by Amber Kell
“I found him.” Talan rushed into the room. “She checked into the Where Motel with another female. The owner hasn’t seen James, but that doesn’t mean he’s not there.”
“Do we know anything about her pride?” Lou asked. “If they are kidnapping males that brings up all kinds of warning flags.”
Talan nodded. “When I heard she was back in town I had KC run up her name. She’s been with a pride in Spokane, apparently it is run by a ruling female. They only bring men in for breeding then toss them out. They have a horrible reputation, so much that no more pride males will deal with them.”
“She did say her alpha was female,” Andrew agreed.
Chen froze. There were always more pride males than females needing a place to live. If no male would touch them, there was something going on. “What do you think they are doing to the males?”
Talan shrugged. “It’s pretty hard to piss off male lions when it comes to breeding, but we don’t have time to track one down and interrogate him. We’ve got to go get James. We have to be smart about this though. If they feel cornered, they might hurt him.”
“She’d hurt her own son?” Lou asked.
“She abandoned him as a baby. I don’t think we can count on her maternal instincts kicking in,” Andrew said.
“We’ll get him back even if I have to crush a few lion heads.” Lou growled.
“I’m coming along,” Andrew said. “I warned her I had a new rifle to try out.”
Chen had never heard his mate sound so vicious. His cock hardened behind his zipper. This might not be the best situation, but his mate was damn sexy when he took charge.
* * * *
The hotel didn’t look like much. Chen eyed it through his binoculars. The others stood beside him doing the same. They were tucked behind a small group of trees across from the motel.
“There’s her car. If she’s hurt my son, I’ll put a bullet in her head.” The coldness in Andrew’s voice snapped Chen’s attention back to his mate.
“Hey, we’ll get him back.”
“Technically she’s in my territory. I can challenge her for taking one of my pride mates. We need to talk to James and make sure he didn’t go willingly,” Talan said.
“You think he might have agreed to go with her?” Andrew asked.
“He has a good point,” Lou said. “James is a curious kitty. If his mother said she wanted to talk, he might have gone with her to see what she wanted.”
“Want us to fly down there and see if we can peek in the window?” Chen offered.
Marlen nodded his agreement with that plan.
“That’s not a bad idea,” Talan said.
“It sure is. What if they get hurt?” Andrew said.
Chen wondered if Andrew noticed he was touching them. Andrew rarely initiated contact. He accepted their caresses but never started anything. He exchanged a smile with Marlen, who also didn’t point out Andrew’s new affection.
“They won’t see us,” Marlen boasted.
Chen nodded his agreement.
“Fine. But if you’re injured, I’m not going to be happy.”
Marlen kissed Andrew’s cheek. “We’ll be careful.”
“We’re always careful,” Chen agreed.
“I don’t want to sacrifice you to save James. Why can’t I have you all safe?” Moisture shimmered in Andrew’s eyes, but he didn’t let the tears fall.
Chen kissed Andrew, a quick peck of affection. “We can take care of ourselves. Don’t worry about us, concentrate on James. This is what we excel at.”
Andrew examined Chen’s expression. He didn’t know what his mate saw, but after a few minutes Andrew nodded. “Okay. Come back safely or I’ll have to go kick some lion butt.”
“You think you can take on a lion?” Talan asked, his voice challenging.
“Well, not you, Talan, but a regular lion. If I had my gun.” Andrew lifted his rifle.
“Easy, Talan. He’s not trying to take over your pride. I think he’s got his hands full with his wrens,” Lou said to the ruffled lion.
Andrew laughed. “Yeah, I definitely do.”
Chen smiled. Talan had refused to let Adrian come because his impulsive wolf could’ve got hurt. He’d reasoned the smaller the group, the better their chances. Adrian had reluctantly agreed.
“Are we done chatting?” Lou growled. The bear shifter had a wild glint in his eye as if he were ready to run down there and get his mate back.
