Primal Bonds (30 page)

It felt good to pound along the hills, under the wide sky and the bright moon. She smelled water and woods, damp earth and open spaces. The wind was cold but just right for a wolf with a thick coat of fur.

Glory wanted to throw her head back and howl for the joy of it, but she kept a grip on herself. The land wasn’t truly wild; it was owned by farmers and developers now, humans who didn’t want to hear wolves on it. The other wild animals out here—coyotes, rabbits, snakes—kept silent, sensing her.

Glory slowed, then sat on her haunches and sniffed the air, trying to calm herself. Dylan was finished with her. She needed to come to terms with that, even if it broke her heart.

The run helped a little, but Glory was still restless by the time she made it back to her car. Shifting back to human, she stretched, dressed, started her car, and drove back to town.

It was only eleven, and Glory wasn’t ready to go home yet. She turned along streets until she found a bar she occasionally visited on the outskirts of town. The bar wasn’t a Shifter hangout, but when a woman was six feet tall with a well-packed body and blond hair, the clientele seemed happy to accept her. Now that the shooters had been driven off it was a relatively safe place where she could sit and brood.

She believed in its safety until she walked out to her car again two hours later, which she’d parked at the edge of the lot. A human male stepped out of the dark, shot her twice in the torso, and disappeared again.

Glory’s Collar sparked as she instinctively tried to attack, but all feeling left her limbs, and she slid down the side of her car in a mass of pain. She quietly collapsed on the pavement, the gravel cutting into her face.

As she lay there bleeding, dying, she felt great regret that she’d never see Dylan again. She’d never be able to apologize for her stupid pride, which had made her throw away what little he was able to give her. That giving had cost him dearly, and Glory had thrown it back in his face.

A wolf scent came to her, sharp and pungent. She recognized the scent, which surprised her. Before she could form either hope or fear, the Lupine, in wolf form, walked up to her and sniffed her face.

CHAPTER TWENTY

“
Y
ou’ve never been inside a grocery store, love?” Sean asked Andrea. “What, never ever? You’re missing a grand experience.”

Andrea gazed at the vinyl-tiled aisles stretching away from them with some trepidation. Not only did the aisles go on forever, they were filled with shelves upon shelves of boxes, cans, bags, and jars that all looked alike. “How is anyone supposed to
find
anything?”

Sean leaned on the handles of a wire cart, a luscious man out to do his morning shopping. “You soon figure out where they put the things you like.”

“I thought you handed a list to someone, and they found the food for you.”

“That was the old days. The village grocer would get in what he knew you liked and make up an order for you, in his friendly little shop on the high street.”

“Even for Shifters?”

Sean shrugged. “Back in Ireland, no one, supposedly, believed in Shifters, but we were the best customers. We always paid our bills, and we were grateful for the sacks of flour and salt and the coffee our village man would get in. We hunted a bit more then, but the day we discovered we could get rabbit in a tin, well, it changed our lives.”

Andrea studied his straight face. “You are so full of shit.”

Sean let himself smile, but his eyes held worry. He was trying to distract Andrea from her thoughts about Glory, who’d not come home last night. Glory often went out and stayed out until the next morning, but Andrea didn’t like that Glory hadn’t even called. With Callum out there still plotting, Andrea worried.

Another problem with Glory not returning was that they’d run out of groceries, and Andrea had been stumped about what to do. Back in Colorado, the stores in town hadn’t wanted Shifters in them but had grudgingly let a few Shifters shop for the entire Shiftertown. One person in Andrea’s pack had been assigned to collect food orders from the families each week, then he made the run into town and brought back said food and supplies.

Andrea hadn’t realized things how differently things were done in this Shiftertown. Glory always asked Andrea what she wanted from the store, never suggesting Andrea do the shopping, so she’d assumed that Glory was a designated shopper.

Andrea had written up what she needed this week, but the list was still on the refrigerator, and food was running low. When she’d told Sean, puzzled, he’d laughed at her, put her on the back of his motorcycle, and driven her to the grocery store closest to Shiftertown.

