A Game of Cat & Mouse (15 page)

“Listen, I’ll get you the bylaws and what not. They’re boring but can answer your questions better than I can, but I can tell you that the alpha female helps the alpha to ensure the pride runs smoothly. We make all the hard decisions and ensure our funds are used appropriately.”

“Okay. What other members of the

pride are there? I mean like in a wolf pack there are betas, enforcers, and what not.

So what do we have?”

“We don’t have any of those things.”

“So what keeps us honest? What checks and balances do we have?”

“I’ve never really thought about it that way, but I guess we lack those things.

Why?”

“Because while I’m sure this pride is well run, I believe it would benefit more with various input from other members of the pride. Besides, if we spend all of our time seeing to the pride, what time would we have for each other?” Miranda kissed him softly on the lips. Caleb wanted to deepen the kiss, but a wild knocking at the door startled everyone.

Caleb answered the door moments later, a curious Miranda behind him, to find a pacing Essence. Her eyes glowed and her claws digging into her palms as she fought to keep her cougar from bursting forth.

Whatever was going on had upset her greatly, more than the financial troubles she’d fretted over yesterday. The almost-silent sniffle of a child brought his attention to the crying Gunner. Caleb’s cougar stood at attention.

“What happened, Essence?”

Essence stood and stared at Caleb, her eyes glowing on the shaded porch.

“Miwanda!” Gunner cried, and made a beeline for Miranda.

Miranda stooped to pick him up, and Essence hissed. Miranda stood still, her brown eyes watching Essence. The need to protect his mate but also aide his pride mate warred within, but when Essence hissed a second time, his decision was clear.

Caleb grabbed Essence by the back of her neck and squeezed hard enough to gain her attention. Essence’s behavior didn’t make sense. Her child wasn’t in danger. Miranda stood slowly and kept Gunner in front of her.

Her voice even and quiet, Miranda said, “Essence, Gunner is fine. He is safe, and we won’t let anyone or anything harm him. I need you to calm down and tell me what happened.”

Essence took a deep breath and closed her eyes. When she opened them, her hazel eyes swam in tears. She collapsed, and had Caleb not caught her, she

would’ve hit the ground. Miranda picked up the distressed Gunner and backed into the house to allow Caleb entrance.

Caleb sat the distraught Essence onto the now vacated couch, and Miranda stood close to her with Gunner. Essence looked up at Miranda, and tears rolled down her cheeks.

“I’m sorry, Miranda, but something isn’t right. Gunner won’t tell me something because he says he doesn’t want me to get hurt.”

Caleb turned to the boy and allowed his eyes to change. The little boy hid his face in Miranda’s neck with a sound of distress.

“Shh, Gunner. Caleb isn’t going to hurt you, but we need to know.”

“Essence, what did he say exactly?”

Caleb asked, turning his attention back to her.

“I asked him why he went into the mine shaft, and he said that he didn’t. I asked him how he got there, and when he

wouldn’t tell me, I scolded him. He cried and said that he couldn’t tell me because he didn’t want me to get hurt. I have a horrible feeling. Someone has threated my kitten!” The longer she spoke, the more her cougar reasserted itself. Miranda set the boy down and stooped to look into his eyes.

“Gunner, tell me what can’t you tell your mother.” The little boy’s face crumpled, and he cried.

“I no want mama hurt, Miwanda.”

Miranda looked up at Caleb. Caleb was at a loss. He’d never really dealt with children. Luckily, Miranda had.

“Gunner, no one is going to hurt your mother. Caleb would not let them. You know that, right?” Gunner looked up at Caleb, but he didn’t nod. He just stared at him as if deciding. Whatever he saw, Gunner must have trusted.

“I no know lady,” Gunner said

“So a lady came in and took you from your room?” Gunner nodded. “You don’t know the lady’s name?”

“No,” Gunner said, and accepted the hug Miranda offered. Miranda sat and Gunner climbed into her lap.

“You did so well, Gunner. We are very proud of you, aren’t we, Caleb?”

