Page 304 of Awakened

Dax and Vae, though?

My attention falls on Daxen, who’s stomping through the training yard a few paces ahead of me. The entire way back, his jaw’s been clenched, and he hasn’t stopped frowning. He’s worried about her, even if he won’t admit it out loud. He doesn’t have any faith at all that she’ll get through whatever this is.

Neither does Vae, who obviously wants nothing more than to wrap her up in cotton wool and hide her in the world’s largest Nest for the rest of time, where he knows she’ll be safe. It’s so fucking obvious; every time I look at him, I struggle not to roll my eyes. The male practically radiates yearning, like he’s been plucked right out of a Jane Austen novel.

After she disappeared, he went on a massive Nesting Material shopping spree. Every time I walk into Caelan’s rooms, more and more fucking boxes and bags overflow with soft things for Idril.

The asshole’s probably spent thousands of dollars on her since he found out how bad he fucked up, and she has no clue. I think she assumed Caelan and I are the ones buying everything for her, outside of the three blankets and that first shipment of clothing.

The thought makes me smirk. If Vae’s too big of a coward to own up to his weird secret-groveling, then that’s his problem.

“Want a drink?” Dax asks, holding open the door as we make our way inside. Caelan grunts what I’m pretty sure is an affirmative, so I nod too. I start up to their wing of the castle when Vae curses behind me. He stops, turns, stalks back to the door, and kicks it open.

Seconds later, Shade appears, slinking past Vae with his head held high like some kind of regal prince of the jungle. His claws click against the stone as he passes us, continuing through the kitchen and into the dining room like he knows exactly where he’s going.

He probably does. That is a scarily intelligent cat.

A muscle starts to throb in the side of Dax’s forehead, and he turns on his Packmate with a glare.

“Why?”

One word, and despite the tone, it’s clearly more of a demand than a question. Vaelenor, who is apparently immune to Daxen by virtue of continued exposure, doesn’t even pretend to feel bad.

He shrugs and lifts his chin. “It’s Idril’s pet.”

Dax stares Vae down, unblinking. “I feel like I shouldn’t have to point this out, but clearly I do. That is a three-hundred-pound jungle cat that somehow understands what we say. In fact, it’s probably planning seven different ways to maul us right as we speak.”

“Not me,” Vae smirks confidently, shouldering past Daxen on his way down the hall and toward the stairs.

“And why, pray tell, are you immune?”

“Simple. I play fetch with him. Plus I just let him inside. That definitely buys me some brownie points.”

“Good to know what your thought process is,” Caelan drawls, following him up the grand staircase. “Next time a killer is trying to break in, be sure to explain how brownie points work when you open the fucking door for him.”

When we finally make it to the den, Shade’s already there. Even better, he’s sprawled across the sectional with his eyes closed, his head resting on paws as big as my face, his tail flicking back and forth across the leather.

“This is a terrible idea,” Dax mutters when he walks in. “I mean honestly, probably the worst fucking idea you’ve ever had.”

Vae pours himself a drink, then drops into the seat closest to Shade’s head. The panther lifts one lazy eyelid, sees Vae, and shuts it again.

Vae shoots Dax a smug smirk and raises his glass in a mock toast. “See? Totally fine.”

“I’m telling you right now, I will not help you when it attacks,” Daxen replies, taking a seat across the room. “I will sit here and watch it eat your face.”

“I just fed, so I’ll probably heal in like… three minutes,” Vae tosses back, but he shifts just a bit closer toward the edge. “Maybe four minutes. Five… Max.”

“That’s a long five minutes without your lips,” I point out as I pour myself a drink as well.

“Shade stays,” Caelan declares, ignoring the indignant look Vae turns on him.

“Hey, where’s the book we brought back from Idril’s?” Vae asks, changing the topic away from being mauled. “It was on the coffee table earlier.”

Caelan set his glass down on the fireplace mantel and extended his hands toward the flames. “I put it in our room. Didn’t want the staff to come across it.”

That was probably a good idea. I don’t think it’d raise any red flags considering it looks like a leather-bound journal—something there are a shocking number of simply lying around in this place—but there’s no sense in leaving out anything that might be gossiped about or accidentally end up in the wrong hands.

I don’t know any of the staff here, obviously, so I don’t trust any of them. Not for the first time, I’m wishing I hadn’t sent Kane back home with the rest of the Pack, but I needed someone I trust to speak with the Elders. After Vae and Dax came home with the book yesterday, I spent all night thinking about the stories I was told when I was younger. I can’t help but feel like I’m forgetting something, so I sent Kane to request a formal meeting.