by J. L. Madore
Lexi put hers to her mouth. Her cheeks ballooned even though no sound was made. She pulled it back, looked at it and started to pout. "Mine's broken."
Bruin shook his head and tugged at his ears. "No, it's not. It's like a dog whistle, Princess. Only I hear it. And please don't blow it so close to me. You almost busted my eardrums."
"Thank-you." I kissed his cheek and laced mine over my head. "I love it"
Lexi wrapped her arms around his neck. "Okay," she laughed, wide eyed. "Put them on me." Bruin laughed again and an instant later, Lexi stood wearing her new T-shirt with her claw necklace hanging in its place.
"Nice trick." Tham muttered, glancing over to a stiff and stern-looking Galan.
"Yeah," Lexi said, "Weres can do lots of neat little tricks."
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
The next morning Galan and I left the Highborne training session at the old horse arena and went behind the barn to the archery lanes Savage and Cowboy had set up. My head was still a little fuzzy from the wine we drank in honor of Bruin's return, but the warm, morning air was clearing the cobwebs.
Standing perpendicular to the targets, Galan brought his arms around to my front and placed his bow in my hand. "This time feel for the wind. The farther the target is from your arrow, the more its path will deviate. The instant before release, hold your breath and loose the string between the beats of your heart. Even those two tiny movements can alter your shot."
I nocked the arrow, stretched my arm until it started to quiver and let it fly. Thunk, it sunk into a bale of straw supporting one of the closer targets.
"Acceptable," Galan said. "Did you close your eyes again?" I shook my head and he chuckled at my hasty denial. "I thought as much. Would you close your eyes when you are under attack?" He kissed up the length of my neck while I pulled the next arrow from the quiver.
The touch of his lips on my skin sent me to another plane of existence. From one breath to another my body heated. His hands skimmed upwards from my hips to cup my breasts. My entire body tingled. I shook my head. "Like I can concentrate when you do that."
"Chaos and distraction are part of battle, Blossom," he whispered close to my ear. "I am simply furthering your training."
"Mhmm . . . will you show me again?"
"If you like." He chuckled, a deep velvet rumble, then stepped in front of me and took the bow. "How many would you like this time, neelan?"
I bit my bottom lip and swept my hair behind my shoulders. Gods he was gorgeous when he was all warriored up and holding his bow. "Three."
"My female wishes to see three arrows in the bull's-eye. Are you watching carefully?" He smiled his crooked, cocky smile and I had to lock my knees to keep from falling.
"I am, but first. . ." I leaned in and kissed him with all I had. As I moaned into his mouth, my hand ran down the front of his suede pants. His laces were already bursting and as I palmed his arousal he pressed his hips forward. He kissed me again, harder, deeper. When I knew he was good and turned-on, I stepped back. "It's only fair that you get distracted too."
Galan smiled, drew a deep breath and let it out fast. "What a glorious distraction you are."
"Fair's fair. Let's see what you've got Highborne."
Galan winked and in an instantaneous blur of motion he struck the centre of the target. Once. Twice. Three times. Each arrow split the one before down the length of its shaft. I sucked in a gasp. I don't know what it was about this man in action but gods he was sex-on-a-stick.
Handing me the bow, he established his position behind me. "Relax your bow arm."
With the tip of my arrow aimed and both of my eyes open, I was loosing my shot when Galan nipped my bare shoulder. Every hormone in my body burst into flame. Dropping the bow to my side I pivoted and lunged. He caught me in his arms. His hands tightened on my ass and swept up my back until my breasts were firm against his smooth, muscled chest.
Cheers from the training session on the other side of the arena reminded me we were far from being discrete. Damn. My hormones were raging and we had no hope of finding privacy.
I forced myself to step back. "Be good." When he started to prowl toward me I held up a finger. "We're changing the subject now. Sooo, Galan, how'd you get so good at archery?"
He chuckled but thankfully played along. "My father, I suppose."
"Your father? You must be kidding?"
