by Jae
One after the other, the councilors took their places around the round table and voted.
Sitting down, sharing the table with her colleagues as equals had never seemed so wrong before. They weren't on the same side.
Kylin was the first to vote, and she hoped to set an example for her colleagues. "My grandfather was thought of as the last dream seer," she said. "Now that title might be rightfully Jorie's, and I'll give her the same trust that I had in my grandfather. She deserves to live."
Next was Kendrick Ryle, representative of the coyote-shifters. He swallowed nervously under the expectant gazes of the other councilors. He licked his lips but then said, "This could be our chance of having a maharsi to guide us again. Killing her would be madness."
Grunts of surprise filled the council chamber.
No one had expected that kind of vote from Ryle — no one but Kylin. While the Ashawe weren't the most impressive or most dominant shifters, she had always admired how fast they adapted to new situations.
She gave Ryle a grateful nod. Two down, seven to go. Oh, please, Great Hunter, let them be reasonable for once.
"Not killing her would be madness," Thyra Davis, still flanked by the two guards, shouted when it was her turn to vote. "She knows about our existence, and thanks to Griffin Westmore she even knows where our council is. She could destroy us all, so I vote for killing her." Her dark eyes glowed with anger and hate when she glared at Jorie.
Behind her, Kylin heard Jorie suck in a sharp breath.
The foxlike Rtar councilor took his time with his decision. "The young woman is right about the role of dreams and dream visions in a lot of the old human cultures," he finally said. "I'm not saying that I fully believe she's a dream seer. We need more information. We need to study her, so I vote for not killing her now."
Relief rushed through Kylin although Jorie's expression told her that she didn't like the thought of being studied by the Wrasa. The Rtar were scientists and scholars at heart. The prejudices of his colleagues hadn't stopped the Rtar councilor from studying human cultures, and he had obviously been impressed with what he saw.
Ky's gaze wandered over to the Kasari councilor, who was next to vote. In a lot of ways, Tyrone Greenly reminded Kylin of her father. But while she had finally managed to earn Brian's respect, she still wasn't sure whether Greenly accepted her as a fellow Kasari. She could only hope his opinion about her wouldn't influence his vote.
His powerful gaze rested on Jorie for a long time, then wandered over to Griffin. Finally, he leaned back in his chair and said simply, "Let them live."
Kylin's knees turned into rubber, and she was thankful that she was already seated. Four votes for Jorie. Now if we can get just one more...
"I agree with Manark Davis," the jaguar-shifter said. "We can't afford to let the human live."
In short order, the representatives of the cougar and the bobcat-shifters gave the same vote.
Kylin gritted her teeth but wasn't surprised. The Scirye, the Arkwi, and the Pako as the three members of the Feline Alliance always made sure to present a united front, and they rarely disagreed with Madsen and Thyra Davis, the most powerful councilors.
The stinging scent of Jorie's fear hit Kylin's nose and made her dizzy. Still, she had to admire Jorie. She was now again standing side by side with Griffin, not hiding behind her. Only her scent gave away that she was not as fearless as she wanted them to believe.
Neither was Kylin.
Scratching her forearms, she turned toward Jeff Madsen. Her heart slammed against her rib cage.
His vote will bring the decision. With nine councilors present, there couldn't be a tie vote. Four had already voted against Jorie, and Jeff Madsen would no doubt do the same. His vote would very likely mean her sister's death. She exchanged a worried gaze with her mother, who was slowly inching closer to Griffin and Jorie.
Madsen shoved back his chair. He stood ramrod straight, his head held high in a position of confidence, very much aware that he held Jorie's and Griffin's lives and the fate of the Wrasa in his hands.
The thick haze of emotions in the room made Kylin feel as if she were trying to breathe underwater. Tension rose.
Jorie's hands, clenched into fists, were trembling. Griffin's large body shook with tension as Griffin got ready to fight her way out of the council chamber if need be. Under the pretense of glaring at Madsen, she stepped in front of Jorie again and subtly moved her toward the door in the cover of her body.
