Hidden Fate

26

“I take it that’s the disgruntled human we can’t trust.” Tia waggled her brows. “This will be fun. Being old gives me an excuse to run my mouth without apology.”

Elliott led the way downstairs, pouting—until he glanced at our group. His eyes bulged, and he missed a step and tumbled down the rest of the stairs. He landed at the bottom, his head smacking the floor with a sickening thud.

I rushed to him, fearing the worst.

As soon as I kneeled by Elliott, Thorn was across from me, assessing the situation. The bottom half of Elliott’s body lay on the stairs, while his torso was on the ground. He was lying face down, but I could hear his heart beating wildly.

“Elliott,” I whispered brokenly. If I lost him, I didn’t know what I’d do. I wanted to flip him over, but I had to fight the instinct. It could make his injury worse.

He groaned and groggily said, “What the f**k happened? I saw an angel. Then all of a sudden, I was falling. I think it was for her.”

I had no clue what he was talking about. “There’s no angel here.”

Thorn snickered. “Speak for yourself.”

Cutting my eyes at Thorn, I couldn’t help but grin. Elliott wasn’t necessarily okay, but talking coherently was a good sign.

“Is he all right?” Mindy asked, and I noticed she’d pushed through the group to kneel at his head. Her forehead creased as her attention locked on Elliott.

The entire group wore similar expressions…except Peter, who shook his head with a scowl.

Wow. He was showing some real fatherly concern.

“I don’t know yet.” I touched his legs. “El, can you feel my touch?”

“Dude! That tickles.” He jerked and winced. “Stop.”

A laugh bubbled out of me. “Okay, I knew you were ticklish as a toddler, but I thought you would’ve grown out of it some.”

Tyson nodded while pumping a fist. “Heck, yeah. Next all-night marathon, I’m going to use that to my advantage.”

“Oh, hell, no.” Elliott lifted himself off the floor and glared at Tyson. “That’s cheating. And only losers cheat. You just don’t like that I can beat your ass, but suck it! You’re a f*****g dragon. You aren’t getting any sympathy from me.”

Belinda tsked. “Language.”

Usually, I’d agree, but his choice of words was not my concern right now. “Elliott, stay still. We need to make sure nothing’s wrong, or you could hurt yourself worse.” One side effect of a brain injury was loss of balance.

“Uh, sorry.” He swung his head toward Belinda but stopped short when his gaze settled on Mindy. His body jerked as his mouth dropped. “She’s really here.”

I was so confused. “What are you talking about?”

“The angel,” he said simply, then clamped his hands over his mouth as his cheeks turned red.

“Oh, I think our little human here has a crush on Mindy.” Tia chuckled.

“Uh…I mean, she’s cute.” Elliott glanced at Mindy. “You’re cute.” He looked away and shrugged, though his face was the same shade as a tomato. He tugged on his borrowed navy shirt, which was two sizes too big on him. Our options here were limited, and he was stuck wearing dragon-sized clothing.

Tyson hung his head. “Not smooth, and can you move? I’m trapped on these stairs, and I swear, your dad is literally breathing down my neck.”

I didn’t want Elliott to move more, but when I noticed he wasn’t struggling more than usual and had control of his limbs, some of my worry eased.

He’s okay, Thorn connected and took my hand, pulling me into the living room beside him.

The comforting buzz of our connection washed away the rest of my concern.

“I’ll get him some ice,” Mindy said, and she hurried past the stairs to the kitchen.

When she returned, Saphira joined us, and while Elliott iced his face, we hung around the living room and chatted. We’d learned that both couples were close to five hundred years old, which was pushing the older end of a dragon’s lifespan. They’d been born in this thunder, had lived here most of their lives, and had all been best friends since birth. They told us about Edna’s conversation with the others and how the thunder had unanimously voted to allow our group to stay here.

In return, we answered their questions. What I hadn’t expected was the information they provided about Thorn’s grandfather.

As Thorn listened, his brows pulled together. Taking after Vlad, he paced in front of the television. His apprehension blanketed me, making my skin crawl. I also had to stand, but I leaned against the wall, knowing he needed to expend his nervous energy.

“You knew my grandfather personally?” Thorn wrung his hands.

“I wouldn’t say personally.” Merlin shook his head and placed an arm around his mate. They were sitting on one end of the long couch. “Back then, we didn’t have the…” His face wrinkled.

Mindy chuckled. “Dragonnet.”

“Oh,” Elliott mumbled next to her, and Mindy focused on him, adjusting the position of the ice on his head.

Biting her thumb, Saphira blinked from her spot on the stairs. She’d missed the debacle, and she’d been side-eyeing them since she’d come down.

“Dude, that’s so sad.” Tyson snorted and shook his head.

Luckily, Cassidy and Hydra were sitting between him and Elliott, or Elliott probably would’ve elbowed him in the side.

My gaze landed on Eva and Sol, who were sitting on the footstool in the middle of the room. I couldn’t help but notice they were now holding hands. Their relationship had started off with a reaction similar to Mindy’s and Elliott’s, and I wondered if it was coincidence or if all three of us were destined to be with dragons. But that was impossible.

“Let the lad get the attention the only way he knows how.” Tia giggled.

Merlin patted her leg. “Now, honey. Behave.”

“Ha. You know better than to waste your breath telling her that.” Belinda wiggled a finger.

Thorn’s anxiety was palpable, and Brenton must have noticed, because he pushed off the wall on the other side of the room where he’d been standing next to Peter, close to the front door, and spoke.

“From what I remember, before the internet, every ten to fifteen years, the king would make rounds to visit the thunders and update them personally.” Brenton steepled his fingers. “Each year, the king focused on a different region, and if there was an announcement everyone needed to hear at once, he would have warriors help spread the message worldwide. The more thunders heard the news, the faster it traveled.”