Depth (Apalala Clan Book 2)

by Dzintra Sullivan

  Attor snorted at the wishes. “Yeah, thanks… fuck sums it up perfectly.” He got up and walked off toward his room. First thing for him was a new shirt, then maybe some time in the ring might help clear his head.

  V watched the brothers all respond with varying degrees of shock. It was as he expected because he was shocked. The coming road might get a little bumpy, time for him to show why he was given this role.

  Taryn sat staring at a large black wooden door. She was in an empty waiting room outside her boss’ office. It was before the clerical staff were due to clock on, so it was only her sitting in a sea of hard orange plastic chairs. The black and white carpet went up the hallway as far as the eye could see. Black and white was the predominant color scheme of the entire building. When she’d arrived, she didn’t know who to tell she had arrived. She wasn’t about to knock on the devil’s mouth without a direct invitation, so she simply took a seat and waited. Taryn heard the buzz of a camera mounted in the far corner and assumed someone had seen her sitting there.

  Taryn had spent her Sunday not answering the phone and tramping around her own small apartment in her pajamas. Taryn didn’t put on make-up, didn’t brush her hair, she just threw it up in a messy bun and flicked the remote for a chick flick binge for one. She’d lost count on the amount of times that Kylee and Payton had tried to call. After the weirdness that happened the afternoon before, she wasn’t interested in any more girl time.

  As Taryn sat, her mind wandered back to her friends and what had made her feel uncomfortable enough to go home early. She couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was directly, but when the two men had arrived, she suddenly felt like she was under a microscope. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, making her nausea feel worse. Add to that the thick smell of lemon in the air and she didn’t know whether she wanted to eat or vomit. Taryn had told the girls she wanted to go home, insisting they stay and enjoy the rest of the afternoon’s frivolity. She gathered her bag and started for home, stopping at the small convenience store on the corner, grabbing some ginger ale and dry crackers, hoping they would settle her stomach.

  Payton and Kylee had given up trying to call her and turned up at her apartment mid-afternoon. Taryn remained quiet in her room. She didn’t answer the repeated beeping from the intercom at the front of her building. Taryn couldn’t explain why she needed some space. It wasn’t like she could just tell them she was a wanted woman, and not in a ring-a-ding-ding way either.

  Hey girls, I’ve known you nearly a year now, but guess what? Funny thing happened back in the States. I’m wanted for murder and am on the run… she snorted to herself. Yeah, that would go down beautifully.

  Having people look at her, really look at her like those men had, made her skin crawl. She’d managed to stay out of people’s sights for nearly three hundred days, and she wasn’t about to jeopardize it now.

  If it cost her the friends she’d made with Kylee and Payton… Taryn’s thoughts stopped as she swallowed past a growing lump. So be it, she said to herself.

  “Ms. Miles?” a voice broke her from her thoughts.

  Taryn looked up and saw her boss standing at the now open door. She was a very tall woman and had a graceful elegance about her. The woman’s blonde hair was neatly placed in a bun at the base of her skull. She was wearing a fitted black skirt and a crisp white blouse. Taryn stood and attempted a smile of confidence.

  “Follow me…” The woman turned and glided like she was ice skating. Taryn watched in awe of how this woman moved on incredibly high heels. She knew her own were tall, but these were a step higher again. Catching the door that she hadn’t waited for Taryn to grab before walking off, Taryn took a deep breath and walked into what felt like the lion’s den.

  “Sit,” she said as she walked around an absurdly gigantic desk, and took her own seat in an equally large office chair.

  Taryn watched her boss sit in what would only be described as a white leather throne. She hurriedly moved to the smaller chair on the opposite side of the desk and sat. Crossing her legs at the ankles, she placed her hands in her lap.

  “You’re not working today?” the woman asked in a lifeless voice.

  “Pardon?” Taryn tilted her head, looking down at her casual jeans and T-shirt appearance. “Oh, this?” The woman nodded at Taryn’s question. “I’m most definitely working, ma’am. My costume is in the dressing room. It’s a newly designed one, so I wasn’t able to get dressed before I arrived.”

