Chapter 16
Carter
I clenched my fists, hating that I could do nothing to help Katya. Once she had quieted, I turned around. Hopefully she was in jaguar form.
She was. And she wasn’t moving.
I raced over to her and rested my hand on her jaguar stomach. It moved up and down. She was breathing. Her body just needed to recover.
First shifts were like that.
“It’s going to be okay.” I kissed the top of her head, between her ears before shifting myself.
Once I was in jaguar form, Katya had lifted her head and was looking around.
I’m alive.
I nodded. Of course you are.
You can hear me? She rose to all fours.
We communicate through our thoughts in this form.
Is there anything else you haven’t told me yet?
Probably. I can’t think of everything. Come on, let’s run.
She lowered her front half and stretched. I’ll follow you. You know the woods.
Let me know if I need to slow down.
I stretched my massive paws out, then burst into a run. Katya was at my side in a matter of moments. Apparently I hadn’t needed to worry about her speed.
The farther we ran, the more I felt her relax. It was taking her no time at all to settle into her new form. We raced and played, even tackling each other and rolling around in a field of wildflowers.
It was the most fun I’d had in a long time—in any form.
After a while, we both rested on our sides. Dirt and pebbles clung to her fur, and mine as well, I assumed. We just enjoyed being in each other’s presence for a while.
Then she rose and stretched, yawning.
I leaped to all fours. Want to meet some other supernaturals?
Can we talk to them like this too?
We’ll shift back first.
Sure.
I crouched low and then burst into a run. She caught up almost immediately. We headed for the Faeble. I slowed my pace and went around to the cubbies.
She turned to me. What are we doing?
This is where the supernaturals are.
We’re going to shift back first?
Yeah, they don’t allow animals inside. That includes shifters.
What about our clothes? You promised me—
You can borrow one of the werewolves’ outfits. It’s fine. Are you ready to turn back?
She yawned. I think so.
Let me shift first, so I can grab the right clothes. I can only have you borrow from my pack.
Katya yawned again and curled up into a ball, facing away from me.
I quickly shifted back, threw on a set of my clothes, then found one of Stella’s dresses. She and Katya were about the same height. Then I set it next to her.
Her bones popped and her fur retracted, showing human skin. I spun around as fast as I could, careful to keep my gaze averted so I could keep my promise of giving her full privacy.
“Are you okay over there?”
“Just trying to get used to all this. It’s not as scary as I expected, actually.”
“Glad to hear it.” I walked over to a stack of chopped wood and studied it as though it was the most interesting thing in the history of the world. It was difficult. I was all too aware of the sounds of Katya moving around, getting dressed.
“All done.”
I breathed a sigh of relief before spinning back around. Katya stood, wearing the dress. Her hair was sticking out in various directions and she had no makeup on.
She took my breath away. Her natural beauty was even more intoxicating than her perfectly-done self.
“Is something wrong?” She glanced down at herself.
“Not at all.” I strode toward her, drinking in her loveliness. She held my gaze, her mouth gaping slightly. I wrapped an arm around her and threaded my fingers through her hair before closing my eyes and kissing her, taking it deeper immediately.
Katya pressed her hands on my sides and squeezed her fingers against my shirt, tickling me slightly. She kissed me back with equal passion.
I guided her to the wall and sandwiched her between it and myself. Our tongues danced together, both exploring with passion.
The door next to us snapped open, slamming against something next to it.
Katya and I jumped apart. A mesmer waggled his tongue. “Don’t stop on my account.”
I glared at him, then pulled Katya inside.
“What was he?” she asked. “Some kind of deranged smurf?”
“No. But their skin does kind of have a blueish hue, though.”
“He’s creepy.”
“I couldn’t agree more. Forget about him. Let’s go meet Tap and Quinn.”
We walked to the main part of the bar, and Katya looked around wide-eyed. I was used to the variety of the patronage, but she reminded me of a kid seeing a carnival of wonders for the first time.
“What are all these… creatures?”
