Firefighter Bear (Silvertip Shifters Book 6)

by J. K Harper

  “The shifters we passed.” Her sweet voice tightened.

  “The shifters—oh. You mean the fucking fuckfaces?” He felt his brows lower.

  She nodded, not cracking even a hint of a smile. Uh-oh. His stomach did clench now. Something bad was up.

  Everly took a few long breaths, slowly inhaling and exhaling. She tipped up her chin, looking at him steadily. “Slade, I didn't want to ruin our night. I didn't want to think about the bad memories, either. But I realized I had to tell you.” Another pause. Then, slowly, she whispered, “Those were the Tarbens.”

  Silence fell. He knotted his eyebrows, unable to place the name for a second, before it hit him.

  “What the actual—those were the Tarbens? The fucking pieces of shit that made your life a living hell before you moved here? The ones who shunned you and your entire family?” He was shouting now, somehow on his feet even though he didn't remember getting up. “Are you kidding me? Those fucking slimeball assholes are staying at my family's lodge, having a really fucking nice vacation, while fucking shunning you all over again?”

  His bear desperately wanted to lunge out, race out of the house, and go find the fuckers to tear them apart limb by limb. Slade paced Everly's bedroom instead, trying to keep at least a semblance of control over himself. He knew murderous rage swept into his eyes because Everly's got huge. She leapt out of the bed, partially tangling in the covers. He did notice her perky little breasts and sweet little body that even in a moment like this made his dick stir to life. But the rage won out for the moment.

  “Nuh-uh,” he said to her approach, which clearly was meant to calm him down. “I'm going up there right now and gonna kill them all in their beds. Every single fucking one of them.” He cracked his knuckles, feeling his bear's roar rattle in his throat and welcoming it.

  “Slade!” She sounded a little impatient. “Just hang on. They didn't recognize me.”

  He stopped dead and swung around to face her. “How the hell could they not recognize you? You went to school with them for like ten years. You grew up in the same damn town as those shitheads.”

  The funny little twist to her mouth told him he wasn't getting it. Feeling slightly desperate, he knew she was right. He went to her, stopping about half a foot away, trying as hard as he could to understand what she was saying. “I don't get it,” he finally said, feeling like he was missing something hugely obvious. “Even if they shunned you, they saw you every day from preschool till the eighth grade. Were they blind?”

  Everly's smile was somewhat pained. She reached out her hand, stroked his cheek, rubbed her thumb along his chin. “Oh, Slade. You would have remembered me. But you aren't like them. Even if you didn't love me, you aren't like them. Slade.” She paused, took a breath. “They don't remember me because to them, I was truly invisible. They shunned me not to make a point as bullies, but because they literally believe me and my kind are so less than that we should not, and to them pretty much do not, exist. The other day, when you and I ran into them, they ignored me because they could tell I'm a fox shifter. But literally none of them remember me because they literally do not notice any shifter they consider to be beneath them.”

  The room seemed to shrink, sucking out the air, making Slade's head bang with the truth. The real truth. He stared at Everly, at his beautiful, sweet, incredibly amazing, extremely worthwhile and deserving mate, and he got it. For the first time in his life, he finally had a genuine understanding of what really had happened to Ever. To many other shifters.

  He'd never really been able to understand because he was a dominant shifter type. He was strong, he was powerful, he was accepted everywhere, he was looked up to in the shifter world merely because of what he was: a grizzly bear shifter.

  “Fuck me,” he whispered. Gently taking her hand, he went back to thump back down on the bed, pulling his sweet little mate onto his lap. Even though it felt really good to have her sitting right there on top of his dick, he just quietly held her close to him for several long minutes. Feeling her heart beat. Listening to her breathing. Smelling her hair, which smelled like fox and sex and him and just—Everly.

  He finally spoke in a voice that felt heavy. “I feel like I've understood nothing about you for the past ten years. Like I never really got what you were telling me. Like I've never really listened to you.” He swore quietly. “I am so sorry, Ev. I should have done better.”

