by T. S. Ryder
"Do I have to blackmail you again?"
"Go ahead and try. Your safety comes first. It has for a while now… I let them take Seth because I heard you scream."
"You–What?"
"I… I have been fighting my feelings for you, Ana." There was a look of deep regret in his eyes. "I'll explain everything, I promise I will, but I won't be able to save Seth if I think you're in danger. Trust me on this one. The best thing you can do is stay here. Stay safe. Give me something to come back for."
The earnestness in his eyes, coupled by the words she never thought she would hear him say left her speechless. Ana opened and closed her mouth, breathless as a fish, but somehow managed to make herself nod.
It would be dangerous for me to go with him. Whatever brings Seth back… and Joseph, too.
The detective kissed her; it was as wild as passionate as it had been the previous night, and then he was gone.
Ana sunk onto the bed, her mind reeling with everything that had happened. Her night with Joseph suddenly took on a completely different light… that feeling she had had, mated, like she was that one that he would be with forever. It had seemed ridiculous last night and she had brushed it off, but in the light of day she couldn't help but wonder if it was real. What if the feeling Joseph had been fighting wasn't just animal lust… but the urge to take her as his mate?
What would she do if it was? She’d only known him for a couple days, it was too early to say that she loved him. Wasn't it?
But was it determination to get Seth back that made her willing to risk her life and seek out the anti-shifter group, or was it because she began trembling from just the thought that she might never see Joseph again? Seth's mate was human, and she had told Ana that she knew the instant he did…
Ana believed in love at first sight, so wasn't it possible that love and lust were mixed into her reaction to him when she saw him for the first time?
She showered and dressed on autopilot, thoughts bouncing around in her brain. It was ridiculous to think that she would be his mate. She wasn't entirely certain what was real and what was myth when it came to that… it was one subject that Seth was rather tight-lipped about. But she did know it was more than sex. And that when a shifter mated, it was for life. She always thought she was a for-life kind of girl, but what if she wasn't? What if she thought she loved him right now, but when she got to know him better, she didn't?
I can't start worrying about futures I'm not sure will happen, she told herself firmly.
There was nothing to do in the hotel room and though she remembered Joseph's admonishment to stay where she was, her stomach growled. There was nothing wrong with going across the street for a croissant, was there? After the week she had, she deserved it. Maybe a donut, too.
She didn't see the white van pull up onto the street until it was right beside her. Before she could even process what was happening, two men dressed all in black jumped out. They seized her around the waist and lifted her from the ground.
Ana screamed as they forced her into the van. She grabbed the door, trying to stop them, but one of them hit her knuckles, making her release it. The door slid shut. The men forced her to the floor, her hands twisted behind her back. Something hard hit her head, and everything went black.
Chapter Eight
He couldn't go after these nutcases alone. Ana's knowledge that Fischer had asked for the captain of his precinct personally helped make seeking him out a little easier, although it still grated against Joseph to ask the captain for help in this situation. His Alpha instincts were strong, especially when combined with his loner personality, and more often than not, they demanded that he take care of his own problems.
At the very least, he always had to be at the head of his investigations. Certainly not put himself at the mercy of people he wasn't sure he could trust.
But he had to trust the captain. For the sake of shifters throughout the country, and for Ana's sake. It was unlikely that those crazies would stop coming after her once Seth was dead. It was made clear she was a target when they destroyed her car. It was a message to non-shifters, showing them what would happen to them if they allied with shifters. Ana, PA to Senator Fischer, was the perfect target to do that.
A growl was already building in his chest, and when the captain ordered him into his office and wouldn't let him speak, that growl emerged.
"Save it," the captain said. "I have something you need to hear."
Recording equipment was set up on his desk and Joseph frowned as the captain pressed the playback button. Soon, however, it became clear why he thought Joseph needed to hear this. Ana's sweet voice played, trembling with fear. Joseph stiffened and clutched at his chair, the blood draining from his face until he felt dizzy.
"My name is Ana Medina, PA to Seth Fischer. I am being held by the Human Rights Association. If they do not receive two million dollars by noon tomorrow, I and Senator Fischer will be killed. The drop must be made by Detective Joseph Baker."
She went on to describe the exact location where the drop was going to be made and Joseph held onto every word Ana said, desperately trying to keep the roar of fury and grief from breaking free. He should never have left her. Never. It was stupid to think they wouldn't go after her, that they wouldn't find her.
But she was alive. For now, he would have to cling to that and hope it stayed that way.
No, his Bear said. Not hope. We will find them. We will make sure they don't hurt her.
"Do we have the money?" he asked and, to his surprise, his voice came out flat, with none of the fury he felt.
"We're getting it." The captain narrowed his eyes at Joseph. "But why do they want you, Baker? In my experience, these types of kidnappers don't want cops anywhere near their ransom money. So why phone us and demand you make the drop?"
Joseph met the captain's eyes. If Ana died, his life was over anyway. So there was no point in hiding his true identity anymore. "Probably because I'm a shifter, and Ana is my mate."
Yes, his Bear agreed. Our mate. And those who have taken her will die.
He couldn't have agreed more.
The captain raised a brow. "Your mate?"
