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“There haven’t been too many cases of Pterons and other shifters producing children, but when the child turns out to be a Pteron, they are often extremely strong physically, but they lack some other critical traits of Pterons.”

“Like what? What do they lack?”

“They can’t protect their minds. They are just as susceptible to witchcraft and mind control as non Pteron shifters.”

“So Casey is fully susceptible to magic. Even to persuasion.” My thoughts went immediately to Nelly. Did she mess with her mind? Is that why she jumped to Jared so quickly? Then the rest of the implications set in.

My body tensed. “And they want to use Casey…” A royal Pteron with an unprotected mind made Casey an easy target. I had to find out if Nelly had really been able to influence her. I also had to make sure the Laurents didn’t find out before I came up with a plan. This was dangerous information we couldn’t have getting out.

He didn’t hesitate with his answer. “Yes. I don’t know what they have planned, but it all has to connect.”

“Why are they bothering with Vera?”

He paled.

“Just tell me.” I pounded on the table again.

“She went willingly.” He looked down.

“What does that mean?”

“It means she went with him willingly. Don’t ask me why, because I don’t have an answer to that one. It wasn’t like Vera. She was so protective of Casey, it never made sense.”

“Then why do you think she went willingly?”

His shoulders slumped. “I don’t know. She fell hard for Murphy and started spending all of her time with him.”

“But maybe he took her. Why don’t you believe that?”

“Because she told me she was leaving.”

“What?” I tossed the table aside. “Why didn’t you stop her?”

“I should have. I figured she’d come back.” He looked away again, but I definitely saw shame cross his face. “I’m trying to protect Casey.”

“Then be honest with me.”

“I am being honest!” he roared. “These are my cousins we’re talking about. Don’t you think I care?”

“Not as much as me.” I mumbled the words but he heard them.

“You’re in love with her.”

I didn’t say anything. I knew he’d take my silence for the yes it was.

“Even knowing what she is?”

“I really don’t care what she is. She’s still Casey.” It felt good to say those words out loud to someone. Hopefully Casey believed they were genuine. In some ways, finding out she was a Pteron made my feelings stronger. We had so much in common, I could relate to her in a way I wasn’t sure I could relate to anyone else.

“Then take care of her.”

“Do you know where Murphy is?” Whether Vera was there willingly or not, we had to find him. Casey wouldn’t be safe until he was taken care of.

“No, but Murphy isn’t who you need to worry about.”

“What do you mean?” Was he going to spring another surprise on me?

“Murphy’s not smart enough to mastermind all of this. He’s working for someone else.”

“Who?” I pulled him up by his collar. “Who is he working for?”

“I don’t know. They only call him ‘the boss.’”

“The boss. Really?”

“Not particularly original, but it’s the only name I’ve heard.” He looked away.

“We need to find him.”

“I don’t think we can. You probably can’t find Murphy either. He keeps himself well hidden. I’ve searched for him for months. The messages I get are always through a third party.”

“Searching in Russia?”

“No, but before then. I didn’t want to do field work, but the department head made me go. It came out of the blue, and I couldn’t say no to the position.”

My guess was the assignment wasn’t a coincidence. They wanted the cousin out of the way, but I kept my thoughts to myself. “We have to find them. I’m not going to let her get used as a pawn.”

“I want to protect her too. That’s why I had her move in with me when she had to leave school. I figured the best way to keep an eye on her was to have her under my own roof.”

“Until you left…”

“Don’t remind me.” His regret and guilt was clear on his face.

“Did you know her well growing up?” This wasn’t part of the interrogation, but I was dying to know more about Casey. Maybe discovering more about her past would help me protect her better in the present.

“Yes and no. I knew Vera better. I tried to get more involved when Vera left, but her mom didn’t want her getting too close. She knew Casey was in for a rough road no matter what she was.”

“I wonder how her mom got involved with the Pterons,” I thought out loud.

“She’s never talked about it. Neither have my parents.” He coughed, making me feel slightly bad about denying the water. “But she’s a good woman. A good mom. It never really added up.”

“Casey took Vera’s leaving hard.” I stated the obvious, hoping to get more info.

“Very. She really curled up inside herself. Casey’s never had many friends, and after Vera left, she pretty much stopped talking to the few she had.”

I made a decision. “I have to tell her. She has to know about Vera.”

“Does she? Will it help her to know her sister abandoned her?” He sighed. “Either way, I need to find Vera. She doesn’t belong with those kind of bears. She’s good through and through.”

“Did she know she was a bear?” The question came to me, and the answer seemed especially important.

“No. Their mom didn’t want them to know…” He closed his eyes then opened them. “But I’m pretty sure she knew when she left. Maybe that’s why she went with them.”

“Does she know what Casey is?” I asked the question out loud even though I assumed he didn’t know the answer.

“If Murphy told her. But, of course, no one knows for sure if she can shift into a Pteron.”

“She can shift. There’s no doubt about that.” I thought about her elegant, black wings.

“Really? Has she flown?” There was an excitement on Rhett’s face that felt strange considering the rest of the conversation.