Chasing Cats

by ERIN BEDFORD

  I only gaped at him in a daze before I realized I did want his eyes. I wanted to be able to see what he saw. Look out at the world from his point of view and see how it would feel to be Cheshire S. Cat: sexy, confident, a bit cocky, and dangerous to not only my libido but my heart as well.

  “Tell me?” He asked again, his voice becoming huskier as if knowing exactly what was running through my mind.

  “I do,” I croaked out before clearing my throat to try again. “I want them.”

  “Then let yourself have them.” Without warning, his lips crashed onto mine.

  My mouth opened in a startled gasp and his tongue swept into my mouth. His hands moved from the side of my face to the back of my neck, tilting me to a more pleasing angle. I let myself be controlled by our desire. My hands sought out the front of his shirt as my magic spread through me like a tidal wave with one goal in mind: to give me what I wanted.

  My body hummed with power, and it poured into every inch of me. My senses became more aware of my surroundings. The feel of the cotton shirt beneath my fingers almost burned the tips from its roughness. My hands moved away to tangle in the softest of silk strands at his shoulders. I stroked them as my nose became engulfed in his deep, masculine smell. The combination of his scent mixed with the delicious taste of his lips caused my insides to clench in a consuming need.

  “What the hell be goin’ on here?” Mop’s voice cut through the fog of lust and magic muddling my brain.

  I jerked back from Chess, a sharp pain stinging my tongue. The coppery taste of blood filled my mouth.

  “Shit.” The curse word came out of my mouth but was not in my voice. It was deeper and buttery. I glanced over at Chess who gave an amused, but slightly surprised smile, not at all comforting my fears.

  I reached a hand up to touch where my lip had gotten nicked by my — fangs? I had fangs? My heart sped up as I spread my fingers out to touch my face. Gone were the soft rounded edges, and in their place were more defined cheekbones and a strong jawline.

  Holy fuck! I chanted over and over in my head as I took in each changed feature.

  My eyes had become more sensitive to the light, and I squinted as I looked down at my body. My clothes were still the same, but my baggy sweatpants were tight against my body as was the t-shirt, showing off my new defined muscles. I was half tempted to check down my pants to see what was going on down there as well, but Mop’s voice broke my thoughts.

  “Is one of ye goin’ to tell me what is goin’ on? Why be there two of ye? And where be Lady?” Mop waved his hands at us.

  “Yes, yes. Trip wishes to know, Trip does.” Trip popped in.

  His beady eyes seemed huge against his furred face as he stood up on the tips of his feet to get a better look at me. His ears were pointed high up in the air, and his tail wagged behind him.

  Chess smirked and gestured his hand at me. Mop and Trip turned their gaze to where I stood. I tugged on my new pink hair, feeling weird and uncomfortable in Chess’ skin. After a moment, I gave a nervous laugh and waved.

  “Hi, guys.” The buttery smooth sound of Chess’ voice coming out of my own mouth sounded awkward and not sexy at all. How did he do it?

  “Lady?” Trip eyed me for a moment, before creeping up to me, his nose pointed toward me to sniff the air. “Lady looks like Smiling Cat, Lady does. Lady even smells like Smiling Cat!”

  Mop circled around me, one hand stroking his chin as he took in my appearance. “How be this possible?”

  I gave an inelegant shrug. Geez, how did he make his body move so fluidly, so sensual? While I might look like the feline, I sure as hell didn’t feel like him. It was like a square that had been shoved into a circle peg. Cramped and claustrophobic. I was beginning to feel a bit light headed.

  A coppery metal smell filled my senses, and a warm trickle came out of my nose. Chess’ nose. Somebody’s nose. My hand went up to touch where I had started bleeding when the world tilted.

  Strong arms wrapped around me, breaking my fall, and the musky scent that was purely Chess mixed with the coppery smell of blood. My limbs felt heavy, and my eyelids fought to stay open as my magic flowed out of me, leaving me empty and weak inside.

  “Don’t worry love, I’ve got you.” Chess lifted me into his arms and carried me across the yard.

