Page 10 of Bound to the Dragon (Wild Fated Shifters #3)

BLAZE

A s maddening as Madison is, she proves to be an asset to the day-to-day operations of the estate.

The pack begrudgingly grows to accept her as one of us as she throws herself into managing the house and staff without any guidance or instruction. Being the Beta’s daughter gave her a natural inclination for how an estate should be run, and she took to her role easily.

I don’t hear much about the upcoming ceremony plans, but I know they’re underway because Lillian has been keeping me updated about my mate’s progress.

Madison and I have deliberately kept opposite schedules because every time we’re in the same room, the attraction between us is palpable, and I want to do unspeakable things to her.

There’s no hiding our mate bond now. It’s far too explosive and obvious.

It’s distracting, and I suspect it will remain that way at least until we consummate the relationship.

But if we do that, I’m afraid I’ll never let her out of my sight again, and that thought is just as daunting.

It’s getting insurmountable to resist, and I lie awake at night, knowing how close Madison is to me in a nearby room. It would be too easy to burst down her door and claim her, as I’m sure she wants to be claimed, to mate with her like she was meant to be mated with.

But I want this done right, after the ceremony. Or at least that’s the excuse I keep telling myself. The truth is, fear is keeping me from acting on it, like I know if I do it, there will be no going back. We will be on the fated mate train forever.

In the interim, I wake extra early and take my coffee on the veranda to ensure I don’t run into Madison when she wanders down to have her bagel and coffee shortly after.

I always feel her, though. The power of her presence overtakes me, well before I catch a glimpse of her through the glass doors of the patio.

I’m not sure how much longer we’re going to be able to go on like this.

Not much, by the feel of the tightness in my pants.

This morning, I catch the hem of her jean skirt in my peripheral view as I stand to take my mug into the office, and the curve of her upper thigh does something to my mind that makes me jittery in a way that has nothing to do with coffee.

“Can I help you, Alpha?” One of my staff members is at my side, taking my breakfast plate, but I wave him away.

“I’m fine. Send Vigo in when he arrives.”

“Yes, Alpha.”

Against my better judgment, I duck back through the dining room and nod at Madison. Her irises widen at my unexpected approach. We haven’t shared the same space in days.

“Good morning.”

She almost spits out her coffee. “Good morning!”

“Did you sleep well?”

“No.”

I smirk at her blunt response. “Is there something wrong with the suite?”

Her eyes narrow, and my pulse rushes into my ears, the energy pulsing between us crackling. I shouldn’t have tempted fate. But I can’t resist her. The mate bond is too strong, no matter how much I resent it. My annoyance against it isn’t going to do anything to curb it.

She sucks back a sigh, and I find myself fascinated by the part of her lips. “The suite is perfect, Blaze. Everything is perfect…”

She trails off as if she wants to explain what isn’t perfect, but leaves the unspoken words dangling between us. She doesn’t need to say it. I get it.

“How is the ceremony planning coming?”

“How is the search for the attackers coming?” Madison fires back. Instantly, a look of contrition falls over her face. “I’m sorry. I haven’t slept in days.”

My desire for her diminishes. “I’m going to work.”

“Me too,” she mumbles, lowering her eyes with a whoosh of breath.

I walk away, feeling Madison’s eyes boring into my back.

Inside my office, I sit behind my chair and exhale. If we don’t act on this tension between us, we’re only going to become more resentful of one another. She’s waiting on me to make the first move.

I’m barely there for a full minute when there’s a knock on the door, and Vigo appears.

“Oh, good. You’re here.” I wave him inside, but my Beta remains in the doorway.

“We should get to the packhouse today,” he suggests. “We should have a good sit-down with everyone.”

Sitting forward, my head cocks with interest. “Are we making some progress with the attacks? What do we know?”

“Not much, but I’ve reached out to Alpha Granger.” He grimaces lightly. “It might be better if you handle Silver Glade yourself.”

He’s right. Alpha Granger is a prick and challenging to deal with.

