Her Reluctant Bear: A Hot Paranormal Fantasy Saga with Witches, Werewolves, and Werebears (Weres and Witches of Silver Lake Book 5) (19 page)

“Jillian Garner, is there something you want to share?” Anna placed a hand on her arm, but quickly removed it. Her mouth opened and then shut as the sparkle that had been in her eyes turned painful.

“Anna, are you okay?”

“Yes. I’m fine.” She looked off to the side and then smiled. “So you and Brian are a couple?”

Her comment was a cover up, but Jillian had learned when to pry and when to go with the flow. “Yes, we are, but you looked like you remembered something. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yes, I just remembered that the winter carnival is this weekend.”

“Really? I wonder why Dalton never mentioned anything. Have you been?” Elana told her that Anna hadn’t been in town that long.

“Yes. Once. I met a guy last year when I’d first arrived in town. We hit it off really well, and he asked me to go with him.”

Because Anna didn’t seem to be dating anyone now, the relationship must not have worked out. “You didn’t have a good time?”

“Yes, it was awesome, but about a month later a freak storm descended on the town. Chris was a first responder and was called out in the middle of the night to help a stranded motorist. We’re not sure what happened, but his car was found at the bottom of a ravine the next day.”

Jillian grabbed Anna’s hand. “I’m so sorry.”

“Thanks. It’s particularly bad when the carnival returns to town.”

Jillian understood. She had issues on June 15
^th
, the day her dad was murdered. While she believed Anna’s story, something else was going on with her. To demand answers right now though wouldn’t be wise. “What’s the carnival like?”

“It’s wonderful. They have rides, fun houses, and a ton of vendors selling everything from fudge to elephant ears to delicious stuffed meat pies. No one goes home hungry. Last year, they had a skating rink and a concert.”

She bet that she and Brian would have a good time. “I might check it out.”

“Do. You’ll like it.”

For the rest of the day, Anna didn’t act like herself. Whether she was thinking about the man she lost or something else, Jillian didn’t know.

They’d just closed up, when an idea struck Jillian. Brian would be working late, and Dalton said he was on a big case and didn’t know when he’d make it home. “Do you want to go get a drink?”

Anna hesitated but then studied Jillian. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

“What do you think of McKinnon’s Pub and Pool?” The place would be filled with shifters, but that shouldn’t be a problem.

“I’ve never been, but I’m game to try a new spot.”

‡

J
illian suspected Anna
had agreed to have a drink with her because she wanted to get the inside scoop on her relationship with Brian. While Jillian didn’t have a problem sharing a few tidbits, it wasn’t as if she could tell her coworker they were mates, or that Brian was trying to learn to shift. Wouldn’t that blow her mind?

They were on their second glass of wine when Jillian decided it was time to ask Anna again why she’d had such a haunted look on her face back at the store. It was the second time since Jillian started working there that Anna had a strange reaction after she’d touched her arm.

“Can I ask you a personal question?” Jillian asked.

Anna smiled. “You can always ask.”

That translated to mean she might not answer. “Why did you move to Silver Lake?”

Tackling the real question from a different starting point often worked. She needed Anna to let down her guard, and the wine was definitely helping.

Her brows rose, clearly not expecting such a benign question. “I love the mountains here, even if they are just rolling hills.”

Jillian could relate. “Where are you from?”

“Montana.”

“Ah.” Jillian had driven through the area just last year. “It’s lovely there. The ragged mountain peaks are breathtaking.”

“They are, but my town held bad memories.”

“Were you thinking of them when you touched my arm?”

Anna gulped most of what was left in her glass. “No.” She let out a breath then watched as she twirled her glass on the tabletop. Finally, Anna looked up. “Since you seem determined to find out, I’ll tell you, but please don’t judge me.”

How sad that she believed Jillian would. “At the risk of sounding egotistical, not judging a person is one of my better traits. Over the years, I’ve learned it’s better to understand a person first before drawing any conclusions.”

Anna’s chin trembled. “Okay, here goes. When I touched your arm, I saw one of
your
memories—a bad one.” Anna leaned forward slightly, and her hand tightened around the stem of the glass.

That comment took Jillian by surprise. “I don’t understand.”

She finished her wine. “Let me begin by saying I’m a very observant person. I knew Elana before she met Kalan, and I watched how she changed after they were together for a while.”

Jillian tensed, wondering if after Elana and Kalan mated, her friend exhibited any shifter traits. “How? What exactly was different?” Had her teeth sharpened? Had her hair suddenly sprouted on her arms and face? Or worse, had her bones cracked?

“Her hearing was better, her smell more acute, and her eyesight was sharper.”

All were shifter qualities, but nothing that would give away her new status. “Fascinating. What do you think caused it?”

Anna leaned back in her seat. “You should know. You have the same traits.”

Oh, shit. Did she know about shifters? Anna wasn’t one. “I’m glad you think so. So tell me about this memory of mine that you saw.”

Anna looked around the room then back at Jillian, as if debating how far to push this line of questioning. “I get it. You don’t want to divulge your secret, but how about I tell you mine and you tell me yours?”

Jillian wasn’t a lawyer for nothing. She didn’t like being evasive, but she wasn’t about to be the one to leak the concept of shifters to a human. “I’m listening.”

Anna twirled her glass. “Let me start by saying I’m cursed.” Jillian raised her brows and downed the rest of her wine. “Ever since I can remember, if I touched someone, I often would see a bad memory they’d had.”

