Boreas Reborn

by Ariana Hawkes

  He gazed at the road ahead without speaking, as if it was the first time he’d thought about it and needed to figure out his feelings. “I like it here. I miss my family and friends, but right now I’ve got too much going on to think about that.” He gave a short laugh. “Here we are,” he said, as they arrived at the harbor. “I’ll just park here and we can walk to the boat.”

  He led her to a sleek motorboat tied to a mooring cleat at its own private slip at the Deerfield harbor. She accepted his hand as he helped her onto the boat. His fingers were callused, but she was struck by how gently he held her. She clambered over the side into the craft. “Nice boat,” she commented.

  Boreas untied the line. The boat rocked wickedly when he jumped aboard. Rainey gripped the side to steady herself and plopped down in the seat next to the captain’s chair.

  “Yeah, Xephyr, our Alpha, he’s taken a liking to these fancy, shiny things you have here—boats, cars, watches. Material things are not important to me, as you can tell from my truck.” He laughed.

  “I like your truck,” Rainey said.

  “Thank you. We work with humans, so we’ve been trying to adapt to some of your ways.”

  “By the way, what did you mean earlier when you said that the people who came to the island were staring at their hands and smiling?” she said.

  “Like this.” Boreas stretched his right arm out, angled it in front of his face, looked up at it and spread his lips in a grin.

  Rainey burst into helpless laughter and Boreas dropped his arm and looked at her, his eyes full of surprise and incomprehension.

  “Did I do it wrong?” he asked, his voice tinged with hurt.

  “No, not at all,” Rainey said, trying to straighten her face. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you. I wasn’t laughing at you. What you just demonstrated was the act of taking a selfie as we call it here. That means, taking a photograph of yourself, with your phone or camera. And what I was laughing at was the fact that you’d described it as people staring in their hands and smiling. A lot of people consider taking selfies very stupid but I think even more will if they saw it the way you did.”

  Boreas laughed. “I guess we still have a lot to learn.”

  Rainey smiled to herself. She liked it that he didn’t understand humans and that he preferred simple things. Royal families on earth were very fond of displaying their wealth. But not royal dragons it seemed. She wanted to ask him more about it, and learn more about his background, but he busied himself with getting the boat started and she didn’t want to interrupt. She leaned back in her seat and took a deep breath. She loved the smell of the sea air.

  Boreas turned the key, and the engine growled to life. He moved the boat smoothly out of the dock. Rainey was prone to seasickness, but the water looked calm and she hoped it’d be a gentle ride. The boat accelerated into the ocean, bouncing rhythmically over the waves.

  “So, tell me about your building project,” Rainey said, raising her voice over the chugging of the engine. “What do you need all of that lumber for?”

  “The island was wild and uninhabited before we arrived, and we’ve set out to make it home,” he replied, his voice so naturally deep and strong that he barely needed to shout. “We’re going to build houses for all of us and some communal areas.”

  “And what about the landscaping? Do you have any ideas of what you’d like to do? I brought a few sketches with me to help us visualize some options.”

  He was silent, seemingly deep in concentration as he stowed the mooring line. “Uh, yeah, the landscaping,” he said at last. “Yeah, I’d love to see your sketches.”

  “I can show them to you as soon as we arrive. I don’t want to risk having them ruined by the water here.”

  “Sure thing.”

  She looked at him sideways. He didn’t sound very thrilled to talk about the landscaping project. Maybe he was just tired of work. The grunting of the engine and the rush of the wind made it too difficult to have a conversation anyways.

  Rainey studied his profile for a few moments, noticing the way the sunlight glinted off his dark, unruly hair and the gentle breeze ruffled the ends. He glanced her way and smiled. She sent him a tight smile in return and diverted her gaze toward the receding shoreline.

  She liked his company. He was calm and friendly, and she felt very relaxed around him. And it was weird—they’d met only a few hours ago, but she had the feeling they’d known each other for years. She felt like she could be herself around him—that was, if she knew who she was anymore. She was looking forward to working with him and spending two weeks on the island. Her life had been so stressful lately. Taking care of the household on top of her job was very demanding and she also had to start planning the wedding. It was more than fifteen months away, but Dwayne had insisted that she had to start preparing at least a year and a half in advance because he wanted everything to be flawless. She had no idea what to expect of the island, but she suspected it’d be more relaxing than the past three months, which had strained her nerves almost to breaking point.

