Gate: Dragon Heartbeats, #5

By Ava Benton

A dragon heartbeat reveals the Scottish dragons are still alive and the Appalachian dragons go on a mission save their kin.

One little detail they didn't count on, though. A certain brunette firecracker of a stowaway who's hell-bent on proving herself, and proving her mother wrong.
Said firecracker's mother? None other than the formidable Mary.

Poor Gate, he's in for a hell of an adventure, and that's before the mission even

• Language: English
• Publisher: ABP
• Release date: May 2, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393143147

Book preview

1

Gate

W hy can’t I ever go with you when you get supplies? Tommy trotted behind Miles and me as we walked down the long tunnel leading to the cave entrance.

I exchanged a glance with my cousin, who shrugged.

So, it was up to me to explain it to the kid. Again.

I stopped and counted to five in my head before turning around to face the tow-headed little kid who had become a sort of unofficial mascot of the entire clan.

His eyes were wide and teary—the sight of them erased even the slightest bit of irritation I had been feeling only moments earlier.

I crouched, putting us at eye-level.

He was a wise boy, much too smart for us to pull the wool over his eyes for long.

We knew this time was coming, naturally. A time when it would no longer be acceptable for us to keep him cooped up in a cave without experiencing more than a bit of pushback. He was a healthy, active boy. Playing in the woods near the mouth of the cave would only satisfy him for so long.

I would love nothing more than to have you with us, I said, lying only slightly in order to spare his feelings.

There were many things I would rather have done than take a child to a crowded store and suffer through his asking for one thing after another.

I had seen enough of that on my supply runs over the years—sticky-mouthed children who pointed and pouted and asked questions. The nice ones, the ones who didn’t give me a splitting headache, took no for an answer. The rest threw tantrums. I’d once watched from the corner of my eye as a pudgy little boy wept, begging his mother to buy him a pack of chocolate bars. He had even tried to hide it under his shirt when she’d refused. Not that I suspected our young friend would ever pull a stunt like that, but there was no telling what might happen when a child was overstimulated.

So? Why can’t I come, too? I’m a good helper. I could help you.

He was breaking my heart. I know you could. You always do help with things when we need you to. But this is something we have to do on our own—Miles and me.

How come?

You know how come, I murmured, taking his shoulders in my hands.

He was small for his age, probably a result of malnourishment when his mother was at her worst.

We’ve talked about this before. You and me and everybody else. I know it isn’t easy for you to be here all the time. And do you want to know a secret?

I guess so.

It wasn’t easy for me at first, either. It took time for me to get used to being here.

You mean it?

Yes. I mean it. I couldn’t help but smile just a little, though it was a rueful one.

Yes, I meant it. I had hated feeling cooped up in the cave, no matter how serious our mission was or how invaluable the treasure we protected. My rational, human side had understood all of that.

My dragon had been a different story. He had wanted to fly free, unencumbered, without having to hide from humans at every turn. It was the same back in Scotland, ever since I’d grown into my wings and learned to control my shifting.

What did you do to get used to it? he fretted, one corner of his mouth screwing up in a distrustful pout. You had lots of people your age here with you. I don’t have anybody except my friends on the computer.

And imagine what it was like for me, back before there were computers, I suggested, raising an eyebrow.

No computers?

I laughed. Come on. You know there was such a time. You’ve been studying history with Ciera. So imagine being here, in this very cave under this very mountain, stuck with my family. Do you know how boring that can get? I could read, certainly, but that was about it at that time.

That does sound boring, he observed.

Trust me. It gets better. I caught sight of Carissa hurrying down the tunnel and was glad for it. Did you happen to tell your aunt that you planned to follow us to the truck?

He looked at the floor. No.

I had a feeling. I patted him on the back, more than a little sorry for him, as he turned to face his punishment.

Not that Cari would go too hard on him for only being lonely and bored. We couldn’t be very good company, no matter how we tried.

Even so, it was a relief to get away from him and join Miles outside.

Fence was out there somewhere, taking his turn at guarding the cave. My cousin waited for me next to the truck and climbed in when he saw me coming.

Letting me drive. How thoughtful, I muttered as I slid behind the wheel.

I thought I owed you at least that much after leaving you swinging in the breeze back there, he shrugged.

Yes, and thanks for that. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you run away from anything that quickly. And he’s only a little boy. I wonder what would happen if you ever faced a real threat. I pressed my foot on the accelerator and relished the way the engine responded.

I didn’t get to drive nearly enough. It had always been a fantasy of mine to drive a sleek sports car as fast as it would take me, perhaps with a curvy bombshell at my side.

No such speeding could be performed along the side of the mountain—and Miles was no bombshell.

I’ve done just fine for myself, thank you very much, he grumbled.

Just the same. Perhaps we should rethink allowing you to perform guard duty when a child frightens you so badly.

He punched my arm—not the best idea while I was driving the truck—and replied, It’s not the child. It’s all the questions, and you know it.

I know it, I confirmed, no longer joking.

It had only been a short while since we’d returned from Scotland, and Tommy had joined us a few weeks earlier, but he was already becoming restless. It was inevitable. He’d want to know why his life had become so secretive. No matter how mature he was or how understanding, there were always limits.

I shuddered to think how much worse it would get. I didn’t even want to consider how much the poor kid might be missing out on.

But that wasn’t my call, was it? Cash was the one who’d shown him his dragon form during the rescue, and there hadn’t been a choice but to bring him and Cari to our underground compound. I could understand it, but I didn’t have to think it was a good idea.

We’re none of us are equipped to deal with a child, Miles observed as he looked out the window. There’s bound to be a period of adjustment. He seems happy enough.

Yes. Happy enough.

I remembered only being happy enough. It wasn’t all a pretty lie, the story I told him about my dissatisfaction when we first traveled to our current home. I, at least, had been an adult. Older than Tommy, anyway, and there was a larger mission at stake. Much more than simply doing as I was told. I’d keenly understood my duty, and even then, I’d been unhappy. What was it like for a child who couldn’t rationalize the turn his life had taken?

It’s really not worth worrying about, my cousin muttered. We have too many other things on which to spend our time.

True. But I’m not sure I feel like obsessing over the length of time it’s taken Mary to get back to us about that little device her team built.

We were still waiting, and every new day which ended without word from her was another nail in the coffin.

There was no telling what was happening to our extended family as time slipped past us. Even if they hadn’t been dead back when we’d first become aware of losing the clan heartbeat, they might be after so much time had passed. And we were sitting on our hands, waiting for somebody else to come up with answers. Hardly our style.

Please. Don’t remind me. He wasn’t any more pleased than I was—in fact, going out for a supply run was a relief, when it was normally a chore.

Getting away from the rest of them when tensions ran as high as they were right now made the long drive worthwhile.

I didn’t even need Miles’ help, but he’d all but begged for the chance to leave.

I turned up the music in an attempt to drown out my irritation.

It was a fruitless effort, but I had to try something.

2

Gate

As it turned out, we didn’t have to wait much longer before things took a turn.

I was in the walk-in freezer, loading the shelves with the steaks we’d picked up at the store, when I heard the commotion.

What’s going on? I asked as I rushed into the control center, but my words were lost in the noise.

Mary’s face filled the screen on the wall, and she looked about as enthusiastic as the rest of my family.

They have a heartbeat. Cash clapped me on the back, grinning from ear to ear.

A heartbeat. We’d always been able to hear the heartbeat of our dragon clan in Scotland, the one we were