Royal Pride
Author: Zelda Knight
Date: 0101-01-01 00:00:00+00:00
Description: Each page of this anthology offers enchanting tales of transformation and seduction from royal prides to foxy thieves. Lions, tigers, dragons, gargoyles, werewolves, mermaids, and more inhabit each magical story. Fall in love with a shapeshifter in this limited edition collection of shifter romances brought to you by thirteen New York Times, USA Today, and international bestsellers, as well as hot new authors! FEATURING: Lion's Bride © 2021 Imani Jay Stolen Mate © 2021 Juliet Moon Breaking Chains © 2021 Margo Bond Collins Cat Among the Demons © 2021 Lillia Hunter For the Love of a Mermaid © 20
Publisher: AURELIA LEO, LLC

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Synopsis

Each page of this anthology offers enchanting tales of transformation and seduction from royal prides to foxy thieves. Lions, tigers, dragons, gargoyles, werewolves, mermaids, and more inhabit each magical story. Fall in love with a shapeshifter in this limited edition collection of shifter romances brought to you by thirteen New York Times, USA Today, and international bestsellers, as well as hot new authors!

ROYAL PRIDE:

A Limited Edition Shifter Romance Anthology

Limited © 2021 Zelda Knight

All rights reserved. Published in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written consent, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles, reviews, and so on. This is a collection of fiction. Any semblance to persons, names, characters, organizations, places, events or incidents is the product of imagination. Any resemblance to the aforementioned is otherwise purely subliminal influence from our dormant shifters.

www.aurelialeo.com

Cover Design by Design by Definition

Book Design by Knight Designs (www.authorzknight.com)

FEATURING:

Lion’s Bride © 2021 Imani Jay

Stolen Mate © 2021 Juliet Moon

Breaking Chains © 2021 Margo Bond Collins

Cat Among the Demons © 2021 Lillia Hunter

For the Love of a Mermaid © 2021 Diana Dawn

Earthen © 2014 RaeLynn Blue

Ritual Island © 2019 J. P. Uvalle

Tricks, Treats & Trial by Fire © 2021 Sapphire Winters

Wings © 2021 Sofia Aves

Bonded © 2021 Isabeau Moon

Pride of a Lioness © 2021 Katia Kozar

Serpent’s Nest © 2021 W.M. Dawson

Foxy Heist © 2021 Zelda Knight

Visit prideanthologies.com for more!

Tables of Contents

Lion's Bride

A Curvy Girl Instalove Shifter Romance

About Lion’s Bride

The Rogue Lion

Chapter One

GAÏNDÉ

Chapter Two

LINGUERE

Chapter Three

GAÏNDÉ

Epilogue

About Imani Jay

Also By Imani Jay

Stolen Mate

(Omegas of the Wilds, Book One)

About Stolen Mate

Chapter One

MINA

Chapter Two

CAINE

Chapter Three

BRIGHTON

Chapter Four

MINA

Chapter Five

BRIGHTON

Chapter Six

CAINE

Chapter Seven

MINA

Chapter Eight

CAINE

Chapter Nine

MINA

Chapter Ten

BRIGHTON

Chapter Eleven

MINA

Chapter Twelve

MINA

About Juliet Moon

Breaking Chains

A La Isla Perdida Paranormal Prison Short Story

About Breaking Chains

Chapter One

MARA

Chapter Two

GAGE

Chapter Three

MARA

Chapter Four

GAGE

Chapter Five

MARA

Chapter Six

GAGE

Chapter Seven

MARA

Chapter Eight

GAGE

About Margo Bond Collins

Also By Margo Bond Collins

Cat Among the Demons

About Cat Among the Demons

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Epilogue

About Lillia Hunter

Also By Lillia Hunter

For the Love of a Mermaid

About For the Love of a Mermaid

Chapter One

The Crystal Petra

Chapter Two

The Cavern Of Pools

Chapter Three

The Seagate

Chapter Four

Marinus

Chapter Five

Soul Mates

About Diana Dawn

Earthen

A Dragon’s Keep Story

About Earthen

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Epilogue

About RaeLynn Blue

Ritual Island

About Ritual Island

Chapter One

BLAIRE

Chapter Two

BLAIRE

Chapter Three

DORIAN

Chapter Four

BLAIRE

Chapter Five

DORIAN

Chapter Six

DORIAN

Chapter Seven

BLAIRE

About J. P. Uvalle

Tricks, Treats & Trial by Fire

About Tricks, Treats & Trial by Fire

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

About Sapphire Winters

Wings

About Wings

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Epilogue

About Sofia Aves

Bonded

(The Candle District Series, Book 1)

About Bonded

Chapter One

NAEMI

Chapter Two

ARAMI

Chapter Three

NAEMI

Chapter Four

ARAMI

Chapter Five

NAEMI

Chapter Six

ARAMI

About Isabeau Moon

Pride of a Lioness

About Pride of a Lioness

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

About Katia Kozar

Serpent’s Nest

About Serpent’s Nest

“The sea is endless when you are in a rowboat.”

“Pain makes man think. Thought makes man wise. Wisdom makes life endurable.”

“Physics is like sex: sure, it may give some practical results, but that’s not why we do it.”

“For there is nothing lost that may be found if sought.”

“During the negotiation, information is more valuable than eloquence.”

“I guess what scares me the most now is the thought that I won’t be able to protect you.”

“There are no ordinary people. You never talked to a mere mortal.”

“Much unhappiness has come into the world because of bewilderment, and things left unsaid.”

“We are the playthings of the gods.”

“The ache for home lives in all of us. The safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.”

“Each of us needs to learn the unique language of our own soul.”

Epilogue

About W.M. Dawson

Foxy Heist

(A Lucky Break Novel, #1)

About Foxy Heist

Prologue

Chapter One

SARAH

Chapter Two

SARAH

Chapter Three

SARAH

Chapter Four

MIN-JOON

Chapter Five

SARAH

Chapter Six

LILLIAN

Chapter Seven

TOSHIYUKI

Chapter Eight

SARAH

Chapter Nine

LILLIAN

Chapter Eleven

SARAH

Chapter Twelve

SARAH

Chapter Thirteen

LILLIAN

Chapter Fifteen

BO CHANG

Chapter Sixteen

MIN-JOON

Chapter Seventeen

BO CHANG

Chapter Eighteen

SARAH

Epilogue

About Zelda Knight

Also By Zelda Knight

Lion's Bride

A Curvy Girl Instalove Shifter Romance

© 2021 Imani Jay

Edited by Jane Quintana’s & Nana Hall

About Lion’s Bride

A Curvy Girl Instalove Shifter Romance

A lion shifter king and a princess share an incredible night. But come morning, she disappears...

Linguére

I’m the odd princess of my country. The one that’s too tall, too curvy, too opinionated… not a single male wants to wed me.

Gaïndé

I’m the shifter king who’s lived centuries without meeting my mate. But when my eyes fall on this perfect woman, I know I’m done waiting!

The Rogue Lion

GAÏNDÉ

“We need to go back, brother,” I tell my Lion in a soothing tone. He stands still, ears twitching, eyes lost beyond the horizon. In what we both know is the direction to our home. Our palace. Our kingdom. “It’s okay to feel upset,” I add. “I, too, feel our void. But our people need us. We have to go back, guardian of my soul.” He emits a long, pained whimper, shakes his mane, then leaps on the road to Ndoumbélane.

When we arrive at the palace, he walks in circles in front of the gate, struggling to relinquish our body to me. “It’s all good, Gaïndé, one day soon we’ll find her. But for now, you have to work with me, brother.” He roars, shaking his big head, then I feel a sensation I haven’t experienced in weeks. The telltale tingle at the base of his spine that signals our imminent transformation. The shift from lion to human. I brace for calm, not wanting to risk enraging him again. I can barely believe it when the turn comes to completion for the first time in fourteen days. I let my head fall back at the base of my neck, roll it from side to side, followed by my shoulders. Then I take stock of my entire body. Tall, strong. A bit less bulk than when we left a fortnight ago, new scars from some of our encounters in the wilderness. But still me. King Gaïndé of Ndoumbélane. Heartbroken, missing a piece of my very soul, but back home to lead my people.

The guards standing at the gate advance to greet me.

“Your Majesty, it’s so good to have you back,” one of them says with fervor.

“We were so worried,” the other one adds, gaze intense with relief.

Rightfully so, we all know the stories of lion-shifters who went rogue and never returned to the pride. Forever erring in their beast form, stricken with grief, mad with pain. Losing one’s mate will do that to their mind. But we’re back now, and I haven’t lost all hope of finding her one day soon…

Chapter One

GAÏNDÉ

I study the pathetic creature facing me, my large hand running over the neatly trimmed beard covering my jaw. I’ve lost the bushy facial hair, my braids are back to their neat, intricate style, and I’ve regained a bit of weight in the month since I’ve been back from roaming the savanna. The haunted look hasn’t left my gaze though…

The man standing in front of me looks much older than I do, although I’m more than a century past his measly seventy or so years. I knew his father before him, and his grandfather when I was only a cub. These feeble creatures age so ungracefully, fade from the surface of the earth so quickly, it’s a wonder their species has survived and thrived for so long. The contradiction between their weakness and extraordinary adaptability annoys and baffles me all at once. I despise human beings. “Not all of them”, my treacherous Lion reminds me. I do my best to seclude him from my conscious thoughts. After all, I have a guest to tend to. One desperate for my full attention.

The specimen standing in front of me is a prime example of human limitations. The mighty King Damél, sovereign of Cayor, the human kingdom neighboring my magical realm of Ndoumbélane. He’s an old man trembling in his boots because the prince regent of Banjul, the nation located on his other flank, has made very clear his ambitions of expansion.

“Are you sure?” I ask with a hint of annoyance, my deep voice coming out even gruffer than its usual low timbre. I sense my Lion twitch, his curiosity piqued by the entire ordeal.

King Damél nods, swallowing with difficulty. His bobbing Adam’s apple betraying the state of his nerves. Lamentable. “Yes, Your Majesty. I’d be honored if you agreed to take my daughter’s hand in marriage.” He bows slightly, displaying a deference no king should show one of his peers, magical or not, and I loathe him even more for his meekness.

“Let me make sure I understand your proposal, son of man. You’re asking for our protection against Banjul, in exchange for your daughter?” I reformulate his ludicrous offer.

“And riches, Your Majesty. You’ll receive a chest of gold and precious stones as her dowry,” he adds agitatedly. Making me want to tear his goddamn throat out to put him out of his misery. When I don’t respond, simply staring him down, he adds, “And anything else that might please you, King Gaïndé.” As if he possessed anything I could wish for.

“Are you sure your daughter agrees to this plan of yours?” I enunciate each word. “Once she makes it to Ndoumbélane, there’s no turning back,” I growl low and menacing. Then watch as his throat works again. A sheen of emotion passing over his eyes, and his dark skin turns a shade paler. Oh, for fuck’s sake!

“She knows, Your Majesty. She’s honored to have been chosen,” he lies through his teeth. I’m sure, praying I tire of his precious princess and send her back home within days. Which is a definite possibility, as it’s well known I have little patience in general, and close to none when it comes to dealing with humans. Not all of them, My Lion purrs again, and again, I ignore Him. I don’t foresee a lot of tolerance on my part for a spoiled princess.

For years, there have been no great battles to fight, no fearsome enemy to slay, not even an extraordinary beauty to conquer. My Lion emits a growl of disagreement, making me pinch the bridge of my nose. Bringing back the memory of the woman who felt closer than any female of any species, more perfect than any fantasy I’ve ever conjured. “The one who’s proven herself impossible to find for five fucking months, driving me to the brink of insanity”. I need to let go of the memory of our single night together. “No!” My Lion growls. “She’s ours. You have to keep looking!”

I shut my mind to his demands and turn my attention back to the poor man begging for my help. My insides burn at the thought of making someone other than my mystery woman, My Queen. But I forge on. More than two centuries on this earth and the only time I felt a true connection was with her. I cannot keep going like this. An alliance with Cayor will benefit my people. The prince of Banjul isn’t only coveting new territory but also the many natural resources of the small kingdom. Some battlefield action might just be what I need.

“I agree, Damél,” I let out resolutely, feeling a sharp pain seize my chest, at the same time my Lion roars his rage.

Chapter Two

LINGUERE

“Are you sure, Lin’?” My sister, princess Signare of Cayor, asks worriedly, chewing on the nail of her dainty finger.

I don’t deign to answer. Simply take a deep breath and continue my beautification efforts. But on the inside, I’m frustrated, hurt, and angry at the entire world. At the injustice that’s my life. This is my only chance to ever be with King Gaïndé. Signare knows it, she’s the one who thought of our subterfuge, and here she is trying to get me to renege on it.

She lays a soft hand on my shoulder, adding: “it’s just that…”

I interrupt her, turning away from the mirror. “Don’t you dare, Sin’! Don’t you dare finish that sentence. This, right here, is my only shot, and you know it. I will not change my mind. Don’t even waste your breath. I thought you, of all people, would understand.”

She stiffens, before retorting harshly, “It’s not the same. Guélwar will make peace with Father.”

She’s referring to her lover, the prince regent of our neighboring kingdom of Banjul. The very same one who has plans to invade our land. The reason why our father has made a deal with the devil himself. Offering his beautiful, highly coveted daughter’s hand to the mighty warrior he thinks can protect us against the threat of annexation.

But here’s the thing: that daughter isn’t me. Nope. My sister is the graceful princess with doe eyes, a slender figure, and the voice of an angel. I’m the one our parents never knew what to do with. The ugly duckling. The older daughter who’s now past thirty and still unwed, unwanted. Scaring men away with her sharp tongue and mind. Making women uncomfortable with her knowledge and practice of magic, and her promiscuous reputation.

Things were not always this way, though. Once upon a time, I too aspired to be a fairy tale princess. To have my happy ending. But life has taught me differently. Growing up in a society that adulates appearances, my full curves and amazon-like stature clashed with the beauty standards. High society men all wished for a trophy wife, a delicate high-born they could parade to the envy of their peers. A dainty thing that would fit perfectly on their arm. That isn’t me. I was doomed from the start by nature itself. So, I took what I could: clandestine encounters behind closed doors, followed by being completely ignored by my lovers in the light of day. I’m good enough for men and even some magical creatures to lust over, but not to love and marry. And if you want to know the truth, it was fine by me. Because my heart is already taken…

On my thirtieth birthday, my mentor Lallah, the royal witch, gave me a very special gift. She did me the honor of taking me to Ndoumbélane. In the dark of night, she sneaked into my room, lightly shook my shoulder, had me put back on my sumptuous birthday celebration gown and guided me half-asleep to a discreet car waiting for us at the palace back gate. When I asked where we were going, she brought her finger to her lips, commanding my silence. We drove for a long while. There wasn’t much I could discern through the tinted windows at that time of the night. When finally, the car stopped, Lallah gave me a large, lacy mask that covered most of my face, making it quasi-impossible to tell who I was.

Before we got out of the car, she held me by the wrist, looking deep into my excited gaze and said, “You cannot keep hiding at the palace, sweet. Our people are…,” her beautiful face screwed up with disgust before she added, “limited. Very few understand the value of strong, complex women such as us.” I nodded, suspended to her lips. “I know you’ve had magic lovers, but they all lived among us. They’re no different than another man. Tonight, I want you to broaden your horizons. We’re attending the Full Moon Ball. All shifters will be in their true form. It’s an eccentricity they allow themselves to mock our confused human beliefs. There will be food, music, dancing, and sex… lots of it,” she finished with a mischievous smile paired with a wink.

I giggled, even more excited now that I had some idea of where the night was going.

We slipped out of the car to look up the high walls of a grand palace. An exquisitely beautiful, winged female with deep violet eyes and a musical voice greeted us at the entrance. She deferentially bowed to Mistress Lallah, a light of recognition illuminating her interesting gaze, and gestured for us to proceed. We entered an immense hall, brightened by a myriad of suspended lights. The floors were covered in marble, rich tapestries were on the walls. We advanced with the rest of the crowd into a vast ballroom. Its entire roof, made of clear glass, let in the twinkling night sky. Everything was grandiose! Some of the dancers around us were creatures I’d never even seen before. There were a few humans, but mostly extraordinary beasts. Hybrids with some human features and partly animal. Others were inhabitants of the savanna who stood and spoke like people. I ogled a pin-up zebra till she turned and gave me a teasing smile, making me chuckle with embarrassment. A couple of elephants stood by the open patio doors, but even though the room was tall and wide, there were more of them outside. I saw a giraffe dressed in an impeccably tailored suit, his lascivious gaze sliding over my curves. There were cheetahs, gazelles, rhinos. Strong, hairy wildebeests. The endless cackling of hyenas. Sexy leopards, tall, muscled antelopes, burly hippos, and fancy ostriches. Impalas with their swirly horns slid by elegantly, dressed in the finest fashion. I shivered when a group of crocodiles took notice of me, wondering if their hungry looks meant they wanted to fuck me or make a late dinner of my full flesh. Lallah gave me a reassuring smile, paired with a pat on my arm. There were also a few snakes and monkeys whose shrieks and chatter were loud enough to compete with the volume of the music. A band of disparate creatures played in one corner of the large room. The music was enticing and eerie, like nothing I’d heard before. My body swayed of its own accord. I was fascinated and I felt safe having Lallah at my side and not sensing any hostility from the crowd surrounding us. The entire experience felt like the best present I’d ever been given. I couldn’t have imagined things were about to get even better.

The rhythm of the music changed, and a hushed murmur ran through the crowd. All eyes directed to the entrance of the ballroom. I stretched my neck to try and catch a glimpse of what everyone was looking at, but there were too many of us, too many heads taller than mine in the crowd. Then a loud roar traversed the room. The sound frightening and majestic, appealing and terrifying all at once. More followed, but none was as scary or intriguing as the first one. A breach in the crowd gave me a glimpse at the extraordinary creatures who’d just joined us and made their presence known. It was the lions. The more they advanced through the crowd, the more I could see. Their majestic manes, short sable fur, strong, sharp canines, big, slanted eyes and elegantly muscled bodies. The females were ravishing and the males dashing. Dressed in long, flowy silk dresses that showed more than they concealed, and fitted suits and uniforms made to compliment broad, square shoulders and thick thighs. I felt myself getting aroused. These creatures were all so beautiful, so sensual. Being among them called to the deepest, most primal part of my being. The lions started mingling with the rest of us, making me release a breath I didn’t even realize I was holding. And Lallah gave a pat on the hand I had no clue I had wrapped around her forearm in my shaken state.

I lifted my gaze to hers, whispering with reverence, “They’re beautiful, Lallah.”

At that moment, a low chuckle resonated behind me. The sound warm and enrapturing. Hitting me straight in my lower belly.

“Good evening, Mistress Lallah. May I ask who’s your enthusiastic guest,” the voice added. Its intonation regal, the words formulated with an undertone of amusement.

Too afraid to fully turn around, I slid closer to Lallah and dared a slight glance to the side. “Oh My God, he was beautiful.” His mane fell in long braids adorned with tiny golden jewelry, over immense shoulders clad in a long embroidered tunic that left his strong arms uncovered. His muscled chest, bare under the silky fabric that reached his feet. Head bent down, I kept silent, my eyes roaming the length of his powerful legs, encased in a pair of pants made of the same ocher colored cloth as his tunic. The contrast between his exotic human attire and lion body, arresting.

“Your majesty,” Lallah greeted him back, making me gasp softly. “This is my apprentice, Lin’,” she used my nickname, giving me the tacit instruction to keep my full identity secret.

I curtsied and allowed my gaze to meet his. And that was the end of me. The large amber pupils studied me with intensity and a hunger like I’d never seen directed at me. My gaze traveled over the braids, the bulky frame, the fascinating eyes, his mouth, the regal nuzzle, long whiskers, and corded throat. God, I’d never been this attracted to a living being in my life. He sniffed the air and bared his fangs, emitting a low growl. His curled upper lip revealed huge, terrifying canines I wanted to feel on my skin. What was wrong with me?!

He turned his attention back to Lallah, “She’s mine.” Without waiting for an answer, the gigantic cat once more seared me with his blazing gaze, jaw clenched, muscles flexing, and motioned his head for me to follow. “Come, little mouse,” he growled in a low, gruff tone that disintegrated my panties.

I threw a wide-eyed gaze at Lallah over my shoulder, and she responded by blowing me a kiss, sending me off to scurry behind the majestic lion striding out of the ballroom, to an unknown destination. His long tail swirling behind him, regal outfit flapping around his large feet.

I followed the majestic feline up a grand stairway, through the longest hallway I’d ever crossed in my life. Its walls were covered in gold plated mirrors. Without ever turning to me, he proceeded in his long saunter. My eyes couldn’t decide where to focus, between the powerful body preceding me and the lavish decor surrounding us. This place was even more grandiose than my father’s palace.

He stopped at an intricately carved wooden door, and I recognized some protection spells in the symbols engraved in the wood. The lion opened the door and stepped aside to let me in. When his gaze met mine, the flicker of a flame passed through his extraordinary golden eyes, and he let out another low roar, exposing the terrifying canines I found so fascinating. I hurried inside the room, torn between excitement and fear, unable to decipher the hunger in his eyes. But I knew what my body’s reaction was: swollen breasts, hard nipples, pulsing clit and wet folds. I was turned on beyond measure.

The room was vast and furnished with Persian rugs, oversized pillows, plush throws and basked in an air filled with exquisite incense. I heard the decisive click of the door and turned my wide gaze to the big cat stomping in my direction. He swept me up by the waist in a swift move and sat back on a pile of pillows, settling me to straddle his lap. I gasped in surprise, holding on to his massive shoulders for dear life.

“I’m King Gaïndé of Ndoumbélane,” he growled at my ear while rubbing his temple against mine and taking a deep sniffle.

I felt completely and irrevocably owned, surrounded, possessed by this wild beast. His musky smell surrounded me, reminding me of walking through the savanna at dusk. The most primal part of my being took over and my hips started rolling of their own accord. I felt my eyelids grow heavy with desire, my fingers dig into King Gaïndé’s powerful shoulders. My lips parted in ragged breaths.

“Are you scared of me, little mouse?” He asked in a dark voice.

I could only shake my head, unable to formulate coherent words.

His expression grew wicked. “Good,” he stretched the word as his huge head bent down to bury in the crook of my neck.

First, I felt the heat of his strong inhales, then the foreign sensation of his large animal tongue on my skin. Finally, my desire was answered. King Gaïndé gently grazed at the tender skin of my neck with his large fangs. I moaned, threading my fingers through the short unbraided hairs at the base of his mane. They were thick and soft. I felt dizzy with new sensations.

The King’s hands started roaming over my body, taking handfuls of tits and ass, tracing the curve of my waist, rolling and pinching my nipples, running over the soft skin of my thick thighs under the fabric of my gown, and kneading the flesh. All the while he still tasted, nibbled at, and inhaled the scent in the crook of my neck, behind my ears and at the top of my cleavage.

I could feel moisture leak from my panties and grew ashamed at my extreme reaction to this extraordinary creature. What was happening to me?

Having slid his large paws over the insides of my thighs, the king’s sharp claws gently scratched my sensitive skin. Climbing ever higher, he reached the moisture coating me. A low, guttural sound emanated from the back of his throat and he growled, “Mine,” in a fierce tone. I let out a long exhale of pleasure, throwing my head back to give him better access and spreading my legs even further to facilitate his access to the apex of my thighs.

“Need to taste you,” he gritted out. He proceeded to lay me on my back, his gesture gentle, even with all the refrained sexual tension coursing through us, and despite his might. I writhed and rolled my hips, moaning with desire and pleasure. Alternating between running my hands over my swollen breasts, between my legs and extending them to him. Completely overtaken by his presence. The musky smell of him, the heat emanating from his body, the unbelievable connection between our bodies. What I felt in my very soul was an instant recognition of the one made for me. King Gaïndé held himself over me, his incandescent gaze tracing a scorching path wherever it landed. I knew his words were true: I was his, but I too owned this fearsome warrior. His traits shifted in front of my eyes. He was giving me the greatest gift, allowing me to see him change from one form to the other. His unnaturally handsome human features taking over, smoothing away the short fur, the nuzzle, the claws and fangs retracting. Leaving him with large, almond shaped eyes, a strong, masculine nose, a full, sensual mouth, cut cheekbones, the same long braids that grew a shade darker. His soft skin turned the same dark brown as the shade under a baobab tree in the heat of midday. Under my perusal, his lips lifted to the side, revealing strong, white teeth that came down to bite on his bottom lip. The ghost of a dimple creasing one cheek. How could he look more extraordinary in his human form than as a fantastical creature?

“Are you ready for me, little mouse?” His voice! It had kept the same guttural undertone in its human form. Raw, powerful, hypnotic. I could do nothing but nod frantically. The king chuckled. I noticed the color of his iris had darkened as well, but the same flickering flame passed through his gaze, signaling he was nowhere near tamed in his man form either.

“How do you like my castle, little one?” He asked softly, still running his now large hands over the bare skin of my thighs.

“It’s beautiful, Your Majesty,” I responded in a breathy voice.

“Good. Have you been to Ndoumbélane before?” his husky growl caressed my face a tad closer, and I shook my head. “Good, good,” he repeated, a calculating look on his gorgeous face. He pushed the layers of my skirts high enough that the fabric bunched at my waist, my thick thighs and damp underwear uncovered to his famished gaze. Running his large palms over my full breasts, the king kept talking. “This is an exquisite gown, but I don’t think you need it anymore,” his voice came out caressing, in contrast with the wicked grin adorning his delectable mouth. The glint in his eyes almost cruel.

I watched as the thickly veined, long-fingered hands each fisted one side of my collar and pulled, tearing the rich fabric wide open to reveal my underwear-clad body. I shrieked, reflexively bringing one hand over my chest and the other to cover my pussy.

The king emitted a low, dark chuckle and bent over to kiss me… His full lips gently prodded mine, till I relaxed in his embrace once more. His sensual tongue licked and caressed my mouth to the point of making me whimper and moan. His hands resumed their exploration now that my poor dress rested at my sides like an untied robe. We kissed long and deep, in soft strokes and hungry grazes of our teeth. His sharp canines pulled sensuous cries from my lips. I forgot all about my torn dress, his questions about my liking his palace or being familiar with his kingdom. My need to tell him who I truly was… Only the friction of our bodies and the incredible sensations he made me feel counted.

His long fingers started tracing my slit through the damp fabric of my underwear and I almost came right then and there. I sucked on his tongue and ran my palms over the hot, soft skin covering the strong muscles of his wide chest and broad back.

“You taste incredible, little mouse,” he breathed against my swollen lips.

“No, you do, My King,” I replied in kind.

His low chuckle resonated again, filling my belly with butterflies.

“I thought My Lion was losing it with the way he reacted to you, but he was right. You are ours. We’ve waited for you for a very long time, little one,” his husky voice came out soft as he ran his knuckles over the apple of my cheeks. And I almost wept, silently thanking the skies above for this blessing. For finally being united with my one true mate. I would relive every single humiliation, each rebuttal, mockery, and rejection a thousand times, if it meant they would lead me to this moment, this extraordinary turn my life was taking. I felt my eyes get watery and sniffled, blinking hard to push away the tears.

“Shhhh, little mouse. It’s all good. I’ve got you, now. You’re safe and sound in my arms. You’re home. I’m never letting you go.” Once again, he took my mouth, but this time, the kiss was slower, tender, full of promises. And I gave into it, gave it my all. Clung on to him with all four limbs, lifting my hips to try and feel him. He finally gave in and settled between my legs, giving me his weight, pressing his long, heavy, hard length along my wet folds. My body shook with pleasure and I whimpered loudly, triggering a wild response from King Gaïndé. He plunged his tongue deep into my mouth, thrust between my legs and squeeze my hips to the point I knew I was going to bruise, but I couldn’t care less. This beautiful, magnificent, magical creature who aroused me like no one ever, like I’d never thought possible, was completely insane for me. The very idea was heady, exciting beyond measure.

“How ready are you, My Queen?” The words startled me and Gaïndé mistook my reaction for worry about our imminent mating. I opened my mouth to explain myself but he silenced me again, pressing a calloused finger over my bruised lips. “Don’t worry, little one. I’ll be mindful. I can’t promise you slow, but your pleasure will always come first.” He pressed a soft kiss on my forehead and my eyelids fluttered, like the lovesick creature I’d turned into.

King Gaïndé pushed the seam of my underwear aside and ran one long, thick finger through my wet folds, making me shudder with pleasure and need. His burning gaze never leaving mine, he roughly pulled the lace down my thighs. His thumb landed on my clit, pressing gently, rolling, pushing away the hood to reveal the hypersensitive bundle of nerves. I started loudly gasping for air. My nails digging into his corded forearms. Lips parted, breaths heavy, I heard myself repeat in an infinite litany: “My King, My King…”

“Yes, such a good girl. You like that?” He praised me, adding back the exploration of his middle finger through my folds. A frisson of pleasure coursed through my spine and I moaned loudly. “More?” He asked wickedly, pushing one finger inside me, drinking in my reactions, his hungry eyes alternating between roaming over my features and looking down to what he was doing to me.

I fought to keep my eyes open and take in as much of his beauty as I could, refusing to let my lids fall, to give in to the tsunami of pleasure building between my legs and to shut everything else out.

A second big finger came to join the first one, stretching me, pulling small cries of mixed surprise and bliss from my parted lips. His thumb still making sparkles fly at my clit. I felt my orgasm build. Gaïndé must have sensed it too, because a few seconds before the mighty wave crashed over me, he replaced his intelligent fingers with the thick head of his cock, lubed it between my folds and started pushing in. Inch after torturously slow inch. Driving me mad with ecstasy and yearning for his big cock to enter me completely. When he finally, finally, finally bent down to take my mouth in a fierce, searing kiss, I latched on with everything I had, pushing myself up to try and take more of him, wrapping my legs around his waist. He kept his rhythm, invading me at a pace that let my body acclimate to his, open for him, take him in, weep my juices all over his thick cock, suck him in. My pussy contracting uncontrollably. Once he rooted himself to the hilt, his heavy balls pressed against my ass, I felt the same electrifying current pass through our joined forms. Our eyes flying wide open at the same time, acknowledging the uniqueness of our connection, of this magical moment. Then he started thrusting into me, his movements powerful. His massive body pressing into my full figure. A lesser woman might have been crushed under his assault. I welcomed it with delight. Sucking and grazing at every inch of his skin I could get my mouth on, moaning his name, scratching and holding him tight. Responding to his drilling with the roll of my hips. My body coursed with wave after wave of the most intense pleasure I’d ever known in my entire life.

Gaïndé detached his mouth from the nipple he’d latched onto and ordered me in a somber voice, “Give it to me, little one. Come for your king, now.”

And I came undone. Shaking, writhing, clawing at his taut muscles, biting his burning skin, whimpering noisily. His gaze grew more vicious as the movement of his hips became less coordinated and even more forceful. He crashed into me at each thrust and I loved it. My orgasm stretching to a length I’d never experienced. Holding my face between his huge hands, Gaïndé kissed me fiercely, his cock drilling into my wet pussy, the long spurts of his cum hitting my womb and mixing with my juices in loud, wet, dirty sounds. Our bodies slapping till the very last tremor.

It was perfect. We lay in each other’s arms. Gaïndé kissing my forehead, whispering sweet nothings into my ear, running his huge hands over my curves. And I explored his wide, muscled chest, big, square shoulders, the soft skin of his back and neck. Gently bit the lobe of his ears. Ran my fingers over his extraordinarily handsome features. Buried my nose in the crook of his neck and inhaled his scent. Snuggled into his heat… and fell asleep in absolute bliss.

That was till I felt it. The call. Lallah’s call. Her powerful witchcraft pulled me out of my state of contentment and I gave my full attention to her voice.

“Linguére, honey. I’m sorry, but we have to go,” she conjured me through a connection spell.

I tried responding, explaining, but my skills were not sharp enough, and my mind was too muddled by everything that had happened to me that night. So, I resolved to discreetly go meet with Lallah, without waking my king, then come back to him once all was clarified. I should never have left his side.

***

I found Lallah at the entrance to the palace, pacing and wringing her hands. The worried look on her face dissipated as I approached with a wide smile. I hugged her tight and hurried to talk before she could pull me into our car, as she was trying to do.

“Thank you so much for bringing me with you tonight! It was wonderful!”

“You’re so very welcome, my sweet girl. Now, let’s go before your absence becomes noticed at home.” Hand gently but firmly wrapped around mine, she again attempted to get me to follow her.

I shook my head. “No, you don’t understand. I’m not going back, Lallah. the King and I…” I trailed off, a smile that was a mix of tenderness and sensuality taking over my face.

“Oh, my poor, poor girl,” Lallah answered, startling me. Her soft hand came up to caress the side of my face. “He’s… he doesn’t. I’ve known of King Gaïndé my entire life, Linguére. He loves feminine company. Of all species. He doesn’t settle, my sweet girl. He’s been on this earth for centuries, and not once has he taken a mate.” Her gaze was soft, concerned.

“No,” I shook my head. “You don’t understand. He called me his queen,” I attempted to explain, but my voice lost some of its resolve. What if she was right?

“I’m sorry, honey.” Both her voice and eyes filled with a compassionate note.

I kept shaking my head. “That’s not… what we shared… Just let me go back and talk to him,” I pleaded.

“I’m sorry, honey. But we really need to go. Soon, it will be sunrise and if your maid notices your absence, your father will send a search party. I can’t risk it, Princess.” She used my title, reminding me of both of our positions. Saying without spelling it out that I would be mildly inconvenienced, while she might end up in deep trouble with her sovereign.

I nodded and followed, promising myself I’d find a way to get in touch with My Lion King. That was six months ago…

***

For days, weeks, months I begged Lallah to take me back to Ndoumbélane. I tried learning a spell that would allow me access into the kingdom heavily guarded by intricate spells. But my unsophisticated magic wasn’t enough, and Lallah wouldn’t budge. She kept reminding me that our countries had been at peace for decades, that my father worried about the menace from Banjul, and didn’t need trouble with our neighbors from our other border. I never lost hope, though. I had no idea how I’d get back to my handsome were-lion, but I knew one day we’d be reunited.

On the day our father announced his intention to give Signare away to the fearsome king, I confessed everything to my sister. Heartbroken, crying, unable to believe how cruel the fates were being. My beautiful, kind Signare pulled my chin up, wiped away my tears and ordered me in her regal tone to get myself together and hurry to learn the transformation spell that would allow us to switch our appearances. It was a brilliant plan! She wouldn’t need to marry a king she didn’t love and was terrified of. And I would be reunited with my Gaïndé.

Well, the plan was brilliant till Signare started chickening out.

“I’m going, honey. He’s the one for me. I know it in my soul.”

She sighed deeply, the worried look in her eyes giving room to an affectionate one. “If you’re sure…” Then, she grabbed the concoction I had prepared and threw back the content of the small vial. Only wincing a little at the bitter aftertaste. And I watched fascinated as her face and body morphed into mine.

“Thank you, honey,” I expressed my gratitude with fervor, and we hugged tightly. Unsure of what our tomorrows would be. Not knowing if this insane plan of ours would work. And praying all would be well for the both of us…

Chapter Three

GAÏNDÉ

I sit on my throne, as emotionless and detached as I’ve been for the past six months, utterly indifferent to the events about to take place. I have no interest in the imminent introduction of my betrothed or our impending nuptials.

My chamberlain announces the arrival of the royal family of Cayor. King Damél is first to enter my throne room. As fidgety and despicable as ever. He’s followed by his queen, a beautiful, elegant mature woman. And the princess…

As soon as she enters the room, the hair at the back of my neck stands up and I straighten from my slouched posture. All my senses coming to attention. Gaïndé roars in my head, ready to leap out of my skin. What is happening? Who’s this woman? I’ve never seen her in my life. She’s petite, slender. With gorgeous features, very similar to those of her mother, but she’s just your everyday princess. Why is my body awakening, all my instincts coming to alert, and My Lion stirring madly at her appearance?

I forego all protocol and rise to my feet, coming to stand in front of the small princess. When her gaze lifts to meet mine, I feel a punch to my gut. It’s her! Under some disguise spell, but her all the same. My mate!

In the same instant, I feel a broad smile take over my features and Gaïndé my body. I relinquish my hold on him. Letting our wild nature take over in this crucial moment. She came back. I don’t know how. And I don’t even really care. All that matters is she’s never leaving.

My body grows heavier, bulkier. My bare human skin is replaced by my sable hide. I grin like a maniac, exposing my large fangs, making most people in the room gasp in horror and terror. But not her, not my queen. Her sharp intake of air is more delight than fear, and I can smell her arousal from where I’m standing. My clothes cracked at the seams, I pounce on my mate, bend at the waist, and throw her over my shoulder, stomping out of the room in a brouhaha of shocked whispers.

“Where. Were. You?” I growl in her face, having dragged my woman into my private chambers, and the very room where I woke up without her warm body at my side all those months ago.

I have her trapped , her back to the door, my arms encasing her. My strong feline body dwarfing her small form. And there’s not one ounce of fear emanating from my queen. Her eyes are softly roaming over my large lion face. A small smile stretching her lips. The enchantment is well done, but her poor human tricks can’t fool my inner eye.

She raises her small hand to the side of my face and gently caresses the short fur. I purr and rub my nuzzle into her soft touch. She watches me with wonder in her big, brown eyes. “How did you know it was me?”

“Human magic is only surface deep, little mouse.”

At my words, she lets out a sigh. And I realize it’s relief I’m reading in her warm gaze. Now, my little one is convinced I’ve truly recognized her.

“My handsome king,” she breathes, making my heart swell.

I gesture to her face and body. “What is this? Spell, potion? How long is it supposed to last?”

She nibbles on her bottom lip before answering. “It’s a potion. I made it. It’s supposed to last a few days. I’m not exactly sure…”

I shake my head, chuckling. “Does Lallah know you did this?” She shakes her head, eyes growing wide. “Ah, little mouse. What am I to do with you?” Her smile grows saucy, stoking the flames of my desire. But it feels wrong lusting after her in a foreign body. I wave my hand over her face, reciting a short incantation, and the charm fades away, revealing her interesting features. The big, brown eyes that have haunted my dreams since our single night together. Her stubborn nose. The sensual lips I long to kiss and suck on. The soft curves that make my mouth water and my heart beat faster. I deeply inhale her dizzying feminine scent, feeling at peace, finally home. My Lion has seen and felt her for himself, he’s calm enough that I can resurface. “Thank the heavens, cause I’m ready to take my woman!”

A thought crosses my mind. “Is the princess alright?”

She giggles. “But Your Majesty, I am the princess.”

I love the mischievous twinkle in her eye. “You know what I mean. Did King Damél put you up to this?”

Lin’s expression sobers as she takes a step closer, bringing her body flush to mine. “Honey, I am one of the two princesses of Cayor. I’m the oldest. The least popular. I dabble in magic, I’ve had my fair share of lovers…” At these words, I emit a low, feral growl. She simply smiles, running her palm over the side of my face. “I’m… unconventional. My father doesn’t think I could make a prized possession.” I scoff, and now that My Lion has calmed down, my body relaxes back into its human form. I feel myself shrink slightly, the hair, fangs and claws recede. When I open my eyes, Lin’ is observing me with a teary gaze. She whispers, “So beautiful,” running the tips of her long, elegant fingers over my face.

I lean into her tender gesture and turn my head to kiss her soft palm.

“Is Lin’ really your name?” I inquire.

She nods. “I’m Linguére of Cayor.”

“No longer,” I contradict her. “You’re Linguére of Ndoumbélane,” I say fiercely, bringing my head down to take her mouth in a searing kiss.

The tears welling my queen’s eyes spill down her cheeks as she reverently repeats her new title: “Linguére of Ndoumbélane.”

Epilogue

LINGUERE

Dressed in a sumptuous red silk dress, my long braids piled atop my head in an intricate style adorned with gold ornaments, I sit on my throne. My posture is regal. Head held high, hands laying in my lap in a poised manner. Eyes traced with kohl. Hands and feet covered in elaborate henna designs. The very image of royalty. I sit and wait. The palace is quiet, all breaths held. We’re expectant, hopeful, but nobody knows the outcome of the battle against Banjul. My King has fought for centuries, and he’s always come back home. Victorious or not, he’s always made it back. That’s what I hold on to, what I keep repeating to myself. I’ve traced countless scars all over his body, gathered from fights in his human form and as a lion. He’s been hunted, caught, left for dead… but my warrior is invincible. Untamable. Undefeatable.

I have a mighty warrior growing inside me that needs his father. And I need my love. The campaign to assist Cayor in fighting back the invasion of its southern border has been going for weeks now. The news we get from the front is encouraging, but we know nothing about the result of the final battle. Now, we wait. We pray. We hope. And as queen, I sit strong and give my people confidence. But inside? Inside I’m an ocean under a storm, a forest burning with a wildfire, a mad beast whose ears are buzzing with terror.

So, I follow the tradition. Dress lavishly and wait in the throne room. Wait for My King to return on his feet or be carried by his brothers.

My ears perk up at the sound of a commotion coming from somewhere in the castle. My heartbeat accelerates, following the rhythm of mighty steps hitting the ground at a blazing pace. “It’s him, he’s back! No, they’re bringing him back hurt… or worse. No! He’s fine!!” My head is about to explode, when the heavy throne room door is slammed open… and My King stomps in! He’s glorious. Covered in dust and blood, long braids falling down his massive shoulders, wide chest rising and falling with heavy breaths. My famished eyes take Gaïndé in as he continues advancing toward me, like the ferocious conqueror he is. I recite a silent prayer of gratitude. My love has returned.

“Gaïndé,” I let out in a relieved exhale.

“Wife,” he growls against my mouth, having covered the few steps separating us with a blurry velocity.

“Welcome home, My King,” I whisper against his chapped lips.

And his mouth curves in a wicked smile as he throws me over his shoulder and strides out of the throne room. Direction, our private quarters for a proper welcome home.

The End

About Imani Jay

Imani is a lover of romance novels! She's been devouring them since she was a young girl (long before she was supposed to venture into steamy stories.) Imani is all about the feels, the sexy times, and most of all the characters! She loves a broody hero, a soft dude, a sassy woman or a shy wallflower…

Her entire life, Imani would daydream of swoony encounters. One day she decided to start writing the stories she always wanted to read; stories with heroines who look more like her, and hunks from all over the world.

What to expect from Imani's stories? Steamy insta-love romances with a diverse cast of curvy girls and their hunky alphas.

Find Out More:

Website: https://authorimanijay.wixsite.com/steamyromance/about-the-author

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Owned By The Alien King:

A Curvy Girl Instalove Romance

(Owned Body & Soul)

All bets are off when a hot Alien King has a sassy, curvy girl swept away to his galaxy!

As always with my bite-sized romances, there's no cheating, no cliffhanger & the HEA is guaranteed. Also, if you have an issue with hot times between the sheets, this book is not for you!

Release Date: September 29, 2021

Pre-Order Link: https://books2read.com/u/bzdKGG

Stolen Mate

(Omegas of the Wilds, Book One)

© 2021 Juliet Moon

Edited by Blue Crescent Books

About Stolen Mate

(Omegas of the Wilds, Book One)

I have one night to get as far away from home as possible before I’m traded to a pack of hungry wolves.

Each month, wolf shifters lost control over their minds and their bodies. Only an omega can fix that…

Unfortunately for me, omegas are rare, and I happen to be one. A single bite into my flesh each month is all it takes to cure an alpha of the Wild Nights.

Now, before my father can barter me off to be mated, used, and abused by a notoriously vicious pack, I have one night left to run. One night when all the shifters of my pack are taken by the wild wolf spirit within them, my two bodyguards included.

But Brighton and Caine have spent the last few years being more than just my protection; they’ve been my friends, my family, and the objects of my deepest desires. Leaving them behind is unimaginable, but what other option is there?

Stolen Mate is a steamy RH/Menage romance. It is the first in a series of standalone shifter RH romances.

Chapter One

MINA

My gaze flew to Brighton first. He sensed me right away, as always, and glanced over his shoulder. Our eyes met.

His were wide and strikingly blue, normally alight with mischief and humor. What I saw now was dull darkness that made my stomach hurt.

He turned away.

I sought out Caine second, having to swivel to see him where he stood, guarding the only door, the only way out of this room.

Caine was tall, brooding, filled with darkness. He was serious as always, gaze fixed to the floor. Even though he didn’t look at me, I knew he felt my gaze by the way he stiffened almost imperfectively.

Neither of them are okay with this. I’m not either.

My father, head alpha of the Briar Pack on the other hand, was delighted.

He had me sitting in the middle of the room, a strong hand on my shoulder, keeping me in place and on display for the Cliffmont Pack.

They’re a gruesome bunch and they smelled just as good as they looked.

Alpha Rafe, a shifter in his late fifties with half rotted teeth and a mottling of scars covering his skin, watched me with open lasciviousness. I couldn’t bear to meet his eyes, so I kept mine trained instead on my hands, clasped in my lap.

Eleven of them, including Alpha Rafe, were here to discuss the trade with father. Each worse than the last. When they took me, there would be even more of them.

I’d heard before that they shared only one omega between all the alphas of the pack—and it was a big one. Their reach went beyond the mountains. They were one of the largest packs I’d ever heard of, their numbers rumored to be around a thousand.

I blinked back a sudden sting of tears, forcing myself back to the present.

“She’ll do nicely,” Rafe breathed. As though I was already his.

He took a step toward me, his boots scraping across the hardwood floor.

I looked up just as a figure stepped between us.

Brighton. His strong back, blocking me from the Cliffmont Alpha was the most comforting sight I had ever seen.

“Not another step,” he warned.

Relief swamped me. For a moment, I was sure Brighton was going to sweep me up and run with me, Caine close behind him. They would take me as far away as they could, where I wouldn’t be used as a barter tool, where no other alpha could reach me but them—and then my father spoke.

“That’s right. She’s not yours yet,” he said. “First, we must discuss what you will offer us in return.”

Alpha Rafe grumbled and stepped back.

“Cliffmont Pack is not used to the Wild Nights anymore,” he said. “We will take the girl and give you border patrol in exchange.”

“That’s all?” my father demanded. “You think that’s enough for my own daughter? An omega is rare to come by. You don’t think I’ll just give her away, do you?”

“You will give us what we require!”

“Only if you meet our demands!”

“Alpha, with all due respect, does the girl need to be here for this?”

Caine’s deep measured voice pierced the argument. All eyes turned to him, mine included. He was watching my father. For a moment, his gaze flickered to mine, his expression unreadable.

My father cleared his throat.

“Take her to her room. Don’t let her out until the matter is settled.”

Nodding, Caine stepped toward me. He finally looked at me properly, his gaze so intense I could barely meet it as he grasped me by the arm, pulling me from the room.

Only when the door shut behind us did I realize that Brighton had followed.

My two bodyguards lead me through the hall, upstairs and directly to my bedroom.

Under normal circumstances, we would talk. Brighton, at least, would make some joke to lighten the mood. Today though, there was no room for small talk. Apparently, when your charge was being sold to another pack to use as a chew toy, it ruined the mood a little.

Unable to take it, I turned to face them both as we reached my door.

“Nothing funny to say about the situation?” I asked, shooting him a look.

Brighton didn't say a word. If I wasn’t mistaken, he looked distraught, and that was the most comforting thing I’d seen all day.

At least the man I considered a friend, the one who watched me and guarded me and cheered me up each day, the one I had grown to care so deeply about, didn’t like what was happening. Even if he wasn't going to do anything about it.

“Mina,” he started and then seemed unable to find words.

“It’s fine.” I managed a smile, but my lips twisted the wrong way at the last moment. “You’re just doing your job. Both of you are. I don’t expect anything more.”

I would love more, don't get me wrong, but I pursed my lips and kept that to myself.

To my surprise, Caine was the first to offer any sort of comfort with a warm, strong hand on my shoulder, squeezing gently.

“We won’t let anyone inside,” he said. And shut the door.

I blinked at it for a moment and then almost laughed.

He wouldn’t let anyone inside? Until a trade agreement was made, was that it?

I swallowed down the lump in my throat and went to my bed.

It was still a rumpled mess from this morning after a night spent tossing and turning. I laid on it, ready to resume the restless actions of my body while I waited.

My gaze flew to the window, to the swiftly setting sun.

It wouldn’t be long now.

Father had timed it in such a way to force the Cliffmont Pack leader to give in to his demands as quickly as possible or suffer another Wild Night.

As an omega, I was free from the plight that afflicted our kind. Each month Wolf shifters lost control over themselves, their minds and their bodies. Only an omega could fix that. There were so few of us that being mated had turned into a business transaction.

How lucky for me.

Father had always been proud of me, flaunting his omega daughter. Now I knew why. I was a big bargaining chip for him. Too bad that he'd decided the Cliffmont pack was the best place for me.

I'd heard all about them for years. Rumors that they went through omegas, using and abusing them until they were dead and gone and then moved on to the next one.

Until today, I'd thought that those were just rumors but now I wasn't so sure.

I'd know soon enough.

Before sunset, the eleven men downstairs would come into my room and claim me. Would they just bite me? I wondered. Would they do worse? Would father not care in the least if he heard my screams? What about Caine and Brighton?

They’d been my personal bodyguards ever since first joining our pack almost ten years ago. Theirs had disbanded and the two lone friends had wandered until my father took them in.

I’d liked them at once. The love had taken a little longer to come.

Never would I have imagined that the two of them would stand aside while I was taken, body and soul.

Any minute now.

My gaze wandered from the ceiling back to the window and suddenly I sat up, back rigid as I watched the sky.

They were playing it very close.

There were only a few minutes left until the sun vanished beyond the horizon.

I pushed to my feet, heart racing as the moments passed. I went to the window and stood, staring out at the sunset. I ignored the playing pink and purple across the sky, gaze fixed to the edge of the sun as it dipped behind the trees.

My father’s plan must have backfired. Instead of forcing the Cliffmont Pack to agree to a shoddy deal in order to have me before the Wild Night, the negotiations must have stretched on too long. Now, as I stood there in shock, every shifter in the village was being taken by their wolf.

Slowly, I walked to my bedroom door. It was locked, but I knocked. No one answered.

On the Wild Nights, when all of the alpha wolves of the pack were incapacitated, those were the only nights I was left unattended. No Brighton. No Caine. No one to darken my doorway. No one to keep me here.

In disbelief, I looked out at the swiftly darkening sky.

This was my one chance. I had the night to get away.

The full moons were a dangerous time in the wild. Aside from the other animals out there, the wild wolf shifters reigned. Most remained locked inside their homes in panic rooms built for just such times, but some let their beast run free, tearing through the woods, destroying anyone that they met.

Still, it was the type of danger I would rather face than what awaited me here.

The wild wolves didn’t possess the cognizance for things like mating an omega. I would much rather face one of them than the Cliffmont Pack in the morning.

Without hesitating any longer, I rushed to the vanity, pulling a long hairpin from my collection.

The door opened with a quiet click, easy as anything. Somehow no one had ever realized that when they locked me in, I was never really locked in. I would have expected Caine at least, to have guessed.

The thought of my steadfast protector sent a twinge through my chest.

If I could help it, I would never see him again. His steady warmth would never be there to support me or hold me if I was hurt as it had in the past. For the last few years, if I fell, Caine lifted me, and Brighton tended to me. Part of me had basked in that attention, but from now on, I would have to stand on my own two feet. Learn to defend and protect myself.

I stared into the darkness of the hallway. Somewhere in the large house, a grunting and thudding began.

The alphas were shifting now, against their will, losing sight of themselves.

I swallowed.

The Wild Nights sounded terrible. To completely lose sight of oneself was a plight I didn’t envy. In fact, I pitied most of the alphas I knew just a little bit. Still, just because I could be their cure, didn’t mean I was theirs to own.

I shifted, pushed by that thought and padded quietly to the front door. I had to shift twice more, to pull it open and then to sneak through the night.

There was a chill in the air. The Briar Pack land was quiet, nestled into the side of the mountains, trees all around the homes, enveloping us. I rarely went into the wilds and never did alone, but I knew I could do this.

I had to.

Chapter Two

CAINE

It took a moment to get my eyes open. They were sealed shut. One more than the other. When I finally blinked them open and gingerly touched my right eye, I realized they were crusted shut with dried blood. Disgust filled me, quickly followed by bile rising up my throat.

I choked it down and struggled to my feet, entire body aching.

The cold, hard cement of my holding cellar was not a pleasant place for the body to spend a few hours passed out, but there was no other option. On the nights when a wolf shifter's body succumbed to the wild that always threatened to overtake us, nothing could survive—not even a mattress to lie on. No, being surrounded by cement was the only way.

Still, my entire adult life, shifting without my control, I had never gotten used to this part. Being taken over by ferocity and abandon, losing sight of myself completely, then waking up, body ravaged… all of it felt wrong and alien. It never became easier.

The room was splattered with fresh blood stains. All of them mine, I knew, since the door locked from the inside.

My toes were caked in it and my fingers too.

It looked like I'd taken out being locked in here on myself this time. Not surprising, that was often how it was.

At least I was in here. As far away from Mina as possible.

That was the other thing that was always the same. At the end of each Wild Night, Mina remained my first thought.

The idea of her, still asleep in her bed, was like an instant balm, soothing me.

Her constant presence, her mischievous smile, everything about her, down to the twists in her auburn hair and the way she smelled as soft as she looked, they offered me more comfort than anything had in all the years since the straggling remains of my pack had disbanded after losing one too many.

My hand made it all the way to the locked door before I remembered everything else; the Cliffmont pack. The deal. The fact that Mina was about to be sold like the precious jewel that she was.

Fury raced through me. My heart started to pound and for a split second, I was sure that the Wilds had started again. I was about to be consumed with my anger—but no physical change overwhelmed me this time.

The truth was, I wanted to fight the entire Cliffmont Pack away from what was rightfully mine. Only problem being that Mina wasn't mine. Was she?

She'd toed the line carefully. Sometimes flirting with me and Brighton for fun—we were the only men she ever spent prolonged time with after all, but she had always remained completely obedient to her father's orders. She'd never crossed any lines with us or any other alphas. I knew; I'd been watching her. It was my job, but I would have done it anyway.

A fist banging on my door startled me from my thoughts.

It wasn't like me to be caught off guard. I needed to get it together.

Shaking myself, I unlocked the door and pulled it open.

The moment I saw Brighton, already cleaned up and dressed, a wild look in his eyes, I knew it was about Mina.

"Is she okay?" I demanded, terrified to hear the answer.

"She's gone."

Chapter Three

BRIGHTON

“What do you mean?”

“I mean she’s gone!” I growled.

I pushed past Caine, eyes barely seeing the state of him, but the sight of his cellar made me pause. Looked like he'd had a rough night. He often did. For some wolves, the beast within them was more discontent than others. That never surprised me. Caine was older than me. He'd watched our pack disintegrate from a loving community to a small group of rabid animals who eventually had to part ways to keep their sanity. Pack politics often got bloody and losing our omegas—our mothers—had nearly broken him.

I’d been a child back then. I barely remembered the good days. All I could do was make best of the life I'd been given.

Caine had kept me by his side, watching out for me but until we’d been taken in by the Briar Pack, things had been tough.

For some time now, life had turned out to be more filled with laughter and love than I had ever thought it could be as a young cub. Mina was to thank for that.

The threat of losing her—especially to a group of alphas so hell bent on hurting her—had made my entire body crawl. What she didn't know—what none of them knew—was that I would only lose Mina over my dead body.

“Brighton. Calm down. Talk to me.”

I took a breath, trying to calm myself.

“I went to Mina’s room. She’s not there. She isn’t anywhere in the house. I searched for her. She isn't anywhere on pack grounds. Her scent headed toward the mountains, but it was weak. I lost her.”

I was shaking, the wolf within me itching to escape.

“I’m going after her,” I said. “Whether you want to come or not, but I just thought—we’ve had each other’s backs since we were kids Caine, so I want you to come.”

He opened his mouth to speak but before a word came out, I rushed on.

“Before you agree, just know. I’m going to find her, but I’m not bringing her back here.”

I could see the cogs working in his eyes. The understanding and the inner conflict. For a moment, fear that he wouldn’t join me, hit me. I thought he loved Mina the way that I did. I thought our bond was too strong to break. But maybe the comfort of being part of a pack, protected and one with them, was worth more to him.

"She doesn't want to mate with the Cliffmont Pack members," I said quietly. "They're going to force her."

His gaze darkened and he placed a hand on my arm, instantly soothing me.

"We won’t let them," he said.

Relief hit me hard.

I didn't know what we would do exactly when we found Mina, but we had been on our own before. Together, we could figure it out.

Caine didn't want to wash up or collect any belongings. I agreed with that sentiment.

If we travelled in our wolf forms, we didn't need any of that stuff. All we needed was each other.

No one tried to stop us as we slipped through the back door. It was still early. No one knew Mina was gone yet. Why would they? We were the ones who usually went to her first.

Sometimes, I even slipped into her room to watch her for a moment before I had to wake her. She loved sleeping in, and I loved letting her because the sounds of her soft breaths and the peaceful look on her face in the morning light offered me a peace I had never experienced before. Then that inevitable smile when she first opened her eyes and looked at me... there was nothing in this world worth more.

Mina had lived her whole life in her father’s home, kept like a princess in a tower with us, her dragon guards, keeping everyone away.

She didn’t know how cruel the wilderness could be with rough terrain, animals ready to attack the moment you showed weakness, and the biggest threat of all; lone wolf shifters.

I pushed harder. In wolf form, her scent was easier to detect. With Caine at my side, we tore through the underbrush toward her.

Chapter Four

MINA

I collapsed against the base of a tree, body automatically shifting to my human form, exhaustion finally forcing me to stop.

The sun was already up. The Wild Night was over, the full moon retreated beyond the horizon.

Caine and Brighton would be free from their beasts by now, probably getting ready for their day.

Regret hit me.

For a moment it was overwhelming—as though, since I was finally resting, my thoughts were waiting, ready to bombard me.

I didn't say goodbye. Did they know I was gone yet?

I pressed my face into my hands, rubbing up and down, then into my hair, trying to ground myself.

I was so tired.

Had I run far enough? Would I be lost to the wilderness now, just as I'd wanted?

I squeezed my eyes shut, sinking down into the earth beneath me as the reality of what I had done settled over me. I was completely lost. I couldn't go back home even if I wanted to, and I didn't want to, but...

I would never see Brighton's brilliant smile again. I would never feel the warmth of Caine's gaze again.

I'd probably fooled myself into thinking they meant more than they did—that Caine's eyes on me hid more than he would say—that the smiles Brighton flashed at me throughout the day were special.

Ugh. I was always a naive fool, always assuming the best, right up until my daddy decided to sell me. Clearly, I didn't have a very good understanding of the men in my life. I bit back tears.

"Come on, Mina," I whispered. "You have to be stronger than this."

I took a deep breath, and then another, finally, my thoughts started to calm. As the sun rose higher, brightening the forest through the needles of the evergreens above, sleep overwhelmed me.

"Ah, there she is. The sweet little snack."

The hissed words filtered into my dream, tainting the colors briefly before someone grabbed me by the ankle, gripping so tightly I kicked before I was even fully awake.

The hands tightened, dragging me a couple feet before a body pressed down on me, holding me still.

Finally, my eyes flew open just as a hand clamped down over my mouth.

Eyes wide, I stared up into a man's face. He was bloody, disheveled and reeked of body odor, urine and other unidentifiable things that I didn't want to place.

"I've been looking for you half the night, little omega."

The stink of his breath, so close to my face made my eyes water.

He grinned, exposing misshapen grey teeth and I finally recognized him. He was one of Alpha Rafe’s men. I didn't catch his name. They'd all leered at me when I'd entered the room yesterday. Aside from the initial glance, I hadn't looked at any of them if I could help it.

I thrashed, but he was stronger, he'd caught me at my most unguarded and my struggles only made him laugh, a deep bellowing sound tinged with something more sinister.

"Oh," he breathed as I finally collapsed, gasping, his hand still clasped over my mouth. "I love a girl who fights back."

My heart was racing harder than I'd ever felt before.

I could barely breathe from the weight of him on top of me. Any second now I was pretty sure I was going to pass out.

Maybe that would work in my favor. Maybe he'd be so disappointed that I wasn't fighting anymore that he would leave me alone.

Yeah, right.

He shoved my face to the side, pressing it into the soil. His hand traced the line of my bare neck. He was naked too, and his body stirred against me in a way I had never felt before.

At times, I'd wanted it so bad. I'd never had sex—how could I when I was always being kept under supervision, allowed to socialize only when my father and guards were there. I'd longed for that alone time with the two of them. I'd wished for Caine to escort me to my room and come inside with me, to seal the door shut behind him and take me. I'd fantasized on the mornings when Brighton woke me, of pulling him down on top of me. I would have done anything if I thought they wanted me the way I wanted them. Now, my fevered dreams of having a man on top of me were coming true in the worst, most twisted way.

Revulsion. Fear. Disappointment. There was no limit to the number of negative emotions hitting me as his length grew against my thigh.

I couldn't help struggling, kicking with all my might.

For a moment, I dislodged him, but just as I rolled away, just as my heart leaped with hope, he tackled me back down.

He landed on my back, shoving me, face first, into the earth. I choked on it, coughing it out of my lungs as he held me down.

"Please," I begged. "Let me go."

He laughed again.

"I'm afraid not," he growled. "I won’t be going wild again. You're going to make sure of it."

A scream tore from my lips just as his teeth grazed my shoulder.

The mating bite. The cure to the wilds. He wasn't going to use my body and take me back to his master. He was going to steal my freedom without a second thought.

From the trees, an inhuman shout tore through the air. My entire body wrenched and suddenly, I was free.

I gasped, staring at the wolf who had attacked him. My attacker shifted, but not before claws tore deeply into the flesh of his rotund belly, and a strong jaw clamped onto his shoulder.

I rolled onto my back, about to dive to my feet when suddenly, Brighton was in front of me. I blinked, sure I had dropped back into a dream.

For a moment, I stared at him and then my gaze went back to the wolves fighting.

“Caine,” I breathed.

Brighton nodded.

Only a few feet away, Caine held my attacker in his strong jaw. I knew Caine. I knew he was determined enough that he would never let go.

The other shifter had already lost so much blood. It was pooling beneath him as he was brought lower and lower, until he was laid flat, panting while Caine crushed the last of his life from his veins.

Finally, the other wolf lay still.

I shut my eyes, turning away.

It had all happened so fast I could barely understand any of it. Waking up under attack. Assaulted and nearly mated. Then just like that, it was over.

They’d come for me. Both of them.

“Are you okay?” Brighton asked, crouching next to me.

His gentle hands ran over my neck, my arms. His beautiful crystal blue gaze swept over me, traced my face and my hair with such tenderness and worry that tears sprang to my eyes.

“Are you okay?” he repeated, with more urgency.

I knew it might not mean anything to them. That my father probably sent the two of them after me the moment they knew I was gone, but it meant something to me.

I pushed myself into Brighton's arms, burying my face against his neck.

The moment he wrapped his arms around me, the tears came and his embrace tightened. The warmth of his bare skin was so comforting, his familiar scent so soothing, I wanted to bury myself inside him and never come out.

"Please," I gulped. "Don't make me go back there. I don't want to be mated to the Cliffmont Pack. I'd rather die."

Brighton inhaled sharply at my brash statement. His hand flew to my hair, stroking it back into some semblance of order.

I pulled back meeting his gaze. It didn't look right so sad like that.

"Stay with me," I whispered. "The three of us can hide somewhere. Together."

I knew it was futile, but there was no sense in hiding anything now.

Brighton's gaze flew over my shoulder, and I turned, realizing that Caine had shifted to his human form. He stood behind me, naked in streaks of light, coated in dried and fresh blood. Bruises and scrapes decorating his skin.

I knew it wasn't all from the fight. Every morning after the Wild Nights, he was like this. My heart went out to him, as always, but more now than ever.

I had never seen him so exposed, so vulnerable and beautiful and the way he was looking at me, like he would do anything for me... it made my entire body ache.

"You're not going back there, Mina," he promised. "We won’t let them take you."

"You'll hide me?" I asked, tone tinged with disbelief.

"We won’t have to," Brighton said.

I looked at him, touched, but confused, until his fingers traced the line of my throat and shoulder, just as my attacker had done. I shivered, just like before, but the feeling that trembled through me was far from disgust.

There were times when I'd had to force myself from throwing myself at them. Suddenly, it appeared that I shouldn't have.

The way Brighton looked at me now, the way Caine touched my shoulder, as he came to kneel next to me, there was no mistaking their feelings now.

Father had put them in a position to watch me because their pack had been known for their decency. I guessed that was why they worked so hard to keep me safe, but now it looked like there was more to it than that.

"We can start our own pack," Caine whispered. "Just the three of us and no one will be able to take you away."

The way he said it, like he was afraid I might refuse! It was almost laughable, except I wanted it so bad that I couldn't laugh. I could do nothing but pull my hair back.

His breath hitched, gaze tracing my features, searching, always so careful. I met his gaze unwavering, praying he could see how much I wanted this. How much I always had.

"You too," I whispered to Brighton.

The familiar flicker of Brighton's smile warmed me straight through.

"I wouldn't let him have you all to himself," he promised.

My heart quickened, desire pooling in me as they both leaned closer. Their lips touched my skin. One on each side.

I expected pain. I expected them to bite me at once and my body stiffened, but neither of them did it, not right away. Instead, a tongue flicked out on one side, I was kissed on the other.

My breath caught as I realized what was happening. Their hands traced my skin, both so gentle, leaving trails of fire wherever they touched.

One touched my chin, tilting me toward them. Brighton, I registered, and then his lips pressed to mine, kissing my so softly at first that I nearly lost Caine's touch pressing in for more. He obliged with a breathy laugh against my lips, deepening the kiss.

My body melted, head fell back, giving him more access as he sucked my lips and tongue, going deeper and deeper until I was a moaning mess, barely able to hold myself up if not for Caine's strong hands steadying me.

"What about me," he muttered, and Brighton laughed again, this time parting from me. I was about to complain, not quite following what was happening until I was turned and Caine's lips met mine, soft and full with a rough scrape of stubble.

His grip was tighter, mouth more demanding but just as passionate.

I held on tight, fingers digging into flesh, feeling as much of them both as I could while I was gently laid down.

"This is really happening, isn't it?"

I was about to lose my virginity in the middle of the forest with not one, but both men I'd lusted after and loved for years.

Caine looked down at me, shaking his head with a rare, gentle smile.

"I can't believe it either," he said.

He reached down, gently traced my cheek and then turned my face to the side giving Brighton the access he was seeking.

Brighton's lips touched my neck where it met the shoulder, the same place he'd been kissing earlier.

I shut my eyes, expecting more of that treatment. That was when he did it.

The bite did hurt, but only for a moment. It was excruciating, a sudden, fiery pain and then his tongue pressed against it and a soothing balm settled over the spot.

My gasp of pain turned into a sigh of relief and pleasure as he licked my skin.

It appeared to take everything in him to pull back. When he finally did, he turned his face away, taking deep lungsful of air.

“My turn,” Caine whispered.

He bent low, lips brushing my neck on the other side and then he hesitated, pulled back and met my gaze looking worried.

“You are sure, right?”

I looked up at Caine, the man who had spent so many years offering me comfort and reached my hands up to cup his strong jaw.

“I am,” I said, playfully. “But you should probably do it quick in case I change my mind.”

I pulled him down, greedily taking another quick kiss before turning my face to the side.

For a moment, he breathed me in, then without further hesitation, he bit into my flesh.

Chapter Five

BRIGHTON

The moment Mina’s blood touched my tongue, something swept through my entire body. I imagined it was like what the earth felt when mountains moved. Everything shifted. Everything changed. In the most basic of descriptions, it felt soothing like every wrong thing inside me clicked into the proper place. Things I didn’t even know were wrong, were fixed.

I shivered, still attempting to come back to reality, to come back to the beautiful woman lying in front of me, offering herself to me and my companion.

Finally, my eyes drifted open.

Mina was lying exactly as she had been, nude, open, free. Except now, two vicious bites adorned her neck.

Regret swamped me—along with the strangest most misplaced feeling of pride. As much as I felt guilt for scarring her, now no one could argue the facts; Mina was ours and we were hers.

Caine had the strangest look on his face. Staring at Mina like he was seeing the stars and the moon for the first time.

For a man always so pent up and on guard, it seemed out of place for a moment but then gratitude swelled in me. Caine deserved happiness. He deserved to have a family again. We all did.

“What’s wrong?” Mina asked, pushing herself up so she was sitting between us. “Did it not work?”

The uncertain tone of her voice made my heart swell.

“It worked,” I said, giving her a reassuring smile.

“Oh?”

She looked from me to Caine and bit her lip.

“So then… why has the kissing stopped?”

A laugh burst from my lips, and I had to bite them to keep it in when she shot me a glare.

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t realize kissing me was so hilarious.”

I dove forward capturing her in one of the kisses she was so eager for but pulled away just as she started to lean into it.

“Sorry Mina, I guess the moment was broken.”

“For now,” Caine added, shaking his head at me. He often told me I needed to ‘read the room.’ I assumed this was one of those times because Mina suddenly looked overcome with worry.

Her jaw set, she nodded, not looking at either of us as she pushed to her feet.

The sight of her lovely, willowy body in the afternoon light nearly made my mouth water. Why had we stopped again? She wanted this as much as we did. That much was clear.

I stood up, shaking off whatever thoughts had told me we should cool it before it went too far.

As soon as I swept her into my arms, she sighed in relief, clinging to me.

Caine sighed heavily next to us me.

“Please don’t make me be the bad guy.”

As one, we turned and looked at him.

“You know I’d rather join you,” he said. “But they’re going to come looking for us soon. All the other Briar Pack alphas will follow your father’s orders, Mina. They’ll scour the forest for you. Even the Cliffmont Alpha’s clearly feel they have some claim over you. Until they realize we’re now mated and all of this blows over, we have to get somewhere safe.”

He glanced over and I followed his gaze to the remains of the alpha who we had found attacking Mina.

Getting to her in that moment, just before she was hurt, was probably one of the best things to have happened to me. Followed quickly by the best thing that had happened to me.

My gaze fell tenderly on Mina. Her hazel eyes, when they caught the sun, always shined orange. I would do anything for that colorful gaze to land on me and now they would all the time.

No more leaving her at night. No more standing in the background watching her. Nope. Now, I would always be at her side. Always protecting her.

"What should we do?" I asked.

I would follow Caine's lead. I always had. He was the responsible one anyway and I was having a hard time thinking beyond the fact that I finally had a mate. I would never experience the Wild Nights again. Our lives were forever altered.

"I think... we should get to the nearest humans.”

Caine's words drew my gaze with a start, all attention finally focused on him.

"What are you talking about?" I demanded.

"We can't mingle with humans, Caine. Are you insane?"

He shook his head.

"We'll keep contact to a minimum.” He shrugged helplessly. "I don't know how else we can protect her. Or each other."

I swallowed, realizing that he was right.

There was a reason that wolf shifters stayed away from humans. Especially the unmated ones. Those who were mated were part of larger packs that had land away from humans anyway so didn't bother mixing. There were hunters amongst the humans—those who captured wolves on human land and ended them in terrible ways.

My heart raced just thinking of approaching them, but Caine was right in a sense. The others weren't likely to follow us out there, were they? Two packs of wolves sneaking into human territory... It would be too crazy.

"Are you sure about this?" I asked.

Caine's sure nod was all I needed.

"As long as you agree, Mina," he said, looking at her. "This concerns you too."

He reached out, brushing the tangled threads of Mina's hair from her face as she considered.

"Our other option is to find somewhere in the mountains, hide there, fight any alphas that track us."

Mina only considered for a moment.

"Two packs against us three?" She shook her head and with a trembling breath, tilted her chin up. "No. Let's find a human village."

Her voice quavered but her bravery warmed me straight through.

“We’ll protect you,” I promised.

“We won’t let them get you,” Caine added.

Chapter Six

CAINE

I meant that promise down to my bones as I lead the other two down the mountain, toward human territory. Mina and Brighton were my family. They already had been, but now it was official.

There was only one thing that could now separate us: death.

And as my heart soared from this strange, nostalgic feeling of completion from belonging to a family, I was also overcome with worry that I tried not to let show.

Brighton was more than capable on his own, but he had always trusted me, looked up to me and faithfully took my lead.

Mating with Mina might not have been the right choice, it put us all in danger, but I couldn't bring myself to regret it.

On all four wolf paws, the mountain was easy to scale. The three of us made quick work of it. Of course, between the three of us, it wouldn't take long for any shifter following us to realize where we were headed.

It didn't matter though. As long as we got into a human town before they got to us, that was all that mattered. Surely, they wouldn’t send a group of wolves after us. That would be too dangerous, and we could handle them one on one. All we needed was enough time for her father's anger to diffuse.

Although the Cliffmont alpha, Rafe, might not be too happy with us. We had killed one of his own... Well, I had anyway. If it came to it, I would take the blame and punishment. Anything to protect my family.

Whenever I glanced back, Mina's slight form was close behind me, focused on the path at foot. Brighton flanked her.

They both looked so determined that my heart squeezed.

Our path was clear but still, I remained alert, listening for any unexpected sounds, nose searching the air for the hint of any other shifters.

Twice I caught the scent of other predators, a regular wolf up wind and a cougar above us, somewhere in the trees.

Neither bothered us.

Somehow, we cleared the forest without so much as tripping. My suspicious nature found it hard to accept that we were in the clear, yet there, below us, a road stretched.

Humans loved things to be neat and orderly and unnatural. The road was a perfect example. Smooth and shiny like a scar running through the land in either direction farther than I could see.

Instead of going straight down to it, we walked the ledge above it, watching the brightly colored cars drive past.

It wasn't a very busy road by human standards, with vehicles driving by every few minutes. From my brief time amongst the humans, after the pack fell apart, I knew they lived in cities so congested with people and pollution that this was probably too far into the mountains for most to venture.

Finally, I spotted something of use.

I shifted, stretching to crack muscles and bones after hours in wolf form.

"Down there," I said, pointing.

The inn was quite large, stretching almost as high as the trees behind it.

"We're going to stay there?"

Mina's uncertain voice drew my gaze.

She was human again, biting her lip in distress, staring down at the building.

I swallowed back the overwhelming urge to hold her, to feel her soft skin against mine once more, even just for a moment. This wasn't the time.

But her nudity reminded me.

"We can't go in like this."

My gaze lingered pointedly over her naked body, the lovely soft curves.

"Why not?"

"Humans are never naked," Brighton explained from behind her. "They're too sensitive to the elements, or something like that."

Her eyes widened.

"Oh. What are we going to do? All our belongings are back home."

I exchanged a look with Brighton.

"Watch her."

His jaw tightened, but he nodded.

"Be fast."

At his words, I shifted back into my wolf form and began to scale the tall ledge down to the road.

I listened for cars and when I was sure none were coming, I ran as fast as I could to the other side, straight into the trees on the opposite side.

Hiding in the shadows, I crouched low and waited, watching all the doors.

A few minutes of tension later, a door finally opened and a large man stepped out. He was about middle-aged, but his hair was nearly all gone, and his belly protruded in a way that only a full human’s ever did. He didn't lock the door behind him which could be good or bad. I could get in with no issue but clearly, he was only stepping out for a minute. There might not be enough time to do anything but get in there.

Without waiting to find out, I took off toward the hotel, whipping past the other rooms fast enough that hopefully no one caught sight of me.

When I reached his door, I paused, listening.

There was no discernable noise from inside. He was probably here alone.

From nearby though, there was a clank of metal that I recognized as a vending machine, then footsteps back in this direction.

Shit.

I shifted, threw open the door, shutting it behind me and locking it—just in case.

The room was dark, but there was enough light from the window to see. It was in a bit of a heap, clothing and belongings strewn around the room, but it smelled clean.

I snatched a duffle bag off the back of a chair. It had a few things in it which I didn't bother emptying. A pair of pants were on the floor, another folded pile of clothes sat on the edge of the bed. I grabbed both just as the door rattled.

I froze for a moment.

"What the fuck," was mumbled from outside, then, the jingle of keys.

Without waiting to find out if those were the right ones for the door, I ran into the washroom and threw the bag out the small window.

In wolf form, leaping through the small gap was easy.

I landed outside just as I heard the door swoop open. Despite myself, I waited, listening for a reaction.

But it seemed as though I'd taken little enough that he hadn't noticed.

Good. We didn't need any extra commotion just yet, especially when we were going to be wearing his clothes.

I opened the bag, shuffling through it to see what I had got. A few outfits. Nothing fancy. I pulled on a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt. They were both slightly loose but stayed put.

I looked up at the sound of wolves approaching, ready to shift back as my heart raced.

"There you are."

Brighton shifted to his human form, Mina following his lead.

"We got worried when he went back in," she explained. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I said, gesturing to the bag.

"Take your pick."

She squinted down at the haul, eventually pulling out a black t-shirt.

It said GOLF KING on it, but when she pulled it over her head it hung almost down to her knees and the words were hard to make out.

Brighton followed our lead, pulling on tan slacks and a collared shirt that he looked a bit ridiculous in.

In fact, we all looked a little silly, but this was the best we could do quickly.

"Come on."

I lead us to the front of the inn, where the concierge sat looking bored behind a large desk. I could practically feel Brighton and Mina’s nerves prickling my skin.

"Booking number?"

I started at the concierge’s first question. He didn't even look up at us when he said it.

I glanced at the other two, but they were no help, both completely out of their depths. Brighton shrugged helplessly.

"Sorry, what number?" I asked.

Finally, the young man looked up at us. He paused, taking us in, expression unreadable.

"I'm guessing you don't have a booking?" he asked.

I shook my head.

With a polite smile, he began to type on his computer, eyes fixed to the screen.

"We have three rooms available. How long are you planning on staying?"

"A couple days," I said trying to sound confident. I had no clue how long we were going to be here. We were winging this whole thing.

"Hm. That's going to be harder with a two or three bed. You might have to transfer in a night if that's okay with you?"

"We only need one bed," Brighton said.

The man glanced at him then fixed his gaze on the screen.

"Okay, that'll be two hundred and thirty-five dollars."

I stared for a moment.

"Right. Money."

After living under a pack for so long, where everything was supplied by the alpha, I'd nearly forgotten about that part. Only problem being of course that we had no money.

Heart speeding, I opened the bag up, shuffling through its contents. Maybe I'd missed a wallet in here somewhere.

All I found was the clothes I'd taken.

Maybe the guy would take pity on us.

I glanced at him. He was watching the three of us now like we were an act at the circus.

"Oh."

My hand closed over a small fabric square in one of the pockets I hadn't noticed. I pulled it out, about to leap with triumph at the sight of the little wallet.

I cleared my throat, opening it.

"It's how much?"

"Two-thirty-five," the guy repeated.

Only problem was that there was no money in this wallet.

But the man glanced at it and pulled out a machine on a wire.

"Debit card or credit card?" he asked.

I looked down at the wallet, eyes widening. It was full of little cards in all sorts of colors. I pulled out a green one and read it.

"Credit," I said.

He offered me the machine and I reached for it but before I could take it, it beeped, and he pulled it back.

"Would you like a receipt?" he asked.

I blinked at him.

"Uh. No. Thank you."

"Here are your room keys, you're in seventy-two. WIFI password is taped to the side table."

I took the keys and managed to nod.

"Thanks," I said, weakly.

He shrugged, turning back to the computer.

Together, we backed out of the room.

“Thank god that’s over,” I muttered under my breath. “Dealing with humans is always so stressful.”

“That man was very confusing, “ Mina agreed, eyes wide. “Are humans always like that?”

“Always.”

Chapter Seven

MINA

The room was smaller than my bedroom at my father’s house, but it had a large washroom with a tub and shower and a queen-sized bed, just like the one I had back at home.

My gaze settled on the flower print sheets on the bed and my body stirred.

Only a couple hours ago, the two men at my sides had very nearly deflowered me in the middle of the woods—right next to the body of the shifter they'd killed for me. That should have been enough to turn me off, but being with them was all I wanted, despite how shaken I was. They could have had me already if they wanted. Instead, they took something even more meaningful than my body. They'd taken my spirit. They’d bound mine to theirs.

My hands slipped up, gently touching the marks on each side of my neck.

"Excuse me," I said.

I felt both of their eyes on me as I went to the washroom. I shut the door behind me, taking a moment to draw in a long breath, suddenly overwhelmed by all that had happened.

That shifter, the one who had attacked me... For a minute there, I'd really thought that I was about to lose everything. I'd thought he was going to rape me, to mate me, to take my entire future and any possibility of happiness. He almost had.

When I turned and saw myself in the mirror, the emotions that I was struggling to overcome suddenly broke free. I was dirty, tired, messy. I was unlike I’d ever seen myself after living an entire life protected like a fine jewel. It was more than the tangled mess of my fiery colored hair and the dirt smeared on my face, that surprised me. It was the look in my eyes, now filled with tears.

I’d truly changed. I even looked different somehow.

And part of that change was due to the two men sitting outside this door waiting for me.

My heart skipped as my thoughts turned to Caine and Brighton once more.

My father had tried to sell me, I’d run from home, I’d lost nearly everything in one night, and yet… I was suddenly filled with excitement.

I pulled the t-shirt-made-dress carefully off, aware of the tenderness in my shoulders as I moved to expose the wounds my mates had left.

They were still raw, in the early process of healing. The two bitemarks were shallow but still deep enough that they would leave scars in my pale skin.

My fingers gently touched the spots once more. Caine and Brighton. They were both mine.

The thought thrilled me at the same moment I was filled with uncertainty.

They hadn’t taken me the way I had wanted them to in the forest. I’d been open and willing.

Sighing, I pushed the thought away and turned to the shower, quickly turning the tap to distract myself and stepping into the glorious warmth of the running water. My body was aching nearly everywhere. Most notably, between my thighs throbbed from the memory of laying on the forest floor, Caine’s firm hands holding me, Brighton’s fingers and lips skating over my skin.

I shuddered just as a knock on the door made me jump.

Before I could so much as look over, it opened.

Brighton had seen me naked already. We had spent the day together, shifted together, gotten dressed together. When he stepped into the washroom and fixed his bright eyes on me through the glass though, it was different.

My entire body reacted as his gaze fell down my form. Cheeks heated, nipples hardened, warmth spread through me, emphasized by the water cascading over my skin.

Without speaking, without breaking my gaze, he unzipped his pants. He let them drop unceremoniously to the tiled floor. His shirt followed.

I watched the display eagerly and the more I watched the harder he became.

When I finally dragged my gaze back up to his face, hunger overwhelmed his expression.

"Brighton," I finally managed to say. "What are you waiting for?"

With a groan, he came toward me, pushed the glass door open and stepped into the shower, immediately taking me in his arms and engulfing me in his warmth.

His lips found my neck, moving straight to the place his teeth had marked and he kissed the spot tenderly before moving to the other side and doing the same to the would from Caine's sharp fangs.

I gasped, pleasure and emotions overcoming me as he pressed his length against me, but I wanted more, and I couldn't wait.

"Where's Caine?" I asked.

My voice barely sounded like my own.

Brighton pulled back.

"Caine!" he shouted, gruffly. "Get in here."

A moment later, the door opened.

Caine took one long look at us, his expression unreadable as he took in our naked forms pressed together.

"She wanted you," Caine informed him and the subtle hard lines on his face softened. He looked away.

"Not here," he said. "Come to the bed."

He turned and left, presumably expecting us to follow.

I swallowed, but Brighton chuckled.

"Always so serious," he said, shaking his head.

He bent down and kissed me again. When he pulled back, I was caught by the sight of him, flushed from the heat of the shower and my presence, a soft smile on his face, the hint of his dimples on display, water droplets falling from the tips of his golden hair.

"Don't look so worried. You know him. He's big on ceremony. He must think you're worth more than a shower fuck for the first time."

I flushed, lips twisting into a smile, despite myself.

"So, what does that say about what you think my worth is?"

His gaze darkened.

"That I've already waited long enough." He bent low, lips brushing my ear. "Mina, I can't stand another minute without being inside you."

My heart rushed; breath barely made it into my lungs.

"Well, let's hurry up then."

I grabbed his hand, pulling him from the shower and straight into the main room.

We didn’t bother with towels, too eager for what was to come.

Caine was waiting for us, standing by the bed, looking serious as usual. wanting to ease his worries, I marched straight up to him, forgetting the bed he'd been so insistent on.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" I asked.

He balked.

"Mina, I should be asking you that. Not the other way around."

That was exactly the answer I'd been looking for.

"Take your clothes off," I ordered.

My voice trembled a little at the brashness, but he didn't laugh or shake his head or call me crazy, he just carefully unbuttoned shirt, then jeans, pushing them off one by one, exposing just how much he did want me.

Caine took a small breath and then stepped up to me, so close that his erection brushed against my skin. His eyes narrowed darkly, hands coming to wrap around my upper arms. Instead of pulling me close the way I wanted him to though, he steered me backwards until the backs of my legs touched the bed.

Two other arms came around me then and I sank back into Brighton's ready embrace.

He pulled me down, laying me atop the soft covers and continued where we'd left off, kissing me so deeply my toes curled, and heat pooled between my legs.

When we parted long enough for me to open my eyes, Caine was next to us, watching me, warmth in his gaze, his fingers trailing through my hair.

I reached up and pulled him down.

He didn't fight me, kissing me deeply.

When his kisses trailed lower, Caine replaced his lips on my own, kissing me. As Brighton’s tongue delved into me, I finally broke the kiss with a gasp. He kept licking me, kissing me between the thighs in a way beyond anything I’d ever imagined. He moaned in pleasure, enjoying it nearly as much as I was. My entire body felt like it was on fire. Nerves I didn’t know existed burned with pleasure.

“Now,” Caine whispered above me.

Brighton immediately stopped pleasuring me with his mouth, lifting and positioning his hard length between my thighs.

My gaze was fixed on the display as he slowly thrust into me.

Truthfully, I’d thought it would be pure pleasure and nothing more, but the way his cock stretched me and just kept sliding in further. It burned.

I gasped, my entire body tensing, eyes squeezing shut.

Above me, Brighton moaned as though in discomfort, and I managed to open my eyes to see Caine’s hand on Brighton’s shoulder to keep him still. He was watching me closely, measuring my reactions.

Embarrassed, I tried to breathe through the discomfort. I knew neither of them would go further until I was ready.

That thought comforted me and slowly my body relaxed around Brighton.

His eyes were squeezed shut with the effort to remain still, but Caine continued to watch me with his sharp gaze.

“She’s ready,” he said softly, and Brighton began to move.

It wasn’t a bad feeling, just unfamiliar and the more he thrust into me, the more the feeling shifted into pure pleasure.

I began to moan and gasp, unable to stop my reactions or stifle my pleasure. Why would I?

I began to thrust back, bracing my feet against his back and meeting his movements.

As my head fell back, an orgasm nearing, he suddenly gasped and pulled back, freeing his cock as he came.

I gasped, watching Brighton come, even more turned on than ever. I’d always wanted to see this side of him and the way his flushed skin gleamed with sweat, the look in his eyes as he lost all control of himself, it was beyond anything I’d imagined.

He rolled to my side, breathing heavily, fingers finding mine as Caine began to move.

He took Brighton’s previous position between my legs, parting them and reaching down, feeling how slick and wet I was.

My body arched from the confidant touch, over too soon.

I was desperate for more and something told me that Caine wasn’t going to finish until I got it.

He pressed his hips forward, pulling my ankles apart to expose myself more.

His cock felt different sliding into me. Thick and heavy, stretching me in a different way.

I moaned, spreading my legs further for him. He obliged, pressing deep and grinding against my pussy.

I few dee hip rolls and I was an incoherent mess, groaning and panting on the edge.

That was when he reached down, expertly teasing my clit, fingers slick from my arousal.

I came harder than I ever had before. My own fingers never could have prepared me for the mind-blowing pleasure that ravaged my body. I held onto him, twitching and clenching as he thrust harder.

It didn’t take Caine long to join me. The way he strained into me, entire body tensing with pleasure, the low groan that tore from his throat, nearly made me want to go again.

But it had been a long day and I’d just had all my fantasies come true, so when he collapsed on my other side and both of my mates wrapped their arms around me, delivering sleepy kisses, I was helpless to the sleep that overtook me.

Somehow, everything had worked out just fine. In this moment, I didn’t believe that anything else could ever go wrong.

Chapter Eight

CAINE

I should have known we weren't alone. Caught in the softness of Mina’s embrace, it wasn’t until a cold, clammy hand closed over my shoulder that I knew we had been found.

My eyes flew open, body tensing for what was to come, but too late.

I was yanked from the bed at the same moment that Brighton was dragged out from the other side.

Mina's shout tore through my chest but I could do nothing before my arms were tied tightly behind my back despite my struggles. If I shifted in this position, my bones would snap. Still, I wasn't completely useless as a human. I fought to free myself from the hands holding me down.

On the other side of the room, Brighton fought four shifters. Just as they nearly had him tied down, he shook an arm loose.

His claws struck out at once, lashing one of our captors across the chest but it was futile. With four of them on him, a hard knee into the center of his back was all it took to pin him down again despite his best efforts.

When I was hoisted up again, it was into a hard chair. Brighton was dropped roughly into the one next to me.

I looked at Mina. She was exactly as we'd left her; untouched in the middle of the bed, hair tousled, beautiful body bare and barely hidden beneath the thin bedsheets.

Her eyes were wide with fear, but she remained perfectly still, gaze flitting between everyone in the room, clearly assessing what the next move would be.

There were ten of them, each reeked of alpha strength. I recognized all of them from their arrival in our pack two days ago. The Cliffmont pack alpha, Rafe, was among them. He stepped up to the bed and right up to Mina. My Mina.

A growl tore from my throat.

"Stay back."

He spared me a glance and a twisted, cruel smile.

"You're in no position to be giving me orders."

With that, he turned back to Mina, leaning down and slowly reaching for the covers. Her grip tightened on the sheets as he began to pull.

"No," she whispered, but he gave a hard yank and the white fabric slipped from her fingers exposing her shoulders and the curves of her breasts and most importantly, the bite marks on her collar.

She yanked the sheets back up hastily, but a growl of frustration left Alpha Rafe.

"You!" he shouted, turning to face us. "You've sullied what was mine!"

"She was never yours!" Brighton shouted.

Rafe marched to Brighton and me, Mina forgotten, and even though he was most likely about to at least try to kill us, I was still flooded with relief.

"She was unmarked, unsullied, completely fresh!" His fist struck out, clasping around Brighton's neck so tightly that I could see his knuckles turn white as Brighton's face flushed with blood.

“Let him go!” Mina screamed and maybe she thought she could take them, maybe she thought it was a last-ditch effort as we all went down together, but despite any better judgments, she shifted.

My entire body went cold as she stood in wolf form, growling at Alpha Rafe who took one look at her and began to laugh.

His hand dropped from Brighton’s neck and my comrade immediately began to cough and gasp the air back into his lungs.

“Mina,” I hissed, heart racing. “Step down.”

She didn’t move, hard gaze fixed on the Cliffmont Pack’s leader. From what I’d seen, each one of the alphas was worse than the last. She couldn’t attack their head; it was bad enough that we’d killed one of their own. It was even worse that we’d already claimed what—they thought—was meant to be theirs.

“Please Mina,” I whispered.

Her ears twitched as though trying to shake my voice away. Perhaps she heard the desperation in it because her snarl faded, curled lips relaxing. The rest of her remained in place, focus entirely on Alpha Rafe.

His laugh cracked through the tension, piercing and unpleasant.

"You have her well trained for me, at least," he bellowed, and Mina's growl rose once more. I had to bite my lip to remain calm. My hands were shaking, fury and fear mixing in my gut.

I glanced at Brighton and caught his gaze at once. The look he gave me, like he was waiting for me to tell him what to do to get out of this mess only made my stomach hurt even more. Truthfully, I didn't know what to do.

The only option was to go along with this until we were untied and then make them pay for coming between us and out mate.

"We won’t let you touch her," Brighton said, voice low, menacing.

A chuckle ran through the room, Rafe's boys found the statement funny, apparently.

"It's not up to you," Rafe informed him.

As though on cue, the door swung open.

A chill traveled through me at the sight of Greer, Mina's father and the leader of my pack for the last ten years. I hadn't wanted to face him again, not until the smoke settled, at least. He'd taken us under his wing, and we'd stolen his main asset. Too bad for him, we hadn't had a choice. I would never have given Mina up to these beasts.

Still, shame filled me as his furious gaze landed on me and Brighton, tied compliantly to the chairs, and then to Mina, still crouched on the bed, ready to pounce on anyone who so much as made a wrong move.

"Mina!" he snarled.

She flinched, gazing back at him but did not back down.

Pride filled me as I watched her.

He marched into the room, behind him, his four main guards followed. I knew them all well from our years living together in the small pack that we had called home. This was a complete betrayal, a stab in the back to the whole pack. Giving Mina to the Cliffmont Pack would better the lives of our whole pack—everyone's lives except Mina's, of course. And as far as I was concerned, hers was the only one that mattered. Not even mine or Brighton's. The way Alpha Greer looked at each of us, I think that fact was finally becoming clear.

Finally, his hard gaze fixed on mine.

"You've given up everything for a single night with my daughter. You had years to act, why now?"

"You're the one who decided to sell her off to this trash!" Brighton spat.

"Brighton," I hissed, but I was already forgotten.

Alpha Greer swung out, striking him across the cheek, claws gashing his flesh. Blood sprayed, splattering the floor.

Brighton hissed and bowed his head, taking a slow breath against the pain, red dying the tips of his golden locks.

“They mated with her, she’s worth less now,” Rafe suddenly said.

Greer’s lips twisted with disgust as he looked down at us. Slowly, he wiped the blood from his fingertips.

“She’s still an omega. She’s young and healthy. She’ll last longer than your other omegas have.”

“We won’t pay.”

Greer addressed Rafe coldly.

“We won’t pass her over for nothing.”

For a moment Rafe was silent.

“You can have your border patrols; I’ll station some of my boys around your village. And we’ll have your back. Pack invasions, skirmishes, business deals, you’ll have the Cliffmont Pack name behind you—“

“You can’t be serious!”

The words burst from my lips, resolve broken. I couldn’t keep silent while they continued to plan Mina’s sale as though she was nothing more than a commodity.

Their gazes turned to me.

“We won’t take them though,” Alpha Rafe sneered.

“They’re my mates.”

Mina’s sudden voice from the bed drew everyone’s eyes.

She crouched, nothing but the deep red locks of her tousled hair to hide her. Still, she held her head high, gaze fixed unwavering on her father.

“Even if a hundred other wolves mate me, they’re my mates too. I won’t go anywhere without them. They’re mine.”

“Darling,” Alpha Greer said, voice touched with something like sadness. “There’s a very easy way to fix that problem.”

The moment they said it, I knew what they intended.

All my effort to remain calm and wait for the right moment was useless. We never going to be untied from these chairs, not until they were disposing of our bodies.

From behind, an arm came around my neck just as I started to thrash, attempting to break free. The chair creaked and groaned but did not break. My hands and ankles remained firmly in place as the hold on my neck tightened.

Mina started screaming.

There was thrashing and noise everywhere, but it was soon drowned out by the rushing of blood through my head.

Even as my eyes began to roll back, the room darkening, my hands reached out blindly, straining against the ropes, searching for freedom or a way to fight back or something to hold onto. Maybe I reached for Mina in the last seconds as the world went black.

Her voice cut through the darkness, screaming in desperation. Whatever she said worked.

Suddenly, I was released, air came rushing back all at once, flooding my system. I coughed and choked on the sudden flow of oxygen. I slumped over, gasping as the spots started to clear. Next to me, Brighton was wheezing.

When I could finally see, Mina was across the room, being held back by two of the other alphas, tears streaking her face.

“Let them go,” she demanded, “and I’ll go with you without a fight.”

“No!” I wanted to say more but the single word was like fire on my throat and I erupted into a fit of coughing.

“We can survive apart,” she went on as though I hadn’t spoken. “But if you kill them or harm them in any way, I promise you, I will not be in this world long enough for you to use me on the next Wild Night.”

“We’ll tie you up,” Rafe snarled. “You won’t be able to move more than a finger. We’ve done it before. The last omega didn’t enjoy it very much. I doubt you’ll be any different.”

He turned a furious gaze to Alpha Greer.

“Go on with it,” he spat. “End them. I will not have them coming after any more of my pack.”

Alpha Greer remained very still. Finally, he glanced at the ones behind us, the ones who had very nearly ended our lives already.

Only then did I realize that it was our own pack members who had been choking us. It was alpha Greer who had stopped them from finishing the job at his daughter’s threat.

“My daughter is being handed off to you. My own flesh and blood,” he reminded Alpha Rafe. “She’s valuable, as you well know. Her plight as an omega is to be mated… but I won’t have her tied up for the rest of her days.”

Rafe’s gaze darkened.

“You’re calling off the deal?”

Before hope could so much as flutter through me, Alpha Greer shook his head.

“No, but I will take care of these two as I see fit, they’re my pack, after all.”

He looked at Mina.

“This is my parting gift,” he said. “You’ll go with them without a fight now, won’t you?”

“You promise you won’t hurt them?” she demanded, voice trembling.

Alpha Greer nodded.

“As long as they never go after you, they will live.”

Mina bit her lip and nodded resolutely, her chin trembling.

“Mina,” Brighton whispered next to me. “Don’t do this.”

Her gaze darted to his, then to mine. There was so much in the quick glance. Desolation, longing, regret and resolve all flitted through her eyes along with more that I couldn’t identify.

Then she shook the other alpha’s hands from her shoulders and went to the door.

She took a slow, trembling breath and then glanced back at Alpha Rafe.

“Ready?” she asked.

Her small voice shook but she did not back down, just waited, gaze unwavering, until finally, Alpha Rafe nodded.

“Let’s go boys,” he said.

They each followed him to the door and one by one, filed outside, Mina in their midst.

Just like that, they were gone.

“You foolish old man!” Brighton spat. “What makes you think that they’re going to deliver any promises they’ve made? You just gave her away.”

Alpha Greer’s gaze narrowed.

“Alpha Rafe gave me his word—”

“Ah, yes, the word of a low life criminal. What a fantastic reason.”

His voice dripped with disdain. I expected Rafe to come give him another scratch, deeper than the last one, but Brighton’s words must have dawned on him for the first time because he turned to the two guards flanking the door.

“Follow them,” he growled.

Chapter Nine

MINA

I shivered in the cool air. I could feel the eyes of the alphas on me. Each of them was aware of me—like they were starving, and I was a nice piece of rare steak.

Without asking for permission, I shifted. My fur offered instant relief from the cold, and their roaming eyes. Most of them were dressed, the ones who weren’t shifted into their wolf forms, closing in on me from all sides as they began to walk. When I took the time to count, there were ten of them.

My pack was a moderate size. There were thirty total members, only six were omegas, all mated but me—until yesterday, of course.

Pain lanced me.

I’d never felt such a physical blow from my emotions, it was like my heart had been stabbed. My steps faltered.

Was I really walking away from Caine and Brighton? Was I really leaving them forever?

Sorrow blossomed inside me. There was a life I could have, one that I had always wanted, and I was literally walking away from it.

One of the men reached down, his dirty fingers sliding over my fur. My hackles rose and he chuckled.

Every instinct screamed at me to run, but I’d made a promise to my father. To save the men I loved from dying right before my eyes, I would do anything.

I expected to go straight back into the forest we had originally emerged from but instead, I was led to a truck parked at an angle at the back of the inn's parking lot.

The blue paint was hammered with dents and scratches, and I eyed the alpha who jumped into the driver's seat.

Rafe pulled open the back door.

"Get in," he commanded.

In one way, I wanted to follow his orders. After all, my submission was the only reason that they had let Brighton and Caine go, but if I got in that truck, they could take me anywhere. It would all be over.

Right now, my mates were only across this lot. Who knew how much farther Rafe and his men would take me?

Rafe watched me for a minute and then with a twisted grin, exposing blackened teeth, he looked at his wolves.

"Go back to the room. Wait outside the doors and the moment you get the chance, rip those fuckers limb from limb."

"All of them?" one of them asked.

Rafe chuckled.

"Especially the Briar Pack's Alpha. He's a little too demanding for someone with so little to offer." His gaze darted to me. "Let's teach him a lesson."

Shocked, I was frozen still for a moment as the other alphas began to move, heading back toward the room we had been staying in.

Brighton, Caine, and now my father too? Yes, he was the one who put me in this situation, but he was still my father. I didn't want him to get hurt. Until a few days ago, I had only ever thought of him as my hard edged, yet doting, daddy.

Without thinking, I jumped into the back of the truck and swiftly shifted into my human form.

"Okay, you got me. I'm going with you without a fight."

Rafe chuckled at me.

"Whatever suits you, omega. I'm not against a little resistance, either."

His dark gaze traveled over me. I cursed leaving my clothing behind as bile rose in my throat. I yanked the door shut between us, blocking myself at least partially. He clearly couldn't wait to get his hands on me and the thought of it nearly made me sick, but now wasn't the time to dwell on that. His men were almost out of sight now, already turning the corner to attack the others.

"I did what you said, call off your men!”

Alpha Rafe blinked at me, seeming perplexed.

“Omega,” he said, leaning close to the open window. “I was going to take you whether you obliged or not.”

His gaze dropped over me again and I sank back in my seat, revulsion filling me from the look in his eyes alone.

“And about your daddy and your little mates,” he went on, “I was going to make them pay whether you obliged or not.”

He smacked the side of the truck, focus turning to the driver.

“Get her away from here.”

Chapter Ten

BRIGHTON

Standing in the meeting room, watching the group of alphas discuss Mina's worth like she wasn't even there... that had been one of my darkest moments. Fear and anxiety had flowed through me. I hadn't told Caine at the time, but I wanted to get her away from there, away from the Cliffmont Pack, even if she wanted nothing to do with me in the end.

Then, finding her again in the forest, mating with her, tasting her healing flesh sooth the wild beast within me... for a full day, I'd lived a dream. Me, Mina and Caine, all holed up together in the hotel, a life ahead of us where we three could be as close as we were with no one to stop us.

Now, fury unlike any I had ever felt, coursed through my veins. I wanted to spit it bitterly from my mouth and could barely contain a single angry comment, despite Caine's warning eyes on me. The words kept coming out, and now that Mina had been inevitably taken from me, it was even harder to stop them.

"You were selfish and greedy," I spat. "You could have kept her safe, instead you threw her to the worst of the wolves."

"Brighton," Caine said, but I went on.

"We can be trusted. We followed your orders for ten years. You should have given her to us from the start."

"You're to be trusted?" Alpha Greer laughed. "You went behind my back and mated my daughter!"

"Only because she was about to be sold off!"

"Respectfully," Caine cut in, "Brighton is right. She ran on her own. We went after her in the morning and found her. She was willing to go out into the wilderness alone to avoid the Cliffmont Pack claiming her. They're dirty players. They smuggle and murder and live in squalor. Everyone knows it. You should have known better than to trust them."

