Chapter 10

TEN

He couldn’t hear me, of course.

But he did stride back in my direction until he was looming in the window frame, scanning every inch of me as if checking to be sure I was okay.

“I’m fine,” I murmured, carefully squashing the tiny little surge of glee that proclaimed he did actually care whether or not I was hurt. “No injuries here.” My ankle chose that moment to remind me that I was a liar, but I ignored it in favor of frowning at Callum’s rather extensive collection of damages.

He was currently bleeding from both feet and sporting a set of scratches that stretched all the way across the front of his chest. His knuckles were scraped and bruised, his clothes were soaking wet, and bits of plaster and drywall were stuck to his skin.

In comparison, I probably looked as if I’d just stepped out of the pages of a fashion magazine.

“What?” he asked quizzically, as if he hadn’t quite registered yet that he was hurt.

Suddenly I was grinning up at him, drunk on the realization that we’d survived. We’d been attacked without warning, when we were at a decided disadvantage, and we’d routed the enemy.

“You have something in your hair,” I told him, smirking a little at his shocked expression. “Also, could you try that roar again? I think there may have been one or two people in Oklahoma who didn’t hear you the first time.”

That’s right, Your Majesty. I made a joke. Deal with it.

But in that moment of euphoria, I’d somehow forgotten who I was dealing with.

He moved so fast. Without warning, Callum’s face was suddenly only a few inches from mine—glowering eyes, stern, stubbled jaw, and filthy, disordered auburn hair—so close I was tempted to reach out and…

Oh, no no no.

Absolutely not.

What was I thinking? This was the king of the shapeshifters.

The man with the best chance of figuring out exactly what I was. The man I was only choosing to help for the sake of the kids. A paranoid grouch with control issues and a wicked right hook.

Which meant I needed to throttle this absurd and inconvenient attraction and stuff it back under a rock where it belonged.

Callum-ro-Deverin was forever off limits.

No touchy.

Just… no.

I managed to take a step back, putting space between us just as my adrenaline crashed and I realized that my clothes were soaked and I was cold.

The sprinklers, at least, seemed to have shut off.

I wrapped my arms around my chest as Kira came racing up behind Callum, eyes huge in her pale face.

“What happened?”

“Inside.” Callum gestured with his head and leaped back in through the window, while Kira, Faris, and Draven headed towards the door.

The moment he stepped past the foyer, Faris stopped dead in his tracks. He began swearing viciously as he stared from the broken shapeshifters to the ruined wall, while Kira flung her arms around her brother and clung to him in a desperate hug.

“I’m so glad you’re okay,” she whispered, and as I watched, the fierce king of the shifters softened enough to wrap his arms around his sister and press a kiss to the top of her hair.

“I am,” he assured her, his voice still coming out deeper and harsher than normal. “But only thanks to Raine.”

She pulled back to look at me, eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

“Thank you,” she said softly. “Really. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

“He’s being generous,” I muttered, feeling somewhat uncomfortable with so much misplaced gratitude. She must have heard my teeth chattering as I spoke, because she immediately broke away from Callum and took my arm.

“We’re getting you out of these wet clothes, now ,” she ordered firmly.

Draven spoke up from where he crouched over the prone body of the lion shifter. “What would you like done with these two?”

“Put them somewhere safe until I can talk to them.” Callum’s wintery tone suggested it would be more than just a simple chat.

Faris chuckled darkly, a low, rumbling sound that promised vengeance. “I’ll take care of it.”

“Are you claiming jurisdiction?” Callum asked in a carefully neutral voice.

The earth elemental glanced in his direction, and suddenly they weren’t just two men anymore, but two separate courts, debating who had been the most offended by the night’s events.

“It is my city,” Faris noted, almost casually. “But they attacked your property, and they’re members of your court. I’d say it’s a draw.”

Callum nodded. “In that case, I would be pleased to cooperate with your investigation. With the caveat that their fate is mine to decide after it’s over.”

So… Faris got to ask the questions and then Callum got to punish them?

“Agreed.” The two shared a formal nod.

I shuddered, as much with my hatred of politics as with the icy chill from my wet clothes, as Faris dragged the two shifters out the door.

