Chapter 18 #3
Sarika didn’t feel as if she’d really earned that friendship—she barely knew Solange—but she was willing to accept the offering. It meant quite a bit since Solange held herself apart from most others.
“I want you to meet my friends, Sarika.” Solange indicated the three women seated across the room in a small grouping with Jasmine. She caught Sarika’s hand and tugged until she followed the other woman.
Immediately, the four women looked up, greeting her with smiles. Jasmine jumped up and flung her arms around Sarika, startling her and everyone else.
“I’m so glad you came. Solange told me you saved her baby. She didn’t say how, but I believe you can move mountains, so I’m sure she was right.”
“Good evening to you, too,” Sarika said. “I didn’t really do all that, but it’s nice Solange thinks I did.”
“These are our friends.” Jasmine waved toward the three women she was seated with.
“Adele, Lucy, Tara, meet Sarika. She’s Luiz’s cousin.
And she faced down the jaguar males when they came for Sandrine and me.
We’ve known these three since we were children.
Tara is married to Finn. He’s around here somewhere.
” She looked around the room a little helplessly and then turned back with enthusiasm.
“So nice to meet you,” Tara said. “I had no idea Luiz had a cousin.”
“He must be thrilled,” Lucy added.
Sarika laughed. “I don’t know how thrilled he is. He likes obedience. So far, I’ve been an utter disaster for him.”
“Our daughter, Bianca, is running around with Sandrine. They’re the best of friends. Bianca is six, a year younger than Sandrine,” Tara explained.
Sarika looked at her with jaguar vision. Inhaled her scent. Tara hadn’t said so, but she was pregnant with her second child.
I think the other two jaguar females are also pregnant, Tomas. That was extremely concerning. She’d been feeling the joy in the room, but now a single thread of apprehension crept in.
Tomas shared the information with the other Carpathians. None of them reacted, but she felt the measure of protective surveillance go up a level.
Riordan De La Cruz walked his wife over to the table, gave the briefest of smiles to the women without really looking at them and seemingly melted away, leaving the women looking after him.
“Good grief, he’s good-looking,” Lucy said. “Juliette, it’s been too long since we’ve seen you. Where have you been hiding?”
Solange made the introductions. Juliette was her cousin. Right away, Sarika recognized the jaguar in her.
“Having a baby is exhausting,” Juliette announced and flung herself in the chair that Dominic provided.
“Solange, I love you, but you should have waited until Hunter was a full year before you decided to follow in my footsteps. And all of you”—she swirled her finger encompassing the women seated at the table—“lied your asses off telling me it would be a walk in the park. Hunter can’t be still for a single minute. ”
The women burst out laughing as Juliette slumped in her chair dramatically. Sarika found herself smiling with the others. Juliette was being somewhat honest about the exhaustion she felt, but she clearly wouldn’t change a thing.
“Thank the universe for Sandrine and Bianca. They’re watching over Hunter so I can get some much-needed female time,” Juliette continued. “Riordan was looking forward to seeing Zacarias today. He’s bringing Marguarita.”
There was a long silence, and the women looked at one another with concern.
Juliette immediately sat up. “Please remember that Marguarita is alone for long periods of time. Zacarias is an exceptional hunter and he leaves her to chase after the worst of the vampires. Her throat was torn out by a vampire, and she’s never been able to speak, even after the conversion. She needs friends.”
“Of course, she’s always welcome here,” Solange said. “She’s family.”
“It’s just that Zacarias can be…disturbing,” Jasmine said. “More so even than Luiz. Forgive me, Sarika, but your cousin can be all kinds of intimidating.”
She felt Tomas’ amusement. These women were in the room with several ancient hunters, all of whom were apex predators, yet they were relaxed around them.
“One just needs to take a firm hand with Luiz,” Sarika said deliberately, sharing her amusement with her cousin.
“By any chance, is Marguarita pregnant?” Sarika asked, suddenly suspicious.
Juliette was ensuring these women would accept her sister-in-law when it was doubtful Marguarita had asked to be championed.
Juliette glanced at Solange. “If she is, Zacarias would not want anyone to speak of it. He is the most hunted of our ancients. He is hated by every vampire, and often they conspire to kill him. If they knew of Marguarita, which is doubtful, they would move heaven and earth to take her from him. Knowing she was bringing his child into the world would create a frenzy of hatred and conspiracy to kill her and the child. We shouldn’t speculate. ”
That meant, without a doubt, that Juliette knew Marguarita had a baby on the way.
It didn’t take long to confirm it. The atmosphere in the house went from easy, joyful fun to high alert and uneasiness, as if a prowling, very hungry tiger had entered.
There were no soft edges to Zacarias De La Cruz.
None. His sweeping gaze took in everything and everyone, leaving them feeling as if he’d stripped them bare and uncovered every secret they had. His burning gaze settled on Sarika.
He halted in the center of the room, halfway to the women’s table, Marguarita behind him.
Ordinarily, that would have annoyed Sarika.
She never liked when a woman trailed behind a man as if she weren’t equal to him.
As much as Zacarias’ attention was centered on her, she knew his every instinct was to shield his lifemate, not lessen her importance.
Sarika smiled at the terrifying Carpathian. “I had hoped to meet with you and your lifemate. Luiz is my cousin and speaks very highly of you.”
“Luiz didn’t tell me you have many powerful gifts. He focused on your courage and your inability to stay out of harm’s way.”
The tone was the casual arrogance that ordinarily could set her teeth on edge.
