Kian (War Cats Book 5)

by Grace Brennan

  Chapter Twelve

  Jessica stared out of the window into the dark night, her arms wrapped around herself. She’d tried to sleep, but she couldn’t. After Luke and Noah left, Kian did his best to wear her out so she could. But although she’d basically been in a pleasure coma once they were finished, she still wasn’t able to fall asleep. Her mind began racing, and she hadn’t been able to turn it off.

  What she’d learned about herself—it was mind blowing, and how could anyone turn those thoughts off? She was born into a magical clan, and she had two animals living inside her. Two forms she could choose between.

  Noah said her form of magic had just begun manifesting, but really, how could she not have realized she had a freakin’ dragon inside her? Kian was right, though. It explained a lot. The “tattoo” with the tail. Her eyes, and her fur, although she hadn’t noticed the latter when she was in tiger form. The strange voice that spoke inside her sometimes.

  And the way there were times when she shed her submissiveness like snake skin and turned dominant as hell. That was her dragon.

  That made it even more strange, though. She had a submissive tiger and a dominant dragon living inside her. Who the hell’s life was this, because it didn’t feel like hers.

  And what kind of twisted fate thought she was strong enough to handle this? They must have been smoking some good shit when they decided she was the right woman for this craziness.

  Um, dragon? Are you there? she asked, feeling all kinds of foolish.

  I’m here, the strange voice she’d heard before replied.

  Jessica jumped, not having expected an actual answer. She didn’t know what she’d expected when she tried to talk to the dragon, and now she didn’t know what to say. She felt shell shocked all over again. It was one thing to be told she had a dragon inside her—and another to have it confirmed, which was what this felt like.

  And then she began feeling guilty. She was twenty-six years old. Which meant she’d been ignoring her dragon for that long. It seemed stupid to feel bad over that, since she hadn’t known, but she did.

  I’m sorry. I didn’t know you existed.

  I know you didn’t. It’s okay. I didn’t really come to consciousness until recently, anyway. I was there, aware, yet kind of asleep, at the same time.

  Jessica blew out a breath, partially relieved, partially sad. To be alive, and aware, but still unable to do anything about it, seemed like hell to her. That was what she got from her dragon’s words.

  And thinking the words her dragon would never stop feeling weird.

  You’ve been thinking you weren’t equal to our mate, her dragon said. You were, whether you realized it or not. But now you can rest assured that you are, because you have me. I’m dominant. And I’ll always be here when you need me. You are equal to him, and you can be a good mate. Your tiger tried to tell you, because she knew I was here. You should listen to your animals more often. We sometimes know things that you yourself don’t even know.

  Jessica inhaled a trembling breath, the reality of those words crashing over her with enough power to knock her over. She’d moved past her fear of not being good enough because of her submissive nature. But not because she thought she was good enough. Because Kian did. Because he’d assured her that dominance wasn’t what he needed in her. He didn’t need her to be a warrior queen.

  But she was. Half of her nature was dominant. Not only that, but she could turn into a motherfluffin’ dragon. She was more than enough for Kian. More than enough to stand tall and proud next to him, not cowering behind him.

  That’s all I ever wanted for you, her tiger said, speaking up for the first time since Jessica found out about her dragon. I want you to be strong, and I tried so hard to give you strength. I wish I could have, but I’m glad you have it now.

  Oh, crap. Jessica felt the guilt rear up all over again. She’d forgotten for a moment that her tiger was there, too. See, that was what she meant by not being able to handle this. How did she balance having two animals? How did she figure out how to give each side equal time? And with two completely different personalities, how did she not hurt one of them with her thoughts?

  No, no, her tiger rushed out. No feeling guilty. This is what I wanted for you. I’m glad you have the dragon. She can give you what I can’t. And I’ve known about her for a long time. I like her. I’m glad for me as well as you. I have a companion.

