by Tigertalez
She remembered when they first arrived, her brother had chanted several colorful words after an encounter with a spider and Betty sent him to clean out the chicken coop. Nor did she forget when she, Gale, and Connie had ridden to town without an escort and were forced to endure a whole shift working for the doctor. That vampire seriously has control issues.
With the last load in the dishwasher and the final pot in the drying rack, Havana dried off her hands. Gale was ready with nails and a hammer. With their new friend Bronya, they headed up to her room to hang her picture.
Gale was very vocal with her “oohs” and “ahhs”, and even though she didn’t say anything, Bronya’s face showed appreciation for the picture. As they were hammering in the nails, Connie and even Seamus stopped by to view her gift. It pleased Havana greatly to know the people she cared about appreciated something she loved so much.
After everyone left, Havana made a quick sweep around the room, readying it for her mate to join her. She even added some things nearby they might need. Grabbing her new laptop and some of her drawing things, she headed down stairs. Just before she stepped onto the main floor, the doorbell rang.
“I’ve got it,” she called out. Being in a house with so many people, she was learning little things mattered. Opening the door, she eyed a young delivery man holding a bouquet of pink and white flowers. “Hello, can I help you?” she asked.
“Uh, yes, I’m looking for a Mister Enzo Boyce. I really hope I have the right place.” The man looked around nervously.
“Yeah, you do. Wait here and I’ll get him.” She lightly closed the door, placed her things on the entry table and trotted to the office. The men looked up at her expectantly as she leaned into the room. “Enzo, some guy with flowers is here for you.”
Enzo’s shocked look let her know he had no idea what she was talking about. She giggled seeing everyone follow and crowd the entryway as Enzo opened the door. The nervous delivery man was looking around and quickly looked back when the door opened.
“Can I help you?” Enzo questioned with a doubtful tone.
The young man, Dylan, if you could go by the name tag, smiled and blushed a little, “No, someone else did, for you. These are chrysanthemums. The person who ordered them sure knows their flowers.”
Receiving the bunch, Enzo questioned him. “I’m sorry, I don’t. What are chrysanthemums?”
“Uh, these are.” The man looked puzzled but then obviously realized what Enzo really meant. “Oh, yeah, they mean secret admirer. Uh,” coughing to clear his throat, the young man continued, “there’s a card.” He pointed to the tiny envelope sticking in between the yellow blooms.
By the look on Enzo’s face, he didn’t know what to do or say. Havana giggled along with Gale, but Connie didn’t seem to be so shocked. “Seriously, men, you would think it was a three headed horse. Give them to me, and I’ll quickly put them in a vase while you tip the kind delivery man.”
That chastising, of course, got the girls laughing harder as they watched the gob-smacked Enzo release his bundle and dig into his pocket, handing the driver a twenty dollar bill. After closing the door on a shocked deliveryman, Enzo opened the note and read it. Havana tried to read over his shoulder, but he was careful not to allow anyone else to see it, except for Alphy. No one could deny their alpha. Havana huffed as Alphy chuckled and slapped Enzo on the back. Now she really wanted to know what it said. And of course her brother couldn’t throw them a bone and say anything, not even a quip. Damn it!
With the delivery man’s engine gone and the crowd dispersed, Havana picked up her burden and skipped out on her way to the barn. She saw Matteo and Slate heading that way, too, but she didn’t pay much attention to them. The sun was peeking between the clouds, warming the air that seemed to add to her cheer. Passing the garage, she stopped and watched Seamus standing still with his eyes closed and his nose slightly up in the air. Looking around and seeing nothing out of the ordinary, she raised her nose in the air and tried to capture what had his attention on the breeze. The air brought a watery fresh pine and foliage scent, fresh and sweet, but nothing else stood out. Maybe she couldn’t smell it where she was. She knew the wind could make a scent flurry around in circles at times. Daring closer, she tried again but still didn’t notice anything. “Whatchya smellin’, Seamus?”
“I’m not sure. I need to talk to Alphy about it,” he mumbled and walked away.
