Imagine Dragon

by Julia Mills

  “I am,” came the Mad Dragon’s gruff reply. “Why?”

  “Because your mate is the best Healer aside from Niall and my mate just returned from a meeting with Morrigan in the Otherworld and now she’s unconscious.”

  “Morrigan did something to her?” Maddox’s growl was laced with insinuation and doubt.

  “No, you pigheaded pain-in-my-ass. She got back, had a vision and collapsed and now she isn’t responding even when I touch her mind. So, for all that is fuckin’ holy can you bring Callie to my house – PRONTO?!”

  Closing off his connection as the cantankerous old Dragon was getting revved up to pitch a fit, Kayne carefully climbed onto the bed, curled his much larger body around Pearl and held her close, whispering, “Everything will be all right, mo ghrá, or heads will roll. Of that, you can be sure.”

  Chapter Ten

  “What do you mean it will just take time?” Kayne snarled, barely missing Maddox’s flying fist.

  “Don’t talk to Callie that way, Asshat!” The Mad Dragon roared, throwing another right hook that barely missed its mark.

  “Stop it, Maddie,” Calysta scolded, grabbing her mate’s left arm before he could swing again. “You know Kayne is just upset.” Patting his shoulder, she placated as only one mate can to another, “Go down and tell the others how she’s doing. Everything is fine, physically. It is my opinion that the stress of being in the Otherworld for almost three whole days then immediately upon getting home and having a vision was just too much.” Looking directly at Kayne, the Grande Priestess added, “Just a little rest and one more shot of the herbs I mixed up and our Pearl will be right as rain by morning.”

  Pointing his monstrous index finger at the tip of Kayne’s nose, Maddox warned, “Yell at her again, and I’ll gut you where you stand.”

  “Love you, too, Old Man,” the Demi-God called to his Brethren’s back, running his fingers through his hair for at least the hundredth time. “Will she really be okay?”

  “Of course, she will,” Calysta readily confided. “Do you think I’d be standing here doing nothing? Your mate is the last Strix in existence. Not to mention that it is my responsibility to preserve life in all its forms whatever the cost.” Walking to Kayne’s side, she laid her hand on his forearm. “You need to calm yourself. Your frustration and worry are hers, and that’s not what she needs right now.”

  “I know you’re right.”

  “But?”

  Shaking his head and exhaling a long, slow breath, Kayne walked to the window and looked towards the setting sun. Was there more he wanted to say? Needed to say? Was Calysta right? Did Pearl just need rest? Why had Morrigan sent her back if all they needed to know was in Pearl’s mind all along?

  Turning back towards the Priestess, he finally replied, “I don’t know if there really is a ‘but’. I just know that I’m just as messed up, tangled up, and twisted about as all the others were.” Looking up, he gave Calysta a half smile. “Not quite as bad as old Doxie, but just about. This whole mate gig is hard, harder than I ever realized.”

  Smiling and shaking her head, the Priestess chuckled, “You sound like all the others, even my daughter. You think having a partner, a true mate, the one who completes you as no other ever can or will, the one person made for you by the Universe Herself, is gonna be easy.” Taking a seat in the leather chair he usually laid his clothes in, Calysta sat back, crossed her legs, and after clasping her hands in her lap, looked Kayne right in the eye and asked, “Did you know that I knew your mother?”

  So shocked that he could barely breathe, let alone answer, the Demi-God slowly shook his head, extremely thankful when she went on to explain, “Yes, it’s true, I did. She was such a pretty young woman, so full of life, so caring and so giving. And smart as a whip, with intuition and foresight that put all the Elders to shame.”

  “I remember her coming to the Coven, the big house on the Reserve where all the Witches with homes and families stay, to tell me that she’d met her mate. Sitting at the table in what used to be my kitchen, your mom, Emilia, described her ‘Dragon’ in exquisite detail. Waiting until she was done talking, I poured our tea then asked, ‘Do you know who he is, Em?’ and just as matter-of-factly as you please, she said, ‘A course I do, Callie. It’s Lugh and he says I’m his sun, moon, and stars.’.”

