by Kamryn Hart
“He wasn’t in control,” Rogue said calmly. Then he ignored the Alpha and asked Gwen, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, Casey took care of me,” she said with a pained smile. It wasn’t a physical pain though, Rogue could sense that much.
“Emily, could you…”
Rogue carefully kept Griffin cradled in one arm as he slipped his other arm off her shoulders. She didn’t say a word as she took the bird from him. Rogue flinched when he noticed he had probably broken one of Griffin’s wings. He offered a silent apology. Then he limped forward and knelt in front of Gwen.
“May I?”
Gwen grabbed his hand and placed it on her rounded belly. “Baby’s fine, Rogue. No need to worry.” She reached for his face with her other hand. “Thank you for saving my mate.”
Rogue’s throat was clogged with emotion. All he could do was nod his head in response as he worked to get himself under control.
He stood, cleared his throat, and said, “We need to keep the eagle sedated until I get to the bottom of this.”
“You mean we,” a man interjected. “Until we get to the bottom of this.”
Rogue looked behind him to see Max, a big blond wolf shifter, walking with his petite White Witch, former Black Witch, mate and new Trinity agent, Ava.
Rogue forgot he had a White Witch at his disposal. He really had been working alone for too long. Yeah, he was part of Trinity, but he rarely did jobs with anyone and when he did, it was with Bruiser. This was a leadership position.
“Right,” Rogue said. “Ava, can you keep Griffin sedated? I’m ninety-nine percent positive a Black Witch got to him.
“Y-yes,” Ava replied. Emily passed Griffin off to Ava.
“Go to my mother,” Casey said. “She’ll be able to fix him up. His wing looks broken. We need to get it set.”
“Get Cedric, too. He’s a bird. He should know how wings work,” Rogue added. Then he turned to Nick who had pulled his mate to her feet and was now holding her protectively in front of him. “Sorry for taking over your pack.” He was half joking with the comment.
“Do you think this has something to do with the Circle?” Nick responded. He wasn’t in the mood for banter. He was Alpha and he wanted to get to the bottom of this as badly as Rogue did. Rogue would have said the Circle was a distinct possibility. They were the most dangerous coven of witches Trinity knew, and the shifter who had been sabotaged by a Black Witch was none other than a Trinity Shifter. The two didn’t get along. They were sworn enemies.
But Rogue wasn’t sure. David Fletcher was also involved somehow. It was possible he was also being controlled by the Circle, he supposed, but that was a little far-fetched since David seemed to be focused on Rogue and was probably doing whatever he was doing, sending Emily out here, because of his vendetta. He had a plan of some sort. That was the only thing he could think. Then again, he didn’t even know that David was, in fact, alive. He hadn’t laid eyes on the guy who sent Emily here.
Fuck, it sucked being the one everyone was looking to for answers. It sucked being a leader.
“The Circle could have something to do with it,” Rogue replied carefully. “But I’m afraid it probably has something to do more with me and a guy who hates me—if it turns out he’s still alive.” He looked Nick in the eye when he said this next bit. “I’m so sorry. I can’t even express how sorry I am.”
“I’m not interested in your sorries, Rogue. You saved us back there. You have the most experience with what we’re dealing with, and I trust you—even with your call to save that fucking eagle. We’re in this together.”
Rogue tried to swallow the lump in his throat. This was a lot of responsibility, a lot of trust to hold. But he wouldn’t let them down. “We’ll get to the bottom of it.”
Chapter 11
EMILY APPLIED THE LAST of a sticky salve to the burns on Ethan’s face. Someone went back to grab his clothes, so he was fully dressed again with every wound treated. He looked as good as he could, considering everything. He didn’t seem to mind her touch anymore, meaning that salve was basically a godsend.
The once extravagant mansion and focal point of the entire town was burned to nothing. The flames were out, but all that was left was a burned to black graveyard of ashen remains. It looked odd against all the snow. It looked like a cursed piece of land no one should tread, held captive by the pristine white.
It was awful, but no one had died. That was good news.
