Shifters Hunt: Shifters Hunt Romance Boxset Books 1-4 Page 6

  “Everything good?” he whispered.

  “Yeah. Ragnor’s worn out from last night and his wound.”

  Don’t forget awesome sex.

  “Let’s go before your mother starts to worry.”

  The light that filtered through my closed eyelids went out, and I listened to the two of them leave The Den, locking the door behind them. Long after they left, I stayed awake despite my fatigue, trying to find a way out of the mess I found myself in. Even if I had the money, I couldn’t bribe my way out of Kanata’s service. Nor could I continue as I once had, not with Skyler in my life.

  If Jonas agreed to take his family out of New Orleans, then we could all head to a safe city. Or even Denver. That drawing sensation tugged at me again at the thought of the city near the great mountains, and once again, I shoved it away. I knew, however, that Jonas had worked his entire life for this bar, and he would refuse to leave it.

  At last, I fell asleep, dreaming of Skyler in my arms as we danced in a high mountain meadow, her hair crowned in wildflowers. There were others in the dream, a woman—a lioness—and a tall lion whose black hair was flecked with silver stood beside her. Other lions stood in a loose circle around us. But I had no idea who they were.

  I woke to the scent of frying bacon and Skyler kissing my mouth. “Wake up, lazy thing,” she said.

  I groaned, craving sleep around me again. “Do I have to?”

  “Yes. Papa wants to know if you’d go with him to Barney’s to borrow the truck and get supplies from the wholesaler.”

  I sniffed my armpit. “Can I shower first?”

  “No. You can’t shower with stitches in. Just wash up. Breakfast is almost ready.”

  “Shit. I think I’ve been domesticated.”

  Skyler laughed. “You sure have. Now get going.”

  I washed most of the stench of old sweat from me, my side sore to the touch from too much activity, then sat on my barstool. As before, Jonas cleaned the place, but this time had few dark glances to shoot me with. “I appreciate the help, Ragnor,” he said, mopping spilled beer and whiskey, now dried, from the floor. “It’s a two-man job, and Barney can’t help today like he usually does.”

  “No worries,” I replied as Skyler set a full plate in front of me. “I’d be glad to help.”

  “Skyler, I don’t want you here alone,” Jonas said. “You’d better come along.”

  “It’s daylight,” she protested. “What would happen?”

  “Kanata’s boys might come to collect taxes,” I replied, my mouth full. “You’re coming with us.”

  Her sigh of resignation sounded genuine, but the happy glint in her eyes belied it. “I know it’s a little late to ask, but will your wound withstand the lifting?”

  “Hope so.”

  After Jonas locked the door, we walked around the corner off the main street and strolled down the alley that ran between The Den and the shops further down. “In truth, Kanata’s goons are after Barney,” Jonas told us as we headed down the narrow dirt lane. “He may be forced to take his family and run.”

  “Kanata has his right-hand hunting runners down,” I warned him. “Maybe he should just hide here for a while.”

  “He can’t, Ragnor,” Jonas replied, despairing. “They’ll find and kill him.”

  I stopped, forcing Jonas and Skyler to stop with me. After a quick glance around, I lowered my voice. “Then tell him to go northeast. Stay off the main roads, take only the secondary. There’s a safe city there at the base of the mountains.”

  “Aren’t there any closer?” he asked. “And how do you know about that one in particular?”

  “I don’t know. Somehow, I just get the feeling that Denver is the center for everything free and safe. He should go there.”

  “I’ll tell him,” Jonas said slowly, his eyes on mine. “Let’s get going.”

  “He’ll need his truck,” I reminded him. “We’ll have to return it soon.”

  “We will.”

  Once we arrived at Barney’s neat tidy home with his truck parked out front, his mate and daughters watching from the kitchen, I glanced into Barney’s desperate eyes. I instantly knew we shouldn’t be borrowing his vehicle. “Are you going to run—now?” I asked.

  “Maybe tonight,” he replied, licking his lips, and that admission was a sign of the trust they now had in me.

  “We’ll refill the tank for you,” Jonas told him. “When you go, head for Denver.”

  “Denver?”

