I’ve been thinking about that. I don’t have an answer yet, but I promise I will.
~/~/~/~/~
Carrying Daniel, Steel walked into Jackson’s study and, placing his son in the playpen, gave his mate a kiss before sitting down next to him at his desk. “Hey, you wanted to talk?”
“I did. Did you have a good nap?”
“Yup. So did our son. He was fussy but as soon as I put him on my chest, he quieted right down.”
“That’s because he loves you,” Jackson said.
“The feeling is mutual. So what’s up?” asked Steel, smiling.
“Maximus spoke with Mystia about Daniel’s new power but she couldn’t shed any light on it.”
Frowning, Steel glanced over to his son, then asked, “Did my father have any other ideas?”
“Yes, one…”
“What is it?” asked Steel.
“I’m not sure you’ll like it but Mystia can put a spell on him that will prevent him from using his power,” Jackson answered. “It’s not a long term solution because it’ll only last a short while, but by then, they hope to have an answer for us.”
Shaking his head, Steel said, “I don’t like it, but…I don’t think we have a choice. What do you think?”
“It’ll buy us some time,” replied Jackson. “Mystia is waiting for us in Cody’s room.”
Picking up Daniel, Jackson cuddled his son as he left his office with his mate trailing behind him.
~/~/~/~/~
Reif couldn’t remember the last time he was so exhilarated—gliding as far as he could on an updraft and then another and another, the wind whistling past him. The freedom to be himself, without worrying that someone would see his beast, made him laugh with sheer joy. Hour after hour he flew, always striving to go higher,yet punctuating his flight from time to time by diving steeply before pulling up just in time to skim the tree tops.
Surveying the ground, he saw a pack of wolves running through the forest, heading north, away from where his car was parked. Then, seeing nothing else moving below, he scanned the sky to verify it belonged to him, and him, alone, before resuming his fun.
After another half hour, Reif knew it was time to return home and get back to the business of searching. Unable to resist one more flight, he flew the highest he could before gliding downward. Suddenly, his beast roared. Surprised, Reif quickly looked around to see what triggered it.
Unable to find anything, he banked, searching for an air current to help him fly high again. Then he felt it…a white dragon! Holy fuck! Where the hell did he come from and who the fuck is he?Calling on his ability, Reif’s beast shimmered before it became one with the surrounding sky and then, circling, he located the source, and flew toward it. Never before had he seen one—and certainly didn’t expect to find it in the Highlands; nonetheless, there was no mistaking it. Reif’s beast snorted with anticipation as he homed in on it, sensing a miracle.Maybe my luck is changing after all!
Chapter 12
Kahn wondered why he bothered taking calls from his father anymore; Josiah never changed, constantly heaping guilt on him for leaving the pack.What the fuck did he expect me to do when he kept denying who I am?He walked over to the bank of windows in his studio, staring at the cityscape below him, but failed to find the serenity it usually brought him.
When his father insisted he mate with a woman, Kahn sought his mother’s advice and, at her urging, loaded his car with his finished canvases, paints, art supplies and personal belongings. Then, after saying good-bye to his sisters and kissing his mother, he got into his car and left the pack for good. Driving through the night, he found himself in San Francisco where he settled.
Finally free of his father’s impossible demands, the darkness in him wasn’t reflected in his work anymore. Instead, his use of lighter colors resonated with joy and his personal happiness, by being true to himself, showed in every piece he painted. And while his work had begun to gain attention when he lived in the pack, it was nothing like what was happening now—his vibrant paintings were beginning to wow the art world. Since setting up his studio, Kahn had been featured in several galleries as a newly discovered artist and that, along with several articles in the local papers, had boosted the demand for his watercolors which were now selling for more than he’d ever imagined. But all that meant nothing to his father.
Turning away from the window, Kahn gazed at the painting he’d been working on before his father called, but with the anger burning inside him, he knew his work day was done. Gathering his brushes, he rinsed thembefore setting them out to dry. While straightening up his studio, he was drawn back to the half-finished painting, losing himself in the colors of the sky.
Kahn’s finger reached out, needing to touch the scene, feeling the beauty of the moment all over again, just as his wolf first experienced it on an early morning run. He felt such a strong affinity with the painting, he’d decided to keep it for his personal collection.Damn him! Even this far away my father has the power to fuck me over.
Dropping down on a stool, he thought about his mother’s advice to move away, preferable to the east coast, but then remembering his father’s erratic behavior; he didn’t want to leave her or his sisters without anyone who could help them escape should his father go completely insane. Snorting, Kahn was surprised he even thought that, since he’d never heard of wolf shifters going mad, but there wasn’t any other way to explain his father’s actions. It began the night he learned Jackson and his brothers had killed everyone in their pack.
The image of his father covered in blood, would forever be embedded in his mind as he listened to Rudy, their head enforcer, tell what his father saw and tried to stop. And that it was a miracle his father escaped with his life. Kahn’s rage at his cousins that night was all-consuming and when his father gave the kill order, he was all for it.
But somewhere along the line, he began to have doubts his father was telling the truth about what really happened. The first time he felt something was amiss occurred one night at dinner when his father was pounding the table about his enforcers failing to find Jackson. Bored, he glanced over at his mother, seeking permission to leave the table when he saw an expression cross her face. Fascinated, he remained, keeping his eyes on her. After dinner, he asked her what she knew aboutthe massacre but the pain that filled her face caused him to back off and change the subject.
From that point on, Kahn paid close attention to dinner conversations, eventually concluding his father was hiding something, but what? It was still a mystery. Sighing, he rose, heading to the living space he’d carved out of the large room, stripping as he went.First a shower, then I’ll see if the guys are going out tonight.Letting the water stream over his tight muscles, Kahn allowed his thoughts to stray, focusing only on where to go and what to eat.
