Spectrum (Stone Society #14) - Faith Gibson Page 0,35

he is. And if that’s the case, you’ll know soon enough. Are you hungry? I need to feed my mate, and I was going to cook.”

“Oh, no thank you. Thomas and I walked to a place called Dockers after dropping Nonna off with his sister.”

“If things were going so well, why aren’t you still with him?”

“I don’t feel so good. I think something I ate didn’t agree with me.”

Zeke winced. “Brother? Do you remember what I said about meeting your mate for the first time?”

“Oh. Oh!” Cyrus jumped up from the sofa and paced in front of the fireplace.

Zeke stepped into his path and placed his hands on Cyrus’s arms. “I’m not saying you’ve for certain met your mate, but if you have, you need to get ready. The transition is painful, but I’m here to help you through it.”

“Oh, god. Yeah. Okay. I can do this.” Cyrus froze like a statue and closed his eyes. Zeke grinned at his brother.

“Cyrus, you can relax. As a matter of fact, why don’t you have a drink?”

Cyrus opened one eye. “Sorry, I’m just a little nervous.”

“No, I get it. And not to put a damper on the situation, but it may just be something you ate. If that’s the case, you probably won’t want a drink.”

“No, I definitely can handle a little alcohol.” Cyrus walked over to the cabinet where bottles of liquor were stored and poured himself a drink. “Would either of you… Stella? Your face.”

Zeke turned toward his mate, worried about whatever it was that had Cyrus freaking out. His mate’s bruises were gone. Completely. Zeke walked over to her and cupped her cheek. “Any pain at all?”

Stella shook her head. “Nope.” She smiled at Cyrus. “I was injected with Gargoyle miracle serum.”

Cyrus choked on the sip of whiskey he’d just taken. “Uh, TMI,” he muttered when he got the coughing under control.

Stella’s mouth dropped, and her face flushed crimson. “Not that! Oh my god. Zeke bit me.”

Cyrus shook his head. “Yeah, that’s not much better.”

Zeke pulled Stella’s back to his chest. “Just wait, Brother. When you get to bond with your own mate, you’ll want to shout it from the rooftops. It’s the best feeling in the world.”

Cyrus rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, you’re right. And I’m really happy for you. Both of you. I hope—”

Zeke’s phone rang. “Hold that thought.” Zeke walked over to where he’d left his phone earlier. “It’s Officer Dowd,” he said before answering. “Hello?”

“Mr. Seymour, this is Officer Dowd. I tried to call Miss Bentley’s phone, but it’s gone straight to voicemail several times, so I was wondering if she’s with you?”

“She is. Hang on a second.” Zeke held out the phone to Stella, and she put it on speaker.

“Hello? This is Stella.”

“Stella, this is Officer Dowd. I wanted to call you with an update. We were able to apprehend the man who attacked you.”

Stella’s eyes widened. “Oh, that’s uh… That’s good. Did he say why he attacked me?”

“He claims he was paid to do it. He says he was only supposed to rough you up a bit, but he hit you harder than intended.”

“Who paid him?” Stella asked, her eyes filling with tears.

“That’s what we’re still trying to figure out. He was paid in cash, so we can’t track the money, but he does have a description. I don’t want to say anything further until I have proof, but I wanted to let you know what we’ve learned so you can remain vigilant. Whoever paid the man is still out there, but I promise, we’re doing everything we can to catch him. I’ll call you when we have more.”

“Okay, thank you.” Stella swiped the tears from her cheeks. Zeke disconnected the phone, then pulled Stella into his arms.

Stella leaned her cheek against Zeke’s chest. “Who would pay someone to hurt me? I don’t have enemies.”

Zeke didn’t want to upset his mate further, but he wouldn’t lie to her. “I have a theory.” Stella looked up at him, and Zeke kissed her forehead before continuing. “I have a feeling it’s Calhoun.”

“Bradley? I know he’s unhappy that I won’t go out with him, but paying to have me assaulted? That’s going a little far.”

“It is, but he is the one who found you. It’s too coincidental he happened along at just the right time.”

“Crap. If they don’t catch him, I can never go back home.” Stella thudded her forehead against Zeke’s chest.

“You can if that’s what you want. I’ll be watching over you