by Caris Roane
“Of course not. All the mastyrs support each other. I don’t think we could survive otherwise.” He sipped his beer.
The wood crackled and sparks flew into the air.
“So, here’s the deal, Olivia, I don’t think I’ll be comfortable until you tell me about yourself. You know about me, so it only seems fair. And my guess is that I won’t be finding anything about you on the Internet.”
She rose to her feet, carrying her beer with her. She sipped a few times before she drew close to his chair. She then dropped down beside him, resting on her haunches while holding on to the arm of his chair.
“I’m weird, Zane. There. I’ve said it. I don’t have any friends. My abilities are too pronounced, and the way I sprout fur is kind of crazy. I own and run an organic farm to the south that services restaurants in Helm’s Watch. I’ve never had a long-term anything and I moved to Swanicott because of this.” She waved her hand in the air, the silver ruff beautiful against her creamy hands. “And because I like my fur, I rarely retract it.”
“I think it’s beautiful.”
Her brows rose. “You do?”
“Yes, I do. But you have to remember, shifters, and all their idiosyncrasies have been part of my life since I was born. I grew up round them, and I now have a Shifter Brigade.
~
Olivia stared into crystal blue eyes. The fire reflected in their depths. She couldn’t believe Zane had told her that her fur was beautiful. She’d always been distressed by it, especially as a child. The fur on the backs of her hands and her chest would appear spontaneously, before she could even form the thought to prevent its emergence.
She’d been teased a lot for being different.
Her mother had done her best, encouraging her to stand up for herself, to let everyone know her father was a fierce shifter warrior in one of the Nine Realms. But the kids had been cruel and their parents worse. She’d learned to live a very solitary life.
She’d been a runner as long as she could remember, whether on two legs, or as soon as she’d shifted for the first time, on four paws.
“Did you go to university?” Zane asked.
“Yes. I majored in Phys Ed. Not many jobs around, though, for human-shifters who can’t easily control fur-sprouting.”
He narrowed his eyes. “I can see this has been a huge challenge for you but I’m not really hearing any bitterness in your voice.”
“No, I’m not bitter. I’ve accepted who I am. I’m just really frustrated. Lonely. I know my life is isolated and I know that needs to change, but it’s not a simple thing to reach out. I’ve trained myself to my insular life.”
“You haven’t mentioned your father.”
“He was never in the picture.”
He nodded, frowning. “Do you happen to know who he is?”
At that, her heart beat hard in her chest. “No, and the truth is I’m afraid to find out. I guess as long as I don’t know, I can pretend he never knew I existed.”
“Well, given your level of ability, he’s no doubt a leader in one of the realm brigades if not an alpha of one of the packs. I could ask around, if you like. What’s your mother’s name?”
At that, she grabbed his arm, panic setting in. She wasn’t sure why she was so distressed, except that she’d always understood that her father knew about the pregnancy but didn’t want to be involved. That left her with a solid reason not to want to know more about him. “No, please don’t. I’m not up for that. Maybe down the road. How about for now, we just focus on what’s happening between you and me. I think that’s enough for the present.”
“You’re right. Forget I mentioned it.”
She eased back to sit on the grass, her forearms on her knees. She drank her beer and her gaze fell to the dagger tattoo on his neck. She had a sudden image in her head of kissing him right there.
But she really didn’t think it would be a good idea to start fantasizing about Zane’s body. They’d already had sex. Twice. Though the shifter in her thought a third time would be just right, she ignored the impulse.
She turned to stare at the fire. “I’m glad you made it, Mastyr. I don’t think Swanicott would survive without you.”
“Thanks. Those are kind words. And please call me Zane.”
She smiled, speaking softly, “Zane.”
She rose to her feet and set her beer on the table. She was heading for the wood pile to retrieve a couple more logs, when all her senses suddenly came alive. The fur on her wrists and chest thickened and her lips drew back. If she’d been in her wolf form, she would have growled.
“What is it?” he asked.
Turning, she saw that he was already on his feet, his beer also on the table. He’d either sensed her concern or felt something himself.
She hurried to position herself close to him and immediately accessed her cloaking vibration, letting the frequency flow over him. She switched to telepathy. I’m not sure whether our conversations can be overheard or not, so let’s play it safe.
He slid his arm around her waist. She found it immensely comforting. Good idea, he said. But what’s going on?
I think the bitch is back.
A sudden wind rose, blowing in from the south, lifting fall leaves into the air. It had a sickly sweet smell and carried a red tinge, a sure sign the Invictus were in the area.
You’re right because the air has the taint of a chaos wind. Let’s move slowly to the front yard and have a look; it might be a trap.
She glanced at him. I’m right with you.
He took her hand and led the way around the side of the house, opening the gate then leaving it ajar as they passed through. She saw his thinking: If someone was watching the neighborhood, it would appear as though the wind blew the gate wide. No one would suspect there were two Realm-folk sneaking around beneath an invisibility cloak.
Once on the lawn, though well back from the street, Olivia sniffed the air once more. Definitely, Margetta. Can you smell that, Zane? She wasn’t sure if it was her acute shifter nose or if vampires could detect the same stench as well.
