by Celeste Raye
Jazz knew that she would have to tell Cali about it in the morning. She should have said something that evening, knowing that she could very well be putting them all in danger. Jazz felt guilty for a moment, but then pushed the thought away. It was not like anything was going to happen that very evening.
That assessment was about the only thing that kept her going. She knew that no one would know where she was and whoever was looking for her today wasn't going to find her fifty miles away in the middle of the woods. There was a reason that the shifter pack lived out there. It wasn't so easy to find them.
The next morning, Jazz got up, and it took a minute for her to orient herself. It all came back to her rather quickly, and Jazz bolted upright. Her mind was going on a mile a minute and her heart was trying to keep up. The only thing that she could see happening, was another day and a whole lot more questions. She hoped that she could find an answer to some of them.
When she finally got out of bed for the day, Jazz was thankful that it was just her and Cali in the kitchen. It had been a long time since she had lived with the old woman, but both of them seemed to accustom themselves to their former roles naturally. Jazz helped her adoptive mother finish making breakfast.
“You don't know how long it has been since I've had this sort of breakfast. I will say this for you, Cali: you have never had an equal when it comes to the food that you make. It has always been very special to me. I have missed it. I've missed you as well, but you know what I mean...” Her voice trailed off.
“You don't know how long I have waited for you to come back, daughter. I was starting to think that you would let me pass on to the other life, and I wouldn’t get to see you again.”
Although Jazz felt immediately guilty from the old woman's words, it was not meant to be that way. She knew that it was a way for her to be told that she was missed. It was just sad, in a roundabout sort of way.
“You know that I didn’t want to make you feel bad or anything like that, Cali.”
She smiled and put her hand on her cheek. “I know, dear. I didn’t say it to make you feel bad. I just missed you. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you, and it’s nice to have you back here, moving around this old house with me.”
“It’s not the same one, is it?”
Cali agreed that it was. “I had them move me further away from the rest of the village, but this is the same house that you lived in when you were here. How is everything going at the university?”
Jazz had told herself that she needed to have that very conversation with Cali, but that didn’t mean that she was looking forward to it all that much. It wasn’t something that she wanted to mention, the witch from the day before, especially with an Alpha that didn’t like witches. But he wasn’t there at the moment, so it seemed like the perfect time to tell her adoptive mother what was going on.
“Well, things were going pretty good, but then some strange things happened. That’s what made me realize that I needed to know what was really going on. I have been guessing, but it’s not doing me any good.”
“What are you talking about? What strange things?”
“I got my powers, and then the next day, I was called to the principal’s office. It wasn’t all that weird at first, but then she told me that she had found my long-lost family. Whoever it was told her that she was my aunt and she wanted to talk to me.”
Cali was smiling, but she was holding back, and Jazz imagined that she knew what was going on. She knew that it was about to go bad very quickly.
“Well, so I was excited, but then I noticed something that was strange about the principal. She was under some kind of spell. I could see it in her eyes. I started to get a really bad feeling, and I just went with my gut. Your words were playing in my head, and I knew that I had to figure something out. I had to get out of there, so I did. I took off, and I know that maybe I should have stayed and found out, but I got scared.”
Cali tried to assure her that she had done the right thing. She could see the fear in her eyes.
“You know that you did exactly what you were supposed to.”
“I am sorry that I didn’t tell you before.”
“Nonsense. There was a lot going on last night, and Dennis can be a bit more vocal then he needs to be. He was hurt by witches and has not been able to move on from it. It will be good for the two of you to be together. Then he would see that witches can be good as well.”
“I don’t think it really matters what he thinks of me, Cali.”
“Oh, child, it matters more than you realize.”
“Why does it matter so much, Cali?”
She just waved Jazz off and told her that she would find out soon enough.
Jazz wished sometimes that Cali would speak more plainly, but she wasn't going to worry herself about it too much. There was a knock at the door, and Cali informed her that it was probably Dennis.
“He likes to get an early start, Jazz, and I think he will be a big help to you. He’s devoted, even if he doesn’t know it yet.”
Jazz ignored the last bit. “Of course, let me just get my coat.”
She tried to act nonchalant about it, but there was obviously something else on Cali’s mind, and Jazz wanted to know what it was. She had a feeling that it had something to do with Dennis.
Chapter Eight
Dennis had argued relentlessly with Josh about going with. He did not want his younger brother anywhere near Jazz, at least not until Dennis had made his feelings known. He wasn't even sure what his feelings were, just that he felt something for her. There was some sort of draw to her that had been there for quite some time. He wanted to protect her. Back then, that was all he wanted, but now, seeing her all grown up, Dennis wanted more.
“Dennis, I don't see why you are making such a big deal out of it.”
“I am not making a big deal out of it, Josh. There is just a lot going on right now, and it would be nice if you would stay back and help take care of it. You are my brother and second, after all. I shouldn’t have to ask you.”
