With nothing else to do for the rest of the evening, Stella sat in the middle of the floor and meditated. Grandma had taught her that when a spell was important, the healer should meditate to help it gain power. There hadn’t been many times in Grandma’s life that Stella had seen her meditate. When she had, though, it had always had unfathomable results.
Stella needed those results now. She needed Grandma’s power and wisdom to shine through during her meditation, and help her spell take hold.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Rick
Rick paced the parking lot, waiting for the kid to text him. Everyone else stood by, stressed and worried. They tried to keep up casual conversation for a while, but soon fell into silence. Rick felt like they were on the edge of something, but he wasn’t sure what.
Austin was sitting on the bed of Rick’s truck, laptop opened, working on deeper background checks into everyone’s employees. Rick was torn between hoping he would find something, and hoping that Rachel was the only chameleon.
His phone pinged, grabbing everybody’s attention.
“He said she’s finally moving.”
Rick wanted to race around the corner and follow her himself, but it would be too obvious. He starred at his phone, willing it to ping again. Ten minutes later, it finally did.
“They’re around the corner just off of Bourbon Street.”
Austin waved them off as he continued to work on his laptop. They all headed down the street, following the kid’s directions. When they finally came to a dark alley lined with French-style homes they saw the kid.
“Here you go, mister. She went into the one three doors down.”
Rick looked down at the house, but nothing about it seemed familiar. He handed the kid his money and the kid took off. They started down to the house as a group, then split up. Jasper and Emma went around back, and Justin stuck by Rick as he headed up the walkway.
Once they were on the porch, Rick stopped. He could hear talking inside. As much as he strained to hear, he couldn’t. The door burst open then. When Rick realized who was walking out of Rachel’s house, he shifted immediately. A roar of anger and betrayal ripped through his throat.
Dave was caught off guard, but managed to shift into his lion form before Rick landed on him, claws sinking into his sides. A cry of pain came out of Dave, but he managed to throw Rick off of him and regain his feet. Rachel ran outside. Justin grabbed her and held her back.
Rick circled Dave in the front yard as low growls came from each shifter. Jasper and Emma came around the corner and looked to Justin.
“It’s Dave. We were right. There must be one with all of us,” he called, holding a struggling Rachel tight.
Dave lunged towards Rick, but Rick slid out of the way, sending Dave crashing into the fence. Then Rick wrapped him up from behind and lifted the giant lion into the air, squeezing him tight. Dave let out a snarl as he thrashed against Rick. Rick couldn’t hang on any longer and he released the lion shifter again. He didn’t want to attack, though. He threw his paw out, landing his claws in the lion’s neck.
Dave pawed at Rick, catching him in his stomach. Rick was oblivious to the pain. Blind rage fueled him forward. Dave roared and made a final leap onto Rick. Rick dug his claws into the lion’s sides and then threw him down on the ground. Rick heard the crack of the lion’s bones as he continued to ply Dave’s lion with his claws.
Finally, Jasper pulled Rick away from the battered lion. Rick breathed heavily and looked around at everyone staring at him with wide eyes.
“He’s gone, Rick,” Jasper said.
Rick shifted and knelt next to the man he had looked at as his friend for years. Then he looked up at Rachel’s tear-stained face.
“Why?”
“We have no choice,” she sobbed.
“Who else!” Austin demanded.
“There’s no one else. It was just me and Dave.”
“Why don’t I believe you?” Rick growled.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Stella
Stella felt pain rip through her body. Her eyes flew open.
“Rick!” she cried out.
As much as she wanted to stay hidden and finish her attack, the pain she felt coming through their mate bond couldn’t be ignored. She opened herself up to their bond.
“Where are you?”
“So now you want to know where I am?” he sneered.
She knew she deserved his anger. Stella ignored the venom in his comment.
“You’re hurt?” she asked.
“I’ll be fine.”
“Rick.”
“Stella.”
