Page 10

G ods-dammit to hell and back. I knew a brawl was inevitable. Seth had called me for help, the little witch still learning the basics of telepathy and unable to do so herself.

A tiger and a moose were busy kicking the shit out of each other in the middle of the dining hall, with friends of both parties on the border of jumping in themselves.

I slammed down in my bear form, wedging myself between them.

Fuck!

Caught between antlers and teeth was not where I wanted to be.

Kendrick shoved his way through the throng in his largest stag form, pushing the moose back, their antlers clashing.

That left the tiger to me and I hauled fucking ass on her, pinning her down and closing my jaws around her neck to keep her there.

Calm the hell down .

I need to get out! Fucking moose trying to box me in.

I growled. You can’t leave. No one can.

That only made her thrash harder.

Logan threw herself into the fray, eyes glowing. A smack onto Kendrick’s ass had him toppling the moose and Logan tossed herself to the ground, wrapping her body around the moose’s head.

“Breathe for me. You’re okay.” She stroked a glowing hand along their fur and I could practically see the fight drain out of them. “Change back, please.”

They complied, fur disappearing, a panting male laying naked on the floor with Logan cupping his face.

“Kendrick, take him.”

Logan diverted instantly toward me. The tiger growled and I tightened my jaws. Don’t you fucking growl at her.

“It’s okay,” Logan crooned.

It’s fucking not! This is a gods-damned cage and I need out of it before I kill someone. The tiger swiped at her, and my witch shrieked, the claws tearing into her.

The panthers piled on, throwing their weight onto the tiger with me.

“Stop!” Logan ordered, hand clutched over the blood dripping down her arm. “She’s scared. You’re making it worse.”

The tiger bucked like a damn bronco. I didn’t even know which tiger it was since she was too fucking geared up to give me her name.

“Change into your smallest form,” Logan ordered.

Fuck you .

Logan got right up in the tiger’s face. “You’re a danger to yourself and everyone around you right now. If you don’t change yourself, I will do it for you.”

With no coherent response forthcoming, Logan thrust her hand into the tiger’s fur, the heat of her power searing over the shifter beneath me. Her form melted away until something like a golden striped tabby lay beneath us. Logan snatched her up by the scruff and walked to the nearest exit.

I wasn’t going to let her go anywhere alone when I had no idea what she had done and if the tiger would be stuck in that form. If she shifted while Logan was alone with her… I shook myself as I charged after them, the nest occupants parting like the Red Sea.

What the hell are you doing? I asked in Logan’s head.

“What she needs.”

The cat yowled, but Logan kept a firm grip on the scruff and did some weird hold with the bottom half to stretch those little chicken legs straight out.

Once outside, Logan planted all four of those paws into the grass but kept her hold. “Okay, you’re outside. I’m not letting go until you breathe for me.”

The cat tried to launch away a few times, but Logan’s eyes glowed brighter and the cat stilled.

I settled in to watch at a safe distance, letting her work whatever magic she thought was necessary to get the situation under control.

“I know everything is scary,” Logan said softly. “I know you hate being cooped up. Everything you’re feeling is valid, but you can’t hurt people because of that.”

She stroked down the cat’s little body, a smooth and steady rhythm that made me envious.

My whole form ached from blocking blows, but I could deal with that later.

Watching Logan break down the tiger’s defenses was fascinating as hell.

So many of us resisted being treated like animals, but our systems were designed the exact same way.

All of us loved to be touched, and a gentle caress regulated the nervous system just as well for shifters as it did for humans and regular animals.

Maybe we needed to initiate some cuddle piles to chill everyone out if they didn’t have a partner to cuddle.

Bit by bit, the tiger surrendered until Logan had gathered her into her lap. “There, see? How are you feeling?”

I wasn’t privy to the response, but Logan’s reply made it clear enough.

“Good. Are you hurt? Oh, don’t worry about me. I’ll head in to see the doctor once you’re fully settled.”

I gave them a few more moments to cuddle before I hauled myself up and walked toward them. You need medical attention.

Logan blinked up at me, fingers still working beneath the cat’s ear.

The cat turned plaintive eyes to me. I’m so sorry. I don’t know what came over me. I’ll take whatever punishment you think is necessary.

A panic attack triggering a violent outburst sounds like punishment enough to me. I put my nose to hers. But if you hurt the witch again, I’m going to eat you.

The cat bristled, tucking her face into Logan’s elbow. Understood.

Shakti hovered at the door. “I’ll stay out with her. Take the witch to the infirmary.”

Come on . I nudged Logan with my head and she passed the cat to Shakti as we stepped back inside. Are you putting on a brave face, or do you have some strange witch magic that dulls your pain?

Logan turned to me with tears lacing her bottom lashes. “It definitely hurts.”

Her panthers met her as we stepped inside.

“Logan, fuck, are you okay?” Caden asked. “We got stuck on crowd control.”

I glanced around, noting Yelena and Haru had finally joined us, each sporting a fresh bite on their throats. Will wonders never cease? I’d been wondering how long it would take her to finally claim the wolf when they’d been head over fucking heels for each other for years.

“I could use some painkillers,” Logan admitted, “and some antiseptic. Who knows where those paws have been?”

I led the way, Logan and her panthers following in my wake.

