A Lamb for the Bear's Appetite (8 page)

Chapter Seven

It was dark as fuck outside, and not even the light from the full moon penetrated the thick covering of trees. Liam had arrived a few minutes ago at the spot he had been instructed by Lor to wait for Olive. He knew she had been in trouble with this Trent asshole, but he hadn’t realized it had run this deep until after he had looked into the leopard, and after he got the call from Lor. For one thing, the mansion he passed on his way to the pickup spot looked like some kind of compound or damn fortress, with high walls and even spotlights along the perimeter of the property. This place was still in Kashton city limits, but it was at the very edge of town, at least fifteen miles from the actual heart of the city. His truck sat a few feet from where he stood, and although he was at least a mile away from the almost prison-like house, he could still make out the beams of light that moved right and left over the property.

He continued to pace, his bear ready to emerge at the slightest provocation. The wind picked up, but he had his dark hoodie on under his black leather. He had the hood covering his head, and with his equally dark shirt and black fatigues, he blended right into the shadows. She should be here any minute, but with each passing second he grew even itchier and less stable. The sound of a twig snapping had his whole body tensing to the point of pain. He stilled and looked around with only his eyes. He sensed his father and Maverick hidden in the trees, ready to be his back-up if need be. Liam could handle his own shit, but in this situation he didn’t know what the hell he was dealing with, especially with the fucking psycho Trent. Again, he heard a twig snap to his right, and he slowly turned in that direction. The wind was blowing in from uphill, making it impossible for him to catch the scent of whom or what was lurking in the darkness. He sensed his father and Maverick move up behind him, their presence powerful and threatening. But soon he didn’t have to wait to learn who was making their way toward him between the trees, because the concentrated scent of his mate slammed into him, and a low growl of possessiveness left him. He also picked up on a male with her, but he could tell they shared the same blood.
She’s with her brother.

He saw her before she saw them. She was practically carrying her brother through the forest. He took a step forward, and a large, fallen branch snapped beneath his foot. She instantly stilled and looked right at him. Tears streamed down her face, and he knew that she hadn’t even realized she wasn’t alone until this very moment.

“Olive.” He kept his voice low, and although he had his attention on her, he was also constantly scanning his surroundings for any threat. He took another step, and another, until he was right in front of her. He looked over at her brother who looked like he was nearly dead as it was, but the male lifted his head and looked at Liam. The male was weak, far too weak to protect his sister if it came down to it.
“Maverick.”

The lion shifter was right beside him a second later, and Liam didn’t need to ask him to take the male, because he already had him thrown over his shoulder and was walking him back to the truck. They didn’t have much time, and the longer they stayed out in the open, the more they were put at risk.

“Come on, baby.” She closed the distance that separated them and then fell against his chest. She started crying harder, and he cupped the back of her head, feeling his chest tighten with emotion. “
Shh
, it’s all right, Olive baby.” She grabbed the edges of his jacket and cried harder sill.

“I am so sorry to get you involved. I just didn’t know who else to call.”

He kept her close to his body. “I’m glad you called. I wouldn’t have wanted anyone else to help you, when I should be the one keeping you safe.” He held her for another moment before Maverick and Trace told him it was time to get the fuck out of there. He turned and made his way to the truck. Her brother was already in the backseat, his head resting against the window and his eyes closed. He looked like shit, bony and withered. He was definitely a shell of a male. Maverick was beside Holden, and his father was looking around their surroundings for any threats. Liam lifted Olive easily into his arms, and holding onto her with one arm he climbed into the passenger seat, but before his father started the truck, and before Liam could close the door so he could take his mate home, there were several gunshots that could be heard over the distance. All three males tensed, their animals coming out and saturating the interior of the car. Olive held onto him tighter and started begging them to go, that Lor had risked a lot and they needed to leave. And right when Liam gripped the handle to close the door so they could get the fuck out of there, the explosion that could be felt from even a mile away rocked the truck. Through the line of trees he could see the great swells of fire that rose up to kiss the sky. Olive lifted her head, her eyes wide and her mouth parted. She had track marks running down her cheeks form her tears, but it was the sight of the large handprint bruise that marred her throat that had his entire body vibrating with unrestrained rage.