“Fine. If you need me, I’m here,” she said, leaving their mate bond open.
As hard as she tried, she couldn’t focus back on her meditation. Her concern for Rick and what he had been doing to become injured worried her too much. Stella picked up the phone in the apartment and dialed Kate’s number.
“Hello?” Kate asked quietly.
“Kate, sorry to disturb you. I hope I didn’t wake the baby.”
“No, I’m at the bar. Are you okay?”
“Yes, but I think Rick may be injured. Could you give me a ride?”
“I’m sorry, I can’t. Greg just left work sick as a dog so I’m filling in. Without Austin here we’re really shorthanded.”
“Okay. Do you want me to come down and help?”
“Can you do that? I thought you were in hiding?”
“The cat will be out of the bag soon enough. If you need help, I can help.”
“That would be great. Thank you so much.”
Stella changed her clothes and headed down to the bar. Kate hadn’t been exaggerating. The bar was packed and Annie was hustling around the floor taking orders and passing out drinks. The cook was frying and flipping faster than SpongeBob SquarePants, and Kate was mixing drinks and pouring beer from the tap at the same time.
The Kamp stayed busy well into the wee hours of the morning, keeping Stella preoccupied. As the last patron left, she and Kate slumped into two bar stools and drank a glass of wine.
“I can’t thank you enough for coming down to help. Greg got so sick, it was just like one second he was fine, the next he looked like death.”
“That fast, huh? Those twenty-four-hour bugs can do that to you. I’m glad I was able to help.”
“Sorry it kept you from Rick. Do you think he’s really hurt?”
“No, I can feel him through our mate bond. He’s injured, but not badly.”
“You guys can communicate through your bond?” Kate asked, bewildered.
“Yeah, because I’m a healer, our bond is different. It’s stronger because of my magic.”
“That must be amazing. I would love to be able to do that with Austin.”
“Until you’re having a disagreement, then you can’t get away from them,” Stella joked.
The door flew open and Austin walked in, followed by the rest of the crew. Justin came in last, tugging Rachel along behind him. Stella stood and went straight to Rick.
“What happened?” she asked, touching the wounds on his chest and face.
As she touched them, they healed. He looked down in amazement and then brought her against him for a rough but quick kiss.
“Don’t ever leave me again,” he said sternly, sending goosebumps down Stella’s arm.
“Why do you have her here?”
“She’s not the only chameleon. There were, are, others.”
“How do you know this? Did you offer this information up?” Stella asked, leaning around Rick to eye Rachel.
“No, we suspected it before, but then we followed her after she left work. She met with Dave tonight.”
“Dave!” Stella yelled.
“He’s dead now,” Rick said, void of all emotion.
Rick went over to the bar and grabbed himself a beer. He held it up to the other guys, and they all nodded. Once everyone had a drink in hand they sat around their usual table. Everyone except Rachel.
She stood by the doorway looking every bit the deer in the headlights. Stella looked at Rick while he glared at the woman.
“Now you’re going to tell me who the other chameleons are,” Rick said, slamming his beer down.
“There aren’t any more. I can’t be here,” Rachel said nervously.
“Either you tell us, or you’ll join Dave in the hole in your backyard,” Jasper said threateningly.
“That’s fine. It would honestly be easier that way. I truly do need to go.”
“You’re not going anywhere.”
“You don’t understand. I can’t be here.”
“He can’t hear you here. This place is secure,” Stella said.
Rachel’s head snapped around to look at Stella. Stella gave her a nod, but didn’t say anything else. Rick’s hand landed on her leg and gave her a tight squeeze. She knew he wanted the name, but she still felt like it was too soon.
Rachel opened her mouth to say something, and then vanished right before their eyes.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Rick
Rick leaped to his feet, sending his chair flying. “Where the hell is she?” he roared.
Stella stood up and put her hand on his arm. “He took her.”
“I thought you said she was safe here.”
