Palm Haven Shifters: Complete Five-Part Series Read online

  Carlos opened the last door in the hallway and José was surprised to see one of the larger meeting rooms turned into a makeshift hospital room. He sent Carlos a questioning look, but the older man waved over to some of the other pack members gathered around a plush bed. “Talk to those ones,” he said.

  José tried to steady his heart rate with long deep breaths. This wasn’t just a man running from an abusive pack — he was fighting for his life. José tilted his head to the side and heard the vertebrae in his neck snap and pop. He rolled his shoulders back and slipped into ‘Alpha-mode’, the fearless leader with no weaknesses or vulnerabilities.

  He raised an eyebrow at Dominic who shrank a little. “He’s an old friend caught up in some dirty shit and I’d owe you big if you can help out,” Dom said.

  José said nothing. He revealed nothing with his expression.

  After a long minute, the man in the bed opened his swollen black eyes and Valerie, a nearby female wolf, offered him a glass of water with a long bent straw. The injured man took a long gulp from the glass, nearly draining it, before he turned to José.

  “What’s your name?” José asked trying to gauge the extent of the man’s injuries. Shifters healed quickly and if he was in this bad of shape, now, he must have looked like hell when he arrived.

  “Juan. I didn’t like the way the Alpha ran things and tried to leave. They beat me and locked me up. When I escaped, they weren’t happy. I’m pretty sure they think I’m dead,” he coughed and winced, grasping at his side.

  “Shitheads kept kicking him after he blacked out. I’ve never seen anyone live through such a savage beating,” Dominic said, his voice seething with murderous hatred. A growl rumbled in his chest and José leveled him with a look meant to cow him.

  “What do you want from us?” José asked Juan, trying his best to hide the rush of fury that raged through him at the other man’s story. This kind of thing happened all too often with other wolf packs.

  Wolf shifters had a tendency to be over aggressive and power hungry — a frequently deadly combination. Alpha spots were won and lost in bloody death matches which attracted the most sadistic narcissists out there. José liked to think his pack was different, more diplomatic.

  Juan swallowed and looked to Dominic for confirmation before turning his puffy eyes to José. “I ask for asylum until I’m healed.”

  “And after?”

  Dominic shuffled his feet.

  “Uh… I hope I’ll be invited to join your pack. I’m pretty useful when I don’t look like this. I can prove it,” Juan said, a determined set to his brow.

  José nodded. “You’ll have to. We have a council in our pack to determine these matters. When the time comes, they will decide,” he said formally. It was all a part of the play for dominance. Making himself the biggest and baddest in the room, even if that was just by controlling the conversation.

  “Until then, you can stay and recover. Dominic, find two more to keep guard. Rotating shifts.”

  Dominic nodded and clapped a hand on José’s shoulder. “Really appreciate this. I owe you.”

  José smirked and nodded. “I’ll add it to your tab.”

  Dom returned one of those grins that had the females clawing their way to his bed every night. It was an infectious kind of smile that threatened to crack José’s stony facade.

  Before he left the impromptu clinic, he gave Juan one last long look. “You are to have absolutely no contact with anyone from your old pack. Understood?”

  Juan nodded, and coughed again. Valerie stepped toward the bed and swept a lock of hair from his forehead. “He needs to rest now,” she said, her golden eyes not quite raising to José’s.

  He left without another word.

  The clubhouse was still a flurry of activity. The excitement of a fight with bears and then a prospective new pack mate brought out everyone’s curiosity. José left through the back doors onto a wide open deck that overlooked a lake. Around the perimeter of the lake were more houses of varying shapes and sizes: all home to wolves. This was their territory, their sanctuary: The Wolves’ Den.

  José felt the air shift behind him and turned, expecting to see someone follow him through the French doors.

  He saw no one, but when he turned to the railing once more, a familiar figure stood there. José took a startled step back before baring his teeth at the cloaked woman.

  “You have a lot of nerve showing up here,” he growled. How had he missed her scent? Her footsteps?

  The older woman’s smile was sour enough to make milk curdle.

