Selene
My husband is impossible.
I swear, it’s not even dark out and we’re already in bed. We don’t even have my heat to use as an excuse anymore. That ended days ago, but the way Bastien is acting, you’d think we were a pair of teenagers trapped in a frenzy of hormones. Not that he’s solely to blame, it seems like every time he touches me I dissolve into a puddle.
It may sound like I’m complaining, but I’m just overwhelmed by everything that’s happened over the last few weeks. I’m not the least bit disappointed to have this incredible Alpha lavishing his affection on me, I’m simply at a loss for how to deal with all these changes.
Bastien is wrapped around me like the warmest of blankets, his big body cushioning every inch of me while his lips move over my soft skin. “Goddess, I love you.” He murmurs, nuzzling my neck.
“I love you too.” I whisper, smiling widely. “Even if you don’t listen to me when I try to tell you about my powers.”
Bastien’s warm chuckle vibrates against my skin moments before his fingers flutter over my sides, tickling me mercilessly. Squealing with laughter and writhing in his arms, I try to escape the tortuous touches, but only end up winding myself tighter in his embrace.
“I was listening.” He promises, nibbling my shoulder, “I simply had other things on my mind.”
“Oh I know what you had on your mind.” I answer wryly, cuddling closer. “But what do you think?”
“I think if even half of what you read is true, then we need to figure out how to help you access that part of yourself.” He claims simply.
“Really?” I ask, glancing over my shoulder and trying to glimpse his rugged face.
“Of course.” Bastien confirms.
“You don’t think it’s…” I start with a shrug.“I don’t know, dangerous or something?”
“I think you need to learn as much as you can,” My mate assesses firmly. “The more able you are to defend yourself, the better. “
“I want to be able to teach Lila, too.” I confide, “when she’s old enough.”
“Mmm.” Bastien purrs in confirmation, “We need to find you a teacher somehow. Someone who knows about these things – someone we can trust.”
“Where on earth are we going to find someone like that?” I ask softly. “I’ve never even heard of any other Volanas, and the people who wrote those history books have been dead for years.”
“I don’t know.” Bastien answers, sounding like his mind is a thousand miles away. “But I can’t see another option. We’ve tried to bring the powers out on our own and it’s not working. We need help.”
Rolling over to face my husband, I tilt my face up for a kiss. My wish is granted almost immediately as his firm lips claim mine. Even as I dissolve into the moment, his words ring in my head, echoing through my thoughts as if holding some unspoken truth just out of reach.
He’s right that we haven’t been able to trigger my powers on our own, but I can’t forget what Odette said about my inability to see my mate as a threat – no matter what he does. I know Bastien won’t allow anyone else to attack me, but my instincts will never kick in unless I’m truly afraid.
Selene, Luna pipes up, rousing from her contented daze, the answer is obvious. We don’t need to be attacked to be afraid, we just need to be in danger.
What are you talking about?” I complain. We were in danger with Martin and nothing happened.
I can almost see my wolf shaking her head. Lila was with us then, we were trying to shield her, not fight.
Well how do you expect us to fight if no one is attacking us? I scoff.
People aren’t the only threats to us. Luna reminds me. In fact I can think of one threat that’s right next door, one we can face without risking harm to anyone else.
Suddenly I know exactly what she means, Luna, that’s insane. We have a child, and a mate who has already survived our death once. We’re not going to risk killing ourselves and leaving them all alone, just to test a theory.
Don’t you see? Luna implores. Lila and Bastien are precisely why we’ll have to fight, she argues. They need us. Dying isn’t an option.
No. I insist, at least, not without some sort of backup.
I can picture my sleek, white wolf nodding. I think it’s time we pay another visit to Odette.
______________________
Bastien
Heads jerk up when I walk through the front doors of Elysium Memorial Hospital with Aiden and Donovan, doctors and nurses scanning our small group as if looking for signs of illness or injury, then furrowing their brows when they find none. Reading my grim expression and determined stride, most drop their gazes once they realize we aren’t here for an emergency or social call.
