Wild Fate: A Shifting Destinies Bear Shifter Romance (Black Claw Ranch Book 4)

by Cecilia Lane

  A smile spread across her face as soon as Alex answered. “You won’t believe the day I’ve had.”

  “Oh?” Alex clicked his tongue. A cow mooed in the background. Daisy, no doubt. “What happened?”

  “Oh, just finding the source of some corporate espionage and going all secret badass on someone. I could probably take your bear on now, that’s how awesome I am. Complete with pulled fire alarms and an evacuated building.”

  “What?” Alex snarled. “Forget it; I’m on my way.”

  “I’m fine,” Liv insisted. “It’s nothing to worry about. I’m sure I’ll be heading home before you get here, anyway.”

  “Dr. Olivia West?”

  “Hold on. More questions, probably,” she told Alex. She heard him draw a sharp breath before she lowered her phone from her ear. She turned to the voice and found a tall man standing behind her. Dark sunglasses covered his eyes. Liv made a quick inspection, looking for some badge in case there were more questions to answer. He wasn’t dressed like any of the security officers, SEA agents, or local police. “Can I help you?”

  “You absolutely can,” he answered with a wide grin. “You know, you’ve been a hard one to reach.”

  Confusion drew her brows together. “I’m sorry?”

  He gestured to the groups still waiting to get inside or trying to leave the parking lot. “With everything going on. As soon as I spotted you, you were dragged away somewhere else. Could you come this way? Just a few more questions.”

  “Sure.” Into her phone, she said, “I’ll call you right back.”

  “I’ll be waiting,” Alex answered.

  She stepped around the back of a black van, expecting more of the tech she’d seen lining the insides of SEA and Bearden police vehicles alike.

  Inside was empty.

  Panic whipped through her just as cloth covered her nose and melted the world into darkness.

  Chapter 24

  Liv bounced awake on a wave of nausea. Her stomach turned, and she curled in on herself.

  Mistake. The movement made her head swim. Her stomach revolted even more with the brutal throb right behind her eyes.

  “What did you do?” she said thickly.

  When she found the strength to shift herself again, Sunglasses watched her in the rearview mirror.

  She pushed past the aches in her stomach and head. She couldn’t afford to give them any energy or thought. The van moved at a sickening, steady pace and carried her far away from the research facility.

  And away from Alex.

  Eyes wide, she scrambled for her phone. Ridiculous defeat ate through her when her fingers came up empty.

  And still, Sunglasses kept on driving.

  Okay. No phone. A silent captor who’d grabbed her at the scene of one crime. What was the advice on cop shows? Moving to a second location lowered the chances of being found?

  Liv fought another wave of nausea and sat up. The van swam again, and she wasn’t sure if it was from a quick turn or simply the aftermath of whatever she’d been dosed with.

  Chloroform, she thought. Not difficult to make at home, commonly dosed with a cloth.

  At least the sun was still out. She couldn’t have been knocked cold for very long. That bode well for a rescue.

  She hoped.

  “Listen,” Liv croaked, “I already told everyone about Jenny. So this, whatever this is, won’t help keep them a secret.”

  Sunglasses glanced at her again, but didn’t say a word.

  Maybe Jenny had a change of heart. Or her mysterious bosses wanted to tie up loose ends. Maybe she was taken to send a message.

  Fucking hell, she wasn’t in a damn mob movie. This was her life!

  “They’re gone, anyway. In the wind. Poofed out of existence.” Liv drew a shaky breath to keep her voice steady. “Taking me isn’t going to help anyone.”

  The air thickened around her and Sunglasses growled a low warning. “You talk too much.”

  “I’m just trying to be reasonable,” she said. “I’m pointless. In fact, taking me back can only help you.”

  “You’re far from pointless. You serve a bigger purpose.”

  Chills ran up and down her spine at the words.

  Sunglasses touched a thick finger to his shades and lowered them a fraction of an inch. Bright green eyes glowed in the reflection. “What do you think will hurt him more? Killing you or seeing you become just like us?”

