by Dana Archer
Owen’s image flashes before me, along with his chilling revelation. Either Owen or Gabriel needs to die. “It won’t work. They’ll turn feral at best, die at worst.”
“They’ve already proven it’ll work, Ilan. So has every alpha who’s joined another shifter to their communal spirit. Ask Dante. Or his siblings, Devin and Mira. All are outsiders who now share a mystical tie to another family’s spirit.” Jarah thumps his chest. “As an alpha, I have that power too, a gift of the heavens. I can sever your tie to the first Kane and bind you to my soul…if you are willing.”
“I am not.” Doing so would sever my connection to my goddess…my grandmother. The stories my birth father shared of her once I reconnected with him defined my life as much as Jarah’s teachings have. I can close my eyes and conjure up her face. When I do, gratitude overwhelms me. She brought Sara into my life and guided my nephew to me. I believe that with everything I am. The Kane goddess was responsible for both, forcing me into a position where I wouldn’t deny either.
“Exactly. Such a bond can exist only if both the first alpha and the one being joined are willing.” Jarah drops his hand to the seat next to him and leans over it, closing the gap between us. “Gabriel is not. The single shifter who’s joined with him is not. That is what is angering those conducting this experiment. They’ve figured out how to duplicate the ceremony alphas perform to join a new member to their family spirit, but they can’t force those being manipulated to accept the unnatural bond.”
“If Gabriel is anything like Ilan, I’m not surprised. Stubbornness must be a Kane trait.” Sara’s comment pulls both Jarah’s gaze and mine to her.
Jarah’s mouth curves into a small smile. “Or possibly a shifter trait. We’re all stubborn, some more so than others. Age seems to compound such qualities too. In Gabriel’s case, it’ll mean his death, but if Ilan and Soren die before he does, then the Kane spirit, the soul of the first Kane, can be captured and used in a different type of experiment, one that’s already proven to be successful and somewhat controllable.”
“They’ll join the spirit of the first Kane to a baby, turning it into an alpha,” I explain, knowing the topic of souls is still new to Sara.
“A single-shifter baby, right?”
“Yes,” Jarah and I answer at the same time.
“Never a human?” Sara glances between us. “I mean, if humans can bond with shifters, couldn’t they do so with the…the spirit of a shifter family?”
My blood chills. While I’ve never considered the possibility, the potential is there. I glance at Jarah. The same apprehension shows on his face.
“Let’s not give anyone ideas, okay?” Jarah smiles, but it’s forced.
Sara nods. “So whoever experimented on Ilan’s brother wants to kill Ilan and Soren because they expect Gabriel’s unnatural bond will fail. That’s why those lion shifters kept coming after us. They need a backup plan.”
“Yes, and they will continue to come after them until they’re successful.” Jarah focuses on me. “I don’t know who they’ll send to take you out, but they’ll come. If you defeat one, they’ll send another and another. From what I heard, those who hold Gabriel are desperate to act quickly. My plan had been to hide Sara and Soren, then return to help you.”
“As you said, they’ll keep coming at us. Hiding isn’t the answer. We need to find my alpha and free Gabriel.” But I’m not looking forward to the choices that’ll need to be faced afterward, especially if Owen’s prediction is correct. His life or Gabriel’s. I’d rather consider another, convincing them to accept this bond neither of them wanted.
A light turns on, brightening the room, before Jarah can respond. He closes his mouth and looks in the direction of the approaching shifter.
After a moment, the same blonde female who greeted me at the door steps around the toy kitchen. A nametag on the shirt she must’ve put on after she left me identifies her as Jenna. A small smile graces her mouth as she greets us. “Dr. Kagan is ready to sit down and give you an update on Ezra.”
“And Daegan?” Jarah stands. “Does she have an update on Daegan?”
The woman swallows hard. “Yes, that’s who she was just in with.”
“Did she say anything to you? Have you seen Daegan? Is he okay?” Jarah presses, concern bleeding into his voice.
The shifter female glances at the floor before raising her gaze to Jarah. “He’s alive. Any other details should come directly from Dr. Kagan.”
More evasive answers. I really don’t like it when people avoid the hard truths, but I’m learning there’s only one way to deal with it. Patience. The truth will eventually come out.
