Page 2 of Pursued By the Sasquatch

Sable had found his mate and moved to Graybury to be with her. With Gariss’ permission, he’d opened his own branch of Appalachian Bail and Bounties. He called often, and we were happy for him, but I suspected Gariss missed him. He’d been talking about going to Graybury for a trip soon. “When do you need me to go to the cop shop?”

“As soon as possible.”

“On it boss.” I tucked my phone and taser into my belt and took the most indirect route out of the office so I could pat Eli on the back. He grumbled, but said nothing. I tried to sneak a glance at the phone he was still staring at, but he twisted to cover it.

Once I was out of the building, I stood for a moment, enjoying the cool air. It smelled like snow was coming. Out here the weather could turn from mild and sunny to the whole town being snowed in within hours.

I didn’t mind. I’d happily lie in the snow like a husky and enjoy the cold while everyone else hid away. Usually, I ended up ferrying supplies for people and checking on those who lived the farthest out. It made a nice change from chasing criminals.

By the time I reached the prison, I was certain. Snow was coming and maybe with it, a storm. It wasn’t close yet. But it had the potential to be a big one. As a cub, I’d lived outside and I’d learned to read the weather as instinctively as I knew how to breathe. I fired off a text to our local mountain rescue to warn them.

A human cop waved me down before I stepped inside.

“You here for the girl?”

“Yep.” I didn’t know this guy well, but he’d always seemed decent in the past.

“There’s more to the story, but if she won’t talk, we can’t go easy on her.”

I nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Inside, I filled out the paperwork and the officer on duty went to get her. As I waited, a wave of scent flowed through the dark, dank room. The honey scent of snowdrops. For a moment, it felt like the world was spinning faster than it should be. Like it had always been spinning slightly too fast, and I’d only just realised. I couldn’t stay upright. Then she walked in and everything slowed. Everything balanced out, and I’d never been so sure of my footing. I’d never been so sure of myself.

“This is Kiy,” the cop said to her, gesturing towards me.

Why was he standing so close to her? I didn’t like it. My throat tightened to form a growl before I froze in shock at my reaction. I wasn’t normally like this. I’d never been possessive. But I couldn’t stand the thought of anyone being nearer to her than I was.

“Hi.”

Her voice was breathy, like the wind. She looked up at me through her dark eyelashes. Her posture was all scrunched up, like she was trying to make herself as small as possible. I wanted her to stand tall. To take up the space she deserved. To see she was worth the room she occupied. Her eyes were ringed with red and my heart ached to soothe her. The silence was growing uncomfortable now as I realized I’d just been staring at her. All I wanted to do was stare at her. Dark hair fell to her shoulders and light brown eyes darted around the room constantly. I gave myself a mental shake.

“Hi. I’ve signed your paperwork. You are officially on bail on my dime now. So don’t make a run for it, or I’m going to have to hunt you down!” My usual half joke somehow hit differently this time. Something flickered in her eyes. A small flash of fire. Chasing her didn’t seem like that bad of a way to spend my time.

“Thank you.”

“I’ll drive you home.”

“You don’t have to.”

“I insist.”

She nodded, and I led her to my car. My brain screamed at me to speak. To say anything, but all I could focus on was the feeling of being next to her. Of how right it seemed for her to be there. Of how my whole life outwardly seemed the same as it had been 10 minutes ago. But it wasn’t. Everything was different. Including me. And none of it made any sense.

Chapter 3

Fern

The gigantic, hairy monster led me to his car. I walked alongside him, feeling tiny and vulnerable. While I often felt vulnerable, I’d never felt tiny. It was nice.

“Here it is.”

I gaped. It had no roof. And not like a convertible. Like he’d just cut the roof off.

“Sorry, it might be drafty.” He walked to my door and opened it for me before he climbed in himself.

I could see why he’d needed to get rid of the roof. He was far too tall. But it was a bit ridiculous.

“You know they make cars that don’t have roofs.”

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