“I give you my word that I will speak on the volunteer’s behalf, but that decision will not be mine to make. The elders, as well as the kings and queens, have control over the portals. It is possible they will not agree to let the dragon return, ever.” Ivar rubbed the back of his neck. His face ached where Gerard had punched him, but that was the least of his worries. “The Draig nobles were not pleased when all of you left. I don’t think you understand how dangerous it has become. It’s not the way it was when you left. My people hate feeling like we’re at the mercy of the dragons and their decisions because the portal is on Draig land. Any decision the Draig royals make will be scrutinized. If dragons are allowed to return after defecting, it will create more chaos. If the cat-shifters protest, then dragons will argue that the Var need to recognize that they guarded the portals since our ancestors escaped Earth the first time. Draig took the risk that, if the human hunters ever found their way through, it was they who would be the first in their path. No decision we make comes without consequence, we are simply trying to choose the best path.”
“I heard you were honest, too.” Drake nodded. “Very well. I will ask the men, but I cannot promise one will return with you.”
“Thank you, Drake of the Cajun. I must insist that you try to convince them. I fear a war is about to erupt between the shifters, and I am not sure my family can stop it.” Ivar took a deep breath, hating the words but believing them to be true. He had a lot of time to contemplate the situation in his exile. “I can only imagine what my absence this last year has caused. Tensions must be running very high.”
“Has it really become that bad?” Drake asked. “The new arrivals have hinted at things, but nothing on the scale you’re talking about.”
“We try to keep things quiet as not to incite panic. I don’t know if you heard of the Nutef faction?” Ivar lowered his voice, not wanting any of the other shifters to overhear them. Drake nodded once. “They believe that taking human wives will dilute shifter blood and cause us to lose our natural abilities.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Drake dismissed.
“I agree, but fear does not know reason,” Ivar said. “The Nutef kidnapped my brother’s wife and tried to kill her. They also took the Draig Princess Eve and brought her through the New Orleans portal to murder her on Earth. I heard rumors that they feared she might have been pregnant and wanted to hide any evidence that Earth women were compatible. We’re not sure how they even knew where to find the portal. The valley entrance is kept locked, and the palace entrance is guarded. Someone had to help them.”
Drake said nothing, merely listened.
“They will do anything to close the portals, including spreading the very rumors you cited as your reasons for leaving. It was never our intention to keep men out of the portals, but setting up safety measures takes time. We did not want to send men through without precautions. Then, when fear of human compatibility started, we found it necessary to lead by example. That is why we princes were to find mates first, to prove that it was safe. Sadly, there are no children from these unions, but by the will of the gods I hope that changes soon.”
“I knew members of the Nutef had used the New Orleans portal, but I never knew about Princess Eve or your brother’s wife.” Drake’s mood changed, and he paced several feet away to look up at the sky. After several breaths, he came back to where Ivar stood. “I believe you.”
Ivar nodded.
“Montague,” Drake stated as if it pained him to say the name.
“What?” Ivar frowned. “You mean Lord Montague the head of the Draig elder council?”
Drake nodded. “He allowed the Nutef through.”
“How do you know?” Ivar asked, doubtful. Why would a Draig elder help a rebel band of cat-shifters? The Nutef were purists and Montague was, well, he was a complete elitist asshole to use the Earth term.
“Because he is the one who showed the others how to get here. He is the one who told us your plans to keep the commoners out of the portals.” Drake frowned. “I never liked that man, but I did not suspect he would lie about something so important.”
“I always wondered why they tried to kill Eve on Earth, but Jenna on Qurilixen. Montague must have been the one to tell them of Princess Eve’s possible pregnancy and help them escape through the portal.”
“Maybe that information will help you stop the war,” Drake said. “If only the others could see this place as I do. No planet is perfect. Some humans do try to hunt the bayou lizard men, but for the most part, they believe us to be a myth. We can keep who we are a secret from humans. It’s not perfect, but no life is.”
“I need to get home.” Ivar tried to see what Drake did in their surroundings. He supposed there was some beauty in the moss hanging from the trees. The landscape was much better than the concrete cities that blocked the view of nature.
“The New Orleans portal recently opened. It won’t be activated for many months,” Drake said. “There is an entrance in Boston. Galen’s brother might know when it appears. Though he said no one was using it.”
Ivar felt relief wash over him. If the New Orleans portal had been opened recently, that meant the elders had not yet closed the portals. He would be going home.
“When Seanan disappeared and could not be recovered, they closed that portal out of fear it was an unsafe place. There was talk of strange weapons and, well, we know better now, but it was never marked as safe. I regret that fear has guided so many of our actions. Reopening a portal that was potentially deadly did not seem worth the political battle when we had so many other options, and it was never deemed necessary.” Ivar shook his head. “Jenna came from Kansas City, but I never memorized when each portal would open where. So even if I was to travel around to the places I know…”
“The odds of a portal opening when you are in front of it would be very slim,” Drake agreed.
