Abby's Heart (Bryant Station Curves) (11 page)

The bear chuffed as it nodded its huge head.

Skylar grinned.
You are right about one thing. Our mate will look even more beautiful when she is huge with our cub.
He turned his attention to the computer screen. He scanned through the numbers, verifying them with the pile of receipts in front of him.

Several minutes later, he sent the document to Theo Willis, and shut down the computer. He paper clipped the receipts and stuck a sticky note on top of the stack. Skylar glanced at the rest of the papers littering his desk. “I have got to get a secretary and soon.”

Skylar’s stomach growled as she stood up and stretched. He looked at the clock on the wall. It was almost noon. Abby should be waking up about now, he thought.

Grabbing his keys, he locked the office and got into his truck.

Skylar turned onto Main Street. Going this way meant he would have to go a couple of miles out of his way to get to the sheriff’s office. He knew he should turn around and retrace his route, but he couldn’t do it. Something wasn’t right. He had to go by the building. A block from the building Abby’s company was contracted to renovate, Skylar turned down a side street that led to the alley behind the building.

He understood why Abby went into the renovation side of construction. So many times in the past, he wanted to restore a house instead of tearing it down and building a new, modern structure. The older buildings had character that the newer ones lacked.

Skylar slowly passed the building. He stepped down hard on the brakes, causing them to squeal. Two vehicles were parked in the parking lot. One was a car he didn’t recognize; the other was Abby’s truck.

“What the fuck is she doing here? She should be home resting.” Skylar parked next to Abby’s truck and got out. He sniffed the air. The sweet smell of honey and vanilla was faint, but there was no mistaking it. Abby had been here. A strong, tangy smell filled the air.

Skylar’s eyes turned silver.

Wolf.

Not just any wolf either, but the wolf from last night. It was here. Its scent mingled with Abby’s sweet smell.

Skylar walked toward the building. The closer he got to it, the stronger the scents grew. Abby was in the building, and so was the wolf.

Pushing open the basement door, Skylar walked inside. The wolf’s scent was stronger, but a new scent mingled with it. Skylar wrinkled his nose. The dark, stench of death filled the air. “No, it can’t be Abby.” Skylar didn’t even realize he had spoken the words aloud.

His bear roared. It slammed its head against Skylar’s stomach.

Skylar swallowed several times. The lump in his throat wouldn’t budge. He couldn’t have lost her. It wasn’t fair. He had just found her. What was the Great Mother Bear thinking?

A bloodcurdling scream ripped through the basement.

Skylar whipped around, giving death his back. His bear rammed it massive head into Skylar’s chest.

Skylar’s skin itched.

In minutes a huge Kodiak bear stood where the man had been. It sniffed the air and roared. Only thinking about its mate, the bear charged into the black depths of the basement.

She felt the hand caress her cheek.

A smile flickered across her lips. Skylar had found her. Abby pushed through the foggy darkness clouding her brain.

The caress trailed down her arm.

Abby slowly forced her eyes open. She blinked several times, trying to make her eyes focus in the dimly lit room. Her mind pushed and pulled at the pieces of information, trying to put them together.

Where was she?

Was she still in the basement?

Where was Edwin?

A cold chill filled the room causing bumps to form on Abby’s arms. Something or someone moved just outside of Abby’s line of vision.

Abby froze.

Her mind screamed she was in danger. She frowned.

But from what?

Who?

Edwin. Edwin had attacked her, but she had gotten away from him. The image of his body lying on the ground flickered through her brain.

He was dead.

Abby pushed herself up into a sitting position. Her body screamed its protests. Pain rippled through her hip. Her muscles trembled in protest.

“I’m so glad you are finally awake.”

Abby’s eyes widened. She slowly turned her head toward the voice. Her eyes narrowed. A dark figure moved in the inky black.

“It is so much more fun when my pets are alive.” The voice laughed.

“I am not your pet, or anyone else’s.” Abby watched the dark figure paced in the shadows.

“But you are my pet. You have been my pet since the first day I met you.”

