I nodded. The earpiece and camera had, for sure, malfunctioned when I slipped through the dragon’s ward.
“But people still need to get around. A handful of years ago, the Peace Council brought mages and scientists together to figure out an alternative. They’ve now opened several teleportation stations around the world.”
“Mages workedwiththe Mondeine?” I asked.
He snorted. “The magicless bastards have plenty of sympathizers among the magical. Feckin’ cunts. But at least they developed a method of travel that works and keeps the factions separated.”
Before I could ask how, Rust and Mackiel both snapped toattention like they always did when the alpha was speaking to them through their connection.
“Time to go,” Rust said, pushing off his bike.
Mack and I followed him toward the building.
“Doesn’t teleporting from a church seem… I don’t know. Blasphemous?” I asked.
Rust looked at me like I was crazy. “You don’t think there’s magic in religion?”
I shrugged. “Is there?”
“Sure the hell is, but don’t tell the Mondeine. It’ll have their panties in a twist. Several old holy buildings have been turned into teleportation stations. Faith seems to help with magical and technological stability.”
“Interesting.” Mack’s head was on a swivel, nostrils flaring as he cataloged every scent and potential threat. We fell in behind Rust and joined the queue leading to the double doors, where the alpha was already waiting.
The closer we got, the more the air thickened with unfamiliar scents—musk, ozone, something reptilian, and a dozen others I couldn’t identify—until my nose itched and I had to clamp down on a sneeze. I peered around Rust at the handful of travelers ahead of us. They came in every shape, size, and color imaginable, including one guy sporting a mohawk made entirely of horns.
A set of enormous oak doors swung open, admitting the next group as a hunched-over male with tawny skin and long, pointed ears ambled out, leaning heavily on his cane.
“Is that an elf?” I whispered to Mack, but he was watching the old man as if he expected him to attack. Realizing I, too, should be on my guard, I dropped my hands to hover over my daggers, only to glance back at the stone golem and remember why I didn’t dare touch them.
The elderly elf passed us, and Mackiel wrinkled his nose, shifting his attention to the hairy, four-armed person at the front of the line who disappeared through the doors next.
Dad and Rust had their heads together, discussing something in Gaelic.
The line crept forward until only two people were in front of our group: a female half my father’s height and a young boy who barely came to her hips. A bag strap slipped down the boy’s arm. As he turned to adjust it, his gaze snagged on the alpha, and his mouth gaped open like a dead fish, his eyes growing wide as saucers. Dad wasn’t tall, but he had the broad, muscular, immovable build of a brick shithouse. He must have seemed like a giant to the miniature child. Something tumbled out of the boy’s hand, hitting the ground with a loud thwack, but he didn’t so much as blink.
Hearing the sound, the woman spun around to find the boy’s attention locked on the alpha. Her cheeks turned bright red, and concern flooded her eyes. “Sorry. Sorry,” she muttered, keeping her gaze lowered. Bowing at the waist, she picked up the fallen wooden car and handed it to the boy. When he didn’t take it, she forced his fingers closed around it before spinning him to face forward.
“Staring is rude, Kipp,” she snapped.
The boy tried to peek over his shoulder, but the woman flicked his ear.
“Ow!” he whined. “But he’s so big and scary, Mom.”
“Keep your eyes fixed ahead and mind your own business.”
The massive oak doors creaked open again. The woman grabbed her son’s arm and hauled him up the single step, their little bodies wobbling from side to side as they made the hike. They disappeared into the building, and the doors closed with a thud.
I grinned. “The kid’s adorable.”
Mack shook his head, but the fond smile he gave me melted my heart. It was a shame pups weren’t in our future, because he’d make an excellent dad. Then again, maybe someday he’d find his true mate and ditch my ass.
That was a troubling thought that I quickly shook out of myhead, determined not to borrow trouble, as I marched up the steps with Mack. I had plenty to worry about already without throwing hypothetical mates into the mix. Mack and I may not have that overwhelming, turn-your-common-sense-and-logic-to-mush lifetime bond I’ve seen in others, like Rust and his mate, but we were solid. We needed to be for whatever shit the alpha was planning to throw at us.
We entered a spacious foyer, and an armed guard pointed us toward a terminal. As we approached, an automated voice boomed from overhead speakers.
“You have entered a neutral zone. By declaration of the Peace Council, violence of any kind is strictly prohibited on the premises. Violators not immediately eliminated will be contained by the Wardens for prosecution and sentencing.”
One look at Mack told me he found the announcement as concerning as I did.