"They must have figured it out because I was so protective of her."
The captain looked startled for a moment, then shook his head and smiled wryly. "I knew there was something special about you, Baker. Can't blame you for not wanting to tell people. Your career—"
"With all due respect, sir, I don't care about my career right now. I need to get Ana back."
The captain nodded. "Of course. Now here's how it's going to happen…"
***
The next day at noon, Joseph carried a duffle bag containing two million dollar through the park, every muscle in his body tense. He knew there were plainclothes cops all around him, having been sent in earlier that day to make sure they didn't tip off the kidnappers. He glanced at every unfamiliar face, wondering if they were the ones who had taken his precious Ana.
He was past trying to convince himself that he didn't need a mate. She was his, and without her, his life would be utterly meaningless.
He reached the drop-off point and put down the duffle bag, glancing around to see if anybody suspicious was around. He spotted a woman jogging towards him and narrowed his eyes. There was a suspiciously bulky shape under her shirt… which turned out to be a water bottle.
"Get out of there, Baker," he heard the captain say through his earpiece. "You know the drill."
Joseph clenched his hands, but there was nothing for him to do but walk away. There was something off about this location. It was open, right next to a busy street. It provided a lot of opportunities for the other police to watch the location—
As he passed a park maintenance van, he heard a gunshot muted by a silencer. Fiery pain bit through his leg and he fell, reaching for his own gun.
Two of the maintenance men grabbed him. He lashed out, landing a solid blow to one of their faces. Something jolted against the back
of his neck, sending pain flaring through him. Taser, his brain said, and then shut down.
***
Joseph woke in a cage. He was light-headed and dizzy. Blinking away the spots still dancing in front of his eyes, he tried to take in his surroundings. It appeared he was in a warehouse of some sort. The space was big and dusty, lit by fluorescent lights. He was being moved, his cage on a forklift. Picking himself up, he grunted as pain shot through his leg. A tourniquet had been tied on his knee, stopping the blood flow to the bullet wound in his calf.
Shifters healed more quickly than humans, but he could see that if he didn't get medical attention soon, he'd lose the leg because of the tourniquet; if it was loosened before his leg was properly treated, he'd bleed to death.
The cage dropped, making Joseph wince, and a half dozen men crowded around the cage. They all carried cattle prods and the detective growled.
"Where am I?"
"Where animals like you belong," one of the men replied. "Now we can either do this the easy way or the hard way." He lovingly stroked his cattle prod. "Get up."
It was difficult to do with an injured leg, but Joseph dragged himself to his feet. So the whole ransom had been nothing more than a ploy to kidnap him, too. Why? What use was he to these nuts? He wasn't a well-known shifter, nobody was going to care much about his death. Except he was a detective… maybe this was to try to show that the police wouldn't protect shifters, even one of their own?
These guys kidnapped Ana and killed Buck, his Bear growled. They die.
We have to find Ana first.
"Where is Ana?"
The cage door was opened and the men glared at him. "You'll see her soon… the boss has something special planned for the human. What did you say to convince her to want you, eh? What lies did you tell her?"
Joseph growled, earning himself a jolt from a cattle prod. The electricity had him falling to his knees, white lights flashing before his eyes. Somebody kicked him in the face and he was dragged to his feet again. The men dragged him along and shoved him towards a small, dark room. His head spinning, he sagged against the doorway.
"Joseph?"
His head came up and he practically ran into the room. The door shut with a slam behind him, but he didn't care. Ana was in his arms. He held her tightly, peppering kisses over her face as he made sure she was really there, that she was safe and unharmed.
"Oh, Joseph!" She buried her face into his shoulder. "I hoped you wouldn’t come for me. Now we'll both die."
"No. No, I'll find a way out of this."
Ana shook her head. "There is no way out… but before we die, I have to tell you something."
He had something to tell her, too.
"You're my mate," he blurted. "I didn't want to think you were, I never thought I wanted or needed a mate but—"
"I know. I figured it out." She sounded breathless. "And I love you. I don't know how, we've only known each other for a few days, but I love you."
She looked up at him. In the darkness, he could barely see where her beautiful eyes were. It took him a moment to realize what she had said. A rush of euphoria made him forget where they were and he kissed her again.
Told you she was our mate, his Bear said smugly. See, she felt it too.
Yes, you're really clever.
"Joseph?" Ana gasped breathlessly when he broke the kiss.
"I love you, too. I have from the moment I saw you, as much as I tried to fight it. I didn't want a mate… but you are mine. And I am yours."
Tears flowed down Ana's cheeks. "For the rest of our lives."
Joseph kissed her again, knowing what she meant. We're going to die here.
Chapter Nine
Even though she knew she shouldn’t, Ana couldn't help but be glad that Joseph was with her. They were going to die, and she wanted to rage against Joseph's death. She wanted to kick and scream and get a gun and kill the people who were going to kill them. But somehow, being in his arms made her feel safe, even in this situation. It made her feel like no matter what happened, as long as they were together, everything would be fine.
