CHAPTER THREE
On the second of January, Margo found herself sitting in an airplane—along with hundreds of humans—headed for Seattle. Gabe was next to her, and his tendency to smile at her was getting on her nerves.
Margo wasn’t used to men smiling at her all the time. Most of the Pack didn’t see her as an equal or someone to pal around with. Not anymore. Not since she’d been a pup, actually. As she’d matured into a powerful female with major Alpha tendencies, even her own Pack had changed in their regard toward her. It wasn’t a bad change, per se.
Mostly, they just treated her with a lot more respect. Some were afraid of her, sometimes. She wasn’t too pleased with that, but she tried to remind herself that it was their problem—their submissiveness—that led those few Pack members to cower. It was the nature of their beasts. Just as she couldn’t help her own dominance. That was the way her wolf was, and her human side was no shrinking violet either. Together, they made one very capable, highly trained investigator who very rarely took no for an answer.
Her temperament had helped her get the job she had always dreamed about. Not only was she a private investigator, but she was one of the top operatives in her field. Collin had connections and employees—either full time or casual—all over the world, though he concentrated the bulk of his business in North America, and mostly in the United States.
The Canadian branch consisted of several teams and a number of individual investigators spaced all around the provinces. Margo was the coordinator, and she kept track of all the purely Canadian cases for Collin. Part of her job was administrative—overseeing the rest of the operation—but she also got to do what she had trained for all her life, running cases of her own.
Occasionally, her tracking would lead her to an airport. Flying wasn’t exactly her favorite activity, but she would do if she had to. This was one of those times. As she snapped her seatbelt shut and listened to the safety presentation, she tried not to think about how long this flight was going to take. Cross country wasn’t quick. But there really was no alternative. The trail was already cold, and they had to get to Seattle as quickly as they could.
That Gabe was along for the ride was something she was still getting used to. Usually, when she went into the field, she was on her own. Having a partner was new. Having that partner be a mage was something completely unprecedented. And having a partner who had rocked her world with the most sensual kiss she’d ever experienced was downright terrifying.
“You look like you’re about to rip into something,” Gabe said quietly to her once the safety presentation had drawn to an end and the regular level of background noise resumed in the crowded cabin. “Chill, Margo,” he counseled.
She wanted to huff at him, but she knew he was right. Deliberately slowing her breathing, she turned slightly to look at him.
“I don’t like flying,” she said shortly, hoping he would accept that as her reason for being somewhat on edge.
Gabe placed one of his big hands over hers on the end of her armrest. She immediately felt warmth and comfort coming off him, and surprisingly, it helped settle her nerves a bit.
“I’m right here. You’re not in this alone. We’ll get our man. I’m certain of it,” he told her.
“I admire your confidence,” she replied candidly. “I’ve been looking for Bolivar for almost my entire life, so I’m not as convinced of our victory.”
“That’s okay,” he said, smiling at her. Again. This one was a soft smile. Almost a grin, complete with boyish charm. Though, how a six-foot-two giant of a man could managed to look boyish was a mystery to her. “I believe in you,” he went on, stealing her breath with the intent look in his eyes. “I believe in us.”
She looked away, her emotions a mass of confusion. He really had to stop saying things like that. She was going to start getting ideas. Ideas about the future. About having him in it… Permanently.
That would never do. She couldn’t start thinking about a future with a human. A mage!
She drew her hand away from his and balled it into a fist that she kept firmly in her lap. She was too tempted to touch him again. Something she could not allow.
Why was her inner wolf whining?
Maybe it was being cooped up in an airplane. Yeah. That had to be it. Right?
Gabe tried to break through Margo’s hard outer shell, time and time again, on the long flight, but she was tough. In a way, that only made him like her more. It also made him more determined than ever.
The woman he’d glimpsed at the party… The woman he’d kissed and held in his arms… That was the woman he knew lay just under Margo’s prickly outer surface. He wanted to get her to let down her guard and be that woman with him again. All the time. Forever.
She didn’t realize it yet, but he was playing for keeps.
She held up well over the hours in the plane until they disembarked in Seattle. It was three hours earlier on the West Coast than it had been in Pennsylvania, so they had a bit of time to kill before they would be able to meet Master Hiram. Vamps only came out after dark, which was a limitation Gabe and Margo had to work with if they wanted to see the Master.
Collin Hastings had set everything up. Gabe was impressed at the lengths Margo’s employer would go to help her. A little niggle of jealousy made him wonder if the relationship between them was strictly employer-employee. They were both shifters, after all.
Though Hastings was said to be some sort of flight shifter. A giant raptor of some kind. Gabe didn’t know if crossing species lines was a common thing among shifters or not. He tended to think it didn’t happen every day, but what did he know? Being around the Stony Ridge Pack these past couple of weeks was the most exposure he’d ever had to a large group of shifters.
