by Mia Taylor
“Most people do.”
“Why don’t you let me up and we can make a deal.”
Daniel howled with laughter.
“Son, I have been chasing you for over three decades. I have gotten to know you better than you know yourself. Do you think I’m that stupid, Ryker? No, my boy, it will take you years to build up that kind of trust with me. I might have you do some chores for me. Maybe take out that bitch of a biological mother.”
Keep him talking. If he’s talking to you, he’s not going after Rui.
“Tell me about her.”
“You want to know about the bitch who ruined your entire future? Sure. She was a homeless waste case when I met her. My sister brought her home and cleaned her up but you know what they say, you can take the girl out of the street but not the street out of the girl. She took you four to sell you, see if she could make some money for crack or meth—whatever was fashionable back then.”
“That’s not what you told the cops,” Ryker challenged. “You told them she was unstable and off her medication. You told them you were worried about our safety, not that we had been sold.”
“Don’t believe everything you read on the internet, boy.”
Daniel sounded defensive at being contradicted and Ryker swallowed a smile.
I’m getting under his skin. Maybe if he gets mad enough, he’ll come in here.
“Sure, Dad.”
Daniel guffawed. “I know you don’t trust me right now, Ryker, but you will.”
“It’s kind of hard to trust you when you have me bound to a table, Dad.”
“Like I said, arrangements need to be made. I can’t believe it’s taken six months to get you alone. Your wife is very protective of you, Ryker.”
Don’t lose it at the mention of Rui. She won’t be harmed. She will be fine…
But the words were empty and hollow even to his own ears.
There was no one to take care of her without him. He had wrenched her away from everything she had ever known to run off with him, only to bring her more danger in the end.
“What was her name, Daniel? Our mother?”
“Fallon. Fallon Rusholme. Stupidest call your Aunt Beatrice ever made. ‘Bear blood carriers are rare, Danny. Beggars can’t be choosers, Danny,’” he mimicked his sister. “I bet she was kicking herself after Fallon took off with you.”
“How much did she get for us?” Ryker asked.
“I don’t know.”
“No idea? I mean like, enough for a lot of crack or—”
“Just stop talking—oh, I think I hear someone coming in. Guess who’s back—”
“Hello, Daniel.” It was a woman’s voice but not one which Ryker recognized.
There was nothing but static over the intercom.
“Aren’t you going to say anything? You don’t look happy to see me.”
“O-of course I’m happy to see you,” he gasped. “I just wasn’t expecting you.”
“Who is that, Daniel?”
“He’s just a test subject. He’s in a trial.”
“He doesn’t look very happy either, Daniel.”
The voice on the intercom grew louder.
“Are you being kept there against your will?”
“Yes!” Ryker yelped. “I am.”
“Sandrine, you shouldn’t be here. It’s not a healthy environment—”
“I can see that.”
“W-what the hell is—put the gun down, Sandrine.”
Ryker’s heart leapt into his throat.
What the hell is going on now? Is she going to kill me next?
“It’s a silver bullet. That’s how I kill you, right?”
“W-what are you talking about?”
“I got a visit from your wife, Fallon. She told me all about you. So I visited with Beatrice, confronted her with what Fallon had said. Poor Beatrice.”
“You met with my mother?” Ryker yelled. “Is she okay?”
There was a short silence.
“You’re one of Fallon’s children? One of the lost boys?”
“Yes! I’m Ryker.”
“Are you like him? Like this baby I’m carrying in my belly?”
Ryker froze, unsure of how to answer the question.
What if she comes in here and kills me too?
“Sandrine, you’re being crazy!” Daniel roared. “This man is heavily sedated and out of his mind.”
“ARE YOU LIKE THEM?”
“Yes,” Ryker admitted quickly.
There was a single gunshot then and a deep silence. Ryker closed his eyes.
“Hello?” he mumbled, sensing the danger which was coming for him. “Sandrine, are you there?”
