by West, Tara
The goddess stood, holding a hand down to Amara. “You will wake soon. It’s time to go.”
“Wait!” Amara took the goddess’s hand, noting how it trembled. Was the goddess frightened? That wasn’t a good omen for the Amaroki. She didn’t have time to dwell on the goddess’s fears. She had a pressing question that needed to be answered. “Goddess, did you trick my fathers into thinking a human is their mate?”
The goddess averted her eyes as she tugged on Amara’s hand, pulling her back to the edge where the clouds dropped off into a black chasm. “It wasn’t so much a trick as it was rewarding them with a kind mate rather than a selfish shrew.”
Having already suspected her fathers had been fooled by the ancients, Amara wasn’t surprised by the goddess’s response. She wasn’t pleased by it either. It made her think her fathers and Eilea had no choice in the matter. “But Eilea doesn’t want to mate with my fathers.” Though she was seething, she tried to keep her tone even. She didn’t think angering a goddess would do her any good.
“She lies.” The goddess’s gaze snapped to hers, a fire in her eyes. “She wants them very much.”
“But you tricked her.” This time she couldn’t keep the note of accusation out of her voice.
“I will not deny I helped bring on the attraction, but that spell was only temporary. This human doesn’t want to admit it, but she is intrigued.” She tapped her chin, looking devious. “What woman wouldn’t want four, viral shifter men as her mates?”
“An independent woman who does not understand our culture.” Amara wasn’t about to let her off the hook so easily. Though Amara loved her mates and didn’t regret their bonding, she had cast aside all inhibitions and mated with them like a rabbit on crack, or in her case, a wolf in heat, not long after they’d first met, after she’d insisted she wasn’t going to be their puppy mill. So much for willpower. Again, she didn’t regret her life, being bonded to four loving, supportive, and oh-so-virile men. But she’d suffered through a sharp learning curve, making a mistake that almost caused her to lose Drasko forever. How would a human be able to handle the challenges that came with mating with a shifter pack? Not only that, but Amara’s grandfathers were Romanian chieftains. Her fathers were expected to one day take their place. Would the Romanian tribe welcome a human as a tribal leader? Would Dr. Johnson want to give up her practice and move to another country?
“She will soon enough.” The goddess shrugged. “And then she will seek you out to get closer to your fathers.”
But there was still one major obstacle the goddess hadn’t mentioned. “And what about Katarina?”
The goddess quirked a brow. “What about her?”
She gawped at the goddess. How could she have forgotten about the Wicked Bitch of the West? “My fathers already have a mate.”
“Not for long,” she said serenely.
“What does that mean?” Would her fathers return to Romania and complete the bond-breaking ceremony?
“I have seen her fate in the scrolls. It does not end well for her.” The goddess spoke with such indifference, she could’ve been talking about the weather.
Amara remembered Amarok saying the same thing to Katarina last year, but nothing came of it, so she assumed all danger had passed. “What happens to her?”
The goddess grimaced, then looked over her shoulder as if they were being watched. “I dare not tell, for if you try to alter the course of the future, it could have dire consequences for your cousin.”
Amara’s heart clenched. What did Annie have to do with this? “What do you mean?”
They peered at the abyss below. “Your mates are trying to wake you.” She pushed Amara.
“But wait!” Amara screamed, tumbling over the edge, falling into darkness and then waking up with a start, staring into four pairs of concerned eyes.
Chapter Seventeen
Takaani woke with a start.
“Goddammit!” She rubbed her eyes and looked around a cabin with dark wood panels and heavy curtains that blocked out the summer sun’s light. Momentarily disoriented, she struggled to remember where she was and why she shouldn’t have fallen asleep. The smell of sickness hit her. Wrinkling her nose, she looked at her husky’s smooth gray fur. Her heart sank when she saw the bloody softball protruding from his leg. Then she remembered the wolverine attack. Mako’s leg was infected.
