Page 82 of Damien’s Mate

“Probably not,” Brandon said. He was placing warding stones around the area where the portal had been. He looked toward the woods. Titan and Brock had come out of the tree line, and Titan gave him a thumbs-up as they walked over.

Damien said, “Then we need to do something!”

“Already done,” Brandon said. “I slipped a magical tracker on Lila. They’ll probably take it away from her, but not before Dragon Boy follows her back to their base.”

“What?”

Titan said, “We asked Dragon Boy to keep an eye on Lila and let us know if she needs help.”

Brock added, “It’s amazing what that kid will do for Twinkies. I hope nobody ever tells him he can just walk into a convenience store, grab a bag full and world-walk out of there.”

“You bribed Dragon Boy to spy on the Makek-Dur? What if they catch him?”

“They’ll be the first,” Brandon said dryly. “That kid’s slipperier than a salamander in the swamp.” He nudged Damien with his shoulder. “Come on. Let’s go home. We’re throwing you a Turning Day party.”

Chapter 33

Back at the territory, Damien was immediately surrounded by the rest of the crew, hugging or touching him.

It really did have a calming effect on his lion.

He and Brandon filled the others in on what had happened at the portal. “I still don’t like it,” Damien said. “I should have gone with her.”

“They wouldn’t have let you,” Titan said. They’d had this conversation about sixteen times on the way back to the house, but Damien couldn’t let it go.

Remy said, “If she needs us, we’ll be there. Don’t worry.”

“Sure, if Dragon Boy doesn’t get distracted. Lila’s life could be riding on a thirteen-year-old with a junk food habit.”

“Trust me,” Brandon said.

“And trust Lila,” Jaeda added. “She’s been taking care of herself for years.”

Damien just growled. She is our mate, his lion said. We are supposed to take care of her. Why are we not taking care of her now?

Good question.

Colt slung an arm around his shoulders. “In the meantime, we’re going to throw a barbecue and get you really drunk, so you won’t think about missing her.”

Remy came up on his other side. “What if he still thinks about it, and gets totally maudlin? What if he cries big pussy lion tears?”

Damien growled, “What if I turn into a lion that’s way bigger than you and bite your spotted pussy face?”

Remy grinned. “Not even, newbie.”

Damien found himself suddenly snarling.

Brandon came up and snarled louder. He said to the twins, “You can get him drunk and piss him off later. Right now, Damien and I need to have a chat.”

He took Damien around the front of the house to a little-used section of the porch, where there were a couple of old kitchen chairs. They sat.

“First of all,” Brandon said, “I know having Lila out there alone sucks for you, and I have a bad feeling about it too. But if she needs help, we’re here. All of us. We’ll bring her back.”

Damien nodded.

“Okay, that aside, this is my official alpha talk, so listen up. Now that you’ve been Turned, here’s what you and the crazy lion need to understand.”

He tilted his chair back. “One. You don’t leave the territory without my say-so until I’m convinced you can manage your animal, at least to the degree that you won’t lose control if you go out into the human world.”