Page 2 of Beauty and the Beastmaster

In dawn’s gray light the small town, unexpected at the end of the less than impressive road, looked charming. Maybe by the full light of day its scars would be revealed, but at this moment it was welcoming. It was beautiful.

Mia was cooing up a storm in the back seat. She liked it, too.

Gabi spotted a small gas station to the left. It wasn’t open yet, but would be eventually. She turned right, intent on exploring a bit, and drove slowly down what the sign designated as Main Street. Police station, café, hardware store, antiques store, and more. There were several empty spaces as well, scattered here and there. Oddly enough the road just ended, straight ahead. It was a weird configuration, as if the road was unfinished; as if at one time someone had planned for that road to continue, and then they’d changed their minds.

Just past the library Gabi turned the car around and headed back toward the gas station. She could park there and wait for it to open, maybe even sleep a while longer. Once she had a full tank of gas and a little more sleep, she’d be good to go.

But where? Where would she go?

Until now, no one would’ve called her a determined woman. All her life she’d been laid back, she’d gone with the flow. Don’t make waves had been her lifelong motto. Life with her single and unhappy mother hadn’t been easy, but they’d gotten by. They’d persevered, through hard times and peaceful moments. She’d cried when her mother had died far too young, but she’d done her crying in private.

Being the object of a rich man’s undivided attention, having someone in her life who did everything in his power to put her first, to make her happy, had been a thrill. At first she hadn’t known how to act, what to say beyond an awkward thank you when a man who seemed to adore her sent flowers, gifted her with expensive jewelry, and took her to the best restaurants in town. Blake Pierce had been well respected in South Florida, and could’ve had any woman he wanted. He’d wanted her. He’d pursued her, not at all put off by her shyness or her ordinary job in a four-station beauty salon.

Looking back, she realized she hadn’t asked enough questions. She hadn’t wondered why Blake asked, early on, so much about her family. Or lack thereof. The thrill of his lavish attention had robbed her of her common sense, of her innate caution. She’d fallen for his lines, she’d let herself be fooled by his charm. By the time she’d realized what he was like, it had been too late.

If only she’d gotten away before she’d made the mistake of saying I do. Even now, could she truly say she’d gotten away? Was Blake right behind her, or around the next corner? She wouldn’t put it past him to be two steps ahead.

Gabi crawled into the back seat and took Mia out of her car seat. No regrets. Her decisions had led her to this point, but they’d also made her a mother. Mia smiled, gurgled, kicked her legs, and waved her arms. And then she settled snugly into her mother’s arms and slept. Gabi slept, too. Her last thought, as she held her daughter close and drifted toward sleep, was a resolute I will do anything for you.

Chapter 1

Present Day

Even this far south, Alabama could be bitterly cold in late February. But some days, especially this late in the month, it promised spring to come. There was a touch of warmth in the air in the afternoon, and some of the trees in the forest that surrounded Silas’s home and place of business were bold enough to bud.

Today was one of those days. He ran along a rough path that wound from his place to the springs for which the town he called home was named. Three dogs followed, obeying his call. Overhead a flock of birds wove up and down, following as the stray dogs did. A few wild animals, hiding here and there among the trees and bushes, watched and listened. They did not follow, though a few kept pace with him for a short while.

Like generations of Hollisters before him, Silas used his gift of communication with animals to serve as Mystic Springs’ veterinarian. One of his most important jobs was a solitary one. He collected, treated, and trained the strays that were drawn to the springs and were foolish enough to drink from it. The water, tainted with the magic that made the town what it was and made the people who they were, drove the canines mad for a while. The effects might last a week, a month… the dogs all reacted differently.

Some of the dogs who came his way were simply lost, but far too many had been discarded by owners who got tired of them, or moved and didn’t want to bother taking their pets with them. Those poor animals were just dumped on the side of the road, left to fend for themselves.

There had to be a special level of hell for people who would do that.

As he took a bend in the path, Silas saw home ahead. His home, his business, a large pen for the animals he called his, for a while… and a white SUV parked beside his battered gray pickup truck.

He muttered a curse word. A handful of birds in the branches he ran beneath took flight in response to his anger. A squirrel abandoned a newly dug hole to take off, moving deeper into the woods. The truth was, while he had no choice but to deal with people, pet owners and law enforcement agencies for the most part, he far preferred animals to humans.

Before Silas reached the pen directly behind his home and office, a blonde he didn’t immediately recognize opened the SUV’s passenger door and stepped out. Donnie Milhouse exited from the driver’s side. As Silas let the newly collected animals into their daytime space, where a collection of other dogs waited, he remembered where he’d seen the blonde before. Holy hell.

He silently ordered the animals to remain calm and to welcome the newcomers — the dogs, not the people — then he turned away. If only he had that power with humans. Even if he did, it probably wouldn’t work with her. She’d never been one to get along well with others.

“Jenna Maxwell,” he said as he walked toward the couple. “What brings you back to Mystic Springs?” Clint would be pissed when he found out his ex-wife had returned.

She smiled. “It’s Jenna Sterling, now.”

“You remarried.”

“I did.” She shrugged. “That marriage didn’t last long either, I’m afraid.”

If she’d tried to change husband number two the way she’d tried to change Clint, he couldn’t be surprised that she was divorced again. Jenna was gorgeous — tall, shapely, blond and blue-eyed — but beauty would only get you so far.

Donnie stood close to Jenna, draping a possessive arm over her shoulder. Huh. A Bigfoot shifter like Clint had to be changed, but she’d take up with a werewolf? Made no sense to him.

“Let’s get to business,” Donnie said.

The hairs on the back of Silas’s neck stood up. There was something alarming about Donnie’s tone, something off about that crooked smile.

Silas ignored Donnie and focused his attention on Jenna. “Does Clint know you’re back?”