by Kimber White
So, I let my bag slide off my shoulder and put my hands up. For now, I would play their game.
Will Yeager lunged forward. It took everything in me not to let out a column of fire. He landed on my chest, knocking the wind out of me.
Though I kept my dragon in check, Will’s tiger eyes widened as he saw the fire in mine.
Chapter Sixteen
Ash
Rick was acting weird. Well, weirder than usual. At first, I thought it was just a polar bear thing. Rumor had it he and Shana were having some trouble. But, he kept asking the equipment dealer nit-picky and repetitive questions even after we’d made the sale. Then, he insisted on making a stop in Eagle River to check on something my father asked him though he refused to tell me what.
“It’s a surprise,” he kept saying. “Ask Clint when we get back.”
“At the rate you’re going, we’re never going to get back,” I said. I’d had to call our pilot at the airstrip in Anchorage twice telling him we’d be delayed. “If we don’t get airborne in the next hour, he’s going to put us off until tomorrow. There’s a storm coming in.”
Rick kept on driving. We’d rented a beater truck from one of the mechanics at the airport. Rick had gotten lost twice on the way to God knows where.
In fairness, he knew something was off about me too. I was distracted. Everything Loch told me had me on edge. Brandhart. His family name was Brandhart. I wanted to believe his explanation for why he lied, but the more I googled, the less sense it all made.
He had an actual skyscraper named after him. Before my cell service died, I’d pulled it up in maps. I knew not to believe everything I read on the internet, but the Brandharts of Chicago were worth billions. Billions! What the hell was he doing driving a loader up in the Yukon?
Fate.
The answer thrummed through me. Loch was my fated mate. No matter what else might be true, I knew that in my heart. It didn’t mean I would blindly follow or believe everything he said. It did mean I would give him the benefit of the doubt for now.
I waited in the truck while Rick popped into what was probably the last gas station on earth. I wanted to call the pilot one more time, but we were too far away from any functioning cell phone towers. Part of me wondered if Rick had planned it. Something just didn’t sit right. Rick was a bullshitter, but when it came to business, he wasn’t usually flighty like this. I didn’t like the doom and gloom feeling it gave me.
When Rick came out, I slid into the driver’s seat. The hell with this. There was only one way to keep us on schedule.
“Hey,” he said, giving me a scowl.
“Get in,” I said, holding the door open. “I’m done messing around. Either we head back to the plane now, or I’m leaving you here. You’re pretty resourceful. You can figure out how to get back to Blackfoot on your own.”
Rick’s coal black polar bear eyes flashed. He tried to hide it, but I knew him far too well. What the actual hell was going on?
Heaving a great sigh, he got in the truck. I spun the wheel and headed back to the main road going way faster than was probably safe. But, as soon as I’d taken the decision out of Rick’s hands, that gut feeling of mine grew even stronger. There was something going on.
The pilot was waiting and damned pissed when I pulled up.
“Are we too late?” I asked, breathless. “Can we still make it back tonight?” I had told Loch to expect me by morning. At this point, I’d be lucky to get back to the jobsite by dinnertime. I still couldn’t get a cell signal. I knew damn well what a regular shifter did when he thought his mate was in danger. There was no telling what a dragon would do. I tried to keep my pulse steady. There was no reason to panic other than this odd feeling I had.
“Yeah,” the pilot said. His name was Denton. I never knew if that was a first or last name. He was a craggy old-timer. Another one of my father’s collections from the first few years he came to the Yukon. “But get hustlin’. My rate’s double ‘cause I’ll have to spend the night in Blackfoot. God, I hate that place.”
I shot him a scowl as I brushed past him to climb into the plane. Rick was right on my heels. I watched them both closely for some sign that Denton was in on whatever weirdness had a hold of Rick. Denton just seemed pissed for having to wait so long. That was good enough for me.
I buckled in and Denton did his last pre-flight checks. Then, we were on our way.
