A Game of Cat & Mouse

by Astrid Cielo

  “I’m sorry, Caleb,” Miranda said as he closed his eyes. They opened, and

  Miranda gasped as his body rippled and changed. His eyes looked vacant, almost as if he’d retreated inside. He wanted vengeance, and he was going to allow his cougar to administer its form of justice.

  “Caleb! No, you just said we couldn’t stoop to her level!”

  Miranda disregarded the growl he sent her way when she touched his flank. He was magnificent, but not the man she’d come to love. Her mate was loving and forgiving. He held the welfare of the pride above all else. She’d known a predator lurked within, but he’d hid it so well. Now that predator was loose and ready to kill.

  Brenna lay still watching as the male cougar approached her, its powerful feline body tense and ready. The male cougar circled the female cougar, growling, swiping at her with its paws. It was almost as if he wanted her to fight. The female stayed still, her eyes following his movements. The pride stood in silence watching as the events unfolded, and Miranda felt an almost desperate edge to the atmosphere.

  Brenna had no one, and Miranda hated her with an intensity she’d never felt before, hated her for bringing the shadows to her mate’s eyes, and hated her for putting Gunner at risk. However, Miranda wondered what had made her do these things. She didn’t know how she knew, but something tugged at her mind. Something had made her do this. Miranda stood in front of the cougar that wished to tear her throat out and was surprised at the authority in her voice. Miranda had always been known for her meekness, but it seemed she was more like her mother than anyone previously believed.

  “Why?”

  Brenna’s crystalline-blue eyes shined moments before she turned into her

  human form.

  “I will not be subject to another’s rule, ever again,” she said between her teeth, her attention never wavering from the pacing male cougar. A fear Miranda had never seen in Brenna before entered her usually defiant blue eyes, but it was gone just as quickly. “Call him off.”

  Miranda looked at her mate, and the cougar shook his head. Miranda shrugged.

  “It seems Caleb has a mind of his own.

  There’s nothing I can say that would keep him from killing you if he so chooses. You killed his parents!”

  ***

  Daphne’s blood-red hair gleamed in the sunlight, and her pale face covered in freckles instantly lit into a smile when she saw him. Wesley climbed out, and the menacing growls echoing to him caught his attention.

  “What the hell are these cats up to?”

  Daphne shrugged and sniffed the wind.

  “I don’t know, but I smell fear and rage.

  Those two aren’t the best combinations.

  They’re this way.” Daphne said as she walked toward the source of the smell.

  The cats were gathered in a circle in a cleared spot within the center of their pride’s community. Wesley broke through the crowd, Daphne close behind.

  In the center stood a naked Miranda speaking to the naked female on the ground. A very pissed female cougar paced just to the right, every occasionally growling at those who approached her or the child that sat watching the cougar pace. Another cougar, male this time, paced around Miranda and the female on the ground, his every muscle bunched and ready to pounce.

  “What’s going on here?” Miranda turned to his voice.

  Before he could blink, the female on the ground transformed into a cougar and pounced, taking the surprised Miranda to the ground. He heard the sickening thud as her head hit the ground.

  Wesley ran, allowing the change to take him, mourning the loss of his clothing as his grizzly side burst free. Before he could reach the cat that had Miranda’s neck in its mouth, the male cougar had pounced, taking the female cougar down. Wesley roared, and the cougar stayed down while Daphne checked on Miranda. The male cougar held the female’s throat within its jaws, and Wesley knew only its human side kept it from crushing her windpipe.

  “She’s alive, but we’re gonna need a medic!” Daphne’s shout drew the

  attention of the male cougar, and he released the female cougar to run to Miranda.

  Nudging her with his nose, he chuffed in displeasure when she didn’t stir.

  “Out of the way, I’m a doctor.” A tall statuesque blonde-haired woman pushed through the crowd, followed by a lean but muscular male with darker coloring. “Don’t worry, Caleb. I’ll take care of her,” the doctor said, reassuring him before she touched Miranda.

