Entangled Interaction (7 page)

"I think I just decided to go vegan. Plants scream less when you kill them."

Cannibal paused long enough to let me catch up a bit. "Circle of life, Shyanne. Circle of life."

"Yeah, but we never saw Simba and Nala take down an antelope, suffocate it by the throat, then dig into it with teeth and claws."

Bear shook his head. "Missing a few survival skills, huh?" He jerked his head in my direction, causing me to believe the question was addressed to Cannibal rather than me.

The Enforcer grinned in return. "What survival skills?"

Nodding, the tall blond agreed. "Figured."

Scurrying along behind them, I considered a potential way out of the mess. If we actually came across some animal to eat, if I yelled to scare it off, would they leave me out in the blizzard to succumb to hypothermia or would they simply teleport me somewhere even worse?

"I would make an offering of you to the Yeti."

Bear's words startled me for a moment before I remembered the Neanderthal could read minds.

I blinked in confusion. "But I thought you were the Yeti."

He slowed long enough for me to move abreast before resuming those long-legged strides. "Oh, no. There's a real Yeti."

"Really?" I perked up, hearing such an announcement. "You know him?"

Cannibal remained mute, but listened intently to the conversation as he walked along.

"We've met a few times. He's not the social type."

You could say that again
.
Oh, I guess he was talking about the real Yeti, not the not-so-real one.

His words replayed in my mind. "Wait. Why would you make an offering of me? What does he do with humans?" My heart sped in near panic at the thought of what a Yeti would do with little old me, anything from human stew to knife target practice dummy.

"No one knows what he does with humans."

Gasping, I tossed out another question. "Then why would you want to give me to him?"

"Because, every few years, the villagers pick one woman as the offering to the Yeti. They march her up to a small clearing and leave her for him."

My eyes widened, and my mouth fell open. "They just leave her there? No one knows her fate, but they just abandon one of their family members to whatever may happen?" Outrage flew through my system. I was all for open-mindedness for diverse cultures, but that seemed more than cruel. What happened to human rights? Women's rights? The right to bear arms and castrate evil men?

"For the offering, the Yeti leaves the villagers alone to live their lives in peace."

Yeah, well, goody for the Yeti and the male villagers.

"It's just one virgin every few years," Bear added.

"You sacrifice a virgin to the Yeti?" Shocked, my mouth fell open once more.

He nodded. "Just ahead is the clearing, in fact."

Coming to a sudden realization, I nearly stumbled over my own feet. "But… you can't. I… I'm not a… virgin. I don't fit… the requirements." Words stuttered from my cold lips as I tried to frantically make my overwhelmed mind spin with efficiency.

"But, just an hour ago, you declared you were." Cannibal chose this time to add his two cents worth.

I wanted to kick him in the shin. He was supposed to be opposed to a virginal Shy sacrifice to the frozen volcano god otherwise known as the Yeti. Instead, he was way too helpful.
Baboon.

Both men stopped to look down at me. I squirmed. I fidgeted. "I… but… well…" Hanging my head, I took a moment to think a way out of this mess. I forced my chin up and met their eyes. "I don't think the Yeti would want me."
There! That told them.

"What's not to want? You're female and a virgin. That's all the requirements he has."

"Yeah, but I'm a
born again
virgin, not a true virgin. Thus, I don't fit the requirements."

Bear shook his head. "Semantics. The Yeti won't care either way."

I wanted to bend over, grab a handful of snow, and throw it in the bear's face. My bottom lip trembled.

He shrugged. "Make the Yeti happy, the villagers would live in continued peace, you wouldn't be yanking Cannibal off the cliff. Sounds like a win-win all around to me."

"I don't wanna be a Yeti virginal sacrifice!"

A split second later, some huge white hairy creature appeared just in front of me. I barely managed to squeal before it grabbed me by the arm.

The men stopped in their tracks, eyes wide as saucers.

My mouth opened to scream when the world transformed from frozen mountain landscapes with blowing snow, to one of a recently familiar room, one where heat radiated enough to warm a person's cold bones.

