Page 68 of My Unbearable Mate

“Interesting.” That definitely wasn’t the answer I’d expected. “Maybe I needed your magic to pull that off.”

“Whatever you did, it was one hell of a showing,” he said just before the GPS told us we had reached our destination.

My heart pounded as the convoy of bears pulled over behind us. Everyone had been given their assignments. Bellamy took my hand in his as we headed down the forest trail.

“Does any of this look familiar to you?”

I shook my head. “No. All I remember is two naked bears picking me up”—I grinned as Bellamy growled— “And then being in that tent with tape on my mouth, and all those stones and crystals. They must have spelled me as soon as they captured me. What if they spell us again? All of us?”

“That would take some impressive power,” Bellamy said. “Especially now that your magic has been realized. Can you call on your power?”

“Technically, yes. But I don’t know how I did it when I tried to stop Edgar from challenging you.”

“You were pretty fucking magnificent.” Bellamy grinned at me. “Call it if you need it. The rest of us have your back. I see the tents ahead. If we’re in the right spot, we’ve arrived.”

My body contracted like someone had punched me in the gut as we walked into that village. Or I should say, where the village had been. The place I remembered being vibrant and lively looked long forgotten. Strips of faded, tattered tents rippled in the breeze. The setup seemed similar to what I remembered, with the only remnants of the firepit being some ancient wood in the middle of the clearing.

When I closed my eyes, I felt the energy like they were all here. But when I opened them, it was only Bellamy. He nodded, letting me take the lead.

I made a loop around the village, vaguely aware of the bears from Sawtooth Security watching us from the perimeters. But no sign of the Lynwood clan. One of the tents seemed familiar, even though they all looked the same. Was that the one I’d been kept in?

A peek inside offered no confirmation. It was empty.

“Did I imagine this whole thing?” Everything about the Lynwoods was incredibly frustrating. I settled in the middle of the clearing, where I’d sat between Alba and Anders and enjoyed a giant feast.

“There’s too much evidence that says you didn’t,” Bellamy said as he settled beside me. It was probably no coincidence that he chose Anders’s spot.

“Maybe it was a vision, and my subconscious did a shit job at conveying that it was really you and Nana.” I knotted my fingers in my lap. “It could’ve been Nana’s power all along.”

“She’s admitting she took us on a wild goose chase.” I didn’t recognize the voice of the bear who was talking shit in my earpiece. “Maybe now we can get back to real work.”

Bellamy growled as he rose from the ground. I fully expected his bear to make an appearance. The heat that rolled off his body could’ve ignited the long forgotten wood in the middle of the firepit. “We’re staying until Clover says the job is done. If you think this job is beneath you, hand in your resignation. You’re no longer part of the Sawtooth Security team.”

The declaration was met with deafening silence.

“That’s what I fucking thought,” Bellamy growled. He put his hand on my shoulder. “I’m sorry you had to hear that. I believe in you, Clover. And we’re gonna find this locket and save your nana.”

“Maybe we’re not in the right place,” I said. “Do you feel anything?”

He didn’t answer right away. We’d been so focused on this case we hadn’t explored his powers yet.

“I feel your heartbeat. Your energy,” he said, that protective rumble still resonating in his voice.

He needs your strength, my bear said. The magic can come later.

We sat in silence. I was listening, feeling, and trying to think about anything but how I’d put the entire security company in danger. How I’d fucked things up again. Okay, I was absolutely thinking those things. I could feel the bears getting restless in their outposts, and Bellamy beside me, sure and steady. Massive and magnificent. This bear had every reason to doubt me, to walk away from this whole thing, and here he was, by my side.

Energy swirled inside me, and I thought I was going to get sick. I’d been too nervous to eat before we left. I opened my eyes and gasped.

“Holy shit.” That was definitely Beau’s voice coming through the earpiece. “I’m looking at a real fucking ghost.”

Chapter

Thirty

Who Do You Think You Are?

Clover

---