I spent the entire flight checking my phone. It was a force of habit. I had the thing in airplane mode, but I needed something to do to occupy my time.
“You plan on telling me what the hell is going on?” I finally shouted to Rick as we were about twenty minutes from landing.
He shrugged and kept his gaze out the window. “Just making sure you got a good deal today. You’re welcome.”
“Cut the shit. You’re up to something. And I know my dad is probably in on it. Why doesn’t he want me in Blackfoot?”
Rick looked startled. Did he really think I wasn’t shrewd enough to pick up on his little ruse? The instant I said it, I was even more pissed at myself for not taking charge of the day sooner. There was only one thing my father and Rick would conspire on right now. Loch.
“What’s he done?” I asked. Denton shouted back for us to buckle up. We were about to make our descent. He would land on the lake just a mile from Little Sister.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Rick said, but I knew he was lying.
“Rick, look at me. What am I going to find when we get back?”
Rick shrugged. He kept his hands on his knees and stared straight ahead. Goddammit. He was following orders. In his mind, my dad outranked me.
The next few minutes seemed to take an eternity. When Denton finally landed, I didn’t wait for his clearance to disembark. I flew out the side door and ran to Rick’s truck. He was right on my heels.
Of course, my fury was no match for the strength of a polar bear shifter if Rick decided to use it. He got in my way.
“You son of a bitch,” I said. “You did something to Loch.”
“Now, Ash, you’re not thinking clear.”
“The hell I’m not!” I took a gamble. Rick had his orders, but they wouldn’t include laying hands on me. I shoved past him and went for his truck. To stop me, Rick would have to grab me and hold me back. He didn’t. He glowered as I grabbed the keys from the sun visor and threw gravel from the tires as the truck lurched forward.
“Loch?” I knew he couldn’t read my mind. But, he could hear me if he was listening. “Where are you?”
He didn’t answer with words, but I sensed him anyway. I veered north and headed for my father’s claim. With each beat of my heart, my dread grew. Something was wrong. Very wrong.
I barely put the truck in park before jumping out of it. If I needed any other sign that disaster loomed, my dad’s operations were entirely shut down. It was like a ghost town. Unless you knew where to look.
My father kept a huge storage shed on the back lot. I saw his truck parked beside it. Will’s too. There was light and moved it under the door. I started to run toward it.
Don’t come any closer!
Loch’s voice thundered through my head, nearly driving me to the ground. A vision slammed into my brain that I don’t think he intended. But, I saw him. He was surrounded. Will was on one side. My father in front. Ten of my father’s best men formed the rest of the circle. Three wolves. Four bears. Two panthers. One jaguar.
The door was locked, but I knew where Dad kept the key. I charged in.
They had Loch in chains. Dragonsteel. My father kept a set for emergencies. They were the only thing strong enough to restrain a shifter. A regular shifter. Instinct told me they were no match for the strength of an actual dragon. Only a weapon dipped in Dragonsblood could hurt him, and no one else here except for me knew that.
“What are you doing?” I said. I meant the question for both my father and Loch himself. He was more than strong enough to break away from this. But he didn’t.
Why?
“This is shifter business, Alecia,” my father said. Will was in his tiger. He stalked the perimeter of the circle.
“You approved this?” I said to my mother. She was sitting in the corner at my father’s desk. She cupped her chin in her hand.
“We need answers,” she said. “I think we could have handled this a bit more diplomatically, but here we are.”
“We found this in his things,” Dad said. He held a mason jar filled with gold. It had my father’s labeling on it.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I said. “Loch, tell them. He’s got no reason to steal from you. Someone planted it there.”
“I’ve been telling them,” Loch said. He was cool and calm.
“You’re not thinking clearly,” Dad said. “You’re too attached to this guy. He’s a con artist.”
“Oh, please,” I rolled my eyes. I moved to the center of the circle. No one tried to stop me, but Loch’s eyes flashed. He didn’t like me that close to this many pent up shifters.
