Bear's Baby (Bear Heat Book 4) (6 page)

Sometimes they found the
murderer's lair in time. But sometimes, they only found the bodies.

Her work weighed heavily on
her, and she usually didn't fall asleep with a smile on her face.

On some nights, she couldn't
fall asleep at all.

When she did sleep, her mind
would usually be invaded by dreams. All kinds of dreams.

Some dreams were dark and
disturbing, leftover thoughts and memories from her work.

Some dreams were abstract,
romantic, magical. Her mind played out her wishes and fantasies
while she slept, and she would dream of a handsome, sexy Black Bear.

Those were just dreams. She
never thought they would come true.

Romance and passion, she
would dream of them. And what she had in her romantic, erotic dreams
were always so much better than what she experienced in real life.
Sad, but true.

Lindy closed her eyes and
drifted off into a contented, dreamless sleep. There was no need to
escape in dreams.

For once, her waking life,
her real life was far better, wildly more romantic and passionate,
than her dreams.

CHAPTER
EIGHT

Baxter sped into the
underground car park of Skyflame Casino and slotted his car into an
empty lot. Checking his weapons, he bolted to the lift lobby. He
had changed into his combat fatigues, and had strapped weapons to his
back, waist and boots. He was literally armed to the teeth.

He took the lift straight to
the top floor of the ritzy casino where Liam Skyworth's office was.
He had answered Lindy's question honestly. Where there was smoke,
there was fire. And with dragons, there was always smoke and fire.

Liam Skyworth was a dragon
guard, a protector of the realm. While the Black Bears waged war
against crime and trafficking syndicates in the city, Liam and his
kind waged a different kind of war. The dragons enlisted the help of
the Black Bears in this war, and Ethan Flint, the Black Bears alpha,
had negotiated for a very hefty, lucrative retainer fee. Ethan was a
shrewd, fearless businessman, and their business had expanded and
flourished at an astronomical rate under his leadership.

The big, fat retainer fee was
one thing. Ethan knew his clan well, and he knew that his Black
Bears would hate missing out on the action. If there was a war to be
waged against darkness and evil, the Black Bears were more than ready
to jump headlong into the fight. They loved getting their paws
bloody and dirty.

Baxter stepped out of the
lift and saw Thor waiting for him. Thor was similarly togged out
in black fatigues with knifes and guns strapped to his body. Until
recently, Thor had been working undercover, infiltrating one of the
largest underground crime gangs in the city. Thor had been
instrumental in the capture of quite a number of crime bosses, but
undercover work was dark, gritty and harrowing. It wasn't easy to
immerse yourself fully in a world of crime and not be tainted.
Aubrey, Thor's mate, had helped steady and soothe him and helped him
transition back to the land of the living. Baxter loved Aubrey and
what she had done for Thor.

Since Thor's return to the
clan, Baxter noticed that he was often paired with Thor for many of
their important missions. Maybe their alpha thought that they would
complement each other. Or maybe it was simply because Thor was the
only one who laughed at his jokes.

“Sorry to drag you away
from your bride on your wedding night,” Baxter said, clapping
Thor on his shoulder. “How's Aubrey?”

“Giggling and gossiping
with the rest of the bridesmaids. The girls are crashing over at our
place.”

Baxter chortled. “I
feel better now. I thought I was dragging you away from some hot
action. Aww, I feel for you, buddy. You're not getting any action
on your wedding night.”

Thor flashed him a smug grin.
“I got plenty last night. And the night before.”

“Good for you.”
Baxter grinned back.

Baxter checked his phone,
tapped his boot and glared at the lift doors. “Dylan is late,
as usual,” he huffed.

“No he isn't. You said
zero five hundred hours. It's now only four-fifty,” Thor said,
looking at his watch.

Baxter sniffed. “Hmph.
He should be early, not just on time. Protocol dictates that he
should be here before his team leader.” The last sentence
wasn't entirely accurate. He and Dylan were both in charge of this
operation. They shared command so they were joint team leaders.

Baxter knew that, but he just
liked to irritate the hell out of Dylan. The guy was too serious for
his own good.

Thor merely smiled. “Well,
speak of the devil.”

“There will be a lot
more devils to speak of soon,” Baxter muttered as the lift door
slid open

Dylan strode out of the lift.
Baxter gaped when he saw Luke following closely behind Dylan.

“What is he doing
here?” Baxter spluttered.

“Luke? I brought him
along. I'm his mentor, you know.”

“Yes, yes I know you're
his mentor. You don't have to rub my nose in it. But why did you
bring him with you? He's a new member of the clan. He's not ready
for this. He needs to be trained!”

“Yes. And this is the
best training for him,” Dylan beamed.

Baxter gaped at them. Luke
stood confidently beside Dylan and pounded a fist over his heart.
“I'm ready.”

Baxter opened his mouth, then
clamped it shut when he saw a flicker of doubt pass over Luke's
features.

“Fine. Let's go in,”
Baxter snapped. His words came out in an angry burst to hide his
worry. He didn't know how well Luke could handle himself in battle.
Luke was a new Black Bear, and the young man had gone through a lot.
He had been a young, human police officer but a trip to the hospital
for a fracture had thrown him into the hands of a maniacal, ambitious
doctor. Dr. Faizel had injected a large dose of bear shifter cells
into Luke, hoping to change him into a lethal killing machine for the
Mob. The Black Bears had put a stop to the deadly operation. Dr.
Faizel was dead and the Mob boss and the hospital Director who
financed and sanctioned the terrible operation had gone missing.
Luke had tried to end his own life when the doctors couldn't reverse
the change in his cell structure. He had a bear in him, like it or
not. And Luke definitely didn't like it. Luke had witnessed what
the serum did to another human. That man had turned into a savage
killer, a monster, and Luke would rather die than become that
monster.

