Chapter 8 Bechora
Convincing Archer not to tag along with us to Caulder’s office left me feeling like I’d kicked a puppy.
His mismatched eyes had gone sad, his lips turned down into a frown, even though his words said he agreed that inviting himself to meet a dragon probably wasn’t the best idea.
The fact that Caulder’s office was empty had me feeling even worse about the way I’d shut down the wolf shifter’s instinct to follow me.
“All I’m saying is it’s kind of weird he was practically hunting me and Miles down, daily, and now we haven’t seen or heard from him since you got back to campus yesterday,” Shadrie said as we made our way up the stairs in Magus House, heading to our floor.
“He didn’t have any problems finding me ,” Miles shrugged.
“That’s because you moved into the library,” Shadrie scoffed, causing Zypher to chuckle.
“It’s the start of term,” Gabriel interjected. “He’s probably busy with teaching a class or dealing with being the head of two houses.”
Before I could respond, movement down the hall near our door caught my attention.
My steps slowed as I took in my dragon mate.
His hair was messy, as if he’d been running his hands through it, and the long-sleeved, button-down with vest combo was really doing something for me.
I was so focused on the way his biceps bulged, and the vest accentuated his tapered waist, that I nearly missed the folder he was holding against his chest.
“Bechora,” he said softly, his eyes landing on me as our little entourage drew to a stop in front of him. “You look…”
“Hi,” I almost didn’t recognize my own voice with the breathy quality it had taken on.
Everything else seemed to slip away, and the pull I felt toward him seemed to pulse in time with my heartbeat.
Being so close to him soothed something I hadn’t known needed soothing, and my shoulders relaxed a fraction.
I realized in the moment that I had missed him.
My body swayed toward him slightly with the realization, just as he lifted a hand toward me before dropping it as if he thought better of touching me.
I frowned, disappointment washing over me that I couldn’t explain.
A throat clearing behind me broke whatever bubble we’d been in, and I glanced over my shoulder to find Shadrie smirking.
“We gonna stand in the hallway all day, or do you two want to move so we can get inside?” she asked, her tone teasing.
“Yes, we should step inside your dorm so we can talk without risking being overheard.” Caulder nodded.
“Right,” I replied, blinking my eyes to clear away the lingering need to be near him.
I turned to open the door to the dorm and stepped inside.
The others followed, Zypher the last to file in, closing the door behind him.
Not sure what to do, I moved to the couch in our communal living room and sat down.
Gabriel sat to my right, Zypher to my left.
Miles took the lone recliner with Shadrie perching on the arm, leaving Caulder standing almost in the center of us.
“You look well,” Caulder started, his attention focused on me. “I wasn’t sure what to expect when Lucifer portaled you away from the Academy.”
Zypher tensed beside me, and I placed a hand on his thigh. “He took us to their home, before sending us off to Abel’s archives to see what we could find on Starcallers.”
Caulder looked taken aback by that. “I… So that’s why your magic is so strange. Mrs. Fiodh gave me something with the story of the Starcaller when I started looking into it, but I never actually expected it to be true.”
“It’s true, alright,” I huffed. “Though the archives weren’t really all that helpful, beyond confirming the information that Miles found before the end of last term.”
Miles sat up straighter in his seat at the mention of his name.
“I’ve been trying to find anything else I can, but there’s not much else in the library as far as I can tell.
At least not yet. There’s still a lot I haven’t managed to read.
” His cheeks flushed slightly, and he pushed his glasses up his nose with his index finger.
“There wouldn’t be,” Caulder said, clutching the folder he held tighter to his side. “The Starcaller is believed to be a myth, same as the Elves.”
“And yet, here I am,” I replied, gesturing toward myself with a flourish.
“I didn’t say they were just a myth,” Caulder retorted. “Just that they’re believed to be. Elves were gone long before I was born, but my clan had detailed records of their existence before….”
“Before what?” Gabriel asked.
Caulder shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. Elves aren’t the reason I’m here.”
