Fur and Feathers [A Raven Saga Book 2]

by Crymsyn R. Hart

  He reached out with his mind and tried to touch her thoughts, but he withdrew when he felt fire, burning him alive. He hadn't realized what torture she was going through. It was more suffering than he had ever experienced even when he had been branded with the triple ravens on his left shoulder. The mark of his brethren. Slowly, he knelt by the side of the bed and concentrated on what Jet and Caleb had taught him about healing. He had mended Alena's feet as well as her scalded hand, but this was something he had never dealt with before. He could cure a human. He wasn't very good at it. Fighting was the skill he was good at. He clasped his hands together, felt the cool energy flowing between them, and put one on Alena's forehead and another over her heart. She jumped at the contact. His palms burned from the heat of her skin. But after a few moments of concentrating on her and trying to at least bring down her temperature, she stopped convulsing and only twitched every once and a while.

  "What the hell happened?"

  Darius looked up and saw Marija and Charlene standing in the doorway along with Vincent, the last person he wanted to see. He looked at Alena's mother amazed the woman was her mother since they didn't look anything like one another, yet he sensed such a maternal instinct from her. She would have barreled over anyone to protect her daughter. She caught his gaze and stared back at him. Her mind blasted his. She had more skills with her gift than Alena did and was more confident at using the ability, but he was not going to let her get into his mind. Before his walls went up, he did sense there were other secrets she was keeping.

  "What happened to her?” Vincent asked again, a little more calmly this time.

  "She started to change.” Charlene put her hand on Alena's cheek feeling her temperature.

  Vincent and Marija looked at one another. “That's impossible. It's not the full moon. She can't change,” Vincent growled.

  Darius looked over at him. “Just because you can doesn't mean that she can't. Maybe it's in her blood instead of you just having to be bitten by your deranged father."

  Vincent growled. “How do you know that?” he said through forced teeth.

  "Because Charlene and I told him along with how you bit Jamie and the others.” Marija didn't look up at Vincent, but stared at Alena and then at Charlene who nodded. “It's true, Vincent. She has begun to change. I told her passion would let the wolf out of its cage. Darius whatever you two were doing, you released the wolf in her. You tore down her walls and brought it to the surface."

  Vincent huffed. “Impossible. Only a wolf could bring out the wolf in her. He's not even a true shifter. He was cursed into a Raven for God's sake by you, Marija."

  "Vincent, will you shut up for once. Something happened to Alena. The transformation has stopped. I don't know how, but if she stays like this she will die.” Charlene stared at Vincent and then at Darius. “I did not come all the way back here to find my daughter and then to lose her again. The vedma who taught me never had a situation like this."

  Darius was taken aback. “Die? No. She can't die."

  Marija looked at the Raven Warrior and her face softened. “You didn't start turning into a raven with her, did you? You love her."

  Darius nodded. “I asked her to stay with me and have my children.” He felt his heart break when he met Marija's and then Charlene's eyes. His gaze shifted back to Marija. For a long time, he had despised the woman, but now the hatred faded away like he was reborn. His soul felt lighter, and he didn't know what he would do if he lost Alena. He locked his eyes with Charlene's. “She gave me back my soul. I swear to you I didn't know this would happen. She tried to warn me about turning, but I didn't know what she meant. I didn't think she would be stuck in her transformation. I don't want to lose her."

  "Oh, please. Enough of this woman shit. Marija, use your magick to change her back. I'm sure you have something up your sleeve. If not, Charlene is almost as powerful as you and can bring her back."

  The gypsy stared at the pack leader. Darius sensed there was something between them that she was not telling him. Of course, he was surprised to hear Marija had another daughter with Vincent. He didn't think she would keep something like that from him. No matter, he would find out as well as discover the killer of the child once Alena was better. For now, he did not want to leave her side. “I can't just wave my hand and fix her. This is something that she has to sort out for herself. She stopped the change. She has to make a choice. She has to accept her heritage and slip her skin or revert back to human form and live the rest of her life as a mortal. The choice is hers."

  "What can I do for her?” Darius asked.

