Page 29 of Cowboy Bear’s Hope (Motley Crewd Shifters #3)

“ I don’t give two fucks what your Alpha told you to do. Dante Bianco is with the Motley Crewd now. I am his Alpha, and you two can get the fuck off my land,” Max snarled at Reginald Lewis, Enforcer for my former Clan.

Two massive Grizzly Shifters paced back and forth behind the hulking male in front of me, their movements predatory and deliberate, like wolves circling a wounded deer. The tension in the air was palpable, crackling like a live wire.

The hair on the back of my neck stood straight up, and my chest rumbled with the sheer force of the growl building inside me. It vibrated through my entire body, a warning to them and a reminder to myself to stay in control.

Barely.

The Willow Creek Clan didn’t play fair. They never had, and as far as I knew, they never would.

Niall Tiegs ran his Clan like it was his own personal kingdom, a place where his word was law, and his desires came before anything else.

Like a fat, greedy toddler screaming for snacks and toys, he used his Enforcers as a personal police force to intimidate, manipulate, and destroy.

He took what he wanted, leaving devastation in his wake, and didn’t give a single damn about the people he hurt in the process.

He was a tyrant. A bully. A cruel excuse for a leader.

And not worthy of a single thought, never mind the time I was wasting on this ridiculous challenge.

But here we were.

These men had come here. They tried to intimidate my Alpha. And now they were threatening my mate? My cub?

Hell. No.

Niall’s voice boomed through the clearing, cold and cruel, his words sharp enough to scrape against my nerves.

“Like I told you, Dante Bianco is still beholden to our Alpha,” he declared, his tone dripping with arrogance. “He owes us his kin. Birthing numbers are down, and if he’s found a breeder, we want her! So this challenge is for his mate and cub?—”

A snarling roar tore out of me before he could finish, the sound ripping through the air like thunder.

Breeder? This motherfucker.

My entire body shook with fury as I stomped the ground, my Grizzly clawing at the edges of my control, desperate for release.

“Don’t you fucking talk about them!” I shouted, my voice raw and filled with unrelenting rage.

The ground beneath me seemed to vibrate with the force of my anger, my fists clenched so tightly I could feel my nails digging into my palms.

My Grizzly roared inside me, demanding I tear Niall apart, that I tear them all apart. Make them pay for even daring to speak about my family like they were property.

My mate. My cub.

They weren’t theirs to take.

They weren’t anyone’s but mine.

I took a step forward, my muscles coiled and ready to strike, my voice low and deadly as I locked eyes with Niall.

“You want a challenge? Fine. But let me make one thing clear. You will regret every word that just came out of your mouth.”

The pacing Grizzlies froze, their eyes darting nervously toward their Alpha, but Niall’s smirk didn’t waver. That only stoked my rage further.

Because this wasn’t just a challenge. This was a threat.

And I was ready to show them what happened when someone threatened what was mine.

“Traitor Bear! You want some of this? You know the laws! Your breeding bitch and her cubs belong to Willow Creek now!” Reginald shouted, his voice a venomous snarl as he backed out of the pen like the coward he was.

His arrogance didn’t mask his fear. Not from me. It smelled worse than bull shit.

“Back off!” Max roared, his voice splitting the air like a whip.

Power pulsed around us, the weight of it crackling like static electricity. But even a Jersey Devil’s strength had its limits.

One Devil, no matter how powerful, was no match for the fury of four fully grown Grizzly Bear Shifters.

Before Max could shout another warning, the two Bears behind Reginald charged.

I didn’t think.

I acted.

My Grizzly tore through me, ripping free in an explosion of muscle, fur, and raw power.

My clothes shredded to tatters as the transformation consumed me, my human skin replaced with the bulk and fury of my beast.

The earth shook beneath us as I met the two charging Bears head-on, our collision reverberating through the ground like a small earthquake.

Reginald was next to swap skin for fur, his hulking form bursting forth, but I barely registered him.

My focus was locked on the two in front of me, their teeth bared and claws slicing through the air as they attacked.

I blocked their strikes with my own, swiping and slamming into them with the force of a battering ram. Three against one wasn’t a fair fight, but I didn’t care.

My Grizzly didn’t care.

This wasn’t about fairness. This was about survival.

About protecting my family.

Max’s Devil dove in then, a fiery blur of black and crimson as he tackled the third Grizzly. Reginald, that prick.

His snarl echoed through the air, and I roared my approval, my beast recognizing the ally in the chaos.

Max’s magic surged, wrapping around Reginald like invisible chains. The Enforcer’s furious growls turned to human shouts as Max compelled him to shift back, his power too strong to resist.

“You will not interfere again,” Max snarled, his voice laced with raw fury as he twisted his hands in a gesture that lifted Reginald clean off the ground.

I didn’t have time to revel in the sight, my focus locked on my attackers. One Bear lunged for me, his claws aiming for my flank, but I was faster.

I twisted, kicking out with my back legs. My claws connected with his snout, the impact sending him stumbling back with a pained roar.

