About Alistair.
About why everyone hated him.
Link had part of the story. His father hurt them. Link needed to know why. He needed to know everything that happened. Because if he didn’t know, then he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from following the same footsteps.
His beast growled a warning. Link shoved it back, trying to ignore the menacing creature inside himself.
3
The world was dark. Kiera tossed and turned in her narrow bed, uncomfortably aware that the clan around her was fractured. She came here hoping to find strength. Charlie came and changed. Kiera wanted that same kind of magical transformation. Instead, Kiera felt like part of the problem.
If only she could have helped in the moment, if she could have kept them from fighting, if she could have stopped them from hating one another. Maybe then there would be no fracture tearing this happy clan in half.
Kiera hadn’t been present for whatever horrific tragedy took place. There was a whole history she didn’t understand, but what Kiera did know was how to keep the peace. She’d lived with Norman’s clan much longer than Charlie. Kiera had been born among that clan. Living with them, she learned how to keep Norman happy and the others from tearing each other apart.
That was how she survived. So long as no one fought around her, she escaped unscathed. Well, for the most part. Kiera locked everything that happened to her in Norman’s bedroom behind a lead door in her mind. Every ounce of pain and torture she had to endure would stay there forever.
Moving forward was the only thing on her mind.
When sleep seemed impossible, she kicked off the sheets and stepped outside. The air didn’t have the heady weight of moisture like it did in Washington. There was no tang of salt in the air, either. What she found was the rich scent of wet earth and rotting things, like nature taking back what it had lost, dead fish and broken kelp.
The sky above wasn’t tainted by too many streetlamps. In fact, it seemed to go on forever, countless stars dotting the darkness. She sighed, leaned her head back, and tried counting them all. It was something she did back in Washington when she couldn’t sleep. Those were the nights Norman kept her in his room.
Out there, the sky was dulled by the nearby city. The stars didn’t seem so infinite and she always thought that if she could count them all, then she could find peace. As if the time and attention it took would grant her a meditative state of mind.
She didn’t have to find that anymore. Norman wasn’t going to find her. He couldn’t reach her so far away. Not while Jasper was sitting on his neck and making life miserable for him. She laughed at the image of the gold dragon physically sitting on Norman’s dragon. It wasn’t so far from the truth.
“Who’s there?”
Kiera yelped. She couldn’t help herself, but she did slap a hand over her mouth. Out of the darkness stepped a male figure. She recognized his voice from earlier. The gold in Link’s eyes sparkled like it had a light of its own.
He stopped just short of the cabin porch, where she sat. “Do you hate me, too?”
There was a soft crack in his voice, one she was sure he was trying to hide from her. The sound of it broke her heart. She shook her head and patted the space on the step beside her.
“My father tried killing everyone. Are you sure?”
“I wasn’t here for that. I was busy with my own problems on the other side of the country.” She bit her lip. Too much information had slipped out at once. Link didn’t need to know about Norman and that clan.
Yet, Link relaxed. His shoulders fell away from his ears and he bent to sit beside her. There was a respectable amount of space between them, yet she could still feel the heat that washed off him. Dragons always burned so much hotter than every other shifter. It was like the furnace inside them never died. The fire was always raging.
Kiera didn’t have much of a flame, herself. She could barely produce a few tongues of flame let alone a full fledge fury like what the gold dragon dropped on her old clan. All the beasts here were probably just as strong. She had no doubt of it, especially if Charlie felt safe here.
“So, you’re like new?” Link’s conversation was stilted, like he didn’t like the silence but also didn’t know what to say.
Kiera grinned and tucked a bit of hair behind her ear. It was growing too long. She would have to get it cut again soon. If she didn’t have long hair, there was nothing to pull. If someone wanted to grab her, they would have to get a limb or her shirt.
“Not new,” Kiera said, tugging at the hem of her shirt. “Just visiting.”
Link nodded. He leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees. Even if he didn’t like the silence, it was oddly comfortable. Kiera didn’t feel the need to run from him, which was new to her. Men were always a threat. They always had something to prove. She could tell that Link had that same energy, but it wasn’t directed at her. He didn’t have anything to prove to her. It was the others, the ones who knew his father.
“I couldn’t sleep with my sister’s mate staring me down,” Link confessed. “What’s your excuse?”
“It’s been a long time since I could sleep through the whole night. This is nothing new to me.”
Link watched her. She turned her face away, but his gaze still warmed her skin like a hand trying to pull her back. This wasn’t a gentle man, though. He was huge. The beast inside him must be massive, she thought. Men like that couldn’t be gentle.
“I’m sorry,” she began. “For earlier. I didn’t mean to spill Charlie’s leftovers all over you. I hope you can forgive me for my clumsiness.”
He laughed. It was so sudden and stark in the night that her head snapped up.
“I ran into you. Why are you apologizing to me? I should be the one saying I’m sorry. But I’m not going to. It was worth getting covered in breakfast leftovers just to meet you.”
“You don’t mean that,” she whispered.
