by Jana Leigh
She heard a knock at her door and then sighed. Her mates, great, although she was extremely entertained by them, she had no desire to actually mate. She had so much more in life she wanted to accomplish before she settled down.
While she was in the smaller compound, she acted shy and quiet just like they assumed she would be. It was enough to drive her to distraction, acting like a schoolgirl for goodness sake.
“Hello?!” she yelled to see who was knocking on her door.
“Me!” Kiki yelled back.
She rolled her head to the side. Kiki was strange and yet completely handsome. Tall, thin, and handsome, what more could you ask for, while Thomas was the complete opposite—and she was drawn to both of them. She wasn’t going to mate them, so there was no use thinking of them. She wanted to help the Drekinn get back in control. It was all that mattered in the short term; the long term, if they were all not hunted down and killed, was another story.
“Come on in!” she called and then folded her arms over her chest and waited.
Kiki did not disappoint. He threw open the door with his recognizable flourish and stomped into her room. Sydney backed up until the back of her legs hit the couch she had risen from. Okay, man on a mission.
“We don’t have time, this is a stage four alert. You, Thomas, and I are being introduced to, like everyone tonight. And when I say everyone, I mean everyone. The girls found out about the mating.” Kiki threw his hands up and then rested them on his hips as he cocked them to one side.
“Uh, okay, but we aren’t mating anytime soon, I told you and Thomas,” Sydney said and then cringed when Kiki threw back his head and laughed.
“You were serious about that? Listen I get it, the whole two-mate thing, but you could not have been anymore surprised than me. I mean, sweetheart, I have been gay since I can remember, and you are the first woman that's given me the urge to like drag out the anatomy book to see what is what.”
Sydney laughed as he wiggled his eyebrows at her. He was charming, and sexy, and damn it, she needed to convince him they would not be mating.
“Yes, I am very serious,” Sydney said quietly, so far she hadn’t even shown her true self. She didn’t want to until she met Ms. Praton, and when they found out she had been fooling them for weeks, it wasn’t going to go down well. There was nothing she could do about that now though, she made her bed, and intended to make sure she had to lie exactly where she needed to be.
“Oh, aren’t you just cute? Okay, well that aside, we don’t have the time for the whole kissy-huggie thing. Although, we are gonna have to dive into those waters soon.” Kiki laughed at his own joke and Sydney jumped at the noise. “Twitchy little thing, aren’t ya? Okay, shower, hair, make-up, and clothes, in that order. If I know the girls, everyone will be there and we all want to look our best. ‘Cause I gotta tell you, they are vultures. Yes, they are my best friends but also wonderfully conniving bitches and all that. Well, chop chop, into the shower with you, I will set up.”
Sydney had no idea what the hell was going on, but she had to play her part it seemed. She definitely didn’t want to piss anyone off before she reached her goal.
“Uh, okay?” she said and walked into the bathroom and shut the door with a click. Shit, she had to hold it together. One night, and then she would ask when she could meet Ms. Praton.
Chapter Two
Damn, this was gonna be fun, Kiki thought and rubbed his hands together. He only wanted to see if the sparks were there with the female, or would he only be destined to wait patiently for Thomas to realize he was bi-sexual? Maybe if he paved the path, and put a few moves on their little mate, Thomas would be more open about it.
Kiki brought in the things he left in the hallway and set them up. It was a portable beauty salon. They stole it when they were in town from an abandoned shop. The fuckin’ Prentiss Agency had the city on lockdown, the shifters in hiding, and the Drekinn disgraced. Assholes.
Soon they were going to make a stand. Declan was teaching him self-defense, and how to use a gun, but so far he hadn’t let him have any bullets. Well, again, Kiki laughed, misfire a gun one time at dinner and you are marked for life.
He could hear Syd splashing in the shower and then he had a problem. The tight pants he wore showed his erection more than he really wanted right now. Shit, she would think he was a savage; all he wanted was a kiss. Okay, that was a lie, but he could live with it.