"They probably ran off with Mina already, leaving you high and dry," I added fueled by Caine's support. "Meanwhile we're sitting here on our hands. We were the ones you should have given her to."

"You didn't need my permission, did you?" Greer asked. "You already claimed her. It's lucky that Alpha Rafe is more reasonable than you think, or you would both already be dead."

The last bits of anger that I was trying to contain, boiled over the surface.

“Don’t pretend that the Cliffmont pack is softer than it is! We all know that they kill their omegas after a short, brutal life. You just sent your only daughter to be slaughtered.”

“It’s none of your concern!” Greer spat. “You think she’s yours now? Just because you mated with her? Sorry to disappoint you son, but she’s about to belong to the entire Cliffmont pack.”

“You’re wrong.”

Caine’s deep, measured voice cut through our passionate argument.

“Mina isn’t ours. We belong to her.”

He fixed his calm gaze on Alpha Greer.

“Let us go after her and stop this before it’s too late. We will offer Briar Pack the alliance and support you are seeking, and we’ll keep Mina safe.”

It was extremely unlikely that Alpha Greer would choose us; a two-shifter team, over all of Cliffmont Pack, but when he didn’t immediately argue, hope blossomed in me.

I opened my mouth, ready to dive in with more but there was a commotion from outside.

I could recognize the sounds of a fight, the snarls, snapping teeth, growling.

“They came back for us.”

Caine’s sure voice made Alpha Greer’s face pale.

He rushed to us, shifting into his wolf form, large and imposing and grey, just as he was as a human. Our bindings ripped off easily in his large jaw.

Everything else left unsaid was clear now. If we helped Briar Pack, our alliance was secured. Mina would be ours.

I needed no more bolstering than that.

Without hesitation, I shifted. Caine transformed at my side. Together, we burst through the door, coming upon the exact scene I'd expected. Rafe's wolves nearly overpowered Greer's, but with me and Caine, the odds were better than even, eight of them against six of us. When Alpha Greer himself joined, I was reminded why I'd had such respect for the alpha in the past; he fought alongside his pack.

Without thought, I allowed my wolf to lead me, my nose guiding me from one unfamiliar wolf to the next, biting down with all my might, ripping and tearing through flesh, not stopping long enough to spit fur from my mouth, barely pausing when teeth locked onto me, only biting back and continuing our brawl.

Around us people shouted. Humans. A wolf brawl in the middle of a parking lot would probably be quite a sight. Normally our kind tried to keep a low profile, surely this story would draw every hunter from miles around, but we would deal with that when it came. For now, all that mattered was getting Mina back.

I caught scent of Alpha Rafe as he approached the fight. I leaped toward him, everything else forgotten.

He fell flat on his back, pinned beneath me in human form as I shifted back into mine, holding him down with a knee in the throat.

"Where is she?" I snarled.

He gritted his teeth, not answering so I pressed my full body weight down until his ugly face turned red, his eyes bugging from his head.

"Where is she?" I repeated.

I loosened the pressure just enough for him to choke the answer.

"Blue truck."

I looked up, wide eyes scanning the parking lot. It was already gone, but they couldn't be far ahead.

I released the Cliffmont Pack leader, pushing to my feet and foolishly allowing my eyes to drift shut as I inhaled, chasing Mina's scent.

There were so many others here that it was muddled, but still, I could pick up the hint of her sweetness.

That was when Alpha Rafe attacked me.

So caught up in the direction of Mina's fading scent, I didn't notice him coming up behind me.

He hit me hard in the scrappy form of his wolf, claws slicing easily through the soft human flesh of my back. I staggered forward, falling to my knees, winded for a moment from the pain, but no other blow came.

When I turned and looked, Alpha Rafe was on his back, blood pooling around him, Caine standing over him.

Caine was bleeding just as thoroughly from his side, but he was standing and Rafe wasn’t. Behind them, the fight had slowed to a stop. Rafe’s wolves that were still standing stood back. When Alpha Greer stepped up to the other pack alpha, Caine removed himself, limping toward me on all fours.

I didn’t care to wait to see what was going to be done with the other pack leader. It wasn’t my problem anymore.

“They took her in a blue truck,” I said. “We don’t have much time.”

I shifted and together we took off, following Mina’s scent to where it ended at the end of the lot. There was only one way to go from there.

We took off down the road. I lead, Caine close behind me, slowed by his wounds but pushing forward. My own wounds throbbed in pain, but it was nothing my quick healing body couldn’t handle. Next to me though, I could hear Caine’s heavy panting and worry streaked through me because there was no time to deal with him. Not when each moment meant Mina was taken further away.

I nearly stopped dead though when I realized what was in front of me.

In the distance, a blue truck was parked at an angle off the side of the road. The back door was wide open.

No one was inside.

Chapter Eleven

MINA

As I looked out the back window, watching the inn fade into the distance, my only option became clear; jump out of the moving truck.

I didn’t even hesitate.

The wind whipping by and the speed as the trees passed were barely things I registered because I didn’t wait long enough to take note of them. I threw myself from the speeding truck.

The landing was even harder than I expected it to be. I hit the ground hard and was sent rolling. Each time my body connected with the rubble, pain shot through me in a dizzying wave until finally, I stopped.

For a moment I laid there, sprawled out on my back, gaze fixed on the sky above. I was momentarily dazed, confused what had happened, or where I was, and then I heard screeching tires and it all came rushing back.

I twisted, pushing to my feet, ignoring the pains shooting through me as I began to run directly into the trees.

I didn’t know where I was going except away from the driver who I knew was sure to follow.

Sure enough, I only made it a few feet before a deep, cold chuckle reached my ears.

I spun around to face him.

There, at the edge of the trees, the other shifter shook his head at me, grinning.

“Didn’t even think to shift, did you?” he asked. “You might have got a little further away on four legs. I mean, I still would have caught you, but you know, you could have pretended you’d get away for a little longer.”

“She doesn’t need to pretend.”

Caine’s familiar voice nearly made me drop to my knees and that was before I even turned and looked at him.

He was standing to the side, leaning against a tree as though he didn’t have a trouble in the world, watching my pursuer with a cold, dark gaze.

Next to him, Brighton crouched in wolf form, fangs bared.

“There’s no need to hold onto the girl anymore. Your master is dead by now.”

The other shifter’s face went pale.

“Don’t play with me,” he spat, but Caine shook his head coolly.

“I would never.”

For the first time, his gaze flitted to mine and I could see that he was telling the truth. Blood rushed in my ears, relief and confusion mingling within me.

“How?”

“Rafe went back on his word. He tried to take you for free and take out your father while he was at it.”

When he spoke to me, there was so much warmth in his voice compared to when he spoke to anyone else. It was a wonder it took me so long to realize how he truly felt for me. When he turned back to the Cliffmont wolf, his tone turned back to ice.

“We were in our rights to dispose of him. The girl remains with us. You should have no reason to fight for her.”

The shifter’s gaze darted from Caine to me. Interest glinting in his eyes.

“An omega for myself would be nice though.”

Brighton’s growl filled the air and the other shifter immediately backed up a step.

“We took out all of your comrades with ease. Care to try us on your own?”

For a moment, the shifter lingered.

It was laughable, did he really think that I would walk away with him? Even if I was on my own, I would fight him off with every last breath.

Finally, seeming to think better of it, he turned, retreating toward the road.

Relief swamped me, I turned to my mates, ready to ambush them but Brighton was already on me, practically body checking me as he engulfed me into a huge hug.

I laughed, tears of relief stinging my eyes.

“You really fought off the Cliffmont pack?” I demanded.

“With your father’s blessing,” Brighton added, kissing me. I was too stunned to do much more than stand there, but a moment later, my shock was absorbed by something else. I drew my hand away from his back where it had landed in slick liquid.

Blood covered my palm.

“Brighton,” I said, slowly. “You’re bleeding.”

“It’s not that bad,” he informed me.

“It looks pretty bad from here,” Caine said.

He was still leaning against that tree, watching me with a wry expression. A feeling of dread fell over me as I realized one of his legs was soaked in blood. He looked incredibly pale.

“I’m guessing you’re not just leaning there to look cool?” I asked, hoping I was wrong.

“I should probably get to a hospital,” he agreed.

My short-lived relief was swiftly replaced with worry. I rushed to his side, taking a moment to gently stroke his hair from his face before looking for the wound.

He indicated his side where the flesh had been practically chewed into shreds.

“Shit,” Brighton muttered next to me. “I didn’t realize it was that bad. You’re a tougher shifter than me, running here in that state.”

Together, we helped him toward the road. Seeing the claw marks gashed into Brighton’s back, just made my worry increase tenfold. I didn’t feel so hot myself, covered in bangs and bruises, but I was nowhere near the state that they were in.

When we reached the road, I we stood at the edge for a moment, watching a car pass slowly. The driver watched us with wide eyes. I didn’t blame her. We were nude and covered in blood.

I wasn't sure what our next step was. I didn't really expect anyone to stop for us, yet a moment later, someone did.

A familiar, rusty old black car pulled up in front of us.

My heart squeezed at the sight of my father in the driver's seat.

He looked at me, expression a mix of unreadable emotions.

"Get in," he said.

I swallowed and nodded. Together, the three of us climbed into the back seat. To my surprise, the clothes we'd left heaped in our motel room were thrown over the back as we began to drive.

I gratefully pulled the long shirt over my head. Brighton fought into his own outfit as we began to drive, but Caine moaned in pain when he tried to move, and we didn't push him to get dressed.

Instead, I pulled his head onto my shoulder and squeezed his hand.

"Do we have far to go?" I asked.

My dad shook his head.

"The nearest hospital is about fifteen more minutes away."

"You hear that?" I asked, tilting my head toward Caine. "Can you make it?"

He didn't answer.

I squeezed his hand harder. On my other side, Brighton took my other hand.

"Don't worry," he reassured me. "Caine's tougher than any wolf out there. He's been through worse than this."

"Everything is going to be okay," my father added. Despite his added reassurance, I felt the car speeding up.

We'd been through so much together. The past two days alone felt like years. Before the last Wild Night, before the Cliffmont Pack arrived on my door, I'd dreamed of a happy, simple life just like the one I had, but with Caine and Brighton as my mates.

Now we were mated, but everything else had gone so wrong. Would we get our happy ending?

The hospital was cold and invasive. We barely made it in the door when we were rushed by nurses. Caine was taken away in a stretcher, Brighton was taken a minute later.

It was easy to make excuses. An animal attacked us while we were camping. That was what my father told them. No one questioned it.

I was left sitting in the waiting room, anxiously tapping my fingers on the arm of the chair.

My father was still next to me.

“You don’t have to wait with me,” I finally said.

A bitter smile touched his lips.

“Do you know what to say to the doctors or nurses when they ask for your insurance or personal details?”

“I hadn’t thought of that,” I said, honestly.

“It’s my fault,” he said. “I kept you away from everything in the world. I was trying to preserve your worth… I was an idiot.”

I wouldn’t argue that. He’d disappointed me more than I ever could have expected… but it had led to me running away, finding the strength within me to fight for myself… and it had led to Brighton and Caine coming after me. It had led to the happiest few hours I could ever remember having.

“Do you think they’ll be okay?” I asked.

“Brighton will be fine,” my father said. “Caine too, but he needed to come here.”

His statement, though nothing I didn’t already know, had my stomach clenching with worry. With shifter healing, it had to be bad to need a human’s intervention. I could already feel my bruises fading, my body realigning.

We waited for what felt like a lifetime until finally, a nurse came to us and said we could enter.

They were both in the same room in identical beds. Brighton was sitting anxiously. Caine though, was unconscious, hooked into machines. My heart twisted at the sight of strong, steady Caine, so vulnerable.

Brighton jumped to his feet the moment we entered, despite the nurse’s warning.

For a long moment we held onto each other, breathing deep.

I wanted nothing more than to retreat to my bedroom and bury myself under the covers with my mates. I wanted to hide them and protect them.

Of course, now I didn’t know if I even had a home to go back to.

I’d thought I was ready for that the night that I ran. Today though, the thought felt daunting.

“Is he okay?” I whispered.

“I’m fine.”

I gasped at Caine’s quiet voice.

Together, we went to his side. His eyes had drifted open, hazy brown eyes looking up at us. I took his hand and Brighton squeezed his shoulder.

“Can we go home now?” he asked, voice a whisper.

Perhaps Brighton had heard my thoughts because his gaze darted to me and then my father.

“You’ll come home,” my father said, stepping forward, “and when you’re ready, you’ll have my help to build your own.”

I knew his offer came from guilt and obligation. Of course, if we were starting our own pack, I was sure he would want to start our alliance on the right foot. Either way though, I appreciated it.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

Our own place…

A spark of excitement found its way into me.

Once my boys were healed, everything would be different.

Chapter Twelve

MINA

“Be careful!”

Brighton stomped to the edge of the roof and glared down at Caine, pointing the nail gun toward him.

“You think I’m not being careful? You keep saying that every five minutes. You want to come do it instead?”

Caine shot me a look, clearly longing to take Brighton up on his suggestion.

“Don’t even think about it,” I said firmly.

Sighing, he shook his head up at Brighton.

“Sorry, Boss says I have to stay down here.”

“Boss says you have to stay down here and finish healing,” I corrected.

Brighton grumbled and went back to work.

He was on the roof of the new house—our new house, fixing the shingles.

A gift from my father.

I was still sore where he was concerned, but it looked like he was trying to make amends despite the awkwardness of our current relationship.

This house was close enough to the Briar Pack land that it still felt familiar and homelike even though half the walls were currently down.

It was in serious disrepair, but we still stuck a bed in one of the rooms and all slept in it overnight. During the day, Brighton worked on fixing it up.

With his shifter healing, he’d recovered faster than any human would have, I was as good as new, but Caine still winced when he moved.

That didn’t stop us from doing other activities, it just meant that I had to go on top and well, no one was complaining about that fact.

Biting my lip at the direction my train of thought had gone, I glanced over at Caine. He was squinting up at Brighton, watching him work with a sharp, worried glare. Clearly, he didn’t trust the other shifter’s carpentry.

He was as sexy as always, even more so now, because I knew how his lips tasted, I knew what his body felt like, I knew he was mine.

“You seem worried,” I sighed coyly. “Let me take your mind off of it.”

“I’m not—“

He finally caught my tone and looked at me, a glint of hunger in his gaze.

Grinning, I leaned in, letting my hand trace the sharp stubble on his jaw as I kissed him. He opened himself up to me, lips following my lead. From the moment we’d started this, he’d always followed me, and I loved that power he gave me. Such a big strong man…

“This is so unfair.”

Brighton’s genuinely disappointed tone brought a burst of laughter from my lips.

I looked up at him where he was watching from the edge of the roof like a dejected child.

“I’m up here working while you two get to have fun,” he pouted.

“Well get down here for a minute then.”

Grinning, he went to the ladder far faster than anyone should ever move on a roof. He leaped off the last five rungs, landing with a spring, tossing the nail gun to the side as he marched toward me.

“Hey! I said be careful with that thing!”

Caine’s shout only made it funnier as Brighton made a show of sweeping me into his arms and dipping me to plant a long, lingering kiss that fully took my breath away.

By the time he lifted me back up and we slowly parted, I could barely think straight.

“Feel better?” I managed to ask.

He nodded, hooded gaze glancing down at my swollen lips.

“Okay, now get back to work.”

He blinked, surprised, and then burst into laughter.

Without arguing and with a much-needed pep in his step, he went back to his job. I settled back down in the garden seat next to Caine.

He took my hand, shaking his head.

“I honestly don’t know how we ended up so lucky.”

I squeezed his hand, for a moment too overcome with emotion to answer.

“I’m the lucky one,” I finally managed.

I meant that with all my heart.

Somehow, instead of being sold to the pack that would take from me until there was nothing left, I was here; with Caine and Brighton as my mates, beginning our own pack.

Starting from this single run-down house, we would rebuild our lives, together.

My every dream had come true, after all.

The End

About Juliet Moon

Juliet Moon is a steamy romance writer who enjoys finding new and interesting ways to twist her characters to her whims.

Stolen Mate is her debut! Thanks for reading!

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Breaking Chains

A La Isla Perdida Paranormal Prison Short Story

© 2021 Margo Bond Collins

About Breaking Chains

A La Isla Perdida Paranormal Prison Short Story

Fae and shifters don’t work together. But Evangeline and Mara did—they were the best burglars in the business. Until they got caught.

Now they’ve been sentenced to La Isla Perdida. The supermax-plus prison designed to hold paranormals, reserved for the most dangerous supernatural criminals.

Rumor has it that in La Isla, there is no peace between the fae and shifters. There’s no peace, period—not unless the alpha fae and shifter declare it. As long as Gage and Clark can maintain their fragile truce, the island won’t descend into chaos.

But it looks like chaos is exactly what Evangeline and Mara bring with them.

Chapter One

MARA

“I have a bad feeling about this job, Mara.” Evangeline twirled several strands of her long, blonde hair into a braid.

“You always say that. Blalock never let us down before.”

My partner frowned. “Yeah, but he never asked us to run anything this big before.”

“Maybe he’s moving up in the world.” I shrugged and pulled on a black hoodie over my tank top. “And this is it, Ev. Our cut will cover the last of what we owe to the Gray Clan, and then we’re out of here.”

With a sigh, Evangeline tucked the last of her braids into the bun on the back of her head. Shrugging into her own hoodie, she finished her prepping ritual. “I can’t wait to get the fuck away from them.”

Virtually in unison, we scooped up our gear bags and strode toward the door of the warehouse apartment we shared.

One more heist.

When Blalock offered us this gig, he had to have known we would feel compelled to take it.

Five years. That’s how long we had been working to buy Evangeline out of the Gray fae clan.

Getting me free of the Blackwood Pack had been much simpler. All I had to do was let them know I was determined to keep working with a fae partner and they kicked me out. After they beat the shit out of me, of course.

Fae and shifters don’t work together. Everyone knows that.

Except Evangeline and me.

And no matter how hard they tried, neither her clan nor my pack had been able to convince us that our friendship, our partnership, was unnatural.

Besides, we were damn good together, the best thieves in the high-end heist business. As soon as we finished paying off the Grays, we would be living the high life.

This last robbery should have been easy. It wasn’t your normal jewel heist. It wasn’t the kind that meant dealing with several layers of security, both magical and mechanical. No. This was a fashion show—one run by a coalition of fae.

A fae fashion show had garnered enough attention that several major designers were loaning out jewelry for the catwalk show the very next day.

And we just happened to know where those jewels were stashed away between now and then.

Or at least, Blalock did. That came with the territory for him. He was the Gray fae clan’s lead enforcer.

Having grown up in the wolf shifter clans, the term enforcer brought to my mind visions of burly men who used their fists and fangs to mete out justice. But in fae clans, it was a different story. The elite enforcers among the fae were not handing out punishments on their own. They were the guys who came up with a plan to hand out justice to everyone else. Blalock hired people to take care of problems.

In our case, he lined up the kinds of heists that paid big, ones that allowed us to buy our way out of the Gray clan as fast as we possibly could. Truth be told, no one wanted us out more than the Grays did. Well, except maybe me and Evangeline.

So I didn’t think anything of it when he handed us this assignment.

I should have paid more attention.

I should have known he was setting us up.

We had a short window to get in, nab the jewels, and get back out.

At three o’clock that morning, the last of the warehouse employees took off, leaving only one security guard making the rounds.

Blalock had told us there might be more security inside around the vault that held the jewels themselves, but because most urban fae clans relied more on magic than muscles, I suspected spells were more likely than people.

Anyway, between the two of us, Evangeline and I could handle anything that came our direction. I was sure of it.

So when we made our way toward the back entry we had scoped out as our best option, I wasn’t worried at all about getting caught.

I had the same adrenaline high I always got at the start of a new gig, that moment when all the plans come together and start unfolding in real time.

I even loved the moments that played out differently from expectations, the ones that forced us to use our wits and our skills, our imagination and our abilities. Those were the moments that made a heist go from merely fun to wildly exhilarating.

Tonight, though, everything went as smooth as silk, as pretty as I could have imagined it.

We got in past the guard, no problem. When it came time to take down the alarm on the door leading into the room holding the dresses and the vault that the jewels were locked away in, Evangeline spun up her magic, highlighted the wires she needed me to deal with, and I followed my heightened shifter senses to make sure they were not electrified before we snipped them.

We really were the perfect team.

At the vault itself, my hyped-up hearing and Evangeline’s delicate touch combined allowed us to crack the code without any problem at all.

When Evangeline swung open the safe door, I gasped.

I had known that the designer jewelry would be gorgeous.

But I hadn’t realized how breathtaking it would all be when I saw it in one place.

Evangeline didn’t move for a couple of seconds, and my partner’s eyes glowed with fae fire—something I had never actually seen before, though I’d heard about it. Not surprising that she would react that way to jewels of this quality, probably. The Gray clan fae were originally miners—mountain fae who could search out veins of precious metal and stone, then turn it into beautiful works of art, jewels our world has never seen the likes of since the clan was virtually decimated several hundred years ago.

“Hey.” I snapped my fingers in front of her face. Evangeline blinked several times until she focused in on me.

“Sorry.” She shook her head, and the last of the fae fire faded from her eyes. “I think some of those are Gray Stones.”

Stones originally crafted by her clan?

Whoa.

“Shouldn’t there be more security on these, then?” I hissed. What the hell was this? It might not be surprising that top designers would use Gray Stones, but surely they would put more guards around them, right?

Evangeline snapped into action. “Doesn’t matter. Let’s get them and get out.”

She pulled two carryalls out of the equipment bag and tossed one to me. I unzipped mine, she unzipped hers, and we began shoveling jewels into them.

When both our bags were full and the safe was empty, we looped the straps over our shoulders, hanging the bags diagonally across our chests to keep them more secure.

I checked my watch, noting the timer I kept running during heists. “Three minutes until the guard makes his next round.”

I closed the safe door and Evangeline spun the lock. The longer it took for anyone to notice that we had been there, the better it would be for us.

Easy job.

That was the last thought I had before all hell broke loose.

As we turned and took a step away from the safe, lights went on throughout the entire warehouse.

“Put up your hands!”

“Stop right there.”

Men’s voices boomed out around us, flashlights beaming directly into our eyes. But we had an escape plan, a contingency for this kind of thing. We simply had to get out of the warehouse first.

The police had blocked all the exit points.

“Four o’clock,” I hissed out of one corner my mouth to Evangeline.

At her almost imperceptible nod, we broke to our right and behind us, toward a spot not covered by the cops who surrounded us—not covered because it was a solid brick wall and they didn’t think they had to cover it.

But they had no idea what Evangeline and I had been working on.

We had never had to use it before to get away. But if whoever had learned enough to take us down tonight had been paying more attention, they might have been able to track us to a variety of abandoned buildings over the last few months. There, they would have discovered the rubble of what had once been solid walls.

Rubble that we had left behind as we practiced.

Fae and shifters had been so unwilling to work with one another for so long that most of them had no idea of the kinds of things we could do together.

I sometimes wondered if that’s why we were all but forbidden to collaborate.

Old stories of the fae portrayed them as sweet woodland creatures with wings. Even older stories and that suggested they were violent and dangerous. And werewolves were shown to be vicious, powerful beasts.

When we were working together, Evangeline and I managed to pretty much be all of that and more.

We headed toward the wall where no one was in our way.

The police around us started yelling for us to stop. But we reached out and grabbed each other’s hands. Evangeline pulled on my power, drawing it into her body and using it to boost herself up the wall, running with her feet perpendicular to the ground, as if gravity had no meaning.

The way she used my energy rebounded into me and forced me to shift. But not in the way shifting usually worked. Normally, my shift felt like my bones breaking and reforming, my muscles ripping and healing. But now, I pulled on a little bit of Evangeline’s power, and when it poured into me, it was like a balm for my body and my soul.

I flowed into my lupine form like water into a glass.

My shift released energy, too, and Evangeline used that to draw her feet back, hover in the air for just a moment, and then kick out with more force than either of us could have applied alone. The wall exploded outward, creating a hole that led to an alleyway. Evangeline dropped down, landing on my back and wrapping her arms around my neck as I leaped through the opening, head down, speeding toward the nearest street.

Together, we were faster and stronger than anyone else I’d ever met. We should have gotten away.

But the cops were smarter than we expected.

They didn’t shoot us. Not with guns, anyway. Something painful and jolting slammed into my shoulder, followed by a blast of electric energy that raced through me in silver spikes of pain.

I crashed to the floor and caught a glimpse of Evangeline tumbling down beside me, convulsing against whatever Taser-like weapon they’d used on us.

Other than twitching against the last of the electricity as it grounded itself out of my body, I couldn’t move. All I could do was watch as two pairs of black boots came to a halt just in front of my face, standing between me and Evangeline.

“Silver and iron,” the owners of one set of boots said to the man standing next to him. “Only thing you can use to take down fairies and werewolves.”

The bite of the silver cuffs he slapped onto my wrists as he tugged me around onto my stomach was the last straw, more pain than I could bear.

The last thing I heard before I passed out was the sound of a man chuckling with an almost evil glee.

Our human attorney, Caroline Matthews, assured us that we would get only a slap on the wrist.

“You don’t have any priors, so although you were caught with the jewels in hand, and you tried to escape, you still shouldn’t face anything worse than probation, when all is said and done. No one was hurt, and frankly, juries have a bit of a soft spot for jewel thieves and beautiful women.” She preened a little bit at the end of her statement, so I wasn’t sure if she intended the “beautiful women” comment for us or for herself.

At any rate, she miscalculated.

For one thing, I don’t think she expected the prosecutor to do his level best to stuff the jury with fae and shifter jurists.

Maybe she didn’t have any clear sense of how deep the animus against fae and shifters working together really went in our communities.

Even worse, the cops’ body-cam footage of our attempted escape through the brick wall of the warehouse terrified the human jurists.

The prosecutor pounded home what that attempt meant, too.

“These two have found a way to use their power in an unprecedented manner,” he argued. “And that makes them a danger to all of us.” He turned to face the jurors. “To me, to you, to everyone.” He made eye contact with each of them, especially the humans.

In the end, the only thing our attorney could do for us was attempt to mitigate the sentencing.

Even that did little good.

She was able to make sure we were sentenced together—she even managed a concession that would allow us to remain together once we were in the facility.

“Not that being together matters all that much in the supernatural prisons,” she muttered at our last meeting, the night before our official sentencing hearing. “As I understand it, the jailers simply try to make sure the supernaturals remain in their designated areas.” She glanced up at us from the notepad she’d been pretending to scribble notes on for the last few minutes. “I’m afraid they’re going to try to make an example out of the two of you.”

I swallowed involuntarily, fear tightening in my stomach. Had we made a mistake by trusting the justice system rather than working to escape?

“Does it not matter that all we were trying to do was buy my way out of the Gray fae clan?” Evangeline asked.

“Probably not at this point. The jury knew all of that before they found you guilty. We’ll know more after the sentencing tomorrow—and I’ll definitely be preparing an appeal for you—but for now, your best bet is to simply accept the court’s decision and let me move it through the appeals process.”

I glanced at Evangeline. Tears welled up in her big blue eyes, and it was all I could do not to growl.

Not now, I told my inner wolf. We’ll find a way out of this.

I wasn’t sure I even believed my own thoughts. By this point, we had been caged for weeks. The human criminal justice system wasn’t fully prepared to deal with supernaturals, so they tended to group us all together. Even in our local jail, where Evangeline and I had been kept, we had been placed in cells next to one another. Specialized cells, of course—hers had iron bars, mine had silver.

Having that much poisonous metal surrounding us was a drain, physically and mentally.

I stayed sick at my stomach the entire time, my inner wolf whining to be let out. My shifting abilities were depressed not only by the silver but also by some magical spell they put on the cell, woven into its bars, its walls, maybe even the bedding, for all I knew.

In some ways, Evangeline dealt with it better than I did. She didn’t miss the outdoors the same way I did. Her clan came from underground, after all.

I, on the other hand, spent every day inside waiting for the short time we were allowed in the yard.

My wolf paced back and forth inside me, testing the boundaries of our confinement.

Still, I had hope. There were a few supernatural prisons that were fairly innocuous. Minimum-security places. Prisons we could either endure or escape from—whichever became most important to us.

So on the day we were due to be sentenced, I was naïvely, ridiculously, foolishly hopeful.

Evangeline and I shuffled into the courtroom in our ugly-ass orange jumpsuits, taking our seats at the defendants’ table next to our attorney.

“All rise for Judge Stephen Wallace,” the bailiff called, and Evangeline and I pushed ourselves up, our chains clanking.

The judge, a gray-haired man in his late fifties, with a full beard and reading glasses, settled into his seat and we all sank down again.

He cleared his throat, and I waited, my heart pounding with suspense.

I kept thinking about everything Caroline had told us about sentences for theft. We hadn’t been armed, we hadn’t gotten away with the goods, so they were all returned, and we didn’t have any history of convictions. As far as anyone in the jury knew, this was our first heist. It was possible that we could get a light sentence.

When the judge began speaking, however, my hopes that he would go easy on us sank, along with my heart.

“I thought long and hard about this case,” Judge Wallace said. “I have considered all the ramifications of the evidence and testimony. Although the two women before us have expressed the remorse, I cannot help but be concerned by the potential for violence they showed in their attempt to escape police custody. They may not have been armed in any traditional sense of the word, but their use of their supernatural abilities to wreak havoc cannot be ignored.” He glanced down at the sheet of paper in front of him. “Therefore, I am sentencing the defendants, Mara Blackwood and Evangeline Gray, to the maximum penalty of twenty years, to be served in La Isla Perdida, the supermax-plus prison for supernatural prisoners.”

Inside me, my wolf howled, and my knees went weak. I caught myself by my hands on the edge of the table before me.

I knew humans were prone to judging supernaturals harshly. But it still shocked me to see it in action. Evangeline gripped my hand in hers. Moments later, we were led out to the sound of the surprised murmurings of everyone who had come to watch our case.

I managed to make it out of the courtroom before tears fell down my cheeks.

I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t spend the next twenty years of my life in prison. I couldn’t believe we had put our trust in the justice system.

We hadn’t wanted to be part of the supernatural community at all. Evangeline and I had wanted to buy our way out of that community. But the human community didn’t want us either.

And now, they had all found a way to lock us up.

I had known that what we did was wrong, at least by all measures of human society. In rejecting the rules of our society, had we somehow brought this on ourselves?

Even more worrisome, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was something else going on here.

Was someone trying to put us away for some nefarious reason?

Chapter Two

GAGE

A chill wind blew the fog from the bay across the prison island.

I gave a slight shudder, the kind my wolf would use to shake off the tiny droplets the rolling fog left behind. In my human form, though, it did no good. The minuscule drops shivered, coalesced, and rolled down my skin.

Briefly, I clenched my jaw against the discomfort—a minor one, all things considered—and scanned the yard.

New fish delivery day was always a tough one.

Inmates reacted to being processed into La Isla Perdida Supermax-Plus Prison for Supernatural Criminals in one of two ways. Either they were scared shitless and trying to be invisible, working hard at not catching anyone’s attention. Or they were scared shitless and trying hard to act tough, working to come across like they were the biggest badass in the yard.

Neither strategy worked.

We had seen it all before.

And we were here first.

It was best to make a good showing on the new inmates’ first day, nonetheless. You didn’t want them thinking they had an edge over you.

Especially if they might.

“Yo, Gage!” Drexel Jones, my second-in-command and the leader of my enforcers, waved to me from a seat at one of the four stone picnic tables lined up near the fence in the yard.

I gave a nod and strolled toward the tall, barbwire-topped fence that separated us from the dock. When I took my seat, Jade, the alpha bitch of the prison pack—even though technically she was a cat-shifter and not a wolf at all—draped herself over my shoulders. I fought my wolf’s urge to shake her off like I’d tried to shake off the mist.

Drex took a seat on the bench next to me, one level down from my own tabletop seat, following pack hierarchy protocol exactly. He flexed his tattooed shoulders, the thorny vine images rolling from one side to the other under his white wifebeater shirt as he moved. “Heard anything about this latest crop?”

I shook my head. “Nope. Nothing came through the pipeline this week.”

“Figures,” Drex muttered.

I settled in for a long watch. In the distance, I could barely see the outline of the prisoner transport ship through the fog. Around us, the other supes began trailing in and taking their places at the tables they’d claimed.

Clark, the fae alpha, flicked a glance my direction just long enough to ascertain that I was in place before sauntering to his own stone picnic tabletop. Just before he got there, he sent a swirl of magic across the table, heating the stone and sending the mist that had settled on it steaming up into the air.

“Showoff,” Jade muttered in my ear. Her fingertips flexed and her claws briefly slipped out of the ends of her fingertips.

“Not worth it,” I warned her.

“Hm.” She retracted her claws, but her narrowed gaze stayed on Clark as the prison fae clan gathered around him.

Rumor had it that in normie prisons, the inmates were kept in line by human guards. Those guards supposedly broke up fights and stopped inmates from killing each other in cold blood. As much as they could, anyway.

On Isla Perdita, the human guards didn’t give a shit.

Here, supes were divided by class and race. Everyone knew the rules: Stick to your own kind and let the alphas duke it out.

The supe alphas were expected to keep their own people in line. The human guards didn’t give a rat’s ass if we killed each other, as long as we didn’t try to take them with us.

Most of the time, we had the run of the island.

Except, of course, when the newbies arrived.

Once a month, we were all required to come in from our various sectors of the island, gather together in the prison yard, and pretend to be mostly civilized for an afternoon.

Initially, I expected this new fish delivery day to be the same as all the rest. My shifters had made their way in from our sector all morning long. I’d come in the evening before and spent the night in a cell. My wolf hated it when I did that. The iron bars made us both crazy—him because he hated being trapped and me because I could feel him pacing back and forth inside me, even when I pushed him down hard.

But it was important for me to get here first. I had to keep all the other shifters in check. We were likely to fight amongst ourselves—it was hard to keep those tendencies in check. And we were even more likely to fight with the fae clans.

Shifters and fae didn’t get along well even under the best of circumstances. We both felt a kinship to the land, an ownership of the woods. But that didn’t draw us together. It forced us apart.

But here we were, waiting for the next group of inmates to cycle through into the island. Together.

I ignored the chatter of the other prisoners pouring into the yard all around us, focusing instead on the ship drawing closer and closer.

Something about this transport held my focus more tightly than usual. Every time I looked away from its gray metal hull, something tugged my attention back to it. As the transport vessel pulled into the dock, I found myself unable to quit staring at it.

Chapter Three

MARA

We started plotting our escape as soon as they put us on a bus to take us to the ship that would deliver us to La Isla Perdida.

If the system made a mistake, it was agreeing to let us travel together, deciding not to separate us. Because Evangeline and I worked best together.

There were a few other prisoners on the bus. Evangeline and I sat in a seat together, our heads bent down as we whispered back and forth.

“Did you notice that the judge didn’t seem to have any idea how we share power?” Evangeline asked.

“I’m not even certain they realize that we can share it,” I added.

“That’s got to be something we can use.”

“For all that our case should have been big news,” I said, my fingers tapping on my knee, “Caroline said that the major newspapers hadn’t picked it up. How much do you think has been included in information sent ahead to prison?”

Evangeline shrugged. “I don’t think it matters. Ultimately, no one has any real idea of how strong we are together.”

“I’m worried about making a break for it. Maybe our best bet would be to wait until we got to the island?”

“Fae can’t really fly, you know,” Evangeline said. “How do you think we will get back to the mainland?”

I shrugged. Right now, we were still wearing the magic-reducing cuffs that we been in every time they took us out of our cells. I reached over and touched the walls of the bus. A burning sensation flashed through my fingers, and I jerked back. “That’s got silver in it.”

Eventually nodded. “Iron, too. I can feel it from here.”

So getting off the bus was unlikely.

And when we pulled into the parking lot that led to the harbor, my heart sank further. The prison transport ship was a giant, gray metal vessel, and I could feel it pulsing with anti-magical forces even from inside the bus.

“Not yet,” Evangeline whispered as we stood to file down the steps of the bus and up the ramp leading to the ship.

I nodded. We would get away. I just didn’t know how, yet.

The trip to the island itself was short, taking less than an hour.

I hoped briefly that we might be able to simply jump into the water and swim back to shore at some point. But when I saw the choppy waters below as we were chained together to move from the ship to the prison’s intake building, my stomach clenched.

I hunkered down into the collar of my shapeless gray uniform stamped with La Isla Perdida, trying to fight against the cool breeze that blew a mist into my face, leaving behind droplets of water that clung to my eyelashes. I wanted to shake it off like my wolf would shake water from her fur, but I didn’t want to give away any weaknesses to my fellow prisoners.

The guards led us down to a pathway past a high, chain-link fence. Behind it, prisoners sat on stone benches and picnic tables, watching us silently until we got close.

That’s when they started moving up to the fence itself, banging on it and calling out to us.

I held my chin high, ignoring the catcalls. The men and women here looked tough—this place might turn out to be rougher than I had anticipated.

Evangeline and I didn’t belong here. We were not murderers or rapists, had never been violent—except against brick walls.

A shiver ran down my back.

That’s when I smelled it. Something new. Enticing. It drew my wolf’s attention. I whipped my head around for just an instant, scanning the people at the fence.

One prisoner’s intense stare hit me like a punch to the stomach.

As his gaze met mine, his eyes flashed gold, glowing and sharp.

He was a shifter. I was certain of it.

And he was scary as fuck.

I dragged my gaze away from his by sheer force of will, but I couldn’t scrub the image of him from my mind. He was enormous, well over six feet tall. And possibly almost as broad. He wore a simple T-shirt that stretched across bulging muscles in his arms and chest. Tattoos covered his arms and neck, strange, almost tribal markings.

I clenched my fists against the desire to reach out and trace them with my fingertips.

Don’t be ridiculous, I told myself.

My wolf whimpered, pushing me to go back, to meet him at the fence, reach through those links and caress the ink on his body.

Shut up, I muttered silently to her.

Okay. I had to admit it, even if only to myself. With those intriguing tattoos, his dark hair, and those intense, glowing eyes—he was almost as sexy as he was scary.

I couldn’t admit that to anyone else without compromising my pride, though. Right?

Anyway, the fact that he was sexy as all get-out didn’t mean the incredibly enticing, spicy scent, like cloves and seawater and the scent of pine trees in summer, belonged to him, too.

But somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew it did.

Chapter Four

GAGE

“What are you thinking?” Jade had whispered as I watched the ship come in, her breath brushing against my ear as she pressed her breasts against my back. Normally, I might have found her attention at least mildly interesting. Today, though, I wanted nothing more than to brush her off.

Still, I wasn’t willing to undermine her position with the rest of the pack.

“Just wondering if we’ll have any new pack members on the ship.”

I felt Jade’s nod against my cheek and again fought back the urge to push her away. That was unusual, too—she didn’t generally irritate me this much. I had inherited Jade from the previous alpha when I’d fought him for primacy a year before, and I had taken her into my bed to solidify my position as alpha. It hadn’t been a hardship; with her red-gold hair and pale skin, she was beautiful and fierce, and many members of our makeshift pack were devoted to her.

She was an asset, and I tried to keep that in mind as she ran her fingertips along my shoulders.

At the dock, the crew members finished securing the transport ship and lowered the gangplank. A few moments later, guards began ushering the new inmates off the boat and toward the intake building.

The prisoners, shackled together and wearing gray prison uniforms, shuffled down the gangplank. The clothes were baggy and shapeless, rendering their forms indistinct and amorphous. There was no way to tell who was who.

But I knew the moment I saw her.

It was like her entire form was lit up by some kind of invisible magical fire. I could feel the pull of her from all the way in the yard.

Jade felt my reaction, despite my attempt to keep it under control. “What is it?” she asked. “What you see?”

This time, I really did shake her off, standing to move toward the fence to get a closer look at the woman.

Out of the corner my eye, I saw Clark moving, too. At the thought that the fae alpha might be fixating on the same woman I stared at, my wolf rose inside me, growling, insisting she was ours. She was pack.

Clark glanced at me, his lip rising in a snarl as he sensed my wolf’s response to him.

I shoved my wolf down, using the same strength I had employed to beat down Magnus, the alpha before me. He had been unable to control his inner wolf. That was what had allowed me to win against him. I wouldn’t let the same thing happen to me.

The rest of the shifters and fae took their alphas’ movement to the fence as a sign to start the gauntlet. They moved up around us, their feet kicking against the yard gravel as they began whistles and catcalls designed to throw the new fish off balance.

Clark and I simply stared out at the line of incoming inmates, equally entranced by them.

With a supreme effort of will, I pulled myself away from the fence—but not before I got a look at her face. She had mahogany brown hair pulled back in a ponytail and luminescent eyes the color of a hunters’ moon, glowing orange with her own inner wolf.

As she passed, she held her chin high, ignoring the jeers of the inmates on my side of the fence. For just a second, though, we made eye contact, and it jolted through me like a physical blow. Her, too—when she saw me, she stumbled, jerking the chains that strung all the inmates together.

That’s when I realize she was holding another woman’s hand. A tall blonde with bright blue eyes and fine bones.

If the blonde weren’t fae, I’d be surprised.

As it was, I was shocked.

Werewolves and fae don’t work together.

Chapter Five

MARA

As we moved into the main building, Evangeline reached up from behind me, her hand taking mine.

Maybe she sensed my distress. I reached back to clasp her hand, too, twisting just a little to do so and relying on my shifter reflexes to keep from tripping everyone linked in this chain gang.

The guards led us into the building, and we came to a halt in a room inside.

One of the guards who had brought us in moved to the front of the room. “Okay. We will be processing in all prisoners today. You’ll be assigned to your group by species and we will get you settled in tonight.”

I squeezed Evangeline’s hand harder, and she clasped mine back just as tightly.

By species? No one had said anything about separating us that way.

As Trumbull started sorting everyone out, Evangeline leaned forward. “Now,” she said.

I nodded in agreement. This would be our last chance. We had to either find a way to be placed together or get away.

I didn’t know if we could make our magic work under these conditions. But I was more than willing to try.

I closed my eyes for a second, calling on my wolf’s power to shift. I felt the rise of it inside me, but instead of pushing it into allowing me to change into my wolf, I shoved it out toward Evangeline.

I felt when she grabbed it, too, then spun it in with her own magic. Like a laser, she pointed it downward, shearing our chains away from the other prisoners’.

We backed up until we were next to a wall, one that faced away from the prison.

“Hey now,” Trumbull said. “What’s this?”

“Back off,” Evangeline said, aiming a small fireball to land near his feet. “We’re not going to be separated.”

Trumbull danced away from the magical projectile.

“Hell,” he muttered. “Wait here.” He glanced around at everyone. “Don’t move. I’ll be right back.”

While he was gone, Evangeline and I passed our magic back and forth, letting it build inside of us. We were going to need it to escape.

When Trumbull came back down the hallway, he led the gorgeous shifter I had seen earlier and a tall, blond fae man. I felt more than heard Evangeline gasp.

And again, that scent washed over me. It really was the shifter’s.

Dammit.

We backed away from the men, moving closer to the wall.

“Don’t come any closer,” Evangeline said threateningly.

Trumbull and the two men stopped.

“That’s better.” Her voice was clear and bright, full of our magic, and the fae man all but reeled at the sound of her voice.

Chapter Six

GAGE

When Trumbull, the head guard on duty, had stepped out of the building and murmured to one of the guards waiting there, sending him to retrieve me, I had known it wouldn’t be anything good.

“What’s up?” I asked as I approached Trumbull. It wasn’t good to be too friendly with the guards—the pack might take it as a sign of weakness. On the other hand, defying the guards too often led to its own kind of trouble.

Trumbull finished murmuring to a second guard, who moved out into the yard and called Clark to join us.

“We got a situation inside. We were sorting out the intakes to hand them over to you guys for their first night. But we have a couple of women in there who are refusing to be separated. Real wildcats.” He slanted a glance at me. “No offense.”

“None taken.” I shrugged. “I’m not a cat, anyway.”

Trumbull snickered and turned to lead us inside and down the long hall toward the common areas. “One shifter, one fae. I figure you two could sort them out better than we could.”

And that was the benefit of staying friendly with the guards—they pretty much let us rule our own kind.

“What do you know about them?” Clark asked.

Trumbull sighed. “Man, they were supposed to be low maintenance. A couple of cat burglars who banked on taking big-ticket items. Not this shit.”

As we rounded a corner into the intake room, I saw what he meant. The two women stood back to back, balanced on the balls of their feet, ready to move in an instant.

They were still chained together, but the rest of the chain, the part that had attached them to the other prisoners, had been sheared off. I squinted to see it a little more clearly and realized the links at the ends had been melted apart.

That impression was borne out by scorch marks on the floor around them.

My gaze flew up to their hands. Empty. Those burn marks were magical.

That shouldn’t have been possible. The manacles around their wrists and ankles were spelled. They were supposed to depress any magical ability until the prison doctor could surgically implant the inmates’ suppressors.

The shifter shouldn’t even be able to take her animal form, even though that was low enough on the magical scale that the suppressors didn’t normally interfere with the shifting ability.

Not to mention, if the other woman was a true fae, neither of the women should have had any kind of true offensive magical ability. Certainly not the kind that would allow either of them to throw fireballs.

The women skittered away from us, dancing lightly on the soles of their feet.

Chapter Seven

MARA

The shifter held his hands up and away from his body. “I’m the alpha of the shifter pack here on the island.” He nodded toward the fae man. “He’s the alpha of the fae clan. Officer Trumbull asked us to come in here and talk to you. What’s going on?”

I snarled at him, feeling our magic changing my mouth, bringing my fangs out.

I want him, my wolf clamored inside me. I ignored her.

“We won’t be separated,” I snarled, the words half-mangled by the partial shift of my mouth.

The shifter alpha flashed a glance at Trumbull. “Is there a problem with her chains?”

Trumbull shook his head. “They register fine on all our equipment.”

The other guards began rounding up the remaining prisoners and drawing them out of the room. I watched them carefully until one of the guards stepped too close to us. Evangeline flashed a firebolt his direction, careful to aim so it hit the floor rather than the guard himself. He jumped back and the alpha shifter narrowed his eyes at us.

He’s smart. That could be a problem for us.

“Fae and shifters don’t stay in the same island sector,” he said. His voice was gentle, but the words pissed me off, and I snarled. A flare of magic swirled up in Evangeline’s hand.

“What are your names?” the fae alpha asked.

Nice try, asshole. He wasn’t going to sweet-talk us into anything.

“Evangeline Gray and Mara Blackwood,” Trumbull said, gesturing at us.

I had to get them to understand. ”You can’t keep us apart. It was part of our plea-bargain that we wouldn’t be separated.”

Trumbull took a step toward an office nearby.

“Don’t do it,” Evangeline commanded, sending a bolt of magic toward him.

Trumbull shook his head, but he stopped.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the alpha shifter’s gaze flicker down to Trumbull’s hands and I whipped around to stare at the alpha.

Oh, hell. The guard is doing something we won’t like.

I gave Evangeline’s hand a squeeze, hoping she’d understand I meant it was time to move.

And she did.

With a puff of pinkish-purple sparkles, Evangeline used her magic to boost herself up the nearest wall, executing our move as smoothly as we’d practiced it. I used her magic to boost my own and shifted, pulling my front paws out of the shackles that had held me and dropping to all fours.

Trumbull fumbled for his weapon, but before he could get it drawn, Evangeline pulled her knees to her chest, floating in the air by the ceiling. When she punched out with her legs, I braced against the force I knew was coming.

Trumbull and the alphas all flew back, crashing into the wall behind them with a resounding crack.

I ignored them, leaping over the rubble and out of the building. Evangeline floated out behind me, wrapped her arms around my neck, and dug her fingers into my ruff, just as we’d practiced.

With a swirl of bright magic, we rushed away, our flight aided by the magic we combined.

I didn’t know where we were headed next or how we would get away from this godforsaken island. I ignored my wolf inside me, crying to go back to the gorgeous, sexy, scary-as-fuck alpha.

No, I told her. We have to get out of here.

I knew that somehow, we would.

After all, Evangeline and I had always worked well together.

Chapter Eight

GAGE

I stared after the two disappearing women, running the last few minutes through my mind.

“We won’t be separated,” she had snarled, the words half-mangled by the partial shift of her mouth.

My wolf howled his agreement—but I realized that she hadn’t been talking about me at all, but about her blonde fae friend. Shut up, I told my wolf. We can’t do anything with her until we sort out this problem, and that can’t happen if you don’t settle down.

Feeling my wolf grumble, but then grow quiet, I continued reviewing the last few minutes.

If we don’t get this under control, it’s going to go sideways—fast and ugly. It was like Mara read my mind. As soon as the thought flickered through my brain, her head whipped around, and she pinned me with those glowing orange eyes of hers.

Then she and Evangeline moved as if they were one organism—or at least as if they could read each other’s minds, too.

With a puff of pinkish-purple sparkles, Evangeline used her magic to boost herself up the nearest wall, running lightly straight up as if she had forsaken gravity altogether, until she reached the ceiling, holding her hands first out and then down toward Mara, who lifted her own arms to follow Evangeline’s progress.

At the same time, Mara shifted, flowing into her wolf form more easily than any shifter I had ever seen before. By the time Evangeline reached the ceiling, Mara was pulling her front paws out of the shackles that had held her and dropping to all fours.

It took Trumbull that long to figure out what was going on. He fumbled for his weapon, but before he could get it drawn, Evangeline pulled her knees to her chest, floating in the air by the ceiling for a microsecond. When she punched out with her legs, I felt the percussive force of the magic she sent with them. It rocked past me, blowing me backward even as it exploded the wall outward.

Trumbull, Clark, and I all flew back, landing on our asses and fetching up against the back wall with a series of resounding thumps.

I cracked my head against the wall behind me, and stars floated in front of my face—but not enough to obscure the glorious sight of Mara leaping over the rubble and out the hole her partner had created in the wall.

Evangeline floated out behind her and wrapped her arms around her friend's neck, digging her fingers into Mara’s ruff.

With another swirl of bright magic, the two flashed away, faster than Mara could run on her own.

I realized that her movements had sent her scent floating across me and I almost swooned from it. She smelled like sugar and cinnamon and vanilla, like warm cookies baking. It was all I could do to keep from drooling.

Mine, my wolf insisted. I tried to shake off my response, but my inner animal dug in his heels. Mine.

Oh, hell.

This was nothing I had ever experienced before, but I knew what it was.

That was a mate-bond response.

We belong together. The knowledge raced through my entire body. It was all I could do to keep from jumping forward to claim her then and there.

Shit. Mate-bonds weren’t supposed to be possible on the island, either.

I reached up to feel the lump on the back of my head, wincing as my fingers made contact with the egg-sized bump.

Beside me, Trumbull spoke urgently into his walkie-talkie, barking out commands and instructions.

As alpha, I should have been angry that one of my pack members had so blatantly refused to work with me.

But as I pulled myself to my feet, my inner wolf lolled his tongue in lupine laughter.

There was definitely something satisfying about seeing my mate best the system.

Even if she didn’t know yet that she was my mate.

I indicated Trumbull with a nod that I would head back to the yard. He waved us away impatiently.

Strolling back down the long hallway, I made eye contact with Clark.

He didn’t say anything, but the corner of his mouth quirked up in something that was almost a grin.

Oh, yeah. He felt it, too.

Those two women couldn’t get very far. They almost certainly couldn’t escape the island—not even with the magical ability they had shown so far. But even if they could, they’d be picked up eventually and brought back.

No, one way or another, we would be seeing them again.

And I couldn’t wait to see what they did next.

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About Margo Bond Collins

USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and New York Times bestselling author Margo Bond Collins is a former college English professor who, tired of explaining the difference between “hanged” and “hung,” turned to writing romance novels instead. Sometimes her heroines kill monsters, sometimes they kiss them. But they always aim for the heart.

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The Hunters’ Academy, Year 1

The Hunters’ Academy, Year 2

Cat Among the Demons

© 2021 Lillia Hunter

About Cat Among the Demons

When magic is the only thing that can save you, but your magic doesn’t work, naturally, you rely on… the cat?

When Kat Emerson takes in a stray cat in the middle of a snowstorm, she has no idea how much her life is going to change. When someone—or something—tries to break into her house, she discovers that her new feline companion isn’t what he seems.

Now, with demons out to kill her for magic she didn’t even know she had, can she learn to control it before time runs out, and survive long enough to find out if love can be furever?

Chapter One

“Hey, kitty. Come on, come here, sweetie pie. It’s okay,” Kat cooed.

The huge black cat stared at her from a safe distance, peering at her from just under the bumper of her car on the snowed in driveway. Kat stared back, half-convinced she’d just seen a flash of amusement in its clear blue eyes. She shivered and glanced around. She’d heard more strange noises near the house not long ago and she really didn’t want to be outside in the dark, but she couldn’t leave an animal out in this weather. She wrapped her arms around herself as a blast of icy air swirled around her, lifting her long, dark hair and whipping it across her face. Snow drifted from the skies, beginning to come down thickly.

“Come on, kitty. Please. You can’t stay out here on your own in this. And it’s freezing. I really want to go inside. How about you?” She patted her thigh. “Come on, beautiful. Come inside where its warm.”

The cat cocked its head as though it was listening but didn’t move. She took a slow step forward and then another, wondering if she could get close enough to pick the animal up and if it would let her. She’d seen it hanging around the house for a few days now, always nearby but never too close. It didn’t have a collar and, although it looked well fed, she didn’t think it belonged to anyone.

Kat took another cautious step and was almost within reach of the stunning black cat when she heard her neighbour calling, “Tiberius, come back here.” She watched helplessly as the dog approached, growling, It headed straight for her feline visitor, who was unconcernedly washing his front paw while ninety pounds of muscular German shepherd bore down on it.

She ran towards them, “No, Tiberius. Leave him alone.”

But she was too late. The huge dog launched himself into the air.

The cat turned to face him and, from somewhere, Kat heard a full-throated roar that wouldn’t have been out of place in the jungle. Tiberius put the brakes on so hard that he twisted around in midair and landed facing almost back the way he’d come. He ran down the hill, hell for leather, whimpering and heading for the safety of his own yard.

The cat sat back down and casually inspected its other front paw as if nothing had happened at all.

Kat looked around, a prickle of unease running down her spine. She felt utterly ridiculous for checking that no jungle creatures were about to suddenly appear out of nowhere, but here she was. Then she ran towards the cat and risked scooping it up. He - it was definitely a boy cat - snuggled into her shoulder, purring, and nuzzled her face as if he’d been born to be hers. She retreated hurriedly into the house, cat in her arms, and shut the door.

In the hallway, Kat looked down at him. “Are you okay, sweetie? I thought I’d lost you for a minute.” She frowned. “That noise wasn’t— You didn’t— Of course not. I don’t know what that was, but it can’t have been you.” She tickled him under the chin and he purred again, resting his head on her hand. “No, look at your cute little face. You couldn’t have made that noise. What was I thinking?”

Her new cat let out the tiniest of delicate mews as if to say, ‘Who me?’ then jumped out of her arms and followed his nose to the kitchen in search of food.

“Who’s a gorgeous boy?” Kat smiled as her new boy turned himself in circles a few times and then lay down full length along her side. “Well, my not-so-little house panther, what shall I call you?” She stroked his head and he purred. “Midnight? Jet? No, I’ve got it. How about Inky? Well, I am a writer, after all, and you couldn’t be a darker shade of black. Yeah, let’s go with Inky.”

Kat rested her arm on his back and snuggled down into her pillows. She began to relax for the first time in days, even though they’d heard those odd, scary noises outside again, not long after she’d brought him in and closed the door.

Inky had not liked hearing the noises outside any more than she had. He'd leapt off the sofa and paced around the house, hissing and yowling, his fur standing on end. At one point, he'd run upstairs and then she'd heard that odd full-throated roar again and she'd almost leapt off the sofa, too. She'd hurried around the house again, double-checking that the windows and doors were all locked.

Kat couldn't tell where the roaring noise was coming from and she had no desire at all to find out what was causing it, or the other noises. She had no intention of being the dim-witted one in the horror movie who opened the door wide and went out to investigate. Nope, not happening. She was staying right where she was, in front of the fire.

Soon after that, the noises had stopped altogether and Inky came running happily back into the lounge, tail up and curled into a question mark, before jumping onto her lap and going to sleep.

Speaking of sleep, she could feel herself drifting off. Somehow, however unlikely it sounded, she felt safer now that she had her beautiful cat.

Kat had no idea how long she'd been asleep but she was awoken abruptly by something that sounded like cannon fire. A screaming whine sounded outside, as if a World War II bomb was streaking across the sky, then the whole house shook as whatever-it-was landed somewhere outside. She sat up in bed, just about catching sight of a blur as Inky tore out of the bedroom and headed downstairs.

Oh god. He must be terrified. She was terrified, so he really must be. She picked up the hockey stick that she'd taken to leaving by her bed and cautiously crept to the top of the stairs, peering down into the hall. Something shook the front door so hard that she could actually see it move, and the handle started to twist even though it was locked, as if a great force was being applied to it.

She heard the rattle of claws on the tiled kitchen floor. They were coming nearer, far bigger and heavier than any noise Inky could possibly have made. Though what else it could be, she didn't even want to think about. Then as the front door started to open, and a gnarled, misshapen hand reached inside, a blood curdling roar rang out and a huge black shadow sped into the hall from the kitchen, knocking over the coat stand as it went.

That was quite enough. She'd seen enough and she didn't want to see any more. Kat dropped her hockey stick and ran as fast as her legs could carry her back into her bedroom. She shut the door as quietly as she could and pushed a chest of drawers in front of it, then she huddled into the far corner, making herself as small as possible.

More snarling roars sounded, and she could hear breaking glass and what sounded like a small army knocking furniture over.

She couldn't think, couldn't breathe. Wrapping her arms around herself for comfort, she covered her ears as inhuman screams came from below. For a long time, she couldn't move, tears streaming down her cheeks and sobs wracking her body as what sounded like a battle royal raged downstairs.

Finally, the front door opened and slammed shut and she heard footsteps running away outside.

Silence.

Chapter Two

Nothing on Earth could have made her open that bedroom door and go downstairs. Nothing except her worry for her new cat.

Kat pushed the chest of drawers away from the door and opened it a tiny bit. She peeked out into the corridor, looking first left and then right, but there was nothing; no-one to be found and absolute silence where uproar had been before. She dared to open the door a little more and poked her head out. So far, so good. Cautiously, she stepped out into the corridor and bent to pick up the hockey stick that she'd dropped in her flight from whatever the hell had been going on downstairs.

Holding the stick high in both hands, she crept slowly downstairs, step by step, pausing and holding her breath every time the floorboards creaked, in case someone was still in the house.

After a tense few moments, Kat reached the hallway that led to the front door. The door was clearly the worse for wear, with a splintered, almost scorched looking frame and the handle hanging on by a thread, much like her nerve. But she was relieved to see that there was no-one there and she couldn't hear anyone else in the house.

“Inky,” she whispered. “Come on, sweetheart.” She paused, waiting to see if he would come to her, but he didn’t appear. “Inky,” she tried, a little louder. “They’ve gone. You can come out now.”

Nothing. Her stomach dropped as she realised that he could have run outside when the door was open and gotten lost in the heavy snow. Oh God. What if she never saw him again?

A quiet huffing sound that might have been her cat came from the lounge and she slowly pushed open the door, hockey stick raised just in case, only to come face to face with a full-grown black jaguar, panting heavily.

Kat would have screamed but she didn't seem to be capable of even breathing, never mind moving any part of her body. The jaguar padded towards her and she closed her eyes. Surely this was the end.

She jumped and opened her eyes as she felt the warmth of soft fur against her hand, and then froze again as she realised the jaguar was standing right in front of her, pushing his head into her hand, just like any domestic cat wanting to be petted. She swallowed, not knowing what to do, but knowing she had no hope of escape if the creature attacked.

The jaguar rubbed its head against her thigh and licked her hand gently, the rough, sandpaper-like feel of his tongue instantly recognisable to anyone who'd ever had a cat.

Was it having a taste first before it decided to eat her? She didn't want to find out. Somehow, Kat managed to make her legs work and she slowly took one step back away from the beast, but it followed her and pushed its head against her hand again.

"Meow," it said, in a distinctly human, male voice.

Kat did a double take, “Did you just say…meow? What the—? No,” She shook her head. “Definitely not. I’m obviously imagining things. Oh, I’m still asleep, aren’t I? This is a dream. Of course, it is.”

She looked suspiciously at the jaguar and it looked back, eyes bright, with just the same expression as a mischievous human. It blinked slowly at her, just once, and flicked the tip of its tail, then it sat down neatly, purring.

Kat looked into its clear blue eyes. There was something familiar about them. She’d seen them before. It couldn’t be. Could it? “Inky? Is that you?” Well, why not? This was one hell of a dream. Why not have a cat that changed into a jaguar? Perhaps she could put wings on it next.

The big cat dipped its head, as if nodding, and slow blinked at her again. It moved back a little way from her and shook itself, its body beginning to shimmer and blur in front of her eyes.

She took a step back, trying to get away from whatever was happening now, but she hit the wall. There was nowhere else to go. Her legs gave way and she sank down onto the floor.

A roar tore from the jaguar's throat as it began to change and shift right in front of her eyes. Muscles shifted and bone reformed, fur receded and blood pumped through newly shaped arms and legs until, instead of either cat or jaguar, a grown man stood, fully clothed in front of her.

He stretched his neck from side to side and pushed his shoulder blades back. "Ah, that's better. It's been a while."

Kat looked up at him, awestruck. He was tall, at least six feet, with muscles that looked almost as powerful as the jaguar's, jet black, shoulder length hair and those same beautiful, clear blue eyes she'd seen in both her cat and the jaguar. And his face...Kat sighed. If Jason Momoa and Joe Manganiello had had a baby, this was that baby.

She sighed again. "Okay. Best. Dream. Ever."

The man's lips twitched in amusement, "Well, thank you." He reached out a hand. "Here, let me help you up."

His voice was warm and deep, with a hint of a growl, and Kat's legs wobbled anew for quite a different reason as he helped her to her feet. She couldn't look away. Apparently, neither could he.

They stared at each other for a long moment before Kat realised she was still holding his hand. She hurriedly let go. "Sorry. I—" She blushed and looked at the floor, then around the room, realising for the first time how little furniture she had left. The television was on the floor, on its side, the screen in far too many pieces to count, and the sofa looked as if something had shredded it with its claws. She looked at the man/jaguar in front of her. Come to think of it, something probably had. "Oh God." She shook her head in denial. "No, this is a dream," she said, stubbornly. "It's just a dream, and everything will be back to normal in the morning."

The man grimaced. "I'm sorry. It's not a dream. I wish it was. I wish you didn't have to face what's coming." He gestured around the lounge at all the damaged furniture. "I'm sorry about all this, too. But at least you can replace the furniture. Better a few smashed chairs than ending up dead."

"Dead? What? You—Just who the hell are you and, if you're not a dream, what the hell are you doing in my house?" Icy fear shot down Kat’s spine and she shivered. This couldn't be real. It couldn't.

The man raised an eyebrow, “I was a little busy for introductions, if you remember. My name’s Ethan. Ethan Alexander. You’re Kat Emerson, aren’t you?”

“Yes. How did you know?”

“I live just over the other side of the village from you and, I know it sounds like a bad movie, but I’m here to protect you.”

Kat’s eyes widened, “From who?” she whispered.

“Not who, what. I know this won’t be easy to hear, but they’re demons.”

“Demons? Demons are real?” That was hard enough to grasp, but the rest was even worse. “But…why are they coming after me?”

“Honestly, I’m not sure. All I know is that there have been quite a few deaths in this area and elsewhere. Good people who shouldn’t have died. I’ve been keeping an eye out for trouble and looking out for the supernatural and magical people in our area. I was out jogging a few nights ago and I saw one of the demons outside your home. I knew you were in trouble and I’ve watched out for you since then. So here I am.”

Kat was struggling to keep up. “Wait, go back. You mean—? But I’m not—I don’t have any magic.”

She swallowed as Ethan all but prowled up to her. He came up close and sniffed her neck, and she was sure her heart was going to beat out of her chest.

He stepped back, “Yes, you do. I can smell it. And they can too, or they wouldn’t be out there.”

“This is all too much. I need to sit down. And I need a drink.” Kat headed for the kitchen, then stopped. “Oh, wait. Do I have any chairs left?”

Ethan smiled. “I’m sure there are a couple around the dining table. And I could go for a drink, too.”

“I still have a dining table? Oh, lucky me.”

“Well, mostly.”

Kat righted a chair and dragged it to what was left of the dining table. “Here, sit down. I’ll get us something to drink. I hope vodka is okay. That’s all I’ve got.”

Ethan picked up a chair for Kat and then sat down, “Vodka is fine.”

Kat pushed a glass across the table to him and sat opposite him. She took a drink and hoped that the shaking would stop soon. She’d never been so scared. “So now what? What do I do?”

“We. You’re not alone, Kat. We’ll get through this.” Ethan reached across the table and touched her hand. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“Can we really fight them off? I mean, is it true that demons are immortal?”

“Well, mostly. But, hey, even demons can’t concentrate on mayhem and destruction when they’re worried that vital parts might get bitten off.”

“I’m not doubting you, not after what you’ve already done for me, but is there anyone else we can call for help?”

“There is no-one else. Not near enough to get here in time, anyway. I can keep them at bay for so long but I can’t defeat them by myself. I could use your help. So, what’s it to be? You can either run or fight. And I know which I’d rather do.” He growled softly.

Kat shook her head and wrapped her arms around herself. “Run. I want to run. I’m absolutely terrified and I can’t fight. I’ve never even taken so much as a self-defense class. And, as for magic, I doubt I could summon enough to blow out a candle, never mind take out a bunch of demons.” Actual demons. She still couldn’t believe she was having this conversation.

“Okay. I can understand that. Well, we’ll get a good night’s sleep and then pack in the morning.”

“What if they come back while we’re asleep?”

“They won’t be back tonight, I promise you. They were scared and a couple of them didn’t come off well after my jaguar got hold of them. They were expecting a woman on her own, with maybe some magic to deal with. They’re used to that. But they weren’t expecting me.” He smiled. “My jaguar enjoyed the fight. You’ll be safe tonight. You sleep, I’ll keep watch.”

“If I leave here, where would I go?”

“Anywhere far enough away from here. Leave for long enough and they’ll lose the scent. Not to mention, demons aren’t known for their long-lasting patience. They’ll get bored with no-one to attack and go looking for another target.”

Kat finished the last of her drink. “Oh, I have so many questions, I don’t know where to start with all this.”

Ethan squeezed her hand reassuringly. “I’m sure you do. I doubt I can answer them all, but fire away.”

“I’m not sure if I really want to know, but what do demons look like?”

“Just like you and me. The only way you’d know they aren’t human is their eyes. They can’t hide the hellfire inside.”

“Okay, that’s not scary, at all! So, you said they’ve been hanging around for a few days. Why didn’t they attack me before if they were already here?”

“Well, I’m not an expert on demon behaviour, but I’d guess they were testing to see if there were any protection spells on your house and seeing if, and how, you’d respond to them poking around. Not even a demon wants to walk straight into a fire fight with someone who has magic.”

“That makes sense. And speaking of which, how did I not know I had magic?”

“I don’t know. I guess it takes longer to come out in some people. Does anyone in your family have it? I’m guessing not?”

“No. I thought all this was just myths and fairy tales until tonight.” She smiled, wryly. “I’m still half convinced I’m dreaming, to be honest.”

Kat poured them another drink and leaned back in her chair, the initial shock beginning to wear off. “So, tell me about you. I hope it’s not rude to ask, but what are you?”

Ethan laughed. “Direct. To the point. I like it. I wouldn’t go asking everyone in polite company, though. Some people are sensitive about it, but I’m fine with you asking. I’m a jaguar shifter. I can change forms at will.”

“Are there others like you?”

“Yes and no. Shifters are pretty common but I’m what’s called a dual shifter, and I have the ability to change twice. I’m made to do that. It can be pretty handy, too. That’s really rare, though. To the point where I’ve never met another one.”

“Can you change into more than the cat and the jaguar?”

“No, just the two. From what I know about it, the two animals have to be similar enough for it to work, so you might get a wolf shifter who can also turn into a dog, but you’d never get a lion shifter who could shift into a chicken or anything.”

“Wait a minute, if you could change back into you, why didn’t you do that when I walked in and saw you as a jaguar?”

“It takes energy to shift and, after a battle like that, I needed a minute to get my energy levels back up. And I didn’t want to scare you with shifting either, so I stayed as I was at first.”

“You thought an enormous black jaguar with the biggest teeth I’ve ever seen would be less scary than being you?

Ethan grinned at her. “Well, I didn’t think a strange man in your house in the middle of the night would go down well, either. Anyway, my turn for the questions. So, Inky? You thought you’d call me Inky? Still think I’m a sweetie pie?” he asked, trying to lighten the mood.

Kat glared at him, “Well, how was I supposed to know you were really the great big, hulking rugby player type underneath all that fur?”

Well, that had certainly taken her mind off her troubles. Now all she could think about were his muscular arms and abs you could bounce a coin off. Focus, Kat!

“Hey, I just thought of something. When you were the cat, you saw me get ready for bed.”

“I didn’t peek.”

“Really?” She stared at him, disbelieving.

“Okay, I may have peeked a bit.”

Chapter Three

The following morning, fresh drifts of snow piled up against the house and Kat and Ethan realised they were going nowhere. The few restless hours of sleep they’d had brought no more answers for what they were going to do or for how Kat was going to discover her magic.

After breakfast, Ethan had her seated in the centre of the lounge, cross-legged.

“I don’t know what I’m doing,” he said, “but I think being relaxed can only help you. Close your eyes, slow deep breaths, right from your diaphragm. Try and let your mind go blank and relax.”

Kat did as he asked, settling herself down onto her cushion and letting her shoulders drop. She closed her eyes, doing everything she could to let the events of the previous evening go and empty her mind.

She wriggled her shoulders and circled her neck, trying to get the tension out.

“Okay,” Ethan said. “Now, concentrate on your breathing, in and out, nice and slow. You can do this.”

Several minutes of long, slow breaths later and Kat was no nearer to either relaxing or producing any magic at all. She blew out a long breath and tried again. The problem was she had no idea what she was looking for, how it was supposed to feel or what do to with it if anything happened, any more than Ethan had.

If only she had a family member or a friend with magic to describe it for her, maybe she’d have more success. She screwed her eyes tightly closed. Come on, concentrate.

After a few minutes, she frowned, “Stop staring at me. You’re not helping,” she said.

“You could feel me staring at you? Maybe it’s working.” Ethan began to pace the room, excitedly.

“Nope, not a flicker. I could just tell you were there. I could hear you breathing.”

“Anything at all, yet.”

Kat opened her eyes, “I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m doing either,” she wailed. “What if I can’t make it work?”

Ethan took hold of her hands. “You will. The magic is inside you.” He placed a hand over her heart. “It’s right here, and we just have to find some way for you to tap into it. That’s all.”

Several days passed as Kat practiced over and over again to the point of exhaustion, trying everything she could to bring out her magic, but nothing worked.

She’d tried yoga, meditation, online reiki, and tai chi to relax, tarot cards, spells off the internet, Wiccan groups, episodes of Charmed, and an extremely strange call to a medium hotline, which cost her a fortune, and where the woman wanted to know all about her before she told her anything, which was really not the way Kat had hoped it would go. She really had tried everything she could think of. And she wasn’t sure where to go next.

Ethan continued to protect her, somehow managing to fight off attacks from the demons, though she had no idea how he did it.

And as they got to know each other, the more she realised she couldn’t fight the attraction she felt for him, and nor did she want to. The more she learned about him, about how funny, warm, and caring he was, about how much he protected the people he cared for, and even people he didn’t know at all, the more she fell for him.

But each time, he came back just a little more damaged, a little more the worse for wear. But he always made it. He always came back.

She just didn’t know how long he could carry on for, if she couldn’t make this work.

Chapter Four

Another day, another attack, and still not a flicker of magic from Kat. Ethan knew it was there and, although he hadn’t known her for long, he had no doubt that she would succeed eventually. He just hoped it would be in time. But for now, it was time to concentrate on the kill. Or at least the bite hard and scare off, in the case of the demons.

Protect our mate, grumbled his jaguar, wanting action. That was the other thing. His mate. He’d known that she was his mate from the moment he saw her, but this was hardly the time to bring that up and give her even more to think about. She had enough to concentrate on.

His jaguar, though, as usual, had other thoughts. Our mate. Want her. But bite first.

He hushed his jaguar and went back to the task at hand, though he was surprised that the demons hadn’t done more to try and deal with him. It was almost as if they were waiting for something.

Lowering his head, he stalked his prey through the undergrowth at the bottom of Kat’s garden; his smooth, graceful movements hardly stirring even a single blade of grass. He opened his mouth and scented his prey. There he was, just ahead of him. This would be easy.

His body shimmered as he turned back into his ordinary, domestic black cat. He peered out through the grass, checking the demon was still there and then sauntered boldly into view, keeping his distance just a little. While he knew the demon would see him as no threat, he also knew they weren't renowned for their kindness to animals.

"Meww," he said, acting the part of little lost kitty.

The demon turned its head and sneered at him. "Beat it, cat. Before I make a meal out of you. Well, more like a small snack." The demon chortled at his own wit and Ethan sighed. Demons weren't renowned for their standup performances, either.

He took a risk and moved a little closer to the demon, aiming to get into the perfect position for a pounce, then as the demon aimed a kick at him to drive him off, Ethan leapt. He launched straight at the demon's face and part way through his leap, he shimmered into his jaguar.

The demon's face was a sight to behold. He'd started off expecting to grab a domestic shorthaired cat out of midair and kill it, and now there he was on the ground, with Ethan's jaguar on top of him. It was clawing, biting, and taking huge chunks out of his flesh. The demon screamed, thrashing, and writhing to shake Ethan off and get away and, after a very satisfying few minutes, Ethan let him.

The demon limped off, as best it could, and Ethan purred in satisfaction, knowing it would be at least a couple of days before that one would regenerate enough to bother anyone.

Next! More bite, more kill, exulted his jaguar, who wasn’t given to articulate, full sentences when he was excited.

He circled the house, silently, listening out for more demons and scenting for another loner to attack.

At the far side of the house, he found the perfect target, and hunkered down, awaiting his moment. This one even had its back to him. Piece of cake.

He crouched low, butt wiggling in excitement, before trotting out behind the demon and getting ready to pounce.

In focusing so much on what he was doing, and thinking about protecting Kat, he didn't notice the three demons hiding upwind of him until it was too late. Before he could shift again, one member of the group grabbed him from behind, by the scruff of the neck. He immediately shifted to his jaguar, but it was too late. More demons piled in to hold him down.

Kat heard the banging on the back door, and then an oily, sickening, singsong voice, that would give her nightmares years later, called to her, "Lady. Oh, layyydeeee. We've got your cat, Kat. Just think of all the things we're going to do to him. We're going to enjoy that. And then we're going to come for you. Or you could save us the trouble. Come out now, give yourself up, and maybe save your friend."

The dish she'd been holding fell from her fingers and she sank down onto the nearest chair, trembling, and trying not to imagine what Ethan might be going through. She leaned forward, head between her knees, feeling faint and dizzy, and utterly panic stricken. If she'd been trying to delude herself even for a moment that he didn't mean anything to her, all that was gone now. She loved him, even after such a short amount of time, and the thought of being without him now was unbearable.

She made her decision and stood on shaky legs. Going to the door, she opened it slightly and shouted through the gap, "I'm coming out. Don't hurt him."

An anguished roar sounded from outside, "No. Kat, don't do it. Stay insi—" Ethan’s voice was cut off, abruptly.

"Come on, Katy Kat. Come and get your cat. He won't be looking so good soon. Though I'm sure he'll still be tasty." The sickening voice turned her stomach and her gorge rose, but she somehow managed to hold herself together.

Kat opened the door and stepped out to meet her fate.

Chapter Five

On the ground, face down against the earth, Ethan tensed again as he heard Kat’s voice.

“I’m here,” she called, her voice quavering slightly. “Let him go.”

"Walk towards me, lady. We're not letting him go until you come to us."

Ethan fought the urge to struggle against the arms that held him down, waiting for the right moment until the demons were distracted. He heard Kat step onto the patio outside. As she neared the group, the arms holding him down loosened as all the demons turned their attention to Kat.

Before anyone could move, he shifted back into his domestic cat, easily leaping free from the demons' grasping hands. Turning back towards Kat, he raced towards her, shifting rapidly again, back into his jaguar. He pushed her away from the group of demons and back towards the house. As he neared the door, he shifted to human, picked her up bodily over his shoulder and powered back into the kitchen, adrenaline pumping. He slammed the door behind him and locked it.

He dropped Kat into the nearest chair and slumped down behind it onto the floor, bleeding all over his back from the wounds the demons had inflicted.

Kat recovered her breath and hurried over to him. "Ethan. Ethan, are you okay?" She knelt in front of him and flung her arms around his neck, kissing him all over his face. "I thought I'd lost you. I thought I might never see you again."

Ethan stirred and took her face in both hands, "My lovely Kat, I'm here. I'm okay."

Kat touched his cheek, gently. “I think,” she swallowed hard, “I think you should leave. It’s me they want, and you shouldn’t have to keep taking this.”

Nooooo, his jaguar roared. Ours. Claim her. We stay.

Ethan shook his head, “I’m not leaving you, Kat. I love you. I’ve known for a while, shifters always know. You’re my mate. Shifters only have one mate in their whole life, and you’re mine.”

Kat beamed at him, her heart leaping as she realised he’d put into words what she’d known and felt too, “I love you, too.”

He pressed his lips to hers, hearing his jaguar roar in his mind, Yessss, ours. Our mate.

Much later, Kat wrapped herself in her dressing gown. "We need to get your back seen to. We should have done that before, but you seem to have distracted me."

Ethan grinned. "Did I? Can I do it again?"

"Later. Come on. Up! Let me look at your back."

In the bathroom, Kat washed his skin, gently, and applied an antiseptic. "You know, some of these are quite deep. You should really get these looked at by someone who knows what they're doing. Oh, wait. Do you visit the vet or the doctor?"

Ethan half-growled, playfully. "Funny lady. What a question."

Kat cocked her head, smiling. "Personally, I think it's a fair question."

"We have our own healers who know what we are, if we need them, but shifters heal really quickly. These will be gone by tonight, don’t worry. Now, I’m going to have a nap, if you don’t mind. It helps with the healing."

“Of course.” Dropping a kiss on his cheek, she headed downstairs.

In the kitchen, Kat began putting together something simple for lunch. She wasn’t a great cook anyway, and there was no way she was focusing all her energy on food right now, but they had to eat to keep up their strength.

She took out a pan from the cupboard next to the oven and was about to put it on the stove, when a noise behind her made her turn around. Her heart nearly stopped in her chest as she stared a demon right in the face, from only a few feet away. Without thinking, she threw the pan at him with all her strength, but it just bounced harmlessly off his shoulder.

Kat watched helplessly as he muttered under his breath, forming his hands into a circle and folding them over and over until he produced a fiery, shimmering ball of energy.

“Die, witch,” he growled, as he flung the ball straight at her.

Kat flung her arms up protectively in front of her face and closed her eyes, although she knew it was no use. Ethan would never get to her in time and she wouldn’t call him anyway. He might get himself killed trying to save her.

A sizzling, crackling noise filled the air, power surged through her chest, and heat briefly washed over her arms, then she heard the demon cry out and opened her eyes to see that there was nothing left but a small pile of ash on the floor.

She looked at her hands in astonishment. Finally! Finally, she’d done it. She didn’t know what she’d done, but she’d done something.

Kat whooped, exhilarated, and Ethan came running down the stairs to see what had happened.

She flung her arms around his neck and kissed him thoroughly. “I did it, I did it.”

“What did you do? What happened?”

Kat described the attack and her reaction and Ethan picked her up and swung her around the kitchen. “You brilliant, brilliant woman. Well done! We’ve got this. We really have.”

Outside, the sun disappeared as the sky darkened, and an eerie wind swirled around the garden, cold fingers reaching out to the house, seeking entry.

Chapter Six

“Can you feel that?” Kat stood and paced around the kitchen, turning this way and that, as if to try and pinpoint the source of her unease. “Something’s not right. Something’s different.”

Ethan’s jaguar sniffed the air, hackles raised. “I can’t feel it in the way that you can,” Ethan said, “but my jaguar knows something’s wrong.”

Someone hesitantly knocked on the door, and Kat and Ethan looked at each other.

"That doesn't sound like a demon," Ethan said. "Expecting anyone?"

Kat shook her head. "In this weather and with all that's going on? Hardly."

Stepping out into the hall, she looked through the window, wiping away the condensation and peering through the heavily falling snow to see who was there, but it was only a stooped old man in a huge overcoat and scarf, shoulders hunched with age and his arms hugging his body against the cold.

She didn't recognise him, but maybe he was someone from the village. She was quite new to town and didn't know everyone yet. White, whispy hair covered the man's head, untidy, thick brows looked as if they might crawl across his face independently, and his eyelids were so drooped and hooded that she couldn't see what his eyes looked like from this distance.

She beckoned to Ethan. "Look, do you know him?"

Ethan glanced out of the window and shook his head. "I don't like this, Kat. Don't go out there. It could be a trap."

The doorbell rang, startling them both, and Kat jumped back from the window as the man spotted her. "He's seen me now. I can hardly be rude and not answer. And what if he's hurt or he needs something?"

"Okay, but for all the good it will do, keep the chain on, just in case." Ethan followed her close behind and shimmered into his jaguar.

Kat cautiously opened the door and peered out, finding it hard to keep her eyes open in the icy wind and driving snow. "Can I help you?"

The old man took a step forward and Ethan snarled from behind the door.

"Sorry, my, uh, dog is really protective. He's not keen on visitors," Kat waved her hand behind her to shush Ethan. "It’s not the weather for being outside if you don’t have to. Is everything okay?" she asked.

The man stared at her for what seemed like far too long, as if he was taking in everything about her and assessing her. Finally, he spoke. "You. It's you. I've come a long way to see you."

Kat didn't know what to make of that, but after the last few days, that was probably the least outlandish thing she'd had to deal with. "Do you know me? I'm sorry, but I don't recognise you."

"I know your kind."

Kat raised her eyebrows, "My...kind? What do you mean by that?"

"Irresponsible, uncaring, devil-may-care, do what you want, no matter what the consequences, damned magicals." The old man spat the last word as if it left a bad taste in his mouth and began to rant. Kat took a step back, her hand on Ethan's soft back.

"You," the man continued, wagging his finger in her face, "It's people like you that shouldn't be allowed to live, shouldn't be allowed. When my Thalia, my beautiful Thalia is dead," he shouted, "because of people like you."

Kat didn't know how to react for the best, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry for your loss," she said, gently, "but we've never met before, and I know I've never met your Thalia."

"It's your fault. It's all your fault," the man ranted, "You and your kind. I lost my daughter, my only daughter, to magic and I'm going to end you. Every last one of you. You take a good last look around because today, you're done. My demons couldn't finish you, useless lumps that they are, but I will."

Ethan grabbed Kat and pulled her back inside, slamming the door shut as the old man's eyes turned hellfire red and he raised his hands high, drawing power from the air. Sparks crackled from his fingertips and his posture was suddenly straight and unbowed.

The front door exploded inwards in a shower of sparks and Ethan shimmered back into human form and grabbed Kat's hand.

"Run," he shouted.

They got as far as the kitchen, but the back door blew off its hinges too and more demons than they'd ever seen before poured inside. Ethan pushed Kat behind him and shifted into his jaguar. "Go. Go now," he growled. "And don't look back."

Kat instinctively ran for the stairs, desperate to put distance between herself and the demons, but equally desperate to save Ethan. She lifted her hands on the stairs, waiting for the surge of power that she'd felt before, hoping against hope that her magic would work to save them both, but it didn't come. She had nothing. She could hear Ethan snarling and roaring in the kitchen as he fought to hold off the demons, but there was nothing she could do to help him.

She saw the old man in her shattered doorway, his arms raised, and then the whole world exploded into white hot fire. Unnatural flames streamed from his fingertips, climbing up the sides of the door frame, and raging across the hallway, engulfing everything in their path.

Fire licked on the bottom step and crept steadily up the stairs like a living, sentient thing, aiming for where she stood and driving her higher. Kat screamed and ran, turning to try again at the top of the stairs, lifting her arms to bring out any trace of power that might help her, but still nothing happened. She sobbed as the fire inched closer and her magic seemed more distant than ever.

The old man's voice rang out, calling to the demons. "Keep them apart. I want them to die alone, screaming, just like my Thalia."

As the fire climbed to the stop of the stairs, flames reaching out to her, Kat retreated into her bedroom and slammed the door.

She glanced around her room, looking for anything she could use. There was nothing magical about her house, that she knew of, and nothing that would bring out her powers. And although she had a fire extinguisher in the kitchen, she couldn't get to it. Even if she did, the fire was too big now, and whether these flames would respond to an ordinary extinguisher, she had no idea.

Smoke began to curl under the bedroom door and Kat started to cough. She ran into her bathroom and soaked the towels, stuffing them under the door, for all the good that would do.

The floorboards creaked and moved under her feet, beginning to warp in the heat. Kat moved away from the centre of the room, pressing against the wall in case the floor collapsed, and trying not to panic. She coughed again and went to the window, hoping for a way to escape, so she could run and get help, but when she opened the curtains, there was nothing but solid brick wall where clear glass should have been.

"No, this can't be." She touched the brick to see if it was real, and then pushed against its solid surface, trying to move it, but it wouldn't budge. She grabbed her hockey stick from next to the bed and smashed at the brick with all her strength but she couldn't even make a dent.

Flames began to lick underneath the door, burning up the wet towels and filling the room with choking black smoke and Kat dropped to her knees and crawled across the floor, retreating to the bathroom. She was determined to do everything she could to survive and get the time she needed to make her magic work. She just hoped that Ethan could hang on too. If he was still alive. She pushed that thought away, knowing that if she focused on him, she'd completely lose it and neither of them would have a chance.

Kat sat in the farthest corner of the bathtub from the door and tried to slow her breathing like Ethan had shown her, trying to calm down so that she could remember what had happened when the demon attacked her in the kitchen and she'd felt that incredible surge of power. She focused in on that feeling of power, sinking herself into how it felt in her chest and how it had felt when she'd released it towards the demon. How did she make it happen again? And quickly, before they ran out of time?

Downstairs in the kitchen, Ethan battled, scrapped, tore and clawed, using his powerful bite to rend any demons who came near him. There were too many. He knew it and his jaguar knew it, but he'd never stop fighting as long as he drew breath. The blood roared in his ears as his jaguar roared at his prey and pounced to shred yet another demon.

He tried to keep his attention on the fight, but he couldn't help wondering about Kat. Had she made it out alive or was she trapped somewhere upstairs? If he could only get to her, he might be able to keep her safe. But the demons kept coming.

A flash of light caught his eye near the doorway and he watched as pure white flames flashed across the ceiling. He hissed as the flames spread, consuming everything before them. The curtains went up in a flash and the old wooden dresser in the corner vanished as if it had never been. Fire leapt in through the doorway from the hall, pushing towards him and bringing choking, thick smoke with it.

He turned to find the demons leaving through the back door, and as he watched, red brick began to replace the window glass and fill in the space where the back door should be. As the last few bricks began to close the space, he shifted back into his domestic cat, closed his eyes, and leapt, knowing he had to get out and save himself before he could somehow find a way to help Kat.

Chapter Seven

Kat coughed again as choking dark smoke filled the bathroom. Her lungs were burning and she could barely see, and what she could see wasn't good. Fire was beginning to creep under the bathroom doorway and the door itself was black and smouldering, despite her aiming the shower head at it in an attempt to keep it cool. Water droplets hissed and spat, boiling away as they hit the wood.

Before long, the flames would be in the room with her and there was nowhere else to go from here, no way out. She only hoped the smoke took her before the flames reached her. She didn't want to die that way.

For the last time, she tried to summon every ounce of whatever power she possessed, focusing on trying to build up power in her hands, reaching deep inside herself.

As she watched, the flames begin to burn the inside of the door, melting and cracking the tiles on the floor and reaching out towards her. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see, and pushed herself as far into the corner as she could get.

Outside the house, Ethan raced around the building, as his jaguar, dodging demons that tried to stop him and looking for a way back in. But every door and window, every opening he could find was blocked by the strange red brick.

He knew it was hopeless, most of the house was on fire now and flames were shooting out of the attic window and through the roof. Even if he got inside, he had no hope of making it up the stairs to save Kat, but she was his mate and he had to try.

He scrabbled with his claws trying to dig his way in under the back wall of the house to get into the basement. Flames hadn’t yet reached this far and, until he knew for certain, he had to keep on hoping.

Fresh earth piled up behind him as he dug and he could hear demons behind him, commenting and laughing at his efforts, but he ignored them and dug on until finally he was through.

His powerful legs drove into the ground as he sprang forward and pushed through into the hole he’d made.

Inside, the basement was beginning to fill with smoke and he knew he didn’t have long until the whole house collapsed. Creaks and groans from the basement ceiling left him in no doubt of that, and whisps of smoke began to creep through from above as that ceiling too began to burn.

Coughing, he began to climb the basement stairs anyway, changing back to his human form to manage the door but, even as he reached it, flames flickered up the inside of the door and quickly spread, driving him back down into the small basement.

“Kat,” he shouted. He didn’t know why. She couldn’t possibly hear him over the roar of the flames, but he just had to reach out to her.

Smoke filled his lungs and his vision swam as his consciousness began to fade.

Chapter Eight

In the corner of the bathtub, Kat waited as the flames advanced towards her. Tears streamed down her face and she could barely breathe as her last minutes on Earth ticked away.

As if to mock her, the old man’s face shimmered in front of her, like a hologram, and he lifted his hands, fire somehow streaming from his fingers straight towards her like a blowtorch, even though he couldn’t possibly be in the bathroom with her.

He smiled, “Time to die.”

Kat flung her arms up as the flames came for her. And there it was, finally. A surge of power so strong that if she’d been standing up, she would have been knocked off her feet.

Cooling wind swirled around her, blowing the fire backwards and away from her at such a speed that the flames were almost horizontal. She focused in on the power, feeling it flow through her, feeling it rise up to meet her, there for the taking, and she stood, spreading her arms wide and focusing all her will on what she wanted.

Inside the house, walls and floors knitted together again as if they’d never been burned, smoke cleared as if blasted out of the house by a jet engine, and the red bricks shattered away from the windows and doors into nothing but dust.

Outside, the fire the demons had brought turned back on them and combined with her magic. They vaporised where they stood, their screams dying into nothing.

Kat’s knees wobbled as she finished the spell, pulling the energy she’d released back into her own body, but she was determined to walk out of the house on her own two feet, so that was what she did.

Outside in the icy air, soft snow still fell, but the power behind the blizzard had faded with the demons and the storm would soon be over.

“Ethan,” she called, her voice hoarse from the smoke. She coughed to clear her throat and tried again, “Ethan, where are you?”

For too long, he didn’t answer and her heart sank, but at last his jaguar burst out of the house and raced across the grass to her side. He leapt as if to attack, but instead, powerful, velvet paws curled around her shoulders and he rasped his tongue over her face, rubbing his head against her cheek to mark her with his scent.

He released her for no more than a second and shimmered back into his human form to take her in his arms properly and hold her tight.

Kat didn’t know whether she was laughing or crying, but all she cared about was that they’d survived and they were together.

When she could finally speak, she looked up at Ethan, “Did I get him?”

Ethan laughed, “Did you see that? You were amazing. How could any of them have survived? Of course you got him.”

“Let’s hope so. I really don’t need that to happen again.”

“Oh, I think you can cope.”

Kat smiled, feeling the power of her magic coursing through her, “So do I. Although, I don’t know why my magic didn’t work before desperate measures were called for. It was so obviously there all the time.”

“I know. I was thinking about that and I think you have defensive magic that can reflect back whatever power is thrown at you. That’s what happened with the demon in the kitchen, anyway. But that doesn’t mean that’s all there is. I don’t know a lot about it but, as far as I know, people’s magic develops and grows over time, so give it a month or two and you might be able to do a lot more.”

Kat nodded. That made complete sense and she knew she’d keep learning and finding out what she could do.

There was just one problem. After all that had happened, she realised that there was nothing left to do now, maybe no reason for Ethan to stay. He’d stayed to protect her, but that was over now, and she didn’t know if everything that had happened between them had been just because of the heat of the moment.

She cleared her throat awkwardly, wondering what to say.

“Well,” she said, at the same time as he did.

They both laughed. “No, you go first, he said.

“Ah, well, I was, uh, just going to ask, uh, if you were okay.”

Ethan smiled and cupped her cheek. “No, you weren’t, sweetheart. You were wondering if I was going to stick around now all this over, and the answer is ‘yes’. You’re my mate, Kat, so of course we’re going to see each other again.” He drew her close and kissed her gently on the lips. “In fact, how about we start right now?”

He kissed her again, sliding his hand into her hair and neither of them noticed the rather confused firemen who’d driven hell for leather to reach what looked like a three-truck fire at least, from all the billowing smoke, only for them to arrive and find a perfectly innocent, pristine house, and a couple who obviously wanted to be alone.

Epilogue

One year later

Ethan patted the unicorn shifter’s mane, soothing the remains of its panic as Kat laid waste to the trio of harpies that had been taunting it for months.

The last of the harpies dove to attack her from behind, and Kat didn’t even turn before casually blasting it out of the sky, just like she’d done to the other two.

His jaguar roared in approval and then turned its attention to complaining about the distinct lack of food in its belly for the whole hour they’d been out here. Typical cat.

Kat turned to face him, her eyes bright with excitement and happiness.

Badass. He’d married an absolute badass of a woman. And how far she’d come in such a short time.

She strolled over, taking the time to talk softly to the frightened unicorn shifter, patting its side and stroking its soft nose. “It’s okay, beautiful boy. They’re gone, and they’ll never bother you again. I promise.”

The unicorn whinnied and cantered off, quite happily.

Kat linked her arm in Ethan’s, and they set off, ready for their next big adventure. It was a busy job being a supernatural guardian, but they were more than up to it.

The End

Check out Lillia’s website (https://lilliahunter.com) for news on hellcats, gods and goddesses, and more coming soon! There will also be cake. Just because.

About Lillia Hunter

Lillia Hunter writes paranormal and fantasy romance, with gods, goddesses, hellcats, shifters, and more worlds than you can shake a dangerous artifact at, along with a dash of humour, a sprinkle of magic and, of course, a happy ending.

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Also By Lillia Hunter

Can’t Buy My Love (Fighting for Love, Book 1) https://books2read.com/CBML

Mercury Falling (Fighting for Love, Book 2) https://books2read.com/mercury-falling

For the Love of a Mermaid

© Diana Dawn

Edited by Tonya Bluston

About For the Love of a Mermaid

They say mermaid songs entice sailors, but could it be the other way around?

It was forbidden. Per the laws of her merfolk clan, it was forbidden for a mermaid to bond with a human. But Kaia was already falling in love with a handsome sailor. What started as her admiration for Samuel’s sea shanty songs had become much more. And now her sister’s life was in danger, and it was up to Kaia to save her. But she needed Samuel’s help. And, of course, the more time she spent with him, the more she found herself falling for him. Can Kaia unlock the mystery to save her sister’s life and still have a ‘happy ever after’ with the sailor she loves?

Chapter One

The Crystal Petra

He sang and played the sea shanty on his mandolin while his crewmate joined him in song:

“In Amsterdam, there lived a maid,

Mark well what I do say!

In Amsterdam, there lived a maid,

And she was mistress of her trade.

I'll go no more a-roving with you, fair maid!

A-roving, a-roving,

Since roving's been my ru-i-in,

I'll go no more a-roving,

With you, fair maid!”

Roger took a swig of his ale as he offered, “You sing pretty good … for a pirate.”

“Ex-pirate, mate!” Samuel corrected. “We’re ex-pirates now, remember? Does a soul good, you know? Instead of ravaging the shipwrecks, now we save the survivors.”

Roger added, “But we still ravage the shipwrecks if there ain’t any survivors.”

“Well, yes.” Samuel nodded. “It’d be a waste not to. And it’s called ‘salvaging,’ not ravaging.”

“Ah, is that what it’s called, now?” asked Roger sarcastically. “But you’re right. Ever since the captain found a Bible at that one shipwreck a year ago, everything changed … and for the better, I might add.”

Samuel laughed. “Who’d have thought Captain Van Horne could read?”

“You think he actually read it?”

“Of course! How do you think that change got into him? By rubbing the leather book cover?”

Roger frowned at his mug. “Hmph. Out of ale. Care to go below for a refill and some grub?”

“Nah. I think I’ve had enough. Gonna turn in and maybe pluck out a tune for a little while till I fall asleep.”

“See you tomorrow.” Roger waved.

Samuel went back to his quarters. He was first mate on the ‘Dreadnought’ under Captain Van Horne. The crew indeed used to be pirates until the captain ‘found God’ and had the entire crew change their ways. Samuel himself had never killed anyone, but he couldn’t say that about the rest of the crew. Things were better now. They were no longer wanted men … well, in most areas, anyway.

Samuel sat on his bed and began playing his mandolin, singing quietly. The crew didn’t mind his singing, as he was rather good. He could efficiently put the entire crew to sleep after a hard day’s work.

She heard it again that night as she swam up to the familiar ship … the ship housing that angelic male voice. He was in his room with the little round window hole on the side of the ship. The window was low enough that she could dive down and then hurl herself back up quickly and jump up to it. Right below it was a dingy boat that she could prop herself onto. Then she sat and listened to him. She always stayed out of his view, so he never noticed her. But this was becoming harder to do. She loved his face and his hair. It was light brown and fairly long, falling carelessly around his cheeks and brushing his shoulders. His eyes were a deep blue, like the ocean. He had a small scar under one eye, but this didn’t take away from the handsomeness of his face. She wondered what had caused that scar. To her, what had started as admiration for his music was becoming something more. She could never tell her clan. Not only would they make fun of her for developing feelings for a human, but they would also forbid her from returning to the surface. This was the only thing that gave her joy … her visits to the surface. In particular, Marinus would protest. She could hardly get a moment’s peace from that merman. He was convinced that she would be his mate. Arrogant jerks, the lot of them. When would those mermen get a clue that mermaids were more than property or trophies? But why would they? Most of the mermaids in her clan were swooning fools! Why would the mermen ever learn any differently when the mermaids catered to their every whim? Well, not her. That was not to be her fate. If she never found a mate, then so be it. Of course, how could she judge when she was practically swooning now over a human, of all things?

‘Oh no!’ she thought. ‘He sees me!’ And she quickly jumped into the water and dove down deep.

“No way! That couldn’t have been a…” He could have sworn he’d seen a woman, a beautiful woman, peering into his window. But how would a woman, out of nowhere, be able to sit outside the window of a ship? Unless! Samuel rushed to the little window and peered out. Nothing. Nothing but the whitecaps on the ocean. “Right,” he said to himself. “Just like I thought. Too much ale.”

The next day, they were out searching for shipwrecks again. They’d heard a rumor in town of a ship that had sunk a few miles up the coast after coming too close to shore and colliding with some sharp rocks.

“Got one!” Samuel yelled to his crewmates as he spotted a woman who appeared to be in peril clinging to a rock. “Miss, we’re here to help you. Just hold on,” he said as he jumped into the water.

Suddenly, he felt someone grab his leg and pull him under. He opened his eyes under the salty ocean water and thought he saw another woman, but the stinging salt made it hard to see. The hold on his leg was released, and he came back to the surface, gasping for breath. When he did, he heard laughter, women’s laughter.

“Oh, look at the poor human! ‘Save me, save me!’” Once again, they all laughed in unison.

They were mermaids. And they were having the time of their lives mocking Samuel. He had simply wanted to save the woman in distress, who was now also laughing at him. They were not concerned about why the humans were there, just that they were there and it was playtime!

Again, one of the mermaids grabbed Samuel’s leg and pulled him under, diving deep. His crewmates called out to him as they saw the mermaids flip up their tails, then dive into the sea with the first mate as their prisoner. The captain prepared to jump in after him, but the crew stopped him. They knew their fate would not be a good one, for either their captain or the first mate.

“I will not leave my first mate to die!” Captain Van Horne said as he tried to pull free.

“Sir, if you jump in, surely you will die yourself, and we will be without a captain. Samuel may be alright. The mermaids do not always kill their prey. It’s a game to them. Sometimes they toy with them and then let them go. But if you jump in with your sword, they will considerer you a threat and kill both of you.”

The captain looked back at the water. “Lord God, please save my first mate, Samuel!”

Kaia was livid. They were torturing the man she loved. Loved? Had she just thought that? With no time to ponder, she dove after him and grabbed his arm. The mermaid with a hold on him looked at Kaia in surprise as Kaia smacked her with her large tail. The mermaid released her hold on the man, and Kaia quickly swam away with him.

She knew she had to had to act quickly. Kaia rushed to the surface so that he could take a breath. He appeared to be only half-conscious, if that. She knew those catty sea cows would be after her. She had to get him to safety. She had to get him to her secret place.

Kaia entered a cave in the underwater part of a cliff that had a large air pocket. Multiple pools led down into the ocean, and she could use them to enter the cave. A special one was at the base of a fresh waterfall. She set the man near the freshwater pool. Kaia didn’t even know his name, but at least he was safe and breathing. She held him in her lap, caressing his face.

He opened his eyes. The first thing he saw wasn’t the strange cave, but the beautiful woman who held him. One of two things must have happened. Either he was dreaming, or he’d died and gone to heaven and this was the angel who was welcoming him to his eternal home. He gave a silent “thanks” to Captain Van Horne for converting his entire crew for God, as he’d been sent to heaven and not that “other place.”

Then he noted she wasn’t wearing clothing. What? He’d expected angels to wear white robes or something. Her long hair covered most of her. But when he turned his head slightly, he noticed her legs were not legs … they were a fishtail? At that moment, everything went black.

She managed to get him to town, whilst snagging some clothing that had been drying on a clothesline. She left the household a gold piece … more than enough to pay for the items. After all, she had plenty of gold pieces. Seemed that every time she found a sunken ship, there was a chest full of the stuff. Gently, she left him outside the tavern with some gold in his pocket. She figured that he, and other folks, would assume he’d had a little too much to drink and just passed out cold.

But now she had another mission. She was tired of her mermaid clan having their morbid way with humans … torturing them by half-drowning them and other unspeakable things. It had to stop. Humans were not all that different from merfolk, and her clan was treating them like animals, toys even. She was going to put an end to it. She wasn’t looking forward to running into Marinus, as he would never take “no” for an answer, but this was more important than avoiding him.

However, upon her arrival in her clan’s underwater city, all was in chaos. What had happened?

