by P. Jameson
They’d find out soon. Theron and Mirena would be back with the books and the clan was getting serious about finding a solution for the coven. In Magic’s words, it was balls to the wall tomorrow night at the lodge. Dinner-n-research starting at four and going until they found something useful. And now that Adira had removed the boundary spell, it looked like Nastia would be there too.
Together maybe they could find an answer that didn’t include her dying. Because happily ever after with Thames was something she wanted more than anything.
Chapter Ten
“Where is it? Where is it? Where!”
Thames heard Nastia’s shrill scream long before he reached the door of their cave. He’d never seen her lose her temper before. Not even when the witches had first arrived at the lodge and fought the clan. She was more dry humor and sarcasm rather than hot-headed.
After their picnic and the vampire bomb she’d dropped on him, he’d taken his bear for a walk through the woods. With Theo gone, he didn’t have anyone to talk to about Nastia’s plan. And as much comfort as prayer had brought him over the years, he didn’t feel like talking to God either.
No offense, Big Guy.
Lumbering through the forest as a bear sometimes made things seem simple. He needed only a few things in life. His mate safe, his family safe, and if he was fortunate enough, he wanted them all happy.
He wanted his brother to find love. Wanted him to feel all the amazing things he felt with Nastia. Wanted him to have a family to call his own that would erase all the ugly things done to them as young. But that required things turning out at least a little right with his own mate. He had hope Theron and Mirena would bring back something that would turn this vampire plan on its ass.
“Grrrr. Newt! This isn’t funny. Where is it? Show me before I… I…”
Thames picked up the pace, shifting to human as soon as he reached the cave, shaking off his fur and letting skin slide back into place.
He walked through the door to find the great room in complete disarray. Blankets and pillows were strewn about. The cushions from the lounge couch were tossed. Drawers from the dresser and side tables were scattered. Pens and notepads littered the floor along with their underwear and shoes. In all the mess, it took him a few seconds to locate his mate.
Nastia was curled over on her hands and knees, digging through the pile of cushions on the floor until they were cleared so she could see underneath the couch. She let off a frustrated squeal and then rose to kick the cushions viciously out of her way.
Thames stood staring in disbelief. His mate was in a full blown fit. In fact, she could rival a toddler right now, the way she was acting.
“Newt!” she screamed, and from the corner of his eye, Thames could see the black and yellow lizard streak across the floor toward the hall. With a throaty growl, Nastia stomped after him. The look in her eye was feral. Less witchy and much more wild than it should be. The Wisest looked like The Craziest right now.
Without another thought, Thames charged forward, tackling her down to the cushions and rolling with her so she wouldn’t land too hard. Her yelp of surprise echoed off the stone walls and when she caught her breath, she went at him, waylaying his chest with her tiny fists.
“Get off me you beast!”
“Beast?” he questioned, trying to hold in a laugh.
“I don’t care how sexy you are, bear, I’ve got ninety nine problems right now and a skink is one.”
And that did it. Whatever dam he’d built to keep the laughter in was crushed to pieces with that single indignant sentence. His chuckles punched forth until he was howling with them. Nastia’s eyes narrowed to slits and he laughed so hard tears pricked his lids and he couldn’t catch a breath.
“This is not funny, bear.” Her stern tone sent him on a fresh peal.
“Do you…” Balancing above her on one arm, he swiped the wetness from his eyes. “Do you even know what that phrase means? What song it comes from?”
Her chin jutted with her answer. “I saw it on YouTube.”
And his laughter exploded again, but it felt so good he didn’t try to stop it this time.
“What?” Her brows came together in a frown.
“You... Oh, damn.” He tried to picture it. Nastia with her sweet composed expression and her nun-level modest dresses, iPhone YouTube app open, listening to Ninety Nine Problems. “You listen to Jay Z?”
“It’s a catchy tune.”
He snorted between chuckles and finally her face relaxed. “That it is, little witch. That it is.”
