Page 38 of Shift of Morals (Shifter Lords #2)
Chapter
Twenty-Six
CAELAN — A FEW WEEKS LATER
A ll attempts to find Finn turned out to be futile, and Donovan’s “investigation” proceeded in exactly the way I thought it would—slow and full of barricades. My wedding fast approached and with it, a gray cloud of dread hanging over the Keep.
Bucking the established power of the Council to release myself from this farce of a wedding would cripple me and my people. Without their support, we’d be considered a rogue establishment, open to attack by every other territory in the country.
As much as I disliked my current situation, the Council and its Lords had me by the balls.
Rowan’s suggestion of marriage niggled at the back of my mind, but every time I thought about it, I dismissed the option.
Evie wouldn’t marry anyone she didn’t want to, and she was dangerous and volatile enough to destroy anyone who tried to force her.
Never before had I let something or someone like her stay inside my territory boundaries.
In the past, I would have thrown them out with little fanfare, but everyone knew I had a soft spot for the little violent Floromancer.
Time would tell if she became my downfall or my saving grace.
I hadn’t heard from Evie since her update on Finn, and the more time I had to think about things, the more I had to assume the deadly Chimera and the man obsessed with the Floromancer were one and the same.
The question was, why did he want Evie so much? Was he as fascinated by her as I was or did he want her for other, more nefarious means? But more importantly, were there other Chimeras in my territory?
If there were, I’d have to handle them with extreme prejudice and exterminate them with no mercy.
The bonding ceremony was still on, Gianna self-assured of the god’s blessings and her future place in my Keep. But she walked around with a new, odd stiffness in her posture, and she didn’t throw as many barbs as before. Strange but I wasn’t complaining.
I hadn’t heard from the one I’d bargained with, but I felt confident the god would show up and throw the entire ceremony into disarray. What kind of disarray was still up in the air.
A message came through, and my heart stopped for a brief second when I saw it was Evie. But her message was short and to the point.
Bonding arrangement samples are on the way to the Keep via courier. Send me back the number you like, and I’ll get to work on it. The others are almost finished. Warmest blessings on your upcoming nuptials.
My lips pulled back from my teeth at that last sentence.
Thank you for the update, flower girl. Any more signs of Finn?
None. With the bouquet gone, Finn should have no more access to the shop or my property.
We’re still looking for him. Be careful.
Will do.
The office door burst open, revealing a travel weary, haggard Garrett.
I hadn’t seen the man in weeks once I’d sent him off to track down Halvard.
Garrett might be a mean sonofabitch, but he was my friend and the best tracker in the entire country.
His presence here today with no warning of his return did not bode well for Halvard’s fate.
I gestured for him to sit and took a bottle of Scotch and two glasses from the tray by my desk. Without a word, I poured us both two stiff portions and pushed one over to him.
“He’s dead, isn’t he?”
Garrett drained the glass in a single swallow. I poured him another.
“Yes, Lord. Most assuredly so.”
Something else had been tugging at my brain for a while now about Halvard and his link to Evie. “Any strange magic around the body?”
Garrett’s fingers trembled. He drained the second portion. “Yes.” His jaw tightened. “I’ve only seen this magic once before, many years ago when traveling through Europe.”
Then Garrett said the words I’d been dreading for weeks now.
“I believe we have a Chimera in our midst.”