by Dianna Love
The breeze carried a fresh evergreen smell and a nice touch of cool air Justin liked far more than the hot bayous of Louisiana where he’d spent too many unhappy years. He’d loved this place the minute he saw it. So much natural beauty across the land, with timber sprouting all around them and streams full of fish, then it opened up to an occasional bald hill like the one where the cabin stood.
Mountains climbed to the skies for a breathtaking backdrop.
Justin really hoped Adrian had soaked up the peacefulness here, but even he had doubts about Adrian being ready next week.
When the Guardian agreed to this deal, he added one caveat. Their boss had said, “Adrian has three months to prove he can control his wolf, which is predicated on his showing significant improvement by the time I make my first visit.”
That initial review was coming up next week.
Cole stopped with a fist in the air, a sign for all of them to pause. He lifted his head, sniffing.
Rory paused and slowly turned around, taking a closer look at their surroundings.
Justin frowned. “Adrian’s scent is everywhere. What’re you smelling?”
Rory uttered, “Smoke.”
Of the three, Justin had the best sense of smell, seven times that of a bloodhound. “I picked that up way back. Smells like someone burned logs in a fireplace.”
“I don’t think so,” Rory said and pointed.
Following Rory’s gaze, Justin saw a tendril of smoke swirling above the treetops. He said, “Shit, that’s where the cabin is,” and took off.
CHAPTER 4
Justin leaped out in front of the guys, racing toward the cabin where they’d left Adrian.
Rory passed him. Damn fast-as-hell cat.
Justin called on more energy, powering up his legs to hang with Rory, but Cole pulled ahead, too. That wolf was quick, but he now benefited from the power of being mated.
Bears weren’t built to be speedsters.
Justin managed to keep those two in sight. Since Cole and Rory had exceptional shifter hearing, Justin didn’t have to yell when he said, “No one made any plans for a damned forest fire. What if this place had burned to the ground before we showed up? Adrian couldn’t get past the ward.”
“The Guardian would know,” Rory answered over his shoulder, then swatted branches out of the way when he peeled off the winding path that stretched another mile. Instead, he cut through the woods, taking the straightest route to the cabin.
“How could the Guardian know?” Justin understood his powerful boss had gifts and abilities they had yet to see, but to know what happened here when the Guardian was normally in a suite high above the Baltimore coast was crazy.
Cole answered, “When we got back from dropping Adrian off, I asked the Guardian if ...” He jumped over two trees fallen across each other, landed in a gully and bounced up out of it.
Damn limber wolf.
Justin did a respectable job of leaping over the same downed trees, then shoved two small saplings aside to clear the way. He might not be cat or wolf fast, but he could plow through practically anything.
When Cole didn’t finish his sentence, Justin pressed, “And what, wolf?”
“I asked if there was any danger for Adrian being here alone. The boss said no, that he would sense a significant disturbance in the land.”
Always something new to learn about their boss.
Rory and Cole burst through the trees and stumbled to a stop with echoes of, “Shit.”
Stench of burned wood clouded the air.
Justin caught up and slowed to pause next to them. His heart sank. Only a pile of charred wood remained where the cabin had been on top of a gently rising hill with a stunning view.
Rory suggested, “It could have been lightning.”
Cole shook his head. “Nope. See that charred fuel can? This smells tainted like petroleum was involved.”
“Good thing the Guardian had the land cleared far enough away to not start a massive forest fire.”
Justin rubbed the back of his neck where it twitched with a bad feeling. If Adrian had actually been inside and kept a fire going, his wolf could have dragged that fuel can to the flame. “This pretty much screws next week’s meeting with the Guardian.”
Always the levelheaded one, Rory said, “Let’s not jump to conclusions. There may be an acceptable reason for this.”
And there was the about-face from Rory’s earlier doom-and-gloom attitude, because that was classic Rory. He’d first list out all the possible negatives to a mission, then jump in to figure a way around them.
Justin walked to his right and uphill, for a better view of what was left. He couldn’t imagine any acceptable reason for this destruction and knew Adrian was not there.
