I always say expect the unexpected. That night was no exception, things turned out a little differently.
The moonlight penetrated the clear magic water and reflected on the white stone bottom. The glow projected an ethereal light show. “It’s beautiful here in the moonlight, Gabe. It’s like a miniature version of the northern lights.”
Gabe picked up Ezzy and sat her upright against a tree. “I never thought of it like that, Kelly. You’re right.”
Esmeralda’s soft mumbling and moaning made me wonder if the fall shook her free from the sedative’s power.
“Is Ezzy okay?” Morgan asked, kneeling down to check her over.
“Hey!” Gabe squeaked and jumped away from Ezzy. “Easy on the merchandise!”
“She’ll be fine,” Morgan said. “She just grabbed two handfuls of werebear balls.”
“I’m going to have to fight these women off of you. You should make a habit of carrying a spare set of clothes in a backpack, Gabe.”
The professor stooped down and tested the water temperature with his hand. “So, this is it. According to the legend, I need to swim to the bottom. When I come back up, I’ll be able to change into a bear. Isn’t that right, Gabe?”
“Shh! Listen.” The professor held his head up and cupped one ear. “I heard splashing. I think someone is in the water.”
“Here, let me light this place up.” I drew a circle in the air with my wand and repeated the words, “Lucreat lux.” The tip flashed, instantly bathing us in a dazzling light. There was something splashing around in the pond all right, a beaver.
“Shoo!” Candy smacked the water with a stick, but the blasé beaver paddled slowly across the surface, undaunted by Candy’s harassment. “Shoot it, Dad. I can’t jump in the water with a giant rat.”
“I’m the one going in, not you.” The professor placed the pistol in his daughter’s hands. “Don’t let them do anything stupid.”
“Really? Might as well shoot them now,” Candy joked.
The professor stripped down to his boxers and waded into the spring. He held his arms out and made his way slowly to deeper water. “Be careful, Dad!”
“What’s the worst that could happen? If it doesn’t work, I’ll still be myself.” The water rippled around his neck. “I’ll be right back.” Those were his parting words before his head disappeared under the surface.
I whispered to Gabe, “Gabe, we need to come up with a plan. I can handle these two, but we still need to figure out what to do about Ursula’s bears.”
“I’m pretty confident I can break the curse so they can have their shifter ability again.” Gabe pointed to the professor’s body slicing through the glimmering depth of the spring. “This spring won’t do anything for Professor Nutjob, but it’ll work on a werebear. Just let me know when you want me to round them up.”
We watched the professor dive down to where the skeletal remains of an old hemlock covered the bubbling water source. He grabbed a branch to hold himself down as he looked in to the dark crevice, the source of the sacred water. He waited too long and when he finally attempted to resurface, he got snagged by the tree. Suddenly, the professor was in a life and death struggle.
“Damn it. He’s caught on the branches. Another damn midnight swim and another chance to drown, just like the last time.” Gabe was ready to dive in, but Candy beat him to the water. She was going to help her dad. I noticed the pistol laying on Candy’s discarded jeans and I quickly picked it up. There was no way those two were getting it back. I was bound and determined to make sure the nutty professor and his crazy daughter had lost their advantage.
Ezzy stumbled over to the shore where we watched the underwater drama unfold. She noted Gabe’s nudity. “Now this is what I’m talking about. I hope I’m not too late to get in on some of this.” Her hands clumsily floundered around as she tried to peel off her leather outfit.
Morgan took Ezzy’s arm over her shoulder and led her back to the tree. “Candy showed up and shot you with a tranquilizer dart.”
“You mean to say I’ve been drugged and didn’t even get to enjoy it?”
While Morgan attended to Ezzy, Gabe and I watched Candy free her father. They rocketed up and broke the surface, gasping for air. As soon as they finally crawled onto the shore, Gabe checked to make sure they were okay. When he returned, he whispered, “Whatever your plan is, now would be a good time to kick it off.” He nodded to me. He was right, and I knew exactly what to do. I took out my mini-broom and prepared to transport everyone back to the institute.
“Gabe, gather up our nocturnal swim team. Morgan, get Ezzy on her feet. We’re going back to the institute. I’ve got a plan, and I need to make a couple of phone calls.”
Chapter Ten
Morgan secured the cage’s heavy latch. The resounding clink was satisfying. “Karma’s a bitch.”
I briefly and quietly explained my plan to Gabe, Ezzy, and Morgan. Once they were on board, I walked around the corner to make a quick call to Randy and Gertie.
“So, what’s the grand plan? You know we’re probably already able to shift into bears. You can let us go, and I promise we’ll leave,” Candy whined from the cage the moment I stepped back into her line of sight.
I lowered my wand and Gabe unloaded the pistol as he winked at me. “Gabe, do you want to tell them?”
“Sure. Here’s the deal, Candy. I tried to tell your dad that the spring does not simply create werebears. It only has the power to create a were-being that manifests your true spirit animal. Aren’t you curious to see what you’ve become? Who knows? You could be a graceful swan and your father a wise owl.” Gabe was taunting Candy. Even he wasn’t above dishing out some payback.
