Shifting Magic (Shifted) (9 page)

“As
I said, it’s not a plan. It’s just a thought. You were able to best a Shifter before you turned. I assume your magic hasn’t been lost in the change?” Hank inquired.

“No
it hasn’t.” Nina grinned seeing the point he was getting at.

“
You need no training beyond what the force I assume required. Your strength is two-fold and Howland has no knowledge you’re wolf or a Cheveyo mate.”

“The
perfect decoy.” Nina mumbled.

“Makes
sense,” Knight interjected. This was all news to him. He hadn’t even been aware his nephew had mated until that morning.

Ranger growled in a low register
while flashing a warning at his uncle, who just grinned at the newly mated Were. “I don’t like it.”

“
Didn’t think you would, but your wife is the perfect bait for him to come out of hiding. He’ll never suspect she’s as strong as she is. So far, he seems to always be one step ahead of us. We have a leak. Other than those present in this room, no one knows Ranger has mated the Mage’s daughter.”

“
They saw her at the clinic.” Willow pointed out.

“
They saw her, but had Ranger claimed her?” Gage asked.

“
Yes, but I don’t think any of the staff was in the room. Faith might have noticed.”

“Faith
noticed you made a move on her, but I don’t think any one of the staff realized you were claiming she was your mate. There was too much going on at the time.” Xavier stepped in to add.

“
So we assume that, at best, the Were’s think I’m Ranger’s new girl. We can put off the formal claiming and hand fasting. It’s just a formality anyway.”

“At risk of having my head taken off
,” Sam started. “I would go one step further just in case the leak is at the clinic.”

“ Meaning
?” Ranger growled.

“
Maverick, who is your most trusted employee?”

“Faith,”
Rory answered for him.

“I
would have to agree. Get to the point Sam.”

“On
the off chance one of the staff did overhear Ranger’s announcement that Nina was his mate, which by the way was spectacular, I was thinking to dispel that rumor we might have to do some damage control.”

“Keep talking Sam
before I seriously entertain the ripping your head off option.”

Ranger was joking but Hank growled at him regardless.
“Calm down Hank. I won’t touch him.”

“
Cut it out you two. I was saying that it would be best if Nina appeared to be close to the family, yet not mated. Faith could be used to spread that rumor, talking up Nina’s connection to the family while leaving out the fact that she is family. Howland would see that as an easy target and take advantage. Nina, I have to assume you masked your true nature before since I’ve known you for years and had no idea you were a witch, much less the Mage’s daughter.”

“I
did, yes.”

“
Can you do the same for your new Shifter essence?”

“
Probably, why?”

“Howland
detests humans. The only thing he hates worse than humans is a human living and knowing about Shifters.”

“
You want to piss him off?’ Nina started to see where Sam’s thoughts were going. “I think I get it. So far he has been careful.”

“
Since Emory was taken, he has kept his distance. A few dead female Shifters and idle threats have indicated that he has once again amassed a pack of rogues to do his dirty work.”

“If
I’m a human, close to the Alpha family, then I’m the perfect target. Smart Sam.”

“No Sam!
” Ranger was practically vibrating.

“Hold
on, Ranger. That’s not your call. It’s mine,” Nina snapped.

Malcolm Black
well had been following the conversation. He wasn’t any happier with his daughter being used as a pawn than her husband was. Ranger was objecting enough for both of them. It was a good match indeed.

11

“Come on. Is that all you got?” Nina taunted. “I thought you were trying to prove a point?” She smiled and watched her mate circle her as they stood on the training field. They had taken the conversation outside. If Ranger was going to go all ‘Alpha Wolf’ on her for agreeing to help with the Howland situation, it was important that he knew the extent of her ability to defend herself. She hadn’t expected the combined strength of her two natures to allow her to beat him, just prove she could hold her own. She was as surprised as he was at the fact that she seemed to have the upper hand.

“I
am proving a point.” The words were stressed as the three hundred pound angry were descended upon her with unearthly speed.

Using both her new werewolf strength and her inborn power, Nina ducked slightly bracing both hands in front of her she pushed her aura outward and let his momentum help to toss him over her head and behind her. Her new found werewolf speed allowed her to turn around before he even impacted the ground with a thud.

