by Elle Thorne
“They were worried about you,” Eden said with a slight grimace.
Camden knew what that meant, and she agreed. The little ones had an almost unhealthy connection to Tyler.
Tyler, Trista, and Tessa started walking toward the house, though, he turned and looked at Camden over his shoulder. “I’d like to finish that discussion sometime.”
She nodded.
“What discussion?” Eden asked, a slight frown playing on her brow.
“Just about elementals.” Camden couldn’t have said why she didn’t tell Eden more. She was still processing the information she’d heard Avala reveal to Tyler.
Many questions swooped down on her. So many questions that it felt like a flock of blackbirds dive-bombing her mind. At the top of the list of inquiries was to ask Avala why she chose Tyler to be the one she shared her history with.
I mean, hell, she hasn’t even told me anything about Cleopatra, and here I’ve been with her all my life.
Eden’s frown had deepened. It was clear she could read her twin well enough to know that Camden wasn’t sharing everything with her.
For a brief second, Cam felt guilty, then she thought of Eden and her fear of bears and how Eden had never discussed that with her. Perhaps, it wasn’t bad that they kept things to themselves, where their elementals were concerned. Or perhaps their elementals were driving a wedge between them. Cam studied Eden’s expression, trying to decipher if they had a problem that they couldn’t overcome.
Perhaps after Camden had a visit with Avala, she could tell Eden about Avala’s history. Maybe Avala wouldn’t mind. For whatever, reason, call it a sense of loyalty, Camden didn’t feel comfortable divulging Avala’s history without her permission.
Eden took a few steps toward the direction Tyler and the twins had gone, then looked back at Camden. “Coming?”
Cam shook her head. “I’ll be along later.” She needed to do some thinking. Some soul-searching. And if possible, have a heart-to-heart with Avala. And at the very least, she needed to have a visit with her panther.
Deep within Camden, her panther growled softly.
Camden could relate to that. She felt the same way. This was all too much; they needed some bonding time. The three of them. She felt as if a fracture had occurred between her elemental, her panther, and herself.
Eden nodded, her own elemental and her panther swirling in the depths of her eyes. “I’ll see you back at the cabin then.”
“Yes,” Camden said, turning toward the forest and heading into the thickness of trees. She could feel her panther pressing for a shift into their animal, and Camden fully intended to give her panther her approval for their shift.
In her panther form, she’d be able to surrender her body, and fully focus on her elemental. Maybe they could talk about Cleopatra, and Avala’s sister. And how she had managed to get Cleopatra to kill herself.
Could Avala do the same thing to her, Camden wondered.
Can she make me kill myself, even if it’s not something I want?
A shudder ran through her body, a sign her panther was readying to emerge. The sound of sinew stretching, muscles relocating, and bones widening heralded her morph into her panther. The skin on her arms began to transform from a café au lait hue as she sprouted ebony fur. Camden dropped to all fours, watching her hands flatten, widen, transforming into her panther’s wide paws.
Fully transformed into a full grown, lithe, muscular black panther, she threw her head back and released a roar, then bounded into the heavily forested area.
* * *
Camden, still in her panther form, leapt over a rotten log. She’d run. And run. And run. She’d released energy from emotional overload and yielded to the exhaustion that came from physical exercise.
The sound of a mountain stream’s bubbling cascade down the mountain brought her to an abrupt stop. The water’s noises reminded her of a thirst brought on by the hours she’d spent running. How many hours? There was no telling, not for sure, not while she was in her panther’s body. The sun was still out, so not that many hours. It was impossible to tell where the sun was though, not exactly. The cover of trees that rose above her head gave no indication of the sun’s location.
She approached the brook, silently padding through the pines and leaves that provided a softness which tempted her to rest for a catnap. Lowering her head, she lapped at the cool, clear water.
She’d have loved to nap, but she had to talk to Avala, and she had to get back to Eden and the twins.
Plus, they needed to have a talk with Tyler. How could she and Eden help Trista and Tessa when they couldn’t speak to the girls without Tyler’s presence? Camden didn’t blame Tyler. She knew it was the girls that pushed to always make sure he was around, but she couldn’t count on opening a line of communication between her and Eden’s elementals with the little girls’ elementals if Tyler was around. Heck, there wasn’t even a guarantee they could do it if Tyler wasn’t around.
I can’t even seem to establish a line of communication with my own elemental.
With that final thought, she swung her head away from the stream and headed toward an extra plush spot, thick with pine needles, latticed with sunny spots where the rays slipped through.
Perfect spot to have a visit with Avala.
In her head, the elemental was silent, leaving Camden to wonder if Avala realized what Camden was up to—that she wanted to speak with her. Avala couldn’t necessarily read Camden’s thoughts unless Camden opened to her, much the same as it was for Camden’s panther. Unless Camden opened the lines of communication, neither of them knew what was on her mind.
Though both could hear and see what Camden heard and saw, Camden usually kept communication with her panther open. She and her panther were allies. She wished she could say the same about her elemental, but most times, to Camden it felt like Avala only took action when her own personal safety was threatened, not so much to assist Camden.
