“We’ll meet you outside.” I got up from the stool.
“I’ll be there at one.”
I nodded, and Tyler followed as I walked further inside.
“Think she really knows how to find him?” Tyler whispered.
“She knows something.”
“Are we sticking around or coming back?”
“I’m not sure yet. Probably sticking around. By the time we get home we’d have to turn back, and we’re probably going to learn more here.”
“No kidding.” He nodded toward the door.
I followed his gaze as Claire walked in, her dress seemingly even shorter than it had been before.
She didn’t notice us, or she pretended not to, instead she smiled at just about every other man in the place while she made her way toward the back. She stopped next to one man, leaned up and whispered in his ear. He reddened and pointed toward the back. She rewarded him with one of her smiles before she brushed passed us without a look and continued to the back.
She tapped on the back of a man in a cowboy hat. He turned, arm raised as if to strike whoever disturbed him, but when he took in who’d bothered him, his arm fell and his scowl turned into a smile.
She touched his chest, running her hand down slowly. He put a hand on her shoulder and led her into a back room.
Tyler exchanged glances with me. I hoped she knew what she was doing.
7
Mara
I sat down at an oval wooden table with Lochlan. I had no other options, and getting on his good side might help me in the long run. My decision to sit had nothing to do with the bagels on the table. Nothing at all.
“You should have one.” Lochlan spread cream cheese on a bagel. “I brought them with me from New York.”
“You came out here from New York?” To be fair I didn’t know where I was exactly, but I assumed Bryant hadn’t flown me too far in my unconscious state. At least I hoped not.
“Yes… it isn’t too often that new Séancers are discovered. Besides, the trip didn’t take long.”
“Are we still in Montana?” Maybe I could at least get that answered.
“Don’t answer that.” Bryant hovered near us.
“Why? Why can’t I know where I am?” That little piece of information would have been nice.
“You’ll know soon enough.” Lochlan took a bite of his bagel.
I reached out for a bagel and then pulled my hand back. “Ok, then tell me what you want to tell me.”
“You can have a bagel. I did nothing to them. As you can see Lochan is eating one.” Bryant took a seat in the chair next to me.
“I can’t trust you. Besides, I’m not hungry.” My stomach growled, betraying me.
“I bought the bagels. They’re safe.” Lochan pointed to the pile of bagels in the center of the table. The yellow one, I assumed was an egg bagel, called my name.
“Fine.” I grabbed the sliced bagel and put a small amount of cream cheese on it. “I’ve already been drugged once.”
“You won’t be again.” Lochlan gave Bryant an unreadable look.
Bryant smiled and shrugged.
“Have you ever felt a connection to the dead? A need to be near them?” Lochlan turned back to me.
I swallowed the bite of bagel in my mouth and set the rest of the half down. “There went my appetite.”
“Don’t pretend talking of the deceased makes you less hungry. It’s impossible. No abilities showing themselves or not, being a Séancer runs through your blood.” Lochlan pointed at me.
“That doesn’t mean I want to talk about it.”
“Why not?” Lochlan pressed. “Why don’t you want to talk about it?”
“Because.” I struggled to come up with the right words. “I don’t.”
“This is about your grandfather.” Lochlan set aside his bagel. “Isn’t it?”
“You make it sound like that’s wrong. He was my only family. Now he’s dead.”
“But that shouldn’t mean you don’t want to think about him. Would he want to be forgotten?”
“He’s not forgotten.” He’d influenced me too much for me to ever forget him.
“He’d want you to embrace this side of yourself.”
“No.” I shook my head. “Now I know you’re lying. Did you even know him?”
He nodded. “Yes, I knew him. And he would want you to.”
“Then why did he try to hide this part of my life from me?” He’d never mentioned a word of it. Not once.
“To protect you from your father. But his attempt to protect you only put you in more danger. Unfortunately that happens more often than not.”
“Or he knew I didn’t have the abilities and wanted to save me the hurt.”
“No.” Lochlan shook his head. “That’s not Willis. And the only way to know for sure whether you have the abilities is to experiment. He would want you to do that.”
“He would want me safe.” Despite all the secrets he kept from me, I knew he had cared. He’d loved me. I refused to believe that part wasn’t true.
“The only way you are going to be safe is if you learn to protect yourself.”
“This isn’t about me protecting myself. I guarantee he hasn’t brought you here for that reason.” I pointed to Bryant.
“I want you to be able to protect yourself from everyone but me. I still think we’re going to end up good friends. And partners.” Bryant laid one of his hands on the table palm up.
“Dream on.”
“We have more in common than you think. I’ve already told you that.”
“And I’ve already told you you’re crazy.” I was starting to believe he was even crazier than I originally thought.
“And that you hate me. Yes. I’ve heard the lines, but that doesn’t mean I believe them.”
“Fine. I’m eating this.” I picked up the bagel. “No talking until I finish the first half.”
Lochlan laughed. “Fine. I wouldn’t mind finishing my breakfast as well.”
