But while Elsary loved everyone at the EfPP, she wanted to work solo, and not with a team and rules.
“Those teammates and rules are in place to keep you safe,” he’d said.
“I know that, but I have contacts on the streets, and they won’t talk to me if they see me with a group of armed EfPP sentinels,” she’d said.
Enyowas knew that she was right. The homeless—everyone, both humans and supes, loved Elsary. She just had that personality.
So while he understood her reasoning, he didn’t have to like it.
They’d finally come to an agreement that she’d keep him updated on what she learned. Only, he never heard from her again.
Now it was too late.
He gazed around Club Purgatori, watching everyone. Yes, he’d needed a drink, but he had another reason for being there as well, and it was called fishing. For information—any information leading to Elsary’s last couple of weeks.
Plus, normally the hopping club was a good distraction, though tonight, it definitely wasn’t working. Memories tortured both Veldi and him.
“Sima didn’t mean it, you know,” Veldi said.
His brother had been trying to convince him of that for the last hour. “She was right, though.”
“No, damn it. None of them are.” Veldi growled.
All during the memorial, Enyowas’s youngest sister and their mother had glared daggers at him. “I thought Mother was going to attack me.” That she didn’t had to do more with the fact that Kayta was ready to tear their mother’s head off if she so much as tried.
“It’s not right that they blame you,” Veldi said.
“Yeah it is. I was supposed to protect Sary, keep her safe. It’s my job to keep them all safe.”
“No, it’s really not. All your life you’ve protected everyone around you, and I happen to know that you tried your best. It’s not your fault Sary gave the trackers following her the slip. Plus, you aren’t their only brother.” Veldi snarled and downed his whiskey, waving the waitress over for more. “You have done everything—everything—to protect them. For sixteen freaking years. Besides, Elsary has always been a wild child. Stubborn as hell when she set herself on a path. She did what she wanted, consequences be damned. How can you protect someone who goes looking for trouble? What were you going to do? Chain her up in her room?”
“Maybe I should have.”
Veldi snorted. “She’d have found a way to escape, and you know it.”
Veldi was right, but still, keeping his family safe had fallen to him when Amit died, and he failed. Again.
“You should’ve let Kayta and Deidra hash it out about Amit,” Veldi said, thanking the waitress who unloaded another tray of drinks at their table. “Your mother needs to face reality where her beloved son is concerned.”
“Mother is too antagonistic. If I didn’t stop them, Kayta was liable to kill her.”
“We could only wish,” Veldi muttered under his breath.
Enyowas ignored him, knowing Veldi had reason to hate his mother. But his breaking up the fight between his mother and sister set Kayta against him.
“I get it, and I know she’s your mother and you love her, but I really hate that bitch.”
“Yeah, well, now all the females in our family hate me,” Enyowas said, tossing back another shot.
“Shabina doesn’t hate you,” Veldi said.
“She’s not family,” Enyowas answered.
Veldi raised an eyebrow but didn’t comment.
Okay, that wasn’t really the truth, but Enyowas refrained from speaking on the subject, and instead kept an eye trained on his surroundings. Ears open, he scanned for any tidbit of what might have gone down the day his younger sister was murdered. It had been a week, and he had nothing. Nada, zip, zilch, and it burned his ass that Sary’s killer was running around unpunished.
He needed to know what she’d been up to.
Unfortunately, Elsary was so good at hiding her tracks, and had picked up enough tricks from him and the EfPP to know how to keep herself from being tracked. Once they’d gotten their tech back up and running, they’d tried to trace her cell phone usage, but it was all to no avail. Elsary was too good at hiding.
Enyowas glanced at the girls dancing and slowly shedding their clothing on stage. Egypt, a.k.a. Genevevia, an erotic sphinx shifter, wouldn’t be on stage until much later. She was always up for a quick, hard fucking. Though lately, he’d been using sex as an excuse to forget everything.
Watching Ginni die all those years ago had splintered something in all of them, and now Elsary’s death deepened the cracks.
