Page 26 of Her Rabid Beasts

She looks at me like she doesn’t appreciate her rest being interrupted, but laps at it exactly three times then puts her head down like she’s really tired.

Why is she so tired all the time?

“I don’t understand why she’s not eating,” I say, putting the bowl aside and peering into her eyes. “She should be eatingplenty.” I don’t want to say it out loud. I really don’t. But when animals don’t take food and water, it’s a bad, bad sign.

My stomach churns and I heat up. My heart starts racing like I’ve run five miles really fast. I’ve never felt this way before.

“Brother,”I project to Scythe, who’s likely back up in our room.

“What’s wrong?”comes the sharp reply. He’s immediately on alert, and I sense Xander’s presence listening in. I don’t usually use this tone. But I swallow down the feeling of poison in my throat.“I think Aurelia is sick.”

But it’s Lyle who answers me. “We need her to shift back.”

“How do we do that?” I gruff. I hate having to ask him questions, but my heart is still pounding and now I can hear it in my ears. Now that I’m looking at her with adrenaline honing my eyes, I can see that her fur is kind of dull.

“Honestly, I don’t know,” he admits.

Anger flares through my veins and the urge to break his face almost makes me lose it. But Aurelia needs us to think. Not fight.

So, I glare at the useless lion. “Aren’t you known for this?” I demand. “Can’t you therapise her? Can’t you do the things you do to make her snap out of it?”

“I’ve never seen a beast turn rabid like this. It’s not quite normal. I think it’s something else. I think…” He looks at me then. Really looks at me in the eyes like he wants to know something. “Can you talk to her telepathically?”

I shake my head. “It’s the first thing I tried.”

“I thought so,” he sighs. “I actually think this might be a Boneweaver thing.”

And we know fuck all about Boneweavers. There’s none that we know of in the country—or any country. And Aurelia’s mother is long gone. The rest of her family is dead, according to Marduk’s research.

As for herotherfamily…

Lyle and I stare at each other as we both realise it at the same time.

The only beast who might know anything about this is the very beast we’re trying to avoid.

“Mace has been trying to arrange a meeting with me on a near daily basis,” Lyle says dryly. “I’ve declined him each time. But maybe?—”

“No.”Scythe’s resounding voice booms through the air like a hand grenade, and even Lyle stills as he hears it. “Not a single chance.”

“He’s her dad.”Xander’s voice is snide because this is his favourite argument.“She must take after him in some way. Try a spell for vermin extermination. That might work.”

“I’m going to kill you,”I say to him.“But after we save Lia.”I lean down and run a gentle hand over her pretty little golden head. “Come out, Lia,” I coo. “We need you back.”

I feel Lyle’s judgemental eyes on me, but I don’t care. I can’t even believe we’re collaborating like this. “Come back out and say something sassy to me. Please.”

But it doesn’t work. Her eyes don’t even open to acknowledge me and it’s like she’s gone even deeper into the thing that’s taken her.

I grumble at the lion. “Can you ask Lady Phoenix? She’s from a mythic order, she might know.”

Lyle huffs and I take that as a yes.

Xander’s drawl pierces my mind again.“I’m from a mythic order too, you asshat. She’s done this to herself,”he says. “If she’s put herself in, she’ll get herself out. Now everyone fuck off and stop fretting like a bunch of old hyenas.”

Lyle sighs and I know he heard that too.

Xander knows stuff about things the rest of us don’t. He’s the closest thing to a Boneweaver, so I’ll just have to trust him.

As I lie back down next to my regina, wondering if my power can somehow transfer to her by osmosis, Lyle says quietly to me, “Keep feeding her, Sav. Try the roast beef tomorrow.”

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