Betrayal Foretold: Descended of Dragons, Book 3 (7 page)

G
aspare’s “cottage
” was a two-story, four-bedroom that could comfortably house a family of eight. After a brief tour, he left us, promising to return the next morning to answer all of our questions. Under normal circumstances, I could never have slept with the new information and worry hanging over my head, but I’d had what certainly felt like the longest day of my life. I fell face first onto the comforter of the coastal-themed guest room with one last thought of Ewan and Boone and Timbra, and didn’t think again until morning.

* * *

“
S
o
, what you’re telling me is not only are there dragons and skin changers here, but they’re living together in harmony with people of all descents. No ‘dragons are evil killers’ or ‘skin changers can’t be trusted.’ They’re neighbors and friends. One big happy family.”

Gaspare tended to gulp coffee rather than sip it, and rose to pour himself another cup. There was no staff here like at the PM residence back in Thayer. I preferred him this way. He never really fit with the whole “privileged” persona anyway.

“Yes.”

I shook my head at his matter-of-fact tone. I had woken rested, hungry, and with a longing for adventure. But I also wanted to know that my friends, especially Ewan, were okay. I wondered how soon I could see them again. Gaspare hadn't gone by the night before to check on Ewan, which was a source of irritation for me. He had caused many of Ewan's injuries, yet seemed completely unconcerned.

My mother shuffled out of her room for coffee, but retreated again to shower. I was raring to go before I bit Gaspare's head off, again, about the friends I'd left behind in Thayer. I had already showered and grabbed jeans and a top from a shifter-friendly closet Gaspare showed us the night before. Before long, Mother joined us at the kitchen bar still looking a bit worse for wear.

“You okay?” I asked.

She nodded, and I suspected she was putting on a front braver than she felt.

“First things first,” chirped Gaspare. “Let’s retrieve your grandmother. I know where she stayed last night.”

“Where did
you
stay? It wasn’t here.” I grimaced at my own accusing tone. “Sorry. That’s none of my business.”

He laughed. “No, it’s okay. I plan to show you that today, too.”

* * *

“
D
ears
,” Bay said in a rush and ran toward us. “I’d like you to meet Forster McCreight, an old friend of mine.” She looked at him adoringly, if a bit sadly. And often.

Forster McCreight was of medium build and height, but there was something about him that required attention. Demanded it, even. His head was shaved so closely he was nearly bald, so nothing distracted from his strong features. Framed by gentle creases, his eyes were light blue and so clear I knew they held no secrets. Maybe that was what was so intriguing about him. He seemed open, honest, and genuine.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. McCreight.”

“Forster, please.” He shook mine and Mother’s hands.

“How do you two kids know each other?” I asked.

Bay’s sad smile foreshadowed her dark story. “Forster’s wife and I were dear friends. She was killed during the Steward Massacre. Rose’s loss was a hard one for many of us. She was a unique and vibrant soul.”

Bay looked up at Forster and shook her head. “All these years I thought both she
and
Forster had been killed.”

“So, you’re like us, then?” I asked. “A dragon?”

A sly grin transformed his face into playful, but no less sincere. “I’m a dragon, but not like you. You’ve a little something extra, don’t you?”

I flushed, still uncomfortable with my newfound lineage of dragon and omni blood, and steered the subject away from myself. “How did you survive? How did you get here, to Pearl?”

Forster’s mouth twisted ruefully as he recalled the events of so many years before. “I didn’t come by choice, I’ll tell you that. Bay was right to think me dead; I nearly died fighting the battles after The Massacre. Rose and I were surrounded, exhausted. She fought fiercely until the end, but a blow caught her in the chest.” He glanced at the ground. “It was instant, at least.”

‘Sorry’ never seemed enough in times like these, but it was all I had. “I’m so sorry.”

“The next blow found me. Knocked me unconscious. Next thing I knew, I woke up here. If I hadn’t been so injured, I would have killed Gaspare.”

“Dammit, Forster. Are we still talking about this?” Gaspare threw his hands out dramatically.

“I guess I’m just not over it yet.”

“When do you think you might be? Another couple centuries? You are the most obstinate ba—”

“It was you?” I asked. “You brought him here, Uncle Gaspare?”

Blue eyes caught the sun, magnifying their brightening at my endearment. “You don’t usually call me uncle.” He beamed. “I like it.”

I shrugged and made a face. My choice of words wasn’t premeditated.

Gaspare patted me on the shoulder and went on.

“Yes, I found him, thank the gods. And Forster would thank
me
if he wasn’t so hard-headed. He was nearly dead when I traced him here. When he woke, he put up a hell of a fight, but with his injuries, he could do nothing until he healed.”

Forster’s hands clenched when he said, “I wanted to go back for Rose.”

“I know. I know you did, and I’m sorry for that.”

Forster’s clear eyes clouded and his nostrils flared, but he went on. “I desperately wanted to avenge my Rose’s death. I still do—well, I did.” His whole body expanded on a deep breath, and he looked at Mother and me. “Bay told me what happened last night. You three have done the impossible. You’ve conquered and rid our world of one evil bastard, and I’m indebted to you. We all are.”

I shifted uncomfortably and nodded my head.

“So, you never did go back?” Mother asked gently. “To Thayer?”

“I never did. By the time I recovered enough to fight again, Gaspare brought word the battle was lost. Rose’s remains were returned to me, and I interred her at the foot of the mountain near a ginkgo.” Forster looked to the distance, I assumed to where Rose had been laid to rest. “So many on our side died over the course of the long war. I channeled my despair into helping rescue those who still had a chance, and into building a community here.”

