Lilly: Dragon Clan

by Skye Jones

  Her shadow dragon flapped her wings, and Lilly swore her stomach fluttered as the beast inside her mirrored the movement.

  “Well, that’s unexpected,” Rhiannon muttered.

  Great, not the words you wanted to hear during a dangerous magic ceremony. Rhiannon turned to her. “Your dragon is strong, child.”

  Then the shadow dragons separated again, and hers blew fire from its mouth, as did Callum’s.

  “And we’re back on track. This is what’s supposed to happen.” Rhiannon gave her a reassuring smile.

  Rhyndor’s bigger shadow beast moved closer to the two other fire-breathing shadows and opened its own mouth. Their fire filled the shadow until it glowed so brightly it hurt her eyes. She couldn’t look away though, still stuck, unable to move.

  Rhyndor’s dragon grew brighter and brighter, and a fierce heat filled the room. Then it flapped its wings and roared. It flew high, toward the ceiling, and swooped back down toward the bed.

  Her own shadow dragon flew back to her, as did Callum’s. When it entered her body, she sensed an awful moment of sickness and something wrong, but then things were back to normal. Only, she retained a heightened awareness of her inner beast.

  Rhiannon brought a different liquid to her and made her swallow it. Kate did the same to Callum. Almost instantly, she found herself able to move.

  She turned around and watched Rhyndor. He still lay unmoving, but his skin, which had turned pale, started to warm as she stared. A golden glow began in his chest and moved out toward his limbs and head.

  She turned to Rhiannon, and the healer smiled. “’Tis working, child.”

  Rhyndor took in a huge breath and began to cough. He gasped through four more wracking breaths then turned on his side and threw up all over the bed.

  His body kept getting wracked by great big, ragged breaths in and out, and he vomited three more times. She began to cry, terrified the cure was killing him all over again. He gave one final heave, and something dark and repulsive came out of his mouth as he vomited.

  Rhiannon cried out, “That vile, evil witch.”

  Lilly didn’t understand what Rhiannon meant, but the words didn’t do anything to calm her fear. Rhyndor finally stopped being sick and lay back on the bed. A horrible stench filled the room, and Kate shouted for someone named Peter.

  A middle-aged man came running into the room and covered his nose with his sleeve.

  “Go fetch an airtight container. Something strong. And rope and tape, the type to bind something well. And bags.” Kate grabbed his arm as he made to leave. “Garbage bags, the strong ones, lots of them.”

  “What’s happening?” Callum voiced the question Lilly wanted to ask.

  “We know why the original healing ceremony killed Rhyndor. Celine left a tiny gift in him all these centuries. It ensured if he ever tried to reverse any of her magic, he’d die. That…thing on the bed. It’s part of her disgusting, black heart.”

  Lilly wanted to vomit herself. She’d never smelled anything so foul.

  “Oh, fuck,” Callum said. “He’s always feared something like this. Worried she’d still somehow retain control over him, make him attack Steffan if they ever met again.”

  “No. Instead, she made sure Rhyndor would be the one hurt if he tried to stop her magic.” Rhiannon shook her head, her lips pursed. “She’s a truly evil being.”

  Rhyndor groaned. “I need a drink, and can someone please get this thing away from me?”

  “How do you feel?” Rhiannon asked.

  “As if I’ve been hit by a truck.”

  Callum started to laugh, but the tears running down his cheeks weren’t from mirth. “Oh no. Nothing as dramatic, my love. You merely died.”

  “What?” Rhyndor sat up.

  “Yes, keep still. You died. Only your mates saved you. Lilly, most of all. Her dragon may be latent, but she’s powerful.” Rhiannon looked at Lilly. “You should train your magic. We need powerful females like you, and something tells me you’ll need to know what to do should that bitch come for your male.”

  Her male. She liked the sound of it. She also liked the idea of becoming a protector and not merely someone to be looked after and mollycoddled. In a way, it was what she’d done at the shelter, and if she could do it for these two strapping men, she would.

  “I’ll train. I’ll learn all I can.” She smiled at Rhyndor and then at Callum. “And I’ll keep both of you safe.”

