by Carol Lynne
“Someone had to have called Maquay earlier. I’d only been in the dorm for maybe ten minutes at most. Why do you think he wanted me to come over?”
Daniel shook his head. “He had to have known you wouldn’t go. My guess is he was just reminding you that he’s keeping tabs and his spies are still at work.”
“Well there was no need to remind me of that. You should’ve seen the looks I got when I went back to the dorm to get my stuff. I think if it hadn’t been for Suni, I wouldn’t have made it out of there alive.”
Hakan nodded. “You could be right. That’s the reason we warned you to stay away. Word is, a lot of the cougars think Ryker will put you in charge of the cougars since we’re friends. We’ve tried to dispel those rumors, but you know how word spreads.”
Jarek chuckled. “Look at me. Do I look like Alpha material?”
Daniel rested his arms on the table and leaned toward Jarek. “You’ve been hanging out with giants. It’s warped your sense of self. You’re the same size as eighty percent of the male shifters.”
Jarek glanced down at himself. “Damn. You’re right. I’ve gotten so used to being carried around by Suni and Mica I did forget that I’m not the freak.”
“Are you calling me a freak?” Suni asked, coming into the room.
Jarek tilted his chin up for a kiss. “Yes. A big, strong, gorgeous macho freak, but a freak nonetheless.”
Suni grabbed Jarek under the arms and lifted him from the chair, setting him back down in his lap.
Jarek grinned. His mate seemed to be in a better mood than when he’d gone into Ryker’s study. “Finish your business?”
“Not quite. We thought it would be best to finish it out here.” Suni ended the sentence with a squeeze to Jarek’s mid-section.
Uh oh. “What’s going on?”
“If Maquay isn’t found guilty and ousted as Alpha, I’m going to challenge him.”
Jarek looked over his shoulder at his mate. “What? I thought you said you didn’t want to be Alpha?”
“I don’t, but I can’t sit by and do nothing while Maquay treats his people like he has been.”
Jarek turned to sit sideways on Suni’s lap. “They’re not his people. They’re your people.”
He couldn’t help but notice the small tick in Suni’s jaw. “You and Mica are my people. But if I have to do this to protect the two of you, it’s worth it.”
“What exactly will Maquay be on trial for, and how will it work?” Jarek asked Ryker.
“Well, as you know, Refuge doesn’t have a set charter of laws. I’ve actually got Toby and Jack working on that as we speak, but in the meantime, I’ve charged Maquay with cruelty and gross misconduct. He’ll be judged by all cougars, not just a selected few. If found guilty, he’ll have the choice of staying on the Refuge preservation, but living outside of town, or leaving Refuge for life on his own.”
“And Bly? What will happen to him?” Jarek asked.
“Bly hasn’t been charged with anything, so he’ll be free to do what he wants.” As Ryker spoke, Jarek noticed Suni’s arms tighten around Jarek’s waist to the point of pain.
“Ow,” he cried, pushing at Suni.
Suni kissed Jarek’s neck. “I’m sorry, baby. Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Are you? What was that about?”
“Nothing.”
“You almost broke me in half for nothing?” He knew his mate wasn’t being truthful.
Suni sighed. “I know the use of gold is going to come up during the trial.”
“And?” Jarek prompted.
“And I’m the one responsible for discovering how harmful it can be to cougars.”
Jarek could feel his lover’s heart racing. “How?”
Suni gave Jarek an apologetic look. “I gave Bly an old gold wedding band I’d found in an antique shop in Denver. I had no idea I’d ever meet you, and at the time, I loved Bly. But when I put the ring on his finger, it seared itself to his skin. By the time we managed to cut it off, the flesh had been burned away nearly to the bone. He became really sick, and I was forced to go and find Maquay. Evidently Maquay didn’t know the two of us had even been seeing each other.”
Jarek brushed Suni’s hip with his hand. “Is that when he branded you?”
Suni shook his head. “Not right away.” Suni glanced at the others at the table. “And it wasn’t Maquay that did it. It was Bly.”
Jarek gasped. “Bly?”
