Page 16 of Shifter’s Promise (Devourer of Magic)

Chapter

Twelve

W e waited outside, not uttering a word until Leona and the triplets joined us. I raised a brow at her arrival, but she merely shook her head. I’d find out what happened later.

Father led the way through the tall grass with not so much as an acknowledgement. Taking his lead, I only greeted them briefly. Like a line of cubs being escorted by the leader, we followed my father to the edge of the meadows, just out of earshot of the jaguar clan house.

He turned on his heel, anger darkening his features as he turned fiery green eyes on the triplets. “What exactly did you three do to my daughter?”

I blinked in wide eyed surprise. “Uh?—”

“Let them speak, Twinlin,” Father cut me off.

Again, I blinked in shock. Turning to the trio, not one of them met my gaze. Instead, they all stared at the grass surrounding us.

“We didn’t treat your daughter right, that’s true,” Taka said first .

“It wasn’t right,” Raxa grumbled.

“Look, we apologize,” Aya surprised me by saying. I thought Aya would be the last to apologize, not the first.

Father’s growl rumbled low, a simmering threat. “You should be apologizing to Twinlin.” He nudged me forward, and I stumbled before being caught by his protective hand. “She’s who you’ve wronged.”

The trio met my gaze. Burning golden eyes filled with guilt and regret. A grin spread across my face—no need for the confident mask—this haughty smirk was all mine.

“We’re sorry, Twinlin,” Raxa said. His fists shook at his sides, brow set with determination.

“I think you understand why we did it,” Aya continued. Father’s rumble at my back had his eyes flying wide. “That doesn’t mean it was right!” He threw his hands up in defense as he hurried on. “I’m sorry.”

“Very sorry,” Taka agreed, properly chastised.

“Was that so difficult?” Father deadpanned.

I barked a laugh. “Thank you guys. I forgive you.”

Taka’s frown abruptly left with the breeze, his toothy grin returning. “Thanks, Twin.”

Raxa nodded his thanks, as did Aya. Now that things had calmed down, my father’s raging energy cooled.

“Good,” he said. “It’s the least you’re owed.” He patted my shoulder.

“Now that you’ve all made up,” Leona began. Her breathtaking smile pulled me in like the sun. I took an unconscious step toward her. “I have a question for you all.” All attention turned to the fierce lioness. “What is your father’s problem with the leopards?”

Huh .

I hadn’t considered that Jeremiah had a specific problem with us. I just thought he was a greedy man. Was there more to it than that? By the way he abused his sons to get what he wanted, there had to be… right?

“I’m not quite sure,” Taka said. He gazed at the city, pondering.

“He’s always hated the leopards,” Aya continued, brow scrunching. “But he’s never really explained why.”

A heavy sigh pulled my attention to my father. “I might know the answer.”

My eyes widened. “What do you mean?” How could father have known all along?

He avoided my gaze, scratching at his cheek. “I know why Jeremiah hates us so… or more accurately, why he hates me .”

My mouth went dry. He knew?!

“Then why?” Leona asked curiously.

Father straightened. “I suppose it’s time you knew.” He palmed my shoulder and finally met my gaze. “Your mother was originally Jeremiah’s fiance.”

I gasped, hand flying to my lips. “What?”

His lips thinned. “That is until we met.”

I barely caught Leona shifting in my peripheral, but her movement drew my attention anyway. She met my gaze, her sunny eyes full of understanding.

“She was your mate,” Leona said.

My mouth dropped open. I looked between Leona and my father, confusion and disbelief warring. Suddenly, everything made sense. Jeremiah had always hated us for seemingly no reason. He even stole our territory when we could no longer protect it.

All for revenge?

“She was,” Father confirmed. All fight left him. He stood there, slumped. A husk of a man, swaying with the powerful breeze.

I placed a hand on his arm. “Dad, what else were you supposed to do?”

Despite the mixed emotions, I could never begrudge my father his mate. He hadn’t stolen another man’s woman. He claimed the mate that was always meant to be his. But Jeremiah must not have seen it that way. All the angry looks. All the misdirected rage. It all made sense now.

