The Guardian by Sara Anderson

when she first got the motel made
sense. “So, what is going to happen to me now? Do I go home? What about—” Grief
hit her hard, and she covered her eyes before she embarrassed herself by crying
in front of Michael. “What about Marcy? She had no family that she spoke to.”
    Michael walked towards her while looking into her
eyes. “We will take care of it. Wade has her body at the funeral home. I will
tell him to prepare it for burial.”
    “What about the man that murdered her?” She felt
hatred growing in her as she thought about him murdering her friend for nothing
more than his own enjoyment.
    “He is being tortured. I could have given him a death
decree, but I sense there is the possibility for change in him.”
    “How is he being tortured? He seemed to just limp away
to me.”
    Michael gave her a sympathetic look. “I know this is
hard for you to understand. In time you will. When a shifter
is cast out, not only are they allowed not to live among us, but any
other shifter they come across will refuse him shelter or peace. Shifters are
pack dwellers, not in their animal forms alone but any shifter. To be parted
from other shifters is physically painful.”
    If he had not killed Marcy then she would have felt
sorry for him, but he was getting what he deserved. “So it is like prison, only
he is free?”
    “It is far worse than a prison. In prison the convicts
are taken care of. Lucas will have no one willing to give him food or shelter.
Even humans will be wary of him. He will have many nights sleeping in the open,
and he has no food, and even shifting will bring him no comfort. Ilithyia has removed her peace from him. ”
    “For how long?” Cassie asked
breathlessly.
    “Until he somehow atones for the crime he committed.”
Michael leaned over and opened a canvas bag. He pulled out some jeans and a
light sweater as well as undergarments that were still sealed in store bags.
“These are the clothes Myra brought over for you.”
    Cassie looked at them and was impressed. For just
throwing them together they looked very close to her size. Now she would get
dressed and see what her new life looked like.

Chapter
Eight
     
    Cassie admired the large house as they walked towards
the front door. The golden brown hardwood floors were smooth against her bare
feet.   Cassie looked at the beautiful oak
woodwork around the doorframes and along the walls. “Is all of this yours?”
Cassie ran her hand along the chair rail as she studied the detail of the wood
work. Someone had spent a lot of time working on this house.
    “Yes, it is all mine . My
father built this house, and some of the finest craftsmen made the woodwork for
it. My mother grew up in New England, and loved the woodwork of her childhood
home. My father built her this house.”
    “What a sweet thing to do,” Cassie said while looking
closer at the hand carved detail.
    Michael smiled. “He loved her very much, and they both
wanted something to pass down to us. Lana, my sister, lives in another part of
the house.   That is the part of the house
my father built for my grandmother. She had her own living space, where she
could be taken care of, yet have her privacy.”
    “She isn’t married?” Cassie instantly regretted
blurting that out. It was none of her business, and Michael’s face turned grim.
    “I’m sorry,” she apologized. “It is none of my
business.”
    Michael rubbed her back slightly, “Your question is a
valid one, and you have a right to know. She was mated to a protector over in
Sierra territory. He was killed by a morchain .”
        “What is a morchain ?” By the look on Michael’s face, Cassie guessed
they were not friendly.
    “They are a lot like what you would call a wraith.
They devour souls, and with shifters they leave behind a bloodthirsty killer.
The protectors of that territory were forced to hunt him down and kill him. His
best friend, Jacob, was the one that killed him.”
    Cassie gasped in horror. “How