Sitting beside Walker’s pickup, Dakota did a quick inventory. Gun from Tess? Check. Bottle of wine with a screw-top cap? Check. Twinkies? Yup – along with one of every type of sweet, cakey thing that 7-11 sold. A whole bag of junk food sure to please any malevolent Greek demi-goddess.
Michael paced nearby, disturbed but silent. Having made the decision, he wasn’t backing out. But she could see how much it pained him to let her face danger. In his relentless pacing. In the twitch of his head and the way that he muttered to himself. In the light that burned in his eyes.
Yet he trusted her. He trusted all of them to save his Flight. A human and two of the ‘lesser’ Shifters. He, the Dragon, the great Protector, would lure their enemies away so that the ‘weaker’ members of his team could deal with this threat.
How much must that sting her proud Dragon? Dakota’s heart burned with pride for him.
“Ready Walker?”
Sitting behind the wheel, the Rat spat out his window. “Guess so. Much as I’ll ever be.”
Tess hopped into the truck bed as Dakota gave Michael one final kiss. He hugged her tight, almost painfully so. “We’ll be fine,” she promised.
“You have to be.”
“I’ll send you a text when we’re in place.”
Reluctantly, he let go of her. “Give us five minutes after that to hit them. You should be able to hear the noise of the fight.”
As Walker drove off, she watched Michael recede in her mirror. Standing on the edge of the road. Unwilling to turn away until they disappeared from view.
The drive was uneventful. Walker parked close to where she’d ditched her stolen car. Keyed up and frightened, she expected the hike in to be pure torture. But, again, it was freakishly placid. The Rat would hide her and Tess behind some deadfall or bushes then scout ahead. Once he knew the path was clear, he escorted them to the next hiding spot. They crossed the woods quietly, slipping from cover to cover like mice.
Or Rats.
On the last trip, Walker was gone so long she feared he’d been caught. When he finally made it back, he hunkered down beside them. “Call yer man. That ridge up there? That’s the Wellspring. There’s a dozen Bears, Wolves, ‘n’ mercs sittin’ round with their thumbs up their asses. They gotta be pulled off ‘fore you head in.”
“Before we head in,” Dakota corrected him.
Indignation lit the Rat’s eyes. “Woman, I ain’t gittin’ no closer ‘n’ this! I done my part.”
“Walker…”
“No! Damn near got my fool self shot last time I tried to help you. Ain’t happenin’ again.”
Tess laid a hand on her arm. “It’s okay. If Michael and Jamie do their job, we won’t be fighting anyone.”
True. She still wanted all the back-up she could get. One look at Walker’s pinched, angry face, though, persuaded her that the Adanai and she were on their own. Sighing, she sent the text.
We’re here.
Five minutes. Michael replied. Wait till you hear us.
Then time did slow to an agonizing crawl.
Where were the Dragons? She checked her phone. Only two minutes had passed. Another eternity crawled by. Still, the phone insisted they were just shy of five minutes.
She would not check again! She would not… for at least a minute…
Off in the distance, a deep roar shattered the morning stillness. A second joined it – then the chatter of gunfire.
Heavy gunfire. Aghast, she turned to Tess. “Is that a machine-gun?”
The Adanai didn’t exactly answer. “They’re Dragons. They can take care of themselves. Let’s do our part.”
Automatic fire rattled on, without a break. In a freakish way, it was almost comforting. If guns could easily bring down a Dragon, after all, this fight would have ended quickly.
Up at the Wellspring, men shouted. Their cries quickly faded off in the direction of the farm.
So far, so good. The two women inched their way up the slope.
Beyond the trees, little had changed. Megaera’s pillar of darkness loomed a little taller. The Dragons seemed paler, smaller. Tess winced at the pain in her Mate’s face. Then, teeth gritted, she turned to Dakota. “You’re up. Start petitioning.”
Clutching the bag of junk food, Dakota scrambled to the edge of the cyclone of shadows. She knelt, ignoring the flurry of black feathers whirling inches away from her face, and set a Slurpee cup on the ground.
Let’s hope this ritual doesn’t require fancy dishes!
Half the bottle of wine fit in that thing. Well, at least nobody was going to accuse her of skimping on the offerings! Dakota arranged four Twinkies around the cup then raised her hands to the skies. “Um, Megaera? A petitioner comes before you.”
A voice woven from rage and darkness sighed. “Petitioner, I know you. And your hands are not empty.”
Score one for the Twinkies.
“Megaera, I withdraw my charge. I was wrong. Please let these Dragons go.”
“No.”
And with one word, all their plans came crashing down.
More forcefully, she repeated her demand. “You have to. I withdraw my charge! You have no charge to enforce!”
“No.”
“Please!”
Begging and desperation didn’t even earn a denial. Dakota glanced back at Tess, and her spirit sank at the despair in the other woman’s face.
“Dammit, I withdraw my charge! Go away!”
“No. Not until your sister is avenged.”
How dare this creature pretend she cared about Cally? “I don’t want your vengeance,” Dakota screamed. “Vengeance sucks!”
