The Dragon Shifter’s Desire by Harmony Raines
Chapter Thirty-Four – Ivan
“Are we ready to leave?” Ivan entered Valerie’s apartment with two backpacks. One filled with food he’d scavenged from his apartment, the other contained a change of clothes, a blanket, and some survival gear. And the tiara.
He didn’t know why he’d packed the item of treasure, but something had compelled him to wrap it in the blanket and bury it at the bottom of the pack.
Perhaps we just need a reminder of why we’re doing this,his dragon told him.
You might be right. He placed his hand on the side of the pack, the canvas rough to the touch. But he didn’t really feel the fabric, his senses were instead fixed on the small portion of his treasure.
“By we, do you mean me?” Fiona called from the kitchen.
“Do you want some coffee?” Valerie asked.
“No, I’ve had enough, thank you.” Ivan ran his hand through his hair. “The only thing I’m going to drink is the potion.”
“Subtle.” Fiona came to meet him.
“It takes a little while to work. I thought we should take it now.” Ivan stuck his hand in his pocket and pulled out the vial of red swirling liquid.
“How long does it last?” Fiona wrinkled her nose as she leaned forward and stared at the vial.
“We’ll have to have a top-up on the way.” He lifted it to the light. “But we can’t leave it too late to take it. There’s no telling how long it takes to have an effect. It could be an hour or two, or more. We can’t take the chance it won’t work before we get to the dragon isle.”
“And I thought you were worried I might be seasick on the way.” She held out her hand. “Give it here.”
He wanted to ask her if she was sure and warn her about how she would feel once she’d drunk from the vial. But he couldn’t take the chance she might back out.
“It’s okay, Ivan.” She closed her hand around his and squeezed. “I want to do this. Not just because you’ve asked me to but because I want to finish what I started all those years ago. I can understand my decision to let go of my memories to protect you. But I’m...surprised at myself.”
“You did the right thing,” Ivan replied.
“Do you believe that?” Fiona let go of his hand and took the potion. “I can’t stop thinking that Argothorn has literally gotten away with murder all these years.”
“You didn’t know the truth about what he’d done.”
“All we knew was that Argothorn wanted to take Ivan. He said that he belonged on the dragon isle and that he should be raised there.” Valerie stood behind Fiona. “We didn’t know Argothorn had a connection to your parents’ death.”
“We should have looked deeper,” Fiona said. “I should have looked deeper.”
“It’s done. There’s no use dwelling on the past.” Ivan pointed to the vial. “Our future lies across the ocean.”
“You’re right.” Fiona pulled the stopper out of the small bottle. “How much do I need to drink?”
“Just a small amount,” Ivan replied.
“A small amount to conquer a dragon.” She shook her head in disgust. “I’m beginning to wish I didn’t know anything about magic. I liked my nice boring life.”
“I don’t think you’ve ever been boring, Fiona, and I’m sure you have come across magic before.” Ivan watched as she sipped the vial and grimaced.
“My turn.” He half-smiled as he took the vial back.
“How does it work?”
“Shouldn’t you have asked that before you took it?” Ivan asked.
“No. I might have changed my mind if I had.” Fiona twisted her mouth in distaste as he took a dose.
“It makes us invisible. At least our dragons are invisible. Of course, it doesn’t come without side effects,” Ivan admitted.
“What kind of side effects?” Fiona’s suspicions were raised.
“I felt disconnected.” He shrugged. “But once I shifted into my dragon, I was free.”
“Disconnected.” Her jaw tensed. “Doesn’t it worry you that we’re going to the dragon isle and if these spells fail, we’re all in trouble?”
“They won’t fail.” Elise entered the apartment with a pack slung over her shoulder. “My Grandma Hannah is very experienced. She also knows what’s at stake. The spells will hold. As long as you top up the dose as soon as it starts to wear off.”
“And how do we know when it’s wearing off?” Fiona asked.
“I’ll tell you.” She cocked her head on one side as Ivan turned to face her. “Before you say anything, I’m coming. Karros and Zara have the kitchen under control. Aiden and Flora will help, too.”
“What about Caleb? Is he okay with you coming with us?” Ivan asked.
“He is. As long as he can tag along, too.” She held up her hand as Ivan opened his mouth to protest. “I know what you’re going to say. You’ll give some speech about how you don’t want to put your family in danger. But that’s tough.”
“I know that look,” Fiona told Ivan. “If I were you, I’d save my energy and just agree to it.”
“It makes sense,” Elise continued. “This way you have someone to watch your back. We are about to set sail on a boat with a vampire as our guide.”
“You don’t trust Silas?” Fiona’s surprised expression was fixed on Ivan.
“I do. At least I think I do. But honestly, since we will be under the influence of the spell, it’s probably a good idea to take a shifter with us. Caleb can protect us. All of us.”
“I have never needed protecting in my life,” Fiona retorted.
“If anything happens, Caleb might be able to deal with it rather than us having to break cover and show our true selves.” Ivan hadn’t wanted his brothers involved in this. It could go so horribly wrong.
