by Celeste Raye
“Do you have any idea where they would be? Or where we could start looking?”
Evelyn thought for a moment and then shrugged. “It could be a multitude of places. I would imagine that this is because of the ancients. Maybe we can do a summoning spell and see if we can find them. I have always been able to find people in the past.”
She didn't sound so sure of herself, but Scott knew that Evelyn was the only chance that they had. He just had to have a little bit of faith. Hopefully, she would be able to show them where the Rebel Bears were.
Scott looked over at Jessica, and he could see she was nervous. Really nervous. He put his arm around her and comforted her. While this was his family, he didn't know them all that well. But it was the family she knew. The difference between how the two of them felt was most likely night and day. He was worried about not having a chance to get to know them better. She was worried about losing everybody she loved.
“It's going to be okay, Jessica. I promise you that we're going to bring them back and everything will be fine. You’ll see.”
There was a tear falling down the side of her face, and it broke his heart.
“It's never going to be the same again. Is this our fault?”
It was the same question he had asked himself, and he told her that it wasn't. Scott really wanted to believe that what he said was true. He didn't want this to be his fault either.
Chapter Twenty
Jessica was nervous about what came next. She had never been without her clan before, and it was different. She, of course, had her husband by her side, something that most likely kept her sane, but at the same time, she had to wonder if she was ever going to see them again. And if she was going to see them again, was it ever going to be the same?
At the moment, Jessica didn't know how it was possible. She was like Scott, feeling guilty, like somehow their push towards happiness had caused all of it. She didn't want to believe it was true but knew there was a good possibility.
Evelyn needed blood for her summoning spell and she said that only Scott's blood would do. Jessica hated to see Scott get cut and the blood fall into a small pestle that looked like it was used for grinding herbs.
It wasn't long before the old woman was shown something for her efforts. The line of blood started to move over a map, and whatever it was that she had seen made Evelyn confused. She brought out another map, dropped more blood on to it, saying the same thing again, and still watched the blood move over the paper. Jessica could see that the first was a map of the world and then of the United States. At least they were still in the country.
It stopped not too far from where they were, and she grumbled to herself.
“What's the matter?”
“Well, according to this, they aren't too far from here at all. I should be able to pick them up, but I can't.”
“Could they be in a cave or something, making it harder to pick up?”
Jessica didn't really know how those things worked. Everybody else was looking at the blood across the map. Scott had a nervous look on his face.
“I bet they’re underground.”
Both women looked at Scott, and then Evelyn agreed.
“You know, I've always heard whispers about where the ancients lived. I've heard that it's an underground lair, about two hundred miles north of here. That is probably where they are. That is the only thing that makes sense to me.”
While Jessica could see that they were happy about the knowledge of where they were, it made things a little bit more complicated. She asked the witch what she knew about the ancient shifters.
“I've heard about them time and time again, but I've never actually seen any of them. They’re whispers, aren't they? They come into a community, claim it to be theirs, and then they usually kill quite a few people in their wake. It is kind of strange to think that I actually don't even know who they are or what they are capable of.”
Jessica was hoping Evelyn would have a little bit more information than ghost stories. Scott seemed to be convinced that the old witch knew everything, but that wasn't the case. If she did, they would have more information to take with them when they went against the ancients. They were an old order of shifters that kept the new ones in line. That's how Jessica had heard it explained over and over again.
She asked a few more questions and didn't get near the answer she wanted. Scott had a few of his own, and Evelyn seemed a bit more attentive towards him. Jessica tried not to take it personally, but she knew that it was likely because of her lineage.
It seemed like anytime she had a problem with somebody, or more specifically, somebody had a problem with her, it was always because of that touch of vampire she had in her. She didn't even know the exact family member on her mom’s side that had given it to her, just that it ran in her blood and made her less than. But not with Scott. He didn't see any difference.
The thought brought her closer to his side, and it wasn't long before they were leaving for the night. Jessica tried not to let herself worry. It was hard not to, though. They didn't have anywhere to go. She hadn't even thought about the fact that every single one of her belongings was now burnt to a crisp. She knew that she was going to be starting a new life with Scott, but she didn't realize it was going to be a completely new start. She thought that she would have at least the wisps of her old life to fall back on when nostalgic.
They got outside of the shack, and both looked at each other, and Jessica finally spoke.
“I don't know if we should believe her or not.”
He shrugged. “I don't think there is any reason not to. She wants us to find her niece. Celeste means a lot to her, and I don't think she would try to stand in our way.”
Jessica agreed, though she still did not trust Evelyn, or pretty much any other witch. Celeste was different because she was family, but the rest...Jessica wasn't ready to trust them just yet.
