rogue shifter 07 - cut off (23 page)

"Um..." Aaron's skin pinked up.

"You have?" I whispered, moving closer.

"Shhh. Don't tell."

"Okay. What was he like?"

"She was—she was beautiful." He lay back in the grass, staring at the late afternoon sky, looking all dreamy.

"Where did you meet her?"

"You know how I like to roam around at night?" I nodded. "She was in the woods to the north of my place."

"What did she look like?"

"Petite. Long light brown hair. Amazing gray eyes that got all sparkly with silver. Fangs."

"What was she wearing?"

He turned away and swallowed hard. "Practically nothing."

"Was she..?" I made a motion with my hands indicating curviness.

"Yeah, she was."

"You didn't let her bite you, did you?"

He sat up. "I offered." I started to yell at him, but he held up a hand to quiet me. "Don't go off the deep end. I've heard it's really...um...that it feels great. She wouldn't do it. She said she'd already fed and that I was still growing and it wouldn't be healthy for me. She told me to look for her again in a couple of years. Her name is Lilliana."

My jaw dropped. "You're lying. That didn't happen." Everybody knew that vampires fed indiscriminately.

He threw down the rod and stood. "I don't lie about stuff like that."

"Yeah? What about that time you told everyone you ate a rattlesnake at an Indian village and became the medicine man's apprentice?" I stood, carefully laying my make-shift rod where it wouldn't get dragged away by the stream's current.

"Okay, that was a lie, but this is the truth."

"A real vampire would have sucked you dry." I pointed a figure at him.

Aaron took a step closer, towering over me, forcing my finger to push against his chest. "I'm not lying," he shouted. He shoved at both of my shoulders, making me stumble backward a few steps.

"I don't believe you." I was furious.

Tell me I'm a liar one more time." He lifted his fist.

"You're a liar and..." The next thing I knew I was flat on my back, blood spurting from my nose.

"Boys!" My father had arrived, which usually meant we'd be given more chores to do. He scowled at me. "Your mother heard you shouting all the way from the house." I was clutching at my nose, blood dripping on my shirt. He hauled me up and pulled my hand away so he could see my face clearly. "Your nose is broken. Shift to cheetah, Garrett, and clean off in the stream. It'll heal faster. Then come back and tell me what's going on."

He turned toward Aaron, but my cousin started jabbering in his usual way before my dad could speak. "Uncle Charles, I didn't mean to break his nose. I only wanted to give him a bloody lip. He called me a liar and I got mad. I wasn't lying," he shouted in my direction.

"Are you hurt?" Aaron shook his head. "Then sit down. We'll wait for Garrett." Aaron obeyed instantly, having recognized my dad's serious tone.

After following orders I pulled on my pants and left my shirt since it was covered with blood. Father pointed for me to sit next to my cousin, although I picked a spot as far away as I could manage.

"What were you two arguing about?"

Aaron put his head in his hands, expecting the worst. He'd be grounded for months or worse if his parents found out he'd been out in the woods in the middle of the night, let alone speaking with a vampire.

I answered, meeting my father's gaze in the hopes that he'd believe me. "He said that there were good vampires and I said there weren't." It wasn't a lie. We had briefly skirted that issue. It just wasn't what we were shouting about.

Aaron lifted his head and glanced at me. I gave him a look we'd developed between us. It meant "You owe me big time." He fought off a smile so my dad wouldn't see.

Unfortunately, Father wasn't buying it. "You expect me to believe that you came to blows over a difference of opinion regarding the civility of vampires?" I nodded.

"Aaron?"

"Yes, Uncle."

Father could have pressed us and we would have had to tell him, but instead he said, "You have a choice. You both tell me the rest of what happened, shake hands and go back to your regular chores, or you both stay silent, shake hands and face your punishment."

"What's the punishment?" Aaron asked.

