Page 9

CHAPTER 8

K at fluttered around Rance until the teen snapped at him. “Stop it. I’m fine.”

“Sorry.” Kat settled down in a seat at the kitchen table. He pulled his binder toward him, along with a notepad and pen. “I’ll focus on my stuff and leave you alone.”

“What are you doing, anyway?” Rance sat beside Kat, tilting his head to get a better look at his notes.

”I’m designing a skincare and bath line for Anthony’s hotel. I want it to feel luxurious and make people want to buy more.” If he could get this contract, his future in the pack would be set. He needed the stability, especially if he was going to help Rance. Raising a teen required money, even if they were ridiculously independent.

“Is it hard?”

Kat paused his notations. “The process isn’t difficult, but if I combine the wrong ingredients, I can make people sick or itchy. There needs to be a good balance of cleansing and soothing ingredients. Anthony also asked me to do some species-specific ones, and I’m trying to adapt my current recipes to accommodate.”

“Sounds interesting.”

“What is it that dryads do?” It occurred to Kat that he didn’t know enough about dryads to be a proper guardian.

“What do you mean?” Rance frowned at Kat’s list.

“I mean for a living.”

“We’re trees.” Rance stared at Kat as if he were an idiot. “We provide oxygen.”

“You don’t have jobs or anything?”

“Why would we need jobs?”

“For clothes and food?”

Rance shook his head. “We have simple needs. Some members of the Grove weave clothing; others hunt or forage. I’m pretty good at using my magic to bend wood. I can weave baskets well. We don’t need a lot. There is only so much room in a tree. We sell things we collect in the forest when we want luxuries like books or different food, but other than that we just live.”

Kat didn’t want to push, but his instincts screamed at him to protect the vulnerable youth. Rance might come across as a brash teen, but everyone needed support, and it sounded as if his mother didn’t have time with him while running the Grove. “Are you sure you’re safe there?”

Beneath Kat’s regard, Rance bit his lip and fidgeted with the hem of the tablecloth. “I’ve been avoiding thinking about that. They don’t want me, and I don’t want to live with them if I can avoid it. Don’t get me wrong, I love Mother, but I’m tired of being around people who hate me. This is my chance to leave.”

The desperation in his voice tugged at Kat’s heart. He patted Rance on the back. “Do you think your mother would stay in a place that won’t accept her son? Especially if they need you to create the Grove.”

Rance’s cheeks flushed. “Mother would want to stay for the health of the Grove. The others don’t understand Mother Nature's rites enough to maintain a healthy forest, and Mother isn’t the type to abandon people to their fate, even if they want to kick her son out.” Rance bit his lip. “Some of them have been calling me an abomination since I was a baby. A new Grove won’t change their opinion even if I grow it.”

The teen sounded fed up with the entire situation. Kat didn’t blame him.

“You can stay here,” Kat blurted out. Damn, he meant to be more subtle. He’d been balancing his budget in his head and was confident he could make enough to support them both.

Rance’s eyes lit up for a second before he frowned again. “For how long?”

“Well, you have three years until you’re eighteen. You can stay here until you reach your majority, and then you can decide what you want to do afterward. We can prepare you for college or train you in a trade. You don’t have to go back to them.”

“I don’t want to impose.”

Despite his words, Kat saw the hope in his eyes.

“It’s no imposition. I know you barely know me. You can say no, but I’d enjoy the company. I can’t imagine you’ll be a lot of work. You seem self-sufficient.” He was almost too self-sufficient, as if he’d been caring for himself for years. Maybe it was his dryad nature. Kat would be the first to admit he knew little about dryads.

Rance leaned over to get a better look at Kat’s notes. “I can read, but I’ve never been to school. I don’t think I’d do well in college with all those people around me. Can’t I help you instead?”

Kat raised an eyebrow. “You want to make skincare products?” That wasn’t something he’d think would appeal to a teenage boy.

Rance hummed. “I know my herbs. It’s part of being a dryad. I could instinctively tell if something conflicted. See here.” He pointed to two ingredients on Kat’s list. “If you combine these, it will be super itchy for vampires and could cause rashes.”

Kat reviewed Anthony’s list against the recipe and nodded. “You’re right. How about you can be my consultant while we home-school you? I’m sure some on the pack would be willing to help. I don’t want someone to take advantage of you when you enter the real world.”

