Lacy Read online

  Devon was born in August. He is the Leo, the leader of the Enforcers of both the Denver Pack and the Council Pack, the leader of their army, a natural protector. Should he wish, he could challenge Quin, of course he would never do that because he does not want the headache. He is perfectly happy being the Beta. Devon was going to be the leader of all the Betas. He would set up training for them and make sure that they were doing their job as well as making sure the Enforcers did theirs. He was like the military leader in the United States, the highest ranking General in the Were community. If there were a war with the Rogues, Devon would be leading it.

  Next in line is Virgo, the child born in September. Cloe will be the medical adviser. She will work with the human doctors to understand the physiology of the Were, and will be the trainer of the Were doctors. Cloe was mated to Beta Darien, and actually, they shared a bond with another member of the new Pack, Teagan.

  The child born in October, Libra, will be the Pack builder. They will be responsible for setting up a new Pack and knowing what is going on in each of the Packs and report to the Council. Once the Council officially moved to Denver, there was sure to be an influx of Packs starting in the United States. Many of the Packs for Europe had small Packs in the States, but Quin knew that they would grow and be much larger than they were now.

  The next is the child born in November, the Scorpio. They are considered the oldest of souls and will be the consultant with the previous Council, using them as a resource, should the Council need them. There was much to be learned from humans and other Were. Quin wanted the Old Council to be advisers, but they needed someone appointed to help with organizing them.

  Finally, the child born in December, the Sagittarius will be the liaison between the other shifters and the Council. They knew there were other shifters, all with different hierarchies, and this person will be the go-between for the groups. Most of the shifter community kept hidden, even from fellow shifters. Once they became public, it would be a huge job to organize all the different communities.

  Everything had been moving along, with a few bumps in the road, like a couple of attacks, a kidnapping, and a few shootings. All in all, not bad. Then the Rogues obviously got a little help. Whoever was leading them was refusing to give up. He or she wanted the shifter community to remain in secret, and he was willing to do anything to do that.

  A black shadow surrounded the New Council Pack compound. Everyone from the town had been taken to the compound so they would be safe. They were staying in the huge Pack house and the other New Council houses that were complete. It was cramped, but because of the danger, it was more than worth the inconvenience.

  The strange shadow was a spell, cast by witches the Rogues had gotten on their side.

  Jo"s father and the Old Council Alpha had gotten information about a strong coven that had migrated to New Orleans after the kidnapping. Witches and shifters had once been friends, but in the chaos after the kidnapping, the relationship between all shifters and magical creatures had been strained.

  So, Sevi and Shawn had been sent to New Orleans to see if they could get the coven leader to help them. They needed a spell to counteract the one being placed on the town, until they did; the New Council was helpless and stuck. They couldn"t leave or communicate. Sevi had tried several times to call Blaine but they had never gotten through. They were on their own, as Ambassadors of the New Council.

  “New Orleans!” Shawn said and pointed to the sign. They were only thirty minutes from the place they needed to be.

  “Finally, let"s find the Queen and get the hell out. I saw a place a few miles back that looked like it had potential.” Sevi said and Shawn agreed.

  Hopefully, they would be able to do this in one day. Neither one of them wanted to stay in New Orleans for long, the whole dick shrinking conversation really put a damper on the trip.

  Chapter 2

  Lacy sighed tiredly; it had been a long day. First, her assistant called in sick, leaving her to be the only one in the store. It had been busy; so many people coming in for vacation right now meant lots of traffic. Then, in the middle of a particularly busy rush, she had tripped over the damn rug and sent a table full of potions flying across the room.

  Thankfully not many of them broke. She just had to clean the mess while people were wandering around and trying to ask her questions.

  She needed a drink. A glass of white wine and a bath sounded heavenly. But she had to go to her mother"s; she called a few moments ago in a panic. Something was up, but she didn"t want to discuss it on the phone. Well she was just going to have to wait. She had to clean up first, and then she would get there. If she left a mess today, tomorrow would be a long day again.

  Picking up the bottles to restock the shelf, she felt a shiver. Someone was outside the door, and they did not have a very good aura. She looked at the door and made sure that it was locked, then turned to finish her stocking. Whoever was at her front door was probably drunk and looking for a reading. People were under the misconception that she was a physic. She was not.

  Finally, she finished with all the cleaning and looked around, she was satisfied that everything would be ready for opening tomorrow. Grabbing the list of potions she was going to have to make on the weekend, Lacy walked to the back door and paused. She felt the same presence back here. Not good. If it was a mugger she was in trouble, she left her crow bar in the car in case she needed it.

  Turning back to her store, she picked up the phone. Her father would be more than happy to come here, she knew. He had done it on more than one occasion, especially when it was Marti Gras.

  “Hello, honey. Are you on your way? Your mom is in a tizzy, she needs you here.” She heard the humor in her father"s voice. “Also, there is a lot we need to discuss.”

