The Jaguar's Arranged Mate: A Paranormal Shifter Romance (13 page)

“So what are you suggesting?” Beric asked, his fingers changing into claws.

What she was thinking, what she was planning… it was something that should be brought up to the council, for them all to have a say in, but who knew how many members of the council were still alive? And she couldn’t find Beric’s father either, to ask the alpha of the Teal Warriors his opinion on it.

No, as heir and future alpha, she would have to get used to making the tough choices, and right now, the choice had to rest on her shoulders and hers alone.

Well, hers and her husband’s, as strange as it was to realize they had finally married.

“Miera…”

She caught his gaze. What would he think of her for suggesting this? There was no other option, not that she could see. As they stood here, thinking and planning, more and more of their people were being sliced down every minute. They had to stop the bleeding.

Even if it meant sacrificing a few to save the many. To hopefully save the many.

In a garbled rush, she explained her idea to Beric. He winced but nodded. “There’s no other way,” he agreed.

As soon as she had his support, she darted forward as quickly as her wounded body would allow. Each step jarred her neck, and she tried to keep her head as still as possible.

Her first target was a were-jaguar who was lying on the ground. No one was near her. Maybe they thought she was dead or dying and not worth the effort.

“Are you hurt?” Miera asked, then winced. Of course she was. She was bleeding near her knee.

“I’m… I’m all right… I’ll…”

“Listen to me.” She pointed to the stack of bodies. “Head there. You see where?”

The woman’s face was terrified as she nodded.

Miera moved her hand slightly so her finger now aimed at the back door, trying not to be obvious about it. “Then go there and leave.”

“But—”

“It’s a command,” Miera said softly but firmly.

After a moment, the were-jaguar nodded. She was a Teal Warrior, one Miera hadn’t met before, but she seemed willing enough to obey, and Miera had so many others to talk to yet that she couldn’t afford to watch and see if the woman reached her destinations or not.

A claw stirred to the left, and Miera hurried over to the were-jaguar lying on the ground. She kept low herself, almost crawling, trying to keep herself small and not draw attention to herself. When she reached the were-jaguar, however, she realized he was already dead. With a trembling hand, she closed his eyes and went off to find someone else to save.

It was slow work, trying to round up as many of the wounded were-jaguars, and she was pulled into battle along the way, forced to change her form to take on the offensive. She fought alongside both Blood Roses and Teal Warriors, but she noticed that the two packs did not go out of their way to help each other.

The hardest part was walking away from those still capable of fighting without sending them to the door. For the plan to work, they had to keep the Brutal Claws occupied and inside the warehouse. They couldn’t afford for the Brutal Claws to realize some of the were-jaguars were slipping out of their grasp and off to safety.

Hopefully to safety.
Who knew what was waiting them outside? If all of the Brutal Claws had descended upon the compound and the brunt of their force was waiting outside the warehouse, they were all dead. It would only be a matter of how many heartbeats they had left to pump.

But her heart was too big, and after she and a Blood Rose killed off two Brutal Claws—the Blood Rose doing more of the fighting because her body, although pregnant and thereby stronger, was still weak from trying to heal herself—she directed her to the pile of bodies and shifted only her mouth to human so she could vocalize easier. “Go there and—”

Carrie changed her mouth too, but it was obviously with great reluctance. “Do what?” she snapped. “There are more to fight.”

“I know but—”

“I will not flee.” Carrie whirled around and rejoined the fray.

Miera exhaled sharply. Carrie was a strong fighter, yes, and one she would love to have for the next battle… if there was one. If Carrie didn’t leave, though, there would soon be no chance she’d be around for round two.

By now, the warriors of their two packs were now becoming vastly outnumbered by the Brutal Claws attacking them. Miera bit her lip.

Beric was suddenly by her side, and he touched her uninjured shoulder. He was in human form, and he held a knife. Briefly she wondered where he had gotten it. “We can’t save them—”

“They have to know what we’re planning.” She jerked away from him. A mistake. Her neck wound reopened, and she could feel blood gushing from it despite the binding. “We can’t just leave them here to—”

“Miera, you said so yourself. If the Brutal Claws realize what we’re doing—”

The rest of his sentence was forever lost because two Brutal Claws came barreling down on them. Miera managed to get a few good slashes in, bright red coating the chest fur of the taller one, but his claw nicked her neck, right on her wound, and down she went. The brunt of his weight smashed against her injured shoulder, and she bit her tongue to keep from crying out. Beric had more than he could handle with his Brutal Claw.

