Liability…Tovin knew what that meant. “Why now? I’m perfectly happy like this.”
“Things changed.”
“What changed exactly?” Tovin snapped back, losing patience with the other man’s terseness.
Kurt took a deep, calming breath. “The other companions found out about you.”
“How?” Tovin took a step backward.
“All I know is someone told them there was someone living in Eresna’s quarters. They think you’re more special than them now, which is causing quite a stir. There’s been a lot of infighting.”
Fantastic. Tovin forced himself to sound calm. To his ear, his voice sounded panicked when he spoke. “When do I have to meet them?”
Kurt shrugged. “You should be ready now. You’ve had plenty of time to adapt to your situation.”
“I have adapted.” Rough start, though. Attempts at escape were numerous and shamefully ineffective. On more than one occasion, Kurt remarked that Tovin was lucky Eresna had bonded with him already, as killing him would have been the standard response otherwise. Tovin felt about as fortunate as being held captive by a mad, blood-sucking werewolf queen allowed him to feel.
“You really haven’t. You don’t get it.” Kurt gave him a cross look.
Reflexively, Tovin began to defend himself, “I get—” but then stopped. Maybe that was true. Kurt might have been a tinfoil hat, but Tovin was the sick puppy no one wanted to get too attached to. Previous signs—the lack of eye contact, interaction, or even slight acknowledgements from the werewolves who brought him his food and various comfort items—were ignored simply because Tovin preferred it that way. It was like being allowed to stay in during recess all over again. “Okay. Right. I’m probably missing a few things here or there.”
“A few,” Kurt agreed.
For once, and grudgingly, Tovin prompted him further, rolling his arm to propel the man beyond their typical one-liner, mandatory-interaction responses.
The other man was in no mood. “I’m going to give you this one bit of advice. This one little bit and that’s all. Others like us—those who know the real deal—are either dead, useful, or compliant. Decide where you fall.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX: HE’S BEING COMPLAINT
Dead, useful, or compliant. Tovin settled on the last, deciding very firmly that he didn’t want to be dead while accepting the fact that he was most likely never going to be useful to the powerful queen. Compliant by default. That was him.
“You are bread.” He said it to himself and then sighed, before knocking on the ornate door that separated him from Eresna. She didn’t answer it herself. Tovin was ushered into the shewolf’s chambers by Nadine, who smiled broadly when she saw him on the other side of the door. The bright green jumper gave her red hair the sheen of dying embers.
“Terrible Tovie. How are you, little love? Got your running shoes on today?” Nadine was always the one who fetched him whenever he tried to escape. Rather than being annoyed by it, the shewolf seemed to see it as a fun game they were playing, a sort of higher stakes hide-and-seek wherein Tovin—once caught—had to spend a few months in a naughty-boy cell. She gave him a big grin and exaggerated wink. Unlike most of the others, she didn’t bother to hide her incisors, which came to sharp points right above her lower lip, and would actually run her tongue up and down the point when she was especially amused.
Tovin hated her most of all. “I’m fine. Thank you.”
“I bet. Finally dropping by to say hello are we?”
“Yes, I thought it was time.”
“Past—” She rolled her hand for dramatic effect, then continued. “—some might say.”
Tovin gave her a tight smile. He felt the edges of it stamp into his face. “I’ve been—”
“Busy?” She licked the tip of her fang, pressing the tip of her tongue against the point so that the flesh puckered slightly. She was having a great time.
Tovin swallowed and shifted his weight slightly. All tongue and tooth, Nadine showed no mercy and continued to look down on him with amused eyes. Tovin reminded himself why he was there and continued, “No. I’ve been afraid.”
When Tovin rehearsed the line—in his head, to the mirror, with a potted plant in the hall—it was said to Eresna, and her demeanor instantly changed from somewhat hostile to motherly within seconds. At least one part of his fantasy came true—for once. Nadine’s mouth rolled up shop and her eyes lost their mocking glint. It wasn’t quite motherly, but at least it wasn’t wolfish either.
