by Kelex
Lane’s father looked away, silent.
“I’ll call once we get settled in the hotel. And see when you’ll allow me to come see my papa.”
Kai scoffed loudly, not believing Lane was asking for permission to see his own papa.
“Tomorrow. This time. He’s usually doing pretty well just after his breakfast,” Terrance answered without looking at Lane or Kai.
Kai saw the pain on Lane’s face and wished he could make it go away. No amount of words or touches would remove that sting. Instead, he grabbed all the bags and loaded them into the SUV and urged Lane into the passenger seat. Only after he got the motor running and they were headed down the steep drop of the mountain road leading away from the cabin did either of them speak one word.
“Terrance might’ve only been trying to protect his mate,” Kai murmured, trying to find the good in the utter bullshit. No way did he want to help Terrance’s case, but he also didn’t want his brother bear sitting in that pain.
“From me? Their own son?”
Kai glanced to the side for a split second before looking back to the road. “He’s afraid of losing Marshall. I’m sure that can make a man a little crazy. I wouldn’t take it too personally. He’s a man in love… fighting to hold on to your papa.”
“I get a demand to come home and then I’m told I can’t stay,” Lane said. “I got ten minutes with my papa. Ten fucking minutes.”
“And you’ll get more time tomorrow. And the next day. And the day after that. I don’t care if we’ve got to stay here for a month. You’re getting more time.”
Lane sighed, and Kai heard his head hitting the backrest. “I had a nightmare last night. That I didn’t make it back before papa died.”
“But you did. He’s alive and well.”
Lane was silent.
Kai turned his head a moment and saw his brother bear looking out the window. “Terrance said something along the lines that you wouldn’t come home because you wouldn’t leave my side. That you loved me too much to leave me.”
Kai felt Lane’s stare on him.
“I think that’s a bit of an overstatement,” Lane responded.
“Why didn’t you come home without me?”
Lane took a moment to answer. “I don’t know. Maybe it was a little bit of you, but it wasn’t all of it. Bear Mountain didn’t feel much like home anymore, not after all our years away. I liked the city—the opportunities we had there that we didn’t here. I think I was afraid I’d be pulled back home if I came without you. I didn’t want to have to choose.”
Kai swallowed back the knot in his throat. “I like the city, too. It’s alive… pulsing with this energy that was so different than anything we’d ever known,” Kai said, trying not to get weighed down in the emotion of Lane’s words. “I do miss the freedom to shift, though. I’m looking forward to at least one run through the woods before we go back.”
Lane didn’t respond for a moment. “Are we going to talk about the shifter we saw outside earlier?”
Kai didn’t know what to say.
An omega. An omega shifter.
They couldn’t have an omega for a mate. After all the shit he’d tossed into Declan’s lap after Gregor’s death?
It can’t be.
“What’s there to say?”
“I know full well you scented what I did.”
Kai shrugged. “I don’t know what I scented. He smelled of so many animals.”
“I think he’s one of the victims of Zed. You remember me telling you about that, right?”
Government experimenting on shifters. Sounded more like a horror movie he never wanted to watch. “So he’s one of their monsters.”
Lane’s lids lowered some. “Don’t be cruel.”
Kai looked back to the road. “I’m not! Isn’t that what you said they were calling these things?”
“Things? You’re calling our mate a thing? A monster? Really?”
“Let’s hold off on the M-word, okay?” Kai sighed and scrubbed his stubbled cheek with one hand. “Look, who knows what kind of experimenting this guy had done on him. He might not truly be our mate. I mean, did you get a good look at him? He looked half crazy. Homeless. Before we jump to conclusions, we need some more information.”
Lane sighed. “I know you had this ideal of us finding a human to share, but we don’t get to choose. You know that.”
Kai didn’t say a word. As usual, Lane had him pegged.
“Did you not feel the attraction to him? Does your bear not call out even now, wanting to go in search of him? To claim him? Homeless and crazy or not, he’s ours. And if he’s in trouble, we need to help him.”
