Therian Prize

by Cyndi Friberg

  Fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, and steamed vegetables. Heather’s stomach gave another hungry growl.

  “I heard that.” Jake chuckled. “Guess I need to feed you more often.”

  “I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I walked into this kitchen. Ian’s right, that food smells good.”

  Ian and Devon joined them at the table and they all filled their plates before the conversation began in earnest.

  “It’s obvious you two are together now, but have you decided to let Jake define you?” Devon asked Heather.

  She’d originally decided to have sex with Jake as a way to sabotage her father’s plans, but the bond between them was rapidly growing into something much more intimate than casual sex. Still, it felt odd explaining her feelings to Devon when she hadn’t really talked things over with Jake.

  “It’s complicated.” She wasn’t sure what else to say.

  Devon accepted the vague answer and moved on. “How’d things go with Dr. Garran?”

  “He confirmed that I’m not defined and that my father injected me with some form of the formula six years ago.”

  “Really?” Ian spoke in between bites of chicken. “If the formula caused no side effects in the past six years then—”

  “What happened to Carlos was a pretty significant side effect.” The tragedy had left an indelible stain on her soul.

  Ian set down the drumstick and nodded. “You’re right. I’m sorry. A lost life should never be disregarded.”

  “Dr. Garran is running all sorts of tests to make sure there isn’t anything wrong with me. If there haven’t been any symptoms in six years, it’s unlikely he’ll find anything. Still, we want to be sure.”

  “Then you’re still considering joining me in this adventure?” Devon smiled, obviously trying to lighten the mood.

  “I’m considering it. In fact, I’m seriously considering it.”

  Jake reached over and squeezed her hand. “Regardless of how we feel about it, the choice is yours.”

  “I know.”

  They ate for a few minutes in reflective silence then Ian asked, “Did the tiger—what’s her name—tell you any more about where she came from?”

  “Her name is Serra and unfortunately she shut down on me.” Jake was obviously frustrated by the fact. He looked at Heather and shrugged. “I don’t know what changed.”

  “Your scent,” Ian suggested. “She probably sensed the connection between you two and didn’t want to piss off your mate.”

  “Our link feels like a mating bond?” Heather hadn’t meant to sound so hopeful but the ability to fool her father would solve so many problems.

  “Newly formed links tend to feel similar. I don’t think you’re in sync yet but you’re definitely close.”

  Heather’s heart lost its rhythm for a moment. She and Jake were in sync? It had been little over a day since he formed the connection. Could it really happen that quickly?

  Disappointed? Jake used their private link to push the words into her mind.

  No. Just surprised. I didn’t expect it to happen this fast.

  But it’s what you want. Isn’t it?

  Yes.

  Then why do you look so sad?

  I’m not sad, just confused. Let’s talk about this later.

  Rather than reply, he sent a warm stream of affection curling through her mind. It made her tingle and smile but she wasn’t allowed to enjoy the sensation for long.

  “I have some sad news,” Jake said.

  “We heard about Natasha,” Devon told him. “We figured if you didn’t bring it up, you didn’t want to talk about it.”

  “Talking about it won’t change the outcome, but I can’t pretend she’s not dead.”

  Devon nodded, her expression cautious. “That’s where mom went, to help Enya with the arrangements. Natasha doesn’t have any family.”

  “She had us.” Jake took a quick sip of water as his eyes filled with tears. “Until I got her killed.”

  “This wasn’t your fault. It wasn’t anyone’s fault.” Even as the words left Devon’s mouth her gaze shot to Heather.

  “Heather had nothing to do with it,” Jake snapped. “I think Zophiel is still alive.”

  “That’s not possible,” Ian insisted, instantly tense and defiant.

  “You thought she was dead once before.” Jake set down the water glass and pushed his plate aside, though he’d barely touched his food. “What if she can’t be killed?”

  “Everyone can be killed.”

  Jake waved away the comment as he asked, “What is she? And why does she hate Therians? I know she’s been around for hundreds of years just like you and Payne, but what’s her story?”

  Payne was a lion-shifter recently arrived in Colorado. He and Ian had been best friends for centuries. Heather had caught bits and pieces of his story but she’d never had reason enough to ask her father to fill in the blanks.

  “She’s dead.” Ian ground out the words between clenched teeth. “She has to be dead.”

  “Indulge me. If she’s dead the details can’t hurt anyone and if she’s alive, I need to know.”

  Ian drained his wineglass as he stared off into space, his agitation obvious. Heather didn’t think he was going to explain and then he said, “We think her father was a fire demon and her mother was Therian.”

  “Holy shit. That’s quite a combination,” Heather muttered, feeling intrusive.

  Devon poured her mate more wine then picked up her own glass. Like Heather, she seemed content to listen as the men explored the topic.

  Ian’s gaze filled with shadows but he reluctantly continued. “It’s Payne’s story to tell. I promised him I’d never speak of it.”

  “Keep it generic but tell me what you can.”

  Ian shuddered. “Payne was her prisoner for years and she subjected him to tortures that would put an inquisitor to shame. She’s a brand of evil unlike any you’ve ever faced. And if she survived that fire, I don’t know how to kill her.”