Dazed, she held the box in her lap. She was still trying to take it all in. Her sister Coral had found a box that had been lost from a ship during a storm. It was locked, but Coral had managed to pry it open with a rusted sword. In it was a beautiful and rare purple crystal formation. It was a rock found only in the deepest oceans, ones that Kaia had heard about only in legend … a “petra.” Coral had picked up the rock and then screamed as her hands began to burn, and she fainted. Blisters were visible on her hands and she was unresponsive. It was almost like the rock was poison, but Kaia had never heard that these rare rocks were dangerous. Since Kaia was the most familiar with the surface, it was voted that she would find out where this rock came from and seek the cure for her sister. The box displayed the word “Seagate.” This was her only clue. But what was “Seagate”? A person? A ship? A town? Kaia didn’t know. But it was her duty to uncover the mystery. Her sister’s life depended on it.

Chapter Two

The Cavern Of Pools

When he woke up, he didn’t know what to think. Before, he’d thought he might have gone to heaven, but now he was on the hard, wooden porch of the town tavern. It was one that he and his crewmates knew well. His last vision had been an angel, right? No, wait … an angel with a fishtail? That was crazy. And what about those horrible women who had been laughing at him and trying to drown him? Maybe they were female pirates and Samuel and his crew had been invading their “turf.” Female pirates? Wow, there was a strange thought. He shook it off and went into the tavern. At that point, he really needed a drink.

Kaia knew taverns had the best gossip, which made them her best bet for finding out about this “Seagate.” So she headed back to the tavern where she had left her human friend. “Friend” ... she laughed to herself. She wished she knew his name. But as she approached the tavern, she saw he wasn’t where she’d left him. Slightly disappointed, she went in with her mission as her motivation.

She approached the bartender and said, “Excuse me?”

Noticing the pretty girl, the bartender softened his normally gruff manner. “Yes, ma’am. What can I get you?”

“I was wondering if you had heard of a name called ‘Seagate.’ Like the name of a person, or a ship, or maybe a town?”

“No. Can’t say that I have.”

“Seagate? Well, I’ve heard of a ship called Seagate,” came the voice of a customer down the length of the bar. He gave her a shady smile, “But I can’t quite remember where I heard it.”

“Would this help you remember?” She produced a gold coin and handed it to him.

“Oh, yes!” he said, as he pocketed the coin. “Now I remember! It’s the name of a ship that I see come into town every now and then for supplies and what have you. Not quite sure when last I saw it or who the captain is.” Once again, he offered her a shady grin.

Kaia had plenty of coins, so she didn’t care. She produced another one. “How about now? Remember any more?”

“You know, it’s coming back to me. I saw it make port in town about a week ago. Captain’s name is Smith, no, Smithy? Wait, maybe it’s Smithton?”

She set another gold coin on the bar.

“Bailey! That’s it! Captain Bailey!”

“What’s their haul, their purpose?”

“Um…”

Again, she slammed another coin on the bar.

“Trading grains, I believe. I see the crew carry crates to the bakeshop across town quite a bit.”

She smiled flirtatiously as she held five coins in her hand. “Anything else you can tell me?”

His eyes widened. “They come in about once a week or so. The name of the crewmate who usually delivers the crates is Smalley. That’s all I know.”

She grinned. “That’s worth only one gold piece, but I’ll give you all five for good measure.”

He seemed deeply grateful. “Thank you! Thank you so much!”

Then she spotted him in the corner and ordered a rum from the bartender.

“You looked like you needed this.” Kaia set the rum shot on the table.

Samuel looked up and was too stunned to speak. She was beautiful. She had aqua-colored eyes and long blonde flowing hair with two small French braids woven alongside her head just behind her ears. He knew her from somewhere, but where? Maybe he’d seen her somewhere in town.

“Thank you for the drink. I know you from somewhere, don’t I?”

“Maybe.” She smirked.

In fact, it was the face in his dreams as of late. And there she was, right in front of him. He didn’t want her to leave.

“I should be buying you a drink, gorgeous.”

Remembering the gold pieces she’d left in his pocket, she smiled. “Alright.”

“What would you like?”

“I guess I’ll have what you’re having.”

He smiled. “You mean what you gave me?”

“Actually, I’ve never tried the stuff. I just heard sailors like it.”

“Indeed. One rum coming up!”

He left and came back with two, one for her and another for him. “And there’s more where that came from. Can I ask your name?”

“Kaia. And yours?”

“Samuel.”

Samuel. ‘Finally,’ Kaia thought. She finally knew his name.

“Kaia,” he said. “That’s beautiful. What does it mean?”

A slight shudder of delight went through her at the sound of her name from his lips, but she composed herself. “It means ‘rejoice the sea.’”

The drink was strange to her. Although a little sweet, it was strong and slightly burned her throat as it went down.

“Would you like another?”

She noted his eager smile. “Maybe just one more.”

Again, he came back with two. And again, the second burned going down, although it still tasted sweet.

“I feel like we’ve met before. And I know that sounds like a come-on, but it’s not.”

“I know it’s not.” She smiled.

Suddenly, warmth enveloped her core, and then she felt giddy and lightheaded. What was this? Was this because of the two rum drinks she’d had? It must have been, as nothing else had ever made her feel this way … made her feel like she should tell Samuel the truth, even though she was essentially “forbidden.” But every second she looked into his ocean blue eyes, she fell deeper under his human spell.

She began, “I think you might remember where you saw me. But I can’t show you here.”

“Show me? I don’t understand,” he said.

“I’m afraid it might scare you.”

He laughed. “Sweetheart, I’ve been through more than you know. Nothing scares me now.”

“Alright. Will you come with me to the beach?”

His heart was practically beating out of his chest. “Yes.”

She led him to a secluded cliff that rose slightly above the ocean.

“Samuel, that night at the shipwreck, my … female friends behaved unspeakably, trying to drown you. So I saved you.”

His eyes widened. “That was real? That was you?”

“Yes. Ever since I heard your beautiful voice, I was captivated. I’d listen by your window at night.”

He gasped. “That was real, too? That was you? I thought I was drunk and hallucinating.”

“No.” She tenderly touched his face. “I love singing. I sing, too. But I’ve never heard a male voice as heavenly as yours. I hope you aren’t upset that I was listening.”

“No, of course not. So does that mean you’re a…”

“A mermaid, yes.” She smiled. He was stunned as she continued with a bit of hesitancy. “When I listened to your singing, I found myself having feelings for you beyond the music.” She smiled shyly.

“Really?” Again, he was stunned.

“I guess that might sound a little strange. I mean, we hadn’t even met.”

Slightly dazed, he couldn’t help but be entranced by her beauty as he looked into her eyes.

Kaia gazed back at him. She felt her feelings deepening. Shaking off the emotion, she offered, “I can show you where I saved you, if you trust me.”

Almost swooning at her beauty, he replied, “Of course I do.”

“Hold your breath. Then, when you need another one, just squeeze my hand.”

She grabbed his hand, and they jumped into the ocean.

He was amazed as he watched her suddenly gain a large tail under her dress. He tried not to stare when she shed the dress and held it in her hand. “I’ll keep this for next time.”

Then she took his hand and led him underwater, across the bay.

After a minute, he squeezed her hand. She stopped, turned to him, and kissed him. As she did, she breathed oxygen into his lungs. He felt lightheaded. Samuel wasn’t sure if it was the air situation or the kiss from Kaia. He felt it was probably the latter.

Soon, they rounded the cliffs that housed her cave. After several more “air kisses” that Samuel did not object to, they reached an air-filled cave containing many pools. From the deep pool, Kaia pulled herself up and onto the cave’s floor. She then helped Samuel up before putting the dress back on. As soon as she pulled her tail out of the pool, it transformed back into two legs. Samuel marveled at the sight.

She motioned to the dress. “I thought it might be a good idea to keep the dress, as without it I’d be naked.” She giggled.

‘She’d get no complaints out of me,’ Samuel thought.

Kaia made her way over to the pool with the waterfall as Samuel followed. “This is a freshwater pool. Isn’t it lovely? I love waterfalls. It’s like my own private little cavern here. I brought you here after the mermaids attacked you.”

He touched her face. “It’s beautiful, Kaia. But it’s not as beautiful as you. You saved my life. How can I ever thank you?”

Tears began streaming down her face.

“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?”

“I need your help, Samuel.”

“Of course. Anything.”

Kaia sat on a rock next to a box. “My sister, Coral, is dying, and it’s up to me to save her. But I don’t know what to do. This box fell off a ship and my sister found it and opened it.” Kaia opened the box to show him. “Don’t touch the crystal, whatever you do. My sister picked it up and it burned her hands. Then she lost consciousness. She still hasn’t woken up. It’s like the crystal is poison or something. I know of this type of rock. It’s called a ‘petra.’ They are rare and found deep in the ocean. But I have never heard that they are poisonous. I have to find where this box came from to see if there is some kind of antidote. The only clue I have is this name on the box, ‘Seagate.’ That’s why I was at the tavern. I found out it’s the name of a ship that occasionally comes into port. A man at the tavern told me it brings supplies, like to the bakery and probably the general store and what have you. The box fell off a ship, so maybe it was the Seagate. I have to find that ship and see if anyone knows about the box. I just hope Coral can hang on until then.”

Samuel pulled Kaia close and comforted her as she cried into his chest. Then she pulled back to look into his eyes as he smiled at her. She reached up and softly touched the scar under his eye. “What happened?”

He pointed to it. “This? It happened during a fight on board the Dreadnought. I barely escaped a pirate’s cutlass blade. Any farther up, and I guess I’d be wearing an eyepatch now.” He chuckled. “I don’t mind the scar so much. It’s better than losing an eye.”

“You fought pirates?”

“Yeah. Used to be one, too. Then we all went clean, the whole crew. Feels a lot better to try and help people. We still look for shipwrecks, but to save the survivors. That’s how I got taken by those mermaids. One of them was pretending to be a survivor and I was trying to save her.”

“Stupid cow! I wish I’d hit her harder than I did. Just a tail slap was too good for her!”

“It’s alright. I’m thankful. Look at us now. And it’s all thanks to her, really.”

Kaia was already overcome with emotion over her sister, and now, being so close to Samuel was too much for her. She leaned up and kissed him … a tender but meaningful kiss. Then she touched his face.

He wanted to kiss her again, but refrained and simply smiled instead. “How can I help save your sister?”

She wanted to kiss him again too, but instead, as she stood, she replied, “I guess we need to find out the next time that ship will make port in town. I’ll swim with you back to town and we can ask the baker. The man at the tavern mentioned that the bakery often received supplies from the Seagate. Oh, and I almost forgot.”

She walked to a chest on the other side of the cavern. When she opened it, Samuel could hardly believe his eyes as she grabbed a handful of gold coins.

“Here, take some of these, as many as you want.”

“W-where did you get all of this?”

She laughed at his surprised reaction. “I find lots of sunken ships on the bottom of the ocean, and many of them have treasure. It comes in handy when I go to town, so I collect what I find.”

He approached her and took her hand. “When we get back to town, I’m taking you out to dinner.”

She smiled at him as she looked into his eyes once again. With the way she was feeling about him, Kaia was afraid that if they didn’t leave the cavern now, they would never get to town.

“Remember to squeeze my hand when you need a breath.”

“Absolutely.” He smiled, looking forward to more of those “air kisses” from her.

She guided him by the hand to the deepest pool that led to the ocean, and they both jumped.

Chapter Three

The Seagate

That night, Samuel bought them both dinner at the tavern. While there, they asked around about the Seagate. Some told them the ship docked there weekly, while others said it docked monthly. They had to talk to the baker, but it was late and the bakeshop was closed.

As they walked through the town, Kaia said, “Look, they have an inn. We could stay there and then talk to the baker in the morning.”

The thought tempted Samuel. Staying in an inn with Kaia, although not proper, was a beautiful image. He knew that she’d made the suggestion in all innocence.

He took her hand. “That sounds lovely, Kaia. But in all honesty, I have to get back to the Dreadnought. The men don’t know what happened to me after the mermaid attack. I’m sure my friends are worried. I just need to let them know I’m alright. I think they were planning to dock in town tonight. So I can still meet you in the morning. Do you want to meet at the inn or the bakery?”

“I’ll probably just stay in my cavern tonight. So I’ll meet you at the bakery at, say, ten o’clock?”

As soon as she’d made the suggestion about the inn, she’d regretted it. ‘Well, that was quite inappropriate, Kaia,’ she thought. For a man to have turned down such an invitation, he must really care about his crewmates. What a truly wonderful person he was, and she was falling in love with him.

Samuel kissed her hand. “Goodnight, sweet Kaia.”

As he was about to walk away, she blurted, “Wait!”

He turned back and was almost knocked over by her kiss as she threw her arms around his neck. He happily kissed her back.

Kaia pulled back before she got carried away. “I just wanted to thank you for helping me. It means the world to me.”

‘She means the world to me,’ he thought. He wanted to tell her, but he was afraid it would sound silly, as they had met just the day before … though Samuel felt like he had known her for longer than that. Still, he kept his thoughts to himself, and simply smiled and kissed her hand. She turned and headed to the cliff. Once he had seen her jump safely into the water, he started toward the boat docks.

“Samuel! You’re alive!” The captain gave Samuel a big hug and a slap on the back.

“What happened?” Roger asked.

Samuel knew no one would believe the truth, so he had to alter it a bit. “I’m not sure. I blacked out and woke up on the beach today. Crazy, isn’t it?”

“Man, you’re lucky to be alive! The men wouldn’t even let me go in after you. They thought you might have a better shot without having me as a threat to the mermaids. I didn’t sleep a wink last night. This is a miracle!” The captain directed the rest of the crew, “Men, let’s celebrate our ‘miracle first mate’!”

Cheers arose as rum and ale were passed around to all. That night, the men of the Dreadnought had a feast.

Samuel didn’t want to over-indulge, as he had a breakfast meeting with a beautiful woman in the morning. So he left the party a little earlier than the other men and made his way to his quarters.

As he began playing on his mandolin, he heard her voice. “I was hoping you would play tonight.”

“Kaia!” He rushed over to the window. “I’ll play whatever you like. Oh,” he remembered. “I hope no one saw you.”

“No, it’s deserted out here. Don’t worry.”

He smiled and went over to his bed to fetch his mandolin, then sat at the window and sang for her:

Oh, Sally Brown, she's a nice young lady,

Way, hay, roll and go.

And we rolled all night,

And we rolled all day,

Spend our money on Sally Brown.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door and Kaia ducked down into the dingy boat.

“Hey, Samuel! Why’d you leave so soon? The night is young!”

“Alright! Give me a minute and I’ll come back up.” Then he turned to the window. “Kaia, I’m sorry. They are just so happy that I’m alive, they threw me a party.” He laughed. “But I wish you could be there. After all, it’s all thanks to you, love.” He touched her chin.

She took his hand and kissed his palm. “I’ll see you in the morning at the bakery.” Then she smiled and jumped into the water.

“Love?” Had he just called her “love”? Did he love her? She knew her feelings for him. She knew that she was madly in love with Samuel … forbidden or not. Somehow, she was going to save her sister. Then she would leave the merfolk clan and never return. She made this promise to herself. She only hoped that she could somehow be with Samuel instead, and that he would want to be with her in return.

She waited outside the bakery shop in a new dress. She even wore flowers in her hair.

“Kaia! Good morning. My, you look beautiful.”

She spun around. “I wanted to look pretty for you.”

‘She’d look gorgeous in a potato sack,’ thought Samuel. “Shall we?” He offered his arm as they went inside.

Behind the counter was a gentleman about Kaia’s age. In the back was a woman, a little older, preparing dough.

“Can I help you?” asked the gentleman.

Samuel began, “We’re looking for some information on a ship called the ‘Seagate.’ I believe that you periodically receive supplies from it to your shop here?”

The gentleman stuttered and suddenly appeared quite nervous. “Y-yes, we do on occasion.”

“Good morning.” The woman approached, wiping flour off of her hands with a dishrag. “How can I help you? Interested in a breakfast pastry?”

Kaia’s eyes lit up. “Yes! Could I have a raspberry tart, please?” She set a gold coin on the counter.

The woman’s eyes widened. “Certainly! And for you, sir?”

“Yes, I’ll have the same. Thank you.”

It was clear that this woman was in charge and that the nervous helper was her assistant.

Samuel directed his questions to her. “I was wondering what you can tell me about a ship called the ‘Seagate.’ Do you know when it makes port in town?”

“Seagate, yes. I’m actually expecting some supplies to come in later this afternoon, if they’re on time.” She laughed. “They sometimes make it a habit of being late … sometimes a whole week late.”

Kaia hoped this wouldn’t be one of those times. She had no idea how long her sister had left. She hoped Coral was still alive.

“So, are you awaiting supplies from them, too?” the baker asked.

“No,” Kaia said. “I think I found a box that was lost from their ship during a storm. I just want to return it.”

Suddenly, the assistant turned almost pale white. “I-I need to go take that cake out of the oven.”

Kaia watched him rush to the back. ‘Something’s off about that lad, and it isn’t just his odd behavior,’ she thought. She just couldn’t put her finger on it.

Samuel and Kaia went to the boat docks to wait on the Seagate. They’d had the baker wrap some cheese and biscuits for later. Then they found a nice shade tree to sit under and have their lunch.

Some time had passed as they waited. Kaia yawned.

“Hey, are you tired?” Samuel asked. “Why don’t you rest for a while? You can lean on me. I’ll watch for the ship.”

Admittedly, falling asleep while snuggled up next to Samuel was a lovely thought. So she nuzzled close to him as he put his arm around her. She rested her head on his chest and closed her eyes, sighing at the feel of being in his arms.

Samuel enjoyed having Kaia in his arms. What was it about her? ‘Everything,’ he thought. She was beautiful and kind and giving. She was wonderful, and he was falling for her. Truth be told, he had fallen for her.

About an hour had passed when he heard a familiar voice.

“Samuel!” Roger yelled as he approached them, waving.

“Hi, Roger!”

Kaia awoke and sat up, stretching.

“Fancy meeting you here. And who is this beauty?” Roger eyed her with much approval.

“Roger, this is Kaia.”

“Hello.” She smiled as Roger kissed her hand.

“Why do you hang out with us sea dogs when you have a beauty such as this for company?”

“Well, Roger, you’ll notice that at the moment, I’m not hanging with you sea dogs, now am I?”

He chuckled. “No, that’s true. Well, I just came into town to replenish some drink … oh, and food.” He laughed again. “I’ll see you later, Samuel.”

Kaia turned back to Samuel. “Your crewmates seem nice. They were concerned about you and then threw you a party. And that gentleman was very polite and chipper.”

“Yeah, they’re my mates. They’re great. I wouldn’t trade them for anything.”

Kaia lowered her head sadly. She had visions of her and Samuel starting a life together, just the two of them. They couldn’t very well do that on his ship with all of his mates.

“Hey, you alright? Are you thinking about your sister?”

She nodded.

He tried to lighten the moment. “You’re so different from the other mermaids. You’re sweet and giving and they’re … well, you know. Is it just you? Maybe you’re only half-mermaid or something?” He laughed.

“My sister is sweet, too. She would never do what they did to you. I hope we aren’t too late. She just accepted a proposal for a bonding ceremony. She was so excited.” At his questioning look, she explained, “A bonding ceremony is like a wedding. Basically, he proposed and she accepted. After the ceremony, they will officially be ‘mates.’ It would be the same as a ‘spouse’ here in your world.”

He was amazed. “So, you have male mermaids, then?”

She giggled. “Yes. They’re called ‘mermen.’ And they’re a pain, in my opinion. They’re arrogant and full of themselves. And for the most part, they treat mermaids like objects to possess. Coral’s merman isn’t all that bad. But most of them are disgusting. One in particular, Marinus, is the worst of them all. Unfortunately, he has his sights set on me.” She noticed Samuel’s eyebrows rise as she continued. “He won’t leave me alone. He’s the reason I dread going home. It’s like having a large, arrogant barnacle attached to you all the time.”

Samuel grinned.

“He hates it when I go to the surface. Luckily, because I go so often and because Coral is my sister, they voted that I would be the best choice to find a way to save her.”

Samuel hesitated, then said, “So, it doesn’t sound like you’re looking for a mate among these ‘mermen’ then?”

“No! In fact, I promised myself that as soon as I can get Coral better, I’m leaving the clan for good. I’ll live the rest of my days on the surface. I just haven’t worked out all the details yet. But the bakery is a good start.”

“You want to work in the bakery?”

“That would be great! You did know that the only thing in the world we merfolk can’t resist is sweets, right?”

“No, I didn’t know that.”

“Oh, yes! That’s why mermaids show up at shipwrecks. They aren’t looking for treasure, and toying with humans is just a fun side game to them. They’re really there looking for cakes and pies and cookies! If you’d had a cookie in your pocket the day of the attack, they would have snagged it and left you alone while they all fought over it!” She laughed.

“I see. So if I ever want you to do something for me, I just need to bake you a pie?” He grinned.

“No. You just need to ask,” she replied in all seriousness.

She looked into his eyes as his smile softened. His gaze fell to her lips. The urge was too overwhelming to ignore. He leaned over and kissed her. She responded eagerly, putting her hand behind his neck. He was about to deepen the kiss when they both heard the yell.

“It’s the Seagate!”

The couple pulled back from the kiss and looked over toward the docks. The dockworkers were helping to bring in the Seagate, finally. Although, once again, the bakery was now closed. Maybe they could still get some information and then head to the bakery in the morning.

They watched the crew file off the ship. When they spotted a man who appeared to be the captain, they approached him.

“Captain Bailey?” Kaia asked timidly.

“Yes, that’s me. How can I help you?”

“I found a box that I think might have fallen off your ship. It had ‘Seagate’ carved into it.”

“Ah, yes. I believe that belongs to my first mate, Smalley. Smalley! Can you come over here a minute?”

A short and stocky young man set down a crate and headed over to them. “Yes, Captain?” he said as he smiled at the lovely girl.

“This young lady thinks she might have found your box. That special-order ocean rock you were transporting?”

“Oh, really? That’s great! It’s for Delmar, the baker’s assistant. He ordered it, although I’m not sure what it’s for. My suspicion is that it’s for a lady. Supposedly, it’s a beautiful and rare ocean crystal. Course, the box was locked, so I never got to see what it looked like. I was hoping I could see it when I delivered it.”

“How long will you be in port? I don’t have the box with me, but I could bring it in the morning.”

“Sure! Yeah, we don’t push off till day after tomorrow.”

Kaia asked, “Would you mind if we went with you when you delivered it? I’m curious to see it, too.”

“Sure, no problem.”

Samuel shook their hands, “Thank you both. We’ll see you tomorrow.”

Once the captain and crewman had gone, Kaia turned to Samuel. “The baker’s assistant! That must be why he was acting so strange. Did you notice that?”

“I did. And I think you’re right.”

“I need to go to the cavern and get the box. Meet me here in the morning at, say, nine?”

“I’ll be here. Don’t have to walk far.” He pointed to the Dreadnought just down the way. Samuel took her hand. “Let me walk you to the cliff.”

As they walked, he squeezed her hand. “Hey, when this is all over, do you…”

“Yes?” she asked quickly.

“I mean, would you like to … what I’m trying to…” He couldn’t seem to get the right words out. “Kaia, may I court you?”

She smiled brightly. “Yes!” And she hugged him tightly. Then she kissed him. Unfortunately, they were in the middle of town and were gaining attention from the townsfolk.

One townsman yelled out, “Hey, get a room! The inn’s right over there!”

The couple broke as they laughed together. Samuel offered, “He’s just jealous!”

He took her hand and walked her the rest of the way to the cliff. He gave her one more gentle kiss, and then she turned and jumped into the sea. Samuel waved to her and she waved back. He turned to leave. It was the sound of her scream that made him turn back. She was being attacked by a man he’d never seen. Kaia was desperately pulling away from him. Quickly, Samuel jumped in after them.

As he swam to the struggle, the man scoffed at him. “This is none of your affair! Go home, human!”

Suddenly, Samuel was struck by a large tail. Then the man grabbed Kaia and dove below the surface. Was this the merman Kaia had spoken of? It had to be. Still dazed by the tail’s lash, Samuel swam back to shore. What could he do? He couldn’t go after them, that was certain. As he thought back to his conversation with Kaia about her clan, he got an idea. He just prayed it would work.

He rushed back to the Dreadnought, hoping they had some sweets on board as the bakery was closed. Luckily, the food and drink on the ship had been replenished. He grabbed all the cakes, pastries, and cookies he could find and headed out to that one particular shipwreck in a dingy boat. He hoped they would be there again. If the mermaids had already stripped the site clean of anything of interest to them, they might not have returned. Again, he prayed his plan would work.

Chapter Four

Marinus

Down they swam as Kaia struggled to get free.

“It’s no use, Kaia. You know that I’m stronger than you are,” Marinus chided.

‘But he isn’t smarter,’ thought Kaia. She had to come up with a plan. She had to get that box back to the Seagate and hopefully save her sister.

They reached his aquatic chamber. “Who was that human you were with … and kissing, no less?”

“That isn’t your business!”

“I’m making it my business! You’re going to be my mate!”

“No, I’m not! For the last time! How many times have I said no? Plenty of other mermaids are groveling at your feet!”

“It’s you I want.”

“Too bad!”

“It’s that human, isn’t it?” He grabbed her by the arms and shook her. “You know the bylaws of the merfolk clan forbid being with a human! Why would you want to be around those deplorable creatures?”

“The only deplorable creature I don’t want to be around is YOU!”

He slapped her, knocking her back into the coral. As she looked at the coral, she said, “How can you take me off the search to save Coral? If she dies, it will be your fault! Do you want that? You have to at least let me go back long enough to find the antidote and save her. I’m close! I found the ship! The box was ordered by the baker’s assistant! I’m supposed to bring it to them in the morning. Then I’ll come back and save Coral.”

Taken aback by her statement, Marinus thought for a moment. “If I could save Coral, would you agree to be my mate and not return to the surface?”

“But you can’t save Coral.”

“If I could, if I found the antidote, would you agree to be my mate?”

She hesitated, then quietly said, “Yes.”

He went over to a seashell on a table and pulled out a little glass vial. “This is the antidote.”

“I don’t understand.”

“This is it. Pour this in Coral’s mouth and she will recover.”

“H-how can you have that?”

Slowly, Samuel approached the site of the shipwreck, the one where the mermaids had attacked him. He tied the dingy to one of the rocks. Before he had a chance to pull the pastries out of the crate, his boat began to rock back and forth.

“Look, girls! It’s our little friend from the other day!”

He turned around and realized that he was surrounded by mermaids, smirking at him.

“Yes, he was stolen from us by Miss ‘Human-lover’ Kaia.”

“Kaia’s such a kill-joy!”

“But she’s not here now!”

“That’s right, she’s not here to save you!” said one of the mermaids as she grabbed the side of the dingy and rocked it dangerously.

Samuel stuttered, “B-but if you tip the boat, you’ll ruin all the pastries I brought for you.”

“Nice try, dingy boy! We aren’t that gullible! You think we…”

“Wait! Did he say ‘pastries’?”

“Ha! Have him prove it. Then we can toy with him!”

Samuel opened the crate and removed a basket full of raspberry tarts. The mermaids swooned. One of them grabbed the basket from his hands.

“Hey, you have to share that, you cow!”

“Yeah! Give it!”

“Ladies! I have more.” He produced an apple pie.

“MINE!” A pretty redhead was reaching out for it when, suddenly, a brunette mermaid burst out of the water and grabbed the pie right out of her hands. The pair immediately began fighting, smacking each other with their tails and pulling each other’s hair.

“But wait, there’s more!” Samuel said as he pulled a large basket of cookies and hurled its contents into the air, in the direction of the mermaid gathering. He felt like he was watching a school of piranhas attack poor, defenseless prey. Then came the pièce de résistance: a large, magnificent chocolate cake, complete with chocolate-covered strawberries on top. All the fighting stopped immediately. The water around him was eerily calm and silent. The mermaids all stared at the cake, mesmerized by its beauty.

In unison, they chanted, “Chocolate!”

They all rushed the boat. Quickly, Samuel threw the cake into the chaos just before they capsized him. The fighting was worse, and all the tails were thrashing. There was biting and hair pulling and clawing.

“Ladies! There’s plenty more where that came from.”

Suddenly, all the mermaids stopped and looked at him.

“I just need you to do something for me, and I’ll get you all the sweets you can eat!”

He had their undivided attention.

Marinus threw an arrogant smirk at Kaia. “I have the antidote, because I’m the one who ordered the poison. You’re not the only one who goes to the surface.” She wore a confused expression as he continued. “I ordered it for a merman in a neighboring clan. The baker’s assistant is a merman.”

‘I knew there was something fishy about him,’ Kaia thought. “Why?” she asked.

“Delmar wants to poison the baker so he can take over the shop. Then all of us merfolk will get unlimited pies and cakes and pastries forever. Sweet deal, right?” He laughed at his joke.

She shook her head in disbelief. “Why don’t you just buy the sweets with all the gold we find in the sunken ships?”

“Buy it? As in giving those humans payment? I’m not giving those deplorable creatures anything! Not gold, not anything!”

She was fuming. “So you let my sister lie in a coma and possibly die while you had the antidote the whole time?”

“I couldn’t let the clan know I was involved with Delmar’s plan.”

“Coral could have died! I don’t even know if she’s still alive!”

“She is. And if you agree to be my mate, I’ll give this to you. You can wake her up and even take all the credit.”

Kaia was so stunned at what Marinus had just disclosed, she was speechless. She tried to make sense of it all.

“Come on, Kaia. It won’t be so bad. You’ll be bonded to the best of the mermen … yours truly. You won’t be sorry.” He grabbed her and kissed her. Disgusted, she whacked him with her tail, causing him to lose his grip on the vial. Kaia grabbed it as it began to float away.

“I’m already sorry!” she yelled to him as she rushed out of his chamber and toward the main cavern where her clan was keeping watch over Coral.

“I’ve got it!” she yelled as she approached her unconscious sister.

Kaia leaned into her and poured the thick, jelly-like substance into her mouth. Then she waited. Marinus entered the cavern but said nothing. He couldn’t confront Kaia here in front of the clan.

Finally, Coral’s eyes began to flutter, and she moaned.

“Coral, it’s Kaia. You were poisoned, but you’re going to be alright. Can you hear me?”

Coral nodded. She still couldn’t quite talk, but she would fully recover. The other merfolk cheered and rejoiced.

Kaia stood to address them. She waited until the noise died down, then offered, “This was Marinus’ doing.”

He stepped up. “Kaia, hush. That’s an order from your mate!”

“You are not and never will be my mate!” She turned back to the gathering merfolk. “Marinus ordered the poison for the baker’s assistant Delmar, a merman from a neighboring clan. Marinus had the antidote the entire time! He could have saved Coral right away! But he was too worried about himself, as usual.”

One of the mermen leaders stepped up. “But why would Marinus want to help another merman poison someone?”

Kaia turned to him as she glared at Marinus. “Because it was for the baker. Delmar was going to poison the baker so he could take over the shop and the merfolk would have unlimited sweets. Never mind that he could have just used the gold to buy it. He is too prideful to bargain with humans.”

“Marinus, is this true?” asked the leader.

“Of course not. You know you can’t trust these silly mermaid cows. They make up stories all the time just to get attention.”

“Then where else would I have gotten this vial? I just came from your chamber after you kidnapped me!”

“Hey,” offered one of the other mermaids, “is that the other clan you mentioned when you said you could get us some sweets?”

Marinus stammered, “W-what? No! I never said that!”

“Yes, you did!” said another mermaid, who approached.

The leader motioned for his bodyguard. “I think we need to investigate this allegation. In the meantime, Marinus, I’m sorry, but I’m afraid we’ll need to hold you until the investigation is complete.”

The bodyguard put shackles with a chain around Marinus’ wrists as he protested. “Hold me! You can’t do this! You can’t put me in chains! You can’t put Marinus in chains!” he yelled as they hauled him away.

One of the mermaids approached. Kaia couldn’t help but notice that she looked a little scratched up. “Kaia, a human at a shipwreck site offered us sweets if we rescued you from Marinus. He said he’d have more in the morning if we brought you back with us. Do you know who this human is?”

Kaia smiled to herself. “Yes. I know who he is and you can trust him. I’ll go with you in the morning and we’ll get all the sweets you want.”

The mermaids swooned and giggled and chattered. Kaia sighed in relief. Her sister would be alright and she was free of Marinus. The only thing left to do was go to her cavern and get the box. In the morning, she would go with her sisters to the surface. Her heart fluttered at the thought of seeing Samuel.

Chapter Five

Soul Mates

That evening, Kaia went to her private cavern to retrieve the box, then hid it in some bushes at the boat docks. The next morning, she and a group of her mermaid clan headed to the shipwreck site. She giggled as she noticed a few mermen tagging along, hoping to score some free sweets.

Samuel didn’t disappoint. Rather than being in a dingy, he had brought the Dreadnaught ship and all of its crew. As the mermaids surfaced, Captain Von Horne’s jaw dropped, as did those of the rest of the crew.

Samuel laughed. “See, I told you. Mermaids line up for sweets.”

Suddenly, Kaia surfaced. Samuel’s breath quickened.

Roger yelled, “Hey! Isn’t that the girl you introduced me to at the docks?”

“Yes, it is,” Samuel replied, his eyes never leaving Kaia’s. He climbed into a dingy boat with many crates and lowered it into the water. Kaia immediately swam to him, jumped up, and kissed him.

“Eeeewwww! She kissed a human!” exclaimed one of the mermaids.

“Don’t knock it till you try it.” Kaia smirked as her eyes stayed locked onto Samuel’s.

“Alright, we brought you Kaia. How about those sweets?”

Kaia whispered to Samuel, “Actually, Marinus is no longer a problem. But I thought I’d humor them and make good on your deal. Maybe it’ll help to soften the relationship between mermaids and humans.”

Samuel spoke out to the mermaids. “Help yourselves, ladies!” He began throwing whole crates of sweets into the sea. Immediately, the mermaids, and the mermen, began opening them and scarfing down the sweets before they had a chance to get soggy in the ocean water. The captain and crew began handing down crate after crate of sweets that Samuel then threw into the sea.

Finally, the merfolk’s ravenous appetites began to abate. One mermaid vomited into the sea and finally dove under the surface. Another one said, “I don’t feel so good.” Then she, too, dove under the surface. Some of the mermen tossed a few of the mermaids over their shoulders and headed below after the maidens passed out from pure sugar crashes.

Once no other merfolk were left, Kaia asked, “Shall I meet you at the boat docks so we can get the box to the Seagate?”

“Yes,” Samuel replied. He handed her a bundle. “This is a new dress for you. It’s wrapped in some of the baker’s special paper, which will help to keep it dry until you can get to land.”

Her eyes twinkled her love for this dear and thoughtful man. “Thank you. I’ll see you shortly.”

As the crew pulled up Samuel’s dingy, he said to Captain Van Horne, “There’s something I need to talk to you about.”

Kaia found Samuel waiting for her near the Seagate. She was adorned in the new outfit that he had given her and was holding the box with the rock.

They found crewmate Smalley, and all three headed to the bakery.

The baker offered them some breakfast sweets and smiled brightly at Samuel. After all, he had spent an exorbitant amount of money that morning at her shop. She had been busy replenishing her supply ever since.

Smalley held the box. “We’re looking for Delmar.”

“Hmm … I haven’t seen him yet this morning. Strange, because he’s never late.”

Just then, the group heard a rustling in the back.

“Delmar, what are you doing? You didn’t tell me you were here,” exclaimed the baker.

They found him quickly grabbing items and shoving them into a bag, as if he was in a hurry to leave.

“I-I was just, um…”

“Going somewhere?” Samuel folded his arms.

“I believe this is yours. You weren’t planning on leaving it behind, were you?” Kaia asked as she took the box from Smalley and offered it to Delmar.

“That’s not mine! I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Smalley looked confused. “You’re Delmar, right? You ordered this box with some type of rare rock inside. I’d like to see it.”

“So would I!” Kaia smirked. “Here, let’s take a look!”

When she opened the box, the baker cooed, “Oh! It’s beautiful! I’d love to have a rock like that to add to my collection!”

“You’re in luck because he ordered it for you.” Kaia turned and thrust the box at Delmar.

“Get that thing away from me! You want to kill me? I-I mean … that’s not mine.”

Samuel pointed at the man. “A-ha! That sounds like an admission of guilt to me!” He turned to the baker. “Delmar ordered this rare rock for you, but it’s poison.”

Kaia spoke up. “My sister found it and touched it, and it almost killed her until we found the antidote. Delmar here wanted to take over your shop and was willing to murder you to do it!”

“That’s not true! You’re lying! I don’t need any of this hogwash!” Delmar grabbed his knapsack and ran out of the shop.

The baker was stunned, not to mention hurt. “I can’t believe it! I thought we had a close relationship. I can’t believe he’d want to do this!” Tears began to sting her eyes. “He’d better never come back here! I’ll buy a pistol! Of course, this leaves me in a bind, with no assistant.”

Samuel grinned as he put his hands on Kaia’s shoulders. “I think you have a perfect replacement assistant right here.”

“Really? You’d want the job?” the baker asked Kaia.

Kaia beamed. “Yes! Well, if you could teach me.”

“Of course! I taught Delmar everything he knows.” She touched Kaia’s cheek. “You saved my life. I think everything worked out exactly as it was supposed to. How can I thank you all?”

“You’re right,” Samuel said. “It all seems to have worked out. No thanks necessary. But what do we do with this rock? It’s dangerous.”

The baker took the box and closed it. “Leave it to me. I’ll get it analyzed and see if we can get the poison removed. It would be a shame to waste such a spectacular crystal rock.”

“It’s called a ‘petra,’ by the way. It’s very rare and found only at the bottom of the ocean.”

“Then I’ll definitely see what I can do. It’s too beautiful to throw away.”

Smalley waved. “Well, I gotta get back to the Seagate. You all take care.”

“Smalley, wait!” Kaia pulled a small bag from her pocket and gave him ten gold pieces. “Thank you for your help.”

His eyes widened. “Thank you! Thank you so much!” He practically bounded from the shop with excitement.

“So…” The baker turned to Kaia. “When would you like to get started?”

Just as Kaia was about to say something, Samuel interrupted, “Actually, how about tomorrow?” He looked into Kaia’s eyes. “There’s something we need to take care of today.”

When the baker noted the couple’s gaze, she laughed. “No problem. I’ll see you tomorrow sometime.”

Kaia took Samuel’s hand as they left. “So, I guess you’ll be going back to the Dreadnaught?”

“About that…” he replied.

“Yes?” she asked, with a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

“I spoke to Captain Van Horne. I told him that living at sea wasn’t something I wanted to do for the rest of my life. So I resigned as first mate. Roger got the job.”

“What will you do?” She swallowed.

“I thought I might apply for work at the boat docks. Then I’d still see my mates when they made port.” He stopped outside the bakery and pulled her close to him. “I thought that maybe with some of that gold, we could get a little cottage outside of town, just you and me.”

Tears welled up in Kaia’s eyes.

He kissed her hand. “Kaia, will you marry me? Will you be my ‘mate,’ my ‘soul mate’?”

Her tears spilled over. “YES! Oh Samuel, yes!” She threw her arms around him and kissed him lovingly. He happily kissed her back.

Then she pulled back and gave him many short kisses all over his face. “I love you!”

“And I love you.”

Suddenly, they heard clapping. Samuel and Kaia turned to see a group of people at the tavern applauding and cheering for them.

Samuel laughed. “Let’s get out of here.” Then he stopped as he remembered something. “Captain Van Horne would like to marry us, if you don’t mind having the wedding aboard the Dreadnaught. Then the whole crew could throw us both a party, just like they did for me. They never turn down a party, that lot.” He laughed again.

“That sounds perfect!” she replied.

The couple immediately went to the dress shop, where Kaia found a lovely dress to serve as a wedding gown. It was light pink with ruffles all down the front and a large ruffled skirt. Samuel asked the baker to bake them a wedding cake, which she was more than happy to provide. The crew on the Dreadnaught was thrilled at the opportunity to have another big party and to see off their old first mate as he became an “old married man.”

Captain Van Horne held his trusty Bible in his hands as he led the couple in their vows.

“You may now kiss the bride.”

Samuel happily obliged as he took his new mermaid bride into his arms for a tender kiss. The crew exploded into cheers. The rum and ale were already flowing.

Kaia decided to forego the sweet wedding cake for the moment as she pulled her new husband over to the side railing of the ship. She wanted to steal a few moments with him before they returned to the party.

As they watched the beautiful orange sunset on the golden horizon, Samuel touched Kaia’s cheek.

She leaned into his touch. “I never knew I could be so happy.”

“Neither did I.”

“Are you sure an ex-pirate could be happy living on land in a cottage instead of on the sea?”

“Are you sure a mermaid could be happy living on land in a cottage instead of in the sea?”

Kaia smiled and gave her answer in the form of a deep and loving kiss.

The End

Visit dianadawnbooks.com for more romance and exciting adventures!

About Diana Dawn

Diana Dawn is a writer and author of the new book series, Whispering Willows. As a lover of fairy tales and romance, Diana has focused her writing on romantic fiction, with an occasional hint of classic fables. She has been a lifelong writer and first began creating stories in grade school. When she isn't glued to her computer or lost in her next fantasy story, Diana enjoys taking vacations with her husband and three children.

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Earthen

A Dragon’s Keep Story

© 2014 RaeLynn Blue

Edited by Katriena Knights

About Earthen

A Dragon’s Keep Story

Sonya Gou has a major issue. Her guardian keeps her safe from threats against her life and his heart. How can she survive being so close to the one man she cannot have?

Zihao Liang. Guardian. Warrior. Earthen. Blood sworn to protect the Gou's treasure, Sonya, he has put his love for her beneath a sacred vow to protect her at all cost.

Zihao and Sonya must put their love to the test when a powerful enemy threatens all they hold dear.

Prologue

Alaskan Wilderness

May

Sunlight streamed into the large cavern buried deep in the heart of the Xiongxin’s Keep. Zihao scanned the smooth walls and domed ceilings his ancestors and those of his lineage had crafted. Before him, seated on the expensive Oriental rug, sat the clan’s great council. Elder Gou sat in the center, and seated beside him in a semi- circle were the heads of the tribes contained within their clan. Ryuu rounded out the last of the council members. They looked at Zihao with grim faces, and nuisance brewing beneath most of them, except Ryuu. He wasn’t much older than Zihao and, as the youngest council member, didn’t hold many of the same beliefs of the much older men. Ryuu didn’t seem grim. No, he seemed pissed off. Ready to explode.

Maybe he always wears that expression. Zihao didn’t know Ryuu personally, but he didn’t know many people on the council. As a dilong, he had few opportunities to mingle with the political players in dragon society.

Elder Gou gestured to him. “Sit, Zihao Longwei.”

Zihao didn’t like the look of this inquisition. More importantly, he didn’t like being yanked away from Sonya, escorted down the dark corridors, and thrust into the council room without a word of explanation. Even though he’d heard Ryuu to be a fair man, he wasn’t sure about the others. Elder Gou’s reputation carried great reverence amongst everyone, but again, Zihao knew him to be very shrewd but also caution and dangerous when necessary. Zihao just didn’t know if this matter called for shrewdness or danger.

Zihao eyed each council member and noted they wore the traditional robes. They sat cross-legged on the large carpet. In the carpet’s center, their clan’s insignia. Every mated dragon bore an exact replica at the base of their collarbones—a brand seared by the mating fire.

At 29, Zihao’s collarbone remained smooth, free of the mating heat’s brand. He could not mate—his duty belonged to his charge. Not many chose this career for that very reason, but digging out keeps and caverns, repairing the tunnels and corridors—a life spent in perpetual digging didn’t appeal to him either. Unlike seadragons, firebreathers, and the mixed breeds, dilongs could go without mating. It caused a lot of pain, but taking a serum could stave off the hunger, the call for a mate.

But only in dilongs.

Dilongs, of course, did mate and produce offspring or else their lineage would die out. What would the others do for dens if that happened?

A hard clearing of a throat brought him back to the room. “I’m sorry. What?” “Sit.” Ryuu gestured to the spot on the carpet in front of the elder.

“I prefer to stand.” Zihao didn’t want to be seated if something happened. Every fiber of his being buzzed in anticipation. His dragon moved about inside him—restless and anxious. Nothing obvious spoke to the potential for danger, but his instincts hummed in warning. Over time, he’d learned not to ignore it.

“How dare you disobey a direct order,” spat the head of the Chee family, Marvin. He yanked his robe down over his fat frame angrily. “You’re a dilong.”

“He obviously doesn’t know his place,” chimed in another council member with disdain.

“He is a member of this clan and if he chooses to stand, then it is his right,” Ryuu thundered over them. “We have more important things to worry about.”

This must be very serious. It amused him to see the other tribes cower at the thundering of the firebreather. The balance of power clearly shifted to the Jin tribe. Zihao made a mental note. Information meant the difference between life and death at times.

Elder Gou nodded. “You are correct, Ryuu. Zihao’s attention snapped with laser focus back to the council. Most importantly, he is Sonya’s guardian.”

At the mention of Sonya’s name, Zihao scowled. This matter had something to do with her? At once her face appeared in his mind, beautiful as she laughed at his
jokes, or when she emerged ready to attend some dragon or socialite function. In a life filled with darkness, Sonya had been his only light.

She had been his greatest love as long as he could remember. And his greatest torment.

“What is this about?” Zihao interrupted. Even now Sonya remained unprotected, and she was probably worried about his whereabouts.

Elder Gou’s eyebrows rose. “I see. Let us come to the point. Ryuu…”

Ryuu nodded. “My brother, Draco Lo Jin, was framed for the murder of a human woman in North Carolina nearly a year ago. About four months ago, we discovered a siren was the murderer…”

Zihao stilled. He’d heard rumors of Draco’s mate, Anika, being part siren, so she wasn’t completely human. Sirens had long since been believed to be extinct. Whispers flourished about whether Draco had truly murdered another woman or had simply been the victim of human ignorance and bigotry. The keep had been aflutter with conversations about it. Sonya had dismissed it all as hogwash. Everyone knew Draco wasn’t a firebreather, so his burning down a house seemed ludicrous. No, the talk in the keep rested on Draco’s mate—a half-human, half-siren woman, but zero dragon shifter. At the time, Zihao didn’t know what to believe, but he did know that both Jin brothers were clan royalty. The fact neither had mated with a dragon shifter had ruffled more than a few scales around the keep.

And the council.

Tradition meant identity, culture, purpose.

“What does that have to do with me? I don’t know any sirens. Hell, I thought they were all dead.” Could they please get to the point? Zihao looked to the elder.

“So did we,” Elder Gou agreed. “We also discovered that the frame, as the humans call it, involved a dragon. The house fire that killed the human wasn’t produced by an accelerant, but by a dragon’s flames.”

Zihao peered at him. “It wasn’t me. I’m no firebreather.”

“Of this we are absolutely sure,” replied Marvin Chee distastefully.

Others chuckled. A chorus of cronies, they all snickered, but Zihao ignored them. Elder Gou raised a thin hand and all laughter ceased. His bushy eyebrows rose,
but settled down as he continued. “Enough.”

Ryuu’s heart-shaped face held dark, intense eyes that locked onto Zihao’s and held them, unwavering. A slash of anger erupted on his mouth as if his words or what he wanted to say annoyed No, the firebreather found none of this humorous. His body language spoke clearly and confirmed that this meeting wasn’t going to be warm and fuzzy. In fact, it seemed he did all he could not to bust heads and spit his famous azure flames. Something deeply bothered Ryuu. Zihao didn’t think it had anything to do with the social mocking of the old council members. Something else caused Ryuu’s rage and discontent.

None of this had anything to do with Zihao. He had been raised to do only one thing—protect the Gou tribe and, most importantly, Sonya. So Zihao broke the other man’s burrowing gaze and looked to the elder. Once more, the reason he was this meeting, before these men, rested in the ancient dragon. His entire life, all 29 years, he’d been at the beck and call and the command of the Gou tribe. Now, Zihao knew without hesitation, this would be no different.

“Zihao, the rogue firebreather is not of this clan. We have spent months investigating. There are no others within our families who breathe fire. Yet, the dragon flames were there at the house and the cause of the woman’s death, despite what the siren’s confession that he had murdered the woman.”

“So, another clan worked with a siren to frame Draco. In doing so they killed a human.” Zihao got the gist of the conversation, but what did it have to do with Sonya? The Jin family had plenty of squabbles with members within the keep, and that was family. No doubt their dealings with others also erupted into disagreements.

Elder Gou nodded and stroked his beard. “With the Gathering, the orchestrator of Draco’s framing may attend along with the other five clans. We have taken precautions and sent Draco and his mate out of the area, but know that tensions will be tight and tempers short.”

“How is this different than any other Gathering?” Zihao wiped his face to hide his smirk. The Gathering always meant tensions and political messes. Collect a bunch of dragons into one spot and tempers flared. Dragons liked to hoard, so a bunch of them— oh, thousands of them—tended to keep close watch over their things. Nothing like adding to one’s hoard.

“You do not see the seriousness of this?” Ryuu pushed himself to a crouching stance, not fully sitting and not fully standing.

“I do. What I don’t see is why I should give a damn.” Zihao’s beast roused inside him. He didn’t like Ryuu’s position—an attack style Zihao had seen with seadragons.

“Why? Because the keep will be flooded with thousands of dragons,” council member Weaver answered. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose as if to punctuate his words.

“Yes, but Draco and his mate won’t be coming to the keep. Right?” Ryuu spoke first. “Right.”

“So, there’s no danger. If the person who framed Draco is a dragon, a firebreather, his issue is with Draco, not Sonya or anyone else in the clan. So if Draco isn’t here, then the danger isn’t here.”

“You don’t understand—” Ryuu started.

Zihao had heard enough. “You’ve kept me from my charge long enough. This isn’t my problem.”

Still standing, Zihao started to bow and offer his goodbye to the elder, but Ryuu shot out of his seat toward him, fists clenched and face set to fury.

He moved in slow motion to Zihao, who with a short and swift wave of his arm, called up a wall made of earth. The firebreather slammed right into it and landed on his butt with a thud. The wall kept Zihao on one side and Ryuu on the other. Zihao didn’t dare venture from around it because he knew what would come next. Within minutes, a stream of fire flicked about on either side of the wall, spilling over from Ryuu’s rage. Zihao, still standing, only strengthened the earthen wall. Ryuu tried to race around it, but Zihao only raised more of the earth until he rested inside walls on all sides.

“How dare you!” Ryuu’s muffled screams came through the dirt. “There is danger for us all!”

Not everyone could control the earth, the sand, the dirt, but not everyone was earthen, like Zihao.

“Enough!” Elder Gou said, so quietly Zihao almost missed it in his earthen cocoon.

Ryuu almost drowned out the elder’s soft voice. Although quiet, Elder Gou’s voice carried power. The magical power of his words caught Zihao’s attention and he dissolved his defenses. The earth looked undisturbed.

Zihao had scarcely looked up from the ground when Ryuu took this opportunity to punch him. “You fucking dilong!”

Furious, Zihao dropped to his knees, and using his arm, knocked Ryuu’s feet from underneath him. Once Ryuu was down, Zihao called upon the earth once more. As soon as Ryuu struck the ground, dirt spread around his body, dragging him underneath, like a burial. The ground acted like water, seeping over Ryuu and dragging him down into its depths.

“Gods be damned, Zihao!” Ryuu struggled and attempted to get up, but the ground held him firm.

“Stop this!” Elder Gou shouted.

Zihao heard the elder, but didn’t hear him. His vision had rimmed scarlet, and his beast threatened to take over. Blood roared fast through him, causing the familiar pinprick of an approaching shift to wash through him. Heat prickled across his back. No one sucker punched him and got away with it.

“Let your flames fly now, spew your birthright, Ryuu.” Zihao smiled down at him. When Zihao spoke, he heard the growling of his dragon threaded with his human voice.

Ryuu’s face darkened.

“You are no warrior, firebreather.” Zihao’s beast relaxed. “Yet you continue to engage me.” His beast didn’t normally rise at this, for combat had been his training.

Reared a guardian, he’d been trained to protect his charge—even from firebreathers. Part of the hate the others held for dilongs resided in this knowledge—the dilongs could control the earth and as such, were powerful. No place on the planet was free from earth, except maybe the air, but dilongs had ways of preventing flight.

“Zihao!” Elder Gou swung out his arm, and at once Zihao flew back against the wall, pinned by an invisible force several feet above the ground. “I said enough!”

Zihao’s sight returned to human, and as the scarlet receded, he could now see several of the council members huddled near the exit, away from the commotion. They whispered furiously behind their cloaks, exchanging their fears one to another. Zihao looked at the elder, but could not move any part of his body except his eyes. Elder Gou kept his hand extended toward Zihao, and with his other hand, he made a short fist and then a wave. The earth siphoned off Ryuu. Freed, he got slowly to his feet. Dirt covered his council robes, his hair and face. He didn’t bother to shake any of it off. Smoke wisps escaped from his clenched teeth as if he’d held a cigarette in his mouth.

Ryuu stalked to Zihao and got into his face, inches from his nose. “This is not over.”

wake.

With that he marched out of the council room, a stream of smoke wafting in his Elder Gou sighed. “You are all dismissed.”

As if a cage had been opened, the other council members fled, nearly running to be free of the inner chamber. Alone, Zihao wondered what his fate would be. He’d struck and nearly killed a council member. He’d disobeyed the elder. Surely a whipping awaited him. It didn’t matter. His honor had to be protected. Ryuu had it coming for the sucker punch.

Elder Gou walked up to him and dropped his hand. Once he had released him, Zihao crumbled to the ground and slowly stood up. He bowed to the elder.

“My apologies, your great.” A low, throbbing ache crawled into his face, on the left side where Ryuu had punched him. His back joined in the aching due to the slamming against the wall the elder had given him. Great. Just wonderful. Now he wouldn’t be a hundred percent to defend Sonya if necessary. Damn his temper.

“Zihao, you are a great warrior. Yet your temper needs greater discipline.” Elder Gou touched his shoulder, signaling that Zihao could stand.

“Yes, you’re great.” Chee said dryly.

“You were selected to protect my niece, an honor and duty I take very seriously. Now, I need you to do so more than ever,” Elder Gou explained. “There is another clan out there who seeks our demise. The danger is not just for Draco, but for us all. Your father’s murder, the attack on Sonya, Draco’s framing, and several other…incidents, all stem from a single clan, a dragon clan. These incidents were all designed to look like isolated occurrences, but they are not.”

“Why? Why would someone want to attack Sonya or kill my father?” Questions he’d asked himself thousands of times.

“She is the only non-mated female in the Gou tribe. She is the seventh of seven. To be sure, I do not know why they seek her or why they chose to frame Draco rather than kill him or why they did choose to slay your father.” Elder Gou watched him closely. “I do know that your love for Sonya must not endanger this keep. With the Gathering of dragons here, we must be diligent. Conspiring with sirens? Whichever clan it is, they’re desperate.”

Zihao met the elder’s eyes and saw true fear rimming them. “Desperate people have nothing to lose.”

Elder Gou patted his shoulder. “That makes them dangerous, very dangerous indeed.”

Chapter One

A week later

Summer arrived with its usual dry candor for the month of May. Outside the keep, flowers bloomed and brought forth new nourishment and life to the fields surrounding the lake and lined the pathways up to the keep’s entrance. Yet, from her room buried in the depths of the mountain, Sonya Gou gazed down at the flourishing world outside. Her room didn’t face the lake, but outward to the rear of the keep, where in the distance, snow-capped peaks reached for the sky and forest greens bled together in a sea of trees.

“I hate this silly waste of time,” Sonya said in a long-suffering whine. The bitterness of her words left an acidic taste on her tongue. Pressing her full lips together, she avoided saying more. Instead, she closed her arms over her bosom and watched the sun shine brightly over all. Her sentinel’s closeness taunted her hormones with precision. Not far enough from his scent, the soft fall of his black silk hair and the graceful animalistic way he moved. The rest of the cavern, which consumed the top floors of the highest part of the keep, belonged to her clan. Unlike others of her kind, her clan eagerly stood out among the humans. In Chicago, her family had practically become celebrities. The annual Gathering brought them back to their traditional keep here in Alaska. Alliances were formed, clans united via marriage, and celebrations of culture were engaged. Normally, Sonya found it fun, but that had been a long time ago. When she reached mating age, she left Chicago with dread—all the way back to Alaska.

Standing beside her cavern’s gaping entrance, Zihao remained alert. She sighed. Zihao was always on alert.

“It is not a waste of time, Son. The Gathering unites most powerful members and reconnects us to our families.” Zihao’s voice glided across the stuffy air with grace, seduction, and fire.

Sonya turned away from the harsh truth of his words, knowing them to be true but resenting them anyway. The annual reunion gathered multiple clans to form and reinforce alliances, to find mates, to reconnect to family, and to discuss politics. The location varied each year, and this time the Xiongxin clan hosted the massive event. Thousands of dragon shifters would descend on the keep for three whole—gods be damned—days.

“You’re of age this year.”

“Don’t remind me.” She glanced at him from the corners of her eyes to see his reaction. Like usual, he didn’t have one.

Instead he said, “Mating is not a death sentence.” “That remains to be seen.”

“Don’t worry.” “I’m not worried.”

Oh, liar, liar. She battled back the pinprick of tears in her eyes. Zihao read her like an open book. She hated the idea of mating to someone she did not love. Her inner dragon rose at the thought of being pinned to some arrogant shifter, but what could she do? Her clan’s power and prestige made her a trophy for others looking to move up the political ranks of the dragon shifter world. Her father made good use of this knowledge and accepted many gifts from other clans whose sons hoped to be mated to her.

Inside her dragon rumbled angrily, and she blew out a slow sigh to settle her
down.

At the root of her heartbreak lay Zihao. Her pride in her clan stood only to be
challenged by her love for him. Her clan would not allow her to mate him. As an earthen dragon, a dilong, Zihao could only control the earth and when his kind shifted, they tended to resemble garden snakes more than dragons. To quote her father, Zihao’s clan lacked the grace of flight, the fierceness of firebreathing, or the elegance of seadragons. If earthen dragons ranked lower on the list of dragon abilities, Zihao’s family held up the rear, because of the some older family lore, Sonya didn’t care anything about.

“It’s an old-fashioned idea, using women as pawns in a modern-day chess set. We live in a new millennium. I’m an independent woman. We’re long removed from the keep and live in the human world. In this country, women have rights, freedoms…” Sonya turned to look at Zihao. Would her words reach his heart? Damn it. She couldn’t keep her voice from trembling with unshed tears. Sighing, she caught her rant before it grew a tail and wrapped itself around her throat. Even the walls had ears and mouths in the keep. They spoke to her parents about everything that occurred.

And her uncle, Elder Gou.

With a weary glance at Zihao, she realized the irony of the situation. Assigned to be her protector, he hailed from the origin country, China, like most of the dragon shifters’ rulers and the royal court, to which her family had once belonged. Zihao’s flawless English hid his guardian rank. Most earth dragons never spoke at all—only guarded what they’d been ordered to protect or spent decades digging out mountains and hills to create keeps for dragons of a higher caste.

“It may be traditional, but it is our way. It keeps you safe.” “You have kept me safe.”

Hearing the sharpness of her tone, Zihao’s face hardened. Narrow eyes, flat nose, thin but kissable lips—he resembled most of Longwei tribe. His dark, burning eyes flashed, his own dragon rising at the bitterness in her tone, no doubt, but he quickly calmed. Falling into silence, he crossed his arms over his muscular chest and faded back into the cavern’s shadows.

“I’m sorry. I’m just annoyed. It’s a double standard.”

“Shush, Sonya.” Zihao’s voice rumbled in warning just loud enough for her to
hear.

“No, hear me out.” Sonya left the window’s light and ventured farther into the
room. Candles lapped at the quiet. “No one finds it odd that you are here alone with me, a single, 28-year-old woman—in my bedroom. I’m of mating age and you’re a dragon too.”

She stopped directly in front of him. Her chin came to the top of his well-defined adnominal muscles, and shorter than him. Taking a deep breath, Sonya looked up and like always her heart whirled in joy.

Hands on her hips. “See my point?”

“I am your dilong. You are the Gou’s treasure. I am blood sworn to protect you.”

She touched his face, cupping his cheek in her open palm. His new growth scratched her hand.

“Does that mean you wouldn’t lay down with me in that bed?” She inclined her head to her king-size bed draped in sea foam-green linens. It had become her only saving grace in the sparsely furnished space, the one piece of furniture no dragon’s nest went without—a mating bed.

Zihao became more still. Only a year older, he’d been charged with her protection since she’d turned 16. Her older dilong had died during yet another assassination attempt on her life. He’d been Zihao’s father. After the violent loss of his father, he’d been made her protector, her earthen wall, her mountain.

“To do so, Son, would be death,” he croaked. “Zihao…” She tiptoed and tried to kiss him.

He gently held her shoulders and moved her back a few steps before returning to his original position. “We cannot be as we once were.”

“Why?” She bit her lip to stem the sob of regret in her throat.

“Because we are not what we once were. I am your dilong. Nothing more.”

Tears gathered but she did not let them fall. Anger burned them away within seconds. They had been young, but they had been in love. She loved him still. Her parents forbid it, but they loved anyway. When Zihao’s father died, her parents had taken pleasure in making Zihao her bodyguard. They wanted it to be a lifetime of torment and torture—to be so close to what he could not have—all because she and Zihao had defied their orders. Her parents believed themselves to be protecting her, but in fact they had only succeeded in making her resent them more.

A few seconds later, the sharp rush of waters at the cavern’s entrance interrupted her unhappy thoughts.

“Sonya,” came her mother’s powerful call. Saturated with magic, Beline Gou spoke life, plants, and emotions into existence. An old dragon, she had given birth to six male dragons, Sonya being her last and her only female. A dragon of her age wielded magical power taught by time and longevity. Long-locked hair, gray with wisdom, face weathered by the seas of both this world and the nether one, Beline floated across the room to the window. Her coral gowns brushed the carpeted floor. Bare feet peeked from beneath the fabric.

“Mom.” Sonya flopped down on her bed. Zihao remained solid like a statue. Seen but not seen. He could’ve been a piece of the room’s décor—a dresser, a chair, a Zihao.

“Malcom Chee’s father, Marvin, invited us to his nest for dinner. We will visit at six.”

“Malcom Chee’s father, Marvin, invited us to his nest for dinner. We will visit at

Sonya shot up. She towered over her mother at 5’3”, but it did little to empower her.

Sonya tried anyway. “No, I have a prior engagement.”

“This is not open for debate.”

She heard the warning in her mother’s voice, but she didn’t give a damn.

“I’m not a child. Isn’t it enough I’m sacrificing my life, my freedom for you, to
mate with someone I don’t love? You’re not taking away my evening plans.” Sonya huffed and rolled her eyes. Not this time. They’d done enough.

“Sonya…” Zihao warned.

“Silence!” her mother thundered at him.

With the twirl of her finger, she put her gaze back on Sonya. “Your life? Let me tell you about your life. It isn’t worth much too modern man. Another Chicago socialite is just as worthless as paper. You are a Gou—a great daughter of the Elder of Xiongxin, an Azure dragon!”

Sonya rose from the bed to stop her mom’s lecture before she really got going. “Your ideals matter more than my own? For my life? It doesn’t matter that you don’t value my plans, my desires, or my happiness. So why should yours be so damn important to me?”

Whack.

The burning sensation started at once. It flamed across Sonya’s cheek and spread across her face and down her neck, the pain flashing through her. Crumbling to her knees, Sonya knew her mother’s power could be a lot worse. It hurt like all the wallop of the sea had come to bear down on her, but she clenched her teeth to keep from screaming. As an ancient seadragon, her mother could control the oceans and the waves at will.

“How dare you speak in that manner?” Beline Gou seethed.

Sonya couldn’t answer from the anguish pinning her to the earthen floor. “I asked you a question!” her mother roared again.

Out of the corner of Sonya’s eyes, she saw her mother’s hand move. Bracing for the next wave of punishment, Sonya closed her eyes and vowed to be free of this lunacy as soon as she could.

It never came.

When she opened her eyes, she found Zihao standing in front of her, his back to her. A wall of earth stood between Sonya and her mother, raised, no doubt, by him. Her mother could control the sea and oceans, but land belonged to the dilongs.

“What are you doing? Get out of the way, dilong!” Her mother said dilong as if she meant to injure him with it.

“Protecting Sonya as is my blood-sworn duty.” Zihao’s voice held no hint of sarcasm or insult, only purpose.

Looking around him, Sonya spied her mother. The woman appeared to be coming back to her senses. Using your powers against your offspring didn’t seem right, but Sonya knew her opinion on the subject held bias.

“Yes, you are correct. If I harm her further, Malcolm may be displeased and then the entire thing’s off.” Nodding, her mother floated backward, toward the entrance. “You may have tonight, Sonya, but only tonight. Do not tempt me, daughter. You may get the freedom you so eagerly seek.”

With that, she vanished; a crashing of waves echoed as she exited.

The dirt wall shot down and returned to the flooring, as if it hadn’t been disturbed. She felt Zihao’s rough hands on her arm as he helped her to her feet.

Zihao shook his head as he dusted off her dress. “You had to push it.”

Sonya swallowed the remnants of pain. The burning sensation had gone now that its source had left too. How could she make him understand that she loved him and no other dragon would ever do? Ever? Her dragon only glowed and warmed for him—at the sound of his voice, at the thud of his steps, at the glance from his eyes and the sound of her name on his tongue.

She didn’t say any of those things, but instead gave the answer that would invoke the least amount of emotional anguish. “I had to stand my ground.”

“So you did.”

Sonya nodded. “No matter how many breaths I take, I still feel like I’m drowning
here.”

“I would never let that happen,” Zihao vowed.

Chapter Two

That evening

“The night is on fire,” Zihao said as they exited the keep. “Too hot to be out.” “Too hot to be in,” Sonya countered. With her long, dark hair hidden by a scarf,
she should’ve been hot too. Zihao didn’t know why she scampered off through downtown Anchorage dressed in jeans and a blouse and cowboy boots in her attempt to blend into her surroundings. Her parents would kill her if they knew she’d left the keep for this. It seemed they had walked for miles, but she finally came to stop outside of a place called Jay’s.

“Jazz club!”

“Wait!” He’d barely uttered the word before Sonya disappeared into the darkened entrance. He followed closely, worried about her safety among humans. Most people acted kind, but human nature wouldn’t be denied. The last thing he needed was Sonya injured because of something petty and pointless.

He had loved her since forever.

Muted tones and soft notes of what Zihao knew at once wasn’t jazz music poured out from the makeshift band, but country. It interrupted his musings. Hints of whispers punctuated the heavy scents of alcohol, perfumes, and cheese fries. Despite the non-smoking sign, a haze hung over the place. Wooden planks walls smelled of mold, fungus, and polish. The place reeked of old grease and age. Humans couldn’t smell those subtle scents, but as an earth dragon, Zihao could.

Sonya walked ahead of him; the gentle sway of her full hips tugged on his attention and trapped his focus. He balled his hands into fists, feeling his nails bite into his palms and the pain forced him to stop daydreaming. He scouted the surroundings. Sonya had a way of making him weak and snaring his every sense like a fly on flypaper, capturing him with her smile, her voice, her smell, and her touch. Her grin disarmed him, her kindness bespelled him, and her grace had saved him. Saved him from the dark cold of grief that trapped him in the wake of his father’s tragic death.

He remembered her seated behind her parents’ chairs at the funeral. His father’s human form lay on the funeral pyre. Ryuu stood along the dock outside the keep. The lake extended as far as his human eyes could see. Once the trumpets had finished blowing their musical goodbyes, Ryuu, the firebreather, blew a stream of azure flames onto the pyre. Once lit, the roaring flames, encouraged by the kindling and strong winds dipping down into the valley, burned his father to cinders. It nearly broke him. Sonya had placed her hand on his shoulder. So beautiful, kind, and lustful, Sonya did not know what her parents had in store for her, but he knew that he wanted to be with her forever.

He knew without certainty, she needed protecting. And he would do it.

With all his heart.

“Here.” Sonya sat down at a tiny, circular table for two.

Arranged in a semi-circle around the dance floor, the tables were all accompanied by two chairs. On the dance floor a few couples line-danced to the band’s song. Zihao couldn’t smell any other dragon shifters amongst the crowd, but he also noticed that he and Sonya didn’t represent the dominant ethnicity. Dragon shifters typically didn’t tend to care about outward appearances, but more importantly what the dragon’s abilities and clan were.

Zihao had done enough research and lived in the human world long enough to know that he and Sonya did not fit in. Their differences caused some fast whispering and curious glances from some of the patrons. His dragon rose alert and suspicious.

“Oh, excellent, they’re switching to a slow song!” Sonya’s face relaxed in pleasure. The table candle’s soft light cast warmth onto her cheeks and gave her entire visage a glow.

“You look beautiful.” The words had left his lips before he could stop them. “Thank—”

“Can I get you two something to drink?” interrupted a brash waitress.

Zihao shot of the seat and had locked the waitress’s arms into a hold before he realized just what had happened. Her fast movements, had taken him off guard. Zihao had pinned her to table. He couldn’t let anything hurt Son, and the waitress had come at them wrong. Reflex.

“Sir?” The woman’s wide, dark eyeliner, blue eyes, and thin, fear-laced tone made him feel even worse that he had attacked her. His father’s murderer had never been found. The elder’s words came rushing back to the forefront of his mind. The Gathering was upon them.

Zihao quickly released her. “I. Uh, sorry.”

Sonya swiftly added. “Sorry, he’s just home from the war and quick movements make him jumpy.”

The waitress nodded, a little too much, but she swallowed hard. Her face paled and she stepped closer to Sonya. “You ain’t from around here?”

Sonya gave a nervous little laugh. “Tourists.” She eyed them. “Uh, huh. Drinks?”

“I’d like a glass of chardonnay.”

Zihao shook his head when the waitress looked in his direction. The poor woman couldn’t bring herself to actually make eye contact with him, though the color had come back into her face. He forced a smile to help her relax, but it only seemed to frighten the woman more. She squeaked at his attempt to smile, and walked to the other side of Sonya, out of his reach.

“Uh, listen, lady, we don’t have chardonnay. We got beer, soda, and bottled water.”

“Bottled water,” Zihao answered.

His voice caused the waitress to jump, and she used the pad to protect her chest. Zihao didn’t like how the place smelled. The environment made him jumpy. He didn’t want Sonya partaking of anything not already sealed before it entered the place. He generally liked Anchorage, but found humans not to be as accepting of his kind as his
kind seemed to be of them. Overall, he liked very few people. Ryuu’s wife, Dr. Brown and those like her who helped the clans and who practiced tolerance, sure, but very few others.

“Z!” Sonya gaped at him. She nodded at the waitress, gave her a reassuring grin, and then leaned close to him. With her telepathy, she reached out to him.

You don’t like this place, do you?

No. It does not smell safe. It does not look safe. We should go.

There you go again. Always on alert. Just once I’d like for you to let go with me. We’re alone here. You and me, like always.

Zihao broke the connection, shutting down the link between them. He knew that line of thinking, and he knew how his body responded to it. Especially when she wanted him like this. They’d been very close to breaking his vow, his blood bond, when alone together. He preferred public places, because it gave him more opportunity to be distracted, to take out his frustrated rage on others, if necessary.

“Oh, hell, yeah! It’s Dolly Parton’s ‘I Will Always Love You!’ Come on!” She snatched his hand and jerked him to the dance floor.

“No! Son!” He tried to hold her back, but she tugged harder.

“I really like the Whitney Houston version better, but this one is good too. The Bodyguard is such a good movie…”

Sonya hadn’t heard a word. Too late to use telepathy. Zihao shut his mouth as she dragged him onto the dance floor. The band had taken a break, and in the interim, they played music from the jukebox. If he didn’t do something to stop the people around them from eyeing them suspiciously, he’d just draw more attention to them. After the incident with the waitress, he needed to blend in because now he and Son really stood out. When pegs stuck out, humans liked to pound them back into place.

Not only humans.

He conceded that point to his inner self as he swept Sonya into his arms and whirled her about in time to the slow, seductive grind of the mournful song. The overall mood of the music leaned toward mournful, but he felt anything but. Pressed close to
him, Sonya smell like lavender and expensive perfume. Her blouse’s soft fabric hugged her curves, showed off the taut body underneath. Dragon shifters’ metabolisms kept them lean, but somehow Sonya managed not to be a stick figure. Real, dangerous, and fine curves made her very attractive to a lot of different species’ males.

Growling, he held her protectively. “Oh, that’s nice…” Sonya laughed.

For the briefest of moments, Zihao let himself feel. Sonya put her head against him and hugged his waist tightly. In his arms like this, Zihao felt Sonya belonged there. As if they’d been molded from the earthen clay as one and separated by the hands of fate, only to be reassembled like this—as one whole.

He could feel her smile against him and it made him grin too.

Almost instinctively, he dropped the grin and took in the room. No one appeared to be paying them much attention now; their novelty had faded. Outside the windows revealed only dark occasionally illuminated by streetlights and vehicles’ beams. He wanted to return to the keep, but when he glanced down at Sonya, nestled against him, her eyes closed, her lips split into an ear-to-ear smile, he hesitated. So few moments brought her any pleasure now that she had reached her mating age.

I can feel your breathing pick up. What’s wrong? Sonya’s thoughts interrupted his musings.

You are safe.

Of course I’m safe. I’m with you. That’s not what I asked. What’s wrong?

Zihao heard the applause as the song came to a close. People started moving off the dance floor. When Sonya let go of him, a large man gone to seed, with a bulging, overlapping belly and hairy forearms, slammed into her with such force she stumbled and fell with an “oomph!”

Zihao’s hands moved, as if with a mind of their own. He caught the rude, offensive man by the throat and hoisted him up off the ground. With his dragon rising, Zihao took the man and with one hand slammed him down to the floor beside Sonya. Gurgling and spurting, the man clawed at his throat, trying to make Zihao release him,
but the room had been stained scarlet by the rise of Zihao’s dragon. Heat sprouted across Zihao’s skin, rushing with the prickle of an approaching shift. The man’s eyes bulged and drool raced down the flabby folds of his face.

“Do not ever touch Sonya Gou!” Zihao heard the sound of his dragon’s voice threaded with his human one. Coarse, animalistic, base. It boomed above the music, which as a result had come to a screeching halt. Screams, crying, and the cocking of a gun caught his attention. Zihao let go, and the wall of a man pushed himself up to a sitting position, coughing and rubbing his throat.

“Zihao!” Sonya screamed.

He heard the bullet long before it reached him, and he dodged it by dropping to the floor. Again, his mind on autopilot, he pulled out two Ninja stars from his belt and whirled them at the source of the shot. At the bar, a young man no older than Sonya dropped the gun with a clatter to the polished wood surface, his hands up above his head. The stars had landed within inches of his face, embedded in the wooden shelves behind him.

“Anyone else want to test me today?” Zihao growled.

A bunch of humans had gathered by the band, but he couldn’t really be sure. All had been dipped in red, and his vision threatened to drop further into infrared mode where all he would be able to see were points of heat. Then he would shift into his full dragon and lay waste to the entire little dive.

It would be what they deserved for mistreating Sonya.

At the thought of her name, he felt her hand on his neck. “I’m all right.

Calm. Soft. Heaven. His dragon bucked in disagreement to her comments that all was well. It caused Zihao snatch away from her.

She swallowed so hard he could hear it and sucked her teeth. “Don’t be that way,” she whispered. “I’m fine. Calm yourself. Remember the treaty.”

“Get out. We don’t like your kind here!” someone shouted from the throng. “What kind would that be?” Sonya shouted back, whipping around to face them
so fast, her hair hit her in the mouth. “You are right out of a damn movie scene cliché!”

Nothing. Zihao eyed the crowd of cowards, but no one would step out and approach them.

But they would send a beer bottle sailing over. It crashed at Sonya’s feet. “Figures. You don’t have enough range. Here, let me show you how it’s done!”

Sonya grabbed an abandoned bottle from a neighboring table and sent it like a fastball. It smashed above the band, showering shards onto the some of the people below. Most fell directly into a trashcan.

Cowering for cover, the people all appeared confused and unsure. Or maybe those expressions were fear. He had no idea, but the brave person who heckled them said no more.

“Uh oh,” Zihao said, his dragon settling back down.

The whirling of lights appeared and sirens echoed. The police had come to settle the disturbance, but Zihao didn’t think the settlement would swing their way. He scooped Sonya into his arms as she was still telling the establishment patrons about themselves and their bigotry.

Time to go, Son.

With the room still partially washed in red, Zihao had a hard time determining the route to the back exits. So he made his own. With a tap of his foot, the flooring cracked open and a hole appeared in the earth. He jumped in, carrying Sonya with him. She pressed her face against his chest and held her breath as they’d done many times before when traveling underground. The dark earth covered them and he shifted into dragon form, a much larger body to move the dirt and tunnel out. He moved fast because Sonya could only hold her breath for so long. As a seadragon, she had very large lungs capable of holding her breath for a while, even in her human form, but he didn’t like to risk it.

Give me a few minutes more. I think we’ve avoided the street and other pavements. Okay, just hurry up! There’s dirt in my hair. You already know how much I hate that.

He smiled, and with a heaving shove, pushed through the top layer of earth. Hoisting Sonya onto his shoulders, he pushed her out into the air and then shifted back into his human self. When he crawled out of the hole, he found only darkness.

“Where are we?” Sonya asked.

Zihao looked around and then up at the sky. “Judging by the constellations, we’re about a mile outside of town, north.”

“Oh, damn it. Mother’s going to have a fit. It’s already late and it’s going to take us even longer to get back to the keep. We left Pax, Hax, and the helicopter in Anchorage.”

Zihao sat down on the grass, hearing her voice, but not able to see her face in the deep dark. The twin dragons, Pax and Hax, probably had bar-crawled across the entire city. He closed his eyes and listened to the annoyance in her tone and her feet stomping around on the grass. He wasn’t sure where they’d ended up, but it seemed like a park of sorts.

It brought back memories of the times they used to run away to play in the Alaskan wilderness. There wasn’t a time when Zihao didn’t love Sonya. She had always lingered in his outside circle while growing up in the keep, but she never infiltrated his inner group. At times, he’d been thankful for it; other times not so much. He’d long wanted to tell her, but the pressure to confess his feelings had proved to be a difficult thing when they were kids. One of the downfalls of being a dragon—telepathy. Even though he hadn’t communicated it to her, they had managed to acknowledge their chemistry, their connectedness when they had learned enough words to be able to describe it—at fourteen.

Looking back, Zihao considered himself fortunate. His father adored Sonya and, as her bodyguard, took her protection seriously. Nevertheless, he had managed to pair his son with her at all events. Even when there had to be separation between them due to social positions at dragon events, he found a way to make eye contact with her or talk to her. The memories still made Zihao smile and warmed his heart.

Yet his father’s passing had changed all that. It seemed as though Sonya’s parents and Elder Gou had taken notice of his and Sonya’s chemistry, whispers about their friendship, and budding love. It didn’t take her mother long to turn the innocence of love into a painful reminder of the distribution of power within the dragon society.

Just then the wind shifted, sending Sonya’s scent directly into his nostrils. His phallus roused, stirred by how wonderful she smelled, and the memory of how wonderful she felt in his embrace. He adjusted what was left of his pants to ease the pressure on his cock. It failed. Not for nothing, he’d become used to the condition. Guarding Sonya kept him teetering on the brink of desire to the point it became painful, twisting his pain and pleasure into one hard knot of yearning.

Wincing at the memory, Zihao pushed it away and put his attention back on the current task. Protecting Sonya. He scanned the area. Farther away, he saw the yellow glow of streetlights and the dark pavement that looked like the outer loop of some walking path. Sonya switched on a flashlight, a tiny one she kept in her purse. She tried dusting off her jeans, but gave up as puffs of dirt kept rising at her actions.

“Shit. Your clothes.” Her eyes grew round as she took in his outfit.

Or lack thereof. His shift had destroyed his clothing, and he stood in front of her without much covering. He watched her look him over, and she came closer to him. She reached into her oversized purse and pulled out a rolled-up pair of sweat pants and a T- shirt. Over the years, they’d learned to carry an extra outfit for Zihao on the off chance he shifted.

Like tonight.

“Here you go,” she said, her voice full of heat. Her fingers brushed his knuckles and lingered. “Z…”

So close to the mating heat, Sonya could end up mated to anyone. Hell, no. She could end up mated to him. They had to be careful. Not that it was a bad thing, being mated to him, but his blood oath had been to protect her. Too close to be mated to her, but he longed to be hers. . He’d be emotionally comprised. Still, Zihao’s inner dragon
rose at the husk in her voice and uncoiled at the scent of her arousal. Throat closing with longing, he hastily took the clothes from her.

Zihao croaked out a hoarse, “Thank you.”

Bare feet didn’t bother him. Dragon shifting demolished shoes. He turned his back to Sonya and removed the tattered remnants of fabric. He’d shifted out of the body-skimming button-down shirt and jeans. He’d done so many times before, and stood before her nude just like now. Zihao could feel her eyes on him anyway. Nudity didn’t usually bother shifters, but somehow knowing she watched him made his cock hard all over again. Damn it. She’d given him sweatpants. Now there would be no hiding his horniness.

“Can you kill the flashlight?” In the darkness, she wouldn’t be able to see his hard-on.

“Sure.” She sounded much too close. Closer than she’d been moments before.

Her fingers lightly fluttered along his nude back. Nails raked across his spine and sent a sheet of pleasure across his skin. Then her palms glided in slow circles across his muscles. He moaned, his head dropping back. He should tell her to stop, but when she wrapped her arms around his waist, all logical thoughts winked out.

“Son…”

She kissed his back and his cock bobbed in gratitude. Her hands moved up his abdomen and up to his pectorals. Without a shirt, his torso remained open to her manipulations. With each kiss her feather-soft lips planted onto his hot flesh, his cock hardened more. Her nails raked gently across his nipples, and he groaned deep in his throat. Unable to stop himself, he turned around and found her in the dark. Clutching her hard to him, he bent his head down and claimed her mouth. Tasting her sent his dragon forward. His tongue explored her and deepened the kiss. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back with equal intensity. Heat prickled across him. When he broke the kiss, Sonya whimpered, “Z, please…”

She ground against his throbbing dick, humping him. It took all he could to push her back. “No, Sonya. You’re so close. The heat is on you. Stop.”

“I don’t want to stop. I want you.” She lunged for him and they fell to the ground. In the dark, they tussled.

Zihao rolled on top of her in the dark and, securing her hands, pressed her to the ground. With her hips, she rolled her need up to his cock and pressed against him. Immense pleasure shot through him, and for a second Zihao thought if she felt this nice with their clothes on, once mated, he and Sonya would explode.

Her panting finally subsided after what seemed like forever. He dropped her down and kissed her lips, softly and quickly. “I’m sorry.”

Sonya returned his kiss, the hint of fire behind it—restrained.

“So, you want to walk to the park? We can find the name of the park and then you can call the twins to come and get us from there.”

He climbed off her. “I hear a helicopter.”

“Where are they going to land the helicopter? On the dog run?” Sonya sounded annoyed.

He didn’t blame her. Unsatisfied and sexually frustrated, they made an annoyed pair. Still, he’d rather have her irritated than dead. Somehow, this thought made him grin. Sonya flipped on her flashlight, cocked her hip, and put her hands on those luscious curves. Even dusty from head to toe, she still pushed at his hard parts. Once she touched him, all those parts crumbled. He couldn’t stop thinking about the way she felt in his arms, like he’d been crafted just to cradle her. “Walk with me into the light and away from this darkness Zihao held his hand out to her. She had her cell phone in her hand. The LCD screen illuminated her face temporarily before falling dark again. In that splash of light, he saw her face brighten, but not just from the light. She made her way to him and took his hand.

Chapter Three

“I’m not going down for this one,” Pax growled. Apparently his inner dragon had awoken in annoyance. It wrenched Sonya from her musings. The helicopter had landed and the twins had already gotten out. The two men stalked across the short field toward her and Zihao. Their body language communicated loud and clear their displeasure at having to wait for her or search for her.

Sonya’s arms crossed over her chest and her face carried pure annoyance, too. She didn’t like them approaching her in this manner. None of what had happened tonight had been her fault or Zihao’s. Sure, her dragon protected her and they could’ve
just left when things got ugly…

Okay, so it was their fault, but Hax and Pax didn’t know that. As an adult, she should’ve been able to do what she wanted without reproach from anyone, especially Hax and Pax who hadn’t even reached mating age yet.

Not that the twins had much time to wait. Tall, just over six feet, with short, straight ebony hair and lithe bodies, the mirror images of each other gave everyone a hard time discerning who was who. Ryuu could tell, but he would never reveal how he knew which was Hax and which one was Pax. The pair struck an image and often caused women to whisper furiously when they walked through the dining cave. Sonya shook her head. No doubt some of the females from the European tribes would seek the pair to mate. Not to mention the other women in the keep. Several tribes intermarried. Tonight, the twins wore dual-blend jackets, dark jeans, and black combat boots. Inky turtlenecks could be seen flashing above their jackets’ collars, and she smirked. One wore blue, the other black, but the colors were so dark, anyone could mistake one for the other—just like the twins.

“You picked a great place to land,” Hax shouted, his hands on his hips. Zihao quirked an eyebrow. This could get interesting.

Sonya glared at him. Don’t you start, Z.

“Pax. Hax. Thank you for getting here so fast.” Sonya said out loud, turning to face the two shifters. It hadn’t been their fault she had taken a detour to the outskirts of Anchorage. She didn’t need to force her angst off on them, though it seemed like that was exactly what they were going to do.

“Twins.” Zihao waved, standing directly behind her. She felt his warm breath on her ear.

The older twin—Hax—waved him off before rounding on Sonya.

“We’ve been scouring the area for you for hours. The Elder demands we bring you back, like now.”

“He is not pleased and you can guess your parents aren’t either,” Hax added in nearly the same tone of voice as his twin. “We won’t be taking the blame for you missing your curfew.”

Maybe it was their attitude, or the way they acted like it had been all her fault, but the twins’ words struck her wrong. Her dragon roused, growling in displeasure. Her vision flushed as her beast rose up in defense. Hell. No. “And yet no one bothered to call my cell phone. Or text. How about that?” Sonya remarked and put one hand on her curvaceous hip, fighting back the flush of scarlet rimming the perimeter of her version—shifting now wouldn’t do. “You were so worried about me. I see. No one even sent me a telepathic message. Or Zihao. Great. You’re both so damn worried. You two weren’t searching for me hours. You two were clothes shopping or sunbathing, but you weren’t searching.”

Silence.

Zihao walked around to stand beside her. Sonya didn’t release a breath, but held it. She’d guessed at what the twins had actually been doing, but she knew for certain they hadn’t been worried or searching for her, no matter what they told her family. Both men crossed their arms and stared at the ground, but neither would meet her eyes. “Have some honor.” She spat, forcing her dragon to settle down. Judging by the
men’s faces, they knew she’d been right about their lack of effort. Still, tension spread
between them, a heavy blanket of silence. She refused to break it first, for she’d had the last say. No. She wouldn’t back down.

Zihao acted like a statue, the way he behaved when her parents or someone else came around. She did enjoy it when he became so focused, super still, because it meant he was focused on protecting her. He took it seriously, and for that, she would always be thankful.

Hax started to laugh, but it didn’t contain any humor. “Right. I guess we’ll stand before the Elder’s fire after all. Know this, Sonya—we won’t be flying you any more after this little stunt. We could’ve called, I give you that, but you could’ve done the same.”

“It won’t just be the fire, but her mother’s ocean,” Pax added, shaking his head, his mouth a slash of fury. “We won’t be flying you out again. You hear?”

“Let’s be real, boys. You will do whatever my mother and uncle tell you to do.” Sonya strutted to the helicopter without a look back at the two of them. “I’m ready to go.”

She tossed the last back over her shoulder. To be true, the twins weren’t servants, but if the Elder told them to do a task, they had to comply. Nevertheless, she knew the fear the twins spoke of was real. Her parents could be plenty scary, but her uncle, the Elder Gou, was legendary. They wrote stories about his fury and powers to tell younglings to make them behave. She knew she’d pushed it too far tonight, but she hadn’t expected the bigotry parade to kick off at that little club. Still, the effect on everyone ended up the same—resentment and anger.

Both emotions stained the twins’ faces. Zihao touched her shoulder as he started for the helicopter. She’d stopped abruptly, thinking about the anger and fury that waited at the keep. Most dragons found solace in the keep, huddled into piles of bodies sleeping together for warmth and comfort. Gathered together each found empathy and understanding in their clan and their mates. Not so for Sonya. Her family’s status kept her outside of people’s trust. Much like the twins, they saw her as only a non-descript person—Elder Gou’s niece, Beline Gou’s daughter, but not as an entity to herself.

Once she’d climbed inside the helicopter, she heard Pax say to Zihao with his face flushed, “I don’t envy you being her bodyguard. You unlucky bastard.”

“It’s my pleasure to be by Sonya’s side,” Zihao replied. “Yeah. Sure it is.” Hax shook his head. “Sure. It. Is.”

Sonya caught Pax’s eyes as he got into the front co-pilot seat. He dropped the gaze quickly—perhaps he knew she’d heard him. They didn’t know Zihao meant his words. The twins didn’t know much of anything about her, except she came from a powerful lineage. She didn’t expect them to understand the role Zihao played in her life. They only saw the outside of the roles earth dragons played in the clan and draconian society. Both the twin dragons had been born with the abilities the clan treasured—wings. Flight hadn’t originally been a part of their clan. The great Azure Chinese dragon had been a wingless but powerful dragon. For many millennia, they could not fly. Forever grounded, they could take to the sea with great regularity or infiltrate the earth, but the sky remained out of their reach. The ability to fly had only come after they mated with those from the European clans, and it still didn’t happen frequently.

Hax climbed into the helicopter and the twins readied the cockpit to get underway. Pax searched Zihao’s face before shrugging and turning back. Hax got out and closed the doors while Pax set about starting the helicopter. The roar of the blades drowned out any further attempts to talk aloud. In moments, they lifted off the ground and into the velvety night sky.

Sonya put on her noise-canceling headphones and sat behind Pax. She had a microphone so she could talk to them if she wanted. But she didn’t really want to do so. Her mind shifted to the trouble that waited back at the keep. What would they have in store for her tonight? A lecture wouldn’t send the message they wanted to promote— you don’t disobey the elder or the council.

Judging by your tight-lipped expression, you’re not in the mood to talk. Zihao’s words whispered into her mind.

She glanced over to him, but he stared straight ahead. Aware of the twins’ ever- listening ears, Zihao pretend not to be engaging her in conversation. They could block out other telepathy and mental eavesdropping but it took control and a lot of effort.

You know how Mom is when she’s angry. She won’t be pleased and moreover, she will probably blame you. I’m sure the police reports have reached the keep too.

Do not worry, Son. I will not let anything happen to you.

I know, but I grow wearier of her tight hold. Tomorrow, I’m to meet with the others to look at finding a mate. Even in telepathy, Sonya’s despair must have rung through because he winced. He rubbed his face and folded his arms over his chest.

I had fun tonight, and despite the dirt and grass stains, you’re still beautiful. Zihao shifted in his seat beside her. She could make out the outline of his cock against his sweats—a partial hard-on. It made her cheek warm, but she put her gaze back on the seat in front of her as the copter buoyed over the Alaskan landscape. Dark sections stretched out in front of them, and she had no idea how the twins navigated, but it looked as bleak as she felt about going to her mother’s wrath.

Do not laugh. You caused this—again. Zihao cleared his throat, but the drone of the helicopter drowned it out.

Just like the old days, huh? She smiled at him as the rush of memories flooded through her. How close had she just come to mating with him? The heated session, kissing and rubbing their bodies together, reminded her of the old days. He always ended up with a severe case of blue balls and she always returned home with wet, sopping panties. Her mother complained about the need to keep buying new ones.

Sonya laughed.

“Yes,” he said out loud, his voice cracking.

Pax turned around, and removed his headphone from his ear. “What’s that?” “Nothing.” Zihao waved him off and adjusted his position in the seat in an
attempt to ease the pressure.

Pax shook his head and with a role of his eyes turned back around, ignoring them again. He said something to his brother, and Hax shook his head too. They wore matching grim expressions.

Sonya burst out laughing again at the look of Pax’s furious face and at Zihao’s attempt to make sure he didn’t give away his partial hard-on. Somehow, he always managed to make her laugh, make her smile and relax. She could not see her life without him in it. He’d always been with her—or so it had seemed. Sobering at the idea that tomorrow her family planned to mate her to Malcolm Chee, Sonya settled back into her seat, all the merriment spilled out of her once more.

Do not worry. I am with you.

What will you do when I am mated to another? You can’t be with me then.

Zihao didn’t reply and she saw him close himself off. Folded arms, eyes closed, and his lips pressed tightly together. He did that when he shut out the world. She couldn’t help the sharp edge of her words, but truth wasn’t always warm and fuzzy.

Sonya looked out her window and sighed.

Chapter Four

Down through winding tunnels to his den, Zihao walked slowly behind Sonya, who was flanked on either side by her parents and her uncle, the great Elder Gou. Now, after he’d come so close to mating with her, he felt more tethered to her than before. Ahead, each tunnel split and fed into other sections of the keep. The corridors held thick aromas of food and sex as matings and feasting unraveled. The Gathering had begun, and they’d missed important events tonight. Ahead their den lay in partial darkness, though somewhere in the deep bowels of the keep, babies cried and the thud, thud, thud of a bedframe ricocheted off the smooth earthen walls.

When they reached the base of the upper section of the keep, scores of cavernous den entrances towered above them. The Gous’ den had several entryways. Winged dragons kept the higher dens, and non-winged dragons had dens closer to the ground. The Gous held a larger den than most, and it had multiple levels.

They entered, pushing the thick curtains aside. They entered the cave at the lower level, but the manner in which the rooms had been carved provided a spiral path to the upper levels. Of course, the top floor—Sonya’s bedroom—could also be reached by flying directly into the upper entrance. One would need wings for that, and neither Sonya nor Zihao had those. Nor did her father, a seadragon like her mother. Sonya too had been born a seadragon. At the bottom floor, the main room’s rug stretched outward through the center section of the ground. Someone had lit the candles and oil lanterns. A warm glow filtered through the living space, but Sonya still appeared cold. She hugged herself.

No one spoke aloud, but Zihao knew Sonya might have been bombarded by a telepathic lecture and reprimand from her parents. Sonya’s shoulders hunched as she became more and more oppressed by her parents’ expectations.

Zihao sighed. Powerless. He wanted to interrupt, to push them aside and take her away from the keep, from the pressure, from…everything. His dragon agreed.

“Sit, Sonya,” her father ordered. The same height as his wife, Cateo made up in presence what he lacked in stature. Her father still carried lean muscle on his body. He seemed unaffected by age, despite his eighty-plus years. He wore an ebony sweater and matching slacks. Like most of their kind, his feet were bare inside the cave.

“Father…” Sonya started.

“Sit!” her father commanded with an added nod to the space opposite his own. Sonya did so. “Let me explain…”

“No, no, not a word.” Cateo sat on the floor beside his wife.

Zihao took his place behind Sonya. He would not let any harm come to her— even from them. Zihao bit the inside of his jaw to keep from lashing out at how her father’s smug and arrogant tone made her flinch. He watched Sonya clutch her hands into fists in an attempt to reel in her rising anger. Elder Gou remained standing, regal and seemingly filling the entire copious space. He stroked his long, ivory goatee. Bushy eyebrows hung like fat caterpillars above dark, intense eyes.

“The twins said they did not know your whereabouts. That you had stopped replying to their telepathic message,” Elder Gou said.

“That’s not true. They never sent me any message, telepathic or otherwise!” The hurt inside her seemed to have tumbled out with the words, because he could hear her anguish. Zihao felt his own hands close in anger. “Zihao was with me. I was safe.”

“You’re a child, and you had a curfew.” Her mother smirked. “I am no child.” Her voice quivered.

“You are of mating age, but not mated,” Beline said with a shrug. “By our standards, a child, regardless of your age.”

Elder Gou raised his hand calmly and fixed Beline with a look. “Sonya, we need to discuss your future.”

“Good, because I have a few ideas for my future.” Sonya stood and pushed her hair out of her face. With her expression set on stern, she set her jaw. While the cavern’s ceilings were large enough for a dragon to shift, he didn’t think Sonya wanted to battle it out with her family in any form.

“You cannot go anywhere. Assassins await to end your life.” Elder Gou gestured to the entrance.

Sonya growled from deep in her throat. “I don’t believe you. Besides, the council doesn’t own me. They don’t question any of the other members of this clan who scatter out into the human populated world. We don’t wear tracking beacons. What? Are we truly going to behave like animals now?”

“Silence!” Cateo shot off the ground, but before he could strike Sonya, Zihao moved so swiftly her father’s blow landed squarely on his chest—and bounced off. For all his power, Cateo failed to dislodge Zihao from his now protective stance in front of Sonya. Her father stumbled backward several times before regaining his footing.

Zihao’s own dragon rose, his vision painted scarlet with his rage. He didn’t even have to speak as the cold prickle of the change flashed across his body. Damn it. He hadn’t wanted to shift, but his beast overrode his logic nonetheless.

“Stop!” Elder Gou commanded.

Too late. Zihao fell to all fours and shifted. Once in full dragon mode, he felt her hand on his shoulder.

Zihao wrapped his tail around Sonya. No one would make her cry or hurt her.

No one. Not even the Elder of the Xiongxin clan.

Everyone shouted and spoke at once.

“Silence!” Elder Gou barked, his eyes scarlet and his skin flushed. Both the Gous sat back down, but begrudgingly so. Zihao’s eyes had dipped into the red and could perceive only heat signatures. He backed up farther and pulled Sonya closer with his tail.

“What is it, Zihao? Her guardian is on alert. We all should be.” Elder Gou raised a hand to silence everyone.

Sonya didn’t know what the hell had happened, but she struggled to keep her own dragon from shifting in the now-tight den. She stroked Zihao’s tail, feeling his scales beneath her palms. It reminded her that this was real and not some horrible
nightmare conjured by a really bad meal. Every inch of her wanted to strangle the life out of them all, but above all her beast wanted to rise and shift. She couldn’t let that happen. Not with Zihao already in his dragon form.

Elder Gou turned to her. “Your dilong is very protective.” “That is what he’s trained to do.”

“He must feel you are in great danger, for he is in his dragon self.” Elder Gou did not move or alter his tone. “Your antics with the humans earlier today nearly cost not only this keep’s cordial status with the locals, but also caused a complaint to be submitted to the United Draconian Empire. Not to mention the shame you wrought on your parents and the Gou line.”

Sonya swore. “I was attacked. If it wasn’t for Zihao I could’ve been killed. No one seems to care at all about that.”

“You shouldn’t have been out in the first place,” her mother spat.

“I had permission, remember, Mom?” Sonya replied, her words holding the same level of anger and bitterness.

“Irrelevant. The general public now sees us as a threat. So, in the meantime, I forbid you leave the keep.” Her father finished his declaration with a nod.

Sonya gaped at her uncle, then her father. Forbidden to leave the keep. “You can’t be serious.”

Her mother gave her a blank glare.

Okay, so she’s serious. “The keep won’t be my prison.” “No, but you won’t be leaving,” her father added. “For how long?”

“Until after the Gathering,” her mother explained and leaned back. “Though honestly, I hope you’ll be mated by then.”

Elder Gou nodded. “Yes, you could mate.” Zihao growled at that comment.

“I will be mated, but not to Malcolm Chee.” Sonya patted his tail.

“I see you’re upset. This close to your mating age, you cannot be allowed to be with human populations.” Her father stood and reached for her mother’s hand.

“Or what?” Sonya asked, hands resting on her hips.

“We don’t want you mated to a human,” her mother explained with a tsk.

“I have a mate option. One I like!” Sonya put her hands on him, and made sure to look her father in the eyes. Difficult work, but she had to let her father get the point. She wasn’t going to be anyone’s messenger or pushover any more. “One. I. Like.”

He snorted, stroking his well-trimmed beard. “Like hell you do.” “I do!” Sonya exclaimed. “Z will be my mate.”

Her father shrugged as if her happiness didn’t matter. Typical. “This isn’t about your wants, Sonya. This is about what’s best for the clan.”

Beline rose from the floor. “As I have taught you often. No Gou will mate with a dilong.”

The community reigned above all. She’d heard that since her youth, but never had the sacrifice been in such complete conflict to her own needs. “Take one for the team, is that it?”

“Sonya…” Her father’s eyes held warning, but at this point, she didn’t care. “You test the length of my patience,” her mother rumbled.

“How is that different from any other day?” The large grin on her face felt cold and detached. The walls of her father’s den appeared to be closing in on her. Sonya swore. Any place was better than here. “Come on, Z.”

“I have not dismissed you.” Her father stood also. “I know.”

Elder Gou cleared his throat. “Little sun… There are other factors at play here.”

She froze. He came closer to her. His prying and penetrating eyes probed into her. She flinched, blinked, and tried to look away.

You are hiding, little sun. Elder Gou’s quiet voice spoke within her mind. He’d called her little sun when she was a youngling. Forever ancient, the elder liked her nickname of Son, but thought she shined bright, like the sun.

I’m entitled to my privacy.

There is great trouble brewing. Keep your guardian close. No recklessness.

“I see,” Sonya whispered aloud.

Both her parents turned back to her. They’d made their way toward the rear recesses of the den. At her words, they paused. Beline came back into the great room. Concern stained her weathered face. She glanced once back at her husband and then to them. “The meeting is on for tomorrow.”

Elder Gou did not look in her direction, but instead held Sonya’s determined stare.

I love Zihao. I will not be mated to another.

That does cause a problem, since the dilong has taken a blood oath not to mate. He loves me. I know it. My dragon and his are destined.

Elder Gou stroked his beard. It probably was her imagination, but she thought
she saw a small smile ghost his lips. “I see, little sun. You have illuminated much.”

What you propose is dangerous. Elder Gou spoke to her as he started for the exit.

Dilongs have their place.

Sonya tossed back her hair back and leveled her gaze at her uncle. Yes. His place is next to me.

At that moment a rush of shouts and screams punctured the silence and bowled over her. A splinter rippled through her universe like an unfurling fury. Earth and shards of rock slammed her against the wall, spraying heartache and pain. Sonya couldn’t think—her ears rang. Discombobulated, she struggled to stand, but she couldn’t get her balance. In front of her, Zihao growled and shook his head. He’d leapt in front of her, taking the brunt of the impact. Dazed, her head throbbing like a sledgehammer, the pain worked on her temples. She touched her face, and her fingers came away wet. She winced. Hints of copper flooded her mouth, and she wiped away blood from her lips. A haze of smoke caused by debris filled the den. Everything seemed to shift, and her dragon rose.

