Chapter 24

Bella suddenly stiffened when the magic inside her Hut fell still, sensing the approach of strangers. Usually, the stairs to the shop were gone after closing hours, but with Kat spending more and more time with her mate, Bella had gotten into the habit of letting them stay out, in case the cat shifter needed them – or if her mate became suspicious about stairs, that disappeared on him all the time.

Wondering about what kind of idiot would break into a voodoo shop, she detangled herself from Kat and headed towards the front door. Well, if they thought they were going to get away with robbing Bellatrix Phips, they had another thing coming!

What she didn't expect – however – was the US Marshals…

Kat screamed as glass rained down on them. Bella didn't have a clue about what was happening, but she'd seen enough forensic shows and cop TV to recognize that the canister that flopped on the floor, wasn't good. A thick, gray gas was oozing out of it, blanketing the living room in a thick mist that stung her eyes.

Cursing and coughing, Bella tried to think up a spell that could make this blasted mist go away. But all she was able to get across her lips were raged breaths of air and an awful choking sound. Fear like she'd never felt before, gripped her. Desperate, she tried to call out to Kat, but all she could hear was the other woman wheeze as she too was fighting for breath.

"GET DOWN!"

Someone shouted. It sounded muffled and gruff, but it was definitely male. Less than a second later Bella felt a heavy body crash into her, and she was flattened against the hardwood fool. If air would just settle in her lungs, it would have been knocked out of here. Hell, she barely even registered when her arms were pulled back and something heavy was locked around her wrists.

All she could think about was breathing…

The air finally cleared enough for them to see again. There were two huge males inside her living room, dressed in all-out SWAT gear. One of them was helping Kat up while her friend still gasped for air, and the other one was mounted on top of her. If there were any more of them, she couldn't tell, because her eyes kept tearing up and her vision was blurred when the brute on top of her hauled her off the ground.

"Magnus?"

The voice belonged to Kat, but it still made Bella frown. Magnus? Her mate and wolf shifter, Magnus?! What the hell was he---?

"Are you alright? Did she hurt you?" Magnus asked, sounding worried, but that's not what Bella was focusing on anymore.

Wait just a minute!

If Magnus was here, then that meant that---

Whipping her head around, Bella's suspicions were confirmed. The bear's hair was as dark as ever, and despite being a bit tousled from the mask being ripped off, he still looked good enough to eat.

"You again?!" she exclaimed, as equal measures of dread and desire filled her lower belly. Still, she couldn't help it when her eyes narrowed on the big cop who was rather rudely manhandling her right now. "Don't you ever give up?"

At that, his obsidian eyes practically gleamed as a wry smile tilted the corner of his extremely kissable lips.

"No rest for the wicket and all that," Bjorn replied with a wink, before turning to face his alpha.

"Get your hands off me!" Bella hissed, anger replacing the heat. Now would be a good time to show these shifters why she was the real Wicket Witch of the West--- if only it hadn't been iron that was wrapped around her wrists.

Shit!

"Wait, it's not what you think! Please?" Kat pleated with Magnus the second the dust settled. "Please? Magnus listen to me!"

Magnus hardly noticed the plea from his mate. When Bjorn called and told him what was happening, his whole world had narrowed down to only one thing:

Keeping his mate safe.

Now that she was, emotions ran hot in his blood. What was his mate talking about? Did she know that the shopkeeper was a witch? A real one? And just like that, a fear like he never knew before slammed into him.

"Did you use some kind of love potions on me?" he asked, as icy clutches turned his blood cold. "Is that why I---?"

I've fallen in love with you!

