“Well?” She arched an elegant eyebrow. “Do you deny that is the reason you married Raina Kemp? Because your king commanded you to do so and not because you had any sort of feelings for the young Leopardess.”
“I do not deny it.” I held her gaze as I added quietly, “This marriage was arranged because I agreed to a peace marriage, and Raina was chosen for me. The king commanded, and we both obeyed.”
“She must’ve swooned over such a proposal, all that talk of duty and the king’s command,” Madoc interjected.
I ground my teeth together, working my jaw, as I bit back the harsh words I wanted to hurl at the impudent youngster. “I never proposed to her. We were formally introduced, and then we married the next day as per the king’s wishes. We were merely one of many couples to do so that week.”
Celeste drew in a sharp breath and took a quick step back. Stark disapproval rolled over Venetia’s face as the younger Tigress asked, “Do you truly mean to say that you permitted your marriage to have such an inauspicious beginning as being part of the circus called the Week of Weddings?”
I kept my gaze on Venetia as I stated simply, “I followed my duty and obeyed my king. It would have been dishonorable to defy either when I accepted the responsibility of committing myself to a peace marriage.”
A touch to my arm pulled my attention back to Celeste. She gave her head a careful shake causing her curls to shiver. “Why would you do such a thing when you have always had your pick of women?”
Pulling away from her, I stated gruffly, “I had my reasons for choosing this path.”
Venetia rose to her feet with silent grace, her expression unreadable, as she shrugged a shoulder. “I suppose we can only admire your devotion to duty . . . even when it means feigning the same devotion to the bride duty chose for you.”
“You are out of line.” The words came out low and harsh.
Yet, it did not stop her. Venetia let out a cold, mirthless laugh. “Do not pretend with me. You are still my son. I know you too well to believe that you fell anything for this girl. A woman who is so very different from you, who is so free spirited as to play with the edicts of the Way as pleases her. No. I cannot believe that one such as she could ever earn more than the grudging devotion rooted solely in your sense of duty . . . your sense of honor.” She shook her head. “No, I could sooner believe a match with a dragon for you.”
Madoc’s chuckle broke the tension in the air. He pushed off the mantle as he rubbed his hands together. “The mighty General Baran paired to a dragon. Now that would be a different story all together, wouldn’t it? Pity the dragons prefer to have nothing to do with the rest of us shifters. They value their bloodlines even more highly than you do, Mother.”
I bared my teeth at him and any rebuke I could offer was silenced by the appearance of Roderick in the doorway. He studied the room for a moment before crossing to Venetia and kissing her cheek. “Dinner has been set on the table. Shall we?”
I didn’t miss the way Venetia cut a knowing look in my direction before she inclined her head and accepted Roderick’s proffered arm. Nor did I miss the smug satisfaction that crossed Madoc’s face. Even Celeste failed to hide her satisfaction at my silence. All of it infuriated me and agitated my tiger into struggling away from my control. I spun on my heel putting my back to the room even as I felt the Tiger ghost across my face.
Marching away from them was one of the most difficult things I had done in over two decades. I caught a whiff of Raina’s cinnamon and vanilla perfume that only grew stronger as I approached the formal dining room. I entered the room only to stop short at the sight of her. The black sheath dress flattered her curves with the lace overlay sleeves falling just short of her wrists while the sweetheart neckline left her shoulders bare. Her copper colored hair hung loose down her back while still covering the tips of her ears. I couldn’t help admiring her as she turned from setting the last of the silverware in its proper place.
Dramatic yet understated was what she had called the dress earlier. But on her . . . On Raina, the dress was elegance and refinement. The black provided a perfect canvas for one to admire her fair skin and copper hair. Her green tinged hazel eyes seemed brighter as she smiled at me.
I returned her smile until Venetia’s comments whispered through my thoughts again. My tiger stirred once more as my smile dropped. The others entered the room behind me, and I crossed to Raina’s side then pulled out a chair for her.
