by Petra Landon
“I’m very confident now that we will get to the bottom of this, Sienna” he assured her. “Merceau is tenacious and doesn’t give a damn about whose toes he has to tread on to get answers. He’s precisely what we need in this situation. And I’m going to make sure that I help him with everything in my power.”
So please hang on, he added silently.
“You’ve changed your mind about him?” she asked curiously.
“I’ve gained a better understanding of him. I trust him to get to the bottom of this. And I trust him with your safety. He’s been very upfront in his dealings with us, Sienna. Merceau is not the type to knife you in the back. If he doesn’t like you, he’ll let you know before he comes at you in a frontal assault.”
Sienna nodded. She rather agreed with Jason on this.
“You were going to tell me about an Anderson” she prompted him.
“He’s the Guardian who held Tasia in the San Francisco Registry. Merceau wants to get all the dirt on him.”
Sienna looked thoughtful. “Any dirt in particular he wants dug up?”
“Anderson was ostensibly searching for a Chosen, a powerful witch he seemed to think was hiding out in this city as a low level wizard. The Alpha wants me to find out who it is that Anderson was looking for.”
Sienna’s eyes held an arrested expression in them. “I think I might know who the Guardian was searching for, Jason.” She reflected quietly for a moment. “Or at least who the Alpha suspects that the Guardian was searching for” she corrected herself.
“Who?”
Sienna met his gaze steadily. “This does not go beyond the two of us.”
“Understood” Jason nodded, his face going grave.
“When the Undead had us in their custody, Tasia used magic beyond her level.”
“What do you mean?”
“When the vampires burst into the room to kill her, she used a magic blast to hold them off. Nothing major …” she trailed off.
“But not something an L2 would be capable of” he finished. Magic levels three and below were wizards only in name. The magic that they could draw on was negligible at best. An L2 would be incapable of a burst of magic to push back another Chosen.
“You suspect that Tasia is the wizard Anderson was searching for?” Jason looked amazed by the prospect.
“I can’t be sure, of course. But I’m convinced that there is more to Tasia than meets the eye. For one, she is no L2. And I think that whoever she is, the Alpha knows about it. The Pack is protecting her, Jason.”
Jason contemplated her solemnly. Sienna was right. He’d suspected almost from the beginning that there was more to the story of how Tasia had come under Pack protection. There was a mystery about her. And the Shifters’ attitude towards her. The Alpha’s immediate assumption that Tasia had been the intended target when informed of the kidnapping at the Registry in Chicago had puzzled him. There was also Merceau’s insistence on mounting a rescue for both wizards without waiting for the GCW – something Jason had concurred with for very different reasons. Although Jason had to admit that the latter might just be a result of the Alpha’s distrust of Guardians in general. For Jason, the most puzzling bit of all had been Tasia’s presence in the Shifter’s party to Chicago.
“It might certainly explain a few things about her that have been puzzling me” he admitted.
Sienna looked inquiring.
“For one, why take her along to Chicago? I don’t think that it was to thumb his nose at me or any other wizards.”
“Yeah, I don’t think the Alpha works like that.”
“Precisely” Jason agreed. “I might’ve suspected him of that before but not now. I think we have a better idea of the man.”
There was a short silence.
“It would also fit in with what I told you before” Sienna said slowly. “In my vision, it is clear that she’s a very special Chosen.”
“You’ve seen it again?”
“No” she shook her head. “Although there’s something familiar at the edges of it that I cannot quite recall clearly. Something to do with Shifters.”
“It will come” he assured her.
“So what do we do now?” Sienna asked him in her forthright manner, the implicit trust in her question bringing an answering smile to Jason’s face.
“We do what Merceau wants. If the Alpha is protecting Tasia, then I say we try to help him in any way we can. In any case, I was going to dig into Anderson for him. I owe Merceau for your locket.”