“He did this to you?” He lifted his hand, but before he could gently touch her neck she flinched.

“None of that matters now. Please, let’s get out of here.”

His dad started the truck, and they were leaving the forest without another word. Liam cupped the back of her head and brought her to his chest once more.

“It’s okay, baby.” He kept Olive on his lap, tucked close to his body, and wanted to really fucking hurt something. “How is he?” He kept his gaze forward as he addressed Maverick. Her brother looked like shit run over twice, and he had scented the fact Holden was close to death as it was.

“He is dehydrated and nearly starved. And from what I can tell through the rips in his shirt, he has an infection from multiple lacerations on his chest.”

Olive lifted her head from his chest and looked over his shoulder. “Will he be okay?” There was a moment of silence before Maverick answered.

“I don’t know. Luke will be able to help though.”

For the rest of the trip they were silent, but Liam refused to loosen his hold on his mate. She had stopped shivering an hour ago, and although he sensed how exhausted she was, she forced herself to stay awake.

Once they reached his father’s house he kept her in his arms. Maverick carried her brother because he was unconscious, and they all made their way toward the back of the house. Trace unlocked the basement door, and they entered the lowest part of the house. It was a fully finished basement, with two separate bedrooms, one and a half baths, and a full-sized kitchen. In essence it was a whole other house right below his father’s. He wished they’d had this setup when Liam had been growing up, but over the past year Trace had completed this, and still planned on expanding more of the house.

“I’ll put him in one of the bedrooms.” Trace was already on the phone with Luke, Sweet Water’s cougar shifting physician. Luke may take care of the majority of the town, but he also worked behind the scenes, helping out his father and Maverick, and several other shifters that were injured and didn’t want a paper trail left because of it.

Trace ended the call a few minutes later, stuck his phone in his front pocket, and looked at Liam. “He’ll be here in twenty minutes.”

Liam nodded and curled his fingers around Olive’s thighs. She clung to him, and as much as he loved the fact she wanted him to hold her, he didn’t like why she wanted his touch so badly. He would have taken her into the other bedroom, but he knew she would want to be with her brother, at least until he was on the mend. Once inside the room where Holden was, he set her gently on the floor, having to force himself to actually let her go. She moved almost hesitantly to where her brother was, as if she was frightened of getting near him. But Liam smelled her nervousness and worry for Holden, and he wished he could take it away.

“Oh, God, Holden.”
She sat on the edge of the bed and took his hand. “We’re free now. Everything will be okay now. When you’re all better we will go to the beach, see the
ocean,
and everything will work out just like we always talked about.” Her brother didn’t respond when she started brushing his hair off his forehead. The scent of her salty tears reminded Liam of the ocean she talked about.

For the next twenty or so minutes he stood in the corner, not able to leave her side, but knowing she needed this time to be with her brother. Once things were settled, and, he hoped, Luke could help heal Holden, he could work on making his mate better, and finding out what in the hell all of that was back there at the compound. It was only a matter of time before Trace and Maverick grilled him on details, but he didn’t have any. As if his thoughts manifested Luke, he walked through the open doorway and immediately started working on Holden.

Olive wouldn’t leave her brother’s side, but Liam walked over to her, got down on his knees so he was eye level with her, and said, “Baby, let him fix your brother.” She looked over at him, and there was a distant look in her eyes. “It’s okay. Everything will be okay.” She allowed him to help her off the bed and lead her out of the room. Trace and Maverick were in the kitchen, talking softly, but stopped when they heard them exit the room. “Are you thirsty, Olive? Hungry?”

She shook her head and wiped the tears from under her eyes. He looked at both males, told them without speaking that he needed a little time with his mate, and turned for the other bedroom before they could say anything.