“Who would do it better than you, Dennis? Maybe you can stay and take care of it. I will take care of Jazz.”
Josh said the last part with a smile on his face; that really got to Dennis. He did not want to hate his brother. The more he talked about Jazz, the more it upset Dennis.
“No, you will not.”
Dennis almost found himself saying something about the fact that she was a witch, but he wasn't going to be that big of a hypocrite. Not when he was thinking about her in a romantic fashion just like his brother. He was no better than Josh, but he wanted Jazz. That should have been enough.
“Come on, Dennis. You usually don't get this uptight. It is not like it would be anything serious. I doubt she would have me as a mate, not as powerful and beautiful as she is now.”
“You have already said that you would have married her if you would have had the chance, brother. I think that is pretty damn serious.”
“So, what, you are trying to save me from myself?”
“If that is what I am meant to do, then yes, but I don't think that I have to do it this time. I just think that you should stay back and help with some of the duties. I will help find her family. Then we can put all of this behind us.”
Josh was not convinced, and that was why he was standing next to Dennis when Cali opened the door. The old woman was happy to see them and invited them in.
“It's good to see you, Dennis. Why don't you guys come on in? Jazz will be ready in just a moment.”
Dennis could see that she was talking to him more than his brother and he wanted to pretend like that was because of her foresight. She had seen something in their future that made her think that Dennis was the one that Jazz was going to be connected to.
The two men went into the house, and it always felt a little bit smaller with them inside. They were both tall and broad-shouldered, like most of the shifter males. They were almost always more muscular than most humans, and Dennis tried to
shrink himself down by sitting on the couch, but instead, it just groaned underneath his weight. Why was he so nervous all of a sudden, like he was seeing her for the first time?
Cali brought them some tea, and although he was going to turn it down, she winked at him, and it made him wonder what was so special about the tea.
He was taking a sip out of the hot liquid when Jazz came from the back room. She had on a similar dress like the one the night before, that didn't quite fit her. Her large breasts were practically popping out of the top, and there was a lot to see from his point of view.
It was hard to drag his eyes off of her, but he looked over at Josh to find that he was gawking in just the same way. Again, he felt jealousy start to run through him and knew that he was going to have to nip it in the bud. One way or another, his brother was going to get the clue. She was going to be his. That was the end of it.
Dennis sat up rather abruptly and told them that it was probably a good time to take off.
Cali told him that he didn't have to run off so quickly, but Dennis used the excuse that he had a lot of work to do. He came across as if he were unbothered by the whole thing and didn't have time for any of it. That was when his brother piped up that he would go with her if he was so busy. Dennis shot him a look, but Josh just smiled at him.
“I am not saying that I am too busy; I just want to get started. I don't know how long this is going to take, and from what you said last night, you're ready to get answers, Jazz. I am just here to facilitate that.”
Jazz thanked him for taking time out of his schedule and Josh made a deflating sound. He really thought that he was going to get the best of Dennis, but his older brother knew better.
Dennis helped her get her coat on. It was hanging on her arm like she was about put it on, and he just hurried it along. Really, he wanted to take a moment to get close to her, catch a whiff of the sweet-smelling flower perfume that he had got to know of the night before. He had known that it was her, and sure enough, she had that same scent on her today. It was enough to send him to a place in his mind that he was trying to stay away from. Dennis was honestly trying to be good.
Once they got outside, they all climbed into Dennis’s car, and they took off towards the direction that the GPS told him to go in. Jazz wanted to know where they were going and Dennis told her that he had talked to some of the people at the hospital where she was born and since they didn't seem to have any of her birth records, he had tracked down one of the nurses that was working the shift when she was born.
It had not been easy for Dennis to come across the information and it certainly hadn't been cheap. Either way, though, it had been worth it. To see her face and the little bit of hope that was edging her eyes, that was all that Dennis needed as a thank you.
Josh wished that he had done a little bit of due-diligence as well, but he had not. He wasn't the type of person that thought things through. He just went with the flow, and that was going to make the difference between him and his brother. Dennis was the one that took the time to plan and to execute things. That's why he was the Alpha.
“I really appreciate your help. I would have never thought of going back that far. I hadn't even really thought it through. I just knew that I needed to find Cali. She has always been a person that I could depend on.”
“Shifters are known for being the reliable type.”
“Are you going to tell me why you hate witches so much?”
Dennis told her that he didn't hate witches. “It is not like that at all.”
“Then why don't you tell me what it's like?”
The problem was Dennis didn't want to. He knew that he should be acting better, but his hatred for witches went pretty deep. It wasn't just the recent run-ins and problems that they had had with them. It was a systemic problem between witches and shifters. Even though there were exceptions made every once in a while—his brother’s new witch wife, for instance—it did not mean that it would be so easy to forget. It was ingrained in him, after all.