Must be good to be king—he didn’t even seem worried that someone might see him.

“Callum, you too,” Kira commanded. “You’re soaked, and even dragons catch colds.”

Wait. I could manipulate water. If I was ready to embrace that side of myself, surely there was more I could do with it than throw arrogant fae assassins in front of speeding pickup trucks.

I just didn’t know how I’d managed any of the things I’d done over the past twenty-four hours. It had all been pure instinct, provoked by a sense of immediate threat.

But I couldn’t afford to catch a cold, and neither could Callum. We needed to be dry, and we needed to fix the damages to this building. Which couldn’t happen while it was ankle deep in water.

I’d seen Talia do it the night before, when she helped clean up The Portal. Maybe if I closed my eyes again…

It was nothing like the brilliant cloud of color and light I’d sensed before. This was more like a hazy landscape of pastels, the faint colors wreathing my body and spreading out into the darkness. I could not simply reach out and tug. I needed to coax. Beckon. Urge them onward with a gentle touch.

As the colors blended together and brightened, they formed a peaceful river that flowed away from me into the darkness. I continued to pull them together until it was only the darkness that bloomed around me, and when I was satisfied, I opened my eyes.

The floor was bone dry.

My dark shirt and pants were no longer soaked with icy water.

I followed the trail I’d seen in my mind’s eye, saw the last trickles of water moving towards the door, over the threshold, and into the street, and felt a jubilant smile blossom across my face. I’d done it.

I looked up at Callum, expecting him to be either shocked or pleased, but was met by an expression of unmistakable dismay.

And that’s when I heard the sounds of outrage echoing in through the open doors. Apparently, in my enthusiasm, I’d forgotten to consider who might be standing on the sidewalk outside.

“Oops,” I murmured, and was rewarded with the twitch of Callum’s lips as three newcomers marched in through the doorway, soaked from the knees down.

It was the same man and two women I’d seen with Callum when he first pulled up to The Portal. All of them wore similar, nondescript dark suits, and two were sporting furious expressions that almost immediately settled on me as the most likely source of their discomfiture.

And even though I could have sworn Callum was amused by my mistake, his tone and demeanor changed the moment his staff came through the door. Ice settled over his gaze and his posture shifted noticeably as they approached, taking him from “disheveled and almost approachable” to “battle-tested sovereign on the path of vengeance.”

“Thank you for coming,” he said stiffly. “As you can see, the matter has been dealt with.”

He must have summoned them at some point after he left me on the roof.

“We apologize.” The tallest of the three bent her head in a very clear act of contrition. “We should have been closer in case of emergency.” I heard censure in her tone that time.

“You were acting on my orders, Angelica,” Callum returned coolly. “And you were exactly where I asked you to be, so there is no need to apologize.”

“You were attacked ,” the woman replied, sounding outraged. “How can you say there was no need for us?”

Callum’s gaze hardened. “I chose to make myself appear vulnerable so that my enemies might decide to take a shot at me. And it worked.”

Kira suddenly let out a laugh that sounded positively evil. An excellent reminder that she, too, was a dragon and probably just as devious as her brother.

“I wondered why you picked a spot in the most visible part of the city and then took months working on renovations. You were hoping for this.”

Was he telling the truth? Was this a calculated performance—the product of a convoluted agenda and a devious mind? Or was he hoping to conceal the true extent of his vulnerability from three people he wasn’t sure whether he could trust?

On our first meeting, he had mentioned leaks and security issues. Were these three under suspicion, or was he truly bold enough to make himself a target under the conviction that he could defeat whatever his enemies threw at him? And if it were the latter…

Where did I come in?

“But if it will make you feel more comfortable,” he said blandly to Angelica, “I’ve already hired someone who can help us protect the integrity of the Symposium moving forward.”

“You what ?” Kira pulled back, her stare narrowing with suspicion and incredulity in equal measures.

“I believe you’ve met Raine Kendrick.” Callum gestured to me and shot me a look that sent a very clear message —no backing out now. “She arrived in town shortly before we did, to assess the situation and provide support. Her assistance proved invaluable tonight, and I am looking forward to exploring potential applications of her skills over the next two weeks.”

