by Dannika Dark
Shepherd propped his elbows on the table and cupped his hands over his mouth as if blowing heat into them.
“I see how much this place means to you,” Viktor continued. “So I have a proposal. I have spoken to my contact, and they agreed to let us keep the boy in lieu of payment.”
A thunderstruck silence fell across the room.
After a long stretch, Wyatt muttered, “Now that’s a twist I didn’t see coming.”
Viktor moved his glass forward, his fingertips gripping the stem. “There is a catch. Everyone in the group has to agree to give up their paycheck to allow the child to live within Keystone.” Viktor’s eyes moved about the room. “That is a lot to consider, but each and every one of you must be in agreement. A group like ours is not a home. It’s a refuge—a safe haven for dangerous people. A child living in our care will always be at risk. With Kira, we are more capable of leaving him in her care while we go on assignments. But make no mistake—this is a huge change that not everyone may be in agreement with, and that is why whichever way you vote, it must be unanimous. It is the only way to maintain harmony as a team. The higher authority has compensated us very well this time. You would each see two more zeroes on your deposit than usual, so that is a lot to give up.”
Shepherd blanched, his eyebrows drawn tightly together. He looked like a cat caught in a rainstorm.
“We will discuss and vote.”
Shepherd rose to his feet. “I have to think about it.” He opened his mouth as if to say more but ducked out, the heavy tread of his boots sounding all the way down the hall.
Blue circled the table to sit in Shepherd’s spot. “Is this a good idea, Viktor? Think of what that child will see. Just look at Raven. That’s enough to give him nightmares for a month.”
All eyes turned to me, and I slumped down in my chair.
“We could traumatize him.” She freed a wisp of hair that had tangled around her feather earring. “What if your wolf attacks him? What if Claude flips his switch and—”
“I would never harm a child,” Claude snarled, rising to his feet. All four canines punched out, and his eyes darkened.
Blue rolled her eyes. “You can’t even sit at this table for more than five minutes without flipping. Some of us have short fuses. And what about injuries? He’ll be exposed to seeing some horrific things.”
“Like your dirty panties lying on the floor next to your hamper?”
She gave Wyatt a hawkish stare that made him swing his green eyes back to Viktor. “We don’t even know much about each other. What if someone at this table hates children or has abused them in the past?”
Viktor sighed and sat back. “I have extensively researched each of you, but you make a valid point about safety. Christian can charm each of you to admit the truth, and I will supervise with Niko’s assistance. He can read light.”
Wyatt rumpled his hair. The light-brown locks were wavy and messy, but that was his signature style. “Maybe Shep doesn’t want to be a daddy. He obviously wants his kid in a good home, but taking him in? That’s a lot to consider.”
Viktor folded his arms. “I want to give Shepherd a choice in the matter. He cannot legally adopt the boy. Shepherd is good for Keystone and has a future here, but this distraction will ruin him if he allows it. I could scrub his memory and send the boy away, but Raven once remarked on all these empty rooms. Not long ago, this house was full of life and laughter. All my brothers lived here with their mates and children. They are all gone now, but maybe this house has room for the laughter of one child. I can make that room. Can you?”
“I agree,” Gem chimed in. “We can all help.”
Niko leaned forward into view. “Is the idea for Shepherd to take on a fatherly role?”
Viktor stroked his chin. “I do not know if Shepherd will even accept that, based on his reaction, but that is up to him. I have no… stipulations?”
Gem nodded at his word choice. “Plus we have Kira. He’s already taken to her, and I think he likes it here. Lots of room to run around.”
“I just wonder if the boy won’t be confused,” Niko said.
Viktor jerked his neck back. “What is confusing?”
“Apologies. I should be clearer. He’s living in a house with… hunters, for a lack of a better word.”
Wyatt tilted his head to the side. “I prefer maverick. Or what about agent? I like the sound of Agent Blessing.”
