Naomi was having three.
It was going to be crazy out here soon. Penny couldn’t even imagine how she was going to manage four babies. Feeding them. Keeping them clean. Keeping herself clean. She and Naomi were only a month apart. By September and October, there would be seven newborns in the tribe.
Seven.
“My love?” Kann’s voice sounded through the room.
“I’m in the bean bag.”
He chuckled and crawled onto the thing next to her, tugged her back to his chest, and rubbing a hand over her round belly. “Are they moving a lot?”
“Mmmhmm,” she answered. “I feel like there’s a wrestling match going on in my stomach.”
“Have you been able to eat anything today? I brought you some treats from the store. Some fruit and something called a cookie mix that Henrietta said you’d been waiting for her to get back in stock.”
“Oooh, the double chocolate chunk?”
Kann nuzzled the back of her neck. His breath was warm, and she stretched into his body, loving the hard feel of him behind her. He made her feel so safe. So treasured. He was the best thing that’d ever happened to her. The whole tribe had given her a sense of family that she’d never had before as a foster kid.
“Yes, the double chocolate chunk. I look forward to at least getting one of them, yes?”
She giggled. “I’ll make sure to save you one or two.”
“Ah, my gracious generous shuarra. Two cookies!” He purred for her and hugged her tight. She loved it when he purred. The vibrations relaxed her whole body. The babies settled. All was right with the world.
“You’re funny, you know that right.”
“Just for you and our young.”
“Babies, not young.”
“Sorry, yes. Our babies. Our children.” He rubbed over her belly and kissed her shoulder. “I cannot wait to meet them. You know when Saul and I escaped to this world alone, I never imagined I would have you one day.”
“Well, I certainly never imagined I’d be having kids with a lion shifter from another planet,” Penny said, her voice soft. “But now that it’s happening, I wouldn’t trade it for anything.” She put a hand over her mate’s where it rested on her belly. The babies were still for the moment. They liked their father’s voice and touch. Not that they didn’t like hers too, but they always settled down for him, especially when he purred. And lately she’d needed him to purr a lot.
Naomi was closer to delivery than Penny by a month, but she was nearly as big as Naomi.
“I got an appointment for tomorrow. We get to see them and hear them.” Penny said, excitement bubbling into her voice like a fresh spring. “I know you can hear them already, but—”
“I will be excited to see the machine that can take pictures of my children while still inside of you. Your world is filled with so much magickal science. Col is always showing off his children’s pictures to the old women at the community center. You know they are knitting clothes for them already.”
“Are you jealous?” Penny said, chuckling at her mate.
“I want my children to have clothes from the elders too,” he answered, his tone one hundred percent serious.
“They will. Those grandmas make every single baby born in Mystery clothes and blankets. You don’t have to pimp out their pictures to get gifts.”
“But I will,” he said, pride deepening his voice.
Her chest warmed at his words. He was the sweetest man. He always said the sweetest things. Just what her soul needed to trust him over and over again. He loved her. He loved these babies and they weren’t even here yet.
It was a reality she’d never really seen before. A family.
She belonged here in Mystery with Kann.
Belonged here with this tribe of people from another planet who accepted people from earth as if they had no differences whatsoever. If only humans could be so accepting of each other.
But Kann of course told her that back on his planet the Reyleans didn’t mix. That it’d taken them losing their whole world and Col breaking every tradition in centuries of customs to do what he’d done. Kann credited Naomi with their tribe’s inclusive nature.
Kann
He lay there on that enormous pillow with his mate until footsteps outside made the hair on the back of his neck curl. Someone was approaching, but not the way a friend would. This person was walking along the side of the house, stopping at each window. This person was spying.
His lion pushed and a rumble started in his chest.
Penny jolted to on alert immediately. “Up, help me up,” she said, her voice giving no room for argument. He loved his mate. No hesitation. Especially now with the pregnancy, she was every bit a natural lioness, even without the claws of an actual lion.
He lifted her off the pillow and set her on her feet lightly.
He tipped his head toward the side of the cabin where their bedroom was and then he looked at the back door and waited for her acknowledgement.
She opened a secret compartment underneath their coffee table and pulled out two handguns—his wife’s version of fangs and claws. She nodded toward the door and he moved in silence while she traversed the other side of the room, putting the large kitchen island between herself and the windows along the back of the house.
Kann opened the back door and slipped outside. He took a deep breath. The intruder was human and not one of the familiar men from the work crews that’d been building for the tribe all summer. He knew each of those men by name. Knew their family’s names.
He walked slowly toward the side of the house where the intruder was stalking. Stopped just before the corner and waited.
The male was making his way closer with each careful footstep.
A few moments later Kann was face to face with a man in a business suit. Not exactly what he’d expected, but his beast wasn’t convinced.
“Oh, I—”
“You’re trespassing on private property,” Kann said, his voice dropping. Kann had been expecting someone with a weapon. An obvious enemy. This man didn’t have one, but something in his demeanor made him seem more insidious than if he’d charged at Kann with an ax.
“I’m looking to buy Mystery,” the man said, holding out a hand for Kann to shake.
Kann raised an eyebrow. What a strange comment. “You’re on my property.”