Abby slowly shook her head. “We have never met. I. Am. Not. Your. Pet.”

“Humans.
You are so entertaining. You believe you are in control of your lives—of your fates, and you are so gullible.”

“I’m not the one hiding in the shadows.” Abby pushed herself to her feet. A wave of dizziness swept over her. She closed her eyes and swallowed several times. The sick feeling slowly went passed. She opened her eyes and looked at the figure in the shadows.

“Come to me.” It held out its hand to her.

The desire to walk toward it was suddenly overwhelming. She took a couple of steps toward it.

The figure laughed. “Yes, come to me.”

Abby frowned. She
didn’t want to go anywhere near the person in the shadows, if it was even a person. “No.” Her voice was low.

“Come here.”

Abby lifted her right foot to take a step. She swallowed. Her forehead wrinkled and her eyebrows scrunched together. Her foot stopped in midair.

“Come here!” The demand was stronger.

Beads of sweat popped up across Abby’s forehead. “No!” She forced her foot back down.

“You will obey me.”

Abby shook her head. “I don’t know who or what you are, but you can go straight to Hell!”

“Hell is my home, and it will be yours too.” The figure stepped out of the shadows.

Abby gasped. At first, the figure looked like an old man, but then it changed into the most hideous monster she could imagine.

The monster’s black eyes glittered. It took a deep smell.
“Fear. It tastes so good, and your fear is much stronger than the last time we met.”

“I think I would remember if we had met before.” Every instinct told Abby to turn and run, but she
couldn’t get her feet to listen.

“Maybe it is because I looked different.” The monster disappeared and a beautiful cheerleader. “I believe you remember me now.” The blonde cheerleader threw her head and laughed.

Abby’s mouth dropped open. She quickly closed it. “You—You’re the—”

“I’m the bitch your mate was fucking.”

Abby paled. “How is this possible?”

The
blonde propped a hand on her hip. “Actually, it was really easy.”

Abby shook her head. Tears threatened to fall.

The monster changed again. “It was easy when he was convinced it was you in his bed, and once I had my hands on him, he couldn’t think of anything else. He didn’t even realize you were in the room.” The monster laughed. “He thought he was fucking you, and you thought he was fucking a blonde. The pain radiating off you was delicious. I haven’t tasted anything like it since.”

Abby glared at the monster. “You drove us apart. Skylar and I would have mated if it wasn’t for you.” She shook with anger.

The monster changed back to its original self. “Yes, I did. It was the best meal ever. Pain from a pure source is so delicious. Nothing else compares to it. I want more of it, and I want it from the original source—you.” The monster shifts again, this time into Edwin.”

Abby stepped back. She looked around the room. She quickly realized she was still in the basement. “You murdered Edwin.” Her voice quivered.

The monster Edwin threw its head back and laughed. “Don’t tell me you actually cared for that pathetic excuse for a wolf.” The monster Edwin suddenly looked at her. “He was in the way.  I couldn’t let him live.” It took a step toward her.

“Stay away from me!”

The monster Edwin grinned. “Now what fun would that be?” It took another step toward her.

“I mean it. Stay away from me!”

The monster Edwin slowly moved toward her. “You and I are going to have so much fun. I’m going to fuck you in ways your bear never even dreamed of doing.” The dim light reflected off something in his hands.

Abby looked around for anything she could use as a weapon.

“And then I’m going to carve one piece flesh after the other off of you bones.” The monster laughed.

Abby saw the chair a few feet from her. It
wasn’t much, but it would have to do. She grabbed it and threw it at the monster, hitting it solid in the face and chest, causing it to scream in anger. She turned and ran.

Abby was almost out of the room, when she felt a hand wrap around her arm.

The monster Edwin spun her around and threw her against the wall. “I didn’t say you could leave.” He raised the knife he still had, and drove it down toward Abby.

Everything seemed to go in slow motion.

