Stephani Hecht - Rileys Regret

Hawk shifter Colin has been the mentor to an Eagle shifter named Riley for several months now.

During all that time, Colin has been trying to make a halfway decent solider out of the brat while fighting the growing attraction they have for one another. As a rare breed of shifter, Riley is constantly in danger of being captured and forced into slavery. Colin has his hands full with training Riley and protecting the younger man against their enemies. Then Colin discovers theres a bigger threat to Riley. This one more dangerous than all the others. Riley cant run away from this threat either since it comes from within him. Will Colin be able to save Riley from himself or will the Eagle be lost to his own insanity?

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Rileys Regret

Copyright 2011 Stephani Hecht ISBN: 978-1-55487-879-6

Cover art by Angela Waters

All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.

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To all those out there who are suffering insilence.

In retrospect, maybe it hadnt been such a good idea to draw smiley faces on all the targets at the coalition firing range. Not only had it pissed off the felines, but the Hawks had failed to find the humor in it as well, which just puzzled Riley, because who didnt like an emoticon every now and again? Even if it was at the end of a rifle site.

Yet, like so many other things in his life, hed found out the hard way that his actions had yet again left him on the butt side of trouble. So after hed been chewed out by both the feline and Hawk leaders, Riley had done what any other civil-minded Eagle shifter who was in the hot seat would dohe sneaked out of headquarters.

Hed gone to the one place where he could find peace. The one place where he didnt feel like a freak, reject, underachiever or disappointment, and that was the fountain in the center of the local shopping mall.

As strange as it sounded, that place had the ability to calm him down no matter how upset he became. It may not look like muchjust a small stone circular pool with a tiny cherub in the center, but it did Riley more good than a thousand Dr. Phils ever could.

He stretched out, belly down, across one curve of the wall encompassing the water. All around him, shoppers rushed by. Humans who were all blissfully unaware of what truly lurked amongst them or how awful the world really was. Riley almost hated them for the ignorance.

He let out a sigh as he rested his cheek on the cool stone and skimmed his fingertips over the surface of the water. Hed give anything to go back to that world again. The one where hed just been another human and didnt know he really was an Eagle shifter and not to have to live with the fact that a whole world of nasty waited out there and that most of them wanted to literally throw his sorry ass into a gold cage.

The water felt cooler than normal. Odd, since as far as Riley could tell, the weather outside hadnt changed. So why should the fountain inside the mall be any different?

We really need to go, Noah admonished in a strained voice.

Riley gazed at Noahs reflection in the water.

Just a bit taller than him and with black hair, the Jaguar shifter had been one of the few who Riley could really call a friend. Noah now wore a worried, harried expression as his gaze darted from side-to-side. Riley almost wanted to snark at Noah that if he were so worried about getting caught, then maybe he shouldnt have tagged along for the field trip. In the end, Riley held his tongue. He knew the only reason why Noah was there was because of the deep-seated loyalty they had for each other.

Just give me five more minutes and then I swear well head back, Riley promised as he continued to trail fingers over the waters surface.

Riley carefully avoided gazing at his own reflection since hed never liked what he found there. While many went out of their way to tell him how beautiful and special he was, he just didnt see it. To him, he just appeared to be scrawny. His hair was too pale and unremarkable.

His eyes were a dull blue. His mouth was too thin.

His nose too narrow. In other words, there was nothing spectacular about him at all.

Which probably was the reason why he got a thrill out of piercing his body. It was the one way he found where he could truly control his appearance and how others viewed him.

Numerous parts of his body sported hardware. He currently had one on his bottom lip, one on the side of his nose, another on his right eyebrow, and that was just to name a few. That same thought process went into his hairstyles. His latest style, gelling his blond locks into a faux hawk. As far as Riley was concerned, if it made him look odd or different, then sign him up.

Why do you hate home so much? It sure as hell beats living in that gold cage the slaves held you in, Noah snapped.

I know. I just need to get away once in a while.

Sometimes, I feel as if headquarters is just another prison.

Noahs eyes softened with pity. Damn it if Riley didnt despise having that emotion directed at him, too.

You know, Mitchell is only doing it to protect you. The slavers would just love to get you again

because Im an eagle shifter and were so rare that Im worth a lot on the black market, Riley finished dully.

God, but if he had to hear that one more time, he was going to toss himself to the Ravens just so he could get it over with. Noah crouched and began to run his hand down Rileys back.

Do you want to talk about it?

No, Riley replied, still dragging his fingers over the water.

Its not like Noah would understand. Noah had been one of the lucky ones. Not only was he able to live amongst other felines, but hed been reunited with his family. Whereas Riley now found himself living at the same headquarters, but in the Hawk section which was all the way on the other side of the massive building. To make matters even worse, since Eagle shifters were all but extinct, not only would there never be any family reunions in Rileys future, but hed be lucky if ever ran into another Eagle, period.

Were worried about you, Noah said.

Who? You and Mitchell, or you and the guys? By guys, Riley meant their close knit group of friends. Riley longed for the days before theyd come to the headquarterswhen it had just been their ragtag bunch of buddy shifters. The best part had been that theyd all been different breeds then, but nobody had cared. Thered been a couple felines, a Wolf, a Hawk, plus him, the Eagle. They were their very own form of the Bradys, shifter version.

The guys, Noah admitted.

Riley sat up so quickly, Noah had to jump back in order not to get hit. Riley barely noticed as a surge of panic filled his chest. Did they suspect hed gone off balance again? Damn it, how could they know it? Hed tried so hard to hide it. With as little time as they now spent together, they couldnt have possibly seen it the few times hed slipped up.