“Peachy,” Vic growled between clenched teeth.
Alyssa slowed the car down, taking her time as she drove past a converted storefront. It looked like it used to be an Ace Hardware, since no one had ever bothered to bring down the old signage. But black curtains covered the four large glass windows and a single poster by the door declared it to be “Kuma Dojo” with a grizzly bear silhouette as its logo. Pretty obvious to her, but even without all that, she would’ve known they’d found the right place. The smell was rank even on the street. Like Vic at his worst. And that psychic stay-the-hell-away had her knuckles white as she clenched the steering wheel.
“Drop me off here,” Simon said. “Come back in an hour.”
God, she wanted to. Not the leaving him behind part, but anything that got her the hell away from that dojo. Instead, she parked her car right across the street from the dark curtained doorway. Simon hopped out, but then so did she and Vic.
“We’re just going in there to talk,” she said as much to herself as anyone else. “That’s not dangerous. That’s normal civilized conversation.”
“Except they’re animals,” Simon said. And then he shook his head. “You’re an idiot for following,” he said to her, but then focused on Vic. “And you keep it together or I’ll rip your head off myself. Got it?”
Vic didn’t answer. His skin was gray and his mouth pinched tight with pain. It had to be those axes and machetes he’d been talking about. But even with that, he was still following with one determined step after another.
Alyssa didn’t know whether to be enormously proud of her brother or terrified for their stupidity. Both, probably. Nevertheless, they all walked together across the street. Until Simon held up his hand.
“Stay behind me, no matter what. And when I say run, you run. Hard.”
She nodded and Vic did, too. Honestly, she wanted to be strong here, to back Simon up however he needed. But every step closer to the building had her knees weakening and her heart fluttering at panicked levels. She was really afraid that if he told her to run, she’d take the excuse and bolt. And she wouldn’t stop until she was in Canada.
In this she was unexpectedly helped by the stench in the air. Hard to run when she was gagging for breath. She glanced at her brother who was shaking his head.
“It’s not from me,” he said, as he showed her his bare and very humanlike hands.
“No,” said Simon as he put his hand on the door. “It’s from inside.” Then he hauled the glass door open and went in.
They followed a step behind, pushing through the dark curtain just as Simon had. But Alyssa never got farther than a half step before she felt Simon’s hand press flat on her belly.
“Run,” he said, his voice low and urgent. “Now.”
CHAPTER 11
As a teen, Simon had seen his share of shifter battles. There was even a shifter summer camp that had an area designed for that. And yes, there were secret shifter fight clubs that every teen searched for but fortunately few found.
None compared to what he saw right now.
A single, moderately-sized grizzly bear stood backed into a corner. It was dark brown with black patches and matted with blood. His face was a swollen mass, and his right thigh had taken enough tearing strikes that it looked like ground meat. Blood flowed everywhere, but the creature was still fighting. It should have been roaring with the way its mouth was open and his teeth gleamed white and wet, but it didn’t have the breath. It saved its strength for swiping with broad strokes in front of him, keeping the four…monsters…back.
Four who looked like Vic at his worst and a stench that matched. They were going in for the kill, encroaching step by step with murderous intent. And lest he think that the others in the room were going to help the pure shifter, the other nine, all in human form, were watching with looks that varied between glee and nausea.
This was a gang murder, plain and simple. And he’d walked Alyssa in seconds before it happened. And double hell, she wasn’t leaving despite the fact that he’d just tried to shove her outside without drawing undue attention to them.
And now it was too late. Alyssa made a sound of defiance. It wasn’t even a word, but she refused to budge, and nothing caught a male shifter’s attention faster than a female refusing to obey. It signaled to everyone that she was a fair target since she’d just refused a male’s protection.
The sound did little to distract the attackers, but it certainly caught the onlookers’ attention. Multiple eyes swiveled in Alyssa’s direction; Simon had to capture their attention quick or risk whatever they had in mind for her.
“We’re just visiting,” he said loud enough for everyone to hear. “Do you mind pausing in the…um…illegal activity over there while we’re here? We don’t mean to interrupt, but now that we’ve seen it, it would be best if it didn’t cross any lines.” It was a sound, logical argument that reminded everyone that they were humans subject to the rule of law.
It didn’t work.
A stupidly large man stood up. Thick shoulders, broad nose, and dark yellow teeth in his pale Caucasian face. He was the Griz alpha, and his name was Nanook as a nod to his Inuit ancestor Nanook of the North. Also, he was the only known shifter who was part polar bear.
And he was really pissed off.
“How did you get in here?” he demanded.
It was that booming question that saved the shifter in the corner. At that tone everyone in the room—including the four attacking…hybrids?—turned to glare at Simon.
“We walked in,” Alyssa snapped. “Through the door. Which was unlocked.”
