I didn’t start the fire but every night it eats me alive, burns me from the inside out wondering. If I had just been a better son, gotten better grades, tried harder to be more obedient, would my father not have taken his own life that night? Would he not have used his dragon fire to set our home ablaze and all my dreams with it?
The streets of Vermillion City are cold and mean at the best of times. But the asphalt is no home for an orphan dragon shifter. It gave me no love, no nurturing or understanding. There was only one thing it gave me. Strength. Strength was my only consolation as I lost all ability to feel, to love and to fear.
Year after year my powers grew, but in a world where only the strongest claimed a piece of the meat, I couldn’t grow fast enough, couldn’t beat down the competition quick enough.
The scars that lined my back were a harsh reminder of how many times I’d almost become dinner for an orc, a pack of wolves or worse. I’d survived by hopping from house to house.
Those rat-infested dwellings were abandoned by humans after the great reveal. They’d fled the cities, preferring not to live among us magicals. Many of their kind moved to separate human colonies where they wouldn’t have to compete with a vampire for a bank job or a troll for construction work.
I almost envy them, those humans. Even without power, they had something we magicals never did. A genuine sense of unity, love and care for their fellow humans, regardless of race. The humans would never leave one of their young to fend for themselves, to fight tooth and nail just to eat.
I did what I had to do to survive. For better or worse I’m alive, and now as a grown dragon I have my full power. A power the likes of which most shifters would pray to their lucky stars to obtain.
One look in my eyes was all it took to strike fear in the heart of any who dared to challenge me. They would see my flame, turn tail and scurry away into the night. When I took to the sky, I was ruler, I was king and all who saw me knew it.
For years I’d worked as a bounty hunter, taking out the scum law enforcement were too chickenshit to take on themselves. One job went wrong, and I ended up in here on some bogus murder charge. I didn’t give a damn what they said. Riley Ashton was a serial killer. I did the world a favor taking him out and no one in the world could convince me otherwise.
At least one good thing came out of my incarceration. The minute I ended up in this shit hole, taking over was a breeze. I’d helped put a big chunk of the more ruthless inmates in here, and the weaker magicals looked to me as some sort of savior. Someone to keep the ‘C’ and ‘D’ classes magicals from getting their necks cut open by the more bloodthirsty ‘A’ and ‘B’ Classes.
Life as a peacekeeper in Pembroke Pen wasn’t easy. Blink and you’d get world war fucking five between centaurs and golems, or shadow people and hell hounds. Look away for a second and you’d get bloody warfare in the whole damn prison.
True, I was a prisoner just like the rest of these scumbags. But unlike them, I was the alpha in charge of my block. Every witch, reaper and ghoul on this block answered to me and looked to me to keep them safe when the man-eating monsters came rushing through the halls hungry for brains, or when their own kind turned on them for breaking one of their culture’s ridiculous laws.
Even with days and nights as chaotic as mine, nothing could have prepared me for this level of shit that was about to hit the fan. Now that crazy bitch of a warden was promising freedom for killing some fae girl? This had trouble written all over it. Now she was here in my cell, rampaging about the place like a bull in a china shop.
“Okay so are you ready to explain what the hell I’m doing in your cell? Hello. Earth to Dominion?” The little fae said, throwing herself against the Marilyn Monroe poster on the wall and folding her arms.
“Calm down and shut the hell up. I’m asking the questions here. Why did Blackwater put a hit on you?”
“Well hell if I know,” she shrugged. “You break a woman’s nose and suddenly, she’s telling a prison full of magicals to kill you dead. A bit of an overreaction if I’ve ever seen one.”
“Wait, you mean you actually beat Blackwater?” This girl was a complete psycho.
But you had to admit, for a crazy bitch she sure was something to look at. Something and then some. Her hair was wild, a unique mix of pink and mellow copper. It was as glossy as it was long, sweeping over the fullness of her ass. Her features were delicately feminine and flawless. I knew fae were known for their beauty, but this one was memorizing in a whole other way. As if she were one part angel, one part sex goddess.
