Read Online So Much To Bear (A Werebear Erotic Romance) by Bethany Rousseau - Free Book Online Page B

the
back of the crowd, shouting encouragement for the rest of the
members of the mob; as the shouts filtered through her brain,
Jennifer realized with a shock that the mob was going after the
“beast” that Liam had claimed had killed her and injured him, that
they were whipped into a killing frenzy by the entitled brat and
his father. Jennifer’s throat was dry, but she called out, trying
to stop just a few of the people around her, trying to catch
anyone’s attention at all. “I’m not dead! I’m right here! I’m fine!
Please—please stop and let me explain what happened!” She shouted,
she screamed, but no one heard her; the mob marched relentlessly
forward, towards the forest that shielded Damon.
     
    Jennifer’s eyes stung with tears and
her throat was tight from her shouts, from the panic that gripped
her. They were going after Damon. Her heart pounded in her chest.
The mob was in such a frenzy of rage that they wouldn’t stop until
they were all exhausted or until they found the “beast” that Liam
had identified as the cause of her death. “Liam is lying to you
all!” Jennifer screamed, even though she knew it was pointless,
that no one was willing to stop, or willing to even listen. They
were wrapped up, consumed with the business of being an angry
mob.
     
    Jennifer stopped in her tracks, letting
her neighbors, people she had known for her entire life, push past
her, flowing around her without seeing her as they made their way
into the woods. Jennifer wondered just how good of a description
Liam had given the people of the town that he’d managed to convince
to go on this crazy hunt for Damon—if he had been too scared to
really take in the man’s features, if he had been able to credit
the fact that he had seen a man turn into a bear. Her thoughts
swirled around in her head, and Jennifer felt torn between the
desire to cry and the need to do something—anything she could—to
protect Damon from the mob that was headed for him.
     
    Before she could consciously make up
her mind, Jennifer found herself walking into the woods, picking a
different path from the one the members of the town had taken. She
consulted her memory and tried to figure out how she could skirt
around the mob that was out to avenge her—not knowing or even
caring anymore that there was nothing to avenge. They just knew
that a “beast” had supposedly killed one of their own, and had
injured Liam—nothing more than that. Jennifer thought about the
trek she had made from Damon’s cave and consulted her memories of
the woods as best as she could—trying to remember anything that
might give her a quicker path through the forest. She knew
instinctively that Liam would have them take the course that the
group had taken the night before last; that would be the only path
he knew—and from there they would scour the woods to find Damon.
But Jennifer at least knew where Damon’s cave actually was; she
didn’t have to hunt for it. She recognized one of the trails she
and Damon had taken the day before while they were completing his
daily chores and followed it, still able to hear the distant shouts
of the mob as she skirted around them, walking as quickly as she
could.
     
    One benefit she had, Jennifer thought
as she jogged along the path that her feet found, was that being by
herself she could move faster than the big group. They would have
to shift numbers around, forming a line to get through some of the
denser tree stands and pausing to consult with Liam or
Robert.
     
    Gradually the sounds of the mob
retreated behind her as Jennifer pulled ahead, panting with
exertion but determined to warn Damon of the danger coming straight
for him. It was only a matter of time before the angry mob found
his cliffs; while she had been lost in the forest, it wasn’t that
big, and they would eventually figure out where the werebear was
hidden deep in the green gloom. If she could just get to him in
time, she might be able to find a way to