Wildfire Phoenix by Zoe Chant
Chapter 13
Zephyr slumped against the wall outside the gym, letting out a soft, heartfelt moan. “I don’t think I can do this.”
“Sure you can.” Joe clapped him on the shoulder, making Zephyr’s abused muscles send out a chorus of fresh complaints. “Mind over matter, bro. Power through the pain.”
“The first few days are always the worst,” Rory said. He was stretching outside the gym, limbering up before the morning training session. “Don’t worry, we’re all suffering too.”
Rory, Zephyr noticed glumly, did not look like he was suffering at all. The squad leader switched legs, bending into a deep hamstring stretch as easily as if he’d spent the last few days relaxing in a spa rather than trekking up and down a mountain. Zephyr was starting to seriously envy shifter biology.
“It’s not the conditioning program that’s the problem,” he said, although it was true that every joint in his body was still aching from the previous day’s training. He gestured through the open door. “That’s the problem.”
Blaise was already on the weight lifting bench, lying on her back with Callum spotting for her. She flexed her fingers around the iron shaft of the barbell, taking a firm grip. Her biceps tightened into taut curves, and Zephyr groaned again, scrunching his eyes shut.
Joe peered over his shoulder. “Ah. Yes. Not that I have any personal interest, but I can see how that might make certain things hard.”
Zephyr thumped his head back against the rough wall. “I’m trying not to watch. I really am. But sometimes I can’t help noticing. And I can’t let her notice that. The last thing I want to do is make her feel uncomfortable.”
Rory let out a deep chuckle. “Piece of advice, from a man who regularly trains with his mate. Always bring a towel to the gym. In an emergency, a good, thick towel can cover a great deal of embarrassment.”
“When Seren was training with us last year, I needed to carry two,” Joe said proudly. “And a bottle of ice. Still had to beat a hasty strategic withdrawal a few times.”
“You’ve both worked with your mates on the squad.” Zephyr looked hopefully from one to the other. “You get used to this, right? I mean, you can’t afford to let yourself get distracted out in the field.”
“Oh, yeah, it’s different out on a fire,” Joe assured him. “Definitely. When you’ve both been working for twelve hours straight, and you’re all covered in dirt and ash—”
“And sweat,” Rory added. His voice slowed. “And she’s working with total focus, applying all her skill and strength to getting the job done…”
“Breathing hard…” Joe was also starting to look rather glazed. “Driving her tool into the ground…”
Rory and Joe both lapsed into silence, gazing at their own private visions.
Zephyr sighed. “You don’t stop noticing, do you?”
“Not,” Joe said, “even a little.”
Rory cleared his throat. “Some things you’ll always notice. But when you’re out on a fire, those urges truly don’t get in the way. The whole squad has to operate as one. Your mate is still your mate, but that closeness helps you to work better together. The job comes first.”
“At least while you’re out on the line.” Joe winked. “Now, in the privacy of a secluded tent, back at fire camp… that’s a different story.”
Sharing a tent with Blaise was definitely not a prospect that it was safe to contemplate in public. Especially not without a handy towel. In fact, it was better not to think about such things at all.
Something of this must have showed in his face, because the wicked gleam in Joe’s eyes softened to sympathy.
“Sorry, bro,” the sea dragon said. “Wasn’t thinking. Didn’t mean to rub salt into the wound.”
“It’s all right,” Zephyr said. With an effort, he banished the mental image of a sweat-streaked Blaise shrugging off her jacket after a hard day of firefighting. “Truly. I don’t want you all to feel you can’t discuss your mates around me.”
“Talking about Seren and Edith behind their backs?” Darcy said, joining them. Fenrir loomed behind her, gargantuan in comparison to his diminutive mate. “Ha, you are all so busted. What’ll you give me to keep this quiet?”
Rory chuckled. “Nothing. I don’t have any secrets from my mate.”
“I do, but only because Seren says I mustn’t tell her any spoilers.” Joe put on an innocent expression. “Anyway, in this case, there’s nothing to hide. Rory and I were just agreeing how much we enjoy working with our mates.”
Darcy gave him a somewhat skeptical look. “Really? And Zeph would corroborate this version of events, if I asked him?”
