Chapter 4

ULRICH’S POV

ULRICH COULDN’T BELIEVE HE WAS MATED TO A

VAMPIRE KING, MAGI PRINCE, AND A WEREWOLF. In

actuality, he’d always had his suspicions—but nothing could have prepared him for it. The vampire king, Salem, was a Blue Blood who’d had everything taken from him by the Hunters. When Ulrich looked at the vampire, he saw strength and resilience—a man whose heart was raw with feeling and yearning for justice. How else could Salem have stood up to

thousands of angry vampires just seconds after meeting Ulrich, Thoren, and Cecil? Sure, the dreams might’ve helped build intimacy between the four of them, but they’d still spent most of their lives apart. Ulrich hadn’t expected earning Salem’s approval so quickly, but accepted it nonetheless.

Then there was the magi—and not just any magi—but the son of the witch who cursed Salem’s kingdom. Cecil’s magical display at the summoning ceremony impressed Ulrich, who was unaccustomed to witchcraft beyond his dragon bubble. Yet what he lacked in practical magical ability, he made up for with his senses—and dragons have the best in the world when it comes to their treasured mates. Ulrich felt the power brewing beneath the magi’s surface.

The werewolf, Thoren, was also on Ulrich’s get-to-know list. The guy had a face like an open book, but most of the time, Ulrich felt like he was staring at a blank canvas. Despite the dragon’s innate sensing abilities, Ulrich couldn’t get a read on his wolfish mate.

Above all, Ulrich felt lucky and blessed with such capable, strong mates. His dragon was on cloud nine just thinking about it.

Yet on the other side of the coin sat Ulrich’s worries. If their child was a Blue Blood like Salem, would they be hunted too? What would happen if their secret got out, and the Hunters attacked? He bristled at the thought.

In response, Ulrich’s dragon rumbled and hissed. A serpent like voice echoed through the caverns of Ulrich’s mind. Kill all who threaten the treasure...

Not that I don’t agree, but isn’t it a little early to be thinking about killing our enemies? Ulrich thought back. His dragon rumbled in response, but Ulrich ignored it. Instead, he rolled over and put an arm around Salem, pulling him close.

His concerns had caused him to wake before the crack of dawn, but his mates were still sound asleep around him. They’d quickly grown accustom to sleeping in Salem’s king sized bed and were all cloistered together beneath the covers. Out of all the places in the estate Ulrich could go to,

Salem’s room was his favorite.

Salem turned to face him and curled into Ulrich’s chest. The dragon-shifter rumbled with contentedness and kissed the top of his mate’s head.

“It’s still early—get some rest,” he whispered.

“But you’re awake,” Salem murmured. “Is everything okay?”

“I’m just thinking,” Ulrich whispered.

“About the baby?”

Damn. “You’re too perceptive for your own good.”

“Am I?” Salem chuckled. “It’s just—I’ve been thinking about it too—and I can sense it in your energy.”

“You can do that?”

Salem yawned. “It’s because you shared your blood.”

“Oh, really?” Ulrich rumbled. “I thought it was from all those sexy dreams.”

Salem looked up at him and smiled. “Oh, stop,” he scolded playfully.

Ulrich’s lips quirked into a naughty smile. “Make me,” he whispered.

The dragon shifter leaned down and kissed Salem. His vampire’s chapped lips were cold and Ulrich sought to warm them. He wrapped an arm around his mate’s scrawny frame and grabbed his ass, eliciting a quiet yelp from Salem. Ulrich rippled with pleasure and deepened the kiss, lost within the moment. His skin sizzled under Salem’s touch. His dragon

hummed.

Everything felt right. Perfect, even.

Salem’s chest heaved as he pulled away, panting. “Your eyes are red...” he breathed.

“Blame my dragon,” Ulrich chuckled.

Salem reached up and stroked Ulrich’s cheek. “It’s beautiful.”

“You’re beautiful.”

Ulrich kissed him once more before pulling the surrounding covers over their heads. He lost count of how many hours they laid together, but he didn’t care. There was no place he would rather be.

LATER THAT EVENING, Ulrich stepped outside for a stroll around the property. Beyond the little he saw during the Summoning Ceremony, he hadn’t gotten a good look at it yet and was curious what the grounds of a vampire estate was like. Despite having dragon blood running through his

veins, Ulrich had never so much as tasted wealth and royalty. Quite the opposite, he’d grown up in a rundown orphanage in the middle of the Wilds. The dragon shifter had to work for everything he had in life—and none of it had been handed to him.

