Mating Instinct: A Moon Shifter Novel (20 page)

* * *

“So what exactly are we doing here?” Kat whispered to Jayce as she peered around a giant oak tree. They’d parked about a mile off the highway, then trekked through the woods to come up behind a biker bar where two APL members had been killed. She certainly wouldn’t be losing any sleep over their deaths. She could just barely see the outline of the one-story building through the cluster of trees. Crime scene tape looped around a few trees and the scent of death tickled her nose. It was fading but there nonetheless.

“Trying to get a scent,” he murmured without looking at her.

“Of who?” They hadn’t been able to talk on the ride over and she hadn’t wanted to talk to him as they’d run through the woods. Too many conflicting thoughts raced through her head.

“Whoever killed those men. The cops seem pretty sure it’s a shifter because of the bite imprints, and if it’s the same one who killed that bartender Friday night, he’s escalating. Three new kills in a twenty-four-hour period is extreme.”

“Could it be a feral shifter?” She’d heard the term a few times, though she wasn’t exactly sure what it meant other than a shifter gone crazy.

Jayce shook his head. “A feral shifter doesn’t think about stealth hunting or hiding from its prey. It goes mad, its eyes turn bloodred, and when it goes on a killing spree, it’s usually put down almost immediately.”

“Why?”

“Because feral shifters have no survival instinct. They attack anything that smells like food, but they don’t worry about protecting themselves. Whoever did this planned the killings. They’re too far apart for it to be a feral wolf—but too close together for this to be anything other than shitty. Not to mention that two of the killings were indoors. Ferals go for easy, accessible prey.”

“Oh.” The bartender she’d gone home with had been killed on Friday and it was now Tuesday morning. Not even a full week had passed. And this time three men had been killed. That was a definite escalation. She might not know much about shifter life, but she knew the locals would start to get angry if things got any worse. They’d already started to show signs of hostility—the crazy lady harassing December and then those teenagers trying to vandalize her store. If they’d been more evil-minded they could have thrown something worse than a rock. And it could have hit December. Not to mention the antagonistic vibe Kat had gotten at the restaurant from other diners. Angry locals would be bad for the pack . . . her pack. The sudden, territorial urge to protect her own surprised her. It surged through her violently. The thought of anyone doing this and causing her pack harm made her see red. “Do you scent what you came for?”

He shook his head. “Stay here.” Without waiting for a response, he moved with a speed that stunned her.

She blinked and he was twenty yards in front of her by another giant tree. He’d definitely been holding back during their jog here. It always amazed her to see him in action. Jayce looked like a roughneck but he had amazing grace and skill.

Moments later he was back. “Come on.”

Without questioning him, she fell in line as they began their trek back to his waiting motorcycle.

Once they reached it, she leaned against the bike, perching on the edge of the seat. They were far enough off the road that they’d be hidden if anyone drove by. “So what did you find?”

A curious frown marred his face. “I scented a beta wolf who’s been missing from the Menuci pack.”

“Menuci pack?” That sounded vaguely familiar.

He nodded. “They live near the coast. Four or five hours from here. I stopped there on the way back to Fontana at the Council’s request, but they didn’t have any new leads and I couldn’t help them with a missing-person case gone cold.”

“I thought betas were supposed to be weaker or at least less aggressive.”

“They’re both of those things. In wolf form a beta could kill humans, but he would have to have a damn good reason to do so. It goes against their nature.”

“So what would make a beta wolf kill four humans unprovoked?”

She could practically see the wheels turning in Jayce’s head. “He and his pregnant mate are missing.”

The bottom dropped out of Kat’s stomach. She wouldn’t put it past the APL to use a pregnant woman as leverage to control someone. There might be no connection, but . . . “You think the APL has his mate?”

Jayce’s face was grim. “I don’t know. It would make a good incentive for him to become a killing machine. And I’ve seen it happen before. Alphas who want to use betas will sometimes threaten their mates.”

“Alphas
do
that?”

“They don’t stay in power long, but it has happened.” His voice was razor-sharp and she had no doubt that he had eliminated Alphas like that.

