Ilias: A Paranormal Shifter Romance (Stratham Dragons Book 2) Read online

  Ilias

  (Stratham Dragons Book 2)

  SARAH J. STONE

  Copyright © 2017 by Sarah J. Stone.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the author’s permission.

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously, and are not to be constructed as real. Any resemblance to persons living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Published in the United States of America

  Other Books in this Series

  Aris (Book 1)

  Want a free book? Sarah J. Stone is giving away a free copy of Exiled Dragons, the prequel to her Exiled Dragons Series (no strings attached). This book is exclusive to her newsletter subscribers.

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  Table of Contents

  Ilias

  Dragons of Umora (Bonus):

  1. Cole

  2. Alexander

  3. Peter

  4. Nicholas

  Previews:

  Aris

  Saved by Alpha Bear

  Saved by a Dragon

  About the Author

  CHAPTER 1

  The hairs on Ilias’ neck stood. He licked his lips, but he didn’t slow his pace. Ever since Aris had come into his full powers, bringing Sophie into their tribe, things were stranger than normal. Someone was watching them, and it seemed lately, whoever it was had turned their focus to him. Ilias was the most vulnerable after all. He hadn’t even fully shifted yet, and he was the youngest, meaning he was the weakest of their tribe.

  That’s what the others kept saying, though, admittedly, a bit nicer. Ilias didn’t feel weak, other than the not shifting bit. In fact, in the past few days, he felt different, stronger, almost as if things were about to change in a major way.

  Ilias let his dragon senses out. He was glad he’d finally learned how to control his eyes. Pricks of magic coated his arms, and he spun and faced the open woods. At first, he didn’t see anything, but the magic grew stronger. It was the same place Sophie swore she’d seen a Golden Dragon, but no one else had – until now.

  Across the street from the small town bank was Stratham’s only park. It was small, and behind the jungle gym was the walking trail that led through the woods. The town was full of trees and foliage. It was one reason they stayed, or so Aris said. It was too early for children to be playing, so the park was absent of laughter and childish energy. The only thing he felt was magic, and then he saw it – the shine of the aura emanated around a tall and thin man who seemed to appear out of nowhere. One minute the park was empty of a presence, and then it wasn’t.

  The man had long white hair, much like Aris, but it was braided. He wore a sword on his back, the length nearly as tall as the man. Ilias shuddered. Once he knew that Ilias spotted him, his lip curled up in a snarl. Ilias took a step back, but he couldn’t move. He was frozen in place as the monster’s eyes shined a brilliant gold.

  He no longer controlled his body as Ilias moved toward the dragon. He tried to plant his feet, but the power was too strong. He felt his resistance breaking as one foot was forced in front of the other. Everything else seemed frozen, but when Ilias tried to turn away, his body was no longer his. This dragon – the one Aris told Sophie not to worry about – was controlling him without breaking a sweat.

  ‘I’ve got you, little one,’ the dragon spoke in his mind.

  ‘Let me go!’

  The dragon laughed. ‘You are an abomination. You should have been killed at birth, but your father – or wait, the man who kept you prisoner – was weak.’ He held his hands out to increase the power. ‘But I am not weak, and I will take your head back to the Council.’

  Ilias shivered. Take his head. The Golden Dragon was here to kill them all. The dragon used his index finger, and that one gesture forced Ilias to come to him. His dragon tried to fight to the surface, shifting Ilias’ eyes from their normal dull hazel to liquid silver. Everything inside of him wanted to fight the power this Golden Dragon had over him, but he wasn’t strong enough. The pull led him across the street.

  The Golden Dragon smirked as if he knew exactly how Ilias felt; as if he could feel the fear, the fear of being locked away and controlled by another dragon. He hadn’t even had a real chance to taste his freedom. He growled and used the power of the Silver Dragon, wishing more than anything that he was as strong as Aris. Wishing someone could save him. Now, he remembered why he never went out on his own. It was only because Sophie’s insisting that he even left.

  ‘Go out, have fun, and be young.’ Then, she had sighed. ‘Oh, come on; just give me time to get this damn cake baked.’

  He wanted to give her a hard time about wanting to surprise him for his birthday, but he was touched. It would be the first time his birth would ever be acknowledged in a good way. There was no way he was messing that up. So, that’s how he found himself being magically lured across the busiest street in downtown Stratham.

  Tires squealed, taking his attention away from the Golden Dragon for a second right before the car slammed into his body, throwing on the ground him five feet away. His head slammed against the concrete, and his vision went white. The next thing he knew, an angel stood over him. And this was how he was going to die?

  “Oh, my god. Oh, my god.” Her high-pitched voice brought him back to himself enough to see a girl, a very curvy girl, standing over him sobbing. She knelt on the ground and pressed her fingers to his neck, feeling for his pulse.

  As soon as her fingers brushed his skin, his lungs refilled and he coughed.

  “Oh, thank you, Lord,” she said.

