Brian didn’t know how this happened to him. It had to be because Haley was so caring and full of life that he fell under her spell, he thought. Humans are like that. They are free and full of life and promise. They don’t worry about the things most shifter’s do. They don’t worry about being discovered as not being human. They don’t worry that they will be hunted and killed for no reason other than they are shifters. They don’t have to hide out in faraway places so as not to be discovered. They are free to roam the world as they see fit.
He reached for two pups lying on the left of Haley, one male and one female. They looked like humans. No one would think they are shifters, he thought. Is that how he looked when he was a baby, he wondered to himself. He never even saw his offspring until they were older and had developed into shifters. All the things he ran from, he had to face.
Holding the two small pups in one hand, he sat in a chair after building a warm fire. On the table near the chair set two bottles. And in those bottles contained Haley’s milk. He couldn’t help but smile as he placed one bottle and then the other in the pup’s mouths. Their skin soft and smooth with a thin coating of fine hair. Their heads completely bald.
They held on to his fingers as if he was their anchor in this life, and that made him feel worthy and that made him feel like a father. But these were not his. When he did impregnate Haley he would be there with her, he decided. As he peered down at them in his arms, he felt a rush of empathy. He couldn’t take their mother from them.
Brian made the best and worst decision of his life.
Staying up during the day hours and spending nights hunting and helping Haley with the pups had taking a toll on his strong body. The Indian woman he hired to clean and care for the pups wouldn’t come until tomorrow, and he thought then he could get some rest and take them down to his Grand Canyon home where he knew it would be difficult for the Samsas to find him and Haley.
He sat down on a large fur rug placed it in front of the fire and took the pups and placed them on the side of him in a small bassinet he built with his own hands. They were asleep and they would be like that for hours. He closed his eyes not expecting to fall asleep, but he did. The two other male pups were being fed by Haley.
Brian didn’t hear when Hunter and Tracker crept up to the house. Brian didn’t hear them when they stalked him stepping carefully without even the owls noticing them. Each werewolf standing at the window. They were hunters, but they weren’t the king of the hunters. The king of all jungles was lying in front of a fire sleeping with Hunter’s pups nearby.
The dim light from the fire was enough for Hunter and Tracker to see Brian lying as if he was dead. Was he just luring them in with a false sense of security only to pounce on them with his strong body and large paws, and tear them apart with his strong jaws? Hunter had estimated that it would take the lion a few seconds to shift. In that time he and Tracker could go for the jugular and it would be all over.
But then he moved and lay on his back and Hunter saw the small crib, and what he thought were cubs in it. These were newborns and he couldn’t distinguish one shifter from another.
Shifters didn’t take on their hair color, facial, and body definition until they were a month old. These cubs had been born only a few days by a human female, Hunter thought.
Hunter readied his bow and arrow and signaled for Tracker to come through the window, and he would break down the door and come in that way. The confusion would distract the lion shifter and he would try to protect the cubs leaving him vulnerable to Hunter and Tracker.
When Hunter raised his foot and batted in the door, the redwood door split from the hinges and from the door frame. At the same time Tracker dove through the window. Brian’s eyes were quick and his shift was faster, but Hunter had the bow and arrow aimed at the cubs as Tracker flicked his large long fangs.
The lion shifter stood hulking over them. “You don’t want to test me,” Brian said his eyes flashing between Hunter and Tracker.
“You are the one at a disadvantage.” Hunter held the bow and the arrow aimed at the two newborns.
“You can’t do that. You don’t want their blood on your hands,” Brian cautioned.
“Tell me why not.”
“One is a female. You two are hunters with a hunter’s principles.”
“Then we’ll take the female with us after we kill you and your male heir.” Hunter raised the bow and aimed it at Brian’s heart. He knew if he didn’t strike him just right that the lion shifter would have enough strength to reach him, and kill him and Tracker before he could fire off another arrow.
Hunter extended his left arm with the bow and arrow ready.
“Where is she?”
“Who?”
