About In Their Own Skins 3: Uncaged
by Kiernan Kelly
256 pages / 73700 words
ISBN: 978-1-61040-129-6
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html, lit, Adobe and Sony optimized pdf, prc, epub, also available in
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Life has finally gotten back to normal for the folks on the Shifting
Sands Ranch – or as normal as it can be for a group of shapeshifters on the
down low, but old habits die hard. When Dakota convinces Jax to bring home
an eccentric gorilla-shifter who calls himself “Kong,” they wonder whether
they’ve finally bitten off more than they can chew.
Meanwhile, Reporter Derek MacCaffrie needs a story, and the videotape he
received of a supposed shapeshifter running wild in the mountains of Wyoming
reeks of something sensational. Unfortunately, writing an exposé on the
shifters may come at a higher price than he ever intended -- he might gain a
Pulitzer, but lose his heart in the process.
It’s a war of shifter versus human as Dakota and Jax take on the world in a
battle to keep their family in this third In Their Own Skins installment,
Uncaged. Previous books include Shifting Sands and Mark of Cain.
Don't miss the three bonus short stories about other shapeshifters included
with the book, Glitter Palms, Divinity Park, and Killer Love
Review
Stevie Woods, author of On Reflection, writes: In UNCAGED, Kiernan Kelly
continues the story of the Shifting Sands Ranch, with all its familiar
inhabitants, and I really enjoyed visiting with old friends again. There
were new and interesting characters introduced, both shifters and
humans, some fun and positive (a gorilla allergic to bananas!), others
harsh and dangerous
The plotline went in a direction I didn’t expect but as always Kiernan
crossed the t’s and dotted the i’s with consummate skill to bring the
story to a satisfactory conclusion – while still leaving the door open
for further adventures.
If you enjoyed the earlier excursions into Kiernan’s world of the most
varied shifters I’ve ever read, then you will want to read this latest
volume.
Linked Short Stories:
GLITTER PALMS
This short story is linked to the Ultimate Predators more than Shifting
Sands. The story introduces us to a wolf pack living in the heart of
Miami and running a Casino. I particularly liked Walker, the only human
who had a magic all of his own.
DIVINITY PARK
The Divinity Trailer Park has only a tenuous link to Shifting Sands
Ranch, but it has its own share of secrets.
KILLER LOVE
Oh heck, but only Kiernan Kelly could pair up a killer whale – and a
squirrel!
Sample
"Will you just shut up for a minute and watch?" Dakota
snapped. The look on his face told Jax he was through playing, and meant
business. Jax would have found it incredibly sexy, if he weren't so pissed
off at having his Sunday interrupted.
Growling low in his chest, feeling both turned on and frustrated at the same
time, Jax sat down on the edge of the sofa, and alternated between watching
the screen and shooting Dakota black looks.
The narrator's voice, generically smooth and male, spoke. "Harry was
captured by forest rangers in the Olympic National Forest near Port Angeles,
Washington, three months ago. Rangers were investigating a complaint from a
family camping in the area who claimed their food supplies were stolen by a
creature the campers identified as 'Big Foot.”
When the rangers arrived on the scene, they found what appeared to be large,
humanoid footprints at the campsite. Tracking them, they found the gorilla
hiding in the dense underbrush. Nicknamed “Harry” after a Big Foot movie
character, they successfully tranquilized the gorilla and transported him to
the Northwest Zoological Research Facility near Spokane.
Primatologists have studied Harry for the last three months, and claim he is
an Eastern Lowland gorilla, found mostly in the mountainous regions of
Uganda. His species is not native to the American Northwest."
"See? He's not really Big Foot," Jax said, rolling his eyes. "He's a
gorilla, Dakota. A real one. Not a shifter."
"Will you shut up and listen, Jax?" Dakota asked. His forehead creased in a
deep frown as his thumb jerked toward the screen.
Jax grabbed another rib, tore off a bite, a chewed in a desultory manner as
he returned his attention, albeit reluctantly, to the television.
