Dragon in the Rough (Elders Enterprises Book 1)

by Jo Vanz

  Paul knew he was missing a piece to the puzzle, but what was it? He wanted to scream. He walked over to the closest wall and punched it again, leaving another gaping hole in his path. Everyone stopped what they were doing and eyed him. Paul got the feeling that if he was not careful, his father was bound to knock him out and keep him that way until Katie was found. He could not risk that happening. He needed to be the one to save his mate.

  Paul turned and padded softly back over to his chair to sit down. Maybe that would help contain his anger. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and pictured Katie in his arms. Her head on his chest. Her hair fanned out around her. What he would give to be able to hold her like that again, to run his fingers through her short, soft hair.

  His thoughts were cut short when his phone went off in his pocket. He thought about ignoring it, as everyone that would need to get ahold of him was already in the room. Everyone, that was, except Katie. Could it be her? No. Her phone laid on the table in front of him, plus he had never given her his number. He kicked himself for that.

  Reluctantly, he pulled his phone out of his pocket. Pressing the button to turn on his screen, he froze. He had a message from Sam. The fucker probably wanted to taunt Paul. He would know that Paul had a dash cam. Hell, everyone that worked with the Elders had them, so he would know that they were looking for him.

  Paul slid the phone across the table to Mark. He was not going to let Sam get to him. He needed to stay calm and that would just push him over the edge, then he would not be awake to rescue Katie. Paul watched as Mark picked up the phone and froze. He glanced up at Paul, asking silently if Paul wanted him to read the message. Paul tilted his head a little bit, telling his brother to go ahead. Mark swiped his finger across the screen. After a few moments, he started laughing.

  All at once, everyone in the room turned and looked at Mark. Paul stood and made his way over to his brother to see what was so funny. “Dude, this message was meant for your eyes only,” Mark said in between gasps for air and laughter.

  Paul grabbed the phone out of his brother’s hand and looked at the screen. First in shock, then horror that his brother had seen the message, and finally a smile touched his lips. He had to reread the message.

  “To my very capable Prince Charming, I would like you to know that I have already done all the heavy lifting. Please come and get me so we can continue practicing to make babies.”

  Paul did not waste any more time. He quickly scrolled down and clicked on the picture. She had sent him an address of where she was. God, he loved this woman. But before they could do anything else, Paul needed to make sure she was okay. He also wanted answers. He rattled off the address to everyone around him, then took off running for the roof.

  As Paul bounded up the stairs, he heard his father bark out orders before following Paul. He walked through the door at the top of the stairs to see that someone had already started to replace the damn thing. Once on the roof, Paul let loose all the speed he had, running toward the edge. When he was a few feet away he jumped, calling on his dragon half. Paul had never transformed this quickly before but did not take the time to admire his skill. Once his wings stretched out, he aimed his head toward the sky and darted up.

  Once Paul was above the clouds, he evened himself out and angled to head out of the city. He did a quick look over his shoulders to see who followed him. There were two dragons to each side. Paul knew that two of the four were his father and brother, but he did not recognize the other two. Shaking the thought away, he roared into the sky. Paul smiled when the others answered with their own roars. The battle cry of the dragon race would be heard for miles around. May the fates have mercy on their targets because Paul was not going to show any.

  ***

  It was a fight for Katie to stay awake. She was not sure how long she had been sitting there but hoped that Paul would hurry up. Her eye’s kept getting heavier the longer she sat there. She thought about Paul to help keep her awake. How he was going to react to everything that she learned. What they were going to do to Julie. How was she going to tell them everything? It broke Katie’s heart just thinking about it.

  Katie’s eyes started to flutter shut. She was losing the battle to keep them open. A muffled moan came from across the room and Katie’s eyes flew open. Okay, that will do it. She looked over to see Julie twitching. She stood slowly, a rush of dizziness hitting as she stood straight up. Katie leaned against the wall until it passed. After a few moments, she pushed away from the wall and made her way over to Julie slowly.

  Katie raised her foot in preparation to bring it down on Julie’s head but at the last second, Julie rolled out of the way, coming up with another knife in her hand. Katie cursed herself for not checking to see if she had any more weapons earlier. Before Katie had time to process what was going on, Julie slashed out, cutting Katie across the neck.

  Katie fell to the ground, hands clutching her neck as she tried to put pressure on the wound. This was it. Katie was going to die after everything she had been through. A tear forced its way down her cheek. The thought that Paul would find her here dead, that he would lose her now, it all just broke her heart.

  Katie watched as Julie started walking toward her with a big smile on her face. Katie knew she was coming in for the final blow to cut Katie’s life short. When she was a few steps away, she stopped. Turning her head toward the door, she dropped the knife, then quickly turned on her heel and ran out the door. Katie was surprised. What had scared her away?

  Katie tried to listen to see if she could hear what had scared off Julie, but it was no good. All she could hear was her own heart pounding in her chest. She felt so cold. It was like she had been sitting in a tub of ice. Her eye’s started to blur. She blinked, trying to clear them. A figure appeared in the door. Who was it? Whoever it was let out a bellow that shook Katie to her core. Paul. He was here for her.

