Romani Blood (Shifter Blood: Romani Curse Book 1)

by Frances Trilone

  “No,” I replied. “You said she’s questioning my purity, not whether I kissed—”

  “You’re under contract to marry Ethan,” the Elder who was standing said. “We need a name. Then we’ll question the boy on whether your virginity is still intact.”

  My mouth dropped. “I’ve done nothing wrong.”

  “Wait.” Mom raised her hand. “What contract? I never agreed to Sienna marrying Ethan.”

  The room grew quiet.

  “Nadya and Sienna, leave the room,” one of the Elders said.

  I slowly walked to the door as Nadya hurried out of the room. Out of the corner of my eye, I glanced at Mom. She hadn’t known about the marriage arrangement. This entire time I’d assumed she knew, but she’d had nothing to do with it.

  “Henry, what did you do?” Mom had tears in her eyes. “We agreed she’d finish school next year and go to college. You said Sienna could get married when she’s ready, and to anyone she wants.”

  “I was doing what needed to be done,” Uncle Henry said. “She’s about to turn eighteen and I told the Elders she’d be engaged. It was the only way they’d let you come back.”

  “No.” Mom shook her head. “You should’ve told me.”

  I stood at the door, refusing to leave. Mom’s banishment being lifted had included two agreements—one with Mom and one with Uncle Henry.

  “We told you to leave.” One of the Elders pushed me out of the room and closed the door.

  Now, what? I needed to warn Kaleb about Nadya and the witnesses.

  Chapter 35

  I hurried out to the backyard, where the festivities were well under way. Someone had turned on the twinkling lights wrapped around the trees. People crowded the buffet tables, and others danced or sat while eating and talking.

  The Norwood wolves remained in their positions along the edge of the yard. Two wolves lingered near the dance floor. They walked back and forth along the perimeter, keeping their eyes on the party as more Romanies arrived.

  Drina and her friends sat at the same table as earlier, but Victor wasn’t with them. He stood near the DJ table, talking to David. Neither saw me. I couldn’t see Ethan anywhere. Maybe he’d stayed inside, getting more details from Nadya.

  I stood off to the side, near the yard next door. No sign of Kaleb or Markus, but Cole remained in his position near the dance floor. He looked bored. After glancing around, he entered the woods. A minute later, he reappeared and leaned against a tree, standing guard again.

  The woods.

  I took several deep breaths as I walked into the neighbor’s yard and stood near a tree. I waited a few minutes, to ensure no one had followed me. But they were too busy eating and dancing, so I hurried into the woods.

  “This is crazy,” I muttered under my breath, as I stumbled for the second time. Over fifty people were attending the party, and I was searching for Kaleb. What if I was seen? How could I explain what I was doing? But I needed to warn him. He needed to know Nadya and her friends had seen us.

  As the sun set on the horizon, I leaned against a tree trunk while I caught my breath and tried to come up with another plan. I couldn’t yell his name without alerting the other Norwood wolves, and walking around the woods was proving to be a waste of time. Why hadn’t one of the Norwood wolves already confronted me? I couldn’t be too far from them.

  My stomach twisted in knots. What if I’d gone in the wrong direction? All the trees looked the same, so I had no way of knowing where I was going. I could still hear the music from the party, but soon, I’d be stumbling around in the dark.

  I glanced back over my shoulder; confident I could retrace my steps and head home to call Bill. He could get a message to Kaleb. Hopefully, none of the witnesses had seen his face. If I kept denying the accusations, what could the Elders do?

  “You shouldn’t be here.”

  My heart raced at the sound of Kaleb’s voice. He stood five feet away, wearing only jeans. His feet were covered in dirt, his hair tousled, and his chest covered in sweat.

  Mixed emotions swirled inside me. I wanted to cry. I wanted to scream. I wanted to tell him he was a jerk, and I wished we had never met.

  “Did you hear what I said?” He folded his arms. “You can’t go running around into the woods every time something bad happens. It’s not safe.”

  “They saw us in the gazebo together.”

