The Snow Leopard's Christmas Surprise

by Emilia Hartley

  She stared out into the quiet of her dim hotel room and had the overwhelming urge to jump up and own in total elation. She’d done it. She’d finally done it. She was no longer tied down by her personal hell. She quit her job, quit the stress, quit Brian—and now she felt free,

  “Nick would be so proud of me,” she whispered, a sad smile crossing her face. That settled it. She’d go see Nick on her way back home, at the very least to thank him for helping her become the woman she was able to be in the pre-dawn morning of a hotel room she’d fought for her right to have.

  ***

  “How are you feeling?”

  Nick rolled his eyes at his brother. “What do you think?”

  Tom held up an apologetic hand. “Okay, okay. I get it.”

  Nick rose with a grunt from where he was sitting to check on the jobs they had that day. There weren’t many.

  “Have you tried calling her?” Tom asked.

  Nick shook his head. “You didn’t see her, Tom,” Nick grumbled, solemnly. “She had terror in her eyes as she zoomed past the shop.” The memory that played in his head broke his heart all over again, and his bear mourned with him once more. “Calling her out of the blue like that would only make her think she can’t escape. Why would I subject her to that torture?”

  Tom walked over to the task list, eyeing it with his brother. “I can get on with things here,” he said, quietly. “So you don’t have to stick around.” He patted Nick on the shoulder. “Why don’t you go start on the cabin repairs? Her scent’s all over that place, it should calm your bear, for a while anyway.”

  Nick shook his head, not really to decline, but rather because his mind was whirring non-stop and he needed to clear it in order for it to function like a normal member of society. “I don’t know. I haven’t been back there since…” He shuddered. “I’m just afraid of going back and having it all hit me at once.”

  Tom gave Nick a rueful smile. “You got this, bro. If you need me to help out, I can put things here on the backburner, but as you are now, you aren’t much help at all. Running hasn’t helped, neither has hunting. The cabin’s the only option you have left. Her scent is the closest you can get to her right now, so go take care of yourself.”

  Nick finally nodded, too many times as his mind began to overwork again. “Yeah, maybe. Thanks,” he said, deciding to leave at once. He stepped out into the cool weather without bothering to grab a jacket. Turning in the direction of the cabin, he strode into the wind, letting it bite at his skin. He remembered how the wind had blown like this the night he’d first brought her to the cabin, making her shiver down into her heavy coat. He’d give anything to be back there right now. She could always return, he allowed himself to think desperately. She was his mate after all. Sure, she was human, but she had to feel something, right? She had to feel as restless and unraveled as he did as he fought the coarse ice breeze to clean away the remnants of her essence that he never wanted to be without.

  He could smell her scent lightly on the air as he approached the cabin, evidence of her recent stay. Tom was right; Nick’s bear relaxed almost immediately as he drew closer. It was short lived, his bear jumping to attention with a snarl as Nick caught another scent… then another… and another. The Northern Wind Pack. He sprinted the rest of the way to the cabin, his every sense on alert.

  His heart fell as he took in the sad sight before him. The cabin had been aggressively vandalized by Lucas’s bears. There was no sign of them at the moment, but he could tell that they hadn’t been gone too long, perhaps attacking sometime during the night.

  The cabin door had been torn from its frame once again, hanging crazily on its hinges. The temporary paint job he’d done had been scraped away, the wood underneath dented and beaten down by large paws. The windows that had survived the first cabin attack had not fared too well this time, all in various stages of destruction. The peep windows’ plastic covers had been shredded to smithereens. They’d dug up the yard, marked the stone foundation with their scent, and tore up the dark wooden planks on the porch.

  He shoved the door aside with a growl, his anger allowing him to easily tear it the rest of the way off its broken hinges. With a touch of surprise, he noticed that the inside was virtually unscathed. Sure, he could trace their scents through the house as they’d apparently took some time to give themselves a tour, but they’d left most everything untouched. He closed his eyes, breathing in a chest full of oxygen, both he and his bear sighed in relief when he picked up on the unmistakable scent of the woman he loved. At the very least, they hadn’t taken that away from him. Not yet.