“Actually, the property is listed under a corporation called Reylea United. But the names of the board were kept off the public paperwork. I’m very interested in speaking to the head of that company. Would you be that person?”
Kann fought not to curl his lip and snarl.
The man looked over Kann’s shoulder. Kann had heard Saul approach long before this human noticed him.
“Problem?” Saul said, his voice hard-edged and threatening with just that one word.
“No problem,” the human male said, pasting a fake smile on his face. “Just looking for the head of the company that owns this land.”
“He won’t like you,” Kann said, keeping his voice even and soft, like a sharp steak knife slicing through softened butter.
“That’s my problem, don’t you think?”
Kann smiled and nodded. Col was approaching from the opposite direction. He was almost directly behind the human before the male stiffened and turned his head. Col was at least a foot taller and probably a hundred pounds heavier than the human male who was trying to act all tough.
“Get. Off. My. Land.” Col’s voice rumbled like an impending storm—the promise of destruction hovered on the end of each spoken word.
“Sir, I would very much like to—”
“You will not speak again if you remain on my property. Every moment your feet touch my land is another moment I take greater offense to you.”
“I don’t think you understand. I can offer you a great deal of money for this property.”
The man was stupid. Missing brain cells, as Naomi would say. Perhaps he had a death wish.
Col’s
chest expanded and Kann didn’t miss the slight flare of flame in their Vraka’s gaze. Heat radiated from him like a furnace. The grass beneath his feet shriveled and curled into crispy tendrils. Even the human wiped sweat from his brow.
“I will give you a moment to leave. If you don’t. I will kill you and no one will ever find your body. Is that clear?”
The human’s heart sped in his chest, his pulse racing like a frightened deer at last. Col had finally made the impression in the idiot’s mind that his life was in danger for invading the Tribe’s space.
“He’s threatening me. You’re a witness. You’re both witnesses,” he mumbled, his voice choppy and raised. Gone was the confidence he’d had to start with. Gone was his swagger and threatening demeanor.
Kann smiled the smile of a predator that’d just seen prey. He relished the grey-pale color the man turned when he looked back at him and Saul who had moved to stand just behind Kann’s shoulder.
“What makes you think we won’t help him feed you to the wolves?” Saul spoke again, giving Col a moment to keep from going nuclear on the human idiot who’d dared to come onto Tribe land.
Dared to come near a dragon and his pregnant mate who was in their cabin right over the crest of the hill.
The man took a deep breath and backed away from the three of them just a couple of steps. Kann watched, surprised that some of the confidence and swagger came back into the human’s demeanor. “You’ll regret not talking to me.”
Col moved faster than even Kann had seen him move before.
He had the human by the neck and off the ground. “Give me one reason I shouldn’t tear your eyes from your disgraceful face this instant. You dare to threaten me in my home.”
The man choked and coughed, but Col’s grip on his neck didn’t loosen enough to let him speak.
“Get out of my town.” Col threw the human to the ground at Kann’s feet.
Kann met his Vraka’s gaze. “Take him to town before I kill him. Make sure you watch him drive away. All the way away.”
Kann nodded, grabbed the guy by the collar of his shirt and started dragging him away from the cabin. A little further down the dirt roads connecting the cabins, he saw a dark SUV. The guy was sputtering and cursing and flailing along the ground. His suit was ripped and ruined, and he was furious and spouting promises of having the sheriff out to arrest them all.
Kann threw him at the SUV’s front tire, taking great pleasure in the way his body thudded against the vehicle and bounced off. “Let’s go.”
“He’s the one who owns the company, isn’t he?”
“Are you really that stupid?” Kann shook his head and turned to walk back to his cabin and his parked truck. “I’ll follow you to the edge of town. Do as your told, or there will be hell to pay that you could never imagine.”
“Fucking idiot. You don’t know who I am. What I can do.”
Kann shook his head.
The bigger problem was that the human had pissed off a fire-breathing dragon and didn’t know it. Col had a short fuse on a normal day. Today he’d found a trespasser threatening the tribe. This had officially become a very bad day for Col’s temper. The heat coming off their chief had been a warning. A warning this guy just didn’t understand.
“I’ll have you arrested. All of you.”
“The town loves us, good luck with that. Plus, you’re the one who broke the law,” he shouted over his shoulder. “Do it again and we’ll make sure it’s the last time you ever bother anyone.”
The door of the SUV slammed shut and the engine started.
Kann sprinted the rest of the way to his truck, started it, and tore off after the SUV to make sure the completely incompetent human did as he was told—left Mystery.
9
Owen
The scent of lion brought Owen out of Leif’s garage. Kann was parked next to the gas tank, standing next to his red truck and watching a black SUV drive south out of Mystery.
“Was that the men who’ve been harassing Katherine and others in town? They the ones that vandalized The Watering hole?” Leif asked, coming out from his store to talk to Kann.
Owen stood back polishing the greasy wrench in his hand with a rag.
“Harassing Katherine? There are more men harassing people in town? This male was on our property. Threatened Col.” Kann said, moving closer to Leif.