“I think you’re bad mouthing some nice spirit animals, Gabe,” Morgan said.
“All you have to do is feel the energy inside and focus. You’ll notice that it builds up very quickly, then the shift happens. It will be hard to control at first, but eventually you’ll master it. When you get to that point, you may never shift again if you don’t want to.”
“I can’t wait!” The professor closed his eyes and held onto the cage bars. “Come on, Candy. Let’s see if we can shift.” Candy copied her father’s actions. Together, they gritted their teeth and grunted.
“Don’t hurt yourselves!” I couldn’t help but laugh. It really served them right for knowingly capturing Gabe, planning to take his blood, tranquilizing Ezzy, and of course, pulling a gun on us. “Show them how it’s done, baby.”
Gabe stretched and feigned a yawn. “Easy.” He blinked and the change occurred. It’s a sight that never ceases to amaze me. One second, Gabe was there in all of his sexiness. The next second, a bear was in his place. I never realized the American black bear can have a variety of color phases. Other than jet black, they can be chocolate colored or white and of course my favorite, cinnamon—Gabe’s color. He leaned forward and became the majestic jumbo sized furball of my dreams.
“Aw, what’s wrong, Professor? You guys aren’t changing.” I was perhaps a little over the top with sarcasm, just a tad, but it was too fun not to. “Try harder people! I know you can do it!” They both gripped the cage so hard their knuckles turned white and they grunted like constipated gorillas. “What do you think, ladies? Can they do it?”
“I say we run some experiments on their conniving asses,” Ezzy said as she rubbed her swollen thigh. “That fucking dart was no joke. Morgan, hand me that dart rifle. Time to light their asses up.”
“No, no. We can’t stoop to their level.”
“Speak for yourself, sister. I’m not above turning them into pincushions. Ugh! I guess I did promise to stick with your plan.” Ezzy climbed onto Gabe’s back like she was a cowboy getting on his horse. “Don’t get too excited, big boy, this is only until I find my broom. Your bear thinks my broom is up by the spring. I don’t even remember going there.” Just before they disappeared down the corridor, she shouted, “I’ll be back with your special order. Ciao.”
“Thanks, Ezzy. Be careful, Gabe.” I gave them a little wave, then my attention returned to the prisoners. “While they’re out taking care of something, there is someone I want you to meet. I’ve called her in here to help you get through your first shift. You could say she’s a specialist in paranormal creatures.” I called over my shoulder, “Oh Gerr-tie! You’re up!”
Gertie donned one of the white lab coats and approached the cage. “I hear you two are having a difficult time shifting? No worries, it’s normal to experience some anxiety your first time. Sometimes that anxiety can cause some serious performance issues. I’ve got just the ticket for shiftile dysfunction.” Gertie took a small velvet bag from the pocket of the coat. “Oh, I nearly forgot. You’ll never guess who I ran into when I arrived in town tonight, a group of very talented and likeable grizzly bears.”
“No! Don’t tell me you brought them here! Not with us locked in a cage like this. Dad, tell her how bad they are!”
Gertie feigned surprise and concern. “Really? Because I had a very interesting conversation with them. They were very grateful for being set free from that cruel circus life and were quite surprised when they saw Candy in the town square. I believe they said when they rushed toward you, they were trying to greet you. Or maybe they said they were trying to eat you. Ah, you know how hard translating Bearish can be. Anyway, they weren’t very happy when they saw you shoot Gabe with that dart. And when they saw your dad hauling him away, they really got upset. Apparently, there’s some bad blood between those bears and your dad.”
The professor interceded, “Please, just help us shift. It’s our only way to survive.”
“Okay! Relax.” Gertie opened the bag and poured a small amount of pink powder in the palm of her hand. “Now, concentrate. Try to shift.” Candy and her father doubled their earlier efforts. Gertie drew in a deep breath and blew the powder in their faces.
Once the two prisoners stopped coughing and gagging, they fell to the floor of the cage. “What? What was that stuff?” Candy’s voice was uncharacteristically meek.
The professor crawled close to the bars. “How long will it take?”
“Just relax. It’ll make it much easier to shift. Candy, did you know those circus bears are really werebears that can’t shift back? Those poor creatures told me they were cursed by your mother. It takes a lot to upset me. Isn’t that true, Kelly?”
“Oh, that’s certainly true. The only thing that makes you mad is cruelty to animals… and paranormals.”
The cage shook violently from the inhabitants convulsions. It only took minutes for the professor and his daughter to change into grizzly bears.
Our conversation was interrupted by a crack of thunder. A cloud of green smoke appeared and out of it stepped Randy with a witch I had never seen. She was a tall, thin, dark haired woman. She was dressed in black from head to toe. In one hand she held a wand and a bullwhip in the other.
Randy loved to act a part. “Hello everyone! Say hello to the legendary Ursula. She put a BOLOB out for missing paranormal circus bears, so I contacted her and told her a couple may have been captured.”
Morgan, Gertie, and I greeted her in harmony. “Hello, Ursula!”
“What’s a BOLOB?” Gertie asked.
