Finding My Mate

by Rylee Winters

  “Like the time at Grams’ funeral when they explained that death isn’t like the movies and you don’t just die.” My brows shot up at that, and Kevin went a purplish red in the face as embarrassment and shame blazed from his eyes.

  “Jon, I was 15, and I never knew that people did that when they died. I laughed because I was uncomfortable.” Sputtering a pathetic response, Kevin’s voice heightened, and I looked around the table as everyone chuckled. “Can we talk about something else, please? Like…I don’t know – anything…”

  “Okay – okay. You’re off the hook for now, Kev. So…” Taking control of the conversation, the human Chad’s firm, deep voice pulled everyone’s attention, and I resumed my eating as he took a breath. “Today, I know no one wants to do this job, but…money. Also, it’s fairly uncomplicated. We’re just doing some yard work, mulching, and digging out the path for the stonework. Even though they’re assholes, the shifters that contracted the job open the potential for more high-profile jobs, which means more money – which means raises. Just don’t say or do anything directly to them and keep your comments to yourself until we’re well down the street. Got it?”

  A chorus of begrudging agreements met the human Chad’s little speech, and I nodded dumbly around my mouthful. His words, his expression, in the yard before he called lunch blossomed in my mind’s eye, and my wings twitched slightly in their sheaths. No one noticed; they couldn’t because they were human, and the human Chad cast me a sidelong glance as the thick hairs on his right arm stood up slightly.

  “It’s just for four hours – it’ll go by quick. Then, we go back in the morning to finish the path, and we’re done. Easy peasy.”

  “I don’t get why shifters think they’re all that and we’re…sub-human…” Despite Kevin’s words, the atmosphere didn’t get heavy or dark, and I shrugged absently as I swallowed my bite. Everyone around the table was resigned to this fact of their lives, despite the situation being very much the opposite.

  “They want to be better than you because they are not. It is as simple as that. Hatred is bred of inferiority no matter where you originate.” Pushing around my last onion-filled thing, I cracked a small, bitter smirk as Kristy hummed softly in agreement.

  “Humans are seen as weak and inferior to shifters, but why are you still here? Why did the shifters not wipe you out if they are so much more mighty than humans? True – they can utilize magic, and humans cannot, but humans have never needed magic. Humans don’t need anything to assist in their survival. They can compete all by themselves.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Linne

  “Please be careful, Linne.” The human Chad’s concern was touching, and I smiled as he rolled into a long, newly paved driveway. His knuckles paled against the wheel during the turn, and he frowned deeply underneath flared nostrils. “I’m not keen to lose my best worker over these assholes.”

  “Human Chad – you worry too much. Do not forget that I come from a different realm, and I have hidden from much stronger opponents. Shifters do not scare me. Maybe, one day, you will witness this for yourself, and it will put your mind at ease.” Affection bloomed in my voice, and I reached across the center console to pat his arm reassuringly. “You are a good man.”

  “…Thank you. I do trust you, Linne – it’s them I don’t trust. The shifters in this town are going to tear it apart. Just last night there was this whole thing on the news about a fight, and two policemen got critically injured trying to break it up.”

  “I did not know that.” The warmth in my tone disappeared as the human Chad nodded sharply, and I furrowed my brows. Sourness coated my tongue, but beyond the windshield, the front door of the large farm house swung open. My gaze snapped to the rather large male that stepped out of the threshold, and I vaguely recognized him from around town. His face was set in a grimace, arms straining as he crossed them over his broad chest, and the fabric of his shirt bunched up to reveal a bare peek of thick abdominal muscles.

  “Why does he just not do the work himself? He is certainly capable…?” My question only darkened the human Chad’s expression, and he sucked in a deep breath to hold before exhaling slowly. The loaded truck jostled to a complete stop, but the cabin reverberated from the second truck that Jon drove as it sidled up next to us.

  “Because they’re lazy, good for nothings that think that because they’re strong due to their other forms, that they’re gods.” Bitterness laced the human Chad’s voice, and I hummed absently before he managed to reign in his emotions.