Kylin's muscles clenched in response. The skin of her arms began to itch, the first warning sign that her body was putting itself into fight-or-flight mode. If the expected vote came, she would fight for Griffin's and Jorie's lives, knowing that it might mean forfeiting her own.
Her gaze darted to the door, then over to Griffin, who gave her a slight nod and moved Jorie even closer to the exit.
Nella joined them from the other side, establishing another wall of protection around Jorie.
Rufus, I hope you have all the traps and distractions in place and the car ready to make a quick escape.
"My vote will be the end of this discussion. We'll all stick to the decision, including the Saru, no matter whether we like it or not," Madsen said, glaring at each of the other councilors in turn.
For the first time in her life, Kylin knew she wouldn't honor the council's decision. Not if it meant leaving her sister to fend for herself and killing a person who might be the last dream seer. Her muscles trembled as she inched back her chair and flexed her thigh muscles, ready to hightail it out of the council chamber.
The other councilors gave grudging nods, and Madsen continued, "With that understood, I vote for letting the human live."
"What?"
Five different councilors echoed Thyra Davis's shout of shock.
Kylin gripped the edge of the table and blinked up at Jeff Madsen in surprise. Had the dizzying scent of emotions made her hallucinate, or had Madsen really voted in Jorie's favor?
"Are you crazy?" Thyra shouted, her voice garbled by the nearly uncontrollable need to shift.
Madsen didn't answer her. "Get her out of here!" His voice boomed over the ensuing chaos. Then he turned to his remaining colleagues. "This human just told us that Thyra helped Cedric Jennings kill potential human dream seers," Jeff Madsen shouted to be heard over all the noise. "I'm not saying that I believe they really were dream seers, but what's important is that we never got to investigate and make that decision. Thyra and Jennings made it for us. It was going on right under our muzzles, and we never knew it!" He growled, enraged at this loss of control. "But somehow the human, despite seeing all of us for the first time today, knew it, so maybe what Nella says is true. Maybe her dreams really connect the human to us Wrasa. I say we investigate this thoroughly and then vote again. Until further notice, no human will be killed, dream seer or not."
He stared at the councilors until one after the other looked away; then he dismissively turned around, signaling that the meeting was over.
Kylin bounded up from her seat.
"Wait a minute!" Jorie called after him. "What about Griffin and her family?"
Madsen whirled around and narrowed his eyes at her.
"You forbade the Saru to kill me, but what about her? I refuse to leave this chamber until you revoke the kill order on her and her family too!"
With dangerous slowness, Madsen walked over to her, making the small group of Jorie's protectors close ranks around her again. "Don't try my patience, human! Be glad that you make it out of this chamber alive!"
"It's not just my survival that's important," Jorie said quietly, but without looking away from his fierce gaze. "Griffin and her family are my friends and my protectors. I won't abandon them. I thought you as a Syak would understand that kind of loyalty, but maybe I was wrong."
Brown eyes widened. For a moment, Kylin was afraid that Madsen would lose control and attack Jorie.
He stepped closer.
Nella and Kylin blocked his way while Gri
ffin pulled Jorie back.
"No." Jorie softly warded off Griffin's hands and slipped past Ky and Nella to stand directly in front of Madsen. Behind her back, Ky could see that her clenched fists were trembling.
From a distance of just a few inches, Madsen stared down at her. "And maybe you were right. At least about this one thing," he said quietly. Then he raised his voice. "Until further notice, no Wrasa will kill Griffin Westmore or her family either," he announced.
"Or harm them," Jorie amended.
"Don't push your luck, human," Madsen said and walked away. Over his shoulder, he added, "No one will harm them if what you said here today proves to be true."
Almost drunk on all the emotions that wafted through the room, Kylin stared at her companions.
Nella gave her a short hug and walked away to talk to a few of the councilors, who were still arguing loudly and sneaking glances at Jorie.
"Ms. Price?" Jeff Madsen returned before Kylin could talk to her sister or Jorie. "A word... please," he added after a few seconds' hesitation. It seemed Jorie had earned his grudging respect.
Jorie's gaze flew back to Griffin, and Griffin gave her a nod and moved to follow.
