by Meagan Hill
“I’m Nina. You were studying the crystals pretty intently. Are you looking for something specific?”
“I need some amethyst for a headache I developed looking for the place next door. I thought for sure I was lost.”
“It is a little difficult to find, especially for someone who hasn’t been here before. May I ask what you’re here for? You don’t seem to be the normal visitor they get over there.”
Mandy hadn’t really thought that through yet, so she was scrambling to come up with a half-decent reply. Finally she blurted out, “I’m checking it out for my sister’s kids. They’re coming here for a couple of weeks this summer, and she wanted to figure out how to keep them occupied while here.”
The lie fell flat between them, though Nina’s expression didn’t change. She did seem to narrow her focus onto Mandy a bit, like she was looking through her eyes in search of the truth. After a moment’s hesitation, Nina replied, “That sounds like fun for the kids. I remember taking vacations with my kids. It was either wonderful or terrible, depending on what we found to keep them entertained. It’s still periodically like that, even though they’re all grown up.”
Mandy could only smile sickly and nod her head. She hated lying, especially to people she knew she had nothing to fear from.
“Well, let’s see which of the stones wants to go with you,” Nina commented smoothly, pulling the container of amethyst crystals out of its holder and moving to a velvet-lined board placed next to the display. She carefully emptied the container onto the velvet, making sure the stones were not stacked, but not touching them. “I cleansed them last weekend, and I’m fairly sure no one’s stuck his hands in there. You should be able to get a good reading from them.”
Mandy lifted her hand above the stone, moving slowly and systematically, opening herself to the vibrations of the stones. One of them held a much more powerful vibration than the others, and she knew she had found one that corresponded to her personal vibrations beautifully. “Wow, this one is much stronger than the one I have at the compound.” Mandy moved her hand over the remaining stones, wanting to be sure she had found the one with the best resonation, and then gently picked up the stone that had spoken to her. Nina picked up a small wooden block, using it to push the remaining stones back into the container before replacing the container in the display.
“Did you want to look at any of the other ones? I can feel the rose quartz and the rutilated quartz calling for you, too.”
Mandy could only stand there and blink at Nina’s suggestions. Clarity, courage, openness to love, aural cleansing, and healing. These were just some of the effects of those particular stones, and exactly what she needed if she was going to survive the week. She had to wonder if Nina herself was a Gifted One. Either way, Mandy wasn’t about to ignore the nudge she’d just received. “Yes, I think you’re absolutely right.” They repeated the choosing process, with Mandy finding stones with a strong resonance with her in each type. Mandy then selected a wired necklace to keep the stones in. She had no pockets, and she needed to have the stones on her to work. After browsing through the rest of the store, Mandy was ready to continue her mission.
She and Nina made small talk about the next-door children’s camp while Nina rang up her purchase. Nina helped her place the stones in the necklace and then place the necklace around her neck. When Nina secured the clasp, Mandy felt a jolt of energy, again making her wonder if Nina might be a GO. Just as Mandy was about to leave, Nina called to her. “Mandy, be sure to speak to Mitch. He’s the owner of the camp, and he can answer any questions you might have. Tell him you saw me, and give him this message—‘Hakuna matata.’ He’ll know what it means.”
“As in the phrase from The Lion King?” Mandy was starting to wonder if Nina was messing with her.
“Yes, that one. No, I’m not playing a trick or anything. Just tell him.”
“Um, okay, Nina. I’ll tell him. Thank you for your help,” Mandy replied as she pushed the door open and went outside. She considered moving her car to the parking lot next door, but it was clear she wasn’t in anyone’s way, and she really felt like walking the distance down to the river. It felt good to be moving around freely at her own pace. That decision made, Mandy dropped her purse into the car and started her way down the road leading down to the camp.
