* * *
Rae woke a long time later. Zander was spooned against her in the narrow bunk, relaxed in sleep. The lines of pain on his face had gone, and a little snore came from his mouth.
Rae touched her abdomen but the fiery streaks that had creased it were now small pale scars. She was not only healed, but she felt better than she had in a long time. Any soreness she’d acquired from traveling, running and climbing, fighting and fleeing was gone. Rae felt only a pleasant rawness from the lovemaking that had grown intense, but that was all right with her. Zander truly had the healing gift, and Rae marveled.
Or maybe it was the mate bond. Her heart was warm, the joy surging inside her a very close thing to the terrific orgasm she’d had with Zander before they’d collapsed into sleep.
Rae wanted to laugh, dance, shout it to the world.
I love crazy Zander Moncrieff and we share the mate bond!
Rae thought about how the sword had rung and glittered while Zander had healed her, and then again when they’d made love.
She reached for it, hoping against hope. Maybe the healing magic combined with the mate bond was the miracle they needed to put it back together.
Rae touched the sword in trepidation, then she drew a breath and tugged it free of the sheath.
Her heart plummeted as the top half came out easily, the jagged cut still in place.
“Bloody hell!” Rae yelled.
Zander jumped and came awake, alert and tense, every inch a Shifter. “What? What happened?”
“This!” Rae held the broken sword up in front of his face. “Goddess—what does a girl have to do?”
* * *
An hour later, Rae found Carson leaning on the stern rail, gazing across the water as the sun slipped below the horizon. It was beautiful out here, peaceful, the deck a much better place to be than the confined spaces inside.
Zander, after he’d scowled at the sword and said he gave up, had led Rae to the wheelhouse, where they’d said hello again to Jake the Snake, who’d curled happily around Zander’s arm. Zander had put him back in the box Miles had made for him and taken Rae to the ward room down the deck, where the other Shifters had gathered.
All the Shifters from Eoin’s group were there, and most from Dylan’s. Tiger wasn’t with them—he and the remaining Austin Shifters had managed to make it to Marlo’s plane and fly out.
Dylan, Eoin, and Zander discussed the fight and what it might mean. A ley line, feral Shifters, humans . . .
It meant they were screwed, Rae knew. Not long ago, Shifters in the Las Vegas Shiftertown had discovered that the Fae had been making swords that would trigger Shifter Collars to render Shifters helpless. Apparently, several Fae clans were working to re-enslave the Shifters—Battle Beasts as they were called.
Had the feral Shifters found a way to cross to and from Faerie—and why? Eoin now asked. Were they working for the Fae or against them? The idea that Shifters would voluntarily work for the Fae was farfetched, but what if the Shifters had already been enslaved, body and mind? Ferals didn’t always know what was going on inside their own heads. Dylan, Eoin, and the other Shifters had gone on speculating, and that was when Rae decided she wanted some air.
She leaned next to Carson now and gazed at the azure and pink sky, the sun lingering on the wide horizon. “When I see something so beautiful,” she said in a quiet voice, “it’s hard to believe there’s evil in the world. I mean, why can’t we all just enjoy the glory of a sunset?”
Carson didn’t answer. The two of them simply stood for a time, neither of them speaking as the sun slipped lower. Then Carson said in a hollow voice, “You almost died. I nearly got you killed, and a lot of other people, with my need for revenge.”
Rae turned to look at him. Carson’s gray eyes were haunted, his face drawn.
“You couldn’t know that the attack on you and your wife was part of a nefarious Fae plot to re-enslave Shifters,” Rae said, trying to sound reasonable. “Who gets up in the morning thinking that?”
“I blamed all Shifters everywhere,” Carson said, the words bitter. “I made their lives hell instead of asking one to help me.”
“And when you did find one to help you, you got Zander.” Rae let herself laugh. “You drew the short straw that day.”
“No, I got you,” Carson said, and Rae’s laughter cut off in surprise. “I finally found someone who cared about Viv and understood what I needed to do.”
“Sorry it didn’t work out,” Rae said softly.
“Maybe it did.” Carson returned his gaze to the horizon. “You and Zander pulled me out of a very dark place and returned me to the world.” He shook his head. “I need to get back to her soon. I don’t like to stay away too long, in case . . .”
He trailed off and Rae didn’t know what to say to comfort him. It will be all right sounded lame, because she had no idea whether anything would be. She gazed silently with him across the water as the ball of sun sank under the dark blue water.
As the sun disappeared, the very top sliver of its disk seemed to hover above the horizon. The sliver brightened, then glowed a sudden, brilliant green. Rae gasped, and just as her breath left her, the green glow disappeared, and the sky returned to its red-orange hue.
“Hey, did you see that?” Zander’s hands landed next to Rae’s on the rail, his tight arm brushing hers. “A green flash. Awesome. Haven’t seen one in a long time. See, the air has to be just right—”
“Zander,” Rae interrupted him. “You’re a healer. Can we see if it will work on Vivian?”
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Zander turned sharply to Rae. His expression of wonder faded and his look became guarded. “I’m a Shifter healer, Little Wolf. I’ve tried to heal humans before. It didn’t work.” The sadness in his eyes attested to that.
“Will you try anyway?” Rae asked. “I’ve heard that a green flash is a sign from the Goddess. Maybe she wants us to try.” Rae didn’t truly believe in signs, but what the hell? She wanted to help Carson and didn’t know how else to do it.
“Us,” Zander repeated slowly, holding her gaze.
“We make a good team,” Rae said. “So yeah. Us.”
Zander watched her for a long time. He’d replaited his braid, weaving green beads into it this time. He must carry a supply around with him.