Table of Contents
Prologue (From Book 1.5)
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Finding the Fire Within
Seaside Wolf Pack
Book 2
By C.C. Masters
Copyright 2017 by C.C. Masters.
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Dedication:
Dedicated to everyone who has supported me along this journey! Special thanks goes out to the Seaside Wolf Pack for always keeping me inspired and motivated.
Thank you to Ann Marie Ware, without you there would have never been a book 2.
Thank you to Sam Loneragan and Sarah Reddish for your support, honest opinions, and help getting this book ready for public viewing
Prologue (From Book 1.5)
The Benefactor
He gave a slight smile as he watched his daughter with her new pack. She had grown into a beautiful woman and wolf. Part of the reason for his affection for her was how similar she looked to her mother. He felt a twinge of regret pass through him as he thought of how things had ended with Astrid.
He shook himself out of his nostalgia to do what he came here for. He had become concerned when he no longer received the weekly reports from the human female he had appointed to look after her. The man who he had sent to investigate had reported back to him that Evelyn had died.
It looked as though his daughter had collected a strong group of protectors. That would be necessary now that she was no longer hidden from the world. He reached out with his senses to feel what little remained on the magic he had placed around his daughter. He had initially put a barrier in place to hide her from the world and repress the magic that she contained inside of her.
As she had gotten older the barrier had slowly crumbled enough for her to be able to tap into enough of her magic to shift into a wolf. He watched her now from afar and she seemed happy with the pack she had found.
He reluctantly reinforced what was left of the barrier. She would be able to use enough magic to be mistaken for a normal wolf, but the part of her magic that had come from him would have to stay hidden. It was painful to look at his daughter and hide half of who she was, especially the half that came from him. But sacrifices had to be made when her safety was on the line. She was much safer here with the humans and her pack than she would be in his world.
Chapter 1
Anna
I smoothed down the long black dress that Quinn had found for me to wear to Evelyn’s memorial. I had worked with Mrs. Peterson and the rest of her church to plan a nice service to celebrate Evelyn’s life and what she meant to us.
I stared at myself in the mirror. My pale blond hair was neatly pinned out of my face but flowed down my back. I had put on some mascara to darken my eyelashes and make my green eyes stand out. Austin had made me blush by comparing them to emeralds, but I had to admit that I liked having him look into my eyes with affection.
Satisfied that my dress and hair were appropriate I carefully picked up Evelyn’s urn. James had quietly given it to me a couple of days ago along with a reassuring squeeze of my hand. We were making progress because he hadn’t made any snarky comments at all to me the last two days. He would usually be able to get me so mad, but a small part of me liked the challenge of getting the upper hand of our verbal sparring.
I chewed my lip worriedly; I hoped he hadn’t backed off because he thought I was too weak to handle it. I sighed as I very carefully made my way to the door with my purse over my shoulder and both hands firmly on the urn.
All of the guys had given me some time to myself after James had given me Evelyn’s remains. It wasn’t until I had held the urn in my arms and I was alone in my room that I had finally let all of my emotions out.
For some reason, having her there with me made everything seem so real and so final. I had let all of my grief and anger flow through me for as long as I needed, and I was left with a sense of peace and acceptance.
I knew that being here with this pack is what Evelyn would have wanted for me; I owed it to her to make the most of this opportunity to be part of a real pack. I wasn’t going to give up on finding justice for Evelyn, but now I had my pack to help me. I wasn’t alone anymore.
Mason and Jason met me at the top of the stairs. I gave each of them a brave smile and tried not to get distracted by how handsome they looked in their suits. It was rare that I saw them in anything but jeans or workout clothes. They were well-muscled from working out all the time, but not so bulky that they looked awkward in suits. They were more wide receiver than linebacker.
Their brown hair was gelled into the messy-hot look that they pulled off so well. Jason was clean-shaven, but Mason had some scruff that added a little bit of roughness to his otherwise posh look. Mason took the urn from me and Jason gave me his arm to help me down the stairs.
Quinn had picked out some ridiculous heels to go with this dress, I proposed flats, and we had compromised on wedges. With the long dress and uncomfortable shoes, I was more than happy to take Jason’s arm to avoid tumbling down the stairs.
Mason and Jason were going with me to the service and the gathering afterwards. Austin, Cody, Caleb, and James were going to meet us later tonight when I released Evelyn’s ashes into the ocean. Cody had already checked, there would be a strong breeze tonight that would carry the ashes out to sea.
Evelyn had told me that when she was growing up she had always wanted to visit the ocean. She had been so happy when she moved to her house near the oceanfront, so I thought she would be pleased to have her ashes carried away by the ocean breeze into eternity.
