Page 71

Week Two

B enjy catches her before she hits the ground, which is more than I can say for the rest of us. We exchange a look because we remember when she did this even as a kid. I don’t know why no one has figured out why the fuck she blacks out all the time, but it seems like something that should have been resolved by now.

People here are going to ask questions she isn’t ready for if it keeps happening.

I growl in frustration because I could help—maybe—but I can’t seem to get a moment alone with her since the tryst at her house. She’s collected a gang of admirers since I last saw her, and it complicates things immensely. The doctors are inductees, but this weird chick is a mystery. I can have that jackass Haggerty look into her ICE records, but that will take time. This situation is far too complex for some random chick to be hanging around.

There’s no way Jolene is going to stay a lost one. I can feel it in my bones, and when we were together, the parts of me that aren’t human felt it. I don’t know why she hasn’t awakened yet, but there’s power humming underneath her skin. It wants out, and I can’t figure out what’s stopping it.

I need her to understand that she’s goddamned made for me.

Every time she sasses me, I want to throw her over my shoulder and smack her ass, but I also want to push back. I’ve never enjoyed the push-pull before; I prefer being completely in charge, but with her…

The docs hover over her nervously, and I growl under my breath. I don’t know where she picked them up, but I can tell by the way they stared back at me I won’t be able to scare them off. The Irish girl is trying to calm the gigantic bird—where did that come from anyway—and the cats are locked in a standoff with my dogs. This scene is utter chaos, and it makes my head hurt.

As I walk to the bar, I whistle for the hounds to help ease some of the noise. That’s when I catch the wild girl’s eyes and she squints, then grins broadly. Some lightbulb just went off in her skull and I don’t have the foggiest what, but she seems determined to finish sorting out the animal mess.

I step up to the bar and my drink slides across it, and I tell the bartender to get a cold cloth from the kitchen. When he returns, he asks about the line on the Polecats, but State U’s team is the last thing on my mind at the moment. I’m not in the business of giving out freebies, but I’m sure my guys will be taking his action sometime this week. I sip my drink and watch the crowd of people around Tilly again, sighing when I realize I’ll need to take charge.

“She’s done this in front of you all before, right? She did it in school, too,” I remark as I walk over again.

The docs don’t answer, but their guilty looks say they know something. Wild girl finally nods, and that prompts them to do the same.

Thanks for the info, guys.

“It’s never lasted for more than a couple of days, but that was a long time ago. Does anyone have more up-to-date information?”

Fletcher looks sheepish. “A couple of hours.”

The Irish lass nods. “Aye, never more than a few hours. Maybe we should take those bloody sofas and let her lie down. Seems like you gents could use a chat.”

“Agreed. I’ll carry her over if you three oversee the menagerie,” I reply. I move to pick her up and Fletcher blocks me.

“Who died and made you the sugarplum whisperer, Edgar Boone? Last I heard, you were a ghost .”

Motherfucker. She’s got him wrapped around her pinky and then some. I’ve never heard him sound this pissed.

I’m not the most powerful guy in town, but I’m definitely near the top of the food chain in all the ways that count. The normally submissive vet and the usually passive avian stare me down with more chutzpah than I’ve seen out of them in the entire I’ve known either of them. Tilly’s definitely shared her big dick energy with them, and her friend is smirking like a crazed leprechaun.

“Fine, fine. You two settle her in and deal with her animals. I’ll get Henry to rustle us up some food and drinks. Benjy will have Amelia throw a net over where we’re sitting so we can have a private conversation. Good enough?”

The guys nod, but the redhead tilts her head at me before saying, “ Diatírisi, prostasía, yperáspisi… o kyklos den teleiónei ? 1 . ”

Son of a hog wrangler shine swiller. Of course she has one.

This girl’s presence makes sense now, and everything clicks into place. Jolene has a Guardian because all the lost ones have a Guardian. They’re always watching, though I’ve never seen one operate like this. That may be because my girl hasn’t emerged and they don’t know if she will. Now I know why her energy has felt off to me since the moment I saw her. I look over at Benjy and he nods—he noticed it, too.

“ Gia na epiviósoume, prépei na prostatéfsoume tous néous ? 2 , sugar.”

Hamilton rolls his eyes at us. “If we’re all done showing our cards before we find a table, may I suggest we retire to a less public space? Seems like there’s going to be a lot of dick swinging, and y’all remember how Nelia hates public spectacles. Nothing gets by that woman.” He picks up my drugar like she weighs nothing and carries her towards the back corner.

