by Ellie Pond
Duncan sat in the window porthole, pulling Aurora down next to him. Her eyes morphed to her true power. “The whole truth, not the gist. The truth, now, Duncan.”
“Right. Witches outed the shifter world to save themselves.”
She nodded. That she knew.
“Well, not all witches. To be more precise, Lauren’s coven. They were being exposed by a detective in Erie, and, to save themselves, they outed a pack of wolves in their town instead while placing cloaking spells around their coven. They saved themselves. It’s the reason wolves hate witches. It’s the reason the feud has gone on so long. The government killed that entire pack. The scientists studied them into nonexistence, killing them one by one, testing their healing powers, their shifting speed. My cousin.” He touched her hand. He knew she had heard of their cousin and how she had died.
“Hannah?” Aurora asked.
“Yes, Hannah.”
“I’ve never heard the full story.”
“It’s not something we talk about. We have a tentative peace, and we need to keep it that way.”
“Lauren’s dad? Lauren said he was sick for a long time before he died.”
“Most likely wolf venom, but I don’t know for sure. It’s a long, slow process for a witch to die.” Duncan didn’t look up at Aurora, but he continued to squeeze her hand. Duncan held her hand but didn’t look at her.
She didn’t want to ask. “Duncan, who bit Lauren’s dad?”
“My uncle. Before he went rogue and my father became alpha. Lauren’s coven cursed him for it. He couldn’t be around any other wolves, not even Aunt Lara. He left not long after. Separated from the pack, he didn’t last long. He became wild. A complete wolf.”
“Didn’t Lauren know? Didn’t she know that Spencer was my friend? The nephew of the wolf who killed her father?”
“She had to.”
“Oh, how could she stand to look at me? Is that why she left every weekend? But she was my friend. I am so confused. Did she know Spencer was her mate back then?” Duncan held both of her hands now.
“No, Aurora.” Sam came from around the corner. Her hair today was slicked back in a giant bun at the base of her neck. She wore black leggings and a short white top that swung and flashed her tan skin underneath.
Aurora jumped. “Where did you come from?”
“Isn’t it obvious? Nothing? It’s a joke. I need new material.” The couple stared at her. “I get it, you’re in the middle of telling her about wolves and witches. Not in the mood for a joke? It’s always time for a joke.”
“Sam, how can I help you?” Duncan crossed his arms over his chest.
“I was looking for your mate.”
“I assumed.”
“No, really, I was. Aurora, I was wondering if you could go to Lauren. I saw her in the bathroom a moment ago, and she needs a friendly face.”
“Are you sure I am the face she wants? I think she wouldn’t want to see me at all.”
“Yes, definitely, Lauren needs you today. She’s in the bathroom upstairs. And what she needs more than anything is to have a normal day. Can you see if you can convince her to play in the tournament?”
“I’ll talk to her again.” Aurora kissed Duncan on his cheek. “Come find me for lunch?”
“I’ll be there.” He pulled her back to him, taking her lips with passion.
When they parted, Aurora touched her puffed lips and jogged up the red-carpeted stairs.
She pushed into the bathroom and found Lauren sitting on the floor next to the sink, her head in her hands.
Aurora sank to the floor and wrapped her arms around her friend. Lauren shook as she cried.
“Hill, you need to get off the floor. Think of all the germs,” Aurora laughed.
“We’re witches, Aurora. We don’t get human diseases.”
“Well, this is a shifter ship. What if we get shifter diseases?”
“Doesn’t work that way.” Lauren sniffled and pulled away from Aurora.
“How are you sure?”
Lauren glared at her. “Because I’m sure.”
“Lauren, I am sorry if I made it uncomfortable for you at school.”
“You didn’t.”
“Really? How could you stand to be in the same room with me? My best friends in the world—their uncle killed your father.”
“They didn’t do the killing, Aurora. My coven did. They are the reason witches are so reviled in the community. Why we are attacked and mocked. Why we hide ourselves with spells, so that no one knows who we are. But are you okay?”