“You must already be in hot water with the Guardians for accepting Shifter hospitality, Jason” Sienna sighed. “I didn’t quite comprehend what the consequences would be for you when I asked you to join me in accepting the Alpha’s invitation.”
“I can handle it, Sienna” his tone was wry. “I don’t like where this investigation is taking us. I’ve a bad feeling about it. For the moment, it is Merceau and his Shifters I trust the most. And frankly, that scares the hell out of me. But I’ve seen them in action and if anyone can defend you from both the vampires and the Guardians who still follow your mother in a misguided venture, then it is him.”
He laughed cynically at the pure irony of it all.
“You know, Merceau even questioned me subtly about the First Wizard’s intentions towards you. He seems to believe that she might throw you to the dogs if your locket gives her an advantage over Lady Bethesda.”
“My mother is more likely to throw me to the dogs than the First Wizard” Sienna declared with a trace of bitterness.
“I assured him that the First Wizard would never do anything to harm you” Jason’s expression was troubled. “Don’t let the bitterness corrode you, Sienna” he suggested softly.
“I try. But lately, it has been rather difficult. I can’t get over her alliance with someone of Bianchi’s ilk. The guy’s a sociopath.”
“There’s a reason the Ancients believe that vampires give up their souls to become the Undead. That is why the Ancients are very resistant to calling the vampires Chosen.”
“Yet they agreed to give the Undead a seat at the table on the CoC” Sienna retorted.
“That was politics. Barring Faoladh, I doubt that anyone thought that the CoC would survive more than a few years.”
“Not even the wizards who respect the word of the Oracle as gospel?” she exclaimed in surprise. “He is the one who foretold the CoC, after all.”
“He never predicted that the CoC would last, Sienna, just that it would come into being” Jason said simply.
Seated on the sidelines of the meeting in progress in the Pack Room, Tasia observed the proceedings silently. From what she could tell, the discussions were about a collaborative project that involved the were-packs led by Luis, Duncan and Sam Chang, a Were-Alpha who rarely frequented the Lair. When Tasia had presented herself at the Pack Room at noon, the Shifter on sentry duty by the door had been expecting her. He had informed her that the Alpha was running late before escorting her into the room to wait. Tasia had been taken aback to see Sara in the Pack Room. Unlike most Shifters, Sara did not work for a Pack run business, so it was unusual to see her at the Lair during office hours on a week day.
Raoul strode in five minutes later from the Alpha’s Room to take up his usual position by the mantel. Tasia glanced surreptitiously at him. He seemed back to his usual self-controlled and unfathomable avatar. She’d had plenty of time to mull over last night. Their interlude had been unusual and even a tad surreal. Although their conversation had certainly been interesting and enlightening, even comforting in some aspects, what stuck out like a sore thumb for Tasia was how unlike his usual self the Alpha had been. He had been less guarded and more approachable than usual, even somewhat forthcoming with her. If this had been anyone else, she would have said that he had been almost indulgent with her! But Tasia knew that Raoul Merceau did not indulge any one, least of all her. First, there had been the invitation into the inner sanctum, to be proffered his company. Then, he had set out to distract h
er, subtly but surely. It was her conversation with him that had helped to eventually banish the echoes of her nightmare. They had talked more openly than before, each laying out more cards on the table, in a bid to try and erase the past. There had also been moments where she had been thrown off kilter by his banter – this had played its part in successfully distracting her. A morning’s reflection had confirmed to Tasia that his teasing had been subtle but unmistakable. In his way, he had been unexpectedly kind to her last night, at a time she had been sorely in need of it. Tasia expected this kind of solicitude and consideration from Hawk, Caro or Sara but never the formidable Alpha. It made her leery and very wary of him this morning.
The Alpha glanced impatiently at his watch, the gesture acting as a subtle signal for the discussion to conclude. Sam Chang made a beeline for the Alpha while some of the other Shifters huddled together for a final confabulation. Sara made her way towards Tasia.
“Hey Tasia, here to meet with the Alpha?”
