by Delta James
As the last strains of their song abated, Gideon raised his glass. “Thank you for welcoming me home. May the best of our past be the worst of our future.”
He watched them depart with a deep sense of commitment and hope for the days to come.
* * *
Gideon spent the next two days trying to ignore the imperative that was now his constant companion. Once he felt as though the repairs to the castle were well underway, he asked Cadan to meet with him.
“Gideon!” Cadan called to him as he flew overhead, circling above the castle before landing. Thankfully, he had rediscovered how to do so without going head over heels in the process.
“Good morning! Thank you for agreeing to meet with me before the others arrived.” Gideon smiled as he saw the small container of blackberries he had with him. “For me, I hope?”
Cadan laughed. “Of course. Ever since you mentioned to the boys that you loved them, they check the bramble every day to see if there are any ripe ones for you. Mind you, their mother can’t get them to do that for jam, but for their dragonlord, nothing is too difficult.”
Taking the container, Gideon wolfed them down. “They’re a nice accompaniment to the fish I had this morning.”
The two men reviewed the repairs that had been done and all that remained. They were making tremendous progress and Cadan’s wife had marshalled the other women to begin to acquire the things needed to live in the keep.
“I think we’re making good progress, but you seem unsatisfied. Do you see something you’d like done differently or more quickly? Is the work not up to your standard?”
Gideon swung his head back around to Cadan when he realized he hadn’t been paying attention. He was distracted by her siren song. It was faint and distant, but it was there. He scented the morning’s ocean breeze; it, too, was there... her scent—the intoxicating perfume that was her essence.
“No, what? Everything is fine. The work is being completed far more quickly than I would have thought, and I appreciate all the effort people are putting into it. It’s just... that...” Gideon trailed off, distracted again by his need to find her, claim her, and make her his.
“Are you all right, Gideon?”
“Yes,” he said, grinning and shaking himself. “In fact, I’m better than I have been in a long, long time. I will be even better upon my return.”
“You’re leaving us?”
Gideon turned back to Cadan, grasped him by the shoulders and squeezed, giving him a little shake and allowing a grin to spread across his face.
“Only for a few days... no more than a week. Will you be able to manage here?”
“Of course, but you’ve only just returned.”
“Aye, but I can hear my mate’s call, and it’s getting stronger. I need to find her and bring her home.”
“Truly? That’s wonderful news. I’ll spread the word so that when you return with her, we can celebrate her joining us. Where is she? Do you know who she is? Have you met?”
“Such mundane details we dragons leave to you mortals,” chuckled Gideon. “I know less than nothing about her, except that she exists, and I can feel her calling to me. It’s been far too long since I enjoyed the pleasure only a woman can provide and never my true heart. I need to find her and make her mine.”
Cadan nodded. “I dread the nights I have to spend parted from Demelza; I can’t begin to imagine what it must have been like for you to sleep alone for so long.”
“Not as difficult as you might imagine. I think in many ways it was probably less difficult for me than it was for Duncan. Seth, Kellan, and I had never been gifted with a true heart. Duncan’s heart was shattered when he found his mate slain. I don’t believe he ever thought to wake when we asked her sister to help us lay to rest.”
“Her sister? How did she help? Can I ask how you picked now to wake?” Cadan asked, clearly intrigued.
“Duncan’s mate was human-born and came from a long line of sorceresses. They were none too happy when instead of simply copulating with a man to conceive a child to further their line, she was claimed by a dragon and turned. All of her family, except for her sister, turned her back on her. When our last attempt to save our species appeared to have failed, we asked her to put us to sleep, never to wake again.”
“But here you are... so her spell didn’t work?”
Gideon smiled. “Doubtful. I suspect she had either some kind of time limit or some foresight of an event that she crafted into the spell to send us to sleep. I woke amongst my brothers and waited several days for them to wake. When they didn’t, I decided to listen to my instinct that told me to head south. I stopped to watch a battle of wolf-shifters and was assailed by the scent of my true heart. I decided to come home and assess what needed to be done. Because of the fidelity of all of you, not much was necessary. My true heart’s pull grows stronger every day so I will go fetch her and bring her home.”
“And what if she isn’t so inclined?” teased Cadan.
“Again, dragons do not much concern themselves with such mundane details,” Gideon said with a smile.
“If she’s worthy of you, I doubt she’ll be faint of heart or easily brought to heel.”
Gideon clapped him on the shoulder. “Aye, but therein lies half the fun.”
Cadan nodded. “And if you’re very fortunate, they are never truly tamed.”
Gideon turned serious for a moment. “I will have to turn whoever my true heart is. She will need to have an indomitable spirit and strength to leave behind her old life and embrace the new. But as there are no females of our kind left, she will have no choice.”
“So, you think that you were awakened to bring back the dragons from extinction?”
“It’s the only explanation that make sense. It doesn’t appear that my people here are on the cusp of some great cataclysm. I know there is a feeling that the wolf-shifters will turn their interest to our homeland and that a threat from the Old Continent exists, but not so imminent that I believe I was awakened to combat it. My greatest hope is that we will wake when our true heart is ready for us. It would explain why I was the only one whose sleep ended. Hopefully the others will join me in short order.”
