“C’mere.” Tanner had stood and was pulling the T-shirt over his head. The faded cotton stretched tight across his chest. At least the hem sat below his belly button. Gathering me to his chest, he said, “Tell me more.”
“His name is Christoph. I don’t know if he has a last name. He’s my father’s father, and he’s a gyrfalcon.” I lifted my head away so I could look Tanner in the eyes. “He has wings. Wings.”
“He’s the bird-man Kaz was talking about, isn’t he?” He lifted the hank of hair that kept falling in my face and let it slide through his fingers
“How did you guess?”
“You said it yourself, Calli.” He used his forefinger to tuck the bothersome hairs behind my ear. He then traced the curve of the same ear with his thumb and smoothed my earlobe. “Curve balls. There are very few gyrfalcon shifters, fewer than a dozen, last I checked. It makes perfect sense in a curve-ball crazy way that the bird-man Kaz wanted to find for Harper would already be related to you.”
“I suppose you’re right,” I said. “But it’s going to take me a helluva long time to process the fact that I’ve got a living, breathing, flying grandfather. And that I have a name for my father.”
“What is it?”
“His name was Benôit.”
“Was?” The thumb that had left my earlobe longing for more touch now caressed the side of my jaw.
I nodded, pressing my forehead hard against Tanner’s sternum and taking comfort in the steady beat of his heart below layers of cloth, skin, muscle, and bone. “Christoph has no idea if my father is alive or dead. All he told me is Benôit fell in love with a selkie, used her skin to enable him to swim, and gave his heart to the sea, rather than the wind.”
“That sounds so poetic.”
“You should hear me after I’ve had a glass or two of wine.” I smoothed the cotton over his pectoral muscle and gave a half-hearted giggle.
“What do you want to do now?” he asked, stroking my hair down the back of my head to the ends. He slid his fingers to the base of my scalp, through the unbrushed tangles, and tugged.
I glanced at the window. “It must be at least six-thirty, seven,” I said, lulled by his touch. “Are you hungry? There are four teenagers upstairs. I have no idea how long they’ll sleep, but I know they’ll be hungry when they wake up.”
“I’m starving. Let’s go make breakfast.”
“Is there any more to tell me about what happened last night?”
His body stiffened then relaxed. “I’m going to have to see Jessamyne again if we want answers to her part in Abigail and Clifford’s disappearance.” He stopped playing with my hair and slid the side of his face against mine until his mouth neared my ear, squeezing me so tightly against his chest I could barely take in a breath. “I wanted to be your hero, Calliope.”
When he released me and I reached for the door, his openness shut down, fast and tight. I had no response for what he’d just whispered. I gave Tanner his privacy and ducked into my bedroom to add a bra and pair of cargo pants to my ensemble.
In the kitchen, the rote movements of mixing batter and heating the waffle press soothed my jumbled head. Tanner unwrapped a fresh stick of butter and placed a saucepan of maple syrup on the stove to heat. In my tired state, I bumped into him a lot, my elbows to his ribs, my heels on his toes. I was usually more conscious of my body’s boundaries. Seems four hours of sleep wasn’t nearly enough to set me closer to normal.
Quiet knocking sounded against the front door. Tanner peered around the refrigerator, laughed, and asked, “Where would I find towels for a couple of otters who look like they’ve been rolling in dirt?”
I pointed in the direction of the hall closet and peeked under the waffle maker’s lid. “Lower shelf.”
The men made a bit of a commotion after Tanner opened front door. He must have offered to hose off the two druids because there was quiet cursing and the sound of water hitting the deck. The men talked as they toweled off. I lifted my heels and peered through the window over the sink, catching flashes of naked backsides as Wes and Kaz shook out the towels and hung them over the railing.
Tanner ducked back into the kitchen. “They’re changing. And they have news.”
“Is it Abi and Cliff?” I asked, a hopeful flutter in my chest. He shook his head. All those little wings dropped to the floor.
“We found your portal, Calliope,” said Wes, walking into the kitchen, bare-chested in cut-off sweatpants.
His eyes wide and sparkling with the excitement of discovery, Kaz added, “And it’s a doozy.”
Chapter 4
Tanner shushed his friends into silence and motioned for them to gather plates and utensils and set the table. I worked on processing my need for instant gratification by adding to the mound of waffles. Kaz offered to get a pot of coffee going. He’d spent enough time in my house that he was opening cupboards and grinding beans before I could say yes.
Seated, plates full, and thanks given, I couldn’t hold back a second longer.
“Where’s the portal, and where does it go?” I directed my question to both Kaz and Wes.
“The portals occupy the entire area around the base of the old crabapple tree next to your garden, Calli. We know there’s more than one and suspect there are four. Access to each is dependent upon where you stand. Or who summons you.”
Portals. As in, more than one. And I didn’t even want to go near the idea of being summoned via a portal. How did my life get so weird? I’d tackle that question later. Instead, I asked, “How did you figure that out?”
“Locating active portals is a druid thing.” Kaz was nonchalant and
