by Vella Day
“Yes.”
“My parents’ house is about a half mile southwest of there.”
EmmaLee tried to find the brick structure, but the blooming leaves blocked her view. “What a great place to grow up.” She sighed. “It’s so peaceful up here. I could sit for hours and watch the world go by.”
Connor turned her around to face him. “My wolf isn’t experiencing any peace right now.”
She grinned. “Do you want me to calm the beast?”
“EmmaLee.” He grabbed her hand. “How about we let the beast lie for a bit longer and take a look in the caves. Then we can have our celebration of life.” He winked.
“You’re so romantic.”
Connor grinned. “Only when I’m around you.”
Hand in hand they walked along the ridge until they came to the imposing hillside. The surface was mostly granite but there was the occasional pine tree interspersed with some scrub.
“Where’s the cave entrance?” she asked.
“The cave where Zane emerged is over here.”
They walked across a grassy area, shaded by oaks and pines. “I love it here,” she said looking around.
“Me too. Let’s check inside for this portal first, and then we can sit under these trees and relax.”
“You want to have the picnic outside, in the open?” she asked, trying not to show she was uncomfortable with that. “The cave would offer more privacy for our dessert.” Then again, the caves were probably full of spiders and crawly things.
“No one comes here.”
“Missy did, remember?”
He smiled. “True. Let’s explore then decide where we want to eat.”
“Good idea.”
Connor entered through a three-foot wide slit, and she followed. He then extracted two flashlights from his backpack and handed her one. “Stay close to me.”
She had no intention of leaving his side. While she’d explored caves as a kid, this one seemed more sinister for some reason. “Vinea mentioned there would be distinct air currents indicating the portal, but I can barely see where I’m walking, let alone detect a shift in air.”
“Do you want to quit?”
Maybe. “No. Keep going for a bit. Maybe Vinea was wrong, and there’ll be some physical marking to show the portal.”
“Don’t get your hopes up,” he said. “We should have asked Zane what his portal looked like.”
“True.”
After ten minutes of searching, EmmaLee had to admit they wouldn’t be coming across a flashing red arrow that pointed to a lit sign saying, Portal this way.
He lifted her chin, and all thoughts of finding other realms disappeared. “Had enough?”
“Yes, I’m ready for our picnic.”
“So am I.”
Once they made it outside, she had to squint at the bright light. The fresh air and whoosh of the wind blowing through the trees were a welcome relief. “How about we set up over there?” EmmaLee said, pointing to a flat grassy area under a large oak.
“Perfect.”
Connor placed the blanket on the ground while she pulled out their bottle of wine, two plastic glasses, and the food from the pack.
Once Connor poured their drinks, he held up his glass, and she tapped his. “What should we toast to?” she asked.
“To us being mates?” Connor’s chest expanded. It was almost as if he was holding his breath, waiting for her response.
She smiled, thrilled that he’d acknowledged what she’d suspected all along. “To us being mates.”
His eyes widened. “You’re okay with the idea?”
EmmaLee tucked in her chin. “I’ve suspected for a while now that we are, especially with the way your body changes when you’re with me.”
“Why didn’t you say something?”
EmmaLee lifted one shoulder. “It wasn’t my place to bring it up. Vinea explained the signs, and you exhibited them all.”
“You have a choice, you know. If you don’t want me, I’ll understand.”
He must not have believed her when she’d told him she loved him. “How can you even say that? I love you, Connor McKinnon. You are everything I want. You’re kind, protective, caring, and yes—you’re hot.”
He set her glass down on the blanket and drew her close. “You’ve changed my world, EmmaLee and made me very happy.”
“Oh, Connor, I feel the same way.” As she leaned in to kiss him, someone clapped, and she stilled.
“Bravo, what a sweet moment. Sorry to have interrupted.”
EmmaLee’s heart dropped to her stomach. She jumped up and accidentally knocked over her glass of wine. “Slater? What are you doing here?”