“And I prefer assassin,” Blue said. “File a complaint. It doesn’t matter what we call it. Niko’s right. How are we going to explain what we do for a living? And not only that, will his loyalty be automatic as he grows up? He might overhear or learn things he shouldn’t.”
“We could tell him we’re superheroes,” I suggested.
Wyatt snorted. “Who are you? Captain Carnage?”
“I like Red Plasma better,” Christian quipped.
Claude scooted in his chair and folded his arms over the back. “What about a trial period? It’ll give Shepherd the chance to know his kid. We’ll take care of him until there’s a candidate for adoption. That way, Shepherd won’t feel so locked into a commitment, and he’ll have control over who will raise the boy if he decides to let him go.”
Everyone’s gazes crossed, and we nodded in agreement.
“I like that idea,” Viktor said. “But you will still be giving up your pay for what might be a temporary arrangement.”
Blue’s soft brown hair shielded half her face as she lowered her head. “I think Shepherd will discover it’s too late for him to be a father. But this way, he won’t have any regrets.” She looked around the table. “If we send the kid off, he’ll leave. One way or the other, I have a feeling he’s out the door. But say the kid stays. Shepherd might be overwhelmed by the idea of raising a child and decide to send him to a good home. No regrets. Viktor has connections, and Shepherd could screen the candidates.”
Gem’s purple lips turned to a frown. “What if Shepherd wants him to stay? Is everyone going to complain?”
“Gem is right.” Viktor pulled his collar away from his neck. “We must all be in agreement with both possible scenarios if we allow the child to stay. It cannot be one or the other.”
“I’m in,” Claude said.
Gem smiled. “Me too.”
The rest of us raised our hands, all but Blue.
She looked around the room and held a poker face.
“You hold the power,” Viktor said. “If we’re not all in agreement, the boy goes to the orphanage in two hours, no matter what Shepherd decides.”
Blue rested her arms on the table. “Here’s my concern: we all chose to be here, even Kira. But this boy doesn’t have a choice. He’s too young to know what he’s getting into. What if, down the road, he doesn’t want to associate with us? We’ll have no choice but to scrub him. And how many years will Christian have to erase? Five? Ten? His whole life erased! He’ll wind up a babbling idiot on a park bench who won’t accept the fake identity Christian implanted in his head—empty memories with no tangible connection to the real world. Are you all willing to accept that responsibility? This is a child we’re talking about, not a puppy.”
Blue made a valid point, and it gave me pause.
“What if we send him off in the world and find out later he was abused and murdered?” I asked. “Or what if he grows up and decides to use his knowledge to destroy the human race? Look, he’s got a better shot with us than anywhere else. And besides, there’s no way to predict what’ll happen. Maybe he’ll want to work for us, or maybe he’ll want to be a priest. A lot of us didn’t have a fair shot in life, but here we are. Who could have predicted our lives would have led us here, even in our darkest hours? There’s no way to guess what’ll happen, no matter which way he goes.”
“Shepherd has a chance to know his son,” Gem said softly. “Is it our place to deny him that right? None of us have children, so we can’t understand what his heart feels. If we send the boy away, we’re keeping a father and son apart. We cou
ld ruin two lives. It’s only fair that we give him the opportunity. Decisions can be made later, but let’s make the one that counts.”
Blue’s shoulders sagged. “You should have been a lawyer, Gem. I think everyone knows my position, and I’ve outlined the risks you’re all accepting. Shepherd’s an asset to this team, and sending the boy away will mean his departure.” Blue sat back and shook her head. “I agree, but only on the condition that we tell Shepherd all the risks. If the kid ever betrays us, he’ll receive a memory wipe. Because of that, we need to keep confidential files out of reach. Wyatt should have password locks on all computers. Shepherd can change his mind at any time and place the boy in a home, but maybe the sooner, the better. Less to erase. If he wants to make it a permanent arrangement, I have no problem with that.”