  The only thing he could think at the moment, was that this woman – no, his mate – nearly killing him was what just saved his life. He sat up and groaned when his head throbbed. His vision went black, and his body swayed. He reached out and grasped the woman’s arm. “Please don’t’ leave,” he whispered, right before he fell back to the ground.

  ***

  There was something strange about the man she hit. It was almost as if she knew him somehow. But Andrea would have remembered if she knew someone like him. Then it hit her right in the gut.

  Oh, gods! I nearly killed him.

  She knew better than driving while she was high, but she didn’t even make it half way home before she got into her emergency stash. She shook her head as she stared into the strangest silver eyes. For a second, she thought she saw something lurk behind them, but that had to have been a hallucination. He smiled at her right before falling back to the ground. His long fingers slid from her arm, letting her know he was out.

  Why would he want her to stay? She hit him. But it was his fault. One minute she’d been driving, and no one was there, and then boom; he was right there in the middle of the damn road, leaving her no time to stop.

  It was almost as if she knew him, but Andrea was sure she’d never seen this guy before. Instead of sticking around, she got into her car – that surprisingly still ran – and drove past the man she’d hit. She avoided looking at his unconscious body, but she couldn’t ignore the people. The onlookers glared as she passed by, but no one made a move to try to stop her from leaving the scene o
f the accident. It was a small town, and she knew that news would travel at the speed of light. She needed to get her car off the street before the cops found it. That was the problem. If she hadn’t been stupid, she wouldn’t have hit him, and now she would end up in jail.

  She drove under the speed limit through the small town her parents moved to once she went off to college. Once she left the downtown area, there was pretty much nothing but trees, and then a house here and there sprinkled about. She’d never been to Stratham before, but it hadn’t been that hard to find. She didn’t even bother looking around. She wouldn’t be staying now. Not since she had committed a felony.

  “Great, just what I needed,” she muttered, and slowed to a stop when she saw the small sign with the address she’d put into her phone. She would have driven right by it had she not been looking for it. The sign might as well have not been there. She turned down the gravel drive to the house her mother had sent her a picture of. They were so proud of their small home.

  Andrea parked and studied the house to put off going inside. She’d been excited about coming home; she thought it was just what she needed to get over her issue, but now she wasn’t sure anything could help. The house was cute in an old-fashioned sort of way. It felt old and as if it was living on fragile bones. That was the only way to describe it. Andrea climbed out of her car, forcing her tired limbs to listen to her commands and trudged to the wooden steps just as the door opened. Her mom smiled and held out her arms the way moms did when they knew their child needed them. Andrea tried to hold back, but the tears fell, and she ran into her mother’s arms.

  “Oh, baby! I’ve missed ya girl.”

  “I missed you too, Mama.”

  Her mother pulled Andrea back by her shoulders and studied her. “What’s wrong girl?”

  “I think I made a mistake.”

  “Come inside,” her mother said.

  Andrea let her mom lead her inside the house. Right away, the scent of cinnamon calmed her nerves. Her stomach growled. She hadn’t eaten the whole trip, not that she’d been hungry. Now that the high was wearing off, it was a different story, and for that she was thankful. There was no way she could ever let her mother know how far she she’d fallen. Those thoughts alone made her pull away. She had no right to be comforted. She’d nearly killed a man, and then she’d run when there were multiple witnesses.

  I’m an idiot.

  She stepped away from her mom and took in the homey room, hoping it would distract her from her thoughts. It reminded her of their old house, having the same furniture and pictures she’d grown up with. The same overstuffed brown leather couch, the fantasy landscape her father painted when she was a kid. All in all, it was home. She plopped down on the couch and sunk into it comfortably. She blinked, forcing her eyes to stay open. She wanted to curl into a ball and sleep, but she couldn’t.

  Her mom sat in a large rocking chair. It was blue with yellow flowers printed on it. She propped her feet on the ottoman. “What happened?”

  “I sort of got into an accident in town.”

  “What kind of accident, Andi?”

  “The bad kind, but the guy seemed okay.”

  Her mother swung her legs to the floor and sat up in her chair. “You hit someone and left him?” She stood up and paced. Her long braids swung violently against her back. “Are you out of your mind, girl?”

  Andrea didn’t know what to say. Her mom wasn’t wrong. “I shouldn’t have left, but I panicked.”

  “Why?”

  “I guess…” She tried to think of a good explanation. “I was so tired after the drive. And I swear he came out of nowhere. One minute the road was clear, and the next he was right there in front of the car.”

  “You have to turn yourself in. Maybe the guy won’t press charges.”

  Andrea wasn’t sure about what would happen. He was pretty out of it. She didn’t need to tell her mother she’d actually stayed long enough to talk to the man she’d hit. That wouldn’t go over well. She rubbed along her wrist the way she always did when she was nervous, or maybe she needed another hit. Her palms started to sweat as if her body reacted to her thought. She couldn’t need more. It hadn’t been that long.