“Mom would never have stayed with Jeremiah knowing her mate was nearby,” I continued. “And you’d never have been able to live with yourself if you didn’t go to her.”

My chest squeezed at the same time my leopard chuffed. We both understood our father, and even Jeremiah, so much better.

“You’re right, Twin,” Father said on a sigh. “I never would have taken her otherwise. I?—”

I smiled. “I know. And hey, if you didn’t, I wouldn’t be here.” Father flinched. “And neither would Kara or the triplets.” I nodded at the trio. “We’re all here today because of the choices made.”

Raxa was the first to step forward in agreement. “She’s right. There’s no grudge to hold, Henry.”

“Lady Fate had other plans,” Aya said. “We wouldn’t be here if She didn’t.”

Taka snorted. “Frankly, I’m glad. I wouldn’t want such an unruly little sister.”

I whipped toward the triplet with the scar through his brow. “Excuse me?”

He grinned, flashing almost every single tooth. “You would have been such a handful growing up,” he teased.

My hands balled. “I’m older than you!”

Three sets of golden eyes rounded in surprise.

Leona burst into laughter. “You’d have made a fantastic older sister.”

I crossed my arms, thinking of Kara. “I already am.”

Father chuckled as he slung an arm around me. “Of course you are.” As our laughter settled, his smile refused to fade. “Thank you, Twin.” He looked up at the rest of them. “Thank you all. I never meant for my past with Jeremiah to lead to… well, this .”

“I’m glad it did,” Taka said firmly.

“We wouldn’t be the same otherwise,” Aya quickly agreed.

“But now that we know why ,” Raxa continued ominously. “We know once and for all that our father’s motives are nothing but selfish.” His brothers nodded in grim agreement.

“We have to do something,” Taka said.

“Agreed,” Father said. “But we should discuss what to do next in a better location.”

I snorted. Yeah, discussing this in an open field probably isn’t the smartest idea.

“Let’s head to your place,” Leona suggested.

We all quickly agreed and made our way back into the city.

“Jeremiah is expecting you all to go out today,” Leona reminded us.

We’d barely stepped onto the stoop, and Leona’s words sent reality crashing down. Right . If we wanted to keep up appearances, we still had to go out where Jeremiah’s people would see us. I had no doubt he’d send a tail this time—especially since he didn’t believe the triplets after our first date.

“You’re right,” I sighed. I’d much rather figure out what to do about Jeremiah. But it could wait until we provided a little show. “We should come back here after.” I looked at the others to gauge their interest.

The triplets nodded grimly. I hated to think what would happen if we didn’t go out. Shaking off that fear, I faced my father.

“Is that all right?”

His lips twisted in a proud smile. “Of course. How smart my daughter has become.” The last part he mumbled, but my cheeks blazed anyway.

From the snickering around me, they’d all heard. Daaaad!

I sighed. “Yeah, yeah. Let’s get going. ”

They might not have mocked me the entire way to the game hall, but they certainly didn’t let it go either. Men . As much as I wanted to be annoyed at them, it felt good to be teased. It provided a levity I’d been missing, while simultaneously making me glad they weren’t my actual brothers.

These heathens would have been hell to raise.

Leona pushed open the thick door. Sound exploded through the doorway.

Is that hunk of wood spelled to be soundproof?

I winced and backed up, right into Raxa. He gently nudged me forward. “Go on. Yeah it’s a bit loud.”

Pushing inside, my eyes widened as I spied the variety of games and tables strewn throughout the long sandstone building.

A bar and tables made up the front of the hall, while the rest was filled with beastkin of all ages.

Children screeched with joy as they dove in and out of a ball pit filled with colorful, rigid cotton balls.

They launched the balls of fabric at one another before diving beneath the surface again.

On the other side of the long room, dartboards lined the wall. Between them there were tables for card games of all kinds. Four shifters sat at one, each eyeing a tower of carved, rectangular sticks. They removed them one at a time, waiting for something .

At the far end of the hall, a band played.

Feather-clad dancers wove throughout the small crowd they’d gathered.