  She tried hard not to laugh at their expressions, but her joy at Rhyndor speaking and breathing next to her was uncontrollable, and she laughed out loud.

  “Does this mean you’ll stay?” Callum looked at her, his gaze serious. “You were confused, not sure what you wanted.”

  “Nearly losing someone you’ve grown to love, in however short a time and fantastical a way, tends to clarify things for you.”

  “You love us?” Callum breathed.

  “I didn’t mention you, did I?” she teased.

  Rhyndor coughed and groaned.

  “You’re going to need lots of TLC.” Rhiannon took his pulse as Kate busied herself clearing away the paraphernalia they’d used for the magic.

  “When can I begin to train my inner dragon and learn your magic?” Lilly asked.

  “As soon as you wish. You can stay here and train with Kate and me or head back to the Scottish clan and work with Morag and the healers there.”

  She quite liked the idea of staying with the Welsh clan for a while. They’d figure out what they wanted to do next while she trained. Lilly looked around the room and realized she had a family here. And another one in Scotland. If she and the guys lived their lives doing their own thing but visiting with Mia and Claire often, she thought she’d be happy. Very happy indeed.

  Chapter Eleven

  Rhyndor still hurt. Each time he moved, his whole body protested, but he’d grown determined to get up. He’d spent over a week of days in bed, sleeping most of the time. He experienced vile dreams, and no wonder. Every time he let his mind dwell on the disgusting piece of Celine living in him all these years, he shuddered. A small part of him remained terrified that more of her resided in him, lying in wait to strike, despite Rhiannon’s assurances she’d checked him and used powerful magic to draw any remaining darkness out of him.

  The good news was he and Callum had their mate. It seemed his dying, however briefly, clarified her feelings and made her want to stay. But once again, he worried about it. What if she merely reacted to the moment and regretted her choice a few months or years down the line?

  He sighed and pushed up on the pillows. And this was why he needed to get moving. Staying in bed was doing a number on his mind. Making him fret and whittle like an old woman.

  After carefully pulling on some sweat pants and a T-shirt, he headed downstairs to find Callum in the kitchen, working on his laptop at the table.

  “Hey,” he went over and kissed his male on the top of his head, breathing in his familiar scent. They needed to talk. Rhyndor had some things he needed to get off his chest. But first, he needed coffee.

  He made a pot as Callum clicked away in the background. “What’re you doing?”

  Callum turned and glanced at him. “I’m making sure we’ve got everything sorted so we can do what we want in the coming months. We need to all sit and talk and decide where we want to be based. Lilly wants to open an animal shelter, so we need to purchase some land. The issue is, do we stay in the States? Or do we come back here and buy some land near one of the clans?”

  “She wants to open an animal shelter?” News to him.

  “Yup. We’ve talked quite a bit while you’ve been resting. How are you feeling?” Callum stopped what he was doing and turned to give Rhyndor his full attention.

  “Better.”

  “But not great.”

  No point in lying; his mate would see through him. “No, not great. Not yet.”

  “I wonder if you need more healing?”

  Rhyndor shook his head and held up a coff
ee mug, proceeding to only make one for himself when Callum shook his head. “Nah. Rhiannon says it will take time, is all. Listen.” He took his cup and went to sit by Callum. “I need to talk to you.”

  “Sounds ominous.”

  “It isn’t.” He sat and blew on his coffee before taking a sip. Ah, heaven. Strong and rich, with only a touch of milk, just how he liked it. “I find shit like this hard to talk about, but I’ve been thinking a lot laid up there in bed. I want you to know how much you mean to me.”

  Callum started to say something, but Rhyndor held up his hand. “I worry that because you had to find Lilly for me to get my warrior side back on track, you think you don’t mean as much to me. You do, it’s simply different. I’ve always felt you can take care of yourself, you know? My feelings for you are the same but different. If it makes any sense at all.”

  Callum smiled at him and leaned over to place a soft and lingering kiss on his lips. “I get exactly what you mean. I understand you care for me as deeply as you do her. But I also guessed bringing a young female whom we were matched to into our lives would reignite your protective instincts. I wanted her for myself, of course. One inhale of her scent, and I was a goner. But I also wanted her for you, and what I believed she’d do for you. The ironic thing is, it looks like she might be the one protecting us when it comes right down to it.”