The rooms in the basement were just as a large as the ones
upstairs,
and the one they were currently in was equivalent to the master bedroom his father shared with Candace. The large bed in the center of the room was the main focal point. There were two end tables with matching lamps on then on either side of that, and hanging on the walls a few pictures that Candace had taken of the wildlife around the property. His old man might have built this place, but Candace had most definitely decorated it.

“Come on, baby. Why don’t you sit down? You look like you might pass out.”

As if she heard him, but didn’t really comprehend what he was saying, she walked over to the bed and sat on the edge. There was a lot of shit he wanted to say, but he knew right now wasn’t the best time to ask her what exactly had gone down back there. She was obviously in some kind of shocked state, and needed to rest. “It’s late. Why don’t you get some sleep, and we can work everything out in the morning?”

“Do you think he’ll be okay? Do you think that cougar can fix him?” She slowly lifted her face so that she was now looking at him. Her tears still fell at a steady pace down her cheeks, and it broke his fucking heart. Liam wanted to tell her that everything would be okay, because he’d damn well make sure she was okay, but he couldn’t and wouldn’t lie to her when it came to her brother. In all honesty he had no idea if the sheep would be okay.

“I don’t know. I hope he will be, but he looked like he was hanging on by a thread.” He looked toward the partially closed door and walked over to it to shut it fully. He’d have to talk to them eventually, but right now he just wanted a little bit of time with his female. She was staring at her hands in her lap. They shook slightly, and so he moved close to her, got down on his haunches, and took her hand in his. She slowly lifted her eyes and looked into his face. “I am so glad you are finally here with me, even if it is at my dad’s place.” He brushed a tear that slid down her cheek away with the pad of his thumb. “And I am so fucking glad you turned to me when you were in trouble.”

“I hate that I put you in the middle of this. I really do, Liam.”

“
Shh
. You’re my mate, and taking care of you is what I was born to do.” He leaned in and kissed first her right cheek, and then moved to her left. When she stopped trembling and breathed easier, he knew he needed to see if she could tell him what happened while it was still fresh in her mind. “Olive, baby, I need you to tell me what happened,
because
I have to make sure you’re safe.” He held her gaze, urging her as gently as he could that this was of the utmost importance. Even from the distance they were at he knew there was no fucking way anyone could have survived an explosion like that, not without being seriously injured. The more information she could provide, the more secure he’d be with making shit safe for her. He would have given her anything she wanted,
would
give her anything she wanted, and although it was clear she needed time and he wanted to give her all she needed, that was something he wouldn’t be able to hand over to her.

Chapter Eight

Olive stared at Liam, and even in the dark room she could see how vibrant green his eyes were. He was pleading with her to tell him what happened, but honestly she had no clue. “I don’t really know, to tell you the truth.” She cleared her throat because her voice was harsh from her emotions. “All I know is what Lor told you.” She scrubbed her hand over her eyes and breathed out roughly. Her immediate concern was whether Holden would be okay. When she had seen him yesterday in the cell he had been so very weak, but he had been lucid. But then when Lor had met her in the garden and Holden had been muttering incoherent things and had been barely able to keep himself upright, so she knew things were far worse than she had thought. The slight stench of an infection had hit her full force when she had wrapped her arms around him and his body was pressed right up against hers. Clearly in less than twenty-four hours he had gone downhill in terms of his health. It wasn’t until the lion shifter had taken Holden that she had fully seen the damage to his back and chest through the rips in his shirt. She had been so determined to get as far away from Trent’s place as possible that she hadn’t stopped to see the full extent of Holden’s condition
..
She didn’t know how Lor had gotten Holden to her, or how he had taken out Trent’s home, but the important thing was that he had.

“Olive, stay with me, baby.” He lifted her chin with his finger so she was once again staring at him. Olive hadn’t even realized their gazes had broken, but her thoughts had taken her away to a darker place, one that she knew she would never forget.

