The Bear Shifter's Second Chance Read online

  He turned back towards Lexa. She calmly stepped from the car and pointed something at him. A burst of spice and oil flew toward him. Blinding pain hit his eyes and he roared, turning away from the can of bear spray. He swiped at his face, the pain burning deep into his eyes. They streamed with tears, but in his bear's form they got caught in his fur and didn't do much good.

  By the time he was able to clear his eyes enough to see again, Lexa was gone, and so was his bike. He let out an annoyed grunt, but all the humans that had attacked them were pinned under the bulk of the bears. Every gun they'd brought had been smashed to bits. A couple of bears were nursing bullet wounds, but nothing too serious appeared to have been suffered.

  Marcus shifted and returned to his ruined clothes, where he fished his cellphone from the pocket. The screen had cracked but it still worked. He quickly called Adela.

  "She's gone," he told her.

  "Everything is set here."

  Her voice didn't tremble and for that Marcus loved her. Even though they both knew this was a terrifying prospect, she wasn't letting her fear overcome her. Marcus wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her forever. Which he would, once this was over.

  "Good," he said. "I will be there soon. Take care of yourself."

  "Of course. You as well."

  With his bike gone, he was going to have to borrow someone else's. David tossed him his keys without a word. As his companions were busy tying up the humans that had attacked them, he jumped on the bike and headed away. His bear snarled and paced, wanting to be free, but he pushed it down. Soon enough he'd let it loose, but he'd get there faster on the bike than trying to run.

  For a brief moment doubts started to bubble to the surface. He had promised Adela she would be safe, but this plan put her in danger. What if he had miscalculated? What if she got hurt or worse? What if…?

  He shoved those thoughts aside. Panicking now wasn't going to help, and it was too late to change course now. Adela was smart, strong, and determined. Nothing would happen to her. Nothing. The plan put her in danger but as long as he acted the way he needed to, she was going to be fine. And he was going to take down Lexa, and she'd never be able to hurt anybody again.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The silence pressing down on her was almost more than she could bear, but the thought of trying to initiate conversation was even worse. Her nerves trembled, making it impossible for her to sit still at the hotel where she and Marcus had agreed that she would go. She held her phone in her hand, watching and waiting for all hell to break loose. She wanted to go to the window to look out, but the two bikers that Marcus had had meet her there reminded her it was too dangerous.

  Other bears were all over the place, as this was a popular place for shifters to stay and their scents wouldn’t draw any attention.

  Adela wished that she could be back at the mansion with Luci and Jasmine, but she couldn’t. They had faked her taking Luci with them, the wad of clothing and makeshift wig they had used as a decoy laying on the floor now. Jasmine was to stay in the panic room until she got a call from them saying that it was safe to leave. She had enough food and water to last her for days, if it was necessary. After three days she was to call the FBI and get them to escort her away from the mansion.

  "She’s here," one of the bikers said. He reached for Adela's arm. "Get into the bathroom."

  Adela hurried to obey. Before she reached the little room, though, there was a shout from outside. The two bears cursed. One of them shifted right in the room and crashed through the window. The other was quick to follow. Her hand was on the bathroom door, ready to close it. Lock the door, brace it with a chair, then hide in the bathtub. That was the plan.

  But when she heard Marcus’s voice, she couldn’t. Before she could stop herself, she had crossed the room. She was at the window before she knew what she was doing.

  Down below was a battle zone. Bears of every shape and size were attacking each other. Fur flew into the air. Blood splattered the ground. The roars and grunts of pain pierced through her, making her jerk with every increasing sound.

  Her eyes quickly sought out the biggest of the bears. His black fur gleamed in the yellow light, his movements swift and terrible. Other, smaller bears surrounded him on all sides, biting into him, tearing through his flesh with their claws. His muscles bulged and rippled under his fur. He charged a small white bear and it danced out of his reach while the others came at him again.

  Was that one Lexa? Adela had imagined her to be bigger.