On a slow exhale, I firm my hold on Sara’s hand and motion ahead of us. “Then let’s speak with the doctor.” Before my mind starts conjuring all the bad things that could happen to Daegan. Honestly, though, I can’t think of any. He’s immortal. As long as he didn’t die, he’ll be fine. Of course, it doesn’t mean he isn’t suffering, but pain is better than oblivion for a Royal. We don’t get second chances.
Twenty-Five
Ilan
The moment the nurse opens the door to the restricted section of the basement, Daegan’s scent reaches me. I can almost taste his pain on my tongue. It’s fading, like the lingering smell of a human’s strong perfume. The presence of the sour stench, twined with Daegan’s scent in the air, hints at how much pain he was in, though.
A rough, huffing sound escapes Jarah’s throat. He presses a hand against the doorframe as if he needs a moment. Weakness doesn’t show on his face, though. Fury does. “What happened to him?”
Knowing Jarah wouldn’t appreciate the dancing around of harsh truths any more than I do, I give him the facts. “He lost his hands and feet, was nearly decapitated, and skinned.”
“How?”
The agonized tone Jarah uses stirs my rage and need for retribution. I want whoever attacked my blood brother to suffer, then die. “I don’t know.”
“Neither do I, but I can hypothesize.” Riley Kagan, the pregnant human doctor, steps out of a doorway at the end of the hall with her mate, the Kagan alpha, by her side. Riley motions to the room behind her. “Come in, and I’ll share what I know.”
The cluttered office she directs us to is small, but the couch is large enough for both Sara and Riley. I drop to a crouch next to my true mate and rest an arm on her bent leg, mirroring the pose of the watchful Kagan alpha, while Jarah remains just inside the room, the closed door at his back.
“Nic Kagan, Riley Kagan.” I tip my head in respect. “My deepest thanks for welcoming Royals into your hospital.”
Nic Kagan, the alpha of the single shifter wolf pack whose lands surround this hospital, returns the greeting, inclining his head. “We don’t turn away any shifter in need. Doesn’t matter who or what they are. My mate has created a sanctuary here. I support it.”
“I second my son’s words. Thank you, the alpha leaders of the Kagan pack. You are true reflections of the first Kagan, an honorable man I once had the pleasure of knowing.”
A flash of confusion passes over Riley’s face, possibly at Jarah’s reference to me or maybe Jarah’s age, but she doesn’t question either. She offers a smile, her gaze touching on each of us before settling on Jarah. “It’s my honor to help those in need, and while examining Daegan, I found a circular mark on his back, right over his spine. The muscles in this area were black and deadened, exactly as the entry point of the dart on Ezra. It wasn’t until I cut this section out that he started healing. I believe Daegan was drugged with the same compound as Ezra, then attacked. There are no other wounds on Daegan’s body to hint that he’d been in a fight.”
The statement is delivered in a neutral tone, exactly as I expect a doctor to deliver harsh facts. These are ones I can believe too. Daegan would never allow himself into a situation where he couldn’t defend himself otherwise. “What kind of drug was used?”
“I can’t say.” Riley bites her lip. “This is a small hospital, and we d
on’t have such capabilities here. Our main purpose is to patch shifters up so their bodies can heal quicker.”
The Kagan alpha caresses his mate’s pregnant belly in a comforting gesture. “But Riley has taken blood and tissue samples from both Ezra and Daegan. Shifter Affairs has them now and promised to run some tests, then pass along the results to Riley.”
“Thank you for your efforts, Dr. Kagan.” I dip my head in gratitude. “What else can you tell us?”
“Both Ezra’s and Daegan’s brain activities are…off.” Riley glances down, her brows pinching. “If Ezra’s brother wasn’t here to convince me otherwise, I would’ve diagnosed both men as brain-dead. I’m confident he’s correct in saying they’ll both fully recover. In the short time that’s passed since I removed the deadened muscles from around the entry point on Ezra’s body, I’ve been able to detect some activity in Ezra’s brain signals.”
“And Daegan?” Jarah studies the human doctor. “Any signs of activity in his brain?”