I whistle for my hounds and head for the bar, noting how concerned the dogs look as they watch the doctor transport Tilly. That’s unusual, and I hope this squad of misfits can help me put together enough information to help Jolene before something bad happens. After I place an order with Henry—including food for the animals, though that was strictly guessing—I walk back to where the Irish lass and the doctors are chatting quietly. Gesturing at Benjy, I wait for his nod, knowing that he’s having Amelia cast a bubble over our space to prevent our discussion from being overheard.

Having a variety of supes in this town is handy for many reasons, and this is one of them.

When I sit down, the girl looks at me with narrowed eyes. “Aye, I know who you are now, Edgar Boone—both from a Society standpoint and from your role in Peanut’s past. Why are you here?”

Great. We don’t have time for a walk down memory lane, but we’ll get nowhere if I don’t spill.

Sighing as I rake a hand through my hair, I decide that brevity is the better part of wit. “You’re correct—my past with Tilly is tumultuous for several reasons. I don’t believe it’s in our best interests to rehash that because it’s a truth that I owe her and no one else. However, now that she’s returned to our hometown, the most urgent topics are current issues.” I pause, waiting for all of them to nod and continue. “I realize that you, an unknown friend, are her Guardian, so you’re naturally concerned with her well-being. You realize that this entire town is an enclave, and most of the people here are hybrids or their adoptive families.”

“Duh,” she says. “They dinna pick me because I’m a prat, doggy. I can see through the web just like the rest of ye.”

“Care to share your name, then?” I ask, wondering if she’s withholding it because like Wolfgang, it is an important detail to her species.

Letting out a rude snort, she points at me. “ You need to get out of this town more. I know what yer thinkin’...ye think I’m a flitting faerie like the puppy here. Not even close, but I’ll give ye my name because we’re bound to become more acquainted. Saoirse Viola O’Flanagan, Guardian to Miss Jolene Athena Whitley, at your service.”

The docs let out sighs of relief and I realize they’ve been silent as the two aggressive people duked it out. “Okay, Saoirse. Now that we’ve all been introduced, do you have any idea why our girl hasn’t emerged yet?”

She shakes her head. “No. When I was assigned to her before she left for Europe, Andromeda and my cheiristís ? 3 discussed her history from here and at college. I was given all of her medical information, family details, and the full package to make certain I could ingratiate myself as easily as possible. It was a bit shocking that she didn’t have a Guardian after she left the Hollow, and worming your way into an adult’s life is more difficult than a teenager, you know.”

“So you and Sugarplum basically lived together all those years you were traveling around the world?” the vet asks, his expression unsure.

“Aye, but not how yer thinkin’, pup. Peanut an’ I considered that route for about a half a tick, but we knew we weren’t meant to be together that way.” She bobs her brows at us with a mischievous expression. “That’s not to say we didn’t get bloody wild in each other’s presence, of course. Years runnin’ around Europe an’ Asia together was a wealth of experience. Yer girl’s not the least ashamed of her preferences.”

This time, I bark a laugh because I’m well aware of that detail after our night together. Matching amused expressions cross the docs’ faces, and I realize they don’t need the pointer, either.

Shit. I’ll have to reveal what I know before someone gets hurt.

“She’s my mate.” My statement is blunt, but it gets the point across without starting a debate.

“Join the club,” Wolfgang retorts and when my eyes widen, Hamilton nods his agreement.

Saoirse tilts her head, looking over at Tilly, and then back at us. “You all feel the mate call?”

We nod, and I’m surprised to hear a throat clearing. My head whips around and I look at Benjy, who I swear might be blushing. The big guy shrugs as he looks at us. “I do, too, but unlike you, I have no idea how I’m going to handle it. When I married Sherilynn, I thought a true mate was not in my stars.”

This is going to ugly as hell and I don’t envy my friend one bit.

“Well, fuck me with a potato peeler. Peanut’s got four of ye on the hook. I wonder if there are more floatin’ around this backwards village?” Saoirse frowns as she considers. “I suppose we’ll find out. I’ll have to contact my cheiristís for instructions—if she has true mates here, the likelihood of emergence is enormous. I have to be here for that.”

“Ahem.” Presley looks at us expectantly, waiting for the chatter to die down. “As the expert on that topic, I’m concerned about the blackouts. After Jolene did it in front of Lucy and I, we both contacted our cheiristís with no success. The dragon should have been able to point me in the right direction, but he’s never heard of a lost one losing time in this way.”

That knowledge is received in pensive silence. Finally, I add, “I spoke to my contacts in the Society discreetly. Unlike many of the hybrids they adopt out to enclaves like ours, they have no information on where Jolene came from or what her supe sides might be. Did anyone else have luck determining what we should expect?”

Saoirse grins. “I, too, spoke with a number of people and sources over the years. I even snatched some blood after an accident in Prague. It’s a feckin’ mystery.”