“It is just complicated. I assure you though, Jazz, that I have no ill feelings towards you whatsoever. On the contrary, I think that we can get along. For one reason or another, I feel connected to you.”
Even though Dennis had not meant to say all of that, he was happy that he did. It was the truth, and even though he did not understand the draw that he had to the witch, it didn't matter. He didn't have to know why he felt something for her or why he was drawn to her.
Dennis had fallen in love once a long time ago, but he had ruined it all. Instead of choosing the woman, he had chosen his pack and the rules. After watching his brother fall in love with a witch and choosing her over everything, Dennis knew that he would not make the same mistake again. If he did find love, no matter where it was, he was going to go with it. He would choose love this time.
Dennis had zoned out for a moment, and the way that his brother was looking at him told him that he wasn't being as suave and unbothered by it all as he wanted to. For a man that never had problems with women, Dennis was finding himself annoyed at his brother, as well as annoyed with himself.
Why did he feel like a young schoolboy that was being reprimanded? Or better yet, standing up in front of the class giving a report and without a stitch of clothing on? That was how vulnerable he felt.
That pulled him from his fantasies, and instead of saying another word, he shut his mouth and glared at Josh. He knew that it was a bad idea for Josh to come along. Josh was only going to make things more complicated.
They gave in to the silence for a while, and at some point, the woman sitting between them started to lean over onto his shoulder. He looked at the contact, and she asked him if it was okay for her to do that.
“I can move if you want me to.”
It was more than okay, as far as Dennis was concerned, but he just nodded his head and looked away. Again, he was trying to seem nonchalant even though every part of him was bothered.
It wasn't long before she was asleep, and Dennis could feel warmth spreading over him. It was just how she made him feel, and again, he wondered what this hold was that she had on him. He wasn't under a spell, surely not, but that did not mean that he did not feel like he was. Dennis was not acting like himself. He didn't feel like himself. He felt like there had been something missing in his life for a very long time, and he was finally face to face with what that was. Or rather, who that was.
Josh asked Dennis a very simple question, but it was one that he had trouble answering.
“What are you doing, Dennis?”
Dennis just shrugged and kept looking at the road. If he had an answer to that, he probably wouldn't be as confused as he was right now. He needed to keep Jazz safe, and anything after that was still up in the air.
Chapter Nine
If Jazz thought that being around Dennis was going to be hard, she hadn’t considered how hard it was going to be being around two men that were just as attractive as the other and they were both vying for her attention.
Jazz pretended to doze for a little while, just to catch a break. For some reason, the two brothers were paying her way too many compliments. It made her nervous, because she wasn’t used to it and it was awkward because they were trying to one-up each other.
When the car stopped, they both got out, and she had to pick which side she was going to get out of. Each guy was on either side. It was like she was supposed to pick one of them.
“You getting out?”
She must have looked stupid, sitting there, not moving. Dennis’s words finally got her moving, and she went out his side. It gave him a satisfying look on his face, and she grimaced inside. He was the man that she would choose if that was somehow a choice, but that didn’t mean that Dennis needed to be so obvious about the win. He was trying to piss his brother off.
When Jazz had first met Dennis, he had been serious and downright threatening to her. He hadn’t warmed up the first night for sure, but now he was acting like he didn’t hate her beca
use she was a witch. Instead, he was acting like he was actually attracted to her. It was confusing, but her body was certainly responding to the pair of eyes that were on her.
They were at the nurse’s house, but Jazz wasn’t sure how far this was going to go. She didn’t know how they were going to get such an old woman to remember something from such a long time ago. Jazz hoped that there would be something that they could work with, a name, anything.
She had to try though. It would be better than what she knew. At the moment, she was in the dark, except for the fact that someone that was blood relation to her was dead.
Dennis took her hand in reassurance, and she actually appreciated the gesture. It was silly that she was so nervous. She wasn’t likely to learn anything from this. It was a good thought, but still possible to learn nothing. She had to come to terms with that before they got up to the door.
When they did get there and knocked, it wasn’t long before a woman that looked to be in her fifties answered the door. Her hair was up and it was the brightest red that Jazz had ever seen. She was trying to gain attention, and she was surely doing that.
The woman squinted her eyes and then asked them what they wanted. She wasn’t being rude, but she wasn’t being exactly polite either. It was more a tired boredom that told them that they were obviously bothering her in the middle of something that was more important.
“We were wondering if we could ask you a question about something that happened a long time ago?”
That got Darla’s attention, and she waited for them to get on with it. She didn’t invite them in, and Jazz tried not to be offended by the woman in front of her.
“Okay, shoot.”
“I was born twenty-one years ago, and I know that you were the nurse on duty. I am trying to find out if you remember anything about my parents.”