Abby screamed when she saw the knife. She knew she had no defense against it. She knew she was going to die. Her only regret was Skylar would never know just how much she loved him. A searing hot pain ripped through her body. Stunned she looked down. The knife was embedded into her left shoulder. Her legs trembled and buckled. She could not stop herself from sliding down the wall.

A blur rushed past her.

A roar filled the room.

Abby turned her head.

A huge Kodiak bear stood on its hind legs. It growled and clawed at the monster that had changed into a huge demon bear with red glowing eyes.

The two beasts charged each other.

The clash caused the room to tremble.

Teeth and claws flashed in the dim light.

Abby knew the Kodiak bear was Skylar. He had come to save her, but in her heart, she knew it was too late. She felt her life slipping away with the blood that slowly ran down her shirt. Each beat of her heart pushed more blood out of her body.
Please, Skylar. Please get out of here. I don’t want you to die too,
she silently pleaded as she helplessly watched the fight.

Drops of blood and bits of fur fly through the air as the two beasts rip at each other with their teeth and claws. Skylar’s bear had several severe cuts, but he kept fighting. He had to destroy the monster.

The monster stepped back from the Kodiak bear. It watched the animal for several minutes.

Skylar’s bear growled. It was breathing heavy.

Without warning, the monster lunged at the Kodiak bear, taking it by surprise. The monster managed to throw the bear on its side, exposing the bear’s neck.

Abby screamed as the monster clamped its teeth into the bear’s neck. Tears rolled down her cheeks. She had to do something. She had to stop the monster before it killed her mate.

Digging deep for her last reserves of energy, Abby pushed herself to her feet. Dizziness swept over her, threatening to send her into the dark. She pushed it aside as she staggered toward the monster. 

Abby grabbed the handle of the knife embedded in her right shoulder and pulled. The pain was horrendous. She felt a gush of blood, but she
didn’t look down. She focused on the monster. She raised the knife as high as she could and she drove it deep into the monster’s back. As the monster whirled around, the darkness inside it exploded, throwing Abby back into the wall.

The darkness surrounded her as she slid to the ground. It called to her.  Blood slowly pooled around her.

She prayed Skylar would live.“I love you, my mate, my heart,” she whispered as her life slowly slipped away.

Abby turned her face up toward the sky. The warm sunshine felt good on her cheeks. A soft breeze played with her hair, tossing strands into her face. She brushed them away, only to have the wind toss the strands of hair back into her face, but she just smiled. The trickling of water flowing over rocks filled the air and lulled Abby into a relaxed state.

Abby let out a contented sigh.

Slowly she opened her eyes. Metal beams and blue sky filled her vision. Abby blinked.
Where am I?
Her brain was a little foggy, but something told her this was not where she was supposed to be. She looked around.

The river stretched out in front of her until it disappeared around a bend. She looked down at her feet. Abby saw the river through the gaps in the wood boards. She raised an eyebrow. “I’m standing in the middle of a camel-back bridge, in the middle of nowhere. The last time I checked, there weren’t too many of these old bridges still in existence.” She shook her head.  “I hope someone is having a good laugh.”

“But this is not a laughing matter, but then, death never is.”

Abby whirled around. The woman standing next to her was tall, with high cheekbones, and long black hair draped over her left shoulder. The woman’s thick, shiny hair wrapped around her until it touched the ground.

The tall woman stared at Abby.

Abby raised an eyebrow.
Who are you?
The words were out of her mouth before she could stop herself; at least she thought they had come out of her mouth.

The woman’s dark eyes drew the warmth out of the air.
I am the guide and protector of all bears. My shifters call me the Great Mother Bear.

Abby stared at the woman and frowned.
I am not a bear or even a bear shifter, so why am I here?

You are the mate of a shifter.

You mean Skylar.

Yes.

I know I am his mate. I have known for a long time, there was just a problem that kept us separated for a long time.

Mother Bear stepped to the railing. She looked over the side.
The river is beautiful. It is the blood of the land. If it is not happy, the land is not happy.

And
what does the river have to do with Skylar and me?

