Her brother.
One of his clan.
Safe.
He touched her, the darkness countered.
His cat growled in agreement.
Eliminate him. Take what’s rightfully ours.
Naomi inched closer. “Alek, take your sister to the car. Wait for me there.”
The two shifted for the door, but froze at the warning growl that rumbled up Priest’s throat. “No.”
“He’ll bring her back.” Lowering her voice, Naomi crept within killing distance. “Your companion is angry. Insulted and raw. He doesn’t care that he’s her brother. Only that he’s a stranger he doesn’t know. But you know, Eerikki. Take the time to find your balance. Tate and Jade can go with them. Tate’s a warrior. You can trust him to keep her safe.”
As though she’d summoned him with her words, Tate stole closer to Priest, the wary nature of his coyote obviously sensing Priest barely held his panther in check. He kept his silence, but his watchful amber eyes burned with curiosity and confusion.
Never in all the years they’d been with them had Priest ever lost control. Hadn’t sunk this deep into the darkness in years.
Still braced protectively in front of Kateri, Alek stared Priest down. Such innocent bravery. Clueless of the torture Priest could wield with little more than a thought.
End him. The dark encouragement danced all too enticingly inside his head and sent fire licking down his spine.
Behind Alek, Kateri watched him with wide eyes. Not afraid. Surprised, yes, and curious given the tilt to her head, but not afraid. She swallowed and flexed the hand clutching her brother’s shoulder.
His panther bristled at the sight, jaws aching to sink its teeth into the usurper who enjoyed her touch.
“Go,” he ordered Tate, not daring to break eye contact with his mate for fear he’d lose what little control he had left. His muscles flexed and strained, blood pulsing with a ferocity that left an aching throb in its wake. Naomi was right. If he didn’t find his balance, he’d slaughter Alek where he stood. “Stay close, but don’t let her out of your sight. No one touches her.” The darkness and his beast coalesced with his own voice and unleashed a feral claim. “She’s mine.”
Chapter Two
It couldn’t be real. None of it. Katy padded down the wooden steps from the tattoo shop, her footsteps nearly silent in comparison to those resonating from the three people behind her. The crisp spring morning temperature kissed her sweat-misted skin and the sun beamed just shy of its zenith. Normal. Safe. The same world she’d grown up in.
Except that the world wasn’t what she’d thought it was. For the last two weeks, her scientist’s mind had insisted that the things Nanna had told her—even shown her—weren’t possible. But that man. Eerikki. Priest. Whatever his name was. Her logic couldn’t ignore that. Had heard the animalistic sounds roll past his lips and felt the power emanating off him. Electric like the snap and tingle that came before a lightning storm. That was no trick of the mind. No figment of her imagination or wishful thinking as she’d tried to explain her grandmother’s foresight and shifting abilities.
And his body...
She shuddered at the memory of the hard muscles she’d felt all too briefly. The heat of him. Between his edgy biker appearance, loose black hair well past his shoulders and deep olive skin, he was every deep, dark fantasy rolled into one. Had her brother not yanked her behind him, she had no doubt she’d have happily pressed herself flush against him and purred like a desperate cat in heat.
Talk about illogical responses.
She released her shaky grip on the handrail and stepped onto the aged asphalt parking lot, praying her adrenaline-overloaded body could navigate without the extra support.
Behind her, the woman she’d yet to formally meet asked, “Are you guys hungry? We’ve got some great cafes and coffee shops on Main Street.”
Katy paused on the sidewalk that ran along the west side of the street and rubbed her arms to ward off the chill. The traffic had picked up since they’d pulled into the parking lot, but the quaint storefronts nestled along the softly sloping street and massive budding trees that framed it on either side seemed to ground the bustling area in a quiet peace.
And, boy, did she need peace right now. Even with the rumble of motorcycles and chattering tourists milling up and down the street, the fresh air and birds chirping soothed her as nothing else could. Nature was what grounded her when nothing else could. The simpleness of it. The soul-calming beauty. Two weeks ago, she’d been a few formalities away from making it the foundation for her future, her Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science and the coveted environmental protection internship she’d fought for almost guaranteed.