  He nodded, centering his mind and getting back to the task at hand. A scent caught his attention, his heart sped slightly as he tracked it to the kitchen, and his bear rattled a growl in warning. His mood darkened as he passed the dining table, noticing a piece of paper that lay upon it. He thought hopefully that it might be from Jo, but upon picking it up, he knew it wasn’t. The script was sloppy as if the person who’d wrote it wasn’t all that accustomed to humanoid hands. It was scrawled on the back of a torn romance novel cover.

  WATCH YOUR STEP ALPHA

  With a sickening realization, the scent that has drawn Nick to the kitchen became disgustingly obvious as he took in several puddles of urine they’d used to mark their territory.

  The note crushed in his hand on reflex, Nick’s nose flaring in rage. They’d dare challenge his territory like this…

  The bear roared loudly within him, its strength rippling through his body. It wanted to be let free, wanted to find the entire Northern Wind Pack and tear them limb from limb for what they’d done. “Not yet,” Nick growled, forcefully calming himself. First and foremost, he’d tidy the place, getting as much done before darkness fell. Broken glass would be swept, foreign fluids would be cleaned, windows would be boarded, and the door would be reset on its hinges for the second time.

  Then, he promised his bear…they’d go hunting.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Jo smiled dutifully as the client’s manager—a kind youngish man—spoke on and on about how wonderful a painter the potential client was.

  She nodded her umpteenth agreement, glancing inconspicuously at the clock that hung on the meeting room’s wall. Nearly an hour since the meeting began, and they hadn’t even gotten to negotiations. “Yes, yes,” she murmured when the manager dared to take a breath. “I agree wholeheartedly with your praise. Your painter showcases amazing talent that we could not be more honored to display at Liberty Art.” The man nodded emphatically, diving back into his spiel that she was sure he probably practiced over and over in the shower that morning. As he prattled on about various artworks that had won various award, Jo’s mind began to wander.

  She wondered about how Nick was doing, if he was missing her the way she missed him. Had he already moved on? Would he be angry when she stopped by unannounced to say hello? Would he still admit to falling for her? Could she admit her truths to him? Should she?

  Tom was another issue entirely. He’d wanted her far away from Nick. Now that she’d seen them turn into bears, she supposed she could understand why. She counted his overprotectiveness of his brother as a small blessing. Fixing her car faster than expected had given her the time she needed to be by herself and clear her head, working through the shock and incredulity so she could decide what she really wanted.

  What she really wanted was to go back and see Nick.

  The man’s voice raised a decibel, desperation growing in his tone as he continued to talk. It interrupted Jo’s train of thought, dragging her reluctantly back to the conversation.

  She bit back her frustration at still being there, interrupting the manager mid commendation. “Excuse me,” she said politely. “My apologies, but I must press you for a decision. I’m on something of a tight schedule today.”

  The manager sighed. “I must be honest with you, I was hoping you would push harder for the job.”

  “Listen,” Jo replied, sitting forward and
folding her hands in her lap. “Liberty Art is an excellent gallery. Artists have gotten their start and gone on to do great things in the art scene with our help. But you already know that. What’s the point in trying to sell ourselves when you’ve already paid?”

  He pressed his lips together. “You do have a point,” he mumbled, not meeting her gaze.

  “We want your client’s work, as you well know. I’m sure it would be great exposure for him, but at the same time, we can’t sit around chipping away the hours of our day waiting until a decision falls into our laps.” She sat back, eyeing the manager confidently. “After all, we are a business at the end of the day. I’m sure you understand.”

  The man seemed to steel his resolve, nodding as he stood to his feet. He held his hand out. “Thank you for being so frank with me. I’ll send the contract over to Liberty Art this afternoon.”

