Ezzy handed me the wand and nodded. I jabbed the point of the wand in the direction of the door, shouting the magic words, “Ignis impetum!” A cannon ball of blazing fire burst from the tip of my wand. The blast nearly knocked us down.
Having been reduced to a useless lump of glowing metal, the lock fell free from the door and tumbled off the cement steps. I kicked the door open, then stepped carefully into the building. My hand eagerly swept the wall in search of a light switch. When the rows of long fluorescent tubes finally flickered to life, the institute surprised me once again.
Chapter Seven
The inviting, neatly kept exterior was nothing but a façade. Morgan leaned over my shoulder and agreed with my unspoken observation. “Dirty pale-green walls, grimy terrazzo floor, and discarded metal lab carts. Yep, just the look you want for your spooky, abandoned asylum. They really nailed it with this place.”
Esmeralda kicked an empty cardboard box out of her path, walking ahead of us. “Charming little place. All we need now are rats. I’m sure there are at least a few descendants of escaped mutant lab rats scurrying around this dump.”
“We need to find Gabe, fast. I think we should split up so we can quickly cover more territory.”
“Do you think there’s a chance he might have already shifted and made an escape?” Morgan asked.
“It depends. From what I know, he can’t change if he’s unconscious, so he won’t change until the drugs wear off. Even then, changing back to human form takes a while. I’m pretty sure he’s still a bear.”
“Bad idea to split up, Kelly. Don’t forget that magic is involved. This is all just another repercussion from the spell you cast. We have no idea what we could run into. Morgan and I will stay with you.”
We marched ahead down the corridor, through swinging doors, and into the adjoining building. It was an open space that reminded me of an airplane hangar. A bright overhead light illuminated a huge cage with a giant bear asleep inside. I knew Gabe would be fine as long as he hadn’t shifted. A hastily erected wire fence formed a perimeter around the cage.
A series of metallic clunks and clanks echoed through the sprawling empty space. It startled me and when I heard the telltale sound of footsteps, I quickly warned Ezzy and Morgan. “Someone’s coming. Go back around the corner.”
A shadowy figure emerged, making his way toward the cage. “It’s the bear research guy,” Morgan whispered. “What’s that he’s carrying?”
Even when I squinted my eyes, I couldn’t tell what it was. “Looks like a bowling ball bag to me. No, maybe it looks more like one of those old doctor’s bags.”
“Witch rule number one, never be a wimp. Always project power. Let me show you how to handle this pinhead.” Esmeralda smoothed down her skin tight, black leather outfit and tossed her long red hair back. Looking both sexy and intimidating came natural to Esmeralda. “Stay here until I call for you.” She strolled out boldly, wand in hand.
“Good evening. Quite a bear you have there.”
“Christ!” The man was so startled by Ezzy’s entrance that he dropped his black leather bag. As he came into the light, I got a better look at him. He was a good looking, mature man with a full head of graying hair. His white, unbuttoned lab coat was so predictable it was comical. “What in the hell are you doing in here? Do you realize you’re trespassing? I could have you arrested. Did you think of that?”
“So many questions for such a smart man. My name is Esmeralda, I’m curious about this bear. Doctor, or should I call you professor?”
“Professor. Professor Bologna.”
“Bologna? Does Professor Bologna have a first name?”
“Oscar.”
Morgan and I completely lost it. Our whooping and snort filled laughs were amplified by the empty space and sheet metal walls.
“Remind me to tell you about the spell we cast on Gertie’s hot fireman, Brad.” I giggled even more, remembering the horrible pickup lines Brad was hexed to recite in public.
“Who else is here? What the devil is going on?”
“Just a couple of friends. They’re just amused that my Bologna has a first name. It’s O S C A R.”
“Like I’ve never heard that before.” The professor shouted into the dark corners of the building, “Okay, you imbeciles have had your laughs. Come out in the open!”
“You two really suck at being stealthy,” Esmeralda said as we joined her. “All right, Professor Bologna. I’m going to level with you. We came for the bear. I’m going to be kind and give you to the count of ten. More than enough time to get out of our way.” Ezzy slapped the wand in the palm of her hand.
