by Kim Cormack
Grey whispered in her ear, “I’m going to need another drink if you’re going to insist on thinking about that dick.”
She rolled her eyes and sparred, “Jealous?”
He pulled away, considered it and teased, “Maybe a little.”
Lexy playfully shoved him away and as she strolled back to the table, she jabbed, “You’ll get over it. You always do.”
“What did you just say?” Grey enquired as he caught up with her.
“Nothing important,” she quipped as she snatched the shot from in front of Tiberius and downed it.
Triad’s leader glanced over at her as she sat down beside Grey. Tiberius bit his lip and grinned as he stretched out his leg and began playing footsies with her. Lexy grinned at him as she countered by sliding her foot as far up his leg as she could reach.
Grey was laughing with Frost and it didn’t look like he’d noticed their flirtation until he turned to look at her, smiled and said, “You know I’m not letting you out of my sight tonight. There’s no point in entertaining those naughty thoughts.”
Their roles were ridiculously unfair. He could do whatever he wanted and her actions had to be monitored...This was the price of being a Dragon. Her Handler was always present to talk her down from the ledge. His job was to stop her dark impulses. She took a sip of her wine as she watched the dancers writhing in the light show in a sea of rising smoke. Everything about this continent’s banquet made her want to let her Dragon soar. The pulsating light show stimulated her need to be free. She met Tiberius’s seductive gaze again and their eyes held with the intensity of their passionate game. Grey countered by possessively placing his hand on her thigh under the table, tugging her heart back to where it belonged without words. Her body and soul had always belonged to her Handler but in the last couple of months, she’d gone from one prospect to three. She’d never been in this position before. Grey had been everything to her for so long. She adored him but he’d been spelled to forget any intimacy between them as he slept. This didn’t make his jealousy any easier to digest because Grey didn’t understand. He couldn’t. She was cursed. She would always remember every heartbreakingly beautiful detail of the nights they’d spent professing their love. He was only ever reacting to half of the story. After forty years by Grey’s side, she was finally ready to find something more. She yearned for a physical connection that would still be there at dawn’s first light. This was something she could never have with Grey.
Orin shifted closer to her and she knew he was trying to make sure she understood her options. Orin was a good friend and undeniably great in the sack but he’d been in a long-term relationship and by long term, she meant, with the same girl on and off for a thousand years. At this moment neither of them could promise more than drama free shelter from the storm of their endless duties. Lexy had only ever been with two other people willingly, bringing her tally of lovers to a whopping three, since becoming Ankh. It had taken her a long time to get to the point of wanting to experience anything physical with anyone but her Handler. She was ready to enjoy the perks of her afterlife now.
Grey glared across the table at Tiberius and said, “That’s me you’re playing footsies with.”
Tiberius winked at Grey as he countered, “I didn’t want you to feel left out. Of course, you’re free to join us.”
Her Handler rolled his eyes. He turned to face Lexy as he warned, “I’ll be upset for like a year if you do this, just so we’re clear.”
Without offering him the sentimentality of eye contact, Lexy whispered, “Lily... Melody... Arrianna... Do I really need to keep going?”
Defeated by the reality of his own actions, Grey looked away and continued to pretend he was listening to Frost.
Out of nowhere, Grey turned to her and asserted, “One word from you and I would have walked away from all of them.”
Here they were again. Her Handler’s feelings for her were returning. As soon as she gave in they would be gone and she’d be left heartbroken. Determined to stop kicking herself, Lexy didn’t respond. She took a pastry from the tray as it was offered to her. As she took her first bite, her eyes were drawn to Tiberius. His foot grazed hers under the table. She bit her lip pensively. With Grey’s hand rested on her thigh, she wasn’t sure she could reply by action without being caught. She wanted to though and that was her truth. She’d despised Tiberius with every inch of her being for forty years and now every argument just felt like foreplay between Dragons. Their duelling libidos had led them both into some awkward situations but she wanted him and admitting it was half the battle. He’d been bold enough to acquire the room next to hers, with an adjoining door. Even though she’d led him to believe she wouldn’t come to him during his rather public dare, she’d planned to. Lexy excused herself, turning back to the table when she was far enough away, she met Tiberius’s intrigued gaze and winked. She intended to make her way back to her room and use that door but needed a quick detour to the bathroom. She maneuvered her way through the crowd on the dance floor and down the short hall with muted toned tapestries to the washroom. She was alone for a moment in the stall before she heard the hollow clicking of footsteps as somebody entered. For a split second, she found herself hoping it was him. Lexy peered through the crack of the door. It was Stephanie. She’d been quite the bitch to Kayn...Her sister. That was still a crazy thought. She could stay in the stall until the Triad girl left or storm out and kick her ass. She was supposed to behave... She’d do her best. Lexy abruptly opened the stall, startling the Triad.
The petite Asian beauty spun around and laughed nervously, “You startled me. I didn’t know anyone else was in here.”
Lexy strolled over with plans to wash her hands and leave but there was no soap in the dispenser. This irritated her but she was still planning to try to play nice.
“Didn’t you hear me?” Stephanie prodded.
