The Dragon Shifter’s Desire by Harmony Raines

 

Chapter One – Larisa

“How’s Dad?” Larisa asked her brother, Simon, as he met her in the driveway of the home they’d both grown up in. She’d been away for a couple of months, traveling to the Himalayas after she’d heard a rumor that dragons had been spotted flying over the mountains.

She’d found nothing. Although, she believed the rumors were true. The local people had simply chosen to keep the secret of the mythical winged beasts.

Larisa had worked to gain the trust of the people in a remote mountain village, and she was certain they were about to open up to her when Simon called and summoned her home.

“He’s...agitated.” Simon strode toward her, worry etched into his face as he flung his arms around her shoulders and pulled her into his arms. “I’ve missed you, Larisa.”

She grabbed hold of him, her fingers digging into his sweater as she clung to him. “I missed you, too.”

They were bound together by the deep love they shared for their father, who had raised them alone, and the desire to free him from the chains of depression that had gripped him tightly for decades.

“Are you sure you found it?” She held him for one moment longer, comforted by the familiarity of the person she trusted most in the world. Simon always had her back. Just as Larisa always had his.

“Yes.” He stepped away and stared at the ground, unable to look her in the eye.

She let out a long breath and tears pricked her eyes. “Okay then.”

He gave a short laugh. “It’s anything but okay.”

“That’s better.” She punched him in the arm. “We’ll figure it out. One step at a time, right? This is the breakthrough we’ve been searching for.”

“There’s more.” He glanced toward the house. “I couldn’t tell you on the phone.”

Ice crept up her spine. “Tell me what?” Had her father’s health taken a downturn since they’d finally made a breakthrough?

“Not here either.” He nodded toward the house. “Dad’s taking a nap. Let’s go around the back and grab some coffee.” He glanced sideways at her. “You look well. The mountain air suited you.”

“It was so beautiful. So serene even though the village only had basic amenities.” She inhaled deeply, missing the cool crisp mountain air she’d grown to love.

“I’m sorry I called you back.” His forehead creased and sorrow crept into his eyes.

“Simon, I came because this is what we’ve both been working for.” She slid her arm around his shoulders as they headed toward the house. “Finding the pendant is huge. It’s the breakthrough we’ve been searching for.”

Simon nodded and they headed around the side of the house without talking. Their father, Davy Westward, had always had trouble sleeping. He was haunted by dreams that he never spoke of. Although, over the years, Larisa and Simon had pieced together the puzzle of what haunted him.

Simon opened the kitchen door, and they went inside. Larisa dumped her pack by the door and closed it quietly while Simon poured coffee and grabbed a package of cookies from the cupboard. Larisa left the kitchen and tiptoed down the hallway, peeking inside the living room to check on her father who snored lightly as he slept in his old recliner chair.

Her mouth turned down at the corners. He looked so old, his face crumpled and tense even in sleep. She swallowed hard, this was no time to cry. This was time to fight.

“So what’s your other news?” She pulled out a chair and sat down at the kitchen table and picked up a cookie. Taking a bite, she closed her eyes and savored the sugar rush. “I’ve missed junk food.”

“I’ve missed you,” Simon said with a cheesy grin.

“Don’t change the subject. I need to hear your news.” She tilted her head to one side trying to read his expression. “Is it good or bad?”

“Good.” He sighed and slumped back in his chair, running his hand over the surface of the table as he kept his eyes downcast. “I guess.”

“Are you trying to kill me with the suspense?” She finished her cookie and lifted her cup of coffee to her lips.

“No.” His forehead crumpled, the creases deep, as if he shouldered the weight of the world.

“Simon.”

“I told you how we found the pendant.”

“You said you got it from Murray’s daughter. That she had it all these years.” Her shoulders tensed as she fought off the feeling of failure that settled on her. It was right there all this time. Not even hidden away in a bank vault. She shook off her sense of failure, it was no use to her now. She needed to direct her energy toward the future and the next step they had to take.

“What I didn’t tell you was that Murray’s daughter, Belle, is the mate of a shifter, Rift.” Simon’s jaw tensed and he swallowed hard.

“What kind of shifter?” Larisa held her breath as her brother sipped his coffee. The suspense truly was going to kill her.

“A snow leopard.”

Her breath left her in one long exhale, and she gave a short laugh. “I thought you were going to say a dragon shifter.”

“No, that would be Rift’s brother, Ivan.” He met her eyes and held it as a myriad of emotions coursed through her. Disbelief, followed by shock, followed by suspicion.

“How do you know?” Her eyes widened. “Did you see him?” Ever since her father told them that dragon shifters were real, they’d dreamed of seeing one in the flesh. There were nights when she’d lie in bed, unable to sleep as her head filled with images of great winged beasts that ruled the sky, she’d often question her reasons for searching the world for one.

Was it purely because she wanted to help her father or was it because of her selfish desire to see one with her own eyes?

Perhaps those two reasons were entwined together. One led to the other. If she saw one, if she found one, then she might be able to help her father.

“No, I haven’t seen him shift.”

She sighed. “So someone told you he was a dragon shifter and you believed them?”

“No.” Simon shook his head and ran his finger around the rim of his cup. “When you meet him, you’ll know it. Just as I know it.”

“When I meet him?” Larisa asked.

“Yes.” Simon glanced at his watch. “He’ll be here in a couple of hours. When you gave me your flight information, I called him and asked if he’d come and meet you.”