  As the door to the kitchen closed behind us, I lost consciousness.

  Chapter 6

  Debts To Be Paid

  WHEN I AWOKE, I found myself lying in my own bed. I jerked up and then grabbed my head in pain. Fuck. It was like a horde of sorority girls were jumping around having a pillow fight on every squishy surface of my brain.

  “Slow now, kitten,” Chess said from somewhere nearby. I peeked out from my partially closed eyes to see him leaning against the doorframe of my bedroom. “You’re going to feel a bit worn out for a while.”

  “What happened?” Before he could answer, I remembered. “Wait!” I glanced down at myself, and if my head didn’t throb so much, I would have jumped up and done a little dance. “I’m me again!”

  I wrapped my arms around myself in a tight hug, not caring that Chess was laughing at me. I touched my face, stroking the soft curve of my cheek, and gave a blissful sigh.

  “Should I leave you two alone?” Chess chuckled as he made his way over to the bed. “Though, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to stay and watch.”

  I was too happy to be myself again to chastise him for being such a perv. I plopped back against the headboard and sighed. I never wanted to experience that again. I couldn’t even imagine what it had looked like to Mop and Trip seeing Chess making out with himself. I was embarrassed to find out parts of me heated at the vision of two Chesses.

  And I thought he was perverted.

  Shaking my head, I turned back to him, ignoring the knowing grin on his face. “So what happened? How did I even do that?”

  He hummed to himself and leaned onto one arm. “You weren’t able to do a full glamour before?”

  “No, I think I would remember being able to completely glamour myself.” I had a few abilities back when I was full Fae, but nothing that powerful. I could manipulate objects, and I had a super green thumb—I could just touch a dying plant and bring new life to it—but I wasn’t about to win any magical awards for it.

  “Well, it must have something to do with your human side.” Chess offered while one of his fingers traced circles on my thigh over the covers.

  I placed my hand on his to stop him, but it only caused a tingle to rush through me. I moved his hand out of my lap and drew my legs up to my chest. Placing my chin on my knees, I looked off to the side and ignored his knowing grin.

  “I’m not sure. I would think being mostly human would make me, weaker not stronger,” I said.

  “Not necessarily. Magic doesn’t have the kind of rules you would think.”

  I snorted. “But the Fae are all about the rules.”

  “True, but that is self-inflicted.” He waved his hand in the air. “If we didn’t give ourselves restrictions, then there would be chaos. Fae killing one another. Jumping time with no regards for the consequences. You never know what could happen.”

  Guilt filled me when he mentioned jumping time. That guy. J. S., whoever he was, was dead because of me. Because of what I let the Shadows do.

  “The cat be right.” Mop waddled into my room, Trip hopping along behind him. “There be rules that be there for a reason.”

  “I don’t remember there being so many rules before.”

  Trip jumped up onto my bed, bouncing on the spring mattress. A slight sound of joy came out of his mouth. I let out a small giggle at the happiness on his face. It had only been about a week, but I’d missed Trip and his childlike personality. He made everything seem fun and new. If only everyone was that way.

  “Trip is happy to see Lady is Lady again, Trip is.” The opalaught snuggled up next to me on the bed, clinging to my arm. I stroked between his ears
and smiled.

  “I’m glad to be me again too, and I’m really glad to see you.” I squeezed him tight. His ears tickled my face. “How is Hare holding up?”

  Trip’s ears dropped at the mention of Hare, and I regretted saying anything. “Hare is no good. Hare is not.”

  “Why? What happened?”

  “It be them damn Shadows!” Mop cursed and spit on the ground. I grimaced, not looking forward to cleaning up brownie slobber. “Hare be gone missin’ and Hatter be beside himself. He has locked himself inside his home and won’t come out. Most of the other Fae have done the same. Bunch of cowards!”

  “You’d be cowering in your home if you’d met the Shadow man too,” I growled out then quickly tried to change the subject when I realized my mistake. “So, why are you two here?”

  Trip opened his mouth but was interrupted by Mop.

