The Bear’s Secret Read online

  “I couldn’t wait for the day I would get to kill you, the day when I could finally have a normal life, the day when I could finally just eliminate you from existence. God, I wished for that day more than anything else,” he stated.

  His words made her shudder, she was disgusted by him.

  “You’re pathetic. I know the shifter. Billy is his name. He’s been on my list. I've been trying to kill him for some time,” he stated to her.

  She let out a raspy sound, trying to fight this, but it was no use. She then felt something touch her neck. She didn’t even know who the hell it was, but she slowly felt her body’s consciousness start to fade away. The only thing that she did remember, was blacking out, and that’s all she could do at the present moment, was to black out, and let things go.

  She didn’t remember what happened next, nor where she was taken, but the actions, all of this, set her on edge

  Who was going to kill her? Would it be her dad? Or would it be someone else?

  This was the last thought she had before she blacked out.

  Chapter 19

  Billy had a bad feeling about this the moment he left her. He didn’t know why this was happening, but there was something just so… off about this whole mess. He wondered if it had something to do with the fact that her dad was home, especially since he was definitely not the nicest person.

  For now though, he felt that it might be best to just let things go. She would call him if things got bad, right?

  He figured as much.

  Billy headed back, and when he stepped in, Travis looked at him with concern.

  “Everything okay there?”

  “Yeah, I'm just a little worried about Nikki, that’s all,” Billy explained.

  “Isn’t she ok?” Travis asked.

  “You could say that. I just… I don’t trust her dad, okay?”

  “Ahh, one of those,” he said with a tsk.

  “Yeah. I don’t like the way that her dad acts. I just have a bad feeling about him, even though I don’t even know the damn guy,” he said.

  “I see. It’s one of those types. I mean, have you tried maybe talking to him?”

  “Nope. She tells me that her dad means well but he’s just… so unapproachable,” Billy explained.

  “I understand that. I mean, I say give it a few hours. Did she promise to call you once she got back?”

  “She didn’t, but that doesn’t mean I'm not going to sit here worried sick about her ass,” he stated.

  “I get that Billy, but maybe there is a reason why she can’t talk. I mean, she might’ve just gotten busy,” Travis explained.

  “You may be right. I mean, she did seem extremely tired when I brought her back, so maybe it’s just my imagination.”

  “Could be. The only thing that you should do is wait and see. Maybe she’ll be at the bar,” Travis explained.

  Billy did think he’d see her at the bar, and he didn’t want to wait too long. There was something bad about this, something which made his hairs stand on end. He shouldn't wait that long. He had a bad feeling about what was about to happen, and there was something about this which made his hair stand on end. He wanted to figure out what it was, but he couldn't really pinpoint what it was.

  A few hours had passed, and Billy tried to sleep, but it was a struggle. He wondered if she was okay. Finally, he started to figure out what to do. He went to the bar, driving over there and clenching the steering wheel in fear. It was still a little early, but Nikki did like to go in early because she hated her family. However, when he got in there, he saw James there instead.

  “Where is Nikki?” Billy asked.

  “Don’t know. I haven’t seen her at all today. Did something happen?” James asked.

  Billy shook his head.

  “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it. I need to find her though,” he said.

  “I see. Well, if you need help with anything, please don’t hesitate to ask,” he said.

  “Thank you. I don’t want to get you involved though. I'm a little worried about her. She was seeing her dad when she got back, and he’s not the best person on earth, so I may have to take matters into my own hands,” Billy explained.

  “I see. Good luck. Please let me know if she’s okay,” James said.

  Billy nodded. He would do that, at least for his friend. He stepped outside, dialing her number in hopes that he would get a response. But there was nothing.

  Her phone was off, going straight to voicemail, so either it died, or she turned it off.

  Or maybe someone turned it off for her.

  This thought made Billy’s hair stand on end. He called Travis, and after a few rings, the alpha’s voice echoed.

  “Everything all right?”

  “No. she’s not responding. If I need backup… you guys will come help, right?”

  “Course. I told you that I'm helping you no matter what Billy. If you ever need me, don’t hesitate to ask,” Travis explained.

  “Thank you. I'm going to her place. If I call again, please track my phone and go there. I may not live to tell the tale,” Billy explained.

  “I see. Good luck,” he said.

  Billy hung up, stepping into his car. The only place left to look was her house, but there was something incredibly unsettling about going there.

  Billy drove back to where the house was, stopping there. He noticed that her car was still there, so she was home, or at least he thought. He stepped in, and soon, he started to move forward. He looked at the doorway, hoping that this would be the answers he’d been looking for.

