Prince of Shadows

by Nancy Gideon

“Your brother James, my prince.”

  “Why? Don’t look at him, look at me! Tell me the truth, or they’ll be washing you out of that Dumpster outside.”

  “To find his sister and make sure she didn’t make it back to the compound alive.”

  Cale felt Silas’s sudden aggressive move behind him and put up a staying hand. “Who wanted her dead?”

  “James.”

  “Why? What was his reason? Was this because of the princess?” Davis’s blank look was his answer. Cale revised the question. “Was this because of the Kick?” Davis paled, clearly fearing he’d already said too much.

  “What is Kick?” Silas demanded.

  “A drug James is hoping to mass-distribute among our kind,” Cale explained briefly, then seized Davis by the jaw. “What does Brigit MacCreedy have to do with pushing Kick?”

  “She saw something she shouldn’t have, my prince. That’s all I know!” More frantically, “Are you going to kill me?”

  Without giving Davis an answer, Cale restored the gag.

  On the drive back, Cale filled Silas in on what little he knew about the drug and his brother’s plan to widen its market. If James could get the port of New Orleans under his control as leader of the Terriot clan, the possibilities would expand exponentially. Cale omitted his own unknowing personal tie.

  “Is this venture something your clan will support?”

  Cale turned so he could view the driver disdainfully. “No. It’s not something my father would consider and nothing I would ever allow. That’s not how we make our money.”

  “So,” Silas deduced coolly, “your brother would have to get rid of both of you to successfully go into business. Probably not a good idea for us to let your father make him king, is it?”

  Cale’s thoughts raced around that fact with the same speed Silas navigated the road’s twists and turns. “Since when do you trust me? Do you know what you’re asking me to do? Rebel against my king. I’m a Terriot prince. I won’t act against my clan.”

  “Was it in your clan’s interest to murder my family? To invade our territory with the introduction of dangerous drugs? To war with your own kind while a greater enemy waits for us to destroy each other? If those are the interests you want to protect, there’s nothing more for us to say.”

  Cale sat staring out the side window, teething on Silas’s words. He wanted none of those things, but he was in no position to fight against them. His backing had been stripped away. Even if a handful of his brothers supported him in challenging James as his father’s chosen, his family would be divided and weakened, an easy target for outside attack by the Guedrys or even Savoie’s clan. He couldn’t risk the future of his clan. Their survival was more important than any individuals’ plans. But could he trust James to lead, knowing what he did?

  And there was his promise to Kendra to see justice done.

  He was silent for a time, then said abruptly, “There are a lot of things I never would have allowed, and I regret those things. If you hadn’t gone to your knees to protect the girls that night, I would have. I would have.”

  Silas glanced at him and nodded in acceptance. “They don’t need us on our knees. They need us to take a stand.”

  While Silas waited in the great hall, Cale went up to seek an audience with Bram. Bull stood outside the room, eying his blood-splotched shirt disapprovingly. “Your king is not taking visitors, young prince.”

  “He needs to see me. Let me pass.”

  After a pause, the big man moved aside.

  Bram’s room was dark. The scent of sickness chasing death gave Cale pause. Emotions congested tightly within his chest, feelings of love and admiration held over from childhood, the fierce need to prove and please, the helpless anger and hidden loathing feeding his teen to adult years for this one man who’d shaped his life with a merciless hand. He crossed slowly to the bed, where he could hear gurgling breaths that made his own throat close up painfully. His father was going to die. Soon. And he wasn’t sure how he felt about that until he went down on his knees and laid his cheek upon one cold hand.

  “My king.”

  The frail hand was withdrawn and placed atop his head for a light stroke. “Of all of them, you’re the only one who grieves for me.” Then a surprising confession. “I loved your mother, Cale. I demanded much, and you made me proud.”

  “I’d be a good king, Father. I’d honor you and protect our clan. Let me lead them.”

