Love at First Roar (BBW Paranormal Shapeshifter Werebear Romance) (Grayslake Book 4) (12 page)

Fuck that noise.

“Do you wanna know what’s happening to him right now because you won’t help me? The woman had poison on her claws—”

“Wha—”

Kira spoke over him. “But it’s not poison. It’s an acid that attacks organic material. Cells. Half the drug slows you down, puts you to sleep so the acid can eat through your flesh. So right now,” her voice rose with every syllable, becoming shrill as she screamed at them. “Right now, your brother is being eaten alive because
you won’t fucking help me
!”

The words echoed off her aged wooden walls, bouncing off every hard surface, but Isaac’s voice rose from beneath the sounds. “Yes.”

A flurry of movement surrounded her, George’s mass brushing past her as he moved to Isaac while Ty came closer, hands outstretched.

“Oh, fuck that. This is my house. That’s my ma—I’m helping him. You go deal with the were-bitch outside. I don’t need your kind of help,” she sneered and then turned to follow the slowly shuffling men.

She didn’t give a damn what Keen and Ty did as long as it didn’t hinder her as she cared for Isaac.

Kira caught up to them on the stairs, George supporting Isaac and slowly bringing them toward the second floor. More of Isaac’s strength drained with each step and fear attacked her, pummeling as her heart threatened to freeze in place.

It seemed to take forever, but they finally entered her room and she raced past them, flinging her shower door open and quickly climbing into the tiled space. A yank on the knob had ice-cold water raining down on her and goose bumps covered her skin. George’s shirt retained the cold liquid, making her shudder, but it didn’t matter when faced with Isaac’s injuries.

She grabbed one of the pitchers and set it beneath the spray before reaching for a box of baking soda. She ripped at the cardboard packaging and dumped a handful into the slowly filling jug.

George dragged Isaac into the shower, soaking himself when he entered. “What do you need?”

Kira didn’t stop in her preparations. “Lower him to the ground in the corner. Lean him against the wall and then get out.”

“You don’t—”

“George, I’m on the clock here. Set him down. If you want to be helpful,” she snatched up the other pitcher and shoved it at him. “Fill this from the sink. Cold. You can also yell for another couple boxes of baking soda. I think I brought enough, but I’d rather be safe.”

When the empty jug was grabbed from her hands, she assumed he was following her instructions. That left her to deal with the male before her.

Never in her life had she hated her handicap. She kidded with herself and whined about not seeing his body or someone’s smile, but… But right now, when healing Isaac depended on being able to see his wounds, she wished she’d inherited her father’s strengths instead of her mother’s weaknesses.

Kira reached up and redirected the spray, grimacing at Isaac’s shout when the water struck his body. Yeah, it hurt. She, more than anyone, knew that.

She dipped her hand into the pitcher sitting on the floor, measuring the volume of water. Finding it held enough to do the job for the initial dousing, she hefted it and approached the moaning and whimpering male.

Wincing, she did what had to be done. It’d hurt, sometimes more than the burn of the acid, but it was necessary.

The first rush of liquid drew a snarl and the second had fur rippling over his cheeks, darkening it from tan to deep brown. Dammit. He needed to stay human. Shifting to a bear wouldn’t help him with this.

Hating herself, she reached out slapped his face, forcing him to focus on her and not the pain. She barely yanked her hand away in enough time to avoid being bitten, the clack of his teeth snapping together telling her just how near the edge he lingered.

“Isaac, you need to stay human.” She dumped more of the liquid on him, washing away the streaks of blood, and filling the open wounds. If any of them healed over, covering the damage beneath, they’d have to dig into them again.

It couldn’t linger—eating and eating and eating until there wasn’t much left to discover.

He snarled again, baring a nearly-bear fang and she bracketed his head with her hands. She let a hint of her shift wash through her fingers. As a mole, she was tiny, but the animal did let her have some of the perks of moledom when still human. Such as sharp nails and teeth. She only needed the nails.

Kira dug them into his skin, tips rested above the arteries in his neck. “Stay. Human.” She released her own version of a growl. “I will kill you before I let you continue suffering. Do you understand me? You promise to stay human or I’ll save us both the trouble.”

She was bluffing. She’d sooner kill herself than do more harm to Isaac, but with the pain riding him and the water and baking soda filling the air, he couldn’t smell the lie.

