by V. Vaughn
Val chuckles. “I think you’re avoiding this.” I ignore his teasing, and rock is cold and hard under my hands as I begin to climb my way up the steep side of the cliff. “Kelsey, that’s not in Ouellette territory.”
“It’s not far out. C’mon. It’ll be romantic.” I glance over my shoulder to shoot him my best attempt at a smoldering look.
Val sighs but begins to follow me. “I know your plan now. Seduce me, and then you think I’ll go easy on you.”
I laugh because that wasn’t exactly what I had in mind, but it’s not a bad idea. “You’re on to me.”
When I reach the top, I’m rewarded with the incredible view I was hoping for. Moonlight glitters on the water like tiny diamonds, and I take a deep breath of the night air as Val puts an arm around my waist. I ask, “Isn’t it spectacular? I feel so fortunate to live here.”
“It really is.” Val turns me by my hips so I’m facing him, and he lowers his mouth toward mine. “And so are you.”
His lips meet mine, and I open up to him. I’m getting lost in our connection when I’m startled by a twig snapping and jerk away just as a male voice I recognize as Buck’s says, “Four guns are trained on you. One is bound to hit its mark, so don’t even think about shifting.”
Val raises his hands and steps away from me as he speaks in my head. “Do as they ask. I’ve called for help.”
I know Jurgen is only minutes away and expect there are other warriors who will come to our aid, so I raise my hands too. Buck and another man walk toward us with their guns raised. Buck says, “Well, well, well. It seems we meet again.” He moves up so close to me, his musk fills my nostrils and makes my stomach turn. I notice he’s got what appears to be a heavy-duty hunting knife at his waist, and I imagine the damage it could do to me. I gasp when he reaches out and grabs a lock of my hair. He glares at Val. “Lovely, isn’t it? I recall the way her sister’s curls splayed out below me. Look.” He drops his gaze to my chest. “Nice rack too.”
My blood turns to ice with my fear as Buck and his companion laugh. A low growl comes from Val, but I think I’m the only one who hears it. I ask, “Where are the warriors?”
“Patience, Kelsey. Stay calm.”
“I wonder if this twin’s just as feisty,” says Buck. He glances at his friend. “I say we find out.”
Now Val can’t control his bear, and he growls loud enough that the men hear. Buck tilts his head at him and lifts his hand in the air to snap his fingers. Feet thud on the ground as two men run toward us. One grabs Val’s arms and yanks them behind his back as another presses a gun against his temple.
“Val!”
Val’s words are controlled, and I’m sure it’s taking all of his willpower to keep from letting his bear out. “Stay. Calm.”
My lower lip trembles as tears fill my eyes. But when I hear the faint clatter of a pebble falling on the rock path we climbed, I think help has arrived. I bite the inside of my cheek to keep from crying out.
Buck grins at me, and I want to gag at the stench of his cigarette-tainted breath. “Time to strip and show us what you’ve got.”
I glance at Val, and his eyes are raging with his bear. My hands tremble as I grip the bottom of my T-shirt. I begin to lift it, when movement catches my eye. I’m about to sigh with relief until I realize who it is.
“Buck!” Linda comes running across the clearing toward us as he turns to her. “Oh my god!” She throws herself at him, and he stumbles back as she hugs him tight. His gun lowers as he embraces her with one arm. “You came to save me!”
“What are you-- Never mind.”
He pushes at her, but she clings tightly, and that’s when I notice the flash of moonlight off something metal. The knife! Linda plunges it hard into the side of his neck, and Val’s voice screams in my head. “Shift!”
Buck’s gun falls to the ground with a thud, and he grasps at his neck. I lunge for the weapon as my bear explodes from my skin. By the time I land on the gun, it’s my large paw that swipes it out of the way, and I glance up to see Linda grab it as gunshots ring out. I turn quickly toward the direction of the noise and barrel toward the man shooting.
My shoulder jolts back, but I have enough momentum with my weight that I flatten the guy underneath me. I open my jaws and let out a roar as I keep him pinned, and when I glance at his face, I see fear. Fear that makes my bear want to sink my teeth into his neck and taste the warmth of his blood.
