Jenna peeked around the corner.
He waved for the teen to join them. Kyle and Zach trailed after her. “I’m not just a dragon. I’m a wér-dragon. All wér-dragons are either solid black or a dark gem tone. The darker a dragon’s scales are dictates how powerful the dragon will become. It’s not necessarily muscle strength, but having extra abilities. Like the ability to shift into three forms or the ability to see through illusions or to bellow flame.”
“And the sashes?” she asked. She hated bringing up the sashes, but she knew the colorful sashes were somehow linked into it all.
“A solid color signifies an un-mated person.” He nodded toward the other teens. “The color of a sash never mattered in the past, but the current fashion trend is for each race to wear a different color. Most dragons wear black, blue is fury, red is vampire, gold is gryphon, and brown is wér-wolf.”
“Wér-wolf?” she asked, hissing the word. She hated werewolves. Her eyes glued to Kyle’s waist. Dark brown cloth wrapped around him.
Kyle’s athletic body changed in the span of a single second. His six-foot frame grew several feet taller, adding bulk to whipcord hard muscles spanning his body. His shoulders grew wider, covered in short, brown fur. The dark fur covered his entire body, except his face. Long fingers uncurled, exposing sharp fingernails. The short nails lengthened, growing into lethal black claws.
She looked up, and saw a bloodthirsty creature staring back at her. Her mouth went dry with fear.
His face wasn’t fur covered; the tanned skin looked tougher, wrinkled, and his eyes were dark amber. His – relatively – short muzzle twitched and he opened his mouth, exposing sharp, white teeth. His appearance was that of a Hollywood werewolf, a very big, scary movie type werewolf. The only thing missing was lots of white foam and blood slathering from his mouth.
At her soft whimper of alarm, Tyler dropped his arm protectively around her shoulders. Growling, he glared at Kyle. “Changing wasn’t necessary.”
Kyle’s lips stretched, exposing more of his sharp arsenal. Emma swallowed uneasily as the teen monster chuckled. The dark, growling sound would give her nightmares. It wasn’t a pleasant thought.
Emma inched closer to Tyler’s comforting embrace, trying not to act like a scared twit and knowing she failed miserably. Where both of Tyler’s shapes brought a feeling of security, the wér-wolf made her want to howl in terror and hide. Oh yes, she’d definitely be hightailing it out of there, if it were not for Tyler’s very solid presence at her side.
“I have my human shape, this shape, and my wolf shape. I’m a true wér,” Kyle said. His voice, considerably deeper and rougher, rasped with arrogant self-confidence. “Do you want to see my third shape?”
Emma shuddered, not knowing what to say, she shook her head in denial. She glanced at Tyler’s tense profile. She really didn’t want to offend one of his friends, but her mind drew blank on something courteous, blurting the first thing that popped into her head. “Tyler’s wér shape is beautiful. You’re just freaky scary looking. No wonder most books portray werewolves as the horrifying bad monsters.”
“It’s wér-wolf, not werewolf,” Kyle said, exposing his teeth in a lip-curling snarl, aggressively stepping toward her. “A werewolf is a mindless animal. I’m not.”
Even though Tyler’s arm was securely around her, a split-second of mouth-watering fear rushed through her. Werewolves had always been her personal boogieman. Kyle was like a nightmare popping into real life, a nightmare within arm reach. It was more than she expected.
Her entire body shuddered, flushing from fear to anger to terror.
Without warning, a switch flipped inside her head, clicking her bubbling anger into high gear. Fury boiled through her, nothing mattered but protecting herself and Tyler. Something dark and dangerous built inside her, shoving at her sanity.
Reality snapped. Animalistic fury drove her forward, insisting she destroy the wér-wolf, the creature reaching for her. She lurched to her feet. Her skin grew tight, and her head pulsed.
A furious growl rumbled.
___________
Emma’s abrupt change stunned Tyler.
Her deep-throated growl echoed around the small garden. Her challenging step toward Kyle spurred him into action.
“Emma,” Tyler said. When his voice had little effect, he gently touched her arm, gaining her attention. She slanted her head to look at him, never letting Kyle out of her sight.