Raina’s smile had faded and a flicker of concern entered her eyes even though her perfume kept the emotion from being detected in her scent. I ignored the unvoiced question as I took her hand and urged her to take her seat.
“Baran, Celeste is to sit beside you.”
“No.”
“Baran,” Raina spoke softly, but I only shook my head at her. Venetia’s words had stung due to their truth. I was tired of allowing the Tigress the upper hand.
“Take your seat, Raina,” I instructed gruffly. She studied me a breath longer before sitting in the chair. I immediately pulled out the one between her and where Venetia would sit and took my own place at the table.
“Baran,” came the clipped call.
I looked up to find Venetia glaring down at me. She pursed her lips before stating icily, “Celeste is to be your dinner companion.”
“No.” I glanced past her to the others and noted that Roderick had already instructed Madoc to take his own seat before pulling out Venetia’s chair. Only Venetia and Celeste still remained in place, their eyes fixed on me. “My companion is my wife as it should be. There is nothing more to be said on the matter.”
“As this is my house, tradition dictates that I seat my guests as suited. Celeste is better suited.”
A low growl escaped me as I shoved to my feet. “That’s enough.”
“I agree,” Roderick interjected. “Venetia, the dinner will get cold. Shall we begin before such a tragedy occurs?”
Venetia inclined her head the tiniest amount, then allowed her husband to seat her while Celeste availed herself of Madoc’s services. A thick tension settled over the table. Not even the food’s aroma was enough to coat the bitter scent. The minutes ticked by with exaggerated sluggishness until Raina cleared her throat. She glanced from me to Roderick as she broke the silence. “Where did the two of you vanish to this afternoon?”
Roderick looked . . . thankful for her efforts. “The reeves summoned me and Baran was kind enough to accompany me into town.”
“Reeves?” Venetia echoed. “What did they need that couldn’t wait until after the holiday?”
Roderick glanced at me, and I gave a curt nod. The information needed to be shared. He nodded in response before answering, “They found a body and, as magistrate, my presence was required.”
Venetia set down her fork as she fixed her husband with a cool look. “The reeves have found bodies before and not needed your presence. Why should this be different?”
“The body was different, my dear. It was the right thing for them to do to call me,” Roderick said patiently.
“Why take Baran?” Venetia did not so much as grace me with her attention. “Maine is not within his territory after all, and we wouldn’t want him to overstep duty’s bounds.”
I glared at her and a growl roughened my voice as I interrupted, “The body was desiccated. We did not know it at the time of Roderick’s invitation, however, it was a good thing that I accompanied him. It was faster than waiting for another military representative to arrive in town. This Therian was killed in the midst of shifting, and the body was stuck between forms. Something that does not happen.”
Raina stiffened beside me, but Celeste was the one who spoke. She gave a little laugh as she sipped her wine. “All this fuss? Over a body that displays unusual signs? Are they certain that this wasn’t some sort of prank?”
I stared at her for a long moment before I shook my head. “This was no prank. There could be only one culprit behind such a body. A Vampyre.”
Ma
doc’s smirk had vanished entirely, and he turned to his father. A thread of seriousness wove into his voice as he asked, “A clutch here? I thought they were trapped in New York.”
“That is likely still the case,” Roderick stated quietly. “I do not think this scout who managed to slip by the net around New York will cause further trouble. Most likely the scout is already retreating. Perhaps they’ve crossed the border into Canada already.”
I frowned at him. “That is a reckless assumption.” Raina touched my leg, but I ignored it as I turned my frown on the others. “We cannot assume that this was a Vampyre scout traveling alone. To do so is both reckless and foolish. Better to assume that where there is one Vampyre we can expect to find more.”
Roderick shifted his weight, his gaze serious, yet he didn’t frown or permit even a hint of a growl as he countered, “The odds of two clutches appearing in the New World at the same time and with one going undetected are highly improbable. I would even say it is more likely to have another Wendigo smuggled into the human’s capital. Perhaps such a thing might have been possible when you were a cub, Baran, but no longer. Our people work too hard to prevent such a situation from occurring, not only Therians and the Elves, but these firms who work between our peoples and the humans, Halliman’s on the West Coast, Carith & Krall in Mississippi, and even Weard Enterprises in Chicago. They all fight to protect our shared secrets from the humans.”
