The Sun Dragon's Mate

by Liv Rider

  “Any sign of Madoc?”

  “Not from over here,” Zach said.

  “None here, either,” Tse confirmed. “Wait,” he said suddenly, then paused.

  “What?” Griffith heard the fierceness bordering on panic in his voice. “I swear, Tse—”

  “Noah’s…down.” Tse sounded confused. “He’s slumped over, grabbing on to the back of the bench.”

  Griffith sat up. “What do you mean?” The heartbeat on his phone began to speed up again. “Is Madoc there? Tse, what the fuck is going on?”

  “I don’t know.” By the shortness of Tse’s breath over the comms, he was running. “But he’s completely down. I think he’s losing consciousness.”

  In the same instance, a loud beeping from Noah’s panic button filled the car.

  Griffith was already out of the car and running.

  ***

  Noah’s worn running shoes tapped a steady beat on the path. He put his hand to his shorts pocket, feeling the comforting weight of the panic button Tse had given him. He knew that Tse and Zach were watching from their viewpoints and Griffith was in his car not far away. Still, he hadn’t realized how much of a target this would make him feel. It was eerie to think about Madoc out there watching him even now.

  He was a mile into his usual three-mile run when he slowed and stopped at the bench to stretch. They’d planned for this: the spot appeared secluded enough to be a temptation if Madoc decided to go after him.

  He should be focusing on the job at hand, but all he could think about was the way Griffith had looked at their last conversation. He’d been afraid, yes, but he’d wanted to believe what Noah was saying, Noah was sure of it. Griffith wanted him as much as Noah wanted Griffith. But how could he compete with a dead man? And how could he convince Griffith that he had heard his dragon?

  He straightened. Endorphins coursed through him, but he calmed his mind and closed his eyes, searching inward. He’d taken a meditation class once, and tried to recall what it had felt like to empty his mind of everything. If his dragon was a part of him, he should be able to communicate with it, right?

  A spark of white fire flared behind his closed eyelids, leaving Noah breathless with its intensity. He pushed deeper, his need to know outweighing caution.

  His mind touched something. It was like a sea of white flame, beautiful and blindingly bright. He was so close he could almost touch it. He reached out.

  And was suddenly consumed by it. Fire rushed through his veins. It was like being devoured from the inside out. The pain was overwhelming; Noah couldn’t even find the breath to cry out. He staggered and caught himself on the back of the bench, and knew for the second time in three days the paralyzing fear of imminent death.

  You’re not going to die. Fight back.

  He tried to contain the fire running through him, but the pain was too great; he could barely think, much less control the inferno. You’re stronger than it. You learned to master it without even knowing you were doing it all these years. You just have to remember how.

  In that moment, he sensed the presence of another dragon.

  Not Griffith. He didn’t know how he knew it wasn’t Griffith, but he did. This presence was looming, familiar, and mindlessly enticing in a way Noah remembered all too well.

  Shit.

  His detour into self-exploration could have taken seconds or minutes. He didn’t know how long he’d been standing here, semi-collapsed against the bench, his attention divorced from his surroundings. How long would it take the hunters to get there? He fumbled for the panic button in his pocket.

  But the presence only fed the white flames of his dragon, growing with the anger Noah still felt—and his dragon was winning.

  His hand ached from gripping the back of the bench; his head whirled with seething power, rushing through his veins.

  He felt himself falling, unable to catch himself this time as everything went dark.

  ***

  “Noah. Noah.” Griffith’s voice didn’t even sound like his. The scene was unreal: Noah slumped on his side on the ground, barely breathing, Zach and Tse standing dumbfounded a few paces back to give them space.

  “Talk to me, Noah, come on.” He was going to kill Zach for this. Of all the stupid ideas he’d gone along with over the years….

  It was an eternity before Noah’s eyes fluttered open.

  “Don’t move.” Griffith’s voice cracked in his relief. “You fell. I don’t know if you injured anything.”

  Noah blinked and looked up at them as if confused by their presence. “What happened?”