  Katie tried to speak but it came out a gurgle. She was choking on her own blood. Paul rushed over to her, kneeling down and scooping her up. He was talking, but Katie could not make out what he was saying. He leaned his face down against hers. It was wet. Was he crying? Yes. Oh baby, please do not cry, Katie tried to say.

  Her eyes were too heavy now, she could not keep them open any longer. This was it. At least she was in Paul’s arms. She was not dying alone.

  ***

  Tears ran down Paul’s face. He held Katie close as he prayed to the fate’s that the medics would get there in time. When Katie’s eyes had fluttered shut, her hands had fallen from her neck. Paul acted swiftly, pressing his own hands on the cut. She had been lucky that the cut had not made its way to her artery. She would have bled out within minutes. She could survive the wound she received, if the medics would fucking hurry up.

  Paul looked over his shoulder. “Where are they?” he growled at his brother, Mark. “They should be here by now. Katie needs them now.” Paul knew that it was not fair to yell at his brother but he could not stop himself. Katie was dying in his arms.

  “They just got here. They should be walking through the door any minute now.” As his brother talked, Paul could hear the sound of boots clashing against the floor outside as they rushed toward them. They were here. Finally. He shifted Katie in his lap so they could have better access to her.

  A group of six men came barreling through the door. Three turned to come help with Katie and the others went to where Sam laid on the floor unmoving. Paul knew that he should probably feel sad for losing his brother, but all he felt was hatred. Death probably came too quickly for the sleaze bag. He deserved to be tortured for the things he had done. If it had not been for him, then Katie would not be laying in his arms on the brink of death.

  “Sir, we need you to put the lady down flat on the ground so we can work on her,” one of the men said in a calming voice that pissed Paul off more than anything.

  Paul glared up at him. “No, you will save her life right now, and you will do so while I hold her. I am not letting go of my mate. Sh
e needs me.” He had let Katie down. He had not found her in time, or stopped Sam from taking her, so he refused to let go of her now.

  The man nodded and started hooking Katie up to different machines. Paul watched as Katie’s heart rate popped up on a little screen. It was slow but it was there. Paul sent up a thank you to the fates. “Sir, I am going to remove your hand slowly and replace it with my own. I need to get a look at what we are dealing with.” Paul nodded and allowed the medic to replace his hand.

  After a few moments, one of the medics whistled. “She is one lucky gal. Another half an inch higher and there would not have been anything we could have done for her. She has lost a lot of blood, so we will need to transfuse and stich up her wound before we can move her.” He looked up at Paul. “Are you injured at all?”

  Paul shook his head in response. “I was earlier, but I shifted. I am good to go.”

  The medic looked around. “Is there someone here that you trust? I need to transfuse from a dragon, but I do not want to use you since you are probably still healing.”

  Paul did not like the idea of someone else giving Katie something that she needed, but he could understand the medic’s concerns. “I will do it,” Mark said, walking up behind the medic. He knelt down and held out his arm. The medic looked at Paul and waited until he nodded his okay before pulling out a butterfly needle from his bag.

  Paul looked up Mark and sent him a silent thank you. He would never be able to repay his brother for this. If Katie survived, then Paul would owe Mark his life.

  Chapter 18

  Katie was in and out of it for a while. Someone would wake her up, ask a few questions and then she would be out again. She dreamt of all the things that she wanted in life. To undergo the mating ceremony with Paul. To have kids of her own. Watch them grow into beautiful dragons. She was not sure how long she was out of it, but it felt like days.

  Katie finally forced her eyes open. She released a relieved breath when she realized that no one else had woken her this time. Maybe she was ready to wake from her days of rest. She went through a mental checklist to make sure she still had everything. When that was done, she reached up to check her neck. It felt a little raw but there was no longer a big gaping hole there.

  Katie stretched for the first time. Everything felt fine. There was no resistance of sore muscles and she noticed that her head no longer throbbed either. How long had she been out? Katie looked around for the first time and realized where she was. She was in Paul’s bed. Turning over to look around, her eyes came to a stop on the man lying in bed next to her. He looked so peaceful in a deep sleep. She thought about how frantic he looked the last time she saw him. The tears that had ran down his cheeks over her.

  Katie leaned over and left a couple soft kisses on his cheeks where his tears had been. Paul’s eyes shot open. He looked at Katie with such love that Katie’s heart melted. “You should be resting,” he whispered before leaning in and nibbling Katie’s ear.

  Katie laughed. “Well, if you want me to rest then you should not be nibbling at my ear like that.”

  Paul’s head jerked back, almost colliding with Katie’s. “This is probably true. How are you feeling, love?” he asked with concern in his eyes.

  Katie thought about it. She was alive so that was good. “Great, but a little hungry. How long have I been out?”

  “You have been touch and go for about three days now,” he said as he climbed out of bed. “How about you go and wash up while I make you something to eat.”

  “I would rather you join me in the shower. I might need a little help with the soap.” Katie winked at Paul when he growled.

