Lycan Legacy - 4 - 5 - 6: Princess - Progeny - Paladin: Book 4 - 5 - 6 in the Lycan Legacy Series

by Veronica Singer

  “But won’t that reduce the range of the car? A smaller battery means less juice.”

  Mason leaned against the workbench and took a sip of beer. “Oh no, dear. This battery pack will be upgraded. Your new range should be about two thousand miles.”

  “You’re going to power this car with magic? Isn’t that unreliable?”

  “No magic involved,” he said. Then he held up a hand to correct himself. “No magic involved in powering the vehicle. I used magic to purify the battery components and increase the energy density.”

  “So, you can make batteries fifty times as good as current technology that don’t use magic.” I laughed and continued, “Better not tell your friend Elon. He’d kidnap you and chain you to an assembly line in his battery factory.”

  “It’ll be our secret.” Mason nodded to include Mike. “Right, Mike?”

  “I’ll never tell,” said Mike.

  I examined the Tesla. There was something different about the glass, a tint that hadn’t been there before.

  “Did you add bulletproof glass? It doesn’t look any thicker than before, but it looks darker.”

  “It’s not glass. At least, not anymore. I decided to use sapphire.”

  I was so shocked I had to laugh. “Sapphire? Couldn’t you have made it out of diamond?”

  Mason answered soberly. “The mechanical characteristics of sapphire fit this job much better than diamond. I was able to layer the sapphire so that it retains strength without the brittleness—”

  He stopped as I hugged him, lifting him off the ground. “Don’t be silly! I was just joking.”

  Mason’s breath escaped with an “oof!” I put him down and ran my hands over his chest. I could feel the ridges of his ribs through his shirt.

  “Mason,” I scolded, “you’re burning yourself out by using too much magic. You need to eat and rest.”

  He shook his head stubbornly. “You nearly died. I can rest once you and the kids are safe.”

  I pushed down the urge to order him to rest. “Mason, please take a break, eat, and have another beer before you do any more magic. Keeping you around is more important than turning my car into a tank.”

  “Yeah,” said Mike, “we could use a short break. We’re nearly done anyway.”

  Mason shook his head again. “I still need to work out a way to block that remote-control signal.” He turned away and stared into space, mumbling fragments of spells.

  After several minutes, it was obvious Mason wasn’t coming out of his trance any time soon.

  I turned to Mike. “I have to visit my packmates. Please watch over Mason and feed him some of that pie and beer when he rouses.”

  “Does he have these spells often?”

  “All magicians tend to drift off like that, even me. It’s a hazard for us.” I lowered my voice. “It’s what makes magicians vulnerable. That’s why we keep it a secret.”

  Mike nodded. “I’ll keep him company and when he returns to Earth, I’ll make sure he takes a break and eats.”

  A few minutes later, I walked out of the garage carrying a basket full of freshly baked pies.

  My first visit was to Christopher’s home. I knocked on the door and put a smile on my face.

  Christopher’s wife opened the door and looked at me blankly.

  “Hello, Amor,” I said. “I’m Luna. I brought you a housewarming gift.” The scent of cooking food wafted from the open door—soy sauce, braised pork, and vegetables. “You’re making pork adobo? I can come back after you eat.”

  “No, no,” she said quickly. “Please come inside.”

  Christopher was waiting in the living room with an older Asian woman. Her scent was so close to Amor’s that it was obvious she was her mother. She was holding an infant in her lap.

  I introduced myself and we bonded over the cute baby.

  “He’s grown so fast. It seems like only yesterday you were pregnant,” I said.

  “Yes, Jun gets bigger every day,” said Amor.

  “Jun? Isn’t his name Christopher?”

  Chris jumped in. “It’s a Filipino tradition. If a child is named after his father, he becomes a Junior. The nickname is Jun.”

  “Wait,” said Amor. “You said ‘when you were pregnant.’ Did I know you then?” Then she peered at me intensely. “I think we’ve met before. We sang together at that base in Alaska.” Her eyes clouded with confusion, then she asked, “Were you part of a USO show?”