“Now would you kindly let me go?”
“Never.” He leaned down, pecking at her pursed lips until she softened and kissed him back. “Now, what has your cute little panties in a tangle, huh?”
She sighed, and he could see the urgency reflected in her eyes. Like whatever was happening was dire.
“It’s my heart stone. The one my sisters gave me. It’s missing.”
Thames frowned, helping her up. “You sure? Did you check your box?”
Her second day in the cave he’d given her a small mahogany jewelry box to keep her stones in so she wouldn’t need to collect them in her pockets anymore.
“Of course I did,” she huffed, swinging her arms out wide. “Look at this place. I’ve searched everywhere.”
Thames gripped her shoulders, making her meet his eyes. “It’s okay, mate. Your rock will turn up. It couldn’t have gone far. And you have plenty more to work with in the meantime. Relax.”
She shrugged him off. “Don’t tell me to relax. I need that rock, Thames. I need it.”
Thames’s bear bristled inside. The way she’d emphasized the word need… it was like she was desperate for the rock. He didn’t like it. Up until now she’d only been desperate for one thing and that was him. She hadn’t even seemed desperate about the possible vampire resolution to her darkness problem. When they’d spoken about it, she’d been calm, reasonable.
Herself.
“Newt has it,” she grumbled. “He’s hidden it away in some crevice of rock somewhere and I’ll probably never find it.”
Thames watched her as she began to straighten the cushions, disturbed and confused.
“Why would Newt take it? How would Newt take it? I doubt he could move it very far.”
“I don’t know,” she answered. “He doesn’t like it. He hissed at it the other day. And he scurries away every time I pick it up when I’m holding him.”
None of this made sense. It was just a rock. She had plenty of them. Why was she so intent on having this one nearby? And blaming Newt seemed unreasonable.
Thames bent to help her clean up the mess she’d made, tossing the clothing back in the drawers and refolding the bedding.
Suddenly, Nastia went still, index finger propped on her chin. Then she turned to face him so fast the skirt of her dress did a little flurry.
“Maybe I dropped it outside in the woods. Maybe it fell out of my pocket when we were, um, you know.”
“Fooling around?”
She nodded, her eyes going bright. “Yeah. I bet I lost it out there. That’s the last time I remember having it.”
She took off toward the door and he chased after her. “Wait,” he said, grabbing her arm. “Let me go look for it. You stay here and clean up.”
Nastia looked back and forth between him and the door. “Are you sure? We could both look and find it faster.”
But Thames didn’t want her leaving the cave. Something was off. His bear was hackles high on edge. He wanted to find the rock fast and get her calmed so he could figure out what was happening.
“If it’s out there, I’ll find it,” he vowed. “You stay here and try to be nice to Newt.”
Nastia nodded and stepped aside. He gave her lips a quick kiss as he passed and then rushed out the door before she could change her mind. It was only when the cold night air hit him that he realized he was still buck ass naked from his shift earlier.
Thames sighed. Oh well. He wa
s going to make this quick anyway…
Two hours later, he’d retraced their steps at least ten times, searched the entire picnic area, and come up empty. No sign of his mate’s purple heart stone.
Trudging back to the cave, he devised a plan to take Nastia’s mind off the missing rock. It involved his body and a can of Redi-Whip. But when he walked through the door, his plan went up in smoke.
The room was spotless, everything put back in its place, and Nastia lay curled on her side in their bed, fast asleep. Stopping at the edge of the mattress, Thames took a few minutes to just stare at her. She wore one of his t-shirts and it was so big it nearly hit her knees. Her hands were folded under her cheek and a soft snore snuffed from her throat. So peaceful. So different from the frantic, desperate woman he’d left earlier. He didn’t know what to make of her little breakdown, but he knew it was a sign things were worsening.
Sighing, he pulled the blanket over her, and headed to the bathroom for a shower.
There was no sign of Newt, so Thames did a quick look around the cave, checking out all the secret hiding spots he knew of. But there was no skink and no purple heart stone.
