Chapter 3 #2
My wolverine smacks me with her tail, and I blink, coming out of the stupor of Leonora’s power.
Fuck. She’s not even actively casting. This is just her natural magical aura.
I need to be careful here. Being this close to the Leo goddess, I could easily find myself ensnared in her power without even realizing it.
I dig my nails into my palms to keep myself alert as Leonora stares into Askari’s eyes. The silence between them makes me uncomfortable, but the beta doesn’t move, and his posture remains relaxed.
Leonora finally asks, “Askari, do you know who placed those portal symbols on the floor?”
“Uh oh.” My beast digs her claws into my mind, ready and more than a little excited to jump into a tussle, but I hold her back.
Askari answers without delay. “No, my goddess. I assumed it was Bodi or Rian or one of their mates.”
She purses her lips again. “Assumed? Is it your job to assume?”
He calmly replies. “No, my goddess. I apologize. I am of course looking into it, but the magnificent power of your magic that you unleashed in that room diluted the signature of the portal magic.”
Hmm. Smart. Blame it on her using a compliment. But will she fall for it?
My wolverine spins a tight circle. “I like him.”
Again, I wave her off as Leonora hums, holding eye contact with Askari before saying. “I expect answers, Beta. They should not have been able to wield their power in my palace, soooo.”
Askari, with his head still wrenched back, his hair in her tight grip, asks, “You think someone within the clan helped them?”
She grins, a feral wildness seeping into her eyes as she says, “I know Malik had a hand in it.” I frown as the muscles of Askari’s back tense as Leonora goes on.
“But my leashed pet is limited in his magic right now, sooo”—She leans in until her lips nearly brush his—“he must have had help. Tell me, Askari. Who do you think would help my Malik do such a thing? It’s a short list, yes? ”
My palms sting where my nails dig deeper into them .
Askari says, “I can’t believe your loyal and loving Leos would betray you like that, my goddess, but if you want me to investigate our clan, I will do so.”
I bite my lip, because he’s lying. I can’t nail down what gives him away, and maybe it’s just my wishful thinking that this beta is on Malik’s side, but if I can detect the lie, then …
Something snaps in Leonora, her expression filling with rage so suddenly, it’s like she flipped a switch.
It’s unnerving how quickly her personality flips, but then again, maybe this is who she is all the time, right under the surface.
She snarls, gripping Askari’s hair even tighter.
With a scream, she throws him across the room, right at me.
I have the desire to catch him, but I can’t be discovered, so I sidestep as he slams into the wall with a sickening thud .
I’m pretty sure I hear ribs crack. Plaster shatters, and he falls to the floor, but lands on his feet like the feline he is.
Askari straightens with a grunt, but in a blink, Leonora is in his face.
My beast hisses, bristling the hair on the back of my neck.
Leonora moved so fast I couldn’t track her.
She grabs his throat and slams him into the wall again.
The hit is so forceful, I feel it through my boots.
Leonora is too close. I could reach out and touch her shoulder, but I don’t move.
I barely breathe. My beast whimpers, vibrating with a need to leap to Askari’s defense.
Askari chokes, his hands curling around Leonora’s fingers where she’s still holding his throat.
But he doesn’t fight her, he doesn’t try to pry her hand off him, he just dangles in her grip.
With barely any effort, Leonora yanks him away from the wall, only to smash him back into it.
His head cracks against the plaster, and as he slumps forward, I cringe at the smear of blood on the wall.
Leonora asks, “Was it you, Beta? My sweet, reliable, loyal beta? ”
I notice she stopped using his name the moment her anger surfaced.
Askari doesn’t answer. With a twist of her hips, she slams Askari face-down into the floor with such force, the marble cracks. He grunts, and his inhale stutters on a wheeze.
Leonora’s voice is eerily calm despite her acts of violence as she says, “Confess now, and I will forgive you.”