Galan looked surprised at my reaction and then, damn him, amused. He took possession of the bow. After nocking the next arrow, he let it sail straight into the farthest target's bull's-eye. "Understand that for the first half-century of my life my sire was a loving, supportive male. He instructed me as any father would and I practiced to become a great ranger and a male of worth." Galan's hands dropped to his sides as he stared into nothingness. "After Naneth passed and I began to care for Lia, I used the practice to escape being berated."
And beaten. I fought back my anger before Galan smelled it. He was a proud man and obviously wouldn't want the abuse I'd found while healing him to come to light. "Does he have any idea how good you are?"
Galan shook his head and loosed another arrow. It flew straight on target, splintering the shaft of the first. "In truth, I have never felt the need to share it with him. Besides, my shot is not as true when others are watching. Lia, Tham and Nyssa can watch me for hours and I shall never falter, but for some reason, I do not retain my accuracy when others are around."
"Sounds like stage fright. How are you in battle?" He stared at me . . . glared at me, actually. "Right, sorry. You've only been in that one battle on Dragon's Peak. But your aim was true then."
He frowned, turned his back and drew another arrow from his quiver. "Apologies. I realize I am not the seasoned warrior you are accustomed to." His voice hardened and his body went stiff as a lamp-post. "You have every right to point out my shortcomings."
"What? Galan, I wasn't—"
"I have little to offer a female warrior such as yourself."
"Stop that!" I grabbed his jaw, forcing him to look at me. His gaze was hard, but I could see the hurt behind the veil of anger. "I wasn't saying anything about your worth. Don't put words into my mouth. It's rude."
Galan stepped closer, looming over me like an ominous shadow. I glared back at him digging my fingers deeper into his jaw.
"Oh, look, a party." Lexi said.
"And us left uninvited?" Tham wiped the sweat from his brow and fingered through his wet hair as he and Lexi strode around the end of the barn. Appraising glances ping-ponged from Galan to me and back again. "We wondered where the two of you had run off to."
I released my grip on Galan's jaw and he turned away, adjusting his bow.
"What's the story behind that?" Lexi pointed to the far end of the arena. My practice arrows were sticking out of the straw on the close target and Galan's splintered bull's-eye shots were there too. Nothing worth wondering about.
"The story behind what?" I sighed, flexing the stiffness out of my hand.
"That." Tham pointed well off the flight path of the targets to where one arrow stuck out of the side of the arena wall.
Even in my mood, I had to chuckle, remembering Galan nipping my shoulder as I shot. "Oh, that one got away on me. I was . . . uh, distracted."
"Distracted?" Tham said, then discretely sauntered toward Galan.
I cleared my throat and turned to my sister. "Well, what did we miss?"
"Actually, quite a bit. Come check this out." Lexi grabbed my hand and skipped around to the front of the arena. Aust was standing with Bruin on the track of the outdoor ring. The two of them were practically glowing, a matching expression of amazement on both of their faces.
Bruin nodded once and took a step back. "Okay Aust, like we practiced."
Aust closed his eyes and raised his hands from his sides. As they moved higher a whirlwind picked up. It swirled around us growing in intensity the higher his hands raised. Hair whipped, clothes pulled in every direction and we were forced to squint to shield
our eyes from the dirt of the track. After a moment, he lowered his hands and the whirlwind dissipated. When he finished, the air was calm with only the trace of a warm summer's breeze.
"Oh, my gods," I gasped. "That was exceptional Aust. Whirlwind is an upper level spell and you learned it in a couple of hours?"
"Not even." Bruin shook his head, his shaggy brown bangs falling over his eyes. "He had it down pat right away, then we worked on this one."
Aust reached into his vest pocket and produced a carnelian carving of Shalana, Goddess of the Woodlands figurine. My stomach flipped. It was one of the icons recovered from the Altar of the Ancients, at Dragon's Peak. It was the one we believed caused the surge in his affinity and the beginning of his evolution.
Aust inclined his head and regarded the heavens. A look of concentration crumpled his brow, then his shape shimmered and disappeared morphing into a sleek, muscular white tiger.
"Holy shit!" My jaw dropped. "Polymorphing at his first training session?"
"I know," Bruin said. "He's a beast. And of course, I'm an exceptional trainer."