  Wind whipped through her hair as the boat sped across the sea. Boreas seemed to be completely focused on steering now, so she closed her eyes, leaned back in her seat, and enjoyed the feeling of embarking on a new adventure.

  There was a big bump, and Rainey’s eyes flew open. They were passing over a big swell in the ocean. She blinked several times. A mass of craggy red peaks was directly in front of them, and the way the sun hit the rocks made the island look like it was ablaze. It was Fire Island, of course—very aptly named. She checked the time on her phone and started when she saw that at least an hour had passed. She’d slept, which was a miracle for her. Even at night, sleep was a rare commodity, never mind when she was in a boat, in the middle of the sea, with a virtual stranger. Her insomnia had been so bad recently that she barely got more than three or four hours of sleep a night. It always took her a long time to fall asleep and then she’d wake up in the middle of the night, wide awake, her mind churning with thoughts. It’d take her hours to fall back asleep, and often she’d just doze for an hour or so before her alarm went off. She was constantly exhausted, and it made her clumsy and slow, which annoyed Dwayne no end. He was a very heavy sleeper himself and never understood the burden of insomnia. His sleep was uninterrupted most nights, even when she was tossing and turning in bed. She took a deep breath. Now she felt somehow refreshed and energized and it was a good feeling.

  Boreas turned his head in her direction and grinned when he saw she was awake. “Feeling better?” he shouted over the wind.

  “I’m so sorry. I did not mean to pass out in front of you,” she yelled back, fidgeting with her clothes in embarrassment.

  “Don’t be. Your body obviously needed the rest.” He gave her a kind look. She swallowed, unused to being treated gently. She couldn’t even imagine how Dwayne would react if he caught her napping during the day.

  “This is my favorite view of the island,” Boreas shouted, interrupting her thoughts. “When the afternoon sun makes the sky so red that it looks like the volcano is exploding.”

  “It is stunning,” she said, observing the rocky shapes that were getting bigger and bigger.

  “A volcanic island?” she murmured to herself. An elusive recollection nagged at the back of her mind and she suddenly had the feeling that something was wrong. But she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Maybe it was nothing. She was probably just feeling tense because she was in a new situation.

  They reached the shore, and Boreas docked the boat and killed the ignition. He grabbed Rainey’s carryall from the dry compartment and jumped out of the boat.

  “Be careful, the edge of the boat can be slippery,” he said and offered his hand to her.

  Rainey held onto it as she clambered out of the boat. “Thanks.”

  “It’s only a short walk from here to our base,” Boreas said, and before she had time to get her bearings, he was already striding along the path in urgent steps. Rainey hurrie
d after him, struggling to keep up with his pace up the small incline. She wondered what the sudden haste was about. Maybe he was hungry. Some men got really impatient when they needed to eat. If they kept walking at this speed, she’d be hungry, too, by the time they arrived.

  Her breathing quickened, and she watched her footing to make sure she didn’t take a wrong step. She didn’t want to fall, or worse, in front of Boreas twice in a day. As she navigated around a small boulder, the nagging feeling at the back of her mind crystalized into a realization. With a mixture of confusion and curiosity, she squatted and, using her fingertips, scraped away the top inch or two of dirt from the surface of the ground.

  “Boreas!” she called after him, hearing the sharpness in her own voice.

  He turned, a shadow of something she couldn’t identify crossing his face. “What is it?” he said, his tone a little too casual.

  “You can’t grow anything on this island. The foundation of the soil is limestone.”

  “Oh. Uh. I’m sure it’ll be okay.” He grunted, and then waved and turned around, ready to walk away.

  “No. No one can do anything about it. It’s impossible. Most volcanic islands are normally quite fertile because of the volcanic soil but that’s not the case here. The rock foundation isn’t well-suited to encouraging tender young plants to root, and the soil isn’t deep enough for plants to take hold. This land is barren.”

