Bastian followed Marisol's gaze, to see Abuela giving her granddaughter a cheeky smile. It wasn't just Marisol who possessed the frightening gift.
"I've seen just about all I can for a good long while," Bastian insisted when he found his voice.
"What, you guys can go all feral, but we Outsiders can't have our little quirks?" Iris looked from Char to Bastian, then to Coso's stunned face.
Bastian was glad he wasn't the only one with his hair standing on end.
"Amazing." Coso stood and approached Marisol in awe. "It makes sense that others would have the same pua that also lives in the Shifter breeds." Coso nodded.
Bastian agreed. If Shifter existed, then there had to be others with similar quirks in the world. But the fact that Coso was unaware of gifted individuals like Marisol and Abuela was disconcerting. Coso was the go-to authority on all things unusual. It was no secret that the Paiute held the knowledge of Shifter origins.
"Of course," Abuela replied with a matronly pat on Coso's back. The way the old woman made the comment, it was as if this should be common knowledge.
Bastian chuckled at the flummoxed sheepish expression Coso cast the old woman.
"I can't believe Wolf knew about this and didn't say anything. What's your quirk?" Char asked Iris.
"She makes Cain's shitty moods disappear," Trip laughed.
Bastian chuckled.
"Nice. Thanks," Cain replied.
"My gift is a bit more difficult to see." Iris wiggled her piggy toes at Cain and he started massaging them. "Will you hand me that pen and paper, please?"
"Sure." Bastian passed her the items.
"Thanks." Iris quickly sketched something. "Does this mean anything to you?" Iris showed the picture to Bastian.
"That's the playing card."
Bastian gawked at the drawing, like he was staring at a ghost. It wasn't a perfect sketch, but oddly it contained all the details that stood out in Bastian's mind. The way Iris scrawled the word help, in the same diagonal direction, was uncanny. She even got the large capital H right.
"Disturbing, isn't it?" Cain interrupted his thoughts.
"Hey!" Iris kicked Cain with her tiny barefoot. Cain grinned as he caught it, then kissed Iris' instep. "Stop," she giggled. "I see things. It would take too long to explain more than that."
"You don't want her to step foot in your casino, ever," Trip interjected.
"Behave," Marisol admonished her man, though she wore a smile.
"Yes mam," Trip quickly replied. He then leaned toward Bastian. "I pissed Marisol off once, and she lit my ass up. The electricity arced through all my piercings. And let me say, the one below the belt stung like a son of a bitch," Trip whispered loud enough everyone could hear.
As unpleasant as that sounded, Trip didn't look the least bit worried as Marisol touched him.
"TMI man." Cain shoved his friend.
The group got along well for being so unusual. Bastian now understood why Cain and Trip latched onto these women. Drake latched onto Ella for the same reason. But Bastian doubted the woman felt more than loathing for the jackal.
"You said you saw the picture Iris drew." Coso brought them back on track.
"Yeah, at last night's card game. Ella tried to reach out to me for help. Somehow, she wrote help on one of the cards in my hand. I didn't know what was going on, so I followed Drake when he left," Bastian explained. He took a big swig of his beer before continuing. "Drake took Ella out in the desert to meet a van with four jackals and Wolf. When Wolf was shot, it was like Ella exploded."
Bastian shook his head in confusion and disbelief. He would've felt completely absurd explaining this, if he hadn't witnessed the other women's bizarre skills.
"What do you mean explode?" Char demanded.
"Explode. Shockwave. She tossed Drake's sports car and tipped a van. But Ella was unhurt."
"The earthquakes," Char mumbled. "Ella can move things. That's her gift."
"You hit the nail on the head. That feels right. That's why Drake's holding Ella, and attempted to bump off Wolf when he came looking for her." Iris nodded. "I hate kidnapping assholes," she added.
"Me too amiga," Marisol agreed.
Cain repressed a growl. Trip wore a similar foul expression as he held onto Marisol. Bastian was certain there was a story there, but it would have to wait.
"So, Ella can move things with her mind," Coso mused out loud. "If that's true, then I think she saved Wolf's life."
Char's hand covered her mouth to repress a sob.
Bastian didn't know how Ella saved Wolf, when the explosion leveled everything around her, but then again, he didn't know how any of this was possible.
Wolf
"Char, stop yelling at me," Wolf groaned.
"He's awake," Char said to someone. "I can't believe you went rushing into a jackal stronghold. You should've brought me along, like I told you."
Wolf cracked his eyelids to see his sister's peeved face.
"I didn't know the jackals were holding … Ella." Wolf struggled to sit up as her name crossed his lips.
"Don't be stupid," Cain growled as he pushed Wolf back down. "You're going to open those wounds back up."
"They've got her," Wolf snarled, as he glared at his friend.
He didn't know why Cain was here, or even where here was. What Wolf did know was that he had to rescue Ella from the jackals.
God only knows what that bastard's done to her.
"I would suggest you calm down." Wolf recognized Coso, the desert alpha. "You were all but dead in that canyon. The Great Wolf looked kindly on you once, but don't test Isa's favor. One of those bullets struck you in the heart, then reversed course, and your ticker knit back together before you died. So, don't throw your second chance away being stupid."
"Ella," Wolf whispered. He'd felt her intense energy surround him before he passed out in the desert.
"Yeah, it was Ella," Iris confirmed as she smiled sympathetically.
Wolf knew Ella was amazing. Apparently, everyone else knew too, now.
"We're going to get her back," Cain promised.
"Damn straight we are," Vick rallied.
Wolf was happy to see who all had come to his aid.
"I know we will," he growled.
"We need to be cautious with how we move forward," Coso insisted. "Jackals may not outnumber the wolf and feline breeds across the territories, but most of them reside here in Nevada. That means they pose a formidable force in this region." Coso paced back and forth. "Drake's not going to let us just walk in and take the female he covets."
"It would be just like Drake to use this as an excuse to start a war. All his people would back him if they thought the other breeds had stolen his mate," Bastian snarled.
Wolf nearly leapt off the couch, at the mere suggestion the fucking jackal wanted to mate his Ella.
"Seriously man?" Cain smacked a hand on Wolf's forehead, affectively pinning him to the couch.
A deep feral growl rumbled through Wolf's chest, but it petered out as a wave of dizziness struck.
"Wolf, we're going to get her," Iris said sincerely.
Those words gave Wolf the most comfort yet. If anyone knew it was Iris.
"Drake may not let a Shifter into his casino," Iris said as she tapped her chin with that funny look Wolf had seen before.
Iris glanced pointedly from Abuela to Marisol, her smile widening.
"Iris, I know you're hatching something. The answer is no," Cain snarled vehemently.
"I agree, it's too fucking dangerous," Trip growled.
"Mijo, I think I'm old enough to make my own decisions," Marisol's grandmother admonished Trip.
"Mi amore, I don't ever get to have fun," Marisol pouted. "Let the girls play, and I'll let you do that thing you've been begging for," she demurred seductively.
Marisol played Trip like a fiddle. Wolf could only imagine what she was bribing him with. Knowing Trip, it was something raunchy.
"I can't ask you to do this," Wolf insisted.
Wolf appreciated the offer. He knew what the three amazing women were capable of, but he wouldn't be able to forgive himself, if anything happened to them.
Wolf clenched his fists. He hated how useless he felt. He needed more time to heal from getting riddled with bullets, but Ella needed him now.
"Cain, this is the only way, without starting a war," Iris insisted sweetly. "Just hear me out. We won't be alone."
"Fine. Tell us what you see," Cain rumbled, as he threw his hands up in defeat.
Iris giggled with maniacal glee, her pregnant belly shaking.