We march straight to the pathology lab, the falsified DNA tests safely clutched in my fist. When we arrive the lab supervisor does a double take, her eyes going wide when she suddenly finds her Alpha bearing down on her.
I flatten the results page on the counter, “What can you tell me about this?” I demand.
Hesitantly reaching for the page, she eventually latches onto the corners, forced to tug it out from beneath my palm and looking more and more nervous every second. Her dark eyes flit over the results page, before she looks back up at me with a frown. “This appears to be a negative paternity test.”
My eyes narrow to slits, “Perhaps I should have been clearer. This test was run in your labs, and the results have since been proven false. So I’m trying to figure out whether your staff is simply incompetant, or criminal.”
The blood drains from the woman’s face. “Alpha, forgive me, this is the first I’m hearing of this.” She stammers, “Can I… may I ask…” She trails off looking uncertain.
“I know they’re false because my daughter has a starlight allergy which was recently triggered.” I explain, “My blood was required for the antidote.”
The supervisor’s jaw tightens, “I see.” Turning to a computer on her left, she quickly types in a rapid stream of information, presumably pulling up the electronic records. Gnawing on her lip as she reads the results, she glances at me uncertainly. “Everything in the system matches that print out.”
“Which means what, exactly?” I interrogate.
“Well, either the sample was contaminated, or the wrong sample was run against your daughter’s.” She hedges. “Intentionally or accidentally.”
“Could someone have edited the results once they were generated?” Aiden questions.
“I’d be able to see edits made after the fact.” She explains. “If I had to guess I’d say the wrong sample was run. If you would be willing to provide me another, I could confirm this.”
“Fine.” I agree through a thick red haze. “Who ran the tests?”
She scrolls up to the top of the screen, her brow knitting together in confusion, “I don’t… it’s not… this doesn’t make sense.” Her words are running together in a rapid whir.
“What’s wrong?” Donavon asks gently.
The supervisor stares up at me with pure trepidation, “It says I ran these… but I wasn’t even here that day!” She immediately squeaks, “I was on vacation, down at the coast with my family.”
“You can provide proof of this?” I question.
“Of course.” She promises, “and my colleagues can confirm it.”
“Who was covering for you?” Aiden wants to know.
“My assistant Jane.” She straightens her shoulders a bit, “but she couldn’t have done this. The system requires our ID badges to swipe in and I leave mine at home when I’m not at work. It was exactly where I left it when we got back to the city.”
“So what are you saying, who could have done this?” I press, getting more and more frustrated by the minute.
Her mouth gapes wordlessly for one long moment, “I don’t know.” She finally answers feebly, “none of this makes any sense. The test was run after hours – the lab wasn’t even open when it happened.”
Donavon leans forward, resting his burly forearms on the counter, “Does everyone who enters the lab have to badge in?”
“Yes, I can pull the log!” She exclaims, latching onto the idea.
As soon as the screen populates, I know the effort was for naught. The supervisor looks completely dejected, “It says I swiped in just after midnight.” She whispers, “No one else was here.”
Aiden squeezes my shoulder, nodding towards the hallway. “They installed security cameras a few years ago. If someone entered the lab using her badge, we should be able to see them on the footage.”
Shaking my head I growl, “if it hasn’t been tampered with too.” I gripe, “how much do you want to bet the recordings from that night have been erased?”
My betas grimace, and suddenly Aiden’s voice appears in my head. You believe her?
Studying the supervisor bleakly, I reply. Yes, unfortunately I think she’s telling the truth.
So where do we go from here? Donavon interjects.
First we check the security tapes, I decide, then we need to pay Dr Kane a visit.
Dr Kane? Aiden asks, to file a complaint?
It’s a logical assumption, after all Kane’s been the pack’s chief physician since my father was alive. But that’s not why I want to see him now.
No, I counter. To ask him how he misidentified my mate’s body after the fire.
_____________________
