by Eden Glenn
That brought Ethan off the kitchen chair sending it flying into the wall while Kiernan took another sip of beer-- nothing like good cold beer.
Caleb, blocked Ethan’s path while he tried to shoulder over or past him.
“Wren is not like that. You just shut the fuck up. I’ll take your head if you talk about her that way again. Fuck, maybe I’ll take your head because you irritate the crap outta me.”
Kiernan hoped Caleb could contain his brother. He sat his beer down on the counter. “Didn’t you pick up any of her emotions through your shared psi-bond?”
Caleb shook his head. “We blocked the connection to her when she showed up in your skin and had apparently placed her brand on you. We had no way of knowing it didn’t represent a mating mark. Now, we’re not able to hear her.”
Kiernan took time to think, as he picked up the beer, drained the rest of the bottle and pitched the empty in the trash. Beer and beef he had missed the most.
He opened the freezer to pull out steaks. Thank the Goddess he’d made good investments and arranged automatic bill pay to keep his utilities on and money flowing while he was away. He had originally set up the system for long vacations with blonde beauties.
One steak, just for him, the two clods drinking his beer could fend for themselves. He already felt like he’d taken them to raise, emotionally, with their female problems.
Thank the Goddess he was exempt from the meddling of women. The heavy meat would probably make him sick after being starved for so long. He set the microwave to thaw before he spoke.
“Okay you dumb shits, then tell me again, why would she choose to go with over a dozen heavily armed Watchers instead of you two?”
He opened the fridge to get another beer, twisting the cap off.
“If you were so stupid to close the door to your mate’s thoughts you’ll have to figure her out the hard way, like human males do.”
He leaned back against the counter, hands in his pockets. They couldn’t understand the simple motivation which he found completely obvious.
The realization dawned on them slowly. Ethan was the first to speak. “Fucking hell, she thought she was protecting us.”
Caleb put his head in his hands. “Oh, hell no. What I said to her.”
“Yep.” Kiernan lifted the bottle to his lips. “I believe you’re referring to the verbal knife blade in the back of your protective mate. But hey, don’t take my word for it. They say I’m not quite functioning in reality. So what are you going to do about it?” Perhaps there was hope for the human shifter race after all.
Neither paused before answering simultaneously. “We’re going to fucking get her back.”
So much for hope, for the future of the race. “Yeah, seeing as how things turned out earlier, that’s probably a workable plan.”
“Fuck, this is going to be a bitch to make right.”
A noise from below on the street echoed through the glass of the windows. “Boom Boom Chucka Boom Boom Boom.”
Down on the street a car at the stop light pounded a low throbbing bass beat loud enough to rattle the windows. Damn.
His next lucid moment found him with his cheek ground into the hard plastic of the microwave over the stove. The defrost cycle ended with a ding. A hard muscular arm gripped him around the neck and twisted his up behind him in a hold that was both restraining and fairly painful. He couldn’t make words form in his head.
Ethan leaned close to his ear speaking slow and distinctly. “Drop. The. Bottle.”
Kiernan felt the beer held by the neck in his free hand. He opened his fingers to let the bottle fall with a clatter to the floor. What the hell had happened?
Ethan kicked the container away from them, glass crunching under his feet. “You seem to be back with us so, I’m going to let you go, and you’d better not come around swinging or the next time I’ll break your arm.”
He then released his hold and stepped back. Kiernan turned around to find his kitchen in chaos. The table was turned over, chairs strewn around the room. Glass was shattered on the floor.
Caleb held a dish towel to his forehead putting pressure on what was evidently a gash from the volume of blood all over him and the cloth. Ethan had a purple bruise already swelling his left eye shut and blood leaking down his chin from a lip cut.
Kiernan couldn’t really figure out what had transpired in the room so he stood staring and trying to think.
“What you didn’t like the music?” Caleb pulled the towel away from his head to look at the blood soaked mess. “Seven hells, you clocked me with a beer bottle.”
