Soar (The Empire Chronicles #1) Read online

  “I don’t know.” Jared stepped closer to the body. “Let’s find out.” He stepped on the shifter’s chest. “Are you ready to talk yet, asshole?”

  Our prisoner grunted.

  “In English please.” Jared pushed his shoe in harder.

  “Move. Foot.” He struggled to talk.

  Jared moved his foot. “Talk.”

  “Why should I?”

  “Because you don’t have a choice.” I leaned down over him. “What do you want with the girl?” I didn’t like describing Casey that way, but I wasn’t using her name in that kind of company.

  “You mean besides fucking her?” He grinned as best he could despite his busted face.

  I got rid of the smile with my sneaker. “I’ll ask you one more time.”

  He grunted. “It’s our business, not yours.”

  “Everything is our business.” Jared moved to his other side. We had him surrounded.

  “Get ready for a new way of life. The Pterons are going down.”

  “Answer the damn question. Why the girl?”

  “Because we want her.” He swiped at me with a knife and drew blood in a line along my chest.

  “You shouldn’t have done that.” Jared looked at me. “You think we’re done here?”

  I nodded.

  “Good.” Jared stepped on him again. “Take care of this piece of shit,” he yelled at one of the Pterons starting in on the cleanup.

  “You okay?” Jared asked, eying my wound.

  “Yeah. A knife though? Who the hell uses a knife?”

  “Weak shifters who don’t have enough faith in their own strength.” Owen spit on the body as we walked away.

  “I need to see her.” They knew exactly who I meant.

  Jared nodded. “I’ll catch up with you later. I need to check in with Levi.”

  “You don’t have to come.”

  “You mean fighting shoulder to shoulder hasn’t made us friends?” He smirked.

  “No, it means I can stand you now.”

  “Yeah, I can say the same to you, but you should probably clean up that bad boy. Don’t want to scare Casey with your war wound.”

  “I need to get an update from my cousins. After that, I’m going up.”

  “Suit yourself. Let me know if you run into any more trouble.” Jared stuffed a hand in his pocket. He seemed completely unaffected by what we’d just done. I guess I probably seemed that way too.

  “Oh, I will. I wouldn’t want you to miss the fun.”

  “Keep that in mind when you see Casey.” He winked and took off before I could respond.

  “Asshole.”

  “I won’t argue with you there. See you around.” Owen took off after him.

  I took one last glance at the carnage on the street before heading up to the sky myself. What a messed up night.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Casey

  “This is Toby’s house?” I looked out the car window at the Tudor style mansion. Surrounded by what had to be acres of property, it was the kind of place I couldn’t imagine someone actually owning.

  “It’s his now.” Cody yanked open my door. He reached toward me and I flinched.

  “I’m not going to hurt you.” He untied my legs and arms.

  “You untied me?” I rubbed my wrists.

  “Yeah. You’re safe here. I wouldn’t advise running off on your own, but if you really want to leave, you can.”

  I looked at him skeptically. It didn’t make sense.

  “Toby’s going to get here as soon as he can, but he can’t leave until he gets things in order.”

  “So what am I supposed to do until then?”

  “Relax. There’s a pretty extensive wine cellar. You can check that out.”

  I’m sure my jaw dropped. “You think I want to sit and drink wine after being kidnapped?”

  “You weren’t kidnapped. You were saved.”

  “I was tied up and thrown in the back seat of a car. That’s kidnapping.”

  “I only did it so you wouldn’t scream or try to run away. Those bears would have gotten you.”

  “Why should I believe you?” I tried to get all the kinks out of my body from sitting funny.

  “Because you don’t have a choice. You did something to get their attention, and they’ve already lost their minds. I wouldn’t suggest spending time with insane shifters.”

  “What do you mean they’ve lost their minds?”

  “They’re attacking people in an attempt to get attention. That’s asking for trouble. The king will have no choice but to retaliate and they know it.”

  “You keep talking about the king. Who is he?”

  “He was the prince until a month ago. He’s down in New Orleans with his new queen.”

  “Is she a Pteron too?”

  He blanched. “No. Pterons don’t mate with Pterons.”

  “What kind of shifter is she then?”

  “She’s human. We don’t screw around with anyone else.”

  “Why would you mate with humans? Aren’t we weaker?”

  “We select the strongest. It keeps the gene pool fresh, and the Pteron gene is dominant so we don’t have to worry.”

  “Do all shifters do that?”

  He shrugged. “Some do. Some don’t.”

  I hobbled over to the porch and sat down. My ankles were raw, and I had no idea where I was going. I wasn’t running anywhere. I needed to see Toby. “Earlier…did you really mean it when you said Eric was a bear?”

  “Yeah. He kind of looks like one, huh?” Cody smiled and he looked even younger.

  “He is big…but why were you working as a doorman? And why the disguise?”

  “I work security. Toby doesn’t like to make it obvious he has someone watching his place.”

  “But you always know when he’s in or not, right?”

  “Yeah.”

  “So why did you send Jared up that morning?”

  Cody smiled again. “Ah, I thought I’d buy Toby some time. I forgot you were still there. He didn’t bother you, did he?” His body seemed to tense, and I sensed there was more that he wasn’t saying.

