Bruins Peak Bears Box Set (Volume III)

by Sarah J. Stone

  Did he sense her presence in the stands? Did he feel her near him the way she felt him? In all the stories she heard about couples mating for life, both people knew what was going on. They both felt the same way. Mating for life didn’t happen to one person alone. It happened to a couple equally.

  Well, he wasn’t her mate for life. That was impossible. That must explain why he paid no attention to her when she visited him the other night. He didn’t feel anything for her other than hatred and disgust. He would kill her if he got the chance. She was Midnight. That made her his enemy.

  Hunter sat in a corner of the stands with his book open on his lap. Guys pressed around him on all sides. They waved hundred-dollar bills in his face and shouted their bets into his ear. He scribbled as fast as he could, stowed the money in his cash box, and handed out scribbled receipts. He had no time to look up at anybody, he worked so fast.

  All of a sudden, an earth-shattered roar swept over the crowd. They all rushed to the parapet to look down. They leaned over it and waved their arms down at the ring. They shoved and jostled everyone out of their seats. They pushed Onyx against the parapet so she had to look down, too.

  The wooden door swung open and Cole stepped out onto the floor. He dragged one dog after another to shackle them to the wall. Then two of his buddies entered with him and they took their places in a semi-circle around Abel.

  Cole’s mouth moved shouting orders to his friends, but no one could hear a thing over the din upstairs. Onyx stood still and stared. That was her down there on that floor. They brought dogs and spears to kill her and rip her bloody corpse to shreds.

  Her guts twisted in knots, but she couldn’t stop the ring now. No one could stop it. She couldn’t see Hunter in the corner any longer. She didn’t have to. He’d be taking bets faster than ever. The nearer Abel came to death, the more people would pay. They would bet on when and where and how he’d fall. Would the dogs kill him? Would he shift and kill the dogs first?

  Tension and explosive excitement rippled over the crowd. Cole waved his hand. He and his comrades leveled their sharp-pointed spears at Abel and moved in. Cole jabbed his spear into Abel’s ribs. Abel tensed, but he didn’t lift his head. He showed no sign of hearing the thunder all around him.

  The dogs yapped at the ends of their chains. They strained so hard they lunged off their feet. The chains yanked them back and they lurched again. Cole delivered another merciless jab to Abel’s shoulder, then another to his thigh. Blood trickled from the wound.

  Every stab sent a tremor through Abel’s body, but he held firm. He didn’t move or look up at his tormentors, not even when all three moved in together. They stuck him from all sides, in his arms and legs, in his body and feet, and even into his neck.

  He lifted his massive arms from around his knees to cover his head. He tucked his forehead against his knees, and that’s where he stayed. He wouldn’t react no matter what they did. Cole spat out curses and chopped his hand through the air. He already put Abel through who knows what kind of torture trying to get him to react. Maybe he wanted Abel to be afraid, but no one could make him afraid without his consent. He would never show fear to these monsters.

  Every jab of those needles dug into Onyx’s guts. Her stomach turned at the sight of blood flowing down Abel’s limbs and sides. What could she do? How could she help him now?

  Cole lost his patience. He pitched his spear on the floor and strode back to the first dog. He unlatched its chain and turned it loose. The other men stood back to watch. The dog ripped across the floor. Its feet kicked up sawdust. It rocketed straight at Abel and hit him side-on. It bowled him over and gaped its fangs wide to maul him to pieces.

  Abel rolled over on his shoulder. He careened up onto his feet just in time to meet the dog coming in for the kill. He snatched the dog out of mid-air and flung it away with all his strength. His face twisted into a mask of horror. His abs contracted with every breath, and his muscles strained against his sternum. Sweat stood out on his forehead, and it spattered in all directions when he spun around.

  Cole marched from one dog to the next and turned all three of them loose. They converged on Abel at once. They bumped each other out of the way in their haste to get to him. Two went after his face from the right and the left. The third dog sank its teeth into his armpit and hung on.