He gazed into solid white eyes and stopped breathing.
“Emma, Chélah,” he said softly, fearing to hope. Like a true Tuathan, she was displaying characteristics of his race. Gently rubbing her arm, he hesitated. Tiny, near translucent scales covered her arm. Honestly, he wasn’t sure what to do. He didn’t want her attacking Kyle, he might accidentally hurt her.
He sensed his clan brother easing backward, trying to give her space.
Emma spun, putting her body in front of Tyler.
Tyler’s dragon rumbled in pleasure as she subconsciously protected what she knew was hers. Whether she acknowledged it or not, she had just staked her claim on him, growling her statement to the world. Tyler was hers. She’d not let anything hurt him.
She snarled at Kyle, baring sharp teeth in warning.
The wér-wolf froze in mid-step, looking rather silly. From the startled look on his face, he wasn’t sure what to do. Fighting a clan sibling, while joking around or training was one thing, fighting a clan brother’s near-defenseless mate was something else entirely.
“Kyle,” Jenna whispered from behind him, “shift back to human. I can smell her anger, but when you first shifted I smelled her fear.”
“Jenna’s right,” Tyler agreed. “I smelled her fear, too. For whatever reason, she’s petrified of you in wér shape.”
Kyle’s sigh was loud enough it increased Emma’s growls. With a slight shake of his head, he shifted back to human.
Emma cocked her head to the side. Eyes narrowing in suspicion, she stalked forward, stopping less than a foot away from Kyle.
Kyle kept his eyes on Emma, tensing as she leaned forward and sniffed him.
She snorted, and shook her head. A single finger poked him in the chest.
Much to Kyle’s credit, he didn’t budge.
___________
Emma craned her head up, looking into Kyle’s somber face. Why in the world would she move closer to a wér-wolf of all things?
Shaking her head, she tried to remember when she got up from the bench. A burning, red haze seemed to wrap around her memories. He’d scared the life out of her.
She abruptly backed up, thumping into Tyler’s solid form. Twisting, she looked up into his worried face. “I really hate wér-wolves.”
Chuckling, he hugged her with a relieved sigh. “I think earthborn mates are going to create quite a stir.” Excitement filled his voice as he told her what happened.
“I did what? How? I mean, I just don’t understand how it’s possible. My vocal chords aren’t made to emit growls,” she fretted, rubbing her throat. “Are you sure my eyes turned completely white?”
“Oh, yeah,” Kyle said with a big grin. “I got an up-close and personal view as someone growled at me. They were definitely solid white. And if I’m not mistaken, and I’m rarely wrong, your upper and lower canines are still a bit longer and sharper as well.”
Emma’s eyes widened. Poking her tongue against her teeth, she gasped in shock.
Tyler frowned at Kyle. “Payback’s rough, clan brother. Remember that when you find your mate.”
Amid Jenna and Zach’s laughter, Tyler gently tugged at Emma’s jaw, pulling it down.
Grumbling, she finally opened her mouth. His eyes caught her soft brown ones. “Sorry, I would have warned you, but you’re staying a step ahead of me. As a mortal, I never dreamed your body would react this way.”
“Warn me now,” Emma said. “I know you’ve said every mating is different, but what else should I expect?”
“Some mates absorb charac
teristics of the other,” he admitted, shrugging his shoulders, reflecting his uncertainty. “Usually, it’s the, ah, weaker half of the mating that pulls something from the stronger half.”
“Yeah, but it’s only a fifty-fifty chance,” Jenna said with apparent authority.
“What else?” Emma asked Tyler, eyes bright with enthusiasm, wondering if she might get wings after all.
“Um, well,” Tyler hesitated over her question.
Jenna snorted, laughing at his hesitation. “You better ask me, Emma. I tried to get these three yahoos to take the mate class with me last year, but none of them would agree. Tyler is right about one thing, all couples are different. I’m sure he’ll mark you, but from the increased pace your body is reacting to Tyler, I’d say just about anything is possible.”
“Isn’t it supposed to take months? I’m just an Earthborn mortal, but my skin was hot the first day. Why am I changing so rapidly, but not Tyler?”
