long, long time, Quinn. It was what pushed me into becoming a feral in the first place. He came to me in dreams, and the nightmares were so intense I almost lost my mind entirely.”
He’d never shared this with anyone, and it felt good to relieve his soul of the secrets he had buried deep inside. Seemingly forgetting about their problematic arousal, Quinn came closer to Roarke and squeezed his hand. “I’m sorry you had to go through that alone,” he whispered. “I can tell how hard it must have been for you.”
“I think that what I went through is nothing compared to his experience,” Roarke mused. He couldn’t really explain how he knew that. Hell, he couldn’t even understand why he didn’t blame the mysterious presence for pushing him into becoming a feral.
“He’s in so much pain, and so are you,” Quinn whispered. “We’ll figure out a way to deal with this, to get away from the dreams.”
It occurred to Roarke that, as much as he had hated his nightmares, the thought of losing them completely, like Quinn had, scared him. This mysterious presence had become his constant companion.
“The most important thing is finding out who this man truly is and what he needs us for,” he told Quinn. “He is convinced that you know something. Any idea what he has in mind?”
Quinn hummed thoughtfully, seemingly considering the question. “Mostly, he’s too weak to tell me anything coherent. He just asks me to talk to him, to tell him about my day. When I do that, he seems relieved, and it’s like he’s not in so much pain anymore. But that still doesn’t give us the answer we’re trying to find.” His eyes lit up and Roarke knew he’d come up with an idea. “Wait. I have a message for you, from Devon.”
“Devon knows the guy in our heads,” Roarke replied. “I think they fought once, and our companion doesn’t want me to go see him. But maybe we’ll get a few clues in this letter of Devon’s.”
Quinn nodded and retrieved an envelope from his pocket. The human handed it to Roarke, and Roarke quickly tore the seal, eager to see what Devon had wanted to say. The last time they had spoken, the other feral had been furious and cold to Roarke. As he read through the lines, though, he couldn’t help a gasp. Nothing could have prepared him for such a thing.
Hi, Roarke.
I hope this letter finds you well. As you probably know, I followed up on the info you gave me and accidentally ran into my mates, Hewitt and Mason. I’m in love now, my friend, and it’s given me the gift of a new beginning. I want that for you.
I know things have been bad between us for a long, long time. But if the Magistrate can work side by side with a feral, you and I can rebuild our friendship.
I’m not in the States now, and I might not be for a while. Please think on my words and consider meeting me when I come back.
Until then, a word of warning. During my stay with the spirit wolves, I came across a strange… I hesitate to call him a creature. He is a witch named G’aladon, and he attempted to possess my lover, Hewitt. We banished him to the astral realm, but his orc minions are still out there somewhere, and there’s really no telling whether he’ll come back or not. You probably think I’m crazy, but it’s true. Orcs, like in all the fantasy stories. I saw them myself, and they are dangerous in a way no other foe we’ve faced is.
Still, Hewitt is unsettled, because he believes we might have made a mistake in sealing G’aladon in the void, and a part of me understands. We were told that G’aladon has no soul, but Hewitt sensed something from him, and I did, too. But I think there was no other way out. As for his creations, those orcs I mentioned, they are soulless, too, and immune to magic. Be very careful, and if you run into anything unusual, contact the Magistrate. As much as we used to hate him, he genuinely wants to help. He is keeping a close eye on the situation, in case those creatures