I mentally added “devious bastard” to my list of descriptors for Callum-ro-Deverin. Hopefully, I could remember all these lies he was spinning to make our story sound more believable.

“Exactly what did you hire Raine to do for you?” Kira was watching me oddly, and I could see the curiosity churning behind her eyes. Wondering what had changed between last night and today. How her brother’s suspicion had turned so suddenly to trust.

I couldn’t help but share her curiosity. His explanation, while plausible, didn’t strike me as sufficient.

“She’ll be serving as my bodyguard throughout the public events of the Symposium,” Callum informed her, without the slightest hint of a smile. “And assisting my staff with administrative tasks during the interim.”

Kira choked. Beside her, Draven hid a smirk. But on the faces of Callum’s underlings, I could see much more complicated calculations as he moved forward with introductions.

Angelica—the tall, elegant woman who’d chosen an expensive pantsuit to complement her permanent sneer—was his executive assistant. Alongside her perfect hair and makeup, she seemed to have a perfectly organized system that was now endangered by my decidedly disorganized presence. Apparently, the king of the shifters wasn’t supposed to hire anyone without running it by her first, and her displeasure took the form of a fiery stare and refusal to address me directly.

Magnus was short and neat, with perfectly cut dark hair and bland dark eyes. He was Callum’s secretary, and appeared to have no opinions whatsoever other than his evident disdain for me. His primary function seemed to be recording everything on a tablet while occasionally informing Callum of events he risked missing, people he risked offending, and appointments that simply could not be rescheduled.

The woman standing just behind Angelica’s left shoulder—Heather—seemed to be some sort of assistant to the assistants. Her brown hair was tucked in a tight bun, her eyes rested perpetually on the floor, and she appeared almost eager to make it unnecessary for the others to run their own errands… or finish their own thoughts.

All three had the amber eyes of shifters, though they addressed Callum with a sort of deference that suggested they probably weren’t dragons. Considering what I’d heard about shifter court politics, it made sense that they would be people Callum didn’t know, who had no loyalty to him personally. No one wanted to risk him gaining too much power in his own court.

None of them knew what to make of me, but none were willing to challenge Callum directly, so they settled for sounding slightly offended that he would hire someone without asking their opinion.

Any one of these three might be the mole we were looking for. Any one of them might decide that I posed a threat, to either their jobs or their agendas. And whether I chose to use my magic to defend myself or not, a full-blooded shifter could easily catch me off guard.

“Do you think,” Angelica was saying in a chilly tone, “your new bodyguard might consider acquiring a wardrobe that is more fitting for her position in your entourage?”

If she was planning to stuff me into a pantsuit and stilettos like hers, the answer would be a resounding no.

“She might,” I replied flatly, resisting the urge to add any further commentary. “If the need arises.”

“You’ll be provided with a uniform,” Callum assured me, “but your preferences will be consulted. You’ll also be issued a purchase card. Same as all of my other direct employees.”

I quelled a quick surge of panic long enough to respond with what I hoped sounded like cool professionalism.

“There’s no need for a card.” I scrambled to come up with a believable reason why I would refuse. “I prefer to… handle my own expenses and then bill you.”

The truth? They would probably want to do a credit or background check before they issued that kind of thing, and who even knew what they would find? I wasn’t even sure whether I still legally existed.

“Consider it done.” Angelica addressed Callum, as if attempting to register her objections to my presence by pretending I was invisible. “Do you have any further orders?”

“Raine?” Callum turned to me, making it clear that he wanted my input. Valued my opinion. “Do you have anything to add?”

Everyone’s eyes shifted to me. Six people, silent and waiting—for me to either produce brilliance or stick my foot in my mouth.

Why was His Majesty putting me on the spot like this? Was it for show in front of his employees, or was it for real? And what could I possibly say that might justify my inclusion in this conversation?

My brain whirled like an out-of-control Ferris wheel—no way to stop, no time for thoughts to get on or off. I had no skills in any of this. No knowledge of politics, shapeshifters, magic, or even bodyguarding. All I knew was… wait.

The Ferris wheel finally stopped and let one tiny, trembling thought off at the platform.

There was one thing I knew that none of them did. One area of expertise that I could legitimately claim.

