Page 103 of Shifter Situations

She scooped up the charts, rolling her eyes at the wolf as they exited the office. I glanced around one last time, thankful that this building would be nothing but ashes and melted metal soon.

Stone was waiting outside the door with four red gas canisters at his feet. “You ready?”

“Yeah. Where’d you get those from?”

“I borrowed them from the construction company next door.”

I smirked. “You go left, I’ll go right?”

“Everyone else is gone, so meet me in the middle.”

I picked up one of the red canisters and began splashing gasoline around the office. I hit all the smaller rooms and the reception area, grimacing at the foul smell the entire time.

Stone was standing in the middle of the containment area, brooding as he played with the flame in his hand. His eyes were completely black when he looked at me.

“I don’t really believe in coincidences either, you know? What Sloane said is making me think about all the pieces.”

I rolled my lips in, nodding. “She made some valid points. Everything that’s happening has led us from one distraction to another.”

“You know what this is, right?”

“It’s a puzzle that came with a thousand pieces, even though we only needed twenty-four.”

He put his hand on my shoulder as he mumbled, “It’s all a game, Novak, but how does it end?”

Stone threw his ball of fire as he pulled us into the Void.

I wouldn’t answer his question, though. My vision didn’t feel like an ending.

It felt like the true beginning.

20

Stone

Saturday, June 6th

Night

Palmer’s powers had been on the fritz all day. It had taken him three attempts to get it right, but the mage had finally figured out a spell to put on Sloane’s and Briggs’ clothes.

Hopefully, when they shifted, they didn’t lose them.

He didn’t want to bring attention to himself, though I suspected his temperamental magic had something to do with the incomplete bond between him and his mate. I knew he had to be experiencing the pull more now than he had in the previous weeks.

It had nearly driven me mad, making my demon push for me to hear his voice. And that was after only two weeks of denying the need to seal our connection. I couldn’t imagine going any longer, yet somehow Palmer and Vaughn had.

All of us were still shocked at how quickly Novak had dove headfirst into mating. But seeing him with Sloane reiterated that they’d made the best choice for them.

Even though Briggs had fought the bond, I thought their relationship suited them. She was better for the wolf than he’d originally wanted to admit.

We’d sealed our bonds much faster than the length of time it had taken Sloane and York, but I wasn’t seeing any issues from the hasty choices.

I had no regrets; I knew the guys didn’t either.

It still amazed me that she could balance six relationships with any sort of grace. Being with the guys all the time would quickly drive me insane, but we were actively trying not to smother her with our presence.

None of her mates with sealed bonds mattered to me at the moment.