“Wait! Is that supposed to be a magic wand? You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“I kid you not, Oscar.” Ezzy leveled the wand at an old folding chair and blasted it into a pile of smoking scrap metal.
“What are you people? Faeries?”
“Please. Another insult like that and you’re next. We’re witches.”
“Hold on, Ezzy. I’ve got a question for the professor before he leaves, or you incinerate him. Professor, why do you have this bear caged? What were you planning to do with him?”
Professor Bologna took slow backwards steps. “Witches. What a coincidence. It’s a rather long story. Suffice it to say, I’ve been hunting for a bear like this all of my life. He’s actually a werebear. Considering your interest in him, you are already aware of that.”
“How did you know?”
“Contrary to the belief of the local idiots, I am not a biologist. I’m actually a professor of European folklore. Thirty years ago, I came upon the legend about a clan of werebears that were captured by a witch and cursed to live as circus bears for all eternity. I went looking for those bears, and I’ve tracked down every myth, every campfire story, and every tabloid headline… if there was even a hint about a werebear. Finally, I came upon them in a small village in Romania. I set out to capture just one and get blood samples.”
“Blood samples?” I asked.
“Yes. I wanted the samples so I could have them analyzed. That was just a start. I also wanted to observe them, study them… I wanted to know their secrets. I had to know if they still had the ability to shift. Centuries of circus travel must have driven them all mad. I was the one who ended up captured.” The professor paused as if he was suddenly being tortured by an awful memory. “That bitch… ”
“Let me guess, Ursula?”
“Yes! She was the one who locked me in the dungeon of an abandoned castle. Then came the bears. They taunted me, day and night. I lived off the scraps of food that was thrown down to us. The day finally came when Ursula decided to move us to a new location. Perhaps she was worried the locals were getting suspicious of her and the bears. Anyway, that’s when I made my escape. Eighteen months I lived in that hell hole.”
“So, why are you here? And why are you still hunting for werebears?”
“Good question, Kelly. One would think the man would want nothing more to do with bears.”
The distinctive sound of a metal door slammed shut behind us. “Nice, Dad. Why didn’t you tell them about Mom? Or me?” We all turned around to see who was speaking.
Chapter Eight
“Candy!” Morgan shouted.
Esmeralda yelped. “What?” That was all she got out before Candy fired Gabe’s tranquilizer rifle. The dart struck Ezzy’s thigh and she collapsed. The wand rolled to Professor Bologna, and he stopped it with his shoe.
“I didn’t tell them everything. I was trying to protect you and your mother.”
“Pfff. Mom can take care of herself. You see, ladies, Dad here was quite the player back in his day. Truth is, he tried to seduce my mom in order to get closer to her circus bears.”
“Your Ursula’s daughter?”
“You must be the smart one,” Candy sneered. “Of course I am. My name is Candy Bear. Dad didn’t escape. Mom kicked him out. When I was old enough to start school, my mom sent me to live with him. She didn’t think I
’d have a healthy, normal childhood roaming around Eastern Europe with her circus. So she sent me to Wisconsin of all places. It’s a circus all its own.”
“Why here? Caldron Falls? And I still don’t know why you captured this bear.”
“This bear? You mean Gabe? Ha! Didn’t think I knew about him, did you? Dad came here to follow up on some Ojibwe legends about shape shifters: werebears to be exact. Gabe and I got to be really close friends… if you know what I mean.” Candy winked at me. “Oh yeah, I know who you are, Kelly. You’re Gabe’s summer fling. But you can’t have him. Nobody can. See, he brushed me off after high school. I gave him everything… including my virginity.”
“Candy! Get ahold of yourself!”
“Shut up, Dad!”
“I had no idea he was a werebear until I saw him change, with you, this summer. Then I knew why he pushed me away. It wasn’t because he didn’t love me, it was because he could only stay in a permanent relationship with another werebear. Today was my lucky day. When I saw him shift in the town square, I realized a golden opportunity had been handed to me. I made it sound like Gabe had been eaten by bears so I could knock his ass out and bring him here. Now, my Dad is going to find out what makes him a werebear. Once he figures it out, I’ll become one. Then Gabe and I can live together forever. He’s all mine.”
