Keeper (Matefinder Next Generation Book 1) (8 page)

Looking over at Gavin, I noticed that he had been holding eye contact with my mother for a while, something that should be impossible for a human to do. He didn’t know it meant a challenge, but I could see my mother’s wolf bristle.

“You’re going to meet a very dear friend of mine, someone like you,” she told him.

Gavin looked away then and I could see my mother’s wolf settle. That’s when I smelled him, Nahuel. He smelled like sage and lavender, and I heard it was impossible not to like the guy even though my mother said he spoke in metaphors. I had never met him, but I grew up hearing stories of his power, his heroic nature and gentle spirit. My mother loved him, considered him family, and so would I.

Out of the woods, behind a thick tree, Nahuel began to trek toward us. He was tall, mid-forties with a sharpened bone hanging from a thread on his neck and he had a tattoo of a jaguar on his arm. His wrists were wrapped in leather cuffs and adorned with turquoise. The air hummed with some sort of tangible power and I instinctively knew this guy would be an Alpha if he were a werewolf. A long, thick brown braid, threaded with silver hairs, hung half-way down his back.

My mother quickly leaned into me and whispered in my ear. “Remember, Anya, the future can always change.” Her voice was worrying and it gave me goosebumps as she crossed the gap between her and Nahuel and gave him a long hug.

Why did she just say that? What else did she see in her vision? Oh God, the unknown made me sick. I was a control freak and I wanted to know everything. I knew then my mother was hiding something. I wanted to interrogate her and know everything about her vision but Nahuel stood before her, the slightest hint of a smile, eyes twinkling.

“Hello, Sister,” he greeted her.

My mother’s face lit up. “Do you age?”

Nahuel simply quirked his head to the side. “Do you?”

My mother laughed. “I’ve missed your guidance, friend. I have someone that I think you can help.”

Stepping to the side, she motioned to Gavin who stood there awkwardly behind her with his hands in his pockets.

The second his gaze fell on Gavin, Nahuel looked alarmed. Tipping his nose up, he smelled the air. His features hardened and his mouth curled upside down.

“You’re a dead man walking.”

His words slammed into me and I growled, taking up a protective stance next to Gavin.

Nahuel put his hands out to me, looking me up and down. “Calm down, pup. I won’t hurt him, but his sickness will kill you if you don’t find a way to stop it.”

The air was charged with his prophecy and I felt so helpless. His sickness will kill me? Is that what he just said? I glanced at my mother and saw that she looked defeated, like she expected him to say that. Is that what she saw in her vision? How would his sickness affect me? Gavin looked shocked, mouth hanging open.

Gavin stepped forward then, standing tall, brave. “What sickness? What’s wrong with me?”

Nahuel pulled out a sage bundle and holding it to his palm, he ignited it. What the? I didn’t even see him get a lighter.

Walking closer, I tensed as he fanned Gavin with the smoke. I was about to ask this asshat what he was doing when I saw the smoke curl around Gavin’s body and reveal a wolf shape. Where Gavin’s normally short nose was, the smoke showed a long snout. Gavin held his hands in front of his face and the smoky shape of a wolf’s paw formed in his palm like a 3D sculpture.

“Holy shit.” Gavin’s voice sounded in awe but his face showed relief.

I gasped.

“I thought I was going crazy, having this fur on my arms, the fevers, the dreams.” He looked over at me and I blushed. The dreams? Did he have them, too?

Nahuel nodded. “When our kind are born, we train them their entire lives to go on a spirit walk when they are thirteen to identify their power animal. For shamans, we have the ability to shift into that animal after the spirit walk.”

My mother stepped closer to Nahuel, taking in every word.

He continued, “But … you were cast aside, neglected, brought up in a white man’s world and did not go on your spirit walk to connect with your animal. So now your soul is torn in two, half full.”

“And whose fault is that?” I countered, seeing the sadness etch into Gavin’s face.

Nahuel only smirked at me, then turned to my mother. “She’s got your temper.”

My mother nodded. “Worse.”

I rolled my eyes. “How do we help Gavin? Horror stories aren’t helping. Why is he dying? How does that affect me?”