  “Why would you care?”

  “Because Toby’s made his intentions clear. No crow is touching you.”

  “His intentions clear? Crow?”

  “I already told you that Toby likes you. I don’t need to keep stoking your ego, do I?”

  “So his intentions are of dating me?”

  “Of mating with you…but you can call it that.”

  “Mating?”

  “Yeah. We can date who we want, but we generally settle down with one person.”

  “Like marriage?”

  “Yes.”

  “Toby doesn’t want to marry me.” We’d just started hanging out. A couple of intense kisses doesn’t make a guy jump to thoughts of marriage.

  “I’m not going to argue about this. It’s really none of my business.”

  “Then tell me what you meant by crow?” I stretched out my legs on the step below me.

  “We’re hawks. Jared, as well as the king and his family, are crows.”

  “Is it random? The bird you’re tied to?”

  “No, it’s not random.” He scrunched up his face. “We tend to stay with our own.”

  “So Jared’s in New York because…”

  “The king sent him.” Cody leaned against the railing. “He’s the head of security.”

  “Jared?” My eyes probably bugged out. “He’s practically my age, isn’t he?”

  “How old do you think the king is?”

  “I don’t know. Forty?”

  “He’s twenty-two.”

  “What?”

  “He just took over for his dad. It’s not a coincidence that the bears and wolves are pulling this crap. They think we’re vulnerable.”

  “Who’s we? I’m so confused.” I rested my head in my hands.

  “The Pterons run The Society. Not everyone’s happy with that.”

&nbs
p; “Oh. That makes some sense. Why do you run it? No offense, but how do birds scare wolves and bears?”

  “It’s our hybrid form. We’re stronger, faster, and smarter.”

  “Because you don’t shift completely into birds?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Why don’t you?”

  “Don’t you know about Darwin’s principles?”

  “Evolution? Survival of the fittest?”

  “Yeah. We evolved into the strongest form, and we reap the benefits.”

  “Sounds nice.” How was I talking to this guy so calmly? Was he using some sort of power to keep me relaxed? I didn’t understand it, and I was too exhausted to try.

  “How are you feeling?” He kneeled down in front of me. “Want me to look at your cuts? I’m sorry if I hurt you.”

  I studied his face. He seemed genuinely concerned, but it could have been an act. I wasn’t sure what I could believe. “You really thought it was the only way?”

  “Yeah. Trust me. Toby’s going to be pissed when he sees you. Hurting you isn’t going to help me move up the chain.”

  I formulated more of my plan. “Maybe we can help each other.”

  “Help each other?” He looked at me warily.

  “I need information. You give it, and I’ll put in a good word.” I wasn’t sure if he was right about Toby caring, but I had to try.

  “I’ve already given you information.”

  “I need more.”

  “Like?”

  “If I wanted to find the bears, how would I?”

  He coughed. “Why would you want to find them?”

  “Why doesn’t matter.”

  “Of course it does. I just dragged you up here to get you away from them. You know more than you’re telling.”

  I crossed my arms. “They have something I want.”

  “Now the truth comes out. What the hell are you hiding?”

  “None of your business.”

  “It is my business. We can’t help you if we don’t know what we’re up against.”

  “You don’t have to help me. You have enough to worry about with those attacks. I just need intel.”

  “Intel? Are you a spy or something?” He grinned, and I decided he wasn’t quite as bad as I thought. “You know what your easiest solution is.”

  “What?” What obvious avenue was I missing?

  “Eric. He’s a bear.”

  “Yeah…but I don’t know if I can trust him. Toby said he’s dangerous.”

  “He is, but not if you’re with us.”

  Did that mean he planned to continue helping me? “Well, he’s not the bear I need.”

  “No, you just want the psycho ones that chase you through the Village.”

  “Exactly.” I cracked a smile.

  “What do they have of yours?” His expression softened.

  “I can’t tell you.” Cody may not have tried to kill me or anything, but I certainly wasn’t going to trust him with that kind of information.

  “Can you tell Toby?”

  “Maybe.” I wanted to. I wanted to be able to tell him anything, but everything was still up in the air.

  “Well, he’ll be here soon. Let’s go inside.”’

  “I feel better out here.” I looked up at the dark sky.

  “It could be hours.”

  “So?”

  “So, we can’t sit out here the whole time.”

  “Why not?” I felt much safer outside. The vast expanse of open grass calmed me. It also allowed for a much easier escape than being inside. Also, theoretically, someone could come to my rescue outside, if I needed rescuing.

  “Mind if I go inside for a minute, then?” He paused with one foot on the step next to me.

  “You’ll leave me out here?”

  “I’ll be right back, and I already told you you’re not being held against your will. Toby wants you to stay, but it’s your choice.”

  “Where are you going?”

  “To take a leak. I’d invite you, but Toby would probably get pissed.”

  “Pissed? That’s almost a pun.”

  “And you’re definitely different than I expected. I’ll be right back.” He took off his shirt, and two large, brown wings splayed out.

  The wings looked almost exactly like Toby’s, and I found myself unable to tear my eyes away. “What are you doing?”