“I have no choice but to wait for the Oxford portal to open.” Ivar glanced to the shack where he woke up, “How many nights did I sleep before gaining consciousness?”
“Only the one,” Drake said.
“The Oxford portal should open in sixteen days. I’ll have to wait.” Ivar felt the familiar frustration of his situation bubbling up inside of him. As much as he wanted to go home, he was also frightened by what he would find when the time came. Would the portal open? How would things look on the other side?
“Stay here,” Drake said. “We’ll get you to the portal on time.”
“No. I can pick up one of the trucks I use for hauling supplies between Oxford and New Orleans. It will give me a chance to thank Toby for giving me work. He has been good to me.” Ivar reached his hand out and held it in the air as he’d seen human’s do to initiate a shake. “I will take Beth back with me. She will need to gather her belongings before we leave.”
Drake took Ivar’s hand, but instead of shaking it, he held it firmly. “You might want to watch how you handle that situation.”
“What do you mean?”
“Ask her if she wants to leave with you before you assume that she does.” Drake shook Ivar’s hand once and released it. “If there’s one piece of Earth knowledge I can pass onto you, it is that women do not like to be dictated to. They like to be asked. And they like to feel as if their opinions matter.”
“Of course she’ll come with me. She is my mate,” Ivar said.
“Humans are not like shifters, prince.” Drake chuckled as if at his own private joke. “They aren’t born with the same innate sense of knowing that our kind has. They question more. Even when the truth of the situation is staring them in the face, they question it. It is in their nature. Just as it is in ours to know the second we look at them that we are to spend eternity at their side.”
14
“Do you wish for me to take you home?” Ivar inquired as Beth approached him.
She was momentarily puzzled by his strange greeting but then nodded. “Yes. I would like to go home.”
“Oh, not yet,” Lor
i said. “Won’t you stay longer?”
“I should be getting back to New Orleans. I need to see if I have a job waiting for me. No job, no rent, no house, no good.”
Lori nodded. “I understand. Please know that you always have a place here in our sanctuary.”
Lori left Beth alone with Ivar. The woman had given Beth some insight into what it was like to date a shifter man. They weren’t like humans. Well, not like most humans, anyway. They carried with them some throwback traits from the Middle Ages from when they were last on Earth. Though they had a sense of honor and duty, they also had an infuriatingly alpha male quality.
He looked at the bandage Lori had wrapped around her hand. “Are you injured?”
“I cut it when we left the apartment. Lori bandaged it for me.”
“You do not need a job in New Orleans,” Ivar said. “There is no need.”
Beth gave a small laugh. “You’ve been in this world long enough. I think you know how things work better than that. If I don’t have a job, I don’t eat, and I really like to eat.”
“I will make sure you are fed,” Ivar said the words like it solved every problem.
There was a part of her who wanted to see where this road led. How could she not be curious about the cat-shifter alien standing before her? There was an undeniable attraction. He may regret it, but it was there, burning as hot as ever.
But what kind of future did this path offer? A hard-headed alpha boyfriend telling her what to do? A trip through a portal to an alien world? She’d give up her art, her friends, her apartment, and her freedom. For what? A man who regretted sleeping with her and claimed they were married without bothering to ask her first.
The answer was clear.
“When do we leave?” Beth fanned her hands over her face. The evening was well upon them, but the air had become muggy.
“The portal opens in sixteen days.”
Beth shook her head. “I meant, when do I get to go home to New Orleans?”
“Drake said someone can give us a ride tomorrow morning.” Ivar looked over her shoulder. Dragons were bringing split wood to fire pits close to the docks and setting out camping chairs.
“Come on, let’s join the party. Lori said she was going to roast marshmallows.” At his arched brow, she added, “I take it you haven’t been camping on your visit here. Here’s one Earth tradition you should at least try before you go.”
“What is a marshmallow?” He didn’t move to join the others. “Will they fish them out of the shadowed marshes?”
“No. They are warm, gooey pieces of heaven shoved between graham crackers and chocolate.” She threaded her arm into his. “Don’t worry, I’ll teach you how to do it.”
At her touch, he nodded. He didn’t resist as she escorted him to join the others. Chairs were offered. They watched as dragons lit the campfires. Beth was a little disappointed that none of them started the fires with their breath. She thought all dragons breathed fire.
Ivar set five marshmallows on fire before he finally let Beth take over his stick to roast it for him. The sun set over the swamps, shadowing faces until they were orange glows in the darkness. Drake told the men of the conversation he had with Ivar, asking one of them to volunteer if they felt moved to do so. No one did. The men’s words turned toward home, of green skies that only darkened one night a year. They spoke of three suns, and valleys that smelled like spun sugar. Their horses were called ceffyls and looked like a reptilian mated with an elephant.
As much as Beth wanted to relax, she couldn’t help remembering how they’d broken into her home and brought them to the swamps. Yes, they had their reasons, but that didn’t change the facts.
