All day long, Bruce had been struggling with a feeling of presentment. He waited anxiously for the meeting to finish before he checked his phone. He was worried about his kids, and worried about the key. It was hard enough to get that woman out of his head but add concern into the mixture and it was downright impossible.
When he checked his voicemail, versus heart dropped. He didn’t give anybody any notice. All he did was take off out of the building and had toward home. As soon as he arrived, Bruce knew something was off. He tore into the house, shouting for Vicky and the kids, but he was met with silence. He suddenly caught the scent of Dragon shifters and knew the worst had probably come to pass. The scent was still strong, so it hadn’t been long since they had been here. Without even thinking twice, Bruce shape shifted into his bear form and tore through the mountain, right on their trail.
He could smell the kids traveling in some kind of vehicle, probably. He grew even more frantic to find them and took off running at full pelt to follow the scent of his children before it faded into the breeze.
There was another scent that deeply affected him. The smell of Vicky’s perfume was in the air and he found himself agitated beyond reason. As soon as he caught up with them he was going to tear those dragon shifters apart and get his family back home. That included Vicky.
He didn’t have a chance to process what that meant and continued until the scents grew stronger and he knew he was close.
He found himself going off Oak Mountain and headed for the forbidden territory of the dragon shifters. Fortunately, it seemed they were in neutral territory and Bruce paused, listening intently for his children. The bear within him grew instantly furious when it heard the muffled sounds of Marie’s crying. He scanned the area – he knew he had to be smart about this, it could easily be an ambush.
“Well come on, you were whining about having to pee so hurry it the hell up!”
Greg whimpered, and Bruce was instantly ready to strike. He leaped out in the direction of the man’s voice, taking the dragon shifter by surprise before he had the chance to shapeshift into his more powerful form. Greg let out a gasp of surprise. “Daddy!” he breathed.
Bruce turned to look at him, silently urging his son to stay quiet. Greg nodded and pointed to the west, where the van was apparently hidden behind a row of trees and foliage. He motioned for his son to stay put, and he crept up to the area that was concealing his other two children. And Vicky.
He hated himself for putting her in this position. What was wrong with him? How could he have done this to them? Maybe he should have just let the dragons have the Jensen project.
But that would mean a horrible future for both his children and the bear shifter children of future generations. He wouldn’t sacrifice his children, but he also wouldn’t sacrifice the possibility of a brighter future for other children either.
When he caught sight of the van, Bruce narrowed his eyes and let out a low growl. He wasn’t going to let them get away with scaring his children like this. And if he found one single hair misplaced on any of their heads, including Vicky’s, he was going to make sure they regretted it. If he had to, he would wage war on the dragon shifters himself.
The van was parked, running idly waiting for Greg and his body guard to come back so they could head back on their way. There were three other dragon shifters, two of which being low rank and the third being significantly more powerful. He looked around as he considered the best way to approach the situation.
There was nothing he wanted less than to traumatize his children further. If they saw him tearing these men apart right in front of them, it was impossible to say how they might be affected. But at the very least they would be safe. That was all he wanted.
He started forward, not caring any further about what his children would think. All he wanted was to have them back at home, safe and sound in their beds. At least he knew Greg was safe. That meant the other two were probably fine as well. And Vicky…well, he could sense her energy in the van. She was alive. Angry, but alive. He felt a fierce surge of adoration for her and suddenly struck.
The man in the driver’s seat didn’t know what hit him when Bruce shattered the glass of the window and grabbed him out through it. He yelped in pain and surprise and Bruce quickly ended him.
However, the attack had alerted the other two to his presence and soon he was face to face with the men that had abducted his family.
“Bruce, I didn’t expect to see you so soon. Although I suppose we did leave you a memo. You must be very efficient with your business.”
Bruce glared at them, a low roar reverberating in his throat. He glanced at the van, where the kids were sitting inside. Hopefully they wouldn’t be able to see him. And if they did, it wouldn’t be too gruesome. It was dangerous to take on more than one dragon shifter on your own, and he had a feeling it would be a grueling fight. As long as Vicky was with them and Greg was safely hidden in the bushes, then it should be all right.
“Allow me to introduce myself,” the leader of the dragon shifter group said, stepping forward and flashing a silvery smile at Bruce. “My name is Harold Chase. I am the leader and rightful owner of your so-called Jensen project. And this,” he said, gesturing to the man beside him, who was shapeshifting into his dragon form. “Is Alex. Alex is going to retrieve the permissions from you, whether you like it or not.”
