Harper's shoulders tensed at the mention of California, but Maroulla's next words surprised her.
"You handled it well," the Warden said briskly. "You kept your head, protected the humans, and managed to avoid exposure. Not many young shifters would have shown such restraint."
The unexpected praise warmed Harper's cheeks. "Thank you, ma'- I mean, Maroulla."
"Now then." Maroulla turned to survey their handiwork with the tables. "This should do nicely. Renee, is there any of that excellent coffee of yours ready? We'll need it."
They were just settling in at one side of the table, having gotten drinks from the buffet against the wall, when a bustle at the front door announced the first arrivals. Two young women entered, looking to be about Harper’s age. Both had honey-gold skin and black hair, but there the resemblance ended. The curvaceous petite woman had big chocolate brown eyes. Theother, a slender waif-like creature, had blue-green eyes similar to aquamarine.
"Jacinth!" Katerina went forward to hug them. "And Alyssa! Come meet Harper."
Jacinth... that was the Djinn, Harper remembered, staring at her in awe. The woman radiated warmth and magic, an otherworldly presence in an outwardly human form. Jacinth, apparently not at all shy, came over and enveloped her in a huge embrace. The hug surprised Harper - she could sense an ancient power thrumming beneath the surface of Jacinth's petite frame, yet the gesture held nothing but genuine affection and welcome.
“I’m thrilled to meet you!” the Djinn woman enthused. “That was so brave! Charging out like that to attack the bear! Even though he turned out to be a shifter, too, you didn’t know it at the time. That was simply superb.”
Harper found herself flushing with a mixture of gratification and embarrassment, and Jacinth stepped back for Alyssa to move in for a hug also.
"Alyssa is a Djinn also," Katerina said in an aside to Harper.
Somewhat uncomfortable, being unused to such exuberance, Harper submitted to the hugs. Was that a Djinn thing, she wondered?
"Talya's not coming?" Katerina inquired.
Jacinth glanced back with a sour expression as she headed for the buffet.
"Class," she responded tersely. "I spent my entire morning handling drama queen tantrums because I insisted she keep her scheduled session with her tutor instead of coming here. She's still catching up to the rest of her class, after that compound."
Harper's breath caught as the memory clicked into place. The caracal compound - it had dominated shifter forums for months after the dramatic rescue. She remembered scrolling through endless discussions about the horrific discovery in Morocco,where male caracal shifters had imprisoned women and children of their own kind. Their twisted goal of maintaining "pure" bloodlines had led to unspeakable abuse.
Reyna growled softly in her mind at the dark memory.Bad men.
The forums had exploded with outrage when news broke of the situation. The shifter community had rallied together, offering support and safe houses across multiple countries.
And Talya had been one of those children. Harper's gaze shifted to Jacinth with new understanding. The Djinn must have adopted the young caracal after her rescue. The thought of what the girl had endured made Harper's heart ache.
Safe now,Reyna reminded her.Good den-mother protects kit.
Harper watched as Jacinth fixed herself a cup of tea, the Djinn's earlier frustration over teenage drama taking on new meaning. How remarkable that Talya had recovered enough to engage in normal teenage behavior - fighting with her adoptive mother over tutoring sessions instead of living in fear.
Community protects,Reyna agreed.Pack strong together.
Unaware of Harper's internal musings, Jacinth chuckled, shaking her head. "The way she carried on, you'd think I was keeping her prisoner in solitary confinement."
Katerina smirked. "Better you than me."
Having prepared her tea to her liking, and nabbing a cherry Danish from the pastries table, Jacinth came to sit facing them. She pointed one finger at Katerina.
"You'll be dealing with this yourself one day," she cautioned. "And I won't forget your mockery."
Katerina merely chuckled. "That's ages from now. Troy and I barely finished saying our vows. Kids aren't even part of the conversation yet."
Two men entered the dining room. One was stocky, perhaps in his mid-thirties, with russet hair and hazel eyes. He looked so similar to her friend Jake, Harper was pretty sure this must be his brother, Joe. The other man was taller, with a lean, wiry build. His hair also was on the reddish side of brown, and his eyes on the green side of hazel. Both looked to be of Irish extraction.
“Oh good, you’re both here,” Maroulla said, nodding thanks to her granddaughter as Katerina fetched her a fresh cup of coffee. “Harper, this is Joe and Liam. Joe is the alpha of the local wolf shifters, and Liam is the forerunner of our program to have shifters who are both physicians and veterinarians.”
"I'm a Great Pyrenees," Liam told her with a cheerful wink. "You'll meet my Chosen, Naomi, at some point, she's working this morning."
"Hi, it's nice to meet you." Harper mustered up a polite smile for both men.
