Page 61 of Bear In A Bookstore
“What the fuck do you want?”
Fox turned on him and Angelo backed up with his hands raised. “That lady you were with at the pub? The bookseller? I saw her with four men on the mountain and it looked a little sus. She didn’t look like she wanted to be there. I tried to call the cops, but my phone died.”
Desi’s arms cracked, his neck popping with loud crackles. “Where?”
“The old mine just outside of town. I was poking around at a clue, but those guys looked serious so I hightailed it out of there.”
Damn it. Someone had Kora. He gripped his head between his hands and mentally tried to soothe his bear.We’re going to get her. Hold on. Can’t shift yet. Let me stay human until we get to her.
“Fox—”
“Yeah, let’s go.”
Angelo made an excited sound. “Dude, are you going to eat someone?”
The shift receded enough that he could fully focus and get back to the truck. Fox diverted him from the driver’s seat when he reached for the door.
“Bears can’t drive, Des. You can’t grip the wheel with your fat meat paws.”
He looked at his hands. “I still have fingers.” They were the size of overheated hotdogs.
He sped to the passenger side and dove in just as Fox pulled away from the curb. His brain hyper focused as they raced out of town. He knew exactly which mine. Kora had cracked that clue first. They drove halfway up and parked the truck. Fresh tracks led up the mountain in the direction of the mine.
“We should walk from here. Don’t want the sound of the truck to alert them we’re coming.”
Fox was a wilderness survival expert, on top of being one of the biggest bears Desi knew. Despite his impressive human and bear size, he was nearly silent in the woods and a master of ambush. They moved off the road to the cover of trees which swathed most of the area, including the entrance to the mine. Thick overgrowth had taken over what had once likely been barren ground in the mining days. The mine wasn’t clearly visible anymore and a person had to know where to look to find it.
Desi followed Fox’s lead, doing everything in his power to hold himself back. His bear was making it almost impossible to contain his rage. Focusing on his mind’s eye, he tried to drum up the earlier connection he’d had with Kora which had allowed him to feel what she was feeling, but nothing happened. She must be so scared.
Terrified.
After what she’d already lived through, this was the worst possible thing to happen. Because of what? A ring? Someone knew he had the ring and now she was paying the price. He pulled scent from the air, catching the unfamiliar notes of two males. A few yards closer and he detected another male along with notes from someone he found familiar. Male. Recognizable pheromones. But who?
Fox motioned at him to halt. Voices streamed on the breeze. He held up four fingers, indicating four males. Desi nodded.
“I’m not going in there.”
The back of his neck prickled. Kora! His muscles tensed, nearly forcing him forward, but he held. He had to get to her. Now!
They crouched as close to the view of the mine entrance as they dared. The original mouth of the mine had long ago been boarded up, but adventurers had popped a new way inside through the top of the hill. The gaping hole was mostly covered by overgrowth, yet he spied the flash of red. Moving to the side, he spotted Kora wearing a climbing harness. She shook her head defiantly and stepped back from the man he couldn’t fully view.
“Yes, you are. If you want him to live, you’ll do as I say.”
“He’s not even here.”
“Oh, he’s here.”
Desi recognized that voice. Breeching the tree line, he took a closer look. The man was short, stocky, his shape familiar. It took him a split second and then it came to him.
Earl!
“What’s the play?” Fox whispered.
“We can’t let her get inside the entrance. We can’t shift down there.”
Earl tugged on the ropes he connected to a large boulder, then moved to the edge of the entrance. Grabbing Kora’s arm, he hugged her to his side and clipped her rope to her harness. She shoved at him, twisting in his arms. Desi about came out of his skin.
“Do you really want to risk fighting me?” Earl’s voice boomed threateningly. “Or do you want to protect your man?”
