Sixteen

Wes rolled off the bed, leaping to his feet as the bedroom wall burst into flames. Outside of the cabin, he heard raucous laughter—men, at least three, possibly four. Anger, more than fear, roiled through his body, his bear roaring within, waiting to bust out and chase down the assholes who set his home on fire and put his mate—mates—at risk. He could already feel his shift happening, his fingernails and toenails stretching into claws, his bear’s fur slipping through his flesh as his teeth turned to sharper fangs. “Get Noel out of here!” he yelled as he raced for the back door.

Jake rolled off the other side of the bed, reaching out and grabbing Noel by the arm and helping her off the bed as well. That was all Wes saw before he ran out of the room, his shift transforming his body as he ran, dropping him to his knees until the transformation finished.

“Wes!” Noel screamed from behind him, but his animal already had control of him. He burst through the back door, wood splintering in shards that rained down on the ground outside. Wes leaped over the steps leading down, hitting the ground hard as he jerked his gaze this way and that, searching for the ones who set his home on fire. He knew Noel would work to put the fire out, and he trusted Jake to take care of Noel, so that he could focus on their attackers. No one put his mate in danger and lived to talk about it.

Three college-aged kids stood off to the side of the cabin, pointing and laughing as the wall near Wes’ bedroom roared in flames. Wes smelled gasoline, realizing they had used an accelerant to cause the most damage quickly. Putting the fire out of his mind, he charged the younger men, his giant body barreling down on them as he closed the distance between them. He roared at them as he charged, his heavy paws pounding the earth as he raced toward them. He recognized two of the kids from Everglades, Prescott’s grandson and his weaselly little friend. The new kid, he had never seen before, but the boy would regret joining in the madness.

“Isaac!” the smaller kid screamed. “Look!” He pointed at Wes as he stumbled backward, trying to turn and run. You’re not going anywhere, asshole.

Prescott’s grandson, Isaac, turned, his eyes going wide as he saw the bear heading their way. He must not have counted on such a quick reaction. Or an angry bear. A roar behind him made him give a mental smile. Okay, two angry bears, Wes thought, as Jake’s big black head rounded the corner of the cabin.

Is Noel all right? he sent to Jake through the mindspeech of the shifters just as he reached the small kid who had tripped over his own feet in his haste to escape.

Jake hit Isaac full in the chest, knocking the kid to the ground with a heavy thud as he stood on him. She is. The fire has been put out, and she called 911. Just as he said it, sirens could be heard off in the distance. We probably shouldn’t leave dead bodies for the firemen to find.

The third kid didn’t even wait to see what would happen to his friends. He spun and took off into the woods at breakneck speed to get the hell out of there. Wes didn’t blame him. Isaac Prescott wasn’t worth him having to go to jail.

“Wes! Jake!” Noel’s voice rang out in the smoky night. “Where are you?”

Wes’ massive brown head turned in the direction of her voice, watching as she rounded the corner, her robe sliding off her shoulders. The sight stirred his loins even in this situation. We’re here, little elf. We nabbed two of them, but their friend got away.

Jake held Isaac down with his front paws on the kid’s chest, while the dark bear’s tongue lolled out, panting. The sight of two bears barreling toward you would be enough to freeze you in your tracks. He then sniffed the air. Of course, I don’t think that’s all this kid did in his pants. He turned his head so that his muzzle hung just above the kid’s face, saliva dripping. Disgusting.

Noel slowed her pace as she reached the bears, both pinning their victims to the ground. “Well, this is going to be fun to explain to the first responders,” she said with a chuckle.

We left our clothes inside. Wes sent to the others. Grab some for us and hide them in the woods. I doubt they’re going to let is in after we shift, and we don’t need to appear suddenly out of the woods naked.

That would be even more fun to explain, Jake chuckled.

Noel raced back inside, disappearing around the corner to gather the needed clothing.

Wes watched as she ran off, thinking themselves lucky that she wasn’t hurt. He sighed as he glanced over at Isaac underneath Jake’s giant paws. First the bar, and now my home. This Order of Wardens is a determined bunch of idiots.

Jake swung his giant head toward Wes. Someone needs to put them down. I doubt they’re going to quit until someone gets hurt.

And that was what Wes feared.

Noel arrived just as the first sheriff’s car pulled into his driveway, followed by a fire truck. She tossed a bag into the woods and then joined the bears just as Lainie Everest left her vehicle. “Wes! Noel!”

“In the back,” Noel called out. “We’re okay.”

When Lainie rounded the corner, she couldn’t help but bust out laughing at the sight, bringing a smile to Noel’s face as well. Wes just growled as Jake sat there, waiting.

“Help us!” Isaac cried out. “These bears will eat us!”

“Help!” the other kid joined the cries, squirming until Wes pressed down harder on his chest.

“I take it these are the culprits?” Lainie walked over, her hand on her gun as she took in the scene.