“Putting an end to what I should have finished a long time ago.”
Her throat closed up.
Connor rose and stepped toward him. “What are you doing here, Coghill?”
“Like I said, I need to finish something.”
“What’s that?” Connor’s hands fisted.
“EmmaLee here is a bit too curious.” Slater glared at her.
She was going to suggest that Connor shift and take him out, but then she remembered him saying that Slater was a shifter too. The question was what kind? Jackson was a bear and had once fought four wolves at the same time. What if Slater were a powerful bear too?
EmmaLee puffed out her chest and stepped next to Connor. He clasped her shoulder, probably afraid she’d move too close to her ex. “Curious about what?” she asked, trying to keep her voice from wavering.
“Dragons.”
Her heart squeezed tight. “What about them? You never believed they existed.”
He smiled, exposing his elongated eyeteeth. “Oh, I believe in them all right. I just didn’t need you to know they existed and blab it to the world.”
“So now you’re a believer? Since when?”
“Since forever.”
She shook her head, pretending as if she were brave. “You don’t have to worry. I’d never tell. If I did, do you think anyone would believe me?”
“I couldn’t take that chance. It was why I was sent here.”
Connor squeezed her hand. “Sent here? From where?”
Slater looked at her. “I bet Em can guess, the little snoop. It was only a matter of time before she stumbled across my secret.”
Her mind spun. Sent there? From where? Another realm? Surely he wasn’t a dragon. No, he’d lost his mind and was trying to mess with her. “Don’t tell me you’re from Tarradon?”
Once more he clapped. “Give the lady a prize. Now you must see why I have to make sure you don’t talk.”
Her legs weakened. Connor must have sensed she was going to drop to the ground because he slipped his arm around her waist and held her up. “You’ll have to kill a lot of people then,” she said. “I’ve shown my evidence to many folks. They all know dragons exist.” She prayed Slater didn’t see through her lie.
“Evidence? Are you referring to that talon? The one I lost when I was fleeing the scene of your parents’ fire? The one I hooked on a tree branch, and it came lose? That one?”
EmmaLee sagged against Connor. “That was yours? How? That was more than fourteen years ago.”
“In human years, we age extremely slow. Dragons live to hundreds of years. Back then, I was just a juvenile dragon of one hundred.”
One hundred? She couldn’t fathom it. “Then you’re not denying that you set the fire that killed my parents?” She was barely able to speak those painful words.
“No, I won’t deny it. Just so you know, I had no choice. Your parents were going to meet with Mr. Fielding. He’d found out that my kind existed and wanted to announce it to the world. He felt that with your parents’ stamp of approval, the world would believe him—and he was probably right.”
“Why not just eliminate Mr. Fielding then? Why go after my parents?”
“Oh, I did eliminate him, but the asshole had already told your parents what he’d learned. I couldn’t chance them talking.�
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Her chin trembled as tears ran down her cheeks. “All that time we were together, why didn’t you kill me when you had the chance?” Her vision blurred, and she swayed. All of this was too much to take in.
“I’ve asked myself that question many times. Believe it or not, I cared for you. I really did, EmmaLee. I tried to make you stop your research, but you were too damn stubborn. I’d been instructed from the start to kill you; only I couldn’t do it. But don’t worry. I’ve seen the error of my ways.”
She couldn’t understand all of his words. It was as if he was talking in a different language. “Instructed? Who told you to kill me?”
“Why, the Royals did—our leaders in Tarradon.”
Royals? Leaders? She couldn’t listen to him anymore. Her blood pressure dropped from the overload of information. Slater was a killer! As if she’d been hit with a force field, her vision turned black for a moment as intense pain raced through her. Just as she tried to move, Slater seemed to disintegrate before her eyes. A second later, a large beast appeared where he’d been standing. Holy hell. He was a dragon—or was he merely a figment of her imagination?
