Ardyn & Zaria Read online

  Copyright © 2018 Caged Fantasies Publications

  Written by Jessica Cage

  Edited by There for You Editing Services

  Cover design by Solidarity Graphics

  Book design by Jessica Cage

  All rights reserved.

  To those who dare to face the demons who haunt them.

  Never will we move forward if first we don’t deal with what holds us back.

  ~Jessica

  I would like to thank a list of people who helped and encouraged me this past year. Delizha, a fabulous author and friend who has welcomed my lunacy into her life. Melissa, my editor and listening ear for those nights when my doubts take hold. Kiff, the designer who has wrapped my babies in total awesomeness and has also become a valued friend. And last but not least, Shana who helps keep my life (the mess that it is) in some semblance of order.

  They say you have to find your tribe, you are not all that make up my circle, but I am glad to have each and every one of you as a part of my life.

  Thank you!

  The rush of wind as it passed his ears was the soundtrack to his celebration. His paws pounded the hard surface of the ground, picking up speed as he ran forward to rejoice in the shower of moonlight. This was the highlight of his night, when the pack fell silent and the night was his to claim. Ardyn had just been told that he would in fact be next in line to replace his father as the Alpha. It wasn’t something he inherited by birth. Although the blood of the Alpha family ran through his veins, he had to earn his place at the head of the pack. It was a challenge he accepted openly, and he had worked his ass off to prove himself. His older brother, and the one who should have been filling his father’s role, Mason, had passed away. A terrible virus struck their home, and before they knew what it was or how to combat it, it had taken several lives, including his brother’s.

  Since the passing of Mason, Ardyn vowed that he would do whatever it took to make sure he kept his father’s legacy alive, and to ensure that his brother be remembered for the amazing person that he was. His father only had two sons. Even without the help of his mother who’d passed away shortly after Ardyn was born, he’d raised them to be good men, men who believed in the strength of family. That was his hope, to honor his father and lead their people in triumph. Others were eyeing the position, members from the pack who wanted to propel their bloodlines into greatness, but Ardyn proved himself the best candidate. It would still be years before his father stepped down, but it was official. Ardyn was to begin his training for Alpha the next day. Though his father had prepared him for what was to come, there were still things that he wasn’t allowed to know, not until the decision had been made.

  In his peripheral, he could see her; the white-haired wolf who always had his back. He continued to push forward, and for a while she kept pace with him. Whenever he ran, she would be there in the shadows. He knew that she wouldn’t approach, she would wait for him to return to her like she did every night. Her intention was only to make sure that he was okay. When he nodded at her, she fell back and let out a small, joyful howl. She was proud of him—he was to be her Alpha and she his Alpha mate.

  He pounded his paws against the ground as hard as he could, creating a thunderous sound as he dropped his head back and howled at the bright orb that hung in the sky. White fur disappeared behind the tree line as he emerged in the large, open field. In the center he stopped and slowed his breathing to a steady rise and fall. Sitting down on his hind legs, he thought to himself about the accomplishments that he achieved, about the trials that he put himself through, and how it was all worth it. His tail smacked against the ground in light pats as the wind brushed through his fur. He stayed there until his mind was calm and his stomach urged him to refuel. As he ended his meditation and decided to return to his home and to the love that waited for him, Ardyn caught sight of a small man standing just at the opposite end of the field. A large dark hood covered his face. The wolf could tell by the stench of onion and sage that came from the man on the breeze that he wasn’t someone who belonged in the area.

  Crinkling his nose as he stood, Ardyn considered the unknown guest. When he realized he was still alone and that no other wolves had come to investigate the strange odor in the air, he growled. Their patrol should have caught on to the stranger and alerted everyone else. There was silence, the kind he had never heard before. Even the wind stilled as he began to walk in the direction of the stranger. He approached the man, hoping to be able to handle it on his own. He would figure out who he was and send him on his way. As he neared, he found himself looking down on an old man who appeared weak, weary, and lost. Ardyn shifted from his wolf into his human form.