  Listening to the Priestess, thankful to gain more insight into the woman who was taken from him before he’d barely opened his eyes, Kayne crossed the room and sat on the end of his bed. Looking at his mate, he asked, “Is it true she had never let her Dragon come forth before she met my father?”

  “Oh yes, that’s very true. Emilia never wanted to fly. She wanted to keep her feet firmly on the ground. But then she met Lugh and everything changed. After they were officially mated, she and he flew all around the world, collecting things for the house they were going to build.”

  Realizing Calysta had stopped talking, Kayne turned back around, surprised to see tears in the great Witch’s eyes. Not wanting to push her, he waited patiently until once again she started to speak.

  “When they got home from one such trip, Emilia announced that she was pregnant and that Lugh wanted her to stay in his castle in the Otherworld. As you can imagine, your grandfather, King Xaviar, had a real live conniption fit. Being the gentleman that he is, Lugh gave in and said Em could stay with her family and he would be back as soon as he could.”

  “And…well, you came that very night. Three weeks early and full of piss and vinegar.” Calysta was smiling but the joy wasn’t reaching her eyes. Wondering what she knew that he’d never been told, Kayne leaned forward as she continued. “There was no way for Em to get a hold of your father and your grandfather barely let you out of his sight, so one night before you were even a week old, your mom went to the mountaintop where she’d first met Lugh and tried to contact him.” Clearing her throat, the Witch looked down at her clasped hands and when she spoke, her voice was barely louder than a whisper. “And that happened to be the night of the Wild Hunt.”

  Not sure why Calysta had stopped talking or what the Wild Hunt had to do with anything, Kayne stood straight up, took a step towards the Priestess, and knelt down in front of her, asking, “What aren’t you saying?”

  Reaching for his hand, she shook her head. “You really don’t know? No one’s ever told you?”

  “Honestly, Calysta, I have no clue where you’re going with this? What should I know?”

  No sooner had he uttered the question than the hair on the back of his neck stood on end and Pearl began to speak in the low, monotone voice he knew meant she was reciting a prophecy. “The Golden One shall know the truth. He shall strike the death blow and finally know peace.”

  Up on his feet, looking at Pearl and then at Calysta and then back at Pearl like he was at Wimbledon, Kayne sat back on the bed and pulled his mate into his arms. Holding her tight and rocking back and forth, he asked through gritted teeth, “What does the Wild Hunt and the Obscured have to do with my mother’s death?”

  “If you get me something to drink and about five bottles of ibuprofen, I’ll tell you everything I know,” Pearl whispered.

  “You’re awake?” Kayne gasped.

  “Yes, I’m awake.” Opening her eyes and smiling up at him, she teased, “At least I wasn’t playing possum, Mr. Dragon Man. That’s your game.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Unable to keep from touching Pearl, wanting to protect her from anything, everything, and everyone, he nearly came completely unglued when she tried to crawl out of bed, stating, “Let’s just go downstairs and tell everyone what’s going on. That way I only have to explain it all once.”

  Wrapping his arm around her waist and holding her tight to his side, Kayne frantically shook his head while growling, “Oh no. Hell no. You are too weak and too tired and…what the… Son of a biiiiitttttcchhh!” His argument turned to a strangled curse as from one heartbeat to the next he found himself kicked off the bed with his lovely mate straddling his chest w
ith the side of her hand at his throat.

  “Move and I’ll cut off your airway,” she threatened, laughter dancing in her eyes. “What was that you were saying about me being too weak?”

  Holding his hands over his head, grinning from ear-to-ear despite his position, Kayne readily acquiesced, “I give. I’m sorry. I’ll never think of you as weak again.”

  A single nod was the only response he got before Pearl climbed off his chest with a satisfied smile. Getting to his feet just as the door to his bedroom burst open, Kayne hammed it up and took a bow as every one of the Dragons laughed out loud and the Ladies of the Sky clapped and cheered.

  “Told ye, me Pearl woold kick his arse,” Gwendolyn chuckled. “Ne’er met a man coold best our girl.”

  “You pissed her off already?” Maddox guffawed. “Not even I’m that bad.”

