Alastair helped himself to a donut. "Unfortunately, we haven't been able to inspect the cellar yet. The old wooden staircase is half rotted away, and the only other access point is outside, the old coal chute. Oskar will bring a ladder when he comes this afternoon, so we'll have a look then."

"Sounds good." Howard drank more water. "So is Elsa around?"

Alastair shot him an annoyed look. "You'll have to conduct all your business meetings with me or Oskar. Elsa has requested not to see you again."

Howard's mouth dropped open.

Alastair scowled at him. "I don't know what you did last night, but I don't appreciate you scaring the h.e.l.l out of her. She's a nice-"

"What?"

"She looked dreadful this morning. Black circles under her eyes. She wouldn't say what had upset her, but it was obvious she hadn't slept a wink."

"She-she's upset?"

Alastair gulped down some water. "So what happened? Did you make a pa.s.s at her?"

"I-"

"I'm not blind, you know. I could tell you two were attracted to each other, and quite frankly, I was delighted for Ellie. She's a lovely woman and deserves to be happy-"

"I didn't hurt her." Howard gritted his teeth. "I would never hurt her."

"Well." Alastair eyed him suspiciously. "I'll have to take your word on that. But for now, I expect you to honor her wishes and stay away from her."

"Where is she? Is she all right?"

Alastair lifted a brow. "She'll be here later with Oskar and the crew. In other words, she will be surrounded by a group of brawny construction workers who consider her their darling little sister."

Howard's inner bear growled at the implied threat. Did they really believe he was a danger to Elsa?

He rose to his feet. "I would never harm her. And I will honor her wishes. You have my word."

Alastair nodded. "Good." He extended a hand. "No hard feelings, ol' chap. Let's continue to work well together."

Howard shook his hand, then strode from the house.

A few minutes later, he found himself parked in front of the motel in Cranville. He'd been in such a daze that he couldn't remember driving there.

He gazed at her door. Room number five. Even here, he could detect a hint of her lovely scent. What had happened to make her suddenly reject him? Had he moved too fast the night before? Kissed her too hard?

He replayed the scene in his mind, trying to figure out where he'd gone wrong. Yes, he'd kissed her with pa.s.sion, but she had kissed him back. She hadn't seemed insulted or frightened by him.

d.a.m.n. He raked a hand through his hair. What the h.e.l.l had upset her? Had she experienced a delayed reaction to being teleported? If that was freaking her out, then how would she ever handle the truth about him being a shifter?

He might never get the chance to tell her. She might insist on never seeing him again.

Despair slammed into him, nearly doubling him over. The bear inside him howled in pain. It rammed against his defenses, demanding release. It needed to run, needed to destroy a poor tree with a few ferocious swipes, needed to shred and devour a helpless animal.

"Later," he whispered, sweat beading on his brow as he tightened his control on the beast. Charging around town as a grizzly bear would not help his cause. What he needed now was a new strategy.

He retrieved a pen and small legal pad from his glove compartment so he could write Elsa a note.

WHAT THE h.e.l.l HAPPENED? he scrawled, then realized all caps looked like he was yelling at her. He ripped that page off and tried again. he scrawled, then realized all caps looked like he was yelling at her. He ripped that page off and tried again.

Elsa, I'm sorry I jumped your bones.

To h.e.l.l with that. He wasn't sorry at all. He tore that page off.

My dearest Elsa:I heard you didn't sleep well, and I was concerned. What could be upsetting you, sweetheart? Why are you so afraid? I never took you for a COWARD!

He ripped that page off. Dammit, he couldn't let his anger creep in.

"Holy c.r.a.p," he muttered. There was only one page left on the pad.

He took a deep breath. Fourth down and ten. No pressure here.

Dear Elsa,I was sorry to miss you this morning. Please call me whenever you get a chance.

He looked it over. Not too bad. He wrote down his cell phone number and signed it simply with his name. It would have to do. He folded it up and wrote her name on it, then took it inside the motel office and asked the sleepy manager to pa.s.s it on to her.

With one last glance at her door, he returned to his SUV, then drove back to the school. Instead of going inside, he jogged to the nearby woods, stripped, and let the bear free.

He roared his frustration, ripped his claws through a tree trunk, then ran through the forest. He made a circle around the school, clawing and marking his territory.

