A Promise on White Wings (Wiccan-Were-Bear) (11 page)

He arched a brow.  “I skimmed one or two.”

She chuckled and stood, coming around the desk and sitting on his lap.  Kissing him, she stroked her thumb over his cheek and looked into his eyes.  “Business or pleasure?”

His hands tightened on her waist reflexively and his eyes darkened.  “I would love to say pleasure, little bird, but I’m afraid that it’s business.  I’ve made arrangements for us to visit the Wiccan coven, and we need to leave in an hour.”

“Long enough for
some
pleasure,” she whispered, kissing him once more and teasing the seam of his lips with her tongue.  He groaned deeply but pulled away from the kiss.

“Sorry, sweet love, but I have to return a call before we leave.”

She pretended to pout, and he laughed.  She didn’t mind that he was working.  Her nights were filled with passion thanks to her insatiable mates, and although she sometimes found time during the day to spend quiet time with one or both men, she didn’t mind leaving the daylight to business.

“Anything serious?” she asked as she stood from his lap and hugged him.

“Not for us, at least not now.  A religious group has made an application to convert a warehouse in downtown Cleveland into a church.  Midas, the King tiger, was going to put in a bid on the construction work for his company and had offered to include my supplies business in the deal, but then he discovered what the church was really about.”

The church was part of a growing group of radicals that protested vampires.  They were normally non-violent protests, but violence from the group occasionally made the news so she’d heard of the group. 
The First Church of Humanity
made the news recently when they protested a wedding between a human and a vampire and a fight had broken out when the protestors called the bride a demon-loving-whore and the groom hadn’t cared for that.

“I’m surprised that with the supernatural presence in this area that the church wasn’t stopped from buying the warehouse,” she mused.

“It wasn’t for lack of trying.  By the time that anyone realized they were buying the property, they’d already done it, bribing officials to keep the dealings quiet.  They were taking bids for the renovation work under a different business name, which is why Midas didn’t know who they were until he had his people do a little digging.  I told Midas that I would have Frost and Glacier check into the leaders, and I have some intel for him.”

“Does it make me a bad person that I’m glad that they only protest vampires?” she asked.

He tweaked her chin with a smile.  “I’m glad for the same reason, sweetheart.  Mishka is the head of the vampire coven, and he’ll have his hands full dealing with them.  I feel badly for him, but I’m glad it’s not us they hate.”

She walked him to the door.  “Why does that church hate vampires?”

“Mythology most likely.  Of all the supernatural beings, the ones most closely associated with demonic creatures are vampires.  I’ve seen the church’s literature – they accuse vampires of killing babies for their blood, seducing children, raping women.  They take people’s worst fears and twist them into ways to fit their desire to see vampires go the way of the dinosaur.”

She shivered.  “Do any churches hate falcons?”

He smiled, and it made her heart flutter.  “No.  But this group is only a church in tax-exempt status and doesn’t actually worship any deity, except the leaders, and they don’t hold to any real religious values.  Most actual religions scorn this church’s beliefs and discourage their own people from joining their intolerant views.”

She said goodbye and promised to be ready to leave within the hour.  She returned to her desk and decided to stop reading falcon history for a bit and finish up a supplies order for the small market in the community.  Many of the females complained about a lack of feminine products and supplies in the store, lamenting the times they’d had to leave the safe walls of the nest to drive into Bishop and find what they needed at all hours.  Bishop was as safe as any other town around, but that didn’t mean that they wouldn’t rather have the convenience of using the market.

Mia, a sweet falcon who was nineteen plus one had tossed her black hair over her shoulder with a huff.  “A male can get a case of condoms at the drop of a hat, but last week I needed tampons and had to drive into Tisner because the Bishop grocery was closed.”

The males who ran the market in the community had not dared to turn Danika down when she approached them two days earlier about stocking more female-friendly things.  Maybe because Chance and his friend Pyre were with her, and they looked menacing when they were just standing around doing nothing.

Within the hour, she had emailed the list to Dennar, one of the falcons who ran the market, and changed into a dressy cream-colored sweater and paired it with a pair of dark green slacks and matching leather pumps.  She was looking forward to meeting the coven ladies and finding out if they could help her understand what she was.

