Exile: Sídhí Summer Camp #3

by Jodie B. Cooper

  He glared at her. The strong lines of his face clenched. A few seconds turned into a minute. She was losing him, but she was at a loss. She didn't know how to win him over. If she told him outright that she was Chi’Kehra, every full-blooded vampire’s boogieman, he’d try to gut her right then and there.

  She grimaced against the sun’s sharp glare but maintained eye contact with him as the burning ball of flame seemed to grow brighter every second.

  “I’ll be so glad when your eyes are a normal black,” he said, moving to stand between her and the blazing ball of fire, contradicting his harsh words with the simple act of kindness.

  “For me, my eyes are normal,” she said quietly. She continued holding his gaze, hoping this once he'd listen to reason. She took a deep breath and tried to reason with him one more time.

  “Nick, you’re everything to me, but my people’s lives are in my hands. If you said one wrong word, even in joking, your words could end up getting thousands, possibly millions of people killed,” she said earnestly, lightly touching his bare arm with the tips of her fingers. A ripple of electric recognition surged through her body.

  His eyes narrowed into black slits. “If you have to hide behind lies why should I listen?”

  She sighed with a pent-up hiss of exasperation, throwing her hands up in the air. “Because this isn't just about you and me, my lies, as you put it, keep my people safe.”

  He glared at her, but she refused to go any further. If he wanted her then he could bend at least a little bit.

  “Safe? An exile worried about keeping people safe? What about the people who die?” He demanded in a snarl. “Did you know a filthy exile killed my brother?”

  Blood drained from her face.

  The loud roar of a dragon drowned Nick’s rumbling growl of fury.

  She'd never been so glad to see a dragon in her entire life.

  Chapter - Wishful Thinking

  A dark blue dragon questioned Nick and Sarah about their missing cabin mates then flew them both to another location several miles away.

  A feeling of dread built in the middle of Nick’s chest. He was determined to confront Sarah, but after they landed at the new campsite, she avoided him like the plague. The few times he managed to catch her eyes, she looked quickly away.

  He was vampire, a predator. He knew how to stalk prey. He eased off hunting her, letting her grow complacent as they spent the night with cabin twenty-four's campers.

  The next day, a different dragon arrived with Mitch and Emily. He breathed a sigh of relief that the burly halfling, who was Katie's twin, and the female vampire, who was Jared's younger sister, and his baby cousin, had escaped from the monsters hidden within the mountains.

  Late that night, after tossing and turning for several hours, he muttered a soft curse. Escaping the confines of the tent he shared with Mitch, he headed toward the middle of camp.

  The darkness, not a hindrance to his enhance Sídhí senses, appeared as gentle shades of gray. A midnight breeze ruffled his hair, bringing with it a hundred smells. A single smell caught his attention, bright and sharp the scent teased him. Still as a statue, he inhaled Sarah’s fragrance, sucking it in like a drowning man gasping for air.

  He couldn’t help it. Like the strongest magnet ever created, her pull was impossible to resist.

  Turning on his heel, he followed the gentle aroma of heather and hyacinth laced with a sharp bite of fire. His need to see her outweighed his caution.

  He found her sitting on a large rock, overlooking a deep ravine. Beams of moonlight caressed her hair, giving her an unearthly glow. She must have heard his quiet approach because she tensed.

  Brushing a slender hand across her face, the long, silky strands of her moon-colored hair shimmered as she turned away from him.

  “If you’ve come to yell at me then just go away,” she said in her normally soft voice, a voice laced with what he knew was tears.

  His heart clenched tight, demanding something he couldn’t give her no matter how much he wanted to. Clearing his throat, he swallowed the knot blocking his voice, but he wasn’t sure what to say.

  He settled on not saying a word. For ten minutes, he sat beside her, silently watching her beautiful profile as she gazed into the darkness. The moon enhanced the soft lines of her face, turning her from beautiful to exquisite. “Tell me what’s wrong,” he said gruffly, as if a force beyond his control sucked the words from him without his consent.

  Shaking her head, she snorted.

