Page 32 of Shadow of Death

Every time I told myself I could walk away from this man, he’d add one more word, one more action, that made it so much harder.

“I’d still like to make a good impression.”

His shoulders rose and fell with his deep breaths. “I don’t want you going out of your way for them. Their opinion doesn’t matter.”

For someone who was so perceptive most of the time, he seemed to have this raging blind spot. There was nothing to be done but spell it out for him.

“Even if they hate me,Idon’t want to show up like this. It’s embarrassing.” I walked over to him, holding out my arms as if to accentuate what a mess I was.

He looked me over and then met my eyes. “I don’t see the problem, but we can make a detour. If you feel the need to stop, we will.”

“I do.”

A detour to some shops and a scrub in a very cold stream later, I was somewhat presentable in a new sweater and jeans. The newboots weren’t going to be so great if I had to run but were much more presentable than my previous outfit.

Right around forty minutes later, we arrived. The main structure was so large, it couldn’t be classified as a house. This thing was an “estate” at the least, with more buildings around the outskirts. The place had an old-world charm mixed with an intimidating grandeur that made my stomach churn even more.

I found myself staring as I got off the bike. “Did they take this over after the collapse?”

“No. The pack has been here for a long time.”

I’d thought I’d fallen for a Southern boy of average origins, if not necessarily traditional ones. This was the home of royalty or something. He’d thought I’d be fine showing up covered in an inch of dust?Note to self: Don’t ever trust him on appropriate dress.

“How come you don’t sound Scottish?” I asked, trying to shake off my awe.

“I was conceived here, but I wasn’t born or raised here. My mother left as soon as she feared she might be pregnant. I visited but never lived here long enough to pick up their accent.”

She got out of this place as soon as shethoughtshe might be pregnant? A lot of women were scared to have a baby alone. How bad was this place?

“Do we need to knock or ring or something?” I asked, looking at the imposing wooden doors. I could feel eyes on us, though, and flashes of people in the windows.

“No. They see us.”

Not a second later, the doors swung open. A tall figure emerged from the building. He was built like Kicks, had his dark coloring, but his features were a little more refined. Somehow that was a negative. Kicks had more of a rough-around-the-edges, earthy, rugged appeal. This guy looked like hemanscaped, and I wasn’t sure I was into the manicuring going on.

“Kicks,” the man said, his voice deep and resonant, and very similar to Kicks’. “Didn’t expect you back here for a long time.”

“This is my brother, Varic,” Kicks said. “Varic, this is Piper.”

Varic eyed me up. I saw his nostrils flare as he took in what he’d already suspected. “She’s—”

“Yes. She’s human.” Kicks spoke like he was drawing a big, fat line Varic shouldn’t cross.

His brother whistled. “I’d heard the rumors but just didn’t believe it. How the hell did she end up as a guide?”

“Just happened,” Kicks replied coldly.

“So what brings you all the way here?” Varic asked, folding his arms across his chest, eyeing us up like we were unwanted guests.

“What, I can’t bring my mate to visit?” Kicks’ spine grew straighter, his muscles straining so hard that I was waiting for his shirt to rip.

“Just thinking of Dad, it’s a surprising move. I mean, we both know how he is.” Varic shrugged, as if it were Kicks’ issue to deal with.

Kicks had warned me they didn’t like humans, but I didn’t think it would be any worse than what I’d encountered before. I was beginning to think I’d kidded myself. I wasn’t sure if we were going to be kicked off the grounds any moment. The only thing I could say for Varic was that at least he was facing us alone.

“I’m not asking him to accept her. I don’t care if he does or doesn’t. His approval means nothing,” Kicks said firmly.

“And yet here you are,” Varic said, trying to sound ironic.

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