Fire starter or not, with hips that curvy even I was tempted to take a bite. A girl like this you could fuck for decades without tiring of her, if she didn’t kill you first. You could see it in the wildness of her eyes. She was a wild one, untamed, fast and strong.
“Yes, I did take her down. You sound surprised.” She jerked her thumb up, gesturing for me to meet her gaze. “Done ogling me yet, dragon boy?”
And did I mention she was annoying as hell?
“In your dreams. Do I look like I’ve got a taste for crazy to you?” I replied, throwing my head back.
“No, but clearly you’ve got a death wish. What the hells with you waltzing in and stealing my meal card?”
“I want information. Now.” I moved in on her, boxing her against the wall, my larger frame completely eclipsing hers.
She took one look at my chest inches from her face and with a grin she said, “Hmm, I like where this is going.”
“Just get to talking,” I snarled, wrapping my fingers around her arms so she couldn’t move. She narrowed her eyes and was about to say something, but I cut her off. “You’re a fae, and yet I see you’re an ‘A’ class. How’s that possible? What, are you half wolf or something?”
“Um no,” she said with growing impatience. “I’m fae, alpha fae, thank you very much. And I just so happen to be the alpha of a pack of fae.” I released her arms, throwing my head back to give a hearty laugh.
“First of all. Don’t fairies come in Frolics? And alpha fae? That’s a joke, right? Fae don’t come in alphas, sweetheart. Vampires can be alphas, shifters can be alphas, hell even angels can be alphas, but when since can a fairy….”
Without warning, the little fae’s fist came hurling towards my face with the force of an angry ox, but I caught it between my fingers before it could land on my cheek.
“Me and my men and tough as hell. We don’t come in frolics. We come in packs and don’t you call me fairy, Dragon boy.” She bit out, leering up at me.
Instead of replying to her I held her hand tight in mine and sent a bit of heat from my flame coursing through that delicate flesh of hers, not enough to leave damage, but more than enough to hurt.
She threw herself back, crashing into the shelf that hung on the wall. Three books and my cell phone went crashing to the floor.
“Akk! What the hell! You can use your powers here? What about the poison?” She squealed, shaking her hand in pain. Her eyes glimpsed my phone, and I snatched it up before she could get any ideas. Cell phones were strictly contraband in here along with anything else that would give a prisoner contact with the outside world. This Fae was pure trouble, and I’d be a fool to let her get her grimy mitts on it.
“You get used to the poison and in time you’ll be able to use some of your power in here.” I continued, shoving my phone into my pants pocket. “Which brings me to my next point. In this cell block, I’m the alpha, Little fae. You’re a member of cell block five, which means unfortunately for the both of us, I’m in charge of you. That means when I say jump, you say how high.”
“Bullshit.” She said, before flipping me off and turning to storm her way toward the open cell door.
“Wanna bet?” I grabbed her by the arm. “You so much as touch that cell door, you’re not going to like what happens next.”
Her lips curled up into a devilish grin. She yanked her arm free and then strolled over to the door, swinging her hips from side to side as
she went. She then outstretched one hand and gently swiped it over the metal bars.
“Sayonara sucker.” Before she could take one step through the door, I grabbed both her arms, threw her overhead and landed her hard on the cold hard ground. I then maneuvered myself on top of her to look her in the eyes. Her furious eyes burned into my calm ones.
“I will say this to you one more time. In this cell block, I’m the alpha and when I speak you obey. If you decide not to oblige, I will show you the true meaning of pain, Little fae.”
Her eyes sparkled with excitement.
“Is that a threat or a promise?” Just then I felt her soft hand caress across my cheek, lighting my every nerve ending ablaze.
Confident little shit, maybe a bit too much. Who the hell was this girl and why did my heart race so much just from being on top of her? I’d fucked two fae for breakfast this morning. What’s so special about this one?
