by Amanda Perry
"Fuck it. I swear. I must have a death wish. My life was so peaceful before any of you showed up." The bear reached into his back pocket, extracting his phone. Punching in numbers, he ordered without preamble, "Bring the tranqs." He paused for a minute, "Shit, bring three. We're gonna need them."
“What do you have in mind, Beta?”
“Something that’s likely going to get me killed.”
15
Noah
It took a while for Reid to start regaining consciousness. The tranquilizers Bruce used would’ve kept a normal Shifter down for much longer but Reid was the Alpha for a reason. It meant he was stronger, faster, and more lethal than any of his brethren. The drug would only be effective a fraction of the intended time. When he woke, he’d have a headache from hell and could possibly be more aggressive than usual. The plan was to keep the zip ties on him until they were sure he had his animal under control.
Noah’s thoughts strayed to the human female, who still looked so frightened when she left. What made Reid attack her? Even provoked, Reid had better control than most. A spell is the only thing that made sense. Someone was fucking with them. Whoever it was had better run far and fast. Because when he caught up to them, he would make them pay for scaring the woman so badly.
Noah glanced at the others, taking in their forlorn expressions. Worry and anger etched each face. Eli paced back and forth, humming to himself. Bruce stood sentry at the front door, occasionally checking his phone. Trying to keep the situation under wraps, they dismissed the others with orders to secure the perimeter. The sweeps hadn’t picked up any unusual activity, but witches were smart, rarely leaving a trail. What they needed was a magic wielder. One who could trace for a magical signature. Noah knew Eli was capable, but Bruce had vetoed the idea, citing security concerns.
A deep, pain-filled groan reached Noah’s ears. All heads turned towards the sound, watching unblinkingly as Reid struggled to return to full consciousness. Noah briefly thought about removing the sock, but something stayed his hand. Even though he didn’t believe Reid to be truly at fault, a part of him still wanted to punish the Shifter for scaring the female so badly. Maybe it was petty, but the small act of revenge lightened the heavy feeling in his heart.
“Hurrr, hmmm murrr urrrggg.” Reid lifted his head, eyes open but dazed.
Bruce pushed himself away from the door, walking further into the kitchen. He bowed his head sagely, baring his neck in a sign of submission. “Alpha. I’m sorry but for your safety and ours, I had to use tranquilizers. You were out of control. We think a witch may have bespelled you. We couldn’t take a chance you would wake up and hurt the human girl. Don’t get me wrong, I would be fine if you offed her, but there are too many witnesses around right now.”
If looks could kill, Bruce would be dead. Noah didn’t feel emotions like Eli, but even he could feel the rage coming from the alpha. So strong, it was a physical manifestation palpitating in the air of the small cabin. Noah decided to intercede before the bear made the situation even worse.
“Shit, Reid. You can’t kill the human. Even if she stuffed a dirty sock in your mouth.” At Noah’s statement, Reid’s eyes opened wider, and he fought harder against the restraints. Weird noises came from his mouth and Noah realized he was trying in vain to spit out the sock. He watched impartially, waiting for Reid to realize the sock was staying in until one of them took off the duct tape. “Calm yourself and I’ll remove the gag.”
“Is that a good idea?” Eli spoke up, his posture uneasy. “He’s pretty pissed off right now. Are we sure he’s in his right mind? He might still be caught up in the spell. Maybe he doesn’t even realize who we are.”
Full blown muffled yelling came from Reid now, all his attention focused on Eli. “See what I mean. He’s getting worse, not better. I think we should leave him like this until we find out what’s wrong.”
“Fucking hell!” Bruce grumbled, stepping closer to the enraged Shifter.
“What are you doing? Don’t touch him, you dipshit,” Noah warned.
“I screwed up. I forgot about our mental connection. His wolf must be pretty close to the surface for him to easily use the pack link. It’s a mental connection for when we’re in our shifted forms that allows us to communicate. He used it to order me to ungag him. I can’t defy a direct order unless it adversely affects the safety of the Alpha or his bond mates. And, technically removing the gag won’t bring either of you harm.” Bruce looked unhappy as he took out a small knife from one of the pockets of his cargo pants. “Please remain still, Alpha. I don’t want to accidentally nick you when I cut off this tape.”
