The Island Of Dragons: A Paranormal Shifter Romance Read online

  Now desperate for him to just go and help, I nodded. “I swear it. I swear it on my life. Just please go help everyone.”

  After helping me to my feet, he gave me a lightning-fast kiss and then took off parallel to the dunes, jumping into the air and shifting into dragon form. Enormous and dark against the peach and lavender sky of early evening, he beat his wings so forcefully that I could feel the breeze from them even on the ground.

  I shifted my gaze from him to the castles, horrified by what I saw. More castles had been damaged, and one of them, a single-story structure, lay in ruins, a heap of pale, salmon-colored rubble. Next to it, a two-story castle made of dove-gray stone appeared to have been cracked right in half, with a gap at least several feet wide running through the side. People were now streaming out of the castles, and I could hear their panicked shouts even from as far away as I was.

  Making a noise something between a cry and a sigh, I folded my hands together so tightly my fingers hurt, though I barely noticed. “Please let everyone be okay. Please, please, please.”

  Just then, I heard a moan coming from somewhere behind me, and I turned to see who’d made the sound. I’d forgotten all about Dalton. He knelt in the sand with his head in his hands, wincing, as if in pain. “Oh, it hurts. It hurts so bad.”

  I dashed over to him, asking what was wrong, and he said it was a headache.

  “It’s like an ice pick in my brain. Dr. Benson said I might have some terrible headaches for a while, especially when getting up, because of my head injury. Guess I got up way too fast.”

  While more tremors made the ground shudder, I guided him to lie down, clearing a few rocks out of the sand behind his head. “Just rest for a minute. Just rest and try to relax.”

  Wincing again, he closed his eyes, and just before he did, I noticed for the first time that they were the same unique shade of pale, hazel-ish green as my own. The exact shade, actually. Which maybe shouldn’t have surprised me, since apparently, he was my half-brother, though I couldn’t even begin to wrap my mind around that right then. I couldn’t even begin to comprehend how that might be true. Though at the same time, I couldn’t quite deny it, either.

  Now that I was specifically looking for similarities, they were numerous. In addition to our eye color, we also shared the same high cheekbones, roundish faces, and small, subtly cleft chins. Both of us on the shorter side, our physical builds were also similar, as was our hair. Mine was a light strawberry blond, and Dalton’s was more of a light golden brown with definite strawberry tones.

  We certainly weren’t virtual twins, by any means, but a family resemblance was definitely there. My father’s looks were prominent in both of us. I just had no clue as to how on earth that had come to be. And how on earth we’d both managed to end up on Black Lake Island. I knew coincidence alone could not be the answer.

  While the sky began to darken, I glanced between Dalton and the village, miles beyond anxious. There wasn’t anything I could do to help Dalton’s pain, and there wasn’t anything I could do to help my friends, and I hated it. I could handle danger, and I could handle stress, as I’d proven when I’d pulled Davy from the ocean, but I couldn’t handle powerlessness. It was tantamount to torture for me.

  Dalton moaned, squeezing his eyes shut, and I realized that I was just going to have to have faith. Faith that he’d be okay, and faith that Warren and his men, many of whom were now in dragon form as well, would be able to free everyone trapped in the ruined castles, and in a short enough span of time that lives could be saved.

  But just sitting back and having faith had never been my strong suit. Almost without thinking, I began getting to my feet, gaze on the village, wondering if maybe I should just get a little closer so I could see better, but Dalton pulled me back down by my sleeve.

  “You promised Chief Knight. You swore it. You said you’d stay right here.”

  I had, of course, and I hadn’t forgotten. And now I felt bad that I’d made the slightest move to break that promise, even though that move had been somewhat involuntary. I also felt bad that Dalton probably thought I’d been going to abandon him.

  I nodded, sinking back down to my knees beside him. “You’re right, and I’m not going anywhere. I’m staying right here. I’m going to make sure you’re okay.”

