A retelling of Ash’s confrontation with Jelverck in Chapters 3 of Once Upon a Dragon, as told from Rory’s perspective.

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Hiding in plain sight when there was a price on your head sometimes made sleep elusive.

In an effort to quiet his mind, Rory loosened the reins on his wolf-enhanced hearing and allowed it to stretch out. Nearby, the snoring and restless slumber of laborers filled the tents around them. Pushing beyond the camp, he focused on the chirp of crickets and followed the sound of nocturnal creatures scurrying through the woods.

The sounds carried his consciousness lower and lower as his mind slipped toward sleep and Rory let himself drift.

With his hearing that wide open, even while dozing he should have easily heard anyone approaching their shelter.

But it was a scent, familiar yet out of place, that alerted Rory first.

Nose twitching and instincts roaring with warning, his body moved before his brain shook off the slumbering fog he’d fallen into.

Rory found himself crouched on his bedroll, teeth bared and searching for the enemy before he was fully awake.

Of course, as always, Doane reacted faster than Rory could ever hope to. Already poised next to the sealed tent flap, Doane was a still shadow. Coiled and ready to spring.

Between them, Ash startled awake, instinctively reaching under the edge of his pallet for the sword Rory knew he had hidden there.

“What’s going on?” Ash asked in a low whisper, sleep still roughening his voice.

Rory didn’t respond, still trying to place the scent, still searching for any sound that might give him a hint about the person outside. He glanced at Doane, hoping maybe he had picked up something that Rory had missed.

But the answer came from the other side of the thin canvas wall.

“I’m not here to harm. I’m not a threat.”

Recognizing the voice instantly, Rory let himself relax slightly. It explained why he hadn’t heard the man coming. Jelverck was a master huntsman. His abilities had been honed razor sharp by years of stalking dangerous prey. Nothing heard, or scented, him coming unless he wanted them to.

Which meant he probably could have ambushed them in their sleep. But had chosen not to.

For Ash, however, recognizing the voice only provoked him.

“Jelverck,” he snarled, spitting the word like poison. Furious, Ash leapt to his feet, hand curled around his sword hilt in a strangling grip.

Doane growled, a chilling sound that promised danger and retribution.

Rory shook his head and stepped between Doane and Ash before they did anything they’d all regret.

The automatic rage was understandable. Jelverck had been Velia’s most trusted henchman for years. The man had held Asher’s sister at knifepoint, forcing the prince and his brothers to give their blood freely to Velia. To allow her magic to twist them to her whims.

More importantly to Rory and Doane, Jelverck had also threatened one of their own. Jack might not be a wolf-shifter, but he was part of the pack all the same. Rory would never forgive the huntsman for the part he’d played in capturing Jack. Or for standing by and letting Velia nearly sacrifice him.

Still, while Rory understood the need for retribution, someone had to remain calm and rational.

“We can’t make a scene,” he insisted reluctantly. “If we wake up the camp, we’ll have too much explaining to do. We risk exposing ourselves with the attention. Attacking a stranger in the middle of the night will definitely be noticed.”

As he spoke, Rory pushed Doane and Ash away from the front of the tent. Hoping he wasn’t making a huge mistake, he waited until both men stopped looking quite so murderous before unlacing the ties.

Then, with a deep breath and half-formed prayer, Rory lifted the canvas flap and allowed Jelverck stepped inside.

The huntsman kept his hands loose and visible at his side and movement deliberately non-threatening.

But Rory scrutinized him closely anyway.

Dark hair shot through with silver, dark eyes guarded and vigilant. Well-muscled and tall but hunched slightly at the moment. Seemingly protective of his side. A hint of limp as he moved. Could be injured. Or could be pretending in order to lull them into overconfidence.

Rory would wait and see.

“I thought you were dead,” Ash said, voice flat and unwelcoming.

“So did Velia when she left me bleeding out in the Grand Corridor to chase after the rest of you. I managed to drag myself out and escape. It took a few weeks of hiding to heal up.”

“What are you doing here?” Ash demanded, not bothering to hide his suspicion or his impatience.

“Same as you, I assume. Trying to find a way to stop Velia. To undo the horrific things I helped her do in Ardell and set things right.”

“You think that will absolve you?” Ash asked with a sneer.

“No. Absolution isn’t something I think I will earn. But I can spend what years I have left putting right as many of the wrongs I committed in her name as possible. Starting with your family. I will see you home, Ash.”

Even in the shadowed darkness of the tent, Rory saw the haunted pain tightening Jelverck’s eyes. The guilt and regret and resignation in his heart was obvious and gut-wrenching when Jelverck spoke. A spark of sympathy tried to worm its way into Rory’s perception, but he held onto his wariness.

