Spirit Island (Betas in Waiting #26)

Chapter One

Serin watched the rope tie itself, pulling the boat snugly against the dock. “You are getting good at that.”

“I get to practice here. Not a lot of prying eyes.” Jane’s voice was soft, and she cradled her toddler with care.

Belle smiled. “I am going to head to my hotel room. Thanks for the ride, ladies.”

Serin and Jane smiled as they left the boat. “It was our pleasure.”

Belle nodded and headed off into the darkness, fading as if she hadn’t been there at all.

Serin smiled. “That’s new. Come on. Let’s get back to my place and get Terro settled in.”

They walked across the dock and through the port. They nodded to the guards who had recently been employed at the dock.

One of the men came forward. “Miss Serin, can I walk you to your home? There has been a kidnapping this week.”

“Certainly, Kidon. Thank you.”

Kidon looked at the child. “Would you like me to carry him?”

“No, thank you. He’s comfortable with me. I haul him around a lot.” Jane chuckled.

Kidon nodded. “You are staying in the village?”

Serin smiled. “The new build near the palace.”

“Right. We should get walking then.”

Jane started walking and heading toward the path that bypassed the village and headed into the hills. Every day as a mom was leg day. Serin followed her friend with a smile.

They walked the mile and a half up to the town and then headed down the path to the new build.

Serin opened the door and sighed. “There isn’t much furnishing yet, but it’s warm and dry and free.”

“Three words I love. Can I make it cozy?”

“Please.”

Jane shifted her son, lifted one hand gracefully, and then flexed her hand, and the room had low chairs next to low tables and rolls of bedding and cushions. Another flick of her fingers and the rolls became beds with pillows and light sheets.

Serin grinned. “So, who do I owe?”

“The shop in the town. The one with the carved fish on the door.”

“Right. I will pay them tomorrow morning.”

“Great. Did you want some nightwear?”

“A loose gown would be great for the sake of sharing a room here.”

Another flick and everyone was ready for bed.

“You change his diapers like that?”

Jane grinned and settled on her bed. “Wouldn’t you? I have diapers in my room in the village. I am probably freaking out housekeeping.”

“You were here on business.”

“I never travel without diapers,” Jane murmured as she settled with her son draped over her. “I will have to get some for him in the morning.”

“We will take care of your boy.”

“Good. His babysitter freaked a little when I called her and told her I was bringing him to the islands without a travel visa.” She smiled. “If they deport him, I go with him.”

“Your partner won’t like that.”

“He isn’t my partner. He was my breeder. Now, we have a son. So, that is something that needs to be discussed.” Jane yawned and ended up with a toddler hand in her mouth. She sighed and pulled it down. “This is going to be fun.”

Serin laughed, and they settled down to sleep.

A small finger poked her nose, and when Serin opened her eyes, a bright smile in a baby-toothed mouth was close to her. “Oh, morning, Terro.”

“Yay!” He stood and waddled off to his mom. “Mama!”

Jane sat up and pushed her hair out of her face. “Hey, baby. Are you an early riser?”

He crawled onto her lap and hugged her. “Food, Mama.”

“Oh, right. We need to feed you. I forgot that I need to feed you every day.” Jane tickled him, and he shrieked and giggled.

Serin contacted the palace and asked a question. “I have a guest. Can I bring her for breakfast? Oh, and her son.”

The husky voice on the other end said, “Of course. We will be down shortly.”

Serin grinned as she hung up.

Jane snapped her fingers, and they were all dressed in island casual.

They walked out and down the path, which showed a lot of activity. Jane held her son’s hand, and he grabbed Serin’s as they walked toward the palace. Serin’s heart melted at the feeling of those little fingers curled against hers.

The palace’s main room was open to the breezes, and the housekeeper came forward and gasped at the sight of Terro.

There were two panther kittens wrestling in a corner, and Terro let out an excited “Oooohhh” as he let go of the adults and ran for the kitty cats.

Serin watched Jane flex her shoulders as she muttered, “Game on.”

Terro moved to the kittens, and he crouched near them. The kittens untangled, and Jane went over to supervise.

Serin looked at Kekoa as he came downstairs and spoke to the housekeeper. The woman tore her gaze away from the toddler and headed into the kitchen.

Kekoa smiled. “Morning, Serin. You look happy.”

“It is very good to be home. I went to a bonding ceremony last night, and the celebration was such a wonderful experience.”

There was a child’s giggle from the corner, and Serin turned and saw Jane sitting with Terro on her lap, and the adolescent kittens were trying to get on as well.

Kekoa blinked. “He’s a toddler.”

Serin smiled. “He is. He was born in the city.”

Jane looked up. “This is Terro. Terro, this is King Kekoa.”

Terro looked up and stared at the tall alpha. Kekoa looked at his face and said, “His eye marks...”

