3. Maple #2
"Well," Gerri said, rising with fluid grace and smoothing down her perfectly tailored suit, "if you're willing, I can take you to meet him right now."
Right now?
But looking at the artifact pulsing with otherworldly energy, feeling the way it seemed to sing in harmony with something deep in her chest, Maple realized she didn't really have a choice. Her old life—the one built on logic and evidence and carefully controlled curiosity—was already over.
The only question now was what would replace it.
Maple moved with movements that felt disconnected from her body as she wrapped the artifact, closed the box, and handed it to Gerri, the dark fabric of her jeans and sweater suddenly feeling like armor against whatever reality she was about to step into.
"I'll handle everything from here," Gerri assured Maple's mother, her voice carrying that same warm authority that had somehow convinced Maple to trust a complete stranger. "Don't worry about the legal complications—this situation requires a different kind of expertise."
Her mother's goodbye felt stilted, weighted with unspoken warnings and maternal anxiety. "Be careful," her mother whispered, her academic composure cracking just enough to reveal the worried parent underneath.
Minutes later, the drive began normally enough—Gerri settling into the passenger seat of Maple's modest sedan with the grace of someone accustomed to luxury but unbothered by its absence. But as they left the familiar streets of Phoenix behind, Gerri's directions became increasingly surreal.
"Take the next right, dear."
Maple glanced at the GPS display showing nothing but empty desert. "There's no road here."
"Trust me."
The path that appeared beneath her tires felt more like a suggestion than an actual road—packed earth that seemed to know where it was going even if she didn't. The landscape around them shifted to raw canyon country, red rock formations rising like ancient beings against the blue sky.
This is insane.
But the artifact in the treasure chest on Gerri's lap seemed to hum in rhythm with her heartbeat, as if it approved of their destination.
"Turn left at those boulders."
Maple followed directions that shouldn't have existed, navigating roads that weren't on any map, until they passed a series of signs that made her stomach clench with recognition.
NO TRESPASSING. AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY. TRIGG CORPORATION.
Her hands tightened on the steering wheel. "I can't be here. They'll arrest me when they find out I trespassed yesterday and excavated an ancient artifact. My career will be ruined."
Gerri's laugh held layers of amusement that seemed entirely inappropriate for their situation. "Oh honey, the only thing getting ruined today is my afternoon schedule. I'll handle this situation. Just trust me."
Trust her.
The woman who claimed dragons existed and somehow knew exactly where to find them.
But something in Gerri's tone—the absolute certainty, the complete lack of concern—made Maple's panic settle into resignation. She'd already crossed so many lines that one more hardly mattered.
The hidden entrance soon appeared like something from a dream—a gap between towering rock formations that shouldn't have been wide enough for a car but somehow accommodated her sedan perfectly.
As they passed through, the world beyond defied every assumption Maple had built about geography and civilization.
A functioning town spread across the canyon floor, complete with paved streets, modern buildings, and what appeared to be a thriving community nestled in a landscape that should have been uninhabitable wilderness.
The architecture blended seamlessly with the natural rock formations, as if the settlement had grown from the canyon itself.
Who lives here?
The question burned in her throat, but the sight of people moving through the streets—normal-looking people conducting what appeared to be perfectly ordinary business—left her speechless.
"Main street," Gerri directed, pointing toward a building that radiated official authority despite its understated design.
Maple parked with hands that trembled, the treasure chest feeling heavier as she lifted it from Gerri's lap. The artifact's energy seemed to intensify the moment they stepped outside, heat flooding her system in waves that left her dizzy.
"You're sure I'm not about to get arrested?"
Gerri's eyes flashed with something that might have been gold in the canyon sunlight. "Positive, dear."
Within minutes, the building's interior felt like stepping into a law office designed by someone with exquisite taste and unlimited resources.
Polished wood, understated luxury, and the kind of quiet authority that suggested serious business conducted by serious people.