Suni nodded. “Several weeks after he recovered, I went to see him. He gave me something to drink that knocked me out. When I woke up, I was chained to a bed. They were both there, but it was Bly who was in the process of running the wedding band over my hip, spelling out the word Maquay had provided. I began screaming for help. Others lived in the area, I know they did, but no one came to help me.”
“So Bly did that to you to get back at you? Didn’t he know it had been a mistake? That you gave him the ring out of love?” No wonder Suni had tensed when Ryker told them Bly hadn’t been charged.
“At the time, he seemed to understand, but evidently in my absence over the following weeks, Maquay had managed to convince him otherwise. He truly is his brother’s puppet. If you allow him to stay, you might as well allow Maquay to remain in Refuge.”
* * * *
Mica woke to the ringing phone on his bedside table. He removed his hand from Suni’s hip to reach blindly for the offensive intrusion. “Hello?”
“It’s Jack. Maquay’s missing. We think he ran up into the mountains.”
Mica sat up and nudged Suni. “Maquay’s run off.”
Suni tossed back the covers and was on his feet before Mica finished the sentence. “I’ll find him.”
“I want to go, too,” Jarek said, crawling out of bed.
“Did you hear that?” Mica asked Jack.
“Yeah. I’d say Suni would be a good guide since he knows the mountains so well, but I don’t think it’s safe for Jarek.”
“I agree. I’ll handle it and meet you at your place in about thirty minutes.”
“Sounds good. I’ve got a few others to call.”
Mica hung up and held his hand out to Jarek. “Come here.”
Jarek glanced at Suni before sitting on the bed beside Mica. “You’re not gonna let me go, are you?”
“Jack thinks it’s too dangerous, and I agree.”
“So do I,” Suni added, joining them on the bed.
“But I can take care of myself,” Jarek tried to argue.
“With most things, that’s true, but you’ve seen what Maquay did to me. I’m not saying you’re weaker than I am, but he doesn’t fight fair.” The thought of Jarek going up against Maquay sickened Mica. He cupped Jarek’s face and kissed him. “I love you. I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you.”
Jarek rubbed his face against Mica’s hand. “Okay. I’ll stay here.”
Although Jarek sounded resigned to not going, Mica needed to make sure. “You’ll stay inside with the doors locked, right?”
Jarek nodded. Mica pulled back and waited for Suni to whisper words of love in Jarek’s ear. The two of them kissed for several moments before they broke apart.
Mica got out of bed and began to dress. He glanced at Suni and smiled. “You might want to put on more than a pair of sweats.”
Suni shook his head. “I plan on tracking him in shifted form, no clothes needed.”
After strapping on his shoulder harness and checking his gun, Mica gestured to the living room. “I’ll get my boots on and then I’ll be ready.”
Suni nodded, pulling Jarek to his feet and into his arms.
Mica found his boots and sat on the couch to put them on. He wondered if Ryker would let them use deadly force if necessary. He made a mental note to ask Jack before they set out.
“Ready?” Suni asked, coming into the room with Jarek at his side.
“Yeah, let me grab a jacket.” He shrugged into his coat and turned to face Jarek. “There’s a radio in the kitchen. You ca
n turn it to channel thirty-six and listen to everything that’s going on with the search.”
“I’ll be fine. Just find him.” Jarek gave Mica another kiss.
Mica squeezed Jarek’s ass before backing away. “Be back before you know it.”
Getting in the truck, Mica turned to Suni. “Can you beat Maquay in a fight?”
Suni nodded. He squirmed in his seat, his body refusing to remain still. “I need to shift.”
Mica pulled out of the dirt driveway and onto the road leading to town. “I know, but we need to talk to Jack first. I want to get permission to use deadly force if we have to.”
Suni snorted. “I guarantee if the two of us meet up, it won’t be a question of getting permission.”
Mica turned into Jack’s driveway. He cut the engine and leaned across the seat to kiss Suni. “All the same, I’d rather have permission. You getting into trouble for dealing with that bastard isn’t an option.”
