Fighting A Lion: BBW Paranormal Lion Shape Shifter Romance (Sleeping Lions - Shifters Prime Book 3)

by Harmony Raines

  She just hoped he was right, and they hadn’t been kidnapped. But even if they had, at least they weren’t heading back towards the border, the place that she never wanted to go again. She lifted the tarpaulin, the rain splattering across her face as she looked out. They were close now, coming down the other side of the mountain, and in the distance, she could make out a row of cottages.

  “We are nearly there.” They sat still for another five minutes, until she impatiently lifted up the tarpaulin and saw that they were passing a barn and then a farmhouse. A mile later, the houses became more frequent and closer together; they were close to their destination.

  Kieran moved. Kneeling up, he banged on the window of the cab. The passenger turned around and looked at him and Misty thought for a heart-stopping moment they were not going to stop the truck. They would have to be ready to jump out, it would hurt, and her ankle throbbed in agreement. Yet, they would have no choice if the truck kept moving at a steady pace.

  Her heart rate quickened, and she felt sick, would they ever be able to trust anyone again? Before she had a chance to say anything to Kieran, the vehicle began to slow down, the brakes of the old truck squeaking, and a sense of relief covered her as the truck came to a halt.

  Kieran was up on his feet, dragging the tarpaulin off them, shaking the water off it before pulling Misty up to stand next to him. He was about to jump over the side of the truck, when he paused and said, “You go first, Misty, I don’t want them to drive off with you still in the back.”

  “I thought you might want to get rid of me,” she joked, but she could see he had been worried too, and then she remembered, this is how Kieran had lived his life until now. He was used to looking over his shoulder, not trusting anybody, which gave her a strange sense of comfort. Even though it made her sad for him.

  When they were both out of the truck, with the rain already soaking through their clothes, they shouted their thanks to the driver and set off towards the village. There must be somewhere they could stay, and then up ahead, they saw a truck stop, and that’s where they headed.

  “Truck stop” might be a bit overambitious; it was more like a small diner with a large parking lot, but at least it was somewhere dry for them to go. They ordered coffee and a warm meal and sat in a booth by the window watching the rain come down.

  “So what’s the plan?” she asked him. “We have to find somewhere to stay tonight and I don’t really fancy sleeping in the woods.”

  “Me neither. Although, there is an alternative, we could just keep on going, we could hide under the shelter of the trees and I could go lion and you could go horse.”

  She thought about it for a moment, it would be better than trying to get some sleep out there in the rain. And it would mean they could cover the distance quicker, already her horse liked the idea, which kind of made it settled. “Why not? It would be good to run, we’d go faster than on two feet, and then maybe tomorrow we can find somewhere dry to sleep in the daytime.”

  “OK, eat up and let’s get going.” They ate the rest of their meal in silence, drinking their coffee as the rain continued to pour. Afterwards, Misty excused herself and went to the bathroom, pulling a face when she saw her reflection in the mirror. Bedraggled hair clung to her face, which had somehow become smeared with mud, while her bruised chin had begun to turn yellow.

  Lucky that they were bonded mates, she thought, because otherwise, why would he possibly want a woman like her?

  Especially when he was just so perfect.

  She went back into the diner to find Kieran, with his pack on his back, at the door ready to leave. He picked up the wet tarpaulin, which he had left outside, and folded it up, tucking it under his arm. She hated the idea of spending their nights underneath it.

  Which made his plan to travel at night even more appealing. The greater speed with which they could cover the ground meant they would be in the Satoma Pride Lands within a couple of days.

  Walking through the village, they kept to the main street, past all the houses with their lights on and smoke rising from the chimneys, as their inhabitants settled down for a nice cosy, dry evening. A sudden wave of homesickness hit her. It would be lovely to have a nice home, a bed to sleep in, and to snuggle down, each night, under the covers with Kieran next to her.

  One day. Hopefully that one day would be soon.

  “There’s a path. We can follow it up until we are well hidden, and then we can change.” He headed off the road, along the track, which was steep and slick with wet mud. He offered her his hand and he pulled up, then they together climbed up into the dense trees.

  Kieran stopped, looking around. “No one can see us here, let’s change and then move further into the trees, we will be like shadows in the night.”

  She changed first, the rain wetting her coat straightaway, but she shook it off and then made her way into the dark forest. If she was in her human form she would have felt afraid, but not as a horse. Her senses were more alert, especially her hearing, and right now, she could hear her lion running towards her. She set off at a trot, not racing, the ground was too wet, but she kept a steady pace.

  An hour or two later they’d covered a good distance, and they decided to stop briefly for a rest. Finding a clearing with some fresh grass springing up from the forest floor, her horse couldn’t resist eating it, savouring the rain-soaked leaves.

  Next to her, Kieran had changed from his lion back into his human form and he said, “You know the best way we could travel, is if I just rode you.” She turned her head and looked at him and then snorted through her nostrils, covering him with her grassy breath. She was sure he got the message; there was no way he was going to ride her. She wasn’t some kind of pack animal. And he needed to remember that. He laughed. “Touchy subject?”

  She changed back into a human form, and said, “Just try it, and I’ll buck you off and then trample all over you.”

