The Moon Shadow : The Wolfrik Trilogy | Book 1

by K. Rea

  “You’re displeased,” Ares stated.

  “Thank you for caring for me, but I am confused, maybe more so than I was before. Your mother is a phoenix. You’re a dragon. Aiden was a vampire. How is that possible?” I asked. He pursed his lips and sat on the corner of the bed casually, like he had done it a dozen times before. He probably had, if what Ruby said was true.

  “Aiden was a vampire, and I am a dragon,” Ares stated. “Phoenixes are always female. When a phoenix has a son, the boy will appear human except for incredible healing abilities until he dies. If he is reborn through fire, he becomes a dragon. Typically, the boy’s father or another dragon in the family would have unlocked those powers when the child is young with dragon-fire in a naming ceremony, but any fire would do,” Ares explained. “When my mother carried us into the fire, it was to save us, transform us, and take us home through the portal.”

  “When Gaius stole Aiden from our mother’s arms Gaius’ household attacked the Wolfrik King and killed all the witnesses. Gaius fed Aiden his blood while Aiden was still human to make him appear like a human child turned into a vampire. Then Gaius spread rumors about the king’s madness, how the King killed Afriel and I. With a dying burned baby in his arms, no one refuted his claims, and Gaius took the throne. Then the Shadows Wars began,” Ares said, his elbows resting against his knees.

  “Why didn’t Afriel or Apollo come back for Aiden?” I asked, heartbroken and repulsed at the idea of leaving a child in the arms of that monster.

  “The king forbid it. He feared losing us all, and as a family, we were all weak. I was a newborn and separated from my twin. Apollo and Afriel were reunited mates kept apart too long. As such, Aiden was raised a vampire under Gaius’ thrall; he was a sickly child. Only humans survive transformations into vampires or werewolves. No one expected Aiden to survive the transformation to a vampire. It’s unheard of. A Court of Light creature being turned into a Shadow. It should have been impossible; his birthright would have burned him from the inside out with fever for years,” Ares said, his paused running his hand through his hair.

  “To have survived as a vampire, Aiden should have lost all other supernatural dispositions during his transformation. I sought him out once when we were teenagers, but by then it was too late. He was Gaius’ son and embraced being a vampire.” Ares explained.

  “Then he was a vampire and not a dragon,” I said dejectedly. The glimmer of hope in my heart sputtered out like a candle in the wind.

  “He was, but not anymore,” Ares said, resting his hand over mine. His touch rough and warm against my skin. The roar in my ears seemed to grow as my heart lurched. The black void of the bond swirled. I hated Ares for his likeness.

  “We’ve run out of time,” Ares muttered, as the roaring seemed to grow louder. “Come with me.”

  THIRTY - NINE

  Ares grabbed my hand and led me through the apartment into the hall. The roaring wasn’t in my head; it grew even louder. The smell of fresh smoke hung in the air. The sound of running feet and hurried shouts echoed in the halls. Ares stopped when we arrived at the throne room. The tables were gone, and the room was empty except for Ruby, Maye, and Mason standing at the center of a balcony talking between each other.

  “The west forest is on fire again,” Mason said.

  “Weren’t you patrolling the west forest this morning?” Ruby asked.

  “He’s still hunting for her. He smelled her on you,” Maye said as we approached the balcony. “Nice of you to join us.”

  “My Queen,” Ruby said with a nod, “you should look.”

  The noonday sun shone brightly despite the smoke. It did nothing to hide the monsters in the sky. A dragon soared above the forest. Its scales were the color of midnight as it raced along the trees after its prey. Smaller, faster, and red, the dragon’s prey flew through the trees. Flames surrounded the creature, but it did not burn, it did not falter. The dragon roared, flames erupted from his mouth and hid the firebird.

  “Bren is tiring, milord. Your sister needs help,” Maye said, concerned.

  The dragon flapped his wings. The firebird tilted for a moment. The dragon snapped his jaws. An enraged screech echoed as the firebird darted through the dragon’s jaws. Ares didn’t hesitate as he ran for the edge of the balcony and launched himself into the air. Flames and midnight blue scales covered his body, then he doubled in size. He was larger than a grizzly bear. The flap of his wings created a gust of air that threw me back. I clapped my hands over my ears as Ares roared and flew in direction of the fight and flailing firebird.

