Chapter 8
The honeymoon ended far too fast in Fate’s mind, but he didn’t think there was any length of time that would have been long enough to have their mate to themselves with no other distractions. They’d been getting to know each other for three years, but now that they’d added physical pleasure to their mating, he felt like he was just getting to know her all over again. He loved the way her eyes glowed when she climaxed and how sweet she sounded when she shouted their names as passion claimed her. Their foreplay before they mated paled in comparison to how it felt to really make love to her.
It was almost indescribable.
His mate was his heart, all wrapped up in a gorgeous package that called to every fiber of his being. He was one lucky panther to be her mate.
For the last five days, they’d stayed in the RV, and it had been easy to envision what their future was going to be like. When the RV was fully opened, the master bedroom was quite large, and there was a smaller bedroom with bunk beds attached to the wall. The couch in the living area folded flat into a full-sized bed, and there was even a way to roll the kitchen table down to be even with the bench seats and lay a blow-up mattress on it for another bed.
“What’s the smile for?” Jilly asked as she nudged him with her elbow when she joined him in the kitchen.
“I was thinking about beds.”
Her eyes widened and then she smiled. “For babies?”
He nodded with a smile. “Yeah. Even though we were just officially mated less than a week ago, I feel like we’ve already been mated for three years.”
“I get that. When we had our joining ceremony three years ago, I told my dad that it was strange to celebrate basically nothing, since we weren’t mated or married, and were just promising to do that in the future. When I was in high school, there was a girl who had a ring that looked like an engagement ring. Her boyfriend gave it to her, and they called it a promise ring, which she said meant that they were promising to eventually get engaged and then married. Like a pre-engagement ring or something. I thought it was silly, but we basically have been engaged for three years.”
He snorted. “That’s long even in human terms.”
“Exactly. So I’m ready to start our family. It will be strange to raise a family on the road, though. What will we do about school?”
“Gwenalee is the clan teacher. She starts working with the cubs a few hours a day when they turn four. Wherever we are, she’ll have school in her RV, or outside in nice weather.”
“It’s nicer now with internet and home schooling material available,” Wyked said as he came into the kitchen from the bedroom. “It wasn’t that simple when our parents were young.”
“That’s neat,” Jilly said.
“And really, there’s a lot more to learning than sitting in a classroom. As we travel, we’ll find lots of ways to teach our kids about the world, being a shifter, and preparing for their future.”
“Will we ever be the clan leaders? Is it hereditary, like when your parents are ready to step down, we take their place, or is it like an election like how humans choose their leaders or a fight like wolves choose theirs?”
Mountain lions didn’t really have a formal hierarchy, and Fate wasn’t surprised she was curious. He’d been told that Eryx, Ethan, and Callie were the Ashland pride leaders, because they’d started the pride years ago when they left Pennsylvania and headed to Indiana. In his mind, though, James, John, and Rue were the leaders. Everyone turned to them for advice and leadership; when there were disagreements, they were fair, and the pride respected their decisions.
“It’s hereditary,” Fate said. “Generally, a clan passes in leadership from father to son, but our father wanted to stay with our mother’s clan, and when her parents were ready to retire, they passed the leadership to our father, since they didn’t have a son. Just like you’ll take over for Hanai as the healer when he retires, the three of us will handle the clan leadership.”
“It won’t be for a while, though, right?” she asked.
“Don’t want to have the weight of the world on your shoulders right after we mated?” Wyked said with a teasing tone.
“Not really. I want to focus on my studies and get our family going before we become leaders.”
Fate kissed her. “You got it.”
She turned her attention to the bay window where the clippings she’d gotten from the fae grew steadily. “I don’t want to go back to reality tomorrow.”
“Neither do we,” Fate said. “But you need to learn what you can from the fae while we’re here, plus spend time with your family.”
“My Aunt Lisa sent a text earlier this morning and asked if we’d like to come to dinner tomorrow night, unless we’re planning to take the weekend as part of our honeymoon and want to postpone.”
“We have to go to Georgette’s,” Wyked said. “We might as well have dinner out, too. Your aunt and uncle are really nice.”
Rhett was one of five mountain lion brothers who called Ashland home. He was the first male to leave the original pride and start over somewhere else. Lisa was human, and one of the best bakers he’d ever seen.
“Okay, so we can still have today, though, right?” she asked, smiling at the two of them. “Like no clothes for the rest of the day?”
She gripped the bottom of her top and lifted it slowly, baring her stomach to their gazes. She was the sexiest female he’d ever known. Her curves and soft skin set his world on fire. He couldn’t stop the purr that rolled up his throat, his cat’s favorite way to let Jilly know the effect she had on him.
