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Anya and Avery rushed to me, burying themselves in my hair, mostly out of sight. I could feel their worry and a hint of fear.
Having their feelings mingling with mine had my hackles rising, my meager magic dancing in my palms, ready for use. Though it seemed I didn’t need to worry. There were five alphas surrounding him within seconds, and there was so much power coursing in the air that I thought they might combust.
“Adorable display of power,” he said in a bored, patronizing tone. He reached up and brushed a strand of his shoulder-length black hair out of his eyes. He appeared unbothered, cold calculation in his eyes. He was taking us in as much as we were him. “However, I think you’ll want to know what I have to say.”
“Let him speak,” I called out to the guys. They took a few steps back, but they stayed close enough that he knew he was well within their grasp if needed.
“I won’t pretend to be a good person or to care about your cause. It doesn’t concern me,” he started in a blunt tone. I could appreciate the honesty, at least. “I’m the reason he found you, but I refuse to die at the hands of an egotistical creature like that… definitely too proud for that bullshit. He kills everyone he encounters, including countless assistants before me. I won’t be waiting around for my death sentence.”
Kane growled, and it took two dragons, Niko, and West to hold him back. I wasn’t even sure where West had come from, but I was glad to see him here.
“He nearly killed her! You’re just as guilty!” Kane growled as he fought against them. This man should be grateful that my warrior mate wouldn’t hurt the others to get to him because otherwise he’d be dead in seconds.
“It was a job,” the man replied, taking a step to bring himself outside their circle. “Now, do you want my intel or not?”
“At what cost?” Avi countered. “Don’t insult our intelligence by assuming we’ll just do this with no real evidence of your trustworthiness.”
“Oh, I’m not trustworthy, I assure you,” he promised. “I do, however, have a solid sense of self-preservation. I hide here until you end him, and I give you what you need to achieve that. I’m also the best tech-witch you’ll ever find.”
“And we do what, just wait for him to come to us?” Levi scoffed. “How does that help us?”
“I have information, dragon, as I already said.” The man sneered. “We’ll find him and lure him in if he doesn’t come on his own.”
“What’s your name?” I said loudly, ending that argument before it could really get started. Niko’s fists were curling, ready to defend his mate, which wasn’t a sign of this moving in a positive direction.
“Lance,” he said. “And if you could point me to my room, I’d like to retire for a bit and shower. I’ll bring you information after I’ve eaten. Is there room service in this… hotel?” His eyes scanned the place with disgust that had me considering rethinking my stance on keeping the peace.
“My hotel will be respected, or you can defend yourself, you dick,” West huffed. “And if you want to eat, you join us for mealtimes. You will find no special treatment here.”
“Then maybe I’llforgetsome of my intel,” Lance said back in an icy tone.
“And maybe you’ll die during battle.” West shrugged. “It’s your choice. All I can guarantee is that your arrogance won’t make you any allies here.”
“I don’t need friends,” he scoffed like the thought was crazy.
“Not once did I say the word friend. If your intel proves helpful, we’ll be allies. Nothing more. Nothing less,” West said. “Now, I’ll show you to your room if you can keep up.” West was off, stalking into Mountainview before the man could even make sense of the argument.
Once he was out of sight, the babies crawled down my arm and leaped into the air, hovering in front of us and glancing around like they were worried.
“It’s okay. You’re always safe with us,” I promised them. Holding out a hand, palm up, I gave them a perch, staring on in wonder as my girls landed there with soft grunts in response. We might not get to experience a sweet newborn stage like other parents, but having these intelligent, feisty little beings to care for was amazing.
“Levi, maybe you should fly with them,” I said softly. “It’s generally the mother’s job, but I can’t shift anymore.” My eyes burned, hating Clarence for ruining my chance to have one of the most basic bonding moments with my dragonlings. “Waiting for me wouldn’t be fair. At least they have you.”
“Farren,” he breathed out, a mix of excitement and pain. I was giving him the opportunity to do something no one else could, and if it had to be anyone, at least it was him. Someday, I would fly with my babies, but until then, they’d learn to navigate the clouds with one of their fathers.
As if Anya and Avery could sense my sadness, they flew over and brushed against my cheeks before settling back in my arms. Their comforting warmth settled the unease in my chest. Having to be an outsider in my own life, my normalcy ripped away, had me tied up in knots. My mind was still reeling from my memory coming back, and it wasn’t easy to adjust to a body with so little magic.
The hardest part of it all was not having Zehra at my side. She would love Avery and Anya as much as we all did, and she’d have insight on what to teach them. We didn’t exactly have a slew of elder dragons guiding us; we were finding out everything on our own. Sure, we had our growing brood, but almost all of us were castaways and loners, the products of war. We were all finally out of hiding and embracing our species.
“Let’s go to the mountains,” Levi said gently.
“Hey, I’m not upset with you. I’m grateful that you can do this for them,” I told him as I reached for his arm. His hand rested on mine, and he looked me in the eyes.
“I’ll do this justice,” he promised.
“No. Focus on having fun. The bonding is the important part,” I argued. “Just go, Levi.” I smirked to show I wasn’t upset, but by his doubtful expression, he saw right through it. I was doing my best though.
When we got to the valley between the mountains, we froze, letting Levi walk ahead. Anya was the first to follow, and Avery paused halfway, glancing back as if she could understand the struggle here.