“Be on the lookout for bears,” Randy replied.
“Great. More cheerful witches. This one, who calls himself Randy, tells me you’ve captured two of my missing bears.”
“Yep! Got two of ‘em right here in this cage.” I slapped my hand on the cage door.
“Hmm. You sure they’re mine? How would you really know?” Ursula seemed skeptical.
“Most definitely. Gertie can communicate with bears and she swears they shifted.”
“Is that right, Gertie?”
“Yes, ma’am. A bit disoriented, but they definitely were shifters, and now stuck in bear form.”
“Good. Thank you. I suppose you expect some type of reward now,” Ursula grumbled.
“No. No reward expected,” I answered.
“Hold on. There is one thing.” Randy whispered something in Ursula’s ear.
“Fair enough. Consider it done.” Ursula raised the whip and brought it down expertly. The long whip straightened out and made a distinctive sound of a gunshot. The green cloud returned and when it drifted away, Ursula, Candy, and the professor were gone.
I smiled at how well my last minute plan worked out. “You know, it really makes me feel good to reunite a family.”
Chapter Eleven
Randy turned the corkscrew and gave it a tug until the cork popped free. He filled our glasses and looked up at the night sky. “It sure is nice up here. This old millhouse is the perfect retreat for us. We always end up on this stone patio.”
“So, how long will it be before Ursula figures out who her new werebears are?” Morgan asked.
“It’s just a temporary magic transformation, I’d say a few days, then it’ll hit them hard. They won’t remember anything about tonight. It will be like none of this ever happened.”
The porch lit up like it was hit by lightning. “Ezzy! How’d it go?”
“I’d say it was a success. The bears hopped into the spring and the magic of it dissolved Ursula’s spell. After all their years in captivity, they were finally able to shift back into humans. They started chatting right away, but we have no idea what the hell they’re saying, but when we mentioned Ursula’s name, they just scoffed. I suppose they know a witch can’t place a Class A Hex on the same person twice, so they have no fear of her.”
“So we’re done, right? It really all worked out, right?” I could barely believe myself.
“It seems so. Perfect Karma for each of them.”
“Now what do we do with these twelve werebears?”
“You have to transport them to the last place they were when you cast the spell, Romania. It puts some distance between us if anything should come up later.”
“Do you know where—” I started to ask.
“Speaking of the werebears, there they are now,” Randy interrupted, pointing to the trail that led to the spring.
“You may want to get your cameras ready because you are about to get a treat.”
Gertie gulped. “Sweet Jaysus! Now that’s something you don’t see every day.”
My giant bear lumbered into the yard, bathed in the magical blue-white glow of the full moon. He was surrounded by twelve naked men, each of them an absolute specimen of mouthwatering hotness.
“My calendar came to life!” Randy cheered. “Excuse me while I get a closer look.”
“Feast your eyes for a few,” Ezzy tapped her foot, “seconds. Okay, say goodbye to these sexy beasts.”
“Goodbye, sexy beasts!” Gertie cheerfully waved.
Ezzy spun her broom and mumbled. After the werebears flashed away to Romania, she came closer to me. “I’m glad I found my broom, riding a werebear in leather pants was more uncomfortable than I could have imagined. I need to get out of these and check some things out. I may have rubbed the skin right off of my ass and thighs. Argh! You don’t even want to know how everything else feels.” Ezzy went into the house and she called out, “Hey witch! Don’t call me, I’ll call you.”
I literally jumped in the air from the shock of hearing a gunshot. I turned around and saw Randy snapping a bullwhip. “So, that’s what you asked Ursula for? A bullwhip?”
“A magic bullwhip, otherwise known as a dragon’s tongue. Who knows when something as kick-ass as this might come in handy?” Randy cracked the whip again with even more enthusiasm. Tiny bolts of lightning shot out and streaked over the yard. “This... is… fucking… awesome! Imagine if we took it and our wands trick or treating around the block.”
“Don’t even think about it! I’ve had enough magically induced mayhem to last a while, thank you very much!” I prayed he was only joking.
“Ooh! Let me try,” Gertie begged.
“Randy, it’s shooting out everywhere! Put that thing away before you hurt someone,” I s
colded.
“Yeah, that’s what he said,” Randy snarked back.
“Come on, Randy. Let me play with your whip,” Gertie whined.
“And that’s what he said also.”
Gabe came up the stairs and nudged me off to the side. He rolled his big head while I rubbed behind one of his ears. “I think you should get changed, if you know what I mean,” I whispered. More than ever I wanted to stay in Caldron Falls permanently. I knew I would be making a decision sooner rather than later. In my heart, I already knew the answer.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
USA Today Bestselling Author Melanie James is the author of more than a dozen books. She grew up in western Pennsylvania before heading off to Chicago, seeking new adventures. She found life in a big city fun for a while and even met the love of her life there. Melanie quickly tired of the hustle and bustle of the concrete jungle and settled down with her one true love in northeast Wisconsin.
Melanie has two kids, three step-kids, a beautiful daughter in-law, and the cutest grandbaby. She also has two dogs and two cats that often make appearances in her books.
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