Serin smiled. “They met his father last night. He came to the party at Ligo’s.”

“How did she not know who he was?” Kekoa murmured.

Jane spoke, “Because I had a flash heat, he had a flash rut, and my adaptation got me to a comfortable place across the city as soon as it was over. We were both travelling for work and hadn’t even exchanged names.”

Kekoa looked at Serin. “Oh. That would do it.”

Terro laughed and played with the kitties, and they were remarkably resilient to the little human that was playing with them.

One of the kittens broke free and galloped over to Kekoa. Terro got up and followed.

Jane got up, Serin sat near one of the tables, and Jane sat next to her. The kitten and the toddler were playing tag around the king’s legs.

There was giggling, and Serin smirked at Kekoa’s enthralled expression.

“He’s so fast,” Kekoa wondered.

The housekeeper arrived with another woman carrying a second tray. Kekoa warily timed it to step out of the chase circle and had a seat across the table from the ladies.

Jane said softly, “Terro, come and have breakfast. They got you a banana.”

He scrambled to his mother and opened his mouth. She snorted and broke off a piece of banana before breaking the rest into suitable pieces. She fed him the first piece and then said, “Now, feed yourself.”

There was oatmeal and fruit and eggs. Jane got herself some food while Serin watched, but then, the funniest thing happened. Terro started to feed his mom chunks of banana.

Kekoa laughed at Jane’s expression. “He has no concept of pacing.”

Serin smiled. “He did this yesterday with shredded pork. Jane wore more than got in her mouth.”

Jane chuckled and turned the tables with the food, getting some of the oatmeal into Terro’s mouth.

Serin ate, and Kekoa stared at the toddler. “I had forgotten what they looked like at that age.”

“I am sorry about the situation, and I am ready to get things back on track so the island can flourish again. Several of my friends are carrying, and I need to get them to term.”

“You don’t have to beat them there?”

“To delivery? No. I just need to find a mate. A good mate. A trustworthy mate. Has anyone seen Ulo?”

“No. We have started looking. The island doesn’t feel him on it.”

Serin lifted her head. “He’s here.”

“Where?”

“In the jungle near the town. I think he is heading for my new house. He feels odd though.”

“Odd, how?”

“I don’t know. He’s like a moving tree.”

“Do you want to go speak to him?”

Serin sighed. “I think we should have it out.”

“I can entertain your friend and her child. The others will be down soon.”

Serin grinned. “I can take a hint. I will return when this is done.”

She grabbed a handful of fruit and nodded to Jane. “I will be nearby if you need me.”

“Same here.” She would have spoken more, but a little hand was stuffed into her mouth.

Serin laughed and left the palace with her friend and her son safe. She needed them to be safe.

Serin walked along and let the greenery reach out to touch her. She didn’t want to freak out Jane or distract Terro. The little guy was clever and would probably mimic what he saw.

She could feel every tree and every leaf around her home, and when she searched for Ulo, she found him in the garden.

“Ulo, what are you doing here?” Serin walked into the light and stared at his broad back.

He turned toward her, and his eyes were green, solid green. “I have missed you.”

“I don’t know you.”

“You may call me Alar. I am your other half.”

“Why are you wearing an Ulo suit?”

He touched his torso. “You once found the body pleasing, so I put myself into it. You don’t find him attractive?”

“Uh, his actions destroyed the new life inside me. I do not find him attractive.”

A vine wrapped around her wrist, and he straightened and nodded. “Right. I will find one that you want to mate with. Just a moment.”

Ulo collapsed and was completely motionless.

She could see him breathing shallowly and went to get a cup of water. She threw the water into his face and said, “Get up.”

“What did you do to me?” He groaned and rubbed his head.

“Nothing. Absolutely nothing. A forest elemental took you over because I used to find you attractive. He is out getting another body for me right now so that I don’t have flashes of anger and disgust when I look at him.”

Ulo sat up. “Serin, was what I did so bad?”

“You betrayed me, and in withdrawing from our link, you killed our child. Yes, what you did was bad. I was set to be the life of the island, and you killed it. There have been no children born here in the last five years. That is all on you.” She looked at him. “You sterilized the Wonder Islands.”

Ulo shook his head. “No. I heard you had a child with you.”

“My friend Jane? She lives in the city. Her son has a father. And if you take one step toward her son, she will destroy you. She’s a very protective mother.”

He blinked. “So, you aren’t lying. We had a child?”

“Yes. I was not particularly fond of the conception, but it had begun.”

“How did it die?”

“The link died, and my body wasn’t able to pull enough energy to support the exponential growth, so it left. That is why you rarely see women alone with an alpha’s baby. When it is us or them, our bodies choose us. With a mate, I would have been able to pull energy from you, and our little one would be close to five by now.” Serin stared at him. “But you had to dive into my sister. You had to betray me and betray our connection. It was not a great time in my life.” She inhaled and felt the warm scents of the fruit and flowers that lined her garden. “But I am here to start over. Start new. Find a mate.”