Xavier snickered on the side lines as did Emory and the two sisters.
“You think this is funny? Then you try,” Ranger groaned flashing a menacing glare at his brother.

“No
thank you. I’m familiar with what she’s capable of and that was before you turned her.”

“Chicken
.”

“Damn
right,” Xavier laughed extending a hand to Ranger.

“Nina
, you proved your point. You can definitely take care of yourself.” Ranger knew that continuing the sparring session would only further solidify Nina’s argument. She was a formidable opponent handling a full grown Were with ease. He had initially gone easy on her but found he needed all his abilities to keep up with his new mate. Her strength had been unexpected.

“Ranger
, I understand why you’re hesitant to let me do this. If anything happened to you, I would truly die.” Nina approached her mate. She needed to be near this man who had burrowed straight into her soul. “This isn’t about us. Women are dying. Howland isn’t going to stop, it would seem. We can do something about that. I’m good at what I do. You have to trust me.”

“
It isn’t a matter of trust, Nina. It’s a matter of instinct. Every part of me wants to protect you,” He growled stalking forward. Nina backed up slightly while enjoying the fire in her mate’s eyes. “I know. I know before you say it. You don’t need protecting I get it, I do. I still want to keep you safe. Confronting Howland is just about as far from safe as you can get.”

“
It’s what I do. Cops take risks,” she reminded him.

“Enforcers do to
o,” Sam added. He hoped she would reconsider her human job and opt for the pack’s guards. After that display he wanted her even more.

“I will
consider it, Sam. so back to the plan. I was thinking on the off chance you and I were noticed at the clinic, we need to do some damage control.”

“ Damage?” Ranger snarled.

“It was an expression. Guys, how well do you trust this Faith? If someone is following my father from a meeting that was only arranged hours before, we have to assume someone at the clinic tipped them off.” Rory raised an eyebrow, holding back a snicker. She saw where this was going, but the men were not going to like it.

“
If the leak is at the clinic. It wasn’t Faith,” Willow answered.

“
You sure babe?”

“
Yes,” Willow assured the group.

Ranger still
wasn’t following. “Nina, what does Faith have to do with this?”

“W
ell, if we are going to try and convince whoever is watching that I’m just some human that has been befriended by the pack, we have to assure they don’t think you and I are mated.”

“Nina
dear,” Malcolm questioned.” How do you propose to do that?”

“
By assuring that whoever is watching sees Ranger with his new girlfriend, Faith.”

“ Faith?” Ranger exclaimed.

“I saw the way she looked at you. I don’t think she’d mind.”

“
You want me to go out with Faith?”

“
No, but it would dispel any rumors. Mated weres don’t date … right?”

“Mated w
eres have no desire to date.”

“That is my point Ranger. There is no way they would think we were anything but friends if you are seen with another woman.”

“She’s right Ranger,” Willow lay a hand on her best friend’s shoulder. The man was practically vibrating.

“You
are
my mate Nina. I don’t like this. I will not have you living somewhere else unprotected.”

“
As we have just proven, I am far from unprotected. I don’t want to live apart but...”

“I
don’t think that’s necessary. She could still move in with us. We could make it look like she’s just moving in with me. If you’re not there hovering like a mate Ranger, then it would just look like she is moving in with a girlfriend.

“That could work,” Nina looked at Ranger. The thought of sleeping anywhere but where she was
for the past two days was uncomfortable. Who knew that a man she had met just days ago could mean everything to her in only moments after the time they met?

“Willow!”
Ranger groaned. He looked at his best friend trying to ascertain if there was more to this than she was letting on. He had lived with her long enough to know the signs, and he could practically see the thoughts churning in the girl’s head.

“Ranger
, do you trust me?”

“
You know I do Willow, but you’re asking a lot here.”

Emory stepped forward addressing the group
“Has anyone thought of Faith in this little plan. It’s no secret that she has been interested in Ranger for years. Now we are asking her to pretend the mated wolf she has been interested in is her boyfriend?”

“I
can’t say that I’m clear on why, but I am sure Faith is supposed to be a part of this.” Willow assured the group.

“
You saw something babe?” Ryder asked sliding in beside his mate.

