by Alanea Alder
"Like self-defense?" she asked. This was somewhat familiar territory.
"Exactly. But on the flip side, I've had to put down a feral that had never killed, yet his accumulated crimes were just as heinous. We don't know exactly what tips the scale, we only deal with the aftermath."
"That other man, Kendrick, he said you were the protectors of your people. You deal with the criminals?"
Every man nodded. "We do," Gage said. "Everyone in the car except for you and Cam are what we call unit warriors. There are six units assigned to each pillar city, and there are four pillar cities. Lycaonia, the shifter city in the North Carolina mountains. Noctem Falls, the vampire city in New Mexico, Éire Danu is where we serve," he continued, pointing to himself, Priest, Kincaid, and Ari. "Éire Danu is the city of the fae. It exists in its own small pocket universe, but has an entry portal in Monroe. The last city is Storm Keep, the city of the witches, located in the Pacific Northwest."
"And when one of your citizens commits a serious enough crime, they lose their soul and you put them in jail?"
Priest shook his head. "There is no coming back from turning feral. It's our job to eliminate them."
"Right," she whispered.
"Brie, honey, we're here," Rathais said, putting the car in park.
She took a deep breath. Right now, she'd focus on making sure the poor lion didn't die, then she'd deal with everything else. She hopped out and met her dad at the back of the car, where he was already waiting with a large flatbed style gurney.
He opened his mouth to say something, then saw the men as they poured out of the vehicle. "I was wondering how we were going to get this guy out of the car, but I think they can handle it." He eyed Aiden. "Damn, son, what do you eat?"
Aiden grinned as his cheeks glowed. "Just about everything."
"I imagine so." Her father's attention immediately went to Ari as the men gently lifted him onto the wheeled gurney. "Let's go, gentlemen. Straight ahead to the back. It's where my personal clinic is."
They quickly got Ari slid onto the operating table, and her father shooed them out.
Rathais rubbed the back of his neck. "Rex Lionhart is gonna skin me alive."
"Who's Rex?" she asked.
"Ari's extremely protective older brother," Priest answered, giving Rathais a shit eating grin.
"Oh, god."
Gage waved off her distress. "He's gonna love you. You're his new baby sister. But he'll be super pissed at Cam that you shot Ari."
"But, I'm the one that shot him."
They all nodded.
"That makes no sense."
"Your actions are a reflection of my leadership. Plus, he's going to spoil you rotten. In his eyes, you can do no wrong," Rathais said, sounding resigned.
Aiden chuckled. "He'll probably be upset with Ari, too, for scaring you."
Rathais brightened. "Oh yeah. This was his fault too."
"So, everyone is at fault except me, who actually fired the gun."
"Yup," Kincaid said.
She turned to her boss. "I'll turn in my badge when we get back."
"Like hell you will," Rathais fussed.
Aiden cleared his throat. "Actually, that may not be such a bad idea. Ari will want her by his side in Éire Danu."
She watched as a stream of emotions crossed Rathais' face. "Son of a bitch! I'm losing my replacement!"
"I don't mind resigning for shooting an innocent, but I'll be damned if I turn in my badge to keep a man happy." Brie crossed her arms over her chest. The men just eyed one another. "Not happening," she repeated. If these men thought she'd just suddenly become Suzy Homemaker, they had another thing coming.
*****
Ari felt the Doc poke around his wound.
"Not just a lion, are ya?" Brie's father asked.
He huffed loudly.
"Didn't think so. I’m Doctor Chris Wilson, Brie’s father. I’ve helped quite a few shifters over the years. Brie is gonna have a fit."
He just purred at the sound of her name. His mate was more beautiful than anything he could have imagined. Her skin reminded him of milk chocolate, and he intended to lick every inch of her to find out if she tasted as sweet.
"Like my Brie, huh?"
He just continued to purr.
"She did shoot you."
He huffed again, and her father laughed. "She yours?"
He tried to move his head, but felt a gentle hand on his muzzle. "Don't move just yet, just purr if she's your mate."
He purred loudly.
"I thought that might be the case. Never seen my baby girl go all to pieces like that before, figured something else had to be going on." He stepped back. "We can go about this two ways. One, I sedate you, extract the bullet, and wait for you to come around. Or I dig it out, numbing the surrounding tissue."
He huffed twice.
"Suit yourself."
Ari grit his teeth as Brie's father quickly pulled the bullet from his back. The second it was gone, he shifted back to human. Brie's father nodded while looking him up and down. "Damn fine body you got there."
Was his mate's father hitting on him?
"Got anything I can wear?" he asked.
Her father placed a stack of worn scrubs on the bed. "Help yourself." He gave him a devilish grin. "Want me to tell them I neutered you?"
Ari grinned back. "I'll even wear a cone of shame to sell it."
"I knew we'd get along. Now shift back."
Ari shifted back and closed his eyes as his future father-in-law hid the scrubs. This should be good.
*****
Brie stood as her father walked through the door wiping his hands. "He came through like a champ. No lasting damage from the bullet and the surrounding tissue isn't swollen."
Gage slumped back against his chair. "Thank the gods."