Zihao struggled to a standing position. Still dragon, he turned to face her. He searched the cavern, but how he could see anything, she didn’t know. A rush of adrenaline roared through her, making her blood pound in her ears. Through squinting eyes, she peered at Zihao. His body a shield, he blew out a hard snort. Her heart lunged forward as the cold fingers of fear squeezed.

“Z?” she uttered a breath before another explosion rippled through the keep. Sonya heard more screams.

Before she faded to black, she wondered if one of those terrified shrieks belonged to her.

Chapter Five

Pushing off with his feet, Zihao powered through what was left of the outer wall of the Gou’s den. Such a proud clan—but more importantly, powerful—the Gous wouldn’t allow Sonya to marry for love. None of the other children had been allowed to do so, which was why the Gous held so much political clout. Even those married to humans had been strategic movements on a well-developed chessboard. How then did Malcolm Chee’s family figure into the Gou’s new plans for power? What had the elder said of Sonya? She was the seventh of seven—the lone female.

The attack had nothing to do with Sonya. Zihao growled. He’d been a fool. A damn fool. Blinded by his own selfishness and narrow focus. The entire clan could’ve been destroyed.

Or not. Other clans had taken up residence in the keep because of The Gathering. The attacks could be between others. Yet he didn’t believe it. The council members had been clear. A dedicated faction had targeted the Xiongxin clan.

Son, come on! Damn his dragon self. So large, he lacked the finesse to maneuver through the debris without creating more, Zihao crashed into piles of rock and broken furniture. The formerly precisely crafted walls and ceiling had been destroyed and now crunched beneath his passive feet. Unstable, the den could completely collapse. He had to get her out of here. When he gazed back, he saw her heat signature fluctuate. Dust covered everything and moans bubbled into the silence. The charred stench of death and blood rolled in from the smoke-infested tunnels.

From outside the den in the corridor, voices grew closer, and muffled screams drowned them out seconds later. He couldn’t see and so he gritted his teeth. Focus. Rivulets of sweat raced across his flesh. Seconds swept by as his scarlet vision receded, and the edges of his human vision returned. Once back in human form, he blinked and staggered. Pain shot through him, and he grimaced at the nasty gash across his abdomen. It leaked blood, but had been smaller on his dragon body. Damn it. His beast healed him faster, but as a man, his injuries became more pronounced.

Pushing the pain aside, he scanned the carnage. He didn’t see the Gous or the elder, but he couldn’t wait to dig them out or go hunting for them. Scrambling over the rocks and scattered destruction, he wrestled Sonya into his arms from the spray of rock and earth. Selfish? Yes. Narrowly focused? Absolutely.

Sonya’s head lolled to his chest. Unconscious.

“Hey! Over here! This way!” came a male voice, the English accented.

He scurried through one of the holes blown through the great room. The Gous’ den seemed to be the target. Cries, wails, and roars rent the once tranquil environment of the Alaskan keep.

“Check in there!” shouted another voice.

The accent came from England. Zihao had started away from the still rumbling violence with Sonya in his arms. As furiously as his dragon rumbled inside him, his duty was to take care of her. He hurried through the impromptu exit, propelled by adrenaline and rage. The wilderness awaited. Until he knew who he could trust, he couldn’t stand around. Explosions continued to erupt within the depths of the keep.

Maybe it wasn’t just about the Gous. He raced toward the waning sunlight. Outside, the chilly weather of May hovered just above fifty degrees. Once he lost the light, Zihao knew it would get colder. Living on a mountain had its benefits, but also serious setbacks. His dragon blood kept him warm, but that had limits.

Go. Now! came a weak telepathic message. Zihao couldn’t figure out who had sent it and didn’t have time. The elder, maybe. He took the advice and made his way down the mountain, careful to keep Sonya close to his chest for warmth. Thankfully, twilight provided cover for their escape. Once at the base of the keep, Zihao looked back to the entrance. Smoke and flames erupted out of the cavern’s mouth.

He placed Sonya down just off the path, in a thatch of trees. Panting, he searched the landscape around them. Safe houses awaited for such a time as this, but he hadn’t
been able to get to the escape tunnels. Who had called out for him to run? Who had lingered outside the Gous’ den?

He’d been sloppy. The council had tried to warn him.

“Oh. Damn my head,” she said, sitting up. Wincing, she held her head and looked at him.

Some guardian. Dried blood caked a long, thin line down her face. Her bruised lips had swollen and scratches littered her hands, her shoulders and face. Despite her injuries, Sonya still stole his breath and tugged at his carnal hunger. Beautiful hardly described her eternal appeal.

“Careful.” He looked away. He’d allowed that to happen to Sonya.

“Who would do this? Invaders?” She struggled to stand and almost instantly fell onto his arms. Incredulousness appeared on her face as she looked up at the keep. Using him as a post, she clawed her way to standing position.

“I don’t know, but we can’t stay here.” Zihao wrapped his arm around her waist to steady her and anchor against him.

“What? Where are you going?” She unraveled herself from him. Pushing her hair out of her face, she quickly braided it to keep it out of her way.

“We have to get to the safe house.”

She looked back to the keep and then to him. “Our people are in there. My parents. My brothers. Nieces. Family. For fuck’s sake, Z, that’s our clan!”

She started for the path, but a wall of earth shot out of the ground, blocking her. He didn’t like using his power against her, but they couldn’t stand out in the open discussing it. Once their enemies discovered she wasn’t amongst the debris and the dead, they would come for her again. Agony shot up his torso and he clenched his teeth. He needed to shift to speed up the healing.

“No,” he insisted with a quiet determination resounding in his message. A growl rumbled low across to her. “We have to go. Now.”

Staggering, Sonya didn’t get too far up the path before she crumbled. Cursing, he stomped over and gazed down at her. The woman’s stubbornness knew no limit.

“You’re weak and in no condition to fight.” Zihao lifted her over his shoulder. She didn’t have the strength to stop him, and for once he was glad. He loved Sonya’s spitfire personality, but now wouldn’t do. His human self wouldn’t sustain her weight over the distance they had to travel to get to the safe houses. He shifted into dragon, his beast thrilled to be free. Using his tail, he wrapped it around Sonya’s waist and hoisted her up. He placed her on his back, close to his shoulders.

Sonya whacked him on the back. “We have to go back. Put me down!”

If you’re dead, we give them exactly what they want. He started running and veered off into the Alaskan wilderness. To his right, the lake stretched out toward the edge of tomorrow. To his left, the smoldering smoke of their home.

Sonya attempted to lift her head, but she slumped down against him. The warmth of her face against his skin told him she remained in her human form. At some point, she held him close, her hands gripping his hide. Despite his sharp focus, he could feel her heartbeat against his skin.

Exposed and in the open, Zihao hurried to get to the closest safe house. Fast.

“There is an old adage about poking a dragon with a stick.” Zihao’s voice infiltrated the painful haze as Sonya tried to open her eyes. Achy. Sore. Where the hell was she?

“What does that mean?” Sonya managed through cottonmouth. Gods, she needed something to drink. A sharp, stabbing pain lit up her head. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to get her bearings. Her body had already healed the damage to her temple and to her mouth, so why did she feel so strange? Flushed? The headache continued to throb. Damn it.

When she opened her eyes, she found him standing in the shadows. Even from here, she could see his face. His features were impassive and his voice sounded indifferent, absent of emotion. Something had happened while she slept. Along the way to get here, she’d fallen asleep. Hell, she’d passed out.

“Nothing.” Zihao’s voice was hard.

She quickly hushed him as she struggled to push herself up on elbows. The room had been draped in darkness with only the solitary glow from a lantern. As the events filtered back to her in anguish-filled waves, she lay back down. The attack. Her parents. Her clan. Her clothes.

“Where are we?” She didn’t recognize the ceiling, the bed, or any of the furniture she could make out in the limited illumination. Although she could see some furniture, she didn’t see Zihao. He’d melded farther back into the dark.

“Safe house 30.”

“How long was I out?” “About sixteen hours.”

“My clothes?” She threw back the blankets and ran her hand over the silk gown. These definitely weren’t the clothes she’d left the keep in. She’d kill for her purse now. Its satchel style allowed her to cart around extra clothes for Zihao, makeup, and a ton of other things she needed. Not to mention her cell phone and its contacts. She could have called her brothers or tried to contact her uncle.

“I…removed them. They were covered in blood, dust, and glass. I also bathed you.”

“Z…”

“I had to make sure you didn’t have any serious injury…” His cold tone canceled any thoughts she might have -pleasure from seeing her nude. Not that he hadn’t seen her naked before—they were dragons. Nudity came with the territory. Many dragons walked around the keep without a stitch on when they shifted out of their clothes, just as their ancestors had done.

“The keep?” She pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged them close. Numb. Fear cloaked her person. She could feel Zihao moving across the room from where she sat, but she wanted him to come and wrap his strong arms around her. “They’re all dead, aren’t they?”

At this, Zihao emerged from the shadows. Her breath caught at the sight of him. The ebony T-shirt hugged his rippling torso, skating across hardened pectorals and rock-hard biceps. His short hair had been tousled and it still looked wet. Dark gym pants clad his legs, but she could still make out his delicious thighs, rigid and tight. Most dragon shifter males kept fit and lean due to a high metabolism, but none wore their muscles as sexily as Zihao. The sleeves had been pushed up to his elbows, and as he came farther into the light, she saw the blankness of emotion on his face. He’d shut her out and clamped down on his feelings. He looked like what he was—a dilong guardian. Lethal. Dangerous. Dedicated.

“I haven’t received any messages.” He stood over her with his arms crossed. “None. No information. No signals. Nothing. Not one damn note.”

She gritted her teeth against the pain and laid her head against her knees. “Nothing.”

Closing her eyes, she lowered her mental guards and reached out for her uncle, her parents, someone. She couldn’t feel them. No whispers of them. “Nothing.”

Zihao gestured to the darkened flat-screen television mounted above a fireplace mantle. “The humans didn’t report any hint of a disturbance or anything odd from our section of the wild.”

Sonya released a breath. “What if…” “No.”

He started pacing again, returning to the dark shadows. Now that her eyes had adjusted, Sonya realized she hadn’t been in a bed, but on a sofa in a living room. Behind her, wooden stairs led up to a loft-style room, probably the bedroom and a bathroom. Through the gloom, she could make out the empty fireplace, a kitchen off to her left, and possibly other rooms. Cabins or safe houses like these existed, dotted across the Alaskan wilderness. Beneath the keeps, tunnels had been developed as escape routes to these types of safe houses. Doomsday preppers had nothing on dragons.

“What if they’re all dead, Z?” There. She finished the thought he’d silenced earlier.

She swung her legs over the sofa’s edge. Tears gathered but she fought not to let them fall. She hated feeling weak, and she despised being scared. Not since Zihao’s father died, murdered by an assassin, had she felt this disjointed, this terrified. Now, more than a single dragon had died. Maybe her entire clan. A sob escaped her throat. It had happened before in their past. Humans had annihilated a keep, killed off the Opal dragons some four hundred years ago.

Zihao stopped. He turned slowly to her. “We are not the Opals, but Azures. Your uncle wouldn’t let the keep be wiped out. Give it time. We wait. We are dragons. Patience is our birthright.”

Sonya blew out a long sigh. She pushed away the hurt throbbing in her heart. Zihao was right. They didn’t know. So it would be foolish to focus on the negative. Logically it made perfect sense, but the numbness made her cold and the fear remained.

Still… “Z?”

“Yeah?” He stopped again, his hand on his chin in thought.

When she didn’t reply, he looked over to her. Words failed her. Now more than ever she wished they’d been mated. Then he could feel her emotions instead of her trying to find words to describe them. It didn’t matter what language they spoke—all the words failed to be adequate enough to communicate what she felt. The complex whirl of emotions inside her caused her to shudder.

He came to her, using the sofa’s arm to separate them. “I am here with you.”

She heard the commitment in his voice. With his hair tousled, his eyes wide, and his lips pressed into that determined line, he reduced her to pure hunger. Breathing deeply, Sonya inched closer to him, using the sofa’s arm to position herself higher. His lips curled into a small smile.

“I know,” she whispered.

“What are you doing?” His breath stirred her hair.

“You know exactly what I’m doing.” Her eyes lowered, and her lips puckered for the kiss she’d been waiting an eternity to get. “Please, Z…”

She reached up and cupped his face in her hand, feeling his unshaven bristles against her palm. Zihao’s body jerked at the contact and he fell back a step.

“Son…”

“Don’t think. Just feel. For once, just do what feels good, what feels right. Kiss me, Z.”

Through half-closed lids, she watched him wrestle with his emotions. She held her breath. Damn him and his training. His walls. His oath.

At the point where she felt foolish, she relaxed her lips, but then bliss arrived.

His kiss felt warmer than any Sonya had ever experienced. His lips coaxed hers apart and his tongue cautiously entered her mouth. He tasted like peppermint gum and a hint of honey sauce. Her body rose, drawn into him, moth to flame. Finally, Zihao, the man she’d been in love with for years, had succumbed enough to show her his feelings.

His hands wound themselves into her hair and massaged her scalp. She groaned as his tongue danced lightly with hers. Her nerves tingled and her clit throbbed as he deepened the kiss, taking her into his arms and holding her so close she thought she’d melt into him. Her hands landed on hardened muscle. Goodness! Every time she touched him, it surprised her how solid he really was. Instantly inflamed by his body being pressed to hers, she could feel the cold numbing of fear receding.

Until he broke the spell and pushed her gently back. “Sorry!” Startled, she reached for him again, but he held her shoulders, preventing her from coming closer. “I—I got carried away…”

“Don’t be sorry. I want you. I want this. I know you do too,” Sonya replied softly, her hand lingering on his forearm, her nails tracing invisible lines up and down his flesh.

His skin felt hot, and she dropped a quick kiss on it. Zihao hissed and released her before stalking to the front windows. He seemed flustered, and his hands trembled.

“Your kiss caught me off guard.”

She followed him to the window, stepping around the sofa that had separated them. Now. It had to be now. She’d come too far and waited too long to have him. Most importantly, she wanted him to understand she loved him. Her body yearned for him. Alone. Death all around them. Sonya wanted to feel love.

“You want it too.” She didn’t make it a question. “We loved, Z. I know you remember.”

He stepped out of her reach. “I am blood sworn, Son. I can’t protect you if I’m dead.”

She lunged at him and brushed the cotton of his shirt softly as he escaped.

“Who is alive to execute you? Who remains to hold you accountable to your
blood oath? We don’t even know if any of our kin are left.” “I know.”

She swallowed her growing dread. She had to get him to see that this moment, this time belonged to them. Feeling she’d made headway in her argument, she continued. “You didn’t deny wanting me.”

He let out a noisy sigh and ran a hand through his hair. “I’ve wanted you since the first day I saw you. You know that.”

Sonya smiled. They’d been ten. The memory flashed into her mind. His long, black hair surfed the wind as he gave her a flower he’d picked. It might’ve been purple. She couldn’t recall the flower, but then she’d only really seen him. The field, the lake, the entire world paled to ghostly apparitions next to him. Dressed in the brown uniform of dilongs, he wasn’t supposed to be talking to her. But his father had been her guardian, and both were children. The rest had become part of her history. Their lives intertwined forever.

“You were the most beautiful boy I’d ever seen,” she confessed.

“And now?” Zihao’s voice held an emotion she could not place, and he’d gone very still.

“The sexiest man I’ve ever seen.” She wasn’t even sure she’d uttered the words aloud or had simply thought them.

Or if Zihao had heard them.

“Gods, you invite obsession, Son.” A thin ribbon of heat snaked into his words.

She couldn’t see his face.

He hung his head and shook it. “You are one stubborn dragon.” “And yet you have not left me.”

“I am sworn...”

“Damn your sense of duty! You love me.” Her voice broke and she spun on her heel. Infuriated and hurt, she struggled not to cry in frustration. He found her stubborn?

She walked three steps toward the kitchen.

“I do.” His breath brushed her ear. With her back to his front, he held her close. Normally, Zihao’s effortless grace and calm determination had kept her safe. Even now, he’d saved her.

“You do what?”

“Love you. So much it’s painful.”

He placed his hands on hers and gently removed them from his waist. As he turned around to face her, she saw the anguish in his face. Tormented, his emotions waged war in his eyes. He untangled himself from her arm and headed toward the door.

“Your mating heat is so close. I—I can smell it.” Zihao’s breathing became a pant.

Through the fabric of his shirt, a circular illumination lit up at the base of his neck. “Z, the burn…”

He touched his collarbone and winced. His eyes widened. Fear looked strange on his face. “I’m not mated. There shouldn’t be a tattoo…”

Sonya swallowed—well, tried to swallow, but her throat was so dry she couldn’t do it. The serum the dilongs took to stave off the mating heat kept Zihao focused on his duty was a safeguard, and one of the major reasons her parents allowed him to continue to be her guardian.

Come to think of it, he’d never let her kiss him like that before “The serum?”

If Zihao hadn’t taken the serum, the mating heat could bind them. Her dragon rose fierce and full of fire.

“At the keep.” Panic threaded through his words, and it sounded odd on his tongue. He backed away from her, pressing himself against the door. Perspiration dripped from his face. He wiped it with the back of his hand. Flushed, Zihao took off his shirt as he became hot.

“I need to go. I…I can’t be here.” He yanked it back on.

“No, don’t leave me. Z. Don’t.” Sonya closed the distance between them. She touched his hand and wrapped her hand around his. The hard calluses rubbed against her palm.

Her beast, already aroused, came fully awake. His scent filled her senses, dousing her in his pheromones and wrapping her in a cocoon of him. Her heightened senses poured him all over her. The feel of his hands zipped across her nerves, and the sound of his labored breathing fell into sync with hers. She ran her fingers lightly across his chest and down his abdomen, lifting the shirt and placing her hands onto his hot flesh. Her touch forced his muscles to clench and tighten along his neck. Veins stood out as if seeking her touch.

“Augh!” Zihao shrieked, but it didn’t look like he felt pain.

Something else arose in his eyes. His lips parted, and he swept her up into his arms.

Too late.

The mating heat rushed her, and all became washed in red.

Chapter Six

It could not be true. Yet, his eyes did not deceive him. The mating heat burned all over Sonya, and he was at his weakest. High above the living room and the scatter of blankets on the sofa, he placed her on the bed. This moment meant more than a claiming on a safe house’s couch. No, it required a mating bed—as was tradition. Dragon custom.

You can’t mate with her. Who are you kidding? They will kill you for it and mate her to another anyway.

His inner voice of reason sounded so much like his great uncle. It whispered into
his mind and made him pause.

It wasn’t wrong. He had sworn with blood to protect her. To keep her safe. He had done so, but the threat wasn’t over. He didn’t know who had attacked her or if they still sought her out. As her guardian, he could not mate. Emotions compromised his sharpness. His clear mindset. Protecting her meant not loving her. But his motivation for protecting her had become entangled with his love for her.

Damn it all to the depths of hell.

“Stop thinking so much. I’m not a logic puzzle,” Sonya broke through his musings. With that she gave him a gentle but playful kiss on the lips.

Funny, that stirred his shaft more than the deep, soul-searching kiss of before. It was this small, free act that crushed the last of his resistance. He grunted a soft smile, but allowed it to wane as he took in her beauty. Already the scratches and bruising from the attack had dissolved, healed by her dragon metabolism. Some humans believed them to be immortal. They weren’t. But their physical makeup healed them so their lifespans stretched for hundreds of years.

Using the back of his hand, he stroked her cheek. Still as soft as when they were kids. It invited a kiss and he obliged. Sonya brushed against a part of him that was swollen and hard. The flimsy gym pants’ fabric didn’t leave much to the imagination.

Her hips rested against his need. She gasped sharply before placing her hand against his cock.

His skin prickled with heat and, not unlike the moments before a shift, goose bumps appeared across him. Sonya rubbed him through his pants, stoking the flames of his desire. He buried his face against her throat and nipped at the sweet, silky skin there. At the base of her collarbone, the circular, glowing tattoo warmed. Its hypnotic call entranced him a few moments, before he forced himself to look away. In that moment, Zihao had felt incredible warmth and acceptance unlike he ever had before.

Sonya stood on her knees, and with the bed’s height, was almost eye-to-eye with him. She molded her body ever closer to his, and he relented. His tongue found her earlobe, and he tugged at it with his teeth. Sonya shuddered in his embrace. His hands glided over the silky fabric as he pulled it over her head.

How could he not take advantage of this moment? Her valid points had blown holes in his logic.

You’re a dilong. She’s a Gou. Stop. It’s an abomination.

Sonya sucked his lower lip and pulled a groan from deep in his being. The serum. Even that had never really stayed his hunger for her—only his oath had managed to keep him from doing what his heart had desired. She had a way of making him feel wanted—and worthy. With a fierce tug, she yanked his head down to meet her mouth. He took complete ownership of her. No one would ever kiss her again—only him, always him.

He pulled himself greedily to her.

She broke his kiss and lay back on the bed. Nude, she rubbed her breasts; their hardened tips stood tall against the air. Her fingers pinched them, forcing her to quiver. The triangle between her legs, brushed by soft dark hair, glistened with wetness from her need. It called to him.

“I want you.” Those words had become tangible and stroked Zihao’s arousal even more.

“Don’t get to close to me, Son.” He glanced away, teetering on the brink of having his life’s greatest dream and its worst nightmare. She couldn’t really know what she was asking. Sure, they’d always been in love, but would she stand beside him when the council condemned him for his treachery?

“I love you, and I know the demons that reside inside you.” Sonya pushed herself up on her elbows. “I have loved you since forever, Z, and I know you’re destined to be mine.”

His throat closed with unshed tears.

She grabbed his hand and placed it against her heart. “Feel my heat and my
love.”

So soft. His hand drifted down to the puckered nipple of her breast. Unable to
stop himself, he ran his thumb across the tight point, soliciting a moan from her. She closed her eyes and threw her head back.

“You’ve got the dreamer’s disease,” he uttered moments before his lips clasped over her nipple. He pinched it with his lips and tugged. His other hand eagerly sought out her breast. He transferred his mouth to the other taut tip and nibbled its sweetness. His thumb and forefinger rubbed and teased. Beneath him, Sonya moaned and thrashed. With a fist full of his shirt, she bucked.

“Take. This. Off!” Sonya yanked on his shirt.

Zihao stood up and with one single motion pushed his sweatpants down. He stepped out of them while simultaneously removing the shirt. While he disrobed, Sonya licked her lips greedily and watched, hunger making her eyes large. She looked so beautiful with the flush of the mating heat warming on her skin, making her nipples darker, and sexier.

Before him, she lay spread wide. . The hard currents roused by the mating heat rushed through him. He lowered himself between her thighs and placed his tongue across her clit. It rocked through her and she shot off the bed. Engulfed in her scent, Zihao’s hesitation dissolved. He loved Sonya. Nothing would change it. Ever. With his blood on fire, he sucked her swollen nubbin and then ran his tongue down her swollen
pussy lips before nibbling on them. She tasted like honey. He could never get enough of her. His entire world had revolved around Sonya. She was his sun and he, her moon. Nothing would change it.

His life as of this moment had become forfeit. He looked at her, and the absolute joy on her face made up his mind.

It was worth it.

Sonya’s heart raced. With each swipe of his tongue, Zihao sent electric pulses to her hooded cleft. Each bolt of pleasure lit up her nerves and shocked her to the point of no return. Wet with want, her pussy quivered, shuddering with need. Gone. She knew it, but moreover she understood deep in her gut that her mate’s joining would bring her calm and completeness. There was no changing her mind now. Great and copious, the heat burned. She didn’t want anyone else. Ever. Roused from dormancy, her dragon agreed. Awakened with an ache, her beast roared. Her hands shifted into claws and they bit into Zihao’s shoulders as he increased his speed.

He smirked playfully as he lifted his head. “Enjoy that, eh?” “You’re awfully full of yourself.”

She tried to sit up fully, but he held her to the spot.

His tongue found her pussy’s opening and entered, teasing her, for it wasn’t nearly enough. He lowered himself back between her legs. He licked her swollen love bud and tugged with his teeth. She hoisted her hips as another wave rolled through her. Each nerve pulsated in time to his flick of her clit. He inserted a thick finger into her aching core, one and then another. Pumping against his hand, she held on to the sheets with one hand and Zihao’s head with the other.

“So wet. All ready for me.”

His breath to brush across her hot pussy. She peered down the length of her body to him. “More…”

Did he chuckle?

Before she could register an answer, his speed accelerated. A duet commenced between his mouth and his fingers. They, became one and the coordination created so much pleasure and burning intensity, she shrieked, blinded by the orgasm searing through her. Unbridled ecstasy coursed fast and furious, until she collapsed, draped in sweat, onto the bed.

Spent.

“No. Oh, no. My beautiful mate. We are not done.” The bed dipped under his weight.

She opened her eyes and still panting. He slid himself further between her parted legs.

“Please, Z. I need this hole gone.”

“Me too. Me. Too.”

With a gentle push, he guided just his bulbous head into her heat, stretching her
opening with a sharp biting pain that made her shout.

Zihao stopped moving. “You’re a virgin, so I’m trying to be gentle.”

The intermingling of pain and pleasure as he thrust slowly forward, and before long, his gentle, thoughtful movements blurred the pain into bliss. She did not know how long they joined, but now it had happened, the world broke apart. Her internal walls hugged his shaft, tugging in impatience. She met his thrusts with her own eagerness, and when she opened her eyes to look up at his determined face, an expression of rapture shone from him. But her vision wavered in scarlet. Now, the rise of mating harkened to the dragons within them.

“Z!” Her claws raced down his back.

He roared, his beast rising as evident by his rhythm. His strokes grew more insistent and deeper, reaching for that piece of her only he could meet. A reckless demand beat inside her as Zihao slammed his length into her, over and over again. Her hips rocked hard in reply, their bodies communicating in ways that words never would be able to do. Here. Now. The joining of their beasts and the melding of their souls. For every inch, two dragons became one.

Her inner muscles squeezed tighter, gripping him. In response, he pounded faster. Just when she thought she couldn’t take it any more for fear she’d die from the rapture, she ignited.

“Z! Now!” She shrieked and gasped in ecstasy.

Buried deep inside her, Zihao bent down to her neck, and as the magick swirled, he bit into her flesh. Goodness! Immense pleasure wrought another mind-blowing rending of her world. Sonya’s orgasm quadrupled in intensity. She locked her arms around his waist and raked her claws down his back, feeling the blood trickle in their wake. That pain must’ve pushed him over because Zihao roared, throwing back his head as he shot his seed deep into her. Sonya shut her eyes and another wave of climax ripped through her.

She felt Zihao move above her, still lodged inside her. With determination, despite her legs’ rubbery feeling, she kept them around his waist, anchoring him to her. They had never been apart, and now they never would be. Exhausted, he crashed to the bed beside her without removing himself from her core. To her surprise, his cock hadn’t diminished. Instead of pulling away, like he often did, he pulled her into his embrace, guiding her to a spooning position. Tucked into his hardened muscles, Sonya could feel his heartbeat against her back.

Together as one.

While Zihao slept, she reached up and touched the raised scarring at the base of her neck. The tattoo gave real proof she’d mated. Another small wave of warmth spread through her, as if the branding had been a push button to pleasure. Behind her, Zihao adjusted his position and pulled her back against him, his front to her back. His cock had softened, but only partially. It remained inside her.

Now, in the cooling down of the mating heat, cold realization returned. How was she going to keep Zihao with her? Or from death? They’d violated clan mandates.

Somehow she would.

She had him, and she wasn’t letting him go.

Chapter Seven

Zihao woke alert. He heard them before they opened the back door. Grunts, hot whispers, and shuffling. Silently, he untangled himself form Sonya’s arms, and with heavy reluctance, slipped out of the bed, abandoning her warmth.

The safe houses lacked the fortress defenses of the keep. In theory, a destruction of an entire clan shouldn’t have occurred, but the safe houses had come in handy. The council in all their infinite intelligence and vision lacked the forethought to provide any true security for the safe houses. So it didn’t surprise him that someone had broken in.

Still, whoever had come made terrible assassins. They were as loud as a dragon in a glass shop, shuffling clumsily through the downstairs rooms. Using the shadows, he vanished and grew still as he made his way down the stairs. Quickly, he jumped behind the wooden staircase, but he could see through the stairs’ slats. His guardian training had required patience and silence for long stretches of time. Stealth. Seen but unseen. The stairs in front of him lead upward to the loft—to Sonya. From this position he could make out the sofa, the fireplace, the side entranceway that led to the kitchen, and the front bank of windows. He and Sonya had left a mess in the living room. Obvious to anyone entering that the cabin had visitors.

Silly mistake. He cursed internally, but the mating heat had swept him up into its clutches.

“Augh! Fuck!” growled a masculine voice. “Ow! Damn it, Ryuu! That fucking hurts!”

Ryuu.

Moments after he thought the name, the firebreather stumbled into his view. His long, black hair had been scattered about his head, his clothes were ripped and torn. Ryuu supported another man who leaned heavily on him. Almost mirror images, the two men had been in a battle or a fight. Soot, bruises, and blood adorned them. Scents of fire, smears of death, and dried blood stained them. Zihao had deliberately gotten rid of his and Sonya’s battle-stained clothing. The new arrivals carried the scent of death on them.

Ryuu’s face was unreadable but the other man, with spiky hair, slid out of his grasp and crashed to the sofa with anguish. He screamed as he struggled to get comfortable. Ryuu pushed his hair out of his face and scanned the room as if seeing it for the first time, ignoring the man he’d gingerly helped to the couch. Other voices could be heard coming from the back door.

So these two weren’t the only ones. Zihao scowled. Damn. He’d been foolish to think he and Sonya would have time to continue to consummate their mating. Normally, dragons had time to secure the bond. Couples would retreat to their mating bed and not reappear from their dens until weeks later. Securing the bond between mates was crucial to establishing an unbreakable connection between the two dragons. That conduit served them well, bolstering their telepathic linkage.

“Should’ve fucking stayed on the boat,” the other man griped.

Across from him, no more than fifteen feet away from Zihao, Ryuu held up his hand. “Hush. Someone else is here, too.”

Zihao smirked. He’d just now figured that out. Slow. The firebreather would’ve been killed if he had been a real assassin. The other man, collapsed onto the sofa, held his thigh and writhed. The makeshift bandage around his injury had a bright spot of scarlet. It seeped through in dark blotches.

Not good.

“Shush, Draco!” Ryuu hissed.

“You move like two overgrown elephants,” Zihao projected his voice “Had I been an assassin, you’d be fodder for the crows.”

Ryuu’s face became furious as he searched the room. “Step out! Show yourself.”

Zihao did as instructed. He casually walked out from behind the steps, his hands already fists.

Ryuu spun around to face him. “What are you doing here?” “The same as you.”

“Z?” came Sonya’s soft voice from the top of the landing. “What’s going on?”

She came into view, peering down the staircase, her nudity covered by a blanket draped around her shoulders. With her hair tousled and her new tattoo glowing around her collarbone, Sonya appeared as a vision of beauty. It tugged on his libido, and he instantly longed to climb the steps, sweep her up into his arms, and place her back on the bed, their visitors be damned.

“Sonya Gou.” Ryuu bowed in greeting. When he stood, his face betrayed his confusion. “I’m glad you escaped. I assume your dilong got you here.”

“Yes.” Sonya’s voice trembled, and she looked at Zihao. “I’m glad you made it too. Draco, is that you?”

The man on the sofa gave a half-hearted wave. “Bleeding like a stuck pig.” Ryuu looked at her and then to Zihao. “You’re mated.”

Draco twisted around to them. With his arms hanging over the sofa back, he shot Zihao a big grin. “Congrats! Welcome to the world of the mated.”

Ryuu swore and shook his head. “My brother is hurt. Do you have first aid supplies?”

Sonya shrugged. “Z would know.”

Ryuu faced him fully. He’d closed the distance between them, standing at the bottom of the stairs where Zihao stood, blocking anyone’s passage up to Sonya.

“I’m not sure what you’ve done. The first moment alone with her, you mate yourself to the elder’s niece. The penalty for which is death.”

Zihao didn’t look away. He didn’t bother explaining any of his actions to Ryuu.

Instead, he smirked through his rising fury. “Tell me something I don’t know.” Shoving past him, Zihao walked toward the kitchen.

From behind him, Sonya came down the stairs. “Ryuu Sho Jin. Don’t you dare talk to him like that!”

Draco laughed and winced. “Oh, hell. You’ve got her mad.”

Zihao ignored Ryuu’s foul mood and false accusations. He sure as hell wasn’t going to explain how the mating heat had captured him, and how the serum had been
abandoned in favor of saving her life. The firebreather didn’t know anything, and like all the others, couldn’t see him beyond his status as a dilong. From behind him, he felt Ryuu approach and turned around to face him, keeping the other man in his sight. Zihao nodded in the direction of the cabinet containing medical supplies.

“Second shelf.”

Ryuu glared at him. “I don’t like you.” “Feeling’s mutual.”

“Sonya is a valued member of the keep. You had one job, and you couldn’t do
it.”

A stillness draped itself over Zihao. If he was going to die, no harm in beating
the living shit out of one of the council members. They could only kill him once. So he pushed himself to a full standing position.

“She’s still breathing. Who did you manage to save, firebreather? I don’t see your mate around…”

Ryuu put the medical kit down on the counter with a smack, and pounced. Smoke seeped from the corners of his mouth. Zihao had already readied for the attack. He grabbed Ryuu’s shirt and, with all his raging anger, slammed him against the refrigerator with so much force, the wall behind the fridge shook. Ryuu scuffled with him and the two of them crashed to the floor. Zihao punched Ryuu in the mouth and wrapped his hand around his throat, cutting off his ability to breathe fire.

“No circus tricks, now.” Zihao smirked and squeezed.

“You won’t be laughing when you’re charred to cinders,” Ryuu managed to choke out.

Zihao squeezed harder and the words ceased. Ryuu punched at his arms and struggled to dislodge his arms.

“Stop it!” Sonya shouted from the entrance. Seething, she breathed heavily. “Gods be damned. Ryuu! Our entire clan could be dead, and you’re in here fighting each other!”

Zihao stilled. Fear laced her words and he got to his feet, releasing Ryuu. Sonya gaped at them.

She pointed accusingly at Ryuu, who still lay sprawled on the floor. “Your brother is in agony and you’re in here pushing the keep’s agendas. I’d be dead if Zihao hadn’t saved me. Yes. I’m mated to him. Get. Over. It. We have larger concerns, councilman.”

“And you…” She shifted her index finger to Zihao. “Stop letting him yank your damn chain. I love you. Got it?”

“Yes…” “Good.”

She swore at them one more time, snatched the medical kit off the counter, and left.

“She’s so beautiful when she’s angry.” Zihao had just realized it. Wow.

Ryuu coughed out what sound like a laugh. He’d sat up and rubbed his throat.

When he cut his eyes up to Zihao, he stopped. He looked away, but a scowl reappeared on his face.

Sonya was right. Zihao stepped back from Ryuu. “Spoken like a man in love.” Ryuu shook his head. “I am.”

Ryuu looked up at him then. “I see.”

Zihao offered his hand, but only because he knew Sonya wanted them to be civil. Ryuu looked at it. “Ah, what the hell...”

“There are worse things out there than me.” “Agreed.”

Ryuu took Zihao’s hand, and he helped Ryuu to his feet. The firebreather searched his face. “I—I don’t like you. A dilong with a Gou. That’s never been done before.”

“A firebreather mated to a human has never been done before either.” Zihao smirked at the outrage on his face.

“How did you know about that?”

“I’m a dilong. There’s little I don’t know.” Zihao headed to the living room.

He didn’t like not being able to see or hear Sonya. An uneasiness crawled into his stomach when he was too far from her. The mating had made it worse. Anxiety clung to him.

Ryuu followed closely behind him. They spilled out into the living room and found Draco wasn’t alone. A lovely woman sat on the edge of the sofa, wiping his face with a cloth and singing. As she sang, Draco lay back against the sofa, his eyes closed and a serene expression on his face. Gone were the furrows of pain and agony. Beside the sofa, Sonya stood watching, fingering the symbol at her neck. It no longer glowed.

“Anika.” Ryuu came around Zihao and to the back of the sofa.

The woman looked up at him. “Sonya bandaged up the wound. I think if we get him into water, I can help speed up the healing.”

Ryuu looked at Sonya. “Is there a tub here?” “Upstairs. Come on. I’ll show you.”

Anika stood and with a sad glance at Draco, followed Sonya upstairs. Ryuu fell in behind them.

Alone with Draco, Zihao realized he could feel Sonya’s emotions. A sadness filled her and it clawed at him. He sat down in the chair. It seemed completely out of place with the unrefined wooden furniture. Nothing in the room invited comfort, only necessity. It had to be durable and functioning—nothing more.

Draco grunted and bolted awake. “Shit!”

Breathing heavily, he gripped the sofa’s back with one hand, his injured thigh with the other. Draco’s wide eyes began to relax when he saw Zihao.

“Oh, hell, it’s you.” Draco lay back against the pillows propped behind him. His damp hair clung to his forehead. Clenching his teeth, he adjusted his position. He stared up at the ceiling.

Zihao only sat. Waiting. He heard Sonya’s throaty laugh echoing from the bathroom. Water could be heard roaring into the tub, and it soon drowned out her laughter. He rose, feeling the burning need bubbling inside him.

Son!

“Relax, dude. She’s with my brother and my wife.” Draco waved him down. Zihao frowned. “Your point?”

Z, I’m fine. Just helping with the water for Draco.

Draco laughed. “You dilongs are seriously committed.”

“What do you know of it?” Zihao barked, his cheeks warm. His beast rose at the perceived slight. Something about Draco had initially made him think in another life they could’ve been friends. Now, he wasn’t sure.

Draco raised both hands and patted the air. “Calm down. Dude. Calm down.” Zihao grunted at him.

Pushing himself to a sitting position, the other dragon nodded. “Seriously. I’m a seadragon. You know how much drama it is to be Ryuu’s little brother?”

Zihao smirked.

Draco nodded. “I love him, but he’s something else. I know a little something about expectations. Labels. The clan’s fucking rigid-ass rules. What you’ve done, mating with Sonya, is a good thing. I’ve known her since we were younglings, and I know what bullshit she gets from her family. I’ve never seen her so happy.”

Zihao snorted at that. She’d been royally angry when she stalked out of the kitchen.

“I do not remember you.” Draco, he would’ve recalled. He knew most of the keep, but a chunk of his childhood remained locked in dilong warrior trainings.

Draco laughed again. “I’m not surprised. Your sole focus has always been on her. I think I tried to get you to play with us once, but damn if you didn’t stand there, gawking after Sonya.”

“I’m a dilong. I do not gawk.” Zihao offered it as an explanation.

Draco again waved it off with a guffaw. “Titles. Labels. They mean nothing when it involves the heart. My mate is human and siren.”

“Siren. So it’s true.” Zihao looked up at the loft, where the light from the bathroom’s open door sliced through the dark.

“Fuck yes, it’s true! I love her with my entire being. I don’t give one iota about the council’s rules, laws, or expectations. Neither should you, Zihao. You love Sonya. I see it. Shit, Ray Charles can see it.”

“Who is Ray Charles?” Zihao looked at Draco.

“You’re such a romantic,” Anika teased as she leaned over the loft’s railing.

The expression on Draco’s face at the sound of her voice hit Zihao like a ton of bricks. Draco’s words burrowed into him. Could he dare think that a time would come when he and Sonya would have that comfortable and incredible love like Draco and Anika? No. Draco’s family weren’t dilongs. Bucking the system worked for him. It didn’t involve a blood oath.

Ryuu’s heavy footsteps on the stairs broke his thoughts. “We need to get you to the tub, water dragon.”

“Don’t call me that,” Draco snapped. He pushed himself to a standing position, but leaned heavily on the sofa’s arm.

Ryuu chuckled. He took Draco’s arm and draped it over his shoulder. He hoisted Draco from his dependence on the sofa arm and supported him as they walked to the stairs. Ryuu half carried him up to the top of the landing. Once he reached it, Anika raced over, dipped beneath Draco’s other arm, and together they walked him into the bathroom.

Where are you, Son?

Here. I’m in the closet, dressing.

Zihao headed up the stairs. The mating heat erupted across him. Hot all over, he found Sonya in the small closet. The overhead light of the loft poured in and provided some illumination. The blanket pooled at her feet. Nude, she pushed the hangers of
clothes from one side to the other. She evaluated a shirt, fingered the label before rejecting it outright.

“I can feel you breathing.” She didn’t turn around, but the heat of her tone further inflamed him.

“I have something else you can feel.” Zihao shut the door behind him.

Chapter Eight

His breath along her neck made her nipples tighten. With the door shut, they were cast into darkness. The call, the instinctual need, pushed him forward. He laid his cheek against hers. Sonya sighed as the warmth of him made her heated. She reached up and placed her fingers in his hair. Those silky strands glided along her fingers, stirring up delight.

“You smell so good.” He inhaled again. “Mmm…”

“I wore perfume to get the feeling right.” She laughed and laid her head back against him. The closeness of the closet mimicked a cocoon. Safe. Protected from outside forces. A thread of worry wound its way in. “What if they’re all dead?”

“Try not to worry. Gous are strong. No one could destroy them all.” Zihao’s voice lit up the gloom, not in the room, but in her heart. “If you’re ever in harm’s way, I’m right behind.”

“You always save the light in my heart. You keep it from being snuffed out.” She felt Zihao shake his head.

“I’m only doing what my dilongs have done forever.”

He slipped his hands around her waist and moaned. Pressing ever closer, he tried to close the space between them.

“So soft.”

“So hard.” She wiggled against him, teasing his hard shaft. It stood rigid against the flimsy fabric. He felt so good. She couldn’t wait to be covered in his kisses, a blanket of bliss. “You’re overdressed.”

A hunger rumbled beneath that statement. She knew exactly who she wanted to taste. He let her go. When he hugged her to him again, his warm flesh met her palms. Delicious and well-developed muscles reacted to her.

“For you, always for you.” His breath tingled her skin.

She turned around and, on her tiptoes, snatched him to her. He smirked as she pulled his mouth closer, inches from hers. His eyes glowed in the gloom. Dragons had great sight, but she saw his face in her mind’s eye, too.

“You belong to me.” She breathed out a happy sigh and used her teeth to gently nip his luscious lips. With each tug, she felt him get harder and her own need grew. Intertwined, their desires flowed into each other so naturally, Sonya’s dragon roused in joy.

Her fingers stroked the tendons along his neck.

“You are woven into my soul.” So many emotions—his voice betrayed the truth of his words. How could anyone challenge their love?

“And you mine, yes…” she answered, a breath before Zihao kissed her fiercely. He still tasted like a bunch of cherries. Rearing forward, she deepened the kiss.

The heat of his hands raised chills. The tingling fluttered down to her clit. She couldn’t wait any longer. Her pussy’s wet craving pushed her to a state of near delirium. The mating heat inflamed her and all she wanted—hell, needed—to exist was here. Him. Why was she so ravenous? This wasn’t like her at all.

Since the initial mating, all she could think about was ripping Zihao from the confines of clothing. Normally, she relaxed around him, but now she tracked him, his movements, the way dragons tracked prey. It scared her. How could she want him so much? The heat. It must be the mating.

She lost herself in the bliss so that she didn’t register at first that he’d picked her
up.

Plunged into the hanging clothes, they stumbled. She broke the kiss in time to
catch herself on the bar. One hand held it, the other rested on Zihao’s shoulder. Her legs instinctively wrapped themselves around him.

“Now.” She heard the force of need in her tone, but the scarlet flush claimed her.

It burned away pretense, pride, and pettiness; only the base hunger remained.

Zihao’s fingers slowly parted her nether lips. Already hard, her nubbin tightened more with each circular motion he applied. So long. Why was he taking so long? Impatience made her thrust greedily forward.

“Z…” She didn’t give a damn that she pleaded.

“I don’t want to hurt you.” He pushed what felt like the tip of his cock inside her saturated pussy. It stretched her opening and teased her with a portion of his girth.

“More. Please don’t tease me.” She pumped and tried to take him deeper.

Zihao stilled. He kissed her lips quickly. “You’re probably sore from losing your virginity. I don’t want to damage you by being fast and careless.”

Sonya wrapped her arms around his neck, releasing the bar. In the closet dark, she sighed at his noble nature.

“Always looking out for my safety. It’s one of the things I love about you. Right now, I want you to fuck me hard and fast until I pass out from pleasure.”

At that, Zihao buried himself to the hilt. The sharp bite of pain and soreness made her cry out and he stopped thrusting.

“Son…”

“No no, keep going. Don’t stop!” She smacked his shoulder. “Don’t stop.”

He commenced again, not as fast, but with slow, deliberate strokes. Reaching farther into her, Zihao could touch her heart. The flames of desire threatened to consume her as the tight ache faded to sensual joy. Clasping him, she closed her eyes and relished the incredible feel of him moving inside her. His hands held her ass as he rammed into her in his own intense need. She bit into his chest, soliciting a hiss.

Her back arched mere seconds before she reached her pinnacle. White-hot and powerful, the climax caused her to come undone. She held on for dear life as the flood rolled over her.

Unable to withstand her quaking pussy, Zihao coughed out a roar of release. He bucked as the force of his orgasm rocketed through him, making him stumble. He held her close as he sank down to the floor, where he wrapped himself around her.

Warm. Sated. Very sleepy. Sonya yawned. Her eyes grew heavy.

Zihao whispered into her ear. “You break down my defenses with your love.”

The closet lit up in the rhythmic pulsing of their brands. Already the magick bonded them and reinforced the connections of mind, body, and beast. The cozy feeling enveloped them and Zihao grunted in his fast slumber.

Smiling, she slept.

“Sonya, you need to come down.” Ryuu knocked again.

No need. Zihao, already awake, had heard him. Twice that damn firebreather had disturbed his slumber, calling him again from the mating warmth. He really didn’t like Ryuu. Calming himself as to not awaken Sonya, he cracked open the closet door.

“Why?”

Ryuu rolled his eyes and swore softly. “We need to discuss a plan for returning.” “It’s nearly dawn. She needs to rest. Make your plans without her.”

“Look. It’s awful that you picked one hell of a time to mate…” Zihao laughed. “You still think I chose this?”

“Don’t care,” Ryuu snapped. “We need everyone.”

Zihao hesitated. He’d never been a part of clan decisions. He’d always stood outside of those conversations when Sonya’s parents and the elder discussed politics. Now, he’d been invited to participate.

“You keep engaging me. You’re either stupid or crazy, firebreather.” “Stay out of my way, dilong.”

Zihao smirked. It felt cold. Tight. “You do the same.”

“Just get downstairs, both of you.” Ryuu turned and marched out of the room.

His hard steps on the stairs seemed to echo his frustration.

Zihao shut the door.

“I’m ready,” Sonya mumbled, half asleep. Zihao smiled. “You need to rest.”

He heard her standing up and before long, the overhead light flickered on. She stifled a yawn.

“For real, I’m up.”

Ten minutes later, she sat on the sofa beside Zihao. Draco lay on the carpet, his head in Anika’s lap. She idly ran her fingers through his hair. His eyes were closed. They both wore different clothes. Zihao smirked. He and Sonya weren’t the only ones who’d connected physically.

Ryuu sat in the wingback chair, his legs crossed and his face blank. He’d re- emerged from their earlier confrontation. His hair was in place, but his disheveled clothes remained. Zihao suppressed a laugh. He hadn’t been able to get to the closet to look for additional clothing because it had been occupied. Bruises decorated his neck and a red slash decorated his left cheek where Zihao had punched him.

Suddenly, he sat up in the chair. “I just got a telepathic message from Angelina…”

A flash lit up the living room, causing all the lanterns to violently flicker. In a heap, Elder Gou appeared. Zihao leapt in front of Sonya and remained there as the elder uncoiled himself to a standing position. Ash and soot streaked his clothing, his face, and his hands. He groaned.

Zihao reached out to stabilize him. Staggering, he grabbed the sofa instead, ignoring Zihao’s outstretched hand. Ryuu had already jumped up and stood beside him. Elder Gou waved him off.

“I am fine.”

His craggy voice and shaking didn’t diminish his power. Ryuu bowed. Zihao, Anika, and Sonya stood up and bowed as well. Draco winced, but didn’t bow. He held his leg and nodded at the elder instead.

“There is no time for formality. The keep has been ransacked, but it is salvageable. We have lost many…”

“Angelina…” Ryuu croaked. Despite the apprehension in his words, the determination on his face meant business. Zihao felt instant pity for whoever had hurt the firebreather’s mate. A flash of worry erupted on his face.

Elder Gou sighed. “She is fine. Safe. She is trying to save as many as she can with her medical knowledge. She, the twins, and the younglings are all in safe house 45.”

“What about my parents? My brothers?” Sonya slipped around Zihao to stand in front of him.

No danger or threat appeared. So he didn’t resume his place in front of her. The intruder had turned out to only be her uncle.

The elder sat down, his hand still on the sofa’s armrest. When his shoulders sagged, Sonya gasped.

“Please, uncle…”

He stroked his long goatee, but did not meet her eyes. “Your parents, my sister, are lost in the ensuing battle. I—I do not know of their fates.”

“How can you not know? You’re the elder of our clan! You can feel the whereabouts of every single…”

Elder Gou stilled as Sonya rounded on him.

“Son…” Zihao touched her shoulder. Her anguish burrowed into him. He had to calm her down or risk becoming emotionally comprised. Being mated allowed for that telepathic bond to be wider, but it served as blessing and curse.

She shook off his hand. “Tell me! I know you know!”

Zihao snatched her to him, feeling her trembling in anger and despair. “No! Tell me where my family is! Tell me!”

Why were they all staring at us?

“He doesn’t know. Sonya! He doesn’t know.” Zihao forced himself to sound calm.

“Let go of me! Z, let go!”

He held her firm. The usual mental defenses failed, and he struggled to keep her
pain and grief from affecting him.

Elder Gou’s shoulders began to shake. He refused to look at her—or anyone—as he walked toward the front windows. Ryuu looked at the elder and then at Sonya.

“We will find them. Elder, who was it that attacked?” Ryuu remained standing.

In his arms, Sonya relaxed. Zihao let her go and she wiped her face, mopping the tears and nervous sweat with the back of her hand. She laid her head against him.

Where are my parents? Brothers? Their mates? Are they all dead?

Zihao didn’t know how to answer that question. So he said nothing. Her thoughts fired into his emotional center. Her knees buckled. Zihao hoisted her into his arms.

Elder Gou said, “I am certain the attack came from within.” Ryuu scowled. “No.”

The elder nodded. “One of us and some of them.”

Draco leaned up on his knees, wincing at the pain. “What is with you and the damn riddles? Speak plain.”

Ryuu scowled at him. “He means it was a joint effort. Someone from our clan, the sirens, and another dragon clan.”

Anika shook her head. “Who? Aren’t you all family?” Ryuu ran a hand through his hair. “We are, and we aren’t.” Draco swore. “English!”

“We are all descendants of the same dragon shifter, the first Azure, but our lines are no longer pure. The bloodlines are so extensive that our cousins are twenty times removed in some instances. This allows us to marry without interbreeding. Plus, we do take mates from other clans.” Ryuu paced behind the sofa.

Zihao lay Sonya down on the sofa and stood watch over her.

“Someone is envious.” Draco tried to stand, but the pain forced him back down.

It looked like the bulk of his injury had healed.

Ryuu stopped and looked over at Draco. “Not jealousy.” “Then what?” Anika asked with a shrug.

“The only thing better than jealousy.” Draco nodded, a cold grin on his face.

“What’s that?” Anika searched everyone’s face. “Money?”

“Power.” Elder Gou turned back to them. “Who would benefit from the council’s demise? The Gous’ deaths?”

The elder walked slowly up to Zihao and Sonya. She must’ve felt Zihao tense, because she bolted awake.

“Do you not know?” he asked her.

Sonya stood up, very close to Zihao. He didn’t like how this sounded. “No. How would I know?” She frowned but didn’t back down.

“Your first guardian was slain in a failed assassination attempt. Your second guardian mated to you the very instance you two were alone.” Her uncle clasped his hands behind his back. “Zihao orchestrated this with help.”

“What? Are you crazy? Z saved me!” Sonya shouted.

“I did no such thing!” Zihao roared. He’d known it. Something had felt off the moment Ryuu appeared at the door. They’d been setting the trap to make him the scapegoat, to separate him from Sonya. No dilong could ever be with a Gou. He’d been foolish to believe they could make a run at it. He stepped away from Sonya. When it came time he’d fight to the death, battle to his last breath to protect her.

“He’s always with me,” Sonya explained.

“What about when you sleep?” Ryuu stated. He stood behind Elder Gou with Draco and Anika.

Sonya’s fear and rising anger channeled directly into Zihao. He growled deep in his throat, his dragon warning. Accusations flew all over the place.

“Stop this madness! You know I live only for Sonya’s safety. I didn’t kill my father. I am not without honor.” Zihao’s hands curled into fists.

“Yet you would break your blood oath,” Ryuu pointed out. “Honor is not in your nature, dilong.”

What are they playing at? I never leaves Sonya’s side. Zihao scowled.

“Power makes one do heinous acts. Hitler. Al Qaeda.” Elder Gou’s eyes remained trained on Sonya, almost as if he willed her to believe him.

“No. Not Z,” Sonya thundered. Zihao swore.

“He had opportunity and motivation.” Draco shook his head. “Chicago is a hub for various dragon clans.”

“No! No!” Sonya screamed.

What’s this feeling, Son?

She didn’t answer him, but a strange feeling rippled through him. Her dragon roared and the safe house’s walls shook. Everyone stumbled except Zihao and Sonya. The doors flew open and the windows shattered as a violent wind rushed in. A furious whirl swept through the cabin, bowling over everyone except Sonya.

“You. Are. Wrong!” Sonya’s dragon voice spoke in clear, flawless, and human
language.

That had never been done before. Sonya. What the hell is going on?

Elder Gou crossed his arms over his robes. “He will be put to death for his treachery.”

Sonya rose into the air, buoyed by some invisible force. Her hair fanned out around her. Her usually warm brown eyes had been altered. Cold, nearly milky orbs stood out in her face.

“No. You won’t take him!” She wasn’t just one voice anymore but hundreds. “Son!” The wind snatched his words, plucking them from the air the moment he
spoke.

The thunderous roar of invisible waves resounded through the safe house. It
furiously ripped curtains from windows. Items crashed, ripped, and smashed to the walls. All the dragons had been pinned to the floor and held on to heavier furniture as to not be swept away.

Zihao squinted against the raw wind. His eyes watered. What the hell was this? How could he protect her when he didn’t even know what was going on? Whatever it was, it had sliced off his telepathic link to her. It overrode his mated connection. What in the world could do that?

“Sonya! Sonya!” He tried again to reach her and to stand. The moment he stood, he flew several feet toward the kitchen. Her wind had drowned out his words.

Everyone cowered.

Except Elder Gou.

He remained standing, a large grin on his face.

“She has it! She has it! Sonya has the celestial wind!”

Chapter Nine

The world had broken into a million pieces. Sonya’s fury unfolded. How dare they threaten him? Accuse him? Another roar raced through her. Screams and shouts could be heard, but from far away. Panic erupted inside her. Had she hurt someone? Z?

Calm yourself! I’m okay. I can feel you now. Please, Son, come back to me. Z?

Yes. Relax. You’re destroying the safe house. I need you to come back. Can you feel my heart again?

Yes…I—I think so.

Then return to me, lover. Please.

Destroyed? She calmed and relaxed. Her feet touched the floor and once they did, the wind died.

An eerie quiet followed.

“What the fuck just happened?” Draco wheezed and hoisted himself up to a standing position. Anika stood beside him, her hand on his shoulder.

Sonya swallowed. Had she done this? She looked around the room at the results of her fury.

Elder Gou walked up to her, smiling. “Do you remember anything?” Sonya jerked away from him. “Yes. That you want to kill my mate!” Zihao raced over to her. “Do not anger her again.”

“Trust me, Zihao. I will not.” Elder Gou nodded. “I do not want to kill your mate.”

“What?” Sonya frowned.

“The elder wanted us to anger you, make you mad,” Ryuu explained, dusting off
his pants. He sighed. “Our apologies, Zihao. We know you are not the mole.” “Why?” Zihao thundered. “Why?”

Elder Gou held Sonya’s furious gaze. “Ah, little sun, you have the ability to harness the celestial wind.”

“The what?” Sonya reached for Zihao’s hand.

“Seng chi is the celestial breath, the essence of life. You are able to harness the breath, the wind. You are the seventh child of the seventh daughter—the lone girl among six males. Rumors abound that the Gous had the bloodline for the celestial breath, but it had never materialized. My sister can control the seas, and I fire and earth, but none of us call forth the celestial breath—all four abilities, flight, fire, earth, and wind. Though our bloodline is rich, none of the Gous can conjure the wind.”

Sonya’s mouth dropped in disbelief. She could control the wind? “I’m a seadragon.”

“A seadragon, yes, but more.”

“Holy shit.” Draco hobbled over to the tossed-over wingback chair, turned it over and sat down.

Ryuu nodded. “The council knew this, but we think Draco was attacked because the assassins wanted him out of the way. The siren just served as a tool.”

Zihao squeezed her hand. “What did that have to do with Sonya?”

Draco answered. “At one point in time, our families considered betrothing us.” Sonya fell back a step into Zihao. “I’m not sure I can take any more surprises.”

Elder Gou stroked his goatee. “They had old information. In fact, we discarded the Jin family because the council did not want one tribe to become more powerful. With a firebreather, the joining of the celestial wind to the Jin line would be—stacking the deck as they say.”

Zihao nodded in understanding as he remembered the fear on the council members’ faces when Ryuu spoke. Draco shrugged. “The other clan wants to eliminate her to stop her from harnessing the wind.”

“You saw how powerful she is,” Anika said, and gestured to the wrecked living room. “She could’ve lifted this cabin off its foundation. Next stop, Oz.”

“And we ain’t in Kansas anymore,” Draco added dryly.

Elder Gou nodded. “They want to stop her from producing younglings with that ability too. I said there was someone from the clan too. They don’t want to kill her, but to mate with her.”

“Who?” Zihao demanded, his hands fists.

“Chee,” Sonya offered. It had to be them. Their grubby claws always turned up in the bad underbelly of dragon affairs.

Elder Gou shook his head. “Not the Chees.” “Who?” Ryuu asked.

Elder Gou’s eyes widened. He stepped back from them and winked out of the room.

“I hate when he does that!” Draco shouted. Anika patted his thigh and laughed. “What now?” Sonya asked, her hands on her hips.

“We can’t stay here.” Zihao pointed to the windows and the doors. “We’re exposed. We need to move.”

“I agree. Get your gear.” Ryuu started for the kitchen.

Sonya followed Zihao up the stairs to the closet to grab warmer clothes and pack clean ones. They grabbed a bunch of things, but they didn’t speak. Shock. A numbness returned and she felt like she stood outside her body watching herself pack and gather put on shoes.

“You’ll be fine.” Zihao spoke like he’d heard her ask a question. “I am fine,” she quipped. Damn him for reading her emotions.

He stopped, placing weapons in a jacket he found in the closet. With a small smile, he hugged her.

“Always knew you were special.”

Almost instantly she relaxed. He soothed her rough edges, like always. “I’m scared. I don’t know how to work this ability. My family is still missing, and my uncle is gone.”

“I will withstand all of hell to be by your side. Nothing is going to hurt you. I’d give it all for us. You know this. We will find your family and we will put an end to this.” Zihao kissed her forehead. “Promise.”

“Damn right.” Ryuu stood at the top of the stairs, dressed in a coat, his hair tied back. The polite council member hid behind a now empty face. He looked as dangerous as Zihao.

“Let’s go.” Zihao hoisted the backpack onto his back. When he looked down at her, he added, “Hold on to me, and never let me go.”

With that, they followed Ryuu down the stairs.

As they reached the bottom, Ryuu stopped abruptly. Zihao maneuvered in front of her. Sonya gasped.

Standing in front of the broken doors was her eldest brother, Santo. Dressed in all black, his long dark hair plaited into a single braid, he looked ready to rob a bank. He didn’t smile when his eyes connected to hers, and several other men filed in behind him. None of the other men were of her clan.

“What’s going on, Santo?” Ryuu asked calmly, but his fists remained clenched. She could feel Zihao’s stillness wash through him.

“You look like someone died. Mom? Dad?” She didn’t move. Ryuu remained blocking her path and Zihao stood behind him. So she called out to her brother from the third step.

“Not yet,” Santo answered. He gestured with left hand and the men fanned out around him, flanking him. Fight formation. No doubt.

“What-what are you doing, Santo?” While her heart was glad to see him, it saddened at his answer. Santo had been more father to her than her real dad.

Calm yourself, Son.

She swallowed the hard knot of realization. “You?” Santo nodded. “Me.”

“No, oh by the gods, no. Why? Why would you try to kill me?” Her knees threatened to give out. Her heart swelled in loss. None of it made sense.

Hatred rimmed his eyes, and he smiled. “Because I hate you.”

The word made her flinch. She grabbed Zihao’s shoulder to keep from sinking to the floor. Hate? How could he hate her? He showed her so much love, until he mated and moved to California. “I’m your little sister.”

“Don’t remind me. Everyone adored you. Everyone. Each time they complimented you, fretted over how important you were, they cut into my soul. They acted like you were the only one capable of greatness.” Santo stepped farther into the room.

Ryuu moved to intercept him. Zihao came down a step, but remained in front of her. She gripped his jacket.

“I love you. You loved me too. I was your favorite, you said!” Tears spilled down her cheeks.

“It wasn’t what I said, but it’s what I didn’t show to them.” Santo grinned. “That reveals the real me.”

“How could you destroy our clan, our family, for what? Your pride? Because Mom didn’t hold you enough?”

“Those cuts were deeper than they seemed,” Santo shouted. “You’re trying to save me, to stop me. Quit holding your breath.”

“Damn it! It was jealousy!” Draco shouted, drawing the attention to the kitchen’s entranceway. “See that, Ryuu? We were wrong.”

Ryuu swore and shook his head. “These others are from the Emerald clan—Irish.

What did he promise you?”

One of the dark-headed dragons laughed and jerked his thumb at Ryuu. “Smart, isn’t he? Santo promised us your demise. That’s enough for us.”

“The clan’s annihilation was a bonus, but I will have her dead, dilong.” Santo nodded at her.

“Oh, I do not think so,” Zihao growled.

“What’s one more dead dilong? Your father didn’t even see it coming when I killed him.” Santo spat.

Zihao stilled to that place Sonya knew invited others to underestimate him. “I’m not smarter than my father, but I am more stubborn. You didn’t succeed that day, and you won’t succeed today.”

“Stop fucking monologuing, Santo, and come get your ass kicked,” Draco shouted.

“Draco! No!” Ryuu shouted, but it was too late.

Santo laughed. “What the hell. The screams all sound the same!” Violence erupted at once.

Sonya felt a hard shove from behind and she fell backward, down the three stairs to the floor. Where Zihao had been was only space. He’d launched himself at Santo. All she saw were blurs of colors dipping into the shadows and lights.

“Come on!” Anika screamed and snatched Sonya’s coat. “This way!”

Dazed, hurting, and furious, she followed Anika to the rear of the cabin, down the stairs, and out the back door. Amazingly, no one was back here, probably because the cabin sat up against the woods. Anika crouched and turned to Sonya.

“Move your ass, woman!” Anika barked. She quickly looked around to make sure she wasn’t heard, but gently pushed Sonya anyway.

Sonya cast a look back at the violence and shouts, and turned away. She wanted to go back, to fight alongside her mate. Ahead lay wilderness, but behind her was her life—her family, her clan, and her lover. She didn’t dare reach out to Zihao while he fought. The distraction could cost him. With her heart heavy, her stomach churned in uncertainty. She couldn’t just abandon it all to save her neck.

“Don’t do it.” Anika stepped in front of her. “Draco gave me very specific instructions. I’ll be damned if I let you go back in there to die. Not when my mate is fighting to save you. You’re going to live, bitch, so help me.”

Sonya heard the fear and the undercurrent of anger in Anika’s voice. So many people sacrificed for her. For what? This celestial wind? It hardly seemed worth it.

“So start walking.” Anika frowned.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Sonya couldn’t really think of anything else to say. So she turned and headed into the unknown.

Chapter Ten

Zihao yanked his dagger from the jacket’s inside pocket before he’d even left the step. Launching himself toward Santo might not have been the best idea, but his emotions—hell, his fury—had overridden his better judgment. The pulsating words flashing in his brain had one solitary goal—neutralize the threat. Part of him couldn’t quite comprehend that Santo, Sonya’s brother—her favorite sibling—had meant her harm. All the times she’d run to him with her millions of questions and frustrations with her parents. Someone she loved, but also looked up to, respected. Sure, when Santo married, he’d become more distant, but never had either he or Sonya thought her pursuer, her assassin, was her own kin.

The knowledge burned him. Sonya’s pain-streaked voice, the complete and utter disbelief quivering in the syllables, had injured him. For that Santo needed a major ass kicking. His label as family had been revoked for the gall and absolute lack of honor. Santo Gou didn’t deserve his birthright, but instead needed to be served a punishment. It spurred Zihao on with greater vengeance. All around him shouts, grunts, and howls—signs of violence—acted as a chorus to the non-choreographed fights. He saw glimpses of the Jin brothers out of the corners of his eyes, but mostly Ryuu’s fire erupting.

“Killing your own parents,” Zihao spoke, but he heard his dragon rise.

Santo sidestepped his attack, but not quite as fast as he may have wanted. Zihao’s gleaming blade’s tip sliced through Santo’s arm, tearing the clothes and only cutting the arm. Grunting, Santo turned to him, eyebrows furrowed on angry dark eyes. He removed his hand from the cut and reared to his full height. Zihao didn’t want the others to his back, so he rotated around, putting the kitchen entrance to his back. Now, he could see the two Jin brothers fighting the vast majority of others. Three of Santo’s men lay sprawled unconscious around the living room. One of them smoldered.

“I will have her heart beating in my hand.” Santo grinned.

“What happened to you?” Zihao swore and shook his head. He adjusted the hunting knife in his hand and pointed it at Santo.

Santo patted his brand at the base of his neck. “I could ask you the same question. You’re mated. I’m guessing Sonya. All the more reason to kill her.”

A stillness came over Zihao, but his grip on the blade’s handle tightened. Zihao had briefly considered taking a gun, but he liked the idea of using his knife. It would make Santo’s death so much more personal—and this was definitely personal.

“Jealous, Santo? She managed to mate with someone of her choice instead of the match her parents made.” Zihao smirked.

“Shut up, you stupid dilong!” Santo came at him, swung a right, and caught him in the back. Pain flashed but Zihao crushed the brief shot of anguish with cold training. I feel nothing.

At that moment, one of Santo’s men crashed into Zihao, catching him from his blind spot and knocking him to the floor. The knife went skittering across the floor. Zihao shoved the now-unconscious man from him and scrabbled backward from Santo’s advance. With thick, steel-toed boots, Santo stomped swiftly as he tried to crush Zihao’s bones. Zihao rolled out of his reach, but not before Santo raced over and attempted to step on him again.

Damn. He’s fast. Faster than he used to be.

“Die, you bastard! Die!” Santo screamed over and over again.

On one of his attempts, he caught Zihao in the ribs. Zihao swallowed the pain and the roar of anguish he wanted to release. Instead he focused on the task at hand. He caught Santo’s foot and twisted it. It sent Santo spiraling to the floor in a shower of shouts and rage. Unable to dislodge Zihao’s grip infuriated him more, because he soon lobbed punches at Zihao’s arms, trying to get free of the hold.

Zihao got to his feet. Waiting, he watched Santo stand. As soon as he did, he swung. Zihao avoided the punch and instantly slammed his fist into Santo’s jaw, sending him spiraling backward, crashing to the floor again. He rose sluggishly and raised his bloody knuckled fists in a boxing crouch.

“All those years of boxing lessons on Chicago’s south side prepared me for pain.” He waved Zihao forward.

“Not for the pain I’m bringing.” Zihao readied himself and squatted down to the floor and called through its wooden beams to the cold earth underneath. The dirt and icy mud rose up between the miniscule cracks in the floor, seeping in like water, but thicker. Santo staggered as it crawled up his shoes and up to his ankles.

“Stop!” Santo roared. “Stop!”

Seadragons could swim well, but this wasn’t water. On land, they were nearly defenseless in dragon form. That was part of why Sonya’s celestial wind held so much allure and promise. Zihao’s father had said don’t keep fighting when using you have the earth. It is enough.

Santo attempted to start for Zihao, but the mud held him firm. He rocked back and forth, flailing around to keep his balance. The moist earth continued to rise over his mid-section. Santo screamed. Hs arms punched the air in an attempt to grab onto something, anything before they too were coated in thick, Alaskan mud. Zihao focused on hardening the thick mixture until it encased him.

Unable to move, Santo screeched, “Kill this earthen slug!”

Zihao shot up to his feet. He searched the room, but none of the other henchmen made a move toward him. Some couldn’t make a move due to grave injuries incurred from Ryuu and Draco. The Jin brothers had backed several more men into a corner. The three others evaluated the situation. They looked at Ryuu and Draco, and then to him. Zihao clutched his fist and squeezed. The mud around Santo’s body packed itself tighter. Santo squealed in pain. At that moment, Ryuu shot a stream of azure flames at them. The trio shrieked and threw down their weapons, fleeing the cabin and out into the dark without any explanation.

“That settles it. Draco, get me some rope to tie these men up.” Ryuu growled at the men in anger. “It’s a good thing we don’t eat our own kind.”

“I will kill you!” Santo roared a brief moment before Zihao forced the mud to cover his mouth, silencing him. He’d had enough of his threats. Zihao walked over to
him. Staring into Santo’s crazed, panic-filled eyes, Zihao understood that he should kill the man at once, because he posed a serious threat to Sonya. He couldn’t live. Something in his face must’ve registered with Santo because he started wiggling again, eyes wide as saucers, struggling against the mud.

Zihao reached inside his jacket and pulled out the second hunting knife. With a fluid motion, he unsheathed it. It caught the sunlight and gleamed, almost as if eager to be utilized.

“Zihao…” Ryuu called softly.

He didn’t even look over at him. Something in him stilled his hand as it approached Santo’s throat. Santo’s struggled. Fear changed him from the screaming, enraged maniac of a few minutes earlier to Sonya’s brother, a Gou, a seadragon…

“You will not hurt her again. This I promise…” Zihao whispered. He drew back his knife and readied to slice Santo’s throat.

“Zihao!” Ryuu shouted. Zihao struck.

At this a flash lit up the room. Elder Gou appeared along with four other people Zihao didn’t recognize, but his blow landed against the elder’s hand. It struck true, but no blood came from the elder’s hand.

“That will do, Zihao.”

The elder’s gown looked washed and new. Gone were the stains and chaos of battle. Healed, lucid, and back to his usual self, he nodded at Zihao and then at the Jin brothers.

“We will take care of this from here.” Elder Gou gestured to the others.

They all wore ancient gowns, none of them looked the same. One of the darker haired men, with bright blue eyes, stepped forward. He bowed.

Ryuu and Draco came to stand beside Zihao.

The man wearing the emerald green cloak and gown nodded. “I am Alcott O’Keefe. These men are my kin. I apologize for their attacks against your people. We have no working knowledge of their actions. They will be severely punished.”

The second person stepped forward. Once she swept back her cloak’s hood, Zihao noticed she was a woman. Thick, curly hair spilled over her shoulders. Her scarlet robe and gown skimmed her figure. She did not smile but bowed. When she spoke, her accent nearly smothered her words.

“I am Beatrice Martinez. Some of these men are my kin as well. They acted in concert with those of O’Keefe’s clan. We are the ruby dragons of Spain. They will be punished according to our laws.”

The third person did not come forward, but lurked in the rear behind Elder Gou. His gown and cloak came in a shimmering navy, but he kept his head bowed. Added to Zihao’s rising suspicions, he did not offer his apologies or acknowledge his kin’s role in attacking the Azure dragons. He glanced at the elder to gauge his response to the other man’s reluctance.

Like always the elder’s face remained blank.

“What about you? Which of these idiots belong to your kin?” Ryuu snapped and stepped toward him. The other man huddled further back into his cloak, but said nothing.

Elder Gou answered. “We will discuss that later.”

“What about Santo?” Zihao asked, the knife still in his fist. He’d stabbed the elder instead, but the man had placed himself in harm’s way.

Elder Gou gestured to the attackers. “The United Draconian Empire has ordered a meeting to discuss the attack. In the meantime, these men, including Santo, will be held as prisoners, until the outcome of a trial and a decision by the UDE.”

Ryuu threw up his hands and Draco shook his head. Neither of them seemed to believe it either.

Zihao grunted in disgust. “He deserves to die for his attack on the Gou and Sonya.”

“Indeed he does, but it will be determined by the UDE as to how.” Elder Gou clasped him by the shoulder.

“Some of you have already handed out death sentences,” said O’Keefe.

“When you come to attack, you better be prepared to win,” Ryuu answered. “Or go home like a burnt burrito,” Draco added.

Beatrice scoffed. “This is how your clan does things, Gou?”

“Is it how yours do things? Attacking other clans and breaking centuries of treaties?” Ryuu snapped as he rounded on her.

Zihao swore. The elder winced. “Ryuu, calm yourself. Now, where is my niece?” His shifted his gaze to Zihao. “Guardian?”

“She is safe with Anika,” Zihao answered. At the mention of her, his mental walls came down and instantly he thought of her again. An ache rose in his heart. He needed to find her as quickly as possible.

Where are you?

He reached out for her, feeling for her presence.

At another safe house about ten miles away. You’ll never guess who is here. Pleasure and joy seeped into her telepathic message. It made him smile. Your parents.

Yes! My entire family is here, though not all of them are in good shape. There’s a lot of our people here, but it’s not good. Anika and Angelina are helping with medicine along with the doctors, but it is very awful. I’m glad to hear you’re alive—not that I didn’t think you would be…

Zihao nodded and sheathed the hunting knife. I need you close to me. I’m coming to you. Do not move.

Elder Gou held up a hand. “Not quite yet, Zihao.” Zihao paused. “I’m going to her.”

The elder stroked his goatee, his thick eyebrows lowered defensively over his eyes. He stared at Zihao, seemingly searching him. For what, Zihao didn’t know, but he would not spend any more time away from Sonya.

After what seemed like decades, Elder Gou nodded. “Go to her, dilong.” Zihao bowed and raced from the cabin.

Epilogue

June

Crisp blue skies stretched out across the Alaskan wilderness. At the base of the

Xiongxin’s Keep, scores of dragons frolicked in the lake and soared in the skies, flying
about in the warm, comfortable weather. The flowers’ many blossoms scented the air and created a natural perfume that blanketed everyone who passed by on the path up to the keep. Sonya stood on the lake’s bank, her back to the brilliant water. Standing directly across from her, her mate, her love, Zihao Longwei watched her from behind dark aviator sunglasses. His hair had grown out a bit and had begun to turn up at the ends. The sun had turned his skin golden, and he looked like a beautiful man.

In the wake of the attack on the keep, guardians stood at the entrance to the keep. Those flying acted as scouts and lookouts for possible trouble. Inside the keep, the roaring of digging and shouts as dilongs worked to clear out debris and repair the dens, tunnels, and major rooms echoed. Most of the clan members resided in the safe house cabins until the keep had been completely finished.

“How do you feel being back?” Sonya walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. He felt wonderful and sweaty.

Shortly after the incident, her family had returned to Chicago. Her mother had been nearly crushed beneath the fall of debris and still remained in the hospital at Northwestern’s Dracontology unit. She might be confined to a wheelchair, but her spirit kept her kicking. Sonya grinned at the memory of her mother ordering the doctors around from her hospital bed.

“Let the man breathe, Sonya,” he father chided from his lounge chair. He shot her a grin. “When did they say they were going to call the damn council meeting? I need to get back to Chicago.”

Sonya shrugged. “I don’t know what’s going on, but the heightened security measures make me nervous.”

Zihao snorted. “There’s no need. I’m here.” He hugged her back, taking her into his arms. “And Santo isn’t.”

Her father squinted against the afternoon’s bright sunshine. “Santo. My own damn son. If you didn’t have a slew of witnesses, and the elder’s words, I wouldn’t believe it.”

Zihao dropped some kisses along Sonya’s neck and instantly she calmed down. She didn’t like thinking about Santo. Only a month had passed, and it still bothered her that he’d meant to kill her. However, since returning to Chicago, her parents had allowed her and Zihao to move into a house out in Schamburg and establish their own lives.

“Mr. Gou, the council meeting will start in fifteen minutes,” announced a deep, graveled voice. Sonya jumped and twisted around to see who it was.

“Kao!” She waved and relaxed.

“How are my two most recently married people?” Kao asked with a grin. His close-clipped dark hair looked perfectly in place, and his almond-shaped eyes had a magick all their own. They made her feel both naked and vulnerable at the same time.

Stylish, he wore a soft, pastel yellow button-down shirt beneath an ivory summer suit. He looked cool, and ready for life in Miami, but as council member himself, Kao Chen made it all look so damn good. She couldn’t hate him too much. He had saved her love, Zihao, from death.

“We are blissfully happy, thanks to you,” Sonya said.

“Disgustingly so,” her father chimed in as he got to his feet. He bowed to Kao and Kao returned the greeting. “Seriously, Kao, we are in your debt. Had you not negotiated, Zihao would be dead and my daughter’s happiness destroyed.”

Kao shook his head. “He saved the clan and took down our internal terrorist. He shouldn’t be put to death for mating with the woman he loves.”

Zihao remained very quiet. She glanced at him, and noticed he’d gone Zihao- still. He’d spoken very little since Kao arrived. The elder had accepted Zihao as her mate, but her parents took real convincing. When Ryuu and Draco testified to Zihao’s valor and strength, her parents reluctantly agreed. Kao had dissolved the blood oath with a lot of legal wrangling. Sonya knew it didn’t sit well with others, especially the Chees.

Kao’s smiling face became suddenly serious. “Zihao, the Chees and a few other families placed a petition to the council about the dissolving of the blood oath. They are arguing that you and Santo acted together for the demise of the clan.”

“I thought that had been settled!” Sonya shrieked. No. Nothing else was coming between them.

“I see that Chee wants his way or he wants revenge,” her father grumbled. “Leave it to me.”

Kao squeezed Sonya’s arm. “He petitioned, but the council is stacked against him. Myself, Ryuu, the elder, and your father all sit on the council. It will be okay.”

“What if they decide to overturn it?” Zihao hugged her closer.

Kao shook his head. “They cannot overturn the council’s decision. The blood oath has been dissolved. There are no grounds.”

“Then why submit it?” Sonya frowned.

Kao met her eyes and shrugged. “Attention. Power play. Attempt to regain respect. Take your pick. All will fail because it is baseless.”

“Do not worry. Kao is the best.” Her father bent down and kissed her cheek before starting for the pathway. “We will get this sorted.”

“It should already be settled,” Sonya snapped, her temper rising.

“Calm yourself.” Kao patted her shoulder. “We won’t let anything come between you and Zihao.”

She watched them walk away, but she folded herself into his arms. Politics. Despite all the craziness that had occurred in the last month, for all the changes, everything was still the same. She couldn’t help but smile.

“I love you, Son. Nothing will remove that or change it. We are mated and we are one.” Zihao kissed her ear gently.

“They’re trying to kill you via the council.” Sonya closed her eyes and sighed.

He turned her to face him, slipped his finger under her chin, and made her look at him. “They will fail. I am your guardian. Not even death will keep me from your side.”

She smiled as his lips closed over hers. Dilong. Guardian. Mate.

Zihao. Hers.

I love you, Son. Zihao broke the kiss and hugged her close.

She slowly opened her eyes and when they met his, she knew without a doubt she had nothing to fear. He’d always been with her, and he would always be with her.

The End

About RaeLynn Blue

RaeLynn Blue is the author of numerous tales of smart contemporary romance and speculative romance. With an imagination that's varied and diverse, her tales explores love in all its many shades, situations and scenarios. She fell into romance stories at the ripe age of eleven and has been writing stories ever since. Join RaeLynn Blue on her next story of love and life.

Ritual Island

© 2019 J. P. Uvalle

Edited by Claire Allmendinger

About Ritual Island

The vacation of a lifetime is about to be cut short...

Blaire and her best friend are eager to cash in on their all-inclusive win and cruise off to Bora Bora for a life-changing vacation.

But nothing on the ship is as it seems.

Something sinister is at play...

...and Blaire may be its next victim.

Surrounded by shifters with insatiable appetites, she’s about to take her chances in the sea itself.

Until him.

Shifter King Dorian is accustomed to being obeyed and feared.

But when he meets the woman intended as his latest sacrifice, he realizes who she is...

...and just what it means for his future.

Can Dorian throw away his only chance at love to restore powers that ensure his reign on Ritual Island as its one true king? Or will he follow his heart and risk everything for love with the woman fated to be his mate?

Go to the people and places that set a spark in your soul.

~Unknown

Chapter One

BLAIRE

“You survived another year of college!” Melanie dropped out after our freshman year, so me, continuing this rat race, is a big deal for both of us.

“Barely.” I grimace, drowning my steak fry in a pool of ketchup before plopping it into my mouth. Yes, I survived another year, but not without getting my heart broken in the process. My ex-boyfriend, Miguel, had decided to dip his cock into the first girl who’d offered up the goods. That was weeks ago, but the wound rips open again every time I see him on campus, flirting with some other chick—his next conquest—almost as if his dick does all the thinking for him now. Where did it all go wrong?

Melanie’s green eyes narrow in my direction, and she tilts her head of ombre curls to the side. “Are you seriously thinking about Pencil Dick again?” She scowls.

“Fuck him.” I shove more fries into my mouth. “I hope that asshole gets the clap.” My gaze lingers to the crowd passing by. My comment causes some pedestrians to do a double-take at us. I give them the finger. “Mind your business.”

The elderly couple shakes their heads, walking off. “Damn, millennials.”

Rolling my eyes, I finally work up an appetite to chomp into my burger. The taste of whiskey barbecue sauce and onion strings overwhelms my taste buds, leaving me humming with delight.

“Now, if only we can find you a man as deliciously satisfying as that burger…” Melanie raises an eyebrow.

“Never gonna happen.” Gulping down my food, I refrain from laughing. Melanie always knows what to say to put me in a better mood—one of the many reasons I adore my bestie. We are total opposites who’ve been through a lot and have somehow managed not to kill each other. Yet.

“Oh, I have an idea. How about we go to Club Crush tonight. I think we deserve it. We—I mean you—have worked so hard this year; you’re on the Dean’s List.”

“Maybe some other time. Really not in the mood to party.”

“C’mon, Blaire. Let’s start our summer vacation off with a bang.” She gives me the puppy-dog eyes, and I am finding it harder to resist the call of booze and dancing all night until my feet are the size of Texas. Leaning my back against the cold chair, I run through all the awful scenarios that can possibly occur, most of them involving Miguel showing up and leaving with someone other than me.

Snap! “Earth to Blaire.” Melanie slumps back into her seat, poking her bottom lip out.

I blow out a breath. “Fine…we can go.” Melanie is right. After the year we’ve had, we do deserve to have some fun. Who knows, we might even meet a cute guy or two worth talking to.

“Yesss!” She does a hip-rolling celebratory dance and gets a whistle from some skaters passing by the café. It makes us both giggle. “I feel that tonight is our night.” She winks as she jumps up from the table, grabs my arm, and pulls me down the street.

“Hey, we didn’t pay for our food!”

Biting my nails, I walk back and forth in front of the window. My stomach is in knots as I try to keep down the food I didn’t pay for.

“Who are you looking for…the Dine-and-Ditch-Police?” Melanie throws a shirt from the drawer back onto the bed in search of another.

“We’re gonna be in so much trouble, Melanie.”

Melanie stops mid-search and struts over to halt my pacing. “Stop worrying, will you? And help me find my black shirt.”

“I love that café. Now, we can never go back.” I groan, crossing my arms over my chest.

“Psst. The food wasn’t that great. We can always find another café to go to.” She goes to pull out a drawer and dumps all the clothes in it onto the floor in front of her. “Ugh, where is my fucking shirt.”

“Maybe you left it in Carlos’ car last week.”

“Now, that you mention it…”

Seriously? I stomp my foot to the ground, eyes narrowing into a glare. “Melanie?”

She puts her hands up. “Just kidding…I think I left it in James’s car, actually.” She lifts her shoulders into a nervous shrug.

My mouth goes agape as I throw a pair of studded leather jeans at her. “You slut.” The girl changes boys like she changes clothes.

“What? I thought we agreed he was smoldering hot.”

I shake my head. “That wasn’t code for, ‘go and fuck him,’ Melanie.’”

“My bad.” She giggles.

“Whatever. Where’s this damn shirt so I can move on with my life?” I head over to the closet and sift through our clothes, finally stumbling upon a black crisscross shirt. Yes, found it.

“I believe this is the shirt you’re looking for.” I hold it up, and she does a track star leap over the pile of clothes to get to it, but I clamp it high above her head. “Not so fast.”

“Hey, America’s Next Top Model.”

“You can have the shirt if you can promise me one thing?”

She blows out a breath. “Fine, what?”

“Don’t sleep with anyone tonight.” I raise an eyebrow.

“You’re such a cockblocker.” She snatches the shirt from my grasp and heads into the bathroom, slamming the door.

Miguel isn’t the only one who needs to learn to keep it in their pants. I smirk, happily turning back to the closet to look for something to wear. I find a simple black dress, take off my clothes, and slide the chiffon fabric over my shoulders.

Once outside, the June breeze brushes against my exposed skin. We strut down the sidewalk of our apartment complex and hop into her purple bug. Speeding down the highway, a familiar song comes on the radio, and I lean forward to turn up the volume. Maybe going out tonight won’t be so bad after all. Clearing my throat, I belt out the words to the song, and Melanie joins in as my backup singer, dancing to the beat.

“Get it, girl.” She nods. Soon, we turn left down an alleyway and pull into a parking garage behind Club Crush. She rolls down the window to punch in a few numbers, and the machine spits out a ticket. We drive farther into the garage and find a spot on the lower level by an elevator. A group of rowdy partygoers are lined up outside the titanium doors.

We re-apply our lipstick, sex up our hair, and saunter over to the crowd with our heels clicking against the cement. The bass of the music intensifies when the doors slide to let us in. At the top, they open to a pink neon tunnel where the line begins.

Melanie shoves me with her elbow. “Aren’t you getting excited?”

Seeing the people in front of us dancing brings a smile to my face. “Yeah, I can’t wait to have a drink.”

“Oooh, I heard their Porn Star Martini is to die for.” She bites her lip.

“Uh, huh. Do you even know what’s in it, or do you just have sex on the brain? Remember you promised.”

She rolls her eyes. “Yes, mother, I remember.” She laces her arm around mine, and we step forward, following the crowd. “Can you promise me something?”

I look down at her. “What?”

She smirks. “Promise, you’ll have a good time. No matter what?”

“Okay,” I squeeze my arm tighter around hers.

We are next in line, and the bald bouncer’s gaze trails up and down the length of us. “ID’s ladies.”

I rummage through my purse and pull out both of our ID’s and hand them to him. His brown eyes scan over each detail with a raised brow. Then he gives us a sharp glare before handing back our ID’s. “Have a good time.” He unlinks the velvet rope and allows us to pass, mumbling something under his breath as we walk by.

“What did you say?”

“Geez, Blaire. Who cares?” Melanie tugs me forward while my glare remains fixed on the bouncer.

He slowly mouths out the words: your fun won’t last.

What the hell is that supposed to mean?

Melanie and I make our way through the crowd. A couple bumps into us. “Blaire?” His eyes go wide.

You’ve got to be kidding me? I yank on Melanie’s arm. “Let’s go.” I knew Miguel would show up here with some shank.

“Fuck him, Blaire. There’s a contest that needs to be won.”

I narrow my eyebrows. “Contest? What contest?”

“I may have taken the liberty of entering you into a karaoke contest. The prize is an all-inclusive cruise to Bora Bora!”

“How could you do this to me?” I yell.

Melanie smiles nervously. “Because…I really want to go to Bora Bora.”

Right then, the DJ announces the night’s first contestant…me.

“Ugh, I hate you so much right now.”

She pushes me toward the stage. “You’ll thank me later. Plus, you can show dickwad here what he’s missing.”

“Oh, shut it, Melanie,” Miguel snarls and walks off.

On stage, I gather my nerves and belt my heart out. The crowd cheers me on, and the frowns on Miquel and his date’s face fuel me to take things up a notch. I hop onto the bar and dance around, Coyote Ugly style. Melanie climbs onto the bar, and the crowd goes wild.

An hour later, after an ear-bleeding showcase… the DJ announces, “Congratulations, Blaire Burkhart. You and a friend are going to Bora Bora!”

Chapter Two

BLAIRE

Melanie and I fly in early and take a shuttle to the port to drop off our luggage at the cruise terminal, where we are kindly greeted by porters. Entering the cruise terminal, we go through airport-style security to check our carry-on bags and walk through a metal detector. At the end, a lady in uniform hands us a health questionnaire to fill out.

“Any health concerns?”

“Not getting enough di—”

“Melanie,” I groan. “Can you act like a girl with some class, for once?”

“Jesus, if I knew I was going on a cruise with Mother Theresa, I would have pretended to be sick or something.”

I shake my head and go back to answering the rest of the questions.

After the security checkpoint, the staff directs us to a line to check-in for our cruise. I pull out our proof of citizenship from my carry-on and hand it over. Our pictures are taken, and soon after, they issue us our cruise card, charge card, and room key.

“Ugh, this is taking forever. I'm ready to get shitfaced already,” Melanie groans.

“Soon...hopefully.”

We arrive at the waiting area for the ship behind a long line of eager passengers. The line begins to dwindle, and once we approach the gangway, the ship’s photographer offers to take our photo in front of “The Golden Goddess.”

“Yes, we want to remember every moment of this trip,” Melanie's voice reaches a new octave.

“I'm sure you do.” The photographer's smirk is laced with mischief, and suddenly, my abdomen clinches with dread. Frozen on the spot I’m standing, I continue to stare at him, unsure of what to do. His smirk widens, the malicious intent in his gaze intensifying his eyes to a deeper shade of blue. They mock my fear, signaling off an alarm inside me. Maybe this is a terrible idea? Or perhaps I am reading this all wrong? I can’t decide—I just know something doesn’t feel right.

“Blaire, are you feeling okay? You look pale suddenly.” Melanie caresses her hand against my forehead. “My goodness, you're burning up. We should get you on board and out of this sun ASAP.”

The photographer says, “Certainly. The staff will take excellent care of her. Have a wonderful time, ladies?” He moves away from the gate, allowing us to pass.

However, I remain glued to the port. “Maybe we should go home, Melanie. I've never heard of this cruise line before.” Looking back at the line of passengers, I realize they’re predominantly female girls around our age.

“Don't be ridiculous.” Melanie cranks on my arm, but I still refuse to budge an inch.

“Get on or get the hell out of our way. You're holding up the line.” A blonde behind us screeches at the top of her lungs.

The sound of her voice unlocks the tension in my muscles, and with a gulp, I swallow my fear, following Melanie aboard.

Our cabin isn’t ready yet, so we make our way through the atrium and head to the restaurant.

“What the hell was that back there?” Melanie glares as she plants her rear on the barstool.

“I don't know. I just have a feeling something is off about this whole thing. Haven't you noticed all the passengers are women, and all the staff are men? Like...seriously buff men?” I whisper.

“And your point is...? What's so alarming about seriously sexy and buff men?” A shirtless waiter walks by, and instantly, I've lost her attention. “Damn, please tell me he is on the menu.”

I groan, punching her in the arm. “Are you even listening to a word I am saying? I think we are in danger.”

“Well, if danger looks like him, I'll risk it.” She cocks her head to get a better look at his ass.

“Ugh, forget it.” I flag down the bartender, who is also not wearing a shirt. “I'll have a shot of tequila.”

Melanie snaps her head of curls back around. “Now, we are talkin'. I'll have the same, handsome.”

The bartender winks and goes about preparing our shots then slides them our direction with a saltshaker and two limes.

We raise our shot glasses, and Melanie shouts, “To Bora Bora or bust.”

I reluctantly repeat, wet the back of my hand with my tongue, and pour on the salt before licking it off. I notice the waiter licking his lips simultaneously with ours. So does Melanie, and she teases him by sticking her tongue out even further to make small circles on her hand until she has licked up all the salt.

No longer enthused, I down my shot and shove the wedge of lime into my mouth. The citrus taste simmers down the burn in my throat.

An announcement sounds over the intercom that our cabin is ready, and I hop off the stool. Grabbing a hold on Melanie's arm, she pulls me back and leaves the waiter a generous tip along with her number.

“I'll be seeing you later, handsome.” She blows him a kiss.

He catches her air kiss in his hand and runs his hand down the length of his chest.

My mouth twists in disgust. “Gaw, we've been here all of five minutes, and you’re already picking up guys.”

She giggles. “I plan to make the most of this vacation. I suggest you do too.”

“Making the most of this vacation doesn't have to involve sleeping with every guy you meet.”

“Oh, loosen up. I won't sleep with every guy. Just the hottest ones,” she laughs.

“Yeah, yeah.”

We round the corridor to find another attractive man holding our luggage. “Welcome, Misses Burkhart and Vanhousan, I'm Marcel, your butler.” He sets down our luggage and kisses the tops of our hands. “Allow me to get you settled in.” He opens the door to our cabin to reveal an opulent space trimmed with gold. The sophistication of color seamlessly blends with the high-quality wood and marble finishes throughout. “Our Goddess Suite comes with two bedrooms, one bathroom with a jacuzzi tub, kitchenette, and mini-bar.” He grins as he sets down our bags.

“Holy shit, Blaire. This place is nicer than our apartment. I'm gonna talk with the parental units about this.” Melanie walks over to pull open the curtain. “My God, this view.”

“The muster drill is scheduled in an hour, so I would recommend getting everything unpacked before then or after dinner at 7 p.m.”

After the drill and welcoming dinner, all the ladies and wait staff gather on the deck. The horn blows, signaling our cast off. We can feel the vibrations from the engine below us as we sail into the unknown. The sensation and the breeze flowing through the air have me beaming with excitement and nervousness. The ship pulls away from the port, and “Celebrate” by the Black Eyed Peas blasts over the speakers.

Melanie snatches my hand in hers and guides me to the front of the ship. The sun casts over the deep blue ocean. People on the pier wave goodbye as we travel forward, heading to Bora Bora: a place described as magical and full of intrigue, with beauty and a promise of romance. Something my heart seeks—the chance of finding love on a cruise is slim, but it doesn't stop me from hoping. I look over to my best friend squeezing my hand. Melanie is right. I need to make the most of this vacation. I decide to leave my worries behind me, including Miguel. He belongs in the past.

The cheering from the crowd pulls our attention to behind us. The fountain in the center of the dock is now glowing with color as clear liquid waterfalls down. The wait staff hand out champagne glasses with cut strawberries in them. Our eyes light up, and we race to the fountain before the line becomes unbearable.

Melanie and I make our way to the dance floor inside where it’s less crowded. Showing up the other girls dancing, we're soon dripping with sweat, so we leave the dance floor and sit down at the bar to have another drink. “Two Peach Pleasures, please.”

“Hmm. Is someone feeling a bit frisky tonight?” Melanie winks, rubbing her clammy arm against mine.

I shrug. “Maybe a little bit.” My mouth fails me, and a mischievous smirk spreads over my face.

“Okay, Miss Coy, I’ve got you. Let's play Dare or Dare.”

“Melanie, no. You always make me do something I could go to jail for. Just no.”

The bartender hands us our beautifully crafted drinks with a cherry and an umbrella in them.

“I promise. I'll go easy on you.”

“Okay, fine. But first, I need to down this entire drink.”

A laugh erupts from Melanie's chest as I take a large gulp. The peach schnapps, gin, and orange go down smoothly, leaving an unforgettable and delicious taste on my buds, which tingle for more.

“So, are you ready?”

“No but dare away.”

She smirks. “I dare you to french kiss the next guy that walks into this bar. You have until midnight.”

I glance at the wall clock behind the bar. My heart jumps. It's 10:55 p.m. “Seriously? It can’t just be a peck on the cheek?” I shudder, but at least I don't have to streak across town in broad daylight. My parents will never let me live that down.

She shakes her head, giggling. “Nope. All tongue, Miss Thang.”

“Bitch.” I roll my eyes and down the rest of my drink.

The energy suddenly shifts in the atmosphere, a crushing blow to my chest. The chatter around us quickly dies, forcing Melanie and me to crane our necks to see what has everyone so speechless. Instantly, my eyes lock onto a man rippling with muscles, his creamy skin—the color of cinnamon is kissed with tribal tattoos and a radiant glow. Fuck me. He has the most gorgeous shade of amber eyes. They call to me, compelling, breaking me down slowly, and no matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to keep my limbs from shaking. Mr. Gorgeous walks into the room and fills the place with his Godlike presence, almost as if he owns everyone’s soul.

“I think I just came,” Melanie whispers.

I look down to find her clenching her thighs together. Jesus!

He moves through the crowd with ease, nodding to a few people as he walks by. Oh, my God! He’s heading this way. I spin around on the barstool and down the last bit of my martini. Hearing his dress shoes clink across the floor, sounding closer and closer, has my heart skipping several beats at a time. I’m on the verge of losing my shit, and I can’t imagine how this must be affecting Melanie.

A shoulder of solid muscle brushes against mine, and a shock of electricity sparks warmth in my veins. Suddenly, I am finding it hard to breathe.

“Whiskey straight.”

I gasp as the bass of his voice vibrates through my bones.

“You got it, Captain.”

What? He only looks a few years older than me. My breath falters—my muscles locking into place. I’ve never felt so terrified to look at a man in my life. I have to kiss the captain of the ship. Oh, Melanie is going to pay for this!

The bartender raises a brow at me in tune with my uprising fear. I’m sure it’s written all over my face. “Can I…get you ladies another round?”

“I…” I glance over to Melanie, and she appears to be worse off than me, barely able to keep herself upright on her stool. “I—”

“Yes, they’ll have another. It’s on me,” says the mystery guy of the hour.

“Thank you.” The words barely make it out of my mouth.

“Is this your first time? I don’t believe I’ve seen you here before.”

“Yes.”

The bartender slides my drink over to me, and I catch the glass in my hand and hold on to it for dear life.

“How about a toast?”

Unable to speak, I nod.

I hear the stool squeak next to me, and next thing I know, I can feel his breath against my ear. Fuck! Stay calm, Blaire. With my heart beating out of control, I close my eyes and exhale a deep breath.

“No need to be afraid. The captain doesn’t bite. Not all the time, anyway.” His hand comes into my line of vision, and he places his finger underneath my chin. Just the slight connection of his skin on mine has my insides burning to ash. “Hey?”

Slowly, I turn my head and link my eyes with his. Although I am trembling, I can’t tear my eyes away from him. He’s a beautiful sight—eyes shimmering with gold, exuberant of so much dominance that I feel like I should be on my knees in front of him.

“Yes, a toast.”

His smirk is dangerous, magnetic. As the seconds pass, I am finding it harder to deny the desire I have for him, devouring every fragment of my existence like a deadly virus. “To first times.” Holding his glass in the air, Melanie and I then clink ours with his.

“First times,” we both say.

Quietly downing our drinks, he steps away from the bar. “Well, ladies, duty calls. If you have any requests, please don’t hesitate to let me or my staff know.” His sexy smile, paired with his memorizing eyes, pulls me into a trance. I don’t respond as he walks away.

What the hell just happened there? I shake off my daze.

Melanie seems to also. “Wait…my friend here requests a kiss.” She laughs so hard she almost falls off her stool.

I sigh when he doesn’t turn around. “I hate you so much right now.”

“You hate me now, but you’ll thank me later. Mr. Dreamboat is out-of-this-world fine as fuck. I’m jelly.”

“Don’t be because this dare isn’t happening.” I jump off my stool.

She catches me by the wrist. “Don’t puss out now. The fun is just beginning. And trust me, you need this, Blaire. You’ve been wound up tightly, maybe Cap can loosen you up a bit—if you know what I mean.” She wiggles her drawn-on eyebrows.

I rip my arm from hers. “What if we get kicked off the cruise because of this?” I wave my hands in the air. “Just no.”

Melanie scrunches her face. “Uh, huh.”

She grabs my hand, leading me through the throng of females and staff members letting loose. Outside, the cool breeze evaporates the sweat from my body. My gaze automatically locks onto the captain walking into the section of the ship the guide referred to as the bridge.

“Now’s your chance.” She smacks me on the ass before pushing me forward. “Go get him, tiger.”

I exhale a long-winded breath, mustering up some courage, and place one foot in front of the other. My heart pounds harder the closer I get to the bridge door. When I am close enough, I realize he is not alone. Damnit. I can’t do this! Turning around, I see Melanie shaking her head and motioning me to continue. She’s not going to give up on this dare if her life depends on it. With another breath, I slowly turn back around. Time to put on your big girl panties, Blaire. I knock. Immediately our eyes find each other through the window. He smirks.

“Well, hey there, first-timer.”

I feel my cheeks heat several degrees. No one has ever had this effect on me before. But, then again, they weren’t real men. “Hey.”

He cocks his head. “What can I do for you…?”

“Blaire. My name is Blaire.”

“Blaire. That’s a beautiful name. Not as beautiful as you are though.”

“Is it in your job description to flirt with your passengers, Captain?”

He chuckles, and my heart skips a beat. “Not only are you beautiful. You’re a feisty one too. And you can call me Dorian.”

“Okay…Captain Dorian,” I smile like a love-struck idiot.

“Just Dorian is fine.”

“So…aren’t you supposed to be steering the ship or something?” I didn’t know what else to say. I’ve noticed no one is at the steering wheel, but I have no clue how things work around here. I’m initiating some small talk, and hopefully, then, I won’t be so damn nervous about trying to kiss him.

“Would you like a tour of my domain, Blaire?” He raises an eyebrow. I’ve known this man for all of five minutes, and he makes me feel like a mindless child. The way he looks at me does things to my body I can’t explain.

“Umm…sure.” I shrug.

He opens the door wider, motioning me in. “My lady.”

My lady? I like the sound of that. Oh, stop it, Blaire. You're ridiculous.

“Take a break, fellas, while I tend to our lovely guest.”

The men happily oblige and close the door behind him, making the room seem so much smaller than it was before. As he moves past me, I am hit with a wall of his highly intoxicating scent; it strikes me in the nostrils, and I close my eyes a moment to fully appreciate the soft yet masculine tone of it.

“Blaire, are you, all right?”

I feel his large hand graze across my back, and I desperately want to fall into his touch, but I resist. “Yeah, just feeling a little seasick is all.”

“Here, have a seat.” He glides a chair across the floor, offering it to me.