Camden pawed the pine needles and leaves, rearranging them, readying a spot to get comfortable in.
She shifted out of her panther and into her human form, rearranging her rumpled clothing.
Shifting is hell on clothes.
Out of her peripheral vision she caught sign of a shadow. Snapping her head to the right, she studied the foliage, but saw nothing.
Raising her nose to the air, she inhaled, trying to see if she could pick up the scent of whatever had just created the shadow.
No luck. No sign of anyone.
She knew she wasn’t the paranoid type, nor was she the type to see something that wasn’t there. Her panther fought to regain control, though it wasn’t possible. Shifting wasn’t something a shifter could do repeatedly without some time to recuperate.
How much time depended on whether or not the shifter maintained his or her shifter skills by practicing often.
Something that Camden didn’t do. She hardly ever shifted into her panther. Her elemental seemed unhappy by the shifting, and Camden’s panther seemed fine with not being in control fairly often.
Camden surveyed the area, casually, without giving a sign of alarm. What was setting her alarms off?
Camden didn’t get a chance to wonder for long. A blur launched itself from the cover of the trees and was headed right at her. A light brown blur with glittering eyes and sharp fangs.
A fox? A large tan colored fox?
Nope. She knew better immediately.
Shifter!
If she’d had time, she’d have paused to wonder why this creature was trying to kill her. But she didn’t have time. Not a lick of it. She dropped to one knee, and the fox flew over her.
Unfortunately, the fox shifter reacted quickly to Camden’s dodging. Far too quickly. Canines dug into the back of Camden’s leg, sinking deeply into her flesh.
Before Camden could stop her, Avala’s powers surged through Camden’s system. A coldness spiked through her body, rendering her incapable of stopping Avala, even if she’d had the presence of
mind to consider stopping her elemental.
With a loud snapping sound, followed by a whistling whoosh, ice bolts the size of arrows flew from above, traveling through the trees, breaking branches and sending leaves flying. The bolts landed all about Camden and the fox. Camden stood still, knowing better than to move and risk being hit. A yelp, then a loud screeching sound followed, just as the last bolt fell.
Camden whirled around. The fox had an ice bolt embedded in its shoulder, and another in its thigh. It howled and snarled, eyes glaring at Camden.
Then, before Camden’s eyes, the fox shifted into a blonde. An angry, defiant blonde that shot Camden looks that could kill.
“Look what you did,” she snarled, though she was in her human form. “You are just like those baby freaks that Sean and Tyler are keeping. You’d think they’d find a different kind of pet.”
Anger blossomed in Camden, but she contained her fury as she felt Avala’s power rising within. Clearly, Avala didn’t appreciate the twins being called freaks. Camden fought for control, trying to keep Avala from killing the fox shifter.
“You must be one of the nannies,” Camden couldn’t keep the disgust from her voice. “If you want a mate that badly, why don’t you try getting one without faking that you give a shit about two little girls?”
Camden wasn’t sure how Avala knew this nanny didn’t give a shit, but it was clear when she took over and finished her sentence that she was right.
The guilt that flashed in the fox shifter’s eyes told Camden what she needed to know. That guilt didn’t last long. It was rapidly replaced with the blaze of fury. The fox shifter leapt to her feet, her fingertips in claws she raked down Camden’s face and across her neck.
Camden gasped at the spurt of blood and cocked one arm back, then struck at the fox shifter, connecting with her jaw. The fox shifter’s head snapped back, but didn’t stay that way long. She threw herself at Camden. Camden struck again, but the blood was coming out of her quickly. And it was too soon to shift into her panther in order to defend herself.
Camden called out to Avala to help her.
Seconds later a darkness descended over the forest for the briefest of seconds as a sheet of ice came down from above, winding its way between Camden and the fox shifter, then rolling and churning into a cage made of ice. Camden tried to focus on the fox shifter now behind blocks of ice, but all she could see was a silhouette behind the bluish-white wall.
Behind the ice, the shifter was screaming at Camden, cursing her, yelling to be released. The words were unintelligible.
Camden collapsed, her torso leaning against a tree’s sturdy trunk.
Seconds later, more voices penetrated the tunnel of unconsciousness surrounding Camden.
Voices she didn’t recognize, but clearly knew her.
“Enough,” one of the voices said.
Enough what, was the last thought Camden had before darkness descended and surrounded her completely.
Chapter Thirteen
“She’s coming to.” This was the first awareness Camden had as she woke. The voice wasn’t one she was familiar with. She didn’t scent an enemy or anger. Her head pounded.
She stretched, and discovered she was in her panther’s body. How—what—why? She pushed for a shift and with the usual—but not enjoyable—crunching and tearing, she morphed into her human form and opened her eyes.
A pair of concerned eyes attached to a good-looking man’s face were studying her. Behind him, a dark-haired equally attractive woman watched. Her dark eyes flashed indigo. Clearly, an elemental resided within this woman. And the man was a shifter, that much she picked up from his aura, but the woman was not, she was strictly elemental.
“I’m Doc Evans,” the good-looking man said.
“Doc?” Camden was confused.
“You’ve been hibernating to heal.”