  Apparently, the shifters hatred of humans wasn’t one sided, and I wasn’t sure the human Chad had any proper reasons to harbor such a sickness.

  “This is gunna suck.” Grumbling as he put the truck in park, the human Chad turned off the engine and slunk out of the car. For a moment, I only watched him and contemplated the resemblances between our realms. Humans and shifters were much like Seelie and Unseelie – maybe a little too much.

  Maybe I’d been cast out of a world on the brink of war only to be thrust into another conflict.

  ‘You are wearing that face again, Linne.’ Jumping slightly at the unexpected caress on my mind, I looked around frantically to find Muss standing in the human Chad’s seat. Cocking his head, he ruffled his shimmery feathers as surprise raced through my veins. Very rarely did he visit me twice in one day, and I cocked my brow in silent question. ‘I only came to check in on you. You did not seem to be in a good mood this morning. There is no news worth mentioning to report.’

  “I am fine. I had a good morning.” Carefully pulling my tumble of brown locks into a pony tail, I frowned when Muss blinked his largest eye at me. “Did you really come here only to ‘check in’ on me?”

  The sensation of annoyance seeped into the crevices of my brain, and Muss ducked his head in an avian nod.

  ‘You are my favorite, Linne. I miss you. No one else cares for me beyond my ability to help them with who I can watch or what I can report. Now that you have been banished, I find it harder and harder to stay sane around my master and her cohorts.’ Muss spoke as if the answer should be obvious, and my cheeks heated while fondness wiggled into my heart. ‘I have been contemplating staying here, even if it means turning into them.’

  “No.” My response was instant and firm, and Muss bristled as he threw his sharp beak back and forth in discontent. “I need to know what is happening beyond the Veil. More than that, I do not think I could live content knowing you turned into one of those creatures. I am becoming more human by the month – there is not enough magic here to sustain you even for that long, Muss.”

  ‘This is exactly what I’m talking about.’ Hopping onto the center console, Muss stared at me through all five, shining eyes, and my fingers itched to touch him – to console the sadness I found there. ‘I could live content here with you, Linne. Does what I want not matter?’

  “…You don’t understand, Muss…turning into this – it is like slowly going insane. I can feel it happening. I will never fly again – my body is too dense now. Could you truly live content being reduced to your most basic of instincts?” Seriousness permeated the truck’s cabin, and I reached to slip my fingers through Muss’ form to watch him shimmer. He only ducked his head at my question, ruffling his feathers in dejection, and I sighed heavily. “You would not be Muss if you stayed here unprepared. However…if you happen upon a Reliquary while serving Kaslni, I would certainly assist you in the infusion.”

  Muss perked up at that, and I smiled broadly as he hopped on the center console.

  ‘You are right! Kaslni is not short of Reliquaries. I will find where she hides them.’ Just like that, Muss disappeared as fast as he had come, and I wrapped my hand around the door handle with a slight shake of my head. Sometimes, he could be so dense, only seeing what was right in front of him. Of course, that was what he was bred to do; he and the others like him had spied for their unseelie masters since the beginning of their creation.

  Reliquaries were not easy to obtain,
and Kaslni trusted no one with her secret collection. Before my banishment, I didn’t even know if the rumors of her hoard were true until she offered me one to help me get back over the Veil – which I refused. My master was kind like that, and her concern for me had touched my heart.

  But, as much as I disliked the human realm, at least I was safe here. One step across the Veil, and Bareiijnr would know – I would be dead for what I had discovered of his deadly secrets.

  “Let’s go! We’re all set!” The call came just as I shut the truck door, and I drew on my magic to send tendrils to snake into the shifter male’s ears. He noticed instantly; I didn’t try to be subtle as I walked towards the bed of Jon’s truck. Even so, he couldn’t figure out what he was feeling, and he only looked around, tense and alert, I saw out of the corner of my eye, from his porch.

  “What kind of shifter is he?” Whispering to Jon as Kevin shoved bags across the bed floor, I frowned slightly when the man only furrowed his brows in thought. Jon never seemed to care about the things happening around him, and he certainly didn’t care about his coworkers’ prejudices.

