Reawakening the Dragon (Stonefire Dragons 4)

“I tracked down the person of interest first. He was determined to clear his name and so he agreed to do an interview.

“Fast forward two days and my story was in the newspaper. The story did well and my boss promoted me. It should’ve been a fantastic day.”

Kai’s voice was quiet when he asked, “So what went wrong?”

Jane closed her eyes a second and then opened them again. “While everything the suspect, Tom Smith, had told me was true, I didn’t provide the whole context.”

“How did that slip past your editors? Or were you working for a tabloid?”

Jane shook her head. “It wasn’t a tabloid, but it was a smaller newspaper with a limited number of staff. Our fact checkers were overworked and some things slipped through from time to time. And my story was one of them.”

He rubbed Jane’s lower back. “What exactly did you say and what happened as a result?”

“Tom had told me about how he picked up his two friends from the nightclub and drove them to a local train station to catch the last southbound train for the night. Since they were students at the University of Manchester with him, he just assumed they were going home for the break and thought nothing of it. He had no idea his friends had just committed arson.”

Kai interjected, “But arson itself isn’t that bad of a crime, compared to others.”

“That’s true, but two of the injured died the next day and it became a homicide case.”

“Right, so what did you leave out and why does it still linger with you?”

Her brows furrowed. “How did you know that?”

“Jane, it’s my job to notice changes in behavior. Ever since you got the idea to tell me about this story, you’ve lost most of your confidence. That tells me something happened and it left a lasting impression on you. So tell me what it is.”

When she didn’t even try to argue back, Kai knew he was right. “Well, I mentioned Tom knowing the suspects and driving them to the train station. However, I didn’t quite mention that he had no idea what was going on. My conscience ate at me and I forced a correction two days later. But by then, the damage had been done. Everyone accused Tom of being a part of the crime. He lost his part-time job and eventually dropped out of uni. He couldn’t take the stares and accusations.”

Kai frowned. “No one bothered to read the retraction, I take it. But the bigger question is whether he ever was convicted or not.”

“Tom was deemed not guilty and cleared of any charges. However, it was all because of me that Tom’s life went off track. I tried to hunt him down, talk to his employer, and make things right. But while I was trying to do that, Tom committed suicide.”

“Jane.”

Jane rolled off him and sat up. Hugging her chest, she continued, “It took me years to get past that, but I vowed that I would never misdirect the public again. With my new work ethic, I switched jobs and worked on fluff pieces again. When my next shot came, I took it. But never again did I not disclose the full truth and distort the narrative to fit my goals.”

Kai wanted to hug his human close, but sensed Jane didn’t want it quite yet. “That’s why you were so upset when I accused you of using the dragon-shifters only to further your career and that you didn’t give a shit.”

She bobbed her head. “Helping the dragon-shifters was risky, but I knew I could help make a difference. Telling the truth would do all dragon-shifters good. In some small way, I thought it might help make up for ruining someone else’s life.”

Kai sat up slowly and reached out a hand to touch her bicep. “You have helped.”

“Not nearly enough.”

He grunted. “I agree. You need to do more.”

Jane unfolded her arms and leaned forward. “If you’re ordering me to work harder, that’s not what I need right now.”

“Wrong. It’s exactly what you need.” Kai cupped Jane’s cheek firmly and leaned closer. “I think your podcast idea from earlier is brilliant and only you can pull it off.” He pressed his forehead against Jane’s. “So you’d better stick around long enough to see it through.”

Jane raised an eyebrow. “So you can make those decisions now, huh, instead of Bram about who gets to stay or not?”

He shrugged his good shoulder, knowing it might stir her fire even more. He’d do anything to keep her from doubting herself again. “If I recommend you, then Bram won’t think twice about letting you stay.”

There was a question in Jane’s eyes. Instead of asking it, she scooted over to Kai and leaned against his chest. “We’ll see. I think my first real test will be luring the Dragon Knights to a specific location so you can deal with them. The combined Lochguard and DDA attack last month helped to thin out their numbers, but one more major takedown should do it. At least, in the UK. I wish there was a way to help the other clans around the world, too.”

He laid his head on top of Jane’s. “Clans are territorial. Hell, I can’t remember the last time we even talked with any of the clans on the Continent, let alone America.”

“That’s going to change, I think.”