Bear King's Curves: A BBW Werebear Shifter Romance (14 page)

“
Alright, grizzly people!” I switched on the
bullhorn, letting my words clarify as it shrieked to life with a
resounding squeal. “Come on out! Come see the traitor, the
heir, and your true destiny...”

I stopped, listening as a few nearby doors creaked open.
Drowsy older bears wandered out, all in their human form, barely
clothed and rubbing their eyes.

“
Come on over, boys! That's right. You're not
dreaming! It's your old buddy, Nick Tunder. I'm back with good news,
the truth that's been stolen from the Klamath Clan by our own Elders.
Somebody call them out! Bring out those ratty old bastards,
especially that toxic cur – that asshole – Elder
Branson!”

I paused, straining my ears to hear thirty feet down.

“
Holy shit, it's really him!”

“
Gods, the murderer is back. This really is a
cursed year! Somebody go ring the damned Executive Office.”

“
Stay inside, stay inside...wait until all this
passes.”

Claw marks. Several impatient bears below me had shifted
to their grizzly form, snarling and clawing at the statue's base,
helplessly trying to shake me down.

Nope. It'll take a lot more than that. Not coming
down until I see Branson's ugly eye staring at me.

It took a good ten minutes for the Elder I wanted to
arrive. Old Hector and Judy must've been taking their sweet time, if
they were going to come at all.

Just now, I had several dozen gathered beneath the
statue, practically the entire Klamath Bear Clan.

Perfect.

“
Going really well,” I whispered into the
small plastic piece attached to my collar. “Now the moment of
truth.”

“
That fucking terrorist has a lot of nerve showing
himself around here...” I heard Branson's voice and looked past
the crowd, toward the small group of men flanking the one eyed Elder.
“Yes, you idiots! Shoot him down.”

A tall figure pushed his way through the crowd at a
lopsided run. He carried a rifle in hand.

Shit.
My hand reached into the bag, fingers twitching as they felt for the
cold surface of the flash grenades.

I relaxed when I saw the closest man with the big gun
was Beamer. He hadn't raised his rifle yet, hadn't taken aim. He was
just beneath me, staring upward, his eyes sick with stormy conflict.

“
Beamer! You don't have to do this,” I
shouted through the bullhorn. “Put the gun down. Better yet,
turn it on the bastard who made you pick it up in the first place.”

“
I don't want to!” He shouted up to me.
“You've done a lot of damage here, Nick. Just come down. We can
talk this out! If you don't, then you're not leaving me much choice,
man...”

“
Yeah, we'll talk this out, alright. But it's not
going to be you and me in some dingy prison room!” I raised my
voice and tipped the bullhorn toward the crowd.

“
Friends, the Elders have usurped your birthright
and mine. Our corrupt little trio murdered your rightful ruler and
usurped power for themselves. They've kept us isolated and
vulnerable, fishing for artifacts only so they can keep them hidden.”

“
What the hell are you talking about, you snake?”
A man shouted up from below. “You're a fucking murderer!”

“
Killing Victor broke my heart. I had to do it.
You didn't know he was about to execute a human girl in cold blood,
did you?”

I really had no idea. I had to test them, find out what
the hell Branson had said about the incident, what lies he'd told.

Several shocked gasps came up from the crowd. Obviously,
he'd given them a different account of that night after all.

Several people turned to face Branson. The Elder's
single uncovered eye twitched with glassy hatred.

“
It's true,” Branson shouted, much to my
surprise and everybody else's. “What he isn't telling you is
that this girl was a thief. Yeah, I kept it hidden. I didn't want to
invite retaliation against our human neighbors and kick up a whole
new bout of shit. This girl's as responsible for Victor's death as
Tunder!”

His arm shot up, pointing an accusatory finger at me. I
repressed a bitter smile.

So, he'd gone with a safer story after all. Hadn't
told them about Lyla at all. Until now.

“
I get it,” I said, switching the bullhorn
on again. “You're all shocked. Surprised. So am I. Thank you,
Elder, for proving my point. You see how this man keeps secrets?
Don't worry, people. There are a lot more deep, dark secrets where
that came from! Oh, but it's all for 'the good of the Klamath Clan,'
isn't it?”

“
You're still a traitor, Tunder! You betrayed your
own kind for a human female, you sick sonofabitch!”

I ignored the anonymous voice below. I was more
concerned about Beamer, who'd at least lowered the rifle.

“
The girl did steal from us, yes, but then she
made up for her crimes. I'm telling you the truth. This little
incident pales when it comes to the real secrets our illustrious
Elders have been hiding. Why don't you tell them about your old man,
Branson? Tell folks all about Theo's purges and bank robberies, all
the lives he ruined by getting our people into crime, bear and human
alike!”

“
Crime? What's he talking about?”

“
The Elders rule like little dictators, pretending
their seniority alone gives them wisdom. But the Clan wasn't always
run with secret deals and three votes, was it?”

Branson was practically shaking with rage now. The other
two had shown up. Judy was at his side, her old face lined with
worry. Hector coughed, propping himself up to stare at me over his
walker.

Perfect timing. I decided to whip out my Ace card.

“
This is the proof! This is the artifact that's
caused so much trouble. All because it has so many answers for our
people.” I held up the destiny stone for everyone to see.

Plenty of curious eyes. No one was very impressed, and I
didn't blame them. It wasn't much to look at when it wasn't glowing,
shooting its red rays in all directions.

“
Beamer! You've got to let me down. No arrest.
Give me a minute to prove what I'm saying is true.” He lifted
his rifle. “None of you have much reason to trust me. But if
you don't let me do this, you won't know that there's even less
reason to trust our all knowing council.”