Caleb nodded. He wondered why

anyone would want to hurt Essence. Ever since her arrival, she mostly kept to herself, but she’d always been a nice person. He’d noticed her helping when she could, even if she’d never admit it.

“Look, Essence, I know you’re upset about this, but Miranda and I decided to search out the culprit at the meeting. It’s only an hour and a half away now, so I’m sure he will be safe.”

Caleb could tell by the panic that

crossed her face that if he suggested she go home it wouldn’t be acceptable. “Why don’t you wait here until the meeting if it makes you feel better.” Essence nodded at his suggestion, and Miranda placed the distressed Gunner into his mother’s arms.

Essence held her child close and settled into the couch.

Miranda’s mother motioned for them to come into the kitchen.

“I see you two have your hands full.

Blake and I are leaving. We’d only planned for one day anyway. If you need us, then you only have to call. Andrew called and wanted to visit you. He sounded weird on the phone, so he will be here sometime next month when his residency is over. I love you, sweetheart.”

Caleb watched with mixed feelings as Miranda hugged her mother. Caleb was happy his mate had such a great family but also saddened that his own parents

weren’t present.

Emma Sullivan left her daughter to wrap Caleb in a hug. Bittersweet emotions flooded him as he remembered his own mother.

“Your parents must have been great

people to have raised such a nice young man. I am happy to call you son.”

Caleb couldn’t stop his eyes from tearing as he bent to allow his mate’s mother to place a kiss on his cheek. Blake Sullivan clasped him in a manly hug before

nodding. Caleb wrapped Miranda in his arms and rested his chin on her head as she waved goodbye when her parents pulled from the drive.

“There has to be some changes around here. There is no way one person can ensure this pride runs effectively.”

Caleb now agreed with Miranda. Before he thought her just afraid, but now he realized she made these suggestions out of caring. Despite her not growing up with these people, not knowing them as he knew them and not knowing how they

would react to her being named alpha female, she cared enough to think they needed change. In truth, he had never actually thought of changing the way the pride was run. It had worked for so long that he never realized it needed fixing. But he didn’t want it to just work anymore, he wanted it to flourish.

“I agree. We’ll bring this up at the pride meeting. Why don’t you think Gunner should be punished for lying? Despite his reasons, that’s what he did.”

Miranda pulled from his hold and looked at him in shock. Apparently, she thought it obvious.

“How could you punish him when he

protected his mother?”

“While that is true, he still lied. He needs to know that’s wrong.”

Miranda sighed and rubbed her

forehead. “You haven’t been around many children, have you?”

“No, actually I haven’t. I know all the kittens in the pride, but I’ve never had to deal with them one-on-one.”

“I’m sure he knows not to lie. But you can’t expect a three year old to navigate the entire gray area of a situation.”

“What gray area?”

Miranda spread out her arms. “The

whole thing, someone’s asked a lot of a three year old when they told him not to tell. I’ve read about this in some articles about abuse. Sometimes, the abuser tells the child not to tell or they’ll hurt someone the child loves.”

“You think Gunner’s been abused?”

“No, but in a way the same principle applies. Gunner can’t grasp that he wasn’t supposed to tell anyone. He told his mother he couldn’t tell her because he didn’t want her to get hurt.”

Caleb cupped his mate’s face and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. Miranda smiled and deepened the kiss, her tongue darting out to tease his lips. She pulled back to look up into his eyes.

“What was that for?”

He smiled and trailed his fingers over her cheeks. “Because I’m lucky to love a person who cares so much that she stands up for her pride.” Miranda blushed prettily at his words. “Thank you for keeping me from making a mistake. I’ll keep that in mind when I deal with the children. I love you, Miranda.”

“I love you too, Caleb.”

The fact remained that something fishy was happening within his pride and he’d been too self-absorbed to realize it. Was he even fit to be alpha of this pride?

***

Aspen wiped her mouth after vomiting

her breakfast in the toilet. She felt like shit, and Caleb wanted to call a meeting.

She wondered if she could weasel her way out of attending. She quashed that idea as soon as it formed, knowing that Caleb intended to present Miranda as his mate.

He’d not canceled the meeting, so she assumed congratulations were in order.

