by Bianca D’Arc
“Are you sure you can do that?” Martin asked. “I mean, isn’t this place owned by some big conglomerate?” He looked up at the sign above the door.
Jack nodded. “SeaLife Enterprises,” he affirmed. “Now owned by the mate of a friend of mine who lives in Grizzly Cove. He’s like us, and she’s a mer, believe it or not. I’m sure they’ll have no objection to my plan for the chain, and they may go a bit farther, once they learn about everything that happened here. They knew something was wrong with this operation. That’s why they sent me to check it out. But none of us had any idea about Melissa being kept here. We’ll probably be piecing together everything that potion witch was involved in for a while. There’s a lot of evidence to sift through, but what we’ve already discovered is damning enough.”
“Grizzly Cove,” Martin mused. “That’s Big John Marshall’s group, isn’t it?”
“You know Big John?” Jack asked.
“In passing. I got out of the service before he came up the ranks, but I keep my hand in, and I’ve heard good things about him and his men. Are you part of that group?” Martin asked outright.
“On the periphery,” Jack explained. “My brothers and I were a specialist team working directly for Admiral Holland, but we got out a few years ago and have been on walkabout ever since. My older brothers have recently found mates and are settling down in Grizzly Cove. I may do the same, but Kiki and I haven’t figured all that out yet. We only just found each other.” Jack’s arm came around Kiki’s shoulders, and she grinned as he drew her to his side. She loved belonging to him, and she loved that he belonged to her, as well.
“Bishop, you said? Jack Bishop…” Martin seemed to be thinking out loud. “You wouldn’t have an older brother named Ace, would you?”
Jack nodded. “You know Ace?”
“A little,” Martin said. “I did a stint as a trainer for Spec Ops. Ace was in one of my last classes.”
“Are you going to stay in town, or are you heading straight back home?” Kiki asked.
“Well…” Martin looked back at his mate, and she stepped forward, holding Melissa in her arms.
“We should probably stop here for the night,” she said. “Give Melissa a chance to catch her breath and sleep a bit.”
“My mate, Lisa,” Martin introduced his wife.
“I think you should use my cottage,” Kiki declared, feeling it was the right thing to do. “We’re going to be here all day, and you three need to rest and regroup. My cottage is secure and, if my new bear friends are to be believed, protected by fey magic. It’s the safest place for you until you’re ready to travel on.”
“Fey, you say?” Martin looked skeptical.
“Kiki’s family line is pretty complicated, and there’s fey blood mixed in on the other branches. One of those cousins rented her the cottage,” Jack explained. “It’s a good, safe place. You have my word on it.”
“Well, if you’re sure it’s not too much trouble,” Lisa said.
“No trouble at all. I hope you’re able to catch your breath and relax a bit,” Kiki said, fishing her keys out of her pocket. She handed them over to Lisa while Jack gave Martin directions.
When the family pulled away in the big pickup truck, Jack put his arm around Kiki’s shoulders. “That was nice of you,” he said, his tone warm and approving.
“It was the right thing to do. Plus, this way, we can have a little get together tonight, and your brother can catch up with his old instructor. I’d like to be certain Melissa is okay, too,” she added. “Helen can look at her again, and make sure.”
Jack leaned down and kissed her. “You have a beautiful soul, Kiki,” he whispered when he finally pulled back. She felt a bit dazed. As she always did when Jack kissed her.
As predicted, they spent the rest of the day at the plant, discovering many things. They used the teleconferencing abilities in the boardroom to communicate with Grizzly Cove, and Kiki got to meet—electronically, at least—the folks who ultimately owned the plant. They were cordial and welcoming, and very thankful for what Kiki had done to stand against Carol. Kiki liked them both—Trevor and Beth—instantly.
She also got a look at the man they’d all been referring to as Big John. He impressed her, as well. He thanked her and congratulated Kiki and Jack on their mating, promising a big celebration whenever Jack and Kiki came back to Grizzly Cove. The fact that they were expected to go to the town in Washington State she had never seen still amazed her, but the welcome message John gave was unmistakable. Kiki was moved by the big hearts of these bears and all the people associated with them.
One of the more gruesome discoveries came when they were examining the area of the warehouse that man, Buford Somersby, had been so hot to check on. There were freezer units. Big chest freezers and a large walk in unit that had to have been installed very recently based on the factory stickers, and shine still on the parts. When they opened those freezers, they found bodies.
Several bodies. One turned out to be Kiki’s predecessor in her job, Josh Moll. There were others, that looked as if they’d been killed earlier, mutilated in various ways, then frozen. Kiki couldn’t bear to look, but the men dealt with the horror and reported back on the carnage to Trevor and Beth, who took the news with stony expressions.
“It looks as if Carol was feeding off the employees as early as a year ago. Maybe more. She started slow, based on what we’ve been able to piece together from the personnel files and matching up I.D. photos, but in recent months, she’s been killing more often and using various body parts for…something,” King disclosed as they all sat around the teleconference set-up.
“Her potions, I’d bet,” Beth said in a weak voice, her face pale. “Our resident potion witch has been giving us a crash course on the kinds of things the evil side of her craft get up to. Using blood and body parts in potions isn’t uncommon, apparently.”