“Sorry.” Chen turned to his nest mate. “Ready?”
Marlen nodded. They started to remove their clothing. Andrew grabbed them before they had more than their shirt off. “What are you doing?”
“We can’t exactly shift with our clothes on, the shirt alone would weigh us down,” Chen explained trying to keep his patience. “You’ve been around shifters before.”
“Yeah, sorry.” Andrew glared at the other shifters.
Talan raised his hands. “We’re turning.” He motioned towards the others.
Amid rolled eyes and good-natured ribbing, the other two men turned around.
“Now you can strip down,” Andrew announced.
“You’ll have to get used to this eventually,” Marlen said.
“Maybe. Or maybe you’ll just have to get used to changing in our bedroom then flying off,” Andrew countered.
Chen planted a hard kiss on Andrew’s lips. “We’ll be right back, beloved.”
Reaching into his mind, he transformed. After trilling to Marlen, he flew away.
The motel showed sign of age. The cheery paint job didn’t cover the fact the building was maybe a year or two from falling apart completely. He settled on an overgrown rose bush outside a window and peered inside the gap in the curtain.
A vibration on his branch heralded Marlen’s landing.
He chirped quietly in greeting, not wanting to draw too much attention.
Hopping closer to the window, he peered inside. James lay on one of the double beds, one woman sat on the other. Where had the other gone?
“Gotcha,” a female voice said right before the world went dark.
Marlen screeched beside him. Chen tumbled through the air, crashing into a cloth barrier that smelt of cotton. They’d been captured. Marlen slammed into him. Before he could get his bearings, they were carried away. The sound of a door closing alerted them that they’d been carried inside the motel room. She must’ve used a pillowcase to capture them—they’d been foolish to not have heard her coming. They’d become too cocky about not being detected. They’d forgotten that James’ ex knew they were wrens.
“Is that them?” a different female voice asked.
“Yes, foolish birds. Just so you know, I’ve tied this off with rope. If you transform, you might hurt yourself.” Juliet’s tone indicated she hoped they would attempt the transformation.
“How many people do you think they brought with them?” the unknown female asked.
Juliet shrugged. “Who cares? James isn’t a proper lion, so he has no pride to back him up. Only his father is going to miss him and Andrew will do anything I want while I hold James and his mates hostage. He’ll be putty in my hands.” She purred.
Chen screeched his anger. Now that they’d captured them, he didn’t need to be quiet.
“Hush or I’ll eat you!” Juliet growled.
He held back the angry barrage of scolding chirps he wished to give. There wouldn’t be much time before their lover came for them. It didn’t occur to him even once that Andrew wouldn’t try to rescue them.
A loud roar startled them.
Talan.
“I thought you said he’d be agreeable. What are we going to do with an unconscious man? We can’t exactly drag him home on the plane,” the unknown lion said.
The wrens were plopped down on a hard surface, the woman indifferent to their care.
“I said he’d do it. I didn’t say he wouldn’t need persuading,” Juliet said.
The sound of a slap and someone hitting the wall
had Chen wincing.
“We can’t keep him drugged forever! We need a male to inseminate our girls, but you had to have a gay son.” Loud snaps indicated bones were being broken. The still unnamed lion shifter continued her rant. “Why can’t you do one thing right?”
“S-sorry, Mistress.”
“I should’ve known any boy of yours would be as useless as you. We just needed a few more litters to last through the winter. You’ll have to convince him to do the right thing for his family, or I’ll get rid of him like I did the others.” The she-lion growled.
Chen’s stomach swirled. The picture was becoming clear and he didn’t like it. No matter what Juliet had done, she didn’t deserve this. No one deserved to be treated like that.
A bear roar reached Chen’s ears.
“What the fuck is that?” the she-lion snarled.
Chen heard the door open then slam shut again.