“No, but it might also be due to the severity of his injuries or the entry location.” The color bleeds from Riley’s cheeks but no other signs of the distress tainting her scent show on her face. “He’s suffered greatly, but his body is repairing itself, quicker than I’ve ever seen.”
“As long as the connection between our souls and body isn’t severed, a Royal can recover from a lot.” Which might be the only thing that’ll save Gabriel if it’s truly only stubbornness to accept his bond to Owen that’s hampering them. If not…well, I don’t want to contemplate that yet.
Riley’s strained laugh surrounds us. “I’m learning that.”
“I’d like to see Daegan, if possible.” While stated as a request, the compulsion to comply in Jarah’s tone is one I feel in my bones.
“And I’d like to sit with Ezra for a while,” Sara adds.
“Of course.” Riley grips the edge of the sofa while her mate helps her stand.
More security checks allow us past another door to a hallway with more locked doors. I glance at the lights, all red, above each. Riley, with her mate by her side, opens the first on the right where Ezra lies motionless on the bed, a sheet covering his body, Uri nowhere in sight.
“Where’s Uri?” I’d expected to see him by his twin’s side.
“With Daegan. Dante is there too.” Riley continues toward the end of the hall, unlocks the door, then twines her fingers with her mate’s. “We’ll give you some privacy. If you need anything else, we’ll be in my office. No codes are needed to exit this hall.”
While I know I should act as a buffer between Dante and Jarah as they haven’t spoken since Jarah cast Dante from the Host’s membership, my steps linger by Ezra’s door. Sara’s halfway across the room. “I need to check on Daegan. I’ll be back soon.”
“Of course. Go.” Sara shoos me away and drags a chair over to the bed. “I’m fine here with Ezra.”
After everything that’s happened tonight, I don’t want to let Sara out of my sight. Doing so will make it impossible to eliminate the threats to our future.
I nod, then head to Daegan’s room, noting where Dante is sitting near Uri, as far from Jarah as possible, but Daegan’s naked body stretched out on the bed captures my attention. Wearing a neck brace, he gives the appearance of a man gravely injured, but no other outward signs show of the injuries he’s sustained. Pink, new skin covers his body, his many tattoos gone, and white cloths are draped over where his hands and feet should be. The aura surrounding him is strong too.
Uri steps away from the wall. “Daegan’s trying to reach out to us, sensing another Royal feline. It feels exactly as with Ezra, though. There’s a fogginess between us. I can sense Daegan, but I can’t reach him. Neither can Dante.”
“Have you been able to connect with Ezra yet?” Jarah moves to the bed and gingerly touches the plastic brace around Daegan’s neck.
“Not in words.” Uri shakes his head. “I feel his anger and frustration, though. Both grow stronger by the hour.”
“Then we can only assume Daegan will break free of this drug soon too.” Jarah lifts the cloth covering one of Daegan’s hands, then nods, a satisfied look on his face. “Then he can tell us who attacked him so they can die.”
“I think what’s more important at the moment is to figure out why both Daegan and Ezra would be targeted with the same drug on the same night.” Dante raises a brow. “Wouldn’t you agree, Elder Jarah, leader of the Host?”
Jarah raises his gaze, finally looking at Dante. “You are correct, Dante Winchester, only feline Royal with a tie to a wolf pack.”
Dante cracks his jaw. “Honorary member. I’m a lone shifter.”
“Right. Tossed from your birth pride and taken in by wolves. Did any of their pretty she-wolves comfort you after you lost your tie to the Host? Maybe offer to soothe your wounded soul? Heal you? I bet one of them offered.” A knowing smile flashes across Jarah’s face. “Why didn’t you take her comfort and let nature run its course? It needs to ha—”
“Enough.” I cut Jarah off. “You’re out of line, Father. Dante is my most favored protégé and—”
“Which is why I’ve sought to protect him.” Jarah’s eyes take on a faint glow, and black flames dance in his brown orbs. “But the stubborn feline won’t accept his gift. All he’s doing is hurting his true mate.”
“You know?” Dante pushes to his feet. “You know Corey is mine?”
Jarah nods. “I saw the way her aura reached for yours, then tasted her pain on my tongue when you walked away from her.”