Chapter 6

"Please don't make a racket. I'm not sure my ears could handle such noise in a small enclosed area like this."

I spun to stare at the monster that kidnapped me. A few seconds of hyperventilation followed as I looked up at his great height and size. He easily topped the men by a good foot, while those not quite human-looking arms and legs shouted power and sheer strength. White hair covered him from head to toe, making me think of a white version of Bigfoot.

"You… you're… the Yeti?" The words stammered out as I continued to stare at him from where I stood in the middle of the room.

"Yes. I'm the real deal." The words in English, though accented, didn't have my mouth falling open once more. Instead, the voice stunned me. Certainly I knew nothing about Yetis, but based on that voice, I would have to label he a she.

"But… you're… female?"

A smile crossed her face, making her appear a bit less threatening. "How observant." She must have noticed my sheer puzzlement as she continued. "Did you think that the Yeti was only one and only male?"

I gave a small shrug. "I don't know much about them… you… to be honest."

She twirled around the room, giving everything a onceover. "Nice taste for a bear."

For the first time, I really noticed my surroundings. Sure enough, we had flashed into the living room at the Yeti's… errr… make that Bear's home.

"You know him well?" I quietly asked. She would have to know about his home anyway to teleport us there.

She returned my shrug. "We've shared this territory for a while."

"Oh."

"It's getting a might bit toasty in here for this outfit." A blink later, she shifted and stood before me as a human. Well, obviously not human, but rather, in human form. Her shifter abilities didn't come as a total shock. She stood a bit taller than me, with much more curves and shape than I could ever possess. The deep red short dress clung just enough to flatter those dips and valleys in all the right places, while accentuating her narrow waist. Matching heels completed the outfit.

Using both hands, she smoothed out invisible wrinkles, then turned her attention back to me. "You're wondering why I grabbed you."

I nodded.

Her blue eyes lit up with her smile as she turned toward the kitchen. Shoulder-length straight blonde hair sashayed with the movement. "Basically, I got tired of listening to that brute bear slander my name. Sacrificing virgins to me in exchange for peace at the village. What rubbish." She snorted and strode off toward the kitchen.

"So what do we do now?" I slowly followed, still unsure what was happening.

She reached into a cabinet and pulled out a cardboard box. "Ah ha. I knew I smelled chocolate in here." Setting it on the countertop, she pulled out two packages of hot chocolate mix. She grabbed a nearby tea kettle, filled it with hot water, and set it on the stove. "We are going to have some hot chocolate, get all warmed up, have a nice girl chat, and wait for those bumbling clowns to come searching for you."

I headed toward the kitchen table and took a seat. She followed suit, taking the chair across from me. "I'm still not sure…"

Reaching out, she patted my hand gently. "A Yeti gets lonely up here. I haven't had another woman to talk to in months."

"Oh, okay."

"And, I couldn't resist the opportunity to get under the skin of that all too sexy Bear."

My light bulb clicked on. The lonely Yeti chose to steal me for a couple of reasons, namely to have another female to talk to for a little bit and to yank Bear's chain in the process.

"But what do I call you?"

She grinned. "By my name, of course."

"Which is?"

"Yeti." She walked over to check on the teapot.

"But I thought Bear was the Yeti?"

She gestured with her hand before reaching in another cabinet for a couple of mugs. "As I said, I'm the real deal. Bear is just a Yeti wannabe."

"Oh…"

Two hours later, we sat sipping hot chocolate, curled up on the Bear's expensive leather furniture in front of a roaring fire. Yeti turned out to be quite a woman. She told me all kinds of things. We spoke of everything from the benefits of eunuchs to Yeti survival skills.

"Damn it. Like calling would do any good…"

The angry words cut across the room as the main door flew open to allow Bear and Cannibal to enter.

Yeti and I both looked at them, not bothering to move from our comfortable positions.

"About time you got here." Yeti tossed out the first pitch.

Bear swung at it. "What in the hell did you think you were doing? You can't go around kidnapping someone under my protection like that. We've been looking for two fucking hours for her, worried sick because you got a harebrained stick up your ass."