  To my extreme relief, at that moment, Dr. Benson appeared over one of the dunes, heading toward us. In the fading light, I could just make out the outline of her short, spiky red hair. She’d left the clinic to take a walk just as soon as Warren and I had arrived.

  Unaware that she was coming, Dalton began mumbling with his eyes closed again. “I knew there would be earthquakes, I just didn’t think they’d start so quickly.”

  Another quake shook the ground right then, and I waited a second or two until it had stopped before responding.

  “Well, what are the quakes from? Why are they happening?”

  Rubbing his temples, Dalton opened his eyes just a crack. “They’re precursors to the island folding in on itself, closing the wormhole, via the lake. The lake is the epicenter.”

  A little quake with its epicenter seeming to be my stomach trembled through my body. Dalton had said earlier that the island was going to self-destruct in thirty days, and I still didn’t even know why, let along how that might be stopped.

  But I knew first things had to be first, and first things at present were making sure Dalton was okay, and then hopefully soon, when the quakes stopped, if they ever stopped, making sure everyone in the village was okay. So, I resolved to try to focus on those things alone. Warren and I would get further answers from Dalton later. Even if he was willing to say more at that moment, I knew it might not be wise to have him explain things in front of Dr. Benson. Whatever was going on with the island, and whatever was going to happen, it would be Warren’s choice as to when he told others. I was certain he’d want to fully understand what was happening before causing a possible panic.

  Once she’d reached us, Dr. Benson knelt next to Dalton, simultaneously asking if he was okay and taking a bottle of pills from the pocket of her white lab jacket. Soon, after swallowing a pill, Dalton appeared to fall asleep, even while the ground continued to rumble beneath us, though seemingly with less force now.

  Dr. Benson sat back on her heels, her expression the very picture of concern. “I knew his headaches would be brutal. He’ll probably be out like a light until tomorrow morning. Which is good, so he can just sleep through the pain, but also because I have a feeling I might be busy all night with other patients, even though I pray that somehow, no one is hurt over there in the rubble. But the way it looks....” She looked from my face to the village, frowning, making the deep creases between her eyes even more pronounced. “I just pray no one is badly hurt. Our castles obviously weren’t built to withstand an earthquake.”

  Soon the mini-quakes ebbed, becoming barely-perceptible little tremors of the ground. Just when I thought I couldn’t stand sitting around and waiting any longer, Warren lifted off from the ruins of a large castle and began flying back over to the dunes. I was on my feet in an instant, and the second he landed, I asked him if everyone was okay.

  He shifted into human form within the blink of an eye and began striding over to me, nodding. “Everyone’s okay, and alive, though we have many, many injuries. I need to take Dr. Benson over immediately.”

  Literally weak with relief, I sank to my knees, saying a silent prayer of thanks that no one had been killed. Dr. Benson and Warren decided they should take Dalton along with them, since Dr. Benson was going to set up a makeshift medical clinic between the village and the actual clinic, so that no one would be caught inside or near buildings again in the event of more quakes. They’d transport people over, then set up tents for the wounded, and use generators to supply electricity to the various machines that Dr. Benson would have to move outside. Once she and I had situated an unconscious Dalton on Warren’s back, not without some difficulty, the three of them took off.

  I w
anted to go with them, but Warren had said I couldn’t. He wanted me to stay put for a little while until everyone could be moved from the village to a makeshift village closer to the water. “There could be more quakes or aftershocks,” he’d said, and he didn’t want me anywhere near the castles if that happened. I understood, but that didn’t make waiting any easier. While full evening fell and the sky turned from dark blue to a velvety shade of midnight, I sat in the sand calling and texting people, trying to find out which of my friends were hurt and which of them were okay.

  Thankfully, it turned out that Joanna had been resting with baby Abby on the ground floor of their house when the quake started. Lucas had been playing with Davy outside, and he’d been able to rush in and whisk Joanna and Abby out before the second story of their castle had crumbled. Also thankfully, Melissa and Dan, and Melody and Josh, along with another couple, had all been enjoying a late dinner outside, some distance away from the castles, when the first quake had hit.