  Her response was immediate. “Don't you dare get all sorry-faced on me. No, you can't totally understand what it's been like to live in my skin. In a fox's skin. But that does not mean you do not know me.” She slipped her arms around him and held tight. “Slade Walker, you know me better than anyone else on earth. You really and truly do.”

  He felt a soft, gentle vibration of sound in her chest where it pressed against his. Her fox. Everly was kind and compassionate in ways that most who had grown up with the suffering she'd experienced at the hands of vile elitists would not be. She could make allowances for his own birthright advantage in ways he couldn't grant himself. He fell in love with her even more deeply.

  But he also felt the need for more truth. “Ever.” He pulled back enough so he could see her face. “You never once asked me, after Jacob didn't come back, if I knew where he was.”

  “I know.” Her eyes seemed to hold the wisdom of the entire universe. One side of her mouth tipped up. “I also knew if you ever wanted to tell me, you would.”

  “Why didn't you just ask me? You deserved to ask me. You could have asked me anything.”

  “Would you have told me?” Her eyes searched his.

  He had to wait a long moment before he could answer. When he did, the words felt like lead in his mouth. Oddly enough, actually saying them left him feeling lighter. “I made a promise not to.”

  Everly smiled at him. “I know.”

  Slade felt comprehension rattling around inside his apparently very thick skull. “Whoa right there. What do you mean, you know? What do you know?”

  Not taking her eyes off him, she pointed at her pants, lying tossed on the ground. “Jacob's letter. It's in the zippered pocket on the side. I carry it with me everywhere. Pull it out. I want you to read it.” She squeezed his hand, then slipped her beautiful naked self off his lap and got back under the bed covers, watching him the entire time.

  Half shocked, Slade followed her orders, found the letter, and pulled it out. He read it silently.

  Hey sis, if you're reading this, I'm gone. I'll probably be gone for a long time before I can come home again. I won't be able to get out, there's no hope for shifters like us. The system is rigged against us in shitholes like a shifter prison run by bad types. (Sorry I swore, don't tell Mom.) I did something stupid and might get caught, which might be why I'll be gone for a long time. But it wasn't my fault. I know everyone says that, but it really wasn't.

  I found out some really bad shit the Tarben clan has been up to all these years. I mean, bad, awful shit. I wondered for a long time what to do about it. Eventually I decided to finally give them back all the shit they shoveled on our family. They deserved it, every single one of them, so I'm not sorry. But it was kind of stupid, I admit that.

  Anyway, if I do get caught and sent to shifter prison, keep an eye on Tobias and don't let him be a total dick. Never mind, he won't be able to help being a dick. Don't tell Mom and Dad. I don't think they could take it. They've had enough crap piled on them to last ten more lifetimes each. Just tell them I'm traveling the world or something, looking for myself. Yeah, tell them something oovy-groovy like that. It'll keep them sane while I'm gone.

  As for Slade—I don't what advice to give you there, except that his head's always been up his ass and he's never been able to see how awesome you are. Well, that's not true, I think he does see that. I think it scares him to death and that's why he's never made a move on you, which is totally dumb because anyone who knows you both even half as well as I do knows you two are mates. Yeah, Ever, Slade's your mate. His clan is good, and he's a
good man. Don't let him go too long without admitting you guys are mates. I'm pretty sure the whole “mates who don't acknowledge each other will wither away and die” thing is actually true. Please don't die, sis. I need you there when I get out of prison. Also, Slade knows about what I did, though I didn't tell him till after it was done. I knew he'd try to stop me. He'd get pissed if I vanished from the hotshot crew, so he'd never have let me do it.

  But I did it for you. For all of us, being shunned like we were literally shitstains on the bottoms of the shoes worn by the high and mighty assholes of the shifter world. Even though we got out, and Mom and Dad managed to get us to a really decent place like Deep Hollow, I know it haunted all of us. And none of us deserved that. So fuck them. I gave them hell, and I'll never be sorry. Even if my pathetic ass does rot in prison for a long time.