“I don’t know anything more about Lor except that he had lost his wife because of
Trent, that
he had infiltrated Trent’s organization under the guise of being one of his men, and that he wanted to help Holden and me get away from it all.” Everything was so silent and still that it made everything seem far worse. “He wanted vengeance because of what Trent took from him, and I guess he got it.”

Liam gave her hands a gentle squeeze, urging her to tell him anything else she could remember. Olive may have given him a condensed version of why she was staying with Trent, but this time she told him everything, and didn’t leave anything out. She told Liam about her brother’s drug problems, the deal she’d made with
Trent,
and everything until the point she had fallen into his arms in the woods. There wasn’t anything she left out. Not the women’s screams she heard at night, or the way Trent watched her, or even the things he had promised to do to her when her time with him was supposedly slated to be done. He was silent for so long that the sound of her pulse grew louder and louder as she waited to hear how he would respond.

“If I wasn’t pretty sure that motherfucker was already dead, I would tear him apart.” He stood and started pacing the length of the room. His bear flashed across his face. It was a frightening and powerful display of how much strength he truly wielded. Liam stopped and stood in front of her. It took him a minute to compose himself, to make his animal recede enough that she could talk to his human side. When the onyx color of his polar bear’s eyes shifted back to bright green, she knew he was in control once more. He was on his knees in front of her
,
 
his
hands on either side of her face, and his eyes boring holes into her. “He will never hurt you again.”

“What if he survived the explosion? What if Lor had been mistaken and he wasn’t even in the house at the time?” Liam was silent for several seconds.

“Even if he is alive, Olive, there is no way I will ever let him hurt you again. It’s over, Olive. It’s all over.” He took hold of her hands and brought them to his mouth. “It’s over, but I won’t let you go. Now that I have you safe beside me, I can’t just let you walk away from me. Do you understand?”

She did, but how could she possibly stay here after everything that happened? This need to be with Liam, the pull that she had to her mate was stronger now than ever, but until the danger was completely gone, she didn’t want to have Liam or his family in the thick of it. She was too tired, still very on edge and frightened, and not about
argue
the point that her staying with him would only make everything that much worse.

He slowly leaned in, and she knew that he was going to kiss her. Olive should have stopped him, should have told him they couldn’t take this to the next level, that everything was still up in the air, but her throat was tight, and her arousal for this male still simmered below the surface. The scent of him and the heat from his body had her becoming drunk for more. It had never left, never even faded, but instead stayed below the surface, wrapped around her animal in a warm, comforting embrace, and was just waiting to emerge. He was so close, his lips only an inch away. Their eyes were locked, and if she just leaned in their mouths would touch finally. But right when she was about to do that, to actually take something for herself, there was a knock on the door. He softly cursed.

“Hold on, baby, because this isn’t nearly the end of this.” His words were strained, as if he had to force them past his lips. He stood and made his way with sure, measured steps to the door. Olive was already standing and making her way toward him when he opened it. The cougar shifter stood on the other side. His shirt sleeves were pushed up his forearms, and his expression was almost grave in appearance.

“Oh, God, is Holden okay?” She moved so she was now standing in front of Liam. As if on instinct she reached behind her and took her mate’s hand for support.
 
He pulled her close to his body, so that her back was to his chest. It seemed like forever before the cougar finally spoke.

“He’ll be okay. He has numerous lacerations on his body, and because they were left untreated he acquired sepsis, a massive blood infection. It traveled quickly through his bloodstream because of the fact his immune system is clearly compromised, due to his lack of nutrition and hydration, and from I what have been told his living conditions. I have him hooked up to an IV with some very powerful antibiotics, and have him also getting fluids for the severe dehydration. It’s going to take several days before the medication completely works, but he’ll show improvement after the first forty-eight hours.” It felt as if her heart would pound right through her chest.

“I can see him?”

He gave her a soft smile. “Of course, but he needs rest, and so do you.”