Andrea gazed at boxes stacked inside a long row of refrigerators with clear glass doors. “I don’t even know what most of this stuff is.”

“Ready-to-eat frozen meals. I’ve tried them. They pretty much taste like the package they come in.”

“Why would anyone want to eat it then?”

“They’re for the perpetually busy. Humans work nonstop, and then throw away all the money they make on cardboard food because they’re so busy working they don’t have time to cook real food. Ironic, that is.”

“Do they have coffee here?”

“Love, they have everything here.”

Sean led the way down the bewildering array of colorful offerings to a row of coffee in cans plus bins of coffee beans at the end of the aisle.

Andrea watched Sean fill a small bag with fragrant coffee beans, his intense gaze fixed on the task. “I never thought I’d need a mate to help me navigate the mysteries of a grocery store,” she said.

“Mates are good for something, then.”

Mates were good for far more than that, but Andrea wasn’t about to flatter Sean’s vanity with that remark. He’d been extremely proud of himself ever since they’d done the mating ceremony yesterday, and the fact that she was sore all over today was testimony to his joy. Sean had a few scratches and bite marks on his flesh as well, silent signals of Andrea’s mating frenzy. She wondered what would happen when they really let themselves go. Wonderful thought.

“You don’t think Glory went off with someone?” Andrea asked. “Eric, maybe?”

Sean shook his head as the stream of coffee topped up the bag. “Not right under Dad’s nose. Glory’s mad at him, but I don’t think she’d go that far. Not yet.”

Andrea agreed, but she’d prefer her aunt holed up consoling herself with a younger man than out-and-out missing.

“Or maybe she went to face my father again,” Andrea said, “and he took her into Faerie.” Far-fetched, but Andrea was trying not to think of the alternative—Glory hurt somewhere. Maybe Callum had found her and was using her to gain a hold over Dylan.

“I’m thinking Glory doesn’t want to be within smelling distance of Faerie or Fionn.”

“Damn it, I keep trying her cell, but she doesn’t answer.” Shifters weren’t allowed voice mail, so Andrea couldn’t leave a message. The phones could call one another, but that was about it.

“Once we’re done foraging for food here, we’ll go see Liam again,” Sean said. “We’ll make a search if we have to. If Glory gets pissed at us for interrupting whatever she’s got going on, that’s her problem.”

“I’m glad you’re so calm.”

“I’m not, but going into hunter mode in the middle of a human grocery store would be a bad idea.” Sean folded up the coffee bag and put one hand on her shoulder. “We’ll find her, love. I promise you.”

At last they were finished, carrying the bags of food Sean had paid for and heading for Sean’s motorcycle. Sean had calculated buying just enough to fit the saddle bags and no more. He settled everything, and Andrea climbed on behind him. She liked holding on to his waist as they moved through the streets to Shiftertown. Sean was strong, warm to lean into. She rested against him and closed her eyes, breathing his scent.

Liam was home when they walked next door, but Dylan had gone again.

“I wish he’d stay put,” Andrea growled.

“He has a lot to think about.” Liam looked from Andrea to Sean, his blue eyes grim. “I’ll put out a lookout for Glory, but I haven’t heard anything.”

A step sounded on the stairs, and Eric descended, his face a bit white, his gait shaky. “Are you all right?” Andrea asked him.

“We tested the Collars last night,” Liam answered for him. “Eric’s getting good at it, but it’s still hell.”

“Hell is one word for it,” Eric said. He wore jeans and a T-shirt but was barefoot, his hair damp from a shower. “Damn painful is another.”

“You don’t know where Glory is, do you?” Andrea asked him. “You didn’t arrange to meet up with her?”

Eric looked surprised. “Are you kidding? With Dylan watching me? I’d be bloody stupid to step between the two of them.”

“I bet Dylan went out looking for her,” Kim said.

“I just hope he finds her.” Liam looked both worried and annoyed. “I’ll call Spike and have him start a search for her—discreetly. Sean, can you help me today?”

The way he said it told Andrea that he expected Sean to understand what he meant. Sean’s eyes flicked to Feline white blue and back again.