Jelverck had been steeped in Velia’s deception and schemes for a long time. They could trust nothing at face value.

Ash, obviously feeling the same, only stared at Jelverck with narrow-eyed suspicion. Jelverck sighed at the unmistakable doubt and distrust, clearly weighing his words before speaking.

“I’m here because the royal family of Glicien is rumored to have a hidden magic. I wasn’t expecting to find you, but I recognized you returning with the work crew to determine if it offered a viable way into the palace.”

Jelverck paused with a grimace, shifting his weight more onto the leg without the limp, before continuing, “I assume you’ve discovered the rumors too?”

It was an obvious opening. An unspoken offer to share whatever knowledge they might have gleaned about the situation in Glicien.

Unsurprisingly, Ash ignored it. Instead, he pushed into Jelverck’s space and demanded, “Tell me what you know.”

Jelverck held his ground and kept his gaze steady as he answered.

“I don’t know much. When Velia found out Korgeto was chasing the group who were helping Kynara, she made a deal with him. She used her magic to help track them. In exchange, he agreed to hand over the princess. Korgeto was obsessed with magic and she used that to coax a great deal of knowledge out of him.”

Rory grimaced at mention of the Duke, but let Ash continue to ask the questions.

“Like what?”

“First, it was about the pack. The monastery they’d been excavating was built on even older ruins.”

“It was?” Rory asked with surprise.

Doane cast an exasperated glance in his direction and Rory resisted the urge to shrug. Apparently, he was the only one who hadn’t known.

Research and detail were more Kaile and Sterling’s thing. He was there to offer a strong back and to protect the pack. He was comfortable in his role and left the history and the esoterica to others.

“Korgeto believed the ground was the sight of a fey city in the distant past,” Jelverck answered with a shrug.

“There’s no such thing as fairies,” Ash scoffed.

“Once, the people of these kingdoms believed there was no such thing as dragons,” Jelverck reminded him. “Whether it’s true or not, the Duke believed it. And he was furious when the pack escaped his trumped-up trespassing charges. Angry enough that he was willing to share rumors about Glicien’s royal family for help getting whatever they found.”

Korgeto had cost the pack dearly. They’d invested nearly everything they had in the dig at the monastery and had to leave it all behind when they fled. Now, they were on the run with a price on their heads because the Duke believed in fairytales?

He grumbled under his breath while Ash continued his interrogation.

“What rumors did he share? What did he tell Velia?”

“Only that he was convinced some kind of wild, fey magic was behind the incident that led to the princesses’ exile. Korgeto was obsessed with finding them and adding them to his collection,” Jelverck paused, expression twisted into disgust. “Like they were relics rather than people.”

“Did Velia believe him? Will she come looking for the magic, too?”

“She was intrigued, I think. She thought Korgeto was deluded by his fascination, but he was useful as a pawn. And, eventually, for his collection. She intended to use him to get a foothold in Glicien, once she secured her control of Ardell.”

Jelverck’s expression changed for the first time, a hint of grim satisfaction filling his eyes

“Your escape, however, has thrown the kingdom into chaos. The rumors of what really happened in the palace that night are spreading, and your sister’s crew decimated the ranks of those few blindly loyal to Velia. Trying to maintain control of a kingdom that’s starting to question what’s going on will keep her busy. Her obsession with finding Jack will occupy the rest of her attention for a while.”

Rory bared his teeth at the thought. This was why he’d risked the price on his head to help Ash. He would do anything to protect his pack. And, right now, Jack was the most vulnerable member of it.

Only a few years older than Jack, Rory remembered the naïve and terrified boy Sterling caught trying to steal their horses. How he had seemed so much younger.

No one in the pack ever really talked about their pasts. And so no had pushed Jack to share his story. Instead, they’d rallied around him. Protected him. Gave him a place to belong.

But it had been obvious from the first that his life before had been traumatic. None of them could have ever guessed what he’d endured.

That Jack had been raised by Velia had come as a shock.

Not that she’d taken him in because she felt any sort of maternal stirrings though. She’d taken him in because, in his full form, Jack was a rare white dragon.

And when his unique magical talents manifested, she’d tried to kill him for the power his sacrifice would grant her.

Right now, Kynara and Jack were safely ensconced in the territory ruled by the Sea Clan. Not even the Grey Enchantress would risk a confrontation with the dragon clans to get to them.

And Rory would make sure that he stayed safe. No matter what risks he had to take. Pack protected pack.

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