Chapter 10

The rest of the day passed uneventfully. However, Charlotte knew that her life was about to be filled with more turmoil than she had ever experienced. When she said this a the dinner table, both Jaxson and Rio stopped eating. Jaxson got up and pulled her chair back then reached down and picked her up, sitting her in his lap.

Rio, watching, simply grinned. He and Jaxson both had seen their dad do this with their mom when she was upset about something. He remembered being a teenager and asking his dad about it. "Son, a mate is your very lifeline. She will do so much for you. She will keep you grounded. She will keep you sane when you think everything is falling apart. She will rock your world." He paused for a moment and then said, "She will be the center of your universe. No matter how many people are in that universe. We, in turn, are the same for them. We nurture them, we provide for them and we protect them. If that means holding her and giving her comfort when she is upset, then that is what we do."

Rio had thought that he had understood. But, watching Jaxson care for Charlotte, he wasn't so sure. Jaxson had attacked his own brother because of his mate. Rio wasn't upset about it. He had understood. The very idea that he had harmed his brother's mate turned his stomach. He hadn't enjoyed what he had done to her, but it had been the only way to protect her. Thinking about the two thugs that he had killed in front of their home, Rio grimaced. Jaxson noticed, and almost instinctively knew what Rio was thinking about, remembering.

Turning away from his brother, Jaxson focused on his mate. Charlotte was beginning to calm down. He could feel her emotions settling. Picking up the fork, he dipped it into the homemade chicken salad and brought it to her mouth. Charlotte obediently opened her mouth and Jaxson fed her the food.

Charlotte realizes that Rio is watching the scene with a longing on his face. Feeling sorry for him, she asked him, "Rio, don't you have a mate?"

Rio was startled that Charlotte would volunteer to speak to him and said, "No, I have never met my mate, Charley. I honestly don't think that I have one. Either that or she is dead."

Charlotte made a sound almost like a sound of regret. Rio realized that, despite everything she had been through, she had decided to forgive him, and because of that, his brother would as well.

Rio was about to say something to them both when his phone vibrated, then started to ring. Taking his phone out of his shirt pocket, Rio swore.

"What is it, Rio?" Jaxson asked, even though he was fairly certain that he knew.

"Nathan is coming by helicopter. He is asking for a place to land. He is also bringing two females with him. One is a coroner and the other is a newly promoted field agent. He said she was green but had great instincts. He also said that she was the only one that he could trust." Rio paused for a minute, allowing Jaxson and Charlotte to absorb this information.

Rio was about to ask his brother where his boss could land his helicopter when Jaxson spoke up. "There's an old hunting lodge down by the river, at the foot of the mountain. Tell him to land there and let us know when they will be here and I will go and meet them. You stay here with Charlotte and guard her. I want you to call Bill to come up here, too. He needs to be here. He's involved in this too, like it or not. We have no idea who or what will show up in town once it hits the fan."

Rio called his boss back and provided the instructions that his brother had given him. Then he called the sheriff and told him what was going on. When he had finished both calls, he looked at Charley and said, "Are you sure you're going to be okay with it just me and you? I know what I did Charley, and I know that you are still frightened of me."

Charlotte looked up at Jaxson. His warm brown eyes were filled with questions as well. She smiled, first at her mate, then at his brother. Of course, the smile she gave Rio was slightly strained. "I'll be fine, Rio. I'm starting to realize exactly what a mess this is going to be and while I am still a little bit wary of you. I also understand why you did what you did."

Rio nodded his head in acknowledgment of Charlotte's statement and got up from the table and went into the room where they kept all of their weapons. Charlotte had seen it only once. It had been a few days before and Rio had come back from hunting and had opened the door to the room and she saw a fully stocked armory. Just the brief glimpse she had seen had assured her that the brothers had no problem holding off a small army. She had seen shotguns, rifles, compound bows, tomahawks, and ammunition. She wasn't sure that was everything. No. She was sure that it wasn't. She hadn't asked to be shown the room. But she knew that eventually, she would have to. She would need to know how to defend herself when the time came.

