Chapter 6

[ELARA]

Glass shards hit my face and arms. Tiny cuts open across my skin but I barely feel them because all I can think about is Leo.

I turn around and cover him with my body the second the windows blow in. Cold wind floods into the room right after the glass, thick with the heavy smell of rain and wet stone. Leo makes a small scared sound against my chest and presses closer.

The dragon under my skin wakes up fast and hard. Heat spreads through me chasing away the u wanted cold in the air. I can smell Kaelen’s anger clearer than the storm itself.

Kaelen is in front of us before the last piece of glass even lands on the floor. His arms are out wide and he is growling so deep that the floor shakes under my heels.

“Stay behind me,” he says, and his voice sounds purely wolf less than 2 seconds he shifts into his large white wolf and completely shields us from the chaos.

I pull Leo tighter against me and step back until my back is against the wall. His little hands are fisted in the front of my shirt and my heart breaks, I want to take his fear and replace it with joy. Rain pours in through the broken windows in heavy sheets and thunder cracks so loud that my teeth hurt from the vibration.

Dorian and two guards rush into the office a moment later. At this point, papers are flying everywhere in the wind. Kaelen snaps out orders without looking away from the broken windows. I can tell because of how the guards are replying that he is using the mind link that they use to communicate in shifted form.

He quickly shifts back and wears his clothes.

Kaelen finally turns to me. Rain has already soaked the shoulders of his dark suit and tiny pieces of glass still shine in his hair. The purple in his eyes has not faded at all and there are some boold stains on his shirt but the wounds have already healed.

“Are you hurt?” he asks.

“Just scratches,” I tell him. “What about Leo?”

I check my son quickly, running my hands over his hair and arms. There is no blood and no glass stuck in him. He just looks up at me with those big eyes that are too much like Kaelen’s.

“We need to move,” he says. “My private rooms are safer than this. The glass there is tempered.”

I want to say no. Every part of me wants to grab Leo and run straight out of this compound. But the storm outside is only getting worse and Seraphina already knows about us. Running right now would be stupid and I know it.

“Fine,” I say. “One night and that’s it.”

We walk through the long hallways that smell like wood and rain. Pack members step aside when they see us coming and some of them stare openly at Leo. I keep my chin up and Leo’s hand locked tight in mine the whole way.

Kaelen’s private wing is quiet when we step inside. The glass here is thick and the curtains are heavy. A fire is already burning in the fireplace and the rugs under our feet are soft. Leo lets go of my hand and runs straight to the window so he can watch the lightning flash across the sky.

Kaelen locks the door behind us. The sound of the lock sliding into place makes my stomach twist hard.

“You can take the master bedroom,” he says. “Leo can have the room right next to it. I’ll stay out here on the couch.”

“We don’t need your bed.”

“It’s safer in here,” he answers. “Nothing is getting through these walls.”

I don’t argue this time. Leo is already yawning and the cuts on my arms are starting to sting from the cold rain that is still drying on my skin. Dragons are stronger than wolves but we don’t heal as fast.

Kaelen leaves for a few minutes and comes back with clean clothes and a tray of food. He has changed into a black t-shirt and sweatpants. The t-shirt clings to his chest and arms in a way that makes it impossible not to notice how much bigger he still is. His hair is still wet from the rain and he looks too much like the man who used to pin me against the kitchen counter and fuck me until I forgot my own name. I hate that my eyes go straight to the way the shirt stretches across his shoulders and abs.

Leo eats half a sandwich and then curls up on the couch with his head resting on my thigh. I stroke his hair slowly and try not to think about how right this feels or how wrong it feels at the same time. The complete family we have been missing for years.

Kaelen sits in the chair across from us, but he doesn’t touch the food. He just watches Leo like he is afraid the boy might disappear if he looks away for even a second.

Maybe he thinks we will try to run, but I’m not that stupid.

“Seraphina will talk,” he says after a long stretch of silence. “By morning the whole territory will know about Leo.”