Thirteen

Noel stared at the front of Everglades, anger boiling up inside of her at the destruction done to Wes’ bar. An hour ago, Sheriff Einstein appeared at Wes’ front door with the bad news that vandals had hit Everglades, and Wes should probably go and check it out to make sure nothing had been stolen and to estimate the damage. Jake offered to drive, and they all piled into his truck, including Noel’s mother who refused to be left behind.

When they arrived, Lainie Everest was there along with her new mate and Bull Creek’s newest resident, Rance Culpepper, investigating the scene. Lainie glanced up, running a hand over her dark hair as Noel and the others slid out of the vehicle and approached the bar. As soon as she saw the damage, Noel jerked her attention to Wes to gauge his reaction. He stood still a moment, hands on his hips, lips pressed into a thin line as he stared at the front of the bar. In bright red letters, the words “Beasts belong in the woods” had been painted over the front of the bar. Along the other walls, someone scrawled more threatening words of hate and anger, which twisted a knot in Noel’s stomach. The support columns at the edge of the overhang covering the entrance had been smashed, and all the windows were broken. The dirt parking lot had been torn up as if someone made donuts in it, digging in ruts that would need to be smoothed out and filled in before others could use it. Noel dreaded what they might find on the inside.

Marge stepped up beside Noel, her arms over her chest as she stared at the destruction. “Some very dissatisfied customer?” she asked. “Let’s hope they left the whiskey alone. I think your men will need a drink after looking at this.”

Noel just glanced at her mother, unsure of what to say to the woman. Her mother didn’t know anything about the paranormal world, so how Noel would explain the Order of Wardens to her, she had no idea. And there was no doubt in Noel’s mind that Jeremiah Prescott and his grandson did this. Only they would stood to gain from this.

Lainie started toward them, Rance following her, as another car pulled up and parked behind Jake’s. Noel glanced behind her and noticed Dimitri’s truck as Dimitri and Adira slid out of their seats into the humid night. She was glad the alpha of Bull Creek had arrived. The Order of Wardens was his problem more than anyone else’s.

“Wes, sorry to drag you out here like this,” Lainie said. “We’ve already been inside to make sure no one remained. The front door had been busted open, hinges ripped from their places. I hate to say it, but the inside is as bad if not worse as the outside. Was there a problem here tonight that would cause someone to do this?”

Rance stepped up beside Lainie, his hands in his pockets as he stared at the others, his eyes narrowing a little at Jake, whom he didn’t know. Adira and Dimitri joined them, just as Lainie finished asking her question.

Wes nodded. “Actually, a young kid came in tonight, the grandson of Jeremiah Prescott. He tried to stir up trouble and cause some mischief. I tossed him out on his ass.”

Rance cocked his head to the side a little. “Jeremiah Prescott? Who’s he?”

“Looks to be Bull Creek’s newest detractor,” Dimitri interjected. He glanced at Wes. “I called Jed Hawkins back in Draven Falls. He said the Prescotts have been stirring up trouble for decades on some crusade to rid the world of anyone not like them. It seems they’ve set their sights on Bull Creek.”

“Anyone not like them?” Marge asked. “What does that mean? Seems to be a hateful way to live. Their world is going to be pretty small if they think that way.”

Noel stared at her mother, hoping the woman kept thinking that way once she found out about Noel’s relationship with Wes and Jake.

“I’m sorry; we haven’t met,” Adira said, extending her arm to shake Marge’s hand. “I’m Adira Brennan, and this is Dimitri. Are you visiting Bull Creek?”

“This is my mother, Marge,” Noel said, making the introductions. “And this is Jake Goodman. Mom arrived tonight. Jake’s been here a couple of days.”

“Glad to meet you again,” Dimitri said as he shook the man’s hand. “Getting things settled, I hope.” He bounced his gaze between Jake and Wes, his meaning pretty obvious.

Noel glanced at Wes, shocked that he had told Dimitri what was happening. Wes just shrugged, however, not even seeming sorry. She sighed. Well, so much for Jake starting out on the right foot here. Now everyone will have a tainted view of him.

Jake shook Dimitri’s hand. “For the most part.” He glanced over his shoulder at the bar. “It doesn’t seem to be as quiet here as Noel told me.”

Dimitri ran a hand through his blond hair as he glanced at the bar. “Yeah, we’ve had our fair share of trouble lately. This is just another round of the same hatred.”

“And what do these people hate?” Marge pressed. “Bars? Woolly-looking bartenders? Dive bars?”

Wes just growled. “This again?”

“Well, I don’t get it,” Marge snapped. “My daughter isn’t as safe as you three told me by the looks of the front of this place, and I want to know what’s going on here. What does this Prescott fool hate about you?”

Everyone glanced around at each other, nervous and unsure how to proceed. Noel sighed. She would not be able to keep the truth from her mother if she were going to mate Jake and Wes. Well, there was no time like the present. “Mom, they have a lot to do here. Why don’t we take a walk, and I’ll tell you what you want to know while Jake helps Wes investigate the inside?”

“Do not walk too far or out of sight of the bar,” Wes said. “We don’t know if these idiots are still lurking around.”

Rance glanced at Lainie. “Maybe I should scout the perimeter, just to make sure.”

Lainie nodded. “Good idea.”

Noel knew they meant for Rance’s wolf to prowl the area, his animal’s nose stronger than his human counterpart. Hopefully, he would wait until he walked out of sight before shifting. Her mother needed to hear the truth before she witnessed it.

