by A. J. Macey
“You all right, Lucie?” Gerry asked, his deep voice pulling me from my internal worries. I nodded, shooting him a grateful smile as he took my bag.
“Just everything with the situation back at school.” I couldn’t bring myself to say his name, the thought making my stomach rebel. He nodded sympathetically.
“I understand, don’t worry though, all right?” He caught my eye. “We’ll do everything we can to handle the situation. I know Dean Renaud is raising hell to find a Tracker so we can locate him.” I knew I shouldn’t be surprised to hear Alex was trying so hard, but I was. My chest filled with emotion, knowing he, along with everyone else handling everything, had my back. I’m not alone. I soared at the thought.
We met Cam and Nik in the lobby; they had come down ten minutes earlier to check out and turn in our keys. My cheeks heated when I saw the bright red claw marks peeking out of Nik’s unbuttoned Henley. Did he do that on purpose?
“There you are,” Cam greeted happily, leaning forward giving me a kiss, his arm wrapping around my shoulders. I grabbed Nik’s free hand as Gerry handed my bag off to a bellhop to load in the waiting SUV. We quickly ran through the buffet grabbing things that we could eat in the car and on the plane. Moving toward the lobby, we ran into the last person I wanted to see. Liam’s smug smirk was firmly in place, but his eyes held a hungry gleam.
“Well, hello again, Lucienne.” My blood ran cold at my full name. “How’s my favorite Djinn?” I couldn’t breathe. How did he know? Nik’s power erupted in bright sparks across his skin as he stepped protectively in front of me, Grigori hunkering down and preparing to launch himself at Liam. I expected that from Nik, but Cam’s reaction surprised me. He leisurely stepped up to Liam, his shoulder partially covering me.
“I don’t know what you think you know,” he murmured. His tone was friendly, but his body was rigid with predatory energy. “But if you threaten our girl,” he took a stalking step toward Liam before continuing, “or tell anyone about what she is”—another prowling step—“I will kill you,” he whispered coldly, the threat blatant enough that Liam paled. He tried to play it off with a scoff and an eyeroll, but it was clear that Liam was shaken. His gaze darted to Nik, dropping long enough to notice the scratches on his chest. His blood red eyes found mine before returning to Cam. After a brief nod, Liam turned and walked away, unwilling to further the confrontation. I took a shuddering breath, my hand brushing against Cam’s muscled back. He turned, his serious hazel eyes finding mine.
“Have you killed someone before?” I whispered. The way Liam had reacted, the blatant fear on his face, left me wondering. Cam’s expression was somber when he answered me.
“Yes, Lucie, I have.” His tone suggested he was waiting for me to leave him, and at first I hesitated, but then I thought it out. Cam would never hurt me or another soul without good reason. My guys would never stand by someone who hurt others in cold blood. Coming to the conclusion that it didn’t bother me, I nodded and gave him a small smile.
“All right.” I nodded my head toward the door. “That’s enough shit for one day, and I haven’t had enough coffee to deal with any more. Let’s go home.” I took their hands and dragged them outside. The heat of the Arizona weather washed over us, a stark contrast to the hotel’s air conditioning. The ride to the airport was quiet but comfortable, the guys realizing I wasn’t going anywhere because of Cam’s confession. I settled in with my breakfast, my head leaning against Cam’s shoulder.
I would ask him later about his past.
December 2nd
Sunday Night
Lucienne
I was curled between the twins while the rest of my guys were in their administration rooms. But try as I might, I couldn’t seem to sleep. My anxiety levels were off the charts, tightening my chest painfully to the point it was hard to breathe. I lay still, the twins’ deep breathing keeping me in place. I texted one of the guys to distract myself, hoping I wasn’t waking them up. Making sure to keep the brightness down on my screen to not wake Logan or Landon, I waited for a response, and Cam replied almost instantly.
Lucie: Hey hon.
Cam: Hey Doll.
Lucie: Can’t sleep?
Cam: No, is that why you’re texting? Can’t sleep?