  “A new one?”

  Taryn smiled. “Belle has a new pimped out image. The costume designers took all my measurements a few weeks ago for an idea cooked up in some office somewhere.” Taryn lightly laughed. “I’m employed to look pretty for photographs not for decision making.”

  “Hmmm…” The sound was one of judgment as she asked, “Do you enjoy it here, Ms. Miles?”

  Taryn sat up straight. “Oh yes, Ms. Cinders,” she said her bosses name for the first time in the meeting. “I like it very much.”

  Her boss leaned forward, placing her elbows on the desk, her fingers interlaced and tapping against her bright red painted lips. “Then why am I getting a few strays sniffing round my business dealings?” Ms. Cinders continued without a breath, “When I offered you a job here, it was because you had a look I’d been hunting for. Now when a girl’s normally that eager to leave a country, it’s because of something bad.” Ms. Cinders got up and walked to her window, she took a moment to look out onto a city already awake and bustling with workers. “I know what it’s like to need to run.” She turned to look at Taryn. “You aren’t the first woman who’s been caught up with an abusive partner.”

  Taryn let out a breath she’d been holding. She sent a small prayer of thanks to whoever allowed this woman to assume she was running from domestic abuse. Taryn lowered her head and nodded, it was partially true after all.

  “Thing is, Taryn…” Ms. Cinders glided over and propped herself up on the front corner of her desk. It was an attempt to appear more approachable by coming out to the front of the desk. “When ghosts from your past come sniffing around my past…” she tilted her head, “… that makes me nervous. Do you understand?”

  “Yes ma’am,” Taryn stumbled on her words. “I was unaware this was happening.”

  “Apparently…” Ms. Cinders stood up and returned to the throne, swinging it round to look directly at Taryn. “That’s why the meeting. Now you know…” she leaned forward, her eyes flashing a dangerous warning as her voice lowered to a new threat level, “… make it stop.”

  “Make what stop?” Taryn asked tentatively.

  “Doing things that draw attention to yourself. I don’t… we don’t want people, I don’t know, poking around our business.” Her boss’ voice got louder with every word, the power bounced around the clean white pictureless walls. “I may have helped you run from whatever you were running from, but know this…” she stood and leaned forward on the desk, letting her energy fill the large office so intensely it left barely enough room for Taryn to exist, “… I will wipe you from my books without a moment’s hesitation if I feel my world is in jeopardy.”

  “You’re world?” Taryn’s forehead creased.

  “Oh God, how dumb can one woman be…” Ms. Cinders sat back down with a rush of air being expelled from her throne. “You aren’t the only one running from things. I will do anything to protect my world, even if it’s throwing you to the wolves,” her boss said. “Bottom line?”

  Taryn looked up from the floor, and her boss delivered the ultimatum. “Stop the junkyard dogs from sniffing around, or you will be terminated.” Ms. Cinders took a breath and calmed down. “Look, Taryn, I can’t risk my ghosts resurfacing, not for anyone.”

  Taryn nodded, hoping that her boss meant job termination only. She stood up. “I understand. I wasn’t aware of any of th… this…” her voice broke, she was clearly shaken. “I will work out what’s going on, and stop it.” Taryn had no idea how she was going to do that, but it seemed like
the right thing to say.

  “Excellent!” As Ms. Cinders smiled, her eyes held a hidden threat under a guise of workplace pleasantries. “Excellent! Then enjoy your day, Taryn.”

  Those words signaled the meeting was over, so Taryn turned and walked out of the office. The waiting room was now full of people, and the noises of phones and chatter between co-workers was quite loud.

  Taryn didn’t know how she made it to her dressing room. She had no clue how she got through the day or even got home. She stepped into the shower, turning on the water and standing under the head. Feeling the water hit her skin and begin to cascade down her weary body, she finally broke down. Her tears came on fast and furious, falling like a rainstorm from her eyes.

  How was she going to find out who?

  How was she going to stop them?

  How was she going to stay free?

  Taryn fell against the wall of the shower and slid down. Wrapping her arms around her knees, she huddled into a small ball and cried until there were no more tears to shed.