  “Never mind why. Gather your stuff then hide until nightfall,” I said, my voice harsh. “Go across country until you’re out of Kanata’s turf, then get your asses to Denver.”

  He nodded. “All right.”

  Leaving him, we took the truck, Jonas driving, and headed for the main drag. “Why is Kanata after him?” I asked from the passenger seat, Skyler wedged between us.

  “He beat the shit out of an enforcer who made a crude comment about his oldest daughter.” Jonas shot a glance at Skyler before gazing out the windshield again. “I can’t blame him.”

  “Me either. But Kanata doesn’t take defiance well at all, even if Barney had cause.”

  “Don’t we know it.”

  I gazed out the window at the pedestrian traffic we passed, observing my brother enforcers shaking down the citizens for the taxes that brought them nothing except violence. I caught a fast glimpse of Lawson on a street corner, throwing a rope over a lamp post. A small crowd had gathered, many with terrified expressions, some weeping.

  “Stop,” I yelled. “Stop, pull over.”

  Jonas obeyed, bringing the truck down to a screeching halt, and pulling toward the curb. I was out before he came to a full stop, running back to the corner where Lawson laughed, three wolves with him. He had put the noose of the rope around the neck of a sobbing, screaming woman, a human, while her mate and children stood by, their hands tied behind their backs.

  “What the hell are you doing?” I roared.

  Lawson tossed a sneer in my direction. “What do you think, shit-for-brains? I caught these idiots trying to run.”

  People had begun to gather around the spectacle, shifters and humans both, and Jonas, Skyler at his side, mingled with them. In a swift glance around, I recognized not just fear on their expressions, but also a tightly restrained rage. Someone from the group yelled out.

  “That’s not true. He dragged them from the shop and they tried to run.”

  I stepped closer to Lawson. “Is that what you did?”

  He glared at the speaker. “Get out of here before I hang the rest of you.”

  The crowd didn’t budge. Nor did I.

  “Let me take a wild guess here, dirtbag,” I gritted. “You think you have free rein to kill anyone you want. Right?”

  “Of course I do.” His feral grin raised the small hairs on the back of my neck. “I can kill whomever I want.”

  “You’re insane. Killing people who pay Kanata’s taxes is stupid.”

  He waved his hand toward the watching crowd. “This will be an example to them, make them all fall into line.” Raising his voice, he bellowed, “Refuse to pay your taxes, you die. You try to leave the city, you die. Boys, hang her.”

  Chapter Six

  The wolves closed in, two seizing the end of the rope to haul the crying woman off her feet. I pointed my finger at them, my upper lip curled into a snarl. “Do it, and you mutts are dead.”

  The wolves froze, staring hard at me, then around at the mob that closed in around them. For the first time, they saw the faces of dull fury, the growing numbers, and seemed to realize their lives, not the captured humans, lay in the balance. Dropping the rope, they backed away, spreading their hands to indicate they held no weapons.

  A low rumbling growl turned my attention back to Lawson. He had shifted into his tiger body, his lips sliding back from his yellowed fangs. “You may be one of Kanata’s favorites,” he rumbled, taking a step closer to me, menacing, “but he will never forgive this.”

 
; I, too, altered my form. “Do I look like I want forgiveness?”

  While my focus was on Lawson, I saw from the corner of my eye the other shifters changing into their other bodies. I circled around Lawson, stalking him, as lions, wolves, and deer ringed us around. The newly freed humans stepped away, and the man pushed through the crowd to run into his shop. The three gangsters were now surrounded by threatening predators and lowered their heads in submission.

  “I’m going to kill you, Ragnor,” Lawson snarled, his heavy paws stepping slowly as he stalked me even as I paced around him, searching for weaknesses.

  “Good luck with that.”

  Slightly larger and heavier than me, he was also twenty years older and no doubt not as strong or as fast as I was. Yet, I had this obnoxious wound on my side, which might slow me down at a critical moment. Nothing in his movement indicated a weakness I could exploit, and I knew I was in for a tough time.

