Snowbound (Arctic Station Bears Book 1) Read Free Page A

carrying is dangerous.”
    “Can you at least promise that if we decide that he’s not dangerous, we come up with a plan to reintroduce him to the world?”
    “At this point, I can’t promise anything.” Liam said.
    I sighed. “A big cage is still a cage.”

Calder

    Calder watched the human female and the bear shifters leave. He was overjoyed that she’d accepted the offer to join their team, and closed the book he was reading. Biochemistry. Finally, he could begin to put his plan into action. They understood so little, and Calder could not trust them. He would stay underestimated. Speak in easy sentences. Mispronounce words.
    There was so much research on the progeny of his bloodline, but fortunately that research did not exist in eons past. If only his tribe had known the effect of silver on shifters, they might not have been content to leave him a prisoner in the ice. They just couldn’t figure out how to kill him. The warriors of his tribe had tried, absolutely. Blades. Fire. Drowning. Calder had left them no choice. He understood that. They were afraid. Calder closed his eyes. If only he alone had been the lone victim of their fear.
    Hopefully history would not repeat itself. Hopefully the people of this time would welcome a return to nature. A connection to the world in which they lived.
    The shifters in this time were weak. They might need to be culled to make way for the new, purer breed. They were unable to partially shift. Unable to truly call upon the strength of the animal and the man at will, and to have control over both. Liam had said that the bears changed only during a full moon, and if they did shift at will, the animal held sway over the man. Their lack of control was pitiful. And the change was a thing to be celebrated daily, not endured as a monthly hardship.
    But not all of the bears were useless, he reminded himself. There was one with potential. He would help Calder bring the plan to fruition. He could be redeemed. Calder smiled. It would begin so soon now. He just needed to understand a little more about the world in which he now found himself. He opened another book.

Chapter Four - Alanna

    I stared out of the huge windows in the common room. It was night, although outside the sky was the same purple-blue twilight as it was when I arrived. It really was beautiful. I should have brought a camera along, because my cell phone pictures just did not do it justice.
    “You okay?”
    I almost jumped out of my skin at the sound. I spun around and there was Ollie, holding two cups and looking like he thought he might get decked. If my hand didn’t ache from the cold, I might’ve actually punched him.
    “You scared me shitless,” I said. “You know I fucking hate it when you sneak up on me.”
    “I’m sorry, Allie,” he said. “Peace offering?” He held a cup out to me. It was filled with a golden liquor that smelled like it might burn a hole right through the floor.
    I took the cup. “What the hell is this?”
    “Richie Golden makes it. He has a still. It’s basically moonshine mixed with honey and spices. He calls it Golden Gate. The rest of us call it Heaven’s Gate, because when you drink it, you feel like you’ve died and gone to heaven.”
    I couldn’t help but laugh. “So you’re trying to buy your way back into my good graces with rotgut whiskey?”
    He flashed his most charming grin. “I thought it might be nice. You know, have a few drinks, catch up a little. Bury the hatchet, maybe?”
    “Before I bury one in you, you mean?”
    “The thought had crossed my mind. I’d just like us to be friends. Truly. I’ve missed you, Allie. I’m glad you’re here.”
    I took a sip from the cup. It burned all the way down my throat in the best possible way. I did have a thing for questionable beverages. Ollie continued to speak, but I failed to hear a single thing he said. I just kept sipping from my cup and eye fucking him, staring at his square jaw and his dimples when he