Using caution, Devon removed one hand from the tree roots and retrieved the stone from her pocket. Its crystalline half glowed. The closer the stone came to the hole, the brighter the amethyst became. Even the dark bronze side seemed vibrant in its own way. As it warmed in her hand, she noticed how much it truly did resemble a tiny dragon egg.
The mossy interior of the tree trunk looked like a cozy nest. Her body hummed with tension. Did she really want to do this? The stone was so beautiful. It was a souvenir of her trip with a dear friend to Salem. Could she abandon it here? Doubt hung heavy in her mind, but then Witch Casey’s prediction filled Devon’s thoughts as if the woman were standing beside her whispering.
What if that was just a crazy woman’s bullshit? Devon tried to drown out the voice, but it continued like a chant. How could she find love in the middle of the bush, half a world away from home? That prospect felt outrageous, but then again, she hadn’t believed in the powers of the stone until it left the mark on her palm. “I want to find love, and I want to believe that there’s something good out there for me,” she whispered reverently as she released the stone and heard a soft thump as it rolled deeper into the heart of the trunk. The moist air surrounding her felt electrified.
Suddenly, a strange bluish mist slowly swirled from the hole in the tree and twisted in the air like a dancing snake. “What the hell?”
The sight was so startling that Devon drew back, lost her grip, slipped, and fell toward the pool below. “Ah!” Spray pummeled her as she dropped. The pounding waterfall swallowed her and dragged her toward the bottom of the pool, where she flipped and tumbled in the current until the downward force let her go. Kicking off the floor of the pool, she bolted to the surface with a gasp and paddled away from the cascading water, shaken, winded, but basically unharmed.
She climbed from the water on trembling legs and walked into the clearing. Kibo wasn’t where she’d left him. “Kibo!” She waited.
Nothing.
“Kibo, where are you!” Her voice cracked. Where the hell was he? She jogged barefoot to where the Jeep had been parked. It was gone, and its tire treads had flattened the grass. The only thing that stood between her and more brush was an empty space where the Jeep once sat. She hadn’t even heard it start or drive off.
Why would he take off and leave her in the middle of nowhere? What the hell was going on? This didn’t make sense. Kibo was her guide, and he wasn’t supposed to leave her stranded. She turned on her heels. How would she get back to the village without being eaten by wild animals, and could she even find her way by herself? Would she spend the last few hours of life roaming the bush and being stalked by a predator? She screamed at the empty spot the Jeep had occupied. “You deserting, no-good son of a bitch!”
As she limped back toward the waterfall, the full magnitude of being stranded in the bush sunk in. Goddamned Kibo. It wasn’t acceptable to be left without warning. Where was he?
“Kibo!” She did not expect an answer. After all, the Jeep hadn’t driven off by itself. A terrible thought occurred to her: what if Kibo had fallen prey to poachers or some other nefarious element? That would be bad. She was alone, and he was the one with the rifle. She looked toward the waterfall and noticed the thin bluish mist that had startled her earlier had grown into a dense wall that loomed over her like a pair of large wings spread wide across the falls. The sight was stunning, but foreboding.
What next? How many daylight hours did she have left to try to get back to camp? She glanced around, searching for her boots, and frowned when she saw them haphazardly tossed near a shallow puddle at the edge of the pool. Most likely they were soaked, but who had moved them? Did Kibo do that, or someone else? It looked like she’d be walking back to camp in wet boots. Where was her camera? She looked around. It was gone. Fuck, this is terrible!
Devon clambered onto a flat, slimy rock to retrieve her boots and nearly slipped. The dense mist above the falls thickened and descended. A harsh shriek with the same threatening tones as an eagle rang through the air and gave her chills. What was it? She glanced upward as uncanny forms took shape within the mist, and two shimmering winged creatures appeared.
Covering her mouth with her hand, she fought to contain a rising scream.
The creatures had long tapered faces, keen eyes, and heavy wings with spiked tips. Holy crap!
