Mine To Bear (A Paranormal Shifter Romance) (Atonement Book 2) Read online

  Mine To Bear

  A Paranormal Shifter Romance

  By Terra Wolf

  COPYRIGHT

  ©2015 Terra Wolf

  Mine To Bear

  All Rights Reserved worldwide.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, uploaded to the Internet, or copied without permission from the author. The author respectfully asks that you please support artistic expression and help promote anti-piracy efforts by purchasing a copy of this book at the authorized online outlets.

  This is a work of fiction intended for mature audiences only. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Some may be used for parody purposes. Any resemblance to events, locales, business establishments, or actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is purely coincidental.

  All sexual activities depicted occur between consenting characters 18 years or older who are not blood related.

  Please Sign Up For My Newsletter for new release updates!

  NEWSLETTER SIGNUP

  Mine To Bear

  Edward

  "Edward, I need your help."

  The voice was one he had known for longer than he cared to imagine. It belonged to one of his best friends, and a man he would do anything for. Yet the tone of voice was different now, more serious and focused on life. For Derek had something to live for now, and she even had a name.

  "When, where and me or the bear?"

  It wasn't a question of whether he would help him or not, simply a matter of knowing what type of help was needed. There were some bonds that required asking to be polite, but assistance was guaranteed. Edward and Derek had shared that bond between them since high school, when they discovered their abilities together.

  Lately, it had expanded to include Philip, the third member of their trio of shifters. Each of them contained within themselves the spirit of a bear. With repeated focus and effort, that bear could manifest itself from their human form. There were more shifters out there than humans suspected, making it inevitable that communities of them would spring up.

  The bears of Clifton Ridge were one such community. It really was just the three of them, but they had staked out their claim in the wilderness and sent out the word that nobody else was to settle in the area. For several years, they had come to enjoy the peace and tranquility that was their little slice of the mountains.

  "Tomorrow at the ridge. Our uninvited guests have come back again. That's enough, it's time we stopped being polite." Derek sounded grimmer than he had in quite some time, enough that it punctured Edward's daze.

  "I'll be ready."

  "Thank you."

  Edward hung up his cell phone with an abrupt punch of the button. His heart sped up a little as he contemplated the full extent of his friends words.

  About a year and a half prior, the three friends had gotten wind of a pack of werewolves encroaching on their property. The three of them had gotten together and driven them off in what they had thought was a rather permanent way.

  However, six months later they had almost trapped and killed Derek and the woman who would come to be his wife. Only the protective ferocity of a trapped bear had saved them, although it had cost Derek much.

  Now it sounded like they had returned again. He hoped everything was okay, though he hadn't been able to pick up more than the irritation in Derek's voice. When the three of them gathered tomorrow, it would not be for any more demonstrations, nor for any polite overtures.

  No, Edward thought, rising up from his chair, tomorrow would be different. Tomorrow they were going to fight. It was even possible that people would die, though even in his anger he hoped that would not be the case. It was senseless to waste life over something so small as a territory dispute.

  It was, however, important to protect that space, especially when it contains something precious. For Derek, that was Keri, the light of his life, Edward thought darkly. He would never begrudge his friend happiness, in fact, it had been Edward who had forced Derek to realize he did truly love this woman.

  Now if only Edward could feel the same.

  He had tried, many times, since he first clued in that his friend was serious about being in love. He snarled at the memory of all those wasted dates with women who only wanted him for his looks or his wealth. It was all fun and games when he only wanted them for their bodies in return.

  But now, now things were different, now he craved something more. He wanted that partner, the one who could see him for who he was, and love him, flaws and all. Deep down, Edward believed he wanted kids as well. It seemed the more he went looking for something, the more the possibility of it slipped away.

  Tomorrow, he knew, would provide a good outlet to release some of his pent up frustrations onto some deserving victims. He always felt bad when he was unnecessarily rude to someone, simply because he was lonely.

  He was lonely, in fact, so much so that even admitting it hurt. At least I still have my friends, he thought consolingly, trying to see the silver lining. Still, things were not looking his way. After tomorrow, perhaps he would reevaluate what it was he was looking for in his life.

  For now though, he had to rest, to ensure he was in peak form for the fight. The last thing he wanted to do was let down his friends.

  They met at the private airport where Derek stowed his plane. It was out on the runway, fueled and ready to go. Only Derek was awaiting him, and they embraced firmly like brothers.

  "Edward, thanks for coming."

  "Don't mention it, seriously." He wasn't a fan of getting emotional with his bear brothers, he just didn't see the point of speaking what didn't need to be said.

  "Philip should be here soon, then we can end this. I'm tired of trying to play nice with these assholes. They chased Keri's car all the way to the forest edge the other day."

  The knuckles on his friend's hands were white as he squeezed hard to contain his rage. It was understandable, for Edward knew he felt nearly the same way, and it wasn't even his wife they had gone after.