  “I don’t know. I do know that this clan is predominantly predator – wolves and bears and a few cats. They’re all segregated, and the reason we never had any problems was because they always fought amongst themselves. Now that the town is essentially split in two, though, they’re starting to come together. The other new clan basically snuck in right under their noses, and they don’t like that. They also don’t want to admit that if they weren’t so busy fighting each other, this never would’ve happened, so there’s a big blame game going on. It’s all a mess, really.” Mumbling softly back, Jon shrugged as I reached to grab a bag of mulch. Magic flowed thickly through my veins, and my wings struggled against their sheaths to distract me.

  I’d need to find a new way to make them comfortable when I used magic in this way.

  “I don’t particularly care. As long as I get left alone. I remember once when I first moved here – before I even got this job – that the clansmen tried to tousle with me. I beat the shit out of them, and they never tried again.” My brows shot up in surprise, and Jon offered me a savage half smirk that rattled my nerves. “I had just gotten out of the military and hadn’t acclimated to civilian life. I had all kinds of issues, and I just took it out on them. A shifter is considered mature once they shift, so no one took pity on those guys.”

  “I did not know you were a warrior…” Trailing off as I picked up my bag, I watched Jon shrug a second time. Slowly walking away from the truck, curiosity tugged at my ribs until he finally offered a response.

  “There’s a lot of things you don’t know about me, just like I don’t know much about you. But, now you know I was in the military.” Nodding firmly, I rubbed my tongue against the roof of my mouth and ignored the urge to ask Jon another question. Instead, I focused on the work that needed to be done, and my gaze flickered to the porch where the shifter stood, watching like a dog.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Linne

  Pausing at the prickling sensation that swept down my arms and back, I straightened from the half-planted flower bed to look around. Reaching to swipe the sweat from my forehead, my hand stiffened to block the sun as my gaze reached the porch. The male that had stood there, always assessing us, had disappeared, and I furrowed my brows sharply. Pursing my lips together, my nostrils flared and sucked up lungful of air before the human Chad sidled up next to me to drop a bag of mulch at my feet.

  “What was that I just felt?” Grumbling lowly, nervous to be overheard, the human Chad stretched his arms high while I shook my head slightly.

  “I do not know.” Even as I answered, that same prickle rolled down my spine much more intensely than the first, and I stiffened. Whirling around, I sucked in a sharp breath as my eyes darted around to catch pluming clouds of magic rising beyond the trucks. “Stay here. Hold this.”

  Working off my harness with deft fingers, I jogged off towards the pair of vehicles with sharp, narrowed eyes digging into my back. My wings flexed, shoulder blades shifting under my skin as relief surged through my chest.

  But it was short lived, and I stopped short at the sight that met me. The shifter male that had been on the porch stood at the front of a group of five, all intently listening to a sixth male. Hiding between the trucks, I crouched down and nibbled my lips as my mind worked frantically.

  It must’ve been them shifting. Silently cursing my inability to detect such obvious magic, I peeked around the wheel to watch the group. None of them looked friendly, and frowns donned each face. Two of the males talked simultaneously, but at this distance, I couldn’t hear them. Glancing around, I locked my eyes on their dark, thick shadows before summoning my second most potent power.

  The group stilled as my senses invaded their shadows; they knew something was going on, but they didn’t know what. At least, now, I could hear them, and I squeezed my eyes shut to concentrate on the gruff voices that emerged from the darkness beyond my eyelids.

  “Something is going on, Trevor – we can’t just sit by while Alpha Jackson and his clan get deeper and deeper engrained in our town.”

  “It’s not like we can do anything, though. They’re not encroaching or anything, Trevor – they’re just there. It’s not like we need a whole town, right? There’s more than enough…”

  “How can you say that, man? They’re full of half-breeds, for fuck’s sake – I say we kick them the fuck out!”