  Jessica blinked back tears, feeling overwhelmed. Maybe this wasn’t the curse she’d first thought it was. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise.

  “Jess? Baby, are you okay?”

  She turned around as Kian’s sleepy voice came from behind her. He was sitting up in bed, the covers falling to his waist, bare chest gleaming in the moonlight, as he rubbed a hand over his sleep rumpled hair. An affectionate smile curled her lips up as she took him in. God, she loved him. So much she almost couldn’t stand it. It was bubbling up inside her, threatening to drown her.

  “I’m fine. I just couldn’t sleep.”

  A roguish grin slowly graced his features and he winked. “Come back to bed and I’ll make another attempt at wearing you out.”

  Her core clenched and she was just about to take him up on his offer when her cell phone rang. She glanced at it in surprise before looking at Kian. “Hardly anyone ever calls me.”

  “It’s pretty late to be getting calls, too,” he replied with a frown.

  She moved to the dresser and picked it up, hearing the covers rustling as he got up to join her. “I don’t recognize the number, either. It’s not even our area code.”

  Kian looked at her grimly. “Answer it and put it on speaker phone.”

  Nodding, she swiped the answer button, immediately putting the speaker on. “Hello?”

  “Hello, Alessa,” a voice, more hiss than spoken words, came through the speaker. “How have you been?”

  Alarmed, she glanced at Kian. He nodded for her to speak, and she cleared her throat, hoping to loosen the tightness. “Um, I’m okay.”

  “Ah, I see you didn’t ask who Alessa was. Good, you already know. And you have me on speaker phone. I’m sure the War Cats’ Alpha is listening, as well. Good, because I want to speak to both of you.”

  “Is… is this the Drako?” she asked, not able to make her voice go above a whisper.

  “It is. I’m pleased you know who we are. Do you know what you are, young princess?”

  Kian growled deep in his throat. “What the hell do you want, asshole?”

  “Oooh, the tiger is acting all macho and badass.” The hissing voice took on a sinister quality, becoming deeper and darker. “We know you want to make our Alessa your queen. But she can never be that, do you understand? She’s our princess, and more powerful than you or your warriors can ever hope to be. She belongs to us. We would have just taken her home where she belongs, but you wouldn’t let her go.”

  “And I never will.”

  “How sweet that you’re willing to die for her. Because that’s what will happen. No matter what happens from this point on, you will die for your interference. That’s a given. But you can still save your tribe. Be standing outside your gates with her three days from now at five o’clock at night. We’ll take her, end your pathetic life, and leave your tribe as they are. But if you try to fight us, make no mistake, everyone in Durga Valley will die. You think you’re the best warriors on the planet, but you can’t stand against us. We have magic you can’t hope to fight. The best choice you can make is to give us Alessa and then die nobly. Otherwise your entire tribe is done for.”

  “Why?” Jessica asked in a whisper, unable to find her voice. “Why can’t you let me be?”

  “Because you’re ours. Remember, Alpha. Three days from today. Or everyone dies. And thank Isla for giving us Alessa’s phone number so we could communicate. So thoughtful of her. Oh, wait. You can’t thank her. Such a shame, that.”

  The phone call ended just as the phone fell from her nerveless fingers, clattering to the floor. Tha
t was it, then. The game was over. They couldn’t fight them. Couldn’t fight magic when they had no idea what the Drako could even do.

  She would give herself over stoically. She couldn’t let the whole tribe be wiped out if they attempted to fight.

  But the real tragedy was that Kian would die, no matter what they did. And she couldn’t bear that.

  The pain crashing over her became too much to bear, and her legs crumpled beneath her as she fell to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably. He would die, and it was all because of her.

  Kian glanced from Jessica’s sleeping form on the bed before looking out the window at the sunrise. It was beautiful and he wanted to appreciate it, because he didn’t think he’d have many left. But there was far too much to do, if there were only three days left before the Drako descended upon them.

