“And Lucius grew up as a human,” Jackson added. “He certainly wouldn’t have learned anything about the paranormal world…or the rights we have regarding our mates.”
“Hmm…good points,” Mystia agreed. “If I look at what Lucius saw through the eyes of a human, then his claim that Zane wants to kill him makes sense, especially if Valerian didn’t educate him about the world he was suddenly thrust into.”
“But Brady knows, so why didn’t he explain it to his mate?” asked Jackson.
Rising, Mystia said, “Because even he doesn’t have the full story. Jackson, I need you to come with me to explain to Brady why Zane was forced to kill Valerian.”
“That’s fine,” Jackson replied, getting to his feet. “Shouldn’t Zane come also?”
“Normally I would agree, but not in this case,” Mystia said. “I’m afraid if Lucius sees him…”
“He’ll disappear again,” Jackson finished for her.
“Yes… and if that happens, I doubt Brady will contact me again,” Mystia murmured, taking Jackson’s hand and disappearing with him.
~/~/~/~/~
After finishing his dessert, Fionn set down his fork, looking around to see if everyone else was done. Thankfully, everyone was, because he and his dragon had run out of patience and couldn’t wait any longer. Grinning at Alex, Fionn announced, “I have a mating present for you and your mates.”
“Oh my gods, wait until you see it,” Kieran squealed. “It’s the bestest gift ever. Right,macushla?”
“Do you know what it is?” asked Sawyer, looking at his brother.
Smirking, Hunter nodded. “You’re gonna love it.”
“Oh shit,” Sawyer muttered. He knew that look after seeing it many times on his brother’s face and it never resulted in anything good. Trying to figure out what his brother was up to, he glanced over at Fionn, hoping to find the answer there. But all it did was confuse him since it appeared Fionn was sincere in thinking that Alex would love it.So…not a practical joke.Shrugging in response to Glenn’s question through their mind link, Sawyer pushed back his chair before getting up to trail behind Fionn and Alex.
Glancing behind him, Alex saw Quin and Kieran following along. “Did you guys help my brother pick out the gift?”
“No,” Quin replied quickly, “But we did help him get your room ready for you.”
“That’s so nice!” Alex said, “Thank you very much…and Quin…thanks for the gorgeous dinner table. I was really wowed!”
Lightly bumping his shoulder against Quin’s, Kieran murmured, “I told ya so.”
“Here we are,” Fionn announced, placing his hand on the gold door knob, but not turning it. Instead, he looked at Alex for a moment before continuing. “I never gave anyone a mating gift before so I wasn’t sure what it should be. But my dragon did. Once he pointed it out to me, I realized right away it was perfect. And when my mate agreed with my dragon, that clinched it.”
Tears pooled in Alex’s eyes. No one had ever given him a gift in his entire life—not for his birthday or a holiday or even to let him know they were thinking about him. But his brother—the one their father so cruelly treated and tried to kill—had done so, and that meant the world to him. Reaching out, he wrapped Fionn in a tight hug, whispering how much he loved him and thanking him for being his brother.
Returning Alex’s hug, Fionn thanked Hunter through their mind link for helping him make the decision to meet Alex, and realized that hearing his brother’s condemnation of their father’s behavior was something he needed to help him heal. Stepping back, he surreptitiously brushed away a few tears as he opened the door, standing aside so his brother could see the whole statue.
“Oh my gods!” exclaimed Alex, his eyes big as saucers as he stared at it.