He stood up. “I can be your mate.”

He reached for her, and what happened next was so fast, she blinked. Vines shot past her on all sides. They wrapped around Ulo and squeezed.

Serin turned and saw a familiar face. “Deno?”

He smiled, and his eyes flickered green. “The spirit of the island asked me a question, and I said yes.”

Serin looked at the stuntman who had attended any number of video shoots. “Why are you even here?”

“Ford sent scouts for the next Alphas versus Betas. Someone put the bug in his ear that it should be held on the water.”

“So, where is the green guy?”

“Oh, he’s in here. He said he searched your memories, and you had a favourable reaction to me.” Deno smiled. “The reaction was mutual.”

There were choked sounds coming from Ulo.

“The spirit regrets that he chose Ulo the first time. You thought he was pretty at the time.”

She snorted. “I was a teenager. I thought that superheroes were pretty. It didn’t mean that I wanted one for life.”

He glanced over toward Ulo. “He does have that swoopy hair and chiselled jaw.”

“And noodle spine and soul of a mirror.” Serin sighed. “I grew up, and so did my taste in men.”

“Pain is a hard teacher.” Deno looked concerned. “Are you all right?”

She looked at his genuinely concerned face, and it was something that no male of her acquaintance had asked her. She smiled, and tears tracked down her cheeks. “I will be.”

He walked to her and offered a hug. She held onto him and just let herself acknowledge the pain, saying it was different from feeling it. She had said it a dozen times over the last few years. She finally let herself feel it.

A soft rain broke over the island, and flowers that hadn’t bloomed in years slowly opened in every nook and cranny of the land.

Deno was stroking her back slowly when she looked up at him in the rain. “I haven’t done that properly.” She glanced behind her. “Hey, where did Ulo go?”

“I chucked him down the embankment. He’s on the beach now. Mostly in one piece.” He chuckled. “I believe he’s limping.”

Serin stepped back and wiped her eyes. “Wow, that was... overdue.”

He chuckled. “Better?”

“Better. Are you really out here scouting?”

“I am. We are. Belle is out here as well. Technically, she is recovering, but she really wants to do something while she recuperates from the treatment.”

Serin chuckled. “The deadly duo.” She paused, “How is she doing? She came with us to the bonding party last night, but you can never tell with her.”

“Yeah. If we get authorization for the show down here, she’s going to be doing training for the betas, and I will be doing it for the alphas.”

“I don’t suppose she has a mark on her.”

He wrinkled his nose. “Not one that can be seen without blacklight.”

“Seriously? That’s a thing?”

Deno smiled. “You didn’t know?”

“I didn’t. I thought I just didn’t have one. I am going to check that out.”

“I can look for you.” He smiled.

“This is kind of sudden,” she murmured.

“Is it? You know what you are. You needed someone to meet you halfway. He asked, and I agreed.”

“Why?”

“Because you draw me like no one else. I was given an opportunity to put myself in your path. All you have to do is run me over.”

“I will settle for hugs.”

“Oh, I can manage hugs.” He smiled. “Did you want to get breakfast?”

“I have already had breakfast, but I do need to stop at some shops in the village. Jane’s skill is a little light-fingered, and she populated my house last night.”

“May I come with you?”

“Please. I need to figure this out.”

He nodded. They walked through her home, and he admired the furniture. “She has good taste.”

“This was a summoning. She can move things from place to place or her son. She can move him easily.”

“You like her.”

“Everyone likes Jane, and everyone loves Terro.”

He smiled. “I saw him once, I think. His mother was carrying him.”

“He’s self-propelled now.” Serin smiled. “At high speed.”

They walked to the shops that were opening with shock and confusion at the missing supplies and homewares. Serin began to pay for her house’s new interior finishings.

Deno wandered off and got himself some breakfast, and Serin just went through shop after shop, including the sleepwear and fresh clothing.

Word was sent around the vendors, and anyone with missing items could send her a note or come see her with a list and a pay unit.

Serin was given a cup of tea at the shop where the pillows had come from, and everyone else came to her. Her village was happy to have her home.

Her grandmother approached, and Serin smiled. “Hey, Grandma.”

“Serin. Oh, my big girl.”

Serin got to her feet and hugged her grandmother. “Hi. Where’s grandpa?”

“He’s on his way, but he’s slow nowadays.”

Her mother’s father slowly appeared around the rest of the villagers, and he enfolded her in a hug. “Hey, Pop-pop.”

“Hey, little flower.”

Serin paused. It was his name for her sister. “How are you feeling, Pop-pop?”