“Oh, Tovie, you silly thing. You’ll be fine. Come on now.” The rest of walk down the hall was wordless, just the way Tovin liked it. Occasionally, Nadine would glance over her shoulder to encourage him with a big smile, which Tovin acknowledged with as much grace as he could muster. “And here we are. Guardian, Tovin is here to see you.”
“Thank you, Nadine.” Colorful, nearly translucent fabric swirled around Eresna as she stood to greet him. She must have heard he was here to make amends. Eresna planted one small kiss on his cheek before she offered him a light gesture that was an invitation to sit. “Tovin, it’s good to see you.”
“Thank you, Guardian.” He’d already lost his I-was-too-scared-to-visit line to Nadine, who was standing right behind him. Recycling the exact thing wasn’t an option if he wanted to come across as genuine. He needed some other type of excuse that hit on the same concept. “I’m sorry I have not been here before. I was worried you might be upset with me. Kurt assured me that wasn’t the case.”
“Not at all. You are always welcome.” While she was going through the motions with him, it was clear she wasn’t taken in by any of what he said. By now, Tovin knew the lip quirks and head bobs associated with politician mode. Tovin was grateful for the first part at least. It was encouraging to know even if she didn’t believe him, she’d at least play pretend with him.
“Thank you. I’m here to—”
“I know why you are here.”
“Okay, I just want to—”
“Look, I’m going to save us both a lot of time.” Eresna cut him off again, giving him a knowing, yet not unkind look in the process. “This is what I want from you. You are going to toe the line, you are going to act as though you believe in your great destiny, and you are going to act as though you believe others here have the same great destiny. You will mingle. You will host.”
The rapid change in demeanor startled Tovin into silence. Once again, he wondered what she knew and what it meant for him. “Why did you even bring Jerald?” It was always a mistake to question her, he knew this by now, but he couldn’t help himself. As far as Tovin knew, she brought the other man specifically to avoid having Tovin do any of those things.
“Things change. Plans change with them.” Vagaries annoyed Tovin, and Eresna hardly seemed prone to engage in improvised decision making. Whatever their other grievances, Tovin had to acknowledge that the shewolf was, like him, a planner. Something happened, but as was the case with Kurt, Eresna wasn’t forthcoming with the details. Tovin remained quiet in the hope she would offer up some type of reason as the silence stretched on awkwardly, but she only favored him with a slight smile as she idly twisted the edges of her skirt with one long, graceful finger.
Tovin gave up. At least she wasn’t treating him like he was stupid anymore. Her honesty about the process was the first time she’d ever acknowledged that something more sinister lurked under the fine clothes and lavish accommodations. Tovin would take that as a small win. “What do I need to say to them?”
“Do you need a script?” There was no menace to her voice, just a slight change in her body language that told Tovin to proceed with caution. Truthfully, a script wouldn’t hurt. It wasn’t like he had a lot of experience telling brainwashed human slaves that their delusions were true. The closest thing he had was when he told a woman that a shitty, low-budget fridge would last for at least ten years and not do anything to her power bill. Even that he couldn’t say with a straight face.
“Maybe
some talking points?” Introduced first as a joke, the notion suddenly grew on Tovin. “Those would actually be great.”
It wasn’t. She rolled her eyes slightly and looked behind her to Nadine, who simply shrugged in response. “You are quite the bother.”
“Why am I alive then?” The question had always been part of his plan. Beyond fear at this point, Tovin only wanted to know what he needed to know.
“Lavario wants you.”
Something told him that this was the real answer, not some made-up shit to pacify him. Tovin didn’t expect her to be honest. For a moment, he didn’t know how to respond. Everything he’d gone through in his head before their encounter prepared him to respond to lies or carefully placed half-truths. After he’d thought about his response for as long as the awkwardness level in the room would allow, he gave up. “Oh,” he said.
Eresna’s lip quirked upward. “Think of yourself as a chip whose value is unknown as of yet. Lavario sees you as his. This works to my advantage. Getting rid of you would remove an advantage, create an enemy I don’t want.”
