Rebirth (Rogues Shifter Series) (25 page)

Peter came out carrying a tray of assorted desserts and coffee.
After glancing around at everyone’s serious expression he put the tray down and walked to Kyle looking extremely annoyed with his mate. “You need to let her go, Kyle. Garrett can’t help her and you’re giving Eleanor the power to fuck up your life and your relationships.”

Kyle winced at Peter’s words. Apparently, this was a bone of contention between them. I decided it was time to have a little discussion with a particularly annoying leopard. Standing up suddenly, I snatched at Kyle’s hand and said, “Is there so
meplace we can talk privately?”

He glared at me defiantly at first, then shrugged, “Sure, sure
…
c’mon.” He led me into the woods behind his house and we walked in silence for a few minutes until we reached a small clearing. I sat on a downed tree branch and he sat across from me on a large rock, our knees almost touching.

“So what’s really going on here, Kyle? Why are you so angry at Garrett and why are you freaking out at me?
"

“
I’m sorry, but shit, Jackie. He’s a low life bloodsucker. How can you stand to let him touch you?” He shook his head. “I don’t want you to get hurt. What if he turns you?”

I ignored him, sensing that there was much more that he wasn’t saying. “Do you hate all vampires or just Garrett?”

“Mostly Garrett and Eleanor.”  He didn’t hesitate at all, which surprised me. So this was personal.

“What happened?” I touched his knee without thinking, sending a gentle probe into his mind. He looked at me, shocked at first, but when our eyes lo
cked his expression changed. I felt the exact moment that he began to trust me. Heartbreak vibrated off of him in waves.

“Eleanor
took my adopted sister, Lily, and turned her. She wasn’t a shifter, she was human. She was the sweetest kid.” He smiled sadly as he remembered his little sister. A moment later, his expression grew grim. “The last time I saw her she almost killed Peter. Eleanor thinks it’s funny to watch me suffer."

He rubbed his face in frustration. "It's my fault.
I helped kill one of her nest four years ago. He'd been hunting and killing shifters in our territory. That's why Eleanor keeps trying to hurt me.”

Kyle looked at me with pleading eyes.” I want Garrett to get her away from Eleanor and kill her, for real. I’m sure she doesn’t want to be like this. H
e won’t do it ‘cause he thinks Eleanor will kill me and Peter in retaliation. Can you talk to him, Jackie? I can’t… I can’t bring myself to kill her.”

His emotional turmoil turned his vibrant red aura into a muddy swirl. I wanted to help him but wasn’t sure how, so I tried to do what Maya had suggested; to synchronize our energies. I was supposed to be a healer, so now was the time to prove it. Keeping my hand on his knee, I worked to make my emerald waves move to his red tempo and I gave a gentle push in his direction.

His eyes widened in shock but he didn’t pull away. “What the shit is that?”

I ignored the question and started speaking in a soothing tone. “Maybe Eleanor would release Lily and you could reconcile.” While I was speaking I was sending him strong waves of my energy, tuned perfectly to his. Slowly his aura brightened and began to clear. “It must be so hard to see the change in her. We’re all here for you Kyle, you’re n
ot alone. The team's stuck together like velcro.” I was trying to make him laugh, but he was consumed with too much guilt. He thought he’d failed her by not having the courage to end her life himself.

As the anger that he hid behind slowly left him, I watched Kyle’s lip tremble and saw two
tears travel down his cheeks. I sent to Garrett, “
Please send Peter out here
.” I kept my energy flowing into him and in less than a minute Peter was there, holding Kyle as he cried softly. I walked back to the others who sat waiting. Garrett put his arm around me and led me toward a chair where he sat and pulled me into his lap.

“
Maya said her aura is green. She’s a healer isn’t she?” asked Rob. Garrett nodded and hugged me closer. “This is great news,” Rob continued. “The council will never banish a healer.”

“A powerful healer can destroy with the same intensity that they use to heal.  Maya may try to force her in that dir
ection. It’s not an easy path.”