The road wasn’t that long, but it got steep quickly as the land angled down toward the water. She passed what she assumed was the main building, which was really a beautiful, older Victorian-style home with a huge back deck covered in picnic tables and lounge chairs. The land steepened even further just past the deck, and Mandy was glad to see there was a crudely made stairway down the rest of the way. The steps were dug into the hill and laid with railroad ties. They were uneven but still climbable. The scene below her was idyllic. The river flowed gently in the background, with several canoes and rafts filled with preteen boys paddling around. A small group of boys were being instructed on tying ropes, while another set were learning how to start a fire using natural objects. Several adults were scattered throughout the area, watching over and leading the different activities. Everywhere she looked, she saw boys in the dung-colored uniforms of a Boy Scout troop. Mandy was relieved there were no girls around. She would be able to cleanly report she had been unable to find a female latent because there were only boys at the camp.
When Mandy was about halfway down the stairs, her attention was suddenly snared by a man who was waist deep in the river. He was helping the scouts learn how to steer their canoes and had his back turned toward her. As soon as her attention focused on him, his back straightened in awareness, and he quickly turned around, searching the area. It only took a moment for his eyes to lock with hers.
He was shockingly handsome. His black hair was closely cropped over his entire head, and he was sporting what looked like a four-day growth beard, though he probably kept the scruffy look on purpose. Whatever the intention, he was hot. His brows were perfectly arched over scorching blue eyes. His lips peeked through the stubble, the bottom slightly heavier than the top, one side slightly lifted in a self-assured smile. From the smile lines on his face, it appeared that this was his usual expression. What she could see of his body was phenomenal. He was well-built though not overly bulky, with clearly defined muscles showing through his T-shirt and large, strong-looking hands. He appeared tall, but Mandy couldn’t tell for sure because she couldn’t see his bottom half, and, oh, how she wanted to see his bottom half.
He radiated a quiet self-confidence, the kind often seen in experienced soldiers, as if saying, “I can handle anything you throw at me. You can trust me.” His body appeared ready to spring, even though he seemed relaxed. He was clearly an alpha male, a leader capable of being in charge in any situation. He made her heart pound and stomach clench in excitement. Mandy was shocked by her response to him. It took her a moment to realize what she was feeling was attraction. She’d never been attracted to another human being in her life, other than the usual teen heartthrobs before she’d been kidnapped.
Mandy continued down the stairs after a brief pause, her focus solely trained on the man who stood still in the water. The man briefly took his eyes away from hers, turning to another one of the adults and motioning them to take his place with the group he’d been working with. He then turned his attention back to Mandy, though he still made no motion to move toward her.
Mandy’s attention was so completely focused on the Adonis before her that she completely stopped looking where she was stepping. One moment she was moving smoothly down the stairs, the next her foot caught on something and she was skidding down the last step and over the grassy area just below, finally landing on her ass in the river, with the water reaching just above her breasts. The temperature of the water was shocking after the warmth of the sun, and Mandy simply sat there a moment, trying to regain her breath. Once she’d shaken the shock off, she looked around to take stock of the situation. She now had everyone’s attention and it was absolutely si
lent for several seconds. Finally, she couldn’t stop the giggles bubbling up inside her. Reassured that laughter was okay, the entire group began howling, except for the man who’d so thoroughly captured her attention. He looked concerned as he began moving toward her.
* * * *
Mitch’s breath left him in a whoosh as awareness slammed through his body. His back immediately straightened and his shoulders squared, an instinctive reaction to meeting another person of power. He’d been able to sense other GOs around him since he’d finished his training, but he’d never felt awareness this strong. Mitch turned in the direction the sensation was coming from and immediately located the source. It was a young woman, maybe mid-twenties, with honey-blond hair, huge eyes that even at a distance seemed to have seen too many horrible things, and a luscious body. She wasn’t tall, maybe five feet, two inches, but extremely thin, much too thin for her frame. A white summer dress hung from her shoulders, accenting the hollows around her collar bones. Mitch wondered if she was one of those girls who thought they had to starve themselves to be beautiful. She didn’t seem the type, as she moved as if unaware of her physicality. She was naturally graceful. At least he thought so until she caught her foot on the last step and proceeded to skid down the grass embankment and right into the water. The look of shock when she landed was comical.
