Cal’s gut clenched at her revelation, but he schooled his reaction and shifted his gaze to meet Lance’s in the rearview mirror. Ahhh, shit. The Oracle hadn’t prophesied this. Damn it! This was a twist he wasn’t even remotely prepared to handle.
“I mean, I’m not going crazy, right?” Morgan asked. “That wolf did speak to me, he can do that. And you.” She pointed at Cal. “You were doing some kind of magic spell in the house. I mean, you did say that we humans don’t believe in certain dangerous things…things like magic and talking wolves, right?”
He caught the edge to her voice. She was riding a fine line between calm and hysteria. Morgan had witnessed a lot over a short span of time—things a normal person would have fainted dead away over. And considering she’d been thrust into this strange new reality without the usual upbringing of a Huntress, she was holding up quite well. She was a fighter, feisty as all hell, and he liked it. It boded well for her and what was to come.
Her body trembled slightly as if she was reining in her emotions. He figured he was the only one who knew because he was wedged up next to her, making sure every part of his right side, from his shoulder to his knee, was touching her in some way.
“Yeah, he can talk, and yeah, I was casting a protection spell to keep the wolves out.”
“A spell,” Morgan whispered, her eyes wide once again. “So now what? We’re adding witches to the madness?”
He licked his lips, unsure how much he could tell her without sending her off the deep end. “We all have different abilities. I can cast spells through symbol tracing, which is what you saw me doing.” Which is what you will be able to do once we are bonded. He motioned toward Ken and then Lance. “They have other talents.”
Lance chuckled as he looked at Morgan in the mirror.
She opened her mouth to speak, but Lance cut her off. “You’ve heard of werewolves before, right, Morgan?” Lance’s gaze moved from Morgan to Cal, then back again.
Morgan frowned. “Is that what Lazarus is? A werewolf?”
Cal laid his head back on the headrest and closed his eyes, gently massaging his aching temples with his fingers. He’d been awake for almost two days searching for her. They’d known that she would be at a fair, but they hadn’t known exactly what city to look for her in. They’d had nothing but the pulse of Cal’s tattoo to point them in the right direction. It had been a hectic search, and now that she was safely in his care, he finally felt like he could rest. Except that as soon as he closed his eyes, his mind raced with the knowledge that if Morgan was truly Lazarus’s bride, he’d been dealt the shittiest hand he could imagine. Things had just gotten very complicated.
He needed to speak with the Oracle and find out what was going on. There had to be some mistake. His Huntress could not be destined for the wolf king.
Cal sighed as he listened to the conversation buzzing around him—Lance explaining to Morgan as much as he could to quell her fears and her questions, knowing that it was going to be Cal’s responsibility to give her all the details. It was part of his duty, just as it would be Lance’s duty when he found his own Huntress.
Morgan startled him by grasping his bicep and tugging his hand from his face. Cal jerked his head up to look at her, worry crashing over him as he saw her expression shatter before his eyes.
“I don’t know what to believe, Caleb.” She sucked in a shuddering breath. Finally, the mask was crumbling. “How am I supposed to believe this?”
He placed his hand on her knee, taking an immense amount of pleasure in the fact that she eased herself closer to him, melting into his side. He was sure she didn’t realize she was doing it. The magnetic pull of their bond was working on her to a certain degree as well.
“It doesn’t make a lot of sense right now,” Cal told her, unable to help himself as he raised his hand to brush some stray tendrils of her hair from her face. “You’ve been through a lot, more than anyone should have to go through in a single night. You’re a pretty strong woman. Very brave.” She stared intently at him, making him wonder just how much was sinking in. “You’re not going crazy, Morgan. We have a long drive ahead. Why don’t you get some sleep? You’re safe with us. No one will hurt you while you’re under my care.”
She swallowed, closed her eyes for a moment and sucked in a deep breath. When she opened them, she was again all business. “I need a phone. I have to call Rachel.” Fire and brimstone flashed in her eyes.
Cal nodded as he tugged his cell phone from his pocket. “Here.” He handed it to her. “Call her. I suggest you tell her that you’re okay, and that you’re going to stay with a friend for a while.” He frowned as a thought suddenly occurred to him—something the Oracle had not specified in her ramblings. “Maybe you should call your parents too.”
Something skittered across Morgan’s eyes before she glanced down at his phone. “I don’t have any family left.”
“I’m sorry—” he started.