Evin nodded. “As long as we stand together we can beat them.” It sounded trite and something a Hollywood hero would say, but he stood by his statement. If things went well he would spend the rest of his life with these complex, beautiful men. Bad guys with drugs and guns were not going to stand in his way of the life he could imagine.
He might not have planned to mate with two feline shifters, but he wasn’t going to back away from the chance, either. 3Chapter Three
“We need to corner them at their hideout,” Evin insisted.
“I don’t want them to kill Garfield.” Chester gnawed on his nail in between statements.
He twitched more than a cat in a room full of rockers. Evin had no doubt that, if Chester had been in cat form, his tail would be flicking madly back and forth.
Adrian and Talan sat on the couch across from Evin, Chester and Dillon. Other members of the pride sat around the room, but Evin’s focus was on the alpha pair. They were the ones who would make the final decision.
“I can send some of the smaller bird shifters. I know a pair of wrens who could do it without anyone suspecting a thing,” Evin offered.
He knew Chen and Marlen would be happy to be of some help. The mated pair had been tossed out of their home aviary for loving each other. The owls had taken them in because they were great at security. No one expected a small bird to turn into a six-foot-tall man. He only hoped they were still willing to talk to him after his banishment from the flock.
“Good—you do that,” Talan said, pulling Evin back into the conversation. He found focusing difficult while surrounded by his mates. Chester’s warm body sat on one side of him, with Dillon’s hard muscled form on the other. His hormones raged at the thought of being sandwiched between them.
Blinking, he focused on the alpha. He was supposed to do something.
“Call your friends,” Dillon whispered in his ear.
Warm breath caressed his lobe and heat flashed through his body. It took him a moment to get himself under control to answer. “Um, yeah, I’ll go do that.”
Standing up, he walked stiffly towards the doorway, seeking a quieter spot to make his call. The lions were a loud bunch and if he wanted to hear Chen then he’d have to go someplace quieter.
The big porch outside the pride house beckoned. Sitting on the swing, Evin dialled. 3“Where the hell are you!” Chen shouted. “This place is falling apart. There are hunters running around like they own the place and all the bird shifters are freaking out. Tilden’s ordering us to attack some lion shifters. What the fuck is up with that?”
“Have you seen the hunters?
“Yeah, there’s twelve of them here and I think more are on the way. Tilden is sending out some owls to scout the territory. I’ll keep you updated.”
“Thanks, Chen. I’m at the lions’ pride and they think the hunters are part of the People Against Werekin. They’re dangerous and they torture shifters for research. Stay as far away from them as you can. When you get the chance, grab Marlen and head out here. I need someone to spy on a wolf pack’s territory. We think the hunters have moved in there. I need you to tell me if they are the same group. If you can help, I’m sure I can get the lions to find you a new home.”
Chen cleared his throat. “Why would the lions take us in?”
Evin could hear the nerves in his friend’s voice. “Because one of them is my mate.”
He held the phone away from his ear at the high screeching yell of joy.
“Congrats, Ev! We’ll be there as soon as we can. I don’t want Tilden to become suspicious. Take care of your mate.” Chen hung up before Evin could tell him he had two mates. At least he’d confirmed his suspicions that there were more of them than he’d thought. If Tilden convinced all the rest of the owls to help him, then there would be a war between shifter kind. Evin hoped his people would refuse, but Tilden could be persuasive and if he had the hunters on his side he might use force to bend them to his will.
Sighing, he went to tell his mates the news.
“So we still don’t know anything. It might be best for me to return to the people who sent me here,” Chester said.
“I’m curious about why they’re doing a two-pronged attack,” Talan said, rubbing his chin in thought. “I mean, why send Chester in to scout around if they have the owls to spy for them, and what made them think we’d accept a shifter into our midst that we didn’t know?”
“If they knew we took the others, they may think we’d respond better to a feline. You and I would both be more suspicious of an owl who suddenly needed sanctuary. A lion pride wouldn’t be any flier’s first choice.” Adrian gave Evin an apologetic smile. 3“No, you’re right. I only came here to warn you. If I wanted to seek sanctuary I would go to another aviary, as most of the winged do.”
“I think they will send owls, but an owl will only be able to look outside. They were hoping I could get into the building,” Chester said.
“And you did.” Evin examined his mate, noticing how his hands shook a bit and his colour was pale. “Do you have a doctor here?” he asked the alphas.
Talan shook his head. “There’s a hospital down the way but I doubt any of them would be able to help with an unknown poison. The best shot we have is to return to the cabin and get the hunters or whoever the hell they are and rescue your brother.”
“Everyone get some rest. We’ll discuss our
