Page 32 of Shadow Spirit

“Me, too.”

Erin stopped, planting her feet until he, too, had stopped. She looked up at him with clear eyes that shone with an inner maturity and intelligence. “You love her.”

All Decker could think was ‘out of the mouths of babes.’ With the simple acceptance of that fact, so many pieces of the puzzle fell into place. This was the reason he felt no jealousy about Greg; he knew that Adriana needed Greg just as much as she needed him. It also helped him to understand the developing bond between him and Greg. The three of them were all parts of their mate bond. While he loved Adriana in a sexual way, he also loved her as a friend, and he loved Greg as a brother.

He could see Adriana coming out to meet them. Erin ran to greet her and hugged her before running back to Decker and doing the same. Taking the hand of each of them as they continued their walk, Decker had a flash of what their future might entail—either with Erin or a child born of their union.

“Adriana, do you think it’s possible anyone from my coven survived? I asked Decker and he said there was no way to know for sure, but he didn’t think so. I kind of agree with him, but I want to know what you think.”

“I didn’t see what Samuel reported to Decker,” said Adriana, “but he described it to me. And while it isn’t likely, it was a coven and not just a group of villagers or shifters—not that there’s anything wrong with either. It’s just you and I know that sometimes we know things others don’t.”

Erin nodded. “Kind of like I knew where to find you.”

“Exactly. Sometimes we don’t even understand that we knew what we knew right away; it just seems to all work best if we follow our intuition.”

“Yes, my grannie used to say that.”

Decker could feel the twinge of pain Erin’s words had caused Adriana—partially because she herself had lost her family and coven. Thankfully they had not been slaughtered, but they had turned their backs on her and banished her when she needed them most. He tried to reach down the tether with soothing vibes. Her coven had best never cross his path; he would not have kind words to say to them. Their abandonment had wounded his mate deeply.

“You know what I think?” asked Adriana, deliberately brightening her tone.

“What?”

“I think we should never give up hope, and maybe if your intuition led you to those in our village, perhaps they will lead anyone who still lives to us, as well.”

They were closing in on the main buildings that comprised the abbey.

“Erin!” called two of the other children as they ran towards them. “Come and play with us!”

Erin looked up at him and Adriana. “Go ahead,” he said as he and Adriana released her hands so she could go join her newfound friends.

He picked up Adriana’s hand once more as they continued to walk. They headed over to the medical facility. Greg grinned as they walked into his office.

“It worked,” Greg said.

“What worked?” asked Decker.

“I was just thinking that we needed to talk. Well actually, I was thinking the two of us should talk before we talk with Adriana.”

“Why would you two need to talk without talking to me?” she asked.

“Because we’re wolves, and we do stupid shit like that,” answered Decker nonchalantly.

Greg chuckled. “He isn’t wrong, but I actually wanted to share with him what Wordsworth found on an ancient scroll. The scroll talked about this triad bond we share. By the way, Adriana and I decided that’s what we should call it.”

“Works for me,” said Decker.

“Anyway. It seems the thing has always been between a witch and two wolves. As an aside, he’s found no reference whatsoever to anything like this existing in any other species. And for the record, it doesn’t happen often. In fact, it seems to be triggered by the rise of a dark force.”

“But we defeated Strode,” protested Adriana.

“Nobody is suggesting Strode wasn’t a malevolent force, but Wordsworth thinks it’s O’Shea, doesn’t he?” suggested Decker.

“Wordsworth and Colby both think so. For what it’s worth, so do I. They think the sooner we get her marked…”

“The safer I will be.”

“Not to put a damper on things,” said Decker, “and I can’t believe I’m saying this, but marking her might not be the best idea, at least my marking her.”

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