Freed by Fire (Dragonkeepers Book 5)

by Kimber White

  I shut the door and locked it. My heart thundered in my chest. Everything she told me...everything about her rattled me to my core.

  Burn marks. Adam Webster had been burned? I knew I had to see for myself. Maybe if I laid eyes on the poor bastard, it would jar something in my memory.

  It was dusk now. A quick search on the cheap smartphone I picked up at the local grocery store gave me the answers I needed. There was only one hospital in Shadow Point. Webster’s body would still be there.

  I managed enough control of my magic to throw off a cloaking spell. I wouldn’t be able to hold it very long, but it should be enough to get me past any prying eyes if I tried to sneak into the morgue. I would have precious little time though.

  I waited until the bar got loud downstairs before slipping out the back door. The hospital was just a five-minute walk. I kept to the shadows, my heart thundering with each step. I’d been close enough to Adam Webster the other night to recognize his scent. Even in death, he was easy to track.

  Sweat poured down my back as I waited for an opening in the alley beside the hospital service entrance. Two orderlies came out to take a smoke break. One of them wrinkled his nose, sensing the echo of my magic. But, he was just human and easy to get past.

  I was in. The morgue was empty and quiet. I didn’t even need the magic to get where I needed to go.

  I found Adam Webster’s body already prepped for his examination. He was gray and waxen. His now bloodless wounds lay open. I carefully approached, afraid of what else I might see.

  Just as Calla described, Adam had burn marks along the side of his ribcage and the back of his hands. I closed my eyes and tried to see it. He’d put his hands up, probably trying to shield his face. Is that when I did it? Had my fire blasted his palms?

  I searched for the truth. Nothing came back to me but desperate blackness. In spite of everything I said to Calla, everything her instincts seemed to tell her...I knew I might be the very killer she was looking for.

  Chapter Nine

  Calla

  “You know I can always tell when you’re lying to me,” Astor said. He stood in the kitchen, wearing his pinstriped suit. He even had his bowler hat on, pulled low almost over his eyes. He’d packed four suitcases and lined them up in the hallway.

  “I can’t leave right now,” I said. “I won’t leave right now. Adam isn’t even in the ground yet.”

  Astor was furious, but I was the only one in the world who would be able to tell. He got two red blotches, near perfect circles, on each of his cheeks. “And you know a shifter did this.” It was a statement, not a question.

  “I don’t know for sure, but it’s likely,” I said. “He was ripped in half.”

  “All the more reason for us to get the hell out of Dodge, as they say. I don’t know why you’re fighting me on this.”

  “Because I like it here,” I said. “And you’re overreacting to the danger.”

  “You’re not reacting enough. Calla, please. Listen to reason. You know why we have to go. And we need to do it now, today. Before anyone else gets hurt.”

  His words hit me like an anvil to the chest. His eyes were kind, but full of pity.

  “Don’t,” I said. “Don’t do that. Don’t stand there and try to explain to me how this is my fault.”

  “Calla, you’re not a child anymore. You know the kind of effect you have on shifters. I’ve been patient. I’ve been too lenient. I’m not saying it’s your fault. I’m saying it’s mine. Maybe I wanted to believe this place would be different too. You think I like packing up and starting over all the time?”

  “Yeah,” I said. “I think you do. I think it makes it easier for you to try and control me.”

  I didn’t mean it. I knew my words hurt him. What made it even worse was Astor’s reaction. He didn’t give me one. He merely straightened his back and locked his gaze with mine. He was still strong. Still formidable. But, there was one simple truth between us.

  “I’m not trying to control you. I’ve only ever tried to protect you.”

  “Sometimes it feels like the same thing,” I said.

  He let out a sigh. “Fine. So go through it with me again. Make me understand.”

  He was patronizing me. At least, it sure as hell felt like it. I would not back down. “It was a bar fight,” I said. “That’s all. One keyed up bear in heat. The wolves weren’t even a witness to it. I don’t even know for sure if that bear had anything to do with Adam’s murder. There’s so much we don’t know.”