But then her parents had been murdered and her neat, tidy life had been turned on its head. “Is there somewhere we can sit outside?”
Alek’s deep, clipped voice sounded a second before his hand clamped onto her shoulder and redirected her to the parking lot where his red Jeep Wrangler waited. “We’re leaving.”
Before Katy could even dig in her heels, Tate was between them and the cars lined in orderly rows. When she’d first seen him in the shop, she’d thought him a cross between a male model and a hipster—his long hair pulled back in a low ponytail and a honey-blond color a lot of women paid hundreds to achieve. Now, seeing his slightly darker beard framing bared teeth as he growled at Alek, he was pure predator. Shoulders back, arms tense at his sides and braced on the balls of his feet, he appeared only seconds from taking Alek to the ground.
Jade shoved Alek’s hand off Katy’s shoulder and positioned herself between Katy and Alek. She was shorter than Katy, five-two at best, but the soft blue tank top and tight-fitting jeans accented firm muscle and curves the likes of which always left Katy envious. “Keep your hands off her.” She studied each of the men and shook her head like they’d both lost their minds, the same silver clan charms her grandmother wore woven into small braids in her long dark hair and glinting in the sun. “Jesus, don’t you know anything about our race?” she said to Alek. “Priest said no one could touch her. Tate’s coyote takes that literally.”
Maybe Katy should have followed her brother. Or at least put a little extra distance between her and Tate. Instead she stepped forward, her indomitable curiosity overpowering the need for caution. “Your animal’s a coyote?”
Tate scanned the distance between her and Alek and relaxed enough to jerk a terse nod. Only after he’d drawn a few more breaths and straightened from his fighting stance did he shift his attention to Alek. “Your family has always anchored the warrior house. Why don’t you know about us?”
Alek frowned and gritted his teeth so hard the muscles at the back of his jaw looked as if they’d snap. “I don’t know. Nanna said our dad made her promise not to tell us. Said he didn’t do his soul quest, or whatever you call it. Something about not wanting his gifts. After what I’ve seen the last few weeks, I’m starting to see why.” He glared at Katy. “We should go. Nanna can finish her big reunion with Mr. High-and-Mighty and call us to come get her.” He huffed out an ironic chuckle and shook his head. “Oh, wait. She’s a hawk, right? She can fly to us when she’s done.”
No way was she leaving. Not when she had a chance to pry information out of two people who clearly knew what they were talking about. Even if she didn’t have a solid motive for wanting to learn more, the scientist in her insisted on digging deeper. On finding some reasonable explanation for the things her nanna had summarized as simply magic. “Don’t you want answers?”
“What I want is for my sister to not end up like our parents. Have you seen the way these people act?”
Memories of the blood-splattered walls and coppery stench that had filled her parents’ living room fired as bold as real-life, pricking her carefully buried rage. To lose control was unacceptable. The worst offense she could show her parents after what th
ey’d suffered. “What I want is justice. The only way we’re going to get it is if we talk to the people who can help us find him. I don’t care if they have spots or shift into unicorns. I’m staying.”
“Justice for what?” Jade shifted her gaze to Alek, confusion clouding the green depths that matched her namesake. “What happened to your parents?”
Mouth pressed in a hard line, Alek stared at Jade for all of two seconds, then spun to face the street, a muttered curse Katy couldn’t quite make out drifting on the wind.
“Our parents were killed two weeks ago.” Two weeks that felt a lifetime away and yet her words still shook with barely contained fury. “It was bloody. Gruesome.”
Jade glanced at Tate as if to gauge if he was following the topic any better than she was. “What?”
“Murdered,” Alek said, shifting enough to scowl at Tate. “By a Volán. You really think I’m inclined to trust anyone from your race after what happened to them? After the whacked-out shit I just saw from Eerikki or whatever his name is?”
