Grizzly's Bear (The Holloways Book 5) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Grizzly’s Bear

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Thank You!

  About the Author

  Grizzly’s Bear

  By Lacey Thorn

  Grizzly’s Bear

  by

  Lacey Thorn

  Grizzly bear Slade Holloway has found his mate, and he’s not taking no for an answer.

  Rissa Montgomery followed her alpha to Wyoming and the Holloways, hoping for a fresh start. Instead, she was taken, tortured, and almost killed.

  Slade Holloway is determined to get one more night with the sexy brown bear who has him wound in knots. The brief taste she gave him wasn’t enough. He wants it all. With her.

  He has no problem giving chase every time she runs from him. Until the moment he doesn’t reach her in time. Now, he’ll do everything in his power to make sure nothing hurts her again. By making sure she understands that from now on she’s the Grizzly’s Bear. Just as soon as she opens her eyes.

  Copyright

  © 2021, Lacey Thorn

  Grizzly’s Bear

  Cover Art by Supernova Indie Publishing Services, LLC

  Edited by Michele Paulin

  Electronic Format ISBN: 978-1-949795-52-3

  Published by: Lacey Thorn Publishing

  Warning: All rights reserved. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and occurrences are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, places or occurrences, is purely coincidental.

  Dedication

  To long drives in congested traffic…

  the place ideas flourish and grow.

  Prologue

  Rissa Montgomery came awake with a scream already breaching her lips. Her entire body felt ablaze with fire, from the inside out. Memories crashed in, along with the swell of pain. She’d been on Holloway land. She should have been safe there. She’d been cockily assured hunters never trespassed on Holloway land. But they had. They’d trespassed and taken her. And she hadn’t been alone. Ariel had been with her. The cat shifter Rissa had decided to claim as her friend. She did her best to look around, searching for the other woman, but her vision was limited by the table she’d been tied down on, as well as the blood flowing freely over her face.

  “Glad you could join us again.”

  The comment was followed by a hard punch to her ribs. One that robbed her of the air needed to launch another scream. Three more punches and she was wheezing as she struggled to breathe. They didn’t stop. Blows rained down over her. No part of her unclothed body was safe. Hard hands punched and pinched and slapped. Her screams tapered down to whimpers before the beating stopped as suddenly as it had begun.

  “Who the hell is this?”

  “You asked for a brunette and a blonde. Here’s your brunette. Blonde’s in the other room.”

  She heard the clip of boots as the man who’d been beating her moved away from her. It was a voice she recognized. One she last recalled giving the order to load them up. A reference to throwing her and Ariel into the back of a truck after they’d been shot with drugged darts that left them both completely immobile on the ground. Now, Rissa knew Ariel was in the other room. Hopefully, her new friend was still out and not being subjected to the same type of torture Rissa was.

  Hunters on Holloway land. Slade had assured her that would never happen. She’d always be safe on his family’s land. She should have known better. She wasn’t safe anywhere. Not since the attacks that had left her pride in Washington split asunder. Her alpha had been killed, along with many of their top enforcers. In the aftermath, too many of them had gone their separate ways. Rissa and her brother, Adam, had eventually left the splintering pack, as well. Adam had pulled her away and guarded her like the overprotective brother he was. Every day, she thanked God her brother hadn’t been with the alpha and other members of their den during the attack. It had been a perfectly planned ambush that had resulted in the deaths of numerous members of their den. Including Jack. The man who’d wanted to mate her. The man she’d sent to his death.

  “I asked for a specific brunette! A specific blonde! This thing is of no use to me. Another worthless bear. I have more of those females than I’ll ever need for my experiments.”

  The snapped words brought Rissa’s attention back to the room surrounding her. The labored breaths of the men staring at her, fingers flexing in obvious anticipation of getting their hands on her again. She knew she had broken ribs, as well as deep tissue bruising. Her bear was shut off from her. Obviously, there’d been a suppressant in one of the darts they’d hit her with.

  “Then come up with some new experiments,” the man from the woods replied. “I know there are all kinds of devious things in that scheming mind of yours, Doc. But you do what you want. Keep her. Don’t keep her. Hell, we can gut her right here if you want.”

  Rissa refused to focus on the last comment. Doc had to be Talbot. He was the reason Ariel and her mate and the ones with them had stopped at the Holloways. The reason the man in the helicopter had stopped in. She thought his name was Tony. None of that mattered. Talbot had others like her. Probably some of the missing females from the Holloway pride. They’d been attacked, as well. That mattered. She needed to find out exactly where the other female bear shifters were being kept, and what Dr. Talbot was putting them through.

  God, she hated these bastards. Murderers, every one of them. What had she ever done to them? Hell, she’d likely never met any of them. Yet they hated her merely because she existed. Hated her and everyone of her species.

  There were two bear packs, neither knowing the other existed. At least as far as she knew. Yet both had been attacked by hunters. She didn’t want to remember the strike against her pack. She’d lived through it and lost a piece of herself with Jack’s death. Better to focus on her new pack. The Holloways. Their alpha had been drawn away and killed alone. His body had been returned to them by a cat shifter.

