“You scared the shit out of me,” he said, his voice muffled against her shirt. Feeling the weight of her limp body on his was going to haunt him for a long time. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her gently to him, needing to keep her close.
“Sorry.”
“We have to go see Trinador again. I know you don’t like her, but…”
“That’s okay. I’ll go.” He felt the muscles in her stomach tighten as she leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his head. “I can only imagine how I’d feel in your place.”
He lifted his head. “You’re not fighting me on this?” Talk about a night of firsts.
“What can I say?” She lifted a shoulder, her lips curling into a soft smile. “I’m nothing if not agreeable.”
“Agreeable. Yeah, that’s the word I’d use.” He rolled his eyes and shifted to push himself off the bed before extending a hand. “Come on. Let’s get you showered.”
“Is that an order or an invitation?”
He arched a brow. “Both.” Although, despite his desire to worship every inch of her, the main reason he wanted to help her into the shower was to thoroughly inspect her and watch her movements. He had to be sure the tough routine wasn’t only an act for his sake. Rho was a hard ass of a different order. She’d do everything she could to pull the wool over their eyes until it was too late.
She rose from the bed on shaky feet. He followed right behind her as she made her way to the bathroom, offering her all the independence she demanded. He’d be close enough to catch her if her knees gave out.
After he talked her into sitting in the tub so she wouldn’t fall, he soaped and rinsed her thoroughly then handed her a fluffy white towel. The fact that she depended on him made his chest swell in a strange way, as if he’d served some incredibly important purpose. Taking care of a woman must feel like that.
No, taking care of his woman made him feel like that.
The momentary high faded as he ran the towel over the death mark on Rho’s arm. “Can you feel this? Does it hurt?”
“No.” Her brow furrowed. “Why?”
“Just curious.” He ran the towel down her other arm, trying to keep his expression blank. That mark would only get worse with time, until maybe one day she simply wouldn’t move again. Ever. The fact that she’d taken the mark in his place only punctuated the importance of removing it. Having her death on his conscience would be a nuclear collision for his emotions. Only a few months of dating, and he was already lost to her.
They had to get rid of the damn thing. Somewhere, somehow, they’d remove it. Or at the very least, neutralize its powers.
As Rho put on her clothes and dried her hair, he settled into the bed and observed her movements with critical eyes. Her legs were steadier and her movements more fluid, which gave him bit of relief. Small improvements were still improvements.
“You’re watching me.” Rho stood in the doorway with her hands on her hips.
Eldon smiled and wiggled his brows. “I always watch you.”
“Not like that.” She rolled her eyes. “You’re observing me like a caged animal.”
“No idea what you’re talking about.”
With an exasperated sigh, she took one last glance in the mirror before heading toward the bedroom door. Eldon jumped off the bed and stopped in front of the door, extending an arm. He wasn’t below using gentlemanly courtesy as an excuse to lead her toward the kitchen. The look she shot him told him she knew exactly what he was up to, but she hooked her arm in his anyway.
When they entered the kitchen, Evette had a mug of coffee waiting for her on the table. Eldon pulled the chair out and settled Rho into it then pressed a kiss to her temple and stepped toward the kitchen. The growling of his stomach told him loud and clear that it was time to eat. He glanced back at the table one last time before turning to the stove. Rho arched a brow, her expression a cross between being amused and irritated, as if she knew he was coddling her but didn’t mind it as much as she let on. She eyed him as she brought the cup to her lips.
Good. He could handle amused irritation.
But he worried about all the things she wasn’t saying. Was she scared of what had happened? Why hadn’t she told him she’d been more tired than normal lately? Now that he considered it, he hadn’t truly asked how she felt, physically or emotionally.
Ass.
He grabbed a mug from a cabinet and poured himself a cup of coffee as he listened to Rho, Preshea, and Tim filter through a list of possible culprits. Although he tried to eavesdrop on the conversation, he found his mind constantly wandering.
