CHAPTER 2

Jonah watched with a sense of satisfaction as the perky blonde woman shuffled away. If the wolf named Carol accepted him as her sorcerer, he’d have a familiar once again. His animus had started to become unstable, his dreams haunted by visions of Terra Noctem—the Night World, the world of the dead. A sorcerer with unstable mana—whether anima or animus—could find his soul drawn into Terra Noctem, or worse. If it went on long enough, he could become a wither, forever hungering for the magic of Terra Mundus. It happened all the time to blood sorcerers if their vile

practices weren’t stopped in time, as their magic raged and forced the change onto them. The only thing he’d found that would stop a blood sorcerer from killing—and turning—was incarceration in solitary confinement. It was a death sentence either way, as the sorcerer’s mana

pulled them apart from the inside without a familiar to balance them out. Blood sorcerers rarely lived to old age.

He never wanted to meet one who had. The thought was horrifying.

He was nowhere near that point, thank the gods, but going for a month without a familiar had made him keen to find a new one.

His animus was reaching for her anima already, eager to find the balance that had disappeared when his last familiar refused to renew their contract or deepen their bond. It had happened so many times now Jonah could count his past familiars on both hands and one foot.

Jonah was thirty years old and had gone through eleven partners. He had thought he’d find his perfect familiar by now, but after being rejected so many times, he’d almost given up hope.

Until now.

The wolf was staring at him with a doggie grin, her body small by wolf standards. She had a narrow snout and a black nose. Her golden eyes watched him curiously, but she wasn’t pulling away. If anything, she was slowly inching closer, her nostrils flaring as she sniffed at him.

Good. That was an excellent sign. It meant that she—

“Sir?” Ms. Weber glanced between the two of them with an air of concern. “I have the paperwork for you and Ms. Voss to sign if you still want to.” She stared at the small poodle who came to sniff at him, smiling. “Of course, there are other familiars who might match better with you.” She made it clear she preferred the smaller, less-ferocious familiars with every word and gesture.

Jonah bit back his annoyed sigh. Why Ms. Weber was following him around when there were other people trying to gain her attention was beyond him. He wasn’t all that interesting. There was a fucking movie star not that far away from him, trying to get her to acknowledge him, but no. She was fixated on Jonah, on turning him away from Ms. Voss, and he had no idea why.

A wet nose touched his hand. Jonah turned his attention back to Carol, half forgetting that Ms. Weber was even there. Already, a tentative bond was forming between them. He could sense their magics testing each other, another good sign. He could tell her link to Terra Mundus—the human plane of existence—was firm. She’d make an excellent anchor for his magic. “All right. Do you want to shift now or after we get to my

home?”

A familiar and sorcerer needed to be close to each other for their magic to mesh properly. If they fully bonded after a year and a day, they

could be apart long enough for the familiar to work away from the sorcerer, but that didn’t happen often.

Many familiars were given free housing and sustenance by the sorcerer or Familiar House, giving them the freedom to work or not as they saw fit, though most either worked with their sorcerer or chose to be homebodies. It sucked for the familiars, but a familiar could live their entire life without a sorcerer, whereas a sorcerer couldn’t survive for long without a familiar. He’d observed—and fought with—the results. It wasn’t pretty.

The small poodle shook its head and sneezed, already moving beyond him, but still, Ms. Weber watched it with affection. “Mr. Sound?” Ms. Weber clutched the papers to her chest, her expression hopeful. “Have you changed your mind?”

“No.” Jonah snatched the papers from her hands, almost tearing one of the sheets. It was all legalese about how he would pay room and board for the familiar, he wouldn’t abuse the familiar, the contract was in effect for blah blah blah. All the rules that had been drilled into him since he was a child, clutching his anima toy and dreaming of a bond that would last his whole life.

“Ms. Voss? Do you want to sign here or at my home?” He’d do whatever his little wolf wished so long as she followed him home.

She edged Ms. Weber away from him with her shoulder. Then she glanced at him and started for the double doors.

Apparently, she was ready to go. Jonah nodded and followed her, opening the front door for her.

“Wait! You haven’t signed the paperwork!”

Jonah tried desperately not to fry the woman. She’d been annoying him since the moment he’d arrived, steering him away from his favored

type of familiar. He’d have to have a word about her with Patrick Burns,

who ran this particular Familiar House. She wasn’t supposed to try to

influence a match. She was supposed to be there for the well-being of the

familiars and to make sure they had what they needed to survive. If she was giving the large predators a hard time, he’d see to it that she was removed from overseeing the meet and greets at the very least.

