Mischa’s eyes widened. “Are you saying there are lots living on their own in the human world?”
Braxton answered this time. He’d been speaking quietly to Nash, who was going in and out of sleep, but clearly still listening. “We don’t make anyone stay in the communities. Our towns are there as a safe haven and as a gateway to protect the prison. Many supernaturals choose to live as a human. They even have human partners and children.”
“The children are half-breeds, and besides a little extra-sensory gifts, are pretty much human,” I added.
“Amazing,” Mischa breathed. “This is both fascinating and incredibly unbelievable for me. If I hadn’t seen some of these things with my own eyes…”
I couldn’t help but grin at her. “There is so much more for you to learn.”
“I’m just really glad I finally have a chance to live as I was meant to. I can’t imagine why any supernatural wants to live amongst humans, denying their true family.” She shook back her dark hair. “I’ll never go back.”
I could see the shudders running through her body.
“That we don’t age is leading to some problems in the human world,” Jacob said. “Supernaturals live over eight hundred years. In the human world they have to move constantly, change their identities. And the ones with families have to do the same, even if it means leaving their loved ones behind.”
Her mouth dropped open, heaves of breath coming in and out. “Even more reason to stay in the communities.”
More questions were forthcoming.
“So there are no female dragon shifters?” she asked, her green eyes wide.
Braxton shook his head. “Female dragons are the rarest of creatures. There have been none born in the last few hundred years. Before that, the rest were killed off.”
“Why?” Mischa was working her lip between her teeth. “What is everyone’s problem with dragons and dragon marked?”
I crushed some pebbles in my right hand. “Fear. The supernatural world is afraid of dragons. They’re the strongest and most powerful of any of us, and when the ancient king dragon almost took over the five races, they decided to never allow that chance again.”
Jacob nodded. “No one knows what the dragon marked even are. The guess is that it’s some way for the dragon king to claim members of all five races. Supposedly, after he died and made his declaration, the marks just started showing up on babies.” His eyes turned stormy. “Of course those infants did not live to tell their tales.”
“But clearly they didn’t kill them all.” Tyson sighed. “Which leads me to ask the question … why are there imprisoned marked? And who are the two women freeing them from the other prisons?”
We had too many unanswered questions, and I wasn’t sure where I fit in with all of this. I didn’t feel dragon marked, having spent my entire life ignorant of the fact. Now I wondered what the future held for me and Mischa.
“Just so I have this straight,” Mischa said, distracting me. “Most supernaturals only breed within their own race, producing pure bloods. If they cross breed between races they produce hybrids, like the Compass parents. And if they breed with a human it’s a half-breed, who have no real power.”
She looked between all of us, and everyone nodded at once.
“Pretty much,” I said with a shrug. It wasn’t that complicated, but it could get messy. Sometimes from all that genetic chaos came anomalies, like the quads.
After this the conversations died off for a bit, everyone lost in their own thoughts. Braxton went back to silently staring at me. I swear the dragon had not taken his eyes off me for more than a few minutes since we’d sat there. He so knew I was up to something. If it wasn’t for Nash taking some of his concentration, he’d definitely have confronted me by now.
I closed my eyes, listening to Jacob. He was communing with nature or whatever he did when he zoned out and started softly singing in his beautiful fey voice.
I squinted one eye open. Braxton was still watching me. The damn man had a stratospheric IQ, nothing slipped past him. If this plan had a hope in hell of working, I’d have to be really convincing to lift his distrust.
Time to act normal.
I gestured to the trusting little cherub. “So what are you going to do with Nash? They’ll notice a new child running around Stratford, especially if he’s bunking at your place.”
He straightened, careful not to disturb the boy curled up on his side. “I’m hoping Jonathon and Torag can smooth things over with the council, pretend he’s an orphan or relative. Mom would love another boy to look after.”
Braxton wasn’t kidding, Jo would be thrilled. And Jack wouldn’t be far behind her. Something in their hybrid natures had given them pure souls with so much love to give. Yeah, they could be brutal if required, but mostly they were all about love.