The Tracker's Mate: Sunderverse (Mate Tracker Book 1)

by Ingrid Seymour

  “Our office, all our stuff... you did that?” I wanted it to sound like an accusation, but it came out as a question instead.

  “Wait, you think I trashed your office? You really think me capable of that?”

  “You’ve done worse,” I shot back. “Your scent is all over the place.”

  A muscle jumped in Jake’s stubbled jaw. After a tense moment, he scoffed, shaking his head. “Look, this is what happened. Early this morning, before dawn, I heard noise next-door. Thought you might be back, so I got dressed and went to check. By the time I got there, whoever trashed the place had left. I called the police. They came and checked it out, but...” He lifted his hand and shrugged. “So no, I didn’t do it.”

  I raked stiff fingers into my hair, a jumble of emotions crashing inside my chest like wrecking balls. Okay, maybe he hadn’t trashed my office, but only one day had passed since Jacob Knight came back into my life, and everything was upside down.

  “You know,” I said. “Both Mom and Daniella told me many times that you were no good for me, but I never listened.”

  Jake’s silver eyes darkened, and his shoulders tensed as he held my gaze.

  “It wasn’t until the day you left that I saw the truth, and now it’s like I’m seeing it all over again, like a freaking déjà vu. You just got here yesterday and look at how peachy things are going.”

  “That’s not fair,” he said in a low whisper, scarier than any outburst he might have had.

  He walked closer, his body lithe, his muscles flexing under golden skin. I took a step closer, too. I wasn’t going to let this thing between us control me. To my satisfaction, he shuddered and stopped. His gaze slid down the length of my body. He licked his lips, then clenched his jaw.

  A thrill of smug pride went through me. It seemed the fierce attraction he’d felt for me before lived on. The knowledge made me feel great and awful at the same time. Great because it seemed he hadn’t left the past behind either. And awful because it confused me, because it gave me new questions about his reasons for leaving me.

  Of course, I had to quickly remind myself that attraction and love belonged on entirely different planes.

  “Just stay out of my way,” I said. “Then I won’t have to blame you if anything else goes wrong.”

  I took a step back, ready to leave.

  “You’re in danger, Toni, and it has nothing to do with me.”

  “That’s not what it looks like from my end.”

  “What happened between us is clouding your judgment and putting your life in danger,” he said. “If you ask me, this is what’s happening... whoever took Stephen doesn’t want him found, for obvious reasons. They know you used to have a relationship with him and might decide to track him, so they are trying to make sure that doesn’t happen. You’re an amazing tracker, and they know it.”

  “You’re the only one trying to pull me into this. I don’t want to get involved, so stop giving those criminals any ideas.”

  He ran a hand through his soft hair.

  Soft? What the hell, Toni? Stop thinking like this.

  But how could anyone blame me? I knew exactly how amazing his hair felt between my fingers. I’d touched it many times, raking my hands through it as we made love. I shuddered. Gah! This was deteriorating quickly. I had to get out of here. Turning on my heel, I headed for the door and opened it.

  “You’re already involved, whether you want to be or not.” Of course, he always had to have the last word.

  I stomped back to my office with his voice ringing in my ears.

  “He’s infuriating,” I growled as I stormed in and collapsed on a chair.

  Rosalina was bending down, gathering papers, and pulling them into a pile. She rose to her full height of 5’5”. She had on flats.

  “I could have told you that going over there would be unproductive, but...” She shrugged.

  “The most infuriating part is,” I hated to admit it, “that he’s right.”

  Her perfectly plucked eyebrows went up. She abandoned the papers, sat down, and gave me her full attention. “This must be good if you’re agreeing with him.” She wiggled her fingers in a “come here” motion. “Spill, girl.”

  I repeated what Jake had said almost word by word. As I went, Rosalina’s expression changed, gradually growing concerned. “We should have realized the kidnappers would come after you,” she said when I finished.

  “I know, but I was so busy being mad at Jake that... Oh, never mind, what do you think we should do?”

