by Bonnie Vanak
Aurora drew in a deep breath.
“My parents had a mixed marriage. My mother was a pureblood Lupine, and my father had Mage blood in him. But we lived as wolves, primitive, wild and free, hunting on our land in rural Wyoming, and seldom mingling with others. When I was four, my little sister Emily was born prematurely. No sense of taste, or smell either.”
He blinked. “For a Lupine, that is a death sentence.”
Her mouth wobbled precariously. “And my parents were set to quietly exterminate her…until I begged them to let her live. I promised I would do anything they wished. They didn’t want her. They found a nanny in the pack and the nanny cared for her. But Em was mine! I helped to bathe her, feed her, sang her songs when she whimpered…
When I turned eight, I had to fulfill my promise. Our lands suffered a tremendous drought and there was no game. My parents handed me over to a colony of Mages to raise as payment in return for permission for them to hunt on the Mage lands. The Mages wanted a Lupine as a dragon seeker, a Lupine who would hunt dragons for them, a female with an extraordinary sense of smell who could flush out the creatures and give them to their Shadow Wizard as gifts. The Shadow Wizard even endowed me with special powers, making me immune to the fire’s burn, to any burns, and gave me the ability to shoot flames from my fingers to coax out the dragon.”
“But you resisted.”
“The Mages treated me well, and I became more Mage than Lupine. When I turned fourteen, my Change finally came upon me. I shifted into a wolf for the first time. It was terrifying, without anyone to show me the way. So the Mages handed me back to my parents to train as wolf.”
She stretched out her trembling hands. “But by then, my parents saw me as an asset, someone they could use, as the Mages had. They refused to return me. And they snuck into their colony and killed them. In return Cadeyrn turned my parents into ash. He wanted to take Emily away as a slave. I begged for her life. Being a slave would kill her. No one would have patience with her. She’s such a gentle soul…”
Now her stomach clenched and her throat tightened. “I haven’t seen her since our parents died. And if I don’t save her, she’ll die. Tomorrow is her twenty-first birthday.”
He framed her face with his long fingers. “You are a brave and gentle soul, with a heart filled with love, Aurora. You do what you must for your family.”
Robert was a man of deep passions and convictions, willing to do anything for his people. This selfless Lupine was dedicated to his pack, never thinking of his own concerns, but only those of his people.
How could she convince him of her greatest need?
“Do I mean as much to you as your pack? I’m your mate. Am I a mate in name only, or do I really come first?”
Robert drew back, the guarded look coming over him again.
“What do you mean? Of course you mean everything. You’re my mate.”
“Then prove it.” Aurora drew in a deep breath. “Take me to see the silver dragon.”
Chapter 15
His mate wanted to meet the pack’s darkest secret. His secret, the dragon that had kept them alive and thriving, and the land fertile.
He balked at the idea. Then he looked at Aurora, who had spent most of her life as a slave, and sacrificed everything for her sister. He had always put his pack’s needs before hers, even when he’d first met her, when she was only fourteen. He hadn’t been able to free her then.
But now, she truly needed him.
“What do you want with my dragon?” He sensed it was not mere curiosity, but a deeper need.
One that could prove dangerous to him.
Aurora clasped his hand, her expression earnest. “If I tell you, please don’t hate me. But take me to see the dragon anyway. I need to know he lives.”
Robert stiffened. “I can’t.”
“You still don’t trust me.”
He hissed out a breath. “The dragon is mine to protect.”
“And me?”
He looked at her, realizing she was right. She was his mate now, and must come first.
They went outside, heading for the all-terrain vehicle. She climbed on behind him and they headed off for the fertile fields where the palms and citrus trees grew.
Near the small cottage where the hot spring bubbled, Robert parked the vehicle. “From here we must walk. Take off your shoes and socks.”
When they were barefoot, he led her on the pathway to the back field, where Scales rested. She accompanied him in silence.
He looked at her. “Why do you need to see the dragon? What do you want, Aurora?”