“Thank you.” I sit down while he watches my every move like a hawk.

“Can I get you anything else?”

I shake my head. “I am good now. Thanks. So, Mr. Captain. How does all this work?” I point to the control panel to the right of me.

His smile and his eyes radiate so much light it almost seems brighter than the moonlight casting over us. “Well, I’ll let you in on the secret.”

“Secret, eh? I think I can stand for this.” I giggle as I sway over to him.

“The captain and his crew steer the ship maybe thirty percent of the time. Otherwise, the ship is driven by autopilot.”

“No way. So, the movies have it all wrong then?”

“Maybe. You see”—he points to a computerized system—"this system does the majority of the work, allowing us to tend to the long list of duties on board.”

“I bet being a captain can be overwhelming at times, being in charge and responsible for all these people?”

“Yeah…sometimes, but I wouldn’t trade this for the world. I love being out at sea. The sight of the ocean gives me a sense of calm.” Dorian sighs as he looks out into the ocean, and his masculine features soften a little.

Watching him watching the ocean puts a smile on my face. “I definitely agree with you there.” I inch closer to him, admiring the spectacular sight before us. “When did you become a captain of a ship? No offense, I just expected a man with wrinkly skin and gray beard.

“Ha,” he laughs. “I get that a lot. My father was a captain of another cruise line. He took me on my first cruise when I was eight years old, and I’ve been hooked ever since.”

“That’s amazing.” When I glance at the clock, I noticed it’s a quarter to midnight, and a lump rises in my throat. My heart races faster now, and I can’t keep my thoughts together.

“So, tell me about you.” He makes the gap between us even smaller, stealing the air from my lungs.

“Umm…there’s not much to me.”

“Sure, there is. Don’t be shy.”

Less talk, more action, Blaire. I’m running out of time. It’s almost midnight. Digging deep, I find my inner sexy and toss my hair back. His eyes widen.

I turn my body to his and slowly run my hand down the length of his chest. “Maybe we can talk another day. But right now, there’s something I need to do.”

“Is that so?” His arms envelope around me as I bravely look into his eyes. The gold swirling within them has me hypnotized once again. For a short moment, I forget to breathe. “Is it something I can assist you with, Blaire?”

“Yes,” I murmur, inching my face closer to his. Even though I am tall, with my heels on we are the same height. Going in for the kill. I kiss him, slow and steady.

He doesn't pull away and pushes back with an intensity that has me melting in his arms, needing to feel more of him. Every nerve in my body sparks with pleasure.

“Oh, Blaire.” He groans against my lips, taking my tongue deeper into his.

I don’t want to stop, but before I get too enraptured in this kiss, I reluctantly disconnect our lips and head for the door. I don't look back to see his reaction, nor do I give him enough time to reject my abrupt departure. I flee to my room, head down. I don't know what I'm more ashamed of—kissing a man I barely know or the fact I left him hanging the way I did after he’d been so kind to me? He must be so confused right now.

My body jolts backward as I bump into a body of solid muscle. “Going to bed so soon.”

How did he get here so fast? My question soon fades as his deep voice caresses over me like a wave. All I want to do is feel his lips against mine once more. His firm, unforgiving arms enclose around me, pulling me deeper into the ecstasy my body craves. But I can't. “Yes. So, if you'll excuse me, Captain.” I go to unlock my cabin door with my keycard, but he blocks the entire doorframe with his massive body. Inhaling a breath, I tightly clench the keycard within my grasp. Everything I could want in a man stands before me, but I must resist the temptation at all costs. Because that's precisely what he is—a fantasy—an illusion. A man as perfect as him doesn't truly exist, and I won't fall for his tricks.

“You can't kiss me the way you did, then run away.”

Yes, I can. “I didn't want to kiss you. My friend dared me to do it.”

He towers over me. “Well, your mouth and body told me otherwise, but go ahead, deny it all you want. You’ll be back.” He moves away from the door as I look down at my feet. “Goodnight, Blaire.”

I bite my lip. Dorian whispering into my ear sends a throbbing ache coursing throughout my body, ending where I've never been touched, but desperately want to be. Ugh, what is this man doing to me? I remain here, silent, as he walks down the hall, never looking back. I watch him until he disappears around the corner, and only then, do I push the key card into the slit. The green light blinks, and I open the door to find Melanie sitting on the bed, all smiles. “So... how’d it go with Mr. Dreamboat?”

I drag my body over to the bed and let myself fall against the golden silk covers. “I don't want to talk about it.”

“C’mon, this game isn’t fun unless you share the juice. And by the looks of him, I bet his kisses were extra juicy.”

They sure were. I struggle to keep from biting my lip. “Shut up.” I sit up to shove her off the bed.

Melanie gets up, dancing around the room as she sings that annoying ‘kissing’ nursery rhyme. “If you two get married one day, I want all the credit.”

I launch a pillow at her head. “Never.”

“We’ll see about that.” She dives onto the bed to grab a pillow and hits me in the face, knocking me over. Melanie may be petite, but they didn't call her Lil Scrappy in high school for nothing.

“Okay, I give.” I lay there, laughing.

She lies next to me, out of breath. “By the way...you don't need to tell me. It's writing all over your face, you shank.” She sucker punches me in the arm and runs into the bathroom, laughing.

I clench my hand over the sting. “You’ll have to come out of there at some point. In the meantime, I get this ultra-comfy bed all to myself.”

The bathroom door creaks open. “I suggest you sleep with one eye open tonight.” She laughs, closing the door. Although she is joking, her threat still sends a tingle down my spine. I hope she doesn’t pour hot sauce in my mouth again…

Chapter Three

DORIAN

“Blaire.” I love the way her name rolls off my tongue. I can still feel her lips gliding across mine. Kissing her was so soft yet primal, awakening the hungry beast within me. Usually, I don't seek out attention, but the way she smells has me undeniably drawn to her. My mouth waters with an agonizing crave to taste her. However, I must remind myself of what my men and I are here to do. Nothing—not even a gorgeous and sweet-smelling morsel like Blaire—can derail our mission. There were many girls before her, and there will be plenty after her. I’ll show her a good time, sure. Blaire deserves that much at least for what is going to become of her and her friend Melanie. We are predators, and they are our delightfully scrumptious prey waiting to get picked off. In good time, my little deer.

A knock at my door shatters my vision of her. “Captain, we need your assistance with a problem.” Flex—my second-in-command—uses a tone revealing all the information I need. I am so sick of this shit!

“Flex, I’ll be right out.” With a sigh, I pull myself from the comfort of my bed, put back on my clothes, and swing open the door. “Where is he?” I growl through gritted teeth.

Flex hangs his head as he says, “The VIP room in the casino.”

Before he has time to look up and follow me, I zip down the corridor at lightning speed and crash through the door to the VIP Room. My hand latches around Hunter’s thick neck, lifting him inches off the ground, so our eyes link. Mine burn into him with fury. “What have you done?”

I follow his eyes to the floor and get a whiff of copper. My hold tightens as a rumble rips from my throat. “How many times do I have to tell you, no feeding until the ritual?” Hunter’s face turns blue while he gasps for air. His hands lock onto my arm, but I refuse to let up until he’s on the brink of death. I’ve had enough of his insubordination, and I’m quickly running out of patience at his indiscretions. Annoyingly, I can’t kill him. But if he’s not careful, he will reveal what we are before it’s time. I can’t have that either. Not only is my responsibility to my crew but the women aboard my ship. They need to remain alive until the night our Goddess performs the ritual to restore our powers.

As Hunter begins to wither away, I release my hold, and he falls to the floor in a heap. “Name?”

“Jessica, sir,” Flex says.

I glare at Hunter. “Throw her overboard, then clean up this mess before anyone sees. Don’t fuck up again.”

He nods, rubbing his throat.

Swiftly, I return to my cabin for much-needed rest. The crew and I have a busy morning entertaining the guests as we reach the last leg of our cruise before arriving in Bora Bora.

The morning festivities come and go, and Blaire is nowhere to be found, so I decide to check on her. I reach her cabin and knock on the door. Her friend Melanie with red curls, answers. “Hello there, Mr. Dreamboat. Blaire hasn’t been able to shut up about you.” She smirks.

I clear my throat. “Really?” My heart jumps. “Can I speak to her?”

Melanie shakes her head. “To be honest, she’s been a little distant…haven’t seen her since this morning.”

I mirror her frown. “Don’t worry, I’ll find her.”

“Oh, I know you will.” She winks, waves goodbye, then closes the door.

I search high and low only to come up empty-handed. The worst ideas of what could’ve happened to her plague my brain. I run into Cade on the way to the bridge. If anyone has seen her, it would have been him as it’s his job to keep a close eye on our guests. “Have you seen a tall, curvaceous girl with long straight black hair and brown eyes? Goes by the name of Blaire.”

He rubs the length of this face. “Blaire, Blaire…Blaire.” He takes a moment to think, but to me, it’s a moment too long considering the douche bag we have lurking on board. “Ah! I think I saw a girl that fits that description hanging around the lookout tower, sir.”

I clap him on the shoulder. “I knew I could count on you.” I teleport to the tower. Looking up, I spot black hair cascading in the wind, a floral scent finding its way to my nostrils. Blowing out a breath of relief, I ascend the tower. It’s her.

“Blaire, I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

She jumps an inch but calms when she realizes it’s just me. “Well, you found me.” She goes back to staring at the ocean with her knees pressed to her chest.

I sit next to her and dangle my legs over the edge. “Melanie mentioned to me that you’ve been distant. Is something bothering you?”

She continues to look forward, pulling her knees closer to her chest. Her face pales several shades. “I just want to be left alone. Please go.”

“I understand. But if you need someone to talk to…I am here.”

Finally, she turns to acknowledge me with eyes full of disdain. My heart twists into a knot. Why is she so upset? Have I done something wrong? Has someone hurt her? My fists clench into a ball. If they have, I’ll make them suffer an agonizing death.

“Yeah, whatever,” is all she says before turning her attention back to the ocean.

At this moment, I wish Blaire trusted me enough to confide in me, and thinking about her impending fate, she probably never will. I frown. I wish things could be different, Blaire. I’m sorry. Being what I am is a blessing and a curse with no way out, and I only have myself to blame.

It takes everything within me to leave her. I didn’t want to, but she’s made it clear she wants nothing to do with me. So, I stand up and leave. Part of me prays she’ll call after me. She doesn’t. I reach the bottom of the tower and organize my crew, making sure everything is on track. We can’t afford any more mishaps this close to Bora Bora. Even throughout the day, all I can think of is Blaire. Will she ever talk to me again?

Chapter Four

BLAIRE

I swing open our cabin door, startling Melanie, and pull my clothes out of the closet.

“I take it things didn't go well with Mr. Dreamboat?”

“Melanie, we have to get off this boat.”

She puts her hand on my shoulder. “So, it didn't work out. There are plenty of hot guys here.”

“It's not that.”

“I'm sorry about the hot sauce, okay. It was a childish thing to do.”

For the first time since last night, I look at Melanie, imprinting her tan skin, green eyes, and her bouncy, red curls to my memory. We've been through so much together that I consider her my sister—a part of me. And God forbid, if something terrible happens to her, I’ll never forgive myself for not being more insistent about leaving this cruise. I just hope we can survive whatever comes our way. “Melanie...I witnessed something awful. We have to get the fuck off this boat.”

Her jaw drops as she stares at me. Usually, she would try to convince me I'm just paranoid, but the fear consuming my eyes can't be ignored. “What did you see?” She walks me over to the bed, and we sit down.

Closing my eyes, the horrifying images play over through my mind... Last night, I was having trouble going back to sleep after attempting to brush the hot sauce out of my mouth. So, I decided to take a walk. The commotion had calmed down, and a few drunk girls were lounging by the pool. Well, I should say, passed out. I walked over to the pool to soak my feet. The coolness surrounding me seemed to calm down my nerves until I heard an oddly familiar voice. The cold invaded the rest of my body as I sat there, frozen.

“Keep a lookout,” a husky voice said.

At the back corner of the boat, I saw shadows moving closer before they came into view. A bald man appeared, and suddenly his words rang in my head. “Your fun won’t last.” I gasped. What was the bouncer from the club doing here?

Quietly, I got up from the pool and tiptoed over to lean against the wall of the ship. I peered around the corner to find the bouncer and another man carrying a girl. I clasped my hand over my mouth to keep myself from screaming. Blood was seeping from her neck or what was left of it. She was blonde. Blonde? My mind pondered as I scanned through all the people I’d encountered on this trip. Squinting to get a better look, I soon realized she was the girl who yelled at me to get on the ship. Now, I wished we hadn't. The sight of this just proved I should’ve listened to my gut all along. Getting on this cruise was a fatal mistake. What—who did that to her? I crept even closer as both men groaned. Her lifeless body went flying over the edge and plunged into the sea below.

I thought I had seen the worst of it. Maybe I was in shock by what I had seen, and I was imagining things, but no, I don’t think my mind could elaborate something like this. The men transformed into the biggest tigers I’d ever seen and sprinted off into the night.

Melanie gasps, both hands covering her mouth. Tears start to stream down her cheeks. “We—we have to go,” she nods uncontrollably. “We fucking have to go.”

We scramble up from the bed, frantically zooming around the cabin to grab all our belongings. Out of breath, we meet back in the middle of the living room.

A stern knock at the door makes us jump.

Melanie and I look at each other, standing in silence. I hope whoever is on the other side of the door will just go away.

They knock again.

My heart pounds loudly in my ears so that I can’t hear myself talk. “Who is it?”

“It’s Marcel. The captain sent me to check on you. Would you like me to bring you some lunch from the buffet?”

We sigh with relief. “Umm…no thanks, Marcel. I appreciate you asking though.”

“My pleasure. If you need anything later, just page me.”

“Of course.” Moving closer, I watch his feet disappear from the door. “That was a close one.”

“So, what’s the plan? We are in the middle of the freaking ocean.”

“While I was sitting on the watchtower, I noticed a few lifeboats hanging off the side. We can take one of those.”

“Okay…that sounds good and all, but what if we get caught? Her hands are glued to her hips. “And if we don’t, we could die at sea from starvation or thirst. Plus, we don’t have a damn clue where we are, Blaire.”

“C’mon, Melanie. Do you think I’d risk our lives without a plan? I saw what looked like an island west of here. We can row us in that direction. It may take us a few days, but once we are on land, we can report these assholes.”

She looks down at her feet. I give her a minute to absorb what’s about to happen. “Okay,” she sighs. “We can do this. I’ll work on food and supplies. You focus on securing us a boat.”

“Gotcha.”

“It’s go time.” Melanie walks out of the room with the confidence I’ve always admired and vanishes around the corner.

It’s raining, and everyone is indoors. I wait for my moment to sneak out of the room to investigate the setup. Usually, a guard is patrolling that area of the boat, but right now, he is nowhere in sight. Stealthily, I slide around the corner and quickly glance over the rail. The lifeboats are anchored to the cruise ship by a mechanical arm. Hopefully, the device won’t be too hard to maneuver.

Quietly and quickly, I return the way I came, meeting Melanie back at the room. We decide it’s best to leave while it’s still raining—less chance of getting caught. This whole situation sucks. I wish I weren’t right about something being off. I frown, knowing what was supposed to be the vacation of the summer ends here—tainted by murder and mystery. “All right. Got everything we need?”

“Yeah, and then some.” Melanie pulls two raincoats from her duffle bag. “I managed to snag these from the staff utility closet when no one was looking.” She smirks.

“Sweet.” I hide my carry-on with all the essentials underneath my blue raincoat because lugging my suitcase around will only slow us down. “Ready?”

Melanie nods. “Ready.”

It’s nighttime, and only a few paths on the ship are well lit, so we stick to those, careful not to make any noise. We get to where the lifeboats are kept, undetected.

No! My heart drops when I see the guard unlatching the boats from the ship. Splash!

We pull our backs against the wall. How did he know? He must’ve have been watching me, but from where?

“Fuck, what do we do now?” Melanie whispers.

Adrenaline pumps rapidly through my veins as I grab Melanie’s hand. “We jump.” I don’t think, I just do, dragging my best friend behind me. We hit the water before either of us has time to scream. The cold current pulls us under, but my hold on Melanie's hand doesn’t budge. We desperately swim to the surface and wrangle a boat toward us by a rope. I steady it so Melanie can climb in. She then reaches down to help me up. “You crazy, bitch.” She lets out a breathy laugh.

“I’m just trying to keep us alive.” Jokingly, I shove her aside to notice we only have one paddle. “Damn it. Well, at least one paddle is better than none.” I dip the paddle into the black sea and row us west. The rain continues to pound down on us as we move away from the ship of death.

The waves suddenly pick up, oddly pushing us back towards the boat. They grow larger and faster, nearly tipping our boat over.

“What the hell? This makes no sense. The wind is blowing westerly. How are we going backward?”

Splash!

At the sound, we both snap around to look at the ship. All is quiet except for a rippling of waves and heavy drops of rain hitting the ocean. The sky is pitch dark now, and I gulp as an unnerving feeling takes over my core. Melanie must feel it too because she latches onto me for dear life. “Blaire, I should’ve listened to you.” She pulls me in closer, and we position ourselves in the middle of the boat.

“Doesn’t matter now because we are going to get through this. We always do.”

“Soul Sista power,” we say in harmony as tears spill from our eyes.

The boat suddenly rocks to the right, and a pair of sharp claws appear out of nowhere. I’m pulled back into the ocean, screaming at the top of my lungs. Something inhuman and beast-like glides through the muggy waters at super speed. I blink, and we are out of the water, back on the ship. What the…?

I turn around to see Melanie being restrained by the bartender, her eyes transfixed on the man-beast standing behind me. “Let her go.”

The creature grumbles, vibrating my entire body before spinning me around. My gaze meets a pair of glowing yellow eyes so vicious; I feel myself slowly dying from its stare. “I’m sorry, but you can never leave,” it says, voice demonic. The beast latches its claws around my face. Melanie’s scream drifts into the air. Its eyes glow brighter, then everything goes dark…

Chapter Five

DORIAN

Bora Bora

Two Days Later…

The sight of over-water bungalows, and waterfalls tumbling down fern-carpeted basalt cliffs, never gets old — just the meaning of what my life has become — an ongoing prophecy as the result of my greed. My men have also suffered.

The cruise ship sails over the glittering lagoons, and past beaches lined with coconut trees before it anchors down. My crew escorts the other females ashore to Vaitape while Flex and I keep an eye on Blaire and Melanie. They attempted to escape; I can’t let them out of my sight. Blaire had witnessed Hunter and Flex tossing Jessica overboard and shifting, thus adding complications to our situation.

After plucking them out of the ocean, I wiped their memory, leaving only the good parts, and adding new memories. But there’s no telling how long we have before their amnesia wears off. Goddamn it. Our Goddess cannot catch wind of this, or she’ll have my ass for dinner.

I open the shades to my cabin, and Melanie and Blaire begin to stir. Here we go…

Blaire’s eyes open and immediately connect with mine. “Captain…” She quickly glances around. “What are we doing in your bed?”

Melanie laughs. “Yes, I’d definitely like to know.” She bites her lip at me, and I refrain from smiling. I wouldn’t mind having both all to myself.

“I’d like to tell you we had an amazing time, but unfortunately that’s not the case.” I clear my throat. “You two were so wasted you jumped overboard. My crew had to take a lifeboat out to rescue you.”

They both shake their heads, trying to recall something they cannot remember.

“Ugh, I’m super annoyed I don’t remember shit. It’s hard to get this one to loosen up.”

Blaire rolls her eyes.

“But I have good news.” I smile. I open the sliding glass door to my balcony, and they both get up and peer out of it. “Welcome to Bora Bora.”

The sight of them jumping up and down in glee temporarily lifts the gloom from my heart. The day is what I look forward to—showing the girls the time of their lives. Tomorrow—not so much. Seventy-eight years of playing this role of captain of a cruise ship. Seventy-eight years of lies and torment and murder. Seventy-eight years of bodies sacrificed, blood, and carnage. The weight of the seventy-eight years of names I carry around in my heart is like a wrecking ball. Put on a fucking happy face, Dorian. It’s showtime!

“Melanie, you remember Flex, don’t you?” He mentioned to me on the first day of this trip, he caught her checking out his ass.

She looks him up and down. “I most certainly do. How’s it hangin’, handsome?”

Flex just smirks. He is the introvert of the group, so I find it funny that the crazy, loud-mouthed females tend to flock to him. Opposites attract, I guess.

“Great because he is your escort for the remainder of the trip.”

She struts over to him and laces her arm through his. “Well, what are we waiting for…escort me.” She waves to Blaire, then they’re out of the door, leaving us alone.

Blaire twiddles her thumbs with her head down to the ground. “I’m sorry we put your men in harm’s way. Normally, I wouldn't behave that way… how embarrassing.”

I lift her chin, so our eyes meet once again, and she sucks in a jagged breath. “Don’t sweat it. It’s our job to keep you safe.

“Okay.” Her creamy cheeks tint with red.

“So, where to?”

“Huh?” Her eyes go wide, lips forming into the perfect shape of an O.

Now, all I can think about is the kiss we shared on our first night. She says it was just a dare, but that kiss was raw and passionate as if she had poured her heart and soul—
every small fiber of her being—into it. I must kiss her again. I smile. “I’m your escort.”

“No way. I get the captain all to myself?”

I nod, my smile growing wider. Oh, I have plans for us.

“I want a tour of all your favorite places.”

The request seems easy enough. I know this place like the back of my hand. It is my prison after all. I hold my arm out for her to grab onto. “You’ve got it, my lady.”

“Oh, and one more thing…”

“Yes?”

“Do I get to wear the captain’s hat?” She flutters her eyelashes in my direction; her eyes pleading with me.

“Certainly.” I remove my hat and place it on her head of lustrous black hair. “I’ll call you my first mate.” God, you’re so fucking adorable.

“Thank you. I’ll be the best first mate you've ever had.” She strays over to the corner of the cabin to look in the mirror.

I watch her, imprinting every curve visible to me through her blue sundress. I’m sure you will. My mind gets carried away with dark thoughts of how much my cock yearns to be inside her. Quickly, I dismiss them, clearing my throat as she turns around.

“How do I look?”

Like my forever. Unfortunately, that life is no longer in the cards for me. “Like a true Golden Goddess.”

Blaire

I feel honored to have Captain Dorian as my tour guide on this tropical paradise. He hasn't left my side since we left his room. It feels nice to have his undivided attention, although I'm quickly becoming enemy number one when it comes to the other females. They all want a piece of the captain.

But I kissed him. And it was mind-blowing. I feel the phantom presence of his lips against mine every time he is so close to me. I must kiss him again. For once in my life, I am grateful for a Melanie dare.

We walk past wild passion fruit vines draped over hibiscus trees and down a bridge to the bungalow Melanie and I will be staying in. Inside, I’m stunned at such beauty. It steals my breath. “This place is unreal.” Part of the floor is glass so you can see the turquoise lagoon below. “Like something out of a dream.”

“You haven’t seen anything yet.” He takes my hand and walks me to a royal blue Jeep with no doors. “Your chariot, my lady.”

I squeal inwardly and hop into the Jeep. Soon, we are driving down a narrow pathway until we reach a small abandoned village, surrounded by lush vegetation. He opens the passenger door for me, and we begin hiking on foot. “What is this place?” I glance around in awe of the fruit trees, growing varies fruits like mangos, bananas, and passion fruit.

Dorian smirks, handsomely. “This is the Valley of the Kings. A place of refuge where one can gather the ‘breath of life’.” He raises his arms in the air, speaking with so much enthusiasm it makes my whole body sing with anticipation of what’s to come. I sense his sudden calmness; he is in his element—at one with the earth.

As we continue trekking through the hills, he outlines more legends surrounding this island rich with culture and traditions. Dorian seems to know a great deal of what took place here in 1941, almost as if he was there himself. When there was an attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States chose Bora Bora to serve as a military supply base. He shows me around the bunkers hidden throughout the jungle, pointing out various artifacts and landmarks.

After our hike, we get back in the Jeep and travel down the path, passing by the volcano I wanted to see. He pulls over suddenly, his demeanor shifting, and he just stares off into space, blinking rapidly.

Have I done something wrong?

“Maybe we should call it a day.”

“What? I've been waiting for this stop all day,” I frown. Why is he so hesitant suddenly? “This place is breathtaking—why can't we go up?”

He turns to me. His eyes, once vacant of emotion, filled with admiration. “You're breathtaking. Now, let's go back. I think we've done enough sightseeing for one day. Plus, I may have a surprise for you.” His smirk reaches from ear to ear, making my heart palpitate.

“Fine. Only if you promise to bring me here tomorrow?”

He grimaces as if my request pains him. “Yeah, sure.”

Watching his internal struggle uproots sadness in my heart. I want to ask questions about what is bothering him, but I barely know this man, and the last thing I want to do is to upset him. So, I don’t push it.

We continue our descent down the hill and end up by the ocean near a hut. Dorian helps me out of the Jeep, before disappearing into the straw hut, appearing seconds later with a bucket of small fish. In silence, we walk together toward a vibrant coral garden near clear, shallow waters.

“Get in,” Dorian demands.

“Umm...is it safe?” I can see a pair of shark fins in the distance.

“They are Black Tip Reef Sharks. They won't hurt you. I promise. Now, get in.”

The firmness in his voice startles me, and I don’t hesitate to do what he asks. “Aye, aye, Captain.” I grab ahold of the security rope as I lower myself into the cold, crisp water. A couple of stingrays and a shark swim in my direction, spiking adrenaline in my veins. I haven’t encountered such exotic aquatic life before, and I feel completely out of my comfort zone.

“I’ll feed them. All you have to do is remain calm and enjoy the show.”

I nod as a stingray brushes against my leg. “Right,” I gulp. More sharks and various schools of a fish circle around me and feeling them so close to me makes me squeal with laughter. I reach down nervously and glide my hand across a shark’s fin, and soon exhilaration shoots up through me. “This is incredible. Thank you.”

“Anytime.”

“So, what's on the agenda for tomorrow?”

“If I told you it wouldn’t be a surprise, now would it?”

I splash him. “You’re such a tease.”

He laughs, splashing me back. “That I am.”

Chapter Six

DORIAN

The welcome festival is the highlight of this vacation, on the shores of Bora Bora, where we treat the women to a colorful display of traditional Polynesian foods, drinks, and music. The last hurrah before we kill them. Spending so much time with Blaire is making me question the whole killing part. Do I want to remain king of Bora Bora? The dilemma is ravaging my insides like a hungry beast. I down my frustration with a shot of whiskey. I struggle, debating with myself about avoiding her completely or saying fuck it and running away with her into the night. Far away from here, where my past haunts me like a ghost.

Blair ultimately decides for me. “Care to dance, Captain?” I hear her sweet voice sound from behind me. The sensation has goosebumps pricking my skin. This woman will be the death of me instead of the other way around.

I look off into the distance and realize the sun is starting to set. The ritual will begin in a few hours. I don’t have much time with her, so I better make the best of it. I gulp down the bitterness in my throat and slide off the barstool in front of the outdoor bar. I turn around with a smile on my face. My eyes immediately find hers and trail of the length of her, draped in the color of seduction—the dress practically painted on her voluptuous curves. Fuck me. I am a dead man.

“How could I ever turn down my first mate?” I smirk, taking her small hand in mine, leading her over to the middle of the beach where there is a makeshift dance floor encircled by strung up lights to create a romantic ambiance.

With the sun setting on the horizon, I pull her close to me, my heart instantly breaking with guilt. My mistakes nip at my heels, and I realize I am cheating myself out of the life I could have.

With her.

“Turn Your Lights Down Low” by Bob Marley plays in the background and I find myself getting caught up in my feelings, the burn consuming my chest. “Blaire, you look incredibly beautiful tonight,” I murmur into her ear.

She exhales a small breath, pressing her sexy body against mine. “You are too kind, Captain. “

“Please, call me, Dorian.” I inhale the black raspberry scent of her, hating the barrier of clothes between us. If she isn’t saying my name now, she will be later.

“Dorian,” she says on a breathless whisper. I clench tighter onto her waist, biting back a moan. She says my name like she was born to.

The tempo picks up, and she turns around to ground her sweet ass into me, making my cock kick in my pants. I notice her bite her lips. Yeah, that’s it. Feel me, baby. Then she dips lower, winding her hips back up, slowly making a figure eight, and the tiger in me growls. I need to taste her now. “Hey, I’m sorry that we never made it to the volcano today. I was hoping I could make it up to you?” I wrap my arms around her and graze my teeth along her earlobe.

I feel her breathing pick up. “What did you have in mind?”

I smirk even though she can’t see me. “Follow me.” I lead her away from the crowd and deeper into the foliage down a dirt path. A waterfall comes into view.”

She gasps, bringing her hand to her chest. “Dorian, this is magical. Better than any volcano.” Thank God! I avoid that place like the plaque. It’s just an ugly reminder of how much I’ve fucked up my life.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Take a dip.”

“She bites her lip at me. “Is this just a ploy to get me naked?”

I shrug. “A man never shares his secrets.”

“Uh-huh. Well, in that case. It’s your lucky day.” Slowly, she struts to the waterfall, leaving her shoes…then her dress behind. Her black thong caresses where I long to. Fuck! I bite my fist, a grumble ripping up my throat. I’ve broken the most important rule of being a shifter king—never fall for the sacrifice. Her entire existence will be my undoing, but at this point, I’m in too deep to care.

Watching her enjoying my favorite waterfall, I can’t control my thoughts. All I see is her. All I need is her. Her beauty is glimmering in purity and depravity all at once. After the amazing day we’ve had, my tiger just wants to bring her filthy ways to the surface. Bend her will until she is on her knees, begging me to fuck away her joys and fears. This delicious morsel with curvy hips could be marked so easily and bred to my liking. As I lick my lips at her, I covertly dive into the water, plunge myself underneath the current and swim to her. She continues to bathe under the waterfall, oblivious to the predator about to pounce. I brush my hand against her leg, and before Blaire can let out a blood-curdling scream, I pull her down and glue my lips to hers. She struggles with me at first but gives into temptation, allowing me to devour her mouth like I wish to eat her sweet, virgin pussy. That’s why I’m so drawn to her. I discovered this fact when I went through her belongings and smelt her panties. It’s been years since I’ve had pure blood. The most powerful. My cock hardens at the thought, the tip of me caressing her leg.

She moans against my mouth then swims up for air. “Dorian,” she says in a breathy exhale.

“I’ve been craving to feel your lips against mine. Have you?” I weave my hand through her wet locks, pulling her back to me, reconnecting our lips in a sacred dance.

Her hands sensuously glide down my back to my ass. “You have no idea.” Slamming my pelvis into hers, she hungrily presses her soft lips against mine. “I am sorry I ran away the first time.”

I unglue my lips from hers with a smirk. “I know a way you can make it up to me.”

Blaire chews on her lip. “How?”

I don’t answer. Instead, I sweep Blaire out of the water and into my embrace. Wrapping her arms around my neck, she giggles as we glide over to the shore, and I lay her down on a slab of rock. Her body is on display for me. Admiring every beautiful curve, I am unable to resist trailing my hands down the length of her body. Her pert nipples harden from the crisp air and my touch, and reaching for her sweet spot, I lightly circle around her nub with my finger. “Let me have a taste.”

Closing her eyes, she shudders underneath my touch while I skim my finger up and down her slit. “I can’t.”

“Yes, you can,” I hiss, moving her panties aside, the only barrier between me and her heat.

Blaire closes her legs. “I’ve never done this before.”

Her confession makes my cock as solid as this slab of rock. Although my tiger yearns to fuck her, the hopeless look in her bright eyes simmers down the beast. I can’t bring myself to take advantage of her. Not now. “Don’t worry, my love. I only want a taste. Do you trust me?”

“Yes, Dorian, I trust you.”

You shouldn’t. “Good. You won’t regret me fucking you with my tongue.” My words make a soft moan escape her quivering lips. Eyeing her panties, I rip them from her trembling body, allowing her honey-like smell to find its way to my nostrils. I inhale deeply, absorbing her sweet essence into my lungs, getting high off the fragment of her lingering inside me. “You smell so good, but I bet you taste even better.”

“Oh, Dorian,’ she whimpers. “Please. I want to feel your tongue.”

That’s my girl. Blowing air on her clit, I tease her.

“Dorian, please.”

“You’ve never been touched, yet I can tell you have a greedy little pussy, don’t you, Blaire?”

Biting her lip, she squeezes her breasts for me. “Yes, please. I need it.”

With a growl, I dive my tongue in, lapping up the wetness already there. A scream rips from her throat as she grinds against my tongue, calling the beast to come out and play. I dig my nails into her thighs, drawing blood, and locking her in place—diving in deeper, I mark her tight channel with stabs of my tongue.

She is too high and distracted to notice my claws as her stomach contracts, an orgasm ripping through her like sharp fangs through flesh.

“Blaire!” I hear Melanie scream, and I groan as I see her running up to us. My claws retract back into my hands as I stand up and bend over to help Blaire off the rock.

Melanie's fist clocks me square in the jaw. “I remember. I remember because I found this.” Melanie shoves a picture into Blaire’s hand.

Fuck! I was hoping the spell would last longer.

Blaire glances down to the picture then back at me. “This is a photo of you from 1942. You haven’t aged a day. How is that possible?”

“Blaire, I can explain.”

“No need.” The voice I dread sounds from behind me. The Goddess emerges from the shadows, her glowing yellow eyes appearing before the rest of her. The train of her golden robe fans out behind her. Blaire and Melanie's jaws are hanging wide, utterly speechless. “Take these girls to the ritual site.” My men appear from the jungle and surround us as they shift into tiger form.

“Wait, just give me a minute…Blaire.”

She frowns at me, a tear falling from her eye. “You’re a monster. You are all monsters.”

Flex and Cade grab them by the arms and drag them into the jungle, as their screams echo around me. My heart constricts. I didn’t want my time with her to be over yet.

“Tsk, tsk. Did you really think you were getting out of this? You’re mine for all eternity.”

I regret the day I ever stepped foot in that volcano filled with gold. I’d only planned to take a little, but I got greedy, and my punishment for stealing from the Golden Goddess was a lifetime of misery for my soldiers and me as guardians of her volcano. Tiger shifters. But to maintain our strength, we need female blood. Lots of it. “Let’s just get it over with.”

She pats me on the head. “Good boy.”

She vanishes amongst the trees, and I reluctantly follow. The other side of the island is painted with blood. Screams penetrate the air. Huge tigers run rampant, feeding on succulent flesh. As much as I detest it, I know none of these girls will make it off this island alive. I spot Blaire and Melanie tied to a tree. Their death will more ritualistic but no less cruel. The Goddess chants to the Blood Gods to accept our offering. Blaire and Melanie’s lives hang in the balance, and for the first time, it pains me to see. They don’t deserve having their lives ripped from them—all because of my mistake. My bones break and rejoin as I shift into my tiger form one last time. Running forward, I pounce on top of the Goddess, knocking her down to the ground with my heavy paws. I swat her repeatedly, allowing Blaire and Melanie some time to wiggle themselves free.

“You fool,” she grumbles as she struggles against my weight. I chomp into her neck, ripping skin and muscle from bone and blood squirts in every direction as she fades underneath me.

I look up to find Blaire and Melanie surrounded by Hunter and a few of the others, and the sight makes the rage flowing through my veins boil over. I must save them even if it means the death of me. Running full speed, I jump in front of them, shielding them from the tigers ready to tear them to pieces. If they want them, they’re going to have to go through me first.

“Dorian, don’t. There’s too many of them,” Blaire cries.

They close us into a circle, and I bare my teeth, ready for the fight of my life. Flex and Cade jump into the circle, but instead of attacking me, they stand alongside me and face the ambush. I charge forward. They follow my lead. Diving into the fire is the only way we’ll be able to give Blaire and Melanie an opening to run. I hope they can run fast!

Chapter Seven

BLAIRE

Bora Bora should be renamed Hell. It’s a place where humans can shift into tigers. Seeing rows of searing teeth snap in my direction, the foggy parts of my memory return, and I relive the horror in my mind as Melanie and I make a break for it through the crowd of ravenous tigers. We run over the torn limbs and heads of the less fortunate and sprint toward the ship. A group of tigers stalk us through the jungle but get picked off by Dorian for he is three times bigger than them. We make it to the port before turning around.

Dorian watches us from afar—the other tigers gaining on him. I want to run to him, tell him goodbye, but I know if we don’t get on this ship now, we never will. Tears well up in my eyes, knowing he didn’t have to save us but was willing to risk his life and betray his people. “Thank you,” I cry out.

His roar echoes into the night sky as a streak of tigers pounce on him from all directions.

“Nooooo!” They tear into him like they did those poor girls. No restraint. No remorse. My heart bangs inside my chest like a tiger raging against a cage. I try to run to him, but Melanie tugs me back.

“There’s nothing we can do for him now.”

As we board the ship, the muscles around my chest grow tight. Even though his roar fades in the distance, my love for him continues to grow. “Goodbye, my tiger.”

A Year Later…

I graduated at the top of my class and even convinced Melanie to reapply to college. Right now, we are celebrating our bright futures. Ones we wouldn’t have if it weren’t for Dorian. Ever since the day he saved us from being sacrificed, he’s all I think about—like I have left my heart back on that island, and I’m walking around as half a person—half a soul, just going through the motions. Now, that I have graduated, I feel I have no purpose, nothing to keep me motivated to get through the day, and nothing to look forward to. I thought I had found the one. But of course, the man of my dreams is dead.

“Hey, little lady, you look good enough to eat.”

It can’t be. I watched him die on that island. I close my eyes for a second. I am so drunk I’m hearing things now. An arm of solid muscle brushes against mine, and the electricity I once felt, so long ago, shoots through me in tidal waves. I open my eyes to a pair of amber eyes. They are still as hypnotizing, even without the gold swirling within them. Has he lost his powers? Without another thought, I don’t hesitate to jump into Dorian’s arms. “How? How are you here right now?” Teardrops spring from my eyes as I cling onto his muscular body draped in an Armani suit. The man of all my fantasies, the reason I breathe, has returned in the flesh. It’s a goddamn miracle. Something that only happens in fairytales is happening to me.

“Did you really think I was going to let some tigers stop me from being with you?”

“No.” I beam.

“Holy shit. Well, if it isn’t Mr. Dreamboat back from the dead. Now, I’ve seen everything,” Melanie chimes in.

He laughs. “Not everything.” He motions behind her, and we both turn to see Flex standing there holding a bouquet of red and pink roses. He is even wearing a tailored suit, too.

“Awe, for me?” Melanie squeals. She doesn’t hesitate and jams her tongue down his throat.

Dorian and I roll our eyes and laugh. My bestie has always been the girl the guys couldn’t tame. Maybe Flex will be the guy to get her to settle her ass down. The thought makes me smile.

Dorian’s hand caresses up and down my back. “Hey, while those two are preoccupied, there’s something I have to show you.”

“I’d go anywhere with you.”

He winks at me and ushers me outside the bar into the humid summer breeze. He walks me around the corner and opens the passenger door to a blue Jeep. “Your chariot awaits, my lady.”

His charming, bright smile makes my heart do a backflip. “Once a Jeep man always a Jeep man.” I giggle.

“You know it.”

I slide into the passenger seat, folding my sundress underneath me so he can close the door. He jumps into the driver seat and puts the key in the ignition, and the Jeep roars to life as if it were a tiger.

I bite my lip, feeling the vibrations through my seat.

“If you keep making expressions like that, we won’t be making it out of this parking lot.” His eyes darken.

“Are you threatening me, Mr. Dorian?” I raise an eyebrow. My skin is aflame, aware of the intense desire in his eyes.

“I don’t threaten. I do. But first, prepare yourself for a grand adventure.”

“Oh, man, if it is anything like the last one, I don’t think I can handle it.” I laugh even though I have many questions. I can only imagine the obstacles he faced getting back—back to me. However, I don’t want to ruin the joyous occasion. I figure that he will tell me when he is ready.

He joins in, laughing too. “Trust me, this adventure will be more fun.”

We cruise down the street and get onto the highway, driving away from downtown and into a charming and salubrious part of Edenborough, Louisiana. A Victorian-style home painted white, nestled in the middle of a landscaped lot, comes into view.

To my surprise, we park in front of it. “What is the meaning of all this?”

A sly grin spreads across his face. “You’ll see.”

The next thing I know, he is on my side of the Jeep, opening my door. He offers me a hand.

I eye him suspiciously, but I take it, and we walk farther onto the property. The lights on the covered porch flicker on, and he stops by a large oak tree next to the gazebo. “Wow, this place is incredible.”

He turns to me, his hold on my hand tightening. “I’ve been watching you from afar for quite some time, Blaire. And I must admit that during my reign as King, I had gotten used to everything being handed to me; had people do my dirty work. But, since I lost my power, I’ve been struggling to find my way as a normal human being. Seeing how hard you worked in college inspired me. I want to be the person I used to be. I wanted to be a better man for you. That’s why I’ve been MIA since what happened on the island. I was working two jobs to save up every penny to buy this house. For you—my future wife—if you will have me.

“Wife?” Butterflies swirl in my belly. Did he just say wife?

“Yes—” Dorian gets down on one knee. “Blaire, from the moment I felt you in the vicinity, smelt the scent of your skin, I knew you were special. Deep down, I knew you were my mate. If I had to do everything all over again, I would choose you over my powers every time. You are my world. You make me the happiest man alive. Be mine forever?” He looks up to me longingly, caressing the top of my hand.

I blink several times, the blood rushing out of my face. I have dreamt of a moment like this ever since I was a little girl, pretending to be Cinderella looking for her Prince Charming. I never thought I would be lucky enough to find me a king instead. He may not rule over Bora Bora anymore, but he most certainly rules my heart. “Yes.” Tears cascade down my cheeks. I’m so elated that I may just spontaneously combust from all the excitement.

“Damn, I am the luckiest man in the world.” He slides a beautiful sapphire ring set in a gold band over my finger. “You are my Golden Goddess now. I love you so much, Blaire.”

“Oh, Dorian. I never thought I could love someone as much as I love you.” I jump into his arms, pressing my lips fiendishly against his, eliciting a heady moan from his mouth. He walks me backward until my spine is flush against the banister of the gazebo. He lifts me, and I wrap my legs around his waist.

“Ever since that day by the waterfall, tasting you is all I can think about.” His lips make a sensuous trail down my neck to my collarbone. “Every inch of you.” He continues his seduction, moving down my chest and rips my dress open, the buttons flying in every direction. My bra goes next, and my nipples stand to attention from his breath, as he captures one at a time in his mouth.

“Oh, Dorian. Take me. I’m all yours. I always have been.”

His growl heats my skin more, spreading a tingling sensation throughout my whole body, landing in between my thighs, where I yearn for his touch the most. He continues his descent, lifting me higher until his head is between my legs, his strong arms holding me firmly against the banister. He rips my panties away with just his teeth—his growling reverberating against my swollen and sensitive skin.

I moan into the night sky as his wide tongue glides across my nub.

“I can’t wait to fully claim this pussy on our wedding day.” He may have lost his powers, but he hasn’t lost the power to sweep me off my feet.

Two Years Later…

“How are you still attracted to me?” I study myself in the mirror, looking at a belly full of stretch marks.

Dorian appears behind me and glides his hands over them. I flinch with disgust. Sometimes I still find it hard to believe this gorgeous, loving, and loyal man is mine.

“They are beautiful.” He takes me by the hand and leads me to the nursery, where our triplets are sleeping peacefully: two boys and a girl. “You did that,” Dorian whispers with a heart-stopping smile.

“You helped,” I smirk.

“But you did most of the work, nourishing them into healthy cubs. You need to look at these marks as a badge of honor—your tiger stripes.”

“You’re right. You always know what to say to make me feel better about myself.” After we’d had a double wedding with Melanie and Flex in Barbados, Dorian didn’t waste any time knocking me up. The thought of one baby was utterly terrifying enough, then we found out we were having triplets. Although they are such a blessing, every now and then, I question my ability as a wife and mother. Plus, it’s been a struggle trying to lose this baby weight, so my self-confidence isn’t where it should be.

Work in progress.

“Before they wake up for their nighttime feeding, I am going to remind you how irresistible you are to me.” With a sly grin, Dorian backs me into the hallway, flipping me around and pushes me against the wall with his body of solid muscle. Dorian's hand strikes my ass, creating a lip-biting sting that spreads all over my body. “Never question my love for you or this sweet ass. You’re all I ever want. You’re my mate for life.”

“I promise…never again.”

“Good.” His hand laces through my hair, giving the strands a tug before tightening his hold with his wrist. “Now, go to our bed and bend that ass over for me.” He slaps my ass again—harder this time.

With a whimper, I do as he says, removing an article of clothing one after another to tease him. He stops to pick up each one, inhaling a whiff. My scent drives him completely wild. “Oh, woman. You are really going to get it now.”

I squeal quietly—a game of predator and prey, as he chases me to the bedroom. I barely make it on top of the bed before he shoves my head down into the mattress and pulls my backend into the air. “Ass up, just how I like it.” He slaps me again, and I moan into the mattress, evidence of my desire trickling down my thigh. His hand ventures in between my legs, and his finger slides in between my slick folds, my eyes rolling toward the sky. “Damn, my wifey is so ready for my cock, isn’t she?”

“Oh, yes. So ready.”

With our triplets being three months old, we don’t have much time for foreplay like we used to. Our entire lives are based around their schedules, so we’ve got to squeeze in time for us whenever we can.

He grips my hips, pulling me back to him and plunges into me with a hard thrust, and I turn my face into the mattress to scream. My whole body shakes in the anticipation of his next perfectly-executed stroke, proving to me that his desire for me is as pure and raw as it was the first time he fucked me on our wedding night.

He threads his fingers through my hair, getting a firm grip as he pumps faster and harder into me. “Even after birthing triplets, this pussy is. Still. So. Fucking. Tight.” He moans.

At this point, he is pounding into me so hard, I’m afraid he is going to break the bed frame.

Again.

I moan his name on an endless loop, the pressure rising in my core. He must sense I am close because he lifts me, so my back is flush with his front. He kisses me with fervor, snagging my bottom lip in between his teeth, and his hand slips down my stomach, going lower and lower until his finger is playing with my clit.

“If it weren’t for your IUD. I’d fill you with another baby.”

“Oh, Dorian, we make beautiful babies. I love you much.” Our bodies move in tandem, taking the pleasuring sensation engulfing my body to new heights. My body trembles, my release having such a stronghold, he falls over the edge with me, biting into my shoulder because although his power to shapeshift is gone, his primal needs and ravenous appetite of a tiger remain.

“I love you too, my goddess. You are my forever. My mate.”

Thanks for Reading!

About J. P. Uvalle

JP is a beautifully twisted soul who has the divine ability to make the unbelievable, believable. A Colorado girl born and raised, she graduated with a degree in veterinary medicine and worked seven years as a full-time ER tech. Marriage and two beautiful kids later, she currently works part-time at a general practice assisting in surgeries and performing dentals. When JP is not saving lives or coming up with my next plot twist, she loves traveling and spending time with family and friends.

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Tricks, Treats & Trial by Fire

© 2021 Sapphire Winters

About Tricks, Treats & Trial by Fire

It's All Hallow's Eve, and Andrea Ralowski is ready to get over her ex and live it up and let it go down at her town's masquerade ball.

But the sleepy little town of Briarwood Hollow just outside Salem is hiding more behind its masks than Andrea knows. Turns out the werewolf she got her howls on with is literally a werewolf and now alpha Rex Rivers wants to make her one too as his fated mate. But it's her choice. After all, he says, someone like her could become too powerful once bitten...

As cryptic as that is, it prompts her to dive into her past, sure her life couldn't get weirder than a predestined wolf man mate... but it does. She learns that she doesn't just have a little magic in her past, but a lot. The kind that got her ancestors burned and could make things around Briarwood a little hot for her too.

But resisting all Rex offers might prove more trick than treat as Andrea must decide who she is and what she could be if she dares...

Chapter One

The last place I want to be is at a masquerade, but as executive assistant for the mayor – a fancy way of saying I’m his secretary – I don’t really have a choice.

Mayor Goodwin is hosting a gala on raising more for the Environmental Defense, a nonprofit organization in our small town of White Willow, who plans to use that money to help clean up the lakeshore. It’s post-tourist season, and as much as the economy flourishes because of the tourists, they leave such a huge mess on the shoreline that it’s almost not worth having them come at all. At least, in my opinion. The mayor doesn’t care. He just wants the money the tourists spend here and he’ll worry about the clean up later.

The gala is at the only luxury hotel in this place, built right on the lake so guests have access to a private part of the lake. It’s five floor and recently remodeled so it looks sleek and modern. I frown, taking it in, as I adjust the ridiculous mask on my face. I miss the red-orange color, the powder-blue trim. It opened in the seventies, after all.

“You okay, miss?”

I blink. One of the valets is addressing me. He’s attired in a black and white suit, his dark hair combed to the side. He can’t be more than twenty, twenty-two. He’s looking at me with such concern that it makes me uncomfortable.

I clear my throat. “I’m here for the gala,” I say.

I’m still unsure if I have to check in or not. My boss didn’t tell me anything except he expected me to be here, all dolled up.

“It’s in the Costa ballroom, just down the main hall,” he says. “You can’t miss it.”

I thank him and step inside. Thanks to the air conditioning, it’s drastically cooler in here than it is outside. White Willow is notoriously humid during the summer, even when fall starts to creep in. I can feel my underarms perspire, and I was in a sleeveless dress. The fact that I’m sweating for no reason isn’t something I’m terribly fond of.

I head to the Costa ballroom. It’s a large room, about three times the size of a regular conference room.

I check in at the table, forcing a smile as Betsy Harmon flickers her brown eyes over my dress, her lips curling into a frown. It’s clear she doesn’t think my dress is appropriate enough for a place like this. What Betsy needs to realize is she has big city dreams but still lives in a small town, and the judgmental look on her face is just asking for a fight.

“Cute dress,” she says as I pin my nametag to my left breast.

I flip her off without looking back.

I’m not in the mood to deal with – or anyone else’s, for that matter – shit. I don’t even want to be here. There’s something strange about everyone here.

I step into the room and I’m immediately offered a cocktail, which I take. I’m not much of a drinker but whatever. I’m at a party I don’t want to be at and though I recognize the people here, there’s something strange about the atmosphere but I can’t quite put my finger on what that is.

“Didn’t think you’d show up here,” a gruff voice says from behind me.

I nearly choke on good alcohol. I frown. Anyone who makes me want to spit is usually not a good guy in my book.

I peel my eyes away from the people, all donning masks. Some line up at the buffet while others are seated at the assigned tables, leaning over them and gossiping like they’re in the quad back in high school.

Sure enough, Rex Hammond is beside me, bottle of draft beer in his hand, his golden eyes taking in the room just like me.

“Didn’t think this was your scene,” he says. There’s something about him that gives him away. I would have recognized him if he was wearing a ski mask. He’s big, powerful, filling out his tuxedo in a way that definitely should be illegal. My pelvis pulsates just looking at him. I’ve never seen him cleaned up like this before.

“And what’s that supposed to mean?” I ask, my voice flat. I shift my weight, returning my gaze to the people. “I know it’s the full moon and everything, but doesn’t it seem strange to you how everyone is so… I don’t know… graceful?”

“So because people aren’t tripping over air like some people, they’re weird?” he asks, arching that damn eyebrow I should have shaven off.

“You’re an asshole,” I mutter.

An old lady arches her eyebrow at me at my use of language before sipping on a flute of champagne. I consider shaving her eyebrow off as well but don’t.

“And you have a mouth on you, I see.”

I shoot him a glare. “The last thing you are allowed to talk about, Rex, is my mouth, okay?”

He took a step closer to me, invading my personal space. Not that he cared.

“I remember telling you not to boss me around,” he says, reaching for my neck so his thumb can tilt my chin back and I’m forced to look up at him. Because he wants me to see just how tall he is compared to me.

“Then stop acting so juvenile,” I tell him. He doesn’t intimidate me, and I know that’s not what he’s going for, but still. I don’t want him to boss me around.

Before I can comprehend what he’s about to do, he ducks his head and captures my lips with his. What the hell he’s doing, I have no idea. He’s a cop, he shouldn’t be publicly kissing me at some fancy gala, but he doesn’t seem to care.

And, if I’m being honest, neither do I.

Chapter Two

When we break apart, my first instinct is to slap him, so I do.

At least, I try to.

He intervenes, but catching my wrist. I pull against him. He refuses to release me. I frown. He snarls.

Suddenly, his mouth is on mine again and I’m not pushing him off of me, even though every instinct inside of me tells me I should. His tongue slides between my lips, causing heat to spark in my pelvis. I don’t want to remember what it feels like kissing Rex again, what it does to my body.

As he deepens the kiss, his hands trace the curves of my body, outlining my breasts, my waist, until his hand rests on my hips. My stomach gets light, my heart skips a beat. I pull back, suddenly needing to breathe. My head spins. If Rex wasn’t holding me, I’d be in a pile on the floor.

“We should go somewhere more private,” Rex says. I have no idea how his breathing isn’t ragged like mine, but it’s not. “Finish the conversation.”

I blink, and suddenly, I’m reminded that Rex and I aren’t alone. We’re at some charity function the more put on. I had been making out to an audience.

Jesus.

My cheeks pinch. Hopefully, my mask is still doing its job and masking my identity. Then again, this is a small town and everyone knows everyone and it’s not like I went out of my way to hide myself.

“S-sure,” I manage to force out.

He nods once, takes my hand, and leads me out of the gala. We head to the elevators. It’s only when we’re tucked safely inside do I shoot him a look.

“Where are we going?” I ask.

“I got a room.”

I wrinkle my nose. “Were you expecting this?” I ask. “To have sex with me?”

I give his shoulder a push.

He grins, baring his entire set of straight teeth. It looks predatory and makes my pelvis burn with desire.

“I wouldn’t say I was expecting it.” His gold eyes turn a shade darker. “You are, after all, a hard one to read. I’m never sure what I’m going to get with you.”

“I’m not sure if that’s a compliment.”

He shrugs. “Take it as you will.”

The elevator pings and the doors slide open. Rex latches onto me again, all but dragging me to his room. He takes out the key and dangles it in the slot. The light flutters to green and the door pops open.

The second we’re inside, Rex pulls me to him and crashes his mouth to mine. I should push him away but I don’t, I can’t. I want his hands on my body and these clothes are making it too hard for him to touch me the way I want him too.

“You… are… such… a dick,” I get out through the kisses as I unbutton his shirt. “You think… I’m just going… to fall… in bed with you.”

“Well, aren’t you?” he asks.

I break away from him, realizing he’s right. His shirt is undone and my eyes gone over that toned body, my mouth watering at the sight. I’ve missed him. Badly.

“Tell me to stop,” he commands in a low voice. “Tell me to stop and I will.”

I let out a breath. I want to, just to rub it in his face. I want nothing more than to be like, fuck it, I will tell you. But I can’t. Even as I open the mouth, nothing comes out and it’s absolutely infuriating that my body is so traitorous.

“That’s what I thought,” he says smugly.

“I fucking hate you,” I say as he steps closer to me.

His smirk only deepened. “You fucking love me.”

He drops his shirt to the floor just before his arms wrap around me once again. His hands find my zipper and before I know what’s happening he peels it off like it’s a second skin I’m shedding. It pools to the floor so I’m in nothing but my underwear which Rex then begins to rip off into pieces.

“Hey!” I exclaim in a low voice.

“I’ll buy you new ones.”

When I’m standing completely naked in front of him, he takes a step back and stares at me. His eyes travel up and down, all over my body. I shift my weight, suddenly uncomfortable with his gaze. It’s like I don’t want him to see me.

“It’s crazy,” he says, his voice actually normal instead of growly, “I forgot how beautiful you are.”

My stomach heats. My cheeks flush. I’m not sure how to respond to that so I don’t. Instead, I clear my throat.

“You’re mine.” The two words come out without hesitation, and judging by his eyes, I can tell just how serious he is.

“I don’t belong to anyone,” I remind him, though I know my words fall on deaf ears. Rex always heard what he wanted and ignored what he didn’t want. It’s one of the reasons why we broke up.

I definitely shouldn’t be here with him. At all.

But I can’t help it.

He lunges for me before I have time to get a hold on myself and we crash to the bed, limbs tangled, body heat mixing, tongues clashing like we’re fighting some kind of a duel. I can’t stop touching him, I can’t stop the noises of pleasure from leaving me as he touches me in all the right places. It’s been a while since we’ve been together but it’s like he hasn’t forgotten.

In my haze, I don’t remember how Rex gets naked. It could have been me. It could have been him. Frankly, I don’t care.

When he thrusts inside of me, I see stars. I scratch his back, running my nails along his skin.

He roars.

He takes me, claims me, and when I climax, it’s his name on my lips even though he’s who I’ve been trying to forget ever since I walked away from him.

Chapter Three

I wake up to stillness and contentment. My pelvis is sore but I barely notice. Every nerve of my body hums with satisfaction. This isn’t the first time Rex has made me feel this way and a small part of me hopes it’s not the last.

Which is crazy.

There’s a reason we broke up. We couldn’t get along. Great sex is not a bandaid for other problems, although maybe it could be. Maybe we could figure something out…

But no.

My heart squeezes painfully and I turn to curl up on my side so my back faces Rex. As much as I don’t regret the sex, I do regret getting tangled up in him again. I do have feelings for the guy, even if he does drive me crazy. He’s rough around the edges, sure, but he was always gentle with me.

I close my eyes. He breathes steady, like he’s truly relaxed. The sound soothes me and I nearly drift off to sleep… up until he shifts in his sleep and he curls an arm around my waist, bringing me closer to him.

I freeze.

I’m not sure why my body tenses up. Maybe it’s because I don’t expect such intimacy from him, but regardless, I wish it doesn’t. I want to be comforted by him. I want to drift off with him, especially because I know this isn’t going to last.

“Why are you tense?” His voice comes out low and tired. His lips press against my bare back, causing a shiver to slide down my spine. My pelvis pulses with anticipation even though I’m too exhausted to think about doing anything other than turn around to face him.

“I-I don’t know,” I admit. I shift, curling the blankets around my body, suddenly shy.

“Look at me.” His voice is soft and gentle, a whisper. Rarely did I ever hear him use such a soft voice, but I realize I liked it. I realize I want him to talk to me more like this because it makes me feel special to him.

I turn over, though it takes a decent amount of effort on my part, and look at him. For a moment, he does nothing but stare back. His eyes search my face though I’m not sure why. There’s a slight wrinkle between his brows that tells me there’s something he wants to tell me. I’m just not sure what that is.

“What is it?” I finally ask. There used to be a time when I could read his face like the back of my hand. I think that’s still there, but I haven’t gone out of my way to try looking into it. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s something I need to tell you,” he says.

I want to roll my eyes. Of course, there is. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have asked. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have told me to look at him in the first place.

“Okay,” I say. I clear my throat and shift again. “What is it? Are you okay?”

He looks down. “Look,” he says, running his fingers through his thick locks of hair. “I don’t know how to tell you this so I’m just going to come out and say it, okay? You can choose to do what you want with the information, but I think it’s important that I tell you.”

My stomach twists. What does he want to tell me? It bothers me is that something, clearly, is wrong with him in terms of keeping something from me, but it’s hard for me to see what he actually wants to say. Is he doing this on purpose by dragging it out? Or is there more going on? And if it’s the latter, should I be worried?

“Rex, stop messing around and just tell me,” I say. “I don’t want to play guessing games.”

He nods once, like he can appreciate my concern. “I’m not who you think I am, Andrea,” he says. “There’s something about me I haven’t told you, and I feel it’s only fair to remedy that.”

“Okay,” I say. I take my hands and rest them on my stomach, lacing them together. I try to keep my patience in line, but the fact that he’s dragging this out and making it more than it needs to be is difficult to deal with.

“I’m a supe.”

I pause, letting his words sink in. “A… what?”

“A supe,” he repeats, like that’s supposed to help my confusion. “A supernatural creature. Someone with superhuman abilities. Do I need to continue?”

My nostrils flare. I don’t appreciate his smartass comment.

“You’re a supe.” I don’t bother to fix my voice. It’s flat and I feel that’s a fair tone to have after what Rex has told me. What am I supposed to do with that information?

“Yeah.”

I furrow my brow. “What does that even mean?” I ask. “You’re a supernatural creature? Is this supposed to be some kind of joke?”

“The last thing I would do is joke about something like this,” he tells me. His golden eyes glow even in the dark and I can tell he’s telling the truth.

My mouth goes dry and I sit up abruptly, leaning against the headboard of the bed. I bring my knees to my chest, wrapping my arms around them, making sure to cover my breasts.

“This isn’t funny,” I say.

“No,” he agrees. “It’s not.” A pause. “Andrea, there’s more.”

“More?” I crane my neck so I can look at him. “What more can there be, Rex? You’re some kind of creature.”

“A shifter,” he corrects. It amazes me how calm he is, how gentle his voice is. It’s uncharacteristic of him to be this way, but I find that I appreciate it. “I’m an Alpha of my pack.”

I close my eyes and rest my forehead on my knees.

“You said there’s more?” I ask, my voice muffled by the sheets.

“Yes.” Another pause. “You and I are fated mates.”

I start laughing. I can’t help it. Rex believes in fated mates?

I need to get out of here. This is too much.

I slide out of the covers and throw on my clothes. I hear him shift on the bed.

“Where are you going?” he demands to know.

“What do you expect?” I ask. “First, you tell me you’re a shifter. Then, you tell me I’m fated to your mate. Don’t you think that entitles me to some time to take it all in?”

I slide on my heels and leave before he can answer. Quite frankly, I don’t care if he agrees or not. But I need space. I need time to digest this information – if I can.

Chapter Four

The second I get home, I slam the door. I’m not in the mood to deal with Rex or any of his bullshit. This whole fated mates thing is ridiculous and I refuse to be a part of it.

I close my eyes. Tears accumulate under the lids, but I do my best to blink them away. I don’t want to start crying, especially not over Rex, especially when I knew I shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up in the first place. Me and Rex were bad together. And now that I know what he really is…

You still love him, a voice points out. That’s why you’re so upset. Because you still love him.

“Fuck off,” I tell myself, my voice coming out pathetic and wobbly.

I push off the door, wiping at my cheek, hoping this isn’t the start of me being an absolute baby. Fated mates don’t exist. I can pretend for the sake of Rex that he believes it’s true but deep down, I know fated mates is bullshit. Hell, supernatural entities should be bullshit but clearly they weren’t.

I close my eyes again, dropping in my couch. The fact that I can’t unsee Rex shifting into a wolf haunts me.

My couch is much more comfortable than I remember. My bones seem to melt into a pile of liquid and I don’t think I can get up if I try. Was this whole town filled with supernatural beings and I just didn’t know? How could it be possible that they would let a nonmagical entity like myself just live here? It’s not like I have a magical bone in my body. If I did, I would have used that to my advantage much sooner than now, for sure.

A noise outside causes my eyes to snap open. My entire body freezes. I pause, waiting. There’s something sinister about the noise, which boggles my mind because a noise should not be sinister. But that doesn’t stop the hairs on my body from standing up, like they’re preparing me for something. I just don’t know what.

I slowly stand up, glancing at my front door. It’s locked, something I’m grateful for. My mother always ingrained locking the door every time I got home from a young age so I do it now without even thinking about it. Still, I don’t feel settled by this.

I look over at my window in the living room, behind the small sofa I picked out at a garage sale. The blinds are closed. No one can see me, but I can’t see them. I’m not sure if this is a good thing or not.

Well, what are you going to do, then?

Honestly, I don’t know. I don’t know if I should sit down and turn on the television as a way to distract me or if I should pop the blinds open and look outside. There’s a chance I’m just freaking myself out because of this whole supernatural thing as well.

I stand slowly, the couch pressing against the back of my legs. I’m not one of those girls who’s going to go outside and check on the noise. I’m not a dumbass. But at the same time, I also don’t want to just stand there and wait for this person or creature or whatever the hell it is to come after me.

I sneak into my kitchen, looking for a frying pan or something to use. I don’t have a bat, though maybe I should get one. My fingers tingle and I can’t explain why.

I rub my lips together, dropping to my knees to open a cabinet and, at the same time, hide myself from view. My kitchen windows are drawn as well, but I don’t want to give them a target.

Just as my hands curl around the handle of a pan, my kitchen door bursts open. I scream. I don’t even know how that’s possible because I know, for a fact, that I locked the kitchen door.

Two men – although they could have been woman, I don’t know – walk in, dressed in black. They wear masks covering their face, and it’s creepy because the masks remind me of an old time doll from all the horror movies with the pale white face and the sickly smile.

They say nothing, but turn to where I am, on my butt and pushing backwards. A pan has fallen out of the cabinet. I lean forward to grab it – it’s the only weapon I’ll have to defend myself with – when one of the men kick it away.

“You’re coming with us,” he growls.

The voice is unfamiliar and my heart skips. Why are they here? What do they want with me?

“Why?” I ask.

One reaches for me. I try to grab the frying pan but it’s just out of my reach. I curse. Of course it is.

The man grabs my arm. With my other one, I lift my hand. Before I realize what’s happening, white light shoots from my hand and forces the two men across my kitchen. Their bodies hit the wall and crumple into a heap on the floor.

“What the hell?”

I look down at my hands. Where had that come from?

Chapter Five

The only person I can talk to about what happened is my grandmother. I’m not positive she’ll be able to tell me what’s going on, but if anyone knows anything, it’s her.

I don’t leave my house until morning. On the one hand, I don’t think my grandma would even be awake at that point, and on the other, I don’t trust whoever did this not to try and do it again. I don’t know if they’re watching me. I don’t know if they’re going to try and attack me again. What I do know is that I don’t know much of anything going on so best to stay in my house with everything locked until it’s bright outside.

Of course, I don’t actually sleep well. I toss and turn and dream of being attacked. I dream of light shooting out of my fingers and Rex turning into a wolf. It’s hard for me to concentrate on anything else.

By the time, it’s morning, I roll out of bed and force myself to step into a shower. I’m ready to wash the events from the previous night off, which I do. When I finish, I throw on comfortable clothing. My feet still hurt from the heels I wore last night, so I gingerly slide on flip flops. Instead of blowing my hair dry, I throw it into a bun.

I stifle a yawn, grab my keys, and head across town to my grandmother’s house. It’s located on the outskirts of the woods. Honestly, at night, it’s kind of a creepy place but in the day, with the birds singing, it’s peaceful.

I step out of my car and head to her door. Her roses are overgrown and come on the path up to her house. I’m careful to step around them. She likes her roses like people like pets and I don’t want to be responsible for any damage to them.

I knock on the door and she answers not a moment later. Her pinkish hair is turning grey, which means she’s probably trying to figure out what crazy color she’s going to dye it this weekend. Her blue eyes fix on me and she grins.

“I knew you’d come,” she says in an ominous voice.

I roll my eyes. “Oh, yeah?” I ask as she steps aside, inviting me in. “How’s that?”

“Your powers were bound to manifest at some point,” she says. “Judging that you have your fathers genes, I assumed correctly you’d fall behind the usual manifesting powers timeline.”

“Wait.” I close my eyes once I step into the foyer, trying to understand. “You knew I have powers?” The word feels weird even as I say it, like some kind of prank I don’t know how to react to.

“Of course I knew you had powers,” she says, rolling her eyes at the thought. “Where do you think you get them from? You could have been an amazing witch, my friend, but then your mother had to run off and marry your father, ensuring your genes would be forever tainted by that.”

“Hey,” I say, giving her a levelled look. Clearly, my grandmother is no fan of my father, which I understand.

“Want a snack?” she asks as we make our way to her small dining room. There’s a light blue vase that holds a bundle of wildflowers and it smells vaguely of sage.

“I’m okay,” I tell her. “I’m more concerned about these powers.”

“How did they manifest?” she asks, going to her pantry and pulling out some chips.

“To be honest, I don’t know.” I drop into a seat and find an old sugar packet blending in with the tablecloth. I began to twist it in my fingers. “I was attacked last night, and just when they were about to grab me, I reached out and powers came from my fingers.”

Grandma nods, popping a chip into her mouth, completely unperturbed by my story.

“Why doesn’t this surprise you?” I ask. I spread my arms out, keeping my hands on the table. “I could have been kidnapped. I could have died.”

“Eh.” She waves a dismissive hand. “You’d have been fine. Your powers are meant to protect you and it sounds like they did their job.”

I blink. “So, they’ve been inside of me since I was born?” I ask.

“Before then, if you want to get technical.” She chews on another chip. “Your mother got her magic from me, I got my magic from my mother. You come from a long line of witches, Andrea. Powerful witches. Do not take that for granted, my darling.”

I look at my hands, dropping the packet of sugar in the process. “It just feels strange,” I point out. “Why didn’t anyone tell me before now.”

“Your mother never got the chance,” my grandmother says, her voice turning softer. I glance over at her only to see her eyes are glassy, but tears don’t fall at the mention of her lost child. She clears her throat. “Anyway, that’s neither here nor there. What matters is you have powers. And now we need to do something about those powers. You said they came when you were attacked?”

I nod.

“Then we need to figure out who’s trying to attack you or take you,” she says. “We have many enemies, Andrea. I had hoped to keep you in the dark for as long as possible, but your magic had other ideas. I need to see who would want to harm us. Until then, go home. Be safe. And trust your powers. They will protect you.”

Chapter Six

When I get back from my grandmother’s place, the last person I expect to find at my door is Rex. And judging by his furrowed brow and his lips thinned from pressing them so hard together, he doesn’t look entirely happy about being here.

“What?” I say after parking the car in my driveway and walking to my front door. Probably not the nicest greeting ever, but I’m already defensive based on what I’ve just learned and I don’t like that he already has an attitude when I haven’t actually done anything to him.

“Anything you need to tell me?” he asks as I slide my key into the lock.

I furrow my brow but I don’t even glance over my shoulder at him. “No,” I say. I turn the knob and step into my house. “Why?”

“So, what you’re telling me is there’s nothing I should know.” Rex follows me inside without waiting for an invitation inside. Asshole. I shut the door behind us quickly, but not before casting a cursory glance around. It’s not like I’m afraid I’m going to get attacked again in broad daylight, but I don’t know who attacked me and I don’t feel like I can trust that completely. “Nothing important that maybe you want to share with me.”

I turn from my door and cross my arms over my chest as he swaggers into the kitchen like he owns the place.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I insist, “and I don’t appreciate you coming into my home and just doing whatever you please.”

“And I don’t appreciate you not calling me after getting attacked in the middle of the night,” he bit back, opening my refrigerator door.

I still. “You heard about that?” I ask.

He glanced over at me before returning his attention to what’s inside the fridge. “Of course I heard about it.” He shakes his head. “I told you. We’re fated mates. I know everything that goes on with you.”

“That’s creepy,” I mutter.

He pulls out a can of soda and clicks it open, shutting the door. “It’s not,” he insists. “It’s just how these things work. I already told you you’re my fated mate. That means my senses are more drawn to you than to anyone else. I can smell your powers on you. I can also smell your distress.”

“So, you knew what happened yesterday and you didn’t come?” I ask. I don’t want him to know I’m disappointed by this revelation. The last thing I want him to think is that I’m some sort of damsel in distress, waiting on him to come save me every time I get attacked – which is starting to be more than I anticipated in my lifetime. However, if he did know what was happening and he chose to stay away, I don’t like that, either.

He took a sip of the soda, leaning against the fridge. “Trust me,” he says. “If I knew…” He lets his voice trail off and I look away. His anger brims from his body and I can feel it even though we’re at least six feet apart. “There would be bloody ribbons of skin littering your house.”

I wrinkle my nose. As sweet as that may be, I don’t like the image that’s popped into my head.

“I felt your distress,” he admits, “but I wrongly assumed it had to do with what I told you, that we’re fated mates. I thought you were still upset.”

“Right, because my distress constantly ties back to you, is that it?” I ask, arching a brow.

He downs the rest of his soda and crinkles the cup in his hand. “Do you recycle?” he asks.

I nod and gesture at my sink. He slides out my trash can, disposes of the can in what I hope is the right place, and slides it back in.

“Yeah, I can admit it was arrogant and clearly wrong,” he says, “and it’s my mistake because you were almost taken. That’s my fault and I’m sorry. I promise that will never happen again.”

His eyes burned into mine and I can’t help but flinch and look away. My stomach turns with something, though I can’t pinpoint what. It’s like the intensity of gaze has complete control of my body, of my insides, and they’re waiting for him to command me to do something. Is this the tug of fated mates or is it something else? I don’t know, and that’s my problem. Are my feelings for Rex genuine? Have they ever been? Or is this scheming by the universe?

“You’re not responsible for me,” I point out, dropping my gaze. I don’t like the thought that he thinks he has to protect me all the time. I am capable of protecting myself. I have magic inside me.

“I am,” he says, his voice tight. “And maybe you don’t like it, but it’s the truth.”

“Just because it’s true for you doesn’t mean it’s true for me,” I tell him, defensive.

“I don’t think you understand –“

“No,” I snap. I don’t care that I’m interrupting him. Rex needs to realize that just because his shifter tradition indicates that he’s fated with me or whatever he thinks is between us doesn’t mean I feel the same way. And yet, looking at him, I can’t stop the heat from flooding inside my body. “You need to realize that I’m not a shifter and I don’t abide by your shifter rules.”

“You’ll abide by whatever I say,” he says. His voice is grouchy, and the words come out through a growl.

I close my eyes. I’m not supposed to react this way. I’m not supposed to like him talking to me like this.

But I do.

God, I do.

“You aren’t the boss of me, Rex.” I force my eyes open, only to realize he’s closer to me. Too close. Our bodies are inches away from each other, like we’re magnets just waiting to attach to each other. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”

“I hate to break it to you, sweetheart,” he says, tilting his head down so his lips are so close to mine, “but you belong to me. Every inch of yours is mine. And I’ll prove it.”

With that, he lunges for me.

Chapter Seven

We need to stop fucking after a fight. I want to see if Rex can be anything other than rough and dominant. But I can’t deny that his hunger feeds my own, and I get a thrill every time he glares at me. I like knowing I piss him off because he pisses me off.

I swallow after he tears himself away from my lips. There’s something in the way he looks at me, something different, something deep. I’m almost tempted to look away, to pull away from him and throw myself into other things. It’s like it’s too much for me. It’s like I can see straight into his soul.

Then, slowly, he cocks his head to the side and pulls my lips back in, except this time, he’s gentle, coaxing. He wants me to lead the kiss and he wants me to know he’s willing to give up this control.

For me.

I’m not sure whether or not I should be grateful. It seems silly but I know this is a big deal for him and I don’t want to take it for granted. I bring my hands up to cup his face. I want to slow things down so my head can break free from the haze. But the second my lips touch his, all rational thought disappears. All I care about is his hands on me, touching me, claiming me. I want to be his. Even that fated mate bullshit. I want all of it, as long as it belongs to him.

I drop my hands from his face so I can clutch his shoulders. I sink my nails into him even though the thin material of his shirt is there. He grunts, approving. My pelvis pulsates with need.

He reaches for the hem of my shirt and yanks it over my head. I’m not sure where it lands, but it disappears somewhere in the living room, despite our position in the kitchen.

So much for slowing things down. I don’t think that’s a possibility for me and Rex. I don’t even care.

His hands cup my breasts, and despite the fact that I’m wearing an old Target bra that is not sexy in the least, I feel as though he’s touching my flesh. My nipples marble underneath his palms and I hiss, pressing myself against him even more.

I need him to touch me more.

I close my eyes as Rex pulls himself away, only to claim my throat. I’m sure he’s going to leave a mark on me like he’s some hormone-crazed boy that can’t control himself during a Victoria Secret commercial. I don’t even care. I want it. Anything he wants to give to me, I want more than anything.

Somehow, I manage to take off his shirt. It helps that he gives me access to his body instead of demanding control from me. Essentially, I can do whatever it is I want to him and he has to deal with it. I run my fingers up and down his bare chest. I’ve seen it plenty of times, but I still can’t get over how enchanted I am by it. Every muscle twitches under my touch, the solid frame immovable. A thrill sweeps through my body. I’m obsessed with him, with what he feels like. If I can touch him like this when I want, I’d be a happy person.

My hands stop at his waist, at the abrupt shift from skin to denim. My fingers fumble as they begin to unbutton his pants. It’s like I’m a teenager again, not a grown woman with experience. It’s almost embarrassing, but I try not to think about it. Rex has this effect on me. It’s not necessarily a bad thing. It keeps me honest.

All of his talk of fated mates and how the two of us are destined to be together doesn’t bother me the way it used to. If anything, it compels me to want him more.

I tug at the jeans, trying to strip them away from his body. I’m having a good go of it, but he has to step in and help me.

By the time we’re both finished, he’s left in merely his underwear and I’m fully clothed, though probably with a hickey or two on my neck.

Both of us are panting. Both of us are staring at each other. I’ve done this with him plenty of times before. I should be used to it. I know what’s going to happen next and it’s exactly what I want. And yet, I can’t move. There’s an added layer that isn’t there before, and I think it has to do with this whole fated mate nonsense.

I like knowing Rex wants me. I even like knowing Rex is tender underneath all that shrapnel. But I can’t help but wonder if we’d be good again. If we were good at all.

But then he steps forward and begins to strip me down. I don’t move. I let him do it.

When I’m finally naked, his eyes feast on me like I’m Thanksgiving and he hasn’t eaten all day just for this. My insides turn over, they spark, they flame up, and I burn. When he touches my hip, I’m surprised steam doesn’t immediately sizzle off of my skin.

I close my eyes as he drags me to him. He kisses me long and slow as he leads me to the bed.

My knees hit the back of the bed and he pushes me down. I’m waiting for him. I want him. I don’t care about anything else.

He crawls on top of me and I open my legs for him, welcoming him home. He fills me up, stretches me out.

I want more. I claw at him.

He thrusts inside of me until I hit my peak, and then I release. His grip tightens as he does the same.

I’m breathless. I’m panting like I’m the shifter. And my magic buzzes inside of me, satiated.

I shouldn’t be with him, but I can’t leave, and I think that explains our entire relationship.

Chapter Eight

I wake to Rex kissing my shoulder. It’s the last thing I expect from him. Rex isn’t the sort of guy who cares about tenderness. At least, he didn’t prioritize it during our relationship. Not to say that he was a bad lover. Quite the contrary, he was the best I ever had. But he isn’t the sort I expect to recite me poetry and to kiss me just because. Hos love is much more quiet, which I appreciate.

As a result, to see him act this way, makes me feel… strange, but not in a bad way. I like it. I like this side of him that I had never seen before. I think I even want to see more of it.

I close my eyes, allowing myself to enjoy it. His lips trail up my shoulder, chaste and soft, like the ghost of a butterfly’s wing, caressing my skin. It causes my insides to melt even more than they already have and I sink in my bed, waiting for more, needing more from him.

“You are so goddamn beautiful,” he tells me.

I swallow but it does nothing for me. My throat is still scratchy and I can only imagine that my tongue is as rough as a cat’s.

“Hmm.” I’m not sure how to respond to his words so I don’t.

“What’s wrong?” he asks, pulling away from me.

I crack open an eye and wait. “What do you mean?”

“You tensed up,” he says. “You thought of something and it made you uncomfortable. What happened? What were you thinking just then?”

I sigh. “I’m thinking, I want to know why suddenly you want to be with me after we broke up,” I say. I can’t keep the words in my mouth so I don’t even bother to try. “I want to know if you’ve suddenly decided to be with me because you realize I’m your fated mate, if your feelings for me are only because of that.”

Rex breathes out, his nostrils flaring as he does so. I don’t like that I’ve made him feel bad about his feelings for me but I do want to know the truth. This Rex, the sweet, tender Rex, is amazing, but is he only here because we’re destined to be together? I want to know he’s here because he loves me, not because fate told him to.

“Is that what you think?” he asks, his golden eyes tracing the shape of my face.

I squirm underneath him, unsure how I feel about the intensity of his gaze on my skin.

“Well, as usual, you’re wrong.” He wraps a lock of hair around his finger and gently tugs on it, but not too hard.

“Am I?” I ask, already annoyed with him.

“You are,” he says. “Fated mates isn’t something that just happens and we’re powerless to control it. It isn’t something we can control, however, and it’s something you should understand. You aren’t sacrificing yourself by agreeing to it. Think about it, Andrea. You have to agree to it in the first place. You have to give your permission. It’s not something that just happens to you.”

I frown. He’s right, of course. From everything he’s said about fated mates, there seems to be this component of consent that plays into it.

“Think about it like this,” he says, shifting where he is, “you’re destined to be a doctor. Being a doctor is something you’re naturally good it. You will serve your community and your people by allowing yourself to be a doctor. However, you could go to law school, be a lawyer, and still be happy and successful if that’s what you want to do.”

“So, you don’t have to be with me?” I ask him, my eyes on him. “You just…” I let my voice trail off as realization dawns on me.

“Want to,” he finishes. He doesn’t flinch as he says the word. He doesn’t do anything that says he’s unhappy with his current predicament. “Yeah, I want to. And that’s why I’m asking you what you want. I’m asking you to consider this.”

“You could be happy with someone else,” I point out.

“I’m happy with you.”

“We fight.”

“I like fighting,” he says. “Especially the making up part.”

I press my lips together. My face is getting hot. I have to look away. I think I’m doing the right thing. I’m trying to point out all of the reasons why this won’t work and it’s falling on deaf ears. Hell, I’m not buying what I’m selling either.

“Why do you want to be with me?” My voice cracks. It’s helpless. How can I convince him that this isn’t a good idea when I can’t seem to convince myself? “We could barely stand each other, being together.”

Rex scoffs as though he doesn’t believe that. “I’m crazy about you,” he says. “And I want you to want me. But I’m not going to force you. You make me a better person. And I love you for it.”

He loves me?

I’m not expecting that.

I kiss him with as much fervor as I can.

When I pull away, I give him a shy nod. I hope he understand what I mean by it. I hope he gets it.

“I…” He’s surprised. “It’s a nip on your neck. That’s it. Is that okay with you?”

I nod my head.

Rex swallows and kisses me again. He pulls back and takes his hand in mine, lacing his fingers through mine, resting his forehead on mine. For a moment, we just breathe.

And then, he tilts his head down and positions his lips on my throat before sinking his fangs into my flesh.

Chapter Nine

As much as I wanted to report that my life changed because I let Rex bite me, that didn’t happen. In fact, we make love again. The thrill of being claimed by him as rocked my senses more than I expect, and when I climax this time, there is something different, something more meaningful than I anticipate.

He holds me close in his arms and we fall asleep together. I actually feel safe in his arms and I’m mystified by just how much I care about him. I’m not sure if fated mates can actually affect me the way it affects him. If so, I’m feeling it already. And I don’t mind as much as I thought I might.

My happiness and contentment with Rex doesn’t last long, however. We’re both woken up to the front door to my place splintering. The sound shocks me awake, like a bad dream.

Except I know this isn’t a dream.

I scramble out of bed and throw on whatever clothes I can find. I don’t even check to see what they are or who they belong to. All that matters is that I’m fully clothed. Rex, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to care as much about properly attiring himself as I do. Unlike me, he gets out of bed with purpose, casts his eyes in front of them, narrowed, as though trying to figure out what ‘s going on. He positions himself in front of me though he doesn’t actually say it. He’s trying to protect me.

A flare of annoyance shoots through my system but I manage to temper it down. He’s being protective. I don’t want to take that away from him, not when I know it’s a big deal to who he is. Instead, I search within myself for my magic.

I reach deep inside of myself and I can feel tendrils of magic wrap around me. My heart skips. This is it. I’ve never connected to my magic before. Granted, I don’t realize I even had magic until recently but I can’t believe I can access it with relative ease. I swallow and shift. I need more of it.

Can I call it forward?

“Andrea,” Rex growls, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I realize he’s thrown on his pants, though the way they dip on his hips, he hasn’t made an effort to find his boxers. Which, fine, whatever makes him more comfortable. I just wish I wasn’t so drawn to the sight of him, especially considering I need to focus on whoever’s trying to attack me. I would bet the deed of this house that it’s the same person who sent those assholes to get me from before.

“I need you to leave,” he says.

“Like hell,” I snap.

I tense my body, searching for more magic to reach.

He growls again.

I turn my attention from the door to him. “Listen,” I say, “just because I let you bite me doesn’t mean I’m going to let you do all the work. I can fight for myself, you know.”

“Trust me, I’m well-aware of that fact,” he says, “but you also need to know that you don’t have to do everything by yourself.”

“I’m not leaving,” I tell him.

He clenches his teeth together. “Fine, we’ll –“

Before he can finish, the door to the bedroom is blasted open and a woman I don’t recognize stands there, white light shooting from her fingertips. Her face is pinched, snarled, and she looks at me like she hates me, like I’m the worst person she’s ever laid eyes on.

“You,” she snarls.

“Me,” I say back.

I look over at Rex to see if maybe he knows her, but he’s focused on how to take her out. I can tell by the way his teeth are showing, how his brow is furrowed low and hangs over his eyes. He doesn’t recognize her. I doubt he’d care if he did. Rex sees her as a threat first and foremost.

“Do you know who I am?” she asks.

“Should I?”

For a moment, nothing happens. The light fizzles from her fingertips so shadows consume the room once more. Everything is silent. And then –

She starts laughing. She laughs like it’s the funniest thing she’s ever heard.

I look over at Rex again. There’s a glimmer of confusion on his face, but other than that, he’s stony and silent. He’s still tense, as though he’s waiting for the other shoe to drop, so to speak. He doesn’t let up.

I look for my magic and I feel it, but I’m not sure what to do with it. Can I really attack someone I don’t know? How would I even go about doing that?

“Of course you don’t know,” she says, shaking her head. “Why would they tell you?”

“Tell me what?” I demand to know. Magic cackles through my body. I’m tired of the games. I just want answers.

“Your family killed my family,” she says.

Even though I don’t want to believe it, I can tell that she does. She’s already past the point of reasoning with her.

“Why would they do that?” I ask instead. I don’t know this person. I’ve never heard of her. My grandmother said nothing of her when I went to visit her, except… “You sent the men after me.”

“I had to know if you had powers,” she says. “I had to see if they finally manifested. And knowing they had, I realized I couldn’t trust them to do anything with you. I had to get to you myself. I would put you down, no one else.”

“Why would my family kill yours?” I ask again.

“So they can control the town, you silly little fool,” she says as though it’s obvious. “My family has had control for years until your grandmother took it from us and gave it to the people.”

Realization dawns on me. “She saved the people,” I say. “She made it so everything was fair and just.”

“And killing my family is fair and just?” she screeches.

Without warning, Rex lunges. She blasts him with magic and he falls. He grunts, however, and relief courses through me, but he has trouble getting up.

“And now to finish what I came for,” she says, lifting her hand. Magic flares.

I brace myself. I have no idea how I’m going to get out of this unless my magic listens to me. And I don’t know how that’s going to happen because I barely realized I had powers in the first place.

Chapter Ten

I barely manage to duck out of the way. My heart is jagged edges, slicing into my chest.

I’m scared. I’m not supposed to be scared. I’m supposed to be confident, powerful. I’m supposed to know exactly what I want and go after it, especially with these powers. But I’m not. I’m the same Andrea, I just have magic buzzing in me that I don’t even know how to use.

This person, this witch – Marcy – knows what she’s doing. I have no idea how I’m going to survive this, let alone fight back.

My breathing is ragged. I don’t dare turn and look at Rex. I know she’d take advantage of my distraction. More than that, there’s a good chance that she may use him against me. She already knows I care about him. There’s no doubt about that. But right now, her focus is on me and I want to keep it that way. I just have to make sure to keep my head above water.

“It’d be easier if you just die,” Marcy says. She holds up a hand and I can see a ball of light form just above it. It’s energy. Something in me knows she’s drawing on energy in order to power her magic.

“Not gonna happen,” I grit through my teeth. “I’m sorry for what’s happened to you. I am. But there’s nothing I can do about it.”

Without warning, she winds up like she’s pitching on the mound of Yankee Stadium and shoots the energy ball directly for me. There’s no way I can avoid it. It’s too fast. Rex grabs my ankle and knocks me down just in time. I fall flat on the wood floor. My head shoots up with pain but I don’t care.

It’s too close.

I don’t have time to reach up and cradle my forehead. Instead, I reach for the floor and pick myself up. I grunt. Magic tickles my fingers and I’m glad. I didn’t know if I’d be able to hold it the way I had before she started shooting her magic at me. As long as I focus on it, I can feel it.

I catch my breath and stand up. I don’t wait to collect myself in a standing position before I push out my hand in her direction. My magic is unrestrained, uncontrolled, and it surrounds her like a brick wall. She’s thrown back until she hits the wall of my living room.

I roll my shoulders back, breathless again. I don’t realize the toll magic takes on the body while using it. I’m surprised I’m even able to stand. All I want to do is crawl into my bed and sleep for the next twenty-four hours.

“You think she’s out?” Rex asks me from where he stands. From my peripheral, I can see cuts on his body. The blood is slight and his shifter abilities already have them healing.

“I don’t know.” I manage to hoist a tendril of magic deep from the depths of my body. Just in case she’s not as out as she seems.

I step closer to her, wary.

“Careful,” Rex says.

I nod, but don’t reply. I continue in silence until I reach her body. I kneel down to try and find some sort of heart beat. At that moment, her hand grips my throat and squeezes.

“Your family took the only person I loved,” she seethed. It’s not just her fingers pressing into my flesh, but her magic. I can barely breathe. I reach for her, but her body is positioned too far away to touch. “And I’m going to do the same to you.”

With her second hand, she reaches out and faces her palm in Rex’s direction. I know what she’s going to do. I can see the magic build up. She’s going to kill Rex, and I refuse to let that happen.

Suddenly, a shot of adrenaline courses through my body. It’s not like the magic I know, it’s something different, animalistic. A roar emerges from the bowels of my throat and I unleash it. The force of it thrusts the witch’s hand from my throat. As fast as I’m able, I pull on the magic from before and channel it into her chest. I don’t let up until I know she’s gone.

“Andrea,” Rex says from behind me. “Andrea.”

I blink. This time, when I look at the witch, I know she’s dead. And she’s dead because of me.

“Oh, my god,” I say, yanking my hand from her body and bringing both to my mouth. “I didn’t mean –“

“Hey.” Rex steps closer to me and wraps his arms around me. “Hey. It’s over. It’s okay.”

“It’s not okay,” I tell him. “Rex, I killed someone.” I look down at my hands. “I don’t even know how I did it. It’s like this animal was inside of me, taking control of me. I don’t know how to explain it.”

“It’s your wolf,” he says, looking down at me. “It saved you.”

I swallow. Fated mates protects me, and in that way, I protect myself.

Without warning, I wrap my arms around him and I kiss him. He is just trying to protect me by letting me protect myself.

“I love you,” I tell him.

“I love you too,” he says. “Let’s call your grandmother. I’m sure she’ll know what to do about her.”

I nod. Warmth spreads through me. I know it’s going to be a hard road of learning, but I also know, with Rex by my side, I’ll figure this out.

No matter what.

The End

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Wings

© 2021 Sapphire Winters

Edited by Sofia Aves

About Wings

When a dead body gets up and walks away under its own steam, Clarrissa has to investigate, but not without her trusty sidekick.

A trusty sidekick who just happens to be a talking bat and who moults stone, not fur. Clarissa loves her job as one of Cook country’s best detectives, but she only ever works alone – until she meets Dolion, a shape shifting mortician who is almost as old as her other gargoyle.

But her brief introduction into the paranormal community is the least of Clarissa’s worries, especially when she discovers time slipping away from all of them...

Chapter One

“Try that pile. Or that one,” Murch flapped leathery, stone encrusted wings in a gesture that was utterly unhelpful. His indolent stare might have had an impact if he was closer to me than his usual perch on the high-arched window of my bell tower home.

“Why don’t you get down here and help, you geriatric pile of pebbles?” I offered, attempting not to snarl. I shook my head, pushing wayward brown strands off my head and tucking them back into my ponytail. “I’m sorry. That was mean.”

“Yes, Clarissa. You should be kinder.” Murch ‘s sarcasm added inflection to his words. He took a last, suffering glance at me and stuck his head under his wing.

I paused, studying him. Exasperation built and over flowed. This case was getting to me. “What in all the hells are you doing?”

“Preening.” Much’s voice had a muffled-echoey quality.

“You can’t preen. You don’t have feathers.”

“Fine. I’m cleaning.” Murch poked his little, stone head out from beneath his dark wing, his customary grimace plastered across his face. “I am allowed to do that, I suppose?”

I rolled my eyes at his theatrics. “No one would guess you’re so senile you forgot your own name. Grumpy bastard,” I added for good measure.

“I’m not deaf, for a senile being,” he snorted, his stone head disappearing back inside the depths of his wing.

“Careful, you’ll get snot on your clean wing. Do gargoyles have snot?” I asked, sorting through the files again. The pile on my jean clad knee grew taller, so I started a new one next to me, moving my leather jacket to an unused square of wooden flooring. The piece of evidence I needed was here. It had to be, or I’d wasted an awful amount of time I would have to explain to my superior. Murch didn’t reply. “Are you going to help me?”

He huffed again, but returned to face me, all the same. “Fine, it’s fine. Not like I have another eon of life to live. Give me the facts again.” He waved a clawed foot in my direction in a grandiose gesture that fell flat, and stretched his wings idly.

A smattering of dust filtered from then, and I noted a new hairline crack in the almost flexible stone form he was perpetually stuck in. Murch nudged it, and with an expression of supreme disdain plastered across his crumpled, bat-like face, he peered out at me.

A grin crept across my face and I held it back with effort. The ancient gargoyle might be crotchety, but he was good company, and he enjoyed solving a crime as much as I did. Which made us a good pair.

I’d extracted Murch from a dilapidated church purchased as my I’m–too–single/pre-midlife crisis fixer-upper project, thinking him to be a pretty statue. He scared the shit out of me when he had first spoken. The only or last of his kind — something he never was clear on — the tiny black stone beastie proclaimed to be so old he didn’t remember what he had been named.

A statement I took with a large grain of salt.

After visiting a meteor exhibit, I’d named him Murch, in lieu of the Murchison Meteorite, a piece of space rock estimated to be seven billion years old, which made it much older than the rest of the planet, give or take two billion years or so. Murch had pooh-poohed the idea, but it had stuck and eventually he’d taken it on with as good grace as I was ever likely to get from the little critter.

Still, he was far too easy to bring to the bite, and I spent too many hours teasing him.

I slid a file across the floor in his direction, flicking the cover open. He hopped down from his perch, scattered the pages expertly. A photo emerged from the pile, and he dipped his scrunched little head to peer at the details of one Malcolm Dallas. An amateur heavyweight, he had been killed by his drunken friend in a one-hit punch at the local bar the night before.

It sounded like an open/closed case — except that the perp had screamed that the body bag was moving as it was taken away. Attending police disregarded the man as drunk and distraught. Naturally, CCTV footage was grainy as hell and whatever miniscule movement might have been there certainly wasn’t visible from my end.

I wished for the umpteenth time for a way to be present at the scene — either at the time of the crime occurred to study it as it happened, or at moments like these, where I was missing vital information and needed first hand knowledge. If it was the latter, of course, the crime would be preventable.

But also, the urge to study how the crime occurred: criminal motivations, what emotions and other factors came into play. It was what had drawn me to detective work in the first place. I sighed, staring at the staticky print out of a paramedic leaning over a body bag that should have held a lifeless body.

Two hour after delivery, the body bag was empty.

So now it was an issue of body snatching. Unless, of course, the victim had simply gotten up and walked away under his own stream, in which case we were looking at battery, or some other violence charge. I couldn't honestly work out what to charge the perp with until I worked out what had actually happened. Until then, he waited in a holding cell at the precinct.

“So, Mister Zombie walked away from his own death and it didn’t take more than a few hours. That’s a record on the guy who took three days to do it. Slacker,” Murch studied his talons idly.

I rolled my eyes again. The ancient gargoyle claimed to have seen many things, but I couldn't get a straight answer out of him on that subject.

“We’ll sort it. Let's go for a walk.” I rose, pressing my hands to my thighs and attempted to get up.

Everything below my knees had gone to sleep. I stumbled about, while Murch flapped the little stone from his wings that faded as he flew, resembling nothing more than a very ugly rodent with wings. Albeit a seven thousand year old one, give or take. And there wasn’t a mark in sight.

Preening indeed. Watch that pedestal doesn’t crumble out from underneath you.

I glared at him as he messed up my files. “You missed a spot.”

“You’re sure you checked the body before you left the crime scene?” I asked the skinny paramedic for the third time.

I had arranged to meet the two men who had attended the scene and assisted the Medical Examiner, who, for the moment, was unavailable. In an unusual process, the paramedic in question had taken the body to the Robert J Stein Institute to process forensics and perform the autopsy, the latter of which had never happened.

The paramedic’s blazing white EMS shirt looked out of place over his pale and lanky physique. Deep sunken eyes surveyed me from beneath a mass of greasy, dirty blonde hair that might have been white with a good shampoo.

Aren’t all paramedics meant to be hot?

Apparently this man had missed the memo. And his last shower. Or five.

He exchanged looks with his driving partner, the latter’s face obscured by a cap, and turned back to me with folded arms. “Yes, ma’am.”

His glare might have mattered to me, if the body he had brought in hadn’t gone walkabout from the Institutethe night before. I could just make out Mason on the ID lanyard strung around his neck.

“Okay. How about you help me retrace your steps, so I don't miss anything?”

The arms stayed crossed over his slight chest, maybe tightened a little. “The other cops said the body was stolen.” Mason’s frown turned into a smarmy smirk. I didn’t usually get into emotions with my investigations, but his expression hit all the wrong bells.

I bit back the urge to snap. “What other cops?” I said, pretending to tap notes on my phone.

More exchanged looks, and one glance to a wrist.

I stifled a new urge.

“The ones who took statements before you. Look, lady, you need to let us get on with our job.”

“And you need to let me get on with mine. Then we can all have our lunch break when it comes around. That is what you’re worried about, right? Not that you could lose your jobs or be prosecuted for sending an undead man to the morgue?” I smiled sweetly, pocketing my phone.

Grumbles filled the corridor behind me. I strode to the elevator, and hit the call button.

The paramedic coughed not so discreetly behind me. I swivelled on my heel, my impatience wearing thin.

“We take the service lift. No one wants a clay next to their nice lab coat,” the smirk remained, but something deadened deeper inside the man’s almost translucent grey eyes. A shiver tore through me with no small degree of violence as he passed, my stomach lurching. I reached for a wall that wasn’t quite where I expected it to be.

Stumbling, I trotted along behind him, mentally cursing the man.

“Of course.” I smiled again, letting my fake, well-used mask seep through. “After you.” I kept my footfalls light behind him, the heel of my boot barely echoing on the tiled surface, but his archaic usage bothered me on too many levels.

This is what you get for hanging out with a timeless gargoyle as your only friend.

Well, that last wasn’t by choice. The tiny stone bat lived with me; I’d found it difficult to either date or maintain friendships with a statue who could mimic my voice remarkably well on call, and maintained a shitful attitude.

This would be a good time for Murch to reenter my world with a little snark, to rest my fraying patience and nerves, but the narcissist was currently perched on the usually bland and grey rendered entrance to the building, posing for photos.

I followed Mason down the hall, realising with a start the other paramedic had disappeared.

Where the hell is your head at, Clarissa?

“Where did your friend go?” I tried to turn and keep my attention on both ends of the hall at once, but it wasn more difficult a feat that I had imagined. A mirror hung above a corner gave me as good a view in both directions as the CCTV footage of the murder scene.

“Off for that lunch break I’m not going to get,” he grunted sourly, punching a button at the service elevator, which looked remarkably like the first one. I looked back up the hall, blurring before me. I need rest. The doors parted and Mason waved me inside the elevator. “If I’m lucky, he might even save me some.”

Maybe I should have felt bad about it, but I’d missed enough meals over my career for the care factor to flatline. I walked to the back of the elevator and turned around, only to find Mason far too close to me. I hissed a sharp breath through my teeth by reflex, and his eyes lit up. I cursed my body for giving him the reaction he was looking for.

Mason leaned past me to press the bottom button in a short row and pointed over my shoulder. “The doors open in that direction. They go in one way and out the other.” He grinned.

Saliva dribbled down the back of my throat, feeling like it had legs. I repressed a shiver, the walls too close with two bodies in a seemingly airless space. Waiting until the lift halted at the bottom may have been the longest fifteen seconds of my life.

I counted every one.

But something inside me — paranoia, gut feels, too many years working my streets — told me not to turn my back to this man. I wasn’t sure what sort of predator he was yet, but he certainly was on my hell no list of men not to be set up with on a blind date.

The doors dinged open. I stepped into the room, and halted.

The wide, clinical space was empty, if you didn’t count the blanket of black moths carpeting the join where the wall met the ceiling at the opposite end of the room.

“What are they?” I asked, taking small steps forward.

“Swarm of Black Witches. Not meant to be here, but the bastards won't leave. Whaddaya do?” he stepped up beside me and shrugged.

I nodded. “Fair enough. What’s your process after bringing the body down here?”

“You didn’t say deceased,” he remarked, but he didn’t wait for an answer. “Most people are bothered by the witches,” he said conversationally, no double looking for a rise.

“I’m not the hygiene police, I’m the regular police. My job isn’t to report you, or get you in shit. Your process,” I said pointedly, sliding my phone out of my pocket and snapping off a few shots of the area.

It wasn’t unlike any InstituteI had been inside. Green tinted whitewashed walls were lined with refrigerated drawers, tables lined neatly against the far wall. A neat desk with a lit lamp occupied the far corner. Oddly, the moths didn’t cluster near the light, seeming to prefer the darkness of the roof, as though trying to escape…only to find that they couldn’t.

Tiny circles at the ends of each wing watched me and I conducted my investigation under the surveillance of a false thousand eyes.

Unease that had been circling at the base of my stomach like crows over carrion rose up a little to meet the saliva that had completed its wandering journey down my throat. The result was an unsettling urge to heave the scant contents of my stomach onto the pristine, albeit sterile, floor.

I studied the room, but small details evaded me. Where was the Medical Examiner?

Mason nodded, the smirk back on his face. “Happens to everyone.”

I shook my head, the eyes on the moth’s wings swaying with me. “Not my first morgue.” Eyes followed me as I swayed; a hypnotising gesture. The hard surface of the floor hit my knees, though it could have been the wall that pulsed gently in time with the fluttering wings.

My head quickly followed.

Chapter Two

“Come on, love. Up with you.” A warm voice flowed over me, followed by a cold shower in the face.

“What– why are you–” I spluttered, my eyes springing open well before I was ready to take the world in again. My head spun as I blinked through a small waterfall cascading over my face, blearily trying to reconcile the place I’d passed out in and the room that looked similar, but wasn’t.

“Told you the ice water would do it,” Murch pranced from one clawed foot to the other smugly, his stone tone only half faded. Not that a talking bat would make a difference to my version of normal.

