by Kimber White
The Bagel Bureau was closed for business now that the church crowd had finally filtered out. Father Dmietriev hadn’t come back, and I supposed that might have been a blessing if it weren’t for the fact I knew he was the one who called the pack on me.
My brother Milo brooded in the corner watching Valentin struggle to control his wolf. My cousins Erik and Edward sat on the opposite side of the bar joining in with the yelling, but otherwise staying put. My cousin Leo was usually the quiet one. Normally, he was my ally. Today, he sat in a corner booth watching it all play out.
They’d been like this for about twenty minutes. They’d meant it as an interrogation, but I’d only gotten three honest words out...I don’t know...before the five of them erupted into the shouting match I now sat in the middle of.
“How many times has he been in here?” Val asked, turning to me. That was progress. At least he wasn’t spewing obscenities in Russian anymore. We’d moved back to direct questioning.
“Again,” I took a breath. “I don’t know. Once or twice maybe. I only waited on him the one time.”
The last part was true. The rest, I was pretending. Only Milo would be shrewd enough to pick up on that. Luckily, his wolf-fueled anger made it hard for him to pick up on any nuances in my tone of voice or posture.
My casual, nonchalant act was just that. The man they lost their shit over had been in the bagel shop exactly three times in the last week. Today was the fourth time I’d seen him and the third day in a row.
I’d noticed his size before anything else. Tall, muscular, he moved with coiled strength and a predatory grace only shifters had. I thought he was a wolf at first, but the minute he locked eyes with me, I knew he was other. Bear maybe, though I’d honestly never been face to face with one of those. The pack would never let one get that close to me.
But this man was no bear. He had a heat about him unlike anything I’d ever encountered. A shiver of pleasure went through me as I remembered what happened the first day he came in. It was just a little thing. My finger brushed against the back of his hand. It set my heart racing and my nerves on fire. He had deep-set, green eyes that glittered like emeralds in the sun. If he wasn’t a wolf or a bear, I had no doubt he had some kind of magic in him.
As the men of my family shouted over each other and me, I had no earthly idea why I felt the need for evasion. My mystery man was probably as dangerous as my overprotective uncle assumed he was. And yet, I couldn’t bring myself to tell them anything.
“The priest said he was watching you,” Erik said. “You really have no idea why?”
“No,” I answered with a sigh. “I really don’t. And I’m not even convinced he’s right about that. It was Father Dmitriev he was talking to. I just came over to see if he...the priest...wanted a cup of coffee before mass. That’s it. You’re all just making way too much out of this. This is a public place, for crying out loud. Lots of people come in here I’ve never seen before. We want them to come back more than once. That’s kind of the idea, you know?”
“This isn’t the same, and you know it,” Milo said, finally picking up on my bullshit. At twenty-three, he was three years older than me, and he lorded that over my head even more than his shifter powers. I was just his human sister, after all. Sometimes, he seemed genetically incapable of realizing I could take care of myself.
“Whatever,” I countered. “This guy you’re up in arms about. I haven’t done anything wrong. Whatever your beef is, it’s got nothing to do with me. This is shifter shit. Leave me out of it.”
Milo gave me his lopsided smile. The one that worked on every girl he’d ever met. He had a mass of unruly brown hair that he wore long on top and shaved to a buzz at the sides. My brother had a deep cleft in his chin that became downright cavernous when he smiled. I guess you could say he was good-looking. At the moment, I kind of wanted to rip his face off.
“Oh, just knock that crap off,” Milo said, rolling his eyes. Though I didn’t do it physically, I’d still managed to rip the smile off his face. “You’ve been around enough of us long enough to know there was something off about that guy. Be smart, Grace.”
God, I hated when he said stuff like that. Pure big brother, backdoor misogynistic bull crap. I wasn’t having it for one second.
“I’m done here,” I said. “You asked your questions. I answered them. That guy is long gone now. You wanna know who or what he was, go track him down. Put those hypersensitive noses of yours somewhere besides up my ass. I’m tired. I’m going home.”