  Then while they’d been mourning, strategic attacks had happened, targeting the females of the pride. Females they’d feared dead. But they weren’t. Not all of them. And Dr. Talbot’s words made her think he had several of them hidden away in one of his torture chambers. If she could lead the Holloways to some of those missing bears, she might earn her place in their pride and prove herself worthy of a man like Slade Holloway. She wanted to be worthy.

  “Let me check on the other one.” The man from the woods walked away again. She heard the clip of his boots on the tiles.

  Talbot mumbled to himself, and she tried to discern what he was saying. He was quiet, though. Too quiet. Or more likely there was something wrong with her hearing. She’d probably taken one too many blows to the head, and it was fucking with her senses.

  “What do you say? Should we go ahead and gut you? Or have some more fun first?” This voice was hard and cold, and Rissa glimpsed eyes black as coal. The hunter held up a short, squat club. It was metallic, and from the way he held it,
appeared to have weight to it. “My vote is for more fun. I’ve been wanting to try this one out. Aren’t you the lucky one.”

  He raised the club and brought it down on Rissa’s thigh, and while the scream was still building in her chest, he struck a second time. Her scream was high and shrill as she felt the bone give. Her ribs cracked under the next swing.

  “This one’s awake now. Want me to start on her?”

  They were going to hurt Ariel. Hurt her the way they were Rissa, and there was nothing she could do to save her. There was nothing she could do but scream.

  “Shut her up!”

  Rissa was just beginning to come to grips with the fact she was going to die when the weapon was raised again. She watched as if in slow motion as it arced down toward her head.

  Slade.

  He was her last thought before darkness took her.

  Chapter One

  Four weeks later…

  Slade Holloway sat in the darkened room, eyes closed while he listened to Rissa breathe. Hibernation. That’s what his brother Jensen told him. Her body was recovering from the brutality she’d received at the hands of hunters. Most of whom were dead. Only one still lived. Talbot. One of the nastiest members of the hunter scourge trying to wipe shifters off the face of the earth. Slade would have gladly ripped out the sick son-of-a-bitch’s throat, also.

  For the rest of his life, he’d never forget running into that cold room and finding Rissa stripped naked and pinned to a table. Blood had covered every inch of her. Her face had been grossly distorted from the hits she’d taken. Bones broken. Skin mottled and bruised beneath the flow of blood. So much fucking blood he’d feared he’d already lost her.

  “Whatever you’re thinking, knock it off, or take yourself elsewhere,” Jensen commanded as he stepped inside the cabin he used as a clinic and began to assess Rissa.

  “I’m not going anywhere,” Slade snapped.

  “Then dial it back, bro. Your hackles are up. You’ve got claws sprouting out of your fingertips, and that rumble in your chest is echoing around the room. Trust me, this isn’t how you want her to see you when she opens those pretty doe eyes of hers. I swear you remind me of Koby.”

  “How is she?” Slade ignored everything else Jensen had said. He needed to know she was okay.

  “She’s resting,” Jensen stated softly. He ran his fingers across her brow then down over her cheek to her neck and across her clavicle. The fact it was with a physician’s impersonal touch kept Slade from shoving to his feet and breaking his brother’s arm. “The breaks are all healing. She’s healing. Give her time. A few more days at most, and her body will be completely recovered. Then it will be just a matter of time before she opens her eyes. She’ll come back to us, Slade. I swear.”

  “Me.” The single word was almost lost in the growl that left Slade’s lips.

  “What?” Jensen questioned.

  “She’ll come back to me.”

  “Then mate her already,” Jensen ordered. “Stop holding back. Stop letting her run.”

  Next time, it could get her killed.

  Slade wondered if he was the only one who heard those words in his mind. Instead, he shook his head. It wasn’t that easy with Rissa. She’d walked into his life and turned his world upside down. She’d given him the best night of his life only to disappear come morning. And she’d been running from him ever since. A few stolen kisses. Some heavy petting. But he hadn’t managed to get back inside her since she’d shown him what heaven was. He didn’t understand it, and she wasn’t forthcoming with her reasons. So he kept pursuing, and she kept running.

  Until she’d been taken.

  “Christ, Slade. Get control. Now.”

  “I won’t lose her. And if you tell me to mate her again, you’re going to see more than my claws,” Slade warned when Jensen opened his mouth. “Don’t you think I plan to do just that when she opens her eyes? I’ve known she was my mate from the first moment I saw her. I let her have time, let her play whatever game she was playing. But that’s done. As soon as she’s healed, she’ll be in my bed until we’re thoroughly mated.”

  “Good. Glad to hear it. I hate watching the women in this den lead their men on a merry chase,” Jensen admitted. “As for you and Rissa, I know you two were together the night Laramie and Em mated. What happened?”

