Page 11 of Smoke and Mirrors
I swallowed and took a deep breath. “In most of my dreams, I feel like Iama shifter. I see through their eyes and experience what they’re doing in animal form. And they feel so vivid, not like dreams at all but memories.”
Hunter slid an arm around me but I couldn’t bring myself to meet his eyes. His lips pressed through my hair. At any point I would have been giddy but he still didn’t know. The worst was still to come.
“I think… I’m pretty sure,” I choked to get the words out, “I saw through the eyes of your mate before she was killed.”
In an instant, his body against me went from warm and comforting to stiff and cold. He pulled away to look at me with a harrowed expression.
“What makes you think that? How do you know it was her?”
“I was hunting with you,” I explained. “I was a black wolf, you were the white one. We were stalking an elk herd.”
His eyes doubled in size and the color drained from his face.
“You were the distraction, I went in for the kill. That was our strategy,” I went on. “And I… Fuck, Hunter, I’m so sorry.”
“You what?” Hunter demanded.
“I knew I was pregnant.”
6
HUNTER
She didn’t want to hurt me. The pained expression on her face told me that loud and clear, but it didn’t stop the years-old wounds from reopening.
I saw the life leaving Audra’s eyes just as clearly as I saw Mel in front of me. So much blood, and the final whispered plea she begged of me before I lost her.
“I’m so sorry, Hunter.” Mel reached for me hesitantly as if I would bite her. “I didn’t know how to stop it. I didn’t want to invade your privacy like that.”
“I know.” The words came out colder than intended and she flinched. “When did you dream this?”
“Um.” She composed herself to think. “Right before you talked to me and Connor that first time. So, almost two weeks ago?”
“How is that possible?” I directed the question at Thembi. “My mate died five years ago.”
“Ah, nothin’ ever truly dies, doggy boy,” she waved an index finger at me. “Ya mate was taken in an abrupt and violent way. Heryanna, her spirit is still earthbound. But ya cannot know or see that. Only a shaman can.”
“So what, she’s a ghost? And haunting Mel or is Mel haunting her? And why the hell haveInever heard of a shaman?”
The drudged-up memories and feelings I’d long since buried turned my mood sour and snappish. Mel and I had been having so much fun too. I’d been fantasizing about kissing her for days and it nearly happened. Now all I wanted to do was race through the woods on all fours. Alone.
“Down, boy.” This woman really seemed to get a kick out of treating me like a dog. “Nah, she’s no ghost. That term is too simple. And ya’ve never heard of a shaman because they’re rare. It’s a gift that is given, not inherited. Only another shaman can pass on the gift. Fewer and fewer have done so in recent years, so we are slowly dyin’ out.” She chuckled amusedly. “Like the dodo.”
“So someone gave me these abilities?” Mel asked. “How is it given exactly?”
“Depends on the giver. You can direct your powers into an object and give that to someone. My master just did this.” Thembi pressed her palm to her forehead. “Nothing happened, of course. I was a child and the gifts don’t become apparent until ya turn eighteen.”
“An object?” Mel suddenly slapped at her shorts and looked frantically through her pockets until she produced a coin that looked like a carnival token. “Like this?”
Thembi cackled delightedly as she slapped her knees. “It’s startin’ to make sense, ah, girl?”
“I still don’t understand,” Mel muttered. “Like, okay. Shamans have these powers and I’ve experienced these… visions. But what’s the point?Whyam I seeing these things?”
“A good question.” Thembi adjusted her seat. “The long-held belief is that shamans are the bridge between humans and shifters. They blend in with the humans but also protect shifters from inevitable conflict with humans. Centuries ago, shamans were far more numerous. Ya could find about ten shifters to one shaman. Shifters would flock toward shamans to be their human representative, more or less.” She cleared her throat and shot us a knowing grin. “Because most shamans were female, she would find herself surrounded by multiple shifter men. I’m sure ya can see where I’m goin’ with that.”
An unmistakable blush rose in Mel’s cheeks. If my dead ex-mate hadn’t been brought to the forefront of my mind, I would have found it adorable. It made complete sense as to why Razvan and I were so drawn to her, and why she never showed an ounce of fear when we revealed ourselves.
“Why have shamans stopped passing on their gifts?” I asked. “It would seem like we need them now more than ever.”