  “I heard the whole conversation.” He kept his distance, ensuring we had plenty of space between us. “She was there that night, watching you and Ethan, but I saw her leave right after he did. She knows he left you in the gazebo, so she’s lying.”

  “Oh,” was all I could say. There’d been no need to warn Kaleb. “Did you hear what happened after I left the room?”

  “Yes. Your mom threatened to leave town with you, and the Elders aren’t happy. Their relationship with the Town Council has improved since you started working at the café.” He rubbed his neck. “It looks like you won’t have to get engaged.”

  “What about the marriage agreement?” I asked.

  “They’re still talking about it. I’m sure they’ll come up with something,” he said. “You should be happy. You got—”

  “Sienna!”

  I jumped at the sound of Ethan’s voice. He yelled my name several times, each time with more urgency and anger than the last.

  “Go back to the party with him,” Kaleb whispered as he disappeared behind a tree.

  “I’m over here.” I steadied my breath, cursing Ethan for interrupting Kaleb and me.

  Ethan stumbled toward me and looked around. He opened his flask and took a drink. “I thought I heard you talking to someone. Who’s with you?”

  “No one.” I tilted my head, glancing at him sideways. “How many drinks have you had?”

  “A few.” He closed the flask, tucked it into his shirt pocket, and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Are you sure you’re alone?”

  I nodded. “I needed some fresh air, but it’s getting dark. We should get back before—”

  “I want his name.” He clenched his fists and leaned toward me, smelling like whiskey and cigarettes. “If he cares about you, he’ll come forward, and let me beat the crap out of him.”

  I chewed my upper lip to prevent a smile. Ethan, beat the crap out of Kaleb? That’ll never happen. “This is silly, Ethan. Let’s get back to the party, and—”

  “Is it David?” His eyes searched my face. “He asked Victor about you. Now you’re eating with him and his sisters. If you’ve been seeing him, I’ll—”

  “Me?” I glared at him. “You’re the one meeting other girls. Nadya told me herself. She thinks we’ve been together every night this week because you’re not going to her house.”

  “Get used to it. Just because I’m marrying you, doesn’t mean I won’t have a few girls on the side.” His shoved me against a tree and pushed my arms back. “But you can’t do this. I won’t be made a fool of.”

  His words burned in my ears. We weren’t even engaged, and he was already planning to have affairs. Nadya was better off without him.

  “I’m not marrying you,” I insisted.

  “That’s what you think.” He tightened his hold on my arms, pushing his entire body against me. “Give me his name and I’ll go easy on him.”

  I struggled, trying to get him off, but Ethan didn’t budge. He only smiled, waiting until I quit squirming under his hold. He wanted a name I couldn’t give. “Why do you believe her? You know Nadya loves you. She’d say anything to keep you from marrying me.”

  “She wouldn’t lie to me.” He pulled me forward a little and then pushed me back, slamming me against the tree. “Someone will know who he is. Tell me his name and I’ll deal with him on my own. I’ll tell the Elders I took care of it, and we don’t need a kris.”

  I looked him straight in the eye. He couldn’t make the Elders call off a kris, and he couldn’t deal with Kaleb on his own. That went against the rule of my male relatives having the righ
t to deal with anyone who touched me. Ethan was such a liar, thinking he could trick me into giving up Kaleb’s name.

  “You’re wasting your time,” I said. “I’ll never tell you his name.”

  “Nadya was right. You’re nothing but a whore. Did you have sex with him?”

  “How dare you ask me that question,” I snapped. “I know why you and Victor fought at Drina’s birthday party. You’re the one having sex.”

  “Don’t act like you didn’t know.” He rolled his eyes. “I know Drina told you about Nadya and me.”

  “Nadya?” I laughed. No wonder she’d accused me of being with someone else. She needed to marry Ethan because she’d already blacklisted herself. She was the one who had brought shame to her family. Not me.

  “Answer me.” Ethan shoved me against the tree again. “Did you have sex with him?”

  I lifted my chin, outraged at his accusation and tired of all the questions. “No, but I wanted to. I threw myself at him, ready to give him whatever he wanted.”