  When he looked inside, the first thing he noticed was how eerily empty it was. This set him on edge, and he looked around. Everything was definitely not good, and he couldn't help but wonder just what the hell she got into.

  He checked the living room, seeing that there was a sign of struggle. There was a chair knocked over the sign of objects being thrown, and disarray. Whatever happened here made Billy gulp in response.

  He moved forward, noticing as well that there was something on the ground. He saw that it was a note, and when he opened it, he read the contents.

  You can look all you want, but she isn’t here. Nikki was taken by us, and if you want to bring her back, you must come alone you pathetic shifter.

  Billy’s hands trembled as he read the note, realizing what was going on. He was going to fight for her life, and he would have to do it alone.

  A part of him wanted to call Travis, to tell him the truth, that this was happening like this. But, he stopped, realizing that if he didn’t follow orders, she might be killed.

  And that was the last thing Billy fucking wanted.

  He pocketed his phone, looking at the note. He saw that there was an address on the back of it, no doubt left for Billy to come to them. He realized it was in the farmhouse in the middle of nowhere, the one that was on the other side of town.

  So she had been kidnapped.

  He wanted answers, and he wanted to get Nikki back safely. He couldn’t help but wonder though if this would be it.

  Billy called Travis, and after a few moments, he spoke.

  “Hey. I know where she is. She was taken by someone. I'm not sure what they want, or who they are, but, I'm going to have to go alone,” Billy said.

  “Are you sure? We could cloak-”

  “No Travis. I need to do this alone,” he snapped.

  “Okay. Just… if you do need help, don’t hesitate to ask for it,” Travis said.

  “Trust me, if I could ask for you all to come help me, I would, but they have my hands tied. I know what I'm doing. I practiced for this. I'm going to get her back, Travis. Just let the others know that if I'm not back in a reasonable amount of time… this is why,” he said.

  “Fair enough,” Travis replied with concern.

  He wished he could let Travis know that he wanted help more than anything else, but he stopped. He knew deep down that it would only get him in trouble if he did that. He clicked the phone off
, sighing in complete frustration. He wished he could just let this all pass, he could just get Nikki and things would be done, but he knew for a fact that this was definitely not going to be the case. It was his fight, and he had to go alone.

  He went to the car, driving it to the destination. He left his phone in the car, feeling that he didn’t need it. When he stepped forward, he realized that there were traps all around. He stepped back, throwing rocks that he noticed in the driveway to each of them. The clanging sound of the traps being closed reverberated through his ears, making his hairs stand on end. This whole thing made his body shudder with slight worry and disdain, but he had to keep on going.

  He got to the entrance when he was attacked by someone. He stepped back, his fist on the ground as he looked at the figure.

  “I knew you’d come. Emilia told me that I would have the honor of taking you out. I wish I could've killed Nikki when I had the chance,” the lady said with a smile on her face. She showed her teeth, which were pure white, and jagged. She had a bloodthirsty look in her eyes, and that alone made Billy’s blood start to rush.

  “You won't get to kill her. None of you will,” he said.

  “On the contrary, that isn’t going to happen, sweetie. You’ll die here, and they’ll kill her too. And soon, Emilia will be the leader once again,” she said.

  “Emilia is dead. She’s been dead,” he said.

  “Oh, you’re too funny. Thinking that she’s dead. But no matter. You’ve got me to deal with first,” the lady said.

  She shifted, and Billy saw that she was a lion. She had piercing grey eyes and a snarl on her face. Billy shifted, turning into a bear as he lunged at her. The two of them struggled with Billy realizing this fight would be harder than he thought. This woman was insane, and every hit that Billy tried to throw at her was countered with a smile. The way that she looked at Billy was the most unsettling thing, but Billy tried not to think about that because if he did think about that, he would feel disgusted with himself. He continued to attack, and with each attack, she smiled at him with crazy eyes.

  “Yes, please, continue to fight me. You won't win. I'll make sure that your bones by the end of this,” she said.

  “That’s what you think,” Billy said.

  He then moved back, snarling and growling at her. He remembered what he had to do. He had to fight for his girl, for his mate, and when he realized that Nikki was his mate, something sparked within him.

  He wondered if this was the power that Travis discussed with the others when he saw Alana as his mate for the first time when he saved her. He soon grew stronger as the haunches in his body becoming fuller with muscle, and he soon attacked, punching the lion down on the ground. He extracted his claws, immediately scraping deep into the flesh. The lion let out a roar of complete pain and agony, but that didn't stop Billy. He wanted to get rid of her. He looked at her, seeing the smile on her face.

  “You… were underestimated… by me,” she said.

  “Yeah. You did underestimate me. I'm going to bring Nikki back. I'm taking her back with me, and you’re not going to stop me,” he said.