Mica opened his door. Jack had a small group of guards gathered on the front porch. Mica shook his boss’s hand and gestured to Suni. “Jack, this is Suni, King of the Cougars.”
Jack bowed his head in respect before reaching out to shake Suni’s hand. “Thanks for helping us.”
“Maquay is someone that should’ve been taken care of a long time ago.”
Mica wasn’t surprised by the vehemence in his lover’s voice. He knew Suni felt guilty for hiding himself in the mountains while Maquay mistreated the cougar shifters at Refuge. Although Mica and Jarek had talked to Suni long into the night about the need for him to step up to his rightful position, Suni had yet to agree.
“Am I mistaken or are we using real guns for this?” Mica asked, nodding toward the side arm strapped to one of his guards.
“Maquay had his chance to do this in a peaceful manner, and he chose not to take it. Try to capture him alive, but don’t risk your own skin to do it,” Jack informed them.
Mica reached out and put his hand on the small of Suni’s back. “Suni wants to go in shifted form.”
Jack nodded. “I figured that would be the case. Just be careful.”
“I’ll be following him as close as possible. I can’t move nearly as fast, but I’ll try my best.”
Suni’s eyes narrowed as he stared at Mica. “Don’t follow too close. Maquay can be a sneaky shit, I wouldn’t put it passed him to double back and get to you.”
“Agreed.” Mica wanted to lean in and kiss Suni, but knew it wasn’t the time or place. Gods, I’m a lovesick fool.
* * * *
Jarek sat glued to the radio. The last transmission had been from Mica, telling Jack and the others that Suni had picked up Maquay’s scent entering Mullin’s Gorge. Mica had warned they probably wouldn’t have radio reception until they were out of the gorge, but Jarek kept hoping.
“Was that a gunshot I just heard?” Jack asked over the radio.
Jarek’s chest tightened. He leaned closer to the radio like he could force someone to answer Jack’s question.
“Affirmative. Rifle fired. Not one of ours,” someone answered.
“Shit!” Jarek jumped off the kitchen stool. All he could think about was one of his men bleeding to death at the bottom of the gorge. He ran out of the house, intent on finding out what was happening and ran right into Bly. Before he could shift, a cloth covered his mouth. The last thing he remembered was slumping to the porch.
Chapter Seven
Mica was trailing Suni as fast as he could down the steep wall of the gorge when he was knocked off his feet when something slammed into his shoulder. A split second later, he heard the unmistakable sound of a rifle firing.
Moving as fast as he could, he rolled and scooted his way behind a large fallen log. One glance down and he knew he was in trouble. Blood was already soaking through his thick coat. He tried to get out of the coat for a better look at his wound, but the pain was unbearable. He cried out as he attempted to push past his agony.
After struggling for several moments, he managed to free one arm. He peeled the coat back as far as he could without disturbing his injured shoulder, and began assessing the injury. Although he wasn’t a doctor, it wasn’t hard to see he’d either need to find a way to slow the bleeding, or die before help could reach him.
Through clenched jaws, he pulled at the bottom of his uniform shirt until he was rewarded with a ripping sound. He was in the process of trying to stuff the piece of material into the wound when he heard something running towards him.
Mica managed to hide himself further behind the log as he blindly reached for his gun.
“Mica!”
Mica peered over the log as Suni burst around the bend. “Over here.”
Suni jumped over the fallen tree and knelt beside Mica. “Fuck!” Suni’s hands began to shake as he began shredding Mica’s shirt. “I need to get you out of here.”
Mica shook his head. “If you can help me slow the bleeding, I can get out on my own. Go after Maquay.”
“I’m not leaving you here like this.”
Mica reached out and wrapped his hand around the back of Suni’s neck, pulling him in for a deep, but brief, kiss. “We need to make sure Maquay gets rid of the rifle. If he doesn’t, you don’t stand a chance. Call him out. Challenge him!”
Suni stared into Mica’s eyes for several moments. “I’ll lead him away first.”
“Good idea because I won’t be moving very fast once I get going.”
“If I don’t make it back…”
“Then we’re both likely to be dead. Remember that when you’re fighting Maquay. You may well be the only thing standing between him and Jarek.”
