by Jenna Kernan
Michaela watched over her husband and scanned the area like a soldier on patrol.
Nicholas came to stand beside her, guarding her as his friend did his work.
“Is it really safe for you here?”
Bess landed on a fence post, listening to them with her bright eyes twinkling.
“I’ve sent all the ghosts away,” Bess said.
Tension remained in Michaela’s shoulders and her attention continued to wander over the open area.
Bess flapped her wings. “But they will all be arriving in the Circle of Ghosts together. These souls will surely draw Nagi’s notice.”
Michaela nodded. “It’s a risk.”
Bess’s neck cowl lifted as a measure of her unease.
“You can’t be here,” said Nicholas.
“But here I stay, until my husband has finished his work.”
Nick glanced at Sebastian. “It is not his duty to protect men.”
“But it is mine,” she answered. “And I am his and so it falls to him, as well.”
Bess piped up. “The buffalo can treat them.”
Michaela shook her head in resignation. “So many are injured and so seriously, the effort would kill him. Buffalos are strong, but no living creature could endure such pain.”
Nicholas pressed his lips together. He would trade all these lives for hers. She was necessary, vital to their fight against Nagi.
She lay a hand on his arm for just a moment. “He will be quick,” she assured.
Nick glanced toward the lodge, wondering if Jessie was all right without him.
Michaela’s voice intruded into his thoughts. “And then you can return to her.”
He flushed and nodded.
The Seer gave him an assessing look. “Nicholas, this Dream Walker saved your life and defies her parents for you.”
“Yes,” he said, reluctant as always to reveal his feelings.
She waited until it was clear he would say nothing further and then she smiled. “You’re worse than Sebastian. How do you feel about her?”
He met Michaela’s gaze, seeing nothing but her sweet serenity and compassion.
“I love her,” he admitted. “She is my soul mate.”
Michaela clapped her hands together and then threw her arms about Nick. “Oh, I’m so happy for you both.”
Nick dragged Michaela’s hands from about his neck and returned his attention to scanning for potential threats, searching for ghosts that he knew he could not see. But if one possessed being came near, he could smell it.
“I can’t wait to tell Sebastian. He’ll be over the moon.”
Nick thought his friend would have a field day and already dreaded the comments he felt sure would come his way. He’d been a bachelor for nearly a century and never had a steady relationship in all that time.
He stayed by his friend’s wife as Sebastian worked. Tuff grew weak from his efforts but continued on without complaint. Nick had never seen so stalwart a Skinwalker. His sacrifice humbled him again. Tuff gave this gift to strangers, selflessly.
When he tried to heal the horse, Sebastian stepped in. “Rest, brother. You have finished your work.”
Tuff nodded his acceptance. He looked near collapse. Nicholas slipped an arm around him and felt him trembling. He knew he should bring him to the lodge and give him some food and water, but he could not leave Michaela and Sebastian. So, he moved Tuff only as far as the bench beside the barn, where he could rest in the shade.
Michaela directed the recovered people to the lodge, where Jessie’s father could work his gift.
Nick glanced toward Sebastian, who chanted over the last of the injured guests. He had to hurry. Any moment Nagi might discover that his forces had been defeated.
Chapter 25
The number of souls rushing into his circle was not startling, but the sheer blackness of these arrivals did confound Nagi.
Such happenings could mean many things, but the worst possibility overshadowed the rest. The Seer had learned to use her gift.
Somewhere high above him the old hag Hihankara had measured each soul and found them lacking. Had she reported the unusual influx of evil to the Spirit World? The old crone was already suspicious.
Nagi felt a moment’s worry. It was too soon. He had chosen not to use the countless ghosts here in his circle in order to avoid notice. It was the very reason he had chosen only the earth-bound ghosts for his army.
He was no fool, after all. It was one thing to fight Halflings and Supernaturals, but quite another to face a true Spirit with powers equal to or greater than his own. He hoped to possess the earth before the others learned of his territorial expansion.
He needed to know what happened. He called the fallen hundred-odd souls from their march. These were the uncollected ghosts he had purposefully overlooked—his light cavalry, his vanguard. Among them were the very three who had captured the little Dream Walker in order to use her against the wolf. Had the Seer escaped? Had not one in his army endured to follow the bear?
He gathered their stories. The Seer had emerged, fought and won. She had learned the secrets of sending souls for judgment. How many had she defeated?
She would be weakened by such an ordeal, like a warrior after the Sun Dance. It gave him another chance to seize her. He knew where she had been very recently. If she was wise, she would have already fled.
Had she fought while carrying her children or—his mind curled about another possibility—had she birthed them? That would only add to her weakness. The twins, the two prophesized great Seers, might at this very minute be helpless and unprotected. Perhaps a victory could be forged from this loss.
Nagi rose through the heavens, making his way swiftly to the place where his battle had been waged to see if any were foolish enough to linger.
Sebastian finished healing the last of the guests at the J Bar M Dude Ranch and helped Tuff heal, as well.
“You must go, brother,” said Nick to Sebastian.
“Yes.”
