Page 5 of Shadow Blind

“Yes. Do you have a total on the charges yet?” She was obviously crazy. She wasn’t responsible for this creature. Why in the world had she offered to pay for the medical charges?

“As of right now, we’re looking at $2,987. This includes several projected days in intensive care. If the animal dies before those days are used, or if he recovers more quickly, you may get a slight refund.”

Demi winced, then shrugged. She had the money, might as well use it on something worthwhile. “Fine. Run the charges. Where will you send him after he recovers?”

The vet made a sound that showed surprise. “We were under the assumption that you’d be taking him home.”

“Oh, no,” she said automatically. “Aiden hates cats.”

“I see.” There was a long pause.

Demi felt compelled to fill the silence. “Maybe the local shelter would take him?”

“I’m sure they would.” The woman’s voice was neutral. “But with his injuries, he’d likely be euthanized to make room for more adoptable cats.”

“Oh…” Demi’s voice was small.

“We can look into some of the local rescues, see if any of them have room for a special needs cat.”

Special needs? She grimaced. Of course it was. With the extent of its injuries, it could hardly go back to living on the streets.

“We have a couple of days before we need to decide,” the woman continued. “He may not even make it through the night. He’s lost a lot of blood and the damage to his body was catastrophic.”

Demi scowled. The vet’s tone suggested that death might be the best option.

“I’ve changed my mind. I’ll take him.” The decision burst from her with no input from her brain. No, Aiden didn’t like cats, but his preferences didn’t matter anymore. He might not know it yet, but they were officially broken up.

“Okay…” the vet sounded hesitant. “Are you certain?”

“Absolutely.” To Demi’s surprise, she was sure. The cat needed a home, and she had plenty of space. “Can I visit him?” At least a visit to the animal clinic would get her out of the house. And if she was going to bring him home, they needed to bond. There would be bandages to change and medicines to give. He needed to learn to trust her and let her take care of him.

“Of course,” the doctor assured her.

After making an appointment to visit the cat, Demi hung up. Looks like she had a pet. A roommate, to keep her company as she moved on with her life.

Chapter three

Day 1

Denali, Alaska

“You appear indifferent about this trip to the Brenahiilo,” Samuel observed as the cafeteria doors slid apart and they stepped into the corridor beyond. “Are you not meeting with your anistaa and le’ven’a?”

“I am.”

It did not surprise Wolf that Samuel had sensed his dissatisfaction with the upcoming visit to the Twin Peaks Reservation. His Caetanee had been kin to him since their early rotations of running wild through the forests and fields of the Brenahiilo. They had been accepted into the warrior clans and bound to the Neealaho—the neural web that tied all warriors as one—during the same ceremony. No one, within or without the Shadow Realm, knew him as well as Samuel did.

“If you do not wish to go, why do so?” Small lines knit Samuel’s forehead.

Wolf grunted but offered no explanation. Spending time with Jillian, his shadow le’ven’a, at least of late, brought nothing but frustration and longing.

He could not prevent her from wallowing in her shadow life, existing in her memories. No matter how many spirit walkers he sent to perform the recalling ceremony, no matter how many times they attempted to rejoin the pieces of her shattered soul, they could not reunite her spirit. Sometimes, when the spirit broke too brutally, it could not be made whole.

“Ah.” Samuel stared straight ahead. But his words proved he knew the situation well. “She does not retreat from the Shadow Realm, then?”

Samuel’s face showed nothing, neither did his matter-of-fact tone. But Wolf felt his second’s sympathy. It shimmered through the mental link that tied their minds.

He bled all emotion from his face, voice, and the neural connection that bound them. “She does not.”

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