Shade could see the wheels turning in his head. He slapped Skelk on the back. "There is no question about trust, brother. You have proven yourself with me, with all of us. And my mate has a special place in her heart for you. Do not be surprised if she joins Lorenzo when he comes to you to train. She will help keep him under control. I will speak with her about it, but I have no doubts she will agree. I am grateful, Skelk. I see what you do here, how you work with the warriors, things they will carry with them for the rest of their lives, skills that could easily save their life. Never think I do not see what you do here. You are loved and appreciated, brother."
Skelk kept his eyes on the floor as his master heaped praise on him. He felt pride but wasn’t comfortable with the attention. "Okay, well, talk to my lady then. And if you both agree, just let me know. I will be happy to work with him."
"I appreciate it, Skelk. I will get back to you on this one. Go on and bust some heads out there tonight. Oh, by the way, how is Robbie doing?"
Skelk had turned to leave when Shade threw the question at him. He stopped and turned. "Oh, Robbie. He’ll do fine. Picks up weapons quickly. Not quite as aggressive as some. Confidence issue, I think. A little experience is all he needs. Some of the young ones come in all cocky, act like they know it all, when underneath they are pissing their pants. Robbie wears his emotions on his sleeve, shows his fear sometimes. He’ll learn to mask it with age."
Shade watched the hulking warrior retreat and knew he was one lonely warrior. Although Skelk never lacked for female company, he might as well have been alone. Like most warriors, Skelk’s life was solitary but Shade thought this one had a deep dark past, one he wasn’t sure he’d ever know.
23
Since the fire-throwing episode, Lorenzo hadn’t been left unsupervised, and that was fine with him! He was still confused about this discovery, in spite of his parents’ reassurances that everything was fine. Tonight, his father was in the camp, meeting with all the warriors, and his mother was with him as they both made their rounds on the progress of the indoor and outdoor pools.
Kate noticed her child lacked his usual exuberance over climbing on the excavated piles of dirt, and she knew he had misgivings about his gift.
On their way downstairs to the indoor pool, they encountered Cory, who gave Lorenzo a high five. “Hey, little dude! What’s happening?”
“Did you hear about me, Cory?”
Cory laughed. “Dude, everyone heard about you!”
Lorenzo looked like he might cry, and Cory responded to the child’s conflict. “Hey, Lorenzo.” He picked him up and held him close. “Don’t be sad about it. It’s all cool. What’s wrong?”
Lorenzo’s voice quivered. “I could hurt people. I didn’t mean to do it.”
Kate rubbed his back and shushed him. “Lorenzo, you’ll learn to control your gift, and when you do, there’s no danger. You’ll use it as a weapon, but only when you need it.”
Lorenzo looked uncertain. “Who will teach me?”
Kate was wondering that herself, but she couldn’t show him any doubt. “Your father will teach you, and I’m sure the other warriors will help. You know, Lorenzo, when I discovered my gift with the animals, I didn’t know how to use it either. I had to learn how to channel my power, how I could use my gift to help protect us, and you’ll do the same. You were born a warrior. Our coven is vast now, and it grows bigger every day. There are so many who depend on us. As you grow, you’ll follow in your father’s footsteps, and he’ll train you to be a great warrior, just like him.”
Cory rocked back and forth with him, as Lorenzo calmed down. “Your gift will be awesome, little dude. Can you imagine? Once you’re grown, you’ll fight battles like our father. Fire is deadly to a vampire, and yet you’re somehow immune to it. You’ll be able to use it as a weapon. It’s a powerful gift, little brother. Don’t be afraid of it. Dad will teach you to channel it, don’t worry.”
Kate took his chubby cheeks in her hand. “But promise me, Lorenzo. Tell me you understand. This isn’t a toy. You don’t explore this gift without supervision and direction. You don’t use it in anger and revenge. You use it to protect yourself and your coven only, understood? Once something, or someone, is destroyed, we can’t bring it back.”
Lorenzo nodded as he sniffed away his tears. “I understand, Mommy.”
“I know we’ve let you play outside in the yard with just the supervision of Aegis, but until you learn how to control your gift, someone will always be with you. This isn’t a punishment. This is to protect you, okay?”
Lorenzo nodded and was relieved he didn’t have to carry the burden of this gift alone.
24
Mica had spent his lifetime in servitude to a master, moving from coven to coven, never feeling at home. It was only now, with Raven, that he felt the need to establish some roots. In the past three years he and Raven had lived here together, they had worked to make their apartment into their home. For Raven, who’d spent his life as a warrior, living in a barracks, it had been a paradise.
Mica had always served in a master's home, or overseeing an inn, but this was the first place that had been truly his. The first place he’d been allowed to mold and shape to his own taste. He knew this came as a result of the generosity of my lady. It was clear whenever Mica was around her that she made no class distinctions, which was a sharp departure in their culture. Still, even with all the freedom they’d been given, they’d dared not make the decision to mate without Shade's approval. They had been back in California for a number of days now, and they had both been busy catching up. This was a busy time at the inn. Actually, it was always a busy time at the inn, but Reynaldo had been informed of their decision to mate, and Shade's approval, and he was encouraging them to take a few days to themselves. He said he could take over the managerial duties for a few days, and they had enough warriors to provide security. And, of course, if anything major went down, he and Raven were right here on the property.
Mica had had one of the housekeepers helping him clean the apartment. He wanted to make sure everything was special. Reynaldo had delivered several bottles of Midnight. Mica had draped their bed in a canopy of sheer tulle, in a pale ivory color, and filled the room with candle light. He was running the oversized claw-foot tub full of steaming water and had filled the tub with night blooming jasmine. He knew this was over the top, but underneath the leather and the tough exterior Raven projected, he knew, beat the heart of a romantic. He took one last look around their apartment, making sure everything was in place for the two of them.
***
Giving out the final orders for the evening to the warriors, Raven was feeling anxious. He felt his beast kicking him hard. They’d been back in California for a few days, and nothing had happened between him and Mica. They could never leave the inn for long as this place was nonstop work, including protection around the clock. He didn’t mind the work, he was used to it, and so was Mica. But it gnawed at him that he and Mica had still not mated. It seemed as though once the boss-man had given the go ahead to mate, Mica was satisfied, and acted like there was no rush.