They navigated corridors that felt both modern and timeless until they reached an office marked with a gold nameplate: brAM VALEX.
Maple clutched the treasure chest tighter, the artifact's energy making her skin feel too tight for her body.
Every instinct screamed that she was walking into something far beyond her understanding, but the alternative—running away from the one discovery that had consumed her entire life—felt impossible.
Gerri knocked with the confidence of someone expected.
"Enter," came a deep voice that carried centuries of authority.
The man behind the desk looked like he'd stepped from the pages of a distinguished gentleman's magazine—silver-haired, weathered in the way that suggested experience rather than age, with eyes that seemed to see far more than they revealed.
When he spotted Gerri, his entire demeanor shifted into something approaching delight.
"Gerri Wilder. I didn't expect the legendary matchmaker to grace me with her presence. I've called you a few times to help me with our stubborn Alpha's mate issues, but you always said to let fate handle this one."
"Hello, Bram." Gerri settled into a chair with familiar ease.
Matchmaker? Alpha? Mate issues?
The words swirled in Maple's head like pieces of a puzzle she couldn't begin to assemble.
Bram's attention shifted to her, and she felt the weight of assessment from someone accustomed to making decisions that mattered. "What brings you here today?"
"Maple discovered something yesterday," Gerri began, her tone carrying the satisfaction of someone whose plans were unfolding exactly as intended. "While she takes full accountability for her trespassing, I think this situation warrants overlooking legal complications."
He raised an eyebrow. "What's in the box?"
Maple's hands moved without conscious decision, placing the treasure chest on Bram's desk with reverence that felt both protective and surrendering.
When he opened the lid and pulled back the layers of cloth, his expression transformed into something she'd never seen on an adult face—pure, childlike wonder mixed with the kind of joy that came from receiving exactly what you'd wished for but never expected to get.
"What is it exactly?" The question escaped before she could stop it.
"Something I thought was destroyed forever." Bram's voice carried the weight of centuries. "But you found one that survived."
"Survived what?" Panic edged into her voice. "What does that mean?"
"Our ancestors buried dozens of these throughout our territory centuries ago, but our Alpha destroyed them all. Or so we thought." His eyes fixed on her with a piercing intensity that made her feel transparent. "This is a claim marker, and it has significance you clearly don't understand yet."
The words hit her like physical blows. "So dragons actually exist? Have existed for centuries? And there's an Alpha who destroyed these artifacts? Why would he do that?"
"Dear, you're standing in hidden dragon territory right now." Bram's smile held secrets. "And we're dragon shifters, to be precise. And our Alpha is... let's say he's controlling and probably won't appreciate this development."
Without thinking, Maple reached toward the claim marker. The moment her fingers brushed the surface, light erupted from its core and heat flooded her system with an intensity that left her gasping.
Bram stared at her with fascination that bordered on reverence. "Remarkable."
"I don't understand why this thing keeps reacting to me," Maple managed, her voice rough with the effort of speaking through the overwhelming sensation. "I just want it to stop, but I also can't bear the thought of giving it up. This is the discovery of my career."
"Well," Bram said slowly, "you can certainly keep the artifact. It belongs to you and you alone now. But I don't think we can unbind you from it. We would need to speak to the Alpha."
Unbind?
The word sent ice through her veins even as the artifact's warmth continued to flood her system.
She was standing in a hidden dragon town, holding an ancient claim marker that responded to her touch like it had been waiting centuries for her specifically, talking to people who spoke casually about Alphas and mates and binding as if these were normal, everyday concepts.
Everything she'd believed about the world—about reality itself—was crumbling around her, but underneath the terror was something she'd never expected to feel. Vindication. The impossible things she'd dreamed about as a child weren't fantasies. They were real, and she'd found them.
Or maybe they'd found her.
"Well, can we meet this Alpha then?" she heard herself asking, the words coming from some deep place of curiosity that had always been stronger than her sense of self-preservation. "Maybe he'll have an idea what to do next."