Entity Mine (13 page)

Anjali toyed with the end of her braid. “Some kind of suspended animation may also have been at work.” She stretched out her hand as if to probe his bicep for structural integrity. “I’d like to take some samples—”

Jake stood and took Anjali’s arm. “You can’t research him right now, darling.”

“Why not?” Anjali’s brow furrowed.

“One, because your ride’s here—”

Ethan jumped a little as he noticed a tall man with a long, rugged face standing in the foyer. He wore a T-shirt and jeans like the rest of them, but his posture made it seem like he wore a tuxedo. Ethan tensed. He hadn’t heard the man come in and that never happened. Honey hadn’t even barked.

“And two, because it’s rude to study people while they’re eating.”

She smiled at Ethan, a thin, sheepish grin and turtled her head in apology. “Oh, right. Sorry.” She turned to the stranger. “Are you sure you’re up to another trip?”

A tiny quirk of the mouth cracked his stern visage. “Sure you are?”

She walked over to him and put her hand in his arm, as if going to the ball.

The stranger acknowledged the room with a slight bow. “
Ciao
,” he said and they disappeared.

Ethan almost leaped to his feet. “What the hell?”

Jake and Kyle exchanged a glance and Jake raised an eyebrow. “You don’t know how right you are.

After Jake had explained his friend could phase, teleporting from one place to another, and why they’d been talking about killing him in the car, Devon had excused herself to take the eager Honey for a walk.

She’d claimed she thought he needed to have the chance to be alone with his brothers. He hoped that was the truth. Part of him feared there was more to it than that. Hell, he hadn’t felt so unsure of a situation since he was a kid.

He checked the clock on the microwave. They’d been talking now for more than an hour, explaining to him how they’d come to be separated as kids, showing him old videos and telling him about his parents.

It was a lot to take in.

He rubbed the back of his neck, re-visiting the conversation he’d overheard in the car. “You thought I’d turned into a man-eater?”

Jake shrugged. “We’d heard reports about your fight with Laird, then you disappeared and, of course, there was the fact that you attacked us.”

Ethan folded his hands and rested his elbows on the chipped surface of the table. “If I hadn’t believed I was a ghost for months, this whole chimera thing would seem like a Syfy Channel original movie.” He examined his knuckles. “And no matter what Anjali said. I didn’t eat for three months. How am I not dead?”

Jake propped his feet on the table and bolstered his head with his hands from behind. “How do we go from 200 pounds to a couple tons? Magic.”

“Magic?” He chuffed. “How did I screw up magic.”

Jake shrugged again. “There are still rules. Anjali thinks you don’t have a strong default.”

“And you do.” Ethan’s glance encompassed both his brothers.

Jake nodded. “I always turn lion and Ky’s default is dragon. But chimeras need to mate around thirty and without a mate . . .”

“They go off the rails?”

His younger brother—God it felt strange to think that—shrugged. “Once they get near the edge, their default can waver and strong emotions, especially anger, can spontaneously trigger a change.”

Ky looked out through the foyer toward the window in the front door. He sat in shadow and his eyes shone green like an animal caught in a headlight’s glare.

Ah, that was why Ky seemed so much, well, wilder than his brother. “You’re unmated,” Ethan said to him.

Ky nodded and took a sip of the coffee Devon had provided before she’d left.

In a flash of insight, Ethan understood his brother hung on to his humanity by a thread. He’d been much the same six months ago. What had changed? “Devon is my mate.” The words escaped him without a pause to consider, but he knew them for the truth.

Jake pulled at his square jaw. “That’s what we figure.”

“How does the mating work?”

Jake leaned forward. “When you first meet, you’ll notice she can calm your inner beasts when emotions cause a spontaneous change. There’s a couple of flip sides though.” Jake took a swig of coffee. “One is before you’ve fully mated you’ll find physical distance from her causes you pain.”

Ethan eyed the hand that was massaging what he’d thought was mild heartburn. “What does full mating entail? Dancing naked under a full moon?”

Ky almost sprayed the mouthful of coffee he’d taken. “No. More like the horizontal tango.”

Air hissed into Ethan’s throat through his teeth at the thought of making love to Devon, but he pushed the image away. “What’s the second flip-side?”

“You’ll be quicker to anger until you’re mated, and even more prone to changing without conscious thought.”

“Great.” At least he wasn’t likely to ghost again now that he knew what he was and how it worked. He raked a palm over his crew cut.

Jake cleared his throat with a glance at Ky. “And . . .”

Alarm roused Ethan’s lion. “And what?” He grimaced, the rough, growl-like timbre of his voice shocking him. He gulped some coffee to steady his emotions.

