Solace

Chapter One

Jesse pulled the van in and looked at the path that led into the trees. It was so overgrown; he could barely make out the trail. There was no way he was driving on that. He groaned, which meant he was going to have to walk it. He was so tired of this back country-middle-of-hell’s forest area—

One more, then I’m hopping back over the border and going home. He mumbled as he put the van in park. It wasn’t unusual for him to talk out loud to himself, he spent a lot of time on the road alone. Grabbing the phone, he sighed. If a forty percent complete house and a small trailer could be called home. He’d had every intention of finishing it and enjoying that beautiful space he’d bought near his clan—and the Tomas organization had ramped up their chaos in his world.

Opening his window, he snapped a picture of the unforgiving dense growth and typed out a message to Calum. He hadn’t talked to him for a few days, so he figured he’d better get in touch, so the big man didn’t send out a search party.

He read the message. Lost in hell. Your kind of fun. After this one I’m coming back. Nodding he hit send.

He should probably report to Devin too. Jesse liked that he was dealing with him most of the time now instead of his father.  Devin didn’t care how much he swore, he didn’t have to be political or be afraid of crossing some hierarchical rule. He had the greatest respect for the king of all shifters—but didn’t envy the man’s job.

His phone beeped. Opening the message from Calum he grinned. Be careful not to hurt your delicate pads in the undergrowth.  No reply was needed for that, he decided.

He pulled the van in as far as he dared. Shutting it off, he leaned back and looked at himself in the mirror. He looked rough, and with good reason, he hadn’t stopped to rest much in the past week. His hair had taken on a new style of its own, not that it lay down and behaved normally.  His eyes were bloodshot, which only made the pale green look even paler. If he found this clan, they were going to take one look at him and pass on any offers of assistance because he looked like a wretch.

Getting out, he stretched.  The amount of driving he’d been doing lately couldn’t be good for a body.  His cat ached to get out and run.  Looking up the mountain, he debated on going for a quick run, then changed his mind. The last thing he needed was to run onto another clan’s territory.  Five years ago, he would have without much thought. Now, with everything he knew about the shifter world, not a chance.

Things were messed up. Really messed up. If he hadn’t been with Devin and the others when they’d gone to find Calum, he never would have believed the bizarre events that had been going on. Bizarre was a nicer way of saying ‘fucked up shit’.  The fact that clans had lost touch with the Alliance over the years wasn’t shocking. There hadn’t always been internet and cellphones—but after the last few months, of looking for those clans he was ready to admit shit was getting real—and not in a good way. Entire clans were gone, without a trace and the only way that could happen was if Tomas had found them. Jesse thought of it as a failure on several levels, the Alliance and the clans themselves. He knew if it were his clan they would have packed up and gone to find the Alliance or even the next closest clan.

Opening the door, he looked in his cooler and found he only had two energy drinks. Should shifters drink these things? No. Most shifters didn’t have to drive the entire length of provinces and states constantly either. Ducking his head, he checked out the ‘trail’ again. Yeah, he was drinking one of these.  Grabbing it, he closed the cooler and took a long drink. Setting the can on top, he brought up his contact list on his phone and hit Devin’s name.

Jesse. Where are you now?

He grinned, he really liked how Devin always got to the point quickly. I’m at the last location on my list.

Is anyone there?

Leaning against the door, he twisted the can back and forth on top of the cooler. I don’t know yet, it’s a long walk to get up there.

Middle of a bush?

Jesse nodded his head slowly, yeah, on top of a mountain I’m guessing.

I’m jealous, Devin said in a quiet tone.

Don’t be. I have to do it on two feet.

Oh, well, not as envious now.  He cleared his throat. I talked to Dad about the last location.

Jesse gave the bottom of his jaw a vigorous rub. A shave was long overdue. What was the decision?  His last stop had found a long-lost clan of lynx shifters, unfortunately, due to isolation and no communication the clan had more or less died off. There had been six almost geriatric shifters remaining.

He’s going to offer to move them to live among another lynx clan.

Jesse shrugged, elder knowledge is always welcome.

That’s his take too.

You know we need to start getting like clans together more or there’s going to be a lot going extinct.

Easier said than done with that Tomas lunatic lurking around every corner. There was a low growl in his voice.

Jesse understood why, Devin’s mate had been engaged to Aiden Tomas, without ever knowing what he was all about. Then again at that point, she hadn’t even known about shifters. He didn’t know how that was possible when you were one, but this year had been enlightening in so for many, himself included.

What kind are you looking for now?  Devin mumbled something, I have so many papers on this desk now I can’t find anything.

