“Guys, you all remember Doug, right?” They nodded. “That’s Volos, the clan’s leader, and his adorable, and my best friend, Payton,” she introduced them formally. Elyse looked at Payton who had the warmest smile she’d ever witnessed, then she glanced at Volos and recoiled. His face was void of emotion being obviously on edge with her being there. “That’s Tor and Taryn, you’ve met them…” Kylee continued stealing her attention away from the leader’s intense stare.
“At the pub, yes. Hello again,” Elyse said as she offered them both a smile.
“Nice to see you again, Doug,” Taryn said from where she was perched on Tor’s lap. They had claimed a recliner and were in a relaxed and non-threatening position. This whole thing was non-threatening. It was like they had all been groomed to look like The Brady Bunch.
“That’s Jo, of course.” Jo tipped his imaginary hat from where he was leaning on the wall. “That’s Wyvern.”
Elyse looked to where Kylee pointed and was greeted with a smile that spoke of warmth and curiosity. The way his head tilted said he knew more about her than she possibly knew about herself.
“Annnd…” Kylee asked. “You know Ladon.”
Elyse turned around. Leaning on the back wall from where she had entered was Ladon. His arms were crossed, and his eyes lowered. He looked like he was ready to run at any given moment. She slowly turned once more, making sure she met every single pair of eyes, except Ladon, who refused to look up from whatever interesting spot he’d found on the floor.
“So, you’re all giant lizards, then?” She placed her hands on her hips.
“What?” Volos stated incredulously.
“Lizards?” Jo snorted. “I’ll show you a fucking lizard, Doug.” He started to unzip his jeans and walk forward.
“Jo,” V commanded his name. “Leave it in your pants, please.”
“V?” Jo held out his hand in question. “Come on… lizards?”
Kylee stepped forward. “Doug,” she whispered. “They’re dragons. Very proud, very large, very scaly dragons.” With a small shake of her head, she said, “Not lizards.”
Doug shrugged. “Same thing really, isn’t it?”
Tor groaned as the words came out of her mouth. “Not even close.”
“Sorry, I just thought—”
“Perhaps more thinking might be better?” Volos spoke from his desk. The power in his voice bounced around the room causing her to shrink slightly within herself.
Elyse stood silent for a few minutes before straightening her spine. “Perhaps not turning into… dragons.” Elyse used the right word much to the breath of relief Kylee just exhaled. “Without warning might be better as well?”
“Yes… well…” Volos conceded her point. “It wasn’t the greatest of timing, I’ll grant you that. But it is what it is.” Volos steepled his fingertips as he rested his elbows on the desk. “I’m not really interested in how this came about, I’m more interested in what happens from now on.”
“Why are you here?” Tor asked bluntly. “I have things to do, and this cat and mouse crap pisses me off. So, let us know you’re here not to kill us and let me go about my business.”
“Attor,” Payton exclaimed. “Really? As if this was ever her intention.”
“And you know this, how? She is a hunter… or have you forgotten that?” Tor tapped Taryn’s thigh. She got up, and so did he. “I don’t care who she is to the goddess, she is and will always be a hunter. Did anyone even check her for weapons?” He looked around. “No. I didn’t think so. You’re all crazy letting this happen. I know what she is, and so should you. Forget it. It’s your life in peril.” He walked closer to Elyse, sized her up before asking her, “Weapons?”
Elyse grinned as she craned her head to look up at this huge man. He was doing his best to intimidate her with his size. “I don’t need weapons to bring a man to his knees.” She took a step closer to him and poked him in the chest. “Don’t go making assumptions you have no proof to back up. Seriously? I came here to talk to Ladon. Not you, not him, or him, or them.” She pointed at the others in the room. “I only came to talk to him.” Turning, she pointed to Ladon. “And he is the only one of you who can’t even stomach to look at me.” Snapping her head back to look at Tor. “So, how about you all back off, let go of this posse of protection you have going on, and let me talk to your brother?”
“I really like her.” Kylee grinned.
“So do I.” Payton smirked lightly. “Let’s go, boys. I see no danger here.”
“Except, maybe for Ladon,” Jo scoffed.
