He hit the creature at fifty miles an hour. The truck's windshield shattered as the monster slammed across the hood and onto the cab, crushing the roof under its weight. Bowman dove down onto the seat, his foot coming off the gas, but the truck kept moving of its own momentum, the weight on the cab sending it into a tailspin.
The truck whirled until the bed met the side of the roadhouse. The beast was flung off, but the huge thing gained its feet, and a nightmare horror stared into the broken cab at Bowman.
Someone had engineered a monster, but it was not put together from parts. This thing was whole-born, not made-with the giant claws of a bear, the maw of a wolf, and the face of a lion. And it was very, very big.
The impact with the truck had cost the beast, though. Blood ran down its side, and one of its arms dangled uselessly. It pulled at the driver's-side door of the broken cab with its good hand and managed to rip the door off. Then the wave of Shifters-wolves, big cats, and one huge, angry grizzly-were upon it.
The creature threw the pickup's door at the crowd, then turned around and ran for the woods. Ran fast. The Shifters sprinted after it, but they stopped just inside the edge of the trees, sitting on haunches or standing with hackles raised, in both fear and frustration.
The beast had vanished. The stench of it faded on a cool breeze, and the sounds of a normal night started up again. A car drove by on the highway beyond, as though nothing were out of the ordinary.
Cade, now in human form, yanked open the still-intact passenger door. He was naked, smelling of sweat, fighting adrenaline, and fear. "Holy shit, Bowman."
Kenzie came to the driver's side, reaching in through the opening that used to be the door. She was naked too, the parking lot's lights sending golden light over her full breasts and their dusky tips. She had a strong body, skin taut over muscle, and curves Bowman lost himself in whenever he touched her. Curves that hugged him now, swallowing him in softness.
A hell of a lot more appealing than Cade, he thought wryly. Kenzie stroked Bowman's hair, her long-fingered hand moving over his pounding skull, soothing, cutting through pain.
Behind him, Cade slammed both fists on the top of the dented cab. "Son of a bitch. Do you know how much work it will take to fix this? If I even can fix it. Hell, if the frame is bent . . ."
"Cade," Bowman said, his voice rasping. He leaned into Kenzie's touch, the scent of her warm over the tang of the dying truck.
"What?" Cade snarled, leaning in to listen.
"Shut the fuck up," Bowman said.
He dropped his head back and slipped into blissful, empty darkness. The last sensation he felt was Kenzie's hand on his hair, and the softness of her body as she bent down to kiss him.
* * *
"Anyone want to take any guesses what that thing was?"
Bowman lay back against his pillows in his bed, one hand behind his head. He looked awful, his face blotchy, healing cuts all over his exposed skin, but his voice was plenty strong. His leg was in another splint, one for humans this time, sticking out over the covers.
Kenzie knew Bowman felt better. He'd snarled at her when she'd tried to make him eat the chicken soup she'd made, so she'd snarled back at him, plopped herself down on a chair, and ate it herself.
Cade and Jamie had come to report. Marcus, the other tracker, hadn't, and Kenzie knew he'd spent the night with her cousin Bianca, whom he was dating-dating in Shifter fashion, that is. After a crazy night like last night, Kenzie didn't blame the two of them for holing up together and not coming out for a while.
Cade had a bandage wrapped around his muscular arm, and Jamie had one around his middle-cracked ribs. The two were nearly as robust as usual, though, Bowman being the one the most hurt. Kenzie had escaped severe injury by being quick, a fact she absolutely would not rub in with the trackers in this room.
No one could answer Bowman's question, so he went on. "Any trace of it?"
"Nope," Cade said. "We've been looking. Disappeared like it never existed. Like we imagined it."
"Nothing that stinks that bad is an illusion," Bowman said. In spite of his injuries, he was still the strongest person in the house, which Kenzie knew with every part of her. Only the presence of Cade and Jamie kept her from sliding out of her clothes and snuggling in beside him. She needed contact with him as a Shifter for her pack leader, as a mate for her mate, as a woman for a man.