With a howl, the tornado collapsed, slamming onto the ground in front of her. Feathers boiled, shreds of darkness ripped past. Then a figure appeared in the midst of that chaos. A crouching woman with staring eyes and snakes for hair. Her arms, pencil thin, clawed into the damp earth. Rage, fury, and madness filled her face. Dakota felt it tearing at her mind, threatening to drag her down into that maelstrom of hatred.
“You insult me?” the Fury hissed.
Her life depended on this answer. The lives of four innocent Dragons, too. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, lips dry as parchment. “I was wrong. Vengeance does matter.”
Megaera straightened and the edge of that boiling madness inched a bit further back.
“But…”
The Fury tensed, snakes hissing.
“…only when it punishes the guilty. ‘Vengeance’ that harms the innocent isn’t real vengeance. It’s just another crime.”
Clouds wreathed Megaera’s form, casting a merciful pall over that maddening visage.
“I want to see Cally’s killer punished, not these men.”
From the depth of the darkness, the Fury’s voice slithered out. “Your mouth says that, but your heart disagrees.”
“What? No! That’s not true!”
The Fury dissolved into a shroud of feathers and whispers. Once more, a whirlwind writhed in the clearing, deaf to her pleas.
Shaken, confused, Dakota turned to Tess. “I don’t understand what she means.”
Pale but calm, the Adanai studied her. “Do you blame them?”
“No!”
“Look at Owen and tell me you don’t think he’s responsible for your sister’s death.”
Owen Jackson. The Dragon who’d tried to shield her when Megaera burst into this world. The father of three children.
Would he kill Cally over a fourth?
No. She remembered his carefree smile and sparkling eyes, now dull and drained from Megaera’s attack. That wasn’t the face of a killer. The Fangs – the people who tricked her into betraying the First Flight – were the villains here.
She believed, with all her heart, that Owen Jackson was innocent.
But…
That quiet, treacherous thought shocked her. ‘But’ what? Not one shred of evidence condemned him.
But…
But she wanted him to be guilty. Longed for it, desperately.
“I think I understand. I want him to be guilty because if he didn’t kill Cally, I did.”
Her confession only made Tess groan. “I am so not understanding this. Girl, did you actually murder your sister?”
“I didn’t put a gun to her head, no. But if I’d taken care of her, if I’d been there for her, she wouldn’t have OD’d in some alley.”
“Maybe. She was the one who decided to use. That’s on her.”
Michael had said almost the same thing. Yet Dakota’s heart balked at that excuse.
“Trust me,” Tess said. “I’ve made a shitload of bad decisions in my life. They all come back to me. Maybe somebody could have saved me from myself – but the blame is still all mine.”
Plain, sensible words. So why did they enrage her?
Because Cally’s death hurt. It still hurts. And I want someone to hurt for that.
Even if that ‘someone’ was her? Or four innocent Dragons?
Dakota stared at the cyclone towering over her. The swirling mass of unyielding anger.
Yes. Because I am Megaera. I’m her little mortal twin.
From the depths of that black cloud, demented eyes sparkled with glee.
We’re sisters, this thing and I. Deep in my heart, I know: vengeance is what matters most.
As despair crept close, though, a memory intruded.
Michael. The feel of his arms around her, protecting her. The joy of waking up beside him.
Love.
Didn’t love matter more than vengeance?
Megaera, that toxic stew of hatred, had no place for love. Could her ‘twin’ ever truly love Michael? Or would that sick rage undermine everything they built together? How could she embrace the future, how could she be a mother and a wife, if the past consumed her?
Two paths stretched before her. One led to Michael and joy. Another, covered with blood and pain, wound its way back to that dank alley where her sister died.
Dakota chose the first one.
“Megaera! A petitioner comes before you!” No doubt or hesitation shook her voice this time.
“Petitioner, I know you. And your hands are not empty.”
“I withdraw my claim against these men. They are innocent.”
Silence. Dakota tested her heart – and this time, it held no doubts. So why hadn’t the Fury…?
An ear-shattering scream of rage filled the glade, echoing across the land. Louder it grew, sending bolts of pain tearing through Dakota’s mind. Her own scream joined it. Behind her Tess, too, collapsed, wailing. Pressure built, her eyes bulged…
And then it died, cut off abruptly. The cloud of feathers and darkness exploded skyward, melting away in the morning sun.
Leaving nothing behind except a ring of frost upon the ground.
Gasps and groans made her turn. Dazed, the four Dragons staggered and fought to get their bearings.
Brandon Lorde’s eyes couldn’t quite focus. “Annie? What…?”
“Dakota. Long story.”
A distant explosion made everyone whirl. “The Fangs have attacked the Stiles’ farm!” Dakota cried. “You’ve got to help Michael and Jamie!”
The Alpha’s piercing gaze swept over his Flight. “Morland, Jackson. Flank them from the east and west. Donnelly...”
A gust of wind staggered them all, as a white Dragon shot into the air.
Lorde sighed. “It appears Donnelly will fly straight at them.”
Dakota’s eyes twinkled. Michael would be pleased to know he wasn’t the only one who found it difficult to herd Dragons.
“Forget it. There’s six of us,” the Alpha grumbled. “Just go.”
Black, green and gold, they launched themselves skyward.
Dakota pitied the people about to face their wrath.