Chapter Two

K raven paced outside the clinic. He was a thousand percent sure that female was his mate, but he had no idea what the fuck was going on. All he knew was she’d been hunted like a rabid animal and left for dead by some whacked-out scientists in a gods only knows place.

The sound of heavy boots on gravel broke him from his back-and-forth march on the healer’s lawn. When he looked up, Talon was approaching with a concerned look on his face. His leader was on a mission, but Kraven wanted to talk to him first.

“What is going on? Are you here to give her your blood?”

Kraven’s panther was definitely pacing in his mind. He could feel the ripples of change tickling his human skin. His alpha was not quite himself, and he could tell Talon’s thoughts were on the female who was currently in the care of the healers.

“We will talk, but I have to meet the female first,” Talon began, sending out his calming energy. “I understand you are going through the emotions of finding your mate, but I need you to trust me on this, Kraven. Can you do that?”

“I can, sir,” he replied, but he didn’t like the tone of the alpha’s voice.

Talon gave a curt nod before disappearing into the clinic. Outside, others began to gather. Diesel was the first one to approach him. The male silently took a protective stance and folded his arms in front of his body. Kraven knew the gesture well, and like all of the Guardians before him, finding one’s mate was an emotional rollercoaster.

Kraven didn’t believe he was going to go feral anytime soon, but there was always a chance. It was part of their essential makeup to have deep-rooted feelings toward their soon-to-be mates even if they hadn’t touched them yet. And he’d made damn certain he didn’t touch her without her blessing.

The sun was only an hour or so from setting, and he looked to the west, noting the reddish hue to the sky. If he hadn’t gone for that run, she would still be in the forest actively dying. He couldn’t understand why she hadn’t shifted to help heal herself. Didn’t she know that key fact about being a shifter? Did her beast not know either?

“Be patient, my friend. You’ll have answers soon,” Diesel reminded him. The male had grown into a damn good Guardian and a friend even though he had been just a teenage cub when Hope and Kraven had moved to the Shaw pride all those years ago.

“I want to know everything and it’s driving me nuts waiting out here,” Kraven admitted, glancing at his friend before returning his line of sight to the door to the clinic. “Talon’s in there giving the female his blood. The moment she comes out, I’m going to run with her.”

“And I will follow for protection,” Diesel added.

Kraven nodded his thanks and waited.

…and waited.

The few light poles on the road leading to the homes on the Shaw lands had been on for at least an hour when the door to the clinic opened. Kraven stood at attention as Talon exited. Kraven looked for the female, but she was nowhere to be found. When his alpha leveled his eyes on him, he knew something was amiss. Talon jerked his head to the side in a silent request for Kraven to enter the clinic. No one made a sound as he made his way onto the porch.

“What’s going on?”

“I want you to come inside and meet the female you rescued. Her name is Rose, and she is now a Shaw, but there is something I need you to see before she should head to the old dorms for the night.”

Kraven didn’t care for his alpha offering the dorms to the female. He’d planned on having her stay in his home on the other side of the property. It was where she belonged.

He stopped dead in his tracks as he ducked into the exam room where he’d left her hours before. In place of her human body, a large, red-shouldered hawk sat perched on the center of the bed.

“Kraven, Rose has taken my blood, and I told her to shift into whichever form she was comfortable in for the next few hours. She didn’t want to leave the clinic to hunt yet since she knew none of us could keep up with her during her flight. If you could please set her up with a room in the dorms after her shift, I would appreciate it. We will meet in my office in the morning. Both of you need your rest.”

The alpha said his goodbyes and let everyone know he’d start hunting down the ones who created her as soon as he got to his office. Talon shook his hand and disappeared out the door, closing it softly behind him.

Kraven took a seat in a chair across the room from Rose in her hawk form and waited. He didn’t know how long she would be in her shift, but he had nowhere else to be.

