"People sleep here?" The idea of someplace warm for the night appealed to Isaac, although he wasn't sure about sleeping in a room full of strangers. But it was either that or find someplace outside to lay his head. He wanted to cry at his predicament. He couldn't understand how his father could do something like this to him, but he held the tears at bay. "Can I stay here?"

"Of course," Rodney said. "We have room for the night. But as the weather turns colder, you'll have to get here earlier in order to make sure we have available beds."

Isaac's stomach growled, reminding him that he hadn't eaten dinner. But that wasn't anything new lately. His father had made him skip a lot of meals over the past two weeks. Jacob had made Isaac kneel on hard kernels of corn and pray for his soul. He would have to kneel in the kitchen while everyone ate, smelling the delicious food, but denied even a scrap.

Rodney glanced around and then touched Isaac's shoulder. "I'm normally not supposed to feed anyone, but I have some leftovers in the back office. Would you like some pasta?"

Isaac hesitated.

"I'm not trying to lure you back there. I promise."

The words I promise rang through his mind. T-Rex had said the same thing. Isaac's chest tightened as he thought about the tall and handsome man. He missed T-Rex something awful and wished he was back at that service station. That had been the happiest day in his life, and now all he had was the memory. He still smiled when he thought of the goofy pictures T-Rex had taken of them in the diner.

If only Isaac had a picture of T-Rex that he could keep tucked close to him. But he didn't have a phone, so all he could do was conjure the man's image up in his mind.

"Okay," Isaac said softly, following Rodney. The man opened the door and turned the light on before grabbing a plastic container off the desk. "Sit in here and eat it."

As soon as Rodney popped the lid, the scent had Isaac's mouth watering. He stepped cautiously into the office and took a seat on a folding chair against the wall. Rodney handed him the container and a fork. "Go ahead and eat it all. I've had my fill."

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Isaac asked. His father had told him how cruel the world was, how people used and killed their fellow man. That was one of the things that had frightened Isaac the most when Henry had kicked him out of the truck. He was terrified that he'd be killed before he could find his bearings.

He was still afraid of everyone around him. Being a bear shifter meant nothing because Isaac had no clue how to fight. His father hadn't let them shift often, only when their bears had insisted on coming out, tired of being cooped up for too long. Jacob Newton said their bears were an evil inheritance and they had to atone for their forefathers' sins.

Isaac was dying to let his out. His bear was pacing the floors inside of him, growling at being pent-up for so long. But he was among humans and couldn't allow the shift to take over.

After Isaac's first black eye, Robby had kept a look out while Isaac shifted and healed. But after his father had seen Isaac heal so quickly, he threatened Isaac's life if he ever let his bear out again and then knocked Isaac around some more, giving him fresh marks that Isaac had to let heal on their own.

"Because I was in your situation about five years ago," Rodney answered. "My dad thought the same thing. He even bought a whore for me and forced me to have sex with her. He said once I felt pussy, I'd be cured. When that didn't happen, he beat me on a regular basis until I finally ran away. I've been on my own since I was sixteen."

And here Isaac had thought the past two weeks were a nightmare. He couldn't image being forced to have sex with someone he didn't want or desire. "How did you survive on the streets?"

The man canted his head to the side. "You've never been on the streets before, have you?"

Isaac shook his head as he tried his hardest not to scarf down the food Rodney had given him. His stomach was eating its way out, and he barely tasted the pasta as he shoved it past his lips.

"Well, I can tell you not to trust anyone," Rodney said and then smiled. "Except me. Not that I'm a saint, but I don't believe in screwing anyone over. Karma and all."

"Karma?"

"Boy, you really are green." Rodney sighed. "He just tossed you out to the wolves. What a bastard."

Isaac kept quiet as he finished off the food. He wasn't sure what to say. Rodney had said Isaac could trust him, but Isaac wasn't sure who he could trust. No, that wasn't right. He knew he could trust T-Rex, but he wasn't going to get the man involved. He had briefly considered Simon, but Isaac was too terrified to step foot back in Bear County.