  Liv’s face drained of blood. Her stomach turned again, but chloroform sickness had nothing to do with it.

  Alex’s maker. His monster stared at her.

  And she was trapped in a van with him.

  No doubt he had some terrible plan for her that would make Alex suffer even more. She wanted no part of his twisted scheme.

  “He’ll find you. He’ll make you pay for everything you’ve done.”

  “Maybe.” He grinned savagely. “It’ll be too late for you, though.”

  Not if she had anything to say about that.

  Liv eyed the latch to the back door. He hadn’t tied her up, perhaps hoping she’d stay out longer. That was the danger of playing chemistry at home. Sometimes the results didn’t go as expected.

  She was thinking of everything except what she intended. She had to. Otherwise her brain might revolt and keep her locked safely in place where she waited for her fate.

  Fuck that.

  Liv lunged for the door. Her fingers scrabbled at the latch until one side flung open. Road sped away from her and turned her stomach. The rush of air was loud in her ears.

  She closed her eyes and tumbled out.

  Her shoulder hit the ground and she rolled. Awkwardly. She ignored the biting pain that twisted through her. She could deal with a busted shoulder and bruises all over her body. Those injuries meant she still lived.

  She eyed the road ahead and behind, then the trees next to the road. In the far distance, a car barreled toward them, but she wouldn’t reach it before her captor caught up to her. Still, she sprinted for it, wildly waving her arms.

  Fuck. Stupid. She’d played her hand too soon.

  The van slammed to a stop and reversed after her. She jumped off the road and onto the grass.

  Sunglasses yanked the wheel and pulled to a stop inches from her. The driver’s side door creaked open.

  Her only hope was the car’s driver spotting her and calling for help before she was overtaken.

  Liv ran for the trees.

  Alex leaned on his forearms and clasped his hands together. The plastic chair underneath him was uncomfortable compared to the cot in the holding cell, but he wasn’t at the police station for some drunk and disorderly charge.

  He watched the two teams bustle around like chickens with their heads sliced off. The local Bearden cops wanted to prove something to the SEA agents strutting around. The SEA contingent had sticks up their asses and didn’t want to rely on local yokels for help with either case they all worked.

  His bear roared, and he clasped his hands together harder. Claws bit into his palms. Better that than letting the beast take his skin and tear into each and every person who wouldn’t put aside their bullshit and find his fucking mate.

  He should have known something was wrong. One comment. Just a handful of words strung together. Those had been the tell. She wasn’t easy to get to? No fucking shit. That’d been by design.

  But the monster hunted. He’d waited patiently and took his shot when an opportunity presented itself.

  Alex had arrived at the research facility in record time, dialing Liv’s phone every time it went to voicemail. Sloan had still been there, helping clear the building of employees while others worked to find the ones Liv mentioned. He couldn’t even remember the words Sloan shouted at him when he tore through the parking lot and began searching for Liv.

  The world had turned red when he spotted her cell on the side of the road. He’d recognize the black case with a sparkly skull on the back even if her scent hadn’t been all over the device.


  Another roar. Another tightening of his jaw and his fists to keep the beast locked inside. Two drops of blood splattered to the floor at his feet.

  “Easy,” Ethan muttered at his side.

  Power washed over him and tried to soothe him. Tried, and failed.

  But he kept to his skin. He would be more of use on two feet than the wild and unmanageable bear on four.

  If there was any progress made. Alex drew in a big breath and let it go slowly. Silently, he went over every detail once more.

  No one saw her leave. No one spotted her being taken.

  The security footage was fucking useless. Nothing existed on the tape because of whatever other scheme had been pulled that day. His word and her phone sitting on the ground were the only clues to go on, and neither were any damn help.

  Bearden cops and SEA agents put out the word right on the heels of the first breaking story and promised to keep him updated.

