My past wasn’t any of her business. And right now, I really didn’t want to talk about her brother either. Inarus was the last person I wanted to think about. That way led to nothing but anger and depression.
We still didn’t know if he’d survive his injuries.
It’d been over two weeks since my mother—the leader of the Northwest Human Alliance Corporation—had abducted and brutalized him.
We’d managed to get him out but not before he’d sustained life-threatening injuries.
He’d undergone surgery but the damage had been so severe the Pack healers had needed to put him into an induced coma to give him time to heal.
It’d been nearly three weeks now.
Frankie and Annabeth checked on him daily and his vitals were stronger now than before, but we still didn’t know when, or if, he’d wake up. Most of his bones had fused back together thanks to advanced psyker healing abilities but his skin was still mottled with bruises and we didn’t know what other internal damage he may have sustained. Gone were the days where we had access to ultrasound machines or x-rays. Now we just prayed and hoped for the best.
It was hard seeing him like that.
The stress of it all ate at my nerves.
If Inarus didn’t pull through, I would never forgive myself.
I shook the thoughts away and focused on my task at hand. He’d wake up. I just had to keep believing that and make sure when he did, I was ready. He deserved retribution and I would give it to him.
The name of the game was to take out Jason. As my self-nominated trainer, he claimed he would whip me into shape and prepare me for the battle we all knew was coming.
The more I worked with him though, the more I thought he was trying to kill me. He didn’t pull his punches and I had the bruises to show for it.
A metal folding chair leaped through the air toward me.
“Don’t hit it!” Dia shouted. “Use your abilities.”
“I know,” I ground out.
On instinct, I called my fire to me but quickly realized that the stupid chair would just fly through whatever fire barrier I managed to erect.
Shit. I snuffed out my flames and raised both hands, trying to call on the telekinetic energy buried inside of me.
I didn’t use it often. Not with conscious thought.
It was volatile and I had no idea how to control it with any sort of precision, so I’d worked at burying it deep inside me. Doing so made it slow to respond but when it did … I shivered.
The chair closed in and I pulled harder on the ball of energy I knew was buried deep inside of me.
“Come on. Come on.” Sweat dripped down my brow. A slow vibration started beneath the surface of my skin, increasing to create a roar in my ears.
I threw my hands up in front of my face as the chair zipped closer. It slammed into an invisible barrier only inches from my face and hovered there.
I looked up. Relief flooded through me. I did it. I stopped the chair.
And then it pulled back, charged forward, and broke through the invisible shield I’d erected around myself, slamming into my face.
Ow!
I fell flat on my back. Blood dripped down my chin and my vision went black before it flickered in and out.
I groaned and rubbed my eyes. When my vision cleared, Dia’s face came into view above me. A shit-eating grin spread across her face.
“Well, you tried.”
I flipped her off and rolled to the side before pushing myself to my feet.
“Again.”
“Maybe it’s time for a break,” Dia suggested.
I waved her off. I didn’t need a break.
I leveled my gaze on Jason. “Again.”
“Fine by me.”
Declan remained quiet but I could feel disapproval radiating from him through our bond.
I shook my head to clear out the dark spots and took a few steps back. I slid my back foot out and assumed a fighters stance.
“Okay. Go.”
A table screeched across the floor toward me. I dodged it and blasted it with fire.
“Wrong ability,” Dia called.
“I know that!” The table whirled and slammed into my back, knocking me off my feet. I careened forward but managed to stay upright.
“Think faster.”
Dia’s voice grated on my nerves.
The table came at me again. The sound of scraping metal had me looking over my shoulder to see another table coming in from the rear.
I pulled my TK power to me and melded it with my fire. Air stirred all around me. This wasn’t working. At this rate, I was going to be pulverized by furniture and wouldn’t that make for a hilarious headstone.
Here lies Aria Naveed. Pyrokinetic. Mercenary. Idiot killed by a coffee table. May she rest in peace.
I bit my lower lip. I was making too many mistakes. I needed a Plan B.
I stilled and closed my eyes for a moment as I racked my brain. The name of the game was to avoid being hit using only my TK abilities. Which meant I couldn’t rely on my fire or my speed.
I snapped my eyes open and my fire surged back inside of me. The two tables closed in.
“Here goes nothing.”
Opening the floodgates on my TK abilities, I wrapped both tables in an invisible shield and forced them to halt.
My knees shook. My skin vibrated and sweat dripped down my back between my shoulder blades. It itched but I ignored it.
Jason shoved against my hold. My teeth clattered and my head pounded. Black spots filled my vision but I held on.
“Not today, buddy. Not today.”
I pushed back but it wasn’t enough. I was barely hanging on. I could already feel the mental push back. I wasn’t going to be able to hold out much longer. Apprehension coursed through me. The blowback was going to hurt like a bitch.
I braced myself in anticipation.
A surge of warmth brushed along my subconscious and I reached for it.
The bond between Declan and I lit up like a neon sign at a strip club. I reached for it and a cascade of strength surged through my bloodstream.
Adrenaline consumed me and I shoved against Jason with everything I had as I roared a preemptive roar shout of victory.
