Read Bear to the End (Bear Claw Security Book 5) for Free Online Page B

several feet from them. 
    Char quickly grabbed the knife and backed away, pulling out her phone and dialing 9-1-1. The man continued to cry out in pain from his likely shattered wrist, when Mark crushed his thick, muscled forearm into the front of the man’s throat, cutting off his cries with a stifled cough.
    “If I were you, I’d shut the fuck up,” Mark growled furiously as he pressed his arm harder into the man’s trachea as he leaned over him. “The only thing keeping you alive right now is the fact that I don’t want to subject any of the women in this place to the view of your mangled, bloodied, dead-ass corpse. Don’t make me change my mind.” His eyes burned with rage as the man gasped feebly and writhed beneath his hulking, muscled body that looked ready to tear the man in half with his bare hands.
    As Mark held him down with extreme prejudice, Char quickly spoke with the dispatcher, and a minute later, two police cars pulled up to the center. In no time at all, the man was cuffed and taken away, and the police took statements from her and Mark. 
    By the time they were done, Char felt like she’d run a marathon, the adrenaline having spent all her already-waning energy.
    “Come on,” Mark said, putting an arm around her. “I’ll take you home.”

Five
    C har could still feel her heart pounding as Mark led her out and helped her into his truck.
    She’d stayed calm throughout the encounter, at least outwardly, because she had to. But now that she was safe, she allowed herself to feel the sheer panic she couldn’t feel during the confrontation.
    “You okay?” Mark asked. His voice was tight, his face drawn and pissed. She didn’t like being around male anger, but Mark had taken care of her, made sure nothing happened to her or anyone else at the shelter.
    She’d seen pure fury in his face as he’d held down the other man, and she knew, despite the violence in his expression, this was very different than the male violence she’d experienced before. This was a man protecting others, angry with another man for being violent.
    Still, she’d been surprised by the strength of his reaction. It had almost seemed personal. Like it was worse because she was the one in danger. Sometimes the way he looked at her made her feel like the only person in the room.
    But perhaps that was just his job as a bodyguard. He was hired to protect her, and that’s what he was doing.
    “I’m sorry I took that phone call,” he said, jaw clenched tight. “I shouldn’t have taken my eyes off you for a minute.”
    She shrugged, still feeling lightheaded. “I thought it would be fine.”
    “Does that happen often?”
    She shook her head. “No. Most men who hurt their wives want to wait until she’s alone again to try and come after her. Most of them are cowards.” She heard the bitterness in her voice, the sting of tears in her eyes, and swiped at them. She hadn’t felt that afraid in a long time. She hadn’t allowed herself to realize she was afraid when the other women had been in danger.
    But now she was angry because it brought back all those feelings of fear and helplessness and just being a woman and feeling like a man could do anything to you.
    And it was far worse when it was a man she’d loved.
    He was quiet for most of the ride, looking over at her in concern every time they hit a light or a stop. He seemed acutely aware of her pain, but not sure what to do about it. He didn’t seem like the type that had been with a lot of women.
    They parked on the street in front of her place, and she just sat there, staring ahead. Her legs felt too much like jelly to go anywhere, at least not yet.
    He looked over at her. “I can tell this really affected you.”
    She swiped at another phantom tear before it could fall. She’d learned early on not to show tears or weakness. It only egged them on. “Yeah. Just brings some things back.”
    He reached out then, startling her, but his touch was soft as he gently