Mate Marked: Shifters of Silver Peak (13 page)

Mitch lay by the side of the road, trussed up like a turkey, screaming threats and promises and pleas for mercy. He’d make them all millionaires! Multi-millionaires! He’d give them anything they wanted!

They ignored him.

They stood on the front porch, outside the house. Roman had found the signal jammer and disabled it, and they’d called the Council for Shifter Affairs. At this point, they didn’t want to deal with the Juniper police department. State Police had been notified and were on their way.

Chelsea was still shaken. She leaned on Roman, who had his arm wrapped protectively around her shoulders.

“What’s going to happen to those wolves?” Ryan asked. The wolves had been fed, and Roman had locked them back up inside the house. They’d followed him around in postures of submission; they could sense an Alpha, even one in shifter form.

“They’ll be treated by a vet, and then the Department of Fish and Game will release them in a wilderness area,” Chelsea said. “We’ll make sure of it.”

“Forget that,” Joyce said impatiently, fixing her gaze on her grandmother. “What exactly is going on with you? Talk. Now.”

“Those mineral springs, dear,” Edna said. “They were good for more than my arthritis. Ever since I started soaking in them, my head started clearing up.”

“Why didn’t you say something?” Joyce demanded.

“Oh, I was going to get around to it, sooner or later. But it’s amazing how much people will say and do in front of an old lady when they think she’s addled,” Edna said cheerfully. “I’ve been having fun with it.” Then she cast a severe look at her two grandsons. “I’m on to you,” she said to them. “No more sneaking into the kitchen at two a.m. for thirds on dessert.”

Joyce gasped indignantly.

They both pretended to be looking at something off in the distance, and Shawn started whistling, hands stuck in his pockets.

“Speaking of sneaking off, you never told me why you went and destroyed the evidence that Mitch was trying to plant,” Joyce said to her brothers.

Shawn glanced over at Roman. “It was to protect the shifters. Paul and Leland. They were coming onto our property in the middle of the night and fixing things. They put up new fence, and they fixed the chicken coop, and they killed the fox that was eating our chickens. We saw them.”

“Those sneaky bas— uh, bass fishers,” Roman stopped himself just in time. “That’s why they were always tired in the morning. That’s where they were going at night.”

“Paul likes my sister,” Shawn added. “He made me promise not to tell. He said they had to leave town soon, so he couldn’t ask her out on a date. I wish he could stay, though. He was going to teach me how to use a bow and arrow.”

“He may still get the chance,” Roman said. “I’m going to be talking to my pack. I get the feeling that they’d like to stick around here for a while. Maybe permanently.”

Chelsea nodded, squeezing his hand.

They’d stay here. They’d have a house here. Together.

“You know what else is fixed up? My arthritis. It’s just about gone. I can skip around like a first-grader,” Edna said. She demonstrated, skipping across the lawn.

“Still a little touched in the head,” Joyce whispered.

“And my hearing is perfect!” Edna called out to her, shooting an annoyed look in her granddaughter’s direction.

Mitch’s screams had died out to despairing wails. They still ignored him.

Edna did a cartwheel across the lawn, and Ryan and Shawn ran over to join her, whooping and hollering. “If those mineral springs can really do all that…” Joyce marveled. “Think of how many people they could help.”

“You’re sitting on a fortune,” Chelsea told her. “And for that matter, so is the town of Silver Peak, since the springs are partly on their land. Everyone in the world will want to come here. My God, everybody’s problems are solved. You’re rich. The pack is rich.”

“You could go back to being sheriff and earn a real salary,” Roman mused.

“Oh dear God, no. But once business starts coming back, somebody could afford to hire me as a baker,” Chelsea said.

“In the meantime, you’ll get to enjoy the taste of powdered eggs and wild rabbit. And the joys of camp life.” Roman squeezed her shoulders, then looked down at her anxiously. “Won’t you?”

She leaned back. “Home is where you are,” she said. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

* * * * *

Three months later…

The soft opening of Wintergreen’s Bakery was a wild success. The entire pack was in attendance, as well as all the new townspeople who’d swarmed to Silver Peak when the news about the mineral springs had come out, and the construction workers who were building new hotels and a massive resort right next to the springs. It was like the gold rush of the 1800s. The town had sprung back to life, and every business was bustling with customers from early morning to late at night.

All of the Silver Peak pack members, and the Dudley family, had a share of the profits. And Chelsea had joined the pack at exactly the right time.

She’d used her share to open her own bakery.

Mitch Rodgers and a couple of the police officers in Juniper who’d conspired with him were in prison, facing trial and the death penalty.