He huffed and growled. No, he was real all right. She just hadn’t expected a dragon to be so big or so black. The iris in each eye was a black slit, surrounded by a teal color. If he weren’t such an evil person, she’d have to say his dragon was almost beautiful.
Connor stepped in front of her, and then he spun and shifted. No! Slater was a good fifteen feet in height, and Connor was a fraction of his size. The fight would be over in seconds.
Slater must have sensed his impending victory for he lifted his head and opened his mouth, looking like he was laughing at them. When he lowered his head again, a stream of fire shot out of his mouth and caught the grass in front of them on fire. Holy shit. Her heart stopped, and every one of her muscles locked.
Then Connor howled, freeing her from her frozen state.
Without thinking, EmmaLee rushed back to the oak, picked up the blanket, and tossed it on a portion of the flames. Slater opened his mouth again then shot out a few small puffs of flames, probably to keep her busy.
“Stop it!” she yelled, but the sound came out weak. She wasn’t about to stand around and do nothing though. Slater scorched a different area, and she repeated her frantic moves, but no matter how fast she darted, she would never be able to keep up.
Realization hit. What if one of his flames hit them? They’d burn to a crisp just like the grass. Bile raced to her mouth as the vision of Connor’s death formed in her mind.
He howled once more and moved toward Slater. She couldn’t let him sacrifice his life for her. Slater wanted her—not Connor. As a shifter, Connor might be trusted to keep his secret.
Slater had killed her parents and was about to do the same to the man she loved. Injustice and hatred filling her, she rushed the dragon, willing to sacrifice herself to save Connor’s life.
When Slater sent a strong stream of fire straight at her, she held her breath, waiting for the horrible pain to consume her. During those two seconds, it was as if she were witnessing life in slow motion. The blazing hot light came at her, and then red and yellow flickering flames surrounded her, crawling up her legs then licking her face. Only she felt nothing. Blood pounded in her ears as fear and hopelessness coursed through her veins.
So this was what death felt like. She’d expected agony, but not even the intense heat affected her. EmmaLee lifted her arms to see the charred damage, but they were whole, encased in some kind of clear bubble.
She didn’t understand what was happening at first since it felt as if she were in a dream.
Then Vinea’s words came back to her. When EmmaLee had been lying in the hospital bed after Slater had attacked her, Vinea told her about the protective shield she’d given her. If you become afraid, a bubble will protect you against Slater or against anyone who tries to harm you.
A howl sounded behind her, jarring her back to the present. Connor charged the huge dragon. No! EmmaLee needed to stop him, needed to prevent Slater from harming him. Only she couldn’t move. It was as if the bubble was glued to the ground.
Slater beat his forty-foot wide wings and hit Connor’s wolf, sending him sprawling. But Connor’s animal was not to be deterred. He jumped up, barred his teeth, and charged again.
She couldn’t watch any longer. Closing her eyes, she tried to press her hands to her ears, but her arms still wouldn’t move.
As if the world came to a halt, silence suddenly entombed her. She forced open her eyes, expecting the worst, but she was no longer peering through a haze. Her bubble had disappeared, and the only animal in front of her was Connor. He too looked around, probably as surprised as she that Slater was no longer there. Connor grunted and then shifted back to his human form.
“What happened?” she asked rushing up to him. “Where did Slater go?”
She didn’t really care. All that mattered was that Connor was alive. She ran her hands down his body to make sure he wasn’t a figment of her imagination.
“I don’t know. I charged, but when I reached where he was, he just vanished.”
“He disappeared? How? Are you sure he isn’t hiding somewhere?” She looked around but saw nothing.
“I don’t sense any shifter signature anymore. Ronan said the man didn’t give off the same scent as we do, and now I know why. He was a dragon.” He ran his hands down her shoulders. “Or did I imagine the big beast?”
“He was a dragon all right, but why would he threaten to kill me and then leave?” she asked.
“I don’t know, but I don’t intend to wait around and find out. We need to get out of here. Now.”