“I need the dragon’s heart to save my sister.”
Robert ground to a halt and seized her shoulders. “What?”
Now it all made sense. Why the Shadow Wizard had thrown him Aurora as a gift, not to break the curse, but for her own purposes.
“It’s the only way Emily can live!” she cried out, struggling free of his tight grip.
“What does the dragon have to do with Emily?”
“After he killed our parents, Cadeyrn gave Emily a reprieve. She would live with a Lupine foster family in a pack who would care for her until she turned twenty-one. And then on the second night of the waning moon of her twenty-first birthday, she would be enslaved. The only way I can free her is to bring Cadeyrn the beating heart of the silver dragon—Tristan’s pet.”
Robert struggled with a sense of betrayal and anger. “You lied to me. You endangered my people, now our people, and never told me your true purpose!”
“I love my sister! She’s everything to me, all I have left.”
“And her needs outweigh the needs of my pack?” he growled deep in his throat.
To her credit, she did not flinch nor draw away. Instead, her gaze remained steady. “I love her, just as much as you love your pack. I’m willing to do anything to save her. You did the same. You told me you’d do anything to save your people. We are both victims, Robert.”
He understood and his shoulders sank. Like him, Aurora was a pawn, bound by fate and love.
“You want the dragon’s heart because you love your sister.”
Her mouth wobbled precariously. “Emily could never survive the outside world. She can’t live as Skin, for she is Lupine. And no Lupine would want her because of her disability. If she becomes a slave, she will die.”
The ground rumbled and shook. Aurora clutched his hand.
“Is this what you truly want, more than anything else?” he asked her.
“I don’t want to kill the dragon. I want him to live. But I have to save my sister.” Tears dripped down her cheek and Aurora wiped them away.
She glanced eastward at the sunny sky, and the ghostlike orb of the moon far in the sunlit sky. “I’ve struggled with this since arriving here. It goes against all my being to kill the dragon, to kill anything! But if I don’t bring Cadeyrn the dragon’s heart by tomorrow night, I’ll lose her forever.”
Robert hesitated. “She means that much to you.”
“She means everything to me. More than my own life. I’ll do anything to save my sister.” Aurora shuddered, remembering the devil’s pact she’d made with the Shadow Wizard fifteen years earlier.
He closed his eyes and his expression turned tormented. Robert buried his head into his hands. When he looked up, torment filled his expression.
“I love you, Aurora. I will do this thing you ask, this thing you desire more than anything else, because I love you. And Scales is dying and in pain. It is his time to pass. You must promise one thing in return.”
“Anything.”
“You will stay with the pack and lead them.” He picked up her hands and ran his thumb along her knuckles. “You are strong and can do it.”
Puzzled, she nodded. “Of course I’ll stay. As long as Emily is free…”
He went to the grotto where they had consummated their union, and told her to remain near the trellis. When he emerged, a small cedar box in his hands, his face was tight and his eyes filled
with sadness.
They continued to walk, Robert’s shoulders slumped. Then they reached a clearing where the palm trees grew in straight lines, and the citrus trees bore fruit.
Upon a white rock rested a small silver dragon, about the size of a large alligator. Aurora cried out in delight and dismay. She had never seen such a magnificent creature, yet instinctively knew this dragon was dying. Its scales shone in the sun, but several had turned white. Some had dropped off, leaving patches of silver skin. Aurora winced. It had to hurt.
Turning his head, the dragon looked at her. She reached out a hand and the dragon blew a weak blue flame at her, but her skin did not burn. Like him, Aurora was special. The dragon aimed her a slightly crooked grin, showing missing teeth.
“So warm,” she murmured.
“He is old, and his powers are waning.” Tucking the cedar box beneath his arm, Robert stroked the dragon’s head between his silver horns, feeling an ache deep in his bones. “I knew this time would come. I was holding out to allow him to pass naturally. But he’s hurting and it is time. And if it means saving your sister, then so be it. That is your heart’s desire, Aurora.”