When Rio came back out of the room, he was carrying a rifle and a handgun. Reaching behind him, he pulled out a knife and handed it to Charlotte. "Do you think you can use it if you have to?"

Charlotte felt her stomach heave at the thought of more violence. Jaxson and Rio both saw the look of terror that crossed her face. Followed swiftly by one of determination. "Yes." It was almost whispered. But both men heard it and were pleased by her response.

Jaxson stood up still holding Charlotte. He let her down gently and cupped her face. "Hopefully, all of this will be over in a little more than a week. Then we can figure out the rest of our lives. Okay?"

Charlotte smiled up at him and he felt his heart turn out in his chest. Anything. He would do anything for this woman. He had opened up his world and let her in because she was his mate. He was beginning to realize why their father was so attached to their mom, now. Just the thought of being away from her, even for a few minutes, made him ache. But, this was about her life and her freedom, as well as his brother's. His brother would never really be free. He would always have to look over his shoulder. In that instant, Jaxson felt pity for his brother.

Charlotte sensing emotional turmoil in her large mate, reached up and put her hand on his chest, covering his heart. Looking down at her, she watched his eyes glow for just a minute before returning to normal.

"We'll be okay, Jaxson. All of us. We don't have a choice. I refuse to roll over and die for anyone. This is our lives. Mine, yours and Rio's, all. We can and will survive."

Jaxson felt his chest swell with pride. His little mate was right. They really didn't have a choice. Straightening to his full height, he picked up Charlotte one more time and kissed her, nodded to his brother, and walked out of the house without a backward glance.

Charlotte took the knife Rio had handed her and tucked it into the back of her jeans, then went about clearing the table and cleaning the kitchen after their meal.

Rio watched out the sliding glass doors as his brother's Jeep drove down the path that led to the hunting cabin to where he would meet Nathan. In the distance was a helicopter. Rio had no doubt that it was his boss. Watching the Jeep disappear in the distance, he stood guard over his brother's mate. Shortly, he heard a vehicle pull up in front of the house. Pointing his rifle towards the front door, he waited for the knock. When it came, he yelled, "It's open."

Charlotte had moved out of sight because Rio had waved her to the side of the room, out of sight. This was his brother's mate and he wasn't taking any chances with her.

As the door opened, Rio used the lever action of the rifle and chambered a bullet. Seeing Bill walk in, he released the breath he was holding before asking the sheriff, "Are you alone?"

"Yep. Left the deputy in charge and told him that I was taking the rest of the day off to go fishing." Bill grinned at Rio, knowing that he was being extra cautious. He didn't blame them. He understood the situation and was also taking extra precautions in town. Just then, Charlotte rounded the corner and smiled at Bill.

"Hi, sheriff. Are you hungry? We just ate, but we have some leftover chicken salad if you are."

Bill was amazed that this small female was at home with two large bear shifters and was almost completely unafraid. She had changed Jaxson quickly. But, that's what happens when you meet your mate.

"No, thank you, Charlotte. I ate before I left town. I'm just here to meet with Mr. Powers and see what small part I might need to play in all of this." She nodded and went to the sliding glass door and stood next to Rio.

"How much longer will it be, Rio?" She never took her eyes off of the horizon.

"Soon. You should see Jaxson's Jeep any minute now." As he spoke the Jeep, did indeed, appear. Sitting up front with her mate was a female and for the first time in her life, Charlotte experienced jealousy.

"Who is that?" She realized that she had snapped the question out, but didn't care. There was a female sitting next to her mate.

Rio and Bill, realizing what was happening, smiled at each other. "It's okay, Charley. She is not a threat to you. I promise. In fact, if you watch, Jaxson is very uncomfortable with her sitting there."

Charlotte took a closer look and realized that Rio was right. Jaxson looked very tense and even from the house she could see that he wasn't happy to be sitting next to the female. She wasn't oblivious to his demeanor, either. She, also, didn't look happy to be sitting next to him. Charlotte watched as the Jeep rounded the property and she heard the engine shut off in front, next to Bill's truck.