Jesse swallowed the laugh, not wanting to offend the future leader, who was still adjusting to going from being in hiding to the most active in the Alliance. "My kind." He grinned.

That’s good, I saw bears on the list, there were papers rustling, wherever it is, and was worried if we should send like or at least similar-sized Alliance reps to look.

Jesse took another quick sip. That’s a thought. He’d never actually seen a bear shifter after they’d shifted and was sure he could go without ever having to, never mind walking into their area and saying ‘hey, Alliance sent me, sorry we lost you’ to a clan of much larger shifters than himself.

How long do you figure you’ll be?

Picking up the can, he closed the door and walked to the front of the van. Well, as long as this path leads to their area, and I don’t have to go searching I should connect with them.

Great. Dad wants you at Blair’s when they’re working on weapons training.

Do we have definite locations now? Jesse felt like he was out of the loop and that annoyed him. He’d seen the damage Aiden Tomas was doing to his kind and had vowed he would not stop until that organization was stopped.

We have several. Including the location of Blair’s brother.

Oh shit, Jesse smirked. I’ll get back as soon as I can so we can start coming up with a plan. Is Calum sticking around Blair’s for now?

Yeah, he’s refusing to go anywhere until they figure out how Tomas’ people got on the property and basically walked off.

What? He’d missed a lot in a few days. Put a leash on him and Blair, until I get there.

Devin chuckled, Blair is newly mated, so he’s distracted enough.

He’s one brave SOB. Taking on a whole clan of women. Jesse set the drink on the hood of the van and went over and opened the door, reaching in he grabbed his run pack.

There were voices in the background. Call me once you’ve found that clan’s area and let me know what you find, and Jesse?

Yeah?

Try to find some that don’t need canes, it will be easier for them to walk down the mountain.

Jesse sighed, let’s hope I do.

Devin hung up without notice. Looking at the phone, he checked for any messages. There was none, that was rare, but he’d take it. Stuffing the phone into his pack, he put it over his head and flipped it to his back so he wouldn’t get hung up on any branches as he walked. He debated if he should grab the handgun under his seat and add it to the pack. Shrugging it off, he decided not. That was for moments when he couldn’t shift and haul ass. 

He realized he hadn’t asked if a decision had been made about moving smaller clans. Half of the clan reps were for it though, and he agreed with them. Moving clans that were less than twenty to either another clan of the same likeness or closer to any clan would make security easier seemed like a solid plan. When he’d spoken to Zain earlier, inquiring about how the rest of the clan co-ordinating team were doing, the news hadn’t been promising. Clans were disappearing and Jesse was willing to bet Tomas was responsible for all of it.

Downing the rest of the drink, he tossed the can in the van and closed the door. Inhaling slowly, he started up the rough trail. This was going to be a long walk.

Chapter Two

Tightening the cord, she checked the tension of the furs.  We’ll be warm this year, Thera. Leah glanced at the leopard laying on the platform. She lifted her head an inch, looked back at her, and then lay back in the sunlight. At least you don’t try to eat them now. Going over, she bent down and rubbed her hand along the animal’s soft coat. Aunt Tillie would be so happy you’ve settled down.  Blowing out a breath, she got back up. Her head was aching, the constant pressure that made it feel like something was squeezing it, but that was nothing new. If she managed to get all the potatoes dug up, maybe she’d go have a short nap. There wasn’t much free time in the fall for taking long breaks.

She stopped halfway to the garden and rubbed the center of her forehead. I’m fine. I need to do this before winter hits. Blowing out a breath, she concentrated on staying focused and here. There was so much to do before the cold weather hit. Leah looked around at the leaves, without Papa Low, she could only guess when that would be, she didn’t have his intuition about the weather.  Her mouth quirked with a smile, Nana Pearl would have laughed at that and said it wasn’t intuition, but arthritis that told him when the cold was moving in.

Pausing beside the shed, she opened it to get out a pail and shovel.  The potatoes were the last to come out, she’d gotten the other root vegetables stored for winter in the last few weeks. Brushing her hair back from her face, she watched Thera pace back and forth outside the garden area. If it weren’t for her, she would be so lonely, so lost.

As she started down the path along the rows, Thera came bounding after her, cutting in front of her. We don’t have time for a run right now, girl. She smiled at the way the large cat stared at her. Let me get them dug up first, then we’ll go for a run and pick them up later.  Thera walked over to the edge of the garden and sat down. Leah chuckled to herself quietly. I’d ask you to help, but then they’d be all sliced up with those claws.  Thera made a deep rasping meow noise. To a person that didn’t know better, it may have sounded like a huge bullfrog, but Leah understood as if she’d used actual words. Of course, you’d get your paws dirty.

