Vulfen Shadow's Grace [Vulfen Cadre 4] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 5

  His legendary coolness under fire was gone, replaced by a chaos of emotions he couldn’t begin to name. Words couldn’t begin to describe the collection of contradictory feelings seething in his stomach.

  His mate was suffering and he needed it to end.

  Her brother was over talking to one of the firemen, but he was staring at Matsij with a look that signaled a clear challenge. John was against the mating. He didn’t want to give his baby sister to a vulfen warrior that much was plain, and Matsij fought against his sense of insult. What the hell did her brother want for her, some human male who would never understand her needs? How would that be better for Grace?

  Matsij frowned back and stepped a little closer to Grace. He refused to apologize for being who he was, but he couldn’t deny John’s charge. Even his friend Ives had warned him of the probable response of some of the vulfen people if he mated a part fox female. Prejudice existed in the world, but he wouldn’t allow that to dictate the terms he lived by.

  What her brother didn’t understand was that Matsij didn’t care about Grace’s heritage. He didn’t care about the color of her hair or skin, or whether her teeth lined up in a perfect row. And though his wolf loved her scent and her slender strength, it wasn’t enough by itself to have him reacting as if her pain was destroying him from the inside out.

  Their animal spirits were connected on the deepest level, but there was something about Grace that drew him as a man. He admired her loyalty and her sass as much as her silky skin and bright smile. He wanted to spend a lifetime learning every aspect of her personality. He wanted to pamper her and keep her safe from all harm. Though it was brand new to him, he marveled at the strength of the tie between them.

  He had a mate and anyone who hurt or insulted her would answer for it. In his mind it wasn’t a threat, it was a simple fact.

  It reminded him of the lives he had ended tonight, but he couldn’t feel regret. Those men had come against his mate, intending harm. In doing so, they had made a fatal choice.

  The medic stood and pulled off his gloves with a snap.

  “You’re good to go,” he said. “Probably should go to the hospital to get checked out.”

  “I’ll be there tomorrow. I work in admitting,” Grace said, and Matsij stiffened.

  Grace would not be working in the morning after a night like tonight.

  The medic paused. “You’re scratched and bruised from head to foot and you’ve had a hell of a shock. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to take a day off and get some rest.”

  Was she truly thinking she would be going to work in the morning as if nothing had happened? Matsij frowned. If she could see herself, could see the bruises, the smoke smudges on her drawn white face and the small trembling hands, she wouldn’t be so quick to say it. She needed rest and care, and Matsij was going to see that she got everything she needed.

  “She will come home with me,” he said. “I will see that she receives the rest and care you recommend.”

  Grace started to speak but broke off as he folded his arms across his chest.

  The medic looked from one to the other and nodded as if satisfied.

  “Good.”

  He gathered his kit and returned to his truck.

  John walked over and gave Grace a long look. A flush climbed her cheeks but she met her brother’s gaze.

  “Are you coming home to Grandma’s?” John asked.

  Grace looked to Matsij and every part of him responded.

  “She will come home with me,” Matsij said, working to keep his voice even. He didn’t want to provoke John into another territorial display. His control was on the razor’s edge tonight and his wolf was close, lunging at the chains of his forced confinement. Matsij didn’t know if he could avoid answering such a challenge in lethal terms.

  He didn’t want John’s clear animosity to force them into a battle that would tear Grace apart. They would have to work things out between them man to man, but not tonight and not in front of Grace. Grace had been through enough.

  John rested his hands on his gun belt. Matsij stiffened. He got the message loud and clear and it was all he could do not to attack then and there. Shifters did not settle their differences with human weapons. It was an insult, and her brother would know that.

  “All Grace has to do is call me and I’ll be there. If this vulfen bastard does anything you don’t like, honey, I’ll show up with a fucking platoon of cops and shifter secrecy be damned. I love you, Gracie,” John said gruffly.

  Grace stepped in and hugged her brother.

  John rested his chin on Grace’s head and Matsij saw the love between brother and sister. He would never want to put an end to that, but he refused to give up his mate, either. He bared his teeth. He and John would have to find some middle ground.

  “I’ll go with my mate, Johnny. But we’ll be at Grandma’s for Sunday dinner, like always.” She tapped one finger on his arm. “Don’t bring a platoon of cops.”

  John’s hard mouth lifted in a bitter smile. He squeezed once and let Grace go.

  She immediately turned to Matsij and he couldn’t resist the urge to pull her close to his side. His wolf had a wounded mate and he was so far beyond protective he almost didn’t recognize himself.

  John nodded his head once and Matsij returned the salute before John turned and walked away.

  * * * *

  Grace sighed and thought of John’s offer. The problem wasn’t with Matsij doing something she didn’t like. She liked everything he did to her far too much. Even now, with all the trauma of the evening, her body inclined itself toward his. It was an instinctive reaction she was too tired to fight.

  She wanted to be with her mate.

  But she didn’t want her brother and her lover and mate to hate each other. In every one of her solitary midnight fantasies, John had gotten along well with the faceless warrior her heart had created to fill the emptiness in her life. This vivid animosity between them left her feeling anxious, unsettled.

