“Nox said bayou.” Then he shared the names of those in the hunting party.

  Zeena’s eyes widened. “Nico is with them?”

  Katy’s brow rose as she grasped what that could mean. “Do you guys think this is a trap, and Nico is in on it because of Wolf-whatever and his mate Tabata?”

  “Tallula,” Gage corrected.

  Katy didn’t skip a beat as she warned her mate, “Never correct another female’s name to me.”

  Gage loved her possessive side. But she needn’t be jealous or worried that he would ever want someone else. He mentally added it to the list of things they really needed to discuss.

  Zeena scooted out from the booth and stood abruptly. “We need to get there. It might not be a trap, but if it is, they will need all the help they can get. And he won’t suspect me.” Her expression hardened with new resolve. “I should have acted long ago.”

  Katy gave the former queen a soft smile, though it didn’t reach her eyes. “We’re going to shut him down, Zeena. And maybe he can be saved.”

  Caught up in his mate’s optimism, Gage allowed a smile. “First, we secure transport to the bayou. Are you ready, Love?”

  At Katy’s eager nod, he ushered both females toward the exit. As he walked, he sent a quick text to Callon warning him about the Kingdom of Chaos alliance and that they didn’t know if Nico was in on it.

  Gage: I’m getting us on a plane with Azure’s mate of her own free will. Can you wait to head out until we get there?”

  Callon: Nico?

  Apparently, he wasn’t past that part of Gage’s text.

  Gage: Focus, man. Wait for us. Make something up to stall that won’t raise Nico’s suspicions.

  Callon: Fine. Hurry your ass up.

  Good ol’ Callon. A man of few words, which Gage respected, and when he did use words, he made sure they were full of piss and vinegar.

  The heavy darkness lifted slightly from Gage’s spirit. They had needed allies and found them in unlikely places. Perhaps together they could still drag Azure back from the abyss and into the light once more. He’d never be king again, but maybe they wouldn’t have to kill him.

  Chapter Fifteen

  I’m Pregnant.

  “I can’t hold on too tightly, or I might break her wings. I can’t hold too loosely, or she might fall and injure herself. There’s got to be a middle ground where I can keep her safe while she feels the freedom she needs. My beast disagrees. He’s all for sticking her in a beautiful cage with any and everything she desires. And he’s arrogant enough to think that he would fill all those desires for her. If it wouldn’t mean I’d lose her, I’d let him try just so I could watch our lioness show him the error of his thinking. It would be a good show.” ~Callon

  Callon stared dubiously at the ramshackle boat bobbing in the gloomy waterway. Rust spots marred the hull, and the deck didn’t look much sturdier. After the mild beating he had given the captain, his parents had returned to the bar to persuade the man to be their guide using slightly gentler methods and, Callon was sure, more money than the captain had probably seen in the past year. Captain Jack stood on the dock, grinning proudly as he gestured the group aboard.

  “She may not be much to look at, but Ol’ Betsy can navigate these waters as good as any of the crocs that live in them, I guarantee.” The captain clapped the pitted railing affectionately.

  With no better options, they began filing slowly onto the decrepit vessel. Callon kept a steadying hand on Lola’s back as she stepped gingerly over the gap between dock and deck. His inner beast bristled at the idea of taking his fragile mate into the remote bayou, but he respected Lola’s courage too much to suggest she stay behind. Better to keep her close where he could protect her if needed.

  His parents came next, his father’s mane-like hair streaming behind him in the humid breeze. Lyra looked dubiously at the cluttered deck while Taras stared impassively ahead. As king and queen of the Kingdom of Claws, they were accustomed to slightly finer transportation than this rust-bucket boat. But his mother, ever the diplomat, smiled. “We’ve no doubt she will get us where we need to go.”

  Jack’s smile widened at Lyra’s kind words.

  Bane loomed tall and silent as he stalked aboard, bulky muscles rippling beneath his customary leather. Callon knew no fiercer warrior to stand at his side than the seasoned panther shifter. Callon had moved past the fact that the man had been in Lola’s bedroom and, at one point, might have even wanted her for his own. Or at least Callon told himself he’d moved past it.