  “How do ye know what it be like? I only just told ye they be corporeal the other day.” The suspicion in Mop’s eyes cut through me like a razor.

  I looked away and out toward the mirror in my room. It was one of those long, full-length mirrors. Ever since I got back I had taken up the habit of covering it with a dark sheet. I could never be too careful of who was listening.

  “You remember how I said I took care of it?” I started, still not meeting any of their eyes.

  “Yeah?” Mop asked.

  There was a lot of judgment just in that one word. I couldn’t imagine how the grumpy brownie was going to react when he heard what I had done.

  “Well, you know I let Alice out, right?”

  Mop nodded at me.

  “And how I had a run in with the Shadows while in there?”

  “Ye still never told me why ye hair turned white, though now knowin’ what I know now, I’d imagine it be havin’ more to do with yer Fae powers than thems Shadows.”

  “Actually, that was partly Seer’s fault,” I pointed out. “Just ask the prince. He was there.”

  “But what happened with the Shadows, kitten?” Chess leaned in closer, a wicked glint in his eye as if he had more at stake with what I had to say than any of them.

  “Uh.” I hesitated. “Well, you see. What happened is…” I took a deep breath and then just spilled it all out in one go. “They want me to be their queen so they can get back at the other Queens, but they wouldn’t let me wake up so I could find Alice ‘cause of the whole incorporeal thing, and so we made a deal where they could take the body of one of the Fae locked away in the Hall of Mirrors that was going to die soon anyway. Except, they kind of stretched the truth on that one, and now they are running amuck, and it’s all my fault ‘cause they are just looking for me!”

  I heaved in air as I tried to catch my breath. I watched the faces of those around me, waiting for the horror and anger that was sure to creep onto their faces, but they all busted out laughing.

  “What? What’s so funny?” I growled out. How could they find this amusing?

  I searched Mop’s face, but he just slapped his knee as his laughter became worse. Trip rolled around on the bed, giggling like a madman, and even Chess, who was supposed to be on my side, was chuckling at my expense.

  “Would someone tell me what is going on?” I twisted my fists into the sheets of my bed, trying to get a hold on my anger. I didn’t remember being so emotional before, but for some reason the more magic I used, the more it grew, the more of an emotional wreck I became.

  Chess quit laughing first and patted me on the knee. “We aren’t laughing at you, precious.”

  “Then what are you laughing at?” I pouted and crossed my arms over my chest.

  “The Shadows—” Mop tried to get out but started chortling again. “Sorry, sorry.” He coughed, forcing his laughter back though his eyes still glittered with unshed tears. “I be fine now.”

  I raised my eyebrow. “Well?”

  “The Shadows don’t be needin’ ye to get their revenge.” The smirk on Mop’s face looked out of place. “They can be gettin’ their own revenge without ye helpin’ them.”

  “Is that so? Then why were they trying so hard to get me on their side? They said they needed someone who wasn’t bound by the same rules as they were and obviously that means me.” I didn’t know why I was trying to justify why the Shadow man would want me. It wasn’t like I had any intention of going over to the dark side, so to speak, but to hear Mop say that I didn’t matter kind of stung.

  Mop exchanged a look with Trip and Chess as if wondering what he should say.

  “What? What are you guys hiding from me?” I glanced at Chess, betrayal clear on my face. I trusted him to tell me the truth at least. Though, I shouldn’t be surprised he was keeping things from me— he was a cat, after all. Who the hell knew what was going on in a feline’s mind?

  “Well, while you are quite a catch, my dear, and any Fae would be lucky to have you,” Chess said, picking my hand up and stroking it, “You aren’t exactly the only one.”

  “What do you mean?” I ignored the way his hand made my skin tingle with every touch.

  “What the cat be tryin’ to tell ye,” Mop jumped in, “is ye ain’t the only one who be able to pass between worlds without a key.”

  “Well, I know that. Chess is half and half, and he can too.” I had a sudden thought, and my attention snapped to him. “Is that who hurt you? Was the Shadow man trying to get you to help him?”

  Chess exchanged a look with Mop but didn’t answer. Instead, Trip tugged on a strand of my once again blonde hair.