He really needed to take some lessons on courting, considering he’d never actually had a real girlfriend before. Most of them were conquests at best, users at worst, and every one of them a regret. None had meant a fraction of what Rho meant to him now.
Yet after everything she’d been through and everything they’d experienced together, he still hadn’t bought her a damn thing. She’d never once asked for anything from him other than him. Not even flowers.
He glanced at Rho as she laughed at Tim. A smile tugged on the corners of his mouth in response. Did she even like flowers? He snagged a muffin from the plate on the counter. For some reason, he didn’t think she’d care much for them. Maybe he could buy her a new Beretta.
He shook his head, giving himself a mental face punch. Really? The most romantic gift he could think of was a gun? That spoke volumes about their relationship.
But that’s who she was. Rough around the edges, strong enough to take care of herself, stubborn to a fault but unbelievably soft to someone once she let them get to know her. And he knew her.
Beretta it was. She’d love it.
He paced over to the kitchen table and set his muffin and coffee down beside Rho. Her knees were pulled to her chest as she sat in the chair, eyeing her teammates. Tim and Preshea sat across from her, Evette and Lukas on either end.
“I hate to drag you into this.” Eldon gave Evette and Lukas a sympathetic glance. He really hadn’t meant for them to be involved at all.
Evette waved a hand. “It’s no big thing. The Collective involved us from the beginning anyway.”
Eldon froze. “Why would they do that?” He hadn’t heard of them calling on civilians for magickal assistance, even if they were professors. All Collective business matters were kept private and separate from the public sector.
She glanced at Eldon. “You know my spells for protection are the best. They hired me to protect the relic in that dome.”
“So you’ve been involved all along.” Interesting. Even he hadn’t known about Evette’s involvement in guarding the relic, and he was on the team sent to recover those that were still missing. If he wasn’t privy to that information, who was? Clearly someone had to know, or it wouldn’t be missing.
“Yes and no.” Evette lifted a shoulder. “Once I finished the spell, it was bound to Cadence. Then it was out of my hands completely.”
So Cadence had hired her to perform those spells personally. He couldn’t know if she was the only one with knowledge of them, but surely if Nick had heard anything about this, he would have spoken up. Maybe not right away, but definitely when they’d heard about the mover Kamen going missing.
For some reason, he couldn’t believe Cadence would have anything to do with their disappearance. He’d known her for years, and nothing about what she’d ever done or who she was would lead him to believe she’d use the Kamens against the mover nation. It simply didn’t suit her.
Preshea tapped her fingers lightly on the table. “These people who stole the mover Kamen—do you have any clue where they would have stashed it? Any thought about where they might go?”
“I cannot say.” Evette shook her head. “Your best chance for finding out would be to ask Cadence. As far as I understand, she is the only one with knowledge of the spells I cast.”
Eldon nodded. “Evette and Lukas, I hate to ask this of you, but do you think our team could have a moment
alone to talk? We have important items to discuss but we’d prefer to keep it private.”
“Of course. Lukas and I needed to run a few errands anyway.” Evette didn’t seem bothered. She rose from the table and wandered over to the coat rack, removing a scarf and wrapping it around her neck.
Eldon really owed them a nice getaway vacation for all the trouble his team had caused. They were being more than accommodating.
Lukas nodded and walked his mug over to the kitchen sink before helping his wife with her coat. “We’ll be back in a few hours. If you need us, just call.”
They left the flat without another word, closing the door on the four of them.
“Little rude, don’t you think?” Preshea settled back in her chair and folded her arms across her chest. “Kicking them out of their own house?”
His sentiments exactly, but he hadn’t really had a choice. “We need to talk.”
“About?” Tim asked, arching a brow.
Here went nothing. They’d agreed no more secrets, and he could only get honesty from his teammates if he gave it. Rho exchanged a glance with Eldon, and he gave her a slight nod. She’d wanted to be the one to spill the beans. Come clean on all fronts.
