“If you die, he will know no peace anyway, but it isn’t going to happen. When I shift, strap that bag around one of my forelegs, okay?” he instructs and steps back, and I watch with a wince as he shifts. It always looks so painful, but they assure me it isn’t anymore.
His dragon huffs and nudges me with his giant head, almost knocking me over. I give him a scratch between the eye ridges before dealing with the backpack. He ambles over to the edge, spreads his wings, and pushes off into the air. I watch, wide-eyed, as he circles around before returning and hovering like a massive hummingbird, his wings flapping madly just outside the entrance like he is waiting for me.
“Here goes nothing,” I mutter and let my dragon rise. There’s a blinding flash of light and magic, and suddenly, my perspective changes as my soul recedes, allowing my dragon to take control. I watch through her eyes, and when she lowers her head, I catch a glimpse of her legs. She is a paler shade of purple, almost lavender in color, compared to Hunter’s shimmery eggplant hue. She spreads her wings and arches her back in a cat-like motion, stretching like she’s been asleep for a long time, which, I guess, she has been. She finally steps forward and off the ledge without a care in the world, and we begin to plummet. I scream, but of course the sound goes nowhere. I struggle to take over, but she has a tight hold on the reins. I hear a bellow of fear behind us, but as the ground rushes up, she snaps her wings out, and we glide to safety. She roars triumphantly as we take to the sky, our wings flapping slowly as if she didn’t just come close to splattering us on the ground. She circles her way up, the air whipping past us as she gains speed and altitude. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Hunter’s dragon come level with us before slightly taking the lead, directing us toward the village.
The view from up here is glorious, and I feel her pleasure as the wind rushes over our scales and the sun shines on us, doing little to ease the cold, but her body starts to heat, warding off the chill as we fly through a cloud bank and then head below it, breaking through to reveal the village of Zalfari in the distance. The return journey is a lot quicker than the one we took last night, our dragons’ speeds far superior to Hunter’s in half form. Before long, we are landing just outside the village. There are people out and about, unlike the last time we arrived, and the children cheer and clap as both dragons land, though they refrain from coming any closer.
Hunter lands between me and the gawking villagers, allowing me privacy to shift and clothe myself despite nudity being commonplace amongst shifters. It is still a long way off for me to feel comfortable being naked in front of people, if that will ever even happen.
I wear the dress I selected to return to the council home. I have a meeting with Nox’s parents to get through before we decide our next move, and I want them to take me seriously, so if that means I have to look like a queen, then I will. Hunter reaches into the bag and pulls out something shiny. When he lifts it, I see it’s a small tiara. He settles it on my head, pushing a lock of my hair back over my shoulder.
“My dragon insisted you needed this. It’s obviously not your official crown, but he was adamant you needed this today,” he tells me, shrugging sheepishly when I raise an eyebrow.
I reach up and cup his jaw. “Thank you,” I tell him, pressing a kiss to his cheek.
Before he can reply, the sound of hooves has us turning our attention to an approaching animal. It’s a small horse, a child, I think, if I’m guessing correctly. It has long, gangly legs, and it slides to a stop just in front of us. It’s a pretty white thing with a mane that sticks up at all angles. It snorts, its attention going from me to Hunter, then it squeals and turns and takes off in the direction it came from, bucking and kicking its back legs.
Hunter chuckles. “I guess it caught scent of my dragon,” he explains when I frown at the reaction. “It will be able to smell that we’re predators, but I bet it couldn’t stop its curiosity.”
We walk hand and hand through the village, the residents watching us with wary eyes. A few give us nods of respect, but most of them remain neutral, if not a little suspicious and leery. I’m not upset, since I would be cautious as well if I had been through what they just experienced. I just smile at them and focus on the tasks ahead. Mending bridges is going to take time, and I don’t have it right now.
