“Do you need to drink it all, or can we save some in case it wears off before the ceremony?” Jared asked exactly what she had been thinking.
“I think a few drops will make it work. I was thinking of drinking half, just to be on the safe side,” Cassie replied.
She stared at the vial in front of her, making no movement to grab it. She had already done the bond thing once. It was intense, and she was just getting used to being bonded to Nate after a week of having him in her head. She wasn’t exactly ready to do that again. And breaking the bond was worse. Now that he was there, she was kind of worried about not having that connection. What if her aunt needed her help? What if he needed to speak to her?
Jared sat beside Cassie, startling her from her thoughts.
“I thought it would be less awkward if Nate wasn’t around, but I can see that didn’t change much,” Jared told her. “I was serious in that I don’t want to make you do something you don’t want to do. I know Nate did that to you already. I’m not like him and never have been.”
Cassie couldn’t help the giggle that escaped. They were more alike than different.
Jared shook his head. “Okay, I’m not like Nate in that matter. We don’t have to do this right now. We can wait until later, right before Nate comes back,” Jared suggested.
Reaching forward, she grabbed the bottle. They could wait, but it wouldn’t make a difference. It still had to be done. She uncorked the vial and tipped it back, trying not to gag on the horrible taste. She really needed to work on that.
The bond instantly snapped. Cassie felt it disappear when she went to Turner’s town, but now it actually felt like it was cut. Cassie grabbed her stomach in the pain of it. She felt like vomiting right there. Jared pulled her into his arms, but the pain was still there.
“Cas, open up your mouth,” Jared instructed while her eyes were clenched shut. She did and squinted at him in the light, which was twice as bright as she thought it just was.
Jared raised his wrist and turned from her. When he turned back, blood was dripping down his arm from biting it. Cassie hoped his blood was healing her like Nate’s had when she was attacked. She needed relief because the pain wasn’t going away … it was getting worse. She opened her mouth, and he pressed his wrist to her lips. After taking only one lick, she felt the burn of the blood as she swallowed it. It felt like drinking a magic-laced drink, but somehow different. It was warmer and eased the pain where much of magic tasted bitter and horrible.
The pain dulled, but it was still there. The pain had to mean something. Maybe she shouldn’t have broken the bond. Cassie didn’t have time to ponder that as Jared held her face still so that he could look into her eyes.
“It’s not gone, is it?” he asked about the pain.
Cassie couldn’t verbally reply as she was afraid if she opened her mouth she would puke.
Jared tenderly picked up her wrist. He looked at Cassie, and she knew what he planned to do. Squeezing her eyes shut, she waited. She felt pressure on her wrist but no pain. She was going to open her eyes to see why he was waiting when she felt him in her mind. She kept her eyes shut now as he was still partially transformed. She didn’t need to see Jared as one of the monsters from her dreams. She wanted to keep him in her mind as the stunning spotted black leopard instead of the red-eyed monster of her dreams.
“Cas, I’m not that monster anymore,” Jared said as he stroked her cheek.
Cassie slowly opened her eyes. The lights were back to normal, and the pain in her stomach was completely gone.
Jared sat next to her on the couch, but he didn’t look anything the same. While the wendigo were grotesque-shaped with long, clawed arms, legs that were bent for maximum speed, and razor-sharp teeth set into an animal-like face with beady red-glowing eyes, Jared was nothing like that. Cassie reached forward and touched his furry face. He wasn’t the black she remembered, but his features were now more cat and human mixed in a pale white color. The spots were a light gray on his exposed arms. He was larger, not quite twice his normal size, but large enough to make Cassie feel tiny next to him.
“Is this really you?” Cassie asked in awe. He was kind of beautiful in a weird monster way.
“This is what we’re supposed to look like,” Jared explained, covering her hand on his face with his own.
“No, you’re supposed to be a big black cat,” Cassie corrected.
Wendigo Jared smiled. His sharp, fanged teeth were still there along with the razor-sharp claws on his fingers, but he looked much more human. The short, fuzzy hair that covered him was soft to the touch, and the best part was that his eyes were back to his normal brown color.
Rising, Cassie walked around him. His shirt was in pieces as he grew in size, and she saw his full back. A raised white line ran the length of his back and a black tattoo like Nate’s covered over it on both sides. Cassie had seen Nate’s marking only a couple of times. Jared’s was different in shape, but not size.
“Do you feel better?” Jared asked. His voice was different as it resonated a bit deeper than his normal voice.
“Yes,” she answered as she touched the long scar. She didn’t need to ask what it was from. That was where the last bit of his leopard was ripped from him.
Cassie walked back around in front of him.
“Does it feel different?” she asked. He looked different, but she was unsure why that mattered. He still wasn’t close to passing for human. This form was still scary to anyone outside the night human world.
Jared nodded as he stood and stretched his arms and flexed his muscles.
“I can feel the strength my father always talks about. Yes. It’s much different.” His arms almost touched the ceiling. Jared rolled his head around. “And something else. It just feels different. Like I can feel all the wendigo better than before.”
Jared flexed his arms one last time before changing back into his normal self. He sat down next to Cassie, shirtless as his was now in shreds.