He set down the box upon the ground, opened it and withdrew a sharp silver dagger, handing it to her hilt first. “This is a very special blade, given to me by Tristan. Hold this. It must not touch the earth before I complete this task.”
“I don’t know if I can do this.” The dagger shook in her hand as she took it from him.
Robert gave a gentle smile as he closed the box. “You won’t do it. I will.”
He took the dagger from her and stood over Scales, the knife poised over the dragon. The dragon looked up at him with wise, pain-filled eyes. So much pain.
Robert’s hand trembled a little.
So this was it. He’d known it eventually would come to this, and he felt a sorrow so deep that it cut like a blade. He looked at Aurora.
His wife. His life. The pack would continue, thanks to her.
“I just wish I had been around longer to love you the way you deserve to be loved,” he whispered.
But she did not hear him. Aurora dusted off her hands and tears shone in her eyes. “You will do this, for me? Save Emily? What about your people? Don’t they need the dragon?”
“They’re already saved. Mating with you lifted the curse.” He pointed to the verdant fields, the patches of brown that had sprung new growth after their mating. Robert stroked a thumb over her cheek, tracing a single tear. “Don’t cry, sweetheart. I want you to be happy. Emily will be safe now, and so will you.”
He turned to the dragon, who looked at him with agony in his silver eyes. It was time. Scales still lived, but he suffered. He needed to set him free.
Scales blew out a small breath and moaned. As if he welcomed death.
Tears filled Aurora’s eyes. “I don’t want him to die.”
“But it will set him free. He’ll no longer be in pain. He’ll be at peace.” Robert swallowed past the emotion clogging his throat. It would take all of his strength to do this.
With his left hand, he stroked Scales’ head and then beneath his chin, where he always adored being petted. “Good-bye my friend. I shall see you on the other side.”
Scales feebly licked Robert’s finger and then nudged his hand holding the dagger.
“In the name of Tristan, the supreme ruler of Wyldings, rightful lord and judge of shifters, I set you free!” He plunged the dagger into the dragon’s heart.
Pain exploded in his chest. Robert bit back a sharp cry. It was not done yet. The light vanished in Scales eyes, a peaceful look to the old dragon before the eyes glazed over.
Scales was dead. But his heart still beat. It was not yet finished. Robert sliced and cut.
He finished the job quickly, lifted the heart out of the dragon’s chest and handed the bloodied organ to Aurora, placing it in her outstretched palms. Silver blood dripped from the beating heart. She sobbed as she held the bloodied organ.
“He was such a beautiful creature.” She wept over the dragon’s heart.
He had loved Scales like one of his own pack. And now Scales was gone forever.
And then the dragon’s body vanished, leaving only the pulsing, bloodied heart in Aurora’s trembling hands.
“It’s yours,” Robert said. “Your sister will be free now.”
Then he dropped the dagger and fell to the ground and gasped, feeling his life force ebb away.
No, oh gods, no, what had she done?!
Robert lay upon the ground, chest heaving in and out, his face growing lined, his hair, oh gods, his hair going white, not silver.
The dragon’s heart beat more slowly in her hands.
What had she done?
Killed the alpha. Her alpha, who was mysteriously tied to the dragon. This was the secret Robert had never told her. Never told anyone.
Aurora set the heart upon the boulder and dropped to her knees beside Robert. “You never told me. Why, why?”
“It…” he struggled to breathe. “Never tell anyone. Secret…with Tristan. Part of the d-deal t-to save my p-pack. S-so cold.”
She drew him into her arms, but his body was like ice, as if he were already dead. “You can’t die.” Aurora rocked back and forth, sweat rolling down her forehead, her stomach clenching hard. “Please, don’t die. You can’t leave me.”
Aurora laid him on the ground, but he kept gasping. She kissed his already chilling cheek and her teardrops splashed on his face like rain. “Robert, please! I love you.”
Feebly, he raised his hand to touch her face. “I love you. You and Emily…free…now.”
