Chapter Eight

Seline

The moment the gunshot rings through the woods I know this entire situation is going to end badly. I can't see past Liam's bulk, but I can hear Ares crying and that is enough for my dragon to take over.

Unimaginable pain rips through my entire being as my bones elongate and break before snapping into their new position. My dragon pushes Liam out of the way, knocking him to the ground before spreading her wings and flying right at my father. I can feel the rage roaring through her veins at the sight of the dead woman at his feet.

Hate, pure and unfiltered, pumps through my veins. I watch him. In his shock his dragon does not have the chance to transform, to help him fend me off. I am going to rip him limb from fucking limb for doing this, for everything he has done before. Liam's plan has failed but I will make sure my father is punished.

"You're a … you're a dragon," my father stammers.

I don't care what he has to say. I watch as my dragon wraps a taloned paw around his right arm before ripping it off. Blood sprays everywhere before his pained scream rends the air. It's like a dream, like I am watching things play out in front of me, but I feel the same satisfaction my dragon does when he howls in pain.

"Seline, stop!" Liam pushes his way between me and my father. "You can't kill him."

My dragon drops her head back roaring to the heavens before looking back at our mate. I finally feel it. The bond, the draw, the love. His soul calls out to mine like we have known each other for lifetimes instead of days.

Carefully, Liam pushes against my dragon's chest, forcing me to step back from my father's fallen, bleeding form. A step my dragon allows.

"I need you to come back to me," he implores. "Ares needs you to come back."

Those are the words that snap me out of my rage-fueled stupor. Ares. Breathing deeply, I pray this works as I force my dragon to let me through. The magic of the transition shimmers over me and within seconds I am standing, naked, in front of Liam.

"There she is," he says softly.

Tears stream down my face as a sob breaks free. I fall to my knees, taking Ares from his dead mother's arms and cradling him to my bare bosom. For long moments I rock him until his cries fade to soft hiccups.

Standing from the dirt path I turn and face Liam to find him tying my father to a large tree, his cell phone cradled to his face. I can smell my father's burning flesh and I know Liam has burned what remains of his arm to stop him from bleeding out.

"Mikael, there has been an incident," he says before listening to the voice on the other end of the call. "We are at my father's lake house. You need to bring the entire Alpha Council."

Again, he falls silent as he listens. "They'll want to be here. Gregor James just killed an innocent woman in cold blood. He's still alive but I can't guarantee for how long."

He listens before ending the call and turning to me. His gaze travels the length of my naked body before landing on my face. "You need to get cleaned up. The Alpha Council is flying up in the Council helicopter. They'll be here within the hour."

Numbly, I nod before walking toward the cabin. I know things are probably going to get a hell of a lot worse before they get any better. So many things keep going wrong and I don't know if we will ever find peace. My heart breaks at the thought of Angela being gone and the fact that Ares will never know her. She didn't deserve any of this. Somehow, I will make this right, I will not let her death be in vain.

I do my best to ignore my father's screaming as I make my way back to the house. I don't want my dragon emerging and killing him before the Alpha Council arrives.

Inside the house, I place Ares's spent form into the camping cot Liam set up in our room yesterday before heading to the bathroom. I stare at myself in the mirror looking for any physical changes, but I can't find a single thing. I may still look the same, but I feel like a new person. My dragon shimmers beneath my skin and I feel her need to be close to Liam pulse through me, so I quickly jump through the shower before getting dressed.

I choose to once again wear shorts and a strappy top. Heaven knows what the Alpha Council will bring down on our heads once they get here, but I want to be ready to fight if I need to.

I stare down at Ares's sleeping form and grab the baby monitor instead of waking him. In my heart I am grateful that he is too small to ever remember what happened here today, but I am also sad that he will never get to know his mother. I will keep her memory alive for him. I may not have known her well, but I do know she loved him enough to give him up and that is all that matters.

Taking a deep breath, I exit the cabin and make my way down the gravel trail to where I left Liam with my father. Just seeing him has rage rampaging through me once more but I fight to keep calm, not allowing my dragon the revenge she so desperately craves.

Liam has covered Angela's body with a blanket and I feel tears build in my throat just seeing it. She didn't deserve this, she had no part in any of this madness, and now she has lost her life for no other reason than my father wanted to scare me into doing his bidding. Bile rises in my throat at the thought of my father, and I must fight back tears.

How can he possibly be this cruel? This vindictive? This fucking greedy? It makes my head hurt just to think about it.