  That's all. I guess if you never get this, it means I got away with it without anyone knowing and tore up this letter. So maybe I'll see you soon after all. Which is a dumb thing to say, because if that's the case, this letter won't even exist. I don't even know what I'm saying anymore. I've been up for almost forty-eight hours and I'm practically delirious.

  Love you, sis. Be good, be strong, be brave, be bold. You're a kickass fox shifter, and you deserve to be in this world as much as any other kind of shifter.

  Love,

  Jacob

  Slade was stunned. He read it again, this time out loud. When he finished, he looked up at Everly. “You read this and you knew? Why didn't you tell me?”

  “You kept a huge secret for me for a long time, Slade. I understand why," she said quickly when he started to open his mouth, "I really do. Jacob can be really convincing when he wants others to do what he wants.”

  Slade shook his head. “I still don't understand why you aren't more pissed at me.”

  Everly made a little sighing sound that stayed stuck in her throat. “Because we guessed a long time ago. Me and my family. Right after he disappeared, we had our suspicions, based on how he started to talk about the Tarbens again after none of us mentioned them for years. He told me and Tobias one night that he had a plan to ruin their lives for what they'd done to us, and to others.” Her gaze grew unfocused for a moment. “He was always a risk-taker. So after you came back without him that night, we thought it must have something to do with them. We started asking around and eventually found out they were indeed up to bad shit, as he says in the letter. And then.” She finally paused, bringing her gaze firmly back to Slade.

  He just waited for her to go on.

  “And then we found out what's been happening at some of the shifter prisons. And we knew there was no way we'd get him out without a huge legal fight, and probably then some.”

  “Holy shit. So you were pretty sure he was there, but not because he did something to deserve it? Instead, it was because he was framed?” Slade’s voice cracked.

  She sighed. “Yes.”

  He worked his jaw. "Nita was right."

  That surprised her. Ever frowned at him. "Nita? About what?"

  "When we were at the Montana fire, she guessed where Jacob has been all this time."

  Everly’s brows lowered into a frown. She opened her mouth, but Slade shook his head.

  "She didn't know for sure, Ev. She guessed. Her cousin’s been there. But you probably knew that already, didn't you?"

  His beautiful mate slowly nodded, her eyes still troubled. He held her gaze as he kept talking.

  "During one of the few times she and her parents were able to visit him, he told her he thought there are probably other shunned shifters being held there unjustly. He didn't know for sure about Jacob, but she'd told him that Jacob disappeared, so he wondered to them once if Jacob might not be there too. "

  Ever looked at him for a long moment before nodding. “Most of the—prisoners,” she stumbled over the word, her face drawn, “they’re kept separated, aren't they?”

  Slade nodded, his skin prickling uncomfortably. His bear rumbled inside, equally disturbed.

  “So they might not even know who else is there. Right?" The last word was more a statement than a question.

  Slade felt a flash of anger spark through him as he thought about how carefully the shifter prison kept its inmates separated. "Correct. Obviously if a lot of shifters changed at once in a group setting, their animals could create some serious shit for the wardens to handle. That's part of why they keep everyone there separated. But Nita said her cousin suspected they particularly keep shunned shifters separated. Because, she said, they're being unjustly held. And if they can't get together to talk about things, they can't let the outside world know if there's shady shit going down there."

  Ever flinched at the words unjustly held, but she held her gaze steady on his. "Unjustly held. Just like Jacob has been all this time." The first deep simmer of anger edged her words. Ever might be little, and she might be a shifter type many considered to be not particularly dangerous, but Slade knew better. The deep anger of a fox's blazing inner fire, once unleashed, wasn't something to be trifled with. His mate's fox fire was strong. He knew it was.

  She reached up, curving her hand over his cheek and caressing him. He leaned into her palm, wondering what the hell they could do now to help Jacob. Then his sexy, clever fox shifter mate surprised him even more. “Slade, I have an idea.”