Nahuel placed a hand on my shoulder and a calmness spread throughout my body, then all of a sudden, I was sucked up out of my body and into a vision.

I was standing in a corn field, the sun high overhead, Nahuel stood like a sentinel before me. A knowing gaze twinkled in his eye.

My heart was pounding as I looked around and then down at my body which seemed real. My mother had told me about her visions with Nahuel but nothing prepared me for this feeling. Of being here
and
back there on Mount Hood. It was like my mind had been taken to this reality but my body was on Mount Hood.

Nahuel took his thumb and placed it on my forehead, smearing it with ash. “You have a great purpose, little pup, just like your mother.”

My breaths were ragged. Nahuel was a God to my mother, she respected him so much. I didn’t want to offend him, but I couldn’t bear to walk on egg shells.

“Why are we here?” I gestured to the corn fields.

Nahuel took in a deep breath. “I love your mother and trust her with my life, but what I am about to tell you is for your ears only. It’s your path and you alone can choose whom you want to walk it with.”

Oh, shit. Here we go. I swore I could feel Jaxon just then. As my nerves heightened, Jaxon’s strength flooded our twin bond.

“Alright, hit me with it,” I told him and was rewarded with a grin from the normally stoic shaman.

“You and Gavin are True Mates. That means no matter your species; witch, vampire, werewolf or shaman, you are destined to be together and have children if you wish.”

The breath tore from my lungs as I processed his claims. Whoa. Heavy. Okay. His words filled me with excitement though. It was near impossible. I had never heard of True Mates, but my great, great grandmother had been a witch and her mate a werewolf. That’s why my mother and Jax and I were half of each. So it must be possible. I never really stopped to think about it. Holy shit.

The shaman’s face clouded over. “That was the good news.”

Oh. I groaned. “The bad news?”

The shaman stared out onto the corn fields. “If Gavin dies, you die too because you are linked like mates without ever having to have a mating ceremony. You were born mated.”

Okay, super intense. I hadn’t even gone on a date with this guy. “I’m not afraid of death.” I held my chin high because I was my father’s daughter and nothing would shake fear into me.

Nahuel was lightning quick then, grabbing the sides of my face and bringing me closer to peer into his eyes.

“You should be, little pup, because if you die, the world as you know it is over, and your people will be slaughtered.”

Before I could react, he touched his forehead to mine and suddenly I was standing in the middle of downtown L.A. The Staples Center loomed on the left. People were running in all directions, looting and breaking windows. Humans were using whips, chains, axes, and guns to capture werewolves. A young werewolf, maybe twelve years old, banged against a silver cage in the back of a pick-up truck that drove past us. The human who sat in the back with the cage, stuck a Taser inside and the young wolf writhed in pain as he was shocked. Ten feet from me, I saw a girl with blonde hair and a wolf tattoo on her neck. The man holding the whip grabbed her ankle and yanked as she slammed head first into the pavement, cracking her teeth.

I hunched over and vomited on the concrete in front of me.

“Why!” I panted to Nahuel who stood behind me. I knew from my mother that this was some glimpse into the future; if I tried to help these wolves, my body would just pass through like a ghost. I was just a watcher here, I could do nothing.

Nahuel touched my back and suddenly I was back in the corn fields, flat on the ground with him standing over me.

“Because, the werewolves have something they want, something they need.”

“The humans? What … what is it?” Tears flowed down my cheeks. No. This couldn’t happen. We protected humans, loved them. Werewolves had always been there for the humans. How could they do this to us?

“That’s for you to figure out. This is your life purpose. Not mine.”

“Argh!” I growled and stood. “Please don’t give me metaphors while my True Mate and I are dying and the humans are about to wipe us all out. ‘Cause I will seriously go apeshit.”

My fists balled as I felt rage build up inside of me. No visions for twenty years and now this? Have you ever woken from a really bad dream and felt sick the whole day? This vision would stick with me for the rest of my life. That kid, in the cage like a dog. The young werewolf girl and her teeth getting smashed out. It was awful.

