by Ford, Rinna
“Nah. We’ll go out the back,” Grayson told him and turned on his heels. “Ya know, I told you my name. It’s only polite you tell me yours.”
“Emelia,” I replied as we followed him through the kitchen and out the back door. “And this is my mate, Xander.”
“Well, Emelia and Xander, bring your car back here and you can follow me in mine. If it feels fishy to you, feel free to leave, no questions asked and I won’t chase you. It’s all in your court. I’ll be in that truck right there.” He pointed to an old red pickup truck then looked back at us. “Are you okay with that?”
Xander nodded and led me around the side of the building toward our car. We each slid inside and Xan stuck the key in the ignition, starting it up.
“What do you think?” I asked as he headed behind the diner.
“I don’t know,” he said. “But I really hope your uncle isn’t sending us to our deaths.”
I nodded in agreement.
“Me too, honey. Me too.”
Chapter Two
We followed behind Grayson’s pickup truck for several miles out of town before turning left onto a winding dirt road. Much like the driveway that led to Xander’s house in the mountains, I would have totally missed it if our guide didn’t know where he was going. I knew that it had to have been the work of a caster to make the turn-off so hard to see.
Xan and I rode in silence, even going as far as turning off the radio so we could use our senses more sharply. Neither one of us thought we were driving into a trap, but you could never be too careful.
The winding path went on for a couple more miles before we reached a tall black wrought-iron fence with a gate that stood in our path. Grayson rolled down his window and put his hand on some kind of sensor pad, allowing him and us entrance into the compound.
Major security.
I gulped at the thought of what awaited us, but whatever it was, it was better than being possibly tortured and killed for simply being me. Xan and I were out of options. We needed to see it through.
The gate slowly swung open and Grayson stepped on the accelerator, leaving us enough time to follow behind him before it closed. We drove for another half mile or so before seeing a house off in the distance. To call it a house was putting it mildly. I had seen mansions smaller than what stood before us. It was massive.
Grayson parked his truck around in front of the house and got out, which left us to do the same. Xan parked beside him, and I immediately opened my car door. The smell of the ocean hit me first, followed by the sound of waves crashing against the shore.
“The house backs up to the ocean,” Grayson told us when he noticed what I was looking for. “You should definitely check it out while you’re here. It’s one of the best things about the place. Come on in!”
He smiled wide and began walking up the steps. He didn’t wait for us to follow, but I knew he knew we’d be right behind him. He had a cool confidence about him, and I decided if he turned out to be telling us the truth about Di, I would definitely like to have him as a friend. If he was lying, then… he’d make a tasty snack for my dragon.
I huffed out a laugh at the sardonic thought and shook my head at Xan when he raised his eyebrows in question as we climbed the stairs. We passed several supes when we walked through the front door. All of them stopped whatever they were doing and stared at us with a mixture of confusion and paranoia. They obviously weren’t used to seeing strangers in their home.
“You know where Di is?” Grayson asked one guy who was walking out of a hallway. He was holding a notepad in his hand, looking down at it and writing something. He almost ran smack into Xander, which made him fall back and hiss at my mate.
The man’s eyes turned red for a second before changing back to the muddy brown they were before. I knew in that instant he must have been a vampire, even though he wasn’t at all what I expected.
Vampires were the one supernatural group I wasn’t familiar with for obvious reasons, but I thought they’d be beautiful, if nothing else. Not that the man wasn’t attractive, but he was more cute than jaw-dropping gorgeous. And what was with the hissing? Did they all do that?
I needed to do more research on vampires, I decided.
The man stood upright and assessed Xan and me as his face went back to its neutral, bland self. “In her office,” he sneered and went on his way without another glance at any of us.
“Thanks, Jep!” Grayson called out after the vampire, then turned back around to us. “Don’t worry about him. He’s Di’s assistant, and he lets the power go to his head quite often. I would say he’s usually easier to be around, but I’d be lying. He’s a prick.”
“Okay,” I replied with raised eyebrows, because the whole interaction was weird.
Grayson smiled again and led us down the hallway Jep had just come from. We passed several doors before he stopped at one on the right and knocked softly.
“Come in,” a husky female voice called from the other side.
Grayson opened the door and let us pass by him, bringing us into a large office with a sitting room and everything. Standing near a large table and holding a tablet was the person I assumed to be Di.
She was absolutely gorgeous with her shoulder-length white blonde hair and blood red lips. She was the most put together person I had ever met in my entire life, with her silky red blouse to her high heeled shoes. I felt completely underdressed standing in the same room as her, and I didn’t like feeling inadequate. But it wasn’t just her appearance which made me feel that way, it was the way she carried herself. She was pure class, and I wondered exactly who she was and how she could help us.
Di smiled wide revealing a row of perfectly straight white teeth and laid her tablet down on the table, making her way over as she eye’d us both. Xander more than me. I mentally rolled my eyes at her audacity.
“Di, this is Emelia and Xander. Devlin Stratton sent them to the diner to find you.”
Di’s eyes snapped to Grayson at his words and she raised one perfectly sculpted eyebrow.