“We’ll be signing at my home.” He tried to smile, aware it probably seemed as rigid as it felt. The woman was beginning to exasperate him.

There was no law or part of the contract that said it had to be signed in front of witnesses, or even at the House. “Once they’re signed, I’ll have them couriered back to you immediately.”

“But—”

“I believe Ms. Voss is leaving without me.” Jonah spun on his heel and walked out, sighing in relief when he was down the steps. Carol was trotting down the street, her tail and head high, practically dancing in a puppyish, endearing way.

Jonah watched her, certain that she was going to be full of sunshine. “My car is this way.” He pointed the opposite way that she’d been walking, almost laughing when she lifted her head even higher and trotted past him.

Yup. This one was going to be a handful.

Jonah took the lead, taking Carol to his car and opening the back door. “Once you’re human, I’ll let you in the front, but for now I think you’ll be more comfortable back here.”

Carol hopped right in and settled on the blanket Jonah had draped

across the back seat for whatever familiar he wound up with. She placed her head on her paws and closed her eyes with a contented sigh.

Huh. That was his blanket. He’d nearly forgotten his appointment and had grabbed the one off his bed without thought. From the way she was nuzzling it, though, she must really like his scent.

He found himself curious as he climbed behind the wheel and started his car. Was Carol tiny, like her wolf form indicated, or tall? Were her eyes golden or a different color? Would he like her as much as she seemed to like him?

It didn’t take long to arrive. The Sound family kept more than one home, his favorite being the house in Santa Monica. Even in winter, the sun on the water and the sound of the waves soothed him as nothing else could. But those homes belonged to his father. Jonah had his own residence apart from his parents’ mansions, a sweet two-story townhouse he’d bought at auction and renovated himself. One his mother couldn’t just waltz into and change on a whim whenever it suited her.

For an eagle shifter, she could be very flighty, but his father adored her and wouldn’t change a thing about her. Neither would Jonah. She’d proven that predatory familiars were just like everyone else. Their only quirk was they preferred their steaks on the rare side.

Jonah pulled into the garage, hoping Carol would be impressed with his home. The garage opened up onto a stone-tiled foyer. To the right of the garage was his office space, where he spent quite a bit of his time researching magical crimes and their aftermath. The bathroom next to it held a small shower for when he came home covered in bodily fluids. It had happened often enough that the shower stall had become a necessity.

The great room was where he lived and entertained, with a

comfortable sectional, a huge television, and all the game consoles he could squeeze into the entertainment center. To the right of the stairs were the kitchen and dining room. The kitchen had French doors leading to a small deck, giving Jonah plenty of room to entertain his family and their familiars or any friends he invited by. Jonah would sit out there sometimes and stare at the city lights when he was weary from another day on the job.

The second floor held three bedrooms, one of which was the master.

He’d installed a large clawfoot tub in the master bath, along with a glass- walled shower big enough for two. A vanity sat between two sinks, ready for a woman’s makeup should he ever find someone to bond with permanently. The second bedroom he’d set up as a guest room—now Carol’s room—and the third was a home gym.

God, he hoped Carol liked his home. He’d sweated blood and tears to make it as comfortable, airy, and livable as possible.

Carol sniffed the air before heading right for his office. She nudged the door open with her snout, glancing around before trotting to the great room and huffing happily at the game consoles. She danced delightedly at

the tiny reading nook he’d set up between the great room and the kitchen. It seemed his new familiar liked to read just as much as he did.

Once in the kitchen, she barked at some birds that had dared to perch on the deck railing, sending them fluttering into the mid-morning sky. Her tail started wagging a mile a minute as she watched them fly off. She moved away from the window when the last of the birds disappeared, stopping at the bottom of the stairs and shooting him a questioning glance.

“The bedrooms are upstairs. Would you like the tour before we sign the paperwork?”

Carol nodded eagerly before running up the stairs, tail still wagging.

Jonah followed at a slower pace, grinning as her nails clicked on the hardwood floors. No doubt at some point she’d come running in, skidding across the surface like a goofy dog. She had that sort of aura about her, as if she were part fierce predator, part happy puppy.

