Free Prey by cassanna dwight

whipped through the trees at the back of his
property and across the deck, chilling him. Trace appeared at the
base of the stairs, waiting for him on the landing.
    Trace knew his secret and had
accompanied him on a few assignments. The tiger was as ruthless as
he was. El helped Gunter raise the cub when they found him in
India, buried under the weight of his dead mother. From the time
they discovered him he never uttered a word, but if you wanted
another shifter at your back, Trace was definitely the beast for
the job.
    El gripped his shoulder. “Nae is
sleeping.”
    Trace’s eyes widened.
    “ Don’t look so surprised,
we had to rest eventually.”
    A half smirk lifted the side of
Trace’s face.
    “ I think she tried to
break me. I’m not the young lion I use to be.”
    Trace rolled his eyes.
    “ I bet I can still kick
your ass.” El chuckled. His smile faltered. “I don’t know what the
hell is going on, but I intend to find out. I need you to watch her
until I find out who the fuck is stalking our pride. I’m going on a
hunt. In the morning take Nae to Trots; I’ll meet you
there.”
    Trace nodded. He shifted within a few
steps and trotted off into the darkness.
    El embraced his animal and accepted
the reformation of his body, allowing his lion to take control. Fur
sprouted from his skin as he dropped to his knees. He raised his
head and snarled. Smaller mammals scurried to find shelter among
the trees. He leapt off the porch. It was time to find some
answers. El bounded into the forest, running at top
speed.
     
    ***
     
    Nae flipped over. Bright light poured
over her face, and she blinked several times before fully opening
her eyes. She rose up on her elbows and swiveled her head,
searching the room for her missing bedmate. The sun’s beams bled
through the sheer curtains which billowed in the soft breeze,
blowing through the screen. She fell back against the pillow and
wiped a hand down her face. All the debauchery of the previous
evening hit her like a punch to the gut. She was in deep trouble,
and she only had one person who would actually believe her. Shay
would know how to extricate her from the situation she’d gotten
herself mired into.
    When she swung her legs off the bed
and planted her feet on the floor, she groaned as she stretched the
sore muscles of her calves and thighs. Her hand grazed the bite
mark at the hollow of her throat, and she flinched. Somehow, she’d
dropped down the rabbit hole and landed in a world which was as far
from wonderland as it could get. Hell, the animals she found
herself surrounded by probably ate the damn rabbit. Dragging the
sheet off the bed, she wrapped it around her and left the room in
search of her clothes. Voices bantering back and forth reached her
as she maneuvered around an overturned hall table. She listened for
El’s voice, when she didn’t hear it, she crouched down to pick up
the heavy lamp laying at her feet. Cautiously, she eased up to the
edge of the wall.
    “ We can hear you stumbling
around back there. Come on out. No one’s going to hurt you.” It was
Gunter’s voice.
    Nae dropped her arm but held on to the
base of the fixture as she stepped into the great room. The heads
of three people turned and stared up at her expectantly. She knew
two of them, and the one guy she didn’t know winked. Her lips
inched up at the corners.
    “ Ya know if El catches you
flirting with his woman, he will hurt you.” La eyes widened, and
she exaggerated her blinking as she took on a look of
innocence.
    “ Shut up La it was a ‘hey,
how are you, welcome to the family, get comfortable’ wink.” The
unknown man answered before adding, “I’m Aristotle by the way. My
buds call me Ari.”
    Nae lifted the lamp. “Nice to meet
you.” She angled her body in Gunter’s direction. “Where is
El?
    “ Don’t know. We thought
he’d be here.” Gunter’s gaze drifted to her neck before he lifted
his eyes to meet her stare. “Being newly mated and