Page 4 of Truth

Oak’s posture went rigid at the mention of the book. But it was what we were here for. He reached to the small of his back and pulled it out, his grip tight as he held it up, “We do have your book, right here. We didn’t steal it though.”

“I know this to be true. The smell of your female would have lingered in any room you entered. I would have known.”

Truth grabbed the book and pulled it close, holding it with two hands as he closed his eyes for a moment. “This is the missing piece to the books of fate. I thank you for returning it.”

“Wait.” Oak took a step toward him and a nearly translucent line glimmered between them. A shield maybe? As if Oak felt the shield, he stopped, holding his hands up to show he wasn’t a threat, “We weren’t returning the book. It’s ours.”

“It’s stolen property. That doesn’t make it yours.”

“But we have been written into the book. It’s about us.”

The book looked tiny in Truth’s fingers as he opened it up and peered inside, “It appears it is. Why would my father’s most important book be about you?”

The look on his face was disgust, but I doubt he even realized it. We weren’t important. We weren’t special. Our names weren’t widely known. Yet, this book was about us. “We have a theory.”

“Of course. A theory must be involved.” Was this guy mocking us?

“There is a prophecy.” Oak began, but Truth cut him off.

“There is always a prophecy. Doesn’t make them true. I myself could be considered a prophet, but I never heard of you, any of you, until I saw visions of you and your other companions walking through my woods.”

“I doubt those were your woods.” Justice commented, “An ogre living in a shack like this wouldn’t be able to own that much land.”

I cringed. What is it with these boys and expenses? Arrogant bastards. Sexy arrogant bastards, but still bastards. One brow rose on Truth, “Do you feel someone else would own the woods this far out?”

“The prophecy,” Oak continued, cutting off whatever disagreement was sure to brew between Truth and Justice. “Surely, you’ve heard of it. With a hybrid vampire? A human who carried a dormant gene in their bloodline until it was unleashed?”

He blinked a few times, “My father had that vision, centuries ago.”

“A week ago, she was human.” Oak explained. “She was never turned. She has no maker. Her memories of our bites don’t dissipate. She – she likes . . .”

“I crave blood. Theirs. Only theirs.” I gave up the information as Oak tried to search for his wording.

“That means nothing.”

“I can heal them. I can feel them. My blood makes them glow, rejuvenating them faster than any normal human could.”

His silver eyes looked down on me and I fought not to shift in my space, “You are a witch. That is for sure. But a woman of prophecies? Of that I am not convinced.

Witch? Whoa. That was new information I wasn’t ready to address. Later, I would ask. I would learn. I reached up to find the zipper pull of my hooded sweater. The material was damp from the misty air outside, the metal of the zipper slick as I pulled it down. “This. I’ve been given this by the fates. They sent me on a quest, a quest found and lead by that book, and allowed me to claim this.”

He stepped closer; his body leaned down slightly. “I assume you are talking about the jewels and not the insufferable wolf’s mark.”

“Definitely talking about the necklace. The insufferable wolf mark claimed me, not I it.”

Beside us, I heard Justice growl. I felt his anger at my words radiate in the space. “You’ve made your wolf angry.”

I giggled; I couldn’t help it. The way Truth spoke was refreshing. “My wolf seems to always be agitated about something.”

“Unfortunate.” He tilted his head, his long braid falling to the side, “The necklace pulses with power, I could feel it.”

“Justice, my wolf,” I heard Justice mumble he wasn’t anyone’s wolf, “was trapped in his animal form for over sixty years, guarding it.”

He blinked in shock, “Who would do such things?”

“A powerful witch. We believe she had hidden the necklace away until she planned to use it. Dispersing her power until she was ready for it. Why else have Justice guard it?”

“It’s plausible, I suppose, but doesn’t mean it’s true.” His braid came down, touching my arm, and I tried not to pull away. I shivered, and he acted as if he didn’t notice, “Who is this witch?”