Stories were told of boys causing mischief in the forests, hiding in trees from their parents, fighting over forgotten incidents, shifting forms freely and without worry of being seen. They had grown up wild, running the countryside without cell phones or GPS. The picture they painted was so vivid, so beautiful, that she wondered how they could have ever left it.
“And you don’t want to go back?” she asked.
Eyes turned to her at the words. Some were sad, others nostalgic, and still others were defiant. There was much emotion wrapped up in the answers to her question.
“It is our past,” Galen answered when no one else did. “This is our future.”
“So, what happened?” Beth asked. “Why are there no more females to marry? Did they all leave with alien visitors?”
“Female shifters are no longer being born, and haven’t been for over a generation,” Ivar said.
“Why? What happened?” she asked.
“We’re not sure. Some say the will of the gods,” Gerard answered.
“Bad luck,” Galen offered.
“Our scientists think it might be the radiation that comes from our three suns. They believe the blue sun altered us somehow. It’s made us stronger, but it took away our ability to have female children. It has been estimated our people will die out within a few generations if we do not fix the problem.” Ivar lifted his hand to take hers.
“I have decided,” Gerard stood. “I will go with you back to Qurilixen. I will tell them Earth is a safe enough place.”
Beth gasped. Out of all the dragons, she would not have guessed Gerard to be the one to volunteer.
“Thank you,” Ivar said.
“We left to forge a new life, not to condemn our old one.” Gerard sighed and walked toward the swamps. His shoulders slumped, and Beth realized he did not want to leave his new home. He was leaving because they all believed someone had to. “I will be ready to go in the morning.”
“I can drive everyone to New Orleans tomorrow,” Galen said. “Then I will go up to Boston to see my brother.”
Beth looked at Ivar’s fingers stroking the back of her hand. His touch sent a tiny shock wave of desire through her. It made sense now. He wanted a woman to take back with him to help repopulate his planet. He had hinted as much in different ways. She was a means to an end, the reason he’d come here. He didn’t love her.
Attraction was not love. That must have been what he meant when he said he regretted it. He regretted having to choose a woman he did not love as his wife. He came from a society where apparently males were used to making the decisions. Some medieval world where it never occurred to him that she would say no.
Beth was not some medieval maiden used to taking orders. She was saying no. She was saying no to a life without love. She was saying no to being used as a political pawn to stop a portal from closing. She was saying no to Ivar. She did not want aliens she had never met to die. But from everything she had heard she wasn’t sure that keeping the portals open would save them. Beyond that, she wasn’t sure that her going with Ivar to his home planet would keep them open. It sounded like a hot mess of politics and age-old rivalries.
For some unknown reason, Maura Masters’ words filled her. The woman had told her that she needed to take chances. She said Beth needed to go out into the world and feel something and fuel her art with it.
When Beth looked at Ivar, she felt something. It was profound and beautiful and painful all at the same time. He was filled with honor, a duty that made him want to save his world. There was a piece of her that never wanted to leave him that wanted to go with him and help him in his heroic journey.
There was another part of her that knew she could not leave with him. They were not meant to be. He did not love her. If she stayed with him, she would fall in love with him, and that was begging for heartbreak.
This wasn’t some romantic movie where everybody rode off into the sunset, or in this case through a portal opening to another planet, to live happily ever after. No, this was reality. What happened when reality took hold? After a month, or a year, or two years when she looked at him and realized he couldn’t care for her the way she cared for him? What happened when she stood in the forest and saw three suns over her head and began to feel homesick? What happened when they expected her to be a princess and t
ook away her paints and her paintbrushes? Beth had no proof that would happen, but she also had no evidence that it would not. Her art was her life. She worked so hard to make it happen. Maybe this heartache she felt was the fuel she needed to take her work to the next level.
The shifters kept talking about the will of the gods and fate. They argued about it. The choices Beth made now would decide her destiny.
“I’m exhausted,” Beth pulled her hand out from under Ivar’s. She nodded in the general direction of the dragons and smiled at Lori. When Ivar stared up at her, she tilted her head that he should come with her. He eagerly stood, said some gruffly worded things to the rest of the gathering, and hurried to escort her back to the shack they shared.
Beth didn’t speak as they went inside. Ivar shut the door, and she instantly moved into his arms. Her lips met his, testing to see if he felt what she did. The desire between them couldn’t be questioned, even with his regrets. It was there, hot and burning, and it pulled her to him like two souls being sewn together.
She felt a sadness knowing that their time would be so short. Soon he would be going home, and she would have to say goodbye. Their kiss deepened, and all thoughts left her.
Hands roamed over flesh. Lips met and parted only to meet again. Clothing fell to the floor. Moonlight came in through the window, but it was barely enough to see by. Ivar laid her down gently on the couch. They made love slowly, caught up in a web of passion. With each thrust, Beth felt their connection growing. They came at the same time, and Beth cried out softly.
He settled next to her, holding her in his arms. Ivar opened his mouth to speak.
Beth pressed her fingers to his lips to stop him. “Shh, don’t say anything.”
If he dared to say he regretted what they did, she couldn’t be held accountable for her reaction.
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