“Panthers,” Yelena called out. “You’re not off duty just yet. Let Velda take care of Logan.”

I gave her a curious look, unsure why she was putting Logan in my hands instead of one of her mates’, but I wasn’t going to say no.

Dr. Atling and Nurse Sarah were already preparing the infirmary and quickly took Logan aside to clean her wounds. I slipped into my human form, dragging Logan into a kiss.

Foolish girl. They could have killed you .

But they didn’t . She hissed, a string of curses tumbling from her as she broke contact.

“I’m sorry.” Dr. Atling didn’t stop her work. “Sarah, she’ll need stitches.”

“I’ll handle it.” Sarah eyed me. “Protector Velda will need some attention as well.”

“I’m fine,” I promised.

“Bullshit.” Dr. Atling eyed me. “Sit down.”

I settled next to Logan so I wouldn’t take up an available bed, choosing the side Sarah wouldn’t need access to.

Logan held my hand as Sarah administered a quick shot to numb the area so she could get started on the stitches.

I didn’t need any myself, but they did do an ultrasound to make sure I didn’t have internal bleeding.

“You’re going to hurt, but it looks like the damage isn’t dangerous,” Dr. Atling announced.

“Nothing I haven’t experienced before.” I waited, distracting Logan while Sarah finished up the stitches.

Logan surveyed my bare skin, taking in the mottled bruising already beginning to form. “I wish I had some kind of healing magic.”

“Don’t you have it? How else did your little panther survive?”

“I think that was more our life-or-death thing. I panic ordered him not to die, but I didn’t heal him.”

I nodded and nuzzled her cheek. “I won’t pretend to understand omega magic, though the emergence of that skill would definitely be helpful. Maybe you can heal yourself with the power surge.”

“Rest first,” Dr. Atling ordered. “Play around with magic later.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Logan said with a laugh.

“Okay, you’re all done,” Sarah announced as she tied off the stitches and applied a sterile cover to the wounds. “We’ll keep an eye on it.”

“Thank you.”

“Do either of you want pain relief?” Dr. Atling asked.

“I’ll suffer for a while and let you know,” I replied.

“Me too,” said Logan. “I don’t want to waste stock when someone else might need it more.”

Kendrick brought in the moose shifter and Shakti came with the other tiger as we were departing. I didn’t miss the relief in Kendrick’s eyes when he saw Logan, or the growing respect in Shakti’s. She was winning them over, even if they wouldn’t admit it.

The dining hall had been cleared in the time it took Sarah to fix Logan up. Caden forced a glass of juice on each of us when he noticed our arrival, looping his arm around Logan to keep her close while she drank.

“I’m fine,” she insisted.

“I don’t care.”

The others crowded around—Yelena, Haru, and Seth. Laila too, the gargoyle emerging from where she was tucked away in the far corner.

“Are you hurt?” she asked, tracing the edges of my new bruising. “The whole nest is in a tizzy.”

“A little banged up,” I told her, “but I’ve definitely survived worse.”

I shivered, the nest not all that warm when you were walking around naked. Nudity was so common among shifters since changing forms didn’t come with clothing, but the temperatures in here definitely required some sort of fabric or fur to be comfortable.

Logan’s gaze caught mine and she reached out, beckoning me closer. “You’re goosebumps head to toe.”

“Are you offering to warm me up?” I pressed against her, threading my fingers into her hair.

Her cheeks flared pink, and her body did indeed heat up like a sweet little furnace. I drew her out of the panther’s arms, and got as much of my skin in contact with her as I could.

I understood why the various cat shifters would like being stuck to her. Above and beyond enjoying the soft curves of her, the cozy heat was soothing, and her scent bordered on intoxicating when she was relaxed.

“Velda, don’t climb all over her in the middle of the dining hall,” Yelena said with a tired sigh.

“Getting in some practice for the orgy,” I mumbled against Logan’s hair.

She laughed, but turned serious a moment later. “Will the tiger be punished?”

“Not by me,” I replied. “She’ll be monitored, though.”

“Come,” Yelena ordered. “Everyone needs rest. Velda, are you coming with us or going to your own rooms?”

I glanced at Laila and she offered me a smile. “Go with the witch. I’ll make sure the girls are okay while you recover.”

I gave her a kiss on the cheek before departing with everyone. I had never been in Yelena’s bed before—though I may have fantasized about it more than once—and I wasn’t going to refuse the opportunity now.

“Where is everyone supposed to lie if we all want to be touching Logan?” I asked.

“That’s a problem we haven’t quite figured out yet,” my witch replied.

Caden had already slipped into his smallest form so he could stretch out on Logan’s chest. Seth lay to one side, with Haru behind him, and Yelena on Logan’s other side. She patted the bed next to her.

“I vote Yelena becomes a kitty cat so I can cuddle with the witch.”

Yelena rolled her eyes but climbed off the bed and let her dress slide to the floor before she shifted into the beautiful amber-gold cat I had only seen once before.

“You’re too fucking cute.” I scooped her up before she could jump onto the bed again. Stretching out comfortably, I got as close to Logan as I could without bothering her injured arm, and let Yelena curl up in the crook of my hips, her top half draped on Logan.

The day caught up to me instantly now that I was safe. Exhaustion tugged at me and I drifted off to the sound of contented purring, the scent of jasmine in my nose.