“Well, maybe that’s why you’re progressing so fast. Your body was like a blank canvas absorbing the blood Tyler gave you, creating a whole new person,” Jenna said with a grin.
“You told them about us exchanging blood,” Emma grumbled, glaring up at Tyler’s sheepish expression.
His concern hit her, and she gave a sigh of frustration. Either this bonded mate thing would get old fast or they’d never have a major argument. At least, not after they could both feel each other’s constant emotions.
Another emotion weaved through his concern. Emma’s eyes narrowed and she smacked his arm as his arrogant pleasure seeped through their ever-growing link. “Arrogant dragon,” she muttered.
He chuckled, but wisely kept his mouth shut.
Jenna grinned. “You’ll find most high council races tie for that specific title. Anyway, the only known cases of mates progressing as quickly as you two are doing are when they already know each other. Their first touch is rarely a small shock, it can be numbing. Literally, the emotional bonding can be almost instant. They say that’s really mind blowing.” Jenna shook her head full of golden curls. “Got off track, sorry. Anyway, who knows what other characteristics you might receive over time? Earthborn are a totally unknown quantity. The changes could be anything, though I doubt very seriously if you’ll ever breathe fire or morph your entire body into another shape, but you might get stronger or smarter. Most dark scales have off-the-charts mental abilities and they heal superfast.”
“Not all of them are brilliant. Andrew’s a prime example of that,” Zach snarled. “Emma, I’m sure you’ve got tons of questions, but Tyler needs to know what Andrew and Lily are up to.”
“Yeah, I know, but Lily’s his sister. Maybe, she was just trying to protect him,” Emma said with grimace twisting her face.
“No way, not after last night,” Tyler said, a growl emphasized his words.
“I didn’t hear everything you all said. I pretty much ran and hid in the bathroom,” she said with a sigh.
“Tyler told her that he’d never harm you. He also bluntly told her that he was nearly a hundred percent positive you were his mate,” Jenna said firmly.
“I don’t mean to take-up for her, but sometimes a family member reacts out of fear. I’m sure she just didn’t want to lose her brother,” Emma said, shrugging her shoulders.
“What exactly did Lily say this morning?” Tyler asked loosening his hold on her, as if he feared he might accidentally hurt her in his anger.
Zach growled. The golden-haired gryphon seemed ready to chomp nails in half.
“She told Andrew to shove me out a window,” Emma said quickly, cutting Zach off. “Tyler, I’m sure she wants you to have a suitable mate, and since we haven’t bonded yet, my death would’ve helped you. Honestly, I don’t like agreeing with her,” she shuddered, “not when she wants to kill me, but she loves you. I can’t help but understand her motivation.”
“I die when you die,” Tyler said softly in her ear, gently rubbing his chin against her silky hair. His eyes were flashing sparks of anger as he tried to contain his fury. “Even if that wasn’t the case, I told her, I told everyone, you are under my protection.”
“Yeah, well, Lily knew your death would kill Tyler,” Jenna said. Her eyes filled with unshed tears, her voice shook with anger. “Last year we were still best friends and she took the mate class with me. She knows what will happen if you die. The bond doesn’t have to be completed. After first contact, if one mate dies, the other nearly always dies as well.”
“Easy, Jenna, all of us feel her betrayal,” Kyle soothed, curling an arm around the petite girl.
“Kyle, she was my best friend,” Jenna said, a single tear slipped down her face. She glanced at Emma. “Lily was part of our clan. Then, one day, she up and changed clans with no warning or explanation. She refused to even talk with me, saying I was nothing but a filthy vampire hybrid.”
“She’s acting like a spoiled brat,” Zach snarled. His eyes glowed with a thunderous anger.
Emma shifted against Tyler, wondering if she was about to get an up-close and personal view of a roaring gryphon, not that she wasn’t curious about his furry form but when he did change for the first time, she didn’t want him standing three feet away within snapping distance.
The conversation continued along the same vein. Their frustration and hurt over Lily’s actions made a glaring impact on Emma.
