“Anyone want to fill me in?”
“Gary is somewhere in these woods. So are Tabby and Julian.”
William growled, the sound low and fierce. “He’s going after my daughter-in-law?”
“They’re not married.”
All three Bears turned and stared at Glory.
She crossed her arms defiantly over her chest. “They’re not.”
“She’s right. We’re mated. That’s much more permanent than marriage.” Though, if Tabby wanted to go through a ceremony, he’d be proud to stand up in church and recite his vows. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he considered insisting on it. It would be one more way to make it known she belonged to him.
Ryan rolled his eyes. “C’mon, Glory. Let’s go.” He took hold of her arm, ignoring her attempt to pull away from him. Bunny was pretty sure the attempt was automatic at this point. “They went that way.”
“Mm-hmm.” He looked into the Jeep and saw two piles of clothes. “And they shifted.” His eyes darkened. He did not like the thought of his Tabby seeing any male but him naked. He didn’t care that in the Packs and Prides nudity meant nothing during a shift. It meant something to him, dammit. His father never allowed his mother to run around naked, that was for sure.
Of course, she laughed at his growls and did what she damn well pleased, but his father didn’t exactly allow it.
“Follow me.” Ryan led the way, Glory stomping in her delicate looking boots right by his side.
Bunny hid a smile. Something told him she’d give his cousin hell, but in the end she’d be just what he needed.
Tabby growled. The son of a bitch had stayed downwind. He was still in human form, but he was naked and ready to shift at any moment.
“Wow, what a coincidence. Here I am, out for a leisurely run, and who do I run into but the fucking Outcast and her baby polar Bear.”
Tabby rolled her eyes. Julian was going to kick his ass just for the polar Bear comment.
She couldn’t attack, not yet. Not until he made a threatening move. She wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize her new place in the Pride, and kicking Gary’s ass without cause would definitely make problems for her.
The two idiots Gary took everywhere laughed. Hell, after six months in Halle, she still didn’t know their names. They’d moved to flank Gary, protecting their precious wannabe Alpha. Tabby snorted. Right. He’s an Alpha. And I’m a Teletubby.
Gary looked over her shoulder at Julian. “I have no quarrel with you, Bear. Back away and you won’t get hurt.”
Julian’s answer was the deep, throbbing roar of a black bear, echoing through the woods to be heard miles away.
Gary smiled. “So be it. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to fight a Bear.”
Gary and his buddies began to shift.
Bunny’s head lifted at the sound of the other Bear’s roar. “They’re farther than I thought.”
“They must have shifted.” William began tugging off his clothes. “You two go on ahead; I’ll guard my soon-to-be niece.”
“Not in this lifetime.” Glory stomped past William, stopping just short of Ryan.
Ryan just sighed and began to pull off his clothing. Bunny was already tugging off his own clothes, terrified that Gary had managed to catch Tabby before he could get to her. It didn’t matter that Julian was with her. Black Bears rarely won a fight with a Wolf Pack. They would run, knowing the Pack could take them down.
Maybe he thought because the Pack was so small that he’d be able to defend Tabby?
“Why are you getting naked?” Glory’s wide eyes brought him back to what they were doing.
“We can’t shift in clothes. If we do, we’ll get tangled, which makes us vulnerable to attack.” Ryan was completely naked. He stretched, muscles flexing, joints popping. Bunny rolled his eyes. Ryan was showing off for his mate.
From the poleaxed look on her face, he’d succeeded. Her gaze couldn’t decide which part of his body to settle on. Ryan tipped her chin up and planted a kiss on her open mouth. “Stay with Uncle Will. He’ll keep you safe.”
Her jaw snapped shut. “I can take care of myself.”
Ryan pointed behind him. “He can take care of you better.”
Once again her jaw dropped. Where Bunny’s father had been now sat a grizzly Bear calmly scratching its ear. “Oh.” She nodded at the huge Bear. Bunny’s father was the only one in the family who rivaled him in size. “Okay. I’ll, um.” She sat down hard, bouncing a little. “Sit. Stay. Got it.” She reached under her without moving her eyes off Will Bunsun and removed a rock, tossing it aside absently.
