FairPlay Shifters Prequel: (A Paranormal Romance Story) Read online

  FairPlay Shifters Prequel

  (A Paranormal Romance Story)

  Serena Meadows

  Copyright ©2018 by Serena Meadows - All rights reserved.

  * * *

  In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.

  * * *

  Respective authors own all copyrights not held by the publisher.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  ***Justin***

  Justin was hiding in the barn, he wasn’t exactly sure why, but he’d gone out to check on the horses and hadn’t been able to leave when he was finished. Considering the fact that it was his eighteenth birthday and there was a huge crowd of people just beyond the big wooden doors waiting to celebrate with him, he shouldn’t have been feeling the way he was. But he knew that when this day and night was over, he’d be an adult with all the responsibilities that came with it.

  He’d known for his entire life that one day he’d be expected to become the leader of the family, had been raised to take on that role. It was the prospect of leaving home that had him avoiding what was waiting for him out in the yard. But his mother had been planning this celebration for months, and there was no way he could avoid the ceremony later that evening—not if he was going to remain a part of the family. So, he brushed off his hands and headed for the door, taking several deep breaths just before he pushed them open.

  As soon as he opened the door, a cheer went up from the crowd, and he felt the weight of his position fall on him like a heavy cloak. Plastering a smile on his face, he walked into the crowd, accepting the hugs, back slaps and well wishes of his family and friends with the kind of gratitude they all expected. He could see his father watching him from across the yard; since he’d told Justin a few weeks ago that he would be going off to college, they hadn’t spoken much, which had been difficult for them both.

  When he’d filled out his college applications, he’d been sure that it was only to satisfy his graduation requirements, that once he was finished with high school, he’d been done. But his father had other plans, plans that he had only recently shared with Justin but would have a major impact on his life. That was part of the reason he’d been so upset, but mostly he was upset because he didn’t see any need for a college education. He’d been raised on the ranch and knew exactly what it took to run it.

  In the end, his father had ordered him to go, one of the few times they’d disagreed and not been able to come to a resolution they both felt comfortable with. So, he’d be leaving in the fall to attend Colorado State University in Fort Collins, a four-hour drive from home and the life he really wanted to be living. Looking around him at his home and the people gathered to celebrate with him, he realized that instead of moping about what was going to happen in the fall, he should be enjoying the time he had left in Fairplay.

  He still had a whole summer of roaming the mountains, herding cattle, and hanging out with his friends. It was time to concentrate on that and stop worrying, otherwise, the summer would be over, and he would have wasted it. Nodding his head to his father, he turned from him and let his mother lead him over to a table loaded with all the food he loved.

  The afternoon seemed to turn to evening before Justin knew it; the tables had been emptied of their burden and the guests, full and happy, had found places to sit or simply stretched out on the lawn to watch the sun set. As the stars began to come out, the guests began to chatter about the fireworks presentation his father had arranged, but that was the last thing on Justin’s mind. Instead, he was focused on the night to come, on his initiation into manhood and the ritual that accompanied it. Tonight, he would become a true shifter, living, if only for a few hours, the full life of the animal he’d become.

  He was watching for the signal from his father, and when it came, he got to his feet, as nervous as if this were his first time transforming. The other eight who’d been chosen to be a part of his initiation got to their feet as well, quietly bid their families goodbye, then followed Justin and his father into the woods. Silently, they walked through the woods, spreading out as they went until they were lined up shoulder to shoulder, then on his father’s command, they shifted.

  What had once been a group of normal looking people was transformed into a sight that would have sent any rancher straight for his shotgun. Lifting their heads, they cried out in unison, then melted into the forest, their instincts guiding them through the dark of the night. Justin thought that he’d been prepared for that moment but seeing it and being part of it was more overwhelming that he’d anticipated, and he felt the emotion welling up inside him.

  After tonight, college education or not, he’d be elevated to one of the leaders in the valley: a responsibility he wasn’t sure he was ready for. He hadn’t told his father about his insecurity; it wouldn’t have helped, only disappointed a man Justin wanted desperately to make proud. His father would have slapped him on the back and launched into a long tale about something that had happened to him at Justin’s age, a story that would have had nothing to do with his insecurity, but he knew that it was the best his father could do.

  Sorting through his emotions, he buried the fear and insecurity, instead focusing on his instincts, then looked to his father who nodded his head, giving Justin the lead. Justin gathered his strength and leaped, a huge bound that propelled him into the darkness of the forest and instantly erased all thought from his mind except the need to run. Soon he was shooting through the forest, his muscles straining, the darkness a welcome blanket around him, letting him block out all thought except the joy of being free.

