Chapter 4
Seth watched Petra process what he’d just said.
Not entirely human.
Most people would have run, or scoffed, or maybe dismissed him as crazy.
A few might even have believed him and panicked.
Petra, surprisingly, did none of those things.
She sat very still on the stone bench, her hands folded in her lap, and studied him with a kind of focused attention that reminded him of a scholar examining a particularly puzzling manuscript.
“Not entirely human,” she repeated slowly. “Meaning what, exactly?”
“Meaning I’m a shapeshifter.” Seth kept his voice calm and matter-of-fact. This was the hard part, the moment where he either gained her trust or lost it completely. “I can take the form of a golden jackal. It shares my soul.”
Her eyes widened slightly, but she didn’t flinch away. “A jackal. Like the animal.”
“Exactly like the animal. Because when I shift form, I am the animal and he is me.” He paused, gauging her reaction. “I was watching you last night. From beneath the dining room window.”
Understanding flickered across her face. “That’s how you knew about my meeting with the lawyers. You were listening.”
“Yes.”
“Show me.”
Seth blinked. “What?”
“Show me.” Petra’s voice was steady, determined. “If you can turn into a jackal, prove it. I need to see it to believe it.”
He should have expected this. Petra was a librarian, someone who dealt in facts and evidence. Of course she’d want proof.
“All right,” Seth said. “But I need you to stay calm. The shift can be startling if you’ve never seen it before.”
“I’ll manage.” She sounded disbelieving. Boy, was she in for a surprise.
“Fair warning, I have to take off my clothes or they’ll be ruined. Don’t worry. I’ll go over there behind the bush to preserve your modesty, but you can still see me from the waist up.” He almost laughed as her eyes widened.
Seth stood and moved behind the bush, as promised, then disrobed. He enjoyed the way her eyes followed his progress and seemed to get caught on his shoulders and stay there. The little librarian liked what she saw, if he wasn’t much mistaken. He smirked, then he let the change take him.
It happened quickly. His body compressed and reformed in a shower of sparkling magic as fur rippled across his skin and his bones shifted and reshaped. The world sharpened into focus through his sharper jackal senses, scents exploding into clarity and sounds becoming crisp and distinct.
He shook out his golden coat and trotted out from behind the bush, looking at Petra the whole time. She’d gone pale, but she hadn’t screamed. She hadn’t run either. No, she was staring at him with a mixture of shock and wonder, her hand pressed to her mouth.
He padded closer, moving slowly so as not to spook her. Then he sat down a few feet away from her and waited.
Petra leaned forward, studying him. “You’re beautiful,” she said softly. “And a bit terrifying. But mostly beautiful.”
The jackal made a soft sound, almost a huff as Seth found her words amusing.
This woman was made of strong stuff to take his news so well.
He had to admire her for that. Padding back behind the bush, he shifted back to his human form.
He needed to speak with her and he couldn’t do that in his beast form.
The process reversed and he was left standing naked, on two legs rather than four, once more. He quickly donned the clothes he’d left draped over the bush and then went around the bush to speak with her again. Petra watched his every move with wide eyes.
“How?” she asked when he faced her again.
“It’s what I am. How I was born.” Seth sat back down on the bench, deliberately casual. “There are shifters all over the world. Different species, different forms. Lions, bears, wolves, big cats. We’ve been here as long as humans have, living alongside you, mostly hidden.”
“Why hidden?”
“Because humans don’t always react well to things they don’t understand.” Seth’s tone was dry. “History is full of witch hunts and burnings, and persecution of all kinds. Shifters learned to keep their heads down and blend in.”
Petra was quiet for a moment, processing. “My mother never mentioned anything like this.”
“She probably didn’t know. Most humans don’t. Your family’s magic was minor enough that it wouldn’t have drawn attention from the magical community. You would have lived your whole life never knowing shifters existed, if not for Abdul Kettering.”
“Because he was involved with those Venifucus people.”
“Right.” Seth leaned back against the bench, trying to project calm.
“The Venifucus is an ancient organization devoted to bringing back Elspeth, the Destroyer of Worlds. She’s a powerful fey being who tried to destroy our realm a long time ago.
She was defeated and banished, but her followers have been working for centuries to find a way to bring her back. ”
“Fey,” Petra said faintly. “As in fairies.”
