by Ashlee Sinn
Speaking to Major, he added, “I don’t like this. It doesn’t feel right.”
Major set a hand on Seth’s shoulder, having to reach up to meet Seth’s impressive size. “It will all work out.”
“That’s not what I’m hearing.”
“What?” I asked him.
Seth’s worried gaze slipped between me and Major before he finally blew out a breath and tucked his phone in his back pocket. “Never mind. I have to go.”
“You aren’t waiting for Scarlett?” Major asked. I was still trying to decide if I wanted to get inside Seth’s head more or not and hadn’t even thought about how he should be here for his alpha.
“No. Brennan’s in there too. Good luck,” he mumbled as he rushed passed me and toward the front of the office.
“You ready?” Major asked after letting out a big sigh.
With a curt nod, I allowed him to open the door. A large table had been placed inside the room with four chairs on each side and two on the ends. The thick air made me choke as I observed the shifters sitting and standing along the wall. At the far end, a human man stood and yanked on his tailored jacket. At the opposite side, closest to me, my father remained seated in his chair and didn’t acknowledge our entrance at all. Asshole.
“Ms. Drakov,” the senator said with an outstretched hand, “it’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”
I wrapped my fingers around his, knowing my skin would be warm to the touch. But he didn’t flinch a bit and I instantly gained some respect.
Major and I took the last two seats next to Brandt and Calvin. Across the table, Scarlett, Marcus, Brennan, and Sutton filled the chairs. There were a few other supporters, like Fiona and a female coyote, standing behind them and it appeared the senator had his humans lining the far wall too.
“Why are we here?” my father asked.
Senator Torrance pressed his lips together and took a folder one of his men behind him held out. “We’re here to discuss what happened in Washington.”
I clenched my hands, waiting for the inevitable. Major shifted in his seat beside me.
“What is there to discuss?” my father snapped. “My laboratory burned down due to faulty wiring. It was a tragedy but also just an accident.”
I managed to look across the table at the other shifters, and based on the smell of their animals and the way they were glaring at my father right now, they hadn’t known he owned the lab. I hung my head in shame.
“Well,” the senator cleared his throat, “there are lawsuits to be handled—”
“We’ve compensated every family quite well,” my father cut in.
“And then there are the rumors about what really happened—”
My father slapped his hands on the table and jumped to his feet. “I will not sit here and listen to this. That fire cost me more than you will understand.” His eyes flashed toward mine and then back to the senator. “And I will not participate in the shifter witch-hunt that you are referring to.”
“Sir, please sit down.” The senator’s voice trembled but he held his ground. “Shouting will not get us anywhere.”
The room collectively sucked in an audible breath. I wondered if the senator knew who, or more importantly what, he was talking to right now. The shifters in the room settled quickly, avoiding eye contact and suddenly becoming interested in the floor. But I focused on my dad and took pleasure in the way his neck was getting red and his jaw was twisting back and forth. He needed a little dose of humility every once in a while.
“Senator Torrance,” Brandt said calmly as my dad decided whether or not he would sit, “please explain yourself.”
The senator watched my father and then let out a sigh. Rubbing his hand over his cropped silvery hair he looked like he didn’t want to discuss whatever was about to come out of his mouth. “There are rumors that the lab was used to experiment on shifters and that it was shifters who burned it down.”
My father huffed and slammed himself back down into his chair. With arms crossed, he glared at the senator in defiance, yet he didn’t utter a word.
“We have heard those rumors too,” Major quickly jumped in. “And believe me when I tell you that the ISC is in the process of completing a thorough investigation.”
“Oh, I believe you,” the senator said, “but this has forced the government to re-examine Amendment 29 again.”
“What?” I asked, irritated that I hadn’t heard about this already.
The senator looked at me with kind eyes that quickly widened when he noticed the change in my pupils. “The voters want you all to register.”
“To register? Like criminals?” my father spat. “That will never happen.”
“I’m afraid it’s too late to stop,” the senator said. “Humans are fearful, especially after they see…” he looked at me, “after they see something they’ve only read about in horror stories.”
My chest rumbled and Major was forced to put a hand over my clenched one underneath the table. I was the monster? This was my fault? I snapped my head around to glare at my father. And his bored, nonchalant expression made me want to spew fire all over his pompous face.
“It won’t happen,” my father repeated. He stood and nodded to the two men behind him. “I wish I could say this was more productive, Senator Torrance, but it was not. Danika, come with me.”
All eyes moved in my direction but I didn’t stand.
“Mr. Drakov, I need to speak to your daughter for a few minutes first,” Major said.
My father huffed like a child and waved his hand in the air. “Fine, meet me outside. Don’t be too long.” With those parting words, my father left the room and ignored everyone else in it.
The senator let out a breath and gathered his paperwork. He looked at Brandt. “This isn’t going to go away. I’m afraid my constituents are simply too strong now.”
Brandt nodded. “Thank you for the warning, and thank you for your continued discretion.” The Callaghan brothers had not yet revealed themselves to the community, even though certain humans knew the truth. Like Senator Torrance, who had been a friend of the family for years.