  “I agree with Ian…we can’t just sit by. The longer we do, the harder it’ll be to get them out, and he’s right – they’re impure…they’re not real shifters – not anymore. They need to be dealt with.” The third, more authoritative voice caused my breath to hitch, and I licked my lips as my ears twitched and worry threaded my veins. “Even if it’s just us, we can take them. They’re not that big a clan. Round up the rest of the pack.”

  Withdrawing smoothly from the shadows, I crawled low before pushing myself up in front of the cabin of the truck. Glancing behind me through narrowed eyes, I held my breath as I watched the men jog off down the street and past the house. My heart thundered in my chest, fueling muscles gorged on adrenaline and worry that quickened my strides.

  The human Chad frowned deeply, and I shook my head before even coming to a stop before him.

  “They are going to attack – that feeling was patrol wolves shifting. That is all I could find out. I believe they thought I am a spy when they sensed my magic…they do not have the skill to decipher my ability.” From behind furrowed brows, the human Chad thought hard in the silence, and I twisted to watch the shifter male that owned the house walk leisurely up the sidewalk. I couldn’t put a name to a face; that wasn’t how shadow magic worked.

  But I could feel that he was the one that had been so outspoken against the other clan.

  “Linne, there’s nothing you can do about it right now, okay?” Drawing my attention, the human Chad grimaced at his own words. “Sit on it – see if you can find out any more. We planned on ending the day early anyway, so don’t worry about that. If you need to use more magic, don’t worry about that either – if they haven’t figured it out after two hours of you being directly in their brains, they’re not going to figure it out at all.”

  “Yes. Okay.” Nodding firmly, relief surged through me at how easily the human Chad took charge of the situation. Despite being way beyond his capabilities, he showed the ability to be a leader; it was this skill that made him such a good businessman.

  “Good. I’m going to go check on the guys.” Waiting for the human Chad to round the front of the house, I rolled my shoulders and shook myself out before magic surged through me. Tendrils I had already sent out became thicker, and waves rolled off me and into the ground to search for shadows. Closing my eyes, I held my breath as my wings lengthened and broadened, returning to their full size as I extended my reach.

  Anyone that looked this way, though, would only see me in the dirt planting flowers. I am so ver
y grateful for my magics.

  “No – honey…they’re abominations…”

  “But he’s really nice…”

  The first voices to reach my ears caused them to twitch, and my lips dragged down in a troubled frown.

  “It doesn’t matter – they’re not right…”

  “But –“

  Nothing came after that, and I lingered for a moment before continuing my search. Voices rushed past me in the darkness, but I ignored most of them as my attention narrowed to certain words and tones.

  An undeterminable amount of time went by before I managed to latch onto something, and I furrowed my brows in concentration. Holding my breath, I pursed my lips tightly.

  “You can’t be okay with this, babe – I told you that moving here was going to be a bad idea.” The high, feminine voice wobbled with worry, and a deeper crease appeared between my eyebrows. “What are we going to do?”

  “Relax, Cindy – ” Familiar and deep, the male voice sounded equally troubled, and my heart stuttered slightly in my chest. “I have to warn them. Alpha Jackson’s not a bad guy, but he’ll wipe this clan off the map. Even Alpha Liza has to realize how stupid it is to attack him.”

  “She’s just a puppet for her brother, and you know it…but what if they catch you? They’ll kill you… You can’t put yourself at risk like that. You know that if they’re talking about it so openly, they’re going to do something stupid like attack right away. There’s no time to do anything before they catch wind of it.”

  Surprise slithered through my veins, and there was silence in the darkness behind my eyelids. My mind churned, wondering and judging the validity of what the two were discussing.

  I feel like I’m back home.

  “But I can’t just sit by while the humans in town are put at risk, Cindy. You’re not wrong – they’re probably going to attack, but I have no reason not to think they haven’t already planned it. They can just say they want to talk truce, meet in the park during peak hours – and boom. What about all those humans that aren’t part of this? Liza may be stupid – a puppet – but she doesn’t care about them. If her brother can convince her to take out two birds with one stone, she’ll do it.”