“I know you can’t respond to me, but I want you to know that I will protect you like I promised in the forest where I found you.” He knew she heard him by the tilt of her head. “I’m sure Talon gave you a lot of information about the pride…well, it’s your pride now, too. I don’t want you to be afraid here, and we will give you all the time you need to adjust.”

She made a small chirp sound and fluttered her feathers, settling back into the spot she was in when he arrived. “If you want to fly, I will shift and follow you until you are ready to return to your human form.”

Rose ducked her head and turned away from him, jumping up to perch on the metal headboard of the hospital bed. Her hawk eyes were wide, and he could see the golden hue to them. It was darker than that of a panther, and he thought they were beautiful nonetheless. Even her human eyes were a little different than his. Yes, they were blue, but not the icy blue like panther shifters. Hers were darker…more cornflower with bold black rims.

She let out another soft chirp to get his attention, and he started to say something, but she hopped down off the headboard and began to shimmer. Within seconds, she was sitting on the edge of the bed, completely naked. He reached for a robe on the table by the door and laid it at the foot of the bed.

“How are you feeling?” Kraven’s first thought was to make sure she was in no pain. He’d seen her at her worst, and he never wanted to see it again.

“Much better, thank you,” she replied. Her voice was beautiful…like an angel. It was so different from when he’d found her. It was no longer raspy and full of fear. “I can’t thank you enough for finding me and bringing me to your home.”

“It’s your home now,” he reminded her.

“That’s what the alpha said.” She smiled and reached for the robe. “I guess I should get some sleep. Talon said there are a lot of pride members who will want to meet me.”

Rose shivered and put on the robe. He averted his eyes while she dressed, but he didn’t offer to leave the room. His panther wouldn’t let him be anywhere else.

“There’s a room I can use in an old dormitory?” she asked as she pulled her hair over her shoulder, twirling the ends. Her hair was longer than he remembered, but now that she was cleaned up, he was starting to notice a lot of things about her…like how full her lips were and she was more muscular than he remembered.

“Actually, I’d rather you stay at my home. I have a spare room for you, and it's safe.” Kraven stood from the seat and walked toward the door, opening it for her. She didn’t question him until they were outside. Everyone had disbursed for the evening, and he was glad they were alone. He didn’t want everyone coming at her all at once. There’d be time for meeting the pride tomorrow.

“Can you show me the place Talon told me I could use?” He gritted his teeth where she couldn’t see and pointed across the backyard of the main house. “He also said there would be food there?”

“The old dorms used to be for new Guardians until they found their mates and built their own homes. Over the years, single or mated males have moved on and built their own cabins. So, now we use it for new pride members or guests visiting from other prides.” He didn’t want her in that building, and her next statement solidified his decision to take her to his home.

“It…it reminds me of the hospital where I was raised,” she admitted, pulling the robe tighter around her body.

“You don’t have to stay there,” he rushed to say. “My home is available to you.”

“I think I would like that, Kraven,” she replied. “I feel safe with you.”

“I will feed you, and then you can sleep in my spare room,” he offered, praying she would indeed feel safe with him.

Talon burst into his office with his phone to his ear, cursing the fucking sheriff for not answering. The news of modified shifters had his blood pressure at maximum volume. How anyone could make shifters in a lab and raise them in hiding for almost thirty years baffled him. They’d been so good at hiding.

“Fuck!” he screamed into the stagnant air of his office.

The door to his office flew open and Liberty came rushing in. If it’d been anyone other than her, he would’ve lashed out at them for entering without knocking or announcing themselves.

“What’s wrong?” His beautiful mate hadn’t aged a bit, and neither did the need for her support and love. Just seeing her in the doorway with wide eyes and tight lips reminded him how lucky he was to have her in his life.

“Close the door,” he ordered and flopped down in his old chair, ignoring the creaks and cracks from so many years of ruling his land and people from that very spot.

“Talon?” Liberty moved to his side, and he let out a heavy sigh when she touched the back of his head, running her fingers through the short strands of hair at his nape. “Is this about the female Kraven found?”

