There was a flurry of movement and suddenly Trent was there, naked and proud. “Melody Canticum, I challenge you,” he declared loudly, and then he shifted and waited for her.
Melody stared at him in horror, but before she could say anything, Mrs Hardinger spoke up. “Melody, do not deny him this. The man hasn’t eaten in three days, he’s yours whether you want him or not, and I rather think that deep down you do.”
Oz had forgotten just how much larger Trent’s fox was, although he shouldn’t have. It was easily a match in size for an Alsatian dog, his fiery coloured hide sleek and glossy. Trent dropped his head into her lap and sniffed, whining quietly.
“Melody, you need all the help you can get, I suggest you accept this man before the option is taken from you. He’s easily the weakest of the shifters gathered in this room, despite his obvious strength. Of them all, he’ll be the most vulnerable to the opinions of others. Even those who support you may consider him not strong enough for you.”
Melody’s grey eyes snapped to Trent’s chocolate brown ones. “Shift,” she said quietly, but even Oz could feel the force of her magic behind it as it blasted the fox. Immediately, Trent knelt up and kissed her gently with his very human mouth. Her arms clamped around him as he gathered her in his and held her there.
“Dude, cover that shit up, come on, we just ate!” snarked Justin, easing the tension of the moment. Nick simply reached up and cuffed the back of his head, making the others laugh.
“And with that simple claiming, I can assure anyone who asks that all of your bonds are legal. There is no doubt in my mind that you could defeat any shifter in this room. No wonder your aunt tried to control you, Melody, your power is phenomenal.”
Melody looked up at him over Trent’s shoulder. He still hadn’t moved, his nose now buried firmly against her neck as he inhaled her scent. Any moment, Oz expected Dean or Asher to throw him off, but instead the two other linked familiars sat with goofy smiles on their faces, watching as Trent bonded with her.
Dean looked up at Oz. “That’s what my bonding should have been like. Not the crap with that bitch, Shawna, or the geasen hitting her so hard, but this. Holding her, feeling that fucking relief, knowing she was finally mine, and I was hers. That’s what we should have had, instead of all that pain and fear.”
Asher got up and disappeared into his room, the moment apparently too much for him, but the asshole wolf surprised Oz when he returned with a blanket, draping it over Trent and tucking it around them both. Melody smiled up at him, as her hands gently stroked the back of Trent’s head, and Oz could see the effect of her approval upon the arrogant wolf shifter. Right in front of their eyes, Asher melted a little more.
“On that note,” said the councillor quietly, “I think I shall make my move. Mrs Hardinger, would you care to accompany me to the gates?”
“The wards are down, Councillor, you can portal from the lawn out the front of the cottage if you like,” she told him. “I’m happy to walk you out the front, but I’m not keen to leave them all alone just yet.”
Mrs Hardinger rose stiffly, the events taking their toll on her physically as well as mentally. “I won’t be far, please see if you can get Trent to eat something, I’m sure his common sense will return with a little food in him.” She linked her arm through Councillor Argrum’s, walking him out the front door, Toby closed behind them.
“What did she mean, ‘the wards are down’?” Oz asked the room in general.
“Most of the wards around the school are tied to the current provost. When there’s a change, there are several days of spells while the wards are transferred over to the new one,” Nick told him, pausing so long that Oz realised he was trying to pick his words carefully.
“With an abrupt change like this, there wasn’t time to transfer the wards, so they broke. They will have to be recast when the new provost is inducted. I’d say the American High Council will get onto that asap, but I’m willing to bet they’ll ask Jus and I to do something temporary with the staff members until that’s sorted.” Nick sighed and scrubbed his hands across his face in fatigue.
It was something that Oz could empathise with, now that Melody was awake again and the interview was over, Oz felt like he could finally relax. He could breathe knowing that right now, nothing was coming for him. Suddenly he felt as exhausted as Nick looked.
“Dude, come on, take a bite,” Ryan cajolled. “You’re all over her, she’s not going anywhere, and I’m sure she won’t mind you chewing in her ear. In fact, I bet she’s waiting for you to start chewing on it.”
Ryan smirked at Trent who was refusing to move from her neck to take the hamburger that was being held out to him by the teasing wolf.
Melody scowled at him, but she nudged Trent. “Come on, if you haven’t eaten in three days, I need you to eat something now. We’re not safe until those wards are back up, and if she comes for us, I need you fighting fit.”
Trent’s head jerked up, and then he grabbed the burger and started devouring it, his eyes blazing as he stared at Melody.
Nick snorted. “He just said ‘I’d like to see her fucking try’ over the link to me.”
“I wouldn’t,” snapped Melody. “I’m weakened, none of