  “Uh, dad. Do you think you could come and get me?” Lacy whispered, like the person outside the store could hear her. Well if they were a shifter, they could.

  “Why?” Her father asked sharply. Lacy heard her mother in the background with her voice rose talking to someone. However, when her father spoke, she could hear her mother speaking frantically to her father.

  “What"s wrong? Is it Lacy?” Her mother asked.

  “Shhh.” Her father said and then spoke to her again. “Lacy, what"s going on?”

  “Nothing, I think there is a drunk outside, gave me an uneasy feeling. I just was wondering if you could come and get me. If you"re busy, I could just handle it.” Lacy said quickly.

  “NO!” Her mother yelled into the phone. Her father must have let her listen while Lacy was talking. “Do not leave the store. We are coming right now to get you.” Lacy frowned and looked at the phone in her hand. Did her mother really just hang up on her?

  Shaking her head, she put the phone down, then wandered back to the entrance, and stood there for a second. Whoever it was, had not left. She could feel the presence on the other side of the door.

  “Hello?” A male voice called. He could feel her. He was a shifter.

  “We"re closed.” Lacy called back and stepped back a little.

  “I know that, Lacy, I just want to talk to you.” The voice said.

  “How do you know my name? Who are you?” Lacy said wrapping her arms around herself and shivered.

  “I know a lot about you, Lacy. More than you probably do. Your parents did a very good job hiding you, but it couldn"t last forever.” The voice said.

  Lacy frowned and stepped closer to the door. “What the heck are you talking about?” She heard the man chuckle and then whispered something to someone else. “Lacy, I would much rather do this face to face. We need your help.” The voice said.

  “Who needs my help?” Lacy said and then stepped one more step closer to the door.

  Helping people is what she did.

  “We are having some problems in our Pack. Some of our females are getting hurt. We have been looking for you for a long time. I know you don"t remember, but you used to belong to our Pack. Your mother was an advisor on
the Council. Then she took you and left without any warning. We have missed you, and needed you. We knew your powers were strong. So did your mother. I think she was afraid that you would take over for her. She knew that you were more powerful.” The voice said softly.

  Lacy frowned and looked at the door. They were lying. She had been born here in New Orleans. And her parents certainly never belonged to a Pack. That, they would have told her.

  “Look, I don"t know who you are, or why you think I"m the person you are looking for, but you are wrong. My parents are on their way, so if you don"t want to find out firsthand how protective my father is, you had better leave.” Lacy called and slowly backed away from the door. She was not going to open it until her parents were here.

  Of course, the laws of physics were not on her side again.

  She heard her father and mother at the back door, they had a key. She turned and once again tripped on the damn carpet that she loved when she bought it. The damn thing had caused her nothing but problems today; it was like it had a mind of its own.

  Lacy screamed when she tripped and stuck her hand out, putting it right through the glass case that was situated by the entrance. She felt the presence at the front door try to use magic to get in. Damnit, she thought it was a shifter. If they were a witch, they were not too powerful because the locks held, thank the Gods.

  Her parents ran into the store and gasped when they saw the blood coming from her arm. Lacy grimaced and then said, “Sorry, tripped.” Her father shook his head and her mother frowned and looked at the front door. “Who was here?” Her mom whispered and stepped toward the door.

  “Don"t know. Some weird guy.” She muttered and then tried to get her arm out of the cabinet without too much damage.

  ***

  The Master leader faded back across the street from the store he had been standing in front of. He came here himself this time, the idiots he kept sending could never seal the deal, and he needed to catch a break. Right now he had the New Council right where he wanted them. They were stuck in Milliken, with the help of a few of his new recruits.

  Looking across the street he sniffed, bears. Damnit, somehow shifters had found her.

  The Rogues had paid a lot of money to hack into the New Council"s communications.

  There were only missing a few of the Chosen. If they weren"t careful, Quin and the rest of the New Council would find all of their missing members. That was not acceptable.

  The Chosen were under the assumption that when they found all the Chosen they completed the Prophesy. They didn"t know the rest of what the Seer said. Only three people knew the truth, and two were dead. He had made sure of it. When the Seer went to the Old Council with her Prophesy, it had been incomplete. When he went to see the woman later that week, she had been excited. The rest of the Prophesy had been revealed to her.

  He assured her that he would bring it to the Council, but instead he and his other partners held on to it. They had a plan already in motion. One of the Chosen was going to disappear. They were going to hold the child until she was old enough to gain her shifting ability. Then they were going to systematically take the rest of the Chosen and change the Prophesy to meet their needs. With all the Chosen, they would have been able to take over the human world.

  Everything went wrong though. First, the dumbass who took the Chosen lost her, and then the rest of the families scattered too quick. They were not able to track them, so the Rogues had to fade back into the woodwork until the opportunity rose again. He hated acting like he was concerned and apathetic to the Alpha, but he was supposed to be his friend. Ha, what a joke that was. Oliver was a pompous ass. Boo hoo, my wife and children were killed. He was supposed to have great power, and he let it all go. He should have used it wisely, women could be bought, and children obtained. Power was what was important.