  "What the hell is wrong with them? Why are they deliberately provoking you? They must know you'll fight back."

  It was confusing to him, for there was no way the wolves, even at their now eight strong numbers, could have a hope against the three experienced and powerful bears. The speed of the wolves didn't even come close to closing the distance in size and strength that the bears had over them. It was unlikely that they would escape unharmed Edward thought, but he knew that it would have to go extremely poorly for any of them to even have to worry about serious injuries.

  "I'm wondering, since it's been so long since you and Philip have been out there, if they even realize that there's three of us."

  "You think they're doing it because they actively want to drive you away? That makes sense, but you would have to be really dumb to think your intended victim wouldn't get some help. This is the shifter world, not the bloody animal kingdom."

  "I agree Edward, I just don't know what to say, because their actions speak loudly about their intent." His friend paused after that, obviously wanting to say more, but not sure what.

  "Spit it out." Whatever it was, it was important enough to cause hesitation, so he saw no point in beating around the bush about it.

  "Is this the right way to go about it? Do we have to resort to violence?" The plea in his voice, for assistance in finding another way out, might normally be taken as weakness. To Edward though, he saw it as strength and intelligence. His friend was strong enough to ask for help in a tough situation, without f
eeling it might compromise his 'manhood' or some other aspect of his integrity. He was also intelligent enough to realize that there often are other ways out of situations that don't involve violence.

  "We live halfway between the animal kingdom and the human one Derek. Sometimes we can duke it out with politics or business like humans do. Other times though, we have to resolve situations using the rules of the wild. I don't like it any more than you do, but that's the way this situation has to be."

  "I know deep down that you're right, but it still doesn't sit well with me. It's likely that some of them will die tonight, and I don't know how I feel about possibly being the one who does it."

  "Just remember, they started this. We were there before them, we've used scare tactics, politics and even the violence of your encounter last year to try and show them this was a bad idea. Yet for whatever reason, they keep coming back, they keep trying to attack you or Keri. It's the part where they go after the non-shifter that really gets me you know. That's supposed to be an unspoken rule of our world, Derek. You don't do that, no matter if they're involved with a shifter or not. You leave them alone. End of story."

  He was seeing red now, so he walked a few steps away to roll his shoulders and try to calm his boiling blood. At that moment a sleek, all black SUV pulled up, indicating the arrival of the third member of their trio.

  "Hey guys, sorry I'm late, there was a pileup on the freeway."

  Brushing his lateness aside, the two others exchanged greetings and quick hugs before they piled into Derek's plane. The short flight to the remote mountain landing strip passed uneventfully. He noticed that both friends were off in their own worlds, contemplating what was to come. The grim attitude had become contagious, for he found himself turning inward, reflecting on what had led them to this point. Only the screech of tires on asphalt as they landed drew him back to reality.

  Melissa

  The cage door slammed shut as he left, laughing evilly as he fixed his pants. She quivered in the corner, unwilling to move, to draw attention to herself. The single dim bulb at the far end of the room swung back and forth slowly, like the tick of a clock slowly counting down her days, until the last one came around.

  She had no idea how long it had been, how long they had had her in their horror cage, the prime feature of their twisted, demented show. The next one came into the cage, beckoning her close with a finger. She knew better than to resist at this point, that to try and hide in the corner would only result in pain. On her knees, which was as high as the collar on her chain would go, she crawled over to him while he prepared himself for her.

  When it was over she crawled back into her corner, feeling like she should cry. Instead, she simply shuddered in place, no tears coming. After so long, there was nothing left in her to cry with. She was beginning to be resigned to this particular fate, all the dreams of her prior life dashed. She had no family to miss her, and very few friends who would notice she was gone. For what seemed like the thousandth time, she pondered if anyone had tried to find her. There was no longer any hope behind the thought, only idle curiosity. Had she been important enough to anyone to warrant a search?

  At the appointed time, which was three times a day, one of her captors came with the plastic takeout dishes that served as her food containers. She had to eat everything with her fingers, for they wouldn't trust her with any sort of cutlery. The food, what looked like rice and possibly leftover chicken, tasted wonderful. It was the one aspect of her captivity that hadn't been horrific. In fact, she thought they planned it this way, so that she began to have something to look forward to.

  Still, as the leader approached her cage with it, she backed away into the corner. He had a bad habit of demanding things from her before she could eat. Today she didn't feel like she had much left in her for that, but thankfully he didn't seem too focused on it.

  He dropped the dishes and left, locking the cage behind her. She played the scene over in her head again, coming to the conclusion that her first thought had been right. Something was bugging the alpha, the leader of those who had captured her. It had been him who had lured her out of the club with his rugged good looks, only to have his gang ambush her in the alley, just as his hand was touching her...