  "Be there for her. Call out to her in the darkness. Let her know you are here and will be when she wakes up. I assume she was there for you when you were poisoned. Now you have to do the same for her. Call to the goddess Morena, Morrigain, and ask her for guidance. Alena must wake soon. Her body can't survive in this state. It is deadly. If she chooses life as a wolf, she will have all of our attributes. You won't have to worry about losing her to mortality. We are practically immortal. She'll heal quickly. Everything. But if she chooses humanity, everything she was will be lost."

  Darius nodded, feeling the gravity of the situation. He wanted to do everything he could to save her. “Thank you, Marija. Will you and Charlene stay with her when I cannot?"

  Both women smiled. “Of course.” Charlene answered. “Now I suggest you put some pants on."

  Darius looked down and smiled. He waved his hand and donned clothing. “What about her? She's burning up. My power won't last forever."

  Charlene touched his hand. “You can't stave off her change. She must work through it. You have eased her pain and are connected with her now. Let her go. She will sleep for now. Besides, don't you have to continue looking for the hunter who killed our young?"

  Darius nodded. “I will. Now—"

  Screaming interrupted him from the forest. Vincent looked between them and then ran. Darius followed. Once outside, they saw the pack gathered around something. When Darius got there, Vincent dropped down to his knees. Darius stared at the body he was pulling close seeing Jamie, his sister and Alena's cousin. She was clawed and gorged like she had been fed from. The pack leader held his sister close. Darius realized the woman was still alive, but barely. He pushed everyone out of the way.

  "Don't you touch her!” Vincent growled. His eyes glinted in the moonlight.

  "She's still alive. I might be able to save her. Please."

  Vincent looked at the Raven Warrior skeptically and, after a moment, handed over his sister to him.

  "This is your fault, Vincent. You're the one who called upon the old gods and now they have sent their claws to kill us for disobeying the moon.” Someone from the pack yelled. There were nods of agreement.

  "You allowed your half-breed cousin to be counted as pack. They are taking out their revenge on us."

  "All of you. Shut up,” Marija shouted entering the circle. “Vincent has not angered the gods by allowing us to sway the moon's power. That was all a line of bull we made up to hide the truth."

  "Then what is the truth.” Another pack member yelled. “Why have the elaborate ceremonies if they are not appeasing the gods."

  "Everyone, enough. I'll explain it all later. Please let him try and save my sister."

  Everyone fell silent, but Darius realized it was an uneasy silence. He concentrated his energy on trying to save the woman beneath him. In his mind, he saw her skin knitting back together. He felt the cool power of the moon fill him lending him strength, and he released the power into Jamie. There was a slight gasp from the audience, and when he opened his eyes, she was healing, but very slowly. The effort was draining of his strength. “I can't. I'm sorry. It's too much. If she were human.” Darius looked up breathlessly at Vincent.

  Her bleeding had stopped on the outside, but his power told him she was still bleeding internally and silver had touched her internal organs. It was impossible for her to completely heal. Growling, Vincent gripped him roughly by the
shoulder and pulled him into him.

  "You will heal her!"

  "I can't, Vincent. I'm sorry. There's been too much damage. Silver has infected her system. That's what is killing her and I bet how the other two really died. The last one was already dead so I could not sense the poison, but with her I can."

  "Vincent...” a garbled whisper escaped Jamie's lips.

  His eyes turned to his sister. “Hey, sis. Lie still. We'll fix you up."

  "Listen. He's after—"

  Jamie tried to sit up, but the effort was too painful for her and she lay back down. Blood spilled over her lips tinged black from the silver poisoning.

  "Who's he? And who is he after?"

  Jamie struggled to pull in air. Darius knew she was close to death. In the ring of the pack, he saw the dark angel patiently waiting just like he had in the other realm when he had been poisoned. Morrigain had said it was a privilege for Raven Warriors to be escorted to the other realm by the angel. Death was Azrael, a strange creature. Now up close, he reminded Darius of one of the other Warriors, pale as the moon with hair and wings as black as any Warrior. He reminded the Warrior of a vampire, but that idea was ridiculous. Vampires were creatures unto their own breed. Darius knew something about them, but he wondered about the Angel of Death.