  Nico came next, somehow looking right at home on the rust bucket. Even though he wore his usual black clothes, all his piercings were gleaming shinier than any metal surface of the boat, and his green hair was spiked up all over his head—a feature he did not have to use any product for. It was simply how his hair grew. The Chaos Shaman moved with deceptive casualness, but his sharp eyes missed nothing, flickering over every detail—likely plotting contingencies should their voyage go awry. Having a capable magic wielder along could prove invaluable. Then again, Nico wasn’t exactly predictable, so it could also prove to be disastrous.

  Callon tensed as the demon, Raphael, made his way aboard behind Nico. His violet eyes gleamed hungrily. The lion prince still disliked the idea of trusting an incubus, necessary evil or no. But Raphael had guided them this far without incident. Better the devil you know than the ones surely awaiting them within the untamed bayou.

  The final passenger to join their grim crew was Otto. His claws clacked on the weathered boards. Callon could admit a grudging fondness for the eccentric lizard man who had aided Katy. And despite his small stature, Otto’s fierce loyalty matched any warrior’s. He would guard their backs ably. As soon as he was on board, Captain Jack began going about his undocking procedures.

  Callon’s phone beeped in his pocket, and he quickly pulled it out. His eyes scanned the text from Gage, and his stomach twisted. He quickly typed a reply to confirm what Gage was saying, because it didn’t bode well for them if he was right. When the Dire Wolf confirmed his information, Callon couldn’t stop the growl that rumbled from his chest. He could feel Lola’s eyes on him as he text back.

  Callon: Fine. Hurry your ass up.

  “Why do you suddenly look like you want to kill someone?” Lola asked softly.

  His eyes roamed over the boat. “I’ve received some interesting news.”

  “News that makes you want to commit murder?”

  “I said it was interesting.” His eyes connected with hers, and he slipped his phone into her hand. “Read the text,” he said in a low tone, “but don’t react. No dropped mouth, wide eyes, or stiffening body. Remember, you’re among animals. They pick up on subtle clues.”

  Lola took the phone and frowned. “So you’re giving me something that I will surely want to react to, but I’m not allowed to? Wait, did somebody die?” She laid her hand on his arm and rose on her toes to get closer to his face. “Did Katy die? I swear on all that is supernatural, I will⁠—”

  Callon put his hand over her mouth, effectively muzzling her questions and the colorful threat she was about to spew. “Read the text, Sazzi.” His voice was low and firm.

  Lola dropped her hand from his arm and looked down at the device. Callon did a quick perusal with his eyes to see if anyone had picked up on their little moment. Thankfully, everyone seemed to be watching Jack and listening to his stories of daring experiences in the bayou.

  A couple of seconds later, Lola slapped Callon’s phone against his chest and blurted out. “I have to pee!” Her eyes were locked on their Captain. “I apologize to interrupt your”—she made a motion with her hand encompassing the boat—“pre-undocking things. But I have got to go to the restroom, and let me tell you it will not be good if I have to try to hold it for however long it’s going to take us to get where we’re going, not to mention, did you know it’s actually bad to hold your bladder? Like it can do serious damage to your kidneys and whatnot. I saw a bathroom.” She pointed over her shoulder back up the dock. “Just over there. I can run over there and take care of business really quick. Like two seconds.” She was already moving to the gunwale. With a little hop, she gracefully jumped from the boat back onto the wooden dock and began jogging off.

  Callon followed, stepping easily onto the dock, minus the hop. “You’re not going anywhere without me.”

  “I’ve got a privy on the boat.” Jack motioned toward some stairs that led down into the interior of the boat. “It’s clean.”

  “Oh, no, that’s okay,” Lola said over her shoulder. “I like my privacy.” She was already moving away, but Callon caught up quickly.

  He glanced over his shoulder and narrowed his eyes at Jack. “Do not leave without us.”

  The man paled, which meant Callon’s face and tone of voice had done what he wanted—scare him stupid.