“That’s his problem,” V muttered as his mate took his hand and led him out of his office. The rest of the brothers filed out until the only two left in the room were Elyse and Ladon.
Elyse walked over and sat on a plush red chair. It was facing the wall on which Ladon leaned. “You going to look at me now?”
“I can’t,” his voice was low.
“Why not? Have I offended you? Have I caused you pain? Have I visually assaulted you so badly that you can no longer cast your eyes upon my face?”
Ladon looked up, his eyebrows crossed in complete confusion.
“See, it wasn’t that hard to look at me, was it?” She smiled softly.
“Aren’t you scared of me?” He went to lower his eyes again.
“You look at that ground again, and I swear I’m going to come and kick you in the shin myself.” He raised his eyes to hers. “Better.” She grinned. “Come and sit, please. I want to understand.”
“Me?”
“This…” she waved her arms in front of her, “… I don’t understand anything that’s going on. Please, can you help me?”
Ladon nodded as he grabbed a chair and walked closer to her, turning it and sitting on it straddled, facing her. “I will be as open and honest as I can be.”
Elyse nodded. “Understood. So, you’re a dragon, obviously.”
“Obviously, and please, never say lizard again.” He snorted. “How you survived that, I’ll never know.”
“Do you change often?” she asked. “Into a dragon, I mean.”
“As often as needed. We are actually water dragons. My brothers and I are the five royal sons, warriors and protectors of the clan. It’s a great honor to do what I do. I keep my people safe. Many lifetimes ago, we went from the beasts of the skies to the rulers of the oceans. So, in answering your question, I change into my dragon form every time I enter the water. That’s whenever I leave this cave… the boat’s for humans.”
“But last night?”
“Your friend pushed me to change on the land, and for the record, changing that hard and fast hurt like a bitch. She wanted to expose me and was successful in bringing my beast to the surface.”
“She isn’t my friend,” Elyse said softly. “For the record, I told her not to hunt you.”
“Doesn’t matter. Her… another hunter… you?” Ladon shrugged. “This brooding war is bone dry, and the first person to throw a spark will have a raging inferno on their hands instantly,” Ladon said.
“I’m not part of any war, and what did you tell your brothers about last night?”
“I didn’t tell them about you if that’s what you mean. I don’t even know if what I saw was true. I could have been clouded by the pain of a forced land change for all I know.”
“She shot me,” Elyse blurted out.
“That did happen, then?”
“Yup. I have the hole in your jacket to prove it.”
“Then why—”
“Am I not dead?” Ladon nodded to her question. “I have no idea,” she answered honestly. “Then add to this cloud of confusion, Kylee tells me I am a gift from your goddess?”
Ladon’s mouth fell open. “She didn’t?”
“Oh, yeah, apparently that’s why you smell all sickly sweet to me.” Elyse looked at Ladon. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to react to all this. I don’t want to offend anyone. I mean, you’re super cute and all, but until I get my head aro
und there being dragons, hunters, and god only knows what else… plus, why I didn’t die last night…” She shook her head. “I can’t deal with the goddess as well.”
“Yeah.” His head dropped along with his eyes.
Elyse swung her foot out and kicked him in the shin. When Ladon groaned and rubbed his shin, he looked up at her with confusion. “I told you if you dropped those eyes what would happen.” She grinned, which made him grin right back while still rubbing his shin. “I need you to help me understand one thing at a time. Please.” Her eyes locked on to his. “I’m sure the goddess can wait till later. After all, helping me is a good thing, right?”
A slow smile crept across Ladon’s face. “Yes, I’d be honored to help you find the answers you seek.”
“Without complications?”
“Until you ask differently.” Ladon nodded.
“Did you see her?”
The male’s voice made Jenna jump as soon as she entered the room. “Don’t do that to me.” She clasped her chest. “Put on a light, would you?”
“Did you see her?” his voice was growing with impatience as he repeated himself.
“Yeah.” Jenna flicked the light switch and squinted as she adjusted. Throwing her bag on the table, she walked further into the room. Flopping on a plush velvet-feeling chair, she looked over and saw him sitting at the kitchen table. His back was incredibly straight as he sat on a hard, wooden chair. In front of him a pile of paper lit only by a small burning candle.
