Protect and Serve Shifting Forces (7 page)

“Well, what have we here?” Startled from my unintended nap, I jump up. Blood rushes to my head in a dizzying swirl. When my eyes finally focus in the early morning light, I see an older man standing in front of me, holding a rifle. Others surround him, also holding weapons. They look like military. Thank God! The boys called out the cavalry.

“I’m so glad you found me, I got lost when I was hiking. Did Kender send you?” The man so obviously in charge cocks his head to the side.

“Kender? Kender Russell? The gryphon shifter?”

“Yes, that’s him. He’s my mate. He and Varick, the phoenix shifter. I know they’ve got to be worried as hell since I didn’t come home.” I notice the men staring around them through the trees. They must have been called in from out of the area, since they don’t look very comfortable here. “I guess I’m kind of rambling. I’m really very relieved you found me so quickly. You guys are very good at your job.”

“Yes. Yes, we are.” A strange smile lights the man’s eyes, sending an uncomfortable chill wending its way up my spine.

“I’m sorry. I just realized I haven’t introduced myself. I’m Aurora Monroe.” I hold out my hand for him to shake. “And you are…”

“I’m your worst nightmare, bitch.” The butt-end of a rifle is the last thing I see as blinding pain sends me reeling into unconsciousness.

Varick’s Blog (10)

“God, Kender, where can she be? It’s getting dark and she doesn’t know this area. You don’t think your family…”

“Oh hell no. They don’t approve of me mating a human, but they’d never do anything to hurt her. You didn’t see any sign of her?” He paces back and forth in front of the cabin. I swear, if he were in his gryphon form, his tail would be lashing back and forth in frustration.

“For the fifth time, I couldn’t find hide nor hair of her. There’s so many paths leading away from here, not to mention the drive out to the main road… she could have gone anywhere. Do you know if she knows anyone around here?”

“As far as I know, this is the first time she’s been up here. Let’s face it -- we need help. Come on, flying is faster. My family can help us look for her.” He shifts, taking off over the trees. I force a quick shift and follow, the cold rain spitting into steam as it hits me.

We land in front of a big ranch house with a wrap-around porch surrounding it. A few lights are on inside the house. Kender enters without knocking. “Mom? Dad? Where are you guys?”

“We’re in here, son,” a deep voice rumbles from the dining room. We’ve obviously interrupted a family dinner. I recognize Kender’s brother and sister on the far side of the loaded table. Their father -- an older version of Kender -- sits at one end, and their mother at the other. “You’ve reconsidered?”

“No, Dad. Aurora is our mate, whether you like it or not. Mom, I’m sorry to interrupt dinner. But Aurora is missing. She ran out of the cabin into the forest after I got back this morning. She was really upset. I thought she was just going to walk it off, but she never came back.”

“That’s probably a good thing. You know how unreliable humans are, son. I’m sure you’re better off without her.” His father takes a drink from a half-filled wineglass before continuing. “Now that Jordan girl, she’s more your type. We’ve already talked with her parents. They’re willing to forgive the human’s insult the other day. They’ll even agree to have her accept your phoenix friend there, if you’re attached to him.”

“What the hell? Dad, haven’t you heard a word I’ve said? I don’t
want
Jordan. Neither of us do. We’re mated to Aurora. Mated and claimed. She’s
missing
! We need help finding her.”

“Son, you can’t mate a human. It’s impossible.” The man takes another sip of the rapidly emptying wineglass.

“Come on, Varick. We need to find her before something happens.” Kender storms out of the room, pausing on the porch to calm himself down. “Damn him! He’s so narrow-minded. He can’t see what’s right in front of his face!” His muscles tremble with his rage. He slams his fist into one of the sturdy wooden columns on the porch, the dull
thud
sounding at the same time the screen door opens.

“Kender, don’t break the house.” His mother stands in the doorway, silhouetted in the light from the house. She slips her arms around her son from behind, laying her head on his back. “I’m sorry about your Dad, honey. You’re right, he’s stubborn and prejudiced. But he loves you, you know that.”

“How can he love me, Mom, and not accept my mate? It’s not his decision! He knows how it is with a mate -- how can he even suggest that I marry Jordan?”