“Oh? Devlin? I haven’t heard from him in a very long time. How is he?” Her attention was back on Xander, as she decided to ignore me completely.
“We don’t know,” I told her with annoyance, bringing her attention back to me.
“Well, that’s a shame,” she sighed. “How do you know Devlin? Why would he send you to me?” She seemed conceited and self-important. I hated people like that.
Xander planted his feet and crossed his arms over his chest. He was annoyed with her too. The corner of my mouth rose in a small smile. Man, I loved that dragon.
“I’ll leave you to it then,” Grayson told us and headed back toward the door to the hallway. “Xander, Emelia, hope to see you around.”
The door shut behind him leaving us in the room alone with the piranha.
“Dev is my uncle,” I informed Di, getting back on the subject. “We were attacked by casters from the Council. He stayed behind so we could get away, so he could be dead, he could be a prisoner, or he could just be hiding out, waiting for his chance to find us. But whatever happened to him, his final request of me was to find you. So you tell me, Di, why would my uncle, who has been my protector from the moment I was born, send me to find you, out of all the people in the world? What can you do to help us?”
Di’s face remained neutral for a moment, then she parted her lips and breathed out audibly, probably from surprise. She turned on her heels and walked back toward the table she was standing at when we walked in.
“I’m afraid I need more information to answer your question to satisfaction. What are you, first of all? I can’t seem to figure it out by your smell.”
“Rude,” I said quietly. Then a little louder I asked, “What are you?”
She smiled wide. “Darling, I’m a vampire.”
Now, she was exactly what I expected when I thought of vampires.
“I’m not a vampire,” I replied. “I’m a caster. And a dragon shifter.”
&nb
sp; The last sentence came out a little softer. It seemed I wasn’t as confident when it came to telling others of my dual status.
Within a second, Di was in front of me and held onto both of my arms at the wrist. She sniffed the air in front of me and her face lit up in excitement.
Xander ripped her away, sending her flying across the room. Di landed on her back next to her desk. When she sat up, she didn’t look angry or annoyed. In fact, she looked as excited as she was before Xan threw her across the office.
“Unbelievable,” she smiled and got back up on her feet. “The prophecy…?”
Her face morphed back into cool composure, and she began smoothing down her pencil skirt and hair before walking back over to us. Xan stood partially in front of me and growled at the vampire.
“Let me guess,” she said, “you’re her mate? Her shifter mate? Does that mean she has a caster mate too?”
Xan’s growling became louder, but he didn’t answer.
“That’s none of your business,” I spoke up. “Can you help us or not?”
Di clapped her hands in front of her smiling face. “Oh, darling! I can most definitely help you! Come! Sit!”
She motioned toward the sitting area and stood next to a high-backed chair, leaving us the couch.
“I’ll call for refreshments! You must be famished, being shifters and all!”
I wasn’t sure if I liked the friendly Di. I definitely didn’t like the snooty Di, but this side of her was just as awful.
Di walked over to the desk and pushed a button on the surface.
“Jep, please bring some snacks and drinks for our guests.”
She walked back over to the chair and sat down, crossing her legs in front of her body and leaning forward.
“Tell me all about you,” she commanded, the smile still plastered on her face. “I want to know everything!”
“First, tell us why we should trust you,” Xan told her. “My mate has told you something very private and very dangerous. I don’t think we should tell you anything else until you tell us what you can do for her. For us.”
“Fair enough.”
Her smile dropped and she leaned back in her chair. Before she could say anything else, there was a knock on the door, and the snooty vampire from before came into the room carrying a large tray of sandwiches and two glasses of water. He set them down on the coffee table in front of us and left without saying a word.
“Help yourself!” Di commanded.
Neither one of us reached for the food in front of us, so Di cleared her throat uncomfortably and began telling us what we wanted to know.
“I’m sure the supernatural world hasn’t been very kind to you,” she started out. “We, as supernaturals, have been told we should remain separate. Mixing of the races is forbidden. Next to the rule that we should keep our identities secret, it’s the biggest rule we are supposed to live by. I happen to run a faction of a group that doesn’t believe that living separate is how we’re supposed to live.”
“So, you’re part of a rebellion of sorts?”
Xander was the one to ask the question.
She nodded and pursed her lips. “You could call us that, yes.”
“You’re rebels? What exactly does that mean?” I asked. Why would Dev send us to a group of rebels?
“It means we oppose the Supernatural Council and the lies they’ve been spreading to keep us in check, that’s all.” Di lightly laughed and put her fake smile back on her face, but she knew we weren’t buying it completely. The vampire cleared her throat and smoothed her skirt down in front of her. “So, do you want our help or not?”
“That’s all? What are you planning on doing with this rebellion? Overthrow the Council? Make a new government?” I questioned.
“You ask some big questions. Are you sure you want the answers?” Di was getting annoyed. It was obvious by her tone and the fact that her haughty look had returned.
“We want to know what we’re getting involved in, so yes. We’d like answers.”
My mate was practically vibrating with anger beside me. I put my hand on the middle of his back as we waited.