  One of them jumped on Marcus' back, tearing into his shoulders and her heart stopped. Her mouth dropped open for a scream but all that came out was a wheezing breath. Her fingernails dug into her palms as she watched, helpless to do anything.

  Another of the biker bears charged, slamming his weight into one of the ones attacking Marcus. They began to fight, freeing up Marcus to throw off the bear on his shoulders and slam another one into a car. The metal caved inwards, the glass shattering with a sound silent under the noise of the fight. The white bear charged in. It lowered its head and slammed all its weight into Marcus’ chest. He stumbled back and fell over. The white bear leaped onto his neck.

  Adela charged from the room. She knew she couldn’t do anything to help, but maybe there was something… Her hand closed tightly on her car keys. Yes. That was it.

  Nobody noticed her as she darted into the parking lot. She wasn’t sure how she found her car or got it started. It was like she was acting on autopilot, her brain jettisoning from her body so that she wouldn’t think about what she was doing.

  She slammed on the gas as she aimed her tiny car for the white bear. The impact had airbags exploding and glass shattering, but it had the desired effect. Lexa was thrown away from Marcus. She rolled several feet before she came to a stop. Her form shifted, becoming human as she held her ribs and gasped.

  Grabbing a package of zip ties from the back of her car, Adela jumped out and pounced on the drug king. Lexa groaned and swatted at her, but seemed to be in too much pain to do anything else.

  "I’m placing you under citizen’s arrest," she crowed triumphantly, quickly securing Lexa’s hands behind her back.

  The bear did nothing but groan again.

  Around them, the bikers quickly subdued the rest of the bears. Several of Lexa's goons took off once they saw the white bear was down, but they didn’t get far. Most of them shifted and lay prostrate on the ground, a signal of defeat. Marcus pushed himself up and grinned at her, though his skin was pale and a hand remained pressed to his chest.

  "I thought the plan was for you to stay inside the hotel." He narrowed his eyes but fell back again.

  She hurried to him and helped him up again. "I changed the plans. Where are you hurt?"

  His skin was slick with blood, the red liquid still pumping from various wounds on his body, but his grin remained. Adela glanced over him, focusing on his neck. When she rested her hands on his chest she could feel the pounding of his heart.

  "You’ll be right in no time." Her voice was high-pitched. "Minor injuries all around."

  He grimaced and put a hand over hers on his heart. "I don't think so. Something’s wrong. I think… my heart hurts."

  He drooped against her. Adrenaline spiked through her blood. She gripped him by the shoulders and tried to right him but he was too heavy. He licked his lips and stared at her for a long moment before he shook his head.

  "I don’t want a hospital. They don’t know how to treat shifters." His eyes glazed and he collapsed.

  "Marcus!" Adela shook him. His weight pressed against her and she lowered him carefully to the concrete. His chest moved in short, shallow gasps. She shook him, bile tasting in the back of her throat. "Marcus!"

  David stepped up behind her. "What's wrong?"

  "I don't know!"

  "Let me see him."

  Adela couldn't move. David had to physically shift her aside to check on Marcus. Behind her, Lexa started to laugh. Adela shot her a furious gl
ance but that only made her laugh harder.

  "Looks like I won anyway," the drug king gloated.

  A sneering look of triumph glowed on her face and Adela wanted to go to her and beat that smile until it was nothing more than a bloody pulp. But Marcus needed her.

  "If he dies, I'll—"

  "What did I do?" Lexa smiled. "It was you hitting him with your car that did this."

  Was she right? No, she couldn't be right. Adela jumped to her feet. "Alava! We need you here!"

  The doctor had emerged from where he had been stashed away and was passing out alcohol wipes and bandages. When he saw Marcus on the ground, he ran for them. Adela cradled her mate’s head in her lap, tears starting to run down her face.

  David glanced up from where he had his head pressed against Marcus' chest. "I think there's something in his heart."

  The doctor swore loudly. "We need to get him to my clinic right away."

