“You’re not the only one with a sob story, Princess.” Her confusion smoothed to careful blankness. “You’re not the only orphan, the only victim. You’re not even the only child that Carmichael Sartori adopted, though you are the only one he kept for himself. The rest of us were raised to infiltrate other clans, packs, and prides. We listened for any whisper of dragon sightings to ensure your location remained secure.”
“You’re not that much older than I am.”
“Do you think a pack or pride or clan would look kinder upon a child they stumbled across, maybe not the same species as them but a shifter nonetheless, or an adult woman whose motives and origins would be questioned before she was granted even a shred of trust?” She read the answer on my face. “I got lucky. The Walsh clan found me ten years ago in a fast food dumpster outside the town they lived in.” She scoffed at the memory. “I sat in week-old fry grease for three days before they took the bait.”
“Tenyears?”
“Trust requires time to build. How else do you think I secured a first-wave invite to Brentwood?”
To know Carmichael killed my parents to get his hands on me was one thing. The knowledge, and the hurt, was so far removed from the life I had lived up to this point, it was like it happened to someone else. But to stand in front of a woman not much older than me and know she had been chosen to sacrifice her childhood—herlife—for his obsessive need to possess me made it so much more immediate. Realer. A thing that was happening now. Today. To living, breathing victims who ought to be spared his agenda.
I could have been her. No. That was the problem. She had been put in that position because ofme.
“I had been briefed on the Murphy pride, whose alpha was an old tiger. They had been targeted because of their diversity, which offered me a better shot at blending in and building relationships with children my age. As it happened, I had chosen a restaurant on the border between Murphy and Walsh territory. They were allies and moved freely between the two, which is how I ended up an accidental ward of the Walshes rather than the Murphys. Best mistake I ever made.”
“I’m sorry Carmichael did that to you.”
“Sorries are pointless.” She shrugged as if she meant it. “They don’t change a thing.”
A low moan puckered her brow, but neither Sloane nor the hulking bear at my back were responsible.
“Who else is here?” I answered my own question with my earlier doubts. “Rochele.”
“She knows me too well.” Fondness softened Mindy’s tone. “I picked her, you know, as the person to emulate. We grew up together, did everything together. I even followed her into law enforcement and then into K9 training. The deeper our friendship, the more secure my cover.”
“It was her blood Sloane smelled.”
“As I said, she knows me too well. She could tell something was wrong and followed me here. I had to knock her out the old-fashioned way.” Her gaze lifted to mine. “I’ve been recalled, so this is the last time we’ll see one another.” She glanced back at Rochele. “Call Burdock as soon as I’m gone. Please. For her.”
“Carmichael lost the challenge.” I clenched my hands, but magic crackled and popped on my fingertips. “He’s no longer the Sartori alpha.”
A knowing smile tipped her lips, but it was as empty as every other expression she had arranged on the blank canvas of her face since unmasking herself to me. Then she pivoted on her heel and bolted for the door.
Jess charged after her and got stuck partway, her fluffy butt clogging the exit. I would have climbed over her, but I was still spurting magic in uncontrolled bursts. I backtracked to the front door instead, shoving through it and spilling out onto the sidewalk. I spotted Mindy running full tilt toward a white car I hadn’t noticed earlier. Her slight lead allowed her to reach it ahead of me, and she slid behind the wheel.
“Stop.”I flung my hand out in her direction and yelped as a globe of fire spun off my fingertips and flew toward her. “Watch out.”
A percussive blast set my ears ringing and swept me off my feet. I was thrown several yards, smashing into another parked car, and the back of my skull throbbed in time with my heart.
Flames engulfed the sedan, and smoke poured from its shattered windows.
No, no, no.
Mindy.
I stared down at my trembling hands in horror, but they blurred as my vision flickered in and out.
Burnout. Had to be. Because I was numb. Spent. Palms empty. No spark left in me.
Good. Yeah. That was…
…good.
thirteen
Moonlight glitteredacross the pale sheets draping over my toes. A dip in the mattress drew my head to one side, and I found Sloane curled in a ball next to me, just shy of touching me. Weight on my feet had me lifting my head to discover Goldie had fallen asleep on them, her hair spilling over my shins.
Shadows twitched on my periphery, revealing Rían conked out in a chair that did its best to hold him. He jerked in his sleep, lines carving deep furrows across his brow. His long fingers danced where they rested on his thighs, as if he were playing a symphony in his dreams. His breathy growls, however, convinced me if I were to ask, he was more likely to admit imagining his hands wrapped around Carmichael’s throat than to confess he was a secret pianist.
