by Aaron Crash
“Bud, I have a secret,” Steven said finally. “If I bring you into that secret, and if you betray us or tell anyone, we’ll have to hurt you.” He paused, staring Bud dead in the eye, holding his gaze. “We might have to kill you.”
Bud laughed—though it was a nervous, uncertain thing—then threw looks at Aria and Tessa. He sobered instantly when he realized he was the only one laughing. The somber look on his face made Bud look older, more mature. “You’re not joking, are you?”
Steven shook his head. “Now, you can go back to your normal life, not knowing that secret, and we’d be cool. But if I tell you, you become a part of my crew. You become my vassal.”
“And you’re like a feudal lord,” Bud said seriously, once again glancing at Tessa and Aria, gauging their responses. “What the fuck is going on here?” he finally said, not angry, but genuinely interested. “Tell me.”
“No, really, think about it.” Steven sipped his coffee. Damn, it was good ... as black and as bitter as an ugly divorce.
Bud leaned back. “Look, man, you called me, naked, asking for clothes. You called me. I was a real asshole to you, and even Tessa got impatient with me, and she has the patience of a saint. You gave me a chance to do you a favor, even after our history together. I like that. And this new you, Steven, it’s so different. I’ve got to know. I’ve always said I wanted to live an exciting life. I’m thinking that if you tell me the secret, I’ll get all the adventure I can handle. Ain’t no way I’m going to walk away from that.”
Steven glanced at Aria. She nodded.
Then he told Bud everything, in a quiet voice, as people trickled through, no idea of the extraordinary things happening so close at hand.
When Steven was finished, Bud nodded and grinned. “No wonder I couldn’t remember that night. And I went back with the pizza? How awesome am I?”
“Stupidly awesome,” Tessa quipped.
“Obviously,” Bud said smugly, folding his arms across his chest. “Okay, but I’m going to want to see some proof. I mean, you have to transform into a dragon for me. That seems like the bare minimum.”
“We can arrange that,” Aria said. “But not here. Dragonsouls must be kept secret. That is our number one rule.”
“Gotcha,” Bud agreed, shooting her a finger gun. “Read you loud and clear. So, you guys need a safe place to crash, and you need money, and we need to protect your families. This Mulk motherfucker is hardly going to play fair. This is total war. I can respect that. Now, let me tell you a little about me.”
Steven listened as Bud opened up—really opened up—for the first time. Turned out, Bud’s father wasn’t just a lawyer but owned a law firm that did legal consulting for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Bud, himself, had done well in the stock market, buying, selling, and trading. He was pre-law at Metro, paying for it himself. He didn’t like taking money from his father, though the two were close. He’d gotten a job at the Coffee Clutch as a hobby but also to finance his trading and to hang out in the center of Denver. He had an expensive loft near Coors Field in the lower downtown district.
That made Steven raise his eyebrows. Bud was paying at least three thousand dollars a month for a place like that in Lodo. There was a lot more to William “Bud” Novak than first met the eye. Suddenly, Steven was immensely glad Tessa had listened to her gut—maybe Bud had been a douchebag of epic proportions, but now Steven was grateful to have him along for the ride.
“How much money do you have again?” Bud asked Tessa.
“Fifteen hundred dollars.”
Bud sucked in a breath and then talked a mile a minute. “Give me a thousand of that. I have Fortune 500 stocks that have dipped. They’re bound to go up and go up big. With your permission, I can then move that money around to work on building back your Hoard. You can stay at my place until you get back on your feet. As for your families, my dad’s law firm has a personal security force. I can hire two teams, one for Tessa’s family and one for your mom, Steven. We’ll call that an interest-free loan. The security teams can keep an eye out for any shady shit going down.”
Steven shook his head. “No, we can’t ask that much from you. I won’t accept charity.”
Bud rolled his eyes. “I’m your vassal, man. This isn’t charity. This is me investing in you and your company ... er ... Primacy. And if you get big, we can see about you hiring on my dad’s law firm. You’re going to need a team of lawyers. I guarantee you that Mulk has a legal team. You can’t do shit in this world without lawyers. We’re the glue that holds civilization together. At least human civilization.”
