A Dragon's Heart

by Jana Leigh

  A Dragon’s Heart

  Templar Guard [1]

  Jana Leigh, Willow Brooke

  * * *

  Warning: For Mature Adult Audiences. Contains language and actions some may deem offensive. Ménage – MFM.

  In book one of Templar Guard: Hidden for centuries, the ancient breed of dragons have remained out of the public eye and blended amongst the humans. When a governmental threat for a new world order arises, it falls upon them and the other members of the Templar Guard to save the human race and their own kind.

  Drakk is the leader of their clan, with no intention of taking a mate. His jaded heart is encased in a brick wall from loss and heartache. He fights the immediate attraction to the little female, determined to remain detached.

  Jex is the comedian of the clan, finding a joke in any situation to lighten the mood. His witty lines and attitude rake over Drakk’s last nerve, winding up in blows in most cases.

  Aislinn has no idea she is a descendant of the original linear of witches. Her future was foretold by an ancestor, unlocking the clues to save the natural world and its inhabitants, both magical and human. When she finds not only one but two mates who happen to shift into huge dragon beasts, it is a little hard to swallow.

  The human race on Earth is threatened and the dragons are sighted to be the weapon needed to obtain the goal for the elite. Will they comply with what has been foretold, or leave the humans on their own while the dragons fly off to keep to their solitary lives?

  A Dragon’s Heart

  Templar Guard

  Book One

  By Jana Leigh and Willow Brooke

  © Copyright May 2014 JK Publishing, Inc.

  ISBN # 9781311612564

  All cover art and logo © Copyright May 2014 by JK Publishing, Inc.

  All rights reserved.

  Edited by Caroline Kirby

  Artwork by Jess Buffett

  Published by JK Publishing, Inc.

  Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.

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  Dedication

  We would like to thank all of our readers: We hope you enjoy our combined work as much as we enjoyed writing it together. We can't wait to see where the next one takes us and hope you come along for the ride.

  Willow & Jana

  Table of Contents

  Dedication

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Epilogue

  Books by Jana Leigh

  Books by Willow Brooke

  JK Publishing, Inc. Author List

  Excerpt from Challenging Love

  Excerpt from Releasing the Spirit

  Prologue

  Drakken stood and stretched his tall, muscular body. He didn’t look in the mirror hanging in his room, because the reflection never changed. It hadn’t in over 500 years when he first saw himself in a reflection in the water. If he had looked, he would have seen a large man, tall and lithe, with his rippling muscles showing his strength in their smooth bulges. His hair was long, he considered it blonde, but according to the women who helped take care of the dragons that were hidden, it was strawberry blonde. His eyes were the only things he could honestly say had changed. When a dragon was young, they were cloudy, almost changing with his mood at every second. Now that he had matured, they were piercing blue. He actually liked them because he could scare the shit out of humans with one glance. His brother dragons would snicker, but it was a source of entertainment, which sometimes they needed as the days of hiding had grown long.

  Many years ago, Trevor Langston I had come to him and explained how he uncovered their existence. Apparently, their secrecy had been blown on more than one occasion. He had genuinely wanted to help; however, after one hundred years, his ancestors didn’t feel the same way. It was becoming evident that he and his brother dragons were going to have to make a move. They allowed the humans to think they had power because it suited their purpose, but there was no way they would allow it to go on much longer, they were getting a little too demanding.

  At the time, Drakken had thought the plan to give the dragons a place to live, and start afresh had been a good idea. Dragons were not known for their people skills with humans. They had little use for them other than to bed the females, or watch their little wars, and sometimes give them information about the other side to keep the conflict going. They had their morals though. They never gave away information to men who were evil. No, they would just kill them, doing the world a favor.

  Moving somewhere protected and off the grid had been a solution at the time, and honestly, they had been curious how far the humans would go to protect them. May sound cold, but if the humans put them up in a nice place, it would be okay to just use them. The place they designed for them had been nice and clean, and more importantly, they had given them all the amenities they wanted.