Now she was intrigued. “Which one of mine did you see?”

She had two horrific ones, but she didn’t believe Anna really had that talent. Jillian hadn’t told Anna anything about her circumstances for being in Silver Lake, and she doubted Elana had spilled the beans either.

“I saw you standing in a bedroom with beige and white striped wallpaper looking at a blonde woman lying on a bed. She’d been shot in the head.”

Jillian’s blood nearly drained from her face. “How did you know? Did Elana tell you?” She waved a hand. Jillian hadn’t mentioned the wallpaper. “Never mind.”

“You see? It’s a curse,” she whispered.

That kind of talent would be. Then it dawned on her. “You’re a Wendayan!”

Anna’s brows scrunched. “A what?”

What was it about people in this town not knowing who or what they were? “A Wendayan is a kind of witch—a good one, mind you. In fact, I have a touch of Wendayan in me.” She didn’t mind sharing that aspect of her life.

Seeing their empty glasses, the waitress came over. “Another round ladies?”

They both nodded. Given their waitress was a shifter, Jillian didn’t care if she overheard.

“Does that mean you can touch someone and see into their past too?” Anna asked, her voice laced with excitement.

“No. Each Wendayan is different.” She tried to remember what Elana told her about some of the Wendayans in town. “Some have premonitions, others can put thoughts into people’s minds without them knowing, and still others can control fire, wind, and earth. As for me, I move fast. Really fast.”

“Shut up! Really?”

“Yes, really.”

Anna’s smile lit up her face. “I thought I was the only one who was weird like that, though controlling fire and wind is way beyond what I can do.”

The poor girl. Here she had thought she was alone all her life. “There is a fairly large group in Silver Lake who possess talents similar to yours and mine, but I’m surprised your parents didn’t tell you about them. Your mom or dad, or both, must have been Wendayans.”

Anna glanced away. “I was adopted.”

Her heart squeezed. That explained a lot about her. Anna was similar to Brian in a way, except she was able to discover her true self without help. While it was probably wrong to ask Anna to break confidence, Jillian had to ask. “Did you ever get a vision off Brian?”

Anna cast her gaze downward. “Yes.”

“Does he know that you did?”

She shook her head. “I see no reason to tell anyone what I’ve seen. It’s not like they aren’t aware of their own memories.”

True. “Was Brian’s bad?”

“More like sad, but still traumatic.”

“Care to share?” Since Anna was a Wendayan, it wouldn’t matter if she learned about shifters since the two groups co-existed. Dalton had said the Silver Lake shifters protected the Wendayans. Explaining all that right now might blow Anna’s mind. In due time, Jillian would tell her.

“I saw Brian as a young boy sitting at his kitchen table. He was maybe six, and his mom was fixing him a glass of milk. He watched her put an eyedropper full of something in his drink then hand it to him.”

The implication crushed her heart. “What did Brian do?”

“He refused to drink it at first, but his mother forced him. I wasn’t touching him long enough to see more.”

Brian must have believed his mother couldn’t be trusted. Hopefully, the eyedropper contained some kind of medicine and not some drug to help calm him.

If Jillian had Anna’s ability, she might not want to touch anyone—ever. “Do you see good things?”

“Not really. Most of the time though, I can’t get any reading off a person. Only those who have had something tragic happen in their lives that is still unresolved seem able to send any images, if that’s the right phrase.”

“Who else knows about your special talent? Sharing can often lighten one’s load.”

“Only Elana, so please don’t tell anyone else. I just thought you might be like me.”

“I can’t read people’s minds or thoughts.”

“Maybe not, but you are intuitive. You’re more open-minded than most.”

Then why did Anna think she’d judge her? “Thank you.”

“You don’t treat Brian like anyone I’ve known. I’ve watched people around him. He can be a little standoffish at times, yet, you can see right through him. You could tell he is a good person.”

“I could.” But that might have been because he was her mate.

“As long as we’re sharing, why did you come to Silver Lake? Elana said you were a lawyer in California.”

Anna deserved to know the truth, especially if that cop ever showed up. “I saw the man who murdered my friend—the blonde you saw—and I think he knows I know.”

Anna sucked in a breath. “You’re on the run?”

“Yes. I’m staying with my brother for protection until I figure out what to do.”

“Do you think he’ll come after you?”

“I hope not, but since the killer is a cop, he has the resources to find me.”

“I have a gun. Maybe I should bring it to the store.”

Jillian smiled. “I don’t think that would be wise.” To be safe, Jillian briefly described the fifty-year old, including the scar on his jaw. “If you do see him, don’t react. Pretend you have no idea who he is.”

If he thought she knew, Frank Whitlaw would shift and attack before Anna had the chance to move.

Their next round of drinks arrived, and Jillian held up her glass. “To those who are different.”

Anna lifted her glass. “To being different.”

*

“I’ve never been
to a carnival,” Brian said, holding Jillian’s hand and glancing around wide eyed.

Country music was being piped through tall speakers located around the large venue. She estimated the carnival was spread out on about eight acres and parking took up several more. Everywhere she looked, vendors were hawking their goods or trying to draw in the crowd to look at what they were selling. She didn’t know the population of Silver Lake, but she bet half of them were there.

“I don’t think I’ve been to anything like this since I was six,” she said. “Los Angeles has festivals, but nothing like this.” Jillian pointed to a stand fifteen feet from them. “Oh, look, cotton candy!”