Her Enemy Protector Bear by Cynthia Wilde

Chapter 20

Nick did the fastest show on record after he sent Zelda out. Zelda had taken off immediately, at a run, shifting as she went. Everything after that, including his unicycle stunt, was on autopilot, but on doubletime. Marla could barely keep up. He was seriously worried about Devon. He didn’t want to let on to Zoe, but if there had been any way to cancel the show he would have. Having said that he whipped through it in probably fifteen minutes flat. Something was up. He did his best to push their last conversation from his mind. She needed him, and it outweighed anything else. His bear, of course, was reveling in the moment.

Pasqual had come to him this morning with injuries he said he got from fighting with some strange cats in the woods last night. He said his enemies had just ‘vanished’ mid fight. Shortly afterwards, Zelda told him about how Zoe dismissed her from the booth which had not pleased him one bit. He lightly chastised her for not insisting on staying. Truthfully it wouldn’t have mattered. Now this. Of course. Things were coming to a head on all sides. He'd given Devon the walkie-talkie but couldn't get in touch with him. He didn’t even know if Devon had it with him anyhow.

As soon as the warp speed show was over, instead of posing for pictures, Nick ran offstage and threw on his after-hours clothing. He hadn’t heard a word from Zelda so he assumed she was still searching. He got to Zoe’s booth quickly. When he got to her booth, Zoe was pacing back and forth.

"Zelda couldn't find him," she cried. "I shouldn't have let him go; I should have kept him here with me. I can’t go search because I don’t know the woods here and I can’t leave because he might come back! He is never late, Nick, and its been hours. And the wallet. It’s just not normal. I know something is wrong. This is all my fault."

"Hey, it's not your fault," said Nick, crouching down to grab her hand. "We will find him." He turned to Zelda, who’d just stepped out. "Stay here and watch the shop, please, just in case he comes back. Call me immediately if he does."

"You got it," said Zelda. "I got in touch with Rafe as well. He hasn't seen his kids either, so they must all be together somewhere. He's already begun gathering the team. He's canceled the next show for today, so you won't have to worry about time. You can focus on finding Devon and the kids.”

Nick was trying to reassure both her and himself. "Let’s just take it easy, Zoe. We’ll start out in the woods, at that spot I was telling you about. They probably went into the woods and lost track of time. This is a vast place, and there are lots of areas to hide in. And just keep reminding yourself, it’s only been a few hours, they could just be hanging out somewhere.

"Devon wouldn't do that," said Zoe. "He never misses his lunch. I think he's mad at me. I told him we were leaving tomorrow," she cried. "He told me he didn't want to leave. He likes it here. He's never argued like that with me before. Maybe he's run away." Her tears were making her own tee shirt wet.

He tried to pull her into a hug, but she responded stiffly for a moment, but then relaxed in his arms. “It’s ok,” he said simply. He gave her a simple kiss on the forehead. And she rested her head on his shoulder a moment before pulling away.

“I’m sorry. I mean I appreciate you Nick. Thank you. This has all been so much,” she said.

"Hey, it’s ok. We’re gonna find him. Rafe already has Red and some other searching.” He pulled her up to standing. “Let’s go.”

The first place they went was the empty house where Rafe's children sometimes played. Nobody had lived there in two years since Alec and Aubrey's wedding. It had been vacant ever since. The place was shuttered, with no signs of life, but Nick sniffed the air anyway, just in case there was a faint scent. He smelled nothing but the wet leaves that adorned the front steps.

Next, they ran to the fairy glen. Aurora was there finishing up a session of story time as she often did when she wasn't patrolling in the woods. When she spied Nick, she nodded and excused herself.

"We have a problem," said Nick quietly as they made their way to the backstage area. "Zoe's son is missing as well as the Parker kids."

Apparently Rafe had not gotten word to her yet. Aurora let out her breath. "When was the last time anyone saw them?" she asked evenly with just a hint of alarm.

"I saw my son this morning," said Zoe. "By the way, I don't think we've met; I'm sorry."

"I'm Aurora, the head of the fairy guild here at the faire," the fairy said without annoyance. "I apologize to you as well. I know who you and your son are. I also know what happened to you at the lake. Nick has been keeping me and several others informed." Zoe looked like she was about to speak, but Aurora held up her hand. "Before you get angry, I want you to know that Nick here has done everything he can to protect you both. We have reason to believe that you and your boy may be the target of some dark magic which places you in considerable danger."

"Dark magic?" asked Zoe. "What do you mean? I mean my kid is missing! Is this really the time? You think this has to do with Devon being missing?"

Aurora sighed. "I will have to explain in-depth later, but for now, we need to find your son before something terrible happens. I guarantee you will see some things that won't make sense to you. Maybe you already have. Things are very different here than from where you've come from. Just have faith that we know what we are doing. We will find Devon. "

Nick watched Zoe's anxious face as she looked from Aurora to him. He took her hand and nodded. "I've got your back," he said. "We will find him."

Just then, the fat calico that Zoe had trapped a few days ago appeared in the woods. She ran toward them, shifting as she went from cat to human. She stood there in front of them in the woods, completely naked and unabashed about that fact. No one was around but them. Her long hair covered her breasts. "I saw your boy," she said to Zoe, not skipping a beat. "He's with the others behind the wall. You must get there quickly, or all is lost!" She turned and shifted, as if it were nothing, right there in front of Zoe as she ran away.