ChapterThirty-One
Colbie
We let ourselves into the council building and climb the stairs to the second floor. The familiar scents of my mates reach my nose, and we track them to a closed door. Hunter doesn’t bother to knock, instead pushing it open and letting us in. We find my other mates sitting around, drinking coffee, and they turn their attention to us. Each of them is in a state of undress, wearing only a pair of sweatpants they must have had in their backpacks. I swallow deeply at seeing all their delicious shifter flesh on display. Liam smirks and gives me a wink when I wipe the corner of my mouth to make sure I’m not drooling.
“You’re finally here!” Brodie jumps to his feet and comes over, pulling me to his chest. I drop Hunter’s hand, who growls, but Brodie just shushes him before giving me a scorching kiss.
“Easy, you big lizard. We’re all going to feel a little needy until the mating drive settles. You know it can take a while,” he scolds the dragon when he pulls away. Suddenly, we are surrounded by the others, and I’m passed from Brodie to Liam, then Gryffin and Gem. They smother me with affection, telling me how much they missed me before I finally end up in Micah’s arms.
I’m a little unsure about us. I barely know the guy, but my creatures don’t care. They know our mate, and they pulse with the unsealed bond, pushing me to take care of what nature intended. I grit my teeth and squeeze my hands into fists to stop myself from mauling the mer. I can see by the lines around his lips and eyes and the tension in his body that he is also having trouble restraining himself.
“Hi,” I murmur, and I hear him take a deep breath and blow it out again before he grimaces.
“Wow, fighting the need is a lot harder than I thought it would be,” he admits, “but unless we want to run the bath and have a very awkward mating, it’s going to have to wait,” he explains, knowing exactly what I’m feeling.
“Okay, but as soon as we find a body of water big enough, we are taking care of this unbearable need,” I tell him, and he nods.
“Even if it’s frozen solid, we will get fire starters to melt it for us,” he agrees before leaning in and pressing a gentle kiss to my lips, then he pulls away and stalks to the other side of the room.
I clear my throat and take a couple of breaths, centering myself so I don’t chase him. “Okay, we need to speak to Lena and her mates. We have to ask her about Nox. I didn’t see him anywhere yesterday, and I’m worried about what that means. His truck was definitely in that parking lot, and if he isn’t here, then where is he?” My worry returns with a vengeance, my mind conjuring all kinds of scenarios. Did the lion kill him like he attempted to do to us? Did they already succeed in blocking me from the crown? Or is Nox out there somewhere in the world, doing his darn best to avoid me?
“Yes, let’s get them working on the location of the children, and then we can focus on finding your last two mates. Maybe they know where Nox might have gone since he isn’t here.” Gem tips his coffee mug back, finishing it before going to the kitchen and placing it in the dishwasher.
He grabs the pot of coffee and two cups and pours both Hunter and me a mug before adding milk and sugar to mine and leaving his black. Gem passes them to us, giving me a kiss on the cheek before walking in what I assume is the direction of the bedrooms. The rest of them follow suit.
“There’s cereal in the cupboard and milk and fruit in the fridge if you’re hungry,” Gryffin tells me before following the others.
I sink down on one of the chairs and take a sip of my coffee, sighing with relief as it hits my taste buds while Hunter pulls out a couple of bowls and holds up a box of cereal.
“Yeah, I guess I should eat, though my stomach is in knots at the thought of this meeting. I assumed unicorns were supposed to be all gentle and serene, but Lena is more like a freaking dragon,” I grumble as he pours us bowls and adds milk before bringing them over to the table.
He chuckles. “Yeah, she certainly doesn’t fit the stereotype, but years of needing to put your walls up to avoid being hurt probably did that to her, not to mention resentment at how her children had to suffer is enough to make any parent defensive.”
He slides the bowl over, and I waste no time inhaling it. We certainly worked up an appetite last night, but I still wasn’t tempted when Hunter suggested we shift and go find a deer or something for our dragons to snack on. Gross.
It doesn’t take long for the others to return dressed in their watch outfits with backpacks over their shoulders. Mine was left behind at the cabin, so it’s lucky that Hunter had this dress and a spare uniform for me.