For years after they left their pride, Elsary tried so hard to cheer everyone up and make them laugh. But despite her efforts, they all carried a weight of sadness for what they’d lost that horrible day.
Then when Elsary became a teenager, she started to sneak out. She thought she was some sort of vigilante. Enyowas thought she’d stopped after she found herself in over her head, but apparently not. It killed him that she’d died alone and afraid.
Who exactly had she been involved with, or chasing? He had no idea, and he wouldn’t rest until he learned the truth.
The dancer with the stage name of Gaia, an auburn-haired, curvy female with sharp blue eyes, caught his attention as she gyrated onstage. He’d often wondered what she’d be like in bed.
“Why don’t you take her home tonight instead of the sphinx? Your normal honeypot seems to be getting way too clingy,” Veldi suggested.
“No,” he replied, though it was true. Genevevia had been hinting that she wanted more from him. Something he wasn’t prepared to give. Not to her, or anyone. Ever. The last thing he needed was another female dependent on him.
“Why not?” Veldi waved the waitress over.
“Just no.” Enyowas ordered a whiskey and caught a pair of eyes watching him. They struck a familiar chord in him. But as the waitress left, he lost sight of the guy in the crowd. Enyowas scoured the room, then looked back at Veldi. “She’s human.”
Veldi raised an eyebrow, anger flashing in his brown eyes. “And?”
“I didn’t mean it that way. You know I cared about your girlfriend.” Enyowas glanced back at the stage. “It’s just, Gaia looks nice.” Nice wasn’t for them—him. It didn’t fit their life or lifestyle, at least not his. Plus, nice girls always wanted more than just a good night in the sack, and that was all he had in him.
“Yeah, I get that.” Veldi sighed. “Still, the way Gaia’s been eyeballing you, I say give her a try.” Veldi paused. “You know, maybe what you need is a mate.”
“Hell no.” That was the last thing he wanted, another female hating him when he failed at his task. Enyowas spotted Genevevia regarding the club from the door leading to the dancers’ dressing rooms. She stopped as her gaze landed on him, and he knew if he walked over, she’d invite him back for a quickie.
He really should go. She was a dream who embodied the cat she held within her. With a bronzed complexion, which she liked to keep gleaming with an oil to make her shimmer, high cheekbones, dark hair and brows, and charcoal eyes, she never hesitated to go after her heart’s desire. She often reminded him of the time of pharaohs, and the way she moved on stage … Yeah, she knew she was stunning. But the calculating light in her eyes lately stopped Enyowas from getting up. He focused his attention back on Gaia. Maybe Veldi was right. Someone new might be just what he needed. Just not as a mate.
Veldi let out an appreciative whistle under his breath, and Enyowas followed his gaze to a female who’d just entered the club. A tough-as-nails phoenix shifter, she wore black leather pants and a black jacket, and a look in her silver eyes that said don’t fuck with me. The only part that didn’t jive was the thick streak of pink in her black hair. What the …?
“Think I can convince her to ditch the hulking blond and join me in one of the fun rooms?” Veldi asked.
Enyowas knew Veldi was only joking, but he glanced at the large male behind the phoenix anyway. W
ith shaggy blond hair, brilliant-green eyes, and a ferocious frown, he looked ready to tear apart anyone who touched his woman. “Don’t even think about it. Even if you got past him, she’s the spitfire who served Tito his ass, and no matter how much I love you, I don’t want to be picking your entrails off the floor of the club.”
“You wound me, brother. I’d pick yours up,” Veldi said.
“And probably end up catching some kind of demeaning dick-shriveling disease. Nope, sorry, you may no longer care, but that’s the last thing I need.”
“True. Don’t think your future mate would be happy with me if I caused such a disaster,” Veldi said.
Enyowas scowled. What was with the mate business lately? “On second thought, maybe I should just stand back and let you dig your own grave with the phoenix, then I’ll be free of your nagging.”
“Harsh, bro, harsh.” Veldi stared at the female headed their way. “But really, she’s the one who fucked Tito up? She looks too small to have done that much damage.” Veldi scanned the club. “Hey, where is knucklehead, anyway. Haven’t seen him in a while.”
