by Bianca D’Arc
“Same goes for me, Kiki. I couldn’t just stand by and let Bob shoot you. I’d rather die than have to watch that happen,” he told her, and something in her heart broke free, winging its way to him, never to return.
They rounded the corner of the building, and the parking lot was blessedly near. “Keys,” they both said at the same time.
Jack altered their trajectory, heading for the front door of the building and the office area just beyond the receptionist’s desk. They detoured into Kiki’s office, and she picked up her handbag, which had stayed put during the struggle, from the bottom drawer of her desk. She held it up triumphantly, and they headed back outside. Jack took only a moment to grab his own jacket from inside his office and then rejoined her.
“That’s an interesting fashion statement you’re making,” she teased him, looking at the jacket and sweatpants, lacking shoes.
“Believe me, I’ve worn worse.” He put his hand on her back as they walked side by side to her car.
Chapter Eighteen
Ben was glad of the expert help when it came to cleaning up the mess left behind by the confrontation with the potion witch. Arch and Jimmy handled the corpse with professional ease. It was clear to Ben they’d disappeared a body before, but he wasn’t going to ask questions. Right now, that was a useful skill, and he had his hands full with the dazed and confused workers who had woken up with no memory of how they’d gotten into the warehouse.
“May I have your attention please!” Ben shouted from the back of the warehouse, seeking and getting everyone’s attention while Arch and Jim dealt with the carnage behind the altar. “There has been an unfortunate chemical reaction resulting in the release of what we believe to be chloroform gas,” he told the easily led multitude. “Please walk slowly to this exit and go outside to sit on the grass while the safety inspectors evaluate the situation.”
Somewhat to his surprise, they bought it and began shuffling toward him to get to the exit. Some moved faster than others, and a few stopped to ask him questions. Ben spun the same tale about a chemical leak and resulting reaction. Later, they could use that story to explain how Carol had died. They could say she had been killed trying to contain it. She would have died a hero, in that scenario, instead of the reason for so much misery.
Jim came back and joined Ben. “Arch is taking care of things,” he told Ben quietly. They both knew he meant that the older shifter was dealing with Carol’s corpse. “What do you want me to do?”
“I’m going to get all of these folks out onto the grass, and we can assess them one by one. We can use some of that medic training we all had to go through. There’s a giant first-aid kit on the wall over there. See if there’s anything useful in it,” Ben instructed his former comrade-in-arms.
With Jim’s help, Ben got everyone outside. They were sitting on the grass, recovering, while the supposed fumes cleared. Ben and Jim played at assessing everyone’s conditions, using the blood pressure cuffs and penlights they found in the first-aid kit, among other props.
Mostly, everyone was okay, except for some scrapes and bruises on those who had come into contact with the bear. There was a broken wrist and three broken arms. A couple of broken toes and one broken leg along with a myriad of sprains and bruises. All in all, though, the bear had been remarkably kind to these people. Not one had a claw mark anywhere on their person.
Arch came back from around the back of the warehouse and declared the building off limits in a very loud voice that carried. He was playing the role of an emergency responder, and nobody questioned his right to make such a decree. The black fatigues lent him and Jim an air of credibility, since they looked somewhat official to the untrained—or, in this case, the very woozy and unfocused—eye.
Once the workers’ heads started to clear, Ben and Jim herded everyone through the plant while they gathered their belongings and then ushered them all toward the parking lot. The plant was closed by order of Arch and wouldn’t be reopening for the rest of the week, at the very least. They sent everyone home with orders not to return until next Monday.
A few were bundled into passenger seats of cars and sent to the local clinic where they could get patched up. Ben gave out business cards that had come in useful in similar situations, and told the injured that if anyone had any questions, they should call him directly. The business cards listed him as a representative of a federal emergency response team.
Ben had been given permission to use the cards, and the title, by an admiral who ran more than one black op. Ben had worked for the man in the past, and apparently, had earned his trust. Even though Ben was technically retired from the military, the admiral kept him on the covert books. Ben wasn’t sure if he’d be called on to serve his country—and that well-connected admiral—ever again, but having friends in high places had come in very handy in situations like the one he found himself in right now.
“That ought to do it,” Ben said as they watched the last of the employees drive away.
“Yeah, now we can do a more thorough job of cleanup without a potential audience,” Arch concurred.
“Have I thanked you guys yet, for coming in such a timely manner?” Ben asked, one eyebrow raised as he turned to his fellow former SEALs.
“I’m just glad we were close enough,” Arch said, his tone, as usual, low key.
“You can say that again,” Ben agreed.
“Let’s get to it,” Arch urged them all. “You promised us dinner, and I’m getting hungry.”
“Roger that.” Ben couldn’t help but grin as they headed back toward the scene of the crime. It was good to be around teammates again, even if they were shifters. Arch was a legend in SEAL circles, and Jim had been a good friend, even before Ben had found out about the unseen world.
Sometimes, he missed his old life in the military, but he’d come to accept that things changed. He’d thought his career was over when he’d left the teams, but in reality, a wider world had only just been beginning to reveal itself, and now, there was no going back to the naïve young soldier he’d once been.
