rogue shifter 05 - caught between (2 page)

"Eleanor's ghost is not one of the ones I dread seeing."
I'd known for a long time that Garrett blamed himself for his family's deaths, even though there was absolutely nothing he could have done to save them.

If onlys
can tear you up inside, and no matter how soundly your logical mind broadcasts that you were without blame, your heart won't let you off so easily. Garrett had carried this guilt around for over a century. Long enough.

"This is our villa now, and if your family shows up, it'll only be to celebrate the upcoming  birth of their grandson and nephew. And maybe to get a good look at me."
I turned around, my rounded belly much more obvious than it was only a few days ago. Fae children gestated for only two and half months, and I was stretching at an alarming rate.
"What do you think they'll say?"

"That I'm behaving like a coward and that I don't deserve you."

"Huh. Well, they don't know me yet. I'll make sure to tell them we're naming him after your dad. That'll earn me some points."
His full-out laugh made me giggle with relief. However his sudden kiss pressed against my mouth made other parts of me happy. I swore to myself that this week I was going to make it my mission to help Garrett replace most of his bad  memories here with good ones. He smiled warmly at me as he took my hand, gestured to Liam and Kellaine and then led us up the wide stone steps to the front door of the villa.

CHAPTER TWO

A tall vampire was already waiting for us on the steps, the doors open behind him. He was Garrett's height, 6', with dark red hair, dark blue eyes and a warm smile. "Monsieur Cuvier, it's a pleasure to see you again." He looked at me, smiling. "I'm Jon, Madame, and I will be here for your entire visit." He turned back to Garrett. "All the renovations are finished and everything is ready for you and your guests. Sandra and Claude will see to your guests' needs while you are resting. If you like, I'll have Dean park your car in the garage."

"Thank you, Jon. This is my mate, Jacqueline, and my friends, Liam and Kellaine." He took his car key out of his pocket and handed it to Jon. "Jon, Dean, Claude and Sondra have acted as caretakers for the property since Eleanor's death." He'd interviewed and hired them in Crescent City, not wanting to come anywhere near the villa at the time.

"You won't recognize it. The crew has done an incredible job."

"I sincerely hope that's true." We walked into the large circular foyer with several arched windows and a thirty foot high ceiling decorated with a colorful mural of angelic figures in shining armor standing off against grotesque demonic foes. The beautiful warriors, male and female High Seelie Fae, were surrounded by mystical creatures, such as unicorns, dragons and griffins, who fought beside them against the darker forces across the central abyss that separated them. Behind them bloomed life in all its natural beauty just as it does in Faerie: shimmering waterfalls, lush forests, crystalline skies and even a rainbow.

On the opposite side, fire engulfed the Unseelie Fae and their demonic cohorts, but strangely, the flames didn't appear to be harming them. Instead the scene was clearly meant to portray their native environment which included stark mountain ranges spotted with sinister caves and shadowed crevices. The Unseelie Fae were just as grotesque as the demon warriors, looking nothing like their shining brothers and sisters. The actual battle had yet to begin and there was no sign at all of vampires, werewolves or shifters in the colorful mural.

"Eleanor never liked this depiction. That's why I decided to keep it. She said it made it seem as if fae and demons were the only powerful supernaturals."

Liam smiled. "Well..."

"Quite dramatic." Kellaine interrupted him with an arched eyebrow.

Liam laughed, giving her hand a yank and pulling her closer. "I was going to say that it's just some artist's interpretation of a past altercation that didn't involve the other races. Was the artist fae?"

Garrett shrugged. "No idea."

"I doubt that the artist had any real sense of what the demon realm is like. No one in our Sidhe has traveled there, except for Kennet of course."

The three of them looked at me, since I'd actually visited with my grandmother in the Demon Realm for a short time a few weeks ago. She's an archdemon, making my son's blood mix unique and possibly even dangerous. It was a concern for all of us.

"I was in a room without windows that was decorated with murals like this one. I got the impression that she'd never been in that room before, so I assumed it was something constructed just so that I'd feel more comfortable. I have no clue what the realm really looks like.