“It has been a nice reprieve,” Enyowas said, but Veldi was right, Club Purgatori was Tito’s favorite hangout.
“The idiot’s probably neck-deep in some stupid shit,” Veldi said. “Still, I can’t believe that tiny female messed him up like she did. If there’s one thing Tito is normally good at, it’s protecting his flea-infested hide.”
“Trust me, she may be small, but that’s one supe you don’t want to fuck with, and from the look on the big guy’s face with her, I’d say he’s her mate. Probably a good thing Tito isn’t here.”
“Maybe, but they’re headed this way, and if they start shit, I’m not backing down from some girl with pink in her hair,” Veldi said.
“Damn it.” Enyowas tossed his drink back, wishing for even a hint of a buzz as the pair stopped at their table. “Tito’s not here.”
“I came to speak with you. I’m hoping you can help us with something,” the pink-haired phoenix said.
That wasn’t what Enyowas had been expecting. Still, for once he wished he could just hide away somewhere and ignore the world. “Lucky me.”
“Sorry, bro,” Veldi said, knowing how much he’d wanted a night free from all responsibility.
Enyowas sighed. He knew what he was signing up for when he joined the EfPP, and it was obvious this petite butt-kicker wasn’t going anywhere. “Sit.” He motioned to a chair.
“I’m Hellfire. This is my mate Sami.”
Hellfire? It was appropriate, he supposed. He nodded at Sami and the big guy sat down beside his mate.
“I heard you’re the Tom of the rogue clan, the Spokane Spite Cats,” Hellfire said.
Again, lucky me. “I am.” When the clan started to grow beyond his own family, with stray mixed-breed shifters, his sisters and brother had at first thought to call him regis. But that was too close to how they’d addressed their father, so no one was upset when he refused. It was Elsary who’d suggested they call him Tom for Tomcat. Most cat clans called their leaders regis or Tomlee, while wolf packs had their alphas. But since they were a clan of strays, Tom seemed fitting. It quickly shortened to Tom.
The reminder of Elsary, who he had hoped to get five minutes to mourn without disturbance, made him wince inwardly.
“We have a leopard shifter who left her clan, only now she’s in heat and stirring up trouble. We were hoping you might be able to help her out,” Hellfire said. “Is there any way to stop her heat?”
Enyowas snorted. “No, and when a female cat shifter goes into heat, they have zero control. Some turn psycho until they are, ah … well fucked.”
“This night keeps getting better and better.” Sami growled, running a hand through his hair.
“Shit’s gonna suck even worse if she’s not taken care of,” Enyowas said, though he felt for the girl and those around her. A cat shifter in heat, who was not properly seen to, could cause the breakdown of a whole clan.
But to be without a clan?
He could only imagine the trouble that might cause. “The best thing you can do is have her clan come get her. They’ll have unmated males willing to accommodate her, or somewhere secluded that they send their females in heat.”
Hellfire shook her head. “That’s not an option. She was beaten half to death when she came to us, and we have no doubt they’ll kill her if she goes back. The asshole-douchebag running things is a fucking monster. Plus, from what we understand, none of the younger males want anything to do with her because she’s not purebred. The only guy in the clan who does want her is a handsy, decrepit old creep.”
In this day and age, it was pathetic the number of clans with shitty leadership, practices, and bigotry toward anyone not full-blooded. But then they were powerful, dangerous supernatural beings. Because of that, they often believed themselves above human law. It was one of the reasons he’d agreed to join the EfPP. To help those oppressed and try to enact change, to make the world safe for humans and shifters.
Veldi met his gaze, face pale at the seriousness of the situation. “Doc’s not an option.”
“Doc?” Sami asked, a wary light in his green eyes.
“The EfPP has a doctor who’s come up with a rare drug that can be given to a female shifter in heat.”
“What’s the EfPP?” Sami asked.
“You’re a supe … of some sort.” He paused, eyebrow raised. Sami didn’t take the bait. “And you’ve never heard of the EfPP?” Enyowas could sense that Sami was a shifter but had no idea what kind.
