Hidden Heart (Dark Wing Series Book 1)

by Ellie Pond

  Duncan gawked at Tad and Kellen.

  “Did you read any of her papers?” Kellen poured two beers for the couple at the end of the bar.

  “No,” Tad said softly.

  “What? I didn’t hear you.” Kellen smirked. He pulled a tablet out of a cabinet from behind the counter and opened it to a paper.

  “Take a read. You’ll learn a thing or two.”

  Tad took the tablet and read. Six plates of food landed in front of Duncan.

  “You came to the ballroom. Were you looking for me or her?” He glanced at Spencer, who nodded back and shrugged.

  “Both.”

  “But she didn’t talk to you. You are going to have to woo her if you want to have a chance. Do you want a chance?”

  “I think so. But then I remember what hell the council will rain down.”

  “Not good enough, brother. You are going to have to explain whatever you said to her the first night.”

  “It wasn’t good.” Spencer ate a French fry.

  “Figured.” Duncan dipped a cheese stick in nacho cheese. “What happened?” He waited for Spencer.

  “I was blindsided. And I said what the wolf council had primed me with for the last ten years. The way I said it came out wrong.”

  “When you talk to her, lead with the ‘I was wrong’ thing.”

  “Now I’m taking relationship advice from you? Little brother. The world is a much different place than I envisioned it.” Spencer scrutinized the food. “I said it wrong. Doesn’t mean all of it was.”

  Shit, his brother was an asshole. Aurora told him to fix it. It might not be possible.

  “It’s a wonderful world. With effort you are going to make this work out with Lauren.”

  “I’m not sure about that. She’s a great woman, from what everyone tells me, and I am attracted to her on a level I can’t explain.”

  Duncan understood. “I get it.”

  “But …”

  “There doesn’t need to be a ‘but’. Buts are what’s wrong with this whole thing.”

  “Some butts don’t have a thing wrong with them. Like that one.” Kellen motioned to the far side of the bar where the doctor was leaving and obviously not looking in their direction.

  “Hey,” Tad said in a low growl as he stood.

  Kellen laughed and headed to the end of the bar to pick up an order the server dropped.

  They all watched the doctor walk out the door. Tad pushed the plate of fries in front of him to Duncan.

  “You’re a good guy, and if you admit you were wrong to her, like you did to me, it’ll go a long way. But you’ve got to believe it.” He hoped. Mating was shifter biology, and humans felt the pull, but anything could happen.

  Spencer turned to Duncan, his eyes still red, but his face a little less sallow, either from the food or being with his pack mates. Spencer sighed. “You think me getting mated is worth a war? Is that what you’re saying? That I should bring death to our pack so I can have what I want? No, you’re proof enough. You suffered because I took what I wanted. I am not doing that again. I am not going to mate Lauren now, not ever. And before you get all worried, I am not stopping you either. Gunnar opened his mouth up last night. Gave me a talking to. Might have been the Dragon Ale. But he was right.” Spencer pushed back from the bar. Out of reflex, he pulled his wallet from his pocket. He humphed, dropped a twenty in the tip jar, and thundered out of the bar.

  Tad glanced from the tablet in front of him to Duncan and back. He pushed the tablet across the table towards Duncan.

  “You want me to read this?”

  “The first two paragraphs where she lays out her argument.”

  “I am a happy construction worker, remember?”

  “I also remember you being fourth in your class.”

  “Out of two hundred.”

  “Isn’t cousin Rachel a judge?”

  “Yeah. So what?”

  “She was fifth of her class. Read the first two paragraphs.”

  Duncan tapped the tablet awake and read. Dr. Cottage explained the complex notions of shifter fated mates in concrete terms.

  Deny mating—suffer physical consequences. Potential human mates more susceptible than their shifter counterpart to illness and early death.

  “So, mate or die. Which are you going to choose?”

  “Mate. But not for the die reason. She’s brilliant. I’ve been asking around about her, too. No one has a bad thing to say about her. Not one complaint. She’s gorgeous and smells of apple blossoms and goodness.”