“Who is he?” It was a name that had been tossed around, and Tovin vaguely remembered his face from before—the tall well-dressed man with almost transparent green eyes and olive skin.
“He is like me, a Guardian. He belongs to another pack, and he’s quite desperate now. He’ll probably come for you at some point.”
She sounded so sure. Tovin nervously twisted at the fabric of his own clothing. “And when he does?”
“He can have you.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN: BUILT-IN MAP
“Tovin is dangerous,” Eresna said the moment Tovin was out the door.
Yuri’s worry for Tovin chafed under Eresna’s words. Already demoted due to the debacle with the extraction, she didn’t dare vocalize how she felt. Being Garvey’s subordinate was bad enough; she didn’t want to test whether or not she could sink any further.
Eventually, her queen would forgive her for the bungled extraction. For now, she was left on her own to fret.
As if sensing her dilemma, Garvey gave her a one of his grins, that mocking tooth of his jutted out idiotically. Superior to her only in rank, an actual fight between them, minus Eresna’s protection, would end very poorly for him. She showed him all her canines as a reminder. “Yes, I see your point,” he chomped at her.
Posturing was all she could do. Wolves like him always knew the length of the lead, and he had a lot of slack left whereas hers was noticeably restrictive. Happily for Yuri, she didn’t have too long to stew in indignation.
“Harsh.” Nadine snuck in a reproachful glance at Eresna as she came back into the room. “And him with his wee tail tucked between his legs.”
Affronted, Eresna raised her chin at the tone. Her upper incisors protruded. “It wasn’t that long ago you told me to bury him in the rose garden.”
Nadine licked her tooth. “The li’l goof would be useful that way.”
Tough talk about rose gardens, mulch, and live burial was exactly that—talk. Though Yuri knew Nadine would not let it interfere with her work, her friend had grown fond of Tovin during their chases. Nothing like hunting someone down to stir Nadine’s wild affections.
Eresna knew it, too. She looked at the shewolf with sympathetic eyes. “I will only act if necessary, Nadine. The punishment will be as light as I can make it. But he’s up to something. He’s always going to the library. Trouble.”
Brash as always, Garvey snorted a bit at their queen’s claim. “The barely-in-his-twenties guy on a mission to uncover the entire truth of werewolf kind with his plucky gumshoe attitude and a little help from the Dewey decimal system? He’s dangerous?”
Far more humble than most guardians, Eresna didn’t require constant subjection—no titles, no bowing, no endless “no, ma’ams” and “yes, ma’ams.” There were lines, however. Wise wolves did not cross them. “Garvey, I am no Moondog. Do not forget it.”
It pleased Yuri to see the False Moon sag in his seat, but she was too concerned by the conversation to gloat.
“How are his lessons with Kurt going?” Cautious, Yuri waded into the conversation.
Nadine guffawed. Even Eresna cracked a small smile.
Garvey responded. “How do you think? Never mind. Here, let me show you.” He prepped himself like a stage actor. Suddenly, his eyes were wide, his face glowing with innocence. “Hey, everyone! Werewolves drink blood! Did you know that? Also, I’m pretty sure you’re all slaves.”
Nadine took up the role of a human. “But, Tovin. You can’t be serious. We’re all so awesome and important!”
Somehow, Garvey’s eyes got wider, more childlike. “No, I’m earnest. I’m earnest as fuck.”
Yuri chuckled. She couldn’t help herself.
“And that’s why he’s dangerous,” Eresna reminded them all, cutting the meat away from the funny bone.
Garvey waved at her worries. “Stall until he learns the script. Make Kurt earn his keep.”
Optimism wasn’t on Eresna’s to-do list. She chatted with Garvey and Nadine about how to best address Tovin’s issues. The three of them formed a circle. Cut off, Yuri made the situation less awkward for herself by sinking down into one of the chairs.
Yuri followed their conversation, making her own notations as she went along.
Any number of things could go wrong. On the obvious side, there was the storage room in the library. Already curious about it, Tovin spent a lot of time simply watching werewolves enter and leave. He’d pretend to read a book, but artifice wasn’t his strong suit. Everyone knew.