  Wesley allowed himself to change and held the cat down, who regarded him with wariness.

  “Change!” The female cougar complied, her cat-like features changing into the blue-eyed dark haired beauty he’d seen before. “Someone tell me what’s going on around here!”

  A tall and muscled male with strawberry blonde hair and hazel eyes stepped out into the circle. Wesley looked down at the female cougar, which regarded him with terror, her ears flat against her skull. She hissed and crouched over the child.

  Wesley shook his head and turned his attention back to the male.

  “Who are you?” “I’m Zackary. Since the alpha is otherwise engaged, I thought I’d fill you in on what was going on.”

  “Talk,” Wesley said, unsure of why his voice was so gruff. He seemed entirely on the edge, his body ready to protect.

  Protect what?

  “Miranda was announced as alpha

  female three days ago but was challenged by Brenna,” he said, pointing toward the girl Wesley now held captive. “When Miranda fought her, she finally realized that Brenna’s scent was the same as the one in Gunner’s room last week when he was missing. In a skirmish, because I’m not sure you would constitute their short-lived fight a battle, Brenna admitted to killing the former alpha pair. My sister attacked because Brenna is a threat to Gunner, and she saved Miranda’s life, defeating Brenna and becoming the new alpha female. When Caleb had learned that Brenna killed his parents, he wanted to kill her too. Miranda stopped him and then… well, you know the rest.”

  Wesley looked at the male and

  attempted to understand all of what he’d just said. He gave up.

  “Who is the guilty party?” The male sighed and pointed at Brenna. Leading the female to his torn clothing, he picked up his handcuffs and placed them on her. He recited her Miranda rights, and when it came time to discuss why she was under arrest, he simply said, “You are under arrest for whatever Zackary just accused you of.”

  Zackary threw his hands up in the air and walked over to Caleb, who still watched over his mate in cougar form.

  “Caleb, you need to change back and go put on some clothes. Dr. Weber wants to call the ambulance, and we can’t let the humans see us like this.”

  Wesley had to give props to the male cougar when it rushed off. He came back wearing mismatched clothing, but his concern was evident. He dropped a

  blanket beside the doctor, and the male with her grabbed it and covered Miranda’s nakedness.

  Daphne handed Wesley some spare

  clothes, and he climbed into them quickly while Daphne undid the handcuffs and made the blue-eyed female dress. When she emitted a soft female growl, Daphne’s green eyes flashed in warning,

  accompanied by a deadly canine growl.

  The cat wised up and dressed quickly.

  Wesley watched as Zackary herded the female cougar and her child out of sight when the sounds of the sirens got closer.

  Paramedics burst onto the scene, and Dr.

  Weber began to give orders. Caleb

  climbed into the back of the ambulance as they loaded his mate, and Wesley took possession of the prisoner.

  He sniffed the air, but he still couldn’t figure out what had stirred his blood and brought forth every protective instinct he had.

  Chapter 21

  Caleb watched as the paramedic started an IV on his mate. She still hadn’t roused from the injury to her head. He felt like such a failure for not protecting her. He reached out and grabbed her hand,
and the feel of her skin calmed him somewhat.

  “Why isn’t she waking up?”

  Saul looked back from the front seat, his face full of sympathy. “She took a pretty good blow to the head. Teresa wants to do a CT scan on her head. We really won’t know too much until then. Hopefully, it’s just a concussion, and she’ll just be miserable for a few days.”

  At the thought of his mate suffering, Caleb swallowed the growl that tried to force its way out. He’d nearly lost his mind when Brenna pinned her on the ground.

  Only the three males who’d held him back kept him from intervening.

  Caleb could remember the pride that overcame him when Miranda nearly

  knocked Brenna’s teeth down her throat with a well-placed head butt. He owed Essence for saving his mate, stepping in to subdue Brenna when she’d targeted

  Miranda’s throat. He was still reeling from her revelation about his parents’ car accident being murder. He wondered how Brenna had done it and why. He

  remembered Miranda staring down at

  Brenna, her beautiful body on display, to ask her why.