  Abel staggered back under their weight. He got one hand against each dog’s mouth to stop their snapping teeth gouging into his face, but he couldn’t hold himself upright. He hit the post, and there he stopped.

  Cole scooped up his spear from the floor. He called to his friends and his forefinger sliced the air. The three men moved in together. They set to work jabbing Abel with their daggers while he fought for his very life against the dogs.

  Cole’s spear ducked under Abel’s arm and pricked him in the ribs. Abel’s face contorted in agony, but he couldn’t slacken his efforts against the dogs. They yapped and snarled in his face. Their teeth cut mere inches from his eyes.

  Cole and his friends kept up their assault for a few minutes, but Cole gave up before they could make a dent in Abel’s defense. Cole threw his spear away and went out of the ring. He came back with the same metal pipe Hunter used. He marched up to Abel and took aim at his head.

  He never got a chance to swing before the dogs dragged Abel to the ground. Their writhing bodies hid him from sight. The dog attached to Abel’s armpit released its grip to dive for his leg. All three dogs scooted in circles in search of the best hold.

  Cole wound back his pipe again and again, but every time, he had to lower it and find a better angle so he didn’t hit his dogs. Abel kicked and thrashed. He couldn’t throw off those dogs. Cole pointed to one of his buddies. The man dropped his spear and came forward, too.

  The man approached Abel from the other side and kicked him in the ribs. Cole tossed his pipe aside, and both men busied themselves kicking Abel as hard as they could under the dogs’ legs. The dogs bit and growled louder and faster than ever. They wriggled every which way and even got in the men’s way.

  Onyx couldn’t watch anymore. She would have run away, but she couldn’t get through the crush of bodies on all sides. She started to close her eyes when the dogs sailed away from Abel so fast no one could see what happened. One dog bounced off the floor. Another slammed into the wall. The third rolled over on its back. It came to rest on its stomach and looked around in surprise.

  Something black rose out of the floor where Abel used to be. Cole and his friend tried to scoot out of the way, but they couldn’t move fast enough. Abel exploded out of his skin with such massive force that he elevated off the ground.

  His arms flew back against the sawdust, and a raging black bear burst out of his chest. His human form vaporized, and the force of nature blasted upward to knock the men aside. Laughter, sobbing, yelling, exultant cheers rocked the basement. Onyx stared down at the bear. He tugged the chain against his leg while the men regrouped.

  Cole shouted something into his friends’ ears, and they picked up their spears again. Cole snapped his fingers to call one of the dogs. While his head was turned, Abel looked over his shoulder at the chain fixed to the post behind him. He dragged the chain out to its farthest limit, but he couldn’t move with that thing attached to his leg.

  Cole took hold of the dog’s collar and yelled something to the animal. The dog strained to get loose and charge Abel again. At that moment, Abel gave the chain a little yank. The pin holding the chain to his ankle popped, and he was free.

  Onyx’s heart flipped over. Her teeth clacked together, and her knuckles ached from knitting her fingers together. She didn’t want to watch what happened next any more than she wanted to watch what happened before. Abel was free. What would he do now?

  The bear narrowed his eyes at his adversaries just as the dog attacked him in a blinding rush. Abel opened his mouth and chomped. The dog’s head caved in, and it crumpled at his feet. Abel didn’t miss a beat. He barreled straight at Cole. He butted Cole in t
he chest with his forehead and knocked him flat.

  Another dog jumped into the mix, and one of the men grabbed the pipe. They converged on Abel together, but nothing could stop his rampaging fury now. He plucked the dog out of mid-air. His jaws clamped around the dog’s throat, and he swung the floppy body in a circle. He smacked the man upside the head with the dog’s hind legs. The pipe flew away. The man spun around in a circle and fell full length across the floor.

  Abel whipped the dog around the other way and let go. The mangled body hit the wall and left a bloody smear when it slid to the floor. The third dog flattened itself against the floor and whined when Abel glared at it.

