Chapter 7
Shadow roamed the early morning streets of the sprawling city remembering the last time she’d been here. It had only been a few weeks prior. Looking around her at the people walking by, she noticed the number of souls greatly outnumbered the living. They appeared as they had in life, going to work, riding imaginary bicycles, and even riding the buses. Deth would have a field day collecting them all if he were here with her.
Her eyes narrowed at the vast number of demons walking around as well. Most of the demons she’d met over her years of servitude with Deth looked like normal humans and these were no different. What gave them away was the fact that she could feel the malevolent energies surrounding them.
A thought came to her and she stopped in front of a lingerie shop to wait. She rolled her eyes at the mannequin behind the glass in its skimpy little outfit. The demons that walked by her didn’t acknowledge her existence. She shivered involuntarily when a handsome demon with long black hair strolled past. His power was unbelievable and his aura was covered with blood.
Deciding to let that one pass by, she kept searching until a relatively weak demon came down the sidewalk. He didn’t look like much and was busy shoving a disgusting looking sandwich into his mouth as he walked. Wrinkling her nose at the display, Shadow abruptly grabbed him and pulled him into the spirit realm making the creature drop his sandwich.
Once she had him pressed to the ground with a blade threatening to slice his neck open Shadow glared. “Why are there so many demons and free roaming spirits in these streets?”
The weak demon looked up at her in fright, “What?”
“The last time I visited this city there were only a few demons here and the streets were not infested with so many souls.” Shadow growled at him, “What happened?”
“It happened a few weeks ago,” the demon answered as a thin trail of black blood welled up under the sharpness of the blade. “The rift between worlds was opened for a little while and a lot of us were able to get out before it slammed shut.”
“Is that all?” Shadow demanded. “I would hate to waste my time hunting you down and pulling that lying tongue through an opening in your neck.”
“Why hide in here when you can come out and play with us,” the demon smirked fearlessly.
Shadow huffed in disgust and rose to her feet tossing the demon away from her. She smirked when he abruptly appeared in the path of a human woman making her yelp in surprise. Shaking her head, Shadow slipped inside the lingerie shop deciding that the human realm had suddenly become more interesting.
As she looked through the racks of sexy undergarments, she wondered what would happen if she told Deth about all the demons that had invaded the human world. Would it be enough to peak his interest and make him find a way to come back here for good? Anything would be better than that little hole in eternity that he’d carved out for himself. What was the sense in being god of your own kingdom if the kingdom sucked?
She smiled when she found a panty and bra set she liked. Across each breast was a black angel’s wing with a smaller set emblazoned across the front of the panties.
“Cute,” she said and reached her arm out of the spirit world, snatching the set right off the rack. Tonight she’d continue the evil deed she had been sent here to do, but today she planned on at least pretending she was a normal woman. She’d never get lucky but at least she could feel sexy in her celibacy.
***** Angelica slowly woke up in layers, rolling over onto her back and throwing an arm up over her eyes to block out the sunlight. Who the hell had opened the curtains when she knew good and well she’d closed them before she took her shower?
She moaned when the silky sheet rubbed sensuously across her body and lifted her head in shock when she realized she didn’t have any clothes on. The shower had been wonderful and she’d come into the bedroom still wrapped up in the towel. Looking over the edge of the bed, she saw that her towel had been tossed over by the bathroom door.
She frowned suspiciously. She was not the type to just carelessly throw things in the floor like that. The traitorous sheet moved again and Angelica took a moment to catch her breath… this was why she didn’t sleep on silky sheets. She pressed her thighs together in frustration and actually whimpered.
“That is the way you should wake up,” a voice said startling her.
Angelica whipped her head around and blinked up at Syn standing at the foot of the bed with his arms crossed over his chest. She watched his gaze roam over the sheet and could have sworn she felt its caress. She tried to breathe normally wanting to feel his hands take the same path his gaze had.
“W-what are you doing here?” she asked feeling her stomach muscles tighten and an unexpected throb thump hard between her legs. She twitched and sat up, holding the sheet against her.
“I held you while you slept so you would not feel the need to search for me in your dreams,” Syn said, not bothering to lie this time. “It is what you wanted… right? Not to dream of me?”
This time Angelica swallowed and her face turned beet red when her nipples hardened against the silk sheet covering her.
“Yes,” she answered, though she wasn’t quite sure which question she was answering.
