Elizabeth and the Thunder of Dragons: A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance (RH Fated Alpha Book 6)

by Ava Mason

  David laughed. “Nah. We just wanted to keep them busy, so we made them dig a hole.” He shrugged. “We didn’t have any other place to keep them. We figured we’d learn who they belonged to soon. Are they with you?”

  I nodded. “Yeah, they’re with me.”

  His smile was bright. “I was hoping it was you. But they weren’t saying a word.”

  I walked over to the hole. Avery gave me a grumpy look but Christian gave me a tired smile. They were covered from head to toe in dirt.

  “How’d these guys get the jump on you?”

  “Who says they did?” Christian gave me a cheeky look but Avery revealed the truth.

  He scowled. “Stupid, sneaky wolves.”

  Christian hit him. “Shut up.”

  “Well, they also had guns. And since we’ve been ordered not to shift…”

  Christian rolled his eyes. “Not that you’ve been following that order much.”

  “You guys want to get out?” Aaron had appeared next to me, looking out over the pit.

  “Nah, we want to stay in here all night.” Avery said.

  “Fine with me.” Aaron folded his arms.

  I looked at Avery. “Where’s James?”

  “The hell if I know. I was hoping he was with you. He just disappeared.”

  I sighed, frustrated. Damnit.

  I turned to Aaron, giving him a smile. “Don’t worry about Avery. He grows on you.”

  Aaron raised his eyebrows. “Does he?” I felt the heat in his gaze and knew he was asking me a question I didn’t want to answer right now.

  “Yes, he does.”

  David threw a rope down there and Christian climbed his way up. Avery threw the shovels and empty water bottles next to us. David threw the rope at him, but Avery ignored it and jumped up, pulling his wings out. His wings scraped the side of the pit but he managed to make it out okay. Both Aaron and David stared at him in awe and I laughed.

  “This is Christian,” I pointed to Christian who shook their hands amicably. “And the grumpy one is Avery.”

  “You got a shower?” Avery didn’t bother to shake their hands.

  “No, we don’t shower over here.” Aaron turned, giving me a wink, then began to lead us inside. I held out my hand towards Avery and he gave me a grim look, but he took it. I tugged on his beard gently, giving him a small smile, and we followed behind Aaron and David.

  Shayne was the first person I saw as we entered the back door and he was asleep on the couch. His face looked so tired and he had new lines etched into his skin, with deep pockets of stress under his eyes. He’d grown out a grey and black, peppered beard. A cup of coffee was on the table next to him, his hand next to it, as if he’d fallen asleep before he had the chance to pick it up.

  “Shayne.” Aaron turned on the lights to the living room. “Wake up.”

  Shayne shot up out of the couch, his eyes wild. “What’s up? Who’s there? What’s—” Then his eyes fell on me and his mouth dropped. “I can’t believe it. Elizabeth. What are you doing here?”

  “I’m sorry I took so long.” I suddenly felt hesitant and worried. Had I taken too long?

  “It’s okay, sweetie. Come here, give an old man a hug.” He held out his hands and I fell into them. His hug was warm and welcoming. Damn, it was good to be home again, even under these circumstances. I let his warmth wash over me and for a second I was taken back in time, when I was smaller and my life was more simple. I felt a longing for those days again but I pushed them away. That was neither here nor there.

  I smiled at him, letting him go. “You’re not that old.”

  He grinned. “Old enough. You come here to take your pack back?”

  I nodded. “Yes.”

  “And you’re ready? Garrett has more power than ever, now that he’s connected to that other pack.”

  “Yes.” I made sure to force resolve into my words. “I will kill him.” I glanced over at Aaron and David. “Sorry.”

  David answered me first. “It’s okay. We understand. Besides, at this point, my dad would kill us on sight, I would think.”

  “What?” I looked at Aaron, who was frowning and nodding.

  “Things have changed, Lizzy. They’re not like they were before.”

  “Is that why you’re here?”