Reid coughed as Bruce removed the sock. Eli, anticipating the request, went to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water from its interior. Uncapping it, he allowed Reid a few sips. He turned his head sharply, refusing more water and startling Elijah and Bruce.
“You fuckers will be lucky if I let you live after this,” Reid threatened lowly. “Where is she?”
“Dude, you’re not yourself right now,” Elijah tried to reason with their bond mate. “You need to get yourself under control first, then we can explain everything. Maybe we should call in that witch you always use for sensitive matters. You know, the one who flirted with the lady from the community center, Ophelia. At least until she told him she’d castrate him if he came near her again.”
“Elijah, shut up or I’ll rip your tongue out! I’m not under a fucking spell.” Reid struggled against the restraints. If they’d been normal ties, he’d have broken through them already. The human had considered that anger would increase his strength when he woke up. Before she left with her family, she told them she’d used silver laced ties, preventing Reid from breaking free easily. It wasn’t impossible, but it would take more strength than he had at the moment with a bit of the tranquilizer still coursing through him.
“There’s silver in the ties, Alpha.” Noah had never heard the Beta speak so softly. He was terrified of what Reid planned to do to him and Noah felt a little bit sorry for the bear.
Noah watched as Reid struggled with his animal. His body vibrated, ready to shift in an instant. The only thing that seemed to stop him was the silver holding him. Elijah and Bruce took several hesitant steps backward until they stood on either side of Noah. If the dicks thought he would protect them, they had another thing coming. If his crazy bond mate broke free somehow, he was running like hell.
“Bruce,” Reid ground out, gritting his teeth. “Where. Is. She?”
Bruce sputtered and stumbled over his words a few times before finally heaving a resigned sigh. “She’s on her way to the border with her family. We couldn’t let you kill her. It would likely start a war amongst the humans and Shifters.”
“I don’t—” Reid started.
Noah cut in, defending the Beta. “I know you’re pissed, Reid, but you’ll thank us later for sending her away. Maybe once this is all over and we find the culprit, you’ll even invite her and her family back eventually.”
“I don’t want to fucking kill her, you god damned idiots!” Reid’s volume hurt everyone’s ears. He was ensuring he was heard and it worked. No one spoke, they only stared wide-eyed at the Alpha, huffing and puffing.
His wolf was dangerously close to the surface and if he didn’t calm down he’d hurt himself. “Alpha, I don’t want to tranq you again. You have to calm down and listen to reason or I’ll use it for your own safety.”
Elijah nodded and took a tentative step forward. “You tried to kill a human because she upset you a little bit. That’s not like you to have your control snap so easily. From what I know of Shifters, that’s closer to how a young Shifter acts, not an Alpha.”
Reid’s roar deafened the room. “I didn’t try to kill her! She’s my mate!”
The room froze. No one moved or breathed for several long seconds. Noah was the first to come to his senses. He narrowed his eyes. “Bullshit! She can’t be your mate.”
Reid reeled back, not expecting Noah’s hostil
ity. “Do you think I made up my body’s reaction to her, Noah? You’re not that stupid.” He dismissed the Vampire and sought out his beta. “Go get the fucking car, Bruce. So help me, if she makes it across that border, I’ll throw you into a pond of hungry piranhas.”
Bruce blanched as much as a black bear Shifter could, then turned tail and scurried from the house.
The news of the human girl belonging to his bond mate didn't sit well with Noah. He wanted to explore the way he felt around her and the way he reacted to the scent of her blood. He’d spent little time with her, but it didn’t deter him from wanting to pursue her.
Noah started to argue again but paused as the third in their triad bond interjected, “Whatever, I saw her first. I called dibs. Plus, she touched my ass. You can’t just claim her like that. What if she wants me instead?”
