by Tara Rose
Chapter Eleven
Saffron watched the flames dance and leaned against Landon’s warm, strong body. Would he kiss her again? Would Nevada do so as well? How on earth was she supposed to spend the night in this cabin with both men, and sleep?
The click of a lock startled them both, and Landon moved his arm from around her shoulder as though her body had burned him. Saffron shifted her weight so that she was backed up against the arm of the sofa, and could watch Nevada come into the cabin.
He glanced at them, narrowed his eyes almost imperceptibly, and then tossed two rolled-up bundles onto the floor. “I brought sleeping bags for Landon and myself, Saffron. You may use the bed.”
“Thank you. Landon opened another bottle of wine. Would you like some?”
“There’s beer, too. And snacks.”
Nevada glanced at each of them in turn with an impassive expression. “Thanks. I’ll help myself.” When he returned from the kitchen, he pulled the armchair over in front of Saffron and handed her a bowl filled with potato chips and bite-sized pretzels. “I don’t imagine you’ve had these before, have you?”
She shook her head. “I was telling Landon the same thing. We grew almost everything we ate.” She tasted one of each, and decided she liked the pretzels better than the greasy chips.
“Will you tell us more about your life at home, Saffron?”
She didn’t see the harm in doing so now. Plus, she seemed unable to refuse either of these men any request. “I spent most of my time with Topaz. She would teach me things, but it’s not like I had formal lessons. She would tell me stories. And in the stories were things I needed to know and learn, only it took me a while to figure out she was doing that.”
Nevada smiled, and Saffron’s heart fluttered. He was so beautiful when he did that. “How long ago did you say she died? Three months, right?” His voice was soft and gentle as he asked, and Saffron took another sip of wine to cover up her urge to lean over and kiss him.
She nodded. “That’s right. She’d been sick for a while, and I’m not sure what was wrong with her. The healer in our village said it was her heart.”
“I’m sorry.” He stroked her arm softly, and she had to bite back a moan. “You must miss her very much.”
Saffron nodded again because words weren’t possible right now. The wine was going to her head, but it was more a sensation of helping her to finally relax for the first time all day rather than one of becoming drunk. The fire was so warm now, and it cast shadows on the wall and made both men appear to be lit from within. She glanced from Nevada’s dark eyes to Landon’s blue ones, wishing she were here with them under better circumstances. This was the most time she’d ever spent with males who weren’t blood relatives, and if she wasn’t currently their prisoner, this would also be the most romantic thing that had ever happened to her.
“What are you thinking right now?” asked Landon, moving closer to her. “You look lost in thought.”
She couldn’t tell him what she’d been thinking. He’d think her a silly fool. As she gazed into their faces, Saffron suddenly felt so lost and lonely. She’d left behind the only home she’d ever known, and as frightening as it had been living with her uncle at times, they were still her people. There were possessions in the house she’d had to leave behind, as well as roots and security. What would happen to her now? What could these two men possibly do to give her back a sense of place and identity? They barely believed her story.
“Saffron, are you all right?” Nevada’s eyes were filled with concern. Could he sense her thoughts?
“I’m just wondering what’s going to happen to me now. I think the reality of what I did this morning finally hit me.”
A tear escaped before she could catch it, and when Nevada motioned her into the middle of the sofa, she moved without protesting. He sat on her opposite side and placed an arm around her shoulder, drawing her close. He was so warm and smelled so good, that Saffron didn’t protest. She leaned into his strong embrace and closed her eyes, wishing that it was he and Landon that her uncle had insisted she mate with instead.
This time, she didn’t push away the erotic thoughts. Wisps of her earlier dream came back, where she’d known that both men were her mates, and she’d also known that she was running away with them to a safe place. If only that were true.
“What can we do to help you?” asked Landon.
“Believe me. Believe who I am, and what I am, and believe that I’m not in league with the Rosens.” The words were so simple, and yet they held tremendous meaning. They held the key to what she wanted and needed at that moment. But what was the use in telling them? They intended to keep her here for two weeks until they could use a stone that would give them an answer they could have in less than ten seconds, if only they’d let her outside.
They exchanged a glance over her head, and as it had happened earlier, she had the impression that they were communicating without words. It was both uncomfortable and fascinating at the same time. Was it Landon’s inherited cougar nature that allowed him to do this with Nevada? Had they always been able to do it? There was so much she didn’t understand about her own nature or powers, let alone theirs.
“All right.” Nevada said the words with a ring of finality to them that had her confused, especially when he stood and offered his hand. “But if you run, I will shift and I will catch you. And when I do, nothing you say will change my mind about what I first thought. I will chain you up and hold you here until I find the answers to who sent you, and why. And if that happens, you can look at me with those big, beautiful eyes all you want, but you will not melt my resolve. Is that understood, Saffron?”
“What?” She was trying to process everything he’d just said, but the words were all mixed up. Had he just said she had beautiful eyes? Was he really going to let her shift and prove herself?
“Outside. Now. We’re going to let you shift. But then you will shift right back to human form, or I will chase you down, and I will catch you. Agreed?”