  All three of them nodded but Shayne answered. “Aaron made the decision to leave his dad. And that meant taking the rest of the family with him, otherwise they’d be punished until he returned.”

  “Where’s the rest of your family?”

  Aaron pointed to the ceiling. “My mom is upstairs with the rest of them. They’re asleep.”

  “Tell me, how have things changed? I mean, we’ve seen some things with our own eyes, but we need to know more.” I glanced at Aaron’s hand, noticing that he didn’t have a wedding ring on.

  So, he hadn’t gotten married to Olivia.

  I noticed that Shayne was eyeing my guys warily. “Wait, first, let me introduce my clan.” I made the introductions and gave a brief explanation of everything that had happened to me since I left, skipping over several things, including the whole relationship thing. That could be explained later on, in private. We all moved into the kitchen to get something to eat and, for Avery and Christian to clean off a little. Avery and Christian washed their face and hands in the sink while David and Shayne began cooking us leftover spaghetti. Then Aaron and my clan sat at the table to talk.

  “After you left, my dad kinda went crazy. He insisted that I was a traitor, that I’d helped you kill your parents.” He looked at me, hesitating. “I don’t really want to bring this up, but… That night, did you see any of the shifters who went to your parents’ house?”

  I shook my head. “I was in the safe room, I didn’t see much. Except that there was a black wolf who helped him kill my dad. There was no one else I recognized. Everyone that was at my house after I got out of the safe room was from the other pack.”

  He nodded. “I figured.” His hands were pressing to the table and his eyebrows were scrunched in the middle. “He told me the only way I could earn my good graces back in the pack was to marry Olivia. If I did that, I’d be under him, as his beta. He made it very clear that I’d be under his thumb. That I’d have to do as he instructed at all times, whether I wanted to or not.” He paused, remembering. “And I just… I couldn’t do it. I knew that if I was going to finally stand up to him, it had to be then. Before he suspected that my mom would support me.” He shrugged. “So we left. Then Rochelle challenged him, and he had her killed the night before the day that they were supposed to fight. Then Marcus challenged him on the spot, and my dad didn’t even wait for the fight date. He killed Marcus in his sleep that night. That’s when he called for extra guards. Said it was you that was killing them and that you’d planned on coming back for him. That’s also when he insisted on everyone moving into his new place. That you would stop at nothing to have the pack and that they needed protection from you.”

  I frowned, scratching at the table, thinking about his words.

  “So the whole pack is living there, then?”

  He nodded. “They have to check in and out. It’s more like a prison than a safe place to live. Although I’ve heard that things at the other pack are worse.”

  “And what does the pack think about my involvement?”

  Aaron gave me a helpless look. “You weren’t here to defend yourself. There were some who stood up for you, but without any backup, and with Elias there to back my dad up…” He shrugged.

  I felt horrible. Not only did I have little support in the pack, but mostly because I hadn’t been there for them when they needed me the most. Christian, who was sitting next to me, put his hand on my knee to comfort me and I saw Aaron’s quick glance at it.

  Hunter leaned forward. “Who’s Elias?”

  “Elias is the black wolf. The one you said helped my dad kill yours.” He swallowed a lump in his throat, then he reached forward and took my hand and stared into my eyes. “Eliza
beth, I swear to you. I had no idea that my dad had plans to go that far. I didn’t even know that he was building that mammoth place out there. I was just as shocked as I’m sure you were.”

  I looked up, ignoring the glances to our touching hands. “Looks like both our parents were keeping secrets.”

  He nodded, his eyes not leaving mine. “I’m sorry. If I would’ve known, I swear, I would’ve told you.”

  I couldn’t look away. “I know. I believe you.”

  He squeezed my hand, then let it go. “Thanks.”

  “So,” Hunter interrupted, standing up to pace beside the table. “Tell me more about Garrett.”

  Easton pulled a pen and paper out of his pack, ready to take notes.

