Chapter Eleven
Poppy had been alone for almost an hour.
She was getting a bit bored. When she was bored, her imagination went wild.
Sometimes it wasn’t a good idea to be alone with her thoughts.
She started to overthink all Wilder’s oddities when she’d promised herself they weren’t worth the trouble.
They were happy together, and that’s all that mattered.
All her life, she never dreamed of having a happily ever after, and each day with Wilder was a dream come true.
But as she paced around the little log house, her attention kept diverting to that locked room in the hallway.
The room bolted from the inside and the outside.
The forbidden temptation that wouldn’t stop invading her thoughts.
Maybe that room had answers. Maybe he was a serial killer.
She shook her head, feeling like an idiot.
She needed to just mind her own business.
But she couldn’t.
Poppy decided it would eat away at her until she knew what was inside.
Maybe then she’d stop doubting Wilder. It was probably old storage, something boring and unimportant.
She searched around all the drawers in the house, looking for a key.
She wasn’t having much luck until she found a large key in his night table drawer.
It was an old-fashioned skeleton key, and she admired it as she brought it into the hallway. Sure enough, it fit the lock.
She froze, her heart pounding in her chest. This felt wrong but she couldn’t stop herself.
Poppy turned the key and pulled open the heavy, reinforced door.
It was pitch-black inside, a waft of stale, musty air greeting her.
It mustn’t have been opened in a long time.
She cautiously stepped inside, feeling around for a light switch on the wall.
Once the lights flicked on, she gasped as she took in the scene.
The walls were a mix of steel and heavy timber, appearing to have been repaired numerous times.
All the walls were gouged over six feet high with thick claw marks.
Broken chains hung from the ceiling and large tufts of fur were stuck in the wood, along with obvious bloodstains.
It was a torture room.
Her stomach twisted in knots.
That’s why Wilder wasn’t afraid of bears.
He brought them here to torture and kill them.
He is a poacher. Or was a poacher. Maybe something worse.
She started to cry in deep waves, sobbing for everything she’d discovered and the future she knew was no more.
She should have known everything was too perfect.
Poppy cautiously walked around the room, watching where she stepped, running her fingertips along all the deep claw marks.
The poor bears were trying to escape. Maybe that’s where he got his money—selling bear parts on the black market.
She wondered what he did to that poor bear cub.
He’d disappeared with him. All the mysteries were shrouded in this dark secret.
Did he know the poachers coming after her? She didn’t know what to do or to believe.
Poppy wiped at her eyes, the tears blurring her vision. She almost wished she could have lived in blissful ignorance, but no, this was a major discovery. Wilder wasn’t the man she thought he was.
She needed to leave this fake paradise and go back to her real life. It may be hard back in the city, but at least she’d be able to sleep at night. There was no way she could ignore this nightmare room, whether he’d changed or not.
Poppy got dressed in warm layers, filled her backpack with her belongings and some food and water.
Then she kissed the three dogs goodbye, which only made her cry more.
She slipped out the front door and headed in the direction she’d come weeks ago.
If she kept going straight, eventually she’d get to her car or at least find someone to help her.
If Wilder found out she discovered the truth, maybe she’d end up trapped in that torture room. There must be a completely different side to him, and she didn’t want to discover it.
She began her long trek, feeling nervous being alone, but more determined than ever to get away. No way could she be here when he returned from wherever he was. She needed to move quickly.
After hiking for miles in the extremely rough terrain, she heard faint voices.
She paused, hoping they were other hikers like that family they’d come across before.
First, she took a drink from her water bottle.
Then she moved a bit closer to see who was talking.
She saw a UTV and several men packing up equipment.
She parted the weeds a bit more and that’s when she knew it was the poachers looking for her.
She held her breath, feeling caught between bad and worse.
How would she get by without them noticing? But she couldn’t stay put forever.
Poppy couldn’t believe the situation she was in, and didn’t know why her thoughts immediately went to Wilder. He wasn’t her savior anymore, he was a freak, some sicko that trapped and hurt wild bears. No wonder he was out here alone. He wasn’t normal at all.
She started to pull back when an arm came around her from behind, covering her mouth so she couldn’t scream.
He was strong and rough. She could barely breathe as he pulled her back into the forest. Poppy kicked her legs, trying to get out of his grip.
She dug in her heels but it was no use. He wreaked of alcohol and body odor.
“Look what I have here!” he shouted. “A nosey little photographer.”
The men she’d seen through the weeds only moments earlier came over to them. They laughed and hooted.
“She actually came right to us.”
The man holding her let go and they all circled her as she sat on the ground.
“You’ve cost us our friend,” one of them said. “We should kill you too.”
She didn’t know what he was talking about. Her heart was beating so fast it was hard to catch her breath. This was it. They’d been hunting her for weeks and now they had their chance to kill her. It was surreal. And there was nothing she could do about it.
“Her boyfriend might be nearby. He’ll know where the bear is.”
“The boss said he wants the bear taken alive.”
“Fuck.”
“We have her and that’s what matters. He’ll give us what we need now.”
Her mind raced with ways to preserve her life. She came up empty. The only chance she had was using the memory card against them, but it was in her bag with her camera.