But this supposed-to-be-dead David Fletcher… if he really was alive and the man who had confronted Emily, she couldn’t believe it, couldn’t understand what he could possibly want. Obviously, it wasn’t good. He had killed Mason and might have been behind what just happened. He was a murderer, and she hated him. She hated him for what he took from her, hated him for what just happened.
“Good as new,” Emily whispered.
Ethan laughed. “Not quite, Em. But thanks. I feel about a billion times better, and I can walk.”
She wanted to kiss him, but she didn’t know what set off that pained reaction he had to her at times. She didn’t know what made the Moon symbol on his cheek glow hot with power. It was visible on his skin, but it was a subtle mark at the moment. There was no sign of power or magic. At least she didn’t feel like Ethan hated her. There was something more going on, something involving a promise with Mason. When it activated, it punished the man in front of her.
She was so pissed that Mason would have anything to do with inflicting that kind of pain on Ethan, she almost wanted to spit on his grave. Because she didn’t understand. So Mason wanted to keep her safe like he always had, but at the expense of Ethan? It wasn’t Ethan’s fault she was here. Did that mean Mason was present? She hadn’t really believed in ghosts one way or the other, but she was starting to get the sense Mason was very present, right here specifically, because she and Ethan were together again. Because the three of them were always meant to be together. It should have been a happy reunion, a relief at the very least, but Mason was being the same hard-ass he always was.
Could she talk some sense into the ghost of the adopted brother she saw as something very different from that?
Emily chanced touching Ethan’s cheek to trace that mark on his skin. He watched her quietly, with a depth and heat in his eyes that made her shake. That look meant her touch was giving him pleasure, not pain. Until this thing with Mason was solved, she would have to treat Ethan like thin glass.
“I need to call Bruiser,” he said tiredly.
Emily only knew what she knew about this Bruiser guy from the last call Ethan had with him. Since she couldn’t hear Bruiser’s end of the conversation, it didn’t amount to knowing much. But she read Ethan’s body language and his responses. Even in his anger, she was certain he held a fondness for the guy. She hoped that meant he hadn’t been lonely all these years like she had been.
Ethan searched his pockets and found his thin glass-faced phone. He made a series of taps and then held it to his ear. Emily stayed close, reluctant to leave his side for anything.
“Hey, Teddy,” Ethan said. He gave Emily a quick glance and then did something she didn’t expect. He put the phone on speaker.
“What the fuck did I say, pussycat?” Bruiser replied. His voice was a low growl, gritty. It wasn’t smooth and pleasant like Ethan’s voice. Emily got the sense Bruiser wasn’t a talker, while her “pussycat” definitely was.
Ethan winked at Emily. Her heart leaped at the gesture. Despite everything going on, he had found his sense of humor again, and that was priceless.
“We’ve got a situation here,” Ethan informed.
“I know. You called me a few hours ago.”
“No, like, it’s an actual situation now.”
Bruiser paused. “What happened?”
“Well, the Alpha Den got burned to the fucking ground because one of our Sun Shifters is under the control of a Black Witch and used a few too many Solsis Bursts. It’s possible the Circle is involved.”
“By the fucking Earth.”
“Tell me about it, but other than that, everything’s kind of okay. I’ve got the bird sedated, no one got killed, and as of now, I don’t see any other immediate threats.”
“Got it. I’ll adjust accordingly. Already on my way there. In the meantime, I’ll use Terros Sight to see what I can find.”
“Great! Thanks, man.”
Bruiser didn’t say another word as he hung up.
“I like your friend,” Emily informed.
“Friend. I don’t know about that, but I knew you’d like him,” Ethan replied. “He’s a big lug, but you gotta love him. And he knows how to get shit done.”
“So Trinity is the good guys and the Circle is the bad guys?”
“Basically. Trinity is a shifter alliance. We go around helping all the shifters in the world. The Circle is a coven of Black Witches with some sort of nasty agenda or another. They’re elusive though, so it’s pretty hard to predict what they’re going to do next.”
Emily asked, “Are you happy with Trinity?”