That made her smile internally. She’d heard that shifters were afraid of Jayce, but he wasn’t some mercenary. He meted out justice and helped those who were weaker. It made her proud.

“So what are we going to do?”

“Track him. The scent is faint, but I can smell it near the road from here. He headed south, back toward town. If we’re lucky, he’s staying nearby.”

“You’re taking me with you?” She couldn’t hide her surprise.

“I’m not letting you out of my sight.” His words were a soft growl.

She wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. His confession of last night still rang loudly in her head.
I fucking love you.
Even the way he’d said it was all Jayce. If he’d gotten all mushy she probably would have scoffed at him, but he’d been blunt, honest, and exactly himself. Why did she like that so much? Instead of responding she slid the helmet on her head, thankful that it covered her eyes from his penetrating gaze.

Riding around with Jayce might wreak havoc on her hormones and her heart, but it was damn interesting learning more about pack life. For the first time in over a month she felt useful again. Not like a shadow of her former self just trying to train enough to defend against potential attackers. She actually felt good about what they were doing. If they could figure out who was behind these killings, it could exonerate her pack from any wrongdoing. The more she adjusted to her new body and life, the more she realized she wanted to embrace them as her own.

* * *

Erin stood around Connor and Ana’s kitchen drinking coffee with Noah and Ryan. The cops had left—judgmental jerks that they were—so Connor and Ana were getting everyone else settled down again. Erin wasn’t worked up, though; she was just annoyed.

She hated anyone taking her DNA. The swab was painless, but it just felt invasive. On one level she understood why the cops were doing it. The recent killings had apparently been vicious and there was no doubt they had been perpetrated by a shifter. Especially since the first man killed had been massacred in his home, his head completely torn off. Regular animals just didn’t do that. But law enforcement didn’t treat humans this way. If someone was killed by “normal” standards, the authorities didn’t round up all the humans in town and test their DNA. On an intellectual level she understood that it wasn’t the same thing at all, but it still irked her inner wolf. Made her testy and ready for a fight.

Unfortunately they were on lockdown until Connor said otherwise. Of course Jayce was out there—not that he was a member of the pack—with Kat, having all the fun of tracking down whoever had been doing these killings. Erin’s fists clenched. Someone was making their pack look bad and they were going to pay. If Jayce didn’t find them first, she was itching for a go at whoever was responsible.

Jayce had said he’d tell her when she was ready to act on her own as an enforcer, but she felt ready. Maybe not to be completely on her own—not that she’d admit that to anyone, especially him—but a small investigation on her own was something she knew she could handle. But Jayce hadn’t given her the go-ahead.

“I hate being on lockdown,” she growled.

Noah shrugged, his dark eyes unreadable. Ever since she’d told him they could only be friends—all of a day and a half ago—he’d been different. Not weird, but she felt like he was plotting something. Being all acquiescent and okay with what she’d said, when he’d been her shadow for a year. It was infuriating.

Bored and feeling edgy, she shot Noah a look she hoped he understood as Ryan murmured his agreement into his cup of coffee.

Noah’s eyebrows raised a teeny tiny fraction—just enough that no one else would have noticed it. But of course she did. She noticed everything about him whether she wanted to or not. “I wonder how long Connor will keep us on lockdown,” she said.

Ryan’s shoulders lifted. “Who cares?”

She knew why he didn’t care. It meant no duty assignments away from the ranch, which meant no time away from Teresa. He might not be willing to admit it, but he was pining for her something fierce. So when Erin turned to Noah she barely held the grin back. “I bet Teresa’s bummed. Didn’t you tell me she had plans with some human male in town? Matt, right? The man who owns that Native American store with his mother?”

Noah didn’t miss a beat; that was one of the reasons she adored him. For all his seriousness, he loved to play with her. “I think it’s more than plans. He’s got a big date in the works—”

Noah was cut off as a low, menacing growl worked its way deep from Ryan’s throat. Erin had just wanted to mess with him, but the dark look on his face stopped her cold. “Shit, Ryan, we were just messing with you.”