It wasn’t until the alpha lion’s footsteps faded that Juliet spoke again. “You two watch over James, okay? And Andrew. They both deserve better than what I gave them. I can’t let her do this anymore. I’ve let her torture me long enough.”
Chen chirped his agreement. They would take care of their mate and his son.
Marlen added his own song.
“Good. Andrew will let you out when he comes. I can’t take the chance she’ll see you.”
The sound of the door opening was followed by the crackle of broken bones. With her injuries, changing from human to lion must’ve been excruciating, but she didn’t complain.
The soft padding of lion paws headed away from them, leaving them in silence.
Chapter Five
“Where are they?” Andrew paced back and forth. His lovers had vanished into the motel with Juliet. Talan had grabbed Andrew when he’d tried to run after his mates.
“We have to be cautious,” Talan said.
The sound of a roar echoed through the air.
“I know you’re out there. Come and get your birds if you can,” a woman screamed. Her words ended on a screech worthy of a bird shifter.
“This bitch is mine!” Lou stripped down then shifted. He let out a challenging growl.
“Lou,” Talan said.
The large grizzly turned to face the alpha.
“Be careful. James won’t like it if you get killed.”
The grizzly chuffed his amusement.
“Yeah, I know she’s only a cat.”
Andrew bit his lip. His mates were missing and James’ mate was going into trouble. He turned to Talan. “What do you want me to do?”
“Honestly, I want you to stay put. I don’t want the wrens to be upset with me if you’re injured. I like my eyes just where they are. Keep an eye on things. If she has backup, you can start trying out your rifle.”
“Are you going in?”
Talan shook his head. “I’m not going to get in Lou’s way. It’s his mate and he deserves to rescue him. If it looks like he’s being overpowered, then I’ll do something.”
Andrew lifted his binoculars to watch the encounter.
“I wasn’t sure about you, Doc, but I have to say you’re growing on me,” Talan said.
“Glad to hear it.” Andrew knew the alpha disliked how he’d managed James’ shifting, but Talan hadn’t been there when his young son had screamed from the pain. Or when James had almost been stuck in a half-shifted shape.
Talan chuckled and patted Andrew on the back. “You don’t care if I like you or not. You only care how I treat your son. That’s why I like you.”
Andrew shook his head. He’d never understand shifters.
Turning his attention back to the trouble at hand, he watched the psycho she-lion transform into her animal form and attack Lou. She had to be crazy. Lions were strong, but they weren’t bear strong. Lou swiped at the lion, sending her flying across the open field in front of the motel. Andrew watched her stand back up and attack again. Another lion emerged from the house and stood between Lou and his opponent.
Andrew dropped the binoculars and readied the gun. Before he had the sight lined up, the new lion attacked the alpha lion instead of Lou. Andrew’s jaw dropped open as the lions battled and the sounds of low growls and high-pitched screams reached them. Andrew didn’t know which lion he should shoot. They mixed together in a swirl of fur and claws.
One lion threw the other against the tree and when she turned to attack again, Lou swiped her with his claws and ripped open her chest. She lay still.
There were no second chances when it came to stealing a bear’s mate. The lions changed back. Lou’s attacker reverted into an unknown woman while the lion by the tree shifted into Andrew’s ex-wife. Cursing, Andrew dropped his gun and ran down the hill. He needed answers.
He reached the lions and dropped to his knees beside Juliet. “Where is he?”
It took a moment for her gold eyes to focus.
“Asleep.” She clutched at his shirt. “Watch over James. Tell him I love him.”
“Then why did you leave us?”
“Because she made me. I was supposed to get pregnant. I wasn’t supposed to love you both.” Her fingers tumbled away and the light dimmed from her eyes.
“Juliet,” Andrew whispered, wondering what had happened to her. He stroked her cheek. Tears dripped down his face and regret stabbed at him with sharp knives of bittersweet memories.
A large hand gripped his shoulder. “Let’s go.”
Andrew nodded. He stood and carefully didn’t look directly at the naked bear shifter.