“If he wants,” Wyatt emphasized. “He ran out of here faster than a groom getting cold feet at his own wedding.”
Gem stood up and skated toward the door. “I’ll go find him and bring him back.”
I noticed the light dimming outside as it neared dusk. When I rose from my chair, Viktor ensnared my wrist.
“I want everyone here when he makes the decision. Hurry back.”
So much for showering.
Chapter 28
Since I didn’t have time to shower, I made a quick visit to a downstairs restroom and washed up. My nape and scalp were itching from clumps of dried blood where the Mage had bled out all over me from a gushing gunshot wound to the jugular. With the boy running around, I became self-conscious about looking like a poster for a Wes Craven movie.
What a strange turn of events. Having a kid around was unexpected, and I understood why it made Shepherd anxious. Were we fit to raise a child? Or would a few years with us scar him for life? Couldn’t be worse than the suffocating life Patrick would have given him. Patrick would have bulldozed that kid until he didn’t know good from evil.
I dried my face with a towel and stepped into the long hall on the east wing. The beautiful blue-tinted windows colored the floor and walls each morning, but now they were a dim shade of indigo. While passing an alcove that led to Gem’s secret room, I glimpsed something outside. When I approached the glass and peered out, I gasped and stepped back.
That was no shadow or stray cat. Houdini stood not one foot away on the other side of the window. He made no gesture, but I knew he wanted to speak to me as he turned toward the back of the house.
I walked alongside him, standing higher than he was. When I reached a heavy steel door in the back, I slid the bolt and walked down two steps before my shoes flattened the dead grass. I hugged my middle as he approached.
Houdini had his hands in the pockets of his grey coat, the high collar leaning stiffly against his jaw. His whitish hair seemed multifaceted, with dark roots and subtle hints of silver. He looked so fresh-faced and casual, his hazel eyes not taking notice of how nightmarish I looked in contrast.
He licked his lips before speaking. “I like that you don’t ask the obvious questions. What am I doing here? Where did I come from?”
“If you’re here, I’m guessing you’ll tell me why.”
He cocked his ear toward the door, probably listening for anyone else. But we were utterly alone. There were far too many walls between us and the rest of my team.
“I’m curious where you parked your car, though.”
He smiled, lines marking the sides of his face. “Too much time passes between our encounters. I see you’ve been busy with all the chaos ensuing around the city.”
“Nice word choice.”
Blackbirds cawed and flocked in the grass just behind me. Sometimes Niko fed the animals that roamed our land, and the birds weren’t shy about badgering us for food. One of them strutted up to my foot and flapped its showy wings.
“Should I thank you for turning on the lights?”
Houdini took a step forward. “Is this a conspiracy?”
My heart thumped in my chest. “Huh?”
He gestured toward the birds and me. “That’s what they call a group of ravens.” He tapped his chin. “Or maybe I’m wrong and it’s an unkindness.”
I lowered my arms. “To be determined. You’re good at deflection, by the way.”
“You’re not so bad yourself.” He watched one of the birds give up and take flight. It landed in a barren tree across the open ground. The stars were already twinkling as the sky changed as subtly as a mood ring. “I sometimes question if I’m really living the life I want. I suppose you think you have it all figured out, but one day, you’ll be more lost than when you started, and you’ll wonder how the hell you got there. I do tire of the repetitive nature of life.”
“I think the blackout was about as much unpredictability as I can stand.”
He rocked on his heels. “Evil thrives in the dark. You can’t see the cockroaches in the daytime.”
I slid my jaw to the side. Patrick was definitely a cockroach, but I didn’t want to admit to Houdini that his little blackout had actually aided in exposing a major conspiracy. But I guessed by the way he was looking at me that he probably knew something about it. Could Houdini have known about Patrick’s secret? Had he orchestrated the outage to either expose their flaws or stop the murders? I wasn’t sure what to believe, and Houdini would never give me a straight answer.
“Would you like to come in for tea?”
