The Mountain Man's Baby Bears Read online

  Usually, shifters can’t change into their animal forms until well after puberty hits. It’s one of those strange animal things. Were born in our human skin and then we have to sort of discover our animal skin. It’s always there, clawing at the back of our minds, but it’s not usually until puberty that the gate between human and animal finally unlocks.

  During puberty, there seems to be a time when it’s possible to start walking between those two worlds.

  I’ll never forget when I first shifted. I had been in school all day, and I was tired. I was at the lake after a particularly hard exam, and I was feeling down. Stressed. I felt anxious and worn out, but then I closed my eyes, and something happened.

  The gate that kept my inner-bear locked away suddenly seemed...open.

  I kept my eyes closed and I walked toward that gate. Reaching my hand out, I seemed to be able to walk over, past my human self, and tap into the animal part of me.

  And it was thrilling.

  In a whirlwind of emotion and chaos, I was transformed into my bear form. I remember feeling and hearing my clothing tearing. My body changed. My skin was replaced with thick, dark fur, and my size seemed to double.

  I truly became a bear.

  It was really the most incredible feeling, but then I didn’t know what to do. I mean, what do you do first when you change into a giant creature? Personally, I decided to go fishing. I jumped into the lake and swam around for a long time, careful not to drown. Swimming as a giant bear was a lot different from swimming as a gangly boy. Then I tried catching fish, which I couldn’t do because I was big and clumsy.

  Eventually, though, I managed to lie back down on the banks of the lake, and I closed my eyes.

  After an afternoon in my bear form, I was ready to try again.

  I was ready to be a boy again.

  But I had to find my way back through that gate.

  The first shift was the hardest. Ever since then, I’ve shifted almost every day. Now I don’t even need to envision the shifter-gate anymore. Now I can easily adjust my body simply by wishing it.

  Things weren’t always so easy.

  I look over at the little bears.

  Is that what happened to these guys?

  Did they discover their gates a little too early?

  Did they try to enter the world of shifters without being properly prepared?

  Are they stuck there, now?

  “What’s going on, little ones?” I ask.

  Spot barks softly, and I know he’s wondering the same thing I am.

  What the hell am I going to do?

  Chapter Two

  Theresa

  Shit.

  Shit.

  Shit.

  They’re gone.

  My kids are gone and they turned into bears and I think I’m going completely crazy.

  What the fuck do I do now?

  I run around the little campsite and try to find some clues.

  Something.

  Anything.

  I just need a lone, single clue to tell me what’s going on and why I’m feeling this way.

  Seriously.

  Where have my kids gone?

  “Think, Theresa,” I tell myself. “Think.”

  I was sitting around the campfire with them when it happened. Silas changed first. He was laughing one second, and the next...he was a bear. He was a little brown bear cub and he was covered in fur. Sebastian went next, but the situation was the same. His entire body was covered in fur, and he was bigger, and his overalls stretched and stretched over the bigger body until everything just tore and fell to the floor.

  I must have passed out because when I woke up, they were gone.

  “Am I going crazy?” I whisper out loud, but even as I do, I realize that I’m not crazy because the clothes are still here. They’re shredded and damaged. Both of my kids left their clothing behind, but not themselves. We’re far from home. I mean, we’re in the mountains. Where is there to go?

  Storm Haven isn’t far. It’s maybe a thirty minute walk, but I don’t think the boys would go there. We only drove through it so we could park at the lodge there before hiking the rest of the way to our campsite. I mean, this was supposed to be a fun and relaxing weekend. It wasn’t supposed to be a nightmare.

  I wasn’t supposed to lose them.

  Tears threaten to spill, but I shove those emotions down. I can feel sad or scared or like a bad mom later. Once I find my boys: that’s when I’ll allow myself to feel anxious or stressed.

  Not until then.

  Not a moment sooner.