  I leaned back, feeling overwhelmed with everything but still trying to pay attention. He went over everything that had happened in more detail, and told us any information he knew about the takeover. Garrett got his influx of money from Elias, but at this point he was expected to start paying for everything on his own. That’s why he was getting involved in illegal weapons.

  Shayne met us at the table, bringing plates and we all joined in getting everything laid out. My clan and I ate while Shayne explained things from his end. He drew out the layout of the house, how many guards were on at all times, and at what time they changed out. After a while, I began to feel so drowsy; I just wanted to sleep.

  Avery and Christian got up to shower and put their clothes through the washing cycle, and David went to show them the way. Shayne looked exhausted, so he told us he was going to go to sleep. Then it was just me, Aaron, Hunter and Easton.

  Easton got up. “Mind if we crash on the couch?”

  “Of course. There’s another set in the sunroom for Avery and Christian.” He looked at me. “And Lizzy.”

  Aaron got everyone blankets and Hunter and Easton began to settle in the living room.

  Aaron looked at me. “Want to go for a walk?”

  I looked at Hunter and Easton, who purposefully didn’t look at me. “Sure.”

  Aaron smiled, then led me out the back door.

  We walked out the back of the house, towards the lake, and the air was so humid, my hair clung to my face and neck. We walked in silence, all the way to the end of the dock. When we got to the end, we sat on the edge and took off our shoes, then dangled our feet into the water.

  We were quiet as we looked out over the lake, and the only sound we made were our feet in the water.

  “Hey, do you remember when we used to sneak off in the middle of the night?”

  I tilted my head towards him. “When we were kids, or when we were teenagers?”

  His eyes glimmered with mischievousness. “When we were kids. Remember we used to sleep in the treehouse?”

  I smiled, thinking about it. “And you almost fell out that one time.” He snickered and I joined in, continuing. “And remember when you shifted in your sleep and we were so surprised. I thought you were playing a trick on me.”

  His eyes met mine. “And for a second, I couldn’t tell why you were freaking out.”

  “And I tried to run you off with a stick.”

  “Fuck, you weren’t afraid of anything. You woke up with a wolf in our treehouse and you weren’t even scared.”

  “I trusted wolves, of course.”

  “Yeah, but still, you were young.”

  “You were young, shifting so early.” I laughed, pushing against his chest, and he caught my arm. Aaron’s eyes were staring intently into mine now, his laughter dying away. He looked so hopeful and I… My heart squeezed in my chest. I couldn’t tear my eyes, or my arm away from him.

  “I’ve missed you, Lizzy.”

  “I’ve missed you, too.” I brushed my hand over his check, up to his nose, running my fingers lightly to his forehead. Then I ran it through his hair. “I love your hair that long. It’s beautiful.”

  He smirked. “Err, that’s not exactly what I was going for.”

  I smiled, still staring into his eyes, then I glanced away. “Well, it’s sexy, too.”

  He caught my chin, forcing me to look into his eyes again. “Is it?”

  My mouth dropped open to speak, but no words came out. I stammered, trying to figure out a way to express the feelings I had inside. I was so conflicted, and I … I wasn’t sure he would be able to accept my new life. He had me first, and I was almost certain that he’d clung to the hope that he would have me forever. By himself.

  And yet… I loved them. All of them.

  Aaron included. Just being here with him again, seeing how much he’d changed. It made my heart constrict with such love and… such emotion. I couldn’t explain it in just a few words.

  Fuck. I was in so much trouble.

  I finally found my voice. “Aaron, I just want to tell you… I regret that I wasn’t here earlier. I feel like your lives could’ve been so much easier if I’d have stayed.”

  His mouth turned down, and he let my arm go. “Lizzy, let’s not lie to each other. If you’d have stayed, my dad would’ve killed you. He wouldn’t have even needed another wolf to take you down, like your dad. At least by leaving, you gave us some hope.”

  I mulled over his words, knowing that they were true, but not wanting to admit it.

  “Do you think that you can challenge him?”

  I looked into his eyes to make certain that he knew I meant it. “Yes.”

