“You don’t have to do this, Caia,” Marion assured quietly.
She felt the stares of the trainees burning her cheeks and willed her heart to slow down. There was no way she was going to fail in front of these guys. That was exactly what they wanted. And if she was going to make a difference in this war, then she was going to need to prove herself to the Daylights first hand.
“No. I’m doing this.”
Mordecai grinned. “Good. Now close your eyes... and do as I asked.”
Quickly and easily, Caia grabbed a hold of the steely vapour that was her magik energy, and completely disengaged from the heat that allowed her to change into a wolf. Now the hard part. So, she was to what... wrap the energy around every molecule of her being…
Ohhhkkaaaay.
She started with her toes, and Mordecai was right. She knew when a part of her body was complete in the process. She followed it through until her very hair tingled with energy.
“Done,” she said, and was surprised to hear a flurry of whispering.
“Uh...” Mordecai seemed to hesitate. Her eyes flew open and he was staring at her incredulously, whilst Marion smiled, almost smugly. “Caia, are you sure?”
She nodded, holding on tight to her transformation. “Yeah, you said I would know, you were right... it’s a weird kind of certainty.”
“But you did that in seconds?” He gaped like a fish.
She frowned. “Is that wrong?”
Marion chuckled. “It usually takes a lot longer the first few times. You’ve done it like you’ve been doing it for years.”
Oh. Well, that was good right?
Mordecai gulped. “I see what you’ve been talking about, Marion.”
“What?” Caia quizzed, looking between the two.
“Uh, Caia, now for the next part.” Mordecai now seemed even more excited to move it along. “I want you to visualise your guest suite. Think of a suitable spot you can materialise in and go there. But... you have to have an extremely clear vision in mind.”
She closed her eyes and imagined a spot on the thick beige carpet that felt like clouds beneath her bare feet; a spot that stood just in front of the chaise longue placed at the end of the opulent bed. Yeah, there was plenty of room to crash land there.
“OK.”
“You’re sure?”
“Pretty much.”
“OK. Now tighten your hold on your energy and picture yourself in that spot; move yourself into that spot with your mind.”
She did as he asked.
“OK. Now what?”
She was met by silence.
“Guys?”
Wait. The floor had gotten awful squishy beneath her feet. And was that lavender air freshener?
Her eyes flew open, and she stumbled back gasping. Holy moly, she was in her guest suite. She had done it! She had done it!
“Aaaahhh!” She laughed, jumping up and down like a little kid. She had freakin’ done it on her first go! She grinned out into the city of Paris. “Take that, Daylight snobs!”
Her face was about to crack under the pressure of that grin, her adrenaline shooting through every part of her body, sending her into shaky excitement. OK, she had to calm down... it was time for the finale.
Following Mordecai’s instructions, she visualised her place back in the hall, and suddenly a flurry of excitement hit her ears.
“Caia!”
Her eyes opened and Mordecai was gazing in stunned amazement. Marion rushed forward to grip her arms, laughing. She looked around, and all the trainees were babbling excitedly, their eyes peeled to her, their bodies involuntarily moving closer.
“You did it! I knew you would do it!” Marion squealed like a little girl, her usual cool completely abandoned.
“I’ve never...” Mordecai took off his glasses to rub a non-existent smudge from them. “Wow.” His eyes flit between her and Marion before a huge grin broke out on his face. “This is going to be fun. I want to see what she can do with natural materialisation.”
***
Lucien was having a blast.
That morning he had woken up early to a banging on his door, belonging to a lykan around his age with an attitude and bad hair. Julian was a pain in the ass, and Lucien had a feeling he had been given to him specifically because he was a pain in the ass, and would irritate the life out of him. He made deliberately malicious comments about the pack, about Caia, anything to try and make Lucien lose his temper. If only he knew that the transparency of his attempts merely irritated rather than angered; he was like a puppy, nipping you in frustration because you won’t play back.
However the Second Unit? Now that was fun.