At the top of the falls, they flapped their wings and shrieked skyward like monstrous birds of prey. Together they pushed away from the rocks and swooped toward her in a long graceful descent.
What the…? Panic overwhelmed her. She didn’t know which way to run first. Screaming her heart out, she scrambled across the mossy rocks. Her knees buckled, and she blacked out.
6
Jace carefully cradled the back of Devon’s head in his palms. He felt terrible. Poor Devon was out cold, and it was completely his fault. “Oh fuck.” He’d scared her to the point that she’d passed out, and that was not his intention.
Beau leaned down to cautiously place an ear to her chest. “Her breathing’s normal, but she might have hit her head. This could be serious.”
Regret burned in his gut. Why had he done that? What made him think a traditional dragon salute would impress her? He’d not been sure of Devon’s initial reaction to them in dragon form. Yes, he’d expected a startled scream, followed by a quick transformation and a hasty explanation on his part, but not this. Devon was their mate of choice and he’d hurt her and undermined Beau’s trust. It just didn’t get worse than that. As the alpha, what he’d done was unforgivable.
“I warned you it would be too much.” Beau’s gaze was accusing. “You’re my mate and I depend on you, but sometimes you’re just too stubborn.”
It was true, but he was new to all this. Being an alpha was a tricky tightrope to walk. Along with the privileges of being in charge of a mated trio, there were terrible risks. The worst was unintentionally acting against his partner’s best interests, like scaring them and letting them bonk their heads on rocks. If his partners’ couldn’t trust him, he was worthless, and a worthless alpha’s days were literally numbered. The process of formally claiming his once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to form a mated trio was off to a shitty start.
Jace knelt over Devon, stroking her face, but she wasn’t coming to. Her lashes weren’t even fluttering. She had such a pretty, heart-shaped face with bold, sweeping brows and a delicate little chin. Her luminous skin with its smattering of freckles reminded him of spiced chai.
She lay perfectly still. Obviously their little surprise was too much of a surprise. A double dragon appearance in the African bush, or anywhere, wouldn’t be an easy sight to deal with, but Devon was a courageous woman. He’d loved the idea of making a big entrance, but the sight of real flesh-and-blood dragons must have caused Devon’s mind to shut down. Now he was so sorry and he had so much he wanted to say to her.
Beau looked at him with intensity. “What do we do?”
Devon opened her doe-like eyes and looked confused. “Jace? What the—” she mumbled, then passed out again.
He patted her cheek. “Devon!” Thank God she was waking up. Since he’d learned of the stone, he’d anxiously waited for this moment. At first, he couldn’t believe Devon had gone to Salem and found a dragon egg, a rare totem and one that defied casual coincidence. If there were any doubts in his mind that Devon was the one, they were gone the moment he saw the stone she’d chosen randomly from a witch’s wish bag or some such story; he wasn’t completely clear on every detail.
What mattered most was Devon had shown real interest in him and Beau days before the mating season started in earnest, and she’d been eager to return to the homeland of the Marduko, which was another excellent omen.
Beau lifted Devon’s head. “We shouldn’t let her sleep. It’s dangerous. We have to wake her.”
Jace pulled Devon onto his lap. “Come on, honey, wake up.” He’d considered several different scenarios to introduce her to the world of Marduko dragons, and obvio
usly he’d chosen the wrong one. He’d intended it to be a romantic gesture; the falls were a traditional mating place from long ago in Marduko history. He’d heard tales since he was a boy that when the first Marduko came to Earth, they spied beautiful women bathing in this waterfall and took them as mates. It was a time-honored tradition to stand on the falls with wings spread wide and shriek a victorious mating cry. Devon should have been swept off her feet. Actually she had been, but in the wrong way. Who knew it would backfire this badly?
Beau leaned over Devon, looking concerned. He brushed his fingertips against her cheek. “She feels cold.” He grabbed his shirt and laid it on top of her. “Maybe she wasn’t ready for us? I’m worried this was a really bad idea.”