“Yes but I never expected to see you at the Lair, Sara.”
Tasia had observed a quiet contentment in her friend since her return from Chicago. She was glad that Hawk’s worries regarding his twin had been unjustified. Sara had kept her distance from the Lair while Hawk had been gone. With her twin, Were-Alpha and friend all away, Sara had made sure to keep her distance from the Shifters and her Pack. This had given her a new air of contentment, serenity and confidence that pleased Tasia no end.
“We’re still on for lunch tomorrow, I hope?”
“Absolutely” Tasia responded enthusiastically. “I’m looking forward to it.”
Sara was slated to join Caro and Tasia for lunch the next day. This was Tasia’s attempt to widen Sara’s circle of acquaintances. Sara could do with some Chosen friends who were not Shifters. Tasia understood better now what worried Hawk about his twin and she was determined to do what she could for the two people she’d come to care for so much.
“Tasia, Sara” Luis with his mellifluous accent strolled over to join them.
Tasia returned the greeting. She had grown to know the taciturn Were-Alpha a little better over the past few weeks.
“Sara, you’re working with Travis and Hernandez, right?”
“Yeah” Sara’s brightness seemed to dim at his presence.
“Are you enjoying the work?” he inquired.
“Yes” her answer was brief.
Luis contemplated her shuttered expression carefully. He seemed on the verge of saying something when Hawk sauntered over to join them. Hawk’s face stiffened as he took in his twin’s poker face and Tasia’s watchful expression. Luis cast him a wary glance but wisely remained silent. Before the undercurrents could get more overt, Duncan joined them to engage Luis in conversation on some Pack matters, leaving Tasia to determinedly carry on a conversation with Hawk and Sara. After a few bright observations on the weather, Sara joined in, her good humor restored. Hawk took a few more minutes to lose the tight expression from his face. But lose it he did. Thus, it was a rather more light-hearted Tasia who joined Hawk to follow Duncan into the Alpha’s Room.
The Alpha sat behind his desk, back to his implacable and unapproachable self. Gone was the more receptive man from last night who’d diverted her, keeping her company to prevent her from giving in to her worries and fears. It was almost like that man had been a dream, their entire encounter something she’d conjured up from her imagination. Duncan took up a position by the Alpha and Hawk leant casually against the desk. Tasia made her way to the single chair across the desk from the Alpha.
“What would you like to know about Pa … Gabriel Azevedo?” she invited.
“Were you aware of his connection to the Lombardi Nest?” the Alpha opened without any preamble.
Tasia shook her head in denial. “I was aware that he’d denounced the Guardians to go work for the Clan but I didn’t know which set of Blutsaugers he’d worked with.”
Raoul narrowed his eyes at her answer. He didn’t know any wizards who referred to the leeches as Blutsaugers. He wondered if her vocabulary was a result of the education her father had imparted to her.
“Why did he eventually break it off with the leeches?”
“There was disagreement over the treatment of a woman the vampires held as prisoner” she responded. “When my father tried to intervene, he roused the ire of the Master. Until then, he’d been their golden boy - the powerful Guardian they had successfully stolen away from the GCW. When my father eventually realized that the vampires would never release her, he helped her escape from them.”
“What happened to her?” a hint of curiosity had seeped into his voice.
Tasia gazed at him for a moment, a strange expression on her face.
“He married her. She was my mother” Tasia disclosed wryly.
“Your mother” the Alpha murmured, clearly surprised by her words. Both Duncan and Hawk looked equally taken aback by the revelation.
The mother unlucky enough to have been a prisoner of the Clan must have been a beautiful woman – the thought popped into Raoul’s head. For him, the witchling’s delicate but subdued beauty had always had an exotic flavor to it. There was something tantalizing about her he had always found himself drawn to, even against his will. A nameless quality that had nothing to do with her piquant face, finely etched features, glowing sun-kissed skin or expressive eyes.
