Page 47 of Bear's Rejected Love

Was that atranquilizer?

Considering that the upper part of his body went completely numb and it was spreading fast, the answer appeared to be yes. That woman in the van. She’d just shot him. It was happening again, the capture, the lab. His brain was having trouble processing everything though he knew for certain that he was in trouble.

Big trouble.

Every animal inside of him tried to shift out of him at once. All of them tried to protect him. The main problem with that was that they shared things like a brain and a bloodstream, and a heart and whatever drug he’d been given was spreading fast. He took one more step and since he couldn’t feel his feet, he went down hard, practically biting the rough asphalt. He felt the scrape of it against his cheek. Skin. Still human. He wasn’t able to shift no matter how much of a war the others were putting up. He could sure have used the owl right about now. That wolf and its hunger. The bear and its size. He could have used any of them and been thankful to them for appearing and saving his ass.

The bear, one of them and he couldn’t tell which one, gave it one last shot. He felt the shift try to happen. The bear tried to emerge, but it was pushed back. He was just so tired. So heavy. He tasted the metallic saltiness of blood in his mouth. He must have bitten his tongue when he fell.

The nothingness came on fast. The dark was absolute. He had one last thought, and it was of Greenacre, of Tabitha and Corbin, Ora, Helena, and Honor. He hoped they’d be okay. That they’d know he hadn’t abandoned them and that in the end, he’d never wanted anything more than just to stay.

Chapter 20

Tabitha

“Something’s wrong, Sam. I can’t explain how I know, I just- I just know.”

Lily popped into view behind Sam at the door of their cabin. “Like the night of the fire?”

“Yes. I saw Roan off half an hour ago and just now I suddenly got that sick, nasty feeling in my stomach like the worst has happened. Like he’s been in an accident or there was trouble on the road. He took his phone, but I’m not sure he would have called me, and I can’t get an answer.”

She toed the front porch with the tip of her sandal and hiked Honor up higher on her hip. He hadn’t tapped into the sketchy, bad vibes she was feeling. She was at home at the cabin, feeding him a snack when she’d suddenly felt like throwing up and screaming at the same time. Her head was pressurized like she was deep under water. She couldn’t do anything to shake it, so after two minutes, she’d grabbed him out of his highchair and made for Sam and Lily’s.

Fast.

“He wouldn’t call you?” Lily asked, like Tabitha knew she would. Not in a mean, prying for answers kind of way, but in a concerned, motherly, friendly way that felt more like a hug than anything.

“We were- uh- taking the day to have some space. We had an argument last night.”

“But he would call if it was an emergency?” Lily asked. She stepped out and held out her arms automatically for Honor.

“I don’t know. Maybe. But what if he couldn’t get to his phone? Maybe it’s nothing. Maybe we’ll go down the road and we won’t find him, and everything will be fine, and we’ll have wasted time—”

“Not a waste of time. Last time you had good reason to be worried, trust your instincts,” Sam grabbed his keys from inside the doorway. “I’ll drive, if that’s alright?”

“Yes. Certainly. I just didn’t have a car seat and the girls and Corbin are at school. I was watching Honor, and they were going to come to my cabin after school, until Roan got home.” She was rambling and she knew it, but the words kept tumbling out. “He just went for a few supplies. I don’t know why he did, he never goes out alone. I thought he might be feeling restless, or that he wanted something from the city he didn’t want to talk about. I agreed to watch Honor since I thought it might be important. I’m sure this feeling isn’t that he decided to leave us. He wouldn’t do that after giving his word.”

Sam’s brows shot up, but he didn’t share that look with Lily that said they would discuss it later between them. What she’d just said was her own business—hers and Roan’s, and it would stay that way.

Greenacre was one of the few places on earth that was fairly free of gossip. If someone had an issue, they talked it out. If someone needed help, they went to their alpha. If Sam and Lily ever discussed anything privately, it was only how best to help someone struggling.

“I’ll watch Honor and I’ll go collect the kids after school if you’re not back.” Lily’s forehead creased, but she kissed the baby’s cheeks and pretended like everything was fine. “Are you sure you shouldn’t take Tavish or Kier?”

“I’ll stop by the clinic on the way,” Sam promised. “We’ll only lose a minute, if that, for me to run inside. I’ll take them both if they’re there, or whoever is.”

“Do you think there’s trouble?” Tabitha gasped. “Like, real trouble?”

“I’m not sure, but it won’t hurt to be safe. No one is going to be mad if there’s not. If anything, it’s a relief. But a bad feeling about one’s mate—that’s not the kind of thing to take lightly.”

“No. I- I mean yes. Thank you for helping me.”

“Of course.”

Sam motioned to the truck. “Jump in. You can ride up front.”

“Oh, that’s okay. I don’t think Tavish or Kier would fit into the back.”

“One of them will have to if they’re both coming.”

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