Page 151 of Shifter Situations

I’d followed the path from the patio to the pool and kept going to the opposite side of the estate. Footsteps sounded behind me, dragging slightly against the brick footstones, too loud to be Stone or Novak, too quiet to be York or Briggs. Not calm enough to be Vaughn.

I stopped, glancing over my shoulder, as I waited for Palmer to catch up to me. He smirked, wiggling his fingers for me to keep moving.

“Did you want to join me or were you working on your stalking skills?”

“I was enjoyin’ the view.” He tilted his head back, staring up at the starless sky in fake wonder.

“The stars are lovely tonight,” I commented sarcastically.

“Well, go on then. Keep gazin’ and I’ll do the same.”

I snorted, grabbing his hand to pull him closer to me. “I’m going to check on Pete, see how he likes all the open space.”

My mage raised a brow at me, threading his fingers with mine as we ambled down the path. “Yer goin’ to make sure the hellhounds aren't driving him insane.”

“That too.”

The pedmar’s stable had been built near the detached garage where the guys parked their cars. Instead of putting up any kind of fence, Franklin had asked for him to be included in the new barrier that went up around the property.

Pete seemed content with the recent changes in scenery, but nothing made him happier than having company.

When we came round the corner of the house, a massive, black shadow lay on the ground. The pedmar had his ears folded over his face and his trunk extended away from his head. He made a whistling sound as he slept, the tip of his ears fluttering with each exhale.

As we drew closer, he lifted his right ear to peek at us.

“Are you going to sleep out here? It’s going to be hot once the sun comes up.”

He made a chattering sound with his teeth, letting me know he was aggravated.

“Okay. I understand. Do you mind if we hang out with you for a few minutes? Palmer is really loving the stars tonight.”

Pete lifted his head to view the sky, a deep breath leaving the end of his trunk before he gave us a single chirp.

I walked about the sprawled-out pedmar, sinking to the ground to rest against the back of his neck. He used his trunk to ruffle my hair, chirping again when I swatted at him.

My mage sat beside me, canting his head to recline on the curve of the pedmar’s shoulder. He looked restless, twitching his fingers where they lay on his thighs.

I tried to block out his nervous behavior.

Basking in the silence between Palmer and Pete wasn’t as welcome a change as I’d hoped. After all the hustling around we’d been doing, I needed the peacefulness of one moment to reset my mind.

“What’s eating at you?”

Palmer sighed. “I think I know how to rid myself of the tracker the angel put on me.”

“That’s good news. Why are you so agitated?”

He reached into his back pocket, pulling out a folded piece of paper. The delicate way he opened it had a sense of foreboding skirting down my spine.

“What is that?”

“A spell,” he murmured, passing the paper to me.

“I’ve never seen anything so complicated,” I admitted, studying it for what felt like ages.

I comprehended less than half of the runes and drawings and a portion of the Latin. The rest was a convoluted way to say set the flesh on fire.

“Who is this for? Be specific, Mage. Are you asking me to do this?”