“Tongue Waggler was a mesmer, basically a trickster. You’re right to be wary of him. Over there at that table are mermaids and—”
“Mermaids are real?”
“Not so loud. Yeah, they are. They can be pretty mean, so be careful.”
She stared at them. “Do they really turn into half-fish if they go into the water?”
“Yeah. Come on, let’s stay focused. An entire family group of jaguar shifters are after you.”
Katya turned to me, her face paling. “I almost forgot. After shifting and… Well, show me to Tad.”
“Tap.”
“What’s he?”
“A former troll king.”
“Trolls are real, too?”
I nodded. “For now, just assume every fairytale creature actually exists. Most do.”
She glanced around the bar, her expression melting back to wonder. I led her to the bar and held out a stool for her to sit on.
“Tap, old buddy. I have someone for you to meet.”
He spun around, carrying a tray of bubbling multi-color drinks. “Oh, yeah? Who?”
I introduced them. “Katya just found out she’s a jaguar shifter. Her family of origin is in town to claim her as their own.”
Concern filled his expression. “Let me give these to the mermaids, then we’ll talk.” He disappeared with the drinks.
Katya leaned against the counter. “He doesn’t seem so bad.”
“He’s a good guy. He’s helped my pack more times than I can count.”
“If he’s a king, why run a bar?”
“Former king, and he loves it. My guess is because he stays on top of what’s going on with so many people coming through. Plus, he has so many people coming to him for help—I think in a way, he’s still a king in his own right.”
“Why’d he give up the actual position?”
“Someday, you’ll have to ask him yourself.”
Quinn came over and held out his hand to Katya. “I’m Quinn. Who’re you?”
“Katya.”
“Very nice to meet you.” He turned to me. “She’s the one you’ve been looking for?”
“Yeah. Thanks for pointing that out.”
Katya laughed. “I’m glad you did, otherwise those guys might’ve succeeded in taking me.”
Quinn’s expression turned serious, and he nodded.
Tap returned and waved Katya and me over to an empty booth in the corner. Then he told Quinn to bring us some drinks.
We made ourselves comfortable, and between Katya and me we filled him in on everything.
Tap drew in a deep breath and sipped his dark-blue drink. “I heard rumors of a shifter pack in town, but hadn’t actually heard any details. Do you need me to find a place to hide the lady?”
Katya scooted closer to me.
I squeezed her hand. “No, I’m going to stay with her, whether it be at the hotel or the mansion. We might need your help in other ways.”
He nodded knowingly. “If the jaguars show up here, I’ll let you know. Do the witches know what’s going on?”
“Toby’s working on that.”
“Good. There’s nothing like having Gessilyn on your side.” He paused, looking deep in thought. “Still haven’t heard from Soleil?”
I shook my head, a wave of sadness running through me at the thought of my valkyrie friend. We hadn’t seen her since she risked everything using a sword that alerted her superiors in Valhalla of her location. “Do you think they found her?”
Tap frowned. “I hope not—unless she managed to find that dictator she was supposed to kill.”
“That’s what worries me. She wasn’t even looking.”
“I know.” Tap turned his attention back to Katya. “She’d have been helpful, but we have plenty of other resources to keep you safe.”
Katya scooted closer to me, and I wrapped my arm around her.
“But will they ever give up looking for me? Carter says they think the guy who wants to marry me thinks he owns me. I can hide, but that’ll only slow them down, right?”
“Correct.” Tap finished his drink. “Your family did a good job of keeping you hidden, but it’s hard once you reach the age of shifting.”
“But now that I’ve shifted, it’ll be easier? Didn’t someone say it was harder to cover my scent because I hadn’t turned yet?”
Tap nodded. “That’ll help, but there are ways. If they know a witch, he or she likely can work around protection spells.”
“So, then what can we do now that they’re here, ready to force me into a life I don’t want?”
Tap and I exchanged a worried glance.
“What?” Katya demanded.
I cleared my throat. “It’s going to involve a lot of death. We’re going to have to kill enough of their family that the remaining ones flee. That’s the only way.”