by V. A. Dold
“Okay, back to how this will work. Once the humans and off-worlders complete their registration, I’ll match up aura photos and verify the couples with their guides. After a couple is identified, they will be invited to the ranch so that they can meet in person. Keep in mind, we can’t guarantee one hundred percent success with the matches. We must allow the humans the option to back out. The last thing we want is an accusation that we are forcing women to accept these men. Because of that, I am insisting on a no touching rule. Until the human accepts the match, there will be a stay at least one-foot away requirement.”
Emma frowned. “Why?”
Krystal gave Doug a telling look, then held up her wrist for all to see. “If the off-worlder touches the human and they are a match, a mark appears and creates an unbreakable link between the two. This is something I found out the hard way.”
Isaac scowled at Luperca. “You knew this?”
Luperca glanced away. “I may have.”
Rylon’s jaw tightened. “Not cool, Lu.”
Luperca threw up her hands. “The mark is so common it never occurred to me that I should mention it. What can I say? It slipped my mind.”
Isaac crossed his arms. “If there is anything else that has slipped your mind, you better fess up now.”
Luperca lifted her chin. “Krystal knows everything she needs to know to build the service. If you have questions, ask her.”
Doug stood to refill his coffee cup. “I have a question. I plan on living out my life on Earth with Krystal, but some may want to take their match home. How will we handle each situation?”
Lucas rubbed his jaw. “I didn’t think past the match. What do you think, Dad? Can we get our people in government to help us protect the couples who choose to stay?”
“If we present a solid plan, I’m sure they will provide anything we need. And now that you mention our political allies, once everything is ready, we should have the president make a national announcement that not only do our cousins exist, they will be living among us. A law preventing violence or discrimination against off-worlders will also need to be passed.”
“I have an idea,” Rylon offered, speaking loudly to be heard. “What about building special communities for the new couples? You know, a safe place for them to live while slowly integrating among the population. We have tons of shifter controlled land throughout the nation where the communities could be built.”
Isaac nodded, his expression considering. “I’ll make some calls.” Then he turned his attention back to Luperca. “How many couples do I need to plan on housing in these new neighborhoods?”
“Until Krystal begins making matches, we won’t know how successful the system will be.”
“All right. What areas of the country would best suit our visitors?”
“Most of the planets involved are warm and temperate. Many sustain a wide variety of life forms and biozones. For example, the Pleiades has five zones, tropical, tepid, temperate, glacial, and polar. They also have seasons, rain and snow, forests, valleys, coastlines, and mountain ranges.”
Isaac nodded again. “Basically, everything we have. Okay, leave the communities to me.”
“We still have two huge hurdles that haven’t been addressed,” Rylon pointed out. “How will the men and women travel to and from Earth? And how can we register our visitors on our computers when they are in another star system?”
Krystal deflated like a stuck balloon in her chair. “This isn’t going to work.”
Luperca raised her face to the ceiling and took a deep breath. “Have you all forgotten who I am? Creating a portal on the ranch and linking the computers to other star systems is child’s play.”
Doug looked at her, tilting his head slightly to the side. “A portal. Excellent idea. I’ve never made one, but I’m willing to help.”
“Thank you, Douglas, but you will have other things to do. Rylon can assist me. Once a structure is built to my specifications, I will activate it and link your portal to others on each of the participating planets. The portal’s link will provide a conduit by which your earth computers can communicate with the computers I will deliver to each planet.” Smiling now, she turned to Emma. “I would like you to design and plant a walled garden around the portal. I would like something that is both attractive and yet secures the portal.”
“I’d love to,” Emma exclaimed, a grin creasing her cheeks turning her from beautiful to devastating, “I adore the stone walls I’ve seen in Texas. Will a seven-foot wall with an iron gate work for you?”
Luperca smiled warmly at Emma. “Make that an eight-foot wall, and it will be perfect.”
“I’ll start designing today.” Excitement showed on her face as she turned to her son. “Lucas? Where would you like this built on the ranch?”
“Well, we need to build a dozen or so cabins. If we stay with the basic footprint of the cabins we have now, I’d say three to four hundred yards past our current cabins. We want it close, but not too close.”
Isaac sat forward. “So, as I see it, Krystal will work with Quin to build a website. While she does that, Rylon will build a portal around which Emma will create a walled garden. As that is done, Lucas will build more cabins, and I will work with our politicians to layout protective measures. Once we have safety in place, the president and I will organize a national address. Cade and Anna can team up with Stefan to secure offices for the matchmaking service in every major city. And we have shifters nationwide who can work those offices for us. I’ll also meet with Seth and Marcus about community locations. Am I leaving anything out?”
Luperca shook her head. “I think that will cover it for now. As you take care of things here, I will visit the planets involved and meet with their councils. Shall we all meet again in three weeks?”
“Make it six weeks,” Lucas stated. “It takes a while to build cabins.”
“I’ll return in a week to complete the portal and then again in six weeks for our follow-up meeting.” Luperca got to her feet. “I have much to do. I have every confidence in your abilities to prepare everything for when I return.” With that, she faded from sight.
