CHAPTER ELEVEN
Ana sat on the wooden steps of the gazebo with a blanket around her shoulders. SE was just above her, rubbing her back. She almost wanted to tell him to stop. She was so freaked about what happened during the ritual, she wouldn’t even let anyone else near her. She felt poisonous. Toxic. The way she used to feel because her nagual was Cobra, the same as Mommie Dearest’s. Back then, she’d never thought she could feel any worse. She supposed it was traumatic to look down and see your body Casper out, but it was nowhere near as horrifying as the look on the faces of everyone around her.
“Ana, you’re still shaking. I wish you’d let me give you something,” Helen said.
She shook her head. “No. Thanks.”
Adriana put a hot mug on the stairs next to her. “Here, honey. It’s chamomile. It’ll calm you.”
She thanked the female and took a small sip. No one seemed afraid of her now, but they had been. Every one of them…except Evy. She looked across the patio at the Seer. Her friend looked back at her, quietly spoke to Troy, and started for the house. Sure enough, just as she opened the French door, she looked back at Ana. Her eyes took on their pearlescent glow for a fraction of a second. She was signaling her.
Ana put down her tea and slipped the blanket off. “I’ll be right back, my male.”
She followed the path to the back door. Well, what d’ ya know. As soon as she walked in the house, she sensed Evy’s k’ul coming from inside the half bath just off the foyer. Ana had sure as hell never been summoned to a meeting in the girls’ room before. This was almost surreal enough to compete with the rest of the evening’s events. She felt like she was sixteen. Well, maybe someone else at sixteen. The Seer sensed her as well, and opened the door to let her in, then locked it behind them. It was a good thing Evy was so petite. They barely fit as it was.
“You sure you wanna get this close to me?”
Evy frowned. “Don’t be an ass.”
“I guess I read you right. You weren’t afraid of me like everyone else, were you? So what do you know?” she whispered.
“They weren’t afraid of you. They were in shock. And they missed some pretty important shit while they were, too.”
Ana crossed her arms. “Like what?”
“Like when you went transparent, your k’ul went through the roof.”
“Define through the roof.”
Evy threw her hands up. “Epic, Ana. Similar to mine. And, there’s something else. I felt the nagual come out the other side.”
“The other side? The other side of what? In case you missed it, I didn’t have any sides, Evy.”
“Not that kind of side. In the Otherworld somewhere.”
“Wait, what? Without a portal?” WTF?
The Seer put her finger to her lips. “Shh. I don’t know. I only know what I felt.”
“So I didn’t kill the nagual?”
Evy shook her head. “No. Definitely not.”
Ana put her head back against the wall and exhaled in relief. “Oh, thank the Goddess. I thought for sure I had. But where the hell did all that power come from?”
“You didn’t feel it?”
“Hello? I had no body. I was too busy trying not to have a stroke.”
Evy nodded. “Right. So what’s the plan?”
“Don’t tell anyone for now. Not until we have a better idea why my freaky-ass life is even freakier. Not even Troy, Evy.”
“I got it. Are you going to tell SE?”
“Yeah, I have to. But I think I’ll wait ’til morning. Maybe by then I’ll have more—”
Evy raised a brow. “Perspective?”
“I was gonna say stones, but close enough.”
James opened his eyes and stretched. Man, the lack of windows in Pax’s room was so screwing with his internal clock. The bed next to him was empty. Pax was up. What time was it? He summoned a current to turn on the lamp and looked over at the nightstand for his phone. It wasn’t there. Crap. He needed to put a clapper on that SOB. He slid his hand under the duvet and felt around in the sheets. Aha. He found something hard under his pillow and pulled it out. It was a small black box. Wha…? Oh, fuck. Today was his birthday. He’d forgotten all about it with the mirror drama. He always hated it when people made a fuss over him. It wasn’t his thing. But today, when he already felt like such a tool? Total cringe-fest.
