Bear's Claim (Bear Heat Book 3) by Natalie Kristen Page B

myself, but...I don't want to die a monster.”

CHAPTER
FIFTEEN

    Thor ran from the hospital
car park straight through the main entrance and into the lobby. He
skidded to the reception counter and said, “Where can I find
Aubrey Williams?”
    There were three
receptionists on duty and they all widened their eyes at him.
“Aubrey? Well, Aubrey's shift would have ended by now,”
one of the receptionists said after glancing at her watch. “I
think she's gone home.”
    “Did you see her?”
the other receptionist asked. “She always stops by to chat
with us before she leaves.”
    “No. In fact, I don't
think I've seen her the whole afternoon.”
    “That's funny.”
    “Yeah. But...”
    A group of elderly folk
approached the reception counter to make enquiries and Thor stepped
back to let the receptionists attend to them.
    He backed out of the hospital
but he didn't go back to his car. Aubrey hadn't gone home. He was
quite sure of that. He could sense that she was still here in the
hospital somewhere.
    He closed his eyes and let
his bear take over for a moment. His bear was tugging him towards
the open field behind the hospital.
    Should he follow his
instincts?
    His instincts had kept him
alive thus far. His bear could always sense danger and trouble. And
right now, his bear was telling him that his mate was in trouble.
    Thor didn't waver. Reason
and good sense told him to search for her in the hospital, but he
would act on sheer instinct and impulse this time. He had held back
his feelings for Aubrey because his overthinking logical brain had
told him that it was best if he backed off and let her go. This was
no time to overthink anything. He had to get to Aubrey. And he had
to trust his bear to find his mate.
    There was nothing but a wide,
overgrown field behind the hospital. Beyond that was the edge of a
forest. There were no buildings, no dwellings, no roads. There was
no reason for Aubrey to be traipsing through the woods.
    But that was where his bear
wanted to go.
    Thor waded through the field
and pushed into the woods. His bear knew exactly where to go. Thor
released his hold on his bear and let the beast rise to the fore, but
he didn't shift into bear form. He simply let his animal take over
his will and control his body. His senses were sharper, and he was
stronger and faster when his bear was dominant.
    Thor dashed through the
forest, moving closer and closer to Aubrey. Her scent was stronger
now. But it was still faint, muted, like there was something
blocking her from him.
    Where was she?
    Was she in some sort of
enclosure?
    Was she...underground?
    He crouched and scented the
air closer to the forest floor. A growl rumbled from his throat.
There really was something under the ground.
    Under the soil and leaves was
the scent of metal, medicine and blood. There seemed to be a chamber
hidden underground, and it was filled with electronic machines,
computers, sterile equipment. Thor could detect the faint scent of a
handful of live humans.
    Aubrey was among them.
    What was this place?
    An operating theater?
    A computer lab?
    Thor shook his head. It made
no sense.
    He took another whiff and
reared up. Aubrey!
    Her scent was much stronger,
clearer and nearer now. She was out in the open and she was coming
towards him.
    He could scent her tears and
blood.
    Thor roared and bolted ahead
at full speed.

CHAPTER
SIXTEEN

    Aubrey scrambled out of the
tunnel and kept running. She swiped furiously at her tears which
were blurring her vision. She had to get help. She didn't want to
leave Michael and Luke behind, but if she stayed, she would be dead.
And she couldn't help anyone if she were dead.
    She tripped and fell over a
tree root, but she picked herself up quickly, ignoring the cuts on
her hands and knees. “I'll be back, Michael. You stay alive,
you hear me?” she whispered. With a sob, she got to her feet
and thought of her promise to Michael. She'd promised to go back for
him. He had helped her escape, and she