Nicole swallowed and eyed the other two men in the room. Caleb Nash and Thor McKenzie. Caleb was Ethan's beta and he was the most chatty of the three. Thor was silent and unsmiling but Nicole knew that the man was sharp and observant. His dark, mismatched eyes saw everything and missed nothing. He would make a good spy, she thought.
Ethan's secretary, Tabitha, came in and put the cups of coffee on the table. She held out a bottle of milk and clucked at the baby. Brendon gurgled happily and held out his arms to her.
“You little darling,” Tabitha cooed.
Tabitha bent towards the baby but Nicole held on to Brendon possessively and protectively. Tabitha seemed sweet and motherly, but Nicole was taking no chances. She wasn't letting anyone touch the baby.
“I'll feed him,” Nicole mumbled, taking the bottle from Tabitha.
Tabitha simply smiled and handed the warm bottle of milk to Nicole. She stroked Brendon's downy hair and left the room.
“Tabitha was four cubs of her own,” Ethan said, watching Brendon drink greedily. The bottle was almost half empty. “She loves kids.”
“Cubs?” Nicole raised her eyes. “Oh, she's a...”
“Bear shifter.”
“You are a bear too, right?” Nicole said slowly. “I'm sorry, Mr Flint. I don't mean to be...”
“It's okay. Caleb and Thor are bears too. But the Black Bears Group is an equal opportunity employer,” Ethan said quickly. “Most, but not all, of our staff are bear shifters.”
Nicole nodded. “Yeah. I know. The Black Bears Group is a great company. I can see that Luke is very happy working here. And he's not even a bear...” She trailed off at the look on their faces. “Oh. Luke...” Nicole bit her lip. “I should have known,” she breathed. “I sensed that there was something different about him, but I never thought...”
Nicole swallowed hard and stared at the three men. “Was Luke bitten, or something? How did he change...”
“Miss Forrest, we care about Luke. He's one of us but it's not our place to talk about what happened to Luke. I'm sure he'll tell you everything when the time is right,” Caleb said gently.
“What happened to him?” Her eyes rounded. “Oh God, it's something terrible, isn't it? He suffered. Oh, why didn't he tell me?”
At that moment, there was a knock on the door and Luke stepped in.
He took one look at her and seemed to jerk back.
“Nicole...”
Oh shit, what did he see on her face? Fear, horror, disgust? She had to get a grip and pull herself together. This wasn't about her.
Nicole stood up so quickly her chair would have toppled if Thor hadn't caught it.
“Hi Luke,” she said brightly and smiled.
“Hi,” he said carefully. “You...okay?”
“Sure. I...I just need to figure out what to do next. Those men who were after me...who are they?” she said, sitting down again. “Can you find out?”
“We suspect those men are connected to the mob,” Thor said. “The way they work, the way they killed Brendon's mother, the brutality and efficiency. I recognize the mob's fingerprints all over the murder.” When Nicole gaped at him, Thor continued, “I used to work undercover. I was the right-hand man of a mob boss for years.”
Nicole nodded. “You are a brave, brave man, Mr McKenzie,” she said sincerely. It took grit, honor and courage not to break under the intense pressure and horror of the job.
She saw Thor smile at last. “My mate, Aubrey, she's the brave one. She's a nurse,” he said with pride.
“So...the mob wants Brendon?” Nicole said, shaking her head. “That doesn't make sense. That's just crazy! He's just a baby, an orphan...”
“Brendon's mother,” Caleb began.
“Anna Ward's my client. I helped her with Brendon's adoption,” Nicole said. “She adopted Brendon from an orphanage. Haven Orphanage.”
Caleb nodded once and turned to Thor.
“They're doing it,” Caleb said through gritted teeth.
“Doing what?” Nicole asked.
Ethan stood up and addressed Nicole and Luke. “We are investigating Haven Orphanage at the moment. We have to tread carefully. In the meantime, the Black Bears will protect you and Brendon,” Ethan said to Nicole. “You'll stay with one of...”
“I want to stay with Luke,” Nicole said immediately.