“A pity Weard doesn’t play well with Trackers in Chicago,” Raina interjected before I could control my irritation enough to speak without roaring. “Of course, there was some damage done by the current commander’s predecessor that caused Weard to pull away a few years ago. The new commander hasn’t had time to reach out to them again.” She glanced at me, then quickly fixed her attention on Roderick. “Have you much experience fighting Vampyres?”
“None. However, I know the stories.” Roderick’s eyes flickered toward Venetia as he added softly, “I learned them from a good friend.”
“I don’t suppose you would be able to consult your source for more information,” Raina asked.
“No.” Roderick’s gaze roamed from my mother to myself. “My . . . friend died shortly after the Fourth War.”
I stiffened. How dare he mention a friendship he lost the rights to years past?
Venetia cleared her throat delicately. “Well then, it sounds to me as though Roderick has the matter well in hand. He will tell us if there’s any need to be concerned.”
Roderick nodded at her words. “Yes. As I said, I do not think this is more than a scout passing through. However, until the reeves determine the creature’s absence from our woods, none of us should go anywhere alone at night. As a precaution.” His gaze landed on Madoc as he added, “Am I understood?”
I shoved back from the table leaving most of the food on my plate untouched. Madoc gave a careless answer, but I didn’t caution him. He wouldn’t listen to me. He wouldn’t even listen to his parents. Why should I have ever been surprised when his own father refused to listen to sense?
Storming from the room, I barely noticed the soft footfalls behind me. A hand brushed against mine, and I whirled baring my teeth in a snarl. The snarl died as Raina raised both eyebrows at me. “What just happened? You almost attacked your own step-father.”
“Don’t call him that.” I stepped away only to change direction and step in close once more as I pointed in the direction of the formal dining room. “They’re fools. They’re reckless. They won’t listen.”
“I can’t imagine why they wouldn’t want to listen to a grouchy growly Tiger,” Raina deadpanned. “What is going on with you tonight? I told you this was just a challenge by Venetia, which I was passing with flying colors by the way. But you . . .”
She shoved her hair back as she lowered her voice to a barely heard whisper. “I don’t know what happened while I was upstairs, but you were out of bounds. And, apparently, on the verge of fighting everyone in that room except for me. And you went after Roderick, which I don’t understand because he’s been the nicest one here. What’s wrong?”
I stared down at her for a long moment. She would never understand. I stepped back from her as I ground out, “Nothing is wrong.”
Raina tsked. “Don’t be insulting. I can smell the lie in that, Baran.” Her hand rested on my arm for a brief second before she pulled back. “All right. I am going to go help with the cleanup. I will join you in our room when I’m done.” She turned to leave and paused to look at me over her shoulder. “Maybe you should shower away some of those emotions.”
ΘΘΘΘΘΘ
Chapter Sixteen
Raina
Why did Tigers have to be so complicated? And exasperating? Exasperatingly complicated! The dish I was rinsing clunked against the side of the sink before I corrected my hold. Fortunately, I didn’t chip it. I could only imagine what my mother-in-law would do to me if I chipped one of her dishes.
I wished I had one of those Tigers in here to question on what had happened to make the TDS so very irritable. Even for him, his reactions were bad. I suppressed a sigh. There were far too many Tigers in this lodge.
“Raina, I wasn’t expecting to find you,” Roderick’s voice came from behind me.
“Thought you would be trying to placate the general.” Madoc paused and a hint of mockery entered his voice as he added, “Unless of course he considers you a blight too. Being an undisciplined Tracker, that is.”
