Twin Dragons: Dragon Lords of Valdier Book 7 (15 page)

Tears streamed down her cheeks as she looked
up at Cree. “Please help me,” she whispered, brokenly. “Please make
him better.”

Her hands shook as she ran her fingers
gently over her grandfather’s withered cheeks. Everything inside
her was willing him to wake up and say it was all a mistake. That
he wasn’t going to leave her alone as she feared.

“Please,” she whispered. “Please, help
me.”

*.*.*

Cree glanced up as the soft, trembling voice
struck him. It was so faint at first, he thought he had imagined
it. His eyes widened in disbelief as he took in the pale, heart
shaped face staring back at him. He recognized the vivid green
eyes, but this was the first time he had really had an unobstructed
view of Mel’s face.

Look beneath.
The words haunted him
as he realized what his symbiot, dragon and Carmen had been trying
to tell him.
Look beneath.

His eyes roamed over the dark curls that
tumbled over Mel’s shoulders and down her back. He stared into the
stunning green eyes filled with desperate fear and pleading and
knew he was totally lost.

Look beneath,
his dragon whispered.
You will see our true mate.

Cree reached out to catch a tear the coursed
down his mate’s cheek. He noticed the slight tremble of his hand as
he moved to touch her for the first time. Everything began falling
into place. All the pieces to the puzzle that he had not seen. The
forest… Carmen’s words that had been more of a riddle than a
sentence suddenly made perfect sense, as did her statement that
humans were not always what they appeared to be.

“I… There is nothing that can be done to
save him,” he whispered as his finger hovered a breath away from
her skin. “He is gone.”

Compassion filled him when she jerked away
from him before he could touch her. Hatred, pain, grief, and
despair burned in her vivid green eyes, but the emotion he
recognized the most was the fear… fear of being alone.

He rose as she did. They stood staring at
each other. Her gaze begging him to help her. The agony and despair
were like the claws of a dragon ripping through his flesh. He knew
there was nothing that could be done. The old man’s heart had given
out. He had moved to the next realm where he would no longer
hurt.

“No! You don’t want to help him,” Melina
whispered, shaking her head in denial as she gazed down at her
grandfather. “I’ve seen what your gold creatures can do. They could
save him if you told it to.”

“No, Mel…” Cree replied in a low, soothing
voice filled with resignation. “Even our symbiots cannot heal what
age has wrought.”

He reached out as a low wounded cry built
until it echoed through the repair bay. His fingers clenched into a
helpless fist as she turned and fled to the solitude of the crates.
Pain twisted his features as he realized what he had almost given
up.

The doors opened again as Tandor and several
other medical staff rushed in. Cree didn’t turn. There was nothing
that could be done for the old man. His only focus, his only
purpose now, was to help and protect his mate. She was alone.

No, she will never be alone again,
he
thought as he stared into the darkened slit where Mel’s loud sobs
could be heard.
Brother, I need you. Our mate needs you.

Cree vaguely heard Creon talking to Carmen.
Tandor confirmed what he already knew, the old man’s heart had
given out. He turned when he heard Tandor say he would see to the
boy.

“Woman,” Cree corrected in a quiet voice. He
turned his eyes back to the crates before he glanced back with
quiet resolve at Creon and Tandor. “The boy is a woman. What is her
name?” he asked, staring at Carmen.

“Melina,” Carmen replied softly. “I’ll stay
with her. She shouldn’t be left alone.”

“Melina,” Cree breathed under his breath as
the door opened and his brother walked in. He looked at Calo.
“
Her
name is Melina.”

Calo’s stride slowed as Cree’s words washed
through him. His eyes immediately went to the crates where only an
occasional whimper could be heard. His face tightened in concern
and resolve. He looked at his brother and nodded once. They were in
agreement. They would take over the care and protection of their
mate so that she would know that she was not alone.

Melina leaned against the wall in the shower
unit and let the fine mist dampen her skin. She rubbed her cheek
against the slick surface and closed her eyes as depression settled
over her as she thought of the outer room. There wasn’t much left
in it. She had taken most of grandfather’s few belongings back into
the narrow area in the center of the crates the night he died.