“Turn off the light, you know it hurts my eyes,” he growled as he put on his dark tinted glasses.
“And risk walking into a wall again? Nope. Light stays on. Besides, it’s the hallway light, it’s not like I flicked on the kitchen light.” Jenna had a hard night, and his grumbling wasn’t on her list of things she wanted to tolerate.
“How did she look?” His head hadn’t moved with his eyes still cast on the pile of papers.
“Like you with tits.” Jenna joked.
His head moved slowly as he turned to look at her, his eyebrow rising behind his glasses. “Jenna? Really?”
“It’s true.” she shrugged.
“You’re sure it’s her? You’re positive we have finally found her?”
Jenna nodded firmly. “It is her. You should see her. She’s the spitting image of your aunt.” Jenna tucked her legs under herself as she readjusted on the chair. “She even goes by the name Doug.”
“I can’t believe, after all these years, I’ve finally found her.” He sat back, his hand raising to his chin as he contemplated what all this means. Years of searching and hunting for his cousin, and now to have her within touching distance was almost too delicious. “I want to see her for myself.”
“Not possible,” Jenna said.
“Why?” His eyes flicked to hers with a pending attack.
“She had made some… unfortunate connections.”
“Like?”
“Like dragons.”
His fists started to ball as he grit his teeth. “She’s a hunter, how is this even possible?” The anger was building with his every word. “Doesn’t she know who she is?”
“I can’t see how it matters to you.” Jenna tilted her head. “It was your mother’s mistake twenty-eight years ago, and then your aunt convinced her to give you away. Only after ten years in the foster system were you discovered by a local hunter family. That was pure dumbass luck that they happen to see your mark while looking to adopt a kid.” She continued, “It wasn’t till you were what? Eighteen? Did you even find out who your mother was, and that she had perished in a suspicious fire.” Jenna watched the darkness fall deeper over his eyes. “Of course, you always had the aunt to go after.”
“And look how that turned out?” he growled.
“Yes, well… it didn’t turn out exactly as you planned, did it?”
“How was I to know she was a freak?”
“I shot her tonight.”
The silence that froze the air that instant was deafening.
“And?”
“Nothing. Not a mark.”
He started to pace up and down the room, hands tucked behind his back as he tried to make sense of the situation. “Where did you shoot her?” Jenna pointed to her heart. “In the chest?” he asked. Her nod of confirmation had him pacing faster. “You shot her in the chest, and she still didn’t die? What is she made of? Titanium?”
“Shot the dragon, too. But unfortunately, he lived as well.”
“You disappoint me, Jenna.”
“Like I give a shit, Toby.” Jenna flipped him the bird and walked off toward the bathroom. “It’s been a night from hell. I’ll be soaking in the tub for the foreseeable future. Don’t come knocking.”
The heavy slam of the door made Toby wince. He shouldn’t have said that, but knowing yet again, his half-sister took a blow that should have ended her life, but she still breathes, brings out his worst. His mother, under the guidance of his aunt, had left him on the cold concrete doorstep of an orphanage.
His cousin was the only nut left to shake out of his family tree.
How many lives can she actually have?
He needed to find out and extinguish them all… permanently.
“Is this such a good idea?” Kylee asked.
“Chicken?” Jo taunted her.
“No.” She punched his arm. “I just didn’t think when Doug said she wanted to experience this, that I would be getting roped into it as well.”
“If you don’t want to…” Doug rested her hand on Kylee’s arm, “… I’ll understand if you pull out. I just wanted not to be the only human doing this.”
“Human’s don’t get shot without leaving a mark, not sure you can claim that title.” She joked.
“Shhh,” Doug leaned forward. “Only the four of us know that. Can we keep it that way?” She had told Kylee and Jo what had happened on the cliff’s edge that night.
“I don’t understand why the secrecy. You got fucking shot? And you don’t even have a bruise? Add this to your car accident, and damn, you might be Superman.” Kylee sighed in awe.
“She wants to tell, she does, but she is afraid.” Ladon came and stood behind her.
