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The next several days made it strikingly clear that things were continuing to spiral between Kam and Chisulo. Chisulo traded his lodgings in the suite, for one of the plush bedrooms on a lower floor. In addition to the home’s two suites, it boasted five bedrooms. Though on a slightly smaller scale, they were no less sumptuous. Currently, there were three bedrooms available with the other two already occupied by Bach and Saiida. Bach had encouraged Chisulo to take the second suite located on the opposite end of Kam’s wing. Chisulo refused.
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Saiida hesitated when she approached the kitchen entryway. She hadn’t expected to find Bach there so early or at all for that matter. The reality of the man cooking his own breakfast struck her as beyond odd. This, in spite of the fact that there was no house staff as far as she could tell. It was understandable he would have to come there to see to his needs, but still...
Bach did a doubletake and smiled when he saw her in the doorway. “Morning,” he called. His smile paired with a curious frown when his greeting was unreturned. “You okay?” he asked.
Slowly, Saiida moved into the kitchen. “Just strange to see you in a kitchen, I guess.”
Frown clearing, Bach nodded. “We never got around to me cooking for you.”
Saiida’s gaze wavered. “We never got around to a lot of things,” she said.
“Yeah,” he looked to the bowl in hand. “Eggs and toast aren’t the extent of my talents, but um, would you care to join me?”
“Sure,” Saiida paired a smile with her acceptance and spent a few moments trying to decide where she wanted to eat. There was a round dining table on the other side of the large, welcoming space. A wall of windows offered a brilliant view of the lush woods and the inlet beyond. Another wall was dedicated to an immense hearth that one of the brothers would get going as evening approached. Though it wasn’t quite fall, chilly temps set in early in that part of the world. That morning was especially frosty and Bach already had the fire going.
Saiida chose a spot on one of two long taupe-colored sofas near the flames.
“Anyone else up, besides you?” Bach asked while setting the light breakfast on the wide oak coffee table.
“Not yet. I was just coming to get something for Kam and I. Thought I’d have it waiting for her when she woke up.”
“Is she eating?”
“When I force her,” Saiida sighed. “How’s Chisulo?” She saw the toll her inquiry took on Bach and watched the muscle flexing fiercely along his strong jawline.
“He’s shifting more than once a day,” he quietly confessed while pouring out coffee for them both.
“Is that bad?” Saiida asked.
“Twice-maybe...three times is normal,” Bach explained. “More than five is... worrisome if there’s no...need.”
“Need meaning a fight?”
“Mmm,” Bach handed Saiida the silverware rolled in a brown linen napkin.
“Maybe it calms him?” she said.
“He’s hunting-and that’s not bad, but he’s not feeding.”
“He’s doing it for sport,” Saiida finished.
“More like pleasure,” Bach settled to an armchair. “I’ve been going out with him when I can, but his shifts are erratic. I only know about his hunting habits through alerts from security when they make their rounds.”
“Have you tried talking to him?”
“It’s not me he wants to talk to. Besides,” he leaned forward to unroll his silverware, “talking only accentuates the problem. Kam’s going through hell, but so is Chisulo and he’s feeling pretty shut out. None of my brothers deal with that too well.”
Saiida sipped her coffee, debating before she spoke. “Are you not including yourself in that?” she finally asked.
Bach focused on breaking a thick slice of buttered toast in half. “I already know how well I handle that.”
“Maybe it could help with Kam and Chisulo being in separate rooms,” she tried to avoid the train of conversation leading to her and Bach but realized her words highlighted the fact that they too were in separate rooms. “I meant separate floors,” she tacked on when she noticed his fork pause over his eggs.
“Did you try getting him to take the other suite?” she asked after clearing her throat.
“He declined,” Bach shoveled in a forkful of eggs, and chewed thoughtfully. “That was a good thing, I guess. Looks like we’re about to have company. Your cousin and my brother met in Jamaica. Mustafa convinced him to join us.”
“Ali?” Saiida was stunned. Silently, she acknowledged that it made perfect sense. Ali not trusting his sister to be properly cared for by the Nkosi, was no surprise. The fact that he hadn’t only agreed to come there, but to also spend several nights, was thoroughly unbelievable.
“Ali won’t hear about us from me, Sy.”
“Ali knows.”
Bach gave into a small laugh. “Guess I don’t need to ask how he took it.”
“He said, the heart wants what it wants.”
Now, Bach was the one stunned.
Saiida returned to her plate and finished her breakfast without further conversation in order to avoid Bach’s fixed gaze.
“Pretty rotten timing, huh?” he said after a while.
“It’s not the timing,” she set her plate aside and smiled forlornly. “It’s the situation.”
Bach looked forlorn as well. “Will you ever be able to look at me and not remember I told you to kill our child?”
“Bach... you were trying to save my life. As much as I’ve tried, I can’t hate you for that.”
He didn’t look pleased by the admission. “You can’t hate me, but you can’t love me either.”
“I do love you, Bach.”
“And trust?” he pressed.