“I’m right here, Ryker.”
His lids flew open and he looked into the surprisingly innocent face of a young brunette.
“You don’t need to kill me,” he told her. “I won’t hurt you, I swear.”
She shook her head.
“I know you won’t but I can’t let you go. I’m sorry. Your kind is dangerous.”
“We don’t need to be,” Ryker babbled. “We can be kind and soft. I have a wife whom I love more than anything in the world. She’s a doctor. She’s trying to use my blood to better humanity, not make it worse.”
Sandrine smiled patiently at him.
“You seem like a nice man, Ryker. I hope you and your wife will be very happy together in the future.”
She whirled away, her hands embracing her swollen womb, and she ran from the chamber, leaving the door wide open in her wake.
Okay. She didn’t kill me. She didn’t kill me but I’m still trapped here. Where am I? Is Wexley still alive?
“RYKER! RYKER!”
He heard his name being called over and over until it was close enough for him to make out his wife’s voice and that of another woman.
“I’m here!” he choked back at them. “I’m… here…”
A moment later, Rui appeared at the chamber door, a redhead in tow, and he exhaled in relief.
“Is he dead?” he murmured. Rui hurried to undo his binds.
“What?” Rui demanded. “Who? Is who dead?”
“Wexley!” Ryker cried. “Didn’t you see him when—”
“No, Ryker, I’m not dead but I’m starting to feel like I made a mistake keeping you alive.”
Chapter Thirteen
Present Day: Rui
The gun was aimed at them but Ryker was already free and he lunged toward Daniel Wexley without warning.
“RYKER, NO!” Rui screamed but before she could move, Vivian pulled her back. The men fell onto the ground in a tussle and Rui struggled against Vivian’s surprisingly strong grip.
“Let me go!” she yelled. “Let me off!”
“You’re no match for them.” Vivian’s voice was steady and calm. “Help is on the way.”
Rui could barely register what she was being told and she watched in horror as Daniel regained control of the gun. He aimed it at Ryker and fired… but nothing happened.
“Better luck next time,” Ryker hissed but before he could administer another punch, a flurry of fur drew her attention away and suddenly both she and Vivian were pressed up against the far wall.
“W-what is happening?” she moaned in disbelief. It was all too much to process and Rui felt as if she was somewhere above the activity, watching it all transpire.
“This is your family,” Vivian murmured. “I told you not to worry.”
Ryker struggled loose, the only one of the terrifying group who had not shifted, and staggered back toward her.
“Are you hurt?” he demanded, his eyes wild and worried. “Look at me.”
“No!” she gasped. “I’m fine. I’m fine.”
“Who are they?”
“I’m Vivian, Ryker. I’m Vaughan’s wife. He’s the grey bear.”
Shrill cries emanated through the isolation chamber as Daniel begged for his life.
“No! Please stop! I’m your father! I’m your father!”
/> “Don’t listen to him!” Ryker instructed. “He’s a liar.”
If the bears heard either man, they did not show it, and Rui collapsed into her husband’s arms, sobbing at the insanity before them.
“It’s going to be okay,” Ryker promised, stroking her hair, and Rui willed herself to be calm, despite the blood spraying around them.
And then, all was silent.
Three lumbering beasts stood heaving around the massacred corpse which had once been Daniel Wexley.
Slowly, their huge frames melded away and three people stood where the bears had been just moments ago.
“What did he give you?” the grey bear, Vaughan, asked Ryker. “Why can’t you shift?”
Ryker shook his head miserably. “I don’t know.”
“We’ll find out,” Rui told him firmly. “I’ll figure it out. I’ve studied enough of your blood to know what’s added.”
“What?” the other man demanded. “She studies your blood?”
“She’s my wife. I’m Ryker. She’s Rui.”
“That’s Briar and his wife, Berlin,” Vivian introduced quickly. “There’s no judgement here, all right? The important thing is that Daniel Wexley has been stopped. Isn’t that all that matters? You are reunited. Isn’t that what the goal was?”