His bear had been roaring since that meeting. The need was overwhelming, to say the least. “We need more information about this Zed thing. I need to know that it doesn’t affect scent and mating before I agree to anything more.”
“Royce can get us the answers we need,” Lane said. “He suggested dinner, right?”
“I’ll give him a call once we get a room,” Kai said before shifting into a higher gear now they were on the main road. “At this point, I want some food and then a nap. Maybe we can meet up with Royce tonight, if he’s available.”
Chapter Eight
Later that evening…
“And that’s where we hope to place the new Police Department,” Royce said, pointing to a vacant store front on the other side of the quad. Kai eyed the building, squinting some. Fading sunlight sparkled on the glass front of the space, the golden-orange autumn hue adding to the spectacle. Families still played in the quad, as Royce had called the green space amid the towering buildings around it. Like the village square, there was a large gazebo for celebrations. But unlike the village center, there was a large playground filled with young cubs, a scattering of picnic tables, and even a few food trucks selling hot chocolate, cider, and small food stuffs. Lane was still drinking a coffee he’d picked up from one during their walk.
“Police? What about the sheriff?” Lane asked, eyeing Royce.
Royce turned to face him. “Graham’s still sheriff. But with the growth of the city center and all the newcomers to Bear Mountain, he’s got his hands full, even with six new deputies. Declan likes the idea of a police department for the city and village and then the sheriff can focus on the more rural areas of the county. With the borders expanding so much, we have a lot of ground to cover. Declan’s working on hiring us a Chief of Police even now.”
“Who?” Kai asked.
“Colm McCreary,” Royce said.
“A McCreary?” Kai asked, stunned. The McCrearys were a bunch of juvenile delinquents—not the type he’d consider for law enforcement.
“Things have changed a lot,” Royce said. “Colm has been living in Midnight, Mississippi the last few years and working for the Midnight PD—where he’s proven himself a solid officer. He better understands the needs of a large city. Add in the fact his brother bear is a King’s Guardsman for the King of Midnight, and the two together here would be a boon for us as we grow.”
“What does the den think about all of these changes?” Kai asked, quirking a brow.
Royce lifted his chin. “There’s been some push-back, especially because of all the new non-bear shifters. We have a good number of folks who see this place as belonging to bears and bears only. But for the most part, I think people appreciate all that Declan has done for residents here—bear or no.”
“What do you think Gregor would think of what’s happened here?” Lane asked.
Royce’s smile faded. “Our father wasn’t far-sighted enough to see that this is what Bear Mountain could become.”
Kai saw that fade and was a little shocked by it. “Our father did what he could with limited resources. He didn’t have a stolen silver mine to use to fund all of these changes.”
Kai wasn’t holding back. He’d heard the comment Royce had made about Carron’s seized silver mine and knew that had to be funding all these changes.
“Stolen?�
� Royce asked. “Carron’s son killed our father. He cheated to do it. Carron started a bear civil war and then tried to destroy this den—using the wealth he’d accumulated through the slave labor of the omegas. We stole nothing. We confiscated money gained through ill-means and redistributed it for the good of the entire den, particularly the omegas he’d hurt.”
“Okay, okay,” Kai said. “However you got the funds… those were monies Father didn’t have. He held things together with far less. You can’t compare his tenure to Declan’s.”
Royce’s mouth opened, his eyes alight with emotion.
But Royce closed his mouth, seething.
What had he been about to say?
“Never mind.” Royce fished a phone from his pocket and looked at the screen before speaking again. “My family’s at the restaurant saving a table for us. We should go.”
“What aren’t you telling me?” Kai demanded.
Royce’s jaw tensed as he glared at his younger brother. He suddenly looked around at the people passing them on the sidewalk before turning back to them. “Now is not the time nor place.” He began walking down the sidewalk.
Kai turned to look at Lane, but said nothing. He sensed there was going to be a massive showdown before their trip was over. It was just a matter of time.
“Ready to eat?”