There were knife throwing games, some sort of ball toss and a few other table top games like the stacked sticks—all of which I had never seen before.

Beastkin bustled everywhere, hooting and hollering.

Laughter and pure unbridled joy spilled out of every corner, overwhelming me.

It had been so long since I’d seen so much happiness in one place that it almost felt fake. Unreal. Like this couldn’t possibly be how some lived while I’d suffered so much.

“Have you ever been here before?” Leona leaned down to ask while the triplets piled in behind us. Aya prowled to the bar with feral grace, ready to order drinks while Taka and Raxa debated which table we should grab.

“Never,” I whisper-yelled back. It would be hard to hear each other over the commotion if it weren’t for our shifter hearing.

“Then I think you’ll love it.”

I looked up to find Leona beaming down at me. The skin around her eyes crinkled cutely, making my stomach do somersaults.

I swallowed thickly and nodded. “I think so too.”

Leona linked her arm with mine, making heat rise to my cheeks. She led me through the gaming hall, pointing out all the different kinds of games. By the time we returned, all three triplets had found a table near the back—possibly the quietest corner in the entire establishment.

While the trio sipped on ale, I noted two glasses of red wine, one in a clear cup, the other in a metal goblet.

“Ah, there you are,” Aya said. He leaned back against the cushioned seat. It teetered on its back legs as he regarded us over his shoulder. “We got drinks.” He tipped back down onto all four just as Taka pushed the cup toward me and Raxa the goblet toward Leona.

I couldn’t help eyeing the dark contents suspiciously. After last time, could anyone really blame me?

“It’s not brandy, I promise,” Taka said sheepishly.

“I told him to get it in a glass so you could see what you’re getting,” Raxa explained. He took a sip of his ale, observing the other patrons with disinterest.

“Oh.” I sat down, Leona taking the seat next to me. “Thanks.”

I palmed the cool glass and inhaled the fruity scent of wine. So it was wine. I smirked.

“Glad to see you’ve learned your lesson.” I cheekily took a sip of wine while Taka balked at me.

“What is that supposed to mean?!” he hollered.

I laughed. “That you’re smarter than you look.”

Taka made a strangled sound that only made me laugh harder. “You cheeky little?—”

“She does have you there, brother,” Aya teased. He met my gaze with a grin. “You’re more like a sister than I thought.”

I snorted. “I am not your sister.”

“Not yet,” Aya shot back.

I rolled my eyes. As if . But knowing they saw me that way, a bit of tension left my shoulders. They didn’t see me as their betrothed or someone they wanted to fuck. They saw me as a sister to poke and tease. I’d take that over their previous treatment any day.

“Enough of your nonsense,” Leona said jokingly. “What game did you want to try first?”

Ignoring the grumbles of the triplets, I faced my mate. “I hadn’t really thought about it.”

I took another sip of wine, a pleasant shiver running through me at the taste. It had been so long since I had a good glass of wine. It wasn’t exactly something I got to partake in much over the last decade. Unless it was being forced down my throat at one of Elherd’s infamous balls.

“What about darts or knife throwing?” Taka encouraged. “How’s your aim?”

“I’m not sure.” I blinked in surprise and they did the same. “I’ve never played any of them.”

Aya slammed his hands on the table, sending all of our drinks sloshing. “Unacceptable.”

Even Raxa nodded. “I agree.”

“None?” Leona asked with round eyes.

Was it really that strange?

“Yes?” I questioned, confused.

“We’re going to have to change that,” Taka said, standing. “Let’s go, brothers. We have to show Twin a good time.”

Determination set their brows. They stood as one. Leona quickly followed, taking my hand.

“Let’s find out which is your favorite, shall we?”

My stomach flipped and my chest warmed. If you’d had told me yesterday that the triplets would work with me like this, I’d have said you were crazy. But now? Standing alongside them felt as natural as breathing.

Pulling me around to each game, they explained the rules excitedly, doing demonstrations and even letting me win a couple of times. Though they made comments about my being like a sister, I hadn’t thought of them like brothers until now.

Maybe things wouldn’t turn out so bad after all.