  I will not be subject to another’s rule, ever again.

  What did that even mean? Even if she’d succeeded in her plot to be free of an alpha and alpha female, she would still be under the rule of the Cougar Council and the Shifter Council. In the scheme of things, being an alpha wasn’t very

  important.

  The ambulance pulled into the hospital, and Teresa looked at him. “I know you want to go with her, but we need you to give us time to work on her. Let us do our job, and I promise to come get you when I can. Promise me, Alpha.” Teresa ended on a whisper.

  Caleb exhaled as he prepared to go

  against everything his cougar demanded by leaving his wounded mate in the care of others. His human side understood, but his cougar side wanted only to protect its mate. Caleb nodded and prayed he would be able to keep his word as he followed a nurse to the waiting room. Caleb sank to the floor by the wall and wished for his mate to wake up. He prayed that she would be okay.

  ***

  Miranda woke to a splitting headache.

  She licked her dry lips and tried to swallow, but her throat was so dry. Opening her eyes, Miranda winced as the light caused the pain in her head to almost triple. She tried to sit up, but couldn’t. Miranda whimpered in frustration.

  Caleb’s face came into view, his golden brown eyes a welcome sight.

  “Hi,” Miranda croaked. She made a

  distasteful moue at the sound of her voice.

  Caleb’s eyes looked suspiciously glassy as he bent and kissed her gently on the lips.

  “Can I have some water?” Caleb reached over her and pressed a button. Miranda looked around confused, finally realizing she was in the hospital. A disembodied voice echoed through the room, startling Miranda and making her moan.

  “Can I help you?”

  Caleb’s voice was excited as he said, “She’s awake and wanting water!”

  “Not so loud, Caleb. My head is killing me.”

  “She’s hurting, too!”

  “The nurse will be there in a second, okay?”

  Miranda looked down at the tubing that ran from her hand to the IV pole. She touched her chest and wondered at the device attached.

  “Saul says it’s called a telemetry pack.

  They are observing your heart rate at the desk,” Caleb said.

  “What happened?” Miranda croaked as a knock on the door preceded the entrance of a short and curvy female. Her light brown hair fell in a single layer that almost touched her shoulders. The lime green scrubs she wore made her eyes pop.

  “Hi, Miss Sullivan, I’m Destini, and I’ve been your nurse since your arrival. Let me just ask you a few questions. Dr. Weber has been notified and should be here shortly. Now, can you tell me your name?”

  “Miranda.”

  “Great.” Destini asked her a few

  questions and shined a light in her eyes that sent pain spiraling through her head.

  She allowed Caleb to give her a few sips of water, and Miranda instantly felt better.

  She took a deep breath and paused to look at Destini.

  “What are you?” Miranda could have slapped herself and blamed her

  inappropriate question on her headache.

  “Pardon me?”

  “I’m sorry, Destini, it’s just that you smell like a shifter, but I can’t place you.”

  Destini smiled as understanding dawned in her eyes.

  “I’m a platypus,” she said as Dr. Weber walked into the room. She turned and spoke to Dr. Weber for a few moments before leaving.

  “It’s good to see you awake,” Dr. Weber said. “We were worried when you didn’t wake within minutes of the injury. Destini assures me that, though you have a

  headache, you answered all questions appropriately. If all goes well, I’ll release you tomorrow. Do you have any

  questions?”

  “Yeah, what happened?” Dr. Weber

  looked at Caleb, and he nodded.

  “You hit your head, apparently striking it on a rock, when Brenna attacked you. All the tests came back negative. We

  diagnosed you with a concussion. We are happy that you have only been out for about an hour now, and there seems to be only a headache. We are planning to keep you overnight for observation, and you should be ready tomorrow for discharge.”

  “Do I have to stay?”

  “It’s your choice, but I recommend you staying.”

  Miranda looked over at Caleb and

  pleaded for him to let her go home. He refused and wouldn’t relent. Miranda huffed and sulked like a child until they took her to the room she would use that night. Caleb kissed her on the forehead, and she melted.

