by M. L. Briers
He knew his own mate would never bare his children, but she was happy to share in the sometimes joys, sometimes stinking nappies, that her friend’s offspring produced, and that was all that he needed from life. To make his mate happy…
He turned the corner, expecting to find Liam pacing, as the man tried to figure out how to keep his beast at bay and wooing his mate at the same time – and there it was, one empty hallway…
“Hmm, interesting…” Connor grinned to himself. “So the wolf found a way to huff and puff, and…” Connor noted the open door to the room and frowned…
Maybe not…
Maybe they went for…
His eyes took in the open panelling on the far wall and took one long moment to curse himself for his stupidity…
“Ooooo, nooooo. Never trust a damn witch!” He grumbled, listening hard for signs of life before he entered the room and stalked towards the tunnel…
That’s not good…
One lonesome wolf, one witch mate, and tunnels not big enough to swing a … wolf…
Oh hell….
The sudden realisation dawned on Connor. The tunnels were the only way into the property that weren’t protected.
He pressed inside and scented the air.
Witch.
Wolf.
And … bear!
CHAPTER TEN
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Wet, cold, and in desperate need of a shower; Kent pressed on through the tunnels after Marco. The man was on a mission to find the witch, and whether he had Raul’s blessing or not – he seemed determined to make Agatha pay for what he’d perceived to be her betrayal of the clan and their alpha, Zane.
Kent didn’t like it.
He didn’t like the fact that Raul had taken control of the clan and was now the alpha.
He didn’t like that Marco was off doing his own damn thing.
And he certainly didn’t like that they weren’t looking at the big picture where Zane’s death was concerned.
One way or another; Zane would have died. The clan wasn’t blaming the pack that had killed him, but they were blaming the witch that they thought should have had his back.
The man had gone crazy bear, and that wasn’t his fault – it happened most of the time when a man lost his mate by whatever means – but killing Agatha for allowing the pack to end Zane … he wasn’t sure that the woman should shoulder the blame for doing what the clan hadn’t done and finishing the alpha off, protecting life, human, and otherwise.
Kent had to wonder what life under their new alpha would be like. He didn’t much care for Raul, and he knew that feeling was mutual.
Perhaps, it was time to leave the clan and find his own way, or perhaps that was turning his back on the people that he’d grown up with, that he knew better than he knew himself. He’d know soon enough when he ventured home again.
What he didn’t want was for Raul to show up on the mountain. The man had the kind of attitude that made you want to punch him in the face before he’d even opened his big mouth, and he didn’t think that would sit well with the vampire and the shifters that he’d already met.
Add to that the amount of witches in the area and Raul was asking for trouble, maybe more than he could handle – just like Marco was by venturing into the damn vampire’s lair.
Deep down Kent knew that this could end only one way – badly.
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Agatha thought that she might have missed the doorway out into the first room. She was almost certain that the first and only time that she had ventured into the tunnels out of a witchy sense of curiosity, she hadn’t gone so deeply into them.
Up ahead; she saw the tunnel widen into a landing with a staircase that lead upwards, presumably towards the roof, and one that led downwards, presumably to the ground floor. There was also the choice of staying on the path that she was on…
At any other time; she might have enjoyed the intrigue, the anticipation of not knowing where she might end up, but the choices that presented themselves to her made her feel antsy.
There was a part of her that wanted to go back, a part that was wondering what her mate was doing, a part that sort of … missed him…
Agatha frowned to herself and sighed inwardly. She wanted to dismiss those feelings, because she knew that they weren’t real…
They seemed real enough in the sense that the mating pull was working inside of her body, mind, and soul to lead her down Fate’s rightful path, but not real in the sense that it was like any other craving – she just needed the willpower to ignore it.
What she couldn’t ignore was the sense that the tunnel felt as if it was getting smaller, closing in around her. She’d never been claustrophobic in her life before, and she wasn’t sure that was what she was actually feeling, or if, like that craving, her mind was just playing tricks on her so that she would turn back towards her mate, towards the mating pull, and towards fate’s plans for her future.
“I’ve come this far and I’m not leaving without cake!” She grumbled to herself – not really feeling the need for a sugary treat as much as for a way out of the tunnels at the earliest convenience.
And maybe there was still a little part of her that was in denial about having found a mate.
Agatha stopped in place the moment that she heard the sound that came from in front of her. She craned her head to listen for what it could be, and wondered if she was going to encounter a really big rat…
Please, not a rat … anything but a rat…
At that exact moment her shields buzzed with a warning … something supernatural by nature was ahead of her.
Ok, maybe a rat would have been good about now…
Agatha took a small step back and wondered if she should let the orb of light extinguish within her palm. The trouble was; the supernatural world tended to be able to see a whole lot better in the dark than she ever could … orb or not, the only one who wouldn’t see what was coming was her.
