Lion Lost & Found, Paranormal Romance (Ghost Cat Shifters Book 2) (10 page)

Chapter 9

Heath leaned forward and set his empty plate on the coffee table. After they showered, Vivi had thrown together some sandwiches. They were in the living room on the couch. Jax had curled up in the corner and was busy grooming himself after coming in drenched from the rain. Vivi stood and picked up Heath’s plate, carting it into the kitchen along with hers. She returned with a bottle of wine and two glasses. He watched while she filled them, her damp hair falling over her shoulders as she leaned forward. She’d changed into a pair of swingy cotton pants and a sweatshirt. He’d run out to his truck to grab the change of clothes he kept there. He’d been doing construction long enough to know it was smart to keep something clean on hand, so he was in a faded pair of jeans and a clean flannel shirt. Vivi had kindly tossed his wet clothes in the washer.

All in all, the entire evening was feeling so domestic, he felt unsettled. He might know precisely where he hoped to go with Vivi, but this felt almost too good to be true. His mind was also turning over how he was going to tell her about Roger’s suspicions about Chris. He didn’t want to wait too long and risk her hearing about it from someone else. When she plunked onto the couch and held out a glass of wine for him, he took it from her and immediately took a healthy swallow.

“I have some news from Roger,” he said, electing to take the quick, direct approach.

She leaned into the cushions and crossed her legs. She looked so relaxed, he wanted to take back his words. Vivi relaxed wasn’t something he got to enjoy often. She was usually humming with energy. Over the last few months, when she was around him, she also had a guarded edge to her. Right now, her hair fell in a rumpled tousle around her shoulders. Her eyes were warm and the lines of tension had disappeared from her face. Much as he was tempted to forget what he was about to say, she needed to hear it and he’d rather she hear it from him.

She snagged a soft knit blanket off the back of the couch and tucked it over her lap as she sipped her wine. “Any news would be good. It feels like we’ve heard nothing but more of the same for months.”

“Right. Well, I’m not sure what you’re gonna think of this. You know Daniel and I’ve been scouting the nearby areas?” At her nod, he continued. “A few days ago, we headed out to one of the properties the police searched months ago. We saw a shifter out there, a male I wasn’t familiar with. It definitely wasn’t Nelson, but whoever it was didn’t want to be found. Anyway, we reported back to Roger, and…” He paused and ran a hand through his hair, his stomach knotting with tension. There was no easy way to tell her Julianna’s father was suspected of being part of the shifter smuggling network and damn if he knew how to soften the blow. He took another gulp of his wine and continued. “Roger thinks it’s likely it was Chris.”

Vivi’s eyes widened and her hand flew to her mouth. “What?! Oh my God. Please tell me that can’t be right. Why does Roger think it’s him?” She took a healthy swallow of her wine, her eyes pinned to Heath.

“Because one of the guys they arrested recently said it was probably Chris. Apparently, Chris was doing pick ups for Nelson. I know you haven’t been in touch with him…”

Vivi cut in. “Not in over three years. Once he found out I was pregnant, he pretty much bolted. I figured out he wasn’t the greatest guy, but… Oh hell. Just tell me everything Roger knows.”

“Aside from what they learned about him working locally for Nelson, apparently he was arrested for dealing in Boulder. When he made his way back to Painter, the police in Boulder gave the guys here a heads up because of everything going on with the smuggling network. That’s all Roger knows.”

Vivi leaned back into the cushions again and sighed. “This sucks. I’ve accepted Chris isn’t interested in being a father, but it doesn’t change the fact he’s Julianna’s father. She asks about him sometimes and I never know what to say. I can’t tell her that her dad’s a loser who can’t be bothered. Now I have to worry about him being involved in the smuggling network. I mean, that’s awful. Those shifters have put us all at risk. If we didn’t have shifters on the police force here, we’d have a real problem. As it is, they’re doing everything they can to keep it quiet that it’s shifters. Now I know just what a scumbag Chris really is.”