  Jo grinned widely, standing as well before accepting his firm handshake. “You’re most certainly welcome. I look forward to seeing his work in our gallery.” She watched him go, a sense of satisfaction in her chest. She may have quit with her best interests at heart, but she’d no doubt miss this part most of all—closing on a deal. There was nothing better than that moment when everybody came to an agreement. She nodded, taking a slow deep breath as she settled her thoughts. This part of her life was over now. It was nice to end the chapter on a high note.

  Grinning to herself, Jo flipped open her laptop and emailed Brian, giving him the rundown of the meeting and letting him know that he should expect to get the client’s details sometime today. Lastly, she attached the short and clean resignation letter to the bottom of the email before sending it off. Closing the laptop carefully, she sat back in her chair and looked around. Everything was exactly as it had been a minute ago, but it felt completely different.

  She was free.

  ***

  The day’s drive back to Rawlins dragged on painfully slow. When she finally stumbled out of her car to run into the shop office, it was daybreak of the following day.

  “Nick?” she called, pushing open the door. “Nick?”

  “Jo?” Tom launched from the back room into the office, his eyes wide with shock. “You came back?”

  Jo nodded, happily. “Yeah, I finished early with my business in San Francisco and thought I’d stop by to apologize.” She looked around eagerly. “Did he step out for food or someth—”

  “He’s not here,” Tom growled. Jo began to notice little stress lines on his face that likely meant he hadn’t been sleeping “He’s gone.”

  “Gone?” Jo repeated, the sight of him visibly bristling making her take a step backward “I… I’m sorry, Tom. I know you’re trying to keep me out of Nick’s life, and I’m sure you think you’re intentions are good, but I need to speak to him for just a moment and I’ll be on my way.”

  Tom shook his head. “No, Jo. I mean he’s gone. He left and I have no idea where he is,” Tom finished, eyes slightly panicked.

  Jo’s heart began to hammer in her chest. “What do you mean? What happened?”

  Tom shrugged roughly, running a hand through his hair. “He’d gone to the cabin to fix it up some. That was the last time I saw him.” He began to pace, his hands gripping one another tightly. “Sometime later, he called while I was away from my phone. His message…” He looked up at Jo with and intense gaze, “he said was going after them. The entire enemy clan. By himself.

  “I dropped everything and ran to the cabin as soon as I’d heard the message, but it was too late.” He inwardly cursed himself, his body nearly vibrating with anger. “The cabin’s in a shambles. Windows are boarded, the porch is torn up. A bunch of stuff. I’m not really sure what happened, but Nick had been there first… and now he’s gone.” He shook his head as if he couldn’t believe it. “I smelled some of the enemy bears as well, but their scents were much weaker, so I know they weren’t there at the same time he was.”

  “Can you not like… track him or something?” Jo asked, blindly searching for solutions despite not knowing anything about shifters.

  Tom managed a fleeting smile. “You don’t think I’ve tried? His scent was too old; it fell off before I was even a mile from the cabin. It’s a bust”

  “Old?” How long has he been gone?” Jo asked, her blood running cold.

  Tom eyed her solemn as he answered. “Almost twenty-four hours now.”

  ***

  “Do you think he’d have his phone?” Jo asked, desperately.

  Tom shook his head. “I found his clothes not too far into the forest. His phone was in the pocket.

  “How about a note?”

  “Anything worth telling is in the voice message he sent me,” Tom retorted.

  “Well you have to give me something here, Tom!” Jo cried, throwing her hands up in defeat. “You’ve known him your whole life. We just need something small. The faintest trail of breadcrumbs.” She clasped her hands together, silently pleading him to put in the effort.

  Tom stared off into space for a few beats of silence before his eyes lit up in an epiphany. “Maybe,” he muttered quietly. “That might work.”

  “What might work?” Jo asked, impatient.

  “I think I have a plan,” he replied, nodding once, as he grew more confident. He promptly headed for the door. “Just stay here where it’s safe. If all goes well, we’ll be back soon.”

  “Like hell I’m staying here alone,” Jo rebutted, following closely behind him. “If Nick’s in trouble, I want to help.”