I glanced over my shoulder in time to see Roderick’s censuring look toward his son, but I only rolled my eyes. “Is that the best you can do? I would have expected something more along the lines of my being a mistoa or a Leopard.” I glanced back down at the shallow bowl in my hands before musing, “Still not sure which one is the bigger sin.”
“Oh being a mistoa, I assure you,” Madoc stated cheerfully as he reached across to pluck the bowl from my grip. “I’ll dry.”
A low laugh escaped me as I flicked soapy water at him. “And here I thought Tigers just love to play in the water.”
Madoc grinned at me as he set aside the bowl and leaned his hip against the counter. “Trust me. If the sink were actually big enough to accommodate the beast, I would be in there in a heartbeat.”
I blinked at him. Shaking my head, I rinsed the next dish. “Tigers are crazy.”
The two tigers filled the kitchen with their laughter. Like I said, Tigers are the most insane of the Felidae clan. Followed by Jaguars. Neither of them knew how to properly cat if they kept playing in any body of water they deemed large enough. It just wasn’t . . . normal.
We set up a system for the rest of the dishes. I washed, Madoc dried, and Roderick put them away. Which was probably for the best since I didn’t have a clue where most of them were supposed to go. I didn’t know where Venetia and Celeste had slinked off to but I was crossing my fingers that they were doing something other than continuing to collude against Baran and me.
“How long have you been with the Trackers?”
I glanced at Madoc before focusing on the sudsy pot in my hands. “August will mark my tenth anniversary. I joined right before I turned seventeen.”
“Ever consider doing anything else?”
A low chuckle escaped me. “I almost followed my father’s steps in joining the military. However, it was not a very good . . . fit, shall we say?”
“How so?”
Meeting Madoc’s questioning eyes, I offered a faint smile. “I don’t like being told what to do. Trackers offer the most freedom on an individual level.”
“Ever consider going private?”
My brow furrowed as I considered his question. “Like the reeves?”
“Or Weard’s hunters.”
I shook my head almost immediately. “Oh no, I’m too much of a homebody. If I were to work outside of the Therians, I’d be more likely to offer my services as liaison to one of the PR firms. Like Carith & Krall.”
“You’d work for the dragons?”
A small grin
popped into being as I handed him the pot. “You’d think dragons and Therians would get along better. Seeing as how we’re all shifters. But yes, I would if it meant I could stay close to my family. I’m a homebody at heart even with my need for independence.”
Madoc shook his head. However, he surprised me by not launching into a rant against the dragons like a good chunk of Therians in our age group would have in his place. Instead, he looked rather thoughtful as he dried the pot. “How long do Tracker recruits stay under close supervision?”
“Depends on the recruit.”
“Do you get your choice of posts if you’re not a commander?”
“Depends on the situation and the recruit.” I paused, then added, “If you know someone among the commanders who’s willing to put his or her hide on the line, you could get special placement instead of being placed where the next available body is needed. But such decisions lie in Matahari’s hands and that Tigress doesn’t move anyone without need or reason. She wants her people to be sharp and willing to do what we must to keep our people safe and fulfill our tasks. However, she mostly interacts with the commanders. Then, we tell our people what needs to be done.”
Madoc looked down at his hands and a slow grin spread across his face as he laughed. Amusement’s warm scent peppered the air. “I thought you didn’t like being told what to do.”
“I don’t.” I waited until he was looking at me before continuing cheerfully, “That’s why I’m a commander. So I can tell everyone else what needs to be done.”
“Trackers care if you come into the service a little later in life?”
“Nope. I know of several Trackers who came to join us after serving a couple of decades in the military. They promise they far prefer the Tracker life to the stripes.”
Roderick turned from where he had been putting away dishes and eyed his son with an indecipherable look. “Since when have you been interested in the Trackers, Madoc?”
Madoc shrugged as he suddenly found the delicate gold pattern on the rim of the china bowl I’d handed him to be absolutely fascinating. Maybe he found secret Fae instructions . . . I glanced over. Nothing that looked Elvish to me. Or one of the other Fae dialects. More’s the pity.
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