  Lawson lunged for me, his sweeping paw seeking to snare me on his claws, rip open my flank. Leaping aside, I avoided his strike and returned the favor with a charge toward his rear end that forced him to spin and face me. Instantly, he jumped, his powerful hindquarters propelling him forward, fangs and deadly claws reaching for my head. Melting out of his path, I forced him to land awkwardly on the pavement, spun, and pounced on his undefended rear.

  Sinking my claws into his back and flanks, I bit deep into his spine, seeking to break it. Roaring in pain and fury, Lawson twisted his body nearly in half and slashed my face with a heavy paw. The blow knocked me off him enough that he swept his rear legs sideways out from under me. Charging forward again, he used his greater weight to throw me to the ground.

  Prepared for exactly that, I once again danced out of his reach, slashing his orange and black striped hide with my claws. Red bloomed across his ribs, but the wounds I inflicted were far from mortal and wouldn’t slow him down. Turning fast, Lawson lunged for me, and this time I rose to meet him.

  On our rear legs, we clawed at one another’s shoulders, tearing hide, our teeth and jaws trying to get past each other’s guard. Now his heavier weight took its toll on me, pushing me backward, the wound on my flank ripping open. Fighting to hurl myself forward, to not go down with him on top, my hindquarters grew weaker, failing me when I needed them most.

  If he got me on my back, I was one dead lion.

  Just before my hind legs collapsed, I twisted my head to the right and down, exposing my neck protected by my thick mane to his fangs. Seizing his left front leg in my jaws, I crunched down, breaking the bones, crushing tendons and ligaments. Lawson screamed, roaring, and in his moment of agony and weakness, I pushed forward with everything I had. He fell backward, turning, trying to land not on his back but on his paws.

  His left front leg couldn’t hold his tremendous weight, and he staggered. Charging forward, I hit him broadside, throwing him to the ground, his neck exposed to my attack. Springing onto his prone form, I seized the side of his throat in my jaws. Lawson fought back, desperate now, his rear claws seeking to shred my belly, weaken me enough that I would be forced to release him.

  Through his tough neck muscles, I clamped down hard, shutting off his breath. My weight pinning him down, he struggled, panicked, unable to throw me off of him. His claws missed me and struck only air. Grinding my teeth in further, I tasted his blood, felt it trickle from my jaws and into his fur. His struggles slowed as he weakened, unable to get air into his lungs. Holding on, I waited, patient, for him to suffocate.

  At last, he lay still. I continued to grip his throat, unwilling to let go until I was certain he would never get up again. When the flow of blood ceased, I knew he was finally dead. Releasing his corpse, I stepped away from it and gazed around at the watching crowd, breathing hard. They stared back at me with a mixture of triumph and terror.

  “Ragnor.”

  Skyler, in her dainty lion body, rushed toward me, pushing her face against my muzzle. “You’re bleeding.”

  “Yeah. I know.”

  The shopkeeper held a shotgun in his hands, a weapon forbidden to all civilians, pointing it at Kanata’s enforcers. They, in their wolf forms, cringed back from the mixture of lions and wolves who circled around them, their intent clear. Jonas was among them, his lips peeled back from his fangs. An antlered deer, his head lowered aggressively, stood between two lions, ready to spear a wolf on his sharp points.

  The ordinary working folks were obviously sick of being prey to Kanata and his gang and now sought either revenge or freedom.

  “Ragnor,” Skyler said, her tone urgent. “Stop them.”

  I glanced at her sidelong. “Why?”

  “If they kill these wolves, Kanata will retaliate. He will make war on us.”

  “Baby, we’ve been at war for a long time,” I replied, watching as the once cowed citizens closed in on the now panicked enforcers. “It’s time to turn the tide against the enemy.”

  As though on a prearranged signal, the buck charged into the three wolves, scattering them. Jonas leaped forward, two lions and a wolf on his tail, snagging a yelping enforcer on his razor-tipped claws. I, with Skyler and a few others, stood back as the menacing ring closed in on Kanata’s boys. I half expected her to turn her head aside, but Skyler watched calmly as the mob ripped the wolves into bloody pieces.

  The spectacle had drawn more attention from the street and the surrounding blocks. Shifters and humans poured in from all sides, whispering together, their shocked voices reaching my ears. As Jonas and the others licked bloody jaws, I leaped atop an overturned, rusted-out vehicle, and turned around to view the mass of people whose eyes watched me.