He was stuck in Junction City, whether he liked it or not. He was going to have to learn the ropes in order to survive on the streets. It wasn't a situation Isaac ever thought he would find himself in. He wasn't prepared, but he was ready to fight for his chance to make it in this world.

He might have been thrown away, but he would find a way to survive.

Chapter Six.

The following morning, Isaac stayed while the other men who had slept there took off. They had put their cots away-which was required-but had headed out at first light. Since Isaac had no idea where to go, Rodney recruited him to help sweep and mop and tidy the place up.

"This isn't what I normally do, but you are kinda growing on me. I'm afraid to let you leave." The man smiled. "You're like a baby cub."

"I have to learn to live out there sooner or later," Isaac stated as he swept the floor twice. It just didn't seem to get clean. When was the last time it had been swept? "I appreciate you trying to protect me, but I have to face the world."

"And you don't have anyone you can call?" Rodney probed. "Not that I'm trying to get rid of you, but it's hard to believe a nice guy like you hasn't made any friends."

Isaac shrugged. "I had a friend named Simon, and he tried to get me to move in with him."

Rodney hopped up onto the counter and asked, "So what happened with that?"

"My dad would have flipped if I'd moved out without a good-paying job or had been accepted to college." Then Isaac shook his head. "But I couldn't get a good-paying job without going to college, and I couldn't apply to any colleges without having a computer. I don't know the first thing about any of that. I know now that it was his way of trapping me at home."

"Parents can be assholes," Rodney said. "They don't always know what's best for us."

"No, they don't," Isaac agreed, feeling the bitterness well up inside of him. He had thought his father all knowing, but as he reflected back on his childhood and adolescent years, he realized that the man was fallible.

The man hadn't always made the right decisions for his family, and there were times when he couldn't even provide for them. But Jacob always said that it was god's will and that things would work out. That was his excuse for failing, a crutch he used when he messed up.

"Don't you think Simon might be worried about you?" Rodney asked.

"He might," Isaac said. "But I don't want to burden him with my problems. He just made manager at the local pharmacy not too long ago and has enough to deal with. I don't want to screw anything up for him." Isaac grabbed the dustpan and emptied the contents before eyeing the mop bucket. He'd grown up doing chores, and cleaning the center where he was allowed to sleep was no sweat off of his back.

"I'll mop," Rodney said.

"Then I'm going to go for a walk." Isaac put the broom and dustpan away. His stomach was still hurting from the beating he'd taken from his father, but he needed the fresh air.

"Are you sure?"

Isaac had been cooped up at home for long enough, and he was ready to explore. He had been serious when he'd told Rodney that he had to get used to living on the streets. If he kept hiding in the shelter, it would make the transition all the harder when the time came for him to hit the road.

Isaac wasn't going to fool himself into thinking this place was anything permanent. It was a shelter. Temporary. But he was still scared to face the world.

"I'm going to give you a map," Rodney said. "I know I have one in the office somewhere. I'm going to circle all the places you need to stay away from, bad neighborhoods. Are we clear?"

For the first time since he'd been dumped on the streets, Isaac smiled. Rodney was fussing over him like- Isaac's smile disappeared.

Like a mother. He thought Rodney was acting like a mother hen. But not even Isaac's own mother had protected him. She had been just as outrageous, just as angry when she'd found out that Isaac had been kissing a man. If anything, she had been worse in her punishments. Isaac's hands had been raw from scrubbing so many clothes, from the endless chores she had piled on him for repentance.

The streets might be a terrifying place, but Isaac would take them over living at home any day. He felt a pang of guilt over leaving Robby there, but it was better this way. Robby hadn't done anything wrong, and their parents wouldn't take things out on him.

Rodney came out of the office, map in hand. "Okay, anything I circled in red is to be avoided at all costs. The blue means it's safe, during the day that is. And the green means you've entered into snob territory. Those people will treat you like trash and swear you're trying to steal from them. So I'd avoid going there as well."