  “Be careful there, Maddie,” Calysta warned with a wink. “I might just have to make a liar out of you.”

  The entire group erupted into laughter as Kayne took Pearl’s outstretched hand and let himself be pulled up. Looking down he spoke directly into her mind, “Without getting my ass kicked in front of everyone, are you sure you’re okay? I worry.”

  Patting his chest and giving him a smile that melted his heart and had his Dragon King purring, Pearl answered in kind, “I appreciate your concern. I’ll let ya’ know if I need you to stand in.”

  Trusting his mate to tell him when she needed him but still refusing to take his hand from hers, Kayne walked alongside Pearl bringing up the rear of the mob of friends and family. Sitting in his favorite huge recliner next to the fireplace, he pulled his mate onto his lap, gave her a warning growl when she started to get up then whispered, “This is the best compromise I can give you,” into her mind.

  Snickering at her grumbled reply of, “I will remember to kick your ass later,” Kayne settled in and listened as Pearl told the group everything she knew about the night the Obscured was let loose.

  Everything seemed pretty typical then he felt her body tense, heard her voice drop to an ominous level, and could see the swirling dark memories inside her mind. Whatever his mate was about to say still haunted her no matter the decades that had passed.

  “I admit,” she looked over her shoulder, spearing him with her glowing lavender gaze and continued. “It is the one and only time in all my years that I have lost control. The call of the Huntmaster’s Horn, the thrill of the chase, and the wild mysticism in the air was just so fucking overwhelming.”

  Rubbing his hand up and down her arm as her usually lilting British accent became hard and staccato, her voice getting louder with every word. “To this day, I’m still so damned embarrassed that my mother, of all bloody people, had to stop me from joining in.”

  Anxiety making her quake in his lap, forcing Kayne to relent as she climbed off his lap and began to pace. Slowly stalking the length of the huge great room where everyone was gathered, she looked every single person in the eye, she went on, “On that night I was stripped of my Stringes, made to look like a fool, and now…” Pearl spun around on her toes, slammed her clenched fists onto her hips and staring right into his eyes declared in a tone so full of fury and rage it was low and rumbling, “The final piece of the puzzle has fallen into place. Odin knowingly led his Wild Hunt into that lair and slaughtered the mother of my mate.”

  Tawny and white down appeared up and down her arms, her eyes turned a glowing yellow-gold and magic popped and sparked in the air around her. “May the Goddess have mercy on my soul, the bloody bastard must pay.”

  Getting to his feet at the same time that Gwendolyn was up and heading towards Pearl, Kayne stopped midstride, turned towards the kitchen and leaned against the doorframe. It was hard not to go to his mate, but something deep inside his soul was telling him to wait and see. She’d told him she would let him know when she needed help, and no matter what a pain in the ass it was, he had to heed her wishes.

  Next up and at Pearl’s side was Sadie, her anger evident in the set of her shoulders and the way she clenched and unclenched her fists hanging at her sides. Looking to the Dragoness’ mate, Orion, the Enforcer known as the Shadow, Kayne nodded as the Guardsman’s voice sounded in his mind, “Are you okay, mo dheartháir? It has to be hard to hear the name of your mother’s murderer, and not be able to do anything about it.”

  “Who said I can’t do anything about it?”

  With a furrowed brow and a slow shake of his head, Orion responded, “You cannot take on the All Father. Not only would your life be forfeit, but also that of your mate, your Brethren, and everyone you’ve ever loved.”

  “Who said I would be the one avenging my mother’s death? Do you not remember the days without sun as my father mourned and then the weeks of sweltering heat, the sun shining so brightly through day and night that the ground dried up, animals died, it was as if we were all going to burn alive?” Getting angrier with every word, letting the pain and sorrow he’d held back at Pearl’s recollection finally take hold within him, Kayne pushed off the wall, marched across the room, and without another word to anyone, walked outside, slamming the door behind him.

