He places my coffee in front of me, and my eyes widen a little when I see a cute dragon floating in it.
He nods, his eyes sparkling with excitement. “Yes, we are. This is our granddaughter’s place, but she was marked as the new shifter queen,” he tells me with pride. “We offered to help her out until she can make permanent arrangements.”
I round my eyes, feigning shock. “Wow, the shifter queen! That has to be…” I pause as I think about what it must be like for a human to be marked. “Terrifying,” I finish, and he nods.
“Yeah, I think our girl had a small meltdown and tried to run away, but she came to her senses, and the shifters couldn’t get a better human to be their queen. She will be amazing.” I can hear the love this man has for his granddaughter in his voice, and I decide to probe a little more.
“So you aren’t from around here?” I ask, taking a sip of my coffee, smiling as the dragon slides around inside. It really is adorable.
“No, we’re from the human zone, a village called Ocean Reef, but this was a way to help out our girl and reduce her stress, so to speak. It’s one less worry for her to have.”
“That’s kind of you. What about other family members? They must also be proud of your granddaughter.” I’m not very subtle, but thankfully this man doesn’t notice.
“Oh no, it’s just Jenny and me. Colbie doesn’t have anyone else except for her mother, and she can be a little difficult,” he says with a grimace.
“Joseph Karridge, stop boring this young man with our family drama,” Jenny, his wife, scolds as she appears with my soup and grilled cheese. She slides it onto the table and shoos her husband away, pointing to the empty booth that needs to be cleared.
“Now there’s no rush, but I’m going to put up the closed sign, otherwise Joe and I will never get out of here. Let us know if you want anything else while we finish tidying for the day, okay?” Jenny puts a stop to my questioning, but I learned enough to know where to look for this other mate of Colbie’s, so I nod politely and eat my food.
They leave me to enjoy the delicious meal. I groan with delight at the flavors and hope that my mate has inherited her grandmother’s talent for cooking, because I truly suck at it—not that a queen will be doing her own cooking regularly, but I hope she knows how to make this soup, because I could happily live off this and grilled cheese.
Once finished, I pay my bill, thank them, and take my leave. I’m bound to meet them again, and they will probably recognize me because I didn’t glamour my features, but I will deal with that when the time comes. I decide to poke around Malina Karridge’s business, but when I get there, the shop is closed, so I leave it for now. I can investigate her later. Joseph made it sound like Colbie and her mother aren’t close. King Loki said as much, but I didn’t push for details at the time because it didn’t matter. It does now, and I want to know everything he does.
I sift to the seaside village of Ocean Reef, and it doesn’t take me long to find out about the loner who lives in the forest near the lighthouse. I decide to wait until dark and kill some time wandering the boardwalk of the cute seaside village. The whole time, my mind obsesses over the woman who is my mate and the men I have been linked to for the rest of my life. I have a good bond with the four other men handpicked by Loki to be his spies, and my relationship with the king is solid. He is my parents’ friend. In fact, he introduced them to each other, and he’s like a favorite uncle who is always getting you into trouble. I’ve killed for the man, but I’ve never been good at the friend thing with others. I’m abrasive, and because of what I do, I am secretive and insular. I have no idea what it’s going to be like to be a part of a bond group. Am I going to be able to open up to these people, and will they accept me for who I am, or am I destined to live on the outside, always looking in?
My thoughts take on a toxic loop of doubt that is very unfamiliar and throws me off-balance. I’m unsettled and restless when the sun finally goes down, and I make my way through the forest surrounding Nox’s cabin on foot, but when I get there, I instantly know he isn’t in residence. I sift inside the building. He doesn’t have any wards up that would prevent me from doing so, but then he probably didn’t think he had to worry about a half fae shifter getting into his place. I can tell that it’s alarmed against human intruders, but my fae magic allows me to be imperceptible to them.
I poke around his things, trying to get a handle on Queen Colbie’s missing mate. There is a cat tree sitting in one corner of the room, but no sign of a cat, and despite the lingering scent of cinnamon and sugar, which I’m pretty sure belongs to this male, the place shows signs of him being gone. It has the slightly musty scent of a room that hasn’t seen fresh air for a few days. There are dishes on the drying rack near the sink, but they are bone dry, as is the sink. The bed is made in the bedroom, but there is a lingering scent of cupcakes and frosting that makes my cock twitch. Damn it, what is that smell? If I had to guess, I would say it’s the queen. I haven’t been close enough to scent her yet, and the water was masking it earlier. I would say this shifter and the queen know each other intimately. So why did he run?
I’m even more curious now, and after shuffling through some correspondence he left on his desk in the office, I learn this male is from Zalfari. He’s an equine, another one of those disregarded shifter races, much like the fairies that sent my mother running from any possible match in this kingdom and straight into the arms of my fae father. Her life was difficult, and that was without her having to worry about human wing hunters and collectors who make being a fairy shifter dangerous. They still exist in hidden, underground markets, but I’ve made it my mission to search them out in my free time and explain why hunting fairy shifters and the fae is a bad idea.
Knowing there is nothing else for me to learn here, I decide to return to the Chaos Kingdom and tell Loki everything I have uncovered. I also have to inform him of my new bond mark. That’s certainly going to be an interesting conversation.
ChapterEighteen
Colbie
Thankfully there are no parties, and dinner is a family affair with Gryffin’s and Hunter’s families, as well as Violet in attendance. My friend looks radiant, her skin glowing with health, and I mention it to her.
“Gretchin took me to the warded room, and I was able to shift, then Layla showed me the queen’s secret garden, and I was able to spend time playing with the plants.” She giggles happily, and I give the queen in question a grateful smile.
“Thank you,” I tell her, and she waves a hand.
“Our garden has never looked so incredible. I knew fairies were good with plants and animals, but I had no idea they were that good. Despite winter being on its way, the flowers are blooming again, and she rejuvenated the vegetables and herbs so they will continue to produce during the cold weather. She’s very talented,” Layla praises, and Violet blushes prettily.
“You’re a fairy?” Talon asks, and Violet blanches, biting her lip in worry before nodding.
“Yes. Is that a problem?” she asks, and I glare at Hunter’s brother, daring him to say it is. I’ll shift and bite his head off, future brother-in-law or not.
He shakes his head, and the sudden tension at the table eases. “No, not at all. I’d love to see your shifted form sometime. I’ve never met a fairy shifter before.”
I breathe a sigh of relief as Violet releases her poor lip and smiles shyly at him. “I’d like that.”
“You mated Liam!” Gracelin shouts, suddenly pointing at the matching bite marks on our necks. I was hoping nobody would notice—not because I’m embarrassed or ashamed, I just kind of wanted to enjoy it without the added pressure of sealing the bond with the others. Of course I can’t get anything past these shifters, and my beast really didn’t go for subtle.
Everyone’s attention switches to us, and it’s my turn for my cheeks to heat. “Yes, I did.” I glare at her for drawing attention to us, and she smirks at me.
“That’s wonderful, Colbie.” Evie claps her hands as everyone congratulates us.
