Page 23 of So I Dared a Dragon

At one time, we’d had a strong alliance, the two most powerful thunders in North America. As the Night God’s guardian, I’d assured them he had our best interests in mind.

If they had followed my advice to their demise, their blood was on my talons.

“I was afraid to tell anyone about you.” Calista’s eyes were wide and full of emotion. She scraped her teeth over her bottom lip and turned to Bibi. “I’m sorry I didn’t say something sooner.That evil god hurt my friend, and I had to act quickly. I was terrified every time he brought her to his chamber that she wouldn’t come back. I had to act fast before he drained the life out of her. I figured he was watching us, waiting for a time to get her back, because nothing’s gone smoothly since I left Tennessee.”

“Where is she now? Is she safe?” I asked. The Night God had conceded, agreeing to give us back the light. “She was the blonde, correct?”

I remembered her as a free spirit with an infectious laugh. But the Night God had sucked her essence until she was brittle and looked like she could be blown into dust.

“Yes. Once I got Darcy out of there, she decided to go back to her family and get a fresh start. She’s in California, studying to become a paralegal.”

“Has she received any of these notes?” I asked. If she had, we could pinpoint the source easily.

“She didn’t stay in touch.” Calista chuckled sadly. “She was able to quit danger cold turkey. Wish I could say the same.”

“Tell me more about this Night God. It’s the first I’ve heard of him.” Bibi crossed her legs, clearly uncomfortable with having these revelations delivered while the cameras were rolling. “Is he an ancient or a modern deity?”

“Both.”

She nodded. “Did he only work with dragons? Or did he associate with other shifters too?” Bibi leaned forward. “Specifically, dire wolves.”

“There were some roaming the Smoky Mountains…ages ago, but I haven’t seen any since the Liberation.” There were no other shifters in our mountains except dragons. “Are they still here?”

“Fortunately, no. They’ve gone back to earth, where they belong. But we seem to attract many ancient beasts.”

“Tell me more about them.” There would have to be some familiar creatures, and maybe some clues who was bold enough to threaten Calista.

“We’ve already mentioned Bigfoot. He’s the one we work closely with, as an invaluable member ofThe Mating Gameteam. He works security with my… Lars helps keep our perimeter safe.” Bibi sighed. She had secrets too.

“Let’s not forget the zombie shifters,” one of other women who worked on the show said. I was pretty sure she’d said her name was Marissa. “The dire wolves brought them back from the dead. Not sure if that answers your question. They were shells of what they had been.”

It sounded like something the Night God would be involved in. I glanced at Magnus and Luca, registering their concern.

“They’re gone now,” Bibi confirmed. “I feared they were holding Calista hostage.”

A growl rolled through my entire being.

“They said they could help me, but they wanted to drain me.” Calista shuddered.

“You should have called for me.” I took her hands in mine. “You didn’t have to face any of this alone.”

Some of the tension faded. I never thought I’d wish we were back in those caverns, but I’d been able to keep her safe there.

I used to love listening to the wild stories about her life and listening to her laugh. The only light would be from my flame, bathing her body a soft glow.

Now I realized she was protecting me. Protecting herself.

“But you were trapped in that mountain, Aarix. After helping Darcy escape, I didn’t think it would ever be safe for me to contact you again. And I couldn’t go home. That’s why I turned to Bibi. I knew she’d help me.”

“And you sure the troublesome ancient shifters are gone?” They hadn’t said dead. I’d make no assumptions.

Calista and Bibi looked at each other.

“Our security team assures us they’re no longer a threat,” Bibi said, but there was a shake to her voice that made me think there was something she wasn’t telling us.

“Were there any dragons with those zombie shifters?”

“We didn’t take the time to differentiate who they’d revived.” Bibi frowned. “The beasts weren’t able to think rationally for themselves. On an earlier episode, we discovered an ancient shifter talisman known as the Hudaknocker. Are you familiar with it?”

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