A growl makes me glance up to a bear I don’t recognize, but I understand he’s asking me to back off. Pain burning in my shoulder snaps me back to reality, and I gladly get up to let the warrior take over.
“Kelsey!” Val nuzzles me with his snout. “You’ve been shot.”
“Yeah.” Adrenaline overload makes me begin to shake as I gaze over at Linda. She has her gun trained on Buck’s unconscious form and continues to shoot. His body jolts with each bullet as a pool of blood surrounds his head. I think she’s in shock, and I glance around to make sure I’m no longer in danger, because I want to go to her. Werebear warriors appear to be everywhere, so I turn my attention back to Linda as I say to Val, “Can I shift back?”
“Yes. We’re safe now.”
When I become human again, I walk over to the woman. I place my hand on her arm, and the muscle in it is rock hard with her tension. I speak softly. “Linda. He’s dead.”
She stops shooting, and her hand shakes as she continues to point the gun at Buck. “He hurts them.”
“He can’t do that anymore, Linda.”
Her arms lower slowly, and she turns to me with dead eyes. “I had to stop him.”
I reach for the gun and wrap my fingers slowly around her wrist as I take the weapon with my other hand. The metal is warm from her touch. “I know. You were very brave.”
She squints at me as if she’s figuring out a tough problem. “You’re bleeding.”
“I am.” My arm is throbbing with pain, and I think I might be in shock too. Because while I know I’ll be fine with my new healing powers, I’m surprised I’m not crying over my injury. “I’ll be okay.”
Footsteps make me glance up, and I see Caitlyn approaching us. She removes her sweatshirt as she comes toward me, and I remember I’m naked. “Here,” she says as she holds it out.
“Thanks.” The cotton is soft on my skin as I clutch it to my chest. My injured shoulder hurts too much to put it on, and the truth is I don’t care about my nudity, but I appreciate the gesture of kindness from my twin.
Val’s hand lands on my back as he joins us. “We should get you cleaned up, Kelsey.”
“I know.”
I look at Caitlyn, and she says, “I’ll take care of Linda.”
I nod and let Val lead me away. Out of the corners of my vision, I can see the other men on the ground, and their flesh is torn, but I don’t want to burn the carnage into my brain, so I don’t look.
I glance up at Val as I recall how I wanted to kill the man I took down. I shiver with the fear that I could have easily taken his life if I’d needed to. I wonder what happened to the wimpy girl in me who cowered when Nadia tried to make me spar in the ring. I recall Izzy said there was a warrior spirit in me, and I think it finally came out. What I needed to do was embrace my werebear state and let it become part of who I am. I’m no longer human. I’ve never been, and now that my bear is awakened, I need to let that side of me stay close. I say, “My bear knows how to fight.”
Val nods. “She sure does.”
“But Val.” I gaze up into his eyes, which have the intense teal color of the Ouellette clan and mine. “Part of me liked it.”
“You weren’t afraid?”
I shake my head. I’m no longer afraid of the urge to kill I felt earlier. I had the ability to control it without any training, and it occurs to me that my two sides really are one. I’m far from the innocent young woman who thought she had the world in her palm when she arrived here at the beginning of the summer. I place my hand on my chest and feel the steady beating of
my heart. The heart that belongs to someone who can be both woman and bear, and warmth floods my body, because this is who I was supposed to be. This is the greatness I came here for. “No, Val. I’ve never been happier in my life.” I smile as I reach for his hand. “Take me home.”
Chapter 27
Izzy
Once Jace carries Tally out of the house to the spell circle, Bella motions for Carly and me to hang back. She says, “I know it’s going to be tempting to try to save any of us if something goes wrong.” Bella’s fingernails dig into my skin as she grasps both of our arms. “But please. Under no circumstances should either of you let yourself be pulled in. If Victor got a hold of either of your powers, not only would our deaths be pointless, but I don’t want to think about what it would mean for the clans.” She gazes intently at me. “You have three babies to consider, and Tally won’t have you losing four lives for her. Understood?”
My stomach rolls as the heartbeats of my children ring in my ears. Those babies are my first priority, and I hope I don’t have to lose Tally to keep them safe. I nod at Bella as Carly says, “Understood.”
