A powerful array of dragons with nothing but fury in their hearts and a need to protect their kin. Another dragon crashed down into the water on one side of Matthew as Shannon landed on the other. He was massive and golden. When her eyes met his, she knew who he was.
Raknar.
Matthew’s father.
An alarming amount of blood started to stain the water around her mate. Yet even as his eyes slid shut, and she knew he was slipping away, his wings never fell apart. He never stopped protecting what he held so close to his heart.
Terrified that it might already be too late, she nudged his wings apart just enough and peered down. Emily’s little dragon looked back, tears in her eyes as she cuddled closer to him. “I’m not leaving Matthew, Mama. You can’t make me.” She nestled closer if that was possible. “He’s my dragon, and I wanna keep him.”
“Okay, baby girl,” she whispered and bit back tears. Or at least it felt that way. Hard to know in her current form. All she knew for sure was that the slower Matthew’s heart beat, the more her heart hurt.
“He’s mine too,” Håkon whimpered as he crawled off of Shannon, ducked down under Matthew’s wings and cuddled against Emily.
Meanwhile, everyone was racing after and battling the enemy, but as Hallstein always seemed to do when faced with too much opposition, he vanished. Shannon sensed Lauren had started to slow down time so they could all attack but it was too late. Hallstein had crossed over into the land of the dead.
“We need to get Matthew to shore.” Raknar’s eyes met hers. “He is too big for you to pull, Shannon.”
“I know.” Shannon wanted to curl up on his chest with the children and be close to him but knew that was impractical. She was the adult here. Still, there was nothing so frightening and heart wrenching than watching her mate’s life seep away.
When another golden dragon surfaced beside her, she finally met Heidrek for the first time. The current Sigdir Viking King and Cybil’s mate. More importantly, Matthew’s brother.
“You lead, Shannon,” he murmured into her mind. “Father and I will make sure he and your children get home.”
Shannon nodded, not sure if she wanted to leave the rear unattended but found she didn’t have to worry when she looked back. Every last dragon that had come to their rescue followed. Her sisters, their mates, and of course, Sven.
She nodded her thanks before she headed inland. This wasn’t how it was supposed to happen. They weren’t supposed to come home only to realize that they hadn’t all made it. There were four of them. And it had taken everything to find one another again.
Now, this.
It almost felt like a funeral rite as they drew closer to shore. What appeared to be hundreds of people lined the docks and roadways beyond. Matthew had been cared about. But then she got the sense all those they considered their own were treated this way.
Shannon spied the woman standing on the shore waiting for them. The same woman she had so recently seen with Raknar on Emily’s boat. She might be older, but still just as elegant and lovely.
Matthew’s mother.
Veronica.
However regally she stood, there was no missing the tears in her eyes as Raknar and Heidrek pulled Matthew onto the shore. As if he knew he was home and his children were safe, his heart beat its final thump then his wings finally fell apart and lay on the ground. Håkon and Emily stayed right where they were, curled up together on his chest.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.
Entrenched in misery, feeling not only her own sadness but that of her children, Shannon didn’t bother shifting back but released a long wail of denial. This wasn’t right. It wasn’t fair. Whimpering, she lay against his side, folded her wings around him, Håkon and Emily, and tried to hold his spirit in.
But that sort of thing was impossible.
Even for a powerful medium.
Yet again, she had lost her mate.
Matthew was dead.
Chapter Eighteen
MATTHEW KNEW HE had died but should have known when Hel was determined to do something, she did it. Or so he assumed. Because one moment the world was bright and he was rising out of his body, the next, dimmer, and he was sucked back into it.
Yet he saw someone first. It was just a glimpse, but he knew who she was.
His cousin, Aðísla.
Meyla and Valan’s daughter.
What was she doing in Helheim? More importantly, why was she wearing a Scottish plaid?
He had no time to ponder that before his heart gave a heavy thump and he inhaled deeply. It took him a moment to realize he lay on the shore. Then another to realize who his wings instinctually wrapped around.
Shannon, Håkon, and Emily.
