“Yes. His best friend. When Weres are close, it doesn’t matter if they are blood related. They form a close bond. They met Isa when they were quite young. She lived in Saskatchewan. They talked her into coming here when she mated them.”
Jessie looked up. “Do all Sabres mate like that? Two males, one female?” When Kitani glanced up at her, she wrinkled her nose and grimaced. “Oh, sorry. Is that an indelicate question?’
Kitani snorted a laugh. “No. A little difficult to explain in the human world, mind you. I get weird looks all the time from the neighbors. Some think Ryan is Cody’s cousin. It’s easier to explain it that way.” She assembled a tentacle and looked at it with satisfaction before continuing. “Sabres have almost always mated in triads. Dires have a crazier system. The entire pack often shares a female.”
Shadows in her dream. Shadows with teeth. Jessie shivered.
Kitani sensed her unease and glanced up. “No one told you that?”
Jessie shook her head. “No. Braden told Laura something about that, though. I was hoping she was wrong.”
“Well, it won’t matter now. The Sabres’ tradition of mating in triads widens the gene pool, as each male fathers offspring. Lately, there has been pressure to expand that number, because there aren’t enough females left of breeding age. But I can’t imagine Cody or Ryan accepting another Were into our mate bond. And every pregnancy is a risk.” Her eyes darkened with worry.
Jessie tried to distract her from it. “Don’t they get jealous and fight?”
“We’re Sabre Weres. Fighting comes with the territory.” Her expression softened when Jessie fidgeted. “The triad mating bond does come with fringe benefits. And I’m not talking about sex.” She flashed a toothy grin. “Although there is that—”
“Please.” Jessie held up a hand. “No more details.”
Kitani grinned. “I meant to say that there is a form of telepathy between mates. It is intimate. And tends to head off arguments. But it is important that the males share a powerful bond based on respect. Because if they don’t... there have been instances of deaths when tempers flare. It is part of what has held the council back from pushing the multimale idea.”
“But the Dires do it,” Jessie pointed out.
“For Dires, everything revolves around the pack. They have a strict hierarchy among the males. If one decides to move up, they fight for the privilege. Time with the female is entirely based on the hierarchy. But only the one that bit her can produce children with her.”
Jessie stared at her. How could any woman put up with that? “Are their females on equal status with them?”
Kitani didn’t answer at first. “In the old days, the alpha female ran the show. Now, I don’t know for sure. I haven’t met many. A few were tough as nails. But a couple—I didn’t think they looked happy.” She shrugged. “The Dires have the same problem as the Sabres. Not enough females. Only there were more of them to begin with. But we’ve had to intervene in a couple of cases where female Dires coming of age became the focus of a pack war.”
Both Dires and Sabres sounded like species on the edge. Only these were creatures with the ability to try to reshape their future.
“What is stopping the Dires from trying this again? From taking human women to create mates?”
Kitani’s eyes flashed to hers. “At one time, I would have told you the council would never allow it to happen. That the Sabres would put a stop to it.”
Jessie’s heart was in her throat. “But now?”
Kitani sighed. “Now, there aren’t enough of us to stop them. And the Dires know it.”
* * *
Kade sat on the bench and watched Cara come. She carried a large pack.
She set it on the ground and sat beside him. “She’s getting used to you.” she gestured gracefully to Storm. The mare stood just on the other side of the panels from where Kade sat. She’d shaken her forelock free from her blue eye to better stare at him. But the ears remained flat to her neck.
“She still doesn’t trust me.”
“Should she?” Cara asked
He snorted. “No.”
“There seems to be a shortage of Weres,” Cara mentioned.
“I have them all out on patrol. No more shifts,” Kade admitted. “Except Neil. He’s got a lead on Sarah.”
Cara’s brows rose. “He’s going after her? Alone?”
Kade nodded. “He’s working with a Dire who is set on betraying Braden.”