Syn smiled seductively, using the bond between them to heighten what she was already feeling. He would not take her until the time came when he would not have to use this form of foreplay to stroke her fires. Until then… he would keep reminding her of what she was missing. If his mate was anything… she was stubborn.
Angelica lowered her eyes and gripped the sheet in her fist when her body betrayed her. He acted as if he had actually been in the dream with her and she desperately wanted to prove that theory wrong.
“What do you know of my dreams?” she raised her gaze to meet his in challenge. “Thus far… they have all been nightmares.”
The amethyst color of Syn’s irises darkened with her lie. Leaning forward, he placed his palms on the mattress, his lips hinting at a dark smile when she shrank back to the pillow. He slowly crawled up and over her… only the silk of the sheet separating them.
“And what a lovely nightmare it was,” He hovered above her… so close, yet refusing to touch her. “Tell me… was it a bed of nails we lay on or was it as soft as whispering moss? The sound of rushing liquid… pools of blood or a crystalline waterfall emptying into the hot springs? Was it the blade of a sword being thrust into your body… or was it…”
Angelica reached up and touched his lips with her fingertips. “Stop,” she panted now having proof he had been there with her in the dream. She pulled her fingers away when she felt the hot moistness of his tongue flick it.
Syn leaned down and let his lips brush across her neck, “Your frustration is what pulled me into your dream. You accuse me of having a hold over you when it is the other way around. You run from your desire when that is the last thing you truly want to do. I am no saint Angelica… but you are trying to make one out of me. When you dream… that is what I truly want to do to you… to make you scream my name and accept that we are bound to each other for eternity.”
Angelica arched up toward him not having the will power to stop. She hissed in pleasure when the sheet rubbed across her skin again… this time exposing her breasts to the cool air of the penthouse.
Syn lowered his head accepting her silent invitation and closed his warm lips around one beautiful pink nipple, drawing it deep into his mouth before gently sliding his teeth across it as he pulled back.
Angelica cried out and writhed upward against Syn’s hard body, losing her breath when he switched to the neglected twin. She tossed her head to the side when he gently bit down and felt the need to scream when he continued to hold his body just inches above hers.
Syn leaned up and pressed his lips to the shell of her ear, “Soon my Angelica… very soon.”
With that, he was gone, leaving Angelica panting heavily on the bed. It took her a few minutes to realize what had just happened and she wanted to cry. Instead, she flung the sheet off of her and stood up from the bed. She was so angry that she accidentally popped the first couple of buttons on her shirt while dressing and decided to leave the cleavage showing. If he could torture her, then she could damn well pay him back for it.
When she walked out into the living room, she was taken by surprise when she was suddenly wrapped in Syn’s arms and thoroughly kissed. Feeling his body finally press so hard against hers, she kissed him back fiercely then blinked when she was set away from him.
She growled in retaliation when Syn glanced down at the skin showing between her breasts then vanished leaving her alone in her bedroom at the castle.
***** “Absolutely not, there’s no way you’re coming with me to pick out my Halloween costume,” Envy put her hands on her hips and lifted her chin defiantly. “It’s called a masquerade party for a reason. No one is supposed to know who you are unless they can figure it out.”
“You’re my mate Envy,” Devon said while leaning back against the front doors of the club blocking her exit. Something was wrong with her and had been ever since she’d passed out last night. He didn’t like the feeling of her pulling away from him like this… and he wasn’t about to let her walk away from him. “No matter what you dress up as, I’ll know it’s you just from your scent.”
“I wouldn’t get your hopes up on that,” Kat smirked at her brother from where she was wiping down the bar. “I told Envy where to get a special herb spray that will mask her scent.” She winked at Envy.
“What if she passes out again while she’s out there without me,” Devon thundered causing his voice to echo across the empty bar. He lowered his voice but kept it just as stern, “pick someone to go with you.”
Envy felt her phone vibrate and pulled it out of her back pocket. She froze seeing Tully on the caller ID but quickly recovered. Flipping it open, she glared at Devon but kept her voice sweet, “Hello.”
“Envy, can you have your brother drive you over here?” Mrs. Tully asked.
“Yes,” Envy snapped the phone closed making a mental note to apologize to Mrs. Tully when she got to her house. Dialing Chad’s number, she ignored Devon while it rang. “Hello dear brother, I have a couple errands to run and Neanderthal Man says I need a chauffeur.”
Chad chuckled into the phone, “Neanderthal Man… the other day he was Oversexed Man.”
“Are you coming to get me or not?” Envy demanded.