Tuff stretched, looking well but tired. “I have a truck. I’ll take you where you and your wife would like to go.”
Sebastian smiled and clasped his hand down on Tuff’s shoulder in thanks. Nick was impressed that Tuff did not move in the slightest at the contact.
“We’d appreciate it.”
Tuff led the way and held open the door for Michaela as Sebastian assisted his wife. Michaela hesitated and glanced at Sebastian.
“Have you asked Nick yet?”
Sebastian shook his head. “I was hoping to find them together.”
Michaela’s smile faded a little. “No time for that now.” She turned to Nick and waited for Sebastian to speak.
Sebastian grinned at him. “Nicholas, we want you and Jessie to name our children.”
Nick gasped at the request. The naming of infants was usually reserved for a family member. To be chosen for the naming ceremony was the greatest honor.
Nick straightened, feeling somehow a little taller as he nodded, accepting the responsibility. It took him another moment to find his voice. “Yes, brother. I’d be honored.”
Sebastian smiled. “And Jessie?”
“I will tell her that it is your wish for her to take part.”
“The ceremony is in three weeks, on the new moon. We will expect you then.” Michaela kissed Nick. “Take good care of my sister and hurry from this place before Nagi discovers what has become of his warriors.”
Nick and Sebastian clasped forearms. “Is it safe for us to come?” Nick asked.
“Michaela thinks so.”
Michaela smiled. “Any ghost that follows you will be sorry, for I will send them to judgment.”
“And Nagi?”
Sebastian and Michaela exchanged looks. “There are always the Thunderbirds.”
“I would not bring harm to you or yours.”
Sebastian nodded. “Then come to us soon.”
They broke apart and Sebastian helped Michaela into the truck. Nick claspe
d Tuff’s hand and thanked him once more, and then Tuff started the engine. In a moment they were waving through the glass as Tuff drove them north.
Nick felt alone once more. He tried not to let the feeling bite deep; he had grown used to isolation, believing there was no other path for him. Now Jessie gave him hope that things might be different. But first he must face Jessie’s parents and get them safely away. Perhaps the most difficult battle still lay ahead.
Bess fluttered down to land at Nick’s feet and then rose as she shifted to her human form, her feather cloak changing almost instantaneously into a rather short black dress and calf-clinging boots with high heels that made her nearly as tall as he was.
It was the kind of outfit that he would have found appealing before he’d met Jessie.
“Time to go,” Bess said. Her eyes flashed playfully as she stepped up to clasp his arm.
He said nothing, but somehow she sensed the difference and her smile died.
She arched an eyebrow at him. “Not done playing house?”
“It’s not a game.”
Her hand slipped from his arm. “She’s not like us. She won’t understand you.” Bess’s gaze challenged him as she stood stiffly before him, holding herself ready for the rejection she sensed was to come. He had never meant to hurt her. Their few times together had been born more of the loneliness of their solitary existence than any real attraction.
“She will grow to understand.”
“I should have left her on the Way of Souls.”
Nick felt the fiery urge to defend Jessie but held his control. “You do not understand how it is with us.”
“Don’t I?” Bess turned her back on him. “Just don’t call me when you get bored.”
He rested a hand on her shoulder, feeling again the smooth, firm skin at the juncture of her neck. She turned toward him, hope blossoming in her eyes.
“Bess…” He met her stare. “She’s my soul mate.”
Bess stepped from his grip. “That one?” Shock echoed in her voice.
For a moment he thought she might cry, but instead she gathered herself like a warrior before battle.
“She doesn’t deserve you.”
“I’m sorry, Bess.”
Her eyes flashed. “Don’t be. I am used to my own company.”
Nick took another step in her direction and she halted him with an uplifted hand.
Her eyes glittered luminescent. The sight punched him in the gut. “If Sebastian and I both have found mates, than you may also.”
She huffed. “That would relieve your conscience, no doubt.” She aimed a finger at him. “Don’t you dare pity me, wolf. I did not give anything I did not get.” She hesitated, as if she would say more.
“Bess, we are still friends, aren’t we?” He had few enough that he could rely on and could ill afford to lose one.
She gave him a look of infinite sadness. “In time, perhaps.”
With that she lifted her arms and shifted into the large glossy raven, rising up into the endless blue sky.
He watched her solitary ascent remembering how it felt to be that alone.
Nick headed toward the lodge at a jog. He needed to get Jessie and her family away from here before Nagi appeared.
He hurried through the massive double doors and past the reception area to the lobby beyond. The great hall was flooded with light from the windows that reached the peak of the roofline. The room was divided only by furniture, which was arranged to create a central foyer before a rustic staircase. To the left, couches and chairs, upholstered with cowhide, circled a massive fieldstone fireplace. To the right, Jessie’s father spoke to the recovering victims who were seated on benches before long pine tables in the dining area.
“That was a bad fall you took in the barn. Lucky you didn’t break anything.”
The portly man nodded.
“Maybe you want to soak in the hot tub this afternoon.”
The man heaved himself up and waddled off.
