Tracking the Bear (Blue Ridge Bears Book 1)(41)

Lucy flashed him a fierce smile. “Oh yes, I am. Since you’ve decided not to be here in person, you can’t smell it, but I’m one hundred percent were-bear.”

“Is it true?” he demanded of Darren, who was still shifting awkwardly at my side. Darren stood a little straighter and strode over to Lucy. I bristled as he bent close to her, skimming his nose across her throat. It was for show, and I knew that. I still didn’t like having him that close to my female.

“She’s a bear,” he confirmed. “Though I have no idea where she came into contact with that breed.”

I’d noticed that too, when she’d been nestled in my fur the night before. Added to her natural scent was a hint of brine and the cool crispness of the north wind. If I hadn’t seen it happen myself, I would have never have believed that she’d come into contact with a polar bear. There weren’t enough of them left.

“Satisfied?” Lucy glared at the screens again.

A slow smirk crossed Joseph Fenn’s face, and I had a sinking feeling that Lucy had just jumped in way over her head.

“Yes, Ms. Elmsong. You’ve made your point. You may act as proxy for your brother’s trial, if you wish.”

“I do,” she said, ignoring Luke’s protest. I didn’t blame her. Lucy wasn’t likely to win against any of us, but Luke would be slaughtered in his current state.

“Would the arresting lawman please step forward? You have been issued a challenge.”

It took my brain a few sluggish minutes to realize that he meant me. I had made the arrest. I was the bear she’d be facing. Oh shit. I couldn’t do it. Not to her.

I forced my legs to carry me forward until I stood only a few feet away from her. She didn’t look taken aback or even frightened. She trusted me not to hurt her. Or maybe she didn’t care if I did. Either way, she was being foolish. This would end badly.

“She can’t shift yet,” I said, desperately trying to forestall the inevitable confrontation. “She’s new. If she forces it, we don’t have enough manpower to contain her.”

“Then you will fight as humans,” Joseph said with a shrug. “You know the rules. The fight goes on until one of you yields. No throwing the fight.”

He steepled his fingers and leaned over to get a better view. “Begin.”

I was still reeling, unsure of how exactly I’d been put in this horrid position when Lucy ran at me. Her form was terrible, and she was telegraphing so blatantly I could have put a kibosh on her plan right then and there if I’d been thinking straight.

Fortunately for her, I wasn’t. And while I was still horrified by the idea of taking a swing at her, she had no such qualms with attacking me. She hit me hard, ramming her shoulders into my stomach. I hadn’t even had the chance to shift into a ready stance, and the combined force of her charge and the newfound strength in her limbs sent us toppling to the ground.

Despite everything, I was more than a little proud that she’d managed to get me on the ground. She scrambled onto my chest, pinning me. Her legs twined around mine, limiting the movement of my hips. I couldn’t roll to dislodge her. Smart. She’d apparently taken at least one self-defense course.

My common sense finally kicked in. I had to fight, no matter how abhorrent it seemed to me. The Thing would dismiss the trial by combat if I yielded without a fight. Not only that, I hadn’t yet proved myself to her bear. It would cause problems later if her spirit found me lacking.

She had leverage, but even with her new strength, she couldn’t beat my reach. She couldn’t pin my wrists in the way she truly needed to and also keep my lower half on the ground. I strained against her hold, pushing my hands several inches from the ground. She gritted her teeth in frustration, but rather than expend more strength than she ought to, she surprised me again.

She bashed her head against mine. My head thunked against the hard-packed ground and I let out a pained grunt. She let out a similar sound and her grip slackened. I wrestled my hands free and was finally able to turn my torso. I rolled her quickly to the ground beneath me.

It shouldn’t have been sexy. We were both in pain. She was struggling vigorously and clearly trying her hardest to push me off. But she was so warm, so near. She was mine. And I no longer had to be careful of my teeth or blood around her. I could lay my teeth into her throat and erase the mark that mangy wolf had left on her.

She got her knees under my chest and kicked me off of her. I was once again knocked breathless and landed in the dirt. My head thumped painfully against a rock. Again. I groaned. She ran at me again, ready to try the whole damned song and dance again.

I swept her legs out from beneath her. She went down with a startled sound, and this time I was able to pin her legs successfully.

“Yield.”

She shook her head. “No! I can’t! I have to-”

“Yield,” I growled. “I can’t kill you Lucy. So please, just yield.”

Her body sagged beneath mine, boneless. A choked sound escaped her. She knew I was right. It would kill me to hurt her more than I already had. I smelled salt and knew she was crying.

“Trust me,” I whispered, pressing my lips to her ear so only she would hear. She whimpered. I waited, heart thundering in my chest.

“I yield.”

I climbed off her the instant the words were out of her mouth. I tasted blood in my mouth and realized I must have bitten my tongue when she’d pulled the stupid head-butt. I spat it on the ground. First blood had been Lucy’s, but victory had been mine. I turned to face the screens.