She dug her claws into the paw holding her down, but he didn’t react, as if he didn’t feel any pain. Somehow, she managed to bury her claws deep enough for him to release her. His howl of fury echoed in her ears as she leaped up, changing her mouth back to her jaguar’s, and lunged right for his throat. Blood rained down her neck even as it filled her mouth.

The Brutal Claw staggered away from her when she released him, and he collapsed in a pool of his blood, mixed with those who had already been killed. Most of the warehouse was covered in blood. The green carpet she’d processed down was now a yellow color from the blood. It looked eerie and gave Miera the creeps.

Gingerly turning her head to the side, she spat out the blood. Then she darted forward and joined the next battle over, two Teal Warriors against three Brutal Claws. She helped them fight, but with every slash, she could feel more blood dripping from her shoulder, and she knew she wouldn’t be able to last much longer. Whenever she came close to either Teal Warrior, she tried to tell them about the plan, but her howls were too low to be audible.

A Brutal Claw fell, then another. The third was furious and fought as if possessed. One of the Teal Warriors was the next one to die, right before the other Teal Warrior finally ended their foe.

Miera nipped at his ear then changed her mouth to human. “Listen. We’re going to set this place on fire. It’s the only way.”

His head snapped up, and he stared at her, his expression unchanging as he took in her wounds. Just like Carrie had, he reluctantly shifted to his human mouth. So much easier to whisper and not draw attention to themselves. “You have to live if there’s to be any chance of any of the others surviving.”

She gaped at him, both filled with admiration and desperation. “You do realize—”

“I know what I’m saying. I know what it means.” He glanced around. “If you don’t leave now, you won’t be able to.”

“But the others—”

“I’m sure they would rather die fighting then—”

“But you wouldn’t die fighting—”

“Yes, we would be. We’ll be doing our part.”

“But—”

“Your part is to survive and try and unite the packs. It’s your only chance. Now leave before I finish you off myself.” He growled, low and menacing, sounding almost more like a wolf than a jaguar.

Beric was hurrying over, well, more limping than hurrying, and it soon became clear why he was trying to rush. Five—yes, five—Brutal Claws were charging after him.

Two Teal Warriors stepped up, including the one who had told Miera to go. A Blood Rose joined them.

Beric grabbed her hand. Together, they hurried to the back door, bypassing the pile of bodies, which had grown significantly.

The door slammed shut behind them.

Miera turned back, regret already filling her. What had they done?

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Beric
struggled to restrain Miera. She was trying so hard to get back inside the warehouse, seemingly unaware of the amount of blood she was losing. She was changing between forms, and if she wasn’t careful, the were-jaguars they had saved would discover her pregnancy.

Although that was the least of their concerns right now.

Two female were-jaguars pushed their way to the front and took Miera from him. He wanted to argue, but he couldn’t. She had to be removed before she killed herself, and he had to stay here and see her plan to completion.

First, he had to usher the were-jaguars back. It wouldn’t do for them to have been moved to safety—thank God there seemed to be no Brutal Claws outside, running amok through the compound—only for them to be caught up too close to the warehouse when it would be destroyed.

It took longer than he would have wished, considering a great number of the were-jaguars were too injured to be able to move under their own power, but eventually, he and the others were able to help them.

That settled, Beric rushed over to the barracks. Constantly shifting back and forth between forms—it had been easier to drag and carry his people in human form but running was better suited in jaguar—was taking a toll on his already weakened body. Miera’s wounds were much more grievous than his, but his were not something he could overlook for much longer. Not one of his own had he bandaged, and with each time he changed form, he could feel the wounds reopen.

The forge burned day and night. Beric and the Teal Warriors used guns, but they also made sure they had plenty of blades on hand as well, and they had upped their production once the Brutal Claws came sniffing around.

Back to human form, Beric—careful to keep his nakedness as far from the fire as he could—managed to collect some of the fire from the forge into a bucket and dashed outside. Before he could change form, he saw a line of were-jaguars. They knew what was going on. They were accepting his lead without question.

Which made him wonder just where his father was… but that wasn’t something to worry about at the moment.

He passed the bucket on and retrieved another one. They continued like this, each one hurrying the bucket full of extremely hot fire to the next one, and soon, the warehouse was on fire and burst completely into flames.

Crap. They should have barricaded the doors. The Brutal Claws would just rush out and—

Sam, an older Teal Warrior, one of the fiercest fighters ever, so Beric wasn’t surprised to see him alive, approached. “None of them will be surviving that.” He gave a smug nod, almost smiling. And Sam wasn’t one to smile.

“How can you be so sure?”