  “Hmm.” He avoided meeting her eyes.

  “That’s why there isn’t a single tree here. No weeds, no nothing,” Rainey continued. “I had a feeling there was something weird about the island when I first saw it, but it took me a while to realize what.”

  “Look, Rainey, let’s just relax tonight. We’ll talk about it tomorrow. It’s been a long day.”

  “Boreas, this is serious. It’s not something that can be fixed tomorrow. It means my job here is redundant. You might as well take me back to the mainland.”

  “Rainey—”

  She planted her hands on her hips and pursed her lips. “You knew, didn’t you?”

  “What? No. I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He stared at his boots and kicked at the dirt with his right foot.

  “Yes, you’ve known this whole time. You said that the soil on the island was very fertile. I thought that was strange because the soil in this whole region is generally quite difficult. But I thought you just had no idea what you were talking about.” She paused for a moment. “But now I realize you just lied. And that’s giving me the creeps. Majorly. Why would you lie?” Distress clutched her stomach.

  “Rainey. Look—”

  “Why would you bring me here under false pretenses?”

  Boreas’s forehead furrowed, and he took a step toward her. “There’s no reason to pani—”

  “Oh, my god. Am I in danger?” she gasped, stepping away from him fast.

  “What? No!” Boreas yelped, pain and confusion all over his face. “No, of course not!”

  Rainey shook her head hard, thoughts racing through her mind. “What do you want from me?”

  “Rainey, please, just listen to me—”

  “Tell me right now!”

  “Look. Rainey. Please.” His features contorted in desperation. “You can’t marry Dwayne,” he sputtered out.

  “What?” Her mouth opened and closed several times. “What did you just say?”

  “You can’t marry Dwayne,” Boreas repeated. “You can’t live with a man who doesn’t treat you with respect. A man who hurts you.”

  “That is none of your business!” she yelled. “Who do you think you are to tell me what to do?”

  He sighed. “I’m not trying to meddle in your life, but everyone has a duty to protect people from predators.”

  “I don’t need protection. And what makes you think he’s been hurting me?”

  The muscles in his jaw twitched. “I saw the bruises.”

  Rainey’s throat tightened, and a wave of heat hit her square in the chest, before rising to her cheeks until they were burning. She’d never felt so ashamed. “So, you’ve brought me here to get me away from Dwayne?” she said at last, her voice breaking.

  He nodded. “I knew it was the only way I’d be able to speak to you in private.”

  “Well, I don’t need a knight in shining armor.”

  “But maybe you need someone fighting your corner.”

  “There’s no fight to fight, Boreas. I’m okay.” She cast her gaze at the ground. She wanted this conversation to end now.

  “You don’t seem okay,” Boreas insisted.

  “What would you know about it?”

  “Well, I know I can feel the tension in your body. It’s like an electric forcefield, and when your fiancé turned up today, it spiked sky-high. But I haven’t felt any of it this afternoon.”

  “I just have a stressful life, Boreas. That’s all.”

  “You deserve better than that, Rainey. Much better.”

  “Thank you for your concern, but I’m fine.”

  He gave her a look so sad that a pang of pain mixed in with her anger. She sensed it was a sadness that had been living inside him for a long time. “Boreas, you have no use of me here. Can you please take me home?” she said more gently.

  Chapter 3

  Rainey

  “Can’t you stay for the night at least?” Boreas asked. “The sun will be down soon, and I try to avoid crossing the ocean at night.”

  “I should go back. There’s nothing I can help you with here.”

  “Rainey, please.” He paused. “Just stay for the night. It’s a real long way back.” His eyes were vulnerable, full of entreaty.

  Rainey hesitated. She was very upset, as well as furious at him for lying to her. But he had done it because he thought there was something to protect her from, and that was nice. His intentions were good. He had tried to help her. And the thought of crossing the sea in the darkness scared her more than she wanted to admit.

  “Fine. I guess I can stay for one night,” she said tersely. “But we go back tomorrow.”

  “Sure.” He nodded. “Thank you.”

  He turned, and she followed him along the path again.