I stand staring at the water trying to calm my thoughts when I hear the faint sound of chopper blades drawing near. Has it been an hour? Can the Alpha Council already be here? Liam's arms wrap around my middle tightly.

"They're here. Get ready."

****

Liam

Seeing Seline in her dragon form was a sight to behold. The aquamarine and purple scales are more beautiful than anything I have ever seen. And her rage, her defense of those she loves only made it more so. She was stunning in her anger.

I honestly didn't think I would be able to get her dragon to back off, but I have never felt relief like I did the moment her human form came back into vision. Everything after that was a bit of a blur but I know I did the right thing in calling the Alpha Council. They govern our laws and will take care of this mess.

Gregor James has fucked up for the last time. I also need to tell them about Ares, Seline being my mate, and the fact that she can shift. All our cards need to be laid out to avoid any further problems. I fully intended to do it after we knew Seline's dragon was under control, but my hand has been forced and it will have to be now.

I stand at the water's edge holding her as the helicopter lands in a clearing behind the trees. I sense the moment the Alphas step through the tree line and let go of her to turn to them.

"Mikael," I greet the man in front of the others. He was my father's best friend and the High Alpha in the Council. "Thank you for coming so quickly."

He casts a look of disgust at Seline's gagged and bound father before casting his gaze to the blanket-draped bundle a few feet away. He looks at me with curiosity before nodding.

"What happened here?" he asks.

The other four members of the Alpha Council stand beside him, each wearing the same curiosity on their features.

"My father killed Angela," Seline says softly beside me. "She didn't deserve to die."

"You're Seline, correct?" Mikael asks.

"Yes, Alpha," she replies.

"Why would Gregor do that? He has been a member of the Elite for many years."

"You know what he did," I cut in. "His Elite status has been stripped. He wanted Seline to go with him, to lie to you, to help him get back to his acquired position."

"And the female?" someone else asks.

"Her name was Angela. She was here with us. He used her as leverage," Seline replies. "When I didn't agree, he shot her to prove his point."

"Do you have any evidence of this?" Mikael asks.

"Yes," I say. "I have cameras around the house. Everything we are telling you will be shown in the footage."

"Show us," Mikael demands.

"Before we do that, there are other matters to discuss."

"Dammit, boy, spit it out already. I don't want to stand here in the sun for the rest of the day," Mikael groans. "Gregor is bleeding out and I want to dole out his punishment before he dies. If what you're saying is true," he adds as an afterthought.

"I need you to keep an open mind about what I am going to tell you. It's about Seline," I say carefully, making sure his attention is focused on me. "She is my mate. And a dragon shifter."

"Lies!" one of the other Alphas calls out immediately. "That is entirely impossible."

But my attention is focused on Mikael. His words and actions are the only things that matter to me. He is the Alpha with the final say. He steps forward until he is no more than a foot away from my female.

"Is this true, Little One?"

I want to bristle at the nickname he so easily uses for my mate but Seline nods with a small smile.

"Show me the footage, Liam," he says without looking away from her. "I assume everything you're saying will be proven then."

I nod, leading Seline into the house as the Alpha Council follows us. The baby monitor crackles to life before Ares's cries can be heard. Seline casts me a questioning gaze.

"Mikael, Seline needs to see to my son." It's not a request. I am just giving him the courtesy of letting him know what is happening.

Before he can nod or say anything, Seline is already headed up the stairs. The Alphas follow me into the lounge where I set the flat screen to the CCTV and search for the incident. It only takes a moment to play it for them. I watch as Gregor enters the frame, the moment he shoots Angela, and when Seline changes to her dragon. Everything felt like it was happening in slow motion but it was only sixty seconds.

The gathered Alphas all gasp in shock at the events. Their anger and disgust are easy to distinguish on each man's face at what Gregor has done as well as the sense of amazement at what Seline is.

"Fuck me," Mikael says with a chuckle. "A female dragon shifter. Who would have thought?"

Everyone else remains in stunned silence.

"What happens now?" Seline asks as she enters the room cradling Ares.

"Nothing," Mikael says. He strides over to her and stares at my son. "Gregor will be put to death as is the law."

"And me?" she asks, staring up at the older Alpha.

"You and Liam need to fill out the paperwork for the child," he says. "I assume he was with the other female. And then you need to get yourselves registered as a mated couple."

"But," one of the other Alphas cut in, drawing a glare from Mikael.

"Bring her by the house sometime," he says to me. "My girls will get a kick out of seeing a female dragon."

And then he is gone. The other Alphas scurry after him knowing he will surely leave them here if he feels like it.