But Ethan, their alpha, saw
that Luke's bear could be controlled. With proper training and
guidance, Luke would be a strong, valuable asset to the clan and the
city. Luke Keller was a good man, and his bear was powerful. With
the right training, Luke would be a formidable fighter and warrior.
So Ethan offered Luke a place in the Black Bears clan and made Dylan
his mentor.

Baxter shot Dylan a look.

Was Dylan doing the right
thing, throwing Luke into the battlefield with so little training and
preparation?

Baxter glanced at Luke, who
was wearing the uniform of the Black Bears smartly and proudly. The
young man was fully armed, but sometimes, oftentimes, weapons were
useless against a cunning, ruthless enemy.

“Stay alive, kid,”
he muttered to Luke.

“That's what I plan to
do,” Luke replied. “Dying is not cool.” After a
beat, he added softly, “I see that now. And I also see that
I'm not a monster.”

Baxter quirked a crooked
smile and nodded. “Well, I guess your mentor made the right
call. You are ready. Now—” He rubbed his hands
gleefully. “Let's go talk to Liam and see what fun he has in
store for us.”

The Black Bears stopped in
front of a mirrored wall. Baxter flashed his identification badge in
front of the blinking scanner at the side of the wall and the
mirrored panels parted.

They walked through the
grand, carpeted foyer to reach a wide glass door. At their approach,
the glass door slid open to reveal a sprawling, luxurious office.

Liam Skyworth was sitting
behind a huge, polished desk at the far end of the office. The
floor-to-ceiling windows behind him afforded a breathtaking view of
the vast glittering nightscape of the city.

“Hi, Liam,”
Baxter greeted him. “What can we do for you on this fine
morning?”

Liam smiled but his eyes were
grim. “Good morning, gentlemen.” He waved to the plush
leather chairs in front of his desk. “Have a seat.”

Baxter sat down and was about
to rock his chair back when he realized that the blasted thing was on
wheels. He was used to pushing his chair back and balancing his
chair on two legs, just for the heck of it. But he couldn't do that
when he was in a chair that was gliding along on its tiny, slippery
wheels.

“Sheesh,” he
grumbled under his breath. “Chairs shouldn't glide. This is
just wrong.”

Liam rang for coffee and
leaned back.

“So what do you have
for us, Liam?” Baxter asked impatiently.

“Well, I was thinking
that you guys might like to go demon hunting today,” Liam
answered calmly.

Baxter's eyes widened. “You
thought right!” He nudged Dylan and Luke.
“
Good
times, eh?
All right!
Let's get this party
started
!”

CHAPTER
NINE

“Morning, Siti!”
Lindy greeted her secretary cheerfully and opened the door to her
office. She certainly had a spring in her step this morning. She
was energized and her mind was buzzing with fresh thoughts and
angles. Good sex and a hearty breakfast had refreshed and refueled
her. She was ready to take on the world, and all the dastardly
villains in it.

She had hurriedly programmed
a reminder in her phone while she scarfed down her breakfast this
morning. If she didn't remind herself that she had a big date this
evening, she would likely work through dinner and by the time she
looked up from her work, it would again be full dark outside.

As soon as she booted up
her laptop, Siti came in with a big, aromatic cup of black coffee.

“I can get my own
coffee, Siti,” Lindy admonished gently. “I told you...”

Siti set the coffee cup
neatly on Lindy's desk. “You have a lot to do, and I know you
need caffeine in your veins to do your best work. I hope you guys
catch the monster soon. God, I'm scared to take the subway, to walk
the streets alone now,” Siti said, twisting the corner of her
blouse. “You have to put that sick fuck away for the rest of
his life. What he did to those people...” Siti's voice
wavered and she shook her head.

Lindy nodded and took an
appreciative sip of her coffee. “The police are doing their
best. I will do my best to help them nail him.” Lindy kept
her voice calm and level. She didn't want to add to her secretary's
panic and hysteria. Emotions were running high in the office and the
city, and fear was spreading like wildfire. She didn't want her
staff, her office and her city to descend into terror and chaos.
“Thanks for the coffee, Siti.”

After Siti left her office,
Lindy finished the rest of the coffee in three scalding gulps and
hunkered down to work. Time was ticking away. She had to get the
profile right, and narrow down the search for the police. The body
of the third victim had been found just two nights ago. They had to
work fast and stop the gruesome killings. The killer was getting
bolder, more brutal, less controlled. It seemed something had
snapped, and the killer was becoming unhinged and unpredictable. But
he wasn't unstoppable. They were closing in on him, and they would
stop him. Before he claimed his fourth victim.

Lindy sat back and studied
her notes. Over the years, she had worked her way up to become one
of the top criminal profilers in the department. She had worked with
the police and other investigative agencies to profile and nail
countless perpetrators of violent, brutal crimes.

But in all her years with the
BAD, she had never come across a case like this. Murderers usually
preyed on victims they perceived as easy and weak. But the victims
of this killer weren't helpless and defenseless. The first victim,
Yoon Park, was a policewoman, a fit, feisty woman who held a black
belt in karate. The second victim was a male deputy district
attorney, a rising star in the criminal justice system with a high
conviction rate. And this latest victim, Felicia Jackson, was an
experienced, gutsy counselor who worked with assault and abuse
victims.

The three victims were sharp,
tough, tenacious people, people who could stand up for themselves and
for others. The deputy district attorney, Anthony Buller, was a
former boxer. He was known to be relentless in the boxing ring and
in the courtroom. And Felicia Jackson was no tiny, petite damsel.
She was six foot tall and she had a mean right hook. Felicia had
once stopped a drunk, deadbeat husband with a chopper from killing
his wife and kids by knocking him out cold with a well-aimed punch.