“Just stop thinking about it, and breathe. Extend your awareness. What you might tap into is like a sixth sense, something you haven’t really been conscious of, until now.”
I tried. I really did. I smelled the forest—sap, damp earth, and rotting leaves. Bird wings whirred overhead. Grass crunched beneath hooves. But they were all physical things. I didn’tfeelanything.
My eyes popped open. “Nothing. I feel nothing.”
She nodded as though unsurprised. “I had to check, just in case. Let me know if it changes. I think your talents may still be developing. Right now, I believe this is a simple case of them being attracted to something in your energy.”
I stared at her. “Do you feel attracted to me? Or is this just an animal thing?”
Cara laughed. “You are an attractive young lady, but I don’t have the urge to plant myself at your feet.” She gestured to the surrounding critters. “But as you say, it could be purely an animal thing.”
“I like you, too,” Mari stated, tilting her big head. “But I don’t think it is compulsory.”
I examined the small zoo we’d collected. “So... Critters only. Doesn’t seem like all that useful a talent.”
“It is, if you can sense them,” Cara said. “Because with practice, you can then communicate with them and recruit their help if you need it.”
I looked at her in surprise. “Can you do that?”
She smiled at me and held out her arms. In an instant, tiny birds dropped from the branches above to sit upon her. They tilted their heads and stared at me with their bright little eyes. Then they took flight again and swirled around us in a dizzying display of aerial acrobatics, before vanishing.
Cara gestured, and every animal in the clearing turned and leaped into the forest. In moments, we were alone.
“My ancient ancestors would find youverytasty,” Mari commented with a toothy grin.
I reflected that the Dorinthian sense of humor had a darker twist than expected. “Do you think I can do that if I practice?” I asked.
The Watcher’s lips pursed. “Your gift may be a simple attraction. But it doesn’t hurt to keep trying. I can coach you, if you like. But I have a few other irons in the fire right now. I leave tomorrow for a few days, but I will check in with you when I return.”
The thought of Cara not being here bothered me, but I wasn’t sure why. We headed back along the path.
The field behind the academy wasn’t empty any longer. Cody and Kitani walked across it, arm in arm. Another large man with reddish hair had lion cubs tumbling around his feet.
Lion cubs?
There were two, bouncing on the mown grass. Their growls and hisses carried to us as Cara led us toward them.
“They are adorable,” Mari said. “I have never seen Sabre children.”
Sabrechildren. Trix pulled on the leash, her entire body in full wiggle mode. The cubs froze, their little ears erect. Then they galloped toward us.
I scooped Trix up in my arms as they bounded next to my legs, making growly sounds as their sharp miniature claws snagged my jeans.
The red-haired man jogged in their wake. “Sorry about that. They are a handful.”
I stared at him. Then down at the cubs. Which now, weren’t cubs. In a flash, they shifted into two naked toddlers.
As Kitani and Cody neared, my brain finally made the connection—these were the twins they’d spoken of. They looked about two, and they reached chubby arms up toward Trix.
“Doggie,” the slightly taller child said.
They were beautiful, but not identical. The shorter toddler had more reddish hair, the other dark. I’d wondered about the children Cody and Kitani would produce, but Ryan’s contribution was every bit as gorgeous.
Large eyes implored me to put my dog back on the ground. One set glowed gold, the other copper.
Trix was wiggling like mad, and crying. Shelovedkids. I crouched down so the girls could pet her.
“Be gentle,” the man coached his offspring. He straightened and glanced at me. “I’m Ryan.”