Syd walked out of the bathroom and into her room with a towel, hell, it could have been a washcloth and it would practically cover things, she was dainty and soft, he felt the need to protect her.
It only took a few moments, then she walked out of the bedroom in a sweat suit and bare feet. Awe, she had such sweet and cute little feet. She smiled at him a little with her hair wrapped up in the towel over her head.
“What now?” Syd asked and Kiki smiled and clapped his hands. Sabrina and Trina popped out of the hallway and grinned. “Sabrina and Trina are descendants as well, and so far they haven’t found their mates.”
“Dude, nor do we want to because we are damn good Enforcers,” Trina puffed up.
“Oh, I know, I know, let it go, cricket. Anyway, they are on the Council of the Drekinn Agency, no matter what they like to do,” Kiki said smugly.
Trina and Sabrina rolled their eyes and then Sabrina stepped forward and said, “I get the hair, she gets the makeup, and you can find clothes. Although she is so tiny I’m not sure what you are going to do.”
“No worries, Pilar is helping me. You know how she has kinda gotten into the ‘sisters before misters’ thing. Besides, she is hiding her head in the sand. It's not like we all don't know who one of her mates is. I mean please, when they are in the room together it is like tenseville, you know what I mean. Oh, Syd, you need to know several things for tonight, sit down and let them go to work while I run to find Pilar and then come back. We will talk then, so much to tell you,” Kiki said and then left the room.
Syd walked to the chair the women were pointing to, sat down, and watched the flurry of excitement as they talked about her bone structure and other things she had never paid attention to. Hell, her hair was way overdue for a cut, it was one power she always wished she had, some Fae could control knives, and scissors.
Sabrina pulled the towel off her head and smiled. “Look at this color, and all these curls, this is going to be fun.”
She sat and just listened; she found most information this way—by being a fly on the wall, so to speak.
“Were you even listening in the meeting?” Sabrina asked Trina who was wiping her face with some kind of cream or something.
“Yep,” Trina said confidently.
“Really, so you get our part of the plan to go into the Prentiss Agency and find the code for their system? Rissa needs it in order to hack into their systems, we need to figure out what the hell is going on,” Sabrina said as she combed her hair and began cutting.
Syd went to open her mouth when she looked up and saw the look on Trina’s face, something important was going to be said in the next few minutes, and maybe if she was quiet enough, they would forget she was here.
“Kade is thinking he was going to have to find a human to go in. So far, none will talk to him, but maybe soon. This shit is freaking impossible,” Trina said as she arranged some make-up in front of her on the table.
“Well they have posted job openings on the net, we just have to find someone qualified and who will take the chance, I mean it is pretty dangerous,” Sabrina said.
“Okay, enough shop talk, Miss Sydney, prepare to be beautified!” Trina laughed and they got to work. Sydney knew what it was like for the first time to have girls include her in a conversation. Laugh, joke, and even tease her and each other.
They spent the next hour cutting, snipping, and pasting on make-up to her face and hair. She felt the weight on her head lighten from the curls and thick hair Sabrina was sheering off. Sydney was a little worried about it but shrugged and let them do the dama
ge, if worst came to worst, she could wait for it to grow out and then refuse any more of this girls’ time in the future. Although, just having them around and laughing with her was a joy.
There was a knock on the door, Sabrina clapped her hands and jumped for the door, and a lovely woman entered. Syd could tell there was something about her, something she wanted to find out more about. They had her back to the mirror and she had been complaining about not being able to see.
Trina guided the woman over to them and introduced her to Sydney.
“Syd, this is Pilar. Pilar, this is Syd.” Trina laughed and then with a flourish they pulled out a dress from behind the woman and pulled up the plastic protectors that had been on it. Slowly she looked at the dark green color of the dress and sucked in her breath.
Green was her favorite color, it complemented her eyes, and her red hair.
“Wow, this is fabulous. I love it, thank you so much,” Sydney said and she felt tears gather in her made up eyes. Damn it, why are they being so nice to me? She just wanted to meet Ms. Praton and get on with it. Mate or no mate, she felt the pull of her destiny to do something.
