Free Along Came a Tiger (Tiger Shifters) by Kat Simons Page B

had to blink a few times to remember where she was. As she lay there staring at the filmy curtains covering the window, she listened for Daniel. The TV was on, and it sounded like sports of some kind, which made her grin.
    Wouldn’t it be nice if all they had to do right now was argue over what to watch?
    They had something more important to do tonight, though. She still wasn’t sure if this would satisfy her. In this quiet farmhouse, it was growing more difficult to hold on to her anger and pain. Somewhere during their walk, she’d let go of some of the blinding rage. Enough that the ache of loss dominated the need for justice. But her anger wasn’t gone completely. All she had to do was imagine Williams’ smug face and the rage returned.
    She realized she was in danger of losing herself to her hate. She knew Su-jin wouldn’t want that any more than she’d want Sarah to sacrifice her chance at a life with Daniel.
    Could she let go? Could she go on without killing the man who’d tortured and murdered her best friend?
    Her stomach rolled with nausea.
    She’d have her answers after tonight. What they found, what happened after…She would either feel satisfied they’d done enough and move on, or she wouldn’t.
    The springs squeaked as she hefted herself out of bed. Time to confront her future. And her soul.
    * * *
    Sarah sat in Daniel’s truck with barely contained patience. He’d made her agree to stay put while he doubled back around the house to ensure Williams wasn’t here. The only thing keeping her seated was the fact that she wanted to repair some of the damage between her and Daniel.
    He’d parked in the same spot he’d used the night before. It was on a relatively empty side road, far enough from the house the car wouldn’t be seen or heard, but near enough to make for an easy escape. The road paralleled the park, but was just outside it so they would go in on foot, limiting the attention they might attract from park security.
    She realized she was nervously bouncing her leg when the truck actually started vibrating. She stopped, scowling. Another quick glance at the clock on the dashboard confirmed Daniel had only been gone fifteen minutes. Staring at the little blue numbers, she gave him five more minutes and then she was going after him.
    Exactly one minute later, he tapped on her window, startling her. How had he managed to sneak up on her? She usually sensed where he was if he was close enough.
    She threw the door open and stepped out. “So?”
    “No one’s at the house.”
    “He said he had a maid. You’re sure she’s not there?”
    “No cars. The house is dark. No sound of human breathing or heartbeat. She probably doesn’t live in the house.”
    “Great. Let’s go.” She started to strip, but he put a hand on her arm.
    “Let’s go on two feet first. We can shift when we get closer to the body.”
    She frowned.
    “The park is mostly empty, since it’s closed now, but there are rental cabins inside and some people are camping. This area isn’t as isolated as a lot of our retreats. I don’t want to risk a random human spotting two tigers stalking through the wood where they don’t belong. We can make sure we’ve got privacy first and then shift.”
    “Fine.”
    She blinked as they moved into the woods, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness. Her tiger vision allowed her to see perfectly well, even in the deep shadows under the trees on this moonless night.
    Along with her heighten vision, she opened up her most powerful tool, her sense of smell, and allowed all the various night scents to filter through her. There weren’t any humans in the immediate area, but she could smell some had been nearby during the day. In the summer, the park was a busy place. Daniel was right, they shouldn’t take any risks. Once deep in the shadows, away from paths and roads, they’d be able to hide better as tigers.
    They circled Williams’ house and entered the park proper before she finally