The Jaguar Prince

Chapter 12

Rogar had blundered and he knew it. He stalled by taking a drink of the liquid Callie called soda, then choked and coughed as it burned his throat. This soda did not go down as smoothly as the wine. He brought his napkin to his mouth as he tried to bring his fit of coughing under control.

Callie’s birthday celebration was not going well. At least, not as well as DeeDee had said it would. He and Callie should be in bed making love. DeeDee told him that women appreciated when men made an effort to cook a meal. They wanted the fairy tale, the romance. When he’d looked up fairy tale on his database, it had shown a picture of flowers along a walkway. It hadn’t been difficult to find someone to come out and provide the landscaping. He’d offered lots of money, and they’d immediately done his bidding.

Nor did it take much to have a food store deliver ingredients for a gourmet meal. He’d thought the instructions for the preparation were self-explanatory, but apparently not.

When he’d researched romance, he’d come up with candlelight, presents, a rose-scented bath, and making love. It seemed everything had to be in that order. Not that he’d minded, as long as the last one on the list didn’t get forgotten. He had a feeling because the first two had been disasters, the last might not happen.

The bath with candles and petals was a good idea. That one seemed to work very well. The stress was gone from Callie’s face and she looked more relaxed. Maybe that’s why he hadn’t guarded his words as well as he could have. He’d make sure he was more careful in the future.

“You okay?” she asked when his breathing returned to normal.

“The drink is strong and made bubbles in my nose.”

“But you’re okay?”

“Yes.”

“Good, then tell me why you need the people to return. You said needed, not wanted.”

“Maybe I chose the wrong word. Your Earth words sometimes carry a meaning I don’t wish to convey.” He’d lied. But it had been for Callie’s own good. Now he was starting to pick up her bad habits.

She smiled. He breathed a sigh of relief.

“Not buying it,” she said, still smiling.

He frowned.

“You might as well tell me.”

He tapped his fingers on the table, then finally spoke, choosing his words more carefully. “Our blood has become too pure. If we don’t mix with impures, we will destroy ourselves. Our children cannot be of pure blood.”

“So mix with another species. Problem solved.”

“It’s not that easy. You should know that. There are certain consequences that go along with being Symtarian.”

“Like changing form.”

“Yes.” He picked up his glass, then set it back on the table without taking a drink. “People have been locked away, driven insane, when they heard their guide speaking to them. Or worse.”

“Worse?” Her eyes widened. “What could be worse than that?”

“Actually shifting. Changing into animal form, then changing back. Not knowing what happened to them.”

“And there’s no one to explain?”

He shook his head. “The Symtarians left on Earth adapted the best way they knew how. They were told to blend with this new society, so they hid who they were, even from their offspring, thinking they were probably doing the right thing.”

“Why didn’t your people come for them sooner?”

“The old leader died, my grandfather, others took his place…” he hedged.

“You forgot about them?” One eyebrow quirked upward.

“Yes.” He hated to admit it, but that was exactly what happened.

“And now you want everyone to come home so there will be mates with less than pure blood so the Symtarian race will continue.”

“Yes.”

“And what happens if I decide to stay here?”

Maybe it was best that she knew everything. “Then your life will be in danger.”

Callie closely watched Rogar’s face. He looked serious. “What do you mean, I’m in danger?”

“Some want to keep our line pure. They don’t like the thought of mixed bloods, and they’re trying to destroy every one of them.”

She shot out of her chair. “You mean there’s someone out there who wants me dead?”

He nodded.

“But I didn’t do anything to this other person.”

He grimaced. “You were born.”

The room suddenly tilted and she had to grab the edge of the table to steady herself. “Is that what happened to my mother? Was she murdered by this monster?”

Rogar looked away. He knew more than what he was saying. All this time, and he hadn’t told her what she so desperately needed to know, to understand.

“You know, don’t you? You know what happened to my parents. Why they left me at the orphanage, don’t you?”

“I didn’t want to upset you needlessly.”

She slowly sat down in the chair. “Tell me. I have the right to know.”

He didn’t look happy. “I have very little information. The last known whereabouts of your parents was Kentucky. That’s where your father was…found dead.”

She hugged her middle. “How…” She swallowed past the sudden lump in her throat. “How was he murdered?”

“Isn’t it enough to know he died? He has no more pain. His sleep is peaceful.”

Her gaze didn’t waver from his. “How was he killed?”

“The report said his heart was ripped out of his chest, his skin shredded. They thought a wild animal might have killed him.”

“And my mother?”

“No one knew what happened to her. A neighbor said she was far into her pregnancy.”

Callie closed her eyes for a moment, then took a deep breath. “Do you think she might have been protecting me? Is that why she left me at the orphanage? Maybe she didn’t leave because she didn’t want me?”

He stood, coming around the table, and gathered her in his arms. She rested her head on his shoulder, and realized her cheeks were damp.