The Centre had set up a simulator of a large woodland arena where the lykans could work out strategies in human form but execute them as wolves. The arena was amazing, the smells, the mud, the trees, the air, all of it as real as can be. And he was getting to stretch his legs, battling sandbag dummies and holograms of Midnights. The sweat was thick in his fur, and his muscles were screaming, his jaws aching from ripping so many faux Midnights apart. But Hades it was a buzz. What a frickin’ way to work out the frustration.
Suddenly a piercing buzzer went off, signalling them to return to base point and change. He laughed at his disappointment and set off with the others. Unabashedly they changed, men and women alike, and pulled on their clothing.
A hand slapped down on Lucien’s shoulder. “Gaia, you’re quick!” Julian was grinning at him now, all contempt wiped from his face.
“Yeah, dude,” one of the largest lykans in the unit said gruffly, his dark eyes glittering in respect, “I’ve never seen someone your size move so fluidly.”
“What do you say, Lucien?” Anders, the units Alpha grinned at him. “Sure we can’t convince you to become a permanent fixture around here?”
Lucien laughed, enjoying the camaraderie, and truthfully, he snorted, the boost to his ego.
“I’m too old to start now,” he joked.
“No way.” one of the female members of the units, Lyla, ran her tongue across the bottom of her teeth, flirtatiously. “You look in shape to me.”
“Sorry, I have a pack to run.”
Julian sneered again. “Like being king of the mountain, huh?”
Lucien slapped him on the back. “Yeah, I do.”
Anders and the others laughed. “Well, we’ve been pushing it hard today. We really should get you a meal before your meeting tonight.”
He nodded and followed them out of the simulator. Thoughts of their five o clock with Marita and Vanne got him wondering how Caia’s day had gone so far. It bugged him to be apart from her, especially not knowing how she had been received by the others. Had they been cruel? Kind? Indifferent. He cracked his neck, unfurling his fists from the tight balls he had pulled them into. If she was harmed when he got her back tonight, he was going to crack some heads, regardless of being under the supervision of the Head of the Coven.
***
It looked like he had nothing to worry about. Caia had greeted him outside his room with Marion, who was brimming over with excitement. Apparently his little Cy had awed everyone by picking up the communication spell first try.
Great.
Not only could she now slam a door in his face from a great distance, but she could actually disappear from his very arms within seconds. That certainly didn’t even things out in a fight.
Ah, he knew he was being belligerent. And she looked so damn pleased with herself.
“Did you know that some magiks use words?”
“Ethan,” he replied grimly.
He watched her blanch as she remembered the fight with her uncle, and the spell Ethan cast under his breath to get out from the shield Caia had put around him, to stop him from hurting Lucien and Jaeden.
“Right,” she said hoarsely.
“Caia-”
“No, right, I forgot.” She shook it off, pretending to be unaffected, and then grinned a little hollowly. “Anyway, they use words to
focus their magik. I haven’t being doing it because I’ve been taught by Marion and she doesn’t do it, but Mordecai has all these funny little words he uses when he’s making something transform, or materialising something out of his element. It’s very cool, very ‘Warlock Weekly’.”
Lucien pasted on a smile to try and ease the unpleasant tension he had caused, and went on to tell them what he had been up to, once they finally let him get a word in.
“So, they have a simulator here?” Caia’s eyes were bright with anticipation, as they stepped out of the presidential elevator that took them to Marita and Vanne’s suite.
“Yup. It’s like the real thing.”
“Do you think they’d let me use it? You know to take a run in... my bones are desperate to crack.”
Marion laughed. “Ask, and I’m sure it’s yours.”
Yeah, Lucien mused, as they walked down the corridor, Caia certainly was getting the royal treatment here. He knew she was an important weapon for them, but this seemed above and beyond what they had expected.
It made him suspicious.
“Glad you’re punctual,” Marita’s cold tones blew past him as they sauntered inside. He watched as her shrewd eyes nailed Caia to the wall. “I’ve been hearing interesting reports from today.”