Chad couldn’t keep his laughter silent, “I’m on my way.”
Envy hung up and sent a smug look to Devon, “Problem solved. I now have a chaperone.”
Devon pushed away from the door and opened his mouth to say something but Envy held her hand up to stop him.
“I already know this one. Let’s see… ‘But Envy dear… Chad’s human and can’t protect you while you’re in a city full of demons’… am I right? Well, he has weapons and he can do something you can’t… he can take me shopping for the masquerade party.” Envy cocked an eyebrow daring him or anyone else to argue with her.
Devon threw Kat a dirty look when she started laughing.
Kat shrugged, “And just think… this is only Halloween. Wait until she wants to go Christmas shopping.” She batted her eyelashes then placed the back of her hand against her forehead, “Oh, but we are just girls… we shouldn’t be allowed to stray too far from our men.”
“Quit teasing your little brother,” Warren smirked walking past Kat. “You know he’s mentally handicapped when it comes to the opposite sex.” His smirk widened when Devon started growling at him. “Come on Devon. We have our own errands to run and now would be as good a time as any.”
Envy smiled at Warren thankfully before closing the distance between her and Devon. Lifting her hand, she brushed his dark bangs out of his brooding eyes and palmed his cheek not wanting him to be mad. “I know you worry about me and I love you for it,” she rose up on her tiptoes and pulled his face closer for a kiss.
Devon growled softly as he gripped her shoulders and pulled her tightly into him. He quickly turned the gentle kiss into something much more passionate before finally ending it. Keeping his lips pressed against hers he whispered, “I love you,” then turned to follow Warren out the door.
“Well, that went better than I thought it would,” Envy murmured then blew her bangs out of her eyes and stepped over to Kat.
Taking a seat on one of the barstools, she nervously tapped her fingers on the counter watching Kat finish wiping the bar down. Her lips parted to say something but she sighed and closed them again. She had about a million questions she wanted to ask Kat but couldn’t without giving her secret away.
“What is it?” Kat asked leaning forward with her elbows on the bar. “Do you need some advice about where to get a costume?”
Envy nodded smiling, “How did you know?” She inwardly shuddered from the partial lie. She hated this but until she knew the truth it was going to have to be her secret to worry about… well, hers and Chad’s.
“Talk to Gypsy at The Witch’s Brew. That’s the same shop I told you to get the scent masking perfume from. Tell her Kat sent you.” She glanced up just as Chad walked in the front door, “Wow, he’s quick. Some of the men around here could take pointers from your brother.” She winked at Envy.
“Thanks,” Envy said with a grin as she slid off the stool and met her brother half way. Sliding her hand in his for the calming effect it would give her, she smiled back at Kat, “I’ll see you later.” Turning, she ushered Chad back out the door.
Kat watched them leave and frowned. She knew Envy was keeping something very important from her but didn’t know what it was. Envy had to have a good reason for doing that but Kat let her female intuition speak for her. Reaching up to her ear she tapped the comlink.
“Nick,” Kat said knowing he could hear her.
“Yeah,” Nick answered from where he was helping with the construction between the two buildings.
“Would you do me a big favor and run by The Witch’s Brew and pick up the Halloween supplies I ordered?” she asked.
“Sure, I’m on it,” Nick answered looking forward to seeing Gypsy again. “Want me to get anything else while I’m there?”
“Envy and Chad just left for there so it wouldn't hurt to check up on them,” Kat offered slyly.
“Envy actually made it out of the building without Devon?” Nick smirked. “Okay, I’ll give them a few minutes head start.”
Nick turned off the comlink and furrowed his eyebrows. Envy leaving the building without Devon wasn’t anything important enough for Kat to call him in as a spy. But when Kat got these feelings, she acted on them and Nick had noticed she was rarely ever wrong.
All the women of the feline breeds had it… an intuition that damn near bordered on being psychic. It was far more powerful than the normal human female intuition and he’d heard of some felines actually getting sick from the sensations it produced.
Heading up into the living area of the club, Nick entered his room and quickly changed clothes. He debated for a moment on which weapons to take but decided less was better. After getting his shoulder and ankle holsters in place, he made sure everything was secure before leaving the room.
Downstairs, he stopped at the bar to see if Kat really needed any extra supplies for the masquerade.
“Just the herbs I had on back order,” Kat said. “Warren took Devon out on some errands he had to run so I think we got the rest covered.”