Bruce eyed Alex, who was flaring his nostrils at Bruce. He grew rigid as the man began to contort into a being that was far taller than Bruce. He measured the dragon up just as the dragon let out a blood-curdling screech. The air surrounding them suddenly became ice cold and Bruce growled in agitation. But this was a good thing. The dragons who specialized in magic were much worse fighters. They were weak without their magic and could rarely use it to hurt others. This was good news. It meant Bruce had already taken out the bodyguards that had been brought along to protect Hector and the magic using dragon.
He lunged mercilessly for the dragon’s leg as it attempted to summon another cold spell, or so Bruce assumed. It let out a cry of anger and tried kicking him away, but Bruce was fast. He climbed the dragon’s body quickly, seeking out the sensitive place between the shifter’s wings. He attacked viciously as the shifter attempted to turn to swat him away, roaring out in anguish. Bruce hated that his children were hearing these sounds but thinking of them made his attacks even more vicious. They should never have messed with his family. That was all there was to it.
“I’m sorry you feel that way, Bruce,” Harold said, his voice growing deeper as his neck began to stretch out as he underwent his shapeshift. “We could have compromised. But now I’m afraid you leave me no choice.”
The dragon Bruce was attacking finally buckled helplessly and fell to the ground. Bruce climbed off and braced himself to face the fearsome dragon before him. Harold was a powerful being. But Bruce was ready. He wasn’t going to let anything happen to his children, even if it meant his own safety. He wanted to tell Vicky to get behind the driver’s wheel of the car and drive, but Greg was still out there hiding where Bruce had told him to hide. And he somehow instinctively knew she wouldn’t ever leave Greg behind.
The only option was to fight Harold and win. Then he would be able to bring them all home safely and forget this mess had ever happened. Harold let out a low growl and Bruce stood rigid, scanning the surroundings. He wouldn’t be as hard to defeat as the others had been. He would have to fight smart. If he didn’t, who knew what might happen to his family?
Harold let out a low growl and unleashed a powerful breath attack. Bruce was knocked backward, and he heard a cry of concern from the van. Vicky was watching. Her voice brought Bruce painfully back to his feet, despite having just had the wind knocked out of him. He was angry, and in pain, but he wouldn’t let that stop him. He would protect his children. He would save Vicky and let her know he was all right.
The newfound determination brought a growl deep within Bruce’s throat, and just as the dragon was about to launch another powerful attack, Bruce ran quickly toward the van and launched himself on top of it, bringing his teeth down hard against the tender area he had learned as a child would debilitate a dragon shifter. Hector craned his neck and attempted to attack again, but Bruce dodged it and gripped the dragon’s delicate throat with his claws. Bruce could feel the strain of the dragon shifter as he squeezed the life out of him while viciously tearing the vital areas away.
Harold let out an ear-piercing wail as Bruce drained the life right out of him. He didn’t let up until he knew he had bested him and then immediately ran to Greg, who climbed instantly on his back and held tightly as Bruce returned to the van to release Vicky and the kids.
“Daddy!” Marie and Michael both cried, running to him to embrace him tightly.
“I’m so sorry,” Vicky was murmuring. She felt horrible about letting the dragon shifters get their hands on his kids. But Bruce knew it wasn’t her fault. It was his own.
He shapeshifted back into his human form and looked Vicky in the eye as he held onto his kids. “You have nothing to be sorry about. I’m so sorry I left you all vulnerable like that. It’s my own fault. I never should have done it.”
“No, you tried, but I failed. I let them get the kids…”
Vicky suddenly started crying and crumbled down onto the floor of the van. Suddenly Michael moved away from his father and over to Vicky. He held her close.
“It’s not your fault Vicky. You were really brave. I love you.”
Everybody, but most especially Vicky, was surprised by the sweet gesture. Vicky glanced at Bruce, then down to the young boy and held him tightly.
“Thank you, Michael. I love you too.”
“All right,” Bruce said, clearing his throat. “Let’s get home.”
Vicky nodded. “Should we take the van?” she asked uncertainly.
“Or we could walk…” Greg said.
“I don’t like this van,” Marie said.
“All right,” Vicky said. “Let’s walk home then.”
The kids suddenly began shapeshifting and Vicky’s eyes grew wide. The cubs rolled around together as Bruce turned to her and grinned. “Want a lift?”
He shapeshifted back into his bear form and bowed in front of Vicky, who reluctantly climbed on top of him. She let out a soft cry and then a laugh when he stood straight up. Together, they strode through the mountains until they made it back home.