  He could hear his father behind him, his padded feet almost silent in the night as they bounded over pine needles, sending up the sweet, fragrant smell of the forest. Then he caught another scent: one he’d recognize anywhere, one he’d never been able to quench his thirst for before tonight. Just the thought of finally tasting what he’d been so carefully trained to hunt since he was twelve made his mouth water and his pulse rise, accompanied by a feeling not unlike sexual arousal.

  Following the scent through the forest wasn’t difficult with his heightened sense of smell, and before long they’d caught up to the herd of deer grazing in a clearing. He chose a vantage point above the herd on a rock overhang, a place where he could watch and wait for the perfect time to spring from his perch and strike.

  Before tonight he’d never been allowed to strike, but as part of his initiation, he would finally have the kill he so desperately wanted and the taste of fresh meat his body seemed to crave when he was in this form. But first he had to catch a deer, something that took patience, and Justin wasn’t very good at being patient.

  Sensing his son’s impatience, his father transformed back into his human form and placed his hand on Justin’s silky head. “Take a break, son,” he said, tipping his head down so he could look into Justin’s green eyes.

  It had been a tactic they’d used since his first transformation when
Justin would be overwhelmed by the raw instinct suddenly alive in his young body, instincts he’d had difficulty controlling. Feeling annoyed that his father didn’t trust him to control himself, he shifted back to his human form, feeling the letdown he always felt and a little bit of frustration; he’d been so close only to have his father pull him back.

  “Let’s sit,” his father said calmly.

  The last thing Justin wanted to do was sit, but he knew the tone of his father’s voice and didn’t argue. “Am I about to get another lecture?” he asked, wondering what he’d done wrong now.

  “Not really a lecture so much as a brief family history,” his father said, slapping him on the back, scaring the herd down below them. When Justin opened his mouth to reply, his father held up his hand. “I know what you’re going to say; you know all the family history, you’ve been hearing it since you were a kid, and that is true. But right now, I want you to hear it once more, except this time I want you to think about what I’m going to say from a different perspective.”

  Justin wasn’t sure quite what he meant, but it wasn’t the first time his father had spoken in riddles. “Okay, I’ll try.”

  His father paused, looking for just the right words. “Our family has been in this valley for three generations; your great-grandparents came here all those years ago searching for a quiet life in a place where they could be themselves without fear of persecution. When they found this valley, they knew that it was the perfect place for them to settle down and make their dreams come true, and they did. They created not only a successful ranch, but a place where other shifters could come and live in peace.”

  Justin sighed, he’d heard this story so many times, always followed by a lecture about how he’d be the one to continue the family business someday. “I know all this dad,” he said, getting more frustrated.

  “Then you also know that they were so grateful to have found a place that they could live in peace that they recruited more like themselves to join them. Looking all over the country, pulling shifters from some pretty horrible places: carnivals, sideshows, and even insane asylums,” his father continued, ignoring Justin’s interruption but giving him a look that said listen don’t speak.

  “We still do that today, and I wonder if you’ve ever considered why,” his father said, then fell silent.

  Justin knew that he was expected to answer. “We do it because those people need a place to go, a place where they can be accepted,” Justin said, surprising his father.

  “Good, I’m glad you understand that. Those lost souls are depending on us and not that long from now, you’re going to be the one everyone turns to. I need to know that you’re equipped to deal with that when the time comes.”

  “I’ll be ready when the time comes,” Justin said, although there was still a little doubt deep down in his heart.

  “You won’t be if you don’t go to college. The world is a much different place than it was when I was your age; you need to be a part of that world if only for a little while. Everyone in this valley depends on the cattle industry; we need to be prepared in case that becomes impossible someday. We need someone who can see the bigger picture, someone who is capable of taking this family and the valley into the future,” his father said.

  Justin should have seen that coming, but he was unprepared for the logic his father had just presented him with. He’d always known that someday he’d have a lot of responsibility, but suddenly he understood just how much. “That person has to be me,” he said, his heart sinking knowing that he was no longer going to fight going to college.

  “I’m afraid it does. But you won’t be doing it alone; you’ll have all the support you need here, and you won’t be the only one leaving the valley to go away to college,” his father said. “Your sister will be going with you. I hope you’ll make the most of the opportunity. Now let’s go get you one of those deer,” he said, pointing to the deer that had come trickling back into the valley, unable to resist the lush green grass.

  Justin looked at his father. “If it’s something I have to do then I will, but it doesn’t mean I’m going to enjoy it,” Justin said, getting to his feet, the urges inside him beginning to come to the surface.

  “I think that’s the best I can hope for,” his father said, then nodded to the deer in the valley, a silent command that Justin was more than ready to execute.