Lexy moved over to the next sink and tried the dispenser...it didn’t work. It spoke to her. It shouldn’t speak to her when she was this drunk.
“Should I grunt like a caveman? You know, speak your language? Is the soap dispenser too difficult for you to figure out? I heard you went years without bathing,” the tiny Triad provoked.
Tiberius just lost his booty call. He would have been the one to tell her that story. Lexy sighed before asserting, “I’d just quietly go about whatever business you came in here to do if I were you.”
Intrigued by her hostility, Stephanie poked the Dragon within her, “I was thinking about taking Greydon out for a spin. I figure it’s all good if you plan on hooking up with Tiberius tonight.”
She wanted to say Grey would never go there but she knew better. He so would, without batting an eye. “Do what you want,” Lexy coldly responded.
“I intend to,” Stephanie sparred as she gave the dispenser a shot and it worked. She smiled at Lexy as she whispered her snarky commentary, “It’s not rocket science.”
And that was it! Lexy shot forward and snapped her neck. Stephanie slumped to the tile. Lexy gave her body a swift boot. What a bitch! That was quite satisfying. She pranced away with a skip in her step. The sound of chaos snapped her back to reality. Crap. Triad’s symbols went off. Adding copious amounts of alcohol to her unfiltered rage issues always backfired. She might as well own it.
Grey was already racing down the hall, absolutely livid while scolding, “Seriously Lex! What in the hell?”
Lexy turned around and mumbled, “I’ll fix it.” She opened the door to Stephanie’s lifeless corpse, she knelt before her laid both palms flat on her mortal enemy’s chest and as the warmth of her healing energy travelled down her arms into the Triad’s body, Grey yanked her aside before Lexy brought her back to life. Her vision wavered, exhausted Lexy passed out beside the Triad on the tile.
Tiberius appeared in the doorway. Grey turned around to explain but Tiberius interrupted him and remarked, “They obviously had a bit of a tiff. I did warn Stephanie about being lippy with certain people. That only expla
ins one of the flashes though.”
Grey sighed as he apologized and tried to explain, “I told Zach to go have some fun and that I’d watch them both tonight. It was my mistake. I’m to blame.”
The leader of Triad slowly shook his head as he replied, “The rules don’t apply to these two anymore, they’re part Guardian. They can’t be entombed. Don’t take ownership of a problem that’s not yours anymore.”
Amar, Markus and Frost appeared in the hallway. Tiberius summoned them over with a wave. Grey once again tried to take one for the team and although Markus did agree that he’d made a misstep, he wasn’t about to place the blame on Grey entirely. “You should have known better Greydon but in all fairness, this is a situation we’ve never encountered so we’re going to have to be quite creative with how we deal with this. Have you noticed a change in your bond in the last couple of days?”
Grey shrugged as he admitted, “Maybe a little.”
Thorne’s deep superhero voice boomed down the hall, “We’ve found the other body! Someone tossed Tiberius’s grandson over the balcony!”
Frost looked stricken as he added, “Let me guess, Kayn and Zach are nowhere to be found.”
“I saw Zach usher Kayn out during the ruckus,” Lily’s voice added as she peeked into the bathroom. “Who started it?”
Grey speculated, “Probably Stephanie but as always, Lexy finished it.”
Tiberius smiled as he stared down at the crimson-haired Dragon sprawled out on the tile. “I can’t turn anyone in. They’re Seth’s daughters and although the rules don’t apply, Ankh is going to have to find a way to control this situation. They can’t just be running around murdering anyone that ticks them off.”
Markus met Frost’s eyes as he apologized, “I’m sorry, Tiberius is right. We must find a way to have control over these two. Contact Jenna and get her to speak to Ankh’s Guardian Azariah. Ask her what she thinks we should do. Grey, take Lexy back to your room and wait for us to get back to you.”
Grey scooped Lexy up in his arms and carried her back to their room. As he placed her on the bed, Lexy whispered, “I’m not sorry.”
He grinned as he climbed into bed next to her and replied, “I know.”
Chapter 4
Whisky Was the Devil
KAYN AWOKE AS THE SUN’S rays shone across the sheets. She stretched out her arm. It hit someone. She rolled over. It wasn’t Frost. Zach was still passed out next to her. What time was it? She squirmed closer and gave her Handler a shake.
Zach opened his eyes, squinting in the not so hangover friendly morning’s rays and grumbled, “It’s blinding me. Close the curtains Brighton.” He struggled to sit up while clutching either side of his head as he complained, “Man, this headache is brutal.” He glared in Kayn’s direction and said, “It’s morning, isn’t it? Oh, did you ever screw up last night. What am I talking about? It’s my fault for trusting that you weren’t going to follow through with your impulses.”
Not now. She didn’t have it in her to deal with bitching about something that couldn’t be undone. She knew what she did. Her brain felt like it was about to explode. She didn’t have Frost there last night to feed her a hangover cure. Kayn swung her legs over the side of the bed and staggered to the bathroom. She could barely see the note he’d left on the bathroom mirror. She squinted to read it but her brain refused to function. Whisky was the devil. Or had it been the tequila? She’d had wine too. She’d earned this headache. That much she was certain of. She read the note again and this time she got the jyst of it. He was gone to the Summit. That was it. No hearts or X’s and O’s. He was probably mad at her. Could she blame him? Not really. She ripped the note off the mirror, sat down on the toilet seat and stared at it. Her inner Dragon had been naughty. She recalled the surprised look on Kevin’s face as she launched him over the balcony and started to giggle.