As I spoke, I hadn't taken my eyes off of one of the fae warriors, who looked a little too familiar for my liking, with long platinum blond hair and sharp features. "Sometimes our enemies can look more like the shining figures." Garrett took my hand again and Kellaine gave my shoulder a squeeze, all of them understanding that I was referring to Lord Kennet. I'd spent several horrific days in his hands, locked away underground and tortured. The child I carried was conceived when he raped me.

"Evil lives in the heart. Some in the Seelie Queen's Court are a perfect example. Eleanor as well." Eleanor had been stunningly beautiful, although it wasn't easy to forget the animal she'd become when she'd dueled against Garrett. Kellaine returned her gaze upward. "War is never as simplified as it is depicted here. Still I like it. It reminds me of epic battles fought alongside handsome, valiant heroes." She winked at Liam who grinned back and looped an arm over her shoulder.

Jon smiled and asked, "May I show you to your rooms?"

Garrett nodded and we followed Jon up a wide curving staircase. Our room was in the front of the house on the second floor. Liam and Kellaine were in a room farther down the hall. Both rooms had windows facing the ocean and good sized balconies.

I smiled when I noticed that our luggage was already there. Vamp-speedy butlers came in handy. I looked around at the lavish furnishings, all of the pieces seemed to be antique. "Was this your room when you lived here?"

"No. It was Yvette's. She liked the sea air and the sound of the waves and the seagulls. She'd grown up near the ocean in France. My room was in the back of the house next to Eleanor's. Not by choice." He went to the window and pointed to the metal shade that was fitted inside the top frame. "The windows and doors in the bedrooms lock down at dawn, just like my room at home. No light will get in. There's a kill switch for each room in case the occupant isn't a vampire."

There was a quiet knock on the door and Garrett answered it. Another vampire, probably Dean, announced that a light meal had been laid out in the dining room if I'd like to eat. My stomach growled loudly at the mention of food and Garrett tried not to laugh.

"It's not me. Charlie must be hungry again."

"At this rate he'll be born fully grown."

"Very funny. Just keep him off Sasha's soccer team until he's at least five." Garrett's nest and our team of shifters had already challenged each other to a soccer tournament, a plausible idea since we'd put a field in the backyard of the new house. Charlie put in his two cents with a few kicks, making my stomach growl louder than ever and both of his parents break out in laughter.

Garrett took my hand and raised it to his mouth, giving it a gentle kiss, then led me down a different staircase and toward the dining room. Smiling wickedly, I mused over the wonderful decadence of having servants to tend to my needs—the main one these days being food. Garrett's laughter had lightened my earlier guilt, so I walked with a renewed optimism, feeling certain that this trip would be a relaxing escape for both of us.

CHAPTER THREE

The light meal turned out to be a huge spread of delicious hot appetizers, cheeses, freshly baked breads and an assortment of fruits, way more than Liam, Kellaine and I could finish. Garrett sipped his wine and listened to our chatter about the house and what we wanted to do during the day while he rested.

Liam and Kellaine were interested in going to the local stable and riding through the nearby hills and along the coastline. I couldn't join them, but I encouraged them to go. Garrett had assured me that I'd be safe here with the servants, especially since he and Liam had also enlisted Farrell's help. He'd be joining us for breakfast each morning and then acting as an additional body guard until Liam and Kellaine returned from their explorations. I enjoyed Farrell's company, but the garden was lovely and I'd brought plenty to read, and I'd discovered that a nap in the afternoon before Garrett rose was always a good idea. Charlie seemed to like it too, settling down peacefully when I did.

After we'd talked for a while, I noticed that Garrett had finished his wine and was staring at the fireplace with a very serious expression.

Liam must have noticed too. "Do you have a pool table? I'll challenge you to a match if you're game. Or perhaps we could all take a walk? The moon is bright tonight."

Garrett turned his head toward Dean, who was clearing the table. "In the great room, sir."

Garrett stood without enthusiasm, and led the way. When we entered the room, he looked startled, then smiled broadly as he inspected the recently renovated space. It was decorated in warm colors with several large plants and bouquets, pictures of redwood forests, similar to where we hunted together as cheetahs, and seascapes like the one outside the window. The room glowed with life and I felt a shift in the energy from the more somber dining room.