  When the pair of mountain lions sprang, the deer rushed toward the forest, but Justin was too quick for his chosen meal, and when his teeth sank into the tender flesh of the doe’s neck, he felt more alive than he’d ever felt before.

  Chapter Two

  ***Beth***

  Beth sat down at her dressing table and looked in the mirror, reached for the pallet of blush and a big makeup brush, then put them back down. Nothing was going to help how pale her face was; putting on more makeup would only make it look like she was trying too hard. Normally it wouldn’t have bothered her, but she knew that today she would be in just about every picture taken; it was her eighteenth birthday after all.

  She knew that she should be grateful that she was alive at all; at one point the doctors had been sure that she’d never see eighteen. But that didn’t change the fact that when she looked in the mirror, all she saw was a skinny girl with pale skin and dark circles under her eyes. It was her big day, and instead of feeling young and beautiful, she felt drained and spent, but the doctors all said that it wouldn’t be long before she was back to her old self—not that she knew what that was.

  After six long years of being in and out of the hospital, she’d been fully released four months ago. Of course, that didn’t mean she wasn’t still going to the doctor all the time, but at least the hospital was out of her life. She should have been happy, but instead, she found herself confused; the twelve-year-old who’d gone into the hospital all those years ago was gone, replaced by a young woman who had no idea who she was or what she wanted to do with her life.

  Getting up from the dressing table, she took one last look at herself in the mirror, glad that at least she still had her long red hair. She’d pulled it back into a sophisticated knot on the top of her head, but suddenly decided it wasn’t her. So, she quickly pulled all the pins out and let it settle onto her shoulders, satisfied when it fell in silky waves down her back. Looking in the mirror, she discovered that she didn’t look quite so ghostly and smiled at her reflection, thinking that by the end of the summer, the girl looking at her in the mirror would be much different.

  Hearing a knock on the door, she turned just as her mother burst into the room, not bothering to wait for a response to the knock as usual. Seeing the look on her daughter’s face, she said, “I know, I know, I should have waited. But everyone is here, and you’re still up here in your room. Are you feeling okay?”

  Beth backed a step away from her mother. “Mom, I’m fine; you have to quit fussing over me,” she said, heading for the door before her mother could whip out the thermometer she always carried in her pocket.

  “You can’t blame me for worrying, I’ve been doing it for six years, I can’t just stop overnight,” her mother said, sounding wounded.

  Beth stopped in the doorway and turned back to her mother. “I know it’s hard for you; you took care of me for so long, but I’m fine now as long as I stay on my meds. The doctor said that I can live a normal life and you’re just going to have to let me do that,” Beth said, for at least the hundredth time in the last few months. “But that doesn’t mean that I don’t love you and that I don’t appreciate everything you gave up for me. Maybe it’s time you did something for yourself mom; I’ll be gone to college in only a few months.”

  Her mother sighed. “I wish you wouldn’t mention that.”

  “Not talking about it isn’t going to make it go away. I’m leaving for college in the fall, and nothing is going to stop me,” Beth said.

  “But do you really have to go all the way across the country? There are plenty of good schools right here on the East Coast; I’m su
re we could pull some strings and get you a late admission,” her mother said.

  “I want a fresh start, mother; I want to go someplace where people don’t know me as the sick girl. I’m tired of people treating me differently, I want to live a normal life, and that’s never going to happen if I go to school here,” Beth explained for at least the tenth time since she’d been admitted to Colorado State University.

  Her mother opened her mouth to argue more, but her dad walked up, kissed her on the cheek, then said, “What are you two doing up here? Everyone wants to see the birthday girl.”

  “We’re discussing your daughter’s stubborn refusal to listen to reason,” her mother said, but her father cut her off.

  “We can talk about that later; right now, we have a house full of people who want to see Beth, so let’s just enjoy the day,” he said, pulling Beth out of the room and down the stairs. “Be patient with your mother; she only wants what best for you. Have you told her about your summer job?”

  “No,” Beth said, “I’m afraid to, she’ll probably come into work every day to check on me.”

  Her father laughed. “Your mother hates swimming pools; she’ll never show up there, but you knew that, didn’t you?”

  Beth gave him a mischievous grin. “I might have.”

  “Well, if you want my advice, tell her about the job; she’ll forget about college for a while and fuss about that,” her father said, grinning back at her.

  Beth soon discovered that her father was right, once she told her mother that she was going to be working for the summer and at a swimming pool as a life guard, the topic of college was shelved. Beth was smart enough to make her plans behind her mother’s back, only sharing them when it was only a couple of weeks before she left.