“Oh, my God.” It was jewelry. It had to be. He covered his eyes with his palms. Not that he was commitment phobic, but with everything going on. He shook his head and looked back down at the box. Nah. This was Pax. He had more sense than that. And no way was he going to propose by just sticking a ring under James’s pillow. That was so not his style. He smiled to himself and flipped the top. Inside the box was a pair of diamond studs. Amazing diamond studs. He remembered Pax’s comment about how hot they would look on him and smiled. Maybe the day wouldn’t be so bad.
James managed to hold on to that perspective until he got up. As soon as he realized where he was headed, he froze. Fuck me. There was no way he was going in that bathroom. He’d just have to shower upstairs. His clothes were up there anyway. Skipping the whole walk of shame thing, he gleamed out and materialized in his room. Sometimes being a New Breed had its perks. He put the box down on the vanity and started the shower. After a few minutes under the hot water, the bandage on his wrist was half off, so he carefully pulled it the rest of the way. All that was left of the wound was a thin pink line. Thank the Goddess. The fewer reminders he had of the night before, the better. He showered quicker than usual without all his thick hair to deal with. He wrapped a towel around his waist and went into the closet. The J. Crew jeans Pax liked went on first. He skipped his usual hoodie and chose a gray wide striped V-neck sweater instead. He looked at the tag. Cashmere. He shook his head. Pax.
James would have preferred to skip the whole mirror business altogether, but he needed a shave. He left some scruff on his chin. It seemed to look good with his hair this way. He was starting to get just a little curious about how those diamonds looked. Once he was dressed, he put them on and checked them out in the mirror. They were the perfect size. Not obnoxious, but you definitely knew they were there. And they did look good on him. Pax was right. He was always right when it came to style. He was just about to go find him when a New Breed with just the right vibration of k’ul knocked on the door.
James let Pax in and gave him a quick kiss. “Hey.”
The male went right for his wrist. “Hey. How are you?”
He turned his arm over and pushed up his sleeve so Pax could see.
His camzah brushed the red line lightly with his hand before bringing it to his lips and dropping a quick kiss on it. “Nice ice by the way.”
James smiled and touched one of his ears. “What, these? This male I know gave them to me for my birthday.”
“Is he hot? Should I be jealous?”
James chuckled. “He’s very hot and they’re perfect. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, but to be honest, I think I got them more for me. They look ridiculously sexy on you. Especially with the buzz.” Pax rubbed the top of his head.
James blushed right up to his ears.
The brother took him by his newly scruffy chin and brought his mouth to his. He slipped his hands over James’s hips and into his back pockets, pulling him close so their cocks rubbed together through their jeans. Pax pressed his lips across his cheek and along his jawline before burying his face in the side of his neck. They were chest to chest and James could feel the brother’s breathing become uneven. Fuck. He could barely recall anything from the night before, but he no doubt scared the shit out of Pax. He gently rubbed the male’s mark on the nape of his neck.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t mean to do it. I don’t even know how it happened.”
“Shh.” Pax kissed his shoulder, then pushed James back just far enough to look at him with faintly glowing eyes. “I know. I’m just glad you’re okay.”
“Me, too.” But he wasn�
��t okay, was he? You didn’t bust mirrors and almost end up dead if you were okay. He couldn’t stop looking into Pax’s eyes. Jesus. Just the thought of losing someone all over again must have been killing the brother. James needed to figure out how to get past this. ASAP.
Pax broke eye contact. “So, how about some breakfast? And then you have another gift coming.”
“Pax, this is enough. I don’t need anything else. Really.”
The male took his hand as they walked down the upstairs hallway. “Just one more thing.”
“Promise?”
“I swear. The studs were kind of a last minute fun thing.”
A last minute fun thing? Granted, Dimitri made sure the brothers made some serious coin, but if that was last minute, what was the other gift? A yacht?
The male looked down at James’s feet. “Unless you’ll let me replace those godawful Converse. Were they originally gray or is that just how they’ve ended up?”
