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After Caz takes Onyx to the stables, we journey across the field to get to the door. Caz opens it and walks inside, and I follow after him while our wolves decide to stay outdoors. When the door creaks and slams shut, he walks down the foyer, checks the den, and then his office, until finally stopping at the kitchen entrance.
“Caz!” Juniper’s voice echoes through the house. I meet up to him just as Juniper comes rushing his way, throwing her arms around his neck. “If youeverdisappear like that again, I’ll feed you to the sharks!”
Caz grunts, but pats Juniper on the back anyway as a form of his affection.
She pulls away from him, looking him all over, then swings her eyes to me. “You found him.”
“Sort of,” I say, smiling.
Juniper steps back, and I look around her, spotting Maeve sitting at the head of the table with a lit bloom between her fingers. She pulls from it, then exhales, blowing out a cloud of smoke.
“I knew he wasn’t far,” Maeve proclaims.
“And yet you didn’t come looking for me,” Caz mumbles, walking toward the table. There’s a teapot on the center of the table, as well as a few empty teacups. He grabs the pot, pours some into two cups, and sits. He slides the other cup toward the chair next to him and eyes me.
I walk over, taking the chair beside him and cupping the tea in my hand. On the other side of the table is Killian, who’s frowning of course, and beside Killian is Rowan, cleaning one of his guns. Juniper sits opposite Caz, close to Maeve. She picks up a glass cup, but it’s not tea in there. It’s blue tonic most likely.
“I’m glad you’re back, brother,” Killian says. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but The Council sent someone to come for you at the tavern.”
Caz presses his lips before asking, “What did they want?”
“They asked for you. They said they need you in Luxor immediately.”
Caz sips his tea carefully, letting Killian’s words marinate. “I’ll deal with them later. For now, there’s something more important I feel should be addressed. Something I must tell you all.”
“Well spit it out then,” Rowan says, sitting up in his chair.
“As you’re all aware, Willow and I are Tethered. And we are not a simple Tether, we are a Cold Tether, which apparently makes us rare and endangered. We were told that by being together, it would make us weaker. However, Willow and I sense that by being together, it makes us stronger.” Caz clears his throat, and I shift in my seat. “When she left Vakeeli, I could feel myself becoming weaker. There came a point where I couldhardly even lift my gun.” He looks at everyone around the table. “Which leads me to believe that someone has lied to us, and I need to know why. I’m sure Juniper has told you all about what Beatrix said—that there is a couple who has survived this Cold Tether. What she hasn’t told you, and what you’re unaware of, is that there is something out there called Mournwrath who feeds on Cold Tethers like the one Willow and I share. He almost did it tonight, but I believe that my acceptance of the bond with Willow sent him away, if only for now.” He folds his fingers on the table. “I would like to get to Beatrix again, which means paying yet another visit to Alora. I’m sure she won’t like it, but I need answers, and I need them immediately, before Mournwrath makes a return.”
“So, what do you need us to do?” Maeve asks, putting out her bloom.
“I need you all to keep the talk about the Tether quiet. As I told Willow, if anyone outside this circle finds out, they’ll know I have a weakness and they’ll use it against me.” He glances at me, a pained expression gripping him, before dropping his blue eyes to the table. “And while she’s in my world, she’s my responsibility. I can’t let anything happen to her.”
“So, is she going back to her world anytime soon?” Killian asks, and I cut my eyes at him, frowning.
“Killian,” Maeve interjects.
“I’m just saying, if the Beatrix woman says she’s not meant to be here, she shouldn’t be here,” Killian goes on. “She poses a threat for all of us, Caz, not just you.”
“As long as everyone in this room agrees to keep their mouths shut about the Cold Tether, she brings no threat.” Caz’s jaw ticks as he glares into Killian’s eyes. “Beatrix lied—that, or someone lied to her. We need to get to Vanora right away to figure out what’s really going on. The sooner we do, the less of a threat there’ll be.”
“I don’t like this,” Killian grumbles, slouching back in his chair. “All our heads on a guillotine for a bloody woman who isn’t evenfamily. It’s fucking stupid.”
Caz shoves back in his chair, standing tall. “Killian, meet me out back.Now.” He storms out of the kitchen, and Killian’s nostrils flare as he looks at me before gripping the table with his big hands and lumbering out of the kitchen himself.
“Ah, he’ll get over it,” Rowan says, crossing his arms and leaning against the back of his chair. “Killian’s always so paranoid.”
“Yeah,” Juniper agrees, after sipping her drink. “Killian’s always been a bit afraid of everything.”
“It’s not that he’s afraid,” Maeve says, pouring herself some tea. “It’s that he feels he must protect everyone at all times. Now that Willow has been tossed into the mix and he has no idea what it’s doing to Caz, he feels like he’s losing control.”
“But you heard him, Mum. Caz almost died because Willow wasn’t here,” Juniper says.
A nod from Maeve. “I know.”
“And with her around, he could very well die because she’s attached to him, or whatever,” Rowan adds.
“Possibly.”
