Sharon's Wolves (Wolf Masters Book 10) (27 page)

When they reached Melinda’s side, they shifted back into bear form quickly.

Wyatt nodded at the aura that reappeared in front of them.
“And there’s our spirit guide. I say we follow it. Seems like it won’t fail us. Your mate surely has ten thousand other things to take care of.”

Sharon stood next to Jackson in the sheriff’s office and listened to Trace’s boss, Sheriff Bergman, shouting out instructions to everyone around him. Every deputy was on call.

Next to him was Sheriff Richards from Sojourn. Since the epicenter of the quakes and the location of the eruption was north of Cambridge, every deputy available from both towns was present at the Cambridge sheriff’s office.

Even Pete Sandhouse was there.

Sharon wanted to glare at the asshole, but it seemed when push came to shove, he was willing to put his bigotry aside and save lives. At least she hoped so.

After the initial instructions were passed out to every willing hand in the high school parking lot, the command center had moved to the sheriff’s office.

The same group of people who had grumbled at each other as though they would sooner kill each other than get along just hours ago were now working side by side to save lives and arrange lodging for stranded hikers and workers from the logging site and the fracking company.

Sharon’s parents had opened their lodge to anyone who was displaced and needed a place to sleep or a meal to eat. Race, sexual orientation, religion, and even status as a human faded away under the crisis.

Sharon’s heart pounded every time she thought about Cooper up on the mountain. She didn’t want to distract him, but she also couldn’t stand going more than fifteen minutes at a time without word.
“Coop.”

Jackson turned to face her, his hands fisted at his sides. He did that a lot. She knew it was because he needed to touch her and couldn’t in public. Or at least shouldn’t.

“I’m still here, babe.”

“What’s happening?”

“Nothing new. The volcanologist and the US Geological Survey are here. We’re setting up near a cave just south of the epicenter. There’s no guarantee an eruption would happen specifically in that location, however. It could easily be farther up the mountain.”

“Or not at all?”
she asked.

“That too. It could be months or years before anything else happens. We’ll watch the situation closely from here for now. But I’m not taking any chances. And no one else should either.”

“Of course.”

Jackson interrupted.
“You call hanging around the location of dozens of holes in the Earth that are spewing gases not taking any chances?”

Cooper ignored Jackson’s retort.
“Jackson, keep Sharon safe. Please. I don’t want to worry about the two of you also.”

“Should we be evacuating Cambridge? All the relief effort is centered here right now. Are we too close?”
Sharon asked.

“You’re safe for now. This is fifteen miles away. As long as everyone on the mountain between here and there has been warned and relocated, that’s the best you can do. If there’s a change, it will be easier to round everyone up and move farther away if they’re all inside the city limits. Like I said, the activity we’ve seen so far could be the end of it, perhaps even for a hundred years.”

“Okay. Stay in touch.”

“Let me get back to work before people start thinking I’m having a seizure over here staring into space.”

He cut the connection.

Sharon jerked awake when someone touched her shoulder. She sat up abruptly from her spot on a cot that had been brought into the sheriff’s office. There were dozens of them around the room. Melinda sat next to her. “Sorry, hon. I hated to wake you, but I knew you’d want to know when I got back.”

“Shit.” She looked around the noisy sheriff’s office, still bustling with activity even though it was early morning. “Were you out there all night?”

“Yeah. Learned a lot too.”

“About what?” She sat up straighter. “Those brothers?”

“Yep. For another time. I’m heading back to the hospital. Thought you might want to come along.”

Sharon glanced around again. “Not sure if I should.” She spotted Jackson leaning over a table covered in maps.

“It will do you good. Cooper’s still in the mountains. Everyone anyone knows has been warned and evacuated. Jackson’s providing his expertise about the logging sites, both old and new and what possible structures might be still usable at each site.

“Come with me. You need food and fresh air. It will keep your mind occupied.”

Jackson glanced her way and nodded.
“Go with Melinda. Take a break,”
he communicated.

She chewed on her bottom lip and then consented. “Okay, but only for a while.”

“Great.” Melinda stood. “We’ll get coffee on the way.”