  “And I thought you loved me.” He stopped, realising what he’d said. “That was just a figure of speech.”

  “Was it?” She walked over and sat down next to him on the fallen log. “You might be afraid to say it. But I’m not. I love you, Kieran.”

  He turned to her and smiled, placing his hand on her cheek and stroking her skin. “And I love you, Misty.” He looked kind of awkward. “I’ve never said that before, to anyone, not that I remember anyway.”

  “I’m sure you’ve said it before. You probably said it to your family, especially your mom, before you left.”

  “I don’t know.” He sighed, and then said, “Why didn’t they ever come looking for me? If they are alive, why didn’t anyone come find me?”

  “I don’t know, but we’ll find out the answers, Kieran. I promise.”

  “What if when we find my family, they don’t remember me?”

  “Believe me, Kieran, no one could forget you.”

  He stiffened; she felt it in the arm he had wrapped around her, as his whole body tensed. “Someone’s coming.”

  “Who, who would find us out here?” It could just be a coincidence, some other shifter passing through, using the trees’ shelter. “Do you know who it is?”

  “You forget I don’t know anybody here except you.” He looked into the trees, and she followed his gaze.

  And then she saw it, a shadow passing low to the ground. It was definitely another animal. Her heart beat rapidly; in her head, her horse stamped on the ground. It was a predator.

  As it grew closer, she could see it was a lion.

  Chapter Twenty – Kieran

  Kieran stood up, putting himself in front of Misty as if trying to protect her. “Should I fight it?”

  “How do we know if it’s friendly or not?” she said. “We don’t want to start something we can’t finish over a misunderstanding.”

  “So what do we do?” And then the choice was taken out of his hands because the lion came towards them, but instead of attacking them, it changed into a man.

  The three of them stood ther
e, staring at each other. The man in front of them didn’t look surprised to see them. Kieran looked at him closely; there was something familiar about him, but he couldn’t know him, unless he was from his distant past. Kieran wished that he could change into his lion and use his lion senses to figure it out.

  “I know you, don’t I?” the man said, voicing Kieran’s thoughts. “I’ve seen you before.”

  “I don’t think so,” Kieran replied, deciding to keep his own thoughts to himself, he was not ready to trust anyone until he knew who they were and what they wanted. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before.”

  “Then you’re similar to somebody I know. A relation, perhaps. Where do you come from?”

  “That’s not something I tell strangers.” Kieran was trying to gauge what exactly he should say. And it wasn’t as if he was lying, he didn’t really know where he came from. They were heading to the Satoma Pride Lands, but they weren’t his pride lands.

  “I can understand your wariness. I would be wary too. It’s not always safe to tell people who you are.”

  “Maybe you could tell us who you are first,” Misty ventured.

  The man laughed. “Good reply.” He came closer, his voice dropping to almost a whisper. “There are many people who would like to know who I am and where I come from. People who would want to hurt me.”

  “Why?” Kieran asked.

  “Because where I come from, the old pride leader was killed by his brother many years ago. And the pride was taken over by his killer.”

  Kieran’s head jerked up. Despite himself, he knew he had let on that this resonated with him. Although the man in front of him kept his reaction neutral, as if he hadn’t noticed.

  “So who is it you’re running from?” Misty asked, stepping forward.

  “Right now I’m running from a new pride leader. Someone who came and took over not so long ago. A face from the past.”

  “Does this new pride leader have a name?”

  “Kane. Apparently he’d been on the other side of the border, hiding out amongst humans until he came into his prime. But he’s back now, and has picked up where his uncle left off. And so I’m on the run.”

  Kieran didn’t know what to make of it; this man appeared to be telling the truth. His story fitted in with what they knew. It seemed Darius had been hiding Kane, grooming him for power, and now he had returned and taken over. No wonder people were after information on Darius.

  Beside him he could feel Misty trembling, he wanted to speak to her in private, so that they could work out what exactly was going on. But he also didn’t want to let this other lion out of his sight. They needed to get as much information as possible from him.

  “So why was he hiding over the border?”

  “The guy, Darius, has been protecting him. After the old pride leader was killed, he was taken there, to grow up where there would be no repercussions.”

  Kieran balled his hands into fists. So Kane, and Darius were the bad guys, they were the ones responsible for his father’s death. How could that be, Kane had lost his father too?

  “No I can’t believe it,” Kieran said

  “Of course not. Who would? And through all this, I’ve been watching out for the other sons of the old leader. There were three children. Kane is a lost cause, manipulated by Darius. But the other two, they could come and take back what was stolen. They could avenge their father’s death.”

  Lies and deceit. Is that what was coming out of this man’s mouth? Or did he speak the truth? Kieran didn’t know, but why would he lie? And how would he know that Darius was really a shifter, unless he knew him?

  The rain was coming down through the trees, soaking them, and Misty was shaking so badly he knew that she was freezing. They had to get into the dry. And that was where the man in front of them played his trump card.

  “Listen, I have a cabin not too far away. Why don’t you come back there with me, I have food and you can dry off. There’s a fire to keep us warm. It’s not much. You’re welcome to share whatever I have.” The man looked sincere, and Kieran figured that as long as they kept their wits about them, it was worth the risk.