“Have I ever told you that you have the best ideas?” Fate asked, following her as she stripped slowly and backed toward the bedroom.
“Every time I suggest making love,” she teased.
He couldn’t think of a better way to spend the last day of their honeymoon.
* * *
After the debacle of Georgette locking Jilly in the house, Wyked insisted on going along for this visit, and bringing Fate, too. Georgette had apologized for her behavior, but Wyked didn’t trust her. She was clearly powerful – so much so that she could hide the little girl from sight – and in his mind, power could be easily corrupted and lead to harm. He suspected that no matter what her lips said, Georgette would put Treasure’s safety above everyone’s, including Jilly’s, and that wasn’t going to fly in the least.
“You look growly,” Jilly said. She sat between him and Fate in the second row of Hanai’s SUV.
“I feel that way.”
“I know you didn’t really want me to come.”
“I would have forbidden it if I thought you’d listen.”
“I believe it. But it’s important that I get this last visit with Georgette in, because I won’t have a chance to come back to see her before we go.”
“Plus, you wanted to see the dragon girl again,” Fate said.
“That too.”
“You didn’t dream about her again, did you?” Wyked asked.
It had unsettled him a great deal that his mate, his uncle, and the girl had all dreamed about each other. Jilly and Hanai had shrugged it off, but it seemed significant to Wyked. And no matter how much he’d argued that they should just forget about the fae and the girl, Jilly had been determined. She’d suggested he could stay with the clan and not go with her, but that had been out of the question. He needed to be with her if he were going to protect her. Assuming that she even needed protection.
Part of him believed returning to Georgette’s was a bad idea. He couldn’t explain why, but he felt an odd sense of foreboding. Since no one else shared that feeling, he’d swallowed his protests and got into the SUV with her. He was going to be by Jilly’s side no matter what. But the fae would need to be on her best behavior. His cat didn’t much care for her.
The sky suddenly turned dark as menacing looking clouds rolled in ahead of them. Lightning sparked in the sky, dancing among the clouds, and thunder boomed in the distance. Rain drummed the roof of the SUV, as the sudden downpour created poor visibility.
“Damn that happened fast,” Hanai said, slowly applying the brake and lowering his speed. He turned onto the path that led to Georgette’s home.
Lightning flashed close by, making contact with a tree and creating sparks as it was struck and the tree split down the middle. Thunder followed, the rumbling making the SUV shudder. Jilly jumped and grabbed hold of Wyked.
“We’re safe in the vehicle,” he told her, patting her hand.
“This is crazy,” Jilly said. “The hair on my arms is standing up.”
“Could be the electricity in the air,” Fate said, squinting as he tried to peer out the side window.
There was another bolt of lightning followed swiftly by a crack of thunder and then what sounded like a roar.
Hanai stopped the SUV and put it into park. He leaned over the steering wheel, squinting, and gazed out the windshield. “Did anyone else hear that?”
“It sounded like a roar,” Jilly said, rubbing her arms.
A shout rent the air, and a winged-man flew wildly through the air and crashed into a nearby tree. He dropped to the ground in a heap.
“Shit, I think Georgette’s in trouble.” Hanai opened the door. “Stay here. I’m going to check things out.”
“Be careful,” Jilly called.
“I’ll go with him,” Wyked said.
Jilly’s hands clamped around his upper arm, and Wyked looked at her, surprised to see her eyes were the amber of her beast. “Be safe.”
“I will, kitten.”
He kissed her cheek and got out of the SUV, shutting the door swiftly to keep out the rain. He shielded his eyes and caught up to Hanai. They ventured off the path and used the woods as cover. Lightning struck the ground behind them, and Wyked spun and looked to make sure that the SUV was okay. The thunder that followed shook the ground like an earthquake.
“What the hell is going on?” Wyked demanded, shouting above the din.
“I don’t know. Watch your back,” Hanai said.
They continued, moving closer to Georgette’s home. They stopped just before the clearing, and to his surprise, everything looked normal. The sun shone and the rain had stopped, but only directly over the house. Something shimmered just out of his sightline, and Wyked turned to the side and stared hard. He saw something, but he couldn’t figure out what it was.
Looking down, he picked up a thick tree branch and whipped it toward the something. It hit, and a winged-man, like the one who had been tossed into the tree appeared out of thin air. The man grunted when the branch impacted his head, and he fell to the ground. The sunshine and clear sky disappeared, and Wyked and Hanai shouted in surprise. Three winged men with swords tried to get past Georgette, who stood in front of the house, her body glittering with blue lightning.
She shouted in a strange language and lightning hit the ground, knocking down one of the men.