"So stay in the blue," Isaac stated.

"You catch on fast," Rodney said with a smile. "It'll be warm enough for you to explore without a jacket, but I'd make it back here before the sun sets. The nights are turning a hell of a lot cooler."

Isaac took the map and read over it. The blue was a very small area. Rodney had even circled the center in blue a few times, making it stand out. The guy didn't want Isaac to get lost.

"Now go and check out Junction City. But damn it, don't trust anyone. And that means, if someone offers you food or cash, they have a motive, and a very bad one. Don't do it. I'll bring in some extra dinner tonight for you."

Isaac tucked the map in his pocket and nodded. "Gotcha. Don't take anything from strangers. I think every kid learned that when they were five."

Rodney laughed. "But you're so green, and the men on the street can talk good game. Don't listen to them, and for fuck's sake, don't go anywhere with them."

Taking a deep breath, Isaac walked out into the sun-filled day to explore the world around him.

T-Rex had scoured the streets half the night and hadn't found Isaac. He was going insane. If he could find Isaac, T-Rex would make damn certain his mate didn't spend another night on the streets. The idea of Isaac being there now made him want to put his fist through the wall. Or more accurately, he wanted to throat punch Jacob Newton.

He sat in his office staring broodingly at the pile of documents in front of him, but T-Rex didn't feel like working. It had been four days since Robby had come to him, and T-Rex hadn't been any closer to finding where Isaac was. It wasn't for a lack of trying on his part. Every evening he set out, scouring Junction City, but came up empty handed.

Grabbing his keys, T-Rex had started to head out when Shott came into the office. "I'm going with you." And then Stripper and Mason came in as well, saying the same thing.

"It'll be better to have more than one person looking," Stripper stated. "We can cover more ground."

"Thanks," T-Rex said.

"You should have told us what was happening in the first place," Stripper admonished him. "We're family. We don't go it alone." Stripper cut a glare at Shott. "Some people shouldn't have kept what was going on a secret."

Shott shrugged but didn't look repentant. T-Rex had asked the man not to say anything, and Shott hadn't.

"You've been there for us," Stripper pointed out. "So stop acting like a one man army and let us help you."

"I don't know about family," Mason said as he stood in the doorway, lumbering over Shott and Stripper, "but I'd like to help."

"Then let's head out." T-Rex was wasting time. The longer Isaac stayed out there, the worse his chances were. Junction City wasn't a place for someone like Isaac. The man would be eaten alive by the streets. That thought had weighed heavy on T-Rex's mind over the past four days.

They took two separate vehicles, and T-Rex had forwarded Stripper and Mason a picture of Isaac from his cell phone. It was the one he'd taken in the diner of Isaac laughing. T-Rex had looked at that image at least a thousand times since he'd taken it. The man's dark hair and amber eyes called to a part of T-Rex that he never knew existed. He wanted to protect Isaac from the world. He was going to find Isaac tonight, or T-Rex would tear this town apart.

Isaac was going to come home with him. There wasn't going to be a debate about it. The man was his. Enough said.

They rode over railroad tracks, and then the two vehicles split up, T-Rex and Shott going south, Stripper and Mason heading west. He drove slowly, checking every alleyway, every alcove, and glanced at every person walking down the street.

"He's my mate," T-Rex confessed to Shott in the dark interior of the truck. "I talked it over with Sparrow. Isaac said I smelled like leather and cedar. I also feel like I'm going to go insane if I don't find him."

"We'll find him," Shott said. "We won't leave until we do." There was finality in the man's voice, and T-Rex appreciated it. He'd always been the one in control, the one who followed all the rules. He was the oldest in the unit and the most mature, but at the moment, he felt as if he were falling apart.

