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“We need to keep the dragon a secret,” Gravor said, straightening.
“Why?”
“Because only those who have the right to know should learn there really are dragons.”
“Okay,” Asher said, grinning. He loved being part of something like this. “You can trust me. I can keep a secret.”
Which made me wonder. Would Asher shift one day? I’d ask Gravor later. I didn’t know what to think about it, though it was already clear Asher liked Gravor. By the time he was old enough for something like that—assuming age played a role in this—I bet he’d want to be just like his dad.
And that would include shifting.
Chapter 18
Gravor
“Why don’t we make a picnic lunch and take a walk along some of the trails outside of town?” I asked Mazie. “We can have lunch and come back home, where me and Asher will cook you an amazing dinner.” This I directed to my son.
My son. I still couldn’t believe it. He was smart and handsome, and I couldn’t wait to do everything with him.
“I like to walk,” Asher said.
“Want to help me make our lunch, then?”
“Yeah!”
“We’ll walk, but no more than a mile or so,” Mazie said. “Little legs can’t walk much more than that or someone will end up carrying him.”
I could tell she meant she’d be carrying Asher, but no way. It would be me. How could I resist?
Damn, I was lost in my family already. So what? They meant everything to me, and I was going to show them.
“We can stick to easier trails,” I said. “No need to scale cliffs or climb to the peak of any mountains.”
“I wanna climb all the way to the top of the tallest mountain,” Asher said, lifting his arms and leaping up into the air. “One this tall.”
“How about a smaller one?” I asked, ruffling his hair. “We can tackle the Andes tomorrow instead.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll grab my backpack in the front closet while you two guys make our feast,” Mazie said.
While she was gone, Asher and I took stuff out of the fridge. While Asher filled metal flasks with water at the sink while standing on a chair, I started putting a charcuterie board equivalent together. I didn’t know yet what foods Asher enjoyed, though I remembered Mazie mentioning he liked just about everything. If it was in her fridge, chances were we’d all enjoy eating it.
Each item went into plastic bags, and I filled another with ice to keep everything cold.
“We’ll need a blanket to sit on,” I told Asher. He leaped off the chair and raced to the living room to grab one.
Mazie returned with a cobweb-covered backpack, and we brushed it off outside and loaded it up.
I took a quick shower and dressed in the other pair of pants and a t-shirt Mazie had bought me.
“We can stop in town for more clothing,” she said when I joined them back in the kitchen. “Although maybe we should drive a few towns over to the box store and stock up there. No one would question if we outfitted you with three wardrobes.”
“All right. Can I borrow your phone to text my brother?”
“Of course.” She pulled it from her pocket and smacked her palm on her forehead. “Jeez, I’m sorry. I promised Zara I’d have you call Kuunik last night, and I forgot.” She typed in her code to unlock her phone. “Kuunik’s number’s in my contacts.”
“Thanks.” I went outside on her back deck and sat in one of the lounge chairs and stared at the phone. Finally, after all this time, I’d talk to my brother again. Damn, I’d missed him so much. Talking with him. Sharing almost everything. We were close from the time we were born, and if we hadn’t had each other, I don’t know what either of us would’ve done when our parents died.