  “Move to China?” she suggested. “This isn’t good. Bernadetta Fiore and her people are ruthless, and open war between her and Ulfen Erickson doesn’t bode well for anyone.”

  “If it was the Dark Donna who kidnapped Stephen.”

  “Who else? I think the constant feud between vampires and werewolves has finally reached a boiling point.” Rosalina rose from the chair and began pacing the office. “Toni, this is bad.”

  She was telling me? I’d nearly been taken last night. Twice. Had Bernadetta sent Beetlejuice and mage? I didn’t know her, so she had no reason to want to hurt me. But who was I kidding? Vampires, especially powerful ones like her, had no respect for life and took whatever they wanted without asking for permission.

  “Well, I’m not moving to China or anywhere else,” I said, resolutely. “I can’t let Jake and his world ruin my life again.”

  “As much as you hate it, you’re also part of that world, Toni,” she reminded me.

  For over a year, I’d had a glimpse at a normal life. Yes, I’d been using my Skew powers to make a living, but we only accepted Stale customers, with few exceptions. Their lives were easier, simple even, and I liked pretending I was one of them. Was my time of peaceful existence over?

  “Thanks for reminding me,” I huffed.

  “So, what then? Do I buy those plane tickets to China? Or we could go to Spain, my Spanish would come in handy.”

  “Not a bad idea,” I pretended to consider it, but who was I kidding? I couldn’t leave St. Louis. My family and everything we’d worked so hard for was here.

  “Maybe we just lay low until this resolves itself,” she suggested, knowing full well we weren’t going anywhere. “We can work from my place and set up meetings with prospective customers at coffee houses or restaurants. That would also help you stay away from...” She hooked her thumb toward Jake’s office.

  “Sounds like a plan. I’ll get some stuff from upstairs.”

  “And I’ll gather a few files, also I already called my sister and asked if I could borrow her spare laptop. She said no problem.”

  “Awesome! We’re in business again. Let’s take butts and kick names.” I stood and we high-fived each other. We had both laughed at that line from one of The Avengers movies and liked to use it pretty regularly.

  Chapter 13

  By that afternoon, I’d made Rosalina’s guest bedroom mine. The clothes that I’d stuffed in a carry-on bag already hung in the closet and Cupid’s fishbowl sat on the dresser. But more importantly, Celina’s crimson potion sat on the night table, waiting in a shallow bowl. I’d closed the shades, and even though the sun had reached its peak, almost no light seeped into the small, carpeted room. I’d changed into comfortable clothes: my favorite pair of pajamas, a flannel number with a heart pattern.

  Chewing on my bottom lip, I worried that more kidnappers might come after me, but this place was armed to the teeth with protection spells. Mom had gone to town with her best work and, on top of that, the complex boasted Stale and Skew security—one of the reasons Rosalina had bought the condo.

  She appeared at the door, still wearing her office clothes, though barefoot rather than in her flats.

  “Ready?” she asked.

  I gave her a decisive nod and sat at the edge of the double bed. The potion shimmered in the bowl, looking as if a constellation of stars was trapped in it. I dreaded this part, not so much because of the trance, but because of what would happen afterward.

&nb
sp; Magic always came with a price, and the price I paid turned out to be a real pain in the ass.

  Rosalina gave me a reassuring smile. “I’m right here. I’ll take care of you.”

  And she certainly did. Best of all, she made sure I had company on the other end of the trance. I’d done it alone before, and a few times it had been nothing short of terrifying.

  Inhaling deeply, I stood and faced the bowl. Maybe this time, it wouldn’t be so bad. I could only hope. Slowly, I dipped my hands into the potion, up to my wrists. When I took them out, it looked as if I’d donned a pair of shiny, sequined gloves. What had been a liquid now clung to me like a second skin. Holding my hands up like a freshly scrubbed-in surgeon, I climbed into bed and made myself comfortable.

  Rosalina walked over, and being careful not to touch my outstretched hands, pulled the covers up to my chest. She knew I liked to be warm. Plus, the covers made me feel safe, contained somehow.

  “Toodles.” I wiggled my fingers.

  She smiled, a bit sadly but reassuringly.