But his wasn’t the only stone face peering in at me.

I held off my insults to study the man staring down at me with luminous topaz eyes that glowed against his deep sepia skin. Murch muttered something about my integrity, drawing my attention away from the man with the honey-warm voice.

“Excuse me for a moment,” I said sweetly, smiling. I turned to Murch, who dropped the smug grin and actually one claw backwards an inch, scraping the cleaned desk he perched on. I took the win. “If you ever throw ice at me again, I will push you off the edge of whatever you’re standing on, stone form of not,” I growled at the tiny, ancient beast.

Murch huffed and turned away.

It wasn’t a real threat; even if he broke, from that height, I could still mend him. A high fall in full stone form would destroy him. The chances of him not transforming back before he hit the ground in time to save himself were slim.

“Odd thing,” the man said at my side.

I shook my head, the room swimming a little. “Not really.” I studied the tidy desk; the clean, bright white walls, absent the greenish tinge of my last memory of this room. “Where are we–” I paused, looking directly at the man studying me.

Murch tiptoed theatrically across the desk to whisper in my ear. “He meant you.”

“Desk. Edge.” I said out of the corner of my mouth. “You know you hate the glue.”

The golden man’s smile saddened, and his face darkened. It grew harder, the dull surface not reflecting light the way a man’s skin should, especially one that glorious.

If I hadn’t seen a similar transformation before, it would have unnerved me. Instead, I watched with curiosity, until his stone tone was not dissimilar to Murch’s, but a few tones lighter, in a sandy, tawny brown.

I blinked. “I’ve never seen a man gargoyle. Shifter, whatever you call it.” Stumbling over the words, I clacked my teeth together, giving it up as a bad job.

He smiled, the stone tone softening to burnt bronze flesh. “Now you have. Dolion Librado. Tell me, Clarissa. What are you doing here?”

Something in his eyes swirled, reminding me of the eyes on the month’s wings, and my stomach lurched again.

“She’s gonna blow,” Murch muttered, retreating across the desk, his claws clicking on the hard surface.

A hand pressed between my shoulder blades, driving me down to the floor. I hovered with my head between my knees, gulping at a distinct lack of air that the contents of my stomach blocked in their haste to exit my body.

“The moths,” I gasped, “they were watching me.”

The floor rose at me, but the hand at my back never moved. Somehow that gave me comfort. Air finally filtered into my lungs, and I took deepening breaths, inhaling through my mouth, but the scent of ammonia dissipated.

“Moths? Mouths? Why would moths watch you?” Murch teetered on the edge of the desk, then swung over it, a great scrape announcing his presence as he hung upside down to peer at me.

I inhaled, then batted at my inverted friend.

He flapped his wings at me. The cool, moving air cleared my head. After a minute, the nausea passed, and I straightened.

“Slowly,” Dolion cautioned, but I flapped at him, too.

“I’m good,” I lied, rubbing my tongue against the roof of my mouth. The bottom, too, but it did little to help ease the nausea.

Dolion positioned me over an industrial-grade waste paper basket. “Sure,” he rubbed my back in firm, gentle strokes, “you’ll be fine in a— ah. There you go.”

For the first time in nine years, I emptied the contents of my stomach into a bin. Murch scraped his way across the table in an undignified retreat, leaving deep scars on the nice shifter’s desk, while I hurled into his bin.

“I hadn't heard of other gargoyles residing in the city,” I coughed.

Or anywhere.

I tried to shoot a glare at Murch but my stomach turned in on itself, like the bat had when he had spun upside down on the desktop. Pressing my lips together, I cramped my stomach, attempting to reduce the urge by sheer will alone.

It became a mute gesture, and I spit into the bin. A fresh water bottle appeared beneath my nose. Broad, calloused fingers snapped the lid off. I gripped the bottle too-tight, gulping the fountain that overflowed from the top.

Dolion laughed. “You have. You just don’t know it. Ever been to the Protean Table?” his voice smiled, as though something drowned the joy in it.

“So you’re used to shifters just pouring into your office, strange women hurling into your waste bin, and asking odd questions?”

He considered a moment, his eyes kind, though watchful. “Have you asked those yet?”

“No. But I will be.” No point hedging. I wasn’t a witch. Though doubtless the city ran with those, too. I had stupidly decided that since Murch was both ancient and rare, he would be the only one.

How very mundane of me.

“You’re welcome to. And you're not a shifter,” his voice closed a little, though he had collected me off the floor of his office. Twice.

“Not an ounce. I was under the impression that gargoyles — magic — was... rare.”

That magic and the possibility of more gargoyles, or actually supernatural occurrences were unheard of. Murch had given me the impression he was the last one, or the only one, of his kind, hinting that either magic had retreated or died off with the rise of the digital age.

Dolion smiled, bringing light to an otherwise thoughtful semi-stone facade. “Now you know differently.” His gaze flicked over my shoulder to Murch, where he scratched away on the desk. “Not an exotic dancer come to find an overdosed partner…police?” He guessed, his gaze sweeping me.

I repressed the shiver that passed through me, leaving a trail of tingles in its wake. “Yes. I’ve danced at the Gold Room.”

Two stone heads swivelled my way, but it was Murch who spoke. “Undercover?”

I grinned at the memory of the night. “Hell no. I was off duty.”

“Skank.”

“Grit.” I returned Murch’s glare, though there was little heat in mine. I had decided one night that I’d spent too long alone and that a night of debauchery was on hand. It hadn’t happened. I’d had a few drinks, danced my ass off, flirted like hell and returned home alone. But Murch hadn’t forgiven me for abandoning him for the night.

His words, not mine.

“You have a…unique relationship.” Dolion spoke softly, three fine lines forming on his forehead as his stone tone retreated to his natural skin.

“We need each other,” we chorused.

Murch grimaced.

I didn't.

“He’s falling apart — age and senility — while I’m already there,” I forestalled the miniature stone bat’s inevitable comeback.

He listed my life off on his claws, anyway. “Broken home, inept attempt at a career. No daily you-know, because the divorce never happened. The marriage never happened. Don’t try to live with her,” Murch curtailed my existence into a few sentences while my stomach did a gazillion sit ups over a bucket with a rather disgusting after-effect, not all of it from the room that had stopped swaying.

“At least I’ll be fit in the morning,” I groaned, trying not to inhale.

“Usually she eats coffee by the gallon. Well, maybe spoonful,” Murch conceded.

“You danced at the– doesn’t matter,” Dolion snapped his thought off abruptly, shaking his head.

“Slut to the bone,” Murch intoned.

“Thank you,” I muttered, “that’s really not very helpful.”

“But it is what you do. Did,” Murch smiled in his usual, ancient grimace.

I knew he could tell stories I really didn’t want to hear, and shook my head to forestall him, pushing myself up on the desk. “Someone show me the room I was in. The one where I passed out,” I added to the dual frowns that filled my vision.

“This one,” Dolion stared hard at me, lines deepening across his brow. The effect had little to do with reducing his sex appeal.

“You should stop that,” I waved at him, “despite your…facade, you’ll crumble.”

“Nothing is permanent. Age catches us all.”

“I thought you lived forever?” I startled, and tried hard not to look at Murch, the lying little piles of pebbles.

Dolion shook his head. “Not true. Don't listen to the critics.” A slant of golden eyes was aimed in the direction of my crumbling housemate.

Murch had lost the ability to fully transform eons ago, or so he said. I studied the man before me with new and undisguised curiosity, curling my hands to prevent myself from going on a discovery tour.

He returned the favour, dark eyes taking me in. Finally he nodded, as though taking whatever information he had gleaned from my study of him and tucking it away.

“I shouldn’t?” I raised an eyebrow, struggling to return to the conversation, and ignoring my snarky crime-solving mate. “Bu–-”

“No.” He said firmly, his hand curling around mine. “You were in this room. Did it look different?”

I reeled a little, trying to keep track of the conversation, and bit back my urge to answer him in full. My lips pressed together, I tried not to react to the tingles centred around my wrist where his hand contacted mine.

“Should it look different?”

Chapter Three

Dolion asked the question as though he expected a specific answer, and something about that irked me. Maybe because I felt like I should have Alice written on a name tag taped to my shirt.

A faint smile tugged at the corners of his lips. “Tell me.” He propped his thighs against his desk chair, far too close for comfort.

Especially with my other gargoyle in the room.

“Moths. There were moths covering half the roof. Big ones. The weedy guy called them Black-”

“Black Witches,” Dolion interrupted, his gaze focussing somewhere behind me. “Rare, but not unheard of. Go on.”

My lips pressed harder together; I hadn’t meant to tell him at all, but fear that I had hallucinated the entire scene gripped me. “The desk was cluttered, a complete mess. Not like yours,” I gestured at the neat lines and rows of stationary and files.

He nodded, his face so smooth, I wondered that he hadn’t turned back into his stone facade. “Anything else?”

I frowned, trying to think back. The gurney was in the same position as they had been in my other experience, and the door... I lifted my gaze to the doorway which wasn’t a true doorway at all. A pair of elevator doors stared back at me. Were they the same ones Mason had pushed me through? I squinted, and realised what was bothering me. It wasn’t the doors, at all.

“The light was different. Greener. Hazier.”

“Not bong smoke?” Murch cracked an eyebrow, a scattering of pebbles drifting down his blackened cheek.

Dolion snorted, brushing the dust from his desk. “Not likely.” His intense gaze became speculative as he turned it on me. “Anything else?”

“It was just…” My brain churned, the scent of ammonia and death clogging it, “different.” I finished lamely.

Murch stuck his head under his wing, his disgust at my pathetic ending palpable in the air between the three of us. Dolion gave a snort that he quickly covered with the back of his hand.

“I’m sorry. That was inappropriate of me.” His tone was some reason but his eyes sparkled at me.

I grinned back. “Be inappropriate. I’m used to it. Not that you were,” I added, tapping my toes on the floor. My bare toes. “What happened to my shoes?”

“You weren’t wearing any when we found you.” Dolion’s mouth thinned. He tapped Murch’s wings, and the little stone bat stiffened. “You, stay. You,” he nodded to me, and took off toward the elevator, “come with me.”

I stood anchored to the floor. My head spun. I had so many questions, I knew that even if I let the floodgates open, I would still miss some important aspect of my situation. Nothing about the situation was right. There were gargoyles. An entire community of creatures I knew nothing about but now suspected. My corpse had its own line of questions, and now we had a shoe thief to top it all off.

Dolion’s broad-shouldered frame took up half the room for me. I studied the outline of his physique, wondering what he looked like in his full stone form. Instead of asking all the questions jumbling at the front of my mind, I closed my mouth, and followed him to the elevator doors.

“You’re younger than him,” I blurted.

Dolion’s half turned, a smile curling his lips.

“You’re a regular Sherlock,” Murch grumped, his snark clearly audible from where he remained on the desk. A shuffling caught my attention. I turned back to find him systematically destroying the order Dolion had for his desk until it looked just like the desk from my vision with the moths. I stared, my head processing at a sluggish speed. The two events, the room — it was all so out of order.

“Ignore him,” Dolion said softly, reaching for a side door that presumably led to stairs.

Going up, I hoped.

He extended his hand. I hesitated only a moment, his luminous topaz eyes that swirled yellow beneath the stark fluorescent lights locking onto mine.

Dolion curled his fingers around my hand, enfolding my wrist. He led me into a green-tinged stairwell. My stomach automatically began to flip flop, and I stalled on the second step. Breath hissed shallowly between my lips.

“Whoa.” Dolion slid an arm behind me, “do you need to go back to the other room?”

I gripped his shoulder, lean muscle that covered his shoulder and bicep taut and hard beneath my hand. A full, cool breath finally made it all the way into my lungs, and my head cleared.

“I’m good,” I said firmly, attempting to disguise the wobble at the end of my words.

Dolion nodded again, his arm wrapping firmly around my waist. I looked up to find him way too close. The warmth of him wrapped around me, drawing me into him.

“Just make sure you hurl that way,” he waved at the railing, a flicker of actual horror passing across his eyes, no doubt at my prior performance in his workplace.

I grinned despite myself, focussing on the colour of his deep sepia skin, the contrast of his crisp white shirt eeking out a wish that I was on a beach with him somewhere.

Hell, my head is screwy.

I shook it, and the stairwell swayed only a little. “Why were you in stone form when I woke up?” I asked as the first distraction that popped through the sludge of my brain.

“Twenty questions?” A finely plucked eyebrow arched elegantly. “Do I get some of my own?” I nodded, trying not to focus on his fingers pressing into my side as if there were no barrier between his skin and mine. “I’m stronger, then. Less…damageable. There seemed to be a threat and I wanted to keep you safe.” The last word came out well rounded, almost honeyed, and I lost myself a little in his eyes.

“Do you always have trouble with the security of your lab?” I found my own voice, creaking from a dry throat. I coughed to cover the horrid sound, but only succeeded in making it worse.

“Not on a too-regular basis,” Dolion drew me up to the landing of the floor I had come in on, pausing with his hand on the door handle. His smooth brow furrowed as he looked down at me, as though trying to puzzle out an enigma. “My turn. Tell me why you came here.”

I held his gaze far longer than was socially acceptable. He looked back, and the concern faded into curiosity.

“I was looking for reasons why your corpse walked away.”

Chapter Four

“I don’t know that I can call it mine, exactly,” Dolion tugged the door to the ground floor open, and our moment of peace was broken.

Sound rushed into the vacuum of our small space. The bottom floor of the Institute was completely closed off from the world above, from everyone else. Dolion hesitated at the threshold of the foyer, then plunged into the main area, full of uniformed bodies charging about their daily duties.

How long had he been down there, and how often did he come out of his closed little cave? My unanswered questions compiled into a jam that cramped my brain, but I pushed them all aside to follow him through the doorway.

I trailed my fingers across the door frame, unsure what I was looking for, but expecting some sort of reaction. My skin encountered only cold paint and solid wood. Somewhat disappointed, I followed Dolion into the lobby. Sunlight reached a few feet into the artificially-lit foyer, providing a warmth the lower floor lacked.

“Is this where you came in?” Dolion gestured to the front doors.

I followed his hand with my eyes, tracing over the smooth skin and wishing it was still wrapped around mine.

Get your head out of the gutter. Murch was right about you.

I smiled; the tiny gargoyle’s snark followed me even when he was floors below me. Dolion grinned back, his smile enough to steal my air in an instant. Near the sunlight, he looked so much more human. His skin softer, the unearthly glow of his eyes dulled, though I missed that. The floor under the Institute had some seriously weird vibes running through it. But it also had some otherworldly lighting, bright as Dolion’s office was. Or maybe it was just him. I stared past him, pushing against his shoulder when he wouldn't budge.

“Down there,” I said softly, still pushing at his shoulder. “The elevator down there,” I waved to the end of the hall where I had followed the paramedic earlier in the day.

That was today?

I blinked when Dolion didn’t move.

“There’s no lift that way, Clarissa.” His soft voice rolled my name, and I blinked, only now realising that I hadn’t given it to him.

Though I was sure Murch had divulged my details at some point — likely while I was unconscious on the younger gargoyle’s floor.

“But that’s the way I was taken,” I frowned, jarred from memory lane by reality. A reality which blurred before me as I pushed past Dolion and headed for the piece of wall Mason had taken me through earlier. The rabbit hole swirled around me, or maybe it was the walls. I pressed a palm to the painted surface for balance. The cold contrast I needed to ground me didn’t come, and the hallway pulsed nauseatingly around me.

For the second time in a day my knees buckled, but this time, my head blessedly didn’t hit the floor. Dolion’s arms slid beneath my armpits, hauling me up against him. His lips moved soundlessly, like I was in a bubble of slow motion.

A shadow passed us on the other side; another blur that shouldn’t look the way it did. Like a memory in its own right.

I frowned after it, ignoring Dolion’s rather beautiful face to follow the familiar shadow. Ahead of it, a man waited at the other end. The paramedic gestured me into the lift and I watched myself follow his command. He disappeared into the lift that shouldn't be there.

“Clarrisa,” Dolion’s deep voice came at me, too loud, his dulcet tones grating on my frayed grasp on reality.

The conversation of the Institute foyer swamped me as I turned to face him, noting the frown lines on his face for the second time.

“Don’t do that,” I said softly, reaching up to brush my fingertips over his forehead “your facade will crack.”

“Not something I worry about.” The lines smoothed beneath my fingers, though more creased around his lips. They faded as he studied me. “Where did you go, then?”

“Didn’t you see– well. Clearly no, you didn’t.” I pressed my lips together, my stomach creating waves of nausea. “I thought I saw myself. Everything slowed down. Stupidly like a movie, but this one took my stomach on a rollercoaster ride along with it. And when I stepped into that apparently non-existent elevator again, it all came back to,” I waved my hands in his face, “normal.”

Dolion stared over my head for a long moment, his hands like steel bands around my arms. “Stay here.”

It was an order, spoken in a tone clearly used to being obeyed, and I was no exception. My feet stayed right where they were as he propped me against the wall. His tall figure strode away down the hall, and he approached the far wall.

Steadying myself on the wall that was cool at my touch — of course, now it’s cool — I edged across the hallway. No one came down this far from the entrance, but I wanted a better view of the area Dolion had claimed. He paused in front of a piece of blank wall where my head still told me a pair of elevator doors should be, rocking forward slightly in his inspection, but not touching the surface.

Passing the turning with the mirror I had tried to use earlier in the day, I continued to make my way along the silent and dead ended hallway to join the Medical Examiner in staring at a blank piece of wall.

“There’s nothing here.” I pressed my lips together.

Good work, Detective Obvious.

Murch’s phantom voice echoed around my head.

“No,” Dolion lingered a moment. “When you saw yourself before, were you in the moment, or more off to the side?”

I frowned, but he didn’t look at me. “What does off to the side mean?” I tried to reduce the sharp edge in my voice, but it slipped through, anyway.

Mostly because I knew exactly what he meant, but some part of me was loath to admit it. The whole situation was well off the sharp end of my acceptable scale, and my brain bumped fuzzily about in a soup of muddled nerves and memories to boot.

Dolion looked at me, hard.

The intensity in those liquid gold eyes snapped something inside me. Every hair on my arms raised in an uncomfortable prickle, irritation and confusion dissolving into a type of uncontrollable madness in my chest.

“Time. He’s…muted it, slowed it. Somehow,” Dolion mused, ignoring the boiling pot standing beside him.

I was surprised I didn't emit a whistle, ready to blow.

His attention was on the wall; his shoulders relaxed as he sorted through the puzzle and I wondered if this was how I looked when I worked at the edge of a crime, all the pieces falling into place.

Murch would know.

I missed the tiny gargoyle and his inevitable snark in that moment, questions and concepts I couldn’t answer as my grip on the rabbit hole loosened and I tumbled ever deeper. My reverie dulled the hiss longing to burst out from behind my clenched teeth. Instead, it slipped out in a hurried exhale, and I breathed properly again.

“He…who? The paramedic? Manson?” I managed to get the question out, then turned it around. “Or are you talking about your corpse?”

Dolion laughed. “Your odd friend, the paramedic. I believe if we can locate him, then we will also find our other missing friend.”

“Malcolm Dallas,” I recalled the victim’s name, pleased my brain had resumed its usual function. “So, how do we catch our people? This isn’t the type of investigation I’m used to working,” I said, surprised I wasn't panicking and running for the proverbial hills. Apparently, working with Murch over a prolonged period had dulled my acceptance of unusual things. I turned back to Dolion. “And don’t you have work to do?” A half assed joke about his work not being able to walk away died before it reached my throat.

Dolion glanced at me, the hint of a smile curling his lips. “Yes, I have to work. And that’s where we’re going.” He headed back to the stairwell. “Don’t touch that,” he warned, when I stretched my hand out to call the elevator.

“Why not?” I followed him into the stairwell. “And what the hell are you about with time?” It should have been the first question from my lips, but clearly, I was still playing catch up.

“Time isn’t stagnant. It moves all the time,” he glanced down at me as he held the door open.

I passed by him, registering the heat of his body. I shivered in response as I stepped into the open landing, already missing his warmth.

“Yes, I can see that. Sort of,” I fell into step with him as he traversed the stairs. “It moves forward, counting us into the future.” The words sounded stupider as they passed my lips and I wished I’d taken my brain’s belated advice not to say them.

“Yes, we move forward, but does it? Time is as fluid as your water trapped in a bottle, bending back on itself in a ribbon. Humans only see in a straight line: they see their future and only what comes next for them. We look back at the past, but we do not experience it,” Dolion’s hand hovered at my lower back, its heat radiating through my shirt.

“And Mason did what, exactly? Bend time to make a door look further away? You said time pauses, upstairs.” I faced him before he opened the door to his workplace.

The usual occupants weren’t my issue; Murch was, and I needed to get this straight in my head before he busted my precarious thought patterns into a cosmos of alternatives. And my grasp was reasonably tentative.

“Paused, to make distance seem like time was passing. There’s little difference between the two,” he added, sliding his hands into his pockets. “For now we wait to find out how he had changed my office to a place of his own making.”

“And he’ll come back and show you this?” My grasp on the conversation, my reality and acceptance melded into a disjointed beast that threatened to overwhelm me. “Just like that?”

Dolion smiled gently. “Just like that. Tea?”

I nodded and followed him into the examination room.

Chapter Five

My phone screen was decorated with tiny scratches that bore a remarkable resemblance to certain a gargoyle’s claws. Murch hung from the ceiling, not-so-tiny grunts letting me know he was feigning sleep after his bat party on my screen.

I scrapped the wrecked screen cover into the bin beside Dolion’s desk. A steaming cup was proffered beneath my nose. I took it, murmuring my thanks, and lay my phone on the desk ignoring the stone bat hanging from the industrial ceiling in the underbelly of the Institute.

“Is he coming down?” Dolion asked softly from his seat on the floor, his long legs folded to his chest.

“Not likely,” I muttered, dwarfed beside his lean bulk as I settled next to him. The man was huge; his height disguised lean muscle all the more intimidating when it ewa curled into a smaller space, “I believe I’m in disgrace.”

Dolion flicked me an amused grin. “You have an unusual relationship,” his smile dipped at one end, though he recovered the slip quickly.

There’s a story there.

“What’s unusual about a girl and her stone bat, fighting crime in Cook County?” I asked lightly.

His gaze lifted to hold mine, the same shiver running over me as it had when he had grasped my hand earlier. “Nothing at all.”

“Tell me how this is going to work,” I raised my mug at the elevator doors, “and why I’m not out there, trying to find your missing corpse the traditional way.”

“Is there a traditional method of recovering the walking dead?” Dolion stared forward pensively, his shoulders drawn in a tight line. “We wait, because if you’ve seen the first part of Mason's paused moment, then the rest of it should come through here, or maybe it hasn’t yet. Or-”

“I get the picture,” I held up a hand, my head already swimming with information overload. Dolion laughed softly beside me. I sent him a death glare, but couldn't help the smile that answered his, “wait– are there walking dead?”

Zombies? Were we having the apocalypse and no one had told me? Visions of the Instituterising around us in a horror scene brought the prickles back in force.

“No, not the way you’re imagining.” Dolion said firmly, not bothering to disguise his smile this time, “no one is rising here today. Or night. Stop imagining,” he bumped his shoulder against mine.

I ducked my head into my coffee, fighting the heat that rushed to my cheeks, and told myself it was embarrassment.

“I can imagine a lot,” I sighed, “Okay, let’s start this thing straight. I have a murder victim who has walked away. I have a room and an elevator in my head where they shouldn’t be-”

“That’s your problem. The rooms were where they should be. They just weren’t.”

“That’s it? Oh, good. We can all go home now,” I snapped.

A cough that could have been a snort came from behind us.

“I believe your Mason has paused time long enough to make a pocket of it. Stored, or twisted it until he has a little bank collected he can access in a certain place.”

“An air bubble,” I blurted, thinking of bubbly chocolate. “But doesn’t that mean that the time can get out, if the bends…or loosens?” I had no idea if I was using terms that Dolion would understand. He nodded, to my greatest relief, and I felt less of an idiot than before.

“Indeed. Your moment in the foyer is proof of such a leakage. It is not an infinite resource. When the time depletes from his bubble, the past and the present will pop back together in a new moment.”

“Ending the sequence.” I mulled on this for a long moment, a million questions buzzing in my head, but I settled on just two. “Why would that not happen in the past, and who would have the power to do this? What sort of being?”

“Because you are not in the past. And being, well…” Dolion shifted slightly, his body slightly more solid-looking beside me.

I peered closer at his body.

Burnished bronze stone-tone covered his fingers, eeking along his hands to cover his wrist. When he turned to look at me, his eyes were golden topaz, no hint of the liquid brown they appeared to be when the sunlight hit him, both beautiful and eerie at once. Despite living with a miniature gargoyle, the sheer presence Dolion displayed drew me to him.

“And your walking corpse isn’t a vampire?” I asked hurriedly, before I fell into those golden eyes.

Lips tweaked the tiniest amount, stone creeping along his face. “Not this one.”

“Wait, does that mean–” I couldn't work out if he was joking or not as my reality lurched.

Unprepared, my stomach tried to go with it, but I fought against the sensation of the solid floor beneath me shifting in a set of random undulations. Neither my mind nor my eyes could work it all out, which wreaked havoc on the rest of my systems.

The elevator doors partially opened, two shadows sliding across the room too fast for me to make out who was who, though I knew I had been the first person to enter. The room wavered, bending at the sides and pulsing madly outward. I inhaled slowly, but my heart wanted to pound at the same rate as the room. I clutched my untouched tea, propped up.

Ignoring a second past version of myself that came into vision and shifted, fading all at once, my attention was drawn into the depths of the elevator. Very slowly, I rose as the third shadow, this one far morse distinguishable and present than the last two, emerged.

Malcolm Dallas still bore the marks of his violent death. He crossed the room with painstaking steps, pausing at the table Dolion had placed in the centre of the room. He rolled his struggling body onto it, drawing the sheet over himself as though preparing for a night’s rest, and lay still.

Dolion’s desk was once again neat and tidy, as though Murch hadn’t spent the past few hours trashing it. Even his little trail of dust had disappeared.

Shadows flickered faintly as the walls ceased their throbbing, a wave of phantom wings fluttering over me. I stumbled backward in their wake as the shroud settled over Malcolm’s head. I blinked, turning to Dolion, but he had resumed an entirely stone facade.

Once again, I was the only breathing being in the still and silent room.

Epilogue

“I still don’t have an answer on who,” I bitched, collecting the files spread over my bell tower room. The lot were in a disarray; apparently I’b been mad enough to leave a window open while I was off gallivanting about Chicago, hunting down a walking dead body. Who knew a paranormal occurrence could be so disturbing to my usual routine. “This is going to make a hell of a report.”

“Be creative.” Murch suggested unhelpfully. “That’s what you people do when you report the evidence, isn’t it? You fit the facts to a fun little story you’ve concocted and hunt down someone suits your needs and arrest them. Well? Of you go.” He made a shooing motion with his claws.

I shook my head, “You’re snarkier than ever. Do bats get PMS?” The last file slipped into place and I made a neat stack, pressing my coffee cup firmly on the top. A glance over my shoulder told me the window was closed. “Wait. Is it because I’m meeting Dolion later on?”

It turned out that the Medical Examiner was an avid ice hockey fan, and seeing as the Blackhawks were playing tonight, he had invited me to share the Institute’s corporate box. I’d jumped at the chance, not having been to a game in years. Plus, I wanted to see what the stone man was like outside of his regular habitat. The fact that my heart beat a little faster at the thought of being near him again was pushed firmly to the back of my mind, Tonight was a social evening, nothing else.

Dolion had provided a handy document co-signed by another coroner’s office apparently run by another shifter of some kind stating the body had been moved for processing purposes. The process remained undisclosed, of course, but it gave me an easy out to close the case.

I would continue to investigate the time thief, or bender — I hadn’t settled on a suitable term yet, and my gargoyles were unhelpful on that front — and Dolion had promised me an introduction to the paranormal community, under the provision that Murch was my guarantor.

“Go have your date,” Murch snarked. “I’ll sit here and tend the radio.”

I burst out laughing. “You should have been a nineteen fifties detective. Would have fit right in with Dick Tracey.”

“Slept through it.” Murch faked a yawn for rest he didn’t need. “Well, go on. Off you go,” he canted his small, squished head, pushing my phone across the table he rested on in a not so subtle gesture.

“You’re giving up crime fighting for tonight? Or are you going to scour Netflix for Batman movies while I’m out?” I checked my light makeup and fixed my ponytail.

“Hardee har har,” Murch muttered, tapping a claw on my screen. “Is this a new cover? I could use it in sharpening my claws.”

“Don’t you dare, you pile of pebbles,” I squeaked, rolling my eyes when he backed off with a shuffle. A tiny pile of dust lay heaped in his shadow.

“Go.” Murch turned to face the window overlooking the city. “I’ll be here, watching over everything while you have your date. Might even find you a new case.”

“Good night, Murch.” I smiled, but the tiny bat had hardened into his traditional shade of black, his neck stretched out in the pose that came most natural to him, watching over the city each night.

My little stone sentinel.

The End

I hope you loved Clarissa & Dolion’s story. They will return! Sign up for my NEWSLETTER to be the first to hear about their next story. Dolion also features in A PORTRAIT IN ASH & LACE.

About Sofia Aves

Sofia Aves writes fast-paced police romances, suspenseful mysteries, steamy cowboys with a Montana backdrop and the occasional cheeky god. She loves reading Indie authors and hides her collection of college romance books beneath an ever-growing TBR pile.

Sofia is a mum of three crazies and an overly large fur baby who thinks she’s a teacup puppy. She loves orchids but can’t always keep them alive. Sofia lives near Brisbane, Australia.

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Bonded

(The Candle District Series, Book 1)

© 2021 Isabeau Moon

Edited by C.W Pubs

About Bonded

(The Candle District Series, Book 1)

Meeting your mate in a bar by chance, while your girlfriend is waiting for you at home. Welcome to the Candle District.

Naemi makes a split decision to take control of her life that leads her down a path she was not expecting.

Arami on the other hand always knew she would be the next Alpha and lives each day controlling every moment of her life with her partner, that is until she meets a stranger that changes everything for her.

Chapter One

NAEMI

He was rambling again. My father loved to talk about duty and honor at any given time. You could be commenting on the weather, and somehow the conversation without a doubt would be steered towards duty and honor.

“Naemi, are you listening?"

I looked up from my half-eaten plate and nodded, "Yes, Dad."

"Your brother will be Alpha soon, and you need to set an example. Adem will need all the help he can get considering the situation."

This conversation had become exhausting. I had heard this same speech a minimum of thirteen times over the past four days. My father had been Alpha of the Bruin Lake Pack for as long as I can remember. But unfortunately, he would never tell me how long it actually was.

Last month he had decided it was time for him to step down, and my oldest brother Adem would have some huge shoes to fill. Of course, my other three brothers were bummed, but we all knew it would be Adem deep down. He and his massive wolf commanded admiration and obedience. Not to mention all the battles he had won against anyone who had even dared challenge him.

"Naemi!" My father's voice echoed in my chest. "Daughter, you must marry the Alpha of the Inigo pack. You understand this, don't you?

My wolf rumbled close to the surface, and I stood knocking my plate over. "What? When was this decided?" I knew he kept saying I needed to set an example, but this was fucking insane. I would not randomly marry someone.

Daughter, this is how our pack will survive. You know what it has been like."

I couldn't even look at him, and my wolf strained at being forced at bay. "I am not marrying Decker Bishop! What is this the 16th century?" I turned away. I had to get out of here.

My father threw the table across the room, making his way to me. He stood above me, and those hard, wary eyes bore into me. It is not ideal, Naemi, but the pack must survive. You will do what your Alpha commands!" My father growled angrily.

He was right, and usually, I would do just that, but this was too much. Why should I have to make sacrifices?

"Why can't Adem marry Dolphine, the Alpha's sister? I finally said, keeping my eyes low. I had never stood up or questioned my father before. "That would generate the same result and make more sense. As the Alpha of the Bruin Lake Pack, he should be the one working to make things right. Why is this being put on me? "

"You dare question your Alpha? Naemi, I know this is something you were unprepared for, so I am trying to keep my temper under control, but don't push me, pup. You live in my house, and you are a part of my pack. You will do as you are told." He turned away from me and proceeded to pick the large wooden table off the floor. "Why don't you go to your room and think about your actions."

My father was tough as nails with everyone, including me. He kept me on a tight leash, but he had never lost his temper with me before., He had never had any reason to before, and now I knew I had pushed him too far. Usually, I would do just as my father demanded, but today was different. This was my life. He was making permanent decisions about my life without any input from me. I stormed out the front door and stood on the porch, looking out into the bleakness.

Our pack had taken some hits, but that was usual when located near other rival packs. The issue was that for some reason, females weren't being born as often as males. Just look at my family, for example. My parents had five children, me being the last and only girl. This was common in the Bruin Lake pack now.

It was suffocating being the youngest and only daughter of the Alpha. I never knew if people were interested in me for me or because of who my father was. Since I was young, I longed for the freedom to be away from my father's rule, calmly waiting for the day I would find my true mate and be able to leave. I shifted under the blanket of moonlight, sighing as my claws dug into the damp ground. And then I darted off into the night as fast as my legs would carry me. I didn't know where I was headed, but I knew that I had to get far away from here. I would not allow my father or Adem to control my life any further.

I ran further and further than I had ever before. It hit me all of a sudden. I had left home with no clothes, no phone, nothing. This was probably the best yet dumbest decision I had ever made. Through the dark mist, I continued. Nothing else mattered except running. The feeling of freedom started settling in the further I was from Bruin Lakes. My mind was blank, and no destinations would come to mind until suddenly I remembered Shademire. It was perfect, and it was the largest supernatural safe haven around. I could literally get lost there. Until I reached my destination, I would stick to the forest and out of the other small supe towns along the way. There was no need to bring attention to myself. I felt a surge of excitement followed by energy at the thought of disappearing in Shademire.

Chapter Two

ARAMI

"Congratulations, Alpha!" my older brother yelled as he attempted to lock me in a chokehold. I loved Kanji, but I was stronger than him. So, I played it off and allowed him to get the upper hand. “Whoa, dad, maybe I should have been Alpha. Look at this."

My father and mother both laughed. I was incredibly pleased that Kanji was so accepting when I was named Alpha of our clan. He was the oldest and, everyone had pretty much thought he had it in the bag.

"Nah, I'm joking, sis. I always knew you were faster and stronger than me. You personify the best of our family, and the Candle District Clan is lucky to have you as our Alpha."

"Kissing up to the Alpha already, huh?" My mother joked, and my brother rolled his eyes. "Your brother is right, Arami." She grabbed my shoulders and pulled me into a hug before kissing me on my forehead. "You are strong, intelligent, and have the respect of the entire clan. I was in tears when your father announced you as the new Alpha, and everyone cheered and welcomed you openly. I'm very proud of you, daughter."

"I assume there will be a wedding next." My father interjected straight-faced."

"Dad. Marriage is the furthest thing from my mind right now. I want to make sure that I am focused on being a successful leader and following in your footsteps to ensure the longevity of our clan." I had been waiting for this topic to arise.

"Where is Marlize anyway?" My mother looked around. Her glossy black hair was cut short and blunt right at her jawline. "I don't remember seeing her after the ceremony."

I smiled uncomfortably and shrugged. I was secretly relieved that Marlize was not here right now. We had gotten into a mini argument. Earlier today, I had introduced her to the Clan Elders as my partner and not my mate. It had just happened. It wasn't intentional, but I knew I messed up as soon as the word left my lips. Her usually oversized smile became fixed and forced. I attempted to apologize once everything was over, but she politely stormed away.

I loved Marlize, and my family had grown to love her as well. She was a lone dragon visiting the neighboring town of Shademire when we met. I hadn't even thought about it and automatically approached her as she left a coffee shop. Her teal-colored curls caught the sun like waves in the sea. All in the span of a year, she was accepted as a member of our clan, and we had moved in together and had even brought up the subject of marriage a few times. But that is all that happened. I hadn't even actually claimed her yet. I knew it bothered her, but that claiming bite just hovered above our relationship and remained unmentioned for some reason.

Looking up, I noticed my mother's glare. My father and brother saw it as well and decided to politely excuse themselves. She sat on the couch near the door and patted the seat for me to sit as well. I was the Alpha, but I would, of course, listen to my mom. Taking a breath, I sat next to her and exhaled slowly. I glanced around at my father's office. I guess I should say my office now, and I was absolutely positive that I would be redecorating soon. The only thing I loved was the immense ornate wooden table in the center used for necessary Clan meetings. It had been in our family for generations.

"Arami."

Feeling my mother's gaze burning an invisible hole in the side of my face, I finally turned to face her, realizing she must have called my name more than once. "Mom, everything is fine," I assured her.

The look on her face instantly told me she knew otherwise. "What is going on? You can talk to me."

"Mom, nothing is going on. I was just named Alpha. Everything is perfect."

"Your father and I are pleased that you are taking your new role seriously. However, it is not an excuse to avoid or neglect your mate."

"Marlize isn't my mate, mom."

My mother sighed deeply as she smoothed her hair on each side. "Mate or not, you have claimed her. You do not go around telling people she is not your mate." Her voice was severe. "We do not always find our true mate, Arami, and that is okay. You have found someone you love, and that is all that matters."

My foot started tapping, and I realized I was becoming annoyed with my mother. I knew she only wanted the best for me, but this wasn't her business. I would figure my love life out in my own way and on my own time.

Her eyes went from my tapping foot and then quickly to my face. "Arami, I am not telling you how to live your life or what to do, but if Marlize is not the one you want to be with, then you need to let it be known. It's not fair to string her along."

"Marlize has been with me through a lot, Mom. I cannot just abandon her."

"You would not be abandoning her, but either claim her as your mate or move on." My mother was doing her best to get her point across without sounding bias, but I knew that she was not Marlize's biggest fan.

"I can't do this right now. You aren't even giving me time to experience being named new Alpha before you throw all this relationship and mate shit on me. Sorry for the language, but I've had enough." I rose from the couch and grabbed my keys and phone off the smooth wooden table. "We'll discuss this later." The words came out harshly, and I hoped my mother would not push the subject any further.

"Of course, daughter." She nodded and stood as well. "We will talk later."

I left immediately, relieved that she got the hint. I would deal with my mother and Marlize later. Right now, I definitely needed a drink.

Chapter Three

NAEMI

When I finally came upon Shademire, I didn't have any money or clothes, but no one gave the wolf roaming around town a second look. Even the humans didn't care. We hadn't had any humans in Bruin Lakes. It was a tiny wolf town far from any human-populated areas, but here it was full of humans, shifters, witches, and more.

I wandered until I reached the Moonglow Inn at the edge of town. I had been sleeping in the woods for a few days now. I longed to shift, take a hot shower and sleep in a bed. It was just my luck running into Astair Kidane and her cat familiar in the town's pumpkin patch, which is a whole other story. Astair's family runs the Moonglow Inn, and they generously offered the newbie in town a room. I offered to work to pay my way, but they declined.

The sun radiated into every corner of the small room, and I glanced at the clock next to the bed. It was almost noon. Feeling wholly re-energized and ready for the day, I popped out of bed. Today, my goal was to explore the neighboring Candle District. It was less well known than Shademire, so I figured I could find a job there and say off the radar.

I hastily showered and pulled on a white t-shirt and jeans from the clothes I had gotten from Astair. The lobby was buzzing with people. There was no one around the day before, but today it seemed like a busload of tourists had decided to drop in. I noticed Astair waving, trying to get my attention from the front desk. Her wild curly hair was in a neat puff today and her cat, who usually was nipping at her ankles, was nowhere to be found.

"It's Samhain. Witches come from all over the country to be a part of our festivities here." Then, after studying my face for a bit, she suddenly shook her head. "I know what you are thinking, but you are not taking a room away from another guest."

"As long as you're sure that I’m not a burden. I'm going job hunting today, and I am keeping track so I can pay you and your family back for everything."

Astair gave a huge grin and rolled her eyes. "Dude. Stop. I told you we are happy to help. I wish I could go and show you around town today, but as you can see, we are kind of swamped today. Maybe tomorrow we can hang out?"

I nodded and made my way through the cacophony of people in the grand lobby.

I followed winding cobblestone roads to the edge of town. There wasn't a sign or anything, but I could instantly tell I was in Candle District. The streets were no longer cobble but paved, and dim lanterns lined both sides of the road. The people on the roads also seemed a bit less friendly than Shademire.

After walking around the main street for a bit, I stumbled upon a bar called the Jagged Flame. I had never really been on my own much that was mostly impossible in Bruin Lake. My father was the Alpha, and I had four overprotective older brothers. So now here I was in a bar in a strange town swaying to the beat, watching sweaty bodies grind against each other. The bar was full of shifters of all kinds. I thought I smelled a witch or two as well. I ordered a drink, nonalcoholic, of course, at the bar, then sat at a high wooden table in the corner. It felt nice to be on my own, although I did wish that my bestie, Jada was with me. I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. It was challenging, but I could not stay home and be forced to marry some rando, especially a rando from Inigo pack. They treated their mates like shit.

Not that I had an experience, but my parents were true mates, and I witnessed their love every day until mom passed last summer. I missed my mom more than anything. If she was here, there was no way she would have let my dad and Adem try to barter me off to the Inigo. I couldn't even think about it without being disgusted. I had never imagined my father would even think that would be okay or ever treat me like property. I was upset, but I knew my father loved me. After decades of being the Alpha, I guess he was used to putting the needs of the pack first.

In an instant, panic struck me, and I felt an icy shiver take over me. They had found me. I knew what it felt like when my Alpha was nearby. I would not go easily. I could sense a strong alpha, but it was neither Adem nor my father. I glanced around and failed to recognize any familiar faces. I eventually noticed a woman standing at the bar. Her silky chestnut hair grazed the top of her well-fit jeans that showed off her rounded butt.

I cleared my throat and sat back in my chair. Why am I looking at this woman's ass? Either way, nice ass or not, I was pretty sure that she was the alpha shifter I had sensed.

The woman must have felt my eyes blazing a hole in the back of her head or her ass, and she turned, locked eyes with me, then flashed a confident grin before resuming her business at the bar. I was utterly embarrassed and, at that moment, decided to finish my drink and get the fuck out of there.

She turned from the bar, her sleek hair shimmering in the dim lights of the room. She started to approach my table, and it was like she was walking towards me in slow motion. My heart started beating faster, and I swear I forgot how to breathe for like two whole minutes.

The stranger put two drinks on the table and pushed one closer to me. "The bartender told me what you were drinking. Do you mind if I sit down?"

Words were just not happening right now, so I nodded yes and smiled. She pushed the drink closer, and I reached out to grab it. I didn't want her to think I was ungrateful or anything. I quickly jerked my back when I felt the spark that shot through my hand. I was sure she experienced it as well, but I wanted to feel it again.

I extended my hand. "I'm Naemi." I watched as the beautiful woman stared at me with her mouth open in an almost half-smile.

"Arami,” she said as she shook my hand and the sensation of touching her became even more intense.

I had initiated this second touch, but the spark intimidated me, and I hurriedly withdrew my hand. I could feel the energy radiating from her. She definitely was an alpha shifter and a powerful one at that. My hand still had that tingly feeling, and I rubbed it while wondering what Arami was.

What the hell was happening? I had never been so affected by anyone like this before. Though I was incredibly inexperienced, I knew that this feeling was no doubt attraction. I smiled at Arami as I eventually remembered to breathe and slowly exhaled.

This moment should have been uncomfortable, but it wasn't. There was no cumbersome embarrassment, and Arami's deep cinnamon eyes locked with mine, and I instantaneously wanted her. I watched as her rosy lips parted into a half-smile before she reached for her drink. Desire smoldered within me, and Arami's eyes flashed with unrestrained hunger.

I tried to find anything to look at, my drink, my hands, the drunk people attempting to twerk on the dance floor, but everything in me pulled my focus back to Arami. I could feel the heat rush through my face.

Arami, seemingly trying to ease the tension, put her drink down and cleared her throat. "So, where are you from?"

"What makes you think that I'm not from around here?"

"I would have noticed you. You would have noticed me too." She smiled and licked her lips. The look on her face became practically possessive, and I felt a wave of relief when Arami's phone began ringing. She huffed, then rolled her eyes. "I have to go, Naemi, but I'll be seeing you again. Soon I hope." She added before downing the rest of her drink and standing from the table. She turned, and her glossy hair swayed with her as she began walking towards the door. Not before I inhaled deeply, making sure to memorize her scent. She glanced over her shoulder before she disappeared out the door, and I was left with the feeling that she knew.

"Fuck", I moaned under my breath. Am I attracted to women now? I smiled at the bartender on the way out and decided to forget about the beautiful stranger while I walked back to the Moonglow Inn.

Chapter Four

ARAMI

It had been almost a week since I had met Naemi, and she was all I could think about. She was beautiful, and although I could tell she was a tad nervous, she remained fully confident in herself. I sat at my desk, barely listening to my assistant Taiya, as she went over the concerns raised by the elders at the last meeting. Instead, I was thinking of Naemi's deep chocolate eyes and her full, rosy-tinted lips and how soft they probably were.

"Alpha?" Taiya slowly put her tablet down and glared at me. "Is everything okay? Would you like me to continue later? She adjusted the collar on her blazer. Today was her first day, and although she was slightly overdressed, she was incredibly attentive and stived to do her job well.

"Everything is fine, but I think this is a great stopping point, don't you? It's getting close to dinner time, and I think I've taken enough of your day today. See you tomorrow?"

"Oh, of course, Alpha. Please let me know if there is anything else you need. I hope you have a great night." She swiftly grabbed her tablet off my desk and started backing towards the door. "See you tomorrow." She gave a nervous smile and closed the door behind her.

Before I closed my laptop, there was a chime from a new email. A family on the edge of our lands had noticed a wolf running in the woods near their home a couple of nights in a row. The wolf had not wandered into our territory or threatened the family in any type of way, but they just thought I should know. Usually, I would have handed this off to my Alpha Guard and went about my day, but Marlize and I had been arguing for the past few days, and I was in no rush to head home. So instead, I would just take a look and make sure all is well.

If I didn't have my duties as Alpha, I would spend all my time soaring high above the clouds, looking down at clan lands. My mind was free above all the responsibilities and the drama waiting for me to return. I started my descent at where the forest started near the end of our territory. The forest was free land and belonged to no one, but other shifters customarily didn't come close without some kind of heads up.

I caught the scent as soon as I set foot on the ground and heard a long howl. My heart started beating faster. A wolf? I hadn't been sure what kind of shifter Naemi was, but I sure knew her scent. I slowly made my way through the forest, following her smell. I was grateful that the paths close to our homes had been made to fit dragons of my size. Then, another long howl sounded and echoed in the dense forest.

Sensing that I was being tracked, I stopped in an opening and waited. I turned as I picked up the slow approach of the wolf while she lifted her snout and sniffed the air. Her silvery-white fur was shimmering in the light of the setting sun, and I recognized the warmth in those chocolatey eyes. I did not want to scare her as I wasn't sure if she knew it was me or not, but Naemi’s smell was so strong now, it was painful, forcing myself not to shift and run to her.

The white wolf brazenly closed the distance between us, and I compelled myself to wait for her to make the first move. I wasn't sure how intimidating it was for her to find a massive dragon stalking her in the woods. Suddenly a surge of heat rushed through my body as the wolf nudged against me. It was soothing knowing she recognized me, and I exhaled in contentment.

After a few minutes, Naemi shifted into her naked human form. "I knew it was you. How did you find me?"

I took a deep breath and shifted and stood face to face with Naemi. I was used to seeing shifters naked, but I took my time taking in Naemi's body, trying to memorize every soft curve of her shapely figure. I could sense a heat burning in her and smell her arousal. I smirked as her breath shuddered slightly.

"I know your scent, Naemi," I snarled huskily.

"Do you?" She asked with an innocent smile that stole my breath. "A dragon, huh?"

"And you're a wolf. Certainly, not from around here, like I said the first time we met. Otherwise, you wouldn't be so close to my Clan's lands."

Naemi's eyebrows rose then scrunched together. " I'm sorry. I didn't know I had crossed over into someone's territory. I just like to let my wolf run free sometimes."

"No. Like I said, you were just close no need to apologize at all. It was quite serendipitous that you chose this area to let your wolf run free. I get to see you again." I smiled and felt satisfaction as I noticed a hint of pink under her usual tawny cheeks.

"I'm still learning about the area and the people. My friend Astair is teaching me all about the area, the families, the clans, and the packs. You said we are near your Clan's lands. Which clan?"

Stepping closer to her, I continued to study her face. "Candle District Clan."

Her face signaled recognition, and she stepped back. "You're the Alpha? I sensed it the first time we met."

"Yea. So?" I laughed as I once again took a step to close the gap between us. I just wanted to submerge myself in her scent. I longed to be closer to her.

She stepped back again. "You have a mate."

"A partner. A girlfriend, I haven't claimed or marked her." I shook my head in disbelief that I let those words slip out so effortlessly.

"I don't understand your point. You are together. She is who you have chosen."

We stared at each other in silence with only the wind whistling among the trees and a distant chirping filling the air around them.

"I guess I should get going. It's getting late." Naemi gave an unsure smile and turned to leave.

This would not do at all. I grabbed her hand and pulled her close. Naemi gasped as our naked bodies pressed up against each other. "I'm not ready for you to go just yet. I've been thinking about you since the first time I saw you, Naemi."

I couldn't endure any longer and gave in. I leaned in to kiss those round succulent lips. Naemi unfolded herself like a blossoming rose petal as she surrendered to the kiss. Naemi moaned into my mouth as the kiss slowly turned desperate. My skin was burning as if it was going up in flames. I didn't want the feeling to stop. I placed soft kisses trailing from her neck to her shoulder, and my heart drummed in my chest as the urge to bite down was overwhelming.

Naemi abruptly pushed me away. "Arami, you have already claimed someone. We cannot do this." Her eyes were downcast, but I could hear the sorrow in her voice.

Before I could begin an apology, she instantly shifted and ran away. Shit. This was the last thing that I wanted to happen, but I was unable to control myself. It was taking every ounce of self-control I had not to chase after Naemi. This wasn't fair to her, and it wasn't fair to Marlize. I gave one last look at the direction she had taken off in before I shifted and started my way back home.

Chapter Five

NAEMI

I didn't stop running until I reached the spot where I had left my clothes. I grabbed them off the largest of the three boulders that marked the path to the woods’ entrance. I shifted quickly and got dressed even quicker. I sighed deeply. I did not want to be here any longer than I had to. There needed to be as much distance as possible between Arami and me. I had lost her scent, so I assumed she hadn't followed me, but I was not about to take any chances. I started making my way back into town while tears began streaming down my cheeks.

This was tough for some reason, I barely knew Arami, but man, I craved her. I had never wanted anyone before, so all these emotions and sensations were entirely new for me. I breathed in a sigh and thought back to how I felt when I had first scented Arami in that bar. Her intoxicating smell assaulted my mind and nose. When we actually spoke, it was like an immediate connection. It was like what I had heard all my life about wolves finding their mate and forming an instant bond, but Arami was not a wolf.

I was more bewildered than ever, considering I had no family here. Even my best friend didn't know where I was, and I was too afraid to call or text her for fear that my father or Adem would find me. Thinking about my father made me wonder what he and my brothers would say, knowing I was having complicated feelings toward a woman. He would probably forbid me from even thinking about it any further and say something about making sacrifices for the pack, which correlates to me marrying the Alpha of the Inigo pack and producing lots of pups, I'm sure.

"Get it together, girl," I muttered to myself as I got closer and closer to the Moonglow Inn and swiped away any stray tears from my face. Astair and Belai, her cat, were resting in the herb garden behind the Inn. As a witch, she and her family used an array of herbs for various spells, potions, and cooking, of course. She gave a hearty wave followed by her usually sparkling smile. I went over to join them as the aroma of the nearby rosemary greeted me. Astair could almost always be found lounging in the garden after her shift was done. It was her favorite spot to stargaze.

"I was wondering when you would be back. I was starting to worry." She said, still laying on her back, looking at the starry night sky.

"Didn't intend to make you worry. Sometimes my wolf just demands wide open spaces to run unfettered," I mumbled, laying on the soft cloud-like grass.

Astair abruptly sat up. "Is everything okay? You seem a tad down."

Listen, I had no intention of unloading and burdening Astair with my issues and a possible love triangle that I may or may not be in, but everything just came pouring out. I felt lighter after telling everything, including why I left home, meeting Arami, kissing Arami, and then realizing who she was and that she had a mate. She listened intently and nodded or squeezed my hand at all the right moments of the story.

"I'm sorry you have had to deal with all of this on your own all this time. But I'm glad you decided to confide in me." She gave me a reassuring smile, and we both laid back down, eyes to the sky. She let things settle before she spoke again. "Do you love her, Naemi?"

The question caught me off guard. I barely knew Arami. Love was such a strong word, but I had never felt anything like this before. Honestly, I didn't know if it was a crush or lust or what. What I did know was that she was all I could think about, and that kiss stole my fucking breath away. Just thinking of kissing Arami again caused an unbridled heat to stir inside her. The scent of Arami drove her wolf wild, and even though she was pissed and hurt right now, she longed to be in the presence of her delicious smell again.

Astair, obviously aware of my uncertainty, decided not to wait for an answer. "Naemi, it’s okay if you do. You did nothing wrong. I don't know the Alpha personally, but I know of her family and her Clan. They're good people, but if she is worthy of you and your love, then she needs to earn it and prove it. So, she has some challenging decisions to make."

My heart smiled at her sweet and supportive words. It was refreshing to not feel judged even though I had no idea what I was feeling or thinking. She was right too. I wasn't the one in a relationship flirting with other women. Arami hadn't once brought up her mate or, as she said, her partner until I did. She was not fair to me or the person she was with. I wouldn't have even known there was someone else if it wasn't for Astair bringing me up to speed on all the gossip in Shademire and Candle District and telling me about the newly named Alpha of the badass dragon clan in the area.

"You're a great friend, Astair. I'm glad I ran into you in that pumpkin patch." We both laughed, and I grabbed her hand. It was nice to have someone to talk to again.

"Let's talk about the fact that you have been here less than two weeks and getting more action than me.

Laughing at her, I squeezed her hand again.

"I've already spoken to my mom, and you can stay here as long as you want, and I think you should. You should also probably avoid the Candle District Clan's Alpha as well. Protect your own feelings. Want me to cast a spell on her?" She asked casually, then smiled.

"Oh, now you have my attention. What kind of spell?"

"I don't know something bad, like every time she's near people, she has extreme gas. Or we can make her hair orange."

"Oh yea, that'll show her." I chuckled.

Chapter Six

ARAMI

"I know there is someone else." Marlize slammed a plate of eggs and bacon on the table in front of me.

Sighing, I put my phone down and watched as she sat in the chair across from me, huffed, and crossed her arms. "Someone else?" This specific conversation had come up a few times in the span of our relationship, with one being the night I was announced Alpha, but I usually just ignored it. Today though, Naemi had instantly popped into my mind.

I was conflicted, and it bothered the fuck out of me. As the Alpha, it was pretty much ingrained in me to be calculating and composed, but I was just a damn mess right now. The way I was feeling about Naemi didn't make sense and made me feel out of control. I should have been feeling guilty as hell for kissing Naemi the night before, but there was none. The only thought I had was that I had never felt that way with anyone before in my life, and I wanted to feel that way every day.

"Arami, you don't think I would know if there was someone else? Did some young damsel come to the Alpha with a problem, and you just couldn't help yourself?" Her grey eyes stared into me like cold rigid steel. She was furious, and she had every right to be.

"I would never use my position in that way, Marlize. You know me better than that." Her snarky comment had pissed me off, and my dragon was gnashing and burning to be let free, but I was in no position to throw blame around.

She rolled her eyes and ran her fingers through her disheveled hair. "It was enough when you introduced me as your partner. I know you don't believe in true mates, but damn, you could have called me your mate for the sake of my pride in front of the entire clan." She huffed again and threw her hands in the air. "I just thought maybe you were slightly nervous about being named Alpha and that it would take some time for you to adjust and come into your new role, but you have only continued to be more withdrawn. I'm not an idiot, Arami. I can tell that something is off, so yes, I know that there is someone else."

When I had initially met Marlize, I did not believe in fated or true mates. I always was attracted to women and thought that maybe it wasn't in the cards for me, so I chose not to consider it. Eventually, my mind was changed after coming out to my parents when I decided to introduce a girlfriend to my parents for the first time. Ultimately, I became increasingly sure that Marlize was not my one true mate. Meeting Naemi only confirmed that theory for me.

Now here I was sitting down for breakfast across from Marlize with cold eggs and bacon dispersed all over while she sneered at me, waiting to confess. There was a small glimmer of hope in her eyes that I would tell her that she was imagining things like every other time this conversation had come up. But this time would be different. I had to do the right thing here.

"Maybe we should take some time apart, Marlize."

I looked up to see her watching at me, bewildered. The stillness of the room only added to an already delicate situation.

Marlize stood and slammed her take on the solid wood dining table. "So, there is someone else. You met some little slut who what, just flashed her ass or tits for the new Alpha, and you just fell for it? Is that it?"

She barely had enough time to get her last words out before I was standing next to her. My dragon was wrathful hearing her describe Naemi like this, mainly because that was not what had transpired. I knew Marlize had the right to be angry, but my dragon would only be pushed so far. "Enough," I said through gritted teeth. "I'm trying to be as civil as possible. The last thing I have ever wanted to do was hurt you. So, I am trying to do the right thing."

"Well, I'm not leaving Candle District. This is my home now."

"Marlize, I never once said you had to level town. I am only suggesting we need some time and space apart."

"This is bullshit! You brought me here and made me part of the Clan. I'm not giving you the pleasure of running me out of my town." She accented every word with her finger almost damn near touching my face. "I will be here living my life. I hope you and your little bitch are happy together."

Shaking my head, I grabbed my phone off the table before heading out. I wasn't surprised to see Ameer and Seno sitting outside of my house. There was always usually someone from the Alpha Guard around me. I shook them when I wanted, though, like last night, for example. They both greeted me but avoided eye contact. This confirmed my suspicions that they had heard at least some of the argument that had gone on inside.

"Do you need anything, Alpha?" Ameer asked. His dark bushy eyebrows were arched in concern.

"Everything is great," I replied and joined them on the porch just as Rami was walking up.

"Morning, sister," he said through a yarn while rubbing his eyes.

"Tired, brother? Not a good look approaching your Alpha half-assed." I said sternly, glaring up at Rami, who was standing over me. His body stilled, and he put his head down. I promptly felt horrible. I was directing my anger at Rami when I was pissed at myself.

"Apologies, Alpha. I had a restless night, but I sincerely promise that I will not affect my duties." Rami nervously responded, his head still down.

"Ameer, Seno, give us a moment."

"Yes, Alpha." They replied in unison and walked away.

Sighing deeply, I patted the spot next to me. "Sit, brother." After Rami settled, I reached over and wrapped my arm around him. "I'm not angry at you, and I shouldn't have snapped at you like that."

"It's your right as an Alpha."

"You're damn right it is.

Kanji's body relaxed, and he laughed.

"I met someone." I blurted out. It was easy to talk to my big brother. He had always been there for me and had always supported me. He was the first person that I confided in about being attracted to women, and he was right there by my side when I had come out to my parents.

"What do you mean you met someone?" He asked seriously. "And does Marlize know about this someone?"

"It's a long story, and Marlize knows. We actually just broke up."

"What the fuck, Arami? I'm assuming Mom and Dad don't know yet." He desperately ran his fingers through his hair.

"Not yet, but I will let them know."

"This someone must be pretty special. You seem confident in what's happening. Who is she?"

"She's my mate, brother."

Kanji jumped to his feet. "Your what? Your mate?"

I wasn't sure if Naemi knew it or not, but the desire to claim her that night in the forest had settled it for me. She was meant for me. I longed to claim her with my mark, and I wanted to dominate her. My dragon growled just at the thought of being with Naemi.

"Her name is Naemi."

"I don't know anyone by that name."

"She's not from here. I met her at the bar in town a couple of weeks ago."

Kanji was staring at me incredulously. "A couple of weeks ago? Arami, you ended a year-long relationship for someone you met a couple of weeks ago?

I stood to look him in the eye while my anger flared, and my dragon drew restless. "That should tell you how serious I am. I had to end things with Marlize to be completely free and available for Naemi. To claim her."

Kanji put his hands up. "Arami, I was just surprised, is all. You are right. This does, in fact, show me just how serious you are. You have never been one to make impulsive decisions. My baby sister is really growing up. I'm proud of you, Alpha. Finding your mate is a gift from the fates. You are one of the lucky ones." He stopped and looked around. So? What are you going to do? I would like to meet this Naemi?"

"Big brother, you will be meeting her very soon. I'll be back. Keep an eye on things for me."

At that moment, I had made up my mind, and I knew what needed to be done. So, I waved at my approving brother and set off to find Naemi. My dragon, who had grown agitated about the uncertainty of my relationship with Naemi, was now snarling with anticipation at the thought of being surrounded by the scent of our mate.

Naemi was mine, and nothing was standing in my way anymore. I would claim her and announce her as my mate in front of our Clan. Hell, I would do the same in front of her pack as well if we needed to. We would become one forever, and I would love her for the rest of my life.

I smirked as I shifted and took to the air in the direction, I had last seen my mate. Eventually, I would pick up her scent, and it would lead me right to her. I hoped Naemi was waiting for me because I would not be taking no as an answer. I was claiming my mate tonight.

To Be Continued

Arami and Naemi’s story has only just begun. You can read more about their story in the full-length version of Bonded, now available for preorder here.

Also, you can get to know Astair, Naemi’s new best friend, in Black Girl Magic: A Shademire Witchy Cozy, which is available for preorder here.

About Isabeau Moon

Isabeau Moon loves coffee, dark chocolate, and steamy romances of all genres. A strong believer that Love is Love, Isabeau writes sultry inclusive stories full of passion and intrigue for everyone to enjoy.

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Pride of a Lioness

© 2021 Katia Kozar

Edited by Adrienne Ah

About Pride of a Lioness

She was just an ordinary American woman on a once-in-a-lifetime trip when the truth about her shifter heritage is revealed, changing everything.

Serwa Robinson-Hall has been ignoring her inner lioness for a long, long time.

Hiding the light of her spirit.

Reining in her ferocity.

Denying her own power.

But a heritage trip to Ghana changes all of that.

When handsome fellow tourist Abeiku Yeboah comes to her rescue after she’s robbed at an outdoor market, the secret he reveals makes her realize she’s only been living half a life.

The information gives her the key to embracing her true self.

Serwa is a lioness.

And she’s ready to roar.

Chapter One

It was raining so hard that Serwa couldn’t see out the windows of the conference room because of the water pouring down the glass in opaque curtains.

And that was a shame because not being able to look out the window while trapped in one of the agency’s endless creative team meetings made it a lot harder not to drift off, made it nearly impossible to look like she was focused and engaged.

Looking alert and interested while Robert Prentice, the world’s most fatuous advertising executive, pontificated about whatever his current client was selling was a skill Serwa had perfected in the three years she’d worked as an advertising copywriter for the third largest ad agency in Chicago. She had learned to tamp down her rage at her boss’ reflexive racism and sexism; she’d learned how to express her disapproval for his disdain for the creative process without drawing his wrath. What she hadn’t figured out was how to deal with him shamelessly stealing any idea that looked like it might have some potential.

There is no I in team. Nor was there an I in shameless self-promoter or unrepentant asshole, but Serwa knew bring up the topic wasn’t worth it. And it wasn’t like there was any other use for her brilliant thoughts about how to sell kitchenware endorsed by a Food Nor celebrity or the books pumped out by a publisher specializing in cozy mysteries and DIY manuals

Serwa had stopped venting about her job with her parents because her father always pointed out that Robert was a white man and therefore not to be trusted, and her mother always told her to file a complaint with H.R., but Serwa knew if she did that, she might as well kiss her career in advertising goodbye and go to work for her cousin who ran a successful breakfast joint on the South Side.

“Are you sure that you really want to be a copywriter?” her best friend Twilla asked her.

Frequently. But then Twilla was working in the Mayor’s office and doing “important work” and thought Serwa was wasting her talents, no matter how much pro bono work she did for social justice campaigns and Black-owned businesses.

Serwa sighed as Robert brought out the Power Point presentation, but at least she knew then that the meeting was almost over. Robert always saved the slides for last. Serwa barely even reacted as he threw up the image of an ad she had worked on for most of the previous weekend, the tagline of which he claimed to have authored. He’d lifted it from her but she’d been “inspired” by a line in an old movie, so she chalked it up to the circle of creativity and shrugged it off.

She was already thinking about the food truck she knew would be parked outside the office building, right across from the pleasant little park where people went to eat their lunches, walk their dogs and conduct low-key drug deals. The truck served the best grilled cheese sandwich in the city with little cups of tomato or onion soup on the side. She was practically salivating at the thought. She had dutifully brought a vegan salad bowl for lunch but rainy days like today required sustenance with cheese.

Then she heard the word “Spark” and her attention snapped back to full alert. Robert was talking about the toothpaste they were branding for one of their old school medical supply clients who’d decided to enter the lucrative but overcrowded market of oral health products.

“Spark,” the agency’s creative director echoed thoughtfully and Serwa could tell he was already pregnant with the idea, which Robert had just floated out as a trial balloon. “Why don’t you work up something for next week?”

Robert looked smug. Serwa couldn’t believe it. She had already told him that they couldn’t use the name because there was already a toothpaste called Spark. All she’d had to do was google it and it had popped right up.

For a hot minute she thought of speaking up, but knew there was no point. Robert would be annoyed and the Creative Director would just wave his wrinkly beige hand at her like she was a troublesome mosquito and tell her not to bother him with the details.

She wondered if she could get down to the food truck before the line got too long. She wondered if they’d have any cups of their divine peach cobbler left when she got there. It was usually the first food item to d sell out.

Finally, mercifully, the meeting ground to a halt. Serwa was on her way back to her office when she heard someone say, “Sara, hold up a minute.”

Sara. Serwa tried not to roll her eyes. She turned and saw it was Robert. Of course it was. Sara was what Robert always called her. He liked to pretend it was a sign of his affection for her, a little joke between them. Actually, it pissed her off,

Her name was not that hard to remember.

Ser. Wa. Two syllables. Pronounced the way it was spelled.

Didn’t anyone learn to read using phonics anymore? The name was Arabic in origin, meaning “wealthy.” Her mother was heavily into “The laws of attraction” and thought it would be a good name to gift a child. Her afro-centric father approved.

Serwa couldn’t believe how many people misheard it or misunderstood and mispronounce it. She got “Sara” a lot. She couldn’t really tell if it was cluelessness or a microaggression. She usually gave most people the benefit of the doubt.

She was really tired of having to do that.

And also tired of wondering if her name was Connie if they’d still mangle it.

Or over-enunciate it like Thad done.

Thad. He had been an experiment and a mistake.

SIR WAH, he’d say, rolling the R like an asshole. “What do you think of that, Sir Wha?”

Thad had moved to Los Angeles a year ago. She’d deleted his Instagram account faster than J. Lo had cancelled Alex Rodriguez but she sometimes saw his posts on Twitter. Every once in a while, she thought about giving him a pity “like” but usually she refrained.

Thad.

Serwa waited for Robert to gather up his papers and put them in razor straight order. He was still shuffling them when he said, without looking up, “I’m going to need you to work exclusively on this Spark thing.”

Wait. What?

“I’ve got a presentation for Bonobo Brands coming up.” The Bonobo account was for luxury leather goods.

“Marie can handle them,” Robert said casually, mentioning the agency’s most junior copywriter.

“She can do Spark,” Serwa said. “It’ll be a no brainer for her.” She made air quotes. “Spark toothpaste. It’ll make your mouth taste like it’s on fire.”

Robert looked at Serwa with disappointment. “Sidney doesn’t think you’re meshing with the brand.”

Sidney was Bonobo’s marketing manager.

Are you kidding me? Serwa thought to herself but managed not to say it out loud. Robert glanced at her hair, a fabulous box braid top knot, and added. “He thinks you represent a more urban demographic than the one he’s targeting.

And there it was. Urban. Code for Black. Serwa could feel the anger uncoil like a serpent in her belly, all the way to her toes, which were currently shod in her favorite pair of Jimmy Choo pumps. “Sidney wears a counterfeit Rolex, polyester ties and a vinyl belt.” She could feel her voice starting to rise. “And I’m the one who doesn’t understand luxury brands?”

Robert didn’t even look at her. “Stop being so dramatic,” he said.

“No,” she said.

“No?” He did look up at that and he looked puzzled, as if he couldn’t process a word that had only one syllable.

“No,” she said again. “I will not work on the toothpaste account.”

“You’re too good to work on it?”

“That’s right,” she said. “You don’t need me to sell toothpaste. Everyone needs toothpaste. But a purse that costs more than a thousand dollars? Nobody needs that, no matter how butter-soft the leather is.” She leaned closer to him to make her point. “But I can sell that purse.”

Robert was not comfortable with her being in his personal space. Probably because in her Jimmy Choos she was at least two inches taller than he was. He stepped back a bit and to cover his unease he said, “You don’t need to shout.”

I am not shouting, Serwa wanted to shout. Instead, she turned and walked out of the conference room, leaving Robert open-mouthed with dismay.

At her cubicle in the open-plan office the copywriters shared, Serwa packed up her oversize coffee mug and realized that there was nothing else she wanted to take with her.

With her head held eye and her heels tapping emphatically on the polished concrete floor, she walked out of the office.

She was not surprised that no one seemed to be at all aware of her intentions. Jimmy Riordan looked up as she passed him, but only because he was an inveterate clock watcher and he was hoping somehow the hands on the aggressively Atomic Age clock on the wall had somehow ticked over to five o’clock without him noticing.

Chapter Two

Serwa didn’t have an employment contract. None of the copywriters did. The agency didn’t consider them particularly important in the grand scheme of things. They weren’t the ones interacting with the clients, or bringing in new business. The agency operated on the assumption that it was the account executives who were responsible for all the really good ideas and they just dictated them to the women and men who worked in the open office.

Account executives all had offices with doors on them. The better to brainstorm. They also rated perks like company cars, expense accounts, regular bonuses, and contracts with non-compete clauses. Nobody wanted an account executive leaving and taking a client with him. And the ones who did leave were almost always male. The agency’s lone female account executive wasn’t going anywhere. She was underwater on her mortgage and needed the job. Serwa would have felt sorry for her if she hadn’t been such a condescending bitch.

Her main client was a chain of grocery stores that consistently had an ad budget of 1.35 percent of their sales revenue. The copywriters on her team spent their days writing print circulars and new recipes for the flagship store’s website. Most of the copywriters on her team had been on the team for years. At least two of them were alcoholics who kept thermoses of fortified “coffee” in their desk drawers like they’d watched too many episodes of Mad Men.

Serwa tried not to think about what happened to people who quit without the safety net of an employment contract.

Once she was home, Serwa turned off her phone, which was blowing up with calls and texts, poured herself a large glass of wine and settled in front of her television to eat her lunch of grilled cheese and peach cobbler. She’d started with the news stations but that soon grew too disheartening so she started clicking around, hoping to find something that would engage her. She watched a few minutes of a Crown rerun, realized it was the episode where Princess Diana died, so skipped it and turned off her television as well. The apartment was so quiet all she could hear was the rain, which was still pelting down. Even the ever-present traffic noise seemed muted. She couldn’t remember when she’d last had more than a half-hour’s unbroken peace and quiet. No deadlines. No homework. No stress.

She knew she’d have to deal with the fallout of quitting without observing protocol, but she didn’t feel like adulting just yet. She went into her kitchen to warm up the peach cobbler and while she was there, fished out her last pint of Grandma’s Old Fashioned Vanilla ice cream from Shawn Michelle’s and plopped a half-dip on top of the warmed cobbler.

It was just what she needed.

Chapter Three

It was Twilla who came up with the idea of the heritage trip. “You need to get out of town for a while,” she said. “Figure out what you’re going to do next.” She’d paused for a minute, then added. “And don’t tell me you don’t have the money.”

It was true. Her parents had preached the gospel of spending much less than se earned with the fervor of Suze Ormond, and as a result Serwa had a comfortable cash cushion. She could afford to take her time looking for another job.

And she had had been toying with the idea of an overseas vacation but she’d been thinking more along the lines of Paris or Porto, somewhere she could walk cobblestoned streets and drink wine. But Twilla wasn’t having it.

“You’ve been to Paris,” she pointed out. “And if you really want to spend some time in Porto, you can fly through there on your way home.”

“On my way home from where?” Serwa asked, thinking it was not an unreasonable question to ask.

“Ghana,” Twilla said. “I’m sending you some links

The links Twilla sent had included the website for an outfit called “Black 2 Africa,” a company name that Serwa approved though she found their home page something of a cliché with all its green and gold and red and massive overuse of silhouettes of acacia trees. That told her the company had a risk-averse marketing department, an unclear sense of their target audience, and a subscription to Depositphotos. Still, after she’d explored the site for half an hour she decided that she really did want to go to Ghana and signed up for tour that was leaving in six weeks, joining up with another group that was swinging by Benin and Togo first.

Serwa hadn’t done a lot of traveling since her junior semester abroad in France, so she was happy to be part of a group. They’d met up at the airport—three other women (two of them a couple) and two men—and boarded the United Airlines flight together with their exceedingly peppy group leader Tina. The one-stop flight had taken almost sixteen hours and by the time they cleared customs at Kotoka International Airport in Accra, everyone in the group was exhausted. But despite her fatigue, Serwa found herself exhilarated by the thought that everywhere she looked, for the first time in her life, the people looked just like her.

There were a few white faces scattered here and there but all the pilots and flight attendants crossing the concourse were Black. The people killing time in the restaurants were Black. The desk staff and the baggage handlers and the tourists in line were all Black.

Serwa just wanted to put down her suitcase and do a little happy dance. She had never felt such an intense sense of connection and belonging in any public space.

Tina briefed the group on airport scams to avoid and then they were all met by Tina’s opposite number, another chipper woman whose name was Ozigbodi but told them to call her Izzy. She wore eyeglasses that covered roughly half her face and was no bigger than a minute as Serwa’s grandmother would say.

“Are you getting Ruth Bader Ginsberg vibes?” one of the men—his name was Darren--whispered to Serwa as Izzy raced off to find a luggage cart.

“I know you’re not dissing RPG,” Serwa replied, thinking of how her father often greeted her with the statement, “It’s not too late to go to law school.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he said and smiled. Darren had a nice smile. The other guy, who had introduced himself as Abeiku Yeboah, looked disapproving. Serwa wondered if he was going to be that person, the proverbial “one bad apple who never seemed to be able to enjoy himself unless he was making everyone else miserable. But she soon forgot about Abeiku as Izzy returned and went into her official speech welcoming them as members of the African diaspora before bundling them all into a van and driving them into Airport City.

Chapter Four

They stayed the night in the Accra Marriott Hotel, and at Tina’s suggestion, to try to mitigate jet lag, rather than go to bed right away, everyone trooped down to the pleasant little bar where they could get a cocktail and a light snack.

At first, Serwa was stunned by the prices on the menu, but then she realized the prices were posted in GHC, the local currency, which was worth about seventeen cents per Ghanaian cedi.

She ordered a plate of humus and pita bread followed by a large piece of chocolate cake for the equivalent of $1.36. Meanwhile, Orinda, the other singleton, sucked down about a 150 cedi’s worth of a cocktail called an Adisidal which was a potent mix of orange and pineapple juices, hibiscus, vodka and Triple Sec. She offered Serwa a sip and it almost put her on her ass.

The two women Serwa had pegged for a couple turned out to be cousins that vacationed together every year. “It was Anna’s idea to come here,” her cousin Sharine said in between bites of . “She wanted to come here for the Return, but we couldn’t work out our schedules.”

Serwa noticed that Abeiku had ordered fried yam with gizzard in pepper sauce and it looked insanely good and had Anna tapping away at her phone to see if she could find the recipe.

“You make shrimp and grits with cheese sauce from a jar,” Sharine said. “You are never going to make that.”

“I might,” Anna said, then laughed. “Or at least I can get the ingredients and let them sit around long enough until you finally make it for me.”

Sharine harumphed but looked pleased.

Tina and Izzy kept the conversation flowing so Serwa just ate her food and listened. She learned Darren was a real estate speculator who was interested in buying up Ghanaian properties and turning them into rentals. “You will need to be up to date on land legislation,” Tina commented and Darren bristled a little bit.

Eventually everyone headed up to bed. The schedule for the next day was light, with optional trips to the W.E.B. DuBois center or the beach or just lazing around the pool. Serwa had already asked about a solo trip to Mole National Park, but it took more than ten hours to drive from Accra and she was not sure she was up for a full day of traveling so she opted for the half-day safari tour leaving from the hotel. She booked it through another travel operator and Tina and Izzy did not seem pleased.

“You will enjoy it,” Abeiku predicted, and Serwa had. It had been thrilling to spot so many animals up close, even though they weren’t exactly in the wild. She had been particularly fascinated by the lions she had seen.

The next day was the centerpiece of the whole trip, a visit to the remains of Elmina Castle, the complex erected by the Portuguese in the 15th century as part of a trade settlement and later used as an embarkation point for shiploads of enslaved people headed across the Atlantic.

Tina had told everyone that Elmina was about a three-hour ride from Accra, and after admonishing everyone to dress conservatively, they all loaded into a van.

On the way, Serwa chatted with her seatmate Orinda, who had spent the day before taking pictures of the market stalls on Spintex Road and had returned with so many reams of colorful material, she told Serwa she was going to have to buy an additional suitcase to bring it all back.

“Do you sew?” Serwa asked.

“Not a stitch,” she said happily, “but I know a woman who’ll whip me up some outfits.”

Orinda was a history teacher from St. Joseph, a small town near Chicago that styled itself “the Riviera of the Midwest.”

“Sounds really white,” Serwa commented.

“Ninety-eight percent,” Orinda acknowledged. “I don’t have much of a social life.” It turned out Orinda lived for travel. She went on several foreign trips every year, she told Serwa, and that she was on her second round of choosing her destinations alphabetically.

“Where will you go next,” Serwa asked.

“Probably Honduras,” she said. “Last time I got to the Hs, I went to Hungary but they are off my list now because of their horrible anti-LGBTQ stance.”

Orinda and Serwa had talked politics a little while, then they had both settled back against the comfortable seats and dozed.

It was nice to just sit back and be driven. The day before they group had driven out to see the Wli Waterfalls and that had meant a hike through a jungle full of butterflies and birds. The walk to the lower falls was flat and relatively easy but the hike to the upper falls was described as challenging and it had lived up to its reputation.

Serwa had been the only woman to complete the climb and Abeiku called her “fierce,” a compliment that left her glowing inside.

Why do you want to impress this man so much? she had scolded herself at the time.

Serwa was sore in places where she didn’t even know she had muscles although she thought of herself as relatively fit. What I wouldn’t give for a massage right about now, she thought. She had googled “best massages in Accra” before she left and had seen a couple of places that were rated nearly five stars. She knew it was crazy indulgent to spend money on pampering but it felt sooooo good.

All thoughts of massage were driven away as Elmina Castle appeared on the horizon.

“Oh my,” Orinda said, and snapped a picture with her phone. The place was huge and dominated the skyline. For some reason a phrase floated through Serwa’s mind. The devil in the white city. She knew that in its day, six hundred years ago, it must have been utterly, malignly, magnificent. She had no doubt the devil had inhabited Elmina Castle once upon a time.

“It reminds me of Auschwitz,” Orinda said. “I can’t even look at the pictures I took there, for fear I’ll see ghosts.”

Orinda’s words sounded fanciful but once the group was actually inside, Serwa found she felt the same way. Anna and Sharine and Darren were snapping away with their cameras but it felt wrong to her, as if her main job was to simply stand there and bear witness.

Then she found it hard to catch her breath. The space was vast but once upon a time, it had been crammed with bodies. The pain and fear of all those who were kidnapped and shackled and loaded on the boats overwhelmed her.

She found herself getting dizzy and she was hot in a way that had nothing to do with the heat dazzling off the white stone.

It felt like something was tearing loose inside of her and clawing to get out.

Suddenly, Abeiku was there, holding her arm, looking at her with concern. “Come into the shade.”

“I have to get out of here,” she said.

“I understand,” he said and helped clear a pathway through the tourists to the exit. She sat down on a little bench and put her head between her knees. Abeiku produced a cold bottle of Verna natural mineral water from somewhere, which she drank gratefully. He waited patiently for her to finish, not trying to fill the silence with meaningless chatter.

“You’ve been here before?” she said as she finished the water.

He nodded. “Many times. It can be overwhelming.” He studied Serwa for a moment. “Maybe when we get back you should go do something completely frivolous. Like shopping for diamonds.”

“Diamonds?” Serwa asked. “Why would I want to shop for diamonds?” The suggestion annoyed her and so did his decision to double down.

“You’re not interested in diamonds?” he said. “Most tourists are.”

“Thanks for the water,” Serwa said. “I’m going back to the bus.”

Chapter Five

Everyone was quiet on the ride back to the hotel. Tina and Izzy kept busy texting, but everyone else either drowsed or looked out the windows. That was what Serwa was doing when she felt someone settle into the seat next to her. To her surprise, it was Abeiku. He looked very serious.

“I owe you an apology,” he said. “I’m not particularly good with small talk.”

“No,” Serwa agreed. “You’re not.”

He looked abashed. “I just meant to suggest you do something frivolous. Something that would not make you sad.”

“I appreciate that,” Serwa said, still annoyed. To her surprise, though he lapsed into silence, he did not move to another seat. She was very much aware of him sitting next to her for the next three hours.

Feeling restless back in the air conditioned room, Serwa decided a trip to Spintex Road might be what she needed. She wanted to buy presents for her parents and Tina and she knew there was a mall there, as well as many outdoor stalls.

She washed her face, put on extra moisturizer and sunscreen and headed out. It was a little far to walk in the heat, so she summoned an Uber and was soon speeding to her destination.

She knew many of the merchants were catering to European and North American tourists but some of the brilliantly colored elephant grass baskets were so beautiful, she didn’t care that they were priced for outsiders. She’d already decided to buy some kente cloth herself and extra for Twilla. You could buy plenty of the traditional cloth in Chicago, but she’d never seen such a huge selection of colors.

Serwa was about to reach for a length of cloth when she felt herself shoved hard from behind as her purse was snatched off her shoulder. She struggled to catch her balance as the vendor yelled something angrily to the thief. There was a sudden flurry behind her and a moment later, Abeiku appeared at her side, her purse in his hand. Bewildered, she took it. “Thanks,” she said, and then watched as a couple of Ghanaian cops escorted a tall, skinny guy out of the area as another cop took Abeiku aside and spoke to him respectfully. When he returned to her side, he looked bemused.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” she said impatiently. “Are you stalking me?”

“I’m keeping track of you.”

Serwa surveyed him critically. “You’re not just a tourist, are you?”

“It’s complicated,” he said. And that was all she expected him to say but he surprised her. “Do you have plans for this evening?”

It was the last night they would spend in the country and Serwa had planned to do some pre-packing. “No,” she said.

“I want to show you something,” he said. “I’ll fetch you at seven.”

Serwa didn’t even think of saying no.

When Orinda saw Serwa leaving with Abeiku, she just lifted one eyebrow and smirked. “I feel like the principal just caught me ditching school,” Serwa said. Abeiku gave her the side-eye. “I bet you never ditched school in your life.” Serwa hadn’t, but she hated admitting it. The confession always made her feel like she was soooo boring.

A valet pulled a black Hyundai up to the door and Abeiku tipped him before opening the passenger side door for Serwa. They’d pulled away and into traffic before he started to speak.

“You’re right. I’m not a tourist,” he said. I’m an FBI gent assigned to the Ghanaian embassy. I’ve been here for the past two years.”

“But you flew here from Chicago.”

“My parents live in Chicago.”

Serwa started to shake her head. “But why are you pretending you’re just a guy on vacation?”

“Remember when I asked you about diamonds and you got so mad?”

“Yes.”

“I just wanted to confirm something.”

Serwa didn’t say anything, so he went on. “I’m on assignment. Someone’s been smuggling diamonds using Black 2 Africa as a front and it’s my job to figure out who.”

“It’s not me,” Serwa said.

“I know,” he said. “It’s Tina and Izzy. The reason I was following you was to keep you away from your room so they could plant some diamonds in your luggage. I have a colleague watching them and we’re pretty sure they were going to move today.”

“Did they?”

“Yes,” he said, then shrugged. “We’re pretty sure they’ve been doing the same thing for years. Their modus operandi is to hide the gems in the women’s suitcases and then if someone finds them, they can blame everything on their sisters of the diaspora.”

He was quiet for a moment. “We’ll pick them up at the airport.

“What tipped you off?”

“A few months ago, one of their guests found some diamonds in a bottle of hand lotion and called us.”

“That’s pretty brazen,” Serwa said.

“Fortune favors the bold,” he said.

“How did you know I wasn’t in on the scam?”

“I know you better than you know yourself,” he said.

“You’re man-splaining?”

“No. That’s what I want to show you.”

He drove her to a small nature preserve protected by a high-tech fence and surveillance cameras.

“What is this place?” she asked.

“A refuge,” he said. “It belongs to a private group and it isn’t open to the public.”

“But you know the code,” she said as he leaned in to the device that would scan his eye and then punched a series of numbers into a keypad.

“Yes,” he said. “I’m one of the owners.”

Serwa was definitely intrigued as they entered the preserve and parked the car. Abeiku got out of the car and walked a few feet away. Curious, she followed and watched as he began to undress and meticulously fold his clothes into a pile. And then suddenly, standing where a man had been moments before, was a full grown male lion, tawny with a black-tipped mane. He was massive, his heavy body rippling with thick muscle under the skin. The animal turned to her and in her head she heard, Your turn.

Serwa was still processing the sight of the lion in front of her when she felt her own body began to change. She hastily shucked off her clothes so that she was naked in the moonlight, her dark skin gilded with traceries of silver light from the full moon.

A thick woman, she felt her weight shifting and her bones getting heavier until she had completely transformed into a full-grown lioness. The process was painful.

It will get easier, Abeiku said in her mind.

Will it be less painful? she asked.

No, but you won’t mind it as much. And then he set off running. Serwa had always had excellent night vision but now it was as if it was high noon. Everything around her was clear and sharp. The night had seemed quiet to her in her human form but now it was alive with noises, both near and far away. She remembered reading somewhere that lions can hear prey from a mile off and then she found herself marveling at thinking like a human while in an animal’s form. And then there was no time for thinking because Abeiku had begun to run. She ran after him and realized to her delight that she was fast. Really, really fast. She felt alive in every nerve ending of her body. She felt powerful.

She felt alive.

She caught up to Abeiku and bumped against him so forcefully that he nearly fell over. She rubbed her cheek against his fur, leaving her scent. He returned the affectionate gesture and then suddenly mounted her as she writhed beneath him in a primal fit of response.

Moments later, she rolled over and Abeiku melted back into his man shape, though some of the musk of the big cat still clung to him. It was powerful. Pungent. Wild.

They mated again in their human form and afterwards dressed and returned to the car, leaving the windows open to the night sounds.

“How did you know?” Serwa asked him when she had sufficient control over her emotions.

“Your scent,” he said. “I knew you were destined to be my mate the moment I met you.”

“I don’t believe in fate,” she said. He shrugged but did not try to convince her.

“When did you first learn you could…do that?” Serwa asked, waving her arm vaguely to indicate “that.” She still couldn’t believe that she’d never transformed before but had done so seamlessly on her first try. She was going to have to have a serious talk with her parents.

“You mean shifting?” Abeiku said. “When I was twelve. Fortunately, my father knew what was happening and knew what to do. It wasn’t exactly the Lion King, but we made it work.”

“Could he shift too?”

“He could and he can. He is magnificent in his beast form.”

“But how do you hide it? A lion is not exactly a big house cat.”

“You’d be surprised. People see what they want to see. And we are masters at camouflage.”

“We,” Serwa repeated. “When you say that do you mean humans or lions or what?”

“I’m a shifter,” He said. “Like you. It’s part of me.” He looked at her with his golden eyes.

“Like you are.”

Serwa felt the weight of his words to her soul. This strange new part of her she had discovered and her strange connection with this unusual man.

She’d only been in Ghana a week but it already felt strangely like home. And she knew she wanted to spend more time there. Her visa was good for 90 days. After that, she would have to see.

They have a saying in Ghana which Serwa took to heart. Go where there is no path to begin a trail.

She would return to Chicago long enough to pack up her condo and hand it over to a rental agency. She would say goodbye to her parents and promise to visit them often while Abeiku was stationed there.

And then she would return to Africa, the place that held her heart and her mate.

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About Katia Kozar

Katia Kozar was born in Washington DC but considers herself a citizen of the world after living in several different countries, including Portugal where she now resides.

Find Out More:

Website: http://kattomic-energy.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html

Heart of a Dragon: https://books2read.com/u/3nEDgR

Death in the Drowned Lands: https://books2read.com/u/47OV6j

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Serpent’s Nest

© 2021 W.M. Dawson

Edited by Stories Matter Editing

About Serpent’s Nest

Naga and Hyena might be enough to stop an evil Nest of Naga from bringing back Devi, one of the Banished.

Devi, a banished Naga priestess, had started a new life in New Orleans with her lover Lou. Her past had caught up with her. The Nest found her hiding place and retrieved her, regardless of her wishes. It would take everything Devi had to protect Lou's life. Despite her desire to communicate with the Gods again, even if it meant taking on some questionable characters, experimenting with magic she had not used in a long time, and dealing with some suspicious characters.

“The sea is endless when you are in a rowboat.”

By Adolfo Bioy Casares

Standing before the dull brick two-story house, I had expected it to be…I don’t know, grander? One of the old stately buildings reminiscent of New Orleans’ elegant plantation homes. One of the fantastic homes with the patios wrapped around with stately white columns, flowers are blooming with the ye ol’ gravel driveway, and fountain in white marble. The picture-perfect travel brochure photo everyone associated with the area. The ones I had seen driving around when I had first arrived in New Orleans. Heck, I had taken tours to visit to get the lay of the land. As the house blended so far into the background, I double-checked its address using my GPS. It was boring, beyond the shadow of bland into the cookie-cutter area. It matched every other house around it, down to the coloring, minuscule front yard, and bland personality commonly associated with oatmeal.

I was stepping out of my merlot red BMW sedan, popping out my umbrella to avoid the misting rain from getting on my hair and tracking in too much moisture. I clicked up the few steps to the taupe-colored door to ring the doorbell that didn’t even bother having a camera, sensor, or a hint of modern technology. Heck, it didn’t even appear from this century. The bell made a half-ass noise; tapping my foot, I waited.

And wait. A bit of misting rain and humidity had formed on everything as the sun broke through the clouds early in the morning. Today would be another hot, sticky day in the city. Finally, the door cracked open, with each joint making sounds of age and creaking. They all needed a good spray of oil—the wizen older man with orange-tinted glasses and a ZZ Top beard down to his pot belly appeared. His suit in beige, which seemed to be from the 1950s, matched the outside paint job in such a creepy, matchy-matchy way that was deeply unsettling. Even the fedora coordinated.

“You are late, Ms. Basu,” his high-pitched yet surprising youthful voice sang out. He glanced briefly over the orange-tinted glass to reveal tangerine-hued eyes, revealing his not-so-human side, something not demonic but probably shifter-like. Maybe reptilian-like me.

“Getting the fresh beignets from Madam Bateaux, who doesn’t open until dawn, means I can’t be here until after dawn. I have a half dozen, part of the price of admission,” I replied. I handed the warm, pale purple bag over. With greed in his eyes, the wrinkled, old spotted hand snatched the bag, peering within as if counting the contents greedily. He licked his dry lips with his long, damp tongue.

“Accepted, you may enter,” he pushed the door fully open and stepped aside. I entered, carrying the heavy suitcase with the full tribute. Gods, this was stupid, this whole thing was. Only the desperate came here, and with limited options... Okay, scratch that. No one came here unless they had no other options. I had no other choice. Stepping into a tan tiled hallway, I stepped away from the oversized entry table adorned with dried fruits to enjoy the cool air. The dried fruit looked like some kind of potpourri, or maybe just fancy dried fruit to eat; I didn't even bother to take a chance. I stood there waiting impatiently for the man who took his time closing the door. He shuffles his way back, munching on a beignet to escort me toward the front sitting room.

He seemed to have no sense of urgency, so we drifted into the pale-yellow room. They packed it with modern antiques, and by modern antiques, I mean furniture, from the 1940s and 1950s. When I perched on the edge of the couch, the plastic slipcover made those particular sounds. Specialty dust collectors in the cabinet featured round-faced porcelain cherubic in a variety of pastel hues. I did not know enough about what they were even to guess what they were, aside from something to collect dust. My surroundings were just as dull as the magazine on the table from last year. Everything was flat enough to drain every vestige of interest I had. It was stodgy in this room, so mind-numbingly dull.

Keeping my butt right on the edge of the plastic-covered seat, I placed the case next to my knee-high leather boots. I waited in the room while he left without explanation. Gazing about the room, searching for any answer other than I would never want to live or have this room in any place I lived in. This faded yellow but a step up from the beige, so at least there was that. To distract myself from the boredom of this dull room, I tapped out rhythms to different songs to keep myself awake.

Sunlight filtered through frightful gauzy curtains covering the semi-clean windows as it burned off the morning mist. A beam of sunlight struggled to filter through the dirty windows, making me wish I could send an entire cleaning crew as payment. Continuing to wait until noon came and went, I clicked my manicured nails over the plastic.

A door opposite to the one I entered opened, finally. A double take followed my glance. It did not prepare me for the woman who wandered in. My first thought was that she would make a brilliant singer with a folk band at one of those hippie festivals.

Her long pale blonde hair looked nearly white, possibly due to age, dye, or an entirely natural state. It was difficult to tell. Even though her skin almost matched the unnatural color, the absurd white feather dress with red bows took it to another level. The girlish bow held back for hair in shiny red certainly didn't help. The sound of her claw-like toenails tinkling against the floor competed with the jingling of bells strung around her ankles as she floated barefooted gracefully. With her pitch-black eyes, she examined my knee-high brown boots and saffron suede dress. When I stood, I towered over her petite frame, and I am just barely over five feet tall without shoes. I have never seen any adult this tiny in America. I had previously seen several women like her in India. She approached slowly, her hooded eyes examining me intently as I took her in.

“A Naga in my sitting room,” she sang. Almost expecting some orchestra to waft in to accompany her, she sang her verse out in perfect pitch. “What brings you into my parlor?”

“The Song, you help those in need,” I replied. There's no sense in skirting this problem. I bowed deeply in reverence for her position.

“Only the desperate come here. Ultimately, I am the last option. Which is more terrifying, death or worse for you, Devi Basu?” Singing, the Song stepped around me, sitting on one of the awful chairs’ opposites to me. Though not as loud as mine, the low humming of her plastic cover gave some sign that her small frame carried some weight.

“Worse is definitely on the horizon for me. I don't believe what is coming for me will be death,” I replied. Death was simple, short, and sweet before one was reborn into the eternal cycle of rebirth to begin again. They would take my life in New Orleans away from me. The Nest would force me back to an existence on the surface, essentially slavery. They would change me into someone I never wanted to see again, or force me to become something I couldn't be.

“Sit, this won’t help our negotiations, serpent,” she waved to the couch. I sat back on the edge with my back in perfect alignment. Old habits are hard to break, ingrained since childhood and years of training. “The tribute?”

As I slide the large case over, I say, “Of course.” If she accepted my case, she deserved payment. “I freely offered the following items for the consideration of my situation.”

“This situation is a disaster zone, as you say. A Naga Nest is coming here, so I dislike the idea of an invasion. I think letting them take you would be the best solution.” The Nest could take me. It wasn't something I hadn't considered before I came. There was no doubt in my mind that I didn't want to go. My life, though imperfect, was mine, and I had no intention of giving it up unless the damned Gods personally came down here and dragged me back.

“I don’t want to go, so here I am instead.”

“A priestess, maybe one of Mansa Devi's people,” she asked, almost in an honest tone. I knew the answer as well as she did. I was using the moment to refocus on the present. As opposed to the past, which kept trying to invade my mind. Memories, bittersweet and vicious, wanted to be a part of this moment.

“When I was part of the Nest with the Naga, I was a priestess. I am just myself now,” I replied. In fact, I had not spoken with any deities in years, not since one of the Nest Priests chose another bride and threw me out into the cold. The Seers chose me to become the next Voice of the Gods. It didn’t come to pass. He didn’t want me. He decided, and they cast me out into a world I knew nothing about. This was like being raised in a cult and then thrust out into the “real” world, not understanding what lay ahead. After that deep breath, the moment was over. This is now. Panic wouldn't help me right now. I wanted to avoid going back there.

“Once a Priestess, aren’t you always one?” she asked.

“It's a question I can't really answer. Since they banished me, I've lost all of my title and holdings and I'm no longer a Priestess of Mansa Devi, therefore,” I replied. “No.”

I didn't use any of the powers they gave me because I didn't hear from the Gods, and they didn't talk to me. I kept to the powers of my Naga nature and what I have learned since my escape.

“I suppose that's a suitable answer, at least,” she replied, tilting her head slightly. She finally blinked her dark eyes. It was eerie how rarely she blinks. Petting her feather dress, she surveyed me. “I will search the paths for you, see if there is a way to save yourself from your current fate.”

“I understand,” I replied. Now on to the caveat I had, the minor hiccup which might get me evicted unceremoniously or worse, I shudder to think what may happen. “Technically, I know my fate is sealed. I have someone else, and they will come for them.”

“The purpose of your visit isn't to save yourself, but to help someone else?” She asked. An added weight shifted the air, and the pressure increased. Throughout this time capsule of a room, her magic filled every space. Before there was no more air left, I gulped down what I could. “You have someone else; they will use them to get to you. Why would you risk your heart?”

“The thought of them searching for me again never occurred to me,” I spoke. I never thought they would find me, thought of, or come to America in a million years. As luck would have it, I received a warning via the postal service. Several days ago, a letter arrived in a familiar handwriting. An old, steady handwriting that evoked splendid memories of home. Jiera, one female in the nest, alerted me they had found me, were coming, and wanted me to be safe. I trusted her with my life. If I could figure out how to protect the females of the Nest, I could return to protect her and the others. "Someone I trust warned me, and they'll be here by Saturday morning. I have two days left before I have to decide.”

"Doable to save your man," the Song replied.

"Actually," I replied. Let's hope the misogyny didn't run deep here. "Elouise is actually she. I want her to be saved."

"Ah, they wouldn't approve of that at all. You're not only in love, but with a woman as well. How scandalous!”  she exclaimed. She smiled at the edge of her unpainted mouth. “Come closer; I have invested in this plot.”

The ugly couch was too far away to get closer. After a few easy steps, I kneeled before the small woman. Her hands lay upward. She beckoned to me with a calm song: "Put your hands on mine, young serpent." I put mine on top of hers—mine were the same temperature as the room around us, a common trait of my species. The magic tickled over my skin. Goosebumps followed suit, marching up and down.

As she began doing what she did best, the thick magic of the room took a sigh. No one knew exactly what the Song did. Scholars, books, occultists, gossips, and gave the simple answer, even by those who claimed to know everything. She just was. Her presence in the supernatural world made her impossible, but what isn't? I used to communicate with the Gods. I can transform into an oversized cobra and do magic beyond human comprehension. Who was I to judge what this woman could do?

She stared into me, and the world melted away.

“Pain makes man think. Thought makes man wise. Wisdom makes life endurable.”

By John Patrick

Emptiness, I was somewhere floating in the void. Did I meditate again?

No, I was somewhere else.

Flashing lights were everywhere. Pain. The pain is unbearable. Migraine pain levels. That's a possibility I didn't realize existed. Those streaks of colors my brain couldn't see made me understand hot pokers were stabbing through my lobes. Where did the migraine come from? What had I done? Did I hit something? Where was I?

No, I went somewhere. Stress, the Nest. I remembered.

My eyes slowly opened with the willpower I had left, looking at the disgusting rug on the floor in washed-out lemon, cream, and a shade of green that should never exist. There might have been some push, or I may have fallen and dropped to avoid vomit on someone. It was Song's sitting room. Oh, Gods, I hope I haven't puked on her. I can't apologize enough for that faux pas.

In a shrill and sing-song voice, she said, “No, I did not vomit on you.” Dear Gods, had she always been so loud? Her soprano voice was loudest of all the singers. “You have underestimated the simplicity of your answer."

“What?” I spoke. My tongue, filled with lancing pain, worked nearly as fast as my brain. As the blinding light of the room blinded me, I needed medication and darkness to sleep off this horror that had resurfaced after years of slumber.

“Lie after lie, deceit after deceit. It's a shame you missed it and can't see it at the moment,” the Song said loudly enough to pierce my ears. “I have given you what you need within your mind. Once you awaken again, the information will still be there.”

As I pointed to the case where the payment was, I said, “Your payment is inside.” I hoped it was still over where I had left it. The payment was a mismatched collection of strange and unusual items. I had to collect them by hand myself. An antique Pez dispenser featuring a Looney Tunes character turned out to be a cosmic joke when I got the list. Fortunately, I found one with Tweety Bird and in decent condition. I had to dig up a lump of coal that ruined my manicure. After researching what it was, I had to find a one-hit-wonder in an antique shop, thanks to which I found something by a band called ‘Information Society.’ I had never heard of them before. The last bit of gold, of course, was the easiest to acquire and made the most sense.

Her dazzling speech spoke again, “I have seen and accepted your payment.” Shooting pains reverberated through my ears, ricocheting off my skull in some morbid attempt to dissolve what was left of my brain. “I've sent a car to take you home.”

“Why?” Another word I could find in the mishmash of terms floating around in my mind.

“You are in no shape to drive yourself home,” I heard the voice saying, softer and farther away. I had closed myself off from the light, blinding me to the undeniable pain it brought. As I placed my head back on the rough rug below, I wondered when the ground would swallow me whole to end the suffering of the long-dead migraine. The display had returned yet there was so little time for this.

As I heard the voice, “Stress, sleeplessness, and magic crashing into your mind,” my horror level decreased somewhat. “My man will help, and you will wake up at home knowing what your options are.”

I can only hope that I will remember this.

I felt a flicker of awareness from time to time. The car ride of shock and awe, with a brief side trip of losing everything I had eaten in the past week into a gutter, only embarrassed me more in front of strangers. Across parts of New Orleans, my dignity lies in ruins, the glory of the moment destined to be erased one day. As I stepped out of the vehicle after the long trip, my butler Maisy helped me out of the vehicle. It was good to know I was in excellent hands. The expert hands would call Elouise when I was asleep, but I would still be at home safe.