  “Will you at least hold me?” Miranda asked when he sat in the chair beside the bed. Caleb slipped off his shoes and climbed in, pulling Miranda flush against his chest.

  “Are you still mad at me?” Caleb asked, his breath fanning her ear.

  “No. I know you only made me stay

  because you love me.”

  “Damn right. Otherwise we’d be at

  home and I’d be lapping at my favorite cream.”

  Miranda felt her cheeks heat, and her folds moistened with just the thought of him between her thighs, his tongue doing extremely naughty things to her.

  “You know I read somewhere that an

  orgasm is a natural cure for a headache,”

  Miranda said, turning her face back toward Caleb.

  Caleb nipped her neck. “Behave,

  Miranda. Rest, baby, and tomorrow night I’ll fuck you six ways from Sunday.”

  “What language!” Miranda said jokingly.

  “I’ve always had a potty mouth, but usually only around family and close friends. I have a reputation to uphold, you know.”

  Miranda laughed and snuggled deeper within his embrace. She let sleep claim her so that she could dream of Caleb doing naughty things to her.

  ***

  Wesley sat across from Brenna James in the bleak and drab interrogation room.

  Daphne stood over Brenna, pointing at pictures. The Andersons’ car accident a little over a year before had been ruled as an accident, but Brenna’s admission to killing them ensured that the case would be reopened. Wesley had looked over the files while Brenna sat inside a cell.

  Daphne had come to the same conclusion that he had –there was almost no way to tie Brenna James to the accident.

  Now they had to find year-old evidence to convict Brenna of a crime they now knew she had committed. Although she’d confessed, they needed more than a

  confession to hold up in court. He and Daphne both knew the charge for

  kidnapping would never hold up in court, either. According to Zackary, Miranda’s sense of smell led her to pinning the kidnapping on Brenna. If Wesley were a betting man, he would say they didn’t have enough to charge the cougar with.

  Besides
, the pride never reported a kidnapping. That just wouldn’t go over well and both he and Daphne knew that.

  This was a case for the Council, not the Pinewood Creek Police Department.

  Wesley slammed his fist on the table, and Brenna jumped, her crystalline-blue eyes widening in fear. “Answer the question! How did you kill the

  Andersons?” The fear that crossed her face quickly turned to defiance.

  “Even if I tell you, there is no way it will hold up in court. I covered my tracks that good,” she snarled. Wesley wanted to snarl back at her, but he refrained himself – barely.

  “So humor us,” he said as nonchalantly as he could. He watched as indecision flowed across her face then transformed to confidence.

  “I emptied the brake fluid from their car.” Brenna sat back, her arms crossed over her chest as a small smile played on her lips.

  “The brake fluid was at appropriate levels, and there was no evidence of tampering with the brakes,” Daphne said, her pale green eyes shooting sparks at the cat.

  “Then I did my job well.”

  “Why don’t you elaborate?” Wesley said, playing into her hands. If there was one thing he had learned in his years as a detective, it was the joy that criminals seemed to get from sharing their crimes.

  He’d never understand why someone

  enjoyed being boastful over their new and inventive way to cause someone else misery.

  “I emptied their brake fluid, and when they were on the way home, I stepped out in front of them knowing they would swerve. Without brakes, he hit the trees head-on.”

  “Okay, now how did you make it look as if everything was full and functioning with the brakes?”

  “I refilled and primed the lines after the accident. I was fortunate the car didn’t catch fire. It made the cover-up so much easier. Now, since you don’t have any evidence to hold me, I have a challenge to finish,” Brenna said, getting up from her chair.

  Daphne pushed her back into the seat and looked at her with an expression akin to watching a roach crawling across the floor.

  “I’m sorry, didn’t we tell you? There’s no way this would hold up in a human court of law, but lucky for you, this falls under Shifter Council jurisdiction. I’ll be handing you over personally to Shifter Council authorities.” Brenna paled at the news and hissed as Daphne pulled her to her feet.