And what a man. Bowman's upper torso, exposed above the sheet, was tight, sun-touched skin over smooth cords of muscle. The hard planes of his pectorals were dusted with black hair that curled around her fingertips whenever she touched him in bed. His dark nipples beckoned her tongue-she loved the pebble-smooth feel of them.
More wiry hair covered his solid forearms, fading to smooth skin on the inside of his wrists, where he liked to be licked. One firm, blunt-fingered fighter's hand rested on the covers, while the other braced Bowman's head, making his short dark hair stick straight up on one side. He'd leave the house like that if Kenzie didn't grab him and smooth down the unruly hair. Bowman rarely looked into a mirror.
Kenzie almost bit down on her spoon. Bowman was hurt, and here she was, getting horny simply looking at him, lying there so lazily, his gray eyes holding fire.
She hastily ate more soup. Cade and Jamie would pick up on her mating frenzy if she weren't careful, and tease the life out of her.
"We take it as real," Bowman said. "I want every tracker in Shiftertown in that woods and in the bar, getting its scent-"
"Won't be hard," Jamie broke in. "The thing stunk like the shit of something that's been dead twenty years."
"Not what you smelled, catbrain," Bowman said. "Its actual scent, not the one it threw out to distract you."
Jamie growled, ready to snap a comeback, but something in Bowman's face made him swallow it.
"We're on it," Cade said seriously. "We know what you mean."
"Kenzie, go with them."
Bowman was looking straight at her, holding her gaze as he did when he wanted no argument.
Kenzie wanted to protest. No, I need to stay with you, make sure you're all right . . .
Bowman must have sensed what was in her head, because he said, "I need someone there to keep an eye on everyone. I'm down, Kenz. I need you."
He did. If a Shifter wasn't strong enough to fight, his mate needed to fight for him. Otherwise, those next in power would sense an opening and try to fill it. In the old days, such a thing happened often, and whoever pushed out or killed the leader would steal his mate and offspring. Hardly ever occurred these days, but this Shiftertown was still divisive, and there were those who liked to challenge Bowman's power. Kenzie knew exactly who Bowman was worried about, and exactly why she needed to keep up a strong front.
She gave him a nod, as though leaving him while he was hurt was no big deal. "You mean keep these buttholes in line?" she asked, meeting Bowman's gaze. "I can do that."
Jamie pretended to look offended, but Cade grinned. He knew what was going on.
Speaking of offspring, Bowman's and Kenzie's decided at that moment to walk in.
CHAPTER FIVE
Bowman's protective instincts went off whenever his cub was near, no matter how much he trusted the other Shifters in the room. It made him cranky, which Kenzie would be quick to point out.
Bowman scented twelve-year-old Ryan's fear, his worry. His extraordinary love for the boy rose up and made him soften his question to only a faint snarl.
"Why the hell aren't you still with your great-grandma?"
"I couldn't stay," Ryan said. His hair was dark, like Kenzie's-in fact, he looked a lot like Kenzie in the shape of his face, and in his eyes, which were golden like hers. He'd also inherited Kenzie's back-talking sass. "Had to come make sure you hadn't been knocked off, because then I'd have to take over Shiftertown. But it looks like you ran fast enough this time, Dad."
Kenzie should have said, Ryan, don't be a smartass, but she only gave her son a look of sparkling good humor. "I made sure the monster didn't catch him."
"Yeah, your mom kicked some good ass," Jamie said. "Your dad was down in the first five minutes."
"The other guy looked worse," Cade said. "But not because of your dad. Kenzie was fighting like crazy. You should have seen her. She didn't even get hurt."
"Didn't get hurt much," Kenzie said. She'd been bruised and winded, but she'd recovered quickly. "But, sure, I did pretty good." She huffed on her curled fingertips and rubbed them against her shirt. "Think I should go a few rounds at the fight club?"
"Girls can't fight in the fight club," Ryan said, but he sounded uncertain. "It's the rules."