  “I know you would, but I can’t let you wear the crown. It’s not your fault, Cale, it’s mine. I’m weak and tired and afraid. I’ve trusted and given my word unwisely. Things can’t be undone. Your brother will need you at his side. I need you to accept what you can’t change for the good of our clan. Our survival depends on what you do tomorrow when I announce my successor.”

  “I can’t support James, my king. There are things you don’t know about him, things he’s doing that will destroy us.”

  “I don’t want to know, boy. I can’t afford to know.” Bram’s fingers clenched tight on the back of Cale’s neck. “Do as you’re told. You can’t hide those you love from the consequences if you disobey. Yield to my decision or suffer for it.”

  Even at the doorway of death, Bram picked intimidation when the demands of love and loyalty would have served him better.

  Cale slipped from his grasp and stood. “My choices have never made any difference in what you decide to do, so this one I won’t make on my knees. The stories I heard of you when I was a boy made me feel so honored to be your son. Be that king again for your people. Do what’s right. Good night, Father.”

  “Cale!” Bram’s shout was followed by a spasm of coughing as Cale shut the door behind him and confronted the massive Bull.

  “Has he spoken to anyone else since I was here earlier?”

  “No, my prince.”

  Cale met his unblinking stare with a compelling directness. “Keep it that way. No one sees him. No one speaks to him. No one brings him anything to eat or drink unless you have someone supervise the preparation. Is that understood?”

  “Yes, my prince.”

  Cale hesitated, then added, “Thank you. You serve him well.”

  “As I will serve you.” His gaze never wavered.

  By the time Cale made his way back down the stairs, the vision in his good eye was fogging. Light-headed and shaky, he barely realized when Silas caught his arm to keep him on his feet. It was the brace of snow-laden air that brought the focus back to his senses. He could have pulled free and made a show of possessing strength that had long since drained away, but it seemed foolish, and Silas didn’t suffer fools. So he depended gratefully on the other for direction to get him to his door. As they walked, they talked.

  “He won’t change his mind,” Silas surmised. “If you’re going to stop your brother, you’ll have to stand against him.”

  “What bargain were you going to make with my father?”

  “Forgiveness of your trespasses in exchange for Kendra’s freedom. I want to take her back with me. It’s too dangerous for her to be here in the middle of this, and you know it.”

  “Will you support me if I release her to you?”

  Silas approached that suspiciously, as if expecting more of a battle. “Yes. She leaves with me, and I’ll see that no one intrudes upon your territories while you work through your problems.”

  “Take her quickly, while my family meets in the morning. She has to be safely out of reach before I make any move on the crown.” Cale swallowed hard, trying not to think about what he was committing to. “Keep her safe, Silas. Be good to her, and love her as she deserves to be loved.”

  Silas pulled up to stare at him in perplexity. “I didn’t come here to take Kendra for my own. I have a bonded mate and a child on the way. How could Kendra not know that? Brigit talked to her . . . and apparently chose to tell her nothing.”

  Though those words filled Cale with relief, they changed nothing. And, in some ways, made things worse. “Don’t te
ll her.”

  “I can’t let her think I’ve come to rescue her with some sort of romantic intention. It wouldn’t be fair to her.”

  “Right now fair is the last thing I’m concerned with. Say nothing until she’s back in New Orleans with you. If she finds out that you haven’t come to claim her, she might not go with you. If you care for her, you’ll keep your mouth shut, take her, and go as fast as you can.”

  She’d be safe and he’d be . . . What did that matter as long as she was safe?

  The sight of Cale and Silas together set Kendra back for a moment, then she was pulling out a dining chair with crisp instructions for Cale to sit. She went to the wet bar, removing a covered dish and a bottle of water from the mini-fridge. After nodding to Silas, she knelt beside Cale’s chair, trying not to cry out in dismay when he turned toward her. Her hand shook slightly as she touched his shattered cheek.

  “Katy.”

  “No. Don’t try telling me that you’re fine. Drink that water, eat what’s in that bowl, and sleep, and until you’ve done those things, I don’t want to hear a word out of you.”