She frowned at him. Then the memories flooded back. The fox shifter. Bleeding horribly. The ice cage that Avala trapped the shifter in.
Passing out.
“I… who helped me? What happened to that fox shifter?”
“Luckily, Mae and I were guiding the council members to the O’Reardon place. We heard screams and…” Doc Evans shrugged. “Found the shifter encased in ice, and you unconscious, losing blood, and almost gone. With help from Mae’s elemental, we were able to get you to shift so you could heal in hibernation. The fox is in custody.”
Hibernation healing. Camden had never had to use it. She’d heard of it, when a shifter was wounded bad enough, they could hibernate and heal in order to survive. She’d seen it work on the burnt twin earlier.
She touched her throat and felt the slight rise of the scar that had not faded yet. The fox shifter had definitely done some damage.
Then it hit her—what Doc Evans said. “Mae?” The Mae? The Mae that had gone to see Circe? She studied the woman. “You’re Mae?”
She nodded and stepped forward, wrapping her arms around Camden. “You and Eden were still away with the monks of the Order of Elementals, training in the Carpathians when I left Denver.”
Camden tried to absorb everything running through her head. “What about Circe?”
“We just arrived from Denver,” Mae said with a smile playing on her lips. “All is well with Circe.”
“You mean she doesn’t ha—” She brought herself up short. She almost said hate.
A soft laugh escaped Mae’s lips. “Your sister Circe is nothing, if not passionate. She feels things deeply, but the love we have for one another would not be outdone by decades apart or misunderstandings.”
Relief flooded through Camden. She’d have to talk to Circe. She knew this must have pleased her sister, because despite how much Circe tried to pretend that Mae didn’t matter to her, it was clear she did.
“Where’s Eden?”
“She’s with the twins.”
“You mentioned the council…” Camden said.
“Yes, they’ve come in. Marie’s call brought them in.”
“What do you mean? And why? And how…”
The Shifter Council, based in New York, functioning much like the League of Nations might, was an entity that exercised much more power than the League of Nations. The Shifter Council made law and enforced law. There were no checks and balances. They determined what needed to be done in order to preserve peace among shifters and they wielded their decisions with a heavy hand.
Oh, Camden had never dealt with them personally, but she’d heard plenty of stories.
“Why would Marie call them in?”
Mae frowned. “I’m not saying it’s your fault…” Her tone sure said it was. “…but it seems that something you said brought the twins to the council’s attention. And not in a favorable way. They’re here to assess and possibly reassign the twins from Sean and Tyler’s care.” There were tears in Mae’s eyes. “When Griz gets back to town, something’s going to hit the fan and it won’t be pretty.”
“Why? Why would they remove them?”
“Seems your concerns raised flags for Marie. She called the Advocates of Young Shifters. AYS is a branch of the Council. They protect young shifters—just like their title states.”
“Protect them from what?” Camden was genuinely concerned. She had no reason to believe Sean or Tyler had done anything that endangered the little girls.
Doc shrugged. “Protect them from whatever it was that you gave Marie reason to be concerned.”
Camden shook her head. “This needs to be cleared up.”
“You think so?” Mae sounded bitter.
“The group is meeting at Grant’s place. Eden and Tyler are there. Sean’s still out on assignment.”
“I have to straighten this out. How can they be having a meeting without my testimony?”
“They’ve been collecting facts and interviewing everyone, while they waited for you to return from your hibernation.”
Camden sprang out of bed. “Then I’m ready to set the record straight.” She could only imagi
ne how frustrated Tyler must be right now. “What kinds of things can the council do?”
“Take custody of the girls.”
“What?” Camden slammed her hand over her mouth. She hadn’t meant to screech. “What? They can just do that?”
Doc nodded. “They are the Shifter Council. Their laws are supreme in the land. The only recourse to changing status or decisions is to take matters to the Shifter Supreme Court. The court rarely decides against the Council, though.”
Camden caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. Her clothes were crumpled from the shifting. “I need to get into some other clothing.” She ran a hand over her bedhead. “And do something with this mess.”
Camden caught Mae’s hands, forced her to look her in the eye. “We’re on the same side. I promise.”
Mae was silent, her expression dubious.
“I promise,” Camden reiterated. “I don’t want to see the girls yanked from Tyler or Sean. I can see how deeply they care for each other.” Though, she couldn’t understand the placement to begin with. Didn’t they usually place kids with couples, instead of bachelor males who were clearly single and probably focused on other things?
She let out a sigh. Though this placement was a mystery to her, she knew Tyler and Sean were the right ones to take care of the girls.
And now she had a mess to fix, that evidently, she created.
And I didn’t even mean to.
Chapter Fourteen
Camden wished the tension she could feel radiating from Doc and Mae toward her wasn’t real. But it was. And it was so tangible that it made her soul ache.
They really believed she’d do something so underhanded as to have Marie call in the council. That stung. She rode in silence behind them in Doc’s massive black SUV, studying the scenery around her.
Odd how she’d become so attached to this place in such a short time. She clasped her hands tightly to keep them from shaking. She wondered if the emotions she was feeling would show on her face when she walked in the door. Would Tyler notice? Did he hate her?