"What the hell happened to her? Who are you?" Her clipped tones demanded. I forget someone else had brought me home, not on my accord. I just wanted to get inside, slip into the darkest hole.

“Ms. Basu came to us, but she suffered a migraine during the process. She will receive her car shortly, but getting her home now was more important," I heard nearby. As much as I wanted to explain myself, only a bubbling burble came out of my mouth instead.

She dismissed him with "Understood.". She took control of the situation. It was almost impossible for me to function, much less take over anything. “Let’s see what you got yourself into, missy.”

She escorted me into the downstairs bathroom. Thankfully, the lights were dim, where she helped undress me to tuck me into the shower. Sitting on the bench, I sat under the shower, away from the smell of everything I had lost. She handled me as if I was a child, an old habit of hers. I had hired Maisy when I had arrived in America once I had made enough money to survive and thrive. Maisy took care of the house and cared for me when the migraines were commonplace, back when I was using my powers often, and now she is still the handler of everything that goes on around the home. She knew the aftermath and cared for me the same as before. She scrubbed off the remains and wrapped me in the soft cotton robe. I followed her to the dark guest room on the bottom floor, tucked into the smaller double bed to watch her close off all the curtains once it settled me. Maisy sat on the edge, placing her hand over my burning head.

“Now, where did you go, young miss?" I felt her concern pressing against my aura. I didn’t even bother opening my eyes. I smiled weakly.

“Jiera sent me a letter from home,” I began. Once I started, the rest rushed out. I barely heard her agreements in a few clucking noises.

“We will hire more security,” Maisy stated. A major reason I hired her was her efficiency. “Does Lou know?”

“Not yet. She has been visiting her parents in Dallas,” I whispered. I won’t disrupt her time. Her being away might save her, but somehow, I doubted I would be that lucky.

“She’ll be home soon enough. Now you must sleep, recover,” I heard. I must have made some sort of agreement. She made me take one of my beautiful pills that would handle the headache that had emerged from one level of hell. Darkness swept over, along with the drug-induced nightmares that would wait for me. It will probably be my ex-fiancée, Parijat, leading the charge. He had been on my mind too much of late since the letter had arrived. His old torments, his steady nitpicks of why I was not what he wanted. All of it waited and pounced when I was most vulnerable.

Even within the dream, I knew it wasn’t real. I wanted the comfort of being within the Nest. The rest of the snakes came back around me. Scales and cool temperatures accompanied by the scent of dampness. I had buried them all deep, but my mind never forgot even here in my nightmare of being chased through the ancient temple, the twists and turns that kept shifting in impossible Escher-like labyrinths. Stripped of all the priestess garb, I was in full Naga. I can embrace my authentic self within my mind. With my people, something hidden, given away to be free.

“Liar,” I heard him whisper. He was next to me, faster than my eyes could comprehend. “You miss everything. My life, me, all of it. You cannot abandon it."

“I have to. I can’t be this anymore,” I said. I was a liar. I wanted parts back. The power, the gifts, but not him, not the dynamics of the world, and never being under anyone’s thumb again. I had discovered I enjoyed being the boss. Being on top was a thrill. Being a submissive little woman was never in the cards again.

It cut me off from oxygen before I could blink by his hand clamping over my throat. “You are always ours, Devi. There will be no freedom for you,” his fangs descended. In order to defeat him, I had to fight. There was no way out. Nothing moved. I couldn’t do anything before he stuck his venomous fangs into my throat. I felt the poison paralyze me. We could paralyze with our venom… or kill if he didn’t release soon—the bastard. I tried to shift, flicker, anything. To destroy our own this way was to say I was a traitor. I wasn’t. He banished me because he wanted another.

No, this was still just a nightmare, nothing more. It just felt natural. Wake up, I shouted to myself.

Wake up!

“Physics is like sex: sure, it may give some practical results, but that’s not why we do it.”

By Richard P Feynman

“Devi, Devi,” I heard several times in my ear. One of my eyes opened thankfully, and it seemed able to focus. Oh, what a glorious moment. The pain was gone. Finally, the nausea, all of it was just gone. I was over the worst of the migraine, and I could think again. Now I just had to figure out how much time I had lost. I blinked a few times to focus, staring into the brown eyes I knew as well as my own. Lou was home. She wasn’t due back for days, but here she was, and worry streaked over her entire face. Her beautiful dark skin creased in lines of unnatural concern. Her short black and gold hair spiked everywhere, likely from her raking it back out of her face. The haunted look I had given her dark, deep-set eyes told me everything. She knew, damn Maisy.

“You know,” I spoke. The rough, tearing sound of my voice was raw, shredded from who knows what I had done in the drug-locked slumber.

"Damn skippy I know, and you should have goddamn told me Dev,” Lou stated. When she started swearing like her naval officer father, I knew it was going to get worse for me. “What the holy fuck? I had to hear it from Maze. You should have called the moment the letter got here from India.”

"You had family time, maay jaan,” I replied.

"So, what, are they are threatening you?” her voice dropped a whole octave. I saw the shine of the red cross her gaze. Ah, my beautiful hyena was beyond the pale of pissed off.

"Elouise,” I began. I wanted her to attempt to be calm.

"Oh no, there is no ‘Elouise’ this or that bullshit Devi. When are they going to be here?”

“Saturday,” I said. No playing around, and now I just had the answer somewhere roaming my neural pathways, or at least I thought I did. If the Song did what she promised, I had all the answers. Now, if I could only recall what that was, that would be wonderful.

“Tomorrow, good, we have time to figure out something,” she snorted. “Why are they coming?”

"That was not explained other than they are here to retrieve me,” I explained.

“Retrieve you, my ass.” I could hear the snarl from deep within her chest. I reach out to pet her over her arms, and anywhere I can reach. Her warm skin rippled under my touch, and thankfully she was wearing one of her muscle shirts, allowing me access to lots of skin. She ran so much warmer than my oh-so-cooler temperatures. I didn’t need her overreacting to the tense situation. “We have guns for these situations, and I can eat cobras when I’m in hyena form.”

"Let’s not make you ill,” I tried not to laugh at the idea of her chasing down Naga to attempt to eat them.

"Speaking of illness, how did you get so sick? Something you ate, because if it was food poisoning again…” she noticed something cross over my face. Her nose buried into my neck to sniff deeply; her nose could smell things I couldn’t. I used my tongue to smell better than with my nose. “Good grief, where did you go, some grandmother’s house?”

“I went to see the Song,” I replied.

"What did she want in return?” she yanked back from my neck. I listed off the strange and unusual things she had asked for. “Not the worst things, and what plan did she give you?”

“It is roaming loose in my brain, but it set off the migraine.”

"It has been what, nearly two years since you have had one of those fuckers,” she said. I counted twenty-two months and three weeks since one had hit me. So yes, nearly two years since one had taken me down. Close enough.

"I just need to relax and remember what she put in there before the Nest of Horror arrive,” I replied. Twenty-four hours and change, splendid.

"Oh, relax and calm down,” her dark eyebrows wiggled suggestively at me. “Do we have the time?”

“I am sure we can squeeze in a few minutes,” I murmured back. Lou rubbed her head close. Our foreheads touched, nuzzled. The warm scent filtered through my senses, musky, vanilla, and cinnamon. Something uniquely attached to Lou, part desert from her place of origin and Texas mixed to uniquely blend to her. Our lips came together, the old and new feelings begun anew. Something fresh as the first time she kissed me years ago when I didn’t know that women could even dare be together and familiar as a few days ago when she left to visit her family. Her lips brought me closer to a home I always searched for, the house I would always fight for, my heart, my love.

Everywhere I could reach I caressed, pulling off her loose muscle shirt to ghost my fingers over her muscles. I loved her arms, how strong they were, and that they seemed to hold up our world. She leaned down against me, breaking our lips apart, before trailing kisses over my face. I gasp for air as her hands spread over my body. One through my thick hair exposing my neck for her mouth to find all the sensitive spots to nibble over. My focus was lost on the moment, lost in sensory overload.

I held on, digging in with my fingernails which just urged Lou further on. She nudged me down to start kissing down my neck to continue down. Her hand continued down, finding my breast, stroking it gently. The pleasant ripples began, being sensitive from endorphins and after the migraine everything was heightened. Her mouth followed, licking and nibbling.

"I missed these,” Lou muttered reverently. Her hand caressed my other breast, gently running her fingertips over the nipple, aching for attention. I heard my gasp, pushing up for more. She cupped my other breast, giving the attention I need, as she suckled the erect nipple she was playing with.

"You always miss my breasts when you leave,” I moaned out.

"I could write entire epics to them,” she changed breasts to start sucking on the other. I arched at the feel of her hand, leaving the breast to scrap down my midsection to drop lower. Lou's hand found the remaining bit of cloth, my underwear, to rid me of them with some help from me before she went straight to going down on me.

Oh stars, it was past time. Her mouth nipped my upper thigh, stretching my legs apart, her fingers stroked up and down. I shivered with deep satisfaction. I rolled my hips, seeking more, wanting all the friction I could get. I bucked when her mouth replaced her hand to start working me up and down with her tongue. She knew everything I wanted. I grabbed onto the sheet and held on as the climax ripped through me. I moan her name with passion and love intertwined.

After a moment of breathing and coming back off my high, I rolled around to return the favor to move on top of Lou’s beautiful lean body. Our bodies are so different from one another. I could always appreciate the contrast. Her deep skin compared to my golden tan, I began to kiss my way down, licking over her silky muscular frame and sensitive breasts that always brought her to a near climax. I played down her body to find every sensitive spot, playing until I nuzzled into her clit to lick her to her first screaming climax. She is much louder than I ever was. I loved her vocal edge. She never told me what she wanted, how she felt, or what I did to her body. It was glorious.

Sweat-covered and sexually sated, we finally rolled together in a brief moment of sleep. I could sleep with my love, my Lou. My Elouise, even if she hated when people called her by her full name.

Now I just had to see when we woke if this plan somewhere rolling in my head from the Song would work out. Or the bits and pieces stored back there would make any sense. Anything to save her, my beloved. I would do anything to protect us from the Nest coming to bring ruin upon us. The oncoming storm they rode on to destroy everything in their path. I had long ago accepted my past, being abandoned, left to rot and I had risen above it. This life, the life I had somehow created from nothing.

“For there is nothing lost that may be found if sought.”

By Edmund Spenser

The aroma of spicy chai tea wafted past my nose, perking me into awareness. My surroundings filtered through, coming back in. The jade walls of the guest bedroom, in the smaller bed than the regular master bed. Glancing up, Lou’s dark eyes met mine with her lopsided grin. I grabbed the oversized vermillion mug, drinking every drop greedily. The caffeine and warmth kicked through my sluggish system, reminding me I was still in human form and had a shit ton to catch up on today. My old Nest jailers would be here soon to attempt to drag me, kicking, screaming back home. The fragments of an operational plan I had flashing in the recesses of my mind continued to play on repeat until I dealt with each piece. After the pain, sex, and now tea, I would be able to start working.

How long did we nap?” I asked.

"About an hour, not much off the ticking clock,” Lou purred towards me.

“Not bad, I can work with that. I need a few supplies and I have a meeting with a work friend,” I began with a smile, “of yours.”

"What, you’re going to surprise some Naga with some strippers? Not a route I would go with,” she chuckled.

“You aren’t a stripper. You’re a bouncer,” I replied, leaning in to kiss her. “But neither is what I am looking for, isn’t the seamstress a Voodoo Priestess?”

"Titania? Yeah, she only works part-time, but I have her number. What do you need a priestess of a different pantheon for?” Lou leaned back on her ankles and knees, tilting her head at me, bathing in the sunlight and nudity. Her midnight skin gleamed in the light, stunning as always. I wanted to lick honey off it. I need to focus on something else. After a week apart, we usually spent time together frolicking. We will be able to once we survived this and then we can enjoy time reconnecting.

"I need someone currently connected to the Gods,” I replied. “I need to get a dagger.”

“I will set up a meeting for this evening. She usually works in the back for the girls on weekends. We probably can see her in the back of the Naughty Pussycat,” she explained. Lou rolled out of bed to land on her feet. She took my mug to place on a nightstand and help me up. I returned her hug and swung up over the bed. My feet landed on the plush rug, sinking into the thick fibers. “Now time for a shower. We should together, of course, in order to save water.”

"I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

She swung me over her shoulder to help me up the stairs to the main bedroom with our actual closet, bedroom, and everyday life. I laughed the entire way up the stairs feeling ridiculous, staring at the carpeted stairs. Lou dumped me on our perfectly made-up bed to get ready for the shower in the best, well-biased best shower since it had recently been remodeled to have far too many showerheads.

“Come on, sleepy-head,” Lou called out. “Time for a shower!”

"Coming, my love,” I replied with a smile. I got back up to follow her into the lush bathroom to attempt to feel more like myself and less like a drowned version of me.

Once we finished showering, taking far too long and probably not saving a lick of water. I certainly was far more awake afterward. Settling onto the vanity chair, I began to braid my waist-length dark brown hair that nearly appeared black in most lights. I didn’t want to spend the hour-plus it would take in drying it. The braid would keep it smooth and out of my way. I dressed in loose silk maroon pants with a cream tank top with a long blue scarf, feeling close to being back to myself, almost as good as my usual Naga magical self I had lost many years ago. I grabbed my purse, unplugged the phone Maisy had set to charge, and kissed Lou goodbye as she left. She jumped in her open jeep, makeup-free with her golden and black hair. I had no idea how she could be ready so fast wearing just a pair of jean shorts and a crop top. I still had to put my face on, buff out the few scrapes over my nails, and add the few elegant jewelry pieces to feel complete for the day.

I left with the travel mug of tea from Maisy, and the GPS coordinates to the shop Juniper ran in central New Orleans. It was challenging to find, given the magic hiding it. Currently, it was hidden behind a flower shop.

“During the negotiation, information is more valuable than eloquence.”

By Amit Kalantri

I was stepping out of my red BMW in front of the local herbal shop that supplied rare and unusual supplies—passing the facade of the flower shop that did brisk business, through the hazy glamour to keep the mundanes out of the back room. An organ song moaned through the walls from an old television show I never could remember. Lily, the clerk, had given up the gothic look again, now she was back into a cheerful bleach blonde hair with a hot pink halter top that appeared spray painted on, and her cut-off jean shorts that showed her pockets. Her color still was a shocking white, remaining from her pasty stage.

“Afternoon, Ms. Basu,” Lily’s smoky voice purred out. Her voice was considered pure sex, screen siren if she had a lick of acting talent or presence other than being a beautiful stick. “Whatcha need?”

"Is Juniper available today?” I gave a smile. Lily was not always the easiest to get along with, but she was one of the best spell designers in the city. Juniper, I needed to help find supplies and books.

“I dunno, check the back,” Lily went back to ignoring me to flip through a new leather-bound Grimoire. With a shrug, I wander through the jam-packed shelves of stones, books, avoiding the pair of cats that roamed freely through the store. The one-eyed older one, Tattoo, hissed at me as I passed, as normal I hissed back, only showing a hint of fang. Tattoo’s good eye peered me up and down before allowing me to pass, with his half tail twitching to bounce to another shelf. Ignoring the cat, I passed through the translucent curtain and the cold veil to the back room.

The atmosphere shifted, passing through the in-between, separating those who could and couldn’t give—those who could arrive at the large bookshop with the solid stone floor. The ghostly figure of Gideon flickered in and out, meaning he wasn’t as tangible today. His eerie, deathly purple eyes glared through me before he just walked through me.

"Damnit, Gideon,” I hissed at him. The bitter cold that shot through my body would take time to leave, given his unnatural death. His head floated only a few inches above his shoulders where one of the loups-garous had severed it centuries ago and cursed him to this ghostly form. Now he stuck around to be creepy and occasionally helpful, if he felt so inclined. “A little warning would be friendly.

“You have tread upon my terrain Naga. I wonder where the unholy tendrils of the winds of the beyond….” Gideon began to speak in his heavily French-accented English.

“Hush you,” Juniper stated. About my height, we both had a love of heels to bring us up to almost 5’3’’. Her natural deep green hair matched her eyes. Some believe it is how she picked her name or how her parents named her. I voted that she was something partially Fae, and she named herself. “Ms. Basu, how might we be of service today?”

As she spoke, the flashing pain warned me of the need for items within this space came forward. I felt them close, pushing against my frontal lobe. “I need the bronze serpent dagger that you aren’t supposed to have,” I stated. Her dark, nearly black eyebrow rose in the question she didn’t ask. “Price?”

“Price is relative. This dagger is dangerous to your species. This does include you,” Juniper warned.

"I am aware,” the calmness I didn’t completely believe. One nick of this Gods forsaken dagger; I would die. The poison would kill me just as easily as it would kill the others. I needed it to defend myself or use as a bargaining chip if the situation became dire.

“I’m not at liberty to sell this dagger, only allow you to borrow it for a time,” Juniper spoke. Not a comforting deal to start with. Owning the dagger would be better. Borrowing meant I couldn’t barter with it, only threaten to use it or fake that I own it. Not exactly the plan I had been shooting for, but I would have to adapt on the fly.

“Yes, I would like to negotiate the ability to borrow the dagger,” I replied. I couldn’t continue my quest without it. Or at least I didn’t believe I could.

“Money is not what I want to borrow,” she commented. Crap, money was something I usually throw at my problems. It was something I was good with. Stock markets, bartering my way through them, I could manage on whims, and it proved to be my calling in the human world. It kept me in a lifestyle I adored without putting me in the position of not fully adapting to the mundane world.

“What do you wish to bargain in?” Fae, I knew she was Fae. Crap, it was going to be something weird, a favor, or Gods forbid hair, spit, or something even stranger.

"You are going to war with your old nest.” She did not ask, she stated bluntly. Damn Juniper’s power. She knew things before they happened. Rolling my shoulders back, I rolled my neck from side to side and wait for the giant shoe to land on me.

“Correct,” I replied, no sense not stating the obvious.

"I want a fang,” she said.

"A fang,” I replied. Gods, don’t be one of mine.

"Yes, from one of the Naga of your Nest. I prefer a High Priest, leader, or someone on your hit list.”

I blinked at her for a moment. “You know far too much about something that hasn’t even happened yet.”

“It’s a gift, mon serpent,” the sly smile crept over her face. I couldn’t help but nod in agreement.

"I will get a fang from the highest-ranked Naga that arrives and is not me or one of the slaves,” I replied. I would never defang one of the females that had been used as slaves.

“I agree. I would prefer one from a male since those are guaranteed not to have been a slave from your Nest.”

"Agreed, I would prefer to use one of those sons of bitches,” I replied. The swelling remembrance of my earlier life memories came forward that I had tried so hard to repress began to come forward. The scents of all the girls crowded together, herded, and brutalized by the elders. Only the magically powerful were chosen to be peeled away from the safe pile of us to be trained to see if we could survive becoming the trained priestess for the gods. With a shake, I had not to be swamped by memories and focused back on the present.

“We have come to an accord. You may borrow the dagger for your mission,” Juniper left the room. The ghostly form of Gideon just glared at me. I waited patiently for several minutes for her to return with the teak box with ancient runes and Hindi warnings carved across the chest. Juniper spoke the spell to unlock the ward binding it to the store. “You may take it but must return it in its present condition along with a Naga fang.”

"I understand and accept those conditions to borrow the dagger,” I spoke. I felt the magic of the agreement bind Juniper and me together. The weight of the box landed in my open hands, heavy with the charm and importance with what it could do to myself, my kind held within its confines.

"Anything else?” Juniper asked.

"That was all from this stop. I appreciate everything Juniper,” I gave a bow that she returned. “Have a pleasant day.”

“I guess what scares me the most now is the thought that I won’t be able to protect you.”

By Julia Hoban

I could breathe easier with the case stored safely in the sedan's trunk, knowing it was not waiting to escape and attack. I knew logically it wasn’t going to burst out of the box like the Kool-Aid Man, but the other part of me wanted it as far away as I could get from the damned blade. Driving away from the disguised occult shop, I made my way towards the next stop.

Several blocks later, I turned into the local farmer’s market. Parking, avoiding the early afternoon crowd, I made my way to odds and ends. Even if searching through the fresh meats, delicious fish, and savory fresh loaves of bread all smelled better than heading to the back. Henri Porcher finished draining another piglet into a mason jar. His thick hands could squeeze each one individually. Several jars were lined up from several different types of fresh blood of different animal types. I waited for him to finish up before daring to interrupt his work.

“Good afternoon. What are you in the market for?” he asked, point-blank. He glanced up, blinking through his thick clear goggles, splattered with droplets of blood.

“Five pints of ewe blood, and two pints of chicken blood, gender is unimportant. I can’t have any of these tainted with cow blood,” I replied.

"Got plenty of chicken blood,” he replied. “Let me check on the ewe blood, not a big demand on sheep’s blood in these parts.”

He unfolded himself from his sitting position, the second set of arms he held to the table to stroll to the back on his four legs. The remains of the cut-off legs were encased in a leather apron with multiple pockets. Henri crawled up to grab several bottles of fresh blood bottles. Not the best part of what I needed to shop for, but it would be helpful. Here I could make sure the blood wouldn’t be tainted with cow’s blood which would ruin everything.

He placed several bottles before me, “Here’s the chicken blood and nearly five pints of sheep’s blood. It’s all I gots,” Henri spoke. I replied with a shrug, leaving a bag of silver coins as payment for the fresh blood. I watched Henri count every one of the pieces as I waited for him to be satisfied it was all there before packing the bottles into the cooler, I had dragged over to keep them safe.

With my transaction completed, he returned to ignoring my existence. Exiting the market, I stored the cooler in the backseat to buckle it secure. I saw the text message from Lou. She had arranged a meeting before the Naughty Pussycat opened with the local Voodoo Priestess. Meaning we could avoid the screaming music, scantily clad dancers, and general chaos of Lou’s workplace. I just needed to drop off the blood and dagger at home.

Getting home to store the dagger into the safe took the elephant off my chest. It was one of the few things I knew that would do painful harm and death to be around. Being a Naga made me pretty resilient, but there were still things around that could kill me, soon things like another Naga and now the dagger were all here to potentially kill me all in one weekend. Lucky me. I picked up the bloodstones in the house to magically prepare them with the blood I had acquired.

Enchanting a dozen of them with the ewe blood and the other dozen with chicken blood. They would help stabilize any wounded by venom or Naga weapons in case there was a fight. I didn’t want anyone hurt. I would protect anyone that would help me. Setting out the bowls, I began to enchant each stone and drizzled the blood over them. They would soak for the next several hours to fully absorb the spell.

“There are no ordinary people. You never talked to a mere mortal.”

By C.S. Lewis

Lou and I took my car to meet up with her work friend at a local diner, close to the Naughty Pussycat that they both frequented after hours. I hadn’t ever been here before, but Lou said that it was decent and clean. There had been enough dirty places we had gone to that I had wanted to clean or call hazmat teams on that Lou made sure the places she dragged me to were clean enough that I didn’t feel like running out of.

It was cozy in the best way possible, with tables tucked in the weird corners, given space was limited. The waitress recognized Lou right off and started with some pleasant chit-chat about the specials and gave us a booth near the back, away from any foot traffic and nowhere near the kitchen. It was private matter best not overheard by nosy people. I glanced over the eclectic menu that ran the gamut—they even had some vegetarian menu options. I hadn’t even thought to return to that mindset fully; I still didn’t eat beef, but I didn’t eat much in the way of animal products given a choice anyway. The fish I certainly ate might be in the Hindu mythology, but we were Naga.

"How’s the fish here?” I asked Lou.

"Love the catfish, the whitefish you will probably like more,” she peeked over the menu. “But they did say they have salmon, which you do so love.”

"True, I might try that,” I muttered, reading even though I had kept reading the same options over and over. Nerves were not my standard setting; I was the calm one in basically everything. I wouldn't say I liked the feeling. I pretended I cared about the menu for another few minutes until the waitress returned, ordered drinks and an appetizer. Lou held our conversation to a nice, airy surface-level stuff that meant nothing in the grand scheme of things. Things I wouldn’t remember in an hour as the drinks arrive. I sipped the tea that had been sweetened to the point of basic liquid candy that this part of the world thrived on, and I had learned to adapt to it.

Lou waved someone over. I turned to see the woman coming over. I had met her a few times, not enough to pick her out of a line-up. She was tall. If she weren’t six feet in height, I would eat this menu. I probably hadn’t seen her walking around much, normally she was just sitting, sewing, or something but now walking towards us, I knew I would remember her more. She looked like an Amazon, lots of curves hidden in ill-fitting jeans, a loose t-shirt, and a long jacket. I wasn't sure why one of those women is hiding, but I particularly didn’t want people looking at her. Her midnight black curly hair tied back seemed to be fighting back to escape. The curls that I would pay hundreds to have someone do to my hair. She was probably mixed race, paler than Lou by several shades. Lou stood to greet her with a gentle hug before she sat, tucking into the seat.

"Titania, Devi,” Lou allowed introduced us. I smiled and leaned over to shake her hand. She had a proper handshake and needed a manicure. Heck so did Lou. I might just be one of those too picky about my appearance type women. Lou wasn’t as much.

“Thank you for joining us this evening,” I smile brightly. Titania gave a nod with a brief smile back.

“Lou said you needed someone to speak to the Gods,” Titania spoke. She didn’t quite have the accent I associated with the New Orleans, instead it was something tropical, the islands perhaps. I didn’t quite know where all the accents were yet.

“I do. I used to speak to my Gods in India. I,” I paused. I needed to find the right words to where to start.

"Are you having problems speaking with them now?” Titania asked politely.

“I haven’t spoken or even attempted to since I was banished from my Nest years ago,” I explained as I paused. The waitress returned with an appetizer, took another drink order before leaving. I waited a few seconds and continued. “I was Chosen by the Gods to be the Speaker, but the Priest I was to be wed to didn’t want me. He selected another to be the Speaker, which meant I was banished, given something was wrong with me, defective. So, they sent me into the world, in a sense to die. But I survived.”

Lou snorted, “I don’t believe they stripped her abilities. She can do all sort of magic.”

Titania seemed to ponder what had been said, sipping her water. “Might I be allowed to view your aura?”

“Of course.” It was always lovely to be asked before someone stared intensely at you and began peering into aspects of one’s being. I felt the magic shift, watching Titania’s dark eyes transform from dark pools to swirl magically awake. The deep indigo shades of blues and purples began swimming. Her skin took on the magic hue that all of us took when using magic—no being able to fake magic users when we were using magic. The eyes always gave us away. Mine were serpent and golden, with the glow of magic flowing through us.

“Your aura doesn’t appear to have been ripped or damaged in any sort of meaningful way. No aural scarring from healing, so I don’t see where they could have taken anything from you magically to have stopped you from communing with your deities.” She tilted her head several times, searching over my aura, giving a thorough search over me. No half-heartedness here, she scoured for any sign. “I can help you reach out, but your Gods and my Gods aren’t the same.”

"I understand, but I need help. At least that I what I was told,” I paused, rotating my water glass around. “By the Song.”

"Ah, she does work in such interesting ways. In that case, I will see what I can do to help,” Titania gave a shake of her head, curls bounced with her chuff. “When do we start?”

"Tonight, if you can, I have company arriving too,” I began.

“They want to kidnap her, steal her,” Lou butted right in over her beer bottle. “Some bullshit if you ask me. They run some misogynistic cult shit, T.”

That startled us both. I jerked my head over to Lou, giving a snarl. Titania just paled. “Lou,” I took her hand. “We won’t let them win.”

"Hell no, I will call in everyone I know, hell we know enough shifters and magic users to start a fucking war,” Lou growled, slamming her beer on the table.

“War?” Titania piped in. “If they are coming for your mate, there are rules about stealing a mate, even with the Naga.”

“But my clan will not respect females with a female as mates. They are old school,” I said. I wouldn't say I liked it. I didn’t even know until I left that woman could be with women, or men with men.

“I might see if there are any laws about that,” Titania mused. “I know a guy who knows all sorts of strange laws or at least knows where to look. It doesn’t hurt to ask.”

“True, but somehow I doubt they care about the laws. They have always been a bit outside of the rules and regulations of the normal society,” I replied. It would be lovely if they would just be dissuaded by law, code of conduct from the world. “I have things to bargain with, threaten, and the plan from the Song. The pieces I gathered today, I am speaking with you now to see if you can help me, and it seems they arrive tomorrow.”

"I guess dinner is needed before we try to take a stab at this tonight,” Titania spoke, as the plates were being brought out, she was right…dinner was needed before we got down to business.

“Much unhappiness has come into the world because of bewilderment, and things left unsaid.”

By Fyodor Dostoevsky

Returning to the house, we used the backyard to set up the seance of sorts. Lou shifted out all the solar lights and added torches to light up with glee with gas and a lighter. Titania walked around using chalk to outline a circle. I followed in her footsteps, using the pattern to awaken the aura watching. I didn’t make it a habit to seek out observing auras, which she had been reminding me how to do since we arrived at the house. It was a natural, a simple skill that, at the moment, I was barely able to see a flicker of anyone’s aura. Damn, I was out of practice.

Once the circle had been set, the shimmery golden glow began to come to life. The magic cycled, lighting up the area. I followed Titania out. She started to place candles and different stones around the site. With a different set of rules, I let her set up, watching intently, this had to work… it just had to. Lou wrapped her arms around me. I could lean against her, with my head against her shoulder. I watched the magic flare on and off, searching for the aura, the magic behind the physical, and practicing any way to see. Titania lit up a fat Cuban cigar, poured the rum in a shot glass, drank some from the bottle, and gave some to the circle. The circle consumed the rum. If I hadn’t seen it, I would have never believed it. Voodoo magic was undoubtedly nothing like mine

"I have the area prepared,” Titania spoke once done. She placed the cigar on the rum glass to puff out a lovely ring of smoke. “I also can open pathways if need be, given my patron deity is Papa Legba.”

"How does that work?” I asked.

“Papa Legba is the guardian of pathways, one of the ways I speak to the dead, and can open gateways between worlds,” she explained. It was enough. Even if I couldn’t, maybe she could open up a gate enough for me to speak with my gods. I can see why the Song sent me the information to talk with her directly instead of someone else.

"Now, what do I need to do?” I asked.

“Now, we speak with anyone close by who wants to speak with us,” Titania said.

Just that easy, she made it sound so plain, and simple. See if anyone was around. See if any of my Gods would speak to me. One of the true Naga. The Naga we should be, the Naga I wanted to be. I took a long breath, felt a tight hug from Lou before she released me with just a whisper of love that wrapped itself around my frantically beating heart.

I entered the circle across from Titania, feeling the spark of magic over my body. I took in the foreign magic. I was breathing in the clean air, the spicy edge lacing everything within the ring. I blinked through the magic, it started foggy from my disuse, but I began to filter bits and pieces of auras through my vision. I could feel the twinges waterfall over my exposed skin, through my blood. The rush came through me- magic in its purist form. Oh, I missed it, the thrill of it all washing over me. I had dabbled, played, cast spells, and shifted, but this was levels above what I played with. I filled my lungs with magic, my soul, my everything. It took several minutes to adjust to feel normal, well, the new normal with magic this intense.

Titania took my hands, showing me the patterns of the general ritual to opening. Her rituals involve dancing, movements I didn’t expect, and patterns completely foreign but oddly familiar to me. They might be different culturally; we followed the waves of magic, the ebbs, and flows. I began to hear the music in the air from somewhere deep within the spiritual realm. Not the music of my people, drums, rhythmic drums. Patterns, chants, and other instruments I could feel ghosting over my skin, aura, and deep into my bones.

I began to awaken. Something slumbering inside of me began to awaken from a deep sleep. The serpent uncoiled, not just my Naga that I could be since I will always be the shift. Something I had forgotten began to stir. I began to wake up, something I had allowed to sleep. Titania came close. I could see her deep blue-purple magic-coated eyes in their full impact—God touched, like me. We were similar in that aspect.

"Your eyes are opening,” she spoke. “The gate is open.”

Her hand was wide with her arms, holding metaphysically and almost physically a gateway between the realms. I could see the outline finally of an aura. Pieces of the shifting cobalt, emerald, and gold veins shimmer around her. An atmosphere about time. It wasn’t as visible as it should be, but it was something. I began to see the outline of the gateway Titania held open. The simple doorway, nothing as unbelievable as I had imagined.

The gateway shimmered with a loud crackling noise. Nothing came out. I stared at the portal, nothing.

“Holy shit,” I heard Lou. I turned to see the man leaning against a staff puffing the cigar from the circle. His worn straw hat and simple clothing were utterly understated, but he stood in the middle of the ring, only a pair of steps from me. I never heard him arrive. He didn’t even seem to breathe except to take in the puffs of his cigar.

"Papa Legba, welcome,” Titania spoke. She bowed to the man, and I followed suit. Titania began to speak in rapid Spanish, hopefully explaining why we have called forth a deity to a backyard. Something not suited for him, I hadn’t set up anything suitable for a deity. I waited in reverence until Titania finished speaking. Papa Legba turned to stare at me with ancient eyes.

"They never stop waiting to speak with you, child,” the old man spoke to me. His deep voice wrapped through me; I could feel it over every part of my body. It was utterly inhuman. The voices of Gods hit people differently than others. He held back his power, not hurting us, but it affected us. “Reach out, and trust yourself.”

With that, the pop noise occurred, and the power level dropped. The man, cigar, and rum were gone, just leaving the cloying scent of smoke behind on the breeze. At a loss for words, I watched the area with the smoke fading.

"What the holy fuck,” Lou exclaimed. “Was that what I think it was?”

"Yes, Lou,” I replied, as my brain continued to process. Could it be true, I had not been stripped of my abilities. Was it all a lie? I dropped to the ground, slammed my butt to the grass in surprise. It came up too fast; it sent ripples through my back.

“No, Lou, you can’t cross the circle,” Titania spoke up. I didn’t know what Lou was doing. I didn’t know anything. I was whole, abandoned.

"Is she hurt? Check on her T,” Lou shouted, sounding way too close. I still didn’t move. I didn’t understand what it meant.

“I will, but if you break the circle, we will have to start from scratch, and the gate is open,” Titania spoke. Words kept washing past me, drifting like water over rocks. “We must proceed with caution in case something comes through.

“I will stay here, but please, take care of Devi,” Lou’s words came through.

I felt a hand on my back, doing something, checking me, something that would make sense in this whirlwind. Not alone, the Gods, they are here. I could reach them.

Those sons of bitches lied. Of course, they lied. Tears started streaming down my face, angel kisses drenching my face, shedding things in a positive light instead of the pain I had expected. Someone reached out and took my hand, an unknown hand. Not the familiar one of Lou. I looked to see rings; Lou never wore rings.

“Devi,” Titania spoke in a low voice.

"I’m back,” I replied in the same reverent tones. “It is not what I expected.”“It never is,” she gave as an answer, like it was a fact we should all know. I might not always understand, but I know now. That should count for something. It might not save me, but it gave me a sign of hope. I had to get up and do what I used to do. See if I could still talk to my Goddess.

“We are the playthings of the gods.”

By Roger Ebert

Kneeling on the grass, I felt restored. I was mediating, returning to my center. I reached out with my senses, all of them. I was feeling the heat around me. I could feel Titania relatively standing; still, Lou pacing wide circles, the plant life, the insects, the few animals, the heat fading from the earth below me, the magic pulsing, and the ebbs and flows of life. Understanding heat was part of my nature. I might be cooler than everyone around me. I could smell the world, feel the colors, and the magic. The glorious magic began to seep back into the world again.

‘Devishi,’ whispered on the wind. My name, my full name. The name no one in America called me, no one from this life knew. A name technically stripped from me. I went by Devi. Given it was familiar enough, I felt I could claim it without drawing attention to myself. ‘Where did you go?’

"I was banished,” I replied to the wind. To the air, to the world as a whole. “They stripped me of everything, sent me into the world as nothing. I survived and became something new.”

'Devishi, we always have been here. They had no power. We chose who hears us,’ the voice spoke. The voice I had always hear from home. The voice of the Goddess. ‘You have returned.’

"I am here,” I replied. I felt it deep in my bones that I have returned. “They are coming for me.”

'They are already here,’ the voice warned. ‘They need you; you are correct on what they need, you alone are our Voice,’

"They are in the city?” I asked. They came early. I should not be surprised. They would seek a location to search the ground, learn the area, and find any weakness they could use to come for me. I know what they needed. They needed me to listen and see what the Gods said. “You won’t speak to them?”

'They are here, and no, we won’t speak with them.’

“So, they have figured out they need me and are willing to steal me to get what they want,” I spoke out loud. “I can’t go back. I am sorry. I can’t live there. You need a new Voice amongst the Nest.”

'You are our choice,’ the voice insisted.

"I can’t go back there,” I spoke. I paused before I found the correct phrase. “No, I could go back, but I won’t go back there. They treat us horribly and do such monstrous things to us. Why, why is this allowed? Why do you allow this to go on?”

‘We allow nothing. Humans have free will Voice,’ she replied. ‘We do not speak to them.’

“Back when I was there, they treat us women like animals. We were slaves. Worse, they treated the animals better. Even a priestess like me was abused, and—” I couldn’t continue. Tears dropped before I could touch the fragments of what forced memories attempted to bleed upward. The caves we lived in, under the ancient temples were so small, several of us had to cram into the little area, sharing what meager food we had. The fear, the dripping fear of who might be forced out that evening. I was praying to anyone that would listen, only getting that it was for a reason. To wait, patiently. And we did, we waited, survived for who knows how long. It was one of the reasons I didn’t know how old I was. Time didn’t feel real when we were in the caverns below the ancient temple.

'Traditions, the priests said it was tradition,’ I heard the words.

"I will never return to that tradition. Pick another Voice,” I spoke. I must have screamed, shouted. Something. I had arms wrapped around me from Titania, holding me in a hug or something to stop me. I heard Lou howl, slamming against the wall of a circle that shimmered where she hit the magical barrier. I jerked, as did Titania. I thought she could get through. The ring wasn’t supposed to be solid to us. Were we trapped?

"You can’t have her,” Lou screams through the growling. “Fuck you, whoever you are.”

‘You are our Voice,’ the Goddess spoke calmly once again.

"I can’t be the Voice,” I cried out again. I couldn’t stop crying. I couldn’t return, I couldn’t be that person, I wouldn’t. “I won’t go there. This is my home, here in this city.”

"What the hell are they saying to her?” Lou demanded.

“They keep repeating she is their Voice. I can’t tell if there is more than one or not. It is too loud,” Titania spoke over the repeating voice, all saying you are ours over and over. It wouldn’t stop. I felt the pounding through my head, soul, everywhere. Suddenly I was released, floating through the air.

Magic soaring through me, unlocking the pieces within me that I had locked, or I had thought were locked away. I began to shift, my legs becoming solid, turning back into a long serpentine tail. Scales rippled through my limbs, turning me from fully human into a partial snake. I felt the ground with the tips of my tail.

The magic cut off, dropping me from the air. The swirls stop, as the air becomes thick with humidity. I had to catch myself with my tail and hands before I slammed into the ground. I caught myself and reoriented myself. I used my tail to wrap around and curl. Titania was close, sweating and panting. I reached down to help hold her up. She finished closing the circle. The strange reverberating buzzing noise rang through. Lou ran in, running her hand over my scales, muttering my name to come to help me hold up Titania, who had fainted in my arms. Thankful, Lou took her to place her on the ground, allowing me to focus to shift back down to my human form. The forced shift into my Naga body had uncomfortably broken and reformed me. I might be healed again, but everything hurt. I needed to return back to my human form in order to handle one last situation.

"Lou, I will be shifting again. This will hurt. Please help her,” I spoke in tones foreign to my ears. I had to remember to talk in English instead of Hindi. My whole body changed in Naga form. My senses became more apparent. I could see further and see well through the night and feel the pressure changes. None of the Nest scents were in the region. They hadn’t been stalking my home yet.

I left the circle, recentered myself to ignore all the new information to start shifting myself correctly. Not being forced but smoothly and on my terms. I pulled the scales back within me, sucking back the height and tail and tearing apart the legs until I became fully human again. I lay naked in the grass. I ruined another lovely outfit, more a shame about the bra since finding one that fit properly was always a pain in the butt.

Lou lifted my head onto her warm legs to start giving me water. She used her bandana to wipe the sweat off my head and graced me with a beautiful smile.

“Hey,” Lou said.

"Hello, maay jaan,” I replied. Gods, she was beautiful. Her dark eyes only had a hint of the gleam of red from her hyena. I could feel it awake roaming inside of her, her teeth sharper, the tips of her ears pointed with fur. Even her short black and gold hair was shaggier than normal, with black fingernails in claws now. I stroked her cheeks up through her lovely hair.

“And here I thought talking to Gods was supposed to be like all spiritual and mediative and shit,” Lou laughed as she spoke. “That wasn’t quite as spiritual as I expected.”

"I am usually more reverent when I speak with the Gods.” It shook me profoundly how rude I had been, but being here, away from tradition, had taught me how to stand on my own, and become someone else.

“Darling, you politely said fuck off,” Lou replied. “Besides, what is with this whole cult thing and no consent?”

"Consent is still a modern concept in many cultures, Lou. You have to keep that in mind,” I spoke. The whole idea of consent didn’t always work in other places. But Lou was a modern woman, raised to stand loud, proud, and not take any shit from anyone. Her naval family made sure she could handle herself in all situations. She had tools many others had never imagined. She still taught me things about how to survive in the world to this day.

"Consent should be the most important thing,” Lou insisted.

"It’s not for the Nest. Power, control, knowledge were far more important. The people are pawns,” I spoke. “We are parts of the whole.”

"For what, they live in a fuck cave, hidden away from the world. You guys didn’t even have basic things,” she replied. “Electricity, Wi-Fi, phones, anything. I barely understand how they can control anything.”

"Magical control, not control of the world you see. They prefer to control through spiritual methods, not magically.” It was a different type of control, one that was completely different than others searched for. They wanted to win the battle of belief, which is harder to explain or win. Not that that was something one could or would win, but no one would ever win an impossible battle. “Can you help me inside?”

"Yeah, I settled Titania into a bedroom,” Lou explained. She shifted to stand up, helping me up. We staggered back into the house, drunkenly walking in without having a drop of alcohol which would have made the evening somewhat better.

“The ache for home lives in all of us. The safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.”

By Maya Angelou

Lou and I settled into the seats around the kitchen table with the early morning light trickling in. I had the bloodstone in front of me, knotting each into necklaces with silver for purity and added protection. Lou dug through the eggs, sausages, bacon, and toast pile before eyeballing my barely touched meal. Sleep had come in fits; I didn’t want to wade through nightmares just waiting beyond the waking realm. I needed to be here, present in the moment. I could feel them hovering on the edge of the periphery. They were closing in; I could feel every shift they made.

“Are you going to eat anything?” Lou asked, sipping her juice.

"Maybe, I feel them close by and trying to wind these for anyone that helps. I don’t want a war, but I don’t know what else to do if they won’t take no as an answer,” I couldn’t imagine they would.

“I am going to start making calls for help.” Lou got up, kissed my head. I handed her the first bloodstone necklaces I had made to protect those who would help us. “Love you, Devi, don’t let them take you to save me. I can save myself.”“I can’t make that promise,” I replied. I wouldn’t make that promise. I couldn’t. She tilted my head, stared into my eyes before kissing me long and hard.

“Damn you, Basu.” She swore under her breath before leaving the kitchen to make her calls.

Once finished with the necklaces, I ate some food and drank my tea. Titania came in, her hair up in a messy bun with curls escaping everywhere and staggering from the magical hangover she must be feeling.

"We have tea, coffee, and food,” I said. I stood, showing her everything. She grabbed food and some water before sitting. I waited for her to get food and water in before starting to ask the questions I had bubbling up from last night. “Did you hear the Goddess?”

“I heard them all. There were many entities there,” she spoke finally.

“Entities?” I asked. “What does that mean?”

"There were Gods, spirits, and things I couldn’t identify,” Titania shifted in the seat. “I am not a full expert in your religion, so I don’t want to guess on everything that might have tried to push through the veil.”

“Ah,” I spoke. True, some deities wouldn’t come across as entirely human for those not of my faith or belief system. She wouldn’t understand. “It would take a while to explain, but you saw and heard others there, other than a snake Goddess.”

“Yes, there was an audience of many ancestor spirits,” she spoke. Ancestor spirits?

“Wait, ancestors?” I had to stop her there.

“Yes, I deal with the dead too. Spirits were traveling along the circle, pushing through, trying to speak. It made everything loud, hard to hear. The snake Goddess was the loudest,” Titania explained.

“She wants me to speak for them,” I spoke softly.

"I heard. I might not understand the meaning behind it other than it hurts you deeply and that you don’t want to return to India,” she replied. “How bad is it there?”

"They are here to drag me back, and Lou is upstairs making calls to start a possible war to make them stop,” I replied, sipping my tea.

“So, bad, bad,” Titania replied. “Should I call for help?”

“I thought you would be heading for higher ground by now,” I said. I wouldn’t be surprised. She had helped far more than I expected. I appreciated everything she had done for me. Staying would be another step.

"I have been in a similar position, taken with nowhere to turn to for help, and I can’t stand by to watch someone else possibly be taken,” she explained. I knew the feeling. If I saw someone else being taken, I would get involved. I could see why she would be staying.

“Are you going to be up for this? They are closing in. I feel them now,” I stated.

“I will be. The spirits have been warning me,” she replied.

“Must be unusual to hear all the spirits.”

"I usually don’t keep my senses open all the time, but they asked me in this situation. Many of them are unhappy about them coming for you.”

"The ancestor spirits?” I asked, they cared what happened?

“Of course, they don’t want them to capture you.”

“I will take that warning signal,” I said. Perfect, some sort of warning.

“I should go and make a few calls to see if I can get some help,” she replied.“It doesn’t seem like they are going to be waiting much longer.”

“Agreed. Take this,” I handed her one of the bloodstone necklaces. “I enchanted them against Naga venom and some of the more deadly poisons they tend to spit at people.”

"Thanks, and spit?” she asked.

"Yes, spit.”

“What a special surprise that will be,” Titania replied with a smile.

“Each of us needs to learn the unique language of our own soul.”

By John O’Donohue

Several friends and strangers arrived at the house to prepare for the arrival of our uninvited guests within a few hours of getting the call. The noise levels shifted, explanations given, weapons shown, bloodstones gifted, and some sort of organization by Lou. I went outside to feel the air when the first priest arrived. He appeared in a long dim yellow robe, worn from age. It’s amazing how his face is still youthful after all this time, but he is beginning to show hints of silver in his deep brown hair. His ancient dark eyes meet mine across the lawn.

"Devishi, you appear to be blooming out here in the wild,” Laksh stated in English. I was impressed he even bothered to learn. He considered foreign languages beneath him.

“Laksh,” I spoke without a bow or groveled. Something he would expect, behind me, some of my friends started creeping around. It had begun. Next to me, I felt fur under my hand. I stroked Lou's thick fur. Not every day one might see a hyena, given in nature, females were more significant than the males already, and she was enormous.

“It is time to return to the Nest,” Laksh spoke. He wove his hand like he was just going to wave me over like a dog and bring me home. He was in for a surprise.

“I will not be returning to the Nest,” I spoke clearly for all to hear, including all the Naga not showing themselves.

“This is not up for debate, you are one of us, and it is time for you to return,” he continued like I had said nothing. “Now come to me Devishi. We will go now.”

"I do not believe you are listening to me, Laksh. I am not returning with you. I was banished. I have no reason to return. Consider me dead for all I care, but I am not leaving New Orleans,” I spoke louder. I needed them to understand, hear me, something. If not, violence would start and soon. I felt Lou’s hackles rising below my hand.

"I hear your words, but it is you child, that does not understand. One of the foolish Priests made an error. We are here to correct Parijat's dismissal,” Laksh spoke, nothing changing or shifting in his voice. Just the expectation is continuing.

“No,” I replied.

“It is not your choice,” Laksh said. “It is mine.”

I dug my fingers into Lou’s fur to stop myself from shaking. I had to stand tall and not fall apart in front of them. This was the man who held the whole collective together, never had left India to the best of my knowledge, and now stood there staring me down. I swallowed the lump from forming in my throat, the bile lurching upward and the pit screaming in my stomach. Don’t pass, don’t pass out.

“Do you speak to your Gods?” I heard Titania speak nearby. Loud enough to gain the attention of even Laksh. His stare turned to who dared interrupt him taking me.

"Who dares speak to me?” Laksh demanded.

“Titania Mallory, Voodoo Priestess, and I can hear your Gods right now telling me you can’t hear them,” she stated. And with that the truth bomb dropped. I could hear the gasps from the Naga through the open space behind the house. Several of them came into view in human form. Only a pair were in proper Naga form.

Rapid conversations began, partially in Hindi and a few other languages from home. I could hear the surprise, shock, and awe in the buzz of conversation. They didn’t know what to think. He had probably been speaking for the Gods for years without a word from them.

“She lies. She is not one of us. She is a foreigner. They cannot understand our Gods,” Laksh tilted his head in Titania’s direction. “Get rid of the heretic.”

“No,” I yelled before I even thought about it. I reached for the Goddess; the instinct kicked in. Protect.

Power flowed unchecked through my veins, gifted by one so much stronger than I. I pushed a force towards Laksh. He felt it and returned, slower. His passion was weaker, not touched by the Gods anymore. He went flying back into the bushes of azaleas. I began to allow the power to flow through me, glowing with being Goddess touched fully again.

"Any of you touch her,” I stated so no one could miss what I said. “I will put you down as I put him down.”

I could see the golden glow stretching out from my hands, my aura spreading out into the physical realm, lighting up the area in hues of yellows, golds, and whites. Even Lou’s fur began to light up under my touch, the coat taking on a golden hue. The other Naga took several steps away, Laksh stayed down, and I heard the Goddess.

'Now, you see,’ the voice spoke directly through me. ‘Time for a change.’

"The Goddess says it is time for a change,” I spoke to the audience before me. I felt them more than I could see them. “I agree with her. It is long overdue. If the leaders cannot speak and hear the Gods, but are unwilling to inform us of when this happens, change is long overdue.”

“She does not speak for us,” Laksh attempted to regain control of those gathered. Someone silenced him with a hand, as others kept him on the ground. There would be no war today.

“I do not speak for you, correct. I am just telling you what she is saying. I do not live amongst you. I live here. I am not returning to India,” I replied. I wouldn’t return even with being touched right now. I still couldn’t go back.

“Why not? We need you?” Another Priest’s voice came out from the bushes.

“I was banished, and I have accepted that fate,” I nodded. “I live here now. I will accept the women who want to stay, and pledge to teach them how to survive, but not the men who do what they do to us.”

"It is tradition,” another man spoke.

"I don’t care. I will save them from you,” I still had the touch of the Goddess flowing. She had not taken her touch away from me. She wasn’t displeased with my choice. “That is my will.”

"What does the Goddess say?” I was asked by several. I waited for her reply. I felt Lou under my hand, muscles tensing if she had to pounce since she was ready to hit anyone right now.

I felt just the positive light and energy from her against me. She agreed with me. “She agrees, it is time for a change. I will stay here. If you wish to know what she says from me, you will have to come to me. Set up a place here. But I want only the women, and the young girls sent here.”

"We need to keep the women, who will clean, care for us?” They moaned

“You will learn to do it yourselves,” I announced. “They are not slaves. They are free now. If they are not freed and returned to me to help….”

I left off the threat, they understood. The voice of the Goddess would no longer speak to them ever. They knew I was it now, they had been lied to, and now I was the only hope. The change had come, and I was it. The women were going to be freed. Heck, the Nest might all move here.

What had I done?

Epilogue

ONE YEAR LATER

The house had become crowded with all the new Naga teenagers living within our house. We had rented out homes around the neighborhood where the other women were placed to start learning English, basic survival skills, and how to successfully navigate living in America. They had finally all been escorted here by the men, most of the older men refused to move to New Orleans, returning to the old ways in India, but the younger Naga stayed setting up a new Nest with the women. I now had become responsible for a Nest, the High Priestess. The Voice, everything I had been afraid of in one swoop with Lou keeping them in line. She was learning the ins and outs of Naga life, helping them adapt.

One of the young Naga allowed me to have a fang to repay Juniper for borrowing the dagger so I could repay the debt. It was polite, and some of the local mages started helping the regrowing process. The old Naga were horrified at the idea of giving an outsider a fang for any use. But the favor was repaid so that it wouldn’t be hanging over my head, and it didn’t have to be used on any of the Naga I had in my Nest. I also knew where it was just in case some of the older Naga started causing any problems in the future.

It became a whole new world for us all. Naga’s in New Orleans, the supernatural world, were surprised with cobras unbalancing the natural order of things. The vipers had to learn how to handle us and us to them. The other shifters were easier to adapt to our presence, given we were not a threat to their order, just the snakes. It was a strange new world we had created.

The End

About W.M. Dawson

W.M. Dawson lives with her husband, her tailless cats, and a three-legged dog that all think they run the house. Now that she is writing full time, her fiction runs the gambit of romance, horror, fantasy, urban fantasy, to whatever comes to mind in her over-caffeinated brain. Raised in the southwestern part of America, she hides from the desert sun in the writing cave, avoiding setting ablaze being a redhead. She also writes under Wendy Cheairs.

Find Out More:

Website: https://indigowriter.com/

Books:

Wings of Fate: A Limited-Edition Collection of Fae Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance:

https://books2read.com/u/me9dMA

Welcome to the Jungle:

https://books2read.com/u/mKwdLE

Moonlight: A Limited-Edition Paranormal Romance Anthology:

https://books2read.com/u/mYG6ap

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Foxy Heist

(A Lucky Break Novel, #1)

© 2021 Zelda Knight

Edited by Halo Press

About Foxy Heist

(A Lucky Break Novel, #1)

A Foxy Heist

Two Magical Realms

Three Feisty Shifters

Interdimensional jewel thief Sarah Lee Ho—better known as Bijoux—slips effortlessly between the human and paranormal realms. She captures divine precious stones in exchange for mortal luxuries. But one fateful night, under a parallel full moon, everything goes wrong. Injured and trapped on the other side, she finds herself the object of desire of three immortal shifters and ex-lovers—Kim Min-joon, Bo Chang, and Toshiyuki. They agree to send her back if she answers their riddles, and if she fails, they demand a steep price: her hand in eternal marriage to three cunning fox gods.

Foxy Heist is a paranormal reverse harem MFMM shifter romance novel. It can be read as a standalone in the Lucky Break series. It features a cunning interdimensional jewel thief and three feisty fox shifter gods with strong language, graphic violence, and sexual content, including bisexual MM.

A thorn defends the rose, harming only those who would steal the blossom.

~ Proverb

Prologue

Sarah

The Last Riddle

Slipping through space and time came as easily as walking and breathing for interdimensional jewel thief Sarah Lee Ho. She was used to exchanging divine precious stones for mortal luxuries, doing back door deals with all sorts of divine, demonic, and super-wealthy human clients for big paydays and otherworldly thrills. But Sarah would be damned if she would spend eternity trapped with a bunch of bored immortals without her magic just because she couldn’t solve a riddle...or three.

“Bijoux,” the elder crow shifter in front of her quipped, “You know what you must do. There’s no point resisting any longer. The foxfire will only burn for another hour.”

“Must I go now, Old Crow?” she groaned.

“Yes. Now. And you’re one to talk, calling me old,” he squawked, beak clacking as his dark wings shoved thick white tiles around the table separating them.

“Hmph! I’m pushing thirty, not three-hundred, old friend.” Sarah scoffed in-between sips of green tea, hands darting across the table encrusted with gold and diamonds as they played a fast-paced game of mahjong to pass the time in the House of Nine Foxes. Which, if she really thought about it, was sort of ironic since only three fox deities lived there currently.

Young hotshot foxy immortals still in the prime of their eternal youth—compared to their ancient immortal neighbors at the very least—Kim Min-joon, Bo Chang, and Toshiyuki were becoming royal pains in Sarah’s ass. They promised to help her when she found herself stuck in between realms on the verge of death, all to draw her into some elaborate game of riddles that lead back to their tiny planet of a mansion. The princes were the craftiest shape-shifting little shits she’d ever encountered, and that was saying a lot because Sarah got around and met many shifters during her travels.

“Bijoux,” the old crow called out to her again, swiping aside the tiles into the gutter of the table. They were swallowed up and re-sorted. And now she was forced to focus on him and not on their shared distraction. Reluctantly, Sarah met his milky gaze, the polar opposite of her obsidian black.

“I know, I know. I need to give them an answer. My time, it seems, has run out, old friend. Pray to your gods I make it back in time.” She stood, smoothing out her shimmering blue gown before bending down to tug on her couture black flats, fixing her sparkling diamond earrings in the process. If she wanted to steal some hearts, she figured she had to look the part. And she couldn’t help but thank them for fixing her outfit.

Before turning to leave, Sarah adjusted the silver pin holding her waist-length black hair in a messy bun. Her transformation to femme fatale complete, it was time to go claim her prize and get herself a ticket back to her realm.

It’s now or never, Bijoux. This is the ultimate test. So don’t screw it up.

After giving herself a brief pep talk, she steeled herself and left, waving away the divine messenger who flapped his jet-black wing in goodbye. She found it strange that after years of knowing each other, she’d never seen his human form or learned his true name. But she wasn’t one to corner a shifter syndicate leader, who was her main connection between the human and paranormal realms before the whole debacle that brought her there.

A little mystery always added to one’s reputation, and as much as her male pseudonym and impossible heists inspired shock and awe when rivals matched her face with Bijoux’s legend, nothing beat a six-foot talking crow who casually dealt in the mortal and immortal realms and seemed to never age.

Sarah marched down the elaborate hallways with her mission in mind, though she couldn’t hide the worry from creeping into her otherwise neutral expression. Beside her were row after row of high arches overseeing a slice of divine paradise. It should have been amazing to see. A sinful human like herself who could only dream of reincarnation, let alone an audience with three divine beings, should be blown away.

However, as much as she hated the expression, Sarah could read the tea leaves in her situation, and they weren’t looking good. The triad of shifter princes were immortals, having cultivated their magic over anywhere from one hundred to five hundred plus years. Sarah, on the other hand, could barely muster the magic to block out the sweltering heat from their cosmic fox flames. Mortals like her were not meant to stay in the paranormal realms for long, especially that of the divine. And it wasn’t like she could transcend her lot in life that easily.

No, she was running out of time in more ways than one. Immortals tended to get fickle with the value of life when their lives never truly ended. While the foxes were ascended, immortals who had known the threat of death before joining the ranks of the divine, they would never again understand Sarah’s struggle. To them, this was a fun game, payback for breaking each one of their hearts in infinite ways when they popped the question that made her flee. But to her, this wasn’t just a game. This was life or death. And Sarah was determined to win.

“Masters? Bijoux seeks an audience with you,” voice dripping in sarcasm, Sarah bowed before the ten-foot solid gold doors separating her from the throne room. Engraved on them was a large fox goddess, her ten tails also a contradiction with the name of their palace.

After a drawn-out silence, the doors began to open at a snail’s pace, thick clouds of ominous white smoke rolling across the glass walkway. Sarah rolled her eyes and forced her way through the crack. She didn’t have time to waste on frivolous formalities or theatrics.

Inside the throne room set her roadblocks, the shifter princes seated in order of their rank, with the eldest in the middle, and two youngest flanking him. As foxes in the Divine Realm, they were much taller and more imposing than they had ever been in the Mortal Realm. Their red fur and white chests and chins seemed fuller and brighter, too. And most jarring were the elaborate outfits and crowns of jewels hanging from their narrow heads.

If she was on one of her usual missions, they’d be in bed by then, and by morning, she’d have melted down their crowns to something more manageable to transport in between dimensions. But her mission at that moment wasn’t like any other Sarah had taken on before.

“I am a gem that never tarnishes but dulls when desire dies. I increase in true value with each passing hour, and contain the trials and tribulations of your heart? What am I?” Just saying the last riddle out loud gave Sarah a splitting headache. She was getting tired of childish games, which was really making her second guess her taste in men—shifter or otherwise.

The trio nodded, Bo Chang’s smile stretching so wide it was almost creepy, distorting his foxy face. His ears flexed, hopping down from his throne, spinning mid-air, landing in the skin of a human. He dressed the most traditional out of all three shifters, long black hair ankle-length and gorgeous. Sarah loved to run her fingers through his silky tresses when they used to make love under the moonlight, out in the open in the park near her luxury apartment. She shook that thought away as soon as it came, eyes trained on Toshiyuki, who appeared next to the eldest.

Toshi, for short, was the youngest and most modern, opting for a pair of black jeans, high-top black boots, and an eclectic white high fashion asymmetrical shirt. His hair was the shortest, shaved down the sides with a curly pompadour down the middle, and many piercings dangling from his pointed ears. He fancied himself a model, an idol even, and Sarah couldn’t help but reminisce over the taste of his ivory skin when they used to “get-to-know-each-other” in the dazzling nightclubs of Tokyo.

Which left Min-joon, the middle prince, to make his presence known. And it wasn’t long before he appeared where she expected him to be—right beside her.

“Sarah,” he whispered, his smooth hand cupping her cheek.

She shuddered despite her internal plea to stand firm. Min-joon wore a three-piece blood-red suit, much more outrageous than his reserved personality, and oddly complementary to her own dress. His hair was styled differently too compared to his usual lax outward appearance, gelled and swooped to the side, braided in the back just past his shoulder blades.

“Enough, Min-joon. Now’s not the time.” She tried to brush him off, but his hand just drifted lower, joined by another, until he was cupping her around her waist and one of her breasts.

Sarah moaned. Despite how she tried to pretend otherwise, she missed the feel of his lips pressed against hers, and lower still, and the way he worked her into a frenzy to the point she feared she’d been placed under his spell. They went back further than Bo and Toshi, meeting under a bright full moon on her very first mission nearly a decade ago.

He was also the first one to propose, she thought ruefully, detangling herself from Min-joon who didn’t protest that go around.

“So, Bijoux, what is your answer?” Bo Chang asked, crossing his long emerald sleeves in front of him, white highlights in his hair fanning out as he released a burst of magical energy. His fox flame burned out too, extinguished in the lantern hanging in the center of the vast imperial throne room.

“It’s…” Sarah drifted off, glaring at Toshi’s playful expression, his ears, and tail still visible to her eyes. Red highlights streaked his blonde hair, arms crossed behind his head as he waited and watched the jewel thief’s fate like it was all a game.

Because it is a game to them, remember that! Even if they saved your life! Taking a deep breath, Sarah blurted out her answer.

“The diamond on a wedding ring. A real one, at least.” Chin raised skyward, defiant as ever, Sarah waited for whatever would come her way. Her fate was in their hands now, anyway.

She’d poured over the massive tomes in the palace library, racked every gem directory she had stored in her portal pocket, and came up empty. That was until she’d pulled out the ring she’d long since cast into oblivion, a ring gifted to her three times over. It was covered in dust and grime, but when she cleaned it, it shined brighter than before. And with it came a flood of emotions that made her misty-eyed and unsure.

Immortals dating humans wasn’t strictly prohibited, but marriage was out of the question. She couldn’t survive long in their realm, and they had no place in hers. It was the very definition of star-crossed lovers, multiplied over three very different, but equally alluring shifters full of equal parts charm and malice.

“Ding ding ding ding ding!” Toshi blurted out as a bell materialized beside him, ringing it obnoxiously. Relief overwhelmed Sarah, and her legs buckled, scooped up by Min-joon before she could fall.

“Very good. And just in time for our would-be anniversary, Bijoux.” Bo Chang clapped, his ears popping out as if he couldn’t control his delight.

Sarah simply smiled, looking up into Min-joon’s sweet expression as he carried her behind the throne and into their private quarters. And what a room it was! She hadn’t seen it in what felt like ages. Hot springs emptied out beside a large bed befitting of an emperor of an empire, or two. It was the stuff straight out of dreams, a painful reminder of the very real divide between them.

“Sarah…” Min-joon whispered once more, placing her onto the satin snow-white sheets three shades lighter than her own skin. Toshi and Bo appeared beside her, with Toshi pulling her hairpin and Bo snapping off her gown with a click of his clawed fingers.

Utterly exposed, all she could do was stare up at them in confusion. “What’s going on? I won! Now teleport me out of this floating circus and back home this instant!”

The eldest prince rolled his eyes, hair cascading down his shoulders as he leaned forward, chest bare, as Toshi and Min-joon each took one of her arms and pulled down. “Do you really think we went through all of that to not reconcile, beloved? The full moon hasn’t yet arrived.”

“Reconcile? What part of, ‘I’ll die if I stay in the Divine Realm for more than a month,’ didn’t make sense last time?” Sarah sounded exacerbated, even as her back arched and dusky pink nipples perked, dragging against the first prince’s porcelain-colored chest lined with muscle and sweat.

“And what part of, ‘As our bride, you will have nothing to worry about,’ doesn’t ring a bell, hmm?” Bo chided her, nipping at her lip and nearly drawing blood. She sighed, turning her face to the side so he could mark her neck, nip, kiss, and lick, suck and fuck her into oblivion as he always did. Rough and hard, until she fainted.

On her right and on her left, Toshi and Min-joon fondled her breasts, moving in tandem with Bo so that every inch of her body was humming and ready for more.

“Now say the magic words, Bijoux, and allow us to steal your heart instead,” Toshi ordered as he grabbed her hand and brought it down to cup his erection.

“To steal my heart,” she snickered, tugging on Toshi’s shaft as he winced and his comrades chuckled, “You’ll have to fuck me harder than this, you naughty little foxes...”

“Your answer, Sarah. Be ours, won’t you? Not just for the night or another heist. Ours, for eternity, as our princess, as our queen, and our goddess,” Min-joon murmured into Sarah’s ear, as Bo kneeled above her, stroking his rock-hard penis, and Toshi’s fingers found her clit and soaked slit.

“...Never,” Sarah gritted out, despite every inch of her being demanding she give in.

The pleasure she would find being lost in their arms, as they descended on her body, devouring her sex as she stroked and sucked on their lengths, plunging into her, exploding with sticky wet come, as she road them, took two and then three at the same time, would be absolutely divine.

But Sarah wasn’t the giving type. Far from it, she was going to take what she needed from them and flee. Because the last thing she needed was to be locked down by three cunning shifters in a parallel world. Rather than their goddess, she’d be their tyrant if she didn’t get what she truly wanted before the next full moon came and went and trapped her there forever—freedom.

Chapter One

SARAH

“If you think I’m giving up the heist of the century to become a glorified babysitter for your daughter, Brother Lieu, you must have lost your mind on your way back to the Mortal Realm!” Sarah’s face twisted into a nasty scowl as the man in question took a long drag of his cigarette, blowing a ring of smoke to his left.

It was nighttime on the edge of San Francisco’s Chinatown. Well, the edge of a version of its Chinatown, anyway. The dingy gambling hall they sat in was at the cusp of both worlds, frequented by many criminals and vagabonds looking for a quick buck, be it in mortal currency or paranormal jewels. They watched over the gamblers from a skybox above the machines and tables. All the money being generated down below belongs to all of their clan members, but Sarah knew very well her brother thought it all should belong to him.

Sarah was used to straddling the border between worlds, just as much as she was used to forging her own path in a world dominated by men, be they mortals, gods, or spirits. And the man that most frequently got in her way was her older brother.

That same night, Sarah was supposed to be on the other side of the world preparing for a mega-heist that might very well be her ticket to retirement, if successful. And yet, just because she was a woman, Brother Lieu thought it was her duty to watch over her bratty niece since rumors swirled of an impending attack from a rival clan. As if he were bringing in the money that made their clan feared by their rivals and worshiped by their pawns?

Without Sarah’s expertise, Brother Lieu wouldn’t be able to pay for bodyguards for his little mafia princess in the first place. Without her leading this heist, the Eternal Lunar Pearl would fall into the hands of their mortal enemies.

“Look,” Brother Lieu began, unusual gray eyes swiveling upward as if he were sending up a prayer, “The Eternal Lunar Pearl isn’t some ordinary heist! Macau may be a gambler’s paradise, but it’ll be your grave if you fuck it up.”

“Well,” she purred, taking a sip of the strange, gurgling purple drink in front of her, not daring to question what was inside of it, “I won’t fuck it up.”

He scoffed, snubbing out his cig on the wooden table like some brute. “You will fuck it up because nobody has gotten past Ju-long. Nobody, Bijoux. No god or mortal, not even his closest associates. Hell, I think he exorcised a ghost on the spot who tried to snatch it last. And you wouldn’t be any different. Those Pearl River Delta gangsters aren’t your run-of-the-mill minor demi-gods. They have connections that’ll get our entire clan killed. And you and I both know this is about your personal vendetta more than anything else.”

To that, Sarah had no comeback. She glanced upwards, above the slot machines, at the large sign that read Tàiyáng Tù Zú in Mandarin; Solar Rabbit Clan in English. Their clan went back over a millennium, with the blood of powerful magicians and shamans freely flowing through their veins, as well as centuries of connections. They were large, global, with pockets throughout all branches of the Asian diasporas. But they were still merely human, bound to die sooner rather than later.

Gods were not infallible beings, but the natural order made it such that one would run out of luck if they tested their will too many times. As Bijoux, Sarah felt invincible. As Bijoux, she could test the limits of her fate. But as a daughter of the Solar Rabbit Clan, she could not throw caution to the wind so easily.

At least, that’s what Brother Lieu wanted her to think. In reality, Sarah knew the truth. He coveted the pearl for himself and was jealous of her exploits. She was now more favored than him, and in line to inherit their entire underground operations. As he used to say when she was young, living was boring, but living among humans was hell. He wanted the glory of living on the edge among immortals, and not some desk job or restaurant managerial role at one of their legitimate establishments above ground, where most of the clan operated in the light of day.

“Brother, you know just as well as I do that the Yuè Tù Zú covets the pearl and has made an offer on it that even Ju-long can’t resist. They’re planning to hand over that wayward moon god, Yuèguāng, in exchange for it in Macau tomorrow. We don’t have time to worry about imaginary consequences when we know very well what will happen when the Lunar Rabbit Clan gets a hold of that pearl!” She slammed her fist against the table for added emphasis.

To that Brother Lieu growled, eyes narrowing, lips pulling down into a savage scowl. If there was one thing he hated more than his adored sister was their rival clan. Sarah smiled, taking another sip of her tea as blindfolded servants lowered plates of food on their rotating table dolly, hands shaking ever so gently. Probably debt-riddled individuals now paying off said debt by working for them. Sarah hated eating anything she didn’t grow and cook herself, but not doing so would cause great offense, so she nibbled and waited for him to respond.

Tension visibly rolled from Brother Lieu's shoulders as sparkling black magical residue. He finally gritted out, “Impossible. They wouldn’t hand over an ancestral god for the pearl.”

“They wouldn’t?” She scoffed. “The depth of their treachery is well known. There’s a reason our clan split into two, after all.”

“Besides, Yuèguāng ceased serving them when they wouldn’t offer up a proper portion of their treasures in tribute to him. It’s a two-way street, remember? We offer the ancestral gods tribute in exchange for power, and they gain power from sharing it with us in exchange for treasure. Now that their bond is broken, why not sell him off for a pearl that would make them nearly invincible in the Mortal Realm?” With that, Sarah clapped her hands twice, summoning forth a satin pouch with an embroidered black rabbit and crescent moon against a milky white background.

She turned it over and what looked like marbles rolled onto the table, in between the plates of food. But the little spheres held swirling white and black magic inside, the latter of which sparkled the same as Brother Lieu’s magic that continued to leak from his pores.

“Look here. Four have turned white in the time it took us to finish our meal. We’re losing ground faster than we can recognize what has slipped from our hands. If the Lunar Rabbit Clan grabs a hold of the pearl, you and I might as well pack it up and disappear in the Realm of the Gods. We’ll be hunted to the ends of the Earth, and I doubt that daughter of yours can be protected then.” Sarah allowed the threat to linger in the air.

As if he suddenly realized the enormity of the problem they faced, Brother Lieu dropped all pretense of being a wise clan elder, and now he looked every part the petulant older brother used to getting what he wanted. “So, you’re threatening me now? What, you’ll blame territorial loses on me if I don’t let you go on a suicide mission?”

“Oh please! Stop pretending that you care about our honor or my life. All you want is personal glory! But I’m sorry to say, that pearl will be mine, as well as the seat of power. I’ve been loyal, and I’ve risked it all for our clan. I’m not giving up the heist of the century because you’re afraid your little princess is going to get whacked, probably because your back door scheming to stop Bijoux fell apart at the last moment.” Tired of putting up a show, Sarah finally let go and unleashed her fury, blue magic swirling around her in the shape of a foxtail, a remnant of a past life.

She was livid. With the pearl basically in their hands, the Lunar Rabbit Clan wouldn’t put out a hit on one of their leaders, not when they could crush them and avoid a war altogether in a matter of days. No, it made more sense that Brother Lieu was the same backstabbing traitor and coward he’d always been. He probably tipped someone off in exchange for a seat at the table, asked too much, and got triple crossed like the idiot that he was.

Now he wanted the pearl and wanted to protect his daughter, all while throwing Sarah under the bus. She was loyal, but only to a point, seeing as she wasn’t a fool. How many times had she discussed her plans in front of so-called trusted company, only for a spy or bounty hunter to meet her at the scene? Was that how "family" was supposed to treat each other?

To be honest, Sarah couldn’t remember who was really related to her anymore. There was too much animosity and bad blood between herself and her adoptive family. The Solar Rabbit Clan expected an orphan like Sarah to be grateful and work hard. The only reason she stayed loyal was because of the lucrative connections the Solar Rabbit Clan brought with them. She had built her legend on scoring the rarest of treasures, and Sarah knew deep down the only reason she got to them first was because the clan knew about them first. If they lost their position, what would happen to her? Nothing good. It was for their mutual benefit she got to the pearl first.

“...Fine. But at least allow Lillian to stay inside your home,” he relented, reaching for his chopsticks.

“Why should I do that?” Sarah asked, adjusting the bow on her white blouse as she got ready to leave.

“Because, as much as you despise her, she…” he grunted, choking on a chunk of egg, “respects you. If you tell her to stay, put, she’ll at least half listen. Me trying to order her to do anything is a lost cause.”

Sarah stood, gazing down at Brother Lieu over her designer sunglasses. She didn’t despise Li-Lang, or Lillian, as her father insisted on calling her now for some unknown reason. And she wasn’t oblivious to the fact the young girl saw her as a role model. But she didn’t do babysitting, be it in person or from a distance. If anything happened to her, she didn’t want to be at fault.

“Fine. But if she sneaks out, that’s on you. I’m just providing a temporary roof over her head.” Despite her bravado, Sarah relented.

As the saying went, it’s not like she could choose her family. The Ho’s had been “generous” enough to adopt her, a “cursed” child abandoned by her family in China to the heads of the clan. The least she could do is not get the only blood-related child of the upcoming generation killed because of negligence. She would provide protection and some more bodyguards. Past that, all Sarah could hope for was that Brother Lieu got it through his thick skull, to stop straddling two clans. One couldn't serve two masters or two ancestral gods. And his selfishness would end up hurting his daughter, as much as he tried to blame Sarah for potentially hurting their clan.

“Appreciate it,” he said begrudgingly. “But before you go, I have to warn you that you’re in for a surprise in Macau if you decide to go. Three ghosts from…”

But before he could finish, Sarah had already made a beeline for the door. She had enough of his doom and gloom sulking. She twisted the knob, murmured a mantra to center herself and concentrate her magic, and when she opened her eyes again, she was facing a large glass window overlooking the glittering lights of the Mortal Realm’s Chinatown, during the dead of night, from inside her condo.

Chapter Two

SARAH

Even I shouldn’t promise the impossible, Sarah lamented as she chugged a glass of wine, and then another, wiping the back of her hand against her mouth.

She would reapply her makeup later when she changed out of her black nightgown and into her designer outfit for the heist. But first, she had to figure out the most effective way to reign in her arrogant niece. Behind her, perched on her couch in Sarah’s fur coat and her loose vintage dress was Li-Lang Ho, who preferred to be called Lillian now, a fifteen-year-old ball of chaotic energy obsessed with the public persona of one of her exes. Fate had a funny way of reminding Sarah about her past, as uncomfortable as the latest reminder was.

Sarah didn’t know what was worse, that she finally gave into Brother Lieu’s request or the fact she was enjoying the company. Because as much as the girl seemed intent on ruining her clothing or blasting the face of Toshiyuki onto every TV in her condo, she at least brought some life into her mausoleum of a home. She never had visitors over, be they family or friends with benefits.

There were just too many associated risks with allowing most of the people in her life inside. She wondered if this was the closest, she’d ever get to the experience of raising a child, however brief? Sarah had wanted kids back when she was young and naïve, not understanding how huge a liability they would be in her line of work. She couldn’t handle the responsibility and commitment expected between lovers, so how in the world could she ever handle a child? It seemed impossible.

I’m barely going to survive this last hour with Li-Lang before I’m on my way to Macau, she thought ruefully as a familiar voice drifted from her widescreen ultra-HD plasma TV.

Toshiyuki. He had been the youngest of her lovers, with the appearance of a twenty-one-year-old, even though he had reached the age needed to gain immortality at least a decade ago. In his radiant white prince suit and cotton candy-colored hair, with an assortment of childish stickers plastered on his military hat and bubble gum pink nails, it was hard to see what Sarah had seen in him back then.

But under all his stage makeup and bubble-gum persona was a gentle soul that made her laugh and made her feel free. That was until he tried to tie her down like the others and rocketed to superstardom in Japan and parts of Asia, as they naturally drifted apart under the weight of her rejection and his newfound fame.

“Can you turn something else on? For goodness’ sake, Li-Lang, you can’t be on your phone, listening to music, and possibly watching that concert recording at the same time? And shouldn’t you be into K-pop like everybody else these days? Didn’t Visual...what the hell was it called? Didn’t Visual Kei die like twenty years ago? Get with the times…” Sarah chided her as she finished cooking a homemade stew, the last of the dishes she was leaving behind for Lillian to eat.

Toshi had explained all the eccentricities of the Japanese idol and street fashion scenes to her ages ago. But Sarah had forgotten most of it long ago.

“Lumière is Oshare Kei, Aunt Bijoux! It’s a sub-sub-culture. And not everything popular out of Asia is K-pop. That’s so stereotypical,” Li-Lang corrected her obnoxiously, twirling a long lock of her thick black hair.

She was like a walking teen stereotype, and yet she was judging Sarah's limited knowledge of commercialized popular Asian culture? Her niece’s attitude was already getting on her nerves, and with how short of a temper her brother had, she knew why their relationship was virtually nonexistent.

“Well, can’t you find anything or anyone to be obsessed with other than Toshiyuki? He’s not what he seems you know; none of those idols are. No reason to be that devoted to a fantasy,” Sarah scoffed as her little nuisance of a niece rolled her eyes so hard, she worried they’d disappear inside of her skull.

“And betray Toshi? Never!” Li-Lang looked aghast at the thought of devoting herself to anyone else but her number one idol.

If she knew her father wouldn’t flip out, she’d smack some sense into her bratty little head. Who disrespected their elders as openly as she did when she was their little “princess,” and not an unwanted burden like Sarah was as a child?

She liked to pick fights because she was bored, emotionally neglected, and hormonal. All three things Sarah could understand on a personal level. But she really needed to direct her energies into something positive, like successfully robbing a bank or running a profitable gambling business.

“You know, you should really find something worthwhile to dive into, like cultivating your magic, or running a legit business above ground to get your feet wet. Anything! Useless women get shunned or married off in our clan. You know this. I’ve told you before, countless times.” And it was true, not only for the Solar Rabbit Clan, but also the Lunar.

Wasn’t part of the whole debacle with their ancestral god over his most costly tribute, Xiuying’s hand in marriage, the Lunar Rabbit Clan’s eldest daughter? They not only coveted the Eternal Lunar Pearl but were selfish enough to deny the god who would have given it to them easily if they only obeyed.

But as much as that was the way of the world, she didn’t want that for Li-Lang. Her father didn’t give a damn, and who knew where her mother fled after she got from underneath his ironclad grasp. But she should give a damn about herself. Li-Lang only really had herself to rely on in this world. So many, be they friend, family, or foe, could and would easily betray her if she wasn’t careful. And being the only child of the third generation, as of now, meant Li-Lang was a walking target.

“Aunt Bijoux?” Li-Lang called out to her over the sound of the music surely blasting from her earbuds. “Where’s the ‘Las Vegas of Asia’ at? Isn’t that where you’re going?”

She was obviously trying to change the topic, but Sarah let her. The story of Xiuying’s fate, almost forced into marriage and now forced into hiding, had scared the crap out of the girl. But Li-Lang wasn’t the type to take the initiative if she didn’t immediately have to when it came to bettering herself.

“Nowhere you need to know right now,” Sarah groaned, marching over to her niece.

She snatched her wireless earbuds out of her ears with the tug of her magic and forced her to sit up straight. Her black heels looked comically large on her feet, and a part of Sarah was a little mortified since the rest of her clothing was loose but complimentary on Li-Lang’s body.

Are my feet really that damn big? Anyway, focus! Now’s not the time to get roped in by her theatrics.

Sarah took a deep, calming breath and said, “Now, here are the ground rules. You’re to stay inside this condo until I return. Do not speak to strangers or open that door. There are...forces out there that mean you harm. This is for your protection. Ordered by your father, okay?”

“Why? Sounds boring.” Li-Lang didn’t whine, but looked like she was on the verge of doing so.

Why am I even negotiating with a child?

Sarah wanted to just run upstairs, slip into her gown, and pass through the portal she’d been perfecting to teleport her to Macau while preserving most of her magic. Sarah didn't have time to play “auntie” with her.

But deep down, she knew why. As much as she was a brat and her father an ass, she didn’t want to see the girl get seriously hurt by leaving Chinatown. The possibility of the Solar Rabbit Clan infiltrating their regular defenses was next to none, but Sarah didn’t want to underestimate their will to do them harm.

Clapping her hands, Sarah opted for a quicker route–bribery. A lazy grin crept across Sarah’s face. She could see her niece visibly caving, eyes widening into saucers as she tried to count the cold hard cash that appeared in Sarah’s hand. And more was coming if she kept her promise.

To an overly sheltered, and immeasurably spoiled fifteen-year-old cut off from her only source of income, Sarah was presenting her with a fortune. But to the acclaimed jewel thief, it was mere pocket change. Not enough for her to even take a job if it was offered as a down payment. Then she clapped, and it disappeared in a puff of smoke like a stage magician’s cheap parlor trick.

“Hey!” she whined, back to her bratty tone and ways. But Sarah had piqued her interest, which was good enough for her.

“Nuh-uh! You’re not seeing a dime unless you promise to at least not leave Chinatown.” Li-Lang glowered up at her, but she could already see the math going on behind her eyes. She knew for a fact her brother had cut her off, and she surely wanted more of Toshi’s merch, which meant Sarah had the upper hand.

“So, do we have a deal?”

Chapter Three

SARAH

No matter how many times she gazed up at it, there was nothing quite as dazzling as Macau’s sparkling skyline at night. She’d emerged on the other side of the world through a doorway in the shadow of the gambling district’s dazzling lights. The Grand Lisboa, the tallest building in sight, was magnificent in of itself, with its mind-numbing number of floors and bustling crowds, architecture reminiscent of a lotus flower.

The narrow streets of the rest of the peninsula were an eclectic mix of Chinese and Portuguese architecture, and they made one dizzy if they stared upward towards the night sky. But an architectural tour wasn’t why Sarah teleported halfway around the world; she could gaze at many beautiful cities if she wanted to. She was in search of something even more magnificently magical—a doorway into the Realm of the Divine, near the border where Ju-long awaited.

Sarah glided through the crowds inside the Grand Lisboa’s hotel, restaurant, and casino unseen. All the guests spoke a mixture of Mandarin, Cantonese, English, and even a sprinkle of pure Portuguese here and there. But it’s when she heard that sweet sound of Patuá—a creole language native to Macau, part Malay, Cantonese, and Sinhalese—that Sarah knew she was on the right path.

She took a sharp turn towards the casino, trailing a couple walking arm in arm. The pair looked happy and human enough, the man vaguely Macanese—an eclectic melting pot of ethnicities native to the island—with a sharp black suit and bright red tie of a business professional. The woman was harder to pin down, with skin so light she might as well have been translucent, and a black dress that clung tightly to her thin body, adorned with white rhinestones.

As she trailed them, Sarah became surer of her hunch that the pair was her ticket to the next realm when she glimpsed their reflection in a large ornate mirror overlooking the poker tables. To a normal human, they’d look just like that, human. But to someone like her with ancestral magic freely flowing through her blood, Sarah saw them for who they truly were. With emerald robes, elongated claws, and thin pointed ears, they appeared to be two foxes disguising themselves in the human world. And to her surprise, their genders appeared to be reversed under their false skins.

Huli jing? she thought, moving swiftly through the sea of people without making a sound. The Chinese name for these deities, anyway.

That was most likely their race since Huli jing, Kitsune, and Kumiho, the infamous fox deities in that part of the world, took the form of beautiful women intent on seducing unsuspecting men all to devour their hearts or livers. But these shifter spirits, well, Sarah wasn’t so sure what race they belonged to.

They could be expressing themselves as they truly were in the Mortal Realm, or simply curious about trying on a new disguise. It wasn’t her place to decide or judge. Be they benevolent or malevolent spirits, male, female, or non-binary, they didn’t belong to their realm anymore. Which meant they were most likely looking for an exit, since they appeared rather bored.

They took one sharp turn after another, weaving their way through poker tables, games of crabs, and slot machines aimed at Westerners. Sarah kept up, but before she knew it, she’d lost sight of them. She picked up the ends of her dress and quickly scaled a stairway where she’d seen a bit of the female’s bejeweled dress disappear. But once she reached the hallways on the second floor, they were nowhere to be found.

“Damn it!” she cursed low underneath her breath, crossing her arms across her chest.

She was debating what to do next, whether to try her luck by spotting another shifter, spirit, or demon in hiding or continuing her chase. The more she thought about it, however, the more she came up empty. She didn’t have time to chase after others to find the correct portal to where Ju-long was hiding, but she also didn’t know where to go without direction. Thanks to her pitiful brother, her connections went dark before she arrived. She was walking into a trap, but the dragon mobster would not make it easy for her to find him either way.

“Sarah?” The thief spun around as if caught red-handed, eyes wide and lipstick-stained lips parted. Her name was but a whisper on the stranger’s pillowy pink lips, so delicate and all at once elegant, like the rest of his features.

She doubled back, shocked beyond belief only to run into the arms of the same man who teleported in the blink of an eye. All at once realizing who the stranger was, a ghost from her past. She spun around once more, ready to fight, but gasped instead.

“We meet again, Bijoux.” His voice was gravelly with lust, and Sarah could do little more than gulp as she stared up into his dazzling yellow eyes, his pupils’ black slits filled with a mixture of longing, fear, and regret.

“Bo Chang?” Sarah whispered his name as if saying it too loudly would be like uttering a curse. He grinned, stepping closer and closer still until her back slammed against the wall of the narrow hall.

They stayed like that; she was pinned like a rabbit caught in the jaws of a ravenous fox. His hand reached up to capture the tip of her chin, and Sarah shuddered all over. She thought she preferred men with softer hands and more refined tastes in the past, but when he slid those rough hands in between her thighs for the first time, hands so unlike his gentle lips, murmuring all sorts of naughty words she’d never heard before, her tastes changed in an instant. The duality of Bo, with his porcelain prince-like features but the spirit of a gangster, was a turn-on. But Sarah desperately needed to be turned off at that moment.

“Let go,” she demanded, though her back arched as his hand left her chin and traced the small of her exposed back.

“So soon? After we just met?” He feigned shock, though his twisted grin said otherwise. Was this the surprise Brother Lieu mentioned in passing, now trapped in the arms of her last regret?

Suddenly, the hallway seemed to morph, and Bo Chang with it, as if the two realms were warring for control. Various shifters side-stepped around them, some staring and others laughing, only to pass into walls. His very public display of possession was embarrassing enough, but the added pressure of his erect cock grinding into her stomach and the merging realities was too much. Sarah slipped from his grasp and under his arm, knowing full well she only escaped because he let her.

He was a god, after all, and she wasn’t using her powers. She was intent on putting a great deal of distance between them so she could focus on her mission and not on how much she wanted to hop in bed with her second ex-lover. However, before she could get too far, she felt a familiar tugging around her ankle.

Leaving so soon, Bijoux? Stay and play with me. The pearl can wait.

His voice reminded her of the sound of falling rain, heavy yet steady, soothing in its own odd way. It thudded through her mind and caused her to stop in her tracks. It was only then she noticed his black suit resembling Republic Era China, crisp and rigid. It was much like the man inside of it. He didn’t like taking no for an answer, just like Sarah, but unlike her, was steeped in various ancient traditions. Much like the one wrapped around her ankle.

Sarah tsk’ed at him as he tugged the Red String of Fate binding their souls together, attached to her right ankle and his left. The thread was worn, so thin and dull it appeared almost brown in color. According to legend, they were destined to meet, and it would never snap. A fated pair that would encounter each other in every lifetime. For humans, anyway. To her knowledge, Bo Chang had ceased the endless cycle of reincarnation during the Tang Dynasty in China. Therefore, it was only her soul finding its way into new bodies, always running into him.

It would be romantic, if not for the fact her destiny was such a hot mess. The two other reasons contributing to that fact appeared beside Bo Chang in plumes of bright blue glowing fox flames.

“Toshi. Kim Min-joon. I see everybody's here.” Rolling her eyes, Sarah watched as a crimson red string materialized from her little finger and attached to the man named Toshiyuki.

"Why wouldn't we come?" Toshi cocked his head to the side, curls covering his left eye.

“Sarah. You really came?” There was a hint of anger in Min-joon’s baritone voice, so soothing it made Sarah’s shoulders relax, tension dissipating in an instant.

His black suit had a bit of flourish, embroidery woven into it, which was typical of him. He always was a little extra, ever the gentlemen dressed to perfection. Sarah didn’t even watch the bright red string attach to her right pinky from his left little finger.

Unlike Bo and Toshi, Min-joon and she had a sort of relationship between them. They’d gone past primal fucking and passionate kissing, with the occasional wine in-between to something approaching boyfriend and girlfriend. So, she was used to their string, back from the days when she thought she had one fated mate and not three.

“Of course, she did, Min-joon! When has she ever listened to anyone with common sense? If there’s a heist worth attending, she’s going to be there.” Toshi laughed, his pitched voice and even higher laughter grating on Sarah’s ears.

He was wearing a black suit like Bo and Min-joon, which was unlike his typical appearance of rainbow vomit on stage, or trendy street fashion during his days off as an idol, both of which sent her niece into a frenzy. Oh, how she would come to hate Aunt Bijoux if she knew she used to regularly bang her favorite idol, and that they were fated mates and she was his “first.”

Toshi had told her on over one occasion that this version of herself was the first time they’d met. She found it hard to believe, seeing as she’d encountered Bo so many times, and Min-joon at least twice in her previous lives, according to what she could pry out of them. But seeing as he was the youngest of the fox shifters, and the newest god among them, it wasn’t beyond possible. What was impossible in the Realm of the Divine?

“Look, I’m not sure why you’re helping a scumbag like Ju-long—” Bo cut her off.

“Helping Ju-long? That pest means nothing to us. We’re here to stop you, not help him, and you know this.” Sarah knew on a fundamental level he wasn’t lying but pressed on, ignoring the implications.

“I don’t know why you care about my business with that menace to social order, and I know divine pearls don’t interest any of you enough to get involved. Why don’t you let me slip on by and ignore the fact we even met, hm? Why drag yourselves into unnecessary trouble.” She smoothed out her cerulean blue dress and waited for a response. She figured it would be the eldest, Bo, as usual. But Sarah was stunned when Toshi spoke instead.

“Do you really think greed would drive us to do anything? You're mistaken, love. We came here because you're here, to protect you. How could we leave you in a viper’s den? Sarah, come on. Think, for once, not about the glory or money, but about you and us. We’re fated mates! Can fated mates let their fated one die over a fool’s errand?” Sarah was taken aback.

Die?

She could lose the pearl or get seriously injured, but the thought she would really die never truly crossed her mind. The threat of death always hung in the air, but the Eternal Lunar Pearl only meant something to humans.

It was more of a decorative item to a god, according to the legends she had access to. Ju-long was a rotten bastard, but he was also a demi-god deeply connected with the Human Realm. His reputation meant something to him. That was true. Bijoux, getting over on him would harm it. But would he really kill her over a pearl and an ancestral god and start a war in the process?

“You doubt his evil intent, and that will be your downfall. Yuèguāng is not just an ancestral god. Ju-long wants him for a reason.” Now it was Min-joon’s turn to warn her, and his ominous tone was off-putting.

Her fated mates had one thing in common—being insufferable worrywarts. Sarah knew for at least Bo and Min-joon, it was warranted. Who knew how long they waited in between her reincarnations? Or, if they had witnessed her death repeatedly, unable to stop the inevitable for humans? They never made a point of telling her anything about her past lives other than she had them, and she didn’t ask.

Toshi, for the most part, was just possessive, as all of them were over what they thought was theirs for the taking. Sarah could understand an emotion like possession very well. She coveted much in her brief life. But the way the trio’s expressions and emotions radiated genuine concern threw her off her game and worried her. Was there a kernel of truth in Brother Lieu’s warning? Could this really be her last heist if things went south?

“So be it. My life is my life. My destiny is ready to be created. I don’t run from a challenge, be it a god or a human. Now show me the way or get out of my way.” Sarah raised her chin upward, trying to appear tough. But she averted her eyes.

When she looked at them, really looked at them, she always felt so weak. She blamed her previous lives and chalked it up to a cruel “gift” from the gods. Just like their love for each other, her visceral emotions were nothing more than an illusion. Once a fate line formed, it always seemed like the person on the other end was the end all be all to existence. But what future did a human thief have with three immortal princes?

“Very well. Follow us. It’s not far,” Bo Chang said, as Min-joon’s and Toshi’s eyes transformed too into the eerie yellow glow and slanted pupils of a fox. They turned on their heels in unison, in order of their rank, and Sarah trailed behind with butterflies fluttering in her gut.

Is my destiny really in my hands right now, or, like fate, am I just walking a predetermined path?

Chapter Four

MIN-JOON

Bijoux’s going to get herself killed this time around being so bullheaded, Min-joon thought with a hint of despair, glancing between the remnants of blue magic Sarah left behind, and his co-fated mate’s retreating backsides, foxtails swishing back and forth.

They’d led her down the hall to a large glass mirror, and helped her pass into Ju-long’s territory, a mirror world like Macau’s gambling mecca, but unlike it at the same time. And now they were heading in the opposite direction, as if they hadn’t transported their mate to her impending death mere minutes ago.

“Are we going to let her die, then? She’s foolhardy but has never been a fool, up until now. We can’t let her do this, not alone at least,” he pleaded his case as he caught up with them.

The fox god trio collectively phased through another section of the hallway, stepping out into a lavish banquet hall. It was like the restaurant section of the Grand Lisboa, only filled with paranormal and immortal beings instead of humans.

“Why not? Her life and choices are none of our concern, apparently.” Bitter as ever, Bo Chang snatched a cup of soju from a minor spirits’ hand, who cowered before him, taking back the empty cup as if they had been handed a magnificent treasure.

Copious amounts of his magic leaked out, barely repressed fury warping his features closer to that of his original form of a twin-tailed fox, though they only showed one tail when in the company of others. They drew too much attention to themselves otherwise.

Min-joon looked down and over to Toshiyuki, who shrugged his shoulders and let out a prolonged sigh. Min-joon joined him, sighing so deep he could feel his sorrows weighing down on his soul. Sarah was a handful and had always been through every iteration of her life, but this was the first time she’d been so resistant to even an iota of love. So strong-willed, so independent, and underneath it all so terrified of commitment.

Why persist with your futile struggle? You are strong, true, and brave to go against fate. Therefore, I will reward you with the gift of life, and help you laugh in the face of the gods.

Her voice had been music to his weary ears, withering away at the edge of a large farm in late Joseon-era Korea.

Why persist? Why fight to survive in the cruel mortal world where his death would go unnoticed, flesh eaten away by vultures, soul recycled, and bones crushed under the weight of decay? Because he wanted to live. Because he was on the cusp of immortality. Because it was his fault, and their prejudice had been his undoing.

Min-joon was spotted at dawn by villagers, chased, and nearly beaten to death, accused of devouring the liver of a human he’d never met. But despite it all, the fox spirit clung to life, his second tail shuddering, on the verge of disintegration, and with it, his cultivated magic. A traveling shaman had come to Min-joon then, prayed over him, and gave him a home to heal. In time, he cultivated enough magic to maintain his transformation. They lived a happy life, until her health faded away, and he was forced to bury his beloved.

That had been the first time of three lifetimes spent with an iteration of the woman he now knew as Sarah Lee Ho, or Bijoux the Jewel Thief. First, he knew her as Soo Yoon the Shaman from Korea who he lived happily with until old age. Then they had met briefly when she was in the arms of another immortal, Bo Chang. They had courted Sugar the Singer from the Philippines equally, and separately, until her life was cut tragically short by an illness that no magic could cure, as Death stole her away on his time. And now they loved Sarah alongside Toshiyuki, together, mated to one.

Can one soul be bound to so many over so many years?

It was a question that plagued him since meeting Bo, and even more so when he caught Sarah in the arms of Toshi after their breakup. Each of them had attempted to capture her heart, but alone they failed. Together, maybe they stood a chance. She had stolen his heart three times, and Min-joon was committed to having the third time be the last.

Maybe falling in love and watching her die, only for her to reincarnate and die once more, has hardened Bo’s heart?

It wasn’t impossible to believe. This was only his third time meeting his fated mate, and yet a part of his heart had dulled to the inevitable pain. At least, that’s what he told himself, to numb himself to the possibility of her death.

Min-joon glanced at Toshiyuki again, who looked impatient. If he remembered correctly, Sarah was the only version of Sarah he had ever known, their mate whose soul never seemed to find peace upon death. Wandering as they wandered, longing for each other, but never to cross paths for long. It was time to put a stop to that. But if she didn’t live, they would be forced to repeat that tragic cycle all over again.

“Maybe one of us should kidnap her? That should give her time to sit and think, and hopefully learn that she’s not an immortal goddess...yet,” Bo Chang offered, finally calming down enough to offer up a useful strategy, reclining on a petal of a blue lily.

“I agree! Best route is seduction,” Toshiyuki countered, lounging on another petal of a floating white lily, legs resting on its pads, “She’s weak to desire. Let’s kidnap her, and in a matter of days, she’ll be begging us for her hand in marriage!”

They shared a laugh together, but Min-joon didn’t join in. Now wasn’t the time for flights of fancy. Bijoux was attempting to steal an item so valuable; she wouldn’t make it out of the heist alive. The humans who were after it probably thought they knew what it could do, but that was only a piece of a much bigger picture. As though he sensed Min-joon’s inner turmoil, Bo Chang’s expression changed. He was serious, lips turning down in a frown.

Ignoring the youngest of the fox trio completely, as he rattled off more ways they could cow their fated mate, Bo Chang turned to Min-joon and murmured, pupils narrowing into slits, “Look, I get it. She’s in over her head. And we can’t risk her dying on us when we can prevent it this time around. I’m just shooting shit because I’m pissed, she won’t listen to us.”

“I can get us through the door, Min-joon, but that doesn’t mean we won’t get stabbed in the back or be too late. If Sarah is crazy enough to try to pull off this heist, then...” Min-joon clasped his shoulder, squeezing down roughly. It was bad luck to voice their worst fears. They would save Sarah, no matter what trouble she got herself into.

“Ugh! Why is no one listening to me!” Toshiyuki whined, stretching obnoxiously loud as his bones cracked and morphed. In seconds, he had shrunk down into a fox, with one tail that burned bright white.

“At least walk upright, no matter how pissed off you are! We’re not animals anymore. Were gods,” Bo barked, straightening his shoulders as his modern suit melted away into a Zhongshan suit reminiscent of Republic Era China.

He tipped his fedora and slid his hand across his face to crop his long hair right above his ears. He was lying on the gangster persona a little thick; all he needed was a cigar and tommy gun to complete the effect. But it would make things easier for them once they crossed in Ju-Long’s border realm. They were going up against a monster, after all. Plus, if one looked the part of an all-powerful immortal, minor gods and spirits tended to treat them until they achieved immortality, which was a bonus.

“So, shall we go support our mate?” Bo asked.

“Support or save?” Toshi countered.

“I don’t know about you, but as much as she may overestimate herself, it’s usually a safe bet to bet on Bijoux.” Min-joon couldn’t argue with that.

Toshi transformed back and repeated his plan of simply kidnapping her and skipping the whole courting her hand in marriage. Bo Chang swatted him on the back of his head, insisting it wouldn’t work, and the time for talking shit was over with. Now they needed to act. But as they argued, Min-joon noticed something unusual in the corner of the hall. A stooped old man was cackling under the glowing light of the parallel crescent moon.

It took him a moment to realize who the tiny god was, but when he did, Min-joon’s foxy eyes almost popped out of his head. He was Yuè Lǎo, God of Fate, and to his absolute horror, Sarah’s red thread was being severed! They should only stretch and tangle, never break. But as he looked down at his hand, he saw the threads untangling one by one, holding on by a single thread. He turned to his co-fated, who were equally stunned as they watched what should be their unbreakable bond unraveling before their eyes.

Bijoux’s in trouble! We have to save Sarah! Now!

Chapter Five

SARAH

For some odd reason, she couldn’t put into words, Sarah was disappointed when the trio of fox gods didn’t come after her immediately. It was beyond selfish, she knew, but she couldn’t help but wonder why they weren’t by her side, ready to help? She’d broken their hearts, but it wasn’t like they were total strangers, and the rewards outweighed their petty differences. Even a gift of fox flame would have been enough. But to be so coldly dropped off and then rebuffed left a nasty taste in her mouth.

No matter. She was used to going it alone, and it was only her fickle heart trying to tell her otherwise. Maybe they weighed the battle ahead with the worth of the Eternal Lunar Pearl and decided against it. It wasn't worth much anyway...in the Realm of the Divine. But in the Mortal Realm, it granted its owner unimaginable power and temporary immortality. At least, that's what she had heard. She still wasn't sure why Ju-long would trade something of such worth for an ancestral god, but Sarah was hoping she wouldn't find out. The deal couldn't go through. She'd get her hands on the pearl first.

"Now what's all of this?" she chuckled, staring at the single door stopping her, blocking her from her goal.

The solid gold was beyond gaudy, and the black imperial dragon with five claws almost comical. Ju-long fashioned himself the Emperor of the Underworld, but he was little more than a coward who hid just on the cusp of each realm, afraid that if the pearl were to slip from his control, he'd be reduced to the weak half-breed bully he'd always been.

"Enter," a sinister voice called out to her as the doors slid open.