“You’re naked.” That shouldn’t have mattered when their lives were at stake, but she needed to focus on something she could understand.
“I have the shirt and pants in the backpack you suggested I carry in case I shifted prematurely.”
“I remember now.” But only vaguely. It seemed so long ago.
Connor didn’t seem as rattled as she was. While he changed, she gathered his torn clothes. He then packed up the wine-soaked blanket and stuffed it into his backpack.
How she made it back to the car, she didn’t know. EmmaLee had to work to even put one foot in front of the other as she tried to block out the image of Slater’s dragon. All she could see in her mind’s eye was his big fire-breathing head.
Her whole life she’d wanted to be convinced that what she’d seen the day her parents had died had been real. Even though she’d met the man who killed them, it hadn’t given her the satisfaction she’d expected. It made her sick to think she’d liked him and had fallen for his lies.
Connor held open the car door and helped her in.
Once seated, her hands wouldn’t stop shaking, and her heart refused to slow. The drive back to the safe room was a blur. Even after replaying what happened a hundred times, none of it made sense.
Connor parked. “How about you pack up your things?”
“Huh?”
“I want you to move in with me. We can’t be sure that Slater won’t return.”
A hint of disappointment shot through her. “That’s a horrible thought.”
He rubbed her arm. “Even if Slater had died, it’s time we share a life together. I want you EmmaLee. Forever.”
The horror of the day seemed to disappear with his wonderful words. “I want that too, but I know Slater. He will return. He wants me dead.”
“Fuck. Let’s see if Ophelia can give us some guidance, assuming she’s not with Finn.”
For the first time since Slater appeared, she relaxed. “I’d like that, but how can she possibly know if Slater will come back?”
“Rye said she might.”
“Rye? What does he know?”
“I called him on the way home. You must have been preoccupied when I spoke to him.”
That she had been. “Okay.”
This time Connor parked in the parking garage, probably
not wanting anyone—meaning Slater—to see them. He pushed open his door, walked over to her side, and opened her door. “Go in and pack; I’ll see if I can get in touch with her.”
Right now, EmmaLee couldn’t think clearly as the horror of him almost dying was too much to bear. “Why didn’t he kill you when he had the chance?” Her voice sounded far away.
The slightest hint of a smile lifted his lips. “Don’t tell me you wished he had?”
As if the fog in her brain disappeared, reality intruded. “No! Of course not—I just need to understand what happened back there near the cave.”
“Come on. Pack up and then we’ll get some answers.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
‡
“What is Ophelia like?” EmmaLee asked as Connor pulled in front of a pretty yellow house where they were to meet this witch.
“She’s old. And she talks in riddles like James does. Maybe more so.”
“What could a witch know about dragons and Tarradon?”
Connor cut the engine before getting out and walking over to her side. His chivalry was something she’d come to love. He helped her out. “I don’t know the details, but Ophelia is not some ordinary witch.” He pointed to the copse of trees. “There she is now.”
A small woman with a curved back slowly emerged. Connor placed a hand on EmmaLee’s arm and led her closer. When they met, the witch studied both of them.
“I sense a lot of stress. I’m Ophelia, by the way.” She shook each of their hands.
“EmmaLee Donovan, and this is—”
The old lady smiled. “Connor McKinnon. Always nice to see you. Finn just left. How can I help you?”
She wanted to ask if Ophelia had been able to help Connor’s brother, but she’d have to be content to ask Finn. If Rye had called to contact Ophelia, she would have thought he’d have filled her in. EmmaLee looked up at Connor, but he nodded for her to tell the story.
EmmaLee began with how her parents had died in a fire fourteen years ago and how she’d seen a dragon fly overhead that day. “From that point forward, I’ve dedicated my life to learning if dragons exist.”
“And now you know.”
How did she do that? EmmaLee hadn’t told her everything. “Yes, I do, but when Slater—that’s the name of the man who used to be my boyfriend—turned out to be a dragon, I kind of freaked.”