Page 6 of The Lost Beloved

“Do you know anything about vampires or hellhounds?” Dumas asked the burning question.

"Vampires?" Harley asked, a little perplexed.

"And hellhounds," Dumas added.

"Maybe we should just leave it there for now." Gage tried to intervene. "You've had a lot to deal with, and we can pick this up at another less tension-filled moment."

“No, tell me what it is you mean.” He glared at Dumas who looked over at Gage apologetically.

"You accept shifters and even that abomination out there, so why is it hard to believe that there are vampires and hellhounds?" Gage went with logic. This was not what he wanted to be doing tonight, but it was a conversation they had to have.

"Ashton never spoke of vampires, but I agree they're not a stretch at this point. As far as hellhounds, I think you're just being ridiculous and playing with me now." Harley's smugness was immediately countered by Dumas shifting into his hellhound. Harley reacted as expected, threw himself backward over the couch, and hid behind it. He stared speechless at the large beast before him. Dumas just stood there looking bored as he let Harley take it all in.

“That’s a hellhound?” Harley’s voice quivered.

"Yes, Dumas is a hellhound, and he's also a member of the Hadden Coven," Gage informed, glancing back at Harley over his shoulder, waiting for him to make the connection.

"You're a vampire?" He asked, and Gage nodded.

"Am I in trouble here?" His uncertainty was understandable, but still, Gage didn't like it.

“You’re in no danger from us.” Gage tried to be clear. Dumas shifted back to his human form and seconded that statement.

"Okay, I'm a little shaken by this, but surprisingly, I'm not scared. If you were going to kill me, I assume you would have done it by now unless you're a couple of really twisted fucks." Harley was rambling, and they just let him ramble. He managed to make Dumas smile, which was not an easy task.

Harley climbed over the couch and sat down beside Gage, which was a very good sign of their growing connection. He even took Gage's jacket that he'd covered him with and pulled it on after first breathing in its scent. He was feeling the pull. He gave Gage a long and thorough assessment, staring at him for several minutes.

“Nikolas Hadden is a coven master?”

“The finest there is.”

“What’s your position in the coven?”

"Dumas and I are new to the Hadden Coven, having joined less than a year ago. We hold positions as guards."

“You’re allowed to just move around coven to coven.”

“Yes, as long as you are accepted."

“Hmm.” Was all he had to say to that.

CHAPTER FOUR

Michael contacted Saphir, a dragon knight he'd gotten to know during his time at the Mountain Lodge. Michael and his beloved Cole, an IT professional with the Coven, had served in both locations. The dragons had proven to be valuable allies in the fight against the infectious evil that had threatened the area.

"We have a couple people in the area east of the Lodge investigating an alarm that was tripped we haven't heard from them, and they should have reported by now." Josef explained their situation. "Are you aware of any issues in that location?"

"There's a wicked storm to the north that is probably interrupting service, but there are other matters as well." That caught Josef's attention, and he hoped it wasn't more magic.

“I hate to say it but there’s a lingering essence of the evil that touched this area we have our mystics putting it down but it’s a slow process.” It was what he’d expected, but still it was disheartening. “We understand your Charmer did an excellent job in Pittsburgh and we thought perhaps he could visit the mountains.”

"He and his beloved are out of town, but as soon as they return, he will come your way."

"Thanks, Josef, but in the meantime, we have a situation involving some shifters. We have encountered several mutants, disfigured shifters, and not just one species. Wolves, cougars, and foxes have been infected. We put them down, but there seems to be more, and I wouldn't be surprised if one of them tripped your alarm." Josef remembered the incident with the poisoning of shifters in DuCane’s territory and recalled it being caused by poisoning. Those shifters were rendered mindless and vicious, stuck in a half shift and under the control of a madman.

“Were they poisoned or under a spell?”

“It all harkens back to the evil that took root in Pittsburgh I believe but I can’t be sure. It presents as a disease, but the shifter is out of his mind with no way back putting them down is all we can do.” Saphir said and then added. “Your guards have probably encountered one or more of these beasts. I’ll send a man out to check the location of the Lodge and to the east.”

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