“Could be better; could be worse. I wish your sister would come back and do what she was supposed to.”

“Maybe she just hates Ulo, Pop-pop?”

“Doesn’t matter. I told him to do what he needed to do years ago. If he hadn’t gotten caught, the island would be crawling with little ones by now.”

The crowd was frozen in horror, and her grandmother was wringing her hands.

Serin held his hands and poured some life back into him. He smiled and looked around and then took a step back. “Oh, no. Oh, berry. I am so sorry.”

“It’s fine, Pop-pop. If you want to talk to my sister, she’s in the jail for attempted murder. You can spend as much time as you like talking about things that should have been. Your spurring Ulo to action made me run. He withdrew our link, and that killed my child. I would not stay around here after that. There was no future for me. He took it from me, and you encouraged him to do it.”

He paled. “He was never supposed to break the link.”

“Oh, but he did, to honour my sister, he did it. Cursing the island at that moment. Wasn’t it fun? You had a part in all of this. I am sure you are proud. Neither of them will be able to taste fruit from the trees or fresh water on the islands. The fish will avoid their hooks, and ants will haunt their sleep.”

She sat back on the chair and said, “Who else has a bill from my friend’s populating of my house?”

The crowd slowly edged her grandparents out while her grandmother’s sobs rang in the air.

Deno arrived with a cup of coffee in each hand. “Here you go.”

“Thanks, Deno. The coffee is welcome. The hits just keep on happening.” She took the cup, and he rubbed the back of her neck.

“New day. New start. The past is the past. It cannot be changed. Did I hear you cursing your sister and Ulo?”

“Yeah. I am not sure if I did or not, but if I did, I think it will end when I have gotten on with things.”

The vendor she was sitting with looked at Serin. “Is he your mate?”

“Probably. He is the spirit of the island. Voluntarily. It has left Ulo completely and is now in Deno.”

Deno snorted, and the green flared in his eyes as he looked around. “Now that my mate has returned, I needed to find a host who would appeal to her. She has worked with Deno and enjoys looking at him, and he, her.”

Serin covered her eyes for a moment and then looked up. “Thank you, Deno-spirit.”

He leaned down and kissed her lips quickly. “They will get used to it, as will you.”

She blushed as he stood up, and Deno grinned. “Well, I do.”

She frowned and then realized the last statement about him liking to look at her. “Oh.”

He smiled. “Drink your coffee.”

She sipped at the cup, and the sellers gathered around Deno, asking him about the spirit and when he got it.

Serin felt the polite request and stood up. “Please gather a list of what I owe. I will return from the palace and settle the rest of the accounts when I get back.”

Liho, the furniture seller, nodded. “We can deliver the bill to the palace if you like.”

“If it gets it settled faster, please.”

Deno put his arm around her, and they excused themselves to head to the palace.

“This is fun. You are going to get to meet Terro and his mom.”

“I look forward to it, as you speak so highly of them.”

They approached the palace, and there was a lot of childish giggling going on. Serin knocked on the nearest post, and Kekoa looked up and smiled. Alohi was playing ball with Terro, and Haravin and Narro were sitting to the side while he gave her a back rub. Jane was talking to Kekoa about something on the tablet in front of him.

Jane looked up. “Hey, Serin, I am just going over some of the early videos that Thera and Aeryn have put together.”

“Nice. I have only seen them on my phone. Busy few days.”

Jane reset the videos, and Kekoa watched with them as Serin judged the images and the music. “Oh, those are good. A few tweaks and they are ready for distribution.”

Jane chuckled. “Great. There is a ton more footage. Amby is even going to recreate her trip up the cliff with Dorian and swim with Ohno.”

Kekoa looked at her. “How do you know all this?”

“I read the briefs, and I have worked with Serin before. She gave me access to the files, and I think I know what she wants changed in the edits. Serin, will you watch Terro?”

“Of course, but I think Alohi has it covered.”

Serin glanced over at Terro and Alohi playing catch. “He does, but I will be here as back up. Oh, Kekoa, this is Deno. He’s my match.”

Deno chuckled. “Hello.” His eyes flared solid green, and he nodded to Kekoa.

Kekoa jolted and blinked. “Oh, it makes so much sense.”

Serin nodded.

Deno smiled. “I will need to gain resident status.”

Kekoa snorted. “I have a stack of them in my office. There have been a lot of new additions, which is amazing.”

Deno sat near Serin. “What constitutes a first date on the island.”

Alohi lifted his head. “A night at the village. Food, music, dancing; it’s fun.”

Kekoa smiled. “And if you wear the cuffs and activate them, you will know how compatible you are.”

Serin sighed and looked at Deno. They both smiled. “We already know.”

Jane did some editing on the fly and then showed the revamped video. It was a productive meeting with builtin childcare. Everybody won.