  “And you’re still lying, I think. There’s a variable you’re not talking about.”

  My heart raced. My throat ran dry. He was talking about Kian. He knew. How the hell did he know? And why did I feel this intense need to hide his very existence from Astor? I knew why. Because we’d be right where we were now. With Astor demanding we flee and blaming me for everything going sideways.

  “Calla, you can’t be around shifters anymore. It’s just how it is. I know it’s hard for you to hear that. And despite what you think, I don’t blame you for what’s happened. For any of the things that have happened around us. It’s not your fault the effect you have on them. And it’s all right for a while. Good, even. I’ve seen you. I think you’ve even prevented shifters wars before they had a chance to start. You’ve saved lives. Maybe I don’t give you enough credit for that. But, I fear for you. That’s all it is. And if we’ve reached the point where there’s a shifter running around killing people the night after meeting you, well...what more proof do you need?”

  I covered my face with my hands. I hated everything he said. I hated that it rang true.

  “This can’t be all there is for me,” I said, dropping my hands.

  The fury left Astor’s face. He sucked in a great breath and came to me. His hands shook as he put them on my shoulders. The ancient lines in his face deepened as he looked at me. He had love in his eyes, but pity too...and guilt.

  “I love you, Calla,” he said. “I knew the risk I was taking when I brought you into this world.”

  “Why did you?” I asked. Tears stung my eyes. I’d never asked him that before. It was cruel of me. At that moment, I couldn’t help it.

  “Why did you?” I asked again. “If you knew this was how things would go… And don’t start in on the pact you made.”

  “Because you’re a miracle, Calla. Just like your mother said you would be. And you have done so much good. Shadow Point is a better place now because of you. And it wasn’t the first. It won’t be the last.”

  “But it’s never going to end,” I said, choking back my tears. “I’m never going to find my place.”

  Astor wiped the tears from my eyes. I hated feeling so vulnerable. So sad. More than anything, I hated that Astor was right. If that bear or another shifter killed poor Adam, his madness might trace back to me. I put my hands on Adam. I touched the bear. And I’d touched Kian.

  “You’ll find your place,” Astor said. “We all do. For a hundred years I asked the same question. Then, you were born. I’ll spend the rest of my days trying to help you find yours, Calla. You want to talk about a pact? That’s the pact my people made. That’s the one I’ll go to my death trying to honor. It’s going to be all right. But, we can’t stay here anymore.”

  I collected myself. I knew I should have told him about Kian. It was just a feeling. There was no logic to it. And yet, I knew in my heart he was different. My presence wasn’t making Kian...whatever he was...worse. Each time I’d found him, he seemed on the grips of something. But, when I touched him, he came back into himself. Still, he was dangerous. Powerful. And whatever else he was, he was sick.

  “Astor,” I said. “I’m not leaving Shadow Point. Not until I know for sure what killed Adam. If my being here set this in motion, that also means I’m the only one who can stop it. If it’s a mess I made, I have to stay and clean it up.”

  His nostrils flared. “Darling. If it’s your mess, as you call it, it will only get better when you leave.”
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br />   “You can go on ahead if you want to. You said you already scouted somewhere near San Diego. So go. I’ll meet you there in a few weeks.” I moved away from the counter. I went into the hall and grabbed my two suitcases. I didn’t even have the energy to be mad at Astor for packing them. And he knew, as powerful as he was, he couldn’t get me to go against my will.

  He muttered to himself in his ancient tongue. I could still only make out a handful of words, but I knew the gist and the drill. I was stubborn. Impossible. But, he loved me. In the end, I knew he wouldn’t leave without me no matter how much sense it made.

  He left me alone for a while. Astor kept his bags packed out of pride. My mind was made up. In all the years we’d been together, this was the first time I flat out refused to leave when he said so. I hoped I wouldn’t live to regret it.

  Later, I made him dinner and got dressed to go back to the bar. Astor ate in silence. But, he ate. I didn’t want to point out the obvious, but our argument had brought new life into him over the last few hours. It was the first time I’d seen him get out of his easy chair and into something other than pajamas for days. That was something.