Home this week, thank God, was a little brownstone on North Oakley four blocks over. I think I would have lost my mind if I had to sleep under the same roof as Milo and the rest of the pack tonight. As it was, I was housesitting for the parents of one of the other waitresses at the Bagel Bureau for the summer. It had been a slice of heaven not having to share a bathroom with a pack of wolves.
“Will you at least let one of us walk you home?” Leo said. He was about the only one I’d even entertain having within ten feet of me right now, and only just.
“Fine,” I said, grabbing my leather jacket off the bar. We still had a few more weeks left of summer, but it was already starting to get cold in the evening.
Milo opened his mouth to protest, but Leo shot him a look that did the trick. They’d done the bad cop routine on me. I knew Leo figured he’d try being the good cop.
I gave my brother a two-fingered salute. Erik and Edward looked miserable. Val held the door for me as Leo followed me out.
It was just a short four blocks, but I wasn’t in the mood for conversation. For his part, Leo understood that. He stayed a few paces behind me scanning the streets and alleys, always on high alert like the rest of the pack. God help the poor bastard who ever really did try to mess with me. I knew I should be grateful. I was. But today, I just felt smothered.
We got to the walk-up in front of the brownstone. I knew Leo had probably been asked to try and convince me to sleep under the family roof tonight on West Potomac. He knew he’d be wasting his breath.
“Thanks,” I said, turning to him. “I mean it. I do know you all mean well.”
Leo let out a sigh. At twenty-six he was the next oldest of us after Val, but he was the last one to come to Chicago. I remember going with my father to pick Leo up at the airport. I had only been five years old. Leo had some trouble getting through customs and my father had been terrified they wouldn’t let him through. Even at eleven and only speaking Russian, Leo had handled it all.
“It’s all right, coz,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “It’s just your dad’s been on high alert lately. He won’t say, but I think he’s had some new pressure from back home. It’s hard for him. He’s had to take care of all of us on his own. That can’t have been easy.”
I knew it wasn’t. My mother died so long ago I didn’t even remember her. Milo did. Chicago was her town, though all of her family were long gone too. Milo said she would have stayed in Moscow for my father. Back home was a little town outside of Moscow I’d never been to. Many of the wolves in Wicker Park were still loyal to the Vadims, the biggest Russian pack left. Papa had warned all of us to stay as far away from them as we could.
“I know,” I said. “But Leo, what is going on? Why is Dad on high alert? What is he afraid will happen to me? To any of us?”
Leo’s face darkened. He looked over my shoulder and I knew he wasn’t going to give me a straight answer.
“Don’t bother,” I said. “Pack business. His standard answer and yours. I get it. And I know the drill. Trust no one. Always look over my shoulder. Be ready for hell to break loose.”
Leo smiled. He had rakish good looks with wavy auburn hair and penetrating blue eyes. His wolf was a deep russet, like the sunset when he shifted.
“More or less,” he said. “Look, I’ll get out of your hair. Just do me a favor. Don’t antagonize Milo or your father right now. Okay? You know all of us have your best interests at heart. Yes, Uncle Andre is overbearing and overprotective. But
, he’s lived in a different world than the rest of us. He just wants what’s best for you. For all of us.”
I touched Leo’s cheek. He had a day’s worth of rough, reddish stubble. His skin warmed beneath my palm and he gave me a smile that usually got him in trouble with women. God help them.
“I hear you, cousin,” I said. “But I’m still going to live my life. This isn’t Russia. I’m not afraid of the big, bad wolves around here. It’s just my luck I’m related to all of them.”
Leo laughed. “Fair enough. You know Uncle Andre always says you’re going to be the death of him. I’m starting to get why.”
I let out an overly dramatic sigh. “It’s not fair. I’m the good one. It’s the rest of you who cause all the trouble.”