“No shit,” Leif said, rubbing his hand over his grey-stubble-covered chin. “And he could still drive?”
Owen chuckled out loud, letting both the men know he was present. Kann glanced over and nodded. Leif waved to him, telling him to come closer.
“Liam called me from the bar earlier today. There’s two guys in town. Pretty sure their Hollister King’s people. That’s who usually tries to buy property in Mystery. He’s been trying for years. His granddaddy grew up here. Was a drunk. Lost his land to Douglas’ family a long time ago. Hollister’s been trying to get back into Mystery ever since. Still, he’s never been violent. What’s been going on with these two thugs over the last week or so is very uncharacteristic for Hollister. The man likes to flash his wallet. That’s about all.”
“That guy wasn’t that old. Maybe in his thirties. And it was only one man in a business suit. He didn’t look that dangerous. Angry, yes. But I never saw a weapon.”
Owen walked up to stand next to the old man and Kann. “I helped clean up after the fires at The Watering Hole.”
Leif cursed under his breath. “I still can’t believe they threw Molotov cocktails through the windows. Lars is rolling in his grave. He’d be so pissed that he brought his granddaughter into this. Put her in danger.”
“Dawn is safe,” Owen assured his employer. “I was over there to check on my sister, who’s staying with Dawn for the time being. Ryder and Tor are there along with Liam. She’s in good hands.”
“Tor is at The Watering Hole?” Kann asked, the lion’s tone showed interest at that tidbit.
Owen nodded. “Hasn’t left since Dawn arrived according to Ava,” he said, a slight grin curving the corners of his lips. He’d let the cat decipher that on his own.
Kann got the gist immediately and smiled back. “Well, I’ll be damned.”
“What? What’d I miss? You people talk to each other in fucking code, I swear.” Leif crossed his arms over his chest, his tattooed biceps bulging impressively for his age. Like Liam, he was a retired soldier.
“Tor’s interested in Dawn, who I assume to be Lars’ granddaughter,” Kann said, humor lacing his tone.
“Oh,” Leif said, drawing out the word, understanding dawning. “Lars is now rolling in his grave for another reason. You boys sure move in quickly on single women. The poor girl has barely been in town twenty-four hours.”
“Have you heard any complaints from our women, Leif?” Kann asked, a chuckle shaking his chest.
“Nope. Not a one. Just stating a fact. The single men in town don’t have a shot in hell while any of you outsiders are still single.”
Kann clapped a hand to his chest in mock agony. “Well, I guess there’s one fewer on that list as of twenty-four hours ago.”
“You act like their married already,” Leif shot back. “Just because he got there first doesn’t mean it’s a sure thing.”
“Have you met Tor?” Owen said, laughing. The tiger was persistent and smooth and surprisingly likable. He’d seen women fawning over the male everywhere he went in town. And those were women Tor wasn’t interested in.
Leif snorted. “Point taken.”
“You gonna chase the other two guys out of town for us too, Kann?” Leif asked.
“Now that I’m aware of their presence, I’d be remiss not too. Col would implode if another person got too close to Naomi and Penny, or Tara,” he said, adding Owen’s mate to the list.
Owen appreciated the sentiment. Tribes protected their women at all costs. All males protected all females. He and Tara had just recently joined the tribe. It’d been rocky to start off, but Col had made it clear th
ey were family, even though his sister had been denied acceptance.
She’d chosen her wolf. Her fated mate. He couldn’t blame her.
He would’ve chosen Tara over the Tribe as well. It just hurt to see her excluded.
“You know where I can find these other two males?”
“Probably staying at the little motel out next to the airport. No one else would’ve rented to them once they knew their agenda. Pete doesn’t give a shit who stays at his rat hole as long as they pay with cash.”
Kann clapped Leif on the shoulder. “I’ll be on my way to the rat hole then.”
“I’ll go with you,” Owen said. “Tell River’s I’ll have his car done by tomorrow morning if he comes asking, would you.”
“Yup,” Leif said. “See you boys later.”
Owen followed Kann to his red truck and climbed into the passenger seat. He turned and looked at the lion male. “These guys attacked Dawn. They injured her. They’ve harassed Katherine and other people in town. There’s been broken windows. Smashed windshields. Then the fire at the bar.”
“Dalmeck!” Kann said, his voice an angry growl. “Why didn’t Tor call us earlier?”
“I’ll give you two reasons,” Owen said, “and they’re both canine.”
Kann growled for real this time. “That tiger is persistent. I’ll give him that, but Col is unlikely to ever change his mind about Ryder and Knox.”
Owen shrugged. “He changed his mind about me.”
“There is that.”
Kann drove through the center of town, passed the café and the bar. He continued down the main road that led west out to the little airport on the edge of town. They turned another few corners and parked in front of the ratty little hovel called Blue Sky Motel. The name was pleasant, but completely misleading for the run-down wooden shack standing in as a motel where rooms were typically rented by the hour. No one in their right mind would stay overnight unless forced.
A couple of sedans were in the lot, but no SUVs.
“Now where?” Owen asked.
All's Were That Ends Were: Soulmate Shifters World (Soulmate Shifters in Mystery, Alaska Book 6) Page 7