All three dragon heads popped up and stared at him.
“Father!” Håkon exclaimed as Emily said, “Dragon Daddy!”
Dragon daddy? He liked the sound of that.
“You’re all better!” both chirped as they scurried further up his chest.
Shannon’s eyes were damp as she nuzzled her face against the side of his neck.
“Thank Odin you’re back,” she whispered, emotional. “Or thank Hel, I suppose.”
Matthew held all three, so relieved to be alive and with them, he couldn’t manage a response.
“Welcome back, Brother.”
Only when Heidrek spoke did he realize how many people were there. Everyone from his kin to their mates as well as their entire village.
“Time to shift back, family. We have people to greet,” Matthew murmured into Shannon, Emily and Håkon’s mind. “And do not forget to dress yourselves.”
All listened except Emily who remained a dragon and danced around with happiness.
“Emily.” Shannon gave her daughter a pointed look. “You heard Matthew.”
The little black dragon looked at him in challenge before she smiled, and shifted. Matthew smiled as well. His daughter was as stubborn as him, but at least she accepted him now. More than just accepted him it seemed based on the way she and Håkon hugged him again.
Cheers arose far and wide as their kin descended on them with smiles and embraces. Shannon and Emily greeted her sisters while he did the same with his kin.
“I’m so glad you’re all safe,” his mother said, tears in her eyes as she held him. “We thought you were dead…then you were alive…then you died again!”
“We’ve been doing a lot of that.” He grinned as he met her eyes. “It’s been an adventure.”
“Look at that,” she murmured. “My son smiles.” She shook her head and whispered, “I’ve missed seeing that.”
“Good, because I think you’ll be seeing a lot more of it.”
“We hope so,” his father said before he embraced him. “It’s good to have you back. The real you.” When he pulled away, his eyes went to Shannon and the kids. “But I can see why.” His eyes returned to Matthew. “Congratulations on being reunited with your family, Son.”
Thanks to their dragon connection, all of his kin would have known everything the moment he and Shannon arrived. Including what had happened to Freydis. Matthew met his parent’s eyes, not sure if now was the time to relay her message. He didn’t want to open old wounds.
“It’s okay, Son,” Veronica whispered, wiping away a tear. “We see her in your thoughts. We know she’s okay now.”
“She is,” he confirmed, his voice gruff with emotion. “And feasting well with Odin in Valhalla until we meet again.”
“Until we meet again,” Veronica echoed as Raknar wrapped a supportive arm around her. Her eyes met his. “She’s finally happy.”
Raknar nodded, sad but pleased. Proud. “Yes.”
After that, Cybil greeted Matthew then Sam and Lauren.
“You look happy.” Lauren smiled. “Really, truly happy.”
“I am,” he confirmed, unable to do anything but smile now.
“I’m so glad.” She kissed his cheek. “You deserve it.”
“Where�
��s Erica?” Shannon asked everyone as she looked around. “And Kodran?” She frowned. “And Cameron?”
“As far as we know Erica’s still in the twenty-first century.” Cybil looked at her with curiosity. “Why do you ask?”
“Because I saw her on the dock,” she replied. “When we first arrived in Emily’s boat.”
“I’m afraid not.” Sam shook her head. “According to Tait and Lauren, she hasn’t shown up at the house in Maine yet either.”
“Speaking of Tait and Lauren.” Sam gestured at them. “Now that everything’s under control, it’s time to get you back to the twenty-first century so I can return and catch up with Shannon.”
Shannon embraced Lauren and Matthew clapped Tait’s back, his eyes locking with his cousin’s in thanks before they left.
“As to Kodran,” Aunt Amber said. “He’s around here somewhere with one woman or another.”
Matthew and Shannon both frowned at that.
“He helped us so much through all this,” Matthew said. “Yet when the enemy nearly destroyed my family, he was off lying with women?”
“So it seems.” Aunt Amber shook her head. “I’m sorry.”
Like Tait, Kodran enjoyed women more than most, but this seemed off somehow. “Are you sure he’s still here at the Fortress?”