Kiernan still couldn’t form words. He was responsible for this destruction? Pain shredded him like something was clawing its way out through his vitals.
Ethan was staring at him intently. “I think we’d better get on back to the Watchers. If I remember right, your dragon needs a wicked bit of healing that you should have tended to before now.”
Kiernan looked toward the door. He needed to beat it to the back country. That was the safest course of action at this point. Something in his head was totally fucked up.
Caleb seemed to read his intent. “You don’t want to do that. We’d just have to come after you and that would leave Wren unprotected.”
Great, take Phaux back to see the devastation he could unleash on the innocents.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Isobeau chose her words carefully. “Wren, I think it’s time to talk about what happened out there.” She and Wren were lounging in the family room of the stately executive home overlooking the river. The Watcher headquarters tucked away in an old Victorian was exquisite, private and spacious.
They curled up on separate ends of a large overstuffed sectional couch. Once she’d had coaxed Wren out of the bedroom, they’d spent a blessedly peaceful evening meal together and sat quietly watching out the back window. Isobeau had apologized for not filling Wren in on her suspicions about Ron Packard.
Isobeau could tell Wren was suffering from the hormonal effects of the estrangement from Caleb and Ethan. The Watcher’s edict to separate her from them may have been a bad decision.
Wren asked, “Kiernan confirmed it, said the Goddess called me a Dragon Guardian?”
“That was the prominent message in his public mind.” Isobeau watched Wren for her reaction.
“I thought you couldn’t read minds?”
“It’s complicated.” Boy was it complicated.
Wren smoothed her hair back with a shaky hand. “What more can you tell me about being Dragon Guardian?”
‘Well, from what Maxwell has grudgingly shared with me, he confirmed that the prevailing though is the Guardian removed herself from our world. The Queen put the spin on it citing the wickedness of the people. That gave her the edge she needed to eradicate those factions of the society that didn’t fit into her scheme of things. Her first attack was on anyone she deemed a sexual deviant.
“Guardian’s emerge from certain genealogical lines. In antiquity one was found amongst the humans. I suspect there was dragon ancestry there. They may occasionally go unnoticed. Watchers are always looking for those of Drakin ancestry lost in the world. We watch for many things. It is for the Watchers to teach you and the Spirit of the Goddess to lead you. You may be the only Dragon Guardian on the earth.”
Wren seemed to pause to consider her words before asking. “Is that because other Guardian’s haven’t been identified?”
Isobeau looked out the window at the river and shrugged. “Maybe. Watchers look for anyone unusual that might be of the power, but you’re the only one we’ve found.”
“What else?” Wren asked.
“The Guardian is like a spiritual leader for the Drakin society. They preside over High Holy Day festivals; look out for the moral and spiritual welfare of the race.” Isabeau spoke by rote.
Wren shook her head. “That doesn’t seem all that important for all this fuss.”
“There’s a lot we don’t know.” Isabeau looked down at he
r hands clasped together. She was not going to reveal her finding that nowhere in the history of Drakin had a Dragon Guardian been mated much less to a member of the Royal house, or as in this case, two such members.
“Those are the basics. There are some references that the Guardian controls the keys to identifying Drakin blood in humans. Also, that she can match likely mating pairs. Matched pairs are very important in Drakin society. We have not had a bonding in this modern generation. The last was well over five hundred years ago. Some believe it is related to not having a Guardian. We are told that the Goddess will reveal more.
“Obviously you hold the power of transition if what happened the other day was any indicator. What’d she call it?”
“She said, powers of manifestation.” I think. “Then there’s this whole thing with Kiernan.”
Isobeau couldn’t let herself admit that she wanted to claim the dark warrior as her own more than her next breath. They’d spoken mind to mind and without the initial bonding experience yet. She couldn’t think of a joined life with a mate who could never want her. What had she gotten herself into? Focus on Wren.
“About my brothers, the way you let them treat you sets the tone for how they are going to treat you the rest of your life. And for dragons, that can be a very long long time.”