  Slowly, I lowered my hands, and lightly pressed stiff fingertips to my closed eyes. My lids tingled. Next, I tilted my head back and ran my fingers downward until I reached my nostrils. The scent of chocolate chip cookies assaulted me. My tongue flicked out, tasting the potion. It reminded me of the same sweet treat. Lastly, I touched my ears, involving all my senses.

  After a long minute, the potion disappeared, leaving my hands and face clean as if it’d never been there. I blinked my eyes open and lowered my hands to my sides. As I peered up at Rosalina, she appeared like an angel from heaven, glowing warmly while tiny stars flickered all around her... just what I liked to see before the spell took me.

  Of their own accord, my eyes closed, and I found myself in what looked like a kindergartner’s Saint Valentine's Day goodie bag. Shiny glitter floated all around me against a deep blackness. Individual pieces twinkled while silence reigned, an indication the potion had taken hold.

  It was so peaceful, I could drift there forever, but I had to get to work.

  Tracking someone with my skills required the use of my senses. I could use four of them, but I only ever wanted to use one. That would have been too easy, though.

  I always started with my strongest, yet most-disposable sense: smell.

  Gradually, I activated it, and my iridescent limbo filled with a host of scents that sent my memory banks into hyper-drive. The sense of smell is the best at retrieving memories and bringing back moments and places that seemed forgotten. Like how a whiff of cannoli or homemade marinara reminds me of Nonna, cooking in her large kitchen, slapping my fingers out of bowls unless I meant to help.

  Faster than my little sister, Lucia, can go through boyfriends, I examined the scents waltzing into my sparkling universe. I detected many distinct ones—car exhaust, cigarette smoke, cologne, mulch, B.O., grilled meat, and more—all from places one of Celina’s potential mates was currently roaming.

  Most people believed that only one mate existed for them, and I didn’t like to contradict them. It kept confusion to a minimum and stopped skeptical clients from asking questions that would be too hard to explain. More than seven billion people live on earth. Thinking that only one other person can be someone’s perfect match is ludicrous. True, some of them might not speak the same language, but still. They make translation apps for a reason.

  As quickly as possible—the longer I stayed under the trance the longer my recovery would be—I cataloged each scent, trying to find it in my Rolodex of memories, hoping it came from a location familiar to me, hopefully somewhere in St. Louis or at least a city I had visited. I made it a point to travel to different places to fill my catalog and increase my success rate.

  One smell, in particular, I pinpointed without trouble. It came from a hamburger joint that I liked. The problem: it was a chain. There might be thousands of them all over the country, and maybe even the world, but since I recognized it, I latched on to it. Still, this clue was too broad. I had to narrow things down.

  Dammit! Like I’d said, getting away with using only one of my senses would be too good to be true.

  It was time for the next most-disposable sense: hearing. But before I moved on, I focused on a strong male scent that was unique. It was the most prevalent scent from one of Celina’s mates.

  When I felt certain I’d committed it to memory, I let my ears come out to play. Immediately, my shimmering surroundings filled with a cacophony of sounds. Horns blowing, a sledgehammer, the din of voices in a crowded place, someone coughing, a lawnmower, the low bass of a rap song, a loud fart. Most of them were useless, sounds one could hear almost anywhere. I riffled through them in frustration, discarding them, shutting them down one at a time, gradually bringing down the cacophony to a bearable level.

  Shit! This was taking too long already. I knew I had to hurry, but the stress of it made me clumsy. I stumbled over the sounds, hesitating to send them away even when they were irrelevant.

  Finally, over the racket of all the remaining sounds, one caught my attention. It repeated itself over and over, which meant the potential mate, my mark, heard it often, maybe even every day.

  Better yet, I recognized it!

  It came from the bells at the Cathedral Basilica, announcing the top of the hour.

  Bingo!

  Maybe St. Louis didn’t have seven billion inhabitants, but with nearly three million in the metro area, the probabilities of finding mates right here didn’t suck. Besides, who could be more compatible than someone living in your own backyard?