The tables flew back, each slamming into the opposite wall with an audible thwack.
My knees buckled and I fell to the floor.
I did it. I finally did it.
Declan rushed toward me and pulled me to my feet. I smiled up with a wide grin and kissed him square on the lips.
“Thank you.” I was so happy I didn’t care that I was acting like a love-drunk idiot.
He scowled but pulled me close. “Next time, don’t wait so long to lean on me.”
I laughed. “Hell, if I knew the bond could do that, I’d have taken advantage of it earlier.”
Okay, so I might not have. The bond between Declan and I was still a scary thing, but I was happy for it at the moment.
Jason walked over, rubbing his forehead.
“The kickback’s a bitch, isn’t it?” I snickered and the buried my smile against Declan’s chest.
He scowled. “I think that’s enough for today. Get some rest and we’ll do this again soon.”
Hopefully not too soon because after today, I needed a nap. Preferably one that lasted several days. And one that maybe included a wine break or two.
2
Declan sat in a leather chair facing the fireplace in our bedroom. Yeah, I said it. Our bedroom.
I’d finally caved and moved in with him.
It seemed stupid not to. Either he was in my bed, or I was in his. It’d been that way every night since rescuing Inarus, so it only made sense to make it official, and since his closet was bigger than mine—I took it over. Sometimes you made sacrifices for the sake of a relationship. In this case, Declan was the one to sacrifice and I was happy to accept.
Declan sighed deeply and I threw myself into the leather chair beside him, kicking off my steel-toed boo
ts to feel the heat of the fire on my toes.
Mmm… this was nice.
Declan shook his head and reached for the glass of amber whiskey resting on the side table between us. His shoulders were tight with tension. His face etched with worry.
“That kind of day?” I asked.
A thread of guilt wormed through me. I knew Declan was under a massive amount of pressure. Running the largest shapeshifter Pack in the United States would run anyone ragged.
And I wasn’t helping the situation by epically failing in my training. I was just one more person on Declan’s endless list to worry about.
But really, if anyone should be drinking, it should be me.
James Shields—my werewolf best friend who also happened to be the Pack Hunter—was still MIA. He’d been gone a month now and it was starting to piss me off. Declan was being tight-lipped about where James had gone and when he’d be back. I had a feeling it had something to do with Noah Thorne, the South Atlantic Pack Alpha who’d kidnapped me and handed me over to my mother—the head of the H.A.C.— but I wasn’t certain and no one would tell me one way or the other.
Noah had visited our territory supposedly because he had business dealings in the area. Too late we realized his business was with the H.A.C. and he’d intended to hand me over to them on a nice shiny silver platter.
And he had.
But Declan and Inarus had rescued me. And I’d walked away with a few minor injuries and new telekinetic powers. Coupled with my pre-existing pyro abilities, I should be a force to be reckoned with. Instead, I was a disaster.
And now I understood Declan’s drinking. Not that it did him any good. I was pretty sure shifters couldn’t get drunk.
But I could.
I poured myself a three fingered glass and took a generous swallow, and then choked and coughed. Gah, did that burn.
Declan didn’t say anything. No jab at my inability to hold my liquor. No teasing remark or reminder that I should avoid alcohol entirely so it didn’t muddle my senses.
He just sat there, stoic and silent, as though the weight of the world rested on his shoulders.
I really wanted to poke him. To pester him with questions until he finally gave in and gave me some answers. But I’d done that once before and knew from experience it wouldn’t get me anywhere.
James wasn’t answering any of my calls. All I would get were single sentence text responses letting me know he was alive, unavailable, and working on Pack business.
You would think as mate to the Alpha of said Pack, I’d get the low down on what was going on.
But no. I was being kept in the dark and until Declan changed his mind, it would stay that way.
I tucked my legs beneath me and waited as Declan took another drink. He was the silent broody type so if I gave him a few minutes, he’d eventually give voice to whatever was on his mind.
Patience had never been one of my virtues but I was learning. In a relationship, sometimes all the other person needed was time. He’d given it to me when I’d needed it. I guess it was my turn now to give it to him.
The fire crackled in the fireplace, calling to my own flames. I stared at the fire as it swayed almost as though it were dancing to silent music.
Time passed. I didn’t know or care how long I sat there.
I just watched the flames and every now and again, I would use my powers to push them this way and that. It was an easy exercise. One I’d done hundreds of times when I was first learning to focus my abilities. Now it came naturally. I hoped my new telekinesis would come easy to me someday too.
Fire licked my fingertips and I shook the flames free before sinking back into my chair.
Declan rested his glass on his knee and leveled me with his emerald gaze, finally ready to talk.
“I know you’re under a lot of pressure but …” He ran his free hand through his white-blond hair. “We don’t have a lot of time. If we’re—”
A knock at the door had us both turning. Brock—the Pack’s head of security—peeked his head into the room. “Sorry but—” Before he could continue, Robert—Alpha of Clan Canidae—pushed his way into the room.
“Pardon the interruption, but there’s a situation that requires your attention.”
