Anna huffed and sat on the bed. “Are you, I mean, do you, I don’t know, do you feelfunny?”
Jewel’s eyes were unfocused as she stared at the floor. “I don’t feel like myself. I feel afraid, angry, and irritated all at thesametime.”
“Yes!” Anna gasped. “Thank you. I’m not losingmymind.”
“It’s Volcan’s ma—” Jewel was cut off when a large, dark figure appeared intheroom.
“You were speaking of me,” Volcan said with a smile that looked half-crazed.
Both of them stood quickly from where they’d been sitting on the beds and took astepback.
Anna shivered. She did not want to be anywhere near him, and yet she felt drawn to him.Damnmagic.
Volcan clucked his tongue at them. “I’m quite disappointed, my lovelies. I sent you out to fulfill a task, and I daresay you have failed quitefantastically.”
“You didn’t bother to tell ushowto fulfill this task,” Anna challenged. “We didn’t know the women would die. You can’t expect us to be successful when you don’t disclose all the informationweneed.”
Volcan’s eyes narrowed on her. “What are you talkingabout?”
Jewel shot her a look and gave a very small shake ofherhead.
Anna tried to backtrack. “I just mean you didn’t tell us they had to be healthy. The ones we picked apparently had problems that kept them from being strong enough to withstand the force of your magic.” There, she’d stroked his ego with that force-of-your-magic bit. Maybe it would distract him from the pathetic attempt to redirect what she’d really intendedtosay.
“Clearly you chose your subjects poorly. Excuses mean nothing to me. It seems you obviously need some incentive to try harder.” In the blink of an eye, he crossed the room and grabbed both women by the arms. An instant later, the room wasempty.
Chapter9
“I suck at limbo. I’m not talking about the back-breaking game of trying to get under a stick that is continually being lowered. I’m talking about the kind of limbo that means your future is undecided. You’re just sort of there, waiting for whatever it is that’s going to happen, tohappen.” ~Kara
“He lookslike he’s going to take a bite out of anyone who makes the slightest move,” Stella whispered to all the girls that were sitting huddledtogether.
“Adam is keeping a close eye on him,” Karaadded.
“How are you two holding up?” Heatherasked.
Stella rubbed the ache in her chest. It was getting worse. “I’ll be honest, at the moment, the whole mate-bond thing is kindasucking.”
Kara nodded. “I have to agree. Although I don’t think the ache I feel is as intense right now.” She looked over at Crina. “Do you know whythatis?”
Crina nodded. “Gypsy healers don’t usually know who their mates are going to be until they turn eighteen. There might be attraction, but there’s no pull and none of the mating signs. It’s surprising that you feel the pain of being separated from him already. Granted, it’s weird that any of you are feeling it considering you haven’t even met the males. Perhaps it’s because magic is stronger here than in the humanrealm.”
“Things have been changing a lot,” Crina said. “The meeting of Fane and Jacque was a miracle that seems to have set many things in motion. Since then, many wolves have found their true mates, more than at any other time in history that I know of. And two new children have been added to the Canis lupus numbers, a very rare occurrence. Something is clearly happening to our magic. Maybe it is evolvingwithus.”
“And to think, not too long ago, my biggest problem was dealing with a particularly strong-willed dog,” Heather said and then laughed. “Perhaps that isn’t really going to be any different from thisnewlife.”
The others joined her laughter. “Remind me to keep her and Jen apart,” Crina said to thegroup.
“On a serious note,” Kara said, “I know I’m beating a dead horse, and I feel like a kid asking, ‘Are we there yet?,’ but if I ask enough, the answer will have to change eventually. So,are weevergoing to get out of here? It’s not that I have anything against pixies. I’m totally pro-pixie.”
Heather laughed. “They have been quite hospitable. I’m saying that like I’ve been able to see the accommodations they’ve provided,” she addeddryly.
“I wish I had an answer for you,” Crina said. “Peri will never stop trying to get us out, of that I can assure you. Not to mention your mates. They will continue, even it takesyears.”
Kara frowned. “Let’s go with, ‘It’s not going to years for onehundred,Alec.’”
“You watch that show?” Stellaasked.
She shrugged. “Some of the foster homes I stayed in had caretakers who were less than enthusiastic about doing a ton of work. They watched the game show channel twenty-four, seven. Quiz shows were a favorite. And they usually had the TV turned up really loud, so it was hard not tolisten.”