*
Jack and Kiki arrived at her cottage just as the sun went down. Her fairy cottage was welcoming as ever and somehow, Jack felt like the spirit of the place cleansed him after the brush with evil he’d just been through.
“It feels so good to be home,” Kiki said as she turned off the engine. “Today was…” She paused then tried, again. “It was insane.”
“You can say that again,” Jack agreed. “But we got through it in one piece, which is kind of a miracle. Kiki…” He turned to face her across the space of the front seat of her car. “Please forgive me. I made a really bad mistake in underestimating Carol. I knew black magic is a hidden art. I shouldn’t have taken things at face value. Especially when my mistake in doing so almost got you killed. I’m so very sorry.”
She reached across the space separating them and took his hand in both of hers. “You have nothing to apologize for, Jack. You saved me.”
“Well, I seem to recall you did that yourself. Where in the world did you get that sachet? And how did you know it would work?” He was impressed, all over again, by her quick thinking and decisive action. She’d saved the day, way more than he had.
She let go of his hand and opened the car door, exiting the vehicle to stand in the middle of her fairy garden. She had a beatific smile on her face as Jack joined her, leaving the car behind.
“I made the sachet,” she told him. “Just this morning, I cut the herbs and flowers from this garden, speaking the ritual words I’d been taught as a child, before they realized I had little power of my own.”
“Just based on what I saw today, I wouldn’t discount your magic, Kiki. You brought down a powerful black ward. Not everyone can do something like that. You saw me—with all my magic, I couldn’t,” he reminded her.
“It wasn’t me. It was this garden. There’s something special about it, you know?” She looked up at him, her gaze so full of innocence and wonder, he just
had to take her into his arms.
“It’s a fey garden,” he whispered against her lips. “I felt it from the moment I saw it.”
He kissed her, precluding any response, enjoying the moment in the twilight, the woman he loved in his arms. She was so supple against him, so compliant. He couldn’t wait to make love with her again, but even more important right now, he wanted to see to her comfort and make certain she was all right after her ordeal.
Lifting her in his arms, Jack walked up the steps to the front door of the cottage. It opened, by magic, as if welcoming them home. Jack felt the magic of the house all over again, and wasn’t startled when the door closed behind them, just as magically.
“This house really likes you, Kiki,” he told her.
She smiled at him. “I know. I like it, too. Isn’t it wonderful?”
“That’s one word,” he agreed, walking down the hall to the bathroom.
The first order of business was going to be a cleansing bath to remove any residue of Carol’s evil from their skin. He would also take the opportunity to check Kiki over, to make sure she had no injuries she wasn’t mentioning.
“What’s it like?” she asked as he set her on her feet in the small bathroom while he turned the water on in the shower. “Turning into a bear?” she added.
Jack shrugged. “It’s how I’ve always been. I was born this way, and I’ve never known anything different,” he explained, then turned his head to catch her gaze. “You’re really not afraid of me?”
Kiki shook her head. “I know your heart,” she told him, making him catch his breath as she walked closer, moving straight into his arms. She reached up and put her hands behind his neck, drawing him downward. “I don’t know how this is all going to work out, but I trust my instincts that say you would never hurt me.”
“Bears are pretty big on instincts too,” he warned her as their mouths drew closer. “Right now, my instincts are telling me to kiss you.”
“Just kiss me?” Her eyes flashed up to meet his again, daring him.
“Kiss…and touch…and possess. Are you ready for that, honey?” He couldn’t help himself. He knew he was rushing things, but the fire inside him demanded the closeness after such a harrowing ordeal.
“So ready,” she said, closing the final inch between their mouths. She kissed him, and Jack didn’t waste any time returning the favor.
The water in the shower was running, creating steam in the small room, but it was lukewarm in comparison to the heat they generated all by themselves. The room was tiny, but they’d make it work. Jack removed the borrowed sweatpants in one long slide, then he turned his attention to Kiki, touching, licking and exciting every inch of her skin as he revealed it. She was a gift he took his time unwrapping, kissing all the little bruises he found that were left over from her ordeal.
Her wrists had been badly abused, so he spent long moments touching the angry red lines on her delicate skin, using what little healing magic he possessed to try to make her more comfortable. Bears were intensely magical, among shifters, but they weren’t mages. Still, he could do a little to at least take out the sting of her injuries.
“Is that you?” she asked, wonder in her voice as he kissed her wrist with a feather touch. “Are you numbing it?”
“Is it working?” he asked, looking up at her while still kissing her wrist. “It’s not one of my specialties, but I do have a tiny bit of healing energy I can sometimes share with others.”
“It’s amazing,” she breathed. “But you don’t have to deplete yourself to take the sting out of my wrists. They’ll heal on their own.”
“Do I look like I’m depleted?” he challenged her, teasing. It was pretty clear he was raring to go for just about anything she might dream up, but it was cute of her to worry. Her blushing cheeks were charming, too.
