Page 13 of Into the Dawn (The Arcadians #4)

She reached into the back of the vehicle but turned around again without touching anything.

Slumping back against the vehicle, she heaved out a loud breath.

“I’m sorry. I thought I was handling this well, but my curiosity is killing me.

I have to ask, are you vampires or something?

No, that can’t be right. You don’t have fangs and the sun is not turning you into crispy critters, so you can’t be. ”

Ronan shook his head. “Nay, we are not vampires.”

Thankfully, Silas had already explained what those creatures were. The god had also taken care of hiding their fangs, but something had obviously tipped her off about them not being human.

“You obviously know we are…different.” He cocked his head to the side as he studied her. “Why are you not afraid of us?”

“Oh, I am. At first, I was fucking terrified. Pardon my language,” she said with a weak laugh. “But I figured you could have hacked me to pieces with your sword the moment I arrived if you wanted to.”

“You do not need to worry,” Dominic assured her. “We will not harm you as long as you pose no threat to our mate.”

She beamed a relieved smile at them. “Then, I have nothing to worry about. Look, I know Kylie’s time is running out. If you can make that sweet girl happy for whatever time she has left, I’ll do whatever I can to help you while you are here. Just…please, don’t hurt her.”

Dominic hesitated for a moment, then admitted, “Kylie is no longer dying. We healed her.”

Layla simply stared at them with a blank expression, then she surprised them both by bursting into loud, heaving sobs. “Are you serious? Please tell me this is real. I prayed for something like this to happen!”

The brothers shared a look as she covered her face with her hands and cried.

“Say something to make her stop doing that,” Ronan demanded.

“Like what?” Dominic asked, aggrieved. “Comforting crying females who are not our mate is not something I am capable of.”

“Never mind. She seems to be stopping on her own.”

The female was taking deep breaths to try and calm herself down. When she lowered her hands, she seemed to have regained her composure. “You said Kylie isn’t dying anymore.”

“That is correct.”

Her eyes filled with tears again, and she swallowed hard. “I want to see her—”

“She is resting. It is a magical slumber she will not wake from until she is fully healed,” Dominic told her.

Using her arm, she wiped the tears from her cheeks and took a few more deep breaths. “I would still like to see her. Please, just for a few seconds.”

Hearing the desperation in her voice, Dominic reached out to his brother “Brother, she will not believe we are telling the truth until she sees for herself.”

With a nod, Ronan relented with a sigh. He led the way up the front steps with Dominic and Abby trailing after him.

“Go with her,” he ordered. “Keep it brief.”

After giving the command to his brother, he headed into the kitchen to set down the pot of food while Dominic accompanied the female into the bedroom. He knew it wouldn’t take long. One glance at Kylie would be all that was needed to convince her that what they said was true.

Ronan heard Layla’s loud gasp of surprise, then he turned and watched as his brother led her back out of the bedroom.

She was holding her hand over her mouth, and there were tears streaming down her face.

When they joined him in the kitchen, she sat down in one of the high chairs by the counter, set her head down on her folded arms, and wept as if her heart was breaking.

They tried to give her a little privacy as they took turns going back and forth to collect the bags and packages she’d left in the vehicle.

By the time Ronan came back inside with the last load, Layla had gotten up from the counter and was now in the kitchen.

She set two large, steaming bowls on the counter and gestured to them.

“Sit. I warmed up some of the stew, which should hold you over for a little while. I’ll call my parents and have them bring over some more food in a little bit.

Especially some stuff we can throw on the grill.

I’ll also tell my dad to round up some casual clothes for you until we can get you some new stuff.

He’s not as muscular as you, but he’s a big bear,” she said, patting her stomach.

“You have bear shifters on this planet?” Dominic asked as he slid one of the bowls in front of him.

She let out a loud, startled laugh. “In real life? Not that I’m aware of. It’s just an expression.” Her eyes widened comically. “Lordy, are you saying you are shifters? That’s so fucking cool! I knew all those paranormal books and movies had to be based on some truth. Are werewolves real, too?”

Ronan sat down and glared at his brother, who had shoved a big spoonful of the stew into his mouth so he wouldn’t have to answer her questions.

He didn’t understand half of what she’d said, but he knew they were crossing into dangerous territory.

They had chosen to trust her enough to prove Kylie was healing, but he wasn’t sure how much information they wanted to share before they had a chance to tell their mate the whole story.

“We might as well tell her some of it,” Dominic said. “She is in favor of our relationship with our mate, and she can aid us while we are here.”

That was true enough.

“But should we allow her mother and father to come here?”

“It sounds like they will come anyway,” Dominic pointed out. “And they are bringing more food.”

Ronan snorted. “Of course, that would sway your decision.”

“Just being truthful.”

“We are dragon shifters from a planet called Arcadia. One of the gods sent us here using the lightning storm, so we can save our mate,” Ronan explained.

Silence followed his confession.

“She seems to be…processing. She just keeps staring at us.”

“I think you broke her mind,” Dominic commented blandly. “Too bad. She is a very good cook. Try the stew. It is delicious.”

Ronan shoved a spoonful into his mouth and had to agree. Reaching for the large loaf of bread, he broke it in half and handed one side to his brother.

“I do not understand. She knows we are not human, so why is she having a difficult time dealing with the fact we confirmed it?” Dominic asked. “Is it the shifter part or the beings from another planet that has her shutting down?”

“Either or both. The Sun God warned us humans as a race are not ready to meet beings from other planets. Are you going to finish that?”

Dominic snorted in derision. “Of course, I am.”

When both males finished their bowls of stew, Abby finally snapped out of it and retrieved the pot from where it had been simmering over a small fire that she controlled with a dial.

“Were you just speaking to each other telepathically?” she asked as she refilled both of their bowls.

“Aye, we were,” Dominic answered. “This is really good.”

“I’m glad you like it.” She paused, then added, “I have more questions.”

“We figured you would. But I also have one of my own,” Ronan stated. “How did you know we are not human?”

She snorted out a laugh. “Seriously?”

They both nodded.

“We need to know so we can blend in better,” Ronan explained.

That made her laugh again. “I hate to break it to you, but you are always going to stand out. You’re tall, really muscular, and extremely good looking. That is always going to draw attention here.”

“We cannot change that,” Dominic noted.

“Right.” She bit her lip as she held back another laugh.

“Added to that, most human men don’t grow their hair out that long.

Oh, and then there’s this one other thing.

The fact that your skin practically sparkles in the sunlight.

It’s not as noticeable indoors, but it was kind of a dead giveaway that you were.

..unusual. That’s why I thought you might be vampires at first. The whole sparkly skin got my thoughts twisted and… never mind that.”

Dominic frowned. “We sparkle?”

“Actually, it’s not really a sparkle. Your skin sort of glistens like it is covered with gold dust. I mean, some people do that for aesthetics here, but it’s not really an everyday thing.

It would probably be better if you avoid other people during daylight hours if you don’t want them to know you are different.

My second guess was going to be that you were angels, but alien dragon shifters are way cooler. ”

Ronan gritted his teeth together in frustration.

Silas should have dimmed their skin when he hid their fangs and their glowing eyes.

Or perhaps the god hadn’t known their skin would glisten under Earth’s sun.

Either way, it felt like he had deliberately set them up, sort of like sending them into battle without a weapon.

When he returned to Arcadia, he was going to…thank the god.

Despite the difficulties they’d encountered, if he ever got the chance, he would thank the God of the Sun for sending them to Earth. Because without him, they wouldn’t have a chance to save their mate.

And that, more than anything, was worth facing whatever challenges lie ahead.