Wren teared up. “I can’t really control how they treat me.”
“Will you listen to yourself? Jeash. You are The Dragon Guardian. I didn’t say control how they treat you. I’m talking about what you accept. And you let them get away with way too much. They aren’t stupid. Once you call them on it a few times they’ll change the way they treat you. Stop being a doormat.”
By then huge tears pooled in her emerald green eyes and ran down Wren’s face. “Besides, they really don’t want me anymore.”
Isobeau knew exactly how she felt. She grabbed a tissue and scooted over to hug her friend. “Oh Wren, If that were true, then you really don’t want them either. You deserve better than that. Everything’s going to work out just fine.” Advice she wished she could believe herself.
“How about let’s get you out of that sidhartha?” If what Isobeau suspected was true…well they’d see wouldn’t they?
“Izzy, you can do that? Why didn’t you say so before?” Wren jumped up from the couch. “Go for it. Wait I’ll need something to put on.”
She ran up the stairs to her room, and charged back to Isobeau, skipping steps on her way down before skidding to a breathless halt, holding up a ridiculous purple and pink backpack with her leather encased sword tied through the handles.
Isobeau had major conflict doing the tango in her head. If it didn’t work no problem, Wren would be stuck in the sidhartha of the love of Isobeau’s life.
If what she was getting ready to do did work and the skin came off Wren, then that was a pretty clear assurance that Isobeau’s essence wanted a mated bond with Kiernan and his spirit was receptive, at least in dragon form. Dragon hide held the intelligence and crux of the dragon at the cellular level.
Wren stood before her waiting. Izzy walked over to her rubbing her hands together, warming them. “Okay. Here goes…” nothing, everything, “Well, here we go.”
Wren threw the backpack onto the couch behind her. “I’ve got half a mind to keep the damn thing just to irritate those insufferable brothers of yours.”
What kind of comeback could Isobeau have for that without revealing more than she wanted to?
“Just kidding, get it off…please.”
Isobeau stroked the leather with the tip of her index finger around the top line of the makeshift wrap and over the rigid knot. This is not where you belong, let go, let go.
“Is it supposed to do something? I don’t feel anything.”
“Patience, give it a moment. It’s thinking.”
“Thinking?” Wren squeaked.
This is not where you belong, come to me. Isobeau blew her breath over the surface of the leather. What occurred next wasn’t something she’d considered anywhere in the realm of possibility.
Wren turned as Isobeau blew making a revolution and back to her starting place. Then the Indigo dragon skin retreated from Wren’s body with a leap, wrapping around Isobeau’s arm like a scared cat before completely disappearing, assimilated into Isobeau’s DNA. Now that was unexpected.
Isobeau tried to absorb the weight of what’d occurred. The entire swath of Dragon skin had disappeared on, er in her. It was impossible.
“Oh Thank the Goddess.” Wren spun around completely naked, running her hands over her skin. Did you know it was going to do that?” Wren asked.
She pulled clothes out of the backpack, the sword bumping up and down as she rummaged.
“Ah, no I can’t say as I did.” Isobeau sank down onto the chair. Maybe Wren wouldn’t grasp the significance of this monumental screw up.
“When are you going to tell Kiernan?” Wren pulled the t-shirt over her head. It swamped her, so she tied the thing around her middle and turned her back to stepped into the jeans.
Damn, Wren didn’t miss anything. “I can’t tell him. He doesn’t ever need to know.”
Wren continued, “I saw a white energy light all around both of you, putting you together. Granted I didn’t think his skin would leap off of me onto you but essentially that confirms you belong together.”
“Oh shit, Wren, you and those Guardian powers!”
“You mean the Guardian is a freaking dragon matchmaker?” Wren’s voice squeaked.
“You’re not just a matchmaker. You are Goddess’s high priestess in our society. Female births have been way down for years. Fertility is decreasing every generation.