Zephyr hid a smile. “I would. Rory and Joe were quite, ah, enthusiastic on the subject.”
“Hmmm.” Darcy glanced up at Fenrir. “I hope you aren’t secretly pining for me to put on a hard hat and slog away at your side. I love you, but I draw the line at a career change that would involve spending weeks away from indoor plumbing.”
Fenrir smiled, reaching out to brush a lock of Darcy’s dyed red hair back from her face. “Wouldn’t change anything about you. Not one thing.”
Darcy’s face softened into the luminous, star struck expression that Zephyr was starting to know all too well. Repressing a sigh, he politely averted his gaze, waiting for Darcy and Fenrir to return from their own little world. Wonderful as it was to be surrounded by couples so clearly and deeply in love, it did tend to lead to an awful lot of awkward pauses in conversation.
Rory must have felt much the same way, because he cleared his throat again. “Was there something you needed, Darcy?”
Darcy blinked, coming back from her rapt contemplation of her mate. “Oh, right. I was hoping to catch you, Zeph. I’ve got news.”
“Hang on,” Joe interrupted. “This sounds like something Blaise will want to hear. I’ll give her a shout.”
Despite his words, Joe didn’t head for the gym, or even call out. Instead, the sea dragon just went still for a moment, eyes unfocussing. A moment later, Blaise emerged from the gym, shadowed by Callum. Joe must have contacted them telepathically, through the bond the mythic shifters shared with each other. Zephyr envied that silent communion even more than their physical strength.
Blaise’s eyes flicked to him. She always did that; found him first, no matter how many other people were present. He knew that for a fact, because he did the same. She looked away quickly, her expression studiously casual, but Zephyr noticed how carefully she positioned herself, as far away from him as she could get while still joining the group. The air between them prickled with their mutual awareness.
“Hey guys,” Blaise said. A triangle of sweat plastered her T-shirt to her upper chest. She plucked at the thin cotton, unsticking it from her skin, and Zephyr had to take a deep breath and think very hard about towels. “What’s up?”
Joe jerked a thumb at Darcy. “News, apparently.”
“Both good and bad,” Darcy said, wrinkling her nose. “Which one do people want first?”
“Good,” Zephyr said, simultaneously with Blaise’s, “Bad.”
“A psychoanalyst would have a field day,” Rory murmured. “Give us the good news, Darcy. We could all use some of that.”
“Isn’t that the truth,” Darcy said. “Well, the good news is that I heard back from Lupa. She can still get a sense of Uncegila through their lingering psychic link. Even better, she’s pretty certain that Uncegila doesn’t have any of her horned serpents left over from previous years. It looks like you cleared them all out, Zephyr.”
“That is good news,” Zephyr said. “So we don’t have to worry about a direct attack. At least not until they start spawning again. It only gives us a couple of weeks’ breathing room, mind.”
“Better than nothing,” Rory said. “So what’s the bad news, Darcy?”
The private investigator grimaced. “The bad news is that Lupa says Uncegila is really, really pissed off. ‘Furious’ was the precise word she used.”
Zephyr winced. “So Uncegila knows that the Thunderbird is back.”
“Yeah, looks that way,” Darcy said. “I don’t know how, though. We were careful not to tell Lupa that you were awake, just in case Uncegila can still eavesdrop through her ears. But it looks like Uncegila has her own sources of information.”
Blaise’s fists clenched, as though in anticipation of serpentine forms erupting from the shadows at any moment. “How is that possible? Maybe Lupa’s wrong, and there are horned serpents sneaking around. They could be watching us right now.”
“I don’t think Uncegila would need spies,” Zephyr said. “The Thunderbird could detect the movement of Uncegila’s children. Not when they were lying low, hiding in a mortal host, but any time they moved between realms or bodies, there was a wave of… energy, I suppose you could call it, that attracted the Thunderbird’s attention. I suspect Uncegila has a similar awareness of the Thunderbird. When it came to me in dreams, it must have been like a flare going off.”
Rory rubbed his chin. “We should still be careful. Wystan can’t ward the whole base, what with so many people coming and going, but maybe he can set up something around your cabin, Zephyr. Just as a precaution. Darcy, was Lupa able to get hints as to what Uncegila might be planning?”