  “Something like that,” I said. “I remember you singing along with me.”

  Her eyes widened as memories returned. The presence of an alpha supernatural helped her overcome the memory-blurring spells that kept our secrets.

  “Lobo,” she whispered, the Filipino word for werewolf.

  I tilted my head at Christopher and smiled. “Let’s change the subject,” I said. “I brought a pie for your dessert.”

  In less than two minutes, we were seated at the table with drinks and slices of my fresh apple pie in front of us.

  Little Jun was sitting on my lap, apparently fascinated with my moonstone amulet. He tugged at the chain and giggled happily at the glittering stone. The innocence of youth saw through the invisibility spell on the necklace with ease.

  I leaned down and sniffed his hair. Johnson’s baby shampoo and the scent of infant, so different than the wild scent of my siblings. They had been born as werewolf pups. We wouldn’t know if Jun would change until he reached puberty.

  Amor bit her lip in hesitation, then asked, “Will the mine reopen soon?”

  I took a breath and opened my mouth to complain about bureaucrats, eminent domain, and government idiocy. Then I stopped. They needed to hear that everything would be all right, not the complaints of a cynical manager.

  I gave them my most confident smile. “We have the best lawyer in Nevada on our side. We have enough cash to tide us over until the issue is settled.”

  I leaned forward and said quietly, “I’ve heard they are losing millions every week, moving tons of dirt around and finding nothing.”

  “I thought the mine was productive,” said Amor.

  “It was very productive when people like Christopher and the rest of our team were in charge. But when you put idiots in charge, even a good mine is unproductive.”

  “So, they will give up soon?”

  I frowned for a second, mindful that anything I said here would soon be broadcast to the rest of the families. “I don’t see how they can continue much longer.”

  I smiled again and joked, “Are you tired of having Chris underfoot? I have other projects he could be working on.”

  “No, Jun loves seeing him all day. I’m just worried about the future.”

  “Your future is bright. Speaking of the future, I have something for Jun.” I reached into my bag and pulled out a small gift-wrapped box.

  I set the box on the table in front of Amor. “This is a birthing gift for Jun.”

  Unlike my Japanese friends, Amor had no inhibitions about opening gifts in front of the gift-giver. She pulled the wrapper off and opened the box to reveal a one-ounce BITCHCoin.

  “It’s very pretty,” she said, lifting it out of the case. Then she felt the weight and took a closer look. “This is real gold! It must be worth a lot.”

  “It’s worth more than its weight in gold,” Christopher said. “It’s a BITCHCoin.”

  “Bitcoin?”

  “No, bitcoin is virtual currency. This coin is more like a collectible. Take your phone and download the app. It’ll show how much it’s worth.”

  While Chris showed Amor how to scan the coin, I fumbled with Jun. He was squirming around and whimpering. I realized that I knew nothing about human children. Was I holding him wrong? Would I hurt him with werewolf strength if he wriggled too much? All my previous experience had been with my siblings as pups, not humans.

  It felt as if I was trying to hold a soap bubble without popping it. Amor’s mom saw Jun squirming and reached for the baby. I gave him up with a sigh o
f relief.

  “So now you scan the coin with the phone’s camera,” said Chris, “and it verifies that the coin is real.”

  Amor smiled as the large green checkmark popped up on the phone’s display. Then the messages started arriving.

  Ding! “What’s this? Someone wants to give us fifty thousand dollars for this coin?” Ding! “Sixty thousand from someone else?”

  Ding! Ding! Ding! “Oh, it must be a joke. This message says they will give us our heart’s desire for the coin.”

  “No,” said Chris, “the messages are real. But we won’t be taking any of those offers, especially not the ‘make a wish’ offers.”

  Amor looked disappointed, then she smiled. “You’re right, mahal. This is Jun’s gift. We’ll save it for when he grows up. This might be enough to cover his college expenses.”

  Amor’s mom said something in Filipino. I tilted my head in query and Amor translated. “She said she only has one wish: for my dad to join us here.”

