Chapter 37 #2
Goose bumps ran up her arms as she took in the surroundings, her whole body going on high alert.
So many shifters. Some were in their animal forms, others looked vaguely human.
By vaguely, she meant horns of all shapes and sizes adorned a few of their heads, a basilisk shifter was partially covered in scales, and the largest wolf she had ever seen was glaring at her with yellow eyes.
One shifter had antlers that branched up like a crown, another had feathers where hair should have been.
The variety was staggering, and every single one of them was looking at her with varying degrees of murder in their eyes.
Avery gulped and took a step back, trying her best not to disappear into mist and let the goddamn wind take her where it wanted.
A smaller—still taller than Avery—cat shifter, in her human form, ran up to them, planting herself right next to the dragon shifter who had whistled.
“Oh my god, Felix,” she said, worried, before the lines of her face etched with anger. “What did you do to him, witch?”
Avery’s nose wrinkled as she said the word witch. Such a terrible insult, at least call her a cockwomble or something creative.
“I would never hurt him,” Avery said plainly, dropping to her knees and grabbing his hand.
“Get away from my brother!” she shrieked before the dragon pale-haired shifter held her back. She snapped her head up to him. “What are you doing, Ciro? Why are you protecting her?”
“They are bonded,” Ciro said. “Felix called her his mate.”
The cat shifter’s eyes widened, flitting between them as if she could find evidence of it on the surface. “It’s not possible.”
Before Avery could show the cat shifter her mating marks, something shifters would respect, Ciro barked out orders. “Take him to the infirmary; he’s been hit by a suppression bullet.”
“But,” the cat shifter said.
“That’s an order, Eimi. Now,” Ciro commanded.
Eimi scowled before signaling over a few other shifters, who carefully lifted him up off the ground as he winced in pain.
Avery twitched, as if to yank him back from the shifter’s clutches, but he was in safe hands here.
She had to respect the shifters. Each sound he made took a few years off her life.
She would never forget the memory of him falling off a cliff.
Avery went to follow them before the dragon, Ciro, stood in front of her. “You’re not going anywhere, witch.”
Oh dear. She nodded. What else could she do, balls-deep in shifter territory?
She was alone and surrounded by people who would tear off her limbs for fun.
Felix had been taken from her. What were they going to do with him?
Would he be okay? They had been through so much.
She had to trust that he would. Hopefully, the worst of things was behind her.
Ciro turned and didn’t have to say anything as he walked away; his mere presence beckoned her to follow him.
Colossal arched doors welcomed their presence; the architecture was built to accommodate those of large stature.
She was sure it would fit a dragon through them if they really tried.
The doors themselves were wooden, intricate carvings of different shifter forms displayed artfully.
It was so different from Caerwyn, which was still beautiful, but something about this place was far more homely than the island ever felt.
Instead of dark features, the building radiated light even in the middle of the night.
When she walked through the door, delicate furnishings and plush comfort greeted her over the hard chairs she was used to.
Deep sofas to sink into and art that filled you with joy instead of horror.
It took everything in her not to gape. She was no stranger to opulence and wealth, but something about this place felt alive in a way Caerwyn wasn’t.
Magic teetered on every surface, brooms moving themselves past the floor, lights dancing along the walls; the magic wanted to be here.
This place was meant to be lived in. The floors were a polished dark wood; not even a single creak sounded as they walked along them.
Avery found herself wondering how old this place was, how many generations of shifters had lived here.
They went past what she assumed was the foyer and up a set of stairs that curved to a grandiose dining room.
A modern chandelier hung from the ceiling, throwing dapples of light over a long table that could seat more than thirty people.
Grand floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked a sprawling, shimmering lake and rolling hills of forests dotted with leaves of russets and golds, almost silver in the moonlight.
The view was stunning enough that Avery forgot to be terrified for approximately five seconds.
“I didn’t think shifters lived like this,” she said out loud.
“Where did you think we lived? Filthy basements and tunnels below the city?” Ciro said, the deep voice making her flinch when she realized who was next to her.
“Yes, actually.” No point in lying about it now. That was exactly what she’d been taught, what every witch believed: they were scavengers, barely better than animals.
Ciro rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his shirtless body.
Even though Felix was the most handsome man she had ever seen, she couldn’t deny that this shifter was a close contender.
He was obscenely attractive. His golden eyes pierced her in a slightly chilling manner. And he had tattoos. Smash.
“Sit,” Ciro said, voice gruff.
She did so, knowing it wasn’t a nicety. Though the chair looked comfortable, she perched on the edge of it, ready to run if necessary. Not that running would help her in any way, shape, or form.
He leaned on the table, his talons clacking against the wood. Avery stilled in the way a deer does. Even with powers, she still had the survival instincts of a peanut.
“How the fuck did you bond to my brother?” he said. She still didn’t know if he was his blood brother like Eimi, but something in her told her it wasn’t the time to ask. What happens if two different shifters mate? Is that how the griffin happened?
Avery wasted no time catching him up on what had happened over the last few weeks, excluding the obvious details of his brother sticking shadows up her butt.
She told him of the bonding, the goddess, and what the goddess had said about their history.
About the statues, about her not mother.
About the mating—not the fun parts. He listened without interrupting, expression unreadable, and Avery couldn’t tell if he believed her or was simply waiting for her to hang herself with her own words.
Ciro didn’t say anything when she finished, but the slight clench in his jaw gave him away.
He took a seat at the head of the table, finally meeting her at her level. “Mates have been a part of our history for a long time, but I have never heard of one between a witch and a shifter.”
Avery pulled back her sleeves. The dragon’s throat worked as he looked her up and down, taking in the visible mating tattoos that he could see on her arm.
For a second, a flash of surprise came across his face, which somehow was more frightening than his anger had been.
She and Felix were truly the first witch and shifter mates.
Ciro poked and prodded her with question after question.
Trying to squeeze every last bit of information out of them.
She probably should have been more careful with what she said.
But truly, she didn’t care. They were keeping shifters at Caerwyn, binding them to witches against their will. She wanted to help them.
“And you’re saying after you mated, he could control his monster?” Ciro asked.
“Yes.”
“Interesting,” was all he said. Avery didn’t know why she waited for his words that wouldn’t come. This dragon wouldn’t trust her as far as he could throw her. Which was ironic because he could throw her, very, very, far.
“When Felix is awake, I would like to hear it from him.” Ciro stood in one graceful movement, chair scraping back across the wood floor.
“Mark my words, witch,” he said, turning to the window. “If you have tampered with his mind in any way, I will peel off your fingernails one by one, rip you limb from limb, and feed you to my pet fish. Is that clear?”
“Crystal,” she squeaked, smiling to hide the pure terror climbing over her features instead. Not that it mattered, he could probably smell that she was one jump away from pissing her pants.
There was nothing left to say after that. Ciro didn’t dismiss her. He briefly talked to Kai. Talked was a stretch, given they were just nodding at each other, obviously having a conversation in their heads. So, Avery just sat in awkward silence and waited for Felix to be awake.