“You know who I mean. The female you’ve been pursuing. The one you had your sons kidnap. You wasted the life of two sons for one female.” It wasn’t that Hunter wanted to discuss Brian’s sons as much as he wanted to weaken him.
“That’s there lot in life. They are lions and if they can’t destroy their enemies then they will be destroyed by them.” It hurt Brian to say this, but he didn’t want to reveal how the news of his son’s demise had made him feeble. He had received the news from his other sons and put it out of his mind. Now Hunter was having him relive it again. Brian legs grew shaky but he held steady.
Then something caught Hunter’s eyes. It was a weak Haley standing holding on to the doorway. “What are you doing here, Hunter?” she said holding on to the frame of the door unable to make another step. That wasn’t what he wanted to hear. Brian tried to make a move in her direction, but Hunter aimed the arrow at the babies and he stepped back.
“Were you going to kill your own babies? Then you are as bad as he was.” Hunter didn’t want to explain. Of course he wouldn’t kill the babies, but he had to make Brian the lion shifter think he would.
“These are not mine. You have lain with him, and now you are trying to save him by saying these are my pups. If they were mine they would be dead by now, and by that shifter before you.”
“You have a stubborn one track mind like your father. You’ve let your emotions color your judgement. I couldn’t give birth in a few weeks of being with Brian. Open your eyes. You can’t even tell your own kind or recognize your own babies?” Haley said with a cold tired hoarse voice. “I see I fell in love with the wrong shifter.” She glanced over to Hunter, then to Tracker who was ready for Hunter to say the word, and the lion shifter would be history.
Raising his bow and taking aim at Brian, Haley rushed in front of Brian. “You can’t do this Hunter.” Brian pushed her out of the way.
“That proves it, these are his cubs. Why would you stop me from killing him?”
“Because he’s more of a human than you are.” Brian glanced over at Haley standing holding on to the back of a chair. When she gathered her strength Brian waved for her to take the babies.
Hunter nodded and Haley stooped and picked up one pup and then the other. She turned and looked at Hunter before scurrying into the bedroom where there were more cries.
“There are two more, Hunter,” Tracker said his thick eyebrows meeting. These are the cries of werewolves, not lions.”
Hunter’s eyes shot to Brian. “Don’t you know the cries of your own pups? Obviously you don’t. If you don’t believe me then listen to your brother. I can see that he’s your brother. I don’t have to guess about that. And why can’t you see the pups are yours. Are you so inflexible and blind with hatred and revenge?”
“It’s enough talk from you. And Hunter let the arrow fly. It passed through the lion shifter’s shoulder and impaled him into the wall. Hunter placed another arrow on the bow ready to finish him off when Haley came running in and stepped in front of him.
“Move, Haley,” Hunter warned her.
“What are you going to do? Kill me too. You can’t forgive me for being here with Brian. Did you believe Katie when she said that I chose to be with him? Right now I would prefer to be with Brian than you. You can’t forgive the weakness in others and yourself.” Haley stood in front of Brian as the blood dripped from his shoulder.
“Let him kill me, Haley. I don’t want you to plea for my life,” Brian said standing straight up after pulling from the wall and crossing in front of Haley.
“I’m not pleading for you. It’s me that don’t want Hunter to do this. If it hadn’t been for you my children might not have been alive.”
“It was him that kidnapped you,” Hunter said, “remember.”
“It was you that didn’t realize that you loved me until it was too late. I want to go home Hunter, and I don’t want Brian’s blood on your hands. I couldn’t live with you or love you if I thought you could kill someone who didn’t do me any harm. What he did by taking me was to make you realize how much you needed and wanted me.”
Haley walked slowly to Hunter. “Take me home and take your pups home. We’ve had enough of this.” Haley watched over at Tracker. She could tell he had had enough by the tired look on his face and he wanted to go home, too.
When Haley faced Hunter she heard a loud thump. Brian had fallen to the floor. Haley rushed to him. She glanced up at Hunter and then to Tracker. “Help me. He’s passed out. He lost a lot of blood. I can help him. You aren’t going to leave him like this to die,” she said her glance wavering between Hunter and Tracker.
Hunter’s expression still cold.