  “Are you lost?” Ardyn questioned the man whose entire body trembled from the chill of the wind.

  “Yes. Yes, I am. Please do help me.” The man looked around the area as if trying to work out how far off course he’d gotten.

  “How did you get out here? What are you doing here?” Ardyn relaxed; the man didn’t seem to be a threat.

  “I’m looking for someone, a friend perhaps.” He paused, glanced at the ground, and then back at Ardyn. “Yes, yes, a friend. Have you seen a friend?”

  “A friend? I doubt you have any friends here.” Ardyn shook his head and scented the air. He tried to pick up a trace of where the man had come from but there was no trail to follow. The pungent smell started and ended where the man’s weary feet were planted in the soil.

  “Perhaps you can be my friend?” The man looked up at him from beneath the large hood covering his face. “I am in need of a friend.”

  “I’m all full up on friends at the moment.” Ardyn shrugged. Not trusting the man or his lack of approaching trail, he started to usher him away from the pack’s boundary. “Look, you need to get out of here before the others come.” Ardyn pointed off to a trail that would lead him away from the territory. “Follow that road and it should take you to somewhere safe.”

  “I really would prefer if you would agree to be my friend,” the old man stated, but his voice sounded less shaky, far less confused than before.

  Ardyn grabbed the arm of the man, helping, and escorting him in the direction of the path. “I’m sorry, but you can’t stay here.”

  “Oh, I do not wish to stay here.” The old man smiled; his voice lost its age completely, and the expression that twisted his features turned Ardyn’s stomach. “I wish for you to come with me.”

  “Yeah, not gonna happen.” Dropping the man’s arm, Ardyn put distance between them as they continued to walk.

  “Well, I had wished that you would agree.” He shook his head and sighed. “That would have made this so much easier. I suppose by force is how it will have to be.”

  “Excuse me?” Ardyn picked up the threat in his tone and prepared to shift. There was something off about the old man, something he should have realized long before that moment.

  “Oh, don’t bother.” The man lifted his hand, revealing a needle dripping in green dye. “Even if you wanted to shift, you couldn’t. Not now.” He dropped his eyes to Ardyn’s torso where the puncture wound leaked with the same green liquid.

  Ardyn rubbed his hand across the small opening in his flesh, smearing the green tint across his stomach. The spot where the needle broke his skin was numb to his touch. He hadn’t felt a thing. He tried to shift but the man was right, there was no use. No matter how loudly he called for his wolf to surface, he went unanswered. “What the hell did you do to me?”

  “Well …” The old man dropped the cloak covering his shoulders, and his small frame expanded. The short, feeble statue exploded into a man who towered over Ardyn. “Ah, it really is so annoying to have to change my form like that, but the old man gets them every time.” The dark man sported a h
ungry Cheshire grin and deep black eyes that held the marks of evil pulled from the depths of hell. “I guess it appeals to the softer side of humanity. You knew something wasn’t right, and yet you allowed yourself to be vulnerable with me. You considered me less of a threat, didn’t you? Yes, it works every time.”

  “What is this?” Ardyn stumbled backward as the drug spread through his system. He began to lose control over his body. His legs shook and threatened to drop his two hundred pounds of muscle to the ground.

  “This, my young wolf, is the start of something simply delicious!” The man clapped his hands together, causing a painful ringing in his ears.

  The world around him quaked and the last thing he could hear was the howl of his mate before he was swallowed by darkness.

  They were together. Finally. Jinn and Nitara had been separated for far too long, but now there was nothing keeping them apart. Daegal was dead, and his final ploy to separate the two lovers had been thwarted. They’d had all of two days to themselves before the celebration of their reunion was cut short. Praia, their fae friend, was still missing and Rick, the lovesick dragon, had gone rogue in hopes of rescuing her. It was a batshit crazy move that put them all at risk. Not only did it risk Praia’s life, but if he went banging on the wrong door, it would mean an all-out war between the dragons, the shifters, and the fae. The shifter territory was a large slab of land that was divide into sectors quite like Africa for the witches. Each species had their own land, with their own rules, but the common understanding was if you mess with one, you mess with all.