He kis
sed my head and I sighed. "Mmm."

Nestling against his chest I
closed my eyes, not really paying attention. I was feeling sleepy even though it was only around 9:00 PM. Garrett stroked my hair and sent,
“How is Kyle
?”

“I think he’ll be ok. Don’t be mad at him. It’s so sad about Lily
.” I breathed in a lungful of Garrett’s scent and smiled when I felt him bury his face in my hair, probably for the same reason.

“Lily is lost. She’s Eleanor’s new pet. She tortures and kills as often as her maker and she enjoys those sessions just as much. There’s none of the innocent girl left in Lily.”
He sighed.
“Maybe if we'd taken her when she was first turned, she might have been able to join another nest. Kyle wants me to kill her, but I won’t endanger us all by attacking one of Eleanor’s progeny unless they attack us first.”

Kyle and Pete
r reappeared from the woods. Kyle walked directly over to Garrett and me. He looked at Garrett. “Hey man, I know I’m a jerk. I can’t keep blaming you for what Eleanor did. I’m sorry.” He stuck out his hand and Garrett shook it solemnly.

“It’s behind us now.” Garrett smiled and seemed
genuinely relieved.

Kyle turned to me next. “Thanks,
witchy woman. I feel better.” He leaned over and kissed my forehead. I smiled back into his shining dark eyes, feeling much better myself.

“Anytime you want to talk…”
I offered. He nodded and then gasped as Sinc grabbed him from behind and hugged him tightly. As much as they fought, we all knew that they cared about each other.

“Thank you.” Peter spoke quietly over the sound of Kyle’s laughter as he took my hand and squeezed it. I thought about how wonderful it was for Kyle, who always seemed to be at a high or a low, to have steady Peter in his life. I looked at Peter’s aura and saw a clear rich violet. I’d have to make a note to ask Maya about that particular color. I nestled into Garrett’s shoulder and yawned.

“I’m taking you home, chatonne.” Garrett unfolded himself gracefully from the chair with me still in his arms, and then set me down next to him. “We’ll see you tomorrow. Jackie needs to rest.” They all said good night, Sinc running over to hug me and suggest that we go to see a movie together. Then she took a look at Garrett with his arm wrapped around me and gave me a discreet wink before she turned back to park herself in Ethan’s lap.  She was sure Garrett and I were more than roommates. I sighed and indulged in a short little fantasy concerning the rest of the night. Unfortunately, once in the car, I only had enough energy left to lean against him as he drove.

An hour later I was lying on my bed with Garrett propped up next to me, typing away on his laptop. I’d managed to stumble through a shower, dressed my exhausted body in PJ’s and dragged my sleepy ass into the bed. I turned onto my side, leaning on my bent elbow to face him, and noticed a curious combination of emotions rolling off of him. “What are you thinking?”I asked.

“I’m thinking back to when I first saw you running down that dark deserted road at 1:00 AM; a 14 year old girl out by herself, but not afraid. When I saw your speed I suspected that you were a cheetah. When your permanent aura formed eighteen months ago I was concerned, because healers can easily turn into killers if they’re twisted by circumstances. You’ve had more than your share of rough times."

“I’m
too stubborn to let them win.”

“I’m sorry that I wasn’t always with you when you needed me.” He stroked my hair and kissed my forehead.

“You saved my life, Garrett. Those men would have killed me.” I reached for his hand. “Stay with me Garrett.” He started to say something, but I put my finger over his delicious lips.

”Just till I fall asleep. Curl up with me like shifters do.”

He kissed my finger and whispered. “Roll over and face the other way.” I did and he scooted next to me in the perfect spoon position, his arm wrapping over my waist and coming to rest just below my breasts, our knees bent and nestled together. He felt cool so I asked, “Did you feed tonight?”

“When you fall asleep I’ll go out, I have plenty of time.” He kissed my hair and my ear, sending serious shivers down my body.
"I'll ask Liam to guard you."

"He's gone home hasn't he?"