Beyond the stairs of the veranda, a path spread out toward the center of the inner courtyard. Since he had no intention of leaving the property, Ulrich turned right and followed another stone walkway around to the backyard. Like the front courtyard, the backyard was outlined with hedges

and beyond that, a forest of tall trees. Unlike the rest of the property, however, hedging also cut through the backyard like a maze. The hedges were tall enough to block one’s view of what was beyond the current path.

As Ulrich followed the perimeter, he found himself further and further away from the main house.

He continued forward until he arrived at a fork in the road. One path led towards the left side of the main house. The other cut straight through the center of the backyard, leading away from the building.

Ulrich followed latter. When he reached the end of the hedge-lined path, he stepped onto a wooden bridge. The contrast from stone to wood surprised the dragon-shifter, who looked up from his feet and came to an abrupt stop. He gazed at the sight before him in wonder. Below his very

feet, Ulrich could see the tranquil flow of pond water. The bridge was suspended over a winding pond adorned with lily pads and colorful dragon fish.

He sucked in a breath and grinned. On the inside, his dragon was practically preening. Something about the dragon fish stroked its fiery ego.

Ulrich shared that feeling as he leaned over the rail of the bridge and stared into the blue pond below.

Beyond the bridge, Ulrich noticed a gazebo that appeared to float atop the water. Tendrils of beautiful flowers weaved along the bridge and overtook the canopy of the gazebo. The dragon-shifter stood still, mesmerized by the gorgeous, sequestered space.

Across the pond, a flash of movement caught Ulrich’s eye. Seconds later, he heard Cecil cry out and his instincts took over.

When he reached the gazebo, Ulrich found Cecil on his hands and knees, face pressed into the wood of the gazebo’s flooring. He quirked an eyebrow. “What are you doing?”

Cecil startled at the dragon-shifter’s sudden voice and whirled around.

“I can explain.”

“Explain away.” Ulrich covered his mouth with one hand, trying to hide the small smirk quirking at his lips.

“I just...” Cecil hesitated. “I dropped my wand.”

Ulrich’s eyes scanned the floor of wooden planks, but he didn’t see a wand. “Dropped it where?”

Cecil straightened and walked to one side of the gazebo where he leaned over the railing and pointed at the dragon fish pond. The magi turned his head back and gave Ulrich a look—the kind that tugged at the dragon shifter’s sensitive heartstrings.

“You dropped it in the pond?” he asked.

Cecil nodded, his red lips pressed together as if he were pouting. Ulrich sighed. “All right, all right. I’ll get it for you.”

Ulrich stripped off his shoes and pants and set them on the swing. He surveyed the pond for a safe spot to land and hopped over the railing. His feet plunged into the water, the impact sending shock waves across the surface of the pond. Dragon fish scattered and disappeared into its depths.

Above him, Cecil whistled and winked. “Water’s pretty deep, huh? It’s up to your waist.”

“Yes, the view from up there is very deceptive.” Ulrich turned his attention to the sandy bed of the pond. “What’s your wand look like?”

“It looks like a piece of thin, long wood.”

Ulrich rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out at the magi. “Hilarious.

With that kind of description, it could be any stick in the pond.”

Cecil howled with laughter. “Okay, fine. It’s got crystals imbued in it.”

Ulrich waded through the pond, bent over with his hands in the water.

He searched for anything shiny that the moonlight would reflect on.

Eventually, something covered in sand glimmered beneath the surface. The dragon-shifter fished it from the pond and raised it up into the moonlight.

Sure enough, the item in his hand was Cecil’s wand.

He climbed out of the water and dried off under the gazebo’s canopy.

Cecil handed him his clothes and in exchange, Ulrich gave him the wand.

After he dressed, the two of them sat on the gazebo swing.

“So what’s that wand all about?” Ulrich asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Well...” he paused. “It’s got crystals on it.”

Cecil stared at Ulrich, long and hard. The awkward silence that fell between them made the dragon shift uncomfortably. Then, his magi mate’s eyes widened, and he exclaimed, “oh my gods—have you never heard of magic before?”

“I’ve heard of it,” Ulrich answered. “But I’ve never seen a wand before.”

Cecil’s eyes glistened. “Okay, I’ll teach you.” The magi pulled his wand out and handed it to Ulrich, who hesitated. “It’s okay. You can touch it.”

He took the wand tentatively and turned it over in his hands. “It’s very lightweight.”

“Some wands are,” Cecil replied.

“You mean they aren’t all like this one?”

Cecil rubbed his chin thoughtfully and gazed out at the moonlight glistened pond. “Have you ever heard of the five elements?”

Ulrich nodded.

“Then you’ve probably heard the origin story, right? How Nitehelm’s forged by water, air, fire, and earth? In the past, the world was overrun with all kinds of mythical creatures before we arrived—like dragons and basilisks. Nowadays, shifters like you have your beasts sealed within you

after birth, right? On the other side of that is magic.

