Werewolves Be Damned

Chapter Two


Pointed stone arches detailing the hammer-beam roof and the stained-glass windows were something plucked right out of Medieval Scotland, or so Nexi thought every time she entered the Council’s Hall.

The headquarters of all things Otherworldly more or less resembled a cathedral from the middle ages. It, and the foyer outside the main doors, was the center of the building. Surrounding the foyer were the four towers making up the structure of the castle. The Guardians’ House and Witches’ House were to the left, and the Vampires’ House and Werewolves’ House were to the right of the Council’s Hall.

All very awe worthy, Nexi still believed.

Even the three male Masters of the Otherworld and one female Mistress were an equally impressive sight, sitting in their throne chairs like royalty. Perhaps, however, they only appeared more powerful tonight, since the most influential supernaturals in all of existence were staring her down.

Nexi heaved a sigh and turned to her birth father, Drake, who stood off to the side of the chairs, rambling incoherent nonsense. While the Council intimated her, the guardian with his eyeballs bulging out of his head simply infuriated her.

At her continuing silence, Drake demanded, “Do you plan on answering me?”

She rubbed her nose, erasing the tickle from the dust in the room he stirred from pacing. “Sorry, what did you ask? You lost me about a second after you opened your mouth.”

His eyes bulged further. “What were you thinking?”

“I—”

He raised a hand. “What would have happened if it wasn’t Briggs—a friend to the Council, I might add—whom you threatened with a weapon?”

She shifted her weight onto her other foot and folded her arms, as he once again paced in front of the Council in long, heavy strides. Only a second passed before Drake continued with a growl to his voice, “I’m starting to believe you’re suffering some mental problems that need tending to.” He stopped mid-step and regarded her. “Are you unwell?”

“Oh, yes, I’m dandy,” she retorted, as if this even needed to be spoken aloud. “The only two people I loved deeply have been murdered. Now not only am I living in some bizarre supernatural realm, but I’m, in fact, a freaky supernatural myself.”

Drake studied her with a long look before he grunted and turned to the Council. “Maybe her grief is blinding her judgment.”

Before he said something she’d make him regret, Nexi interjected, “Rewind there, Daddy. You said I have magical powers, so what’s the big deal? I’ll voodoo some shit up, bring out my spidey-senses, and bam.”

Drake openly gawked at her. “You have guardian powers and those are innate abilities. You may have increased strength, but skill is learned not gifted.” Each Council member nodded agreement, and he added, “Might I also remind you that, yes, Zia released the block on your supernatural powers to allow those gifts to return, but your witch abilities haven’t shown themselves yet. You, at the moment, have no magic at all.”

Good point, but… “Even if the witch side of things hasn’t shown itself yet, you said it yourself: I’m physically stronger now.” As the vein in the center of his forehead nearly burst, she hurried the heck up. “And I’ve told you repeatedly, I’m done sitting around. If you’re so concerned about my safety in the world now, then train me so I can fight.”

He shook his head. “You’re not ready.”

“Yes,” she said through clenched teeth. “I am.”

Talon, Master of Guardians, hummed low in his throat as he rubbed his jaw, studying her with his emerald eyes. The warrior, decked out in the whole sword and leather kilt getup, exuded power. “You’ve only had a month to mourn your family’s passing and to adjust to your new life. I worry about pushing you into this too quickly.”

Beside him, Holten, Master of Weres, agreed with a nod. “It’s too soon.”

Nexi would consider the werewolf a softy, with his gentle, chocolate brown eyes and long, dark hair. That was, if the two hundred and fifty pounds of muscle on his body didn’t put him into the category of Scary as Hell.

Even if she might fear him, and even if he had seemed kind enough toward her, her hands tightened into fists.

Zia, Mistress of Witches, raised her eyebrows over her blue beauties, apparently aware of the rage flowing through Nexi’s veins. Even the pale Master of Vampires, Zade, regarded her with black, twinkling eyes, his fangs poking out from his lip.

They were right: she was about to blow her lid.

These males were deciding her life as if she didn’t have an opinion on the matter, or as if her life wasn’t hers to control. From what she’d seen so far, males in the Otherworld clearly hadn’t gotten with the times and they treated women as if they were fragile.

