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“What did you do?” Jax said, his accent thickened.

“Calliope ripped a human heart out on her stage.” Asher sighed.

Teeth audibly clicked.

“Can you make her stop?” Jax said gruffly, his hand smoothing down the side of my head.

“Why couldn’t she just compel him to forget? Why?” I cried. “I thought a council was called to vote when there was something like that.” I would be surprised if he understood what the hell came out of my mouth. Jax continued rubbing the back of my head in soothing little circles.

“Because it did not need to be escalated. Calliope was that vampire’s Sire; she has chosen to handle it in-house,” Ren’s voice interjected.

“We should have anticipated a move like this from her.” Asher’s arm fastened tighter around me with his words.

“Hand her to me,” Ren demanded. “Cat.” His voice rumbled and he pinched my chin, lifting my face high to look at him. He blurred behind my tears. “Nothing will happen to you.”

Tears continued to drip down my chin.

“She seems catatonic,” Asher said gruffly.

Jax muttered in his language. He didn’t sound happy.

“Catalina,” he snapped. I couldn’t move even if I wanted to. He shouldered Ren out of the way, stepping within my sight. Instead of saying anything. He ripped his t-shirt off and unbuttoned his slacks. Sex was usually the answer, but right now I couldn’t stop thinking about gushing bloo?—

Jax’s muscles rippled and shifted and changed. Fur sprouted and from one moment to the next, Binx sat on a pile of clothes.

I gaped. This—the—I shook my head.

I held my palm to my chest.

I’d asked him earlier what his ability was and he’d seemed to want to avoid it. He changed into a cat. . . a cat that had spent quite a lot of time with me. Time I’d been very vulnerable in.

I could only blink.

“H-he.” I couldn’t get any damn words out.

“Now you broke her.” Ren frowned.

“Your mouth is hanging open, Pet.” Asher closed my mouth.

“You’re Binx?”

Ren laughed. Jax, in cat form, hissed at him. His body started rippling until Jax stood a few feet away.

“Binx,” he grumbled. “You couldn’t have chosen a less stupid fucking name.”

I scoffed, offended. Binx was a fine name!

“I should be the angry one, you watched, no, spied on me!” Awareness dawned. “Oh my God, you’ve watched me shower!”

“Don’t get too worked up.” He scowled. “You tried to put a collar on me.”

“And you scratched me for my efforts,” I retorted. His lips pursed.

“What is going on in here?”

I whirled to look at Tobias in the large opening.

“Him.” I pointed at Jax accusingly. His teeth clicked together. Now that I wasn’t blinded by tears, I saw we were in an entertainment area of sorts. With all the ‘man-cave’ fixings. A pool table, a large, oversized television, recliners . . .