  The dragons chose not to be a part of this alliance when they took their own land and isolated themselves from the world. There weren’t many in the shifter region who didn’t take this as a slap in the face. As far as they were concerned, dragons weren’t their friends.

  “What’s the plan?” Jinn stood in his living room, again the unofficial headquarters for their band of misfits.

  “The plan is that we find a way into shifter land that doesn’t involve a war. Then we figure out where Praia is and save her.” Jax shrugged.

  “That’s not a very thorough plan.” Jinn scoffed. “You have anything better?”

  “Hell, I got us this far. And I have guys tailing Rick. We should be able to intercept him before he sets foot on dry land.”

  “Good. If you can make that happen, it buys us some time. Who else you got?” Jinn pressed for more information.

  “Well, Briar is out. Lots of fairy stuff to handle, especially with the new leader of Reverie. She is lending us a few guards, though. Boxi is at our disposal, as well as some new faces,” Jax reported.

  “What about the fae?” Jinn looked to Mike who’d managed to make it there for the meeting. The man was still pretty beat up and wouldn’t be joining them on their trek, but he had a ton of valuable information that they needed. Jinn considered taking the party to Mike’s house but was warned that his wife wasn’t all that pleased with the djinn who sent her husband home in stitches.

  “Hell, I wasn’t that close with them, Praia was it for me. I tried to reach out, but I haven’t heard anything back from them. I’m a slither … you know not everyone is going to be open to me knocking on their doors.” Mike adjusted on the sofa to get more comfortable.

  Jinn looked around the room. “Fuck, okay, so now what?”

  “Now, you call in your boys. Where’s the not so happy couple?” Mike joked.

  “Couple?” Jax questioned. The only couples he knew about were already represented.

  “Big red and the penguin lover.” Mike laughed and then grunted from the pain it caused him. “Damn, I’ll be glad when this shit finishes healing!” Though the fairies had worked their magic on him to try to heal him, there were still remnants of fae magic at work beneath his flesh. It would wear off in time.

  “They’re a couple?” Jax asked.

  “Well, it's complicated.” Jinn laughed. The women were in the kitchen, but the guys were the ones doing all the gossiping.

  “Right,” Jax rolled his eyes toward the kitchen. “I know a little bit about that.”

  “I can reach out to them,” Jinn agreed. “Bruto will definitely be up for it.”

  “I have someone I can call as well,” Nitara announced, while carrying a tray of tea, as she and Inda returned from the kitchen. Inda gave Jax a look that told she’d overheard what he’d said, and he was in big trouble for it.

  “Great, so let's pull our super awesome, kick ass team together and go save our girl,” Mike announced as he took the offered cup of tea from Nitara.

  “Our girl?” Jinn raised a brow at the man. He hadn’t known that Mike cared so much for Praia. “I never knew the two of you were so close.”

  “Hey, I liked her.” He shrugged. “What can I say? She grew on me, kinda like a fungus or something.”

  “Is there anything else you have to offer up?” Jinn questioned as Nitara handed him a cup,—whiskey spiked, of course. “Any valuable information that might actually help us here?”

  “A bit, but I’ll fill in my replacement on all of the details. I’m still waiting on a few confirmations and don’t want to go blabbing about something that may not be factual. He’ll have a direct line to me as well, just in case you have any questions. I’d love to join you all, but not only am I busted up, I’m in the doghouse with the Mrs.”

  “It sounds like we all are.” Nitara winked at Mike.

  “Hey, think you can conjure up some of those steaks before you all head off into your various directions?” Mike rubbed his belly with wide eyes. “I think we can all agree I’ve earned them!”