We were about to start down the stairs when I heard a door open in the hallway behind me. The three of us turned to see Caleb looking nervous. His dark brown hair was messy as if he had just gotten out of bed and his warm brown eyes were unsure.
“Uh, hey Anna. I just wanted to say…” he hesitated and cleared his throat. “I don’t know the right words for this- is good luck today appropriate?”
I gave him a warm smile and headed back down the hallway to him. I held out a hand to him and he enclosed it in one of his.
“Thanks, Caleb.” I told him softly.
He blushed but looked me in the eyes. “If you need anything today, I’m here for you. You can call or text, I will keep my phone on me.”
I gave his hand a squeeze. “I appreciate that Caleb.”
“Anytime, Anna Banana.”
I chuckled at his nickname for me.
Jason was getting tired of waiting and headed down the hallway to us. “C’mon, Anna. It’s time to get going.”
Caleb gave him a reproachful look, but Jason just ignored him and tossed me over his shoulder.
“Hey!” I squawked as he carried me down the stairs.
He laughed. “Those look like uncomfortable shoes, Anna.” He teased me. “I wouldn’t want you t
o fall.”
He made it down the stairs without dropping me but showed no intention of putting me down as he walked to the door.
“Okay, Jase.” I said, warning in my voice.
He just laughed, and I got nervous. Now was not the time for pranks, today was important.
“Put her down.” Austin’s voice came out of nowhere.
Jason set me down gently and I tried to fix my now messy hair. He stood next to me on my right and Mason on my left so that I was standing between the twins. Austin strode towards us with a scowl on his face. He was well-dressed, as per his usual, but his dark blonde hair looked like he had been running his hands through it. His blue eyes flashed with impatience. If the twins were wide receivers, Austin was the quarterback.
Austin stopped in front of us and eyed both the twins. “Remember what we talked about, no shenanigans today. Be prepared for anything that might come your way.”
I frowned, was Austin expecting trouble today?
The twins both had serious looks on their faces.
“You got it, boss.” Mason told him.
Jason opened his suit jacket and I saw a flash of a handgun in a holster. I gaped in surprise, but if anyone noticed the shock on my face they ignored it.
“We are locked and loaded, boss.” Jason told Austin confidently. Austin gave each of them a nod and his gaze softened as he looked at me.
“If either of them give you trouble, you let me know.” He said softly.
I smiled at him. “Don’t worry; I can keep them in line.”
He gave a chuckle and then smiled at me affectionately. “I don’t doubt it.”
Jason opened the front door for us and we headed to the car after one last goodbye to Austin. The sun was shining brightly today, and it was unseasonably warm. It was going to be around 70 degrees today, which was warm for November, but Evelyn would have considered it to be absolutely perfect.
Mason carefully buckled the urn into a seat with a seatbelt and I nodded at him in approval. He looked a little embarrassed when Jason smirked at him, but he just shrugged and mumbled, “What? It’s important to Anna.”
My heart warmed at his thoughtfulness. Today was going to be difficult, but not as difficult as I had thought. I had already said goodbye to Evelyn in my heart, today was a day to celebrate her and what she meant to me. I was grateful that both of the twins were going to be here for me today if I needed to lean on them a little.
Because of the temperature we left the windows open so I could feel the heat of the sun and the coolness of the breeze as we drove. The twins took the road that gave us occasional glimpses of the ocean and the breeze carried the distinctive scent of salt water.
I had spent the couple weeks living with the guys at the giant mansion. Initially, I had been nervous about going back to work after everything that happened. But Austin was surprisingly supportive of my return. The twins had wanted me to just quit my job and asked Austin to give me a work assignment for the pack.
I was grateful that Austin realized how much my job meant to me. I had spent most of my childhood being told that I was nothing- just a burden, a useless piece of garbage soaking up precious resources. Having a career gave me a sense of identity and accomplishment. I wasn’t nothing, I was a pharmacist at Seaside Navel Medical Center.
It might seem silly to some people, but I felt like giving up my job would be giving up the life and the identity that I had struggled so hard to get. It had taken years of personal sacrifice to get where I was right now, and I didn’t want to throw it all away just because some guys asked me to.
I felt like giving it up would make me return to being nothing, just a leech living off of the pack’s generosity. I know Austin wouldn’t feel the same hatred and disdain for me as my uncle had, but fear was ingrained deep inside of me.
While I was determined to retain my independence and self-sufficiency, I wasn’t stupid. There was a murderer still out there and there had been a kidnapping attempt on me just last week. James had put together security protocols for me and I was happy to comply.
I might be an expert in my field, but I needed to trust them to be experts in theirs. Judging by how quickly the Seaside pack had tracked me down once they became aware there was a female hiding somewhere on their territory, evasion was not one of my strong suits. Once they had caught my scent in Evelyn’s house, it had taken them less than 24 hrs to find my home and my job.