Heath didn’t know what to say. He wanted to promise her it would be okay, but he couldn’t. He could keep Vivi and Julianna safe from a lot of things, but not from the realities of Chris’s risky and damning choices. Cold anger knotted inside. He detested the kind of man Chris was. It made him sick to consider how Chris had hurt Vivi and essentially abandoned Julianna. He looked over at Vivi. Her eyes were bright with tears. He started to reach for her, but she shook her head sharply. Swiping at her eyes, she gulped in air.

“It’s just one more thing to figure out how to explain to Julianna when she’s old enough to understand. You have no idea how much I wish I could go back and have enough sense to see Chris for who he was. I say that and then I remember that not for a second would I change the events that brought Julianna into my life. I just wish I could have her, and she could also have a father who wasn’t a complete asshole and who cared enough to be around.”

Heath absorbed what she said and bit back his words. He wanted to tell her it would be okay because he’d be the father to Julianna she didn’t have, but he figured that might be pushing too far and too fast for Vivi right now. At the moment, she needed time to come to terms with what Chris might be doing. “You know, it might be Chris or it might not. They won’t really know until they bring him in.”

Vivi shrugged. “My guess is it’s him. I never mentioned it, but here and there, I wondered if he was involved in something like this. I didn’t want to believe it, but he was always looking for the easy way and he didn’t care much for any kind of responsibility. That’s how he approached the whole father thing. He acted like it was a burden on him. When I told him I was pregnant, that was it. Maybe if I’d decided against having Julianna, it would have been different, but I doubt it. Smuggling would appeal to him because it was good money and risky. It doesn’t surprise me to hear he got picked up for dealing in Boulder. I just want him arrested. I want it over, so I can know for sure. It’s not like I’ll tell Julianna about this now, but it’ll give me a few years to figure out how the hell to tell her not only does her father not give a damn about her, but he’s also a criminal.”

Vivi’s voice was bitter and weary. Heath’s mind spun as he considered how he could make this right. Yet, there was no making it right. It was what it was. Whether or not Chris was involved in the smuggling network, it didn’t change what Julianna would have to accept about her father overall. The knot of anger tightened further. Heath might not be able to make it right, but it didn’t change how furious he was about it. He looked over at Vivi and stretched his arm across the back of the couch, his hand curling around the nape of her neck. This time she didn’t push him away. She relaxed into his touch as he slowly massaged her neck, easing the tension bundled there.

After several quiet moments, Jax’s purr started. Heath chuckled. “Jax is the Olympic champ of purring.”

Vivi rolled her head to the side, a slow smile curling the corners of her mouth. “So he is.” She paused and took a deep breath. “Thanks for telling me about Chris. I know you didn’t have to.”

“There was never any question. I figured you had to know soon.”

She held his gaze for a long moment. His body started to tighten and that familiar need coursed through him.

***

The following afternoon, Vivi drove along the winding highway. The road hugged the mountainside. Leaves fluttered in the breeze. The road was dappled with the shadows of trees and blowing leaves. As she drove along, the tension in her stomach knotted tighter and tighter. She hadn’t told anyone she was coming out here, but she was determined to find Chris herself. She didn’t think he would hurt her, but she wanted to talk to him. Heath had told her where he and Daniel had gone searching the other day, so she knew she was looking for an old overgrown road that led into the forest. In her years growing up in Painter, she and Sophia had explored almost every nook and cranny in the mountains surrounding Painter. She recalled this old logging property from back when Daniel’s grandfather was actively working on the land. She’d hated seeing the barren sections of land, absent of trees. She’d been relieved when they’d stopped logging. It had been years since she’d explored over on this side of town, but she knew where to look. The overgrown road was right where she remembered. She turned into it slowly. Broken branches and foliage cued her it was the right road since Heath and Daniel had driven through here already.

She followed their tire tracks to where they must have parked in a small clearing. The clearing had once held a few temporary buildings where the heavy duty logging equipment was stored. She climbed out of her car and paused beside it. The autumn air was chilly, its scent crisp and refreshing. The forest rose tall around the edges of the clearing. She walked through the clearing and into the trees. Sunlight fell through the trees, slanting rays of light brightening the forest. She held still for a moment and then shifted. Power whipped through her. In seconds, she stretched in her cat form. The soft breeze ruffled through her fur. She stood tall and sniffed the air, hoping to catch any hint of Chris nearby. No luck. She scented nothing other than the earthy hint of autumn and leaves blowing on the breeze.