  The last man standing raced for the door. He yelled something over his shoulder, and the dog scampered after him. He fumbled getting the door open and disappeared. Abel planted his sturdy legs in the middle of the ring. He swept the battlefield with his small, piercing eyes. Nothing remained to bother him now.

  Cole stretched out on his back with his eyes closed. Was he dead? A pool of blood spread around the other fallen man’s head. Abel arched back his neck and bellowed to the skies, but Onyx couldn’t hear him over the noise in the stands.

  The fleeing man slammed the door closed, but it bounced out of its latch. One half-inch of space held it open. Abel eyed it, but before he could walk away, Onyx caught a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye. That shouldn’t have struck her as odd with so many people waving their arms in every direction.

  She glanced sideways to see the crowd part to let someone through. A lone man came to the parapet. It was Hunter. He leveled a rifle down at the floor and welded the butt into his shoulder.

  Onyx didn’t hesitate. Hunter was going to kill her mate. Did she really just think those words? She never took the time to question. She couldn’t let him kill Abel. She launched herself at him with all her might. She threw one arm over the rifle barrel and tugged Hunter’s hand away from the trigger grip. She screamed into his face. “No!”

  She yanked so hard she pulled his finger against the trigger. The gun exploded in her hands, and the bullet sang down into the ring. Hunter rounded on her. His lips quivered in rage. “You!”

  28. Chapter 8

  The bullet smashed into the wooden wall next to Abel’s head. He looked up into the stands and spotted Onyx struggling over the gun in Hunter’s arms. Hunter slapped his hand down on Onyx’s chest and shoved her away so hard she staggered back into a sea of bodies.

  Hunter turned his attention back to the ring. He shouldered his rifle again and took aim, but it was already too late. Abel trotted to the door, clawed it open, and slipped through. He paced around in the dark for half a minute before he found the stairs leading up to the stands.

  The closer he got, the louder the noise grew. People scurried out of his way when he neared the top of the stairs, but he didn’t stop. He broke out into the crowd. Smells assaulted him from every direction. Midnight and human mingled together in the shadows. Screams and shouts hurt his ears. All he had to do was follow his fleeing enemies to find his way out of here.

  Pain enraged him. Dozens of needle sticks and dog bites made every move a torment. He slashed his teeth here and there. He didn’t care who he bit or killed. He was getting out of here, and he would destroy anyone who stood in his way.

  The crowd caved before him. People stampeded to the stairs. His bear brain didn’t know enough to compare this moment with Azer’s attack. He wouldn’t have cared anyway. These were his enemies. They were his prey. They were fodder for his claws and fangs. He would smash them to pieces.

  Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a flurry of activity among the running feet. That meant trouble, and he gravitated toward it. The bystanders fell to either side, and he saw Hunter coming the opposite way. He still carried his gun, and he swept his other hand to signal to those around him.

  A gang of Midnight followed him against the flow. They moved toward Abel instead of away. Abel paused, but he couldn’t figure out what they were doing. He couldn’t figure it out until Hunter stopped in his tracks and locked his eyes right on Abel’s face.

  Man and bear regarded each other for one terrible moment. Before Abel could react, the Midnight rushed around Hunter. They shifted in mid-flight until a dozen black panthers converged on Abel in one body.

  Abel roared his challenge to these pesky cats, but he couldn’t fight them all. Azer could stand against as many Midnight as cared to attack him. Abel was much smaller. They pounced on him, and their sharp teeth pricked his flesh all over.

  He whirled one way and then the other. He shook himself and flung them off, but more and more Midnight joined the fight to bring him down. Across the floor, Hunter raised his rifle. He slid back the bolt, but instead of loading more bullets, he slotted a red-tufted dart into the chamber. He crammed the bolt down and swung the gun into position.

  The harder Abel fought, the more Midnight turned around to engage with him. The more they weighed him down, the louder he bellowed in agony and rage, the more excited they got. They could defeat him. They could hold him in place until Hunter shot him with a dart. They would tranquilize him and haul him back to the ring. They would find a way to restrain him until they got a chance to kill him.

