Allegiance (Causal Enchantment #3)(9)
Author: K.A. Tucker

I shrugged. “Tired, I guess. And hungry. Otherwise, I’m okay.”

She peered deep into my eyes. “Are you sure?”

Warning bells went off in my head, another bubble of hysteria rising. “Why shouldn’t I be? What did you do earlier? What’s going on?”

Sofie frowned, shaking her head. “No reason … Just a test,” she answered curtly.

“Were you testing the Tribe’s magic? Is it still there?” A second of excitement churned through me. No more toxic Evie! No more lethal danger to Caden should he slip! No more fragile humanity! The excitement was followed by the plummet of dread. Without the Tribe’s magic, they’d be able to read my emotions. They’d discover my secrets … I was a fish out of water, flopping around, desperately searching for safety.

Another long pause. “Yes, it’s still there, but …” This was so unlike Sofie. Normally her answers were quick and decisive, whether true or not. I waited for the rest of the answer but when none came, I couldn’t help but feel exasperated. “But what? Sofie?”

After an uncomfortable pause, Sofie shrugged, waving her black-painted fingernails dismissively. “I’m not sure yet … Don’t worry about it. I’m sure it’s nothing.” The last line felt like an afterthought, a flighty, unconvincing one, but I caught the sharp glare of warning that she threw Max’s way. Before I could question it, Sofie was prattling off instructions in French to the two ladies. When done, she turned back to me. “Did you sleep well?”

“No … I was up for a while because of a bad dream,” I admitted, and then wanted nothing more than to change topics so I didn’t have to think about Veronique. “What’s with all the decorations?”

“Oh … that.” Sofie shrugged, as if it were no big deal. “It’s almost Christmas.” But then she smiled warmly. “I figured you should have a normal Christmas since you’ve had so many lousy ones.”

I couldn’t help it. I burst out laughing. “Normal? Isn’t there a group of vampires showing up later today to stop the end of the world?”

Sofie grimaced. “You heard about that.”

“Yeah, Mortimer and Mage filled me in last night,” I explained as a hot mug of coffee and a freshly baked croissant suddenly appeared before me. The shorter and chunkier of the two ladies smiled at me. The simple act stirred memories and an ache inside me. “I miss Leo, Sofie.”

I looked up to see sadness cloud her eyes. “Me too,” she whispered, her finger tracing the swirling pattern on the marble countertop. “He was a good friend. Rest assured, he’s with Maeve now. Happy. Away from this mess.”

I took a sip of my coffee, wondering if that were true. I didn’t recall anything about vampires and magic and the illusive Fates casting down judgment on the world in the Bible. Was there even such thing as heaven and God? Could I believe such things anymore?

Yes … I decided there had to be. I needed to believe Leo was with Maeve. Otherwise, my dear grandfatherly guardian had died for nothing and that knowledge, if nothing else, would break me. I forced the thought out of my head. “What happened to the rest of them? Are Magda and Martha and the other beasts safe?”

Sofie inclined her head. “I thought Max would have told you.”

That’s right, I realized. Max would know, given he was connected to the other dogs subconsciously. His brothers, who he’d spent four hundred years with. “No, he didn’t,” I glared sharply at him.

Don’t look at me like that. You never asked … Max responded.

My hand flew to cover my mouth. He was right. I hadn’t bothered to ask. I was too wrapped up in myself. What a rotten, selfish person I was turning into.

Sofie’s voice broke into my silent scolding. “They’re safe. Kiril and Ivan got them out of there before they froze to death.”

I felt my face squish up. “Kiril and Ivan …?”

“Yes. The two property keepers who helped keep the cabin running.” Sofie’s brow quirked in amusement.

“Oh …” I finally realized who she was referring to. “Yeti One and Yeti Two.”

A soft musical laughter filled the kitchen. “Is that what you called them?”

I replied with a smile. That was a little joke between Julian and me. Little jokes like that kept us sane while in isolation. But my smile dropped when the memories pushed forward.

“What would be more appropriate? Werewolf One and Werewolf Two?” I asked, my voice thick with sarcasm. Max had divulged that little tidbit of a secret randomly on the same day, just before discovering that Valentina was possessed by Ursula.

If Sofie sensed my displeasure, she didn’t let on, grinning broadly. “The wolves owed me a favor, so I asked them to watch over you. They know those mountains better than anyone.”

A favor. Everyone owes Sofie a favor. I sipped my coffee as I pondered that. Sofie was like the Godfather. Everyone owed her a favor and she wasn’t shy about collecting. Leo had owed her a favor for saving his wife, and look where he ended up … I bit my tongue before I said something I might regret. Sofie genuinely hadn’t intended such a tragic end for her friend. All the same, it had happened.

“What’d you do for the wolves?” I asked, pushing my sadness away, replacing it with curiosity.

“Werewolves were all but extinct from the world for a time. They had existed for centuries—another Causal Enchantment gone wrong.” Of course … Sofie slid my plate toward me, reminding me that I should eat. “They’re rare. New wolves are created by the bite of the alpha male. There’s only ever one alpha male for the entire race. He leads the entire pack and, basically, he creates his pack. When he dies, the role passes on to the next male in succession, the oldest of the alpha’s offspring.”

“So what happened?”

“Well, the vampires knew how fragile the race was. If you take out the alpha male and its offspring, the entire race will dwindle. So the vampires went after them. They succeeded in killing the last male wolf about three hundred years ago.

“About a hundred years ago, a young woman tracked me down. She was a descendant of the last alpha male and was determined to reclaim her lost heritage. How she found me, I don’t know. How any of them keep finding me to solve their problems …” Sofie rolled her eyes.

I giggled. “You’re famous. You’re like the Madonna of the supernatural world.”

