Read Online Grayslake: More than Mated: Bear Up (Kindle Worlds Novella) by Mina Carter - Free Book Online

cowering bear in front of him, sudden fear rolling off him in waves.
    “Yes, what is it?” he snapped, turning to find Bennett framed in the doorway. One look set all his alarm bells ringing. The normally laid back man looked agitated, worried even, a hand shoving his hair back as he looked at Dean.
    “It’s the Watson girls, boss. Someone got in, killed the babysitter, and took them.”

    * * *
    “ W HAT ?”
    Dean’s roar of rage reverberated through the house, shaking the walls. Kacie stopped dead at the bottom of the stairs and lifted her head, using the sound to work out where he was. After it had become obvious he wasn’t coming back, she’d dressed quickly and headed downstairs to find food.
    But at the sound of him bellowing, her hunger fled and she barreled through the house, no thought in her mind but to get to him. Something was wrong, very wrong. She felt it in her bones.
    What could be more wrong than being attacked by werebears in an alley? The little voice in the back of her head demanded. Or finding out half the damn town get furry every month?
    She ignored it, beating feet through the room where she’d awakened on the dining table, and zeroed in on voices filtering through a partially open door she hadn’t noticed before.
    “What’s wrong?” she asked, pushing it open to reveal Dean, Sheriff Anderson and Bennett Allan, a young guy from town who worked in the car shop not far from her house.
    Surprise filled her. If they were here, in this room, it meant they were werebears and she’d never in a million years have picked the sheriff as one. He was the stereotype of the old boys’ network, so set in his ways that you could set your watch by him. They had set their watches by him when they were children… knowing exactly where he’d be on his patrol route at any particular time of day. Made it easy for them to get up to the tricks kids in a backwater town did without getting into trouble. But a bear? That blew her mind.
    “Two kids have been kidnapped.” Dean’s words robbed her of breath for a second.
    “Shit. For real? Who?”
    “Yeah. Two of Jeb Watson’s girls.” Dean turned to the two men in the room. “Anderson, you’ll need to run interference with the humans on this. We can’t let them know it’s bear business. Bennett, tell me everything you know.”
    Even as he rattled off orders with the air of someone accustomed to giving them, Dean had his cell in his hand, punching numbers. Holding a hand up to halt Bennett’s report for a second, he held it up to his ear as Anderson scuttled out of the room.
    “Braun, it’s me. We got problems. Someone killed the Watsons’ babysitter and lifted two of the kids… yeah, might be the rogues. Get teams out, search the town and outlying areas. I’m going to head down to the Watsons’ and check it out.”
    Kacie sagged against the doorframe feeling like the bottom had just dropped out of her stomach. “Someone got killed?”
    “Yeah. Angela Russell, the daughter of one of the Watsons’ neighbors,” Bennett answered her, his deep voice shaking as he paced the room. “She was a good kid, Itan, put up a fight. She didn’t deserve what they did to her.”
    Kacie was swept along with Dean and Bennett as they headed out to the car. Her eyes widened as, on the way, they passed through the rest of the building. Either Dean lived in a damn mansion, or there were a lot more people who lived here.
    She didn’t get the chance to ask. Dean started one call as soon as he’d finished the last, his cell glued to his ear as he threw Bennett his keys. As the other man didn’t lift an eyebrow, she assumed that driving his… his what? his boss’… car was nothing new.
    Sliding into the back seat, she buckled up automatically—a fact she was glad about when Bennett hit the gas and the powerful vehicle sped off down the mountain road. He handled the big SUV like it was a race car, almost taking some corners on two wheels in complete disregard