Melindas Wolves (13 page)

Melinda giggled. “Is this supposed to be helping me?”

Mimi brushed her hand over Melinda’s hair. “This is reality. There will be changes.

Some good. Some bad. But in your heart you know this is unavoidable. Look at your hands.”

Melinda glanced down, confused. She lifted them in front of her, fingers spread.

They shook.

“That unease won’t rest until you follow your destiny, child.”

Melinda tucked her hands between her knees and held them tight. She stared off into space, looking at nothing. After she licked her lips, she continued, “Is it like this for all women?”

“No.” Mimi understood her without Melinda having to elaborate. “It’s harder for you as a medicine woman. You’ll always sense things. Often before your mates.

Sometimes it will drive them crazy. Sometimes they won’t believe you. Sometimes you’ll fight.

“It’s tough. I won’t lie to you, child. Your grandfather and I butted heads more times than I can count. But it’s worth it. Trust me. Your mates will relax over time as they learn to accept your idiosyncrasies.”

“What about me?” Melinda looked down at her lap. “When will I learn to accept them?”

Mimi hesitated for several moments before speaking again. “Fate brought you together for a reason. Any turmoil between the three of you is part of Her plan. It’s hard to see that now, but trust me. You have to follow your instincts and believe She won’t lead you astray.”

“Keegan makes my blood boil.”

“No. Keegan’s line of work and what it stands for makes your blood boil. The man himself makes your heart pound. It’s difficult to separate the two emotions.”

“You’re right.”
As usual
.

“Trace is a cop all the way in Cambridge.”

“Rebecca was a nurse in Cambridge. Griffen worked there too. They worked it out.

You will too. Don’t forget you have land on the edge of the reservation just like your brother. Build there. It will all fall into place.”

Melinda leaned into her grandmother. “How did you get so wise?”

Mimi chuckled. “I’m not wise, child. Just insightful. Open your heart and your mind. Let your mates in. Trust in the way of our people.”

Melinda blew out a breath. “I think I need a run. In the mountains.”

“You could do that. But take your mates. Don’t go alone.”

Melinda eyed her grandmother. “You think there’s still some sort of danger lurking out there?” It had been months since anyone from the pack came forward to Mimi or Melinda with news of a spirit sighting. Not since the earthquake that shook all their worlds both literally and figuratively.

Mimi shrugged. “I don’t know. But there’s no sense taking any chances.”

“You don’t think all the sightings last year were related to keeping Rebecca safe from that quake? Or bringing her together with her mates? Or even keeping anyone from being killed by my father or grandfather?” Melinda shuddered at the memory of a father she’d never met—one who had raped her mother to produce Melinda and her twin Miles.

And his father, no better than him. An elder in the tribe. The last living elder of his generation. Hopefully the last holdout who ran her mother off for twenty-seven years with threats against her and her children if she stayed on the reservation after mating a white man.

Melinda sincerely hoped those days of racism were over now that the son, Randal Junior, had been killed, and the father, Randal, committed suicide in prison. She tried not to think too often about the fact that those two men were her own father and grandfather.

Mimi pursed her lips, hesitating a moment. “It’s possible. But just like your gut tells you to mate with Trace and Keegan, my gut tells me there’s more to come. I wish it were an exact science, but it’s not. And you know that.

“I feel the unrest in the air. The unease. The spirits are not at rest. They’re agitated. I don’t know why. But I know they demand our diligence. And that extends to you.

You’re the next generation of medicine women in our tribe.
You
are the future. It falls to you to complete this mating and focus your energy on honing your skills, listening to your intuition, paying attention to your surroundings.”

“That’s a lot of pressure, Mimi.” Melinda’s voice was soft.

“Yes. And like many things in life, it’s your burden to carry. You’re chosen, child.”

Mimi grasped her hand and squeezed it. “You’re the flesh of my flesh. The spirits have chosen you to guide the tribe and lead everyone down the right path.”

“Mimi,
you
are doing that. And you do it well.”

“I am an old woman, Melinda. I won’t be here forever.”