  “Lady is right, Lady is. Smiling Cat can, but so can others, they can.” Trip gave me a small, sad smile as if he knew something that I didn’t, which it seemed like that was going on a lot lately.

  “What others?” I asked, but they once again looked amongst themselves. I’d had enough. “Stop doing that. Stop acting like I’m a child that needs protecting. I’m older than all of you combined. Well, my soul is at least, but that’s beside the point” I waved a finger in each of their direction. “You are keeping stuff from me, and I want—no, I need—to know what it is.”

  Chess gave me a sympathetic half smile and then let out a reluctant sigh. “You have to remember that a lot has happened in the time you were gone. Not all of it good.”

  Mop snorted. “That be an understatement if I ever heard one.”

  Chess snapped his eyes to Mop in warning. Mop crossed his arms and stared Chess down as if daring him to chastise him.

  “Like I was saying,” Chess turned back to me, ignoring the defiant little man, “A lot has happened in the time since you died and now.”

  “I know that, and I know there is a lot of catching up to do, and if I’m going to make a sound decision on where my place in the world is—any world—shouldn’t I have all the facts?”

  “Sometimes the truth isn’t always good for you,” Chess warned.

  “I don’t care. I want to know,” I urged, but none of them offered up an explanation. I opened my mouth to continue to argue when Trip tugged on my arm.

  “Lady can’t ask friends that, Lady can’t. There are rules, there are.” Trip’s frown did nothing to ease my need to know. In fact, it just made it stronger. They were hiding something. They all were.

  “Even you, Chess? I thought you didn’t have to obey the rules?” I quirked a brow at him.

  He looked me dead in the eye with a serious glare.

  “This one I do. Let’s have no more talk of it.” The strictness in his voice called for no argument, but his face soon changed to a curious, playful manner as he turned to Trip. “What are you two doing here, anyway? Did his highness not trust me to keep our princess safe?”

  “Bah! Like his highness would be askin’ us? I be here deliverin’ a message. A reminder.” Mop’s dark eyes locked with mine.

  “A reminder?”

  “That ye made promises. Blood oaths. Oaths ye better be keepin’ if ye know what be good for ya.”

  Oh. That oath.

&n
bsp; “Teeth be gettin’ impatient. Ye haven’ fulfilled your end of ye bargain yet. Ye don’t be havin’ much time left, can’t ye feel it?” Mop wagged his finger at me.

  This was another one of those instances where I was supposed to feel something and I didn’t. When I had made the deal with the big fuzzy wall with sharp teeth that had become his namesake, I was supposed to have felt some kind of magical power in my blood. But like many things that had changed about me, the human half of me seemed to negate any rules that came from being Fae. So technically there wouldn’t be any consequences, but the honorable part of me urged me to do the right thing.

  I smacked my head back against my headboard with a groan and then blew out a hard breath.

  “Fine, let’s get this over with.” I nudged Chess over to get out of the bed and moved to the edge.

  “Are you sure you are all right now, love?” Chess held his hand out to me with concern in his eyes.

  I nodded, placing my hand in his. My head had stopped throbbing, and the weak feeling I had was gone.

  The promise I had made to make biscuits for Teeth in exchange for my passage flashed through my mind. A hundred biscuits were nothing in the human world. Besides, it wasn’t like I was making biscuits from scratch. Who even did that anymore?

  “Oh! Oh! Can Trip help, can Trip?” He jumped up and down on my bed his tail wagging behind him.

  “Sure you can, Trip.” I smiled back at him and headed for the bedroom door.

  My room wasn’t big, but then again, I didn’t have many belongings, so I didn’t need much. A stand-up dresser, single door closet, and a queen sized bed. The bedroom was my grandmother’s, which was easily identified by the large flower print on the comforter and the massive amount of throw pillows. Really, who needed that many pillows? They were just there for looks, anyway.

  “A hundred biscuits be a large order,” Mop stated as he followed me into the kitchen. “How ye goin’ to make all thems biscuits on ye own?”