She placed a hand on his neck, her throat tightening with emotion when his tail thumped the floor. He was too sick to lift his head as he let out a heart-wrenching whimper. He needed antibiotics, which meant she had to take him to a vet and run the risk of agents catching her.
She glanced at the keys to the old truck, hanging from the hook by the front door, then bent over Mako and kissed his forehead.
“Don’t worry, buddy,” she whispered as tears welled in her eyes. “You’ll be better soon.”
What choice did she have? She couldn’t let her best friend die.
AMARA AND HAKON HAD argued until her head spun, but he refused to sneak her off the reservation until she practiced her newfound powers for at least another day, which meant one more day that Agent Johnson was closer to death and Annie was out there alone, hunted by federal agents. This was all thanks to Luc, who’d talked Hakon into putting off the mission. Though Amara wanted to be mad at him, she appreciated his concern for her.
A call to Eilea confirmed Johnson was “hanging on.” The mission could be put off for one day while they prepared. She spent all morning, deep in the forest with her mates, buckling the ground and rattling trees. The more she practiced, the better she got. She didn’t even need to lift her hands. She could simply aim with her eyes.
One big downside to being a pregnant earthshaker was the tremors magnified morning sickness tenfold. After the third time she vomited, her mates insisted they’d practiced enough and took her home.
They returned to a delicious spread of waffles, eggs, and bacon. Amara wanted to eat the whole platter of waffles, but she only managed a few bites before the nausea kicked in again. Rone sat her down with a cup of herbal tea, and she felt well enough to return to her breakfast. She ate slowly while her mates planned the next day’s escape.
Once they escaped the reservation, the feds would be after them, so they planned to abandon their truck and meet up with Eilea, who would take Amara, Hakon, and Drasko to the hospital while Luc and Rone created a diversion, taking off through the forest as wolves. Luc would also try to find Annie and lead her back to Eilea’s new clinic, which was just outside the reservation. They’d wait there until Amara cured Agent Johnson, and he could relieve Richter of duty, and maybe let Hakon and Drasko kick the douchewad’s ass.
Amara’s fathers sat across from her mates, their faces drawn. “You are including Eilea—Dr. Johnson in this?” Boris asked, looking over his shoulder, no doubt making sure Katarina wasn’t within earshot.
Hakon was puzzled. “Of course.”
“Why?” Her father’s voice rose an octave. “This is too dangerous for a human.”
Amara’s other fathers murmured agreement, then went quiet when Katarina sauntered up the stairs.
She stood at the top of the steps, snarling at Boris. “Since when do you care about humans?”
He stared straight ahead, focused on the tree branches being whipped about in the wind outside. “That is none of your concern.”
“What does this human mean to you?” she shrieked, marching up to him with clenched hands.
He glanced at her. “She means nothing to me.”
He said it with so little emotion, he almost convinced Amara, but she was no fool. Not only had her fathers ignored Katarina since they’d picked up Eilea’s scent, they’d ignored Amara, too. They spent every waking hour with heads bent together, telepathically speaking and acting as if they were the only souls in the room. Still, she was glad her father lied to Katarina about Eilea. Amara shuddered at the thought of what Katarina would do to Eilea if she discovered her mates wanted to claim her.
&nb
sp; Katarina’s face hardened. “You lie.”
“Listen to yourself, Katarina.” Her second alpha father, Jovan, let out a laugh that sounded forced. “Jealous of a human? You have gone nebun.”
Katarina crossed her arms, glaring at him.
Boris arched a brow. “Do you have something to say, Katarina?”
Her lips twisted so tight, she looked as if she’d sucked on a sour, moldy lemon. All the air seemed to have been pulled from the room while they waited for her to answer. Finally she sat with a huff, giving her mates the stink eye while pouring herself a cup of coffee.
Hakon looked at her a long moment, then shook his head, swearing under his breath. “We need Dr. Johnson to get us into the hospital,” he said to Boris.
He squared his shoulders. “We are going with you.”
“Why?” Katarina slammed the coffee carafe down, sloshing liquid on the table. “To protect this human?”
