Prologue
January
Lake Gemini, Ontario
JOHN Page was in deep shit. They were taking him out to the woods to kill him.
At least that was the impression made by Royal Hill’s goons as they dragged him off the road into town toward the forest at the edge of Royal’s property. Although John was a sizable man, these two were bigger. Both Seb and Vadim towered over him. Even if he managed to make a run for it, they’d outrun him and overpower him.
As he stumbled through the snowy undergrowth, his regrets confronted him like multiple slaps in the face. He’d always wanted to travel and see the world. Right now, he could barely see through the trees they were so thick. He’d always wanted to make some money. Real money, the sort that made hot women throw themselves at you. He would have found a nice hacienda by the beach and thrown some cash at a few Mexican honeys. Yeah, that would have been the life.
Not much chance of that now.
“Pick up your feet, you crybaby,” Seb muttered. “Walk like a man.”
“And try not to piss yourself in front of Mr. Hill,” said Vadim. “He’s hunting and wouldn’t want your stench to give his position away.”
“I’m not crying, and I haven’t pissed myself.”
Vadim’s laugh held a bit too much mirth for John’s liking. “Give it time.”
“Look.” John tried to sound cool, but he heard the quaver in his own voice. “We’re all bear shifters here. Brothers, in a sense. I think you can trust me to walk on my own. I won’t run.”
The men tightened their grip. Clearly, they didn’t buy the whole bear brotherhood routine. He couldn’t blame them. He wouldn’t have bought it either.
He knew some shape shifters liked to believe they were all part of some holy communion of supernatural beings. What did his good-for-nothing older brother Howard used to say?
We look after our own.
Yeah. Bullshit.
No one had ever looked after him, not even Howard. When John had first started having issues with gambling, he’d gone to his brother and Howard had turned him away. Granted, he’d spotted him a bit of money to get over the first hump, but he could have done more.
I gave you that cash for groceries and rent, not so you could lose it at the card table. You’re cut off now.
John worked, but he’d frittered away most of his pay. Even the generous wages supplied by his boss, Ryland Snow, weren’t enough to cover all his debts. John worked as a waiter at the Ursa Resort on Gemini Island, a resort for shape shifters. He’d recently asked Ryland for an advance on his wages, but the man had refused.
“Sorry, John,” Ryland had said. “I’ve helped you out a couple of times already. I can’t do it again.” He’d taken a moment to choose his next words. “Someone on the team told me they’ve seen you at the casino. Several times. If you need to talk to someone about your gambling, I can make the arrangements.”
“I don’t have a gambling problem.”
Only today it appeared he did.
Ryland might like to pretend he was some sort of do-gooder, but he hadn’t done John much good. He didn’t want to attend some stupid meeting so he could talk to a bunch of losers about his feelings. He just needed some cash.
“Thanks for nothing, Ryland,” he said under his breath.
“You praying, little man?” Vadim’s lips curled. “You’re not as dumb as you look.”
A single gunshot ripped apart the morning silence. John tensed, but the men just pulled him along.
What was that? A fucking practice shot?
“Come on,” said Seb. “Mr. Hill is just up ahead. Let’s get this over with.”
John lowered his head as they walked, recounting his sins and measuring his good deeds against them. Even to his own eyes, his random acts of kindness were sadly lacking in number. He was a screw-up and always had been a screw-up.
Why had he ever gone to Royal Hill in the first place? He should have been able to foresee this day. Unfortunately, the lure of easy money had been too hard to ignore. Once his debts starting racking up, he’d had no choice. The bank didn’t exactly fork over loans to cover gambling debts.
But Royal Hill did, or so some drunk at the casino had told him. If you needed fast cash, go to Royal. Just be prepared to pay him back and with hefty interest.
He should have known he’d never be able to keep up. Considering his recent losing streak, it should have been a no-brainer, but he’d been convinced the next big win was just one game away.
The ground beneath their feet became jagged, and they approached a small series of hills. The mouth of a cave was visible by one of them.
Royal Hill stood at the cave’s mouth, a rifle in one hand. At his feet lay a female bear, bleeding from the chest. Its tongue lolled out of its mouth.
The man held out his arms in apparent welcome. Smiling, he almost looked friendly. The clean-shaven face and tidy brown hair might be marks of a respectable businessman, but John glimpsed the strange light in Royal’s eyes. They were a little too bright, all-seeing, and they made him nervous.
He wore pressed jeans and a bright red winter jacket. Not exactly the clothing of a hunter. Was it his first time shooting at wild animals, or was he so confident in his hunting skills that he just didn’t care about being seen?
Royal broke the silence. “Ah, John, my friend. You’re just in time to witness this magnificent kill.” He grabbed the bear by its head. “A real trophy, huh?”
John tried to keep his voice steady. “I didn’t think it was bear hunting season.”
“It’s always hunting season for me.” Royal dropped the beast’s head.
John’s stomach lurched. Although he felt no real affinity for the wild bear, as a bear shifter, his own spirit animal growled in disgust. He had no quarrel with hunting in general, but to slaughter a bear in the midst of winter as it rested?
Forget the bear. Keep an eye on that rifle.
“Now the real prize is just inside the cave.” Royal hunched over to look inside, one hand on the rock. “Can you hear that?”
The noise was faint, but there was no mistaking the heart-rending mewl of baby bears.
Royal leaned his rifle against the rock face and stepped over the mother’s carcass. He crept into the cave, emerging a moment later with two baby bears in his hands. “Cute, aren’t they?”
Cute and small and utterly helpless without their mother. John’s gut raged again.
“They’re premature,” said Royal. “Even still, they’re usable.”
“Usable?”
“Oh, yeah. Do you have any idea what cub organs go for on the black market? This is a great day for me.” He made a face. “Not so good for you, though. I believe you’re in arrears, John.”