She stood and faced him, her face burning with embarrassment, while at the same time her heart leapt with joy. “Um…agreed. But…I have to be naked to shift.” Her gaze dropped to her bare feet. “Otherwise the only night clothes I have will be ruined.”
Nevada cleared his throat and behind her, she heard Landon mutter something that she swore was a prayer for strength. If this hadn’t been such a serious matter, she’d be elated. They weren’t embarrassed by the realization they were about to see her naked. They were as turned on as she was. But it was the only way that she knew to keep from ruining her clothes. “How about if I take them off outside? That way there won’t be as much light. You can avert your eyes while I shift, if it makes you feel better to do so.”
“It sounds like you wouldn’t mind if we did look,” said Nevada, softly. His voice was so arousing that Saffron still couldn’t look him in the eyes.
“I’m flattered that you want to.”
“As if we could help it,” said Landon, under his breath. But she heard him just the same.
Saffron took Nevada’s hand because he was still holding it out, and she was surprised to find his palm slightly damp. Did he still think she was going to run? The thought had crossed her mind that she should simply take off, but if she did that she’d have nothing with her, including clothes, and there was no doubt that Nevada was faster and would catch her. And his tracking skills were probably honed to a level she could never out maneuver, at any rate.
They were placing a huge amount of trust in her, and she wasn’t going to let them down. She knew this was a conclusion they had reached with difficulty. She wouldn’t disappointment them or give them a reason not to trust her again.
Landon unlocked the front door, and Saffron stepped outside, taking a deep breath of the cold night air. It felt like she’d been indoors for days, not hours. Enough light spilled out from inside that she could still see both Landon and Nevada clearly enough to know they watched her closely. She felt bold
and wanton as she pulled off her tank top and handed it to Landon. He almost dropped it. She swore she could actually see beads of sweat forming on his hair line.
Rather than wait and see if his gaze drifted down to her breasts, she stepped out of her PJ bottoms and handed them to Nevada, who made no pretense of not checking out her naked form. The lust shining in his dark eyes forced a soft moan from her throat, and she struggled to focus on what needed to be done right now.
Somewhere in the distance a coyote howled, followed by a second one. No insects sang tonight. It was too cold. Saffron closed her eyes and pictured her leopard form. As the transformation took place, she heard both men draw in a sharp breath, and when she stood before them in her animal form, the urge to run was so strong that it took all of her concentration not to give in.
“You’re magnificent,” said Nevada, his voice full of reverence. “If I hadn’t seen this with my own eyes, I never would have believed it.”
She couldn’t answer him, other than to purr. When she glanced at Landon, he was slowly shaking his head, and the awe in his eyes was evident as well. “Beautiful,” he whispered. “Truly beautiful, Saffron. Thank you for showing us.”
She shifted back to human form, fighting the sense of loss that almost always accompanied that transformation. She never felt as truly free as she did when she was in her leopard state. Nevada handed her the PJ bottoms without a word and she slipped them on. Then she took her tank top from Landon, and she couldn’t help but notice the slight tremor of his hand. Once she was dressed, she walked back inside the cabin.
There was no need for words. She’d proven to them what she was, and she hoped like hell that she’d also earned their trust by not running. There was no reason now for them to keep her here, and she needed to bring that point to their attention. But she’d leave in the morning. She had no strength tonight to keep running. She also had to figure out where to go, and how to live on her own. Saffron drained her wine glass and then filled it again, and by the time she’d taken her seat on the sofa, one of them had locked the front door again and both men stood in front of the fire, facing her.
“I owe you an apology,” said Nevada.
Saffron wished he’d sit down because she was eye level with his crotch, and all she could think about was what his naked body might look like. “It’s all right. Thank you for letting me prove to you that I am what I said.”
“I’m sorry I doubted you, Saffron.”
She looked into Landon’s eyes, which now were as deep blue as sapphires, and wished he’d sit down, too. It was all she could do not to point out that it wasn’t fair they’d seen her naked but hadn’t returned the favor. “It’s okay. Thank you.”
“We have no reason to keep you here now.” As soon as Landon said the words, Nevada gave him a sharp glance, but Saffron saw the truth in Nevada’s eyes. He knew it, too. She wouldn’t have to point out the obvious, after all.
“So what do we do now?” she asked. “You know what I am, and you know I was telling the truth. If I stay here, I risk putting all of you in danger if my uncle or the Rosens find me.”
Nevada finally sat next to her. “It’s worse than that. You asked me where I go with my mother when we leave town, and I told you it was to do research, but I didn’t tell you on what or who.”
Saffron held her breath. She was finally going to hear that truth about that, and it stunned her that Nevada was volunteering the information so freely.
“Are you familiar with the League of Exitium?”
She shook her head as she hugged herself. The very name sent a shiver of fear through her body. What did that translate to? League of Ruin?
“I’m fairly certain that they are the people your uncle is involved with. And I know the Rosens are, although what I don’t know is if it’s the same family as the ones who live in your village. You said Topaz told you never to go downstairs when your uncle’s associates were in the house, practicing their rituals. Didn’t you ever wonder why?”
“Of course I did. But she would never tell me anything more about them.”