Aust padded once around us, his head low, his ice-blue gaze sharp yet his own. When he returned to his natural form, Bruin materialized Aust's clothes and gave him a minute to gather himself. When he straightened, he was smiling from one pointed ear to the other.
I threw my arms around his neck and practically tackled him to the ground. "You are amazing, Aust. You should be so proud." I kissed his cheek, then looked up to find that Galan and Tham had joined us.
"I am in awe of you, brother mine." Galan glided forward to embrace him, chest to chest, thumping his back with his palm. "If you can do this in just a few short hours, imagine what you shall accomplish on your second day."
"Tell me," Tham said. "How is it to be a creature of such strength and power?"
"It is the most incredible sensation," Aust said. "I retain my wits and senses just in the altered form. I feel the beast's basic instincts . . . his keen senses, his strength and, of course, his ferocity. I cannot hold my form long, though it is unbelievable to experience a oneness with a creature so primal. A dream come to fruition. One day I shall see the countryside the way Faolan and my wildlife family see it, running on all fours."
"Not if we slack off you won't." Bruin's voice was stern, but the twitch at the corner of his mouth told us he was joking. "Back to work. Don't you girls have classes to teach?" After giving us the proverbial boot to the ass, Bruin pulled Aust back into their training session and Tham and Galan walked us to the forest path.
"Can you believe that?" My head was buzzing. "He morphed on his first day. It's absolutely unheard of. Elora is going to pee her pants when she sees him turn into a tiger."
Galan's scowl softened. "We can only hope you are wrong."
I crinkled my nose at him. "You know what I mean."
"Yes. I do." He tugged my hair and we let Lexi and Tham get a bit ahead of us.
"Are we okay?" I caught his hand. "I mean . . . I want you to know—"
"I know." He took a deep breath and squeezed my hand. A stiff, uncomfortable silence fell between us. My heart raced as I waited for him to say more, to look at me, to smile . . . anything. After what seemed an eternity he nodded. "Fash not, Blossom. All is well."
Sadly, I didn't believe that for a second.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
With classes over for another week, I peered through the doorway of the fifth-floor lounge. Everyone was still riding the adrenaline rush after a grueling training session. Savage sat alone, sharpening his blades, while the rest of the group fidgeted in their seats, stretching out tweaked muscles, cracking knuckles and rolling necks.
Amped atmosphere aside, everyone bore the stress of waiting with a great deal of humor. Lexi, Tham, Rue and Cowboy were cheating at Euchre, cracking up at the thinly veiled attempts to table-talk their suits to their partners and throw lame-ass signals.
Iadon, Aust and Nyssa were over by the televisions, playing the instruments they'd brought back from the village. The harmonizing of Iadon and Aust's smooth, deep voices sent shivers through me. I laughed out loud realizing they were singing Phillip Phillip's Home. I didn't even know they were American Idol fans.
And then there was Galan.
He lay, stretched out on the wide, leather sofa with Ella lying flat on his chest. They were both sound asleep, Galan's hands splayed protectively over her back, a chenille throw over them both. After another of his fitful nights, it seemed Galan had succumbed to Ella's soothing effect.
"Jade, are you supporting the doorway or would you like to try your luck at cards?" Tham winked as he shuffled the deck then started dealing out the next hand.
"I'll pass. I suck at cheating."
"Cheating?" Tham feigned insult. "Harsh words female. We are simply. . ."
"Creative with the finer points of the rules," Cowboy finished for him.
The four of them laughed and nodded.
Aust set his lute down against the marble hearth of the fireplace and joined me by the door. Pulling back from kissing my cheek, he slid the wide strap from my shoulder and set my bag on the floor just inside the room. "How was your class this afternoon, neelan?"
"Good, thanks." I shuffled over to the buffet and poured myself a glass of soda. "Naith and I took a group of fourth years to a clearing near northern ward seventeen to harvest the Purple Pollida. The lavender flowers are almost three feet tall this time of year."
"And for what shall you use them?"
"A couple things actually. Both the spiny heads of the flowers and the roots can be used in several different natural remedies." I pointed to my bag and when he brought it to me I retrieved one of the cuttings from the pocket to show him. "Aust, if you're interested in my Phytotherapy classes you're more than welcome to sit in."