Nothing and everything.

Abby rolled her eyes.
Okay, that was really clear and helpful.

Do you expec
t everything to be clear or helpful to you?

Don’t
you like things to be clear to you so that you understand what is going on?

The Mother Bear threw her head back and laughed.
Yes, I like to understand things, as you put it, but life is not always that clear. Life is full of mysteries and misunderstandings, just as it is full of life and death, love and hate. No answer is perfectly clear. We have to interpret the signs, even if they lead us away from what we really want.

Okay.
Abby took a deep breath and slowly let it out.
How is this for an interpretation? I took a knife in the shoulder, and it hit a major artery. I am bleeding to death. I pulled the knife out of my shoulder.

Why did you pull out the knife? You should have left it in your shoulder until medical help arrived.

Abby looked at the river.
I had to stop that evil thing from killing Skylar.
She turned to Mother Bear.
He is alive, right?

Yes, he is alive.

And he will live?

It is possible
, he will live, but if he does, it will not be much of a life.

What do you mean?
Abby’s eyes widened.
I did not stop that evil thing in time, did I?

You stopped it from immediately killing Skylar, but the beast mortally wounded the bear shifter. He is dying.

You can save him.

Mother Bear stared at Abby, but did not say anything.

Abby felt hot tears roll down her cheeks.
You have to save him. You can’t let him die.

I cannot save him.
There is one who can save his life, but it will come at a price.

Abby blinked.
We have to find this person.

I already have.

Where is he?

I am looking at her.

Me?

Only you can save Skylar, but it will cost you, and it will cost Skylar.

What will it cost me?
Abby shook her head.
You know what? Just forget I asked. Tell me what I need to do to save Skylar.

Mother Bear studied Abby.

Hello! We are wasting time.

Look at the banks of the river.
Mother Bear stretched out her arms.

Abby wanted to resist, but the power in Mother Bear’s words would not let her. She looked at the banks.
Where did they come from?
Kodiak bears lined both sides of the banks.

They are all my children—children, who are stuck here, because there was no one who could prevent the death of their human halves.
Death is inevitable. Do you understand?

Human doctors can handle minor things, but it takes a healer—a true shifter healer to heal shifters.
Abby turned to look at the woman standing next to her. Movement behind the woman caught her eyes. Three Kodiak bears walked up to them. Two of the bears sat down. The third bear walked over to Abby, sat down, and stared at her.

My bears have not had a true healer for a long time.

Abby shook her head.
I am not a healer. I am a structural engineer. I make old buildings stable and renovate them.

You
look at the past beauty, the current potential and bring life to what is considered lifeless. You are a healer. You have been healing the broken buildings, but you have more potential.

The bear behind Abby moved closer. It pressed its shoulder up against her legs. Abby reached down and scratched its ears.
If I accept this, I can go back and heal Skylar?

Yes, but there is a price.

Will Skylar be alive? Will there be any problems or side effects?

Your mate will be alive and whole.

Then let’s do this.

Do you want to know what it will cost you?
Mother Bear tilted her head.

It does not matter what it costs, as long as Skylar is alive. That is all that matters.
Abby knew she was dead, but if there was a chance to make sure Skylar lived, she was going to take it.

As long as you realize there is a price for the gift that will save your mate’s life.

I understand there is a price, but Skylar hast to live. I can’t let him die. He was just trying to protect me.
Abby wiped away the tears streaming down her cheeks.
I love him too much to let him die.

Mother Bear nodded her head.
You will return as a healer, and not just to my bears. You will be able to heal Skylar. Let your instincts guide you.

Thank you.

Mother Bear shook her head.
Do not thank me, because the price of saving your mate is your burden to carry, and like a sword, it has two sharp edges. Either side can and will kill you.

Abby’s heat thudded against her chest
. I’m not going to like this,
she whispered.

Mother Bear put her hand over Abby’s heart.
You will remember, but your mate will have no memory of you.

Abby paled.
Skylar won’t remember me?

No, he will not.

