Chapter One – Ruby

The mountain range spread out before Ruby as she perched on the ledge of solid rock, her feet at the very edge, ready to jump. Peaks and valleys, high cliff faces, and gently sloping hills filled the scene below. The chilly wind buffeted her as snow clung to the highest slopes around her. But lower down, a haze of green told of the arrival of summer. The warmth of the season had coaxed green shoots of grass out of hiding and animals ventured higher up the mountain into areas once inaccessible by winter, but now bathed in sunlight, to graze and rear their young. She loved this part of the mountain, where the varied terrain remained mostly unexplored by man.

From her vantage point, she could see it all and yet she could not find what she was looking for. Was it even there? Ruby pushed those thoughts firmly out of her mind. She would not allow herself to become disillusioned, it wasn’t an option. She had to believe other dragons were here, somewhere, hidden in caves, resting in a deep sleep, waiting to be awoken. She needed to believe there were more like her.

Dramatic, much? her inner dragon asked.

Yeah, I guess. Ruby smiled wryly to herself while she continued to survey the area below. She’d systematically worked her way from west to east, from the highest peaks to the lowest valleys, and found nothing. Zilch. Zero. Not a hint of a big, fire-breathing creature asleep on his hoard of treasure.

It sounds like make-believe. Her dragon echoed Ruby’s own thoughts. But she had to believe. Even if it seemed impossible for a dragon to sleep so close to where humans lived without being discovered. She had to believe she might discover a magnificent beast in a cave deep in the mountain range that watched over the town of Bear Creek.

After witnessing a dragon being put under an Ancient Slumber spell, Ruby became obsessed with the knowledge that more dragons might already sleep under such a spell. Dragons who had spent centuries waiting to be woken by their mate. Yes, the chances of her finding her own mate amongst those were slim, but that was not why she was searching so hard.

She hated the idea that there were so few dragons left alive. Or awake. Her fear was that if these sleeping dragons did exist, they would one day wake up and be lonely, cut off from their own kind. But if she found the dragons and woke them, then they could find their mates and breed and no dragon would be lonely again.

It sounded simple, and so she’d decided to devote her life to traveling the world, searching through cave systems in the high, remote mountain ranges that stretched around the globe. It was her calling—along with working for her father. She had agreed to be his successor and take over his company. A challenge she relished.

Somehow, she would make these two important parts of her life work. She had to.

Finding dragons closer to home would provide a solution. Which was why she was here on the mountain. Whether she’d gotten lucky, or if fate had stepped in, Ruby couldn’t be sure but while she was researching local myths and legends she’d found something. An old book that looked as if it had sat untouched for decades, sitting on a dusty shelf at the library, provided new information for her search. As she flicked through the pages, her eye caught on a black and white drawing. It depicted a battle between man and bears. Above the battlefield flew a dragon. This dragon helped push back the men and the bears won the battle and were left to live in peace.

Someone might pass it off as a made-up story told around the hearth on a winter’s night before the age of radio and TV. Until that same someone flew over the mountains and recognized the peaks depicted in the background of the battle. The same peaks Ruby and her sister, Sapphi, had played chase around when they first moved to Bear Creek.

The next day, she’d gone back to the library and taken a photo of the drawing on her phone. Her solitary quest had begun.

Usually Ruby spent the evenings flying over the mountains with her sister, Sapphi. But Sapphi had a new mate and a life of her own now. A life that no longer included Ruby.

To fill her lonely hours, Ruby spent her evenings trying to figure out the exact place the battle depicted in the book took place. Once this was accomplished, Ruby spent a further week searching every cliff face, every cave system in the surrounding area, desperate to find any proof it was real, not imaginary.

Her dragon called her obsessive. Ruby called it thorough.

Not that she’d told anyone about her theory. The last thing Ruby needed was for her family to call her crazy and tell her she was wasting her time. Although, she was beginning to come to her own conclusion on that score. No matter how hard she searched, there was no proof, not even deep scratch marks in a rock face where a dragon might have sharpened his talons getting ready for war.

The mountains around her home were not ready to give up their secrets. If they had any secrets at all. With her search of the mountains nearly complete, she would have to face the truth that there were no more dragons here. If she wanted to continue looking, she would have to begin a new search further away. A visit to Sapphi’s in-laws in the Himalayas might be a good place to start.

But she wasn't ready to admit defeat. Not yet.

With one last look at the scene below, Ruby launched herself into the air and dove down into the nothingness below. The wind dragged at her hair, cool on her face as she plummeted toward the earth. Then she tucked her knees in and hugged them to her chest, curling her body into a tight ball. With her chin resting on her chest, Ruby somersaulted forward, rolling over and over. Then at the last minute, as the ground rushed toward her, Ruby opened her arms wide and shifted into her dragon.

With a surge of adrenaline, she flapped her wings hard and rose up to circle the peak, before catching a thermal which she rode in a spiral around the mountain. If not for the task she’d set herself, to find and awaken at least one more dragon in her lifetime, she would relax and enjoy the bright sunshine, warm on her back. It wasn't often she allowed herself the luxury of flying in the daytime. But up here on a remote peak, high above the mountain, she was relatively safe. Her dragon senses stretched out, no one was close enough to see her.

