Panthera Spelaea

I arrived at the heliport early, dreading the meeting I was about to have. It could go wrong in so many ways, and the stakes were incredibly high. I’d gotten a text from Dad last night, confirming they were going off the grid for a week. My mates were in hiding, and Edward would take care of Alexandra. I’d warned Duncan to lay low for a while; his land was big enough to disappear without leaving.

I didn’t have any idea what kind of reception I’d get. I’d texted Art to request the meeting, and all I got back was the address of the heliport with a time and a tail number. The pilot didn’t say anything when I arrived that wasn’t related to safety. The ride out to sea was silent; about five minutes in, I realized Art had used helicopter accidents to eliminate rivals before. I let out a nervous breath when the helicopter circled downwind of the Elements as she cruised slowly north. An Israeli Navy gunship was keeping pace with her, and I could see armed crew members in sniper positions as we descended to land. Art wasn’t taking any chances with pirates or terrorists.

Art wasn’t on deck as the helicopter set down. Instead, Zach ran forward to get the door and escort me back inside. We got to Art’s office as the pilot was preparing to take off. Zach closed the door, and most of the noise went away. “How are you doing, John?”

“I’m doing well,” I said as I shook his proferred hand.

“Congratulations on your marriage. Your girls are doing well?”

I looked at Art’s security chief and laughed. “I figure you have better information than I do after all the flying I’ve been doing.”

He looked back at the helicopter as it took off again. “Yeah, probably. It’s good to see you again, John. We were all disappointed you didn’t bring the girls along.”

“I have to protect them above all else, Zach. Even from my friends.”

“Yeah, sorry about that. Come with me, Art is finishing up a meeting, and we’ve held breakfast for you.” He led me to the outdoor salon, where the senior crew members and Karpen Investments executives gathered. I greeted a few of them as we waited for their boss. The chill in the air wasn’t from the Mediterranean breeze or the morning temperature. No, there was a reluctance to get close or be too friendly with me that was telling. I got the impression they were waiting to see how things went before things could return to normal.

Art came in a few minutes later with Claire, the head of Karpen Investment’s research arm. I was seated between her and Art near the head of the table, the Captain and Company President opposite. The meal was family-style. Art passed me the bowls and trays of food after he’d taken what he wanted. Both of us had larger plates, better to handle the increased appetite of a Switcher. Art didn’t say anything until I had stuffed a forkful of pancakes in my mouth. “You feel the need to hide your mates from ME?”

I nearly choked on the food, chewing it as I held up a hand before swallowing and chasing it with orange juice. “My mates are more important than my life, Art. You remember how it was. I will risk myself but not them.”

“You think I am a threat to you?”

“I think you are a threat to anyone you think is working against you. I also think you don’t know enough about me to trust me completely. There are others out there besides you that may threaten my family because of my newfound wealth. So yes, I sent my mates into hiding to keep them safe until I could straighten out our affairs.”

Art thought about this, then fixed me with a stare. “In the last thirty-six hours, my security people lost their protective surveillance of your mates and Melanie. The rest of your family is in an unknown location.” I just returned his look, giving away nothing. “Duncan and Olivia are not at their ranch or in communication. Edward landed in Moscow twelve hours ago, and my men lost him as well. I don’t believe in coincidences, John. Why is everyone behaving as if they are in danger? I sent my best people to protect them, and now they can’t do their jobs. Are you turning against me?”

I turned towards him, my Lion bristling at the challenge. “Do I have reason to fear you, Art?”

He didn’t like my challenge. I could sense his Cave Bear coming forward, his body language clearly showing his bid for superiority. Everyone at the table watched our showdown, two Switchers using body posturing and language to fight for dominance. For centuries, Art had been unassailable, yet now a beast as strong as his was in the room. His Cave Bear was big and stocky, heavily muscled, with dangerous claws and teeth. My Lion’s weapons were just as deadly, plus he was faster and more agile. Neither of us would back down, yet a fight wouldn’t solve anything. I let the posturing continue long enough for him to understand I wasn’t intimidated, and then I laughed.

“Is something funny, John?”

“Our lives are teetering on a cliff edge, Art. Instead of linking arms and working together, we’re posturing like a couple of animals in the zoo. There are only five of us in the world. We won’t be your subjects or your slaves. Our humans and our beasts are strong and independent. They won’t accept having you tell them what to do.”

Art didn’t like that. “What I’ve done has been for the good of us all,” he growled.

