The water felt like iced concrete when she hit it, and the shock almost took the breath she held away from her. She kept her mouth clamped shut and nose plugged, arms pinned to her sides to help hold her backpack straps on her arms.
She felt the tug when the water hit the bag, and it reminded her of her parachute catching when she’d skydived for her twenty-first birthday. She went from free falling to suddenly being yanked upward, but that wasn’t really what happened, and she knew it. She wasn’t going upward so much as the descent just ceased.
This moment felt about the same, except instead of fresh air, she was surrounded by water.
She let her body go limp, hoping that would help her conserve air and let the flotation device do its job. Her descent began to slow, the water pressure building in her ears as she struggled not to panic.
She kicked her feet, and she finally stopped, then began to slowly rise upward. She looked up and began kicking frantically, desperate to reach the water surface that seemed so far away.
A shadow swam by her, and she had to force herself not to scream. She was going to die. She just knew it. And it was all Ty’s fault.
His hands were on her in the next moment, and she felt him yank hard. Her head broke the surface, and she took the deepest breath of her life and almost cried out in relief.
“You’re alright,” he said in her ear. “Relax, I’ve got you.”
“How the hell is that your favorite part?” she said angrily.
He chuckled.
“You get used to it.”
“You get used to it. I’m never setting foot in this place again.”
“Never say never.”
He held her so her head was on his shoulder, and she leaned into him.
“This is nice,” she said, eyes closed. “I like this part.”
“That’s good,” he said. “But I wouldn’t open your eyes just yet.”
She sat up quickly, ignoring his suggestion and doing just that. A few yards away, on the bank of the pool of water they’d jumped into were half a dozen men, all armed and looking quite angry.
“Friends of yours?” Senora asked, too exhausted to panic anymore.
“They aren’t,” he whispered, then turned his attention to the men in question. “I’m here to see Ethan,” he said loud enough for them to hear.
“Who are you?” the man closest to them asked.
“Ty Mahigan,” he said.
“Mahigan? You’re a wolf?”
“That would be correct,” Ty answered sheepishly.
“What are you doing here?”
“I need to see Ethan.”
“For what?”
“To save his life.”
And how are you going to do that?” a voice said from behind the rustling trees as he moved into view.
Ty smiled.
“The same way I always save your life, you winged bastard.”
The two men laughed, and Ethan waved the others to stand down.
“I see you’ve brought me a prize,” Ethan said, eyeing Senora.
“No way, Friend.”
Ethan shrugged.
“I guess your mother never taught you to share.”
Senora shot Ty a look of pure terror as her stomach clenched at their playful banter, but Ty shook his head.
“We’re joking, Senora,” he said.
“Senora?” Ethan asked, eyebrow raised.
“The one and only,” Ty said.
“Well, then. Welcome, Senora. I’ve heard so much about you.”
She looked at Ty, but Ty held up his hands.
“Not from me,” Ty said. “I told you. You’re famous.”
Ethan stepped into the water and held out his hand to help Ty out.
“I was hoping when I saw an APB out on myself that they would send you, Ty. I couldn’t have dreamed that they would send you and the famous Senora.”
“I wish you guys would quit saying that and tell me what’s going on,” she said, stepping onto the grassy shore and resisting the urge to kiss that ground.
She turned and looked at the opening in the side of the mountain. She shook her head.
“If Ty would have called me, I could have had you flown in like a civilized human being.”
“I didn’t have time to call. Kaden was at the base of the mountains and in our hotel.”
“That definitely put a damper on things,” Ethan laughed. “That man is relentless. We should get going.”
“Is anyone going to explain the ‘famous Senora’ comments?”
“No,” Ethan said. “It’s far easier to show you, and I think you’ll want to get out of those clothes first. Dinner will be served soon, and we have a lot to talk about.”
“But you’re in danger of being found,” Senora said, stopping and letting her arms fall loudly to her sides in exasperation. “Are you just going to go on as if you have nothing to fear?”
Ethan turned, and she expected him to be laughing or maybe even angry at what she was insinuating. Instead, his eyes were soft. She found herself lost in them, like she was diving into the emerald green depths and soaring through the skies all at once. She was rooted to the ground, but she could feel the winds blowing around her, and she knew that she was flying.
“Ethan, knock it off,” Ty said.
The image shattered and fell around her, and all at once, she was back in the woods, and Ethan was smiling.
“Sorry. It’s a habit. That’s why I wear the colored contacts to hide my eyes when I’m out and about. It’s easier to avoid enchantments that way.”
“What just happened?” Senora asked.
“I thought it would help you relax, but it looks like you don’t respond the way most women do. I’m not surprised, but at least we’re already here.”
“What?”
Senora turned, looked behind them and was shocked to see that the pool was gone, and so was the cliff cave they’d jumped out of. She ran her hands through her hair and stopped, looking up at Ethan and feeling the heat build.
“My hair is dry,” she said, trying to keep herself under control. “What did you do?”
“Nothing,” he said. “You looked stressed and tired, and like the altitude was getting to you. You should feel better now. Take a deep breath.”
Senora did it, even though she didn’t mean to. For the first time since they’d parked at the overlook, she didn’t feel dizzy when she inhaled.
“I’m sorry. I should have asked you, but I thought you could use a little help.”
“What did you do exactly?”
“I enchanted you and let your mind rest while we walked through the woods. One, so you could rest, and two, so you wouldn’t remember how we got here. I’m sorry, but I have to protect our secrets, even from you.”
“You keep saying that.”
“I do. And now, you’re about to see why.”
Ethan raised his arm and motioned. A slender girl no more than twelve or thirteen handed a younger girl the basket full of beans she was picking from the garden, and the younger girl continued the work.
The girl hurried over, her long black hair flowing behind her in tight ringlets down to her waist. Her bright green eyes shone from the distance, and Senora heard herself gasp as her hands went up to her mouth in shock.
“Impossible,” Senora whispered.
“Oh, my goodness,” the girl cried out, running.
When she got close, Senora knew she was running not to Ethan and not to Ty, but to Senora. She opened her arms to the girl and wrapped her up tight when the girl slammed into her and buried her face against her like small children do. Senora inhaled the familiar scent of her hair and held her tighter, fighting back tears as the girl sobbed happily in her arms.
“I take it you know who she is,” Ethan said with a wide grin.
“I do. I’ll never forget this sweet face for as long as I live.” She turned to Ty, still holding the girl in her arms. “This is Emma. She was my first missing person case that I found alive and the reason I got my own department. Everyone thought she was dead, and I followed a hunch and found her. She wasn’t quite eight years old, and she was so tiny we’d walked past where she was hidden countless times and missed her. None of us thought she could be in the area beneath the garden shack, but I checked anyway. I found her under there, bound and gagged and struggling to breathe.”
“They would have come back to carry her off if you hadn’t,” Ethan said. “We never would have found her if they had come back to get her. You saved her life.”
“That’s right,” Senora said. “How do you know all this, Ethan?”
“Because Emma is my baby sister.”