"No," Madsen said with a decisive shake of his head. "Just the human... Ms. Price. If she's a dream seer, she doesn't need a babysitter, does she?"
Griffin gritted her teeth. She couldn't object without saying that Jorie wasn't a dream seer. Her gaze followed Jorie across the room. Muscles flexed under her shirt as if she was barely holding herself back.
"So this is Jorie Price. I thought she would be... I don't know... bigger," Kylin teased to distract her sister. The atmosphere in the room was tense enough without Griffin doing something stupid.
Griffin's head swiveled around. Anger sparked in her eyes but then receded when she saw Kylin's smile. "She's bigger than you and me both, Ky," she said quietly.
Oh, man. Kylin regarded her sister with amusement. She's smitten. Never thought I'd see the day when Griffin would fall tail over whiskers in love.
In a badly concealed attempt to keep track of Jorie and Jeff Madsen, Griffin looked around the room. Her gaze fell on Rufus, who was just re-entering the council chamber. "Tell Rufus thanks from me," she said. "Your friend was brave enough to get us through the front door, past two growling Syak and the Maki receptionist who looked as if she was PMSing."
Habit made Kylin nod, but then she hesitated. After a day like this, when a lot of old secrets had been revealed, wasn't it time to tell her sister the truth? Maybe her confession would barely register on Griffin's emotional radar in the middle of all this chaos. After all they had been through today, maybe Griffin wouldn't be too angry that she hadn't told her sooner. "He's not my friend," she said. "Rufus is my betrothed."
"What?"
Kylin smiled apologetically. "We've been keeping it quiet."
"Quiet?" Griffin's voice was an octave higher than usual. "That's an understatement! You didn't even tell me, your twin sister. Did anyone else know?"
"Just Gus," Kylin said and quickly added, "I didn't tell him. Somehow, he just guessed. I'm sorry." She meant it. "I wanted to tell you before, but I didn't know how, and there never seemed to be a good time to do it, and I guess I was just scared."
The familiar amber eyes squinted at her. "Scared?" Griffin repeated. Hurt tinged her voice. "Of me? Of my reaction?"
"I'm half Kasari and half Puwar, and Rufus is half Ashawe, half Syak. If people learn that we're a couple and might one day want kids if that's even biologically possible..." Kylin shook her head. Her fellow Wrasa wouldn't accept it.
Griffin's hand landed on Kylin's shoulder and gave a soft squeeze. "Times are changing, Ky." She nodded in the direction of Jorie and Jeff Madsen, who were still talking. "And you've been a big part of that. Don't let your relationship be dictated by what people might have to say about it."
Warm affection spread through Kylin. She clasped her sister's arm, relieved that Griffin wasn't angry and had taken her relationship in stride. Part of her had always known that Griffin would be supportive, but she had still been afraid. "Wise words," she said when she felt she could speak without her voice giving out on her. "I hope you'll heed them when it comes to your own relationship."
"What?" Griffin looked away from where she had watched Madsen and Jorie. "I'm not in a relationship."
"But you might one day be if you don't make the same mistake again," Kylin said.
"Mistake?" Copper eyebrows lifted in confusion.
Kylin nodded. "You didn't even try with Rhonda, because she's Kasari and you knew the pride wouldn't approve."
"Oh, Great Hunter!" Griffin's flushed features disappeared behind her hand as she rubbed her ear in embarrassment. "Does everyone know I had a crush on her?"
Kylin let her amused smile speak for itself. "You weren't as soft-footed about it as you thought, and you aren't hiding it well now either."
"She's human, Ky," Griffin said, not trying to deny her interest in Jorie any longer. They both knew she wouldn't get away with it with her twin sister. "It's not just about what people might say. We're just so different, and we didn't exactly meet under ideal circumstances, so I really wonder if this could ever work."
The words were familiar. She had said the same thing about her relationship with Rufus in the beginning. Okay, but at least we didn't start out kidnapping and trying to kill each other.
"You'll never know if you don't try," Kylin said. She wanted to add further encouragement, but Jeff Madsen finally left the room, and Jorie returned to Griffin's side.
Griffin's gaze slid over Jorie from head to toe, making sure there wasn't a scratch on her that hadn't been there before. "What did he want?" she asked.
