Fall in Love

by Anthology

  Logan swallowed. He was taking Grif’s words very seriously.

  Maybe they weren’t as bloodthirsty as she feared.

  “Good to know,” Logan said in a subdued tone.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Like clockwork, about an hour later, there was a knock on the cabin’s front door. Logan had left earlier to gather his Pack and make sure everyone was accounted for. Nobody would be running loose until Timmons had been dealt with. Steve and Matt were both outside—Steve on the perimeter, hidden in the tree line and Matt in the barn.

  Belinda had stayed up in her room. Grif didn’t like the fear he could smell on her, but there was nothing he could do about it now. On second thought—he was doing the best he could to eliminate that fear once and for all by bringing the situation with Timmons to a head. Once he was gone, then Belinda might be able to lose that fear and embrace joy again. It was one of his most fervent wishes.

  Lindsey had remained downstairs, only going upstairs to check on Belinda from time to time and bring her a tray with snacks and pop. Grif liked the way Lindsey supported not only him, but his little sister. Lindsey had a soft spot for Belinda, which boded well for their future as a family. And Belinda already looked up to Lindsey, quite obviously happy to have a female in the immediate family again.

  Grif opened the door, knowing it had to be one of Moore’s men. Nobody else could’ve gotten past both Steve and Matt without there being some kind of disturbance. Sure enough, the face that greeted him was a familiar one.

  “Arlo,” Grif greeted the man, offering his hand. “Good of you to come.”

  The other man didn’t smile, but then, neither did Grif. This wasn’t a happy reunion. Or at least, the reason Grif was seeing one of Jesse Moore’s top men on his doorstep was not a happy one. Grif was relieved to have skilled backup. He knew Arlo’s background and abilities. Their odds of coming out of this intact had just increased exponentially because Arlo was just the tip of the spear. He was just a single representative of a force that was most likely even now deploying into the woods all around the house.

  “Glad to assist, Alpha.” Arlo nodded, one hand resting on the assault rifle slung across his chest with easy familiarity. He was in cammo from head to toe and looked ready for anything.

  “Come in,” Grif invited, opening the door wider and inviting the ex-soldier into the cabin.

  He wouldn’t ask Arlo to remove his weapon. The man was a shifter. His entire body was a weapon. If he meant harm to anyone inside the cabin, Grif would deal with it, but pigs would sooner fly than Arlo would betray him. Grif was staking more than just his life on that belief, but he didn’t think he was wrong.

  Arlo entered and his glance darted around the room, taking in every possible threat while Grif closed the door and then led him toward the coffee table they’d been using for laptops and data collation. Arlo sat on the edge of the sofa at Grif’s gesture and looked quickly at the data the brothers had collected.

  “Jesse sends his regards. He’s on another mission at the moment, but the rest of the team is at your disposal,” Arlo reported as he read through the few reports they’d printed out.

  “How many men?”

  Grif felt a moment of panic. They needed every skilled hand they could get on this. Timmons we too slippery. He’d escaped expert trackers for months. He could easily slip away this time too, and Grif wouldn’t allow that. This threat to his family had to end here and now.

  “Two squads surrounding the perimeter of the cabin. I’ve got another squad out hunting with some of the wolves. If they find the target, orders are to herd him toward us here.” Arlo finally looked up at Grif, having finished with the reports. “Do you have any objections to that, Alpha? I figured you’d want to witness the capture or kill.”

  “Witness? Hell, I want in on it!” Grif let a little of his frustration show.

  Arlo quirked a smile in response. Grif knew Arlo understood how Grif needed to see justice done with every fiber of his being. He wanted his teeth on Timmons’s neck. He wanted his claws in Timmons’s flesh. The beast wanted vengeance.

  “Understood.” Arlo nodded respectfully and stood. “I’ve got eyes in the air as well as on the ground.”

  Grif took that statement to mean some of the raptor shifters that were rumored to be part of Moore’s team were actively pursuing Timmons’s trail. All the better.

  “No word yet, I presume?” Grif asked as they stood. Arlo didn’t seem in a hurry to leave.