Ten minutes later the two of them were on the road to Sojourn’s hospital. It was forty minutes away.

Melinda drove.

“How’s Mimi this morning?” Sharon stared out the window at the first light of day. Gray. Dreary. Hazy. The air smelled horrible, even from inside the car.

“The good news is she regained enough strength to sit up last night. Her doctor is a shifter. The first chance he gets as soon as she’s able, he’ll have her shift and see if she can heal that way. It’s a tough situation, however, since leaving the hospital isn’t a good idea, and shifting someplace where one might get caught is even worse.”

“Damn. That sucks.”

“Exactly. But it makes me nervous not knowing what, if anything, might happen if only she could shift and let her body heal on its own.”

As they crossed onto the reservation, Melinda slowed the car. “Oh good. A roadblock.” Her voice oozed with sarcasm.

“Why?”

She shrugged. “Probably to warn people to stay off the mountains and listen to the news in their homes.” As she came to a stop, she rolled her eyes. “Oh double yay.”

“What now?”

“Pete Sandhouse.” She nodded toward the deputy heading their way.

Sharon recognized him. She’d seen him several times in the past, but after last night’s display, she would never forget his face. What a jackass. The man was a shifter for Christ’s sake. And he was also somehow opposed to threesomes. It made no sense to her. He knew perfectly well that mates were chosen by Fate, not happenstance.

Melinda rolled down the window.

“Ladies.” He tipped his hat as he spoke. His word should have sounded pleasant enough. But it didn’t. And the smirk on his lips made Sharon want to punch him.

“What do you want, Sandhouse?” Melinda asked.

He cackled. “Let’s see. What do I want? A public apology would be nice for starters.”

“Not going to happen, Pete. Let us through.”

“Not sure if you’ve heard, but there’s a city-wide ban on ascending the mountains. It’s not safe today.”

“I’m super clear on that, Pete. Can we go now?”

He stared at her, narrowing his gaze. “Heard about your grandmother. Such a shame. You must be heartbroken. A woman like her… Still in her prime… A stroke is quite the silent killer.”

Melinda gritted her teeth. “She’s not dead, you asshole. Now, can we please get by so we can visit her in the hospital?”

“Oh. Sure. My bad. You ladies have a nice day. Watch out for lava and stay safe.” His words were mocking as though he didn’t believe a word about the Earth’s upset.

“Goodbye, Pete.” Melinda rolled up her window before she finished the sentence. “Asshole,” she muttered under her breath.

“I’m surprised he’s not on probation or something with the sheriff’s office after the way he acted last night.”

Melinda held the steering wheel so tight her knuckles turned white. “Believe me, if we could have nailed his ass to the wall a long time ago, we would have. Unfortunately bigotry isn’t grounds for dismissal.”

Sharon rolled her head against the back of the seat, trying to work out the kinks. “Apparently throwing rocks through my brother’s mate’s window and threatening them isn’t, either. Or hey, how about attempted murder. He was most likely involved in the gas leak in my condo when Zach, Corbin, and Laurie were living there.”

Melinda sighed. “I hear you. I wish someone could have proven he was present for any of those things.”

Sharon didn’t have the energy to focus on Pete Sandhouse. She had a mate too close to the seismic activity, another mate insisting on remaining in the thick of things in town, and a sweet old woman with a stroke to concentrate on.

When they arrived at the hospital, Joyce met them in the hallway outside Mimi’s room. “Oh good, you’re here.” She smiled at Melinda and then Sharon.

“What’s happening?” Melinda asked.

“We’re going to take Mimi home.”

“What? Why? I thought we had decided the benefits of the stroke medication outweighed the unknown effects of shifting.”

Joyce nodded. “That was before she started getting more lucid. She’s got limited control of her left side, and her voice is slurred, but she’s alert and understands what’s happening around her. We’ve made the decision to move her to her own home and see if she can make bigger strides in her personal surroundings.”

Melinda nodded. “Makes sense. The doctor thinks this is a good idea?”

“He’s hedging, of course, but yes.”

