by Bianca D'Arc
“Damn.” The very idea shocked her. “What can we do?”
“Find the grizzlies. It sounds like everything started when they were abducted.”
“That’s our mission anyway. We’re going to find their trail. Help is coming, but we’re the closest and Zach is the only witness. He’s hurt, but he’s healing fast and he can tell us how it all went down.”
“Good. But keep that boy safe. The last thing you want is for the enemy to get even more magic under its control.”
“They can do that?”
“From what Mom told me, yes. But only the most powerful of mages can drain magical energy from other beings. Only the most evil would do it from people he’d kidnapped. This is not good, Maria. You’re going to have to be very careful. The merest hint of magic will be noticed by these people. You’re going to have to track them the old-fashioned way. I hope your werewolf’s nose is good.”
Jesse stifled a quick laugh at her aunt’s words. “I think he’s up to it. He’s an ex-soldier. Special Forces. I bet they taught him all kinds of non-magical tricks in the service.”
“You’re in good hands then.” Her aunt’s voice held a note of relief. “Tell him to keep you safe and when this is all over, Mom and I can’t wait to meet him.”
“No problem. Actually, you can tell Nona that Jesse’s new sister-in-law is who sent him to help me. She thinks she’s related to us through a common ancestor named Leonora who is—get this—a dryad. Have you ever heard such a thing? I mean, is it at all possible we could be descended from dryad magic?”
Her aunt didn’t answer right away, and Maria’s curiosity was piqued. “Stranger things have happened, Maria. Best we keep an open mind. I’ll look forward to meeting this supposed relative and your new boyfriend once the storm passes. Be careful, sweetie, and take good care of each other. This is going to be a rough one.”
“Take care of Nona and yourself too. Call me if you need me.”
“I’d say the same, but there’s no reception up at the cabin. Still, if you’re in desperate need, you know what to do.” Her aunt’s tone turned deadly serious.
“I remember. I love you. Give Nona my love too.” A tear formed in her eye, but she fought it back. She had to be strong.
“We love you too, sweetie. Watch each other’s backs and trust the man who holds your heart, Maria. This is your time. Your moment to decide what the rest of your life will hold. Grab it and make it do the right thing for you and for everyone who values the Light.”
The call ended on that note, with Maria holding back tears and spending just a moment in worry about what would come next. Jesse put his arm around her shoulders and suddenly things didn’t seem quite so dire anymore. They were together. He was strong. She could be strong with his help. Together, they could do what needed to be done.
Chapter Six
They drove back roads most of the day, stopping for gas once and making use of out-of-the-way public parks to have a picnic lunch and dinner. After full dark had fallen, Jesse turned off the road into a small motel that looked neat but rather run down. It was like something left over from the 1950s, but it would do.
“I know it’s not the Ritz,” he said softly as he shut off the ignition.
He’d run into the office and gotten a room at the far end of the long, single-story building. He’d then parked his vehicle over one space from the door. He could still see it, but it didn’t block their door or obstruct his view from the front window or peephole in the door.
“It’s all right. As long as it’s clean and safe, we’re good.”
“It’s as good as we’re going to get tonight. I wanted to give Zach more time to heal before we tackle the recon. He managed to travel quite a ways before the humans captured him and drove him even farther away from the scene of the crime, bringing him to you.”
“I run one of the only sanctuaries that provide free surgical care for the larger species of wild ones.” She shrugged as if it was no big deal, but Jesse was impressed with her dedication to her work and the care she so clearly gave all of her patients.
“I meant to tell you before how much I like your place. You’ve got a good setup. Decent security for the animals, though the locks on the cages are a little problematic if you get another shifter by mistake. I could install a better security system for you when this is over.”
“Really?” She looked so surprised, he had to lean down and kiss her.
“It’s the least I can do. I’d do anything for you, sweetheart.”
“Where are we?” came a plaintive voice from the back seat.
Zach was awake again. He’d been sleeping off and on all day. Each time he woke, he seemed to be in a bit better shape physically.
“We’re at a motel about a half hour north of Lincoln, Nebraska,” Jesse answered with a sigh. The kid had bad timing, but it couldn’t be helped.
So much had happened in so short a time. He’d discovered the most amazing woman he’d ever met, and his wolf had gone ape shit the moment he’d gotten his first good whiff of her amazingly alluring scent. Jesse wasn’t sure—since it had never happened before and Maria wasn’t a wolf—but he suspected very strongly that he’d finally met his mate.
Now if only she could be convinced of that little fact. But she’d lived in the human world all her life. Although some of her relatives knew about magic, it was clear Maria had known next to nothing about shifters. He doubted she’d fully understand what it meant to mate one. It would be his task to teach her. Actually, it would be more like an honor. And a pleasure.
Jesse hadn’t thought he’d ever find a woman who could claim both his heart and his soul so completely, but in the few hours he’d known Maria, he was already truly, fully and blissfully lost in her. The wolf wanted to rub against her at every opportunity and protect her with everything in him. The man wanted the same, though in different ways.
