by Lola Gabriel
Then why couldn’t he stop the feeling of worry consuming him?
“I think this was just a slap in the face for us to get back to our lives,” Cassia told him gently. “We couldn’t lie around here forever.”
“Technically, we could,” Wilder corrected, and she rolled her eyes.
“You always have to have the last word, don’t you?”
“I think you just had it by saying that.” They both tittered, and Wilder drew her up from the chair and into his arms. “I need to get back to the Hollows,” he murmured in her ear. “There are matters there that can’t wait.”
Cassia pulled her head back and stared at him. “I’ll come with you.”
“Are you sure you’re ready to try it again?”
She nodded. “I’m as ready as I’ll ever be,” she answered.
This time, when they returned to the Hollows, Wilder did shift, and he waited for Cassia to climb onto his back.
“Holy crap!” she breathed, cautiously mounting him. “Holy crap!”
Wilder sprinted forward on clawed feet, his wide wings spanning to fly back toward the palace. He could feel Cassia trembling as she clung to him for dear life, and it made Wilder chuckle. He would never allow her to fall, of course, but he wondered what it would be like to experience the Hollows the way Cassia was for once.
It’s all so commonplace now, he thought with some regret. He would have to settle for living vicariously through his lover.
“Oh, my God!” he heard her choke when the palace came into view, the strange mismatch of extensions spanning further than anyone could see. “Is that the palace?”
Wilder swooped down, landing in his private courtyard in the residential section. With wobbling legs, Cassia dismounted, her eyes wide as Wilder transformed himself back into his mortal form.
“This is surreal.”
“You’ll get used to it,” he laughed, but the chuckle died in his throat as he realized that she might not. “Come inside,” he instructed her, leading them toward his huge suite.
“You live here? All the time?” Cassia demanded, and for a minute, Wilder was worried for her eyes. It seemed like they would pop out of her head.
“I do. My brothers have properties on the Sunside, but I always felt like my roots were here.” Wilder heard the wistful sadness in his own tone, and he wasn’t surprised that Cassia picked up on it as well.
“Wilder, what is going on? You’re happy one minute, sad the next. Tell me what’s wrong.” She cupped his face in her palms and forced him to look at her. “You can talk to me, you know.”
“I know,” he replied gruffly. “But there’s nothing you can do about it.”
“You won’t know that unless you tell me,” she retorted, exasperated. “And you promised me full disclosure, remember?”
“I remember.”
“Well?”
He smiled at her. “You’re stubborn.”
“So are you.”
Unable to resist, Wilder kissed her lips, and she started at the sudden gesture.
“Sit down and I’ll tell you,” he said. Cassia nodded and obliged his request, perching on the edge of his California king bed. The curtains from the canopy swirled around her, the sheer white enhancing her ethereal beauty. She belongs in the Hollows, too. The light flatters her perfectly. She should never have been born in the Sunside, no matter who her father is.
“I’m sitting,” Cassia reminded him, and Wilder realized, with some embarrassment, that he was lost in the beauty of her face.
“It’s a rather complicated story,” he started.
“I’ll try and keep up.”
He scowled. “I’m not suggesting you’re stupid—I’m saying it pertains to Hollows matters, and we can both agree you’re not exactly well-versed in the subject.”
She nodded, shrugging in agreement. “Fine. I really will try to keep up.”
He grunted and joined her side. “The Hollows are disappearing,” he told her. “At a rate I can’t control.”
“I… What does that mean?” she asked, and Wilder took a deep breath.
“I know. I didn’t understand it until I got a scientist involved, but basically, as the Earth’s tectonic plates move over the lithosphere, it affects the Hollows. Until now, the changes have been not been perceivable, but now…” Cassia waited for him to finish. “The rate is much faster than anything we’ve ever seen.”
“Which means…?”
“It means that in less than six months, we’ll all be displaced. We will be forced out of our homes and business to live in the Sunside.”