The things Nastia had told him about familiars came to him, and he had to wonder if the lizard was becoming something more than just a pet. She’d seemed convinced the skink had something to do with the missing rock.
Moving to the bathroom, Thames showered quickly, washing away the grime from the outdoors that remained on his skin. When he’d finished, he toweled off and strolled back to the great room.
Sssssth.
Screeching to a stop in the middle of the cavern, he listened for the sound. It seemed to be over by the bed. His bear bristled, instinct telling him there was an intruder.
Sssssth, sssth.
Thames crossed the room in three strides and found the source of the noise. Newt seemed to be squaring off with two mammoth sized black beetles, hissing and spitting for all his life was worth. Each insect was as big as Thames’s thumb, their antennae rotating in the air as if to gauge Newt’s threat. And strangest of all, Nastia’s missing rock lay on the floor between them.
Thames let off a quiet snarl and the insects scattered. But he wasn’t about to leave them for Nastia to find. He had to get rid of them. It was part of his mately duty to kill the creepy crawlies. Pretty sure that was in the contract. She carries his mark and his cubs, he smashes the bugs.
His hand shot out to grab one of the work boots he kept by the bed. With a thwack, he annihilated one of the little buggers while the other one scuttled under the bed frame. But Newt, the smart little lizard, had anticipated the move and headed the beetle off, hissing at him until he backed out.
“Good skink,” Thames murmured, and brought the boot down on the second insect. “I’d give you a high five for the team work, but it might be dangerous.”
Newt blinked his response.
“Yep. Be right back.”
Thames jogged to the counter for a paper towel and scooped the bugs up to flush down the toilet. When he returned, he found Newt attempting to drag Nastia’s rock away.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Thames hissed, shooting a glance at his mate to make sure she was still sleeping soundly. “You asking for trouble or what?”
He bent to pick up the stone and if he wasn’t mistaken, he’d swear the lizard glared at him.
“This is not yours. Hands off or I’ll toss you outside.”
After a moment of Newt considering his options, he seemed to decide the stone wasn’t worth it and burrowed into his scarf bed.
“Good choice.”
Thames put the stone in Nastia’s box so she would find it in the morning, and climbed into bed. Pulling his mate close, he let his bear settle. This little twilight-zone episode felt like a warning. Like things might be getting a lot stranger for them. But as he told her earlier, he’d prepared for this. Let the hard times come. They were part of the package anyway.
He buried his nose in her hair and inhaled.
Worth it. Whatever trouble lie ahead was worth it.
Chapter Eleven
Nastia scowled at the bowl of chili on the table in front of her. It was Eagan’s special something-or-other and she got the hint she was supposed to adore it. But if she was honest, it tasted like sawdust and vomit.
Darkness swirled in her veins, palpable now. It was poisoning everything and making her wonder if the poison was really a gift. Darkness made her stronger, it was clear.
It was a week later and the second dinner-n-research Magic had scheduled. At this rate, he might as well twiddle his thumbs and whistle. They should be doing this every day until a solution was found. But nooooo. There was a lodge to run. There was business to attend to. There was life to live while hers hung in the balance.
She narrowed her eyes in the clan leader’s direction. He held an amber colored long neck bottle in one hand, his other curved around his mate Josie’s bulging baby bump. Yes, he wasn’t worried in the least about the Sorcera’s future. The bastard had promised to help them and here he was just wasting time while she wasted away.
Nastia should kill him. But his mate first, so he’d hurt before he died.
Why had she helped them in the first place? These people meant nothing to her. She should have let them all die.
Except…
A pain speared her chest and she swallowed around it, trying to remember what it meant.
Thames.
He stood over in the corner of the dining room, deep in conversation with Mason and Theron. He wasn’t easing the night away, she knew. Whatever was being said between those three, was pertinent to the Sorcera’s problem. He was fighting for her like he’d promised he would.