There was a grunting sound from behind her – she snapped her head around and narrowed her eyes in a vein attempt at trying to see into the deepest darkness of the tunnel, but all that she could see was the blackness that unnerved her.
With magic at her fingertips – she had a choice to make – go back – go forward – or wait, watch, and pray that she was fast enough to act if push came to shove.
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Liam could scent his mate in the air. He knew that he was getting closer because her scent was stronger now and it wrapped around him, urging him on. But there was also the scent of bear in the air that made his heart beat its own tune, and it wasn’t a good one.
Liam had a sense of dread and a rock in his gut that told him things could go very badly if he didn’t reach her soon. The woman was walking into a damn trap, whether she knew it or not, and when he found her…
His wolf was more than agitated, it was almost desperate to push forward, be at her side, and it might have been a good idea or a very bad one, but Liam knew that he couldn’t risk it either way.
He was having a hard time with the width of the tunnels as it was. His shoulders brushed and caught on the stone on either side of him, but he kept going. There wasn’t time in his mind to shift – not when his mate was in danger…
He saw the light of the orb that reflected against the dank walls and knew it had to be her … his heart pounded within his ears and he rushed forwards towards her…
“Agatha…” he growled out…
She felt so damn close that he could just reach out and touch her, and yet, before he could – there was the danger that he’d sensed so well…
The bears were upon her, and all that he could do was keep going…
CHAPTER ELEVEN
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Agatha had turned her head at relief at the sound of her name, but that moment of distraction was when someone had rushed towards her from the opposite direction. She’d tried her damnedest to turn back in time, to
raise her free hand and ward off the danger with her magic, but the hard grasp of his biting fingers dug into the flesh of her wrist, and she was wrenched sideways on her feet…
Away from Liam.
Away from safety…
The biting pain of being yanked so viciously blinded her mind to concentrating on her magic, and it focused all of her attention on the pain…
“Let her go!” Liam growled, mindful of the fact that his wolf had pushed so far forward that the beast’s fur was prickling his skin from the inside…
“Damn it…” Marco growled out…
He’d scented the wolf in the tunnels, but he’d hoped to have the witch in his grasp and be gone before the shifter showed up – leaving only Kent alone in his wake to take the wrath of her mate…
Marco knew that he had a problem, and it was a big one…
The wolf was in front of him, the witch was struggling within his grasp, and Kent was closing up fast behind him, and none of that boded well for an escape plan…
He needed to think fast and act faster.
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Liam rushed towards his mate without a thought or a care for what happened to him.
He saw the danger that she was in and a red veil came down over his moral compass and his rational mind.
He needed to kill the bear shifter and rescue his mate. That was all. That was everything to him … and if the man harmed one hair on her head then he’d kill him, find a damn way to bring him back to life, and kill him again and again…
His wolf growled and clawed within him. The beast wanted exactly the same thing and the damn wolf wouldn’t be sated until the bear shifters were dead…
He fully intended to make that plan a reality…
The roar that rose through his broad chest and burst from his lips wasn’t his alone. That sound of intention was owned by both man and beast, working in harmony, determined to kill the threat as they saw it…
“Easy, wolf…” Kent growled from somewhere behind Marco… “Let the woman go…” He demanded, but Marco had other ideas…
“Are you challenging me?” Marco growled back over his shoulder, but before Kent could answer – Liam had come within thumping distance of the man…
There wasn’t enough room in the damn tunnels for what Liam had in mind, but he made do…
He reached out one large hand that was aiming to have a connection with Agatha’s face, but he wasn’t reaching for her, he was reaching for Marco. That cowardly bear was using his mate as a human shield…
His fingers wrapped around Marco’s neck and he took great pleasure in squeezing … the sound of his mate gasping in a breath in pain made him loosen his hold on the man’s throat…
“Kill me, I kill her…” Marco rasped against the restriction of air to his lungs…
Liam’s eyes flicked towards Agatha for just a second … just long enough for the bear shifter to toss his mate straight at him, and Liam had no choice in the matter – he had to let go of the man and collect his mate within his arms … for that split second, her safety was all that was important to him.