  Lola and Callon rounded the corner of a small concrete building housing restrooms. Callon grabbed her arm, gently pulling his mate to a stop. “What are you doing?”

  “Going pee.” She looked at him as if he was an idiot who hadn’t heard the whole exchange. “Let me go so I don’t pee on myself. It’s really not the ‘in’ look this year.”

  “So you really do have to go? It’s not because of the text from Gage?” He released her and folded his arms in front of him.

  “Oh, no, it’s totally because of that text, but it just worked to our benefit that I also indeed need to use the restroom.” She continued to the door that had the image of a woman on it. Callon followed after her into the bathroom.

  Lola rolled her eyes and tried to push him back. “You can’t come in here.”

  “Let someone try to stop me,” Callon challenged. He didn’t hear or smell a human inside with them. Mostly, he smelled chemical cleaners.

  “I’m not going with you standing outside of the stall. You heard what I said to the captain. I like my privacy.” She held his stare and finally he relented.

  “I’ll be right outside the door,” he warned.

  Lola sighed, obviously annoyed. She was going to stay annoyed with him a lot once it began to sink in just how protective of her he was. “There’s no one in here, Callon. I’m perfectly safe.”

  He didn’t tell her that he only felt she was safe when he was with her or that it wasn’t just enemies that he worried about. It was ridiculous, but he worried about her slipping and hitting her head in the shower, or falling down stairs, or cutting herself as she prepared a meal. There were so many ways that she could be hurt just in everyday life, and yet he couldn’t protect her from all of it. His beast disagreed, but then when it came to their mate, his lion was a tad overprotective, even worse than the man.

  Callon waited outside and kept his attention on any person that came in the vicinity. Most were early morning joggers or bike riders. There were a few street cleaners out and the occasional homeless person.

  Five minutes later, he stuck his head back in the bathroom. He started to speak, but Callon’s words died on his lips as he took in the bizarre scene before him. Lola stood with one leg propped on the counter, shorts still on, as she calmly shaved her legs. The contents of the pack that had been on her back were strewn across the counter haphazardly.

  She glanced over with a nonchalant, “Hey, babe,” before returning to her task.

  Callon dragged a hand down his face. “Sazzi, what are you doing? We need to figure out how to stall this trip, not pamper yourself.”

  Lola scoffed, rinsing her razor in the sink. “Uh, pretty sure smooth legs fall under basic human rights. I’m multitasking, plotting our next moves while making myself presentable, which will also keep us here. In about ten minutes, I’m going to become violently ill. Just roll with it.” She switched to the other leg, continuing conversationally. “We could also sabotage the boat engine.”

  Callon shook his head as he walked fully into the bathroom, letting the door close behind him. He braced his hands on either side of the sink and leaned toward her. His eyes met hers in the mirror. The heat that was always there between them went up a notch, but he forced himself to ignore it. “Faking an engine issue?” He held her stare. The hand holding the razor had stopped in midair as she watched him back. “Could get us stranded out there. As for illness, Sazzi, you’re a shifter now. You don’t get human ailments.”

  “But Jack doesn’t know that,” she pointed out.

  “Nico does,” he challenged. “As does Raphael. If Nico is working with Azure, then so is the demon he calls a friend.”

  She focused on her task and continued to throw out ideas. “Okay, how about broken bones? Could I trip and, oops, my ankle just snapped in half. Gonna have to call an ambulance. Then when the ambulance gets here, I refuse to get in and I throw a big stink about their carbon footprint for sitting on idle in their square hospital on wheels, just waiting for calls. I’m sure I can come up with at least two dozen questions for them.”

  “Your bones would heal faster than they could get a cast on you.”

  “Oh, snap. Well, that’s pretty awesome. Hmm.” She tapped the bottom of the razor on the counter.

  Callon didn’t like her holding a blade and not paying attention to what she was doing, especially when she threw the hand up in the air that was holding said blade. “I’ve got it!”