  “I wish you didn’t have to.”

  “It’s my right, Aaron. I’m still the Fated Alpha.”

  He looked away and stared into the water. “Except that you have your own clan now. They need you.”

  I shook my head. “That only means that we add the pack to it. They all understand.”

  “I bet they do.” His voice was bitter.

  I sighed, knowing that he’d read all the unspoken signs. He’d always been good at that. “I’m sorry, Aaron.”

  He looked up. “Are you with them?”

  I shook my head. “I am.”

  “All of them?”

  Now it was my turn to look away. “They do things differently over there.”

  “How?”

  I thought about how to explain it to him while a cool breeze blew over the lake, gently blowing my hair. “Dragons are rare. They’re a dying species. Women especially, are rare.”

  “So they all mate with one female.”

  “If necessary.” I tried to be matter of fact about it.

  “But why you, Lizzy? What about us?”

  My voice caught. “That doesn’t mean there can’t be an us.”

  “You’d want me to share, with all of them?”

  “Honestly, I don’t know. You and I, we…” I looked at him. “Towards the end, I wasn’t sure if there was even much of an us.”

  “Maybe not to you, but you were everything to me. I loved you.” His expression looked so conflicted, so broken and I felt a suffocating, smothering feeling in my chest. I hated hurting him.

  “You were everything to me, too, but you can’t deny that we’d grown apart. Before my birthday, before everything happened, I wasn’t even sure how you felt about me anymore. I felt like I had to beg you to spend time with me.”

  “I was dealing with so much shit at the time, I didn’t even have time to be with you like I wanted to. I was so stressed about my mom, my brother and sisters.”

  “But you didn’t tell me that, Aaron. You kept it all inside. You didn’t trust me. So what was I supposed to think? And then after everything happened, I didn’t know who to trust. And then Shayne told me you were marrying Olivia—”

  “I thought I proved myself to you when you left.”

  “I…” My words cut off because the truth of his words hit me. “I didn’t know. Okay, I didn’t know. The last thing I knew was that Shayne said you were getting married the next day. He didn’t tell me you were having doubts, that you were even considering running away. And everything in my life was falling apart. I had so much going on in my life and I had no one, no one fro
m my past. My whole family, all the pack, was gone, in one shitty night. And so I had to make a choice. Go back and fight for you; put you and your family’s life in danger; risk your dad killing me, too. Or, stay away and force myself to be stronger so that I could return to make things right. And so I made the choice to stay. To trust the men who came when my dad called. And things just progressed from there.”

  “Do you love them?” His voice choked out the words.

  “I do. Things were happening and we were in danger, you have no idea what we’ve been through. I haven’t just been having fun and falling in love. We’ve been through some dangerous shit. And they protected me and loved me. So I made the choice to move on. To be with them. To love them and not to cling to a fantasy that you were waiting for me. Because as far as I knew, you were already married and had moved on.” I took his head in my hands and pulled him towards me so that his forehead rested on mine. “But believe me, Aaron. I still love you. I just wish things could be different. And fuck, now that I see what happened here. That you ran away, that you hadn’t moved on… I never wanted to hurt you, and I wish that I hadn’t. But I can’t change the past, no matter how much I want to.”

  His hands came up to clasp my cheeks. “But I hung on to the fantasy. I loved you this whole time. Even when I didn’t even know if you were coming back. Even when Olivia—” He cut off and I pulled back out of his embrace and his hands fell to the dock.

  “Even when Olivia what?”

  He looked away, wiping at his tears.

  “Tell me, Aaron. I’ve told you the truth, you have to tell me.”

  He looked back at me, his eyes firm. “Even when Olivia wanted to get married. Like, for real.”

  I was shocked into silence.

  “Olivia, she left. With me and my family. She’s been living here.”

  “Where is she now?”

  His face hardened. “She went in for supplies. Shayne’s been busy and we needed things. She offered and I thought it would be safe for her.”

  “And your dad took her.”