“Yes,” Kadlin confirmed and grinned. “There’s no mistaking the sounds coming from his lodge.”
Many nodded in agreement.
“So where’s Cameron?” Shannon asked. “I want to thank him for getting Emily home safely.” Worry knit her brows. “Is he all right?”
“He is better than all right. He’s in my bed.” Kadlin winked. “I am sure he will be sorry he missed your arrival, but you will see him again eventually.” A smirk hovered on her lips. “As soon as he finds the strength to join us.”
Kadlin was about to continue when Shannon’s brows shot up. “Say no more. I got it.”
Sensing Shannon’s need to escape an awkward moment, Uncle Kol turned to the crowd and roared, “Let us celebrate my nephew and his family’s safe return.”
Everyone roared their agreement.
When Matthew saw Heidrek remaining by the shore as everyone headed inland, he urged Shannon to go on ahead and enjoy reuniting with Cybil. They had a lot of catching up to do. Emily and Håkon were already racing each other into the village.
“It’s good to see you again, my King,” he said as he joined Heidreck. Now that he was mentally communicating with his kin, he knew little had changed here. They had not seen the enemy until today.
“It is good to see you as well,” Heidrek said. Though he knew his brother disliked when he called him by his title, he said nothing. He did not want to upset Matthew. Not when they were just reconnecting.
And they were.
More than Heidrek realized at first.
Now free of all that weighed him down, Matthew knew it was time to end the distance he’d put between them.
“I know what happened that day,” he began gruffly, not all that good at this sort of thing. “I know the truth about the battle.” He shook his head. “I was wrong. I’ve been wrong all along.”
“It no longer matters.” Heidrek gripped Matthew’s shoulders and met his eyes. “What matters now is that you found your family. That you are no longer repressed by all that haunted you.”
Heidrek meant every last word. It was clear in his forgiving and wise gaze. As Matthew had figured out along the way, Heidrek had never held anything against him. Not for a moment.
“I have missed you, Brother.” Matthew kept his eyes locked with Heidrek’s. “And I am sorry.”
“So am I.” Heidrek embraced him. “For all the loss we suffered that day…and since that day.”
Matthew nodded and held his brother tight before he pulled away. “We have a lot to discuss. Revenge to plot.”
“How else can it be?” Heidrek grinned and clapped his shoulder as they started toward the Fortress. “You are Hel’s dragon, and like Lauren, you can slow down time. Having two of you with that ability will be very helpful indeed.” There was pride in his voice as he continued. “Not only that, but your mate is a powerful medium, and the two of you can shift in and out of Helheim. That is remarkable and puts us on far more equal ground with the enemy.”
Matthew nodded, just as proud. They would be a formidable addition to this war.
Yet he worried.
While he hated to do it, he blocked his next few words from Shannon. It was better for now that she only think the best of Anthony. “Though she said otherwise, I got the sense Hel knew more about why Eluf, Anthony, and their fellow seers went to such great lengths to bring my family back to me. The look Anthony gave me before he died was telling. There was more to it than what I shared.” He shook his head. “It was almost as if he were repaying a debt.”
Heidrek frowned. “What sort of debt?”
“I have no idea.” He shook his head again. “But it must have been a big one based on the lengths he went to.” And he had the strangest feeling it was all related to old rules and unfortunate laws. “I think the division between seers and dragons in ancient times led to things that are going to affect us more before this is all over.”
Heidreck nodded. “I agree.”
“I remain curious about Kodran,” Matthew said, going over some of the things that had happened along the way. “If he was not Einar, then who was he? And why will he not tell us when it’s clear he knows?” He frowned. “And why did Shannon see Maeva’s dragon act so frightened on the cliff when Hallstein arrived? It makes no sense considering what we just witnessed here.”
“I wish I knew.” Heidrek shook his head. “Like Kadlin, Kodran has always been his own dragon. What I do know, is that he would not keep anything from us that would put us in harm’s way. He would protect his dragon kin until his last breath.”