He nodded. Margetta’s here all right.
Olivia felt edgy and ready to hit something. And right now I feel incredibly irritable. That wind is bugging the shit out of me.
I’m pretty sure the purpose of the spell is to create exactly that kind of sensation. I’m expecting the bar to erupt any moment and for all hell to break loose. I’m going to get some of my Guardsmen over here, but I have to path Marian in order to do that, so hold on.
Got it. She took turns watching him, then glancing down the street in the direction of the familiar golden glow of light that indicated Margetta was nearby. Olivia kept her cloaking vibration tight to them both.
The next moment, the door to the bar opened and, just as Zane had predicted, several of the bikers poured out onto the street and started brawling, calling each other vile names and shouting. She’d never heard quite that many ‘f’ bombs in her life as the men, along with a couple of rough looking shifter women, lit into each other.
Zane tapped on her telepathic frequency. When she opened, he said, I’ll have Guardsmen coming in north of here about a mile up the road in just a few minutes. I want to head up there. But stay hidden. If Margetta discovers you’re the one who helped me, she’ll be after you.
I won’t make that promise, Zane.
He turned to her and she saw his eyes flash with anger. You’re not to put yourself at risk. That’s an order.
At that, she lifted her chin. The shifter part of me absolutely resents those words. Now tell me I’m out of line here. This is my life. These are my choices. I’ll ghost you, but like hell I’ll stand back and not take action if needed. And remember, I helped get you out of the Dead Zone.
Like any man used to command, he stiffened his back.
She put a hand on his chest, which stopped whatever argument he intended to put forward, and added, I’ll make the promise that I won’t enter the fray. But I will do what I need to do.
> He scowled heavily. I guess I’ll have to be content with that.
Yes, you will.
At that moment, two Invictus wraith-pairs flew up the street. They had a couple of unbonded female wraiths with them, dressed in strange, gauzy-red strips and ready to force bonds with the shifters. Any of the bikers would make fierce battling mates once bonded as part of an Invictus pair.
They’re frightening to look at.
Yes, Zane pathed. They are. He turned to her. Be careful, Olivia. Don’t do anything foolish.
At that, she offered a crooked smile. Again, no promises.
She watched his own lips twist, though she could tell he was trying to remain stern.
Wisely, he slipped unnoticed into the forest, moving north and away from the Elf Lords Hideaway.
CHAPTER THREE
Olivia kept her cloak frequency tight and her gaze fixed on the street. At the same time, she ghosted Zane as he flew a mile north. She switched often between her tracking ability and her need to see what was happening in Barker’s Bend.
In the north with Zane, the woodland opened up to a narrow field where twenty or so Vampire Guardsmen had gathered, hovering in the air and waiting to attack.
Across from the bar, more bikers rushed into the street and engaged in the brawl. The whole time, Margetta’s chaos wind blew, the strange odor making Olivia’s nose wrinkle.
Her internal gaze watched as Zane and his troops headed higher into the air, a fearsome sight. The Vampire Guard all dressed the same, in long, sleeveless leather coats padded at the shoulders, and in black leather hip boots, pants in the same material, and maroon woven shirts.
The coats flapped as they moved so that there was a certain sound to the flight, like a soft drum in the background. They flew swiftly south. But about a quarter mile from the bar, Zane lifted his hand and the entire squadron drew up, levitating midair.
Zane, what is it? Olivia asked.
Shit, it’s just like Britchett Falls. My men couldn’t get in then and they can’t get in now. Margetta has some kind of additional spell in place.
Though his men stayed put, he rose another fifteen feet above his troops, probably looking for a way around the spell. This feels like a wall that goes on forever.
As before, he used his battle frequency to break through, but when he waved his men forward, they found the same resistance and couldn’t progress past the spell barrier, even though Zane could.
He drew back immediately to rejoin his troops. To Olivia, he pathed, The hell if I’m falling for that again.
Yeah. Don’t do that.
She heard Zane’s telepathic laughter.
Olivia moved out from the shadows, but stuck close to the shrubbery. Let me get a visual down the street. Maybe there’s something I can do to disrupt the spell from here.
The golden light came into view first, then Margetta. Behind her were at least two dozen wraith-pairs and several single wraiths no doubt looking for new Realm-folk with which to bond. She let Zane know what she saw.
He responded exactly as she expected. Damn.
When more unbonded wraiths began to fly toward the bikers, Olivia’s heart rate rose. Once bonded, those biker-shifters would be tough to defeat for the average Vampire Guardsman. The Invictus bond added power to both the wraith and the bonded mate.
Olivia knew only one thing; she had to help if she could.
I’m going to try something, Zane. Just be ready.
What are you doing? She heard the concerned edge to his voice.
Don’t worry. Margetta won’t be able to see me.
How do you know that for sure? His voice sounded harder now, angry. Clearly, he didn’t like that she was taking action.
I just know. Now hold on. I’m going to shift.
She took a deep breath, focused on the fur on her hands and chest and let her wolf come.
