Page 38 of Dragon's Honor

“Okey dokey.” She poked at her food with her fork trying to figure out what to make of everything Ash had shared with her.

He didn’t present as crazy. The information he gave her made sense, as much as mythological stuff could make sense in the light of the day. She had a ton more questions and she didn’t like that he was keeping something from her. What could possibly be more than what he’d already told her?

She wanted to freak out. Memories of her own experience flooded her.

It seemed like every important event in her life happened in a storm. The night her mother left, she’d come home to the empty apartment in the middle of the storm. When she graduated from high school it rained on the outdoor ceremony. Prom night ended with her and her date on the beach getting stormed out. She still lost her virginity that night. She got her first real freelance job as a photographer in the middle of a hurricane. Storms always seemed to be in the middle of her biggest moments.

That night was no different. Storms were the trend that tied her life together.

The smell of the rainy night. The way the lightning flashed, and the thunder rolled over the sky. She remembered everything so clearly, but it still felt like a dream.

Barely thirteen, she’d been with her mother. They’d been shopping until the stores closed. They stopped to get something to eat before they headed back to the car garage. It was dark by the time they headed back to the car. Finley remembered looking around, not feeling secure and not really knowing why.

Finley shook herself out of the memory. If Ash was telling the truth, she was sitting at the table with someone who not only believed in the supernatural but was himself supernatural.

She’d always believe in the impossible. Her mother never believed her story of what she saw as a child and she never wanted to share it with anyone else. Not until she could prove her story real.

Was she close to doing that?

There was no way to know if trusting Ash was a colossal mistake. She had no reason to trust him.

Of course, she didn’t have a reason not to trust him either.

“Ash?”

A male voice boomed from inside the house.

Ash’s brow furrowed. He pulled his napkin from his lap and set it on the table as he rose. Just as he reached the doorway, Henrik appeared on the other side.

“I thought I was smelling things,” Henrik said, his gaze landing on Finley.

“What are you doing here?”

“Kashton called. He got a lead from his hacker buddy, but we have to act now.”

Ash glanced back at her. “What kind of lead?”

Henrik didn’t respond but the look he gave Ash made it clear it was important.

“Sawyer, I need to go. You’re going to stay here.”

She swung out of the chair and stood there facing them. “The hell I am,” she barked.

“You’ll be safe here.”

“So will you.”

Henrik stepped forward. “I have to agree with my brother. You’re safe here. You don’t want to get entangled in this mess. You’re too important.”

“I’m important? I’m not a king.” Unsure of what she was really fighting for, she crossed her arms over her chest and stamped her foot. “You’ve been vague and weird all day. I want to know what’s going on.”

Henrik and Ash exchanged a glance. Though, the way they looked at each other and the amount of time it took for them to look back at her, it felt like she’d missed an entire conversation.

“The man responsible for killing my parents. We have a lead on where he might be. It’ll be dangerous and I can’t worry about you and him at the same time,” Ash said.

“I don’t care. I’ll stay out of the way.”

Whatever was happening right now, it was important, and she wanted to be a part of it. She wanted to be there.

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