  “Yeah, yeah. You know, you and Praia are a lot more alike than you think!” Jinn looked to the coffee table where a fresh platter of steaks appeared. “I’m off to round up the happy couple. I’ll be back.” He kissed Nitara on the cheek and vanished leaving blue wisps of smoke that tickled her skin.

  “We should really get going. I need to find out what’s our status on Rick.” Jax stood and headed for the door.

  “Right behind you,” Inda said as she snagged one of Mike’s steaks and winked at him when he growled. “Hell, you aren’t the only one who earned a decent meal!” She skipped out of the door teasing him with the meat and she followed Jax.

  “So, are you happy to be back?” Mike attempted to make small talk with Nitara who was left alone with him. It was the first time the two of them had ever been alone.

  “Yes, I am.” Nitara smiled and sipped her tea.

  “That’s good.” Mike took to awkwardly cutting into his steak. It gave him something to do with his hands, and a reason to avoid eye contact.

  “I owe you thanks, Mike.” Nitara shook her hand at the obvious attempt at aversion.

  “Hell, I owe you the same. It was real close back there with the vampires.” Mike quickly finished off the piece of steak and groaned at the empty space where the second piece was before Inda snagged it.

  “Yes, it was. But Jinn told me that without you, he would have never been able to get to me, he would have never even known that I was alive.” She put her cup down on the table. “I hate to think how things would have turned out if you hadn’t given him that information. Hell, I hate to think what would have happened to us all if Daegal had succeeded in what he was aiming for.

  “I guess that is true.” Mike smiled. “In that case, you’re welcome! The entire world is welcome!”

  Nitara laughed at his outstretched arms, a posture of grandeur. “Not only that, but you risked your life for me at a time when your budding family needs you … you did it twice. I have no doubt that if you weren’t hurt now, you’d be out there risking it all again to help save Praia. You are truly a commendable person. I cannot express how grateful I am for you.”

  “Grateful enough to conjure up a couple more steaks?” Mike clearly had a problem with emotional discussions, and to combat that, he used humor. He tapped the empty plate with the tip of his knife and gave a toothy grin.

  “Yes, of cour
se. All of the steaks your heart desires!” Nitara laughed. “I have to make a few runs, I’m sure you will be fine here alone.” With a wave of her finger, she vanished, and a fresh plate of meat appeared on the table in front of him.

  “Oh, yeah, I could definitely get used to this!” Mike chuckled as he dug into the meal.

  Jinn walked into the home of Rosie, and by the sounds of his favorite concerto that echoed through the halls, it was now Bruto’s home as well. What was once a penguin-filled domicile had become a new love nest for the pair. Jinn caught sight of Pepper, Rosie’s main bird and the only one who always seemed to be inside of the house. The bird greeted him by nuzzling his leg before waddling off through a small door that led into what Jinn could only imagine was a penguin factory. The little island that Rosie had claimed for herself was covered with the flightless birds.

  “Yo, anyone here?” Jinn called out as he strolled farther into the home. As he rounded the corner, he got a full view of Bruto’s pale ass in the air. “Whoa!” Jinn threw his hand up to block his view and jumped back around the corner.

  “Dammit, man! You people need to learn to knock!” Bruto yelled. It wasn’t the first time he’d been caught with his pants down. The last time it had been by the king of the slithers.

  “My bad!” Jinn shuddered as he tried to erase the image of his friend’s ass out of his head—even more so, the mole on his left cheek. “Everybody decent?” He came around the corner again slowly, and with his hand covering his eyes.

  “You, again?” Rosie teased. “Come on in! The goods are covered.”

  “Sorry about that, I didn’t mean to intrude,” Jinn apologized as he cautiously lowered his hand.

  “Yeah, sure. That’s why you didn’t call ahead?” Bruto grunted, clearly frustrated about the events that were interrupted.

  “Oh, settle down, big boy.” Rosie pinched his arm. “Jinn wouldn’t be here if it weren’t important.”