Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

The mission had been a success, as they had freed Queen Grian from her horrible imprisonment, but the next day, a heavy somberness rested on the dragons. There was nothing to celebrate. The mission had come at too high a cost. Lucia’s death, first of all, but also the queen’s condition.

They could all feel it, the pain and sadness, the weight of her sickness. As always, they sought comfort with each other, the omegas first, but then the alphas joined as well. Jermon, Valdis, and Nadiv took turns staying with their mom, but when they weren’t with her, they craved companionship with the other dragons, hanging out together in the meeting barn. The wolf omegas kept bringing food and drinks, taking care of them without needing to be asked.

Oliver had never felt such a strong kinship with the others. Well, maybe when Erwan had been crowned king. That had been a special moment for the clan. But the unity they had right now, the connection they shared, as if their souls were all knitted together, tied to each other with strong threads of magic, that was new. It was wonderful and awful at the same time because they all knew the reason.

The queen was dying. She was hanging on, but Oliver didn’t need anyone to tell him what he already knew. She wouldn’t survive. Maybe she was waiting for Erwan to return home, but she wouldn’t be able to do so for much longer. She’d been too weak, too far gone, both mentally and physically.

Her passing would come as a liberation for her, an end to the suffering she had endured at the hands of her husband. But for her sons, the loss would hit hard. From what Oliver understood, she was the only one who had ever loved them. Erwan, especially, would be devastated to lose his mom after learning everything she’d done to protect him and keep him safe from his father and uncle.

Jermon walked into the meeting barn—Valdis had left minutes before to relieve him—and the hushed conversations died. He cleared his throat. “There’s been no change in her condition.”

The spark of hope that had ignited inside Oliver died just as quickly. Jermon sat next to him, and Oliver handed him a cold can of Coke.

“Thank you.” Jermon downed about half the can, then put it down. “I’m exhausted. I don’t know why since I’ve been doing nothing but sitting, but I’m wiped.”

Oliver tapped the side of his head, and Jermon nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. I’m stressed out, and that causes physical tiredness.”

Oliver moved his arms as if rocking a baby. “Yes, of course, the hatchlings take up a lot of energy.”

Jermon only needed a simple affirmative hum from Oliver to continue. “They’re doing great. Zayden set a curtain on fire yesterday. Not on purpose, of course, but he burped some fire too close to the curtain, and the whole thing caught. Luckily, Riordan and Wilmer saw it happen and were right there to put it out.” He sighed. “You can’t let them out of your sight for even a minute.”

“Cute,” Oliver whispered.

Jermon’s face broke open in a wide smile, the affection for his kids obvious. “Yes, they’re stinking cute, and that’s a good thing. If they weren’t, this phase would be unbearable, I fear. As it is, it’s a lot for Riordan.”

“Acceptance?”

He was communicating in single words, but Jermon had no trouble understanding him. “Yes, they’re accepting Riordan and Wilmer as parents. Thank the gods. Don’t know what I would’ve done had that not been the case. They don’t treat them any differently than they do me.”

Oliver held up his thumb.

They sat quietly for a bit, Oliver snacking on some almonds.

Adar sat at a table in the back, checking in regularly to make sure Oliver was okay. As always, his presence brought Oliver comfort and a sense of safety.

“You know, before yesterday, I never quite understood what your magic could do,” Jermon said. “I knew you were a scientist, which was a magical ability, but it made little sense to me, even after an explanation. Not until I watched you analyzing that spell yesterday and telling Fallon how to counter it. You two saved my mom. I’ll never be able to thank you for that.”

“Not Lucia.”

Jermon reached for Oliver in a slow, deliberate movement, giving him the opportunity to back away. When Oliver stayed still, Jermon patted his hand. “You know her death is not on you. Her time had come. The spell might’ve shortened her life by a few days or weeks, but her life was full. And she knew what she was doing. She served my mom her entire life, and her last act being one of selfless sacrifice has to mean something.”

Oliver nodded. “Power.”

“That’s what Wilmer and Riordan keep telling me, that there is power in sacrifice. They weren’t part of the pack yet when Lidon’s cousin died in the attack on the PTP ranch, but when he was buried, an earthquake happened, and the moon turned red.”

Oliver widened his eyes. He’d heard references to Jawon’s death meaning something, but he’d never known the details. An earthquake? A blood moon? What the hell?

“The pack got a power boost from it, for lack of a better word, and they’re speculating that Lucia’s sacrifice could have the same effect.” Jermon closed his eyes and rubbed his cheeks, for a moment looking as if he carried the weight of the world. “I hope it will help Erwan and Rhene. I’m worried about them.”

He wasn’t the only one. Everyone kept bringing it up, wondering how they were faring at the Dragon Council. They’d warned they’d be in a remote area without cell service and thus unable to send updates, and it looked like that was the case because no one had heard from them. At least they were together. Rhene wouldn’t let anything happen to Erwan. That much Oliver knew for a fact.

Fallon wandered over to them. “Mind if I join you?”

Jermon pulled back a chair. “Please do. How are you feeling today?”

“Tired. I can tell yesterday drained me from a lot of magic.”

“The two of you were brilliant, Fallon. Absolutely brilliant. I was just telling Oliver how grateful I was to have you two with us. We couldn’t have done it without you.”

“It was our honor.”

“How’s the baby?” Jermon asked Fallon.

Fallon got this sweet, almost dreamy expression, as always when he talked about Ainle. “He’s perfect. I’m enjoying every minute. We’re still dividing the feedings between the three of us, and I do the night feeding. It’s so special to sit there with him when everything around us is quiet, just the two of us. He’s not my biological son, but I feel a deep connection to him.”