Boris let out a primal roar. “To protect our daughter, you selfish shrew!”
Amara covered her ears, praying her father’s outburst hadn’t woken Hrod, who was sleeping upstairs with Bunica and Bunic Nicolae. Mihaela and Tatiana both glared at Boris from across the room. They’d been quietly playing with the dog by the fire, though Amara suspected they were secretly listening in on the conversation.
“Our son is sleeping,” Hakon said harshly.
“Sorry,” Boris said.
Katarina pushed away from the table, slamming the chair and making all kinds of noise as she stomped back down the stairs. When Amara heard the outside door slam, she secretly hoped Katarina stayed outside the rest of the day.
The sounds of Hrod’s whimpers, followed by a shrill cry, made Amara tense.
She stood to go to him, but Rone grabbed her arm. “He’ll be fine. Let your bunics handle it.”
She couldn’t control herself. It made her uneasy when her baby cried, and she couldn’t help him. Then she heard Bunica singing a Romanian lullaby, and her heart warmed. Though she loathed having Katarina in her house, it was worth it to have her bunica.
Her birth father, Marius, abruptly got up and crossed to the window. “She is not supposed to wander that far from the house.”
“Leave her,” Boris said, pouring something from a flask into his coffee. “The chieftain and his brothers are outside. They won’t let her get far.” He passed the flask around to her other fathers, and they poured generous amounts into their coffees, too. It wasn’t like her fathers to drink so early. Had Katarina driven them to this?
She remembered what the goddess had said about Katarina’s fate, and though she never wished ill will on anyone, she hated to admit she wouldn’t shed any tears for her stepmonster. This woman had been cruel to her and unfaithful to her fathers, driving them to drink with her outbursts and moods. Her fathers clutched their mugs like lifelines, downing their coffees and then passing around the flask again. There was no way they could go with her on her mission, and not just because of their drinking. She suspected they’d be too preoccupied with drooling over Eilea to be of any help.
“Fathers.” Amara cleared her throat when they all looked at her. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to come with us.”
Boris’s face fell. He set down his cup and pushed it away. “I meant what I said. We want to protect you, fiică.”
She impatiently tapped her fingers on the table and shared knowing looks with her mates. “And?”
Jovan frowned into his drink. “We will not deny our need to protect Eilea, too.”
“She doesn’t want you there.” Amara clenched her silverware as her fathers shot her pitiful looks. “She asked me to leave you at home.”
“We will control ourselves.” Boris crossed his hands on the table, sitting erect, like a schoolboy trying to impress his teacher. “Now that the shock has worn off, we will be on our best behavior.”
Marius sat at the table, eagerly nodding agreement. His brothers did the same.
Amara looked to her mates, surprised when Drasko nodded.
“A mission like this requires more protectors than just Hakon and me,” Drasko said.
“You can come with us,” Hakon said, “but you must follow my command.”
Boris looked affronted. “Of course.”
Amara was surprised that Boris would agree so easily to follow her mate’s orders. She wanted to think it was because he truly desired to protect her, but she suspected Eilea was the main reason her fathers were on their best behavior.
Hakon leveled them with a dark look. “You must agree that Amara’s safety comes before all others.”
Her fathers simultaneously flinched as if Hakon had splashed a bucket of ice water on them.
Boris stood and looked down his nose at Hakon. “We’re insulted that you’d even have to ask us to put our daughter first.”
Again, Hakon shared long looks with his brothers. Amara was slightly annoyed that her mates had left her out of the conversation.
“Forgive me,” Hakon said to Boris, “but you haven’t even spent time with her since you’ve gotten here. You’ve spent your time obsessing over the human doctor.”
“Do you not remember how you obsessed over Amara when you first scented her?” Boris sat back down, his shoulders caving inward as if pressed down by an invisible weight. “How you still obsess over her? Would you be so bothered if she wasn’t human?”
Hakon leaned back, giving each of them a long look. “I admit it concerns me that she is not like us.”
