Bear's Match (Bear Heat Book 6) (9 page)

Dylan got up and went to the
kitchen with Jade. “I'll help you get dinner ready.”

Luke got up as well, but
Dylan said, “Go talk to Nicole.” He gave Luke a
meaningful look and closed the kitchen door behind him.

Luke went and sat down beside
Nicole on the couch. She had a thoughtful look on her face as she
rocked the baby to sleep in her arms.

“It's so nice to see
Jade again. And those girls are awesome. They're all human women
mated to powerful bear shifters. I think it takes a special kind of
female to tame a bear, don't you think?” Nicole was looking at
him expectantly, and Luke knew that she was waiting for him to share
his secret with her, open up to her and let her in.

“Nicole.” Luke
took a deep breath. “I need to talk to you. About what
happened to me.”

She shifted the snoring baby
in her arms and nodded.

“You know I always
wanted to be a cop, right? Well, I was a cop in the city police
force. And I was a damn good one.”

“I bet you were,”
Nicole said, smiling.

Her smile fortified and
assured him. Grimly, he plowed on. “I was having a game of
basketball with my buddies when I fell badly and suffered a hairline
fracture in my leg. I went to the hospital to get my leg fixed. It
was just a simple treatment and I should have been in and out of the
hospital in a day. The doctor made me stay overnight for observation
and told me I could be discharged the next day.”

Nicole nodded, encouraging
him to go on.

“Something happened
during my stay at the hospital. Another doctor, Dr. Faizel, came and
injected something into me. What Dr. Faizel did was unauthorized,
illegal and wrong. He was working for a Mob boss, who was financing
his research. I don't know why they chose me. Maybe I was fit and
young and healthy.” Luke took a deep breath. “The
injection changed my cell structures. I was to be turned into a
lethal weapon for the Mob, a monster who could kill on command.”

Nicole swallowed but said
nothing.

Luke went on determinedly,
“What Dr. Faizel pumped into me was a serum containing a large
dose of bear shifter cells. I was taken to an underground chamber
hidden within the hospital premises where Dr. Faizel hoped to
continue his experiments on me. The Black Bears rescued me from that
hell, and watched over me. They told me that it might be possible to
reverse the change in me, and the doctors in the other hospital did
everything they could. I know they did.”

Luke closed his eyes briefly.
“But they couldn't change me back. The shifter cells had
taken root in my body and rewired my system. I wasn't the same, I
wasn't human any more.”

“But you are, Luke.
You are the same Luke I knew as a kid. The same kind, gentle boy
I've always loved,” Nicole said fervently.

Luke shook his head.
“There's an animal, a beast in me. A big, raging, deadly bear.
I didn't want to become a killer, a murderous monster. I begged the
doctors to terminate my life, but they refused. So I climbed onto
the window ledge and prepared to end my nightmare. But Thor saved
me, and the Black Bears took me under their wing and assigned Dylan
as my mentor. They stood by me, guided me and helped me through my
Change. They trained me and taught me how to control my bear. They
were patient with me and they gave me the space and time to heal and
get back on my feet.”

“But I bet they gave
you some tough love too,” Nicole said, quirking a lopsided
smile.

Luke barked out a laugh.
“They sure did! The training was grueling and demanding. It
was tough, and Dylan didn't mollycoddle me. But he was a good
mentor. The best.”

Luke looked up into Nicole's
shining eyes and said softly, “The Black Bears saved my life.
I am a bear shifter now, Nicole. I am part of the Black Bears clan,
and...”

“They're your family,”
Nicole said. “And I can see that you're very proud to be a
part of this close-knit, supportive, wonderful clan. I've met most
of the Black Bears. I've even met their mates and cubs. And I love
them!”

The kitchen door opened and
Jade and Dylan stepped out with steaming bowls. “Dinner's
ready,” Dylan announced.

Jade came to relieve Nicole
from her mothering duties. She gathered the baby up and murmured,
“I'll put him to bed. You just sit down and eat, Nicole.”

Luke knew his sister had been
eavesdropping on their conversation when he saw tears glisten in
Jade's eyes. Quietly, Jade kissed Nicole on the cheek and whispered,
“Thank you.”

CHAPTER
EIGHTEEN

Luke and Dylan walked into
the office together. Ethan had called Dylan and told him that all
the intel on Haven Orphanage had come in. They would have to move
fast to save the children.

Ethan assigned Trevor and
Baxter to guard Nicole and Brendon. The two of them arrived at the
apartment just before Luke and Dylan stepped out. They came armed
with boxes of diapers, baby toys and infant formula.

“The females in the
office ordered us to bring these,” Baxter grumbled.

When Nicole stuttered and
confessed that she didn't know how to change a diaper, Baxter had
crowed proudly, “I'll teach you! Lindy fed our little girl,
but I was the one on diaper duty at night. I can change a diaper in
under thirty seconds. That's the record to beat,” he
challenged Nicole.

Nicole accepted the challenge
readily, and Luke chuckled as he left them to it. Nicole and Brendon
were in good hands.

Three teams were already
assembled in the large conference room when Luke and Dylan arrived.
Ethan came in and stood at the head of the long table.

“We're going to have to
move in quick and get the children out. All the children,”
Ethan said.

There were nods and murmurs
round the table.

Ethan glanced down at the
report in his hands and said, “Our suspicions have been proven.
Alberto Birns is behind this.” Ethan looked straight at Luke
and said, “Yes. Dr. Faizel, the doctor who injected Luke with
that shifter serum was working for Alberto Birns. Alberto is the Mob
boss who financed that whole experiment and operation.”

Eyes swiveled to Luke, and
Luke could feel the charged atmosphere in the room.

“We'll get him this
time,” Thor swore. “Alberto went into hiding and we've
been trying to flush him out.”

