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Chapter
One
I’d been up all night tending to the latest injured shifter to appear on my porch. The wolf shifter could have easily been mistaken for a werewolf, but I’d hurt him while cleaning his wounds, and his body partially shifted, revealing a draconic head. His secondary form was a dragon. Thankfully, he’d passed out before roasting me in flames.
We weren’t exactly certain why, but if a hybrid was part shifter, they often had a shifter form not previously seen. For example, there were dragons and wolves, some elves could shift into foxes or owls, but there were hybrids who could shift into bears, lions, and more.
The city bustled noisily in the distance as I sat atop my cabin in the woods, drinking my coffee and watching the sun rise. Those who lived in the city pretended I didn’t exist, but I was okay with that. The only time they hassled me was when the kids came to see the evil witch in the woods. A term I found hilarious since witches didn’t exist, but mages did. They loved the silly fairy tales of witches and dwarves.
I preferred living in the wilderness with the animals I treated. My land, a personal paradise.
The call of a hawk drew my eyes skyward. Kieran, a beautiful ferruginous hawk I’d nursed back to health after finding him with torn wings and a cracked beak, circled twice overhead before heading deeper into the woods.
Leaping up, I jumped from my roof, landing lightly on my feet, and jogged through the woods after him.
After a few minutes, I heard the soft cry of a bear cub.
Stopping, I closed my eyes and listened, trying to hear if there were hunters or anything ahead. The only sounds I could hear were the soft cries of the cub and a strained breathing pattern of something larger.
Striding confidently through the trees ahead, my heart hurt at the sight of a tiny brown bear cub huddled against a giant brown bear that was bleeding from several cuts and barely breathing.
“Looks like you got into one nasty fight, momma,” I called as I approached.
The bear opened her eyes and snarled.
I held up my hands. “Easy, darlin’. I’m here to help you and your cub. I mean no harm.”
The bear glared at me but stayed quiet.
“Good,” I praised and walked around her, inspecting her injuries. “Was it that nasty Bruno? I keep trying to get him to leave my woods, but he won’t leave. Perhaps I need to get a little more stern in my request.” Bruno was a huge black bear with a nasty temper. I’d sent him flying a few times, but the persistent bear wouldn’t move elsewhere.
“Here,” Kieran said, appearing beside me in his human form and holding out my medical kit. His long, rust colored hair, the same color as his leg feathers, fell into his face as he squatted down, forcing him to toss it back.
“Thank you.” I opened the kit and grabbed the items I needed to patch the momma bear back up.
“Was it Bruno again?” he asked.
“I think so, but she ain’t talking to me right now,” I said and smiled. “She doesn’t trust me yet.”
Kieran peered down at the little bear cub that was silent and standing perfectly still, its tiny heart pounding hard at the sight of the man it could tell was a predator. “I’m not going to hurt you, little one,” Kieran whispered.
The cub slid beneath its momma’s shoulder as far as it could without her being able to move. Clearly, it didn’t believe him.
I laughed softly and shook my head. “Those eyes take a bit to get used to, love.” No matter what form he took, Kieran kept his jade green hawk eyes; something a lot of hybrid shifters dealt with, far more than full-blooded shifters.
He made a “hmph” sound but said no more.
It took over two hours for me to deal with the bear’s wounds and another hour to convince her to eat the food Kieran brought. Finally, both momma bear and baby bear were fed, hydrated, and ready to return to the woods.
Momma bear let me pet her head and finally communicated with me. She admitted it wasn’t Bruno, but an even bigger, meaner bear she’d never seen or smelled before. I promised I would investigate and try to ensure the woods were a little safer for her to raise her cub.
The baby bear rubbed against my leg and in a stunning turn of events, licked Kieran’s outstretched hand before darting over to his momma.
I leaned my head against Kieran’s shoulder and smiled as we watched the bears head off into the woods. This was why I did it. This was why I left the niceties of suburban life and came out into the woods, away from nine to five jobs and into a life where I made a difference. I saved as many animals as I could, treating their injuries and using my knowledge for a good purpose.
My parents couldn’t understand me and my desire to live this life, but I was okay with being the weird lady in the woods. So long as I could have moments like this.
Kieran turned his head, looking back towards the house. “There’s growling at the house.”
