Zed sped through a curve just beyond Stolen Pearl Crick, prepared to gun his engine for the last mile to town. And then he damn near fell off his bike.

The sight of a person out in the grass, propped under a dead live oak tree, not moving, startled him so badly that he barely missed slamming on his brakes. All he could think was, “Please God, not again!”

His hackles had never quite relaxed since the town had been subjected to a series of murders, right after Jillian arrived in town. They’d lost several good people to a madman, and Zed still felt their loss, the guilt of knowing he had failed to protect his own.

It took him skidding to a stop and leaping off of the bike onto the grass, before Zed registered that the person sitting in the grass was Dani. He felt a peculiar rush of panic, seeing her sitting there unprotected. What in the hell was she doing this far away from the maison? Had she gotten lost trying to get into town? He didn’t see a car parked nearby, though as far as he knew Dani didn’t have a vehicle. Had she walked two miles from her rental house in the sweltering heat just to take a nap under an enormous dead tree? She was wearing sensible nylon pants and hiking boots, so she seemed to know what she was doing there. Was she not aware that she was a sitting duck in one of the most dangerous ecosystems in the world?

Also, she didn’t seem to be stirring, despite the fact that a pretty loud motorcycle had rolled up within twenty feet of her. He could hear her heartbeat. And he could see her chest moving just a bit every few seconds. So she was alive at least, just . . . odd.

And she still wasn’t moving or acknowledging him.

“Miss Teel? Are you okay?” he asked quietly.

No response. But she was still breathing. Zed frowned, and studied the tree she was sitting under. There didn’t seem to be any fire ant hills or snake holes nearby, so that was something. The tree itself was covered in Spanish moss that had grown so thick in its branches that the tree hadn’t been able to get the light and nutrients it needed. It was a grand old tree that had died a slow death.

And Dani still wasn’t moving. He couldn’t just leave her here alone. Abandoning sweet-faced ladies in the middle of the swamp was not something a Berend did. Or really any self-respecting shifter in Mystic Bayou.