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I heard muted voices in the passageway around me. Was it Vera? Was Toby with her? I closed my eyes, building up all the strength and confidence I could muster. The voices died down. It wasn’t them. How much longer would it take? When would the boss come, or had he already? I thought back on the shadowy figure.

My eyes flew open sometime later when I heard footsteps approaching. A torch lit up the face of my visitor.

“Fin?” Confusion flooded me. Did they need to make things worse? Did they need to remind me of another mistake years before.

“Don’t talk.” His voice was sharp, so I listened.

He leaned over me, and I held my breath. He couldn’t hurt me. There was no way. His hand brushed against me as he unlocked the chain fastened over my body. He also released my hands from the straight jacket. “Give me a head start out of here. I’m putting myself on the line.” With a quick glance back, he disappeared through the rock entryway.

I waited until I heard his footsteps disappear before I tried to move. With my hands free, I was able to break the chains on my legs. Had Fin just helped me escape? Why? If it was a trap, I had to tread lightly, but I also didn’t have time to stop and worry. I got up and away from that darn stone wall.

The passageway was silent so I left the enclave, hoping I could somehow find my way in the darkness. Pteron night vision is great, but it has its limitations. It requires at least some light source to work off of. The pitch darkness of the cave was too much.

I fell to my knees and tried crawling. With my eyes closed I could focus better on my other senses. I heard what sounded like running water. I remembered hearing the same noise on the way in. I tried to calm my breathing and beating heart.

I followed the sound of water and kept crawling until I saw a small sliver of light. I was going to make it.

A bear claw reached out for me, and I jerked away, ready to fight. But with the limited light I could see again, and I saw the hazel eyes. I knew this wasn’t an ordinary bear, it was Vera. She wasn’t alone, and I just barely made out Jared’s muscular form.

I couldn’t speak at first. I was too afraid of getting caught. I was so relieved to see them, but I froze when Toby’s absence dawned on me. Where was he? I whispered Toby’s name, knowing Jared could hear. He only nodded forward. I hoped that meant he was okay.

Vera pushed her nose against me, urging me forward. I followed her out, passing two bears lying in a heap on the floor. I wondered if Vera or Jared was responsible for that. Seeing the hurt animals made me worry. I hoped nothing had happened to Toby. I’d never forgive myself.

What felt like an eternity later, we stumbled out onto the forest floor.

“Casey!” Toby yelled as soon as we emerged.

I picked myself up off the ground and ran into Toby’s arms. I knew we didn’t have time to waste, but I needed to feel his body against mine. Neither of us said anything. We just wrapped up in each other’s arms and let the physical contact say the rest. Wordlessly, we broke the embrace and turned toward Vera and Jared. Vera was still in bear form.

“I’m going back in.” Jared hadn’t said a word to me yet. “The boss might be in there, and I have to find him. Otherwise, we’re never going to get answers.”

I pulled myself from Toby and walked toward Jared. “Be careful and thank you.” I hugged him.

“You be careful too.” Jared turned to Toby. “Take care of her. We’ll meet back in the city.”

Toby put an arm around me. “Don’t do anything stupid.”

Jared grinned. “Would I ever do something like that?”

Vera let out a grunt that probably would have been a laugh if she were in human form. I still couldn’t quite accept that she was my sister. Pterons still look like people when they transform—bears were entirely different.

Jared shifted his weight from foot to foot. “We’ll catch up with you soon. You have to get her out of here, Toby.”

Toby didn’t need to be told again. He transformed, and I did the same.

We flew for a half hour until neither of us could wait anymore. We landed in an open field.

I knocked him over in my excitement, unwilling to bother transforming back. “You came for me.” I gazed down at him with a grin on my face.

“Of course I did.” He reached up and rested his hands on my hips. “Did you really doubt it?”

I shook my head, shaking out my hair while enjoying the fresh air and the feel of Toby’s strong hands on me. “No. Not for a second.”

He grinned. “Then we’re making progress.”

“I love you.” The words flew off my tongue without a second of hesitation. I had no doubts about how I felt. My heart was so full. Nothing else in the world could change it.

“I’ve been in love with you since the first time you served me coffee.”

I swatted at him. “That’s not true.”

“Sure it is.” He took both of my wrists in one of his hands. “Ever hear of love at first sight?”

“And you just didn’t realize it until now?”

“Oh, I realized it ages ago. You just didn’t give me the chance to say it.”

“Here’s your chance. I love you, Toby, and I always will.”

“I love you, Casey Bates.” He pulled my body down on his and his lips crashed into mine. I needed the taste of his lips, his mouth. I indulged in him, feeling a mix of relief and passion as he deepened the kiss. Everything else disappeared. It was just the two of us alone in a field in the middle of the night.

“You’re amazing.” He broke the kiss first, and it brought me back to reality.

“Do you think Vera and Jared are okay?”

Toby pulled me against him. “Please don’t ever tell anyone I’m saying this, but if I had to trust anyone with my life or yours, it would probably be Jared. Not to mention that your sister is a pretty bad ass bear.”

I smiled. “She is, isn’t she? And I agree with you about Jared. Despite our, uh, history, he’s the kind of guy you want on your side.”

“He’s into your sister.”

I laughed, realizing I didn’t care nearly as much as I should have. “Yeah, well, can you blame him? The Bates girls are pretty hard to resist.”

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Jared

Caves have to be one of my least favorite places in the world. Cramped and dark even for a Pteron, they’re the worst place for a bird. You’d think one trip inside the place would have been enough, but I wasn’t ready to give up. If I didn’t find the boss, we’d just have to go through this again. I choked down my discomfort and prepared to go back inside the cold and dank space. Vera tried to follow me in, but I had her keep lookout. I knew there was no telling when the rest of the bears would be back, and considering we’d only taken out four, that left over twenty. I hoped I’d be out of the area before they came back.