Waking the Bear (Shifter Wars) (5 page)

Tears flooded his eyes and he slowed as he pulled into his driveway.

He parked and climbed out of the truck, leaving his toolbox in the cab in case he had to go back to the cabin. He wiped his eyes and looked up.

The stars fanned out over his head from mountain peak to mountain peak and he spotted Ursa Major, the Great Bear, dipping into the night sky. Ursa Minor always represented Charlotte to him and tonight, the haze obscured the tiny constellation. He let out a long breath. The stars always reminded him that taking care of the bears of Deep Creek had to remain his top priority. Until the Sen Pal were gone, one way or another.

No matter what.

Chapter Five

“It’s time we move in on the bears.” Evers paced the room filled with other men in the pride, plus the lone lioness warrior, Lara. He didn’t know when Max had started letting women fight, but clearly the old man was getting soft. He edged around her and she hissed as he passed by.

Bitch.

“Sit down, Evers. You’ll get your chance to talk to my father when he gets here.” Mason, one of the twin heirs to the pride’s leadership, raised his voice. His black hair fell in a clump over his eyes like a tough guy, but Evers wasn’t fooled. He wasn’t afraid of the twins.

Anger coiled inside Evers’s chest, constricting his breath. Marco and Mason, the twins, had long been his friends. They’d tousled and played as cubs and learned to fight as young men. Things had changed since he’d been gone. The other lions were acting as docile as housecats.

He paused then spoke louder. “They’re still sleepy from winter and we’d get the jump on them before they even knew what was happening if we attacked now.”

He’d never liked being cooped up in the compound where the lions lived, but Max insisted the pride live within the confines of the little area just outside Henredon. He’d said it was safer if they stayed together, and easier since they’d all be close in case the bears attacked. But Evers had been gone awhile and he’d been plenty safe out in the human world.

He preferred roaming free, but he came back for one reason alone.

To kill Griff Martin.

Stuck in the compound felt like being in a zoo, only no one was coming to see them or tossing them juicy steaks.

He clutched the back of a chair, savoring his knuckles turning white under his ferocious grip. He thrived on his anger and the physical pain it caused, and it made him feel more powerful, especially in the room full of lions in sheep’s clothing.

The rec room the pride used for meetings was even more stifling than the compound, especially when most of the decision makers were in attendance. Too many people in too small a space. Like today.

He stood to his full height. “I’m tired of waiting.”

He couldn’t let the others know his true agenda. Once Griff was out of the way, he might help regain the cave, depending on his mood and how many bears he might get the chance to kill, but then he was heading out of the area and making his home elsewhere. He scanned the group. “I’m ready to fight for what’s ours.”

All the lions kept their heads down except Lara, who met his gaze with a scowl, but Evers knew none would truly challenge him except the twins.

Maximillian, the pride leader, was another matter. Evers did respect him some, though as Max had aged, he’d lost some of his hard edge.

Evers held his nose high and sniffed the fear wafting through the air. Fear he’d caused. He stifled a grin. No denying it, he enjoyed the power he still held in the pride. The men knew to respect him, and the women didn’t count.

“Sit down and shut up, Evers.” Lara let out a low growl and crossed her arms. “You don’t make the decisions. Max does.”

Evers moved to stand in front of her and leaned close. “Don’t try to tell me what to do. I’ll crush you.”

Lara rose, her hands fisted, and Evers stepped back. “You’re even more of an asshole than you were before you left.” She moved toward him. “Why don’t you go back to whichever garbage pail you were scavenging from? We don’t need you. Or want you.”

“You need me. You’re just too stupid to realize it.” Evers sneered. “War is coming.”

“We’ll be ready, despite you. I’m training a group of lionesses to fight, and we’ll be helping when we go after the bears. Whether you like it or not.”

“Your place is here in the compound, having babies.” Evers ran his hand through his short hair. Disgust rolled through him. He was going to have to talk to Max, as he’d clearly lost his mind.

Lara shrieked, and the slap that followed echoed across the room. Evers reeled, his face stinging, his pride stinging even more. The other lions jumped to their feet and Mason rushed over and pushed between Evers and Lara, jostling Evers backward.

“Enough!” Mason’s voice carried in the room, booming off the walls.

“Come on, Evers.” Marco pushed him. “When are you going to learn to keep your mouth shut?”