“Bullshit,” Tessa broke in. “What do you call a thousand lawyers buried at the bottom of the ocean?”
Bud finished the joke. “A good start. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. But you’re going to need contracts, a will, definitely a will, and a bunch of other legal stuff.”
“What do you get out of this?” Steven asked, eyes narrowing.
“A percentage of your Hoard,” Bud said like a lawyer. “And adventure, man. Fucking adventure.” He grinned and leaned forward, elbows resting on the tabletop. “This is just too awesome.”
“You worked at the Coffee Clutch as a hobby?” Tessa wondered. “What the hell?”
Bud smirked. “I wanted to see how the other ninety-eight percent lived. You guys have it rough. Believe me, it was educational. And the coffee was good.”
“Alright,” Steven finally agreed, “but we can’t stay at your place. If we go there, there’s a good chance it’ll be destroyed. I keep losing houses to Mulk. My apartment burned down. The Lookout Mountain Aerie was blown to pieces, and the Colorado Springs Aerie got hit by lava.”
“Lava?” Bud asked. “Like molten rock?”
Steven nodded. “Yeah. Portal magic. Don’t ask.”
“Okay, don’t really want fucking lava in my pad,” Bud said. “Then again, it’s only stuff. Stuff is temporary. But what you’re trying to build, Steven? That’s an empire. And empires last.”
Tessa reached out and took Steven’s hand. “We could crash in the loft upstairs. Donny didn’t pay his rent, right, Bud?”
Bud raised his eyebrows. “Yeah, poor Donny. Can’t get that monkey off his back. He took off a week ago. You could go up there. With three of you, it’ll be tight, but with your arrangement, you might like that. I’ll clear it with Eduardo.”
Tessa frowned. “I have to go home, Steven, to check on my brother. I know it’s dangerous, but it’s something I need to do.”
“You do that,” Bud said, “while I invest your money and take care of getting the security teams set up. But if Mulk hasn’t hit your families, there’s a good chance he doesn’t know about them. Either way, let’s play it safe.”
“What about seeing us transform?” Steven asked.
“Man, it’s pretty fucking clear you’re not playing with me. You’re a good guy, Cool Whipp. I can trust you. I have good instincts about shit like this.”
Tessa gave Steven a secret smile. “I have good instincts too. This is all going to work out fine.”
Steven wanted to believe that, but even with Bud’s help, they were still in trouble. And after forking over a grand for investments, they only had five hundred dollars to their name. How far would that go? Not far enough.
Steven closed his eyes. He needed to sleep, both he and Aria needed another healing spell, and they all needed a good dose of Animus.
Once the finished their drinks, they left the Coffee Clutch. Bud went one way, and Steven with his Escort went another.
The sky was blue and hopeful.
But a storm was coming. Steven could feel it. They needed an edge to fight Mulk. But who, other than Bud, could help them?
And why had his shield spell failed during the fight with the Terror Trio? He just didn’t know. They all had a world of shit to learn but no time to learn it.
Chapter Six
TESSA TOOK A TURN DRIVING the big orange Bronco when they headed to her house. She’d taken a buttload
of Advil, so the pain of her burn was better, but her leg still throbbed in time with her heart. Keeping on top of it was getting harder as the minutes passed. Good thing that the tie-dye dress hid the bandages on her legs.
They pulled off the freeway and wound their way through the backstreets until she pulled up in front of the duplex in Englewood. A nice little red brick place with a quaint lawn—the grass mostly yellow—and neatly manicured bushes out front.
She was never more grateful for their neighbors. The other part of the duplex was owned by two huge police officers, Bart and Barry. On many a night, Tessa and her mom had called them to investigate strange noises.
Problem was, Bart and Barry would have no chance against even one Dragonsoul if Mulk decided to send in a hit squad.
Steven rode shotgun and Aria was in the back seat, but she was leaning forward to talk with them. “There is a good chance Mulk will not involve civilians. He’ll have to explain any murder of humans to the Primes in surrounding territories. Yes, Mulk is powerful and has the Denver Police Department in his pocket, but civilian murders can get messy, especially in America. In India, it’s easier to make people disappear.”