Suni leaned in for one last kiss. “I love you, Stone Man.”
“Love you, King.” Suni shifted into the powerful black panther Mica loved and disappeared in the blink of an eye. Mica panted through the pain as he waited to hear Suni’s challenge.
“Maquay! This is your King. Come out and challenge me like the Alpha you pretend to be. Rifles are a coward’s way to fight.”
Keeping his arm plastered against his body, Mica stood and slowly began to work his way up the steep incline. He was halfway up when he heard the unmistakable sounds of two cougars locked in battle.
Mica stopped and closed his eyes. “Please protect my love, Mother,” he prayed.
By the time he crawled his way out of the gorge, he was barely conscious. He unclipped the radio from his belt. “Jack?”
He heard a crackling sound as he struggled to stay awake, the forest around him going in and out of focus.
“Where are you?” Jack asked.
Shivering, Mica gave him a rough idea of his location. He knew if Jarek were listening in, he’d be beside himself with worry. “Jarek? I hope you can hear me. I want you to know I’ll be fine. It’s just a shoulder wound.”
Mica struggled to stay awake. He heard Jack and the others coming his way. “I love you, Jarek, and I’ll see you soon.”
The radio dropped from Mica’s hand as he lost consciousness.
* * * *
On his side, Suni was aware of approaching footsteps, but he still hadn’t healed enough to do anything about it.
“Suni!”
Although they’d only met briefly, Suni recognized Jack’s voice. “Here!”
Jack and a guard broke through the tree line and stopped. “Fuck.”
Suni could only imagine what he must look like to Jack. “He put up one hell of a fight.”
“I can see that.” Jack crouched down beside Suni. “You gonna make it?”
Suni nodded. “Just giving the old body time to heal. Is Mica okay?”
“Yeah. They loaded him onto a truck and took him back to town. He should be fine. The bullet went all the way through.”
Staring up into Jack’s eyes, Suni could tell there was something the man was withholding. He couldn’t see Maquay, and an uneasy feeling came over him. The fighting between the two of them had been unlike anything Suni had ever witnessed. By the end of t
he battle, they were both insane with blood lust, ripping and tearing whatever they could sink their teeth into.
“Please don’t tell me Maquay got away.”
Jack shook his head. “Not a chance. The wounds you inflicted aren’t recoverable.”
“Good.” Suni closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on healing his injuries.
“There is something though.”
Suni opened his eyes. This time, the expression on Jack’s face was easier to read. “Jarek.”
“Yeah. Toby called me on the radio. When he heard about Mica, he drove over to the cabin to pick Jarek up and take him to the clinic, but there was no one there.”
Fear like he’d never known crawled its way up Suni’s spine. “Where’s Bly?”
Jack shook his head, refusing to make eye contact with Suni. “We can’t find him either.”
“Shit!” Suni held out his hand. “Help me up.”
Jack put a hand on Suni’s shoulder. “Give yourself more time. You won’t do Jarek any good going up against Bly with anything short of one hundred percent.”
Suni’s head knew Jack was right, but his heart screamed to run after his mate. He’d looked into the mad eyes of Bly before, and didn’t wish the same on anyone, especially not the man he loved.
Suni lay back and closed his eyes, taking himself deep into a healing trance. He concentrated on each muscle, each tear, feeling the tingling burn as they began to heal.
When he felt his breathing returning to normal, he opened his eyes and sat up. “I’m ready.”
* * * *
“Wake up!”
Jarek opened his eyes and turned his head to the side as the contents of his stomach emptied onto the familiar dirt floor beside the pallet of furs. When everything that could come up had, he studied the shackles on his wrists.
“They’re stronger than you are, believe me.”
Jarek lifted his gaze as he readied himself to shift. He may not be the biggest cougar, but he sure as hell had a better chance than he did in his man skin.
Bly surprised him by lifting his arm away from his side, a large handgun aimed at Jarek’s head. “Don’t even think about it. You’ll have a bullet between your eyes before the first claw breaks through the skin.”