  However, Hugh hadn’t been so lucky. He and Sadie had been in their living room, and a portion of stone wall had fallen on Hugh as he’d been trying to usher Sadie to safety. He’d sustained an injury to his shoulder, although fortunately, Sadie had been able to make it outside without being hurt. Hugh claimed he was just fine and sent me a text saying that it would take much more than a falling wall to fell a “tough old dragon” like himself. Though shortly after, Melissa sent me a text saying Hugh’s shoulder was “pretty messed up.” I was glad shifters healed faster than regular humans.

  At least a dozen other people in the village had been injured, some much worse than Hugh, though no one was in critical condition, and mercifully, all of the village children had somehow managed to make it through the ordeal more or less unscathed. A few scrapes and bumps was the worst of it.

  That night, everyone who hadn’t been injured slept in tents on the shore, while the injured and their families spent the night in the makeshift medical clinic. Many men worked through the night, already clearing debris and repairing castles, the sound of their tools rising above the sound of the surf at times. Warren was out and about all night, checking on the wounded, overseeing repairs, and making calls to the other island leaders, checking to see if their people were okay, and fortunately all were, for the most part. Each of the two other villages had some injuries, but not as many as ours, being that their bungalows and cabins were all one-story structures.

  Sometime very late, Warren came by my tent to tell me all this and check in on me. I was wide-awake, as he said he thought I might be. Shortly after he arrived, he said he had to leave again, and he made me promise to at least try to get some sleep. I agreed to try, but as frayed as my nerves were, I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to sleep without the comforting feel of his arms around me. Though somehow, maybe an hour later, I did finally manage to drift off, even with the sound of hammers clanging in the distance.

  The next morning, Warren came back, bringing me clean clothes and some of my toiletry items, like my toothbrush and toothpaste. His bloodshot eyes told me he probably hadn’t slept a wink. After dropping my stuff on the little camp cot in my tent, he pulled me close and gave me a quick kiss before pulling away to look at my face. “Go ahead and get changed, then we’ll grab you a bite to eat, and then we’ll head to the outdoor clinic, and Dalton. It’s time for answers.”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  When Warren and I arrived at the makeshift clinic, Dalton wasn’t anywhere to be found. Presumably having heard us asking about him, Dr. Benson poked her head out of one of the patient tents with her normally bright eyes just as bloodshot as Warren’s were.

  “Dalton ‘discharged’ himself earlier this morning, very much against this doctor’s orders. Went back to his castle. Said he had some urgent scientific project to work on. I didn’t ask too many questions; he’s got his headache medication with him and seems to be very stable, and I’ve got my hands quite full here.”

  A few minutes later, Warren and I arrived at Dalton’s guest castle, which hadn’t sustained any damage in the quake. Mine hadn’t, either, along with a few dozen others, including Warren’s, but that didn’t mean everyone could go back home right away. Not knowing when or if another quake could strike, it was just too dangerous. I wasn’t quite sure how much I was going to enjoy living on the beach indefinitely; I had a painful twinge in my back just from spending one night on the camp cot. However, a little twinge in my back was the very least of my problems, considering that Dalton seemed sure that the island was going to be destroyed in a month. As we knocked on his front door, a little twinge as a problem seemed downright comical to me.

  It took him a while to answer the door, but once he did, he quickly ushered us inside saying that he was glad we were there. “I want to show you both something I’ve been working on since dawn. It’s actually almost done; just a few more hours now for some finishing touches.”

  I asked what “it” was and he led Warren and me into his small, sparsely-furnished living room, gesturing to some contraption sitting on a work table in one corner. It, whatever it was, was kind of a box-shaped thing made from metal, plastic, and wires. Directly in front of the box, connected to it somehow, was some kind of a tray with a long roll of paper slowly being fed into it. Etching thin marks on the paper was a slender metal arm-type thing, like a pen, but “writing” parallel to the paper with the very end of it bent.

  Dalton looked at Warren and me with a little look of consternation, as if he was a bit disappointed that we didn’t immediately know what the strange machine thing on his worktable was.

