Lion Conquers All by Krystal Shannan

23

AARAV

“They aren’t going to let us stay if they see there’s a fucking dragon living across the river! I like my home. I like this town. I don’t want to live on the run with the triplets! What about Penny and Kann? They have four!” Naomi crossed her arms and stomped her foot.

She was so tiny next to her mate, but she was strong. Looks were deceiving in her case. A dragon lived inside the small compact woman with bouncy brown curls and a smile for days.

But she wasn’t smiling right now. And fire flickered in her gaze.

“Shuarra, what if they were our children missing?”

Col’s voice was calm and low.

“Fuck.” Naomi sat down on the couch, defeat in her slumped shoulders. Tears ran down her cheeks. “You know we’re going to lose everything.”

“You don’t know that for sure.” Col knelt in front of his mate and cupped her face in his hands. “The children could already be dead, Naomi. We can’t leave them up there alone any longer. We shouldn’t have waited this long to search for them. If we find bodies, I’ll never forgive myself, and neither will you.”

The rest of the tribe stood around the room.

Silence hung in the air like a shroud of fear.

A few of the other females wiped tears from their cheeks.

“You don’t understand how bad it’s going to be.” Naomi’s words were slurred by her emotion.

“We are together. That’s all that matters. We have this family at our side and we will stay together and protect each other, no matter what.”

She shook her head free of his hands and Aarav’s chest tightened at the pain he knew Col was feeling. Col’s mate and wife was scared and upset and they were all about to risk something that could have lasting consequences for all of them.

Col stood and glanced around the room.

The others were coming.

It was time.

The dragon’s gaze landed on Liam, where he stood next to Tor and Dawn. “Liam, would you stay with Naomi and Penny. Kann, you as well. I would not have you separated from your children. Ryder, you will also stay along with Ava to help pack trucks and necessities should we need to make a quick exit. All females remain behind and stay together.”

Ryder’s eyebrows rose, surprise evident that he’d been singled out to stay. He exchanged a questioning glance with Ava, who shook her head to dismiss the order made by their chief.

“Split into groups of two or three. Do not separate from each other. We don’t know what searchers from town might still be on the mountain. Be vigilant.” Col kissed his mate on the head and walked out into the still-dark morning.

Aarav glanced around the room and headed for the door to follow. Shenn kissed his mate, Heather, and then left the cabin with the rest of the males. Ivann had paired up with Saul. They got along very well. Veer and Raj were waiting for Aarav at the bottom of the stairs.

“Maybe no one will see us and everything will continue as usual.”

Aarav released a slow sigh. “Maybe.”

The cold wind bit into his skin and he was glad they were shifting into their beasts to hunt for the kids. His lion handled this winter weather much better than his human form.

“Everyone take a flare gun and a tranq gun. If you find the kids, fire two flares. If you get into trouble, fire one flare. If the kids are awake, tranq them so Col can come pick them up without causing a panic attack.” Penny stood in the doorway holding out a big duffle bag. “Now.” She shook the bag and the plastic and metal guns and cartridges clinked together noisily.

Aarav smiled and several of the other men chuckled. Penny was the expert in all things weapons and preparedness. She was also the one in charge of building an underground bunker not far from Naomi and Col’s cabin. Especially after the Tribe here in Mystery encountered Aarav and his brothers along with the Ka’lagh and then the dragon tribe from Oregon.

Her “bat cave” as she called it had become top priority. She had contractors lined up for next summer to start construction. She and Kann’s home already looked like a secret base from a spy movie—guns, cameras, and other technology he probably would never understand.

“How were you this prepared?”

She smiled and shook her head. “I have strategies and plans for all sorts of problems. You have no idea. Welcome to my brain.”

Aarav took a flare gun and several cartridges, along with the small metal tranq gun and several vials of the tranquilizer. He shoved them into a zippered pocket on his pant leg. Then took the bag from her and passed it around the group. The bag was nearly empty when he handed it back to her.

“Thank you.”

Her lips were tight, but she nodded. “Be careful out there. Connie will never forgive you if something happens to you.”

His shoulders sagged a little at the mention of his mate. He’d slipped away from the community center without speaking to her. She’d been against this from the very start. He couldn’t face her anger, not right now. Not when he knew what they were doing was the right thing. No matter the consequences. No matter how much it might hurt. They all knew this was the right choice. It had been all along.

Col walked further away from the group, giving himself room to shift. The rest of them stood still and watched with awe as his enormous black body appeared, huge black wings unfurled and flapped, lifting him a bit off the ground for a moment. His eyes were orange with fire. His mouth was big enough to swallow one of their beasts whole.

One snap.

That’s it. You would just be gone.

That’s why the dragons on Reylea had been the ruling Tribe. When you were big, powerful, fireproof, and could swallow your enemies whole. Nothing really tried to go up against you. Ever.

The big dragon growled low in his chest and the ground rumbled with the command.

Aarav could feel the alpha magick pressing against him, urging his beast to take control.

His lion pushed forward and he shifted.