Kiki felt nauseated by the idea. Beth’s face, over the screen, looked like she felt the same.
“You’d better pick up that Buford Somersby fellow,” Trevor intoned, getting them back on track. “He had to have been in on it, somehow, if he was so fired up to check his area earlier today.”
“We’re working on it, but it looks like he might’ve already skipped town,” Ace reported. “I suspect that when he couldn’t get in this morning, he realized the jig was up and took off.”
“We’ll have to track him,” Beth put in, touching her mate’s arm where it rested on the table.
“We will, honey,” Trevor assured his mate, then turned back to the camera. “You have until Monday to complete your investigation at the plant. I might be able to extend it after that, if necessary, but ideally, if we could clear this up over the weekend, it would draw a lot less attention from the human world.”
“Understood,” Jack replied. “I think we can make that deadline. We made good progress already, today. And, that little girl’s father is a tracker. I’ll ask him to take a look at Somersby’s trail and see if he can give us any leads before he heads home with his family.”
“Good idea. I want you all to stabilize the situation at the plant so we can save the place and everyone’s jobs,” Trevor added. “We don’t want to draw unnecessary attention, so having you all on-site to fix things is essential for right now. We’ll find someone to send after Somersby. Just gather what you can to make the hunt as easy as possible.”
“If he’s really involved, then he probably knows some tricks to make it difficult to find him,” King said, his tone grim.
“Understood,” Trevor replied. “But if that’s the case, a delay of a day or two before following his trail, isn’t going to change things much.”
The men were nodding their agreement and the meeting went on. They talked about accounting discrepancies and the plans to tear the warehouse apart piece by piece the next day. Kiki was impressed by how thorough they all were and the new owners of SeaLife impressed her particularly, with their dedication to doing what was right.
&nbs
p; That night, there was another impromptu party in the backyard of the cottage. Ace was glad to see his old instructor again, and they spent some time catching up. Helen had another a chance to look at Melissa and assured both Kiki and Melissa’s mother that she was well and would only improve from here. The garden glowed with fey light, and Kiki could almost swear she heard the tinkling laughter of fairies and garden gnomes, but that might just be her overactive imagination.
Still, she felt certain that the house was happy. Kiki knew she was certainly happy. In fact, everybody in the gathering seemed happy to be here. To be alive and safe, and blessed.
Kiki bowed her head in thanks for a moment as she contemplated the scene from out in the berry patch, where she’d gone to collect some sweets for Melissa. She wasn’t surprised to feel Jack’s arm come around her from the side, though she hadn’t heard him approach.
“What are you doing out here?” he asked gently, kissing the shell of her ear with a gentle nibble.
“Just thanking the Mother of All for the happiness here tonight,” she told him honestly, turning to put her arms around him. “I never knew I could be this content, and it’s all thanks to you, Jack.”
“Same goes,” he replied, tightening their embrace. “You complete me, Kiki.”
“I love you, Jack,” she whispered in the peace of the berry patch with fey Light glowing all around. It felt like a solemn vow.
“I love you too, Kiki. Now and forever,” Jack whispered back, sealing his words with a deep, meaningful kiss. Yes, that really did feel like a vow, spoken in a magic glen, with the fey magic as witness.
When he let her up for air, she was smiling. “Jack. Look…” she said, wonder filling her voice.
All around them, every single berry plant offered up ripe, succulent fruit that definitely hadn’t been there before. A gift from the garden itself.
“I think the garden approves,” she whispered.
“And I approve, wholeheartedly, of this magnificent garden.” Jack reached out for a handful of raspberries, shoveling them into his mouth and closing his eyes in bliss as the flavor hit his tongue.
Kiki laughed and retrieved the mixing bowl she’d brought out with her, from where it had fallen to the ground. She sent up a prayer of thanks and then began picking the bounteous berries.
“I was hoping to pick enough to give Melissa a treat, but now, we have enough for everybody,” she enthused while dropping berries gently into the bowl.
Jack grabbed another handful and put them in his mouth. “Speak for yourself,” he teased, but he was also helping her pick the berries.
If he ate a few on the way to the bowl, she didn’t mind. Apparently, her big bear of a mate had a bit of a sweet tooth. She was sure she’d learn a lot more about his likes and dislikes in the years to come, and she was looking forward to every minute spent with him. Kiki had never expected to find a magical mate, but Fate had apparently had other plans for her.
Boy, was she glad things had worked out the way they did. Even with all the danger and peril, she wouldn’t change a thing about meeting Jack. He was her future. Her life. Her everything. And she had the very real sense that she was the same to him.
He didn’t care that she had no real magic of her own. To him, she was just fine the way she was.
And that…was a real gift.
*
Thanks for reading Black Magic Bear. If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review. If you’re looking for more new paranormal romance from me, check out next month’s release: Perfect. A short excerpt follows.
A complete list of all of my books, separated by series, follows the excerpt. You can also check out my website at WWW.BIANCADARC.COM. Or you can sign up for my newsletter to be alerted when new books are released.
