by Alanea Alder
Amelia laughed as he walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him. She looked at her one lone suitcase and wrangled it up into the chair. Unzipping it, she pulled out her toiletry bag and her nightshirt and headed to the bathroom. She got undressed, breathing a sigh of relief when she removed her bra. She slipped on her nightshirt and pulled her long brown curls back in a hair tie. Reaching into her toiletry bag for her face wash and moisturizer, she started her nightly routine.
When she was done, she folded up her jeans and shirt and walked back into the bedroom. She opened her suitcase and dropped her clothes inside. Staring at her wardrobe, she sighed. All her tops were either black or white. Her bottoms were either black slacks or jeans. Normally, she didn't mind her monochromatic look, thinking it was edgy, but she didn't want her new friends to think she was wearing the same thing over and over again. She definitely needed to go shopping soon. She looked around the room and found her tote bag on the dresser. She fished around the large bag until she found her phone.
She got comfortable on the bed and leaned back on a stack of fluffy pillows. She knew the conversation she was about to have would be hard, but it had to be done. She opened the phone and pressed the speed dial number for Caiden. He answered on the first ring.
"What's happened? Are you hurt? Are you dead?" he demanded.
"Dead? Yes, I'm calling on my ghostly iPhone, you idiot." She rolled her eyes.
"Don't roll your eyes at me, young lady. You never call this late, what's happened?"
How does he always know when I do that?
"Well, you know how I said I would be leaving first thing in the morning?"
"Yes?"
"Yeah, that's not happening."
"Why? Do you have a flat? Is it car trouble? Are you being held hostage?"
"How do you go from flat tire to hostage situation?"
"Well?" he demanded, ignoring her perfectly logical question.
"I found my mate! Isn't that exciting?" She held her breath and mentally counted down.
Three...two...one...
"What!? That sonofabitch! Waiting until we weren't around to swoop in and steal my baby girl!" He called out to their brothers, "Kyran! Tristan! Get Packed! We're going to Lycaonia to beat some fae bastard's ass and take back our baby girl!"
"What!?" she heard Kyran shout.
"Motherfucker!" Tristan yelled.
Amelia stared up at the ceiling. Yeah, they wouldn't complicate matters at all.
"Freeze!" she barked into the phone. A second later, there was silence. "Listen, I'm a grown woman; please don't interfere."
"You're barely grown and only because you're half human. I thought we agreed you wouldn't mate until you were two hundred," Caiden argued.
"No! You told me I couldn't mate until I was two hundred. I have met him. He's my mate. Get over it."
"Shifty, blond bastard. I bet he makes shoes or something," Caiden grumbled.
Amelia pinched the bridge of her nose. "Cai-den!"
"Yes?"
"Where am I?"
"Lycaonia."
"And..." She waited to see if he would put two and two together.
"Oh Gods! You're moving!" he practically wailed.
"Can she do that?" Kyran demanded.
Fuck my life right now!
"Lycaonia is the city of..."
"Shifters," Tristan answered.
"Exactly!" she exclaimed. "What type of fae live in a shifter city?"
Silence.
Silence.
"Do you have the roster?" she heard Caiden ask.
"Right here," Tristan shouted. "Okay, so her fae bastard mate could be Larik Li'Mileren from Beta, Barak Ri'Anvial from Delta, Alanis Vi'Kilernan from Epsilon, Sulis Ri'Orthames from Zeta, Gods, if that is her mate, then he isn't getting the two hundred bucks I owe him."
"Tristan!" Caiden barked.
"Right. All that's left are the brothers Darian Vi'Alina or Oron Vi'Eirson."
Amelia sat up straight. "Wait, how can they be brothers if they have different last names?"
"Gods, it's one of those two surly assholes," Kyran groaned.
"Which one is it, baby girl?" Caiden asked.
"How are they brothers?" she repeated.
"From what I've heard, they were raised by the same foster parents. Now, which one?"
"Darian."
She heard them swearing softly.
"Is he treating you right?" Caiden finally asked.