The siblings nodded at one another and begrudgingly stepped forward to take Ryker’s hand and then Rui’s.
“Sorry I snapped at you,” Briar told her. “I was a little tense.”
“We need to get this guy out of here,” Rui said suddenly, her emergency room demeanor stepping into play and overriding her emotions. Now that she knew that Ryker was not in peril, she was all doctor again.
“That’s a good idea,” Vivian agreed. “And clean up this mess.”
~ ~ ~
They regrouped at Ryker and Rui’s house in the suburbs where everyone took turns showering. Joey hid under a table, growling in terror as he seemed to sense something in the strangers he didn’t like.
Maybe it’s the fact that they can eat him, she thought grimly but the initial fear she’d had quickly diminished when she realized that Briar, Berlin and Vaughan had saved Ryker’s life.
Not to mention Vivian. If she hadn’t shown up when she did...
She shuddered to think what would have happened.
“Babe, I am so sorry I let that man into our lives,” Rui told her husband when they found themselves alone in the kitchen. “If I hadn’t accepted his job offer—”
“He would have found another way to get at us. He told her that he was going after Vaughan next. He’s been at this for years, Rui. You’re not to blame for what happened here.”
“What about Daniel’s wife? What do you think she did next?”
“I don’t know what she did next,” Vivian called from the living room. “But I can tell you what she did before she shot Daniel.”
“I forgot how little privacy there is with siblings in the house,” Ryker commented dryly.
“At least she’s nicer than Bryn,” Rui quipped and they headed back into the living room to see what Vivian was talking about. On television, the newscaster stood in front of a sprawling mansion.
“…Ashbridge where the entire town was rocked by this senseless act. The only suspect in Ms. Wexley’s murder is her brother, Daniel, who has not been seen nor heard from.”
The scene flashed and Ryker gasped as a girl appeared on the screen, her eyes teary and red.
“Danny, please come home,” Sandrine sobbed. “Our baby needs you. No matter what you did, I forgive you.”
There was a chorus of exclamations around the room and Ryker could not resist laughing aloud.
“It’s a damn shame he didn’t live. She’s as sociopathic as he is. They’re a great couple.”
“Everyone has their mate,” Rui agreed, slipping her hand into Ryker’s and squeezing. “I’m glad mine isn’t a murderer.”
“So… I hope this isn’t completely out of line,” Berlin said, rising from her spot on the couch. “But I invited some people over.”
Rui gaped at her but before she could speak, Vivian nodded.
“I invited someone too,” she confessed. “I know it’s a small house but…”
There was a knock at the door and Berlin hurried to answer it. In the doorway, a redheaded woman, very pregnant, and her tall, dashing companion stood. Rui didn’t need to be introduced. She knew Cypher’s music well but even without that, she would have recognized the same genes she saw in the other three brothers.
“Cypher, Chloe, this is Ryker and Rui but we’re calling them Andrew and Alison, right?”
“I think our cover here might be blown,” Ryker sighed wryly. “Ryker and Rui will do for now.”
“It’s amazing to meet you,” Chloe said, stepping forward to embrace her.
“You’re having a baby!” Rui gasped.
“We already have a seven-year-old,” Briar offered. “Her name is Stella.”
“Wow.” She looked at Ryker. “We need to do some catching up.”
Everyone laughed and the new arrivals found spots in the living room as the doorbell rang again.
“I’ll get this one,” Vivian announced, zigzagging through the maze of people.
She pulled open the door and a hush fell over the room.
“Fallon!” Rui gasped. “You’re really the same woman we saw.”
The older woman ducked her head and looked about shyly, a hot blush touching her face.
“I can’t believe this,” she mumbled. “You’re all here. All of you.”
There was a long silence as everyone smiled sweetly at her, no one quite sure what to say.