  “We were hoping you could tell us,” Tse said. “You just collapsed.”

  “I….” Noah looked around. “Is he here?”

  Griffith tensed, all his senses on alert. “You saw Madoc?”

  “I felt him. Somewhere.”

  Griffith looked over at Zach, who shook his head. “He wasn’t in the park.”

  “He was here,” Noah insisted. “I could feel him in my head.” He struggled to rise. When he resisted Griffith’s efforts to keep him still, Griffith gave in and helped him to sit up.

  “Did you sense anything?” Griffith asked Tse.

  “No,” Tse said slowly. He bent closer to Noah. “Are you sure it was Madoc? Not one of us?”

  “This is all still new to you,” Griffith said tentatively. “It’s hard for even a seasoned shifter to tell the difference between shifters—”

  Noah glared at him. “It was him.” He put a hand to his head. “Can I….?”

  Griffith moved back to help him to stand. “We should get you to the hospital.”

  “I’m okay,” Noah said, though he wobbled a little on his feet.

  “You should get him home,” Zach said. “We’ll stay here and scour the park, look for any sign that Madoc was here.”

  He sounded doubtful, which echoed Griffith’s own doubts. Two days ago Noah had no idea of the existence of shifters. Would he really be able to sense Madoc so easily now?

  Noah stumbled again on the way back to the car. “Sure you won’t go to the hospital?” Griffith said, as Noah settled into the passenger seat and sank back against the head rest.

  “I’m fine.” Noah was quiet a moment. “You don’t believe me.”

  Griffith said carefully, “I believe that you believe you sensed Madoc. But Zach and Tse had eyes on all parts of that park. If he had been near, they would have seen him.”

  “So I was just imagining things?”

  “Maybe. Maybe not.” Griffith started the car. His hand was shaking from the aftereffects of adrenaline, and he took a breath to try to steady it. His heart was still beating crazily from the sight of Noah so still and silent on the ground. “I’ll give Sofia a call, see what she thinks. Is that why you collapsed? Because you sensed Madoc?”

  Noah hesitated before answering. “No. I was trying to, uh, get in touch with my dragon.”

  Griffith’s hands tightened on the wheel. “Your dragon. You mean the one that has the power of the sun?”

  “I guess it wasn’t such a hot idea.”

  Noah sounded so deflated that Griffith bit off the rest of the lecture he would have liked to have given him. Besides, he was probably as much to blame as Noah. “Was it because of me? Because I didn’t believe your dragon spoke to you before?”

  “No. Yes.” Noah sighed. “Maybe. But it’s not just that. If this is what I am—if I have this power inside me—then I have to understand it, don’t I?”

  This was all foreign territory for Griffith. He’d never encountered a shifter who hadn’t known exactly who he or she was since birth. “I told you, this is all supposed to happen naturally. If it hasn’t happened yet, then maybe Sofia is right and you’re protecting yourself. Besides, I don’t know what would happen when someone who’s suppressed his shifter half his entire life tries to force the issue.”

  “I think I just found out.”

  Griffith’s hands tightened again on the wheel. He hated this feeling of hel
plessness. “Noah, if anything had happened to you….”

  “I’m sorry,” Noah said quietly. “It was stupid. I wasn’t thinking.”

  Griffith glanced over at him. Noah’s eyes were closed, his face drawn. Griffith found his voice again. “When this is over, we’ll have plenty of time to figure it out. Until then, though….”

  “I know. Next time I might not be so lucky.”

  Chapter Nine

  Griffith waited until Noah was in the shower before calling Sofia. She picked up on the third ring.

  “Hm,” she said, after Griffith summarized what Noah had told him about sensing Madoc. “It would be an unusual kind of bond, but it’s possible that when Madoc drained Noah’s life force, he forged a connection between them. Noah may have more sensitivity to Madoc outside a shifter’s normal range. Either that, or….” She trailed off.

  “Or?” Griffith asked impatiently.