George worked methodically, moving from one group to the next until all the people had acceptable explanations for their lingering ailments.
Nick followed Jessie’s scent through the room, but George stepped before him.
“Well, that was good work. We are finished up now. Time for you to get going.”
Nick shook his head. “Where is Jessie?”
“She’s not coming with you,” said George.
Nick growled and stepped forward. George, to his credit, did not retreat.
“She doesn’t want to see you.”
Nick gave him a smile that was more a baring of teeth. “She’ll have to tell me that herself.”
“She’s been in danger every minute since she met you. It’s best for you both if you’d end this now.”
“I’m going to see her.”
“Haven’t you caused her enough pain? Do you really want to make her an outcast, too? You will cost her everything.” George’s voice changed. It became soothing and the cadence was deeply appealing. “She’s been through a lot. Her mother is with her. We’ll take care of her from here.”
Nick hesitated. “I want to see her.”
“No, you don’t.”
Nick’s eyes narrowed as he tried to hold on to his own thoughts.
“You love her too much to put her in danger. She’s safest with us. If you love her, you’ll let her go.”
Nicholas felt the pressing burden of guilt. Still, he glanced toward the back of the lodge, drawn by the trail of Jessie’s familiar scent.
“Nicholas, look at me.” Her father’s voice called him back. “She’s safe with her family. Your work is elsewhere. You need to protect the Seer.”
Nicholas nodded and then straightened as his own thoughts flooded past the ones George had fed him. George was doing to him what he had done to all these people. The only difference was that his words were true.
“Let me pass, George.”
“No,” he said, his voice adamant and cold.
It would have been an easy matter to defeat him, but instead, Nick chose to simply push past him.
George was left to run to catch Nick as he charged down a long hallway.
Jessie’s sweet essence filled his nostrils as he ran along a narrow corridor with hotel rooms flanking either side. He paused at a door, knowing she lay beyond.
“Jessie?”
Her voice, sounded hopeful. “Nicholas?”
Then came another female voice, hard, angry—her mother. “Go away, wolf.”
He tried the door and found it bolted. Beyond it, he recognized the whisper of footsteps on carpet.
“Let go of me, Mom.”
Nick gripped the handle, found it locked and prepared to throw his shoulder against the door. But the lock clicked open and Jessie appeared in the gap.
Her cheeks were pink, her hair disheveled, but somehow she managed to give him a smile.
Her mother stood behind her, lips pressed in disapproval. Her father caught up, his stride purposeful as his heels pounded the native-motif carpeting.
She was his soul mate, his one true love. Yet to accept him, she must give up her family, friends, community—everything. It wasn’t right to ask her, to beg her to choose him. Still, he stood there like a whipped dog, holding out his heart to her.
“Jessie,” he whispered, “come with me.”
Chapter 26
Jessie’s limbs still trembled and pain stabbed behind her eyes, both remnants of her extended journey out of body. But she straightened to face her mother and father, who stood side by side in a unified front. They had raised her to be Niyanoka and expected her to bring them honor by walking the Red Road. She did not go with them and so she must prepare herself that they would cease to recognize her as their daughter.
She turned her head. There stood Nick, solitary as he had always been, the eternal outsider, who saw in her a chance to belong. He wanted her to walk at his side through the centuries and be what she’d been born to be, his soul mate.
> She saw the cautious hunch of his powerful shoulders and the alert watchfulness of his eyes. Even in human form, he was ever the wolf. He stared boldly at her, urging her to have the courage to come to him.
She took one step, a tiny step, yet the biggest of her life. Right there in the hotel corridor, she moved from her parents to stand beside Nicholas.
He wrapped one arm around her, pulling her tight, protecting her from the approaching firestorm. She felt bathed in his willingness to defend her but found she did not need it.
“Jessica Elizabeth! You come over here this instant.” Her mother billowed like a volcano about to blow, her face brightening to a lava red.
Her father tried a different tack. “Come here, pumpkin.”
She shook her head. “Not this time.”
Her parents exchanged a long look and then faced her again like a tag team in a wrestling match.
“What will our friends say?” said her mother, going for guilt. “For goodness’ sake, Jessica, think of someone besides yourself for once.”
Was it selfish to love this man? Perhaps, but no less so than to expect one’s daughter to give up her one true love so she would not embarrass you. They were her parents. It was her duty to do them honor. But they did not have the right to choose her path.
Her mother waited for her answer. If she wanted an apology, she’d have a long wait. Jessie refused to beg forgiveness for the best thing that had ever happened to her. And she would not ask permission to take what was hers.
“Jessica?”
Nick felt the muscles in Jessie’s back contract, as if she was prepared to fight, and instantly saw why. Nick glanced from Jessie’s face to see George raising his fist to throw a punch.
If it came to a fight, he knew who the victor would be. He hesitated only because he did not know how Jessie would take him pummeling her father. Even a victory would be a defeat.
Jessie’s intention came clearly to Nick and he deferred to her, allowing her to step forward, only because he was certain she was in no danger.
Jessica sprang between her father and Nick aiming a finger at his nose.
