The Aussie Dire shifter snorted loudly. “Take a look around you, Angel. You’re talking to a Dragon shifter and a werewolf. Monsters are normal in this place.”
I gritted my teeth and contemplated leaving. Did I really want to know what the shards was going on? I had enough of my own vexations.
But even marred by dirt, Anna was so beautiful, standing there in the briefest of tops, her shoulders and belly bare. When had I started to find a complete lack of scales appealing? But she was, even with the tracks of tears through the smudges on her face. My heart constricted. I couldn’t leave without knowing more.
“Tell me.” It came out as more of an order than I’d intended, and she stiffened.
“It’s none of your concern,” she insisted.
Matt sighed. “Look, if we’re going to sort this out, another set of peepers might be grand.”
I sensed her waver. I didn’t like to think about what had transpired between these two—my nose gave me far more details than I really wanted—but now that she seemed to be in trouble, I couldn’t leave either.
“Tell me,” I repeated.
The Aussie Dire shot her a glance. “We decided to get her mad, to see if it would trigger her talent.”
“This was about getting hermad?” My eyebrows climbed. “Is that the usual reaction to you—” I broke off, glancing at Anna. What the hell kind of perversions did the Dire engage in?
My mind spun. I’d had involuntary experience with pretty much the full gamut of them.
“No!” Matt’s denial was surprisingly vehement. “We were scrapping. Things just went sideways on us.”
Okay. Wrestling, the adrenaline flowing. Hands on each other—if I had my hands on that body, I couldn’t be held accountable for the consequences.
Understanding how it could have evolved wasn’t helping to calm me. But if it had been her choice—why was she so upset? Nothing about this woman had, to date, indicated that tears were often part of the equation. “So... What went wrong?”
Anna’s mouth pulled straight, and she looked away from both of us. “I drained him.”
Well, that much their scents had told me, and my fool body tightened in response.
Matt’s Dire nose picked up on my state immediately. “That’s not what she means, mate.” He rubbed a hand over his face. “She sucked me dry.” His eyes flicked to mine, and his lips twitched at my thunderous expression. “Oflife energy.”
“Like a vampire.” She whispered the words, and her voice broke. “I almost killed him.”
I stiffened, shocked. That would mesh with what I sensed, all right. His life essence was very low.
Matt pushed himself upright. “I might be stonkered, but you didn’t almost kill me, Angel.”
“I did.” Her eyes met and held mine. “His heart—I could barely feel it beat. I tried to heal him—I think I gave some of his energy back.”
Matt just stared at her, then he shook his head. “I don’t remember that.” His voice had a tremble to it.
“What do I do now?” Anna’s face had lost all color. “My touch can kill. No one will want to work with me on a team. I’m a hazard to everything we’re trying to achieve.”
I considered answers, but all I could do was state the obvious. “None of our talents are without risk. The shifter relationship with their beast isn’t always a peaceful one. We never know when the animal side will fight for control.” She was listening to me, and I waved a hand, warming to my task. “That’s just shifters. Mari makes the ground tremble every time she gets upset. Firethrowers really do throw fire. Movers throw boulders. One reason those talented people are here is to learn control—so that they aren’t a risk to others.”
Some of the panic had left her features. She was thinking now.
Matt had once again collapsed against the tree, but he added, “He’s right, Angel. Your talent isn’t any more dangerous than the others. Just different.”
Her lips twisted. “Any of those kill with a touch?”
“You’ve touched me before,” he said. “And healed me.”
It was a valid point, and I picked up on it. “If you killed with a touch, your path would be littered with corpses. So what actually activates your talent?”
She swallowed.