“He knew she was here, but he wouldn’t have been able to hear us. He also couldn’t come here himself.”
“Why?”
Stella sighed.
“Stella,” he urged, sitting back down.
“I spent all day in the apartment above here placing several spells on the bar. I wanted this to be a completely safe place. When the time comes, we’ll need it.”
“When what time comes? Who is the guy? Why can’t we know? Start talking!” Austin said, handing down an alpha command.
Stella could feel Austin’s alpha power pushing down on her to submit. She straightened her shoulders and held her ground. As a healer, she could refuse an alpha, if it was for the protection of the pack.
“Stella!” Rick roared.
“I can’t tell you who. Not yet. What I can tell you is that we’ll have to bring the fight to The Kamp. He won’t be completely defenseless here, but he’ll be hindered. You all will be most powerful here. With all of you together, along with your mates and myself, we can defeat him here.”
“So when does all this go down?” Justin asked.
“Soon. The time is coming soon. He’ll know now that I’m the healer. Killing Grandma was meant to cripple us. They didn’t expect Grandma to be powerful enough to transfer her power. Or clever enough to know to do it sooner, rather than later.”
“Go, Grandma!” Emma chirped.
Stella smiled at her daughter.
“If there are other chameleons, we need to focus on weeding them out. They’ll make him stronger.”
“I’ve been working on doing more intrusive background checks on everybody, but nothing’s popped up. I looked at Dave and Rachel both, and nothing sticks out.”
“Nothing will stick out. They’re chameleons. You have to use the magic within you. Your bear will feel uneasy around them. Let your bear decide.”
“I never felt uneasy around Dave,” Rick chimed in.
“Think about how your bear felt when you first met him. Maybe your bear was more subdued than usual. Almost like magic was keeping him from alerting you?” Stella offered.
Everyone fell into deep thought. Stella sagged against Rick’s side, tired from the day. He picked her up and sat her on his lap, holding her close. Austin watched them, and then turned and looked at each member of his immediate pack.
“Let’s all go home. Enjoy your mate, sleep. If Stella’s right then this will only continue to escalate. Let’s make sure we’re ready.” Austin stood and grabbed Kate’s hand.
Everyone said their goodbyes and left. Rick stopped as Stella looked back at Kate and Austin standing in front of the bar door. Once they were at his truck, Stella stopped again.
“Do you feel that?” she asked him.
He gave over to his bear’s powers, trying to feel something. He felt nothing.
“Dark magic is just on the edge, pushing against my spell.”
Rick looked back at the bar, but he still didn’t feel anything. Apparently, that had been his problem. He had been oblivious for much too long.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Stella
They spent the next several days basking in the solitude of their home. Stella had officially moved all of her things into Rick’s house. Her house was on the market. They spent the nights and mornings tangled up in each other. Stella knew eventually the honeymoon would be over. Arriell and Rachel’s handler would seek their revenge.
Until then, Stella planned on living her new life with Rick to the fullest. Part of that meant finalizing their mate bond. Rick seemed hesitant, and Stella knew it was his underlying fear that he would need to sacrifice himself. He felt responsible for everything that was happening.
“Rick, you will not be sacrificing yourself to anybody for any reason. Trust me, we can win this. We’re stronger once we perform the mate bond ceremony.”
“We can’t know what’s to come, Stella. I won’t risk taking you from this earth or risking anybody else’s lives because of my own selfish desire to live.”
“Do you think I wouldn’t follow? Do you really think for one second that if you left this earth that I wouldn’t leave soon after? I can’t be here without you.”
“You have Emma, she may have cubs. You can’t leave the pack without a healer. You’re too valuable.”
“I love Emma, and I would never want to intentionally hurt her, but she would understand.”
“You’re a stubborn woman,” he said as a smile tugged at the corners of his lips.
“I’m yours, though.”
“Yes, that you are. You’re mine, mate.”