I took a deep breath and began to climb down. Really, he
could've shot me at any time, or maybe he was just waiting to
intercept me as soon as I got my feet on the ground.

It's now or never. All in. I'd rather get a bullet in
my brain than keep up this charade.

Angry men and women in the crowd chattered louder as I
descended. I kept going, without even looking at them or Beamer.

My feet touched the ground. I pressed my hands to the
statue and turned, one last time.

My old friend and mentor had the rifle pointed at my
face. A second later, he lowered it, shuddering with self-disgust.

“
Hey! What the fuck are you doing, you idiot?”
Branson exploded, screaming over the rest of the people. “Shoot
him! Shoot him dead. No more fucking delays! This murderer, this
traitor, doesn't deserve a second trial.”

Several people turned toward the booming, bitter voice
slowly. Their faces were lined with shock.

Branson had a history of public outbursts, but never
before the entire clan. He looked like a fire hydrant shaking with
too much built up pressure.

“
You see that?” I whispered to Beamer.

“
Yeah. But that doesn't mean I trust you either.
Get up in front of the statue, man, and do whatever you're gonna do.
This won't end well any other way. If something awesome doesn't
happen, you're going in handcuffs.”

That was fair. I strode forward, destiny stone in hand,
gripping it as I spread my arms and legs.

Summoning fire in my blood for shifting wasn't hard. I
fixed my eyes on Branson and his vile companions as I fell, screaming
as bones, flesh, and nerves contorted with unusual fury.

Shit. Hope I didn't break the mic. Lyla won't be able
to hear anything if it's shattered or all muffled.

I worried about her showing up unannounced. But just
now, back in my grizzly form, I had bigger worries.

The bear whined deep inside me, hungry for blood. I had
to restrain myself from charging straight through the crowd and
biting into Branson's head.

The stone, the stone. Go for the stone.

My paws fumbled with the big round object. I managed a
grip, throwing my strength into my hind legs.

When half my claws were touching it, and it caught the
distant moonlight filtering down from above, it burst fiery red. At
night, the glow was far stronger than it had been in the daytime
forest, more like holding a big red sun than a bleeding moon.

People turned toward the cherry red brightness and
gasped. Some of the ones in the front shielded their eyes. Behind me,
Beamer swore. I heard the unmistakable sound of the rifle clattering
on the statue's wooden platform.

I tipped my head up to the sky and roared, calling on
the Gods to come to me this moment, purveyors of truth and fate.

The destiny stone continued to flicker, a livelier red
than before. The blood red glow circulated with dizzying intensity,
almost like a mechanical heart churning blood inside it.

I poked out my huge
tongue through sharp teeth, gasping for cool, nourishing air.
Something else was happening. It was like the sphere was sucking the
life force out of me, as if it were
my
energy fueling the blood red glow.

I fell on all fours, holding the stone snug in my paws.
I began to shift.

The heat surrounding my hands instantly dissipated, its
shooting star glow tamed back to a jade green. I crouched around the
stone, pretending to hide my nakedness. Really, the crouching
position helped me feel like I wouldn't pass out.

“
What the hell was that?” Beamer whispered
behind me, echoing the sentiment of a dozen bears in the crowd.
“Feels like I've seen those fireworks before. Strong,
calming...right.”

Several people just below us nodded their heads. I
smiled. Maybe they couldn't put it into words, but in their hearts,
they knew damned well what that red light meant.

Half the crowd turned to Branson for answers, and the
rest to us. I reached for the bullhorn.

“
Do you see that,
everyone? Do you
know
that light?”

More heads nodded in the crowd, bemused and reluctant.

“
This is what he's hidden from you. The truth
about your past, your future, the Klamath Clan's destiny and mine. I,
Nicholas Tunder, am more than just an Alpha-in-waiting. I'm the heir
to this bear clan's thrown.”

More gasps, another long wave of chatter among my fellow
bears. No one spiked up challenging it.

Not even Branson. I eyed him warily across the crowd.
All three Elders looked too shocked to speak or even think about
giving more kill orders.

Well, at least I've accomplished something here
tonight...

More excited tittering, jeers, and thunderous growls
from the crowd. People were getting overly excited, dangerously close
to a full out fight breaking out in the confusion. All it took was
one overexcited bear taking grizzly form and –

A deafening bang exploded behind me.

I spun, just in time to see a quick puff of smoke rising
from Beamer's file. He'd fired straight up into the sky. That got
everybody's attention.

He reached out to me, pointing at the bullhorn. I handed
it over.

“
Alright, everybody, listen up! We've got a hell
of a crisis on our hands. Just stay calm and we'll sort all this out.
I'm calling on the other security guys to take the Elders into
custody. I'll do the same for Mister Tunder here.”

I didn't resist as Beamer grabbed my arm. Over the
crowd, the look of horror on the Elders' faces was priceless. I
beamed my smile at Branson, all my hate and triumph into that one
good eye.

“
Wait, wait, wait...” There was an old,
meager voice repeating the same word over the clamor.

Beamer led me forward, and stopped just short of the
Elders. We pushed through the crowd, many of whom had wisely decided
to fan out and return to their cabins.

A bear called Gerald, a little older than Beamer, had a
small handgun drawn as he stood next to the Elders.

“
It's Hector. He wants to tell you something,”
Gerald said to Beamer, flashing me a wary look.

“
Everything he said is true,” I heard old
Hector say from a distance, surprisingly cough free. “I'm the
oldest here...I remember the old ways. Branson's father took over
more than a generation ago. Killed the King, and later his son. That
hit on the girl...Branson thought she was armed and dangerous. He was
hoping Nick and her would kill each other.”