  15

  Everly's nerves had set up such an intense battle in her stomach she verged on believing they would win. She would panic, puke, then spin around to run away.

  Steady, she whispered deep inside herself. She felt her fox murmuring back at her, a soft chittering like foxes did to soothe their young. Except—wait, no, that wasn't quite right. The sound her fox made inside her was deep. Strong. Fierce.

  Well, okay then. Everly sucked in another fortifying breath. Behind her, Slade murmured in a low growl, "I'll just go with you. It'll be easier. What if they do something stupid, like try to attack you?" His bear rumbled beneath his voice, filling it with agitation and anger.

  Nita's voice shot out, "Then we will mess them up in ways they never thought possible. Don't fuck with a pissed off badger whose friend might be in trouble." The hiss underscoring her words let everyone know how close her badger was to the surface too.

  A surge of other voices chimed in. "Hell, yeah," Jessie said, her tone grim.

  "That's right," Haley said, just as fiercely as Slade.

  Abby followed with, "We protect our own here."

  "I have no problems charring them into flame if you ask me to," Pix chimed in, her voice almost frighteningly cheerful. Everly couldn't help her wicked grin in response. As it turned out, having dragon shifters on one's side was a really good thing.

  Another voice slid in. "I'll take them on any day for you, Everly." Marisa, who'd only recently come to terms with the mountain lion with whom she shared a soul. "We all stick together."

  The deeper bass of male voices joined in, agreeing with what all the women had said. Everly smiled, though she didn't turn around to look at them. She knew each voice by sound. Cortez. Quentin. Shane, Jessie's mate. Beckett, not a Silvertip clan member but best friends with Cortez and mate of Pix, definitely on their side. Riley, the evenness of his agreement saying he was ready as always to protect his clan, his family, his friends. Tobias let out a low chittering sound, clearly struggling to keep his fox in. He'd also offered to help Everly with the plan, or just do it himself, but she'd refused him too.

  Right now, this was her battle. She was never letting those bastards rule over her again.

  Still facing the beautiful meadow in front of her here at the Silvertip Lodge, she pitched her voice just loud enough that everyone behind her could easily hear, but no one else nearby could. "You all have my back. Especially you, Slade." Her voice softened as she said his name, because she couldn't not soften her voice every time she talked to him, or about him, or just thought of him. "But I've got this.”

  Reaching deep inside to find her fox fire, the strong will tha
t would keep her focused and safe, feeling the real strength she'd never thought she possessed until everyone kept gently pointing it out to her, Everly didn't look backward as she strode into the big meadow, heading straight for the group of Tarben shifters lolling about under the trees as they enjoyed their lunch. Not for long, you unforgivable jerks, she thought, bolstering her anger even further. Her fox chittered in agreement, fully alert inside Everly.

  Naturally, they didn't even notice her walking toward them till she was about fifty feet away. She saw one of them, the nasty girl who'd stolen her necklace all those years ago, jerk her head, quickly glance at Everly, then snap her head back around to face the group. The woman didn't have to say anything, as a quick little hush fell over them all. But a split second later, they resumed chattering and laughing as if they hadn't noticed her.

  Everly snorted in disdain. Typical bigoted shitheads, she told herself. Fucking fuckfaces, she added, happily using Slade's term for them. That almost made her chuckle as well as stoked the angry flames even higher. Good. She needed as much rage as she could muster, while remaining in control of it.

  She walked closer and closer. The conversation got louder, not a single one of them remotely acknowledging her, even though she was completely visible to everyone there. Closer. With each step she took forward, with each laughing remark they made to one another that so clearly demonstrated their deliberate ignoring of her, her anger at them rose higher and higher.

  Now she was almost on top of them, but still not a single one of them looked at her. Seriously? Completely outraged now, she marched right into the middle of their damned picnic. It had to be pretty damn hard for them to ignore her at this point. Even so, they valiantly tried, staring right through her to only talk to one another, even though she knew perfectly well not a single one of them had x-ray vision.