Page 5 of Prey

Joaquin looks like you could knock him over with a feather and then immediately busts out in the most hysterical laughter I have ever seen from a six-thousand-year-old vampire. “Well, this is certainly going to complicate things,” he says between laughing and trying to catch his breath.

Kadi looks like it’s taking every ounce of strength he has not to try to grab me again.

Folding my arms over my chest, I frown at Joaquin. “What do you mean?”

Kadi gestures to one of the couches, hand shaking with effort. “We should probably sit down. We came to talk to you about afew things. It looks like this conversation is going to go a little differently than I thought it would.”

I follow them and sit down in a chair across from the couch. No way am I putting myself near him at the moment. I can feel the bond tugging at me to get closer. He also seems to be struggling with it too, despite his efforts so far.

“The guy that was here, that we were chasing earlier?” Kadi starts. I nod. “We think he may be a scout for a group that’s been attacking witch and warlock owned businesses and assaulting and kidnapping some of them. Up until now, we’ve only managed to come in after it had already occurred. This was the first time we arrived at a location before anything happened.”

I’ve been hearing some rumblings about businesses that’ve been broken into and trashed, but I had no idea anyone had been kidnapped.

“So, you think he came here to scope out my place so they can come back later and either trash it or try to kidnap me?” I ask, incredulously.

“Yes, we think the chances are pretty high. Joaquin and I came to see if you’d let us stay in here tonight and try to catch them if anyone comes in, or just to stake out the place to see if we can catch someone,” he says.

I snicker at his use of stake and see Joaquin scowling at him, and then at me. I shrug my shoulders at him and contemplate what Kadi said.

I chew on my bottom lip a little while I’m thinking. My apartment is above the shop. The thought of someone breaking in here and trashing the place with me so close is not a positive one, but I can take care of myself pretty well too. I don’t need anyone staying inside the shop overnight, but I can’t stop them from watching from outside.

I also don’t know how I feel about this whole mate thing, either, and I don’t really feel comfortable having Kadi that closeuntil I can figure it out, though wearegoing to have to spend some time together. But I want it to be on my terms.

“I don’t feel comfortable having you in here if I’m not here at night. I live just upstairs and I’m more than capable of handling myself if I need to, but if you want to sit outside and watch, I can’t stop you. So, have your little stake out if you need to,” I say with a small giggle. Joaquin scowls at me again.

I like Joaquin. He comes in a lot, though I didn’t know he was part of Wrath. He hasn’t ever worn his riding gear in here before. That makes me think he must not live far from here and probably walks over instead of riding. There’s a vamp neighborhood a few streets over. So, my guess is it’s somewhere over there.

Lifting my finger slightly, I send a pulse of magic towards them. I want to check and see if there’s any malice coming from either of them. Just because they came here to tell me about these break ins, doesn’t mean they aren’t involved themselves.

It would be very easy to tell someone to let them in so they can watch things and then be the ones to tear the place up. Theyarecriminals after all, even if they are the Robin Hood type. I sense only curiosity and the need to complete the bond from Kadi, and nothing but kindness and concern coming from Joaquin.

That makes me feel a little better.

Kadi clears his throat. “One more thing, I’m sorry about Ethan. His issues are his own to share but his experiences with witchkind haven’t been great. He’ll come around. It’s just going to take some time. Though, I will say this is a little more excessive than normal so I think there may be something else going on that he isn’t saying.”

I almost say I don’t really give a shit if he comes around or not, but then I think of the mating bond. They are President and Vice President of the club together, and best friends if all the stories are true. So, I can’t just write him off. We will have to cometo some kind of a truce at least so that things aren’t awkward between us for Kadi’s sake.

Sighing, I say, “I’m not agreeing or disagreeing at this point, and I don’t want to talk about bonds tonight either. I’ve heard what you have to say. I’ve agreed to let you watch the shop tonight. Give me some time to think about the rest and we can talk again tomorrow, okay?”

I see a look of disappointment and hurt cross Kadi’s face, but he nods. Well, that’s definitely a point in his favor. He isn’t going to push things unless I’m ready. As a witch, I can break a bond with no consequences if I feel it’s necessary. We are the only ones who can, though. I’ve seen a lot of mates push too hard and get rejected. That’s never good for anyone and both people involved will slowly die when that happens.

The only reason witchkind can do it is because a long time ago, a black magic user from the Society figured out a way to force a bond and made a Coven of witches into his mates. He also, through the dark bond, controlled them and made them do many evil things against their will. It was a powerful Coven that had a few witches with special powers. They all got together behind his back and came up with a spell to break the bond, but it only works for witchkind. It also comes with a whole host of problems because you aren’t supposed to reject a mate. Under normal circumstances, rejection kills the ones involved.

Covens are powerful. The ones that have been together for several hundred years are even more powerful. There had to be a way to offset it if anything like that ever happened again. It was too dangerous not to.

Shaking myself from my thoughts, I look at Kadi; really look at him. Straight black hair but with some lighter strands bleached from the sun, dark brown eyes, almost black. It’s possible he has some Bedouin heritage, maybe. He’s not hugely muscular like Ethan, but he’s still pretty solid. Lion shifters are known for theirstrength and loyalty to their Pride. As far as mates go, he’s a pretty good option.

I need to talk to my mother and grandmother and then make Emmett come over for some “girl” talk. Standing, I gesture towards the door. The other two customers left while we were talking. “I need to close and then I have some places I need to go. You guys are more than welcome to hang out wherever out there.”

Joaquin gives me a two-finger salute and then heads out the door while Kadi lingers. He steps over to me and raises a hand to my face, running a finger down my cheek to my chin and lifting my face so that our eyes meet.

“I’ll give you a little bit of space to sort through your feelings. I’m a pretty laid-back guy, unlike Ethan, but don’t keep me waiting forever, my Little Lioness. Neither of us wants to be in pain,” he says quietly, rubbing his thumb across my lips before stepping away and following his friend out the door.

Lifting a hand to my face, I trace the same path he took and just stand there staring as they walk out into the night.

Gathering myself, I finish unpacking the last box of books. This time, I don’t find any more surprises. Cleaning up the coffee bar, I get things ready for when Emmett comes in in the morning. I go to the back room and grab the box I put the medallion in and then close everything up and drive to my grandmother's house.

Closing the car door when I get there, I look up to see my mom and grandma standing on the porch. My grandma has precognition. Great, that means she probably had a vision about the little surprise I got at the shop, maybe even both.

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