Evers steadied himself and wiped at his cheek, the low-level anger he’d had boiling up exponentially. His face burned where Lara slapped him. If Marco weren’t standing there, he’d punch her.

“You’ll pay for that.” Evers spit on the floor then glared at Lara.

“Bring it.” Lara sat down. “I’m not afraid of you. There’s more where that came from, and next time it won’t be just a slap.”

“You’d better be afraid of me,” Evers muttered and turned away. The pride was out of control.

The lions scattered and returned to their seats, whispering and staring.

“Evers, calm down before I get up and beat your ass myself.” Marco leaned back in his leather recliner. He already had the regal posture, his shoulders squared and his spine straight. He looked ready to rule, if Max tapped him. “Until my father speaks, we wait.”

Most of the lions in the upper echelon had already arrived to talk about what to do about the bears and Max was late as usual. Evers huffed. The old lion had gotten even worse about being tardy.

As pride Enforcer, Evers knew the best plan for war. After all, enforcement was his job. He didn’t need the old man to tell him it was time to attack the bears and take the cave.

It
was
time.

Time for a new generation to shine in Deep Creek. A generation of lions. He didn’t care if he was around to be part of it, but he wanted the bears crushed.

Especially Griff. He set his mouth in a hard line and swallowed down the acid that crept up his throat.

Preston, a young lion, crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, his golden hair falling past his shoulders in loose waves. “I agree with Evers. We should’ve attacked while the bears were sleeping.”

“Finally. Someone rational.” Evers put his hands on his hips.

Preston continued, “Could’ve taken them out while they lived off their own fat. They are so groggy and slow in winter. Simple. Maybe no glory in a sneak attack, but it would’ve worked. We’d already be in control of the cave.”

Mason took a swig of his Buck’s Beer and set the green bottle down hard. Everyone looked toward him. “That wouldn’t have worked.” He glared at Preston. “We’d never have found them all because they’re so spread out. Even living in Oakwood and Henredon. Not like they have a compound like we do. The ones we didn’t find would have come after us like hornets out of a nest and there are a lot more of them than us. We’ve got to play this smart if we want to win decisively.”

Evers ground his teeth. Marco and Mason annoyed him these days. Sometimes they were too passive, especially Mason. Marco was fairly stern.

As heirs to the leadership of the pride, they had both grown into weak versions of their father. All talk and no action. Instead of leading with power and strength, they wanted to hold meetings and discuss what to do.

Bullshit. Time to put up or shut up.

“By all accounts, there are twice as many bears as lions.” Marco doodled on his notepad. “That’s a big problem.”

“We don’t know that for sure.” Evers closed his eyes and counted.
One, two, three...oh, the stupidity.

“We don’t know it’s not true, either.” Marco set the notebook down. “Until we know all the facts, and until my father says so, we don’t attack.”

“Total bullshit.” Evers glanced around the room at the lions. They all looked fit and muscular. Battle-ready. No reason to wait, none at all. “Preston agrees with me.”

The young lion looked down at his hands.

“No accounting for ignorance.” Lara tapped her fingers on the chair’s armrest.

Evers growled. “Why is this female here?”

The rest of the lions in the room once again refused to meet his glare. Didn’t matter. He preferred to work on his own anyway. Didn’t need sloppy minions to do his work. If it weren’t for Maximillian, he’d not think twice about heading out on his own to take care of the bears. He might do it anyway. Out of respect for what the old man had done for him, he’d wait to hear out his plan.

Griff. Park ranger and bear bastard.

Saliva filled his mouth. Yeah. He’d take care of that bear. As soon as possible.

“Lara is an excellent warrior. We’re going to need her.” Marco kicked the recliner back and put his arms behind his head. “It’s not going to be long before it’s time to go after the bears, Evers. We’ll take what’s rightfully ours.”

A general group of “yeah” and “you bet we will” and “go lions” went out amongst the lions. Evers shook his head and rolled his eyes. He’d left the pride strong and tough and had come back to a pompon squad.

Most of the lions seemed to prefer hanging out and playing eight ball at the clubhouse or, as he’d heard, in the summer, sunning themselves by the pool Max had put in. No one wanted to actually fight for what the bears took from them. Max had even built a bowling alley and the lions had teams.
Ugh.