“No worries, lets get you changed, but no looking until we have you dressed, you have to see the whole package,” Trina warned and pulled her up without turning her.
Pilar smiled and sat down in the seat across from her, winked at Sydney and said, “I think I will wait until I see the finished product, then I will go and get changed for the party.”
Sabrina laughed and dragged Sydney into the bedroom and put a hand over her eyes and smiled. “Change right here, I will help with the zipper.”
Sydney shook her head and smiled but refrained from turning around and looking in the mirror and spoiling their fun. She had enjoyed the afternoon much more than expected. She hoped the rest of the Drekkin would be just as nice. She had been introduced to everyone, but that was when Rissa found them the first time, after that, Sydney avoided them because of the rumors.
She had heard about the group so she was a little worried about meeting them for real, in a different situation. Phillip would be there, he was one of Rissa’s mates so it would be good. He would protect her. Maybe her new friends would as well. She certainly hoped so, ‘cause what she had heard was a bit disturbing.
“Okay, open your eyes,” Sabrina said quietly, then yelled, “O.M.G!” and jumped up and down. “Let me get the zipper, the girls have a full length mirror out there.”
Sydney laughed and looked down when it was zipped. It was gorgeous, a soft flattering cut that looked good on her small figure. Most short people had small boobs, she was the opposite, and she had a few curves, not a lot, but a few. She was surprised to see the snug-fitting dress look smooth down her front. Wow, Pilar could really pick a dress. She was certainly going to thank her. The last time she wore a dress people laughed at her. She knew no one would laugh now.
Sabrina announced her with her now familiar flourish to the other two women. “Ta Da,” she yelled and held out her arms.
“Holy shit,” Trina murmured and tugged the sheet off the mirror and Sydney gasped.
Sabrina had trimmed her hair in a way that left the soft curls flowing around her shoulders. It didn’t look like she cut an inch, but she had thinned out the thick hair so it hung perfectly instead of poofing out. Trina accentuated her eyes with liner and eye shadow; she was going to have to ask how she did it, because it looked natural, not like she was a hooker as she thought she was going to look like. The dress was just amazing, she thought.
Sydney looked to her new friends who were grinning at her and said, “Thank you.”
“No problemo, I can help you anytime.” Sabrina laughed, then cleaned up and left. She twirled in front of the mirror, then smiled and sat down. So, where were the guys, she looked at the clock and chuckled. Well they only had a few minutes to get here, or she was going to go looking.
*****
Kiki and Thomas stood in the doorway of the dining hall and moaned together. Shit, they had not listened to him and the place was decorated to the nines. Candles, wine, and there were even balloons. Bitches were going to have to be dyed. Kiki just had to figure out how to do it.
“We have to go and get Syd,” Kiki murmured quietly.
“Yeah, shit, we should have totally not agreed with this,” Thomas grumbled.
“Suck it up, dude, we're screwed so we should just join the party. Looks like they have wine and beer.” Kiki laughed and hit him on the back.
Thomas wanted to turn around and go back to his room. For the dinner, he wore slacks and a nice shirt and tie. Kiki had told him he looked amazing. Thomas replied with the same when he saw Kiki, damn he did look amazing when he was dressed for the kill.
Kiki wore tailored blue pants, and a gray silky shirt opened at the collar. If Thomas didn’t know any better, he would have thought Kiki was straight, with a flare for clothing. Kiki had been very happy and Thomas shyly smiled. Damn it, Thomas was attracted to him. What the fuck did he do with that?
"We don’t have to worry about that right now, we only have to worry about Syd, the rest will come if you want it to, if you don’t, the feelings I have for Syd are strong,” Kiki whispered and bumped his shoulder.
“Let’s go get her, maybe if we show up early, we can leave early,” Thomas said hopefully,
“Keep dreaming, did you see how many places were set? They invited the parents,” Kiki laughed.
“Oh fuck a duck.” Thomas groaned and put a hand on his face and rubbed it.
