by Bianca D'Arc
As was their mother. Only she didn’t know it yet.
Another pain wracked her small body and Rocky’s heart twisted. He called on the magic that was his to command—so much less than Tony’s had been—and sent it to her and the children, hoping to ease their way. How he wished Tony could be here. Tony was the one with all the magic. Rocky was only good with his fists, and for lifting heavy objects.
Rocco Garibaldi and Antonio Fernandez had grown up together on the outskirts of Whitefish, Montana, brothers in every way but blood. Bear shifters were rare, so when two grizzly families settled in the same area with cubs the same age, they’d sniffed each other out and forged an alliance. As a result, Rocky and Tony had been nearly inseparable from their earliest years.
Tony had been gifted with more than the ample magic already granted to bear shifters, and Rocky had physical strength beyond that of any normal shifter. Rocky was already stronger than most bear shifters when he was still just a teen, and as he grew into adulthood, his size and speed only increased, but Tony was never jealous. Tony was a shaman, and from a young age he could foresee certain things that would come to pass. There was only one point of contention between the two young men as they entered adulthood.
Maggie.
Margaret Hobson was a beautiful girl, and they both loved her, but not even she knew about their ability to turn into grizzlies whenever the mood struck. Their shifting ability was kept a strict secret from their human friends.
Rocky had never been eloquent. He often let Tony do the talking for them both. Tony was brilliant, and while Rocky was no slouch in school—he’d become an engineer, after all—when compared to Tony, he always found himself lacking. He didn’t begrudge Tony his native intellectual abilities, just as Tony didn’t begrudge Rocky’s physical prowess.
Only that one time had Rocky wished he’d had Tony’s way with words…and women. That day when he’d lacked the nerve—and the words—to ask Maggie to the senior prom. She’d gone with Tony instead, and from that point on, they’d been a couple. Just a few years later, they’d married and Rocky had left Whitefish for good.
“Something’s happening.”
Maggie’s shocked whisper brought Rocky back to the moment. The babies were moving, both heading south toward the exit of their temporary home. He could feel it under his palm.
“Whoa there, little ones,” he whispered, hoping some sense of his words would make it through to the cubs struggling under his hands. And maybe it did. He could feel them cease their struggles momentarily as if listening. “Maggie, I don’t think they want to wait for the priestesses. I think we’re going to have to do this ourselves.”
Rocky spared her a glance, taking in her terrified, yet trusting expression. The look on her face gave him pause, but the babies demanded his attention. He could feel their plaintive questioning now. They were turning to him for direction, sensing his power, his dominance over them. These amazingly powerful bear cubs recognized their Alpha and awaited instruction.
But they wouldn’t wait for long.
“God, Rocky!” She gasped. “I can feel them. They want out.”
“I know, sweetheart.” He moved around her on the wide bed, positioning himself to aid her as best he could. Just then he heard a truck roar into his yard, spraying gravel against the wooden siding of the house. He smiled at her, keeping his tentative hold on the babies as he heard the soft tripping of feminine footsteps come up to his door. “They’re here. Praise the Lady.”
He stood, but Maggie’s hand clamped down on his wrist. “Don’t leave me!”
Rocky scooted around to the head of the bed, sat beside her and kept his hand firmly over the squirming babies in her tummy. “I’m not going anywhere, Maggie. Never again.”
He lifted her slightly so she rested against his arm. She felt so right there. He reached down and kissed her hair, tenderness overwhelming him.
A knock sounded on the door and he cursed the ladies’ politeness. Still, he knew it wasn’t polite to enter a grizzly’s den without permission, even in an emergency such as this.
“Come in.” Rocky raised his voice, careful not to blast Maggie in the ear as she leaned against him.
The door opened and a moment later two women bustled in and took over. Betina was a tiny thing, ageless in a fey way and deceptively powerful. Her apprentice, Allie, was younger, earthier, but just as lovely. Both were strong magic users and gentle women he respected greatly. He kept the introductions short, feeling the urgency under his hand. The cubs would wait no longer.
Betina placed her hand over Maggie’s, which still rested over Rocky’s on her protruding stomach. Rocky would have moved away, but the priestess stopped him.
“We need you to anchor them as their Alpha. Guide them with your knowledge of their true nature.” Betina knelt on the other side of the big bed, barely disturbing the mattress.
She smiled serenely at Maggie and Rocky felt the magic in the air, putting Maggie and the cubs more at ease. He knew then he was in the presence of immense power not entirely of this world.
Of course, he’d always had his suspicions about the high priestess. She had a timeless, ageless beauty. It had come clear during their last battle with a Venifucus mage that she was not completely human. Only the Lords and their lady knew for certain, but Rocky suspected Betina was more than a little bit fey. It would explain her enormous magic and slender, almost fragile appearance.
Rocky knew the moment Betina spotted the softly pulsing heartstone. Her gaze slid from the necklace upward to meet Rocky’s eyes.
“I can feel their sire’s magic flowing through these youngsters. They will be very powerful when they are grown.”
“Their father was the most gifted grizzly shaman of our generation.” Rocky confirmed with a nod.
