Cougar's Conquest by Linda O. Johnston Read Free Book Online Page A

more ambivalent than usual.
    Oh, yes, she loved how it felt to be shifted, a feline in the wild. She always had.
    But being alone, as she’d been in Colorado, was preferable to knowing that her family members were nearby and treated her like the lowliest form of dirt imaginable.
    “Come out here, Gwynn. Now.” That was her father. He was on the back porch of their house. She felt certain that the rest of the family, except for her, were there, too.
    She felt especially uneasy this night. Could she trust Brett to stay away?
    He might not know exactly where she was, but he had traced her to this area. He was smart, innovative, and in some ways unstoppable.
    Even though she was inside and not directly in the glare of the full moon, she felt the initial tugging beneath her skin that told her that her shift was beginning.
    Sighing, she did as she was told and headed to the back porch to be with her family.
    Her parents, her brother, were all illuminated somewhat by the light of the moon, barely visible near the horizon beyond the stand of nearby trees. They appeared to be in varied degrees of discomfort, limbs twisted, the beginning of their cougar pelts erupting from beneath their skin.
    None wore any clothing, of course. The change took place whether a shifter was dressed or not, but its discomfort was somewhat lessened by nudity.
    Gwynn stood just outside the doorway, undressing quickly. A good thing, since her own change had begun. She writhed, staring at her arms as they lengthened and she sat back on her haunches, fur growing quickly on her limbs, her body.
    She heard a roar deep in the throat of her father, followed by answering growls of her brother.
    They were staring into the woods beyond the clearing around their home.
    Her gasp sounded almost human to her as she realized what they were growling about.
    There, only partially hidden behind the trees, was Brett, dressed in black, but still visible.
    An intruder.
    A human.
    One who was very much in danger.

Chapter Seven
     
    Fascinating.
    Brett was shooting a video on his special camera, watching as the four people on the back porch of that small, decrepit cabin morphed from human form into cougars.
    Just like he had seen one of them do so many months ago: Gwynn.
    He’d been amazed, horrified, almost sickened then, until he’d had time to think about it.
    Now, he was still amazed but fascinated. Excited. Drawn to them.
    Maybe the entire family could be encouraged to join Alpha Force.
    On the other hand, if his impressions about Gwynn’s fear this afternoon were real, Alpha Force would not want her possibly out of control family members.
    Back when he had known her before, she’d never answered any questions about her origins or her family. He had the sense that something was wrong there, although he didn’t know what.
    He’d developed some theories, though. After seeing her change, his huge amount of research had included not only shapeshifters but cougars, too.
    Like all felines, they tended to be solitary hunters. Staying in family groups was not natural when they were fully grown. Not while they were in feline form.
    Having the group together like this as humans—did that lead to problems, too?
    He’d watch them now. Follow Gwynn to memorialize with his camera how a changed cougar with only limited human awareness, if any at all, acted during a shift.
    And to make sure she remained safe. That took precedence over his promise to stay away from her tonight.
    He hadn’t had a camera with him the last time he had seen her change. Not even a smartphone.
    Of course then he hadn’t been anticipating what he’d seen.
    As he watched under the brightness of the full moon, two of the creatures—now all cougar—leaped almost in unison from the porch, then stalked in his direction.
    Not good, he realized, stiffening in place as his self-protective instincts hollered at him to run. They had no pack mentality as werewolf shifters did, or at least they shouldn’t. But