Malcolm
Due to a last-minute issue with some of the remodeling paperwork, I’m late leaving work. I hop in my car and hurry back, glancing over at Cordelia’s house as I pull into my driveway. Something seems different, off. She should be home by now, but the lights are off in her house, I realize. Strange. I shut off my car, drop my laptop off in the house, and immediately head over to check on her. It’s pouring out, and I’d hate to think he’s out walking around in the rain somewhere. Did she get caught in the storm and have trouble getting home? She probably would have called me if she needed a ride, but you never know.
I scurry up the porch and I’m just about to knock on the door when I realize I hear voices inside. Instantly, every one of my senses is on full alert. Cordelia never has people over. Ever. I’ve been inside of her house and so has Harold, but that’s it. Even then, we’ve both only ever been in the living room. Cordelia hasn’t told me what happened in her past to scare her so deeply, but I know it must have been something bad if this is how she is now.
She’s brave, but she’s cautious, and as a non-fighting shifter, it’s best to be cautious. It’s a good way to stay safe and to protect yourself. Cordelia can’t simply shift into a dragon or a bear and attack someone who is hunting her or hurting her. She has to use more than her physical shape: she has to use her mind.
Carefully, I move across the porch to the window. Can I see inside? Maybe I can catch a glimpse of whoever is inside. I’m not trying to be a creepy boyfriend or a stalker, but if there’s someone in Cordelia’s house and the lights are off, it’s either because there’s an emergency electrical problem or it’s because she’s in danger.
I tend to think it’s the latter.
Cordelia usually has the blinds closed and today is no exception, but there’s a small sliver of space at the edge of the blinds where I’m able to peek into the house. Sure enough, there are two people there, and they don’t look happy. One is a large man. He’s tall and bulky. He looks stupid, but he also looks angry. The other person is a female. Human. She’s smaller and looks angry, too, but there’s another emotion on her face: fear.
Is she scared of the man she’s with?
Instantly, I know these are the people Cordelia has been afraid of. I don’t know the back story. I don’t know what’s happened. I don’t know anything except they’re going to try to get her out of here and hurt her, and I won’t let that happen.
I’ll do anything to protect my mate, but I’m also not too proud to ask for help. I don’t leave the porch. Instead, I squat down in the corner, pull out my phone, and send an emergency text to Harold and every other shifter who lives on the street.
9-1-1 @ Cordelia’s house. Intruders. Humans. Come ASAP.
Less than a minute later, people begin pouring out of their houses. Not everyone is home, of course, but most of the neighborhood just got back from work. Soon a dozen people, including Harold, are quietly standing around Cordelia’s front porch.
Luckily, the humans inside haven’t noticed us.
We’re a quiet group, and the rain masks any noise we make, but if they looked outside, the humans would see us instantly. I motion for the group to circle the house.
“It’s your move,” Harold says quietly, and I nod. I like that he’s letting me take the lead on this. He’s not trying to pull rank or anything like that just because he’s the oldest shifter here. Instead, he’s respecting the fact that this is my fight and it’s my mate.
Once the group is in place, one of the cat-shifters meows to let us know they’re ready.
“All right,” I tell Harold. “Here we go.”
Harold slips away, presumably to shift, and I take a deep breath. Mentally, I’m ready for this. I’ve been ready my entire life. Yeah, I might be “just” a goose shifter, but I’m feisty and I’m scrappy. When it comes to protecting my mate, I’ll do whatever it takes. I’ll do anything for Cordelia, and I’m about to prove that to her right now.
I strip out of my clothes, tossing them off the porch and into a bush, and knock on the door. Then I instantly shift into goose form.
I hate knowing that someone is in there with my mate. I hate that they’re potentially hurting her. This is not okay, but Cordelia isn’t alone anymore. She’s not going to be alone ever again. Not when it matters. Not when she’s in trouble.
“Are you expecting anyone?” A man’s voice sounds.
“N-No,” Cordelia stutters.
My feathers bristle.
How dare this fucker make her feel scared?
I can scent her anxiety wafting through the door. Even if she wasn’t my mate, I would know she’s afraid.
“Be quiet,” the man says, and I hear him coming close to the door. “Who is it?” He calls out. “We don’t want anything.”
I’m silent.
I hear him unlock the door and pull it open. Then he’s standing there, peeking out onto the porch. He sees me, but glances around, anyway, obviously checking to see if anyone else is around. He doesn’t notice my clothes because they’re in a bush, so he has no reason to suspect I’m a shifter.
“Who is it?” A woman says.
“There’s no one here,” the man says, peeking once more. “It’s just a goose.”
I hear Cordelia gasp, and that’s when I attack. I lunge forward, flapping my wings, and leap at the man’s face. Most geese might not be able to get this kind of air, but I’m a fucking shifter, and I bite him on the damn nose.
“Ouch!” The man screeches, backing into the house. “He fucking bit me.”
“What the fuck?” The woman starts yelling and running away, not bothering to try to protect her guy from the wild goose in the living room. What a coward. Even though Cordelia and I are still at the beginning of our relationship, I already know she’ll never abandon me when I’m in trouble, just as I’ll never abandon her.
“It bit me,” the man repeats, and I don’t back down. I peck at him again, biting him over and over until he falls to the ground, and then I shift back into a man and place my foot in the center of his fucking chest. He’s not going anywhere.
The fucker looks at me like he can’t quite believe what he’s seeing.
“Y-You…You’re a….” He stutters, staring at me.
“That’s right,” I tell him. “I’m a fucking goose, asshole, and you messed with the wrong man’s mate.”
“Malcolm,” Cordelia whispers. “You came.”
“I’ll do anything for you, Cordelia. You’re my mate, baby. I will always be here for you.”
I smell her tears and I know she’s starting to try, but I don’t turn to look at her. I keep my eyes firmly planted on the piece of shit in front of me.
“Is this asshole the reason you came to Perfection?” I ask her.
“Yes,” she says. “I used to be roommates with his girlfriend. She found out I’m a shifter and…and they captured me,” she sobs. “I escaped and I moved here. They tracked me using my phone…I feel so stupid. I should have known.”
“It’s not your fault,” I tell her, and then we hear screeching from the other room, followed by a group of animals and two men hauling the woman into the room.
“Trish,” Cordelia says. “Oh, good, you caught Trish.”
“They captured me,” Trish whines, shaking.
“Nobody comes to our town and messes with our family,” Taylor, one of the men says. Then he looks at me. “You guys already call the cops?”
“They’ll never believe you,” the man beneath my feet says. “No one will believe that Trish and I did anything wrong. I’ll say you captured us and hurt us. I’ll say you tortured us.”
“That might work,” Harold says, shifting from his wolf form to his human form. “If the Chief of Police wasn’t right there.” He jerks his head toward a fox shifter who offers a sly look before he, too, returns to his human form.
“It’s not what it looks like,” Trish says, protesting.
“You have the right to remain silent,” the police officer says. Then he looks at me and nods. “Nice work, Malcolm. Nice work.”