“Yes.” Vanne grinned, winking at Caia.
“Yes,” Marita continued, “Apparently, our guest is a natural at natural materialisation. She produced a bird, an apple, and for her finale a grand oak that nearly broke the windows. Oh and let’s not forget that she completed a communication spell on her first try.”
“Impressive.” Her husband nodded his head deferentially, and Lucien watched as Caia blushed uncomfortably.
Marita nodded, her eyes glittering strangely. “Of course, we all know that it really is impressive, but already gossip has reached me. Some of our occupants think Marion had already trained you on how to do a communication spell.”
He felt a growl rumbling from his chest.
“It’s OK,” Caia whispered beside him, and as usual her perfect understanding of him settled that strange peace over him.
“Well, they’re idiots,” Marion snapped. “Mordecai was most impressed, and the others tend to fall in line with him.”
Vanne smirked. “Yes, very well done in choosing Mordecai. Powerful, influential and apparently has a thing for petite blondes who can blow his socks off.”
Lucien snapped his gaze to Caia. Had this Mordecai been flirting with her? The guy sounded a little awe-inspiring... should he be worried?
Marion smiled. “I’m not stupid, Vanne. I knew this whole process was going to liken to a political campaign. I rallied the best.”
Marita strode forward, gesturing to a dining table at the far end of the room that had been set up as battle plan central. “Yes, well, you are my sister. Take a seat people.”
“We also heard that Lucien performed well today,” Vanne murmured as they congregated around. “Anders was very impressed.”
His wife sniffed, eyeing Lucien narrowly. “Anders forgets that Lucien has taken down a few rogues in his time, as well as Adriana Vang, the heir to the Midnight Coven. If we are to go by how very shocked he was by your performance today, I would say he wasn’t listening when I told him not to underestimate you.”
“I don’t know whether I’ve been complimented or insulted.”
Marita gave a huff of amusement. “Oh it was a compliment... but you are so very suspicious aren’t you, Lucien?”
She knew he wasn’t sure of her, which meant he was giving far too much away when they met. He had to reign in his natural compulsion to observe stonily, and try harder to shield his feelings through her trace magik. He didn’t want to seem calculating to her; if she really was up to something – and he was sure she was – then she would be too on edge to let the smallest thing slip.
“Vang?” Caia mumbled.
Marion placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Your family name.”
He watched worriedly as an emotion he couldn’t identify flittered across her face. And then she was shaking herself, tensing under Marion’s hand. “My family name is Ribeiro.”
He ached for her then. She never allowed herself a moment to feel her mother’s betrayal. Lucien smiled kindly. “And don’t you forget it.”
She turned and smiled warmly up at him. “Did you know it means river - Ribeiro I mean?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s kind of ironic, don’t you think?”
He chuckled. “I guess it is.”
“Excuse me,” Marita said imperiously. “Can we return to the matter at hand? We have a strategy to sort out.”
“Let’s get started then.”
“First, I’d like to introduce you to the operatives who will be helping us coordinate.” She turned and gestured to Noble at the door, who in turn pulled it open with a flourish. “First, Anders Rosencrantz, Alpha of our Second Unit, whom Lucien is already acquainted with.”
He nodded in acknowledgment to the older lykan, who strode purposefully into the room, taking time to shake hands with Caia.
“And Mordecai Cherstvennikov, head of the First Unit, and the water magik who has been instructing Caia.”
Lucien pulled in a breath, and then quickly let it go as the stocky young man, who looked to be about the same age as him, walked stiffly into the room towards them. He shoved at the black glasses that slid down his nose and smiled tensely at Lucien, quickly shaking his hand, and then grinned broadly at Caia and Marion.
Well... that guy certainly didn’t look how he sounded. But he and Caia looked awful chummy awful fast. Lucien resisted the urge to growl possessively.