  Right. Her mate didn’t want her.

  He needed to keep his big mouth shut.

  “My little sister’s birthday is in a few days,” she said quietly. “I’m going to miss it.”

  “Miranda?”

  She turned to him, eyes wide with surprise. “How did you know that?”

  “I heard you and Katie talking.” He shrugged, uncomfortable that she knew he had wanted to listen to anything she had to say.

  “How old will she be?” he asked, giving into the desire to talk with her, while refusing to admit how desperate he was to know everything about her.

  “Seventeen going on a hundred,” she said with a smile coloring her voice. “Miranda and Mac keep me centered.”

  Stifling a growl, he refused to ask who Mac was. Any boyfriend she had didn’t matter to him. She would never be his bonded mate. No matter how much he desired her, she was an exile. Her values, her entire way of life, was so vile he would never accept her.

  He tensed, ready to stand up and return to camp, when she started speaking softly, almost dreamlike, as if she was talking to herself.

  “Miranda might ask me a dozen questions about stuff, but she never questions me. She accepts me without reservation. Living in my shadow, she should hate me, but I know for a fact she’d die to protect me.” She paused, glancing at him. A slight smile touched her lips. “You’d like her. She is so sweet she’d make your teeth ache.”

  He scrambled for something to say, something that wouldn’t hurt her or start an argument. “What’s the last thing you did together?”

  To his surprise she laughed. The shocking reaction filled her eerily beautiful face with sunshine. “Long story,” she said with a shake of her head.

  “We’ve got all night,” he said, unwilling to let her go, desperate to know what it might’ve been like between them if she hadn’t been born exile and him clan, a staunch supporter of vampire honor. Reluctantly, he admitted, he also wanted to know what made her laugh with such honesty that delight glowed from her eyes. The thought struck him, and he realized it was the truth. Without the ice princess face, she appeared different, pure of heart if that was possible. He shook his head at his crazy thoughts, shoving them to the dark recess of his mind.

  “A few nights before camp started, I had trouble sleeping,” she said hesitantly, giving him a flickering glance filled with pain. The smooth skin above her eyes tightened.

  Hearing what she didn’t say, he sucked in a ragged breath. She couldn’t sleep after having a mate dream, one where he had tried to kill the evil exile he believed her to be. He clenched his teeth, but she didn’t condemn him as she softly continued her story.

  “I heard a sound coming from her room. You need to understand, she sleeps like the dead. Once down, she doesn’t stir all night. My first thought was an intruder so I ported into her room.” From the twinkle in her eyes, he could tell she was trying extremely hard not to laugh. “Miranda was dressed head to toe in black clothes. She looked like a ninja or something. All I had to do was quirk a questioning eyebrow at her and she was spilling her guts.”

  “She calls it a hobby, but she has this fascination with fountains. She has collected miniature fountains and pictures of them for years. Last Christmas I gave her a camera and a How To book on taking pictures of moving water. Now, she drives everyone crazy with wanting to visit famous fountains.”

  “She was sneaking out to take pictures?” he asked doubtfully. “You sure you know your innocent sister?”
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  Sarah chuckled. “Yeah, believe me she wanted to visit the Trevi fountain in Rome. She even had a map with yellow highlighter marking her route. Earlier that day, she snitched three coins from my bedside stand, hoping she could throw the coins in the fountain and make a wish.”

  “I thought she wanted to take a picture?” he asked, frowning as he tried to keep up with her story.

  “Yes, well, during her internet research on fountains, she found one that supposedly grants wishes of true love.”

  Nick snorted. “And so she stole money from you to visit the fountain. Sarah, that doesn’t sound like a too-sweet-for-words type of girl.”

  Sarah looked at him. For a split moment, her eyes reflected such a deep pain he nearly groaned. “The wish wasn’t for her. It was for me.”

  Chapter - Can’t Catch Me

  Clarabelle reclined in the luxurious California King bed, arching her body seductively in the beams of sun pouring through the oval skylight. Her silky human skin glowed with health. The dark gold color reflected hours of time spent under the hot sun. At times, she didn’t know which form she preferred, her luscious human body or her sleekly, dangerous dragon form.