  Wasting no time, I snapped out of the trance and breathed a sigh of relief when I came to.

  Rosalina always said that watching me during a trance scared her, that my eyelashes didn’t flutter and my chest barely rose and fell. From the sound of it, I appeared dead or comatose, but I never had trouble breaking out of a trance, though sometimes I wondered... what if I got stuck in one of them?

  My eyes sprang open. Exhaustion weighed my every limb, making me feel as if I’d partied hard and been put away soaking wet.

  Rosalina sat next to me, holding my hand. She smiled when I met her gaze and seemed relieved to find that I’d only used two senses. She could tell because I hadn’t lost my sight and I could still see her.

  Besides feeling like a wet rag, the price I paid for tracking amounted to losing the senses I used during the trance. Of course, the loss of my senses kicked my butt the worst. For every minute I stayed under, my senses went dormant for an hour. In the past, I’d been deaf, blind, anosmic (unable to smell) and hypoesthetic (numb to the touch). I’d yet to lose my sense of taste. I’d never used it during my trance. Learning what my mark ate every morning for breakfast didn’t seem useful.

  Right away, the lack of smells hit me like it always did. Losing my most powerful sense was awful, worse than dumpster diving and inhaling the rotten juices like crack cocaine would be. I was sure of it. The way the air just went blank, dead, deeply unnerved me and left me feeling unmoored. The silence, I could handle. The peace, the solitude in the absence of all sound wasn’t bad. But the lack of scents... too weird.

  Rosalina signed, her hands moving as she formed the word “read.” She held up her e-reader.

  I said “yes” but didn’t hear myself.

  She and I were studying sign language so we could communicate. It had been her idea. She also tried hard to make the periods when I was deaf as comfortable, stress-free, and restful as possible. Reading did the trick.

  Her head snapped up, her brows drawing together as she listened for something.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  She beat her fist on her open palm to indicate someone was knocking at the door. In one fluid motion, she jumped to her feet, her back turned and stiff.

  Shit! Something told me the knocking wasn’t friendly.

  I scrambled out of bed woozily, imagining another Beetlejuice trying to tear the door down. My weak legs protested as I stood.

  God, they’ve
found us!

  I glanced around, searching for something to use as a weapon. The bedside lamp screamed, “pick me!” I clumsily threw its shade on the bed, unplugged it, and held the base like a bat, ready to hit whoever walked through the door right in the gonads, because I was certain the intruder had a pair of them. My arms trembled like ramen noodles.

  Rosalina’s shoulders relaxed.

  Huh? No Beetlejuice?

  She turned and glanced at the lamp and my threatening stance. She laughed and shrugged, seeming to say, “Yeah, sure, go ahead and leave him gonadless.”

  I was confused, to say the least.

  Rosalina signed for me to put the lamp down, then painstakingly formed four letters with her fingers.

  J-A-K-E.

  I rolled my eyes. “Ugh, I’m going to kill him.”

  Why in the hell couldn’t he leave us alone?

  Chapter 14

  “Tell him I’m not here,” I told Rosalina.

  She nodded, walked out of the bedroom, and closed the door. I sat at the edge of the bed, biting my thumbnail and bouncing my knee.

  How in the name of a million witchlights had he found us?

  It’s my job to know things, I heard his obnoxiously sexy voice inside my head.

  This was the worst possible time for Jake to show up. I had purposely kept the side effects of my powers secret from him. At the time, I’d been afraid he would refuse to let me use them. Losing my senses was traumatic, but that wasn’t the only problem. When I tracked people in trouble, I got a full blast of what they felt. Fear, desperation, despair, pain.

  Mate tracking was a walk in the park compared to that.

  Now, it didn’t matter if Jake found out, but my burden felt private, and I didn’t think he deserved to know.

  My heart pounded in my chest as I tried to imagine why he’d come. What was he telling Rosalina out there? Had something—

  The door to the bedroom slammed open, and Jake stormed in, Rosalina hot on his heels, pulling on his massive biceps with no effect. His mouth was moving at a thousand miles per hour, and I had no godly or ungodly idea what he was saying.