“Take it easy, honey,” my mother said, giving voice to what I knew Loch was thinking.
“Loch isn’t here to steal from us,” I said.
“Then what is he here for?” My father’s voice raised to a shout. His stripes were out. My mother came to his side, putting a calming hand on his back. He was furious, almost feral.
“What happened to innocent until proven guilty?” I said.
“He’s proven guilty,” Rick said, having just caught up with me. “He got caught red-handed.”
I did a quick headcount. Kincaid was missing. I knew that wasn’t a coincidence. He may still have been angry that I demoted him for Loch. Len, Tommy, and Pete were still rumored to be hanging around Blackfoot too. Any one of them had a better motive to steal from my father for things I’d done.
“So this was your scheme? Keeping me distracted all day so you could condemn Loch without me here to talk sense into you?”
Will growled. His tail swished back and forth. Saliva dripped from his fangs.
“Get him out of here,” I said, sensing Loch’s temper rising. “If Will can’t keep his tiger in check, he’s got no business here.”
“Honey, I’m sorry,” Rick said. “I know you feel like we’ve undermined you. But, you’re not objective on this one. Fella’s got in your pants and now…”
That did it. Loch let out a low growl and strained against the chains. It would take just one flick of his wrists and he’d break them to pieces. Now, it clicked why he hadn’t so far. The instant he did it, every shifter in Blackfoot would know he was something they’d never seen before.
“You’re just going to have to trust me,” I said. “I need you to take my word for it that Loch is not trying to steal from us. I’ll help you get to the bottom of this, but he’s been framed. What about Kincaid? Tommy? Len? Pete? Jesus. Hasn’t anyone put that together? Have you even talked to any of them? They all have access to the gold tents in all of our claims.”
“Ash, please,” my mother said. “We’ve known those men for years. You really think…”
“Yes,” I said. “Please, trust me. You all owe me that much.”
“Forget it, Ash,” Loch said. “I’ve been saying the same thing until I’m blue in the face. They’ve already made up their minds. I’m not welcome here anymore. It’s time for me to go.”
“Doesn’t work like that, son,” my father said. He got close to Loch. Too close. I saw the fire rise in Loch’s eyes. Hatred burned behind them and it singed my own heart. There was something between them that went far beyond this little mix-up with the gold. What the hell wasn’t Loch telling me?
“Can you give us a few minutes?” I said. “Five. Tops. Let me talk to Loch alone. I swear I can straighten this out.”
I hated lying to my father. To all of them. I wouldn’t do it a second longer without knowing everything Loch had to say.
As I turned to face Loch, I caught my mother’s eye. In that instant, her own eyes widened. She knew me better than anyone. The color drained from her face. She knew.
“Ash?” she said, whispering it. She moved away from my father. “Is he…are you…”
It might have ended there. But, Will flicked his tail, knocking over a stool near my father’s workbench. With all the testosterone flying around the room, it spooked Rick. He shifted on the spot. It set off the other bears. Will lunged at Loch. Instinct drove me and I tried to get between them.
Loch reacted to the threat, shoving me behind him and breaking the chains.
One of my father’s men, Alvin, a Siberian wolf, charged forward. It happened so fast I almost didn’t see the flash of silver. Alvin was armed. Thinking Loch was trying to hurt me, Will sunk his teeth into Loch’s arm while Alvin drove a knife into his side.
They couldn’t hurt him. They had no idea what he was.
But, as Loch perceived the threat to me and his blood began to flow, his dragon roared to life. He drove Will back with a column of flame that ignited the north wall of the shed. They couldn’t see him. Loch’s magic kept his true nature hidden. All my family would see was a blur of motion and the fire.
It was a melee after that. My father shifted. So did my mother. Will scrambled up on all fours and lunged for us again.
Loch wrapped an arm around me and charged through the crowd with ease. I felt a shift in the air as he called on his magic.