“Unfortunately not,” Darcy said. “Even though she still has Uncegila’s mark, the connection’s pretty weak, especially now that Lupa’s hellhound has recovered its strength. Her inner animal is really protective. It doesn’t like Lupa trying to reach for Uncegila any more than it likes the demon reaching for her.”
“Unwary wolf is a dead wolf,” Fenrir said. “And sister was caged for a long time. Think her animal is wise to refuse to put head into a noose again, no matter how compelling the scent.”
“I agree,” Zephyr said. “I really don’t want anyone to risk themselves on my account, Darcy. Especially not Lupa. I know she feels guilty over her actions, but she was duped by Uncegila. She’s as much a victim of the horned serpents as anyone. I wish I could tell her that myself.”
“I’ll pass on the message,” Darcy said. “There’s not much point in keeping your situation a secret from Lupa any longer, given that Uncegila already knows. Though I’m pretty sure Lupa’s already guessed what’s going on. She’s sharp, and it doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together.”
“Then please tell her I’d like to talk, if she’s willing.” Zephyr said. “To apologize for my own actions and assure her I harbor no grudges. It would be good to finally put an end to the enmity between our bloodlines.”
“Sometimes past casts a long shadow.” Fenrir clasped Zephyr’s upper arm in a brief, understanding touch. “But we are all pack now.”
Rory frowned. “I appreciate you want to make things right with Lupa, Zephyr, but I’m not sure it’s a good idea for you two to meet yet. At least not in person. She still has Uncegila’s mark. It’s possible that it’s not as dormant as Lupa thinks.”
“Yeah, let’s not give Lupa a chance to turn around with glowing red eyes and snap your neck,” Blaise said. “And just to check, she is somewhere secure, right? Not that I want her locked up, but leaving Uncegila’s ex-minion free to wander around is asking for trouble.”
“Don’t worry,” Darcy said. “Shan and Min-Seo are guarding her at a safe house, along with the wendigo, Mort. That basilisk guy Vance is there too.”
Rory’s eyebrows rose. “The doctor who made the anti-shift serum?”
“Yeah, he requested protection too, though I’m pretty sure he meant protecting everyone else from him. Poor guy still doesn’t have much control over his shift form. Anyway, Min-Seo and Shan will keep everyone safe if Uncegila tries anything.” Darcy made a face. “Assuming Min-Seo doesn’t snap first. Even her gumiho emotion-altering powers can’t do much to lighten that much angst. I think she’s about one tragic sigh away from murdering them all with a spork.”
“Send candy,” Callum advised. “Lots of candy.”
“I’d still like to meet Lupa, even if only virtually,” Zephyr said. “And the others too, seeing that they were dragged into this fight. Will you—”
“So you want us to focus on core stability exercises, Rory?” Callum said loudly, without any warning. “Crunches and frontal planes?”
“Wha—?” Rory cut himself off, eyes widening. He adopted a brisk, professional tone. “Right. Focus on form, and make sure to extend your back. Not too far though. We don’t want any injuries before the season even starts.”
The reason for the abrupt change of topic became apparent a moment later, as B-squad came jogging round the corner of the building. They streamed past with a chorus of friendly jibes and greetings, heading for the grassy area that the crew used for outdoor exercises. Last came Tanner, ambling along behind the rest of his squad. Catching sight of their huddle, he stopped, shaggy head tilting quizzically.
“Thought A-squad had the gym first session, Rory,” he said in his soft back country drawl. “Or did I mix up the schedule somehow?”
“We’re just waiting for Wystan to get here,” Rory replied. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure we don’t overrun into B-squad’s slot.”
“See as you don’t. My boys and girls need some toughening up.” Tanner gave Fenrir a friendly slap on the shoulder. “Not like this beast you’ve got here. Big enough already, eh?”
Darcy’s smirk was more than a little dirty. “Yep. Definitely as much as I can handle.”
From the way Tanner colored behind his beard, he hadn’t intended the innuendo. He touched the brim of his hat. “Sorry, ma’am. Didn’t see you there. How’s the investigation going?”
