CALIFF
“So you two made up?” Zack sniffed the air.
I looked over my shoulder. “Why are you here?”
“Believe me, I’m worried about Shadow’s father. Have you heard anything from Italy?” He slumped his ass on the couch.
“No. Zarah will call if Sebastien is in trouble.”
“Where’s Shadow?”
“She’ll be here shortly.”
The door swung open. Her gaze shifted from me to Zack. “Hey, Zack.”
“Luna.”
“Am I still a Luna?” she specifically asked me, showing her unmarked neck before coming to kiss me on the lips.
“Of course, you’re my mate and my wife.”
“Okay. So, is the band getting back together now?” She sat across Zack and sighed with furrow, taking out her phone.
“What’s wrong?”
“My father is not answering my call.”
“He would let you know if something went south in Italy. And he has lycan warriors and human security details to keep him safe.”
“Yeah. I hope so.” She put her phone back in her pocket and turned to Zack. “So why are you here?”
“He’s worried about Sebastien.”
“Huh. Really?” She looked at him inquisitively.
“Yeah. Why is it surprising? He’s your father, and he’s been there for us, so I would feel bad if something happened to him.”
A sharp knock on the door interrupted us.
“Come in.”
The door opened, and my brother and Everlee walked in.
“Oh, my Goddess. Shadow.” Everlee smiled from ear to ear, and she looked happy.
“Hey.” It still felt surreal watching them get along, but yeah, I was glad our past stayed in the past. “So good to see you.”
“Brother.” We hugged each other. “How’s your students?”
He chuckled. “Busy with their relationships and phones. Kids nowadays waste too much time on social media, watching stupid videos than learning.”
“They’re Gen Z. That’s what they do.”
“I don’t,” Shadow disagreed. “Look, where am I?”
“So why are you, guys, here? Not that I’m not happy to see you.” Zack went back to his seat.
“We were on our way back to the pack when Zarah called us to meet you all here. She didn’t say much. She hung up the call as if in a hurry before I could inquire.”
Shadow swallowed hard and met my gaze, filled with worry.
“Don’t go there, baby. Everything is fine.”
“Why? What’s going on?” Everlee asked, but her gaze was on Shadow.
“She let the guy escape, and then he killed the roommate,” Zack started. “He’s not innocent after all, but we managed to find out that the roommate worked at the nightclub. So she may have exposed her father’s luxurious castle.”
“My goddess.” Everlee placed a hand on her chest.
“Thanks for the summary, Zack. I feel so terrible right now.” She rolled her eyes. “I let him escape because I want him to lead us to the big fish, but I feel guilty for the man he killed.”
“So he’s not that innocent,” Calder said.
“No. Not at all. He left my jacket with a tracker, didn’t use my card, but my cash.”
The portal suddenly appeared at the wall. We looked at each other but neither moved or walked through.
“That could be the bad witch’s portal, right?” Zack said, barely blinking.
“Yeah. Certainly,” Calder agreed.
Zarah suddenly came out. “What the hell are you all waiting for?”
“Oh, I thought that’s the another witch’s portal,” said Calder warily.
“How could she make a portal when she’s dead?” She rolled her eyes.
“How? What happened?”
“Well, that’s the price she paid for betraying the coven. Are you coming or not?”
“Yes,” we said in unison.
The portal brought us to the modern house, and the ocean view was spectacular.
“What the heck? Why are we in Southhampton?” Shadow gushed.
The Alpha King walked in, barefooted. “Welcome.”
“Well, look at you. You look chill for someone being chased by the hunters.” Shadow was amused to see his father in sweatpants and shirts for the first time.
“Well, this is Stateside, and the view is amazing.” He hugged his daughter. “Glad you’re okay, daughter.”
“I was worried about you, and yet here you are, having the best time of your life here.”
“Barely, but Zarah is with me, and now you’re here, so I guess you could say that.”
Zack went ahead to the mini bar, helping himself.
“Do you know what you’re doing?” I asked him.
“I bartended in college, Alpha. You don’t remember? Don’t worry, no one is getting poi-” He stopped and looked at Shadow, who didn’t seem to hear Zack.
“It’s fine, Zack,” Shadow said as she walked to the veranda overlooking the blue ocean.
I let him do whatever he wanted as I joined Shadow.
“See? Nothing to worry about. He was not answering because he was probably busy with- you know.” I wrapped my arms around her from behind and kissed the side of her head. “So this is supposed to be the place?”
“Yup, but you blew it off.”
“I believe in a second chance.”
She shook to laugh as she turned to face me and met me in the eye. “I imagined this moment. You and I, here, at this exact place.”
