Page 30 of Shifter's Homecoming

Reed reached Graeme first. Kendra was awake, lounging in her father’s protective arms. She blinked at Reed, her face more serious than a baby’s should be.

“Trent’s in trouble,” Reed said to Graeme.

The men arrived and the six of them thronged just outside the first cabin. Dawn was on its way, but had not quite arrived. Reed could see all the men well, and they all were worried.

Graeme nodded to her. “I ken. I had the dream also.”

Troy faced him sharply. “What dream, my dream?”

“Aye. It’s time to find Trent and bring him home.”

Troy nodded slowly, affirmatively.

Reed and Trevor exchanged a look. They hadn’t had any dreams.

Trevor spoke to her. “Wade is on his way in, he says the team is rousted and heading out here, and you need to have a briefing before you go. We’ll do it right here, right now. I’ll fill the others in later.” He gave her an appraising look. “What exactly do you know?”

“What I… know?”

Trevor gestured all around them. “About us, about all of this. Tell us everything you know and we will fill in what you are missing.”

“Ok, ok. Right.” Reed thought about it for a moment. “Well, I know there’s a demon named Khain. I know there’s a goddess named Rhen. I know they are fighting but Rhen created shifters, um,shiften, to fight for her and that’s … that’s you guys. And I know that Khain…” Her voice got soft. “Khain killed all of theshiftenfemales and then an angel um …. Well he came down from heaven, I mean the meadow—”

Troy interrupted her. “Psh. The meadow isn’t heaven. Well, dirty heaven maybe.”

“Yeah, that brings me to the next part,” Reed said. To her, it all seemed like a mythical soap opera. “Yeah um, the angel, there’s an angel, and he-he had sex with my mom and other women and they all had babies, and now… here I am, talking to the local plant life.”

Troy kissed her on the forehead. “Like a boss,” he said.

Reed laughed. He had way too much confidence in her. “Plus I know there’s prophecy. You all have prophecy.” She pointed around at them.

“No, not me,” Troy said. “Not Graeme either.” His voice turned proud. “Trevor does, though. Two prophecies.”

Trevor shook his head. “Those have to be about Track or Treena.”

Troy kissed Treena on her little forehead, and he spoke with even more pride. “Could be. Treena is a born demon-killer if I ever saw one.”

Reed grinned at her man. She couldn’t help it. He was a sweet guy. “I know Khain wants to kill Rhen,” she said. “Even though I don’t think he knows how to do that?”

Trevor’s tone turned sober as he explained. “She has a body, it’s in a locked room under the police station in the tunnels, but it’s guarded. Jaggar thinks that he’s trying to trigger all of the 777 signs—which are more prophecy, but prophecy that didn’t come from our side—if he triggers all of them, he’ll be guaranteed a way past the tunnel guards and into the inner room where he can get to her. If he kills her body, he thinks that will untether her spirit from all of us, and then we’ll…”

Troy finished for him. “We don’t really know if we’ll pass out, drop dead or blow up or something.”

Trevor shrugged, like he didn’t want to admit it, but that was what he’d been thinking, too “You’ve got it. That’s the important stuff.” He turned to Graeme. “Wade says you’re to tell us everything, even about the reservoir if you think it’s important.” Trevor’s face clearly said he wanted to hear about the reservoir.

Graeme raised an eyebrow. “He told you that?”

“Yes.”

“He thinks the reservoir is related to Trent?”

Trevor cocked his head like he was doing that telepathy thing. “He says yes.”

“Tell you everything,” Graeme mused quietly. He nodded and said “Ok, here we go, hold onto yer pants.” He cocked an amused eyebrow at their boxer-shorts outfits. “Too late.”

Trevor nodded dryly. Reed held in a laugh—the moment seemed too serious—and Graeme was already talking anyway.

“Trent is a traveler,” he said to all of them. To Reed, he said, “A traveler is someone who lives a consistent and remembered second life in their dreams. Eight to ten percent of the population travels, and that includes humans.”

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