The entire group was now watching their visitor sitting just inside the river. Mitch could hear several squelched giggles. The entire thing had been hilarious, but even preteen boys knew better than to laugh at a gorgeous woman. Mitch expected her to start screeching about getting wet or crying from embarrassment, so he was very pleasantly surprised to hear her begin laughing. A woman who could laugh at herself was rare, and this intrigued Mitch even more. Hearing her laughter was all the permission the others needed as they all began guffawing in their spots. Mitch managed to restrain his own laughter as he began to move toward her, though he couldn’t help getting lost in her eyes once again.
“Are you okay, Miss?” Mitch asked when he got close enough to hear her over the raucous laughter still surrounding them. He could see her clearly now with his new proximity, and Mitch was entranced. Her eyes were hazel with touches of gray, an unusual combination. Her features were delicate and gave an impression of fragility. Her lips were perfectly plumped, not abnormally large like some women were having done these days. In fact, it was clear she was naturally beautiful. Nothing was fake about her.
Mandy’s laughter died in her throat when he spoke to her. His voice was deep and smooth and made her pulse pound. She bet he could make her shiver just listening to him read a phone book. She forced herself to pull in a breath, finally answering, “I think I’m okay. Just wet. At least I have clothes in my car that I can change into.” Mandy moved to plant her feet under her in preparation for standing up, but froze when he lifted his hand up in a “stop” gesture.
“Wait, don’t stand up yet,” Mitch said, interrupting her movement. She waited, her eyes widening in shock as she watched him pull his own T-shirt off. “Your dress is white and now wet. It’s also now transparent from what I can see. As much as the kids might enjoy it, I’d have to guess you’re not into giving preteens a free show.”
Mandy’s eyes widened even more as she realized what Mitch was saying. She automatically crossed her arms over her breasts, though she knew it was too little too late. She could tell that her nipples were hardened from the coolness of the water, and the dress was sticking to her body, clearly outlining each curve. Mandy considered her options for a brief second before taking the offered shirt, swiftly pulling it on. Mandy couldn’t stop the shudder that ripped through her in response to the warmth and scent that clung to the fabric, remnants from the gorgeous man in front of her, whose name she still did not know, she was stunned to realize.
“Thanks, um, sir?”
“It’s Mitch. Mitch Masterson. And you are…” Mitch trailed off, asking for her name in return.
“Mandy Cabela.” Mandy couldn’t stop another shudder, this time in disgust for her last name. Cabela required that all of the coven members use his last name as theirs. She hated it. It was just another sign of his possession of her. “You’re the owner here, right? Nina told me to talk to you.”
“You spoke with Nina?” Mitch asked, surprise evident in his voice.
“Yes, why are you so surprised? I loved her shop.”
“I just didn’t know she was up there. She doesn’t open regularly. I’ll have to stop in and talk to her later.”
“Oh, that reminds me. She said to tell you “Hakuna matata”. whatever that means, beyond the accepted definition.”
Mitch couldn’t keep the surprise from showing on his face. Last he’d heard, his mother was at his parent’s house in Charleston. She only opened the shop on very special occasions for very special customers. Certainly never for someone who’d just dropped in off the highway. However, the surprise that his mother was at the shop was minor compared to his shock at what Mandy had just told him. “Seriously, she said, ‘Hakuna matata,’ like from The Lion King?” At Mandy’s nod, Mitch’s mind began racing. It was a code phrase, of course. Over the years, they had developed a kind of language all their own so they could talk freely around the regular humans without worrying about revealing their existence. “Hakuna matata” meant “This one is special. Take good care of him.” Nina had only used it a few times, and in each case, the subject of the conversation was in danger of some sort and needed protection. They also tended to end up being very powerful. “Okay, thanks for telling me.”
