“So how do you know Dellan is my mate?” Rael’s chest tightened, and that fluttering sensation in his stomach was back.
“Because you heard him in your head.”
“And how do you know that makes him my mate, if they’re so rare?” Rael’s head was reeling.
“I listened, that’s all. Every chance I got to be around shifters, I listened. I guess you pick up stuff. Well, I picked up enough to know that between mates, there’s supposed to be some kind of telepathic communication. A psychic link. Maybe that’s how he got to be in your dream. I’m just guessing, of course.” He caught the expelled breath. “You need to talk to someone who knows about these things. All I could tell you was you were a shifter, and as far as humans are concerned, shifters are a myth. They think if we ever did exist, we’ve all died out. So we let them think that. And as for mates… no one I listened to had ever met anyone who’d found their mate.”
From puberty, his mom had instilled in him the rule of law for all shifters: in a shifted state, he was not to approach humans or attack them. His prey was to be animals. Then his parents advised him to find a space where he felt safe and to shift there once a month. The Salmon-Challis National Forest was perfect, big enough that he could get about unseen by human eyes.
Then he realized what really bothered him about this whole new state of things.
“Wait a minute. Don’t I get a say in this? I mean, is that it? He’s my mate, so I just deal with it?”
There was silence. When she finally spoke, her voice was low but firm. “I don’t know how these things work, but I don’t think for a moment some… higher power is sitting somewhere, giggling to themselves because they’ve put two assholes together. I’d like to think they’ve put you two together because you complement each other. Because you’d be good for each other. And if I’d just found out I had a mate, the last thing I’d be doing was complaining.”
“What?” He’d never heard her so riled.
“Are you for real?” Her voice grew louder. “I’ve just finished telling you that what you’ve experienced is so rare virtually every shifter you’ve ever met would tell you it’s not possible, that they’ve never heard of such a thing, and you want to complain?”
“Yes, but—”
“But nothing. Think about your dream for a second. Didn’t you feel good when you held him? When you kissed? That’s your own body telling you who he is. But put that aside for a minute. You know what I’d be thinking if I were in your shoes? I’d be planning how I’m going to get my mate out of there, because this stinks. This feels really… wrong.”
“You’re forgetting something.” Rael swallowed. “I’m not saying you’re wrong about him being my mate, but we’re kind of overlooking one important question. Why is he in there? What if he’s attacked and killed a human? Maybe that’s why they’re keeping him caged.”
There was a pause. “This is your mate. What does your heart tell you?”
Rael stilled. Everything in him was telling him Dellan was a good guy. Scared, maybe. Desperate even. But Rael didn’t sense any badness in him at all.
“What you need are answers, and the only way I can see for you to get them is to free him. So what are you going to do about it?”
Her words finally sank in. “Wait—what?”
“Well, you can’t leave him there. Maybe he is dangerous, but then again, you’re a lion, so you are too. What if they’re keeping him against his will?”
“If that was the case, surely he’d just shift and escape.” That was what Rael couldn’t get his head around.
“So he chooses to be in his tiger form and live in a cage? Is that what you believe?”
When she put it like that…? Then common sense took over. “Mom, he’s in a cage on the top floor of a skyscraper. How do you propose I get him out of there?” Even as he said the words, he knew how they sounded.
Like he was making excuses. Avoiding the question. Avoiding the solution.
“Hell, you got into that warlord’s enclave last year. If you can do that, you can do anything.”
“But that was different. Someone else got me in there.” Another excuse. What’s wrong with me?
“Then someone else can get you into that skyscraper. Don’t you know people?” Then she drew in a long breath. “I’m sorry. I got carried away. It’s just that… oh my God, Rael, you have a mate. And he needs you. He keeps asking you to help him.”
And there it was, the one argument he couldn’t ignore. Because… that voice.
He could still hear that voice.
“What about you?” he asked. “Don’t you have any contacts, someone who might be able to help?”
“As soon as I finish talking to you, I’m going to wake up your father, and we’ll put our heads together.” She chuckled. “He won’t thank me in the morning when he’s grumpy and he has to go to work, but it’ll be worth it if we come up with something. You’re going back there tomorrow?”
“Yes. Though I’m not sure how much of this I can bring up in the interview. What if Anson is the one who’s imprisoned him?” Rael still couldn’t get over Dellan not being able to shift. It didn’t make sense.
“Sounds to me like someone has gone to a lot of trouble to keep Dellan’s disappearance out of the news. The last thing you should do is draw attention to yourself by mentioning what you know. Especially if you’re going in there at some point to rescue him.”
“Let’s leave the escape plans until after the interview, okay?” He wanted to see how things felt in the morning. More importantly, he wanted to get an idea of the kind of man Anson Prescott was.
“You’re not running away from this for some reason, are you?”
Rael had to be honest. Yes, he’d shied away from the idea initially, but she’d gotten through to him. Worn me down is nearer the truth. “No, I’m not,” he said sincerely. “But let’s see how tomorrow goes, all right?”
“Do you know what time it is?” Rael’s dad sounded pissed off and groggy in the background. “I can hear you yelling from the bedroom. For God’s sake, tell Rael to go to sleep, then come to bed.”
“Not until you and I have talked,” Mom said firmly. “Put the coffee on. You’re going to need it.”
Rael smiled as he caught his dad’s mutterings, something about it being a good thing he loved her. “I’ll leave you to it. Give Dad my love—and my apologies.”
“Sure thing, sweetheart. Get some sleep. Love you.”
“Love you too.” He disconnected. The thought occurred to him that he hadn’t eaten since his late-morning sub, but he was too wound up to think about calling down for food. He got off the bed, rummaged through his bag, and discovered a couple of protein bars. He ate each one in three bites, then headed for the swanky bathroom to brush his teeth.
The alarm set on his phone, Rael climbed into bed and prayed for a dreamless sleep.
VERONICA SMILED as she opened the panel for him. “Hello again. Mr. Prescott is waiting for you. I trust you spent a comfortable night?”