“Still got a lot of old records to get through,” Darcy said, with the ease of someone used to working undercover. Buck had told the rest of the crew that she was an arson investigator looking into last season’s fires, to explain her continued presence on the base. She popped up on her toes, giving Fenrir a hug. “I should get back to it. Wish me luck?”
With a deep, growling chuckle, Fenrir wrapped his hands around his mate’s waist. Darcy was solidly built, yet Fenrir lifted her entirely off her feet as though she weighed nothing at all. Good-natured catcalls and wolf whistles erupted from B-squad as the pair kissed.
Darcy slid back down Fenrir, grinning from ear to ear. Flipping a finger up at the background hecklers, she sauntered off, an extra swing in her step. Fenrir watched her leave, smiling.
Tanner clapped Fenrir on the back again. “Got yourself quite a partner there, you lucky dog.”
“Yep,” Joe said, his eyes gleaming with mischief. “He definitely is—ow!”
“Sorry,” Blaise said, not sounding sorry at all. “Was that your foot?”
“How’s B-squad coming along, Tanner?” Rory said, with the speed of a man seizing on the first topic change that sprang to mind. “Think everyone will pass the fitness tests?”
“There’s always one or two who let their physical condition slide over the off-season, but I’ll whip ‘em into shape. B-squad won’t let the crew down.” Tanner’s gaze fell on Zephyr, and his smile slipped. “Hope the same is true for your lot.”
Like the rest of the crew, Tanner had taken the news of Zephyr’s application with considerably less enthusiasm than the shifters of A-squad. No one had been less than polite, but they also hadn’t teased and joked with him the way they did with each other. It was obvious they all thought Buck had only allowed him to join the training group because he was his nephew. To be fair, they weren’t wrong.
Blaise bristled. “Our squad will be on top form this season. All of us. You just wait.”
Tanner scratched at his beard, still looking rather dubious. Zephyr couldn’t blame him. His performance so far could be most kindly described as ‘not entirely incompetent.’ There was turning out to be a lot more to firefighting than mere physical fitness.
“Well, A-squad’s got a good track record at training up newbies,” Tanner conceded. “I’ll give you that much. I had my doubts about Edith and Seren, and they turned out to be real powerhouses. And Fenton here is already shaping up to follow in those mighty big footsteps. One of these days, Rory, I’m going to twist your arm until you finally spill the beans on just how you find so many top-notch recruits.”
Rory’s smile turned rather fixed. “Aha. Ha. Just lucky, I guess.”
“Look,” Zephyr said, glad to be able to rescue his squad leader. He raised a hand, pointing down the dirt track. “Here comes Wystan.”
Too late, he realized his mistake. Tanner followed the line of his finger, squinting straight through the approaching unicorn. “I don’t see anyone.”
Zephyr cursed in his head. He kept forgetting that most people couldn’t see mythic shifters in their animal forms. “Er, my mistake. Thought I glimpsed him coming through the trees. But I’m sure he’ll turn up any minute now.”
The silver unicorn dropped into a trot, weaving neatly through B-squad. None of the firefighters so much as blinked as it went past, even though any one of them could have put out a hand and touched the pale, gleaming hide. Swerving, it vanished behind the gym building. A moment later, Wystan hurried round the other side, smoothing down windswept hair.
“I’m so sorry,” he said, in between pants. “I have no excuse for my unforgivable tardiness.”
“Of course you have, Wys,” Rory said, golden eyes crinkling. “The best excuse in the world.”
“How’s the little one?” Tanner asked. “Home yet?”
Wystan shook his head, still catching his breath. “She’s doing well, but she still needs to put on a bit more weight. I really am sorry for my late arrival. I was at the hospital all night. Had to dash home to change.”
Joe patted Wystan’s shoulder sympathetically. “Not getting much sleep, huh?”
Wystan winced. “Is it that obvious?”
“Have shirt on backwards.” Fenrir gestured at the label sticking out at Wystan’s throat. “And inside out.”
With a deep sigh, Wystan started to struggle out of his T-shirt. “Please excuse me for a moment.”
Tanner chuckled. “At least you got your pants on correctly. For a new father, that’s doing pretty well, I’d say.”