****
Wilder came home from his rounds, young fawn in his arms, and found the door to his secret room open. And Poppy was gone. He didn’t know where she was. Usually, she listened to him when he asked her to stay inside while he was away. It was for her own safety.
Why would she run? He looked inside the room, but old memories came rushing back. He immediately pushed the door closed. There was no way she’ d be able to figure anything out by seeing the room. No way she’ d be able to connect the dots and discover who he really was.
Right now, he needed to find her and talk to her. She was obviously suspicious enough of him to try to open his locked room in the first place. Maybe it was time to tell her the truth about everything. Hiding his true identity forever was no longer an option.
He set the injured fawn down on the dog bed and brought a bowl of water close.
Wilder stepped outside, testing the air.
He knew precisely the direction Poppy had taken but it was a while ago as the scent was muted.
He’d have to track her in his fur. That was the fastest way to get around the forest. She could be in danger.
He had a satchel around his chest with a change of pants, and nothing more.
He wanted to find her before dark so she wouldn’t be cold or afraid.
That was going to cut it close as the sun was already starting its slow descent.
Wilder squatted down, bracing himself on an outstretched hand as he called to his bear.
Within seconds, his bones contorted and snapped as they shifted from human to bear.
His body grew, his muscles thickening, and hair sprouting from his skin.
His nails changed to massive claws. As soon as it had started, he was fully transformed into his alpha grizzly bear.
The shift was often uncomfortable but it was nothing like in his youth.
He’d learned to master and control the change with practice over the decades.
He pawed the ground briefly, then bound into the forest.
The closer he got to his mate, the more he could sense her. He was on the right trail, sounds becoming clearer and scents becoming more potent. The poachers were nearby. He’d run nonstop, so he found Poppy just as the sun faded into the horizon. The cover of night would aid him now.
The poachers had her. This was the one thing he’d feared all these weeks.
The reason he’d been with her at most times and kept her safely in the house when he was away.
She was still alive because he could hear and sense her.
She was afraid. That enraged his bear. They didn’t want to see his bear angry, but tonight they would.
He patrolled the perimeter of their camp. They were starting a fire to fend off the darkness. Wilder could see them all perfectly. There were four males. Poppy was sitting against a tree with her hands tied behind her back. She didn’t appear injured.
Although he was grateful she was still alive, he had to wonder why they were keeping her breathing after trying so hard to capture her. She had the evidence, so without her, they were in the clear. But she was still here.
He watched intently, taking in every move they made. Wilder had to remember the lesson from his parents’ legacy. To never underestimate human firepower. He had to wait until they were all away from their guns, even though his instincts wanted him to react without caution.
“We’re wasting our time. Maybe he doesn’t know where it is.”
“He knows.”
They started separating. One headed into the bush to take a shit. With three by the fire, and no weapons in hand, he took the opportunity to save his woman. Wilder bound toward the fire in his fur, immediately swatting one man to the side, sending him hurtling into the trees.
“It’s him! It’s him!” one shouted.
Wilder slashed the front of his torso, immediately killing him as his bloody body collapsed to the ground.
His bear stood on his hind legs, roaring as he targeted the other two men.
He dropped back down, the earth seeming to shake.
Wilder chased down the third one, grabbing him by the thigh with his teeth, biting down hard as he swung the body like a rag doll into a tree.
Before he could get the man in the forest, he heard the UTV’s engine rumble to life.
The last man made his escape, but Wilder’s only focus now was Poppy.
He bound over to her. She looked absolutely terrified of him, and it broke his heart.
He wished his bear could speak so he could tell her he’d never hurt her.
To tell her she could pet his thick fur and find safety in his presence.
Now wasn’t the time. She’d been through enough already.
After one more look at her, he disappeared into the forest where he’d left his satchel. Wilder pulled on his jeans. He reappeared shortly after in his skin.
“Wilder!” she shouted. “Be careful!”
He loved that she worried about him.
“Let me untie you,” he said, bending down next to her.
Once her hands were free, she swung her arms around his neck squeezing tightly. She was crying, her stomach convulsing.
“I don’t know what to think anymore,” she said.
“Everything will be okay. Let’s get you home.”
Then she pulled back, her brow furrowed. “No, I can’t.”
“Why?”
“You’re not who I thought you were.”
He froze. Had she figured out the beast of the forest was him? Was she rejecting him even before he had a chance to tell her the truth himself?
“Who am I?”
“Not what you wanted me to believe,” she said. Then she added, “I found your secret room.”
He swallowed hard. That room brought back a lot of unwanted memories. He’d moved on long ago and didn’t want to think about it. But seeing the room shouldn’t have revealed anything to her. It was empty, unused for decades.
“It’s just an old room. I’m the same man I was yesterday and the day before that. The man who loves you.”
She cried into her hands. “I wish I could believe that, Wilder.”
“I’ll explain everything. Answer any questions you have. Just come home with me. This area isn’t safe. More men could return. The authorities could come searching for the beast.”
“It was a bear,” she whispered.
“You saw it?”
She nodded. “He looked right at me. His eyes were dark ... like yours.”