He couldn’t even be bothered to show up for the mating ceremony with Madison.

It makes it hard to believe that Silver Glade isn’t somehow responsible for what happened here that day, but I can’t reconcile how that would benefit them, hurting their own pack, especially during a mating ceremony that was meant to unify us.

Since the attack, he has been unreachable by phone, his absence only adding to suspicions about his involvement. But without evidence or witnesses, I’m unsure what to make of the situation.

“Gather the pack. I’ll get Madison.” I stand.

Vigo stops me. “I would leave her out of this one, Blaze.”

Defensiveness shoots through me. “She’s the Luna. She should be there, too.”

“I know.” He shifts his weight uncomfortably and looks down. “But Blaze, she comes from Silver Glade, and we still don’t know who’s behind the attack. If her pack is somehow responsible…”

He doesn’t need to finish his thought, but more apprehension sparks inside me at the unspoken suggestion.

“She’s part of Shadow Pine now. Her loyalties are to us.”

The corners of Vigo’s mouth pull inward. “On paper, maybe, but you can’t be so na?ve as to believe that she would just switch sides, especially if she’s involved in this. You have to think of the pack.”

I refuse to believe that Madison would have anything to do with it, but an image of her guilty-looking face when we descended to the jail cells to confront the prisoners flashes behind my eyes. Even then, I had known she knew more than she was saying. Why haven’t I followed up on that?

“Your bond with her is making it hard to think objectively, Alpha.”

My fists close, and I inhale sharply. “It’s not.”

“Then you hear what I’m saying. She needs to stay here.”

Any other arguments die on my lips, and I hang my head, nodding in agreement. “Get the car. I’ll meet you out front.”

Madison is not going to be happy when she hears she was left out of this meeting, but Vigo is right. This needs to be resolved with absolute certainty before we can do anything else. If Madison is reporting back to her family pack, we can’t have her at that meeting.

Our remote packhouse is filled to the brim, every shifter from Shadow Pine in attendance.

I’m disheartened to see so many of my people still bandaged from the attack.

Madison has been keeping an eye on the staff and has given them the compensation package as well as days off to rest in the aftermath.

In hindsight, it had been a good idea, even if I had initially been against the extra expense.

It was good for morale, and the staff appreciated it.

I noticed their extra efforts around the estate, even the ones who hadn’t been injured.

If she had something to do with this attack, why would she go through so much trouble to clean it up? Guilt?

I have to wonder if Vigo isn’t right, if my mate bond isn’t clouding my judgment for me to be soundly leading this meeting at all, and I pull my Beta aside as we enter the packhouse.

We step into the pantry, the only spot in the whole house that isn’t teeming with bodies.

“I want you to take over the meetings for now. I’ll sit and monitor,” I tell Vigo.

He doesn’t question my authority, but I read the dubiousness in his eyes.

“If we lose the support of the pack, we’re in trouble,” I add. “We need to stay unified more than ever.”

“Whatever you want to do, Blaze. I’ve always got your back.”

We retreat and gather everyone outside so we can address the entire pack.

It’s been a long time since we’ve had this many shifters together at the packhouse, and it’s not equipped to handle so many.

It’s disheartening that we have to meet under these circumstances, but it’s good to know we’re unified for the same cause.

“We’re still looking into what happened at the ceremony,” Vigo begins, and the mutters of disapproval already start. He throws up a hand to end it. “Stop!”

He ends their grumblings before they can swell, his eyes sweeping through the crowd. “We’re doing all we can with what we have.”

“Is it possible that it was an attack from Silver Glade?” I can’t see who asked, but there are a lot of nods, indicating that the question was clearly weighing on many people’s minds.

“It’s unlikely,” I speak up before Vigo can. “Given that their entire pack was there and suffered injuries, too.”

“You’re just saying that because Madison is your mate. You don’t want to admit you made a mistake by bringing in a traitor.”

“Yeah!” There are far too many calls of consensus for my liking.