She bandaged his leg as best as she could and Joseph undid the tourniquet. He needed the blood flow to use his leg properly, to fight. Maybe that was why she felt so safe… He wasn't giving up, he was planning what to do to get them out of there; maybe there was some small part of her that felt hope again as well.
It was only a few hours after he was brought to her room that the two of them were dragged out of it again. Ana blinked. The warehouse she remembered seeing had been completely transformed. It now looked like somebody's living room, and bright filming lights shone at them from every direction.
"Hello," a voice trilled. A female voice.
Ana looked at the source and found a petite woman. She was quite lovely, with black hair and blue eyes, and was surrounded by men holding guns on her and Joseph. Ana recognized her. She was a TV personality. Crystal Scott. A talk show hostess who married an insanely rich man who also happened to be very anti-shifter.
The two prisoners were dragged to the couches. Ana was relieved to see Seth there already, looking pale but calm.
"Are you okay?" she asked him.
He nodded once. "You?"
"Yeah."
"Please take your seats," the woman said. "My name is Crystal Scott. I'm so glad that you could join me for my show today."
Ana leaned into Joseph's side. The woman stared at the three of them with unbridled hatred.
"We are here today with shifter Seth Fischer. Tell me, senator, who did you have to bribe to get into office? Everybody knows that shifters are untrustworthy, vile creatures. They should not be allowed to walk freely in public. Would you let a Bear stroll down the street?" She turned to Joseph. "And yet we have a Bear right here. A detective. Shifters are unpredictable. They are ruled by instinct, how can we trust that a Bear like you will protect the people?"
There was something off about Crystal's monologue. The things she was saying were bad enough, but the way she said it, talking too fast, pacing back and forth, gave her a hysterical quality. Ana shivered. She had always thought of anti-shifters as being crazy, but when it came to Crystal Scott… she couldn't help but think it was true. Rumor had it she'd had a mental breakdown recently. Was it true?
"And then there's the danger to humans." Crystal focused on Ana. "This woman thinks she's found a mate. A mate who will stay with her forever and ever and ever. But did you have a choice in the matter, Ana Medina? Or was it because the Bear forced you into it? Yes, he tricked you, lied to you, and then… then you didn't have a choice. When a shifter decides they have a mate, they produce pheromones that draw that human to them until they don't have a choice."
"That was scientifically disproven," Ana tried to say.
Crystal grabbed a handgun from one of the men around her. She pointed it at the three of them in turn, panting, her eyes wide and wild. Ana shrank back. She was insane! Her own eyes widened and her mind raced, trying to think of a way to talk the woman down.
A gunshot went off. She heard the bullet hit and a spray of blood splattered her face. Seth let out a cry of pain, hunching over. He clutched his abdomen. Ana was just able to repress a scream.
"You're stopping the Shifter Registry," Crystal said. "We need the registry to protect humans from the monsters that shifters are!"
She turned the gun on Ana. But Joseph had already leaped from the couch. In one fluid motion, he shifted. The guns of Crystal's guards fired rapidly; Joseph barreled through them, slapping Crystal away. Her gun clattered to the floor. Rearing to his full elephantine size, Joseph struck out, knocking the men with guns every which way. He pounced on each of them, crushing guns and bone between his teeth.
Ana sprang from the couch, grabbing Seth. She couldn’t do anything to help Joseph, but she could get Seth out of here. She dragged him up, looping his arm over her shoulders. He stumbled, leaning against her and she looked around wildly–the forklift. They could at least have some
protection in there. Ana tightened her grip on her boss and started lugging him towards it.
A bellow filled the warehouse. Ana turned, her heart jumping to her throat. Crystal had scrambled to her feet and was charging towards them. That maniacal gleam in her eyes was back; she bellowed again, the sound inhuman, and in a blink, her form changed. A moose bigger than Joseph's Bear barreled towards them, foaming at the mouth.
Ana screamed.
A roar echoed, challenging the moose for dominance. Crystal turned just in time to meet Joseph as he threw himself at her. Ana stared, frozen and horrified, as the moose caught him in her antlers and tossed him aside. Joseph landed in the couches, sending them flying, but rolled to his feet and charged again. This time, he was able to avoid those antlers and wrapped his front legs around Crystal's shoulders, biting at her neck. Blood splattered on the floor.
"Ana," Seth wheezed.
She shook her head and turned her back on the fight. Her heart pounded in her throat. If she got into the forklift, would she be able to ram the moose, help Joseph get the upper hand? Or would she just end up putting herself in danger?
In the end, though, it wasn't necessary. When Ana got to the forklift, she risked a glance backward. Crystal was on the floor, her legs crushed against her body by Joseph's bulk; his jaws were around her throat. Ana helped Seth into the forklift and when she turned back, Crystal was human again, cowering on the floor, her body shaking with sobs.
"You've ruined everything," she cried to Joseph as he also shifted. "I was just trying to protect the humans from Beasts like us. Can't you see? We don't deserve to walk free!"
"You are suffering because you've suppressed your shifter side," Joseph panted, still pinning her. "You're sick, and it's because you haven't talked with your Beast enough."
She clutched her head. "Shut up, shut up! I don't want anything to do with her! She's a demon inside of me, I have to find a way to cut her out before she can hurt anybody else."