“You called him? What is he, your new best friend?” A thrill of excitement prickled across her skin, but she quickly tempered her elation. Simon hadn’t seen this guy actually shift. There was no proof he wasn’t a liar. They’d met them before. People who claimed to be a shifter but were delusional.

“He wants to help.”

“Why?”

“Because we believe that the same person who killed Murray also killed his parents.” Simon watched her closely.

“You mean... This dragon shifter is the son of...” She pointed toward the living room where their father slept.

“Yes.” Simon nodded. “Ivan was raised in a town called Wishing Moon Bay. He was an orphan and had no idea about any of this.”

“Damn.” She rested her elbows on the table and threaded her fingers through her hair. Then she looked up at Simon, her lips pursed. “Wait, you said that Murray’s daughter is the mate of the dragon shifter’s brother?”

“Yes. Fate has a weird sense of humor, doesn’t it?” Simon looked up, his attention was drawn to the living room. “Dad’s awake.”

“I’ll go say hi.” Larisa cast a critical eye over her brother. “You look as if you need some sleep.”

Simon shrugged. “Dad’s not the only one who is agitated.”

“Did something else happen?” She’d expected Simon to be happier. But instead, he seemed kind of downcast. Perhaps because they now had a new mystery to solve. They’d been so focused on finding the pendant that they had no real plan as to how they were going to use it to track down the dragon shifter who had been responsible for Murray’s death and for laying the blame on their dad.

“I did some things I’m not proud of.” He stared down at his hands as she waited for him to continue. “Things I regret.”

“We all do things we regret,” she told him quietly.

“Not like this.” He rubbed his hand across his eyes. “Things got out of control.”

“Did someone get hurt?” Larisa swallowed hard. This thing had eaten away at her father for decades, would Simon also end up being tormented for his deeds? She’d do whatever it took to stop that from happening.

“We tried to ambush Murray’s daughter. She was with her family. We cornered them. At least we thought we did.” He raised his eyes to meet hers. “I grabbed Belle.” He shook his head and looked away. “It was like things were spinning out of control. I’m not sure what might have happened if someone...” He rubbed the back of his head.

“Are you okay?” Larisa got up from the table and went to her brother. “Did you get hurt?”

“Nothing more than I deserved.” He pressed his lips together and grasped her hand as she reached out to touch his head. “Please, I don’t deserve your sympathy.”

“Listen.” She hunkered down next to him. “We’re going to get through this together. We’ll end this once and for all.”

“I hope so.” He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her. “Why don’t you go see Dad?”

“Okay.” She got up and didn’t look back as she left the kitchen. Simon hated her seeing him crying and she was certain he was weeping as he got up and gathered the coffee cups.

Her hands balled into fists. What she wouldn’t give to get her hands on the person who had done this to them. A dragon shifter. Her nostrils flared. As much as she wanted to meet a dragon shifter in real life, she had little time for them. From what they’d learned about dragons over the years, they weren’t the nicest of people.

Except Andor. He’d been her father’s friend. According to her father, he had a big heart and whereas most dragon shifters hoarded their wealth, Andor had used it to help others. Larisa wished she’d met him, but she’d been born after Andor was killed and after her father had changed.

“Hi, Dad.” Larisa smiled brightly as she entered the living room and went to her father who lay staring at the window with unseeing eyes.

“Larisa.” He blinked several times before he turned his head and focused on her face. “When did you get here?”

“I just arrived. You were sleeping and I didn’t want to disturb you.” She went to him, her jaw tense as she fought to keep her emotions under control. What she wouldn’t give for her dad to be happy. To see him smile. To see him free of the fear that seemed to have taken hold of him more and more, over the last decade.

“It’s good to see you, Larisa. I’ve missed you.” He clutched her hand and squeezed it just like he used to do when she was a little girl in need of comfort.

“It’s good to be home.” It wasn’t a lie. She was happy to be home even though there was such uncertainty surrounding them. Whenever she was away, no matter how much she loved the place she was visiting, her heart always belonged here. Not so much in the house, but with her father.

He’d raised two children single-handedly after their mom died when Larisa was only a baby. Larisa couldn’t remember her mom at all, she only recalled her face because of the many photos her dad kept on display. There was no memory of her perfume or the sound of her voice.

Was that a blessing or a curse? It was an eternal debate she’d had over and over, often in the hours when she lay awake in bed staring at the ceiling as she worried about her dad. If her mom were here, things would have been different.

Or not.

Davy Westward would still have been a suspect in a murder case. Those events had happened before Lorraine Westward died. Would she have pulled him out of his misery? Perhaps he would have turned himself into the police and tried to clear his name.

A wave of guilt hit Larisa and she leaned forward and rested her head on his knee.

Davy Westward had never cleared his name because he wouldn’t risk being sent to prison. Not when his wife was sick, and his children needed him.

He’d become this shell of a man because of his family.

“Stop blaming yourself,” her dad said quietly.

“I’m...”

“I can always tell.” He sighed heavily. “None of this was your fault. And we’re one step closer to proving my innocence. Thanks to you and your brother.”

“Do you trust the dragon shifter?” she asked.

“I do.” He stroked her head, and she closed her eyes as jet lag crept up on her. “He’s the son of one of the best men I ever knew.”

She raised her head and stared into her father’s eyes. “You’re sure.”

He smiled, his eyes lighting up as he held her gaze. “I’m certain. He looks just like him.”

“Then I can’t wait to meet him.” She rested her head back on her dad’s knee.

She wanted to trust Ivan, too. But dragon shifters had only brought misery to their family. Not always with intent.

But misery all the same. Why would this one be any different?