I nibbled my lip as I responded, deciding to be honest. I didn’t want to hide stuff from them.
Lucie: Too much anxiety, I was able to ignore it while we were in AZ, but now I can’t. It’s kind of a lot to handle.
Cam: I’m sorry Doll, I wish there was something I could do.
My heart squeezed at the sentiment.
Lucie: It’s all right, why can’t you sleep?
Cam: Worried about you, about what you found out.
My face scrunched involuntarily, confusion filtering through me at that response. I was trying to think of what he meant when another text came in. I nodded in understanding even knowing no one could see me.
Cam: about what I told you after asshole Liam.
Lucie: why would you be worried?
Cam: it isn’t exactly normal to have blood on your hands.
Lucie: will you tell me what happened?
I waited, my breath holding in anticipation. Since we got back, the rest of my guys had been vying for my attention, and I hadn’t gotten a chance to talk to Cam privately. I would be lying if I said I hadn’t been thinking about it since the situation this morning. After another few tense minutes, my phone flashed a response.
Cam: can you let me in?
Nervous energy flooded me as I very carefully maneuvered out from between the twins. Slipping on my slippers and one of my hoodies, I headed out into the hall. Bill gave me a quirked brow as I stepped out but didn’t question when I pointed to the library stacks and whispered about grabbing a book. I scurried through the empty library towards the front door making sure to disarm the alarm system.
Cam stood bundled in an RSU sweatshirt and a pair of black sweatpants, his breath puffing out in front of him as he shuffled from one foot to the other. As soon as the system showed clear, I opened the door for him and he darted inside with a chattering jaw. Quickly resetting the alarm, I waved Cam to follow me to the section opposite my room. I took a steadying breath as we reached the corner and turned to face my boyfriend. One of my boyfriends.
“I figured I owe you an explanation face to face,” he murmured softly, and a hint of worry laced his words. “I was younger, eleven about to turn twelve, and my aunt, uncle, and I had traveled to Seattle for a weekend trip for them to study an artifact for a presentation they had to do at the college. I was out walking from one of the shops, and a human was attacking a woman in an alleyway, attempting to force himself on her.” His jaw clenched tightly as he told the story, his eyes glued to the carpet.
“I wouldn’t—couldn’t—stop, after I got a hold of him. It only took a couple of hits before he was dead. I mean, it wasn’t intentional, but it still happened. I can’t deny the fact that I’m a predator regardless of if I wanted to, and when I see someone hurting someone else, I lose myself in that instinctual side of what I am.”
“Why were you worried, hon?” I asked quietly. There was a tiny part of me that still thought I should be upset, shocked, or even the slightest bit outraged. But honestly? I couldn't bring myself to listen to that voice for even a split second knowing what it was like being at the receiving end of such an attack.
“Since you grew up in the human community and are used to the different standards they tend to follow, I was afraid that what I did was going to scare you away,” he mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck, glancing up at me from under his lashes. I chuckled which surprised him. “What?” he asked, finally standing up fully. There’s my Cam.
“Unless you’re a psychopath, which I know you aren’t, I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me,” I reassured him, wrapping my arms around his waist. Snuggling in, I realized that a part of his statement didn’t make much sense. “What do you mean ‘different standards’?”
“That’s a very in-depth topic of conversation, and it’s already late. When we get a bit of free time, I’ll tell you about it, how about that?” He sighed in contentment, his nose buried into my hair as he hugged me to his chest. His parchment scent calmed me, making my eyes droop in sleepiness.
“Okay, hon. I’m really tired.” My words were muffled as I rubbed my cheek on the soft maroon fabric of his collegiate hoodie.
“You get some sleep, Doll,” Cam said after we finally stepped apart and walked to the front door.
“I will if you do,” I challenged playfully.
“Deal.”
“But before you go”—I nibbled my lip, getting the courage to ask—“you never told me how I tasted.”