But we have more chance in success if Caleb and Elise come along, too.His dragon didn’t like it either but they both agreed it was for the best. The whole plan depended on the dragons staying hidden. If the boat they were traveling on got into any kind of trouble, then Caleb, with help from Elise and Silas, might be able to sort it out without Ivan and Fiona shifting into their dragons.
Unless, of course, the threat came from another dragon. There was no way Ivan’s dragon would hide and let his brother get injured. Or worse.
“Okay, well, that went easier than I thought.” Elise edged toward the door. “Caleb is waiting, we should go.”
“Take care of each other.” Valerie hugged Ivan. “Please come home safely.”
“We’ll all come home safely.” Ivan wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. “I love you, Mom.”
“I love you, too.” She buried her head in his shoulder for a moment before she sniffed loudly and pulled away.
“As one mother to another,” Fiona began, “I promise to do whatever it takes to bring them home safely.”
Valerie nodded but hid her face as they left the apartment.
I hate seeing her cry,his dragon said miserably.
So do I. But we have to go. Larisa needs us to play our part in this plan. It’s the only way we’re ever going to end this and move on with our lives.Ivan didn’t look back, he couldn’t bear to see Valerie’s tears.
“Is Silas back?” Ivan asked Elise as they exited the hotel.
“Not yet.” She checked her phone. “He said an hour, we still have five minutes to go.”
“What happens if he doesn’t show?” Fiona asked from behind Ivan.
“We wait ten minutes and then go. I’m sure we can find a boat to take us to the dragon isle.” He looked up at the sky, the clouds were thin whisps of white against the deepening blue. “Or we risk flying. We’d have the cover of darkness if we wait a few hours.”
“I thought flying wasn’t an option.” Elise led them around the side of the hotel.
“It’s not the best option. But it is an option. We could fly to Cairnnor and then use the spell to mask our true selves.” Ivan waved to Caleb as they reached the parking lot.
“That is the worst idea,” Fiona told him. “We will find a boat even if I have to leave Wishing Moon Bay and steal one.”
His dragon chuckled. He could completely believe Fiona would go steal a boat and carry it back here if she had to.
“Silas will come,” Elise insisted.
“You’re his number one fan all of a sudden?” Ivan asked.
She pulled open the truck door and leaned inside. “We were here when he came to call in his favors.”
“Silas was deadly serious,” Caleb told them. “And I don’t mean that as a pun.” He grinned. “Well, I do. But I’m also serious. He wants this done. I don’t think he has an angle on it.”
“I can sense him.” Fiona shuddered. “I still can’t believe I let him inside my head.”
“He must have earned your trust. I mean before…” Elise looked up and half-turned to look at Fiona.
“I did. He had my back. No question he wanted to keep Ivan safe. But he never shared his reasoning with me.” She stared down the street in the direction of the beach. “He’s lived for a long time. And when you’re that old, time has little meaning. He could have a motive none of us know about.”
“He’s one vampire against three shifters and a fae. I think we can handle him,” Ivan said.
“That depends,” Fiona mused.
“On what?” Ivan could sense Silas. He’d be there any moment.
“What kind of spell Hannah made for him. He’s walking in daylight. How do we know the spell doesn’t protect him from other things? Such as dragon fire?” Fiona arched her eyebrow in question.
Elise shook her head. “I asked Grandma Hannah for the spell. It was to protect Silas from sunlight. Nothing more.”
“At least that’s what you think. What you believe.” Fiona tapped the side of her head. “Unless he got to you, too.”
Caleb chuckled. “He didn’t get to us. But I like your way of thinking.”
“I’m highly suspicious,” Fiona admitted. “That’s how I have stayed alive for so long. And I have no intention of letting my guard down.”
“Are we all ready?” Ivan didn’t know how good the vampire’s hearing was and so he changed the subject. They needed Silas on their side and didn’t want him alerted to their suspicions.
“We are.” Elise glanced at Caleb.
“Thanks for coming.” Ivan ducked his head and looked at his brother.
“You’d do the same for me. We’ve always had each other’s back.” He nodded toward the hotel. “The others would come, too, but we figured that you might not be able to carry us all if we had to fly out of there.”
“I’d rather they stayed here. Just in case there are any repercussions. One dragon shifter has already come to Wishing Moon Bay. There might be more.” He raised his gaze to the distant mountains. “I should have flown around town and made sure there weren’t any others lurking close by.”
“It’s too late for that now.” Fiona straightened up as a car pulled into the parking lot.
Colton, an elderly man with silver-gray hair who had been by Silas’s side since before Ivan could remember, parked the car in a parking spot and got out. He went around to the trunk and popped it open while Silas got out of the passenger side.
“We’ve arranged to travel onboard a boat to the dragon isle,” Silas announced.
“Are you coming, too, Colton?” Ivan didn’t like the idea of the old man coming with them. Not just for his own safety but because he might slow them down if they ran into trouble.
“No. I’m staying here to keep an eye on things.” Colton handed a backpack to Silas. “This has everything you need.”
Ivan wrinkled his nose. He could smell the blood in the pack. He should have known Silas would need to pack his own food. But at least he wouldn’t need to snack on one of his fellow travelers.
Ivan’s dragon snorted, but then settled back down to sleep. He was saving his energy for what was to come.
The problem was, they had no idea what that might be.