“You know Mr. Sheaver?” Aaron asked her.
“Yes, of course. He’s one of my best customers,” she replied, smiling at him.
Though faint, her smiled was returned, but he seemed more intent upon studying her face, as if this was the first time he had been afforded an opportunity to get close enough to do so. He was quiet for a moment, continuing to look at her, but then he looked down for a moment before turning his gaze toward Aaron.
“The incident, in Dundalk. It wasn’t something he wanted to do, but he had no choice, he said. The man had the woman pinned against a stone wall beside the sidewalk she had been traversing. He had a knife to her throat and would have killed her. The street lights were shining directly on his face, so she had gotten a very good look at him. No way would he have just taken her purse and let her walk away.”
“The shifter told you this?”
“Yes. He came home, all naked and bloody. He had shredded his clothes when he shifted, no time to take them off first. The man never saw him coming, he jumped him from behind, accidentally swiping the woman with a paw in the process, but the man got the worst of it. When it was all done, the woman had run away screaming, and the man lay there bleeding on the sidewalk. He wasn’t even sure if he lived.”
“Who was he?”
“My grandson, Kara’s father,” he said flatly, glancing toward Kara, who looked completely stricken but then turning his attention back toward Cassi again.
“I’m sorry I never told you,” he said to her. “I wanted to tell you so many times, but I thought it might only hurt you and, honestly, I was afraid it would put me in jeopardy to reveal myself for what I am – myself and my family.”
“I don’t understand. You were born here. I remember when you were brought home from the hospital, how proud your mother and father were of you.”
“Yes, I was born here, as was my father and his father before him, but if you go back far enough in my family tree, you will find someone you know.”
“Who is that?” she said, but the barely audible tone of her voice said she already knew the answer.
“Khalil.”
“Khalil wasn’t here in this village except to come back for me. I sent him away!” she said, almost sobbing from all the emotions that must be descending on her and confusing her.
“Khalil kept your secret, Cassi. He kept it until he was dying. You see, he was the last of his kind. He never remarried, and Advik was his only child.”
“I left him to die alone,” she wept.
“No, Cassi. No. You gave him the most beautiful gift. You left him with a son to carry on after he was gone, and he couldn’t let your son go through life without knowing who you were. He told him where to find you, and that is what Advik did.”
“No. That’s not true. Advik never came here. He never spoke to me!” she said, visibly upset.
“Ah, but he did, Cassi. After his father died, he came here. He changed his name and moved into one of the abandoned cabins down by the main stream.”
“Tio Sheaver. Of course, Tio… short for Tiogar, the Hindi word for tiger. How could I not have seen that? Why? Why would he not tell me who he was?”
“He was afraid you’d send him away if you knew. As far as Khalil had known, you had moved on and didn’t want to be with them. He watched you, waiting for a sign that you might want to know him, but none ever came. I have his diaries; they tell his story. I have his father’s diaries; they tell one, too. I will let you read them, Cassi, but you should know that they may only bring you more pain. Khalil loved you until the day he died, and so did your son. He came to know you quite well – just like me – from afar.”
“How could you know this and not tell me? Not tell anyone?” Kara suddenly blurted out angrily.
“It was not my place to tell. It not only would have brought shame on Cassi, it would have gotten us sent away from the only place we knew as home. The diaries have been passed down and kept well hidden. They would have gone to your father, but with him gone, I would have had to wait for you to have a son or break tradition and give them to you.”
“It doesn’t make sense. I’m not a tiger shifter. I’m a dragon shifter. It’s all I’ve ever been.”
“Yes. You are like your mother, who was a dragon.”
“But I’ve seen my father shift. He was a dragon, as well!”
“Your father, like all the men in our family since Advik, could shift into either a tiger or a dragon.”
Kara looked defeated, sitting down in a nearby chair and putting her face in her hands. Thomas wanted to go to her, but it was inappropriate here, especially now. He kicked himself for thinking about how it might affect him if he was open about his affections for her in this moment, but what choice did he really have?
“I don’t know what to say. This is a lot to take in,” Cassi stammered, now studying his face in the same way he had studied hers before.
“Perhaps you should just let it sink in a bit, and we can talk about it some more tomorrow,” he told her.
“Yes, yes. Of course, you are right.”
She reached her hand out toward his face, stroking his cheek lightly for a moment before pulling it away. Slowly standing, she began walking wordlessly toward the door, but stopped about halfway across and turned back with a smile.
“This is good news, then. Kara can take my parchment and turn it into a deed. She’ll be able to demonstrate kinship. What a wonderful turn of events.”
Thomas felt his heart break for her, as her lighthearted words of encouragement came from behind haunted eyes. How devastated she must have been to have to walk away from her child. How horrified she must be now to know he had been beneath her nose all the time. He turned to find Kara’s grandfather attempting to comfort her. Upset, she stormed out, but Thomas fought the urge to go after her.
“Thomas, can you get Mr. Sheaver back home?” Aaron told him.
“Sure, no problem,” Thomas replied. Mr. Sheaver thanked him and rose from his chair.
