Page 169 of Secret Shifters Next Door

I was on the verge of leaping from the chair and trying to wrestle the gun away from Ryland when a warm, relaxing calm spread down my spine and into my stomach. I frowned then suppressed a smile. It was the feeling I always had when Steff close. He hadn’t claimed me yet, but we were mates. I could always sense him. He was nearby. My God, he was probably inside the building. Hope filled me, and I almost cried with relief.

Ryland walked over and took me by the arm, lifting me up. “Time to go. I need to introduce you to my boss. We’ll need his permission before I can convert you into a believer.”

I struggled and yanked my arm from his grasp. He snatched at my arm again, grabbing it hard, sending a jolt of pain up into my armpit. “Stop being difficult and accept this. You have no idea how good your life can be.”

“I’ll never love you.” I spit in his face. “You’ll never be half the man Steff is.”

The rage in his face was like nothing I’d ever seen in my life. He looked like he’d gone crazy with anger. He jerked my arm, shaking me. “Man?” he screamed. “I’m a man. Not that fucking thing. I’ll have to wash the stink off you before we get married.”

He drew his hand back and slapped me across the face. My head jerked to the right, and blood flew from my mouth as my cheek was cut open on my teeth. I slumped to the ground, dizzy with pain. Ryland stood over me, opening his mouth to say something else, but the quiet of the warehouse was broken by a roar of storming anger. The roar even mademygut grow cold. A moment later, Steff galloped out of the darkness in full grizzly form, a massive charging beast with glowing eyes of rage—eyes that were locked on Ryland.

THIRTY-FOUR

STEFF

The exterior guards went down easily. They never even heard us approach. Blayne’s panther took most of them out in complete silence. Instead of going through one of the exterior doors, Tate shifted and flew both Blayne and me up to the roof. He’d seen a door hatch and ladder there that we all thought looked like a quiet way to sneak in.

I lifted the hatch and glanced inside. I could see a few patches of light, but most of the building was shrouded in darkness. Exactly what we needed. I sniffed the air and caught April’s scent. She was definitely there. I forced myself to stay calm and not rush in.

Tate patted my shoulder and whispered, “You ready?”

I nodded tightly. “Let’s do this.”

We climbed down the ladder, and I could hear someone talking in the distance. Even with my enhanced hearing, I couldn’t make out what was being said, but I did recognize the voice. Ryland. I bared my teeth to the darkness and finished my climb. The three of us spread out into the shadows. I crept along a row of empty shelves, getting closer to the biggest patch of light.

The scent of blood hit me, and I hurried along, desperate to set eyes on April. At the end of one row, I found a spot that gave me a full view. There was a corpse lying off to the side. Ryland stood over April, and as much as I wanted to rip his throat out, I stayed put. The information I could get from listening could be more important than my vengeance.

I sat down on my haunches and took in everything he said. It became clear that the hunters were some sort of brainwashed cult. That wasn’t the typical MO of hunter groups. They were usually people who’d been wronged by a shifter in some way. Usually a feral shifter had killed a family member or loved one. This was new and more disturbing. Religion was a great motivator. It sounded like they were being run by some big money douchebag.

Our plan was to watch until they moved April. Once they were out in the open, we were going to take them down and get more answers. It was a good plan. But that plan went to hell the moment Ryland slapped April. Anger exploded inside of me, and the bear took over. My body morphed and changed automatically. A roar ripped out of my throat, echoing across the warehouse, and I charged out of the shadows straight at him.

Ryland had time to turn and see me before I swung one of my massive paws and caught him in the chest. I sent him flying across the room, and he slammed into one of the metal shelves. He landed with a grunt on a pile of rotten cardboard boxes.

I’d hoped he’d get knocked out by the fall, but he was already groaning and trying to get up. Making sure I blocked April with my body, I hunched and bared my teeth at him as he stood. Ryland stumbled through the boxes, holding a hand to the back of his head. The fingers came away red with blood. He grimaced and wiped his hand on his jeans.

“I’m going to enjoy skinning you, Steff. In fact, I plan on making a nice, lush rug out of your hide. I’ll put it on mybedroom floor. I’ll tell my kids about how I killed and skinned a monster. And every few months, I’ll lay my new wife April down on it and fuck her brains out.”

The thought of him touching April filled me with a rage I didn’t know I had. The rage inside me was multiplied by what my bear felt. I roared at Ryland, strings of spittle flying off my massive teeth, and my eyes glowed with blazing light. Ryland’s mask of calm derision faded, and the fear shone through.

Beyond us, I heard gunshots and screams. Ryland turned and glanced behind him. The echoes of Blayne and Tate taking down the rest of the hunters sounded like a warzone. I had nothing to worry about from the rest of Ryland’s crew. This would be him and me. A fight to the finish.

Ryland waved a hand at me. “Get rid of that abomination. Be a man and face me like one. Or whatever semblance of humanity you can muster.”

Without hesitation, I shifted back to human form. I didn’t fear anything Ryland could do to me. Even without my bear form, he was no match for me. I took a single step toward Ryland, but he shoved a hand into his back pocket and pulled a small metal box out and held it up. I stopped in my tracks.

“Stay right there, asshole,” Ryland called, a smile reappearing on his lips. “You move one more step, and I blow the whole fucking place.”

April gasped behind me. I glanced back at her and saw horror on her face. She looked at me and shook her head. “He’s serious, Steff. They wired the place with explosives. It was part of the plan to kill you all.”

Slowly, I swung my head back to Ryland. His thumb sat on top of a small blinking red button. All he had to do was press it. I couldn’t see how I could get to him before he detonated it.

“I don’t fear death,” Ryland said, a smug smile plastered on his face. “I know that what I do is in service of God. If I die, I’llwalk through the gate of Heaven as a warrior hero. I’ll sit at the right hand of the Lord with my brothers for eternity. All while you filthy beasts roast in the fiery pits of Hell. Sometimes, the price for fighting evil is a life. Even my own.”

“Tate. Blayne. Get the hell out of here,” I screamed, hoping they might have the time to get clear.

“No,” Ryland snarled, shaking the box at me. “Tell them to come out, or I blow it right now.”

They didn’t have time. They wouldn’t get free before he hit the button. If we could keep Ryland talking, there might be an opening. We might have a chance. One percent was better than zero. I gritted my teeth. “Guys. The place is rigged to blow. Come on out. Come here or we all die.”

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