  “Why can’t he?”

  “He’s in the Philippines.”

  “Is he afraid of flying?”

  “No. He can’t get a visa. He overstayed his US visa and has been banned from the country.”

  It took a second to process. Mason, with his computer skills and magic, could whip up passports and identity documents in an instant. Others were not so lucky.

  I opened my mouth to say Mason could help, then hesitated. Would Christopher accept help from a magician? I tempered my statement.

  “We could probably help with that,” I said.

  Amor and her mother looked joyful, but Chris glowered. “I don’t want any help from Mason.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “You heard the story of how Mason got documents for those kidnapped Chinese girls?”

  “Yes, Logan told me. I helped close off the section of the mine where the kidnappers—” He stopped abruptly. Never tell where the bodies are buried.

  “We helped those girls,” I said. “We can help Amor’s dad.”

  “I don’t need Mason’s help,” Chris repeated stubbornly.

  “What can Mason do for my dad?”

  I used my ‘this is a secret’ voice. “Mason assisted the authorities in capturing some human traffickers. After the arrests, he used his influence to get the young girls US passports. He might still be able to help.”

  “I’m not asking him for help,” said Chris. “Sure, he helped those girls, but he didn’t do it normally.”

  “Why won’t you ask for help?” asked Mrs. Galit.

  “Chris and Mason have… political differences that make them obstinate,” I said. Describing the mutual hatred between magicians and werewolves as ‘political’ was probably as close as human terms could come.

  I had a sudden doubt. Mason was burning himself out creating protection for the babies. He might not have the time or energy to help Amor’s family.

  “You don’t need Mason’s help,” I said. “We don’t need Mason’s help. I have the best lawyer in Nevada on retainer. All you have to do is make a formal request.”

  Amor and Mrs. Galit smiled at Chris, silently urging him to ask for help.

  Then Amor got a puzzled expression. “Formally request? Why does he have to make a formal request?”

  “It’s the way we handle these things,” I replied.

  I turned to Chris. “Do you ask this favor of your alpha?”

  Chris held his breath for a few moments. Then Amor stroked his arm, a silent plea.

  “He won’t be using any of Mason’s ‘shortcuts?’” asked Chris.

  “Only the most legal and aboveboard methods.”

  Chris smiled, his mood changing abruptly. “Then I ask this favor of my alpha.”

  “Done.” I pulled out my phone and texted Briar, passing him Amor’s contact information and telling him this was a high priority.

  I got up to leave and Amor surprised me with a hug. “Thank you for your gift for Jun and your help with Dad.”

  “You’re welcome. I hope everything works out well for your dad. I hate to see families separated.” I put a finger to my chin, as if surprised by a thought. “In fact, I think it would be a great idea for all of you to visit your dad in the Philippines.”

  Mrs. Galit’s face lit up in a huge smile, Chris looked puzzled, and Amor asked, “What about his job?”

  “The mine is closed down for a bit. We’re still paying Chris. This would be the best time to leave.” I looked at Chris. “Use the company credit card to book your flight as soon as possible.” Only Chris heard the subsonics of an alpha’s command in my statement.

  He stiffened, fighting the order, then bent his head. “Is this what my alpha requests?”

  “Yes.”

  I saw a thousand arguments flash across his face, then he gritted his teeth and nodded.

  “Amor, start packing. I want to meet the rest of your family as soon as possible,” Chris said.

  Ten minutes later, I was knocking on Logan’s door. I could tell from the noise and the scents that his daughters were there.

  Logan opened the door and grinned, a grin that turned into a smile when he smelled the contents of the basket. “Luna! Come on in.”

  Logan’s daughters, Alisha and Brita, were seated on the couch. Alisha, seventeen and ‘all grown up,’ sat beside her fourteen-year-old sister, Brita. They were engrossed in a video game on the large-screen TV. They ignored us as they tried to joust for first place in the game. They were wearing the platinum globe lucky charm bracelets that Mason had created for them.

  “Girls, Luna’s here. Stop the game and say hello.”