“I’d love to pay my respects to Rose,” Bay said. “It’s a wonderful place you’ve built here, Forster. I can’t wait to see more of it.”

Bay’s newfound friends and outlook had done wonders for her appearance. Though Thayerians lived longer and aged much more slowly than humans, her face still held proof of her age. But where before her skin had looked weathered and dull; there was now a pinkness to her cheeks, a shine to her eyes. Seeing Bay happy made me happy, and I was hopeful for this new start, this new place. I was in no hurry to get back to Thayer.

“Bay,” I said. “Tell us about the other people you met last night like Mr. McCreight.”

“Forster, please,” he said.

“Sorry. Forster.”

“Oh, I flew like I hadna flown in years,” she gushed. “We talked and soared until nearly dawn. I canna remember ever feeling that free, though I know I must’ve known it long ago. O’ course they wanted to know everythin’ about my…” Bay’s voice slowed and cracked with emotion, but she powered through, “imprisonment, and about Eiven and Stryde.”

“Bay, Eiven and Stryde’s circumstances were what all of us here were facing. What we all feared.” Forster looked sympathetically at Mother. “And of course we knew of Edina’s horrific plight.”

Mother turned her head in an attempt to ignore the conversation. I wasn’t surprised at her response. That she didn’t deal well with her past was no secret to me, of all people.

Forster went on, “Hearing Bay’s stories was therapeutic for us. It reinforced what we suspected—that coming here to Pearl was the right choice, tough as it was.”

“’Twas healing for me, too, Forster. Not just finding my own kind, but reliving some of the old days, the good times with Eiven and Stryde. Recalling those memories has soothed my soul.”

Forster met her warm gaze before clearing his throat and turning to us. “Would you like to meet some of them?”

“Yes,” I said in a rush and Mother “Mmm’ed” noncommittally.

He laughed at my eagerness. “All right. Let’s go into town.”

“Well, folks, this is where I get off,” Gaspare said.

“Oh no. Stay,” I pleaded.

“I’ll catch up with you all this afternoon. I still have Thayer to run, you know, and Forster’s perfectly capable of showing you around.”

Gaspare prepared to trace and I raised my hand in goodbye to him before a thought struck me. “Gaspare, wait! Will you go by The Root today?”

“What for?”

I shot him an irritated look. "To check on Ewan. To tell him I’m all right, that I’m safe. I want my friends—you remember Boone and Timbra—I want them to know you didn’t execute us.”

Gaspare shifted and his posture was suddenly stiff. His frown made him look older than he’d ever seemed. “They can’t know, Stella. Everyone must think you dead…or at least lost forever.” He reached to touch my arm, but I jerked away. “I’m so sorry.”

“No way,” I shook my head furiously. “No freakin way, Gaspare. That wasn’t part of the deal. You never mentioned that or I’d never have agreed to it!”

“Deal? What deal?” his voice rose, but he quieted again. “I got you out of there before Gresham had no choice but to jail you—or worse, before the mob killed you. I brought you to a place where you and your family can have a fresh start. You know that Bay and Edina wouldn’t survive being imprisoned again. No, there was no deal…and there’s no other way,” he said sadly.

I was fighting mad, my hands squeezed into tight fists. “We could’ve gotten out of there ourselves. We killed Brandubh, we could have fought our way out.”

“Oh, and more death and destruction would certainly instill confidence in the inherent good of dragons? Come on, Stella. You three would’ve been on the run for the rest of your lives, which here in Thayer are very long. Is that what you’d rather have? A life of hiding? Of fear?”

“No. I don’t know. I should’ve had a choice. There's no way I'm leaving Ewan. You can't expect me to just forget about him, to abandon my friends and start a life here. That's crazy. They don't even know I'm alive!”

His guilty face said he'd already thought of that.

My tone softened when I pleaded, “Oh, no. No. You can’t let them think me dead, Gaspare. It’ll kill them. It’s cruel, not to mention completely unnecessary.”

“It
is
necessary. If your friends don’t act as if they’ve lost you, if they’re not completely convincing, people will ferret out the truth. If you want to live here with Bay and your mother and start a new life where dragons aren’t the enemy, you’ll accept this truth, hard as it is. It’ll get easier with time, trust me. You’ll make new friends and you’ll find someone new.”

I shook my head furiously. He didn’t understand. There didn’t exist a better friend than Timbra Redfern. Even Boone was exceptional. And Ewan and I were just getting started, but I knew what was between us was
right
.

No. I would not accept his logic. I couldn’t.

“And don’t get any ideas about tracing back to Thayer,” he said. “You can’t. It’s the small price of living here.”

“Oh, who’s going to stop me?” I was being impertinent, and I knew it. But the whole situation was ridiculously overstated.

“It’s heavily warded. Only a select few can travel between Pearl and Thayer. I’m sorry, but it’s too risky for you to go.”

“A select few? Like you? Who else?”

“Those who know about this place.” His tone indicated the conversation was over, but I didn’t agree.

“Oh, you always have an answer for everything, don’t you?” I snapped. “Why don’t you tell me how Livia and Brandubh found me at the cabin, if it was so heavily warded? Hell, the whole town popped in like there weren’t any wards at all. I don’t think we’re any more safe here than we were in Thayer.”

“Ah, that’s our fault, actually,” said Bay sheepishly.

“What? What do you mean?”

“Those were my wards to break, and, well, I broke them.”