“That sounds good, but don’t you think you should ask your mate before offering me a place to stay?”

Kat frowned. “If he’s willing to kick out a kid, he isn’t the mate for me.”

“You can always ask him now.”

“I don’t want to call him until I know his schedule better. I’d hate to interrupt him while he’s doing something important.”

“He’s free now.”

“How do you know that?”

Rance pointed. “Because he’s at the back door.”

Kat’s head snapped up. Xavier’s face was framed in the back door window. He waved when Kat looked his way. Kat stumbled to his feet, tripping over the chair leg and almost face-planting onto the floor. Luckily, he regained his balance in time.

He ripped the door open after fumbling with the chain. “Hey,” he called out, breathless.

“Hello.” Xavier’s wide smile eased Kat’s anxiety.

“Do you want to come in?”

“No, he wants to stay on the porch,” Rance called out.

“Teenagers,” Kat sighed.

Xavier laughed, a warm, comforting noise that melted Kat’s spine. “Come in.” He stepped back and waved Xavier inside.

“Hello, Rance.” Xavier nodded to the teen.

“Decided to take me to my mother?” He glared.

“I could, but then you would probably be put in a cell with her.”

“Why?” Rance tilted his head and tried to stare Xavier down.

It was adorable.

“Come sit down. Do you want some coffee?” Kat asked.

“I’ll take the seat, but no on the coffee.” He sat on the other side of Kat. “I just came from talking to the Chimera.”

“The mob boss?” Even Kat had heard of him, and he barely listened to news and gossip.

Xavier gave a crooked smile. “Turns out he’s my older brother. Some of the rumors are true. He did kill a bunch of people, but they were experimenting on him. That’s why he’s a chimera.”

Kat winced. “Sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.” Xavier shrugged. “We lost touch years ago. For all I know, he really is a cold-hearted mob boss. I’m holding back my opinion for now.”

“Fair enough.” A silence fell over the table.

“Is that what you wanted to tell us?” Rance broke in. “That your brother is a mob boss?”

“Not exactly. He wants me to make sure that Rance stays with the Moon Pack for safety. He thinks, and I agree, that Octavia might try something.”

“Even if she knows Rance is a Green Man?”

“Maybe.” Xavier turned to Rance. “Do you think she would still want you gone if she knew you were needed?”

Rance took a few minutes before answering. “Truly? I don’t think it will matter to her. Octavia has always hated me. She would convince herself and others that they could do it without me rather than let me near the new Grove. Mother Nature blessed or not.”

Xavier nodded. “That’s what I took from my discussion with Melcori.”

“What should I do?” Rance got up to pace.

“Right now, she can’t do much while in Melcori’s custody. I’m worried about who she might have contacted before Melcori put her in a cell.” Any number of people could be hunting Rance right now, and they wouldn’t have a clue until it was too late.

Kat didn’t know what to say. This poor kid had it tough. Not only did the people who raised him want him kicked out, but at least one of them wanted him dead and was willing to kill everyone else to achieve that. ”The best thing to do is have you stay here. We’ll tell Silver the situation. You should be safe enough on pack lands for the next few days until we figure out who might be hunting you and how to keep you safe.”

Xavier nodded along to Kat’s words. “Kat’s right. We don’t know all the players right now. We can only protect you where you are and make sure you don’t go anywhere alone.”

“We still need to find a site for the Grove,” Rance interrupted Kat’s spiraling thoughts. “I need to be the one to pick it out.”

“Why?” Xavier asked. “Melcori was going to let Octavia pick so she would be happy with the location.”

“It must resonate with my magic. I doubt it will do that with any site Octavia picks.”

“I can’t argue against that.” Xavier stood and pressed his hands on Rance’s shoulders. “Are you sure you want to do this? You don’t owe them anything. Melcori and Jared might want the gems, but this will affect your people, you most of all.”

“Xavier’s right.” Kat flexed his claws. They would shred a few trees quite nicely. “Don’t rush into making a decision.”

“I’m not.” Rance tilted his chin up and pinned them with a serious expression. “Like I said before, I can’t leave Mom homeless, and she won’t leave the others without a Grove.” His face had a complicated expression as if he were doing this against his will but set on doing it anyway.

