Chapter 12

I did a cat stretch, arched my back, and let all the muscle tension drift away . It was morning, judging by the unmistakable sound of a distant lawnmower. I had a feeling Adam took off without me to get an early start, but I was okay with that. My stomach let out a bobcat growl in the silence of the room and I rubbed my itchy nose and pulled away the blindfold. My pupils went into shock from the light and I shut my eyes.

I hated the smell of musty hotels; it was depressing because they were an in-between place for travelers. Mid-yawn, I flinched when I opened my eyes and Adam came into focus. He was lying on his side, fully dressed.

“How long have you been doing that? I thought you were gone.” I pulled my pillow over my head, hiding.

“Long enough to know you need to run a bristle over those pearlies.”

I groaned in the oversized pillow.

“Zoë, I’d like you to come with me. I think you’d find it interesting to see what I do.” He was all serious this morning, as if last night never happened. “I could use an assistant; I need help with some of the equipment and changing out the lenses.”

“You’ve been on a million photo shoots and never needed help before. You just don’t want to leave me alone.”

“True that. You seem to get yourself in all kinds of trouble when I’m not around.”

I lifted a middle finger slowly and before he could grab it, I shoved my fingers through his hair. “You need a haircut. Do you want me to do it?”

“Have you ever cut hair before?”

I shrugged. “Sure. I shaved a poodle once.”

“And this gives you experience?”

“As long as I don’t have to shave anywhere near your butt it might come out pretty good.”

“Well that shouldn’t be a problem.” He pinched my nose and I snickered. I really, truly adored the relationship we had going at times—it was so effortless.

“Do I have time for room service?”

“At your service.” Adam reached behind his back and brought a large white paper bag around, setting it down between us. I unrolled the top skeptically and peeked inside. “Donuts!”

“They’re cinnamon sugar; hope you like them. If not, we can pick up something on the way.”

I was already shoving one in my mouth, dusting the granules off my fingers. He tried to take the donut from me and I tilted back.

“Now, Zoë, you’re getting crumbs all over the bed,” he said sternly. Adam hated crumbs on the furniture and it drove him absolutely mad that I liked to eat crackers on his leather sofa. So I obligingly took a donut from the bag and shoved it in his mouth, scattering tiny flecks of sugar all over the sheets.

“That’s what maid service is for.”

Once I showered, I slid on a pair of cotton shorts and a yellow shirt that tied around the neck. The weather was warmer than back home as summer was extending itself.

The first location was in front of a beautiful historic home. During the setup, Adam smuggled a pair of jeans from the wardrobe lady and gave them to me. It was the first time I ever changed in a car and most definitely the last when one of his crew walked by the window and whistled.

The last location brought us back to town, and it was closing in on sunset. A pretty model sat by Adam, touching his wrist whenever he spoke, and I had a slight pang of jealousy to see him give attention to someone else, but it was actually nice to see someone flirting with him. Adam needed some normalcy, and he was a handsome guy. He deserved to have someone throwing affection his way.

I walked to a sandwich shop up the street for a bite to eat. When the door swung open, a small bell jingled, announcing my entry, an old-fashioned touch I rather liked. Leaning over the counter, the scent of lemon cake had me inhaling deeply, but I stuck with a ham and avocado sandwich with a tall lemonade. I still couldn’t take my eyes off that cake, but I pried myself away to a small table by the window.

After I finished my meal in what seemed like five bites, I dusted the crumbs from my fingers.

“Are you planning to eat that?”

I looked up without surprise to see Justus eyeing my pickle.

“Help yourself.”

He slid in the chair across from me, setting a small plate with a slice of lemon cake in front as he grabbed the pickle.

“You can’t be with him, you know.”

“Who says I’m going to?” My finger swiped at the icing and brought a taste to my lips.

“Well, you can’t.”

Today Justus looked a little less like the playboy I had seen the night before as he was dressed in a button-up shirt and slacks. His demeanor was still smug, just toned down. There was one other woman in the shop and she couldn’t take her eyes off him.

“Knowing what you are, how long do you think it would be before you hurt him? You can do some serious damage, you know. You could kill him. If you accept me as your Ghuardian, you can learn to control it enough that, should you want,” he said and nodded at the window, “you could be with a human.”

“You say ‘human’ like we are some kind of alien,” I said flatly.

“Have you ever seen Invasion of the Body Snatchers ?”

I pursed my lips.

“I’m giving you a chance to live a worthy life. You must know about the world you belong in—the world of Breed. You must feel this. Being among humans is no longer your place. You cannot run from what you are; you will not be able to protect yourself when another Mage finds you. And they will find you.”