Picking up the shovel, she moved over to the row. The garden had been good this year, which surprised her. It was the first year without Papa Low’s secret fertilizer. She’d planted more than needed, but Papa Virgil had always said it was better to have too much than not enough.

I could preserve half of it and make the trek to town and sell it at the market… Like they used to do.  Biting her lip, she shook her head. I could do it. She nodded, with a little help, but I could try it again. Sighing, she looked across to the other side of the fence. She missed Papa Low. The others too, but her grandfather and Aunt Tillie had been her absolute favorite people on earth.

Leah inhaled slowly. Not that we know a lot of people. She murmured and then started to turn the soil carefully, keeping the shovel turned to the right angle to not slice open the fleshy roots under the soil.

I miss people, Thera. She didn’t bother to look at the cat, knowing she would hear her regardless of where she lay down. "I know, I know, I can’t handle people. She paused and looked at the ground, not really seeing it. They are terrifying, rude, pushy… Minn didn’t like it when people weren’t nice to her. Blinking, she concentrated on the plant in front of her, bending down, she pulled it from the soil, shook it, and tossed it beside the row. I could do it, get some other supplies, she whispered. She was running out of so much including paper and brushes. Aunt Tillie had shown her how to use plants and other items to make paints, but she couldn’t find all the colors she’d like to have. Painting helped.  Helped her stay grounded, stay present.  We could do it, together, go down the mountain."

Evanna had always protected her. Always kept her safe, even before Minn was around. Her heart accelerated, causing her to catch her breath. Pausing she looked at Thera, I’ll think about it some more.  Even though she’d said it aloud, she knew already that there wouldn’t be a trip down the mountain, there wouldn’t be new brushes and crisp paper. She couldn’t even control her panic at the thought of doing it, so there was no way Minn or Evanna would let her load up preserves and trek down there and out of their safe place.

She had to get her emotions back under control or she’d lose it and have one of those moments that left her feeling like she’d failed again. It had been better for the last few months, and she wanted to keep it that way. She didn’t like when she receded so far into her mind that when she came back there was no clarity on what had happened. According to her journal, Evanna hadn’t had to take over for a month now, at least there were no gaps, so she could only assume she hadn’t been here.

Thera got up and came over and rubbed up against her. She offered her a quick look, I’m fine, we’ve got this.

Chapter Three

Jesse had to fight the whole way to stay on two legs, the scents around him had his cat stirring and wanting nothing more than to explore the area.  Pausing he looked around, how long had he been walking? He hadn’t checked the time when he started, but it was beginning to feel like forever. He wasn’t out of shape, but normally covering this kind of terrain was done in his cat form.  Inhaling again, he checked for any scent that would let him know he was going in the right direction.

If he found another empty, deserted clan space, he wasn’t sure what he was going to do. This one felt different, maybe he was feeling torn because this clan was the same as his own, he couldn’t be sure. Frowning, he lifted his chin and inhaled again—there was a hint of something that was not made by nature. A metallic taste hit his tongue. Definitely not natural. Blowing out a quick breath, he followed the direction he was facing to see if he could ferret out the source of the processed metal he was picking up. It took him some time to be able to narrow down the smell and keep going in the right direction. He blamed the energy drink, it messed with most of his senses, but he needed the extra boost. If he’d been near a populated area, he wouldn’t have bothered, but up here, metal had no place.

Stopping, he looked to his left, then right. Metal? Inhaling slowly, he took a few steps to his right and then looked down as he processed to make sure it was getting stronger. There were groves in the ground. Tilting his head, he followed them slowly. He was almost right on top of it before he saw it through the very well-built shelter. Going closer, he looked it over, the branches looked like they were still trees.  Moving along the side of it, he pulled one of the larger limbs and the wall of leaves moved. He stood there with his mouth hanging open. Behind it was an old pickup truck. Moving in between the wall and truck, he looked inside it. Judging by the amount of dust in it and on it, this thing hadn’t moved in a few years, at least.

Going back out, he pushed the wall back in place. That was an encouraging sign, sort of.  The fact there was a truck up here—he looked back down the trail he’d walked up—-however insane anyone would have to be to drive that, it was the first sign he’d had that someone might still live up here. His stomach churning was because it hadn’t been moved in a long time.

Jesse’s cat rubbed against him again, he wanted out. Soon, if we don’t find something, we’ll speed up the search.  He couldn’t take the chance of crossing onto another clan’s territory and being unable to speak.

Listening he looked around, there was a slight noise that was familiar, but not enough to pinpoint where it was. It sounded like paws hitting the earth. Some sort of metal again was nearby as well, not the same as an automobile, but man-made for certain.  He checked the ground often and hadn’t found any more signs of old tracks from the truck.  Turning, he decided it was because he’d headed into the thicker treed area and there was no car made that could fit through here.