  “He has a sister? What is she?” I asked, watching as Ares swooped toward the aggressive dragon.

  “Princess Bren Charon is a phoenix, like Queen Afriel. Bren, along with Ares, came to save her brother,” Maye explained. The smaller phoenix darted away and flew toward the balcony.

  “He’s proving to be stubborn like their father,” Maye said as the two dragons collided. The impact sounded like thunder. They were mirror images of each other. Their tails whipping around each other, they gnashed their teeth. I couldn’t tell who was who. One was trying to push the other to the ground. The other was snapping his opponent’s neck.

  “He needs you; he’s been looking for you,” Ruby said.

  “Ruthless bastard has been burning the countryside for days,” Mason said. “He’s decimated the vampire houses and anyone associated with Gaius that didn’t flee or submit. We kept him contained to this area, but he’s getting stronger.”

  “Even after Ares has fought him into unconsciousness, he hasn’t turned back. He’s frantic and full of rage when he wakes and hunts again,” Maye explains. “Always ruthlessly hunting.”

  The firebird landed on the balcony. Her body shrank as the flames winked out, and her red feathers melted away. Familiar blue eyes scanned the group, pausing on me before she turned back to the sky.

  “Ares is bringing him this way,” Bren said. “Remember, be prepared to run if they send dragon fire here. They’re both careless creatures.”

  The two dragons swirled, dipped, and fought in the sky. The forest burned behind them, dark smoke floated through the sky. The smoke made everything hazy as the dragons fell. They wrapped their tails around each other. One dragon had his jaws on the back of the other’s neck.

  “Ares has him,” Bren said.

  “I don’t know how you tell them apart,” Mason said.

  “Ares still has his scar in dragon form. Aiden doesn’t,” Bren said. My heart seized as the dragons crashed into the grass in front of us. The dragons didn’t move, instead laying on their backs. I watched as their chests rose and fell. I walked to the edge of the banister and stared at the beasts. Twin beasts.

  “Aiden?” I whispered.

  “By the Goddess, no one told her already?” Bren scoffed.

  “Aiden!” I yelled; my hands gripped the banister. My claws erupted from my fingers.

  A dragon growled and flipped over. The roar was deafening. It ran toward me; its wings flapped once before the other dragon pinned it to the ground. A vicious snarl escaped the pinned dragon, and he thrashed. I shifted and leaped from the balcony. The outcry behind me drowned out by dragons’ roar. I landed hard and rolled to my feet.

  The dragons were at least three times my size. A dragon paced and snarled between the dragon that growled and me. I approached them slowly and growled back. The bond was silent, a dark inky void in my chest. Yet it trembled.

  Mine, the wolf echoed.

  The dragon roared; Ares roared back. Aiden rose and wrapped his tail around Ares’ throat and used his tail to fling Ares away. Ares hit the ground hard as Aiden ran for me, roaring. Fire flickering around him. I froze. He didn’t slow, his jaws snapping. Ares shifted back to human form.

  “Evelyn, run!” Ares bellowed. It was too late. Fire surrounded me with a raging dragon in front of me. I shifted and stood my
ground in the middle of the smoke and flames as the firestorm consumed everything around me.

  The dragon tilted its head; his blue eyes burned. He stopped a foot away. Fire surrounded us. Heat poured off of him. For a heart-stopping moment, I thought he was going to eat me or at least burn me. He lowered his head close to mine with a growl. I reached my hand up and gently stroked the scales on his face. The delicate-looking scales were swirling shades of midnight, purple, and emerald. They were soft like a snake scales under my fingers. He purred; it shook the ground beneath my feet.

  “Don’t fret, little beast, I’ve got you,” I whispered, smiling, “I love you.”

  The purr changed into a rumble, then laughter as the scales beneath my fingers smoothed away into skin and stubble. He stood there, shirtless, in ragged jeans, and covered in ash. The surrounding fires died down as I pulled him into my arms. I brought his face down and kissed him like I did the night at the festival. The bond flickered as he clutched me back.