“Faith is con
nected to the family,” was all Willow could say.”

“Xavier
?” Ranger assumed perhaps that she was meant for his bother the way Willow was talking.

“
Hell no. Don’t get me wrong, the girl is beautiful and smart, but I’m pretty sure she’s not my mate.”

“What then?” Ranger asked Willow
.

“Not sure,
” Willow shrugged.

“
If Willow sees her as part of this, I say we speak to her. The worse she could say is no. I don’t love the idea of Ranger and another woman, but if we are going to determine who tipped Howland off, we need someone the family trusts from the outside to do it. If someone at the clinic told Howland we were meeting, then the sooner we find out who that was the better.”

“I agree,” Royal
’s decree sounded more like an order than an opinion. “Malcolm?”

“It
would seem the logical step. Nina, I have every confidence in you. It is clear that the weres that followed us were told of our meeting. If they were able to relay that information so quickly, that would mean your assumption that someone at the clinic relayed the information is

more than likely correct. The
Coven’s resources are at your disposal as always.”

“Dad,
the Coven, have they been told about Ranger?”

“No
. I thought it better that you address them personally.”

“Good
. So other than those present, no one is sure that Ranger and I are mates.”

Maverick
nodded in agreement. “If anyone at the clinic noticed, I have heard no mention of it in the last two days.”

“Okay
, then let’s call Faith,” Nina smiled.

“I
can’t believe my mate is setting me up on a date,” Ranger grabbed Nina possessively as he pulled her back against him with little or no protest from her.

“
There will be rules darling,” she purred.

“No
rules necessary Nina. I want no one but you forever.”

“Right
back at you big guy. So let’s get my husband a girlfriend. The sooner we find the leak, the sooner I get my happily ever after.”

12

“Yes sir
, right away sir,” Faith nodded, even though Royal Cheveyo, her pack’s leader, was on the phone and couldn’t see her.

He had called the clinic
, which was not unusual. Maverick, his heir apparent, was the doctor that ran the clinic. What was out of the ordinary was that he had asked for Faith specifically.

“Well?” June
, one of the nurses that worked with Faith, asked as Tam, Brin, and Michelle the other staff on that day, huddled around her.

“I’ve been asked to drive out to the Alpha compound.” Faith seemed stunned. She had worked with Maverick for almost ten years at the c
linic. She had seen all of the Alpha family at one time or another. She even had a sort of friendship going with Rory Cheveyo, Maverick’s mate, who was revered as the chosen due to her white coat. In all that time, with all that contact, she had never once been asked to the inner sanctum of the Alpha compound.

“
Is it the chosen?” Tam whispered.

“No
, I don’t think so. Alpha just said I should come at once.”

“
Is it the child? They took him out of here only hours after birth,” Michelle speculated.

“
Look, I really don’t know why he asked me to come, but he seemed calm enough. I don’t think it’s an emergency, besides it’s Sunday. Rory mentioned once that Maverick and the others always have dinner at the compound on Sunday as a family. Maverick is more than capable to handle an emergency. I don’t see why they would need me. I’m not a doctor.”

“
Maybe you’re in trouble for allowing that female police officer into the clinic.”

“She came in with Xavier
. I really had no say in the matter,” Faith said remembering how Ranger had protected her as well. It had been clear he was interested in the human. Perhaps if she had been human, Ranger might have noticed her. The Alpha family did seem to have a fixation on the weaker species. Faith was not prejudice the way some weres were, but Ranger’s interest in the police officer had stung a bit. The crush she had had on the man for years was just that, a crush, but one couldn’t turn off their emotions.

“That’s
right. She did come in with him. Do you think…” June started but Faith cut her off.

“I
think I should get going before I do get in more trouble. If the Alpha does blame me for the human being present, I suppose there isn’t much I can do about it.”

“Wouldn’t
he just come here to reprimand you?” Brin asked. Faith hoped she was right. Why the Alpha compound?

“
Well, if you never see me again you’ll know why.” Faith was joking, but Brin looked disturbed by the comment.

“
Oh relax. I’m sure it’s nothing,” Faith said aloud while her subconscious screamed, ‘Liar’.