"Oh," Jorie answered with a smile that almost disguised how tense her posture still was, "he just wanted an autograph."
Griffin ogled her skeptically. "Don't tell me he's a fan of yours?"
A slender elbow nudged her in the ribs. "Don't sound so incredulous. I have a few of those, you know?" Jorie grinned at Griffin until she relaxed. Only then did Jorie relent. "No, he didn't really want an autograph. He just warned me that publishing my novel or breathing even a word about the Wrasa's existence to anyone would be my death sentence. I'm not allowed to write anything without the council's express permission."
"That was to be expected," Kylin said. Even though a few councilors had started to believe that Jorie might indeed be a dream seer, that didn't mean that they trusted her blindly. Their distrust for humans wouldn't change within just one day.
Jorie nodded. "What was unexpected was what he said last. He told me he had a few connections to the publishing industry and that when the time was right, there might be a way to publish my novel in a way that has advantages for me and for the Wrasa."
That sly old wolf! A mix of frustration and admiration made Kylin shake her head. "Now that he realizes that change is inevitable, he's trying to make the best of it and take advantage of your novel."
"I was almost killed because the Wrasa feared my story so much, so how could it be used to Jeff Madsen's or the Wrasa's advantage?" The scent of confusion punctuated Jorie's question. "I didn't want to appear weak by asking Madsen since he seemed to think I understood. Maybe he thinks dream seers have all the answers."
Seems she's not afraid to appear weak in front of Griffin... and maybe I have a little of her trust too, by extension.
"I think Madsen realized that a coming out to the human public is inevitable," Kylin said. She had studied her fellow councilors, their strategy, and the way they thought since she served as the Puwar representative. Madsen's plans were obvious to her. "It won't happen today or tomorrow, but it's just a matter of time, especially once word gets out about the existence of human dream seers. If that happens, your book will sell more copies than the Bible and the IKEA catalog put together. If Madsen has control over your book, he's not only rich, but he can also make the Wrasa look like the good guys to all of your human readers."
; A frown carved lines into Griffin's forehead. "I don't like him using Jorie and her book for his political agenda," she grumbled.
Jorie laid a hand on Griffin's arm. "After everything that happened because of my story, that's the least of our worries. I won't give up control of my novel that easily, but I also don't see the need for a lot of changes. After all, the shape-shifters are the good guys in my novel." Glancing at Griffin, she added with a grin, "Or rather, the good gals."
"Oh, just wait until Madsen is through with you. By the time that novel is published, the hero will be a wolf-shifter who heroically hunts down the bad cat to save the human," Griffin predicted glumly.
Cute, Kylin thought, suppressing a smile. Do I interact like this with Rufus?
"I think it's in Madsen's best interest to make all Wrasa look good," Kylin said. "You can be sure that there'll be no insidious wolves and no uncaring Maki in the story if he gets his way."
"Apropos Maki." Griffin turned to fully face Jorie. "You didn't tell me you had another dream. When did you dream about Thyra Davis covering up what Jennings was doing to human dream seers? On the plane?"
A slow smile spread over Jorie's face, and she rubbed her ear, a gesture that instantly reminded Kylin of her twin sister. "Um." She lowered her voice to a nearly inaudible whisper. "I didn't dream about her at all. That was just a bluff."
"What?" Griffin and Kylin shouted.
Jorie lifted a finger to her lips. "Shhh!"
"The revelation that finally swayed Madsen and saved our lives was just a bluff?" Griffin's whisper relayed the same disbelief that Kylin felt. "But how did you know that it was Thyra Davis? It could have been anyone on the council."
"No." The dark eyes twinkled. "Not anyone. I trust your sister." Jorie gave Kylin a nod. "These two," she pointed at the Rtar and the Ashawe councilor, "seemed too shocked when I told them Jennings had hunted down human dream seers, and these three," she indicated the cougar, jaguar, and bobcat-shifters, "didn't even make a peep the whole time I was in here, so I thought it unlikely that they had enough power to help Jennings hide what he was doing. That left only Jeff Madsen and Thyra Davis."