“Magi have wielded the elements for centuries through imbuing their wands with all kinds of materials. For example, if you forged a wand using dragon scales, you’d wield fire. Frost Giants give you ice wands like mine—and that’s why it has all those crystals on it. There are lots of materials

wand makers used to craft wands and each of them imbues a different power. Make sense?”

“That’s incredible.” Ulrich examined Cecil’s wand closer. “How many kinds of powers are there?”

Cecil shrugged and leaned back against the swing. He dangled his legs over the edge and pumped them ever so slightly to keep the swing moving.

“Who knows? I’m sure there are all kinds of magic out there, waiting for someone to hone them. Sometimes when I think about that, I get a little sad.”

“How come?” Ulrich wondered.

“Well, magic also depends a lot on a person’s physical and mental constitution. Some magi won’t be able to use a dragon scale wand no matter how hard they try. Once I realized that, I also had to accept that some magic may never get discovered. Isn’t that sad, though?”

The dragon shifter pondered Cecil’s words. “Why not try to discover them, then?”

The magi laughed. “I could spend my whole life searching for the right vessels and die before I accomplish it.”

“Isn’t your mother immortal?” Ulrich said.

Cecil held up a hand and shook his head. “I know where this is going, and my answer is no.”

“You wouldn’t want to live forever?” Ulrich teased.

The magi jutted his chin out defiantly. “If I get immortality, it’ll be without my mother’s help.”

Ulrich sat back in silence for many long minutes. He gazed at the moon and listened to the sounds of the night. Crickets chirped and dragon fish swam in the pond below, making small disturbances along the surface with their dorsal fins. Ulrich exhaled a deep breath and said, “I could probably

help with that.”

Now it was Cecil’s turn to ask questions. “What do you mean?”

He shrugged. “Dragon blood has other qualities, doesn’t it? Like a long lifespan.”

“Are you suggesting what I think you’re suggesting?”

“I don’t know what your mother did to become immortal, but I’m sure you could figure something out if you used some of my blood.”

Cecil stood up abruptly and crossed the gazebo to the bridge, where he stopped and gazed down at the pond. “I couldn’t possibly do that.”

Ulrich rose from the swinging bench and stood next to Cecil. “Why not?”

“Immortality isn’t for me,” he said. “I don’t have any desire to live forever.”

The dragon hummed and leaned forward. His reflection danced in the water below as dragon fish skirted the surface of the pond in search of bugs.

“Even if you had something to live for?”

Cecil didn’t answer.

“Our child will share my blood, Cecil. Combined with Salem’s, he or she will have a very long life. In your current state, they’ll easily outlive you,” Ulrich continued. “Is that what you want?”

“Talk about a loaded question,” Cecil retorted with a smirk. “Everyone has a unique time when their life force will cease and they will die. I’m no exception.”

Ulrich stared at the magi. “I can’t believe that for a second.”

“Why not? Do I have any reason to lie to you?”

“Maybe not—but you might have plenty of reasons to lie to yourself.”

Ulrich shook his head. “Being able to spend as much time with my treasures—the people I love—is my sole priority. When the baby is born, that will change, but my feelings won’t. As long as I am here, I will continue living for as long as I can.”

They stood on the bridge a while longer, not speaking. Did I go too far?

Ulrich thought warily. He ruminated over his last words as the silence stretched on between them. When Cecil finally spoke up, the magi’s voice was barely a whisper. “My mother’s immortality comes at a high cost. She has watched countless mates die. She hides her suffering well, so most

don’t see the impact it’s had on her. Until Salem summoned me, I’ve always been by her side, so I’ve seen it with my own eyes. Immortality isn’t the gift it’s wrapped up to be.”

Cecil’s confession rocked Ulrich to his core. He wanted to say something reassuring, but what came out instead was an apology. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pressed the issue...”

The magi shook his head and pushed away from the railing. Ulrich trailed behind Cecil as the magi walked down the bridge toward the maze of hedges. After crossing over onto solid ground, Cecil stopped and looked back at Ulrich. “Look, don’t worry about what I said. My feelings were bound to come out eventually.”

The dragon shifter reached out and placed a hand on his mate’s shoulder. “Are you sure?”

Cecil tilted his head up and gazed into Ulrich’s eyes. In the moonlight, the pure blueness of the magi’s eyes blew Ulrich away.

A soft smile played upon Cecil’s lips. “I’m sure. Now let’s go back inside before we make the others worry.” His mate turned on his heel and started walking again.

Ulrich’s lips pressed into a firm line. He stared at Cecil’s back and wished his dragon’s flames could purify the heavy burden his mate was carrying in his heart. But he couldn’t say anything at all.