Honored Vow

hold onto his
    werepanther form.
    “Yuri,” Domin cried.
    “Jin.”
    I turned to look at my sheseru when he spoke my name, and found
    him still on one knee, taking deep breaths in and out.
    “I would allow no man to touch you, my reah.”
    My breath caught with the sincerity of his promise.
    “I will slaughter any that even reach a hand toward you.”
    And I knew that, and so I instantly calmed.
    “Oh thank God,” Domin gasped, sitting up, hands on his thighs,
    closing his eyes and breathing. “Please, Jin, calm down.”
    “Yes,” Justin agreed, letting his head loll back as he, too, exhaled
    deeply.
    I watched Sean, Justin’s sheseru, claw free of his clothes, roll to his
    paws, and take a seat behind his semel. He was a beautiful, sleek golden
    panther. There were many in the room. Years ago I had found that my
    black color was as rare as being born a reah. Every panther I had ever seen
    was gold.
    “You trust me,” Yuri said.
    I nodded.
    He closed his eyes, and I saw the tremble run through his massive
    frame. My faith washed over him, and his certainty of his place as my
    guardian anchored me. We were bound together, the two of us, and every
    day the bond got deeper and stronger.

    Honored Vow

    71

    “Once everyone shifts back,” Justin said after long minutes, his eyes
    on me as he took long steadying breaths, “I think we will all wait here for
    Logan’s arrival.”
    I nodded.
    His smile wavered, but it was there. “You have to be a very strong
    panther to withstand your pheromones, Jin; I feel very privileged to have
    passed this test, though had it gone a second longer, I, too, would have
    succumbed.”
    “No, you wouldn’t have.”
    His eyes were locked on mine. “Oh yes, I don’t think I’ve ever
    wanted anything or anyone as badly as you.”
    I looked away, unable to hold his gaze. My eyes found Domin.
    “You are the mate of my semel, Jin,” he said tiredly. “I don’t think
    of you as a man but only as my reah.”
    “Yes,” Yuri said, and when I looked at him, he nodded. “Your power
    is painful to bear, but I can withstand pain; I was made to stand between
    you and anything, even yourself.”
    The tears came fast as I squeezed his shoulder.
    “Imagine how strong Logan Church is to have such a mate.” Yuri
    smiled, and I saw him glow with pride.
    “What now?” I asked Justin.
    “Now we all wait for Logan.”
    “I’ll order some food,” Domin suggested, climbing unsteadily to his
    feet. “I’m starving.”
    I walked over to the window as Yuri rose to his towering height,
    positioning himself between me and everyone else.
    “Tell me how Crane looks,” I asked him.
    His eyes, when he looked at me, were slits. “He’s broken, Jin, he
    won’t shift back.”
    Shit.
    “His father was the one with the knife.”
    I braced myself on the wall.
    “If I see him, anywhere, at any time, I’ll kill him. Pit or no pit,
    Crane’s father is dead,” he said, and his voice was dark with purpose.
    I nodded my agreement.

    72

    Mary Calmes

    Chapter Six

    THE knock on the door came just minutes after nine that night, and Artem
    Varda, Yuri’s second, walked through the door a moment before Logan. I
    stood, the whole room stood, and my mate waited. It was my place to go
    to him, and when I moved, everyone stepped back. It was like I was a
    leper or something; no one wanted me to touch them.
    Logan drew me up against his side, tucking me there, and I inhaled
    him, his scent, put my hands on him and leaned.
    “Please.”
    I opened my eyes and saw Miguel reach for the edge of the table and
    grab it tight.
    “Semel-netjer, I ask your forgiveness for my trespass against your
    reah and humbly beg you to remove him from my territory. I have granted
    your brother the status of duat and will offer him no further jeopardy as
    long as he honors his place and never shifts.”
    “What trespass did you make against my reah?”
    “May I speak?”
    Logan turned his head to Domin, who was standing between Yuri
    and Artem. “The semel of the tribe of Deshret has given to your brother;
    let us return the favor and depart.”
    “Can we go home now?” I asked my mate.
    “Yes,” Logan said quickly, his arms tightening around me. “Are you
    packed?”
    “I never unpacked,” I told him.

    Honored Vow

    73

    The nervousness in the room was palpable, and I understood that it
    was because they were uncomfortable sitting there in clothes from
    overnight bags or ones that someone had had to go