Leaning against Tyler’s side, she curled her fingers through his trying to piece together everything she was hearing. From what the four friends said, Lily had a completely different personality no more than a few months ago. She had changed overnight, from a loving and laughing teenager to a shrewish and haughty girl with a fake smile and a malicious sense of humor.
“I’ll be the first to admit I don’t know much about Tuathans,” Emma said cautiously, “but could someone be mentally controlling Lily? On earth, myth has it that vampires can control a person’s thoughts.”
With a touch of dread in his voice Tyler said, “A royal chimera, one with pure blood lines, could manage it. But the Alliance tracks all known royals, and I’ve only heard of a handful that are mentally strong enough for what you’re suggesting.”
“That’s not completely true.” Jenna turned a light rose color. Her hesitant voice confirmed her discomfort with the topic. “If touching, skin-to-skin, any vampire or chimera can muddle a person’s short-term thoughts. Short-term memory alteration along with the numbing and healing properties, allow us to feed from a person without their consent.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude or anything,” Emma said. Nervously running her tongue over her new fangs, she clipped the edge of her lower lip with a sharp canine.
“You have no way of knowing without asking questions. And stop that,” Tyler growled, tugging at her chin. “You’re going to rip your lip to pieces.”
“Yeah, learning to eat with fangs should be an experience,” Emma quipped with a grin, trying to recover from her social misstep. “Thanks, Ty, but I think I could’ve done without that specific bodily enhancement.”
“Sorry,” he chuckled, grinning as she spoke his nickname for the first time.
“So, chimera is another name for vampire?” she asked, trying to get one more detail straight in her head.
Jenna shook her head no. “It depends on who you ask. Vampires and furies say they appeared first, but chimera insist they were first.”
“Um, you totally lost me. Furies are winged, right? What do they have to do with chimera?”
“Chimera are a combination of vampire and fury,” Tyler said. “Jenna is a chimera, having both vampire and fury characteristics.”
Okay, now that was a weird combination.
Chapter - Fire Lake
An hour later, Emma rode Tyler’s back as he soared above Beaver Lake, or as the Tuathans called the much larger manmade body of water, Fire Lake.
After the teens talked their options into the ground, they had agreed to take a break. They couldn’t accuse a member of the Wér-Dr
agon’s household of attempted murder, not without solid evidence. It was as simple as that.
Tyler agreed to meet the others at Scrimp Shaw, a tourist town north of Capital City for dinner at a place called The Cantina. He promised Emma a mouth-watering meal of fresh-water shellfish and pasta.
Emma leaned forward, caressing the dark scales beneath her hands. The warm surface rippled under her touch.
Tyler caught a stream of warm air, and sailed across the afternoon sky. The breeze ruffled through her dark hair. Flying was an incredible experience. She had a feeling Tyler would soon be tired of her asking for a ride.
Without warning, he dipped and swerved across the sky.
Clenching her legs tightly around his neck, she laughed in delight. “What was that all about?”
“You mean other than getting you to clamp your sexy legs around my neck?” he asked innocently.
Her face burst bright red with embarrassment, while a slow burn started in the pit of her stomach. She didn’t know how to respond, because he sounded as if he truly meant it. A few seconds rolled into a minute.
“I’ll be so glad when I can feel your emotions.” He heaved a deep sigh. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
She shifted her weight with the movement of his deep breathing, having learned that moving with his body was the best way to fly. “You didn’t upset me,” she said quickly, but took a moment to finish. “It’s just hard for me to grasp that you seem to like what I look like. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’d be thrilled if you thought I was pretty, but sexy?” She gave a rough snort of disbelief, rubbing her hand along his neck ridge. “Ty, I know what I look like, and sexy is not it. Mom tells everyone I’m just a little brown mouse.”
“Then she is crazy. You are sexy,” he said, snapping each word. His deep growl caught her off guard. “You’re beautiful! Where did you get the absurd idea you aren’t sexy?”
“The mirror?” she asked sarcastically.
“That’s totally ridiculous! You’re blind as a bat,” he snapped. “Only a slug wouldn’t think you’re not gorgeous.”
Emma (Dark Fire) Page 15