“Never?”
“Not about things like this,” Alice conceded. “I’ve been known to get the odd thing incorrect, but it is rare.” She threw Marshall a kind smile. “I’m not offended by your questions, Marshall. I know this is hard for you to understand.”
“Wait.” Saint’s voice had Marshall twisting to look over his shoulder at his best friend. “Elder Vaughn, you said the bond has only been between those with shifter blood.”
“Yes. I know the fae and vampires both have similar fated mate legends, but it’s usually interspecies and rarely crosses.”
“What are you thinking, Saint?”
“I think you need to have a conversation with your parents. Someone, somewhere in your family, was a shifter. It’s the only plausible answer to why you and Aaron are fated.”
“The DNA test will confirm it too,” Sam said. “But Saint’s right. There has to be some shifter blood in your family.”
“How much do you think there would have to be, though?” Marshall leaned forward to look at Alice and Kyr. “Did any of your research say?”
“I know there was one instance of a half-shifter-half-mage bonding with a lion shifter about forty years ago in France,” Kyr said, his fingers tapping rapidly on the keyboard of his laptop. “Hmm, there’s a brief mention of a quarter wolf and wolf before them.”
“Why don’t you ring your parents and have a talk with them?” Vaughn suggested.
“Is that okay? I mean, I thought we were keeping this just between us?”
“Yes,” Alice said. “You can tell your parents everything. I think you’ll find some surprises when you do.”
Marshall gave the older woman a keen stare, which she returned with a grin and a sassy wink that had him snort. “You’re trouble, old woman,” he said warmly.
“Oh, you havenoidea,“ Aaron agreed.
Laughter broke out, and some of the tension in Marshall’s shoulders eased.
Saint clapped him on the shoulder. “Come on, Marsh. We’ll head back to our room, and you can call Mom and Dad.”
“Good idea,” Aaron said, rising. “I’ll be in my office.”
“Thanks for the tour this morning,” Marshall said.
“It was my pleasure. Come and find me when you’re done, and we can pick up where we left off.”
Chapter 8
“HoldinghandswithhotAlpha, are we?” Saint teased when they got back to their suite.
“Not a hardship,” Marshall replied with a grin.
“No, I can see that.” Saint eyed him keenly. “Do you think they’re telling the truth? About the soul bond.”
“I think so. There’s been no medical explanation for either me or Aaron, so it has to be somethingother.”
“How are you feeling? You’ve got more color in your face, and you’re walking a little stronger.”
Marshall thought for a moment. “I’m definitely feeling better than I did yesterday, but that could just be because yesterday was a shit day. I mean, the travel alone was enough to wash me out, but add those seizures on top, and yeah, I was pretty fucked last night, and not in the good way.”
“Do you even remember what it’s like to be fucked in the good way?” Saint laughed, dodging the cushion that flew towards him. “What? I’m just saying it’s been a while.”
Marshall grinned ruefully. “You’re not wrong there. I’ve almost forgotten what it’s like.”
“I’ve heard that it’s like riding a bike; once you’ve learned, you never forget.”
“Haven’t ridden one of those in years either.”