He smiled wide. "If our training schedule should allow, I shall. Gratitude."
Aust gave off such a beautifully pure energy I couldn't help but be drawn to it. "I'll make sure your schedule allows it." I winked at him. "I do have a little pull around here."
"Gratitude, Jade. The natural world of Shalana—"
We both swung around when Galan—still clutching Ella to his chest—stood bolt upright. Looking at all the watchful eyes upon him, the energy of the room changed.
A cold tingling clawed at me. "Galan, what is it?"
"Something is wrong." He growled, moving to Iadon and handing off the sleeping baby. He drew his dagger, tensing as he spun it in his hand, obviously trying to focus on whatever it was that he was sensing. Cards fell in a flurry, weapons and daggers took their place.
Then we felt it too, the crackle of the electrical fissure opening up in the room. Bruin materialized into the centre of the lounge, bruised and bleeding from a gash across his shoulder. He met my gaze and nodded once. "Saddle up."
Every person in the room was on their feet and readying themselves. The Elves slung quivers, cinched belts and unsheathed swords. Cowboy, Savage and Rue heaved on their battle-vests and dusters which were each stocked full as an arsenal.
"The majority of Scourge are out on a raid. The compound is guarded by only a skeleton force of fifty or so." Bruin looked to Iadon, inclining his head. "Did you finish that little project I gave you?" Iadon laid Ella in her chair then retrieved his backpack from the floor.
"Blaze and Princess, come over here for a sec."
I looked at Bruin while Iadon laid out two black chest harnesses. They looked like Army Surplus had ravaged Victoria's Secrets and sired hybrid Kevlar, tank-top-sport-bras.
"Battle vests for girls?" Lexi squealed. "Cool."
"Iadon sized them to fit and will show you how to get them on."
With Iadon's help, Lexi and I slipped into our new assault apparel. They were lightweight and strong as steel, covering our chest and bellies. And what do you know . . . we rocked the look. Small Velcro pockets ran down the front and along the bottom edge with two slim blades sheathed crisscross for a stealthy retrieval.
"In a jam these babies might keep your girl parts protected, you feel me?"
I nodded, patting my pockets and activating my communicator. With that done, I checked how the others were doing. Though I thought Lexi and I had ceased to be female in the eyes of our fellow Talon enforcers, the men stood, transfixed on our new bad-ass vests.
"Down boys." Tham said, smacking Lexi on the butt as he grabbed his dagger.
"Sorry Tham. At this particular moment, down is not an option." Cowboy adjusted his leathers and waggled his brows. "How hot is a woman in battle gear?"
Bruin turned to the group. "Those who can Flash grab hold of those who can't and follow my vapor." Bruin nodded once toward Galan, who was sporting a greenish hue and paying no attention to the banter. "Galan. We need you tight if we're going to get your sister back, right?" When Galan nodded, Bruin scanned the group. "Everyone ready? Okay, don't let go until we're in the belly of hell and you're surrounded by Scourge scum."
Iadon stood with his arms around Nyssa, her gaze locked on Galan. They were doing that silent communication thing the two of them did. It didn't take much to figure out what was being said. With my pulse racing I clamped Galan's hand. "I love you soul-deep Highborne."
"Stay close and stay safe, Blossom." He closed his eyes and squeezed my hand.
"Ready?" Bruin grabbed hold of us and inclined his head. "Here goes everything."
As promised, we Flashed into the eye of a storm of soldiers. The air hung between the forest trees, pressing against my skin like a heavy blanket. Fanning out along the edge of the Scourge encampment, we joined the battle already in progress. Scourge often lived below ground and just beyond the treeline was a small outbuilding which marked the entrance into the underground caverns.
Reign and a dozen men were clashing hard with a defense force hell-bent on keeping us out of those caverns. Sizing up our surroundings, Galan muttered in a low oath and pulled me behind his body. He nocked his bow in repeated succession releasing a tidal wave of arrows one after another after another until the fight drew too close. Then he drew his short sword and engaged in the melee.