"Scientists speculate that Harry may have been brought into the country via
the black market as a pet, and then abandoned in the wild when he grew too
large for his owners to manage. It is not believed that Harry has been
living on his own for long, since he would be ill-equipped to survive the
hostile Northern Pacific winters."
The screen switched to show a man in a white lab coat, looking uneasy at the
microphone held in front of his face. "We believe Harry has had contact with
humans before, and was treated well by his former owners. He is in excellent
health, and well, he seems to be toilet trained. He shows signs of
possessing an extremely high level of intelligence. Most incredibly, he
seems to understand the English language, at least at some basic level." The
scientist gave a short laugh. "He enjoys watching television, particularly
game shows."
The camera returned to the reporter. "Harry is currently being housed in a
private facility, but he will be soon transferred to the gorilla enclosure
at a major theme park zoo in Florida for public viewing. Officials state
Harry will be better suited to the near-tropical climate in Florida. Animal
rights activists have protested the move, claiming that Harry should be
flown to Africa and released back into the wild. They may file a lawsuit,
and seek an injunction against the move."
"A gorilla," Jax said again, polishing off his second rib. "He's nothing but
an overgrown monkey. And for this, you interrupt my Sunday afternoon off?"
"Gorillas are apes, not monkeys, and what gorilla does that?" Dakota said,
pointing at the screen showing Harry in his cage, watching television.
Harry's shoulders shook as if he were laughing.
"Monkey see, monkey do," Jax said stubbornly, as a hollow feeling settled in
the pit of his stomach. He knew what Dakota wanted, and exactly what Dakota
was going to say next. He didn't want to hear it, but also knew there was no
way around it, not unless he keeled over and dropped stone-cold dead,
face-first into his platter of barbeque ribs. Resignedly, he mouthed the
words as Dakota spoke them.
"What if he's a shifter, Jax?"
"He's not."
"You don't know that. This documentary is a couple of months old. I checked
with the zoo. Harry's already there. I think we should take a trip to
Florida to find out if he's a shifter."
"Absolutely not! The only thing I'm going to take is a nap after I finish
watching the game!"
Dakota's smile grew seductive, and he palmed his cock through his denim
pants, making Jax's breath catch in his throat. Dakota definitely didn’t
play fair, although Jax figured he should be used to it by now.
"Oh, well, I guess no means no. I'm going upstairs to the bedroom, Jax. I'm
going strip my clothes off, and lay naked on the bed. I'm feeling…finicky. I
might have to jerk off. Maybe finger myself, too. Not that you'd be
interested in any of that, not with such an important game on television,
and all…"
Guh. An instant mental image bloomed in Jax's mind of Dakota naked, legs
spread, knees bent, a single finger sliding into his ass as his other hand
worked his cock. Jax's balls began to thrum with need; his wolf awakened and
howled at him to get his ass upstairs and get a little loving from his mate.
"You realize how badly this sucks, don’t you?”
"Huh, that’s funny. You always told me that I sucked pretty good," Dakota
replied with a wink. He chuckled as he headed for the stairs.
“You know what I mean!” Jax grumbled. He looked forlornly at the
barely-touched plate of ribs, then sighed, walked to the television and hit
the power button, shutting it down. "For that matter, I complain all the
time, for all the good it does me," he muttered under his breath as he
listened to Dakota trotting up the stairs.
He followed more slowly, wanting to hold on to his irritation, but finding
it slipping away as he climbed the stairs. As he entered the bedroom and
closed door, eyeing Dakota as Dakota began making good on his promise,
stripping and flinging himself bare-assed on the bed, Jax wondered why he
repeatedly let Dakota get away with sexing him up to get him to agree to
every hair brained idea Dakota had, and why it always worked.
He froze mid-step as he watched Dakota’s finger slip between his spread
thighs and rub lube over his delicate pink hole.
Oh, yeah, he thought. That’s why.