Mayor Winkleman was now the ex-mayor. He’d finally been able to step down; Lorena and Susan had tied the vote, and were serving as the town’s first ever co-mayors. They squabbled constantly.

Barbara had so much front-page news she barely knew what to do with herself, and she’d hired a reporter and a photographer.

Paul and Joyce were dating, and he and the Silver Peak pack were now building a mansion-style home on the Dudley property. Ryan and Shawn were excited about getting their own rooms.

Benjamin was the new Alpha of the Silver Peak pack. He’d proven extremely popular. He was attending the bakery opening with the rest of his pack, maintaining crowd control and picking up trash.

Marcus had even stopped by early, and had gruffly shoved a couple of twenties at her to stock up on baked goods for the week. As soon as the crowds had arrived, he’d fled.

Roman’s family in Colorado had hired Chelsea to do the wedding cake for his cousin’s Mate-Marking ceremony. And they’d dropped the charges against Roman after Chelsea had nagged him into flying out there for a long overdue visit, so Roman was no longer an outlaw on the run.

Chelsea stood at the back of the bakery, watching the happy crowd and holding Roman’s hand. Erika and Leland were sitting at a table next to them, chowing down on brownies. Louise was beaming with approval, watching them. Erika had her hair pulled back in a ponytail to show off her new Mate Mark.

Chelsea had it all. Everything she’d ever wanted. A pack, a life mate, a best friend. Well, she had it all except for one tiny little thing. Not that it mattered, except she’d been up all night prepping for the soft opening and she was exhausted.

“No coffee, curse my ever-loving life,” Chelsea said to Roman. She hid a huge yawn behind her hand.

“You can have decaf,” Roman pointed out.

“Decaf. Feh. It is a terrible tease which fails to deliver on its promise. Unlike you,” she added, kissing him on the cheek. “You never fail to deliver.”

He winked at her. “Damn straight. Five times last night. I still got it.”

“Why can’t you have coffee?” Erika asked around a mouthful of brownie.

Leland gave him a quizzical look. “Is there something you want to tell the pack, Roman?”

Erika’s eyes widened. “Are you…?”

“Maybe,” Chelsea said, blushing. She glanced at Roman, who grinned at her. “It was a surprise. We just found out. So, yeah, approximately six more months of no caffeine. Or alcohol. But, you know, worth it.”

“Oh my God, oh my God, I’m going to be an aunt!” Erika screamed. She leapt to her feet and started dancing around and waving her arms over her head. Everyone turned to stare at Chelsea and Roman.

“Wait, what? Why didn’t you tell me?” Barbara complained, rushing up to them. “Boy? Girl? I need a proper birth announcement!”

“Guys, we just found out,” Chelsea said. Everyone was crowding around her now, hugging her, congratulating her. Roman let himself get pushed out of the way, content to stand back and watch. Tears burned in her eyes—happy tears. The pack was genuinely delighted for her.

“Boy? Girl?” Esther demanded, bustling up to her. “I need to know if I’m sewing pink or blue onesies.”

“Neutral colors for now, please and thank you. We’re going to let it be a happy surprise.”

Roman flashed them a huge grin. “If it’s a boy, we’re going to name it Jesse James,” he called out. “And if it’s a girl, we’re going to name it Jesse James.” He glanced at the shifters crowding around Chelsea. “Hey! Air! Pregnant lady needs air!” he yelled. They ignored him. She waved; he could just see her hand poking up out of the crowd.

“I’m fine!” she shouted above the din.

When the crowd finally parted, Roman found Chelsea sipping a cup of decaf and making a face of dismay. She broke into a smile when she saw him, though.

“Congratulations, Dad,” she said. “By the way, I haven’t given you the complete tour of the bakery yet.”

“I’ve seen it all,” he said, puzzled. “I helped build it.”

She quickly pulled him through the back door and shut it.

“There’s a part of my office that you haven’t seen yet,” she said, leading him down the hallway.

They entered the office, and she shut and locked the door behind them.

She gestured at the corner of the office, where she’d put in a soft, lush couch that he hadn’t seen before.

“I’m calling that the nooky corner,” she said cheerfully. She leaned up against him. “And by the way, I just locked the door because I’m taking you into custody.”

“You what? Come on. You try to arrest me, you know what’ll happen.” There was a roguish twinkle in his eye.

“Chelsea Wintergreen,” he chided her as he began walking her over to the sofa. “Abandoning your customers and trying to arrest your Alpha? You have been very, very bad. You know what happens next.”

“I do indeed,” she breathed as he pushed her down.

THE END

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