“I don’t hate it. I like what they do and what they stand for.” It seemed he had given up on trying to leave her in the dark. She was grateful for that. Any progress, no matter how small, was still progress.
Emily followed Ethan as he started walking back toward Nick and Gwen. Most of the town seemed to be gathered around the “Alpha Den’s” burned remains, talking and figuring out what to do next. Nick had insisted his mate go inside one of the houses where it was warm, though. Emily understood he was unbalanced by what could have happened to her and his unborn child. He just wanted to look out for her. Gwen didn’t seem like a pushover, but she obliged him. Despite Casey using that crazy blue magic on her, she looked exhausted.
“Ethan,” Emily said.
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
“That was pretty random.”
“But I do, and I want you to know.” It seemed important to say it because, as much as she didn’t want to admit it, things were dangerous, and she didn’t know what was going to happen at the end of this.
He stopped walking, looked at her thoughtfully and replied, “I love you, too.” He bent down and brushed his lips against her ear. “Always have, always will.”
She wanted to kiss him, but he moved away and started walking again. “Nick,” he called. “Bruiser’s coming with backup.”
“Perfect,” Nick replied with a sigh. “The pack is strong but this Solsis shit and Black Magic combination is ridiculous.”
“Amen to that, brother.”
“The Celestial Trinity doesn’t seem balanced. I’ve never seen power like a Solsis Burst. It was just… raw.”
“Yeah, well, life isn’t balanced. Also, the sun is a fucking star, a big ball of bright destruction. It kind of makes sense.”
Nick actually offered a small smirk for that comment. But he went right back to straight-laced in the next moment. “Do you really think the Circle could be behind it?”
“Dunno. It’s not a bad guess. The Circle hates Trinity more than anyone and you openly pledged your pack to it, so it makes Moonwatch a valid target. I guess with new friends come new enemies. It’s a shitty deal, and I’m sorry—whether it’s my fault or Trinity’s.”
Nick shook his head. “I’d rather have loyal friends who’d lay down their lives for each other than be neutral and free of enemies. We’ll get by. I’m going to send out scouts and keep others here to watch Moonwatch and hopefully identify any other threats before they happen. That eagle attack was a good move though. Only Cedric would have been able to stop him, but the chances of him flying at the same time the eagle came would have been way too small anyway. The bird just showed up out of nowhere, dive bombed through a window, and exploded.”
Ethan nodded. “Yeah, it was well played. No way we could have been ready for that. Do you want me to head out and see what I can find? I’m pretty good with tracking and picking up unlikely clues.”
“No. Stay here. You’re probably the best equipped to deal with whatever else might come our way.”
“Your call, Alpha. I’ll obey.”
“Good, then get some rest too. Someone’ll wake you up if there’s trouble. I need you sharp and alert.”
The sun was all but gone from the sky. It was at that moment Emily realized just how tired she was. She couldn’t imagine Ethan’s exhaustion. She hoped he wasn’t in too much pain. He took painkillers orally as well as all the external care he had received for his wounds, so he was as well off as he could be.
“Bruiser’s going to have an eye out for us, too,” Ethan informed. “He’ll use Terros Sight as much as he can.”
“Thanks,” Nick said.
Ethan shook his head dismissively.
“I mean it.”
“I’ll protect this pack with me life, Nick. I know it’s just the words of a cat you don’t know well, but I mean it.” Then he held out his left hand.
Nick regarded Ethan’s outstretched hand for a moment and asked, “Another contract?”
“A promise and a contract. I hope you’ll accept it.”
Emily watched on in silence. Nick gave her a quick look as well, like this whole thing had something to do with her too. It was a small gesture, but one she appreciated. She was a part of this because she was a part of Ethan.
“A promise like that makes you more than an ally, Ethan,” Nick said. “It makes you a part of the pack. And I promise the same. Being a part of this pack means my life for yours and vice versa.” Nick slapped his right hand down on Ethan’s left.
Emily watched on in wonder as that same glow of blue magic shone through the cracks in their joined hands, fingertips and the edges of their palms, as if the light source was located on their palms.