  Before I left, he came to my bedroom doorway. He looked defeated, but he looked at me with love. “Can I come in?” he asked.

  I’d just finished lacing my tennis shoes. I twisted my hair into a knot and nodded. “Of course.”

  That’s when I noticed what he carried in his hands. My breath caught. I thought I’d done the last of my crying for the day. Astor sat on the edge of my bed and put the book beside him. It was bound in green leather with gold trim. The pages were brittle. One edge of the binding was charred. One more thing I had to feel guilty about. I’d lost my temper when Astor told me we had to leave our last town and come to Shadow Point.

  “You saved it?” I asked, my hand flying to cover my mouth.

  “Of course I saved it,” he said. “You just lost your temper. You had a right.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me? I thought I’d destroyed it for good.”

  “You’re strong, Calla. But I’ve still got a little magic left of my own. I should have given it back to you a long time ago. I know it’s not mine to keep anymore. It’s just...it always brings you such sadness.”

  I picked up the leather-bound book and pressed it to my breast. Its weight comforted me.

  “Can you still read it?” he asked. “I know I shouldn’t have looked. It was never my right. But...the writing seemed to have faded. Or maybe it’s just my eyes.”

  I sat beside him and opened the book. The words were slashed across the pages in bold ink. They hadn’t faded one bit.

  “I can still read it,” I said.

  Astor’s shoulders sagged with relief. “Good. Then, I’ll leave you to it.” He patted my arm and smiled.

  Clever old bastard, he was. Just when I thought I was winning the argument between us he had to go and play this card.

  With great effort, Astor got to his feet. He shuffled to the door and gave me one last smile before he disappeared into the hallway.

  “Damn you both,” I whispered as I smoothed my fingers over the rough pages.

  The book was a diary of sorts. My mother’s. Her name was Giselle. She died long before I could remember, but I swore I could feel her in the words scrawled across these pages.

  My dear one, she wrote…

  I never want you to feel alone. I cannot imagine how hard it will be for you without us. Perhaps it is cruel to let you come into the world like this. For the rest of my days I will pray for your forgiveness. I will do my best in the time that I have to tell you what I can. To explain. I know it will not be enough. It is all that I have.

  I couldn’t read anymore. Even if the ink had disappeared, I already knew the words by heart. My mother told me she loved me. She told me she was sorry for not being here. She told me to trust Astor and Astor alone. But, there was one last passage that stuck in my heart.

  The day will come when you will know your path. You will not be alone. When he comes to you, you will understand.

  When he comes to me. Over the years, I’d read a little of my mother’s words to Astor. But never that line. That was just for me.

  When he comes to me, I was supposed to understand. But, understand what? I shut the book and pressed it to my heart. When I closed my eyes, for the first time, it wasn’t my mother’s face I imagined.

  It was Kian’s.

  Chapter Ten

  Calla

  Three days later, Sheriff Baines waited at the bar when I walked in for my shift. His grim expression sent a shockwave through me. Owen hadn’t even taken the closed sign off the door, so Baines wasn’t here for the drinks. Miranda, one of the waitresses, wailed in the corner.

  “What’s going on?” I asked. Owen gave me a pained look. I couldn’t breathe. I knew what this was...what it had to be.

  “Owen?” I asked.

  Baines turned to me. “Is there someplace we can talk in private?”

  Owen jerked his chin. “You can have the breakroom. Miranda, tell Tracy, the two of you can go home. I’m not going to bother opening tonight.”

  I led Baines down the hall off the kitchen. The breakroom used to be a closet. We kept a card table and a small fridge back there for employee snacks.

  “Do you have something on Adam’s murder?”

  Baines shook his head. “I wish I did. Calla, I need to ask you a few questions.”

  Time slowed down. I had tunnel vision as I looked at Baines. No. I knew what he was going to say before he said it. It couldn’t be true. Not again.

