Leifs Surrender

Chapter Ten

She was going crazy. Jaden had never experienced anything like this before, and quite frankly, she never wanted to again. Her nerves were stretched thin. All she could do was pace back and forth across the large foyer. Leif had been gone for an hour, and it felt as if she hadn’t seen him in almost a year. Every fiber in her being wanted, no, needed to be with him.

Along with feeling as if she was slowly losing her mind, what he’d told her about his being a werewolf and being her mate kept swirling around inside her head. After watching him shift into a wolf, there was no doubt that what he said was true. At first, she had been scared, but as the minutes ticked by after he’d left, she hadn’t been able to hold onto her fear. Her anxiousness to be with him again kind of overrode any other emotion she felt. God, she missed him. She didn’t care what he was. She just needed to have him hold her again.

Finally, some of the other couples of the house started to return. Saskia, Eli, Roan and Ansley arrived back at the mansion at the same time. Saskia took one look at Jaden and rushed over to her, worry clearly showing on her face.

“Jaden? Where’s Leif?”

She stopped pacing, but she couldn’t seem to stop wringing her hands. “He got a call on his cell. A lone wolf called that supposedly had information about Miles. He went to see him. Leif said you would know what that meant.”

Saskia’s look of worry increased. “I do. Did he get a chance to explain—?”

“About you all being werewolves and that I’m his mate? Yes, but I don’t think as well as he wanted to. He was in a bit of a rush. But he did take the time to shift into his wolf form to make me believe what he’d told me.”

“How long has he been gone?”

“About an hour. He told me it would get bad, but I wasn’t expecting this. I don’t know if I can take much more of this.” Jaden crossed her arms over her stomach and rubbed her arms.

“We’ll help you get through it,” Saskia reassured her as she rubbed her back. “We’ve all experienced this since we became mated. Once Leif comes home, it’ll end.”

A cell phone ringing had Saskia reaching into her jeans’ pocket. She pulled it out and looked at who was calling. She smiled at Jaden. “It’s Leif. I’ll put it on hands-free.

Hearing his voice should help a little.”

Saskia flipped the phone open. “Leif, you’d better be on your way back.”

A male voice, that wasn’t Leif’s, said, “I’m sorry, sister dear, but Leif is a little…indisposed at the moment.”

“Miles, what have you done to Leif?” Saskia asked with a snarl.

“The nosy bastard got what he deserved.”

“You better not have harmed him. Or I’ll—”

“You’ll do nothing. I didn’t harm your precious brother-in-arms. He’s taking a forced nap right now. No harm will come to him so long as you agree to a trade.”

“A trade?”

“Yes, sister dear, a trade. The foretold one for Leif.”

“We are her Protectors. We aren’t going to just hand her over to you.”

“You will or Leif won’t live to see another thousand years. I’ll give you until dawn to think about it, then I’ll call you again to tell you where to make the trade. For Leif’s sake, you’d better make the right decision, because if you don’t bring me the foretold one, I’ll take my disappointment out on him before I put him out of his misery.”

Miles disconnected, and silence reigned for a few seconds before the others started to argue about what to do.

“We can’t hand Roxie over to Miles,” Saskia said.

“No,” Roan agreed, “but we can’t leave Leif with Miles, either.”

“What if we made the trade with a decoy?” Eli asked. “You know, find another female that Miles wouldn’t know, one who would be able to hold her own against him and be able to get away.”

“Hmm, that could be an idea,” Saskia said, but then she shook her head. “The only female I know who would be strong enough to take Miles down, besides myself, is Billie and she and Royce are away on holiday.”

Eli chuckled. “My sister will be upset that she missed the opportunity to kick some butt.”

“We’ll just have to come up with something else,” Roan said.

Feeling even more desperate than she had before, Jaden said not very loudly, “What about me?” When she got no response, she said louder, “Use me instead of Roxie. I’ll go.”

The others stopped talking. Saskia then gave her a sad look. “Jaden, you can’t. For one thing, you smell like a mortal. Miles would get one whiff of you from a distance, and he’d know. And being that you are mortal, it would be twice as risky as sending in an untrained female werewolf. At least she would have the ability to shift.”

“Then do it,” Jaden blurted.

“Do what?”

“Leif said something about Roxie being able to turn me into a werewolf. Then get her to turn me. That way I won’t smell like a mortal.”

“I don’t know, Jaden. Once you’re turned, it can’t be undone. You have to know that we live a very long time. You would be living as a werewolf for at least a couple of thousand years.”

“But I would be living those years with Leif as my mate, right? And I would be a lot stronger than I am now.”

“Yes.”