Rho set her elbows on the table and leaned forward. “You should know that Eldon and I have a special connection.”
“No shit, Captain Obvious.” Preshea waved a hand between them. “You’re dating.”
Eldon cleared his throat. “Right. But what isn’t obvious is how we’re joined. Rho?”
Rho nodded and glanced from Preshea to Tim. “Eldon and I are linked telepathically.”
“Excuse me?” Tim’s eyes narrowed.
“That’s not possible.” Preshea gave Tim a sidelong look. “Right?”
“Right. Movers aren’t telepaths.” Tim frowned as his gaze darted from Eldon to Rho then back to Eldon again.
“We thought so, too, until it happened,” Eldon said.
“How long ago did this happen, exactly?” The weight of Tim’s Alpha status carried through in his deep voice.
Eldon met his eyes. “Before we even joined the team.”
“What?” Preshea threw her hands up before leaning forward toward the table. “You’ve had this tie to each other all along and you never told us?”
“Do you have any idea what kind of weapon that could be against our enemies?” Tim’s voice was laced with anger. “Why wouldn’t you tell us?”
Tension flowed from Rho in heavy streams. “It’s erratic. We can’t control when it works and when it doesn’t.” She adjusted her position in her seat, setting both her feet on the ground and bouncing her heels nervously.
“Although it seems to happen only in…tense…situations.” Eldon set a hand on her knee and gave her a gentle squeeze, hoping to calm her down. After the episode this morning, they didn’t need her to experience any more stress than absolutely necessary. She’d been through enough for one day, and they still needed to see Trinador.
“Tense?” Preshea’s eyes narrowed. “How tense?”
“Getting shot or having sex,” Rho said dryly.
Wow. There it was. And she’d actually said that out loud.
He squeezed her leg again, wondering if any local etiquette workshops gave discounts for helpless cases. His mother would have flipped if he’d ever brought a girl like Rho home, all tattoos and attitude and unrepentant wit. Everything about her was the exact opposite of what he’d always known growing up. Maybe that was why he felt so drawn to her.
“What?” Rho batted her not-so-innocent eyes up at him. “We said we were being honest now.”
He chuckled as he shook his head. “Couth, honey. Real couth.”
“I can’t believe you didn’t tell us.” Preshea ignored them both, still absorbed in the revelation of their connection. “It does explain a lot, though.”
Eldon craned his head toward the shifter. “Oh?”
Preshea waggled a finger at him. “You two have a tendency to get lost with each other sometimes, and the timing never makes sense.” Her pointer finger moved to Rho. “Like after that fight. When you said you had all that energy trapped inside you. He talked to you, didn’t he?”
The smile fell from Rho’s face. “That’s how he helped me without the enemy knowing what I was doing.”
Preshea’s sharp, clear eyes narrowed. “Those men still saw you take the blue fire.”
“But they didn’t know what I was doing or why.” Rho shrugged a shoulder. “That’s better than nothing.”
“You should have told us about this a long time ago.” Tim leaned back in his chair, his tan biceps folding across his broad chest. He scowled in disapproval.
Rho drew in a deep breath before letting it out slowly. “Before we were…together, I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t even want the connection to be there. Frankly, it’s still a little weird.”
Eldon couldn’t disagree. Every time Rho got inside his head, he found their connection a bit easier to cling to. He was able to fight and talk to others without being distracted. While it might never truly feel normal, he did wish they’d learn to control it.
Although first things first, Rho needed to practice her magick. After she saw Trinador tonight, they had to keep up the pace.
Preshea rapped her fingers against the wood table. “Can your maker still get in your mind?”
“Yes.” Rho glanced at Eldon, her brows drawn together. “But he doesn’t know about my connection to Eldon, either.”
“So I take it we’re the only ones who know?” Tim asked.
Eldon shot him a level stare. “And we plan on keeping it that way. Nothing good can come from too many people knowing.”