“Do you really feel better?” he asked, searching her eyes for the truth.
“Yes. I broke the bond for someone else, and he never said it felt horrible,” Cassie explained. “I wasn’t expecting that.”
Jared nodded. “Do you want to rest a little before we have to head out?”
Cassie glanced at the window. It was getting darker out, and a one o’clock meeting meant no nighttime sleep.
“Sure,” she replied, standing to head back upstairs. She walked toward the doorway, but stopped. Nate’s begging popped into her head. She promised to not go upstairs alone.
“What’s wrong?” Jared asked, jumping to her side before she could say anything.
“Nate said I shouldn’t leave your side for any reason,” Cassie admitted.
“But you still need to rest,” Jared replied. “Come on.”
Taking her hand in his, he led her upstairs. She felt a warm hum when his hand touched hers. It felt normal, like she had held his hand a hundred times already. It made Jared happy, but Cassie didn’t know what to think. Jared smiled as she thought that.
“Are you inside my head?” she asked. Nate had been kind enough to stay out, or if he did see something, he kept it to himself.
“I’m not trying. It kind of goes with the whole mate thing,” Jared replied. “Just like you knew I was happy before I smiled.”
Her brow furrowed, not realizing she had done that. “Fine,” she muttered, giving and not continuing to pout about it.
Jared walked into the room and dropped Cassie’s hand as she reached the bed.
“You rest, and I’ll just sit over there.” Jared pointed to the chair next to the windows.
“You’ll wake me when Nate comes back?” Cassie asked.
“Yes. Now get some rest.”
Cassie climbed into the large king-sized bed. The covers were cold, and she shivered—not knowing if it was from the cold or from being alone. The large bed just emphasized that she was all alone now, just like the bond with Nate being gone
left her without the clan or the coven. The bed bounced, and Cassie opened her eyes to find Jared lying behind her. He wrapped his arms around her, keeping her tucked tightly into the covers. She could feel his warmness through them.
“You aren’t alone, Cassie, and never will be,” Jared whispered into her ear before gently kissing her cheek. “Now rest.”
CHAPTER 9
The knock at the door wasn’t loud enough to normally wake Cassie, but now she felt things through her new mate as well. The soft pounding from the room below was enough to make him move. Cassie could sense it was a wendigo at the door, and that Jared already knew it was his brother. How he knew was beyond Cassie, but she hurried off the bed to follow him downstairs, no matter how sleepy she still was.
Cassie plopped down on the futon as Jared answered the door.
“We have a bit of an issue,” Ryder whispered to his brother.
Jared shrugged. “You’re going to have to get used to telling us both stuff. She’s my mate and soon enough will be able to hear every thought I think.”
‘Like why in the world did he have to wake us when we both were comfortably asleep?’ Jared said to Cassie.
She covered her laugh with a fake cough.
“I didn’t think she’d like to hear this one, and you might want to take care of it yourself,” Ryder cryptically explained before sending a bunch of images to Jared. Cassie caught bits of them as it was the first time she ever felt Jared’s bond to his clan.
“Cassie, we need to go take care of this,” Jared told her.
Jared slowed the images down because she was confused. Nate was in a cage and lashing out at anyone who came near. They had tased him as he was walking through the woods and caged him.
Ryder watched as she stood and took Jared’s outstretched hand.
“Father was worried that after you guys bonded in a couple hours it would break the hold Cassie has on Nate, and he will go feral like the rest of the skinwalkers,” Ryder explained, leading them outside.
Cassie hadn’t even thought of that. She had never once, even before she was bonded to Nate, feared his tiger. And she was pretty certain not all were feral, but she kept that to herself and hoped Jared didn’t see that thought.
“You don’t have to cage him,” Cassie stated as Ryder opened the door.
‘We don’t know that,’ Jared answered. ‘We didn’t even think about what it would do to break the bond with him.’
Cassie already felt bad about that. She hadn’t thought about the pain because she didn’t know. Did Nate go through that pain? Was he really feral?
Ryder led them to the barn where his truck was parked outside … just like when Cassie first woke up with the wendigo, except this time Whitney wasn’t in the cage, but Nate was. A couple of the night humans hanging around were jeering at Nate in the cage. He sat perfectly still until they got close enough for him to lash out at them. He wasn’t even close to being feral. He was his normal, calculated self. And if she wasn’t bonded to him, Nate was still marked as her mate. She could very faintly feel his emotions, and he was ticked off.
Cassie walked over to the cage and Nate immediately sat down nicely.
“Let him out of there,” she ordered Ryder.
Ryder looked to Jared, and Jared shrugged his reply.
‘Is that really the best idea?’ Jared asked.
Cassie turned to him. ‘What proof do you need?’ she asked. ‘I know he’s still in there. I can see it in his eyes. The mating bond didn’t disappear. He’s stable even if he’s just a tiger now.’
Jared didn’t appear convinced.
Cassie looked over to Nate.
“Nate, can you prove to Jared that you are safe to let go?” Cassie asked out loud for everyone.
Tiger Nate rolled his eyes before standing up as much as he could in the cramped cage and pushing forward against the bars to allow Cassie to pet him. She ran her hand down his striped fur, and he turned to lick her hand.