“Then I want it. Call Roxie and do whatever you have to do to get her to turn me.”

When Saskia hesitated, Roan said, “I think we should let her. She and Leif are mated. If he sees his mate put in danger, he’ll be that more protective of her. He’ll claw through Miles and whatever men he has to get to her. Nothing will hold him back, especially after being separated from Jaden for so long.”

Saskia sighed. “All right, you have a point there. But what if there is a slim chance that Miles has seen Roxie from a distance? Jaden and Roxie have similar builds even though they aren’t the same height, but Jaden’s hair isn’t the same. She wouldn’t be able to fool him even from a distance.”

Ansley cleared her throat. “That’s where I come in. Remember, I’m Roxie’s hair stylist. I can color Jaden’s hair to match hers and cut it the same way. It may be a tad shorter, but it won’t make that much of a difference. As for the glasses, Jaden just won’t wear them.”

“I really can’t see all that well without them,” Jaden said.

“After you’re turned you’ll have perfect vision, I’m sure,” Roan assured her. “Since she was turned, Ansley’s eyesight and hearing are now as acute as any born werewolf.

The same will happen with you.” He looked at Saskia. “Well, sis, what do you say?”

Jaden looked at Saskia expectantly as did Ansley. Finally, Saskia nodded. “All right, we’ll do it. Let’s just hope Leif doesn’t kill me afterwards for putting his mate in danger.”

After one quick phone call, Roxie was on her way to the mansion with the Protectors who had been with her. Roan had taken Ansley out to an open late drug store to buy the hair coloring kit needed to dye Jaden’s brown hair to Roxie’s golden brown. They arrived back a short time after Jager and Daylen had returned home.

While waiting for Ansley to get back, Saskia had done her best to answer any questions Jaden had. She now had a better understanding of werewolves, as well as what being mated to one entailed. She still couldn’t get over the fact that Leif had known she was his mate from her scent right on that first day she’d seen him. After what Dirk had said about Leif being a lady’s man, it also didn’t surprise her to learn he’d fought the mating urge to claim her as his. It also explained why he had been so desperate to have her that night he’d come to her place.

Jaden wasn’t bothered that she hadn’t been given any choice when it came to their mating. Leif was the man for her. Her feelings for him had grown deeper faster than she’d ever experienced before. And now that she was separated from him, she realized she never wanted to live without him.

Ansley had died her hair, and Jaden had just come down from showering out the color when Roxie, Beowulf, Dirk, Skylar and Kye arrived. Everyone had congregated in the kitchen while Ansley set to work cutting Jaden’s hair. The men and Saskia had moved to one part of the kitchen while the other women had moved to where Ansley worked.

Roxie pulled a chair up across from Jaden and met her gaze. “Are you still sure you want to go through with this, Jaden?”

“Yes, I’m sure.” To distract herself from the rollercoaster of emotions she was almost constantly feeling because of not being with Leif, she asked, “How is the spell done?”

“It’s pretty simple. I inject you with some of my blood, say the words of the spell and then you’ll turn. That’s why I brought these with me.” Opening a paper bag, Roxie pulled out two small packages holding rubbing alcohol wipes and a new syringe, one that looked like the kind diabetics used.

“I can handle that.”

“Now I’m not going to lie to you, Jaden. Once I’ve said the words, it’s going to hurt like a bugger. But it doesn’t last for very long. Right, Ansley?”

“Roxie’s right,” Ansley said in return. “It only lasts a matter of seconds.”

“Just remember what the outcome will be,” Daylen said. “Once the pain is over, you’ll be Leif’s mate in every way.”

“I should be able to handle it then.” Jaden listened to the sound of Ansley’s scissors clipping away for a few seconds before she said, “While on the phone with Saskia, Miles called her sister but called Leif her brother-in-arms. Wouldn’t Leif be his brother too?”

Roxie shook her head. “The Protectors may call themselves brothers and sister, but they all aren’t natural siblings. Roan, Jager and Skylar are the only true siblings. They have been living together for centuries, so they’ve come to think of themselves as one big family. Saskia’s grandmother was the one who brought them all together, basically forming their own small pack with Saskia as pack leader. Miles is Saskia’s real brother and, at one time, was one of them until he went bad.”

“I get it now. And Miles needs you so he can rule the packs?”

“Basically. I rule them now since I’m the foretold one. Saskia’s grandmother had the sight and was the one who saw my coming, hence the title of the foretold one. Saskia also has the sight, and recently, we unfortunately learned Miles has a bit of it as well. That’s why he’s been able to keep one step ahead of the Protectors.”

“If he has the sight, why hasn’t he been able to see you in one of his visions?”