“You like pain?” I asked, and she nodded once, biting her lower lip. I grabbed her by the neck and squeezed tight, tight enough that there would be no misunderstandings between us ever again. Her pulse roared beneath my clenched hand and her eyes flew open in surprise. I then leaned in close enough that I could feel the warmth of her breath over my lips.
“Do not flirt with me, little fae. I am not your friend. I am not your lover. I’m your watch dog. I will not let you cause trouble in here for the other inmates. I will not have my block turned upside down and let weaker magicals be decimated while the more powerful ones try to kill you. Understand?”
I released her throat, and she coughed, her pretty eyes glaring daggers in my direction. If looks could kill, I’d be dead right now.
“You do realize that I’m going to kill you for that right?” She said with another cough, the smile returning to her face but not touching her eyes as she stilled beneath me.
“Your welcome to try, little fae.” I rose to my feet, and she followed after me. After me was good. The sooner she learned to submit, the better.
“Hmm, so you’re the big bad dragon here to enforce the law? You do realize you’re an inmate just like I am, right? I’m curious, what are you in for?” She raised her finger to twirl it in her long pink hair.
“I’m a bounty hunter.” I replied plainly. “I kill vamps, wolves, escaped basilisks and the like. Sometimes in my line of work shit happens”
“Basilisks, ooh interesting. What about wendigos?” she asked.
Wendigos, she would be crazy enough to take one of those beasts on. Half deer, half demon, all flesh-eating evil.
“I’ve never fought one of those.” I cupped my chin trying to remember.
She strolled over to me, swinging her hips and fluttering her long fluffy lashes as she went. She then folded her arms and rested both of them on my chest to glance up at me with the eyes of a cute little cheerleader who’d just put down her pom-poms.
“Well, I eat wendigo for breakfast. So, the next time you decide to throw me to the floor like a little rag doll, just remember that. And just fair warning between alphas. I don’t take kindly to men who try to boss me around. So, if I were you, I’d sleep with one eye open.” She flicked the pad of her index finger over my nose and shot me a playful wink.
I grabbed that finger before she could fully retract it and she didn’t flinch for a second.
“Is that so? Well, between alphas, this place you’ve just waltzed into like a little lost princess is no castle. This place is like hell itself and there are a lot of weaker magicals in here who can’t afford to get caught in the crossfires of you and that bitch Blackwater’s games.”
“And what can I do about it? I didn’t ask for this stupid game of hers.”
“I’ll tell you what you can do, little fae. Keep your head the fuck down and stay the hell out of trouble and when I give you an order, you obey. Simple as pie. Get the picture?”
“Yes, Mr. Dragon, sir!” She said with a salute that made me sure this crazy fae had got just about everything but the picture, or maybe she was just mocking me. I pulled her meal card from my pocket and handed it back to her.
There was no doubt she was powerful, maybe even the most powerful Fae I’d ever come across. But in this cell block I was the law and if she wanted to fight, I would have to break her apart inch by inch and bone by bone until she knew who her alpha truly was.
There was just one minor problem. By the look of that sweet ass of hers skipping out my cell doors and merrily prancing down the hall, I might enjoy breaking her a bit more than I should.
CHAPTER FIVE
Jessy
Turned out the poison slowly seeping in through the vents was doing more than just blocking my power. It was making me exhausted. I needed some time to get used to it before I would be in any position to go looking for Michael. So, After I left the dragon’s cell I decided to make my way to my own cell. This way I could rest a bit and get used to my new surroundings.
I walked through block five and almost every cell on the block was empty. I imagined their residents were off eating dinner or playing basketball or whatever it was you did in here to keep yourself sane. I approached my cell doors and walked past the silver bars. I knew it was mine thanks to the big red ‘66’ on the plaque right at the entrance.
The room was dark and dingy with a toilet to one corner and a dirty old sink and dusk covered mirror hung over it. There was an empty shelf on the wall next to the sink and a bed sat to the other end of the room.
