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The little voice in Timber’s head … the one that had sprung up upon Serenity’s death … was getting louder and louder every day.
It had been three days since he had revealed himself to Lyra. And at that time, he had debated whether calling a meeting of the council was the right thing to do.
But he knew he needed their approval if he wanted his relationship with Lyra to succeed.
And now, as he watched her take care of Marigold, he couldn’t imagine life without her.
The bear inside him agreed, growling and whining at the very thought of losing Lyra.
He had to try. He would never forgive himself if he didn’t.
Timber left the cabin after Lyra and Marigold laid down for a nap. Lyra had taken to sleeping at the same time as Marigold because that was the only time she got any sleep.
Outside, he shifted, allowing the bear to take over, growling with relief as his body stretched in places no human would ever be able to.
Then he lumbered into the forest, to the top of the highest point in the area, and let out a great growl. The forest shook in the aftermath.
Angry crows took off overhead, and snakes slithered into the deep dark safety of their holes in the ground.
Timber heard the shifting of the forest around him as another bear shifter came out of the undergrowth.
The bear was a shifter named Callum. He was an emissary of the council, and this hill was where messages were traded between the council and the bear shifters.
With a growl, they greeted one another.
Timber relayed his message, and Callum nodded in his bear form.
The bear shifter left, disappearing into the forest without a sound or trace.
When Timber left the hill, the forest had settled, and its creatures were back where they had been before Timber called the meeting.
Two crows, however, circled him overhead as he walked back to the cabin.
They cried out in the air every few seconds, taunting him.
Crows were different from the other birds of the forests. They might not be shifters, but they saw and heard everything. They understood things that no wild animal should.
And now, as the cabin came into view, it was as though the crows were mocking him for even thinking he could get away with being with a human.
* * *
The meetingwith the bear council took place before dawn the next morning.
The council meeting took place in a cabin that had been the home of a revered elder.
Four bear shifters waited for him. However, other bear shifters stalked the dark forest surrounding the cabin.
Each bear shifter inside the cabin represented one of the bear mauls in the area.
Devlen, Callum, Elias, and Jameson represented the bears of Montana.
“Timber Mahogany,” Devlen spoke in his growling voice.
Timber inclined his head in a small bow to each of them.
The four shifters all wore bear skins.
“Thank you for seeing me,” he said. “I am here to plead before the council. I would like to find a human mate. Clearly, Serenity and I were not a match, and this resulted in her death.”