That’s going to leave a mark. From the look on Ryan’s face he’d enjoy healing it, too.
Bunny rubbed his chest and sighed. He was forced to heal the tattoo the rest of the way and hope for the best, otherwise it would heal when he shifted. God knew what would happen to the glorious picture if he did that.
He did not want to meet his mate if her Wolf looked like a Shar-Pei.
Bunny nodded at Ryan and began to shift. He could see the shock still on Glory’s face as the two men both turned into grizzlies.
The shock turned to disgust when a long Bear tongue swiped up her cheek just before the two Bears charged into the woods.
“Ew! Bear spit!”
Tabby was shocked when she hit the ground. Julian had batted her aside with one swipe of his paw before looming over her prone body. He snarled at the Wolves facing them, daring them to go after him.
They did, nipping at his flanks, trying to draw him away from her. He refused to go more than a few yards away, darting back to her when it looked like one of them might be ready to pounce. And every time she tried to stand, he pushed her back down with one paw, easily holding her in place. He was acting like a mama protecting her cubs. She growled up at him, demanding he let her go so she could fight. He couldn’t take on even this small a Pack by himself.
Julian looked down at her and shook his head. He wasn’t going to let her go.
Tabby bided her time, watching the Wolves harass Julian. Julian moved, going after one of the Wolves.
Now.
She shot to her feet and raced after Gary. She had one shot to save Julian and she wasn’t going to waste it.
She heard Julian’s pained cry behind her. She paused in her charge, glancing back. Julian was on the ground, his neck bloodied, two wolves dodging in and out, trying to get another bite in and finish the kill. But Julian continued to snap at them, his wounds healing before their eyes.
Too slowly. Tabby knew they were healing too slowly. He was still drained from saving Chloe. If he took a wound that was too deep, his visions would come true.
She tried to jump toward him, determined to protect him, when strong jaws clamped on her hind leg and dragged her back. She threw back her head and howled in pain, desperately hoping Alex would hear. If he didn’t come soon, she was going to lose Julian.
The pained howl of a Wolf had him sprinting through the trees. The top speed for a natural grizzly had once been clocked at thirty miles an hour. Bunny did his damndest to top that.
Bunny was furious. It wasn’t long before he could hear the yips and cries of the fight. He put on an extra burst of speed, knowing seconds could mean the difference between life and death.
Ten more steps would see him where he needed to be. Nine…eight…seven…
Tabby yelped, the sound full of anguish. And Bunny, terrified, ran faster.
Julian was barely breathing, his fur matted with blood, the color a dark golden green to her Wolf’s eyes, almost blending with the soft gold of his shoulders. She could smell the coppery scent of his blood, her own and the Wolves around them.
At least they’d managed to get off a few shots of their own before going down.
She snapped at Gary, trying to get him off of her. She struggled, but couldn’t break free, not without snapping her leg. She gave up and let him drag her back, knowing what he would attempt to do next.
&
nbsp; He would try to mount her. And when he did, she would try to kill him.
Bunny skidded to a stop, taking in the scene through furious eyes. Bright red blood matted Julian’s fur, his throat almost shredded. He could already tell the Bear was unconscious, unable to assist Tabby in her fight.
Tabby was under Gary, the would-be Alpha Wolf attempting to mount her. Her dark brown and tan fur was matted with blood and dirt, the small tuft of green at the very top barely visible. She whimpered in pain when she tried to put weight on her back paw. The leg gave way beneath her, the shock nearly giving Gary the chance to enter her. She snapped and snarled, trying to toss Gary off, but he had a hold of her neck now and was hunching his hips forward, trying to fuck the smaller Wolf.
Gary was trying to rape Tabby.
Bunny roared and relaxed his iron control over his rage.
And it felt good.
Tabby started at the terrifying roar. She knew who that was and renewed her struggles.
Alex was here.