  After a five-minute hike through a rocky canyon, they emerged at the edge of a clearing. Straight ahead was a steep reddish rock face soaring into the air. Something metallic glinted at the top along the spine of the ridge. Rainey shaded her eyes but couldn’t figure out what it was.

  At the base of the wall sat a large wooden structure. It was clearly supposed to be a building, but looked more like a disorganized heap of wood. Along the right edge of the clearing was a row of dilapidated wooden shacks. Boreas led her to one of them. “This is the guest cabin,” he said. “I hope you find it comfortable.”

  There was a wide and welcoming veranda with two cozy-looking rockers to the left of the steps. And that was the only normal aspect to the cabin. Everything else seemed to have been built by someone with their eyes shut. The front of the structure was littered with windows, resembling a giant advent-calendar drawn by a child. There were at least twenty of them, all different sizes, shapes, and proportions. Some of them were barely a foot above the ground, while others were just below the roof. There were huge gaps between the wood panels, some several inches wide, and random pieces of wood were sticking out everywhere. The whole house was heavily slanting to the right, while the roof was leaning to the left, looking as if it might collapse at any moment. There was a short curtain covering a big gap at the front, which was supposed to function as the entrance to the cabin.

  “Mmm…it’s nice,” she said, not wanting to offend him. She was pretty sure Boreas and his clan had never seen a cabin before. In her back pocket, her cell phone buzzed with a call. She ignored it.

  “Is there a bathroom in here?”

  Boreas looked offended. “Of course, there is. The door leading off the bedroom.”

  “Thanks. I need to freshen up,” Rainey said.

  “I can show you around after
you unpack,” Boreas offered.

  “Maybe later,” she replied, a little more coldly than she’d intended, but she was still angry and upset.

  “Sure, take your time. I’ll be over there if you need anything.” He pointed to the big wooden building they’d just passed, raised a hand in goodbye, and walked away.

  Boreas snorted and two tiny jets of smoke puffed from his nostrils. This was going worse and worse. He’d known it wouldn’t be easy, ever since he first laid eyes on Rainey and that piece of rat crap who called himself her fiancé. And now he’d stuffed everything up. He stormed into his cabin, grabbed a beer out of the fridge and chugged half of it in a single gulp.

  Earlier that week he’d been on one of his sky patrols, searching for humans who might need the dragons’ help. Flying over an industrial park, his keen eyesight had been drawn to the sight of a man bawling and ranting at a woman, then tossing a glass in her direction. Luckily it missed her, so Boreas didn’t shoot down from the sky and tear the asshole’s throat out. But when he got back to the agency, he asked Eurus to look them up and they found out that the woman was Rainey Hampton, and the shining example of manhood was her fiancé, Dwayne Veitch. For the next few days, Boreas traversed the skies above their house, looking for more evidence of abuse, but Rainey and Dwayne didn’t spend any more time outside. He had a bad feeling about the situation though, and decided he needed to see them face-to-face.

  It turned out that Veitch Lumbers had a reputation for providing high-quality wood, and the dragons were genuinely in need of a supply of lumber to build their new cabins, so Boreas had set up a meeting with Dwayne. He hadn’t known what to expect when he arrived at the company earlier that day. While he hoped to speak to the man and get an idea of his character, he thought that bumping into the woman would be a long shot. But then, there she was, sweet, good-natured, and even more beautiful close up. Then—those bruises. Marring the soft flesh of her neck. The sight of them made him sick, sicker than he’d ever felt before. His dragon had coiled and writhed inside him as if it’d been poisoned, while dark, long-buried memories rose up in his mind. He saw how Rainey changed and tensed when Dwayne joined them, the scent of her fear thick in his nostrils, and he knew for sure that she was being abused by that douchebag. That gutless excuse for a wolf. Boreas could’ve ripped him open like a ripe fruit with one slash of his claws. But he knew that wasn’t the right way to deal with things. It had to be Rainey’s decision. Which was how he found himself asking Rainey to landscape the island. He knew she’d realize something was going on the moment she saw the volcano and the barren earth. But he figured he’d deal with that later. The first step was to get her away from Dwayne and his abusive paws.