The twins and I had settled into a routine during the past couple weeks. They would take me to work and wait until I was safely on base before going to their classes or running errands for the pack. I stayed in view of the many cameras in the hospital and didn’t wander into the public areas for lunch like I used to.
After work we would make dinner for whoever was in the house that night, and I would help out with any assignments the twins might have for class. I smiled as I thought about how much of a family we were becoming.
“What’s so funny?” Jason asked, cutting into my thoughts.
I smiled at him, “I was just thinking about the three of us, you know, we are like the three musketeers or something.”
Mason laughed. “James would probably disagree. I heard him complaining to Cody about the three stooges last night. I’m pretty sure he was talking about us.”
I giggled. “He’s probably still upset about the glitter.”
Both of the twins laughed. Earlier this week we had tried to put a very fine glitter in his body wash but were disappointed when almost none of it stayed on his skin. To make up for the fail we mailed him a glitter bomb. He was still finding glitter everywhere days later. Probably because I kept sprinkling extra glitter in his room and his office when he wasn’t around.
Mason pulled up to the church where the service was being held and drove slowly through the parking lot, looking for an empty space. I slouched down in my seat and glanced over at the urn. Now that the moment was here, I no longer felt ready for it.
I chewed on my lip. “So, what do I say if Mrs. Peterson asks questions about the investigation?” I asked the twins.
The twins glanced at each other.
“Why would she ask questions?” Mason asked me.
I ran my hands over my dress, smoothing out the nonexistent wrinkles. “Because she’s the one who found the body,” I said quietly. “She knows the truth.”
Jason shook his head at me. “No, she doesn’t. The council’s clean-up crew took care of all of that. No one knows that she was murdered except us.”
I frowned at him. “I get that you can buy someone’s silence, but money won’t make anyone forget. She might just be waiting to get me alone to talk about it because she can’t talk to anyone else.”
Jason laughed and didn’t even try to hide his smile when I glared at him.
“Anna, the council didn’t bribe Mrs. Peterson not to talk.” Mason told me gently. “They have connections with the lamia, so they really did take her memories. All Mrs. Peterson will have left is a fuzzy recollection of finding the body of an elderly woman who died in her sleep.”
My jaw dropped. “What’s a lamia?” I asked them as Mason slid the jeep into a parking spot.
Both twins turned and looked at me in astonishment. “I know you said that Evelyn didn’t teach you much about wolves…” Mason’s voice trailed off as he looked at Jason.
“We assumed that she would have taught you about everything else in our world, though. Since you were in hiding you should have known what to look out for.”
I shrugged in dismay. There was more than just us werewolves out there? How could I have not known that?
A couple walked past the jeep on their way into the church. “We can talk about this later, Anna. A church parking lot with humans wandering through isn’t the place for this.” Mason told me.
Externally I just nodded and reached for the door handle, but internally I growled in frustration. How could there still be so much that I was ignorant of? I glanced at the urn as I stepped out of the vehicle
.
Evelyn had kept so many secrets from me. A part of me understood that she had done it to protect me, but another part of me was angry that she had never completely trusted me with her secrets.
She should have told me that there were more than just wolves out there that I had to hide from. What if I had run into a lamia without knowing it?
I leaned close to Jason so I could whisper in his ear. “By lamia, do you mean the Persian snake people of myth and legend?”
Jason’s eyes widened in surprise before he burst out laughing.
“What?” Mason asked curiously as he came around the other side of the Jeep, holding the urn.
Jason must have sent him what I had asked via their bond because he laughed as well.
“Think more like Edward Cullen, minus the glitter.” He told me with a chuckle.
I scowled at both of them, but I took Jason’s arm when he offered it to me. Mason followed us into the church, carrying the urn.
Vampires were real? This was ridiculous, what was next? Witches, faeries? These guys had better be ready to do a lot of explaining when we got home later today.
We stepped inside of the church and the sunlight disappeared as the door shut behind us. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the dim light inside. I sighed. I guess the shadowy light gave the event a solemn feel, but Evelyn hated being trapped in the gloomy indoors when she could be outside in the warm sun.
The church also had a musty smell to it, as if someone needed to air out the stuffy foyer. It was probably the right atmosphere for a funeral service, but I think Evelyn would have preferred more of a celebration of life. I tried to be appreciative, the church had been very accommodating to schedule this with such short notice.
Mrs. Peterson met me right in the entranceway. “Anna! I’m so happy to see you.” She reached to give me a hug and Jason released my arm so that I could embrace her.
I stiffly gave her a brief hug to be polite, but pulled away as soon as possible. She didn’t seem to notice and turned to Jason. “I didn’t know you had a beau!”
Finding the Fire Within Page 1