  Silence descended as the import of Ian’s words sank in. The most powerful Therian in existence couldn’t kill their enemy.

  “We’ll figure it out together,” Jake insisted. “You took her on alone. All this means is it will take more than one of us to end her. She took the life of someone I considered family and endangered my mate in the process. That’s all the incentive I need.”

  Mate? Had he just referred to her as his mate? She couldn’t catch his gaze, so she wasn’t sure if he’d meant it literally or if it had been a figure of speech. Synchronization lasted three months. Mating bonds lasted forever.

  “Is she still working with the backers or has she branched out on her own?” Jake’s question drew her away from the troubling tangent.

  “A fire demon is working with the backers?” She tried not to sound as rattled as she felt but this couldn’t be good. The only thing that kept the backers’ threat contained was the fact that they were human. If they had a fire demon on the payroll, this could be disastrous.

  “We’re not sure who works for whom. Zophiel took control of one of the backers, like she did with Natasha. His name was Roberto,” Devon told her. “We don’t know if he was the only backer she contacted, but it seems unlikely.”

  “What does she want from us? Why does she hate Therians if her mother was one?”

  “Nehema, the woman who founded the Abolitionists, was Zophiel’s sister.” Devon suddenly looked as tired as she sounded. “Zophiel kidnapped me, and Nehema was killed during my rescue. Jake wasn’t directly involved in that, but he’s a rebel. The attack on you two could have been retaliation.”

  “Nehema and Zophiel were sisters?” Heather shook her head. Her father didn’t know half as much as these cats. No wonder they stayed several steps ahead of him. “That’s why Nehema blamed demons for Therian abilities. She wasn’t a religious fanatic. She had a demon for a sister.”

  “She was also a religious fanatic,” Devon stressed. “And I think they’re
both insane.”

  “And I don’t disagree with anything Dev just said,” Ian interjected. “But Zophiel’s hatred of Therians is older and deeper than Nehema’s death.”

  “The question still remains. How do we find and kill Zophiel?” Jake sounded impatient.

  “I’ll dig deeper into mom’s journals,” Devon suggested.

  “I’ll talk to Payne, see if he knows anything that can help us,” Ian added.

  “What about Serra?” Heather waited until the others looked at her before she went on. “If she really did escape from a backer compound and Zophiel is working with or for the backers…”

  “Then the backers could lead us to Zophiel,” Jake finished for her. “It’s worth a try.”

  “If half of what Carly Ides told us was true, all of the compounds need to be shut down,” Devon stressed.

  Heather looked at Devon, confused by her obvious passion. “I thought the captives were rescued when you raided the mountain lab.”

  “The ones in the mountain lab were rescued, but according to Carly there are ‘test subjects’ at all the labs.” Ian pushed back his chair and stood, apparently finished with dinner.

  “How many labs are there?”

  “We don’t know,” Devon admitted. “If you go with Jake and assure Serra that you’re not a danger to her, she might be more inclined to confide in Jake.”

  “Or I could take the formula and let Jake trigger my first animal nature. If I was defined with his blood, it’s likely I could speak with Serra directly.”

  No one could have missed the pleased approval in Jake’s eyes as he said, “That’s always an option.”

  Chapter Eleven

  “Are you sure this is what you want?”

  Heather looked at Jake and smiled. They were in the same treatment room as the first time they’d visited the clinic. She knew Jake wanted her to take the formula, thought it was the wisest course. Despite his personal opinion, he insisted she take her time and become absolutely certain of her choice.

  “This is what I want.”

  All of her tests had come back within normal parameters so she’d asked Dr. Garran to administer the formula.

  Jake moved to the end of the table on which she sat and pushed in the footrest. Then he eased her legs apart and stepped between them. “I know I was distant last night because of Natasha but I want something clear before we do this.”

  She’d meant to ask him about the mate comment and discuss where their relationship was headed. But as soon as she’d seen the pain in his eyes she put the conversation on hold. He’d needed comfort and understanding, not an interrogation. So they’d made slow, sweet love, communicating with their bodies. And then they’d fallen asleep in each other’s arms.

  “So talk,” she urged with a playful smile. “I’m listening.”

  “We were drawn together before you ran from your father. Many of our choices have been shaped by his actions, but what I feel for you is separate from that conflict.”

  She wrapped her legs around his thighs and pulled him closer. “What do you feel for me?”

  “It’s more what I feel when I’m with you. Our physical compatibility is undeniable but I want more than sex from you.”

  “How much more?” Already joy and excitement welled within her but she couldn’t resist teasing him.

  All playfulness evaporated and he looked deep into her eyes. “I want forever.”

  She was about to confess that she wanted forever too, wanted it more than anything. But Dr. Garran returned, entering the room after a perfunctory knock. “Last chance to back out. This is forever.”

  Heather laughed and the doctor looked at her askance. “Sorry.” She held up her hand and fought back her amusement. “Your phrasing coordinated a little too well with what we were saying.”

  “Do you still have doubts?” Garran asked.

  She looked at Jake and shook her head. “Not at all. This is exactly what I want and forever doesn’t scare me anymore.”