“Thank you so much.” Emotion clogged her throat. He gave her another smile, and then looked over at Liam, gave a tight nod, and turned and made his way to where the polar bear and lion shifter stood in the kitchen. Before she could rush to see her brother Liam had her in his arms and had his face buried in the crook of her neck. She found herself holding him just as tightly, needing the strength that he so easily and readily gave her.

“
It’s
okay, Olive. Everything will be okay, yeah, baby?”

She nodded even though she felt anything but fine. “I know.” Spearing her hands through his short dark hair, she pulled away, looked into his face, and felt a genuine smile form on her lips. It had only been a few days, but here she was feeling so many intense feelings for this male. He really was everything she had hoped for, and that wasn’t just because he had been the one she had turned to for her escape. He was everything that made a mate perfect, and he gave everything to her without thought. That including risking his life to help Holden and her.

“Thank you for everything.”

He cupped each side of her face, and that familiar spark of electricity slammed into her.

“You have nothing to thank me for.” He was so very wrong about that.

“But I do. Lor got us out of there, but if you weren’t there to help us escape, I know Holden and I wouldn’t have been able to get away.” Before he could respond she stood on her toes and kissed him on the cheek. The light scruff on his face from him not shaving for a day or two was abrading on her lips, but it sent a spiral of heat right to her core. He was masculine in every way, and this little five o’clock shading was only the tip of that manly exterior. Kissing him on the cheek was far from what she really wanted to do, but right now it was all she had to offer. His whole body stiffened, and when she pulled away and looked into his face she saw a hint of hidden lust and barely restrained need reflected right back at her. “So, thank you, Liam.” She would also be thanking the other men, because without them also this wouldn’t have been possible. She pulled away from him and made her way into the other room. Olive stopped right before she entered, her heart lodged in her throat as she stared at her brother. He even looked worse than when he was all drugged out, as hard as that was to imagine.

A look behind her showed Liam and the other two males talking softly. She focused back on Holden and moved to the edge of the bed. The sound of the IV machine seemed overly loud, and even though the lamp on the bedside table was on, the glow was muted. Holden still looked ten shades too close to death.

“Oh, Holden.”
She desperately wanted him to open his eyes and to tell her everything would be okay now. He had apologized over and over again since all of this had happened, but none of that mattered anymore. The only thing she wanted to worry about was the here and now. Sitting on the edge of the bed and taking hold of his hand, she was grateful that Holden’s sheep was strong inside of him. She could feel it trying to heal them both from the inside out, but it would take time.

Olive didn’t know how long she sat at the edge of his bed, but it was only when her eyes started to become heavy, and she was having a hard time holding her head up, that she finally felt someone lightly touch her on the shoulder. But she didn’t need to look behind her to know it was Liam. The scent of him and his polar bear was strong and potent, and she wanted nothing more than to curl up beside him and sleep until everything became better and was more optimistic.

“Come on, Olive. It’s really late, and you’re going to make yourself sick if you don’t get some rest.” She let Liam help her off the bed and back into the other bedroom. There he pulled the comforter and sheets back, and walked over to the dresser to take out a long t-shirt. “You’ll be swimming in it, but I doubt you want to sleep in those clothes.” She looked down, saw the dirt and pieces of dried leaves stuck to her shirt, and slowly shook her head. Everything was hazy, and exhaustion was making her head hurt and her belly queasy. “We’ll get some clothes for you tomorrow, and for Holden, too.” He stood in front of her again, set the shirt on the mattress, and gently eased her to sit on the edge of the bed with his hands on her shoulders. “I’d offer to help you get undressed, but I don’t think that would go over very well.” Despite how tired she was she chuckled, and when she lifted her eyes to look at him she saw him smiling, too.

“I think I can probably handle it from here.”

He kept his smile, but nodded.

“I’ll take the couch, and if you need anything I’ll be right on the other side of the door.”

“Okay.” That lone word was soft. He leaned down, placed a kiss on the top of her head, and left her alone in the room. Once the door shut softly behind her she fell back on the bed and let her eyes finally close. That was the last thing she remembered before darkness took her away from reality.