Page 70 of The Bear's Reluctant Mate

“Where is my son?” Heather demanded, her face flushing with anger.

“I don’t know!” Marion shouted, gesturing wildly at the empty yard. “He was right here, and then he was gone!”

“You probably staged this whole thing,” Heather accused, stepping closer. “To keep me from seeing him. What did you do, hide him at a neighbor’s?”

“I would never do that,” Marion said, her voice breaking. “Never.”

Something in her tone must have reached through Heather’s anger because her sister’s face suddenly crumpled. “This is all my fault,” Heather sobbed. “Everything is always my fault. I’ve let him down again and again, and now he’s run away because of me.”

Despite everything, Marion couldn’t bear to see her sister in such pain. She sat down beside Heather, placing a tentative hand on her shoulder.

“We’ll find him,” she promised. “He can’t have gone far.”

Heather looked up, mascara streaking down her cheeks. “I’ve made such a mess of everything, haven’t I? I always thought I’d have time to fix things, to be better, but...”

The sound of tires on gravel interrupted her. Alfie’s truck skidded to a stop in the driveway, and he was out and running toward them before the engine had fully quieted.

“Any sign of him?” he asked, his eyes scanning the yard even as he spoke.

Marion shook her head, rising to her feet. “Nothing. I’ve looked everywhere.”

As Alfie approached, Marion wasn’t sure what scared her more, what Charlie might have overheard, or how deep she knew his pain must run to disappear this way. She only knew one thing…he couldn’t have gone far. Not without someone knowing.

And if anyone could find him, it was Alfie.

Chapter Twenty-Three – Alfie

The journey to Marion’s house was a blur. Alfie’s bear paced anxiously within him, claws scraping against his consciousness with each passing second. They both knew how fragile Charlie’s progress had been, how much the boy had opened up in recent days, and how quickly that progress could be ripped away. The thought of him alone and upset made Alfie press harder on the accelerator.

When he pulled into Marion’s driveway, the first thing he noticed was the unfamiliar car parked haphazardly behind his mate’s car.

His bear’s hackles rose immediately.That’s her,his bear growled.The one who hurt our cub.

Alfie took a steadying breath as he climbed out of his truck.Let’s not make things worse.

How could they be worse?His bear moaned like a wounded animal.

Let’s not try to find out,Alfie said as he walked toward the house.

Through the screen door, he could see Marion sitting on the couch, her arm around a blonde woman who was sobbing into her hands. The family resemblance was unmistakable, the same heart-shaped face, the same slope of the nose, although Heather’s features were sharper, harder somehow.

His bear snarled in disgust.How could a mother abandon her child for a man who hurt him?The very concept was anathema to his bear’s protective instincts.

Marion looked up, relief flooding her face as she spotted him through the door. “Alfie,” she called, her voice breaking with emotion.

He wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms, to absorb her fear and replace it with his strength. But that wasn’t what she needed right now. It wasn’t the reason she had called and asked for his help.

Every moment Charlie was missing was another moment he might be in danger. And Alfie was the one person who might be able to find Charlie because he had super senses.

“Where did you see him last?” Alfie asked, getting straight to business as he entered the house.

Marion disengaged from her sister and stood. “The backyard. He was looking at bugs with his magnifying glass.”

Without another word, Alfie strode through the house, Marion close behind him. He could feel Heather watching them, but he didn’t spare her another glance. His focus was entirely on finding Charlie.

We know he’s not here,his bear said impatiently as they stepped into the yard.

Patience.Alfie closed his eyes, pushing out his senses in a way unique to shifters. He searched for that spark of connection he’d formed with Charlie, but there was nothing. Their connection was not as strong as the one he shared with Marion. He could find her in a crowd a mile away… But Charlie was not in the immediate vicinity and his presence was lost among the other folks of Bear Creek.

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