  Jake pushed affection across their link, assuring her he understood her true meaning, then moved out of the way.

  Dr. Garran administered the injection and then said, “I’d like you to stick around for at least an hour just to make sure there’s no adverse reaction. You can sit in the waiting room if you’re more comfortable or you’re welcome to stay here.”

  “There’s no reason to tie up this room,” Heather decided.

  “I’ll have one of the nurses check your vital signs in an hour and if everything is normal, you’re free to go.”

  They loitered in the waiting room for an hour. Jake stepped outside to use his phone and Heather flipped through a dated magazine. She wasn’t interested in the articles on gardening, she just needed a distraction. Anticipation made her pulse race and her mind whirl. She felt restless and excited. They’d go back to the safe house and a few drops of Jake’s blood would change her life forever. She’d lived among shapeshifters her entire life and yet she’d never really been one. All that would change today.

  Jake was still outside when the nurse motioned Heather back to the triage area, so Heather went alone. The nurse took her temperature, blood pressure and pulse then asked, “Any shortness of breath or dizziness?”

  “No. I feel fine.”

  After clipping a sensor on to the end of Heather’s index finger, the nurse wrote something on a clipboard as she waited for the device to register the oxygen saturation in Heather’s blood. “Well, all of these readings are normal. I’ll let Dr. Garran know.” She freed Heather’s finger and motioned to the archway leading to the waiting room. “Unless you have any questions, you’re free to go.”

  It was such a curious custom. As a patient, was she a prisoner in a doctor’s office until he or she granted her permission to leave?

  “Thanks.” She smiled at the nurse and hurried out of the clinic.

  The sun was blinding as she stepped outside. Not so much as a wisp of white disturbed the bright-blue sky. Surrounded by flowering bushes and massive shade trees, the clinic looked more like a rural homestead than a medical facility. However, on the other side of the graveled parking lot stood a large, perfectly square building with few windows and only two doors.

  Jake quickly ended his call as she walked up to him.

  “What is that?” She pointed to the mystery building.

  “Research lab. Paul Garran might seem like a quaint country doctor, but he’s likely the most brilliant scientific mind in the Therian nation.”

  “Who funds his research?”

  “The feline networks, primarily.”

  That raised her brow. “And cats reap the benefits of his findings?”

  Jake shrugged, apparently unconcerned with her conclusion. “Some of his projects have focused on feline problems, but just as many deal with Therians as a whole.”

  She didn’t want to start an argument right before her definition, so she said nothing more. The feline networks—Rocky Mountain in particular—were larger and more affluent than the other Therian networks. Wealth bought power and power provided privilege. It was an inescapable fact of life but she didn’t have to like it.

  Jake kept the conversation going as he drove back to the safe house. Heather answered his questions but her mind was consumed by what was about to happen. She was about to be transformed on the cellular level. Did this mean she would no longer be a wolf?

  “Are you scared?” he asked as the house came into view.

  “Excited, scared, generally freaked out, pick your label.”

  He pulled into the driveway and put the car in park, but she unfastened her seatbelt and got out before he could do the same. She crossed to the keypad mounted on the garage door’s frame and entered the numerical code. The door went up and he pulled into the garage. She crossed to the door leading to the house and used the manual trigger to close the garage door.

  “Do you want a drink before we get started?”

  “No. I want this finished once and for all.” />
  He nodded and motioned toward the bedroom they shared. “Do you have a bathrobe?” She shook her head. “Then take off everything but your t-shirt. You might have time to yank it off before the shift hits you but there’s no way you’ll have time to undress.”

  Shapeshifting was hard on clothes. Many Therians left spare clothes at friends’ houses or in the trunk of their vehicles. “I’ll be right back.”

  She returned a short time later wearing a t-shirt and socks. He stood near the refrigerator, drinking a beer. She smiled. “The drink question wasn’t so much for me?” She motioned toward the bottle in his hand.

  “I’ve defined females before, but this feels different.” He looked away and set down the beer. “I couldn’t take it if anything happened to you.”

  She rushed across the kitchen and wrapped her arms around him. After hugging him tightly for a moment she leaned back and looked into his eyes. “The only thing that’s going to happen to me is I’ll finally be able to shift. I’ve been looking forward to this for six years and now it’s finally happening with a person I chose. You have no idea how much that means to me.”

  He smiled and warmth illuminated his dark-green eyes.

  “There is one last thing I need to say.”

  “You can tell me anything.”

  “If everything goes the way we expect it to, I want Landon’s blood next. I’ve always thought of myself as a wolf and I don’t want to lose that heritage. My father might be an asshole, but I don’t want to completely abandon who I am.”

  “Absolutely. I think it’s a wonderful idea.”

  “Good.” The last of her apprehension loosened and she sighed.

  “Then let’s get started. The sooner you’re defined, the sooner we can go back to bed.”

  She laughed. “As if we haven’t spent enough time there already.”

  “All right. We can try out the couch instead, but a lot of people have stayed in this house. There’s no telling what went on there.”

  “Eww! Thanks for that mental image.” He took her by the hand and headed for the door leading to the basement. “We’re doing this downstairs?”