8
Ian
“Did they run out of beer in Crestview?” A voice asked from behind me.
I turned around. “Hey, Alton. No. Came for a change of scenery.”
“I call your bullshit.” He tipped a bottle of beer to his lips.
“You can call it whatever you want.” I took a swig of my beer. I had no interest in the alcohol, but I needed to blend in.
“What’s really going on?” Alton dropped his voice to a whisper.
I considered my options. There was a chance Alton could help. Little chance he could hurt. “Looking for someone.”
“What kind of someone?”
“Someone who messed with a friend of mine.” Mara was far more than my friend, but that wasn’t the issue at hand.
“Anyone I know?” He raised an eyebrow.
“No.” I shook my head.
“Anyone I should know?” He took another swig of his beer.
“Not yet.”
“Ok.” Alton nodded. “How can I help?”
“Why do you want to help?” I was always suspicious when someone offered help too early. Everyone had their own agenda and interests.
“I wouldn’t mind having you owe me a favor. There are worse things.” He shrugged.
“In other words, he wants a favor from you.” Tyler nodded in Alton’s direction.
“And you make that sound like some impressive observation.” Alton laughed. He barely looked in Tyler’s direction. I’d hated being in Jonovan’s shadows, but my younger brothers had it even worse.
“What do you need?” I asked careful to make sure I wasn’t promising anything yet.
“I need some muscle. Someone’s moving in on our land.”
“Who?” The tiger suddenly had much more of my interest.
“Your kind. Not sure who the hell they are, but they’ve crossed the line.”
Tyler and I exchanged looks.
“What?” Alton looked to me for an answer. “What aren’t you saying?
”
“Do you know any names?” I’d start there.
“Why? This isn’t the first you’ve heard of it?” His face was as serious as stone.
“Yours isn’t the only land under attack.” Mine was too, and if I had to guess it all of ours would be. Whatever Willem was into was way bigger than a rival bear dispute.
He leaned in. “I keep hearing the name Willem, but I’ve never met him. It may be for cover.”
“That’s the name I’ve been hearing too.”
“About your land or the friend?” He glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one was paying too much attention.
I did the same thing. No one seemed to be listening, but that didn’t actually mean they weren’t. “Both.”
“His men have a place out on the lake.”
“Out which way?” This was more information than I could have hoped for. And that also made me nervous.
“West.”
“If you know all this why haven’t you taken care of it yourself?” Alton took care of things. He wasn’t weak.
“I’ve tried.” Alton pulled up his shirt revealing raw cuts that crisscrossed his abdomen. “I’m lucky to be alive.”
“Who did that?” Tigers, like all shifters, healed quickly. Those cuts had to have been real deep to still look that bad.
“I’d tell you if I knew. They appear to work for Willem. I ran into them out there, and I’m lucky to be here to tell you about it.”
“Were you going to show me those marks if I didn’t ask?”
“Nah. I figured Jonovan would be the first to head out there, and he’d deserve whatever came his way.”
I tensed. Did everyone have to talk about Jonovan? I wasn’t a fan of lying, but I had no choice. “Jonovan’s busy. I’m handling this myself.”
“Well then, I’m glad you saw them. Don’t be stupid.” There was a warning in his words. Alton wasn’t a friend—but we respected one another. Often respect went a lot deeper than friendship.
“I try not to, but I need to find Willem.”
“This friend of yours…” Alton gestured with his hand. “It a girl?”
“Why does that matter?”
“Because it means I understand what you’re doing.”
Letting him know my mate was in trouble was dangerous. I shook my head. “Don’t read into what I’m doing.”
“I’m going to.” Alton lifted his beer to his lips again. “But I’ll keep my mouth shut.”
“You do that.”
Alton nodded. “See you around.” He walked off into the crowd.
“You’re heading out to the lake, aren’t you?” Tyler leaned in.
“Can I trust you to wait here for Claire and then Monica?”
“Or you could wait. Heading out there alone is stupid.”
“I’m not good at waiting.” I’d never been, and now with Mara in danger it was even harder. Every minute I waited was too long.
“Call Rhett. He can get his ass back to town.” Tyler growled. Tyler and Rhett had always butted heads.
“Rhett made his choice when he left.”
“He was upset. That doesn’t mean he won’t answer to you.”
“I have enough to deal with right now.”
“You know he’ll be here.”
“I’ll give Claire another few minutes, then I’ll call.”
“You don’t trust me alone with her.”
“I do.” I did. Mostly.
“I’m not Noah. I’m not going to fall for any of her lines.”
“It’s not you falling for her lines that I’m worried about.”
Tyler scowled. “I’m not falling for anything of hers.”
“I don’t doubt you—completely.”
Tyler glared at me. “Did becoming Alpha turn you into an ass?”
“No. I’ve always been one.”
“I’m not going to argue with that.”
I checked my watch. Claire had been in the back room for close to an hour. I hoped she was getting some info out of the guy. Otherwise this would have been a colossal waste of time.