He kept his cloaking spell in place. They didn’t see scales, his talons, his tail as it whipped across the ground kicking up dirt. They didn’t see him vault into the air with me tucked beneath his wings.
But, they saw the wall of flame he made behind us. And they saw me disappear.
Chapter Seventeen
Loch
Fire raced through my veins. It took everything in me not scorch the earth and turn Clint Yeager and his men to ash. It’s what I was sent here to do. At the last second as Yeager and his son came at me, I saw the past as if a thousand years had melted away.
My mother was right. Death was in Yeager’s blood. My father was gone because of it. There was no logic or reason to it. It didn’t matter that Clint wasn’t the man who drove the killing thrust into my father’s heart. I felt my father’s need for justice. It fell on me. And I had failed.
“Loch!” Only Ash’s scream, her fluttering pulse, cut through to me. She clung to me for life. I hadn’t even given a thought as to where I was going.
Knoydart would be the smartest choice. There I could come into myself again and feel the healing powers of our family fires. Except, it wasn’t fair to Ash. I couldn’t lie to her anymore. Not if I wanted her to ever love me the way I needed.
I turned south, heading for the warmer waters of the Pacific. We had a place in Washington State near Port Crescent. A beach house retreat my mother often went to when she’d had enough of her sons for a while. It was remote, currently empty. But, it was close.
I landed on the beach, kicking up clouds of sand as I set Ash down. She sputtered and staggered, nearly falling. But, she righted herself. I stepped away and shifted. When I turned back toward her, Ash doubled over and threw up.
“Oh, shit,” I said, running toward her. “I’m sorry. I went too fast. I wasn’t thinking.”
Ash put a hand up, warding me off. I gave her a moment and some space. Smoothing her hair back, she straightened and the color came back to her face.
“Where are we?” she asked.
“Er...Washington. My family owns this place. Let’s get you inside. There’s not much here now. Usually, I send word to the caretaker before we come. But, the heat should be on at least. He’ll have kept the fridge and cupboards stocked with the essentials.”
Nodding, Ash followed me up the steps to the back porch. Seagulls flew overhead, welcoming my return. I unlocked the back door and ushered Ash in.
It was an open floor plan with a gas fireplace on one end, a panoramic view of the ocean through the floor-to-ceiling windows. She found a space on the couch. I grabbed a bottle of wate
r from the fridge and sat beside her.
“It’s beautiful here,” she said, gratefully accepting the water.
“Take it easy,” I said. “I really am sorry. I should have been more gentle. Put your head between your knees if you feel like you’re going to be sick again.”
She buried her face in her hands. “We have to go back. But...not just this actual second. I don’t think my stomach can handle being airborne again right away.”
I went to her, putting a light hand on her back. “God. Ash. That was foolish of me. I wasn’t thinking. I put you at risk.”
“Would you just stop? I know why you did it. It’s just...I need to send word. My parents will be out of their minds. They think you’re some kind of witch. And they probably think you just kidnapped me.”
I dropped my head. I’d made a mess of everything. Ash trusted me. And now I knew I was about to make it so much worse.
“I tried to keep my head,” I said. “But when that fucking wolf started…”
“Alvin,” she said. “Yeah, he’s always been kind of a dumbass. Look, I know how this goes. You thought I was in danger. Lord, I’ve seen that a thousand times out of my dad. If it had been my mom in what he thought was harm’s way...I know you showed restraint. Loch, I could feel your need to blast them all. Thank you. But, we’ve got to figure out a way to straighten all of this out. You have to tell at least my family what you are.”
“If you knew…”
“Enough!” she shouted. “No more lies. This is impossible. I can’t turn my back on my family for you. I won’t. I asked them to trust me for you. Now, I’m asking you to trust me for them. When my family knows who you are to me, it’ll change everything. I understand about the rest of the crew. I mean...I don’t know how we’re going to fix all that, but there has to be a way. My father isn’t an unreasonable man. And my mother already suspects. The dragon thing is going to throw her, sure, but she understands what fate is.”