Cassia eyed him, apparently weighing her next words.
“Is that really so bad?” she asked tentatively. “You already live among us.”
Wilder suppressed his irritation. “I have built my empire here,” he told her flatly. “For literal eons, Cassia. Not to mention that there are beings who will die if they go to the surface.”
“Oh.” She looked apologetic, but she didn’t speak.
“Like I said, there’s nothing you can do about it. I have the scientist working on it, but…” He shrugged, trying to look flippant but failed miserably.
“I’m sorry, Wilder. It will be a shame for all these beings to lose their homes,” Cassia offered gently. “But…”
He looked at her. “But what?”
She gave him a half-smile. “For every problem, there’s a solution, right?”
Wilder’s heart skipped. “What?”
“It’s a mathematical mantra, isn’t it? And this is basically a math problem. If the walls are shifting, we need to figure out how to make them stop.”
“Where have you been my entire life?” Wilder muttered. “Why have you been hiding?”
“Luck?” Cassia jested. She squealed when he knocked her down and lavished her face with kisses. “Do you think there’s a way to stop it?” she asked. “Or am I being hopelessly optimistic on your behalf?”
“I’ll find a way,” he told her firmly, propping himself up on his arm to stare at her face lovingly. “And when I do, I’ll erect a statue of you in your honor.” Cassia howled with laughter.
“I can’t wait.” His eyes shone as he stared at her, his fingertips trailing over her face.
“No matter what happens, Cassia, I think I can finally say I’ve found happiness,” he murmured huskily. “I never believed in the prophecies, but you are proof that they’re real.”
Her eyes glimmered with confusion.
“Prophecies?” she echoed. “What prophecies?”
Suddenly, Wilder’s mind was off on another thought, and he bolted upright. “The prophecy,” he muttered. “I have to reread the prophecy.”
“Uh… Sorry, I know I’m behind the eight ball on this, but what the hell are you talking about?”
“The Big Shift!” Wilder said excitedly. “It’s been predicted.”
Cassia’s face turned pale. “The Big Shift?” she repeated. “What is that?”
But Wilder was already off the bed and plopped at his laptop, his fingers flying over the keys.
“If it’s been predicted, there must be a solution in the scriptures,” he muttered, more to himself than to Cassia.
“Wilder—”
“Hang on a second, Cassia.” He chewed on his lower lip and concentrated as the information appeared. “This makes no sense.”
“Wilder—”
He turned and looked at her, but he didn’t really see her. His mind was whirling.
“The prophecy claims that the shift was caused by the birth of a dragon child years ago,” he told her. “But there have been no dragons born by us from years past…”
“WILDER!”
He snapped to attention and scowled. “What?” he demanded. “I’m thinking!”
“My mom!” Cassia cried, and for the first time, Wilder realized how wan her complexion had become.
“What about your mom?”
“She was talking about the Big Shift the last time I visited her.”
Wilder nodded slowly. “I’m not surprised, Cassia. She’s a sorceress. She can foresee the future.”
“We need to go back and talk to her,” Cassia told him. “And I’ve got to get her out of that nursing home before they drug her into submission.” Wilder sighed.
“I can’t go with you,” he told her gently. “She won’t say anything in my presence, but she will be open to you now. Go to her and see what else she says.”
“What have you done that makes the others so wary of you?” Cassia demanded. Wilder smiled humorlessly.
“If you ask nicely, maybe your mom will tell you that, too.” He stared at her with limpid blue eyes. “Just remember, Cassia, whatever you learn about us, it was a long, long time ago. None of us are the same beasts we were when we came to the Hollows.”
“Okay…”
Wilder felt a pang of worry, but he knew he couldn’t waste time stressing about what Cassia would learn.
Just another thing you should have considered before you brought her here, he told himself furiously.
But it was far too late for regrets. The hand of fate had already waved. Everything else was destiny.