  “That powerful, huh?”

  Callum nodded. “Not on Rhiannon’s level…yet. But the females think she’s powerful enough to be a clan Warder if she ever wishes it. They’ve been training her while you’ve been convalescing. Not sure she does want to be a Warder, though. She wants to visit her sisters often, but I don’t think she wants to live amongst a clan. And she does keep going on about this animal shelter she wants to build.”

  “Christ, we’re going to be overrun by kittens and puppies,” Rhyndor groaned.

  “Yep, and worse, we’re going to have to hire human helpers, which means being careful to keep our identity secret. It’s going to be a bit of a pain in the arse.”

  “But we’re going to do it.” Rhyndor took a sip of his coffee.

  “Of course we are,” Callum laughed. “No choice. Our mate wants it, we’ll give her it.”

  “We’re so fucked.”

  “Yes, we are.”

  Neither of them sounded too worried about being fucked, and Rhyndor, for one, didn’t give a shit how many waifs and strays Lilly wanted to adopt, so long as they were together.

  The female in question breezed into the room and gave a cry of delight. “You’re up! I’ve been so worried about you.”

  She ran to him and gave him a hug and a kiss, then turned and kissed Callum too. “I’ve been thinking.”

  “Yes.”

  “I love it around here. I like Scotland, too. But I love it around here more. And yesterday I went with Mia and Steffan, to see Mia’s home by the sea. The Welsh coast is bloody lovely. The mountains along the coastline give it so much drama. Steffan says he’s grown to love it as much as Mia.”

  Rhyndor shot Callum a glance. He still worried about leaving Lilly with Steffan, despite their supposedly having buried the hatchet. Lilly caught his look and nudged his arm gently.

  “Rhyndor, you laid down your life for him. You died. For him. You don’t think he’s grateful? You’ve got an ally now. Mia says he’s done a complete 180, considers himself in your debt. Besides which, my sister won’t let her mate harm a hair on my head. And…I’ve a few tricks up my sleeve if anyone tries to harm me.”

  He grumbled under his breath but let it go.

  “As I was saying,” she continued, “I went to see Mia’s home. And I think I’ve fallen a little in love. It’s beautiful. So, so stunning. And I’d love to be near the ocean. We can buy a property with land, open a shelter, and be near the sea. We’d also be close enough to the clan to visit. And Nathan, Dom, and Claire come to see their Welsh friends often.”

  Her eyes shone, and Rhyndor loved seeing her so happy, but he still couldn’t trust it. He didn’t know what the fuck was wrong with him, but he kept waiting for it all to end. It felt too good, too much. He didn’t deserve this. Yes, he’d tried to right the wrong he’d done. But he’d still allowed himself to be weak enough to be enchanted all those years ago, and he’d let himself host a piece of evil for centuries without knowing it. He’d always feared it, but why hadn’t he definitively sensed her in him? Maybe he was evil too.

  Part of him, deep down, worried he was tainted somehow.

  “I can see the cogs turning,” Callum said dryly.

  “What’s wrong?” Lilly frowned at him.

  Not sure how to put it into words, Rhyndor stared morosely at his coffee for a moment before speaking. “I’m worried you don’t truly want this. Us. It’s a reaction to what happened, and it’s natural, but you’re not thinking straight.”

  “I am thinking straight,” she insisted.

  He shook his head. “No, I don’t think you are. You saw what came out of me. Once you’re over the shock of me dying, you’ll not want to be with someone like me. You need an honorable male, not one who allowed himself to be used by someone like Celine for so long.”

  “Oh, fucking hell.” Callum shot out of his chair. “I thought we were done with this shit, Rhyn.”

  “No. Not done at all. You saw it, Callum. Jesus. To think she’d lived in me all this time. There’s got to be something wrong with me. I’m worried I’m evil.”

  Lilly gasped. “You’re the opposite of evil. You’re the best person I’ve ever met.”

  “Thanks,” Callum mumbled.

