Page 4 of A Bloodline Redeemed

I opened my eyes and looked up to find her kneeling beside me, tentatively stroking my head.“I’m sorry,” she said simply.“I’m hurting, and it apparently turns me into a cruel bitch.I don’t know you well, but I’d like to think I’ve gotten to know you well enough these past few weeks to know that you wouldn’t let Hasumi… die… without a reason.”Her voice cracked and she choked up over the last few words, her pain still raw and all-consuming.

Pain I had contributed to, even if it wasn’t by choice.

But she didn’t tell me to leave again.Her gaze didn’t hold blame, or disappointment, or judgement, and I felt something change inside me.Safety.I glanced at the other two men in the room, then back at the witch.I was safe here.I didn’t have to hide in my cat form.But I did need to explain.To own my decisions, horrible as they were.

Taking a deep breath, I tried to shift back to human.And this time, it worked.

Andy’s hand slid off my head and onto my shoulder as I changed shape.She blinked at me, as if surprised.“That will never not be cool,” she muttered.Then she seemed to realize that her hand had fallen lower, to rest on my bare chest.She turned bright red and yanked her hand away, clearing her throat.

“Right,” she said with a little nod, as if she was re-centering herself.

In any other circumstance, I’d find it cute.It was endearing how non-shifters always reacted so strongly to the shift.And to nudity.A small pillow smacked me in the face, and I tore my eyes away from the witch to find the little jinn glaring at me.“No one wants to stare at your limp dick,” he snapped, nodding toward the pillow he had just hurled at me.

I snorted and plopped the pillow over my lap.I quite thoughtseveralof the people in this mansion would enjoy staring at my anatomy, if we were being honest.And the feeling was mutual.But I let it go.I still wasn’t sure I would be allowed to stay after I explained myself.Pointing out that I’d be open to sampling their lovely harem would hardly help my case.

And I was just distracting myself again.Avoiding the discomfort that was to come.I could give a dissertation on the subject, thanks to my powers.And thanks to my interest in psychology journals and other publications.In fact, I had found a very unique book on the subject hidden in one of the dusty old Lovell libraries.It was written over a century ago, and archaic beliefs about how the mind and body worked were always so fascinating…

“River?”

I blinked, pulling myself back to the present moment to find Andy watching me with a weird expression that was halfway between frustration and amusement.It was an expression I was used to.Though, usually there was less amusement and more frustration.

“Sorry,” I rushed to reply.“I got lost in thought.”

She shook her head.“I’d ask what you were thinking, but I have a feeling we’d never get back around to the actual topic at hand.”

I gave her a sheepish look.“Which is…”

She rolled her eyes.“I asked you to explain what you did.During the fight.How did I end up halfway across the clearing, and what secret power have you apparently been hiding from us all this time.Andwhy do you think I should blame you for… everything?”

I took a deep breath and prepared for the unpleasant task of explaining the living hell that was time manipulation and luck magic.

Chapter 4

Elijah

Weallstoodinthe grand entry and watched in silence as Zhong headed up the stairs with Andy, Aahil, and River.

I wasn’t sure where to go or what to do.I felt… lost.I was certainly no stranger to death.But all that we had just witnessed, all we had justdonein the name of the rebel cause weighed heavily on me.And Hasumi… well, it had been a long time since I’d lost a family member.Especially one who was so dear to me and those around me.My heart ached at the loss.For Hasumi.And for everyone who was left behind to grieve.

“Well then,” Ambrose said, his deep voice laced with a jovial tone I was sure he didn’t feel.“Let’s all head to the private sitting room, shall we?I’ll make some tea.”I had overheard his hushed conversation with Zhong.The two of them had divided the rest of us up like a couple of parents deciding which of their children they’d be responsible for.

I wanted to be mad about that.But I just didn’t have it in me.This was why we all worked together as a family.And as something more.Everyone worked together to look out for everyone else.And some of us were better with certain situations than others.Zhong was a solid, comforting presence that I knew Andy and Aahil likely needed more than the rest of us right now, since they had been especially close to Hasumi.And while Ambrose didn’t have Hasumi’s talent for shifting and influencing emotions, hedidfeed on the unpleasant ones.He could draw off some of our pain and suffering.

Ambrose paused and gave us all a once over, his eerie eyes narrowed.“And don’t any of you think about sneaking off to sulk by yourself in a corner somewhere.I’ll only find you and drag you back here.”

After issuing that warning, the boogeyman disappeared in a swirl of inky shadows, off to make the tea.

I sighed and glanced at the others.Niamh had her arms crossed over her chest and a rebellious look on her pretty face.Dyre’s expression was completely neutral, not giving a single clue to his emotions.It was a skill I both admired and hated in the man.It made him impossible to read.But sometimes I wished I could be so stoic.

I rubbed the spot in the middle of my chest that continued to ache and clench.Then I turned and headed toward the room near the back of the house, which we had turned into a casual living room space during our time together.

“Come on,” I told my two surly companions.“Best to do as he says or we’ll end up having nightmares for a week.”Not that I thought I stood a chance of nightmare-free sleep anyway after today, but it was the only threat I had to get them moving.Ambrose was right to worry about them just going off to sulk alone.And I thought maybe we all needed to stick together right now.To weather this pain together.

I was surprised when both Dyre and Niamh followed me without argument.They didn’t even snark or jab at each other, the way they might have in the past.Maybe it was just the pain and shock of loss, but I thought it was something more… something had shifted between the two of them in some subtle way.

When we reached the living room, I flopped down onto the couch and dropped my head against the back to stare up at the intricate flourishes on the ceiling tiles.I rubbed my chest again, feeling like I couldn’t quite draw a full breath.

Niamh went to the minibar that lived under a bookshelf on the far wall, and the clink of glass told me she was in search of liquid pain killer.Dyre was still silent.I lifted my head to see that he was standing just inside the room, staring off into space as if lost in thought.

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