Evelyn had given them the map to follow, but it wasn't very precise. The blood had ended around the space where there was a dot on the map and a small town called Monroe. Jessica had never heard of it, but she knew that there were probably twenty of the same-named towns in the country. It was a tiny town of about two thousand from the look of it. She was hopeful that Monroe was the place that they were looking for. It just had to be it.
The town was about as unimpressive as it sounded. If there were a whole clan of shifters in the town, she certainly couldn't tell when they drove through for the first time. It really was dismal, and there were only two swinging red lights in the whole place. They stopped at the gas station, and Jessica went in to pay while Scott pumped some gas.
She asked if there had been any large groups of people coming into town, but the hawk-eyed man behind the register didn't notice anything. Jessica had a feeling that if anybody would have been through the town that wasn't supposed to be there, the guy would have noticed.
Jessica thanked him for the help, even though he hadn't helped her much. She left with a smile and kept it plastered on her face until she got out the door. It was a little bit colder there; the chill was already in the air, and it was getting dark. They had to decide if they wanted to keep looking through the night or if they needed to find a place to stay. She was ready for bed, but also anxious to keep going.
When she got back to the car, she was about to ask Scott if he wanted to look for a hotel, but he had talked to the person at the next pump over and had better luck.
They had heard about an underground warehouse on the outskirts of town. It was big gossip a few years back when they were pouring the concrete for it. Some people that worked down at the site said that there was already a large network of tunnels in the mountain and in the ground around it. Scott thought that it was the perfect place to start, and Jessica had to agree, even though she was tired.
“We at least need to go see what we can find. It would be better to go at night. We wouldn't be seen, and from what I've seen so far, this is one of those towns that has a lot more gossip t
han others.”
Jessica had to agree. She was used to living in the city, and that gave the clan the little bit of anonymity. Sure, people knew them by their Rebel Bear jackets, but if they didn't wear it and they weren't on a bike, nobody would notice them. That was not the case in a small town like Monroe. Anything out of the ordinary would be noticed by many. Not only that, but those people that did see it would surely talk to their neighbors about it.
Chapter Twenty-One
While Scott was used to danger, he was out of his element completely with the current situation. Usually, he was in a club with a lot of witnesses. That kept things generally aboveboard and he didn't have too many problems. It didn’t take long to take somebody down, and then he was able to go out about his day when it was over.
It was a danger that he didn't even think about because it was only a few fleeting moments, and then it was over. The worst he had to worry about was a gun or a knife coming out, and that had happened on several occasions. Even then, he didn't really feel any fear. He had nothing to lose.
Now things were different for a multitude of reasons. One of the major differences was the wife that was right next to him. He was trying his best to keep his new wife safe, but it was hard in a situation so alien to him. He was going against shifters, something he had done only one time in the past. These were not regular shifters, though. They had a lot of magic running through their veins. He thought of Evelyn and her advanced age and what it had done for her. She was certainly more powerful than others.
Jessica asked him if he was alright before they got to the entrance of one of the tunnels. Scott was so focused on what was going on in his head that he had forgotten for a moment that Jessica was right next to him. It wasn't the time to talk, but she wanted some assurance that he was okay.
“Everything is fine, Jessica. I am just worried about what's going to happen next. It's just the two of us, and if they had enough power to take all of the Rebel Bear clan, all those people, how are we expected to take them out ourselves?”
“We can always see if Evelyn will help out. She most likely will because of Celeste, but I at least want to know what we’re up against first.”
While Scott was overwhelmed with the whole situation, that didn't mean that he was willing to go ask for help. He wanted to do it himself. He needed to because there was a part of him that knew he had to prove his worth to Jake.
“We're going to do this ourselves. If we can’t, Evelyn will know where to find Celeste. I'm sure she will track somebody down to do what she bids. I hear she is good at that.”
Jessica was somber while Scott was trying to be optimistic. One of them needed to be. He was completely out of his element in all ways, but Scott was convinced that it was all going to work out somehow.
Darkness permeated the tunnel they walked into. It was fitted with a road of smooth concrete. Whatever it was that was going on down there, it was really big. From the plans that Scott and Jessica had gotten, there were ten tunnels going into the place that were just as big as the one that they were in. They were big enough that they could fit semi-trucks. No doubt that was to bring in supplies in, but Scott wondered what all of it was for.
It seemed to make sense that it would also be the mode of transportation that would have been used to take the gang away. They were in the right place; he couldn’t sense like Jessica could, but he knew.
They walked for almost twenty minutes before they came to anything that resembled light. He was thankful for the ease with which he could see in the darkness, not knowing his whole life that it was because of his lineage.
They heard something up ahead; and Jessica and Scott stopped suddenly. Scott was on alert, but his senses weren’t as strong as hers. He hoped she would hear something he couldn’t.