  “So what’s your problem?”

  “She doesn’t want me.”

  “How is that possible?” Duncan laughed. If you asked the same question of Tad’s coworkers, their answers would be different. Difficult and pompous but brilliant.

  “Sounds like you have some work ahead.”

  “I do.”

  Tad pushed the tablet to Kellen. “Thanks.”

  “You’re welcome. You’ve probably figured it out, but Doc has a lot of adopted big brothers on this ship. Don’t fuck this up.”

  Tad gawked at the massive bear shifter. “Noted.” He opened his wallet to put a tip in the jar.

  “No. You’re family now. No tipping family.”

  “I am moving up. So much better than my current pack.” Tad pushed down on the rim of Duncan’s hat.

  “Shut it.”

  “What does this mean for Spencer?” Duncan pointed to the tablet.

  “Guess we’ll find out.”

  Duncan watched Tad leave the bar. He finished the rest of the plates of food.

  “Want something else?” Kellen cleared the plates away. More people were in the bar now.

  “Yes, but I am going to take a walk first. Thanks.” Duncan left a tip.

  * * *

  The wind on the deck vibrated the deck chairs. He shoved his hat in the back pocket of his shorts. A little girl screamed as she splashed out of the slide. He glanced at his watch—two hours before Aurora’s lunch break. Time ticked backwards. Two laps of the deck, no land in sight, only water surrounded them. He flopped into a deck chair, placed his hat over his eyes, and tried to nap. His eyes flung open. Napping had become his super power, and now he couldn’t at all. Being able to eat and not sleep was new to him.

  * * *

  Giant brass doors filled the entire end of the hallway. He paused before he opened them, studying the detailed tree of life relief engraved on the doors. The scent of lavender circled the dark lobby. Two attendants dressed in loose black clothing stood behind an oak desk. A rain wall behind them and the dim lights both repelled and attracted him. It gave off a you-can’t-afford-it spa feeling, not that Duncan had ever been to a spa. A young wolf shifter with long wavy hair and mocha skin perked up when he walked in. “Good morning, Mr. Larsen.” She smiled. The pale, gangly young shifter next to her stared at a screen in front of him.

  Duncan squinted and wanted to turn around. Didn’t horror movies start out with people you didn’t know greeting you by name? He pressed forward.

  “Here for a stretch?”

  He nodded his affirmative.

  “Great. Behind me is our large running track. There are lockers down the hall and to the right for your clothes and possessions. We do recommend taking your band off and locking it up. If you want to shift and hang out in a mixed environment, the door to the left will lead you upstairs where you can get a bite to eat or a drink and shift at your leisure. A few rules: no running and no chasing up there.”

  He nodded. The gangly man handed him a large cream robe with the Dark Wing logo on it.

  “Thank you.”

  The locker room could have been from his gym at home, only there were large scratch marks on both the floor and the lockers. He pulled his clothes off and tossed them in the locker; he put his band under his hat. He locked the locker with the pin code, following the directions, and headed for the track. Outside of New York City, he had gone to a bar that labeled itself as a ‘mixed shifter environme
nt.’ By ‘mixed’ they meant ‘naked’, and ‘environment’ meant ‘orgy.’ He didn’t like it then, and with a new mate, he didn’t want it now.

  He headed to the track, the robe in hand, and hung it on the wall. A large circle rounded the empty cage match arena. On the inside rail was a vending machine of scents you could purchase to put in a target to chase around the room. He skipped it, although it appealed to his wolf. He was here to kill some hours. With that, the shift took him swiftly, without his normal pain. There were a few other shifters running the track or chasing the android scents around the room. Now, if he could have bottled Aurora and put her scent in one, that would have been fun. But not as fun as the real thing. He ran until his legs shook and he collapsed near the wall. After a few minutes, he recovered enough, and he showered until his human skin pruned.

