Revenge of the Cat Men: A Shifter Romance (The Pride Book 1)

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Also By Amie Heights

REVENGE OF THE CAT MEN | BOOK ONE OF THE PRIDE

Further Reading: Bride for the Demon Horde

Also By Amie Heights

Amie Heights

Copyright 2015 by Amie Heights

This work of fiction is intended for mature audiences only.  All characters represented within are eighteen years of age or older and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.  This work is property of Amie Heights, please do not reproduce illegally.

This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental.  The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

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Adult Reading Material

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T
he pride was restless tonight and Gerald could feel it in his hackles. 

For the past three nights they had been searching for their youngest member, a kit named Samuel who had gone missing.  Samuel was small and naive at only twenty years old and Gerald was terrified when he thought of what could have happened to him.  Since the cat people aged much slower than a full-human man, most members of the pride were at least in their forties before they stuck out to find a family of their own.  This had to be something different.

He looked at his remaining brothers and saw nothing but concern for the missing Samuel.  They were preparing to head out again tonight to resume the search but after looking for so long with no clues they were starting to lose hope.

"Where do you plan to start tonight?" Gerald asked William, his second in the pride.

"The other four are going to check the East side, down by the waterfront," William told him, and Gerald nodded.

"And you?" Gerald asked wondering why William hadn't volunteered the information.

"I'm going to check someplace else," he said.  Gerald growled and he had to force his ears to stay up instead of flattening like they wanted.

"You will tell me exactly what you have planned, now," he commanded.  As the alpha male he would be obeyed or there would be Hell to pay.  He knew that William's emotions were high out of concern for his missing brother and that was the only thing that prevented Gerald from showing his claws already.

"I'm going to check inside the building he was last seen on.  I am going to explore when it still has people inside, because it is never empty...," Gerald cut him off.

"No, you will not," he said.  As much as he wanted to find the kit he couldn't allow any member of the pride to risk being discovered by the humans. 

In the day time the members of the pride looked like normal men.  A bit taller, a bit leaner, but still human to the untrained eye.  Night time brought on the Change.  As the sun lowered they would experience a heightening of their senses and a primal urge begin to grow inside.  When the sun set the transformation would be complete and pride members took on their true forms.  More muscle mass was added, and they grew hair from nearly every surface of their bodies.  Feline features became more prominent until they resembled big cats as much as men, halfway in between a man and a beast.

Gerald's had always believed that his own face took on a more lion like appearance than any of the others, but that could have been just his vanity.  He continued explaining to William.

"I know it is tempting to look where you can not, but we must not be discovered, you know this," he said.

"I also know that is Samuel may have already been discovered," William said flatly.

Gerald had already considered this.  If the kit had been captured at night, the world would soon know of their existence.  What would come next would a life on the run from constant hunting for them.

"Yes, and if he hasn't you could be putting everyone at risk for no reason.  We will continue to look, but safely," Gerald concluded.

"As you command me," said William and he started to join the others.  Gerald had one more thing to add.

"William, check the outside of that building again and if you find anything, I want you to come to me first, do you understand?" he asked.

"I will, and I do," William said, knowing the Gerald would do what was best for the pride.

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A
lison watched as the three scientists walked past, ignoring her where sat behind the desk at reception.  It was typical for them to treat her like furniture unless they wanted something.  Without a word the men used their passkeys to open the secured doors and exit the complex where she worked.

She had started the job over a year ago but still had no idea what exactly happened behind the closed doors she guarded.  She had assumed that the reception job would involve taking phone calls and routing people to where they needed to go in the complex but soon learned otherwise.  After a few days it became apparent that there wouldn't be any visitors, no phone calls, just the steady flow of researchers inside in the morning and out in the evening. 

It amazed her that she could spend five days a week doing nothing but sitting at her desk and browsing Facebook.  It was like the job was just there for her because they wanted to look like a real business.  She figured the thought process was that if they were legitimate, they would have a secretary, so they had one sitting right out front.  Camouflage in the urban jungle.

She had once entertained the fantasy that the complex was a front for a mob family, a phony business to launder cash somehow.  She knew it was impossible, the scientists were clearly what they appeared to be, too thick of glasses and too thin on style to be mobsters.  It was much more likely that the people who ran this place had corporate secrets to keep and that was almost as scary as gangsters. 

The most exciting thing to ever happen occurred just a few days ago.  Alison had been sitting at her desk like every day, shopping online.  Suddenly she had heard a slam at the security doors.  When she looked up she saw that two of the scientists had a large bag, strapped to a table on wheels.  They had banged it into the wall in the rush to get it inside and had fumbled with their pass key badges when opening the doors.  They didn't even look at Alison was they rolled past on the way into the complex.

