Hunt (The Grizzly Brothers Chronicles Book 1) (16 page)

M
y head spun
. I wasn’t sure what to believe. I was dizzy from all the crazy information and my ridiculously intense feelings for Ian, which were now a hundred fold worse. Having sex with him had been amazing—but now I was paying the price. The attraction I’d had before had amplified, and now it was going to be nearly impossible to walk away. Although I’d have to. As soon as he started talking about mating and bear shifters I didn’t have a choice.

“I know what you’re thinking about.” Ian’s voice came from right behind where I stood by the fence.

“I thought you were supposed to keep your mouth shut so I can pretend I’m alone.” I looked out further at Ian’s land. It seemed to go on forever.

“You said yourself you’d notice me anyway.”

“That wasn’t an invitation for you to talk.”

“Mara.” His fingers brushed against the back of my neck.

I spun around. His eyes were large and full of worry, and some of my anger melted. I was truly losing it.

“You were part of what happened earlier. You know how intense this thing is between us.”

“Good sex doesn’t make up for everything else.”

“It was more than good sex.”

“Ok, great sex.” The best I’d ever had.

“Amazing sex, but that’s beside the point.” Ian’s lips twisted into a smile.

“Then what’s the point?”

“We’re meant for each other.”

“Oh yes, fate.” I tried to make my words sound nonchalant. I wanted to convince him I didn’t care. It would make everything easier.

“You believe in fate.”

“So? That doesn’t mean this is fate.”

“What’s upsetting you right now?”

“What’s upsetting me?” I put a hand to my chest. “Hmm, maybe that there is supposedly a psycho guy who thinks he owns me or something, I just slept with a guy who may be able to turn into a bear, oh and I’m supposed to be able to communicate with the dead. Am I missing anything?”

He smiled.

“Why are you smiling?” I crossed my arms.

“Because you’re adorable.”

“I’m not adorable!”

“You are.” He closed the space between us. “Completely and utterly.”

“Can’t we just turn back the clock to when we were in bed and erase all this crazy stuff? Things were better then.”

“Things are exactly the same between us.”

“Ok, assuming you really turn into a bear, doesn’t the whole I should be able to communicate with the dead thing freak you out?”

“No. And I’m surprised you haven’t asked me the obvious. That’s a good sign.”

“The obvious?”

“Aren’t you worried it’s why I picked you to begin with?” He stood only a few inches from me. “The whole power thing Connor eluded to.”

“I hadn’t thought of that.” Because I wasn’t powerful.

“It’s not true, of course. I had no idea you were anything but human.”

“But it would have been a turn on?”

He laughed. “A turn on? I don’t know if I’d call it that, but we’ve been hunting for new Séancers for years. It’s what makes our breed of bear shifters different. Some bears are on their own and have their own magic. Some live without magic, and some align with Séancers. We’ve always aligned with Séancers until this generation. We’ve lost a lot of our strength. And now we’re also losing our land.”

“Your land?”

“The case Connor brought you here for is over our land. It’s been ours for generations, and now a party is disputing our rights to some of it. My guess is Willem is behind the group trying to claim our land as their own. It shouldn’t even be a case, but they forged some papers and hired some fancy lawyers.”

“I don’t see why Connor would involve himself in something like that.”

“Well, he claims he’s doing it to protect you, but I don’t necessarily believe it. He’s trying to help himself.”

“Why wouldn’t my grandfather have told me any of this?” That part bothered me. He’d always been so open with me. Or so I thought. It turned out he’d been hiding more from me than I ever could have imagined.

“I don’t know. But usually when someone withholds information it’s for one of two reasons.”

“What reasons?” I couldn’t think of a single good one.

“They are worried about their own interests or they are protecting you.”

“My grandfather loved me.” I refused to believe anything else. Maybe most of my life was a lie but one person had cared for me. Tears spilled down my cheeks. I couldn’t let go of that truth.

