“That’s one word for it,” Barney muttered. He moved out of the way as Alex scooped his baby up. “She’s fine, Alex.”
“I know.” But that didn’t stop Alex from taking his child through the curtain, where his mate was.
Barney turned his attention back to her just as the bell jingled and Julian stepped in. “Tell me.”
“Me too. I want to hear what Jamie said.” There was a silver streak in Julian’s hair, but his eyes were still dark. He sounded almost happy, but his expression when he said Jamie’s name was completely different. He missed the old Jamie, and everyone knew it.
Heather took a deep breath. “He said the Leo made a mistake in announcing everything right from the start, that it will only end in more deaths for the white shifters. He also told me that if the Leo dies, then our children will be born human.”
Barney blinked. “Holy fuck.”
Heather nodded. “He also said that he thinks those who are doing this have no idea of the consequences of killing the Lowe line. They think it’s just power, nothing more, but the Leo is our link to our animals. It’s through him that we exist at all.”
“You think…” Julian’s eyes went wide. “Of course. It makes sense.”
“What does?” Heather smiled as Barney took hold of her hands. She hadn’t realized they were still shaking.
Julian sat down in the other chair, his gaze on Heather. There was a flicker of silver. “That’s why the Leo can’t talk to the spirits. He’s a conduit.”
Barney and Heather exchanged a confused glance, but it was Cyn who spoke. “In English, mi corazón.”
“He’s channeling the power of the spirits into us, the descendants of the first shifters,” Julian replied faintly. He still seemed stunned by his own revelation. “Without that cornerstone, the Leo, the whole thing crumbles to dust. We lose our connection to our animals, and thus our children are born human.”
“There’s nothing wrong with being human,” Cyn replied.
“No, there isn’t.” Julian stared at his mate. “Now, imagine losing your Bear forever.”
Her eyes went wide, and she shivered.
Heather could understand. Her Fox was yipping in distress, and the urge to soothe it, to reassure it that they’d never be apart, was so strong she almost shifted right then and there. “Hell.”
“How did Jamie know when no one else did?” Barney was staring out the window, but she could see the wheels turning. “Because he’s the white Puma?”
“Who knows?” Julian shrugged. “The rules the spirits live by are different from ours. Perhaps it was simply time we knew, and the spirits allowed it. Or perhaps Puma broke the rules to make sure we lived, and will be punished for it. Without talking to Bear, I can’t answer that.”
“And it looks like you’ve been a busy boy already,” Cyn grunted. She stepped from behind the counter and touched the streak of silver in her mate’s hair. “No spirit jaunts for you until you rest, cariño.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Julian replied, leaning into his mate’s touch.
“Now I’m really worried.” Cyn shook her head. “Go in the back and get something to drink.” She turned to Barney and Heather as Julian nodded, stood and headed for the employees’ area. “Barney, you need to let Max know what Jamie said. Heather, you think you can work today?”
She took a deep breath. “Yeah, I think so.”
“Good. Go clean your station. You’ll be tatting someone today.”
Barney kissed her cheek. “Good luck, sweetheart.” He turned to Cyn. “Call me if anything, and I mean anything, seems out of place.”
“Will do.” She pointed out the window. “We’ve got a guard out there, one of Gabe’s men, but he must not have seen Jamie.”
“I don’t care if Rambo is guarding this place. Call me.” Barney gave her one last kiss before striding out the door.
Cyn put her hands on her hips. “Okay. Forget all of that. It’s time to get your head into the art, got it?”
Heather nodded, but it would take a while for her to forget the words Dr. Howard had said. She’d been right to tell Barney a war was coming.
Now all she had to do was keep her mate safe, and pray it didn’t take her family.