“I know you’d never hurt me. Not intentionally. Sometimes...the clearer picture really is on the outside looking in.”
“Meaning?”
“I trust you Bach,” she watched as his eyes darkened as he regarded her. She couldn’t tell from the smirk that followed, whether he believed her.
“You love me, trust me,” he said. “Do you love and trust me enough to marry me?”
Her jaw dropped and his smirk became a broad grin. Bach stood, and collected the breakfast plates.
“Come find me when you have an answer, doctor,” he left her to process his words.
***
That evening, Chisulo acknowledged that he had succeeded in spooking his quarry. He’d found no trace of prey in the usual spots during his property runs that day. Apparently, all had grown used to his presence and purpose.
No matter. They would drop their guards at some point and he planned to shift a few more times during the hours before he rested.
Rested, he thought while stretching and digging razor-sharp claws into the soil. Resting his body, perhaps. His mind, that was another story. He had come to depend on the respite he enjoyed with shifting. His thoughts went into a whole other mode inside the massive lion.
That was before. Now, he could only count on that respite while chasing down and tearing into fresh kill. Bereft of that element too...well now only one thing filled his head.
He’d ordered himself to give Kam what she said she wanted. Space. He had refused the suite down the hall for just that reason. It wasn’t the only reason, of course. He couldn’t pressure her. Being near her, he was sure to do just that.
They had done a good job of avoiding each other over the last several days. Chisulo gave himself the credit. He had seen her only once during a nighttime prowl of the grounds. A high bluff offered a perfect view of her suite’s alcove window. Any other time, he would’ve been pissed by her carelessness at leaving the drapes parted for any passerby to oogle her. That was far from the case now.
He’d sat there watching her from the time she emerged naked and glistening from her shower to the time she turned in for the night. His claws dug into the earth as the towel she’d used suddenly became his biggest enemy. He’d tortured himself with longing while she smoothed lotion into her skin. His feline nostrils flared in remembrance of the scent whenever he explored her body.
After that night, he made a point to bypass that area of the estate. He had tried and failed to pacify himself with assurances that this was only a momentary setback. Once their enemies were dealt with, surely they would be back on track. Only, there was more to this than settling scores. Kam had killed five men and sent them to their graves in a particularly brutal fashion. Killing wasn’t something a person just ‘got over’. Those who did...well that was someone he prayed Kam would never become.
The truth was, he might never get her back and that fact made him angry enough to kill.
He knew Bach didn’t approve of his...recent activities, but it was either slaughtering animals while he himself was in animal form or slaughtering humans. Whether he was in animal or human form, perhaps wouldn’t have mattered.
Imperceptibly, his head tilted, an ear faintly twitching in the direction of the sound. He didn’t instantly spring into action but continued to assess the subtle change in his environment.
There were two nearby and they weren’t the usual prey. The Canadian air was distinctive and these two didn’t carry its scent, hence they didn’t belong. Leisurely, he rose to his paws-a graceful display given his vast size.
He yawned, the action boasting elongated incisors. He began to stroll the area, his gait slow, idle as though he were merely surveying the land and nothing more. He could detect no shift of scents on the air. They were still in observation mode.
A pity, Chisulo thought. He would’ve enjoyed the workout that running them down would provide.
His idle prowl was not without strategy. The two observers were still green, obviously unaware that he was closing in on them in circles that were gradually growing smaller. He had to wonder at their ages and the stupidity of the ones who had sent them to court death.
Cloud cover masked whatever moonlight may have increased visibility in the early evening hours. The cloud cover hardly mattered, he could easily make out the silhouettes of his would-be attackers.
Lions.
They were unprepared for the roar that barrelled out of the dark. He was black as the night surrounding him and the two predators were unable to immediately lock in on his location.
It was their undoing.
He slammed into the first, a move that sent the other lion careening into a tree trunk. His fangs grazed the flesh of the second and he gave a start even as the lion yowled.
Confusion surged and yet he continued the assault, even though he began to miss more blows than he landed.
The lion tag team tried to give as good as they got. They were a strong pair and that worked in their favor. Their moves were intuitive as though they were easily anticipating each other’s strategy. They had yet to land any meaningful strikes, however they did manage to take Chisulo’s paws out from under him more than once. Their skill improved once the clouds shifted and more moonlight illuminated the area.
Unfortunately for his attackers, the light aided Chisulo as well. He punished one of the young lions with a swipe from the back of his paw. He advanced on the second, while its partner lay dazed in a thatch of large bushes.
He positioned himself as his opponent crouched, then launched with its paws high and claws aimed. Expertly, he caught the younger lion’s shoulder between his powerful jaws. Something prickled his mind while he fervently inhaled the scent of the beast’s tan and taupe-colored mane. His jaws closed further, causing his fangs to graze the animal's flesh...and draw blood.
The taste sent realization blooming in shattering fashion and then he was the one yowling as he scurried back. Panting violently, he labored to quiet his mind in order to shift. His attackers did the same. Once all transformations were complete, Chisulo found himself glaring into the equally enraged eyes of his baby brothers.