Nick smiled, “All right then… but if you think of anything else just give me a ring.”
***** Chad parked in Mrs. Tully’s driveway and the two of them sat there for a moment in the silence.
“You know this is going to change everything if those tests are positive,” Chad said quietly.
Envy nodded, “Yeah, I know. I’m just not looking forward to telling Devon that the baby might not be his.” She felt the constriction that had been in her chest since last light tighten. She really didn’t know how Devon would react and she didn’t want to lose him.
Chad reached over and grabbed her hand, “You got a lot of people on your side Envy and you know damn good and well that Trevor would never let anything happen to you.”
Envy looked over at him with an incredulous look on her face. “Devon would never hurt me.”
“I know he wouldn’t,” Chad said flabbergasted. “I’m saying Trevor would make sure you never went without. He loves you… you know.”
Envy smiled sadly, “Yeah, I know… that’s what makes it so damn difficult.”
Getting out of the car, they walked up to the front door. Chad lifted his hand to knock when the door flew open and Mrs. Tully stood there with a grin on her face.
“I was wondering when the two of you would get out of the car and come inside. I was beginning to think I’d have to go sit in the back seat,” The elder woman said. “Come in and make yourself at home, I’m just bringing out some tea.”
Envy sat down on the comfortable sofa and tried to relax while Chad plopped down next to her. They could hear Mrs. Tully puttering around in the kitchen and the familiar noise seemed to calm them down a little bit.
Mrs. Tully appeared a few moments later with a silver tray laden with a beautiful tea set. She poured some for both Envy and Chad and handed to them. The scent of the tea calmed the siblings even more and Mrs. Tully sat down in a chair next to the sofa.
“Drink it,” she ordered and nodded to Chad since he still looked more nervous than Envy.
Chad couldn’t help being nervous. No matter who the father was, he was going to be an uncle and that scared and excited him at the same time.
Envy sighed, “The suspense is killing me. What’s the verdict doc?”
Living by the code of ‘honesty being the best policy when dealing with a patient’, Mrs. Tully didn’t beat around the bush.
“My dear, you are a little over a month pregnant.” She pulled a bottle of pills out of her pocket and set them down beside Envy’s tea. “These are a special blend of organic vitamins that will make it easier for your body to remain balanced over the next eight months. Your iron was low and that’s why you passed out. It’s nothing to be alarmed about though, iron deficiency happens for normal human pregnancies too.”
Envy picked up the nondescript bottle and eyed it nervously before opening it and popping one of the pills in her mouth. She took a drink of her tea to swallow it down and closed her eyes.
“Take only one of those a day, preferably with breakfast.” Mrs. Tully ordered gently.
“Over a month ago,” Chad repeated softly and then sighed when Mrs. Tully pointed to his tea. He picked it back up and sipped it before saying, “You wouldn’t happen to have anything stronger than tea would you?”
Mrs. Tully smiled liking Chad more and more every time they met, “There’s something already in the tea that’s better and safer than alcohol.”
Chad looked down at his cup before quickly downing it like a shot glass.
“Now, there are a couple important things we need to talk about,” Mrs. Tully started. “I am assuming that giving the time frame… Trevor is the father of your child.”
Envy nodded but kept her eyes on the cup in her hands. She still had a million questions but at the moment her mind had shut down on her.
“Envy, look at me,” Mrs. Tully said trying to get the girl to focus. When Envy flinched and raised her gaze she nodded, “That’s better. We don’t need you going into shock right now. It’s not going to be good for the baby if you stress yourself out. What’s done is done.”
Chad frowned and slid closer to his sister putting his arm around her hoping the feeling of support would help. He couldn’t quite understand what Envy was so afraid of. Devon wasn’t going to leave her or anything because of this. But then again, maybe her fear was what Devon would do to Trevor when he found out.
“Are there a lot of human’s that get pregnant by nonhumans?” Envy finally asked getting some of her brain function back.
“No,” Mrs. Tully answered glad Envy was finally asking questions. “Usually it takes both parents being the same breed to produce offspring. On rare occasions though… if the Shifter has found his true soul mate in a human, then it is possible for them to sire offspring… rare but not impossible.”
“But I’m Devon’s mate,” Envy whispered wishing someone would confirm that because right now it felt more like she had cheated on Trevor with Devon.
“And this is proof that you are also Trevor’s soul mate,” Mrs. Tully pointed out.