  Volos had kept the brothers busy all day Monday. He wanted all of us on board with exactly what we knew. What strategies he thought we as a clan should go forth with, and what the plan was if the Nest ever came under attack. V hadn’t appreciated his brother challenging him for the leadership, but he was dragon enough to admit he was perhaps more focused on the settlement of the clan than their safety. Now the clan was settled, and Wyvern had evidence that Q was floating around, he needed to refocus back on security. Attor had done him an immense favor, woken him up, not that he would ever tell his brother that.

  Attor was up and out of the Nest early on Tuesday. He wasn’t getting caught up by V and his ‘warriors who plan together, stay together’ bullshit. He’d already been into the workout room, spent all his pent-up energy divided between a hanging bag and a wooden spinning opponent. The bag helping with his need to beat the living shit out of something, and the wooden man—they had nicknamed him Woody, of course—was fantastic at fine-tuning the strategy building component of your fight. Woody looked like a tall coat stand with multiple moving branches. When he spun from side to side, some of his branches would shoot out from the spin. If you weren’t paying attention to him, he would clock you in the head, chest, or shin, whatever wasn’t guarded. Attor worked with Woody a lot, as he felt it kept his brain trained for multiple facets in a true fight.

  After a shower, he’d changed into his full warrior leathers and vanished from the Nest. All but one brother was still in their rooms. Ladon was on the sofa tuned out to getting a new high score on the latest version of ‘Call of Duty.’ Attor was confident his brother hadn’t seen him as he went into the chamber and left for the surrounding waters.

  Attor felt the rush of freedom as his wings sprung free from the skin that kept them hidden. Some dragons feared the pain of a partial turn more than a full. With a full turn, the beast took over, and the human pain sensation was switched off. A partial was different, though. You had to be strong enough to control your human side and handle the pain. When Attor changed, his spine, ribs, scapular, and hips would snap and reform into a spinal structure that was strong enough to withstand the weight of his massive wings. Add to that the firestorm that ran up his body as a splattering of iridescent blue-green scales partially covered his body. For most clan members it was a very painful experience and one they didn’t do on a daily basis. Most were happy to exist in a constant state of bliss, hidden in the Nest and oblivious to what was happening in the world. That was what they relied on the warriors to do.

  Attor breathed through the fire dancing vigorously up his skin. He loved it, it made him feel alive and at one with his beast. Beating his wings a few times in the depths of the dark and cold ocean, he smiled at the water swirling around him, moving to his every whim, curling and caressing his skin with every movement he made.

  Attor looked to his hand, written on his palm in waterproof pen were the numbers:

  35.6329 N

  139.8804 E

  A set of numbers he had seen on the paperwork Wyvern had handed out at the last meeting. He knew they were coordinates for somewhere close to the Nest, and seeing they were connected to Q’s name, he thought it would be a great place to start looking.

  Raising his head slightly above the waterline, he could see a park of some sort. Checking the numbers on his hand, and using his own dragon inbuilt radar system, he was definitely at the right spot. There were only a few people wandering around, so he climbed up the reinforced retainer walls and changed back. He was still in full leathers, and even though he drew attention from his enormous size, it wasn’t anything like if he had a set of four-meter dragon wings protruding from his back.

  Attor walked into the grounds only garnering a brief look from what appeared like some cleaning crew for the park. As he ventured further in, he could see kids’ rides, roller-coasters, and a plethora of shops, shacks, and wagons used for selling products. Some of the shops were beginning to open their doors, and he could smell the food preparation. Guessing it wouldn’t be long until opening hours, Attor didn’t have much time to find out where he was exactly and what Q had to do with it.

  “Attor?” a voice said from behind him.

  Attor spun with the speed of a scorpion, his knees slightly bent and his hands raised and ready to inflict a deadly blow to his foe. Pausing, he squinted, his eyes looking over a small framed woman, dressed in a bright yellow ball gown that had been torn shorter giving the edge a tattered punk look. A very tight black corset adorned the woman’s tiny waist. Attor’s eyes struggled to not look at her breasts which were being pushed up from the silver-buckled torture device of sixteenth-century France.