Ian wiped a tear off my cheek. “Of course he did, which is why my bet is on the second reason. Maybe he didn’t want you to be hunted.”

“Hunted?” I hated that word.

“Yes. As I am sure you’re starting to understand, Séancers are valuable. Bears aren’t the only ones who want you.”

The rain started again. Small droplets that I knew would only get larger. I should have walked back to the covered porch, but I didn’t. The water was cold and it fit my mood.

I pulled out the folded note from my grandfather and read it again.

Mara-

Mara.

When life gives you lemons you make lemonade. I've taught you that.

But sometimes lemons go bad and the only lemonade they are going to make is sour and undrinkable.

I'm afraid I've left you with sour lemons. And for that I am sorry, but there was no other way. I ran out of time and chickened out.

Your father didn't die. He left you. When your mother died he couldn't handle raising you so he put you in my care. As I said. Sour lemons. You may be asking why I'm telling you now, and the answer is simple. He's going to find you one day. He couldn't handle you as a child, but now he needs something from you, and I know sometime soon I won't be there to protect you anymore.

Take these sour lemons and throw them far away. Don't let him pull you into the world that destroyed your mother. Connor knows everything, and he will protect you as best he can.

He owes me and he will repay that debt by making sure you are safe. Or as safe as you could ever be.

On a positive note, I do have some good lemons. If you sell the farm you can pay for the rest of law school.

With endless love and support,

Grandpa

I stared at the note, making sense of the words now that I knew more. Large droplets of rain fell on the paper, smearing the ink in a way that I could never fix. Just like I could never fix the hole he’d left behind in my life.

“May I see that?” Ian asked gently.

I nodded and handed him the paper.

“Connor isn’t telling us everything. What kind of debt does he owe your grandfather?”

“And why didn’t he tell my grandfather everything? I mean clearly my grandpa didn’t realize the extent of the mess my father already created.”

Ian handed back the letter. “I don’t know, but he’s going to have to start talking.”

“No one has to do anything.” I stuffed the note back in my pocket.

“He will. And you’ll be safe here.”

“I’m sure they know where I am.”

“Willem?” Ian nodded. “Yes. And they aren’t working alone. But we won’t let them hurt you.”

“What if they hurt you? Or your family? Or Mrs. Peterson?” I couldn’t forget about the sweet older woman.

“Mrs. Peterson is safe. We took care of that.”

“How?”

“She’s been moved to a safer place. I might as well put it out there. Her husband was the chief of the last mountain lion pack that was out here.”

“The last mountain lion pack?”

“Yes. So she knows everything about this world. None of this will surprise her. Well, aside from what you are.”

“What my family supposedly is. I don’t have these abilities.”

“I guess you now know why your grandfather had such an affinity for funerals.”

I hadn’t even thought of that. “Do you think that’s why? I mean it makes sense, but it’s still kind of crazy.”

“Maybe he thought it would help with your abilities. I have no clue.”

I sighed. “Now what? What do we do?”

“You have a couple of different choices.”

“Meaning?”

“You sit back and relax while my brothers and I figure this out.”

“But it’s not your problem.” I crossed my arms over my chest again. My shirt was wet, and I was starting to get really cold.

“Of course it is.” Ian put a hand on my arm. “You’re going to be my mate, Mara. It’s as much my problem as yours.”

“Who said I’m going to be your mate?” I was too focused on everything else to even address that issue with him again.

“You don’t have to say it. It’s in your eyes. It’s in the way your body responds to mine. You were meant to be with me. To spend your days by my side and your nights in my bed. We will fulfill each other. Our connection will only strengthen.”

“I don’t want to be anyone’s mate.” At least I didn’t think I wanted to be. It wasn’t exactly something I’d had to consider before.

“I didn’t think I wanted one either. I wanted to stay focused on running my pack and—”

“Running your pack?”

“I’m Alpha now.”

“Now?”

He nodded. “Ok. Confession time.”

“Uh oh.” More confessions? How could there be more?

“It’s not any worse than anything else you’ve heard today.”