About the Author
Dana Marie Bell wrote her first short story when she was thirteen years old. She’s now a USA Today bestselling author with Samhain Publishing and Carina Press. Dana has lived primarily in the Northeast with a brief stint on the U.S. Virgin Island of St. Croix. She lives with her soul mate and husband Dusty, their two maniacal children, two evil ice-cream-stealing cats and a bull terrier that thinks it’s a Pekingese. She’s been heard to describe herself as “vertically challenged” and “a lapsed brunette.” Dana also suffers from ankylosing spondylitis (a progressive inflammatory arthritis that primarily affects the spine), and can be seen walking with a cane or tooling around in her mobility scooter. Her condition was the inspiration for Belle’s hip injury in Steel Beauty.
You can learn more about Dana at:
www.danamariebell.com
danamariebell.blogspot.com
www.facebook.com/pages/Dana-Marie-Bells-Fan-Page/185916691436341
www.twitter/com/danamariebell
Look for these titles by Dana Marie Bell
Now Available:
Halle Pumas
The Wallflower
Sweet Dreams
Cat of a Different Color
Steel Beauty
Only In My Dreams
Halle Shifters
Bear Necessities
Cynful
Bear Naked
Figure of Speech
Indirect Lines
The Gray Court
Dare to Believe
Noble Blood
Artistic Vision
The Hob
Siren’s Song
Never More
Heart’s Desire
Shadow of the Wolf
Hecate’s Own
The Wizard King
Warlock Unbound
Poconos Pack
Finding Forgiveness
Mr. Red Riding Hoode
True Destiny
Very Much Alive
Eye of the Beholder
Howl for Me
Morgan’s Fate
Not Broken
Coming Soon:
The Gray Court
Electric Dreams
True Destiny
Hide and Seek
Don’t miss these other titles by Dana Marie Bell!
The last Beckett brother is going down.
Heart’s Desire, Book 4
If he had a choice, Daniel Beckett would wait to cast the Beckett family mating spell until his life is more settled. But his brothers, worried he’s losing himself to his wolf, aren’t giving it to him.
Daniel doesn’t need a spell to know Kerry Andrews is his mate. With the last of the Godwin warlocks still on the loose, Daniel crosses his fingers that the willful, stubborn, beautiful woman will allow him to protect her.
Kerry is tempted to make Daniel wait, like he’s made her wait for so long. But the decision is taken out of her hands when things start going horribly wrong. A sleeper hex is activated, putting her life in danger—and the only safe place to run is Daniel’s waiting arms.
Once there, Kerry finds a whole new world to explore with her magical mate. But Arthur Godwin is plotting to rip away their newfound happiness. Women who look like Kerry are turning up dead…and it’s only a matter of time before the killer’s weapon hits its intended prey.
Warning: This title contains explicit sex, graphic language, a growly wizard and the woman who loves him.
He’ll fulfill her wildest fantasies… but only if she believes.
The Gray Court, Book 1
Leo Dunne has been searching his entire life for the one person born just for him. He finds her working in his own company, but the shy little Ruby Halloway constantly hides from him. He hatches a devilish plot with her best friend to bring her out of her shell, and the result proves her desire is more than a match for his own.
Ruby has had the hots for her boss for some time now, but she knows business and pleasure shouldn’t mix. While that can’t stop a girl from dreaming, she sticks by her guns and does her best never to be alone with the handsome CEO. Until the company masquerade party, where she discovers a passion with him that leaves a mark on her soul.
A family emergency calls Leo away, and rather than spend one night out of Ruby’s arms, he convinces her to go with him. With his brother’s life on the line, it’s vital she learn how to deal with who, and what, her new lover really is…before it’s too late.
Warning: This book contains explicit sex, graphic language, some violence, a bit of bondage, and a Sidhe Lord determined to claim and protect what is his.
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They cannot be sold, shared or given away as it is an infringement on the copyright of this work.
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
11821 Mason Montgomery Road Suite 4B
Cincinnati OH 45249
Indirect Lines
Copyright © 2015 by Dana Marie Bell
ISBN: 978-1-61923-364-5
Edited by Tera Cuskaden
Cover by Kanaxa
All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
First Samhain Publishing, Ltd. electronic publication: December 2015
www.samhainpublishing.com
Indirect Lines: Halle Shifters, Book 5 Page 23