He looked as uncomfortable as she’d seen him look all day, and suddenly Saffron didn’t want to hear this. Nevada took her hands, and his were no longer damp. She drew strength from his warmth. “Saffron, as their name suggests, they are dedicated to bringing about destruction. Not of humans, but of rival cats, and especially, cougars. They, like some Native American and ancient civilizations, believe that cougars are inherently evil. And black cougars, like myself and my mother, are especially bad omens.”
She blinked a few times, convinced she’d heard him wrong. “You’re melanistic as well?”
He nodded. “My mother and I both are. That’s why we’re in as much danger as Landon if anyone from the League gets too close to here.” Everything these two had told her suddenly made sense in a way it hadn’t before. He cut his gaze toward Landon for a second. “Landon was born to two of them, but he has no powers. That makes him not only evil, but in their eyes, allowing him to live brings devastation on a village. His birth is a bad omen.”
“Which explains why his own parents left him to die.”
Nevada nodded. “This is all explained in the book I told you about. The Alpha Legend. The League has existed a very long time.”
“But why do they believe this?”
“For the same reasons humans believe that wishing on birthday candles will give them that wish if they blow them all out at the same time, or why they carry around a rabbit’s foot. All superstitions have their origin in real events. No one that I’ve ever come across understands why they believe these things, but they do. They might not even be able to tell you the origins if you asked them.”
He took a few deep breaths as if talking about this was difficult for him. “But they believe these things, regardless, and they work hard to carry out their perversions. They twist the ancient legends to use them in their own rituals. Nothing they do is aimed at preservation of our kind. Only destruction.”
He sighed, cut his gaze in Landon’s direction again. “And I’m afraid that Landon being left in the woods is a bit more complicated than his birth being a bad omen.” Landon finally took his seat next to Saffron.
She let go of one of Nevada’s hands so that she could take one of Landon’s as well. “You’ve told me this much, Nevada. You may as well spill all of it.”
“If they find Landon, they’ll kill him. They’ll sacrifice him to appease their gods.”
“That’s horrible. It’s barbaric.” She shook her head. “Are you telling me that my uncle… that they…” She kept shaking her head.
“I don’t know, obviously.” His voice was gentle and soothing, and his dark eyes held hers, full of compassion. She held on to that emotion as he continued to speak. If only Topaz were here right now. Saffron needed the familiarity of her comforting voice and mannerisms.
“I only know what my mother and I have learned about the League. A cougar like Landon, born to rare parents but with no powers of his own, would be regarded as a very bad omen. His family thinks he’s dead. But if they ever found out he wasn’t, anything tragic or unexplainable in their village for the past sixteen years would be blamed on his being alive, and they’d have to sacrifice him to rid their village of the ill will.”
“But what about you and your mother? You have powers. Why would they hurt you?”
“Because we’re melanistic cougars. We’re evil, in their eyes. Remember I told you anything rare is also hunted? They would love to find the two of us. Sacrificing melanistic cougars would give them greater powers, according to their beliefs.”
“But what does all this mean for someone like me? Are you saying they’re hunting me, too? Is there more to this than my uncle simply wanting me to mate with other black leopards in the hope that the bloodline will be strengthened?”
“We aren’t sure,” said Nevada. “But I do know enough now to suspect he is part of this League.”
“But how, specifically, do
you know that?” She knew it was true because it explained so many things she’d seen and heard over the years, but had never understood. Everything coming together now still didn’t help ease the overwhelming sense of loss or heartache that threatened to consume her.
“Because when my mother and I leave town, it isn’t to earn credit toward college degrees like my grandfather tells everyone in town we’re off doing. It’s to stay with other cats around the country who are trying to learn more about this League, and ultimately stop them.”
“Why is it so hard to stop them or learn about them? You seem to know a lot already.”
“Because they stay hidden. They’re very secretive, and they guard their rituals closely. I’m guessing that the reason Topaz told you not to let them see you was so that they would never believe you knew too much about them. The less you knew, the less you might be in danger one day.”
“Then maybe I should have stayed.” She hadn’t meant for her voice to come out so sarcastic.
“If you had, you’d have had little defense against your uncle.” Nevada glanced at Landon again. “And you wouldn’t have had any defense against the Rosen brothers they’d chosen for your mates.”
Saffron had to avert her gaze. She couldn’t deal with that right now. She was no more destined to be a mate for Marc and Jake Rosen than she was to be one for Nevada and Landon. Nevada’s words, even spoken in his soft voice, had struck at the very core of her fears. She’d always known Uncle Dennis was part of something dark and sinister, and she’d long suspected the Rosens were as well, but if what Nevada said was true, she now realized she hadn’t even begun to learn the truth of their depravity.
“Nevada, if they find me, they’ll find you and Landon. They’ll find your mother, and your entire village.” She looked from one man to the other, squeezing their hands as she did. She’d known them both less than twenty-four hours and already had shared more intimacy with each of them than she’d ever shared with any man—human or shifter. The sadness that filled her heart wasn’t unexpected, but it confused her, and it cast a dark pall over what had started out to be an almost pleasant evening.