"Three swipes of the strap and then you'll both help with the laundry. That blood won't be easy to get out. When you've finished, you will continue with your regular chores. There will be no dinner until everything is done."

I sat up straighter. "We'll take the punishment."

"Yes. The punishment, uncle."

It certainly wasn't the harshest punishment my father had doled out. Our behinds were sore enough to make us squirm a little at the dinner table, but not keep us from eating. The worst part was doing the laundry while my sister and mother looked on, both of them sipping tea and laughing at us. Aaron splashed Marie with some of the suds, but she didn't seem to mind. He treated her like she was his little sister too. Aaron being an only child, he was happiest when he was around our family.

Later, while we were washing up for dinner, we whispered together.

"Thanks. I suppose you'll be telling me what it is you want?" Aaron asked.

"You'll take me with you next time. My cheetah can protect you if you run into other vampires." After all, he was only a human.

He laughed, then covered his mouth when he saw Marie watching us like a hawk. "Fine."

When I slid under the covers that night, Dad came to talk to me. I asked, "Why didn't you make us tell?"

"You've seen Aaron's back?" I nodded. He was beaten on a regular basis. My father's three swipes of the strap against our most padded area were mostly to make a point, not to leave a mark. Not to say they didn't hurt. "His father is an unyielding man. I'm afraid we can't do much about that, except to have Aaron over as often as he's allowed to come. I'd like you to spend more time with him. You're a good influence." My eyes widened at the compliment. "Oui, mon fils. Je suis fier de toi." He ruffled my hair and left me glowing. He was proud of me. I wondered if Aaron's dad ever told him that.

My whipping for today ended and the chains disappeared along with my torturer. Elle was brought back in so I could feed. I refused, because she wasn't well and my taking her blood weakened her more. She was very gentle as she cleaned my wounds, and because of Aymis' earlier generosity, my natural healing kicked in enough to stop the bleeding and seal up the worst of the slashes.

As Elle slept, I spent more time remembering my father, whose steady presence and stark integrity had influenced my life more than any other male. When my thoughts turned to Charlie, I smiled. He'd been lucky enough to have a dad who didn't believe in the benefits of a sore behind, even though there'd been times I was tempted. Several, in fact. Parenthood wasn't easy, but the unexpected arrival of a son sixteen years ago, had encouraged me to channel my much-wiser father whenever possible.

When I felt I could manage to rest, I closed my eyes and conjured up my beloved mate and son, sending out mental messages of love they'd never receive.
Please let them be safe
.

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Simon brought the potion in a container about the size of a standard water bottle. Elizabeth, our witchy friend, was with him, smiling and bubbling with enthusiasm. She was one of the sweetest people I'd ever met, plus she was an expert in her craft.

Simon looked worried. "Please sit, honey." Shocked that he'd used a term of endearment, I continued to stand, not able to say anything at first. He took that the wrong way. "I apologize. I have no right to..."

His embarrassment was obvious, but there was also sadness. "Shush. You're my dad. We don't know each other all that well, but I kind of liked the sound of
honey
. I guess I need...with Garrett gone..."

He lifted his arms and I walked into his embrace, at the same time catching Elizabeth's wide approving grin over his shoulder. His almond scent surrounded me the way his strong arms did, both of them comforting and necessary. He rubbed my back and kissed the top of my head. "You don't have much time, honey."

I managed to giggle. "Don't overdo it." I pulled away with a grin of my own. "Tell me what I need to do."

I sat and he explained, "This magic is untried, but Liz and I both believe it's safe and going to work as designed."

Hmmm. Liz, huh? As far as I knew, she preferred to be called Elizabeth. I gave her a sly glance, and she winked at me when Simon was turned away. They'd spent the night together, supposedly working on the potion. As far as I knew, neither of them was in a committed relationship. Although the two races usually disagreed on the fundamentals of magic, on rare occasions sorcerers and witches ended up working as partners. That way all the bases were covered.