Rogar led her to the sofa and sat down, pulling her onto his lap. “Symtarians bond very strongly with their children, from the moment of conception. More so than any race I know. Your mother wouldn’t have left you because she didn’t love you. I’m certain she cared for you very much.”

“And this person who killed my father, is he still out there?”

“I’m afraid so. His name is Zerod. He was son to one of the elder rulers, born later in life. He was against mixing our blood. But we had no choice. Our blood had become so pure that it’s harder to control our guides. Zerod lost control of his, and now his guide rules his head.”

“And that’s dangerous?”

“You should be one with your guide, a blending, so to say. The natural instinct of the guide is to hunt, to kill, but always to protect the human side. When the guide begins to take over, then those natural instincts are stronger. But Zerod has the blood lust on his human side as well. That makes him an even greater danger. And there are those who follow him.”

“And he wants to kill me.”

“Yes. That’s why it’s imperative we bring everyone home. Zerod is searching for you even now.”

She closed her eyes and breathed in Rogar’s scent. For the first time in her life, she felt protected.

The real world quickly closed in around her. Rogar wouldn’t always be there to protect her, and she couldn’t leave the only thing she’d ever known to step into the unknown.

He lightly began to caress her arm. She doubted he even realized what he was doing, but she did, as heat spread through her. She bit her bottom lip. Sensations swarmed over her, and her body tingled to awareness. It would be so easy to let him continue to touch her, raise her face so that he could brush his lips across hers. How much more difficult would it be to say good-bye if they grew even closer?

She came to her feet, putting distance between them. “What can I do to protect myself?”

He blinked, as though he’d also been lost in thought.

“I can do something to protect myself, can’t I?” She sounded a lot braver than she felt.

“Not without your guide.”

“The bunny?”

He shook his head. “That wasn’t your guide.”

It was a good thing because she really doubted a rabbit could protect her from anything, except maybe a giant carrot.

He stood and came toward her. Not stopping until he was barely a foot away. She could feel the heat emanating from him. Her nipples tingled as he awakened her body to awareness. But he didn’t touch her.

“Close your eyes,” he told her. “Take a deep breath, then exhale.”

She did as he asked, but caught his scent again. It tickled her senses. Tempted her to step closer.

“Free your mind,” he said, breaking into her thoughts. “Let it go blank.”

Not easy with him standing this close, but she tried, until a car went barreling around the corner, apparently on two wheels the way it screamed. That was followed by a horn honking and an obscenity being yelled out. She wondered if she should pull at least one of the Jags into her tiny garage. The red one maybe. Anything could happen…

“You’re not concentrating.”

She opened her eyes. Not good. Now she was staring at him. Rogar was really handsome. “Easier said than done with all the noise.”

“That’s how you ended up as a bunny. You didn’t concentrate.”

“I’m not exactly the kind of person who gets into all that meditation stuff.”

He cocked an eyebrow.

“Okay, I’ll try again.”

She closed her eyes. What should she think about? Maybe an elephant. Then she could squash anyone who got in her way. It would be kind of hard to hide if she was an elephant, though. A horse could run fast.

Her red Jag had a lot of horsepower. She’d felt it the moment she’d turned the key. Unleashed power that she’d had complete control over.

“Are you concentrating?”

She glared at him. “Yes, if you’d quit interrupting me. Sheesh.” She closed her eyes and forced herself to think about an animal. She’d love to shift into a jaguar, like Sheba.

There was a knock on the door.

She opened her eyes. “This isn’t going to be that easy. If DeeDee is on the other side, she’s got a lot of explaining to do about filling your head with happy birthday ideas.”

She marched over to the door and flung it open, but a man she’d never seen before stood on the doorstep.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I thought you might have been someone else.”

He smiled. The man was handsome with light brown hair, just a touch of silvery gray at the temples, and gray eyes. It was what she saw in his eyes that made her go cold. There wasn’t an ounce of warmth. It was almost as though he was dead. He looked behind her and his smile widened.

“Rogar.” He held up a newspaper. “You take a good picture, but then, you are my cousin so I would expect no less.”

“Cousin?” She looked at Rogar, and knew by the glare in his eyes that there was no love lost between these two.

“I lost you for a while in Kentucky.” His gaze turned to Callie. “You look much like your mother.” He reached out and twined a dark curl around his finger.

Cold chills of dread swept over her. “You knew my mother?”

“Leave,” Rogar said with barely controlled anger. “You’re not welcome here.”

“But I’m not here for you,” his words were silky.

Rogar stepped closer, moving Callie behind him. “I won’t let you harm her.”

“She’s an impure,” he spat. “Not worthy to breed and produce weaker versions of herself. It would be an abomination to our society!”

And then she knew for sure. This was Zerod, the man who’d murdered her father, and stolen her childhood. For the first time in her life, she wanted to kill someone.