Askari manages to say, “It wasn’t?—”
A burst of power ripples from the goddess, and the back of Askari’s tunic shreds as deep, slicing wounds open up along his back. His scream is more lion than human, and his beast’s ears pop up on his head as he starts to shift.
Leonora calmly demands, “Confess.”
But she doesn’t give him time to speak before more slashes rip down his back. I should stop this. I can’t. I’m no good to anyone if I’m dead. And Leonora will kill me.
Fur spreads across Askari’s skin, and his tail thrashes as his claws descend.
Leonora slams his face against the marble floor, leaving behind a growing pool of blood as she says, “Tell me so we may move past this. Don’t break my trust, Beta.
Don’t break my heart. You have always been so reliable, so steady, so loyal.
” Her voice drops to a pleading whisper filled with sorrow.
But that pain is false, betrayed by the excited glitter in her eyes. “Tell me, Askari.”
He chokes on the blood in his mouth before saying, “My goddess, I don’t?—”
With a sharp tsk , she grabs the back of his neck and throws him back across the room.
His shift fully takes over, his lion trying to protect him as he slams into the cushioned stool she was sitting on earlier.
The furniture shatters, and the lion skids on his side for at least a yard before stopping.
His breathing is shallow, pained grunts accompanying each short inhale.
Leonora stalks slowly across the room towards Askari. He’s not going to tell her what she wants to hear. She reaches for the beta, and the lion yowls, but doesn’t move to evade her. I can’t take this anymore. I’m not supposed to interact or intervene, but I just can’t …
My inner beast throws herself against my mind, nearly drawing a grunt from my lips as she says, “Let me out. Let me at her!”
“No. Stop it. If we get caught, that’s it.
Game over. She’ll kill us. Just let me think …
” My gaze darts around the room, and an idea forms. My wolverine dips her head, flashing her fangs with a wicked smile as I gather my magic—which is starting to run low—weaving the necessary signs as quickly as I can.
With a thud, the two guards at the doorway crumple to the floor as soon as my spell hits them, their masks clinking loudly against the marble.
Leonora stops and looks over her shoulder at the unconscious hunters.
She stands slowly, her eyes narrowed, the predator peeking out, sniffing.
She shouldn’t be able to sense me, but the stone in my pocket is fire-poker hot, and a cold sweat slicks down my back.
My beast is on high alert, ready to pounce.
Leonora scans the room, her eyes moving right over me.
When she looks back towards Askari, I weave new signs, and the unconscious guards slide down the hall with a skittering screech of skin on marble until they ram into the wall of the T-junction at the end.
Leonora crosses the room and stands on the threshold as she scans the hallway, eyes still narrowed. She takes a single step into the hallway, and I flick my pinky fingers, sending one guard sliding out of view down the hall to the right, and the other goes left.
Leonora stumbles back a step, abandoning the hallway and weaves her hands. Two new hunters appear, and their masked faces turn side-to-side as they get their bearings. As soon as they see Leonora, they drop to a knee and bow. The goddess points through the open doors.
“Find out what’s going on.”
The two lift their heads and glance down the hall, but seeing nothing, they turn back to Leonora, one asking, “My goddess?”
She tsks , “Down there. Go!”
They leap to their feet and run down the hall. They pause, looking each way before they split up, heading towards the downed guards. I tag the unconscious shifters with a movement spell, and I hear the scrambling of feet as the guards’ bodies slide away, and the hunters take chase.
My beast chuckles, and I grin at her, pleased at the little distraction.
Leonora’s brows furrow. She glances at Askari who’s still lying on his side amongst the rubble of her shattered stool.
With a sigh, she straightens her clothing, tossing her ponytail over her shoulder and says, “My guest will be here any moment. Clean this up, Askari. I expect answers to what happened during the banquet once my meeting has concluded.”
Her bare feet pad quietly against the marble floor as she heads for the door.
She pauses, and her head swivels. She looks my way, searching.
I stare right at her, holding my breath.
Her gaze passes over me once, twice. She takes a step in my direction.
If she takes another, she’ll run right into me.