Mentally imagining the map she used to mark off the places she had already searched, Ruby moved to a new sector and began her quest anew. Each cave she found had to be searched. Which sounded easy, except for the rock falls that had occurred regularly over the years, blocking some of the cave mouths. Often, her dragon would land outside the cave and either use fire, talons, or her tail to swipe the debris away.

Each time they had been disappointed. But they continued on. The myth had to be right.

Or not, her dragon told her. There is a chance it is just that, a myth, made up by the early settlers in this region.

Do you have to sound so sensible and level-headed?

Her dragon gave a dry laugh and swooped down, her giant wings stretched out as she glided on a thermal. If only Sapphi was here, it would be perfect. A bittersweet sense of loss passed over her. Ever since her sister had met her mate, they spent less and less time together. Ruby understood Sapphi’s priorities had changed, but that didn’t stop the pain. Sapphi had a mate now, and a business to build.

Her dragon inhaled deeply as they passed through a narrow valley, where she and Sapphi’s dragon had raced only weeks ago, lost in the freedom and joy of flight. They’d vied to go first, rolling over and over as they each forged ahead, claws raking the side of the mountain as they leveraged themselves forward to give themselves an advantage.

But something was different, there had been a recent rock fall. Large boulders lay scattered across the valley floor as if giants had been playing catch.

More like drop, her dragon replied as they swooped lower and landed on top of a large boulder. From their vantage point, Ruby’s dragon scanned the high sides of the valley, inhaling deeply once more. Agitated, she leaped into the air and flew slowly, swinging her head from side to side as she surveyed the high cliffs where shadows lurked, making the air chilly, despite the summer sun that beat down from above them.

What is it? Ruby asked her dragon.

A scent. She inhaled deeply again. It’s gone, I must have been imagining it.

Imagining what? Ruby pressed for information, but her dragon didn’t reply. Was she hiding something? Great, now her dragon was keeping secrets. What next?

Shutting her mind off to those thoughts, which would do no good to anyone, Ruby let her dragon take them down the mountain, enjoying the thrill of flight, and the thought of Harlan’s cooking. When her dragon was ready, she would share her thoughts. They were a partnership, and that would not change, even if they did find their own mate one day.

Her dragon’s mind shifted, like sand beneath her feet. Was that it?

Her dragon dove down toward a great lake, hidden from most people in a secluded valley only accessible from the air. She spread her wings wide, flapping them in a slow, leisurely fashion, as she scooped up water from the lake and drank it down in a large gulp. The tips of her wings hit the water and spray sparkled in the sunshine. Then, instead of turning back toward home, her dragon flew up to a cliff overhanging the valley and set herself down.

Care to share? Ruby asked, troubled by her dragon’s behavior.

I don’t know what it is, but I felt something in that valley, her dragon admitted.

Something. Could we narrow it down? Ruby asked. Something good, or something bad?

Something that’s gone. Her dragon spoke in riddles. It was there and then I experienced a sense of loss, as if someone had stolen something from us.

Our mate? Ruby asked gently, sensing the depth of her dragon’s confusion and sorrow.

Perhaps. Her dragon looked up at the sky, where wisps of cloud floated leisurely high above the mountains. What if we’re alone?

We’re not, Ruby told her dragon firmly. I don’t believe it. Now, let’s go home and eat.

Roasted mutton, cooked over an open fire, her dragon salivated.

You’ve spent too much time with Tiberius and Helena, Ruby told her.

Her dragon sighed. I long for the days where we could fly free, never having to care who saw us, because we were strong and fierce, and no weapon could harm us.

We never lived in those times, they belong to the past. We belong to the future.

With that, her dragon leaped into the air and flew high, skimming the sides of the valley before swooping down, catching a thermal and riding it on outstretched wings down toward the house she lived in with her adoptive parents. Life was good. They might not have their mate, and they might have lost a part of Sapphi to her mate, but they were still family, and family endured, like the mountain beneath them.

Home. Her dragon always knew where home was. It sang to them, called to them, beckoning them back to the one place in the world where they were loved and accepted for who they were.

Ruby smiled to herself. She might have issues with Fiona, her mom, but they loved each other. As for her dad, Harlan… A well of emotion caught her off guard. What about her real parents? Had she forgotten them? No, they had a place in her heart, but they were gone, both dead.

Like all the other dragons, her own dragon sighed.

As the mighty dragon set down in a small copse, far enough from prying eyes to not be seen in daylight, she swung her large head around to take one last look at the mountain peaks high above them. If only.

Ruby shifted, and the human side of her picked up the backpack she’d left earlier, when the search had begun, and took out a bottle of water. Drinking her fill, she began the long walk down the mountain trail. If it were nighttime, she would have flown all the way home and landed behind their house. Not that she minded the walk, it gave her a chance to think.