She glanced around and started running slowly through the forest. She recalled there were some caves in an area a few miles from here. She didn’t know where Chris might be hiding out, but she figured she’d start where he could find shelter. She wove through the trees, picking up speed as she moved. A pair of squirrels chattered at her from a tree as she passed by them.

The terrain became rockier as she ascended deeper into the mountains. She moved quickly and quietly, her senses attuned to any changes around her. As she approached the area where the caves were, a gust of wind blew through the trees. She scented another shifter. Coming to an abrupt stop, she waited quietly. A crow called nearby. A chipmunk scampered across the ground in front of her, pausing to stare at her for a moment before dashing between two boulders. Her skin prickled as she sensed the other lion getting closer.

She held still for a moment before she leapt, almost silently, into a tree branch. The height afforded her a better view through the trees, and she spied the other cat padding quietly through the trees. At first, she didn’t have a clear view, but as the shifter moved closer, she could see it was Chris. She hadn’t harbored much hope, but what little she had, she’d been clinging to tightly. She’d hoped against hope that she was wrong about Chris and he hadn’t been stupid enough to get involved in the smuggling network. She didn’t want Julianna to have to learn that detail about her father later on. As she released that tiny bit of hope, fury rose on its heels. Without thinking, she coiled and leapt to the ground, dashing through the trees and heading straight for Chris.

She closed the distance between them swiftly, giving up any attempt at stealth. Chris swung around and growled when she wove through the trees and bolted onto the bluff where he was walking. She didn’t hold back and snarled as she went for him, claws extended as she caught him in the shoulder. She knew he recognized her because he hesitated for a split second before snarling in return when he dodged her. She swiped at him again, this time catching him solidly in the neck. He growled and went for her in return. What had initially been a half-hearted fight on his part swung to fierce, his desperation showing. She was driven by her own fury, fury formed from the festering anger she’d held inside for years—anger at herself for falling for Chris and anger at him for not giving a damn about Julianna.

Vivi dodged and swirled as Chris fought with her. Even though they’d dated and she’d traveled in the mountains a few times with him in lion form, she’d never seen him fight. He was sloppy, but strong. She pushed and pushed until she almost had him cornered among a cluster of boulders. Just when she thought she could subdue him, he lunged and sunk his claws into her shoulder. Searing pain shot through her, and she cried out. He gained just enough leverage to pin her. Fear rose within, riding the fumes of her adrenaline. She didn’t give up though and snarled, swiping her claws across his face.

Chris released her and stepped away. He gave her a long look before he bolted and raced through the trees. She scrambled to her feet and started to take chase before she stopped. She didn’t know what she meant to do. She’d come out here because she needed to know if it was Chris. She had her answer. Only her festering anger was driving her to fight. She could keep chasing him, but she didn’t think she’d manage to subdue him on her own and bring him in. Her breath misted in the chilly air. She heard Chris running, the sound of him weaving through the trees fading as he got further and further away. She turned and headed back to her car. Her shoulder was burning with pain from the deep gouge of his claws. The concrete, physical pain mirrored her emotional state—anger mingled with sadness. She so, so wished Chris had been nothing more than a blip on her life, that she’d been able to see past the surface before the dice of life rolled and he ended up being much more than a blip.
 
If it weren’t for Julianna, Vivi wouldn’t even be angry. She wanted to protect Julianna from the pain of loss and of learning she happened to have a father who couldn’t even be bothered. When Vivi reached the clearing, the sun was setting on the mountain ridge on the far side of the trees. The sky was a watercolor of soft gold and orange with the last rays of the sun haloing the trees.

Chapter 10

Heath pushed through the door into Mile High Grounds, a gust of wind following him into the coffee shop. It was quiet again since it was late afternoon, his preferred time to stop by. He’d just finished helping Daniel with the last of the window replacements out at the farmhouse and could use a shot of caffeine.