Fear shook through Tessa. The idea of her family disappearing made her sick to her stomach. “I’ll go in quick. I just want to check on them. Make sure they’re okay, and that they know I’m okay. I’m so grateful to Bud for his security team.”
“Fucking Bud,” Steven said in wonder. “Who knew he had all those secrets?”
“Yeah,” Tessa agreed, “that was some Undercover Boss shit right there. I had no idea. I knew he came from money—you can’t dress like he does unless you have some seriously deep pockets—but him working at the Coffee Clutch as a hobby? Fuck me.”
“Later,” Steve whispered. “Park down the street.”
Tessa dreaded the walk in on her hurt, burned leg. But she pulled over anyway. She needed to do this. For her. For her family.
“I’ll stay and keep watch,” Aria said. “If you are attacked, I can take them in the rear.”
“He said we’ll do that later,” Tessa joked. “Jeez, Aria, you’re such a dirty girl.”
Aria was speechless for a second, and then she bubbled out, “I am not a dirty girl. I enjoy sex, and that doesn’t make me dirty. It makes me a Dragonsoul.”
“Good point,” Tessa breathed. “Sex positive! Come on, Steven, I’ll need to lean on you to get there.”
Steven helped her down the sidewalk past lawns still withered from winter. Green shoots were doing their best to break through the brown.
The smells of her neighborhood greeted Tessa: the lawns, someone cooking a roast, and someone else had a fire in their fireplace—a plume of gray smoke drifted up from a nearby roof. For a minute, she wished for simpler days, when she’d been a normal girl growing up in a normal suburb. Now? Everything had changed. Nothing was simple.
Tessa kept an eye out for any strange looking characters, both on the ground and in the sky. She might not be able to see a dragon coming because she was human, and Dragonsouls had powerful magic to hide themselves. Steven would see, however. He would be able to stop them. And if he needed help, Aria was still in the Bronco parked just down the way.
Tessa keyed through the front door. In the living room, her brother sat in his wheelchair in front of a big TV, playing a video game. On good days, he had the muscular control to kick some ass playing any number of games from Mass Effect to Call of Duty to Fortnite. He liked them all right, but he enjoyed some indie games more. His favorites were Undertale, Little Nightmares, Inside, and Albino Lullaby. That was his favorite. It was so horrific and awesome and strange!
Jared had a tiny, withered body, but a large head with big expressive eyes and soft dark hair. When he smiled, it was like he smiled with his whole body.
Jared spun and paused the game. His eyes lit up when he saw his sister. “Tess! Well, you’ve finally come to visit. Sure, you get a boyfriend, a girlfriend, and a new life and you forget all about your long-lost brother.”
Tessa felt her eyes flood with tears, but she laughed them away. He was kidding. He was always joking around with her, but the idea of abandoning him, or losing him, made her get emotional. She kissed his cheek.
“Ugh,” Jared said. “None of that mushy stuff. Introduce me to your man-child.”
Steven walked up and put out a hand.
Jared took it and they shook. Then he cleared his throat. “And just what are your intentions for my sister?”
Steven grinned. “I think we’re pretty much married at this point. I can’t imagine my life without her.”
Jared did his best to look distant and unimpressed. “Uh huh. Now what of children? I would like a niece and a nephew, one of each. Can you make that happen?”
“Trying my best!” Steven said and then blushed. “Damn, shouldn’t joke about sex with my girlfriend’s kid brother.”
Jared chuckled. “Damn, probably shouldn’t curse either.” He turned to Tessa. “Well, Tessa, I like him. He just might be a keeper.”
“He definitely is,” Tessa said. “You two talk. I’m going to check on Abby.”
She had ulterior motives. She wanted to check every room to make sure no one was there. Yes, she was being paranoid, but this was her family.
Right then, Tessa knew they had to defeat Mulk. Jared wouldn’t be safe until Steven was the Dragonsoul Prime of the Great Plains. Then, with their Hoard and vassals, they could stop anything bad from happening to the ones they loved.
Tessa found Abby in the back of the duplex, in her sewing room, embroidering next to a window where sunlight shined down. The room smelled of the flowery air freshener plugged into the wall. Abby rocked back and forth in a rocking chair. Tessa sat down on a little colorful bench.