  Abel snapped right and left. He sank his giant bite into one feline body after another. He crunched spines and broke legs. He ripped their guts open and tore out their throats, but they still kept coming. They sensed him losing the fight, and that knowledge spurred them to deadly ferocity.

  Hunter took aim, but he couldn’t get a decent shot with so many bodies in the way. He relaxed his aim and took it, again and again. Someone shouted from the stairs where the crowd hurried away, “Come on, boys!”

  Midnight bumped Hunter from behind in the race to get their fangs into Abel. Hunter lowered his rifle to point it at the floor and watched Abel fall under a tide of inky fur. Nothing could save Abel now.

  All at once, a feral shriek split the air. A black shadow streaked across the floor on a bee line for Abel. Another panther glided into view—a female. She screeched to wake the dead. She pounced on the nearest Midnight, but she didn’t pause to engage with him. She hooked her claws into his hide and sent him flying to one side.

  Faster than the eye could see, she yanked and jerked her claws in every direction. She threw as many Midnight off Abel as she could get. She cleared the floor in a heartbeat, and still she kept fighting.

  Abel reared up into the space she made for him. He jumped onto his hind feet and roared out loud. Midnight tumbled off his back, and he swept them aside with a powerful roundhouse of his claws. In the mayhem, he caught a strange scent. He knew that scent. It worked on his brain. It cast an intoxicating spell over him. Only the heat of fresh blood captivated him like that.

  He never stopped fighting, but he knew she was there. She was cat. She was fighting to free him. He roared louder than ever until he caught sight of her. She didn’t see him. She was too busy slashing and nipping here and there and everywhere.

  Across the floor, Hunter took advantage of the opening to raise his gun. He took aim at Abel’s broad chest spread out before him. Abel made a perfect target Abel saw him and snarled his challenge, but Hunter was too far away. Hunter tightened his finger over the trigger, and the dart puffed through the air.

  At that moment, Onyx sank her fangs into the nearest Midnight she could find. She heaved the flopping body into the air and swung it in a circle. The cat thunked against Abel’s chest to knock the wind out of his lungs, and the dart embedded its point in the victim’s body.

  Onyx let the panther go, and it hit the floor. Abel stared down at it. The dart’s fluffy red tail wobbled against the cat’s silky fur. He looked up to catch Onyx’s eye for a second. Then she spun away with a screech. She attacked anyone who came near her.

  The sight sparked Abel’s foaming rage all over again. He smothered one cat after another, but he fixed his eyes on Hunter. He barreled forward and broke a path through his assailants
. He swatted Midnight away on either side on his way toward the stairs.

  Hunter retreated into the crowd. His friends swallowed him up and he disappeared before Abel and Onyx could get free. Onyx wheeled to see Abel making his escape. She fought her way after him and followed him up the stairs.

  Bear and panther raced out of the house into the open. Once outside, no one stood in their way. Abel set off running for the woods. Onyx glided along the ground behind him. The woods covered their tracks, and no one pursued them.

  The fresh air revived Abel’s senses and he turned toward Renegade Ridge. He crossed most of Midnight territory before he remembered the black panther racing at his heels. He growled under his breath, but he didn’t stop long enough to confront her.

  He ran all the way to the borderland between Midnight Moraine and Renegade Ridge, but when he started to cross it, he understood he had to stop her. He couldn’t let her follow him up the Ridge.

  He rounded on her and stopped. His shoulders collapsed in on themselves. His neck straightened, and his snout flattened into a man’s face. His mind cleared. He could think like a man again, and all the old questions and divided loyalties flooded into his head.

  The panther ran on a few paces before she realized he no longer led her. She skidded to a halt and turned around to find a man standing there. She blinked her yellow eyes at him.

  “You can’t go any further,” Abel told her. “You have to go back.”

  Onyx shifted. She rose on her hind legs. Her spine arched, and she became a woman once again. “Why can’t I come with you?”

  He shook his head. “You can’t come up to the Ridge. You can’t go any further than this. Go back to your own territory.”