Tiger's Strength

by Kimberly A Rogers

  My lieutenant muttered, “Lunatic is going to crash before he catches the prey.”

  Raina was definitely driving. For the love of the Creator, I was going to enroll her in a remedial driving course if she survived.

  The SUV suddenly veered wide and slammed into the back left corner of the short bed truck. The Lynx hissed softly, “Nice PIT maneuver.”

  “Not that nice, Claire,” my lieutenant grumbled with a hint of a growl. “Prey’s still able to run.”

  “Not for long, Alfred. See?”

  I ignored their conversation, tuning it out, as I focused on watching the progression of the chase. Raina’s SUV was gaining on the truck again. They bounced over another hillock. She swerved right this time and then t-boned the truck. Something metallic broke with a shriek that made my Tiger want to flatten his ears, and I caught myself baring my teeth before I controlled my reaction.

  “Come on.” I jumped out of the jeep on the heels of my order and ran toward the mess. The vehicles’ momentum carried them to another crash against a large log Clan Felidae used to sharpen our claws when in Beast form. There was the sound of breaking glass and the truck’s windshield burst as the suspect was flung forward. Apparently he had not been wearing a seatbelt. I caught a glimpse of a lean man with shaggy brown and grey hair landing on the crumpled hood before he shifted into a large brown Wolf. He leapt off the disabled truck and raced for the woods.

  Raina and her companion were already out of their vehicle. The other Tracker shifting forms to chase the Lupine. A Jaguar. I didn’t know she had a Jaguar under her command. I gestured to my lieutenant. “Help him.”

  With a yip, the Lupine shifted forms and tore across the dead grass to cut off the suspect. He and the Tracker reached the other Lupine at nearly the same time. They both shifted into half-form as they tackled the fleeing Wolf. Certain they had the suspect under control, I turned my full attention on my mate who was still standing beside the vehicles. Her wrap tunic of dark green and the black pants tucked into dark brown suede Elven made leather boots only complemented her tall, lithe frame. Her slightly pointed ears were hidden by her hair, and the scent of her cinnamon and vanilla perfume teased my nose. She had both hands on her hips as she surveyed the destruction to her own vehicle. Based solely on the way the left front tire was crumpled, I was certain she had managed to break something expensive. The wind kicked up, pulling long strands of copper colored hair from her elaborate braid, as she turned to face me. Her hazel eyes looked far more green than usual and she was smiling. Why was she smiling?

  Recalling my irritation, I huffed as I pointed to the remnants of the chain link fence caught beneath the truck and the front of her SUV. “You said you were coming for a visit, not to demolish my outpost.”

  “I told you it was going to be unexpected,” the little pest protested. The warm scent of amusement burst free of her perfume, even as she innocently spread her hands. “It’s not my fault the man failed to comprehend how a proper braking system works.”

  “You don’t comprehend how a proper braking system works!”

  She rolled her eyes. “Here we go.” The pest walked back to her vehicle and crawled into the passenger seat in order to reach the back row, still talking, “You know, Baran, you need to learn how to let things go with the flow instead of getting so . . . so tense.”

  “Tense?” I repeated, the word coming out in a low growl.

  “Yes, I am being very kind and calling your behavior tense.” She glanced over her shoulder, permitting me to see her wide smile and accompanying dimples. Of course, this is the kind of situation that makes her dimple. I growled at her and she laughed. She got out of the vehicle, a pair of cuffs and a muzzle dangling from her fingers, and skipped over to me.

  She looked up at me and nearly preened as her eyes flashed to gold. Her pink lips curved into a smile that made me almost forget myself as I struggled not to respond. This was not the time to let her disrupt my control. By some miracle, Raina managed to retain enough sense of protocol to not further needle at me as her Tracker and my lieutenant carried the Lupine to her. The Jaguar was panting slightly, still in his half-form, when they dropped the Wolf on the ground before us. He pressed a knee into the Wolf’s back as his clawed hand dug into the fur at his nape. “He refuses to shift forms, Commander.”