It was pretty clear to Gabe that the long flight had been rough on Margo. He wanted to try to help her adjust to the new time zone and recover from being so constrained within the confines of the airplane. He thought he knew just how to do it.
“We have time before we need to meet Master Hiram,” he said, once they were in their rented four-wheel-drive vehicle and headed out of the airport. “What do you say we go up to the cabin and settle in first? We can be back in plenty of time for the meeting if we go straight there now.”
Margo, in the passenger seat, turned to look at him. “You’re the one who’s spent time in this region before. I leave the logistics up to you.”
“You’re going to love my cousin’s cabin. It’s out in the middle of nowhere,” Gabe told her as he turned onto the highway that would lead them away from the city. “Brian swears there are no magical energies for miles in any direction. It’s his retreat away from everything—even magic.”
“No shifter energy?” Margo asked. “I find that hard to believe. Anywhere there’s wilderness, there are usually shifters.”
“Brian is kind of a special case. He’s extra sensitive to magical energy. Has been ever since we were kids. He learned to manage it early on, but I think, sometimes, it gets to be too much for him. Shielding himself from all that extrasensory input has to be exhausting. So, when he went looking for a place to get away, he was particularly careful about the neighborhood,” Gabe told her. “The property backs onto a cliff that I doubt any animal—even a shifter—could climb. He put the cabin right there, at the base of the cliff, at the farthest point from his property lines. Then, he posted a fence and signage to keep out the non-magical people and had some of the family help put up wards to keep the magical folk clear. So far, it’s worked like a charm, and Bri has owned the place for years. He spends his summers up here now. He won’t admit it, but as he gets older and more powerful, I think the ability to sense even the slightest magic grows, too.”
“That must be tough,” Margo replied, watching the scenery pass. They were heading away from the suburbs and into the higher elevations. “Do all mages get stronger as they age?”
Gabe was glad she seemed to be taking an interest in the conversation.
“No. Not at all. Though, of course, most of us keep learning and keep perfecting our skills throughout our lives. Some do get stronger, as well as more knowledgeable. Brian is one of those.” Gabe shook his head in sympathy for his cousin. “I think it’s hard on him, but he keeps up a brave face. I’m afraid, one of these days, he’s just going to move up here permanently and become a hermit.” Gabe scowled. “There’s a bit of history in our family of that kind of thing. Along with all the priestesses, we’ve got more than our fair share of hermits, as well.”
“I had no idea.” Margo looked truly shocked. She’d turned her head to look at him. Though he was concentrating on the road ahead, he could see her movement in his peripheral vision. “Being alone is really difficult for one of us,” she shared. “I don’t know how Evie managed. Josh might have had it a little easier. He’s very Alpha, and lone wolves are generally all strong Alphas who need to leave their home Packs for one reason or another. Often, they form their own Packs after a period of roaming. But Evie… She was very submissive, by all accounts, before she left. She must have had a great deal of hidden strength to make it through everything she had to endure. I give her a lot of credit.”
“I really like her,” Gabe agreed. “But Ray is more than a little scary.” He laughed, and she chuckled, as well.
“He’s the first full fey I’ve ever encountered,” she admitted. “And you’re right. He is scary.”
“Duncan is worse. And Bettina! She’s…” Gabe was lost for words.
“Yeah, I know what you mean. The High Priestess is kind of a rock star among shifters. Having her perform the mating ceremony was incredibly special.” Margo’s tone softened just a hair. “I never expected to ever meet her. She’s so busy with the Lords and everything she does. It was a big deal that she came all that way. And I’m still a little stunned—I think the whole Pack is—that she’s part of your family.”
“A very distant part,” Gabe allowed. “There have been many, many generations since her child founded my line. Someday, I’m going to investigate the family archives and trace it all the way back. All I know is, she wants us to call her grandma, which seems really odd because she looks younger than my mother.”
“Fey don’t age.” Margo shook her head slightly as she said the words. “Or, at least, not in a way we mortals can discern.” She paused for a moment, then went on. “You have some of that blood in you—and a lot of that magic. You’ll live far longer than a regular human, won’t you?”
Her tone sounded almost accusatory, and Gabe felt a bit of annoyance. “Yeah, maybe. But so will you. Shifters get two or three human lifetimes if they don’t get killed in battle, don’t they?”
She must have sensed his irritation. “Whoa. Truce,” she said. “It was just an observation. You may try to act the innocent human, but you’re part-fey under the surface. All that magic makes you something quite different.”
“As does your shifter magic,” he pointed out, though he was calming down.