Di turned her nose up and looked away toward a window. “We have no plans to overthrow the Council, I assure you.” Her eyes shifted back to us. “Do you want our help or not?”
No one spoke for almost a minute as Xan and I stared at Di and she back at us. I knew that she was lying, but we were out of options. If worse came to worst, we could always level the house down in our dragon forms and fly away.
“Yes,” I told her. “We’ll stay, for now. Just know, neither one of us are pawns in your little game, whatever your position. The moment we feel used or lied to, we’re out of here. I’m a caster and a dragon, and don’t forget that Dev is my uncle. I have the means and the ability to get us both out of here.”
Di rose from her seat, an annoyed expression crossing her face.
“Understood. But just so you know, you’ll be expected to pull your weight around here. Everyone helps with the cooking and cleaning. Room and board doesn’t come for free, and neither does my help or protection.”
Xan and I both stood in front of the couch. I stuck out both hands and within seconds, both Xan’s and my backpacks appeared in them. I handed my mate his, and he looped one of the straps over his broad shoulder.
Surprise crossed Di’s face. “How? How did you do that?” she asked. “You shouldn’t have been able to do that in this house! It’s protected from magic use inside!”
“We understand your conditions and we accept them,” I replied, not answering her question. I honestly didn’t know the answer because, apparently, a caster had spelled the house against that kind of power, but I loved that I kept knocking her off her game. “Now, is there someplace we can freshen up?”
She nodded her head quickly and began walking toward the door to the hallway.
“Follow me,” she told us, quickly.
I shrugged my shoulders and smiled at my mate before following the vampire out of the office.
Chapter Three
“Irna, please show this couple to a room on the second floor,” Di said to the first person she came in contact with.
A petite blonde woman with bright hazel eyes looked up from her book when Di spoke to her. She had a kind, sweet smile that slowly fell when she got a good look at me. Her smile returned after a second and she stood, walking over to us on bare feet.
“Hi, I’m sure you heard, but I’m Irna,” she said and held out her hand for me to shake.
I took her offered hand. “I’m Emelia, and this is my mate, Xander.”
Xan nodded his head in greeting. It seemed as if he was still on edge, so I let his rudeness go. It looked like Irna did too because her expression never faltered.
“It’s nice to meet you both. I got it, Di,” she said to the vampire and began walking toward the stairs.
I turned to say thank you to our host, after all, it was only polite, but she was already gone. Where she went, I didn’t know. All I knew at that point was we were safe, well as safe as we could be, and there was a hot shower with my name on it.
“Follow me,” Irna grinned. “The house is enormous and I don’t want you to get lost on my watch.”
I looked at Xan and lightly punched his stomach before following after our guide. I didn’t look back, but by the sound of my mate’s heavy footsteps, I knew he was following too.
“This house has twenty-six bedrooms, each having its own ensuite bathroom so you won’t have to share with anyone.” Irna looked behind her to see if we were still with her then turned back around and stepped off of the stairs and onto the second floor landing. She turned left down one of the two hallways and kept walking. “The house also has an indoor/outdoor pool, theatre, and game room for entertainment. There’s other stuff too, but I’ll wait and let Di decide if she wants to tell you about it since she’s the boss and all.” She stopped at a door on the right, turned the knob, and pushed it open. “This is you
r room. I think you’ll like the view.”
I stepped inside and was immediately greeted with a cloudless blue sky. Two-thirds of the back wall was made up of large windows that allowed a massive amount of light in.
“Wow,” I breathed out.
My dragon nudged my subconscious. She wanted to be out there, flying.
Later. I promise.
She nudged me again because even though Xan and I stopped once on the route to California in a secluded place to stretch our wings, so to speak, it wasn’t enough. I understood her need to get out. I hated being cooped up too.
“Wanna go on a date with me later?” I eyed my mate.
He took his eyes off of the windows to face me and smiled.
“I’ll leave you two alone, then,” Irna said from the doorway. I had forgotten she was there.
“Sorry,” I cringed. “Thank you.”
Irna grabbed the doorknob and began to shut it, but stopped and pushed her head back in.
“Why do you look so familiar?” she asked, her eyebrows scrunched in confusion.
“I don’t know. Maybe you know my uncle Devlin? Di and Grayson knew him, so maybe you do too. We kind of look alike.”
Her face went ashen and she stood upright.
“Devlin? Devlin Stratton is your uncle?”
“Yeah. Did you know him?”
Irna gulped and nodded her head. “You could say that. Dinner is at 6:30. Breakfast and dinner are usually a family-style thing, so we all eat together. See you two later.”
With that she left, closing the door in a hurry.
Weird.
“What do you think her problem was?” I turned to face Xan and asked him.
“My guess? She knew Devlin and she didn’t want to be reminded of that. Maybe they were together at one point or something.”
I stared out the window and thought about that for a second. Dev was gay, so him with a woman wasn’t likely. But he did tell me about a mate, a female he denied. Oh shit. It must be her. She was supposed to be in Europe or something, but anything was possible.
“I think you’re right,” I sighed. Life just couldn’t be simple.