"I even took advantage of the anesthesia to neuter him for you. No sense in having to put him under twice for the second procedure."
Brie gasped. "What!" she screeched. She looked around the room, every single man was the color of milk.
Her father blinked. "What? It's the law. Unless the animal has paperwork from a zoo, they are desexed to keep aggression to a minimum."
"Ari!" Priest yelled, running into the room, Gage and Kincaid right on his heels.
"Oh Gods, no!" Kincaid wailed.
Brie walked in and could only stare. Blocking the view of his mane was a giant cone. "Oh, oh, oh." she repeated.
Rathais and Aiden stood in the doorway, staring at the large lion in shock.
"His brother is going to murder me," Rathais whispered dropping to his knees, looking as if he was about to vomit.
"Ari," she whispered.
The large lion lifted his head and yowled pitifully. She rushed forward. "It's okay. You're alive; that's all that matters," she said, rubbing her hands over the soft fur on the top of his head.
Gage wheeled on her father. "How could you!" he raged.
"I don't understand." Her father looked so confused.
She sniffled, then stopped. There was no law that said exotic animals had to be neutered. She turned to look at her father. The second their eyes met, a mischievous twinkle appeared in his.
"I hate you!"
Priest wiped at his eyes and went to her side. "He's still Ari," he said brokenly. "Don't be angry with your father; he didn't know. This is our fault."
When her father began to chuckle, she tried to reach past Priest to whack him upside the head. "You're evil!"
"I couldn't help it." Her father simply shrugged.
At her side, the lion shimmered and there in all his glory was her supposed mate. He was laughing as he pulled off the cone. "Sorry, but he was right; it was too good of an opportunity to pass up."
Rathais pulled out his sidearm. "Just one more bullet," he said, growling out each word as he stood.
Gage, Kincaid, and Priest, however, took more direct action. Their fingers were twisting and pinching at lightning speed. Ari yelped then hopped off
the table to pull on some scrubs. He looked over his shoulder and saw that she was still staring. "You can inspect them later to ensure that they're still attached."
"Man, I wouldn't let her anywhere near my balls after that stunt," Kincaid said, glaring at Ari.
As the material covered up his firm ass, she sighed.
"Yeah, I don't think that's gonna be a problem," Priest said, sounding tired.
Ari looked at Aiden. "Any word on the transfer?" And just like that, the mirth in the room died. She had forgotten the mass of bodies they had discovered.
"What transfer?" her father asked, noticing the change in the room's tension.
"Doc…" Ari began.
Her father held up a hand. "Chris. Doctor Chris Wilson. You can call me Dad, the others can call me Doc, Chris, or Doctor Wilson."
Ari looked surprised as a shy smile appeared. "Dad, when Brie found us, we had just discovered the bodies of close to seventy-five of our people stacked up in a warehouse. The transfer refers to getting them home."
"Éire Danu?" her dad asked.
She simply stared. "Was I the only one who didn't know?"
"Sorry, baby girl, but this kind of secret is on a need-to-know basis. My name has been down as a paranormal-friendly doctor ever since I graduated. My college roommate was a wolf shifter," he explained.
"Un-fucking-real."
"I was going to tell you," Rathais said, pointing to his badge. "As Sheriff of Monroe, you'd have to know."
Ari smiled at her. "You're a sheriff?"
She shook her head. "Deputy."
"I was training her up to be my replacement for when I aged out," Rathais complained.
"Aged out?"
Her boss blinked. "Oh. Yeah." He placed his hand over his badge and whispered words she didn't understand. Suddenly, she was looking at a much younger, virile version of the boss she had always had a bit of a crush on.
"Damn," she exhaled slowly, her eyes never leaving Rathais.
Rathais winked, and Ari began to growl low in his throat. "Mine!" he snarled, pulling her so that her back was flush against the front of him. Through the thin fabric of the scrubs she could feel his flesh, hot and hard.
"Okay. Right. Come on, Dad, let me show you the SUV," Gage said, maneuvering her father out of the room.
"You better not hurt my baby girl, Ari, or I really will neuter you," her father threatened, though he was laughing the entire time he said it.
When the door shut, she was spun around to face him. "Mine," he growled again.
"Yeah, the whole supposed mate thing. Does that mean you're mine too? Or do you expect me to wait at home while you prowl?"
She watched in fascination as his eyes shifted to a bright honey color. "I am yours, and you are mine. Fate has chosen you just for me. I will never forsake you, never betray you, and always place your whims, wants, and needs above my own. There will be no other for me, but you."
"If I truly am yours, then you better kiss me, because I think I may die if you don't."
"We can't have that," he said, before swooping down to take complete possession of her lips. She thought that the kiss would be hot and hard, like him. But his feather light touch and playful nipping was driving her insane. When Ari stepped back, he had a satisfied smile on his face.
"I'm sort of sorry I shot you."
"And I am very sorry I scared you."
She thumped the tip of his nose. "I'm getting you back for that horrible neuter prank."
His eyes lit up. "I can't wait."
Chapter Four
Brie didn't know what to think as they made their way back to the warehouse. The men were quiet and somber. She had argued for five minutes outside the SUV with her father about him returning with them. Finally, he swayed the men by stating he wanted to get to know Ari better since he was mated to his daughter, and none of them could argue that point.