“Is that a yes?” she asked, holding her breath.
He nodded and swooped her up, planting her firmly on their kitchen table. He captured her mouth in a devouring kiss that made Stella’s body shake with desire. He started to raise her shirt when someone cleared their throat.
“Gross, Mom. It’s the middle of the day,” Emma laughed, tossing her purse on the kitchen island.
The rest of the gang filed in after her. Stella slid off of the table and straightened her shirt. Her face was red with embarrassment, but Rick looked completely lax about being busted. She elbowed him in the side, making him grunt out a laugh.
“What?” he mouthed.
She shrugged, not really sure what she had expected.
“Things have been pretty quiet,” Austin said.
“They won’t always be,” Stella offered.
She knew the shifters were impatient by nature. Especially when there was a fight looming ahead. They’d rather get it over with. Rachel’s handler worked with dark magic, which meant he was patient and methodical. He was taking his time to plan and plot. What he wouldn’t have in brute strength he would try to make up for with planning and preparation.
“Austin, since you’re here, and the rest of you, Rick and I would like to complete the mate bond ceremony,” Stella said, changing the subject.
“Now?” Kate gasped.
“Yes, is there something wrong with that?”
“You’re not ready. We need to plan. At least get you a nice dress,” Emma said.
Stella rolled her eyes at the young girls.
“Girls, I’m too old to be worried about dresses and things.”
“Whatever, Mom. At least let’s go out and get a dress, maybe some flowers,” Emma said, looking to Rick for backup.
Rick looked over at Stella and shrugged his shoulders. He wasn’t going to be of any help. With a sigh she gestured for the girls to lead the way. Emma squealed in delight.
“When I get back,” Stella said to Rick.
“When you return,” he reiterated.
The girls chatted in the car on their way to the thrift s
tore where Emma had found her dress. Stella felt silly getting excited, but their attitudes were contagious. Once they were in the store, Stella hated to admit they had been right. She was glad she was taking the time to find a dress. With all of the chaos, it seemed right to slow down and savor her and Rick’s ceremony. They had fought for this moment. Following through with it was her idea of winning.
“What about this one, Mom?” Emma cooed over a light blue, chiffon summer dress.
Stella shook her head. Blue seemed too young and innocent. What she and Rick had was far from innocent. She wanted a dress that spoke to their passion and their determination to be together. Three stores and countless dresses later she found what she had been looking for. The dress was deep red and skin tight. Stella was no spring chicken, but her figure was still worthy of the slinky material. She had a pair of black heels that would go with it perfectly and help her be closer to Rick’s height.
Emma rolled her eyes at first, stating her mom looked more like a cocktail waitress. Stella laughed and ignored the comment. She could imagine the way Rick’s eyes would pool with desire when he saw her in the dress. Stella’s heart pounded in her chest at the thought, and her womanhood stirred in anticipation.
By the time they had made it back to her and Rick’s house, the guys had set up an arch. Stella was even more impressed that they had hung flowers across the top of it, and Rick had changed his clothes. She ran upstairs and hastily freshened herself up, then slid the dress on. Stella blushed when she decided to go sans panties. After sliding on her heels she sped back downstairs. Everybody was already outside, waiting for her.
She took a deep breath and then walked outside. Everybody turned towards her, but she only had eyes for Rick. His eyes devoured her. They openly stripped her down in front of everyone, and Stella wished they had thought to be alone for their ceremony. As a healer, she could perform the ceremony herself.
Finally, taking her place next to Rick, she lost herself in his eyes, and took a deep shaky breath. Desire was pulsating off of him. Stella had to focus to keep her legs underneath her. Austin started to speak; as alpha it was his right to perform their ceremony. It didn’t seem to last that long to Stella. She wanted to kick everyone out as soon as it was completed, but while they had been outside, caterers had been setting up food inside.
Saving the Bear (Bear Kamp Book 4) Page 7