Tate smirked and cocked an eyebrow. “He goes by Priest. And I hate to point this out, but if you’re Naomi’s grandson, you’re Volán, too. One from the warrior primo family.”
“A warrior what?” Katy said.
Jade’s gaze cut behind Katy to a couple meandering down the sidewalk. She cleared her throat and motioned for Katy to step out of the way. Only when the couple was out of earshot did she speak, but her voice was still hushed. “Warrior primo. Every house has a leader that serves the high priest and mentors their people. Your family has led the warrior house for as long as anyone remembers.”
Alek scoffed, stuffed his hands in the pocket of his jeans and glared into the distance. “This is bullshit.”
Katy understood the sentiment. Had echoed the thought more times than she could count since Naomi first shared her family’s mysterious heritage and shifted into a hawk for the first time. But this was the first time she’d seen Alek struggle with the concept of their race. Yes, he’d grieved and wrestled with anger the same as her since they’d found their parents slaughtered in their family home, but he’d seemed more open to the idea of magic. Even eager to learn more about it. Or he had been—until he’d come face-to-face with Priest.
“Call it whatever you want,” Tate said. “But it’s reality. If you don’t accept what’s yours, the Keeper will hand the honor to someone else.”
“Who’s the Keeper?” Katy asked.
“Wow.” Jade’s eyebrows hopped high, and she scrunched a handful of her soft black hair on top of her head. After considering Katy and Alek for a second, she planted both hands on her hips, scanned Main Street from left to right, then made pointed eye contact with Alek and Tate the same as a scolding mother would her errant sons. “Okay, can you two hold your shit in check long enough for us to find a place to talk?”
“I’m fine,” Katy said. “It’s the men doing all the flipping out, not the women.” Although, if she was honest with herself, Alek’s attitude had been getting worse even before their parents were killed. Like the quiet patience he’d always shown growing up had sprung a slow leak that showed no signs of stopping.
Jade crooked a grin that spoke of a saucy attitude Katy could absolutely appreciate under normal circumstances. “Not exactly a trait unique to our clan, but still true.” She glanced back at Tate, a genuine concern and question in her soft gaze. “You good?”
Tate paused long enough to scrutinize Alek who still refused to look at the rest of them. He nodded. “Yeah. Just keep him at arm’s length.”
That got Alek’s attention. He squared his shoulders toward Tate and started forward, but Katy held up her hand before he could get two steps in. “Stop it.” She lowered her voice. “Whatever it is that’s going on with you, let it go. They’re not going to hurt me. No one’s going to hurt me. But I want answers and they’ve got them. If you can’t deal with that, go wait in the car, and I’ll find you after we’re done.”
It took a good fifteen seconds and more pride than Alek was likely comfortable swallowing, but he finally dipped his head, the tiny acquiescence leaving his features hard and pinched.
Jade sighed and motioned toward the top of the main strip where a pub sat on the opposite side of the street with motorcycles lining the front of it. “Let’s hit the Cat House. Breakfast sounded good thirty minutes ago, but right now a drink sounds better than coffee, and we can sit on the patio.”
Less than fifteen minutes later, they were seated at a balcony table overlooking Main Street. There’d been another tense moment when Tate had claimed the seat beside Katy—effectively caging her between the balcony rail and him—but between the give-it-a-rest glower she aimed at her brother and Jade’s placating demeanor, Alek took a seat beside Jade on the opposite side of the table. If the waitress found it odd they all ordered hard liquor at straight up noon, she didn’t show it.
Eureka Springs truly was a beautiful town. The soft rolling hills, quirky shops and buildings from a more peaceful era was a place she’d enjoy exploring. But while she loved the thick foliage and the winding streets, what she wanted most right now were answers. Checking the proximity to make sure no one could overhear them, Katy started with Jade. “Can you shift, too?”
One blink and the watchful tension that had gripped Jade nearly nonstop since Alek had yanked Katy out of Priest’s arms flashed to bright happiness. “I can. My soul quest was just a little over a month ago.”
“What’s your animal?”
Her smile grew bigger. Prouder. “My companion’s a lynx.”