Her eyes felt heavy from all the crying. It
had been a little over a week since he had passed away and the pain
and grief were just as powerful as it had been that day. She knew
Carmen was worried about her. Her friendship with the other woman
had deepened over the last month. Still, she preferred to just be
left alone to deal with her grief and try to come to terms with
what her future would hold.

Even that seemed insurmountable to deal with
at the moment. Pain wracked her as she remembered Cree and Calo
trying to stay with her. They had spoken quietly to her, promising
her that she would never be alone.

“Why?” She whispered brokenly as she
caressed the golden pendant hanging from her neck. The three
dragons on it warmed to her touch, as if trying to comfort her.
“Why? We were almost home.”

She slowly turned off the shower and stepped
out. There was no mirror so she didn’t have to worry about how she
looked. She quickly dressed in the new clothes that Carmen had
brought to her.

She had made Carmen promise to not let
anyone else into the repair bay. Tandor had come by several times,
as had Zuk and the original guard. It would appear that word was
spreading that the deranged ‘boy’ was instead a human female.

The two that had come around the most,
though, were Cree and Calo. She was having a hard enough time
dealing with life right now. She didn’t have the energy to deal
with her feelings toward them on top of everything else.

Melina paused as she heard voices outside of
the office. She closed her eyes as pain spiraled through her. The
sound of Calo’s husky voice wrapped around her. Her fingers
instinctively moved to the pendant again and she stroked the
dragons with trembling fingers.

“No,” Carmen was saying in a stern, firm
voice. “Don’t make me have to kick your asses!”

“Lady Carmen, please,” Calo pleaded. “You do
not understand. She is our mate.”

“Don’t you think she has enough to deal
with? She just lost her last family member, she is about to return
home after being gone for the past four years, and you think having
not one, but two mates is supposed to help her feel better?”
Carmen’s exasperated voice asked.

“We have no choice,” Cree’s deep voice
growled. “She has us now. We will care for her.”

“No,” Melina said softly from the doorway.
“I want you to leave me alone. I’m taking Gramps back so he can be
with grandma and my folks. I’m going home.”

She stared back at both men, ignoring the
pain that was sweeping through her. She owed it to her grandfather
to return him home. He wanted to be buried next to her grandmother
and she would make sure his final wish was carried out.

“Melina, you are our mate. We have claimed
you,” Cree said as his eyes moved over the gold wrapped around her
wrists and the pendant of the dragons hanging from her neck.

“Our dragons and our symbiots have claimed
you, as well. You are our true mate,” Calo added, taking a step
closer to her.

“No,” she said as she shook her head in
denial. She looked at both men briefly before she bowed her head so
they couldn’t see the pain in her eyes. “I’m going home and will
forget this ever happened to me. I’ll live my life back home in
Georgia. I can’t be your mate.”

“Melina,” Cree and Calo protested at the
same time.

Sobs built inside her as she fought for
control. Unable to deal with her grief and them at the same time.
She shook her head before she turned and ran to the only place that
she knew where she would be left alone. The sounds of Cree and
Calo’s loud roars echoed through the room behind her.

She collapsed on the blankets piled on the
floor and reached for the Teddy Bear. Pulling it close, she closed
her eyes and willed the pain to stop. Shuddering sobs tore from her
throat as she listened to Carmen talk to Cree and Calo.

“Give her time,” Carmen warned both men.
“She needs to bury her grandfather. Give her that before you do
anything. Give her time to say good-bye.”

“What if…” Calo asked hoarsely.

“She needs closure,” Carmen interrupted. “We
have to say good-bye and accept there is no going back, only
forward. Trust me. I’m speaking from experience.”

It was Cree’s husky promise that made her
breath catch in her throat. He spoke the words loud enough for her
to hear. The resolve in it told her that they were not giving
up.

“Just know this,” Cree vowed passionately.
“She will not be remaining on her world when we leave.”

