Wolf's Den - A BBW Shifter Romance Novel (23 page)

Wolves became men as they mounted their motorcycles or climbed into vehicles. Edie, Agnes and I entered the motorhome as Yeager, Murphy and the others climbed on their bikes. Violet’s wolves did not attack. They simply watched us go. I had the feeling they were simply defending what was theirs and now that we were leaving, they would let us go. I didn’t think Lady Violet would agree with them, however. In any case, away we went, dozens of vehicles headed to regroup and count our dead and treat our wounded.

Was this the end, I wondered as we left? Somehow, I knew that as long as Lady Violet lived, this wasn’t finished. This was just the beginning.

~~O~~

That night we found ourselves back in the Utah desert, hundreds of miles from Wolfsbane Ranch and Lady Violet. I tried to apologize for going there in the first place but Yeager and Edie wouldn’t hear of it. They supported the decision despite their misgivings. They went willingly. Still, I felt responsible for everything that had happened. If I hadn’t been so stupid, so gullible, I would have never been taken captive. None of what happened this morning would have been necessary.

“Have a beer,” Murphy offered.

“I’m not feeling it,” I replied. We were camped in the wilds of southern Utah among the red rock and rugged mountains. Several campfires burned and around them shifters and their mates gathered. I couldn’t help but wonder how Yeager was able to gather so many so quickly.

“You need to stop sulking,” Murphy told me as he shoved the bottle towards me. I took it reluctantly and glared at him. Stop sulking? People had died today. Murphy sat down on a boulder across the fire from me and stared back at me.

“Doesn’t it bother you that those people died?” I challenged him.

“Yeah, but there’s not much I can do about it,” he replied.

“Well, maybe you can forget them but they died to save me. I can’t just dismiss that so easily,” I said. Yeager sat back as he sensed conflict brewing. Edie and Agnes stared at the fire uncomfortably.

“I never said I had forgotten them. Some of those people were my friends. You’re right, they came to save you but they came willingly. That’s what we do. I’ll forgive your ignorance. You’re new to this life. We live apart because that’s what most of us prefer but we are all the same. We all are burdened and blessed with the ability to become wolves. That binds us together. We’re a family, a pack. We look out for one another. Those men and women that died trying to secure your freedom this morning did so willingly and they’d do it again if they had the chance,” Murphy told me.

His voice never rose in volume and his tone was never harsh but his passion was evident. He was right. I was new to this life. I didn’t understand it fully. I didn’t understand the dynamics and relationships among the men that turned into wolves and their mates. Yeager sat forward feeling the tension ease a bit as I pondered Murphy’s words.

“Look, fur ball, we all grieve. But you need to ask yourself one question. If you knew one of these men,” Yeager began as he gestured at the shifters scattered around us, “was in need, would you go to their aid? Even if that meant you might die?” I sighed. Of course, I would.

“Yes, I’d help,” I admitted. Murphy leaned forward.

“Then stop pouting. Honor those that died today by living your life. They lived as they chose and they came when another needed help. That’s what we do. We stick together. Maybe one day, these men will need you. Maybe not. But if that happens, you can repay the debt. Besides, like it or not, your special,” the old biker told me.

“You sound like her,” I replied referring to Lady Violet. Yeager had told Murphy about Lady Violet and Wolfsbane. He knew what she had told me and I’d told him the rest of it earlier.

“There’s a difference. I only recognize your importance. I don’t seek to exploit it,” he said plainly. I finally took a sip of my beer.

“Sorry, I know,” I replied.

“Don’t be sorry. And don’t shut down. This ain’t over. We need you. This was never about you anyway. This was always about that Lady Violet character and her machinations,” Murphy told me.

“I suppose,” I replied. Edie no longer stared at the fire. She sat next to Agnes, each of them in a folding chair holding hands.

“So, I don’t get it. How did you find all these shifters? I thought you were all loners and rogues,” Edie asked. Yeager deferred to Murphy.

“Loners, yes. Rogues, no. That Dolan was a rogue. We just want to live our lives. Not all of these mated pairs live in the sticks like you, Cassie and Yeager. Some live in subdivisions and condominiums. They lead quiet, private but full lives. Why do you think they all have motorcycles and Jeeps and trucks? Why do you think all those people go out to the woods? Some of them spend their weekends in the outdoors so they can run as wolves or naked next to their mate away from prying eyes,” Murphy told Edie. Yeager got her attention and continued.

“Dolan and his type are rogues. They don’t take mates the way we do. They take what they want. They live apart from society in one way or another but instead of seeking to go unnoticed, they prey upon society. They use their ability to exploit others,” Yeager explained.

“So, what about her question? How did you gather all these shifters so quickly?” I asked.

“I know a lot of shifters and their mates. We find each other at motorcycle runs and such. They know others and those others know still others. When these men and women heard one of us was in trouble, they came. Not every shifter answered the call but this bunch did,” Yeager told us.

“We live apart from society and in many cases each other. Some of these pairs live among other pairs and their packs. Hell, I know a whole cul de sac in Sacramento that is nothing but shifters, their mates and their young ones. They throw one hell of a block party. Still, we’re a community even if we’ve never met. We all share the same burdens and blessings,” Murphy added.

“I had no idea,” I replied.

“Maybe I should have told you more. I was just enjoying you too much I guess,” Yeager said. He’d told me a little about all of this but there was a lot to know.

