Beauty's Beast(9)

He placed the back of his hand on his brow as his mother always did when he was acting strangely. No fever. But his blood felt fevered, and his skin tingled with a soft buzz of energy that warmed him like a fire. And each time he touched her soft skin his stomach grew tight.

The door closed behind her. Only when she was out of sight was Alon able to move in the opposite direction.

He removed his clothes, folded them and set them in the crook of a tree. Then he transformed into his flying form and rocketed through the forest. In this form he was least substantial. The billowing smoke made it easy to fly in tight places but impossible to fight. But for fighting he had his first form. That was what his mom dubbed it—first form or fighting form.

Alon just called it his monster form.

* * *

Samantha stepped into the vaulted foyer of the Garzas’ empty home and paused as the unexpected surrounded her.

She had thought to see an abundance of wood and rustic furnishings. Instead, she was greeted with a contemporary stairway that seemed to float upward as it was anchored only to one wall. Clean plaster and elegant molding had been painted white. Before her hung a long Japanese scroll that stretched from the second story and nearly touched the floor. The brightly colored silk edging framed an ink painting of many blackbirds rising through the air.

She peeked into the living room, taking in the sleek white leather sofa set before a glass coffee table facing a hearth with a mantel of white marble, black granite and obsidian. The elegant room had no clutter, but several unique objects of art. A splash of color came from a painting of pink cherry blossoms above the hearth and wilted red roses on the mantel.

She continued through the foyer, finding the kitchen and informal dining room filling the back half of the enormous house.

Reaching the center of the stainless-steel and black granite kitchen, Samantha realized how thirsty she was. She cupped her hand and drank from the faucet. Only when her thirst was satisfied did she explore the offerings in the kitchen.

She felt like Goldilocks raiding the pantry of the three bears, but then remembered she was also one of the bears. Alon had invited her in. Dropped her at the door like a bad date, actually.

Bess Suncatcher kept a full larder, and Samantha had no trouble making a meal. When she had satisfied her hunger, she turned to the computer set up on a counter between two flanking pantry shelves in the walk-in larder. She’d seen such an arrangement in decor magazines, described as a place for the owner to look up a recipe or read emails.

The internet connection was surprisingly strong. None of her family had mobile phones, because changing from bear to human forms made it impossible to carry such things. But they did all have email accounts.

Samantha checked hers for news and was disappointed to find nothing from any of them. She told them of her safe arrival and where she landed. She paused before telling them about Alon, not knowing what to say. She told them she had seen their father attacked before being torn away from them by the whirlwinds and that she feared for his safety. Finally she said she had not yet found Bess but was in her home. Samantha pressed Send and glanced around, noting that the bare windows had gone dark. Nightfall, she realized.

When would he be back?

She headed upstairs to one of the bathrooms and took a moment to wash then transformed her bearskin into fitted jeans and a gauzy peasant blouse. She wore no underwear, socks or shoes. She had preferred it that way since she was a child. The less restraining her garments, the better.

“Now, let’s just see who lives here.”

When she was finished exploring the house, she reached the conclusion that Cesar Garza and Bess Suncatcher did live here until quite recently. So Alon had not lied about that. The Thunderbirds could find people, especially people who were not where you expected them to be. Yet they had plunked her here in this empty house.

It made no sense.

Samantha stared out the picture windows into the night. Should she stay or go? Alon could be bluffing, but thus far everything she could verify had been true.

The yearlings were out there. How dangerous could they be? She was a grizzly bear for goodness’ sakes. Nothing could defeat her.

Alon had.

Samantha sighed and decided to check her email again. Perhaps there was some word. The inbox popped up with one new message.

Samantha saw Blake’s address and suddenly she could breathe again. Her brother was alive.

A moment later she scanned his message. He had arrived uninjured at the home of the wolf and the Dream Walker. Nicholas had left Blake in charge of his family as he went to search for their father. Samantha sagged in her chair. The wolf was going to help her father. He’d find him. She knew a wolf’s gifts. Nicholas could track down anyone he had ever met. But would he be too late?

The worry gnawed at her like termites in dry wood as she read on. Tomorrow Blake would meet the chief of the Northwestern Council. In less than an afternoon he had found whom he sought, been trusted with Nicholas’s family and begun the process of becoming a member of their mother’s people, while she had spent the afternoon running through the woods like a headless chicken and creepy-crawling a stranger’s house.

Samantha wilted a little in her chair.

Oh, and let’s not forget that she had met a Toe Tagger who could steal a creature’s living soul. She shivered.

“What’s wrong?”

Samantha exploded out of the chair at the same instant she recognized Alon’s voice. She clutched her chest with both hands as her gaze snapped to his. He stood in the door to the pantry, arms folded over his chest, his silvery blond hair now pulled back into a neat ponytail.

Samantha gasped. “You might have given me a heart attack.”

“Your heart is strong,” he said.

Was he referring to the self-imposed stress test she’d given herself in the forest?

Why hadn’t she heard him or smelled him? Her senses were excellent, far better than a human’s. Nobody sneaked up on her, yet he had gotten all the way to the doorway of the pantry before she’d noticed him.

And now he blocked the only exit.

The hairs on her neck lifted.

His broad shoulders did not leave her enough territory to squeeze by him. She did not like the way he stared unblinking at her. It made her feel...hunted.

“Step back, Alon,” she growled, lowering her chin as she prepared for a fight she would likely lose.

His smile widened as if anxious to answer the challenge in her voice.

He arched a brow. “Or what?”

Samantha lowered her chin a notch. “Or I’ll make you step back.”

He didn’t move for a long, silent moment. Then he stood sideways and swept a hand toward the opening, like a courtier moving aside to let a lady pass.

He gave a half grin that made her stomach flutter and churn all at once. She’d never met anyone who made her feel anxious and thrilled at the same time. It was as if his presence made her senses go haywire.

She tried to judge his intent and failed, losing herself in those fathomless blue eyes. He was so effortlessly appealing, but terrifying too. She couldn’t decide if she should run from him or to him.

She took a step in his direction. Unlike humans, she listened to her instincts, and they told her not to be trapped between escape and this Halfling. But there was another instinct, a deeper, more disquieting urging that she did not care to scrutinize as she glided forward.

His eyes dared her to cross. His smile relayed his eagerness for the sport. Was this a game to him? Why was she willing to play?

Samantha tried not to show her nervousness as she took another step forward, but now her knees felt stiff and her gait awkward. He maintained his position, head bowed, one arm extended toward freedom. His devilish smile encouraged, and the predatory glint in his eyes warned her to be cautious.

She almost made it past him before he lunged forward. She did not have time to escape or defend. An instant later she found herself with both hands trapped behind her back as he used his body to push her to the opposite side of the frame. Her body twitched with the shock of all that male flesh pressed to hers.

“What upsets you, Samantha?”

“Besides you?”

He grinned, flashing strong white teeth, and her stomach dropped. Why did his nearness do that to her? She knew who he was and what he was. This son of her enemy was just like the horde that attacked her family. And yet...

“Tell me,” he coaxed.

She gazed up into those entrancing blue eyes. Was that why she reacted to him, because he did not look like those others? Her mind knew what he was, but her body seemed fooled by the masquerade. He had two forms, and this one was the most dangerous because she could not defend against his appeal.

“Let me go,” she said, just managing the words through clenched teeth. Her control slipped and she leaned forward instead of away.

He noticed, judging from the roguish smile full of male confidence. The urge to head-butt him was easier to resist than the impulse to lay her cheek on the hollow between his strong neck and wide shoulders. She came so close she could feel the heat of his skin on her face. His voice rumbled from his chest and she felt the vibrations on his skin.