“Chimera mates are latent chimeras. After you’re mated, she’ll be able to shift as well.”

Ethan blew out a sigh ending with a whistle. “And I was worried about telling Devon we’re mates. Shapeshifting should go over well, especially when she’s seen how natural it came to me.”

The doorknob rattled. Devon entered with Honey. A breeze had sprung up and his mate—God, that sounded so right—looked windblown in a delicious way that made him want to drag her to the nearest bed.

The dog bounced up to Ethan and licked his hands.

Devon closed the door. “You guys catch up?” She sounded a little breathless and ran a hand through her hair as if uneasy.

Ethan leaned back. “It’s a start.” A well of hope bubbled in his chest. It really was a fresh start. A chance for him to really live. He hadn’t loved his life before, but three months in limbo had spotlighted just how empty it’d been.

All that time, and he’d thought no one had come looking for him, no one had cared. But he had family, and now Devon.

He stood to go to Devon, wanting to touch her, to kiss her, but before he could move from behind his chair she went to the carafe on the counter and poured a mug of steaming coffee. “Well, I’d better finish packing.”

And just like that, the well of hope burst and flowed away. She didn’t want him anymore than any of his foster families had. Before he could speak past the tight knot in his throat, there was a knock on the door.

Honey barked.

Devon patted her on her knobby head as the dog bounded by her side to the door. “You’re supposed to bark
before
they knock.”

Devon opened the door and greeted someone, then backed up to let the person in.

Beth entered saying, “I forgot my—” She stopped at the sight of the three men at the table. Her gaze came to rest on Ethan and she looked at him sideways, eyelids half-lowered. “Ethan?”

Chapter 21

The joy in Beth’s voice sent a dark dart of something unpleasant through Devon’s chest. She took a sip of hot coffee to quell the feeling. So Beth was excited to see Ethan alive. She’d known him longer, after all.

Devon buried a sigh in her drink as Beth hugged Ethan. Her petite friend made him look like a giant. Though, he didn’t need much help. There was no more than a few inches of clearance between him and the domed foyer light.

Longer? Devon almost groaned. Despite her feelings to the contrary, she didn’t really know him at all. She certainly had no basis for jealousy. No matter how it might have seemed when he’d shifted back to human in the forest.

God. How happy she’d been to see him in the flesh. At the time, he’d appeared equally happy.
Of course, he was happy, you twit. He’d been in some kind of weird limbo for months.

Devon stuck her hands in her jeans pocket and tried to look involved in the reunion. Ethan hadn’t said two words to her since she’d walked in. For a moment, she’d thought he might come to her. Had she imagined their connection?

“What happened, Ethan?” Beth drew back, her eyes gleaming with tears, her nose a bit pink. “We thought you were dead.”

Ethan glanced at his brothers. She saw each give almost imperceptible headshakes. The brothers didn’t want him to tell the truth.

A breath snagged in Devon’s throat. Damn. If telling the truth was out, how could they possibly explain this?

Ethan cleared his throat. The collar of the soft, black T-shirt Jake had thrown at him seemed as tight as a wetsuit, the room as airless and cramped as a decompression chamber. “Ah, I was as good as.”

Beth shook her head. “What do you mean?”

Ethan skimmed his hand from the back of his neck over his crew cut to his forehead, his hair prickling his palm. “My friends came by. We had a fight, and after they left, I decided to go for a walk.”

He blew out a sigh. God, he hated lying to Beth. Though he’d never trusted himself enough to allow her to get close, she’d been the only one who’d given a shit when he’d disappeared.

He glanced at his brothers, the tension in his chest easing. Well, maybe not the only one. He rubbed his hand on his thigh. “I don’t know what came over me. I just wanted to see the ocean.”

Beth nodded, as if that made some sense to her.

He sighed, fumbling for an explanation of his three month disappearance that didn’t make him seem like a selfish asshole, or worse, sound like a movie plot. “I walked and I hitched. When I got to the coast, I interrupted something illegal. I still don’t know what.”

Beth gasped. Her hand cupped over her mouth.

“The next thing I knew I was stranded. In Cuba.”

“My God!” Beth’s eyes couldn’t get any wider.

Now what? Sea Turtles, Captain Jack?
The laughing male voice seemed to sound inside his head. He looked around, finding Jake’s eyes glinting with private amusement.

How
?

Jake raised a dark eyebrow.
You can accept shapeshifting, and phasing, but telepathy surprises you?

Conscious of the lengthening silence, Ethan palmed his head again. “Without any papers or money, and given the relationship between our governments, all I could do was keep my head down and work illegally until I earned enough to pay to be smuggled back in the country.” Farfetched, but at least he’d avoided claiming amnesia. He shoved his hands into his jeans pockets and ignored his younger brother’s laughing gaze.