  CHAPTER 2

  Ilias woke up surrounded by people, but the one he wanted to see was gone. He looked around and realized he needed to get up before someone tried to send him to the hospital. He didn’t need to go. One thing he learned early on was how quickly he healed. It was a new thing for him, but the others talked about it all the time.

  The rapid healing. The problem with getting hurt in public was the fact he couldn’t hide that he was already healing what should take weeks or even months for a human.

  Luckily for him, Zarin preplanned for this. He taught him how to shake off the real pain and smile like nothing hurt. Even if at this moment, it really did. He had to make these people think he had just passed out from shock. He had to prove he was fine and walk away in perfect condition. The car didn’t hurt him…nope. Or he had to move fast enough and disappear. Yup, that was the better plan. He wasn’t sure if he could bullshit his way out of a trip to the hospital if confronted by anyone in town.

  Even luckier, his mate proved to be the best distraction. Her running away got the attention of all the onlookers, and for the second time in his life, he ran, quickly taking advantage of his luck. The pain pushed his body to move faster. Ilias fell into the past.

  Images of claws digging into his back, shredding his skin and leaving him panting for breath as white, hot agony coursed through his body. Yet he didn’t scream; he couldn’t. That horrible voice calling him names pushed him further, pushed him not to cry out, not to flinch, and not to give into the utter despair that threatened to overtake his body.

  His breath came out in pants. Sweat dripped from his head and slid down his face, but he didn’t care. All that mattered was running and getting away from the pain. Getting away from the monster that chased him, even if it meant he had to run from the memories of his past.

  He ran up the stairs to the large home he’d come to love and blinked, trying to adjust to the difference in light. The kitchen was dim and cool compared to the heat of summer outside. How he lost himself like that, he didn’t know. That was the first time in a long time the memories of his past had taken over him to that extent. He ran through town without even paying attention. He wasn’t imprisoned anymore. He had a family who cared about him now.

  Ilias licked his lips, but his mouth was so dry. His throat was thick, and he tried to call out, but no words came out. His body weighed a ton as bright yellow stars danced in front of his eyes. It was a warning he couldn’t ignore.

  “Hey, what are you doing back?”

  He sways and gripped whatever he could get his hands on. The cool marble counter was no help to hold him up.

  “Ilias!”

  His damp fingers slipped from the counter, and he swayed, unable to hold himself up anymore. His head slammed against the ground for the second time, and he clenched his jaw so he wouldn’t cry out in pain. Just as his eyes fluttered shut, a soft hand gripped his.

  It was Sophie.

  Ilias knew he was safe now. He was home. Darkness clouded his vision.

  ***

  “What the hell happened to him?” Aris was angry. That wasn’t anything new. He was always angry. It was part of his charm. Ilias wanted to laugh, but he couldn’t. He tried to open his eyes or his mouth to let the others know that he was okay. He could hear them.

  “I don’t know. He ran in the house and then passed out,” Sophie said.

  The blackness took over, only he wasn’t unconscious. He was aware of everything – the sounds of their voices, the feel of the tension rising in the room. Hearing Sophie’s upset voice riled his dragons up. They didn’t like to upset their queen, but Ilias was stuck in this state of which he didn’t know.

  “Oh, happy birthday boy. Are you ready for your gift?”

  Ilias knew that voice meant no good, but it
was nice to know another horrible year had passed. Maybe his father’s gift was to finally set him free. He didn’t respond. He’d learned early on that he wasn’t actually supposed to speak. Every time he answered a question, the resonating pain from a backhanded slap put him in his place. Eventually, Ilias stopped speaking all together. He knew there was no hope of ever being freed. He would die in this cave. He prayed it would be today.

  “Today, you become a man,” his father said and held out a sword.

  Ilias went to retrieve the sword but pulled his hand back in time, realizing this for what it was. It had to be a trick. There was no way Father would ever let him have a sword. Father chuckled and slid the weapon back in its sheath. “So, you have learned something this year.”

  Ilias stood tall, and he waited for what was to come.

  In the distance, Ilias heard Sophie sobbing. He wanted – no, he needed it to stop. He would rather rip off his arm than hear her cry; he wasn’t the only one in the house that felt that way either. All of them did. Sophie changed the dynamic of how they lived. Before, it was just men, but having a woman around…well, it was heaven, even if none of them besides Aris admitted that out loud. It gave them hope that they wouldn’t be alone, which reminded him…his eyes shot open, but all he saw was ceiling. He didn’t remember falling to the ground. He tried to sit up, but everything hurt, and when he rubbed the back of his aching head, everything else came back to him.

  He had met his mate.

  “I’m fine.” There was a frog in his throat, but they had good hearing, and he hoped it would calm the energy in the room. It made his head throb, and the ache was worse than he got from slamming his head against the concrete.

  Sophie ran to him and slid to her knees, pulling him into her chest. “Oh, thank the gods you’re all right. I was so worried.”