  "Is it?"

  Darius stared at the angel, realizing he was talking directly to him. "I don't know. Are you?"

  The dark entity gave him a smile showing him pointed fangs. "I guess that is up to you to decide."

  "Jamie, please hang on. Who did this?"

  Jamie sputtered. “Trina. Alena. After both—nev—” Before she could finish, her last breath escaped her. Vincent hugged the body to him and uttered a scream that turned into a howl. The rest of the pack joined in the mourning.

  Darius felt something cold brush his face. When he looked up, he saw the robe of the Angel of Death before him. A silver orb rested in his hand. It was Jamie's soul. "This one is at peace now. Tend to the one you love, or I might be back." Azrael's eyes slid in the direction of the cabin. Darius nodded, understanding what the angel meant. Alena's life was in danger if she didn't come back to herself.

  A chill passed over him and the angel was gone. Vincent stopped howling, laid his sister on the ground, and then launched himself at Darius. The Raven Warrior was getting sick of this. This was twice in one night, and he had just tried to save his sister. Didn't Vincent understand he was seriously getting pissed off? He caught the Warrior off guard and pinned him to the ground. The whole pack backed away while the two came to blows. Vincent was as tall as Darius, but the Raven Warrior was built broader. The pack leader was partially transformed into a wolf. He had bulked up, had a muzzle and claws. With the added mass, he had Darius outweighed.

  He began to shred his shirt. Darius tried to push him off. Marija yelled for both of them to stop. Darius was in no mood for a fight, which he found strange considering he normally was always in the mood for a fight. With a little shimmer of power, he summoned his weapons and felt his sword materialize in his hand and his dagger in the other. Vincent saw the flash of silver and knocked the sword from Darius's hand. However, he didn't see the dagger. Darius brought the blade up to Vincent's throat. The lust of the kill seared his mind. He so wanted to take the werewolf's life considering Vincent had almost killed him with the poisoned silver blade he had stolen from Marija, but Darius did not.

  "I really want to use this blade to slit your gutless throat. However, there are other things to worry about, like finding your sister's killer. That's why I'm here. If you give me some time, I have an idea how I can find out some information, but you have to let me up.” Darius pressed the blade into Vincent's fur and nicked the skin. He knew the little bit of silver would not kill the wolf, just give him a nasty cut and nothing more. Vincent hissed, closed his eyes, and then began to transform back into a man.

  "Oh God, what happened?"

  Darius looked up and saw Ben running to the scene. The pack cleared a path for him. He dropped to his knees and screamed when he saw Jamie's shredded dead body. Other members of the pack gathered around to console him.

  "I'm sorry. I just—” Vincent stammered.

  Darius twisted his hand, and the dagger disappeared back into the Grey. He got up and held his hand out to the mourning pack leader. Vincent looked at it for a moment while rubbing his neck where he was cut. “No harm done. Just watch over, Alena. Take care of your pack. They need you now. Protect her and your niece. Jamie said they were the ones who were in danger. They need you too. Please. We both want what is best here."

  Vincent nodded and took Darius's hand so he could get up. “What do you need from me?"

  Those were the first words of sense he had heard from the pack leader since he had gotten there. “Take care of them. Bury your sister as your custom dictates.” Darius looked at Marija. “I need the bracelet I found from the cave."

  "It's back at my cabin. Why do you need it?"

  "I have a hunch. I'm tired of having no answers. I can bring it to someone who might be able to help. If either you or Charlene needs me in the meantime, just call out. You already know how to summon me.” The Raven Warrior kissed her cheek and left the circle of the pack. It was their place to mourn for the dead and not his.

  Darius raced back to the cabin and searched for the bracelet. He found the trinket easily on the hearth. He stepped into the back bedroom to see Alena resting fitfully on the bed. Her body was still contorted, elongated, but underneath her twisted form, he still saw the woman he loved. Charlene looked up when she heard the boards creaking.