Maybe the long plane ride had affected his nerves, too. They’d been on the road since the crack of dawn and had gained three hours with the shifting time zones. His body told him it should be afternoon, but the clock here on the West Coast said something quite different. It was disorienting, if he let himself think about it.
He let the topic drop, riding in silence for a while. The scenery was changing from cleared land with houses and other structures dotting the landscape to soaring pine forest, populated by millions of trees. They were rising in elevation, and soon, they would be nearing Brian’s cabin.
“We should probably stop at the convenience store on the way and pick up some groceries,” Gabe reopened the conversation sometime later. “Brian keeps some things stocked—canned goods that won’t go bad right away and stuff like that—but if we want anything fresh for lunch, we should probably pick it up.”
“Is it lunchtime now?” Margo asked, looking at her watch. “I’m all turned around.”
“Jetlag will do that to you,” Gabe commiserated. “We should eat before we go back to Seattle for our meeting. I doubt Master Hiram will have a meal prepared for us.”
“More likely, we might end up being his meal,” Margo muttered, her dislike for bloodletters evident in her tone.
“I’d like to see him try,” Gabe said, his voice steely.
Fey magic was proof against most vampires—even the masters. Fey blood was much more powerful in its effect on bloodletters, so although they might try to get it, the fey weren’t very cooperative about giving it up.
Margo was feeling out of sorts by the time they arrived at a little roadside convenience store. There was a gas station out front and a store in the back of the property that sold all manner of things. There were a few long-haul truckers there, playing video games in the back of the store, and a smattering of other travelers. Everyone seemed pleasant enough, and none were in a huge hurry like everyone on the East Coast had seemed to be.
There was a totally different vibe to the humans out here in Washington state. It was a bit more like her home region of Canada. Nobody was in a rush, and people took time to actually look at you and perhaps give you a smile. It was much more civilized to her mind.
Her inner wolf was enjoying all the new scents. It was familiar in some ways, yet slightly different. The scent of pine was stronger here than at home, and the air was quite a bit moister. Temperatures were warmer, too, by a large margin. All in all, it was quite pleasant.
Margo roamed the small aisles of the store and picked up a few items she wanted. She kept track of Gabe, watching him covertly. He was filling a basket with all sorts of things from fresh veggies to packages of frozen meat. It certainly looked like he was planning to stay a while.
Then again, he knew this territory. The lonely little convenience store was probably the only place for miles around where they could buy provisions. Margo went back and picked up a few more items, adding them to her basket.
They checked out separately. Margo studiously avoided Gabe’s gaze. She had the feeling he was going to try to be chivalrous and pay for her shopping, but she wouldn’t allow that. The very idea made her bristle. She’d been earning her own way since she was a teenager, and she wasn’t about to let some half-human mage even think he could take that freedom from her.
Or… Maybe Margo was just overly sensitive on that point. Her last fling, a trial relationship with a handsome human a few years ago, had ended badly. Justin had tried to control every part of her life—from what she bought for dinner to who she spoke to during the day.
They’d been together mostly out of convenience—at least on her part. He’d wanted to try to make something permanent out of their relationship, but it would never have worked. Her wolf hadn’t felt the pull toward him, and she doubted he would have tolerated her growing independence.
She’d just wanted someone to share her nights with. She’d thought Justin was the man, but he’d proven to be a subtly controlling bastard, who had ridiculous ideas about a woman’s role in a relationship. Getting free of her entanglement with him had taken some doing.
Justin had been a police officer. A very dominant male that her inner wolf didn’t scoff at as she did most males. The wolf hadn’t been particularly impressed by him either, but the fact that the wolf didn’t kick up a fuss when they’d gotten together seemed significant. It became apparent, after a while, that Justin’s controlling ways were not a good match for Margo’s independent nature, but when she tried to break things off, Justin dug in his heels and tried to cause problems.
He’d pull her over for traffic stops, just to get his jollies. He’d cruise by her office, just to try to intimidate her. He’d call at all hours of the day and night, just to annoy her. Finally, she’d had to take matters into her own hands. She wasn’t cowed by his threats or acts of stupidity. Far from it. She was pissed.
And nobody wanted to mess with a pissed off Alpha female. Justin soon figured that out for himself after he’d gone just a step too far in his intimidation campaign. The end result had been him applying for a transfer to a police department clear across Canada. By that point, Margo was only too happy to see the back side of him.
But, because of that miserable relationship, Margo had earned a few new hot buttons that could be pushed and guaranteed to set her off. She didn’t like controlling men. She didn’t want someone to pay her way. She liked her independence. She’d fought hard for it and wouldn’t give it up lightly. She’d learned from her time with Justin that, once you caved in on small items, it wasn’t all that much of a stretch to start giving in on the big things. She would never let that happen again.