She felt her eyes fill with tears. She wanted to cry and tell him it wasn't fair, that all her life she had wanted her mate and now he was denying her. She wanted her big brother to fix it, like he always did, but she knew he couldn't fix this. She smiled through her tears.
"He's been so unpredictable. He looks exactly like I dreamt him." Technically her words weren't a lie, but her heart still felt heavy.
"Okay, baby girl, we'll stay out of it. We don't really want to be around when you're freshly mated; that would be weird. But if you need us for anything--and I do mean anything--you call, day or night."
"I promise." She tried to keep her voice upbeat and cheery.
"Also, don't hesitate to go to Aiden. He's a good guy. He'll help you any way we would," Caiden said.
"If the need arises, I will. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm heading to bed. Remember, I'm three hours ahead of you now."
"We'll visit soon," Kyran called out.
"Miss you guys already." This time she couldn't keep the tears from falling down her cheeks.
"We miss you, too, baby girl. Now get some sleep and give that mate of yours hell," he said gruffly. She knew he was fighting his own emotions.
"Night, night, CaiKryTri," she said, using the abbreviated nickname she had for the three of them.
"Night, night, doodlebutt," Tristan said, making her smile.
She ended the call, curled up on her side, and hugged the phone to her chest. After a few minutes of sniffling, she realized the room had gotten cold so she decided to turn out the light and get under the covers. Before she knew it, she was asleep.
CHAPTER FOUR
In her dreams, Darian was no longer her prince. She stared at his back as he walked away from her. She chased him down a long, narrow corridor. Menacing, bony arms reached out from the walls to grab her. She had to get to him before he went through the door at the end of the hallway. Once he went through that door, she knew she would never see him again, but no matter how fast she ran, she couldn't catch up. She felt a new wave of panic overtake her when he reached the door and turned the handle. When the door swung open, there was nothing but an unending, black abyss. He spread his arms wide and jumped, plunging into darkness where there was no light to save either of them. She ran to the open doorway and looked down; he was quickly falling away from her. When she jumped after him, he welcomed her with open arms, an evil grin on his lips.
Amelia woke with a start; Darian's sinister smile was burned into her mind. She prayed that what she saw wasn't a warning for something horrible to come. The image of the long hallway hit a little too close to home when it came to her mate's current mental state. She turned over and stared at the ceiling for a moment before reaching for her phone. It was after noon! She had slept the morning away, and despite the extra hours of sleep, her head felt like it was packed with cotton. Groaning, she got out of bed and headed to the bathroom. Compared to Darian's atrium, her room felt empty and dead. It had the warmth of a hotel room, despite the quality of the furniture and linens. She wondered what it felt like to go to sleep listening to the magic of the wind blowing through the trees and the birds singing you to sleep each night. She shook her head. What she needed was a nice, hot shower. She turned the water on to the hottest setting then backed it off a fraction. In no time, the room was filling with steam. She pulled off her nightshirt and stepped into the shower. Her travel size shampoo only served as a reminder that, for all intents and purposes, she was in limbo. Without being claimed, could she really call this place home?
&
nbsp; She finished washing and stepped out. She dried off as fast as she could and wrapped her hair up in a towel. She would wait until it was almost dry before working a sculpting cream through her hair. Even during the coldest winters, she never blow-dried her curls; if she did, the natural curls she inherited from her mother would end up in a pouffy mess. More than once, when she was growing up she had longed for straight hair like her brothers.
Standing at the bathroom counter, she opened her everyday makeup bag. She went through her familiar routine of applying her favorite foundations and eyeshadows. Each action brought order to the chaos she was feeling. When she was done, she was happy with the soft, feminine look she had created. She unwrapped her hair from the towel and worked her favorite hair cream through her long curls. She bent over and shook out her hair at the roots to give it volume. Standing, she blew a kiss to herself in the mirror. She hung up the towel and stepped into the room. Coming from a heated, steamy bathroom, her bedroom felt cold. Goosebumps covered her from head to toe as she raced naked over to her suitcase and pulled out a haphazard outfit. Black knee high socks, skinny jeans, black tank top, and a zippered black hoodie sweater completed her outfit. Smiling, she picked out her favorite ruby red bra and panty set. Surprisingly, her underthings were as colorful as the rainbow. Only her outer clothes seemed to stay black and white.