  “Kanata will never forgive this treachery,” I told them, lifting my voice so all could hear. The crowd ceased their whispers, fell silent. “Four of his enforcers are dead, one of them his best friend and right-hand man. He will come for all of us with everything he has.”

  “Then we fight back,” Jonas roared, his tail lashing. “Take back our city. End his fucking taxes, his murders of our innocents.”

  “Right,” yelled the shop keeper, brandishing the shotgun over his head. “Kill his enforcers.”

  “This means war,” I growled. “Are you all prepared, ready to risk your lives, as well as those of your loved ones?”

  “We have no choice,” proclaimed the buck. “We’re dead if we don’t fight. But if we stand together, we may have a chance.”

  The crowd screamed its approval, paws and hands lifted high, words of rebellion rippling through from shifter to human in a wave of anger and defiance. Kill the gangs, kill Kanata, kill the gangs, kill Kanata flew from mouth to mouth, savage growls of rage spreading underneath the chanting. I stared around at the angry mob below. We outnumber them, but we also have mates and offspring to protect.

  Jonas, a wolf and a lion at his flanks, stepped toward me, gazing up. “Will you lead us, Ragnor?”

  His question shocked me enough that I stumbled back and almost fell from the car. “What? No!”

  The chanting ceased as the crowd fell silent, every eye on me. Feeling trapped, as though they would soon advance and rip me to shreds, I felt the urgent need to run and fast. Desperate, frantic, I went on, my voice near a squeak, “You lead, Jonas; you’re respected, and people will follow you.”

  He shook his mane. “You’re a born leader, Ragnor,” he replied. “We need you.”

  “No, dammit, I’m one of the bad guys, an enforcer. No one wants me to lead a rebellion.”

  “Yes, we do.”

  I stared down at Skyler, stunned at the odd note of triumph and rage in her voice.

  “You stood up for us, Ragnor,” she growled, her golden eyes flattened, her ears back. “You’re a hero to these people. You killed Lawson, risked your life to save others, including me. There is no one better suited to lead us.”

  “But—”

  “No, buts,” Jonas demanded, “look around you. All these people will charge into battle on your word alone. Without you, we will fail.”<
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  The low, growling chant resumed, but this time, the mob spoke my name over and over. The eyes that once held anger and a burning resentment now held a fanaticism that frightened me more than the thought of Kanata arriving with a huge gang armed with semi-automatic weapons. I opened my mouth to protest, but nothing came out. I can’t be their leader; I have no idea how to fight a rebellion.

  A smaller voice deep inside me muttered, Oh, yes, you do.

  “Okay, okay,” I yelled, my voice overriding the chanting. “Knock it off now. If I screw this up, it's your fault.”

  Gazing down at the faces staring up, I sighed. “First thing we need to do is hide. Spread the word across the city. Business as usual comes to a screeching halt, and the noncombatants must find bolt holes. Gather stores of food, water. Kanata will come searching with everything he has within an hour, if not sooner.”

  “We have secretly been preparing for this for months,” Jonas said. “Those are the meetings I have been attending. We have begun stockpiling weapons caches, securing locations where we can hide.”

  “Great,” I replied, then pointed at the armed human. “What’s your name?”

  “Casey, sir.”

  “I’m Ragnor, not sir,” I growled. “You’re in charge of gathering and weaponizing a unit of humans, all able to fight, male or female. Those unable to fight must hide, and hide well, for Kanata will kick down every door to find and slaughter them.”

  I stared down at the buck. “And you?”

  “McKinley.”

  “I admire your courage, McKinley, and need you to be in charge of gathering supplies. You and your deer shifters will be our quartermasters, and responsible for keeping the rest of us fed. Are you willing to take on that task?”

  “Absolutely, Ragnor. We must seize the warehouses first, however, before Kanata realizes what we’ve begun. If I were him, I’d burn them down, starve us.”

  “Do you know how to shoot guns?”

  “No. But we can learn.”

  “You’ll have to. Casey, as you gather your people, send a bunch with McKinley to safeguard our food sources. Go, start now; we have no time to organize further.”