Nahuel looked at me like a father trying to deal with his hormonal teenage daughter. “Contrary to what you may think, I don’t know everything. I have done my own vision ceremonies and this is all I have seen. The humans want the wolves for something. I don’t know what. Gavin is your True Mate and if he dies, you die. That’s all I know.”

“Oh.” I stared at my Converse sneakers. “I liked you better when I thought you knew everything and could stop time,” I teased. Nahuel was growing on me. I could see why my mother liked him so much.

He reached out his hand and I took it.

“I can stop time.” He winked.

My mouth popped open in surprise and all of a sudden I was slammed back into my body.

I opened my eyes to find that I was lying flat on the ground. Gavin stood over me in a crouched position and my mother was backed up against a tree.

Nahuel, standing a few feet from Gavin, cocked his head to the side. “Interesting.”

I sat up and Gavin stood from his crouched position, shaking his head and looking down at his furry arms.

“What happened?” I asked breathless, the vision with Nahuel still playing in my mind. My mother stepped forward now, staring at Gavin.

“He was protecting you. His eyes went yellow, and …”

Gavin’s arms began to lose the fur and I suddenly felt feverish.

Gavin extended his hand to help me. Taking my hand, he pulled me up with a strong, firm grip and then I was smashed into his bare chest. We were nose to nose, his eyes still threaded with yellow, his wolf.

“You fainted, and … something took over. I …” His voice was husky and my belly warmed. God, he smelled so good. I guess Gretchen’s spell wasn’t exactly 100%. I mean, technically he didn’t have claws, but…

I suddenly became keenly aware that my mother and Nahuel were watching us, but still I couldn’t bring myself to tear my gaze away. His wolf was half-way out, protecting me. How? How did he even have a wolf if what Nahuel said was true?

‘Kiss him,’
Jax taunted in my head and the moment was ruined. I sighed, stepping back I looked toward the house to see Jax watching through an open curtain.

‘Grow up, Jax. This is serious shit,’
I scolded my twin.

Gavin took a few steps toward my mother. “I’m sorry if I scared you.” His head was low. Shame.

My mother’s lips quirked. “I wasn’t scared, just giving your wolf space so he didn’t feel threatened.”

She reached out and touched his shoulder.

My upper lip was sweating now as the fever climbed higher. Nahuel was looking from Gavin to me and back again.

“You get his fevers. He gets your wolf,” Nahuel stated.

“What?” my mother and I asked in unison. Jesus Christ, I was the most impatient woman in the world. Nahuel’s half-assed riddles would be the death of me.

Nahuel looked intrigued. “I must speak with someone. I’ll be back soon. I have an idea.”

Then he simply walked away, but before he got out of sight, he called back to Gavin.

“Don’t leave her side. She’s your mate.”

Then he was gone. Shit! Really? You’re going to drop that bomb before you leave? Fricken shaman.

“What the …” Gavin started, and looked at me with a gaze I couldn’t interpret. Relief? Excitement? I was pretty sure my cheeks were the color of strawberries and it wasn’t the fever.

“…hell is going on?” My mother finished his sentence and looked at me.

I shrugged. “I can’t even process what just happened.” I knew my mother would understand about the visions and how traumatizing and confusing they could be. She nodded but Gavin was still staring oddly at me, as if with a renewed wonder.

“May I talk to you privately?” he asked me and my mother raised one eyebrow and suppressed a smile. She nodded and walked off into the house. Gavin walked a few feet off into the thick wooded area and I nervously followed. I picked at my cuticles. This was so god damn awkward. Why did Nahuel have to spill that news? The word mate was so weird to a human.

“So, we’re mates.” He said it like it was no big deal. Humans didn’t understand what meeting your mate was like. It wasn’t like a boyfriend or even a husband. It was your
mate
. It was the other half of your soul. The person you were meant to walk the earth with, to go through everything with, to have children with. I didn’t know what to say. My wolf had risen to the surface, staking her claim.

“Yes,” she said with confidence.