  “It might not be Madoc at all, just a piece of him left from when he tried to drain Noah. A remnant or memory from their connection.”

  “So Noah might end up having Madoc in his head forever?” That was an appalling thought.

  “If it is that, then in time it should fade. I’ll look into similar cases and get back to you.”

  “Thanks, Sofia.” He hesitated. “Also, uh, Noah tried experimenting with his dragon. It didn’t go well.”

  “What happened?” Sofia asked sharply.

  “Collapsed when he tried. He doesn’t seem to remember much from it.”

  “A sun dragon is not something to play around with. Bring Noah to see me once this is done. If he’s already catalyzed the connection, it could only be a matter of time before his dragon emerges on its own. Without a way to control it, that could be disastrous for everyone.”

  “Will do. Thanks, Sofia.”

  Zach and Tse came back from their canvassing of the park just as Griffith was hanging up with her.

  “Anything?” Griffith asked, as they settled in the living room.

  “Nothing,” Zach said. “I don’t know what the kid sensed, but if Madoc had been in the park, one of us would have at least felt a hint of his presence. There were no physical signs that someone else had been there.”

  “Sofia thinks it might be a side effect from when Madoc tried to drain Noah’s life force.” He explained Sofia’s theory.

  “Sucks for the kid,” Zach said sympathetically, “but if he’s able to sense Madoc when we can’t, then we can use that for next time.”

  “After what happened, you still want to use Noah as bait?” He couldn’t believe they were still talking about this.

  “You have a better plan? Just because this one didn’t work doesn’t mean the strategy isn’t sound.”

  “It’s sound. We’re just not pushing it far enough.”

  All heads swiveled to Griffith’s bedroom door, where Noah had just emerged, toweling his hair dry. His t-shirt and jeans clung damply to his skin.

  “Like you said, Madoc’s not stupid,” Noah said reasonably. “Maybe his thirst for revenge makes him more reckless, but he had to know exactly what we were planning in the park. If he’s going to bite, then he has to believe I’m truly vulnerable.”

  Griffith’s dragon hissed its displeasure. Griffith voiced each word carefully. “And how do you propose doing that?”

  “I need to go back to my regular schedule at the university. Act like everything is normal, like we think Madoc’s already moved on. Besides,” Noah said wryly, “I’ve already missed a day of classes.”

  Tse warned, “A university campus will make it a lot harder to keep eyes on you than a park.”

  “Exactly,” Noah said. “You can’t be somewhere where Madoc will see or sense you. I still have the panic button you gave me; what kind of range does it have?”

  “I can rig your phone to operate like one. What’s the cell coverage like at the university?”

  “I’ve never had a problem.”

  “Wait,” Griffith said incredulously. “We’re seriously considering this?”

  Zach shrugged. “Not sure we have a choice.”

  “Of course we have a choice. I was almost too late to save Noah the first time, and I was right there at his apartment. If we’re not within sight of him, we won’t be able to get to him in time.”

  Zach turned to Noah. “Think you can stall Madoc long enough for us to get there?”

  “I can try.”

  “It could work,” Tse said, shocking Griffith. He’d been counting on Tse to shoot the idea down on logistical grounds. “We can be out of sight and sensing range, but still close enough to get there within a few minutes. Do you have a map of campus?”

  Noah glanced at Griffith. “Okay if I use your laptop?”

  Griffith didn’t trust himself to speak. He waved his permission.

  They were all insane if they thought he was going along with this plan. But Tse and Zach moved to sit beside Noah on the couch while Noah pulled up the campus map on Griffith’s laptop, as if they all thought this was a viable option.

  “Send me your class schedule,” Tse was saying to Noah. “Can you mark down what buildings each of your classes are in?”

  “Sure,” Noah said.

  Griffith went into the kitchen and put the coffee pot on. The caffeine wouldn’t do him any good, and he would have preferred something stronger, but this wasn’t the time to cloud his head.

  Fuck it. He reached into the back of the cabinet and pulled out the bottle of scotch he’d rarely indulged in the last six years, and poured a small amount into his coffee mug. He knocked it back with a swift bracing burn down his throat.