  Maybe they could never be friends, exactly, but she wanted them to get along and not constantly try to challenge each other.

  She thought back. John had started out almost admiring of the other warrior until Matsij had said the word mate and his response had turned on a dime. Suddenly, her easygoing brother turned protective, territorial.

  Grace understood that he felt his little sister was being threatened in a way that he couldn’t fight, but his strong protectiveness was part of what drove her nuts about her otherwise wonderful family. She loved John very much, but just wanted to punch him sometimes. She had carved out a life for herself as a separate person, with her own job and her own little house. She wasn’t giving up the rare chance to have a mate and family of her own, and her brother shouldn’t stand in her way, damn it.

  If she had ever thought about the possibility of having a mate of her own, it was purely in the realm of fantasy. And even her wildest fantasies could never touch on the reality of a man like Matsij. He was a hard-bodied warrior who put his community ahead of himself on a daily basis. His honor was a visible part of his life, and Grace couldn’t help but admire that.

  She snuggled closer in his embrace, and his warm arms closed around her with a ripple of steel-hard muscle. His obvious strength tempered by his gentleness toward her was an irresistible combination.

  Strong, honorable, and sexy was a wish list she never expected to see in her real life. And to have fate offer up the physical embodiment of her personal fantasy was almost more than she could process. She didn’t know where the future would take them, but she wanted to find out.

  Chapter 7

  When Matsij had said he would take her home, Grace wasn’t sure just what she had expected, but a cliffside mansion overlooking the choppy Atlantic hadn’t entered her head. The moon was a silver dollar in the sky and the sea air was cool and refreshing. Any other time she would have stopped to admire the strong lines of such a fine house silhouetted against the brilliant moon, but beyond the sudden ne
rves twisting in her stomach at the thought of possibly meeting his family, she was almost too tired to care.

  The door opened before they reached the top step and Matsij ushered her inside and past the thin older man who had opened the door.

  “Mirko, I have brought my mate home. Please see that a small meal is sent to my suite and a change of clothes for both of us if you can manage it.”

  The man nodded and his thin face softened into a smile when he looked at Grace. She smiled in return.

  “Of course, sir. And may I offer my sincere congratulations. Such a pretty girl.” The man turned and disappeared into a hidden doorway.

  It was such a stunning home. If she had the energy to explore, Grace could almost forget the events of the night and just lose herself in the beauty around her. Every artistic detail was perfect, and the floor was so scrupulously clean that the tile shone even in the low light.

  Matsij took her hand and led her to the right, down a long hallway that opened into a huge gallery filled with paintings and sculptures. It was dimly lit, even in the middle of the night, and the sculptures cast eerie wavering shadows on the walls and floor.

  Grace wanted to turn on every light in the place so she could stand and stare at the beauty around her, but Matsij didn’t slow down.

  A tall, elegant woman came out of a dark alcove and they stopped. She had long flowing black hair and her ears and throat glittered with diamonds.

  “This is my mother, Narenya Zrynko Gabrov. Mother, please meet my mate, Grace Commander.”

  Matsij’s grip tightened on her hand and Grace was suddenly conscious of the state of her clothing. She was so exhausted that her mind wasn’t working. She hadn’t thought what it could mean if he brought her to his home. She was meeting his mother for the first time in the middle of the night, a woman who walked like a queen, when she smelled like blood and smoke and had no bra on. Embarrassing wasn’t a strong enough word.

  “Pleased to meet you,” Grace said with as much of a smile as she could manage.

  Narenya looked down at Grace for a long moment and sniffed delicately but said nothing. Grace wanted to disappear.

  “Matsij, I need to speak with you. Please come into the library.” Narenya turned to go, clearly used to her word being instantly obeyed.

  “Mother, I must look after my mate first. She has had a trying evening.”

  Narenya halted with her back to them and stood taller.

  “It is important,” was all she said.

  Grace could feel Matsij’s reluctance, but he turned to her and said, “Grace, please go to my suite and make yourself at home there. It is through that black oak door there, do you see? There is a private bath and Mirko will bring something for you to eat. I will not be long.”

  The last words were a clear warning and Narenya glanced back, lips pursed in disapproval. It was obvious his mother wasn’t happy, but Grace looked at the frown lines on her brow and thought uncharitably that she looked as though she had never been happy a day in her life.

  Grace looked at the black door and nodded, but it was a strange house and she didn’t want to go without him. She wasn’t a clingy person, but she was shaken and out of her depth with him and she didn’t want to be alone. Her fox just wanted a safe place to hide.

  She looked up at Matsij, trying to convey her feelings without saying out loud how uncomfortable she was, but Matsij wasn’t looking at her. His attention was on his mother.

  Grace dropped his hand and watched him follow his graceful mother into another side room off the gallery.

  She didn’t move to enter his suite. The idea of walking into his personal space without him made her uncomfortable. Fated or not, they had been mates for less than a day and melding their different lives would take time. Walking into his private rooms alone would seem almost like breaking and entering. Maybe she could just wait for him and they could go together. She saw a low bench and made her way over to sit half in shadow.