Zoe just froze. She turned slowly to look at Nick, and Aurora, who were both watching her calmly. “You’re not freaked out by that at all are you?” she pointed. Both Nick and Aurora shook their heads. "Cats are people, and people are cats," Zoe whispered. To Nick’s eye it was like a key had finally turned in her head. Understand seemed to dawn on her face. "Devon, he was right, and you," Zoe looked at Nick, "that means you could be telling the truth, too. You are telling the truth. Have been…"

"Yes," said Nick. "Let's go."

The three of them ran, following the cat shifter towards one of the openings in the wall in the woods. There were two more, deeper in, closer to the Void. She shifted back into a woman again and whispered, "I cannot go back, or I risk being enslaved. He has other witches and warlocks on his side now. He's turned them with his evil. Chell is there too. I barely escaped. I can’t go back there. I’m so sorry, please, be careful." Then the woman shifted back into her cat form and ran the other direction.

"I closed that particular door long ago," said Aurora, staring at the opening in the wall, looking rather displeased. "It took me a long time to do it, it takes equally strong magic to open that door again. We need Rafe here now." Aurora produced a walkie-talkie and called out a distress signal for all the crew to meet them at the opening in the wall.

Within minutes, Rafe, Red, Samantha, and Alec joined them.

"The children are inside," said Nick, as everyone listened. "And Chell, too, but something is enslaving witches and warlocks, and turning them."

"Furdinand," whispered Zoe. "He's plagued my dreams, being a demon and scaring the hell out of me… and he's been speaking to Devon. That’s what he was trying to do I think. Turn us! Devon told me the cats talked to him but I just didn't listen. I thought he was just making up stories. He was telling me! Maybe I could have stopped all this!"

"It hasn't just spoken to Devon," Nick interjected. "It also spoke through him. He possessed him a few weeks ago and spoke through his mouth. I only know because Devon asked me where his cat was afterward, and didn’t remember a thing that he’d said to me. He said Furdi had just been on his lap, and this was at my house. Your cat was nowhere nearby." Then a thought occurred to Nick. "Zoe, do you have any more cat treats?"

"Yes," she answered, giving him a puzzled look. "They're in my truck; why?"

"We're going to need them, I think," he said, then he turned to look at Aurora. "Do you think you can transport her without being seen?"

"Yes," she answered. "Zoe, take my hand and close your eyes. I know this is a lot, but you are gonna need to trust me. This will help us save Devon. Just think about your truck as clearly as you can. Focus."

“I understand,” Zoe said. Something clicked earlier. I’m ready.

With that she closed her eyes while Aurora did some sort of movements with her arms. A moment later the two of them disappeared in a puff of glitter.

"What is your plan?" asked Rafe. "My children are there with him. How are cat treats going to make a difference? Why are we having this delay? We have to get in there now!"

Nick could see Rafe's dragon threatening to come out.

"We may need a dragon, but trust me, these treats will be the key here," said Nick. "I think the strays are being controlled by the demon in the cat, Furdi. If they still have any sort of cat left in them, they will not be able to resist the treats. I don’t know why I couldn’t see it before, but Zoe has something about her. I don’t think she knew it herself. That may be why. Anyhow I think she imbues the treats with some sort of spell that makes them irresistible. Even the witch shifters were not immune. With Zoe’s special treats we can lure them away and trap them. We need any advantage we can get, even if it’s cat treats."

A minute later, Aurora and Zoe returned with the jar. Zoe looked frazzled but here eyes were full of tears. “It’s magic, Nick. It’s really magic.” she whispered, almost to herself. She cleared her throat and straightened her spine. And I knew it…something in me knows it. I can’t explain.

"Here they are," she said, handing the jar to Nick. "What now?"

"Where are the traps?" asked Nick.

"I reset them yesterday," said Samantha. "I will run and get them. I'll go as fast as I can. I’m going as wolf, Rafe, so we may need so Fae forgetting spells for any patrons who see me, but there’s not time to lose."

Rafe nodded. Samantha ran to grab the traps as everyone else looked at one another in silent agreement. This was it.

"The rest of us will go in," said Nick, looking at his friends and comrades in battle against whatever demon or creature it was that had the kids. "We will wait for your knock. Hopefully, we will win. We don’t know exactly what we are up against so be ready for anything."

As they made their way in, Nick pulled Zoe aside. "I don't know what you are going to see in there or what will happen, but I want you to know something," Nick took a deep breath. "I love you. I have always loved you, even if I was too meatheaded to realize it. I’m sorry I couldn’t find a way to help you see the truth of all this before."

Zoe's intake of breath was sharp, but her eyes filled with tears.

"I love you, too, and you did your best. You have always done your best. I see that now," she responded.

"I will gladly lay down my life to save you and Devon," he said with vehemence as he felt every word. "But I going to do my best to avoid it,” he smiled. “So don’t worry. Please, trust me in there, okay?"

"I trust you," Zoe said, kissing him gently on the lips. "I will trust you with our lives."

Hand in hand, Nick and Zoe entered through the door to face whatever this dark force was prepared to throw at them.