“I’ll get them. You see if Treasure needs help,” Hanai said.
Wyked nodded and melted back into the woods, running around to the back of the house. He saw another winged man, and he cracked his neck and called for his beast, wanting the enhanced strength and speed that being a shifter gave him. He could shift and attack, but then he wouldn’t be able to talk, and Treasure might be scared or hurt. Silent and swift, Wyked moved behind the man who was trying to break down the back door. He put his hand on the man’s head and shoved his face into the wooden door. There was a squishy, cracking sound as the man’s nose broke and he was knocked unconscious. Wyked pulled him to the side and peered into the house through a window.
“Treasure? Are you okay? It’s me, Wyked. You’re friends with my wife, Jilly?”
He couldn’t see anything, but he could feel a presence, and he wondered if Georgette was using a cloaking spell on Treasure. A winged man moved into the room, his head moving from side to side. He slashed his sword suddenly, and there was a scream of pain, and Treasure appeared, clutching her bleeding arm. Her wings stretched out and she backed away from the man. Tears slipped over her cheeks.
Turning to the door, Wyked looked to see if there was a lock he could pick, but the lock on the old-fashioned doorknob had been covered with a metal plate. Calling for his beast once more, he backed up a few steps and hurled himself shoulder-first into the door. The door was so solid it felt like he was hitting a brick wall. He moved to the window and pounded his fist on the glass, and then he looked on the ground for something to throw at the glass to break it.
Treasure screamed. “No! Go away!”
Her wings beat wildly, and she bent over, clutching her stomach and crying. And then she changed. From one moment to the next, the girl disappeared, and a pink-and-blue-scaled dragon appeared. She roared and a clicking sound was followed by a stream of fire that shot out toward the winged man. He screamed as his clothing caught fire, but his scream was cut off when Treasure leaped on him, grabbing his neck between her jaws and squeezing until his spine cracked. The man went limp, and she lifted her head and roared angrily.
Wyked couldn’t find a rock big enough to break the glass, so he pulled off his shirt and wrapped it around his hand to protect his skin.
“I’m going to break the glass, Treasure,” he said in warning. He smashed his fist through the glass. Then he carefully extracted his hand, unwound the shirt, and reached into the hole and found the interior lock on the door. Unlocking it, he pulled his hand out and opened the door.
Treasure was roughly the size of a full-grown horse in her shift. Iridescent pink and blue scales covered her skin, the same colors as her wings when she was in human form. Her wings were tucked against her back, and she sat on her haunches with her tail tucked around her clawed feet.
“I hope you heard me before when I said that you’re friends with my wife, Jilly. That makes you and me friends, right?”
She tilted her head and regarded him with eyes that were so bright blue they looked electrified. Then she nodded slowly.
Letting out a relieved sigh, Wyked said, “Can you shift back?”
She rose into the air suddenly, her wings flapping as she lifted from the floor and then she spun in a circle and changed forms. Once she shifted, she lowered herself to the floor. Her eyes still glowed, but tears now tracked down her cheeks. Wyked saw a quilt draped over the back of a chair and gave it to her. Her wings disappeared into her back, and she wrapped the blanket around herself.
“Your aunt is up front with my uncle. Let’s go see what’s going on. Are you injured?”
She didn’t say anything, simply shook her head. The injury to her arm was entirely healed, which Wyked suspected happened because of her shifting, which could accelerate natural healing abilities.
They moved through the house, and he unlocked the front door.
Treasure screamed, “No!” She raced to where Hanai knelt on the ground holding Georgette.
“What happened?” Wyked asked as he knelt next to him. Treasure dropped to her knees, covering Georgette with her body. She sobbed loudly, clutching at the woman’s clothing.
Hanai said, “We thought all the guys were dead, but one of them came at me out of the woods, and Georgette knocked me out of the way. He ran her through with his sword. I killed him, but it was too late.”
Wyked counted six dead fae outside, and one inside the house. “They look like soldiers.”
“I think they are. The fae realm has an army.”
“Did they come for Treasure?”
Hanai shrugged and scrubbed the tears from his cheeks.
“Auntie,” Treasure said with a trembling voice. “No. Please. Don’t leave me.”
“I’m really sorry,” Hanai said. “She was a wonderful lady.”
Wyked pulled his cell from his pocket and called Fate. “Bring Jilly.”
He could hear Jilly ask, “Is everyone okay?”
“Hanai, Treasure, and I are fine,” Wyked said. “Come in the SUV.”
He ended the call and looked at Georgette. She wore a peaceful expression, her eyes closed as if she were only sleeping, but he knew she wasn’t.
“What are we going to do?” he murmured to Hanai.
“I don’t fucking know.”