Alison had a suspicion that the bag might be something illegal and it was shaped an awful lot like a person but knew better than to ask about it.  She wouldn't have been told anything anyway and it might cost her the job.  She rationalized that there was no possible way it could be a body, and that her fantasies were just running from her away again.  It was still fun to imagine that there was a something clandestine going on behind the scenes.

Even now, days later, she remembered it and wondered if she would ever see the long bag being transported the other way out of the building.  If it had been removed already, it must have been done late at night when she wasn't working because she hadn’t seen anything.  Either way, she was in the dark about it and knew it would probably never affect her personally.  She returned her attention to computer, reading an article about cooking with basil. 

She sighed and wished something exciting would happen to her, instead of just being the one watching it pass by in front of her face.

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G
erald and William crouched on the roof of Alison's building.  William had summoned him and he had raced across the rooftops, bounding from one to another easily as he used his cat like reflexes and muscles.  In the dark, no creature was his equal.  As coordinated as a jaguar, as smart as any man, and as powerful as a lion he had raced to his brother.

William extended the scrap of fur he had found, some bloody skin still attached.  Gerald sniffed it and let out a low, menacing grow.  He knew in his heart that nothing good could come of this. 

"It's Samuel's skin," Gerald said and William nodded.

"I found it wrapped in plastic in the garbage of this building," William told him.  "I could smell it as I passed."

"Thank you for bringing me here, you were right to do so," Gerald said and put his clawed hand on William's arm to show his appreciation for the younger man respecting his commands.

Whatever happened next he would need William at his side.

"It was as I feared, we need to go inside, to explore this building," William said.  This time Gerald agreed.  One way or the other Samuel was coming home tonight.  Whatever secrets were out he could do nothing about now and the only thing her had left was his pride of brothers.  All of them.

"We go inside, but first we call the others and let them know what we have found," Gerald said.

He tilted his hear back and let out a sub vocal whine.  Inaudible to humans the call would carry to the pride and let them know to come.  Each member had a specific frequency that they were most attuned to, it was how William had called him earlier, but this was the signal to all.  He knew that the other four would be here soon and if Samuel was inside he would know help was coming.

William joined him in the whine so twice the intensity it emanated from them, an urgent plea to be joined by the pride.  In a few minutes he saw a figure pulling himself over the ledge to the roof.  It was Jacob.  Next came Mathew.  Jean Luc and Davidson arrived together to complete the circle.

"You have news?" asked Mathew.  Solemnly Gerald nodded.

"William had found evidence that our missing brother is inside this building.  We would not be able to breech it in the form of man during the day so we are going to break in tonight."  He flexed his claws so the razor sharp nails came out. 

"What would you have us do to help?" asked Jean Luc.

"William and I are going to go in together, just us two," he said and noticed the instant annoyance in the others, they wanted to participate.  "You will wait here, and guard our exit, we will need to be able to leave in a rush if we have to."

Without waiting for a response William grabbed the access door on the roof and in a spasmodic jerk ripped it from its hinges.  He gently set in aside so it wouldn’t make any more noise than necessary and leap into the dark hole he had made, followed a second later by Gerald.

Keeping themselves in the dark the two cat men made their way deeper into the building.  They passed down a corridor lined with doors but didn't check inside any of them.  Their senses would let them know when they were close and so far they hadn't picked up anything.  It wasn't a good sign but there was still a lot of area to cover before they would lose hope.

Gerald found the entrance to the elevator and rather than pushing the button he pulled the door open and fell down the shaft, his claw catching the cable to slow his descent so he swung down to the doors of the floor below.  Shoving a claw in the gape he pulled those doors open and slid inside.  William was right behind him. 

The two went methodically, floor by floor, deeper into the building until Gerald finally sensed something.

This floor felt different.  It was better lit and the two creatures sensed something that could only have been a member of the pride. 

Crouching low and spreading his arms Gerald allowed his senses to expand out from him.  Every noise, vibration, and smell capable of being sensed washed over him.  He closed his eyes and touched the wall.  He could feel Samuel was close.

"Down two rooms, on the left," he whispered.  William took the lead and carefully slinked down the hallway until he got to the door.  It was locked but he inserted a claw and twisted until the lock was a ruined mess.  Gerald pushed it open gently and they looked inside.  The room was clearly a laboratory with medical machines lining the walls.  In the middle of the room was a cage with straw on the floor as if for an animal.

Locked in a cage was Samuel.

Growling fiercely Gerald leapt in a single bound to the door of the cage and clawed it.  Deep scratches showed on the metal lock plate but it was too strongly built to be torn open with bare claws.  He cast his cat's eyes around the room until he saw what he was looking for.  Several keys were hanging on a rack and he grabbed them up and shoved the largest one into the lock.  It snapped open and he swung it wide.