Her hind leg was killing her, her neck was sore, and she couldn’t get the son of a bitch off her to save her life. She looked up as far as she could with Gary’s teeth buried against her throat. There were two grizzlies. One went after the Wolves trying to finish off Julian. The other, larger one raced straight for Gary.
Gary let go of her and tried to back away, but he was too late. The grizzly swiped with his massive paw, sending the Wolf flying through the air. Tabby whimpered, her neck bleeding from where Gary had tried to embed his teeth.
Gary landed against a tree with a yelp of pain and a sickening thud, his sides heaving. Alex stood over her battered, bleeding body and growled. The expression in his eyes was full of pure rage. His muscles were tense with the need to kill, pure predator as he stared at his downed prey.
Sometimes it was easy to forget that Bears were omnivores. She didn’t think she’d ever forget that again.
She struggled to her feet, wincing, unable to put her full weight on her back paw.
It wasn’t broken, but it felt badly sprained. She nuzzled Alex’s leg as he settled back on all fours. He was massive, much larger than the other grizzly. She stretched up and licked the underside of his jaw, barely able to reach him with the tip of her tongue.
Alex’s eyes never left Gary, but the insane growls lessened with her display of affection. Now, pure rage was filtered by determination, turning what might have been a massacre into an execution. She had no doubts that Alex would win.
She did have to wonder how many pieces Gary would be in when Alex was done.
Bunny stared at the Wolf struggling to his feet. Off to his left, he could hear Ryan quickly dispatching the lesser Wolves. Now it was up to him to deal with Gary.
He started forward, snarling when he felt Tabby trying to keep pace. He needed her to stand back, let him deal with her attacker, but he couldn’t tell her that in this form. He didn’t dare take his eyes off the Wolf. Gary would take any advantage he gave him, and Bunny had no intention of bleeding for the asshole.
But Gary would bleed for him. Oh, would he bleed.
Gary rose to fight him, using those darting tactics Packs used to bring down large prey, but the shifter was off balance. Bunny, thanks to Bear’s gift, knew Gary had banged his head pretty hard and was probably fighting off a concussion. That, added to the ribs he’d cracked when he hit the tree, were making him slower and much clumsier than he’d been when he’d faced Tabby and Julian.
Poor puppy. Bunny grinned, showing his fangs. He reached out one long arm and knocked Gary sideways. He wasn’t ready to finish the kill yet. He wanted Gary to suffer first.
Tabby yipped. He darted a quick glance at her, startled when she limped her way toward Julian. The other Bear did not look good. He wasn’t healing as quickly as he should. Those legendary Spirit Bear powers seemed to have deserted him.
Shit. Whatever Julian had done to help Chloe must have weakened him more than Bunny had first thought. He needed help, and he’d need it soon.
Sharp, cold pain sliced across his side. He whirled back to face his opponent.
He’d taken his eyes off Gary for too long and the Wolf had gotten him for it. He roared and knocked the Wolf back, his claws raking along Gary’s side. The Wolf howled. Blood dripped from wounds inflicted by five-inch claws. As Wolf, he wouldn’t heal, not without help, or without shifting. And shifting right now would merely give Bunny the opening he needed to finish him.
He narrowed his eyes and gathered himself. It was time for the real battle to begin.
Sharp claws, flashing teeth, flying fur, and the smell of blood assaulted her senses. The battle was joined for real. Each shifter tried his best to savage the other, Gary fighting for his life, Alex fighting for his mate and the life of her friend.
The two Wolves who had come with Gary were down, defeated by Ryan in such a short amount of time that Tabby was surprised at how long it was taking Alex to finish the battle. The two Wolves who’d shadowed Gary’s every move had even changed, lying there naked and pathetic, covered in dirt and blood and tears.
They were babbling, begging the huge grizzly for mercy.
Ryan chuffed at them and turned his attention to Julian. She knew the healing powers of the Bears and hoped he’d be able to help him. Because she could hear Julian’s heartbeat, and it was slowing down.
Julian was dying.