Kai inhaled deeply before scrubbing his face. “Can I say no?”
“You can,” Lane murmured.
Kai stood there another moment, silent. “What isn’t he telling me?”
“No idea,” Lane said. “But you’re not going to find out standing here.”
Kai nodded. “True. And I would like to meet my nephews.”
“Then let’s go,” Lane said, urging Kai along.
They soon caught up to Royce just before he turned a corner. Multiple restaurants lined both sides of the street—on the bottom floor of several buildings—and all looked like they were doing well. Royce stopped before an Italian joint and opened the outer door. A low roar of activity hit Kai’s ears. Inside, he saw a nearly full restaurant.
Once inside the lobby, a young cub came running toward them. “Popp-eee!”
Two tiny arms wrapped around Royce’s midsection a few seconds before the boy was lofted into the crook of his father’s arm. He turned toward Lane and Kai. “Meet Ezra, our youngest.” Royce looked down, his face softening as he stared at his cub. “This is my younger brother, Kai, and his brother bear, Lane. Can you say hello?”
Kai smiled at the tiny boy and chuckled as the cub pressed his head against his father’s chest, half hiding and half grinning.
“Hewwo,” Ezra mumbled before fully hiding his face into Royce’ chest.
“Hello, Ezra,” Kai responded.
“Let’s introduce you to the rest of the family,” Royce said before pushing past them. He nodded to the host at the station by the entrance. “We’ve got a table already.”
“Yes, Mr. Mayor,” the host said, waving them on in.
“Mayor?” Lane asked from behind them.
“Yes, I forgot to tell you. I’m now the Mayor of Bear Mountain,” Royce said over his shoulder. “Declan needed my help as the city grew, and I was happy to assist.”
Things must have improved between the two—or had it been a bone Declan had thrown their brother’s way? Kai wasn’t sure how he’d have felt in Royce’s shoes. To be next in line to the throne, and then for it to be ripped away? Kai had heard Benny grumbling about the same a time or two, particularly when his uncle had drunk a little too much Scotch too fast.
The whole shifters can’t get drunk thing was bullshit. Benny had proven it possible a time or two. Enough liquor imbibed quick enough and his uncle was slurring.
Once they reached the table, Kai said hello to Royce’s brother bear, Jared, and was then introduced to their human, Carson, as well as nine-year-old Judah and five-year-old Jonah. Royce lowered the three-year-old cub in his arms into one of the chairs before urging Kai and Lane to sit.
“How’s it feel to be home?” Jared asked them.
“Good. Strange,” Kai said before turning to Lane. “Plus the main reason we came is Lane’s papa.”
“How’s he doing?” Carson asked, looking concerned and apparently in the know.
How many knew of the illness? And none had reached out to them?
But then, he wasn’t all that great at answering phone calls, either.
“Better,” Lane said. “Or so says my father. We stopped in earlier to spend a little time with him before he got in some rest.”
“I was going to bring them over some food,” Carson said. “The last thing they should have to worry about right now is cooking. Is there a good time to stop in?”
“Trust me, no one wants to eat your cooking,” Jared said, grinning ear to ear. “The man is trying to get well. He doesn’t need food poisoning on top of everything else.”
Carson jabbed Jared in the gut. “You love my lasagna.”
“That is pretty edible,” Royce agreed before getting a glare from Carson.
“I’m sure my fathers would be appreciative of the concern, but Father is being a bit overprotective of Papa right now. He even asked us to get a hotel room—so I don’t know how he’d feel about visitors right now. You might want to try calling first.”
The table grew quiet. Kai could feel Lane’s disquiet. Before he could say anything, another spoke up, parroting the words he’d said earlier.
“I’m sure your father meant no offense,” Jared said before turning to Carson. “A bear’s human… we tend to get a little overprotective at times.”
“I can attest that’s true,” Carson said before rolling his eyes at Jared and then turning to Lane. “But not a little. A lot overprotective.”