Rance nodded and then walked off toward the back of the building. Noel reached out and squeezed Wes’ hand. “Just breathe,” she said. Then she glanced at Jake as Wes nodded and followed Dimitri and Lainie toward the entrance. Once Wes walked out of earshot, she told Jake, “Keep an eye on him. This bar is his life.”

Jake reached out and caressed her shoulder. “I promise. I’ll stay close.” He then smiled at her. “We’re in this together. Promise.”

She smiled as she nodded. Then, turning to her mother, she said, “Shall we take a walk?”

“I’ll hang out by the front,” Adira said, her expression both hopeful and understanding. The witch knew how hard it had been for Noel to hear the truth, so knew Noel would be worried about how her mother would react. “Just in case you need anything.”

Noel thanked her and then led her mother away from the bar to the back of Jake’s truck. It was far enough away to offer them some privacy while keeping them in sight in case something else happened. She leaned back on the truck, arms over her chest as she took a deep breath, her stomach a twisted jumble of nerves. “I left home because Jake told me something about himself that he had been keeping a secret,” Noel began. “I had a hard time understanding his secret at first, and then when he showed me, it scared the hell out of me, so I took off.”

To Noel’s surprise, her mother didn’t say a word, just leaned back on the truck, hands clasped in front of her, and listened.

With a deep breath and a churning in the pit of her stomach, Noel told her mother about the paranormal world and Jake being a bear shifter. She told her mother that vampires existed as well as witches, like Adira. She explained that shifters came in all animal forms and that some of her best friends could shift into panthers, wolves, and even tigers. She went on to explain how she did a deep dive on the dark web and found Bull Creek, which many saw as a safe haven for anyone needing to escape the hatred of an unjust world. Noel then told her mother how she had arrived and took a job at Everglades where she discovered Wes, a bear shifter. He helped her understand and not fear the paranormal world, and the more he opened her mind, the more she fell in love with him, so much so that by the time she didn’t fear Jake anymore, her love for Wes had become too strong to just walk away.

“Then, Jake found me a couple of days ago,” Noel continued, barely managing to keep her voice from shaking, “and he forced me to face some hard facts. I love both of them.”

Marge snorted in laughter. “You always were a greedy one. How did they take that?”

Noel felt the smile spread across her face, her cheeks hurting a little as they went up with the curve of her lips. At least her mother hadn’t said she was crazy. “Oh, there were some rough spots that first night, but neither one of them want to give me up. Shifters have certain mating traits. Their animals actually pick their mates through some mystical pull they feel toward the one they are destined to be with for the rest of their lives. Both of them felt pulled to me, and if they ignored that call, it would literally drive them nuts.” She shrugged. “So, I get to be greedy. I get to keep both of them. While we’re not sure how it will work out, we know that it’s the only way to move forward.”

“That sounds complicated,” her mother said, turning her head to glance at Noel. “Aren’t you worried about jealousies and emotions starting fights?”

Noel shook her head. “Shifters view things a little differently than the rest of the world. While they’re protective, they’re also very open. Nudity and sex are just a common occurrence to them, without the taboo or stigma most of society puts on them. We’ll make it work; of that, I have no doubt.”

Her mother turned her gaze back to the dark road in front of them, nodding her head. Her expression remained neutral, and at first, Noel worried that her mother wouldn’t believe her or, worse, would find her delusional. She held her breath until her mother finally spoke again. “So, your men turn into bears, huh? Aren’t you worried about them shedding in the house?”

Noel couldn’t help herself; she laughed, the tension of the moment bringing tears to her eyes. “There won’t be any shifting in the house.” She shook her head. “You crack me up.”

“Well, I’ll admit,” her mother said, shaking her head. “This isn’t exactly what I expected when I came out here. It’s all rather… strange.”

Noel nodded. “Tell me about it.”

“I just did,” her mother snapped. Noel could hear the heavy gasp of her mother’s breathing even though the woman tried hard to appear calm. The fact that she remained quiet, listening to everything that Noel said was one thing. That she still stood there without running off screaming was quite another. Both said how much her mother loved her. Of course, Noel knew that once she gave the woman a few minutes, she’d be back to her cranky, snarky self.

Her mother took a deep breath. “If you go through with this mating ritual, you’re going to be putting the same mark on your back as your boyfriends. People like this Order of Wardens will be hunting you down as well, trying to drive you out of your home. Are you ready to deal with that?” She turned and stared at Noel, her expression serious, concerned.

Noel smiled, with no doubt in her mind. “I am meant to be with Wes and Jake, and I have no doubt that they will always be there to take care of me, just as I will be there to take care of them. Shifters believe in the safety of the pack. The pack is family, and each protects and defends the others in that pack. Bull Creek may be made up of several races, but we all exist as one pack. Nothing is going to drive us from our home. Not even the Order of Wardens.”

Her mother nodded. “Well, then, looks like I really need to get to know this woolly-looking man of yours.”

Noel turned her gaze back to the bar. Adira stood outside, just as she said she would, as lights inside indicated that the others had moved into the bar to examine the damage. Noel pressed her lips into a thin line as she worried about what Wes struggled with right then. “He’s worth the effort of getting to know. I promise you.”

Her mother reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing it, and bringing Noel’s attention back to her. “If you love him, then I have no doubt.”