“I don’t even think Nelia knows,” Wolfgang murmurs. “If they knew, they wouldn’t have assigned a personal Guardian to keep tabs so late in life.”

“It’s true. I’ve been mates with Peanut since they assigned me. She consulted in Europe and Asia for yanks before she got a wild hair. Moved home and started training for the peelers before I could bat a lash. Wish I knew what shitehawk let that go on for yonks without stalling the ball before it hurt her.”

Hamilton snickers. “I don’t envy the person in Richmond if you ever find out who it was, O’ Flanagan.”

The vet runs his hand over his hair. “The biggest problem is that we all know, and she doesn’t. Whatever happened when she was young that stopped her awakening shadows her memories and perception, according to Saoirse. When Sugarplum finds out we’ve all lied to her, she’ll be furious.”

“Aye,” Saoirse murmurs as she nods. “I don’t have a baldy notion of when we’ll be allowed to spill the beans, but she’ll eat the heads off us.”

I frown as I look at the girl who’s managed to stay in my heart all of these years. Her fire makes my hound flame up, but I don’t want to be her enemy. All of my sides know that she’s ours, even if only one has started the process with a mark. As I glance at the others, I realize none of them want her to be angry at them either, but even combined, we don’t have the pull to get permission to reveal our world before she’s ready. We’re all bound by honor and our word to keep her in the dark until the Society deems the time is right or she fully emerges.

“This fucking sucks and it’s dangerous. Not having any information puts the entire town at risk of exposure. Why did they let her return?” My frustration overflows as I try to work out what the Society was thinking when they sent her flying back before it was time.

“The only way to stop this was to act the maggot with Fate, moiraíos syntrofos ? 4 . Sounds like fair play to you?”

Fletcher shakes his head, his eyes wide. “Absolutely not. No one should live their life tied up like breed stock. Certainly not my sugarplum—there’s a well of passion screaming to get loose.”

Raising my glass, I clink it with his in agreement. “Indeed. What are our next steps, then? We can’t report this conversation, and until the fog lifts, we can’t let anyone trigger events that could get her recalled.”

“Look at you, the disappearin’ man thinkin’ he can order us all around,” Saoirse says wryly. “I’ll work on getting meself reassigned. The doctors over there will help manage my girl and the companions. Since you’re an eejit, you get to figure out how to get her to forgive your thick arse.”

The docs snicker at me and to make matters worse, one of her cats chimes in with a ‘mow’ followed by a honk from the ridiculous bird.

That’s fucking great, I’m being taunted by her animals and her boy toys.

“Fine. We’re in agreement.” I look over at Hamilton. “Do whatever it is that you do and wake the lady up. It’s time you show you’ve been hiding, good Doctor.”

“As you wish, Your Honor,” he grumbles with a sneer.

Ah, that’s more like it. I like submission.

* * *

As it turned out, even Hamilton couldn’t break the hold of whatever knocked Tilly into oblivion. He did everything short of shifting into his giant feathery alter ego in the middle of the bar, but not a damned thing worked. We even called Amelia over to see if she could snap Jolene out of it, but it didn’t budge a thing.

Something is very strange about the way the fog was applied to our girl and even Hamilton doesn’t know what to do.

The best solution we could work out was to haul her home—animals, car, and all—and stay with her until she came out of it. There was a small argument about who was doing what, but in the end, we came to terms. Saoirse took her companions and the Impala while the docs and I followed. Poor Benjy has his own problems to deal with and I made sure he knew I’d assist in any way possible once he decided what he was going to do. After all, he has a family, but the call of a true mate—one who is within your grasp—is impossible to ignore for any supe.

Sherilynn is going to blow her fucking top if she finds out.

Once we arrived at her house, we unloaded everything and the Irish lass retired to a guest room. We got the cats and my dogs settled inside and the eagle took off to hunt. Hamilton said it would be okay on its own, and since that’s his area of expertise, I let it go.

We fell asleep surrounding her in that giant bed of hers, waiting for her to awaken like Sleeping Beauty.

And when she finally did the next morning, she was furious .

Jolene kicked us all out without even listening. The fear in her eyes as we looked at her when we roused told me everything I needed to know: someone hurt my drugar badly and she’s never recovered. Her reaction wasn’t about our past; it was about intimacy.

So we gave her space, but I left my girls with her—just in case. The docs told me about her security issue while we discussed enough of the past to help them understand why Tilly is so skittish around me, and since I’m headed out of town, I wanted to make sure she had extra eyes on her. My dogs were trained by elite security officials from a young age—child of a Senator and all—so they’re ready to defend her if need be.

I’m not about to let someone snatch or hurt my mate now that she’s home.

1 ? Conservation, protection, défense…the circle does not end.

2 ? To survive, we must protect the young.

3 ? Handler

4 ? Fated mate