He had been about it say it but cut himself off before the words left his mouth. And thank fuck he did, because the look that Kat gave him was enough to bring him to his knees. First, she was stunned into silence as disbelief showed on her features. But once the shock had gone, the hurt and sadness that replaced them felt like a knife to the gut. Hell, she looked at him as if he'd just slapped her. The hurt in her eyes was making tears well up and his wolf whined, wanting to comfort her. Damn, he felt like the world's biggest asshole, and he didn't even know why…

"She doesn't need to use a potion on you, because---" The witch suddenly cut in, but was cut off when she stumbled forward. At the last minute, Bjorn caught her and dragged her to stand next to them. She cursed and hissed at his partner, not showing any fear despite barely reaching the huge bear's chest. Which would have impressed Magnus on any other day of the week, except---

Because what?

"No magic, ha?" Bjorn growled with barely contained rage and with a flick of his wrist, had the hourglass pendant that hung around Kat's neck in his big paws. "Then what the hell is this?"

Magnus felt Kat's whole entire body stiffen as a scream was torn from her lips.

"NO---!"

And just like that, the luscious female disappeared between his fingers. There one second and gone the next, leaving behind only a pile of clothes. Shocked, he and Bjorn both jumped back, when the puddle of clothes moved and a big cat stuck out its head.

A bobcat he recognized all too well…!

"LOVE?!"

Bella watched as the two big cops gaped at the graceful feline, who mowed softly, before jumping up on the counter and turning to face them. Kat was rambling on and on about a million miles an hour, but the shifters clearly didn't understand a word that she said. All that filled the room was the silenced shock as the two SWAT-clad males kept gawking at her.

"Well," Bella broke the silence, unable to grin as she watched the ludicrous expressions on the big shifters' faces. "I guess the cat is out of the bag."

Pun intended!

Moving slowly, they both turned their glares on her and the intensity of it sent a shiver down her spine. But as with all things, Bellatrix Phips didn't cower before ANYONE!

"What?" she shaped, straitening her spine despite the new iron jewelry she was sporting. "When else would you ever use that phrase?"

This totally wasn't the time to joke around. Bella knew as much, especially considering that she was screwed two ways to Shit's Creek. But what else could she do? The opportunity was just too good to pass by…

"What the hell happened?" Magnus demanded, his attention shifting between Kat and herself, and as if the cat had suddenly become radioactive, he took a careful step backward.

Dumbass wolf!

"Arg! I keep forgetting," Kat sighed loudly, and if she'd been in her human body, Bella was sure that the cat would have facepalmed herself. "They can't understand me."

"Well, no shit," Bella snorted and rolled her eyes at her friend, ignoring the way the shifters looked at her strangely. She took in a deep breath and dug deep for the last thread of her patience – her very thin thread of patience at that. Jeez! She'd just had it up to HERE with these overbearing males.

Didn't they ever take a break?!

"In case you didn't notice," she replied, her voice surprisingly even despite her flaring hot temper. "Kat's cursed."

She didn't even know why she was this angry. Perhaps it was because the star in all her wet dreams hadn't even hesitated to throw her in chains the second, he had her in his grasp. Perhaps it was because now she was going to be held and detained by these MBI-persons and her mission to save her sister would be shot even more to hell. Or perhaps she'd just lost her mind altogether! Because despite the situation, she wished she was alone with the bear.

And that he'd take advantage of her – chained up like this…

"You cursed her?" Bjorn asked, his brows knitted tightly in a deep frown.

"Oh, please," she snorted and while she couldn't put her hand on her hip, she still shot it out to show her displeasure. "Curses are so below me. If I wanted someone to suffer, I'd---"

"Bella!" Kat cut her off, her eyes wide in fear. "I don't think you're helping your case much."

Bella huffed, annoyed that she couldn't show these guys up for a change. Besides, a small, wicked side of her wanted to see them squirm when she told them her favorite method to punish arrogant little shitheads who crossed her the wrong way…

"Like I could persuade them," Bella said with a roll of her eyes, before returning her attention to the male shifters. "As I was saying that if I were to---!"