  He dried off. He retrieved his clothes from the locker and put them on. A quick hand through his hair and he put his hat on. He turned back to the locker when he remembered his orange cruise band. He searched the empty locker and the ones around it, too.

  * * *

  “No one can get into your locker, Mr. Larsen. If you locked it, like you said.” The dark hair girl typed into her computer.

  “I locked it.”

  “Are you sure you brought it?” The gangly shifter read over her shoulder.

  The girl rolled her eyes at him. “Chad, if he didn’t have it on when he entered, his name wouldn’t have popped up so we could greet him.”

  “Oh, yeah.” Chad shrugged.

  Duncan shifted from side to side. “Can you call someone to find out where my band is?”

  “Oh, right. Sure.” His voice cracked as he dialed the phone. “This is Chad. Hi Daniel, a guest lost his band here …”

  The girl stared at him sympathetically.

  “I didn’t lose it from the inside of a locked locker.” Duncan leaned forward over the oak podium.

  “Uh, yeah. He said it was inside his locked locker,” Chad said into the phone.

  “It was locked when you came back?” His hand was over the receiver.

  “Yes.” Duncan resisted the urge to change into his wolf and jump over the counter.

  The girl typed away on the screen in front of her. Lines formed between her eyes as she squinted at the screen. She elbowed Chad and pointed at the screen.

  “Wow, Daisy, how is that possible?” Chad pointed at the screen.

  “What? How is what possible?” Daisy squinted and cocked her head.

  Duncan scrutinized the two. Chad stepped back and shook his head in confusion. Daisy typed away.

  She took the phone from Chad. “Yeah, Zac, this is Daisy. Can you get an officer down here stat?”

  Duncan rounded the corner of the podium.

  “Mr. Larsen, you can’t be back here.”

  “Shh, Chad. Let him see it.”

  “Yeah, Chad.”

  Chad threw his arms up. The three of them crowded around the screen. It was a feed from a security camera that showed the lockers.

  30

  Powers that Be

  The ballroom door vibrated shut behind them. Aurora held onto Lauren's hand. Lauren was steadfast and determined to make it to the check-in table, where a distinguished balding man sat behind the desk with a clipboard.

  “Ladies, there you are. You’re almost late. Glad you are here.”

  “Well, we’re here.” Lauren crossed her arms across her chest.

  He blinked at her.

  “Thanks for waiting for us. Sorry we’re late.” Aurora took her name tag from the table.

  “Yes, Miss Berry, you will be at table five over there.” He pointed over his right shoulder. “And Ms. Hill, you're at table one, right here by the front. Oh wait, I read that wrong. It says table five. Odd. I must be getting old—time for a new set of glasses.” He chuckled and took his glasses off, rubbing them on the tail of his purple polo shirt. With them on, he stared intently at the paper. Aurora squinted quizzically at Lauren. She rubbed her elbow on Aurora’s and stepped briskly away from the table.

  Aurora glanced at her with puzzlement. Lauren leaned in. “There are a few benefits to being a witch,” she whispered.

  Aurora glared and wondered how often Lauren had used magic on her when they were roommates.

  At the table, Aurora recognized a few of the players from the days before. The man who won the first round on day one sat directly across from her. He nodded at her,

  Today’s board game she had only played twice before, and that was to get ready for the cruise. Strategy would be key.

  As the rounds passed and turned to hours, she found herself in the middle of the scorecard, with Lauren placed a little ahead of her. The man across the table led again as the break bell rang. All the contestants moved to the lobby area at the same time to prevent cheating.

  As Aurora left the room, she pondered her last move of the round. She wished she had taken a card instead of moving her token. That would have led to more points in her next turn. Darn.

  Lauren wandered to the restroom, and Aurora grabbed a snack from the buffet table. The warning bell rang for them to go back to the tables, followed by the bell for them to return. Aurora sat down. She picked up her card but had an extra one. Confused, she scanned back and forth between her hand and Lauren and mouthed, “This isn't my hand.”