  I take a deep breath and look around the campsite once more. I’m no hunter. I’m not anyone special. I mean, I’m a romance writer, for dragon’s sake. What the hell do I know about being stuck in the woods?

  Only, I wrote a book a few months ago about some campers who discovered a secret treasure while they were on vacation in the wilderness, so maybe I can use that.

  The first thing I do is get my phone and my watch. I pocket the phone. There’s no service here, but there might be later. Then I get my watch and put it on my wrist. From what I can tell, I wasn’t out for very long, but when I opened my eyes, I was very groggy, and I lay next to the campsite for about half an hour, just dozing in and out of consciousness. Yeah, that can’t be good for me.

  “Okay,” I say out loud. “First, figure out where they went. Nope,” I hold up my finger, as though I’m having some sort of revelation, and more importantly, that there’s someone here to see it. “First, get some clothing.”

  If I find them and they’ve somehow managed to change back into their little boy forms, then I’m going to need clothing for these kids. They’re five-year-olds, after all. They aren’t bears. Not really. Whatever’s happening has to have some sort of normal, logical explanation.

  It’s just that I haven’t heard of the explanation.

  And I haven’t heard of anyone who can just change into a bear.

  I grab my knapsack and shove a pair of clothing in it. The little shoulder bag is something I planned to use for day hikes and walking around. It’s big enough for clothing, but just barely, and I can’t fit anything else in there.

  When I go back to where the campfire was, I realize that it’s almost completely dead. Night is upon us, and my kids are out there. They’re out there and they’re lost and they’re probably scared and shit!

  Okay, so maybe I actually am a bad mom.

  Taking a deep breath, I start walking away from the campfire. In my book, my characters looked for footprints and things like broken twigs to figure out which direction to go. I swing my flashlight around until I spot what look like bear tracks.

  Good job, kids.

  So, my boys aren’t exactly known for their suave jaunts. They’re little kids. They’re clumsy and they’re messy and they’re a little bit wild.

  That’s fine.

  I walk in that direction, heading away from the camp.

  “Silas!” I yell into the darkness. I listen carefully, but there’s nothing. “Sebastian!”

  Still nothing.

  I don’t know whether yelling out for my kids is a good thing or a bad thing. There might be wild animals out here. There might be creatures that could hurt me, but I just can’t seem to care. I have to find my kids.

  When I planned this camping trip, it was supposed to be a chance to get away from the chaos of my normal life. I work a lot and my job as a writer takes up a lot of my time. Even when I’m home with the boys, I know that I tend to drift off into “writer mode” more often than I should.

  This trip was supposed to be a chance for us to just get away and spend time together.

  I parked over at the lodge, purchased a few supplies, and the kids and I walked the rest of the way up here on a little path. The campsite we chose has been cleared and is perfectly tailored to families. There’s no running water or public bathroom or anything like that, but there’s a fire pit and it’s got beautiful views.

  My kids are a bit
young to go camping, and a few of my fellow writers mentioned concern when I said we were going off to camp near Storm Haven, but come on.

  I just wanted to live a little.

  Well, now I guess I’m living a little more than I should have.

  I’m walking in the opposite direction from where I parked. This is unfortunate because I’d love to just get in the car and drive away and find someone to come up here and help me. Surely there are troopers and outdoorsy-people who can help find a couple of little kids.

  But what would I say?

  “Um, excuse me? My kids changed into little bears and ran away?”

  Uh, yeah.

  That sounds like a really fast way to die a slow and painful death in a sanitarium.

  “Silas!” I call again. “Sebastian!”

  It’s getting colder, and I’m starting to feel even more afraid. I’m walking through the woods, and I’m following their tracks, but it’s chilly out here. How far did they go? Where did my kids wander off to?

  I don’t like knowing that the two of them are out here by themselves. They’re much too young to know how to stay safe at night in the woods and I...

  I’ve really failed them.