“And Mother? What about her? She’s back now. She’ll also be able to help.”

Mimi shook her head. “Your mother has skills. It’s true. And if she had been here for the last three decades, she would be a valuable asset. But she has been away. Her abilities are weakened. She’s not sharp. We spoke for many hours last night. She may, in time, regain some of her abilities. But I fear not all. My visions do not include her.

They direct me to you. Besides, she can’t be here right now. She has her mate’s extended family to consider. Her other three children.”

Melinda held her breath. Mimi’s words were powerful and daunting.

And true.

“Why have I not sensed this same unrest as you?”

Mimi cupped her face. “Because you’ve been on a path toward your mates.”

“Did you know this?” Had Mimi foreseen Melinda meeting Trace and Keegan last night? Hell, had she known who Melinda’s mates were?

Mimi shook her head. “No. What I knew was that something huge was about to occur. I felt the rumbling. I have meditated often. I feel the unrest in the peaks of the mountains. The spirits are many. They’re gathering. They’re multiplying.

“I have watched you closely and noticed that you did not sense the same unrest. It has weighed heavily on my heart for many weeks. I worried why the spirits were not manifesting themselves to you in the same way. Now I have my answers.

“You have much on your plate, child. The return of your mother to our family. The addition of her mate and three half siblings you have not yet met. And most importantly, your mating. One step at a time. I’m sure it will all come together in good time.”

Melinda hugged her grandmother tight. “Thank you. I love you.”

“And I love you, child. Now when are those two gorgeous mates of yours returning?”

“As soon as I call them.”

“Then, I’ll be on my way.” Mimi hefted herself off the couch and brushed her hands down her dress as though smoothing out imaginary wrinkles. “You’re strong, Melinda.

You’ll be fine. I’ve seen it.” She winked and then walked out the front door without another word.

After Melinda finished her sandwich in the quiet stillness of her condo, she texted Trace and Keegan in a group message. No way would she risk hurting either man’s feelings by choosing one.

I’m ready
.

Those two words were filled with innuendo. Ready for them to come back? Ready to let them claim her? She recognized her vague statement immediately, but it was too late to change it.

Be there in ten
.

Keegan sent that text. It made sense. Trace was driving.

Calmer now, Melinda entered her bedroom and packed more of her things.

Obviously she wasn’t going to spend much time here in the near future. Whatever she’d packed hastily that morning hadn’t had even half of her concentration. This time she opened a suitcase and stuffed it with clothes.

She heard the truck pull up and headed for the front door before her mates reached her small porch. With a smile, she opened it and lifted her suitcase.

Keegan chuckled. “Decide you might need more things?”

“Seemed prudent.”

“That’s a good sign.” Trace leaned in, kissed her forehead, and took the suitcase from her hand.

As she followed them to the truck, Keegan said, “Back to my place now?”

“Actually, I was hoping you wouldn’t mind a detour.” What would they say about her side plan?

Trace lifted her suitcase into the truck bed and turned around. “Where to next then?” He didn’t flinch at her request, not even pausing to ask what it was before consenting.

And she loved that reaction. She stepped into his embrace as he leaned against the truck and reached for her. “I need a trip to the mountains.”

Keegan leaned against the side of the truck next to them. “You want to shift?”

“Yes.” She glanced at Keegan and then back at Trace.

“Okay. Let’s do it.” Keegan opened the passenger door and wrapped his hands around her waist. He inhaled her scent long and deep before lifting her into the cab.

“Are we on a mission?”

“Sort of.” She settled in her seat as Trace climbed in on her other side and started the engine.

Trace set a hand on her thigh.

She was getting used to being touched by them both, nearly all the time, but she needed a clear head for a while this afternoon. She lifted his hand off her and put it on the wheel. “I need some space. Don’t crowd me for a bit.”

“Okay, babe. What’s this all about?” His brow was furrowed when he glanced her way.

“You’re aware of the events that led to your bother Griffen mating with my brother and Rebecca last year, right?”

“Somewhat. I mean I was with them when they met.” Trace gripped the steering wheel harder. She watched his knuckles turn white. She hoped he wasn’t uncomfortable with her abilities, or it was going to be a long life.