  “Lead the way,” Kieran said.

  “I’m not so sure about this,” Misty said, at last finding her voice, through her chattering teeth.

  “We don’t have any choice,” Kieran said quietly to her. “We’re so wet and as long as we don’t take what he says as the truth, as long as we are careful, we should be okay.”

  She didn’t look too happy about it, but she nodded her head in agreement. And so they shifted and followed him through the trees, although Kieran realised he should have at least asked what his name was. But there was time for that later.

  After ten minutes, he smelt wood smoke in the air and knew that they were nearing the cabin. Cabin was a little bit of an overstatement, though; it was more of a shack that had definitely seen better days. Kieran wasn’t even sure if the roof was sound, but it was shelter from the rain and as they reached the porch he shook his lion body, droplets of water springing off in every direction.

  They all shifted into their human form and the guy opened the door. “Here we are, you’ll be safe and dry inside.”

  “I never asked you,” Kieran said. “What is your name?”

  “They call me Serrif,” the man said.

  “It’s good to meet you, Serrif, and it kind of you to invite us in.”

  “No problem, now let’s get in to the dry. Ladies first,” Serrif said, opening his arm to Misty and ushering her into the cabin. And then everything happened at once; the cabin wasn’t empty.

  As if history was being repeated, two men grabbed Misty, covering her mouth so that she couldn’t scream. Kieran didn’t know what to do, although his lion wanted to burst out and kill them.

  But then Serrif spoke. “Don’t be too hasty in your actions, Kieran.”

  “How do you know who I am?” Kieran asked.

  “Because my friends on the other side of the border have been looking after you. And now you’re here I have a job for you.”

  “What do you mean looking after me?” And then the pieces fit together. “Lance worked for you?”

  “I can see you’re putting altogether. I had wanted you killed, but Lance insisted he could control you. Although Lance was about to mess it all up, all those questions about Darius, and then he kidnapped little Misty Blue. My guess is Darius won’t survive long over there now. And when he comes back, I’ll be waiting for him.”

  “You are a monster,” Kieran said.

  “Oh yes, I know. I left you all alone, watched you from when you were a child. Philippe was right to be always looking over his shoulder. But that is in the past.” Serrif’s eyes went distant, as if he was reminiscing, then he continued. “You are the last brother to arrive in the Prime, Kieran. You should have stayed fighting in the cage. But now you are here, you’re my greatest chance for revenge. Kane took the pride back from me, and they locked me in prison. He was stupid to think that I didn’t have friends, that I wouldn’t get free.”

  “What do you want?” Kieran asked.

  “Oh, this is my favourite part,” Serrif said. “First, though, a little history lesson for you. And before you think of striking out, you should remember I have something very precious of yours.”

  Kieran had never felt so useless. His hands were tied. While Serrif had Misty, he couldn’t act.

  Then Serrif began to talk. “I am the one who killed your father, I am the one you’ve been hiding from your whole life. The three of you, you and your brothers, were taken across the border to hide from me. Darius took Kane, and Nora took Daniel. And you were taken by poor Philippe: he was like a little mouse, how he hated to go. But he did it because they all loved your father so much.”

  “That still doesn’t tell me what you want?” Kieran asked, his eyes darting to Misty, who looked terrified.

  “What I want is for you to go and kill your brother, so I can take back what is mine.” />
  “You’re mad,” Kieran said.

  “Oh no, no I’m not. You see I have leverage, I know I can’t beat him myself, so I will use what you love to make you fight your brother. She’s your mate. And if you want her back, you’re going to do exactly as I say.”

  Kieran looked from Serrif to Misty, and knew that Serrif was right. Kieran would do whatever it took to get Misty back. He didn’t care about the pride; he didn’t care about his brother Kane.

  Misty was his mate, the only one who mattered.

  Chapter Twenty-One – Misty

  Misty had always loved being a horse, but at this exact moment, she wished with all her heart that she was a predator, with sharp teeth and claws that could rip the throats out of these men holding her.

  As she listened to Serrif telling Kieran what he wanted him to do, she felt a rage inside of her, like she had never known. What Serrif was asking Kieran to do was monstrous. If Kieran carried out Serrif’s demands, he would never forgive himself, never be able to live with himself. He would be changed, no longer the man she had fallen in love with. She could not let that happen.

  But standing there with her hands held by two men, one of them covering her mouth, she couldn’t say or do anything. She was powerless. Inside her head, her horse screamed with rage, rearing up, hooves flailing, but it was all for nothing. Even if she shifted, there was nothing she could do—a horse against three predators stood no chance. All she was thankful for was at Kieran hadn’t tried to fight either.

  “So what’s it to be? Are you going to do as I ask, or are you going to watch while I kill your mate? And don’t think I’ll make it quick. Don’t think I won’t let these hyenas have their way with her first.”

  Kieran’s face was filled with rage, but it was all for nothing and he knew it. And her heart went out to him as he realised that he could not win; he could not fight his way out of this situation.

  “Where? Where do I find him?” Kieran asked, his voice sticking in his throat as he swallowed his anger.