  “We’ve found another victim in the woods,” he said. “He’s been identified by his family. It was Bobby Kirkland.”

  I sank into the nearest chair. Bobby. Our most experienced waiter. My friend. No.

  “Same wounds,” Baines said. “I’m sorry if this is a shock. But, I need to know where you were last night.”

  My head snapped back. “I need an alibi? Do you think…”

  “Calla, just calm down. Bobby was last seen here at the bar. I need to question everybody who had any contact with him. That’s all. Do you remember the last time you saw him alive?”

  I couldn’t think. Bobby was just...Bobby. He worked his shift just like normal. Just like me.

  “We both got off work after closing,” I said. “I was home by about one thirty in the morning. You can ask my grandfather. You know Astor rarely leaves the apartment.”

  Baines nodded. “I believe you. So, you didn’t see Bobby leave with anyone? And you didn’t talk to him after your shift?”

  “No,” I said. “I mean...we’re work friends. We don’t hang out outside of it.”

  “Okay,” Baines said. “That seems to be the consensus. I might talk to Astor too if that’s all right. I know he likes to people watch from the window. Maybe he saw something.”

  “I’ll talk to him.”

  “I’d appreciate it. Now, there’s something else I need to know about from you. Owen...he said something about a new boarder he’s taken on. Said he’s a friend of yours. Mr. Kian? You ever see Bobby with him?

  “Just once,” I said. “Bobby waited on him a couple of weeks or so ago when he first came to town.”

  “Okay...well...I’m going to have to talk to him next.”

  That made two of us. “You’re sure,” I said. “This was a shifter?”

  I didn’t want to believe it. I didn’t want Astor to be right about everything. Was it already far too late? Was I responsible for sending some shifter over the edge into a murderous frenzy?

  “Looks like,” Baines said. “But I’ve not seen anything quite like this in all my years. Shifters don’t normally go after humans like this.”

  “You’re saying you actually believe we have a shifter serial killer in Shadow Point?” God. Was it my fault? I wanted to die.

  “I don’t want to jump to too many conclusions. But, I need to know everything you do. You said something about a bear giving Adam Webster a h
ard time earlier this month. You’re sure you haven’t seen him come back.”

  “I haven’t,” I said. “I swear.”

  “And Bobby was working here that night too? Did he have any interactions with this bear shifter?”

  I shook my head. “No. I don’t remember. I don’t think so.”

  I wanted to finish with Baines. I could see his wheels turning as he took notes on his tablet. What had Owen told him about Kian? I closed my eyes and tried to still my breathing. I couldn’t sense Kian upstairs. I wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing at the moment.

  “Okay,” Baines finished. “Look, I’m sorry about your friends. I want you to stay safe, Calla. So far, the bar is the main connection Bobby and Adam had to each other.”

  “You think the killer is using the Blue Heron to scout victims?” The horror of the idea chilled me.

  “I think it’s way too soon to jump to those kinds of conclusions. Shadow Point is a small town. It’s not like we have that many bars around here. Everyone in town frequents this place at one time or another. It’s just...honey, I want you to be careful. Don’t walk around alone. Not even during the daytime. I think Owen’s right to close the bar down for at least today.”

  “My God,” I said. “If people start thinking the bar is the connection...it’s going to ruin Owen.”

  “I know,” Baines said. “And like I said, let’s not jump there just yet. Just...stay safe. Now, if you think it’s a good time, I’m going to head over and talk to Astor.”

  I nodded. Baines gave me a grim smile and switched off his tablet. I just sat there, frozen. My palms sweated. It was hard to think. I heard Baines leave by the back door. As soon as the lock engaged, I rose on unsteady legs. He was going to question Astor. He might let it slip about Kian. That’s the one secret I had yet to share with him. I knew I’d need to talk to Kian first.

  Smoothing my hair away from my face, I left the breakroom and headed for the stairs. My footsteps echoed off the wood floor as I inched my way up. I knocked once. No answer. Squeezing my eyes shut, I listened for Kian inside. I couldn’t so much as hear him breathing.