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“Then you defeated that demon-wolf? You saved our pack?”
I winced. “Not exactly …”
My father’s head snapped to the side and he finally took in Raika standing by my side. He snarled. “What the fuck is she doing here?”
Raika took a step back, but I reached for her and held her hand firmly in mine. “Dad, Raika is my mate.”
His jaw slackened. “W-what? But she’s the omega!”
“Because youdemoted her family,” I snapped. He wasn’t going to talk about my mate like that. “We’re not here to talk about our relationship. We have other important matters to discuss.”
My father crossed his arms and lifted his chin. “You said you didn’t defeat the demon-wolf. Your visit is related to that?”
“Sort of.” I rehashed what had happened, a short one-minute version, since we didn’t have time to waste. “We recovered the two stolen crystals, I put them back, but the barrier didn't come back up. Instead, something like an earthquake went through the pack lands and a crack formed in the square’s pavement.” My father’s jaw tightened more and more with each of my words. “A witch told us there’s something sleeping deep below the gap. Tell me you know about it. Tell me how to fix this.”
“Fuck,” he muttered. “I should have told you everything a long time ago.”
“Everything?” I tensed. “Tell me now.”
He let out a long breath. “We always told the pack only half of the truth. Our first alpha was good friends with a witch coven, and they enchanted the pack lands, created the barrier, and gave him the crystals to keep the barrier up. But that wasn’t all. What do you know about dragons?”
I gaped at him. “Are you saying there’s a dragon below the pack lands?”
“Answer the question.”
“I …” My mind went blank because all I could think was … holy shit, there was a damn dragon sleeping beneath our feet!
“Dragons are the most powerful supernaturals that ever walked the earth,” Raika said, filling in for me. My father glanced at her, annoyance written all over his face, but at least he didn’t interrupt her. “It’s said they actually came from another realm and got stuck here. Because they were so powerful, they were hunted by other supernaturals. Witches, vampires, wolf shifters, demons … you name it. Everyone wanted their magic. Everyone thought they could harness the dragons’ magic and become more powerful. Slowly, the dragons were captured and killed. They became extinct.”
My father nodded. “About eight hundred years ago, one of the last dragons was seen flying over Canada. A big hunt started. During a fight, the dragon became injured. It was dying. Ulfang, our first alpha, found the dragon. The witches put the dragon to sleep and they imprisoned the dragon underneath our lands.” He paused. “The crystals have two purposes: to keep the dragon asleep and to absorb his magic. The dragon’s magic feeds the already powerful crystals, and with that, the barrier was unbreakable.”
I shook my head. “You’re saying our ancestors buried a dragon alive and used his magic for their own purpose?” That was beyond evil. “And you went along with it?”
“I came into all of this almost eight hundred years after they did that! There was a long line of tradition and responsibilities I had to follow. Tell me, how are the pack lands now without the barrier? Is it getting colder? The plants seem off? Are you going to bed worried about intruders and sudden attacks? It’s because the barrier and the magic inside it became a crutch. I wasn’t going to be the one responsible for changing our entire way of life to save a dragon who was dying anyway.”
I couldn’t believe I was hearing this. “So you imprisoned an innocent dragon because you couldn’t be bothered? That isn’t right!”
“Innocent? Dragons were predators, like a lion or a bear. Go near them and they would rip you to pieces. If we didn’t kill them, they would kill us.”
I shifted my weight. It didn’t matter. I wouldn’t cage a lion if I ever saw one. Well, maybe I would, but just so it wouldn’t hurt me until I could return it to wherever it belonged.
“That isn’t right,” I repeated, my voice lower.
“If that doesn’t convince you then what about this,” my father started. He walked to the edge of the circle, close to me. “About twenty years ago, the crystals and their power, the power they drew from the dragon, were used for something else.”
I crossed my arms. “What?”
His hard gaze shifted to Raika. “Tell me, how is your magic now that the crystals have been disrupted?”
Raika gasped and took a large step back.
My brows slammed down. First Tanner, now my father. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Let me tell you another story.” A small, sly grin took over my father’s face. “I know your mother told you why I demoted Kali’s family, and I’m guessing that by now you must have told her.” He jutted his chin toward Raika. The intonation in the word her sounded as if he was talking about deadly bacteria. “I admit, I was stupid and naive, and I demoted your family to omega because Kali didn’t return my feelings. I should have undone it. Several times, I thought about it, especially after I met Petra. But Kali kept asking for some freedom, so I allowed her to go out of town every once in a while. It was the least I could do. However, I didn’t trust her so I sent Kortan to follow her a few times. And each time, he reported Kali met the same man. But he wasn’t a man, he was a demon.”
Raika took another step back.
I shook my head. “Where are you going with this?”
