Free Red and the Tiger (BBW Shapeshifter Paranormal Romance) (Shifters Everafter Book 2) by Lola Kidd Page A

bit her lip. She didn’t want to run off, but Jessica Sheridan was her hero. The governor’s daughter had grown up as sheltered as Suzy and had every reason to hate shifters. One had killed her mother when she was very young, and Governor Sheridan was very anti-shifter. Suzy wasn’t sure if shifters were friend or foe, but she knew it took a lot of courage to leave everything you knew behind for love. It was all so romantic.
    “With a father like Roger, I’d want to run away too,” Suzy said.
    “He’s a good man. After everything he’s been through, I can’t believe he’s able to go on,” Cindy wiped her eyes. “Jessica getting taken by that tiger really hurt him. You shouldn’t be so mean.”
    Suzy sighed loudly. “I know you admire the governor, but I don’t. I won’t apologize for that. Now, I’m going to watch Wheel of Fortune if you’d like to join me.”
    Cindy turned back to the sink. “When I’m done. You go on without me.”
    Suzy went to the living room and turned on the TV. She had let that conversation get out of hand. She shouldn’t be picking on her mother’s hero. Cindy had loved Roger Sheridan for years from afar. That obsession had started long before Suzy was born and wasn’t going to come to an end anytime soon. After her no-good father had left her mom pregnant and alone, Roger and his wife had stepped in to help Cindy. They’d given her lots of the baby items that Jessica had outgrown and they’d driven her to her doctor appointments when Gran was busy.
    When Mrs. Sheridan had been killed by a wolf, Cindy had taken it almost as hard as Roger had. Suzy appreciated that the Sheridans had helped her mother in her time of need and she knew Roger had taken his wife’s death hard. But that didn’t excuse his treatment of shifters and how he treated Jess. He’d kept his daughter under lock and key. Everyone had known how unhappy she was, living with her father, but he’d manipulated her into staying.
    It warmed Suzy’s heart to see pictures of Jessica and her new friends on Baghera, the shifter island to the south. Jessica had been able to get away and make a life for herself. Suzy wished her own mother could do the same thing. Maybe if she forgot about Roger and his tirade against the shifters, she would be able to leave the house and Penicalla. There was nothing good for them in this town.
    When Gran turned up, Suzy was going to talk with her about it. They could come up with a plan together. If Gran was in one piece, anyway. As long as she could get Gran home, there was a slim chance they could convince Cindy to leave the house. Even if it was only for a little while, it would be a start. Suzy wanted her mother to be happy above all else, but she also wanted her freedom. She would never be able to go anywhere if Cindy stayed the way she was now. She couldn’t do anything for herself, and Suzy couldn’t trust anyone else to help her mom out.
    But it all hinged on her finding Gran. Suzy spent the rest of the night staring at the phone and hoping Gran would call. No such luck. By the next morning, she realized she was going to have to go out looking for her again.
    “I’m going to Gran’s house to look around again,” Suzy told her mother.
    Cindy took Suzy’s red cape-style coat out of the closet. “That’s a good idea. But come right back as soon as you’re done.”
    “Maybe she’ll be there and she just forgot to call us,” Suzy said hopefully.
    Cindy nodded. “That would be just like her.”
    Two hours later, Suzy was trudging back home mentally exhausted and very afraid. She’d found no sign of Gran, just like the last two times she’d gone and checked. She’d tried to call Gran’s phone while she was there, too. No answer. There was only one place left to check, but it was going to be very hard to convince Mom to let her go.
    “Anything?” Cindy asked as soon as Suzy was inside again.
    “Nothing,” Suzy said. She sat her mother down on the couch. “I’m