We get our first look at Kaylani and Everett together. What did you think? And what did you think of Merethyl trying to demand that Avani take his free will back?
I slept on the way back to the laboratory. I didn’t get much sleep last night and the stress took a toll on me. I know Avani is worried about me and our little girl, so I took the opportunity while we flew back to sleep some more. I can tell that Avani is feeling better now that I’ve gotten some decent sleep and have food in my stomach. That is, until we land and he hears that they caught a hunter. “Ishir, care to join me?” Avani says, inviting Ishir to go ‘interrogate’ the hunter. I have no such desire, knowing that whatever they do, it won’t be pleasant. When Ishir nods and walks to Avani, I turn to Everett and Kaylani. “I’ll take you to the dragons.” “Thank you.” Everett says. As we walk, Everett looks at me. “I don’t want to presume, but, are you an elf?’” I look at him. “What gave me away?” He smiles self-deprecatingly. “The ears.” “Ahhh.” “Well, that and the regal way you carry yourself. I guess I have an image in my head of elves being majestic and other worldly. You fi
Being a shifter, I don’t get squeamish or queasy seeing blood or violence. I know my mate does and that’s why I’m glad she’s not here. Bajaro has a vicious streak to her. I like it, it makes me want to know if she’d be willing to guard our daughter after she’s born and Mere or I have to leave her. Anyone who has no qualms about literally tearing an enemy limb from limb is good enough to watch my child. I’m not exactly sure that Mere will agree, but I’ll ask her. Thankfully, the hunter gave us what we needed before he bled out. We got the coordinates to another facility that has dragons. As we head back to where Merethyl, Kaylani and Everett are, I think about our next steps. Ishir is the brains of this operation. It’s what he does. He’s a hunter by nature, but he’s also really good at searching for and finding missing shifters and other supernaturals. He also supplements that by helping humans find their missing loved ones. They pay a lot to find their missing children, and I happen
I’m staring at the paper that Bajaro handed me. It’s a drawing of a dragon’s head and it shows how to insert what looks like an explosive device. I look up and realize Kaylani’s hands have stopped moving. Avani has rolled his eye back to look at her and they are having a silent conversation. “Show me.” I demand, my words sharp with my fear. ‘Merethyl, you need to calm down.’ Avani says in my head, but I ignore him. I step up to Kaylani. “Show me.” I say again, this time with less snap in my voice. She takes my hand and puts it where hers was a moment ago. There’s a place near what you would call his temple where a scale, not larger than the tip of my pointer finger, is soft rather than the hard covering I'm accustomed to. Soft like a human’s skin. Soft enough to inject an explosive device the size of a pill into his brain and kill him. I push the fear of that thought away and walk to the other side. ‘What are you doing, Merethyl?” He asks me. I look at him as I walk around his
When we find the next laboratory, it’s much the same. We get there in time to free the dragons but then they die in front of us. Over the next month, we find two more laboratories and each time it’s the same thing. We can’t get to the dragons fast enough. Even with Everett trying to get into their skulls, we just don’t have enough time. We’re all sitting outside the most recent laboratory. I’m holding my mate once again as she cries. Her stomach is now protruding to the point that it’s impossible to hide her pregnancy. Everett is consoling Kaylani. Thankfully she responds to him. I was worried the first time that she’d cried, concerned that she'd begin her dragon’s lament. Nothing is more heart-wrenching than a dragon’s cry, except when my mate cries. “We have to do something different.” Bajaro says, watching sadly as I console Mere. “What do you mean?” Shiv asks, coming to stand beside her and putting his arm around her. This entire process has brought all of us closer together. “
I watch as Avani rips the bottom of the laboratory floor down into the tunnel where we are. Kaylani does the same and dust and dirt come raining down around me. As soon as there is a hole big enough, she leaps through. I hear screaming and yelling as Kayid grabs Everett and Shiv grabs me, leaping through the hole that Kaylani created. As soon as we’re inside the room, they release us and begin fighting. The space is small and there are so many of us in here that Everett and I are pushed against a wall. Kayid and Shiv put themselves front of us, acting as shields. I realize that there are several hunters in here, guarding the ones that have control of the laboratory. When I hear shots ring out, I reach out with my element and grab the bullets, arcing them around our group and sending them back into the group of hunters. I hear them screaming and several fall to the ground, presumably dead. Kaylani snarls, a sound I’ve never heard from her before. Her talons come out and I hear the h
Watching the Chief finally die, hearing the gurgling of his breathing as his lungs filled with blood was a highlight of my life. This man caused nothing but pain for me, my mate and the entire supernatural community. He deserved to die. The sound of rustling clothing makes me focus a moment before I hear the scream. I can’t see in front of me because I have the Chief impaled on my talons, so I retract them and the moment he drops to the ground, I see him. I scream for Merethyl but it’s too late, he’s already swinging the board in his hand toward her head. She goes flying into Everett and Kaylani who are on the floor. I slam my fist into the man’s face before racing over to Merethyl. If anything happens to her, if she’s dead….. Everett is already touching the side of her head. “Fractured skull,” he says, not looking up at me. He continues to gently touch her scalp. "it feels like her brain is hemorrhaging,” he continues to talk to himself, just like he does when he’s making notes a
I can feel Avani holding on to my mind. It’s almost like I’m laying on top of him and his arms are wrapped around me, holding me protectively. ‘Always so accurate in your descriptions of me,’ he says softly in my mind and begins purring gently. ‘What happened? I feel…strange. Dizzy.” ‘The Chief apparently has a son no one knew about. He attacked you. He….” I feel Avani’s anger, his fear for me and losing me heavily weighing on him. In my mind, I snuggle against him, helping to calm him. I feel him sigh, holding me more tightly. ‘He bashed you in the head with a wooden beam and fractured your skull. Your brain was hemorrhaging. I had to heal you.’ ‘Mmmm, good thing I have a dragon who loves me.’ ‘I love you so much, Merethyl. You can never leave me. I was so afraid. So afraid I’d lose you and our daughter,’ he says, panic clear in his voice. ‘I’m right here, love. I’m not going anywhere. And our daughter is safe?’ I ask. ‘Yes, that doctor looked after her while I healed you. I’
I don’t want Merethyl overdoing it with this little dragon, but almost instantly I can tell that where I struggled to stay gentle when healing Merethyl, peace and calm flows out of her as easily as if she’s breathing. It’s just part of who she is. When she’s done, we say our goodbyes to the group. They will continue hunting for more dragons, trying to save them, but I need to protect my mate and my child. I can’t do that when we’re constantly fighting. As much as I want to help them, Merethyl is my priority and always will be. ‘Would you like to stop and see Ancalagon and Zephyr one more time before we go back to the elf lands?’ I ask Mere. It’s been a while since I’ve seen my son and I’m sure he’s gotten bigger. Once we’re back on Yhendorn’s lands, we probably won’t be leaving until after the birth of our daughter. ‘Is that what has you so excited? I’d love to see them,' she says. ‘Yes and no. I want to see Ancalagon again, but I was thinking of our daughter and her upcoming birth