She will be mine, the bear growled. the bear growled. Elsa will be mine. Elsa will be mine.

The note burned in Elsa's pocket, but she ignored it and walked from the motel office to the local diner. Even though it was almost noon, she ordered breakfast. After a sleepless night, she'd dragged herself to the car at dawn, but thankfully, Alastair had taken mercy on her and given her the morning off. She'd climbed back into bed and dozed away most of the morning.

Now she tapped her fingers on the linoleum table, waiting for her bacon and eggs. She could pa.s.s the time by looking at the note the motel manager had given her.

No. She sipped some coffee instead. She sipped some coffee instead.

She strongly suspected the note was from Howard. Her name was written on the outside with bold, strong strokes, nothing like the fluid handwriting that Alastair used.

d.a.m.n, she'd let Howard walk her to her room last night. He knew which room was hers. She shook her head. Howard had acted like a gentleman. He didn't deserve all this suspicion. She was letting those weird berserker legends freak her out.

Howard wasn't behaving like a wild animal. He'd simply left a note for her at the office.

Should she look at it?

She rubbed her brow, not knowing what to think. Her aunt had frightened her with all that berserker nonsense, and then her dream had terrified her. Was she really marked for murder? Was Howard some kind of modern-day berserker who went into an animal-like trance, killing everything in sight?

How had her life slipped so far into the bizarre?

She drank more coffee and looked around the diner. Everything seemed so normal. Small-town America. Down-to-earth people with friendly faces. They were delighted that the International Home Wreckers International Home Wreckers show had come to town. The motel was fully booked for the next four months. She'd booked a room for her aunts and seven more rooms to accommodate Oskar, Madge the camerawoman, her sound and light guys, and the main construction crew. Specialty crews would come and go over the next few months, filling up the rest of the motel. show had come to town. The motel was fully booked for the next four months. She'd booked a room for her aunts and seven more rooms to accommodate Oskar, Madge the camerawoman, her sound and light guys, and the main construction crew. Specialty crews would come and go over the next few months, filling up the rest of the motel.

Madge and her production crew were going to film the "before" footage today. They would return about once a week over the next four months, then film a lot of interviews and "after" footage when the project was finished.

The main construction crew was jokingly called The B Boys, since their names were Bennie, Bradley, Bartello, and Buff. Buff's name was actually Mario, but he liked being called Buff as much as he liked showing off his buff body. All The B Boys had been selected for the show because they were experts on construction with the added bonus of looking fabulous without their shirts. Whenever Madge was around with her camera, she insisted they partially disrobe, claiming a shirtless man in a hard hat was good for ratings.

They were a nice-looking bunch, Elsa thought, but not nearly as huge and handsome as Howard. Read his note Read his note.

"No!" She realized the waitress was standing there with a coffee pot in hand and a surprised look on her face. "I mean, yes." She slid her nearly empty cup across the table.

The waitress filled it and gave her a wary look. "Your food will be out soon."

"Thank you." Elsa smiled to let the waitress know she was okay.

Read the note, you coward. What could be so bad about a note? It wasn't like Howard could strangle her with a few written words, not like the guy in her dream. What could be so bad about a note? It wasn't like Howard could strangle her with a few written words, not like the guy in her dream.

She retrieved the note from her jeans pocket and read it. His cell phone number glared back at her. "No." She stuffed the note in her handbag.

Would it hurt to call him? It wasn't like Howard could strangle her over the phone, not like the guy in her dream. She winced and shook her head. Stop thinking about that. Stop thinking about that.

"Are you all right?" The waitress eyed her suspiciously as she set a platter of eggs, bacon, and toast on the table.

"I'm fine. Thank you." I'm not going to think about Howard going berserk and killing a bunch of pigs in an animal-like frenzy. I'm not going to think about Howard going berserk and killing a bunch of pigs in an animal-like frenzy. She picked up a slice of bacon and groaned. She picked up a slice of bacon and groaned.

Maybe she'd start with the eggs.

Shortly after Elsa's late breakfast, Oskar, The BBoys, and Madge and her crew arrived in two trucks and a van. They quickly settled in their motel rooms while Elsa ordered a dozen hamburger combo meals at the diner. Then, loaded up with take-out food and supplies, they headed off to the gatehouse.

