Snake Charmer
Page 1
Yvena needs to start over and leaving for the Crossroads is what she has planned. Being followed by the mongoose of her dreams is a shock.
Yvena was one of the stolen shifters, and her recovery has not been easy. Six months of healing after two months of torture is not enough to make her whole, but she knows that not everyone is out to get her.
She is released from the recovery centre and sets out to the Crossroads. After one day there, she knows that she is trying to hide and rushing toward a mate was a mistake. She asks to leave and it is agreed that she can go home the next day, but that night everything changes.
Liander is a mongoose with his eyes on the king cobra who stole his heart. As her caregiver, he couldn’t pursue a relationship, but now she was out, he had quit and there was nothing between them but mutual attraction and being natural enemies. How hard could a relationship be?
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Snake Charmer
Copyright © 2014 Zenina Masters
ISBN: 978-1-77111-886-6
Cover art by Carmen Waters
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.
Published by eXtasy Books
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Snake Charmer
Shifting Crossroads book 14
By
Zenina Masters
Chapter One
Yvena woke up with a jerk; sweat covered her body. She looked around, and the small room was the same as it had been when she went to sleep.
She got up, slipped a robe over her pyjamas and went for a walk.
The recovery facility was in a cold part of the country. Snow was two feet thick outside the windows of the common room. She sat in one of the huge plush chairs and curled up, staring at the moon.
Six months of recovery and she still wasn’t quite right. Yvena still had nightmares, and she hadn’t had a full night’s sleep since the lions had grabbed her with her hood pierced, unable to shift from snake back to human.
King cobra venom was good for vengeance spells, or so they had told her when they milked her teeth, leaving them trashed, her mouth savaged and her psyche battered.
“Can’t sleep again?”
Her one friend in the facility appeared at her side with a glass of warm milk.
Yvena took the milk and smiled when she tasted the honey in it. “Thank you, Liander.”
He sat next to her in one of the huge chairs. He had been more than a friend when she had first arrived; he had been her restraint system. She had never dealt directly with a mongoose until he had pinned her down without fear of her venom. He had picked her up carefully and delivered her to the healers. The healing had been its own kind of agony, and he had been there with her the entire time.
The first shift to human had been torture, but he had been with her all the way, holding her as she shifted from scale to skin for the first time in two months.
“I have some news, Yvena. You are going to be released this week. We can’t do anything for you that you can’t do yourself. Even your PTSD can be handled outside this facility.” Liander’s features were stuck in professional encouragement.
“Fine. I am going to need contact with a transporter.” She was grim. Her life had been shattered and she wanted a new start.
“Why?” He seemed surprised and that was an expression she had never seen on his face before.
“I am going to the Crossroads. If I have to start over, I don’t have to do it alone. Time to start a new life and look to the future.”
Shock replaced Liander’s expression. “Are you sure?”
“Positive. Old life is broken and dead. New life looms ahead. I am choosing life and possibly love.”
He nodded and straightened in the chair. “Right. A transporter. I will have the administrator arrange it in the morning.”
Yvena reached over and put her hand on his arm. “Thank you. You cannot know how much your help has meant to me over these last few months. Seriously. Thank you.”
His dark grey eyes were calm under the swath of dark brown hair that always slipped out of his control. It was the only part of him that was ever out of control.
He put his hand over hers, and she felt the warmth that always sparked between them. If he hadn’t been bound by his position as a caregiver, she would have pursued something with him; however, every overture she had ever engaged in had run into the solid wall of professionalism.
With no hope with the man she wanted, it was time to look elsewhere for the one who might just be good enough.
After two months thinking that she was going to die every day, she now had a fixation on the future. Today might be emotionally uncomfortable but tomorrow was the chance for something new, something better with someone else.
Liander nodded and got to his feet. “Good night. Get some rest, Yvena.”
She lifted her cup of hot milk. “Thank you, Liander. Good night.”
He left her alone, and she stared out the window at the snow and moon. It was so different from her home that it was almost like being on holiday. Almost.
The shifter recovery home that she was in had a room for her species with a hot rock and bright light. She hadn’t bothered with it until her therapists had forced her to shift to check her healing. She had been sealed in the room for four hours, and when she emerged, she could not get into her human form fast enough.
Her snake form was no longer the joy or safe haven it had once been. She was officially the most timid cobra that had ever slithered through her family tree. Yvena wanted something more, but even after months of therapy, she wasn’t sure that she would be able to manage it. Throwing herself into the Crossroads would cause her to react. When she was in doubt, she could always react. It was the snake in her. Life was something that had passed her by until she was captured; now, she was fixated on participating in whatever socially uncomfortable manner she could.