“No way. These are my favorite kicks.”
“No comment.”
“Hey!”
The two of them play fought their way down the main staircase toward the small dining room. Pax ran his hand along his buzz and James leaned into his palm. When they came to the doorway, they both stopped cold. No one was there. That wouldn’t have been so odd, but the leftover food brought in from main breakfast almost two hours earlier was also barely touched.
James looked at Pax. “Did we miss something?”
Pax nodded. “I think it’s safe to say we did.”
X walked down the back corridor of the compound after helping Rosie carry materials down to the tutoring room. As he passed through the gym, he hopped up and swung off the basketball hoop. The metal made a nasty groan and he let go before breaking it. That would be a fairly efficient way to get his brothers all up in his mix. Just as he entered the main corridor, he heard a scream.
“Yo! What’s the deal down there?”
Helen flew out of the lab and ran straight at him. “I got it! I got it! The first half of the formula! I got it, X!”
“Bouya! Now that’s what I’m talkin’ about!”
The female jumped up and hugged him. “Thank you so much for your help.”
He gave her a quick squeeze. He might catch some flak from Dies, but whatever. “Aw, no. This was all you.”
“I have to find Diesel. I think he’s out by the guest house.”
X cast out his senses and found the male on his way down the path to the front of the house. “Yep, he’s on his way in.”
“Let’s not wait.”
Wow. She was really excited. Helen hated gleaming. ’Course, when your first time was off a motorcycle careening out of control, you were bound to have some reservations. “Okay, hang on.”
Seconds later they were standing on the new asphalt Dimitri had added to the property. Helen turned and shrieked when she saw her male. She flew at him and jumped up into his arms. “I did it, Dies! I got the first half!”
Diesel held her tight and she wrapped her legs around his hips. “Congratulations, Doc. I knew you could do it.”
X gave them some privacy via gleam.
Helen looked into her male’s gorgeous pale green eyes and the look of pride she saw there made the milestone even more fulfilling. True, as a surgeon she’d had her moments. But the sheer enormity of how much good a cure to the serum could do both excited and humbled her. And the change in the project’s momentum had absolutely come when she took her head out of her ass long enough to listen to her male and realize only an idiot would try to do it alone. Especially with a male like Xavier around to help.
She was still wrapped around her mate when the view of the side yard was exchanged for the privacy of their suite.
Diesel leaned her up against the wall and ran his hands into her hair. “I’m so proud of you. You know that?”
She smiled and nodded.
“Could you say it? So I know you really know?”
She took his face in her hands. “You’re proud of me.”
She didn’t realize how emotional it would make her until she heard it in her own voice. He gave her a little smile of satisfaction and she kissed one of his dimples.
“Maybe I should get some more work done before dinner.”
“Like that’s gonna happen.” He kissed her long and deep as he carried her over to the bed and made them miss dinner completely.
CHAPTER TWELVE
SE sat on the edge of the bed, watching his mate pace back and forth. “It’s not the fact Evy knows you never endangered the nagual. It’s the fact she had to tell you she had the evidence before you would even entertain the idea. You’re looking at this backwards, assuming you’ve done something wrong until proven otherwise. I get it, Ihkweea. I really do. But how many times do you have to be proven wrong to believe you’re not some evil progeny of Victrixa?”
Ana shook her head. “It’s more than that. There are things that have happened which can be tied directly to both Xibalba and Victrixa. Her demon, her use of dark spells, the disappearing act, what happened to Evy when she investigated my dream. All of those things are dark, SE, and I’m somehow tied to them. I know it.”
“Right, through your mother. That’s it. The only thing you have in common with that psycho is DNA.”
“What about last night? Whatever happened to me during the ritual was not a New Breed power.”
“We don’t know that for sure. But we do know that nothing even remotely dark came of it. The nagual was attracted to you all this time and finally found its way to the Otherworld. That’s all.”
