Bearly Living: Foxhollow Den #1 (Alaskan Den Men) by Kizzie Waller Read Free Book Online Page A

couldn’t think about donuts right now. “Did you notice the hardware store is still closed this afternoon? Isn’t that unusual?”
    “Maybe. I’ve heard through the grapevine that mom and pop Wright are down in Juneau, and I guess Ray usually runs the store when they aren’t there. Are you concerned something happened?”
    “Grant and Ray were going to confront poachers who had guns this morning, and it was a stupid idea,” she blurted without taking a pause.
    Samantha stood and joined Bobbie at the front of the café. “Jesus, Bobbie. Why didn’t you start the conversation with that information? Confronting poachers is always a stupid idea. When was this?”
    She shook her hands rapidly, trying to shake out any fear for Grant’s safety. “A couple of hours ago. I’d thought they’d be back by now.”
    A woman with a double stroller stopped in front of the hardware store and pulled on the locked doors. She knocked insistently, only pausing to put a pacifier back in one of the babies’ mouths. “Is that Ray’s wife?”
    Samantha had paced away but now joined her again at the window. “Yes, and Kristin looks pissed.”
    Fear gnawed at Bobbie’s limbs and wouldn’t stop. She’d been the last to see Ray, and now it was possible he and Grant were in trouble. “Should we tell her what we know?”
    Samantha’s golden curls bounced around her as she shook her head. “I don’t think we should worry her without good reason.” Her serious gaze locked on Bobbie’s. “What do you want to do?”
    Find Grant and wring his neck for making me feel this way . “I don’t know. I wouldn’t even know where to begin to look for them if they are off in the woods. I do know how to get down to Grant’s pond, and I might be able to find the spot from there.”
    Samantha made sure the bolt was set on the front door. “We can start with the last place you guys saw the poachers. I’ve had enough Grant smell off of you lately, I can probably track them. Let’s go.”
    Bobbie rushed behind Samantha. “Really? You’d help sworn family enemies?”
    Samantha grabbed her keys from the counter, and they walked out the kitchen back door. “Personal drama aside, we shifters have to stick together.”
    Having her cousin back her up eased her anxiety. “What’s the plan?”
    “We assess and determine if we need to call for back up. Nothing crazy or risky.”
    “Got it.” Nothing crazy or risky .
     
    ∞∞∞
     
    Bobbie stayed in constant awe of her cousin’s tracking abilities as they prowled their way through the trees and high brush. “Why didn’t you tell me you were a bear-spirit badass?”
    “Children are taught the ways of the bear up here. This is normal for us.”
    “And you didn’t say anything the entire time I’ve been complaining to you about being a bear?”
    Samantha faced her and crinkled her nose. “We’ve both got issues and were going to focus on the donuts, remember?”
    Men’s voices filtered through the trees. Samantha held a finger to her lips and waved Bobbie forward.
    At the edge of the trees they stooped and high crawled behind a cluster of bushes. Bobbie could see a large four-door truck with a white horse trailer hooked to the bumper. Two men loaded a ridiculously sized crate into the back. A naked, very human Grant was hunched over inside. She assumed Ray was already in a similar cage on the truck. The nakedness meant they’d been in bear form before being captured.
    Bobbie gripped Samantha’s arm. “This is bad. Very bad.”
    “We need to take action now.” Samantha nodded at me. “Here’s the down and dirty plan. Take your clothes off and run naked through the field.”
    “This is your idea of nothing crazy or risky? Are you insane?” Bobbie asked.
    “We don’t have time to call for reinforcements. What if they get away? The poachers’ brains will literally shut off at the distraction and we’ll get the drop on them. They’ll be confused for days. We just have to get