  For years, he had sat there, watched and waited, holding the old man"s hand. Now, he was in the perfect position. They all thought he was going to be an asset to the New Council, ha; no, he was just waiting and biding his time. They thought he was hunting the Rogue leader, which was why he was not at the compound or in Denver. Oliver was so trusting. Of course, he had made sure the man did not realize what he was doing.

  He thought that when his computer expert hacked into the Pack computers he would get the upper hand. But each time they tried to get ahead of the New Council they failed. It was pissing him off. This time he had been here in more than enough time. Who had sent bears? It had not even been in the computer that they found another one of the Chosen.

  Hell, he had just figured it out himself when he was talking to his new helpers. They spoke of their coven leader. How she spoke about the Prophesy, and that it would be soon when the Alphas discovered the spirits had picked one of their own to be a Chosen.

  How arrogant Oliver had been, thinking the spirits had chosen only wolves to be on the Council. It had been part of the rest of the Prophesy that only he knew. The Chosen and their mates would be a mixture of magical creatures. It was the only way for the final part of the Prophesy to come to fruition. He was not going to let that happen.

  The magical community needed to stay hidden, if humans knew they existed, it would change everything. Right now, they could use their powers to control the humans.

  Making money and leading countries was what it was all about. He was not going to give up all he had worked for. Soon he wouldn"t have to. He would have what he needed and no one was going to stop him.

  Swinging around, he looked one last time at the store and walked down the street. He was sure that he would be able to get to her or one of the mates soon. He needed leverage.

  ***

  Lacy"s mother looked out the window and watched the shadowed man walk away. She shivered and thought that her daughter had avoided capture tonight. Danger was near and she needed to leave here, and go to where she finally belonged.

  Her mother closed her eyes and felt outward so she could feel the man"s power; she wanted to be able to recognize it when she saw it again.

  She turned back, looked at her husband, and nodded. He sighed and bent to help their daughter. It was past time to tell Lacy about her past. They thought that she had been hidden, but her coven sisters knew. Recently they had had a break in in the coven.

  Some of them did not agree with the way the future New Council was planning. They liked the way things were. Several of her sister witches had left the coven.

  She looked to the door and smiled. The twin bears had just entered the store and they were looking right at her daughter. She knew when they showed up this afternoon who they were. The spirits had chosen well for her daughter. She could feel the connection between them. When she had met them and used a simple spell to see what kind of shifters they were, she consulted the tree of life she had in her spell room and she had known. These were her daughter"s mates. Twin bears, meant to protect and keep her safe.

  Lacy was not going to be happy with her or her father. It is a good thing she will have her mates to talk to.

  Chapter 4

  Blaine looked at his mother and frowned. She was telling him that he needed to have more faith in his brothers. He did have faith in them, which was not the issue. The issue was that they were sent to New Orleans to find a witch.

  “Your brothers are competent enough to find who they are looking for. Besides the Alpha female is the one who sent them, go yell at her.” His mother said and sniffed.

  “Right, like she would listen to me. She is a force of nature; I just don"t want them to get into any trouble. We don"t know much about the coven down there, for all we know they could curse them and send them on their way. Then we would have to listen to them whine forever about it.” Blaine said.

  His mother laughed and patted her hand on his face. “You should be more worried about letting your mates claim you, don"t think I didn"t notice that they both bare your mark but you don"t. Care to explain that to me?”

  Blaine blushed and looked around the room. Ta
lking with his mom about this was probably the most uncomfortable thing he had done in a long time. His mates understood.

  “Ma, that is between me and my mates.” Blaine said.

  “Well, I want grandbabies. Look at the rest of the Chosen, they are all pregnant or have had kids. You are not going to deny me that are you?” His mother said. “Until they claim you, Kira can"t get pregnant, I am not stupid.” Blaine sighed and looked at the ceiling. Some things were not allowed to be told to anyone outside the Council. But this was his mother.

  “Ma, don"t worry, you will get your grandchildren. Now is not the time for my mates to claim me.” Blaine said.

  His mother looked worried and looked at him intently. “What is going on?” Blaine laughed and then kissed his mother on the forehead and whispered, “When the time comes, we shall have a child.”

  He walked away, wishing the shadow around the compound would be gone soon. This many people in the Chosen compound made for little privacy.

  Kira and Dalton came around the corner and he went to them. “My mom is asking questions.” He said to his mates after he kissed them.

  Kira laughed and wrapped her arms around him. “Soon, we have to do what the spirits tell us and right now they say that it is too dangerous for us to claim you. We have to trust the visions. Something will happen soon.”

  “Yeah, but I don"t think it"s going to be what the Alphas want.” Blaine said.

  Chapter 5

  Sevi and Shawn entered the small store and their eyes instantly went to the woman who was lying on the floor bleeding. They paused for a few moments and sniffed the air.

  Their mate. They had found their mate, and she was perfect.