  “Oh really? I thought you’d be pleased to see me after your failure earlier.” Her voice carried on the wind in an odd way and José felt the hairs on his arms stand to attention.

  “My failure?” He took a step toward the witch, his temper boiling just beneath the surface. If he wasn’t careful, the other wolves would sense their Alpha’s distress. “Listen, witch, I don’t know what game you’re playing, but leave me out of it.”

  She sneered, her face folding in with wrinkles. “You’ll address me by my proper name, wolf.”

  José felt his tongue grow heavy in his mouth, unable to form any of his smartass responses and all he could say was “Sorry, Esther.”

  Esther pursed her lips in satisfaction. “Now, you failed to take care of the witch, but you’ll have another chance,” she said, her beady eyes looking at him a little too closely. It made him squirm uncomfortably.

  “You misled me. You said she was kidnapping a cub.”

  Esther shrugged. “Oops.”

  “And the Coven is trying to rip apart our pack.” She’d come to him only days earlier as a savior, offering to protect his kind from the destructive forces of a Coven on a warpath. José was having trouble believing all was as she said, though.

  A ghost of a smile played on her lips and an unsettling light sparked within her eyes. “Well, that may not be a complete fabrication…”

  José growled and leaped for her, intent on pinning her to the railing and getting the answers he wanted from her.

  His body collided with the wooden railing and José turned in a flash to see Esther standing on the other side of him, still grinning like the cat that ate the canary.

  “Now now, we’re having a pleasant talk aren’t we? No need to get physical,” she said, and then José noticed the very edges of her image shimmering and fading.

  “You’re not really here,” he said, stating what was now obvious to him.

  Esther clapped her hands in condescending praise. “Very good, puppy! I’ve seen your penchant for violence and thought a projection more… prudent. Now, about your little pack…”

  “Stay away,” he growled, baring his teeth, the wolf so close to the surface now.

  “Oh, I will,” she said cheerfully. “As long as you do as I say.”

  He narrowed his eyes and studied her face for any cracks in her armor.

  “I’m not going to be your pawn. I can protect my pack with or without you. Preferably the latter.”

  Esther pulled an exaggerated frown. “That’s too bad,” she said and José tried to slow the rapid beating of his heart.

  She closed the distance between them and electricity crackled in the air — the only physical evidence of her presence. “You’re not the only Alpha in town, you know. I’m sure the other will be more than willing to do my dirty work… he seems to enjoy it.”

  José’s blood turned to ice. Another Alpha? In his territory? The way she said he enjoyed it made José wonder what she wasn’t saying.

  “Who?”

  She produced a girlish giggle that rang hollow in the air, slimy fingers of unease sliding down José’s spine. “Aw, I’d love to tell you, but I guess we’re not friends anymore. Too bad. If you change your mind, take care of the witch.”

  And just like that, she was gone, the projection fading into the air.

  The large French doors opened and Carlos stuck his head through the opening. “Everything okay out here?
Some people are noticing you seem a little… angry,” he said gently, carefully testing the waters with his sometimes volatile Alpha.

  José sighed and balled his hands into fists at his side. “Fine, yeah,” he lied.

  Esther’s words rang through his mind again. You’re not the only Alpha in town.

  Was Juan’s Alpha looking for him?

  “Hey, where did you say Juan was running from?”

  Carlos frowned, his expression more than a little impatient with having to recount everything he’d said only a few minutes earlier.

  “Summer Springs. That bastard Diego Rivera.”

  Chapter 5

  SONYA

  Sonya examined her reflection in the bathroom mirror, clipping her long dark hair up into a simple twist before applying one last coat of mascara. She tugged at the hem of her silk blouse and made sure it was tucked into her grey pants all the way around.

  “Mama, my shoes,” Manuel said, shuffling into the bathroom with untied laces trailing behind him.

  “Of course, sweetheart, sit down.”

  Manuel hopped up on the closed toilet lid and swung his legs while he waited for his Mama to tie his shoes.