"Do you like it?" Kellaine asked.

Garrett nodded."It's perfect. I'll have to contact the decorators to thank them."

"You're welcome." She laughed.

"You did this?"

"It's a present from Liam and me. I'll be happy to take care of the dining room for you. It's still very formal."

"Yes, it's too much like it was. I found myself brooding. I'd be grateful, Kellaine, if you could make it more like this charming room."

"Of course. "

I couldn't play pool because my belly got in the way. Well, actually, I couldn't really play even if it was a normal size. I just wasn't good at it and honestly, I didn't have the patience to learn. Hitting little balls into holes with sticks held no appeal for me. Clobbering bad guys with staffs was definitely more fun.

The boys played, Liam sipping honey wine and Garrett his usual red, while Kellaine sat down at the baby grand piano in the corner and played a lovely song that brought back memories of Garrett playing the violin for me at our binding party. Singing in the Fae language, her voice rang through the large room like a sweet cool breeze on a hot day, refreshing us all.  Liam beamed at her, his eyes full of love, and she smiled back in a similar fashion.

She finished her song and then poured us a glass of honey wine and sat beside me in front of the fireplace. Apparently honey wine was healthy for unborn fae babies, as long as I didn't over do it. Gotta love those pixies and their bee hives.

She smiled warmly at me, putting me more at ease. I'd never actually spent any one-on-one time with Kellaine, and although she seemed nice enough, she was a six hundred year old fae, perfectly capable of thinking me into oblivion. I would tread carefully at first.

"You've had a strange journey, Jacqueline. Growing up assuming you were human, turning cheetah, healer, becoming the lifemate of a vampire. And now you'll be the mother of a fae prince.

"I'm a little confused. Why are Liam and his brother Aedus called princes? Lord Caelen isn't a fae king, is he? And Kennet surely wasn't, so my Charlie won't be a prince either."

"The four Cascade Elders are siblings of the current Queen: Kennet and his sister also. They all share the blood of the same father, Finvarra. Caelen and the Queen are actually twins, true siblings. Their mother is Aine, the former Queen. The rest have different mothers."

"But the current Queen inherited the throne, not Lord Caelen?" This was getting complicated.

"He held the throne for a time, then deferred to his sister. The throne often goes to the female in the hopes that she will bear an heir, although no one would have defied Caelen if he had kept the crown. Aedus and Liam were born while he ruled. His mother, Queen Aine was barren for hundreds of years before she took Finvarra as her lover and made him her king. He would not agree to becoming only her consort, and because he was known for his charm, she agreed to his demands. They had their twins, Caelen and his sister, and then Finvarra began to take other lovers to bring new life to Faerie. The monarchs were both well-loved and the court mourned them when they journeyed to the nether regions of Faerie."

"Hmm. I think I see some of that male charm in Liam and his brother."

She laughed. "I most certainly agree. The queen has a daughter and she is now the heir."

"What's her name?"

"I apologize, but I will not say the name of the queen or her daughter, because they may turn their attention west, and that would be a very bad thing for us all."

I felt a sudden chill and shivered, pulling my sweater more closely around me. "Why did the Elders leave the court? It must have been beautiful."

Her eyes took on a dreamy glaze as she stared into the hearth fire. "The Faerie Court is more beautiful than all other places—," she met my eyes with a more serious look, "—but it is also a dark place. The queen is not tolerant. Please forgive me if I do not speak of it further."

"I'm sorry if I'm being nosy."

"Nosy?"

"Too curious."

She smiled. "You may ask whatever you wish, and I will do the same. How else can we learn?"

I heard Garrett laugh from the other end of the large room, having gotten in a good shot.

I thought of something surprising but held my tongue, afraid of her reaction. She smiled, having seen my expression. "Ask."

"Aedus and Philladre are cousins?"

"Yes, we mate with our cousins. I understand it is forbidden in your world, but neither is it necessary. There are so many mates for you to choose from, and most are fertile. Traditionally the fae have striven to keep our bloodlines pure, so choosing cousins as mates makes sense in this regard. In the last thousand years or so, we have grown more inventive, choosing to have children with humans and raising them in Faerie." She smiled in Liam's direction.