  Slade closed his eyes. He let the memory wash over him. The way her gaze had met his across the clearing where Laramie and Em had given their mating vows. The sexual pull between the two alphas had spilled over to the pack surrounding them. Several couples had left together. When Rissa had grabbed his hand and asked where they could go, he’d immediately taken her to one of the outer cabins. He hadn’t wanted to give his family or her brother a chance to interrupt them.

  She’d turned and had his jeans opened as soon as he’d closed the door behind him. She’d touched him, tasted him with her lips and tongue, and nearly drove him wild to have her. Then she’d stepped back, stripped, and held his gaze while she ran her hands down her body to tease herself between her legs. She’d walked across the room, bent over the side of the bed, and ordered him to fuck her.

  “Are you purring?” Jensen demanded, but Slade’s gaze was glued to the lone figure in the bed, who blinked open her beautiful, brown eyes. He was on his feet and at her bedside before Jensen realized she was awake.

  “Rissa?” Slade took her hand in his and brought it to his lips, kissing the back of her fingers. He saw Jensen text something on his phone before slipping it into his pocket and figured he was letting the others know Rissa was awake.

  “Slade?” She glanced around, taking in the room and Jensen. “What? Where am I? Why is your brother here?”

  Jensen moved toward her with a penlight. “Hey, there, lazy bones. Nice to see you up and around. How’s your head feeling?”

  Rissa looked confused, but she let him check her eyes. She didn’t balk until he went to skim his hands along her clavicle, most likely checking the break.

  “What are you doing?” Rissa jerked toward Slade. “Why is he here?”

  “What’s the last thing you remember?” Slade asked her.

  “Standing out by the swings with you.” Her glance skimmed over to Jensen then back to Slade. “Do you really want me to remind you of the things we were doing last night while your brother’s in the room with us?”

  Slade met Jensen’s gaze, catching the abrupt shake of his brother’s head.

  “How do you feel, Rissa? Your arms? Legs? Any aches or pains?” Jensen kept his hands to himself, but Slade could tell it was a close thing. His brother wanted to assess her more fully than by visual scan.

  “You’re scaring me, Jensen. Slade?” She stared hard at him, and the insecurity in her gaze killed him. “What’s going on?”

  “If you don’t answer my brother’s question, he’s going to hurt himself trying to keep his hands to himself. He wants to make sure you feel okay. Any aches or pains? Soreness? Anything at all?”

  She paused, and the way she gingerly moved showed she was finally taking Jensen’s inquiry seriously. “A little sore, maybe. My leg’s tender. My ribs, too, and I have a hell of a headache. Now, what’s going on?”

  “It’s a long story,” Slade admitted, unsure where to start. Hell, the last thing she remembered was the two of them fooling around by a tree.

  “I can give you something for the headache,” Jensen assured her, moving around the room. “Leg and ribs should be better in another day or so.”

  Rissa squeezed Slade’s hand then used it to tug him closer, practically wrapping around him. “Did something happen to me?”

  “You could say that,” Jensen answered before Slade had a chance. Slade sent his brother a hard glare.

  “Oh, God! Is anyone else hurt? Did we get attacked again?” She shoved against Slade, kicking her legs at the covers, trying to get free, but Slade held her tight, refusing to let go. “Em? Is Em okay? Ruby? Please, tell me Ruby’s safe!”

  “Shh, baby. Rub
y and Em are both fine. They’re fine. I swear. No one was hurt,” Slade vowed, which wasn’t exactly the truth. He knew she could see that in his eyes.

  “Except me. It’s why I’m here instead of the cabin I share with my brother.” Fear filled her face. “The last thing I remember was fondling you while we made out against the tree.”

  Jensen cleared his throat, and Slade sent him another glare before glancing back at Rissa.

  “I don’t remember. Did I go back to the cabin I share with Adam? Or did you and I go somewhere? What happened to me, Slade?”

  He turned to Jensen, seeking his medical opinion before saying anything. Would it make it worse for her if he answered, or did it matter at all? And why couldn’t she remember? He knew she’d taken a hard blow to the head. There’d been swelling and a hairline fracture of her skull. Jensen had monitored her around the clock to make sure he didn’t miss anything. Slade wanted to go back and once again, slit the throats of the ones who’d taken her, who’d hurt her, who’d brought that look of fear and uncertainty to her eyes.

  “Rissa, you don’t remember anything after that night with Slade?” Jensen questioned.

  Her gaze bounced back and forth between them before remaining on Slade. She shook her head frantically back and forth. “No.”

  “You were taken,” Slade told her.

  “No, that’s impossible. I stayed on Holloway land. I didn’t leave, Slade. You told me I’d be safe here. I’m safe here. I couldn’t have been taken.”

  She was shaking, and when she tugged away from him again, he let her go. He felt like the lowest life form as he watched her wrap her arms around herself, appearing completely lost and alone. She wasn’t, though. She had him. Still, he’d promised her she’d be safe on Holloway land. He’d cockily told her hunters would never dare step foot on their property. Then they had, and the bastards had taken her.

  “Do you remember Ariel?” Jensen asked while Slade silently watched her. Rissa had withdrawn from him.