Everyone sat on the floor in the formal parlor to eat their lunch with leftover donuts for dessert while Alastair outlined the plans. Madge and her crew recorded some video, and The B Boys ate without their shirts, just to make her happy. Elsa suspected some of them were making Madge happy when the camera wasn't rolling.

They would start with the bas.e.m.e.nt and work their way up. The bad news: Alastair suspected the bas.e.m.e.nt was only about seven feet high. They might have to dig down another two feet.

The B Boys groaned.

Their first job: set up temporary lighting in the cellar, clean the place up, and determine if it was structurally sound before they started digging.

It was a horrendous mess. After a few hours, they were all covered in dirt, cobwebs, and coal dust. Elsa had climbed up the ladder to get a bottle of water from the kitchen when her cell phone jangled. She wiped her dirty hands on her jeans, then answered it.

"Ellie!" Aunt Greta exclaimed. "We've just arrived at the motel. Where are you?"

"At work. I'll be there soon." Elsa yelled down at Alastair that she needed to return to town and heard his m.u.f.fled agreement.

"I'll take you back." Madge climbed up the ladder. "We're done for the day."

Fifteen minutes later, Elsa arrived at the motel. Aunt Greta and Great-aunt Ula bounded from their room, all smiles and open arms.

"Goodness, girl, you're a mess." Greta gave her a quick hug, then stepped back.

Great-aunt Ula grinned at her, then spoke in broken English. "You look very well. We were very afraid for you."

"I'm fine. And you look great, Aunt Ula. I swear you haven't aged a day since I last saw you." And it wasn't flattery. Elsa hoped she would age as well her great-aunt. Ula's hair was silver, but it was thick and shiny and plaited into a long braid. Her glowing complexion had only a few wrinkles, and her green eyes were as sharp as ever.

Ula nodded, smiling. "You grow up very pretty." Her smile faded as she plucked a cobweb from Elsa's hair. "But very dirty."

"I'll jump in the shower." Elsa unlocked her motel room door and ushered the two women inside.

Ten minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom squeaky clean, dressed in new jeans and a T-shirt. While she towel-dried her hair, the aunts sat on her bed, speaking in Swedish.

"We must tell her everything," Ula insisted. "What does she know so far?"

"I told her about the murders," Greta whispered. "And the berserkers."

Ula nodded. "Does she know she's a-"

"A what?" Elsa asked in English. She hadn't understood the last word Ula had said.

"It translates best as guardian," Greta explained in English. "As you know, Aunt Ula can talk to seals, whales, dolphins, fish-all the creatures of the sea."

Ula nodded. "Turtles, too."

Elsa sighed. "Yes, I've heard that." But she'd never believed it.

"I am Guardian of Sea," Ula announced.

And I'm the queen of England. Elsa tossed her damp towel under the vanity. Elsa tossed her damp towel under the vanity.

"That's why she has the fish birthmark," Greta explained.

"Ja. Fish." Ula tapped her shoulder. Fish." Ula tapped her shoulder.

"And I have the bird birthmark," Greta continued, "so I'm Guardian of the Sky."

"She talks to birds," Ula added.

"What?" Elsa gave her aunt an incredulous look. "You never mentioned that before."

Greta dragged a hand through her short blond hair. As pale as her hair was, the few strands of silver were barely noticeable. "I became your mother, and I was afraid you wouldn't mind me if you thought I was crazy. But remember in junior high when you insisted on walking home from the bus stop on your own?"

Elsa swallowed hard. A hawk had always followed her home.

"And when you went off to college, there was an owl who lived in the rafters outside your room," Greta continued.

"You kept an eye on me with birds birds?" Elsa asked.

Greta nodded. "You wouldn't believe how handy they are. I've never gotten a speeding ticket 'cause they always tell me where the cops are."

"Huh?" Elsa ran a hand through her damp hair.

"That's why I wasn't concerned about driving around with the rifles in the trunk." Greta quickly translated what she'd said to Swedish, and Ula grinned.

"Ja. We need guns to keep Elsa safe," Ula said, still smiling. We need guns to keep Elsa safe," Ula said, still smiling.

Elsa groaned. "You can't just walk around shooting everyone who looks at me funny."