“Bonded mates are almost non-existent. We are a dying race and it’s pretty important to identify mates for our warriors from among the humans without exposing our people to the world.”
Wren didn’t have time to say more because there was a measured, pounding on the front door that shook the heavy wood.
“And you aren’t going to tell him either, got it?” Isobeau didn’t wait for Wren’s answer.
Isobeau felt the familiar chaotic swirl of emotions outside and ran to pull the door open. Thank the Goddess, they’d brought Kiernan back. Hopefully he would accept healing from her now.
He was supported between Caleb and Ethan. Ethan looked bruised and battered. Caleb had a gash over his forehead at least three inches long that could use stitches.
Kiernan’s complexion had faded to a pasty grey. Ethan was hollering at her. “Why the fuck are you opening this door without knowing who’s on the other side?”
Isobeau stood back shaking her head as the three men stumbled through. “I can’t believe this, you left here to go brawl with each other. What did you two do to him?” Everyone was talking at once. Rage poured through Isobeau.
“You two testosterone laden bullies had to beat him up, just to prove your point?” Isobeau shouted at her brothers pounding her fist on Ethan’s shoulder.
Caleb shouted back. “This isn’t what it looks like. Give us a chance, damn it woman he needs a healer not a hell cat.”
Ethan started cursing again. “He went ape shit on us. We didn’t do anything to him.”
Isobeau ran her hands over Kiernan looking for injuries. He didn’t have a mark on him.
She glanced up noticing cuts and bruises on her brothers. “Well it does look like you two got the worst end of the deal.” Six bulky Watchers stormed through the door, evidently attracted by all the pounding and shouting. She nodded to her armed companions.
“These two are my brothers and you’re going to have to get used to a lot of shouting when they are around. It doesn’t necessarily mean anything. And no they aren’t going to make off with the Lady Wren, in spite of what Maxwell may have told you so shoo, go somewhere and do something useful. I’ve got healing to do.”
They didn’t look convinced. Isobeau put her hands on her hips. “Seriously, guys Rhys will be here and I am perfectly capable of calling you if I
need you. If you feel like you are obligated to be around then go clear the front ballroom of furniture. I’m going to need a big space to work.”
That seemed to convince them and they turned to leave. Some degree of relief floated to Isobeau’s awareness. Yeah, those guys didn’t want to have to stand between the royal heirs and anything they wanted.
Kiernan pulled away from Isobeau and her brothers and stumbled, lurching toward Wren going down on one knee in front of her. “Guardian. I’m in bad shape and the enemy has messed with my mind. The Goddess was wrong, I’m not worthy to be your Tao'Taran.”
Isobeau’s heart shredded to see Kiernan on his knees in front of Wren.
“Give us time to figure this out. What was that you said, you are my Tao'Taran?”
“Yes the Goddess appeared to me. I thought she was a delusion. I didn’t feel right talking about it in front of Maxwell.” He hesitated.
“It’s okay Kiernan, you can tell me what you saw.”
“I was chained. Ron was working on me, cutting the skin from my back. A fae woman appeared to me. I thought she’d been there before but that must not have been real. I couldn’t tell what was real from hallucination.
She said The Mane’tung would mate and I was to be the protector, the Tao'Taran of the new Queen as she would be the Guardian of the people as well-- the time was coming soon. Then you showed up.”
Vitality left Kiernan and he knelt broken before her. “I can’t be trusted. You must end my suffering and keep everyone safe. I’m asking for you to order my mercy death, couAnasia. Be fast and merciful in your justice.”
Isobeau fell to her knees beside him. “No, Wren don’t.” Izzy begged, she couldn’t think of a world without Kiernan even if she couldn’t let herself claim him.
“I’m sorry. I guess I’m not going to be a very good Guardian.” Wren turned from Izzy to Kiernan with a perplexed look on her face.
“Kiernan, I’ve told you when I placed that mark on your face, the Goddess isn’t finished with you yet. When are you going to believe it?