Jesse had seen the way she could take care of herself when he’d busted down her door and found she had already disabled two young, fit men. She was a very capable woman and he liked that about her. She was also delicate and feminine in a way many wolf women weren’t. She might have trouble in the Pack because of that, but Jesse would clobber anyone who hassled his mate. He wouldn’t give her up. He’d leave the Pack if he had to. He’d go anywhere to be with Maria. If that meant forsaking the Pack he’d grown up with, then so be it.
“Can we get fast food?” came a plaintive voice from the back of the vehicle.
Jesse shook off his troubling thoughts and got his mind back on the game at hand. They were in the parking lot in front of the motel. It appeared the kid in the backseat was feeling better. He’d spotted the familiar, glowing golden arches across the street and Jesse could hear Zach’s stomach rumble.
“Let’s get settled first. If everything is secure, we’ll make a cheeseburger run, okay?”
“Okay.” Zach sounded resigned, and Jesse took it as a good sign that he was on the mend.
“All right. This is how we’re going to do this. You two stay in the vehicle. Maria, I want you to slide over here and be ready to drive if something goes wrong. I’m going to recon the room and as much of the area as I can while keeping you in sight. Lock the doors when I leave and sit tight. I’ll be back in five minutes. If I haven’t returned in exactly five minutes, take off. Drive and keep going.”
While he talked, Jesse gestured for Maria to give him her cell phone. She handed it over with a raised eyebrow but didn’t comment. He added a few numbers to her contacts list, set up some speed-dial options and then handed it back.
“My brother is speed-dial number one. My team leader is on number two. Use them if you need them, okay?” Jesse figured Maria was smart enough to know when the shit hit the fan she’d need help. She didn’t disappoint him, nodding readily, even though her expression was troubled.
She followed his instructions, scooting under the steering wheel when he opened the driver’s side door and got out. She touched his arm, drawing his at
tention, which he didn’t like given their present vulnerability, but he couldn’t deny her.
“Be careful, Jesse,” she whispered.
For a moment—just a moment—he couldn’t breathe. The worry on her face took his breath away. He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss, just because he had to. His feet refused to move before he showed her how much he appreciated her care and concern over his welfare.
He didn’t know what to say to alleviate her anxiety, so he drew back and closed the door, holding her gaze. He hoped she’d understand the reassurance he didn’t know how to put into words. He waited until she locked the doors and then melted into the shadows.
He had a job to do.
Thankfully, Jesse didn’t find any threats either outside or inside the motel room. He went back to the vehicle four minutes and forty-five seconds later to find Maria nervously gripping the steering wheel, her eyes wide as she scanned the area. She was on her guard, which was good. But he still hated the reason for her wariness.
The danger was real, and it was Jesse’s duty and fondest desire to end it, once and for all.
“The coast is clear for now,” he reported as Maria opened the door. She tumbled out of the high vehicle while Jesse unloaded a few things they’d need that night, keeping one wary eye on their surroundings.
There were lots of trees to either side of the parking lot that provided some cover, but the lawn leading to the road left them very visible. By the same token, he’d be able to run over to the fast-food joint while still keeping the motel in sight. It was a risk, but he’d take this one, this time. His spidey sense—that indefinable thing in his makeup that always seemed to warn him when danger was imminent—was quiet for now. He figured it would be safe enough to get the kid some comfort food. Zach had been through a lot.
The least Jesse could do was give him a hot meal. And the werebear’s healing body could use all the calories it could get. Healing burned fuel among all weres. Jesse understood that more than most. The kid would need a lot of food in the next days to help him get back to full strength.
They got settled in the motel and Jesse was able to get a dozen burgers and assorted other items for them to all share for dinner. He got fried chicken, salads, the ubiquitous French fries and drinks, carting it all back across the street in a couple of shopping bags. They’d be set for the night between that haul and the stuff they still had from Maria’s house.
Jesse had claimed the bed closest to the door, taking the outside position should anyone try to enter through the door or the unit’s single window, which was in front. The bathroom was in back and had no window, only a tiny vent to the outside up near the light fixture.
Zach got the other double bed, closest to the bathroom. There was no question in Jesse’s mind that Maria would sleep with him, and he was glad when she didn’t appear to question it either. The two double beds in the small room made for cramped accommodations, but it was the best they could do for now.
With another full night of bed rest, Zach would probably be much better in the morning as the poison slowly worked its way out of his system. He’d already been able to walk well on his own, having slept most of the day while they drove. Jesse had questioned the kid a few times about where they were headed, getting small details about the abduction and the location of his mad flight from the enemy out of Zach as gently as possible. Zach was proving to be stronger than Jesse would have guessed based on his age.
“I’d like to clean up if it’s safe enough to shower,” Maria said, breaking into his thoughts.
“Sure, go ahead.”
She’d eaten a salad and some chicken for dinner, but both Zach and Jesse were still working on a few last cheeseburgers and fries. She looked tired and stressed, but she was holding up well, Jesse thought, proud of the way she’d been dealing with all the unexpected twists that had hit her in the last couple of hours. She was strong. Resilient like a willow bending with the wind. He really liked that about her.