“I can get you the money, Royal. I swear.”
“You said that last month. I’ve been more than generous.”
“You have. I realize that.”
“I don’t think you do realize it.” Royal nodded at Vadim.
Without preamble, Vadim grabbed John’s left hand and wrenched one of his fingers back.
As the bone snapped, John howled. Although John’s knees buckled, the men held him up. “P-please. Just a little more time.”
Royal paced in front of him, gesticulating and holding one bear cub in each hand. Their little mouths opened, rooting for a nipple they would never find. “You see, when you have a bit of money, people think they can play fast and loose with you. It’s a good lesson for you to learn, John. If you ever come into some cash, you need to invest it, not give it away like I do. My problem is I’m too much of a philanthropist. I can’t bear the suffering of my fellow man, so I do my part. I try to help out my friends and then they just kick me in the teeth. I don’t like how it makes me feel.”
“I’m sorry, Royal. I never meant to hurt your feelings.” John tried not to look at his bent finger.
The trafficker kissed the baby bears on their heads and handed them to Seb. His assistant took them to the pickup truck they’d parked close by and dumped them in a burlap sack.
“Don’t tie it too tightly,” ordered Royal. “I need them to be able to breathe for a while longer. It’s better if the organs are fresh when I extract them.”
“Yes, Mr. Hill.”
Bile flooded John’s mouth, but he swallowed it. It occurred to him he should be groveling some more but couldn’t think of anything else to say.
Royal picked up his rifle and walked over to John. He laid a hand on his shoulder. “Be honest with me. When can you get the money?”
“I don’t know. I’ve been working extra shifts but—”
“Ah, yes, at the Ursa Fishing Lodge and Resort on Gemini Island.”
“Yeah.”
Royal’s eyes narrowed. “I have heard of the place. Interesting.”
“It’s a good job. I’m sure I can go to my boss again and ask him to spot me a bit of cash.” Ryland would never give it to him but maybe if he pleaded.
“I don’t think a bit will help in this case.” Royal used his jacket sleeve to buff the rifle barrel. “Of course, you could always come work for me. I find people like you make motivated employees. Why, it wasn’t all that long ago that Seb came to me with his tail between his legs. Isn’t that right, Seb?”
Seb’s tight nod was the only response.
Oh God. What would he make John do? “But what about my job at the Ursa?”
“Have you ever heard of multitasking? I hear it’s all the rage in the corporate world. I’m offering you a way out, John.”
“Right. I’m sorry. Of course.”
“The fact is I’ve had my eye on the Ursa Resort for some time. I’ve wanted someone on my team who can share the inner workings of the place with me. You know, someone who can tell me more about the people who work there. They’re a mysterious bunch, even for shape shifters.”
“You mean you want me to be a spy?”
Royal laughed. “This isn’t MI-5. ‘Spy’ is such a derogatory term. I’d prefer to think of you as my very own little fact checker.”
“Okay.” So, a spy. If it meant he’d keep his head, he’d be a spy. He wasn’t sure why Royal needed information on the people at the Ursa though. Personally, John had never met a more boring bunch of shape shifters. All they cared about were their teen mentoring programs and making the goddamn world a better place. How many of his coworkers had ever tried to make the world a better place for him? None. “I would…I’d be honored to work for you, Royal.”
“Mr. Hill. My employees call me Mr. Hill.” He nodded at Vadim again, and the man let go of John. “You’ve made a wise decision today, John. I’ve needed some extra help because my hunting takes up much of my time. Tell me, have you ever gone hunting?”
“No.”
“Well, I love to hunt. There’s nothing more vital, more life affirming, than seizing the life of another creature. And as you know, I rely on hunting to provide me with the product I need.” The man lifted his booted foot and rested it on the mother bear’s head. “Beauties like this one are ideal. Bears command the best prices for their spleens and gallbladders, but I use other animals in my taxidermy shop. Gotta have a legit business so the humans don’t snoop around.”
“Taxidermy, right.” Vomit crept up John’s throat once again. Swallow, swallow.
“Make faces all you want. I’ve been dealing with that sort of condescending crap my entire career. Taxidermy is an art. I’m an artist. Art isn’t always pretty and packaged with a bow. Art stirs the soul. It makes us uncomfortable and aware.” Hill shook his head. “I don’t know why I bother trying to explain it to people. Only a fellow artist would understand.”
“Sorry, Mr. Hill.”
“Anyway, your duties are much simpler. I want immediate reports on everyone who lives at the Ursa Resort. You will tell me where they work, where they play, what they eat, and when they stop to take a piss. I want all their spirit animals catalogued, from the biggest tiger right down to the smallest doe. Do you hear me? Everyone, young and old. I want photos, too. Lots of photos. You do know how to take a picture, right?”
“Yes, Mr. Hill.”
Hill patted him on the shoulder. “Good man. I’ll deduct your debts from your wages. Although the way you suck at cards, it might take a while for you to catch up. You might want to stay away from the casino.” He shook John’s hand. The right one, thank God. “Looks like we’re in business. Get to work.”
Vadim took John by the shoulders and pushed him.
“Oh, and John?”
He looked over his shoulder.
Hill crouched down and smiled at the dead female bear. “I think Mama Bear is pretty enough to display in my shop. What do you think?”
“Uh, sure.”
“Uh, sure? What’s wrong with you? Look at the rich shading in her fur and the beautiful muscle tone. It’ll be an honor to capture this majesty for all time.” His eyes got all dreamy and creepy. “I’m a bit of a sucker when it comes to lady bears. They’re my one weakness. Call me a connoisseur.”
As Seb and Vadim helped Hill haul the bear over to the truck, John raced through the trees and toward the road.
Only then did he allow himself to vomit.