  So he waited with his alpha at his side and tried not to feel like he was being babysat and watched for any potential freak-out.

  Sloan peeled away from another group and stepped through the waist-high swinging doors separating the bullpen from the waiting area. She looped her thumbs through her belt loops and shot him a pitying look that grated.

  “There’s no reason for you to stick around. We’ll give you any updates we get.”

  Ethan canted his head. “We’ll stay.”

  Sloan pressed her lips together. “Look—”

  “We’re not leaving.” Ethan rose to his feet. “You’re doing your job; I get that. Alex is doing his. We’ll stay out of the way, but we’re here. We’re in this. We’re bringing her home.”

  Useless. He felt fucking useless.

  His mate was in danger and all he could do was sit around and wait for someone else to find her. He should have locked her in a deep mountain bunker the first moment he caught her scent and his maker’s in the same thousand-mile stretch.

  And what damn good did it do to have personal connections with the damn Supernatural Enforcement Agency when she tried to send them home?

  A growl rattled in his throat. Both Ethan and Sloan darted eyes to him, but he didn’t move.

  “We’re staying,” Ethan said after a second.

  Sloan dipped her chin and moved back through the swinging doors.

  “Really think it’s a good idea to fuck with someone who can shoot you?” Ethan muttered.

  Alex glared and kept silent. He didn’t care who he pissed off. He’d wreck a thousand days if it meant Liv’s safety.

  Nothing else to do, he picked through the day’s events again. Each repetition firmed up his memories, but didn’t give him any clearer of a view. He still didn’t know where Liv had been taken or the face of the one who’d nabbed her. Fuck, six years and that clipped tone in the background was the first time he’d heard the bastard’s voice.

  All he had was a fleeting scent and a growing need to fight. His bear paced through his head, swiping at him with claws. Move, the beast urged. Find her.

  Sendings pushed into his head that he quickly waved away. He couldn’t focus on those happy images when a sick, oily sense of loss filled his stomach.

  A wave of renewed activity rolled through the station. Heads came together as word hopped from group to group. The murmurings reached a crescendo as local cops maneuvered to the back of the station and strapped themselves into gear. The agents pushed their way out the door and engines sputtered to life.

  Sloan again pushed her way out of the bullpen and into the waiting area. Fierce light brightened her eyes. “There was a report of a woman throwing herself out of a van south of here.”

  Alex perked up and spoke for the first time since Ethan appeared at his side at the research facility and forced him to quit yelling like a madman. “Was it her?”

  Sloan shook her head. “We don’t know. A group is heading that way now.”

  He rose to his feet. She pressed her lips together. A shake of her head came with a burst of frustration in her scent. “Stay to the back. I’m not filing extra paperwork if either of you get shot.”

  He was out the door before she finished, with Ethan right on his heels.

  The parking lot filled with bodies making beelines for vehicles. Lights flashed to life with the wail of sirens. Cruisers and SUVs peeled out of the parking lot and raced down the road.

  Faster, Alex urged. His bear rumbled a growled agreement.

  Time slowed to a crawl even as the caravan barreled forward. They burst out of the mountains and into hill country to the song of sirens. The wails carried them down the sparsely populated road between the enclave and the rest of human civilization.

  A black van sat on the side of the road. One of the back doors hung open, as did the driver’s. The engine still ran.

  Just ahead was a small car. An elderly man held the shaking shoulders of a woman. His wife, Alex assumed. He didn’t hear anything over the buzz of voices, but the man pointed into the trees.

  Alex was out of the truck as soon as Ethan pulled to the side of the road. Cops and agents scurried all over the scene and commanded him to stop, but he didn’t listen. Fury and worry struck him deaf and blind to anything but finding Liv.

  That bastard. He choked on the scent of him as soon as he got near the van. Liv’s intoxicating smell was nearly snuffed out under the slimy stench of his maker.

  Ten feet from the van, though, the bastard switched direction. Liv’s was the only one that entered the trees directly in front of him.