"Wait! You---" Magnus cut her off this time and took a step towards his mate. He still seemed confused, but Bella was willing to bet good money, that his wolf was hounding him hard to go to his mate. And as if to prove her point, she noticed that his gaze shifted between her and the cat several more times, before he finally was able to keep his eyes on her.

"You can understand her?" he asked, his eyes narrow in suspicion and--- was that fascination?

"Obviously, yes!" Bella harumphed, now irritated with them. "What? You think we just pick up random cats, hand them priceless talismans and see if they're a human?"

"You don't?" Bjorn snorted, as he crossed his huge arms over his chest. Not because he actually thought so, but because his bear was getting all bitchy because Bella wasn't paying any attention to him. And hell, it worked. His little witch leveled him with a glare so cold he felt the chills crawl down his spine. And like the bear who just got a bite of the sweetest honey, a wide satisfied grin threatened to split his face in two.

Luckily, he managed to smother it, before anyone noticed…

"No, Pooh-Bear. I don't," she all but growled. Yeah, his little witch sure as hell didn't take shit from anyone. If only she hadn't just compared him to a soft, yellow teddy, she'd be fucking perfect…

"Pooh-Bear?" He snorted, but try as he might, he couldn't get really angry. "I'm a grizzly, Goldilocks!"

"Ah, did I hit a nerve, Daddy-Bear?" she smirked right back--- and fuck him! That should piss him off, NOT give him ideas. Damn it! He was already half-hard, just thinking about her crying out "Daddy" when he took her hard from behind.

Mentally shaking his head, he willed the blood rushing south to stop flowing in that direction and instead start to boil. He was a bear shifter, for fucks sake! He shouldn't be thinking about tying the witch to his bed and making her come all over his cock…

"Want to know what a pissed-off grizzly looks like, Goldie?" he growled instead and took what he hoped was a threatening step forward. He wanted her to back off, to say or do something that could remind him that no matter what his bear wanted, there couldn't ever be anything between them.

He needed her to get away from him!

But his threat came out low and husky and standing this close to her, he was once again reminded of how freaking sweet she smelled. And when her defiant eyes met his, he knew…

He was so fucked!

There was no way in hell Bella was going to back away from the shifter. He might try to intimidate her, but she wasn't one to ever back away – even when it was in her best interests. Meeting his gaze head-on, she even took a step toward him. Sure, she had to crane her neck all the way back to look up at him and yeah, she was pretty sure this would be what a small dog felt when faced with a monstrous bear, but there was no going back from this!

"Ever seen a pissed-off witch, Bear?" she challenged him straight in the face. "Take off these shackles and I'll be happy to show you."

First, she'd make all his clothes disappear! Once she had access to his naked skin, she'd take her time to study every delectable inch of him. She'd never seen him in anything less than Jeans and a T-shirt, but her imagination happily supplied the rest. In her mind, he had a sculpted---

"OK! Cut it out you two!" Magnus cut in between them, placing a hand on both their shoulders to separate them. "Seriously? How old are you?"

"HE/SHE STARTED IT!" they both exclaimed at the same time--- and hell, Magnus felt years disappear off his life. Oh, Lord, give me strength, he mentally sighed, ignoring how much this reminded him of some scenario back in kindergarten. This was NOT what he had envisioned was going to happen after he found his mate with the witch that was trying to summon hell on Earth.

Ignoring the witch and the bear, his attention returned to the cat now sitting on the counter right behind him. Worried, fascinated, and not really sure what he was supposed to believe, he walked back to the black bobcat. The second he was within reach, she tentatively took a step towards him and purred when he gently rubbed the spot behind her ear that he knew she loved. The connection that had been there before was gone, but with the way his wolf finally calmed after shit had hit the fan, he was beginning to understand why his wolf was so attached to this cat.

His mate was cursed?!

How? And why? And was there any way to break it? Or would this be the rest of their lives? So many questions were rushing through his head and so many emotions it left him feeling completely raw inside.

What was he supposed to do now?