“My father was a high level wizard and I’ve been told that my mother was off the charts. Her family disowned her when she ran off with my father. They didn’t want anything to do with us. She died when I was a baby and my father brought me up alone.”
Much like him, she had inherited magic from two powerful parents. In her, it seemed to have resulted in an extraordinary array of powers.
Tasia waited patiently, those big expressive eyes on him.
“I take it that the leeches didn’t react well to your father’s altruism” Raoul remarked.
“No, the vampires continued to hunt them both. Eventually, they faked their deaths to fool the Clan. My father made sure that the vampires would have no knowledge of my birth. That way, their feud would die with him and I’d never be hunted by them like he was.”
The truly terrifying thing was that Bianchi had actually had her in his clutches without even being aware of the prize he held, Raoul mused. No wonder she regarded leeches as the stuff of nightmares. Now that he was aware of their history with her father, he’d make damn sure that the Lombardi leeches never got within sniffing distance of her ever again.
“It sounds like your parents were successful at shaking off the vampires” Duncan remarked.
“Yes but they were forced to pay a high price for their success” Tasia’s response was sober. “Something went wrong with the plan and they were both badly injured. I was born six months later and my mother succumbed to her injuries almost immediately.”
Hawk shot her a look full of commiseration but remained silent.
“How did your mother come to be a prisoner of the leeches?” Raoul was curious.
This is the part that I navigate very carefully.
“It had to do with who she was. The Master had an old beef with her family.”
She was counting on the Shifters’ knowledge of the Clan. And they understood her subtle hint only too well. Leeches tended to hold grudges for a very long time, sometimes across generations. They were even known to exact revenge on the descendants of humans who the leeches felt wronged by before joining the ranks of the Undead.
“Did your father ever tell you why he went to work for the vampires?” Duncan asked the question.
She shook her head. “I know that he regretted it very much. Even before my mother and her imprisonment, he’d already become disillusioned with them. He said that he was too stubborn and too proud to admit his mistake and go back to the GCW to eat humble pie.”
That Raoul could understand. Not for the first time, he wondered what had led a powerful wizard to denounce his own people and join the leeches. A
nd whether it had something to do with Lady Bethesda’s decision five years later to ally with the same leeches.
There was a short silence. Duncan shot a look at Raoul’s contemplative face, a slight frown on his forehead.
“Tasia must be kept away from the Clan, especially Bianchi and his nest mates” Duncan prompted softly.
Raoul met his friend’s gaze. This might explain her strong reaction to leeches and her aversion to leaving any trail of her blood at the house in Chicago. It still didn’t explain her unique and extraordinary ability to kill leeches. Something passed on from father to daughter perhaps, he wondered. Azevedo had spent a few years working closely with the leeches. Could he have discovered a secret weakness that would allow a Magick with sufficient power to snuff out an Undead? It seemed a highly unlikely scenario, to Raoul’s mind. If such a possibility did exist, Raoul knew that it would have been near impossible for the leeches to keep their secret for so long without another Chosen sniffing it out.
He glanced at Tasia. She was looking at Duncan who wore an expression graver than usual. Raoul knew what had Duncan so worried. Under normal circumstances, keeping leeches away from her would be an easy enough task. But the Pack was involved in an investigation that seemed to point at the Lombardi Nest’s alliance with Lady Bethesda. These were the very leeches that had once feuded with her father. Given that, hiding her from the leeches would require finesse, attention and careful planning. Safeguarding her from her father’s enemies would be the easy part - her secret had bigger implications. They also had to make sure that her work for the Pack did not inadvertently rouse the Clan’s suspicions of her real identity.
“She’ll be safe here in San Francisco” Raoul’s response was directed at Duncan although his eyes remained on her. “Franciszka knows of her Pack status now and I doubt the local leeches will dare to tangle with me on this again.”
“However, until we can sort this out, I’d like you to stay close to the Lair.”
Tasia sighed silently, her crestfallen face making her feelings clear.