He responded with a grunt that sounded very similar to his father’s, but she took it as agreement.

She got back to work. More of the baking soda filled water drenched him, sliding over his skin to be washed away by the shower. The rain would keep him cool as she fought to cease the poison’s progress. Time ticked past, everything outside her care for Isaac disappearing from her thoughts.

Slowly he regained his strength, the suppressant aspect of the poison working its way through his increased metabolism. The bear part of him burned it off, leaving behind the pain and debilitating wounds.

His skin sliding beneath her fingers was ragged, some injuries deeper than others, but slowly healing. She memorized each one, the heat of the cuts telling her of the healing while the coolness of others informed her the toxin still lingered.

While he lay injured before her, his movements sluggish when she urged him to twist and turn so she could reach all parts of him, she took advantage. She took advantage of an injured male and memorized the planes of his body, the strength of his muscles and the old wounds that had scarred and left permanent marks on him.

The one that laid open his chest stretched from shoulder to ribs on the opposite side. Another encased his shoulder. There were even more on his back that stretched to his legs.

Then… dear God, the one that destroyed his face. The
pain
he’d endured. The agony. It was astounding to her. A thick line of scar tissue went from hairline to chin, amazingly missing his eye. She had no idea if it was usable, but it remained in place. Shapeshifters couldn’t tolerate foreign material within their bodies. Especially during the change. So he definitely didn’t have a glass eye.

But the suffering.

“K’ra?” Isaac’s voice was a slur, but it was enough to snare her attention.

She placed the half-empty jug on the ground and crouched before him. She cupped his cheeks, helping him raise his head as she stared into his eyes. Claws weren’t involved this time. Now she needed to care for him, give him a reason to fight and lure him to the land of the living. “You with me?”

“Wh’ h’ppned? Wh’re we?”

“Kira?” George’s low, rumbling voice bounced off the tiled walls. Even after she’d exhausted all three boxes of baking soda, he’d stuck around. His words were quiet, almost a whisper, but she heard. As did Isaac.

The man before her snarled and the sound transformed into a rolling growl, overriding all others. “Mine.”

“Easy,” she was quick to soothe him. “Be easy. It’s your father. You worried us and he is helping me.”

Isaac grumbled and snatched one of her hands, fingers wrapping around her wrist. He tugged her, forcing her to fall against him. He didn’t even wince, not when her weight landed on him nor when her fingers dug into still-pink flesh. “Mine.”

“For the love of…” she mumbled. “Isaac, you’re injured. Do you remember?”

She’d experienced this often enough that she knew what recovery was like. Reinforce recent events, remind the person, reinforce them again, touch them, anchor them to reality. Repeat until their eyes were no longer filled with the blackness of their pupils and they met your gaze.

“Huh?” He shook his head and she knew he focused on her.

“Vanessa came to my house. She attacked me and you saved me. You fought her. Her claws were tipped with poison. Your father and I healed you.”

“Wha—?” He shook his head, but the anger was gone, memories slowly resurfacing.

“You fought Vanessa, she poisoned you, we healed you.”

“We?”

Kira reached for the wound on his bicep, testing the temperature of his skin. It was the worst and one that’d needed several washings. Now only a ridge of swollen skin remained. He was nearly back to her.

“Your father and me. Do you remember?”

“Dad?” He was hoarse from the constant growls and yells as she’d treated him, but after that first slap, he’d stayed human.

The shower door slowly swung open, George’s familiar form coming into view. The more time she spent with the male, the more she’d be able to recognize him with or without his scent.

“Isaac?” Hope filled the single word.

“Vanessa?”

“I’ve been up here with you and Kira. Your brothers are dealing with her. At least until your mother gets her hands on her.” George’s voice was grim, but she didn’t hear a hint of remorse.

“So, she’s dead then. Mom won’t stand for anything less,” Isaac rumbled, and his skin darkened with his bear’s fur.

Hell no. Not after all she’d done. She gripped his cheeks once again and forced him to turn to her. “You need to calm down. I did not put you back together just so you can ruin it. The more you’re exposed to this, the worse it gets, every single time.” Didn’t she know the truth of that statement? She reached up and traced the scar that ran the length of his face. “And I think you know that already.”