Going to the Crossroads was right up that alley. She would learn how to speak to people, to make friends out of strangers, and if she were lucky, she would find someone willing to look past her wall of crazy.
She didn’t hold out much hope, but she had to try. Her life at the recovery centre was over; time for the next step.
The transporter smiled and checked the map. “You live here?”
Yvena Kastric nodded. “That is my home.”
The transporter made notes. “I can take you home today, and you will be in a transport position in four days. I can send you to the Crossroads then if you like.”
Yvena nodded. “Yes, please. I have the donations from my family ready.”
Transporter Wekkian smiled, “You don’t need it. You were offered free passage as part of the rescue and rehabilitation effort.”
Yvena rubbed the back of her neck. “Can I book it? I really don’t want to give myself time to change my mind.”
“Of course. Transporter Igorson handles that area, but I can make sure that he puts you on his schedule.”
Yvena frowned and quickly wrote out her email address. “Send a picture of him here. I am not in the mood to trust strangers.”
The transporter blinked and then nodded. “Of course. You have been through a trial.”
“If it was a trial, I was convicted without testimony.”
He looked at her and was a little upset by her wry manner. She mentally sniggered as he resumed giving her an appointment card and asking her to get to her feet.
“You will receive a call before the transporter arrives.”
“It is a good thing that my family paid the phone bill while I was out here.” She sighed and scribbled the number on the page attached to his clipboard.
He looked at a loss for what to say next.
She waved to the staff at the recovery centre and noted that Liander was missing. She sighed. “Transporter Wekkian, please, send me home.”
Light flared, and she was wrapped in warmth. A moment later and she was on the road, five minutes from her house.
The warmth of the air caused her to shiver. She slung her pack over her shoulder and carried the clothing that had been donated to her down the road to her house.
Eight months. It had been eight months since she had seen her home. She turned down her drive, and tears came to her eyes. Her family had kept up the maintenance on her home.
Despite the distance between them, they had cared enough to help her when she could not help herself. For the first time since she had been taken, she left herself cry.
Chapter Two
Her studio showed signs that someone had tried to tidy it. The cards and machines were all in the wrong places.
She groaned as she took an inventory. She would have to try to contact her old clients and see if they were interested or she could change her company name and start over.
Starting over seemed like the best option. Explaining how she had been kidnapped and returned after therapy was not something she was interested in doing.
When she entered her kitchen, the only thing that was available was a bag of chips. She grabbed her purse, checked that she had cash and went to do a few days’ worth of shopping.
This time, she would leave her house with the intention of making it dormant for a few days or weeks. She would be in control of her departure.
She had four days to prepare, and she was going to spend every minute taking control of her environment.
Her car had grudgingly started and her trip to the grocery store had been quick. When Yvena got out of the car, she was no longer alone.
Her mother silently approached and took the bag from her. “Good afternoon, daughter.”
“Mother. Thank you for caring for my home while I was gone.”
Yvetta Kastric inclined her head. “Your sister helped.”
“How is Yvonne?”
“She is well. I am assuming that you picked up some wine; shall we go inside?”
The offer to behave normally was just what she needed.
“Please.”
Once inside, Yvena assembled a cheese and fruit tray while she let the pinot noir breathe.
She carried it into her living room where her mother was perched on the edge of the sofa.
“You look well, considering your travails.”
“Thank you. You seem to be keeping well. New man in your life? You have that certain glow.” She returned and got two glasses and the bottle.
“I am carrying again. This time it is a boy.”
Yvena smiled, “Congratulations. At long last you will have the son to carry on the family name.”
“I never wanted that, Yvena. You know that I treasure you and your sister.”
“I know. Thank you again for taking care of my home.”
“You are welcome. I only wish that your disappearance had been noticed sooner. I will not let that much time pass between us again.”
Yvena reached out and touched her mother’s hand. “I would like that.”
Yvetta scaled her hand over and wove her fingers against her daughter’s. Yvena did the same to her own hand and emerald green met with emerald green in a measure of trust.
Yvena felt her fangs unfolding and her vision shifted. A mother could call the snake out of a child and her mother was doing just that.
Yvena jerked her hand back, “Stop.”
Yvetta looked hurt. “You used to love twisting together in a knot.”
She rubbed her neck and winced, “That was before I was pinned to a board by my hood and had my venom milked every three days. It took weeks with healers to get my teeth back.”