Abby was two years older and so pretty it hurt, though in a far more traditional way. While Tessa had liked getting tattoos and piercings, Abby went the conventional route with unshaved hair and bangs. She loved her boyfriend, and they had a very monogamous relationship that worked well for them. Abby and Tessa couldn’t have been more different, but they’d remained close, respecting each other’s decisions.
Abby looked up and a smile broke across her face like a sunrise, transforming her from beautiful to stunning. “Tessa,” she said, before standing up with a squeal and throwing her arms around Tessa, drawing her into a deep hug. After a moment, she pulled away, holding Tessa at arm’s length as she regarded her. “You look so good, sis,” she said, “but also different. Changed.” The smile slipped just a hair, then returned full force a second later. “It’s love, isn’t it? You met someone.”
Tessa only sighed—Abby always was good at reading her like a book. She dropped onto a nearby stool while Abby took the rocking chair once again. “Yes,” Tessa admitted rather sheepishly, “I met a boy. Steven.” She glanced down, fidgeting restlessly. “He’s changed my world, Abby.” Before she knew it, she was spilling the beans on Steven, on how cool he was. How sweet. How generous and caring.
“So, you’re really serious about this Steven?” her sister asked.
Tessa nodded, grinned, then tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Serious isn’t strong enough. It’s more than that. It’s like he’s opened a doorway into a whole other world for me. I’ve been studying ... I’ve never been more focused. It’s like magic.” She had to smile at herself. Her life had literally become magical, and she’d seen doorways into other worlds on top of the St. Vrain Aerie.
“So are we talking marriage here?” Abby asked.
“Maybe,” Tessa admitted. “It’s only been a couple of weeks, but I already feel married. I feel like this is forever.”
Abby looked genuinely surprised. “That’s huge talk coming from you. You’re not exactly ... the monogamous type. Would he be okay if you strayed?”
“That’s the thing,” Tessa said. “I don’t feel like I need to. And it’s not monogamy we’re talking about here ... there’s another woman with us, Aria. Between the two
of them, I can’t imagine I would ever feel unsatisfied. No, things are going really well.”
They were quiet for a minute, Abby searching her face. “There’s something else, though,” she finally said. “There’s something bothering you. Eating at you. Something big.” She frowned, the wheels in her head clearly turning. “You’re worried about us,” Abby finally said. “Are you in some kind of trouble? Are we?”
Damn she was good. Tessa had to edge around the truth. “Maybe. Abby, we don’t know yet. Just keep the doors locked, and if you see anything out of the ordinary, take it seriously.”
“See something, say something?” Abby asked.
“That’s right,” Tessa said. “And feel free to call Bart and Barry. You know how much they love to act manly around us poor, fragile women.”
Abby rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I know, I know. I think they both thought they’d be dating us not a month after moving in. At first I thought they might be gay, but no, not gay. They can’t stop checking us out.”
Tessa eased herself off the stool. Her burned leg screamed again, but she didn’t wince. She had to keep up appearance as best she could. She kept a straight face as she knelt and hugged her sister in her rocking chair. “Stay alert. I can’t say more, but keep Mom and Jared safe.”
Abby nodded. “I will. Now, let’s meet the boyfriend.”
Tessa watched proudly as Steven greeted Abby. They talked for a bit, even Jared did, keeping his game paused. That spoke volumes. Steven was confident without being arrogant, he was polite without being weak, and when he smiled, it was genuine. By the time they left, both Abby and Jared were smitten with him.
The door closed behind them, and Tessa fell against Steven. “Let’s get back to the Coffee Clutch. My leg ... fuck ... Steven, it hurts.”
She was feeling awful, but her family was safe. And soon Bud would have his security team keeping watch. Throw in Bart and Barry, and things might turn out okay.
Then again, with Jared’s disease, death had always been a threat. He was the product of a one-night stand after Tessa’s father died, so technically, Jared was her half-brother, but it never felt like that. Jared’s father was good with child support, but he couldn’t handle the responsibility of raising a special needs son, so he wasn’t around much. Sometimes, Tessa worried that Jared had too much “girl” around him, and she tried to butch it up when she was with him.