Revere and Tonik drove them to the coven offices in downtown Cleveland, which were located in the back of The Cleveland Mother Earth Store.  Jes told her that he had been involved with the granddaughter of the head of the coven, and that Elizabeth had been one of the ones who came to her aid in the bear den.  She didn’t mind that he had been with her at one time, because that was in the past and all she cared about was the present and the future.

Lorene, North Corner and head of the coven, was standing in the store when they walked inside, carefully counting dried yellow petals and placing them in a paper envelope.  Jes kissed her cheek and introduced Danika and Chance.

Lorene took Danika’s hand between both of hers and pressed firmly.  A chill swept over Danika’s skin and then her palm began to warm as a tingle raced up her arm.  “Oh my,” Lorene said, giving Danika’s hand a gentle squeeze before releasing it.  “Bitty is going to love to meet you.”

Bitty was a Corner, which in Wiccan terms meant she was powerful and helped to lead the coven.  She was mostly human, what they called an
unnatural witch
.  Somewhere in her family history a powerful Wiccan had turned away from her powers and encouraged the future generations to do so as well.  Eventually the power, as it lay untapped, began to disappear until it was all but non-existent.  An unnatural witch could have almost no real power or could, like Bitty, with practice and devotion, build up his or her power.  The witch remained entirely mortal, not sharing in a Wiccan’s natural long-life because the power that gave Wiccans long-life had been forever denied.

Lorene took them back into a room that was lined with floor to ceiling bookshelves.  The shelves were filled with books and curios, and several rolling ladders were placed around the room.  In the center of the room was a round table covered with several colorful silks and surrounded by chairs.

An older woman, who appeared to be in her seventies, was sitting at the table.  Lorene introduced her as Bitty, and she asked everyone to sit down.  Danika sat next to Bitty, who took her hand and held it tightly but said nothing.  Her eyes were bright blue and youthful although her skin was etched with wrinkles.  Danika told them the story of her life, being found naked and starving as a toddler and no one being able to explain the marks on her back.  Then she shared how she felt when she saw Jes and Chance in the den, glossing over the sex that had helped her to shift for the first time.

Bitty had stared at her intently during the story, and Danika felt as though the old woman was actually seeing into her mind.  Lorene asked to see the marks, and Danika removed her sweater and gave it to Chance.  She had worn a white satin cami under her top, knowing that they would want to see the marks she had been born with.

Standing slowly, she turned and brushed her hair forward over her shoulder so they could see the white wings marked into her skin.  They asked her if she could shift, and with little effort, she called her wings forth, and also her fangs and claws.  She had found she could separately shift her wings from her fangs and claws, but it took less effort for her to allow them to come out together.  She took that to mean that she was meant to be part lion and part falcon, not one or the other.

Lorene’s voice was filled with alarm when she said, “Bitty?  Bitty?”

Danika turned and saw that Bitty seemed to be having a seizure.  Her frail body jerked in her chair, and her eyes rolled back in her head.  Danika reached for her at the same time that Lorene did, and everything around Danika dropped away until she was standing in a completely dark place.  Light blinded her, and when it dimmed, she found herself looking at herself in the future.  She looked only slightly older, maybe a year or two, and she knew that meant that anywhere from twelve to twenty-four years had actually passed due to her slow aging.  Her future self was in the garden behind the house, sitting on a stone bench, her stomach swollen with child.  Twin girls, no more than ten, made chains of flowers at her feet.

“Mom?” a male’s voice called to her.

“Over here, Jance,” she answered.

A handsome youth strode out of the house, his hair a riot of dark curls like Jes’.  Just behind him came another young male, this one with gorgeous dark blond hair like a lion’s mane.

Jance said, “Venture and I want to go hunting, and our dads said to check with you first because we’ll be out past dinner.”

“You’ll stay within the walls?” her future self asked.

Venture nodded.  “Of course, Mom.  And I’ll even bring you some of the purple flowers you love so much.”

“You’re just like your dad, Ven,” she smiled.  “It’s okay with me.  I’ll have Ley leave dinner out on the counter for you.”