It would’ve bothered Kat, too, if he knew his parent wanted the safety of others before him. For a teen, Rance had a mature outlook. “I don’t want to fight with everyone forever. Once they are settled, I’ll permanently move in.”

Kat nodded. With Rance here, he could continue to help the boy with his burns. They were healing faster than a human but slower than a shifter, and they still needed treatment. He sighed and retracted his claws. “I always thought dryads were a peaceful race.”

Rance made a scoffing sound. “Just because we’re tree spirits doesn’t mean we don’t have egos and tempers. We have fights between us like everyone else. Did you ever step into a forest and think maybe you shouldn’t be there?”

Kat and Xavier nodded.

“That’s when the nature spirits are fighting. We aren’t the only thing in the woods with bouts of moodiness.”

Kat’s feline curiosity wanted to interrogate the teen over what else lived there, but his more practical side told him he really, really didn’t want to know.

He kept silent.

“Does anyone know why Octavia made her move now?” Kat couldn’t think of anything to justify destroying a Grove and traumatizing them all, especially since it was also her home they burned down. “Rance is at the point where they could age him out of the Grove. She didn’t have to burn it down. If she had enough support, couldn’t she have done a silent coup?”

Rance’s voice was quiet as if confessing a deep sin. “No. A Grove only gets one child. If I died in the fire, Mother would be inconsolable, and Octavia could easily take over the leadership position of the new Grove. No one else wants the responsibility. It was her last chance to end me before I left on my own. Octavia probably saw this as her one chance to have a new Grove and a child.”

“Dryad politics are more complicated than I thought,” Xavier murmured. “He’s probably right. I don’t know how Melcori found Octavia, but they somehow came to an agreement that served them both well. She didn’t get away with it, though, because with you still alive, your mother won’t step down, especially now that she knows how far Octavia will go to rule the Grove. At least that was my take.”

Rance frowned. “She’ll dig in her roots. I think you’re right about her willing to send someone to kill me. Octavia has always been determined to get me to leave. I’ve always been suspicious that the fungus that harmed my mother’s last tree might not have been an accident.”

“You think she was trying to take out your mother even then?” Kat pulled out the chair beside him.

Rance ignored it. “It wouldn’t surprise me.”

Kat was worried over how casually Rance commented on someone wanting him dead. If it were him, Kat would burn the new Grove down to the ground if it prevented the woman who killed his child from power.

“Do you think she’d hurt Mother to get to me?” Rance asked nervously.

Xavier shrugged. “You know her better than me, but from what I’ve learned about your mother, I doubt she’d have any problems holding her own.”

Rance grinned. “She can be rather vicious.”

“Maybe we should move you to the main pack house until the danger has passed,” Kat fretted.

Rance stopped pacing and settled back in a chair, pinning Kat with a serious expression in his big eyes. “We still need to pick a new location for a Grove.”

“Do you know what to look for?” Xavier asked.

Rance nodded. “I’m sure I can find a spot in the same forest. Plus, starting a Grove on land I’m familiar with will be easier. I know that forest’s magic and it will guide me to a new home.”

“I’ll take you,” Kat offered.

Xavier scowled. “Are you sure? I could come along if you want.”

“Don’t you have a Mastery project to finish?” Kat asked.

Xavier bit his lip and didn’t reply for several minutes as if trying to come up with a counterargument. “Yes, but I don’t know if I’m comfortable with you two alone.”

“You’re not comfortable with me alone in a forest?” Rance arched an eyebrow at him. “Did you forget I’m a dryad?”

“But there are other dryads after you,” Xavier countered.

“The ones after him are locked up. I’m sure between us, we can stay safe walking in a known forest,” Kat scoffed.

Xavier’s sigh held a century of angst. “I don’t want you to think I don’t trust you to take care of yourself, and you’re right; I have a lot of work to do, but Melcori told me this has priority.”

“We’ll be fine,” Kat countered in a dry tone.

“I’ll convince Melcori to let you stay here until it’s time to grow the new Grove for your protection.”

“Sounds good,” Rance agreed with a sunny smile.

Kat suspected by his quick agreement that they did more than call Rance names, but it was too early in their relationship for Rance to share all his troubles.

“Also, if they plan to kick you out after you build their Grove, there should be some compensation. Maybe a percentage of the gem money. Melcori has a soft spot for kids. He’ll work a contract in your favor over the other dryads if I tell him the situation.”