She stood and slowly walked over, only to stop a few steps in front of him. "And what gives you the right to scare this poor girl half to death with stories of virgin sacrifices? Talk about cruel, not to mention slandering my good name."

Bear growled, his hands fisted against his sides. Yeti appeared a bit calmer, but her pale face flushed with color while her back straightened.

"It was only meant as a joke, damn it. Payback for her injuring me," he shot back.

"You deserved everything you got. Walking about naked with company. Where did you learn your manners? In a cave?" She stepped closer, pausing when she stood nearly nose to nose with the slightly taller man. "You red-assed baboon."

"Keep it up and you'll be the one with the red ass." He countered while crossing his arms over his chest.

"You wouldn't dare!" Her eyes sparked as she leaned toward him. "Talking big to make up for some personal shortcomings?" Her eyes dropped to his groin then her eyebrow shot up.

"I've got more than you can handle, lady."

"I so don't think so."

In an instant, the mood shifted. One second they were yelling at one another. The next, they were in deep lip lock with hands roaming as if they couldn't get close enough or touch enough areas of the body quick enough.

Her hands tugged at his waistband. He took the hint, swept her up in his arms, strode down the hall, and shut his door rather forcefully behind him.

I blinked, turning my attention from down the hall, back to Cannibal. We stared at one another for a long moment before moans and groans carried from the bedroom.

I stood, taking my empty mug to the kitchen sink, washed it out, and gently placed it upside down. "Now what?" I tried my best to ignore the embarrassing noises.

Cannibal unzipped his heavy coat and strode back toward his bedroom. "Come on. Let's get packed."

Hurrying behind him, I headed to my pile of clothes. "Are we leaving?"

He nodded, focused on packing.

I followed suit, stuffing my clothes back into my smaller pack. A loud thumping could be heard, as if something banged against the far wall.

"Why are we leaving? We've only been here one night." For the life of me, I couldn't understand spending so much time and energy, climbing to the middle of nowhere to only spend one night at the clothing-optional Yeti resort. Seemed a lot of work for a twenty-four hour stay.

Cannibal zipped up his bag. "I have a feeling those two won't be coming up for air for another week. Maybe not even then."

"Oh."

He flashed a quick grin. "Must be lonely up here."

"I see."

"No sense in sitting around here listening to them have wild Yeti sex all day and all night."

"That's true." I stuffed the last of my items in my bag and yanked the zipper to the top.

Cannibal pulled his pack over his shoulder and reached out to grab mine. With both in hand, he led the way back to the living room.

"Don't worry. I'll leave him a note."

I nodded and pulled my heavy parka on, dreading going back out into the dark, cold wilderness. It was one thing to be clueless about the trek up, it was another to know what I would face all the way down.

Cannibal must have read my mind. "We're not going down like we came up."

"We're not?" I turned to look up at him.

He stepped over, leaned down to place a gentle kiss on my forehead. "Nope."

"Then how?"

"As it happens, I know someone with this wonderful ability to teleport." A small smile teased his lips.

I couldn't help but grin in return. "Aren't you the lucky one?"

"Some days it pays to be lucky."

Chapter 7

Two nights later, I decided to take the first steps of my new life. No sense hanging home waiting for fate to drop a partner into my lap. As far as I knew, things never worked that way. I had to get out and about, find the male of my dreams. That meant socializing.

The boys were at baseball camp over spring break. Bas ran off to his latest assignment somewhere on the East Coast. Jessica flew to Florida to attend a sex toy convention. She invited me, but I refused, citing my national debt sized therapy bill. Thus, I had the house to myself and felt bored to tears.

What is that proverb? Today is the first day of the rest of your life? I grasped that idea and ran with it.

After the letdown of my last visit to the club, I tossed out the thought of wearing such a sleazy dress. No sense giving the wrong impression. Casual and cute, not horny and desperate. That called for jeans and a pink top. Hint without revealing.

The club hopped, nearly bursting with people compared to the first night I'd visited. Somehow I managed to find a small table, order a bottle of water, and kick back to people watch, all too reminiscent of the night I met Meat.