“Candy, do you realize how crazy this sounds? You sound just like your mother.”
“What? What! What did you just say?” As any fool knows, you never tell a woman on a rant that she sounds crazy. And you most certainly never, ever, double down on asking for death by saying she sounds just like her crazy mother—who happens to be a witch with a track record of sadistic eternal cursing.
“Candy, just listen to me, sweetie. I had no idea Gabe was a werebear until you told me this earlier today. To be honest, we don’t even know for sure if it is Gabe until it changes, if it changes.
“Err..owwl!” Candy stomped her foot and actually jumped up and down in a childish tantrum. “Mom won’t let me be a witch and you won’t let me be a werebear. This is bullshit! Of course this is Gabe. How can you be so stupid? His slut, the witch, wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t. You are going to take his blood and you are going to give me a transfusion until I AM A FUCKING WEREBEAR! Got it? And you witches… I am going to fix you. Dad, give me that wand.”
“No. Candy, I can’t let you do this.”
“Then I’ll just take it.” When Candy bent down to grab the wand, Morgan shoved her from behind. The dart gun hit the cement floor as Candy fell. Professor Bologna quickly snagged the wand before his uncontrollable daughter could get her hands on it.
“Just don’t hurt her, please.” He handed me the wand as Candy rose back up. I aimed the wand at her.
“Candy, don’t try anything. You have no right to kidnap Gabe like this. Whatever you had with Gabe is in the past. It sounds like he broke up with you, and I’m sorry, but that’s life. You can’t just tranquilize people, put them in a cage, and make them love you.”
Candy growled, her eyes scanned the room, looking for the tranquilizer gun. The whole time Candy had been talking, Gabe had apparently shook off the effects of the drug and started to shift. By the time I got a look at him, he was back in human form. It must have been one hell of a shock to get knocked out and wake up in a cage, with no clue as to what had happened.
Morgan crawled under the wire fence and lifted the latch in the cage door. Gabe was stark naked and quite confused when he walked out. “What? Where are the bears?” He shielded his eyes from the floodlight and squinted. “What’s going on? Candy? Oh shit! What are you doing here?” Gabe did his best to cover himself with his hands as he jogged over to me. “Kelly, only you and the witches know I’m a werebear! Now two more people do.” He added in a whisper, “You’ve probably already figured this out about Candy, but… ”
“The wheel is spinning but the hamster’s asleep? A few fries short of a Happy Meal? Yeah, I got that. After listening to her talk about it, you loved her but couldn’t divulge your werebear secret, so you broke up. She thinks if she becomes a werebear, you’ll suddenly love her forever.”
“What? How was she trying to become a werebear?”
“By using you as a donor for her blood transfusion.”
“Jesus. Blood transfusion? I told you she’s nuts. It wouldn’t work anyway. Only the spring has the power. But listen, Kelly, and believe me, there was nothing even remotely close to love between Candy and me. Seriously, it was just a few dates in high school.”
“Used her for casual sex and then swept her aside, got it.”
“No. It wasn’t like that either.”
“Don’t worry. I’m just giving you a hard time. That stuff doesn’t matter to me.” At least I tried not to let it bug me. It was time to grill Candy about the other bears. “And what about your mom’s bears that showed up in town today, Miss Bear Stalker? Were you going to capture them, too?”
“Those bears are werebears? My mom’s circus bears? No way! Her bears are with her… someplace in Europe.”
“I wouldn’t bet on it,” Morgan said. “Kelly used a spell to free them. Now they’re right here in Caldron Falls.”
“My mom will be coming for them. You are all going to be really screwed once I tell her you were the witches responsible for taking her bears away.”
Professor Bologna interrupted his daughter. “Ursula’s bears are in Caldron Falls? This cannot be happening. Candy, those bears are vicious. They’re absolutely insane. This changes everything.”
“Hmm. I think it’s time to make a deal. Gabe, I heard you whispering to Kelly. Something about a spring? You said, ‘only the spring has that power’. What spring?”
