“They know everything, Chris.” Taliana sighed.
“And you believe this Pteron created a veil?” Chris pointed to me. “Or was it Vera? Last time I checked only witches and warlocks could do that, and it’s a rare skill to come by. I’ve never met someone who could.”
“I don’t know who did, but they know too much.” Taliana sat down on the top step below the landing. “Do you think Gareth would have left us alone if Vera had seen him? He’d have found us immediately.”
“He still loves and cares for you, Taliana.” Gareth’s tenderness had surprised me at the time. “Chris… I’d probably stay far away.”
“I don’t care what you think.” He scowled.
I held up my hands in defense. “Just giving some friendly advice.”
“We’re not friends. Nor are you friends with my daughter.” He crossed his arms.
“Actually, Dad… I picked him as my mate at a Petere ceremony, so he’s here to stay.” Vera walked down to meet me in the living room.
“A Petere ceremony?” Chris balked. “Gareth forced you into that?”
“And Mom… they both wanted me to, to calm everyone down. I picked Jared.” She touched my arm.
“And how did everyone react?” Chris’ expression was softer as he addressed his daughter.
“It was a mixed response.”
“So, uh, what are we?” Casey asked. “I mean I know I don’t have wings, but do the rest of you?”
“You do have wings, you just haven’t used them yet, and the rest of us are bears.” Vera made it sound completely casual, as though every family was a mix of different supernatural creatures.
“Insanity. This is the most insane dream ever.” Casey buried her head in her hands.
“I could prove you have wings, but I don’t want to traumatize you.” I wasn’t sure if my comment would help or hurt, but I couldn’t stand there and do nothing. We had no time for that.
“Yeah, I’d rather not be traumatized, but thanks for the offer.”
I smiled. “And there’s that sense of humor.”
“Stop that. Stop acting like we know each other.” Casey exhaled loudly.
“He’ll stop.” Vera sent me a warning through her eyes.
“So what are you doing back?” Taliana asked. “Vera says you don’t know why you ended up at this time?”
I nodded. “Exactly, and now we’re stuck. I can’t time travel in this veil since I haven’t had the magic awakened or whatever.”
“That’s it.” Vera grinned. “It’s so simple, how didn’t we think of it earlier?”
“What?” I asked with surprise and excitement. Had she figured something out?
“How was the magic awakened the first time?” Her face was lit with excitement.
“The crystals?” Understanding dawned on me. “You want to go to Norco?”
“No way.” Chris shook his head. “You will not be taking my daughter to Norco.”
“I’m going to Norco. He can’t go alone.” Vera shook her head. “Besides, there’s no way we’re going to get him on that island without problems unless Mom talks to someone in advance.”
“I’m going wherever you go this time, Vera. I’m not being left behind again.” Casey moved to her feet.
Taliana grabbed Casey’s arm as if to steady her.
“After all the craziness I’ve said and you’ve seen, you want to come with us?” I couldn’t believe how well Casey was taking things.
“Yes.” She shrugged. “Maybe I’m as crazy as you two.”
I turned to Chris. “Sorry, pal, but for your own safety I’m going to have to tell you to stay behind.”
“Not a chance.”
“We need to find my mate first.” Levi walked back inside. He must have been listening to our conversation from the porch. “Don’t forget about that.” He closed the door behind him.
I nodded. “She’s in Westchester. “
“Lucky break she’s just on the other side of the city, huh?” Casey started down the stairs.
I laughed.
She turned to me. “No comment about knowing me.”
I held my hands up in front of me. “Not saying a word.”
* * *
After making sure Casey was really okay and telling Vera my plans, I walked out onto the front porch where Levi was waiting again. “You’re ready to go, aren’t you?”
“If she’s really my mate, then yes.” He straightened up from where he’d been leaning against the railing.
“She’s your mate.” I knew that for sure. I didn’t like the thought of leaving Vera, but we needed to make sure Allie was ok. I realized she might not be back from New Orleans yet, but it seemed worth a try. That way we could at least search the area and make sure the house was safe.
“Do you know her exact address?”
“Yeah. Her mom’s house. I also know Toby’s address in case she’s over there.” I was hoping that wouldn’t be the case, but it always pays to be prepared.
Levi rubbed the back of his neck. “She won’t be at his place.”
“She hasn’t met you yet. No getting jealous.”
“She’s going to be my mate. I’m allowed to get jealous.”
“Do you want to just go?”
“You okay leaving?” He studied me. Maybe he was beginning to understand how much Vera meant to me.
“The sooner we leave, the sooner I see her again.”
“She seems cool, for whatever that’s worth.”
“You wanted her.” Might as well call a spade a spade.
“She’s gorgeous.” Levi grinned.
“She’s mine.” A felt a growl develop in my chest even though I knew Levi wasn’t actually going to try anything.
“And you tell me not to be jealous?” He cocked an eyebrow.
“It’s different. I know her already.”
