Page 159 of Wicked Magik

He arched backward, spine curving with impossible elasticity, like a cat waking from a nap. A groan escaped his lips as he raked fingers through his hair. "Never again," he muttered, "I'd rather die than spend another day trapped as a damned feline."

Oryx tilted his head and tapped the side of his face. “You meant to do that?” He pointed to his chest. “To be a feline?”

The male nodded. "Yes. Someone who looks like me tends to draw attention in the human realm," he said, flexing his blue-tipped fingers. "Shape shifting lets me blend in when necessary. Physical fighting isn't exactly my strength." His lips curved into a slight smile. "I prefer taking the form of a white fox, but a common housecat seemed less conspicuous in a funeral home."

I crossed my arms, doubly impressed. If he was a shapeshifter, then that was a whole other category than a plain shifter. It was a subject I would want to discuss later.

Plates dropped in the open doorway of the lab. Pyrrah stood with her mouth agape and no intention of cleaning up the mess. “I was bringing you lunch, but it appears you made me some.”

Oryx huffed in annoyance.

I cleared my throat and waved my hand toward the male, “This is Vesper’s father.” There was no reason to doubt it. There was a striking resemblance from the hair, the eyes, even his lips. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name,” I asked him.

“Thackery,” he held out his hand to me. “And you two are the barbarians manhandling my precious snowflake for all to see.” He ran his hand down his face. “From now on, you put her in a bedroom, I swear to the shadows, just because she fucks this animal,” he pointed to Oryx, “doesn’t mean she has to act like one in public.”

Oryx lowered his head and kicked his hoof on the ground.

I shook my head. “How have you not turned back earlier? What took so long?”

Thackery growled and ran his hand through his hair.

“Wait, no.” I shook my head. “We need to leave, we need to get Vesper. Pyrrah, stop drooling and get our father-in-law some clothes!”

Pyrahh wiggled her eyebrows and winked before running off down the hallway.

Thackery's fingers closed around my forearm, his touch cool against my skin. "Slow down," he said, his voice level. "Sylvaine won't harm a hair on her head. You two need to collect yourselves before we proceed."

Oryx snarled and whipped his tail back and forth. “He has our pet, I will not stand by and wait for that beast to take her from us! We have yet to bond with her!”

Thackery's posture stiffened, his spine straightening like a rod of ice. Frost crystallized along the tips of his pointed ears, glittering in the light. "My power hasn't fully returned," he explained, voice tight with frustration. "My mana was completely depleted when I was in the Earth Realm. That realm doesn’t have the mana, the energy my kind needs. After following Vesper through the portal, I wandered aimlessly until my reserves began to replenish. Once I had enough magik flowing through me again, I caught her scent on the wind and tracked it here."

I hummed in response. “If you were completely drained, it would have taken much longer for you to replace your magik to return to your true form.”

Thackery nodded and smirked devilishly. “Only one thing that can shock the mana system so quickly.”

My eyes widened. “You have a mate somewhere and you were close enough?”

"Sylvaine has no intention of harming Vesper," Thackery said, his voice softening. "He discovered the truth—she carries my bloodline, born of the union between myself and the third member of our bond, our female mate. This is why he claimed her from your protection."

Oryx snarled. “Why take her if we are her fated? We can best protect her!”

Thackery frowned. “That would be best explained while we traveled, and I know where they would be going.”

We each had our gifts to speed our journey—my command of shadows, Oryx's powerful strides, and Thackery's frostwhisper abilities. He manipulated the mist around him, transforming it into a gliding path that carried him effortlessly as he guided us toward the mountains.

As dawn approached, Thackery's movements grew increasingly fluid. The fog seemed to dance around him as we ascended the mountain, each gesture more precise and elegant than the last. Snowflakes spiraled in his wake, catching in his hair as it whipped against the current of the wind.

Oryx sneezed, the snow blowing out of his nose as he dug the snow from his eyeholes.

While I was absolutely livid that Vesper was taken from us, I was relieved that she was in no danger.

Oryx felt the same, but he would not be as forgiving of Sylvain as me.

He was in predator mode, his animal instincts were on high alert and Thackery could sense it.

The journey stretched across hundreds of miles, forcing us to pause at intervals. Though Thackery and I could have pressed on more quickly, we dared not offer to help Oryx. We watchedhim silently, knowing better than to suggest he couldn't keep our pace.

Oryx had pride.