Love of A Dragon (Exalted Dragons Book 1)

by K. T. Stryker

  “You’ll probably see me in the shower,” I stammered as he wiggled his eyebrows, “I mean, in the bathroom. Ugh, you know what I mean, now go wash the stink off and stop grinning, you idiot.” His cackle floated back to me as he disappeared around the corner of corridor that led to the student dormitories.

  “Do you want to tell me something, Care-Bear?” David’s face was a careful blank, but his eyes danced with amusement.

  “Shut up.” He scoffed at me and followed Clayton towards our rooms. Simi arched an eyebrow and handed me her tablet so I could review the route I’d taken and my vitals at each of the check points I’d passed.

  “That was the longest training chase on record that I can see. Although, I’ll have to look it up in the archives to be sure.” Simi grinned at me. “You’re such a badass. I can’t wait until you swear in; I’m going to make you the scariest thing to come out of the Lamiae, like, ever.” She placed one coffee-colored hand on my arm. “You did really well. I know you won’t do it out here in front of the guys, but in your room? You’ve earned a victory dance.” I chuckled and leaned into her.

  “Once I can feel my legs again, I’ll be sure to do that.” I said goodbye and went to my dorm, keeping my pace steady and making sure I didn’t favor my aching right knee, which was jarred and painful from my last drop. I’d mistimed the last step and almost blown the kneecap. Weakness wasn’t permitted among the Lamiae, and us students were careful to show ourselves to be capable to face the demons we aimed to eradicate. I wanted to graduate top of my class just like David was about to. Those who scored the highest marks were given highest priority in assignments and the best hunters with which to train. I had top marks in every subject; from History, to Chemistry, to Vampire Anatomy. I wasn’t about to let a bad landing screw it up for me.

  I stripped down to my bra and panties, and iced my knee while I pulled the course up on my laptop and reviewed my weakest moments. Aside from my last drop from roof to ground level, I had three other major slows, all in places where I had to make a choice. I opened a scheduling tab and reserved a few blocks of time in the reflexes chamber. Quick on my feet, but slow to decide. Sounded like me, all right.

  I took the ice pack off my knee and threw it back in the freezer compartment of my first aid cabinet in the corner of my room. I took out my Xanax, and slipped a single pill into my pocket; out of habit more than necessity, since I hadn’t had a panic attack I couldn’t control in months. I wrapped my knee with an Ace bandage and put on sweats to wear to the shower, so the bandage wouldn’t be visible.

  David and Clay were done with their showers and were primping in front of the mirror when I arrived. Between them, they had as much hair and skin product as Simi, and she was a theatrical genius and a master of disguise.

  “Hurry it up, slow-poke, or we’ll have to eat without you, and you know, the cool kid table isn’t cool when you’re the only one sitting there.” I flipped David off and walked away without answering. Chances were they’d still be doing their hair when I got out, and he knew it.

  David was just packing up his hygiene kit when I stepped out; back in my sweats, with my wet hair soaking the back of my shirt. He tossed me his brush and I smoothed the wet tendrils into a respectable ponytail at my crown, stealing some of his moisturizer for my face and hands before we walked out together. A couple of younger students shot daggers at me as we passed them in the hall, but my skin was thick when it came to other women’s hatred. It came with the territory, being raised alongside God’s gift to women. Sure, he had chocolate eyes that looked right through you, a six-foot frame under the build of an all-American, and a perpetual tan, courtesy of his Brazilian heritage. Okay, so he was bloody beautiful, and sometimes, he was a little too aware of it.

  But David wasn’t just my best friend; he was also my big brother. When I arrived at his house, I couldn’t speak. I was so little, and the horror of watching my parents mutilated and killed for sport was more than I could process at the age of three. He was only one year older than me, but even then; he’d protected me and kept me safe. When I was old enough, David’s parents; my new family, had explained the truth behind my memories and nightmares. That was when I learned that vampires were real. It was also when my foster father showed me a photograph of a face I could never forget, no matter how hard I tried. This time though, the vampire’s eyes weren’t glowing red with hellfire like they were the night he visited my home: they were lifeless and clouded, his head lolling in a basket, severed from the rest of his body.

  David had held my hand, trying to protect me from the image, but it didn’t hurt to see the vampire’s death. I’d felt such a fierce joy that it frightened me. My foster parents were hunters, members of the Venatores Lamiae, an elite cadre started by the Roman church millennia before to observe, hunt, and eradicate the scourge of vampirism. David had always been the one to stand between me and the world. The more I stood on my own, the more he made me feel like I could do anything.

  I sighed, the ache in my knee was distracting and sharp. David didn’t say a word. He just put his arm around me, draping my arm over his shoulders. It took the weight off my knee while making it look like besties just being affectionate. Because Clayton and I had done so well, our practice times had been broadcasted through the bunker and gossiped about, thoroughly. David and I walking like a couple of drunks in the middle of the day wouldn’t even make them blink.

  “So, did you hear a pop, or are you just sore?” He asked as we sat across the table from Clay.

