Page 28 of Only You, No One Else

“I am where I am supposed to be.” A rare smile replaced his stoicism, making him seem younger than he was. He laughed, startling Mark enough that he released his hold on the doorknob. “I am much older than I look. And you don’t need to worry. He’s here. He’s meeting with the King.”

Mark nodded, rejecting the shame that often flooded his system when he failed to guard his mind against intrusion from vampires. “I need Edie and…” He held out his hands, noting the futility of his action before dropping them.

“You left your phone at the cabin?”

He nodded again.

Kyle reached into his pocket, pulled out his device, pushed a single button, and held it to his ear. “Find Edie. Mark needs her.” Then he gave Mark a curt nod as if that settled it.

The house, or at least this part of it, seemed so quiet, almost as if the silence was by design. There had to be a lot of people in the house; his heightened senses could pick up a myriad of scents, most unfamiliar, but the silence was deafening.

“You’ll get used to that. The King requires it.”

Again, he hated that he’d left his mind open to Kyle’s easy intrusion, but his wolf didn’t sense a threat from the big vampire. He shrugged and turned back to the safety of Caster’s room. “You don’t have to stay here…”

Kyle’s unexpected chuckle stopped him mid-thought. “Caster’s orders cannot be ignored.”

That was true. But why would Caster think he needed to have Kyle’s protection here? Was he afraid that Zeke would find him? Zeke had proven he could access his wolf anytime he wanted. The panic that the shadow of Caster’s presence had removed only a few minutes ago returned with a vengeance, his wolf howling out its discomfort. What if Zeke attacked him again, and Caster was not here?

***

A soft knock startled him, and the door swung open just as he gathered the strength to fight the intruder. His fear and panic dissipated into an exhale when Edie walked in, her smile faltering into a frown. “Are you OK?”

His nod was small, and she accepted his answer, closing the door behind her and taking his hand to lead him to the sitting area. The breakfast he’d been enjoying a few minutes earlier now looked anything but appetizing. If Caster feared Zeke’s challenge this much, perhaps he was not taking the threat as seriously as he should.

He chuckled against the warring emotions threatening the peace he’d been enjoying. “You wouldn’t happen to have that tea, would you?”

Edie’s smile was subdued, but he would take it. They both sighed as they sat, her scrutiny and the extent of her power adding to the pressure he couldn’t contain. “Did something happen?”

Mark swallowed around the lump constricting his words. Caster had to be talking to his father about this, so why was it hard for him to articulate what had happened? He needed to find Dean, but if a power Zeke seemed willing to flaunt was anything to go by, Dean would soon have larger problems than his safety to deal with.

He closed his eyes and thanked Edie’s silent patience. He reached for his wolf, surprised to find his animal companion quiet, even relaxed. Why wasn’t he as panicked as he felt? He found words that seemed impossible even as they coalesced in his mind in a long exhale. “Caster was in my mind space.”

Edie frowned.

He leaned forward, trying to communicate the impossible as best he could. “Zeke tried to control me again, and then Caster was there.”

“What did it feel like?” There was an inexplicable smile in Edie’s voice.

She smiled wider when he caught her eye, but her joy did nothing to ease his confusion. “Terrifying. It was like…”

She shook her head. “No. Not Zeke. Caster. When he was in your mind space, what did it feel like?”

He’d been so caught up in the impossibility of it, he hadn’t considered what Caster’s presence in his mind had brought. Mark took a second to search through that memory, through his wolf’s memory, and the picture came together. The fear, the darkness in the moment he’d been drawn back into Zeke’s control, had almost ripped him apart. But the second Caster appeared, all the fear dissipated, and his wolf regained his vigor, even attempting to fight back.

He gasped, understanding his wolf’s calm, and Edie smiled wider. “How can…”

“The protection spell.”

He frowned.

Edie leaned forward, the extent of her power lessening, its red glow now fainter. “Remember how we set that up?”

He nodded. They’d insisted on connecting his protection spell to Caster. “That’s why he could reach my wolf?”

Edie’s smile fell. “Yes, but I’ve never heard of a vampire entering a werewolf’s mind space.” She leaned forward, her hand reaching for him. “Do you mind if I…”

He nodded, trusting her magic, taking her hand. His wolf awoke with a start, but stopped mid-growl as if recognizing her. Whatever she’d done pulled him forward, even though he remained in his seat, only to push him back into himself a second later. He opened eyes he didn’t remember closing to find an indulgent smile on her face.