“I think we’ve all had enough for one night. In the morning, we’ll begin the business of getting this all sorted out,” Aaron said, dismissing everyone to go home.
Thomas was anxious as he took Mr. Sheaver home and then made his way to Kara’s place. He found her there, sitting on her front porch, looking up at the stars. It was apparent that she had been crying. The shredded remains of the shirt she had been wearing earlier lay beside her, and she had changed into a pair of leggings and a sleeveless dress.
“What can I do for you, Kara?”
“Nothing, apparently. You let me sit there upset and did nothing. You didn’t even come after me when I left.”
“I’m here now.”
He knew it was weak, but it was all he had. He didn’t want to lose her, but being with her could cost him everything he had worked so hard for. He was a member of the Dragon Council, not merely a member of the guard. It was a high rank for anyone in their clan, and he would lose his position if he knowingly became involved with a tiger shifter. The fact that she was also part dragon shifter would come second to that little detail of her being.
“You are here because you feel guilty. Don’t worry about it, Thomas. I understand the position you are in. It’s not like we have been together for years or anything. We only just got together. Better to end this before it begins, right?”
Her words were bitter, spewed forth by a steeled heart. Even if they could keep this quiet from the villagers, it would be known by the Council. It would have to be in order to facilitate approval for her to take over the land as Cassi’s rightful heir. He hesitated for a moment, then started down the steps just as something landed on the ground beside him. It was the shredded shirt.
“Take it with you. Burn it. I shredded it when I shifted and came home. Useless to me now, anyway. I’ll never be the mother of dragons. I don’t know what I’ll be a mother of, or if I’ll be a mother at all, considering what might happen.”
“Kara, don’t say that.”
“Don’t tell me what to say, Thomas. Just go.”
She stood up and walked into her house, slamming the door shut behind her as she went. Thomas didn’t look back again, instead climbing into the car and leaving, his heart in his throat all the way home. Tossing and turning all night, he never slept, eventually getting out of bed and taking a late-night flight to try to calm himself. When he returned, he was finally able to sleep for a bit, but this dreams were filled with thoughts of Kara.
Chapter 12
The days that followed were like fresh torment. In the course of doing his duties, he was forced to cross paths with Kara several times, each one more agonizing than the last, though she seemed as if it didn’t bother her. Perhaps he hadn’t meant so much to her, after all. It was all he could do to avoid rekindling things, but he knew it was a bad idea.
“Cassi and I have discussed this, and we’ve decided that the property should not remain in my name. If it does, we’ll only have to shift it again in the years to come. Instead, we want to deed it over to the village. That way, it can become government property that will merely pass down through the generations automatically. We only ask that lifelong rights be granted to each of us for the homes and property where we each currently reside and, of course, the restaurant. How the village works it out with the rest of the people here is naturally up to you and the Council, Aaron,” Kara told the dragon leader as they prepared to make their way to place a claim on it on her behalf.
“I appreciate that, Kara. Let’s get this land baron off our case first, and then we will sort all of it out on a more permanent basis. I’ll get the lawyers to work on it for us so that it is done right.”
“I have another request as well,” Kara told him.
“What is that?”
“My grandfather. I know that he has deceived the people of the village and the Council, but he did it to protect his family, not through any ill will. In exchange for our help in getting this matter settled, I am asking for immunity for him. I can’t have him in danger of any sort of prosecution.”
“That was never even a consideration, Kara. I know I’m going to have some minds to change on the Council to sort that out, and we’re going to have to change some things around here if we are going to usher in a new age in this village. We’ve already changed things to accommodate a human, and I think that everyone will agree that it was a good decision. Amy is a great asset to this community. Now, we also have Barb, Josh’s girlfriend, who may be joining us eventually. That is, if he ever gets sense enough to take the next step,” Aaron said, casting a look toward Josh who rolled his eyes and smiled.
Thomas could almost read her mind. She might as well have made some remark about it running in the family aloud, but he was grateful that she didn’t. Otherwise, he’d have that to explain. Then again, perhaps she should. Maybe it would push him to do what he wanted instead of what his fear drove him to do. He cursed himself again for putting his career ahead of a woman who was clearly right for him, but cast his eyes downward and away from her, rather than convey anything he might be feeling in regard to current events.
It all seemed like smooth sailing once they established viable ownership and had the paperwork turned in with the proper authorities, but they were in for quite a nasty surprise as the following week turned up an unexpected visitor in the village. He was a large man, not someone you saw every day in remote parts of Ireland. Tall and broad, he must have weighed several hundred pounds, a result of gluttony and privilege.
Aaron stood facing him at the entrance to the headquarters, flanked by several members of the Dragon Guard. His ugly, bird-like nose and thin lips pursed impatiently as he looked back and forth from one of them to another. His weirdly tanned skin contrasted with his snow-white hair combed over from one side of his head to the other. Though his suit was expensive, it was ill fitted and topped off with an excessively long tie that hung far below where the jacket ended.
