Cullen
I drove. Anya’s words came out in an unbroken stream. She buried her face in her hands. One thought played over and over in my head like a drumbeat. Pregnant. Her sister had been pregnant.
I took the expressway back to the duplex going far faster than I should have. Anya’s grief and pain permeated through every cell in my body. I wanted nothing more than to take her as far away from here as possible and try to keep her safe. But, she might never feel safe again. Not after I told her the things I suspected.
That would have to wait.
As I made the turn down Anya’s street, the hair stood up along my spine. A growl erupted from my throat as my nerves went into overdrive.
“What is it?” Anya and I were connected now in more ways than one. She could sense my alarm.
“Trouble,” I answered. The house was quiet. It was dusk and a light snowfall sugared the grass. They’d been careful. I sensed at least two of them. Not Arkady. He would have been too smart for that. I would have smelled his Alpha signature farther away. I saw no tracks through the light powder dusting Anya’s driveway, so it had been at least an hour since they’d left. But, they’d been here.
“Stay here,” I warned her. “Get ready to shoot if you don’t see me come back out that door in about ten seconds.”
Anya swallowed hard and took her gun out of her purse. She took the safety off and held it two-handed while I slammed the car door shut. This wouldn’t take long. I went to my door first. The screen was torn from the frame. I took in a deep breath and closed my eyes. Yeah. Two of them. Stefan and another bear whose scent I couldn’t place. They’d come to my place first. I took one step inside and saw all I needed to. They’d torn up the carpet and scratched deep gouges through the walls. The ceiling fan in the living room had been ripped from the socket, the blades smashed into pieces and strewn all over the kitchen.
I shut the door and went to Anya’s. They’d done less damage there but made their point. This was a warning from Arkady, no doubt. He wanted me to know he knew I was still here. Son of a bitch.
“Cullen!” Anya called to me from the open car window. I poked my head back outside and raised my index finger. They’d only upended some of her living room furniture, but their purpose here was clear. Arkady must have told them to make sure and get their scent everywhere. The stench was so strong, I had a hell of a time keeping my bear in check. As it was, the sooner I got Anya the hell away from here, the better for the both of us.
I went into her bedroom and grabbed a suitcase from her closet. I stuffed as many of her clothes inside as I could find and a few of her things from the bathroom. She had her purse, phone, and credit cards with her. That would have to be enough. She couldn’t come back here Not ever. I hoped she’d take the news in stride after everything else she’d learned tonight.
Anya’s eyes widened as she saw me approach the car with her suitcase. She lowered her gun and put it back in her purse as I threw the suitcase into the backseat and got behind the wheel.
“We can’t stay here,” I said, slamming the car into reverse. I headed northeast, having no idea where the hell I’d take her. I didn’t sense Arkady or the other bears at the moment, but they could show up at any time. I needed to put some distance between us and fast.
“Tell me what happened,” she said, rubbing her forehead with her fingers.
“They sent a message.”
“What message?”
I shook my head. Dammit. I thought I’d have more time. I couldn’t go back to Wild Ridge. My best bet was to head back to Hoosier National Forest and hope I could find an abandoned cabin there.
“Let’s just say I don’t think you’ll be getting your security deposit back.”
“What do we do?”
I slammed my fist against the wheel. My urge to shift bubbled strong beneath the surface of my skin. Driving probably wasn’t the brightest idea I’d had lately. I needed woods around me. It would help me think and plan. I just hoped Anya could handle a night under the stars. I’d keep her warm and safe with my body. It was the only fucking thing I had to offer her right now and it tore at me.
She was silent for most of the trip. Once I’d gone far enough to throw anyone off our trail, I turned into the park. At the very least, I knew a cave where we could hide out. I’d used it before and had left some camping supplies there, so I could keep us comfortable. It was secluded enough, but open enough I’d be able to hear or scent anyone coming from miles away. What I’d do if an entire clan decided to show up, I couldn’t think about right now. We parked the car and hiked the two miles through the sparsest trail. Anya took my hand and followed me without question. When we got to the cave Anya turned and smiled at me.
“Is this what life’s going to be like with a bear?”
I think she meant it as a joke, but her soft eyes tore at my heart. “Dammit. I’m sorry. I can’t offer you anything else right now.”
She stepped forward and laid her hand along my jaw. My skin warmed hers and her eyes glistened with tears. “It’s enough. If you can keep me safe, it’s enough.”
“Tell me about Avery. And slow down this time.”
She began again. Every detail she remembered sent cold dread through me. She saw it in my eyes.
“I think it’s time for you to tell me about Avery.”
I spread out the sleeping bags and brought Anya close to me, leaning our backs up against the cave wall. I could keep her warm enough, but that was about it. Later, I’d hunt for us. A part of me could barely wait for it. I needed the clarity of my bear’s mind. Mine swirled with doubt right now.
“I can’t be sure. But what you’re describing, if she was pregnant with a were … it could have gone like that. In the clans, we have doctors and healers who know how to ease a woman through it. Our mates aren’t supposed to be alone out in the human world like that. No wonder she was so sick. She belonged with her mate’s clan.”
“Her mate.” Anya said the word as though it burned in her mouth. “Do you think she was forced? That’s what I’m afraid of, Cullen. I’m afraid Arkady was behind it.”
I didn’t want to answer her. The idea that Arkady would impregnate a woman and just leave her unprotected and without the proper care seemed so brutal, even for him. If the baby was his or a member of his clan’s, it wouldn’t have made sense.
“Are you sure that’s all Dr. Putnam said?”
Anya shook her head. “She said three women stormed her office and took Avery away at gunpoint. I don’t think they were werebears. I mean I didn’t ask, but that’s a fairly significant detail for her to leave out.”
I shook my head. “No. I told you, there are only about six she-bears in the world anyway. They could have been Anam Cara, but that doesn’t make much sense either. Their mates would have been with them if Avery was one of theirs.”
“There’s one other thing.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a crumpled yellow piece of paper. “Dr. Putnam said Avery asked for her father.”
“The one that’s in prison?”
“No. I think she misunderstood. Avery wrote down this name. Dr. Putnam thought it was our father because she thought that’s what Avery said. I don’t think so. I think maybe this man is who Avery thought was the father of her baby. Putnam said if anything happened to her, she wanted her to try and find him.”
Anya handed me the paper and I unfolded it. The first time I read the name, my brain couldn’t process it. It couldn’t be. I blinked hard and read it again.
“Cullen?” Anya sensed a shift in my mood.
Simon Marshall. I read the name over and over, hoping the words would blur and change right before my eyes. Of course, they didn’t. It couldn’t be a coincidence. I knew it in my heart.
“Cullen, does that name mean anything to you?”
I crushed the paper in my fist and pounded it against the wall. I couldn’t bring myself to say it. I couldn’t let the words form in my mouth. Simon Marshall. If Anya’s suspicions were right, the enemy who hurt Anya’s sister wasn’t Arkady or some Russian clan at all. Yes. I knew Simon Marshall. He was head of one of the most powerful clans on Wild Ridge. My Wild Ridge, the place I wanted desperately to return to. The man who had hurt Avery the most was one of my people, not Arkady’s.