Beth shook her head again, her honey-streaked curls quivering. “It’s hard to believe something like that could happen in this day and age.

Not as hard to believe as what really happened? Eh, bro?

Ethan fought the urge to elbow Jake in his moose-sized ribcage and patted Beth’s shoulder, but before he could speak she gasped, jerked, and seemed to swell. Blotchy red patches formed on her face.

Devon was on her feet in an instant. “Beth, are you okay?”

Beth’s lips moved, but the gruff voice that emerged from them sounded nothing like her own. “I’m sorry. Beth isn’t here right now.”

Chapter 22

“Quit kidding around, Beth.” Devon stared at her friend’s face. The light flooding in behind Beth from the window in the front door threw her friend’s pretty features into shadow, but the whites of her eyes gleamed and her pupils completely eclipsed the irises, turning them black.

A sinking feeling settled in Devon’s chest. Damn it. The demonic.

The corners of Beth’s lips stretched toward her cheeks revealing all her teeth, but her eyes stayed flat like a shark’s.

God, that’s an ugly smile.

Devon’s heart rate surged. She swallowed. With all her experience as a kid with the things that went bump in the night, she’d never seen anyone else overshadowed, but if Beth was playing, she was giving an Oscar-winning performance. Was this what she’d looked like the night it had happened to her?

Ethan laid his hand on Beth’s shoulder, his hazel gaze locked on her friend. “Beth? What’s going on?”

His obvious worry sent a spurt of something cold and slimy washing over Devon.
Jealous, much?
She shook her head, trying to throw off the feeling.

Helping Beth was the important thing now. And the fiend would only draw strength from such negative thoughts.

Devon exhaled hard, encompassing the group with a swift glance. “She’s possessed.”

Ethan reared back.

Jake and Kyle turned.

She suddenly had the laser-focused attention of all three shapeshifting brothers. The experience was a bit intense and she had to fight not to back away.

Jake crossed his forearms, his biceps stretching his T-shirt, his gaze skating past her in his diffident way. “You wanna run that by us again?”

Beth lunged at Devon, her hands curled into slashing claws. “Shut up, bitch!”

Shit
. Devon threw her hands up to shove Beth away, but the willowy blonde was too strong.

Just as Beth’s hands brushed Devon’s already-sore neck, Ethan jerked the blonde away, wrapping the kicking, biting woman in a bear hug. Devon felt tiny breezes rush past as Beth strafed the air with her fingernails and tried to reach Devon with a slender espadrilled foot.

He grunted with effort. “You two just gonna stand there? She’s fuckin’ strong.”

Jake and Kyle exchanged a wary look that would have made Devon chuckle under other circumstances, then moved forward. In a heartbeat, they’d steered Beth into a ladder-backed kitchen chair, pinning her shoulders against the back with their massive hands, while Ethan used his knee to keep her writhing body in the seat. Devon ran to her bedroom, tossing clothing out of her drawers, scrounging for something to hold her, and finally coming up with some filmy silk scarves. Ugh!
They’d better be stronger than they seem.

She grimaced, her heart in her mouth, as she tied her lifelong friend’s arms to the chair, trying to be gentle, but Beth growled and snapped with her teeth whenever Devon got too near and she wasn’t sure if it was tears or sweat burning her eyes. When the possessed woman was secure, Ethan wrapped a powerful hand around Devon’s wrist and towed her into the living room, his brothers following.

Kyle’s eyes flashed green. “Now, what the hell is going on?”

The sight of those glowing eyes sent Devon’s adrenaline spiking. She held up her hands, palms out, swiping her damp forehead with her elbow. “We’ve had a little bit of a ghost problem.”

She rambled through a hasty summary of her experiences in the house.

Jake’s mouth dropped open. “A little problem? Lady, mice are a ‘little problem.’ What you’ve got here is a full-on ‘situation.’”

Kyle raised a hard palm, his eyes, thankfully, a more human green. “I’ll call John.”

She took a deep breath, glancing between the brothers. “Who’s John? An exorcist or something?” The idea they knew someone who could help made her want to hug them.

Kyle rubbed his neck. “Or something. You’ve already met him. I hope he has the energy to phase back here again.”

Ethan’s eyes narrowed. “I take it from your tone the emphasis is on ‘thing.’”

Ethan’s voice held a strange raspy edge, that sent a shiver down Devon’s spine.

Jake’s mouth quirked. “If you consider a demon a thing.”

“No way.” Ethan glared at his brother.

Devon found herself speechless for a full minute. “Are you crazy? We already have one demon too many here.”