She slipped into the small bathroom and he heard the shower go on. Zach ate steadily, as did Jesse. Both of them knew food was important to fuel a shifter’s strength and stamina. They had naturally high metabolisms, necessary to power their special abilities.
“Are you thinking of mating her?” Zach asked, sounding more like a judgmental adult than the young teen he still was. “She’s only human. Not a good match, my parents would say.”
“Your parents—and you—are wrong, Zach.” Jesse had to stand up to the boy’s derisive comment. The kid had to know who was Alpha here. Sure, the bear might be more magical, and in time, Zach might grow into an Alpha to be rivaled, but for now he was still just a hurt kid, bear or not. The wolf was in charge of this little mission and it was time the kid understood that once and for all.
Zach bristled, but Jesse went on. “The doc descends from a magic even more powerful than yours or mine. She is the granddaughter of the dryad Leonora. I was sent to bring her back to Wyoming, to meet her grandmother.” Zach didn’t need to know the details of Leonora’s injury or the need for them to gather all her relatives so she could be freed from the tree that kept her body safe and healed. “In fact, my brother just mated another of Leonora’s granddaughters, a former police detective named Sally. Turns out, she’s also descended from Rothgar the Great and Neveril the Mighty. You’ve heard of them, haven’t you?”
Zach nodded grudgingly. “But their legend is ancient. I heard your brother’s mate can’t even shift.”
“Maybe not, but the forest speaks to her. She is a true daughter of the dryad, with a little bit of famous wolf blood and the courage to match. I’ve seen her in action, Zach. She’s Alpha through and through. The Pack loves her already, and I think you probably know enough about wolves to realize that we don’t usually accept outsiders easily or well. Especially as mate to the Alpha.”
Zach looked suspicious but thoughtful as he polished off another cheeseburger, but he held his tongue. Good. He was learning. Thinking. Not mouthing off anymore. It was a step in the right direction.
“There’s something else you should know,” Jesse said in a quiet voice. He was about to tell something to the youngster that wasn’t general knowledge except among certain Alphas and the Lords of all Were. “Have you heard anything about a group of ex-military shifters banding together and hiring out to do special jobs for other were Tribes, Packs and Clans?”
“The Wraiths, you mean?” Zach’s eyes lit up.
Jesse had to smile. “Is that what they’re calling us?”
“You mean you…?” Suspicion and dawning understanding lit Zach’s expression.
“I was a Green Beret, son. During the last war, after my human counterparts lost the trail in the mountains of Afghanistan, they finally sent my unit in. There were a few of us shifters in the mix. We picked up the trail again.” Jesse didn’t have to say any more. Everyone knew how that had turned out. But only a very few in the shifter community knew some of their folk had been involved.
Shifters didn’t normally go out into human society in such a visible way, but Jesse had always been a daredevil. It had been a game to hide his superior abilities from his human comrades. It had also been his honor to help the men of his unit—normal humans he’d come to respect and admire and call friend—when the need arose. Working with them had taught Jesse not to underestimate humanity. They could be just as noble, dedicated, courageous and strong as a shifter when pressed. He’d learned to respect their strong hearts and the simple ability to fight evil without all the advantages of a shifter heritage.
The men he’d served with had fought on the side of Light in that foreign war, and he would never forget his comrades in arms. Every one of Jesse’s current group of ex-military shifters felt the same. They’d learned important lessons that all shifters should know about humanity in those years they’d walked among humans.
“You’re one of the Wraiths?” Zach asked in a quiet voice.
“I lead them, Zach. I’m Alpha of the small group of ex-S
pec Ops soldiers who have found a home within my brother’s Pack, though slightly separate from it. We’re still adjusting to being out of the service and some of us have had a harder time with that than others.” Damn. He hadn’t meant to reveal so much, but for some reason, the rocky adjustment to Pack life had been on his mind more often lately. “I tell you this because you need to know that we’re definitely going to find your parents, and I can and will keep you safe. And if push comes to shove, you need to follow my directives without question. I’ve trained most of my life for situations like this. You need to know not to question my decisions, my commands or my authority.”
Zach sat back and stopped eating for a moment while he thought. Jesse was glad he was taking this so seriously. It could mean life or death if they found themselves in a bad situation.
“Uncle Rocky trusts you.” Zach paused deliberately. “I believe you.” That was some concession coming from a kid who’d been through hell. “Are the Wraiths going to help us?” An eager sort of hope lit Zach’s eyes.
“You bet they are.” Jesse had talked to his brother and some of his guys throughout the day while they’d been traveling. “They’re coming, but they’re on the other side of this storm.” Jesse nodded toward the TV they’d tuned to the weather station but had kept mute. The image on the screen right now was of a massive circular storm system swirling on the radar just to their west.
The storm seemed centered over eastern Nebraska, with the bands of heavier weather expanding toward where they were now. In fact, while they’d eaten, rain had begun to fall outside. Jesse suspected it would only get worse from here.
“Uncle Rocky’s coming too.” Zach seemed to need to reassure himself.
“He is. He’s en route, but he has to come overland. So do my men. Planes and choppers are grounded in and around the storm because of the high and unpredictable winds. Zach, you do realize there’s nothing natural about that storm, right?”