“And Michael Brown, head of our Third Unit of vampyres.” A tall, slender man who looked to be in his forties - but was probably closer to a hundred years old - glided into the room and over to them. His sharp face remained stony as he shook every one of their hands.
Marita looked over them all. “I decided not to take any precautions in the defence of the MacLachlans, which is why I am enlisting the aid of every unit. The added bonus is that Lucien and Caia will have an understanding of how all of you work individually, and as a team. However, we have two more operatives I would like to involve. I feel it is only right that the MacLachlans have a representative, and so I have asked Phoebe MacLachlan to join us.”
They all turned and watched the gorgeous female sashay into the room. Lucien had heard reports of Phoebe from Ryder who said the Rogue Hunter looked like an angel, fought dirty like Hades, and had a heart of stone. It looked like he was right. She was tall and curvy with heaps of golden hair cascading over her shoulders, but her ice blue eyes were hard and calculating as they drank in the team, her mouth twisted in what looked like scorn. She shook hands with no one, just braced herself against the nearest wall, her gaze straight ahead at Marita.
“And Phoebe has asked to involve another lykan whom she trusts. Rose Bronson.”
He felt like he had been sucker punched.
Rose. Rose was here?
Yup. There she was.
The statuesque redhead came almost galloping into the room, and as soon as her brown eyes spotted him, she broke into a wide smile and launched herself at him. His body automatically caught her, although his mind was still in shock.
“Rose,” he murmured and she pulled back, her citrusy scent bringing with it a rush of memories.
He had met Rose two years after he had left the pack. She was a Rogue Hunter he’d met and he’d stayed with her pack for three months. Three months in which they had engaged in a passionate affair before he had to break her heart by telling her he couldn’t mate with her. He had never been able to explain the reason, and she had told him she would never forgive him. Her hatred over his betrayal had made it easier to walk away... but it had taken him a long time to get over her.
“Lucien,” she breathed, holding his face between her hands tenderly, “I understand now,” she whispered.
She knew about
Caia then.
Caia!
Lucien glanced down beside him to see how she was reacting, but her gaze was on the floor, her long hair hiding her expression from him.
He managed to put Rose at a physical distance without hurting her feelings; she just kept smiling at him and holding on to his arm.
“You two are acquainted?” Marita asked softly.
His head snapped up at her tone, and he knew… he knew just looking at her eyes, slightly round with innocence, that she had done this deliberately.
Phoebe MacLachlan didn’t know Rose Bronson; their packs were on different sides of the country. Marita had brought Rose here as a distraction.
He stilled the growl in his chest.
Whatever was going on here, he was going to get to the bottom of it.
8 - Consequences
He couldn’t remember when he had had this much fun.
The daytime drive hadn’t seemed so long with her beside him, cracking jokes, teasing him. Sparring with Jaeden had him strung out... but in a good way.
Almost like foreplay.
He clenched his hand around the steering wheel at the thought, but there was no getting around the fact that he was extremely attracted to the now senior Jae, with her gorgeous smile and caustic wit. The truth was, he wasn’t known for sticking with one female, and he had a pretty colourful past as a player. Thoughts of having a respectable young female like Jaeden in his bed were enough to have him strung up. But the scary truth was... he had never been this comfortable, and yet this attracted, to a female in his life...
Could Jae be his mate?
His heart stopped.
Dimitri was going to kill him.
Ryder sighed heavily.
“You OK?” She asked quietly, and he could feel her curiosity. That much hadn’t changed about her anyway: as curious as a cat.
He nodded, throwing her a weak smile. Yeah, he was cool. Just getting a little ahead of himself, that was all. For Gaia’s sakes, they hadn’t even kissed yet. Hey, not to mention the fact that he still didn’t know what the Hades she was hiding; which brought him back to another dilemma. They were having such a good time together, and he didn’t want to spoil it, but if he was going to consider ‘courting’ Jaeden then he needed to know everything there was to know about her.
River Cast: Part Two in the Tale of Lunarmorte Page 7