The Hunger (The Lycans 3)

Things were definitely about to change, and I prayed it was for the best.

A centuries-old father who was the king of the Lycan shifters.

A century-old mother who was a vampire.

And one sister and two hybrid brothers—the latter of whom were identical matches to Caelan.

“Lass, ye’re nervous, but I promise I will no’ let anything happen tae ye. I’ll be right by ye the entire time. No one will hurt ye. I swear it.” He reached across the seat and took my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

“I’m not nervous that anything will happen to me,” I muttered the truth, even if my thoughts had been on his family. I glanced across the SUV at him. He intermittently looked from me to the road, his expression warm and soft. “I’m just scared of what I may find out about my family.”

Caelan gave me another squeeze and then brought our joined hands to his mouth to kiss my knuckles.

At the feel of his lips against my skin, I let myself rest back against the buttery-soft leather of the seat and tried to calm down.

“It won’t do any good freaking out.”

“Aye, but if ye need tae freak out tae feel better, I understand.”

I snorted and turned my head to look at him. “You might regret saying that.”

He shook his head, a stubborn look on his face. “Never. When it comes tae ye, I’m putty in ye hands. I’ll go along with whatever ye say.”

I didn’t say anything in response because I didn’t know what to say. It was still so strange and surreal to feel so close to someone after only a few days. I hated the saying “everything happens for a reason,” but right now it sure felt like the truth.

I looked down and into the cupholder to see the medallion that sat inside. Caelan had taken it off last night, going with the “no more lies, even if the truth is hard to face.”

I stared at that circular piece of metal and wondered the stories it would tell if it could speak. The talisman looked aged and scarred, as if it had seen a thousand lifetimes. For that little piece of jewelry to hold mystical powers was crazy to think about, but I supposed it was par for the course.

I’d finally gotten reception once we’d been a couple of hours into the drive, and I’d been so happy to be able to get ahold of Evelyn. I’d obviously woken her up, given the time difference, but she’d been just as relieved to hear my voice as I had been to hear hers.

She’d sounded so frantic as she immediately started rambling about how worried she’d been when she couldn't get through to me.

Of course I hadn’t told her about Caelan or the Otherworld, or anything she wouldn't be able to comprehend. Hell, I was barely grasping it all. So instead I told her that my absence was because I met somebody who could help me find information on my father’s side. It wasn’t a lie, although it wasn’t the whole truth either. I felt horrible for omitting the whole truth, but realistically I didn't want her to think I was insane and immediately jump on a plane to “rescue me.” Which she would have.

Caelan pulled the SUV onto a long, pebbled road, ascending highlands and taking turns the longer we went. It seemed like forever we stayed on that little road, and then I saw a massive stone and iron wall. I felt my skin tighten, and on instinct I looked out the window and tried to see into the thickness of the forest. The deeper I tried to peer inward, the darker the shadows became.

Even though I didn’t see anyone, I knew without a doubt we weren’t alone.

“We’re not,” Caelan said, low and deep.

I glanced over at him, not at all surprised he’d known what I was thinking. He wasn’t a mind reader, but he didn’t have to be in order to no doubt see the unease written on my face. I felt like the latter was a neon sign flashing over my head.

“Lycan sentries. They patrol the property and protect the land and my family.” Caelan looked at me and gave me a reassuring smile.

Obviously they were friend and not foe, at least not to me because I was with Caelan, but it was like my survival instinct still had warning bells going off in me. And rightly so, since those guards would have to be dangerous if they were protecting royalty.

Damn. Not just royalty, but werewolf shifting royalty.

I sat up straighter, that anxiousness right back at the forefront, but I tried to stay grounded by the feel of Caelan’s thumb moving over the back of my hand in gentle sweeps.

Beyond the gate and situated in the “center” of the property were green hills and lush land as far as I could see. Surrounding all of that was the dense forest with trees that were so massive it was like they blocked everything else out.