“There were three, actually,” Noel said. She pointed to the one under Jake. “That’s the kid we suspect of trashing Everglades. He caused a ruckus the other night in the bar, and Wes had to toss him out on his ass. His grandfather is also the one who tried to buy Everglades from Wes a few days ago, threatening him if he didn’t sell.”

Isaac strained to get out from under Jake to no avail. “My grandfather is only looking out for the humans in this area. Paranormals are a dangerous menace in our world.”

Wes watched as Lainie walked over to where the kid stood. She squatted down and leaned in close as she shifted, her facial features transforming into her panther for just the briefest of seconds.

Isaac screamed as he tried to shove himself deeper into the earth.

There’s that disgusting smell again, Jake sneered.

When Lainie shifted back, she patted Isaac’s head. “I’d be careful what you say. Some might think you’ve lost your faculties and have you committed. It’s been known to happen around here.” She stood, her hand back on her gun. “Now, turn over.” With her other hand she pulled out some handcuffs. Jake slid his paws off the kid but didn’t move just in case Isaac tried to run. He didn’t.

Firemen rounded the corner with a long hose just as Lainie cuffed the other kid’s wrists. The bears lumbered off into the woods, but weren’t out of sight before the firemen appeared, ready to put out a fire already extinguished.

“Were those bears?” one of the firemen asked, stopping in his tracks.

Lainie stood, wiping her hands together as she nodded. “Amazing what you find in these woods, isn’t it?” She turned to the firemen. “Can you make sure no burning embers remain?”

The fireman stared at the departing bears a moment longer, nodding his head, his mouth hanging open a bit. “Um, yeah, sure.” He shook his head. “I love living here,” he mumbled as he turned to the smoldering wall. They could hear other firemen inside the cabin, making sure the fire was truly out.

Wes and Jake ducked into the woods just enough to be out of sight before turning back around and watching what happened next. Wes hated not shifting back immediately, but he wanted to make sure nothing else happened while he was in the middle of his transformation.

Jake must have sensed his trepidation because he sent, You shift back and go to her. Once you’re there, I’ll see if I can track the one who got away.

Thanks, Wes sent as he moved over to where he saw Noel toss the bag of clothes, keeping his focus on the situation at the back of his cabin.

“You know you’re not going to be able to stay here tonight, right?” Lainie asked as she walked over to where Noel stood.

Noel wrapped her arms over her chest as she nodded. “We can stay at Jake’s.”

“Wes!” Dimitri’s voice rang out, and a moment later, he rounded the side of the cabin. “Noel, is everyone all right?” Adira appeared right behind him.

“I am so sorry,” the witch said. “I should have thought about putting barriers around the cabin as well.”

“Not your fault,” Noel assured the woman. “None of us thought about it. Who knew they would be this determined to drive us out?”

Dimitri gave her a quick, tight hug, and then walked over to where Isaac Prescott laid on the ground, squatting down beside the kid. “You guys are going to be a major pain in my ass, I see.” He shook his head. “Looks like I need to go talk to your grandfather. That’s going to be fun.”

“He’s not going to talk to you,” the kid spat.

Dimitri winked at the kid. “I don’t really intend on talking.” He patted the kid’s head and then stood back to his feet just as Wes walked out of the woods.

“Where’s Jake?” Noel asked, her arms still over her chest, a worried expression on her face.

Wes walked over to her, taking her in his arms. “He went after the other kid. He’ll be back soon.” He glanced down at the kid on the ground. “I want to go with you when you talk to his grandfather.”

Dimitri nodded. “Of course.”

The firemen stayed there another thirty minutes, water dripping from everywhere as they ensured the place was safe. Dimitri assisted Lainie in putting the kids in the back of her car, and then he and Adira left the others there, promising to do whatever they needed to help them out. Wes and Noel thanked them, but said they’d be all right. There were three of them now after all. They would need to make some major repairs, of course, but nothing had been severely destroyed. He kissed the side of Noel’s head. “Never a dull moment in Bull Creek,” he sighed.

“You think Jake’s regretting his decision to come find me?” She sighed into Wes’ chest, wrapping her arms around his waist.

He squeezed her tighter. “I think Jake is right where he wants to be. He hasn’t balked at anything that’s happened so far. Besides, you’re here, his mate. Nothing is going to drag him away, not even the Order of Wardens.”

“I love you,” she whispered.

“I love you, too, little elf. And so does Jake. We’re in this together. Promise.”

“The Order of Wardens will be a problem,” Noel said.

Wes nodded. “They probably will, but we’ll deal with them the way we deal with everything else. Nothing is going to defeat us or run us out of our home.”

“Our home is pretty fucked up right now,” she said with a defeated chuckle.

“Well, we needed a bigger place, anyway. The cabin was kind of small for three people. Time to upgrade.” He leaned down and kissed the mark he made on her shoulder, running his tongue over his teeth impressions. “As long as we have each other, it doesn’t matter where we live.”

He felt her squeeze her arms tighter around him, absorbing his comfort through his touch. “I don’t deserve you.”

He kissed the side of her head. “We deserve each other. We’ll survive this. Don’t fret.” He didn’t tell her that he worried enough for both of them.