“Eventually you will get used to us being naked,” he rumbled.
“Somehow I don’t think so,” Andrew said. Brushing past Lou, he entered the small motel room. Loud chirping led him to a pillowcase tied off with a bit of rope. It took him a few minutes to unravel the binding and free the birds. The small wrens chirped happily up at him. “Hello, my mates.”
Relief coursed through him. They didn’t appear injured and no feathers were out of place.
In a blink, he became the centre of a wren sandwich. He relaxed against them. Glancing over, he saw Lou leaning over an unconscious James.
“I’ve got to check on my son.” The wrens released him immediately. They knew of his need to watch over his boy.
“Is he all right?” Lou asked. He hovered over James as if worried about touching him.
Andrew checked James’ vitals and nodded. “She just knocked him out. He doesn’t appear to be having any bad side effects. I think he can just sleep it off.”
“Good.” Lou picked up his mate in his muscular arms. Andrew didn’t get another word in as the bear shifter left the room with his prize.
Talan patted Andrew on the back. “Take your mates home. We’ll call you if there’s any change.
Chapter Six
Marlen smiled. He couldn’t help it. His two favourite people in the world were lying in bed together. They weren’t doing anything yet except smiling at each other and kissing between conversations, but for a wren, having everyone in his nest was a present of the highest level.
“Are you going to stand there and smile all night or are you going to strip down and join us? I warn you there is a no clothing standard for this bed,” Andrew teased. After two weeks of breaking apart the other pride and uncovering all her nefarious actions, they’d been too tired to do much to further their bond.
They had gone to the pride home of Andrew’s ex and had found female lions locked in cages. They’d been bred, then their cubs were sold to bring money to the pride house. Their conditions had been inhumane. Talan had turned them over to the shifter authorities to handle. The women needed counselling and places where they could feel safe. Some of them had watched their mates be killed when they’d challenged the alpha female.
Marlen pretended to pout. “What about my flannel jammies?”
“If you ever get anything flannel, I will burn it,” Chen vowed.
“But I get cold.” Marlen batted his eyelashes.
Andrew laughed
. “Come here, little bird, I’ll keep you warm, though I think you probably have more body heat than I do.”
That was an invitation he couldn’t resist. He climbed on top of the bed and snuggled against Andrew.
“Are you going to claim me anytime soon?” Andrew asked.
Marlen lifted his head. “Why? Are you missing the connection?” He didn’t dare hope their human could feel the mate bond.
“I think so.” Andrew frowned. “I feel more connected to Chen and I think it is because he and I have bonded, but we haven’t.”
“O-okay.” Marlen didn’t top. Ever. Chen had been kind when he said Marlen didn’t do it often. Wren shifters only had to be claimed by one member of the nest but apparently humans were different. Since Andrew couldn’t bond with Marlen, he had to step up to the plate and do the honours.
Chen gave him an encouraging smile. “It’ll be all right. Hey, Andrew could probably give you a blow job and get the same result.”
“You think?” Marlen’s anxiety eased a bit.
“Do I get a vote?” Andrew asked.
“What is your vote?” Marlen asked, curious.
Andrew trailed his hand down Marlen’s chest. “I want you to do me.”
“Okay. If-if you’re sure.”
“I’m positive.”
“Here, babe.” Chen handed over the lube.
Marlen fumbled with the cap and would’ve dropped it if Andrew hadn’t snatched it out of the air and handed it back. “Great reflexes.”
“Thanks.”
Marlen’s fingers shook. He didn’t know why. Andrew already belonged to them and he showed no signs of distress over the thought of Marlen fucking him.
“No problem, how do you want me?”
“On top and fucking me deep,” Marlen replied, trying to hide the nerves trembling through him.
Andrew pulled Marlen close. “If you truly don’t want to do this. I won’t make you. It’s supposed to be pleasurable for everyone.”