“I hope not. But then why are you so nervous?”

“Because this wasn’t an omission, it was a lie, and I don’t want you to think I’m going to lie to you.”

I froze. This wasn’t going to be good. “Tell me.”

“Promise not to run away and hate me?”

“I didn’t run away when I found out you were a bear and wanted me to be your mate.”

“You ran outside.”

“I let you follow.” I’d wanted him near me even if I couldn’t admit that out loud.

“I would have followed anyway.”

“See that’s the kind of stuff you don’t have to tell me.”

“Fine. I’m getting this over with.” He looked down at the ground and then back at me. “It’s about that burial.”

“What about it?”

“I wasn’t out for a walk.”

“I kind of assumed that.” I’d let it slide because it didn’t seem worth an argument at the time.

“That was my brother being buried.”

“What?” I shook my head. “No, he had no family.”

“He did have a family. Us. But we had to keep it secret until we found out who did it.”

“Who did it?” Was he implying it wasn’t a car accident?

“He was murdered.”

A chill ran through me.

“My brother had far more enemies than friends, but he was a force to be reckoned with. Whoever did it had strength.”

“And you really don’t know who it was?”

“We have some ideas.” Ian’s eyes darkened.

A creeping sensation set in. “It ties back to me, right? Willem this whole land thing?”

“Yes.”

“I had nothing to do with it.”

“I know. But I thought maybe you did. When I first saw you.”

“Which is why you frowned.”

“Part of it.” He ran his fingers over my neck.

“But why did you change your mind?”

“About you?”

“About taking a mate.” That had been what started this discussion to begin with.

“Because I met you.”

“And that changed things?”

“It changed everything. I knew no matter what you had to be mine.”

“
W
hy do
you have to make it sound so possessive?” She watched me while a few loose strands of her hair blew around her face in the wind.

“It’s not possessive. It’s protective.”

“Calling someone yours goes beyond protection.” She looked up at the sky. The rain had tapered off, but the cloud cover suggested it was going to start up again.

“It’s how we view choosing a mate. If it makes you feel better, I’ll be yours too.” And I wanted to be hers. I’d never thought I’d meet someone I could say that about. Mara was making me change my mind on so many things.

She smiled. “Why am I even still talking to you?”

“Because of our connection. You don’t want to walk away.”

She sighed. “You don’t always have to be right.”

I brushed some hair away from her face. “No, I don’t. But I’m right on this.”

“I’m not agreeing with you yet.” She tried to hide it, but I caught a glimpse of a smile.

“Why not?”

“Because I’m not wholly convinced. Maybe this is all a side effect of the craziness.”

“But you felt the connection before the craziness started.” She’d felt it from the beginning, just as I had.

She shrugged. “Maybe.”

Maybe wasn’t going to be enough. I pulled her into my arms and crushed my lips into hers. She responded immediately, and I soaked in the taste of her lips. I needed her, and I needed to remind her of what we shared. She was right, things were crazy, but that had nothing to do with whether she belonged with me.

She wrapped her arms around my neck, and I pulled her tighter against me. I’d never get her close enough. I allowed myself to get lost in the kiss, to pretend it was a normal night, not one full of violence and the unknown.

Finally, I made myself break the kiss. We stood there only inches apart, out of breath and staring at each other.

Suddenly, I heard a whoosh and out of the corner of my eye saw a blur of black feathers. Then she was gone.

The space she’d been in was empty, and I watched as she ascended into the sky wrapped in arms that had no right to touch her. Only a large black feather fell on the ground where she has once stood.

I roared, letting my bear take over. The sound echoed off the mountains in the distance, and quickly the Pteron and Mara were out of sight.

Running after her was pointless, without wings I could never catch up. But I would get her back. And after I did, I’d make the Pteron pay with his life if he’d hurt her. He’d learn he had messed with the wrong bear. I’d only known Mara for a few days, but the connection was real. She was made to be my mate, and no one was going to get between us.