First of all, he couldn’t smell burned flesh or fur.
Plus, over the past few years, Adrian had preferred sleeping outside.
All of that led to one conclusion. Justin said, “He burned it. You know he did.”
No one argued.
“Where do you think he is now?” Rory asked.
That would be the million-dollar question. Justin had been scenting Adrian’s wolf even more heavily in the woods they’d raced through, which meant Adrian had probably been spending a lot of time in animal form.
A sick feeling tumbled through Justin. What if Rory hadn’t just been hung up on negative possibilities and Adrian really had remained in wolf form the entire time here?
What if he couldn’t shift to human?
Of course, that would mean Adrian hadn’t burned the cabin.
The approaching sound of thundering hooves suddenly pierced the calm.
Cole jerked to his left. “What the fuck?”
Rory started yanking off his shirt. “Whatever it is, I’m not ... ”
A herd of cow elk stampeded up the dirt road that belched out right before the hill where the cabin had stood. Justin and the guys would have entered from there if they hadn’t pulled off the trail.
The minute the herd burst into the open space, they spread out, turning into a blob of gray-brown fur and pounding hooves.
Justin had seconds to dive to the right and roll out of the way as the herd parted around the cabin ruins.
Cole and Rory had taken off and shifted on the run. They split up, leaping to top speed ahead of deadly hooves.
The chaos pounded away as quickly as it had appeared.
Justin dusted himself off and walked over to see where they all went, but caught a sudden strong scent of Adrian’s wolf, Red.
He turned slowly to see the wolf chasing a straggler into the clearing, which answered any question about who had started that stampede.
Red had once possessed a deep-rust-colored coat, but after the torture, his coat had changed to a lighter champagne hue, as had Adrian’s hair. In human form, he now had silver locks mixed with his natural auburn even though he was only twenty-seven.
Cole had a beast of a wolf known as Gray Wolf, but Adrian’s was no slack at two hundred and seventy pounds, and standing four feet tall at the shoulder.
Adrian’s wolf snapped at the hind legs of a young cow that was half the size of the herd mates who had left her in their dust.
Guess elk don’t hold to the no-man-left-behind rule.
In a lunge, the wolf locked his jaws on the hindquarters of the cow, pulling it to a stop.
Justin remained perfectly still as Adrian’s wolf battled with a two-hundred-plus-pound female elk unwilling to give in.
Everything was going fine until Cole returned in wolf form and came trotting around the burned structure. He’d had no way to see Adrian and the elk until it was too late.
Justin couldn’t warn the other two unless he shifted to his bear. The Gallize shifters could talk mind to mind only when in animal form.
Adrian’s wolf released the elk and snarled viciously at Gray Wolf for daring to enter his territory.
Damn. Justin walked forward one slow step at a time and kept his voice soothing.
“Easy, Red. Easy, Adrian. You know us. We’re not intruders.”
Thankfully, Cole’s animal had frozen the minute he realized the problem.
The ravaged, but still alive, cow limped off, now forgotten by Adrian’s wolf, which continued to stare at Gray Wolf with dead eyes. Tufts of the light gold fur along Red’s shoulders continued to stand in a sure sign that this was going downhill fast.
“Adrian,” Justin kept trying in a calm voice. “Look at me, buddy. We’re your friends.”
When Red turned his head to Justin, eyes filled with rage met his.
No one home.
Gray Wolf advanced slowly. Cole would be doing that with intentions of watching Justin’s back, as they all did for each other.
But that small motion yanked Adrian’s wolf back to his initial target. Growling an unholy sound, Red launched himself at Gray Wolf, who accepted the challenge and met him halfway.
“Fuck! Back off, both of you!” Justin yelled.
No one paid him any attention.
Claws and fangs ripped up muscles on both wolves. Cole had only recently regained control of his animal and probably figured Red needed a beat down, but if no one stopped them, one would die.
Red would not pull back from a kill though, where Cole would. Sammy’s death was still too fresh for all of them, but especially Cole.