"Can you change back?" he asked the cat, not sure if she understood him or not. He guessed that she could since Bella seemed to understand her perfectly. His gut knotted slightly, thinking of all the bullshit he'd told her over the last past months. But perhaps that's why he felt like she understood him so well. He'd practically spilled his heart out to this cat. And with that, a part of him felt betrayed. Why, if she was his mate, hadn't she tried to tell him? Which then made him feel ridiculous, because---

A cat and a typewriter?

Yeah, he didn't know how to feel about that…

"No, she can't," the witch, Bella, replied, but only half turned towards him as if she needed to keep half an eye on Bjorn too. He looked up at her, and more shame welled up in him. Seeing her now that he knew, he realized that she was the same woman that they'd taken into custody along with Colten. She'd cut her hair and washed up, revealing an alluring sweeten but also bitter scent. But they were definitely the same woman. Which he should have realized the second he saw her after his date with Kat.

Commercials!

Fucking idiot!

"Can you break the curse?" He asked instead of letting himself get caught up in the past. He might not be human, but even he knew he was allowed to make mistakes. And while this one was going to hurt like a sore thumb for a freaking long time, he was eventually going to get over it.

He hoped!

"Nope," Bella replied, shaking her head. "The pendant (she gestured to the necklace in Bjorn's hand) lets her get her human skin back 6 hours of the day. If she turns it, you have to wait until the sand runs back before she can change again."

Ah!

That explained why she had to run off all the time and always had to be the one setting the time for their dates. She was literally like Cinderella, having to run away before the stroke of midnight. Or before the last grain of sand ran out.

"Is there a way to lift the curse?" he asked, both hopeful and fearful of the answer. What if there wasn't? What if this would be what he had to live with for the rest of his life? Whit his mate stuck like a cat half the time? And hell, what would his pack say? It was one thing to have a human as a mate, but a cursed human?

*Deep sigh!*

Without even thinking about it, he stepped closer to the cat and stroked her, the way he knew she loved. Purring she rubbed up against him and--- and for the life of him, he couldn't stop the smile that tilted the edge of his lips upwards.

Mine…

"Do I tell him?" Bella asked, turning her attention to Kat, who was looking like the kitten who got the crème being in the wolf's embrace.

"I'd rather it was me," Kat replied, lifting her head towards her. "I'm really sorry to put you into this situation, Bella. I never---"

"It's ok," she sighed, and while her friend sounded sincere, Bella found that she couldn't really be mad at her despite the whole situation. Somewhere deep down Bella had always known that the longer she stayed in this time the greater the risk of exposure. Yet she'd stayed, not willing to do the necessary evil to regain her lost power anymore. Hell, just thinking about hurting her friend sent an icy emotion through her heart, making it physically hurt. So in a way, this was as much her own fault as Kat's and as the humans said:

They'd had a good run…

"And she'd rather tell you herself," she continued and turned to the big wolf shifter, who instantly brightened at her words.

"So, it can be broken?" he asked, sounding hopeful.

"Of course," she snorted. "All curses can be broken. You literally can't make a curse without a way to nullify it." Didn't these people know anything? Apparently not. And they hunted magical creatures for a living? Freaking armatures…

"Alright," Magnus said on a sigh. "That's one hurdle down." Then, for the first time since coming into the Hut, he straightened to his full height and turned all that alpha domineering powers on her. "That still leaves you though," he said, and while his tone was smooth like silk, Bella still felt like she should have someone go over her will right about now. "Who are you? And what are you doing here?"

Well, she guessed. This was either the part where she'd come up with an epic tale of bullshit--- or tell them the truth. Kat had told her a million times that if she told anyone she came from the past, nobody would believe her, but right about now, Bella didn't care if the shifters thought she was crazy.

So, with a smirk, she proudly announced:

"I'm Bellatrix Phips," she said, loud and clear. "And I came here from 1693, Salem, to save my family."