  “Why can’t I come with you?” he asked, his wide eyes tugging at her heart, making Sonya feel guilty though she had no reason to.

  “It’s just for a little while, baby. You’re going to hang out with Abuela and you’re gonna have a blast, okay?”

  She tied one of his cartoon character sneakers before switching to the other and her son frowned.

  “Abuela is weird,” he said wrinkling his nose, “her house always smells.”

  Sonya chuckled and wrapped him in a hug. He didn’t know that his grandmother’s house smelled like magic potions, just that it was weird.

  “I know, but it’s just for a bit while I go to this interview, okay?”

  He nodded, his mop of curls bouncing atop his head.

  “That’s my good grown up little boy,” she said, ruffling his hair as she finished his shoes.

  Once they were at Estrella’s house, Sonya knocked and tapped her foot impatiently, she was already cutting it close on time.

  Her mother opened the door and Manuel gave his Abuela a reluctant hug.

  “Go ahead inside,” Sonya said as Estrella stepped outside and pulled the door closed behind her.

  “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

  Sonya’s mouth formed a hard line and she nodded sharply. “I told you, I’m done running. I’m through getting crappy under-the-table jobs just to avoid leaving a paper trail. This is a good opportunity and we could move into a better house… a nicer neighborhood.”

  Estrella’s uncertain expression mirrored her own.

  “Well, good luck with your interview, then,” she said.

  Sonya nodded. “Thanks again for watching him. No funny business, though. Don’t try to ship him off to your friends or anything,” she added with a dangerous glare. She loved her mother, but nothing was going to come between her and her baby.

  Estrella had the audacity to look offended at the suggestion, like she hadn’t tried to orchestrate that very scenario only days ago.

  “Shouldn’t be more than an hour. Two tops,” she said before giving her mother a hug and leaving for the interview.

  It wasn’t long before she found herself outside of Whimsical Witchcraft Designs, a local interior design agency Sonya read about online.

  The office sign hung from the bright blue door of the mid-century bungalow, lush palms and tropical flowers gracing the edges of the cobbled walkway. She pressed the doorbell and felt an eruption of anxiety rise within her as the chime rang inside.

  Sonya glanced at her watch and watched nearly two minutes tick by while she waited for someone to answer the door. Just as she pressed the doorbell again, the door swung open and the auburn-haired woman on the other side winced a little at the loud noise, sending a peeved glare toward the rafters.

  “Hi! I’m so sorry,” she said with a sweeping gesture, ushering Sonya inside.

  “I heard the bell and I just… well, I got distracted. You must be Sonya!”

  Sonya nodded mutely as she tried to take in the scene: while tastefully decorated, the house was a mess. Scraps of fabric, magazine clippings, project boards and piles of who-knows-what-else cluttered the space.

  “Oh, God, I’m so sorry about the mess, but that’s why I put the ad up! With this big magazine shoot coming up, I just don’t have any time. I can’t afford an assistant so it’s all on me and well…”

  She raised her arms in defeat. “My life has kind of exploded.” Her muddy green eyes looked at Sonya with an expression she was unfamiliar with… She looked like a woman that could use some help.

  Sonya laughed, “I know that feeling.”

  “So, I just need someone to clean up around here. Maybe remind me to feed myself on occasion? I’m Emily, by the way. Oh my god, I didn’t even introduce myself, I’m so sorry. Emily Westcott, small business owner and total scatterbrain.” Emily flashed a self-deprecating smile and Sonya returned a grin of her own.

  “You seem… overwhelmed,” said Sonya.

  Emily laughed and blew a piece of reddish hair out of her face while another escaped her messy bun. “You don’t know the half of it. So what do you think? Will you take the job?”

  Sonya bit back the gasp of surprise. “Uh… just like that? Don’t you want to ask me some questions or something?”

  Emily shrugged. “You seem pretty together. You’re certainly not the mess that I am and I’d rather have someone around that understands my…” she wiggled her fingers, “quirks.”

  Sonya pulled a face and tried to understand what she was getting at. Then she remembered the name of the business and the pieces clicked together. “You’re a witch…” she muttered.