“What's going on?”
“Can't you feel it?”
He stood still trying to feel whatever it was that she could feel. He couldn't feel anything besides anticipation and anxiety.
“They are down here.”
The way she said it did not make him want to ask how they were. It was quite clear to him from the look on her face that they were not doing well at all. He was just going to have to hold on to the feeling that at least they were alive. If they were still alive, there was still a chance. That's all he could ask for.
When they finally came upon people, it was security guards, and at first, he wanted to talk to them. Scott was not above getting the information however he had to, either. Information could always be found with the right motivation.
Scott was moving forward to do just that when Jessica grabbed his arm and shook her head. He didn't like being stopped, but he did, and she suggested they wait to see what would happen next. Finally, the two armed guards went the other way, and Scott and Jessica were left standing there.
“Why did you stop me?”
“Because we don't need to go in there in attack mode. Not until we know what's going on.”
“I was going to get information from them. They probably know where the family is.”
She agreed. “Right, but they also could have radioed for help before we were able to stop them. Then our people might be in even more danger.”
While he could see her point, that didn't mean he agreed with it. Scott was under the impression that it would be better if they went in on the offense. It was obvious that they didn't want to let their people go. It was also obvious that something bad was going to happen if they didn't get them out of there.
It wasn't long before the security guards came back, and he realized what she was doing. She was trying to figure out how long it would take in between intervals, and the next time they left, the two took off deeper into the mountain.
One thing that they both seemed to notice was the fact that there were no shifters as far as they could see. There were obviously a few in there, but the security guards were human.
When Scott said something about it to Jessica, she agreed that it was weird.
“I don't know what to think about this, but I have a really bad feeling.”
“Do you think it's some kind of trap?
She shook her head. That's not what she was thinking at all. “If it was a trap, it would be quite an elaborate one for only two people. They probably didn't even know that we were gone, or that we exist. We’re not on the roster for the last trial.”
“So, you think they're going to have a trial down here?”
She shrugged, and Scott looked around in the darkness. He still didn't know what kind of place it was, but it was starting to feel like more of a human outfit than shifter. Something was off.
They heard the guards as they came through for another round. This time, they hid, but it was Jessica that jumped out onto the guards. He followed suit and grabbed hold of the one that was free. He paid attention to the man’s hands, making sure that they didn’t radio in for help. They hadn’t said anything into their walkie talkies for a while, so Scott hoped that they didn’t have to call back to their people and check-in.
He was reconsidering the whole operation. The two guards were easy to dispatch. They were human, after all, but even then, there could be hundreds of them down there. How else were they going to subdue and transport that many shifters?
“You alright?”
“Yeah, this is just not right.”
She agreed, but neither one of them had much more to add to it.
Light was coming up from ahead, and it took longer to get his eyes adjusted to looking at it. Jessica grabbed his hand and squeezed it like she needed to be reminded that everything was going to be okay.
“What the hell is this, Scott? What are all those military types doing here? Why is a place full of shifters but has human soldiers crawling all over the place?”
Scott shrugged. There wasn’t a clear-cut answer for that. He wanted to get deeper to see what more they could find. He quickly realized that getting them free alone would be iffy at best. They were stronger, but the guards wer
e packing heat.
“Can we get shot?”
She looked at him with wild eyes. “What?”
“I mean, I know that they can shoot us, but will we die from it?”
“We can die, Scott, but we also heal. It’s like that snake bite. You would have died if you were human and didn’t get the antivenom. Since you were a shifter, you just expelled the poison. It saved you. When you get shot, it can save you as well, but we can die too. It would just take more or a really good shot.”
He nodded. It killed any thoughts of him running in and just going for it.
“Well, let’s get as far in as we can without being seen. I don’t know if we are going to be able to do this ourselves.”
Scott thought about sending her out of there, but he was worried that she would be seen on the way out or something equally awful would happen. Scott couldn’t let anything happen to Jessica. She was his mate, his love, and likely carrying his child. Scott knew he was just going to have to be cautious.
The hairs on the back of his neck stood up, and he looked behind him. There were several guards coming their way. They hadn’t been seen, but they would be soon if they didn’t hide.
He pulled Jessica to him and pushed her against the wall. The dark tunnel helped them to stay hidden, but one blast of a flashlight would have changed all of that.
Scott could feel her rapid heartbeat and he knew she was scared. He could feel her trembling as well. He kissed her right in the middle of all of it. They both needed a distraction for the moment.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Are you serious?”
He chuckled and pulled away. “What?”
“We’re trying to not get caught and killed, and that’s all you can think about?”
Jessica had fallen for the kiss for a moment. His lips always felt good pressed to hers, but there was no time for any of that.