Both Aiden and Rathais agreed that since her father had been a point of contact for their world for years, him coming to Éire Danu to see where his daughter would be living was completely reasonable.
She looked up at Ari's profile. Just like that, every single person in this car, except for her, accepted that the two of them were together. What if he expected her to change, give up her job, or become more 'feminine'? God, what if he was a mouth breather? She watched him closely: his mouth was closed, and he was breathing. So far, so good.
He looked down at her and raised an eyebrow. She shook her head. Anything she wanted to say, she wanted to stay between the two of them, not the entire vehicle. This was not a group project.
"Ari, have you called your parents yet to let them know you've found your mate?" Gage asked.
Ari shook his head. "No, I'll let them know after we arrive. I imagine they are up to their ears in helping Rex get the body identification process organized."
Aiden tucked his phone into his vest pocket. "The queen is requesting for Tau to have dinner at the palace tonight, your parents and brother, of course, will be there."
Ari sighed and let his head fall back against the seat. "I was seriously looking forward to a quiet, light meal tonight."
She nodded absently. That sounded really good to her too.
"Ari, not only are you a Lionhart, but you are essentially the city's ranking unit leader. You won't have a moment of peace until this entire mess is behind us." Aiden turned in his seat to give him a sour look. "Trust me, I've been bouncing from shit storm to shit storm with Meryn in tow for months. I dream of a day where we aren't facing a worldwide catastrophe."
Brie stared at Aiden. "Meryn, spelled m-e-r-y-n, right?" He nodded. "Her last name wouldn't be Evans, would it?"
Aiden now looked spooked. "Why?"
Brie just smiled. If Meryn was who she thought she was, dinner was going to be interesting.
"Brie?" Aiden pleaded.
She simply smiled at him, then turned to look out the window.
"Godsdammit," Aiden muttered, pulling out his phone. His large fingers moved carefully. After a few moments he turned back to her. "She says she doesn't know a Brie Wilson."
She beamed at him. "She doesn't know me, but I know of her."
He paled. "Gods."
Ari pulled out his phone. She looked down and saw that he was texting someone named Leo, and he was advising him to have something called Forbidden Fruit on hand for Aiden. She gave him a questioning look.
He opened up the notes section of his phone.
Paranormal whiskey. Created by the vampires, probably the only thing that can get us drunk.
She held out her hand, and he passed her his phone.
Make sure he has a few bottles.
Ari's eyes widened, and he shot off another text.
Why?
She ignored his question and resumed looking out the window.
"Gods," Ari whispered, under his breath.
*****
When they entered the warehouse, her good mood evaporated. They were still gently photographing, lifting, and bagging bodies. She understood that the pace was brutally slow so that evidence wouldn't be missed or destroyed.
Aiden and Rathais immediately went to the side of a pair of extremely tall blond men. Her father, along with Gage, Priest, and Kincaid went over to relieve the warriors who had been lifting the bodies into the black body bags. She watched in amazement as her father comforted the warriors around him and took over the process.
The second she had him alone, she was going to ask him how he got wrapped up in the paranormal world and especially why he wasn't freaking out at the sight of the bodies. He was just a vet, wasn't he? Feeling like she didn't know up from sideways, she wandered over to River, Ari glued to her side.
"Hey, River."
"Hey, Wilson."
"Anything I can do?"
"My camera is over on the table. You know what to look for. Can you start taking pictures of the entire room, starting from the perimeter, then moving closer to where they were piled?"
"Yup, you g
ot it." She went to the table and picked up the camera.
Ari placed a hand on her arm. "Are you okay doing this?"
She pointed to her uniform. "It's my job, Ari."
He sighed and gave a single nod. "I know, the reason I ask isn't because I don't think you're capable, but something like this can't be a normal scene for you. Hell, it's not even a normal scene for us."
His explanation made her feel better. He wasn't worried because she was a woman, but because the scene was that bad. "You're right; this entire room is horrid. It's very difficult to keep my emotions in check, but it's not their fault." She indicated to the dead. "They deserve us at our very best so that we can find their killers. Later, I may fall apart, but right now, I will do everything I can to help them."
Ari simply leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "I'm so proud to call you my mate. I'll be with Aiden and Cam if you need me." He walked away, leaving her feeling even more confused. She had expected for him to put up a huge fuss over her work.
"Mate?" River asked, looking up at her surprised.
"Evidently."
He smiled as he nodded slowly. "You know, he may be the perfect match for you, Brie. He will not get his dick twisted because you are a badass the way your ex did. In fact, you being a badass is going to seriously work in your favor."
"How so?"
"He is a lion."
"Huh?"
He shook his head and went back to the small plastic bags he was organizing. "You will see."
She decided to leave the entire mating thing alone and focus on her job. She slowly made her way around the room, making sure to take extra care where River had left red markers indicating something was found there. As she worked, she couldn't help but think about who could have possibly done this and why. Why so many all at once? Why leave them here? If they were meant to be a statement, why were they left in an abandoned warehouse where the possibility of going unfound was high?