“He may as well put it on a T-shirt,” Nadine summarized. “Or announce it on a bullhorn.”
Far more worrisome was the portal. Werewolves of all stripes knew exactly what it was. Despite its drab appearance, it thrummed with an almost sexual rhythm—a slow, methodical back and forth to ferment the blood. Hidden in the open, it was harmless to most humans, nothing more than an odd-looking door in the middle of a makeshift gallery of sorts. But it called to certain people. Those who felt the tug almost inevitably ended up seduced by it.
Tovin ventured near it a few times, turning his head to the side as though he heard something. Bad sign, bad start.
“Take him to it. See how it goes,” Garvey suggested.
Nadine shook her head. “Yes, let’s take our pyromaniacs to the firework stand next. See how that goes.”
“It actually makes sense,” Yuri ventured back to the conversation.
The three of them turned to look at her. Garvey’s mouth was open in a big grin. For once, she—the sour killjoy—agreed with him. While she had their attention, Yuri volunteered her reasoning. “We’ve always taken a wait-and-see approach, but perhaps we should find out what we’re dealing with before we decide what to do. Be preventative instead of reactive. The portal is kept out in the open so we can see when it calls out to humans. We would only be hastening the result if Tovin is drawn.”
“There you go,” Garvey said. “Rationalized like a pro.”
Nadine gave her a dark look. Protective, her solution was to herd Tovin away from the library altogether. “Taking him to it puts him right on the path of danger.”
“Oh, he’ll eventually find the road himself,” Garvey reiterated. “Sweet treat’s got a built-in map.”
Wasn’t that the truth?
Red-faced, Nadine tantrumed more objections. Each of them road the wave differently.
One of Yuri’s favorite things about Nadine was her rowdy, gentle love. It was like being held by a T. rex wearing combat boots. Sure its arms were short and stumpy, but you were super close to its heart as it stomped through the forest, trampling anything that got in both your paths.
Pragmatic at the start, driven only by the most advantageous outcome, Nadine eventually shifted alliances to passionate, fierce love for a few select. Yuri wasn’t quite sure how, but it seemed Tovin made the cut.
“This is what’s best for Tovin,” Yuri assured her friend. “To keep hi
m safe.”
“This kid is Sookie-ing us,” Garvey quipped. “He’s so lovably prone to disaster.”
No one understood the reference.
Nadine finally agreed after a few minutes of soul searching.
“Yes, fine.” Eresna capitulated as well. “But I’m taking him. I don’t trust any of you to be objective.”
So it was agreed. They would bring Tovin to the portal connecting to the Door.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT: THE PORTAL
Seemingly weightless—even though two massive brackets held it in place—the door dominated the room. Touch, it seemed to say. The wood’s dark grain was threaded with red veins, which spiraled in a dodgy, inconsistent pattern of loops and bends from top to bottom. Aside from the color of the wood, which Tovin had never seen before and thought looked otherworldly, it was unremarkable. The texture was coarse, the frame splintered. Worst of all, it stank like rotten potatoes. Tovin wrinkled his nose.
So why was he drawn to it? This was the third time today he’d circled back around. His hand twitched at his side, moving upward. A superstitious inkling pulled it away and told him touching would be very bad. Little hairs on the back of his neck, erect and pulsing, agreed there was something else, something ineffable, about the experience. Tovin brushed away those thoughts. Even as his hand slumped to his side and relief immediately followed, he scolded his superstitious self. There was nothing remarkable about this door.
Other explanations nagged at him. “What is it?”
He wasn’t talking to himself. As always, there was someone with him.
“Only a door.”
Eresna. He was only moderately surprised to hear her voice. Sending him here felt like a test at the start, a preliminary run of some sort. Tovin, safely facing away, rolled his eyes. Something about her made him want to push a button. Through her, he was meant to feel invincible, powerful, untouchable. Knowing she was trying to cultivate these feelings, he suggested, “Maybe it’s dangerous.”
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