  “I don’t have a key. I’ll have to fly in the attic window.”

  “I’m never going to get used to this.”

  “Sure you will.” He flew up to the attic, pushed open a window and disappeared inside.

  I stared out at the yard, illuminated only by one small porch light, wondering what my next move should be. Was I being stupid to just sit around waiting for Toby, a guy I barely knew who had a pair of wings on his back? Did it make me certifiably insane that I still liked him, and kind of, sort of wanted to know what his wings would feel like under my hands?

  A creaking sound had me up on my feet.

  “Didn’t mean to scare you.” Cody, still shirtless, stood at the door. “Are you ready to come in?”

  “I already told you I like it out here.” The problem was once he brought up the bathroom, I had to go.

  “You sure there’s nothing you need to do inside?” He pulled his t-shirt back on over his head.

  “Can you read minds?”

  “No, but you’re crossing your legs, and we were in the car for awhile.”

  “Promise not to try anything?” Not like that promise would mean anything, but I had to ask for it.

  “If I wanted to hurt you, wouldn’t I have done it already?”

  “Maybe, maybe not. You could be waiting for reinforcements.”

  “Didn’t you see how easy it was for me to get you in the car? I don’t need reinforcements.”

  My bladder screamed at me. “Okay.”

  He held open the door, and I walked into a dark hallway. Lined with faded old pictures, it looked like it belonged in another time period.

  “It’s the third door on the left.” Cody pointed in the direction of a hallway off the main one.

  I nodded. “Thanks.”

  I walked down the hall tentatively, half convinced something was going to jump out and attack me. I had just discovered that paranormal creatures existed after all. And I’d kissed one. I’d kissed a paranormal creature. That meant he wasn’t human. The scary part was he wasn’t the first non-human I’d kissed. Chances were good that Murphy’s brother wasn’t human either. And I’d done a whole lot more than kiss him.

  I found the bathroom, happy to discover it appeared to be something out of the twenty-first century. I took my time, not sure I wanted to face any more of the craziness. My nerves were fried, and I felt near my breaking point. I also didn’t want to face the growing feeling that I had something to do with the attacks. It didn’t make any sense, but why take Vera, and then go after me?

  I wanted Toby. The thought came suddenly, and I splashed water on my face to make it go away. Using Toby for information was one thing, but did I really still want someone who wasn’t human? Yes. The answer gnawed at me. I kind of wanted him more, and that was a really scary thought.

  “Casey? Are you okay?” Cody called. It sounded like he was right outside the door.

  “Yeah. I’ll be right out.” I splashed another round of water on my face and patted it dry. I tied my hair up in an attempt to make myself look more like a strong survivor than a disheveled victim.

  “Take your time. I was just checking.” He sounded embarrassed. I doubt he wanted to ask. Maybe he was afraid I was crying, or even worse, that I needed a tampon or something. Cody seemed like the kind of guy who’d get freaked out over that.

  “Thanks.”

  “I’m going to see if there’s anything edible in the kitchen.”

  I waited for his footsteps to disappear down the hall before opening the door. It’s always weird to open a door when someone’s right there.

  I heard talking and followed it
to the kitchen. Cody was on the phone. “So we should plan to spend the night, then?”

  My stomach churned. That didn’t sound good. I waited just outside the entryway.

  “He’s going to be okay though, right? I don’t think we can handle another power switch.”

  “Is he okay?” I stepped into the kitchen, giving away my eavesdropping. I hoped by some chance he wasn’t talking about Toby.

  Cody held the phone away from his ear. “He’ll be fine.” He returned to the call. “I’ve got to go.” He hung up.

  “What happened to Toby?”

  Cody swallowed hard. “He’s going to be okay.”

  “Tell me.” I gripped the counter.

  “He got a little cut, that’s all.”

  A cut? I was positive it was a lot bigger than that. “Is he coming here?”

  “Yeah. He’s taking care of some things, but then he’ll head up.”

  “Soon?”

  Cody smiled. “Toby would be glad to see your concern. The flight won’t take long, but he can’t leave yet. Let’s find something to eat, and then you can get some sleep while you wait.”

  “Get some sleep? Are you kidding me?”

  He opened the cabinets and pulled out a jar of peanut butter and some crackers. I picked them up and checked the dates. They both were well within expiration—impressive for a house that didn’t seem to be frequently used.

  “Sleeping is usually advisable.” He spread a thick layer of peanut butter on a couple crackers.

  “Yet not necessarily possible.” I knew a lot about sleepless nights. I had them more often than not.

  “You’re safe here.”

  “Clearly, I trust you. I’m inside the house, standing here calmly while you wield a knife.”

  He chuckled. “Wield a knife? I’d worry more about my pinky than a butter knife.”

  “Yeah, that was a joke, and your response didn’t exactly put me at ease.”

  He bit into a cracker. I wondered if Pteron teeth were stronger too. “You’re only stuck with me for a few more hours.”

  “Good to know.”

  He laughed again. “I wonder if that’s what Toby sees in you. I mean, besides what you look like.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You’re funny. You’ve got this wittiness to you that you probably don’t even realize you have.”