  Arlo tapped his ear. “Nothing worth reporting yet, but I expect some action soon. I assume the females are here. Do you want them extracted?”

  “I’m not going anywhere.” Lindsey’s voice came from the doorway to the kitchen and Grif realized she’d been listening in. He sighed and realized she was right. He motioned for her to join them.

  “Arlo, this is Lindsey. My mate. Up ‘til a few days ago, she was completely human. Now, she’s cougar, but not used to it. Go easy on her.” The warning was couched in a friendly tone, but it was a warning nonetheless. Grif would brook no disrespect to his lady.

  “Ma’am,” Arlo nodded respectfully, though one of his eyebrows rose at Grif’s talk of her being a newly made cougar. Still, Arlo was discrete and didn’t ask the obvious question. There would be time for explanations later, if they all lived through this.

  “Nice to meet you,” Lindsey replied. “And I meant what I said.” She turned to Grif as she stood at his side. “I’m not leaving.”

  “It’s okay, kitten. I wasn’t going to send you anywhere. I think you and Belinda are both safest with me and my brothers. I trust your people, Arlo, but I don’t trust Timmons. He’s escaped expert trackers too many times before. He’s got skills and I don’t want to take any more chances than I have to with my sister or my mate. They stay.”

  “Understood,” Arlo nodded as if it didn’t matter to him one way or the other. It was clear he was deferring to Grif as the Alpha, and Grif appreciated it.

  Arlo reached into his pocket and came out with a small earpiece, handing it to Grif. He’d used many like it in his time as a Green Beret, though they’d gotten smaller over the years.

  “I stopped on the way in and gave one to Steve as well,” Arlo said as Grif put the thing in his ear and did a com check.

  He could hear the intermittent reports from the team and it made him feel a lot better. They weren’t all alone in the wilderness anymore. There was a support team of skilled fighters ready to help defend and protect…and serve up justice to a creature who had escaped it for much too long.

  “I’ve also got one very special team working in town.” Arlo’s expression was a little more closed when he mentioned the last component of his group. Grif was instantly curious, but he knew enough not to ask for too many details about Moore’s men. They were secretive by nature to protect their civilian identities and loved ones. “Jason’s best tracker and a small support team. She’s got mad skills and is working on picking up the trail from the store where your brother had contact with Timmons. She got the scent from Logan’s people and is already on the job.”

  Grif knew his eyebrow rose as the idea of a female being allowed to work with Jesse Moore’s group. The fact that Arlo had been careful to note that the woman was Jason Moore’s tracker didn’t escape Grif. She wasn’t part of the merc team that reported directly to Jesse. Instead, she was part of the larger Pack that answered to Jason, Jesse’s brother and Alpha of the Wyoming wolf Pack, of which Jesse’s group was part.

  “I’m going to hang with Matt in the barn, if you have no objection. Use that as my base of operation. I’m leading the four teams we brought. Logan’s leading his group and liaising with me. We figured you’d call the shots from in here and we’d report up to you. Is that okay?”

  “Perfect.” Grif agreed with the command structure they’d come up with. It would avoid confusion among the groups and allow Grif to coordinate the effort as a whole while the subordinate commanders organized their own teams.

&n
bsp; “All right then. I suggest you hole up here ‘til we have some news. I’ve got a feeling for these things and I expect something within the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours.”

  Grif had learned to trust Arlo’s feelings. He had a sort of sixth sense about when action would strike that was well documented among the small group of elite ex-Spec Ops shifters. If he said it was going down in certain time frame, ninety-nine percent of the time, it was going down within that period.

  In a way, Grif was relieved to know Arlo had one of his famous feelings about this situation. It was good to know that something would happen soon.

  In another way, it scared the shit out of him. This could all go sideways very easily. There were a lot of people in the field and any one of them could be hurt or killed trying to help. Or Timmons could somehow infiltrate too far and manage to hurt his family—again. Grif vowed not to let that happen, but he knew better than anyone that the bastard had skills. Grif tried not to take anything for granted.