  “It’s Attor, right?” the woman said again. “I’m Taryn… a friend of Payton’s?”

  Attor looked up into her eyes and realized his heart beat faster. All her hair had been pulled up and placed in a messy bun atop her head. Her gentle blue eyes framed by the longest eyelashes he’d ever seen staring at him with kindness. His eyes dropped to her plump red lips as she spoke again.

  “I didn’t mean to startle you.” She smiled again softly, taking a small step back, a little worried he was still frozen, poised to attack a potential threat.

  Lifting his eyes back to meet hers, he coughed and stood back up straight. With a slight nod of his head. “My apologies, Taryn, you just… I just…” He fought to find the right words. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”

  “I work here,” she said, and with a sweep of her hand she planted a huge smile on her face and said, “Welcome to Tokyo Disneyland. Hope you have a magical day.” Her professional voice had an animated edge to it, a character of sorts. Her wide smile of super white straight teeth, and an extra sparkle in her bright blue eyes made her look like she’d stepped straight from a movie. Albeit a dark and twisted version of the Disney movies he was used to. Her dress looked like it was straight out of the cover shoot for #PunkedDisney, her makeup was bold and seductive, and she was sporting some serious ink down her left arm and leg, and from what Attor could see there wasn’t much skin left untouched on that side of her body.

  A rumble of soft laughter rolled up Attor’s chest. “How many times a day do you have to say that?”

  “Too many for the pay I get.” She laughed.

  His body lit up with a weird sensation at the sound of her laughter. It was as if he was about to fight for his life, but instead of imminent danger being the primary driver, his body was on fire with the need to touch her. He desperately wanted to bury his nose in her hair and smell her scent, logging it into his memory banks forever. Attor’s hands began to sweat as he forced them to stay at his sides. They were begging to touch her, to feel the soft silkiness of her pale, smooth skin under his fingertips. Shiiit, Attor swore to himself, feeling himself starting to grow at the thought of touching her naked flesh. I swear lil’T… you make yourself known right here, right now, I’m going to cut you off myself. Threatening his penis with castration made t
he requested shrinkage follow fast. Taking a large breath, he exhaled and asked, “Worked here long?”

  “Huh?” Taryn looked back, momentarily distracted by a staff member walking past. “Yes… no…” She shrugged. “Not quite a year. Don’t know which column that falls under.” She laughed. “Trust me, it’s almost like dog years. You know… when one human year is seven dog years?”

  Attor nodded and laughed. “Indeed. I can imagine. Especially with that greeting. I mean it is…” he shrugged, “… so sweet. Each ticket should come with a discount to a local dentist.”

  Taryn snickered. “Right!” She looked around again. “Well, as unexpected…” she paused in her thoughts with a tilt of her head, and she repeated the same choice of word, “… unexpected as it was to see you again, I have to start my shift.” Pulling out a small watch from between her breasts, she checked the time and stuck it back down deep in her cleavage.

  Her sudden laugher made Attor look up. He hadn’t realized he was staring at her breasts with the look at a five-year-old in a candy store for the first time. “Fuck,” he chastised himself. “Taryn…” Attor hated himself right now. He hated his breast loving self, and his own stupid immature inner child. “My most humble apologies. I didn’t mean to…” lowering his eyes to the ground, he couldn’t believe how rude he was. “I didn’t—”

  “Attor,” she cut him off with a cheeky wink. “It’s okay, it’s part of my job. I’m not here for my brains.”

  “I’m sure your brains are extremely sexy,” Attor murmured too fast for his brain to stop it.

  “You bet your sweet ass they are, but not needed for this job.” Turning her head, she saw people walking through the now open gates. “I have to go.” Her eyes flicked up to see Ms. Cinders staring at her from an office window a few floors up from where she was standing. Taryn gulped loudly. “I got to go, now!” Flicking a look back to Attor, who had followed her eyes up to the imposing blonde woman whose eyes were presently threatening bodily harm against his as-of-yet unaware mate.