The Cat Shifter (Book 1 of Shifter Series)

Chapter 16

"So, are you two done being at each other's throats?" a familiar voice asked from where they were in a tree. "Because... we have a slight problem."

I looked in the tree to see Ro and Ray staring at me, grinning. I scowled and sat up. "Ronan," I warned, and he stopped grinning before it appeared again. "Raylen." I glanced at the female, and she shrugged.

"Hiya, Carver," they said, looking at Carver.

"Where have you been?" Ro asked.

Carver scowled and sat up. "Hiding. Aren't you two supposed to be doing that?"

They shrugged.

"The spell is complete," Ro said.

"We are allowed to come without the fear of him knowing."

I raised an eyebrow. "Then why didn't you two come sooner? I thought you would have."

Their grins fell a little before appearing again.

"Well... a certain male had been hanging around the place we had been hiding, wondering about a certain scent we had been carrying."

I raised an eyebrow but stayed silent.

"Well, he followed us..."

I bit back a groan and sat up. "And, he used a potion to cover up his scent?" I asked, causing them to nod their head. I took a deep breath and rubbed the bridge of my nose. "How far was he?"

"About three miles away," Ro said, shrugging his shoulder. "He's been about that far for about the whole trip here."

"We tried to lose him, but the bastard had gotten good at tracking," Ray added, causing him to nod his head. She scowled and narrowed her eyes. Worry filled them, and I knew that she was worried that Romanov would try to use him to find me.

I nodded my head and stood. "Well, I guess that means we have to greet him." I looked at Trevor. "Tell Brody, please," I said.

'You know that you can contact him yourself, correct?' Tigress asked, amused. She shifted in my head, finally accepting the reason as to why we had to wait to rescue my mother and Trevor's parents.

'Well, he doesn't, not yet,' I replied. 'I want to wait a bit and see if I can't scare him.'

Tigress chuckled.

"He has been told," Trevor said. "He will meet us at the border. A strange male wants to cross."

I nodded. "That must be him. Let's collect him before he tries to kill someone."

"If he hasn't done so already," Carver said, standing. He looked at the twins. "Lead the way."

The twins nodded their heads and started to run with us following close behind.

***

"What do you mean that you can't let me through?" an angry voice asked when we were near to the pack border. "I am your prince. Why would I lie about that?"

"I am sorry, Sir, but I cannot let you through without the Alpha's permission," one of the border members said.

"What about the Luna's permission?" I asked, walking out from behind a bush that was blocking my path. I bit back a smile when the guard jumped and turned to look at Trevor and me. "Would you be able to let him through then?" 

"Beta, Luna," he said, bowing his neck. "I wasn't expecting anyone so soon. The Alpha said he is on his way."

"Cats are fast," I replied, shrugging my shoulder. "And Halfbreeds of the cat species. We had been informed that someone was trying to get across."

"By...?" the guard asked. He raised an eyebrow when he didn't see anyone else.

"Who he says he had been following," I replied, nodding to the man that was staring at me as if he had seen a ghost. I shifted on my feet, feeling slightly uncomfortable.

"He called them egotistical dimwitted, buffoons," the guard said. "But..?" He looked around to see that there was no one else there.

I took a deep breath and let it out, feeling annoyed. "Will you two come out, please?" I asked. "You too, Carver."

"But, he called us buffoons," Ro said while he walked to my side with his sister by his side.

"And dimwitted," Ray added. "Why should we save his ass?"

"Because you two are buffoons," Trevor said, speaking for the first time. He nodded his head. "Caspian. It's good to see you again."

"You, too," Caspian said dismissively, and Trevor snorted and rolled his eyes. "Kat?" he asked, and I nodded. He cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. He looked me up and down and licked his lips, trying to find his voice. "It's... ah... good to see you again."

I nodded my head, feeling uncomfortable. I knew that he had a crush on me, and I had hoped that it disappeared. However, I could tell that it hadn't.

"It's... ah... good to see you, too," I said. I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly. "Though I don't think I like you with a beard."