“Do you not know who I am? Have you not heard of Sterling Brant?” he asked Aaron.
“No. Should I have?” Aaron replied in a disinterested tone.
“Yes, you should have. I realize that you folks here live out in the sticks and all, but that’s no excuse for not educating yourself.”
“What is it you’ve come here for, Mr. Brant?”
“This land you and your Irish bumpkins sit on. I intend to buy it.”
“In case you haven’t heard, it isn’t for sale.”
“I don’t think that is for you to say. It is my understanding that it was recently deeded to a Miss Kara Sheaver. I want to talk to her, but I’ve had a helluva time trying to reach her.”
“And you will continue to do so. Miss Sheaver has nothing to say to you.”
“Oh, I think she will when she sees what I’m willing to offer her for this property.”
“That is doubtful. What is it you intend to do with the land? Why can’t you just set your sights elsewhere? Surely, there are easier plots of land to purchase.”
“Not like this one. I’m going to turn it into the best resort and spa in Ireland, complete with hot springs and meditation studios. The location and the amenities are perfect.”
“The Irish people have no need for such an overblown place,” Aaron told him.
“Maybe the Irish don’t, but plenty of Americans do. America and other countries. This place could be a cash cow.”
“Then I suggest you find your over-privileged Americans someplace else to wind down. It won’t be here.”
“We’ll see about that.”
“You need to leave, Mr. Brant. You aren’t welcome here.”
“I’ll leave when I’ve spoken to Miss Sheaver.”
“Wrong. You’ll leave now,” Aaron told him, nodding toward the Dragon Guard.
“Don’t you dare touch me!” the man shouted at them as they approached. He stepped back, and they hesitated. He pointed his finger at Aaron, waving it around at him. “I’ll go for now, but you haven’t seen the last of me. I plan to contest this little ruse you’ve set up laying claim to this property. I’ll sue you for fraud and take everything everyone in this village owns. You best hope you don’t have any secrets to keep. I’ll find a way to bring you down and take what I want!”
The Dragon Guard descended on him, but were quickly pulled free of him by his own security that had been standing beside the dark sedan in which he had arrived. They glanced toward Aaron, and he shook his head ‘no.’ Letting go, they stepped back and stood looking at him menacingly as he straightened his jacket and returned to his car.
“Thomas, I need for you to get over to Kara’s place and make sure no one comes near her,” Aaron told him when he returned to the building.
“What? Why me? I’m a councilman, not a guard,” Thomas protested.
“Because she is more familiar with you, and I don’t want some stranger hovering over her,” he replied.
“I don’t think she likes me very much,” Thomas tried to say, but Aaron cut him off.
“Look, Thomas. I don’t know what happened between the two of you out on the road, but this is no time for any drama. You need to get over there and just stay, until I tell you it is okay to go home. Got it?” Aaron barked at him.
“Got it,” Thomas replied, a bit taken aback. He had never seen Aaron quite so angry and thought it best to just deal with it. Kara was not going to be happy about this at all. He was certain of that, and if he wasn’t, she made it perfectly clear for him a short time later.
“I don’t need you here. I can take care of myself,” she told him.
“I don’t have a choice, Kara. Aaron said I had to come here and stay with you.”
“I’m sure he did. We both know you wouldn’t have turned up otherwise,” she barked at him.
“I get it, Kara. You are angry with me. You don’t understand why I didn’t come after you the other night, or why I can’t be with you. I’m sorry for that. You have no idea how much I wish things could be different, but they are
n’t.”
“They aren’t because you don’t want them to be! They aren’t because you are too cowardly to stand up to the Council and tell them their ways are wrong. It’s why my family has had to hide who they are all these years, and why we still have to keep it as quiet as possible.”
“Aaron is working on that – working on changing it. Just give him some time.”
“Whatever you say, Thomas. The important thing right now is that you leave me alone. Get off my porch and don’t come back. Do you need me to write Aaron a note? I can explain to him why you aren’t welcome here.”
“Fine, Kara. I’ll go. I’ll get Aaron to send someone else.”
“No, don’t. I told you, I don’t need any of you here. The only reason I’m being protected by the Dragon Council is so that they can make sure they don’t lose this land. If I didn’t hold some value to them, my family would be forced to leave like traitors in the night. Leave. Don’t come back!” she shouted at him.
He watched as she turned and went back inside, slamming the door shut behind her. Looking down, he saw that the shredded Mother of Dragons t-shirt still lay on the ground, now dirty and wet from several days of rain that had fallen since she had thrown it at him. He wasn’t sure why, but he picked it up and put it in a plastic bag from the back of his car, before getting inside and moving it down the street out of her sight.
Then, he returned and sat in the darkness beyond her house, watching from afar. He felt like a coward. She was right. He wouldn’t stand up for her to be with her, and now here he was, hiding out in the bushes just beyond her house so that she wouldn’t see him and yell at him anymore. It should make him angry that she spoke to him like that, that she raised her voice to him, but it only made him sad. She was right and, even worse, he missed her terribly.
Touched by a Dragon Page 8