Isaac sighed. “You heard her. We better get moving if we want everything in place within six weeks. There’s a lot of planning and organizing we need to do before we can begin working. We will be leaving early in the morning, I have business to attend to, so we’ll say goodbye now. But we’ll be back to work on the garden and such.”
Once the office emptied out, Krystal took the chair in front of Lucas’s desk. “We have one more thing to discuss. The dude ranch is totally booked for the next two months and a spattering of reservations beyond that. How are we going to handle that?”
“I’ll complete cabins as quickly as possible, and Kensie can furnish them. As each is finished, you can reschedule guests to come early. If we push it hard, we can service all of the guests before the matching service starts.”
Krystal nodded. “I think that’ll work. And for the reservations who can’t reschedule, I’ll offer a refund and direct them to another dude ranch.”
The next morning, Krystal sipped her coffee, smiling at the newest photo she’d found stuffed under her door. He must have done it when he left for work. This time it was a picture of their dinner at Rubio’s. Someone, probably Angelo, had gotten a shot of them without her knowing. Propping the photo against the salt and pepper shakers, she thought over what she needed to do. How was she going to pull this one off? Creating a list of questions that were helpful in matching the participants was a daunting task. Maybe she needed a male’s perspective? Checking the time, she set the notepad for questions aside. She’d wait until Quin arrived to tackle that. He should get to the ranch in a few hours, and it would take him a little time to settle into his cabin with his equipment.
One thing she could handle was the city offices. Picking up her phone, she placed a call to her cousin.
“Good morning, Krystal,” Cade greeted her wit
h a smile in his voice.
“Good morning. Has anyone filled you in on what’s going on?”
“Dad called last night and gave me the details. Luperca gave you one heck of a huge project. Anna and I will do everything we can to help you.”
“Thanks. I need all the help I can get.”
“Let’s go over what you need.”
Taking a deep breath, she made a quick mental list. “Let’s start with one A.D.A.M. Agency office in every major city. For example, in Louisiana, we would want offices in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Shreveport. Once we get a feel for the traffic in each office, we can add or delete locations.”
“Excellent. That’ll make the initial offices easy enough to lockdown. I’ll look at each state individually, note the major cities, and then coordinate that list with our pack locations. We want to make running these offices as easy as possible. Which means employing shifters that we know.”
“That’s true. We want to secure and control the chain of custody of the applicants’ information. Using our pack members around the country is the best option.”
“Okay, after we have the leases we need, what do you want in each office as far as equipment?”
“I’ll email you a link where you can purchase the specialized aura cameras. You will need one camera and a computer in each office. The way I want this to work is, the applicant creates an account and fills out a questionnaire online. Then they visit our local office for the photo, and our employee adds the image to the applicant’s account. Once that is done, I review the information and photo to make the match.”
“Perfect. If you think of anything else you want in the offices, let me know. As I sign the leases, Anna will order the equipment. We should have the initial network in place within two weeks.”
Krystal’s stress level lowered significantly. “That sounds great. Thank you again and tell Anna she’s incredible.”
“I’ll do that. Have a great day, cousin.”
“You too.” Krystal ended the call and sighed. Checking that off her list of things to do, she took a sip of coffee. Okay, what next?
Twenty-One
Krystal had been working on website notes in between rescheduling guests when her wolf alerted her to danger. Going to an open window, she drew a deep breath, sorting through the scents. It took a moment, but she found what she was searching for. At least a dozen unknown humans, gunpowder, cold steel, and sweat. Shit, the mob was coming for Sheena.
On the heels of that thought, her cell phone rang. Accepting the call, she whispered, “Doug, the mob is here.”
“I know, that’s why I called. I watched an army of men drive through town in SUVs. I counted thirty, but I know there were more. Where are your guests right now? Are they in harm’s way?”
“No, they’re all out on a trail ride.”
“Perfect, warn Xander and his men. I’ll get there as fast as I can.”
“Okay, I need to handle this. I love you.”
“Love you too.”
She ended the call and immediately contacted her cousin Simon.
“Hey, cuz. What’s up?”
“The mob is here. We’ll handle the men coming at the main house. But Doug said there were over thirty, and I only smell twelve, so they must be coming at us from another direction.”
“It sounds like it. Watch your back. Quin’s on his way, and he’ll skin me if you’re injured. Shit, I hear them coming. Gotta go.”
Doug’s truck lifted a cloud of dust as he barreled down the ranch road. His tiger clawed at him for freedom to defend their djairi. She was fighting for her life, and he wasn’t there to protect her. Slamming on the brakes, his truck was still rocking when he erupted from the cab and shifted into a massive, enraged Bengal tiger.
He clamped his jaws around the first man he came to and shook him hard before tossing the limp body aside with a broken neck from the violent handling. He grabbed the next human, more than aware of his woman and her family fighting in wolf form. Their animals were formable opponents for the humans, but his tiger was unstoppable.