  Alex felt sick. His maker hunted his mate.

  “Did any other cars pass? We need to know if the other one was picked up,” someone said in the background.

  He wasn’t. Alex stared away from the road and yanked his shirt over his head. Two paths were as clear as day, but he only concerned himself with one. He had Liv’s scent in his nose. That trail was the most important one in the world.

  He kicked out of his boots and shucked his pants. Objections rose as soon as he was noticed. Fuck ‘em. They could tranq him if they had a problem with what he intended.

  He was going after Liv.

  His muscles snapped and his bones cracked. Fur slid out of his pores and he fell to his paws. His bear ripped out of him and, nose gathering Liv’s scent, he tore after his mate.

  Her path was easy to follow. Thick with fear, she dug her nails into his fur and led him on. Between thick trunks and thinner ones. Through prickly brush. Liv ran as far and as fast as possible while he’d been sitting on his ass waiting for some small word of hope.

  Alex roared at the first tinge of blood at the exact spot his maker’s scent crossed with Liv’s.

  A roar answered him, coming from behind. Ethan. His alpha. He let him lead and didn’t try to stop him, but he was there nonetheless. Watching. Waiting. Alex knew the stakes. He’d seen the vicious power of a mate denied. Ethan, Hunter, Lorne, they’d all been through the destruction of nearly watching their other half torn away. None of them were half as fucked up as him.

  Ethan would keep him from going off the deep end, even if it meant Alex’s death.

  He pushed forward, following the metallic scent of blood and odor of fear. Those told a story, as did the stench of the bastard crossing paths, then vanishing into the trees again. His maker played with her.

  Alex raked claws down a tree trunk to burn off an inch of fury. Liv needed him.

  At the bottom of the slope and covered over in leaves and other debris, was a body.

  Fuck. Fuck. By the bloody Broken and all the gods in the sky. Fucking piece of shit psychotic asshole!

  Alex tore down the slope as fast as possible, shifting along the way. He lunged the last few steps and skidded to her side on his knees.

  Shallow breath reached his ears as he pulled Liv into his lap. Her pants were torn and hung ragged. Blood smeared over her arms and exposed legs. The scent of fur mingled with the tangy, exotic base.

  Bitten. The wounds had mostly closed and left beh
ind silvery scars just like his own.

  Alex squeezed his eyes closed. He had her, and he still might lose her.

  She had others. She had him. And that still might not make a difference to the unruly beast unwillingly placed in her middle.

  And that was if she survived the change. Women fared better, but he’d never wanted to put that to the test.

  Behind him, others crashed through the woods.

  Ahead of him, a branch snapped.

  Alex whipped his attention to the bear stepping out between thick tree trunks. Bright green eyes focused on him.

  His grief transformed into pure rage. He’d found a sliver of happiness with someone who understood him. He was a wild creature and likely wouldn’t ever change, but she didn’t care. She still wanted to be with him.

  And that fucking prick wanted to trample all over his new life. He’d already made the journey to his mate longer than it had to be. He wouldn’t take her from him again.

  Fuck being a decent person. Screw keeping himself steady.

  Alex let his bear rip out of him with a savage roar and charged.

  He was thankful for every fight he’d ever provoked or launched himself into. They built him up for the exact moment he needed to defend his mate.

  He crashed into the other bear hard enough to shake the ground under their feet. The tremors didn’t stop him in the slightest.

  Paws slapped. Claws raked. He roared and bit, backed off and circled. He leaped forward at any sign of weakness or hesitation. There was no testing, no waiting for a feint. He thundered past all the bastard’s defenses with an explosion of rage six years in the making.

  He hurt Liv. He stole her choice and forced a rabid animal into her. For that alone, Alex wanted him to cease living.

  Blood wet his tongue and coated his claws. His maker still roared and spun and attacked, showing no sign of slowing. Alex refused to give up. Wouldn’t comprehend the idea. Not while the bastard that hurt him and his mate still drew breath.