  He’d held Jessica when she’d fallen apart after the phone call, but nothing he said or did calmed her. After an hour of trying to comfort her, knowing she hadn’t slept at all yet, he used his gift of compulsion for only the second time in his life and made her sleep.

  And he refused to feel guilty about it. She was literally making herself sick, dry heaving in between sobs. Nothing he could say or do would help, so he did the only thing he could do.

  Since then, he’d just been sitting on the bed, watching her sleep. She should be more worried about what they wanted her for, but she hadn’t been. She’d been more upset over his fate than hers. But he didn’t mind it.

  Yes, he mourned all the time with her that he’d lose. He should have forever with her. Instead, he had only days. He grieved for their lost minutes, hours, years. He despised the thought of missing even one smile, let alone a lifetime of them.

  He mourned the children they’d never have.

  But he could bear losing his life if she was okay. What he couldn’t abide was knowing that she was going to be taken by a clan full of evilness. Only evil went to the lengths the Drako had gone to. She was facing a future with that, yet what upset her was his demise.

  We have to figure out what to do next, his tiger said, clawing desperately at Kian’s chest, making him wince with pain. This can’t be it. There has to be something.

  If there was, Kian hadn’t figured it out yet. But that didn’t mean he was giving up. With a heavy exhale, he glanced over at Jessica’s sleeping form and then quietly stood, grabbing his phone and walking to the living room. He didn’t want to let her out of his sight, but he had to start making calls, and he didn’t want to risk waking her up.

  Dialing the number for the most important call, he waited impatiently as the phone rang. He was just about to hang up and redial when it was finally answered.

  “Kian? It’s six o’clock in the morning. What’s wrong?”

  “Hey, Ian. Sorry about calling so early, but it’s important.”

  There was a pause and he heard Ian murmuring to his mate, Holly. That was something else he’d regret. He hadn’t had a chance to spend as much time with his half-brother as he would have liked. At least, not as brothers. They hadn’t even known until a year and a half ago. They had a lifetime of catching up to do that wasn’t going to happen. And little Shelby. He’d miss her, too.

  “Okay, Kian, what’s going on?”

  Inhaling deeply, he steadied his nerves and then explained the situation. Ian listened quietly without interrupting other than cursing occasionally. When he was done, silence stretched out over the line for a moment.

  “Fuck, Kian. How can I help?”

  “I want to send all of the women and children to you. Even if we do what they want, I don’t trust that they won’t kill me and then take out the tribe anyway. I want the women and children safe. I know it’s a lot to ask. The number isn’t small. But I need to know they’re safe, and there’s no one else I can trust with that.”

  “It won’t be a problem. There are a lot of us in Eagle Creek who can take them in. But is that all you want from me? I can do more. I can be there and fight. That’s what I’m trained to do.”

  “No!” he barked, pausing with a look at the bedroom door, listening hard to make sure he hadn’t woken Jessica up. Lowering his voice, he continued. “No, I don’t want any of you around here. It’s not your fight, and I won’t risk any of you like that.”

  “We might not have grown up together, and we might not have known that long, but you’re my brother, Kian. We’re family. That makes it my fight.”

  “It doesn’t. I don’t want you here. Promise me, Ian. All I want is a place to send the women and children.”

  A heavy pause stretched out, and then he finally heard Ian sigh. “Fine. Send them here whenever you need to. And remember, whatever you need, if it’s in my power to give, you have it.”

  Emotion tightened Kian’s throat, and he coughed, trying to clear it away. “Thanks, Ian. I appreciate it more than you know.”

  When they hung up, he bowed his head, gripping his phone tightly enough he thought he’d break it. Emotions were bombarding him hard, one after another, never letting up, and he was almost brought to his knees from the force of them.

  His father would have ridiculed him. Would have told him that feeling so strongly made him half a man and even less of an alpha. But Kian disagreed. Feeling like that made him the best kind of man and leader. And as much as he hurt like a motherfucker, he wouldn’t change it.