Sarah shrugged her shoulders and stepped inside boldly. Ju-long knew she was coming for the pearl; he'd been tipped off long ago. So, what was the point of pretending she was walking into anything but a trap, trying to sneak within his mock-throne room.

If one could call it that. Once she stepped inside, it looked nothing like she imagined. A strange cross between a hot spring and a penthouse office. Gods loved their hot springs. To her left were said hot springs with various merwomen lying around, and as her eyes traced the sandy walkway until it turned into tile, Sarah's eyes met more gorgeous women. All were paranormals, maybe even minor gods, some with animal ears and others clearly element spirits in the shape of a woman.

The walls were lined in crystal clear glass overlooking a strange world filled with giant floating koi fish and twisting towers made of ancient trees, leaves all colors under the sun. It was the mirror version of the Las Vegas of Asia, equally gorgeous in a strange sense, and rife with opportunities to get rich.

To her right, Sarah gasped in shock, and awe as her eyes landed on the pearl. Its mystic aura made her shudder, radiating pure power that flowed through her veins and made her groan with pleasure. Underneath it, a glorious blue lily bloomed, radiant as it was otherworldly. It lay on an eggshell-colored pedestal, carved into the shapes of seashells.

And at the center of it all, the enchanting beauty of the border between worlds—at least in his delusional mind—was none other than the dragon-shifter predator Ju-long.

"Bijoux," he hissed, voice harsh to her ears and cruel. It stung her ears and made her frown.

"In the flesh, as I have always been," she replied, crossing her arms in front of her chest, her torn neckline sloping downward from where she’d escaped from Bo Chang. She would have fixed it with a quick spell, but she would need all her remaining power to pull off her carefully laid plans.

“I...see. I suppose you’re here to join my harem instead of pulling off your pointless attempt at a heist. I wouldn't mind adding a mere human, especially one as beautiful as you.” He grinned, jagged teeth razor-sharp like a shark.

His chin rested on his white knuckles, elbows on top of his mahogany desk. Before she could respond, he abruptly stood up, attended to by water and fire spirits. They adjusted his cufflinks, straightened his tie, and helped him into his jacket. If one knew nothing about him, he'd look the part of a wealthy CEO rather than a kingpin.

Their deference made Sarah sick, but she knew more than anyone they'd been forced into their role, so she could feel only pity for them soon after.

When was the last time they had met? Hong Kong? Vietnam? Or was it South Korea? To be honest, she'd blocked it all out and couldn't pin it down. But in the time between then and now, Ju-long had changed for the worse.

His black hair was longer now, just below his waist, now streaked in silver, fanning out around his face as if lifted slightly by an invisible wind. His face was still handsome enough, and his yellow eyes and slit pupils reminded Sarah of her men. But instead of love or at least conflicting emotions, there was nothing but smug contempt radiating from their depths.

The most visible change, however, was how his tattoo had changed. What used to be a giant, winding dragon up the right side of his body and on his back had morphed into something...strange. She could only see the parts that were still exposed on his neck, hand, and face, but the ink was now row after row of shiny green scales.

Sarah's eyes darted back to the pearl, knowing instinctively that the pearl was transforming him. But how long could he hang onto such an unnatural state and immense power? If her hunch proved correct, Sarah knew it was his weakness.

"You know, I must say I preferred you as a man. Now your legend doesn't suit you. You of all people should know French is a gendered language, Bijoux." He was attempting to joke around, as sexist as it was, but she wasn't laughing along.

She could still feel his forked tongue tracing the nape of her neck, arms twisted behind her back, and a knife pressed to her breast. Just the memory of the attempted assault made her want to retch.

“What can I say, Ju-long? A girl needs to have ambition if she’s to get what she wants out of life. Does it really matter if my legend is more suited for a man," she began, taking a step forward as he tensed.

“Vice and virtue are the ways of the realms. Lying isn’t becoming of you, though,” he gritted out between clenched, sharpened teeth.

“I don’t need your pearls of wisdom, Ju-long. I need the Pearl!” He took the bait, a maddening grin overtaking her serene expression to egg him on.

In an instant, two giant ogres appeared beside her, little more than puppets for their master. They seized her by each of her arms and pulled her backward. His "harem" scattered, fleeing the room to wherever their more permanent prison was located.

"So now you have ogre henchmen? You've really leveled up over the years," she murmured, trying to keep the mood light as she centered her energy, the mantra hidden between her breasts over her fox-shaped birthmark glowing faintly, too weak to be detected.

He scoffed, combing his fingers through his hair. "I have, all thanks to that over there. But the Eternal Lunar Pearl isn't for sale, nor will I allow it to be stolen. But I've been thinking. What if we became...partners, again? Your little boy toys don't remember, but I do. You were so young but so hungry for power, at the fringes of the clan that never wanted you. I want that for us again. We can rule the mortal world with it...and unlock its true potential in the world of the divine with Yuèguāng's assistance."

Sarah had almost tuned out completely from his stock "evil villain monologue," focusing on remembering the ancient mantra needed to boost her spell when the world seemed to come to a standstill. Boy toys? True power? And what was that about the Lunar Rabbit Clan’s ancestral god lending his "assistance?"

"What the fuck!” she screamed as Ju-long clapped his hands, and two bodies came flying from aether into reality. Their necks were split from ear to ear, his trademark killing move, but it was the symbols on their chest that made all the blood drain from Bijoux's face.

They were the emissaries sent from her rival clan; there was no mistaking the white rabbit birthmarks! Did she walk into a trap within a trap? Had she been purposely fed misleading information? How much more did Ju-long know, or had her brother really set her up to die?

"You know, Bijoux..." he said, discarding the bodies as he picked up a cage from another swirling pool of aether, a tiny white rabbit inside it covered in dried blood, "...you’re famous for thinking up and executing the perfect plan. But this time I have been ahead of your little games, many steps ahead might I add. How easy it was to play on the rivalry between your clans and your greed. To feed lies to your allies in exchange for future prestige. And now you have a choice. Watch me test the pearl on your immortal boyfriends and stand by my side in the process. Or be obliterated with the scum as I become the true emperor of both realms!"

There was no way she was going to watch Bo, Min-joon, or Toshi get killed, and she certainly didn't come there to be his concubine or face death. Though she'd rather die than watch her lovers get caught up in Ju-long's megalomania. It's why they never worked out as partners; he dreamed too big to overcompensate for his wretched childhood, while Sarah made do with the circumstances of her youth and moved on.

"You're fucking insane! As if I'd help you. I don't know what I don't know when it comes to the pearl, but I know your body is warring with itself right now. So why would I resign myself to a fate worse than death by your side?" That seemed to hit all the wrong spots.

"You're still a mouthy piece of work, even if you look like a bitch now! No matter. You of all people should know I don't take no for an answer." Ju-long cackled, something akin to lightning crackling from his skin, face morphing as the scales shimmered and rattled against his remaining skin.

He was angry. Enraged, even. That was good. She hung her head as she was dragged towards her mortal enemy by his henchmen, playing the part of a defeated and depressed victim. But underneath her bangs, hairpin falling out of her hair, the master thief was smirking. For Ju-long believed himself to be victorious, ensnaring her in his trap before she could get her hands on the Eternal Lunar Pearl. He was wrong.

Gotcha.

"Yaah!" she wailed, shattering the glass windows.

She released the mantra she'd been holding tight to her chest, and it flew onto Ju-long's forehead. Time wavered and then paused, creating a temporal pocket that would allow Sarah a few minutes to move. That would pass in seconds. It was said that the spell fed on the soul, so she couldn't keep it up for long.

The mantra enhanced the ancient freezing spell, but her whole plan was to give her enough time to drag the pearl first to a trap in the Divine Realm and then back home. But none of what she'd been told held any weight anymore, and she couldn't trust what the Eternal Lunar Pearl could or couldn't do.

But instead of immobilizing Ju-long temporarily to make a move on the pearl, she flew forward and knocked the cage from his arms. The rabbit god hopped out, staring up at her with his blood-red eyes.

I can't rely on what intel I received when it comes to the pearl. For all I know, he's immortal now, both in the mortal and immortal realms. But I can save a desperate god in need. Gods always return a favor. And if he'd kill and deceive to capture Yuèguāng, he must be more powerful than he seems.

At least, she hoped he could and would as Ju-long and his men turned their fury on her. Her time was up.

Sarah flipped backward and spun around, releasing a torrent of magical energy. All she had left was a protective spell. It took the shape of a foxtail just as a barrage of magical bullets flew her way, emanating from the palms of the dragon-shifter’s hands, his henchmen smashing their fists into her shield.

The majority ricocheted away, but some caught her arms and legs, and one shattered against her stomach, and she collapsed against their weight. She was trapped, about to die, and no one was coming to save her. Even the rabbit god seemed to ignore her desperate circumstances and silent plea for help, hopping towards the pearl. To her horror, its jaw dislocated and grew, inhaling the pearl and flower after hopping into the air.

"Damn it!" Ju-long growled, stopping his attack long enough for Bijoux to roll toward the door.

But the ogres caught up with her before she could even attempt to free herself. She knew it was wishful thinking. What a damsel in distress longed for in her time of need.

But I turned my men away, and now I’ll die alone.

"No!" she wailed, watching helplessly as Ju-long seized the rabbit by its white ears and plunged a knife into its gut like he was trying to cut the pearl out of its stomach.

It squealed and knocked the demi-god away with its holy force. He flew out of the busted windows, shards of glass cutting into his reptilian flesh. Sarah almost let out a shout of joy, but balked when she realized he was very much alive.

"After that rodent! Kill Bijoux now!" he roared, saved by a legion of crow shifters who held him up like a king.

Ju-long brushed the glass from his body and turned his attention back on Bijoux after being placed back inside the penthouse. By his side was what she assumed was their semi-transformed leader. He nodded, flinging himself after Yuèguāng, who had created a portal on the verge of death. The crows flew after him in a swarm. Some of their heads snapped off as it suddenly closed. Their discarded bodies twitched on the ground post-mortem.

Ju-long walked towards her menacingly, his body now fully distorted, white horns sprouting from his head, taking the shape of an upright dragon.

This is how it ends? she thought, her heart squeezing tight, so tight she thought it would explode.

She had known Ju-long since she was a child, and thought she still knew him as an adult. But Sarah didn't know this Ju-long drunk on power so much he bordered on madness. He was no longer a demi-divine, the bastard son of a dragon god and a human woman. He was simply a monster with monstrous strength.

Sarah made one last desperate to live, pulling out a spare mantra. If she attempted another spell, Sarah knew her soul may not handle it. But it was the only way out, even if her out wouldn't mean she stayed alive.

"Goddess, hear my prayer! Deliver to me the power of flame and fury! Burn the wretched away in your holy flame!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, birthmark searing her chest as nine-tails appeared around the fox head.

"Nooo!" Ju-long howled as the penthouse was engulfed in blue fox flames, burning bright and white-hot, consuming all in its wake. She clutched her chest, unable to hold on to her protective shield for much longer. It felt like her heart would burn into dust.

With no options left, Bijoux opted for death, and flung herself from the open window at full speed, praying she'd be saved at the last minute by her gods.

Chapter Six

LILLIAN

Humming to the tune of Lumière’s latest hit single, “Angel!Baby,” Lillian scrolled through her phone, bored out of her mind. Lillian had taken her new nickname from the song, and it usually boosted her bad mood, but didn’t this time around. She’d used up all her tickets on her favorite text-chat, serial story, and romance apps, and her father had long since cut her off from his credit cards. And she wouldn’t see a cent of Aunt Bijoux’s personal fortune if she didn’t stay put. Which meant she wouldn’t be able to purchase any of her favorite pastimes anytime soon.

She had also caught up with the latest news from Toshi’s fan café and had re-watched all of his latest variety shows, web dramas, and his first leading role in a romantic movie to pass the time. Her brain felt like it was disintegrating from all the ooey-gooey love stories.

“What the hell am I supposed to do all weekend?” she cried out to no one in particular. As much as she enjoyed her aunt’s cooking—she should have been a chef rather than a jewel thief—Lillian couldn’t just sit around and eat all weekend.

She knew the seriousness of her situation, and how he always dragged his daughter’s life into the crosshairs of the family business. But what Lillian didn’t understand was why she was being forced to hide when it should be her father instead. Was someone really trying to kill her?

She’d heard the rumors, at least, and caught the look of smug satisfaction in some of her father’s bodyguard’s eyes. They didn’t like him, which meant they hated her for some strange reason, like she asked to be her daughter or be born a mobster’s pride and joy. That’s why her aunt had selected some new ones from her personal guard to watch over her.

Well, she thought as she rolled onto her stomach, staring over at Toshi’s pristine smile on her aunt’s massive flatscreen, pride and joy might be going too far. Father tolerates me. His mistresses hate me. Who knows how Mother felt before she left.

If not for being ridiculously wealthy, Lillian imagined she’d be like the downtrodden heroines of her favorite J-dramas, minus the boyfriend straight out of a fairytale.

No, she was a “spoiled mafia princess,” the lonely villainess of those stories. Which meant, just like her Aunt Bijoux, she had to find her own path. She couldn't rely on anyone, especially a man, to come through and flash his money and good looks to improve her life somehow.

I won’t leave Chinatown.

That was the promise she made to her aunt. And Lillian was going to keep her word. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t bend her aunt’s rules. Chinatown didn’t comprise her luxury condo alone. Would grabbing a bite to eat really be breaking her promise to her? Especially with a slew of bodyguards in tow?

I don’t think so!

With a grin, Lillian bolted upward and hopped over to the window. All of Chinatown was basically her playground, and the underworld her backyard. Who would dare try to kill her on the Solar Rabbit Clan’s turf under Bijoux’s protection?

A part of Lillian’s mind, the rational part, warned her she was stretching the truth, and that everything wasn’t as it seemed. Why else would the adults be so worried, when they usually shrugged off threats to their lives? Something big was brewing behind the scenes. Lillian just wasn't privy to what it was.

But the childish part of her mind won out in the end. After all, she was basically her father with only a little more good sense. She was used to getting her way and had never witnessed the dark underbelly of the Solar Rabbit Clan’s dealing up close, nor faced any real consequences for her disobedience in the past. As long as she stayed in her clan’s territory, she naively thought she’d be safe.

Standing just outside the fortified gate that protected her aunt’s home, Lillian waited anxiously for her friend to arrive. Two silent guards, who wore stereotypical suits and headsets, already flanked her, like they just stepped out of a cheesy action flick.

Lillian went up on her toes, dark hair swaying in the wind, cupping her eyes against the blazing sun on the verge of setting. That’s when she spotted him, waving him over frantically.

“Jong-hyun?” she whined. “Where were you?”

He rolled his eyes at her, brushing back his shoulder-length, silky black hair. He was still wearing his Catholic school uniform, his church boy aesthetic totally at odds with his personality and upbringing. He was an up-and-coming gangster in the Korean branch of the Solar Rabbit Clan, Taeyang Tokki Iljog, if she remembered the Korean correctly. Jong-hyun also happened to be the only boy around her age that could get close to her, seeing as he’d served as a part of her personal guard one day.

Stopping a few inches away from her with an umbrella in his hand, he sighed. “You should be inside.”

It was her turn to roll her eyes, waiting for him to open the umbrella. He did so without hesitation, tilting it so it completely covered Lillian and barely covered his shoulder. She didn’t know it was supposed to rain, but she also hadn’t bothered to check. Always perceptive, Lillian doubted Jong-hyun ever left his house without checking the weather. Sometimes he was just too perfect, like he wasn’t even human.

“I’m not leaving Chinatown. We’re not. And you see these two? There’s more on the roofs and every nook and cranny. We’ll be fine.” She slapped him on the shoulder and skipped along, snickering at his dramatic sigh as he caught up.

His legs were longer than hers, and he was now much taller than her two. He was only two years older, but everyday Jong-hyun seemed older, wiser, and more estranged. It worried Lillian since, between her fan calls with Toshiyuki and the occasional outing with other “princesses” to socialize, Jong-hyun was the only person she could really call a friend. The more he seemed unlike himself, the more worried she became.

But Lillian didn’t voice any of her concerns, instead opting to point out new shops and old as they passed underneath the famous Dragon Gates of Chinatown. They cut through crowds of residents and tourists alike and wandered the narrow alleys and sloping streets. They would look out-of-place anywhere else, but the Ho’s were considered a famous, eccentric wealthy family to most, and feared mob bosses to those in the know. So, Lillian and her posse had no problems parting crowds like butter and clearing out shops as she pleased. Sometimes they’d stop at a small storefront, and Lillian debated eating here or there, but never stopped to enter a place for long. The second they actually stopped to eat would mean they were closer to going home.

I want to spend more time with him and outside of Aunt Bijoux’s home.

However, when Lillian turned down the sixth restaurant to grab a bite to eat, Jong-hyun had enough and made it known. He tugged on her cheek after boxing her in beneath an umbrella shielding a pottery shop’s window.

“That’s enough, Li-Lang! Enough playing around. We need to go back. It’s not safe…” his voice trailed off, staring down at her with his ethereal honey-brown eyes, bangs, and clothing slick with water, clinging to his face and chest.

Lillian gulped, shoving him away. Even as he stumbled back, allowing her to do as she pleased, he kept her shielded from the rain. “Don’t call me Li-Lang. And fine! Whatever. I don’t know why you have to be so paranoid. You should know better than most nothing is going to happen to us!”

The way his thick black eyebrows furrowed, and his mouth twisted made Lillian second-guess herself. If even Jong-hyun was that worried about an impending attack, maybe she really was being oblivious?

She lowered her head, feeling like a brat. She dragged how many bodyguards and her best friend around just because she was bored for what? When their lives could really be in danger? Maybe it was the number of dramas she’d been watching as of late starring her all-star idol, but Lillian was feeling bad about herself more and more. She wouldn’t have thought about it before, but now she was worried all of them would catch a cold and potentially a bullet because she was being stubborn.

“... Alright already! Stop glaring at me like that. Let’s go home. But can you at least pick me something up to eat before we go? Pretty please?” she begged, stepping forward, clutching the ends of his shirt and nearly pulling it from his black slacks.

Lillian didn’t notice the way his eyes darkened, or how he tilted his face to hide his blushing. She simply smiled as he nodded, murmured some harsh words to her bodyguards, and took off to grab her favorite meal.

Lillian waited and waited and waited some more until she got worried. The sun had long since set, but it shouldn’t have taken so long for an order of some inauthentic Kung Pao chicken.

“Hey?” she ordered the guard closest to her, his face hidden behind a magical bright red and gold tiger mask. “Go check on Jong-hyun.”

He turned her way but didn’t move. She looked at the other guard with a matching mask, who also remained silent. Confused and a little afraid, Lillian backed up and away, then she took off running toward Uncle Bao’s restaurant. Her bodyguards remained rooted in place, staring at her, motionless, devoid of emotion if their glazed eyes were any indication.

Now terrified, Lillian ran harder than she had ever run in her life under the pouring rain, ruining her aunt’s expensive fur coat and designer clothing. When she finally made it to the restaurant, however, she was shocked to find a dozen or so bodyguards waiting for her, all wearing the same mask with robotic eyes.

She stopped hard, panicking, brushing back her wet hair from her eyes and face. The sea of men parted, and she was surprised to find a tiny white rabbit balled up on the ground, its blood mixing with the water, what looked like a stab wound in its belly.

“What the he—” she didn’t have time to finish, as Jong-hyun burst from the restaurant through the glass, his body slamming against trash cans as he slid from the opposite wall. Lillian watched in horror as a shadow decapitated the bodyguards one by one, their blood raining down like some macabre fountain.

When the shadow paused, landing on the ground, Sarah recognized it to be a crow shifter. The man had the typical wings of one and bent feet. However, his spiky black hair, muscular torso with a thin, tattered cloth tied around his waist, blood-red eyes, and grim expression made him appear to be a god of Death, rather than a shifter spirit. He opened his mouth and screamed, a sonic boom causing the raindrops to pause mid-air.

Lillian watched it hurdle her way, unable to move, when suddenly Jong-hyun appeared beside her, lifted her into his arms, and they both went flying against the wall. She clutched his neck and wrapped her legs around his waist, terrified. It was only then that she felt trembling between them. She thought it was her heart at first, and then his, until she opened her eyes long enough to see the rabbit that lay on the ground between them.

“That’s not an ordinary crow!” she shouted the obvious, smashing the rabbit in between their chests as she clutched her best friend again.

“I know. He ain’t working for Dal Tokki Bujog, either,” he groaned between strained breaths, wheezing for air. “We have to run away!”

He took off full speed without another word, cutting through damp, narrow corners, and smashing into various shopkeepers, scaling street food stalls and walls, only to have his hands and feet pecked to death so that they always tumbled back down to Earth. Lillian watched it all unfold as the crow shifter trailed them from the clouds, its enormous shadow like a low-flying plane. Various crows came after them, and other birds, pecking anybody and anything it saw to death. It was an infestation, a call to war.

“Ugh!” Jong-hyun screamed in pain as one crow spiraled towards his back so fast his beak acted as a knife. He tumbled forward with Lillian in tow.

Just before they hit the ground, he thrust her away, spun around, and obliterated the crow with a written spell. It screeched in terror as the piece of paper caught fire and engulfed it.

“Jong-hyun!” she cried out to him, still clutching the rabbit. That’s when, to her utter shock, a miracle occurred.

Lillian watched in amazement as the injured white rabbit transformed, body quadrupling in size in minutes, but still in the form of a rabbit. She pushed it away as it got too big. But then, slowly but surely, human features emerged as it shed its damp white fur covered in ruby red blood.

Its ears folded and vanished, and its skin glistened, turning pale pink and then sun-kissed brown. Thick black wavy hair flowed down the rabbit’s back to the balls of its feet, now tucked into its chest. Slowly, they stood much taller and older than Lillian expected. It was only then that Lillian realized the injured rabbit, the now-injured man, was butt naked! She held her hands over her mouth to keep from screaming. Before she knew it, she was tugging her aunt’s stolen fur jacket off and throwing it at the stranger’s lithe body covered in wounds from the birds.

“Did you save me?” His accent was strange to Lillian’s ears, and untraceable, obsidian eyes so dark they resemble deep space. When she glanced at Jong-hyun for help, he looked equally lost, swatting away more crows and birds with successive spells.

She frowned, “Y-yes. Well, he did. I just held you, is all. I’m glad you’re alive! Can you help us? Are you a god? Gods are supposed to help those who help them, right? My family is rich. They can give you anything you’ve—”

“I am Yuèguāng. He will be my groom, and you will be my bride. That is your reward for saving my life.” The name sounded vaguely familiar, despite his over-dramatic delivery short-circuiting the girl’s head.

Lillian, Jong-hyun whispered into her mind via magic. We need to run! Master isn’t a minor spirit… He’s the Lunar Rabbit Clan’s god! That's why these damn birds are attacking us. They don’t want you or me. They want him!

Lillian gasped, but was still too deep in a state of shock to act. She didn’t even catch the insertion of “master” on Jong-hyun’s part. Jong-hyun rose to his feet and charged forward, but was caught in a headlock before he could reach her side. Yuèguāng, as her friend had called the newcomer, lifted his paw into the air. And it was a paw, similar to a human’s but covered in fur with elongated black claws. As the largest of the crow deities swept low, he uttered an incantation. In seconds, it burst into cosmic flames and crashed through the roof of an apartment complex.

Struggling to stand, all Lillian could do was stare at the devastation the battle had left in their wake, unable to process what was going on and what she should do to save Jong-hyun and herself. But she didn’t have long to be confused. In the blink of an eye, he was by her side.

“I will make you both mine. Now come. I need time to heal.” Before she could even respond, Yuèguāng pulled her towards his chest, letting go just long enough to pull Jong-hyun in as well. In an instant, they disappeared, only leaving behind rippling puddles pounded by falling rain, and the dizzying scent of sunflowers in their wake.

Chapter Seven

TOSHIYUKI

We're too late!

Toshiyuki’s fox paws pounded the ground as he raced towards Ju-long Towers. The imitation of a human skyscraper looked out of place in the magical realm it was in, and all of it had gone up in holy flames. Below, various shifters and spirits, gods and demons looked upon the inferno in awe. But all Toshi could think of was Bijoux, and the way their string of fate was nearly severed.

“Sarah!” Bo Chang, his eldest co-fated, screamed as a section of the tower melted away completely, leaving nothingness in its wake.

Nothing could withstand the power of the Nine-Tailed Goddess, not even an immortal. They would be forced into reincarnation as lesser beings, while mortals would be no more.

It didn't have to be like this. Sarah had been so foolish. They had tried to rescue her from her fate, sent into a panic by their dissolving strings, but it was no use. Some spell had captured them as they reached Ju-long's golden door, and when they came to, it was chaos. Each time they tried to open it, the fox gods were rebuffed, as if fate demanded them to give in and watch their mate die.

Toshi had heard about it before, in bits and pieces, when his elders were drunk. He knew a time would come if Sarah kept rejecting them, she would die. He'd foolishly believed she would accept them soon enough, unable to deny all three. He couldn't have imagined her soul obliterated, never to return.

"Damn it!" Min-joon groaned, half-transformed, his twin tails, black claws, and pointed ears present. "We can't stop this. This is the goddess' will."

"Bullshit!" Bo Chang sneered, his expression feral, bones cracking as he too transformed into a fox larger than all three in his natural state, "We must do something!"

Toshi was at a loss for words, standing on his hind legs as he and the others gathered, watched the blue flames turn bright white, the fire claiming all in its wake. The trio stood a safe distance away, across a crystal-clear river by a towering tree that spiraled to the heavens. The home of many paranormal beings.

For all their awesome power, and years of cultivation, what could they do in the face of such destruction? They were immortal, but even if they ran headfirst into the flames, they'd be little use to Sarah.

She's probably already dead.

The morbid thought hit him like a meteorite, shattering his resolve. Toshi folded, curling into a ball, glad that he was in his natural state, for his co-fated couldn't see his tears. Devastation couldn't even begin to describe his tumultuous feelings.

But then, like a bolt of lightning, something stirred him to his feet. He gazed upward with the crowd as a tiny ball of light shot from the tower like a shooting star. He didn't know why, but he knew in his heart of hearts that it was her.

"Help me, please!" he pleaded, transforming back into his human shape. Bo Chang and Min-joon flew down from their perches on the tree and rushed towards him.

"Do you think–" Bo Chang cut Min-joon off in an instant.

"It's her, isn't it? What should we do? How can we save her?" he pleaded as if Toshi had all the answers.

Toshi looked between them, suddenly appearing much older than they usually did. He thought of how many lifetimes they'd watched her die, waiting for the moment she'd be reborn. But Sarah was the only version of Sarah he'd ever know. And if he was the only version of Toshi, she loved in this world, it would be enough for him.

He reached for them, pulling his elders into a loose hug. They grabbed him back tightly, sobs dying in their throats, attempting to hold it all together.

"Goodbye. It's been... Well, shit, it's been an honor to meet my other lovesick partners." He attempted to smile, pushing away before they could question what he meant.

Toshi transformed once more, twin-tails ablaze. He bounded up the ancient tree trunk, claws digging into the bark as he reached a point where he stood above where the Ju-long Towers used to be. Then he leaped, on a literal wing and a prayer, surfing the mystic winds towards the blazing ball of light he knew contained Sarah's weakened soul.

When had they first met? Maybe a year or two before he rocketed to fame. He'd been enraptured by her beauty and then amazed by her brain. She was always scheming, but always generous, too. She shared little of her heart, so guarded and afraid of being hurt, but shared her wealth like it was endless. And it seemed that way at first.

Betting on Bijoux always seemed that way at first. But under her armor and legend, she was just a woman, just like he was just a man. Maybe not like a mortal man, but with a heart and will akin.

What greater love could he show her than to sacrifice his most precious gift in exchange for her soul?

"Sarah!" he wailed as his eternal body collided with the shooting star. He expected pain, flinching hard, but was shocked to find himself feeling nothing at all. No pain, no fear, not even anger at Ju-long, who had surely perished in the foxfire and started the whole awful chain of events leading to that moment.

And then, rapidly, emotions filled him until Toshi thought he would shatter. But they were not his own. Confusion, fear, anguish, sorrow, longing...

These were his mate's emotions, her hopes and terrors all fused into one free-flowing chain. He searched the blinding light for her soul, to grab onto it and infuse his power into her long enough for her to survive. The fox flames began to lick at his flesh, searing him even though he was of the Goddess. Her power was just that intense.

Toshiyuki didn't have long before he'd be no more.

He had to fight. He would fight for her. He would give his immorality if he must. For this Sarah was the only Sarah he had ever known and loved. What greater gift could one give the greatest thief of both realms?

Chapter Eight

SARAH

Maybe fate has finally caught up with me, making a mockery of my end? Maybe this is the end? Dying alone, fleeing for my life, completely empty-handed. All my struggle, all for nothing. Only my broken body to drag back home as a failure. As a disgrace. What was it all for in the end?

Those negative thoughts were the only way Sarah could unpack her strange predicament. She should be dead, but she still existed. Maybe not in the land of the living, but a land, nonetheless. A luminous full moon soaked her in its rays as she stumbled up and over a wooden bridge, translucent koi fish the size of small children swimming below. Lightning bugs, whose buds were lit up blue instead of their customary pale yellow, trailed after her as she stumbled towards a dark void.

Her sides ached where Ju-long had rained down his bullets, and the ogres had beaten down with their fists, and all the injuries were blossoming into bruises all over her body. However, she was not burned in the least. Her skin still resembled skin, and her body was intact. She was hurt, but largely uninjured in any critical sense. It made no sense.

The Holy Fox Flame, or whatever the ancient spell she had drawn on was really named, was meant to make Ju-long no more, erase his existence and destroy his soul. Only then could she have the Eternal Lunar Peal to herself. And only then could

But she had just gone through all that abuse to miss out on the reason she’d come to Macau, and then Ju-long’s casino palace in the first place, the Eternal Lunar Pearl. On top of that, it felt like something had... broken inside of her.

She felt violently ill in a way that disturbed her and shook her to the core of her being. It was like a piece of her was missing, falling away and falling apart, laying bare her vulnerability like a newborn baby without someone to nurture them in the cold. And she felt cold too, freezingly so, clutching her arms as her teeth clattered.

I have to…

run...

I have to get…

help...

I have to…

find my way…

home.

She kept stepping forward, stumbling and dragging herself back to her feet. Nothing seemed familiar, and it wouldn’t be. She was no longer home, trapped far away in another world altogether. But there had to be a way out.

Sarah couldn’t be trapped in the strange world forever, or in the Realm of the Divine, if she'd crossed over from the paranormal buffer that divided mortals from gods.

It was unnatural for a mortal to live among immortals for long. If she couldn’t figure out how to get out, she would be trapped there forever. She couldn’t let that happen. She had so much to live for. She wanted so much more out of her life.

Not like this… Please… Gods… Goddess... Not like this…

Sarah begged, knowing her prayers would go unanswered. Though she didn't know where she was, she knew she wasn't supposed to be there. Maybe Sarah was never meant to exist at all?

Kneeling before a cherry blossom tree that emerged from the void, Sarah knelt down and breathed deep. She was hyperventilating. Or was she suffocating? She turned back and saw the bridge she had crossed over, but when she looked forward, there was nothing but darkness.

It was soothing, devoid of the terror the world beyond the bridge seemed to instill in her, forcing her to run away. Sarah considered her options, and sobbed, hair breaking free from her clip and falling past her shoulders.

Was this the end? It had to be. She wasn't sure why the road to death looked ripped out of a historical Japanese movie, but it was the end all the same.

And she would accept it willingly. What else could she do? How many times had Bo, Min-joon, and Toshi begged for her hand, and she'd refused? In her lifetime, three times. But how many lifetimes had been cut too short. Or had she run away from the thought of being with each of them?

Maybe it would be better this way. She'd stop leading them on and stop lying to herself that she wanted to be with them and forget the troubles of the mortal world. Of her responsibilities to her clan, and the pressure of living up to her legend.

Yes, maybe it was easier to give in to death. As if the gods could hear her resolve shatter and fall away, hands emerged from the inky darkness attached to beings that must have been spirits.

And how frightening they were. Not because they resembled the image of demons that had carried over generations of human life. They frightened her because each of them looked like her, dragging their final iteration to an inky black oblivion.

Sarah didn't resist them, the collection of her previous iterations as they latched onto her and dragged her forward, glassy eyes devoid of emotions, smiles resembling carved masks.

But as her body was almost subsumed, two hands gripped her around her waist and pulled back. Her spirits stirred, smiles flipping to grotesque frowns. They screeched, fingers elongating, nails sharpening as they attempted to drag her back.

Sarah would have clutched her chest if she could. A giant weight on her heart as she felt her soul being literally ripped in two.

"Let go of her!" the man screamed, and she knew it was Toshiyuki.

He had come for her. They had come for her, most likely to save her from her foolish decisions. But could gods go against fate if this was the end of the road for her soul?

I want to live. I have to live. If not for their sakes, because I want to live!

A sudden burst of willpower jolted Sarah out of her stupor. She pulled and twisted, fighting against the innumerable other Sarahs who howled and cackled, trying to drag her back into submission and into the void. But she couldn't die. No, she wouldn't die just yet.

Because I want to live!

Chapter Nine

LILLIAN

“Lillian? Li-Lang! Wake up right now! We’re in deep shit and we need to get out of here right now.” Lillian gasped, choking on her own spit as someone continually slapped her cheeks, not hard enough to hurt, but hard enough to wake her up.

When her eyes finally adjusted to the strange blinding light above her, she was relieved to see Jong-hyun’s face. But that’s when her relief ended. He was dressed strangely, in a long white robe with embroidered sunflowers, that didn’t seem to have any distinct ethnic origin, with his hair tied back. As he helped her sit up, she noticed she was wearing a scarlet red cheongsam embroidered with flowers, like some Shanghai movie star from the early twentieth century. It made little sense. Had the rabbit god Yuèguāng teleported them into the past?

“I know what you’re thinking Li-Lang,” Jong-hyun whispered, adjusting his tall, layered hat that looked visibly Korean, though she only recognized it from dramas and not the name or significance, “But you’re wrong. We’re not in some feudal era or the turn of the century. We’re not dead, either. But we’re not in the Mortal Realm anymore, that’s for sure.”

Lillian’s mouth flew open when she finally looked around to see what he was talking about. They lay in a vast field of sunflowers, some so tall they looked as if they’d pierce the bright blue sky, so clear above them it couldn’t be natural. And it wasn’t.

Like a glass mirror acting as a portal to another world, the sky rippled, and various creatures glided above. Rainbow-colored dragons, giant goldfish, and even some dreaded crows flew above them like they were looking into a pool. The parallel world was like a highway for various shifters and gods, and they were trapped at the bottom of a vast bubble.

“Where are we?” she murmured, clinging to Jong-hyun, who wrapped his arms around her much smaller shoulders.

“I don’t know, but just stick close to me. I’m sure Yuèguāng will return any minute now. We’ll ask him.” It seemed easier said than done, but Lillian decided to trust in Jong-hyun and trust in the god.

He always kept a much more level head than her during times of trouble, and always protected her. And for all his terrifying power, the god had saved them from that giant crow. And what could Lillian possibly do in their peculiar situation other than cry, seeing as she was never skilled with magic since her father didn’t bother to train her? What could she offer as a tribute to a god who obviously didn’t care for human luxuries? Why else would he abandon the Lunar Rabbit Clan and return to wherever they were?

“Sssh,” Jong-hyun ordered, dragging her downward. His broad chest covered her tiny body.

She held her hands over her mouth to stifle a scream, as her most trusted personal guard dug inside his long sleeves, probably looking for his mantras. Their power lived in their blood, members of the warring Rabbit Clans. But it was enhanced through the use of physical objects, especially for the less experienced like a guard in-training.

“Oh no, what do we have here?” Jong-hyun pushed off of Lillian and let out a terrifying howl, a huge burst of black energy blasted towards the voice’s direction.

Lillian rolled onto her stomach, got to her feet, and got into a fighting stance. She was woefully undertrained, but she wasn’t going down without a fight. However, before she could even start misremembering a spell, she noticed her friend was nowhere to be found.

“Jong-hyun? Jong-hyun! Jong…” something told her to look up, and she did, shocked to find him levitating in the air.

He kicked and fussed and cussed, and that’s when she noticed nine claws had captured his body. Above him flew a very large and ancient crow, some of his black feathers a shiny silver, scars and new wounds littering his body. His eyes, however, looked rather human and infinitely patient as he slowly lowered himself and Jong-hyun back to the ground.

As he rolled away, darting backward to defend Lillian, they both noticed there was no malicious intent radiating from the new crow’s body. Instead, he seemed almost... jovial. The crow shifter waltzed forward on three legs, followed by what appeared to be a human man who materialized beside him. Only his purple eyes gave away that he was someone special.

“I’m Asuka. And this here is my mentor, Old Crow,” the newcomer said, his voice much deeper than she expected, like an echo from a deep cave. He wore a simple striped, black Japanese yukata with a white paper fan in his hand, swooped back jet-black hair more elegant than his attire.

What kind of name is Old Crow? And why does he have three legs? Is he a mutant? And what’s this about being his mentor? How does a crow god take on a human protege?

Lillian whined. Jong-hyun had pinched her. His face was warning her that her emotions were clear to see. Lillian schooled her expression and attempted to smile and not stare. Though, she couldn’t help but stare once she really took in all of Old Crow’s gaudy adornments. The number of precious stones encrusted in the bangles around his legs must have been worth a fortune, and Lillian wondered if the Old Crow was some sort of mobster or another ancestral god from a wealthy dynasty? Was Asuka his protege or a servant?

“I... I am Jong-hyun, a guardian of the Solar Rabbit Clan,” Jong-hyun began, guiding Lillian behind his back.

She peeked over at the odd duo from behind his massive sleeves. “We need help. An ancestral god of our rivals, Yuèguāng, has kidnapped us. We can offer you… Well…”

Just like Lillian, Jong-hyun seemed sincerely stumped. He couldn’t beat the crow, who was infinitely stronger than what little show of force he’d displayed. Even Lillian could pick up on that. And he seemed wealthy enough with enough tributes to tide him over. If he didn’t even bother to take a human form, did he care about human luxury at all? And if Asuka was truly his protege or a member of his human cult’s clan, he’d have no need for two teenage magicians to join him for protection or devotion.

“Old Crow. I did not summon you here to scare my mates. I summoned you here to heal them and bear witness.” A booming voice appeared behind Lillian and Jong-hyun, who spun around.

These immortals are going to give me a heart attack if they keep appearing out of thin air like that!

The teens backed away as none other than Yuèguāng appeared a little over six feet in height, all muscle and might. His hair was parted, one section tied into a curly bun that rested on the nape of his neck, and the rest spiraling down past his buttocks. It was longer than Lillian’s that stopped at the small of her back. His features seemed more mature, with a high nose and deep-set dark eyes, lashes so long they made him appear almost feminine. But on closer inspection, he didn’t look much older than them by human standards, maybe nineteen at most. He was just very tall, very imposing, and still mostly naked, with only a thick loincloth covering his privates.

It would have been quite hilarious to think such a fearsome god took the form of a small white rabbit, but Lillian was too scared shitless to make the connection. All she wanted to do was curl up with her Toshi body pillow and pretend the whole gruesome day hadn’t happened. Why had she been so foolish to push the limits of her promise, only to get trapped in a parallel dimension?

Lillian and Jong-hyun looked to each other, partly to find strength in each other’s presence to get through their situation, and also to wrap their heads around their next steps. Both coming up empty, Lillian reached for her most trusted guard’s hand and squeezed tight. He did the same.

Asuka and Old Crow ambled towards Yuèguāng, calm and composed, like they were greeting an old friend after a long time. And they most likely were. He had been the ancestral god for the Solar Rabbit Clan for at least three generations, if not more, since they split. The history from back when they were united was unclear to Lillian, and she never bothered asking any of her elders. They didn’t know and also didn’t care.

“Now then. It’s time Old Crow prepare—” Lillian cut him off, finding her courage now that she was sure he wasn’t trying to end their lives.

“Wait a minute! Stop! Please! We saved your life, didn’t we? So, we should be rewarded. Please send us back home, we... erm,” she tried to find the right word, dropping to her knees.

Jong-hyun’s mouth flew open in shock before he joined her on the ground, head bowed, beseeching Yuèguāng alongside his young mistress. “We implore you, god of the Moon!”

They waited for his mercy to rain down on their bowed heads, believing that all gods returned a favor. Gods were mostly immortal, but even they could be rendered mortal by special means, like being weakened through the withdrawal of tribute and trapped in the Mortal Realm. That was one rumor Lillian knew now was true. By all accounts, Yuèguāng would be dead if not for them.

But instead of a portal opening up to send them back, his booming laughter shook the air and bent the sunflowers around them. He stopped just as suddenly as he began, expression souring a bit. “Have I not already offered you both a reward? You will be made immortal, risen to my rank, once the ceremony is held and you give your consent.”

Ceremony? Immortality? Consent? The words bounced around Lillian’s head like dropped plates, shattering and creating a huge, confusing mess. But then, just as rapidly, bits and pieces of conversations came to Lillian in waves. Her mouth flew open, and she stammered, “You wanted Xiuying to be your br-bride? The Solar Rabbit Clan’s eldest daughter? Isn’t that right?”

“Why yes, mortal, I did. They refused my request and then had the audacity to try and sell me to that dragon-devil Ju-long for my own pearl! As if I’d let its true secrets fall into the hands of those ungrateful human elders,” Yuèguāng spat, obviously enraged.

“But what does that have to do... with us?” Jong-hyun ventured, reaching over to squeeze the top of Lillian’s hand.

“Well, according to Ying Yue Jiang here, I’ll have the honor of conferring immortality to you both after I officiate your wedding! One bride out the door, and two fated mates enter. I know Old Yuè Lǎo is cackling!” Old Crow chirped, wings flapping as if to say congratulations.

“Wh-what?!” Lillian and Jong-hyun shouted in unison.

“What do you mean ‘what’? It’s time your petty war came to an end anyway. Dividing the Rabbit Clans has caused me nothing but grief. Now, what is her name, yes that Bijoux has gone and made a mess. If I hadn’t snatched that divine treasure in time, your clans would have made a mockery of the gods, thrashing around Earth, causing a great calamity. What better way to solidify unity than to marry a member from each and join the opposing clans as one once more? It’s destiny!” Lillian was barely keeping up, still on her knees, when two things struck her at once.

Her aunt had failed to recover the Eternal Lunar Pearl and was most likely in big trouble over in Macau. And there was only one problem with his marriage pact plan. Besides the obvious, Jong-hyun and Lillian were both from the same clan, just different branches... correct?

Lillian looked over to Jong-hyun to confirm the obvious, but the way he nodded, and his right eye squinted, gave her pause. No one else would notice the tick, but she knew him long enough to know his eye squinted when he was lying to her.

But she didn’t have time to process the enormity of that truth, as the Red String of Fate began to materialize, or should she say strings. One wound itself around Lillian’s right ankle, only to connect Yuèguāng’s, and she felt the middle of her chest burning where her black rabbit birthmark was. Then, around her left pinky, and Jong-hyun’s right, a twin red string appeared, and he reached up to clutch his chest, like his birthmark burned as well.

Destiny? Fated mates? A shotgun wedding while her aunt was probably dead? It was like unlocking a harem ending in an otome game, but she hated everyone in it. Lillian gazed between Jong-hyun, Asuka, Old Crow, and her supposed fiancé, now called Ying Yue Jiang. Then the next thing she knew, reality distorted, rippling, and she blacked out from the shock.

Chapter Eleven

SARAH

“Haaah!” Sarah gasped, eyes flying wide open, mouth gaped.

At first, she lay frozen, unable to speak or truly see anything but shadows moving frantically above her. When her eyes adjusted to the dim candle-lit scene before her, she grew even more confused. Bo, Min-joon, and Toshi were above her, all sporting smiles so wide their faces looked ghastly.

"Thank the gods! She's awake. She's alive!" Min-joon groaned, bending forward to snatch his ex-lover into his arms.

Sarah didn't resist him, because she couldn't have even if she tried. Her body was like jello, loose and jiggly, unable to do much other than fold against the force of his arms wrapped around her back as he pulled her in for a tight hug.

"Stop it, co-fated! You're going to crush our beloved!" Bo admonished, though the look in his honey-yellow eyes told her he'd been crying, though he'd never admit it out loud.

“Where am I?” she whispered, assuming somehow her soul had snuck into a type of paradise with her men.

Was that why she had dreamed of Toshiyuki saving her before everything burst into bright white light? Was she dead? She didn't feel dead, not with the usually reserved Min-joon trying to sever her spine with his brute strength, arms tightening even tighter around her waist.

“Home,” he whispered, and with that, Toshi nodded, stepping forward.

He cupped his fated mate’s clammy cheek in his hand as his co-mates all laid a hand on her freezing cold body, infusing some of their magic into her as the fox-shaped birthmark in between her breasts glowed. However, when they each pulled away, each of their joyous expression crumbled.

"Rest for now, Bijoux. We will return before nightfall in our realm," Bo said rather ominously as they all turned their backs on her and vanished seconds later in a plume of white smoke.

Sarah blinked, not processing what was happening until she looked around. She wasn't in her realm anymore. No, she was in a bedroom large enough to fit a city block, most assuredly in the Realm of the Divine.

“House of the... Nine Foxes?” Sarah murmured quizzically as she slid a housecoat over her naked body. It resembled something out of a high-end hotel, and she wondered briefly if one of them had taken it from the Mortal Realm during a visit?

“Yes,” Bo Chang declared, “This is our home in the Realm of the Divine.”

True to their word, the trio materialized back inside the overly large bedroom as the powder blue skies outside the embellished windows shifted to a hazy mixture of purple, pink, and orange as the afternoon rolled through like a gentle wave.

They wore outfits she had never seen before, glamorous and uncanny. They each had a hint of a variety of Asian influences, but no single ethnic group's culture stood out. The deep azure blue of the fox flame candles that lined the room made her shudder, remembering her brush with death. Just the memory of it made her heart clench and stomachache.

“You cannot cross over until the next full moon, Bijoux. We have consulted our oracle and made countless intercessions to the goddess. But we see no other way," Bo Chang stated, voice much more commanding than his usual tone.

Min-joon and Toshi remained silent, arms folded in front of them, rigid as statues.

What's this about a full moon? Do they mean to trap me here for almost a month in human days? That's insane!

And Sarah made her feelings known.

"I'm thankful, really. Nothing can describe how thankful I am that Toshiyuki saved me. But I can't stay here for that long. I need to get home. To find out if Ju-long–" Min-joon intervened before she could finish.

"Is dead. He was swallowed whole by the eternal inferno, and his soul devoured by the goddess' holy light." Sarah's nose scrunched up.

It would be silly of her to deny the existence of gods, seeing as she'd slept with three and was currently shacked up in their room. But all the overly heavy religious tones of their message were making her uneasy.

"Eternal inferno?" she asked, honestly stumped by what they were saying.

If Ju-long was dead, that solved one of her pressing problems. But that still left the affairs of her clan now that she had failed to seize the pearl. And what of the moon god, the ancestral god of the Lunar Rabbit Clan? Was Yuèguāng alive? Had he survived Ju-long's blade and escaped his horde of feathered henchmen?

If so, Sarah was glad. She knew the Lunar Rabbit Clan was already looking to start a war. If their ancestral god died, even if it had all been Ju-long's plan to double cross, the mortal underworld would be in shambles, and the bloodletting would spill into the streets.

"Yuèguāng," Toshi murmured, turning towards the direction of the parallel setting sun, "is alive and well. The Nine-Tailed Moon would tell us otherwise. All is well, except for you, Bijoux. You must stay. The human world can wait."

"But I can't," she declared, swinging her legs over the side of the enormous bed she lay in.

If she stood, she felt like she'd have more equal footing in their conversation, even though it would be purely psychological. There was no such thing as being equal to an immortal as a mortal.

"Wait!" Min-joon cooed as she doubled over in pain. He swept her into his arms and laid her back down on the bed.

"You're injured. You haven't fully recovered. And it will..." Bo faltered, turning in the opposite direction of Toshi, who slowly turned to face Sarah once more.

"And...it will?" she gasped out, holding her stomach, thankful their magic had at least removed the visible signs of Ju-long's beating.

"Why don't we play a game? Three riddles for a master of deception. Figure them out before our fox flames run out, and you will be free to leave. If you're not able to in time, you will accept not one but three offers of immortality," Bo Chang said, completely changing the direction of the conversation altogether.

She cupped the back of her neck to soften the effects of the whiplash he’d just given her. Sarah propped herself on her elbows as Toshi came forward, helping Min-joon tuck her in like a baby.

"And if I refuse?" she asked, wondering if that was even an option.

"You automatically forfeit, of course," he said, with a small smile that did not reach his pointed ears.

Is this all a game to them? I'm supposed to figure out riddles trapped in their ancient palace while my clan descends into civil war in my absence?

For Sarah knew Brother Lieu was crafty, but not efficient. If she remained away for too long, without the pearl in hand, discontent would grow. Some would feud, or turn their attentions on the Lunar Rabbit Clan, hungry to prove themselves to establish this power. She might have failed to recover the key to inconceivable power, with secrets yet untold, but Sarah would not let go of her only avenue towards freedom.

Because if I'm not the head, the Solar Rabbit Clan will never let me go. I'll remain indebted to them. And what life can I build then? To become immortal sounds so tempting, but it's just another chain. I love deep and I love hard, but they do not love me. They love because fate has told them to love, and they have fallen in love with many versions of “me.” I’m just as disposable to them as my family.

It took her up to that moment to put a voice to why she had drawn away from all three of the fox god shifters each time they proposed, even though she had seen and felt their Red Strings of Fate. As childish as it was, she couldn't get over the fact that she was replaceable. How many eerie versions of her own face had greeted her in that terrible dream?

It is said one reincarnates into many beings, male and female, human and animal, repeatedly. But each version of herself has looked like her, some younger, some older, some darker, some paler, but all recognizable. How many were fated to be with not one, but three gods?

Sarah knew her reasoning made little sense in any logical way. If she became immortal, they would love only her for eternity. But she couldn't reconcile her feelings of inadequacy until she realized the sheer number of "Sarahs" Bo Chang, Min-joon, and Toshiyuki had loved before her.

"So, you choose to forfeit?" Toshi murmured as he stroked her hair with his clawed hands.

Min-joon took hold of her right hand and knelt beside her, amber eyes smoldering with affection. She noticed they always shifted to that honey-like color when their emotions were intense.

Sarah shook her head no, so Bo Chang continued, "I speak without a mouth and hear without ears. I have no body, but I come alive with the wind. What am I?"

"An echo," she answered without flinching, loving the way Toshi's claws scraped against her itchy skull. The massage was as divine as their home.

"... Very good. I have cities, but no houses. I have mountains, but no trees. I have water, but no fish. What am I?" he tried another riddle, and she answered just as quickly.

"A map," she spat, coughing gently. Something rattled inside of her, and all of their elongated eyebrows furrowed.

They looked at each other in utter confusion as to how she could answer the riddles so quickly. Sarah shrugged, adjusting the sleeves of her gown. They were easy enough, child’s play really, and easily available on the internet. What did they expect from a master of manipulation such as herself? To be tripped up by them would just be embarrassing.

"You said you had three for me. Give me the third." She grinned, feeling a little cocky even in her severely weakened state.

"... I am a gem that never tarnishes but dulls when desire dies. I increase in true value with each passing hour, and contain the trials and tribulations of your heart? What am I?" Bo finished the riddle with a smile that reached his ears that time around.

Sarah's eyes widened, and her tongue flicked out to lick her lips. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, life returning to her weary body. She was a jewel expert. This riddle should have been child's play.

However, to her dismay, she was stumped.

What can possibly never tarnish but dull when desire dies? The desire of who? The wearer or someone who admires? What increases in value with time but also holds emotions? Could it be some sort of mystical gem even I haven’t encountered?

The air was heavy with tension, Sarah’s shoulders straight as an arrow as the gods' eyes bore down on her from all sides.

"So, are you still game, Bijoux? Or do you forfeit your heart to us now?" Bo Chang sounded so sure of himself, like he had it all figured out, and there was no way she could win.

But Bijoux loved nothing more than a challenge. She leaned forward and grinned so hard one could mistake her for a fox shifter.

“No way. You have a deal. Just know when I figure out your last riddle, you all will be the ones forfeiting your hearts to me.”

Chapter Twelve

SARAH

The New Riddle

Almost a month had passed since the failed heist. Sarah’s soul and body were nearly obliterated in holy flames, and the infamous Bijoux ended up as a guest in the palace of her three ex-lovers. Sarah had grown bold after solving the fox trio’s riddles, but now she was stuck and didn’t know what to do. What was one to do when faced with a dilemma like hers?

Freedom? Ha! She should have at least allowed herself the freedom of some scorching hot sex rather than endless days of waiting for... what? An opportunity to return to Earth only to be butchered by a betrayer in her clan, for she had little doubt a war was being waged down below. She hated to admit it, but the changes to her body made her afraid.

They claimed she couldn’t return until the next full moon, but as each day passed, she didn’t feel herself growing stronger. Far from it, she felt weaker than ever before. She'd wondered briefly if they had been poisoning her, only to remember she'd shared a drink with Old Crow, and nothing had happened.

Truth be told, food and water weren’t a necessity for them anymore. And why would her fated mates attempt to kill her because they lost a game?

"Gotcha!" she tensed and then melted like chocolate when she felt Toshiyuki's arms wrap around her shoulder. He was always the most playful of the bunch, and she was grateful for it at that moment. It helped distract her from her racing thoughts.

"What is it now? Shouldn't you be preparing my way back to Earth, hm?" she joked, turning in her chair to look up at him, his hands still wrapped around her rather frail shoulders.

He frowned. "Let's not think of that right now. Can we not convince you to stay? If you hadn't been so quick to hop out of our bed last week, we could have shown you what you'd been missing."

Sarah smirked. "Who says we can't still fool around when I get back to Earth and reclaim my rightful place as heir to the Solar Rabbit Clan?"

“Fated mates with benefits? I like the sound of that. Why don’t you stay here though, with us, just like this, and let us give and take? Marriage to a god isn't like a mortal, you know. We can do what we want whenever we want, please you until your numb to desire, Bijoux. Win-win.” Sarah blushed as Toshi’s playful hug turned sensual, his lips pressed to the nape of her neck as his hands trailed up her stomach and cupped her breast.

Through the thin fabric of her nondescript robes, it felt like his silky palms were touching her bare skin. She groaned. They were divine nuisances, but oh so skilled in the art of lovemaking.

Or is it because we are fated mates, Sarah wondered absently as Toshi tweaked her nipples. That it feels so good?

“You should rely on your mates more. We can provide, protect, and...” his voice died away as she pouted up at him. Sarah never pouted, but she was feeling playful that day.

“I can do that myself," she retorted, enjoying the back and forth, feeling like herself again.

"How?" Toshi purred, visibly turned on, even as he was bursting her bubble. "You don't have the pearl. You can barely even walk these days."

He had a point, but his injection of reality only soured her already terrible mood. "So be it! I didn't need the pearl to get to the top. There are more treasures out there to be found."

"More so than your health?" he warned, pulling away as she shrugged him off, nails digging into her shoulders before he let go, afraid of his own power if his expression meant anything important.

She winced but didn't flinch, not wanting to exaggerate the pain she was in. "If anything, I think staying here so long has made me weak. Remember, mortals aren't supposed to be here at all..."

"Then become immortal, Bijoux," he insisted, obviously pained by her persistent refusal. "What is so wrong with us that even immortality would be so unappealing to you? Do you... hate us so much?"

"Hate?" Her mouth fell open in shock. "Would I fuck you all on and off for years if I hated you? I don't hate any of you, Toshi, I just want to be..."

"Free? Free to die? Free to be abused? Free to fight all your life for what? Fame? Glory? Wealth? You can have that and so much more! Forever. By our side. Please... Please, Sarah. Must I beg you?" His tone turned from anxious to angry in the flip of a dime.

Sarah bristled. “Enough! I need to focus.”

He snapped back. “You should rely on your mates more. We can provide, protect, and...”

“I can do that myself. When I'm back home, I'll do that myself. We can still...meet. Make love. Have fun. Life means a little more when you know it'll end, you know." Sarah tried to sound uplifting, even though she couldn't even console herself of her position.

“Fine then. Keep toiling away as your soul withers away, Bijoux.” He looked sad, radiating pity.

Under normal circumstances, it would have pissed her off. But now? She could do nothing but hang her head and allow her dark hair to hide her misty eyes.

What could she say? She was way over her head and outside her depth but relying on an immortal was the equivalent of counting sand. She’d die long before she finished what she started. Sarah could be vulnerable and let them shield her. But for how long? Fated mates or not, could they prevent death and unlock everlasting freedom? If Sarah couldn’t figure it out, how could she ever dream of saying “I do?”

He nuzzled her neck than with the tip of his nose, reaching around to grip her chin. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t get angry with you over something so simple. In all honesty, I'm just desperate, Bijoux. Even if you accepted us, I... Let me talk to my co-fated. We will... We have to find a way."

He walked away and vanished in their signature plume of smoke, leaving Sarah more confused than when he first came, and longing for his touch on his skin, Min-joon's lips on her lips, and Bo Chang between her thighs. Maybe her horniness was trying to fill the void of sadness welling up inside of her heart. Maybe deep down she knew death was closer than she imagined it to be. For her, she was merely resisting her most basic instincts.

Or maybe Sarah was still afraid of her own inadequacies, not being able to trust, not being able to love without reservations. Maybe she was fighting an unwinnable battle, a battle against her self-esteem and arrogant ambition?

Who knows? All I know is that I need to rest. I've solved all the riddles, but the real puzzle lies ahead.

Either way, she retreated to her room to hide away until the next full moon, hoping against reason all would resolve itself in the end.

Sarah paced her inner palace halls, an unnamed structure on the far end of the vast compound. The full moon was approaching any day. Since her run-in with Toshiyuki, however, no one had come to see her again. True, only two days had passed, but there were only a few days left before the moon god's power would be at full blast.

"Maybe I should just do it? How many people have a shotgun wedding and come out of it a goddess!" she reasoned, plopping down on the silk sheets of her own enormous bed.

"But can a goddess get divorced? Do gods have Red Strings of Fate between each other?" They must, she thought, but the fox god trio's strings only connected to her, not to each other.

What if they grew tired of sharing and fought, and she caused more problems for them in their realm? What if they dissolved when she ascended, and then she had to live out forever alone?

"What if I stopped playing twenty questions with myself and just talked it out with them like adults?" she said out loud, but even the most obvious answer seemed hopeless.

They were hiding something from her. She didn't know what it was, but she knew they were. It was obvious from the way they avoided her eyes or drifted off when speaking. Especially the way Toshi had acted since she met him in that strange world. For now, she knew it was not a dream. Because, if Ju-long had been consumed, and the flame so blazing hot it still burned where his tower stood, it stood to reason she should be more than dead. Her soul should have been annihilated by her own spell.

But Toshi had saved her, and they had infused her with strength. She'd been so consumed with winning their bet, her competitive spirit getting the best of her, that Sarah didn't think of the obvious.

What if they are forcing me to stay here because there's something wrong with me? Something wrong with my... soul? It seemed so simple, so obvious, and would explain her fragility and chest pains.

But how could she imagine that her soul was at stake when they made every attempt to distract her? If that was the case, she didn't think rushing into marriage would solve things. Love could conquer anything, but something had to exist to be conquered.

"The holy flame burns so brightly it purifies the world." That's what she'd written as a mantra to concentrate her spell.

Did that mean her soul was at stake if she returned home? A part of it had been drained to even create the fire, so it made sense in a twisted way.

"So, what can I do? Maybe if we tried to steal the..." Sarah got back to her feet and walked over to a large window.

That wouldn't do. The moon god apparently was the god of their moon. And while she was a stranger to the god's hierarchy, Sarah knew what hierarchy felt like on a fundamental level. All immortals did not hold the same amount of power. No one prayed to the fox god trio or showered them with devotion. From what she could tell, they lead luxurious lives, yet didn't control much. They lived. That was their gift. They stood above mortals. But Yuèguāng not only controlled their moon. He was also at the center of centuries of human devotion. A god always returned a favor. Maybe his blessing was the only reason Toshi could recover her spirit from the void?

"This is all giving me a damn headache!" she hissed through clenched teeth, when suddenly a knock came from her door.

The fox god trio never knocked. It was their home, after all. She thought hard at who it could be and only came to one conclusion that seemed logical.

“Old Crow? Have you returned?” she called out to her partner, stepping away from the open window.

However, she was knocked off guard when a large black shadow swooped down from the sky. A flurry of movement later, Sarah was swept away. All that remained was a single black feather belonging to a ravenborn.

Chapter Thirteen

LILLIAN

A cold cloth nudged Lillian awake this time around. Her eyes fluttered before opening fully, gazing into the pained face of her childhood friend turned mortal enemy. As soon as she regained her senses, she pushed him away, backing up until, to her surprise, her back hit a wall.

She glanced around only to find miles and miles of the same sunflowers in a field as she's seen before. But as she turned, she noticed she had bumped up against a large tree rather than a wall. It spiraled past the glass-like sky and into another realm entirely. Strangely, bits and pieces were charred like a great fire had consumed the winding bark but had not burned it to the ground.

"I'm glad you're awake," he finally murmured, lowering his eyes.

He was still dressed in the same outfit, which meant she was too, and they were both trapped in Yuèguāng's otherworldly word. If it had been any other day, Lillian would have instantly leaned on him for support and comfort. But now her heart had grown cold, suspicious. She heard her aunt’s nagging tone in her voice, warning her always to suspect others. Especially those who were closest. She'd thought it paranoid before, but what could she say now? Her best friend, who would one day lead her personal guard, ended up being a spy.

"Jong-hyun..." she drifted off as he lifted his eyes and she saw the pain radiating from them. She didn't know what to say, so went quiet, contemplating their next steps. If her father found out that a Lunar Rabbit Clan spy had been so close to his daughter for so long... Lillian dreaded the thought and shut it away.

Foremost, she had to figure out how they were going to get out of the rabbit's god world alive, back to Earth, and how Lillian was going to find her aunt. What had happened to her in the first place? Had Ju-long the Devil got to her first before she could steal the pearl?

"You've... been sleeping for quite some time." Jong-hyun's deep voice cut through her own thoughts like a knife slicing through butter.

She frowned. "Couldn't have been that long since we're wearing the same clothes, and it's daytime.

"Well," he began, pupils shifting left and right like he was trying to summon the courage to speak, "try three weeks, going on four."

Lillian stared at him, blinking rapidly, before bursting into laughter. Three weeks? An entire month had almost passed since she fainted from the news of them becoming fated mates to an oversized rabbit.

"You're joking," she stated, not wanting to entertain wherever he was going with the strange topic at hand.

"I'm not. See for yourself." He leaned forward, and despite herself, Lillian found herself blushing. He felt like a stranger now, dangerous yet familiar in a way he shouldn't anymore.

His robe shifted a bit, and Lillian was confused to see that the white rabbit head at the center of his chest was nearly grey. When she finally came to her senses, blocked in by his chest, she could feel something behind her head.

Her neck craned to the side as Jong-hyun pulled away. She could do little more than gasp when she saw twenty-two notches carved into the trunk of the tree, realizing Jong-hyun had carved the twenty-second when he leaned her way.

"Th-that's..." she stammered.

"Impossible? I know. I thought you were dead, or the Red Strings of Fate put you in a coma! Master Ying Yue said it was the... composition of your body? Something about your ancestral magic resisting him since the Solar Rabbit Clan has been separated from him for so long." Lillian shook her head as he spoke, covering her ears, none of it making any sense to her.

"Where is he? Where's Yuèguāng or Ying Yue Jiang or whatever the hell he's calling himself!” she nearly screamed, denial transforming quickly into rage and determination.

"Wait!" Jong-hyun called out to her as she sprung to her feet and started running.

Deep down she knew she couldn't catch up with a god, wherever he was hiding, if he was hiding at all. And what would she do when she faced him? Scream her head off at him and get it magically snatched away, so she was rendered mute? But reason wasn't what was flowing through her veins as she crashed through the sunflower maze.

Trapped in a parallel world with a mad god, a gangster crow, and his apprentice, she thought she could rely on Jong-hyun. Now that she was virtually alone, all Lillian could do was rage against fate.

"Ying Yue! Ying Yue! Come out this instant!" she screamed, hearing the stampede of footsteps behind her as she picked up her pace.

Jong-hyun was faster, stronger, and well-trained. But she was desperate, angry, and hell-bent on getting her way. All that combined with a beauty rest that seemed to rejuvenate every bone and muscle in her body meant Lillian was holding her own against her bodyguard.

She kept crying out for the rabbit god to reveal himself when suddenly he did just that, appearing in front of her as she slammed into his back. Lillian flew backward and into the awaiting arms of Jong-hyun, who huffed and puffed as if he weren't used to extreme exercising like a sprint.

Yuèguāng turned towards the duo, his red eyes a glow. It was only then, through the haze of emotion clouding her young mind, that Jong-hyun's eyes had glowed amber. She chalked it up to the strangeness of the Realm of the Divine, but it was strange that he would react so strongly to otherworldly magic when she seemed perfectly fine.

"Fated," the god said, voice low, stern, and clear, "I am glad your body has finally adjusted to the Nine-Tail Moon. Why have you summoned me back? I have much to do and little time to do it."

Nine-Tail Moon? She wondered what that meant. The place they were in looked nothing like the surface of the moon. But then she thought, why would it? They were in the same dimension, after all.

"Look, I don't really care either way. But please, please listen to me. I know you said marriage would be your gift to us in exchange for saving you–" Ying Yue waved his hand in the air as if to silence her.

"Marriage is but part of the package, the natural choice between fated mates and a peaceful means to unite the clan. What I offer is immortality in exchange for preserving my own." He opened his palms, hands having rested by his sides, balled into fist.

Jong-hyun clutched Lillian's shoulders as she shook. From his palms first formed a large blue lily which blossomed and out popped a pearl. It was large and beautiful, shining so brightly she thought they'd all go blind. A crack ran from end to end, and a clear substance leaked from it, sparkling like a diamond under the light.

"What...is that?" she whispered.

"What Ju-long stole and the Solar Rabbit Clan foolishly thought to exchange for my life. What Bijoux dared try to steal and failed. This is the cultivated magic of the Jiang Rabbit Clan's magic. I supposed humans would call it a source of immortality. Drink the pearl's nectar and gain the secrets of our arts," he whispered, folding his hands as it disappeared in a shaft of white light.

Then it clicked, and Lillian fell to her knees. Jong-hyun followed her to the ground, still obedient, even though his true nature had been revealed. "Aunt Bijoux... Did Ju-long kill Aunt Bijoux!?"

Ying Yue glanced down at them, now dressed head to toe in white robes with golden embroidery. He looked rather regal, and infinitely wiser. "No... If what Old Crow's discipline has gathered is true. Her fate now lies in the hands of her husbands, but it is unnatural that she still lives. She's on borrowed time. The Holy Fox Flame should have consumed her and her soul."

Lillian shook her head, even more confused by his explanation. Holy flames and mystical pearls didn't matter to her. She just wanted to know if her aunt was still breathing.

"Lillian, no, Li-Lang," Jong-hyun murmured, scooting to the side, so they were shoulder to shoulder. "Please trust in Master Yuèguāng to solve this problem. At first, I had to pretend, to keep up appearances. But I have utter faith in him to right this wrong."

"Oh, please!" she spat. "Why should I trust you or him? All you've done is lie to me my entire life, and he's more worried about some stupid string when Aunt Bijoux could be dead!"

"Don't turn your anger on him, Li-Lang! It is I who sent Jong-hyun. To watch over the next generation and find a way forward toward reunification." Lillian was taken aback, turning towards him and looking at him with new eyes.

When she really thought about it, they had been childhood friends, but she knew little about him. He had appeared one day by her side, around the age of nine, and she'd been told he was training to be a part of her personal guard. But even back then they had all marveled at his accomplishments, and the way things came so easily to him. Was it because he wasn't human at all, but a demi-god?

She turned back to Ying Yue, beaming down at them both with gentle eyes. "Fate is fickle. Destiny unwritten until it appears. Who knew I would send one of my disciplines and he'd return as my fated mate, alongside you, my girl. But I see now Jong-hyun–as you call yourself these days–I see now that more time is needed. Continue to watch over Li-Lang in my temporal absence as I get my affairs in order in our realm."

"Yes, master," Jong-hyun murmured, bowing towards the god.

Lillian’s mouth flopped like a fish out of water as the eldest among them continued, "I've sent an emissary to see what happened at Ju-long Towers, and if there's any way, I can help your... Aunt? And your mistress. A god always returns their favor. If not for her, centuries of my clan's cultivated magic would have been in the hands of a madman, and I would have probably died. Don't worry. My mission now is to join our mortal clan together and have my fated mates’ rule by my side. I have sent Old Crow to my allies' palace to see if Asuka's investigation proves correct, and if so, how I can help. The gift of immortality cannot be given to an empty vessel, after all. But I know we can find a way to save your aunt and spare my in-laws more needless suffering."

Chapter Fifteen

BO CHANG

“What can we do, co-fated, when faced with a body without a soul, to infuse with our strength?" Bo asked, the question largely rhetorical.

He glanced over at Toshi and Min-joon, who contemplated their own riddle that seemed to have no hidden answer. Bo couldn't blame them for the twin looks of despair slowly morphing their faces. He gazed out at their realm, standing in the reception hall where they’d rushed to their fated mate’s near lifeless body towards their bedchamber nearly a month ago.

“We've played a game with our beloved Bijoux, to pass the time and give ourselves time since she loves a challenge. But it seems we've run out of time." Toshi was right, and Bo Chang hated to admit it was true.

Toshi had pulled off what should have been impossible, saving a soul and a body from the Holy Fox Flame of the goddess. He'd even lost his cultivated magic in the process, unable to return to earth for at least another hundred years, only able to hold on to his human form thanks to the energy that freely flowed between all three.

But Toshi losing his immortality was but a bump in the road if they could implore the divine god of their moon, Yuèguāng, to share some of her immortal nectar and hasten the cultivation process. But what could any of them do with a mortal woman whose soul was set to expire with the next full moon?

"Maybe we can beg for nectar from the Eternal Lunar Pearl," Toshi offered, visibly distressed by the situation.

"We could, but would it even work?" Min-joon countered, "One has to have a soul to become immortal. Sarah's is waning faster with each passing hour. We thought if we bound ourselves to her in marriage it could help, and it should at least stop the process but..."

“If we had collectively, and unnaturally extended her life by raising her to goddesshood,” Bo Chang began, “wouldn’t it make sense that it could preserve her soul forever? Why would she die before our eyes so many times only to slip away forever this time around, so arbitrarily?”

"It does, in theory, but even we didn't know her soul would have withered this much so fast. It's like the cultivation process but in reverse. How much magic would she need to stabilize? She may become something... other than immortal, like a wandering ghost."

All three men fell silent, considering Min-joon's point. At first, they'd been so sure of themselves, guiding her into the bed, and waiting for those magic words so that their gift would hold. They could force it on her, but an unwilling soul would fight even the most prized possession in both realms–eternal life.

But now they weren't so sure. Sarah had declined rapidly after the rejection, going downhill like a car crashing over the side of a cliff as the full moon approached. Even if they could force her to accept goddesshood, would it be enough?

Probably not, Bo Change had to admit to himself, which would mean regular infusions from the Eternal Lunar Pearl. And there's no way Yuèguāng would accept that, being the last member of the Jiang Lunar Dynasty in charge of the pearl. Until he's mated and has brought forth a new generation of heirs, we're pushing our luck trying to speed up Toshi's cultivation.

Then what options remained? Bo Chang began to wander, and his co-fated followed closely. He still remembered when he had marked Suyin, a young woman from a poor family with the gift of fortune-telling, and he in the guise of a wealthy merchant. He had come into immortality at least a century prior and had grown bored with living the life of a prince and general, merchant and peasant, longing for the opportunity to rise to the true ranks of the divine.

Their passion had been palpable and forbidden back then, when he was so ignorant. He had marked her so their souls would be bound through each reincarnation, forcing the God of Fate, Yuè Lǎo, to forge their bond least he makes a mockery of the gods and kill her true fated lover.

His mark had been a curse rather than a blessing, and Bo Chang couldn't help but realize he had set the whole cosmic chain of misfortune into action. Suyin, as he knew her back then, had foreseen her fate–annihilation. She was not meant to reincarnate, and never destined to be his goddess. But he'd made a mockery of the gods, and now they were making a mockery of him and his co-fated in return.

What use is immortality and all the power in the world if I can't save the one I love?

“Have you ever heard of one being bound to three? Of gods fated to a mortal woman? Of achieving eternity without merit?” Min-joon’s string of questions were rhetorical once more.

“Old Crow?” Bo Change asked, genuinely confused why he had visited.

He paused in front of Sarah's hall, flanked by Min-joon and Toshi, having walked there by instinct. He wasn't expecting to see the mobster there, especially so close to Bijoux's bed. He'd been there to witness their humiliation when Sarah not only solved their last riddle, but rejected them in bed.

But he didn't seem ready to gloat about winning their personal bet that Sarah would never say "I do." It had been a long time since they'd placed that bet. Around the time Sarah and Bo Chang had broken up. No, there was something strange about his aura. The way he stood blocking the entrance to Bijoux's inner palace.

Had she let him in?

"I come on Yuèguāng authority this time, old friends." All men tensed at that, Bo visibly furious. It was one thing to ask for entrance, and another for Yuèguāng to use his rank to barge into their private quarters.

"What does he want with our fated mate?" Toshi roared, held back by Min-joon's and Bo's twin tails.

"Well, he wants Bijoux," Old Crow quipped, flapping his wings as his three legs shuffled.

“Why?”

"Nothing bad, I assure you. He's indebted to her is all!" Old Crow tutted, beak clacking hard. "But who's to say he won't banish her to the void if he can't recover her soul. You know his job is trifold: manage the affairs of the clan on Earth to receive tribute, keep our moon spinning, and act as the ultimate judge for immortal affairs. He can't have a wraith running around, don't you think? It would upset the natural order of things."

Not a second passed between his last statement and a massive wave of energy shooting from the eldest and youngest fox god's tails. He were beyond enraged at the thought of Yuèguāng deciding their fated mate's fate, when her fate line was nearly severed as it was. They needed time, not judgment, to solve what could be done about her withering soul.

Old Crow, for his part, fought back with a wave of his shimmering black and gray feathers, a wave of pure purple energy countering the fox duo. But it didn't hold for long, for they were both immortal beings. But Old Crow had been tainted by the mortal realm for too long. He was knocked back, slamming against the doors separating Bijoux from her harem.

"Ever heard about not shooting the got damn messenger!" Old Crow wailed as Toshi leaped forward and descended on him as a fox. He clawed at his face and wings, and Bo had to flash forward to stop him.

“Then they shouldn't come looking for trouble!” Bo Chang stated as he pulled Toshi away and sealed Old Crow to the door.

They'd lost control of their dominion, and their petty fight was distracting them from their ultimate mission: save Sarah from final judgement from the gods.

Chapter Sixteen

MIN-JOON

“That damn crow and some damn demi-god has kidnapped her!" Min-joon barely had time to transform back into a human as he, Toshi, and Bo Chang leaped from a window in their palace towards the courtyard.

The whole structure levitated mid-air, supported by a cumulonimbus cloud. The vertical giant upheld their slice of the Divine Realm. Now it rocked with lightning and thunder and hail as their emotions got the better of them. For there would be hell to pay for stealing their fated mate!

"What demi-god?" Bo Chang wailed over the tumultuous weather, shaking the palace so hard fox statues slid from their pillars and shattered on the ground. "And why would Yuèguāng send them? Have we not been loyal to him? Does he not respect the goddess anymore to decide her fate for us?"

All of what the eldest fox god asked could not be answered just yet. There was no rhyme or reason to the action of the elemental order of gods, meant to keep both realms in perfect harmony. Their actions could only be vaguely divined by ascendant beings such as them. But Yuèguāng and the Goddess went back over a millennium, before she left the palace to join the Council of Fire. They were the keepers of her memory, the last ascendant fox gods to remain in the House of Nine Foxes as others ventured to the human realm or lost their immortality because of folly.

"There!" Min-joon wailed, watching as a cloaked figure whisked Bijoux away toward the portal leading to the Nine-Tailed Moon.

They wouldn't allow him to reach it, even if it cost them all their immortality, for the Guardian had supreme power in his realm. They could fight, but could they win against a literal commander of water and light?

It was doubtful. But just like it was usually a good bet to bet on Bijoux, her fated mates weren't ones to back down no matter the odds.

"Toshi! Fall back and support our flames," he demanded, and Toshi obliged.

The kidnapper may be part human, according to Old Crow himself, but Toshi couldn't afford to be hit with a killing blow. Bo Chang and Min-joon closed ranks, forming a triangle formation. They chanted, summoning the goddess' will, and began sealing the portal.

It was nearly shut tight when the figure turned. Sarah very much alive and fighting. "Get the fuck off of your wannabe ninja! I let go and put me the fuck down!"

That's the Sarah he was used to, who cursed like a sailor and never knew when she should hold back and know her limits. He would have grinned if not for the utterly dangerous position she was in.

"Who are you?" he growled as the half-breed took a fighting stance, holding Sarah around her waist beside him like she was a sack of potatoes.

Old Crow? Min-joon thought. How had he broken our seal?

He received his answer in the form of another gust of wind, so strong he thought a tornado would carry them away. Around his bejeweled ankles was a new addition, lunar pearls. They were not the Eternal Lunar Pearl, but they held within them the moon god's energy.

"Asuka! Go! You cannot take on all three of the fox gods and leave her uninjured," a voice wailed from above.

A gust of wind knocked them all back, but knocked Asuka back much further, closer to the rapidly sealing portal. He pulled Sarah tight to his chest as she kicked and screamed and hit, and phased through with her in his arms, disappearing from their sight.

“Shit! Damn it all! We have to go after Asuka, or Sarah might–” Bo Chang didn't have to finish his sentence.

They all took one last look at each other and dashed ahead, chanting underneath their breath as their tails elongated and shielded them from the wind. It beat at them mercilessly, but they remained dead set on their mission to recover Sarah before she was banished to the void.

Defying the will of the gods was risky business. Defying the will of the god of their moon could mean damnation. But they'd do whatever it took to save their beloved. Min-joon refused to go through another moment, waiting for her to be reborn. He refused to watch helplessly as her soul ceased to exist entirely.

Together, they burst through the portal just as the fissure through time and space closed behind them.

Chapter Seventeen

BO CHANG

The trio emerged in a field of sunflowers, as they expected, part of the moon god's beautification process on the lonely hunk of gray he called home. They instantly assembled back-to-back, tails elongating and covering their body. But no one attacked. Not Old Crow, who Bo Chang suspected was still trapped at their palace, nor the demi-god Asuka, his lackey, nor did the moon god himself make an appearance. It perplexed them all greatly.

"What should we do," Toshi asked, the first to break their protective formation.

Min-joon was the second, "Stay close to us co-fated! Your life hangs in the balance if Asuka returns or Yuèguāng comes. We searched for her. Fight to bring Bijoux back and head directly to the goddess if that's what it takes."

"Nonsense," Bo Chang interceded, finally lowering his own defenses long enough to catch up with his bickering partners as they marched forward aimlessly. "We'd be cut down because we could even reach that level of the heavens. We have to be realistic."

"What the fuck is realistic," Toshi yelled, much to Bo Chang and Min-joon's visible carnage.

"Calm yourself before you alert him that we are near," Bo Chang ordered, but he rebuffed him.

"He already knows, co-fated! He's a supreme god of moon light and waves. We have to throw everything we got at him while we still can." Toshi had a point, but it would be a suicide mission for him.

"Then let us go and you guard where the portal closed to make sure that Old Crow doesn't have more ticks dangling from his ankles," Min-joon demanded.

But none of them seemed able to come to a realistic course of action in the face of the absurdity of it all. As they argued, they didn't notice footsteps approaching, for they held no recognizable energy. It was only when they were within striking distance did the fox separate, transform, and generate so much power that they burned the sunflowers around them to a crisp.

However, they were shocked to find a young girl who had a striking resemblance to their fated mate, rather than an enemy who had crept up to attack.

Bo Chang thought to ask her who she was when a devious thought entered his mind. He rushed forward and captured her with his tail as she screamed, Min-joon and Toshiyuki looking on in horror even as they moved to follow.

Yuèguāng lived a secluded life, and rarely got involved in the affairs of humans or gods. So, if he was willing to bring a human girl to his realm, she had to mean something to him. He'd use her as bait in exchange and end things without a bloodbath. At least, that's what he hoped for, as the girl twisted and turned, screaming for help.

"Bo Chang! We shouldn't–" Before Min-joon could scold him, or talk some sense into his mind, they all stopped in their tracks as something large shook the ground, sunflowers swaying violently to the left.

A shadow overtook the ground, and the fox gods scattered as a large rabbit with blood-red eyes landed before them. Bo Chang rolled, tucking the girl between his tails so she wouldn't be injured, and got back onto his paws as the dust settled.

“What is the meaning of this Yuèguāng!” Bo Chang’s fur stood end to end, eyes blazing with hatred towards the rabbit god in front of them. He hopped forward and landed again, the force of his movements shaking everything in its wake, including the fox gods, but not as violently as before.

In seconds, the giant white rabbit morphed into a tan young man, who looked younger than Bo Chang and Min-joon, even Toshiyuki in age. The gods looked upon the eldest in shock, never having looked upon his human form. He looked nothing like Bo Chang imagined he'd look like, but that mattered little. What mattered was that he returned Sarah to their side.

The younger god bristled, baring his teeth. “The girl is mine! She will be my bride. And you will put her down this instant”

“Not until you bring our bride back to us, Ying Yue!” Bo Chang snapped back, using his informal name disrespectfully to get a rise out of him.

"You expect me to cave to barbarism?" The elder god seemed appalled.

What's more barbaric than banishing a soul to the void never to be reincarnated!" Bo Chang countered.

"Guys!" the young girl shouted so hard her cheeks turned blue from the effort. "Please put me down and listen to what he has to say! I promise he's a little pushy, but he's really trying to save Aunt Bijoux."

Aunt Bijoux? All three fox gods looked up at the girl in confusion.

"I see there must have been a huge misunderstanding. Asuka! Jong-hyun. Come," Ying Yue ordered, and two shadows formed by his side. At first, Bo Chang thought them both demi-gods, but on closer inspection it seemed the one called Jong-hyun was hiding more power than he chose to reveal.

The two men–more like a man and a teenage boy on closer–surged forward and took the girl back with them to Yin Yue's side. He shook his head, long curly black hair dancing on the wind.

"Now let's talk like civilized beings, hm?" Ying Yue offered, ushering the triad of gods forward. They did as they were told, transforming back into their human form.

"Who is this girl?" Min-joon asked, cocking his head sideways.

"I have a voice and a name, you know. I'm Li-Lang. Li-Lang Ho. Aunt... Sarah's niece. And this is apparently my... fiancé. To be honest, I don't know what's going on but..." her voice cut short as a squeal pierced the air. All the gods covered their sensitive ears as Jong-hyun rolled his eyes and Asuka smiled widely.

"Are you Toshiyuki! OMG! I have all of your albums and I'm... Wait... Oh no!" Li-Lang's exhilaration turned into despair as she sank into Jong-hyun's arms.

Bo Chang and Min-joon looked to him for guidance, but shrugged and whispered, "I guess she's one of my fans? Lumière's big with the teen market."

That made sense, Bo Chang thought, watching the girl go through a breakdown with concern. But then he turned his attention back to the God of the Moon.

"So why did you order her to be kidnapped in the first place if you wanted a peaceful resolution?" Bo Chang asked.

"Kidnapped?" Ying Yue cocked his head to the side this time around, appearing infinitely younger than his age of at least three thousand years, eclipsing even Bo Chang. "I asked Asuka to bring her here. But I guess she fought him instead. Old Crow was to inform you all. What a mess they have made... and she."

That sounds about right, Bo Chang lamented.

Before he could dwell too long on the unnecessary frenzy her kidnapping instilled or wonder where Sarah was with them all gathered on his moon, Ying Yue summoned forth the jewel that caused all the misfortune to occur.

"The Eternal Lunar Pearl is the Jing Lunar Dynasty's most prized possession. It is also cultivated magic made more powerful by the warring clans of these two. I wish to bring them together when Li-Lang and Jong-hyun are old enough. But for now, they must return and calm down tension, as do I behind the scenes. But a god always returns a favor. And I believe this may be the answer to many prayers." Yuèguāng released the treasure that floated directly into Bo Chang's arms.

The fox gods looked down at it with astonishment, and Bo Chang handed it to Toshiyuki so he could regain his power. But that's when he noticed a tiny chip on the otherwise perfect shell.

He looked back at Ying Yue, his still emotional bride-to-be, his apparent bridegroom, and the demi-god known as Asuka. He watched as one more gift drifted in his direction and reached out to grab it. Everything fell into place.

“Ha! We’re such fools.” He cupped the glowing blue lotus petal in his hands and then unfurled it.

Cradling the shard, the eldest fox god walked towards his co-fated with a smirk.

“What is priceless to a human but useless to a god?” Even amid all the turmoil, Bo Chang still had time to rattle off riddles.

Immortality, they thought in unison, as Toshi took a sip of the moon god's power.

He contorted, a sound of pure agony escaping his lungs, but when he breathed again, his power was restored. They all embraced, thankful that nothing ended in bloodshed, and that they were closer than ever to saving Bijoux's soul.

“We are gods, no? Then we shall craft a new soul from what remains. A shard of immortality with our combined strength. It should be enough to forge for Bijoux a new destiny. Isn't that what you're offering to us, God of the Nine-Tailed Moon?" Bo Chang, Min-joon, and Toshiyuki turned towards Ying Yue and his guest.

He appeared pleased, motioning for Asuka to take the hands of the girl named Li-Lang, Sarah's blood relative, and the older boy. "It seems by returning the favor I am owed, you all will become my... relatives, no? So how could I not offer the only hope I see of rescuing her from the void. If this doesn't work, unfortunately, I must do my job. A wraith cannot be allowed to live, or it will grow into something grotesque and evil. I know you wouldn't want that for her, either. But with a shard of the Eternal Pearl, its nectar, and your powers maybe... maybe we can defy fate. Together."

They all nodded in return, Toshi's twin-tails shimmering as he was fully renewed.

“May the luck of the gods be with you, and our goddess’ blessings.” And with that, Yuèguāng bid them farewell, relinquishing an invaluable gem’s shard in exchange for a promise and a dream of a peaceful world.

Chapter Eighteen

SARAH

Sarah yelped in pain as she was unceremoniously dropped on her ass at the edge of a sunflower field, having thrust herself away from her captor as they emerged on the other side of the portal. He swept down to grab her, only to double back and fly away. She was left alone to her own devices, considerably weakened and afraid.

Behind her were gray craters that resembled Earth’s moon, and up above a sky that was not really a sky, devoid of stars, reflecting the paranormal border that separated the “profane” mortal world from the divine.

“What the hell?” she wondered out loud, heart seizing as she limped forward. She was already at her limit, and that raven-shifter didn't help.

She fought like a madwoman even as he tried to calm her down, convinced somehow that Ju-long had lived and sent a spy to assassinate her. Even when she realized it was a raven instead of a crow, and he looked completely human besides his purple eyes, she still didn't give up. When she saw Bo, Min-joon, and Toshi disappear before her eyes as she was swept into the portal, she thought it was the worst day of her life.

"What should I do so I can return?" Bijoux gazed upward but found no answers in the glittering paradise above.

She turned towards the sea of sunflowers and walked. It seemed safer than trying her luck in the barrenness behind her. As she stumbled along, she thought of everything that happened and wept.

If only she could go back and just say yes and put her pride aside. She might not have eternity with them, but at least she'd have the night. What remained of worth in her life in the human world was her niece, and it wasn't like they'd been close. They just shared the mischance of being born with equally shitty parents.

Li-Lang idolized her, but time would heal any wounds left behind by her absence, and she had access to all Bijoux left behind as an inheritance. Even Brother Lieu couldn't challenge her if he grew so bold.

So, in the end, it was just her misplaced pride and insecurity that prevented her from a second chance at life. Sarah knelt down, tired to her bones, and rested. She couldn't fight the feeling of weightlessness anymore, her body going numb.

But just as she got comfortable, hands seized her and brought her to her feet. She attempted to scream, only to see three familiar faces. Tears streamed down her cheeks.

"How?" She asked, letting the rest of the question die on her lips.

“What’s the point of eternity...” Min-joon whispered as he took her shaking hands.

Toshi leaned in and kissed her cheek, eyes glowing with delight. “Precious Bijoux...”

“If we can’t spend it with you?” Bo all but groaned into her ear, dragging her towards his broad chest; lean with muscle.

They closed in on her, holding her tight, as Bo Chang kissed her. She shuddered as he pulled away and Min-joon's chapped lips did the same, followed soon after by Toshi. Her body felt hot and heavy, light and airy, and all sorts of conflicting emotions.

"Trust us. Believe in us. Take our essence," they chanted, and formed a triangle around her body as they all pulled away.

She gasped as a shard slipped down her throat, along with a lily petal and drop of milky liquid, rejuvenated her soul. The pain she felt was immense, so terrible she thought death might hurt less. But then Sarah was filled with overwhelming sensations as they all embraced her again and helped her through. And when she opened her eyes again, they glowed yellow with slit black pupils, and the birthmark on her chest was no more.

She was no longer Sarah or Bijoux, or any other version of her reincarnated souls. She was renewed. A goddess of the House of the Nine Foxes. The fated mate of the last disciples of the Nine-Tailed Goddess.

Epilogue

SARAH

Nine Years Later

Nearly a decade had passed in the Mortal Realm since Bijoux pulled off the heist of the century, in which the story had been confused, and the legendary interdimensional jewel thief had slipped into the Realm of the Divine in the House of Nine Foxes with the Eternal Lunar Pearl unharmed. Which, if she really thought about it, was still ironic since only four foxes deities lived there currently and counting.

Bijoux was now the stuff of legends, written about on blogs on the internet rather than preserved through ink on scrolls. While the details were all confused, Sarah didn’t mind. In the end, she got what she wanted and then some. Retirement, power, with a dose of immortal love as a topping.

In the Realm of the Divine, and in the House of Nine Foxes, time moved much slower than in the Mortal Realm, and it seemed to freeze completely at times. It was peaceful, albeit a little eerie, in an overwhelming world occupied by so few beings. Usually devoid of any outsiders, today was different. Guests were pouring in through the wide-open golden doors, mingling on glass walkways and in lotus shaped chairs gliding in the air held up by magic. The Autumn Festival in the parallel world was more extravagant than anything she’d ever witnessed on Earth, made even more special by two celebrations Sarah never thought she’d witness for herself.

Emerging from the Hall of the Eternal Lunar Pearl, her personal palace, she walked towards the main hall slowly. Her chunky black platforms and flowing white silk over her blue gown made it harder to walk, but she had attempted to blend her old style with Bo Chang’s neo-traditional flavor. When she finally made it, she was happy to see mortals, gods, and spirits greeting each other, at peace and full of joy. So many of her rivals were now a part of her family tree, or soon to be, anyway. It took more time than even a god accounted for to merge the Rabbit Clans back together as one.

“Fated,” Sarah sighed, leaning back into the arms of her eldest lover Bo Chang. He had not aged a day since their first meeting, but now his hair touched the floor, and had to be held up by dotting fairies, little balls of pure energy that floated around him.

She couldn’t wait to ditch the festivities and comb her hands through his hair as he… She was getting ahead of herself and getting worked up as well. Groaning, Sarah pulled away and ushered him forward, hand in hand.

“Where are Min-joon and Toshi?” she asked, relishing the roughness of his calloused skin. She realized soon after they were married that he kept them that way on purpose, to remind himself of his humble origins, and to please his beloved.

“By our side, as always,” he answered, smiling down at her, face radiating love.

Soon enough, a larger hand engulfed her free hand, and she knew on the other side of Min-joon was Toshi. Just like Bo Chang, they hadn’t changed much. Their hair was longer, Toshi’s to his shoulder, while Min-joon’s touched his ankles when he took it out of his top knot, he’d grown accustomed to wearing. And Toshi still was the most eclectic dresser, with Min-joon’s clothing always elegant with a traditional flair. The only thing that really changed were their occupations, now that she thought about it.

Toshi had retired from idol superstardom at the height of his career, much to his fans’ utter devastation. He would have faked his death if Sarah hadn’t convinced him how much his teen fan base would be pushed over the edge, so now opted for solos and other content that would show him aging over the coming years. Min-joon and Bo Chang had hung up the mobster lifestyle, much like their wife and queen, only she had also given up her life of treasure hunting. She’d found something much more precious to covet now.

She smiled. No words needed to be exchanged. How many lifetimes had their fates been entangled? How long had she been by their side, deepening their understanding of each other as their union flourished?

As they entered the main hall, descending a spiraling staircase line with wispy clouds, a cheer rose in the crowd. At the very center Sarah spotted the reasons for the occasion: her recalcitrant niece, Li-Lang, decked out in the finest of silk wedding gowns alongside the bridegroom hand-in-hand, Jong-Hyun, and her nine-year-old cousin in between, Kim Eun-Kyung. As much as she fussed about finally having to marry her fated mates, Sarah got the sense through her yearly visits she was looking forward to her future with them more than she let on.

“Welcome,” Min-joon belted out, and a hush fell over the crowd. “We welcome you to the birth of our princess, and the blessing ceremony that will unite our queen’s former warring clans. We give thanks to Yuèguāng, who, in his infinite mercy, gifted the Rabbit Clan with the Eternal Lunar Pearl. Peace has been restored, and the symbolic union of Li-Lang and Jong-Hyun to the god of our Moon will act as the ultimate tribute.”

“Now, let’s get this fucking party started!!!” Toshi screamed, and wail went up from the crowd. Sarah covered her face, mildly embarrassed. Leave it to Toshi to turn a formal ceremony into a house party.

But Sarah could do little more than laugh as his old hit single, “Angel! Baby,” blared from invisible speakers, and the crowd went wild. Li-Lang and her co-mate Jong-Hyun danced, as the shining pearl that encased the fox deities’ child lifted into the air and exploded just as the clock struck midnight. A decade had finally passed, and with it the true birth of the House of the Nine Foxes’ first child. The shards rained down like glitter from a shattered moon, only heightening the festivities. A ball of light came towards Sarah, who lifted her hands to cradle it.

According to her husbands, their will had summoned her birth, and she would have to be held in her protective shell for one hundred years to be born an immortal. But Sarah couldn’t wait that long. And with the peace they now enjoyed, she was willing to shield their daughter in their slice of heaven until she was ready. Thankfully, they agreed, eager to meet her and hold her as well. Bo, Min-joon, and Toshi crowded in to lay their golden eyes on their daughter for the first time.

Eun-Kyung was tiny like a newborn babe, but already radiating copious amounts of blue magical energy. A bright red fox tail curled around her body, stubby black nails and pointed ears a dead giveaway of her lineage. In the center of her chest was a blue rabbit paw, which elated Sarah. And when her eyes finally opened, tiny black slits shrinking as she cooed in happiness, Sarah felt like all was right in both realms.

She had everything she ever wanted right in her arms and all around her, and many lifetimes to enjoy the fruits of her labor. Releasing her daughter, she allowed the fairies to carry her away to her chamber, soon to be renamed the Hall of the Blue Eclipse Rabbit. In her personal fortified palace, no harm would come to her. All three of her fathers, and her badass mother, would make sure of it. As Sarah turned to leave, not one to be amid any party, even one so personal, a bundle of flowers was pressed into her arms. She gazed at the blue and red roses bisected by beautiful sunflowers in amazement. She knew the sunflowers had to come directly from Ying Yue Jiang’s lunar palace. No other sunflower carried that strand’s distinct smell.

“You know I hate roses, and sunflowers with them? A strange choice.” Sarah admonished, even as she took in their unique, otherworldly scent with a gentle grin, her diamond ring sparkling tenfold.

“But I suppose I’ll take what I can get.” She giggles like a girl, overcome with a sudden surge of pure joy. Her mates joined her as they giggled like children, walking hand in hand back to their inner place.

As soon as the large double doors shut behind them, the fairy attendants disappeared, and the last of the fox flames that lit up the hall dimmed and vanished. Three sets of hands descended on Bijoux’s body. She didn’t resist, allowing Bo Chang to rip away her gown with enough force that she was yanked forward. A clawed hand sunk into her left buttcheek, followed by a hard slap to her behind that flung her to her knees and left her sore. She relished the force of their combined possession, their claim over their shared wife, and she allowed herself to be lost in their arms once more, as she wanted to do when they were first reunited nine years ago.

She felt herself lifted and tossed on the bed, then two rough hands dragged her backward by her thighs. Sarah moaned as Bo Chang’s tongue wasted no time finding her slit, tracing it once, then twice, before parting it with his thumbs. His tongue sunk into her pussy, and he lavished it with care, elongating and thickening as he lost control of his human facade.

She shuddered, unable to stop herself from trembling as he fucked her with his mouth. Sarah reaching in between her raised hips to flick her aching clit. It wasn’t long before she could feel her thighs trembling, already on the cusp of orgasm. But her mates wouldn’t let her off that easily, especially on a special occasion like tonight. Sarah’s head was yanked upward by Toshiyuki, who liked his lips, eyes aglow as he guided his slick cock into her awaiting mouth. She took him readily, greedily, rocking back on Bo’s mouth as Toshi went to work, fucking her throat in earnest.

He rammed his penis down her throat over and over, balls slapping her chin as he cupped the sides of her face. She enjoyed the way his eyes fluttered backwards, whispering nonsense as he lost the rhythm and pumped her throat with abandon. Her eyes rolled back, ready for the erections to plunge deep inside of her and fill every one of her hungry holes. She wanted all of them all at once, no more teasing or games. She wanted it fast and rough, to have their sticky, wet seed inside her until she couldn’t take anymore.

As if he could read her mind, she felt something stiff enter her bum. She whimpered around Toshi’s thick cock, growing harder and bigger as he came closer to coming undone. Min-joon’s slick fingers were working the ring of her ass, and the combined sensations of Bo’s tongue, Toshi’s cock, and Min-joon’s fingers was absolutely divine. There was nothing that could ever come close to mating with her fated mates. Nothing in either realm was as precious as a love that never faded and grew stronger with age.

“Move, fated. I can’t wait for her any longer.” In an instant, Bo’s claws lifted from her bum and his long tongue pulled out of her wet pussy. She longed for something harder to fill her up quickly, and she was delighted when Min-joon clasped her, pressed, and slammed forward, plunging into her ass.

She screamed, the pressure immense, and the pleasure melting her six senses into mush. She gagged on Toshi, who groaned in return, shooting his sticky wet load down her throat in spurts. He pulled away, and she gasped for air, mouth full of his seed. Still balls deep inside of his queen, Min-joon pulled her into the air and slowly lowered her onto Bo Chang’s stiff cock, eagerly awaiting her wetness to engulf him and clamp down tight.

She hissed, the mark on her chest glowing bright blue, magic leaking through her pores along with sweat and the curious scent of sex. Min-joon rode her like a wild beast, vicious in the pursuit of a post come high but oddly gentle as he toyed with her nipples. Bo, for his part, simply held on for dear life and allowed the force of Min-joon’s claim to force him deeper inside his beloved.

No words could explain the immensity of her feeling, only sharpened when Toshi stroked himself back into a full erection, guiding Bo’s lips to his shaft. He reached over and brought his wife’s lips to his, deep inside the eldest’s throat, tongue exploring Sarah’s. Min-joon continued filling her core at a punishing pace, until he stiffened all over and exploded inside. Sarah followed suit, trembling all over, soaring so high she felt as though she’d circled the moon and fallen back down to earth like a shooting star.

He pulled out slowly, come leaking from her open hole. He kissed her neck, then bit down, before leaning forward. He pulled Toshiyuki away from their wife, kissed him, and whispered endearments. The youngest understood in seconds. Repositioning themselves, as Sarah leaned down to kiss Bo, his cock still wedged inside her pussy, pistolling in and out, she found Toshiyuki inside, filling the gap Min-Joon had left. Sarah whimpered again, tears pooling at the edge of her vision, wondering if she could come again and still reside in the land of the living?

Her answer came in the form of two deep thrusts, the weight on her back so heavy she knew Min-joon must have been inside of Toshiyuki. Bo was the first to crack, having held out the longest as they all came together and came undone. He panted, hard nipples scraping against Sarah’s as Toshi persisted in his pursuit of filling her once more. He came second, in shuddering spirits, his tail appearing out of thin air to circle around Sarah’s stomach. It always popped out at the most unexpected moments when they were making love. With one more push, so deep that Sarah thought she would never feel the same inside again, Min-joon came again and collapsed.

They lay there in a sticky hot mess, entangled and enraptured, but soon enough Min-joon pulled out and Toshiyuki followed. Bo was last, lifting Sarah from his cock as his mate’s arousal dripped down her thighs and leaked from her behind, mixed with their semen.

“Your love may crack me open like a safe one day,” she cooed, completely spent as she evaporated into Bo’s chest, as silky as the satin sheets on the master bed large enough to hold them all and then some.

Toshi nipped first on his shoulder and then the side of her neck, murmuring. “Never.”

“Our love is too strong, our bond so great, that it would never break,” Min-joon chimed in, his large arm and tails encircling both Toshi and Sarah.

“How long can our love last, do you suppose, Great Bijoux?” Min-joon asked, speaking for all as they crowded around her, encasing Bijoux in their warmth and primal magic, caressing her with their tails and bodies.

“Forever,” she whispered, burrowing deeper into her den of foxy fated mates, realizing that she had pulled off the heist of the century. Claiming all three of their hearts.

THE END

Thank you for reading Foxy Heist (A Lucky Break Novel, #1)! If you enjoyed this blend of Asian mythology and poly romance, please leave a review. And don’t forget to pre-order the next books in the series!

About Zelda Knight

Zelda Knight writes erotic sci-fi and fantasy romance. She’s also a cryptozoologist in training. Keep in touch on social media @AuthorZKnight. Or visit www.zeldaknight.com. You can also email zelda@zeldaknight.com.

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Also By Zelda Knight

Pride Anthologies

Moonlight: A Limited Edition Paranormal Romance Anthology
https://books2read.com/moonlightanthology

Lucky Break Series

Colonial Caper (A Lucky Break Novel, #2): https://books2read.com/colonialcaper

Midnight Conspiracy (A Lucky Break Novel, #2): https://books2read.com/midnightconspiracy

Omegas of Alaska

Omega’s Sanctuary (Omega’s of Alaska, #1): https://books2read.com/omegassanctuary

The Grimoire Chronicles

Zephyr’s Curse (A Grimoire Chronicles Novelette, #0.5): https://storyoriginapp.com/giveaways/b60e235c-01aa-11eb-8843-9763c8e95190