Love of a Shifter: A Paranormal Romance Bundle

Chapter 3-1

Chapter 3“What is this?” Tamara asked, looking at the massive document that was larger than any book that she had inside of her own home. It was massive and intimidating to behold. As she held it in her hands, she saw that there were dozens of tabs for her to sign, initial, and date for him.

“This is the final contract for what you’re going to be engaging in,” Mr. Green said with a very serious tone in his voice. “Let me express that your silence has already been sealed and that everything you go through now is in honor of the contract you previously signed. There is no backing out of this, Ms. Ralphson. No matter what you hear me say, you will have no opportunity to walk away from this point. Are you aware of that?”

“Yes,” Tamara felt a sinister gloom in the air when he said that and she didn’t like the feeling in the sinking pit of her stomach. Maybe she should have reconsidered this before she signed the previous document, but that was behind her.

“Good,” Mr. Garrett said, clearing his throat. “Now, the bank account that you gave us is correct?”

Tamara nodded to him.

Turning the monitor of his computer screen, which looked like nothing more than a thick piece of glass, she saw on the screen that her bank account, its records, and all of her transactions were visible. She noticed that there were seven digits deposited into her account. “Your money has been deposited and you have officially been paid for your services,” Mr. Green said to her. “If you would like, there are several investment opportunities that Matterhorn Company offers investors looking to put their silent money to good use.

For the next nine months, I would suggest you make that money grow for you. But, I’m not a financial advisor. Should you like to speak with one, you will be given access to the best Matterhorn has to offer.”

Tamara nodded. Sure, why not.

“Will I be able to touch the money today?” Tamara asked him nervously, not wanting to sound too greedy. “Or will I have to wait until after the birth to have access to the money?”

“You have access to it immediately,” Mr. Garrett assured her. “However, as was previously discussed in the application process, you won’t be leaving the care and hospitality of the Matterhorn group through the duration of the pregnancy. You will be given a luxury penthouse here on the top floor of the tower where you’ll have your own access to professional cooking staff, fitness instructors, entertainment of your choosing, and fashion designers willing to make anything you’re interested in wearing. Your safety and comfort are officially our top concern, as is the privacy of your surrogacy. You will not be allowed to leave the tower, but I assure you that you will not be bored at all.”

Suddenly, everything felt claustrophobic. She thought that she was going to have access to the city and be able to explore New York City while she was here. Now she realized that she was going to be stuck here without any way of seeing the city beyond her windows.

“Why is it so private?” Tamara asked out of her own curiosity.

“There’s the rub,” Mr. Garrett said to her. “One last time, let me remind you that you cannot breathe a word of what you see, experience, or learn here.” Tamara nodded to him. “Very well,” he cleared his throat. “The Matterhorn Company is owned by the Matterhorn Group which is a trust designed for a group of individuals who are like-minded and brought together through ancient bloodlines that stretch back to the period of the Middle Ages. During the formation of the Free Mason guilds, others saw that there was safety in numbers, especially when nobility and the holy church could destroy you in a heartbeat. In their own archaic circles, the Matterhorn Group is known as the Matterhorn Clan.”

“Are they like a family?” Tamara had visions of carrying a baby from some noble bloodline that stretched back to the Renaissance or even farther. It made her feel excited.

“More like a series of families,” Mr. Garrett said. “Tell me, Ms. Ralphson, are you someone who would consider themselves an open minded individual?”

Tamara shrugged. “I’m not religious, if that’s what you mean,” she answered.

“It’s not,” Mr. Garrett clarified. “Do you believe that there is more at work in this world than what science or reason can explain? I suppose, I’m asking if you have a capacity for wonder.”

“Sort of,” Tamara shrugged again. That was hard to explain or to even figure out. When was the last time she was blown away by something that seemed magical or beyond the limits of her understanding? She had always been smart and she had always found that there were explanations to things.

“That’s a gilded no,” Mr. Garrett said, typing on a silent keyboard and turning his monitor to face him again. She couldn’t make out anything definitively through the frosted back of the monitor, but she could make out pictures being pulled up.

“Honestly, I don’t care if you don’t believe me at this point. The contract is signed and you’re stuck with nut jobs at the worst, at the best however, you’ll understand that the world is a lot larger and stranger than you previously believed.”

When he spun the screen around, Tamara saw something that she wasn’t ready to comprehend or really understand. What she saw was the image of a very large lizard with wings, standing larger than a car. It was the sight of something that was immense, with a long neck and fangs protruding from its clenched eyes, staring with cold eyes at people running in the distance. There was smoke and fire around it, but the fact that this was in the open made her question if it was from a movie or an elaborate hoax. Maybe this was the true final part of the test.

“Are you familiar with the term: Shifter?” Mr. Garrett asked her.

“No,” Tamara placed the tome of the contract back on the desk.

“The Matterhorn Group members transform from humans into these large, well, they’re dragons, obviously,” Mr. Garrett said, clearing his throat. “There are others, of course, those who turn into wolves, bears, large birds, and other various animals. After all, you’ve known about their existence since you heard your first werewolf story or your first Halloween that you can remember. The fact that you didn’t believe them is your fault, not theirs.”

“If this were true, we’d see it on the news,” Tamara informed him. “We’d read about it on the internet.”

“Oh no you wouldn’t,” Mr. Garrett smiled deeply and wisely at her. He was privy to some secret knowledge that she wasn’t and it ate at her. “You see, the Matterhorn Group has been around since the First Crusade was launched against the Holy Land. Their wealth is beyond comprehension as it is with most of the other clans. They’re a global organization and entity that spans from America to Asia. But, as for the internet, well, that’s another story.

"Most media outlets are filtered by the various organizations, but the Deep Web is something a little more difficult to control. There are plenty of stories, testimonies, and various other images and sources down in the deep, dark of the internet. Those are harder to get rid of.”

“This is the last part of the exam,” Tamara said finally, shaking her head. “This is the last part, right? I mean you’re messing with me. If I buy into this, I get booted from the examination process and the less gullible applicant goes on to win the surrogacy spot?”

“Unfortunately, no,” a voice said from behind her, making her almost jump out of her skin.