"Jackie." Simon held up the bottle, wrinkling his brow. "You need to listen carefully. The potion must be taken on an empty stomach and sipped at one minute intervals. You can eat an hour after the last drop is consumed, and you should eat well. You'll need to be in top form tonight."

Elizabeth continued. "This brew will strengthen your emerald aura, which will in turn strengthen your powers as a healer. You should be able to build your shields more strongly than you ever have before."

Garrett had been the one to teach me how to build my protective diamond wall in the first place, then Isaiah had taught me how to use demon magic to strengthen my shields on many levels. No one knew better than me how important defensive magic was in the grand arena of magical politics.

"Thank you both for all your hard work last night. I appreciate it more than I can say."

Simon smiled and held out the flask. "Sip it slowly. We'll stay until you've absorbed the full spell."

I flashed on the memory of Isaiah requiring me to drink his special potion and how sick I'd gotten when I drank it down. I really couldn't afford to spend the next hour worshipping the porcelain god. We were leaving for court in three hours.

"If I feel sick, I'm going to stop. I can't mess up the schedule."

"Let's see how it goes." Simon nodded toward the flask.

I sipped and waited then sipped again. This went on for a full ten minutes before I began to feel anything at all. There was no nausea, only a pleasant warmth and a tingling on my skin as if I was near some huge power source. I checked my own aura and found it to be brighter, then I tested the effects by building my usual protections. Even though I wouldn't know for sure if they were stronger until someone tried to breach them, I sensed a more permanent foundation coupled with a sharper core.

"There is an added benefit that might surprise you." Simon smiled.

"Oh?"

"We'll give it a test, but first we need to go outside." Curious, I followed the two of them out. Samson tagged along. Simon looked behind him, then said, "I'll try to attack you mentally."

The moment I felt his mental fingers brush across my shields, my magic reacted, sending him flying across the lawn and landing on his ass ten feet away.

Elizabeth laughed out loud. "Well it works!" she said.

He rubbed his behind as he stood. "If you're attacked mentally it will respond."

"Are you okay?" I asked, shocked by my violent response.

"Yes, fine, although I'll have a bruise."

Elizabeth laughed again, the rich sound filling the yard. "It could be worse. You could have cracked your skull open."

"But I don't have any control."

"Now that you know what to expect, you can tone it down." She whispered to me, "He insisted. Sorcerers are such show-offs."

"You witches would benefit from taking more chances. How will you grow in skill?" He winced and rubbed his right hip.

"Come home with me. I have a special poultice that works well on bruises." Simon smiled warmly at his new friend, and I figured that Liz had more than a poultice in mind for Simon. They hugged me and wished me luck, then left along the side path which led to the driveway where they'd parked. Their playful banter continued on until they reached Simon's car.

As Simon and Elizabeth drove off, Aedus and Lord Caelen arrived at the house. I still had two and a half hours before we were to depart, so their unexpected arrival worried me.

Caelen's expression was grim. "Brina has offered to glamour herself to look like your son. I believe that it may be our best hope to get your mate back."

"That's too dangerous."

"She's insisting and I'm allowing it."

"Have you heard if the queen's letting him feed?"

"We don't know."

I dug my nails into my thighs. "Is Fionna doing the torturing?"

"Kennet." Oh god. That was worse. So much worse. Kennet would kill him.

As if reading my mind, Aedus answered. "She will not have him killed. We will get him back tonight."

My heart ached for him. I missed his laugh, his scent, his hands around my waist, his breath against my hair as we spooned in bed. I missed the way he looked at our son with such pride and the grin that spread across his face when we saw each other for the first time each afternoon. I desperately needed his strength, but understood that tonight he'd be relying on mine.

Noticing my distress, Aedus took my hand in his. "We disposed of the—the package, so that Garrett will not be at risk." Farrell had told me they were going to build a fire, cast a purifying spell and then burn the contents so that no one with a knowledge of blood magic could use it against him.