“No, son, he doesn’t know.” Her sad eyes meet mine, and then she turns Kender’s face toward her. “We aren’t mated, Kender. Our parents arranged the marriage. Neither of us ever found our mate. We’ve been happy enough, and we eventually grew to love each other. But I never gave up hope for you children.”

“You’re not… oh hell, Mom, I didn’t know. That explains a lot.”

“It’s okay, honey. We’re happy. But both of you have found your mate. It doesn’t matter that she’s human as far as I’m concerned. You’re luckier than most. Maybe if we’d looked beyond our narrow little world like you two did… Regardless, you need our help. Whether your father approves or not, we’re family.”

“What do you need us to do, Kender?” His brother and sister walk out the door to stand beside us on the porch. “We called in several of the other families. They’re on their way to help.”

“I’ll help, too, son. I’m sorry. You were right, I should have listened.” His father’s hand lands on Kender’s shoulder, gripping him tightly. Kender folds his hand over his dad’s, standing still, his eyes closed tightly.

Overwhelmed -- I know the feeling -- I’m overcome with envy. My family would never do anything like this. Hell, I don’t even know if they’re still alive. Phoenixes just don’t stick together.

“Thanks. All of you, thanks.” He straightens his shoulders, and then looks at me, determination hard on his face. “Mom, Dad, this is Varick Gerard. He’s Aurora’s other mate, and my friend. Varick, you’ve already met Sean and Brianna. Varick, these are my parents, Hugh and Lilia Russell.”

“Nice to meet you. Now let’s find Aurora. It’s getting cold.” More cars start pulling up, lining the driveway all the way out to the road.

“Is this where the party’s at?”

Jordan’s familiar voice sets my teeth on edge. I pull her aside before she reaches the porch. Kender doesn’t need this -- so I head her off. “What are you doing here?”

The woman actually blushes. I’m surprised she knows how. “Look, I get it. He’s mated. It was worth a try, anyway. We brought more people to help search. These forests can be really dangerous. No matter how mad you are at me, you’re going to need everyone you can get.” She looks toward Kender’s family, affection in her eyes. “At least there’s already a military team looking for her. They’ll probably have better luck than we will. But the more eyes, the better.”

“A military team? What are you talking about?”

“You called them, didn’t you? I saw them in town when we first got word. I assumed they were from Kender’s team. Some sergeant was calling the shots. He seemed really eager to go once he heard that it was Kender’s mate missing.”

“Kender!” He comes running at my yell, glaring at Jordan when he reaches us.

“Why are you here, Jordan?”

“She’s here to help. Kender, she said there was a military team in town. They took off after Aurora when the sergeant heard she was your mate.”

“Turner? Sgt. Turner?” At her nod, Kender curses vehemently -- loud enough to bring the rest of the searchers.

“Isn’t having the military helping a good thing?” Jordan’s question was echoed by a few of the others.

“Sgt. Turner’s son was killed in a rogue attack just before I joined. When I lost it after my first battle, I guess he saw something of his son in me and helped me. He was my mentor. But after the government outlawed paranormals in the military, he changed. Turner started blaming paranormals for everything -- especially shifters. Didn’t matter if they were rogue or not. When I had to shift right in front of him to save Aurora…” His gaze rolls over the hills covered in forest, shrouded in fog. “My team thought I was human. By hiding what I am, I’ve put her in danger.”

“You know him, Kender. Where would he head first?” I have to get him to focus. Aurora’s life depends on it.

“I used to tell him about how I liked to hike along the river by my cabin. I think he’d probably start near there and send men along the trails, looking for tracks in the mud. But that’s just a guess. We’re going to have to check everywhere, just in case. We can cut off at least half an hour by heading straight over the mountain.”

Now he looks like the gryphon I first met -- in charge, assured, and determined to save his mate.

“Mom, send someone to my cabin in case she comes back. Dad, you take some people and check the streams. Brianna, you take Sean and check the main roads. Jordan, I need you and your friends to search near town. Whatever you do -- all of you -- do
not
try to fight the military. They’ll have orders to take anyone down who opposes them. Anyone. I just need help finding her. He’ll use her to lure me. His grudge is against me, not you.”

“Son, this fight has been a long time coming between the military and paranormals. It’s bigger than just you. If this sergeant comes after you or your mates, then he’ll have all of us to deal with.” Kender’s dad clears his throat, uncomfortable with the outpouring of emotion.