Envy bit her bottom lip remembering Trevor’s claim when he’d told her that she was both his and Devon’s soul mate. “Is that even possible… to be soul mate to two different men at the same time?”
“Wars have been started over that very reason,” Mrs. Tully confirmed but hoped it wouldn’t come to that. “A peaceful solution must be reached between those two… otherwise it could trigger a loss.”
“Is there a chance the baby will be human?” Chad asked, his curiosity starting to take over his nervousness.
Mrs. Tully shook her head, “No, Trevor is the most powerful breed of shape shifters out there. His DNA would have overridden Envy’s the moment they conceived. There is no such thing as a half breed shifter either.”
“Glad to hear that there is still some fiction left in Hollywood,” Chad mused even though secretly… he thought a half breed nephew would have been awesome.
“What do you mean the most powerful breed of shifter? He’s a bear shifter right?” Envy sighed and leaned back on the sofa. The image that popped into her mind was quite comical, “that’s it isn’t it? I’m going to have a little teddy bear to cuddle.”
Chad made a face, “A teddy bear? I’ve seen him as a cat, a dog, and a bear. Hell, I don’t even know what he is.”
Envy jerked up on the sofa, “What?”
Chad laid his palm against his forehead realizing Envy didn’t have a clue, “I thought you knew… that he’d told you by now. Remember the golden retriever you let into the apartment a couple weeks ago? I didn’t know it then but that was Trevor.”
“That lying, conniving bastard,” Envy ranted through clenched teeth. “He was watching me take a shower!”
Mrs. Tully held her hands up, “Stop it, both of you! Listen closely because this is very important.” She pointed at Chad, “You are privy to certain information only because you are a part of PIT… but with knowledge comes a lot of responsibility. You will keep those secrets to yourself or risk having your memory taken from you.”
Chad frowned but nodded having heard this lecture before.
“And you will not out the father of your child to the were-clans. I am surprised Trevor shifted in front of them to begin with,” Mrs. Tully stated.
“He shifted to save Kat from vampires,” Envy said thoughtfully. “Trevor saved her life.”
“Then he had a good reason for choosing the form of a bear,” Mrs. Tully nodded. “He can take on any form he wishes by manipulation of his DNA and he is ten times stronger than any other breed of shifter out there. That alone makes him a great asset to PIT.”
“He could even take on my form and you would never be able to tell the difference between us, no matter how many tests you ran. Yet, even in my aged form, Trevor would be able to take on Devon and his whole family and be the only one to walk away from it, so take care not to let them fight. He is a true shapeshifter, therefore faster and stronger than the other breeds.”
Envy felt the need to take up for Trevor, “Trevor wouldn’t do that.”
“You’re right,” Mrs. Tully smiled softly, “Trevor is a good man with a huge heart. Even after you were with Devon, he still chose to save Devon’s sister’s life at his own risk of being exposed. There is no such thing as a bear shifter species.”
“Wow,” Chad said and ran his hand through his hair. “With that kind of power he could get in anywhere and into anything he wanted with just a snap of his fingers… so to speak.”
Mrs. Tully nodded and continued, “The weaker breeds out there are intimidated by true shapeshifters because of that power. This mistrust has had them hunted almost to extinction by demonic bounty hunters and hired assassins in the past.”
Envy felt her heart go out to the man she now knew she had betrayed. The knowledge made her feel smaller and smaller by the minute.
“Trevor was probably taught to hide his true identity before he could even walk.” Mrs. Tully pointed out. “It is a defensive mechanism of the breed… they do it to protect themselves from total extinction. So, if you’re thinking he was deliberately hiding something from you, he was… but not for the petty reasons you might assume. I wouldn’t be telling you now if you were not carrying a true shapeshifter inside your womb. His secret is now yours to keep.”
“I understand,” Envy rubbed her temple suddenly feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders.
Her anger from a moment ago about Trevor hiding something else from her flew out the window. He hadn’t done it because he was being an ass… it was self-preservation and he knew what might happen if word did get out. Now it was her turn to feel like the Olympic gold medalist for world’s biggest jerk.
“Do you want me to call Trevor and ask him to come over here?” Mrs. Tully asked softly.
“No,” Envy’s eyes widened and her heart jerked at the thought, “I’m not ready. I need a little more time.”
“A little time is all you have,” Mrs. Tully stated sympathetically. “You are constantly around nonhumans with higher than normal senses. I’m surprised they haven’t already noticed your pregnancy. Once the baby’s heartbeat grows stronger… they will hear it.”
