There was a full moon that night, and its light reflected off the snow. Sage turned on her flashlight once she neared the corner of the house. Since no one had shoveled in a while, the snow was deep. And she saw footprints in it that looked fresh. She followed them, keeping an eye out for the person who’d made them.
It didn’t take her long to find him. He had his back to her, bent over, working on something. She heard the distinctive rasping sound of a lighter being used, but the wind must have blown it out. It didn’t work in his favor either since it blew in their direction right into their faces.
“What are you doing?” she asked loudly.
The man shot around and Sage aimed the light she held in his eyes. The first thing she noticed was it was Caleb who stood a short distance in front of her. She’d seen pictures of him. And the second, he held in one hand a glass bottle that had a rag hanging out of the top, which couldn’t be anything but a Molotov cocktail, and in the other a lighter. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what he was going to do with them.
“Everything is fine, Officer,” Caleb said. “This is my house. I locked my keys inside and was going to look for the spare one I have hidden in the yard.”
“Really,” she said. “And you were going to use that homemade bomb to light the way for you?”
“It isn’t what you think it is.”
“Drop what you’re holding and walk toward me, keeping your hands in sight.”
“You’re overreacting. As I said before, this is my house. I’m not breaking any laws.”
“You will do as I say or I’ll force you to comply.”
Caleb walked toward her, but made no move to drop what he held. “What’s your name, Officer? I’m going to go to your superior and tell him how you harassed me for no reason.”
Once he was close enough, Sage said, “You can try, Caleb, but since this is my last night on the job, I don’t think it matters.”
He stopped and stiffened. “How do you know my name?”
Sage put one hand behind her back as she pulled out the cougar head pendant she wore under her uniform shirt with the other after she pocketed her flashlight. Caleb’s eyes widened, then he sniffed the air and a look of fury passed over his face.
“You’re Grady’s,” he said with a snarl. “Did he send a woman after me?”
“No. I decided to come here by myself since I have more experience taking in scumbags like you.”
“Do you think that you, a mere human, can best me enough to subdue me? I’m a cougar shifter. I’m faster and stronger than you.”
As if to prove his words, Caleb let loose with a cat’s growl and launched himself at her. Too bad for him, Sage had been all prepared for that. She pulled the hand she had at her back to her front and aimed her Taser gun right at him. She fired and the two small electrodes hit him in the thigh. He went down like a ton of bricks, no longer able to move as his muscles involuntarily contracted.
Sage closed the distance between them and looked down at him. She kept the electricity flowing from the gun to Caleb. “Yeah, you might be faster and stronger, but you’re no match for a Taser gun just like every other criminal out there. Now be a good boy and shift to your cougar form.”
She turned off the juice and waited to see if Caleb would do as she’d ordered. Of course he didn’t. Once he’d recovered enough to be able to move again, he growled threateningly and tried to have another go at her. Sage jolted him a second time, rendering him immobile.
“Go to hell, bitch,” he said through clenched teeth.
“Wrong answer.” She squatted in front of him. “If a human gets zapped too many times, it can kill them. As for a cougar shifter, who can heal a lot quicker, I’m not sure how many jolts you can take, but I’m willing to find out. Either you shift so I can put zip ties on you or you get the juice for however long it takes Grady and whoever else in his family wants to come collect you to bring you to face our family group leader. It’s your choice.”
To show she meant business, Sage turned off the electricity before she zapped Caleb again. It didn’t take him long before he complied. It was then she found out a cougar shifter could take on his cat form while being tased. Obviously, the magic inside them wasn’t affected.
After the change was complete, she quickly zip-tied his front legs together and then his back, and for good measure, she tied the front and back together as well. Satisfied he wouldn’t be going anywhere, Sage turned off the juice and pulled the electrodes out of Caleb’s leg. He snarled, showing off his sharp teeth. She chuckled.
Sage straightened and pulled her cell phone from the inside pocket of her uniform jacket and called Grady. After she explained the situation, he assured her that he, Jase, Taylor and Blaise would be over to collect Caleb as quickly as possible.
Since Caleb’s place wasn’t in the same general area of her new home and Taylor and Blaise’s, it took the men about twenty minutes to arrive. They came running toward her. Once Grady reached her, he tugged her close and kissed her almost senseless.
“I can’t believe you caught Caleb after all the months we’ve been trying,” Grady said once he released her.
“It was just a matter of being in the right place at the right time. Plus, I had some help from something none of you have.” Sage help up her Taser gun. “It would seem cougar shifters aren’t immune to being tased.”
Taylor laughed. “Did you get him after he shifted?”
“No, I hit him before that.”
“Then how did you get him to shift and lie still long enough for you to tie him up so well?”
“I told him he either shifted, allowing me to zip-tie him, or I’d keep the juice going to him until you guys showed up. He chose the first option.”
“Remind me never to piss your mate off, Grady,” Blaise said with a laugh. “I think she’s too friendly with that Taser gun of hers.”
Sage chuckled. “You have nothing to worry about from me. Well, if you guys can take care of Caleb, I should get back on the road. My shift is almost finished and I have to get back to the station.”
Grady pulled her to him again. “Are you still okay with giving up police work? You’re giving up your chance to be a detective.”
She smiled. “Raising Josh will be more rewarding, and he deserves to have me home. As do you.”
“Well, if you’re firm on it, I’m not going to complain.” He grabbed her ass. “Though I’m going to miss seeing you wear your police officer uniform. It turns me on.”
“I get to keep it,” she said with a wink. “I can wear it anytime you want.”
Jase cleared his throat. “You two do realize you aren’t alone? I so didn’t need to hear that.”
Taylor and Blaise hefted Caleb out of the snow between them. “Time to go,” Taylor said. “Dad will be happy to see what you caught him. I’m sure he’ll want to see you tomorrow, Sage.”
“Grady, Josh and I will be by sometime.”
After Taylor and Blaise left, carting Caleb with them, Jase said he’d meet his brother at home. Once Sage and Grady were alone, they slowly walked toward the front of the house. She was more than ready to turn in her badge and gun at her shift’s end. In less than a month, her life had changed, some for the bad and a lot for the good. As she looked at the man she loved, she knew she’d never have to worry about being alone again. She owned her cougar shifter’s soul as much as he owned hers.
The End
About Marisa Chenery
Marisa Chenery was always a lover of books, but after reading her first historical romance novel she found herself hooked. Having inherited a love for the written word, she soon started writing her own novels.