“Of course,” Ethan smiled. “But I'm thinking it may be good to have another female around to help you care for the baby. I've spoken to Dylan. He agreed that you and Luke should stay with Jade and him for the time being. They have a spare bedroom. If you have no objections...”
“None. I'll love to spend time with Jade. Thank you, for...making the arrangements, and for protecting me and Brendon.”
“You're with Morgann Hill, Miss Forrest?” Ethan said.
“Yes. I called to take one week off. But...” Nicole wrinkled her nose. “I'll have to contact the office to ask the other lawyers to take over some of my more urgent cases. Mr Morgann won't be pleased. Maybe I'll be demoted, or fired.”
Ethan smiled. “Jace Morgann is an old friend. I'll talk to him and let you know your situation. And if you do find yourself out of a job, you are always welcome at the Black Bears Group. Caleb and I have been discussing about setting up a legal department within the Group. We've never let a client down but what we do is dangerous and risky. Injuries, damage to property, loss of life and limb...” He blew out a hard breath. “Things happen. We do our best, but there are risks we have to take. Comes with the job. We have to deal with lawsuits, insurance claims, and we don't really have the time to jump through all these legal hoops. We have a few law firms on retainer, but it would be great to have an in-house lawyer. You know, someone on the inside who's really part of the Black Bears Group.”
Nicole blinked at them. “Are you making me an offer I can't refuse?”
Ethan laughed. “Of course you can refuse, Miss Forrest. We're just hoping you'll think about it.”
“I certainly will. Thank you. And please, just call me Nicole.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Luke watched Nicole chat and laugh with his sister, Jade, and the other females who were crowded around her. They were in Jade and Dylan's apartment, and Cora, Prisha, Aubrey and Lindy had popped by in the evening to see Nicole and Brendon. Cora had made the introductions as soon as the women swooped into Jade's apartment.
“Hi! I'm Cora, Ethan's mate. And this is Prisha, Caleb's mate. And Aubrey, Thor's mate. And Lindy, Baxter's mate! We're so happy to finally meet you, Nicole!” Cora had gushed and hugged Nicole.
Cora, Prisha and Lindy brought their cubs along for the visit, and the three tots were super excited to see the baby. They climbed up Nicole's legs and sat on her lap and shoulders to peer at Brendon. Nicole looked completely at ease with three lively bear cubs scrambling all over her. She admonished them gently if they got too noisy or too rough, but otherwise, she simply let them be. Luke thought she looked like a confident mama bear.
Dylan was sitting at the dining table with him, watching the women in the living room.
“Nicole is taking all this really well,” Dylan remarked. “She's cool.”
“She is,” Luke agreed wholeheartedly. “I...”
“You haven't talked to her.”
Luke sighed and shook his head. “I know. I will.”
Dylan smiled and clapped him on the shoulder. “Like I said, she's cool. Have faith in her.”
Luke nodded. Dylan was right. Nicole deserved the truth. He didn't want to scare her, but it was clear that Nicole didn't scare easily.
Jade insisted the girls stay for dinner, but they all wanted to get home to their families. And the cubs were getting cranky and restless.
“We'll get them out of your hair,” Cora said, prying her son, Matt, off Nicole. Matt had shifted to bear form and he growled in protest as his mother tucked him under her arm. Matt wanted to stay and play with Nicole and the baby.
“Don't you growl at me, young man,” Cora said sternly, raising a warning finger. “We're going home for dinner right now. Daddy should be home by now.”
Matt stubbornly remained in bear form but raised his paw to wave when his mother told me to say goodbye to everyone. Prisha and Lindy gathered their little girls as well and kissed Nicole and Brendon before leaving.
Jade closed the door behind them and beamed at Nicole. “You must be exhausted. Those cubs can be a handful, but you handled them like a champ!”
Nicole laughed. “They're really cute, and fun. The kids were all so protective of Brendon, like he was their baby brother. It's...wonderful.”
Dylan got up and went to the kitchen with Jade. “I'll help you get dinner ready.”