Saskia, who had come to join them, said, “That’s a good question. I haven’t been able to figure that one out. I had the vision that led me to Wulf’s Den where I knew the foretold would be found, but Miles obviously hasn’t been able to pick up on you.”

“Well,” Roxie said, “I may have an explanation for that. You know I’ve been playing around with my magic to see exactly what I can and can’t do. One of the things I’ve been doing ever since that night at the club, when you said how you found me, is to use my magic to shield myself. When you told me about Miles, I’ve been kind of specifically directing it to deflect him.”

“You’ve been doing it all this time and you never told me,” Saskia said.

“I didn’t know if it was actually working or not, but I have a feeling it must be.”

“All right. Let’s do a test. I know I can pick up your location if I concentrate hard enough, and a vision will come to me. Include me in this direct shielding you’re doing for Miles.”

Roxie closed her eyes for a few seconds, then opened them. “Okay, done.”

Saskia got a faraway look on her face. A full minute passed before she shook her head and smiled. “Well, I’ll be damned. I’m getting nothing but a blank.”

“Then I guess it’s working,” Roxie said with a large smile.

“At least we don’t have to worry about Miles learning your identity through a vision.”

Ansley put down her scissors and picked up the hairdryer. “I’m all done. Once I style it, it should look exactly like Roxie’s.”

Jaden closed her eyes as Ansley dried her hair. She’d let the others’ conversations wash over her. It was taking almost everything she had not to go out and look for Leif, even though doing so would be a complete waste of time. Miles had him hidden somewhere in the city. It would take an army and more hours than they had to be able to find him.

Shutting off the hairdryer, Ansley put it on the table and took off the cape she’d put around Jaden. “What do you think?” she asked the women.

“Perfect, as always,” Roxie said. “From a distance, Jaden will pass for me.”

Jaden opened her eyes. “I guess it’s spell time.”

Roxie met her gaze. “Are you ready for this?”

The men joined them as Jaden nodded and put her glasses on. She wanted to be able to see everything Roxie did. “Let’s do it.”

After opening one of the wipes, Roxie rubbed the inside of her elbow with it before she took off the top of the syringe and stuck the needle into her skin. She pulled out the plunger and filled it with some of her blood. Guessing at what was to come next, Jaden held out her right arm with it turned so the inside of her elbow was facing up. Roxie used the other wipe, then jabbed the needle into Jaden’s arm.

Once she pushed the plunger to inject the blood, Roxie said the words of the spell.

“The magic of the wolf’s blood is now in thee. A wolf you become to run wild and free.

Where once there were two, now only one we see.”

Jaden gasped while Roxie said them. They seemed to resonate inside her. The place where Roxie had injected her started to burn. Then, moving like quicksilver, it swept through her whole body. It felt as if Jaden was burning from the inside out. She bit her bottom lip until she tasted blood to keep herself from yelling out in pain.

When she thought she wouldn’t be able to take anymore, the burning sensation slowly started to ease until it disappeared completely. Shaking with the aftereffects, Jaden took a few deep breaths. Looking at everyone crowded around her, she found her sight was blurry. Jaden pulled off the glasses she no longer needed.

She gave everyone a shaky smile. “It worked. I can’t see through these anymore.”

She put her glasses on the table.

Saskia came and hugged her. “Welcome to the family, Jaden.” She then pulled away from Jaden sharply and gasped.

“What?” Jaden asked, scared that something had gone wrong with the spell after all.

“Your scent is different, and not just because you’re now a werewolf. It’s subtle, but it’s enough for me to smell it.” Saskia’s gaze ran over her face with shock. “You’re scent is similar to Miles’.”

“Are you sure?” Jager asked. At Saskia’s nod, he leaned in to Jaden and took a deep breath. “Holy crap. You’re right.”

Starting to feel uncomfortable, Jaden said, “How can I smell like Miles? I don’t know him, and I’ve never been near him.”

“Jaden, who is your father?” Saskia asked softly.

“I have no idea. My mother never told me. She never spoke of him. After she died, I never found anything in her belongings about him, either.”

“I know who he is. Miles is your father, which makes you my niece.”

Shocked, Jaden asked, “How can you tell just by my scent?”

“Werewolf offspring carry the scent of both their mother and father. It’s something that doesn’t go away, even after they reach adulthood. Because of that, we always know the paternity of our children. I guess being born as a mortal has somehow masked Miles’

scent, but you are most definitely his daughter.”

Learning her father was the man who had taken her mate and threatened to kill him was just not something Jaden needed. She’d always wondered what he was like, but right now, she wished he’d have remained a mystery.