Looking towards the barn, Havana saw Slate, Matteo, and another pack member escorting what looked like a prisoner into the woods. Everyone’s so busy. Shrugging her shoulders, she continued to splash her way through the muddy path to the barn.
The familiar scents of wood, metal, cement, barn owls, and critters wafted over her as she opened one of the doors. The faint scent of long ago visits from herding animals was still slightly imprinted into the surroundings. But if they were to fill it once again with horses and such, they would have to get rid of the building materials first.
Havana kind of liked the idea of being around farm animals. She was raised in the suburb country, so it was like the city’s version of country. Chickens were an oddity for her, so she couldn’t imagine how fun the others would be like.
The boards creaked as her weight shifted on them when she climbed the stairs to the second level. Having thought more about why her mate roosted out here in the barn instead of in her room made sense, this time, but after tonight, he’d better not do it again. She was going to let him know he was forgiven, and just so he wouldn’t have any more misconceptions or misjudgments, she decided she was going to be blunt with him. After hearing the tragedy he’d endured during wartime, she felt fate brought her in his life now so he could be pulled a little bit from his serious side and to loosen up. He needed to have a little more fun. And she wasn’t going to admit this to anyone, but being as young as she was, she figured it was also fate trying to temper her a bit.
Nearing the corner of items, she placed her things down and walked around to see her petrified mate. Soon, once he claimed her, he would go through molting and be able to choose when to roost. Thinking of that made her happy that he would see a sunrise and sunset for the first time with her.
Rounding the corner, she stopped and fought to catch her breath from an intense loved-filled shock. Dultyn looked like he was already holding her against him, with her face in his right hand. And frozen on his face, staring down to where she would be standing was a look of pure, unadulterated, passionate love.
Havana moved slowly to her mate and stroked his cheek. She maneuvered her body into his perfectly placed hands positioning her against his warm hardened body. His arm wrapped perfectly around her waist. She tilted her face and rested her cheek in his large clawed hands. The smooth stone rubbed softly over his skin, and his warmth seeped into her, warming her. When she looked up, their faces were so close that she was looking directly into his face. It held so much emotion. She couldn’t stop the stream of tears that, again, began to fall. Wow, when my mate makes up for his mistakes, he does a good job. How am I going to beat this? And my mistake was worse.
She didn’t know how long she spent in his arms, but it didn’t feel long enough. She let her hands rove over the smooth stone dips and curves of his arms, chest, and face. She traced his fingers with hers, and placed kisses on his face. She even brushed her lips over his. Yeah sappy, she thought, but she wasn’t going to be like this for anyone else. She made sure her scent was well spread along his surface, easing her bear some. Hearing her cell sing “I’m a Gummy Bear” she sighed. It was Reese’s ringtone. Figures. She reluctantly pulled herself away from her perfect stone cocoon.
“Yeah?”
Her younger brother’s voice sounded over the line. “Hey, sis, Connie asked if you would come in and help her with lunch.”
Ok, she couldn’t help but act her age. She whined. “But—but I wanted to spend time with my mate.”
“Sorry, sis. I’m supposed to be helping Seamus since Katie is too sick, and Gale left wi
th Alphy who is traveling with Nix and Bronya to Toronto. They’re not supposed to be back until supper.”
Havana groaned. With so many people coming to the pack house for meals, and with Betty gone, and of course none of the uber-macho men could do anything girly like cook, that left the girls having to team up to produce the mass quantities of grub. Ok, maybe she was a little too hard on the men. They were doing loads of other things like building houses and protecting them. Blah, blah, blah. She really wasn’t happy about this.
Huffing out her irritation, she answered, “Fine, but no one had better complain they don’t like the food or I’ll go all bear on their asses.”
“Sure thing, sis, I’ll let Connie know.” Lowering his voice, her brother continued, “Just between you and me, she’s looking pretty tired. I think all the stresses of everything, and maybe perhaps the twins on top of it, have really exhausted her.”