Alek snickered. “You mean you’re a cat.”
Katy shot him a warning glare. “A full-grown Eurasian lynx would come up to your thigh and could spot you coming as much as 250 feet away. They’re also superb hunters. I’d hardly call her a cat.”
Tate’s reply wasn’t nearly so subtle, the low growl of his coyote winding around them all.
“Let it go, Tate,” Jade said then turned her attention on Katy. “How do you know so much about them anyway?”
“I took an advanced zoology class before I declared my major in Environmental Science.” She glared at her brother, still more embarrassed than she cared to admit. “I don’t know what’s up your ass lately, but I’ve just about had it with your attitude.”
“I don’t have an attitude, I’m just tired.”
“Trust me. You have an attitude. All the time. And when you’re not biting everyone’s head off you’re passed out in bed.”
Jade and Tate shared a look, one borne of many years together and unspoken understanding.
“What?” Katy asked them both. “Does that mean something?”
Ducking her head, Jade tapped her thumb against the scarred wood tabletop.
“How old are you?” Tate asked Alek.
Alek hesitated as if he sensed a trap or a prank coming on. “Twenty-five, why?”
“Bad temper? Sleeping a lot?”
Alek glanced at Katy and shrugged. “I guess. Yeah.”
Tate nodded. “Most Voláns are called on their soul quest between twenty-one and twenty-six. Most never make it past twenty-five and men almost always share the warning signs of fatigue and anger. If you’re not generally a giant dick, I’d say you’re close.”
For the first time since he’d gone all protective-big-brother with Priest, a little of Alek’s bravado faded. An especially surprising response considering Tate’s blatant verbal taunt.
“You really don’t know much about our race at all, do you?” Jade asked quietly.
Alek shook his head, barely meeting her eyes. “Nanna told us about the magic and the basic houses. She said she was a seer and showed us she could shift, but other than that... I think she was afraid to share more.”
“You said you went on a soul quest,” Katy said to Jade. “That’s when you learn to shift?”
“
Sort of.” Jade stared at the table for a second, her eyes distant while she seemed to struggle for the right words. “In the Otherworld, you face the parts of yourself the Keeper feels are necessary for you to navigate this realm with magic. Once you do, you’re assigned a house and the magic that goes with it. It’s only after your quest that you meet your companion.”
Odd. She’d heard that expression several times since her grandmother had divulged their race’s shapeshifting gift and it still didn’t make sense. “I don’t get the companion part.”
“If you think it’s weird now, wait until you have one.” Tate chuckled and crossed his muscled forearms on the table. “Think of it this way. Today there’s just you. When you think to yourself, all you hear is your voice. After you’re given your companion, you’ll hear two. Yours and your animal’s. It’s the Keeper’s way of ensuring our race stays in tune with nature and magic.”
Fascinating. Far-fetched and completely insane, but fascinating in theory nonetheless. “And there are four houses, right? Seer, warrior, healer and sorcerer?”
Jade nodded. “The sorcerers are rare, though. Very powerful and highly respected. Or they were. We don’t know of any that are still alive.”
Alek shifted in his seat, obviously uncomfortable. “The primo thing. You said our family led the warriors. What’s that about?”
While he’d directed his question to Jade, it was Tate who answered. “Your grandmother’s mate was the last primo for the warriors. Unless the Keeper deems otherwise, each primo stays within a family line. No clue what she’ll do since your father refused his gifts.”
“And what do primos do, exactly?” Katy asked.
“They’re the strongest in their house and serve as mentor for the people they lead. But they also serve as Priest’s advisors and share their magic with him at presect.”
“At what?”
“Huh?”
Both Tate and Jade smiled at Alek and Katy’s dumbfounded responses, but it was Tate who answered. “When the seasons change, our clan comes together for a sacred rite called presect. It’s simple really. An exchange designed to honor, balance and keep the Earth’s magic thriving. Only, we don’t have any primos right now. Without them to help Priest, the rites aren’t as effective. We need them. Bad.”
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