Excerpt from Perfect
©2020 Bianca D’Arc. All Rights Reserved.
Prologue
Cody Tyler reported to his Alpha’s office, wondering what new adventure Joe Villalobos might send him on this time. Cody had been born and raised in the Big Wolf Pack, but he got the wanderlust from time to time, unlike most other wolves. There was a real possibility he’d go lone wolf one day, but Joe was a good friend, and a good Alpha, and he tried to give Cody assignments that would settle his restlessness while still keeping him firmly connected to the Pack.
Cody liked and respected Joe. He’d done some traveling, getting an education and running a string of businesses, but when it came down to it, he always returned to Big Wolf, Texas, because of Joe. The man had earned Cody’s loyalty and trust, which wasn’t something Cody gave easily.
“Morning,” Joe greeted him when he stuck his head in the open office door. “Come in and take a seat.”
“Morning, Joe,” Cody replied as he entered and sat in one of the guest chairs across the big desk from the town’s mayor, who was also the Pack’s beloved Alpha.
“How are our investments doing today?” Joe asked, as if he didn’t already know. He might’ve turned the investment portfolio over to one of Cody’s companies to run, but Joe knew to the dollar how everything was invested, and Cody knew the Alpha followed the stock market news daily.
“Looking up, as usual, though you may want to divest in some of the commodity markets,” Cody told him. “Talk to Meghan at the office and see what she recommends. She’s got her finger on the pulse more than I do these days.”
“I’ll be calling her once the markets close,” Joe said offhandedly. “I want to get her take on a bakery business.”
“Bakery?” Cody frowned as Joe sat back in his chair and regarded him steadily.
“As you might know, the Weaver place is bordered on one side by a large tract of ranch land that used to be owned by Billy Singleton.”
“Used to be?” Cody asked, feeling a bit like a parrot at the moment.
“Yeah, that’s the problem. Billy died and his heir was some stock broker from New York City. He sold the land—at a very large profit—to a city gal who used to own a chain of bakeries. Cassandra’s Cakes. Ever heard of it?”
Cody shook his head. “Can’t say that I have.”
“Well, apparently, there really is an actual Cassandra. She sold her bakery chain, and bought the Singleton ranch with the proceeds. What I need you to do, is check her out. Cal Weaver told me he’s seen some strange goings on over there since Billy Singleton died. Cal couldn’t swear to it, but he thought he saw some evidence of ritual sacrifice on the back forty.”
“Ritual sacrifice? Seriously?” Cody frowned.
“I’m afraid so,” Joe said, sitting back in his chair, frowning. “Cal Weaver isn’t the excitable sort. If he says he saw something like that, there’s got to be an explanation. I want you to go over to the ranch and see if you can get hired on as a hand, or something. Word in town is, she’s hiring. Report back when you have something to tell me. Sooner, if you need backup.”
“Will do.” Cody stood, sensing Joe had said all that needed saying. Joe wasn’t in the habit of micromanaging his people. He was the kind of Alpha who put the right people in the right jobs and let them get on with it.
“Hopefully it’s nothing,” Joe said as Cody headed for the door.
Cody paused and looked back at Joe, seeing an expression of doubt on the Alpha’s face that cause Cody some concern.
“But you don’t think it is?” Cody had to ask.
Joe shook his head and grimaced. “I can’t say exactly why, but I’ve got a feeling…” He trailed off, then his expression turned to exasperation. “Just be careful out there, okay?”
“Will do, boss. I’ll be in touch if there’s anything you need to know.”
Joe nodded and Cody went on his way. Just like that, he had a new adventure and this one sounded both intriguing and dangerous. It was the kind of combination his inner wolf liked best.
To read more, pick up your copy of Perfect by Bianca D’Arc.
About the Author
Bianca D’Arc has run a laboratory, climbed the corporate l
adder in the shark-infested streets of lower Manhattan, studied and taught martial arts, and earned the right to put a whole bunch of letters after her name, but she’s always enjoyed writing more than any of her other pursuits. She grew up and still lives on Long Island, where she keeps busy with an extensive garden, several aquariums full of very demanding fish, and writing her favorite genres of paranormal, fantasy and sci-fi romance.
Bianca loves to hear from readers and can be reached through Twitter (@BiancaDArc), Facebook (BiancaDArcAuthor) or through the various links on her website.
Other Books by Bianca D’Arc
Paranormal Romance
Brotherhood of Blood
One & Only
Rare Vintage
Phantom Desires
Sweeter Than Wine
Forever Valentine
Wolf Hills*
Wolf Quest
Tales of the Were
Lords of the Were
Inferno
Tales of the Were ~ The Others
Rocky
Slade
Tales of the Were ~ Redstone Clan
The Purrfect Stranger
Grif
Red
Magnus
Bobcat
Matt
Tales of the Were ~ String of Fate
Cat’s Cradle
King’s Throne
Jacob’s Ladder
Her Warriors
Tales of the Were ~ Grizzly Cove
All About the Bear
Mating Dance
Night Shift
Alpha Bear
Saving Grace
Bearliest Catch
The Bear’s Healing Touch
The Luck of the Shifters
Badass Bear
Loaded for Bear