“And the bastard is
targeting children now,” Luke said through clenched teeth. To
put a child through the harrowing ordeal that he had gone through—it
was unthinkable.

“Yes. The Mob selected
children to be injected with a new, more potent serum. The children
will grow at an accelerated pace, and they will become stronger,
bigger and faster than ordinary humans. Some of them may be able to
shift, because the serum contains some shifter cells,” Ethan
answered. “The Mob is growing its very own squad of special
bodyguards and hitmen in Haven Orphanage.”

“Brendon,” Luke
said suddenly. “Brendon was injected with the serum, wasn't
he? That's why they want him. The orphanage Director made a mistake
and allowed Anna Ward to adopt him.”

Ethan nodded. “The
orphanage Director, Madam Dixon, is a very rich woman, according to
her bank records. The Mob has been paying her off to turn a blind
eye to what they're doing to the children under her care.”

Curses flew around the room
and Ethan held up his hand for silence. “We need to get all
the children out. We don't know which ones have been injected.
Dylan, Paige.”

“Yes, Alpha.”

“Get your teams ready.
The building will be guarded. We have to move quickly and carefully.
We have to make sure none of the children are injured.”

“Yes, Alpha!”

“Thor, we have
information on Alberto Birn's location. The police will be moving
in. They requested backup from the Black Bears. Gather your team
and meet Detective Kenner at the station.”

“Yes, Alpha.”

As everyone began to move
out, Ethan stopped Luke at the door.

“You have a choice,
Luke,” Ethan said in a low voice. “Do you want to join
Thor's team and take down Alberto Birns? Or do you want to go with
Dylan to get the orphans?”

Luke knew that Ethan was
giving him the chance to go after the Mob boss who forced the Change
on him. Maybe his alpha thought that he would find closure by
assisting in the capture of Alberto Birns. But Luke had found his
peace and he didn't need closure. He had taken an oath to serve and
protect the city when he became a cop. He was a Black Bear now, and
he was proud to do that duty.

“I'll stay with my
team, Alpha,” Luke said. “I'll focus on the children.”
The future
.

Ethan nodded once.

“Go.”

CHAPTER
NINETEEN

Luke flattened himself
against the wall and waited for the signal. Dylan's team was spread
out on the left side of Haven Orphanage, while Paige's team covered
the right.

Haven Orphanage was a
three-story brick building situated at the far edge of the city.
Behind the orphanage was a low grassy hill and there was a long
winding driveway leading up to the main entrance. There were a few
old abandoned buildings flanking the orphanage, and some small houses
down the street.

Luke heard Dylan's voice
through his earpiece. “Now.”

The Black Bears moved
silently and swiftly towards the orphanage. They entered through the
back door and flowed through the dingy kitchen.

A few children were there,
scrubbing the pots and pans. Dylan put a finger to his lips and
spoke quietly to the children, “We're here to save you.
We're...”

Immediately, the children ran
to him and flung their arms around him. “Take us away,”
one of them begged.

Paige motioned to her team
and two of her team members carried the children out. “They
know what's happening,” Dylan muttered. “But they're
orphans. They've no family, and nowhere to go. The look on their
faces—hoping that someone would come and save them, but knowing
that no one would. God!”

Gritting his teeth, Dylan
signaled them forward, and they began to fan out when they reached
the stairs.

They raced up to the rooms
and managed to retrieve some children from a dingy workroom. The
children were doing some needlework and stared up at the Black Bears
with pale, frightened faces. But they co-operated without a word,
knowing instinctively that these people in black fatigues and
security vests with the Black Bears logo on them were the good guys.

The look in the children's
eyes saddened Luke. They had seen too much in their young lives.
They had known fear and pain, and they were so hungry for love and a
caring, gentle touch.

He gripped his weapon tighter
as Paige barked a warning through his earpiece. “They're here!
Go find the rest of the kids!”

Shots were heard on the floor
above and below. The sounds of a furious firefight exploded and
Dylan yelled to Luke and Jenny, “Find them!”

Luke ran towards a narrow
door at the end of the corridor while Jenny shot at two men in black
suits who had appeared out of a doorway. He wrenched the door open
and made a strangled sound.

There were no windows at all
in the room. There were about a dozen children in pajamas, huddled
against the walls. They were shackled to the brick wall by their
ankles and Luke saw some of their eyes glow in the dark.

These were the children who
had been given the serum.

Luke knelt beside a young boy
and tried to break the iron shackle. He used his claws but the
shackle held fast. Luke panted and turned to the whimpering
children.

“I'm going to shift
into a bear,” he said quickly. “Don't be afraid. My
bear is a part of me. I won't hurt you. I need the strength of my
bear to get you out. Okay?” He didn't want them to start
screaming and crying at the sight of his bear. He needed them calm,
not hysterical.

“Okay,” a few of
the older children answered.

There was more shouting and
shooting outside, but Luke concentrated on his job. His teammates
were covering him, but he had to work fast. He would get all the
children out.

Crouching, he let his bear
rip from his skin. The man melted away and his bear stood in front
of the wide-eyed children. There were a few gasps and astounded
cries.

Luke approached the boy, who
didn't shrink away from him. The boy nodded and held still for him.

Luke slashed his claws
through the rusty iron and broke the shackle. The boy instantly
scrambled to another boy shackled to the opposite wall. They clung
to each other and spoke rapidly. They looked like twins, with the
same black hair and eyes.

One by one, Luke freed the
children. There were thirteen of them. Jenny ran into the room and
hissed, “Let's go!”

Sirens wailed as Luke and
Jenny led the children from the room. The children weren't as thin
as the other orphans, and their reflexes were quick. Luke saw some
of them leap over the railing of the stairs and land nimbly on their
feet.