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I recognized that animal. One of the rogues who’d ambushed us in the mountain pass had transformed into a weasel to flee. I was sure that animal was the same one. So he’d been tailing us through the cave, carrying yet another forbidden weapon. The moment we’d all had our guards down, even for a moment, I had no doubt he’d have tried to finish the job the group of rogues had attemptedbefore.
Killingme.
In the conjured image, a fae man appeared in front of the weasel. His mouth moved, but the conjured display contained no sound. The weasel flinched and darted for a crevice. The man threw a bolt of searing light toward it. The bolt struck the weasel—and consumed it in a brief blaze. When the light faded, nothing of our enemyremained.
The fae woman gestured again, and the image vanished. She spread her arms as if to say,There you haveit.
“We would rather have had him captured alive so we could have questioned him,” Aaron said. He managed to keep his tone even, but his rasp had become more pronounced. And why shouldn’t he be upset? The weasel shifter might have been our enemy, but the fae couldn’t have been sure of his intentions. He’d beenourbusiness to deal with as we saw fit. And they’d just slaughtered him with a single swipe ofmagic.
What if they decided we deserved the sametreatment?
“He was not inclined to cooperate, as you could see,” the fae woman said. “My companion could feel the murderous intent in him. We believed we were doing you a kindness.” She paused, and her filmy eyes glittered in a way that set my nerves on edge. “You are the alphas of the shifter-kin, are you not? And the long-missed dragonshifter.”
I liked the way her gaze settled on me even less. Apparently the guys all had the same feeling, because they drew closer around me at the samemoment.
“We are,” Marco said. I guessed she must have been able to sense their status, maybe through the oath-scars on their hands. “And she is. And as far as we knew, no one has made a direct claim on this mountain. I hope we aren’tintruding.”
“Not at all,” the fae woman said, but I thought her sheen jittered a little. “We venture into the mountains from time to time, but we don’t consider them truly part of our home. There is room enough forboth.”
“So this is basically a vacation spot for you,” Marco said. He raised his eyebrows at the cave around us. “You have interestingtastes.”
“The landscape has qualities that appeal in their own way. I suppose you’ve noticed other signs of our presence on yourtravels.”
“We didn’t think you’d been here recently,” Nate put in. “Otherwise we’d have reached out toyou.”
“Did you pass on word to your people elsewhere?” the fae woman asked. She gave us a demure smile. “I know we’ve had our disagreements in the past. If there will be more shifters arriving, it would be best for us to know they’re here on your request. To avoid any awkwardencounters.”
Like a fae deciding to incinerate anothershifter?
“We aren’t expecting anyone to join us,” Aaron said. “But please, if you come across another rogue lurking around, bring the matter up with us before taking anyaction.”
The fae woman bowed her head in a way that didn’t look all that apologetic to me. My skin prickled. Maybe the dragon shifters and the fae had worked together long ago, but right now I didn’t trust them atall.
“Is there any particular reason you’re here rightnow?” West asked, his voice tight. He obviously shared mysentiments.
“We were simply passing by and noticed you doing the same.” The fae woman tipped her head. “All four of the alphas and their long-lost mate up here together—youmust be making this trip on a matter of someimportance.”
She said it as a statement, but the question was clearly implied. My hands clenched. She claimed she was helping us, but every sense I had screamed that she had other intentions. I had no interest in sharing my mother’s story withher.
“Serenity is still adjusting to her new role,” Aaron said. He was the only one who called me by my full name, the name my mother had urged me to keep secret the entire time we’d been in hiding, and sometimes it still felt as if he were talking about a stranger. Right now, faced with the fae, I appreciated the formality of it. “There aren’t many places a dragon shifter can exercise her powers without needing to worry aboutdiscretion.”
“I suppose your people must at least know you’ve traveled up here,” the fae woman said. “They’ll be awaiting yourreturn.”
“We’ll be back soon enough,” Marco said. I restrained a frown. What was she gettingat?
Maybe it was time we started asking more of the questions. I didn’t want to tell her much about Mom, but she might know things Ididn’t.
“My mother came up here at least once in the last several years,” I said. “She liked to visit the mountains too. I don’t suppose you ‘passed by’ herthen?”
The fae woman pursed her lips. “I can’t recall the last time I saw any dragon shifter in these heights. I can ask my companions if they have moreknowledge.”
That was an incredibly vague answer. And if she could tell the alphas were alphas just by sensing it, surely she’d picked up on the marks Mom had left behind on the walls. Maybe she just assumed we’d already seenthose?
“It sounds as though you’re more familiar with this mountain than we are in general,” Aaron said. “Is there anything we should know for safe passage from hereon?”
The fae woman’s mouth curled into another smile, but this one looked even chillier than the last. “You’re the five most powerful shifters alive. I’m sure there’s nothing on this mountain that could threaten you. I suppose I shouldn’t delay you in your journey any longer. We are moving on now, so I doubt our paths will crossagain.”
“Thank you for your rogue-cleanup services,” Marcosaid.