“Are you decent?” Zach called from the other side of the door.
“Come in. I’m just sitting here, stewing,” she answered. He walked in and she passed him the note.
It was obvious, Zach was trying to contain his laughter. A snicker escaped as he gave the note back and confirmed her earlier thoughts, “Oh, I’d say he didn’t find your impulse control issues funny last night.”
It would be better if she just kept her emotions off. If she didn’t, she was going to spend the next week thinking about what he was doing. There was a knock on the door.
Zach offered, “I’ll go get it.” While wandering towards the door, he commentated, “Somebody’s here to entomb me for being the worst damn Handler ever.”
He was joking, she knew that but one day it could be. She couldn’t be punished but he could. Oh, she was an idiot. Her inner commentary was going strong even with her emotions somewhat stifled. She heard Grey and Lexy’s voices. Had they stayed behind? Time to face the firing squad. She got up and strolled back into the room. Lexy was beaming but Grey appeared to be quite unimpressed with her shenanigans.
Grey approached her as he enquired, “Zach says your impulse control issues were caused by inconveniently timed feelings.”
Kayn glanced at her fellow Dragon and Lexy winked.
“Stephanie also met with an accident last night. Apparently, she tripped and broke her neck in the bathroom,” Zach explained.
Awe, that’s so sweet, her sister got her a present. She’d forgotten about her plot for Stephanie.
“As a result, we’ll be staying with you two while the others go to the Summit,” Grey explained. “Melody is going with them. Astrid and Haley will be slipping away with Samid. They’ll be meeting up with Jenna and Arrianna because they have Dean. Our job is to try to connect Amar’s new trio of Ankh.”
Curiosity got the best of her and she asked, “How mad is Frost, on a scale of one to ten?”
“Eleven,” Grey sternly retorted.
That sounds about right. Yes. It would be best to keep her feelings shut down. Kayn replied, “A week apart isn’t that bad. I’ll fix it when I see him again.”
“Try, we don’t get to meet up with the others until we’ve completed this enormous list of jobs. It looks like it’s going to be a long haul. It really goes without saying that Markus isn’t feeling all warm and fuzzy about your bond with your Handler. Or my bond because I was forced to admit that I told Zach to go and have some fun while I made sure you didn’t get into any trouble. While I was partying, Lexy here went into the bathroom and murdered Stephanie on a whim. You tossed Kevin off a damn balcony. Now, we’re all in trouble...Mostly me. So, it’s the four of us with no relationship disruptions for the next couple of months.”
Kayn’s eyes met with Lexy’s and they both smiled. Sister Dragon bonding time. This might be fun.
“Oh, yes...there’s one more thing,” Grey announced as he snatched Zach’s cell right out of his hand. “Turn in your phones. I have new burner phones for all of us. We’re being punished by having no contact with the rest of Ankh. I have the information for the next month. They’ll contact us with any changes.”
Kayn grimaced. This was bullshit. She handed Grey her phone and wandered outside. From her balcony, Kayn saw the staff still cleaning up the splat Kevin made on the cement path in the courtyard below. He shouldn’t have given her that flower. A twinge of guilt began to grow within her. She spun around, marched back into the room and said, “Reprimanding us by sending us on a murder spree doesn’t seem like punishment to me, but why not? Let’s get this party started.”
Zach glanced at Grey as he added, “They’re not even fazed by this.”
“They will be,” Grey replied as he struggled to pry Lexy’s cell phone from her fingers. “Come on Lex, just give it to me.”
Lexy released her hold on the phone. She asserted, “In all fairness, we were told the rules didn’t apply to us anymore.”
“Come on Lex. Did you really believe that was the case? They can’t have you two running around free to do whatever crosses your mind,” Zach argued as he played with his new phone
. “At least these ones are smartphones,” he noted.
Grey fiddled around with his for a second before announcing, “Yes! We have data plans!”
Lexy placed her cell on the counter as she suggested, “Go change into something from the closet and fix yourself up. If we don’t eat breakfast before we leave for training in the in-between, we’ll still be hung over when we get back.”
Kayn wandered back to the washroom and as she passed the closet, she peeked inside. There were three modest silky dresses that looked like they might be her size. They were all the same cut so she chose the colour she liked best and brought the garment with her into the bathroom for some privacy. After she’d changed and washed off her raccoon eyes from smudged mascara, she felt like a new woman. Her stomach grumbled. Lexy was right. She needed breakfast before they went anywhere. There was a knock on the door, Grey opened it and stepped out of the way as a lady pushed a cart with their breakfast into the room.
Amar strolled in after her and announced, “Excellent, you’re all up! Eat up! Take those pills beside your orange juice. They’ll help your hangover. We have a lot to accomplish in only a small amount of time!”
Oh, he was far too perky for this time of the morning. Wait...what time was it?