Now Havana felt slightly guilty for not thinking of the friendly woman. Sighing again, she answered, “Let her know I’m on my way in. Don’t worry, I’ll lose the bitch side of me before I get there so she won’t feel bad.”
“Thanks, sis,” Reese cheerfully replied right before he ended the call.
Havana groaned again. Stepping up to her mate one last time, she spoke to him in spite of knowing he couldn’t hear her. “I’ve gotta go and help with lunch, my mate. I’ll be back later, but just a heads-up, it sounds like I’ll get drafted again into helping with supper.” After another kiss, she forced herself away from her mate’s warm embrace and headed down the stairs. Opening the door, she nearly cursed herself for forgetting her stuff. Just as she turned to head back, something in the forest glimmered. Turning to see what caught her eye, she slowly started to head into the tree line.
Havana didn’t hear anything, but she felt a piercing pain in her stomach. Looking down, she saw a red tipped dart sticking from her stomach. She looked up, but everything looked blurry, then nothing but blackness.
Chapter Nine
First hours of Saturday morning
After the attack at the hotel, Bronya stayed quiet to help assimilate everything she’d just seen and heard. There were many things she didn’t understand, but she knew those answers would come soon enough. But for now, she was struggling with the things she understood but found hard to believe. As they made their way from the hotel to a large house in the middle of nowhere, she tried to get her mind to shut down enough to rest. Of course with the bloody room and dead bodies still burned behind her eyelids, that wasn’t something she thought she could do.
Arriving at the large house, she leaned closer to Nix. For some reason, she felt most comfortable with him. Something about him calmed her a bit and gave her the sense that she was safe. She needed that to help keep her sane. Entering the house, Nix introduced her to a large man. “Bronya, this is our Alpha, Ralph Kaska, but everyone calls him Alphy.”
Ok, “alpha” was a term she was familiar with. In the animal world, an alpha was a leader, so she deduced this man was their leader. Watching them each subtly show their necks to him helped confirm it. “Alphy, this is my mate, Bronya Webber.”
Alphy smiled and held out his hand. “I’m pleased to meet you, Bronya.” She took his hand and shook it. “I’m very sorry for the violent introduction into our world. There are a lot of things to assimilate, so take your time and don’t be shy to ask questions.”
They made their way into the dining room where Dultyn was, and to her surprise, two other gargoyles. Bronya marveled at the difference in their appearances, but she pressed closer to Nix. She wasn’t frightened so much as she was unsure of herself.
They had uncrated a large print that she thought was a beautiful piece. It was simple, yet drew her eye with its lines and patterns.
“She’s going to love it beyond words, Dultyn. You did good, man.” Alphy’s admiration sounded sincere, and Bronya had to agree. Whoever it was meant for was a lucky girl.
Feeling a light press on her lower back, she allowed Nix to navigate her to a room upstairs. “This is my room. We have just a few hours before we need to be back up again. I don’t expect you to allow me to hold you, but I would feel better if you would sleep in here with me. If you would rather me sleep on the floor or even have me shift and perch on the bed frame, I would do that for you.”
Bronya thought about what he said and offered. She hadn’t known him for more than a few hours. Could she be ok with letting him lie next to her and hold her? Feeling her eyes grow almost too heavy to keep open, she felt her concerns fall away. She really didn’t care right now. Shaking her head, she took a chance and walked into his arms, which immediately wrapped around her, drawing her into a warm and comfortable embrace that had her relaxing so much she nearly fell to sleep standing up.
His rich chuckle drew a shiver of pleasure down her spine. “I’m tired, too. Thank you.” He kissed the top of her head then led her to one side of the bed. After both of them took off their shoes, she allowed him to draw her close against him, spooning her against the front of his toned body. She felt her eyes burn as her lids closed over them. She felt her body relax in his hold, and just before she was completely out, she thought to herself, how odd that it feels so right to be here with him.
A thumping noise had Bronya jolting awake. She felt a solid wall of heat at her back as warm strong arms squeezed her close. “Shh, it’s ok, I’ve got you. It’s just a friend at the door.” His hand rubbed lightly on her hip, calming her. She molded her back to his form as he called through to door. “Yeah?”