At least the blankets on the bed looked clean and warm. And oh goodie, they even gave me a pillow. Warden Blackwater really did know how to spoil a girl.
My eyes trailed to the foot of the bed where a big cardboard box sat. There were some clothes and toiletries peeking out through the top. These were the only things I was allowed to have in here. Something to cover myself and some soap and deodorant so I didn’t stink.
How was Michael fearing in this place, I wondered. We were both used to having every luxury back at home. Was he eating well? Sleeping well? Had he made any friends? These were all the thoughts that raced through my mind with no one around to answer them.
I staggered towards the bed nearing falling over. I then cupped my forehead with my palm. The air is damn poison. It was making me so sick I could barely stop myself from toppling over.
I approached the bed and kicked off my shoes before burying myself under the blankets. It wasn’t late. It couldn’t have been more than eight or nine pm. But if I was going to find Michael and I was going to find him, I would need all the strength I could muster.
I relaxed my every muscle and closed my eyes. It normally took a few minutes for me to fall asleep but my body had never been exposed to the trauma of whatever toxin was now blowing into my lungs. So I was out like a light in seconds and before I knew it, my mind was left to wonder through the land of dreams.
***
The dining room walls were white and pretty with something made of gold everywhere you looked. It was on the walls, on the ceiling, and even on the floor. There was only one thing in this room that wasn’t pretty. Me. I was eight years old and this mansion was my cage.
I wrapped my little fingers around the edge of the wall, leaning my head to the side just enough to see around it without being seen. I couldn’t stay long, if someone caught me, I’d be hurt real bad. It wasn’t my place to watch him eat lunch or even to look at him. Mother would remind me often. But I wanted to see him. I lived to see him. I loved him and there he was.
Michael sat in the dining room with mother at his side. They both wore the prettiest clothes I never got to wear. They both sat on the fanciest chairs I was never allowed to sit on, at the nicest table I was never allowed to eat at. Michael may have been my twin brother, but I was not his equal.
A colorful spread of yummy looking meats and vegetables rested on the table before him and mother. It was more than any eight-year-old boy could ever eat alone. But it was all for him. Mother said a growing boy needed his nourishment, and she always made sur
e he got it. There were cakes, cookies, pies and everything else nice to eat resting on the table.
My stomach growled at the sight and my mouth watered.
If I could just have one, just one piece of meat it could stop this awful growling. I was so hungry.
I gripped my belly, hoping to stop the quakes. Would I be allowed to have the scraps this time? Just a little bite this time? Mommy caught me in her sights, and she turned up her nose as if she smelled something bad. The glare she shot me from the corner of her eye made one thing clear. No, I wouldn’t be getting any scraps.
“Be off you dirty little thing!” My mother cursed, leering at me, and I stumbled backward, tears forming in my eyes.
Michael, visibly upset, opened his mouth to argue in my defense. Her furious eyes shot to him and his lips fell silent from her chastising glare. He had no choice. He was just as scared of her as I was.
My brother snuck me another glance from his seat. The sadness in his eyes when they met mine silenced my belly’s loudest growl. He may have been the only loved child, but he was the only one who hated my raggedy clothes more than I did. The only one who felt my pain, my isolation and misery. But even then, he was powerless to help me beyond sneaking me a loaf of bread whenever he could. Each loaf was a gift from the only person who’d ever shown me love, the light in my darkness. Michael.
From my room in the drafty attic, I often stayed up at night wondering something. Michael and I were born fifteen minutes apart. So why was he the only one to be shown affection? Couldn’t I be allowed to have friends too? To go to parties? To go out to play and have fun? None of my girl cousins wore dirty clothes, so why did I? Were Michael and I that different?
Heavy footsteps stomped towards me and fear tore through me.
“Where the hell have you been? I’ve been looking everywhere for you?” A deep voice bellowed from behind, and I spun to gawk helplessly up at my towering monster of a father.
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