He wouldn’t let Gray Wolf kill Red, but Red wouldn’t be as accommodating.
Ripping clothes half off, Justin called up his grizzly.
He was not losing two friends this way.
Shifted, Justin’s bear lifted on his hind legs to stand over ten feet tall. Herc unleashed a roar that would send most animals running for their lives, but these two didn’t even pause. Fuck.
He stepped forward, hoping he didn’t have to kill one to save the other.
CHAPTER 5
With Herc in the lead, Justin let his bear choose where to enter the fierce battle between Cole’s and Adrian’s wolves. Herc dropped down to walk on all four legs as he approached the brawl.
Now that they could speak telepathically in animal form, Cole called out to Justin. I can’t stop Red unless I go for his jugular.
I know. Back off and let me have a go at him.
Gray Wolf snarled and still fought, snapping his jaws, but it was clear that wolf was under control, where Adrian’s wolf battled like a rabid animal. When Red spun around and slammed Gray Wolf hard, knocking him sideways, Justin shouted at Cole, Now!
Gray Wolf continued to roll away from the hit, then came up on all fours, head down, fangs still bared.
Justin sighed.
He hadn’t expected Gray Wolf to just saunter off, but that action demanded a response.
Adrian’s wolf dropped back on his hind legs to leap at Gray Wolf for round two.
Time for a workout, Herc, Justin silently told his bear. Herc was the shortened version of Hercules, which Sammy had named the grizzly the first time he met Justin’s bear.
As Adrian’s wolf lunged up and out, Herc picked up speed and crashed into the wolf, knocking Red into a ball of legs and bloodied fur bouncing over the ground.
Lifting his head, Herc roared a challenge.
Justin approved. He and his bear had been through difficult battles together that most people couldn’t imagine. They worked as one with Justin taking the lead when the human side held the advantage and Herc doing the heavy lifting when muscle and power ruled.
Adrian’s wolf shook off the vicious hit and rounded on Justin, who called out to his friend mind to mind. Adrian, it’s me, Justin. Have you forgotten your friends?
Silence answered him.
Shit, yet another bad sign.
Herc remained standing on all four legs, rocking his head back and forth, huffing.
That only meant he was ready to brawl.
If Herc started popping his jaws and snorting, well, that was a polite warning for his opponent to throw in the towel.
Unfortunately, none of them had a towel handy in their animal forms and Adrian’s wolf didn’t show any sign of backing off.
Justin, Cole called to him. You can’t trust that wolf not to rip your throat out. I sent word to Rory to go back to the truck and get a tranq.
Herc kept his gaze pinned on the wolf creeping toward him as Justin replied, By the time Rory can get a tranq and return, this will be over, so call him back, but tell him not to walk out here as a jaguar. We may need his medical expertise to keep one or both of us alive.
I’m coming back into the fight then, Cole warned.
Stand down, Cole. I got this.
That sounded pretty damn good for a bald-faced lie.
Justin wasn’t sure how he was going to manage preventing Adrian’s wolf from ripping all of them apart, and at the same time, not kill his friend or get Herc’s throat torn open.
Herc made a rumbling noise Justin had come to think of as his bear chuckling, if bears chuckled.
Herc was just letting Justin know he had no intention of dying today.
Justin tried once more to reach his friend. Adrian, make your wolf stop attacking so we can ...
The wolf in discussion went from zero to sixty in seconds, snarling as he dodged to the side and leaped on top of Herc.
That was a bad idea.
Reaching around with jaws that could crush the wolf’s head, Herc snapped at the wolf that was digging claws into his back.
Fuck, that hurt.
Justin’s bear lifted up on his hind legs, shaking back and forth to loosen the wolf’s hold. It seemed to work as the wolf slid down, dragging his claws as he did.
When the wolf landed on the ground again, Herc dropped back to all four legs and lurched around to face his attacker.