  “That's cute. I'm just the first line of defense though. You’ll get to see Emilia in there if you can find her in time of course,” she said.

  She laid there, blood pooling on the ground, and Billy went back into his human form. He was already covered in blood, but that didn’t stop him. He needed to find Nikki, to get her out of there, and he wanted to figure out what the hell is going on.

  He raced inside, feeling the nagging feeling grow, but then, as he went in, he stopped, nearly getting his dick cut off by the swinging axes that were in there.

  “What is this, some kind of fucking horror show?” he muttered to himself. He raced through there, heading through every single direction possible. It was a labyrinth, but he wouldn't stop. He needed to find Nikki.

  The pathway was long, with twists and turns that made Billy feel almost sick to his stomach. When he finally got to the very edge though, he stopped. He realized he was in a room, and there were two people there. It was a man and a woman. He looked at them, feeling the bile start to rise in his throat. In front of them was Nikki. She was unconscious, and she looked drugged.

  “What the hell did you do to her?” he said.

  “Aww, is the little bear scared of what I did to her? Well trust me, I haven't killed her, yet. I plan to make sure she’s slaughtered though, right before your very eyes,” she said.

  He looked at the woman with fear in his heart. He knew that voice, and he knew that sound. He remembered that cutting tone, the one that made him want to throw up, to run away in fear at the sound.

  “Emilia?” he said.

  “Ding dong, give this little idiot a prize. Looks like you've figured me out,” she said to him with a sneer.

  He couldn't believe it. That was her mom? That explained why she had such a rough time, but that didn’t mean that Billy was going to give up. He needed to save Nikki, to wake her up, and to defeat her.

  “You’re not going to take her Emilia. Not this one,” he said.

  “Wow, you really think you can defeat me. How cute,” she told him.

  He snarled at her, the growl echoing through the barn. He saw that Nikki was still lying there and knew he needed to get her away from these psychos. He wondered how he could do it.

  He stared, trying to find the opening. After a brief moment, he saw it.

  There was a brief second of time, a small increment that could mean happiness or death. But, Billy took this chance, and as he rushed on forward, he grasped her body, holding her in his arms. He then rushed over to the other room, pulling Nikki in there. He stayed with her, hoping that she would wake up.

  “Come on. Wake up for me,” he said to her.

  He waited there, hearing the sound of footsteps as they thumbed through. Emilia was coming, but Billy didn’t care. He wanted to save Nikki, to get her away from this hell.

  He then stayed with her, touching her beautiful curly hair. When her eyes started to flutter awake, he looked at her beautiful face, seeing the smile that showed up on her face. He immediately grinned, feeling his heart lurch at the presence in front of him.

  Chapter 20

  Nikki could feel the pain in her body as she started to rouse. It felt like she had been drugged. When she finally got up, she noticed Billy in the room. She looked at him, suddenly moving forward.

  “Billy,” she said.

  “I'm here now sweetie,” he said.

  “I know that you are, but who are… they?” she asked.

  She looked in the corner, seeing her dad there, but there was also someone else standing beside him. However, when Nikki looked at the woman, she was quite different from the mother that she knew.

  “Mom?” she asked.

  She couldn't believe that this was her mother. She didn’t want to believe that it was her. But her mom smiled at her, a sneering look that set her on edge.

  “Hello there sweetie. How are you?” she said in a voice that reeked of annoyance.

  “What are you doing here? Why?” she asked.

  “Why do you think?” she muttered.

  Nikki looked at the duo, and then back at Billy. She started to take in what was going on.

  Suddenly, it dawned to Nikki. Her mother wasn’t sick. In fact, she looked perfectly well, which made absolutely no sense to Nikki whatsoever. She had been under the illusion that her mother was dying, yet here she was, with a snarl on her face, and a look of fear in her eyes.

  “You haven't figured it out yet, have you? Or maybe you don’t realize what is really going on here,” she snapped.

  “She doesn’t. She doesn’t know who you are, Emilia,” Billy stated.

  Emilia? Like the woman who killed his parents, Emilia? Nikki looked at the woman. There was a similarity to her mom’s features, but there was something else to her expression, something sinister.

  At that moment, the woman who called herself her mother started c
hanging in shape. Instead of having a sunken, hallowed face, she appeared full of life, much younger, and with a presence that was far eviler than Nikki could ever think possible. She looked at the two of them, unsure of what to make of this.

  “Wait, what! Do you mean you’re not my mother? That all of this was a lie?” she said.

  “Give the little girl a prize,” the lady said.

  “You at least owe her an explanation Emilia,’ Billy snapped.