“I can’t even explain what is going on…nor do I understand it,” he admitted, reaching for her hand. When his mate dropped to her knees beside him, he turned in his chair to face her. “She was made in a lab…thirty years ago.”

“What?” Liberty’s brows furrowed at his news. “She was made?”

“She didn’t even have a name,” he cursed, wiping his free hand over his face. “They created several of them, and they are held up in some hospital with the ones they made. This female escaped and they sent their males…Trackers…to kill her. They left her for dead.”

“Jesus,” Liberty breathed. “The scientists? I thought the human government shut them down.”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s not the scientists we know. These are shifters, and I have no idea where they are or who they’re working for. She doesn’t even know what town she came from. The only thing I know is she’d been running for several days; possibly a week. She could’ve come from anywhere.”

“Did she shift and run? Or did she run in her human form?” Liberty was still confused, and Talon knew the news he would deliver next would be hard to believe, but it was true.

“Liberty, my mate…she’s all shifter ,” he paused, still not believing what his mouth was saying.

“All shifter?”

“She was made to be able to turn into any animal she chooses.” The gasp from his wife could’ve been heard all over the pride. She didn’t believe it, either. “The scientists have found a way to clone all of the shifters and breed their own race. They call them ‘MODs’ and they never gave them names; only calling them by their chart number.”

“Oh, gods. She’s a true shapeshifter,” she cried, taking his hand in hers, squeezing it as tightly as she could, but it was short-lived when a knock sounded on the door. Liberty stood and kissed his forehead. “I’ll be close.”

“I love you,” he whispered as she walked away, knowing his mate heard his words. She mentioned the female being a true shapeshifter, and Talon had heard of them, but they were rare…even believed to be extinct, but this was much different.

When she opened the door, revealing the sheriff, Talon stood from his chair and narrowed his eyes at the lawman. “We have a problem.”

“Tell me everything,” Garrett grunted, entering the moment Liberty was down the hall.

Talon went into the details he’d learned from the female who’d taken the name “Rose.” He’d given her his last name and his blood. Garrett would help him get identity paperwork for her to make her legal in the eyes of the human government, but that would have to wait.

“I’ve never heard of this,” Garrett cursed.

“Of course you haven’t,” Talon barked. “Your gods only gave you sight of things to come from humans.” Talon was fed up with the gods fucking with his pride and all shifters. They pretended to help them but wouldn’t extend it to anything that came their way. It would’ve been nice to have known about the MODs and their creation.

“I can always try to talk to them,” Garrett suggested, but Talon was starting to rage, and he didn’t want to hear anything else from the angel.

“No!” Talon barked, standing to his feet. The office chair slammed against the bookshelf behind him, but he didn’t care. “I’ve had it with their bullshit, Garrett.”

“Well, it’s not my fault,” Garrett barked back. “What the fuck do you want me to do?”

“Help me find these shifter scientists and don’t bring the gods into this,” Talon said through gritted teeth. If Garrett’s people weren’t so helpful in getting him information, he would’ve told him to get the fuck out of his house and never return, but he needed him. His hands were tied.

“If you need my help, don’t come at me like your troubles are my doing,” Garrett replied, and Talon backed off only because the sheriff’s voice was calm. If they’d kept up the anger, it could’ve ended worse. “Regardless, I should’ve known about this. There is no way humans aren’t involved. If they’re in a ‘hospital’, it had to have been registered and regulated. Something doesn’t sit right in my gut.”

But Talon still wanted to kick his ass. That time would come later, but not tonight. Tonight, he would start his search for these motherfuckers who’d taken the sacred act of mating and tarnished the sanctity of their nature.

“Find out what you can, and make it quick,” Talon warned.

“I’ll be in touch, and I won’t stop until we find out where this female came from. This I promise you, Talon Shaw,” Garrett vowed, placing his fist over his heart before the room flashed bright white and the angel disappeared.