Page 3 of Shadowed Spirits

Luca putting on a shirt is a damn shame, but sacrifices have to be made for the greater good—or so I’m told.

“I’m going to go see if any of the undamaged ghosts know anything about what’s going on. Call me if you need me, kid.” Aggie waits until I give her a nod before fading away.

It only takes Luca a minute to get dressed. He then leads our not-so-merry procession through the winding maze they call a house until we reach the kitchen. When he pushes open the heavy navy door, I’m bombarded with a cacophony of sound. Pots clanging, knives chopping, meat sizzling, dough slamming on marble countertops, and some of the thirty people in the cavernous space yelling out instructions.

My gaze snags on the copper pots hanging haphazardly from the ceiling and the large brick fireplace before noticing Cain and Prue at the opposite end of the kitchen. They’re both cracking eggs into a mound of flour. Cain has to keep sweeping his black hair out of his startlingly green eyes. His thick, wavy hair has grown out since I met him, now approaching shoulder length.

As we walk closer, I can make out some of their conversation.

“Ya know, this would be easier if you cut your hair. You wouldn’t have to keep pushing it out of your face if you did.” Cain grunts at Prue but doesn’t say anything as he keeps mixing what looks like pasta dough. Prue sighs. “No one’s saying you have to get a buzz cut, but you don’t even like it being so long. Have you talked to your mate about everything with our egg donor? Maybe she’d be able to help.”

Cain clenches his jaw and uses his bare forearm to push his dark hair out of his face. “I’m fine and don’t need to talk to anyone about it. Stop meddling, Prudence.” I can’t help but admire his defined arms, showcased by the rolled-up sleeves of his black button-down.

Prue huffs and rolls her eyes before aggressively kneading the pasta dough, her frustration at her brother seeping into her movements. “Stop being such a numbskull, Silence. You’re not fine. If you won’t talk about it for your sake, do it for your mate.”

Cain opens his mouth to respond when his gaze clashes with mine. His eyes widen before he ducks his head in what looks like embarrassment, which makes me feel bad for eavesdropping. Our group comes to a stop in front of the metal table they’re working on, and Cain keeps his gaze trained on the balls of pasta dough in front of him.

Prue looks up at our approach, and her hazel eyes light up when she spots me. She rushes over in a whirl of auburn curls and wraps me in an enthusiastic hug. I freeze as she squeezes the life out of me.

Seemingly oblivious to my uncertainty, Prue pulls back to grin at me. “New sis! How are you? We so need to spend more time together. Oh my God, we could do a sleepover! Wouldn’t that be great?”

“Um,” I start, unsure of what to say to the exuberant woman in front of me.

“Prue, let her go.” I can hear the laughter in Cain’s voice at my predicament. I would glare at him for finding this funny, but I still feel bad about listening to his private conversation. Flashing him a small smile over Prue’s shoulder, I’m relieved when I get a grin back.

She pouts but lets me go before sticking her tongue out at her older brother. “You’re always such a party pooper.”

Cain huffs a laugh before wiping his doughy hands on a towel he had tucked into the waistband of his charcoal suit pants. “What are you guys doing here? I thought you were supposed to be at school, angel.”

Prue makes a swooning motion when Cain calls meangel, and I can’t help the small chuckle that slips out. At my laughter,Prue gives me a megawatt smile. I don’t want to find her funny, damn it, but I totally do.

Refocusing on Cain’s question, my mirth fades away. “I had a, uh, situation at school. We need to go get Bishop and then take care of it.”

His forehead scrunches in confusion, and he opens his mouth to ask questions I can’t answer in a crowded kitchen. I look around us pointedly, and his gaze lights with understanding. He gives me a sharp nod.

“Let’s head out.” Cain sets his dish towel on the metal table before pulling Prue into a quick hug. “Love you. Don’t cause pandemonium or burn down the kitchen while I’m gone. Please.”

She rolls her eyes at him. “That was one time, Silence. One. Time!” Prue gathers up the balls of dough before turning back to Cain. “Love you too, bro. Bye Luca, Archer, and random guy. See you soon, new sis!”

When Prue bounds off like a coked-up bouncy ball, we walk back through the kitchen. Now that I’m not so focused on Cain and Prue’s conversation, I notice all the people around us, who are definitely staring at us. Or, more specifically, me. I feel a blush creep up at being the center of attention. None of the wolves are staring at me hostilely, just with curiosity, but I still feel the weight of their judgment. I’m sure they wanted a nice, respectable she-wolf. Not a mage who unleashes chaos and trouble everywhere she goes.

Luca pushes open the navy door and almost runs into Bishop, who steps to the side to allow us to exit the bustling kitchen. His brown hair is mussed, like he’s been running his hands through it, and his baby blue eyes shine with worry.

As soon as the door swings closed behind Archer, Bishop grabs me by my waist and lifts me up. My legs automatically wrap around his waist, and I wind my arms around his neck. Hetunnels one hand into my hair and clutches me to him, like he’s concerned I’ll fade away if he doesn’t. I lay my head on his soft, navy band T-shirt while I soak up his comfort.

“I’m so fucking glad you’re okay, sweetheart.” Hearing the anxiety bleed into Bishop’s voice makes me feel awful and gives me warm fuzzies at the same time. While I hate when my family or mates worry about me, it does also warm my cold, dead little heart that they care about me. I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve so many people giving a shit about me, since I’m a prickly, self-destructive asshole most of the time.

“I’m sorry I worried you,” I whisper into his neck.

Bishop lets out a quiet chuckle. “You don’t have anything to apologize for.” Bishop holds me for a long moment more before placing a lingering kiss on top of my hair and letting me slide down his body. “So, what’s the plan? And how are we going to get the wolves past council security?”

With how much mages hate wolves, there’s no chance the guards would allow them to walk through the front door.

Levi shakes his head. “We won’t need to go through security. I can take us straight to Doyle’s office.”

My eyebrows raise in surprise. “How? Portals don’t work in the council building.” That would’ve made breaking in so much easier if we could’ve just portaled in. But, alas, the council members aren’t complete dumbasses about security. They have pretty beefy spells that prevent all portal travel in or out.

“I won’t be portaling us in. I’ll open a rift, which bypasses the protection spells.” Levi opens one of his freaky but cool portals, complete with bloodred flames and a yawning black abyss. I wish my portals were as badass as his.

---