  Paul walked around the bed and stopped in front of Katie. He helped her stand up, then he leaned over and kissed her. It was a soft, sweet kiss that promised so much more, but it ended way too soon for Katie’s liking. She moaned her protest as he pulled away. “Katie, I would love to join you, but you are not fully healed yet. So against what my body is telling me to do, I am going to go make you some food. I also need to let everyone know that you are awake.”

  Without another word, Paul turned and walked out of the room, leaving Katie to go shower. Once in the bathroom, she thought about taking a nice hot bath, but decided against it when her stomach groaned at her. She walked over and started the shower, letting the water warm up before she jumped in.

  Thirty minutes later, Katie stepped out of the bathroom feeling clean and refreshed. She padded her way over to her closet and pulled out some clean clothes. Once dressed, she made her way out into the kitchen. Paul was busy at the stove flipping pancakes. He turned around and faced her as she walked closer.

  “My father and Mark are on their way over,” he said as he piled two plates full of food. “They would like to talk to you about what happened.”

  Katie nodded, she knew the drill. She respected it, even if she did not know if she was ready for it. “Did Julie not tell them anything?”

  Paul froze, setting off an alarm in Katie’s head. “We have not found Julie yet. Honestly, we did not know for sure that she was involved. We had our suspicions but no evidence of it.”

  Katie’s heart rate picked up and her hands started shake. The woman behind all the horrible things that have happened to her was still free. Out there in the world, planning her next moves. Would they involve Katie? Or other little helpless babies?

  Paul walked around the counter and pulled Katie into his arms. “It will all be okay, love. We will catch her. If you would like to wait to talk to my family then we can. You do not have to do it right now.”

  Katie shook her head. She needed to do this now. Maybe it would help to catch Julie and bring her to justice. “No, we need to do it now. But you should know that this will not be easy for any of you to hear.”

  Paul went stiff around Katie. She hated the fact that she had to explain everything to them. Before either one of them could say any more, a knock came at the door. Paul stepped away and went to answer the door. Katie was not surprised when Fabian and Mark walked in.

  “It is good to see you up and moving around,” Fabian said as he gave Katie a quick hug. Mark followed suit before walking over to Paul. Katie looked over at Paul and watched as he wrapped Mark into a hug. This was the first time she had ever seen him embrace his family in this way. It made her smile. They exchanged a few words and Katie could swear that she saw a tear in Paul’s eye.

  They released one another and turned toward the dining room table. Paul grabbed the plates off the counter and carried them over to the table. “Come sit down and eat, love, we can talk about everything else afterwards.” He pulled out a chair and waited for her to sit down before he sat down in the chair next to her.

  Katie was almost done with her breakfast when she looked up at the men sitting around her. They were quiet the whole time she ate, giving her the chance to think about how to explain everything. She had just one question first. “What happened to Sam?”

  Fabian cleared his throat before answering. “He was cremated two days go. It is dragon tradition. Even though he broke our laws and put you and Paul in danger, he was still my son.”

  Katie nodded. She understood Fabian’s need to stick with tradition. She could even see why Sam had done what he did. He was upset over a lot of things, hurting over so many people he had lost. Hell, he had no idea what Julie had truly been up to. “You know, he did not know everything that Julie had done, he was just upset about a lot of different things. I think the things that pushed him over the edge were his mate was killed a few months ago, and then I came into the picture and everyone was so happy for Paul. He just could not take it anymore.”

  “What do you mean his mate was killed a few months ago? He did not have a mate,” Fabian said with a look of confusion.

  “All I know is that he said she was murdered by a group of dragons.” She watched as Fabian’s face changed from confusion to sorrow.

  “The female that we found two months ago. When everyone figured out that she was o
ne of us, the unmated males flocked. She just could not handle it; it was all too much for her.” A tear ran down Fabian’s face as he put everything together. Katie did not want to continue so she sat there quietly waiting.

  After a few minutes of silence, Mark cleared his throat and asked, “What can you tell us about Julie?”

  Katie looked up at Mark. “I believe she is insane.” Paul reached over and grabbed her hand, giving her some comfort. “She was pissed off that she was the only unmated female dragon. She said that for the last fifty years or so, she has been helping to deliver the babies. When a female is born, she takes the child and tells the parents that the child died.”

  “We would have noticed if the kids were just disappearing, but they were dead!” Fabian bit out. “I held my baby girl after she passed.”

  Katie had to push the lump in her throat down. They needed to know that truth. “She said that she would get a dead baby from a funeral home to give to the parents and then would take the dragon females to a hospital and leave it there. She even admitted to Sam that she had done the same thing with Lilith and me.”

  “Oh my god,” Mark whispered. “Are you saying that my baby sister could still be alive?”

  Katie nodded. “Along with my parents.” She looked at Fabian and her heart broke. “My birth parents do not even know that I exist. They think I am dead.”

  Paul wiped away the tears that streamed down his face, stood, and walked over to the desk across the room. “What state were you born in?” he asked, looking over his shoulder.