  He shook Arlo’s hand as the other man made to leave. “Thanks for coming in on this so quickly. I owe you.”

  Arlo chuckled. “Just wait ‘til you see the bill.”

  Grif laughed with him, knowing that whatever the mercs charged for their fast response, it would be well worth it. These guys were the best of the best and it was a relief to know they were out there, helping guard his family.

  The rest of the day was spent indoors and when it came time to turn in, Grif made sure the second shift of watchers was on duty and ready before he tucked Belinda in for the night. He then went with Lindsey to their room, but he was too on guard to make love to her. Anything could happen at any moment. He didn’t want to be caught with his pants down and too caught up in his mate to protect his family.

  Lindsey hugged him and he knew she understood. She was on edge too, though they discussed how they needed to sleep so they’d be fresh and alert the next day. Grif was trusting to Moore’s guys to keep them safe through the night. He’d trusted them before and knew he needed to trust them now so he’d be rested when it came time for action.

  As it turned out, action came a lot sooner than he expected.

  “Red Alert.”

  Grif woke to the sound of Arlo’s soft voice in his ear. He hadn’t removed the earpiece and he could hear tension in the team leader’s voice as he spoke.

  It was about three in the morning. Grif and Lindsey had been sleeping, but he came instantly awake, careful of making too much noise. He had to figure out what was going on before he started stomping around. It was too late not to wake Lindsey. She was rubbing her eyes at his side as he sat up in bed. He scanned the dark room and found no immediate threat, so he took the chance to communicate with Arlo through the earpiece.

  “Sit rep,” he demanded in a low rumble.

  “My tracker just followed Timmons’s trail to your front door. I think he’s in the cabin. We’re moving in. Will enter from all points on the first floor.” Grif could hear the soft sounds of fast movement on the other end. “I’m sending men to the roof as well. They’ll be at every window within the next three minutes. Get ready.”

  “I’m going to check Belinda,” Grif reported, already out of bed and going for his weapon. He’d gone to sleep in his T-shirt and sweats. He’d be able to shift without too much trouble if he needed to and he had a loaded .357 Magnum in his night stand.

  A moment later it was in his hand as he headed for the hall. Belinda’s room was two doors down on the hall and he cursed the distance between them. He didn’t see anyone in the hall, so he moved closer on swift, silent feet, knowing Lindsey was following behind. He could smell the scent of fear and concern, but she was staying with him, showing more courage than he would have imagined.

  He didn’t really want her with him, but he also didn’t want to let her out of his sight. In the end, he figured it was better to have her where he could see her and handle any threats first-hand.

  A noise came from behind the closed door to the room on the other side of the hall. Grif stilled, motioning to Lindsey to continue on to Belinda’s room while he checked the noise.

  He waited ‘til she was past him to throw open the door and bring his weapon to bear. He checked himself, seeing one of Arlo’s guys entering a little too noisily through the window. Grif cursed. This guy had to be a newbie—or maybe just unlucky. He’d have words with him later. For now, Grif was just glad he hadn’t opened fire without checking who it was first.

  A scream pierced the night. Lindsey’s scream, coming from Belinda’s room.

  Grif cursed and ran for the child’s room, his heart in his throat.

  Lindsey had pushed open the door to Belinda’s room as quietly as she could, surprised to find it ajar. But then she realized someone was there before her. A man’s form stood over Belinda, looking down at the sleeping girl.

  And then she saw the knife.

  She screamed. She didn’t know what else to do. She screamed bloody murder, knowing Grif and everyone else would come running.

  As she screamed, she moved out of the doorway and into the room. Timmons turned to face her. It had to be him. Nobody else would be carrying an unsheathed knife in Belinda’s room.

  A number of things happened simultaneously. Belinda woke up and jumped into the corner of her bed, crouching and changing into her cat. Good girl. Timmons whirled toward Lindsey and raised the knife, stepping toward her.

  Then Grif ran into the room and took Timmons’s attention off Lindsey. Grif was followed by another big man, dressed all in black. Grif tackled Timmons while Lindsey went to Belinda, her cat form shaking in fear.