Sofie snorted. “Maybe … I used my magic to isolate the werewolf gene and create a male replica, thus turning her into an alpha and bringing the species back.” She explained it so matter-of-factly that it sounded like a basic “baking soda plus vinegar equals cool fizz” science experiment. I gaped at her, my mouth hanging open.

“What?”

“There’s nothing you can’t do!” I said.

A glimmer of despair sailed across her face. “I hope you’re right …” Then, as typically mercurial as Sofie was, the sadness disappeared, replaced by a stubborn set of her jaw. “Eat!”

I finished the food, thinking about Yeti One in wolf form. A beautiful, fierce creature standing stock-still, quietly observing us in the mountains that day, just before Ursula attacked. He didn’t growl or snap at us; he didn’t attack. He was just there, peacefully watching.

“Why would the vampires care about werewolves?” I asked with a mouthful of flaky pastry. “They seemed pretty harmless to me.”

Sofie chuckled, shaking her head in that Oh-Evangeline-you’re-so-naïve way. “I wouldn’t call them harmless. They aren’t immortal or as super-powered as vampires, but they’re tough as titanium. And if they get a bite in beforehand … it’s fatal.”

“Really? I thought the only way to kill a vampire was to take their heart out or burn them. Or burn their heart …” I tried to remember what Amelie and Fiona told me. “Something involving burning and hearts.”

“Yes … and a werewolf bite. It’s so rare that we don’t normally even worry about it, and no one worried about it once they were extinct.”

“Well, if it’s so rare, why would the vampires bother? Sounds risky …”

Sofie smirked. “Did I forget to mention that Viggo was the one who did the eradicating?”

My forehead dropped to the counter dramatically. “Oh …” Now it made sense. Anything maniacal involving Viggo made sense.

“Of course, if Viggo hadn’t, I’d imagine the witches would have sooner or later,” Sofie added.

“Why? Does a wolf bite kill them too?”

Sofie shook her head. “They don’t like anything they can’t control. Wolves aren’t easily influenced by their magic.”

I sighed heavily. So much hunting and killing for both the witches and the vampires. If they spent less time trying to kill and more time minding their own business, maybe we could avoid this entire war! A new thought dawned on me. “What did Viggo say when he found out you brought werewolves back?” Surely he couldn’t have been happy about Sofie undoing his work.

Sofie smiled, defiance twinkling in her eyes. “I guess we’ll find out soon enough. They’re on their way here to help us … Eat up!” Sofie slapped the counter as one of ladies slid a bowl of cinnamon-laced, creamy rice pudding in front of me. “Giselle has been stirring that pudding for two hours!” Sofie hopped off her stool and rhymed off another sentence to the ladies. On her way out, she threw over her shoulder, “Caden’s in the glass room, when you’re finished.”

At the mention of Caden, I scrambled to my feet, ready to dash off after her. With remarkably swift movements—as though expecting my reaction—the two plump ladies moved to stand opposite me, arms folded across their chests, morphing from sweet French cooks into stern-faced food sentries, guarding over me until I finished my breakfast.

4. Transformation—Sofie

“It’s getting worse,” I proclaimed to Mage the second I spotted her jet-black hair in the hallway. “I just left her in the kitchen and … it’s getting worse.”

“How so?” Mage’s soothing voice, normally a godsend, sparked fury in me.

“Because she has started to change!” I screamed. Mage didn’t even flinch at my reaction, as if expecting it. I immediately felt guilty. “I’m sorry … I didn’t mean to …”

She lifted a hand to quiet me, shaking her head, brow furrowed, dismissing my apology. “That’s all right. What exactly has changed since last night?”

I took a deep, bitter breath. “When I went to see her in the kitchen, when I got close, something started pulling on my magic. Draining it. Only slightly. Not to the extent of the Tribe’s people completely sapping my magic, but it was there.”

Mage nodded slowly, as if registering my words. “Did you tell her?”

“No!” I exclaimed in horror. “There’s nothing to tell yet. We don’t know … I don’t know …” But I knew. Deep down, I knew. How could I tell her that her touch might soon be lethal to all those around her? This was exactly something that the Fates would do! “We can’t tell her yet …” I stalked off toward the glass room. “But I do need to warn Caden.”

5. Break—Evangeline

Three poinsettia-covered corners and one set of garland-lined stairs later, Max and I stepped into a room entirely made of glass—glass walls, glass ceiling, glass doors. Tasteful furniture in light suede and wool sat in the center, illuminated by an enormous crystal chandelier. Off to the left stood the largest evergreen tree I’d ever seen indoors, its fresh woodsy scent filling the room, the branches covered in beautiful antique-looking ornaments. Boxes of empty packaging and bubble wrap lay scattered everywhere.

“Wow,” I murmured under my breath. Sofie teetered on one four-inch-heeled foot on a ladder rung, reaching up to hang a dazzling bronze bulb, her face set with deep concentration.

I watched her precarious position for just a short moment, quickly shifting to the most important element of the room: Caden, leaning up against the white frame structure that held this room of glass together. He had changed into dark blue jeans and white T-shirt that revealed the muscular curves of his shoulders and back. An angel against the snow. An angel deep in thought, based on his side profile; trouble furrowed his brow.

“Caden?” He didn’t respond. “Caden?” I asked again, this time my voice a little shaky, a touch uncertain.

His head snapped in my direction, those jade eyes widening slightly before settling on my face. Slowly, he shifted his body toward me.

With some hesitation, I walked over to him, forcing a smile when everything inside me screamed worry. Again, that inkling that something was not right between us. I cast a wayward glance in Sofie’s direction. She took that as her cue. “Now, where did I put those seventeenth-century nutcrackers,” she exclaimed, leaping from the ladder to give Max a smack on the rump.