“When did you see us together?” Dante takes a step forward, his body tensing. “Nobody outside the pack has seen us together.”
“I’m one of the first assassins, Dante Winchester.” Jarah laughs. “I know how to move undetected into any territory, even the mighty Winchester pack’s lands.”
“And I’m counting on your skills, along with Dante’s to help me find Gabriel.” I give Uri and Dante the abbreviated version of my discussion with Jarah from moments ago, bringing them up to speed, then I focus on Uri. “I need to know what’s contained in the file Ella has on my alpha and the Hunter. I’m hoping there’s something in there that’ll give us some clue as to where Gabriel is being kept.”
“You’re better off trying to connect with Gabriel through Owen.”
Dante’s announcement draws my attention to him. “Is it possible to call Gabriel forth?”
“Yes. Thanks to Molly.” Dante smirks. “She’s taught several shifters, including Xander, how to brew ambrosia. Once Owen’s high, Gabriel is easy to connect with. According to Xander, anyway.”
I don’t need anyone to teach me how to brew the delusion-inducing beverage our shaman ancestors enjoyed. Jarah passed the skill down to me, along with many other secrets forgotten by our species.
“It would’ve been nice if Xander had shared this information with me earlier.” Actually, it would’ve been nice if Xander had told me about Owen being bonded to Gabriel the moment Xander had learned of their unnatural connection.
“Xander is protective of Molly. Very protective. If he had mentioned about talking to Gabriel, he would’ve had to tell you how he pulled off the feat and Xander didn’t want to give away Molly’s secrets. A child isn’t supposed to know how to brew ambrosia.”
“And it’s suddenly okay to share that detail?”
“Yes. Molly gave him permission to do so.”
Arguing will get me nowhere. What’s done is done.
“Then it looks like I’ll be visiting the Hunter again.” After I get Sara and Soren to safety. I don’t doubt Soren is in good hands at Josh and Mira’s place, especially with the Alexander pride mates close by. With Mira pregnant, however, I don’t want to bring danger into their backyard.
Good thing there’s a Royal wolf pack who would be happy to protect my female and nephew. And if Xander Winchester has a problem with it, I can always relocate Eli for his training once I’ve dealt with the threats coming for my pack. I have t
hat power over my new protégé. One order and he’ll turn his back on his birth pack to follow me anywhere, doing anything I tell him, even if he doesn’t like it.
Maybe that’d be wrong of me. Too bad I can’t work up the energy to care. If I can’t save Gabriel and eliminate those who want me and Soren dead, I won’t be on this earth long enough to teach Eli how to control his primal rage without my blood oath forcing him to act normal.
Twenty-Six
Sara
The rich scent of coffee draws me down the hallway to the cafeteria of Riley’s Sanctuary for the second time tonight. My steps drag. It’ll be hours before I can crawl into a bed. I desperately need this caffeine boost.
Besides, maybe this time, I might be able to enjoy my cup without tension locking my muscles. For the moment, I have no immediate reason to be stressed. Ilan is just down the hallway in Daegan’s room, Ezra is resting comfortably, and Mira just texted me with an update on Soren. Everyone is safe. Tonight, at least.
The echo of the conversation with Jarah and Ilan lingers in my mind, a stark reminder that danger—death—still looms over my family. And that’s what Ilan, Soren, and the other shifters I’ve met are to me. Family. I care deeply for them. And maybe, if the situation called for it, I’d kill for them.
The realization of how far I’d go would’ve been inconceivable a few weeks ago, but I want the people I love happy and safe. Whatever that requires. Before Ilan came into my life, that involved dropping everything on a dime when Mya needed a babysitter, no matter the conditions outside or when Josh needed someone to fill in at work at the last minute. Now, though?
I cast a glance over my shoulder at Ezra’s room. He’s in there fighting the effects of whatever drug has been used on him because of me. He would’ve died trying to protect me and Soren.
How could I not do the same?
Standing a little taller, stronger with my rationalization, I step through the door separating the restricted area of the basement from the cafeteria. The gurgles of a brewing pot put a smile on my face. I quicken my pace and turn into the cafeteria, then stop dead in my tracks.