12
They remained in the Hollows for the rest of the night. Wilder showed Cassia around the palace with pride gleaming on his face.
“Only Owen is nearby right now,” Wilder explained. “But you’ll meet the others eventually.”
“Dragon princes,” she muttered in disbelief. “Are you sure I’m not on peyote or something?”
“Peyote isn’t this good,” Wilder assured her, leading her through the vast chambers of the palace. They had been walking for hours, but Cassia could see there was still much to be explored, even as her legs grew sore. “I can carry you if you’re tired,” Wilder told her, and she chuckled.
“Don’t tempt me. That ride from the portal was the wildest of my life.”
“I can give you a better ride than that,” he leered, and Cassia swatted at him.
“I can see why you love this place so much,” she told him sincerely. “It’s rife with history. I can feel the ghosts alive and well in here.” Wilder snorted.
“There’s no such thing as ghosts.” Cassia had no idea if he was being ironic or not, but she didn’t ask. “Tomorrow, I’ll show you outside the palace,” he promised. “Even the seedier areas have their charms. You’ll see.”
“Tomorrow, I have to get back to the office. You heard me promise Val,” she reminded him. “And I’d like to visit my mom… Maybe get some answers from her?”
Wilder bobbed his head. “I’ll come back with you,” he told her, and Cassia wondered if he had business there or if he simply didn’t want to leave her for any amount of time.
“I can’t bring you to the office,” she reminded him. “You can stay at my place while I go in, though.”
“I have to check in on my new headquarters,” Wilder said. “I’ll meet you after work, and then I can take you to your mother.” Cassia wished he would change his mind about joining her at the nursing home, but he remained steadfast in his answer. He would only be accompanying her as far as the entrance of the nursing home. “Trust me. It will be a wasted trip if I go.”
They started up the stairs toward the residential suites, hand in hand, and Cassia couldn’t resist looking back at the rotunda.
Imagine being a princess, walking down these red-carpeted stairs in a Cinderella gown to greet my adoring kingdom. She reminded herself quickly that she was the bad guy in all the fairy tales.
“What are you thinking about?” Wilder asked, noting her slight pause.
“I’m thinking that it would be a shame if this was destroyed,” she answered. “It is rich with culture.”
“I will do everything in my power to ensure that doesn’t happen,” he told her gently. “And then we’ll have a grand ball to commemorate you joining the Hollows. I’ll have a gown commissioned for the occasion.” Cassia whipped her head up and looked at him suspiciously.
“Can you read my mind?” she demanded in shock, and he laughed merrily.
“I’ll never tell you.”
They reached the landing, and before Cassia could take another step, Wilder pressed her against the wall, his eyes boring into hers.
“I don’t need to read your mind. I feel like we’re already part of one another, joined together in perfect synch. I can’t explain it, but I’m a part of you, and you’re a part of me.”
Cassia didn’t need it explained—she felt it just as deeply.
“I’m in love with you,” she replied simply, and the look in Wilder’s eyes told her that the feeling was beyond mutual. They kissed softly, their heartbeats falling into rhythm.
“I’m in love with you,” Wilder whispered in her ear when he found her magic placed, his nose nuzzling against her skin to cause a thousand prickles to slide over her skin.
Slowly, gently, they arched into one another, becoming a mold of the same being, relishing the feeling of each other. Wilder’s hands moved along the side of Cassia’s skirt, pulling it up easily, and she sighed with contentment, permitting herself to fall into him fully. His lips grew hotter, tasting the skin of her throat, and Cassia was ready for him when he entered her, pushing her slender frame against the walls of the palace.
Despite Wilder’s claims, she knew she could feel the eyes of all the spirits upon her, but it did nothing to dampen her arousal, her nails curling into Wilder’s back as he pressed into her, reaching her at levels only he could. They fit perfectly, a marvel which continued to amaze Cassia.
We belong together, she thought, her breaths escaping faster as Wilder pushed her to her climax. It’s unmistakable.