“People keep asking me that.”
“Well, people care about you.”
“And you, too.”
“I am not sure about that.”
“Lauren, it’s true.”
She shrugged. “Right now? I … that’s the problem. I don’t know? I’m confused.”
“Me too, me too.”
28
Cheers
Sam and Duncan watched Aurora bound up the stairs, the crutches gone. She disappeared over the top of the stairs that took out her knee only three days ago.
“Why are you meddling in my life, witch?” Duncan stood.
“You’re extraordinarily rude, wolf.”
“That’s true, but you owe me an answer.”
“I owe you nothing.” She put her hand on her hip.
“Not really, witch.”
“You’ve got all day.”
“Technically, yes. But I have to pick Rory up for lunch.”
“Rory, right?”
“What are you talking about, witch?”
“How you call Aurora ‘Rory.’ You’re the only one, you know.”
“I am the only what?”
“The only one who calls Aurora ‘Rory.’ In Violet’s vision, it was hard to follow. She kept getting the word ‘roar’, and it led us on a crazy chase for a while. And then I had to plan the whole game tournament. It took forever. I can’t describe to you the number of pictures of lion shifters I had to dig through before Violet told me to focus on wolves. She knew about the two of you but couldn’t piece together that it was time. You made this whole thing super frustrating for me.”
Duncan leaned against the wall and tried not to roll his eyes. He didn’t care that he made anything more difficult for her. “I’ll say it again: what do you want from my mate and me?”
She leaned up against the wall herself. “I want you to fix the world. That shouldn’t be too much trouble for you.”
“Fix the world?”
“Well, the whole witch-wolf conflict.”
“Damn witch, witches and wolves, it’s a war, or at least it is going to be. How the hell is a single mated couple going to fix the issues?”
Sam continued to stare out the porthole. The ocean rolled up and down.
“You don’t know, do you?” Duncan’s eyes glowed. “You don’t have a clue how, and you think we have some superpower? No. You need to stay away from my mate and me.” Duncan pushed away from the wall and jumped up the stairs two at a time. He pulled a lonely chair from the corner of the ballroom lobby and sat in it next to the door, like a burly security guard. Lunch couldn’t come soon enough. Confident that he would hear movement in the lobby, he closed his eyes and leaned the chair back on two legs against the wall.
* * *
Eyes shut, he felt his alpha’s presence. Duncan opened his eyes without moving his reclined body. “Hey bro, you look like shit.”
And Spencer did. His eyes were pink and hazel, his white polo shirt stained. His hair that always laid smooth with an annoying hockey curl at the end stuck out at odd angles.
Spencer looked down at his shirt, ran his hand through his hair, and kicked the leg out of the chair Duncan sat on. Duncan crumpled to the floor.
“You could have fucking told me.” He offered his hand to pull his brother up.
“No, I couldn’t. And you know it. I wasn’t even sure until two days ago. What would have happened to Aunt Lara, Aurora, and her m
om when you went to the shifter council? The first time they talked about witches, they would know that we were protecting them. A puma toddler would know that you were hanging out with one. The second you started talking, they would know that you were trying to deceive them.” Duncan took his brother’s hand and stood.
“Shit, you don’t know for sure.”
“Have you met a puma?” He raised an eyebrow at the question being asked. Dumb question—the Calculus teacher at their school was a puma. Truly infuriating. She would ask questions like, “Have you done your homework, and did anyone cheat on the test?” Normal questions. But you couldn’t pull off a lie with a Puma. So yes, he had met a Puma.
“The council doesn’t have any pumas on it.”
“And they don’t have any on staff?”
Spencer turned away, his eyes darting from him to the closed doors of the ballroom. He had never seen his brother like this before.
“Man, are you going to be okay?”
“I don’t … Did Dad know?”
“I would imagine so. Explains why he put you in charge and stepped down so quickly. Hell, he had you made alpha as soon as he could.”
“Ten months.” Spencer rubbed his face. “I can’t. If he knew, how did he keep it from the council?”
