Page 43 of Feline Good

Where the fuck could it be?

Her parents had passed the bar to Malak, who was instructed to pass it to Maya when she came of age. There had been no letters, no instructions, no random treasure chests it could be stored in. Maya just had the bar. Unless it was hidden under the floorboards, she had no clue where it could be.

It was this frustration that led her to decide to weave. Confident in the guys’ ability, she passed by the bar and tapped Pharaoh on the head before retreating upstairs, ready to lose herself another vision that would hopefully lead her to the amulet.

When she sat down at the loom, she was struck by the intricate pattern she’d begun weaving weeks ago. The tails of three cat figures wove in and out of the red and gold background.

That’s it.

In a daze, she made her way downstairs, taking one step at a time until she stood behind the bar, staring at the cat figurine for a moment. Then, she grabbed Pharaoh and made her way to her office. Her parents hadn’t exactly lived a life of luxury, but love wasn’t measured in how many dollars you had in your pocket, or how many heirlooms sat on the shelves.

Maya knew this, but still, tears traced her cheeks as she thought about breaking the little guy.

Egyptians had to be all about the fucking balance.

With a sigh, she kissed the little figurine on the head and let go. He crashed into the ground, shattering into a hundred pieces across the dark, hardwood floor.

The guys came rushing in at the sound, and Maya heard them scramble to stop behind her as they saw the mess.

A maniacal laugh left her throat as she spied what they’d been looking for the whole time. A beautiful, amethyst jewel, framed by priceless golden curlicues, just like in her vision.

Maya laughed at the irony. “I’ve had it this whole time.”

“It’s so obvious, it’s not obvious.” August laughed with her before the other two joined in.

“He reminded me of my parents. It’s where I got the whole... tapping him for luck thing. My mom and dad used to do it too.” Wiping a tear away, she sniffed back the ones remaining as a pair of arms wrapped around her from behind.

Asher moved closer to lay his head on her shoulder, until they both peered down at the little pieces of clay littering the floor. “Maybe...we can find you a new one.”

“It’s okay. At least we have the amulet... but now what?”

August came into her line of sight, pulling her from Asher’s arms. As he framed her face with his hands, the chill of metal from his rings sent shivers over her body when he leaned in to kiss her. Their lips touched softly, the kiss lingering, as she smiled into it. When she pulled away, their foreheads touched, and she wrapped her arms around him in a simple hug.

Three words were dangerously close to the tip of her tongue, and Maya was on the cusp of admitting her swelling emotions, when the waitress yelled for their help.

Maya sighed, wishing she could afford to take the evening off and close the bar. Instead, she tucked the jewel into her pocket and went back to work.

The evening passed uneventfully. It was a Saturday, so they were busier than normal, and it kept Maya on her toes.

The guys were a hit. It seemed word had spread about the three sexy, new bartenders at Feline Good, and women flocked in droves to see for themselves. Maya’s jaw ticked the whole night, and her head hurt from the continued grinding of her teeth. Surprisingly, when a woman got a little too excited over the new bartenders, the guys would lean over and kiss Maya on the cheek. The head. The lips, neck, and forehead. A blush would color her cheeks every time, but it made her heart flutter all the same. They were telling everyone just who they belonged to, and for once, the thought didn’t strike Maya as odd.

Eventually, her shyness disappeared, and as the night wore on, so did her patience. Multiple times, she’d growled as a woman reached across the bar to cop a feel of a thick, veiny forearm, and yeah, she might have charged an extra dollar for the ogling, handsy bitches.

Fuck girls’ night.

By the time the bar closed and the last patron went home, Maya was itching to take each one of them upstairs and re-stake her claim. One right after the other.

Instead, as they all headed upstairs after the nightly chores, the sound of glass shattering broke through the silence. Asher had his hand in her back pocket as they walked, playing with her ass, but they all froze at the sound. Their heads jerked apart as Maya instinctively leaned down to check for the amulet, relieved to find it in her pocket still.

She hadn’t even straightened up when August suddenly turned from where he’d been leading them, and with wide eyes, mouthed, run. Something smacked him in the chest, and he fell to the floor with a grunt. Maya gaped at how quickly it all happened. He started seizing, and she noticed the lines connecting him to a taser gun in the hands of a man in black. Their faces were once again half covered with bandanas, and Maya cursed.

She only hesitated a split second after Asher and Amir burst into action, their shifter abilities lending them extra speed and strength to rip their way through the first two guys in sync.

Refusing to waste any more time, she turned to run out the back. She barely made it into the kitchen when a man stepped in her way. He had come from the very door she had been trying to escape out of. Narrowing her eyes in a glare, she noticed the pots and pans still drying in the sink. Taking advantage of her weird shifter strength and speed, she grabbed one and threw it across the room with all her might. A loud clang sounded as she hit her mark, beaming the black clad bastard right in the head. He crashed to the floor with a thud, and Maya rushed to grab his taser gun. He carried the same type that had downed August, and she made her way to the main floor. From the grunts in the other room, the fight was still on.

August was out cold by the stairs, and Maya stared hard, her heart frozen in her chest as she studied him. Relief almost floored her when she saw his chest rise and fall, but she stood strong. Crouching low, she quietly tiptoed around the bar to get a look at what was happening. Amir and Asher both fought a handful of guys, and she could hardly keep up with who was where, they moved so quickly. Still, she was in awe of their strength. Amir would kick out, sending a guy flying into the table behind him, while Asher would get one in a chokehold before brutally snapping his neck. They fought in sync, lithe movements, always aware of where the other was so they didn’t get tangled up.

Maya almost didn’t even bother to intervene, but the remaining guys decided to gang up on her men. She lifted the gun, aimed, and fired off the electrodes into one of the guys from the back, and he went down hard, a flurry of wild arms and flailing legs as volts of electricity circuited his body. Maya didn’t even wince in sympathy.