Page 100 of Catch a Tiger

Samuel

The fact that Mylo didn’t immediately respond with violence surprised Samuel enough he felt more of the madness ease.

“My Vix is good at taking things apart though, not putting them back together,” the raven warned, sliding his dark gaze to Samuel. “When I found her, she was sleeping in a snowy clearing, mutilated angels all around her. Verydeadangels. Honestly, I wasn’t sure she was even alive until she threatened to kill me.”

He and Mylo watched the raven, silently acknowledging that their little spat would have to wait.

“You can call me Kenji by the way,” the raven told them, smiling as he studied them. It wasn’t a very reassuring smile though since his eyes shifted to red, a warning that death wasn’t far. “She likes that name.”

He glanced at Mylo, and Samuel adjusted his stance so the other tiger was slightly behind him. This raven wasn’t just an assassin. He was a very protective father, and Samuel respected just how dangerous that made him.

“She was maybe sixteen when I found her,” Kenji admitted, like they were just having a chat about old memories. “But whenI looked into her eyes…they were ancient. My little killer has lived a thousand lives but can’t remember any of them. She just remembers the pain.”

The rising sun was starting to peek through the trees, rays of golden light cutting through the shadows, separating them from the house, and Samuel suddenly wondered if it was a mistake to leave Rune and Vix alone for so long with Valentina and Morgan.

“She agreed not to kill the witch or her raven, so she won’t.”

Both he and Mylo stared at the raven, wondering how he could read them so easily – as easily as Vix did.

Kenji shrugged. “It may not seem like it, but she’s very good at following rules. You just have to be extremely specific. If you leave something out, she’ll consider that rule null and void because there’s nothing to guide her in that situation. I made a lot of mistakes before I learned that.”

Mylo took a deep breath and considered those words carefully. Samuel couldn’t wait to hear what he’d figured out from that concession. His second was by far the smartest out of the three of them.

“Why are you telling us this?” the other tiger asked, tilting his head slightly, claws still out in case the raven got any ideas.

“I’m sure you already know why.” Kenji sighed and ran his hand through his dark hair and then shook his head like he was trying to get water out of it.

What an interesting raven. He even had emotion in his eyes.

“I’d like you to spell it out for me,” Mylo drawled, inspecting his claws. “I already have one red-eyed raven to worry about, I don’t need another.”

The way Kenji grinned set Samuel’s teeth on edge, but he couldn’t say why exactly. It was just…Vix’s father lookedpleasedwith his second, delighted even.

“Because she asked me for permission.” The raven turned his gaze to the house then, like he always knew where she was.“She asked me for permission to tell you a raven’s secrets. As outsiders, you can’t possibly understand what that means.”

He had an idea, but Samuel wasn’t sure he was ready to hear it – he didn’tdeserveto hear it.

“She was willing to risk her life to tell you what you needed to know, and I chose to take that risk instead, because I don’t trust you.” Kenji turned back to them, one eyebrow raised like he was trying to decide if they were worth bothering with or not. “My vixen has already decided you three belong to her and doesn’t care if you have ulterior motives. She’s stubborn like that.”

“We have no plans to harm her,” Mylo snarled softly, rising to the challenge so easily Samuel couldn’t help but stare at him. Was his second actuallyoffended?

“Yes, but she doesn’t have a scent, does she?” Kenji smirked and laced his fingers behind his head like he didn’t have a care in the world. “Don’t you find that disgusting?”

Mylo actually reeled back like he’d been slapped, and Samuel glared at the raven, knowing he couldn’t destroy him no matter how badly he wanted to.

“If not that, then maybe the rotten stench of angel blood clinging to her hair when she comes home one night would make you sick to your stomach as she slips into your bed like she hasn’t just slaughtered an immortal.” Kenji jumped back when Samuel slipped closer, grinning just like Vix when she got all crazy. “What are you going to do when Gabriel finally comes for her?”

“And what makes you so sure he will?” Samuel growled, flexing his hands into fists to shift the claws back to human nails once more. “Seems to me like he abandoned her.”

“You would think that, wouldn’t you?” The raven pulled down the black fabric around his neck to show off the scar that was identical to Vix’s. “That rune on her neck is evidence of our blood oath. I chose her as my partner after the last one died. Ravens never work alone, did you know that?”

They did actually, but it was pretty common knowledge.

“Don’t worry, I’m very aware she’s not actually a raven shifter.” Kenji’s grin widened then, as if he could see their thoughts written on their faces. “I knew she wasn’t when I found her, but her skin was covered in all those scars and her aura was drenched in death. That aura may be shattered, but any raven can see the pieces if they look. It’s how I learned she was a hybrid.”

Kenji released the black gaiter and ran his hand through his hair again, the grin on his face fading.

“Her shoulder was ripped open, and I still don’t know why. Or how she kills angels. Those secrets aren’t mine to keep. My only job is to protect her, just like I promised I would fourteen years ago.”

---