"Liam travels the lines. He can be here in two seconds." He kissed my throat.

“The bed is going to burst into flames in a minute.”

“Sorry.” He chuckled softly.

“What’s a chatonne?”

“A kitten.” I closed my eyes and drifted off, purring contentedly.

Chapter Thirty-two

The next day I got up around 11 AM, showered, dressed and hunted through the house looking for Liam. I had quite a few questions I wanted to ask him and was slightly annoyed that he seemed to be nowhere around. My mood was greatly improved, however, when I saw the fresh pot of coffee, so I took a mug out to the back patio and sat in the sunshine. He popped up about ten minutes later to ask me if I’d like some breakfast. Instead I asked him to sit.

“Do you know Maya? “I asked.

“Yes, I do.”

“She told me that the fae are masters at using the magic of the ley lines. Is this true?”

“Yes. We are practically made of magic and so can drift in and out of the lines as you would step in and out of a gentle rain shower.”

“Can you help me learn to use magic?”

He sat silently for a few moments. “The fae are many races, all of them powerful,
some much more so than others. There are many in the Seelie or Unseelie Court who would kill us both if I tried to teach you our ways. Secrecy is essential to our survival.”

I could see the strain in his expression. “I understand
. I’m sorry if I asked for something I shouldn’t have.” I nodded my head slightly, the way I’d seen Rob greet Liam, and he acknowledged the courtesy with an amused smile and nod of his own. There was something about Liam that made me switch into a more formal mode of address, whether it was the way he spoke or the fact that he'd been around for 1500 years and would possibly live for many millennium.

Liam continued, “What I
can
do is come to your aid when you need me. I am much more than I seem—a trained warrior at your disposal. This I pledge to you, Jacqueline Crawford.”  He bowed his head again and I acknowledged his generosity saying, “I accept your kind offer, Liam, of the Seelie Court.” His laugh was musical and so infectious that I joined him. When he asked again if there was something I’d like to eat, I requested french toast and orange juice and moved inside to relax into the kitchen chair and watch him cook.

My cell phone rang. I
t was Ethan.

“
What’s up?” I asked.

“Hi Speedy!
Sinc, Kyle and I are doing some impromptu training. Can you meet us at Route 204 and Longview Road in about an hour?”

“Sure, sounds like fun.
Does Rob know?”

He hesitated. “No. W
e want to try out a weapon that Kyle and Sinc have been working on in the lab. It’s not perfected yet. Once we know it works, we’ll surprise Garrett and Rob.”

The idea that Rob should probably be told about our little excursion  swirled around in my head for a few seconds and then was quashed by my excitement over doing something cool on our own, without ‘teacher
supervision’. We were smart and we’d be careful. “I’m in. See you soon.”

Liam was bringing out my breakfast as I was hanging up. He put the plates on the table and then looked at me with a worried expression. I had a few bites of food, hoping he would leave. When he didn’t
, I asked, “Okay, what did you hear?”

“Master Garrett will not be happy if he hears that you four went off on your own. You must call Robert.”

“We’re going into the woods to train, what could happen? Kyle will have his weapons, Ethan is as strong as any werewolf, Sinc is a genius and can camouflage herself like a ghost and no one can run me down.” I crossed my arms smugly and met his violet eyes.

He scowled at me and spoke sharply. “Miss Jacqueline, I believe that in your very limited experience you have only enc
ountered humans, underfed werewolves and shapeshifters. Master Garrett is the only vampire you have met and I am the only fae you have come in contact with. There are deadly creatures that roam the woods and many of them are your enemies. Your ignorance and your arrogant attitude is dangerous to you and the rest of your team.” I think my mouth was hanging open. "And no, you would not be able to outrun even a newly made vampire or the weakest of the fae."

Whoa, well that was unexpected. Lia
m was starting to piss me off. “Liam I appreciate your concern. I’ll leave Garrett a note; I’ll take my cell phone and call here if there’s any trouble at all. We’ll be back before dusk. We’ll be fine.” I glared at him.