After shaking hands with Brandt and shuffling out the door, the only remaining human in the room was Sutton. But her radio soon cracked with static, calling her out on the job. Giving Calvin a quick kiss, she wished us well and said she’d help in any way she could.
Slowly, the others left, making plans to meet up later tonight where they could have some privacy. Major stayed behind with me and said nothing until Seth poked his head back into the room. “You ready?” Major asked him.
Seth grinned, a genuine grin that did something nice to his usually stoic face.
Major turned to me. “You need to go with Seth. Now.”
“But I—”
“No arguments.”
I flinched with the power behind Major’s words. But his golden-orange eyes spoke volumes and I knew he must have had a very important reason to assert his dominance. I followed him out of the room, but when he turned left to leave out the front door, Seth grabbed my arm and pulled me in the other direction. I growled and let the heat fill my skin.
Seth immediately dropped his hand and his head. “Sorry. We’re going this way.”
I glanced at Major who nodded. “Go.”
We said nothing else as Seth and I weaved our way into the hall and toward the back of the building. When Seth pushed open a door at the end of our path, I instantly smelled the gasoline from the cruisers, the oil from the workshop, and the amazing outdoor air that only Alaska seemed to have.
And then I caught the scent of him.
Zane.
My Zane. My mate.
Seth led me through the garage and out the open door to a parking lot in the back of the complex. And there, leaning against his truck, was my handsome grizzly. His eyes widened when he saw me, and despite the limp that still persisted, he ran toward me. I laughed as his burly arms lifted me into the air and he smashed his lips against mine.
/> “Oh my god,” he whispered, “I didn’t know what happened to you.”
“Are you okay?” I asked when he kissed the top of my shoulder where the dragon wings reached the front of my body.
“I am now,” he growled, setting my down and cupping my ass. He pulled me into him, hard enough to feel his growing erection and with a desperation I hadn’t seen from him before.
“You two need to go,” Seth said. He tossed a set of keys to Zane and handed him a white envelope. “Take my truck. The directions are in there along with a letter for safe passage.”
“What’s going on?” I asked. But from the perplexed look on Zane’s face, he didn’t know anything either.
Seth began to pace, his gaze drifting back toward the garage. “The clan’s hands are tied, but the pack wants to help. You two need to get out of town for a while. We’ll take care of Anton.”
“Seth, you can’t,” I whispered.
“We will do what we can,” he said a little more strongly. “Please, you need to leave.”
Zane pulled on my hand when he jumped forward and wrapped Seth in a quick hug. “Tell Scarlett thanks.”
Seth dropped his head and I knew that something wasn’t right. But there wasn’t any time to dig.
“Please watch out for my father. He is ruthless when he doesn’t get his way.”
Seth snorted and stood a little taller. “Well, there’s a whole bunch of us up here and that should give us some leverage.”
I wanted to say I hoped so, but couldn’t get the words out of my mouth. I shouldn’t leave and risk the wrath of my father on these shifters who I’ve come to appreciate and respect these past few months. That wasn’t the dragon way. That wasn’t my way.
But then I thought about my father’s plan to impregnate me with some kind of genetically engineered human and my stomach roiled. Perhaps a few days off the grid with Zane was exactly what I needed to figure out how I could stop my father’s quest for dominance once and for all.
And when we heard the voices of several officers wafting out of the garage, I quickly made up my mind.
“Thank you, Seth,” I said with a nod.
Zane slipped his hand onto my lower back and ushered me over to Seth’s black truck. It was a newer one with a full cab, but we didn’t have anything to throw in the back. Zane started the ignition and quickly backed out of the space. As we pulled onto the road leading out of the spit and guiding us toward freedom, he lifted my hand and kissed my knuckles.
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” he said.
I smiled over at him. “Me too.”
And I really was. Whatever my father’s plans had been for me, my life was different now. I was on a different path, loving my time in Alaska, and loving the grizzly sitting beside me. I wasn’t going to be the science experiment my father wanted.
I would stay here, with Zane.
No matter what it took.
“Is this it?” I asked Danika while squinting into the darkness. She flipped the paper around in her hands several times and I laughed. “Please tell me you know how to read a map.”
She huffed and shook her head. “I’m a fucking dragon. I have a perfect sense of direction.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“I can’t read Seth’s handwriting.”
I loved seeing Danika, my beautiful dragon, so flustered. Very rarely did she ever let her cold façade crack, but I’d been witnessing more and more of it and it made my heart swell and dick harden every time.
“I see a sign up ahead.”
Danika looked up from the map and leaned toward the windshield. “Does that say Eagle Creek?”
As we got closer, I slowed. Sure enough, on a worn our green street sign, the remnants of the town’s name were there. I turned onto the gravel county road, feeling something thick and heavy in the air. “Is that you?” I asked Danika. While I’d gotten used to her overbearing animal, this didn’t quite feel like her.
“No,” she whispered.
“You sense it?” The hairs on the back of my neck were standing at attention, the darkness around us seeming to come alive the further away from the main road we drove.