Yet, the way he looked at her made her cheeks flush with heat. It was like he could see her as a person. Not a child to be coddled or a possession to be dominated. Was that possible? Or was she making up things that didn’t exist? Kiera couldn’t tell the difference.
“Okay,” Link said, leaning back. He raised a finger. “You were here, standing still. Then I came through the door and,” he raised the other hand, finger pointed up, and crashed it into the first hand. “I ran into you. That seems like my fault.”
“Alright, you have a point.”
He nudged her shoulder and smiled. Her heart jumped into her throat. Fear was immediate and sharp as it sliced through her. All he’d done was show a bit of camaraderie, and yet her mind translated it into aggression. She had to swallow a mouthful of air to squash the rising panic.
“Oh, I didn’t mean to…” His words trailed off, probably because he didn’t know what he’d done wrong.
Kiera gave him a weak smile. She wasn’t quite sure what was wrong, either. All that she knew was the way she responded. Norman was to blame. He and his clan ruined her forever. This wasn’t where she would find strength and confidence. Kiera would never find either.
“What brings you all the way out here?” She tried to change the subject. So long as she could move it away from herself, then she wouldn’t have to face the truth.
Link groaned. “My mom passed away recently. Without her, I didn’t have anything. I remember my father talking about a clan. He had dragons in his life, and I wanted that for myself. With a bit of digging, I found his last known address and hit the road.”
“Why do you think he kept you separate from the clan? I mean, he was the leader. Right? Why were you kept a secret?”
Link shrugged, throwing his hands into the air. “I don’t know. To be honest, I’m not sure of anything anymore. You’re the only person here who doesn’t treat me like I’m going to become a mass murderer. Well, sort of.”
“Where I came from…” She worked past the lump in her throat. “Where I came from, I was in danger a lot. I
’m not afraid of you because of who you are. I’m just…afraid all the time.”
She couldn’t believe she’d said it. It was the truth, though. Even in the diner with Charlie, Kiera had been afraid. Charlie was stronger now. Kiera kept her head down and her voice low, speaking only when spoken to because that was what she learned around strong dragons. It didn’t matter that Charlie had been her friend back in Washington. Charlie was different and so Kiera felt the need to submit.
Link’s beast thrashed inside him. It was ready to destroy every man who’d ever laid a hand on her, but for her benefit, he kept the beast leashed. Link was enjoying her company. He wanted to sit beside her a while longer. If he let his anger show, she would run screaming.
She fell silent, so he picked up the slack and filled the night with noise.
“It’s weird finding out I have a sister. That was not what I expected to find today. My father always treated me and my mom like the only family he had. He and mom weren’t exactly in love. It was more like having divorced parents. To discover that my father sired another dragon around the same time I was born… It’s strange.”
The more he spoke, unraveling his past for her, the more she relaxed. Little by little, she leaned into him. She wasn’t quite touching, but close enough that maybe she didn’t see him as a threat anymore.
Everyone else saw him as a monster. This clan, once headed by his father, saw Alistair in him and attacked. Link got the idea that not everyone felt such immediate hate. There were some, like Buffy, who refused to hate him until he did something deserving of hatred. The rest wanted Link gone. He suspected they could see the piece of his father that he carried everywhere with him, the beast that would burn the earth if it could.
Link did his best not to give in to the creature, but there were days where it was hard. Being attacked before he could introduce himself had riled up the monster inside him. He wasn’t outside because it was difficult to sleep with Buffy’s mate watching him. Link stepped outside because the cabin felt too small for the great big creature inside him. The beast’s power grew and grew until Link didn’t feel like he was enough to contain it.
Yet, beside this woman he barely knew, the creature’s attention was fixed on her. She was a spot of calm in a rocky ocean. When she smiled, he was blinded by the light of it. Still, she was hunched in on herself, like she was trying to be as small as possible.
Could she feel the monster in him, too? Or was this a natural response to other dragons?
Link lifted his head and let the lake wind wash over him. “Meeting Buffy makes me wonder if my father was trying to make the best heir. How many other siblings do I have across the country? Was I the one he called a success? I don’t know all of what my father did to them, but I’m getting the feeling that I don’t want whatever dad had planned for me.”
She reached out and set a hand on his arm. Her hand was so small and frail. He should have told her to take it back before he accidentally broke her. She shouldn’t even be around him. He was a big monster and she was a dainty flower.
“I don’t have anything encouraging to say,” she confessed. “I don’t even know what’s happening with my own life right now. If it helps, I don’t think you’re a danger to anyone here.”
His heart swelled, but then she went on.
“The other dragons here, the ones that belong to this clan, are strong enough that you wouldn’t be able to hurt them. I think they’re just afraid because of the past. That’s something I can understand.”
Link wondered who had hurt this girl. She wasn’t a part of this clan. Where had they found her? Were they trying to help her? Or was she just drifting through the world while trying to handle her pain?
He held his hand between them, palm up. “I can make you a promise that I’ll never hurt you. That’s about all I can say for sure.”
“I don’t think you’ll hurt anyone else, either.” Her fingertips touched his palm.
