Prologue: The Plan

 

 

Isaac Le Beau held his palms out to the crackle and snap of the dancing flames in the fireplace. He reminisced about the last year, amazed by the many changes the past twelve months had brought. His soft chuckle caught Emma’s attention. He grinned and took up his lowball of scotch to salute her. “To the six successful mating’s we’ve accomplished. Can you believe it’s been a year since we hatched our plan?”

Emma picked up the glass of wine she just poured and joined him in front of the fire. “Really? A whole year? I’m surprised our plan worked so well. Who knew, all I had to do was ask the Goddess, Luperca for the names of our son’s mates? If I’d known she would give me the information, I would have asked long ago.”

“I know! And when she told us where their mates would be, she made our job so easy.” He sat back, shifted onto his left hip so he could cross one long leg over the other, and wrapped his fingers around his ankle.

Emma’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “Like shooting fish in a barrel. I don’t think they have a clue we’ve arranged every one of their chance meetings.”

“I laugh every time one of the boys realizes he found the one woman meant for him. They think they’re finding the women on their own. Cade has no idea I canceled my lunch with him on purpose.” Isaac barked out a laugh. “He believes he happened upon Anna at the Crescent City Brewhouse by accident.”

Emma giggled in delight. “That was pure genius on your part, and Richie handled Cade like a champ.”

Isaac sobered. “So far, our little game of arranged meetings has worked. It’s been easy enough to make sure the boys were in the right place at the right time. The moment they saw one another the three signs of finding their mate kicked in, and we were able to sit back and watched each relationship develop.” He rotated his wrist to swirl the scotch in his glass. “Hopefully, our luck holds out until we have every one of them mated.”

Emma nodded. “I can’t believe we’ve pulled this off without getting caught.”

He let out a long breath. “We have to be very, very careful or the boys will catch on. They’re finding their mate’s in such rapid succession they might get suspicious. Frankly, I prayed we would get one mated. I never expected the results we’ve seen. I wanted grandchildren, and the Goddess gave us my fondest wish and so much more.”

She glanced away from the fire and caught his eye. “That’s true. However, it hasn’t been all smooth sailing. Anna’s Ex-husband caused a lot of trouble.”

“Don’t remind me.” Isaac shivered. “I have nightmares about the mobsters kidnapping her.”

“I’m so proud of Anna.” Emma nodded. “She’s such a strong woman and took care of those awful men on her own. She also provided Simon’s mate without knowing she was a party to our plan. She made it so easy for us.”

Isaac choked on his scotch. “Simon’s mating was easy?”

She grinned, her nose wrinkling. “Well, except for the parts where he was stuck in wolf form, and the swampers dragged Rose into the bayou.”

“I have to admit that Anna and Rose’s friendship was advantageous. That made getting her here for a visit easy.” Isaac chuckled when Emma grew more excited. His mate was a pleasure to watch. She wiggled in her seat and clapped her hands.

“Rose also helped Simon build the PTSD dog charity. So many mates were found at the ball she organized.”

Isaac nodded. “Stefan found El, and Sharon claimed Mark Anderson. Sharon’s mating was a bonus I hadn’t expected.”

“Poor Stefan.” Emma sighed and shook her head. “He had a hard row to hoe with El. I was so worried about him.” Emma sniffled and wiped away a tear.

Isaac sat his drink aside. “Come here, cher.” He pulled her onto his lap and kissed her damp cheeks. “Don’t cry, sweetheart. They’re happy now.”

“I know. But I can’t help worrying about my boys.”

He reached out and tucked a bit of stray hair behind her ear. “Speaking of boys, Thomas and Julia met at the annual gathering. We should have more get-togethers. I bet we could find the others mates if we did.”

“Maybe. I can speak with Rose about organizing something. However, she’s busy with the baby and may not have time.”

“True. Lucas has his plate full at the ranch with his new mate Kensie. She may not be able to get away now that her medical practice has taken off.”

Emma snuggled closer. “They are pretty busy. I hadn’t expected any repercussions from finding mates for our boys. They’re happy, but we see so little of them now.”

He stroked her hair, breathing in her scent. “When things settle down for them, I’m sure they’ll visit more often. Have you heard how Richie is doing with his mate Piper?”

“I haven’t heard much. Anna went to his cabin and talked with Piper. From what she said, they’re in a lot of danger. Piper’s bounty turned the tables on her, and now she’s the hunted.”

“Seth told me Richie called and asked for help. He’s guarding the cabin at night in case they’re attacked.”

“I know, but he just got home. I haven’t seen him in so long.” Emma’s voice softened, expressing her disappointment. “I selfishly want Seth all to myself.”

“I do too. But our boy won’t be at the cabin long, and we’ll have him back. He retired from the Elite guard, and he’s home to stay this time.”

“I lost a lot of sleep worrying about him. I was so happy when he announced he’s no longer hunting rogues.”

“I agree. The guard is dangerous. Still, it’s a necessity. I’m proud of Seth and the service he provided the shifter community. Only the strongest can live the life he chose.”

Emma smiled. “Seth is strong.” The joy left her face a second later. “Nevertheless, the last one hundred fifty years took a toll on him. I ache to hold him tight and make it better for him.”

Isaac chuckled. “You’ll always see them as little boys.”

“Of course I will. I’m their mother.”