“Our Goddess Amara wasn’t a wolf when she first mated with Amarok and his brothers,” Marius said.
Her other fathers nodded their agreement.
“No,” Hakon said, “but she was a powerful witch who used magic to become like us.”
Oh, so that’s how she’d done it. Amara had secretly hoped it was something simple, so Eilea could transform into a shifter, too. That is, if she wanted to.
“This human has no magic,” Drasko grumbled. “She does not belong with us.”
Amara stiffened, taking offense for Eilea’s sake. Amara’s mother was human, and Eilea was a kind, strong woman. She would make a good mate for Amara’s fathers, if she was willing.
“That is not for you to decide.” Boris stood, leaning on his knuckles and giving Amara’s mates a challenging glare. “The Ancients have obviously chosen her for us for a reason.”
Drasko narrowed his eyes at Boris. “Or you are mistaken.”
Boris pounded the table. “I know my instinct!”
Amara flinched, then held her breath, waiting for Hrod’s wail.
Hakon let out a low rumble, his eyes shifting to gold. “Again, I must ask you to remember my son, your grandson, is sleeping.”
To Amara’s surprise, Boris hung his head and apologized.
Knowing she’d have to tell them about her visit with the goddess last night, Amara tensed. She still hadn’t told anyone. She feared they’d ask her for every detail, and she didn’t know how her fathers would take the news about Katarina’s fate.
Amara released a slow breath. “No, Drasko, they are not mistaken. I spoke to our goddess last night.”
All four of her fathers looked at her like dogs drooling over a bone. “What did she say?” Boris asked, his eyes alight with eagerness.
“That she did lure you to Eilea.” Biting her lip, her gaze darted from father to father. “She says you deserve a kind mate.”
“And what about Katarina?” Boris asked.
The gleam in his eyes made Amara think he was hoping Katarina would have a bad outcome.
She swallowed a knot in her throat. Her emotions were too raw to process if the knot had stemmed from fear, pity, or joy.
“She only told me that her fate will not end well. She refused to say more.”
“And then we will be free to mate with Eilea.” Boris’s tone was too hopeful, not that she could blame him.
“Listen to you!” Her tracker father, Geri, who’d been quiet until now, stood over Boris,
his face turning from red to purple. “Ready to cast aside one mate for another.”
Boris jumped to his feet, snarling. “She already cast us aside when she ran off with the Devoras!”
They stared at each other, hands clenched, flushed with anger.
“Fathers, please,” she begged, though she had no idea what she hoped to accomplish.
Upstairs, Hrod’s cries broke the tension between them. Bunic Nicolae clomped out of Hrod’s upstairs bedroom, wordlessly shook his fist at Amara’s fathers, then stormed back into the room. Geri and Boris fell into their chairs, mouthing an apology to Amara.
“Maybe it’s not a good idea for you to come with us,” Hakon said. “I will ask my fathers.”
“No!” Boris said with a hiss, throwing out his hands. “I have already said we will behave. If you do not take us, we will find another way.” They were acting like lovestruck teens.
Amara’s mates traded disgusted looks before leaving the table and going outside. Amara’s heart plummeted as they pounded down the porch steps, backs stiff.
Boris looked at Amara. “Why does he give us so much grief?”
She shrugged and turned to her plate, ignoring her grumbling stomach and wishing she had the desire to finish her food.
“Forgive us, Amara.” Boris leaned across the table and grabbed her hand. “We have not been good fathers. We came to bond with you, and we have not been doing a good job of it.”
“No,” she answered honestly, “you haven’t.” Amara couldn’t deny her growing jealousy. She didn’t think she was being selfish to want a few minutes of their time. She’d been so looking forward to their visit, but they might as well have stayed in Romania. Thank the Ancients for Bunica and Bunic Nicolae, who’d showered Hrod and her with attention and love.
“We will make it up to you as soon as the danger passes.” Marius got up and sat beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “We will spend more time with you and Hrod.”
“Okay.” Amara wasn’t holding her breath.