Though she was happy for Caleb and

Miranda, she couldn’t help but be jealous at the obvious love they shared. Aspen bent over to puke yet again, her stomach cramping from emptiness. Slamming her fist on the wall, she began to cry when her hand went through the plaster. What the hell had she done to deserve this?

Aspen realized that to deny one’s mate bordered on torture. Their souls cried out for each other until they melded into the one perfect soul they were always meant to become. She knew she suffered

because her chosen mate did not want her. That asshole hadn’t even stopped her when she left. Just like a dog! Her only consolation was that maybe he was feeling a fraction of the withdrawal that she felt.

She was miserable, and putting on the facade of being happy was killing her. It took all of her energy to get up in the morning, let alone paste the fake smile on her face and show the world how strong she could be. But she was tired of being strong. After a month of being strong, the pain still hurt just as bad.

A knock on the door made her jump.

“Aspen, sweetie, are you okay?”

Winston’s wife, Evelyn, was a sweet woman, but she saw everyone as her

child. She always had, even when Aspen was a child. As a child who parents fought constantly, she’d welcomed the attention that Evelyn always bestowed.

However, now that not only her heart had been wounded, but also her pride, Aspen just wanted to crawl into a hole.

She didn’t want anyone to know her

shame. How pathetic she was to love a man who didn’t even want her except for a one-night stand.

Evelyn opened the door and looked

down at her. Aspen saw the pity that crossed Evelyn’s face before she knelt down beside the toilet.

“Are you sick, sweetheart?”

Did feeling like your heart was being pureed in a blender count as sick?

“I think I just need to lie down, Mrs.

Dawson. Isn’t there still an hour before the meeting?”

“I’ll be sure to wake you. These things never start on time, dear. So go ahead and lie down. But if you think you need to see a doctor, I’ll just tell Caleb we won’t be there. I’ll take you to see a doctor.”

Evelyn paused as though she wanted to say something else.

Aspen smiled a real smile, despite the pain that lanced through her from not having her mate. It was the first real one she’d smiled in a month.

“Thanks, Mrs. Dawson. I’m sure I’ll be fine after a nap.”

The lie tasted bitter in her mouth, and Mrs. Dawson’s sharp green eyes regarded her for what seemed an eternity before she nodded and left the broken Aspen to take a nap.

It was not the restful experience she hoped for because she spent her nap dreaming of the man who’d used her, the one she’d walked away from because she couldn’t bear to see him. A man fate had deemed hers.

Caleb looked down at the impromptu

agenda that Miranda scribbled while Essence and Gunner napped. Every once in a while, her head would pop up from her furious scribbling, and she would ask another question. He was astounded by all of the things she thought to accomplish with one meeting. When he’d asked her how she thought they would address all of these issues, she’d given him a reasonable answer.

“Our goal today is not to fix every problem but to begin the process.”

Caleb wasn’t actually sure how the pride had survived this long without such guidance, but the other alphas of this pride had been honest men who had strived for the good of their pride. Caleb had yet to tell Miranda that, despite the changes they hoped to implement within their own pride, there were hundreds of prides throughout the States. He would eventually have to propose these ideas to the Pride Council.

Shifters government was complex yet simple. Their goal was to maintain secrecy of all shifters. None of them wanted to be lab rats for human scientists. Their natural immunity to STDs, cancer, and most other infectious diseases ensured that their physiology would be in high demand.

Shifters weren’t even sure of how their immunities worked; they were just grateful for them.

The Pride Council also held two seats on the National Shifter Council. They voted on laws and punished shifters who broke them. Most animals had at least one seat, and those with greater numbers held more than one. The wolves held three seats, and the bears only held one. He knew Miranda had knowledge the NSC existed, but he did not think she knew the work she would have to go through to make these changes official. Sure, they could implement them in their own pride, but the cougars who received a certain position within the pride would only retain that position within the pride. Caleb would carry the title of alpha, no matter where he ventured, as long as he remained

Pinewood Creek Pride’s alpha.

“It’s time,” Caleb said.

Miranda nodded and followed him to the event center.

Miranda looked around, and as the