Bunny stopped Gary from darting under him. He couldn’t afford to expose his soft belly to the Wolf. He got a good bite on the Wolf’s tail, earning a pained yip from Gary before he pulled free. They circled one another, each watching for another opening, another chance for claws and fangs to do some serious damage.
Without the rest of his Pack, there was no way Gary could win, not against someone like Bunny.
Bunny saw his opening and charged the Wolf, raking his claws down Gary’s left haunch, opening his hip down to the bone. The Wolf went down, unable to put weight on the leg.
Bunny pulled himself around quickly, his snarl daring the Wolf to get back up.
Gary didn’t. Panting, the man changed, turning human. He clutched his hip, moaning in agony. If Bunny let him live, he’d need a hospital.
Bunny was debating that. He was leaning more toward not.
Tabby limped back to him, and the pain she felt sealed Gary’s fate.
Chapter Nine
Tabby tried to stop Alex from killing Gary. Too many questions would be asked if a man was found naked, mauled by a grizzly bear. But even limping as quickly as she could, she wasn’t fast enough. So she was surprised when a golden body separated Bunny from his prey. She stiffened, knowing who was blocking Alex.
Emma could have gotten hurt if Alex hadn’t pulled his blow at the last minute, recognizing the scent of the Curana.
“Really, you don’t want to do that.” Max Cannon stepped out from the trees, gloriously naked. She ignored Alex’s glare and got a good eyeful before politely turning her back on her Alpha’s nudity. Simply put, the man was built like a fucking golden god. How could she not look?
From Alex’s low growl, she’d be paying for that bit of gratuitous eye candy later.
Right now, they had more important things to deal with.
“For one thing, I have some questions for Gary Sanders of Phoenix, Arizona.”
Gary whimpered.
Arizona? I thought he was from New Mexico.
“Like, who his Alpha is, and why he thought it was okay to disobey me on Pride lands?” That invisible mist poured out of the Alpha, demanding compliance from all around him.
“Jesus Christ on a pogo stick. You’re huge!” Tabby’s eyes rolled and landed on the naked form of Emma Cannon. She stood, staring wide-eyed at Alex, her head barely reaching his chest. “What the hell do they feed you guys in…where are you from? Do elephants look at you and say, ‘Goddamn, you’re big’?”
There was a gusty sigh. “Emma. Could you focus on the bad guy here?”
“Sorry.” But she didn’t look sorry
as she quickly shifted to Puma.
Tabby ignored her Curana and bowed down, baring her belly for her Alpha. Out of respect for Alex, she kept one eye closed.
The other eye was for the man candy. The Alpha was seriously hot. And, as the saying went, she was mated, not dead.
A female Puma bounced over to her and tilted her head, snarling when she saw Tabby’s eye open and trained on the Alpha. Tabby knew who it was immediately and closed her other eye. Apparently the Curana was not amused, and she was much larger than Tabby.
Gary was still panting, but Tabby didn’t dare open her eyes to look. “This isn’t Pride land.”
“Oh? Are you sure?”
The only response was the renewed whimpers of Gary’s minions.
“Thought not. Bunny, why don’t you change back? I’d rather not have to explain a bear mauling in Halle, especially a grizzly mauling. If you and your family are staying, we need to keep your presence as quiet as possible. We don’t need Fish and Wildlife sniffing around, wondering how to move your fuzzy ass back west.”
She heard a rustling sound. “Tabby?”
She opened her eyes to find her naked mate bending over her. She damn near growled when she saw her Curana sizing him up. Tabby changed back, then laughed when the big cat was plucked up by Max and carted back toward the other Pumas.
A soft moan had her looking back at the great white Bear. “Julian!” She scrambled to her feet, ignoring her own wounds. She’d heal with time. Julian might not.
Ryan was over him, eyes closed. The concentration on his human face was hard to miss. He was doing his best to heal the other Bear. Wounds began slowly closing, but without the graceful flow she’d seen Julian use. “Alex?”
“On it.” Alex joined his cousin over Julian’s prone body. He closed his eyes and drifted away from her, down what he’d called the spiral of the healing path. She had no clue what he meant by that, but if it saved Julian, she was all for it.
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