Half-conscious, Devon weakly flailed her hands in the air. “Run!” she muttered.
Reaching for Devon’s limp hand, Jace turned her palm upward. “Look.” He smiled in vindication. “I was right. The dragon egg branded her with our mark.” She’d instinctively known to place the stone inside a nest. He’d thought he was going to die when she started climbing those slippery roots and gone straight for the knot in the sacred tree. “I’m telling you, she’s got the Marduko spirit in her blood. We chose Devon as our mate, but on a deeper level, the mark proves she’s already chosen us. Look at how dark the coloring is. She’s our mate for sure. When Devon wakes up, we’ll just to have to convince her it’s going to be okay.”
“What if Devon doesn’t want two mates and a nest full of dragon babies?” Beau grew somber. “These aren’t the good old days when a man could get away with swooping down on a startled woman and carrying her away to his cave in the mountainside. Modern women won’t put up with that crap, and I wouldn’t want or expect them to. We’re not on Draca.”
“Who wants to be on Draca?” Jace touched the side of Devon’s face. “It was a fucking miserable place. No wonder our ancestors came here and never looked back.”
“She could be in shock. Shouldn’t we be wrapping her in a blanket and warming her up?” Beau’s brows sank. “Devon’s going to be so confused and angry when she wakes up. Maybe we should have prepared her a little better?”
Jace shrugged. ”How do you prepare someone for something like this? ‘Close your eyes, and when you open them, you’ll get a big surprise with wing and talons.’ There’s no easy way to do this.”
“We could have done better.” Beau hovered over Devon. “Maybe we could have told Devon we were dragons and then shown ourselves.”
He was being confronted, and rightfully so. It felt awful. Could he ever be a proper alpha? This was the time to make his case and make things right. “We had to wait to show our true selves until Devon had buried the dragon egg. She needed to do that completely on her own.”
Leaning down, Jace gently kissed Devon’s forehead. He’d been impatient and he knew it, but damn, he was new at this stuff too. A man was bound to make a few mistakes. “She could have kept it or buried it in her backyard, but Devon brought it all the way to Africa and buried it in a sacred place. Do you think those are the actions of a clueless and unprepared person?” He shook his head. “Never. She’s already trying to form a psychic link with us. I can feel it in the center of my chest. This is fate. Devon’s soul knows this is right and led her straight toward us, and I’ll take full responsibility for her.”
For days he’d sensed Devon presence entering his thoughts and dreams so strongly, it often felt like they were in the same room together having a conversation. As a new alpha entering his first mating season, he was blown away by the intensity of the experience and humbled too, though he didn’t admit it to Beau.
Sweet Beau was a worrier and a planner, and if he revealed himself to be the least bit uncertain in his approach to taking a mate, poor Beau would internalize the stress, and he didn’t want that. He was the head of this hopefully soon-to-be trio and it was his duty to put the needs and well-being of his betas first. And here he’d terrified his chosen mate so badly she’d fainted and knocked her head on a rock, proving he was a dumbass. “Maybe we should fly her to a hospital?”
Beau looked stricken. “Over the veld in broad daylight? What if she wakes midflight? That could be traumatizing.”
Right then, he wasn’t feeling too good about himself. There was so much on the line. True mating seasons came so rarely, and had even begun to skip generations. Marduko were a dying breed. It had been a miracle that he and Beau had found each other in the urban wilderness of the modern world where most dragons were forced to remain hidden and celibate. He had hoped but never expected Devon to respond so instinctively to the spawning grounds of Kilimanjaro, but he was thrilled she had. By the will of Great Draca, Devon was meant to be with her two dragons.
Devon’s lashes fluttered.
“I think she’s ready to open her eyes,” Beau whispered excitedly.
Jace turned his attention to Devon. He wanted to appear reassuring, not panicked as he was starting to feel.
She looked disoriented.
“Devon, can you hear me?” He attempted to sound calm and in charge.