  “It’s a seismograph. It’ll be able to give us advance notice before another earthquake hits. This way, at least we can all wait out the next month in the comfort of our own castles without worrying if our precious last days are going to be cut even shorter by several tons of rock falling on our heads.

  “See, what I’m thinking is that the seismograph can be taken to one of the outbuildings, where several people, who I’ll train in the reading and interpreting of its data, can take shifts watching it. Any time it signals that an earthquake is imminent, the alarm sirens that we used with the golem can be sounded, giving folks plenty of time to get out of their castles. It really will make the next several weeks much easier, I think. Just being that I’m sure many people will be wanting to spend time with loved ones and say their goodbyes indoors, in the privacy of their own homes, and not down on the beach in tents.”

  He paused for a breath, surveying Warren and me. “I should say that I don’t mean to make it sound like I’m excited about all this... about the ending of the island, I mean... but I guess I am maybe a little hyped up about the seismograph. I do find science unbelievably exciting; I won’t lie about that. Though at the same time this morning, of course I’m sad, too. I don’t want this island to self-destruct, and I don’t want everyone to die, of course, and I hated to deliver that news to you both.

  “But, being that we have to face reality, and spend the next several weeks as calmly and enjoyably as we possibly can, I’ve decided that all I can do to help toward that end is try to use my science skills for the greater good. And being that that’s the case, and being that I’ve spent all morning immersed in this project... well, even in the midst of impending doom, I can’t say that the morning hasn’t been a bit exhilarating.”

  Drawing his dark brows together, Warren led me over to a loveseat, sat us down, and then gestured for Dalton to have a seat in an overstuffed chair opposite us. Once he had, Warren leaned forward, elbows on knees, hands clasped. He looked at Dalton with an expression that didn’t bear even a hint of malice, an expression that was pretty expressionless, actually. But somehow, this lack of expression conveyed deadly seriousness at the same time. As did the tone of his deep voice when he spoke.

  “I appreciate your scientific contributions, Dalton, and the seismograph will be very appreciated in the coming weeks. However, I do want you to get one thing straight. This island isn’t self-destructing. No on
e is dying. Not on my watch. Not as long as there’s the smallest shred of hope that we can fix things, and I have to believe there is.”

  Dalton shifted in his seat, pushing his glasses up a little higher on the bridge of his nose. “Well, there’s a lot I can do with science... things like making a rudimentary seismograph... but as far as preventing the closing of the wormhole, it just can’t be done. Opening one is much easier, and I managed to do that on the cruise ship just fine, yes... but stopping what has already been put into motion...” He trailed off, giving his head a single shake. “Not even if I had use of a nuclear reactor, or a—”

  “That’s not what I meant.” Warren gave his own head a little shake, sitting up straighter next to me. “I didn’t mean that you fix whatever is happening using purely scientific means, and solely alone. I just need for you to tell Ellie and me exactly what is going on so that we can all try to think of a solution together.

  “And I’m not ashamed to admit that I have no idea at this point what that solution might be, because of course I have no idea what’s going on. But I just have to believe there might be some way that what you said is going to happen can be stopped. I have to believe we can fight it. So, please... without further ado... tell us why the island is set to self-destruct, and then we’ll try to come up with some way to stop it. Please tell us everything.”

  I finally spoke up, intensely curious about a certain particular matter. “Maybe start with the fact that we’re half-siblings and how on earth that came to be.”

  I realized that the self-destruction of the island was surely a bigger deal to say the least, but the longer I sat across from Dalton, noticing how similar his eyes were to my own, I felt like I just had to get to the bottom of that mystery first.

  Not seeming surprised, Dalton sat back in his big sand-colored overstuffed chair, a chair so big it almost seemed to be swallowing his small frame whole. “Well, that question’s easy. Your father, who of course is also my father, and my mother were both technology geniuses working for the government in the same department. And despite the fact that our father was a married man married to your mother, with an infant daughter, no less... well...” Dalton trailed off, reddening just slightly.