Fire ignited and sped up his arm, curling in his chest like the heart of a furnace. Around her, he burned hotter than ever before. He had to part his lips and let the heat out before it consumed him. Her fingertips spread wider, like she might twine her fingers with his. His heart skipped a beat, expectant.
Just as her fingers settled over his, a door slammed open in the night. He felt the ire-filled gaze of another shifter. The woman snatched her hand back before he could keep it forever. She clutched her arms close to her chest and spun to see who was behind her.
“Kiera?” a female voice called out.
Kiera hung her head, as if filled with shame. She stood, walking backwards away from the porch with her arms still folded over her chest. His heart clenched when she wouldn’t look him in the eye.
The other woman ran down the steps to her cabin and hurtled toward Kiera. The flare in the woman’s eyes as she glared at Link was too much. He lurched to his feet and brushed off his knees mostly because he didn’t know what to do with the feeling still lingering in his hand. If he held onto it, he would want to chase after Kiera. He would crave more.
It was best to let it go, because he couldn’t have her. She was too small and scared. If she got to truly know him, she would learn to fear him, and he didn’t know if he could bear that. It was one thing to watch Kiera get dragged away by a woman with hatred in her eyes. It was another to see that reflected in Kiera’s.
Kiera disappeared, but not after a lingering glance in the front door of the other woman’s cabin. Then, as if she was yanked away, she disappeared.
Link let out a long-suffering sigh. He’d sought out this territory with the hope of vanquishing the loneliness squatting in his hollow chest. Instead, he was only reminded of the emptiness. Instead of standing around and hoping to catch another glimpse of Kiera, he set out toward the lake.
A dock bobbed on the water, held aloft by two massive barrels. By day, the lake was vibrant and inviting. Once the sun set and the dark of night crept in, Link found an ominousness about it. The air was eerily silent. He strained to listen for crickets and birds, but it was as if all life had vanished.
In the distance, the waves swelled. The water broke. Link wasn’t sure what he was seeing. He’d heard tales of monsters in Scottish lakes, and even some of the more western Great Lakes. This one didn’t have a monster, as far as he knew. Yet, what he was staring at could be nothing else.
The great beast lifted its head from the water and stared him down. Link could feel the malice from where he sat. It drew him to his feet and pushed him back. The beast in him snarled. His dragon never backed down from a fight. It roared inside Link and filled him with the heat of flames.
Before the beast could break free of Link, the lake monster disappeared beneath the surface again. Link stood, flabbergasted and thoroughly confused. He told himself that he was tired and seeing things. It’d been a long drive from his last destination and the fight had rattled his brain. To be fair, Jude’s mate packed a heavy punch.
Link settled back down and watched the water for another glimpse of the monster, but it never came.
“What were you thinking?” Charlie just about screamed. In the bedroom, there was a rustle as someone woke. Her mate.
Kiera shrank away from her yelling friend. Surely, it couldn’t be that bad to have a conversation with this new man. It seemed like all he wanted was a friend. There was no shame in being amicable. Kiera knew that was how to avoid fights. Smile. Submit. Suffer.
Keeping the peace was as simple as that.
But Charlie was looking at her like she’d lost her mind. Alec appeared, hair ruffled and eyelids drooping from sleep. He blinked at his mate.
“What are you going on about?” he grumbled.
“Alistair was outside,” Charlie answered.
“His name isn’t Alistair.” She couldn’t have been the one to speak, but when everyone turned to her, she realized it was. She was surprised at the strength in her voice. It was so loud, so confident. “His name is Link. Don’t treat him like he’s
someone else.”
Charlie’s nose wrinkled. Alec just sighed, trudged forward, and grabbed his mate. He led her back to bed before she could say anything more. That left Kiera standing on her own in the middle of an unfamiliar living room.
When she went back outside to find Link, he was already gone. He must have heard what Charlie said. Kiera hoped his feelings weren’t too hurt. He seemed like an okay man. She wanted to talk to him some more and make him feel a little less alone, but if he left then he wanted to be alone and she shouldn’t follow.
4
Buffy was up early. It was like she never slept. In a crop top and a pair of shorts, she set about making breakfast. The radio was cranked as high as it would go. Both Link and Heath had their ears covered and their eyes on each other.
Link was sure Buffy’s mate would kill him. Buffy would be none the wiser as Heath wrapped his hands around Link’s throat. The music was too loud. They could destroy half the house and she still wouldn’t be able to hear. But Heath made no move.
Breakfast was served, and Buffy flopped into her seat, slamming her elbows onto the table and her chin into her hands. She batted her lashes and grinned deviously.
She said something, but the music swallowed the sound. Link tried to ask her what she said, but it stole that from him, too. Heath shoved his chair back and stormed toward the radio in the kitchen. He opened the window, ripped the radio out of the wall, and chucked it outside. Silence made their ears ring.
Buffy scowled at her mate, but if she had anything she wanted to tell him, she kept it to herself. Her attention as quickly refocused on Link again.
“Tell me everything about yourself. I need to know it all.”
“I, uh…”
He was saved from having to respond when the front door opened. Jude entered, wearing a slouchy hoodie and holding the accursed radio.
Link (Keepers Of The Lake Book 5) Page 3