  He picked up the water, drinking half of it down before forking up the raw pieces of beef without comment. Kendra lingered, watching him chew with difficulty, her heart in her gaze until she noticed Silas’s fixed study.

  “How’s Bram?” she asked him.

  “Chances are, there’ll be a new Terriot king tomorrow.”

  The significance made Kendra’s glance fly to Cale. Her hand clutched his forearm, but his concentration didn’t leave his meal. As she rose, she let her lips brush his bruised brow.

  “I should go,” Silas announced. “See you in the morning.”

  Cale rose with an effort and extended his hand. “You see to your promises.” Silas clasped it firmly with a mutter that he would, and with a nod to Kendra, he left them.

  Though puzzled over their exchange, Kendra’s first priority was Cale. There’d be plenty of time of talk of politics later.

  Stepping up from where he’d been waiting silently in the background, Kip announced, “I’m gonna take off, too,” and clasped Cale’s forearm.

  “Thank you, brother.”

  “No problem. Good night, Princess. Take care of him.”

  She smiled and walked him to the door. “I will. We’ll see you tomorrow.” She kissed his cheek lightly, making him blush.

  Then there was just the two of them.

  “I need to explain about this morning,” Kendra began. “I never thought that you—”

  “No. No need. It’s okay. Here.” He drew his phone out of his pocket. “I told your cousin you’d call her. I wouldn’t want her to think I’d lie to her as well as try to murder her. Her number is in there. Go ahead. Take it into the other room. I’m going to stretch out on the couch for a while.” He wobbled on his feet, waving off her attempt to help him as he pressed the phone into her hand. He managed a faint smile. “Don’t tell her about the coat. She’s already pissed off.”

  She watched him hobble to the couch, her heart in her throat, waiting until he’d eased himself down and closed his eyes to leave him and place that call to her cousin. Her eyes flooded the second she heard Brigit’s voice.

  “Let me talk to her, Cale. You promised, you little—”

  “Bree?”

  “Oh, Kendra, are you all right?”

  “I’m fine. Silas is here. He and Cale haven’t killed each other yet.”

  “I wanted to see you, but I had so many things going on . . . Kendra, I’ve met someone.”

  A man. Kendra smiled. She’d known it had something to do with a man. “Anyone I know?”

  “Silas hasn’t told you?” Strained relief shivered through her cousin’s words, immediately alerting her. This was no simple romance if Silas’s opinion mattered. “He’s— His name is Giles St. Clair. I’m so in love with him, I’m loopy. He’s—”

  “He’s gorgeous, rich, powerful, treats you like royalty,” Kendra supplied, familiar with the necessary requirements.

  Brigit’s laugh was filled with breathy excitement. “Yes. No.”

  “He’s what?” Kendra urged, beginning to worry.

  “He’s human.”

  She never would have guessed that! Brigit filled in the silence by rushing through all her lover’s qualities. “He’s strong and brave and handsome, doesn’t take any crap from me.” Another flighty laugh. “He works for Max Savoie. He and Silas are partners of a sort. He saved my life, Kendra. There’s so much more I need to tell you when you get here.”

  “Bree, I won’t be coming back with Silas.”

  “What do you mean? Those bastards won’t let you go?”

  “It’s my choice. I’m staying. With Cale, as his queen.”

  A pause, then a ferocious “What has he done to you?”

  “Nothing. Nothing I didn’t want him to. We’re mated. I’m . . . I’m so in love with him, I’m loopy. Bree?”

  Another long silence, then the dial tone said it all.

  twenty-three

  Cale turned his head to the side to avoid the first painfully bright rays of daylight and found his face nestled in a soft tangle of blond hair.

  He must have slept the entire night on the couch. The fire had burned down to embers. One of the coverlets from their bed was draped over him and bundled about the figure seated on the floor beside him. His arm rested around Kendra’s shoulders; her head was pillowed on his chest. To judge from the soft sound of her breathing, she was still asleep.