The grandfather clock chimed the top of the hour, interrupting the conversation.

“Look at the time. I’m late for my daily meditation.” Emma kissed Isaac and got to her feet. “I’ll find you when I finish.”

“I’ll be here.”

 

 

Emma lit her candles and incense. She knelt before her altar and closed her eyes to clear her mind.

“Blessed be, my daughter,” The Goddess Luperca greeted Emma in her soft, lyrical voice.

“Blessed be, Mother. I would like to thank you for your continued blessings upon my family and our friends.”

“You are more than welcome. I’m pleased to see my children happily mated and starting families. Your sons are in fact, why I’m here.”

Emma became alarmed. “Is something wrong?”

“No, my daughter.” Luperca laughed softly. “Everything has gone as planned. I have another name for you.”

Emma clapped her hands with glee. “You do?”

“Yes. Seth, whom you graciously adopted when I requested you do so, has served me well and as such, suffered terribly. Many years ago, he closed himself off from both human and shifter contact. He only interacts with you and his friend Richie Majors. I fear he may choose to end his existence. Seth needs his mate to heal his ragged heart and soul. Bringing justice to rogues, a few who once were friends and family, over such an extended period of time has taken a terrible toll. The least I can do is disclose the name of his mate. It saddens me that he didn’t find Sara sooner,” Luperca said with tears in her eyes.

“How may I be of service? What would you like me to do?” Emma asked in rapid succession.

“Seth is destined to meet Sara Adams in Minnesota. She’s a homicide detective with the Richfield police department. On August tenth, a rogue went on the rampage and killed Sara’s brother. She is a tenacious woman and has taken the task upon herself to find the killer on her own. Seth must go to Minnesota and aid her before she attempts to dispatch the rogue and the beast kills her. If she dies, all hope to save Seth will be lost.”

Emma’s eyes widened. “No! I won’t lose my son.” Fear threatened to choke her, but she forced it away with a hard swallow. “I’ll do whatever it takes to help him. Other than convincing Seth to go to Richfield is there anything else we should do?”

“Seth will want to hunt the rogue on his own with the expediency he is accustomed and return home as quickly as possible. For them to meet, he must agree to assist her. He has never worked with a partner and definitely never a human. I'm afraid this won’t be easy.”

Emma wrung her hands and thought about the problem for a bit. “I think I know how we can force him to take Sara as a partner in this. Leave everything to Isaac and myself. We’ll get this done one way or the other.”

The Goddess’s eyes twinkled with amusement. “I believe you will. I'll leave this in your capable hands. Blessed be, daughter, and good luck.”

“Thank you. I’m sure we'll need more than luck this time. Blessed be, Mother.”

Emma chewed her lip and watched the Goddess fade from view. How are we going to pull this one off?

She needed to speak to Isaac and fast. Hopefully, he was still in the study. “Isaac!” she called, as she hustled down the hall.

“I’m in here, cher,” Isaac called back.

She plopped into an overstuffed chair next to Isaac, huffing and puffing from her exertion. When he opened his mouth, she held up one finger to silence his questions while she caught her breath.

“We have a problem,” she panted out.

Isaac leaned forward, concern etching deep lines into his handsome features. “What kind of problem?”

“The Goddess gave me another name. The problem is, pulling off the mating will be difficult.”

“Who?”

“Seth.”

“Holy cow,” he exclaimed and reared back in his chair. “I didn’t see that one coming. I mean, he deserves a mate like all the other boys. Although as a hunter, I assumed Seth would never have one. It’s exceedingly rare for the elite to settle down. Then again, I didn’t expect Seth to turn up on our doorstep ready to retire from the hunters either.”

“I was rather shocked myself. And here’s the kicker, we have to convince him to allow his mate to partner with him on a rogue hunt.”

“Shit,” Isaac growled. “He’ll never agree.”

Emma sighed and wiped her eyes. “I’m pretty worried as well, but I have an idea. We may have to use a bit of parental tough love to pull it off, and what I have in mind hurts my heart.”

Isaac leaned forward again and took her hand. “What's your plan?”

“We could make the assignment a requirement of his living on the plantation. Though I’m afraid he’ll think we don't love him enough to let him stay without conditions.” She swallowed the lump that rose in her throat. “I can’t think of any other way.”

Isaac scrubbed his face with his palms. “I’ve got nothing. I'm afraid your plan might be our one shot to get this done. However, we have to present the situation in a way that won't alienate him. You would think after two hundred years the adoption wouldn’t matter. No matter how many times I tell Seth I love him unconditionally, the boy doesn’t quite believe we love him as much as the other boys. I don’t want to drive him away and screw the whole thing up.”

They were silent for several minutes before Emma spoke again. “What if we tell Seth that the Goddess is adamant that he take this final hunt, and she added the requirement that he must work with the human? She also stipulated that Sara must be involved in avenging her family, and he's not allowed to hunt the rogue on his own. We could emphasize that Luperca has a plan for Sara and has tasked him with her safety.”

Isaac’s brows lifted and his head tilted to one side. “That might work. We’ll stress the Goddess made the hunt a requirement and downplay the part about living here. Seth would never go against the Goddess’s wishes.”

He grinned, his eyes twinkling with excitement again. “When he returns from helping Richie protect Piper we'll inform him that he's going to Minnesota.”