“Like sweet perfection,” he said with a beaming smile. “Goodnight, Doll.” Cam left with a soft kiss, hustling down the sidewalk through the cold back to his dorm. Locking the door and arming the security system to the library, I made sure there wasn’t any security breaches before grabbing a random book off the shelf, thinking it would be weird if I returned without one.
I slipped back between my twins without even looking at the book I chose, and I drifted off.
Camden
My shoulders sagged in relief. Talking about what I had done, even in the defense of others, was hard and I hated doing it. I didn’t hate that I saved the woman from an awful fate, but I wouldn’t have been able to stand seeing the look of hatred or fear in Lucie’s eyes if she hadn’t been all right with it. I was almost to the dorm when my phone buzzed. Digging it out, I saw several texts from Hudson flashing on the screen.
Hudson: Don’t forget, we gotta look into what I asked my mom about
Hudson: And we have to be careful with Lucie being in the library, don’t want to get her hopes up if nothing turns up as we look through the archives.
Sending back a quick confirmation, I stepped into the building and darted up to Nik’s and my room with a quickly growing list of things I would need to research for Hudson’s surprise.
I hope she doesn’t mind...
December 3rd
Monday Afternoon
Dante
“You’re coming tomorrow, right?” My mother’s question irked me. Sighing away from the phone, I tried to keep my irritation out of my answer.
“Yes, Mom.” I was pretty sure it didn’t hold as steady as I wanted, but there was nothing I could do about it now.
“You going to bring your girlfriend?” Gritting my teeth, I pulled open the door to the library.
“I still need to ask her,” I huffed, weaving around the stacks toward the back study area where Lucie and Hudson were. Cam and Nik were grabbing our usual coffee orders and wouldn’t be here for another little while. The twins were working on a project and would be back this afternoon. “I’ll let you know what she says.” I didn’t want to bring Lucie, but I would ask her. I knew she’d be upset if I didn’t.
“Good,” she exclaimed, her voice cheerful from knowing she was getting her way. “I know Miguel and Sebastian are curious about her.” This time I didn’t bother to hide my groan as I reached the study area. Hanging back, I scanned the crowd for my firecracker. “Don’t sass me, Dante James, we’re all curious. Now, I need to go, Vera and I have plans to go to happy hour.” I gave a quick goodbye before hanging up, stuffing my phone into my coat pocket as I reached Lucie and Hudson. I flopped down into the chair with a huff. I don’t know why I let them get under my skin.
“Hey, dude, you all right?” Hudson’s eyebrows crawled up his forehead. I huffed again.
“What’s wrong?” Lucie’s soft voice had me turning my head to look at her. Her eyes were worried as she took in my features.
“My parents want me to come home for a birthday dinner tomorrow.” I rubbed my hands down my face. Hudson chuckled, understanding what that meant— dealing with my asshole brothers and my father with his too high standards.
“Do you not want to go?”
I tilted my head back and forth debating how to answer. “I want to see my mom, but dinner with my family can be a bit much.” Looking over at her again I mustered up the courage to confess. “They want to meet you.” Her sapphire eyes grew wide.
“What?” she squeaked, her cheeks blushing in the most adorable way. Hudson laughed again, finding this whole situation humorous because, for once, he wasn’t forced to attend the dinner.
“Yeah, but you don’t have to if…” I started, but she cut me off by pressing her hand to my lips.
“I’ll go,” she rushed, “you just surprised me is all. When is it? And where?” She looked over at Hudson whose eyes were sparkling. “And why are you laughing like it’s the funniest joke you’ve ever heard?” Her eyes narrowed.
“I’ve always had to go to his family dinners. Our moms are best friends, remember? It’s just funny it’s not me this time.” He gave her a wide smile. Her eyes were still narrowed, but a smile curled her lip as she turned back to me.
“It’s at my parent’s house, tomorrow night,” I answered so she wouldn’t have to ask again.
“Where is your guys’ hometown?” She looked intrigued, her eyes lighting up at our conversation.