He’d done the spare bedroom up almost hotel-like. He hoped she’d add her personal touch to the room, but for now, it was a blank slate, ready for her to make it her own.

The sound of her rummaging around amused him, but he let her be, instead choosing to head back downstairs. He grabbed some soft drinks for them. Not only did they have paperwork to file, but he was dying to find out what his familiar looked like under all that fur and cuteness. He took the

drinks to the round dining room table he’d chosen to fit the space. It easily seated six, eight in a pinch.

It wasn’t long before she returned, her tongue hanging out of the

side of her mouth in a very dog-like way. This was one wolf who seemed to like the comforts of home.

“Can you change? We need to talk.” Jonah ignored the way that

doggie grin immediately disappeared. “I’d like to meet you in your human form too.”

The air around the woman shimmered. A small-boned woman stood before him, her red hair cut in a long, wavy bob. Her big brown eyes were

the same gold as her wolf’s. She wore a simple T-shirt and jeans, with red canvas sneakers.

If she was over five foot two, he’d eat his wand.

“Hi.” She waved warily, her smile shy. “I’m Carol.”

Jonah grinned. God, she really was cute as a button, and about the same size. “I’m Jonah.” He held out his hand, gripping hers lightly. The

threads of their magic twined around their clasped hands, making him gasp at the strength of their connection.

“Wow.” Her golden eyes were wide.

“Wow indeed.” Jonah took his hand back before he got lost in her anima. This woman could possibly be the one he’d been searching for all these years, someone who could give him not only a familiar bond but a

loving relationship. Between the magical bonds and the strong attraction, he

was starting to hope for something he’d begun to think was beyond his grasp. “Where have you been all my life?”

She threw her head back and laughed. “The orphanage, then the House.”

He scowled. “Orphanage?” Damn it. Please let it not be what I’m thinking. Too many parents of large predator shifters familiars abandoned their children, forcing them to live in state-run orphanages before being shipped off to a House for matching once they graduated high school. This wouldn’t be the first time he’d matched with an abandoned familiar. His

animus was only attracted to the large predators, especially canines and vulpines.

Of course, he could be wrong. Her parents could be dead. Shrugging, Carol took her seat at the table. “We were a typical case.

My brother Sawyer and I were both dropped off when my parents learned we were large predators, not smaller, less-lethal tabbies like our dad.”

Guess not. It happened a lot, familiars born different from their parents, either due to a genetic throwback or the magic they carried. He wasn’t sure why. Other sorcerers were researching the enigma, but so far, no answer had been found. His mother had once told him that it was the

goddess of magic’s choice, and why should anyone question it? But Jonah considered it an interesting conundrum that two larger predators were born to a small house cat.

“Dad was a tabby cat, and Mom barely had enough magic to qualify as a sorcerer,” Carol continued, her tone nonchalant. “They were afraid they wouldn’t be able to contain us if we ran wild. Since our little sister wasn’t dropped off, we assume she became a sorcerer, or a tabby like our dad.”

Mother of magic, he hated stories like hers. They broke his heart. One child was accepted and loved while the other two were thrown away

like garbage. It happened more often than he liked to think. Even other

familiars tended to be wary of the larger predators, buying in to the myth that they were as savage as their beast.

Jonah grimaced. “I’m sorry you had to go through that. What is your brother?” She hadn’t mentioned that yet, and he found himself curious.

She grinned, and this time, it was an expression of pride. “He’s a

lion.” She shrugged again. “I’m sorry too. What sucks the most is I have no idea where they are or even if they’re still alive. We never heard from any of them again.” She took a sip of the soda he’d poured them. “Mm. It’s

good.”

“Homemade is the best.” Jonah leaned back in his chair and studied her. “Do you want to find them?” On principle he was against it, but if it

was what she wanted he’d hunt them down.

She paused, carefully placing the glass down on the coaster he’d set out. “My parents? No. My sister, maybe. She’d be eighteen now, I think.”

“We can try to find her if that’s what you want.” Jonah would, whether Carol wished it or not. If the sister was like the parents and wanted nothing to do with her, he’d tell Carol that she was dead rather than subject her to the animosity some people had toward predator familiars.

“I’d like that, but I need to see what my brother wants to do.” Carol smiled sweetly, and Jonah found himself drowning in more than just the

magic bouncing between them. Those expressive eyes of hers were going to be the death of him.

If this bond didn’t work out, Jonah really would eat his wand.