The thought of raising a family with Isaac settled around T-Rex like a warm blanket. He looked forward to raising his children on the ranch. Yes, he wanted more than one child. Both he and Isaac had grown up in a large family, and T-Rex wanted one of his own. He couldn't think of anyone he'd rather start that family with than Isaac.

They combed the streets for hours, and T-Rex felt as if he would never find Isaac. How could one man just disappear like that? Junction City was not large. Although Bear County was smaller, it wasn't like this place was metropolitan. He should be able to find one lone man.

He turned down the next street, finding himself under a bridge. The streetlights were out, making it harder for him to see. He and Shott checked the faces of the homeless who were scattered about, some in torn tents, some huddled by a burning trashcan. T-Rex's heart went out to the less fortunate. He couldn't believe the number of homeless people in this town.

Lost souls. He'd seen faces like this in other countries when he was in the service and on a few assignments for his business. It seemed only the scenery changed. The faces still looked desolate, hopeless. The worst was when he saw children out on the streets, with no place to go. T-Rex knew he couldn't save them all, but that didn't stop his heart from going out to them.

T-Rex decided to get out and search on foot. There were too many here to conduct a quick face sweep. He parked his truck and walked among the vagabonds. Shott was across the street, doing the same. T-Rex tried to seem less intimidating, especially when he came across women huddled in makeshift shelters of either cardboard or old, torn sheets. It was like a Third World country right here under this bridge, its own community of misplaced people.

He wondered what the town was doing to help these people. The number was astounding. There had to be at least two dozen men and woman calling this space home.

T-Rex was going to ask Sparrow about the homeless in Bear County. This bothered him down to his bones. It was a reality check of just how good his life truly was.

He stopped when he saw a woman huddled close to a smaller person. At first T-Rex thought it was a child. The person was curled in, shaking slightly under a grubby blanket. It was the hair that caught T-Rex's attention. He moved closer and gave the woman a nonthreatening smile.

"I'm looking for a friend," he said. He would have said lover, but that wouldn't have been accurate. Besides, he wanted to seem as friendly as possible. "His name is Isaac."

The bundle next to her moved, and then amber-gold eyes peeked out at him. T-Rex's heart tightened when he saw the bruises on the man's face and the terrified look in his eyes. "Isaac?"

The man began to shake even harder, and tears formed in his eyes, catching on his thick lashes. "T-Rex?"

Isaac's voice was barely audible. The man sat up, staring at T-Rex as if he were looking at a ghost. T-Rex's jaw flexed when he saw how filthy Isaac was and the yellowing marks that marred the man's face.

"I lost the map," Isaac stated, and then the tears began to fall. "I tried so hard to find the shelter, but I couldn't remember where it was."

Without thought, T-Rex reached down and pulled Isaac from the alcove he was nestled in. The woman stood, her fists coming up. "You leave him alone!"

T-Rex reached into his pocket and pulled out a twenty. He handed it to the woman. "Isaac is my friend, and I'm taking him home. He's safe."

She looked from T-Rex to Isaac, who was still huddled under the grungy blanket. "Is that true?"

Isaac nodded. "I know him."

T-Rex shouted over his shoulder. "Shott, get me the blankets from the truck."

When Shott brought them to him, T-Rex took the one from around Isaac and handed it back to the woman. He also gave her a few more blankets as well. He saved one to wrap around Isaac before he thanked the lady for looking out for Isaac and then took his mate to the truck.

"I lost the map," Isaac repeated as he curled into T-Rex's arms. "I couldn't find the place."

T-Rex gave Shott the keys and then slid into the passenger's side, keeping Isaac close to him. "You don't need the map anymore. I'm taking you home."

"I can't." Isaac tried to sit up, panic spreading through his eyes. "I can't go back to Bear County."

T-Rex soothed his hand down Isaac's back. "Your father isn't going to come anywhere near you. I promise."

"I can't get you involved in this," Isaac said as he continued to struggle.

"I run a bodyguard business, Isaac. I can handle one bear shifter."

Isaac's eyes widened even farther. "You never told me that."