  I glanced at Raina who looked slightly pained at the very formal tone the young Jaguar was taking with her. Still, she didn’t offer a protest as she focused on her prey. She dropped into a crouch and dangled the muzzle and cuffs in front of the Wolf’s nose. “Sully, you have two options. One, you will remain in this form and wear the muzzle. Two, you can shift into your mortal form and I’ll use the normal cuffs. Either way, you are going back. Your choice. So what will it be?”

  The Lupine snarled at her.

  “Number One, it is. Hold him still.” Raina waited just long enough for the Jaguar and my lieutenant to grab the Lupine’s head before she forced the muzzle over his nose. He growled at her and she hissed back. I left her side only long enough to search through the mess in the SUV to find reinforced cuffs with adjustable leads. Returning to Raina’s side, I silently handed them to her. Her fingers brushed against mine before she used the reinforced cuffs to further restrain the Lupine. His legs now bound so he could not shift forms without experiencing a deterring amount of discomfort since the cuffs were designed to hold firm to a Beast and would not break if a Therian attempted to shift.

  After watching her movements, I was certain that she had not been hurt in the crash. Relief gave way to annoyance, but I waited until Raina finished her task before I said anything. Folding my arms over my chest, I growled. “Tracker, why didn’t you call in for assistance when you discovered your suspect was going to cross onto my outpost?”

  “I did call,” she countered far too casually. Raising a finger, she added, “And before you argue, I didn’t know he was going to literally run through your precious outpost.”

  I snarled at that reminder. “You demolished my perimeter fence. You also almost got yourself killed because you were too busy playing to notice that your decision to ram his vehicle was going to disable both vehicles. What if you had crashed into one of the generators?”

  “We’re not that close to the generators,” she protested, rolling her eyes. “Oh come on, Baran, you are acting as though I planned to disable the vehicles. Now, I admit that it is an extreme inconvenience since I will need to borrow a ride, but it was hardly my plan. My plan was to catch the runner, take him to his new watchers, and then call it a day. Nowhere did my itinerary include the scheduled event of demolishing Baran’s outpost because he has an ugly fence. Although, you might want to keep aesthetics in mind when you do replace it since a literal hole in the fence is a security disaster, I’m sure.”

  I gestured to the crumpled vehicles, irritation at her glib outlook causing a growl to seep into my voice. “You destroyed two vehicles, Raina. You also demolished my perimeter fence. And yes, it is a security breach and now the entire outpost must adapt until it is replaced. You have no concerns whatsoever?”

  She made a show of looking around at her swath of destruction and the soldiers who had gathered around us, and then her eyes twinkled at me as her lips quivered with repressed laughter. The scent of her amusement grew even heavier, but somehow it didn’t bubble up in her voice as she replied, “Sully broke your fence, Baran, not me. I would say make him pay for it, but he doesn’t have any funds available at the moment.” She paused, considering, and then added blithely, “Also, have you considered that your attachment to this fence might be symbolic of your attachment to personal boundaries to the point that you tend to treat all personally involved people as trespassers to be chewed on by the Tiger?”

  “You are insane. You also do not make any sense at all.” A low growl rumbled in my chest as I added, “How did you ever get a driver’s license?”

  “With flying colors, I’ll have you know,” she retorted.

  “Now that
I find difficult to believe,” I commented drily. Noticing that the Jaguar was gaping at us while my lieutenant struggled not to do the same, I cleared my throat and changed the subject. Something more professional was necessary. Before I actually gave in to the impulse to wring her pretty little neck then booting her right into a remedial driving course. I gestured sharply to the trussed up Lupine at our feet. “Who is he? Fringe?”

  Raina scoffed, “I should be so lucky. No, Sully is not Fringe. He’s just a deadbeat who is wanted in the court down at Tampa. He fled instead of paying and now he’s going to pay a lot more than was originally required. Judicious irony, don’t you think?” She tapped a finger against my arm. “So, can I have a truck?”

  “Based on your driving skills, Raina, I don’t think you should have any vehicle.”

  “Cute, TDS, real cute,” she intoned even as her eyes sparkled with laughter. She stepped closer to me and plucked at my sleeve as she cajoled, “Come on, I just need to borrow a truck to get Sully to Haven. I’ll bring it right back.”