“Issaquah, about half an hour northwest of here.” Pulling my phone out, I texted my mom to let her know Lucie would be coming tomorrow. She replied almost instantly, meaning she had been waiting by her cell for my answer. “Dinner’s at six tomorrow, nothing fancy or anything, they just want to celebrate me going through the Separation.” Lucie’s eyes lit up even more, reminding me of a curious and excitable puppy.
“The thing that happens when your animal mentally separates itself to be its own entity? Doesn’t that mean you’ve reached ‘shifter maturity’? I thought that usually only happened around the twenty-fifth birthday unless you’re an alpha shifter.” Her eyes blew outward as she realized what she had just said. “You’re an alpha shifter? Does that mean you can radiate Dominance to other shifters?” Her words were rushed, questions blurring together in her realization. The way her eyes lit up as she got lost in her questions reminded me of Cam when he found something new to research. Suddenly, it felt like I could understand the way they connected so well. Inside our little firecracker was another born researcher, and I found her curiosity, her passion, endearing.
“My whole family is made up of Alpha shifters,” I explained, my elbow leaning on the arm of my chair toward her. “Both my brothers went through the Separation at twenty-one, same as my dad, and grandfather, and so on and so forth. To answer your other questions, yes, I can do that now, but I haven’t tried it.” I could feel my griffin curled up in my mind, and it was odd no longer having his essence wound around mine. He was still there, obviously, and I was still tied to him, but I could now identify and separate my emotions and his. It had been a strange transition; I was going about my normal morning routine yesterday and all of a sudden it was like this weird out of body experience that didn’t seem to end. Over the last twenty-four hours I had adjusted, but not completely, still feeling like I was missing something essential from my sense of self.
Reaching shifter maturity was considered a rite of passage into adulthood. The sooner you go through the Separation, the higher on the hierarchy of shifters you were. Alphas go through the process around their twenty-first birthday, Betas anywhere from their twenty-second to twenty-third birthday, and finally Omegas, or ‘normal shifters,’ when they turn twenty-five. This included shifters who didn’t associate with packs, clans, or prides. It made it easier to identify who was the stronger predator for shifters and supes alike.
Lucie nodded enthusiastically, but instead of asking questions her eyes locked on Cam and Nik carrying coffee. Once the topic of my family dinner was on the back burner, we buckled down to focus on homework, but my mind continued to race with worries about how Lucie would handle my family. Please let them not be their normal selves…
December 4th
Tuesday Evening
Lucienne
; Dante pulled up to a quaint two-story house with red brick and cream siding. The porch was small, the columns and railing a natural wood. There was a two-car garage attached to the left of the house and the front door was a bright red calling attention to the festive winter wreath. The wide driveway held two vehicles—a black SUV and a red sedan, both relatively new. Dante parked his truck on the curb, shutting off the car before turning to me.
“Just so you know,” he said with obvious resignation, “my brothers might be a little extreme and my dad...” He paused with a grimace. “He’s a bit of a perfectionist, so don’t take anything he says personally, my brothers either.”
Unsure what to say, I nodded, putting on a brave face despite the anxiety building at his words. I can’t believe I’m meeting his parents. I swallowed the lump in my throat as he exited the vehicle, walking around the front to open the door for me. Happily taking his hand, I made sure to not squeeze too tightly in my nervousness.
The door opened as we neared the porch steps, and a short woman with the same caramel skin tone as Dante stood in a pair of jeans and a yellow blouse. Her feet were bare, her long black hair hung down her torso in soft waves. She was beautiful in an earthy way.
“Dante!” she greeted warmly, pulling him into a tight hug, her head only going up to the middle of his chest. “We’ve missed you, darling.” He leaned down as she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, his face reddening slightly in an adorable way. Her attention turned to me. “You must be Lucie.” It was my turn to blush, and I didn’t have enough time to speak before she gave me a warm greeting of my own. I spluttered when she pulled me into a hug, her head reaching my nose. She smelled like roses, fresh ones, not the overbearing scent of perfumed flowers.