“Boarded it up myself. Every door and window. Soon as I smelled the first bucket. I don’t think any of those stupid, mangy Brutal Claws even recognized the odor. All they know is death and their twisted sense of glory and inflated self-worth.” He spat, his face twisting with disgust.

“Good. That’s good.” Beric’s chest ached, and he glanced down. He didn’t have a major wound there. The pain was internal. He hadn’t liked condemning their fighters any more than Miera had, but their sacrifice had been worthwhile. It had saved so many.

“They understood.” Sam nodded knowingly, his features solemn.

“Are you sure?”

Sam stared at him, unblinking. “This is war. There will be casualties.”

The fire burned for hours. The choice of wedding locale at the warehouse was inspired, as the warehouse was set apart from all of the other buildings, so there was no risk of the fire spreading. Beric watched the flames, mesmerized. Dimly, he realized he was on the ground, sitting. At some point, someone had bandaged his wounds, and a pile of clothes sat at his feet. He didn’t move to change until the black plume turned white. The fire was dying.

A part of him had died with each were-jaguar they had lost.

But he couldn’t stay here, being depressed and worthless. His injuries were healing, maybe a little slower than they should be. Food would help. Rest definitely. There would be time for that… maybe.

The hospital was overflowing with patients, and Beric winced as he walked inside. Maybe it would be better to have the injured treated elsewhere. The hospital would be any easy target for the Brutal Claws. They would be despicable enough to attack the already injured.

Maybe he should check on the fence and the gates to see how they got in, but he had to show everyone he had survived, to try and bolster their spirits. The wedding should have been a joyous occasion. Instead, it had turned into a bloodbath. And seeing that the two packs hadn’t worked together during the battle meant his own spirits needed to be bolstered, too.

Every were-jaguar he smiled or spoke with on the first floor were all Teal Warriors. The same on the second. When he reached the third and top floor and had yet to see a single Blood Rose, he couldn’t help feeling concerned.

A nurse rushed by, and he tapped her arm. “Excuse me…”

“Beric. Yes.” She dipped her head in deference.

Something tightened in his chest to the point where he couldn’t breathe. Her reaction was to that of an alpha, but he wasn’t her leader yet, right?

He had planned on asking about the Blood Roses, but instead he blurted out, “My father…”

“I haven’t seen him.”

“So he isn’t anywhere inside the hospital?” That pile of dead bodies…

“We’re a little disorganized. We’re trying to get a list of casualties and those here seeking treatment and—”

“Seeking treatment? You mean to say no Blood Roses were injured enough to seek treatment?” His voice echoed down the hall, much louder than the groans slithering out from some of the nearby patient rooms.

Her already flushed face turned even redder. “I-I don’t—”

A doctor exited a room, and Beric left her behind and approached him. “Where are the wounded Blood Roses?” he demanded.

The doctor hardly looked up at him. “I don’t know. If you will excuse—”

“No.” Beric grabbed his arm. His fangs had popped out. He forced them back and tried to control his emotions. Now was not the time to be demanding and brutish, but he had to figure out what was going on. “Have Blood Roses been allowed to come inside the hospital?”

The doctor glanced at the door of the room he had been trying to enter. “I really need to see to my patients—”

“Not all of your patients are here,” Beric growled. He could not be more furious. “Tell me the truth.”

The were-jaguar hung his head. “I don’t know where they went.”

Beric felt cold all over. “They were turned aside.”

“Only two showed up in the first place,” he protested. “What did you think would happen? They want their own doctors and medicine. They don’t trust us to treat them, and, frankly, we have too many of our own to treat.”

“No.” Beric ran a hand through his hair. “There isn’t a them versus us. There’s only us.”

The doctor stared at him shrewdly. “If you believe that, you are mistaken. The wedding came too late. We are not joined. We will not fight together. We will all fall. But since I can see you wish for us to live long enough to die in the next attack, I need to attempt to patch up our wounded so they can go out there and die anyhow.”

Beric wanted to argue with him, to demand answers, to force him to cooperate, but he didn’t. The man had a job to do—heal the sick. Beric had a job to do as well—lead. Or at least locate his father.

Feeling rejected and low, his body aching and his movements slowing, Beric eased his way back to the first floor. As he approached the front door, a male nurse stopped him. “Let me help you.”

Beric waved him away. “Others need—”

“They can wait,” Jake insisted. He ushered Beric to a chair and walked down the hall to a cart. He pulled it over and handed Beric some medicine. “Drink this.” He gave him a cup of water. “And then go get something to eat. It should help your natural healing abilities.”

He popped the pills and drank all of the water even though it was so cold it hurt his teeth. Food definitely would help him, but he had to find the Blood Roses, and his father, and Miera… his wife…

Beric jumped to his feet, and a wave of dizziness washed over him.