I kept my eyes off the door. Instead I watched the crowd, searching for an unfamiliar face. I didn’t know every supernatural creature in the area, but I knew most. I also knew a suspicious character when I saw them.
Just as I was ready to leave Taylor nudged me with his elbow. I glanced up and watched Claire walk out of the back room. Alone. She brushed past me on the way out and raised one eyebrow slightly.
She wanted us to follow, but we had to do it carefully. We waited a full five minutes before setting aside our empty beer bottles and heading out into the night.
I unlocked my truck with only a small glance into the back. She was waiting.
As soon as Tyler shut his door I pulled out of the parking lot. Hopefully Claire came through this time.
9
Mara
“I’ll admit the bagel was good.”
Lochlan grinned. “I told you.”
“That doesn’t mean I trust you, or that I’m going along with any of this.”
“You’re going along with this because you like your bear.” Bryant leaned back in his chair. “Or have you forgotten about him?”
“I’ll never forget about him.” That would be impossible. And I would get back to Ian. I wasn’t going to accept any other possible outcome. “Why is it that you manage to destroy any semblance of hopefulness I have?” I sighed
“It’s my job.”
“Your job is to torment people?”
“No.” Bryant shook his head. “My job is to make sure people do what they are supposed to do.”
“Meaning they do the things you want them to do. Don’t pretend this has anything to do with them doing things for themselves.”
“What I want has helped quite a few people. That’s the case here.”
“Yes, because I’m so excited to embrace these skills.” I rolled my eyes. “It’s not going to help me. It may destroy me.”
“Beautiful things can grow out of destruction.” Bryant ran his fingers over the wood of the tabletop.
“Save your breath.”
“I normally don’t put up with this kind of back talk, in case you were wondering.”
“I guess I am special then.”
“You are. And I like you despite how much I don’t want to.”
“Lovely,” I mumbled.
“More than lovely.”
I scowled. “No. The opposite of that.”
Bryant knocked over the table sending bagels, cream cheese, plates, and a large container of orange juice flying.
He moved over me. “You think you’d be luckier if I didn’t like you?”
I trembled. Maybe I’d pushed things too far. I shook my head.
“Answer me when I speak to you.”
I shook my head again.
“That’s not an answer. Speak. Use words.” He put his hand on my chin.
“No.” I struggled to speak with the pressure of his hand on my face.
“Very good. From now on you’re going to listen, or there will be consequences. I made a mistake. I shouldn’t have treated you as a guest. I should have immediately treated you as the prisoner you are.” His fingers pushed into my skin. There was no maybe about it. I’d made a major mistake. “Is that what you want? To be tied up and gagged and forced to do everything? Because I can do that. I am very good at doing that. I’ve been told I’m an expert at causing pain.” He took my hand and pulled it behind my back. “Shall I demonstrate?”
“That won’t be necessary.” Lochlan stepped into my view. “She will cooperate.”
“I want more than cooperation. I want respect. I deserve respect.” Bryant’s whole body shook.
I wanted to argue. I wanted to tell him where to shove his desire for respect, but I would suffer for that and would have an even harder time of escaping. Besides, he might take things out on Ian. Instead I said nothing. I swallowed my pride and made eye contact. “I understand.”
“I understand.”
“Good.” Bryant released my face. “Then prove it. You are going to listen to what Lochlan has to say, and you are going to follow his instructions. Is that understood?”
“Completely.” I nodded while still trying to calm my rapidly beating heart.
“Good.” He released my arm. “We will move into the living room as the kitchen is now trashed.”
I held in the response I wanted to give about the mess being his fault. That would undermine the promise I’d just made and likely would get me hurt and in a heap of more trouble.
I stood and followed Lochlan through an archway and into a living room. If I hadn’t already suspected this house wasn’t Bryant’s, I did now. The floral couches and decorative blinds were as far from the style I’d expect from him as one could get.
“Please, have a seat.” Lochlan appeared to be trying to ease the tension, but nothing was going to fix it. I wasn’t going to relax until I was out of this crazy house, and Bryant wasn’t going to relax until I did his dirty work, whatever it was he wanted to use me for. The problem was I wasn’t willing to do that work—and I wasn’t sure what that would mean for my chance of survival. As I’d feared before, I was closer to facing my death than ever.
I took a seat on the edge of a high back chair. At least that way no one could sit next to me.
Bryant sat down on the arm rest. There went that hope. “It’s cozy in here, isn’t it?”
I kept my mouth shut, which was a harder task than you’d think. Being around Bryant made it nearly impossible.
“I asked you a question. Don’t you have an answer?” He scooted closer to me.
“Very cozy.” I tried to keep my voice even.
“Glad we agree on that.” Bryant patted my arm.
I resisted the urge to slap his hand.
“Before we move to a cemetery I want to go over the basics with you.” Lochlan moved forward in his seat. “Have you ever tried to connect with the dead before?”
“Are you kidding me?” I crossed my arms. “I already told you this wasn’t my thing.”
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