“You’re my queen,” he breathed, and the words brought her to the heights she had desired, her passion spilling forward to join him in unison.
They trembled within each other’s arms for a long, blissful moment before Wilder carefully withdrew from her, placing her legs onto the floor.
“Aren’t there security cameras in here?” Cassia asked, suddenly self-conscious. Wilder laughed.
“Not on the residential side,” he promised. “No one would be stupid enough to try anything with us here.”
Cassia straightened her skirt and nodded. “I guess not,” she replied before cocking her head to the side and staring at him pensively. “Are there vampires here?”
“Yes.”
“Werewolves?”
“Lycans, yes.”
“And what else?”
“Think of any stories you may have heard in mortal schools. They all exist. Behind every tall tale, my dear Cassia, there is a true story. Never discount anything you hear as fiction.”
“So if you were to get into a fight with a vampire, you’d win?”
Wilder sighed and eyed her. “Yes.”
“What about a—”
“Cassia,” he groaned. “This is not a comic book. The dragons are, by far, the most powerful beings in either world. This is just known.”
“And there’s only five of you?”
“Seven now.”
“Who are the other two?”
“You’ll meet them soon,” he promised, tugging on her hand. “Come, let’s get some sleep. We haven’t been doing much of that lately, have we?”
“No,” she agreed, laughing. “We haven’t.” She followed Wilder back to his suite, her pulse still racing from their lovemaking. As they moved, she couldn’t peel her eyes away from the beauty of the artifacts lining the walls of the palace.
This place is worth saving, she thought with determination. It might be my home one day. Oddly, the thought didn’t frighten her in the least.
“I’ll be right here waiting for you,” Wilder told her.
“You better be,” Cassia muttered. “You’re driving my car.” She couldn’t believe that she’d allowed him to drive. Just another in a long line of firsts, I guess, she thought, reaching for the handle.
“Hey.”
“Hm?”
> “Aren’t you forgetting something?”
Cassia peered at him. “What?” Wilder pointed at his lips, and she grinned. “I’m not used to having someone to kiss,” she told him after brushing her lips to his. “I kind of like it.”
“Kind of?”
“I’ll get back to you on that.” She exited the BMW and moved toward the front entrance, casting Wilder a nervous look over her shoulder.
She’d been at the office for most of the day, but thankfully, had not run into Val, who was out with a client. Cassia knew the day of reckoning was coming over what Val had witnessed at her house, though it didn’t bother Cassia as much as she anticipated.
That bitch has been lying by omission to me since the day we met. How could she not tell me who I was? Wilder caught her eye as she moved and gave her a reassuring smile, but she could read the worry in his face. Is he more worried about the Hollows or about what I’m going to learn about him? she wondered. Cassia had already decided that she wouldn’t let whatever her mother had to say cloud her feelings. Everyone makes mistakes, she thought magnanimously. God knows I wouldn’t want to be judged on my past.
Her teen years were not a time Cassia liked to remember. She had barely escaped unscathed by the time she gave up the partying and drugs, her rebellion extending far longer than it should have.
“Lacy Colter,” she announced at the reception desk.
“ID, please?”
Cassia went through the usual motions before being granted admittance, and when she got to her mom’s room, she noted with relief that Lacy was awake.
“Hey, Mom,” she called, closing the door behind her. “How are you?” Lacy remained in her place, staring out into the lot with blind eyes.
“I knew you were coming,” her mother intoned as she always did. “The temperature always rises ten degrees when you’re coming.”
“Mom,” Cassia said, joining Lacy at her side. “I need to talk to you.”
Slowly, Lacy’s head swiveled to look at her. “You know,” she murmured. “How?”
A shiver of apprehension slithered through Cassia.
“It doesn’t matter,” she replied quickly. “But I need you to talk to me. I know you’re not suffering from dementia. I know that you’re a sorceress just like me.”