Ryan glared at both of them. “Fuck! That’s messed up. I expect it from you”—his eyes narrowed on Erin—“but not you, man.” He shook his head and for a moment Erin thought he was really and truly pissed, but then he laughed under his breath. “Payback’s going to be a bitch, short stuff.”

She rolled her eyes at the nickname, though inside it warmed her. Her relationship with the warriors of this pack was more comfortable than with her last pack. Not that she’d truly let her guard down around them. She’d seen firsthand what happened when you trusted someone and they betrayed you—she had the scars to prove it too. Scars that went far deeper than the faint ones that marred her back and sides. Shaking off the dark memory, she pasted on a smile. “Whatever—”

Erin stopped abruptly as Vivian raced inside with Esperanze, Lucas, and Leila in tow. Lucas and Vivian were in shifted form and the little cubs were absolutely adorable.

Esperanze, the pretty shifter with hair longer than anyone else in the pack—the kind of gorgeous locks Erin wasn’t afraid to admit she envied—looked completely frazzled. “Erin and Noah, you two are in charge of these little hellions,” Esperanze said as she motioned to Vivian and Lucas.

“No problem.” Erin wrangled Vivian out from under the table. “Come on, you little she-cat. It’s time for a run.” As Erin pulled her out, she saw Noah trying to wrestle Lucas out from the pantry, where he was hiding behind some canned food. For one completely insane moment she could actually picture what it would be like to have cubs with Noah. The thought alone sent a brutal, knifelike sensation jamming through her chest. As her breath caught, Noah looked over and frowned.

The concern in his gaze nearly undid her, but she ignored him and focused on Vivian, who was trying to scramble out of her grip.

Once she got the she-cat under control, she turned back to face Esperanze and stilled.

Almost as if he’d appeared out of nowhere, Nikan was suddenly in the room. The tall Native American shifter who’d recently mated with Esperanze was standing next to her, his stance completely protective and proprietary. “Do you need help with anything?” Nikan asked.

Esperanze shook her head, fine lines bracketing her mouth. “No. Leila already has some college credits, but we’re going to go over what classes she might be able to opt out of through testing and I can’t do that with the cubs—”

“I don’t need to finish school,” the young she-wolf muttered, earning her another exasperated look from Esperanze.

Erin eyed the girl, curious as to whether she was like her, and wondering what Jayce was going to do about it. Leila had gray eyes and that unique yet familiar cedar scent that Jayce had told her was common among enforcers—few though there were. And if Erin had to guess, she’d say Leila preferred fighting in her human form. She really wanted to know if the young shifter had any fighting skills, namely if she had a preference for blades, but at the same time she didn’t think one so young should be fighting anyway. Thankfully, Jayce was the one who would figure out if Leila was like them.

“You’re going to listen to what Esperanze has to say anyway,” Erin said quietly.

Leila crossed her arms over her chest, a sulking expression covering her face. “Fine.”

Before anybody else could say anything, the front door banged open. “Everyone in the living room. Now.” Connor’s voice carried to whoever might be in the house.

Even Vivian settled against Erin at Connor’s command. There was something about an Alpha’s voice that just made you listen.

As they all hustled into the room, Erin wasn’t surprised to find almost a dozen more pack members filing in. Absolute quiet descended as Connor flipped on the giant flat screen he’d recently installed. Erin stood next to one of the couches, conscious of the fact that Noah was directly behind her. All that male heat could burn her if she let it.

Suddenly her thoughts of the sexy man at her back disappeared as the reporter’s words on television registered.

The pretty brunette wearing a sharp black pantsuit with a black-and-white-checkered scarf stood outside the police station, holding a microphone in front of a woman who was probably in her early forties. At the bottom of the screen the word
LIVE
appeared in red all caps.

“In light of these recent killings allegedly committed by shifters, how do you feel about the safety of your family?” the reporter asked.

The woman brushed her hand over her curly hair, obviously nervous. “Any killings in our town make me scared.”

“Do you fear members of the Armstrong-Cordona pack who live on the outskirts of Fontana?”

The woman shrugged and tugged on her hair almost absently. “I . . . Well, yes, especially with what’s been happening. I don’t understand why the cops haven’t made an arrest yet.”