“Spring? You heard wrong,” Gabe growled.
The professor’s face lit up. “The legend! It must be the Ojibwe legend of the magic spring! That’s the place where warriors were transformed into werebears. Then it’s true! All these years of research... ” Something in him changed when he realized the possibilities. “Take me to that spring, Gabe. I must see it.” Without warning, he slipped a small pistol from the jacket of his lab coat and aimed it at Morgan. “Put the wand down, young lady, or your friend gets it. As long as everyone does as I say, I won’t be forced to use this gun.”
“Better listen to my dad. You think I’m crazy? He’s got your crazy.”
“Hold on a sec, Doctor Bologna.” I slowly lowered my wand. “I thought you weren’t exactly okay with your daughter kidnapping a werebear for nefarious purposes, and now you pull a gun in order to learn Gabe’s secret? What’s your agenda?”
“If this was thirty years ago, I’d tell you that my agenda is purely academic—a borderline obsessive curiosity I suppose, but nonetheless academic in nature. It’s true, I seduced Ursula to get close to the bears, but it’s also true that she imprisoned me with her bears when she found out I was only using her. I grew to hate those bears. She eventually kicked me out after I served my time in circus bear hell. Now, I’ve learned Ursula’s bears are here and you can bet they will remember me. Hell, they may be hunting for me as we speak. Listen, Candy, the last thing I want is for my only child to become a bear. However, if I were the one to become a bear like Gabe, I would be able to protect you. Plus, it might be my only way to survive Ursula’s circus bears.”
“I don’t think the spring works like you assume it does, Professor,” Gabe argued.
Oscar waved his gun like he was shooing us toward the door. “We’ll see. Pick up your friend and let’s get moving.”
Gabe picked up Ezzy’s limp body and slung her over his big shoulders. I didn’t care for the way Candy was eyeing up Gabe’s hot, naked body. I had to think of something to say to her. “You know something, Candy. I don’t think you and Gabe ever had anything meaningful. Otherwise, he would have taken you up to the magic spring. Like he did with me.”
Candy tore her eyes off of him and glared at me. “Yeah, well, I’ve had that plenty of times.” She pointed at Gabe�
��s flaccid member. “It may be a Porsche, but it may as well be a Geo if the driver can’t figure out how to handle it.”
Morgan had apparently decided to keep score between me and my rival. “Ooh, that was pretty harsh. Candy takes the lead, and I’m ready to call this contest in her favor.”
“Not so fast. Sounds to me like Gabe didn’t find anything exciting down your dirty, dead end road. It’s clearer than ever to me now. You didn’t have anything special with him like I do. We have awesome sex. That’s because I’m the one he truly loves. He doesn’t hold back, not even his ninth inch. I’m talking the mind-blowing, think-you’ve-died-and-came-back-to-life kind of sex. Truly, it’s incredible.”
“Ouch!” Morgan made tally marks in the air. “Upon further review, fifty points is awarded to Gryffindor for that smack down. Kelly wins.”
Gabe sealed the deal by pulling me over with his free arm, kissing me passionately. I don’t think it was accidental when he swung Ezzy’s ass in Candy’s face.
The professor waved his gun once again. “Knock it off. Use your powers, witch. I’ve seen how Ursula uses a miniature broom, I’m sure you have one, too. Take us all to that spring. We don’t have time to waste.”
“Actually, I’ll need my wand for that.” He didn’t need to know about the tiny broom I had hidden in my pocket. I’d use any excuse I could to get my wand back.
“Very well.” The professor nodded and I bent down to retrieve my wand.
Chapter Nine
At some point during our transport through time and space, Esmeralda was freed from Gabe’s shoulder. She landed with a graceless “thump” on the muddy shore of the spring. Because Gabe and I were familiar with the area, the full moon provided more than enough light to find our way.
You would think this would end with the professor and his daughter diving into the magic water, returning as werebears. I have to be honest, I really didn’t care what they did. My mission was to free Gabe. And the sooner these oddballs were out of the picture, the sooner I could focus on the impossible objective, returning the circus bears to Ursula.
literal leigh 05.7 - mission impawsible Page 4