  While the men struggled in the small space, Lindsey looked for a way out. The men were blocking the doorway. That left only the window. She didn’t like it, but Grif had said cats were good climbers. Seemed like now was the moment to find out how much truth there was in that claim.

  Lindsey pushed the window open as quickly as she could and beckoned Belinda over. The little cat didn’t need any coaxing. As furniture crashed behind them and men cursed and growled, tearing up the place, Lindsey looked out to find Arlo on the roof along with two cougars she recognized as Matt and Steve.

  She pushed Belinda out the window first, then squeezed through the small opening herself, in human form. The roof was relatively wide at this point and not too pitched. She’d be able to cling to it for a little while. At least long enough for things to settle down inside Belinda’s bedroom.

  Arlo met her. He was in human form too. Belinda was rubbing up against Matt, both in cat form. Steve was heading toward the window at a fast clip. He clearly wanted in on the fight.

  “My men are below. They’ll help you down from the roof. Go with Freddy. He’ll take care of you,” Arlo instructed, handing her off to another human-shaped, black-clad operative.

  Lindsey was torn. She didn’t want to leave Grif, but she knew he wouldn’t want her anywhere near the bad guy. And there was Belinda to look out for.

  With a last look back at the dark window where crashing sounds could still be heard loud and clear, she followed the man named Freddy toward the edge of the roof. She wasn’t quite sure how she was going to get down, but she watched Matt jump from one level of the roof to another, then to the porch roof, Belinda right behind him. Lindsey did the same, but wasn’t quite ready to jump off the porch roof the way the cougars had. She’d probably break a leg if she tried that in her human form and she wasn’t comfortable enough as a cougar yet to try it either.

  She sat on the edge of the porch roof, dangling her feet over the side. Looking down, it seemed much too far to the ground for her comfort.

  Freddy touched her shoulder. “I’ll go first and catch you. All you have to do is slide down. I’ll grab your legs and take you the rest of the way.”

  That sounded a lot better to her. Lindsey swallowed hard. “Thanks.”

  Freddy squeezed her shoulder once before hopping off the side. He landed on his feet, his knees bent to absorb the shock.
He made it look so easy, but he was clearly a shifter, and had been his whole life. Lindsey didn’t know what her newly-changed body could and couldn’t do just yet. She wasn’t about to chance jumping off a roof anytime soon.

  She followed Freddy’s encouraging gestures and slid slowly off the roof. There was a scary moment where she was in freefall before the solid man caught her around the thighs and stopped her descent. True to his word, he lowered her carefully to the ground and she did her best not to let her knees buckle. She didn’t want to appear any weaker to these shifters than she already had.

  “Where’s Belinda?” she whispered, aware of the dark shapes of people and animals all around them. There were many men carrying weapons and kitted out like commandos. She could only assume those were the guys Grif had called, finally showing themselves en masse.

  “She’s with Matt, heading for the barn,” the man she knew as Freddy answered in a low, gruff tone. He pointed and Lindsey could easily see the small cougar in the shadow of the larger one, loping toward relative safety.

  “What about Grif?” Her thoughts turned to the chaos she’d left inside Belinda’s bedroom.

  She watched Belinda’s tail disappear into the dark opening of the barn door and breathed a sigh of relief, knowing she’d be safe for the moment. Then her gaze switched to the upper story of the house behind her. Grif was still in there. She looked over at Freddy and saw him touching his ear, probably to indicate he was listening in on whatever was going down inside. He had one of those little earpieces.

  “They’re coming out now,” Freddy reported after a slight pause. “Target is subdued.”

  A sigh of relief escaped her as she moved toward the house. She took Freddy’s words to mean they’d captured Timmons, not killed him. She thought that was the best result. Her new, inner cat wanted blood, but her human side was glad it hadn’t been spilled inside the house.

  The front door opened and the man she’d only seen in shadow in the bedroom came out snarling. Grif and Steve were right behind him. They had each held one of his hands and one shoulder as they marched him out the door.