“I will see that a bridal bower is readied for your return. Given the bonfire we had upon your return, tales of your bonding celebration will be told for a long time to come.”
Gideon smiled, grateful that Cadan had been called to be his second in command. “Let us hope your lady will see it as such. I leave our people and our homeland in your care until I return with my mate.”
Gideon turned away and put distance between himself and Cadan. Discarding his clothes, he placed them in the cylindrical container Cadan and Demelza had fashioned for him. He called forth his dragon and felt the beast surge to the forefront, eclipsing his humanity. Gideon beat his wings, unfurling them and creating a great wind and lift as he stood up off his four feet onto two and elevated himself from the confines of the earth.
Gideon’s spirits soared as he flew among the clouds. He no longer cared if anyone saw him. Perhaps it would give the southern wolves pause to know that at least one dragon still remained and flew from the Cornish coast. He amused himself as he danced with the sky, folding his wings to dive toward the earth and then skimming just above the ground before powerfully beating them to climb back into the heavens.
* * *
Bridget rode hard the first day. If she was lucky, it wouldn’t be until after breakfast when her absence was noticed. Her laughter bubbled forth as she thought of Connor organizing a search for her and his profound annoyance when he discovered she was gone... again. She was fairly certain the search would cover the ground between the keep and the fishing village, which lay in the opposite direction from which she was going.
She galloped her horse until she found a long stretch of wooded landscape that would keep her hidden from sight and still allow her to continue her journey. She reduced her speed to an easy jog trot, allowing her horse to catch his breath while still putting
distance between herself and Castle Dundalk. Her plan was to ride in as straight a line as possible toward the western shore and then make her way south. As she rode, she mused about why her decision had been to ride south down the coast. In some ways north would be better as it would take her further away from either her pack at Dundalk or their allied pack at Calon Onest in Wales, which was to the south. The problem was that every time she thought of heading north, a feeling washed over her that to the south lay her destiny.
As the sun crept over her shoulder and she began to ride directly into its light, she felt the last remnants of grief leaving her. When she stopped to make camp, she found a good-sized outcropping of rock, tethered and tended to her horse, and then made a simple meal of bread, cheese, fruit, and dried meat. It wasn’t as tasty as the succulent meals they enjoyed at Castle Dundalk, but it felt good to be free of the responsibilities of being the mistress of a great pack. Arielle would be wonderful in the role, far better than she. After securing her food stores out of the reach of animals, she poked up the fire and made her position secure for the night.
As she was pulling her cloak around her shoulders to keep out the chill of the night, she noticed that she was bleeding. She opened the neck of her shirt wider to locate the source of the blood. The place that bore the mark of her deceased mate was bleeding. What looked to have started as a mere trickle was now bleeding profusely. Grabbing a cloth from her saddlebag, she pressed against it to stanch the flow of blood. Bridget rocked back, sitting down hard on the log she had pulled before the fire. She stared at the cloth and shook her head. No, this couldn’t be. An alpha’s mark only ever bled after its initial healing for one reason... she was destined to have another fated mate. If the stories told were to be believed, in the not too distant future.
Bridget slept badly that night and the one that followed. The mark hadn’t bled again, but there was no denying that the sadness at her mate’s death had been lifted from her heart. She rode hard for the coast, more determined now than ever that she would not be forced into another pairing that she didn’t want. It wasn’t that, in the end, she hadn’t loved him, it was that she’d been given no say in the matter... even her body had refused to listen when she had wanted no part of being mate to the alpha of Dundalk.
As she crested a hill, the distinctive smell of salt air reached her nostrils. Bridget realized she hadn’t shifted in a while and felt her wolf calling her to allow her to come forth and run along the beach and play in the waves. That was something she hadn’t done for a long time. Dundalk did not have a long expanse of sand-covered shoreline... at least not one that was close enough for their alpha to feel it was safe for unescorted she-wolves. Well, she thought, she’d had enough of that nonsense. She meant to live the rest of her life doing what she wanted, when she wanted. And what she wanted right now was to find a place to safely leave her horse and her clothing and go for a run as a wolf along that beach.
Bridget searched for, and found, a small alcove nestled within the rocks where she could safely leave her horse. She stripped out of her clothes and called forth her wolf, who leapt to the forefront of her being with eager joy. Her last thought as a human was that it had been far too long. Bridget bounded out of the small niche, where she’d left her horse, to gallop along the sand.
She ran with abandon, relishing both the soft, giving texture of the very dry sand as well as the firm, damp ground closer to the ocean. Bridget moved with power and strength, enjoying the sea spray almost as much as the feeling of freedom that always came with being a wolf. She played tag with the waves, yapping and snapping at them as if they too were alive and engaged in her game.
A large shadow passed overhead. Bridget looked up and stopped dead in her tracks. A wild wave rolled in, crashing into her and knocking her off her feet. She looked to the heavens again. There was no mistaking what had created the shadow... a dragon!