They all did, taking everything they were carrying with them into the magick. Every shifter in Reylea was gifted with a charm from the Magick-Benders when they turned five years old. The charm allowed their clothes, weapons, anything they were carrying to merge into the shift with them and reappear when they shifted back to human form.

Snow crunched beneath his wide paws.

The wind carried so many scents, things he really couldn’t pick out in his human form.

A group of wolves sprinted from the front of the cabin, breaking off into two groups. Col flapped his wings again and launched himself into the air. He and his brothers set off after the wolves.

They traveled along the river until they came to a bridge the Tribe had built from fallen trees, especially so they could cross safely as their beasts. He and his brothers crossed, one by one, bounding over the thick pine trunk. His claws dug into the bark and propelled him forward without a single concern for the rushing icy water below them.

They reached one of the main hiking trails, marked every so often with large wooden signs and maps. Aarav and Raj split and went right. Veers, Shenn, and Ivan turned and went left. The hunt was on and the storm, as much as they had hoped for a lull, was not blowing over. If anything, the intensity was increasing again.

His legs sankinto the fresh powder at least a foot deep. In some places he sunk deep enough the snow touched his belly.

They climbed at a pace, no human would’ve been able to maintain. Raj was ahead of him, and he could see his brother’s tawny hide, but only if he stayed within nipping distance. Visibility was so-so, but if Raj stopped suddenly, they’d end up a tangled pile of limbs.

The sky brightened slightly, but only enough to know that at least an hour or two had passed. They were on the east side of the mountain, approaching the base and the scent of human was strong in the air.

Someone was on this ridge with them.

Not the children. He knew the scent of the missing kids and so did Raj.

He and his brother slowed their pace, moving carefully from the cover of brush and clumps of evergreen.

His brother froze a short distance ahead of Aarav. He’d left the clump of cedar where Aarav was crouched and moved forward to another. There was less wind and the snow wasn’t as deep. The thick evergreens cut some of the storm out.

Aarav growled low and shifted into his human form so he’d be a smaller target if someone was scoping the area. He’d paid careful attention in Penny’s rifle lessons and his training for the deputy position in town.

Someone was watching them.

He could feel it.

The wind was throwing snow all over and it was difficult to pin down exactly where the scent was coming from.

The cold hit his skin like he’d dipped into an icy lake. He wouldn’t be able to stay in this form too long. “Raj.” He called out to his brother. “Shahma. Dramast.” Shift. Danger.

The wind carried his voice away. Aarav wasn’t sure if Raj could even hear him.

A shot rang through the wailing of the storm.

“Dramast.” He shouted into the wind and ran out from the group of cedars he’d been behind.

Where had Raj gone? The scent of the human was strong and fresh, the bitter tang of gunpowder also rode in the air. It had been a gunshot. He hadn’t imagined it.

“Raj!” His heart beat frantically in his chest, kicking like prey tangled in vines watching a predator approach. “Raj!” He breathed in the air deeply, looking for any trace and direction. His mind was spinning, and his lion wanted to take control again.

We can find him. We kill the threat.

But he couldn’t shift. If the hunter was out here, he might shoot him too. His beast didn’t belong in this world. And certainly didn’t belong on this mountain.

“Who’s out there? Who’s Raj?” An unfamiliar voice called out from his right, maybe ten or fifteen yards away. He wasn’t far. “Deputy Di’Rham? What the hell? Are you out here by yourself?”

Snow crunched and a man appeared from the trees. The human was dressed in grey and white camouflage from head to foot.

Fuck.No wonder they hadn’t been able to spot him, even as his beast. All the volunteers were supposed to be wearing the neon orange vests to make them easy to see.

“My brother.” Aarav said without a single thought. He ran at the guy and grabbed him by the collar of his jacket. “Where’s my brother? What did you shoot at?”

The man’s eyes opened wider. Shock and fear crept into his grey eyes. “It was an animal. Cougar or something. I didn’t shoot at a person. I saw eyes and teeth. Why weren’t you together?”

“We were together,” Aarav shouted right at the man’s face, his voice turning into a growl. “You’re not supposed to be up here. SAR called everyone back.”

Aarav threw the man on the ground at his feet. If he didn’t let go of him his lion was going to shake him until his neck snapped. Fury burned in his chest.

“I know what I’m doing. I’m not some damn civilian. I’ve hunted on this mountain off and on my whole life. Who else was going to find those kids?”

“We are!” Aarav roared this time, his voice taking on a very animalistic quality. His claws pressed through the ends of his fingers. He unzipped the pocket with the tranq gun, grabbed it, loaded it.

“What the fuck is that?”

“Shut up.” Aarav grabbed the struggling man and shoved the gun against the man’s bare neck. He pulled the trigger and watched the liquid drain into the man. The male’s eyes closed almost instantly and his body went limp.

“Fuck.” Aarav shoved the tranq gun back in his pocket and pulled out the flare gun instead. He shoved a cartridge into the chamber and fired into the sky.

One flare for trouble. This definitely qualified as trouble.