A. Arthur - Shifter's Claim

Shadow Shifter Tribes

Topteniathe jaguars

Croesteriiathe cheetahs

Lormeniathe white Bengal tigers

Bosiniathe cougars

Serfinsthe white lions

Acordadothe awakening, the Shadow Shifters first shift

Almathe name of the spa at Perryville Resorts Sedona. Means soul in Portuguese

Amizadeannex to the Elders Grounds used as a fellowship hall

Companheiromate

Companheiro calorthe scent shared between mates

Curanderothe medicinal and spiritual healer of the tribes

Elderssenior members of the tribe

ticathe Shadow Shifter Code of Ethics

Joiningthe union of mated shifters

La Selvathe name of the restaurant at Perryville Resorts. Means the jungle in Portuguese

Pessoalsecondary building of the Elders Grounds which houses the personal rooms of each Elder

Roguea Shadow Shifter who has turned from the tribes, refusing to follow the tica, in an effort to become their own distinct species

Santa Casamain building of the Elders Grounds that is the holy house of the Elders

The Assemblythree Elders from each tribe that make up the governing council of shifters in the Gungi

The Gungi Rainforest, South America

Fourteen years ago

He saw red.

Everything was red.

Blood red.

The rain, the leaves, even the muddy dirt puddles at his feet. The acidic stench burned his nostrils and had his stomach churning until he fought to keep from vomiting. Beneath his feet branches cracked and rustled. Rain, cold like slivers of ice, pelted his naked body, as a form of punishment, maybe. Because hed been too late.

Her body lay on the ground, mutilated, floating in the pool of blood. His fingers shook as an arm reached out. Her eyes had been blue, like a summers sky. He remembered them clearly, remembered how theyd stared at him brimming with tears as hed explained their time together had run its course. Pressing against the lids he closed them, not wanting to see them any longer. Not wanting her to be disappointed by him yet again.

Bas cursed. The words rolling from his lips in a long fluid succession that sounded more like a drunk in a gangster movie than a man heading for his senior year in college. Then again he wasnt in New York anymore. He was in the forest where hed been born. After his parents divorce it just made more sense to come here than go back to the house in the Hamptons where there were expensive things like rugs and lamps, statues and paintings and memories. But no people, not anymore. In the midst of the two-year-long his versus hers tug-of-war theyd left the house to Bas. Then, after too many failed attempts to get them back together, Bas had simply left the damned house.

Hed also left Mariah. After dating the sophomore whom hed met at a party for almost a month, Bas had told her it was over. Whatever faith hed had in lasting relationships had been dashed with his parents actions. In his mind it hadnt mattered anyway because he hadnt been in love with Mariahhed known she wasnt his mateand because she was a human. And he was not. Their laws were very clear in that regardno exposure to humans. Ever.

And now look where he was and what adhering to that law had done.

No, what theyd done. He was very clear on the fact that those bastard rogues had killed Mariah without any remorse and so hed done the only thing he could do. Hed ripped their fucking throats out, without remorse, of course.

Mariah was dead and there was nothing he could do about that. Shed died right in front of him, screaming and writhing until she could do neither anymore. If hed just been a second faster, a minute more alert instead of basking in his own problems. He could have what? Saved her from being killed by shifting into a jaguar and ripping the heads off the four other men who changed into jaguars right in front of her.

That would have gone over real well.

Exposure was the biggest warning in the tica. In other words it was a huge no-no that all the Shadow Shifters lived with every day of their lives. Dont tell humans who and what you are. Keep the secret, blend in, but do not become one of them. All his life hed been taught this, the philosophy had been practically beaten into his head.

And he believed in that philosophy just as he believed in the tica and the upward movement of the Shadow Shifters who now took residence in the United States and who were working together toward a democracy for their kind, also known as the Stateside Shadow Shifters.

What he did not believe in was senseless death. And as he lifted what was left of Mariah into his arms, carrying her through the rain deeper into the Gungi, inhaling the stench of her blood that dripped continuously from her body, Bas cursed the rogues. He cursed their very existence even as he took pride in his own.

He also cursed himself for being so foolish as to become involved with a female, especially a human. How shed come to be in the Gungi at all had been a mystery to him since the last time hed seen her had been over a week ago. She hadnt taken the break-up well, which was also something Bas had downplayed. Hed seen the look of hurt in her eyes when hed so callously spoken those words and hadnt bothered to look back after hed left her standing in the hallway of her dorm. Had she come here looking for him? Had she thought following him would get them back together? His temples throbbed with what might be the worst headache ever.

Bas cursed not only the thoughts of how shed come to be here but the fact that shed made him feel weak and insignificant, a failure and a disgrace. Sort of like hed felt when all his talking hadnt kept the two people hed loved most in this world together.

Beneath the heavy canopy of the forest and the dense rain that fell on a daily basis, Bas had buried Mariah, closing his eyes to pray over the mound of mud hed padded tightly over her body. There would be no human funeral for her, the remains of her body could not be found. Too many questions would be asked. In time her parents would have her declared dead, they would grieve and then eventually move on. As for Bas, he would keep this secret with him for the rest of his days. But he vowed to never make this mistake again. Never. His voice was low but deep, traveling on the wind throughout the forest where hed once taken solace.

Comastaz Laboratories

Sedona, Arizona

One year ago

So were kidnappers now?

Were not kidnappers. You are a scientist and I am a decorated officer of the United States Marine Corps. Were both employed by the United States government and we have a responsibility to develop new and improved ways for our countrys defense.

Dr. Mario DiLaurent scratched the back of his head, looking skeptically at the body lying still as a corpse on the examining table. It was encased half in and half out of a body bag, adding credence to the dead theory. But there was a pulse. Hed touched the wrist of what looked to be a Hispanic male, between the ages of twenty-five and thirty. His physique was huge, built like a battering ram, perfectly sculpted like a model. And he was in Marios lab, where the only humans allowed wore white coats and valid ID badges.

We specialize in chemical warfare, he reminded Captain Lawrence Crowe, the director of the labs defense program.