Yvetta paled. “They just said you had been captured, they didn’t tell me…oh scales.”
“It’s…well, I can’t say its fine, but it is over. I was one of dozens. They were harvesting other shifters for use in spells.”
Her mother nodded, “Revenge spells. Of course. I had heard about the shifters that were found, but I hadn’t realised how long you had been there. We had to guess at when you had disappeared by what was in your fridge and the state of the fruit on the counter.”
“Two months of imprisonment. In the span of a life, it doesn’t seem like much, but it was an eternity that effectively tainted my love for my other shape. I am dealing with that, as I am dealing with the aftereffects of seeing others tortured the same way I was. It is a process that I have to go through.”
She poured the wine and smiled when her mother took it. “Aren’t you worried about the little one?”
“He is exposed to one of the strongest venoms on Earth on a daily basis. He can handle some wine and cheese.” Yvetta sipped and sighed. “You always did have the best taste when it came to wine.”
“Go by the flavour, not the price.” Yvena grinned.
“At least I taught you that.”
They laughed and worked their way through the platter. When they reached the halfway point, Yvena confessed. “I am glad you are here, Mother. In four days, I leave for the Crossroads.”
Yvetta spluttered. “Really? So soon?”
“If the last few months have taught me anything, it is that life is not predictable. You have a limited time on the planet and you need to make it count. I am going to look for a mate. I am not interested in another snake; I just want someone of my own that I can depend on to be there.”
The smile on Yvetta’s face was softer than any of her other expressions had been so far. “I could depend on your father. Carlos was always there, even when I was shedding my skin. I still wake up in the morning expecting to see him and have to face the fact that he is gone. It has been eighteen years, and I miss him every day.”
Yvena smiled, “I want to feel a version of that for myself. In recovery, I met a great guy, but his caregiver status put him out of reach. He wouldn’t break the trust, and I wouldn’t do that to him.”
“What was he?”
She wrinkled her nose. “He was my handler when I had to shift. He kept me under control no matter how much I was freaking out.”
Her mother looked hopeful. “Another snake?”
Yvena sipped her wine and rubbed the back of her neck, “A mongoose.”
Yvetta spluttered, “You are joking.”
“I am not. I was so damaged after my imprisonment that I couldn’t shift back for a few days. He had to be there to keep me in position during my treatments. Once I was able to shift, he accompanied me to therapy and healing appointments.” She sighed and leaned back into the couch cushions. “He even brought me warm milk and honey at night when the nightmares woke me up.”
“Wow, it sounds like he was the perfect guy.”
Yvena chuckled and sipped at her wine. “The perfect guy at the exact wrong time.”
“So, what are you going to look for at the Crossroads?”
Smiling softly, she looked at her mother, “The perfect
guy at the right time.”
The house was sealed up and ready for her return. She met with the transporter on her porch, swinging gently as she signed all the documents he had brought.
Transporter Igorson was a handsome young man who looked very nervous as she handed him the vial of venom to go with her mother’s and sister’s skin samples.
“So, you have your council’s agreement that they will uphold the mating?” he was looking at her like she was going to bite.
“It doesn’t work that way with serpents. Am I your first?”
He blushed furiously. “First serpent? Yes, ma’am.”
She winced. “I am not that much older than you are. Stow the ma’am.”
He blinked. “Yes, m—miss.”
She grinned. “Better. When do we do this?”
“The portal will be aligned in fifteen minutes. Are you ready?”
She gestured to her carry-on. “As ready as I will ever be. How long have you been a certified transporter?”
“Five months. I have done ten transports.”
“How many to the Crossroads?” She was rocking slowly on her swing. He was sitting in one of the lounge chairs on her porch.
“This will be my first. I can feel the connection getting closer. I will have a two-minute window to send you on your way.”
“Can you do it?”
He sat up straight. “I believe I can. It is essentially no different from a standard transport; I just need to concentrate on the location. The difficulty arises in that I haven’t been there before. It is like catching a soap bubble.”
Yvena smiled. “Good. I hope everything goes well.”
He muttered, “So do I.”
The time ticked heavily between them. When he got to his feet, she stood and grabbed her bag. She was ready when he was.
Light spluttered and flared, finally brightening and widening to the point where it was large enough for her to walk through. She checked the payment charm, the grip on her luggage and, with a nod from Igorson, she jumped through the portal and, hopefully, she would land at the Crossroads. At this point, she wasn’t too fussy as long as she arrived in one piece.