“Fair enough,” Leo said as he backed down the stairs. I felt a little bad for lumping him in with the rest of them today. He was always better at handling me because he usually just gave me my space. I waved goodbye and watched him until he turned the corner and disappeared from view.
I knew where he’d go. I knew where all of them would go. There was something in the air that had nothing to do with me. My brother, cousins, and uncle had been city-bound too long. They needed to shift. They needed to hunt. As soon as my father got back from his construction job on the south side, he’d find them and join them.
I envied them. God, it must be so freeing to just let loose and go wild like they could. I knew it must make them feel like the most powerful creatures on earth to let their beasts out and just go. I couldn’t do that, but I had something at least sort of close.
I changed out of my Bagel Bureau t-shirt and found a running bra and shorts. I gathered my hair into a ponytail and put my smartphone into the fanny pack I wore. It wasn’t the most stylish thing in the world, but it was another concession I’d made to my father. Along with my earbuds, I slipped a switchblade he made me carry into the Velcro compartment of the leather pouch and grabbed a water bottle from the fridge.
No, it wasn’t like running with a wolf pack, but the evening breeze filled my lungs and I tore off toward the park. It would stay light for at least another hour and I’d stay to the most heavily trafficked trails. I wasn’t looking for trouble or on some danger quest, despite what my brother liked to think.
My blood pumped harder and I started to sweat. This was good. This was hard. It gave me time to think.
I said it all to Leo and the others, but I said it to myself now. I’d done nothing wrong. They all wanted to make something out of this guy who showed up today, but it had nothing whatsoever to do with me.
My muscles loosened up as I made the first turn. This was the good part. I hit my stride. In another few minutes, I’d feel the good burn. I’d be sore tomorrow, but it was all worth it. I popped my earbuds in and picked something grungy. It fit my mood.
That guy. I’d come out here to clear my head. When I closed my eyes, I could see his face. I could almost smell him. Not the tangy, woodsy, masculine scent that wolf shifters gave off. It wasn’t that. His was just as powerful though. Like metal and fire.
He was beautiful, brutally handsome with the blackest hair I’d ever seen. My blood stirred as I imagined running my hands through it. I went right back to that second when my finger brushed his skin. It was electric fire. He was...something. And everything I’d said to my brother and the others was a damn lie.
Gideon Brandhart.
He’d paid with a credit card that first day he came in. The name seemed familiar, but I hadn’t tried to place it. Until he came in the second day and I knew my mind wasn’t just playing tricks on me and it wasn’t my family’s paranoia rubbing off. He was different. And it felt like he was there for me.
I rounded the next corner and advanced the next song to something even harder. It felt good, almost making my ears burn. I wanted to drown out my thoughts. I just wanted to be.
The pack was out there. The wooded area was just south of me. They’d probably head there first. They were close enough that if I really did find myself in trouble, they might sense it. At least Milo would.
A shadow crossed my path. Warmth spread from my shoulder blades outward. My breath caught. I passed a couple running in the opposite direction. The man smiled at me. The woman only had eyes for him.
I’d hit the park benches just ahead, and it seemed like a good enough place to take a break. My throat ran dry and the water would taste so good. I slowed my pace. Panting, I put a foot up on the bench and tightened my laces. A shadow moved over me. Strange. There were no clouds.
I should have been afraid maybe. In some deep corner of my mind, maybe I was. But, the words formed in my thoughts as natural as breathing. Oh, there you are again.
I straightened, feeling him behind me. He kept his distance. He was just watching. I doubted if he even realized I knew he was there. Maybe I wasn’t supposed to. But, I did. I turned.
Gideon Brandhart was walking up the path a few yards behind me. I swallowed hard and faced him full on. His step faltered. He was surprised that I sensed his approach. As he got closer, my heart raced. Tendrils of heat unraveled through me.
I don’t remember making a conscious decision to do it, but before I knew what was happening, I crossed the distance between us. It was just us on the trail now. There were no other people. No cars. Nothing. Alarm bells rang in my head. At least, they should have.