I narrowed my eyes. Pardon? Since when did the sneaky coyote develop manners? He had to be up to something.
Declan stood but Robert was already shaking his head. “Not yours. Hers.”
I lifted a brow. “Me?”
Robert rolled his eyes. “Yes, you. Now hurry up before someone gets hurt.”
Without waiting for me, Robert turned and left, leaving me to hastily follow in his wake.
Declan strode beside me, clearly as curious as I was to see whatever was going on. This was the first time I’d ever been sought out by a Clan Alpha.
We’d just cleared the end of the hallway and started to head down the staircase when raised voices reached my ears.
“What —” I started but was cut off.
“You’ll see.” Was Roberts vague response.
Reaching the third level, I came to a stop. Shifters stood wild-eyed, their gazes aimed toward the door I knew led to the infirmary where Inarus was resting and recovering.
Robert didn’t bother stopping. He brushed passed the men in the hallway and stepped into Inarus’ room.
Almost instantly, he was shoved right back out, crashing into me.
“What the hell—” I nearly fell, but Declan’s firm grip held me upright as Robert righted himself and I sucked in a lungful of breath.
Robert indicated the doorway. “No one can get close to him. It’s like there’s an invisible force field surrounding him and he shoves away anyone who gets too close.”
“When did this start?” I stared at the empty doorway. It looked perfectly normal but…
Declan strode into the room next, only to slide back out, barely managing to maintain his footing.
Robert ran a hand through his close-cropped blonde hair. “Annabeth noticed only a few minutes ago. Dia tried to get in and had the same results.”
As though hearing her name, Dia descended the steps behind me. Her jet black hair fanned around her face as she jogged closer. “Good. You found her. Can you get through to him?
Dia was Inarus’ sister. She’d tried to kill me. Then helped me, and now she was working to train me. It was a strange relationship. One I tried not to look too closely at.
She and Robert had developed some sort of something between the two of them so I no longer stared wide-eyed whenever I noticed their hands touch briefly or their shoulders brush up against one another—like they did just now.
Their contact was always brief, careful. But I wasn’t stupid. Something was brewing between these two and I didn’t want to know about it.
Judging by the scowl on Declan’s face, he didn’t either.
It was frowned upon to date a non shifter. One of the many reasons mine and Declan’s mating was so surprising. As Alpha to the Pacific Northwest Pack, he’d been expected to mate with a nice shifter girl. Instead, his beast took matters into its own hands and claimed me.
Before that, shifter and non shifter couplings were virtually unheard of. It made Dia and Robert’s attraction to one another all the more intriguing.
Robert had definitely not been team Aria in the beginning. He’d come around. But he wouldn’t have minded one bit if Declan had replaced me with a a shifter.
Maybe Dia was the reason he’d suddenly embraced my presence? Not that she would vouch for me. We weren’t exactly friends. But it was something to think about later.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, getting back to the task at hand.
Dia waved toward the open doorway. “Inarus is protecting himself. He’s created a telekinetic net that keeps intruders away while his body heals. Think of it like a shield. On some level, he doesn’t feel safe. You need to reassure him he isn’t in any danger.”
“Me? Why me?” I turned a wide-eyed look towa
rd Declan, who only shrugged.
“I don’t know how any of this psyker stuff works.”
Some help he was.
“Why can’t you do it?” I asked.
Dia lifted her arm, displaying the spell-worked cuff that locked her telekinetic powers. “Until this comes off, I’m a dud. You’re the only one who can get through to him when he’s like this.”
I looked skeptically to the doorway and then back to Dia. “Have you at least tried?”
She rolled her grey-blue eyes. “Repeatedly. I can’t get even a spark of my abilities to manifest thanks to this. And I have you to thank for that, by the way.” Her smile was far from friendly.
I couldn’t blame her for her hostility. If someone had locked up my abilities I’d be pissed too. But it’d been necessary at the time. Dia had been our enemy. I wasn’t entirely sure what she was now but it would have been easier had she been able to help.
“Telekinesis and I aren’t great friends—” You’d think today’s earlier demonstration would have reaffirmed that.
“I know. You suck at using your abilities but you’re all we’ve got. Annabeth and Frankie need to be able to monitor him and the extra strain he’s putting on himself by erecting this shield is going to stymie his healing. He could kill himself if you don’t hurry up and do something.”
I swallowed. Great. No pressure.
Exhaustion pulled at the corners of my subconscious. I would have liked to recover from todays training activities before using my abilities but I wasn’t about to let Inarus hurt himself. He’d been through enough.
“Okay. Tell me what to do.”
3
“Hurry up!” Dia shouted for what seemed like the hundredth time.
I turned, looked over my shoulder, flipped her off, and then had to grit my teeth as Inarus battered into the thin shield I’d managed to erect around myself.
That alone took nearly thirty minutes to figure out how to do.
“Dammit. Ow. Fuck!” Rubbing a hand over my face did nothing to ease the throb in my skull. I was reaching my mental limits.
Forged by Fire: An Urban Fantasy Novel (Blood and Magic Book 6) Page 2