The experience as always, of so much transforming power working in her body, electrified her. Desire flowed as well, and it didn’t help that she was still ghosting Zane. She was connected to him, even more than before, which heightened her need for the vampire.
But she set aside her lust and savored the shift from human to wolf, the feel of the earth beneath her paws, and the stronger scents that came to her from every direction. Unlike her human form that seemed to react in a negative way to most of the odors around her, the shifter seemed to delight in just about every one of them.
Except of course, for Margetta’s stench. That was something not even her wolf-ness could embrace.
She raced through to the backyard and leaped into the air. She didn’t quite understand why she was able to bound as high as she could when she knew most other shifters couldn’t. But she had tremendous reach as she gauged her distance to Margetta.
She bounded, slammed her front paws against the side of a neighbor’s house and almost as quickly her back paws, so that she sailed through the air a hundred yards.
With her gaze focused intently on Margetta, she judged distance and timing perfectly. She angled as she flew so that she touched down three feet behind the smelly bitch.
With a quick swerve in Margetta’s direction, she aimed for the woman’s right heel, opened her maw, and bit down hard, making sure she reached bone.
She leaped away a split second later, loping off to the east, behind the strip center, and heading straight for the forest. Once in the woods, she turned and watched Margetta hop around on one foot.
The Invictus pairs, to the last one, moved away from Margetta a good thirty feet. Olivia wasn’t surprised. Margetta might be lovely to behold, but she had the soul of a monster and wouldn’t hesitate to strike out at any handy object.
Zane, are you there? Once more she ghosted to him in a flash.
What happened? I’m hearing the woman yelp.
Olivia smiled, suddenly glad she’d been born half-shifter. I bit the bitch and it was awesome.
You did what? She heard the laughter in his telepathic voice.
I bit her and the wind has stopped blowing which means the shield is down. I suggest you get a move on because about a half minute ago, several unattached wraiths started doing some kind of enthrallment trick on your biker buddies.
I’m on it. She watched with her internal vision as he waved his arm forward again, setting his Vampire Guard in motion.
Olivia stayed put, keeping her eye on Margetta from the edge of the forest. If the Ancient Fae whipped up a new spell, or pulled anything else out of her magical bag of tricks, Olivia would be able to warn Zane.
The Ancient Fae, however, remained bent over, her wounded heel lifted slightly. Olivia could see blood on the pavement, a nice pool of it. She could also tell Margetta was healing swiftly.
Ghosting Zane again, she watched him lift hand and make use of his battle power. A streak of blue lightning headed toward a wraith-pair and struck a bonded troll. The troll’s face twisted in an angry snarl, as he flew backward onto the street, his chest smoking. He writhed in pain and would be dead soon.
Olivia ghosted away from Zane, deciding she didn’t want to see the rest of the battle, at least not so close up.
Reverting her attention to Margetta, she heard the Ancient Fae deliver a series of orders. She directed her Invictus pairs to head away from the street, then to come in at various points to surround the Vampire Guard.
Zane?
Sort of busy here.
Margetta’s moving her troops to surround you. I’m going to look for a better position to relay their movements.
Don’t suppose I can stop you.
No. You can’t.
She shut the communication down and loped north through the forest until she was parallel to the bar. She raced across the field, her cloak still tight, then leaped onto the pitched roof. Four paws sure helped to gain quick stability.
From her new vantage, she could see all around the bar and down the street. Margetta was using both feet now, all healed up. Olivia wished now she’d torn out the woman’s Achilles ten
don, or maybe her heart. Of course, she had no way of knowing the extent of Margetta’s powers and a full-on attack would have been foolish. Better just to bite and run.
The battle was going strong with several Invictus pairs lying prone on the street, either dead or so severely wounded they couldn’t move.
The wraiths who had been attempting to create the heinous Invictus bonds now flew near Margetta, swirling in wild paths twenty feet above her head.
Margetta, however, no longer appeared to be interested in the battle on the street. Instead, she shifted direction entirely and moved toward the forest. She appeared to be searching for something on the ground.
Olivia knew instinctively that Margetta was somehow tracking her.
But how?
Of course, the good news was that for all her power, the Ancient Fae still couldn’t see through Olivia’s cloak. Yet, it seemed clear that Olivia had left a trail of some sort behind her, a mark the Ancient Fae could see.
She was safe for the time-being because Margetta was moving slow, so she reverted her attention to the street battle. Scanning the surrounding area, she saw several Invictus pairs moving in, just as the Ancient Fae had ordered.
She pathed to Zane, I see Margetta’s troops now, Mastyr. They’re closing in.
Olivia watched as Zane brought down another Invictus pair, then drew away from the battle enough to scan the skies.
Ready. Do you have numbers and locations? He then shouted to his team to prepare for incoming.
Olivia gave specifics, Two pair have just entered the back door of the bar. Three pair are coming in from the north, and five from behind my house. She shifted to the south. Another three are moving up the street.
Thanks, Olivia. She heard Zane start shouting out the locations of the advancing Invictus. His troops moved seamlessly into place.
Needing to check her own back trail, she turned and caught sight of Margetta coming out of the forest directly across from the bar. Oh, shit.