Virgil shrugged. “Not many. This is the one I know most about, then Indigo Mountain. The others I only know about in passing. A lot of my knowledge also comes from stories and books, as well as word ofmouth.”
I leaned on my knee as I watched him speak. Sometimes I marvelled at how gorgeous he was, both inside and out. His voice was firm, deep, and confident. I could listen to him talkforever.
“You know, I don’t really know all that much about your original pack. Or clan. Whatever it’s called,” I said. “The only thing I know about your past is that you just showed up one day at Scarlet Ridge. Oh, and the fact that you have two shifter forms for somereason.”
Virgil shot me a coy smile. “Right.”
I raised a brow. “Well? You gonnaelaborate?”
He chuckled. “I suppose I have to, now that you’ve cornered me in the tentlikethis.”
I stared at him coyly, waiting for him to continue. Finally, he sighed, crossed his legs and arms, and began tospeak.
“My full name is Virgil Corvae of the tribe of Cinderhollow. My family name belongs to a group of shifters in our tribe who possess the ability to shift into both wolves and corvids - ravens, crows, magpies andthelike.”
“Wow… So you’re not the only one whose both a wolf and araven?”
He shook his head. “No. My whole family has this ability. Our forms serve two tasks. One is the ability to blend in with most shifters - wolves serve as a recognizable baseline for our kind. The other ability is of flight - the raven, in my case. My family needed to travel far and wide forourrole.”
“Your role?” I asked. “What’sthat?”
Virgil explained. “Our tribe… Cinderhollow has a different way of functioning than most packs or clans. Instead of staying within the pack, for example, as most wolves do, Cinderhollow values outside blood. By bringing in new shifter blood, they can potentially gain more forms, and therefore more power.” He frowned suddenly. “Although, I’m not sure how much more power they need, considering their powers to shift into the most powerful creatureofall…”
He trailed off, leaving me confused and anxious to hear more. What could be more powerful than a wolf? “What? Bears?Lions?”
“No.” Virgil looked me in the eye, and said in a morbidly serious tone, “Dragons.”
If it were anyone else, I would have laughed. I would have thought they were fucking with me. But Virgil was dead fucking serious. My mate, who I trusted more than anything, was sitting there with a frown on his face telling me dragonswerereal.
I didn’t know what to say. “Uh. That’s.Dragons?”
“Yes.”
“Dragons.”
Virgil stared at me with the expression of a man who was notjoking.
“Okay,” I finally said. “Ibelieveyou.”
“I know it must sound ridiculous,” he went on. “But I assure you dragons exist. They are not justlegends.”
I didn’t really know how to deal with this information. “Well… As long as they’re not burning my tent down or trying to rip my head off, I guessthat’sfine.”
Virgil laughed. “I don’t think there’s any risk of thathappening.”
“Good.”
I pulled him down with me into the nest of blankets and snuggled into his chest. “So why’d you leave your dragon tribe, then?” I frowned. “They weren’t being mean to you or anything,werethey?”
“No.” He smiled again. “It was more of a different in opinion. Had I stayed, I had a clear role - to serve the dragons. I would have to travel often and far, be away for extended periods of time from a potential family, all to procure mates for them. That’s just not the kind of life Iwanted.”
“That makes sense.” I nosed his chest, breathing in his scent. “And they just let youleave?”
“There wasn’t much fuss, no,” he said. “Dragons aren’t the fire-breathing tyrants you’re probablythinkingof.”
“Good. I’d kick their asses if they laid a claw on you,” Imuttered.
Virgil chuckled again, then pressed a kiss to my head. “Feisty omega. Sleep now. We have a long, hard day aheadofus.”
Right. Themission.
My mind wandered in the direction I didn’t want it togoin.
Thebaby.
Virgil was about to lead our ragtag group into a dangerous revolt against Gunner, and he still didn’t know about the existence ofourbaby.