“No doubt I will manage to forget those tomorrow,” Wystan said, muffled by fabric. His head emerged from the T-shirt, wearing an even more pained expression. “It’s a miracle Buck hasn’t fired me yet.”
“I don’t think there’s much risk of that,” Zephyr said, hiding a smile. “Did you have time to get some breakfast? Rory’s set us a pretty full schedule.”
“Breakfast,” Wystan said, as though it was a foreign concept. He rubbed at the dark shadows under his eyes. “Yes. I had breakfast… yesterday? Or was that the day before?”
“Here.” Fenrir pulled a protein bar out of his pocket, offering it to Wystan. “Brought snacks.”
With a look of gratitude, Wystan tore open the wrapper. “You are a true hero, Fenrir.”
Tanner cocked his head. “Fenrir?”
Wystan froze, his mouth full of protein bar.
Blaise forced a laugh, though there was a panicked edge to it. “Wow, you are tired, Wystan. Mixing up names like that.”
Wystan swallowed hard and coughed. “Yes. Very tired. My apologies, Fenton. Force of habit.”
“Easy mistake to make,” Tanner said kindly. “Y’all sure were fond of that dog. Funny how your name is so similar, Fenton.”
“No,” Fenrir rumbled. “Not really.”
Rory clapped his hands together, with a slight air of desperation. “Well, now that we’re all here—and mostly dressed—we’d better get to work. See you at the crew meeting later, Tanner.”
“Sure thing.” Tanner hesitated, giving Fenrir a lingering, curious look before shaking his head. “Huh. Y’know, somehow he even looks like Fenrir. Now I’m going to be slipping up too.”
Zephyr followed the rest of the squad into the gym. Once Rory had closed the door, Wystan groaned, slumping onto a weight bench.
“My sincere apologies, everyone.” Wystan buried his head in his hands. “I’d promise that it won’t happen again, but in my current state, I’m barely able to remember my own name.”
Rory squeezed the unicorn shifter’s shoulder. “It’s fine, Wystan. No harm done.”
“Despite some people’s best efforts,” Blaise muttered, shooting Fenrir a glare.
“Let’s get started, or we won’t finish before the end of our hour,” Zephyr said, to head off the incipient bickering. “Rory, are we doing the same routine as yesterday?”
“Right, but let’s switch up the pairs,” Rory said. “I’ll move between groups, since we’re an odd number. Everyone else, pick a partner.”
“Wystan,” Callum said. He gave the unicorn shifter one of his rare, brief smiles. “We can talk sleepless babies. Beth still gets us up in the night, and she’s nearly two.”
Wystan shuddered. “Please don’t tell me that.”
With an effort, Zephyr didn’t glance in Blaise’s direction. Instead, he turned to Fenrir. “Since I paired up with Joe yesterday, I guess it’s me and you.”
“Sorry, bro,” Joe said before Fenrir could even open his mouth. He draped an arm around Fenrir’s shoulders. “Already claimed. I get the big guns today.”
“What, you saying I can’t spot for you?” Blaise folded her arms. “Joe, you have never in your entire life lifted anything close to my limit.”
“Sorry! Can’t dally, too much lifting to do!” Joe sang out, already dragging Fenrir away. The hellhound looked back over his shoulder with a wry shrug.
That left Zephyr, Blaise, and several fathoms of uncomfortable silence.
Zephyr made himself look at her, doing his best to conceal the way his heart thumped against his ribs. He felt ridiculously as though he was about to ask his crush if she’d like to go to the prom. Not that he’d ever had the chance to experience that particular rite of passage; at least, not for himself.
“This is awkward,” he said. “But we can’t keep circling each other like rival cats. Shall we start with weights or floor work?”
Blaise’s tongue darted out, moistening her lips. “Actually, I already finished my sets. Look, you pair up with Rory. I’ve, uh, got to go do some maintenance on the chainsaws. Catch up with you on the hike, okay?”
“Blaise—” Zephyr started, but she’d already bolted out the door.
“Well, that was a marked improvement,” Rory said from behind him. “A whole eight seconds before Blaise lost her nerve and bailed. By the end of the season, you two might even manage a whole conversation.”