Ethan smirked. “You’re learning well, Alpha. But you’re too honest for Lunas to be any use to you outside of your pack.”
“You’re the same way, cat, and you’re the one teaching me. Permission and trust is part of the process. Underhandedness isn’t my style anyway.”
They released this apparently binding promise they just made, and Nick excused himself to take care of his Alpha duties.
“That’s the Moon’s power,” Ethan told her absentmindedly. “These Moon Marks are also known as Lunas Sigils. They’re promises sealed by the Moon, and they can’t be broken.”
“It’s the same magic that binds the vow you made with Mason about keeping me safe,” Emily concluded.
“Yep. All shifters come from one of three celestial bodies: the Moon, the Earth, or the Sun. Some of us can use their power beyond shifting. The mansion went up in flames because a Sun Shifter was using explosive Sun Magic in there.”
Emily thought she knew shifters well by this point, after these five years of doing nothing but tracking one down, but it turned out she knew very little.
“I want to help, Ethan. I don’t know how this is all linked or if this is somehow my fault for not telling you about the strange shifter I met sooner, but I’m going to help you fix things.”
“I need you safe, Em.” His words were strained and Emily swore she could see that mark on his cheek starting to light up again.
“I’m a human. I’m not as strong as you are, but I’m not as fragile as you think. I’m not as fragile as Mason thinks. I know how to defend myself. I’m a good shot.”
She saw her opportunity to show him just how good. She had good vision when it came to detecting motion, and that went double for the unsuspecting white rabbit that mostly blended into the snow as it hopped out of its burrow, making its way toward an unsuspecting Derek’s feet. She whipped out her pistol fitted snuggly in the back of her pants, aimed, and fired past Ethan all in the span of a few seconds. Her aim was true—but it had scared the shit out of the big wolf Ethan had left her with earlier; he jumped back and stared at the dead rabbit in the snow. Then he looked at Emily who was once again stowing away her pistol.
“By the Moon, Earth, and Sun. What the hell
?” Ethan growled as he whipped around, clearly shocked and confused by what Emily had just done. Quick shifter or not, he missed all of that, couldn’t stop her from firing, and she hit her mark. Case in point.
“Shiiiit,” Derek said in response. “Your girl is a fucking bunny slayer. You could have hit me, girl! It’s dark as dark gets out here. Are you even human?”
“I’m too good of a shot for that,” she replied with a wink.
Derek held up his hands. “Let’s not get aggressive now.”
“Derek,” Willow said as she walked over to him after ending a conversation with another packmate. She didn’t look like the Barbie doll she did before. She was burned and hurting, though not as badly as Ethan, and more than frazzled. “Take me home. I did what I had to do, and I’m tired.” She walked forward until she could lean in and rest her forehead on the big wolf’s chest.
“You got it, Will.” He kissed her gently on the top of her head. “Want me to carry you?”
“Yes,” she said with a playful whine as she clawed at the light coat he was wearing. “Carry me and baby me and put me to bed.”
Derek obliged, catching her legs in one arm and her back in the other effortlessly. Willow curled up close to him, and Emily couldn’t help but smile at the affectionate display. It was adorable.
Before they went on their way, Derek looked over his shoulder and said, “I like your girl, Rogue.”
Emily smiled at that, too. Ethan was a part of the pack. She wanted to find a way to stick with him and join the pack too if that was what it took. The shifters here seemed nice enough. She would be happy. Couldn’t Mason see that? She was already happier right now, with all the crazy shit going down, than she had been in the last five years. She was where she was supposed to be with who she was supposed to be with.
Ethan’s lips were pursed tightly, and he seemed to be intent on staying absolutely silent.
“Let me help, Ethan. I’m going to help anyway, so we might as well be on the same page,” she reasoned. “If you don’t, I just killed that bunny for nothing. Don’t make me a bunny murderer.”
Ethan snorted at that, meaning he found it at least a little funny, which was her goal, but she also knew he wasn’t into senseless violence. The kill probably really did bother him, but he didn’t have to worry. She wouldn’t let it go to waste.