When Jaxson entered the front door, Charlotte threw herself at him. Jaxson didn't care. He had missed his little mate. They weren't separated but for a few minutes, but it felt like a lifetime. He kissed her, hard. Until someone cleared their throats. Looking up, Jaxson saw Bill standing beside his brother, smiling.

Nathan Powers sensing the shift in the room, addressed Rio. "Well son, do you have anything to give me?"

Rio gestured to his brother and his mate and said, "Actually sir, you might want to speak to Jaxson and Charlotte about that."

Powers frowned at that. "Why would I want to talk to them?"

"Because I had inside my body. That's why." Rio laughed. He had forgotten that Charley could be sassy at times.

Nathan Powers looked over at the slip of a girl standing in the circle. An almost exact replica of Rio, just younger. She had some faded bruises and he could see some areas that had stitches.

"And you are?" Powers said with one eyebrow raised.

"The person who got you the information. I'll tell you something too. I paid dearly for it. I was beaten within an inch of my life, stabbed, and shot. Then I was tossed out like yesterday's trash. If it hadn't been for Rio dumping me on his family property, you wouldn't have your precious evidence and I would be dead. So you can stop acting like an ass and be a little bit nicer." She snapped.

The two women had to turn their heads to keep their boss from seeing their smirks. It wasn't often that anyone stood up to or talked back to Nathan Powers. Yet this small, seemingly fragile female just did.

Jaxson, however, was bearing his teeth, sensing a threat to their mate. His bear would not tolerate someone belittling or disrespecting her in any manner.

Powers, suddenly aware that he was at a disadvantage, decided to stand down. The sheriff seeing this looked over at the government agent and said, "Welcome to the world of shifters, Powers. They are very protective of their mates, and Charlotte here just happens to be the mate of the head of the Bear clan."

Powers looked over at the sheriff and huffed. "I had heard about you guys, but never met one before."

"Sure you have Nathan. You've worked with me for almost twenty years." Rio replied with a grin. It did his boss good to be uprooted in his belief that he was in control of everything.

"You too, Rio?"

"Yep. I was supposed to be the alpha, but I went into undercover work instead. My brother went into the military and our sheriff here," gesturing to Bill, "ran the clan for us until one of us returned. In the town about an hour from here, you'll find all sorts of shifters. Bears like us, wolves, foxes, even a cat or two. That being said, we do not wish to become 'government experiments.' We will fight to the last breath for our freedom."

Nathan felt slightly out of sorts. It wasn't in him to not have his finger on all of the information at hand. Yet, he had missed some very vital information. A whole town of shifters. But, not just that. His lead deep cover operative was one as well. He frowned as he mulled over this information, not liking that he had been left out.

"Sir, I can see the wheels turning in your head. Lay it to rest for the time being and let's work on the situation at hand," one of the females said. It was the woman who had been sitting next to Jaxson in the Jeep. Stretching out her hand to Charlotte in a goodwill gesture she introduced herself. "I'm Misty. I'll be the lead coroner in this investigation. Can we go into another room and let me take pictures of your injuries? I know that they are healing, but this will give us a bit of evidence for things like warrants and wiretaps."

Charlotte looked up at Jaxson to see if he was okay with this. He nodded and said, "Go ahead, honey. I'll be right here if you need me." Feeling somewhat relieved, she nodded to the blonde and said, "Follow me." She then turned and led her to her and Jaxson's bedroom.

Charlotte shut the door and turned to the woman. "They are all over. From my shoulders to my thighs. There are two gunshots, one right near my collarbone, the other on the inside of my left thigh. I had several fingers broken and my head was busted open as well."

Charlotte let the information sink in while she undressed down to her underwear. She could hear the camera shutter as the other woman took pictures to document her injuries. Charlotte kept her eyes closed the whole time. While her body had healed, there were still parts of her mind that had not, and she preferred not to see anyone's reaction to her ugly scars. Then Misty said something that almost blew her away.

"These are healing very well. I honestly don't think that you will have any scarring. If you do, it will be minimal at best."