  “I looked for you in the woods, in our dreams. You ran from me; you’re always running away from me.” Aiden whispered. He was the monster in my dreams.

  “I didn’t know it was you Aiden, I thought I lost you.” I said, I pressed my lips against his again. The kiss gentle this time, an apology.

  “Mo ghràdh, I want far more than a kiss,” Aiden whispered to me as he hugged me close.

  “Thank the Goddess for that,” I said with a laugh.

  The grass smoldered around us as Aiden let me go. He kept his hand tightly intertwined with mine. The smoke cleared around us. Aiden looked up sharply and pulled me behind him; he snarled and growled. The air around him shimmered as his temper and body temperature soared.

  Ares didn’t hesitate. He struck Aiden hard in the jaw. I flinched at the crackling sound that came from the impact. Aiden let go of my hand to defend himself, and Ares grabbed Aiden. They both snarled, then glared at each other, tense. Mirror images to each other but for Ares’ scar.

  “Aiden, this is Ares,” I said as I placed a hand on Aiden’s shoulder.

  “I know,” Aiden answered, “I gave him that scar.”

  “What the hell were you thinking, attacking her like that?” Ares bellowed as he released Aiden. Ares stood with his arms crossed and a conflicted look on his face.

  “I wasn’t. The dragon was in control,” Aiden admitted, then Ares turned to me.

  “Do you realize he could have killed you? That leap from the balcony alone, by the darkness -” Bren landed beside Ares in firebird form then shifted back to her human form.

  “Ares, stop badgering them. Let’s take this reunion inside somewhere more private,” Bren said as she put a hand on Ares’ shoulder. I looked behind me to the balconies above. Werewolves and fae scattered across them, all watching. Mason glared down at us, his expression stoic. Ruby smiled with mirth. Maye was gone. Ares turned and walked off, then shifted and took to the sky. His dragon form soaring high before diving into the cover of the forest.

  “He’ll be fine,” Bren promised.

  “You’ve been after me for days, keeping me from Evelyn. Who are you?” Aiden growled; Bren looked back at Aiden. Her smirk was familiar but feminine. She held out her hand to Aiden. He took it slowly.

  “Bren Charon, heir to the Court of Light,” Bren quipped as she shook his hand. “Welcome to the family, brother.”

  FORTY

  Aiden stayed by my side even when Mason suggested a shower and tossed him a clean shirt. Some part of Aiden was always touching me. He kept his hand in mine as we walked. When we sat in the great hall, his thigh brushed against mine under the table as Bren, Ruby, and Mason explained recent events over lunch.

  I didn’t really hear much of what was said or discussed. The void in my chest from the bond was still there, and it flickered only when Aiden touched me. He looked different to me, my memory of him before like a faded photograph. It didn’t compare to the vivid man sitting in front of me now taking it all in like a seasoned battle commander. Aiden’s vampire nature had burned away in the churning fires. All that remained was the dragon that had always burned beneath the surface, trapped. He turned to me; his blue ember eyes looked at me, concerned.

  “Evelyn, are you okay?” He asked. I looked at him, surprised.

  “Yes, why?” I responded. He tilted his head and frowned.

  “Mason asked you a question about Ciara,” Aiden answered.

  “Sorry, Mason, what was the question?” I asked, turning back to Mason.

  “Do you want to stay here with Ciara out there somewhere?” Mason asked.

  “No,” I responded.

  “I have a place we can go. It’s protected,” Aiden responded. “If you two don’t mind, could we pick this up later?”

  “Fine,” Mason muttered, and Ruby smiled.

  “Your quarters are still standing. Everything you need should still be inside. We’ll find you a vehicle. Come on, Mason,” Ruby beckoned to the wolf. He looked disgruntled at the order but followed her without hesitation. Bren looked at the two of us critically, considering us. She didn’t rise to leave.

  “I need a word with Evelyn alone,” Bren said; Aiden tensed beside me. We were the only three people in the hall.

  “It’s not a request,” Bren said, Aiden only bristled further. His hand heated in mine, the cool, collected vampire replaced by a turbulent dragon.

