We stared, no other words spoken. This was a test for us. To see the new individuals we had become around each other. Ezra and I were pressed against one another, a coldness to anyone else’s senses radiating from us, because our protective love was pushing it. We would never be taken from each other again. We were that much better now at hiding our affection.
A soft whistling reached my ears, a merry tune. Ever so slightly, Antonio was rocking back and forth on his heels, his hands in his pockets and an entirely content expression on his features while he lit the night with melody. Even though he whispered once more, “Tick-tock.”
Ezra scowled, then he turned, his shoulder brushing mine as he faced Antonio. “Enough with the Mage shit. What’s happening?”
Antonio sighed heavily, sending me a cross expression before peering back to Ezra. “You and my daughter are about to take a trip. Since I can’t follow to watch over you two, it’s a trip that I do not approve of.” He waggled glowing fingers in the air. “It’s not in my blood to do so.”
I cocked my head. “Your blood?”
Antonio now appeared sullen as hell, his nostrils flared. “I’m not yet powerful enough to see into your future of where you’re going, by touching you.” That was all. With a scowl.
“Uh…” I rubbed my lips together. “Why would you have to touch me to see my future? You’ve been able to see it without touching me before.”
He snorted, then he mumbled a curse under his breath. “I just can’t. Not yet. Give me a few years, and I’ll be able to then. It’s all about age now. Or the time.”
I blinked. “I don’t understand.”
He sighed heavily, waving an aggravated arm through the air, toward the trees. “Never mind. There’s no time to explain. Your visitor is here.”
My attention swiftly honed to the trees.
Ezra muttered quietly, “There’s no…” His head cocked. “Wait, someone is there now.”
The six of us stood silent as a Shifter man, smelling heavily of wolf, stepped out of the tree line. He wore a hooded black cloak almost identical to our other guest’s minutes ago, though he held two more black cloaks over one of his forearms. He appeared mid-thirty in Com years, handsome as sin, with roughish black hair that fell in messy clumps to his cheekbones. His eyes were golden, shining dimly to light his way through the dark. The oddest part about his appearance was the bow he had over one shoulder, along with a lot of silver arrows in a leather tube, their spikes sticking up next to his head and gleaming a lethal invitation.
He stopped three feet away from our group, his eyes directly on Ezra and me.
Elder Merrick instantly took a step forward, assessing the Shifter. “What’s your name?”
The man smirked, making him appear even more dashing. “The name’s Tipkin. I’ve come to collect King Zeller and Queen Ruckler. They’ll be traveling with me tonight.”
I lurched forward a step…not of my own free will. My words were not even my own, pulled from my throat. “I’ll go with you this time. You have my word.”
Ezra grabbed my arm in a blur when I took another step toward the Shifter. “What are you doing?” His eyes darted across my face. “You just gave your word to a stranger.”
I yanked my arm away with Shifter strength, again my body acting like I was a drone. “I have no choice. It must be done.” I leapt through the air, landing directly next to the man I did not know, having pledged my loyalty to doing what he asked. “Ready?”
“What the fuck?” Ezra boomed, blurring to stand directly next to Tipkin and me. “If you’re going, I’m going too.” He paused. “Antonio said so.”
Tipkin grinned. “Antonio said so, huh? Do you do everything he says?”
“Fuck you,” Ezra growled quietly.
“Maybe another day.” Tipkin shrugged.
“Wait a goddamn second,” Elder Merrick hissed and stepped closer. “I don’t know this man, and I know damn near all Shifters. I want to know who the hell he really is.”
“I said my name is Tipkin,” he explained calmly, even as he handed Ezra a large robe, then gifted me with a smaller one. He pointed at us. “Put those on.” His golden eyes swung to Elder Merrick as we dressed. His words were blunt, and they would have knocked me on my ass if I were in control of my own actions instead of doing exactly as he bid. “I’m a hybrid. I’ve been in hiding. I’m Shifter and Mage, just like Philip Masterson. My Mage power, like his, is reversed because of our dueling nature. Where powerful purebred Mages can see the future, and a few lucky ones can travel there, I have the power to see the past and travel there.” He shrugged. “That’s where we’re going. To the past.”
Cahal grunted. “Bullshit. No one has the power to do that, because it would change time.” His words were heated and he looked as if he was constructing all kinds of deadly scenarios…for Tipkin. “Changing time is not allowed, if you don’t fucking know!”