He turned his body in the confines of the tunnels and put her behind him – the hard fist that he took to the side of the head pitched him sideways and he almost lost his footing – almost crushed his mate against a wall…
“You … here…” Connor wrenched Agatha back into the wider opening where the tunnels converged…
Liam shot out his fist and connected with the side of Marco’s head as the man tried to retreat…
The bear shifter roared – his beast was more than ready for the challenge, and done with the thought of retreating; Marco rushed towards Liam, bulldozing into the man and carrying him backwards through the tunnel under his weight, his willpower, and his raw rage…
Connor saw the shifter’s coming their way and pushed Agatha away from him – a heartbeat later and the shifter’s combined weight had hit him like a freight train, forcing him along with them, and practically crushing his body between them and the nearest stone wall…
The vampire groaned in annoyance…
“Hit him…” Connor bit out…
Liam was already doing just that. Both men were locked together, throwing whatever punches they could manage at each other, and Connor would have inspected his nails if he could have got his hand up that far…
“Don’t tickle him – hit him…” Connor groaned…
“I … am … hitting … him…” Liam offered back, through punches thrown and taken, and through the grunting and growling that his wolf offered…
When Connor got a fist to the face from a stray punch thrown by Marco – he’d had more than enough…
With one large thrust – he was away from the wall at his back – forcing the wolf and the bear shifter backwards into the open space, and sidestepping the pair of them – just in case he ended up trapped once more…
“Idiots…” Connor bit out.
He looked for Agatha, and his eyes found her – just at the exact moment that Kent wrapped an arm around her waist and lifted her body against his…
Then the bear shifter headed towards the nook, and the exit out of the tunnels … leaving Connor to bite down on the futility of the two shifters that were pounding all hell out of each other…
“Shifter’s got your mate…” He offered, and noted the way that Liam’s ears pricked up…
With another roar, Liam was done trying to beat the man to death out of some sense of vengeance…
He flicked out his claws and swiped his hand through the air, connecting with Marco’s face, and neck, before he lifted his foot and booted the man away from him. Then he turned to follow the vampire…
He’d had enough of all of them…
He was more than ready to kill someone…
He reached out and yanked Connor backwards, swapping places with him as he stalked towards to nook, following her scent…
The way was barred by a heavy wooden door, and he slammed his palms against it to open it, but it was solid – possibly having been wedged from the other side…
He backed up and took a small run at it. Hitting it hard with his shoulder and bouncing backwards…
With a grunt, he repeated his actions…
“Inwards…” Connor offered…
Liam hit the door with everything that he had, and he felt it move … he stepped back and did it again…
“Inwards – the damn door opens inwards man!” Connor shouted…
“Could have said so sooner…” Liam growled, reaching for the edge of the wood with his claws, digging them in, and yanking the door open.
“Works better that way, no?” Connor grumbled, following the man through into the light of the bedroom…
Liam dropped his chin down towards his chest and growled a long hard warning at Kent, and the man growled back…
All in all – there was only one truth, and that was that Liam was fit to kill him…
CHAPTER TWELVE
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“Step away from the bear…” Liam growled at his mate and Agatha frowned back at her mate.
“Seriously?” She bit out. “The bear?”
“Agatha…” Liam could feel his wolf pushing forward and clawing to break free and he didn’t want her anywhere near the man when that happened…
“Now hold on…” Connor offered from behind him, but Liam’s beast was fit to tear free…
“Look…” Kent said, but that was as far as he got when Liam’s wolf burst free from inside of him…
Kent could feel his bear pushing forwards. He noted the arrival of the wolf like a challenge to his pride, to his life, and he tried to hold his bear inside, but too much had happened in the last few hours and his bear wanted an out, and it would use any reason to have it…
“Oh, wonderful…” Connor muttered to himself as Kent’s bear tore free of the man…
One honour bound wolf.
One challenged bear.
O
ne miffed of witch…
What could possibly go wrong? Connor thought.
I need a damn holiday.
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Vicky had been on her way to check on Agatha when she’d heard the commotion within the tunnels. The sound was unique, and it echoed through the castle halls like a beacon, drawing her towards the sounds, and bringing her to the conclusion that something had hit the fan, and knowing her mate as she did – it was a damn good bet that he was probably right in the middle of it…
She didn’t bother wasting time reaching out to the door handle of the room – instead she lifted her hands, palms outwards, and blasted the door backwards on its thick metal hinges …
Her jaw almost dropped at the sight that befell her.
One wolf.
One bear.
One witch.
And Connor…
Oh, for the love of…
“Honey, I’m home…” Vicky announced as she took a step inside of the large bedroom and eyed her mate.
Oh, sure – you look all guilty and sorry for yourself now…
Wait til I get you alone later…
“About the tunnels … I can explain…” Connor started.
“But, honey … I see you’re planning a spot of redecoration without me…” Vicky bit out, with one hand; she zapped the bear – with the other she zapped the wolf, and with a nod of her head – Connor ground down on his jaw as the pain raced through him…
“Why me?” The vampire bit out.
“Because you annoy me so…” Vicky said.
“Fair enough…” Connor grumbled. He knew better than to try to reason with his mate when she was in the zapping mood.
His mate was formidable, and he loved it…
“I’d advise you both to shift back or risk losing your balls, and I mean … your balls…” Connor announced to both shifters…