Page 15

15

LEO

“ I t’s your birthday.”

I frowned. “Pardon?”

“It’s your birthday,” Philip repeated. “Look here!”

He turned the laptop around, showing me the calendar. Sure enough, it was indeed my birthday. Huh, where had all the time gone?

“So it is,” I said before returning to my conversation with Frank on how to use the latest smartphones. Technology changed so fast in a short amount of time, and Frank was stuck on the fact that phones didn’t have headphone jacks anymore.

I had to admit, that was a pretty inconvenient tech decision.

Ven suddenly jumped to her feet. “What do you mean it’s your birthday?”

Before I could answer, America stuck her head out of the back door. “Wait, did I just hear that it’s your birthday?”

“Yeah, it is, but it’s not a big deal. Really. I’m just grateful to be alive and have all of us here.” I was being sincere. I’d never been big on birthdays, and with everything we’d gone through, the peace was enough for me. I really didn’t need anything else.

“Oh, bullshit,” Ven said. “When was the last time you even had a birthday anyway? You were stuck as your wolf for so long. None of you were supposed to ever have another birthday again, so we are going to celebrate, and we’re going to celebrate hard.”

“Really, I promise, I’m happy.” I sent my love a grateful smile, thinking that would be the last of it. I didn’t think my opinion was something I could be wrong about, but I was quickly corrected of that notion when everyone around me insisted we needed to celebrate. Birthdays were us laughing in the faces of the very warlocks who had tried to end us all.

They had point there.

And that was how I’d ended up being whisked off on a long run with Ricky and several others while everyone set up for one hell of a shindig. There would be no punches pulled because half the people setting it up were Latin. Although I hadn’t hung around many coyote shifters, I knew their celebrations were full of delicious food and often carried on until three in the morning. At least Ven lived deep enough in the country that we wouldn’t be getting any noise complaints.

I tried my best to convince them I didn’t need to celebrate, but it was all in vain, so I simply enjoyed the run. I couldn’t even remember the last time I’d truly sprinted with my packmates in the wild. Running was a huge part of our culture, and it felt like it was one more thing we were reclaiming for ourselves.

I couldn’t say quite how long we ran, but it was long enough that I was pleasantly exhausted when we returned, my flank on the verge of overheating. It was also the longest I’d ever been in my wolf form since Ven had broken my curse. I had forgotten what it was like to just be my wolf self rather than only taking that form to rush into battle. Now that things were calmer, I could take the time to do more leisurely things so my inner wolf and I could both stay healthy and on the same page.

“Man, that smells amazing,” Ricky said as we approached the opening in the woods around Ven’s land.

I had to agree with him. I’d always been a fan of barbacoa, tamales, empanadas, and the like, but I only ever had it when I traveled, and that rarely happened. My mouth watered as we approached the house, but even with all the smells and sounds, I still wasn’t quite expecting what awaited me.

There were six long folding tables set up in the yard, the kind that reminded me of church potlucks. A combination of folding chairs and camping seats surrounded them, while yet another two long tables were laden with tinfoil-covered containers. Someone had pulled up a grill, which was smoking pleasantly on the far side of the garden, and the kitchen windows were open, so another bouquet of mouthwatering smells drifted out from it.

“Holy shit,” I said, well and truly shocked that they’d managed to do all this in a few hours. It hadn’t even felt like we were gone that long.

“Do you like it?” America asked, bounding up to me out of nowhere. I had to admit, the girl moved fast.

“It’s definitely impressive.” I didn’t mean to sound cagey, but I was truly surprised by the lavish display and the fact that everyone present seemed so excited. My birthday wasn’t a big deal to me, but clearly the little slice of normalcy was a huge deal to everyone else. I wouldn’t be a wet blanket about it. If people wanted to celebrate, then I would celebrate.

“But do you like it?”

“I love it. It’s really amazing what you guys have done so far.”

America beamed at me, and I got swept up a bit in the festive spirit. It was hard not to when everyone looked so eager. “This ain’t nothing. If you ever want to see a real party, you should come down to one of my nieces’ quinceaneras . We’ll show you how we really throw down. Although, you’ll have to bring your rhythm. Dancing is obligatory.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. Have you seen Ven around? I want to steal her for a minute.”

“Actually, I have to call ixnay on that. She’s busy in the kitchen and gave me orders not to allow you in there until she gives the word.”

“Really? I’ve been banished from the kitchen?”

“Effective immediately.”

I laughed. I was alpha, so I could order her to stand aside and march right into the kitchen, but I didn’t even have the faintest compunction to do that. My father always told me that being the best alpha wasn’t about how much you could order your people around, but how well you listened and provided for your people. Instead of arguing, I shook my head and looked at Ricky.

“I guess we’re a bunch of kitchen fugitives now.”

“Sorry, boss, but from what I’m hearing, you’re the only one who’s been banished, not the rest of us. I’m going to head inside and see if there’s any morsels I can sneak a taste of.” He clapped my shoulder. “Have fun being social with all our lovely guests.”

I narrowed my eyes at him, glowering. “Traitor.”

“Blame your mate’s excellent cooking.” He gave a jaunty little salute, then strode toward the kitchen like the cocky beta he was.