  A heavy weight seems to settle on my chest and it’s so painful that I don’t notice the animal watching me at first. Its eyes are tracking me, but it’s not for a full minute after I notice those two blinking eyes that it really registers just how much trouble I’m in.

  A wolf.

  There’s a wolf.

  And it sees me.

  At first, I keep walking. I can see it watching me from the brush, but there’s at least fifteen feet between us. Maybe if I keep walking, it’ll realize that I’m not a threat, and it’ll go away.

  Only, I’m not stupid, and I know that there’s no way this is going to end well for me.

  I swing my flashlight toward the wolf, illuminating it. It steps from the shadows of the brush and starts walking toward me. It’s taking its time, I realize. It’s moving slowly, and I know why.

  I am all alone.

  I smell like fear. Hell, I probably reek of it, and this monster can do whatever it wants to me.

  I have no way to get away. I have nowhere to go. That doesn’t stop the scream that escapes from my mouth. I’m shaking, and the flashlight is shaking, and I scream as loud as I can, drop the flashlight, and start running.

  I didn’t mean to drop it, but there’s no going back now.

  I shout, crying out as I run as fast as I can on the forest path ahead of me. So this is it. This is how I die. I lost my kids and now, after everything I’ve gone through, I’m about to lose my life.

  Somehow, when I pictured my future death, I thought it would be surrounded by friends and family members who loved me. I thought that readers would flock to my funeral to celebrate the writer they’ve all grown up adoring.

  I didn’t think I’d be mauled by a wolf in the middle of the forest.

  I didn’t think that.

  The wolf’s claws hit my back and I fall to the ground. I cry out as I hit it, and suddenly everything hurts.

  “Please!” I scream. “Please don’t hurt me.”

  I don’t know why I’m arguing with a wolf, though, and I don’t know what good it’s going to do. My back hurts from where the wolf’s nails dug into my skin, and I can feel the cold air spinning in the tears on my shirt.

  But I don’t die.

  And the wolf seems to vanish.

  At least for a second.

  Then I hear the screams: it’s fighting something. It’s howling and there’s...oh shit, it’s a bear. I recognize the sounds of the bear’s growling and I roll over, somehow, and look over. The moon shines down and I can see them battling. The wolf and the bear are fighting one another, but it’s hardly a fair fight. There’s a little dog, too, and it’s barking at the wolf. Okay, so that creature is on Team Bear. Got it.

  I slowly start to scoot backwards. I need to get out of here because as soon as this fight is over, I’m going to be eaten alive.

  Scoot.

  Scoot.

  Scoot.

  I push myself backwards, farther away from the fighting, but the little dog seems to notice me. I look over just as the bear bats the wolf away for the very last time. The wolf flies through the air and falls, unmoving. I think it’s safe to say that Mr. Bear is the winner.

  The dog comes over and barks, alerting the bear to my presence.

  “Please go away,” I find myself whispering.

  Everything hurts.

  My entire body hurts.

  My throat hurts. My ears hurt. My back hurts.

  Everything is sore and I don’t think I can even contemplate trying to fight a bear.

  “Please,” I whisper. “Please, no.”

  The bear approaches, but to my surprise, it doesn’t attack me. It comes closer and closer, and I’m ashamed when I close my eyes and finally start to cry. Again, this isn’t how I saw myself dying. I didn’t think I’d be bawling in the middle of the woods at night. I didn’t think I’d be killed by a huge creature.

  I didn’t think a little dog would be the one who led me to my death.

  But I don’t die, and I open my eyes.

  The bear squats down, looking at me. It seems to cock its head. Why is it looking at me like that? Why is it just staring at me?

  The bear looks like it knows something I don’t know, and then suddenly, it hits me. I realize that it’s a bear. My kids are also bears.

  Did this bear find my children?

  Can it smell the kids on my clothes?

  Suddenly, I push myself up. I’m pretty worn down and it takes me a few tries, but I manage to get to my feet.