“Yeager doesn’t know everything either. Me either. None of us knows everything. We’re scattered. Apparently, there are others, maybe many others, that we know nothing about like this Wolfsbane place. Makes you wonder how many of us there are out there. Hell, maybe some actor or celebrity, even the President, is one of us,” he said but that got snickers from all of us. We all knew there was no way the President was a shifter. Not the current one anyway.

“Even this bunch you see here is just a few of those I know about. Those that are too old or that have young ones didn’t come and no one blames them. I’ve got a daughter but she’s grown. Some of these pairs and loners never had kids or haven’t had them yet. Most are less domesticated types, if you take my meaning,” Murphy explained. I understood. They were free spirits, the type of people that lived like Yeager and I, that cherished their independence and would fight for it.

“So, where’s your mate?” Agnes asked. Murphy smiled at her. I knew what he was going to say from the wistful look on his face though not the details.

“She passed after our daughter was born,” he said. Agnes looked mortified but Murphy wasn’t offended. “It’s all right. My daughter and I persevered. She’s my focus now even though she’s grown. We helped each other get through it and still do,” he told the girl.

“I’m sorry,” Agnes replied.

“No worries. She’s right here,” Murphy said patting his chest. I’d only had a taste of the despair and longing Yeager had told me shifters who lost their mates felt. I couldn’t imagine what Murphy had gone through and I didn’t want to. As I tried to dismiss the terrible thoughts that attempted to intrude, two men walked up. They drove two of the Jeeps with the big tires. One was small and wiry with ponytail, the other barrel-chested with stubble on his head but a long, unruly beard on his chin.

“So, what’s the plan?” the big man asked. Murphy offered them a beer from his ice chest and invited them to find a rock to sit on. Then the old biker introduced the two men to the rest of us. The smaller man went by Sprocket. The bigger man was called Amp. Those were obviously nicknames...I hoped.

“Nice to meet you,” I greeted the two.

“So, you’re the one,” Sprocket said as he lit a cigarette.

“Yeah, but I’m not just one any more. She can shift too and there are others,” I explained indicating Agnes.

“Damn!” Amp exclaimed.

“What?” Murphy asked.

“A chick that can become a wolf? That’s hot,” Amp replied. I giggled at that and looked at Yeager.

“It is,” my mate told the big Jeeper. Amp held out his beer bottle and Yeager clinked his against it.

“Rock on, brother,” Amp said and took a big swig of his beer. Men! I changed the subject to avoid any more talk of the relative merits of female shifters. I just hoped they couldn’t see how red my cheeks had become.

“I want to thank you guys for coming,” I told the two men.

“Honored, Cassie,” Sprocket told me.

“Hell, it’s been a while. Thank you,” Amp said. His response confused me. Amp noticed my consternation. “Sprocket and me, we met in Afghanistan while in the Marines. We spilled a lot of Taliban blood with both bullets and teeth. We miss it, ma’am,” Amp explained. I wasn’t sure I understood that, why men would miss war and fighting, but I didn’t question him.

“Well, thank you again,” I said. Amp and Sprocket held out their bottles, leaned forward and I clinked my bottle against theirs. Apparently, that was that.

“So, Murph, what’s the plan?” Amp asked again.

“I honestly don’t know. From what Cassie and Agnes had told us, that Lady Violet isn’t going to give up,” Murphy told him but suddenly he perked up. I smelled it too. A wolf approaching and it wasn’t part of our group. Amp and Sprocket looked ready to spring into action as a gray wolf approached. Its scent told me it meant us no harm and it was strangely familiar. Then the wolf that carried a satchel in its teeth dropped the bag and became a man as it reached the light of the fire. It was Phillip, the doctor that had taken my blood and would have performed the procedure on me that morning if I hadn’t escaped.

“She won’t give up,” he said as he stood up after grabbing the satchel. Two other wolves appeared but they were ours, sentries. They growled at Phillip but he held up his hands. “It’s just clothing. I don’t like being naked,” he said. Amp stood up to check the bag but I stopped him.

“It could be tainted with the pheromone,” I warned. Amp stopped.

“I haven’t come to harm you. I’d be the last one Violet would send. She doesn’t know I’m here,” he said. I sensed he was telling the truth. I could smell fear and not much else.

“Let him get dressed. If he pulls anything, rip his throat out,” I told the wolves that stood behind Phillip. The doctor swallowed hard but pulled clothes from the satchel and put them on, slacks, a shirt and loafers. Murphy dispatched the wolves to make sure he wasn’t followed.

“Why are you here?” I asked Phillip.

“I can’t do this anymore. I can’t let her do this,” he said. Amp looked at me and I nodded. The big Jeeper grabbed Phillip and pulled him along behind him. He then forced Phillip to sit down between himself and Sprocket. Phillip looked rather uncomfortable.

“What can’t you do anymore?” Yeager asked. Phillip composed himself before speaking.

“She wasn’t always like this. When I met Violet, she was concerned about our kind. She wanted to protect them, to build a community of shifters, their mates and children. But things changed. She told you she had seen horrors, Cassie. A family from the Ranch was brutally murdered. Ranchers tracked the wolves that they had seen on their land and slaughtered them. You know, killed as a wolf, you remain a wolf. They were found dead in their human form meaning they had shifted into human form but the Ranchers killed them anyway. Violet changed after that,” he explained.

“So, were supposed to feel sympathy? She was going to kill me...with your help, Phillip,” I reminded him.