about what to say, and finally decided that Sage was his mate, and he wasn’t about to conceal anything from her. “He wanted me to take you and Rhiannon and run somewhere safe,” he said.
Shiloh whirled instantly, fury rising in his expression. “You—”
“I never promised not to tell her,” Reid said calmly. “I don’t think I should lie to my mate.”
Sage, though, far from looking angry, had visibly softened. “Shiloh...” she said, reaching out to him. “You wanted that?”
He hesitated, and then stepped forward to take her hand. “Jeremiah isn’t going to stand for this,” he said, stone-faced. “You know that. The only way to be safe is to leave, and he can take you somewhere far away.”
“I’m not leaving you,” Sage said quietly. “After that? You being stuck here with him? No. We’ll face him together.”
Shiloh’s face contorted, agonized. “He’ll kill us.”
“I won’t let that happen,” Reid interposed. “Santos and I—and don’t discount Athena and Alaric, either; you think they won’t fight for their freedom, too?”
Shiloh looked away. His face was locked up tight, but Reid thought he knew what was underneath.
A shout came from the woods, then, and running footsteps sounded. All three of them spun to look at who was coming.
It was Athena, with Santos and Alaric right behind her. “He’s coming,” she said, her face grim. “Jeremiah’s on his way here.”
Chapter 14: Sage
It was strange.
Sage had expected to be overcome with a wave of fear. That would’ve been the sensible response, because she knew that this was going to end in a fight.
But she wasn’t afraid.
She looked up at Reid, who was facing the sky with a calm but resolute expression, and she wasn’t afraid at all.
She could feel his quiet confidence through the mate-bond. She knew that he expected to get through this confrontation, and come out the other side victorious.
And although she couldn’t quite see how it would happen—too many past encounters with Jeremiah playing through her mind like harbingers of the future—she believed in him.
“Then let’s see what he has to say,” Reid said, and turned to face the direction Athena was pointing, straight and tall.
After a minute, Athena took up a spot next to him, with Santos next to her, and Alaric standing behind her.
Another long minute...and Shiloh came over to stand next to Sage. “This isn’t going to work,” he muttered to her.
“Why are you standing here with us, then?” she asked. “Go meet him and stand with him against us, if you’re so sure he’s all-powerful.”
She regretted the words the second they came out of her mouth—they were a dumb, provoking tease, something a sibling would say during a game, and if Shiloh decided to take offense, to stalk off and do what she said just to spite her, this whole situation would suddenly become much more dangerous.
But he didn’t. He set his jaw and squared his shoulders, tense and angry, but not moving.
What did you say to him? she wanted to ask Reid, almost exasperated at the impossible phenomenon of Shiloh humbling himself to do what someone else wanted instead of what he wanted.
But maybe, it suddenly occurred to her, that wasn’t it.
Maybe this was what he wanted.
She didn’t have time to explore that thought, though, because there was a rush of wingbeats and Jeremiah appeared over the treetops.
He was huge in his shifted form, bigger than any of the other dragons in the clan. His wingspan almost blocked out the sky as he glided in, circled, and landed with a thud that rattled the houses.
He shifted. Human, he was still larger than anyone present—she remembered Shiloh and even Ronan, as boys, wanting more than anything to be as big and tall as their father. Shiloh had been bitterly disappointed when he stopped an inch or two shy of Jeremiah’s six-foot-six.
He was well over fifty, but still hale and strong, muscle cording his shoulders, no sign of any real weakness or infirmity from age. Sage knew for a fact that he could beat down any individual member of their clan without even trying.
Although she wondered, suddenly, how much of that was because none of them—even the best fighters, like Shiloh and Alaric—would ever bring their full strength to bear against the clan leader.
Jeremiah’s expression was darkening already as he stalked over to them, his eyes picking out Reid and Santos. “Who are these strangers?” he growled, gaze settling on Shiloh to deliver an explanation.
Sage knew that this was her cue. Athena paused, surprised, mouth already half-open, as she stepped