“I kind of know Allie.” He smiled as though saying her name brought him pleasure. “At least I know the girl from my dream.”
“She’s even better than you remembered.”
“I want to meet her.” He straightened again.
“But be prepared. This isn’t going to be love at first sight—at least not on her end.”
“Great.” His voice dripped with sarcasm.
“She’s going to be annoyed and tell you to leave her alone.”
“Wonderful.”
“But it’s all worth it in the end.” And hopefully it would be this time too, although I was still hoping to erase the veil before that even became an issue.
“Was she excited to become my princess?”
“No.” That was an understatement.
“But she said yes…”
“Uh, not exactly.”
“What do you mean?”
I looked out at the dark night. “This probably isn’t the best time to tell you.”
“It’s the perfect time to tell me.” He clenched his jaw.
“It isn’t.”
“What did I do?”
“You really trust me?” I knew his reaction wouldn’t be a good one. I needed to make sure he focused on the end game.
“Of course I do. I’m here, aren’t I?”
“Then you’ll trust me when I say it all works out… but you were an idiot. Or you will be an idiot.”
“Just tell me.” He tilted his head back to look at the sky.
“You don’t want to know the details. In your defense, it was out of desperation.”
“Desperation?”
“Yes. She was leaving, and you didn’t want her to. You tried to find a way to stop her.” I understood more now than I did then. At the time I couldn’t imagine having feelings so strong they’d make you do something so reckless.
“But she eventually forgives me for whatever I did?”
“Yes, but she makes you pay for quite a while.”
“I won’t be an idiot this time.” He seemed to be speaking more to himself than to me.
“Let’s hope you even get a cha
nce to date her.”
“I will. If she’s supposed to be my mate, she will be.”
“Listen to you, believing so whole heartedly in destiny.” He’d given up those thoughts completely after failing to find his dream girl. Did my word really mean so much to him that he was willing to believe in it again?
“If it’s really her, then I do.”
“It’s her.” At least I could be confident about that.
“If you’re wrong, and you’re putting me through this for nothing, you’re going to pay.” His eyes darkened.
“It’s her.”
“We’ll see.”
I pulled off my t-shirt and released my wings.
He released his wings. “How far is she from here?”
“Not far. Thirty-eight miles.”
“Not that you had it mapped out specifically.”
“I’m always prepared.”
“Which is why you’re so useful.”
“Glad I’m useful for something.” I was in a hurry. Not only did we have to check on Allie, but I wanted to get back to Vera. I knew she could protect herself and she wasn’t alone, but every minute I was away worried me. I was losing it.
We took off and started the short flight toward Allie’s house. We were silent at first.
A short ways out, Levi broke the silence. “If she’s not there yet, we can put a security detail on her house.”
“We can’t.” I didn’t want to explain about my dad, but it looked like I was going to have to soon. “We can’t trust anyone.”
“That’s depressing. I’ll stay and watch it myself.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
“You think I can’t protect myself?” There was amusement in his voice.
“I know you can, but it’s my job to make sure you’re not left alone.”
“Whatever you say.”
I started the descent toward her yard. I’d never been there before, but I knew the basic layout of her neighborhood. I landed and quickly retracted my wings. I had no interested in getting caught.
“I feel like a stalker.” Levi spoke exactly what I was thinking. Landing in her backyard made me feel like a total creeper.
“You are. Well, we are technically, but it’s for her own good.”
“Most stalkers probably say that.”
I laughed. “Good point.”
“When I fall for her the first time I didn’t stalk her though, right?”
“Not stalk as much as carefully monitor.”
“So I was a psycho.”
“You were a little bit obsessed.” That was putting it mildly, but in hindsight I couldn’t blame him. They were meant to be together.
“Why was she going to leave?”
“She’s supposed to go to Princeton.”
“But she doesn’t?”
“She transfers to Tulane.” It hadn’t been an easy decision for her, but in the end it had been the right one.
“Nice.”
“And she is roommates with Hailey.”
“Uh, why doesn’t she live with me?”
“I already told you, it takes a while for you to win her back.”
“Wonderful.” And there was the sarcasm again.
“Want to complain, or should we get going?” I nodded toward the house.
“Let’s get going.”
We went around front. The driveway was empty. The house was silent, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t sleeping somewhere deep inside.
“How stalker would it be to break in and check on her?” There was some mild hesitation in his voice. Normally he’d do whatever it was he wanted without worrying about how it would be perceived.
“We won’t know for sure if she’s there otherwise, but breaking in does cross a line.”
“You don’t sense anyone or anything, do you?” There was worry on his face.
“No.”
“Do you want to wait here until morning?” I knew he would and should say yes, but then I’d be in a bind. I didn’t want to abandon him, but I needed to get back to Vera.
“Yes. I’ll be fine.”
“I already told you that—“
“Fine. I have an idea.” He pulled out his phone. “I’ll call Owen.”