Bella lets out a long breath. “Okay, let’s do this.”
Jean Luc stayed home for the clan. Our telepathic communications are limited by distance, and I speak to him before I’m too far to do it. “We’re about to start the ceremony. I’ll keep you posted on what happens.”
“I love you, Isabelle. Stay safe.”
“I will. I love you too.”
As we walk outside, I gaze up. The sky is a deep shade of gray-blue as twilight becomes night, and the stars twinkle in the distance, as if they’re sending a message in Morse code. I wonder what destiny has in store for us tonight. The flickering candles set inside the salt circle’s edge pulse with a message of their own, and for a moment I try to read their thoughts as if they’re animate objects.
Carly and I step into the circle and take our places near Tally’s feet. She reaches out and grasps my hand as she says, “I know Tally is much more to you than a clan medicine woman, and I feel the same way about Kimi.” A low growl of alpha power rumbles in her chest, and she says, “Let’s get them back.”
I let out a guttural noise of my own as I grip her fingers tight. Lucian’s chant begins, and his loud wail sends a shiver down my spine, making me grit my teeth with resolve to keep the witches safe. As instructed, I imagine I’m holding three thick ropes attached to Lucian, Leanne, and Bella. Wind laced with the electricity of magic swirls around us, making my hair get in my eyes and mouth, but I ignore it and focus on holding steady. I feel a tug on Lucian’s connection first, as if he’s moving, and it’s followed by a tug on Bella’s and Leanne’s ropes too. Their voices chanting now are low and the words methodic as I realize the witches have left their physical bodies to enter Tally and follow the bond to Victor to cut him loose.
What feels like an eternity goes by as the ropes remain taut, and I have to force my mind to remain focused as impatience grows in me. A sudden jerking of Lucian’s rope startles me, and Carly’s grip on my hand tightens, telling me she felt it too. I flex my thighs as I imagine holding him steady. When Bella’s and Leanne’s ropes pull hard, I glance at Carly. Her blue eyes blaze with her bear as she too appears to be experiencing the same concern.
Sweat trickles down my back as I strain with increasing tension on the rope, and I wonder what could be happening. Lucian’s, Bella’s, and Leanne’s bodies are sliding toward the center of the circle, as if they’re being sucked down a vortex. A black hole opens up, and I watch in horror as Carly says, “It’s not letting up.”
I let out a growl, and my thighs flex as I lean back to utilize my weight. But it’s still not enough, and when Lucian disappears, I stumble forward at the same time Carly does. She grunts. I know as bear we are stronger, so I shift and glance over at Carly to see she’s done the same. The torn strips of fabric from her clothing flap in the wind, and her alpha side is fierce as she growls, but even our powerful animal bodies can’t seem to anchor the witches. Bella and Leanne fall into the abyss.
Tally! Her body is being drawn in with a magnetic-like pull. My nails dig into the earth as I’m dragged closer to the center of the circle, where I could be sucked in too. Sudden movement catches my eye, and I notice Marcel has entered the circle. He squats down to scoop up Tally, and when he leans down to kiss her, they both fall into the black hole as if he wanted it to happen.
I refuse to give up, and my magic courses through me with all the power I’ve got while every cell of my being buzzes with the intensity. Panic fills me with white-hot heat, and I let it turn to rage for the adrenaline rush as I roar loudly enough I’m sure trees around us shudder.
I’m inches from my demise, but I won’t let go until I absolutely have to. The decision is made for me when Carly bodychecks me to make me release my hold at the same time she does so one of us isn’t suddenly yanked away. We both slam backward to the ground, making it quake beneath our spent bodies. Carly’s animal lets out a cry of frustration before she returns to human form, and I join her.
We gaze at each other in shock. “My god, Izzy. They’re gone.”
I recall Marcel kissing Tally before he practically jumped into the vortex. I know he’s a seer and wonder if he was acting on a premonition. I say, “I’m not so sure. Did you notice how Marcel seemed like he wanted to go?”
“He’s magical too?”
“A little.” I think about the bond he and Tally have. Could he have latent powers that came out in his frantic need to save her? I shake my head. “I don’t know what just happened.” I glance up at Jace, hovering at the edge of the circle with his eyes blazing and his bear at the surface of his skin, begging to come out. Our gazes lock as I say, “This can’t be the end.”