Once dressed, she tucked her phone into her back pocket, grabbed her coat from the chair, and went downstairs. She walked through the foyer and down the hallway to the empty dining room. Without everyone around the table, the room seemed much bigger than the night before. She heard sounds from the kitchen and followed the voices. She found Rheia and Ryuu at the kitchen table sipping on tea.
Ryuu stood, smiling. "I'm happy to see that not everyone in this house rises with the sun. Please, join us." He pointed to an empty kitchen chair.
Amelia hung her coat on the back of the chair and sat down. Ryuu glided over to the cabinet and pulled down another cup and saucer. He placed them in front of her and sat down again. Rheia poured her a cup of what looked and smelled like jasmine green tea.
"The aroma is lovely." Amelia added five teaspoons of sugar and stirred lightly.
"I don't know how you or Meryn have any teeth left. You both drink your sugar with a bit of tea." Rheia shook her head.
"I need the sugar this morning. I usually rise with the sun, as Ryuu put it, but woke up this morning after a nightmare feeling completely out of sorts," she confessed.
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Ryuu asked.
Amelia shook her head. "It's something I need to work out. The tea is helping, I feel calmer already."
Smiling, Ryuu and Rheia shared a look.
Amelia frowned. "What?"
Rheia apologized quickly. "I'm sorry. Let me explain. This is my mother's tea service. Whenever I needed a pick-me-up, she would use this set, and it seemed like my worries would just float away."
"Is it okay for me to use?" Amelia asked, worried she had blundered in where she didn't belong.
Rheia laughed. "Of course, it's okay. In fact, maybe my mother is looking out for the both of us this morning."
"Why do you need its calming effects?" Amelia asked.
"I'm worried about having this baby; it's my first. Like Meryn, I'm human having a shifter baby. I have heard that sometimes human women can have issues delivering." Rheia sat back in her chair.
Amelia frowned. She was confused. She could have sworn she met Rheia's daughter the night before. "But Penny..."
"Penny is my adopted daughter. Even though I didn't give birth to her, she couldn't be more like me if we tried. So, even though I'm already a mother, I've never actually experienced giving birth. I bet it's much different being the one pushing than telling someone to push."
"I think you'll be fine, at least you know what to expect. You're not going into it wide eyed with expectations of a twenty minute delivery before holding your perfect baby, hair and makeup still looking great."
"You're right, but I think it's a double-edged sword. I also know everything that can go wrong." Rheia stared into her cup, a frown pulling her eyebrows together in worry.
Amelia knew no matter what she said, Rheia would continue to fret until her baby was safe in her arms, so she decided to change the subject to something happier.
"So are you decorating in Star Wars and Doctor Who, too?" Amelia joked.
Rheia's face brightened and she laughed. "God, no. Colton and I decided on a baby wolf theme. Evidently, it's very popular here in Lycaonia at the moment due to a suggestion Meryn made to another pregnant woman a couple months ago. A lot of shops in the city started creating different shifter-themed items. We chose wolf, not only because my baby will be half wolf shifter, but we're also including Penny in the decorations. The baby's nursery will have a mural of Colton and Penny in their shifted forms painted on one of the walls."
"That sounds perfect! My brothers are the ones that raised me, so they did the decorating when it came to my own nursery. Since they couldn't decide on a single theme, they decided that they would each decorate one wall, leaving the wall with the door blank to keep things even." She took a sip of her tea and continued. "Caiden chose dragons since he had mastered the element of air, but they weren't cute cartoon dragons; they were realistic ones with long fangs and bodies."
"Oh no!" Rheia covered mouth to hide her smile.
Amelia held up her hand. "It gets better. Kyran had mastered water so he had sharks painted on his wall. Finally, Tristan chose an erupting volcano for his wall, since he had mastered fire."
By this time, Rheia had given in to her giggles, and even Ryuu was smiling.
"I wasn't able to redecorate that room until I was thirteen! But on the bright side, not much scares me as an adult." She shrugged.