  “It twanged. Not a, full-on, pop.” Clay gaped at us then muttered something under his breath as David got back up to get us lunch. “Clayton, what’s up?” I asked.

  “You ran the course injured, and you still kicked my ass.”

  “Well, it helps that I treat it like it’s not practice every time. It’s not you chasing me; it’s him. Pretty damn good motivation, if you think about it.”

  “Okay, that’s messed up, and probably exactly what I should be doing.”

  “I’m going to ask them to randomize the course again. Will you back me up?”

  “But, we’re just getting used to it. Oh; I get it; you’re a slave driver, but yes I’ll back you up. You really want to blow the records out of the water, don’t you?”

  “That’s not what I was aiming for. I went over my run today, and every time I had to make a choice, I froze. I’m not like you and David; I don’t even know anyone but you guys, Simi, and my teachers. I freeze; I have panic attacks. I’m afraid they’ll stick me in a library and never give me a chance.” David slid a tray in front of me, with a salad big enough for two people, and fragrant garlic bread.

  “You haven’t had a panic attack in a long time. You’re unique here, and everybody agrees that you’re special Care-Bear,” he said. I just rolled my eyes at him.

  “Girls who tell me I’m worthless sing my praises to you, David. They don’t think I’m special. They want you to like them.” Clay nodded, shrugging when David glared at him.

  “Sorry bro. As your wingman, I can tell you she’s on point. You two are scary together. I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like with you guys running the place someday.” He winked at me and I had to smile back. Clay’s positivity was unusual around here, where every day was life or death, by necessity. “So, are we ready for some beach time?” David beat on the table like a drum and grinned.

  “I’m already packed. How about you, squirt?” Clay chimed in.

  “Yes, I’m packed. And if you call me squirt again, I’m going to break your legs.” I drawled. I was as excited to get away as the guys, but nervous. It was the first time we were getting to go away without constant adult supervision, and I was anxious about losing my safety net and being around strangers at the same time. But Malibu sounded so amazing, and I couldn’t wait to spend some time on the beach. Once David was apprenticed, he’d be up mostly at night. Clay and I had already decided that when he started night training, we would too, which meant a serious limi
t on time to bask in the sun.

  I glanced at David out of the corner of my eye and thought about what Clay had said. I had no intention of coming in second to anyone in the Venatores Lamiae, but it made my chest feel tight, and my stomach heat up, to think of spending my near future even closer to David. I’d no longer be able to stand one step behind and watch him forget I existed when we weren’t alone.

  After we had finished eating, David snuck me into the nurses’ station without our monitor; Simi, or any of the teachers seeing us, and cajoled the nurse into giving me a cortisone injection for my knee. She barely seemed to notice I was there, despite me being the patient, until I asked David to leave so I could talk to her about girl stuff. When he left, she gave me a death stare, until I pulled out some tears, just enough to make her feel guilty. I looked even younger than my seventeen years on my best day. My glassy eyes and red nose only knocked a couple more years off that. By the time I left, she’d handed over an additional injection “for an adult to give me if I needed it”. I also asked for more Xanax, and oral anti-inflammatories, which I’d add to my kit for emergencies.

  Clay and David were both waiting outside the triage when I walked out. My pain had almost completely subsided already. David put an arm around me and I let him, even though I didn’t need the support anymore. After all, who was I to turn down the support of my best friend?

  Chapter 2

  The entire class was buzzing with the conversations of twenty students as we all tried to guess what was keeping Eldritch. Our Anthropology professor was never late, and there were already speculations that he’d been called out on a hunt and wasn’t coming back. But Eldritch was far too old to be actively hunting vampires, even if the thought of him being hospitalized did make most of us smile. I was set to be valedictorian of my class, top marks, never late or missing homework, and even I couldn’t escape his foul temper. He swept into the classroom, and there was an audible groan from all of us at the sight of the black storm cloud in his expression. “Two more days ‘til vacation”, I thought. “Two more days”.

  “I have a special treat for you today, class.” Eldritch spat out the words, literally, so that a fine mist settled on my desk and books. I forced myself to ignore it and not brush it away. I took comfort in the fact that it probably was going to be a treat for us. He seemed pretty unhappy, and he hated anything his students thought was fun. “I present to you,” Eldritch continued, “Signora Borgia, master of the eleventh order of magic and elder of the Venatores Lamiae.”

  A collective gasp went up around the room as a slender, pale woman glided to the front of the classroom and bowed at her neck. This was the closest I’d ever been to a true legend. Signora Borgia was a hunter and magic-user. According to my textbooks, she’d been born to a powerful Italian family of hunters, during the Renaissance. She looked no more than twenty-five, which meant she was an incredibly powerful sorceress. Magic and psychic powers like her telepathy were incredibly rare; it meant that those with talents were the most valuable members of the Venatores. Signora Borgia was the most renowned of them all.