“You don’t need to do that.”
“You saying we can’t trust him?”
“We can.” He was one of the few people we could, but I’d been hoping to leave him out of this.
“What if he leaves a trail when he heads up here?”
“Didn’t the witch pretty much tell you to come here? She knows where you are.”
“My dad doesn’t.” And he was the last person we needed.
“I still don’t understand that.”
“Just know you can’t trust him.”
He nodded. “Ok, I’ll get Owen up here without giving away any details. I’ll wait here. Go see your girl.” He typed something into his phone, and I assumed he was texting Owen.
“If you don’t show up in a few hours, I’m coming back.” I knew I sounded overprotective, but he didn’t understand how dangerous things were.
“Is that a threat or a promise?”
“Shut up.”
“You shut up and leave. Owen’s on his way here. He can babysit.”
“You know that’s not what I’m—”
“Stop while you’re ahead. I get it,” he interrupted. “Go see Vera.”
“I’m going to protect her.”
“Keep telling yourself that.” He laughed.
“See you.” I took off and headed back to Vera. Pathetic or not, I missed her already.
11
Jared
I returned from checking out Allie’s house to find Vera sitting on the couch. I heard the light sound of talking from the kitchen.
“Let’s sit outside.” Vera tugged on my arm as soon as I sat down beside her.
She didn’t need to say it twice. I nodded absently and let her lead me out onto the back deck.
“It’s pretty out here.” I glanced out into the forest that gave her home privacy from the nearest neighbors.
“It is. I never understood why they kept the trees so dense in the yard.” She took a seat on an outdoor couch. “I get it now.”
“Were you always unhappy?” I took a seat next to her. I was treading in dangerous water with my question but I needed to ask it anyway. Her eyes were so full of sadness, and it hurt me far more deeply than most things did.
“No. I had a good childhood. Casey and I had fun.”
“When did things change?” I wondered when the sadness in her eyes showed up, and when it disappeared, or at least faded.
“When I was fifteen.”
“You needed to shift.” Holding back the change wasn’t good for a shifter.
“That was a big part of it.”
“They were trying to protect you.” I nodded toward the house where her family waited. I understood the desire to protect your family, but sometimes trying to protect someone causes the most harm.
“I’m aware. I accept that, but it’s still hard to come back here.”
“Casey’s safe.” She thought we were crazy, but that was another story.
“She is.” Vera rested her head on my arm. “That’s a huge relief, although I’m not sure what to do now that we found her.”
“You mean beyond going to Norco? Specifically about Casey?”
“Yes. If we can’t erase this veil…”
“We have to erase it. Things have gotten so out of control, I’m not sure we can continue in it.” Between messing up things with Allie and Levi, and Tiffany showing up, I was beginning to doubt we could do anything with this veil.
“We might not have a choice.”
“We will.” I feigned optimism I didn’t really feel.
“How do you see any of this working? We’re going to grab Allie and run?”
“I’ll come up with a plan.” I just had to think of one.
“But then what? We can’t bring every
one to Norco.”
“Levi could help us with Norco.” They had to let him on the Island. I wasn’t looking forward to seeing Gareth’s reaction to Levi, but we didn’t have much of a choice. Hopefully we’d erase the veil, and he’d never remember it.
“Norco could help us with Allie.”
“You mean erase what Tiffany did?” I was still pissed at myself for letting that happen. I should have protected her.
“Exactly. Hopefully then she can fall for Levi and make everything right.”
“But her thing with Levi was anything but love at first sight.” It had been much more complicated. And dangerous. Levi had tricked her, and she’d ended up with the cougars. He’d also had to re-do everything in order to save her life. That felt like a lifetime away. Hopefully we wouldn’t be reliving it.
“Still, it will be easier if she isn’t pining over Toby.”
“True. Very True.” Getting her feelings for Toby back in line would help.
“Do you feel different than you did?” She brushed her lips against the sensitive skin of my neck.
“Well, my shifted form is normal.”
“That’s not what I mean.” She lifted her head and locked eyes with mine.
“Are you asking me whether I feel differently about you?” I ran my fingers through her long brown hair.
She nodded, her stare unflinching.
“No. My physical self is different, but my mental side isn’t.”
“But feelings aren’t mental.”
“They’re emotional… and that’s the same.” Then I thought of something. “Why are you asking? Are your feelings different?” I hadn’t considered that. Not that it would matter much unless we got stuck…
“They’re the same for me, but you’ve been cracking less sexual innuendos than usual.”
I laughed. “I’m in over my head.”
“So am I. We’re in this together.”
“We are.” I ran my hand down her arm, eliciting goosebumps in the process. The night was warm, so it was from my touch and not the cold.
“Let’s find out if the physical feelings are different.” She leaned over and pressed her lips against mine.
I didn’t hesitate before responding and taking control. I deepened the kiss, pushing for access to her mouth. The small taste she was giving me wasn’t enough.
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