Sharon felt for these woman. They loved Mimi more than life. And she couldn’t blame them. Even though the woman was not her own grandmother, she’d met her many times, and she was delightful. She was also the strongest shaman alive. Her insight surpassed anyone’s, even Melinda’s.

Melinda’s shoulders fell.

Sharon watched her closely, wondering why she was so opposed to moving Mimi home. Lots of regular humans would even benefit from their own environments. Why not Mimi, who could in all likelihood shift and rest for hours at home?

It wasn’t until they were back in the car following Joyce and Laurie, who had Mimi stretched out in the backseat, that Sharon asked Melinda the hard question. “What’s the matter?”

Melinda shrugged. “My gut tells me this is a bad idea.”

“Because?”

A long silence ensued before Melinda spoke again. “Because every single sensitivity I’ve ever had seems to have doubled in the last twenty-four hours.”

“You’re under a lot of stress. You spent the night running all over the mountainside saving lives. That’s understandable.”

Melinda shook her head. “No. Not that. It’s more. It’s like ever since she had the stroke, my abilities increased.”

“Oh.”
Ohhh
.

“Yeah, oh. It’s like she’s already gone, and the baton has passed to me.”

“Why not your mother? Do you suppose she’s experiencing the same thing?”

Melinda shook her head. “No. She was gone for twenty-seven years. That does something to a person. And before that she spent three years dealing with a rape that Miles and I were the byproducts of. That gets under the skin and changes a person no matter how much they love their kids.”

Sharon reached across the console and touched Melinda’s shoulder. The woman was stiff and almost cold. “I’m sorry. I’m sure this is very stressful for you.”

“Yeah. Putting it mildly. Mimi raised me.” Her voice choked up, and she wiped her eyes with the back of one hand, trying to keep her gaze on the road. “She’s like a mother. Much more than a mother. And I’m scared.”

“Maybe shifting will help.”

“Maybe.” Melinda’s voice was weak.

Sharon knew her words weren’t penetrating. Her friend was scared. And rightfully so. She was also tired. When they got to the house, she needed to nap no matter what. If they could get Mimi to shift, she would need hours of resting in wolf form. The perfect time for Melinda to sleep also.

»»•««

Two hours later, Sharon sat in a chair in Mimi’s bedroom staring across the room at the spirit that had taken up residence.

Mimi had managed to shift with very little difficulty and rested peacefully now. Laurie and Joyce had been up all night with Mimi. Melinda had been up all night saving biologists and hikers. All three women needed rest, and Sharon had insisted she would keep watch over Mimi while they did so in the guest room and on the living room couch.

For over an hour, Sharon had sat vigil on this chair. Not once had she felt too tired to keep her eyes open because not for a second had the aura gone away. It presented itself the second the rest of the family had gone to sleep, and it hadn’t moved more than to shimmer in place since then.

To the best of Sharon’s knowledge, no spirit had hung around this long. Unless Cooper was staring at the same scene up on the mountain, which was also likely.

What did it want? Was it here to protect Mimi? Or perhaps to take her to the other side?

A shiver shook Sharon’s frame for the millionth time.

And still she didn’t move. She knew instinctively she wasn’t meant to awaken the others. Though the aura had no distinct features—no face, no eyes, no mouth—it did have a presence that insinuated it was more than an apparition.

It calmed her. The longer she sat in its presence, the more she relaxed. She prayed for Melinda’s sake this black cloud of smoke was feeding life into Mimi. Sharon wasn’t altogether sure Melinda could handle the pressure of her grandmother dying on top of everything else.

“You okay, babe?”
Cooper communicated.

“Yeah. I’m with Mimi. Melinda and her family are napping.”

“Good. It will keep your mind occupied.”

“Hey. Are there any spirits hanging around you?”

“Yep. Several. They’ve been here all night. Some are lighter than others. Odd looking. And they give off a totally different vibe.”
He chuckled.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d say the black ones are wolf spirits, and the brown ones are those of another species.”

“That could be. Like Wyatt and Isaiah perhaps?”

“Hadn’t thought of that. You’re probably right. Did Melinda say anything about them?”

“Not yet. She’s preoccupied. I’ll ask her when the time is right. She did say she had tales to tell from last night, but nothing else yet.”