“It’s just that, whenever my sister uses her healing ability, it wipes her out,” Kiki explained, her breath catching as he moved on to another raw spot on her poor abused wrists.
“So, your sister is a healer?” Jack didn’t wait for an answer. “Human magic is a bit different from mine, and I’m not exactly sure how it all works, but if I had to come up with a theory, I’d say that my magic is of the earth, and I get it directly from the source. The earth is infinite, and as long as I’m in a place that is healthy and strong, so am I. Human mages tend to get their power from their own beings, I think. That might account for the drain, but I’m no scholar.”
“I think you sell yourself short, Jack,” Kiki whispered, eyeing him with a half-lidded gaze that was driving him wild all by itself. “That’s probably the best explanation I’ve heard for something magical, like…ever. My family has a tendency to overcomplicate things.”
“I can’t wait to meet them,” he said, chuckling. “Maybe I can help uncomplicated things for you.”
Kiki couldn’t wait for them to meet him, either. She wondered what they’d think of Jack and his amazing magic. She also felt a certain amount of pride in the idea that she could attract such a magnificent being—so intensely magical—when she’d always been discounted as the magical runt of the family. Wouldn’t they be surprised?
Then again, they’d probably already seen it coming. After all, they’d seen enough to send that care package full of hex signs to her at the right time. She wasn’t sure how she felt about them knowing she was having a steamy affair with a man who could turn into a bear. Some things, she would prefer to keep private, but that was a chore in her family.
Kiki forgot all about her family the moment Jack started undressing her with his teeth. Never had a man done something so primal. He unfastened the hooks of her bra with his fingers then used his teeth to nudge down the fabric covering her breasts. Kiki gasped as his teeth grazed lightly over her sensitive skin.
The air in the room felt chilly against her bare skin, but not for long. Jack replaced the fabric of her bra with his hands, caressing her breasts with his thumbs, his gaze zeroing in on the pendant that hung between them.
“A pentacle?” He shot her an amused look. “You are a lady just full of surprises, aren’t you?”
“I haven’t worn it in a long time, but I dug it out this morning, and I’m glad I did. I could actually feel it protecting me at times, while Carol had me tied up,” she told him.
“I have no doubt. Your family must be experts in all sorts of protective symbolism,” he mused. “I’m going to enjoy learning more,” he said, making her breath catch.
In order to learn more, as he’d put it, he’d have to stick around for a while, surely. She wanted that, like she wanted her next breath. She wanted Jack in her life for as long as she could possibly keep him.
Jack lowered his hands to the waistband of her skirt and made short work of removing both the skirt and the panties she wore beneath. She’d already removed the ruined pantyhose she’d worn to work that morning. They’d been shredded by the bindings around her ankles, and she’d quietly slipped them off the moment she’d gotten into the car back at the plant.
They were both naked, and he coaxed her with gentle hands toward the shower where the water was already flowing. He reached in and adjusted the temperature downward so there wasn’t quite as much steam. That would be more comfortable for her, she was sure. He was so careful of her comfort it was really touching.
“Is that good for you?” he asked, waiting for her answer before letting go of the adjustment knob. She nodded and stepped over the rim of the tub, stepping into the water stream.
“That feels heavenly,” she said, closing her eyes for a moment. She heard Jack moving around but she was enjoying the warm water too much to bother trying to figure out what he was doing.
When she opened her eyes again, sometime later, Jack was standing in front of her, blocking most of the water from hitting her, but she didn’t mind. The fire in his eyes warmed her from within, which felt even better than the warm water on her skin.
He took her into his arms and kissed her. Kiki lost track of
time and space. She felt motion and realized he was lifting her up, both of his hands supporting her butt. He turned her so that she was against the side wall of the shower, her back against the tile.
“Is it too cold?” he asked, his breath coming hard and fast.
“Nope,” she replied, sparing only the single syllable before she moved in to kiss him again. She was fast becoming addicted to his kisses.
“I’m not gonna last long, Kiki,” he told her in between kisses. “Are you ready for this?”
“More than ready,” she replied, feeling a desperate urgency in the marrow of her bones. She wanted him, and she wanted him now. To heck with waiting. “Come into me now, Jack. I need you,” she whispered, feeling greatly daring and utterly truthful.
He took her at her word and positioned himself for entry. She looked down, surprised to see that he’d apparently taken that time while she’d been basking in the warm water to go into her night stand and retrieve a condom. Thoughtful man.
After everything that had happened today, she needed him inside her. She needed the comfort and solidity of him, making love with her. She needed to feel the realness of them together. The joy and perfection after what had been a very ugly day.
Jack slid into her in one long push. Yes. There it was. This thing that defined them, as a couple. This unity. This purity. This oneness. Kiki couldn’t get enough of it.
Then, he started to move. Short digs and long strokes, he seemed somewhat uncoordinated at first, but then, she realized emotion was riding him hard. As it was her. She’d almost lost him today. He’d almost taken a bullet meant for her. She’d almost died at the hands of an evil woman who would have done who-knows-what with what little power Kiki had. Her very soul had been in peril with that kind of evil in control.