With a sigh, Zephyr turned. “I appreciate that you all mean well. But in all honesty, these efforts to force us together aren’t helping. ”
“Mmm.” Rory picked up a weight from a rack, tossing it idly from hand to hand. “Have you spent any time together outside of training?”
He let out a breath of ironic laughter. “We don’t all have shifter stamina, you know. Outside of training, I’ve mainly been asleep.”
Rory lifted an eyebrow. “Sounds like the ideal time to talk to her.”
He had been tempted, in the drifting halfway state between consciousness and sleep. It would have been easy to let himself fall out of his own yearning dreams and into hers. But he’d promised to keep his distance.
He shook his head. “I haven’t dreamwalked at all. I can’t, not without risking bringing her with me. And that would only make things worse. Strengthen the connection between us.”
Rory handed him the weight, and Zephyr had to lock his knees to avoid staggering. “Bicep curls. Set your feet wider. Good. I thought connections were exactly what you needed.”
“Not that one. You know that’s not possible.”
“I know Blaise thinks it’s not possible.” Rory selected a weight for himself. It was at least three times the size of the one he’d handed Zephyr. “The rest of us aren’t so sure.”
“That has been rather obvious,” Zephyr said wryly. “Rory, please. Don’t make this harder for Blaise than it already is. Respect her choices. She’s the expert on herself, after all.”
Rory blew out his breath. “I’m not saying she isn’t. But Zephyr, I’ve known Blaise all her life. Until a few years ago, she used to shift all the time, without any issues at all. One bad incident, and she completely locked her animal away. That’s not healthy for any shifter.”
“Blaise isn’t ‘any’ shifter. Her situation is unique.”
“I know. But still, I’m worried. She won’t talk about any of this. Not what happened back then, or how she struggles with her animal now. She won’t even talk to us about you. It’s like she thinks if she ignores it all hard enough, it will go away.”
“These things take time. Blaise has to decide when she wants to talk. All you can do is let her know that you’re willing to listen.” Zephyr’s arm was starting to burn. He gritted his teeth, keeping up with Rory’s pace. “I’m glad she has you, and the rest of the squad. It’s a comfort to know you’ll be there for her, when she’s ready.”
Rory gave him a troubled look, still lifting and lowering his dumbbell. He wasn’t even breathing hard. Zephyr was beginning to understand why his uncle muttered motherloving shifters on an hourly basis.
“That sounds,” the griffin shifter said slowly, “like you know that you won’t be here for her.”
Zephyr let the weight fall to his side, rolling his shoulder. “I appreciate that everyone is doing their best to welcome me. I’m grateful for that, truly. But let’s be honest. You don’t think Blaise’s plan will work either.”
The steady movement of Rory’s weight paused. “I don’t think it’s the best option, no. But if you’re certain it won’t work, why are you going along with it?”
“Well, it’s not like I have a better one. And who knows, maybe I’m wrong. At least this way, I get to spend my last few weeks with her.” He attempted to make a joke out of it. “Even if only for eight seconds at a time.”
Rory didn’t smile. “Zephyr, what do you think will happen to Blaise if you disappear again?”
Zephyr had been trying not to think about that. “Well, I suppose she’d grieve. But she won’t be alone, at least. She’ll have you. All of you.”
“Yes,” Rory said grimly. “And it won’t be enough. You are her mate. If she loses you, it will destroy her.”
“And none of us are going to let that happen,” Joe’s unexpected comment nearly made Zephyr drop his weight on his foot. “We’re going to keep you two together. I don’t know how, except possibly with several rolls of duct tape, but failure isn’t an option.”
Looking around, Zephyr discovered that the rest of the squad had obviously been listening in on the conversation. Now they were all nodding, every face set in lines of utter determination.
“Blaise helped me to find happiness with my mate,” Wystan said. “Whatever I can do to assist her now, I will.”
“We all will,” Callum said. “Together.”
“She is pack,” Fenrir said, in his deep, rumbling voice. “You are hers. One of us, now, always. Pack protects pack.”
Zephyr had to swallow the lump in his throat. “I… thank you. All of you.”
“One way or another, you are going to be here for Blaise.” Rory’s eyes shone lion-gold, catching the light. “So you’d better figure out how to make that work.”