Luke got up as well, but Dylan said, “Go talk to Nicole.” He gave Luke a meaningful look and closed the kitchen door behind him.
Luke went and sat down beside Nicole on the couch. She had a thoughtful look on her face as she rocked the baby to sleep in her arms.
“It's so nice to see Jade again. And those girls are awesome. They're all human women mated to powerful bear shifters. I think it takes a special kind of female to tame a bear, don't you think?” Nicole was looking at him expectantly, and Luke knew that she was waiting for him to share his secret with her, open up to her and let her in.
“Nicole.” Luke took a deep breath. “I need to talk to you. About what happened to me.”
She shifted the snoring baby in her arms and nodded.
“You know I always wanted to be a cop, right? Well, I was a cop in the city police force. And I was a damn good one.”
“I bet you were,” Nicole said, smiling.
Her smile fortified and assured him. Grimly, he plowed on. “I was having a game of basketball with my buddies when I fell badly and suffered a hairline fracture in my leg. I went to the hospital to get my leg fixed. It was just a simple treatment and I should have been in and out of the hospital in a day. The doctor made me stay overnight for observation and told me I could be discharged the next day.”
Nicole nodded, encouraging him to go on.
“Something happened during my stay at the hospital. Another doctor, Dr. Faizel, came and injected something into me. What Dr. Faizel did was unauthorized, illegal and wrong. He was working for a Mob boss, who was financing his research. I don't know why they chose me. Maybe I was fit and young and healthy.” Luke took a deep breath. “The injection changed my cell structures. I was to be turned into a lethal weapon for the Mob, a monster who could kill on command.”
Nicole swallowed but said nothing.
Luke went on determinedly, “What Dr. Faizel pumped into me was a serum containing a large dose of bear shifter cells. I was taken to an underground chamber hidden within the hospital premises where Dr. Faizel hoped to continue his experiments on me. The Black Bears rescued me from that hell, and watched over me. They told me that it might be possible to reverse the change in me, and the doctors in the other hospital did everything they could. I know they did.”
Luke closed his eyes briefly. “But they couldn't change me back. The shifter cells had taken root in my body and rewired my system. I wasn't the same, I wasn't human any more.”
“But you are, Luke. You are the same Luke I knew as a kid. The same kind, gentle boy I've always loved,” Nicole said fervently.
Luke shook his head. “There's an animal, a beast in me. A big, raging, deadly bear. I didn't want to become a killer, a murderous monster. I begged the doctors to terminate my life, but they refused. So I climbed onto the window ledge and prepared to end my nightmare. But Thor saved me, and the Black Bears took me under their wing and assigned Dylan as my mentor. They stood by me, guided me and helped me through my Change. They trained me and taught me how to control my bear. They were patient with me and they gave me the space and time to heal and get back on my feet.”
“But I bet they gave you some tough love too,” Nicole said, quirking a lopsided smile.
Luke barked out a laugh. “They sure did! The training was grueling and demanding. It was tough, and Dylan didn't mollycoddle me. But he was a good mentor. The best.”
Luke looked up into Nicole's shining eyes and said softly, “The Black Bears saved my life. I am a bear shifter now, Nicole. I am part of the Black Bears clan, and...”
“They're your family,” Nicole said. “And I can see that you're very proud to be a part of this close-knit, supportive, wonderful clan. I've met most of the Black Bears. I've even met their mates and cubs. And I love them!”
The kitchen door opened and Jade and Dylan stepped out with steaming bowls. “Dinner's ready,” Dylan announced.
Jade came to relieve Nicole from her mothering duties. She gathered the baby up and murmured, “I'll put him to bed. You just sit down and eat, Nicole.”
Luke knew his sister had been eavesdropping on their conversation when he saw tears glisten in Jade's eyes. Quietly, Jade kissed Nicole on the cheek and whispered, “Thank you.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Luke and Dylan walked into the office together. Ethan had called Dylan and told him that all the intel on Haven Orphanage had come in. They would have to move fast to save the children.