Duncan grabbed Spencer’s elbow, their arms locked together. “It must have been hard for Dad to not tell you. If he had seen another way out, he would have taken it.”
“What will I do now? It’s not like I can avoid the council. It’s not like they won’t know who my mate is or figure out what she is. Hell, I’m sure she’s on a list, seeing who her father was. How did Dad keep it from them?”
The ballroom doors flung open, and the gamers flowed into the lobby. Lauren’s long hair tumbled around her shoulders in a disheveled array of tangles. Her face was puffy, and her eyes matched Spencer’s red tinge. His own mate looked equally disheveled but for a different reason altogether.
When Aurora spotted Spencer, she led a reluctant Lauren over. Her eyes scanned Spencer. “You look like shit, and you’re acting like shit too.”
His brother didn’t look at Aurora, only at Lauren. How Spencer could not reach for Lauren and pull her to him, he couldn’t understand.
“He’s made himself perfectly clear, Aurora.” Her eyes narrowed, and Duncan felt his brother’s pain. Lauren smoothed her hair down. “Are you coming, Aurora? The break is over in ten minutes.” She darted for the bathroom. Spencer didn’t move.
Aurora didn’t take off after Lauren. “Your shit, Spencer—gather it up and fix this.” She waved her hands in a circular motion. “And you—you talk some sense into him.” She poked at Duncan’s chest. Aurora stomped off to the bathroom, catching Lauren before the door closed on its own behind her, vibrating shut.
Spencer looked at Duncan with a childlike innocence.
“You heard my mate. Fix your shit.”
“Not that easy.” Spencer rubbed his chin.
“It better be, because my mate said I need to have you fix it.” And yes, he had told Aurora that they needed to stay out of it, but damn, his brother was lost.
“I am not sure I can. I don’t ...” Both of them watched the bathroom door like something magical would happen.
Duncan waited for Spencer to say anything else. “Come on, let’s go have a drink.”
“I know just the place.”
The elevator opened, and Tad stood in the corner of the lobby. “What the hell? Are you hiding from someone?”
Tad jumped at Duncan’s voice. “What. Oh. Hey guys.” He said in an over-casual voice. Tad glanced around the lobby before he took two steps towards them.
“Not buying it,” Duncan laughed. “Get over here. We’re taking my dumb shit brother for a drink.”
“It’s nine a.m.”
“Look at him.”
“Looks like he’s already had a drink. Did you sleep in those clothes?”
“Maybe.”
“That’s a yes.” The elevator door started to close with Tad still in the lobby.
“Get in here. I need help.”
Tad looked over his shoulder. “Okay, but I can’t stay long.”
* * *
The Bjorn bar had only opened a few moments before the guys pulled on the door handle. A young blond shifter was polishing the brass fixtures around the bar, his hair bouncing as he did it.
“What the hell are you doing?” Duncan skirted around him.
“Polishing.” The young crewman said.
“Not you, my dumb shit cousin. What are you acting all cat crazy about?” He pointed at Tad.
The blond shifter stopped his polishing and glared at them.
“Apologies.” Duncan stared at the shifter until he nodded back at him. The cat shifter put his rags in a small bucket and left the bar. The door thudded shut behind him.
He turned to Spencer. “Seriously, what are you so afraid of?”
“I am not afraid of anything.” Tad ran his fingers through his loose hair.
“Then what the hell?”
“Stop it. I thought we came for a drink with Spencer.” Tad motioned to the end of the open bar. The three of them took stools, Spencer in the middle.
“We’re sitting. Are you happy now?”
“We’ll get to you. Spencer first.” Duncan pointed to Tad.
“So, now that you are all mated, you’re the family fixer?” Spencer pushed a coaster around on the oak bar.
“I am not after your crown as family fixer, so settle down.”
“What can I get you? Belgium’s new on tap.” Kellen poured them both one as they nodded.
“That’s great, thanks.” Duncan said.
