“Anyway…” Andy steered Charity around a molehill. “Watch out for those.” He pointed at the small opening. “They’re not like Brink moles. They bite when you step on their front porch, and it itches for weeks. Right, so when you get summoned, your body gets all hot and feverish and strong. Way strong. You almost feel invincible. But your skin crawls, too, like it’s on too tight. Itchy, yo.”
Charity rubbed her chest. That sounded about right.
“I thought I had some sort of rash, even though I didn’t see any actual skin irritation,” Macy said.
“It’s uncomfortable.” Andy nodded. “But so is puberty in general, you know? So half the time you think everyone else is going through it, too. But then you get a, like, superhuman sense of smell. And bionic hearing. That’s not normal, right?”
“Don’t stare at that guy, Charity, he’s a jerk at the best of times.” Macy bumped Charity, knocking her stare off a being with green-tinged skin and fiery red hair.
“So then it’s up to our parents to talk us through our first change,” Andy said. “And if your parents didn’t get the gene or hate that they change and refuse to do it, like Devon’s mom—then another family member.”
“Devon’s mom?” Charity asked, remembering his look of soul-crunching loss.
“Shut up, Andy, that’s pack business.” Macy gave him a hard shove.
“It’s not like she won’t be pack soon. Or else why is Roger bothering to—”
Macy thwapped him upside the head. “Don’t get involved in whatever Roger’s got going on. Let Devon handle it.”
Andy rubbed his head, expression sour. “Let’s get this tour over with. Charity, do me a favor. If you see something that surprises you, stare at the ground.”Chapter Fourteen“Seriously, Devon, I know how to walk.” Charity ripped her arm out of Devon’s grip as they scaled the mountain of steep, twisty stone steps on the way to Roger’s office in one of the castle towers. Apparently they needed another powwow before she could go.
“You’ve stumbled twice,” Devon groused. “I can’t have you falling and braining yourself.”
Charity rolled her eyes as she reached the landing, tired of his attitude. “You should be more worried about me braining you.” Devon pushed her out of the way so he could shove the door open for her. “Oh yeah, real gentlemanly—abuse a girl so you can open the door.”
“Just get in, would you? I’m exhausted, and I can’t finish my mission until I get you off my plate. Sooner the better. Your magic and your attitude need a serious adjustment.”
Crazy heat flared within her, as if fanned by his words, and a smile tweaked her lips. Her hand itched for that sword.
“Yes. That.” Devon shoved her through the door and directed her down the hall. “Knock it off. It’s pissing me off.”
“Need to get me off your plate? I don’t want to be on your plate any more than you want me there, trust me,” she muttered. She entered the office, then hesitated, causing Devon to bump into her backside.
The barrel-chested alpha, Roger, stood behind a massive wood desk, tracking her movement with his different-colored eyes. A wave of shivers washed over her, her reaction to a predator in her midst. Any flare of defiance she had toward Devon dwindled as her flight reflex kicked into high gear. The whole situation was disconcerting.
“Please, sit,” Roger said, indicating one of two large leather chairs in front of the desk.
“How did you get leather in here?” Charity did as he said, lowering into the cushy chair. “I can’t imagine you kill cows in this place. Although that minotaur would probably deserve it.”
“We got the furniture here the same way we got you in here. Carried it,” Devon muttered as he sat in the chair beside her.
“Charity,” Roger began, ignoring Devon’s comment. “We need to discuss what comes next with you. Your presence at the house may have helped us derail Vlad’s plan, but as you are aware, it also created a problem. Six new vampires are now hunting humans. Given that we were able to extinguish some of their creators, they’ll have limited guidance and control. They’ll drain their food sources dry. Bodies will pile up. This is a very dangerous situation for the non-magical in the area.”
“Sorry about that,” she mumbled, because it felt like she should say something.
“I would like to employ you,” he went on. Devon shifted uncomfortably next to her. “I would like to use you to help clean up the overspill from that party. I think you could be an asset to our organization.”
Charity shook her head and pushed to the end of her seat. “Look, I’m really sorry that I got in the way, but I have a life I worked hard for. I don’t know what the status is with my roommate, but I do know I need to get back to my regularly scheduled program tomorrow. Right? Tomorrow’s Monday? Or does time move differently here?”