  ***

  On the way there she patted her pockets for her cellphone, only to discover that she didn’t have it. It must have fallen out of her pocket when she crashed her car into Lexa. She held Marcus’ hand and whispered that she loved him over and over. At the clinic Alava took an ultrasound and they discovered that David was right. There was something in his heart.

  The bullet that had been lodged beside Marcus’ heart, the one doctors refused to take out because it posed no risk, had been punched through the muscle. It floated in his left ventricle, not allowing the muscle to contract fully and constricting blood flow. As soon as he saw, Alava cursed and started dashing around the room.

  "Surgery," he muttered. "Wash your hands, I’m going to need you. Don’t have time to get to a hospital anyway. I’m not a surgeon, dammit! Should have taken him right to the hospital, damn the consequences."

  None of this was at all comforting. Adela stuck her hands in the sink. They shook so bad she could hardly lather them up. Her head jerked up as the door was flung open and Jasmine strode in. The instant relief at seeing someone who could help Alava with the surgery was quickly overwhelmed by fear for Luci’s sake.

  "Where is she?" she screamed.

  Jasmine held up her hands in a placating gesture. "Your friends Isaias and Becky returned from their trip. They’ve been trying to call you for hours."

  "Don’t have my phone," she muttered. Had it really been hours? "Are you sure it was them?"

  "I recognized them from the TV. They’re kind of famous."

  It was true. Becky was a best-selling author and Isaias was famous for being rich.

  "I left Luci with them to come see what was happening." Jasmine looked at Marcus lying on the table. Her eyes widened. "What is going on here?"

  Adela looked at her mate. It seemed like every second that passed his face grew paler. Tears flooded her eyes and she gripped his hands. Her words were choked in her throat, but fortunately she didn’t have to say anything.

  Alava thrust a pair of gloves at Jasmine. "Wash up and put these on. Bears don’t get infections easy but we won’t take any chances. You good with blood?"

  The nanny looked startled. She quickly scrubbed her hands, elbowing Adela out of the way, and nodded. "I grew up on a farm and went hunting with my dad. I have been in everything from slaughtering animals to helping them give birth."

  "It’s a bit different when you are dealing with people."

  "I'll deal."

  They ignored Adela and she inched back to the doorway, staring in. Her body felt very cold and she was hardly aware of the other bears, the bikers who stood guard or were patching themselves up. She watched as Jasmine pulled on her gloves and Alava pulled out a scalpel.

  With the first cut into Marcus' chest, her stomach rebelled. She raced for the bathroom and collapsed over the toilet. Once she had vomited herself dry, she began sobbing. What would she do if he died?

  Isaias and Becky were home. She scrambled back outside and grabbed the receptionist’s phone. She dialed Isaias’ number from memory. Her tears only increased when she heard his voice, heavy with concern.

  "Are you okay?" he asked over and over again while she sobbed. "Adela! Are you okay?"

  "I’m fine," she finally managed. "I’m not hurt."

  "Thank God. Where is he? If he hurt you, I swear, I’ll—"

  Adela nearly wailed. "He’s… he’s… he’s dying."

  Silence. Adela continued to cry. She pressed the receiver to her ear, wanting him to reassure her but he didn’t even know what was happening. She wanted him and Becky here with her, so she had someone to cry with and explain everything to. But just because they captured Lexa didn’t mean it was safe yet.

  "Adela, where are you?"

  She became aware that Isaias had been speaking to her. She sucked in a deep breath. "I want you to stay with Luci. Keep her safe."

  A brief pause. "What is going on?"

  Adela closed her eyes and started to explain everything.

  ***

  Several hours later, Jasmine emerged from the room. Blood stained her clothes and there was a shell-shocked look in her eyes, but she managed a smile as soon as Adela bolted to her feet. It had taken all of her strength to stay where she was and not call Isaias back to beg him to come be with her. He had wanted to, but she insisted that he had to stay with Becky and Luci in case something happened.

  "The doctor thinks he should go to a hospital for observation, but we got the bullet out." Jasmine shivered. "That was a hack job of a surgery. If he wasn’t a bear, he wouldn't have survived it. I'm not sure any other shifter would."