  Lauren cocked her head.

  Most of the contestants were studying their own hands. “Not my cards,” she mouthed to Lauren again.

  The man in the lead spoke up. “Are you saying that someone cheated? We all left the table at the same time.”

  “No, I am not saying that. I'm not accusing anyone of cheating.”

  Lauren gazed at Aurora in a sympathetic way that told her everything would be alright.

  Aurora shrugged with a what the heck motion.

  Lauren mouthed, “Don't worry about it. We’ll talk later.”

  The man raised his hand to call a referee over. “These two are talking about cheating.” The rest of the table glared at them now.

  “Ladies, is there a problem?”

  “No, everything is fine,” Aurora said. “I said nothing about cheating.”

  Lauren echoed Aurora.

  The referee observed the three of them like a tennis match.

  “She’s new to the game and forgot what she did last turn, that’s all. No worries.”

  Aurora's eyes flashed at Lauren, and it hit her: she had been thinking about the resource card, and now it was in her hand. With her magic unlocked, was it possible that she changed her cards?

  “Yes, what she said. I just forgot.”

  “Is everyone happy with that answer?” The referee scrutinized the players around the table.

  The man across the table studied his hand and the pieces on the board. The game was locked down. It didn’t matter what cards she had or not. He was going to win. “I am not happy with it, but yeah, we're fine. Thanks for coming over.”

  Within 20 minutes he had indeed won. Aurora had intentionally taken a few bad moves. She didn't even want to place during the game. She felt horrible. She didn't like cheating. That wasn't who she was. Even coming in next to last, the guilt rumbled in her gut. The lunch bell rang. Most of the games were already over, and people stood in the lobby.

  Aurora turned to Lauren. “Do you want to go to lunch with me?”

  “I’m not sure that's a good idea if you’re having lunch with Duncan.”

  “I told him I would, but I can cancel.”

  “No, you need to be with your mate.”

  You should too, she thought, but she didn’t say it.

  The doors to the elevator opened, and Aurora could see Duncan standing, filling out most of the doorway. For a change, she found him before he picked her out of the crowd. People flowed around him, rushing to the elevator. His smile consumed his face when he spotted her staring at him from across the lobby.

  Standing on her toes, she went in to kiss his cheek, and he turned his head and
gave her a heart-thumping kiss. Aurora pulled back before she wanted to, knowing Lauren watched.

  “Hey Lauren, we’re heading to lunch. You want to come with us?” Duncan asked

  “No, that's okay. I'll see you later.” Lauren turned away from the line at the elevator and zipped past the cardboard castle towards the dangerous stairs.

  “See you at dinner,” Aurora called after her.

  “Maybe. I don't know what I'm doing yet.” Lauren paused ten feet away.

  “We are going to the pool if you want to catch up with us after lunch.”

  Lauren nodded and ran down the stairs.

  Duncan and Aurora watched her go.

  “Did you talk any sense into him?”

  “He needs to come to that on his own. Tad and I tried, but there’s a lot going on.”

  31

  Full Circle

  Aurora took a bite of pizza. “So, the locker popped open, and the band fell to the ground and rolled out of the camera view. And the other camera in the room only saw the door close to the locker?”

  “Yup.” Duncan turned his new orange band around on his wrist.

  “And the band didn’t have any new charges or access anything before they deactivated it?”

  “Not a one.” Duncan finished his fourth—no fifth—slice of loaded pizza.

  “And the door popped open and closed on its own?”

  “Yup. But it didn’t do it on its own. Someone did some …” He moved his hands like he was casting a spell.

  Aurora batted his hands down.

  “What?”

  “What nothing! You’re the one who says we need to keep a low profile with the, you know?”

  He smirked. “With the you know?”

  “But why?”

  “That’s what Laurit said, too. Doesn’t make any sense. To go through all that trouble, why not use the band right away? Buy something. Live it up a little. Now it’s just an orange bracelet.”