“He’s perfectly safe, but if you guys think he’ll be a problem, I can send him away,” Cassie suggested. The other wendigo seemed to like that idea, but Ryder was still waiting for Jared to tell him what to do.
Jared nodded. “We can walk him to the edge of the property and send him on his way.”
‘Thank you,’ Cassie replied.
Ryder unlocked the cage, and Nate jumped out of it in one graceful leap that landed him on the ground next to Cassie. Tiger Nate rubbed his head under her hand. The nearest wendigo that had been harassing him backed slowly away as Nate raised his lips to show off his teeth with a soft growl. Cassie batted his head.
“Knock that off,” she scolded him. Nate turned to her and licked her hand. It had been hard to see him walk away and even harder to break the bond, but Nate was acting like good old Nate. “And knock that off, too. Tiger licks are gross and very wet.”
Nate seemed to huff a laugh, his tongue hanging out to get her another time.
“This way,” Jared directed Cassie and Nate as they began to walk away from the house.
Jared stayed on alert. Cassie could sense that he didn’t think Nate was actually in full control. He was anxious to get him off the wendigo land and away from Cassie. He led the way in the dark night and had to occasionally help Cassie not trip on anything. Cassie laughed at the one time where both the guys had to make sure she didn’t fall down. She was the only one hiking in the dark without night vision. As Jared slowed down, Cassie saw Nate pause.
“Once he passes those two trees he’ll be outside the perimeter to our clan. None of the wendigo have permission to hunt outside our grounds. You will be safe there,” Jared explained. “But if you come back, I can’t guarantee you won’t be killed next time. Many are very afraid of you, and my father would rather not have a single living skinwalker around. Releasing them is what I bargained for. That doesn’t mean he will respect that if you come back. You’ve already seen how much patience he has.”
Nate turned back to Cassie. In his tiger body on four legs he basically stood eye-to-eye with her. Nate turned his glowing blue eyes to Cassie and waited. Cassie smiled; she knew what he wanted. Placing a hand on his head, Cassie peered into his eyes. It would only be a one-way conversation, but it was better than nothing.
Cassie watched her aunt speak to her through Nate’s eyes. ‘Hi, Cassie. Nate found us and filled us in on everything. We are pretty sure we know where they’re keeping the witches. They have a sacred ground they do all their ceremonies on. We found it the first day we went looking. Underneath the ground are all sorts of caves. Nate’s been able to contact his dad, and he’s helping us find the witches by finding his mother. We plan to get them tonight while the wendigo are distracted by your ceremony. You are our distraction. The younger skinwalkers are all following Nate’s commands and will attack if we need more time to get everyone out. They have been warned to stay away from Jared as it will hurt you, too. Please stay safe and we will on our end. Nate will come for you once everyone is out and to safety.’
Cassie rubbed Nate’s head. It was strange to not hear him. She could remember the first few nights when she thought Nate was Whitney. She told him she wished he could be a talking tiger. Again, she wanted that. It was too quiet without a response from him.
“Tell her I miss her,” Cassie said quietly. “Was it painful for you, too?” She had to ask.
Nate cocked his head to the side as if he didn’t understand.
“When the bond broke,” Cassie added. Nate shook his head. “Good.” That didn’t explain anything, but at least she didn’t hurt him by doing it.
Nate peered around Cassie to Jared, who was waiting back a few feet, giving them space.
“He’s been fine. Don’t worry. It worked, and his father will have nothing to be upset about.”
Cassie reached out for Nate again but pulled her hand back. She could feel through the bond that there were many wendigo in the woods. They were growing impatient, and they all were looking at Nate as a meal.
/> “You really should get going. These guys don’t seem too patient, and I’m pretty sure there are several waiting for you to not leave,” Cassie added what she felt through the bond with Jared. Several was an understatement. It was closer to a couple dozen, but that would make Nate stay instead of leave.
Nate glanced back at Jared one more time.
Jared came closer and put his arm around Cassie’s waist.
“She will be safe with me,” he promised Nate.
Nate nodded to him and stepped past the boundary. It was as if there was smoke beyond, and he disappeared right into it, vanishing into the night.
“The borders have magic around them,” Jared explained. “It helps keep visitors out.”
Cassie nodded, staring where Nate had been. She had to hope he stayed safe. They had a plan. She had her part to play, and now she just wanted to go back to Jared’s room where she felt safe. Cassie walked holding Jared’s hand, and the wendigo, while hidden throughout the woods, walked with them, keeping a silent watch over the two of them.
‘They are here to protect us,’ Jared explained. ‘My father has been bugging me for years to join him as a full wendigo; I have a feeling he’s afraid something will happen now that I have you.’
‘It does that seem to work way, doesn’t it?’ Cassie replied, still uneasy with the monsters around her.
Smiling, Jared shook his head. ‘I know why you think we are monsters, but more than half the men here aren’t here by their choice. There are a lot of people that get kicked out of the skinwalker clan. They had no place to go and chose to join us.’
‘But I sense so much evil around here,’ Cassie commented. Evil seeped from the ground they were walking on.