  Logan’s anger spiked as they continued to play.

  I put a hand on his arm to calm him, and said, “Hi, girls. I brought food.”

  The screen froze and the cacophony stopped. Both girls turned to me and Brita said, “Hi, Luna! What did you bring?”

  “Homemade apple pie.”

  At the table, where I was nibbling at my third slice of apple pie today, I turned the discussion to Alisha’s future.

  “I understand that you want to move to LA and get into acting.”

  “Hey, she could start by acting nice to her dad,” said Logan.

  Ignoring Logan’s jibe, I said, “My company is interested in venturing into film production. We have a director in mind, a few scenes have been shot, and a few minor roles have been assigned.”

  “So you still need a star. Can I have Chris Hemsworth as my costar?”

  “Who? I don’t watch many movies. Is he popular?”

  Alisha gave me the ‘I can’t believe you don’t know that’ look and said, “He played Thor, the thunder god in one of the highest grossing movies of all time.”

  “This is going to be a low-budget, entry-level film. We won’t have a lot of money to throw at thunder gods.”

  “But you’re going to pay me, right?”

  I smiled at her. “As little as possible. Just because Logan works for me doesn’t mean you’ll get a movie-star payday.”

  I explained what little I knew about the Screen Actors Guild and minimum pay rates.

  “I think I need an agent,” muttered Alisha as she crossed her arms.

  Her mouth dropped open when I said, “I agree with you. You don’t have to trust us. You should always have outside counsel. And speaking of trust, if we do this, there will be some strings attached.”

  “IF? I knew you would try to back out of this deal,” she spluttered in anger.

  “Yes. If. We don’t have a deal now, and we won’t have a deal until we are all in agreement.”

  Brita caught the implication. “Even Dad?”

  “And your mom. If she doesn’t want you to go to LA, I’m not going to send you.”

  “That’s not fair! I’ll be eighteen soon. Then I can do what I want.”

  “True. You can do what you want without a minor role in a low-budget film.” I gave her my sarcastic smile. “I’m sure if you just wait in the Starbucks on Hollywood Boulevard, you�
��ll be discovered in no time.”

  Brita elbowed Alisha in the ribs and gave her a ‘don’t screw this up’ look. Maybe Alisha should hire her as her agent.

  “So you’re going to talk to my mom?”

  “What? No. We don’t see eye-to-eye.” I had nearly killed her the last time we met. “You’ll have to convince her.”

  “She might not agree. It’s not fair.”

  “Life’s not fair,” I replied. “Consider this your screen test. Work out a way to convince you mom that this is a good idea.”

  “Fine! What are your other strings?”

  “Logan is going to be there to watch over our business interests. You’re going to live with him. You’re going to get your high school diploma. You’re going to finish this project.”

  “What? No morality clause?”

  “Morality clause?”

  “No boyfriends, no drugs, no drinking,” Brita supplied.

  “That’s a good idea,” I said. That earned Brita a venomous look from Alisha. “Logan will have to approve any boyfriends.”

  Alisha darted a sly glance at Logan. “I’m sure that won’t be a problem.”

  I took a deep breath, cataloging scents. Leather, open air, chain lube, and male deodorant.

  “If you try to fool your dad and he finds out, it will end badly. For example, we know that you rode on the back of your boyfriend’s motorcycle today. He has brown, shaggy hair; rides without a helmet; and is about twenty-two.” I crinkled my nose in puzzlement. “Isn’t that kind of old to be giving rides to high school girls?”

  Alisha glared at Brita, who immediately said, “I didn’t tell! Did you post that online?”

  “We will always know if you’re dating a guy.”

  “Fine!” she humphed. “I’ll just stick to drinking and drugs!”

  The image of Logan eviscerating anyone who tried to get Alisha to take drugs brought a smile to my lips.

  “You’re scary when you smile like that,” said Brita.

  I turned my scary smile on Alisha, who paled a bit under my glare. “My company is investing millions in this project. If a teenage brat can’t keep out of trouble for a few months, we’ll just find another teenager who wants to act.”