That was true. Regardless. What room did secrets have in all this?
“I am sure we will have the answers to your questions soon enough, Brother,” Heidrek said. “Until then, take some time and enjoy reuniting with your long lost family. Enjoy your children.”
Matthew nodded. Heidrek was right.
“Before we join the celebrations, I would like to visit Naðr Véurr,” Matthew said. “Nothing has changed with his condition, no?”
“No,” Heidrek confirmed.
Matthew hadn’t blocked anything that had happened to him and Shannon from his brother. It was too risky with so much threat still out there. So he knew Guardian was watching over Cybil’s yet to be conceived child. And he knew that Matthew suspected the returning soul might be Megan.
“It is nothing we can confirm,” Heidrek murmured. “So I want it kept blocked from Naðr when we are around him. He might be able to sense it, and I do not want him upset.”
Matthew nodded his agreement.
“So you did not see him in Helheim?” Wariness flickered in Heidrek’s eyes. “Because you could just as easily be blocking that to spare me.”
“No, I did not nor did Shannon.” He shook his head. “I kept nothing from you, Brother.” His eyes met Heidrek’s as something occurred to him and he stopped. “Perhaps I should not visit him considering Aðísla.”
Heidrek frowned. “What about Aðísla?”
“You did not see her in my mind’s eye?” Matthew matched his frown. “Right before I returned from Helheim the final time?”
“No.” He shook his head, troubled. “So she is…dead?”
“I don’t know with any certainty,” Matthew said, just as troubled. “I cannot imagine that she would have dressed as a Scotswoman in Helheim.”
Heidrek’s eyes narrowed. “What colors were her plaid?”
Her father, Valan, was originally of the Hamilton clan, so it was a logical enough question.
“MacLomain colors.” Matthew perked his brows. “Why do you suppose she was dressed like that?” As far as he knew Valan was still in a self-induced trance trying to find her since she w
ent missing. “Has something changed? Has Uncle Valan made contact with her?”
“Not that I know of,” Heidrek replied. “For now, we will block this from everyone else. I need time to think about it.”
Matthew nodded. “Of course.” His eyes held Heidrek’s. “Emily has spoken with both Grant Hamilton and Adlin MacLomain in her dreams. Did you know that?”
Surprise flashed across Heidrek’s face. “No, but then I haven’t heard from Grant since we trapped his enemy in the MacLomain great hall’s tapestry.” He shook his head. “And I haven’t spoken with Adlin for many, many years.”
“Then I have given you more to think upon,” Matthew murmured. “Once everything has settled, I will question Emily further.”
“No rush. After she has acclimated and spent time with her father and brother,” Heidrek said, his voice soft. “And something tells me if Grant and Adlin have already reached out to her, it is only a matter of time before we hear from them as well.”
Matthew nodded in agreement, grateful Heidrek wasn’t pushing him to ask Emily anything right away. They were just reconnecting, and he didn’t want to do anything to compromise that.
“And then there is what happened so long ago,” he said softly as his eyes met Heidrek’s. “Most of our dragons abandoned Bjark’s tribe. We let them be slaughtered.” He shook his head. “But I sensed there was something off about it.” His eyes pled with his brother’s, as though he had all the answers. “You’ve seen inside my mind. You know what happened. Why would they have done that? Why would they have come then leave?”
Equally pained, Heidrek shook his head. “I do not know, Matthew.” He clenched his jaw. “But I agree there was something strange about it. Before all of this is finished, we will have our answers. We will know the truth.”
“We better,” Matthew ground out, not upset with Heidrek just the betrayal his clan had once shown Shannon’s.
“We will.” His brother’s eyes narrowed on the sea as he pondered. “I think it is also odd that besides that one dragon Hallstein had with him at the beginning of all this, we have seen no other comrades. Yet I know they exist. I’ve seen them in visions.” Heidrek’s eyes met Matthew’s. “He’s hiding his fleet somewhere, and we need to prepare for them.”
Fury of a Viking (The MacLomain Series: Viking Ancestors' Kin Book 4) Page 29