He walked over and leaned in close, looking at my eyes. His breath was warm and smelled good, like cinnamon and home. My heart skipped a beat as he grabbed my hand and inspected my fingernails. My wolf ached for him to touch me and now that he did, I didn’t know what to do. My wolf wanted more, but I was trying to pump the brakes.

“What are you doing?” I asked dumbfounded.

Gavin gave me a sexy smile. “You’re a nail biter, with incredible blue eyes, a fierce personality, and you chew on your bottom lip when you’re nervous.”

I smiled huge and it turned into a laugh.

“And you have an amazing laugh.” He tucked a chunk of hair behind my ear. “You see, I’m just trying to get to know the beautiful girl I’ve been dreaming about for months.”

My breath caught. “The dreams … you saw me?”

He nodded. “Every time, every dream.”

The heat suddenly flushed through my body making my gasp. My wolf couldn’t take the distance any longer and suddenly I was pressed up against his tight muscular body.

“My wolf. She … I …” I didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t normally this forward, but this was my
mate
and my wolf wanted to put her scent all over him. Suddenly, I thought of the girl he was with at the bar and I forced myself to back up a few inches. His face fell as if he was anticipating something more. Dammit.

“Tomatoes,” I blurted.

“What?” His dark hair shook as he snapped out of whatever trance I had put him in.

“I hate tomatoes,” I offered and he smiled.

“Me too, but ketchup is fine.” His mannerisms were casual, but I was noticing every flex of his biceps. God, someone get this boy a shirt before I claim him right here with my mother and Alpha father in the house.

I nodded. “Obviously, but ketchup isn’t as good as ranch.”

His smile was so wide now I saw that the dimple on his right cheek was more indented than the left. “I guess we are mates, if you rank ranch above ketchup,” he told me, giving me a hooded gaze.

I smiled, eyeing his lips. “That’s it then. Definitely mates.”

‘His grandfather wants to see him when you guys are done making out,’
Jaxon told me and I groaned, blushing.

Gavin furrowed his brow. “What’s wrong?”

“My twin brother and I can talk into each other’s minds like an Alpha can with his pack mates.”

Gavin looked impressed. “Cool.”

“Your grandfather wants to see you,” I added.

He cleared his throat. “Right, that. Yeah. Let’s go.”

My wolf rose up then and I knew my eyes were yellow. “Is she your girlfriend?”

Shit! What? No! WTF. I did not mean to say that out loud. My wolf was at the wheel of this crazy train and now I wanted to die of embarrassment. He looked confused and then something dawned on him.

He chuckled. “Becky? The blonde from the bar?”

I had trouble suppressing the slight growl that came to my throat. I could only nod, afraid of what other damage my wolf would do.

He smiled. “She’s an ex-girlfriend who can’t let it go.”

Relief crashed over me, but I tried not to show it. As he passed by me to make a move toward the house, he leaned in to whisper in my ear. “She’s got nothing on you.”

My belly heated and it took every ounce of my self-control not to push him to the ground.

Game on.

I stood there and took a few moments to center myself and gather my wits before going in to see everyone. That vision kept replaying in my head. It was weird to have spent my whole life living in my mother’s shadow and now, here I was with my own big purpose to fulfill. To be honest, I was scared shitless. I just couldn’t believe that the humans would ever harm us. But the second I thought it, my hand went to the tattoo on my neck that branded me different from them. A tattoo they required for me to be in public with them.

“Shit.” I breathed. Who were those humans at the club last night and what did they want? What if it wasn’t an isolated incident? What if it was about to become a frequent occurrence? Snippets of the vision with Nahuel kept flashing into my mind. Chewing my lip, I knew I needed to warn my dad. He would get word to the wolves and warn the right people. I hated to even think it, but maybe we needed to start watching our backs around the humans.

Taking one last breath of the beautiful forest, I went inside. My dad’s baritone voice could be heard from the back door where I stood.

“I’m going to have to insist, sir. Gavin is linked with my daughter and I must protect them both. You’re welcome to bring your wife and stay as a family in one of my homes on the mountain.” I could tell my Alpha father was trying to make it sound like a request but it wasn’t.