Kylee tried not to smirk at the irony of a dragon who stands six feet four inches in man form, and a hunter of dragons who stands five feet two inches right next to each other. “Doug has asked for some time to process it all before disclosing everything. I think it’s the least we can do considering she isn’t hunting our asses, right?”
“Look at you being all tall, dark, and protective.” Kylee grinned. “It suits you, Ladon.” Kylee lowered her eyes to look at Doug. “I got your back, girl. Always. Now, about this…”
“It will be fun.” Ladon grinned. “I’ve never seen you so antsy before, Kylee. It suits you, too.” Kylee flipped him the bird as she chuckled lightly.
Jo grabbed the special breathing bubbles. “Now ladies…” He stood extra upright, his hip swung to the left and had suddenly developed a lisp as he gave his best safety information speech. “Now this is for your own safety. Without this bubble, you will die. So please, at all times, keep it safely secured to your head as we don’t want to explain either of your deaths to V. He seriously doesn’t have a sense of humor.”
“It just attaches, right?” Doug asked with a pang of nerves to her tone.
Ladon took her small hands in his. Engulfed by his size, he looked down into her eyes. “I would never, ever, put your life in danger. You are completely safe with me. The bubble will automatically attach, and through the magic that none of us truly understand but trust our Wiccan friends for, you will be able to breathe easily,” he said calmly in an even tone. “Jo and I will show you our true form as this is what you wish to see, and if you’re comfortable, we could take you for a quick trip around the bottom of the sea.” Ladon was loving the feeling of her depending on him. She needed him for her protection and trusted him enough to follow him into his world.
“I think we need a s
afe word,” Kylee said.
“Pineapple,” Doug said quickly.
Ladon laughed. “Okay, pineapple it is. Either of you say it, and we will have you back here within minutes, safe and sound.” He looked to Jo who nodded that he understood. “Ready?”
“No,” Kylee said.
“Yes,” Doug said.
“Let’s go.” Ladon took Doug by her hand and walked her out to the edge of the water. You two go in first. There is a ledge just under the surface. Once Jo and I go under, the changes are instinctive. So, I want to make sure you two are fine first.
Doug nodded as both her and Kylee slid down in their black wetsuits covered bodies. The bubbles of breath in their hands ready to be placed over their heads as soon as they dove in. Doug looked back to Ladon, who nodded with encouragement. Using his hands, he mimed for her to place the bubble over her head. She did and gasped as it automatically tightened firmly around her neck. Not tight enough to strangle, but definitely watertight. Doug watched Kylee do the same, grinning as her eyes widened with the tightening too.
“Okay, let’s go.” Ladon smiled widely.
This was his biggest test yet for how she might handle his dragon side. Ladon and Jo stepped past the girls and dove into the water. Bobbing up to the surface, Ladon reached out his hand to take Doug’s. She entwined her fingers in his as she slid into his arms. They swam out a little before Ladon pointed that they were going under. Doug nodded and held onto to him tightly. Jo had given them some weight to put around their ankles, allowing them to sink without holding them down.
Under the surface, Doug held Ladon’s arm tightly. He smiled warmly at her and rubbed the top of her hand. “It’s okay,” he mouthed to her. “Trust me.”
Doug took a few breaths, calming her heart to beat at a more normal pace as she nodded to him and released his arm. Kylee came up beside her with the help of Jo pushing her. Jo and Ladon swam back a little and spaced from each other.
Doug grabbed for Kylee’s waiting hand as they both watched the water start to ripple around the guys. It was like someone had dropped a pebble, and the ripple along the surface was under instead. Doug’s eyes were glued to Ladon’s. He stared into her soul as she watched him show his true form. The scales started to appear on his ears and fingertips first. They spread evenly down his cheeks and up his forearms. Ladon’s eyes suddenly shut as his back arched. Doug thought he looked like he was in pain and went to swim toward him. Kylee pulled her back and pointed to Jo, who was doing the exact same thing. Their bodies were growing larger as if being blown up like a balloon underwater. Doug’s eyes were wide as she witnessed two seemingly normal looking males turn into large-scaled beasts right before her. They weren’t as large as Ladon had turned on the land, but they had already said before this journey that they stay smaller in the water for aerodynamics.
Submerge (Apalala Clan Book 3) Page 15