“Well, don’t stand in the doorway,” Rui insisted, ushering her inside. “We’ll make room.”
“Actually,” she mumbled, “I brought someone with me. I hope that’s okay.”
“The more the merrier,” Rui chuckled, eyeing Ryker, who looked as overwhelmed as she felt. He couldn’t take his eyes off his mother. Fallon turned and waved at someone and a moment later, a bespectacled man appeared on the porch at her side. Instantly, Fallon reached for his hand.
“Everyone, this is my fiancé, Kevin Davies.”
“Oh, hey!”
“Wow, great!”
“Welcome, Kevin!”
There were cheerful greetings from all corners of the room and Rui managed to mush them into the house before closing the door.
“Fallon…” Ryker sighed. “Where have you been all this time?”
Rui read the shame on her face before she could turn her head away but Kevin opened his mouth to answer.
“Her whole life, Ryker, your mother has done everything she could to protect you from your father. She left you at that orphanage, four states away, and went home to deal with the repercussions of what she had done. She thought Daniel was going to kill her but instead he did something worse—he let her live and had her followed for her whole life, hoping that she would bring him to you.”
“Mom, is that true?” Cypher choked. “Is that what happened?”
Fallon’s head jerked upward and she looked at her eldest son with wet eyes.
“He called her ‘Mom.’” Rui felt tears sting her own irises and she quickly brushed them away.
“Yes, Cypher,” she murmured. “That’s what happened.”
“That bastard is going to burn in hell for everything he did,” Briar muttered furiously. “Fallon,” he said quickly, realizing how dark he sounded. “You have a granddaughter. Her name is Stella.”
Rui was sure she had never seen so much pride in one person’s face and her heart melted slowly as she lowered her head against Ryker’s shoulder.
“We might need to buy a bigger house,” she told him softly.
“You think we’re the ones who are always going to be entertaining?”
“I don’t think we’re going to have much of a choice.”
Ryker kissed the top of her head and squeezed her close.
“I thought I wa
s going to lose you today. I can’t imagine what my life would be like if I lost you, Rui.”
“You didn’t lose me and you won’t, not for a hundred years.”
She snuggled into him and waited for a lull in the conversation.
“Listen, I don’t think I have enough food to feed a bear army in here so I’m going to order a few pizzas, okay?” Rui called. “What do you want on them?”
“Anything but mushrooms!”
“No olives.”
“Lots of mushrooms!”
“Extra olives!”
“Extra sauce!”
“Ew, no way! Thin crust, pineapples!”
“Pineapples? What are you, from nineteen eighty-six?”
Rui turned and looked at her husband again.
“You’re on this, right?”
“We could leave,” he teased. “Let them eat one another.”
Rui looked back at the group scrunched together and shook her head.
“Not on your life. We’ve already missed way too much. I’m not missing another second of family time.”
Epilogue
One Year Later: Fallon
The baby screamed bloody murder, her face red and indignant as Fallon rocked her soothingly in her arms.
“Hush, little baby, don’t say a word,” she sang sweetly but Ava was having none of it.
“Mom, let me take her,” Cypher laughed, reaching for his daughter, but Fallon shook her head and looked up at him pleadingly.
“Please, can I hold her just a little while longer, Cypher?”
He looked at her, a combination of exasperation and affection on his face.
“I don’t know how you can put up with her endless wailing like that. She’s got a set of lungs that don’t quit.”
“Like you did,” Fallon told him, readjusting Ava so she sat up. She let out a huge burp and promptly stopped crying. “It’s always gas, my boy.”
They both laughed and Cypher shook his head.
“Mom, you’ve got to get ready. Everyone is waiting for you downstairs and Ava might spit up on your dress.”
“So what?” Fallon replied lightly, rising with her grandchild still firmly in her arms. “What grandma doesn’t have baby puke on her wedding dress?”
She looked at herself in the mirror and Ava cooed when she caught a glimpse of her own reflection.