His hand fell back, closed his eyes and kept gasping for air.
She screamed, and screamed. Aurora called out for the Silver Wizard. “Tristan! Help, please help him!”
A flash of silver light and Tristan appeared. The wizard bent solemnly over Robert. “I am sorry, my friend. You knew it would come to this.”
Panting, Robert nodded.
“It hurts badly,” Tristan said. “I know. But the pain will be gone soon and you will be at peace.”
“What’s happening to him?” She began chafing Robert’s hands. Cold, oh so damn cold!
Tristan sighed. “He bound his life force to the silver dragon long ago to save his people. He inherited the dragon’s powers, to withstand fire, and to give life back to the earth. It was the only way to combat Caroline’s death curse until he could find his true mate. Robert loved his pack so much he was willing to die for them.”
“You have to save him!”
“I cannot. No one can. It was his choice.”
She knelt by her mate, touched his graying face, watching his hair turn white. He breathed in loud, anguished gasps.
Aurora looked at the Silver Wizard. “Please, help him. Please, I’ll do anything!”
“Anything?” Tristan sat by Robert, stroking his head. “It means giving up all you cherish.”
“What?”
“Your freedom.” The wizard’s dark eyes flickered and turned ice blue. “You can save him by binding your life forces together. You will be together forever. If he dies, you die.”
“You promise he’ll live?” she asked.
“I cannot promise this. But it could save him. You will never be free. Never free to seek your sister, care for her again. You must remain always with Robert. Where he goes, you must go. This was the way of bonding with the dragon, why Robert seldom went far from his lands and the dragon.”
If it didn’t work and Robert died, her life was over.
Aurora stared at the dragon’s heart lying upon the rock. Bind herself to Robert. Never being free, always tied to him. And then she looked at her mate and knew…
She loved him. And if this meant saving him, and giving up her promised freedom, so be it, as long as he lived.
“And Emily?” Tears rolled down her cheeks, splashed onto Robert’s sunken cheek. He was fading fast. “I must have assurances she will be okay.”
&
nbsp; The wizard closed his eyes and then opened them, his eyes shining like chrome. Then he blinked and they turned dark once more.
“Emily is safe. She’s always been safe and cherished in another Lupine pack. But only Cadeyrn can set her free.”
Tristan stared at the beating heart of the dragon. He stared with such intensity, she wondered what was wrong and why he did not seem upset. The silver dragon had been his pet. Why wasn’t he furious?
“I can’t touch it,” he murmured. He looked skyward. “Cadeyrn!”
She snatched up the dragon’s heart as the earth rumbled and the Shadow Wizard appeared. He gave the other wizard a sympathetic look and then assumed his usual impatient expression.
“Aurora.” The Shadow Wizard snapped his fingers and her slave collar appeared in his hand. “You have the dragon’s heart. Give it to me and I shall destroy this. Your sister will be spared and you will be free forever.”
But Robert would die.
“I can’t sacrifice Emily for Robert. He gave his life for her. I have to save him,” she whispered.
Something flickered in the wizard’s eyes. “You would give up your heart’s desire, your freedom? And your sister’s life, all for this wolf?”
“I love him.” Aurora had bargaining power. She held the dragon’s still beating heart. “I will remain a slave. You can do whatever you wish with me, if you spare Robert’s life and Emily’s.”
“Such selflessness,” he murmured. “You were once a spoiled, self-entitled brat. And you learned, from each master you served. The witch taught you strength with her cruelty. And courage. The troll taught you the value of knowledge. And the ogre taught you to honor the land, and to have compassion for living things.”
Aurora stared. “You sent me to those masters just so I’d learn?”
He exchanged a meaningful glance with Tristan. “You are half Lupine, half Mage and ruled by both of us. We agreed we needed to save you, for your parents were arrogant, selfish wolves with no thought for others.”
With his hand, the wizard crushed the collar and it turned to crumbled bits. “You are free, no more a slave.”