  “Have you seen my kids?” I whisper. “My cubs?”

  The bear doesn’t move. If it understands me, I can’t tell. I bite my lip to keep from crying out. My wrists hurt from landing on them. Hell, even my legs hurt.

  “My children,” I try again. “They’re out there. I have to find them. Have you seen them, Mr. Bear?” I whisper the words, but the bear just looks at me.

  Okay, so it doesn’t know where my kids are. Either that, or it doesn’t speak human, but I’m still alive, and I don’t think this bear is going to kill me, so I turn and start walking away.

  Instantly, the dog starts barking, nipping at my ankles.

  “Please,” I whisper. I shake my leg, trying to get the dog to leave me alone, but I finally stop and turn back. The bear hasn’t moved, but he’s still watching me. Suddenly, I’m very aware that this bear is, in fact, a he.

  I look at the creature, wondering what he’s going to do, and then he motions to me.

  I point to myself, as though I can’t believe what’s happening right now, but he repeats the gesture. It’s like he wants me to follow him, and you know what? My night has been so crazy that somehow, I find myself moving after him.

  One step at a time.

  Chapter Three

  Heath

  I found her.

  I don’t know how it happened, but I found her.

  What luck.

  As a matter of principal, when two little bear cubs come wandering into my home, I don’t leave them alone to fend for themselves. Tonight is very different from anything I could have predicted, though. The kids haven’t been abandoned, which was a fear that was nagging at the back of my mind.

  After all, it’s no secret that taking care of children can be incredibly difficult.

  If a human’s children randomly changed into bears, it would be natural for a parent to completely freak out. I mean, I’m not sure how someone could not know their kids were shifters. Maybe a woman mated with a shifter male and it was a one-night kind of deal. Perhaps there was a situation where the mom just really had no way to know.

  I don’t know.

  The woman is shaking as she follows me, though, and part of me thinks I should change back into my human form right now just so I can reassure her that everything is going to be fine, b
ut I don’t.

  It’s fucking cold outside.

  Besides, I don’t want to scare her even more. If I shift into my human form and she freaks out, I’m going to have a hell of a time convincing her that I’m not a freak and that her kids are safe.

  I just want to help her find her kids.

  So, I move slowly through the darkness, carefully guiding her back to my cabin. Soon we arrive at the little home, and she stops outside of my house and looks up at it. I wonder what she’s thinking as she eyes the design. It’s a beautiful cabin, at least if you ask me, but then again, I designed this place to live. I didn’t want something simple or tiny. I wanted something comfortable and wonderful to help me move on with my life.

  I needed a place to just forget.

  I needed a place where I could just be myself.

  She stops outside of the cabin and looks at it for a very long time. It’s so long, in fact, that for a minute, I wonder if she’s going to go inside or if she’s just going to walk away. She looks over at me, though, and she nods.

  “You’re one of them, aren’t you?”

  One of them?

  She bites her lip and looks from me to the cabin and back again.

  “So, I’m not going crazy.”

  I can’t tell if she’s speaking to herself or to me.

  “My kids,” she says. “They were turned into little animals. Bears. Like you. I know it sounds crazy. It’s crazy, right? I mean, nobody’s kids just turn into bears.” She shakes her head, and I want to reach for her and tell her that no, she’s not crazy.

  Who is this woman?

  Why was she even in the woods?

  And how did she not know that her kids were shifters?

  “Can you change into a person?” She asks.

  Spot barks lightly, and she looks at him.

  “You’re just a dog,” she says. “You’re too playful to be a...I don’t even know what ya’ll are called. Changers? I don’t know. But you,” she looks at me and shakes her head. “You’re something else. You look...sad.”

  Well, shit.

  “So are you?” She asks. “Are you one of those things? Like my kids?” She looks back to the cabin and then to me once more. “Because if you are, I need to know. I don’t know why you brought me here if you aren’t one of them. Bears don’t live in houses in the woods.”