  Running across the wet evening grass, calling forth Ailill from one stride to the other, he embraced the transformation, let his rage fuel the bending and stretching of every cell. The pop and crack of every bone, tendon, and joint was music to his ears. The sting as millions of scales pushed through his skin, adrenaline raced through his veins, and the very core of his body erupted in the overwhelming power and insurmountable grace of one of the Universe’s chosen warriors forced him over the glorious razor’s edge from man to Dragon.

  One mighty thrust against the wind at his back and the apex predator, the top of the food chain, the only Being with the power of life and death in every beat of his heart let loose the fire boiling his lungs and the roar spewing from his chest. “Beware!” He was shouting. “I am Dragon. I am the King. I demand vengeance.”

  Riding the clouds, pushing his wings against the airstream, again and again, moving so quickly the ground beneath him was nothing more than an insignificant blur, he circled the highest peak of the highest mountain closest to the shore, before decisively heading for the ground. Changing back to his human, setting his feet down in the exact center of the summit, Kayne threw back his head, flung his arms open wide and so loudly that it echoed through every fiber of his being, demanded, “Come now, Father. Come now or I’m coming to you.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Refusing to move as the sound of boots crunching against the rocky plateau echoed through the silent night, Kayne hissed, “So, you came?”

  “Was I given any other choice?”

  Slowly, painstakingly turning towards his father, Lugh, the Celtic God of the Sun, Kayne slid his feet shoulder width apart, uncrossed his arms from across his chest and stood tall. “Did you know?”

  “Did I know what, my son?”

  “Please don’t embarrass either one of us by wasting time trying to make me believe you didn’t read my thoughts the moment I called for you. It’s petty and quite frankly, beneath you. Just tell me if you knew and I’ll be on my way.”

  Stopping right in front of him, looking more like a regular old dad than he ever had in his washed-out jeans, a plain gray T-shirt, and a well-worn leather jacket with his bright blond hair pulled back at the nape of his neck, Lugh shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged. “Yes, I know that Odin is responsible for the death of your mother.”

  The stilted, rage-filled words repeated over and around Kayne’s head, buzzing like a swarm of angry bees, picking at the memory of each and every time he’d asked his father what had happened to his mother. Summoning every ounce of restraint, the Demi-God slowly nodded, “Thank you for at least being honest.”

  Turning away, the first golden scales of his Dragon covering the backs of his hands, he stopped mid-stride when Lugh challenged, “Would anything be different if you’d known before now?”

  Doing an abrupt about-
face, he stared in disbelief at the man, the God, he’d always been able to look up to, had always depended on, had always believed had his back. Opening his mouth to speak, then slamming it shut and shaking his head, it took two more tries before Kayne finally scoffed, “Would anything be different? Is that really what you just asked me? Have you lost your frikkin’ mind?”

  Aggressively stepping forward, stabbing his right index finger through the air just inches from the tip of Lugh’s nose, he shook with rage as he growled through gritted teeth, “What the fuck is wrong with you? How can you think I didn’t have a right to know? Leaving me to wonder all these fucking centuries, never answering my questions, leading me to believe that you were just as devastated as I was.” Another step forward, so close he could see the rays of the sun shining in his father’s eyes, Kayne snarled, “Even for a fucking God, that’s low. You are not only a bastard, but a fucking liar and from this day forward, you are dead to me.”

  Spinning back around, he made it exactly three steps before damn near every muscle in his body froze. Still able to breathe and speak, he seethed, “Really? You think to treat me just as Morrigan mistreated my Pearl? Seems as though you are just like all the rest.”

  Appearing in front of him, Lugh’s usually easy manner and laidback stance was gone. Rays of sunlight had turned to lightning. His long, golden locks swirled around his head like gleaming currents of fire ready to strike. Grabbing his face between his scorching thumb and forefinger, looking at him as if he were a petulant child, the God of the Sun snarled, “If you act like an insolent child then you get treated like an insolent child. It matters not how many years you have lived.”

  Snatching his hand away, leaving the fiery burn of the sun’s surface, Lugh took a single step backward. Still glaring into Kayne’s eyes, he took a long deep breath, slowly letting it out before adding, “If you would like to act like the civilized young man I know you were raised to be then I would like to tell you what I know.”