The sound echoed in his sensitive ears again, he picked up the pace, determined he was getting some answers this time.

He cleared the thick vine growth, and almost walked into it as he examined the scratch along his arm. Stopping abruptly, his face was inches from a tall chain-link fence. Leaning back, he checked to his left, then did the same in the other direction. It went on as far as he could see.

As signs went, this was a damn good one that people had been living up here. It wasn’t new fencing by any means, but it was a fence. His muscles tensed, was it to keep people in or out, that was the question. After what they’d found at Shaelan’s, his worst nightmare was to find more clans that were living under that sort of condition.

Shaking it off, he started following the fence, leading back in the direction where he’d gone off the old trail.  Maybe the fence was to keep people outside the shifter world out of their area. He shrugged; hunters could be an issue. It wouldn’t be the first time a clan had that problem.  He’d know, his own had to install camera systems to warn them of hunters in the area.

Stopping, he squatted down to give his legs a break and opened his pack to check his phone. Jesse’s cat jolted inside of him, alerting him to the fact they weren’t alone. Crouching down lower, he checked behind him and scented the air. There was nothing out of place there. Moving closer to the fence, into the vegetation so it would hide him. Inhaling, he checked the odors around him. His cat was right, he was picking up two different signatures that weren’t the metal fence or plant life. They were the scents of animals.

Slowing his breathing, he listened. The sound registered at the same time two cats came into sight. Two leopards. He smiled, but it was short-lived when he noticed they were nothing alike. Shades and the blend of rosettes varied, he knew this, no two in his clan were the same, but the body types were always the same. The one was so dark; it was closer to orange than the golden color he knew leopard shifters to be. Its eyes, the glance he got of them were more yellow than grey as well. He frowned and watched as they came up beside each other. The tail was much longer, body smaller—had two clans joined together to further their numbers?  It wasn’t common, but it had happened before. The paler cat stopped and looked right to where he was. He held his breath. The cat gave a low grunt, and both took off back into the thick of the trees.

Standing up, he blew out a breath. Well, at least there were leopards here, that was encouraging. Touching the fence, he frowned again. Why they were fenced in he still didn’t know.  Closing his pack, he got up and started jogging along the fence line. There had to be a gate somewhere along here. Hopefully, when he found it, he would be able to see people, talk to them, and let them know that the Alliance was here to help.

A short while later he found the gate. It wasn’t bolted shut as he’d imagined it would be. He looked in between the wire links; it also wasn’t guarded. Searching the area he could see, he frowned, he didn’t see any sign of life.

Rolling his shoulders, he opened the gate slowly and winced as it creaked a high-pitched noise that made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. That would work for announcing his presence as nothing else could. A sound at that pitch would be heard by any shifter in the area. Maybe it was like that on purpose.

As he closed the gate, another thought came to mind, maybe the gate was to keep younger shifters from getting lost. This area was very overgrown, it wouldn’t be hard to get turned around. He stood there looking around, listening, he didn’t hear a sound that wasn’t part of nature. His cat was tense, to say the least as he coiled inside him waiting.  Inhaling slowly, Jesse felt a small amount of relief when he picked up the scents of something that had recently been cooked. There was no mistaking that smoky smell from a wood stove.

With slow, silent steps, he moved in the direction of the five buildings he could see. They weren’t run down or abandoned from the look of them, also a good sign. Maybe the clan was out on a run or a hunt. Fall was here, so preparing for the winter made sense. Stopping, he looked over to the far side, it was a large garden. Again, another good sign. The scent of freshly turned soil was reassuring, it had been worked in recently.

Chapter Four

Alert was the only way to describe the feelings his cat was conveying right now as he walked along the perimeter of the fence. He didn’t want to stand in the middle of the common area in the center, that was leaving him too vulnerable. Opening the gate and coming in without an invitation better not come back to bite him.

If his anxious cat wasn’t bad enough, his skin prickled when he walked further along the fence and saw what was on the other side of it. Old half torn-down homes and a graveyard, one that was cared for regularly.  That was something you didn’t see with shifters.

Turning away from the sad sight, he studied the largest building in the middle of four smaller homes and headed for it with quick steps. Hopefully, this would be resolved by simply knocking on the door and having someone answer it.

When he was ten feet from it a woman came around the corner. She had what appeared to be an old tablecloth slung over her shoulder and was wearing it like a toga wrap. Had she been one of the cats he’d seen? She was lovely, despite her manner of dress, dark hair, deep brown eyes, and flawless sun-darkened skin—and to his delight was nowhere close to being geriatric.

