"I'll be okay," Quinn murmured. He sighed and pulled away after a few moments, still trying to smile. "Thanks, Farley. You know, maybe it's not so bad. It's not like this journey was for nothing." His smile brightened now, turning genuine. "If I’d never set out to find my wings, I never would have met you."
I smiled and stroked his face, thumbing the last of his tears away. "That's true."
"And I have a mate and a baby now. So maybe I don't need wings after all."
A shadowy, familiar voice spoke up behind us. "Are you sure about that?"
Animus stood with his hands behind his back. His shoulders were slackened and his icy eyes didn't burn as defiantly as they had during our conversation with Mistral. He looked fatigued now, as if no longer putting on a façade.
"What do you mean by that?" Quinn asked cautiously.
"Earlier, I overheard you. And yes, to answer your question, I do not possess the raw strength that other spirits do. But that doesn't make me powerless." His gaze was piercing, reminding me that he was an immortal entity beyond my comprehension, no matter how human he looked. Well, aside from the horns and claws. "Quinn. I don't make it a habit to be impressed by alphas. But you are different. Your dedication to your mate – your fated mate – pleased me. In exchange, I want to give you what Mistral did not, albeit in a different manner."
Quinn sucked in a breath. Hope flashed in his expression. "Are you serious?"
"Yes," Animus said. "Fated mates have innate magical energy that we spirits can use and transform according to our will. From what I've seen, the spikes of energy only appear to happen during major milestones in a relationship. Intimacy, romantic moments, the birth of a child…"
Quinn turned to me, his brows raised. "Is that what Mistral was talking about?"
"It does ring a bell," I said, thinking about Mistral's comments to us about intimacy. He hadn't even bothered to give us the context, unlike Animus.
"Wait," Quinn said, grabbing my hand in excitement. "The birth of a child. Does that mean when our baby is born – or hatched – that will be enough of a spike in spiritual energy?"
"Most likely," Animus confirmed. There was a coy look on his face. "Now if you'll excuse me, I must rest. Dealing with Mistral exhausts me."
And then he was gone again before I could even open my mouth to thank him.
18
Quinn
It wasa long trip back home, due to a lot of stopping simply to enjoy each other's company. And bodies. We weren't in a hurry. Until our baby was born and Animus promised to meet us again, we had all the time in the world.
"So, let me see if I got this straight. Your family has lived here for an entire generation now?" Farley asked.
"That's right. It's a long story that I'm sure a few of my uncles will be more than happy to tell you," I said with a grin. "But the short version is that a few shifters left home to start families of their own and found this beautiful place. The wildlife reserve actually belongs to my uncle Remington. He's Zak's dad."
Farley scratched his head. "So this is actually all Remington's joint. But he doesn't live in a fancy building or anything?"
"Nope. All of us are wild and we like it that way. Though some of us originally came from human cities, too. My uncle Nishiki loves to remind us just how much he misses hot tubs."
"Some of them are like me then."
"Do you miss the city?” I asked.
"It's loud, smelly, crowded. What do you think?"
"Oh, good. Then you should feel right at home with my family," I said, laughing. I put my arm around him and placed one hand on his belly. "By the way, when the baby’s born, where do you want us to live? Here, or in the city, or..."
Farley stopped to look at me. "Quinn, I've lived in human cities, in an aviary cage for two years, and now in the wild." He stroked my hair. "I don't care where we live as long as it's with you. But honestly? I like it out here."
A rush of warmth and happiness flooded me. "Oh, come on. You're the one who’s pregnant, so why am I always the one getting emotional and teary-eyed?"
He smirked. "One of us has to."
"Yo, Quinn!"
I looked up at the familiar voice to see Cloud flying in to greet us. He banked his wings and touched down.