  “Don’t you get it?” Tom exclaimed, rounding on her. “This isn’t a silly little human problem. These are flesh-hungry bear shifters who won’t hesitate to tear your pretty little human throat out! I won’t allow it.”

  Jo set her jaw, glaring right into his furious eyes. “That’s not your decision to make, Tom.”

  A growled bubbled up Tom’s throat, low and dangerous.

  Jo waved it away. “This old trick again? Trust me, it was scarier the first time,” she dismissed, unimpressed. “Got anything else in your top hat of magic tricks?”

  He growled louder, lips peeling back to bare his teeth at her. It was surprisingly underwhelming, and with an annoyed scoff, Jo slid past him to head to her car. “I’ll just follow you, okay?”

  Tom looked like he was warring with himself to say or do something, before finally throwing up his hands in defeat. “Suit yourself, but don’t you dare step out of that car.” He spat, his body tensing as the change took over his body.

  He undressed as quickly as possible, dipping behind some shadowed foliage just in time to maintain some form of censorship between himself and Jo. She heard bones snap and muscles convulse. Tom’s cries were low and painful as they floated to her ears from where he had changed. Soon after, a mighty brown bear emerged from the tree line, poking his head out to let Jo know he was finished. Knowing it was coming this time, she could properly appreciate just how amazing and awe-inspiring his bear form looked. It made her hopeful for her reunion with Nick.

  She nodded. “And I’m not making any promises,” she said, finally answering his request. She smiled at the noises that trickled from his lips, more of a chagrined groan than a growl. Without another word, Tom tore off into the trees, making Jo scramble into her car and peel off into the tree line before she lost his large frame in the shadows of the forest.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Nick had ended up tracking the Northern Wind clan for hours the day before, the complete darkness of night under the cover of the forest providing both an advantage and a hindrance to his mission.

  He’d known they were here, their scents all distinct and swirling as he watched them come and go. He’d watched from the shadows, picking up easily that Lucas was out for a while, and his subordinates were taking turns running into Nick’s territory to keep an eye on him.

  He watched as a bear named Jake slunk in late at night, alerting Dan that, despite combing all of Rawlins, Nick was nowhere to be found. He crouched lower in the gr
ass, keeping low… just in case.

  He stayed like that for hours longer, silently stalking the Northern Wind until the bear he’d wanted to see most of all finally made his return. Flood limped to Dan, letting him know that Lucas had finally finished his errand. Finally, Nick couldn’t help but think. Even his patience had a limit.

  When Lucas entered the clearing, Nick had to bite back a vicious growl. Everything about him set Nick’s bear off. He wasn’t an alpha, but he was large—larger than even Dan, his designated muscle bear. His subordinates scuttled backwards in fear if he moved too close to them, and absolutely no one made eye contact as he walked leisurely into their camp.

  “Idiots!” he roared immediately. “Explain to me how I can have so many fools in one pack.”

  The bears shuffled uncomfortably under their leader’s scrutiny, and Nick’s chest rattled. This wasn’t what leading was supposed to look like. This wasn’t how a pack was supposed to behave.

  “What do you mean, Lucas?” he heard Dan ask, reluctantly.

  “Oh?” Lucas quipped descending upon his second. “You don’t know?” Dan cringed backward, averting his gaze until Lucas finally walked away.

  “I supposed you can tell him,” Lucas called out, and at first Nick thought he was speaking to no one in particular until a thought twisted his stomach. As if on cue, Lucas barked a laugh after a beat of tense silence. “Oh, come on, Nick. How long are you going to hide out over there in that tall grass?”

  A shiver ran through Nick as he was finally exposed. Figuring there was no more reason to hide, he bit back a curse before launching himself from his hiding place.

  “I assume you got the message?” Lucas asked as Nick met up with the enemy.

  He was clearly outnumbered; trying anything crass would be foolish. “I did.”

  He could almost see the wicked grin that flashed on Lucas’s face. “So, you’ve changed your mind then.”

  “No.”

  A chorus of growls met his response, the other bears waiting quietly in the shadows for their leader to give the word. Lucas glared at Nick. “Then why are you here?”