“Well, you are only human. You’re not as strong as a bear,” Jonah said, never looking up from the Crayola masterpiece he was creating on the paper covering the table.
“Only human, huh? I can sure get you, mister,” Carson said before tickling the cub. Jonah scrunched into a ball of giggles before his big brother huffed on the other side, rolling his eyes.
“Jonah! You just made me mess up!” Judah cried, looking absolutely appalled to have his own masterpiece ruined.
Kai watched the family interaction and smiled. He remembered days like that with LJ, his little brother, driving him nuts. One day, he expected to have a family of his own, with cubs warring with one another one moment and loving each other the next.
His mind again went to their vagrant. He’d spent the entire tour with Royce searching the faces of everyone they passed—scanning the perimeter, with every step. He hadn’t seen the man.
He was pretty sure he’d caught Lane doing the same.
Even now, in a place he much doubted their mate would come, he was still searching the faces and drawing in scents, hoping.
Hoping for what?
“I called Declan,” Royce said, interrupting Kai’s thoughts. “He flew to Chicago to talk to you and LJ and convince you all to come home for a visit. By the time I saw you, he was already there and I couldn’t get him on the phone until later. He should be back home by tomorrow morning.”
“Wow, he actually took a moment to come talk to us? I’m impressed,” Kai spat. Too little, too late.
Royce frowned. “We called you and told you to come home a long time ago.”
Kai felt his blood pressure rising. He opened his mouth to reply to his brother, but Lane cut him off.
“Let’s not argue tonight,” Lane said. “We came to see how things have changed… and we’ve got a lot of questions we’d love answers to.”
Royce settled back in his chair, lifting a brow. “Shoot.”
“This whole Zed thing,” Lane said. “My fathers had told me some basics in phone calls home over the last few years… these… beasts… are they all living in Bear Mountain?”
“Our monsters,” Royce said with a grim grin. “Some of them are living here among us—but only the ones deemed non-
violent and in treatment. There are others still on the base, also in treatment but not as far along. A couple have improved enough to move on—but they need to check in twice a year to the base.”
“Why do they need treatment?” Kai asked.
“Most of them had their DNA spliced while they were captives. All were born shifter, but now they’re a mix of multiple animals. Some two or three extras—others have dozens of species within. The worst part is, animal spirits entered their body along with the DNA. So instead of hearing the roar of a single shifter in their minds—they hear five or ten or twenty different animals inside their head. Half of them went mad. We had to treat them like prisoners—after freeing them from another prison. It was rough on those who wanted to help. It’s been a long road to recovery for most. Our doctors were able to use Zed’s own research to help find a serum that quiets the animals within and allows the human side to be in control. But they need to get shots regularly to stay sane.”
“How regularly?” Lane asked.
“Depends, from what I hear. Some get them weekly. Some can go a few weeks or months between. Not sure what the criteria is for that. Could be the amount or type of experiments done to them while they were locked up. Could be how long it’s been since they reached sanity.”
“Did any of the experiments have anything to do with mating?” Kai asked.
Royce frowned. “How so?”
“Did it… did these scientists… mess with a shifter’s scent?” Kai asked.
Royce narrowed his eyes a moment, seeming to consider Kai’s words. After a moment, those eyes widened a little. “What have you scented?”
“Nothing,” Kai spat. “I was just curious what kind of freak shows they’d created.”
“Kai,” Lane whispered hotly under his breath.
A little tickle of guilt hit him, but truthfully, they had no idea what they had on their hands.
Royce looked between Kai and Lane. “Bullshit. You met someone, didn’t you?”
Kai released a slow breath. “No. I was just curious how these creatures fit into Bear Mountain now.”
Royce’s lips closed, and he looked to Carson, Jared, and the cubs before turning back. “As far as I know, there were no experiments on the mating scent, one way or another. No one has brought anything like that to my attention, but Declan was the one who had more one-on-one conversations with the Shifter Army. I can put in some inquiries, if you’d like. Or we can ask Declan when he gets back here.”