  A huge surge of tenderness swelled for this amazing female he loved beyond all boundaries. If he could have pushed back the approaching day with his bare hands, he would have, just to savor this quiet moment alone with her a bit longer. The time had gone too fast. He’d never had the chance to learn all he’d desired to know about her, to share all the things he’d wanted to tell her. If he had forty, fifty, sixty more years of waking up beside her, that still wouldn’t be enough. It would never be enough.

  And now it would never be again.

  Cale rubbed his cheek over the silky curls, inhaling deeply. Their mating had heightened what already stirred within him when she was near—the driving need to envelop her with all the strength of heart, body, and mind, to hold her close, protect her, provide for her, procreate with her. Fate had savagely ripped away all those instinctual demands, leaving only one, the only thing he’d ever been able to do for her and would continue to do until the day he died. Protect her.

  Kendra stirred, giving him only an instant to compose his features. He managed a smile when she lifted her head to look at him, ignoring the way his pulse staggered and began to race. “Hey, baby. What are you doing down there?”

  The tender light of her regard made the force of Silas’s fist to his ribs seem like a playful tap. The gentle touch of her hand to his chest seemed to cave in its walls until he struggled to breathe.

  “I didn’t want to wake you, and I didn’t want to leave you.”

  He blinked quickly to ease the burn in his eyes and shifted onto his side, opening up a space on the cushions next to him. “Come up here with me.”

  Cale hoped she’d spoon in back to front to relieve him of the strain of holding to his game face, but she settled in with her arms around him so they were nose to nose with stares locked in. She frowned slightly and pressed her palm to his brow as if to check for fever. “Are you all right? Are you cold? You’re shaking.”

  He caught her hand, touching a quick kiss to her fingertips as he willed the tension from him. “I’m fine.”

  She wasn’t convinced. “Are you worried about today?”

  “No.” He wasn’t worried. He was empty.

  “Any news about your father?”

  He shook his head. The sympathy in her expression was killing him. To distract her, he asked, “Did you have a good talk with Brigit?”

  Kendra’s smile stiffened slightly. “Yes. She went on and on about her new man.”

  “Poor bastard.”

&n
bsp; “Cale!” She bit her lower lip, then asked softly, “Do you think they could come visit us once things calm down between our clans? Or we could visit them? I’d like to meet him.”

  “We’ll see how things go.” She looked so damned grateful, he had to tuck her head beneath his chin or give everything away as his features twisted with anguish. She’d be seeing plenty of her cousin. And him, not at all.

  He simply held her for a long minute before a gradual awareness of what she was doing broke the bittersweet mood. Her lips brushed against his throat. Her wandering hand wasn’t quite so subtle as she went from rubbing his back to squeezing his butt, tugging him toward the suggestive nudging of her hips.

  “Katy,” he cautioned regretfully.

  There was no tact in the way her palm stroked over his zipper. “I’m sorry. I can’t seem to be in the same room with you without needing to tear off your clothes.”

  At one time he would have gloated that he’d told her so. That time had passed. Cale stilled her hands and kissed her brow. “Not this morning, baby.” He sat up, hand to his side in anticipation of the pain, but he found only a manageable ache. “I need to shower and get dressed.” At her inviting glance, he clarified, “Alone. Today changes everything. I need to get my head straight.”

  Kendra sat up slowly. Something was very wrong. Her intuition sang with warning. Cale looked all right, other than that gruesome amount of blood filling his eye. The side of his face had healed except for a mild bruising across his cheekbone. He betrayed nothing with his movements, his manner, or his tone, but she felt it as strongly as she had her desire for him. He was lying to her or hiding something from her. Or both. Wondering what it might be scared her to death.

  She stayed him with a stroke of her fingertips to his cheek. The flare of raw emotion in his eyes made her go weak inside. She heard his breath draw in sharply as she leaned to kiss him, not with passion but with a cherishing commitment to her next words. “I’ll always be here for you, Cale. Always.”

  Again she felt that infinitesimal tremor shudder through him. Still he smiled, while his eyes shimmered like that early-morning light off the fresh snow outside. His voice was dragged-over-gravel rough. “Thank you, Katy.”