For Thames. That’s why she’d helped this clan. She hadn’t known it yet, but it was for him. Because this pain in her chest meant she loved him. Yes, she did. She remembered now.
Her dark thoughts toward the clan weren’t hers, but they were getting harder and harder to fight. How much longer could she do it? Perhaps she needed to be confined to the cave again.
No. No one would lock her up like a prisoner. Not when she was the best among them. She could wipe this lodge clean of their existence in one breath. One snap of her fingers. The darkness was there, waiting for her to harness it.
Like she had before.
It had felt good being the one to save them. Being the one strong enough to do so. They should bow to her for it. Worship her even. She could build a throne in Thames’s chapel and require them to bow or die.
What fun that would be.
Thames.
He stared at her from across the room, eyes digging into her until she hurt again. Love. She loved him. She’d never take his chapel away. He talked to his god there. It would hurt him and she couldn’t do that.
As she brought her water glass to her lips, she took note of how badly her hands shook. The tremors were new, coming in the past two days, but they were getting worse. Her spirit and mind were at war, and her body was taking the toll.
She should stop fighting.
Thames crossed the room and sank into the chair beside her. His hand eased up along her spine and gripped the back of her neck firm enough to make her focus. A reminder of who she belonged to. And it helped. When he touched her, the darkness wasn’t so dark.
She glanced back to Magic and saw the scene in a completely different light. Josie was holding one of the tomes Mirena had brought back for them to study, while Magic read over her shoulder.
Nastia frowned as her gaze roamed the dining room.
Layna sat hunched over another book, shoveling spoonfuls of chili into her mouth while one finger traced along the page as she read.
Ryan and Gash were scribbling down notes as Bailey read aloud from a third book.
Doc Davis and Owyn were listening as Adira explained something that wasn’t reaching Nastia’s ears.
Clara and Eagan were refilling bowls and drinks to keep everybody working at their best potenti
al.
Renner and Bethany were studying with Mirena. Even little Rhys was propped on his daddy’s hip, watching intently.
The entire clan was there for her and her sisters. The entire clan was working toward a solution while she sat there stewing over her situation.
“Mate,” Thames spoke low. “Are you okay?”
She nodded, but she didn’t think she was telling him the truth.
Digging into her collar she fished around for the purple heart stone. After it disappeared a week ago, she’d found some spare twine and made it into a necklace so Newt couldn’t drag it off again. Pulling it free of her top, she rubbed her thumb over the stone, hoping it would focus her enough to calm the shakes.
Mirena barked out a high pitched whoop and all eyes flicked to her. She didn’t look up from her book. “I… I’m not sure but… I might have found something.”
That same sick hope Nastia had felt before unfurled wildly as she jumped up to read over her sister’s shoulder. Thames followed her, pressing close against her back, and then the others were there too. She felt like she had an army behind her… or a herd waiting to trample her.
She clutched her stone tighter, trying to remain normal.
“Some believe a life born of love can anchor a magic user to her light when a true Anchor can’t be found,” Mirena read aloud. Her finger kept her place as she looked up at the group gathered behind her. “A child. A baby? Could it be so easy?”
Adira was silent, but the rest of them started babbling.
“A life born of love,” Bailey said. “Of course. Why didn’t we consider that before? The idea is to connect with something so thoroughly that it holds you to your power, yeah? A baby could do that.” She rubbed her belly even though there was no bump yet to show she was pregnant.
“Thames, man,” Ryan chuckled, punching him on the shoulder. “Get ‘er done. Put a bun in the ov and boom, female saved.”
“Did… did we just find the answer?” Doc asked quietly.
“Whewwww,” Theron blew out a heavy breath. “Okay, so babies can be Anchors. Hope you wanted chilluns, Nas. I know Thames has wanted cubs since he was old enough to have dolls. You can handle it from here, yeah brother?” He clapped his hands together glancing from Adira to Mirena. “Guess you’ll both need young put in you too, huh?”