Betina gave him a kind smile and returned the little nod. “All will be well,” she intoned with confidence that communicated itself through her words to all who heard them.
In due course, with Betina’s expert guidance and not a little support from Allie and Rocky as well, the babies came squirming into the world, full of magic and the wonder of life. Rocky was almost overwhelmed by the event. He’d never been present at a birth before, and never one accompanied by such positive omens.
It was Samhain after all, what the human world called Halloween. This was a special time for all magical folk. Up until the moment he’d found Maggie sitting in her car in front of his house that afternoon, Rocky had planned to run with the other shifters that night, in celebration of this sacred time. Even now, werecreatures of all kinds were probably gathering in the circle of stones where the ceremony to mark the sabbat would be held.
Samhain was an auspicious time for such a significant birth. Twins were rare. Twin boys of Alpha shaman lineage even more so. It was more than likely that these cubs would be the next Lords when they came of age. Rocky knew no grizzly shifter had ruled the were in recent memory. He feared it was a powerful portent of troubling times to come.
Chapter Three
Maggie was tired but in surprisingly little pain. The beautiful apparition who’d come to help her was so gentle and kind, Maggie felt instantly calm in her presence.
“The babies have given you their first gift, Margaret,” Betina said as Allie cleaned the infants just a few feet away in the small cabin. “They’ve healed your body as much as possible. You should be good as new in a few days with a little TLC, which I know our Rocky will be happy to provide. In fact, I’ll wager you’d be up for a walk to the glen tonight, if you’d agree to let your babies take part in our celebration.”
“Do you really think that’s wise?” Rocky asked, his warm voice sounding above her head, rumbling against her back. He was her anchor, her rock, as he always had been when they were younger.
“I think it’s important, yes.” Betina nodded. “If Margaret is agreeable.”
The high priestess placed her hand on Maggie’s forehead and a burst of energy fired through her. It was as if the
fog had cleared and suddenly things were sharper and more in focus than they had been.
“What did you do to me?” she asked as she sat up a little straighter, Rocky’s strong hands helping her. She felt—if not good as new—certainly not as if she’d just suffered through a day of intense labor and pain, not to mention an arduous twin birth.
Betina smiled. “Fuzzed the edges of your pain a bit, just to help you through. It’s the best we can do without drugs, but shifter babies are very sensitive to any kind of chemicals, so we had to do this au natural, with a touch of magic, of course.” Her tinkling laugh enchanted Maggie. There was something very special about this woman.
“That’s amazing. Thank you. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”
Betina patted her hand as she rose from the messy bed and turned to Allie, who was finished cleaning the squirming infants. Betina placed first one baby and then the other in Maggie’s outstretched arms. Rocky was there to help, steadying her and supporting the babies with his big hands, and all felt right with the world.
Rocky marveled at the way Maggie bounced back from what had been the most amazingly painful and joyful experience he’d ever witnessed. She’d been in agony, her grip nearly crushing the bones in his hands as she clung to him through the worst of the ordeal. Betina and Allie had worked their magic to make her unaware for the most part, but it had still been a frightening experience.
He’d helped too, in his way. Tony’s babies were more self-aware than any newborn shifters he’d ever seen, and they needed his constant reassuring energy, his direction and dominant authority. They would be handfuls as they grew, he could already tell. Rocky looked forward to taking the youngsters in hand and teaching them the ways of the world.
Maggie’s recovery was truly amazing. The priestesses helped clean her up as she cuddled the babies, then helped her to a nearby chair so they could strip the bed of its soiled linens. She had one child in each arm, whispering to them as they settled to sleep next to her warm body. It seemed they too were tired from their ordeal.
“They’re beautiful,” she whispered.
Rocky couldn’t agree more. “Just like their mama.” His soft words brought her gaze up to his and they shared a moment of communion, of sharing and joy. Rocky bent to place a kiss on her forehead. “You did good, Maggie.”
Her smile brightened his world.
The priestesses cleaned up his bed, making it fresh and taking away the laundry, but Rocky was mostly oblivious to the bustle around him. All that mattered in his universe was the woman sitting in front of him and the two little bundles of magical, loving energy now asleep in her arms.
“What’s this about a walk? I know by rights I shouldn’t feel this good, but I could use a little fresh air.”
Betina popped up next to them and smiled. “Tonight we celebrate the sabbat of Samhain. The most magical night of the year when the veils between worlds are at their weakest. It is the end of the old year and the beginning of the new. The turning point for many beings, including yourself and your babies this year, Margaret.”
“I have something you can wear out in the car. It’ll be perfect for you.” Allie moved toward the door with the bundle of sheets and towels in her arms. “Just let me get it.”
“Can I take a shower?” Maggie asked, uncertain. She looked from Betina to Rocky and back, seeking permission, or maybe advice.
“My shower has a bench. I can program it so you can sit and the jets will reach you.”
“Program it?” A hint of a smile curled her lips.
Rocky shrugged with an answering grin. “I may live in the woods, but I like my creature comforts.”