“But why would you do that? Neither I nor Aurora are gryphons.”
I don’t understand
. His gaze shifts to me, a slight smile on his face.

“You’re family now, son. Family sticks together.” He shifts into a magnificent gryphon -- even more impressive than Kender -- and wings into the air, disappearing into the night.

The searchers disperse, most shifting into one form or another and flying or running into the forest in an alternate form in search of our mate. Not only Kender’s family, but all the others who came running at the first sign of trouble, with no expectation of repayment.

So, this is what it’s like to have a real family. I fly to the forest, determined to do whatever it takes to keep my new family safe.

Kender’s Blog (11)

Complete and utter terror for Aurora races through my veins. I know Sgt. Turner -- at least who he used to be. The man he has become scares the hell out of me.

“Kender, what are we going to do if we find them?” Varick flies next to me, his bright fire muted in the fog.

“Like I said before, he’s coming after me. He thinks I betrayed him -- betrayed the military. To him, it’s the same thing. He’ll never stop hunting us now that he knows who you and Aurora are and what you mean to me. If I can, I’ll take him out. God, Varick, what have I done? What if she gets hurt?”

“We can
what if
all night long, son, but it won’t do us any good until we see what we’re up against.” The voice comes out of the fog behind us. I drop a little altitude in surprise.

“Dad? What are you doing here?”

He flies in next to us, strong and regal in his gryphon form. “I figured I’d be of more use helping you rather than searching streams.”

“Dad, you don’t know how dangerous this man is. I’ve lived and fought next to him for the past ten years. I don’t want you in harm’s way.”

“That’s nice, Kender. Sweet, really. But have you forgotten who you’re talking to?”

“Oh. Sorry Dad.” Yeah, I had forgotten. Dad comes from a long line of heroes, and he continued in the family business. The kind of hero stuff that legends are made of. Sometimes it’s hard to see him as more than just a parent. Too bad the hero gene ran out before it got to me.

“You want to share?” Varick asks.

“Let’s just say we don’t have to worry about Dad holding his own in any fight.” What an understatement. He took out an entire pack of werewolves once. Yeah, that kind of legendary stuff.

“Listen…” I hear voices ahead in the valley. I can’t make out what they’re saying, but it’s definitely voices.

“Do you think it’s one of the search teams?” Varick pauses, dropping lower in the fog. He’s damned fast, but his fire glows brightly at night. Still, he’s got great stealth instincts. He’d have made a good soldier.

“Probably not. They’d be calling for her, not making noise enough to wake the dead. I think it’s Turner. Let’s drop down to the valley floor so Varick can shift. Sorry, bud, but you glow. I’ll go further ahead and recon.” There’s not much of a clearing below, but a wide spot next to a bend in the stream is big enough for us to land.

“Kender, can I talk to you for a minute?” Varick and I step aside, just far enough away to give us the illusion of privacy. “Don’t you think I should be the one to check it out? I know you’re military and all, but what if something happens to you?”

“Do you think you’re invincible, that you’d take my place? I don’t want anything to happen to either of us, Varick.”

“I’d rather something happen to me than to you. Aurora would be better off with you. You have family. Support. Friends. And you’re a gryphon.”

“What’s being a gryphon have to do with it? Don’t forget, you have family here now, too. And she’s no better off with me than with you. At least you stick up for who you are, no matter the consequences. That takes real courage. Me, I hid who I was just to make my life easier. But I hurt so many people.”

“Kender, I… it’s not the same. My family life was really crappy. Seriously. You have good blood running in your veins. Commitment, loyalty and all that shit. My family legacy is nothing but cheating, abandonment and hatred. I can’t be what Aurora needs. I’m afraid she’d end up as bitter as my mom did.”

“Were your parents mated?” Not something I’d normally ask, but after finding out about my parents, it seems likely that Varick’s parents weren’t either. Especially if it was as bad as he says.

“I don’t know. I never asked. Never really thought about it.”

“Are you planning on running out on her?”

“Of course not. I love her.”

“Then shut the fuck up and be
you
. You’re not your dad. And you’re
mated
to Aurora. Do you think you could ever do to her what your dad did to your mom?”