My lungs burn as my beast hisses at her in my mind.
Leonora blinks, then turns and walks away.
I want to slump against the wall and release a sigh of relief, but I hold still and take a slow inhale, calming my nerves as much as I can.
Askari coughs, half-shifted back to human.
Blood runs down his back as he pushes himself up and sits with a wince.
Black bruises smear over both his eyes, and his nose looks broken.
His shifter healing should have kicked in by now.
He holds his waist where a large purple bruise spreads over his ribs, and he hisses in pain.
He spits, and more of his blood splatters on the floor.
Voice raspy with pain, he says, “Is there someone in here?”
I falter. My gut says I can trust Askari. I have questions, but I don’t want to get him in more trouble. I’m about to turn and walk away, but Askari’s voice stops me. “Whoever you are, you should leave. She will find out, and she will kill you.”
His warning settles around the seemingly empty room. He sighs and struggles to his feet, and he sounds so … defeated.
My beast butts her head against my stomach. “You might as well. We need to start somewhere. He’s our best bet.”
I slip my hand into my pocket, tapping the stone in the correct rhythm before rubbing my thumb over the smooth flat side three times clockwise and once counterclockwise.
Askari’s gaze lands on me the moment I materialize.
I expected him to be shocked, despite his earlier words, but he’s not.
His gaze does dip to the enforcer tattoo on my throat, a hint of surprise lifting his brows, but he’s quick to mask his expression.
He lifts his hand, gently prodding at the bridge of his nose, and he winces with a groan. I’m sure he has quite the headache.
I ask, “Why aren’t you healing?”
He chuckles, but immediately regrets it as he doubles over, his thighs flexing as he hugs his ribs with a grunt. After a second, he stands, albeit a little hunched, and says, “She’s not letting me.”
I take a step towards him, holding up my hand. “Would you like me to?”
He shakes his head. “She’ll know someone helped me, and then she’ll have yet another reason to question me.”
I cock a hip, crossing my arms. “That was an interrogation, not an inquiry.”
He raises a brow, drawing my attention to his beautiful gold eyes ringed with bruises. He runs a hand through his wavy hair that falls just past his ears, and I can’t help but think it looks like his lion’s mane.
He breaks my perusal of his face, asking, “It was you who did that with the guards?” I smile in answer, and he dips his head in a shallow bow.
“Thanks, I guess. So, who are you and why are you sneaking around? You must know how dangerous it is to be here without an invitation. You have some kind of death-wish?”
I smile, and he freezes in place, his hand still in his hair, his eyes wide at my response. I say, “Nah, it’s my job to do these sorts of things.”
His eyes once more fall to the tattoo on my throat. “The Council is getting involved?”
I shake my head, hating to crush the hope in his voice. “No. I’m here … unofficially.”
“To what end?”
“Why would you assume I’d trust you with that information?”
He grins, the expression flirty despite his swollen face. “You showed yourself to me, assuming I wouldn’t turn you in, so ...”
I shrug. “You told me to leave before Leonora caught me without even knowing for sure I was in here. It was a pretty safe bet. Besides, I can disappear just as quickly. You’d be turning in a ghost.”
“A ghost with the tattoo of the enforcers.”
“The Council will deny sending any of their enforcers into Leonora’s palace. Because they didn’t. Of course they wouldn’t do that. That would violate the treaty.”
Askari’s shoulders slump as if suddenly too tired to continue our banter. He turns, heading towards a single door on the other side of the room. I’ve noticed that’s a theme in this palace; there are always at least two—if not more—ways to get in and out of a room.
His voice floats over his shoulder as he walks away. “Fine, whatever. Continue spying, but I won’t help you if you get caught. I have somewhere to be.”
“ Are you helping Malik?”
The question blurts out of me, and my words stall the shifter, his hand paused in reaching for the door handle. His body is tense, like he’s ready to pounce as he turns on me. This is the first time I’ve seen actual anger on his face, despite what Leonora just did to him.
Interesting.