  “Do you love him?”

  “Yes.”

  “It doesn’t matter. You belong to me.” He placed his forearm across my throat and pushed his lips onto mine.

  I tried to turn away, but his forearm pressed harder against my throat. As soon as he pushed his tongue into my mouth, I bit down, hard.

  He released my arms, looking surprised as I kicked his shin and pushed him away. He stopped himself from stumbling onto the ground and then froze at the sound of a low growl. Ethan spun, almost tripping as he pulled a gun out.

  “You shouldn’t be here.” Anger flashed across Kaleb’s face.

  “You know these girls. They can never get enough of me.” Ethan lowered the gun. “You see anyone else out here?”

  “Only my friends and me.” Kaleb folded his arms and looked at me. “Are you okay?”

  I nodded, not daring to speak.

  “She’s fine,” snapped Ethan.

  Five growling wolves appeared behind Kaleb, but they became quiet when he raised his hand… except for the wolf on Kaleb’s left. It was a wolf with warm brown eyes and brown fur.

  Ethan raised his gun as Markus snarled and walked toward us.

  “Put away the gun,” I said.

  “Call him off.” Ethan’s hand shook, as Markus took another step. “He’s scaring her.”

  Kaleb grinned. “He won’t—”

  A wolf howl in the distance interrupted Kaleb. The Norwood wolves froze and turned their heads in the direction of the sound which had come from somewhere near the lake. Another howl sounded, and four of the wolves took off running as Markus’ head turned in the opposite direction.

  I followed his gaze, shocked to see Ethan running away.

  “Get her back in the house,” Kaleb said.

  “He doesn’t need to. I can—”

  The words caught in my throat as I turned to find Kaleb unzipping his jeans. My cheeks heated as he pushed them down a little and stopped. He wore no underwear.

  A smile crossed his face when our eyes met.

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “A wolf just crossed into town. Maybe the one that killed Paige and Jenny,” Kaleb said. “Please get inside the house, Sienna.”

  Markus touched my leg with his nose as Kaleb disappeared into the bushes.

  I stumbled through the woods, one hand on Markus as he led the way to Nadya’s backyard. The twinkling lights on the trees came into view as the loud music abruptly cut off and wolf howls tore through the night air.

  My legs buckled, and I sank to the ground.

  Everyone stopped dancing. There were screams as they scrambled into Nadya’s house, like an army of ants scurrying to their mound. The two wolves by the dance floor ran into the woods, howling. There were no other wolves nearby. Markus nudged my back, but I couldn’t move.

  More chaos erupted as everyone attempted to squeeze through Nadya’s back door. Several people ran into the street and jumped into cars, or entered houses nearby.

  I searched the crowd, looking for Mom or another familiar face. Then I saw Mom’s face pressed against a window on the second floor of Nadya’s house.

  Fingers gripped my arm. “Get inside.”

  I glanced over my shoulder. Markus was lying on the ground in human form, completely naked. I squeezed my eyes shut. “What are you doing? Shift back.”

  “You didn’t give me a choice. You can’t understand me in wolf form.”

  Somewhere in the distance, a wolf shrieked and then yelped.

  “He needs you.” I opened my eyes, focusing on Markus’ face. “Go to Kaleb.”

  “He ordered me to stay with you.”

  My heart smiled. Kaleb still cared. “I’m begging you, Markus. Please go.”

  Another howl tore through the night. This long howl was deep and followed by barks.

  “I’ll go,” Markus said. “But you have to get inside.”

  I jumped to my feet and ran toward the back door. As someone pulled me inside, I caught a glimpse of Markus in wolf form. He let out a deep howl and ran into the woods.

  Chapter 36

  I made my way through the kitchen as more wolves howled outside. Men, women, and children filled every inch of space, holding hands and hugging each other. As the last man stumbled through the back door, an older woman shoved a chair beneath the doorknob and dropped to her knees, praying.

  The hallway looked even more crowded. People stood or sat on the floor, clinging to one another.

  “Has anyone seen my family?” I looked from face to face, carefully stepping over their legs. No one answered, so I headed upstairs, bumping into Mom when I reached the second floor.