  “Hey.”

  Griffith turned at Zach’s voice. Zach leaned against the counter, eyes noting the bottle next to Griffith. “The plan is for Noah to go back to his apartment in the morning. Tse will set up a surveillance schedule for us.”

  Griffith pointedly returned the bottle to the cabinet. He was only a tiny bit mollified by the us. “You actually want to go along with this disaster of a plan?”

  “You know it’s the only one we have. Besides, Noah’s a sensible kid. This isn’t Rafe chasing every danger he could find.”

  “Don’t.” Griffith’s jaw was so tight he thought it might snap.

  “You can’t keep blaming yourself for what happened. We tried to warn Rafe, and hell, maybe he even believed us. There was nothing else—”

  “Enough, Zach.” They’d gone through this too many times before. Griffith couldn’t hear it again now, not when it felt like history was repeating.

  Tse appeared in the doorway with his usual timing. “If you’re done, we’ve got some planning to do.” He assessed Griffith. “You in?”

  Apparently he was outnumbered. He was going to resist this plan at every turn, but hell if they were going to do it without him. “I’m in.”

  ***

  Zach and Tse had left hours ago, and Noah was asleep in Griffith’s bed. Griffith lay awake on the couch, unable to still his mind long enough to fall asleep.

  The files from Madoc’s case were still piled on the coffee table. They hadn’t revealed anything useful. They already knew Madoc’s haunts and old associates, not that Madoc had socialized much outside of hunter circles. Still, Griffith picked up the top file to look through again. Anything to keep his mind off what was really keeping him awake.

  My dragon thinks you’re mine.

  Noah couldn’t possibly know what his dragon was thinking a day after finding out what he was. Much less that Griffith was Noah’s mate. It was too close to what Griffith wanted to hear. He couldn’t trust himself to believe it.

  He’d spent years convincing himself that he wasn’t the mating type. That he was like Rafe, taking pleasure in life’s more fleeting moments, reveling in his freedom and a solitude that he’d refused to recognize as loneliness. That having anything more just wasn’t in the cards for him.

  His sister Megan had tried to explain the mate bond to him once. It’s like being home whereve
r you are, as long as you’re with that person. It’s like walking through joy.

  Griffith had never felt that way about anyone. Until now.

  “Hey.”

  Griffith looked up. He hadn’t heard Noah come in. Noah was still in a t-shirt and jeans, but his hair was wild looking as if he’d at least tried to get some rest. He settled into the big chair opposite the couch, tucking his bare feet under him.

  Griffith tossed the file he’d been looking through on the coffee table. “Couldn’t sleep?”

  “An hour or two maybe.” Noah looked at the pile of folders. “Anything new?”

  “Nope,” Griffith said. “But I talked to Sofia. I didn’t get a chance to tell you earlier.” He summarized their conversation.

  “Huh. So I can either sense Madoc’s around when others can’t, or he’s in my head forever?”

  “If it’s the latter, Sofia thinks it might fade over time.”

  “And if it’s the former, then even if this plan doesn’t work, we have a tool that can work against him.”

  “One he can use equally against you.”

  “Griffith—”

  Griffith held up his hand. “I’ve already voiced my objections. It’s your choice. I respect that.” Griffith cleared his throat. “Sofia also wants to talk to you about your attempt to access your dragon. She can probably help you learn some control over it.”

  “I’m not eager to try that again, but I’ll go see her once this is over.”

  Silence fell. Griffith had turned off the overhead light so only the lamp next to the couch lit the room. Noah was half in shadows. So close, just a few feet separating them, but he might as well have been miles away.

  “You should try to get some rest. Go back to bed.”

  “Come with me.”

  Griffith’s chest tightened. He clamped down on his immediate response. Nothing had changed; all the arguments he’d already given still held. “Noah….”

  “No. I know what you’re going to say. I don’t care about any of that. If you don’t want me, that’s fine, I’ll back off—”