“Was it for the good of all Switchers when, before you even met me, you offered to deliver me to Mikhail in exchange for forty percent of his company?”

I heard a glass drop to the floor and shatter, and several people gasped. The truth hit home, and his people saw it. “That didn’t happen,” he replied.

“No, but only because Mikhail balked at the price. He thought it was more cost-effective to hire a mercenary force to kill everyone on this yacht after you gathered all the Switchers in one place. After that failure, he took the billion-dollar offer Edward gave him with your concurrence.”

Art waved his hand. “You knew you were going to the island as bait, and it worked! You’re rich as a result. It all ended well.”

“I wouldn’t call my sister getting kidnapped and nearly killed ‘ending well,’ Art.”

“She got the Eagle and immortality, John. She should be thanking me.”

I took a drink of orange juice while I let everyone process what they heard. “Melanie is still adjusting to the benefits and dangers of Switcher life. It is not easy to accept the changes, much less to understand how much your dead body is worth on the black market. You have to trust the people who know your true nature with your life, and that is difficult for obvious reasons.”

“Mikhail is gone, and things can go back to normal now,” Art said.

“Nothing has been ‘normal’ since I touched the Cave Lion in Siberia. With the sudden wealth and media interest, it never will be.”

Art chuckled at this. “After over five centuries as a Switcher, this IS normal.” He ate a piece of bacon before looking back at me. “I never would have let Mikhail become one of us, John. He’s not the kind of person who I can trust with immortality.”

“And I am?”

“You are deep down a good person, and your mates are strong. They will bear you many children, and that family will keep you on the right path,” Art said. “If you had been an evil man, I would have made the deal. Mikhail was not a good man, so after I’d taken his company, I’d kill him and retrieve the Cave Lion for myself.”

“And that right there is why all the other Switchers and their mates are in hiding right now,” I replied. “You are a businessman, Art. Every situation presents an opportunity to enrich your family or eliminate a competitor. Loyalty outside your family isn’t a barrier. Do you think the rest of us haven’t noticed?”

Art didn’t reply. Instead, he went back to eating. The rest of the table followed his lead, and the rest of the meal was silent, and people excused themselves as soon as they finished eating. Soon enough, it was just me, Art, and Zach. Art stood and asked us both to join him in his office. Art sat behind his desk, the monitors in the room as dark as his mood. Zach and I sat down in the chairs and waited. “John, why did you come here today if you don’t trust me?”

I let out a breath. “You’ve done a lot for me, my mates, and Melanie. I appreciate that. Bringing the known Switchers together, despite the danger it created, was a big help to me.” I sat back a little, letting the hostility in the room bleed off. “I don’t know if it will be possible for the five of us to work closely together, but I know we MUST work together to some extent. It’s too difficult in the modern world to disappear and create a new life elsewhere. We need people around the world, contacts, and support to keep our secret.”

“Work together for the common good,” Zach replied.

“Yes. Our Switcher nature ties our fates together. That nature must stay hidden, or we are all lost.” Both men nodded. “Our mates are just as important. Their lives are more important than our own, and that is what brings me here.”

Zach tensed. “Someone is threatening Svetlana and Anna?”

“No. Edward found his mate, and that will either destroy our relationship with you or guide the way forward into greater cooperation.”

“What? When? Who?” Art was leaning forward, while Zach was shocked. Art depended on him for information, and they were both caught unaware.

“A few weeks ago. Love at first sight and all. Edward is a lucky man, as she’s quite a catch. Young, rich, intelligent, and beautiful.”

“Who is she?”

“You know her, I believe. Edward asked me to inform you because he didn’t know how you would take the news.” I took a breath and let it out, my finger tapping against the hidden pocked in my slacks where the poison capsule lay. Like a band-aid, it was better to just rip it off than drag it out. I sat forward, ready to get the hell out of there quickly. “Edward’s mate is Alexandra Abrahmov, sole heir to her father’s empire.”

There was a loud cracking sound as Art suddenly switched into his Cave Bear form. The leather desk chair was unable to contain his bulk and broke into pieces. Zach and I moved away as the massive Cave Bear roared, then sent the desk flying into the liquor cabinet. We ran out the door to the bow just before a chair hit the bulletproof glass window.

I looked at Zach as we hid behind the anchor windlass. “Well, that went better than I expected,” I said.

Zach didn’t respond as he listened to Art destroy his office. “What the fuck did you expect?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “For Art to kill me, then order Edward and Alexandra’s deaths.”

Zach just nodded. “It’s still early.”