  “Well of course I am! So are you, that’s what makes us a good fit,” Emily said with a beaming smile.

  “H-how… how did you know?” Sonya wasn’t sure how she felt about being outed so easily. She’d thought it was something she’d kept hidden fairly well.

  Emily frowned and slipped on a pair of thin-framed gold glasses attached to a long glittering chain around her neck. “It isn’t a secret or anything, is it?”

  Sonya nibbled her bottom lip and tried to resist the sudden urge to flee. She wasn’t going to be afraid anymore.

  “I… well… no, I guess not. It’s not something that comes up in conversation and I don’t… practice.”

  Emily shrugged. “That’s okay. I’m not really all that big on it either. All that meaningless sex for power stuff that the Coven talks about? Not my scene. Still, mishaps happen and it’s better if I don’t have to think up some excuse on the fly all the time.” Her nose wrinkled for a moment before the smile returned.

  “So what do you say? Will you save my life, Sonya?” Emily clasped her hands together in a plea.

  Sonya laughed and nodded. They discussed her salary — more than enough to get them out of their hovel, but nothing outrageous — and Emily gave her a big hug.

  “Okay. Great. I’m so excited about this! Will you be able to start right away? I have a few more sketches to do, so I can stay out of your way completely.”

  “Uh…” Sonya faltered. She’d said she’d only be gone for a little while, but this mess was going to take much much longer. Still, the desperate look in Emily’s eyes made Sonya feel needed. It was nice to be needed rather than always needing something. This felt normal. A new job. Maybe a new friend?

  “Yeah, sure. I just need to call my babysitter to let her know.” Hopefully her mother would understand.

  “Great!”

  A few hours later, Sonya left Emily’s home-slash-office much tidier for her efforts. Well, the home was tidier. She certainly wasn’t. Sonya’s hair was slicked with sweat, her carefully-applied makeup long gone to the rigors of a deep cleaning. Her silk blouse was wrinkled, untucked, and probably bleach stained, she realized with despair.

&n
bsp; The one nice shirt she had.

  But at least she had the job.

  As she walked to her car, heels dangling from her fingertips, long abandoned once she’d begun cleaning, Sonya pulled out her phone.

  She was bone tired. More exhausted than she had been in a long time, and all she wanted was to cuddle up with Manuel at Storytime. Her rug rat could make even the worst day feel amazing.

  Intent on calling her mother on her way to pick up her son, Sonya frowned when she saw the missed call from an unfamiliar number.

  Weird.

  And they left a voicemail.

  Apprehension clawed at her stomach, but Sonya tried her best to shake it off as she climbed into the car. People mis-dialed numbers all of the time. She shouldn’t look too much into it. Right?

  So why were her fingers trembling as she pressed the button to listen to the message? Why did her heart race as the mechanical voice announced the date stamp before the message?

  Hey babe. I was in town and heard you’re staying here now. See you soon.

  She froze, the phone slipping from her fingers, clattering to the floorboard. Time stood still and in the back of Sonya’s mind, something shattered.

  She forgot how to breathe as she fought to suppress the bile rising in her throat.

  Diego. Here. Oh god.

  Thoughts didn’t even exist in her mind anymore, just sheer unadulterated panic. So much for not being afraid. So much for standing her ground. The sound of his voice was enough to make her want to bury her head in the sand like an ostrich. To run away and never come back.

  But she couldn’t do that to Manuel. Or herself. They deserved a normal life. She deserved this new job.

  And Diego deserved to pay.

  She sucked in a shaky breath and closed her eyes as she exhaled, fighting to steady the white water rapids of her rushing blood.

  See you soon. That bastard. Sonya clenched her teeth until her jaw hurt, grasping onto the anger inside of her instead of the fear. Anger could serve her.

  She started the car and drove towards home, deciding to leave her mother and Manuel out of this until she knew Diego wasn’t at their home. Maybe he hadn’t found where they lived yet. Maybe it was an empty threat.