  Emotions made him human. They made him good. They meant he wasn’t an unfeeling, evil bastard, like Kabir had been.

  He just wished he wasn’t feeling quite so strongly in that moment.

  Exhaling heavily, he fought to get control of himself. He had to call a meeting with his top warriors and the Enforcers and figure out what the fuck they were going to do.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jessica watched as Kian spoke intently to Zane. Well, it was more like they were arguing about something, but she wasn’t close enough to hear. She didn’t care much about hearing it, either. She just couldn’t let Kian out of her sight.

  Two more days. That was all she had with him and she wasn’t going to waste a second of it.

  Exhaling, she wrapped her arms around her waist, holding tightly. She’d been wracking her brain for the last day, trying to come up with a solution, but there was none. They were going to take her and kill Kian. Because the man who called had been right. They couldn’t fight magic they knew nothing about.

  But I do, her dragon said, speaking up for the first time since the Drako had called.

  She froze, brow furrowing. Her heart leapt, but she cautioned herself about getting her hopes up. How could her dragon know anything about what was going on?

  What do you know?

  I’ve been thinking about this. That’s why I’ve been quiet. Little bits and pieces of knowledge have been coming to me, but I wasn’t sure how I knew them. The clan is nothing without their queen. That’s part of why they want you. You’re next in line. That’s why he said you’re so powerful. You have to fight back. Strike out at the queen. She’ll be there because she can’t risk it going wrong.

  Shrugging, Jessica shook her head helplessly. But how will I know who the queen is?

  You likely won’t, but I will. We’re the only ones who can do this. Let me out when the time comes. I’ll take care of her. I need to think more, try to remember more. But remember, we have to fight. It’s our only chance.

  Wait!

  But it was too late. Her dragon had already sunk down inside her, too deep to reach. Her mind raced even as she walked quickly toward Kian and Zane. She didn’t even think twice about trusting what her dragon told her. What had she said the other night?

  You should listen to your animals more often. We sometimes know things that you yourself don’t even know.

  Zane was thrusting his face into Kian’s when she reached them. “I am not leaving you here to fight this by yourself while I go hide like a bitch in Eagle Creek. You’re out of your mind if you think I will. It’s. Not. Happening.”

  Kian ran a weary han
d through his hair. “You have to, cousin. You’re next in line. If they wipe out the village, those left behind need an alpha. You’re the only one qualified.”

  “Find someone else. I’m not leaving.”

  Kian opened his mouth to reply but Jessica spoke, her words rushing together. “We’re fighting them.”

  “At least Jessica has some sense,” Zane spat.

  Kian turned to her with a puzzled look. “What are you talking about, Jessica? I’ve thought this through. We can’t fight. There’s no way to win.”

  “And there’s no guarantee they won’t kill everyone anyway once they have me. We don’t have a choice. But we can win, Kian.”

  He shook his head, looking so tired and defeated that it broke her heart. “How? How do we fight magic we know nothing about?”

  “With me.”

  Zane cocked his head, giving her a considering look. “Explain.”

  “First of all, I’m a weapon just by virtue of being what I am.” They both looked confused and she rolled her eyes. “I’m a dragon, remember? Dragons are virtually indestructible. Very hard to fight, unless you’re also a dragon, and very hard to kill.”

  Kian nodded. “That’s true, but who’s to say they won’t have more dragons? They’re very rare, but they exist. And there are others like you out there. We know that because of the image Noah found. They could bring them along.”

  “Or they could not have any at all. Also, remember what he said when he called. He called me their princess. My dragon is remembering pieces of our history. She said the clan is ruled by a queen. I’m next in line. But I don’t think that’s the only reason they want me. He talked about how powerful I was. And the way he said it was like I was more powerful than most of them, even. There’s a reason they want me so badly. Like you said, I’m not the only one like me who’s out there. Powerful, Kian.”