  She glanced around the room, feeling a surge of arrogant possessiveness. The restricted suite of rooms took-up thousands of square feet in her mate’s fortress. The fairy enforced walls kept all curious eyes and ears from seeing or hearing anything that went on within the rooms.

  No one, except her mate, had ever seen her within his bedchamber. She was Lady Clarabelle of a domain that didn’t know she existed.

  With a curl of her finely manicured finger, she imperiously ordered her mate to attend her.

  His lips twisted into a smile. To the average person, the thin curving of his lips looked bitter. And why wouldn’t he be bitter? Even his fellow members on the dragon council understood why one of the oldest members of that esteemed group of dragons was harsh, an unpleasant person through and through. It was a well-known fact he was one of the oldest dragons alive that remained unmated… or so they believed.

  Keeping the mating bond a secret for the last hundred years had been harder than killing her own grandparents but like that nasty chore so many years before, the lifeBond between her and her mate had to remain secret.

  “I’d love nothing more than to stay here with you, but while you were sleeping I received a summons to an urgent council meeting,” he said, kissing the tips of her fingers as he rubbed his free hand across her unmarred chest, searching for the slightest scar. “Are you sure it no longer hurts?”

  “I’m fine.” She tugged him closer for a proper kiss. “I was fine yesterday, but someone was overly cautious and demanded I stay in bed.”

  “I didn’t hear you complaining last night or this morning for that matter,” he said with a smirk on his face. His satisfaction filled her, matching her own feelings. They had been together for so many years. They had become perfect companions even before the bonding, held together with an overwhelming lust for power.

  His synth crystal had sang for her (naming Clarabelle his perfect mate) the day she outlined her plan to return Dragon Valley to the Sídhí home world. It had been a near impossible dream, because without having Chi'Kehra, the legendary leader of the elves, available to charge the long dead energy landfills her brilliant blueprint for the future had very little hope of succeeding. At the time, she estimated her plan had less than a single chance in one billion of succeeding, but it would be worth anything if they could accomplish returning dragons to Sídhí.

  Modern dragons made her sick. Every year more and more dragons lost focus on what it meant to be dragon. Dragons were a magnificent race born to rule the world. Yet, too many dragons had a mind-set of solitude and peace, wanting nothing to do with taking their rightful place among the other Sídhí races.

  “You don’t think Cornelia suspects anything, do you?” Clarabelle asked, with only a hint of concern in her eyes. She didn’t doubt her plan was perfect, but the councilwoman had a knack for screwing-up the Khr'Vurr’s strategy.

  Clarabelle was still irritated about the last time. The old, gold dragon had been the one that discovered their plan to plant a bomb at the last council meeting. If the old hag hadn’t interfered with Clarabelle’s flawless plan, the bomb would have destroyed the bulk of the dragon council.

  “That old bat won’t see us coming until I’ve got a sword passing through her neck. She’s as blind to the world around her as a true bat.” He smiled; a wicked looking crease of his pale lips. “Once we have the chit shackled to do our bidding, I’ll enjoy a bit of torture on the old bird. They say Cornelia is so old, she heals nearly instantly.”

  Clarabelle glared at her mate. Worry made her words harsh. “That chit nearly killed me. Sarah might be young, but she is still the Chi’Kehra. The power that girl has is unreal. Don’t underestimate her.”

  His chuckle turned nasty. “Oh no, she’ll not get the chance to harm either of us ever again. And once I have her mate in my dungeon, she’ll regret the day she ever harmed you.”

  Chapter - Forbidden Territory

  Early the next morning, Sarah exited the tent to find a dragon - in his human form - starting the campfire. He stuck around long enough to discuss cabin twenty-four’s decision to take the river rafts back to the main campground.

  Guardian Alexander did not make an appearance, and the dragon he sent in his place was not subtle. The dragon suggested Sarah and her cabin mates should not join the other teen's trip down the river. By leaving them in the forest, Alexander was trying to turn her - and her cabin mates - into bait.