“You’re not going to tell me what it means, are you?” Mandy asked in a resigned tone.
Mitch could only smirk and shake his head. “Nope.”
“Okay, fine. Be that way. For all I know...” Mitch watched as Mandy pulled her feet beneath her in preparation for standing up. She couldn’t stifle the cry of pain as her ankle buckled beneath her, landing her back in her spot on the bank. Mitch was next to her by the next second. If Mandy hadn’t been so distracted by the pain, she would have been startled he was there so quickly.
“What hurts, Mandy?” Mitch asked, his voice concerned. He reached out to steady her by her shoulders, wanting to keep her steady and prevent further injury. He nearly jumped back with the jolt that rocked through him as he touched her. He wasn’t too shocked, however, to notice an answering jolt go through her, nor her eyes widening in reaction. He also wasn’t too shocked to notice how her personal energy and his blended together. That had never happened to him.
Mandy could only blink at him for a moment, appearing to be just as blown away by their connection as he was. Finally, she responded, “Hurt. Oh, it’s my ankle. I must have twisted it on the way down. It’s really not that bad. I was just taken off guard.” Again, she tried to rise from her spot, but Mitch’s hands would not let her move.
Mitch mentally shook his head, amused at the stubbornness she was displaying. He wasn’t about to let her try to walk on an injured ankle. Certainly not until he’d had an opportunity to look at it. Without bothering to warn her, Mitch stepped up next to her and swept her up into his arms, making sure to get the tail of his shirt so that her bottom was covered, and cradling her to his chest. She was so tiny she felt like she weighed next to nothing. Mitch couldn’t help but moan silently at the feel of the woman in his arms. She felt like she belonged there. Mitch tried to control his reaction to this beautiful stranger as he began the long climb to the house.
Mandy yelped in surprise before allowing herself to settle against his chest and wrap her arms around his neck. “I’ll take a look at it up at the house. We have some first aid supplies there. If it’s bad enough, I’ll take you to County General for an X-ray,” Mitch muttered. He could see it was already starting to swell, but it didn’t look like it was bruising. From experience, it appeared it was just a sprain, though sprains were still plenty painful.
“No. No hospital. Besides, I’ve had worse. Way worse. And had to work with it without any type
of medical treatment. You can put me down. I’m sure I can walk.” Mitch was distracted from savoring the feel of the small woman in his arms when her words finally sunk into his brain. “What are you talking about, no medical care? How did you get hurt and not have medical care?” His normally strong protective streak exploded within him. He couldn’t get the image of her injured badly, with no healing help, out of his mind. He had no idea how very close to reality his worst thought was.
“Well, my, uh, the guy in charge of where I live refuses to allow us medical care unless it’s a matter of life or death.”
“How badly have you been hurt? List your injuries.” Mitch’s intuition was telling him the information was important for reasons other than his newfound need to protect her. Mitch placed her on one of the loungers scattered around the back deck of the house and pulled up another lounger and sat down to listen to what she had to say.
“Seriously? You want to know about all the stuff I’ve had hurt?” Mitch nodded his head and didn’t miss the way the question was phrased. She hadn’t said, “Stuff I’ve hurt.” She’d said, “Stuff I’ve had hurt.” There was a world of difference. Clearly, whatever had happened to her had been a result of someone else. Mandy sighed as she gathered her thoughts. “I guess I’ll start at the bottom and work my way up. I’ve had several toes broken, both ankles sprained multiple times, and once a wrenched knee. My tailbone has been cracked several times, along with bruised, cracked, and broken ribs. Higher up were a broken clavicle twice, multiple instances of dislocated shoulders,, both wrists broken, and repeated broken fingers. I was always careful to straighten the fingers and toes, and for that matter, my nose, so they’d hopefully heal straight.” Mitch’s brain swam at the recitation of injury and pain she’d just given, so he wasn’t prepared when she continued.