Talon (Rise of the Pride, Book 1) (14 page)

“You can’t keep me from finding her,” he
roared, walking right up to Talon’s desk and slamming his hands
down in anger.

“I’m not,” Talon growled, his alpha bubbling
to the surface. No one, not even his little brother, walked into
his domain demanding anything. He knew Kye needed guidance, but he
also needed a strong hand. “But you will stand down, Kye.”

“I’m sorry,” he relented, dropping his gaze
to the desktop as a sign that he was not going to challenge the
alpha. Talon’s push of power was no match for Kye’s anger. “I have
to find her, Talon.”

“You go with Noah and Dane,” he replied.
“Bring her home.” That was all he could do for his brother. Let him
feel like he was doing something to find her.

Noah held the door for the two Guardians
who’d already shifted, following them out into the hallway. Talon
started around the desk but stopped when his brother let out a
shuddering breath.

“If someone hurts her…” Kye paused, clutching
his chest.

“She will be found,” Talon assured him,
hoping like hell he didn’t bring back the body of the young female
his brother was already falling in love with. They were not
mated…at least, not yet. The mating hormones didn’t appear until
around the twentieth birthday. Kye had three more years before he
and Evie would know if they were meant to be together. There was
only one mate for a panther, and they mated for life.

“Wait,” Kye said, stopping Talon from
leaving. “What about Liberty? What’s going on?”

“She is my mate and will be treated as such,”
Talon replied, his alpha rising to the surface. She was his even if
he hadn’t claimed her yet, but that would happen.

“We need to worry about Evie,” Kye
interrupted.

“Liberty is no threat to us,” Talon snarled.
“She is mine. Is that understood?” His voice dropped to a deeper
octave. The sound was low and menacing. Any of his Guardians or
family that challenged him would suffer at his hands when it came
to the woman.

“She’s human,” Kye reminded Talon.

“Regardless, she’s my mate,” he stated, his
voice holding a tone that said the discussion was over. He didn’t
want to have to explain the complications of his mating with his
little brother. Now wasn’t even the time to get into that with him.
They had to find the child and bring her home.

As the thought of Liberty being left alone
with his pride entered his brain, he ushered his brother out of the
room. When he entered the living room, he was shocked still at the
sight before him. Every one of his pride, in human and panther
form, were gathered around Liberty as close as possible, watching
while she held Evie’s mother as she wept on Liberty’s shoulder.
When their eyes met, a sadness passed between them and right then
and there, Talon Shaw made a vow to never see that look in her eyes
again. He couldn’t bring a human into his world. It was too
dangerous, and the thought of his mate being taken or hurt hardened
his heart toward mating…anyone. His pride was the most important
thing in his world. It was his responsibility to keep them
safe.

Having a mate complicated things. His heart
squeezed painfully knowing he couldn’t move forward with Liberty
right now. Talon’s dedication was to his people. As it was supposed
to be.

Chapter
Eight

When Talon had left the room, Liberty had
squared her shoulders and turned toward the group that had
gathered, making sure to stay a good distance away from the ones
who were in panther form. She still wasn’t sure how much of their
human side remained after the shift.

“Can you tell me anything about what happened
to your daughter?” Liberty asked, dropping to her knees in front of
the woman. The woman’s eyes widened when she looked at Liberty, but
she was speechless as sobs wrenched out of her. “Can
anyone
tell me anything?”

“Two men came on our land, and I was too late
to catch them. They took my daughter.” The father squeezed the
woman’s hand in a show of support. The pride who’d shifted snarled
as their cat bodies rocked back and forth, anxiety evident in their
postures.

“Did they look familiar? Ages? Descriptions?”
she begged. She was throwing out any questions she could think of.
They had to find that poor girl. Seeing this woman hurting was more
than Liberty could stand. The thought of how her mother would have
felt if she’d been kidnapped sent her heart fluttering in
terror.

“Both of them had dark hair,” the mother
whispered, accepting a tissue from an older boy who looked like the
father. “I don’t remember much. It all happened so fast.”

“Is the girl that’s missing your sister?”
Liberty asked, rising to her feet. The boy couldn’t have been more
than fifteen, sixteen at most. His hair was dark brown and touched
his shoulders. His eyes were icy blue, just like all of the people
in the room who were actually in their human form.

“Yes,” he said, holding his shoulders high.
“Her name is Evie, and I will kill whoever took her.”

“No, you will not!” his mother hollered. “You
will not leave me too. I cannot lose both of my children.” Then the
woman folded in on herself, sobbing hysterically.

“We will find her…Talon will find her,”
Liberty promised, kneeling in front of the woman again and gently
taking her into her arms. She hugged the grieving mother tightly,
whispering how sorry she was over and over into her ear.

She held the woman for a few moments, praying
she’d calm down enough so that her husband could take her home and
she could rest. Bodies shifted behind her, but she didn’t look to
see what was going on. The soft sounds of crying coming from the
females was like sitting at a funeral, and Liberty had to grit her
teeth to keep from joining along with them. She did have to wipe
her eyes several times to catch the tears that escaped.

A peace settled over the room and Liberty
turned her head quickly to see that Talon had come back. He stood
at the doorway to the massive living room, his eyes soft as they
landed on her. He nodded his gratitude and stepped forward. Liberty
gasped when she noticed all of the pride in the room had crowded
against her, lending their support to the woman and her husband.
Two panthers were scooted up against her left leg and she hadn’t
even noticed them approach.

As Talon moved forward, his people parted as
if he were a god. Their eyes watched him walk gracefully toward the
girl’s parents. When he stood next to Liberty, she started to move,
but his large hand landed on her shoulder, holding her in place.
She looked up just as he took to one knee next to Liberty, his hand
still in place. With his other hand, he placed it on top of the
woman’s head and leaned in to kiss her forehead. Apparently, the
alpha could touch any female in his pride and not cause them
pain.

