Shattered - Completed

38 - Eventually

Gavin snickers. "She thinks you're going soft from missing mom."

Without letting me go, the king responds, "I'll bring CeCe with me and see how long you last, little asshole."

Gavin snarls and the king laughs but lets me go. Immediately, I'm snatched back into my mate's arms. These males.

"Be safe, little one," the king pats my head, then slaps his son's back before striding out of the meat hut.

"Wait, is he taking Salvatore, too?" I ask, worriedly.

Gavin kisses me softly. "It's safer with my dad, sweetheart."

"But we didn't say goodbye!" I exclaim.

"He won't leave without letting us say 'goodbye.'"

I turn to leave the hut, eager to go find Salvatore right this minute, when a raspy voice speaks, "you've replaced me."

Slowly, I spin back around. I glance at Gavin, but my mate's face is inscrutable. He's leaving this up to me, for now. I walk a few steps closer to Tivo. Being in this hut, with three wolves who would rip my throat out without any hesitation, isn't doing my shaky state of mind any favors. "I found a mate," I correct Tivo. My voice is cold, but holds a quivering note.

Tivo laughs. "You always had a thing for him. I remember," he swallows. "Mom used to say we had to hide you."

"From my mother," I tell him. "Penelope wanted to kill me. I'm surprised that your mother didn't allow her to."

Tivo laughs. "She couldn't kill you. Mom knew I needed you for pups. She was hiding you from him." I wrinkle my nose, utterly disgusted at the idea of having sex with Tivo. "And he can't kill me," Tivo sneers, "because he can't give you pups." He is panting, his eyes blown wide in fury.

Gavin is utterly silent. I'm baffled. I can barely make sense of his emotions through our bond. Is my mate testing my reaction? "I don't want your pups, Tivo. I never did. What if they grew up like you?" Tivo flinches from my sally. "Besides, I have a son, Salvatore, and if Gavin could have one pup with-"

A rusty laugh echoes out. I fall silent, just watching Tivo. "Can't," he gasps out. "You're special," he mocks, "you can't have pups without me."

I frown. "My mother did," I say bluntly.

"Because she was never the high priestess," Malcolm explains softly. "She called herself that, but she's never been able to reach your height with the Sight. She turned to dark magic for that reason."

"How do you know?" I ask Malcolm. "How do you know how powerful I am compared to my mother?"

His smile twists bitterly. "I am the eldest son of the clan. We are trained from puphood to serve the ones who have the Sight. And... I spent my entire life spying. First on my mother, then Penelope. You don't need them alive," he says to Gavin. "I know everything they do. I know all the laws of the moon. I can teach my sister what she needs to know."

Gavin sits on an overturned barrel and pulls me to perch on his thigh. His golden eyes don't leave Tivo. I blush when my mate's lips touch my ear softly. His next words prove that he's hung up on one particular rule of the moon. "I'll keep the prick alive for you if you want," he murmurs to me. He looks at Malcolm, "is it true? Can I give my CeCe pups?" His warm hand slides under my cloak to rest on my lower tummy.

Malcolm shrugs. "No high priestess has ever had pups with anyone other than her mate. It's important, you see, because her defenders and guardians are very... close to her."

"That will not happen," Gavin says in a calm voice. "I am her only lover." His eyes glow so brightly that they look like two golden lamps shining out of his face. His canines are glinting from his lips. I kiss his throat, but he doesn't relax.