It turned out that time flew quickly with loved ones, even with Ven locked away from me in the kitchen. Before I knew it, two hours had passed, and it was suddenly time for the punch and everyone to enjoy some appetizers.

And, boy, were there a lot of appetizers.

Even though all the mains were still cooking, the food tables were practically overflowing with finger food. Granted, we were all shifters, so a lot of food was necessary. Honestly, if a dozen or so of our pack weren’t still recovering and on a simple diet, the dishes would have been empty within minutes.

I was worried Ven would stay locked in the kitchen and miss the entire first spread, but she finally emerged, dressed in denim shorts and a ruby-red tank top that made me want to ditch the party and carry her up to her bedroom like a caveman.

I wasn’t an idiot, though, and I knew she had put a lot of work into the party. So, I strode forward and kissed her stupid before offering her my arm and guiding her over to the appetizers.

“Happy birthday, my love,” she said, grinning up at me. The sparkle in her dark eyes made my heart thunder.

“Thank you for making it the best one I’ve ever had.”

She laughed and playfully jostled my arm. “Wait until you taste my cooking before you get all sappy.”

“I don’t need to. It’s the best birthday because I get to spend it with you.”

And there it was, the blush I loved so much rushing up her neck and spilling across those cherubic cheeks of hers. She really was pretty in pink in every way possible.

“That’s not fair, babe,” she murmured.

From anyone else, that was a bad statement, but with my beautiful Ven, I knew exactly what she meant. After a life of so much detraction and people trying to chip away at her confidence, genuine compliments disconcerted her. I kissed the top of her head as we loaded our plates up with the delicious fare.

We sat at the head of the table and dug in, chatting idly with everyone around us. I was going with the flow, but when Ricky handed me an ice-cold beer, I was struck with how incredible this was.

Not too long ago, we’d all been wild animals. Mindless and completely disconnected from our humanity. Lost. But thanks to one woman giving me a simple kiss on my snout, we were alive and restored to our natural way of being. Just a couple of months ago, we were a tragic story. A tale of caution for going up against the powerful. But now? Now the men who had hurt us and so many others were dead, and we were thriving. We were celebrating life together when the brothers had meant to strip it from us forever.

Incredible.

For the rest of my life, I would never take such things for granted again. The ability to have a cookout. The ability to talk and laugh as loud as we wanted to while stuffing our faces. Telling old, embarrassing stories about teenage me, listening as those around me remembered more and more of their lives. Sitting with my arm around my lover, with no threat hovering over our heads.

At least that’s what I thought.

Thunder cracked over our heads out of nowhere, startling a good number of us. While storms were a fairly normal occurrence, this was no normal storm. A normal storm would not have the hair on the back of my neck standing on end.

The sky grew dark, like night was rolling in, and lightning flashed a beat later. I rose to my feet, about to order everyone to get inside, when a figure emerged from the clouds and descended downward.

Who the fuck was that? All the brothers were dead, so it couldn’t be one of them. And it wasn’t like they had a lot of allies in the magical world since they’d pissed off or killed everyone they came into contact with. Who could possibly?—

A scent hit me, and I knew exactly who it was. My blood ran cold, and I had to swallow hard to prevent bile from rising in my throat. It was like the brothers’, but more. Older. More powerful. It had a deep allure that went beyond physical appeal.

“Vanessa, I need you to run. Go to the cave.”

“What—”

“Just go!” I hissed. There was no time to explain that the raven-haired woman hovering in the air was none other than the mother.

Katarina Morgana, the powerful witch who hadn’t been seen in over fifty years.

Jet-black hair, alabaster skin, eyes so green they practically glowed. Supposedly directly descended from Morgan La Fay, carrying a power all her sons had tried to emulate.

We were so fucked.

Thankfully, Ven didn’t argue with me. She took off running at full speed, but it wasn’t fast enough. A translucent wall of black shot up all around the garden and cabin, blocking everyone in.

“Now, now,” Katarina chided. “No getting away now. Not when I finally found you.”

Her voice was unlike any other I’d ever heard. Ancient but smooth. Full of honey and ash. It was the promise of total devastation while also hinting at forbidden bliss. I could understand how she’d had so many lovers in the magical community. There was something borderline eldritch and untouchable in her words.

She raised her hand, and lightning cracked down again, hitting Ven’s cabin. I heard Ven scream behind me, and I couldn’t blame her as a good quarter of her home went up in flames.

As Katarina’s feet touched the ground, she waved her hand again and the flames died out, smoke drifting through the air. She did it without even batting an eye, and fear coiled in my belly. We were facing the closest thing to a god.

Fuck.

I was only halfway through my shift when the witch sent a powerful blast of wind whipping through the gathering. Tables rose up, sending paper and cups flying, even hitting people with chairs. The debris from the cabin soon joined in, making a vortex of dangerous flying objects. I wasn’t too worried about myself or my people—we would heal if anything hit us—but Ven was so much softer and more vulnerable. Although she seemed to have incredible powers, too, she didn’t have enhanced healing, nor could she call upon her plant powers at will. They only seemed to manifest at times of great stress, or even as a survival trigger.

I braced myself as I waited for the torrent to end, knowing I stood no chance, but hopefully, I could give my family time to run.