I went for the knife. It was my father’s voice in my head. He wasn’t there. Not really. But, his lessons pounded through me. Be cautious. Be safe.
“You,” I said, my throat dry.
Gideon took a step back. I have no idea why I did it. Any of it. But, I lifted a hand and reached for him. The urge to touch him burned through me.
He caught my wrist before I could press my palm to his cheek. Fire arched between us. His eyes widened then turned purest gold. This was no wolf. No bear. He was something stronger. More dangerous. More powerful.
“Oh, shit,” I whispered. Gideon seemed just as unsettled as I was. Whatever beast he carried inside himself, I felt it clamoring to get out.
That’s when I panicked. He lunged for me. I reacted. I had the knife in my hand and I held it out. Gideon’s face fell then went white. He grabbed the knife and squeezed the blade. That same fire came back into his eyes as he buried the blade into his palm. He pulled away and held his palm up and watched blood trickle down his wrist as if he’d never seen it before.
Then, he turned those blazing eyes back to me. He grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me gently. “Where the hell did you get that knife?” he asked.
In the distance, three distinct howls rose. It was Milo, Val, and my father, and they were closing in.
Chapter Three
Gideon
Dragonsteel. The blade sliced through the meat of my palm, burning a path along with it. For me, it would be a minor cut. For any other shifter, aimed properly, it could mean death.
“Where did you get this?” I asked her again.
Grace took a step back, out of my grasp. She held it out, her fingers trembling as she watched the blood flow down my wrist. The wound itself was already starting to close.
Shit.
What had I been thinking? She knew what the weapon was. It made it all the more urgent that I figure out where she came by it.
The pack was coming. A human, she wasn’t connected to them the way they were to each other, but she meant something to them. It wasn’t a coincidence, them showing up outside the bagel shop the way they did.
I’d overstayed my welcome. One more close encounter, and they might start piecing together what I was.
“You’re hurt,” Grace said, her voice rising with urgency. “Why did you do that? I wasn’t trying to hurt you. Er...I don’t think.”
An earsplitting howl rose. The pack was in the woods at the edge of the park and heading straight for us.
“Come on!” Grace whispered. “Follow me. It’s no good if they find you.”
I blinked hard. Of course she woul
d think her blade did more damage to me than it had. I knew in my heart I should just tell her not to worry. Better yet, I should have just cloaked myself and flown the hell out of there. But, Grace’s touch burned through me far deeper than the knife wound had. It was no good. Wherever she was going, I had no choice but to follow.
She grabbed my other hand and broke into a run. She took a zigzag path through the park, veering off the path. It took just a light jog for me to keep up with her. The desire to pull her against me and take flight burned through me. My dragon wanted to soar. Somehow, I managed to keep my feet on the ground.
She took a shortcut through the neighborhood bordering the park on North Damen Street. The sun dipped below the trees as she turned down a narrow street lined with brick brownstones.
The wolves were still back there, but they seemed disorganized. For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out the connection. Unless…
Fire shot through me. Still holding my hand, Grace felt it too. She turned and let go of me, her eyes widening with fear.
Somehow, I managed to get a hold of myself before the fire reached my eyes. I pushed those destructive thoughts out of my mind. She couldn’t be mated to one of them. I would have sensed that, wouldn’t I?
“This way,” she said, breathless. She stopped in front of a two-story brownstone with a black, wrought iron gate in front. She unlatched it and bounded up the porch steps two at a time. I was right behind her.
She did a quick scan of the street and pushed the front door open, motioning for me to follow her. She needn’t have bothered. It almost felt like a magnetic pull between us. I had no idea if she felt it too.
A brown tabby cat tore down the narrow hallway as I stepped inside. Grace went around me and locked the front door. The cat purred and rubbed against her leg. Then, he got one look at me and dove under the couch so fast he was a blur of motion.