Adrian’s wolf had been ready and ran in a circle, chasing behind Herc and avoiding being bitten. When the bear stopped to turn in the other direction, the wolf locked his jaws on one of Herc’s hind legs, crunching hard, trying to break bone.
Herc bellowed with anger, kicking at the wolf’s head, but that wouldn’t make him let go. Jerking his huge bear body around in a circle, he dragged the wolf, which kept his jaws clamped hard on Herc’s leg.
But that left the wolf’s hind legs exposed.
In a move Justin considered one of Herc’s signature counterattacks, the bear latched onto the wolf’s outstretched leg.
Where Adrian’s wolf couldn’t break Herc’s bones, the bear had no trouble cracking bones in the wolf’s leg. A howling scream broke loose when the wolf released Herc’s.
Adrian’s wolf whined, howled and hobbled around on three legs, but still not giving up.
Justin’s bear waited, huffing in short breaths from the exertion, but Herc had yet to fully tap the load of power he possessed.
When the wolf didn’t attack again immediately, Justin kept trying to reach Adrian’s mind. Talk to me, buddy. I know you’re in there and your wolf is hurting. Let’s stop and fix your leg.
Limping forward, the wolf had his head slumped down in submission.
Herc waited as the whimpering wolf crept closer.
Justin’s bear stood much taller than the wolf, which allowed the wolf a perfect position to rip out Herc’s throat.
Justin, back off! Cole shouted in his head.
He ignored Cole, letting Herc handle it.
His bear dipped his head to one side at the same second the wolf lunged. Herc swung that massive head right back and whacked the wolf’s head with a sickening crack.
Adrian’s wolf sidestepped, shook its head and tried to stay upright.
That damn wolf had a death wish.
It started forward again in a stuttering gait, holding its rear leg off the ground.
Herc lifted up on his hind legs and roared an even louder warning that he ruled this battle.
The wolf wobbled and fell onto its side, bleeding profusely from when he’d fought Gray Wolf and now with a crushed back leg plus a possible concussion.
Did that matter to Herc?
No. Justin
’s bear dropped down again and stepped over to place a foot on the wolf’s neck, drawing a weak snarl from Adrian’s wolf. Herc kept up the pressure, pushing just short of crushing the wolf’s throat.
This time, when the wolf whined as if begging, it was an honest sound.
Herc removed his massive paw from the beaten wolf and sat back on his butt.
Rory came striding into view, wearing his jeans and no shirt. He tossed a pair of jeans at Cole.
Justin thanked Herc for a good job and for not killing the wolf, then he asked to shift back.
His bear snorted. Play time.
Only Herc would think that had been an easy battle. The change flowed over Justin, which sounded simple and smooth, when in truth it sometimes hurt like a bitch. Like now, when his back had been clawed and his leg was bleeding and already starting to swell, though thankfully not broken.
Cole had shifted back to human form and put on his jeans.
He stepped over to give Adrian’s wolf a long look.
Rory took a spot on the other side of Justin and said, “I don’t think there’s enough of your jeans left to make jorts.”
“Jorts?” Justin gave him a look of confusion he normally reserved for human guys who tried to pick a fight with him.
“You know. A cross between jeans and shorts.”
Another deep voice said, “You should be embarrassed to admit even knowing that term, Rory.”
Justin looked over to find a naked and bloody Adrian lying on his side, with a bushy beard and head of hair that belonged on Big Foot.
He winced at Adrian’s mangled leg and asked, “How’s your head?”
“Feels like someone used it as a wrecking ball.”
“That’s because you’re so damned hardheaded,” Justin growled.
Rory dropped down to look at Adrian’s leg. “Leg looks like it went through a blender.”
Adrian gritted out, “Yep.”
“You should shift back to heal it faster.”
“Nope. If I do, that fucker will attack all of you even without a fourth leg.”
Rory cursed under his breath. “Stay stretched out and I’ll do what I can.”
“Yep.”
Justin exchanged a quick look with Cole while those two talked, if you considered Adrian’s one-word answers conversational. From the sick expression on Cole’s face, he was having the same thoughts as Justin.