Danika opened another piece of paper Seth had folded in half. “Scarlett of the Tik’a Pack requests safe passage for her guests.” She set the letter in her lap and looked up again. “Whose territory is this?”
Rubbing my neck, I shrugged. “No one has claimed it. But it’s rumored to be a shifter hideout. Like for those who have no place else to go.” I thought about what that must be like. It had almost happened to me when I sided with Julia’s father instead of Brandt. I’d fought against my own and risked being ousted for life. Thankfully, I was able to repair those relationships. And I couldn’t imagine not having my clan. My bear would die a slow and painful death.
“Slow down,” Danika mumbled. Her chest vibrated with an inhuman sound while she gazed up at the trees above us.
“What is it?”
“There’s something flying overhead.”
We were both looking through the trees and up into the sky, so when a man stepped out of the darkness in front of the truck, I shouted as I slammed on the brakes and skidded to a stop just inches from his legs.
“Jesus Christ!” Throwing the truck in park, I jumped out of my side much to Danika’s protests from the front seat. “What the hell, man?” My leg throbbed with the landing but I knew I couldn’t let my weakness show.
The tall, muscular beast let his yellow eyes glow in the dark. His dark skin disappeared underneath a white tee shirt and blue jeans. I felt his animal and my bear begged for a challenge, even though I wasn’t sure what kind of shifter he was. His chin length brown hair hung over one side of his face, exposing a scar down his right cheek. He said nothing, even as Danika stepped down from the truck and marched over toward him. She was so strong and beautiful, I didn’t mind that she was taking the lead.
“I am Danika Drak—”
“I know who you are,” the man growled. In the trees around us, I felt several other shifters hiding in the shadows.
Danika snapped her lips together and tossed me a glance. I saw her pupils elongate and then retreat to their human size before turning back to the man. “Are you Max?” she asked curtly.
“No.”
Danika crossed her arms and stood a few inches taller. And while the shifter in front of her had to reach six and a half feet, she felt much stronger and dominant. However, the man didn’t budge. “You said you know who I am?”
He nodded and a branch cracked in the distance. I spun on my heel to look out into the night, a grizzly growl warning whatever it was to stay put.
“Then you know not to fuck with me,” Danika snapped.
I whipped my head back around to watch her, the smile growing on my face as I did. My grizzly didn’t like being on the bottom of the clan’s pecking order, but he certainly didn’t mind letting a dragon do his bidding for him outside of that scenario.
The giant man huffed a breath and tried to toss the hair out of his face. It immediately fell back over his left eye. He seemed completely unfazed by Danika’s power. Interesting. “What do you want?” he growled.
“Your name.”
“Donavan.”
Danika nodded ever so slightly and held out the letter Seth had given us. “We are trying to get to Kenny Lake, Donavan, and this should ensure us safe passage.”
Donavan didn’t make any move to take the letter. “Why should we let you pass?”
Shaking the paper hard enough to make it snap, Danika said, “Because we are asking for a favor.”
An eagle screeched overhead, an eerie sound in the dead of night. I moved toward the front of the truck to be closer to my mate but when Donavan bared his teeth at me, I stopped. We hadn’t come here for a fight. Plus, even though my bear recognized the challenge, I still didn’t think he was available in his full form yet. And a man with one grizzly paw and one grizzly leg wouldn’t stand a chance against the gang of
misfit shifters surrounding us now.
“I am a representative of the ISC—” Danika started to speak but stopped when Donavan ripped the papers from her hand.
“And you are the dragon,” he grumbled. “I don’t care.”
“Well, you should,” I said. When both Donavan and Danika gave me an annoyed look, I felt stupid for speaking up. “Scarlett has asked for our permission to go through your land.” There, that sounded more mature.
“This isn’t my land,” Donavan said.
“Then Max’s land,” I added with an eye roll.
“This territory belongs to all of us. Not one individual.”
“Fine. Jesus. You don’t have to get so technical,” I groaned. “Will you all allow us to pass or not.”
As Donavan read the letter, several sets of glowing animal eyes appeared from the trees. Standing at all levels, I seriously wondered if all of the rumors about this group were true. People said bears worked alongside coyotes, panthers, and even lions. But those rumors were just rumors—there was no way all of those dominant animals could live in the same place and survive. The eagle screeched again, a sign that it was time for us to leave.
Donavan glared at Danika. “We don’t want any trouble.”
“The ISC would never interfere—”
“I mean with the dragon,” he interrupted again. The man sure had a large set of balls on him.
I could see Danika swallow hard and I wasn’t sure if she was trying to control the beast inside of her or if she was hiding her guilt. “You have my word.”
With a snort, Donavan turned his back to both of us and started to walk away toward the woods again. “You have safe passage,” he grumbled over his shoulder just before disappearing into the darkness.
“Well, thanks good sir,” I called out after him, not even trying to hide the sarcasm.
Danika let out a breath and wrapped her arms around my waist. “That was weird.”
Kissing the top of her head, I held her close. “It was. So, let’s get the hell out of here. How much further to the cabin?”
“Thirty more miles,” she whispered through a yawn.