Shopping paid for out of her own pocket, Margo followed Gabe out into the sunshine. He was already at the rental car, loading the small backseat with the bags of stuff he’d bought. By contrast, her measly two bags of provisions didn’t take up much space at all. He didn’t comment as they loaded up and got back on the road.
They were some distance away from the store when he restarted the conversation. She appreciated the fact that he wasn’t too chatty. He was a rare man who could tolerate silence. Being a predator by nature, and an investigator by trade, Margo spent a lot of her time in silence. Watching. Waiting. Getting ready to pounce, either literally or figuratively. She wasn’t chatty herself, so she liked the fact that Gabe seemed to respect that about her and followed suit.
Still, when he had something important to say, he didn’t hesitate, and he didn’t leave her in the dark about his plans. He had included her in his thinking process to this point, which meant he saw her as more of an equal and not a subordinate. She took that as a mark of respect, and it made her feel… Well, it made her feel good. Both as a human and as her wolf.
It was a rare man that could evoke both sides of her nature in such a positive way. Then again, Gabe was proving to be a special case in every sense of the word.
“We’ll be turning off soon, and then, it’s only a short ride to the cabin. The road gets a little rough, though, which is why I rented this vehicle, instead of a more conventional car,” he told her. “When we get there, I can handle the groceries if you want to take a run. I know I’m feeling a bit off after all the travel today. I’d like a chance to stretch, too, so I’ll probably fire up Brian’s hot tub.”
“Hot tub?” What was this? Some kind of lame seduction plan? Margo shook her head.
“Yeah, he’s got one on the side of the house. I told you he spends a lot of time up here. Each year, he adds something else on. Last year, it was a sunroom on the side of the house. He put in an exercise area, complete with a weight machine, a treadmill, elliptical, bicycle, and some other stuff. The hot tub was for the sore muscles after a workout. Supposedly.” Gabe winked at her then sobered. “We tease him about it, but the sad fact is, I doubt he’s ever let anyone but family come up here. I wish he’d find a girlfriend or someone to share his life with. Bri’s a loner, and I hate to see him hole himself up here and go the hermit route.”
“I guess you can’t really be a hermit if you have someone with you,” Margo said quietly.
“We all want to see Brian happy. I think a companion would be a good first step toward that, but what do I know? I’m just his pesky younger cousin. He doesn’t listen to me.”
“Is he in Pennsylvania?” Margo asked. “Did I meet him at the wedding and just not remember?”
“No,” Gabe shook his head and frowned. “He said he couldn’t make it. He’s involved in something down in California right now. Or so he claims. Personally, I think he just couldn’t handle the magical crowd. All of us together—my family and yours—would have been a nightmare for someone with his talents.”
“Poor guy,” Margo mused.
She hated to think what that kind of talent must mean for his everyday life. Margo resolved to leave something nice behind as a thank you for Brian’s willingness to let her and Gabe use his place. She’d have to think about what might be the best gift for such a reclusive talent.
As they rose in elevation, Margo noted a light scattering of white on the ground beneath the tall pines. It must have snowed the day before because temperatures were above freezing now and things were melting in the sun. Everything had a fresh scent and whiteness to it that only came with snow, with an underlying piney decay that was common to forests everywhere. It felt welcoming to her wild side.
“I think I’ll take you up on your offer to unload the car,” she told him as he turned off onto a dirt path. She wanted to run in these strange, yet friendly woods. She wanted to investigate all the new scents and sounds.
“We just crossed over my cousin’s property line. Did you feel the ward?”
“I felt…something,” she admitted, frowning a bit as she thought about the sensations she’d experienced.
“It’s muted because you’re with me, but if you get near the wards in your travels, you’ll feel it more intensely. Just skirt around and stay within the property lines, and you’ll be fine. The wards aren’t set up to hurt anyone, just to provide warning to those in residence and provide a deterrent to those magical folk who might otherwise trespass.”
“Sounds complicated,” she admitted.
“Not really. It’s just a matter of being clear in your intentions when you cast the ward. The wards around this property are simply meant to deter magical folk from crossing them, not to harm anybody. They also serve to warn anyone from my family who’s staying in the cabin that they’ve been breached.” Gabe expertly drove over the rough terrain for a few minutes. Then, they rounded a tight corner, and Margo could just make out a wooden structure in the distance. “There’s the cabin,” he said unnecessarily.
Eagerness built in Margo as they drew closer. She would shift and prowl around the perimeter of the cabin first, learning its boundaries, its scents and its character. Then, she’d roam the woodlands surrounding the place. There was so much to see. A whole new territory—however temporary—to explore. She couldn’t wait.