“I hear one of our kin is in a prison cell right now,” she said, glancing from me to Nate and back again, as if she figured the offense had to be my fault. “What’s that about? We’re locking each other away now?”
Nate cleared his throat. His voice came out low and firm. “We’ve always used the holding rooms under the estate to deal with kin who break our laws, Mildred. You know that.”
She sniffed. “And what law has this one broken?”
Nate glowered at her. “That’s not a matter for public discussion.”
“It seems like a lot has changed since we had a dragon back in town.”
My back stiffened as she flounced away from us. “Ignore her,” Nate muttered. “She’s always been a difficult one.”
It was true that most of his kin were friendly to me. I spent another hour, at the table and then circulating through the crowd, smiling and laughing at jokes and telling a few of the less traumatic stories from my life among humans. But even when the shifters were smiling back, I wasn’t sure how much to believe in their warmth. Did they really trust me, or were they just better at hiding their uneasiness than some of the others?
Alice came up beside me. “Time for another breather?”
“Yeah,” I said with relief. “What did you have in mind?”
“It seems to me there’s no reason we shouldn’t help restock the wine table,” she said with a grin.
We meandered into the estate house and down to the wine cellar. And a massive wine cellar it was. I didn’t think I’d seen so many bottles in my life, even in a liquor store. I stopped and stared at them.
“I don’t know where to start.”
“Ah, we can always just hang out here for a bit and then let the attendants pick. That’s their job anyway.” She propped herself against a crate and cocked her head at me. “I’m guessing the life you had before my brother and the other alphas found you was pretty different from this, huh?”
“Uh, yeah, that would be the understatement of the year.”
“Tell me about it. I’ve always wondered what it’s like on the human side of things.”
I let out my breath. Where to start? “Well, I’m not sure my ‘human’ life was all that normal. When my mom was still around, we always lived pretty simply. Her first concern was making sure we didn’t draw attention to ourselves. And then after she left... I ended up having to leave the apartment and live on the streets. I didn’t have a real home for more than five years. Let alone a home like this.” I waved to indicate the entire estate.
“That must have been rough,” Alice said, her tone going serious. “You don’t let it show, when you’re out there talking to the kin.”
I shrugged. “That’s not the side of me they want to see, right? The side that’s human. Weak.”
Alice grimaced. “I wouldn’t call surviving the lowest rungs of the human world with no support and no powers weak, not by a long shot. You know, I can’t say I’ve had to experience anything like that, but I have needed to spend a lot of time keeping up a strong front. It wears you out. The more you can be your real self, the easier it’ll be on you in the long run.”
“I guess that makes sense.” I looked down at my hands. “It’s just hard to know what anyone expects. There’s still so much I have to get used to.”
“This place is a bit of a change from the avian estate, isn’t it? The different kin-groups have their own attitudes. Or attitude problems.” She gave me half a smile. “We avians usually get along best with the canine crew. We both believe in strong bonds and keeping a united front. The felines and the disparate community, it’s a bit more of a free-for-all. Everyone for themselves.”
Okay, so maybe it wasn’t that Nate’s kin resented me for the attack. Maybe this was just the way they always were. That possibility was weirdly reassuring.
“Everyone wants so many different things,” I said. “It’s kind of... overwhelming. I don’t know how I’m going to make them all happy.”
Alice knuckled my arm. “Probably you won’t. But I guess the best you can do is listen to everyone, and your alphas, and don’t forget what’s in here too.” She tapped her head. “And you find whatever balance seems to be the best fit. See, simple! I have all the answers.”
I had to laugh. “Right. I guess I’m all set then.”
Her gaze drifted toward the door, and I abruptly realized that the flexing of her muscles wasn’t just her usual bodyguard-like readiness. She was feeling edgy too. I didn’t need any special senses to figure out why.
“You’re worried about Aaron,” I said.
She rubbed her mouth. “He’s a big boy. He can take care of himself. As he likes to remind me on the regular. But... I thought from what he said that he’d be back by now.”
If even Alice was worried enough to admit it, my anxiety wasn’t just me being over cautious. I hesitated. Why shouldn’t I change her orders? Technically I had at least as much authority over the shifter kin as Aaron did.
“You know what?” I said. “We’ve waited long enough. I want you to go looking for him. And if he has a problem with that when you find him, you can tell him to take it up with me.”
Alice blinked at me. “Really?”
“Absolutely. That’s a direct command from your dragon shifter.”
Her mouth stretched into a real grin. “Now I’m really glad we’ve got you back.”
We grabbed a couple bottles of wine somewhat at random so it’d look like we’d done more than just disappear. But when we emerged into the courtyard, it occurred to me that there were other orders given that I didn’t totally agree with. I wasn’t going to go against Nate’s authority—but I could try to temper his harshness with a gesture of my own.
I picked up a new plate and snatched a little of this and a little of that off the tables. The kin watching were probably speculating about a dragon shifter’s appetite. Let them wonder.
I carried the plate into the house and down the stairs into a different part of the basement. The part where we’d confronted the rogue just yesterday. I caught sight of Orion through the second window I glanced into.
The former guard was hunched over on his bench, his head in his hands. My heart wrenched.
The guard on duty walked over. “Dragon shifter,” he said with a respectful bow. “What do you need?”
I held up the plate. “I’d like to bring this in to him.”
The guard paused. “I wasn’t told—”
I fixed him with a firm stare. “I’m your alpha’s mate and dragon shifter. All I want to do is bring the prisoner a little dinner. He’s too drugged up to shift, isn’t he? He doesn’t look like he’s going to be any threat.”
“Yes. Yes, he should be subdued. My apologies.”
The guard pulled out a key and unlocked the door. I stepped inside tentatively.
Orion raised his head. The muskrat shifter’s eyes were glazed. A dribble of drool shone at the corner of his mouth. He was at least aware enough to notice it and swipe it away when the back of his hand when he saw me.
“Dragon shifter,” he said in a dazed voice. “What are you doing here?”