Carpathian 17 - Dark Celebration

and know what's going on."
    He cursed under his breath for being weak. He could deny her nothing when she was afraid. "Stay behind me, Syndil, and do exactly what I say."
    She nodded and moved closer. "Does it feel like a vampire?"
    He shook his head. It felt like danger—trouble—something out of sync.
    "Not in harmony," Syndil said suddenly, going very still. Her grip tightened on his jeans.
    "In the house. The cats. I reached for them and they are—crazy."
    He turned back to her, pulling her close to reassure her. "It's all right, honey." He felt the leopards prowling within the walls of the cabin, enraged for some reason he couldn't fathom. He tried to reach out to them as he'd been doing since they were young, to calm them, but neither responded. He had to get them into their cage, both for their safety and the safety of any person coming in contact with them, until he could figure out what was wrong.
    He slipped inside beneath the door, streaming in as vapor, swirling through the rooms until he found the cats, very conscious that Syndil was right behind him in the same form.
    Forest, the male, lay stretched out on a bed, while Sasha, the female, paced back and forth restlessly. The moment he entered the bedroom, Sasha reacted, snarling, showing her teeth, tail twitching as she paced, her eyes darting around the room as she detected his presence. Forest launched his body from the couch, going from a prone position to a full-out attack, claws raking through the insubstantial vapor in an effort to get at Barack.

    He streamed away, out of reach, trying to push the cat's mind back toward sanity.
    Leopards were notorious for their tempers, but this savage behavior was way out of character for either cat. The leopards had been with the Troubadours since they were born and had never behaved in such a manner. Sasha kept looking at the window, acting as though she might break through the glass to escape.
    Something is terribly wrong with them , he told Syndil. I can't control them .
    Syndil remained silent, listening to the earth. There is a subtle flow of power — of energy.
    It's upsetting the leopards. There are so many Carpathians here. Most are probably using energy for shifting and other tasks. Maybe the cats are too sensitive to be here .
    Maybe . Barack doubted it, but he was going to cage the animals. I'm going to get them to follow me to the cages. I cant direct them inside, so I'll have to trick them .
    How can you do that ? There was trepidation in her voice.
    I'll just use myself as bait.
    Syndil drew in her breath sharply, fighting back the protest welling up. I was afraid of that. Be careful, Barack .
    He touched her mentally, his vapor circling hers for just a moment as if he could brush up against her in reassurance. Barack shimmered into his human form right under the female's nose, shifting back almost immediately and streaming through the house, leading the cats to the smallest bedroom, where the heavily barred traveling cage was kept.
    He reached out to open the door of the cage, shifting for just seconds so he could use his hand. Forest leapt, raking Barack's arm, tearing deep gouges in his skin before Barack could shift back to mist. He streamed toward the back of the cage, leading the two leopards inside.
    They followed, raging at him.
    Behind them, he waved the door closed. Both threw themselves at the bars, snarling a protest. Barack didn't wait for them to settle down, sending word to Darius and the other band members before taking his natural form.
    Syndil was already reaching for him, stroking her fingers down his arm, leaning into him to use her saliva to heal the wounds. "You need to be faster," she told him, her large eyes chastising him.
    A slow smile lit his dark gaze. "I don't know, sweetheart. Then I wouldn't have your sexy little mouth all over me, now would I?"
    Her eyebrow shot up. "Actually, yes, you probably would."

Chapter 8
    Mikhail flew low over the forest, making several passes, quartering the region in an effort to ferret out any danger that might be lurking to harm his people. He touched Raven's mind often, could feel her happiness as she prepared whatever dish she was making for the celebration dinner. He had had no idea she missed cooking, and it shamed him. He had been her lifemate for years, yet he still was discovering things about her. She enjoyed the preparation of a meal, the presentation, the pleasure others received from it.
    He felt the mental brush of her