  She slammed the door on that memory, refusing to remember how wonderful it felt. Now all she felt was pain when they were with her, each touch the stab of a thousand tiny swords into her skin. She instead focused on the food, shoving it in her mouth as fast as she could, hoping to have it done in case another member came inside. It had taken her a hard lesson or two to understand that she wouldn't be allowed to finish if they needed her.

  As the last bites slid into her stomach, she curled up in the corner, wondering if she would be allowed to sleep. As if tempting fate, no sooner had the thought finished crossing her mind, when yet another member entered the room, walking over to her cage. She whimpered as he grabbed her hair, interested in a different aspect of her today. It didn't take long for the taste of the food to be swept away.

  This time the light was turned off as he left her there, her lips split and leaking from her mouth. Alone in the darkness, she contemplated her future. It was only a matter of time before one of them left her with an unpleasant gift in her womb, she was sure. That would probably signify the end of her life, for she had picked up on the fact that she was not the first toy they had procured, nor did they expect her to be the last. That sad thought drove her into yet another night of restless sleep, that was interrupted more than once by unwelcome visitors.

  This was her life, the only one she knew these days.

  Edward

  "So, do you have a plan?" he asked Derek as the jeep bounced across the uneven terrain, leaving the plane far behind.

  "I tracked them some distance the other week, after they went after Keri. Then I had a helicopter pilot and cameraman follow them from a distance. I'm not sure exactly where their den is, but I have it pinpointed to less than a square mile of area. It shouldn't be hard to find them from there." His voice was terse, spitting out the facts and leaving emotion behind.

  The three of them focused in on the landscape ahead of them as the jeep sped along. The trees began to blur by for him, his tunnel vision only seeing the looming mountainside ahead. They were nearing their quarry, and soon the hunt would begin.

  Slewing the jeep to a stop, Derek killed the engine.

  "We're here."

  The friends climbed out, looking around, testing the air.

  "I have them," Edward said, his sense of smell having always been keener than that of his friends. Without argument, they fell in behind him as he lead the way up the hill. The trees began to close in on them, forming natural barriers to the side that would prove difficult to maneuver in for their bears.

  "I don't like it, this would be the perfect place for an ambush." The ground rose sharply to either side of the barely worn path, thick stands of trees preventing them from going anywhere but forward or back.

  "Spread out and change. Let's not get taken by surprise."

  No sooner had Derek uttered his words than they heard the snarls of approaching wolves.

  "Go! Shift!" his friend exclaimed, not waiting to see if they followed his orders.

  Crouching down, he opened the link in his mind. His bear roared its agreement, charging down the now open tunnel, exerting itself in the real world for the first time in awhile. He felt his limbs stretch and change, his skin thickening and sprouting fur. There was always a short, blinding moment of pain as the transition completed itself.

  When the pain didn't subside, and the world began to spin, he assessed what had happened in that brief moment. His right flank was on fire, and the world was upside down. He had been hit by a wolf before the change had completed, when he was at his most vulnerable.

  As he rose swiftly to his feet, another wolf darted in and tore at his rear legs. He roared in pain, echoing noises filling the air from his friends. The wolves had gotten the drop on them, hitting
the trio before they could complete their shifting. Spinning, Edward flung a paw out at an approaching wolf, sending it tumbling away, huge gashes opening in its neck. Tired of being on the defensive, he let loose with a battle cry, doing the exact opposite thing the wolves expected.

  He attacked.

  Charging into the midst of a clump of wolves, he landed heavily on one, bones breaking beneath the gargantuan weight of his over-sized bear. A backhand from his front paw sent another wolf flying into a tree and falling beneath it, unmoving. Just like that, the odds had changed.

  Feinting at the last wolf close to him, he drove it back a few steps before he spun and in the blink of an eye accelerated back up the path to his friends. Derek was holding his own, but Philip, the smallest of the three, was in trouble. His flanks were bleeding badly, and he had a wolf on top of him while another was worrying his legs.

  As Philip saw backup charging down, he got rid of the wolf on top of him the easiest way he knew how. He rose up and slammed his back against the trees, crushing the wolf between them. The second attacker, sensing an opening, began to dart forward.

  He got no more than a step before Edward's mass hit him like a runaway freight train. The wolf didn't move as Edward continued to roll along, flicking out a paw to open the throat of one of the wolves Derek was battling. Slowing, he turned back to face the carnage in his wake.

  It was over.

  Wolves lay strewn across the path, almost a dozen of them downed between himself and his friends, in the span of mere seconds. It had been a slaughter, completely senseless. He couldn't help but wonder what they were protecting. It had to be something extremely important, but he had no idea as to what.

  He stayed in his bear form while Derek tended to Philip. The wounds looked bad, but shifter's tended to heal quickly and easily, so there was no need to worry besides closing them up. Patrolling the perimeter, he ensured that they weren't snuck up upon again. None of them had expected to find this many wolves, which told them there was something more going on here, something the wolves really did not want anyone else to see.