“Jace?” Her voice was hoarse. “Oh my God, I thought I was hallucinating.”
He stroked a few wavy strands of Devon’s hair away from her face. “It’s me, and Beau’s here too.”
Her frightened gaze focused on Beau. “Be careful. There’s something horrible flying around here. Monsters.”
Rising on one shaky elbow, she stared at Jace. “Why are you both here? Am I still in Africa? What the hell is going on?”
“You called for us,” Beau insisted.
“No, I didn’t!” Devon became indignant. “I didn’t call for anyone, except Kibo, my guide. That jerk disappeared. Besides, I have no cell or laptop, so how could I possibly call for you? Why are we arguing? We’re in fucking danger! I’m not going to sit still and wait for those creatures to come back.”
A stab of guilt for deliberately terrifying the guide poked at his conscience like a hornet’s sting. While Devon was swimming in the pool, he had chased Kibo toward the Jeep with flapping wings and snapping jaws. The poor guy hit the gas and sped away without looking back. It was a rash thing to do, but in that moment his passion and territorial dragon instincts had overridden any semblance of human common sense. The alpha in him had wanted Devon and the sacred waterfall all to himself, and he’d claimed them.
“You called to us with the dragon egg.” Beau smiled at Devon. “You finally buried the stone and released the silent internal call. We’ve been calling to you for weeks. Have you felt it?”
“Beau, are you nuts or am I? What call?” Devon tried to rise but immediately melted back to the ground. “We have to get out of here. There are strange flying things on the loose.” Her voice quivered. “They look like fucking prehistoric dragons.”
“It’s all right.” Jace lovingly smoothed Devon’s hair. He reached for her palm and turned it over to reveal the dragon mark. “Did the creatures look like this?”
Devon gulped a frightened breath and nodded.
Hoping to sound as calm and sane as possible, though his heart was beating frantically for him to grab Devon and cover her in kisses, Jace spoke slowly. “It’s okay, sweetheart. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”
“I’m pretty sure there is.” Her lips trembled. “They’re out there. They have toothy jaws that look like they could snap bones, and sharp claws that make a grizzly bear look like a house cat. I’m freaking terrified!”
Beau squeezed her hand. “Jace has something to tell you. Relax and listen to him.”
“No talk! Not now. We need to run.” Devon’s gaze was glassy. “Those things could come back any second. Do you have a Jeep? We need to get out of here, hide, find a weapon or something.”
Jace smoothed Devon’s hair. “It’s okay.”
She pulled away from him. “Goddamn you, why aren’t you listening to me! It’s not okay. If we don’t leave, we’re going to become snacks for some flapping shrieking things as big as airport shu
ttles! Am I speaking English? Why are you not reacting to this?”
He drew his hand away from Devon’s scalp, and there was a red sticky substance covering it. “She’s bleeding.”
Beau looked mortified. “What do we do?”
What could they do? Even in full dragon flight, they were hours from a clinic, and Devon needed treatment now. His would-be reign as alpha was off to a bumbling start. Where was the instinctual dragon wisdom of the ages that was supposed to show up for an alpha in his hour of need?
“Well?” Beau placed his hands on his hips. “Come up with a plan, or for Devon’s sake I’m going to have to override your authority and do something.”
Pressure! He thought hard. What was the best choice to make? What advantages did they have at hand? Please, for fuck’s sake, let an ancestral memory surface, something useful. Devon was depending on him to save her, and Beau was losing faith. Think…. Oh my God! Something came through. “Go behind the waterfall and climb the dragon tree. Grab a mature leaf and crush it. It has medicinal properties. We can use it to stanch the wound.”
“It works for us, but will it work for her?” Beau shook his head. “What if too much dragon sap seeps into her bloodstream? It might be poison to a human.”
“It won’t be.” All his intuition shouted that his chosen mate needed help fast. He had to honor the primal voice in his head that was meant to unite a mated trio and protect them from harm, not cause challenge or doubt. “Trust me,” Jace blustered. “It will help.”
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