“You dumb fucks can’t argue with fate!” Reid hollered, struggling with the ties once more. “She is mine. She belongs to me and that isn’t going to change. Get over it.”
“Fuck you both. I smelled her first. If anyone is going to get a chance with her, it’s me,” Noah snapped back.
Elijah shot him an incredulous look. “You called her fat. I doubt she’s pining for you.”
Noah groaned. “Fuck you, Eli. I did not call her fat!”
“Untie me now!” Reid ordered the two who simply stood still and blinked at him.
An idea formed in Noah’s mind and he acted on it before truly thinking through his actions.
He patted Reid’s shoulder, then turned his back on the man. “Good luck getting free, Reid. I’ll go with Bruce. We can take the car to the border and intercept the human family. I’ll be sure to take good care of Remy.”
Elijah hooted, following Noah out of the house. “Wait up, I’m coming, too. It’ll take some work to help her calm down. Reid did just try to kill her after all.”
Noah walked beside Eli as they left their third bond mate tied to the chair, knowing he'd have his full strength back and break free soon. If they hurried to the border, they'd beat Reid there and Noah would get to Remy first. In truth, hurting his chosen brother was the same as hurting himself. It didn't feel right to leave Reid behind. But in the same turn, it didn't sit well to allow anyone else a chance with Remy. At least, not before he spoke to her first to find out if the connection he was sure he felt was one-sided. If she wasn't interested, he didn't know what he'd do, but he had to try. He only hoped Reid would forgive him and Eli eventually.
“You better hope she didn’t get across the border, Bruce.” Noah worried his bottom lip between his sharp canine teeth as Bruce sped down the road.
Elijah nodded his agreement, holding onto the headrest for dear life. “I really don’t want to see you turned into a rug, no matter how much I joke about it.”
“He said he’d feed Bruce to piranhas, not turn him into a rug,” Noah reminded the Fae.
“Will you two mother fuckers shut the hell up?” Bruce shouted. He stewed for a moment, then leaned forward and pulled out his cell phone from his back pocket. The car swerved slightly as he did so.
"Oh fuck, please don't kill us. I don't want to die this young." Noah cringed and stomped on the imaginary brake on the passenger floorboard.
Elijah snorted in the back seat. “You’re not that young, dude.”
“Shut it, Eli,” Noah shot back at his friend. He turned his attention back to Bruce and watched as the bear pressed a few buttons on his phone while trying to keep the vehicle straight on the road. Noah sent a silent prayer up to anyone listening they’d make it to the border in one piece.
“Bryant, I need you and Brody to stop the humans at the border,” Bruce’s firm demand brought Noah’s attention away from their potential demise. He turned just in time to catch the cell phone as Bruce tossed it at the Vampire. “Put that fucking thing on speakerphone. I can’t drive and talk.”
“We noticed,” Eli inserted from the back seat. Noah clicked the speaker button and watched Bruce shoot Elijah a hard glare in the mirror. He hoped his bond mate would tone down his shit before the beta tore him to shreds.
“Their car is pulling up now,” Bryant, one of Bruce’s triplet brothers and co-head of security, called through the phone. “There are three humans inside from what we can tell. Brody and I will detain them. I’ll call you back with more details.”
The line went dead and the three men in the car sat in awkward silence as they continued speeding down the road. “Hey, Bruce?”
“What, Elijah?” Bruce sounded ready to beat the Fae to a pulp if he cracked another joke.
Eli cleared his throat and shrugged. “If Reid does kill you, can I have your weight set?”
“You little fruit fly mother fucker!” Bruce held onto the wheel with one hand while leaning back in his seat, grabbing for Elijah.
Eli squirmed around, avoiding the bear’s meaty paw and laughing maniacally. Before Noah could interject, breaking the two up and possibly saving the lives of all three by bringing Bruce’s focus back to the fucking road, the phone in his hand rang. The two yahoos beside Noah stopped going after each other and Bruce straightened the vehicle out as Noah answered the phone. “You’re on speaker.”