  I raised an eyebrow at that. “You would bring it right back?”

  Her lips twitched and then she countered serenely, “Well, right after I borrowed it and went for a completely irresponsible joyride through the Appalachians, naturally. At high rates of speed.”

  I pulled my arm free of her plucking grasp as I grumbled, “Brat.”

  She giggled. “You know you love it.”

  “I most certainly do not. I am also not going to send you off with one of my vehicles on the hope that you somehow remember the existence of driving laws. A rather vain one, I might add.” I turned to the soldiers still standing around and gestured to two of them. “Richard, Sorrel, go with the Trackers to Haven. Once they are finished using the truck, bring it back.”

  “Yes, General.” Richard followed his acquiescence by helping the Jaguar carry the prisoner to his truck.

  Raina grinned up at me, her hazel eyes flickering between green and gold, as she reached up to tug on the lapels of my shirt. “Thank you, darling.” I struggled to maintain my control as she brushed at my shirt while adding, “Prisoner turnover probably won’t take long, so I should be back for a proper visit in two or three hours.” She looked at me from beneath her lashes making it increasingly difficult to maintain an unaffected veneer as my Tiger stirred in response to his mate’s attentions. I reminded myself that the response I’d most like to give her teasing was not at all appropriate for a general to indulge in, especially in front of an audience. Raina laughed softly and tugged on my lapels one last time as she breathed, “Don’t be so grumpy.” Then, she rose on tiptoe and pressed her lips against mine.

  For a single moment, I allowed myself to enjoy it. Then, I caught the sound of the collective intake of breath from my watching soldiers. Embarrassment rose hot, but I forced it back behind the stoic demeanor I had long cultivated before I could give myself away. Raina broke the kiss and looked at me for a long moment, an unspoken question in her eyes, before a little smile appeared as she turned and strolled away. She took the keys from Sorrel who was gaping with the least amount of professionalism she had ever shown and climbed into the driver’s seat, leaving Sorrel to ride shotgun as the young Tracker and Richard rode in the back guarding the prisoner. I saw Sorrel look from Raina to me and then back to Raina before she asked something that made my mate smile broadly, and then nod.

  As they drove off, I finally turned to look at my soldiers. They were grinning like a bunch of hyenas. I snarled. “It seems we have grown lax in our personal security. I believe the best solution is to run a drill.”

  The grins vanished.

  Two hours later, I was reasonably satisfied that my soldiers would be far more prompt in non-lethal responses to any future perimeter breaches. Much as I detested the idea of a breach occurring again, I could not help feeling that Raina’s involvement in my life almost guaranteed such a reoccurrence. I had also met with the commandants. The meeting had been far less troublesome than I had originally anticipated. A pleasant change, to be sure.

  Returning to my office, I was more surprised to find her absent than I would have been to find the little pest rifling through my paperwork. Out of habit, I checked my personal cell to see if Raina had left a message. One message. As soon as I hit play, I knew I should have deleted it without listening. Venetia’s cool tones once more filled my ear. “Baran. I will not be denied. You will come to visit for the holidays. You have an obligation.”

  I deleted the message without listening to the whole thing. I would not go anywhere near that woman. Irritation mounting, I opened the office door. Alfred was sitting at his desk once more. He looked up expectantly. A hint of a growl tinged my words despite my best efforts to suppress it as I said, “Lieutenant, block all calls that may come in from a Therian by the name of Venetia. I do not care what she says or threatens. I am not in and you will not take any messages. Understood?”

  “Yes, General Baran.”

  ΘΘΘΘΘΘ

  Chapter Two

  Raina

  “You do realize that I have things to do, yes?”

  I grinned at the TDS’ words. How was it he sounded so, oh, let’s go with annoyed? Honestly, he should be far more appreciative of my efforts to stay in touch. Propping my elbow on the car door, I laughed softly. “Of course, you do. However, is doing those things truly more of a priority than talking to your mate? Especially if your mate could take offense with your reluctance to wile time away by chatting with her like a good husband and, oh, release a swarm of ducks and geese in your office?”