“As in an ancient race of magical beings who exist in a different realm from this one. They’re powerful, dangerous when they want to be, and mostly they stay out of human affairs. Elspeth was different. She wanted to unmake everything, and she nearly succeeded.”
Petra pressed her fingers to her temples. “This is insane.”
“I know. But it’s also true.”
“Okay.” She looked at him, and Seth was struck by how steady her gaze was despite everything he’d just told her. “The workshop. Those so-called craftsmen were making magical things in that workshop.”
“Exactly. Dark magical artifacts. Things that could be used by others of their kind to help them kill shifters, enslave humans, and likely break protective wards. Your late cousin was providing them with space, materials, and protection in exchange for power and influence.”
“And they’re coming back in less than a week.”
“According to Herr Müller, yes.”
Petra stood and paced a few steps away, her arms wrapped around herself. Seth watched her think, saw the moment she came to a decision and turned back to face him.
“You said my family had magic,” she said. “What does that mean, exactly?”
“What your mother had was a low-level gift, an ability to sense things. True mages are different. They can manipulate energy, cast spells, create wards and enchantments. The power varies wildly. Some mages are barely stronger than your grandmother. Others can level buildings or summon demons.”
“Demons.” Petra’s voice was flat. “Of course there are demons.” She rolled her eyes and shook her head and he had to bite back a grin at her reaction.
“From other realms, yes. The Venifucus has been known to use them as weapons or even guards. It’s dangerous, and forbidden by most magical communities, but dark mages don’t care about rules.”
“What about the silver?” Petra asked abruptly. “In the workshop. It made me feel sick.”
“Silver is poisonous to many magical beings. There’s truth to the old wives tales about silver bullets being the only thing that can stop a werewolf.
Silver is poisonous to all shifters and especially deadly to bloodletters.
What you probably call vampires. As for other magical races, it depends on the nature of their magic, but silver is very malleable and can be easily weaponized.
If it was in the workshop, I have no doubt it was being used to make things that would be harmful to my kind, and Others who fight on the side of Light.
If it made you feel sick, it’s likely your body was reacting to that because you’re more sensitive to magic than a regular person. ”
Petra hugged herself tighter. “The gold didn’t feel as bad.”
“Gold is harder to corrupt. It’s more closely associated with Light magic, and with protection and healing. The Venifucus probably used it for specific protective purposes, but most of their offensive work would have been done with silver.”
“Light magic,” Petra said. “So there’s good magic and bad magic.”
“It’s a little more complicated than that, but essentially yes.
Magic itself is neutral. It’s just energy.
It can be bent toward creation or destruction, healing or harm.
Those who serve the Light use magic to protect and to build, and to maintain balance.
The Venifucus serves destruction and chaos. ”
“And you? Which side are you on?”
“The Light,” Seth said without hesitation.
“I work with a network of shifters and allies who oppose the Venifucus and have been trying to stop Elspeth’s return to power.
That’s why I’m here. My contacts, Sam Kinkaid and Mark Peppard, asked me to monitor the situation after Abdul died.
We need to know if his Venifucus connections will continue to operate or if they’ll abandon this site. ”
“But then I showed up.”
“Then you showed up,” Seth agreed. “An innocent civilian who inherited a viper’s nest without knowing it.”
“I’ve heard that name. Mark Peppard. He’s some kind of rich businessman, isn’t he?” she asked, her brow furrowed the tiniest bit.
“He’s a billionaire,” Seth said without hesitation. “So is Sam Kinkaid. You may have heard of Kinkaid Industries? They’re based in Houston, Texas, but they have a strong presence in both Africa and Europe. Especially in Ireland and Scotland.”
She was nodding slowly. “Yes, I seem to recall hearing that name as well. I confess, I don’t run in those kinds of circles, normally, so I don’t know much about either one. You say they sent you here? Are they footing the bill for your services? And if so, why?”
“Why? Because they are both firmly committed to the Light. It was Sam who your cousin confronted in Monaco. Abdul and his pet mages were trying to kill Sam and his mate. Mark was there, as well. They have a vested interest in making sure the evil mages who were operating out of this castle are stopped from continuing to do so. They sent me to find out what was going on and yes, they are footing the bill, as you put it.”