Bronya’s eyes were burning dry as she looked around. The sun had started to rise. Already?
A muffled male voice sounded from the other side. “Alphy wants you to join us in a meeting in five. Coffee is already brewing.”
“All right, I’m coming.” Nix kissed the top of her head, “Sorry, Dove, I’ve gotta get up.” She moved just enough to give him room to roll over and sit on the edge of the bead. She watched his shirt pull tight around the muscles in his torso as he stretched. A flutter of want pulled in her stomach, but before it could accumulate further, he stood up and headed for the door. She watched as he stopped at the door and looked back. “Let me show you where the bathroom is and after we’re done, I’ll lead you to the kitchen, before heading into the meeting.”
A few minutes later, Bronya was sitting down at the breakfast bar with a hot cup of coffee warming in her hands. “This is Gale, Alphy’s mate, and Connie, her mother. I’ll be down that hall on the right if you need me for anything.” Turning to the two ladies, Nix asked them, “Take it easy on her. She hasn’t spoken much because she’s still processing.” With another kiss planted on her forehead, Nix took his own steaming cup of coffee with him down the hall he indicated and disappeared into a lit doorway.
Bronya wasn’t normally so quiet or shy, but she really didn’t have any energy yet and she still hadn’t finished wrapping her head around what she’d seen only a few hours before. Right, no telling how long that could take.
Gale plopped down next to her while her mother started cracking eggs into a bowl and whisking them. “Welcome to the pack. I’m Gale. I’m human, too, and so is my mom. You should love being the destined mate to a shifter, especially Nix. Did anyone get to tell you yet all the perks?”
Bronya shook her head. Gale must have seen the stress on her face, because she toned down her voice as she continued. “It was a ton for me to take in, too. I was fifteen when I learned about shifters. Let me try to give you some basics. First off, you can’t be turned into any paranormal. You have to be born that way.
“They are completely cognizant when they are shifted, but their baser instincts are stronger, and when they refer to their animal, it’s more like referring to their instincts. But their animal is them. You can talk to them in their shifted form, and they’ll understand you just like when they are in human form. Also, paranormals heal faster, much faster, then a human so they can’t go to any human hospital or doctor.
; “There are several different species of animal shifters, both predator and prey, but don’t let that cause you to judge mean and nice. My loving stepdad is an elk shifter, and his alpha, also an elk, was evil and cruel.”
Bronya sipped her coffee while she tried to follow along as Gale continued. “Shifters, or all paranormals really, usually live in groups, or packs, for a couple of reasons. Of course you can probably guess it’s for protection, but it’s also because they live so much longer than humans. They can’t really bond to them because they can’t keep them as friends for long. They also have to worry about always hiding that part of them around them. So they are usually very close to those within their own pack.”
Ok, Bronya sort of understood this. She watched nature enough to know how some animals live and work together. Wait, live longer?
“That brings us to hierarchy. The leader of a group is the alpha. His second in charge is the beta. After that are the lead enforcer and other enforcers and then the lead tracker and other trackers.” Bronya was able to make sense of most of the hierarch system. It was a lot like in wolf packs. Taking another sip of her bitter brew, she struggled to keep up with the info dump as Gale continued.
“For safety and protection, there are laws within the paranormal world. That is one thing you might have noticed last night. When you cross a line in the shifter world, usually there’s no going back, so it can mean death. They have strict laws, and if you mess up or hurt someone, the victim is entitled to restitution. All shifters are governed by the shifter council, and the vampires have the vampire council. I’m still learning what others are out there.”
Bronya started to feel a pounding throb behind her eyes. Vampires? She rubbed her eyes to try to ease the blossoming throb. This is “just some basics”?
Gale finally noticed her discomfort. “Oh! Ok, I guess that’s enough for now. Hey, don’t worry, I can easily promise everything will be all right. Of everything you learn, always remember that fate never makes mistakes. Nix will be everything you need him to be. That’s how fate works. So just relax and let things sink in.”