Ethan assigned Trevor and Baxter to guard Nicole and Brendon. The two of them arrived at the apartment just before Luke and Dylan stepped out. They came armed with boxes of diapers, baby toys and infant formula.
“The females in the office ordered us to bring these,” Baxter grumbled.
When Nicole stuttered and confessed that she didn't know how to change a diaper, Baxter had crowed proudly, “I'll teach you! Lindy fed our little girl, but I was the one on diaper duty at night. I can change a diaper in under thirty seconds. That's the record to beat,” he challenged Nicole.
Nicole accepted the challenge readily, and Luke chuckled as he left them to it. Nicole and Brendon were in good hands.
Three teams were already assembled in the large conference room when Luke and Dylan arrived. Ethan came in and stood at the head of the long table.
“We're going to have to move in quick and get the children out. All the children,” Ethan said.
There were nods and murmurs round the table.
Ethan glanced down at the report in his hands and said, “Our suspicions have been proven. Alberto Birns is behind this.” Ethan looked straight at Luke and said, “Yes. Dr. Faizel, the doctor who injected Luke with that shifter serum was working for Alberto Birns. Alberto is the Mob boss who financed that whole experiment and operation.”
Eyes swiveled to Luke, and Luke could feel the charged atmosphere in the room.
“We'll get him this time,” Thor swore. “Alberto went into hiding and we've been trying to flush him out.”
“And the bastard is targeting children now,” Luke said through clenched teeth. To put a child through the harrowing ordeal that he had gone through—it was unthinkable.
“Yes. The Mob selected children to be injected with a new, more potent serum. The children will grow at an accelerated pace, and they will become stronger, bigger and faster than ordinary humans. Some of them may be able to shift, because the serum contains some shifter cells,” Ethan answered. “The Mob is growing its very own squad of special bodyguards and hitmen in Haven Orphanage.”
“Brendon,” Luke said suddenly. “Brendon was injected with the serum, wasn't he? That's why they want him. The orphanage Director made a mistake and allowed Anna Ward to adopt him.”
Ethan nodded. “The orphanage Director, Madam Dixon, is a very rich woman, according to her bank records. The Mob has been paying her off to turn a blind eye to what they're doing to the children under her care.”
Curses flew around the room and Ethan held up his hand for silence. “We need to get all the children out. We don't know which ones have been injected. Dylan, Paige.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
“Get your teams ready. The building will be guarded. We have to move qui
ckly and carefully. We have to make sure none of the children are injured.”
“Yes, Alpha!”
“Thor, we have information on Alberto Birn's location. The police will be moving in. They requested backup from the Black Bears. Gather your team and meet Detective Kenner at the station.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
As everyone began to move out, Ethan stopped Luke at the door.
“You have a choice, Luke,” Ethan said in a low voice. “Do you want to join Thor's team and take down Alberto Birns? Or do you want to go with Dylan to get the orphans?”
Luke knew that Ethan was giving him the chance to go after the Mob boss who forced the Change on him. Maybe his alpha thought that he would find closure by assisting in the capture of Alberto Birns. But Luke had found his peace and he didn't need closure. He had taken an oath to serve and protect the city when he became a cop. He was a Black Bear now, and he was proud to do that duty.
“I'll stay with my team, Alpha,” Luke said. “I'll focus on the children.” The future.
Ethan nodded once.
“Go.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Luke flattened himself against the wall and waited for the signal. Dylan's team was spread out on the left side of Haven Orphanage, while Paige's team covered the right.
Haven Orphanage was a three-story brick building situated at the far edge of the city. Behind the orphanage was a low grassy hill and there was a long winding driveway leading up to the main entrance. There were a few old abandoned buildings flanking the orphanage, and some small houses down the street.
Luke heard Dylan's voice through his earpiece. “Now.”
The Black Bears moved silently and swiftly towards the orphanage. They entered through the back door and flowed through the dingy kitchen.
A few children were there, scrubbing the pots and pans. Dylan put a finger to his lips and spoke quietly to the children, “We're here to save you. We're...”
Bear's Match (Bear Heat Book 6) Page 6