Read Fire's Embrace [Chronicles of the Shifter Directive 6] (Siren Publishing Epic Romance, ManLove) for Free Online

deal.
    The moment Rachen and Sage stepped into the room, all conversation ceased. Everyone was here, apparently gathered for a meeting. The three Imperial Consuls—Hareem, Karein, and Kaelezrin—together with their mates and Prince Camden Isaiat formed the gathering. All of them looked straight at Rachen. Karein arched a brow, obviously noticing Alwyn’s conspicuous absence. “Where is Lord Cyraltin?” he inquired.
    “He didn’t feel well,” Rachen explained again. “I’m here to speak on his behalf.”
    Talrasar frowned. “I hope you didn’t scare him with horror stories. No one here means him any harm.”
    Sari nodded earnestly. “We just want to figure out the meaning of my vision. It could be anything. My best guess is that the entire thing is symbolic and not necessarily a direct depiction of what might happen in the future. It could be that Alwyn is just accidentally involved in some way in something that will harm all of us.”
    Actually, that sounded less disheartening than what Rachen had expected. He was kind of reluctant to reveal what Alwyn had told him, given that his brothers were obviously doing their best not to throw around wild accusations.
    In fact, in spite of what Sari had seen, Hareem and Karein joined him and patted Rachen’s shoulder. “Give me some credit,” Hareem said. “Alwyn saved my life. I wouldn’t forget it just like that.”
    “Besides, he’s your mate,” Karein pointed out. “He’s practically family.”
    Rachen gaped. “But you said—”
    “I know what I said,” Karein replied, interrupting him. “We never meant to actually accuse him of anything. But the entire attack reeks of sprite involvement. We have to find a way to steer him clear of it, in spite of the treaty with Elusia.”
    Rachen couldn’t believe his ears. He had not expected such unconditional support, not after Sari’s vision. “So you’re sure that it was a sprite? It could have been the Ancient Horror. We aren’t completely sure he’s gone.”
    “No, we aren’t,” Talrasar agreed, “but both Sari and Kael are very familiar with the feel of sprite magic. During the war, they provided a lot of assistance for our forces. Sari has practically grown up with a sprite, so he’s well aware of what I’m talking about.”
    “It’s true that this magic felt different somehow,” Kael explained, “but it nevertheless had a sprite signature.”
    “Perhaps it truly was Alwyn’s father,” Hareem said. “He would certainly have the power to do that.”
    For the first time since Rachen had entered the room, Taryn spoke out. “But that still doesn’t explain the reason for it.”
    Even as he spoke, Taryn was rocking his son to his chest, holding him protectively. Rachen remembered what Sari had said happened in the vision. He recalled the desperate look on Alwyn’s face. No matter how much he wanted to keep his family from turning against his mate, it was safe to say that Alwyn wasn’t exactly well. Rachen’s dragon could feel it, like something was unraveling within Alwyn, taking bits and pieces of Rachen’s soul with it. Whatever it was, it needed to be stopped, and Rachen couldn’t fail Alwyn by hiding this.
    Taking a deep breath, Rachen said, “Alwyn shared something with me that he thinks all of you should know. He’s having doubts about his real identity. He suspects Elina might have known about it, and planned to exploit this knowledge because of Alwyn’s connection to me.”
    Silence. Absolute silence. Obviously no one had expected him to say that. Hareem released a curse, and Taryn groaned. “Of course,” Hareem said. “How could I have been such an idiot?”
    “Ferradul is a powerful sprite,” Karein said softly. “He would be able to create an illusion that would make us believe he’d handed in his son to us.”
    “Our investigation was thorough,” Sage piped up. “We knew what Alwyn looked like, so he couldn’t just replace him with someone else. It had to be a