He shakes his head before he throws it back and lets out a frustrated roar. And I speak to Jean Luc to let him know what happened. When I’m done, I gaze at Carly to discover tears streaming down her face, and it makes me realize I’m crying too. I say, “I refuse to believe we’ve lost them.” I recall the image of Marcel and Tally’s wedding Tally let me see. They’re meant to be and haven’t had a chance to act on it. I swipe my dirt-caked fingers across my cheek to wipe the tears away. “I won’t, because this isn’t over yet.”
Carly nods at me. “No. It’s not.”
Chapter 28
Tally
I’m in Cassandra’s spell circle, and I glance over at Marcel. My lips burn with the kiss he gave me in what I thought was a dream. But it wasn’t a sexy kiss. No. Did he suck magic out of me?
When he shifts, horror fills me, because it’s clear he plans to fight Victor to break the bond the alpha has with me. The man I love more than anyone in the world hasn’t got a prayer against an evil-infused alpha. When Marcel advances toward Victor, a wall of red flames shoots up from the ground. Cassandra has more than one spell circle! It’s like a sick version of a Venn diagram, and Marcel is in the larger circle but can’t enter Victor’s smaller and, judging by the way Victor is moving freely, mobile circle. I’m willing to bet Victor can enter Marcel’s, though.
I jump up, using energy I didn’t know I had to stop Victor before he kills Marcel, but I’m knocked flat on my back with a fireball that nearly stops me dead. I know it didn’t, though, because right now my heart is beating so hard, it might come out of my chest as I pretend I’m out of commission.
Cassandra’s laughter rings in my head as she takes pleasure in the fact she knocked me down with a fireball that should have felt like a fluffy snowball hitting me. I hear a roar from Marcel and stare in shock as I watch him slice through Victor’s circle with a paw. How did he do that? To break through a protective barrier takes immense power Marcel doesn’t have.
Victor lashes out easily to rake his claws down Marcel’s arm, and I glance away to try to figure out how I can help. The roar of the two bears fighting rings in my ears as I hear the thud of limbs clashing. Just a few minutes ago, Lucian, Bella, and Leanne were attacking the
bond I had to Victor, and with each strand that was broken, some of my magic returned to me. But something went wrong. I glance around the circle to see three dazed witches. Lucian is staring at his hands, and Bella’s head is tilted as if she has no idea what’s going on. Leanne is grinning like a fool, and now I know Marcel is screwed. Unless I can get to one of them. If I suck out someone’s magic, I’ll gain strength. But I have to be stealthy, or Cassandra will clean my clock with another fireball.
Bella is closest to me, and a pebble digs into my back as I inch my way over to her. I remember she had me by the hand in our minds when we entered the tunnel of my magic earlier. Cassandra can’t see our internal connection, so I stop moving and reach out my mind’s hand to Bella instead. She smiles at me and places her palm on mine. Yes! I grip her tight and take a deep breath as I pull what I can from her. It’s highly unethical to do without permission, but if she were thinking clearly, I think she’d allow it, considering I’m trying to save all of us.
My confused friend blinks as her magic flows easily through my arm to my torso. I close my eyes as I savor the warmth that floods me. It’s a heady feeling that I liken to what a crack addict experiences when they get a hit, and if I’m not careful, I could take all she’s got. I force myself to leave Bella enough power to function when she’s clearheaded again. The growls and groans of Marcel and Victor capture my attention once again, and I turn my head to focus on them.
I’ve seen my fair share of werebear fights and have a high tolerance for the violence necessary, but the vision of Marcel’s torn flesh bleeding as he battles with Victor takes my breath away. I’m so furious, I want to attack Victor like a madwoman out to save her man, and it takes every ounce of self-control I have not to, because I’d be put out of commission by Cassandra and her coven in an instant. I tear my eyes from the gore to take in the witches surrounding the spell circle. There are four total, and besides Cassandra, I recognize two others. The woman directly across from Cassandra, I’ve never seen before. Her black curly hair is thick and swirling around her head like Medusa’s snakes, and I decide she must be the evil sidekick, Evie.