Liam also shot a pointed gaze at Eric, who took the hint. “The less I know about this, the better, right?” Eric asked. “I’ll go for a walk.”

His green gaze was speculative, but he brushed by Liam on the way out, showing that the two Shifter males had become friends.

“All right,” Andrea said once Eric was gone. “Mind telling me what’s going on?”

“Liam wants to try to remove your Collar,” Sean said.

Her eyes widened. “
Remove
it?”

Sean put a protective hand on her back. “He’s trying to find out how to remove all Collars, but doing it can make the Shifter crazy, even more feral than before. But you.” Sean traced the design of the Celtic knot. “Your Collar doesn’t affect you. Liam wants to study it, to see whether he can safely remove it from you.”

Interesting. “Ooh, I’ve always wanted to be a lab rat.”

“I won’t let him if you don’t want to.” Sean’s voice took on a hint of growl. “I’ll protect you from him with my last breath.”

Andrea found Liam’s gaze on her, his alpha stare matching Sean’s. Wasn’t that wonderful? Two powerful Felines pinning down a little Lupine. She smacked that gaze right back at them.

“Yes,” she said to Liam. “The answer is yes. I’m curious, and it might be worth it to find out.”

S
ean did not want this, and he let Liam know with every bit of body language that he didn’t. Liam, damn his eyes, pretended to ignore him.

Connor was at school, so they didn’t have to explain why they’d left him behind to go to the innocent-looking garden shed behind another Shifter’s house; Kim was at her office. Eric didn’t like being left out, but Eric understood. The less he knew, the less culpability he’d have if humans found out what they were doing. Eric and his Shiftertown didn’t need to pay for the Morrisseys’ experiments.

The inside of the garden shed looked innocent as well. Tools hung on the walls, an old lawn mower sat in the corner, and the whole place smelled of grass, earth, and oil.

Liam removed a small tarp hanging on the wall and took down his tray of instruments. No one who didn’t know would understand what the little files and probes were for—to fix the lawn mower, maybe? Liam kept them deliberately grimy, sterilizing them only if he needed to nick Sean’s or Dylan’s or his own skin.

The Shifter to whom this garden shed belonged wasn’t home, but Liam came and went here as he pleased. Kim had saved that Shifter’s life, and the grateful Feline and his mother who lived with him obeyed Liam’s every wish.

Liam had Andrea sit on a stool. Andrea did, betraying no fear, but Sean knew her enough to read her by now. He saw the minute flicker of her lashes, the small nervous movement of her hands as she brushed a speck of dirt from her jeans.

“I’d love to tell you this won’t hurt,” Liam said. “But I have no bloody idea.”

The Collars were fused to the wearer’s skin, so they never moved, never slipped. Liam touched a probe that looked like a small flashlight to the Celtic knot at the base of Andrea’s Collar. A spark leapt from the knot to run around the Collar, and Andrea jumped. Sean snarled.

“No, I’m all right,” Andrea said quickly. “It just—I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Don’t hurt her, Liam.” Sean knew he’d die if Andrea was hurt. He’d be scrambling around like a madman trying to save her, the mate bond closing like iron around his heart. If Liam hurt her, clan leader or no, brother or no, Sean would attack him.

Andrea’s hand on his calmed his craziness, her gentle touch a link to sanity. “I’m really fine, Sean. Is that it?” she asked Liam.

“No.” Liam took out another instrument that looked like a scalpel, scrubbed it clean with some antibacterial wipes, and dipped it in alcohol. “I’ll try not to cut you.”

“Oh, that’s reassuring.”

Liam held up the knife. “I also have to ask you not to talk.”

Sean squeezed her hand. “Andrea likes to talk.”

“Especially when I’m nervous.”

“Well, for now, resist the urge,” Liam said. “Shifters have fine metabolisms, but not if I accidentally slit your throat.”

Andrea opened her mouth to answer that, her lips shook a little, and she closed them again. Her fingers closed harder on Sean’s as Liam very carefully slid the knife under a link in Andrea’s Collar and again touched the probe to the knot.