Lucas ripped out a throat to his left as a female wolf savaged another to his right. Kensie, he thought. He knew Krystal’s wolf and her scent, and that was a different beast. His delicate mahri, was fighting ten feet in front of him. One last human stood between him and his destination. The human lifted a gun, pointing it at Krystal. A heartbeat later, the arm with the pistol still gripped in its hand flew into the brush. The man screamed, blood flowing from the gaping wound at his shoulder. Knowing the human posed no further threat, Doug left him to bleed out. Krystal finished off her human as he leapt to her side.
His tiger gave her wolf a quick once over for injuries before placing his body between her and the battlefield. But when he glanced about for a threat, not a single human stood on the blood-drenched lawn.
He watched as Lucas and Kensie took human form. A second later, he felt Krystal’s fingers in his fur. “Hey, big guy. Thanks for the assist.”
Glancing back, he licked her face until she giggled, then he too shifted back to human form. “It looks like I missed most of the action.” He ran his hands down her arms and over her body. “Are you injured?”
“Pff. You have a lot to learn about me. I grew up with four brothers in the bayou. I know how to fight.”
“Although, I’m glad to hear that. I would prefer that you leave that to me whenever possible.”
“You’re welcome to it. I said I know how to fight, not that I enjoy it.”
“Good.” He took her face in his hands and kissed her until he was dizzy and needed a breath. “I went mad knowing you were in danger and I wasn’t here. Human vehicles have drawbacks.”
“Well, you’re here now. You can help Lucas deal with the bodies while I take a shower. I don’t relish dried blood on my skin. Oh, and don’t forget to gather any weapons strewn about. We don’t want a guest stumbling upon one.”
Grinning, he gestured as if he were tipping his hat. “Yes, ma’am.”
He glanced around until he found Lucas loading a body into the bed of a truck. “What’s the plan?”
“We’re taking all of them to the vampires for disposal.” With the lift of his chin, Lucas indicated a leg sticking out of some shrubs. “Grab that one.”
Lucas parked the truck beside a smoldering pile of ash and got out. “Hello, the house!” he called as he bounded onto the porch.
Xander loosened his arms and pulled Sheena to his side. “You’re awfully chipper.”
Lucas rocked on the heels of his cowboy boots. “Hell yeah. I haven’t had that much fun in a long time. I miss a good bar fight. This was ten times more fun.”
Xander looked at Lucas, then Doug. “I take it all of the intruders are dead and you could use a disposal service?”
“Yes, sir. Do you want them on the ash pile?” Lucas asked, as he surveyed the damage to the house.
Xander rubbed his chin. “The ash pile will work, but don’t stack them, lay them out in a row. If they’re layered, bits and pieces may be missed by the vampire fire.”
Doug smiled, feeling a new level of respect for Earth’s vampires. “I’ll get on that.”
A minute later, Simon dragged a body out of the house and tossed it on the ash pile. “I think that’s the last one.”
Once the bodies were unloaded, Xander flicked his finger at the lineup. One by one, the bodies flared with vampire fire and turned to ash. Then he turned to his men. “Nick, call Darius. Find out if we can go home.”
Minutes later, Nick said, “All clear. This crew was the last of them.”
“Perfect. We’ll head back to New Orleans tomorrow morning.”
“That means this is our last night on the ranch.” Nick rubbed his hands together. “I vote we celebrate with a bonfire. Who’s in?”
“That sounds good to me,” Lucas agreed. “I’ll let Krystal know so she can make the changes to tonight’s activities.”
T
wenty-Two
Krystal yawned as she poured a cup of coffee. Last night, the celebration around the bonfire had gone late into the night, and she was feeling it now. Simon and Marcus had eaten breakfast and headed for home. She adored her cousins and was going to miss them. At least Quin was on his way to the ranch and would arrive any moment. He was itching to start programming her website. For that, he would demand her undivided attention. The problem was, her attention was still sleeping. Taking a sip, she willed her mind to function.
She was stirring her second cup when a knock sounded. Taking a deep breath, she smiled. “Come on in, Quin.” She turned to offer him a cup of coffee and frowned. “Where’s your laptop?”
He waved her question away. “Laptop, schwaptop. I brought the whole enchilada. My baby is waiting for action in my cabin. I just came by for a cup of your amazing coffee. I’ve been on the road a long time and need to refuel before we head over to my place. We’ll work there.”
Smiling, she shook her head and got him a mug. “Your love affair with that computer is beyond strange. You know that, right?”
He grinned at her as he added cream and sugar to his cup. “Said the wolf who mated a tiger.”
Krystal rolled her eyes. “Whatever.”
Quin took a seat at her little dining table and sighed. “I don’t know how you do it, but no one makes coffee as good as yours.”
“Thanks. If my website is totally kickass, I might tell you my secret.”
He grinned and took a sip. “Deal. Speaking of your site, let’s talk. Give me the lowdown on what we’re doing and how you need the site to function.”
“Luperca asked me to organize love matches between the populations of the Sirius and Pleiades systems and Earthlings. It’s a daunting task, but with the help of my computer savvy brother, that’s you in case you’re confused, I’m sure we can figure out how to make that happen.”
“You’re funny,” he teased back. “Making a dating site is easy enough, but how do we incorporate the clients who are in another solar system?”