“The small human female arrived at the border with her father and brother. The little girl is really pissed off. Do we have permission to shoot to kill if she tries to attack us again?” Bryant was dead serious on the other end of the phone. The bear had no idea who he was dealing with and Noah was sure Remy’s temper was flaring something fierce at the moment.
He waited for Bruce to yell at his brother, ensuring they didn’t shoot the human family, but when Bruce remained silent, he glanced over at him incredulously. The look on Bruce’s face was thoughtful; the fucker was actually contemplating giving the go ahead.
“Do you have a fucking death wish, Bruce?” Noah shrieked. “If Reid doesn’t kill you, I will.”
Bruce rolled his eyes at the Vampire but spoke into the phone at the same time. “Don’t kill the little brat. Just hold them until we get there.”
“Don’t harm her in any way, he means!” Noah shouted into the phone, shooting a look at the Beta. “The alpha ordered it.” He clicked off the phone and placed it in the cup holder between the two front seats.
Elijah, ever the serious one, gasped in the back seat. “Oh, Reid is gonna kick your ass. You know he doesn’t like it when we tell people he ordered something when he didn’t.”
Noah spun around, pinning Elijah with a glare. “Me ordering the guards at the border to leave Remy unharmed and you ordering twelve pizzas in his name are two completely different things, Eli.”
“It was only eleven,” Eli muttered as he leaned back in his seat, arms crossing over his chest.
16
Remy
The night air, while warm, still caused goosebumps to rise on Remy’s skin. Her hand shook with nerves as she stood next to her family, waiting for permission to cross the border. “What the hell is going on, Dad? Those assholes are just holding us here. Do you think the Alpha woke up? What if he’s on his way here to go all crazy serial killer on me?”
Todd frowned. “Just you? I think he’d have to off all three of us. No witnesses and all that.”
Remy scoffed but stayed silent. Todd had a point.
Her dad’s arm came across her shoulder, hugging her to his side, pulling her attention away from her brother. “Whatever it is, I’ll take care of it. I’ve already alerted my team of possible trouble. If we have to fight our way out, we’ll have reinforcements.”
“I’m sorry I messed everything up for you. I know you were looking forward to being part of this new inter-species council.” Remy’s anger had long since diminished.
Yes, she’d put up a stink when they first arrived at the border and one of the guards refused to lift the gate, allowing them entrance to the human-run territory. The longer they waited, though, the less pissed off she became and now she was too exhausted to hold onto her anger. Remy counted fifteen Shi
fters guarding the gate. She was sure there were more unseen guards around the perimeter. They stood with rifles, dressed in full fatigues. With a cursory glance, they looked like human soldiers. When you took a closer look, they didn’t wear flak jackets nor combat boots. They wore sand colored t-shirts with camo pants, but their feet were bare. Shoes would only slow down a shifter in theory.
All the guards watched her family closely while still keeping an eye on the surrounding area. Remy considered her odds of escape if she hopped into her car and plowed through the guard dogs. A quiet giggle escaped her at her own joke. She wasn’t certain if the guards were canine Shifters, but it was funny nonetheless.
“Why are you laughing?” Brody asked wearily. He was nervous for a bear Shifter. He didn’t appear comfortable around her and her family. It amused Remy and she wished she could stick around and torture him as much as she did Bruce. She only just learned Bruce is one in a set of triplets. Brody and the honey bandit, Bryant. Bryant must still be bitter about Remy taking the last jar of natural raw honey from the store during her first week on the compound. He had yet to directly speak to Remy and the only time he acknowledged her existence was to call and ask Bruce if he could shoot her. She thought of him as a giant whiner. It was only one jar and they had plenty of other, not so delicious, processed kinds available. He could have made due.
Brody cleared his throat, pulling Remy’s attention back to him and his question. She thought for a moment about sharing her inner joke, but with all the Shifters around, she decided against it. She attempted to muster up a different reason for her giggles, but the sound of a roaring engine and the incessant beep of a horn distracted her.