"Where were your parents?" Ryuu asked.
"After I was born, my mother realized she wasn't the maternal type. She wanted to be a free spirit, untethered by earthly shackles." Amelia made air quotes around free spirit and earthly shackles.
"Then why have a child?" Rheia asked.
"Because my father wanted another one. When I was born, he handed me off to Caiden, and he and my mother left on a free love adventure. My nature loving, bell bottoms-wearing mother turned my high-born, ruling-house father into a nomadic hippie, although I think he fakes it because he loves her. He still makes them stay in five star hotels after their 'sojourns' into the woods."
"So Lady Ironwood is a free spirit?" Ryuu asked, rotating his mug.
Amelia shook her head. "My mother is also quite the feminist, she kept her maiden name much to the utter shock and dismay of my father, so it's not Lady Ironwood; it's Lady Camden."
"She sounds fascinating." Rheia said, setting her cup down.
"Indeed," Ryuu murmured.
"She's something else, I'll tell you that. I don't know how many times I thanked the Goddess that my brothers raised me, nightmare walls and all. During one of her visits, my mother took me on a nature hike. She made me sit crossed-legged in the woods for hours, trying to hear the voices of the spirits. I couldn't have been more than four or five at the time. When Caiden found us, I was hungry, crying, and covered in mosquito bites." Amelia shuddered thinking of how her life might have been if her parents had stayed home all the time to raise her.
"It sounds like you're very close to your brothers," Rheia commented, a knowing look in her eye.
"You have brothers, too?"
"Yes, but like Penny, not by birth. We chose each other, kinda like the family we have now."
Amelia looked around, remembering the empty dining room. It was eerily quiet considering how many people lived there. "Where is everyone?"
Rheia stood and stretched. "Penny is in the front room being homeschooled by her grandmother. Beth is with Meryn, Jaxon, and Noah in Aiden's office, and the boys are doing drills as usual, though after Meryn's comment last night about explosives, I heard Aiden wants to do an inventory of the armory."
Rheia shook her head. "No. Just...no."
"Do they have grenades?"
Ryuu nodded. "Oh, yes; according to denka, they explode when you pull the pin, not when they land after you throw them."
Amelia nodded. "Good to know."
"Okay, on that note, I'm heading back to the clinic. Be good and stay away from the armory." Rheia wagged a finger at her, waved goodbye and left.
Amelia quickly drained her cup before standing. She pulled on her coat. "I'm going to go see what Darian is doing."
Ryuu stood, his face serious. "Be careful itoko-sama; his light is all but faded."
"I know; it's why I'm trying so hard."
Ryuu walked over to the counter and picked up something small and metallic. "This is from Meryn, for your stalking efforts, and this is from me for breakfast." He handed her a pair of binoculars and a sandwich wrapped in paper towels.
"Thank you for the food. Tell Meryn she rocks socks!" Amelia accepted the binoculars.
"I will tell her you were most thankful." Amelia laughed at his paraphrasing and waved goodbye.
She walked out the front door and looked over to the open field where the men had been training yesterday. Sure enough, they were at it again. Acting as if she had every right to be there, Amelia sat down on the stacked crates next to Aiden. He grinned at her, and kept counting, making notes on a piece of paper on his clipboard. Rheia hadn't been kidding when she said Aiden would do an inventory.
She placed her sandwich in her lap and unwrapped the paper towels. Ryuu had made her a ham and cheese sandwich, one of her favorites. Smiling, she began to eat as she swung her feet happily. When she had finished her breakfast, she stuffed the paper towels in her pocket and pulled out her binoculars to look for her mate. She found him dangling from a rope attached to one of the drill towers. When he began to do pull-ups on the rope he was hanging from, she sighed. When he turned his body upside down and began lowering himself up and down in an inverted pull up, she had to check for drool. When her hand came up to check her chin, she heard the men start laughing. She gave them the bird, making them laugh even harder. With each repetition, his arms bulged, and she felt her heart beat a little more out of control. She had a death grip on the binoculars that were giving her the up close and personal view of her gorgeous mate.