“That’s all? The spirit went through me, SE. Into me. And…”
“And you’re afraid. You can say it, Ihkweea. It’s just me.”
“You don’t get it. I can’t, my male. I don’t have that luxury. The moment I start to let down my guard, she’ll use it to her advantage. I mean, look what she did to Bastian.” She put her hand to her forehead. “I’m starting to let shit rattle me and it’s a mistake. There might be stuff you think I should be feeling, and maybe I am. But when it comes to her, you have to let me get through the best way I know how. Okay?”
He looked up into her bright green eyes and nodded.
Ana kneeled down in front of him and he cupped her cheek with his hand. She placed her hand on top of his. “When this is all over, I wanna go home. Promise me when this is done, you’ll take me home for good.”
“Te lo juro, Ihkweea. Cuando esto termine, te llevo a México.” He promised it to her in their own native Spanish, so she could hear the earnestness in his voice.
She leaned up and brought her mouth to his, as though she were sealing his promise. In that moment he understood his fate was forever and irrevocably tied to hers. Not since the day of their mating just months ago, but since the day their housekeeper at the Mexico compound adopted her from the Maya village nearby. If they went home, they did it together. And if for any reason she could not, he would never see his homeland again.
James followed Pax out the front door and waited for his camzah to punch in all the security codes. He couldn’t imagine why Pax would want him to see what Dimitri had done to the property. It was going to be really nice for Geoffrey and Mary, but, seriously. He’d seen asphalt before.
Pax took his hand as they walked along the new path to the guest house. “How fucking awesome was that birthday cake after dinner?”
James looked around. “It was insane. You know, this would be sweet for some street hockey.”
“You’ll have to take that one up with Mary, and good luck.” Pax chuckled and ran his hand over James’s buzz before jerking his hand back. “Sorry. I know. I’m like obsessed with it.”
He smiled and took Pax’s hand back in his. “I don’t mind. Where are we going? I mean, I can pretty much figure out what the rest looks like from here.”
“I told Mary I’d pick something up for her real quick.”
“Ah.” He realized he’d never actually been inside their
house before. “Who’s taking my duty tonight?”
“Reyn. Apparently, he needs to get out. Can’t imagine why.”
“He must be going batshit. You were AWOL just across town for less than twelve hours and I practically needed a straitjacket.”
Pax gave his hand a squeeze before going into the house. Huh. That was weird. Diesel and X were so security happy there had to be an alarm system. He wiped his feet and followed Pax into the living room.
“Be right back.”
James nodded and looked around. He was so used to the mansion, he’d forgotten what a regular house was like inside. It was so strange. If someone had asked him on his last birthday what he thought he’d be doing in a year, he’d have said playing hoops at college. This, he would never have predicted. Who could? Being kidnapped, becoming a New Breed, joining the Order. Of course, a year ago, he was also homeless and sleeping in his high school at night. He never would’ve seen that one coming either. Now he had a shot at being happier than he ever could have imagined. If only he could just learn to live with what he’d done. Just coexist with it somehow. He knew he would never forgive himself, and forgetting was just as unlikely. But he was so afraid it was going to somehow fuck things up with Pax. He sighed and looked out the front window. He couldn’t let that happen. Goddess, he loved that male. The sound of Pax coming back down the hallway interrupted his thoughts. He turned around just as the male walked in clutching the collar of a gorgeous red haired Golden Retriever. Pax let go and the dog came right over to meet him.
“She’s beautiful, Pax.” He stroked the dog’s muzzle. “I didn’t know Geoffrey and Mary got a dog.”
Pax knelt down beside him and patted the animal’s back. “Actually, they didn’t. She’s from the local Retriever rescue. G and Mary were nice enough to pet sit for me. All that’s left to do is sign some paperwork. If you want her, that is.”
James looked into Pax’s eyes to make sure he’d caught that right. The Golden licked his cheek and James felt his eyes well up. “Want her? Are you kidding?”
Desperate Call (New Breed Novels Book 5) Page 8