“Everything happens for a reason, baby.” I always loved looking her in the eye- her eyes were beautiful and expressive, as if I could see through her soul. I wondered why the color didn’t change despite losing her wolf.
“And what’s the reason behind losing my wolf and gift?” A sudden sadness crossed her eyes.
“We’ll figure it out.” I tucked the hair behind her ear. “I promise.”
“I think I know the answer. Maybe I couldn’t figure out the other side of me with my wolf. I wouldn’t step out of the box and explore my human side, my strength without my Lycan blood, and I wouldn’t have learned something for the past weeks, and for the first time, I held silver.”
“There’s something good in that bad experience, after all.”
“You’re right.” She cupped my face and tiptoed to kiss me.
I leaned down and kissed her on the lips.
“I didn’t bring you here to make out.” Zarah’s angry voice broke us away.
I chuckled as I turned to Zarah. “Why then?”
“Any progress?” Shadow still had her arms around my waist.
“Yeah. I received your message regarding posting the logo online, and we have some good input from the comments. Come with me.”
Shadow and I grabbed a drink that Zack made. Everlee had the same cocktail, while Calder chose a different poison.
We followed her down. The ground floor was spacious and cozy, with luxurious couches and open floor-to-ceiling windows while curtains danced through the breeze.
“You guys read the comments. I printed something that made some sense.”
I joined Shadow on the couch. “This is good, Zack. You should make more often.”
“We don’t have a minibar, and I doubt if alcohol bottles last a day. Those guys living in the pack house drink like Vikings.”
“Right, because you guys have good alcohol tolerance, and I don’t.” I felt the pain and sarcasm in her voice. She picked up a copy and read it to herself. “Government secret experiment. The logo looks ancient.”
“This one.” Zack read it out loud. “Life’s journey, the pursuit of goals. This white ass due just took it from google. Very helpful. I want something dark, deep, and mysterious.”
“Wait. Is this the mark you’ve been researching?” Calder pointed at the paper in his hand. “What the-”
“I told you, Alpha. Calder doesn’t curse so much.”
“He’s a professor, a good role model. What do you expect?”
The way he stared at the paper, my heart sank. I knew he was about to deliver the most shocking part.
“Yes.” I looked at him. He taught History. Why didn’t I think of asking him? Oh, yeah, because I didn’t trust him at that time. “Did you read something about it in the history books or some Pagan and Roman books?”
He stared at it for a while until his face ashen.
“I take that as a yes,” Zack put down the paper on the table.
“What is it, Calder?” Shadow put the paper down as she noticed Calder’s face.
Breathing deeply, Calder held his knees as he sat down. He seemed to have lost his strength.
“Mind telling us, brother.”
“Zarah?” Shadow called her out. “I think we got something.”
“Tell us what you know, babe.”
Calder swallowed hard as he nodded at Everlee. “I hope I’m correct. It’s been years since I last saw this mark. I saw it on a ring. It was like a signet. I even rubbed it with my thumb. I thought, wow. It was cool and ancient.”
“Where did you see it?” Zarah joined us. Sebastien came, but he remained standing.
“It’s my uncle’s.”
“Your fucking uncle?” Zack burst out.
“Language.” I groaned at him.
“Well, we’d been busting our asses, looking for the meaning of it. Aciano is gone, the assassin almost killed Shadow, and she almost died with the poison, so I apologize if I can’t calm myself down.”
“Why didn’t I ask you all about this?” Calder looked distraught. “And you, Cal, why didn’t you ask me?”
“Because we didn’t trust you, man,” Zack said truthfully. “No offense. And maybe this is your plan all along, befriending us, getting us to trust you, getting our location, knowing our greatest weaknesses, the map, feeling sick, and all that to gain our sympathy, then kill us all. After all, you’re a pathfinder, a great liar and deceiver.”
“What the fuck, Zack?” I stood up, all glaring eyes. My jaw hardened. I pressed my lips into a thin line as I breathed through my nose. He just accused my brother of being involved in that cult of hunters.
“I apologize, Alpha.” He bowed down. “But let’s be more logical here. I mean, Shadow was poison while Calder was there. The moment he met your father, while you were on your honeymoon, you were poisoned by mercury. Then, days later, he arrived at the compound, introducing himself. Doesn’t it look suspicious? And after all our troubles finding these savages, his uncle was actually one of them. Calder could also be one of them.”
“Hey.” Shadow stood up and placed a hand on my chest. “Calm down. Take a deep breath. Your eyes are glowing.”
My eyes glowed. My wolf went restless, urging me to come out. I blinked it off as I pointed at Zack. “You disrespect, disobey me, and say something like that again. Even if you’re my mate’s best friend, I will rip your head off.”
“I’m sorry, Alpha, but let’s not forget who killed the two men found in the woods.”