The pride had no pride.

Evers grabbed a can of soda from the fridge and popped the top.
I’m surrounded by idiots.
He gulped the drink. Max would be ready to attack soon, he was sure of it.

They’d already waited long enough, and the cave belonged under the lions’ care, not the bears’. Not that Evers believed any of the funky superstitions about it, but the land had been lion territory and Max knew that. He’d wanted access to the cave for a long, long time. If some fairy lived there that granted wishes or told the future, then even better.

All Evers knew is that his parents were buried there. Griff had taken him there to kill him. That was reason enough to take the cave from the bears.

The door opened and Max entered, along with a crowd of young lions following him. Evers watched the group enter, noting the almost-cubs fawning over their leader like he was a rock star. He shook his head.

Max stopped and looked around the room, giving a quick nod toward his sons, Marco and Mason.

Large and muscular, with a head of thick pale white hair that framed his face standing out at least six inches in all directions, Max held a presence in the room that wasn’t matched by anyone. His gaze, centered around gleaming blue eyes set in sun-tanned skin, pierced anyone who dared meet it. He stood at least half a foot taller than everyone in the room. No question he was the alpha, leader of the pride. Marco and Mason rose to meet their father and the other lions all stood, heads down, to acknowledge his entry.

Evers took another gulp of the soda.
Finally.

Max hugged each of the twins, giving them a sharp pat on the back before moving into the room, nodding and greeting everyone. The boys’ mother had died in childbirth, and since then they had been raised and spoiled by the whole pride.

After his own parents had been killed when he was a teen, Evers had naturally filled in as a third son for Max, since his parents had been Max’s best friends.

He’d always been envious that Marco and Mason had a father. A real one. His own was dead and buried.

And it was Griff’s fault.

Evers’s parents’ car had run off a muddy road in heavy rain and flipped multiple times down an embankment. According to what he’d heard from Max, they’d been driving through the national park, having spent the day hiking and picnicking near one of the scenic waterfalls near the gorge. The same park that Griff was now ranger for.

A teenaged Griff had come upon the scene of the accident. Supposedly, he had been out collecting mushrooms to dehydrate for use in cooking, but it was all too convenient that he’d been in the same area of the accident. Somehow, he’d either caused the accident or finished off Evers’s parents, not that it mattered now. After all, he was a bear, and the bears were sworn enemies. Max hadn’t told him directly that it was Griff’s fault, but it wasn’t hard to figure out.

The police hadn’t arrived for forty-five minutes and the ambulance took over an hour to wend its way through the park to the accident scene. Evers held his hand to his throbbing head and bit back the bile taste in his mouth. He pulled out his roll of antacid from his pocket and popped three, chewing the chalky mint tablets like he was tearing into meat.

At the very least, Griff had allowed his parents to die. Otherwise, they would still be alive. Max had kept him from investigating the crime for a long time, first because Evers was too young, then by directing him to other tasks, but finally Evers had enough and decided it was time to find out the truth. When he’d pulled the police report in Oakwood last winter, he’d seen little mention of Griff—and no mention that he’d tried to save Evers’s mom and dad. Only that the bodies were dragged off by animals.

Griff had not only killed his parents; he lied about it.

It was at that point Evers decided that revenge, once and for all, was the answer. No more speculation or excuses.

The bastard was going to pay for his parents’ deaths. A bear wouldn’t save a lion, much less go out of his way to do it.

Evers clenched his fists.

“Evers.” Max hugged him then moved past. “It’s wonderful to see you again. You weren’t around much this winter.”

Evers jerked out of his train of thought. “I had a lot on my mind. It’s good to be home.”

Evers breathed in the scent of power that Max gave off. What he wouldn’t give to have that power.

The room quieted as Max plopped down and spread himself in the large chair in the corner. He pushed his hair behind his ears, revealing a large diamond stud in his left lobe, and cleared his throat. “Happy to see you all, my family.”

The lions answered their greeting in chorus. Evers rolled his eyes.

Max leaned forward. “Let’s talk about killing bears.”

“I’m all for that.” Evers nodded. He’d thought about hunting down Griff during his semi-hibernation, but even if he could’ve gotten to him inside his cabin, what joy would it be to kill him while he slept? He wanted Griff to be looking him in the eye when he took his life. And completely awake and aware of why he was dying.