  "I'm just—"

  "I know what you're doing, Darius. I'll watch over her until you come back. I may not have been there for her when she needed me in the past, but I will be here for her now. I give you my word."

  He nodded and was almost ready to go when he stopped. “Charlene, when we first met, you came onto me. Why?"

  A devilish smile turned on her lips. “Well, Darius, I have to admit you are rather handsome and not what I expected. I found you rather yummy. I'm glad you bonded to my daughter. You'll be a wonderful match."

  He opened his mouth, but closed it and clutched the bracelet harder. Without another word, he let himself fade into the Grey. The cold caressed him for a split second, and then he found himself standing in Jonathan's bedroom. The teenager should have been asleep, but he was half awake playing video games.

  "Hi, Darius."

  "Jonathan, I should tell your mother you're up playing games."

  "She's not home. And Caleb is outside watching me so I'm safe. Besides I knew you'd be coming."

  The Raven Warrior never thought he would be asking a mere boy for help, especially one who was his charge, but he knew that Jonathan would be able to help him with his abilities of being able to predict the future. “So you know why I'm here."

  The teenager kept on pressing the game controller buttons and swaying from left to right while he tried to get the character in the game to go in the direction his body moved. It wasn't working. His charge at the end of it was just a typical boy. Finally, Jonathan met his eyes and threw the game controller down. “Kinda. I know you have something for me. Can I see it?"

  Darius held the bracelet out to the boy. He had never seen Jonathan use his gift before like this, but he knew the ability was in him. The boy looked at the bracelet in the weak light of the television screen and then placed the trinket between his hands. Jonathan's face knotted up in concentration. Darius knelt, waiting for him to get something. After a moment, Jonathan's eyes opened, but he was staring past the Raven Warrior.

  "What do you see?"

  "It's real dark. He wants them all dead."

  "Who is he?"

  "Don't know. He is old and hates the moon. His dark past has reawakened after a long sleep. He was bitten, and then something went wrong. For the past few months, it's like he's two people, one who loves and one who has been asleep. The one who was asleep did some bad things before
it was a wolf, and it talks funny. He has a history but disappeared before he could be discovered. When he was bitten again, something from the bites made everything change for him. Now he can't help himself."

  Jonathan screamed, jumped, and threw the bracelet into the air. Darius went to seize it, but instead of his hand enclosing the metal, he grabbed empty air only to see Caleb had caught the piece of jewelry. Something was wrong if Caleb was here in human form! Even his leader had no reprieve to take human form except for the three days and nights of the full moon. A pang of dread washed over Darius, figuring that using his charge's powers to help him in the hunt was against the rules, but he had found out some valuable information.

  "Darius, what am I going to do with you?” Caleb chided. “Meet me outside."

  With that, Caleb folded the shadows around him silently. Darius hung his head and felt dread. He was going to be taken before the council and judged for using Jonathan instead of protecting him. He would lose Alena and never see her again. He had to figure out a way to get out of this.

  "You had better go,” Jonathan said, distracting him from his thoughts.

  "Look, kid. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pull you into this."

  His charge shrugged and grabbed the game controller again. “I know. Don't worry. It won't be as bad as you think."

  What won't be as bad? His punishment? Losing Alena. “What won't?"

  Jonathan didn't bother to answer him and put his attention into the game. Darius ruffled his hair and stared out of the window. Caleb stood on the grass looking up at him. The moon made his hair look like liquid metal. Darius let the shadows take him so he was outside standing beside his leader. He couldn't let himself meet the other Warrior's gaze.

  "Guess Betha gave you a reprieve to be human?"

  "Only to come and get you! She's not very happy with the way you've been handling things. She wants results and says if you don't have them by the sunrise after this one, you'll never be able to be human again."

  At those words, his fury returned. Darius met the gaze of his leader head on. There was lead in his jaw. He had never been disrespectful to Caleb before or gone against his orders, but he would be damned if he would be forced to go back to the council and explain his actions. “I will not be cursed for doing my job. I can't help it if whoever is killing the pack children happens to be cunning. I couldn't help it I was poisoned and toxin almost killed Alena, too. Did Betha know about that?"