Absolutely in command. Implying he could and would remedy what might be perceived as failings.
Because she had a thread to him through her jaguar, she felt his humor.
More, he shared that humor with his lifemate.
He hadn’t let go of the woman’s mind for even a small moment.
It was as if Marguarita anchored him into the world of civilization.
“Luiz does seem to have a teeny problem with modern-day independent women. He told me you were head of the family. You might want to have a little discussion with him about it and clue him in.”
Dominic burst out laughing. Tomas did as well. Marguarita came out from behind Zacarias and offered her hand.
“Do you prefer to speak telepathically, with notes or sign?” Sarika asked.
She was willing to use any of Marguarita’s preferences.
Just the fact that she could be lifemate to a man as dark and shadowed as Zacarias elevated her to star status.
The moment their hands came together, she knew it was a fact that Marguarita was pregnant and much further along than she appeared.
There was no evidence in her feminine form.
Dominic put another chair up to the table. “Sit, Marguarita, before Zacarias loses what little civility he has left.”
That little taunt told Sarika that Dominic and Zacarias were very old friends, and if Zacarias trusted anyone with his lifemate, it was Dominic.
She was beginning to get a feel for those in the room. They might be very powerful individuals, but they were good people, and all of them seemed willing to bring her into the family circle. Even Zacarias, who found it amusing that her cousin was having a difficult time reining her in.
As Marguarita sank into the very comfortable chair Dominic had added to the women’s table, Zacarias, like the other men, seemed to fade into the background. There was the briefest of pauses as a little girl raced into the room.
Her hair was in fiery curls, her eyes a deep velvety gold ringed with reddish-gold lashes.
She was dressed like a little dragon rider, but the little black jacket had ruffles down the back, trimmed in rose and gold sparkles.
The jodhpurs were cuffed with the same rose and gold sparkles.
Under the jacket was a little tank top of rose and gold.
“Auntie Solange! I’m here. I’m here.” She skidded to a halt to look around the room, her gaze taking in Sarika, and then her face lit up when she looked past her. “Luiz! You came. I hoped you’d come. I’m looking for Sandrine and Bianca, but I’ll give you a hug, too.”
The child couldn’t have been more than three, but she was extremely intelligent for her age and spoke very articulately. There wasn’t even a hint of baby talk.
“Maureen.” A male voice came from the doorway to the room. “What have I told you about security?”
“I scanned carefully, Daddy, while I was running,” the child said. She smiled winningly. “And everyone is here. I was late.”
“Perhaps because you threw a fit about your hair ribbons.”
This, then, was the legendary Dax, who shared his soul with a real dragon.
Sarika could see evidence of the fire-breathing soulmate in the Carpathian’s eyes.
The man had looked beyond his daughter to find Luiz.
Sarika could see he was very conflicted.
He was a Carpathian male and would want to know his daughter had added protection.
But Luiz was now one of the controversial De La Cruz family. And he wasn’t in the least modern.
“Thank you for ridding the world of Mitro,” she said to Dax, once more regaining his attention. She was certain Tomas had shared information with Dax as soon as her memories became known. Dax lived close, and Mitro had been a larger-than-life monster that haunted her.
Dax gave her a short old-world bow. “I regret that I was unable to rid the world of him before he destroyed the people you loved.”
She felt his regret. His guilt. It was the last thing she wanted. She certainly didn’t blame Dax for the terrible things Mitro had done. “At the time, I didn’t think there was anyone in this world who could rid the world of such a monster.”
Maureen went over to her father to take his hand. “Mama says Daddy is a hero, but we’re not supposed to call him that when he’s around.” She stated it proudly to Sarika in an overly loud whisper.
Riley came through the door just in time to hear her daughter’s declaration and receive the burning, piercing glare from her lifemate. She laughed, the sound moving through the room to dispel any doubt that she thought her man was a hero.
“But you are, honey,” she said and circled his neck with her arm. “At least to me.”
“And me,” Maureen said staunchly.
“And me,” Sarika chimed in, enjoying the Carpathian male’s discomfort just a little too much. She liked that the women weren’t intimidated by their own lifemates, not even Marguarita.
Dominic brought chairs, this time for Riley and Sarika.
She found herself seated at the women’s table.
The men faded into the background, and the party began in earnest. Maureen ran into the next room to find the other children.
She seemed to be a little force of nature.
Her hair was several shades of red, emphasized by the corkscrew curls.
Secretly, Sarika was very pleased that Luiz’s lifemate was a little tornado and already very self-assured.
Sarika wasn’t certain how the males did it, but they faded so much into the background that she nearly forgot they were there.
She didn’t ask questions about being Carpathian.
The talk was mostly about babies and being a mother.
Solange was clearly nervous but very happy, and the others wanted to support her.
An hour of fun and silly games had gone by when, without warning, the shadow hit Sarika hard, dropping over her, into her, until she could barely breathe.
The threat came out of nowhere, in the midst of children’s laughter and women’s excited murmurs as they talked of new babies and the love and joy they brought.
The atmosphere in Solange’s home had been joyful. Bright. Filled with hope and friendship. She had relaxed, believing that with all the male Carpathians there, she had been wrong. The women and children were protected, not only by those inside the house but also by the roving patrols outside.
In that one heartbeat, everything changed. Shadows shifted in the room. In her mind, she saw the shadows growing on the walls, reaching to the high ceilings to loom over the children and the women laughing and talking as if none of that threat touched them.