“Yeah, let’s just get it over with,” Kiki said and pulled his mate behind him to pick up Syd, Kiki couldn’t wait until they saw her again. There was a connection whether she wanted to admit it or not.
Chapter Three
Sydney paced in her room. They should have been here. Hell, maybe she scared them off. Damn it, this was not good, right when she was so close. If she wanted to be in the Drekinn, then she needed to speak to Ms. Praton, everyone said so.
She was just ready to plop into the chair once again after she had made her fifth circuit of the room, when there was a knock on the door. Finally, she thought and rolled her eyes, before smoothing down her dress and primping for just a second.
She went to the door, and felt her heart begin to beat harder. They were there on the other side of the door. Since she had met them, it had been a constant arousal when she was around them all the time. It didn’t matter when they were arguing over something to eat, and then checking out the SAT TV, and so on. They were like sex on a stick and she was ready to take a lick.
“Hello?” Sydney called and she grinned when Kiki sang her name and Thomas groaned loudly and pounded on the door.
“Please, don’t make me kill him,” Thomas roared.
Sydney opened the door and smiled shyly at the men who stood waiting for her. She actually wanted to laugh aloud when she saw their mouths drop a little at her appearance.
“Cupcake, you were beautiful before, but right now, you are drop dead gorgeous.” Kiki smiled and tugged her out of the room and closed the door.
“We are the luckiest men alive tonight,” Thomas muttered and took a hand, tucking it in the crook of his arm, and then smiled when Kiki did the same thing.
“Oh snap, the guys are gonna be on the prowl,” Kiki growled and bumped hips with her.
Sydney rolled her eyes and shook her head. It was crazy, she knew she had a mission, but right now, she couldn’t remember what it was. Kiki and Thomas looked amazing. As they led her down the hallway, she caught a glimpse of the three of them in a mirror, she had to admit they made a striking trio.
She had been here for a couple of weeks, and she still had not seen the whole place yet. She looked and took note of certain places she thought Ms. Praton would likely be. Like the library, surely a woman of her stature would spend time in a library.
“So what is the deal here?” Sydney said finally. “I am assuming everyone will be there tonight, who exactly will be there though?”
“Oh, like the Alphas?” Sydney pressed a little.
“Sure,” Thomas shrugged and said, “plus, everyone and their brother, too.”
Sydney wanted to yell in frustration. How was she ever going to find the woman she wanted to talk to if no one ever seemed to mention her? She bit her lip and thought about all she knew, which of course lately was more about herself than Ms. Praton. They had shown her her ancestors and read her history about the Chosen until her head was spinning.
“What about the Drekinn before, you know, when you didn’t know all about this stuff?” she asked.
“That was Ms. Praton and Brooks who built the Drekinn Agency to what it was. They worked tirelessly together to make sure they were able to protect shifters and magical creatures as well as humans,” Kiki said. “You know, I wonder if Brooks and Pilar will get together finally, I mean enter a room with them in it, and it is like fireworks, they love to argue about every thing.”
Thomas snorted and said, “I wonder if they have a third as well. They would have their own built-in referee.”
“Pilar was nice, I haven’t met Brooks or Ms. Praton,” Sydney admitted slowly thinking she may have suddenly caught a break.
The men looked at her and frowned and Kiki was about to say something when there was a cry from down the hallway. Sydney turned in enough time to see a gaggle of women cheering and talking to one another about something.
“Oh hell,” Thomas said and tightened his hand on hers that rested on his arm.
“What is the excitement?!” Kiki yelled and Sydney saw three gorgeous women turn and look at them. Calli, Cherri, and Rissa, the head bitches in charge. That was the only words she could use to describe the three.
According to rumor, they were all lethal and smart. Since they started with the Drekinn, they had made it a mission to make a better life for shifters. Cherri was the Head of the Medical Research, while Rissa the Head of Tech. However, Calli was an Alpha through and through. She was the head of the security. Calli could make someone shake in fear with one look. Sydney knew first hand when she first met the Alpha Bitch, as she liked to be referred as, Calli scared the shit out of her.