AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Jermon only needed a simple affirmative hum from Oliver to continue. “They’re doing great. Zayden set a curtain on fire yesterday. Not on purpose, of course, but he burped some fire too close to the curtain, and the whole thing caught. Luckily, Riordan and Wilmer saw it happen and were right there to put it out.” He sighed. “You can’t let them out of your sight for even a minute.”
“Cute,” Oliver whispered.
Jermon’s face broke open in a wide smile, the affection for his kids obvious. “Yes, they’re stinking cute, and that’s a good thing. If they weren’t, this phase would be unbearable, I fear. As it is, it’s a lot for Riordan.”
“Acceptance?”
He was communicating in single words, but Jermon had no trouble understanding him. “Yes, they’re accepting Riordan and Wilmer as parents. Thank the gods. Don’t know what I would’ve done had that not been the case. They don’t treat them any differently than they do me.”
Oliver held up his thumb.
They sat quietly for a bit, Oliver snacking on some almonds.
Adar sat at a table in the back, checking in regularly to make sure Oliver was okay. As always, his presence brought Oliver comfort and a sense of safety.
“You know, before yesterday, I never quite understood what your magic could do,” Jermon said. “I knew you were a scientist, which was a magical ability, but it made little sense to me, even after an explanation. Not until I watched you analyzing that spell yesterday and telling Fallon how to counter it. You two saved my mom. I’ll never be able to thank you for that.”
“Not Lucia.”
Jermon reached for Oliver in a slow, deliberate movement, giving him the opportunity to back away. When Oliver stayed still, Jermon patted his hand. “You know her death is not on you. Her time had come. The spell might’ve shortened her life by a few days or weeks, but her life was full. And she knew what she was doing. She served my mom her entire life, and her last act being one of selfless sacrifice has to mean something.”
Oliver nodded. “Power.”
“That’s what Wilmer and Riordan keep telling me, that there is power in sacrifice. They weren’t part of the pack yet when Lidon’s cousin died in the attack on the PTP ranch, but when he was buried, an earthquake happened, and the moon turned red.”
Oliver widened his eyes. He’d heard references to Jawon’s death meaning something, but he’d never known the details. An earthquake? A blood moon? What the hell?
“The pack got a power boost from it, for lack of a better word, and they’re speculating that Lucia’s sacrifice could have the same effect.” Jermon closed his eyes and rubbed his cheeks, for a moment looking as if he carried the weight of the world. “I hope it will help Erwan and Rhene. I’m worried about them.”
He wasn’t the only one. Everyone kept bringing it up, wondering how they were faring at the Dragon Council. They’d warned they’d be in a remote area without cell service and thus unable to send updates, and it looked like that was the case because no one had heard from them. At least they were together. Rhene wouldn’t let anything happen to Erwan. That much Oliver knew for a fact.
Fallon wandered over to them. “Mind if I join you?”
Jermon pulled back a chair. “Please do. How are you feeling today?”
“Tired. I can tell yesterday drained me from a lot of magic.”
“The two of you were brilliant, Fallon. Absolutely brilliant. I was just telling Oliver how grateful I was to have you two with us. We couldn’t have done it without you.”
“It was our honor.”
“How’s the baby?” Jermon asked Fallon.
Fallon got this sweet, almost dreamy expression, as always when he talked about Ainle. “He’s perfect. I’m enjoying every minute. We’re still dividing the feedings between the three of us, and I do the night feeding. It’s so special to sit there with him when everything around us is quiet, just the two of us. He’s not my biological son, but I feel a deep connection to him.”
“Special,” Oliver said.
“He is.” Fallon nodded. “He’s very special. There’s a lot about him we don’t see or understand yet. Like Emma’s words when we all blessed him. She said he was the alpha heir but also a dragon prince. That’s the part I still can’t wrap my head around. How can he be a dragon prince when he’s one hundred percent wolf?”
Oliver hummed in agreement. He’d asked himself the same thing.
“I guess in the same way that Riordan could carry our eggs when he’s a wolf and that little Hakon Hayes has DNA from all four of his dads, even though he’s Lidon and Vieno’s son biologically.” Jermon shrugged. “Magic. That’s the only explanation I have for you. We have magic, and the wolves have magic of their own. Combined, it’s a recipe for miracles.”
“Agree,” Oliver said.
“It would have to be because there’s no logical explanation,” Fallon said.
But wait. There was. “Rhene,” Oliver said. “Dragon prince.”