“Marie,” he said, his voice even and strong.
“The Guardians have gone out to search. Let Marcus take you home.
We will send word as soon as we have it.”

“Yes, alpha.” She nodded, turning toward
Liberty. “Thank you, Liberty.”

“You’re welcome,” she choked out, feeling
more tears build when the older woman wrapped her into an embrace
only a mother could give.

“Talon?” a soft voice interrupted. When they
both turned, a woman who looked like she was in her mid-fifties
stood in the doorway to another room in the house. Her dark hair
was styled in big curls that fell to her shoulders. Her eyes
matched all of the shifters. She was petite and a little rounded,
but still stunningly beautiful. She wore a pair of gray slacks and
a pale pink blouse.

As they approached, she noticed they were
entering the kitchen. They woman smiled warmly at Liberty and
pulled her into a tight embrace. “She’s beautiful, son.”

“Ma,” Talon scolded. When she looked over her
shoulder at the big badass alpha, Liberty barely contained a
giggle. He was blushing slightly and he looked almost like a small
boy.

“It’s nice to finally meet you,” his mom
said, holding out her hand.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Shaw,”
Liberty greeted and smiled, accepting the firm handshake from
Talon’s mother. Talon resembled his mother. Their hair matched each
other’s color perfectly. The woman was very young looking despite
what Liberty assumed her age to be somewhere in her late fifties to
early sixties. Her smile made Liberty feel welcome, and that helped
ease some of the tension she’d been feeling since walking into
Talon’s house.

“Please,” she chuckled warmly. “Call me,
Victoria.”

“Thank you, Victoria,” Liberty replied.
Liberty had a sudden thought. This woman would know that she was
human. Would she actually accept Liberty?

“You must come over for dinner on Sunday,
dear,” Victoria suggested.

“I would be honored,” she replied, grateful
to have been asked.

“It’s late,” Talon interrupted, taking her
hand. “Let me get you home.”

“Okay,” she said, nodding to his mother.

“I’ll see you soon,” Victoria said, casting a
hard glare across the room to the other panthers. Liberty was too
afraid to look back at their expressions.

There was a group of people, maybe twelve or
so, watching their alpha escort her out of the house. Panthers and
some of the men she recognized from the bar were just heading out
into a wooded area beside the beautiful two story home.

Now that she was outside and not being rushed
by Talon, Liberty thought about the grand home. The inside had been
rustic, warm. The sunken living room had several overstuffed
couches against every wall except for the wall with a huge
fireplace. That was where she’d found the grieving mother sitting
in one of the two high back chairs next to the hearth. The river
rock face of the fireplace extended all the way up the ceiling that
had to have been twenty feet high. A landing overlooked the living
area.

Talon escorted her over to the passenger
side, opening the door without a word. She felt his warmth as he
helped her up into the seat. When she looked into his eyes, there
was anger and sadness there that froze her in place. Before she
could speak, he closed the door and walked around to climb in the
driver’s seat.

“Your mother is very sweet,” she commented,
but frowned when he glared at her. The look that he gave Liberty
could freeze hellfire. She’d never seen that look in his eyes.
“What? What did I do?”

“My priority has to be my pride.” Talon
growled, hanging his hands over the steering wheel and staring at
his lap.

“I understand,” she mumbled, sadness rolling
through her for that poor family inside the house.

“Do you?” he asked, his voice going deep.

“I’m not going anywhere,” she promised. “You
know where to find me.”

“That’s the problem,” he grumbled, starting
the truck and backing out of the spot by the door.

“What?” she asked, unsure where this
conversation was headed.

“My pride…I can’t mate a human,” he
explained. “It’s not fair to you.”

“They won’t accept me?” she wondered.

“That’s not it.” He cursed. “They need me. I
can’t spend my time with you when one of my own is missing. I am
their leader and…and you are human.”

“Okay,” Liberty managed to squeak out,
straightening her spine. She would not cry, because Talon was the
one who’d come on to
her
…not the other way around.

He did things to her body, to her mind. The
man ignited a fire in her very core, but he couldn’t claim her…he
didn’t want her because she wasn’t one of his kind. She wasn’t good
enough. She wiped angrily at a tear that had escaped the corner of
her eye. She never cried, and this guy had pushed her away after
claiming she was his mate and all of that bullshit.

“Liberty,” he began, but she was already
shaking her head.

“Just…just take me home, Talon,” she said,
gritting her teeth. The flowers flashed through her mind and she
wanted to crush each and every one of their petals into dust.

“I’m sorry,” he said.

“Me too,” she replied.

The rest of the short drive was oppressively
quiet. She watched the trees roll by as they moved forward. Fields
of corn met them at different points, separated by houses and the
occasional horse stable.

When they pulled into her driveway, Liberty’s
only goal was to make it into the house. Nova’s car wasn’t there,
so she hadn’t made it home from the bar yet. Looking at the clock
on the truck’s dash, she figured she had about an hour and a half
alone to stew over the rollercoaster Talon Shaw had put her on over
the past few days.

“Liberty,” he said, trying again. He put the
truck in park and turned toward her, but Liberty wasn’t one to
argue.

“Let me go, Talon,” she pleaded and then
sniffed, before throwing open the door and rushing toward the
house. The moment Liberty got the key into the lock, she heard
Talon’s truck door open. He called her name once more and she
ignored him. She knew she shouldn’t ask him to choose between her
and his people, but she’d felt something…something solid when she
was with him. She needed his warmth…she needed his strength. There
was something about him that she wanted to latch onto and never let
go, but she’d be damned before she ever let that little bit of
information be known.