Nexi hadn’t grown up in the Otherworld, and if they thought for a second that they could boss her around and she’d just take it, they were dead wrong. For two weeks now, she’d taken matters into her own hands then, after enduring the charade of the Council’s reprimand, tried to persuade them.

Before she could snap, however, a low, smooth voice from far beside her said, “I think it’s time to give the girl what she wants.”

Glancing over at the other chest-beating guardian thrust into her life, she found Kyden leaning casually against the wall. He might be a looker, if she cared about a thick body chiseled to pure perfection and silky-smooth tanned skin. Or if she liked how his light brown hair softened him a little by hanging messily across his forehead.

Of course, those things didn’t impress her.

Especially considering he presently gave her his classic smart-ass grin as he strode toward her. A smile she’d come to discover she hated and liked at the same time. When he settled in next to her, he continued. “If we don’t train her, she’ll get herself killed. I can’t continue to babysit her.”

Reason enough why she hated the grin, a smart-ass comment always followed. “Yes, boy, that’s exactly what I need.”

In all actuality, she could’ve been a little girl to him. Everyone in the room appeared thirty-years-old, even her father. Immortality had been an added perk, and she’d never complain she wouldn’t have a wrinkle once she reached immortal age in six years. But she had also learned from Haven that Kyden was only twenty-eight years old and not centuries old like the Masters of the Otherworld.

“Kyden’s right,” Zia said to Drake, tangling her finger in her strawberry blonde locks. “Nexi is clearly going to be involved in this whether you like it or not. We must prepare her.”

Drake grunted.

“While you believe this is Nexi’s grief,” Talon added, “I’m more inclined to think this is her guardian roots flourishing. Withholding her drive to fight would be a waste, not only for her, but for the Otherworld.”

Silence drifted around Nexi as she watched Drake looking at the cement floor, his feet shifting side to side. After a long pause, his shoulders slumped and he raised his head. “Is this really the life you want?”

Maybe the father-daughter relationship was new, considering she’d never met him until he’d swept in to save her life, but there in the depths of his warm eyes, concern held strong. That touched her. His question, however, merely stumped her. “Isn’t this what I should be doing?”

Darkness seeped over his face. “I didn’t want this life for you.”

That she knew well enough. He’d done the unthinkable, or so Haven had told her. Drake had requested the Council to block her magical powers so she would live and die as a human. He desired to protect her from the danger of the supernatural world after he’d lost the witch—her birth mother—he loved.

The Council had asked her if she wanted to know the truth about her past, she’d said yes, and with that—regardless of Drake’s reservations—the block was removed. Now there was no going back, since the spell to block supernatural abilities could only be cast before a child was six months old. “But I am a guardian now,” she gently reminded him.

“You’re right.” His brows drew together, pain filling his features. “But that doesn’t mean you have to join the Council’s Guard. Most of our kind lives in the Earthworld, and you could still have a simple life.”

“Um…” Again, she stated the obvious problem with a wave over herself. “Now that Zia removed the block and awakened my magic, if you haven’t noticed, I’ll never die.” She pointed to her chest. “Immortal, remember? I’d imagine humans might find a woman who never ages to be a bit odd.”

He shook his head. “Magic can hide the true identity of a supernatural.” His chin lowered, eyes in line with hers. “If you join the Guard, your immortality is not so stable. This life is violent.”

She could’ve responded brashly, voicing yet again her need to avenge her parents, but this was something too important not to consider. One of those no-going-back-moments. Drake had sent her away from the Otherworld for this very reason.

After she’d pondered all viewpoints of her decision, she discovered only one thing mattered. “By choosing this life, you’ll stay off my back and let me hunt the wolf that killed my family?”

Drake hesitated, then said with a bite in his voice, “Once you’re in the Council’s Guard, my say in the matter is gone.”

“’Nuff said,” she retorted. “I’m staying.”

Drake frowned, possibly at her quick response, then he turned to the Council. “I’m not an appropriate mentor for her. I cannot…” He glanced at her again, and his eyelids lowered. “I’m unable to fight against you in a way to train you properly.”

Before Nexi could ask what in the hell that meant, Kyden interjected, “I’ll train her.”

“Wait. What?” Nexi gaped at him, stunned he had offered. Somehow, the idea of spending time with him made her belly flutter, which was of course silly, since the only time she’d spent with the caveman so far had sucked.