Kyle shook his head. “There are all different kinds of demon. John isn’t the type that possesses people, but believe me, we need his knowledge.”

Devon licked her lips, aware of the grunts and squeaks of Beth struggling in the kitchen. They couldn’t keep her tied up forever and she could hurt herself or someone else. She threw up her hands. “Okay, call this pet demon.”

“Actually, I’m only half-demon.”

Devon jumped and spun around. The same dark stranger from earlier had once again
not
used the door, and seeing him closer now, looked like nobody’s pet. She sucked in a breath to slow her tripping heart and fought to give the impression she handled deadly shapeshifters, demonic possession, and uninvited half-demons every day before breakfast; twice on Sundays.

Ethan moved to make a barrier between Devon and the rugged newcomer. The block wasn’t necessary, but it spawned a tiny bubble of warmth in her chest. He leveled a challenging stare at his brother’s friend. “You’re John, I suppose?”

The man eyed the tense set of Ethan’s shoulders and the way he had planted his body between him and Devon and smiled. There was a bit of the devil in his eyes, but none of the malicious glee that whatever had hold of Beth had displayed. “I guess I’d better be.”

“He is.” Kyle sounded aggrieved as he strode past Ethan and clapped the man on the shoulder. “Behave or I will change your official title to ‘pet.’” He threw a glance over his shoulder at Jake. “It has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?”

Jake just stared at the ceiling, his brows knit in a long-suffering expression.

Kyle slid a sidelong glance at John as if he’d just realized something was off. “Wait, why are you back here?”

Jake zeroed his suddenly golden gaze on the other man. “There’s nothing wrong with Anjali, is there?”

John shook his head. “She’s fine and—” He looked at Kyle, catching him with the air of someone about to speak. “—the other’s fine, too. Anjali’s got everything under control and I thought you might need my help.” He’d supported his chin with his fist, but now opened his hand and waved it in the air. “It turns out you do.”

Devon rubbed at her brow. Who, or what, was the other?

Jake grinned, his teeth white and even. “You mean you ran out of trouble at home and went looking for more.”

She’d like to see Ethan smile like that.

John shrugged.

Rolling her eyes, Devon flung her arm in the direction of the kitchen. “Hello. Woman tied to a chair? Can you bring your friend up to speed before she hurts herself?”

Restraining a growl, Ethan moved out of the way as Devon steamed into the kitchen, muttering something that sounded like, “Men!” and then followed her. The lion side of him hated having so many other males around his mate and he could feel his fingers prickle as if claws or talons lurked under the surface.

He forced himself to breathe slow and even, as if he wore a regulator. He’d only just regained his life. No way would he lose himself now.

At the table, poor Beth continued to fight against her bonds. Her wrists were red and chafed, would no doubt bruise, but she acted as if she didn’t even feel them. Her eyes were frightening in their diamond-bright malice.

Ethan clenched his fists, burning for a knife to hold, something physical to fight. How the hell did you handle someone who’s possessed? Three months ago, he hadn’t even believed in ghosts, let alone possession. God, he was out of his depth.

John looked the writhing woman up and down and turned back to them, raising a thick eyebrow. “You’re sure she’s possessed, and not just pissed off because you tied her to this chair?”

Beth snapped the air with her teeth. “Come closer, so I can rip you a new one, asshole.’

Devon jerked her head at Beth. “Does that sound like a normal woman?”

John raised both eyebrows. “Is she a chain-smoking truck-driver?”

The look Devon aimed at the man could have burned holes in sheet metal. “No.”

He shrugged, stuffing his hands into his jeans pockets. “Then, not really.”

Ethan swallowed another growl. “Can you help her or not?”

“Of course I can help her.” John walked around the table, so he could see Beth’s face. “So, what’s your name?” he asked, as if meeting a woman in a club.

“My name is Legion.”

John’s gaze bounced to the ceiling and back. “Really? You going through the inhuman spirit playbook?” Despite the light tenor or his words, he leaned over the table, bracing his weight on his spread fingers. The position was familiar to anyone who’d watched an actor play “bad cop,” but it was clear the half-demon wasn’t playing at anything. All levity washed from John’s features and his eyes took on a slightly red glow. “What’s. Your. Name?”

“You think I’m just going to hand over my name and let you banish me? Think again,” the fiend ground out in a voice rough enough to cut glass.

“If you’re not going to give me a name, I’m going to have to call you Harvey . . .” John said, his tone that of a man warning a small child about an earlier bedtime.

The creature in Beth’s body growled. The chair began to shake harder, rocking on its wooden legs, joints squeaking.

Ethan grabbed Devon, hugging her slight frame against him as the chair tilted wildly then lifted into the air.