  Adela’s heart stuttered. "But he did survive, right?"

  "Yeah. It was touch and go when we took the bullet out, but he survived. As the doctor was putting the last stitch in he woke up… I can only imagine how much worse that would have been if he was conscious. There was so much blood."

  Adela's stomach threatened to rebel again, even though it was empty.

  "He was right, it’s different when it’s a person. But he’s awake, that’s a good sign. It means that he’s healing." Jasmine glanced at her blood-soaked hands and stripped off the gloves.

  She didn’t say anything else, so Adela darted into the surgery room. Alava was wiping down Marcus’ chest with some sort of liquid that smelled pungent, but she ignored it. Marcus still looked paler than normal, but he smiled when he saw her. Adela rushed to his side, sobbing.

  "Hey now," Marcus croaked. "Tears? So disappointed to see that I made it?"

  "Don’t even joke about that," Adela warned him as she stroked his face. "You are never allowed to do that again. Never, do you hear me?"

  Marcus’ lids fluttered. "Bossy lady."

  "You bet your butt I’m bossy. I love you and I’m not going to lose you."

  "Love me? Love you, too." His hand fell to hers and he squeezed it. "And I’m not going anywhere."

  Chapter Sixteen

  The months following their takedown of Lexa were difficult. Not just physically, although recovering from having a bullet ripped out of his heart did take a while to get over. The legal battles over what he had done were long, drawn out, and tedious. He wasn't completely free yet, but with Isaias footing the bill for the lawyers it was unlikely they would see any further action taken against them. After all, they did something that the police couldn't and in many cases, wouldn't do.

  He smiled as he pulled up to the Durant mansion, where Adela and Luci would be waiting for him. He was buzzed through the gates and parked next to Isaias’ Mustang. Adela exited the house with Luci. Her eyes widened at the vehicle that Marcus stepped out of.

  "What is that?" she asked.

  "Minivan. Now that I have a daughter to look out for I figured it was time to get something more family-friendly. With this we will be able to take camping trips and haul kayaks and have all sorts of fun."

  "Pretty!" Luci shouted. "Me love red!"

  The toddler ran to him and hugged his knees before climbing into the van and sitting in the front seat to pretend to drive. Adela approa
ched more cautiously. The frown on her face made Marcus wonder if he had done the right thing.

  "How did you afford this? Its brand new and these things aren't cheap…"

  Marcus shrugged. "I got a job now, remember? It may be civic duties but the matriarch is still paying me."

  "But the payments…"

  "I’ll manage."

  Adela put her hands on her hips. "You’ll manage? Well you had best move in with me to help with your finances then."

  Marcus laughed. It was the one thing they hadn't agreed on yet, where to live. They bounced from his place to hers and then at the Durant mansion for the weekends. His relationship with Isaias had improved, even if it was still somewhat awkward between them.

  "My place is cheaper," he reminded her. "You should move in with me. Besides, I already paid most of the cost of the van up front."

  "How?" Adela gasped. "You didn't!"

  "Didn't what, Mommy?" Luci asked. Her brow creased with a frown. "What’d Papa do?"

  Papa. Wasn't it strange how a single word could make his heart swell with so much happiness? He beamed at his little girl, but she met it with a confused frown. Apparently, she wasn't happy with the lack of answers because she started to tug on Marcus’ arm.

  "Papa, what did you do?"

  She looked so much like Adela scolding him that he had to laugh. "Nothing to worry about, sweet pea."

  Adela lowered her voice. "Did you sell your bike?"

  "Bike?" Luci looked alarmed. "It’s loud!"

  Marcus chuckled and rubbed her head. "It is."

  Apparently satisfied, she went back to playing. Marcus waited until she was well distracted before he turned back to Adela. He nodded once and an upset look crossed her face.

  "You didn't have to do that," she said. "My car is perfectly okay for right now and the store is doing well. We could have waited a couple years and gotten a minivan when we actually needed it. And you sold your bike?"