One sleek eyebrow arched. “Will that be a problem for you?”

He brushed up against her arm and a discouragingly hot shiver bolted through her veins, which had been the exact reaction she had experienced for weeks now. Whenever he touched her or turned his entire focus onto her, her body took notice, even if her mind told her to run, run, run.

Controlling all the heat whipping around her body, she cleared her throat. “Nope. No problem here.”

Looking away from Kyden, Nexi noticed that Drake studied her intently. At whatever he saw in her expression—and she hoped it wasn’t that whole reaction to Kyden’s touch—his features tightened. “Kyden’s the elite guardian—there isn’t anyone better to train you. You’ll do fine.”

The tenderness he exuded pulled at her heartstrings. While the relationship was still a work in progress, she found herself becoming closer to him. “I know you’re worried about me. I appreciate that. But really, how can anything happen to me?” She gestured toward the guardian next to her, who’d been looking out for her since that very first night. “I apparently have this Neanderthal guarding me.”

Kyden leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Ah, but the time to guard you is over, isn’t it, Álainn?”

Before she had the chance to figure out why he continued to call her that odd name, Talon said, “Good, that’s settled.” To Kyden, he added, “There’s been a death in Salt Lake City. Go to 285 West Broadway.” Turning to Nexi, he said, “Consider this your first lesson.”

“Whoa. Hold up there.” Her heart skipped a beat. “You’re not seriously suggesting that I go see a dead body?” At Talon’s nod, she added, “Shouldn’t I—I don’t know—train first, and then see dead things?”

Holten, Master of Weres, said, “It’ll help you understand things that would be hard to explain with words.”

Was that supposed to soothe her?

It didn’t.

Zia nodded. “This is best.”

She jerked her head toward Drake in hopes he’d disapprove. While the training bit sounded great to give her the skills she needed to hunt that lone wolf responsible for her parents’ murder, the idea of seeing anything dead didn’t appeal to her in the least. “You can’t possibly think this is a smart idea…”

Drake hesitated, examined her for a long moment, then he shrugged. “It’s not an ideal situation for you. But I’m not sure even after training, the scene would be easy for you to accept.”

Nexi groaned, facing resolved expressions. No matter how insane it all sounded, complete and total nonsense, she did want her freedom. That meant her choices were limited. To the Council, she muttered, “Shoving me in head first?”

Zade, grinned, showing fangs. “No better way to do it.”

She didn’t agree, but at the sudden rush of warm happy tingles lacing her veins, which had nothing to do with her own feelings, she didn’t care to comment. Glancing over her shoulder, she found Haven standing at the entrance to the Council’s Hall.

The first time Nexi had sensed Haven’s emotions, she had screamed bloody murder. Maybe the soul-sister bond had been odd to come to terms with when Nexi couldn’t feel her strongest, most private emotions without Haven butting in. But in the mess of her life, the peculiar emotional bond had been a blessing.

In those first few weeks after her life-changing night, Haven was a piece of sunshine in Nexi’s dark world. Even if Nexi hadn’t gotten used to—or gotten to like—Haven sharing emotions that she’d rather keep private, she loved Haven.

She needed her.

Best part, Haven needed her back.

Haven skipped forward, smiling from ear to ear. “We’re going out together, then?”

Nexi gaped in horror. While she appreciated the bond at the beginning and it could be a tad annoying at times, since nothing remained private any longer, Haven was the glue holding her together. The thought of Haven in a dangerous situation terrified her. “You’re not coming with us, are you?”

“Of course I am.” Haven glared, which looked ridiculously harmless, even if irritation flickered through the bond. “I always help the guardians, which means we get to be a team.” She waggled her eyebrows. “Isn’t that exciting?”

Hell to the no. Little, sweet Haven… “You’re not fighting, are you?”

Haven’s eyes went huge. “Me, fighting, are you crazy?” Her lids lowered, and her familiar happy expression returned, sparkling eyes and all. “I’m going to recreate the scene.”

Nexi blinked. “Say again?”

Haven’s lips parted, but Zia interjected, “It’ll be much easier for you to understand by seeing it, rather than having it explained to you.”

She couldn’t argue with that. “Probably won’t believe it even after I see it.”

Zia smiled. “Probably not.”