Chapter Four
Bridget sat back and watched as the large winged creature lazily circled the beach, gliding on the warm air current before, banking sharply, flapping its wings and heading out to sea. Bridget idly wondered where the dragon might be going. The legends said that all the dragons had perished, but clearly, the tales of their demise were wrong. If one existed, were there more?
She galloped back to where she had stashed her clothing, shifted and re-dressed. Catching up her horse, she mounted and headed south down the coastline. She rode for the better part of the day before coming to a small village. Bridget rode to what looked to be a tavern with perhaps rooms to let. She didn’t want to stay in any one place too long, but perhaps she could stay a day or two and make inquiries about the surrounding area.
Bridget found a public stable and, after making arrangements for her horse, made her way to the tavern to get something to eat and see about a room. Having secured both, she ate her meal alone and then made her way toward her room. The laughter of those enjoying themselves and seeking companionship for the night made her think twice about seeking her own lonely bed. As she entered her room, she shook her head, smiling. For a woman who had spent almost ten years mated to a wolf who greatly enjoyed pleasuring her and being pleasured himself, that sort of companionship was missed. She grieved his loss on an emotional level but found that once his death had broken the link between them, she found she missed him in a more abstract and random way. Since the alpha mark on her neck had bled, she seemed to grieve the loss of her daughter’s father more than that of her own mate.
She shook her head again. No! She had no intention of being mate to another, especially an alpha. While she had proven to be skilled in the role of mistress, it was not one to which she had ever felt called. Perhaps she would find another mate, but not an alpha. Ruari had sworn he would not see her mated against her will unless called to a fated mate and she meant to avoid any and all alphas in order to ensure her freedom. In fact, if her adventure proved fruitful, she might find that she was finally in control of her own destiny.
Bridget slept fitfully. She would have liked to have blamed it on being able to overhear the amorous goings-on in the room adjacent to hers, but that wasn’t it at all. The fact was that she hadn’t heard a thing. What kept her tossing and turning were her own feelings of arousal and need. She had awakened with stiffened nipples and a growing well of desire pooling between her legs. If it persisted into the evening, she would either take care of the situation herself or find some random human male to spend some time with. After all, she was planning to move on tomorrow so there would be no reason for awkwardness if he wanted to pursue something more than a one-night stand.
Squaring her shoulders, Bridget trotted down the stairs, had breakfast, and went to get her horse to go exploring. She spent the better part of the day doing so and returned as evening approached.
* * *
Gideon had spent the better part of two days tracking his mate. He had returned to the scene of the battle and been able to pick up her scent. From there he tracked her to the town of Blackpool. Outside of town, he shifted back to human form, donned his clothes, and located a drinking establishment to see if he could find out anything about her. Her trail had led him to the dock and disappeared midway down, indicating to him that she had boarded a boat.
“Mead,” Gideon rumbled at the barkeep.
“Mead? Good lord, no one has ordered mead here in... well... forever,” laughed the man, who Gideon was sure was a fox-shifter. They were normally good sources of information but were crafty and always served their own interests. Foxes were also greedy creatures, which served Gideon’s purpose just fine; he had plenty of coin.
“Yes, I’m sorry. My mother served it at home and came from around these parts. Being here makes me think of her and I was nostalgic. What would you suggest?”
“Whiskey or wine. The whiskey is exceptional, but more expensive than the wine.”
Gideon brought out his coin purse and ensured the fox could see that it was full.
“Bring me your best bottle of whiskey. P
erhaps you’d care to join me for a drink. I’m in need of information a man such as yourself will most likely have.”
“My time is expensive,” said the fox.
“That’s all right; I’m a wealthy man.”
“Then, my friend, my time is yours.”
The fox grabbed the bottle of whiskey, two clean glasses, and led Gideon to a back table.
“I assumed a man who wanted to talk business would prefer something a bit more private than a table in the middle of the room.”
“Knowledgeable and discreet. You and I should deal well together,” said Gideon smoothly.
After they were seated, the fox turned to Gideon and asked, “How may I be of service?”
“I’m seeking a woman... not just any woman but a particular woman who would have passed this way in the last week to ten days. She would have been coming from the east and may have been in the company of soldiers.”
“There were two such women, but I am not inclined to cross the alpha of Dundalk. I hope for your sake, friend, that it wasn’t his mate you seek.”
“I don’t believe it was. Tell me about the other.”
The fox snorted. “That one isn’t much better. I understand she was mated to his brother, the former alpha of Dundalk.”
“Mated as in past tense?”
“Yes. Her mate was killed in battle a while ago. His brother assumed leadership of their pack and now she lives there as a kind of dowager. Pretty thing. Not as fair as the current mistress of the pack and they say she is quite bold.”
Gideon hid his smile and tossed several coins on the table in the general direction of the fox. He thought that the fox’s description sounded like it was the former mistress of Dundalk that he sought. Surely the powers that be would not have gifted him with a mate who was already bonded to another.
“The former mistress, do you know her name?”
“I do. Bridget of Dundalk.”
Gideon tossed him a few more coins.
“And might you know the current location of the fair Bridget?”