  She looked at each of us in turn, and my throat went dry as I waited for her to look at me. When her eyes finally lit on my face, I felt an instant recognition, even before I heard her voice in my head Startled by the invasive sensation, I felt something like a door slamming shut inside me. It was followed by the impression that someone was pushing at it from the outside. My heart raced and I shook, but my jaw locked and I couldn’t speak or tell her to stop. My foster parents had explained that my mind worked differently from others. Until now, I didn’t understand what they’d been trying to say.

  Her face registered surprise, and she stepped up to my desk, touching my forehead with one long, cool finger. She traced a series of symbols across the fevered skin above my eyebrows, starting at the right temple and moving across to end at the left.

  “I am Dominique, Caroline. It is fascinating to meet someone so young who has raw, untrained psychic ability,” she projected telepathically, her voice an echo inside my head that gave me goosebumps. “I regret frightening you. Please come out, I’m not here to harm you.” Her being washed over me, entreating me to be calm, but I didn’t know how to control what I was doing. I had built my psychic walls in a terrifying instant, unaware of what I was doing. When Venatores doctors had noticed this ability in me, they had called it traumatic disassociation. They said is wasn’t a valid psychic ability, but a one-time herculean effort to save myself. I wasn’t excited about proving them wrong in the middle of class.

  The spot where Dominique had touched my forehead began to cool, in swirls and symbols that followed the spell, or whatever she had done to me. I felt my jaw unlock gradually and my walls melted away like ice. It wasn’t at all like the violent tearing down that I would have expected. I took a deep breath and thanked her, using her telepathic connection. Dominique rewarded me with a smile that warmed me to my toes.

  “Now that Caroline is finished interrupting class, let’s carry on with the lesson, shall we?” Professor Eldritch’s acerbic tone made Dominique’s eyes fly wide, and then she winked at me.

  “Oh, I agree, Professor. In fact, I’d like Caroline to join me at the front for a demonstration She’s going to be my guinea pig, and help me teach a vital skill that every hunter should know.” Eldritch motioned for me to join the sorceress at the front of the class; his jaw was working under his skin like he was grinding hard enough to break his own teeth.

  “Now, can you explain to the class what happened when I touched your mind?” Dominique asked. I hesitated, unsure of how to explain without speaking of my parents, a secret that only David and his parents were privy to. I’d prefer the whole school think I was weird and shy and a nerd. I wasn’t sure I could stand pity or fear from them.

  “I. Um, I had a really bad experience as a child. The kind of thing that no one can really describe without making the room super uncomfortable, so, I won’t go there. But, when it happened, I was little… barely talking in full sentences, little.” I cleared my throat. “So, when I was found after the bad thing happened, I wasn’t speaking. The doctors called it ‘catatonic’,” I shared, looking straight at Dominique, and pretending the class wasn’t even there. “But my foster brother seemed to always know what I wanted, how I was feeling, and what I wanted to say, even though I was silent for a long time.”

  “You shared a psychic connection?” Dominique questioned.

  “That’s what my foster parents guessed, but we were never sure. I went to therapy and tore down the walls that I built to protect my mind, over a long time, one brick at a time.” I swallowed hard. “I threw them back up the moment I felt you in my head. How did you get them down so easily?” The sheer power I’d felt pushing at me was terrifying. I questioned my right to be at a school with kids so brave and ready to fight monsters that I couldn’t even imagine without giving myself nightmares.

  “That, in fact, is exactly why I am here.” Dominique smiled at me like I’d just discovered a new element of magic. “The first thing any student should learn, even before they learn to hunt, is how to protect their own minds from intrusion. Vampires are highly developed predators. They have the upper hand in almost every situation, and many can even infiltrate minds, like I did when I entered the room. I’m going to spend a few days with you, teaching you how to keep your minds safe.” She motioned me to my chair, and I sank to the wooden seat with shaky legs.

  Eldritch sat in the corner behind his desk, and I glanced at him when I felt his eyes on me. His face was unreadable as he watched me, but the scrutiny was enough to make my palms damp, and I fingered the pill in my pocket like a touchstone.

  Signora Borgia explained the visual of mental blocks. She said we each had to have them ready at our command, without putting any thought into it. She also explained that when shields were automatic, but not cultivated and practiced, like mine, they were much easier to break down. To prevent this, she gave us instructions for building our
strongest, best mental shields.

  Class had gone almost an hour over before Eldritch finally released us. I was gathering my books and waiting for the crowd pressing out the door to thin so I could make my escape, when Dominique and Eldritch approached my desk.

  Dominique addressed me. “Caroline, I would like to give you one extra bit of homework before you go. You are the only student in the class who can accomplish it, and I feel that it would be of use to you right away to have it.” I nodded, and she handed me a notebook. “This is my first spell book. I was your age when I started to exhibit talents, and I was obsessed with writing down everything I learned, because I had no one to teach me.” I looked at the ancient leather binding in awe. “It was a different time then, and I have no doubt you will surpass me in time, given some instruction and time to realize your strength.” She opened the vellum pages to a section marked with a red silk ribbon. “This spell will help you bring anyone back to themselves. If another controls them or if they are hysterical with fear or even rage this spell, done correctly, will bring them back to their rational mind.” I read the words silently, mouthing them as I did.