  Sarah assumed the twisted plan was the guardian’s way of giving her the chance to catch the Khr’Vurr. Wasn’t she the lucky one?

  Over the next few days, the teens hiked into the surrounding forest exploring the area. Nick joined the expeditions, but she avoided him as much as possible. For her, it was abnormal behavior. She never avoided a problem but this time it was different.

  This time, she freely admitted (to herself), she was being chicken. She didn’t care. Her semi-truce with Nick had ended the very minute he looked at her the next morning. Seeing the sunshine turn her eyes red, he curled his lip in a snarl of distaste and stomped away. He really had a problem with her red eyes.

  As the days dragged on, the number of teens at the campsite increased. The dragons brought in the remaining members of cabin twenty-five, first Clarisse (who Sarah suspected was a junior member of the Khr’Vurr) then Jared and Katie.

  Well, they flew in everyone, except a couple of shapeshifters, Beth and Brianna. The two shapeshifters, both girls in their late teens, had arrived at the main camp several days late. When the girls checked into the cabin, Ella, their cabin mother, insisted the girls hike through the forest and catch-up with cabin twenty-five.

  The dragons had one big, all-important rule for all campers during the Peace Camp: all cabin members had to stay together and play together. The rule was a pain in the backside. Unfortunately, Sarah was in for the duration, playing impotent little camper along with the other teenagers. It meant she had to follow the camp rules. Well, for the most part.

  As soon as Katie and Jared arrived at the new campsite, the teens had a quick meeting, and decided to visit Blue Bertha, a unique hot spring that glowed. No one mentioned waiting for Clarisse, the single absent cabin mate. The girl had taken off at the crack-of-dawn, ignoring everyone around her. She was the daughter of a high councilor in Clan Valley. As such, she had an attitude the size of the Grand Canyon. Given enough time, Sarah hoped the young vampire would implicate herself as being Khr’Vurr.

  Halfway to Blue Bertha, the teens came upon a split in the trail. One trail was marked with warning signs, while the other trail made her hair rise in warning.

  “The lower trail isn’t safe,” Sarah said, pointing to the trail with no warning signs.

  Nick glared at her. “And why should we take an exile’s word for it? That happens to be the approved trail or can’t you read th
e warning signs plastered all over the other trail?”

  “The exile is right,” Beth said emphatically. From the overly confident expression on the shapeshifter’s heart shaped face, she believed the group of teens would accept her words as gospel. “Whatever is down that trail isn’t safe.”

  “Look Mutt, we can’t go up the mountain,” Mitch said, glaring at Beth. The big, muscle-bound halfling towered over the petite girl. His intense dislike of the shifter came through each growled word. “The trail is off limits and probably for a darn good reason like a werewolf nature preserve or something, not that you wouldn’t fit right in with your furry kin folk.”

  Biting the inside of her lip, Sarah refused to laugh, but her eyes sparkled as the shapeshifter received a firm smack down. What did the girl expect? Most Sídhí had believed shapeshifters, not including dragon shifters, were extinct. The sudden appearance of Haven Valley - a valley full of shapeshifters - would take time for people to accept, not to mention believing shapeshifters were not minions of the Dhark Empire. During the Great War on the Sídhí home world, shapeshifters were in tight with the umbra, the original nightmare race that began the Dhark Empire.

  “Look moron, shifters are not related to werewolves. Anyway, if you’ll just look at the map you’ll see those warning signs are wrong,” Beth argued, waving her hand toward the map Nick studied. “Obviously, halflings are denser than concrete, because your head is so thick you’ve forgotten the meaning of common sense.”

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Katie walk toward the trail. Before Sarah had time to consider her actions, she grabbed hold of her young friend’s arm stopping her. “No, stay away from there,” she said firmly.

  Not surprisingly, Jared growled at her for manhandling his mate. No one, not even a family member, grabbed a vampire’s mate.

  She sighed, refusing to let his show of distrust hurt. She slowly released Katie. “Something doesn’t feel right.”