The Crystal Moon Curse: Book 5: TAKEN

Chapter 2. Bears

KYRA

By the time I reach the hill that looks down on my small hometown, I’m on the edge of passing out.

The pain in my broken ribs rivals the pain in my shoulder from the lodged bullet. I can feel it rubbing inside as my healing starts to encase it painfully in my flesh.

Groaning with relief, I set my sights on the tavern at the end of the town’s single road and head home.

It is a small human town, and no one knows of the werewolf girl living with the family of shifter bears. I need to keep it that way and would not normally return home in wolf form but it can’t be helped now.

“Kyra, that you?” Udyr’s booming voice calls down from the kitchen above as I nose open the backdoor and it slams shut behind me.

Finally in safety, I shift, my body trembling, weak, naked, and bleeding on the timber floor. Udyr’s heavy feet thunder slowly down the hall to the mudroom where I lay.

“Wasn’t expecting you back until tomorrow - what the hell!”

Udyr rushes down the last steps as I roll onto my back with a pained groan. Right now my glaring nakedness is the least of my worries.

“Hey, I think I need a doctor,” I grunt trying to throw in a chuckle which fails as the pain in my shoulder throbs.

“By all the Gods Kyra, what the hell happened to you, was it hunters?” he growls angrily, his large hands skimming across my skin finding my wounds as I hiss and groan with each touch.

“No. Just me in the wrong place at the wrong time.” I manage through strained breaths.

“Okay, don’t talk. You’ve lost a lot of blood which is why you’re not healing fast enough, but you look okay. I’ll get Jensen over.”

A blanket covers me, then as I’m lifted into the safety of Udyr’s arms, darkness beings to swirl around my head.

***

“She’s going to be fine Dad, she’s just weak from the blood loss and the effort it took to get home. You know she’s tougher than she looks, her ribs will be fine by morning.” I start to wake, hearing my brother Jensen explain my condition to Udyr who grunts in angry disbelief.

He’s always seen me as nothing less than the broken child he saved in the woods and nothing will ever make him see me any other way.

Letting me go out on my own to hunt and run my wolf was a massive effort on his part and took much convincing from me with Jensen’s support.

I can bet my socks he won’t be letting me out of his sight for a long time to come.

“Jensen’s right, I feel better already,” I mumble opening my eyes to see Jensen smiling down at me with his arms crossed over his large barrel chest, his dark beard not hiding his handsome face and warm brown eyes.

“Oh, do you now? Glad to hear it - so that means you’re ready for that ear-lashing?” Udyr growls and I cower back under the sheets glancing at Jensen.

“Hey Doc, you wanna tell him the patient needs rest?”

Jensen chuckles while Udyr growls at me.

“Like I said Dad, she will be fine in the morning, you can give her that ear lashing then. Now I want to hear what the hell happened.”

“Yeah me too.” my bedroom door opens and my Uncle Borra saunters in. Dressed almost identically to Udyr in flannel shirt, jeans, and boots. With matching dark rugged beards and dark eyes, they could almost pass for twins.