Jake gently but firmly pushed him back onto the chair. “Stay here,” he commanded. “I’ll bring you some food.”

The nurse was only gone for a minute, which was a good thing because Beric had just decided he wasn’t going to wait for him any longer. It was a hamburger, with all the fixings. Normally, Beric preferred steaks or pork or fish, but right now, his body needed it, and he inhaled the food. It did make him feel better. His body was still stiff, but almost all of his bruises had gone away; his small cuts healed up, too. Only the deeper gashes remained, and even they weren’t as serious as they had been.

“I need more of that medicine.” Beric held out his hand. He would bring the medicine to the Blood Roses himself. Miera needed some as well.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.” Jake shook his head. “I need to get back—”

“I said I need more.”

The nurse lowered his gaze. “If you were alpha…”

“I just might be!”

“Until we know that for certain, I can’t. I’m sorry. I have to tend to the injured.” With that, Jake ran off.

Beric’s nostrils flared. As much as he didn’t want to be alpha, he wanted the respect of one.

He also wanted the two packs to work together.

And he also wanted the war to be over.

Somehow, he had a feeling that he might not be getting any of the things he wanted.

*

Miera
didn’t want to move. She didn’t even want to think. She just wanted to be left alone, to sleep for hours, maybe even forever.

But Lisa, her best friend, wouldn’t stop talking, and Helen, the kindest Teal Warrior Miera had met and who was quickly becoming a dear friend, kept fussing over her. Even worse was listening to the cries and wails of her people.

They were in a house that looked vaguely familiar. It took Miera’s addled brain a long moment to recognize it as Helen’s house. She was the only Teal Warrior Miera saw or heard. Everyone else was a Blood Rose.

“You should see if you can go to the hospital,” Lisa was saying, but her voice was a little muffled as if her back was turned toward Miera. Who was she talking to?

“With so many wounded, I don’t see how I’ll be able to get anything for you all.” That was Helen, and she sounded weary.

“What’s going on?” Miera asked. She forced her eyes open and tried to sit up.

The two were-jaguars pounced on her, pushing her back down. “Just relax,” Lisa crooned.

“We’re handling things,” Helen added.

Miera didn’t have the strength to fight them. Her body felt almost wrong. Her limbs were too heavy, her chest oddly light even though it felt as if she couldn’t catch her breath. Her neck especially ached, and she felt ready to pass out. Had she already fainted? After leaving the warehouse… oh, God, the warehouse… Was that smoke she smelled? Had their plan, as horrible as it was, worked? Try as she did, she couldn’t remember what happened after she and Beric fled the warehouse.

“What’s going on?” she asked again. Even her voice sounded strange, weak.

But Lisa and Helen weren’t there. She was floating away. Not even the sound of the dying could reach her.

When she came to from having passed out for the first—or maybe fifth—time, the crying hadn’t stopped any. She struggled to sit up, but her upper chest and her forehead had both been tied to the bed to keep her from moving. Her neck. It wasn’t healing, or at least not fast enough. She still felt faint and dizzy, and tired. So tired. She could sleep for forever.

The crying grew louder. The person didn’t sound like he was in pain, at least not physical pain. No, the were-jaguar had lost someone. A pang filled Miera’s chest. The mothers and fathers and brothers and sisters of the ones they had sent to a fiery grave… would they understand as Beric thought they would? Would she ever be able to forgive herself for what she had done? Yes, war was terrible, and it required sacrifice, but that sacrifice should be freely given. It should have been their choice…

A cough rattled through her, and her body shook as much as the restraints would allow.

Someone approached the bed. Helen. “You’re awake again. Good. Would you like to drink something?”

Miera wanted to nod, but she couldn’t move her head. “Yes,” she croaked out. Her throat was so dry it hurt to talk.

Helen held a straw to her lips, and Miera drank the water greedily.

“What’s happening?” Miera asked. “There’s a… hospital…”

“There is, yes.” Helen stared at the empty cup in her hands. “But none of the Blood Roses are willing to go there. Some on principle and some because a few tried and were turned away.”

“Turned away?” Miera’s hands clenched into fists. “What do you mean turned away? The Teal Warrior doctors and nurses won’t help us?”

Helen looked like she wanted the floor to swallow her up. “Well, they are busy trying to help the wounded—”

“The wounded Teal Warriors,”
Miera
said bitterly. She closed her eyes. “I understand that the Blood Roses want to be healed by our own doctors, but now isn’t the time to be worrying about Teal or Blood. We are all one now that Beric and I… Beric. Where is he? Is he all right?”