  “Why do I have a feeling this isn’t going to be⁠—”

  “I’m pregnant!” The word reverberated off the walls of the bathroom and knocked the wind out of Callon.

  His grip on the counter tightened as he let the words flow over him. He knew she was just trying to help, to keep her friend safe, and the humans whom she didn’t even know. But his mate had no idea what hearing those words out of her mouth would do to him. Children were so few and far between in their world, and the idea of a little Lola running around nearly took him to his knees.

  “I’m sorry, but did you just say you’re pregnant?”

  Callon slowly turned his head to see his mother stepping into the bathroom.

  Lyra stepped around Lola to her other side, and her eyes roamed over her body. Lola’s leg was still up on the counter, albeit most of the shaving cream was gone now. “Unless procreation has changed in some organic way, I’m pretty sure you two haven’t known each other long enough to have created life, or if you’ve tried, you haven’t known each other long enough to know if you have succeeded. Are you pregnant with someone else’s child?”

  The words had barely left his mother’s lips and Callon was moving. There was no thought, only reaction to the idea of another man touching his mate. Another man’s baby growing inside of her. Callon’s fist slammed into the bathroom mirror, shattering it into jagged pieces that crashed to the floor. Rage blinded him at the thought of Lola carrying another male’s child. His inner lion snarled viciously, demanding he rip apart any who dared touch his mate.

  A small hand grasped his arm just before he could put his fist through the remaining glass. “Whoa there, Simba. Let’s take a breath before destroying any more property.”

  Lola’s teasing voice cut through the haze of primal fury. Callon blinked down at her upturned face. Her beautiful, marbled skin glowed as the impish glint in her green eyes doused his anger as swiftly as it had ignited. Of course she wasn’t pregnant, least of all by some phantom rival. He was being irrational.

  Callon dropped his clenched fist and exhaled sheepishly. “Forgive my reaction. The idea of you…” His stomach churned at the thought.

  Lola patted his arm consolingly. “No offense taken, Baby Daddy. I’m flattered you find me so copulation worthy. And Katy would be so proud of my choice of vocabulary. Remind me to tell her.”

  Despite his embarrassment, Callon couldn’t contain an amused snort. Only his Lola could diffuse the situation with such ease. It was one of the many reasons why he loved her, after all.

  Lyra regarded them curiously. “Why are you shaving your legs? Why the insistence on delaying? What has you so on edge?”

  Callon quickly filled his mother in on the text from Gage and what he’d learned about the Kingdom of Chaos and Zeena.

  Lyra stood up straighter as she folded her arms in front of her and narrowed her eyes. This was the Prima standing before him, not the woman who gave him life.

  “I remember a time when Zeena was a friend.” Lyra’s voice held a hint of sadness. “She smiled often. She loved children and desperately wanted some of her own. But as time went on, she slowly changed into someone I no longer recognized. I wonder…” She tilted her head sideways, her eyes lost in a memory. “After all this time, is she capable of changing?”

  Callon didn’t think someone who’d lived with Azure so closely, and been exposed to his twisted, poisonous thinking, would be able to see anything rational anymore. But then, he was known to be overly cynical.

  “I hope she can.” Lola’s brow wrinkled as her eyes opened wide. “Because if not, then how is there hope for any of us if redemption is unattainable?”

  And that right there was why she was made for him. She balanced Callon. In all his cynicism, she was the voice of hope and reason.

  Lyra gave Lola a nod. “I agree. We should give her the chance to face her mate, and maybe she won’t be the only one who can change.”

  Callon helped his mate gather up the scattered contents of her bag, which was now covered in mirror glass thanks to his theatrics. She caught his eye and shrugged. “No sense in crying over spilled milk.”

  “Tell that to a lion cub.”

  Lyra’s comment made Callon smile. One day, he and Lola would have a lion cub, and she’d get to see just how upset a young one could get over spilled milk.

  As soon as her bag was repacked, he put it over his shoulder and took her hand as they followed his mother out the door.

  Lola glanced over her shoulder as they exited the now destroyed bathroom. She felt bad that they were leaving it in such a state.