Page 30 of Mitchell's Untamed Mate

“Yes, Madame President,” he replied with a sigh.

With a decisive step, the guard closed the door behind him, leaving Mitchell and the woman alone in the silence of the room.She stood out from the white-coated shifters who had interviewed him before, both in appearance and tone.She glanced around the room again, let out a sigh, and slowly approached his cot.

“Do you mind?It appears there is nowhere else to sit,” she requested.

With a furrowed brow, he lifted his hand and motioned to the end of the cot.She shot him a grateful smile, turned, and sat down before she bent forward and removed her shoes.

“Goddess, but that feels good.I swear heels were made to torture women,” she moaned, wiggling her toes.

“Then why do you wear them?”

The question popped out before he remembered that he had decided not to speak to the shifters who had captured him.He silently cursed, watching her as she rubbed her foot.She gave him a rueful smile.

“When you are the president of a country, some assholes expect you to look the part.The media had a field day when I went barefoot at the beach.Hell, they would have had a stroke if I had worn a bathing suit!It was bad enough that I was wearing a skirt that day.Do you have any idea how irritating sand is when it gets in your shoes?”

His lips twitched at her outraged tone and expression.“Yes.”

“You do?Thank the Goddess again!”she muttered.

She scooted back on his bed until her back was against the wall.She looked up at the camera in the corner.He followed her line of sight when she snorted out a laugh.

“Is that mashed potatoes?”she asked.

“Yes.”

“Mm, I’ll have to remember that little trick,” she murmured before she leaned her head back against the wall and studied him.“I’m Michaela Bearclaw-Kodiak.”

Mitchell stiffened and frowned back at the woman holding out her hand.He slowly reached out and grasped it.Michaela gave him a firm handshake before she released his hand and closed her eyes.

“You… are related to Tracy?”he asked.

A smile curved her lips and she mumbled an agreement.Looking at Michaela with her closed eyes and her head tilted backwards, he could see the slight resemblance.She had the same markings as Tracy and her brother, Ty.

“My niece is a lovely young woman when she isn’t ripping doors off of USNASBSI vans or trying to kill government agents,” Michaela murmured.

“Tracy ripped a door off of a US—” he asked, stumbling on the rapid letters that Michaela had said.

Michaela peeked an eye at him and smiled.“You can call it the SBSI.It isn’t as much of a mouthful and means the same thing.Yes, she did.I do apologize about this unfortunate situation.I stationed the SBSI around the Park for the protection of your people.However, the necessity of keeping your location secret meant there was not a protocol in place in the event of unavoidable contact with a human.One of my agents saw you unconscious beneath an unknown assailant and you were rushed to medical care while a team attempted to apprehend your attacker.He got away.And unfortunately, Tracy saw your condition and the urgency of their mission to bring you to a facility with medical professionals, and she misunderstood.Imagine my surprise when my brother called me in a panic about Tracy being detained.It took a few days for word to reach me of where exactly you and she were being held, which is why I’m here.”

Mitchell frowned.“Tracy is a captive.Where?”

Michaela opened her eyes and sat up.“Here.I debated whether to get her out first or you.My curiosity got the best of me, so I came to see you first.”

He scowled at her.“You should have protected Tracy first!She has done nothing wrong.”

Michaela released a dry laugh.“You haven’t seen the SBSI’s van.She was rather upset when they took you.”

“You… should go to her,” he said, looking away.

Michaela slid forward.“You’re right.I would hate for her bear to get the better of her.It is going to take some creative compromises to keep this quiet.”

He watched as Michaela slid her shoes back on and rose.She ran her hands down over her suit, smoothing the wrinkles before she turned and smiled.Confusion struck him when she held out her hand and wiggled her fingers.

“Come on, let’s go bust my niece out of here.I’m sure she’ll be delighted to see you are safe and sound,” Michaela said.

He slid off the bed and studied her.“You can release me?”

Michaela lifted a delicate eyebrow at him and gave him a sharp-toothed smile.“IamMadame President.There is very little I can’t do.”

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