His cat was suddenly still. Hi, I’m… he trailed off when she raised a large, handcrafted spear and pointed it at him. 

The dark-colored cat he’d seen in the bush stepped around her and stood to her side, crouched, ears back and teeth bared. Uh—my name is Jesse. He tried to keep his voice steady, calm, I’m, um, with the Shifter Alliance.

She lowered the spear to point more at the ground than him. You came.

She said it so softly that he barely heard it. He glanced to the cat still waiting to pounce and decided standing here was would be close enough. He inhaled subtly, trying to scent the cat.

Nana Pearl said you would. Her voice was shaking.

Jesse straightened as the smell processed in his brain. The cat daring him to make one wrong move was not a shifter, but a very real, very wild kind of cat. Is ah, he glanced at the house, she here?

The woman nodded her head briefly, then pointed.

Jesse followed the direction she pointed. It was the graveyard. I’m so sorry. He turned back to her. Are you alone here?

She shook her head, no—we, I… She continued to stand there looking at the ground like she was trying to figure out what to say. She closed her eyes and gave her head a slight shake, I’m sorry, she offered what may have been a smile, then glanced over his shoulder.

Jesse jolted and turned to look behind him. No one was there. He checked the rest of the yard to be sure. Looking back at her, he was surprised the spear was leaning against the wall as she pulled her hair back into a tight ponytail, all while giving him a very thorough appraisal.  The cat, the real one was now sitting beside her looking all chill. What the hell? His animal was calmer, watchful. What the hell was happening?

So, you’re from the Alliance?

Gone was her soft tone, he had no problem hearing her now. Yes. I was sent to check on your clan because there has been no contact for, he shrugged a shoulder, some time.

She chortled. "Good reason for that, she pointed to the wires hanging from a pole that was tilted at a sixty-five-degree angle. Phones haven’t worked in years. She put her hand down to rest on the cat’s head, we haven’t had power for over a year now."

We? He glanced around quickly but saw no movement anywhere.

Leah, Thera, Minn, and I.

She’d looked at the cat when she’d said Thera. Thera is…

The real cat, yes she is. She squatted down and rubbed her hand along the cat’s shoulder and neck. "Leah had to rescue her. She was underfed, her pen was small and filthy…"

They’d stolen a real leopard from some wildlife facility. I’ve never seen her species before. His guts were in a knot and he didn’t know why. There was something off about this situation. Not dangerous or his cat would sound the alarm, but something wasn’t quite right here.

You wouldn’t, she stood up, she’s from Africa or, she motioned in the air, somewhere near there.  She looked down at the cloth covering her and jerked it around as if she was annoyed with it. Are you here to check up on us or to move us? Why are you here now? She held his look without hesitation.

That’s up to you, if you want to leave, I can take you somewhere with more of our kind.

She inhaled slowly, then smirked, I wasn’t sure if you were the same as us or not. I knew you weren’t a normal man, but I haven’t had—what’s your name?

Jesse quirked an eyebrow at her, but kept his thoughts to himself, Jesse…

I’m going to get dressed, Jesse, feel free to hang out with Thera until I come back out. She went up the stairs and, in the door, before he could comment.

Jesse tucked his hands in his pockets and looked at the leopard in front of him, Thera, huh?  She continued to look at him without blinking. That couldn’t be good. So is Leah around? Not wanting to startle the animal with any movement, he looked, with just his eyes to see if he could see anyone else. Or, what was the other name? Minn, are they around? The cat didn’t move or look around. Jesse wanted to pet her but thought maybe he should wait until the woman came back out. He liked his hands—and all the other parts of his body still on his body.  Okay, he nodded to the cat, then motioned to the step, is it okay if I sit down? Her ears went back. Or I could stand, that’s works too. 

When the animal turned to look at the door the woman had gone in, its whole demeanor changed. She was alert, crouched down again instead of sitting, her ears lay back flat, and then she turned those yellow eyes back to him.

Jesse’s cat was tense again, ready to spring. The door of the building opened, Jesse turned to ask the woman her name, but it didn’t seem to be her. It looked like her, but the movement was completely different. Why had his cat switched gears again? He had to wonder if Leah and the other one were twins, maybe? Hi, he offered his best smile.

Thera, be nice. She said softly and the cat immediately lay down. I’m sorry about that, she doesn’t know what to do with strangers. She smiled at him, still a little timid and frightened, but not like before.

His cat went crazy inside him. Not a bad crazy, just strange like he’d never known him to be, kind of weird. If he could see him, he was pretty sure he’d be rolling around like some kind of kitten.

I’m Leah. She