Preshea stared at Rho and bit her lip, as if she were working on some complex equation. “You think it’s because you’re part siphon?”
“Maybe.” Rho flexed her hands. “It could also be that we’re soul struck.”
“What? Since when?” Tim demanded.
Annnd…another revelation out on the table. Eldon hadn’t really even thought about dropping that bomb on them just yet, but he supposed it would be easier to get everything out in the open right away. No point in holding back now.
Rho’s knuckles were white as she kept flexing her hands, a habit he’d noticed she only did when she got nervous.
Eldon cleared his throat. “We’re not sure how long, exactly, but probably since the beginning.”
“Does that mean you’re mated?” Preshea asked, her stare intense.
“No.” Rho’s eyes conveyed nothing as she glanced up at Eldon. “For vampires, at least, there has to be a blood ceremony. We can be soul struck without being mated.”
“This is too much.” Tim rubbed his hands on his face, as if the motion would help him absorb the new knowledge.
“Anything else you forgot to mention?” Preshea tilted her head, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. “An illegitimate child? Are you signing us up for a magick-hunting reality show?”
“That’s everything,” Eldon said. “We probably should have told you all of this sooner.”
“Yeah, you should have.” Tim’s jaw flexed. “Your dependency on each other could be a liability or a resource. I’m just not sure which one just yet.”
A soft knock echoed at the door. All four of them made a move to stand, but Eldon held up a hand. “I’ll get it.”
They sat back down, and Eldon felt a little guilty for leaving Rho at the table with those two still giving her the stare-down. He’d only be a moment, though. Evette and Lukas probably just forgot something at the house and didn’t want to interrupt.
He extended a hand and yanked the door open. “Cadence?”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Eldon frowned as Cadence marched through the doorway. Her glance drifted to the kitchen table, where the rest of the team remained seated, mouths gaping at the sudden intrusion.
“Cadence? Why are you here?” Eldon asked as he stepped aside then shut the door behind her.
She met his stare. “I need to speak with you.” Her gaze darted around the room nervously as she bit her lower lip.
This wasn’t right. No one should know of their whereabouts, including Cadence. Evette and Lukas had told him this place was a secret, even from the Collective. “How did you know where to find us?”
“As the leader of the Collective, I’m privy to classified information.” Cadence’s lips pursed before she eyed the table again. “Do you mind if I take a seat?”
He nodded slowly, trying to push his suspicions aside. She’d never given him a reason to doubt her integrity. “As long as you’re bringing good news. Want a coffee?”
“Yes, please.” She strode over to the table and settled into what had been Eldon’s seat. “But I won’t be long.”
Cadence hooked her purse on the chair behind her. The critical eyes of his teammates tracked her every move. Eldon headed into the kitchen and grabbed a mug from a cabinet.
“Sorry for dropping in on you like this. I’m sure you’re busy,” Cadence said.
“Yeah, we are.” Preshea scowled as she ran her eyes over the Collective leader, as if she were just waiting for the woman to make one false move.
Rho shot Preshea a shut-up-and-be-nice glare before leaning forward. “Spill it, Cadence. I know this isn’t a personal call. You don’t have to sugarcoat it.”
Eldon removed the carafe from its holder and poured their unexpected guest a fresh cup of coffee then stepped out of the kitchen and toward the table. Strange that Cadence would find it necessary to come all the way out here for a simple discussion. Even if someone happened to find out where they were and the phone lines were tapped, he wasn’t under the impression the Collective cared enough to send their leader to visit with him personally. As far as he knew, they thought he had things handled.
Cadence’s gaze lifted to Eldon. “The Collective has been compromised.”
Eldon froze mid-step, mug in hand. In all the years of mover history he’d read, never once had the Collective been truly compromised. They held too much power to allow it. But for Cadence to air this news, especially in front of a group of non-movers, meant she was serious. And concerned.
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