“Have you considered assigning someone as a liaison with the human reporters?” I asked carefully. “When they get word of this attack and find out there’s in-fighting among the Idrian factions, you may have to answer some awkward questions.”

Callum looked more confused than worried, and Angelica’s face wore a slightly superior smirk.

“The humans don’t even know the Symposium is taking place,” Callum insisted, “nor do they care. At this point, it has nothing to do with them, and we’re hoping it will stay that way.”

“Tell that to the writing on your wall,” I said dryly, turning so I could gesture pointedly at the two-foot letters still blazoned over our heads. “There’s no way someone hasn’t seen this yet. And, more importantly, yes, the humans do know about the Symposium.”

Six pairs of eyes suddenly fixed on me with unnerving intensity. When all of them are shapeshifters, that’s a lot of pressure, and a great deal of temptation to panic and run for your life.

Callum was the first one to open his mouth, his words emerging with a hint of angry dragon behind them. “How do you know?”

“I watched the news ?” I tilted an eyebrow at him. “You know, the place humans go to find out what’s going on in the world?”

His brow creased ominously as he turned his attention to Angelica. “Did anyone on our team speak with the media?”

She’d begun to look a little pale under the pressure of Callum’s growing fury. “That was expressly against our orders. We would have no reason to do so.”

It wasn’t a denial, and I could tell Callum noticed that too, because he reverted to icy detachment.

“Very well. Please add meetings with human media outlets into our schedule, and assign someone to monitor local coverage. And get someone in here to clean up this mess. We need to resume construction work by Monday morning.”

Angelica nodded hastily, as if relieved that his attention was no longer focused on her. “I’ll update you on the interview requests when I hear back from local channels, and will have a restoration crew on the premises first thing in the morning. Twenty-four hour security will be on the building within the hour, and access will be strictly vetted. Will there be anything else, sir?”

“Structural engineer,” Callum rumbled. “I want to know that the building is still sound after that quake.”

“Done.” Angelica strode off, already on her phone, gesturing impatiently at Heather and firing off orders without pausing for breath. Magnus gave a brief, formal-looking bow before following her, and I could sense the moment Callum’s shoulders seemed to slump with relief.

But shortly after the three of them disappeared through the door, he turned to Kira with an uneasy frown.

“Kira, would Faris have done this? Talked to the humans about the Symposium? Does he have a relationship with local reporters?”

She shook her head emphatically. “Not a chance.”

“So that confirms there’s a leak.”

“Maybe not a deliberate one,” I pointed out. “People talk, and it isn’t like this Symposium is a top secret operation. But no matter how the leak happened, you can counteract it by making contact with the local government and getting some positive press out there. They sounded pretty worried about whether this event would lead to violence, or even a rise in anti-human sentiment, so it’s probably wise to assure them that the intent is peaceful and you have security well in hand.”

“First, you might want to be sure you do have security well in hand.” Draven added under his breath.

“Brilliant deduction,” Callum growled sarcastically. “Do you have anything actually helpful to add?”

Draven shrugged, as if to say this had nothing to do with him.

Callum suddenly looked thoughtful as he eyed his future brother-in-law. “Do you think we could be facing the remains of Elayara’s cadre?”

Despite my clothing being dry, a fresh chill rippled through my body, leaving my heart a solid block of ice. Why would he bring them up?

“It’s not them.” The dark and dangerous assassin seemed very sure.

“What makes you say that?”

“Because.” Draven was regarding Callum with stony certainty, a storm building in his gray eyes. Literally. Lightning danced across his pupils, and I could see electricity begin to crackle at the ends of his dark hair. “They’re all dealt with. We made certain of it.”

Wait. What ?

They’re all dealt with.

What did that mean? And who was we ?

“After her defeat, we spent an entire year hunting down her remnants. Following every trail. A few months ago, we discovered what we believe was the last of her underground facilities. Very few of her people were left, and we found no prisoners—only a small handful of objects with transferred magic.”

Did that mean… they’d found our prison?

Were our captors and tormentors—everyone in that subterranean hellscape—all dead?

Suddenly, my whole body began to shake. I clasped my hands behind my back to try to stop it, digging my nails into my own palms in hopes that the pain would anchor me.