Gavin’s grandfather sighed. “No, my wife wouldn’t be comfortable among so many of your kind. Gavin looks better since we brought him here, so I will have to trust that you can care for him now.”

I came into the living room and saw my father stand and shake Tom’s hand. “We will. You have my word.”

Gavin stood there awkwardly, but for once in his life Jaxon did something kind. “And you can visit anytime. Call every day,” Jaxon told Tom.

Tom smiled. “Thank you, son. That will be nice.”

So Gavin was coming to live with us? What the hell? I was gone three minutes. When did this happen?

“Okay, I can drive you home now.” I tried to usher the craziness out the door. Tom, Gavin, and Jax filed outside, but my father caught my upper arm.

“Young lady, is there something you need to tell me?” My father’s eyes were yellow. Holy shit. When he did that, I wanted to blurt out every bad thing I had ever done. I smoked one of Gretchen’s clove cigarettes with Jax when I was fourteen, I stole his car one night when I was fifteen, ahhh.

My mother saved me. “About the vision with Nahuel. Your energy is all over the place. Was it bad?” she offered.

Relief crashed over me and my dad was frowning. Thank God, Mom taught me to lock him out of my every thought when I was ten. “The vision, yes. It’s pretty bad. Dad, you should probably assemble the council. I will fill you all in when we get back.”

My father balked. “The council. Okay …”

I kissed his cheek. “Thanks for protecting him, Papa.”

When I pulled back, I saw emotion written all over his face. Before this talk could get serious, I bee-lined for the door. “I’ll be back in a couple hours.”

*

The drive to Gavin’s house was equal parts comical and awfully sad.

Tom tried to speak quietly but Jax and I heard it all.

“They brought the fever down, so they must know what they are doing.” His hand was on Gavin’s knee.

I looked in the rearview mirror at Gavin as Jax drove. Gavin simply nodded and stared out the window.

“So, you’re like them?” Tom whispered.

Gavin met his grandfather’s eyes. “Kind of.”

Tom nodded, patting Gavin’s leg. “I hope you’re not upset that I declined the big guy’s offer to live on the mountain, but you know your grandmother.”

Gavin chuckled, nodding. “It’s fine.”

Tom smiled. “I read somewhere that when the wolves shift to their animal form, they get nude. Can you imagine your grandma hanging the washing on the line and getting an eyeful?”

Gavin full on laughed now and I found myself smiling at his brief bit of happiness.

Tom was quiet for a while then he turned to Gavin once more. “But you’ll be okay now, right? They can help with the …” He indicated Gavin’s arms.

Gavin mustered a fake smile. “I’m gonna be fine, Pop. Don’t you worry.”

My heart broke for my mate then. He must be scared; he heard Nahuel tell him he was a dead man walking and now he was coming to live on a mountain full of werewolves at the stern request of one of the most powerful Alphas in the world. My father. Yet, he still held strong to reassure his family. A worthy mate, I could do no better, I was sure. It was in that moment that I knew I would fall in love with this man. This man I would most likely spend the rest of my life with. I was just hoping it was longer than the four days we had been given by Gretchen.

Gavin’s eyes suddenly met mine in the mirror, they held a passionate fierceness that matched my own. If there was a way to stop whatever ailed him and live a long and happy life together, we would give it our all. Spirit didn’t make mistakes, Gavin was my perfect match whether I knew his middle name or not. Suddenly a warm hand squeezed mine. Jaxon. I was not alone in this. Together we would all figure it out. A weight that had firmly settled on my shoulders since the dreams began, dissipated a little bit then.

We drove the rest of the way in silence. Once we pulled up to Gavin’s house, Jax and I told them we would wait in the car. He would have to say goodbye to his family and pack up all of his things. My twin pulled on the bond to get my attention, looking up, I saw a seriousness in his eyes.

“Does this mean we aren’t going off to college?” he asked.

I laughed. “Oh, Jaxon. For a second there, I thought you might actually say something sincere.”

He smiled. “I’m just kidding. Trying to make you smile.”

I gave him a tight smile and we just stared at each other, at a loss for words. Finally he leaned forward.

“Is he your mate?” he asked sincerely.