“Yes, I suppose I should be getting right to the point,” he said. “I promised to return this to you, and I’m a man of my word.” Houdini raised his hand from his pocket. Dangling from the silver chain was the heart-shaped pendant Christian had given me before a masked ball. I’d worn it all the time until Houdini took it from me. The glass sparkled even in the disappearing twilight.
“I never understood why you wanted it. What’s the occasion? Or maybe you’re feeling guilty about kidnapping me.”
“I never abducted you, Raven. You came willingly.”
I rubbed my temple. I had gone with him. I’d sat right in his car. “You charmed me.”
“A man attacked you in the parking lot, and I came to your rescue. You act as if I planned it, but you know that isn’t true. A selective memory won’t serve you well in the job you’re in.” He stepped forward and opened the clasp. “May I?”
Houdini fastening the necklace behind my neck felt oddly intimate and tender. He held the heart in the palm of his hand and shifted it.
I lifted my chin. “I’d rather have my memory back than a cheap necklace.”
“Are you certain that’s what you really want?”
“You had no right to take it. That wasn’t part of our deal, and I want it back.”
“Careful what you wish for, Butterfly. Someday you might wish you hadn’t.”
My breath caught. “Say again?”
He reached out and cupped the back of my neck with his hand. His fingers could snap my vertebrae in one swift movement, so I found myself paralyzed. Houdini leaned in, and his lips brushed softly against my ear. “I put a spell on you…”
When he whispered the rest, images flashed through my mind like a slide show, and it felt as though a floodgate had opened. My breath quickened, my heart raced, and I suddenly remembered everything.
My first kiss with Christian. Every intimate conversation we’d had. Tender things he’d said, and the way my heart had grown to feel something more than desire. And then I remembered the one piece of the puzzle that made everything fit.
The fire.
Christian was the stranger who’d saved me from an inferno when I was a child. I remembered our conversation in an abandoned building and how we’d both come to the shocking realization that we’d met once before. I remembered drinking from him, feeling sexual thoughts, our conversation at my mother’s grave about seeing where our relationship would go. I remembered choosing the onyx stone for his ring and how it filled me with such joy to see him put it on right away, because the necklace he’d given me wasn’t made of glass. I teared up thinking about all the piece
s of my heart that Houdini had locked away. He had intentionally put Christian at a disadvantage.
I finally lifted my eyes to his. “Why did you give it all back?”
“Let’s just say I’m a generous man and leave it at that.” Houdini’s hand slowly moved away from my neck and touched the rare Burmese ruby. “I’m surprised you wanted this back,” he said obliquely.
“Why?”
Houdini let it go and stared at the red tinge on his fingertips from where he’d touched my neck. “It was purchased for another woman.” His eyes flashed up to mine and caught my confusion. “He didn’t tell you that? Seems like an important detail to leave out when giving such a precious gift.”
There he was, trying to stir the pot again. “And how would you know something like that?”
“Because I was there.” Houdini unfastened the only button holding his coat closed. “Christian’s not the man you think he is. Ask him who he bought the necklace for, Butterfly. Ask him.”
With the last two words, Houdini raised his arms and transformed into a white owl. Awestruck, I watched as he flapped his wings and disappeared into the night.
“Holy shit,” I whispered.
I’d seen him as a white panther, but an owl? My mind reeled. Shifters shared their body with only one animal. Then again, I’d never actually seen him shift into that panther. Maybe I’d imagined it.
I touched the necklace, wondering if maybe this was a hallucination, an aftereffect from all the blood. Whether it was a dream or a nightmare, my memories were restored.
And now that I had my heart again, I didn’t know what to do with it.
Shepherd could hardly breathe. He’d heard stories about people going into shock, and for the first time, he knew what it felt like. He’d come close to passing out at the table when Viktor made the surprise announcement that keeping the boy was an option. The possibility filled him with terror, and he fled the room before they could vote.