Her future lay ahead of her, and she had to figure out what that future was. Harlan’s offer of taking over his business was a generous one, and the challenge excited her.

Gold, her dragon breathed the word reverently in her mind, and Ruby smiled.

Never change, my beautiful beast.

Her dragon closed her eyes, perhaps to dream of treasure, or maybe of their mate.

For Ruby, it wasn’t about the money, it was about finding a place in the world where she fit in. Where she could make her mark, as her forefathers and foremothers would have long ago. Dragons like Fiona, ancient and wise, who had shaped the world, until the world changed and she hid from it.

“That smells delicious,” Ruby complimented Harlan as she entered the kitchen. If the dragon flight hadn’t worked up an appetite, then the walk had. “I am starving.” She dropped her pack on the floor and leaned over to kiss Harlan Jr. “What have you got there?”

“Gem.” Harlan Jr. held up an emerald.

“It’s beautiful. Where did you get it?” Ruby asked.

“Tiberius and Helena came by, to say goodbye. They’ve been visiting Sapphi and Alex.” He looked pointedly at Ruby as if to say, they came hundreds of miles to see Sapphi, while her own sister couldn’t be bothered to walk a half a mile along a good road.

Ruby met him with a blank stare. “That doesn’t explain the gem. Dragons don’t give up their treasure easily.

“They said something about Harlan Jr. needing his own treasure. I guess they are right.”

Ruby poured coffee for two, and orange juice for one as Harlan set out three plates. “Is it just us for lunch?”

“It is. Fiona is busy at work.” Harlan was about to ladle stew onto the plates, when he looked up, alert to something outside. Something Ruby couldn’t hear, or sense. “At least she said she was.”

“Maybe she smelled your stew and couldn’t resist.” Ruby sat down and forked up meat and potatoes hungrily. Whatever the reason for Fiona to come home, they would soon know and Ruby didn’t want it ruining her appetite.

“Everything okay?” Harlan’s concern showed in his voice. Their quiet lives here had been shattered recently. Although the knowledge that there might be other dragons out there, deep in the mountains, under the spell of ancient sleep had been welcome news for the dragon family, it also left them wary.

Fiona nodded. “I’m fine.” She set her briefcase down on the table, and then took a newspaper out from under her arm and spread it out on the scrubbed wooden surface.

Harlan raised his eyebrows at Ruby, who smiled in return. Fiona often went off in a rage about simple things, like the cutting down of an ancient tree, or the building of a house in what she considered a sacred grove. Or the price of milk. With Fiona, you never knew what you were going to get, and they all loved her for it.

Within reason, her dragon yawned sleepily.

Fiona jabbed her finger at an article on the front page. “That.”

Ruby frowned and looked closer. “Man Found Wandering in the Mountain. Magnus Dumas was found by a local resident in the mountains around Wolf Valley. Despite exhaustive attempts to discover his identity, it remains a mystery. Mr. Dumas can only remember his name, and police are asking for anyone who knows him to come forward.”

Ruby looked up at Fiona and shrugged. In return, Fiona huffed and jabbed her finger at the newspaper once more. “Magnus Dumas.”

“I can read.” Ruby frowned, and then drew back, shaking her head. “You know him!”

“I most certainly do. The reason they can’t find out anything about him is that they are not looking back far enough.” Fiona folded her arms. “Magnus Dumas made his name as an artist in the seventeenth century. I never met him, but I did see his work.”

“Do you think?” Ruby could hardly contain her excitement. “He’s one of us?”

“Either that or he’s an imposter.” That did not sit well with Fiona.

“I’ll go over there and speak to him.” Ruby headed for the door.

“Eat first,” Harlan said gently and reached out for her, catching her by the shirt. “Eat, and calm down.”

“But he’s out there, all alone.” Ruby pointed at the door.

“And he’ll be fine for another half an hour.” Harlan looked at Fiona with concern, seeking backup. He guided Ruby back to the table. “I don’t want you getting your hopes up only to have them dashed.”

“But another dragon.” Ruby needed Harlan to understand how much this meant to her.

“Or an imposter.” Harlan cast a disapproving glance toward his wife, but it slid off her unnoticed. “Fiona, you don’t know if it’s just a coincidence.”

“True.” Fiona sat down at the table next to her son and tenderly stroked his head. Harlan Jr. turned to face her, a toothy smile plastered on his face. “But what if it’s not? We have to know. Just think, all these years and there could have been a dragon on our doorstep.”

Harlan fetched his wife a plateful of stew. “Here, eat. Then Ruby can go over to Wolf Valley and see what she can find out. But I doubt a story about a dragon shifter would have made the papers.”

Ruby had to agree. Wolf Valley would not want to draw attention to a shifter in this way. But the only way to know for sure was if they met Magnus Dumas. As she forked her food into her mouth, under the watchful and concerned gaze of Harlan, all she could think of was her dragon’s sense of something.

But she wasn’t going to share that. Not yet. Not until she knew for sure if this something was her mate. If this something was Magnus Dumas.