Abby wrapped her arms around her waist. Her legs trembled.
He won’t know who I am? He won’t know I am his mate?

No.

Is it the only way to save him?

Yes.

Abby cried. It wasn’t fair. She had just found him again. He will be alive and that is better than dead, she told herself. She let go of her waist and rubbed the tears away from her eyes.
He will be alive?

Yes.

Please, just let Skylar have a good life
. Abby swallowed. 
If I can’t be his mate, let him find a mate to love, and make sure she loves him back. He deserves to be happy and to have cubs.
Abby thought her heart had been broken years ago, but at that moment; she knew her heart was being ripped out of her chest. Skylar was her mate, and he was lost to her.

It
is done. You are giving up your mate so he may live. You will never find another mate, but you will live with the knowledge that you mate is alive and has a good life with his new mate. While he goes on to have cubs, you will never know that joy. You will be alone, but your gift will benefit others.

With each breath, the hole in Abby’s chest grew bigger. How was she going to survive this? Abby closed her eyes. For Skylar, she would survive this. “I love you, Skylar,” she whispered as her world turned black.

Abby woke with a jerk. Pain radiated through her body. A moan escaped her lips.

You have to wake up.

Abby tried to move, but her arms
wouldn’t cooperate.
It’s not happening today.
Abby tried again to move her arms. She managed to wiggle a finger.

Our mate is dying.

Skylar.

We must help our mate.

And who are you?
Abby wondered if hearing voices in your head was something that happened just before you died.

I am not a voice in your head
and you are not dead. I am your bear.

I
don’t have a bear.

You have me. I am your bear. I chose you.
We must make sure our mate lives. Look inside and you will see why.

Abby searched deep inside and found a small spark of energy. She grabbed it, and cradled it.

You see it.

I see it,
whispered Abby
. What is it?

You know what it is. We have to help our mate. Our cub needs its sire.

Our cub? I’m pregnant with Skylar’s cub. How? We only just—

The bear snorted and shook its head.
Do I have to explain to you how our mate gave us a cub?

No! I know how it happened.
I’m just surprised that I got pregnant so quick, and
then there is the fact that we already know. It takes a couple of weeks at least, depending on what test you use.
Abby wondered if her face actually turned as red as she thought it had.

We are healers.
We don’t need the tests humans use. We know these things.

Abby frowned.
Mother Bear said I wouldn’t have any children.

She did not know you were pregnant.

How could she not have known?

The bear snorted.
You are special. She could not see past her anger.

Tears rolled down Abby’s cheeks.
Our cub won’t ever know its father. Skylar won’t know he has a child.
Abby felt the hole in her chest grow bigger. She forced her arms to move and pushed herself into a sitting position. She slowly turned her head to her left. “Skylar.”

A few feet from her, Skylar laid on his side, with his back to her. He was no longer in his bear form. He was human again—a very naked human.

Abby rolled to her knees. The intense pain threatened to send her back into the darkness. She swallowed several times and forced her body moving.

“Skylar.”
She touched his shoulder.

A moan was his only response.

Gently, Abby rolled him over to his back. She gasped.

Deep claw marks cover his throat to his stomach. Some were so deep, she was sure she could put her hand inside his body and feel his organs. Abby put her hands over Skylar’s wounds, and then moved them away.

You know what to do.

He
won’t remember me.

But
he will be alive.

Abby sobbed.
How are we going to survive?

We are strong. We
will protect our cub. Maybe he will remember us. If he does not, then we will have to make him remember. His bear will recognize its cub.

Tears rolled down her face and fell onto Skylar’s skin. “I can do this. I have to do this.” Abby repeated the words over, and over to herself.

Put your hands over his wounds.

Abby nodded and put her hands over Skylar’s wounds.
Nothing’s happening.

Feel.
Focus. You can do this. You can save our mate.

Abby pushed through her emotions until she found a small spot of peaceful calm. She latched onto the calm, clinging to it as her emotions swirled around her. She closed her eyes.

Her hands grew warm.