  “A gathering of birds is called a flock,” came the rumbling correction.

  My smile grew as I could almost picture Baran stalking around our house completely ignoring the fact that it was Saturday. Tall, Dark, and oh so Serious Tigers do not acknowledge the weekends when there’s no Leopard around. At least, I hoped he was at the house. If he was at his outpost, I might have to kidnap him. Again. My leopard stirred as I countered, “I would make sure these were a swarm. Geese are mean, you know.”

  “Raina.” So much exasperation packed into my name. Who could resist that?

  I bit back a laugh as I straightened in my seat. “No, they really are mean. They chase you when you aren’t even near their nests or the goslings, and they bite. Did you know some geese have teeth? They’re like blue jays on steroids and with even more attitude problems. Not to mention the fact that—”

  “Raina.”

  I was quite obliging to stop mid-goose rant. “Yes, Baran?”

  “Please. Stop. Talking. About. Geese.”

  My grin returned. I could just picture the look of suffering to accompany his tone. Okay, maybe not suffering, but knowing the TDS, he probably had his eyes closed complete with pinching the bridge of his nose. The image amused me to the point that I couldn’t resist poking the Tiger a little more. “Are your eyes closed?”

  There was a long pause before Baran grumbled, “No.”

  “Not anymore, you mean, right? Because they were closed, weren’t they?”

  He sighed, and I could just picture him pinching the bridge of his nose again. I snickered. Oh, they had definitely been closed. They might be closed again. But, I was a good wife and resisted batting at him further. Instead, I took care to be extra sweet as I purred, “I love you, Baran.”

  “Then I shudder to think of what you would be like if you hated me,” he replied drily. Such lovely and winsome words just guaranteed to sweep a girl off her feet, no?

  Fortunately, for my oh so serious and unappreciative Tiger, I laughed again.

  Baran just sighed. I happen to know that my Tiger thinks my fully developed and exceptionally employed sense of humor comes from my mother’s side. Honestly, I think he is the only Therian I know, well, am in frequent contact with that does not have a properly functioning sense of humor. But, I have been working on ways to expand his horizons. And in truth, he was actually much better at showing the humor he only hinted at when we went hunting
for a Fringe assassin in February. Of course, I had to admit that a lot of things were much better since February.

  I must have been quiet a little too long because Baran started rumbling in my ear again. “Raina, it has been an hour since you first called me. And, you have yet to tell me the reason for your call. Instead, I have endured your chatter about Genevieve and her cubs and whether they will be sufficiently recovered from their illness in time for the holidays. I still do not see the point in that exercise at all. Why did you call?”

  Okaaaay then, still need to upload the humor upgrade into the Tigger.

  “Raina.”

  “I’m thinking,” I protested with all the swiftness honed by growing up with two older brothers.

  “You don’t remember.” He sounded remarkably flat when he said that . . . how unnecessary. Then, the TDS added to his crimes the horror of incredulity. “Did you even have a purpose for this call or were you merely using me?”

  “Using you?” I repeated with as much insulted aghastness as I could muster. I even placed my hand over my heart. If he could have seen me, I know he would have felt guilty for daring to accuse me of such underhandedness. “Me? Using you? How could you think such a thing? And of your own mate?”

  There was a heavy sigh. He was probably pinching the bridge of his nose again. Then he murmured, “I can think it quite easily because you are my mate, and I imagine I know you quite well by now.”

  “Yes, well, you’re such a meanie.” When in doubt, resort to childish name calling. At the very least, it would have the slightest chance of amusing the TDS and reminding him to be nice. I drummed my fingers against the steering wheel trying to remember why I called him in the first place. Sitting up straighter, I snapped my fingers. “That’s right!”

  Baran sighed in my ear again, but I chose to overlook that this time. Lucky for him. Because if I were inclined to keep a tally of how often the TDS sighed during our conversations, I would be obliged to be annoyed with him. And, Baran couldn’t afford what happened when I decided to be permanently annoyed. Besides, it was bad for his health.