Chapter 23
***TAYLOR***
Taylor pulled into the parking lot of the old factory, stopped the car, and looked up at the building through the windshield, hoping that his mom hadn’t gotten the address wrong.
“I don’t know if this is right, this building looks abandoned, look at all the broken windows,” he said.
“It sure doesn’t look like the right place to hold a clan meeting. ”
“Unless you’re trying to keep a low profile,” Emily said, then pointed to the side of the building. “Look at all the cars in the parking lot. This has to be the place.”
After shutting off the car, he turned and faced Emily. “Are you sure I can’t talk you into staying here?” he asked. “I don’t want anything to happen to you; I would never forgive myself.”
Emily reached over and took his hand. “I’m not staying behind, Taylor. I’m not going to let you face these people alone,” she said. We’re a team, remember? I’ll be fine. Nothing is going to happen to me; fate won’t allow it.”
“I hope you’re right,” he said, then took a deep breath and opened his door. “Let’s go do this.”
When they approached the door, any doubt he had evaporated when he saw a guard posted outside. “This is private property, you’ll have to leave,” the man growled. “Move along before I call the police.”
“I’m Taylor Gordon and I’m here to see my grandfather,” he said, planting his feet, hoping he didn’t have to fight too hard to get inside. “I heard that he wants to see me.”
The man studied him, but he saw the flash of recognition. “Wait here,” he finally said, before slipping inside.
He was back only a few minutes later. “You may enter, but the others stay out here,” the man said. “No strangers allowed.”
“They come too,” he said, squaring his shoulders. “This is my wife, and these men are part of my clan. I won’t leave them behind.”
The man was silent for a second, then he finally stepped aside with a grunt and opened the door. “Your grandfather won’t like it,” he warned. “He’s already angry with you.”
“He’s about to get angrier,” he said, taking Emily’s hand and walking inside.
It took his eyes a second to adjust to the dark interior of the factory, but he could feel the stare of hundreds of eyes and forced himself to take a deep breath.
Emily squeezed his hand, urging him forward, and they slowly made their way past row after row of chairs until they reached the front of the room and the table full of older men facing them.
“Well, boy, it sure took you long enough,” a withered white-haired man said, slowly getting to his feet. “But you’re finally back where you belong, and now that my rightful heir is here, we can settle with this alpha business once and for all.”
Before he could tell his grandfather that he was wrong, Sebastian came storming up to them from the back of the room.
“You can’t be serious, you can’t be willing to throw me to the side just because this loser showed up here,” he said, shaking his head, his eyes imploring his grandfather to tell him differently, but the old man just looked at him.
“I can’t believe after everything I’ve done, everything I’ve put up with just to make you happy, you’re throwing me away like a piece of garbage. ”
“I guess you didn’t know our grandfather as well as you thought you did,” Taylor said, looking over at Sebastian.
“At least you can count yourself lucky that he didn’t try to have you killed; then again, maybe that’s still coming.
After all, you’re going to be nothing but trouble if I take over the clan. ”
Sebastian was shocked into silence, but it didn’t last long. “I’ll kill you; you’re nothing but a bastard,” he said, launching himself at Taylor. “I’ll die before I let you take over this clan.”
Taylor easily sidestepped him. “That won’t be necessary, you can have the clan, I don’t want it,” he said, turning to face his grandfather again.
“The only reason I came here is to renounce any claim I have on the clan. I don’t want to be the alpha, I don’t want my birthright, I just want to be left alone. ”
There was a hushed silence in the room, and then a burst of excited conversation filled the room. “Silence…I will have silence…” his grandfather had to shout to be heard over the commotion. “This will not happen, do you hear me? You will become the alpha, or I won’t relinquish control of the clan.”
“What happens to this clan is no concern of mine. I’ve come to say what I need to, and now I’m leaving,” he said, signaling to his friends that he was done.
“I’m cutting all ties with this clan and with you, Grandfather.
Don’t try to contact me, and don’t mess with my family and friends, or you will be sorry. ”
“You can’t do this,” his grandfather shouted, but he turned and started back toward the door, ignoring him.
“Get back here, boy, get back here right now. Sebastian, you moron, this is all your fault. You screwed this up like you’ve screwed up everything your entire life.
This is your last chance to do something right.
Bring him back here; get my grandson and bring him back. ”
***Emily***
Emily walked beside Taylor, her heart pounding, her senses on alert, sure that they weren’t safe yet, and she was right.
Only a second later, there was a roar of frustration from behind them, and she turned to see Sebastian barreling toward them, his eyes blazing in anger.
Before she could move, Taylor shoved her behind him and turned to face the angry shifter with blood in his eyes.
“I’m going to kill you, you ruined everything,” Sebastian shouted. Then, he suddenly disappeared, and a dragon took his place, making the crowd around them gasp.
Taylor still didn’t move; instead, he took several deep breaths and then shifted into the emerald green beast she remembered from the night at the poker game.
A wave of power took her breath away for a second.
Then she felt Sebastian’s attention turn to her, and she realized that he was going to come after her instead of Taylor.
With a cry that broke several of the windows, Sebastian spread his wings and lunged for her, but Taylor was faster and blocked him, taking the brunt of his weight with a grunt.
Sebastian tumbled to the floor but sprang back to his feet, his eyes glowing, and attacked Taylor again.
He was no match for the larger dragon and ended up on the ground, but not before inflicting a huge gash on Taylor’s side.
She watched horrified as blood gushed from the wound, but it only seemed to give Taylor more strength, and this time, when he went after Sebastian, she knew the other dragon wouldn’t survive.
It took her several long seconds before she could get her legs to work, but then she ran over to the two creatures, hoping she wasn’t too late when she saw that Taylor had Sebastian’s throat locked in his powerful jaws.
Circling around them, relieved when she saw that the smaller dragon was still breathing, she tried to get Taylor’s attention, but he was too focused on the kill.
“Taylor, sweetheart, you don’t want to kill him, I know you don’t,” she called out to him.
“You’ve made your point, let him go and come back to me.
We have a life together to get started, let’s not begin it with bloodshed.
I know you don’t really want to do this, I know you don’t want to kill him.
Let him go, Taylor, you can do it. I love you more than anything in the world.
Don’t do this, please, darling, let’s go back to our beach house. ”
Her words got through to Taylor, and he slowly loosened his grip on Sebastian’s throat, then let go completely.
He stepped back from the other dragon, and then, with a whoosh of air, he was back in his human form.
She rushed over to him and threw herself into his arms, tears pouring down her cheeks.
Then, she turned and started out of the building again.
“Thank you for stopping me,” Taylor said, leaning on her a little as they walked. “I love you too, Emily, you’ve changed my life in so many ways, I can’t even begin to count them, and I bet you’ll change it some more before you’re done.”
“I love you, too, Taylor,” she said, grinning up at him. “Now and forever.”