She cleared her throat. “My tribe believes in spirit guides.”

“Right, like that black orb or whatever Griffen saw last summer.”

She nodded. “Yes. Well, there have been many such sightings in our history. The spirits are believed to hover in the peaks of the mountain ranges. They usually manifest themselves in a similar fashion—a sort of black shadow that startles the viewer and gets their attention.”

“And your entire tribe believes in this?” Keegan asked.

She knew he would be the more skeptical of the two of her mates. “Yes. It’s part of our culture. It’s our history. We don’t know otherwise. For us it’s a way of life. It just is.”

“Okay. Go on.” Keegan turned toward her. He lifted one hand out and then set it back on his leg.

“My grandmother is one of a long line of women in our family who have always had a higher sense of things. Not just me. The ability goes back for generations and includes my mother and myself. Apparently, my grandmother has been sensing an unrest lately.”

“And you have not?” Trace asked.

She shook her head. “No. Mimi believes it’s because my world has been preparing for the arrival of my mother and the two of you. She’s not fond of delayed matings.”

“Did you speak to her while you were at your condo this afternoon?” Keegan asked.

Melinda nodded. “She was there when I arrived. She’s often exactly where she’s needed before the other person is even aware. It happens to me also. But lately I’ve been distracted. It’s obvious now why.”

“Wasn’t she at Miles’s house waiting on him and Griffen and Rebecca when they met?” Trace asked.

Melinda giggled. “She was. And she read them the riot act.”

“For what?” Keegan leaned into her line of vision.

“She can be a meddler when she feels the need. She thought the spirits were angry with the three of them for not consummating the claiming quicker—not that they had an opportunity before that moment.”

“Not to mention the fact that Rebecca is human and had no understanding of what was happening,” Trace added.

“Exactly.”

Keegan met her gaze. “So she laid into you for not letting us claim you yet?” His smile grew wide.

“Sort of. But don’t get a big head. She’s not worried about your ego, stud. She’s concerned with the direction of our future as a whole, not yours and mine.”

“I see.” He obviously fought to stop grinning. “But in order to protect the sanctity of the universe, we need to claim you.”

She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. I’m concerned about the unrest she speaks of. And I’d like to shift and head up the mountain—see what I can feel.”

“Okay, baby. We’ll do it.” Trace turned left at the next turn and made his way farther into the hills, away from the reservation.

They were closer to Keegan’s house, and that area was the best area to explore at a higher elevation anyway.

“I know just the spot,” Keegan added, giving Trace directions. “A place we can park, shift, and run where no humans will be hiking.”

There were many such locations in the area. That was one of the reasons so many packs of shifters—both Native American and others—lived in this section of Montana.

The freedom to run through the dense forest and difficult terrain of the more uninhabitable sides of the mountains was perfect for their kind and kept them secret from humans.

When Trace pulled off the main road onto a dirt lane, Melinda got butterflies in her stomach. She hadn’t realized what a big deal it was to shift and run with her mates for the first time. She’d only been thinking about getting to the peak and therefore closer to the spirits where she could meditate for a while, at one with nature.

As the truck came to a stop, she felt invigorated in a new way.

They all three jumped down from the cab, and Melinda circled to the bed of the truck. Her heart pounded with the need to shift. She could feel the itch under her skin.

Even though she hadn’t let these two men who were meant to be with her for the rest of her life claim her completely yet, they were closer to her than anyone she’d ever met.

They already held a piece of her heart, even if they didn’t know it. She felt a connection to them that went deeper than anything. And that connection would grow every day through thick and thin.

Her certainty was a personal relief. Her chat with Mimi had made her see things through new lenses.

Keegan grabbed her hand as she dropped her flip flops into the bed of the truck and unbuttoned her jeans. He tugged her close and took her lips in a brief, but heated kiss.

A smile lit his face. “Something’s different about you.”

“I’m excited to shift and run. I haven’t run in a few weeks. And…I can’t wait to see you both in your natural form.”