“I’m not a kid,” Rance sneered with all the glory of teenage pride.

Xavier laughed. “Melcori is ancient. Everyone is a kid to him. Trust me, I know. He raised me. For this, you want to capitalize on being a kid.”

“What happened to your parents?” Rance asked.

Kat protested. “Rance, he might not want to share all the details of his personal life with strangers.”

Rance frowned. “But you’re his mate.”

“Just because mates feel a pull to be together doesn’t mean everything will magically work out. We still need to get to know each other like regular people.” Kat had heard dozens of stories about mates breaking up because they skipped communication for sex. That only worked out in short-term relationships and porn stories.

“Thank you!” Xavier said, his voice louder than before. “No one wants to admit that having a mate bond doesn’t immediately solve every relationship problem. I’m glad you agree.”

Kat nodded. “Definitely.” He patted Rance’s arm. “Let Xavier talk to Melcori. They can iron out the details before bringing you in. You’ll see your mother soon. We only have a few more days before the Grove magic transfers. This situation won’t last forever.”

“You’re right. I just miss her.” He turned a shy look in Kat’s direction. “I’d like to return here after the Grove is established.” He paused and bit his lip before continuing. “If you’re still willing to have me.”

“Of course.” Kat knew he’d be glowing with joy if he were fae.

“Wait, what does he mean?” Xavier asked.

Kat took a deep breath before replying, hoping this wouldn’t be a problem. “I offered Rance a place to stay. It’s not right to kick a kid out of his home at fifteen. And, yes, I know he probably doesn’t need much care, but no teen deserves to be without proper support, even if he does have a home tree he carries around with him. I’m sorry if you don’t want to have a teen to look after so soon after meeting your mate, but I won’t abandon him!” His voice had become a little screechy in the end.

“Whoa.” Xavier held up his hands as if to hold off the verbal torrent. “I have nothing against you giving Rance a permanent home, but maybe you should talk to his mother before you’re set on raising her kid.”

Kat gave a stiff nod. “Sorry, I’m rather passionate about this topic. I don’t want any kid to be homeless.”

“Considering my parents tossed me aside when I was eight, I completely support that viewpoint.”

“What!” Rance shouted.

Xavier scraped his fingers through his hair. “It’s a long story. Maybe I’ll tell you another time.”

Rance nodded, then changed the topic entirely. “I can put my tree right there.” He pointed out the window to Kat’s backyard, his hand flailing in excitement.

Kat let out a pleased purr.

“Maybe you and Rance should stay at the pack house until this is resolved.”

“Are you trying to hide me or Rance?” Kat winced. That had come out sharper than he planned.

“I’m trying to protect you. The fewer people who know we’re mated right now, the safer you are.”

Kat wrinkled his nose. “You think Melcori will harm me?”

“No, but I think he’d use you as a bargaining chip.”

Kat held back the dozens of questions he had about Xavier’s childhood. Unfortunately, he couldn’t ask them now after reprimanding Rance about his intrusive questions. From what he knew of Blood Mage Masters, they weren’t exactly warm and paternal, something he should probably keep in mind when dealing with his mate.

Kat longed to know everything about Xavier, from how he grew up to what he planned to do once his apprenticeship ended. Would he want to move in with Kat, or did he have his own place?

“As long as you can find me, that’s what matters?” Kat batted his eyelashes at Xavier, making him laugh.

“Can I go to my room?” Rance asked a slight whine in his voice. “I don’t want to watch old people flirt.”

Kat flicked him on the forehead. “Better get used to it if you want to live here. How about I call the pack house and have someone take you for a sleepover? I’d feel better if you spent time with the pack before deciding whether you want to stay here permanently. Besides, I hear they’re having a video game tournament this afternoon. I don’t know who all is there, but you can at least learn about games.”

“Sounds fun!” Rance’s grin was the widest Kat had seen so far.

“Great, I’ll make some phone calls.”

“Okay.” Rance flashed a cautious glance toward Xavier. “Could you tell Mother that I’m safe?”

“I will,” Xavier reassured the teen.

“Go pack a few things to stay overnight. It’s too late to go Grove shopping today.”

“Thanks!” Rance shouted over his shoulder as he ran from the room.

“No running!” Kat shouted back at him.

“You already sound like a parent,” Xavier smirked.

Kat flicked him in the forehead.