*.*.*

Cree waited outside of the Command room for
Creon to exit. He fingered the knife at his waist as his eyes
roamed the bridge of the
Horizon
. He knew that Creon
expected him and Calo to go down to the planet with him and
Carmen.

Have you asked him yet?
Calo’s
impatient voice demanded in his head.

No, he is still talking with his
brothers,
Cree replied, rubbing his thumb over the carving on
the handle of the knife.
He should be done shortly. How is
she?

Quiet. Withdrawn. Carmen has been with her
the last hour. Our symbiots are with her as well.

He is finished,
Cree said, breaking
off as the door opened and Creon stepped out.

“Lord Creon, I wish to speak with you,” Cree
said formerly.

Creon’s eyes widened at Cree’s formal
address and the tense expression on his face. Worry creased his
brow as he thought something might have happened to Carmen. That
thought eased as he ran his hand over the symbiot on his wrist and
he felt Carmen’s swift reassurance.

“What is it?” Creon asked as he walked
toward the doors leading off the bridge.

“My brother and I wish to escort Melina down
to the planet,” Cree stated tersely.

Creon paused outside the lift and folded his
arms across his chest. He studied Cree intensely for several
seconds. He knew from his conversations with Carmen why the
brothers wanted to escort Melina down. He also knew that they would
not leave her there.

If he agreed, he was approving of them
taking the human female without her consent. Yet, if he refused, he
was sentencing the Twin Dragons to death. His own dragon stirred
enough to remind him of what it felt like to know that he had a
true mate and the fear and darkness when he thought he might lose
her.

“You know Carmen is going to kill me for
this, don’t you?” Creon asked with a quirk of his lips.

A smile tugged at Cree’s lips in return. “I
don’t think so,” he replied. “She understands what is at
stake.”

“I’ll get Jaguin and Gunner to accompany
me,” Creon said with a nod. “Be careful. It is imperative to our
future visits that the humans are not aware that we have been
here.”

“As always, my Lord,” Cree said as he
started to turn.

“And Cree,” Creon called out.

“Yes.”

“I’m pleased that you and your brother have
found your true mate,” Creon said. “You both deserve it.”

Cree’s face tightened for a moment before he
relaxed. “The war is not won yet, my Lord.”

Creon watched as Cree turned and strode down
the corridor. The warrior moved with an ease that belied just how
deadly he could be in battle. Creon couldn’t help but think of the
struggles he was having with his own mate.

“No, it is not won yet, but you and your
brother will win. Never in history has a set of Twin Dragons been
given the gift of a true mate until now. I have fought at the side
of both you and your brother. You will win, my friend,” Creon
muttered as he turned to step into the lift.

Melina stood quietly, looking around the
repair bay one last time. She had her arms wrapped around the only
two things that she cared about; the delicately carved container
holding her grandfather’s ashes and the Teddy Bear. Her Nana’s
floppy hat sat on her head. There was nothing else for her to take.
The few items that they had collected over the last four years
couldn’t be taken back to Earth.

The door slid open, telling her it was time
to leave. She knew instinctively who would be standing in the
opening. She felt both men before they came in. Over the past week,
it had been harder and harder for her to ignore them. Despite what
she had said earlier, she didn’t want them to leave her alone. She
was so tired of being alone.

“Melina,” Calo said softly. “When you are
ready, we will depart.”

She drew in a shuddering breath and turned.
Her heart melted at the sight of the two men standing like silent
sentinels by the door. A wobbly, uncertain smile curved her lips
upward as she stared at them.

“I haven’t been very nice to either of you,”
she said quietly. “My mom and Nana would be disappointed in me for
having such bad manners. You both have been very sweet and I want…
I want to thank you for everything that you’ve done. I know… I know
I haven’t… I haven’t…” Her voice died and she looked down at the
floor, blinking rapidly to push the tears away.

A faint gasp escaped her when a pair of
callused hands caressed her cheeks. She looked up to see both men
standing in front of her. It was the first time they had touched
her. Cree’s thumb stroked across her cheekbone, while Calo’s
touched her bottom lip.