I almost couldn’t bring myself to believe it was true. At some point during that nightmare six months of running, the compound where we’d been trapped for so long had been attacked and destroyed. And in one respect, the relief of knowing that we were not being pursued was so great, my knees felt like the ramen noodles I’d eaten for breakfast that morning.

But what of all the others? I’d managed to break out with Ari and Logan and Kes, and then we’d run. Fearing that trying to take too many would only get us caught. But had my selfishness doomed the others to die?

There were the Idrian victims we’d seen only briefly. Those whose powers had been stolen again and again, some with no hope of return. I’d even considered the possibility that Talia’s missing daughter had been among them, but how would I know? And then there were the kidnapped humans of all ages, many of whom I’d known for years.

Like Zoe, the retired office worker who cried every night because she missed her miniature poodle. Lucas, the twenty-something gamer nerd who thought it was all so cool until they began testing children. Blake, the kind-eyed man who’d helped keep the newcomers calm even after he failed the tests and they refused to let him go…

“Raine?”

A warm weight settled on my shoulder, and I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood. Stuffed those memories back behind locked doors and looked up. Callum was watching me, and I knew he could feel the tremors echoing through my body.

“I’m fine.” My voice was hollow. I was the farthest thing from fine, and yet I could never explain—to anyone—what I was feeling in this moment.

After a long, pointed look, Callum extracted a phone from his pocket and began texting at a speed that would have impressed even a teenage girl.

Kira disappeared, only to reappear a short time later with a pair of boots in hand. “Your shoes, brother dear.”

The king of the shifters looked down at his sister, reached out, and deliberately ruffled her hair. When she shoved the boots into his chest, he actually… grinned.

“Thank you?”

“You’re welcome,” Kira replied, in careful, precise syllables that communicated both her annoyance and her worry, without any need for explanation.

“I’m fine,” Callum said gently. “Stop worrying.”

“You’re bleeding,” she pointed out grimly. “A lot. And they tried to blow up this building with you in it. Of course I’m worried.”

“Now you know how we felt,” he murmured, and she scowled at him.

“Just… be careful. And Raine?” She turned to me with a fierce stare. “Don’t let him do anything stupid.”

With that, she turned on her heel and marched out, followed by Draven. He shot me a shrug and a smirk as he left, as if to say, good luck with that .

That left only me, standing next to a visibly amused dragon.

He glanced at me. I looked back.

“I think,” he said, “given the events of the evening, you should have the rest of the night off.”

“Okay.” My voice sounded mechanical, even to me, but I had a lot to process. I had walked in here only a few short hours ago, almost entirely certain that I was about to turn down his job offer and walk away.

Now I had a new job, a new boss, and a strange new relationship with the magic that coursed and twisted through my body. I’d thrown myself headlong into peril and uncertainty for the sake of a man I barely knew, and now that my adrenaline was ebbing, I found time to wonder whether it had been a mistake.

But it was too late to second guess. I was going to have to walk this tightrope—embracing the opportunity to do something good and lasting, while still continuing to hide the truth—all while confronting a very real and present enemy. Someone had brazenly attacked the building I was in, and may well pose a threat to the safety of every Idrian in the city.

In conclusion? I was in over my head, so deep I couldn’t even find the surface.

“Are you going to run?” Callum asked the question quietly, as if granting me the illusion of privacy—of choice. But that’s all it was—an illusion. Like it or not, I was tied to this dragon now, by my own unspoken promises, and by his.

He’d claimed that this Symposium would protect all those others out there like me, Logan, Ari, and Kes. And whatever his faults, dishonesty didn’t seem to be one of them. I believed that he meant it. That this was the first step towards ensuring that there would never be another Elayara, whose crimes had gone on for years without intervention.

So even if it put me in danger, I would see this through.

“I should have,” I admitted. “I should have told you where to stick this job and walked away. But apparently I’m too stupid.”

“I won’t let them hurt anyone else,” he said, his voice low and intense. “And that includes you.”

I looked the dragon in the eye. “You can’t promise that.”

It wasn’t that I thought he was lying. He meant it. And he would try everything in his power to keep that promise.

But someday, he would break it. I could only hope that before that day came, I would have done enough to keep my people safe from his vengeance.