The other came at me from the side, but I met him head-on, my powerful jaws closing around his snout. I bit down hard, ignoring his whines and cries as the coppery tang of blood filled my mouth.

He struggled, thrashing against me, but I refused to let go. Pain flared in my hindquarters as the first Bear clawed at me, his strikes slicing through my fur and skin, but I didn’t care.

My Grizzly roared in defiance, unyielding in the face of their combined assault.

“You’re going to fail, Traitor,” one of the Bears snarled out at me in a terrible voice that was too animal to be human.

Fury and desperation laced his words and his scent, and I snarled back, unwilling to make a mockery of myself by speaking in my Bear form as he had.

“The bitch and cub will be ours and I will breed her myself?—”

I roared at that, cutting him off with my own unimaginable anger. The sound of my ire shook the ground, and I allowed it to grow. I wanted rage to consume me.

Zeke paced just outside the enclosure, his Dragon form held in check for now, waiting until it was absolutely necessary to intervene.

I appreciated his restraint.

This fight wasn’t his to take—it was mine.

This threat was against my family.

And it was on me to defend them.

And I would. With every last breath in my body.

I attacked then, and by the time I stopped there was nothing left of the two Bears who’d threatened my mate but fur, blood, and gore.

My chest rumbled with my growl even as I swapped fur for skin, falling to one knee on the snow covered ground as I tried to catch my breath.

When did it start snowing?

The sound of a 4-wheeler roaring to life had my head snapping up. Max and Zeke both turned as well, their eyes narrowing in confusion.

Then I saw her.

“Avery? Avery! NO!” I shouted, my voice raw with panic as my gaze locked onto my mate speeding down the path on the 4-wheeler, heading straight toward us.

And was she holding a frying pan?

My lungs seized and I couldn’t breathe.

She looked like some kind of avenging angel, her golden eyes blazing with fire and determination, her hair wild around her face.

My heart lurched in my chest as I took in the sight of her, equal parts awe and terror coursing through me.

She was glorious.

But my admiration quickly turned to dread as everything started happening at once.

I roared in warning, the sound echoing across the clearing. At the same time, Max, distracted by the commotion, loosened his hold on the third Grizzly.

Reginald.

The bastard dropped to the ground and shot up like a spring, his body contorting as he shifted mid-charge. Fur erupted over his skin as his massive Grizzly form exploded outward. His focus wasn’t on me, though. Or Max.

It was on Avery.

He barreled toward her with horrifying speed, a half-ton of rage and muscle aimed directly at my mate.

“Avery! No!” I shouted, my voice breaking as I watched her stop the 4-wheeler and dismount, grabbing the frying pan with both hands like it was Excalibur.

She raised it high over her head, standing her ground like a warrior ready to face down a monster.

Except this wasn’t that kind of fairy tale.

This was real, and the monster charging her was not easily defeated.

My muscles burned as I launched forward, every ounce of power in my body focused on one thing. Getting to her in time.

I saw Max running too, in the periphery of my vision, but we were both too far away.

Reginald leaped, his hulking Grizzly form soaring through the air, his claws extended, aiming straight for Avery’s throat.

Time seemed to slow.

And then, something incredible happened.

A shadow darkened the sky, enormous and impossible. An enormous purple Dragon soared overhead, its wingspan covering half the clearing.

The beast was massive. Bigger than an eighteen-wheeler and easily three times as heavy.

With a bone-shaking roar, the Dragon opened its draconian maw and snatched Reginald out of the air as easily as an owl plucking a mouse from the ground.

It was Zeke. And he was right on time, too.

Just before the Grizzly could connect with my sweet, fearless Avery.

My heart stopped.

Avery screamed, her eyes squeezing shut as the Dragon tossed Reginald into the air like a rag doll.

I reached her just as the Dragon roasted the Grizzly with a blast of fiery breath, the flames engulfing him in a matter of seconds.

The smell of scorched fur and cooked meat filled the air as the beast snapped its jaws around the charred remains, swallowing Reginald whole like a toasted, bite-sized Bear snack.

My lungs burned, but I didn’t stop.

I caught the frying pan as it slipped from Avery’s trembling hands, plucking it away and tossing it to the ground.

Then I pulled her into my arms, wrapping her tightly against my chest and shielding her from the sight of the carnage above us.

Her body shook against mine, and I murmured soothing words into her hair, my hands running up and down her back.

She clung to me like her life depended on it, her breaths coming in short, panicked bursts.

“Shh, I’ve got you,” I whispered, pressing a kiss to her temple. “You’re safe. You’re okay. I’ve got you, Honey.”

She looked up at me, her wide, tear-filled eyes searching my face. “That was a, a Dragon.”

I couldn’t help the small, strained laugh that escaped me.

“Yeah. Zeke’s Dragon.”

Her jaw dropped, but she didn’t say anything else, just buried her face in my chest again. I tightened my hold on her, silently thanking every deity I could think of for getting me to her in time—and for Zeke’s impeccable timing.

Because Avery was my everything.

And nothing— not Grizzlies, not tyrants, no manner of beast or man —was ever going to take her away from me.