I sighed and watched a passing car. I didn’t want to live my life on the run, in hiding.

“Yes, you should be afraid. God help you without a Ghuardian who could protect you. You would be used in the worst kind of way. You need to be taught.”

“So I can wield the power as you do? Sending out your energy to the nearest pair of panties is such a great example of the power you have. I’m not stupid, you know. You’re good-looking,” I reluctantly pointed out, “but you aren’t that good-looking. That was quite a show you put on last night.”

He leaned back and laced his fingers behind his head. “Power has its perks.”

“Power also corrupts,” I added.

Justus’s eyes fell to his lap and his brow formed a single, vertical crease on his forehead. Completely switching gears, his voice suddenly thundered, “Turn around. Now !”

I blanched as I whipped my neck around and hunched my shoulders, thinking that someone was coming up from behind to attack. But all I saw was a man at a nearby table whose eyes sank low and turned away. When my heart came out of my throat, I realized he wasn’t yelling at me, but the guy behind us.

Justus gazed over my body. “You really should dress more appropriately; too much skin draws attention and you do not have enough fabric in the back.” He swirled a finger in the air.

“I’m wearing a sleeveless shirt, not a thong.”

“I can’t force you, but I can promise you one certainty.”

I raised my head and looked directly at him as he rose to his feet.

“You cannot control it on your own. I tapped your energy and there’s a lot of it. You are not tempered enough to protect yourself. The wrong kind of Mage will find you and make you their pet.” His lip curled when he said that and I was surprised at how much it angered him. “And I’m not about to go into the many details of why you don’t want that to happen. Time is ticking and you can’t hide from who you are. Leave this life behind, Zoë, while you still have the freedom to do so.”

He took my wrist and pressed a card into it, making a crisp snap from his finger pulling off the edge.

“Keep it, should you change your mind. My offer still stands. Goodbye, Zoë.”

When he left the shop, I studied the card. It was charcoal grey with the name Justus De Gradi in white raised print and a phone number below. I ran my finger over the finely embossed gold ring before tucking the card in my jean pocket.

The trip to Memphis ended soon enough, and we were back at Adam’s house, but there was tension beneath the surface. Things had changed, and he didn’t look at me quite the same. His look was sad and distant. I didn’t like who I had become either and it had nothing to do with being a Mage. Living off his generosity only proved that I had become nothing less than a mooch.

There was a light knock on the bedroom door.

“Come in.”

Adam stepped over my legs and took a seat on the floor across from me, leaning against the wall with one leg propped up and his arm casually draped over his knee.

“There’s something you should know.”

My attention focused away from the blank ceiling overhead and fell to Adam. I didn’t like the look on his face at all. “Now you’re scaring me.”

He knocked his head against the wall. “You have a mark. I didn’t say anything before, I guess I was hoping—”

“What mark? I don’t have a mark; I’ve seen my body, Raze.”

“I’ve seen your body, too.” His face became splotchy as it heated with embarrassment.

“Care to elaborate?”

“When I cleaned you I didn’t dress you right away; I put you in the bed and covered you up. It wasn’t until later, after you transformed, that I put clothes on you.” His hand scratched the back of his neck. “I had some underwear, and I didn’t want you waking up naked. Suffice it to say that putting underwear on an unconscious woman is something I’ve never done before, and it’s no easy feat.”

My bottom jaw stuck out. Underwear . I never really thought about where those mystery panties had come from, let alone how they got on me. I had other things on my mind at the time, but now it was sparkling clear.

“Let me just save myself the embarrassment.” As if he could . “You have a mark on your right cheek.”

And I knew he didn’t mean the cheek on my face.

I propelled into the bathroom—the mirror was too high so I lowered my sweats on the right, exposing part of my bare ass as I strained to get a glimpse from over my shoulder. Adam tapped my arm with a handheld mirror, which I snatched away.

“Lower,” he said.

There it was—a mark low on my cheek, nearly where it met my leg on the inner side. It was smaller than Justus’s and different. It looked like a wavy line with two curved patterns intersecting it at one end.

I set the mirror on the sink and pulled my pants back up. There was only one option.

“This—whatever we’re doing here—I can’t do it anymore. I need to know what I am.” My eyes fell on him imploringly.

“I know.” His finger swept a lock of hair from my face.

“Why did you just decide to tell me all of a sudden? You could have kept it to yourself.”

“I had no right to, and there’s something else that concerns me. It’s been on my mind since Justus brought it up that night. On more than one occasion, someone has been following you. I don’t like that someone wants to hurt you and I may not be able to protect you. Maybe you’re safer… with him.”

So I made the call.