Isaac’s gaze was already on her, but it became heavy and charged, weighing her down. “I do. But the question is: how do you?”

Dammit.

*

Dammit, Isaac hurt all over. His bear gradually healed his wounds, but it couldn’t return his strength. He needed time and food.

And Kira. He definitely needed her. Unfortunately, he couldn’t find her even in her own home.

The moment she decreed he couldn’t be moved from her care, his family descended. His father, Keen, and Ty were already present, but then
everyone else
came over.

His father helped him onto Kira’s bed and that’s where he’d remained. On one hand, he wanted to stay with her. On the other, he wanted all the fucking males out of her fucking bedroom.

Instead, what he got was his father and brothers surrounding him in bed and she was nowhere in sight.

Dammit. Again.

He still hadn’t gotten an explanation as to how she knew of the poison, what it did, and how to treat it.

But he would.

Just as soon as he got rid of everyone.

The four men of the family stood before him, encircling him in their massive presence. Well, they could fuck off. He didn’t have the energy to deal with the bullshit with Vanessa. He had more important things on his mind.

Kira-shaped things.

“You need to explain what happened.” Ty’s voice was harsh, but Isaac ignored him.

“Where’s Kira?” He looked to his father. Ty may be his Itan, but his father was his father. When Dad showed up, they were all back on an even playing field. “Is she okay?”

Dad grunted and rolled his eyes.

Raised voices of a handful of women reached him, his mother’s, Mia’s, Lauren’s, and Trista’s overlapping. Right. The women had descended.

“Isaac,” Ty snapped.

He glared at his brother. “What?”

“I need you to tell me why I have a half-dead she-bear on her way to the hospital and how you got poisoned and beat to hell.”

Isaac’s bear snarled. He wasn’t beat to hell. Yes, he’d been poisoned, but adrenaline would have carried him through ending the threat to Kira. Just a few more moments…

“It was necessary.” He looked past the men, staring at the doorway. “I want Kira.”

He needed her beside him, needed to know she was healing after her confrontation with Vanessa and that coming in contact with the toxins hadn’t harmed her. It ate through flesh and bone, but it could be just as dangerous to skin. And then… one nick, one cut, and it’d burn through her blood.

Ty shifted his position, blocking Isaac’s view. “I want to know what the fuck happened to one of my bears.”

Dad grunted and shot Ty a glare. Good. Let the man get slapped down by their father.

Isaac snarled at his Itan. “You mean me? Or your precious Vanessa? Good to know you’re worried about me.”

“Dammit, Isaac. That’s not what I meant.”

He sighed. “Yeah, you did. One of your bears, Ty. Not me, just ‘one of’ them.”

Another reason he needed to get the fuck out.

Isaac was breathing. Isaac was healing. Isaac was doing this or that for the good of the clan, so let’s forget that Isaac could feel pain like any other man. Let’s forget that he’s not a robot.

He mentally shook his head and took a deep breath. He wasn’t going to turn into a wailing baby. He didn’t have the right to whine like a bitch. Not when Ty’s attitude wasn’t anywhere near what they’d all done to Keen long ago. The pain and agony his youngest brother endured over the years, his struggle for control… It was nothing compared to a little thoughtlessness.

“Dammit, Isaac.”

“Fuck you, Ty,” he volleyed back.

His anger brought forward a rush of adrenaline, heart-pumping blood through his veins, and the transition shoved more of his pain forward. A wound or two split open beneath the new onslaught. He hadn’t had a real chance to heal and it showed. The sting on his side was the worst, but the other on his thigh pulsed with an ache as well.

Their father grunted. One that told them to shut the fuck up already. “What happened?”

Isaac sighed. He could fight with his brothers, but he couldn’t ignore Dad. So, he repeated the events. Skipping over Kira’s visit, and rushing forward to him hearing her screeches and her animal’s calls for help. Even now, after all this time had passed, the sounds haunted him. Her pleas and wails bouncing through his head and enraging the bear once again.

His skin rippled, fur sliding through his pores and then retracting when he urged the animal to calm. Kira was safe. She was downstairs with his mother and his brothers’ mates. Just because the mates couldn’t shift didn’t mean she was unprotected. Mom clearly claimed her, which meant she was now a deadly Momma Bear who’d defend her family to the bitter end.