The young males stripped quickly and shifted.  To Danika’s surprise, they transformed into not a falcon and a lion, but a combination of both.  Before her eyes, her sons shifted into white lions with the head, forelegs, and wings of falcons.  They spread their wings, ducked their heads to her future self, and leapt into the sky.  Their dark wings flapped quickly, and they rose into the sky, circling overhead before moving away from the house.

Her future self looked down at the little girls, and Danika noticed that the shoulder strap of one sundress had slipped down and white wings were etched onto their skin.

The vision began to dim around the edges, and although she wanted to stay and watch what would happen next, she let the present pull her back.  She was cradled against Chance’s chest, her hand still holding Bitty.  Jes stroked her neck and spoke frantically to someone.

“Hey,” Chance said, his voice choked with emotion, “there you are.”

She blinked a few times to clear her vision and smiled at her mates.  “I’m okay.”

Jes sighed in relief.  “You scared the shit out of me, sweetheart!”

Danika turned her head and saw that Bitty was also fine, sitting up straight in her chair and smoothing down her hair.  She stood, pushing her chair back and said, “Oh my, oh my.”

“Oh my, what?” Jes asked.

Danika told them what she saw.  They both looked at her in confusion and then at Lorene.

Lorene said, “I saw the vision as well.  I think that Bitty was having the vision, and when we both touched her, it allowed us to see it.  It’s absolutely amazing.”

Danika still felt stunned.  She didn’t know what any of it meant.  Bitty climbed a ladder, scooting it across the bookshelf as she searched for something.  Climbing down, she went to another ladder and climbed all the way to the top.  After a few moments, she said, “Yes!” and climbed down with a leather bound book in her hand.

The cover was engraved with symbols and secured with a leather tie.  Bitty untied it and began to flip through the pages.  “Ah, here.  This is what you are, Danika.”  She turned the book towards Danika and pointed to a drawing of a woman with wings, claws and fangs.  At her feet were a girl with wings, claws, and fangs, and a mixed creature like she’d seen her sons change into.

“You’re a
madter
, a catalyst for two different were-species.  Your sons will be the combination of falcon and lion – otherwise known in mythology as gryphons – and your daughters will be
madters
when they reach the age of eighteen.  Your daughters may not mate with falcons and lions.  They may become
madters
for two other were-species.  One species will always have wings, and the other species may be horse shifters, tiger shifters, wolf shifters, dragon shifters, even vampires.”

Her mind spun with the possibilities.  She began to read the folklore about the
madter
, and looked up at Bitty.  “So my mother was a
madter
as well?”

“It’s hereditary, so yes.  She was most likely mated to two different species of males.  You were too young to know what happened to them?”

She nodded.

Lorene said, “It was fortunate that you were taken in by the bear den and protected.”

Although things had gone south quickly between her and the bear den, she would always be grateful to Mama for taking her in, and for the den for bringing her to Ohio so she could find her mates.

Jes and Chance were reading over her shoulders.  Jes said, “Well, this is really an answer to the prophecy, isn’t it?  A woman who will bind two were-groups together in a new way.  I never would have guessed that a child of mine would be both lion and falcon.  It’s incredible.”

Chance nodded.  “I always anticipated having a child who was entirely lion.  I didn’t know that gryphons were real.”

Bitty leaned back in her chair.  “They’re not really.  Not in the sense that they were born from gryphon parents.  Most creatures of myth are the product of two different species together.  Creatures mistaken for angels on earth are often the Valkyrie – falcon and vampire.  Winged wolves are falcon and wolf, and winged horses are centaurs and falcons.”

Danika’s head snapped up.  “Pegasus?  Are there really Centaurs?  I thought they were just legends.”

Bitty chuckled.  “Myths come from truth more often than not.  I don’t know if there are any living Centaurs in our realm any longer, but there are realms that we don’t even know about, coexisting along ours but never revealing themselves.  Who knows what your children will find as they grow up, what the world will be like in ten years?  Twenty years?  A hundred?”  She yawned and gathered a shawl around her shoulders.  “I’m feeling quite tired, Lorene.  Would you help me to my office so I might lay down for a bit?”