“I’ve heard of it,” Hellfire said.
“I haven’t.” Sami said.
“It stands for Enforcement for Preternatural Protection.”
“Really?” Sami asked, surprised.
“Really.”
Hellfire nudged Sami. “Back on track here.” She looked at Enyowas. “So tell us, why can’t this Doc help.”
Enyowas blew out a breath. “The EfPP was attacked last week and Doc’s in a coma.”
“Shit, sorry to hear that. Did you catch the ones responsible?” Sami asked.
“No, but we will,” Enyowas said, his rage on a constant simmer lately.
“Was it the Ilyium?” Hellfire asked.
“Could be, but we’re not sure yet.”
“That sucks balls. And you don’t know what drug this Doc uses?” Hellfire asked.
“No, he keeps a tight lid on his remedies, and this is something he concocted. He also uses his unique ability to study one’s physiology in order to judge how much to administer. Apparently, it varies by person. Too little, and it does no good, too much and it can be a disaster.”
Hellfire swore.
“So what does everyone who doesn’t have access to this drug do then?” Sami asked.
“Usually they have unmated males who service the female, or they send her into seclusion miles from any other living being, as their pheromones make them targets to anything with a dick,” Enyowas said.
“The only one she seems to be affecting so far is the were-leopard living with us. The wolves living with us seem a little agitated, but otherwise fine,” Sami said.
“It’s rare for a female’s pheromones to be so selective,” Veldi said.
“Could it be because he’s newly turned? Elianna bit him and turned him against his will,” Sami bit out, eyes flashing.
“Yeah, he’s terrified of her, and in love with someone else,” Hellfire said, meeting Sami’s gaze.
“That doesn’t matter, he won’t be able to resist her, but you say she bit him without his consent?”
The couple nodded, clearly pissed, as they should be.
“Shit, that’s bad,” Veldi said.
“Is that why her clan doesn’t want her?” Enyowas asked.
“Possibly some of it, but apparently it’s more because she’s a clouded leopard and not a pure North American leopard shifter,” Sami said. “Which I don’t really understand. She’s still a leopard.”
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Veldi let out a low whistle.
Enyowas growled. “A regular, non-shifter, clouded leopard is actually made up of two species of wild cat from Southeast Asia. But for shifters, clouded leopards are a mix of leopard, cheetah, and jaguar. But you’re right, she is still a cat shifter, and it shouldn’t matter. Fucking bigot, racist pricks.” Then he stilled, horror washing through him. “Damn it.”
“What?” Sami asked.
Enyowas so didn’t need this shit tonight.
“This is really bad.” Veldi scrubbed a hand through his short brown hair.
“I don’t understand,” Sami said.
“As a clouded leopard, she’s in really big trouble if she doesn’t mate with someone.”
The couple appeared confused.
The night was getting better and better. Not. “She’s a ticking time bomb. Supposedly, there’s something screwed up in their genetic makeup, or they were cursed or something, not really sure. But if they don’t find a mate, or have another shifter service them and infuse them with energy by the end of their first heat, they die. It’s why they’re so damn rare.”
“She’ll die?” Sami asked.
“Yes.”
“Fan-freaking-tastic,” Sami said.
“If she were in your clan what would you do?” Hellfire asked.
“In our clan, we usually use the drug option, but we don’t have any clouded leopards. I’ve only ever met a handful in my life.” Enyowas scrambled to think of any options they had. It was looking grim.
“You said usually? What else is there?” Sami asked.
“Like I said, we have a few males who sometimes service females in heat.” Responsible males who knew and accepted the risk that the female could become pregnant, since using a condom wasn’t an option. Only a true mating got a female cat shifter through their heat.
“Can you call one of them?”
“Unfortunately, no. Two of them are now mated, and the other three are out on assignment.” Ferno and team one had gone silent earlier that afternoon while infiltrating the Ilyium.
Veldi linked to him. “Shit, Enyo, if she’s a clouded, then one of us has to do it.”
“I’m aware,” he answered testily.
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