  “You’re the second-best, okay?”

  He laughed. “Yeah, good enough.”

  “You’re a good person.” She came to stand by him. “I’m a powerful dragon, you know? More so than my sisters, which I think secretly bugs Mia.” She laughed. “You should listen to me, I know things.”

  He wanted to believe her, he honestly did. But he still found it hard to accept he deserved anything good. All his time with Callum, he’d been waiting for the other male to leave. He didn’t want to spend his time with Lilly doing the same, but old habits died hard.

  “Hey. You’re not a bad person. You risked it all to help Steffan. You had things lining up for you, we had our mate, and you risked it to help Steffan. To me, that makes you too good,” Callum huffed.

  Lilly nudged at Rhyndor and slid herself between him and the table, climbing onto his knee. The feel of her in his arms heated his blood, despite his aches and pains. He’d been missing her and Callum. They’d left him alone to heal, and the bed felt too big, too empty.

  She snuggled on his knee, and he groaned as part of him came to life, suddenly insistent and demanding as her scent hit him. “I think you’re a good male, Rhyndor,” she whispered in his ear. “But right now, something tells me you’re feeling a little bad.”

  “You have the worst lines.” He pulled back to look at her beautiful face and couldn’t resist planting a kiss on her full lips. “Between you and him, you’ll be the death of me.”

  He laughed at their stunned silence. “What? Too soon?”

  “Way too soon.” Callum came over to him and took his face in his hands. He gave him a kiss on the cheek and then a much harsher, more demanding one on the lips. “How much pain are you in, exactly?”

  “Not so much I can’t be distracted.”

  “Come on. Let’s go upstairs.” Callum reached out and pulled Lilly off his lap and then pulled Rhyndor into a standing position.

  He led them both down the hall, shooting quick, heated glances their way. When they reached the end, he didn’t take them to the room where Rhyndor had been recuperating, but to the room he’d been sharing with Lilly.

  “We’ve been ever so good while you’ve been out of action. No playing around whatsoever.”

  “I wouldn’t have minded,” Rhyndor said truthfully.

  “We wanted to wait for you,” Lilly told him.

  They reached the bedroom, and Callum
pushed the door open.

  “There is something we need to discuss.”

  Callum looked serious, which worried Rhyndor because the guy hardly ever looked serious. “What?”

  “Because of the way our shadow dragons merged, there is a risk when we get physical that our real dragons will merge. That we’ll mate, essentially. Rhiannon discussed it in detail with Lilly and me while you were recovering. The breathing our fire into you thing was part of the plan, and even that makes us more closely bonded. But our shadows also merged with Lilly’s, which is quite dangerous from a bonding point of view.”

  “You guys did a brave but stupid thing,” Rhyndor admonished. “Your shadow dragons may have been harmed, killing your real dragons and maybe killing you completely. Not to add that this magic is not too well understood, and from what I know, you’re more at risk from Celine in the future if she comes after us. Or when we go after her.”

  “Who was going to harm our dragons?” Callum laughed.

  They made light of it, but if one of their shadow dragons was killed or harmed, then their real dragon died along with it. Some believed if a shadow dragon was locked out of your body by magic, it could never return and would be cursed to wander the in-between for all eternity. They’d taken a huge risk.

  “I still don’t quite get the difference.” Lilly frowned. “I saw two dragons. One brightly colored but ethereal and one a dark shadow. Are you saying the cloudy one is real, but the shadow one isn’t?”

  “It’s more complex than that. Some believe that we have more than one soul. Our cloud dragons are our light souls, and the shadow dragon is a deeper, more hidden part of our soul.” Callum smiled at her. “Our cloud dragon comes out more, for example, when we bond. Only powerful magic can bring the other dragon out. The shadow dragons are more complicated, and I don’t fully understand it myself. It’s to do with powerful and dangerous magic. But we’re okay and always would have been because no one in the room, or this clan, wanted to harm us. Lilly’s right, Rhyn. These guys see you as a hero now. Steffan is no longer in pain or at risk from Celine’s poison, and it’s due to your sacrifice and great courage. You need to start seeing yourself as others do.”