Page 11 of Grumpy Special Ops Bear: Ep. 2
“I get it. You’re hungry. Well, that’s just too fucking bad. Deal with it.”
But damn… What I wouldn’t give for a big, sloppy cheeseburger with a large side of cheese fries and a cookies-and-cream shake.
I started on again, one heavy step at a time, determined to make it a suitable distance today. I knew somewhere along this stream was a state park ranger station. If I could just get there, I’d make it. I’d survive this nightmare.
Unless the other thing stalking me eats me first.
I stopped again and turned around real quick, hoping to catch it, but there were only trees. I bent down, and laughing hysterically, I made a snowball. Part of my brain told me I was being a complete idiot. The other part of my brain told that part to shut the fuck up.
I picked up the well-formed snowball and chucked it into the trees.
“Boo-yah!” I danced half-heartedly, twerking as if I were in a club. “Take that, you fucker.” I bent down, made another snowball that I had to hold with both hands, and launched it. “You sure you want to rumble with me?”
But then that one hit something solid, and it wasn’t a tree. There was a low, animallike sound.
Oh shit!
I froze as a shadow separated itself from the trees and lumbered forward, pieces of my snowball falling from its wide shoulders.
“Oh hell no!” I screamed as the grizzly stalked hungrily toward me.
My eyes darted around, but there was nowhere to run. Anyway, I couldn’t outrun it; that was for damn sure. It was going to eat me. Well, at least that would be better than being caught by Price—though how, I wasn’t sure yet.
The bear stalked closer, sniffing the air. It was beautiful, but it was deadly. I gawked at it; it was larger than any grizzly I’d ever seen. Its head was easily the size of my torso. Its paws were bigger than my head, and it was tall, even on all fours.
This wasn’t just a grizzly. It was a monster.
It shifted ever so slightly as it came toward my trembling body, and I caught sight of the familiar marks on its back. I knew this was the same bear from my dreams. For just a second, I forgot to be terrified that something else had just come out of the woods to eat me.
Dammit. I fucking pissed it off.
The markings definitely didn’t look natural, but they didn’t seem out of place either. The lines of color weren’t straight but wavy, almost forming an intricate, tribal-looking design. I couldn’t stop staring at them. Even when the grizzly was only feet from me and I could feel its hot breath on my face, all I saw were those markings.
Then the bear roared, and I was right back to being scared.
Its eyes weren’t normal for a bear either. Sky blue, they bored right into my very soul, and I froze. The bear took another step toward me, and something snapped inside my head. I was hungry, exhausted, and tired of feeling out of control. Helpless and scared, I was going to die out here at the hands of beasts.
The fear ebbed as my anger grew. I refused to move away from the bear. I didn’t back away from anything.
I clenched and unclenched my fists at my sides. There was no way in hell I was going to let a bear—or anything else—kill me. If this was a shifter, I sure as hell would not go down easy.
I reacted swiftly. Rearing my arm back, I smacked the bear on the muzzle. “Get the hell away from me, asshole.”
The bear glared back at me, eyes wide before they narrowed, and a guttural growl started in its chest.
I grunted back. “Oh, go ahead. Snarl at me,” I snapped, pointing in its face while wagging my hand. “I don’t give a shit. In fact, all you fucking monsters can kiss my freezing ass.” I turned around, bent forward, and nearly toppled over before slapping my ass. “Go ahead. Kiss it,” I demanded, looking over my shoulder.
The bear didn’t move. It continued to eyeball me as its grumble quieted.
“Just like I thought. You got nothing but a roar and no bite, exactly like in all my dreams.” Turning back around to face the bear, I jammed my hands on my hips. “Well, this time I’m not helpless and stuck in some fucking icy hole, begging for my life, while you get ready to attack me. Nope, this time I’m free to punch you in the damn throat and send your big ass running.” I shook my fist at it. “Run along now before I get to beating your ass like you owe me money.”
I waited for it to rip me into pieces, but it just glared at me. A wave of dizziness hit me, and I swayed, barely staying on my feet. I needed help, badly, and standing here arguing with a bear was crazy.
“Fine then. If you won’t go away, I will,” I said, still trying to sound tougher than I felt. “Watch my ass go right on through the woods, grizzly.”
Everything was getting topsy-turvy. I stumbled away from the bear, trying to ignore the fact that I’d just smacked a bear in the face and told it to kiss my ass.
What the hell was I thinking?