  “You can wait in your quarters or outside the doorway, but she won’t be allowed to leave if I can’t speak to her alone,” Bren threatened.

  “I’ll be at the apartment waiting for you, I’ll leave the door unlocked,” Aiden said before kissing me gently on the forehead. He rose from the table, nodded at Bren, and walked out. His steps growing fainter with each passing moment. It was the first time he had left my side since changing back from dragon form.

  “You have my full attention,” I said, resting my elbows on the rough wooden table.

  “I was told you came to this Court a prisoner, compelled and injured. Then you were given an option of marriage or becoming a blood concubine. You bonded with my brother while he was a vampire,” Bren said. I nodded.

  “Now, you can be the queen of this Court or appoint another in your place. The marriage you had with Aiden when he was a vampire is void. At least no one here would hold you to it. I daresay not even the gods would. Then there’s the bond. I suspect it disappeared mostly when his vampire self-burned and died, didn’t it?” Bren asked.

  “Yes,” I said, admitting that what I felt for Aiden had changed. I loved him still, that much was true, but where the bond was before, only a flicker remained. I wasn’t even sure it was the bond. We weren’t connected the same. My heart still ached for that feeling, that wholeness. Bren smiled sadly.

  “I’ve heard when moon shadows finally claim their lovers, they mate for life. That sometimes, the wolf decides their mate for them. The Aiden you knew died in the fire, but he is still the same in most ways. Dragons are similar to your wolves; they mate for life, whether they have one mate or four. The way Aiden looks at you, the way he hunted you, I’d bet my crown his dragon already considers you his,” Bren said with a smirk.

  “I know you came back for Aiden; I suspect you love him despite the questionable beginnings of your relationship. I wanted to make sure you had time to decide if this is really what you want. The next time you, you know, the bond will snap back into place. For life is longer with dragons than you’d expect,” Bren explained as a softest shown in her expression.

  “If you choose Aiden, you know the way to his rooms. If not, or if you need more time, I can arrange for you to join your brother if you prefer. We have nowhere to be. I’ll wait with you,” Bren said, sitting back.

  “Thank you, that won’t be necessary. I know my choice. I’ll make it again and again as many times as I need to,” I said, rising from the table and walking to the door that led t
o Aiden’s apartment. I stopped at the doorway, pausing before looking back at the princess. A warrior princess, a stranger that took the time to look out for me when others didn’t. She looked alone, sad.

  “Do you have a mate?” I asked. Bren looked stricken for a moment before she schooled her expression into that of a carefree woman.

  “Not anymore,” Bren said as she touched the ring strung around her neck. “Protect what you have. If there is the one thing I’ve learned, its love is worth more than any Court or crown.”

  I nodded one queen-to-be to another, turned, and walked out as fast as my feet could carry me to Aiden’s door. The door was unlocked as he promised; it opened smoothly. I walked into the apartment and followed the smoky citrus smell through his room. His burned clothes and new shirt were thrown in a pile in the corner. The bathroom door was open, letting steam escape.

  Aiden stood in the middle of the bathroom, staring at the mirror. His scars and the wolf tattoo were gone, not a single mark marred his skin. He had partially shifted, midnight blue wings sprouted from his back. Whereas Bren’s red feathered wings were like a falcon, Aiden’s scaled dragon wings resembled a bat’s. His eyes met mine in the mirror; they burned like blue embers as I walked up behind him.

  “May I?” I asked, reaching a hand out to touch them.

  “Always,” Aiden responded. I ran my fingers along the top of his wings carefully, slowly. Aiden trembled beneath my hands. “Do you like them?”

  “They’re beautiful, and less intimating this way,” I admitted. “You are a fearsome beast in full form.”

  A soft rumble came from Aiden, almost a purr. I reached up and took his head in my hands and kissed him tenderly. Aiden wrapped his arms and wings around me for a moment as he kissed me back. He set me on the counter and kissed along my neck and shoulders. He made quick work of my clothes; they joined his on the floor. He only stopped kissing me to pull my shirt off over my head. Aiden picked me up and carried me to the door. He paused. A light chuckle escaped him before he grew hot against my skin. His wings faded like a mirage on a hot day.