  His mother hadn’t even greeted her. She had been assessed and dismissed without a single word being exchanged. It shouldn’t hurt coming from a person she didn’t even know, but it did. If his family couldn’t even accept her, what would his people say? What chance did they have?

  Grace leaned back against the cool stone of the bench with a hiss of pain. Her head ached abominably and her abused muscles were already stiffening. She was so exhausted she could go to sleep on the hard stone.

  A raised voice caught her attention.

  “Of course, I have nothing against foxes, or humans. Every race has its gifts. But surely there is one among our beautiful vulfen females who could be your match instead.”

  Grace sat up straight. She almost couldn’t hear the low-voiced reply.

  “Grace is my mate.”

  “She is only a part-blood fox.” The words were shrill and Grace winced. “It cannot be a true mating. Don’t tell me you didn’t have the same thought. I can tell you haven’t mated her yet. Do not mate her, Matsij. Fate would not play such a trick on the Gabrov family. No one would blame you if you renounced her. You cannot mate outside our race. Think of our position as a family.”

  Grace winced.

  “Mother, our position as a family is not what you seem to think. I am a sanctioned killer for our Alpha, as my father was. I am a skilled hunter feared by all. I am the brother of a traitor who was executed by the Alpha for an attack on our chosen queen. That is our true position in the eyes of our society.”

  His mother gasped. “Matsij, how could you say such a thing to me, your own mother?”

  “I speak a truth you have never wanted to acknowledge. I have been cleared of any guilt by our generous Alpha, but now I know down to my bones that I am truly untarnished by the actions of my brother, because I have been granted a beautiful and intelligent mate when so many of our kind walk alone. Grace is a gift to me.”

  “It is not a true mating and I will never acknowledge it as such. I will never acknowledge her and without my support our people will shun her. You will live your life outside of our society and no one will accept you. Think, Matsij!”

  There in the shadows, Grace’s stomach quivered with nerves. Would Matsij be swayed by his mother and abandon Grace before they even had a chance to see if they could make it?

  “Understand this, Mother.” His voice was quiet and slow and Grace shivered for no reason. “The vulfen people will not be so foolish as to offer insult to the mate of their Shadow.”

  Grace heard a loud dramatic sob.

  “I never thought I would see the day when my only remaining son would turn his back on his mother. I think only of you. You will be an outcast in our society. You must renounce her. She is a disgrace as a mate. Renounce her and get her out of here before anyone sees her.”

  Grace felt her heart shrivel inside her. His mother hated her, wanted her to disappear so Matsij could mate with someone more suitable, probably someone as tall and poised and coolly beautiful as his mother.

  Grace wanted to curl up in a ball and weep. In a way, his mother was right. He deserved a mate who was all of that, everything that Grace wasn’t.

  She stood up and looked frantically around, uncertain where the nearest exit was. She needed to get out of here before Matsij came back. Her stomach was about to rebel and she swallowed bile. After all they had shared, she couldn’t face him if he was only going to say good-bye.

  She saw a door and started to run, but a hand snagged her wrist and she was hauled up against a hard body. She wriggled, trying to get away.

  Matsij growled softly against her hair and she stopped struggling. Her shoulders slumped in defeat.

  He lowered his head and brushed his lips against hers.

  It felt like a good-bye to her, and she gasped and fought back tears.

  “Come, sweet Grace. I deeply regret the inconvenience, but we cannot stay here tonight. My mother is…” He shrugged, clearly at a loss for words. Grace felt a tear roll down. She couldn’t hold it back.

  W
ith a low sound, Matsij bent and sipped the tear from her cheek. His lips travelled over her face.

  “Hush, milaya. You are the light glowing in my soul. We will go wherever you want. If you want to go to your Grandmother’s house, I will go with you. I will always go with you.”

  The tenderness in his voice was her undoing. She burrowed against his wide chest and cried. After fearing that he would dump her and turn his back on their mating, to find out that he still wanted her, would go against his family for her, it was more than she could take. She sobbed loudly and tried to muffle the sounds in his chest.

  “Grace, you cannot cry like this.” There was an answering anguish in his deep voice. “You actually make my heart ache in my chest. You must stop before you make yourself ill.”

  He sounded desperate, completely at a loss.

  Grace couldn’t guide him because she was lost, too, swept away by the storm of emotion that he had awakened in her. Only Matsij had ever made her feel like this, as if the threat of his absence might diminish her until there was nothing left of Grace without him. It wasn’t like her to be so possessive, even obsessive about a man. She faced the world with a quip and a smile, but she couldn’t stop crying. Tonight was just too much.

  He swept her up in his arms and carried her. She didn’t know or care where they were going.

  “Sir, sir!”

  Matsij halted.

  The old man who had answered the door earlier said something that Grace didn’t hear through her sniffling, but Matsij’s posture changed. She could tell he liked the old man.

  “Yes, Mirko, as soon as I find a home that is suitable for her. In the meantime, if you would be so kind as to convey my intentions to the others. You must remove any who will not be kind to my mate. I will not have a repeat of this night ever.”