“Shh! Let the Alpha speak!” My Beta holds up his hands again for silence.

My eyes tear through the group, silently taking note of the dissidents, and I glance at Vigo to ensure he’s making the same mental notes I am. They need to be dealt with swiftly.

“Madison is the Luna, and my fated mate,” I concede. “Which is why you will show her respect.”

“If she deserves respect, why isn’t she here?” A fox shifter steps forward, her eyes slits of suspicion. “Shouldn’t she be at this meeting, too?”

I cast Vigo a scathing look, but to his credit, he accepts the blame. “That was my decision. Since we still don’t know who’s behind the attack?—”

“So, you do think Silver Glade has something to do with it!” The fox shifter almost sounds gleeful, as if she’s happy that a rogue Luna could cause dissent in our ranks.

The pack is in an uproar now, and I shift out of my human form, my blue-gray colored tail whipping out to strike the crowd as I spray a ring of fire into the air. A hush befalls them again, and all eyes return to Vigo.

“The point is, we just don’t know.” The Beta folds his arms over his chest. “And griping and infighting aren’t going to help us solve the issue any faster. So, listen up. We need to work together. That’s why we’re all here right now.”

I remain in my dragon form as the meeting continues, Vigo pacing the room. “I find it difficult to believe that no one is claiming responsibility for this yet, but there will be someone who speaks up eventually, and when they do, I want to be the first one who hears about it.”

He waits for a response. “Is that understood?”

“Yes, Beta.”

“I want you to spread yourselves out along the territory. Silver Glade, too. Hang out in public spaces, malls, bars, and restaurants. Someone involved with plots like this always talks too much, usually after too many drinks.”

His request makes the group uncomfortable, and Vigo immediately picks up on it. “Obviously not to your detriment. Your safety always comes first.”

His words don’t add much relief.

“The night guard has been doubled for the territory. If anyone who is not an enforcer wants to volunteer to join the night guard temporarily until this is resolved, see me afterward, and we’ll have you tested for fitness.”

A buzz of excitement sweeps through the pack.

This is an opportunity that doesn’t arise very often.

Becoming an enforcer for the Alpha’s guard is a step up, and while there aren’t often openings, this could be a way to prove oneself for future opportunities.

Vigo was smart to bring it up. It improved morale for the end of the meeting.

“Does anyone else have business?” Vigo’s eyes scan the pack, and then he starts to turn away when someone calls out.

“What if it turns out that Silver Glade is responsible for the attack?”

I tense, and Vigo frowns. “Then obviously we will deal with it.”

The crocodile shifter ambles further through the crowd to look at me. “I mean, what are we going to do with the Luna?”

I fall back on my haunches, my chest heaving as he nears. He’s not aggressive, but the mere mention of my mate raises my hackles.

“What kind of question is that, Ari?” Vigo demands, putting himself between me and the crocodile shifter. “She’s still the Luna, no matter what some members of her pack might have done.”

I morph back into my human form to deal with this question head-on.

“Madison had nothing to do with this attack. She’s been tending to all of you since it happened.

Right now, she’s at the estate taking care of the staff and planning another ceremony to make up for the one we lost. Does that sound like someone who is plotting against us? ”

“Blaze…” Vigo’s hand falls on my shoulder, and I realize I’m trembling with anger.

Ari reads the rage in my eyes and backs away. “I meant no disrespect, Alpha. It just doesn’t seem safe to have a traitor in our midst, if that’s what’s happening.”

“It’s not what’s happening! She’s not a traitor!” The words fly out of my mouth before I can stop them.

Every set of eyes fixates on me, and I know I’ve gone too far now.

Dammit. I lost control. In front of the entire pack.

The bond is messing with my ability to lead, and I have to do something about this.

Without another word, I shift back into my dragon body and spiral upward, my massive blue-gray form disappearing into the blue Texan sky overhead and through the clouds.

Enough is enough. We’re fixing this problem. Today.