“Okay what’s …”
“Drink first, talk later.”
They all sipped their drinks. Duncan studied Spencer and Tad. Duncan had just finished his beer, leaving a ring on his coaster, when the door flew open.
Oliver Sutton stood there with Doctor Cottage.
Duncan looked at Tad. “I am guessing that’s who you were avoiding.”
“Precisely.”
29
Between the Lines
The doctor didn’t glance at them. She headed for a booth around the corner of the bar, but Oliver paused and held Tad’s gaze.
“Damn, that’s terrifying. I suggest that you figure out what you are going to do, Tad. Your new friend over there has a mighty tough bodyguard.”
“I don’t need to figure out what I’m going to do. I am not doing anything. And she says the same. Nothing to figure out. She’s a nice woman. Beautiful, smart. A solid doctor. But nothing is going to happen.”
“A solid doctor. Wow. That’s high praise from you. Right?” Duncan nudged Spencer’s elbow from the bar. He didn’t move, with his head low to the bar and beer mug firm in hand. The view on Duncan’s other side wasn’t much better. Tad took an occasional peep at the corner of the bar where only the doctor’s black-trousered legs peeked out from behind the pillar.
Kellen wiped the sink down and hung up dry barware. In the opposite corner of the bar, a crew member set up tables and filled condiments. Neither of the two of them said anything, and as hard as he tried to eavesdrop, the good doctor’s conversation was drowned out by the low Celtic music.
A couple sat down at the opposite end of the bar from them. The couple and the few other people in the bar gawked at something behind Duncan. Duncan glanced over his shoulder. The ship’s captain stood behind them. Did the captain just scent him? What the …? You didn’t do that. Not unless you wanted to fight or rut. Duncan squinted and started to stand; the dragon would take him out in an instant. But he didn’t care.
Thud. Duncan turned to the bar. The menu Kellen dropped in front of Duncan bounced. “You want something to eat? Your stomach’s so loud, it’s echoing around the bar.”
Duncan glared back over his shoulder, but the captain sat with the Doctor and Sutton. He shook it off. “I could eat.” Duncan picked up the menu. Being hungry was a new
concept. And eating without pain a new passion. “I’ll have the appetizers.”
“Which one?”
“All of them. Wait, not the chicken salad. Unless I can have just the chicken. Thanks.” He closed the menu and waited for a snarky comment from Tad. None arrived. Tad was craning his neck towards the doctor’s table.
Kellen nodded and punched the order into the touch screen. After two minutes of typing, he turned to Duncan. “You gonna last the fifteen minutes it will take?”
Duncan’s stomach let out a loud cry. “I think so.” He patted his belly.
“I try not to meddle. Being a bartender and all, people usually tell me what’s going on. Spencer mentioned a thing or two. What’s your story?” Kellen filled Tad’s beer again.
“No story at all. I’m 40, no mate. And I am good.” Tad didn’t peer over the edge of the bar at Kellen; he glanced back at the doctor.
“And now you’ve found your mate, right? Got it. It’s an old wives’ tale.” Kellen washed a cocktail shaker and put it in the drying rack.
“What old wives’ tale?” Spencer spoke for the first time in an hour.
“I’ve seen plenty of shifters find their mates later in life. Hell, I saw one lion shifter find a fated mate at sixty. It was his second fated mate. Lucky cat. Some can’t find one, and he found two.”
“Maybe for cats.”
“Nope. I’ve seen it for all kinds of shifters. Not second mates—that could be a cat thing.”
“You should ask the doctor about it. That’s her specialty.”
Tad sat up straight. “Shifters?”
“Sure—shifters, the health of shifters, and fated mates. I read a paper she did before she came on board.”
Tad scrutinized Kellen.
“Don’t get so high brow. I am more than a bartender. I’ve done lots of jobs. I was a lab tech for ten years before I moved on. Or rather, the Captain bribed me with building this bar to join the crew. Captain asked me what I thought of her work. And it’s the best. Better than Dr. Larsen here.”