“Special,” Oliver said.

“He is.” Fallon nodded. “He’s very special. There’s a lot about him we don’t see or understand yet. Like Emma’s words when we all blessed him. She said he was the alpha heir but also a dragon prince. That’s the part I still can’t wrap my head around. How can he be a dragon prince when he’s one hundred percent wolf?”

Oliver hummed in agreement. He’d asked himself the same thing.

“I guess in the same way that Riordan could carry our eggs when he’s a wolf and that little Hakon Hayes has DNA from all four of his dads, even though he’s Lidon and Vieno’s son biologically.” Jermon shrugged. “Magic. That’s the only explanation I have for you. We have magic, and the wolves have magic of their own. Combined, it’s a recipe for miracles.”

“Agree,” Oliver said.

“It would have to be because there’s no logical explanation,” Fallon said.

But wait. There was. “Rhene,” Oliver said. “Dragon prince.”

Jermon widened his eyes. “You’re right. Rhene is a dragon prince because of his relationship with my brother. If Ainle were to mate with a dragon king or prince, he would be too, even though he’d still be one hundred percent wolf.”

“I’ll be damned.” Fallon slowly shook his head. “I didn’t even think of that, but you’re right.”

But Oliver had already come to an even more shocking conclusion. Emma had also said Ainle would unite the White Dragon and the True Alpha of his generation. “Two mates.” Oliver held up two fingers. “White Dragon and True Alpha.”

Fallon and Jermon gasped so loudly that conversations around them died down and every head in the barn turned their way. After a few seconds, people started talking again, but Fallon and Jermon still sat with their mouths open.

“You’re saying that…” Fallon swallowed. “That he’ll be mated to the White Dragon and the True Alpha of his generation?”

Oliver nodded. What he didn’t say was that he even had a good idea of who those two could be. Hakon would be the True Alpha, no doubt about it. Was it presumptuous to assume that the White Dragon would be the child that Finlay and Erwan would have?

Oh, but wait. They’d be brothers, wouldn’t they? Ainle and Erwan’s son. Well, not biologically. They shared no blood. But they would grow up together as brothers.

And wasn’t Ainle related to Hakon? If Hakon had Palani’s DNA, that meant he was blood-related to Ainle, who was Rhene’s son. Granted, it was a weak connection, like that of second cousins or something, but still.

Hmm, maybe he was wrong. Time would tell.

“Ainle is here.” Fallon jumped up and hurried over to Yitro, who carried Ainle in a sling. Duer, not a big people person—and Oliver could relate to that—was right beside him.

A big stir at the entrance drew his attention. Gods, Riordan and Wilmer had brought the hatchlings, each carrying two. The benefit of hatchlings over babies was that they were much smaller and lighter, thus easier to transport. At this stage, they wouldn’t be able to shift into their human forms yet, so that made the risks low.

Oliver tapped Jermon’s hand and pointed. Jermon’s eyes lit up with pure joy, and he rushed over to greet his mates.

“Why don’t we connect the tables?” Sivney suggested. Oliver hadn’t seen him come in. His mates were there too, bringing their two kids.

Within minutes, the barn was rearranged into three rows of four connected tables. As if people had sensed it, more and more wolves filed in until the entire pack was complete, kids included. The only ones missing were Nadiv and Emma, who were sitting with Queen Grian. Despite the size of the crowd, the conversations were hushed. People were talking and sometimes laughing, but it was all muted, as if at a funeral. Why had everyone come? What was going on?

More people entered the barn, and Oliver looked up. Oh, Palani and Kean had come. “We’re going crazy waiting for news from Rhene and Erwan,” Palani said. “And it seems we’re not the only ones.”

Chairs were pulled back so the two Hightower brothers could join them. “We’re all waiting to hear from them,” Jermon said. “Come hang out with us so we can wait together.”

Was that why they had gathered? Or was it because of the queen? Either way, unity mattered. The pack was strongest when it was united, and so was the clan. It would bring power to Erwan and Rhene…and maybe everyone had come because they’d sensed those two needed it.

Palani’s eyes lit up when he spotted Ainle. “Oh, can I hold my nephew for a bit?”

Yitro freed Ainle from the sling and handed him over with a smile. The baby had woken up, but he wasn’t crying, more watching with curiosity in his eyes.

Palani cradled the baby to his chest, and Kean bowed in to see. “Oh my god, his eyes…” Kean grinned. “It’s like looking at Rhene.”

“It is…” Palani tickled Ainle under his chin. “You’re gonna be just as big and strong as your wolf dad, aren’t you?”

Yitro chuckled. “He’s already big for his age, Enar says.”

“See? A big, strapping alpha. That’s what you’ll be.” Ainle blew a raspberry, and Palani’s smile widened. “And when you’re a little older, you’ll have so many playmates. Hakon is dying for you to be old enough to play with, and so is Jax. Our girls wanna play too, but you’ll have to be a bit more careful with them, okay? They’re omegas, so you need to protect them and watch out for them.”

Our girls? Oh, right, Palani and Kean both had a daughter, though their names escaped Oliver. And didn’t Palani also have a third kid with his mates? A beta boy who was Enar’s biological son? It was hard to keep track of all the kids.

“But for now…” Palani’s smile faded. “For now, we need to think of your dads and send them all the power we can spare.” He looked up at Kean, and something passed between the brothers. “They’re gonna need it.”