“I think a shower wouldn’t hurt,” Betina advised. “As long as you don’t overdo it. You’re in much better shape than most women after giving birth, thanks to your sons’ magic, but you will need a little time to heal completely. Allie and I will watch over the little ones while you cleanse your body and spirit. It’s actually a very good idea to start fresh on the sabbat.” Betina beamed at her.
“Thank you. I promise not to overdo it. If Rocky can just program his space age shower for me…” She shot him an amused look. “I’ll be fine.”
Maggie managed to walk into the surprisingly large bathroom with Rocky and Betina’s help. Allie had come back inside and was watching over the babies while they slept. Whatever magic had been done to her, Maggie was feeling better with each passing second.
Entering the bathroom, she stopped short in the doorway. It looked like a little piece of heaven on Earth—in a masculine sort of way. Slate tile covered the heated floor and every wall in soothing shades of blue, grey and tan.
The shower itself was gigantic. It had a slate bench running along one side with ledges placed at strategic heights for soap and shampoo. It fit in one corner of the big bathroom, the walls tiled in matching slabs of natural slate placed in a lovely, almost mosaic pattern. Gleaming silver faucets and showerheads stuck out every now and then from the walls and ceiling. The other two sides of the six foot enclosure were made of glass, artfully frosted with a mural of bears in the woods, interwoven with knot work symbols that spoke to her artistic side.
The entire effect made her feel safe and protected. It also made her covetous. She loved this bathroom and wished she could build one exactly like it for herself.
While she’d been admiring the décor, Rocky had stepped up to a control panel cleverly hidden behind a decorative tile. She watched in fascination as he punched buttons, turning the water jets inside the enclosure on and off until he had it arranged to his satisfaction. She stepped closer, watching over his shoulder, noting that he was able to set both the angle and direction of each of the many water nozzles as well as the water temperature and pressure.
“You weren’t kidding when you said you had to program this thing.”
Rocky looked at her over his shoulder and grinned. “It’s computer controlled and completely customized to my specifications. I spent a lot of time with the manufacturer going over plans to get it just right.”
“Wow.” She was impressed. Rocky had always liked gadgets and computers when they were growing up. It didn’t surprise her that the trait had followed him into adulthood. “This is fantastic. I think I could spend hours relaxing in here.”
“Glad you like it.” He seemed uncomfortable with her praise, but she could tell he was pleased.
“This is a work of art, Rocky,” Betina said quietly, admiring the glass mural. “Protective, healing magic is worked within these designs.”
“I know. I consulted with a friend before I made the panels.” He looked almost bashful as he answered the older lady.
“Your work?” Betina seemed surprised, making Maggie want to rise to his defense.
“Rocky was always artistic. He used to sculpt and whittle a lot when we were kids. I have the carvings you gave me and Tony over the years packed in my bags.” She turned to him, touching his arm.
A moment of silent communication passed between them, but she wasn’t sure what it meant. She wanted him to know how much he’d always meant to her, and hoped the fact that she’d saved his gifts—out of all the things she’d had to leave behind—would mean as much to him as it did to her.
Rocky cleared his throat as the moment ended. He moved toward the door to the giant bathroom. “I’ll bring in your bags from the car and park the SUV in the shed where it can’t be seen.”
“Thanks.” He always thought of everything. She would be safe now. She knew it in her heart.
With Betina’s help, she got in the shower and was able to control the jets somewhat with the waterproof controls set into the wall near the bench. She was glad of the slate ledge. Her legs were still a little rubbery, but as she washed the sweat and grime from her body, she started to feel much better.
Betina left her, promising to come at once if Maggie needed help, but she was glad of the few moments alone with the just the warm water and the feeling of security—of Rocky’s pr
otection, here in his home—wrapping around her. Maggie wept, knowing her life had changed irrevocably. A new chapter was just starting, and though she feared what might come, she also looked forward to it.
The past had to be put away. Not forgotten, but dealt with so she and her babies could move forward.
She wept for the husband she’d loved so much and lost so unfairly. For the babies who would never meet their father. But her tears were balanced by the hope that they would know him through Rocky. She sensed he would teach them all they needed to know about being little bears.
That thought should have jarred her, but it was becoming more and more familiar to her. More right. Her babies would be able to turn into grizzly bears.
Rubbing soap lather over her sore limbs, she took a moment to really study the glass mural encasing her in its nurturing, protective embrace. The scene was just like the woods she had traveled through to get to Rocky’s cabin. Bears were walking along behind and through the dominating trees. She could see one giant adult bear leading three little ones of differing sizes while two others climbed and played in the trees overhead.
Her gaze tracked the mural around the corner of the enclosure, enchanted by the scene. She could see glimpses of the bears at first, but as she studied the patterns through the leaves and branches, they came clearer. The mural almost seemed alive, and the level of artistry impressed her.
Turning to follow the mural to its end, she gasped and dropped the soap. There, just at the edge of the scene behind a tree, if she looked carefully, was the outline of a woman. A human woman.
It almost looked like…her. Was this a depiction of her family? Rocky’s idea of what she could’ve had with Tony, had he lived? Or was it some prophetic vision of the future?