Vivian Arend - Diamond Dust

Ainsworth went insane with panic, struggling like a possessed demon. Tyler held tight and took a deep breath. He lifted his lower limbs and wrapped them around his opponent as well, dragging Ainsworth under the water.

Sound cut off. The shrieks and the crying. The strange thumping sound that had begun right around the time Ainsworth had abandoned their fight to attack Caroline. There was nothing in Tyler’s ears but bubbles. His vision remained clear and sharp as he kept Ainsworth trapped. He checked for Caroline, pleased to see her at the opposite side of the pool, her long limbs vanishing as she exited the water.

Good, she was safe.

An extraordinary sense of peace came over him. It must have had something to do with knowing Caroline was all right. That she’d be able to move on after this event was over.

Ainsworth wiggled. Tyler attempted to hang on, his breath of air nearly exhausted as the water grew sparkling bright around them. He couldn’t seem to hold his quarry anymore. Tyler fought the urge as long as possible before he could no longer resist. His arms opened, and Ainsworth floated away.

Tyler drifted toward the bottom of the pool. It was rather peaceful down there. No one chewing on him, no one ripping his fur.

A splash disturbed the surface, and slender legs came into view. Pretty legs, followed by a pretty body. His bear figured that human Tyler would like the bits and pieces more, so the animal part took the initiative to shift. Tyler’s humanity returned in a rush as Caroline swam down, her blonde hair waving in the water as if she was a beautiful and delicate mermaid. Her eyes blinked, her smile so…Caroline.

Then she caught him by the hair and dragged him to the surface.

She’d spoken to Nadia before. Had heard about the petite lynx shifter’s abilities from Shaun and Gem, but Caroline had never seen anything like the Omega in action.

Right about the time Caroline had leapt into the water, the pack helicopter landed on the roof of the building. By the time she’d swum across the pool width and scrambled back to dry ground, Nadia stood at the lip of the roof, shaking her head sadly. Caroline stared in amazement as the small blonde sat on the edge then jumped down, a massive man following at a short distance.

Fighting between the wolves and bears slowed, the few lingering skirmishes drawing apart and the combatants either sitting peacefully or falling to the ground as Nadia walked the perimeter of the pool.

Omega. A peace-bringer. As the lynx strolled through the war zone, it was as if an overdose of Valium flooded the area. Even Caroline was on the relaxed side, but figured that was more because of her rush of relief the bloodletting was done.

Not seeing Tyler rise from the pool had been her final annoyance, though. Caroline jumped in and dragged him upward, thankful he had the sense to shift, because she doubted his rock of a bear would have been easy to budge.

Tyler blinked as he hit the surface, grabbing the pool edge with one hand and catching her to him with the other. “Caroline. Watch out. It’s dangerous.”

She snorted. “You need to catch up, big guy. The fight is over, I brought in the cavalry.”

A pair of pretty pink-painted toes stopped beside them as Nadia knelt to say hello. “This is the weirdest pool party I’ve ever seen a human host.”

“I ordered guppies, but they didn’t arrive in time. We had to improvise.” Caroline wiggled free from Tyler and pushed herself up to sit on the edge. “Thank you for coming.”

“No problem. I’m sorry I couldn’t make it sooner.” Nadia wrinkled her nose. “You’d think these guys would know to contact someone like me before organizing volatile gatherings.”

Caroline shrugged. “They’re bears. They don’t think.”

“True.”

“Hey, be nice.” Tyler was up on the deck, bringing Caroline to her feet and offering a welcoming hand to Nadia. “Maybe it’s because your existence is nothing more than a rumour. Good to meet you. Omega?”

“Cross-species. No one is safe from my mind-melds.” Nadia blinked appreciatively as she looked Tyler over. “And aren’t you a lovely looking specimen? If you ever need a personal favour, let me know.”

Caroline nudged the blonde out of the way even as she laughed. She’d been warned about Nadia’s tendency to flirt. “Stop it, no dallying with my boyfriend.”

“Oh, he’s taken? Too bad.”

Tyler adjusted his grin of delight to a more serious expression in the nick of time before Caroline stomped on his toes. He glanced around the pool. “Dammit, we were terrible.”

“You were bears.” Nadia patted his chest, her eyes widening as she spotted the scratches and bite marks marring his skin. “And yes, you were terrible.”

Caroline blushed as the particular mark Nadia focused on was one Caroline had caused. “Come on, now that you’ve got them calmed down, perhaps we can convince them to hire you to hang out for a few more days.”

Nadia nodded.

Cleanup took less time than anyone expected. The message Caroline had sent off brought a full emergency-response team—all shifters or humans with shifters in their families. There were medical attendants and RCMP. She’d even alerted her media contacts, and the newspaper was there to interview the campers and a few key well-schooled actors regarding the excitement of “filming in a northern location”.

No mention of bloodshed or injuries. Just a typical day in the Yukon.

Typical . Caroline wasn’t sure if she should laugh or cry.

Damage Control 101. She was good at it after all these years, sadly. That beach beckoned again. A sun lounge, a fruity drink with a double dose of alcohol…

Except for the women who gathered their things to head back into Whitehorse, each of them stopping to give her a bear hug and offer support.

By the time Shelley had finished examining Tyler’s wounds, the pool area was nearly empty, everyone having moved toward the parking lot and their cars. “You were far luckier than you could have been. Just saying.”

“I’m a bear. I can take it.” Tyler frowned, his annoyance turned on Chase who was staring at Caroline in disgust. “What’s your problem?”

Caroline pressed her lips together, trying not to smile.

“Go on, laugh it up. I’ll get my revenge.” Chase plopped on the bench beside his mate and nuzzled her under the ear. “You were wonderful though.”

Caroline pulled Tyler aside before he could make any other demands, handing him the pair of pants she’d found. “You need to come talk to Jim Halcyon and the RCMP rep. They’re asking what to do with Ainsworth.”

“And you didn’t have any proposals?”

Her blood steamed. “I suggested abandoning him on a drifting iceberg, but they didn’t take me seriously.”

“Let’s not inflict him on the Hawaiian shifters, if the ice lasted that long.”

Sergeant Major Graham, a black bear she’d learned was affiliated with Clan Halcyon, waited beside a picnic table. Todd Ainsworth was seated on the wooden bench and refused to make eye contact with her.

“Caroline.”

“Sergeant Major. Thanks for coming.”

He switched his gaze to Tyler. “We have a problem. I’m obviously not going to arrest Ainsworth for anything that occurred at the pool this afternoon related to conclave.”

Tyler nodded. “Business meeting.”

Caroline snorted. She couldn’t help it.

Tyler caught her fingers and squeezed them.

Jim Halcyon spoke from his position on the opposite side of the table. “The issue is whether charges should be brought for spousal abuse.”

Todd Ainsworth reared to his feet. “See here—”

“Shut up, Todd.” Even the pressure of Tyler’s hand on hers couldn’t stop Caroline from responding. “This is not your decision.”