“Nah, you’re doing your weird, dragon stalker thing and checking in like you’ve been doing since B vanished with Luci, Triple D, and Gabe,” Shadrie piped in, holding back a laugh.
“I have not been doing any sort of stalking. Dragons don’t stalk.
” Caulder grumbled before shaking his head and holding the folder out to redirect our attention.
“I’m here because I was hoping you could see whatever it is in this information that I’m missing.
Or rather, I was hoping that Miles could, and I knew you would be upset if I didn’t include you. ”
Zypher chuckled beside me, and I shot him a playful glare before turning my attention back to Caulder. “What exactly are you looking for?”
“The reason the king targeted these supernaturals. You and Miles both noticed something odd with his broadcast at the end of last term. I know you suspect something , and I’m hoping this can help us figure out what it is. Maybe even help us find a way to stop him.”
Caulder moved toward me and handed me the folder.
My brows dipped in confusion as I opened it and scanned the information inside.
Pages upon pages of missing supernaturals.
Their age, gender, species, abilities, and the date they vanished.
A few had notations about leaving behind something to indicate they’d gone to the human realm.
Though, I suspected their inclusion meant Caulder had a very good reason not to believe that.
Most of them were also noted as not having living relatives.
It was that note that caused me to stop skimming the pages and look at Caulder when I came across a list of an entire dragon clan being murdered and drained of magic, with the exception of one survivor.
Sensing my gaze, he looked at me, jaw tightening, and gave a curt nod.
While it didn’t excuse him keeping me in the dark about being mates, it did help me understand.
If someone could wipe out an entire clan of powerful dragons with the full strength of their magic behind them, there was little hope for someone like me.
“How did you come by this information?” Zypher asked, skimming over my shoulder.
“I have my sources,” Caulder replied, tearing his gaze from me. “Ones I’m not at liberty to share.”
“A spy at court then,” Gabriel said. “Except, there’s no dragons at court, and I can’t think of anyone willing to risk the king’s wrath like this.”
Caulder simply shrugged.
“Does it really matter?” I asked. “It’s pretty obvious between the broadcast, this list, and the prophecy Lilith mentioned, that the king is corrupt.”
“Prophecy?” Caulder interjected.
I continued, ignoring him. “ If the prophecy is true, and I’m supposed to stop him, then we need to figure out why this information is important.
” I paused, closing the folder and passing it to Zypher with a nod toward Miles.
“If anyone can make sense of it, it’s Miles.
And frankly, I’m fucking tired of being in the dark.
We need to know exactly what we’re up against and how to stop it. ”
“Oooh! We’re like a real-life Scooby gang!” Shadrie said, rubbing her hands together with a grin. “We need a name. B’s Bitches? B’s Babes? Ugh, no. That makes it sound like we’re all part of your harem. We’ll workshop it.”
Caulder shot her a look of disbelief and horror as the rest of us laughed. I couldn’t say what actually made me laugh harder, Shadrie’s ability to say just the right thing to break a tense moment, or the look on my dragon’s face.
“If you’re sure there’s nothing to find in the library about Starcallers, I’ll shift my focus to this,” Miles said, lifting the folder in one hand once the laughter settled.
“Thank you,” Caulder replied before turning his attention to me.
“I’d like to resume our one-on-one sessions as well, if you’re willing.
You need to know how to use your magic to its full extent if you truly are prophesied to stop Evarian.
” I didn’t miss the slight grimace he made on the word prophesied.
“Okay,” I agreed, my stomach fluttering in anticipation.
“You can work on wooing her while you teach,” Zypher said with a slight nod.
I elbowed him in the ribs, only for him to turn his head toward me and grin.
“Your brother was quite insistent that you claim your mates, Dilectus. Given that the dragon has yet to prove himself and re-earn your trust, wooing is necessary.”
Gabriel covered a laugh with a cough, on my other side, and I whipped my head to glare at him. My vampire shook his head and held his hands up in surrender, but didn’t bother dropping his amused grin.
Caulder cleared his throat, and I returned my attention to him. “I’ll review your class schedule against my teaching and office hours. We’ll sort out a schedule to work on your abilities from there.”