  “I was worried about you.” Mom hugged me. “But Victor said Ethan was with you. I knew he’d protect you.”

  I pulled away, shaking my head. “Ethan didn’t protect me. He forced himself on me and then ran off.”

  “What?” Her eyes widened. “That little—”

  “Where’s everyone else?”

  “Henry and Norma are in the master bedroom with the Elders.”

  “What about Victor and Drina?”

  “They’re not with you?” Her mouth dropped open. “They went looking for you.”

  “What?” My voice squeaked. “I didn’t see them in the backyard. Are you sure they’re not in the house?”

  “I don’t know.” She grabbed my arm as I backed away, toward the staircase. “Where are you going?”

  “I need to find them.”

  “No, you need to stay with me. Victor’s nothing like Ethan. He’ll protect Drina. I’m sure they’re fine.”

  “I’ll check downstairs and come right back.”

  “Wait.” She held onto my arm, not willing to let me go. “We need to talk about this kris.”

  I shook my head. Drina and Victor could be outside with a killer wolf. “We can talk about this later.”

  “If you’re in love with someone else, I can—”

  “It doesn’t matter anymore. He’s with somebody else.” I yanked my arm away, then immediately regretted what I’d said when I saw the shocked look on her face. “Go tell Henry I’m safe. Tell him I haven’t seen Drina and Victor.”

  Surprisingly, Mom headed down the hallway without protesting or asking me for a name.

  I hurried downstairs, skipping every other step, and found Victor by the front door. “Where’s Drina?”

  “We got separated,” he replied. “Have you seen anyone else?”

  “My mom’s upstairs with Uncle Henry and Aunt Norma.”

  “Wait here,” he said, and he ran upstairs.

  A few seconds later, Uncle Henry came downstairs, Victor close behind. They yelled Drina’s name and opened each door on the first floor. Uncle Henry spoke to everyone sitting in the hallway. He spoke in the native Romani tongue, but no one said anything or looked his way.

  Victor pulled Uncle Henry toward the front door where I stood leaning against the wall. They exchanged more unfamiliar Romani
words as two Elders walked downstairs. Uncle Henry met them at the bottom of the stairs, talking as he pointed toward the hallway.

  I nudged Victor’s arm. “What’s that about?”

  “Henry asked for volunteers to help find Drina. No one’s stepped forward.” Victor glanced at the two Elders who talked to Uncle Henry. “Where’s Ethan? He’ll help look for Drina.”

  I lowered my gaze, not wanting to tell him the truth about his cousin. No way would Ethan help us find her.

  “What is it?” Victor asked.

  “We were talking in the woods. When the wolves started howling, he ran off.”

  “What were you doing in the woods?” He shook his head. “Never mind. I don’t want to know. I’ll be right back.”

  He disappeared into one of the rooms and returned with a gun.

  “What’s that for?”

  “I’ll find Drina. Stay here, and—”

  “I’m coming with you.” I touched his hand. I couldn’t just stand around and do nothing. This was my fault. If I’d stayed at the party instead of going in search of Kaleb, Drina and Victor wouldn’t have gone outside looking for me. What if she was in danger?

  Victor looked at me, surprised. “You still have your knife?”

  “Yes.” I reached into my boot and tapped my hunting knife, grateful I never went anywhere without it.

  “Stay close.” He quietly opened the front door as Uncle Henry and the Elders continued talking near the bottom of the staircase.

  We walked down the porch steps and onto the sidewalk, hurrying past several cars and houses. The streets were empty, except for a few people crouched inside vehicles.

  We heard a low growl, and Victor pulled me between two cars. We crouched and kept our heads down as a man ran by, ranting in Romani. I wanted to ask Victor to translate, but then I heard Drina’s voice.

  “Did you hear that?” I whispered.

  He peeked around the car and quickly pulled back. “A wolf has her cornered.”

  I rested the back of my head against the car, regretting I’d sent Markus away. The scared expression on Victor’s face didn’t help either. “Is it a Norwood wolf?”