  It was last
night when the men had gotten important information though, and after last night’s little meeting, they were going to hash this out in private. The men had insisted on one room with no cameras. The idiots kept trying to trick them, but dragons had the power to let them hear or not.

  Drakken got ready for his day and smiled a little. It was time the humans who thought they were in charge, learned that they weren’t.

  It was time.

  Chapter One

  The men gathered in the room where they knew they could speak freely. Up until now, they had let the humans think they could watch them whenever they chose to. It amused them, a game if you will.

  Drakk, as only his friends called him, stood at the front, his men either leaning against the wall, or sitting in the chairs. Being their leader meant everything to him. They were family, and that meant everything to a dragon, there were so few of them to begin with.

  “So last night, Trevor Langston IV decided he was going to inform us the testing of our powers would begin next week. We have never been asked to show them what we can do, and frankly they don’t need to know,” Drakk said.

  The second oldest, his right hand man, and the arrogant playboy of the group, Daganth, or Dag for short said, “Why do you think they are wondering about our powers now?”

  “‘Cause we are perfect and strange beings?” the youngest dragon, Jexual asked. He was the comedian, keeping their moods from clashing with each other.

  “Because we are obviously more intelligent,” Brakton said.

  “Oh I know, because we're vicious scary beasts who they are trying to control in order to take over the world, and make cool little minions in our name. Making us omnipotent,” Xavier said.

  Drakk rolled his eyes. “Guys, think. Seriously, I don’t care why they are taking interest now, but they are. That was our rule when we started this, we would not be used. So, when are we leaving? I think we should find caves by the ocean. Lazing our days away with a view. I am a little sick of all the interaction they insist on anyway. I have my cave still in the mountains, I could go there, but the cold seems a bit much these days.”

  “Hell yeah,” Dag laughed and rubbed his hands. “I have always wanted to see the babes on the beaches do the topless thing. I have seen pictures.” His eyebrows wagged suggestively, showing his ornery playboy nature.

  They talked around the room and he shook his head as he listened to them argue about where they were going. Not one of them worried about how the hell they were going to get out of there. Because basically, there was never a question of whether they could hold them there. The fact of the matter was—they couldn’t. Drakk was one of the oldest dragons on Earth, and because of that, he had matured into his powers. His gold scales revealed in their kind that he was one of the elite and the wisest dragon.

  Drakk kind of hated the title; it seemed like a lot of work if you asked him. Taking these men under his wings had been more than enough. At the time, Drakk had been alone, and now he had a family. If someone tried to hurt them, there would be hell to pay.

  He looked around, disgusted at the unacceptable conditions the humans had given. The room was old and tattered, with plumbing overhead and industrial pipes and beams lining along the walls. The miniscule humans looked at them as an inferior species, when in fact they were an inferior race. With little information given, and the plans to keep it that way, their new dilemma was to find an escape route without drawing attention. Whatever the government was up to, they could not get their hands on the power of the dragons.

  “You all are losing sight of the problem at hand. We need to come up with a way to get out of here before you go making vacation plans. Most of the security here we can override without them having a clue. The motion alarms are our only real obstacle. Without using magic, even if we go invisible, we can't avoid setting them off.”

  “Why do you insist we refrain from using magic? It is ours. They could never stand a chance against us even if they tried. One dragon could wipe out the whole country if desired,” Peyon exclaimed annoyed.

  “Do you not realize the scientific technology they have created? Things have changed tremendously in the past three centuries. Without us knowing exactly how advanced they are, it is a risk we can't take,” Drakk shot back.

  “Drakk is right. It is best to avoid any confrontation with them for now. We know they have discovered the celestial cave, and are close to figuring out how to enter past the wards. If they do, they will know our one and only weakness. That is a major problem.” Brakton shifted his weight, still uncomfortable and hating being in human form. The others didn't seem to mind being reduced to a puny little helpless shell, but he did. He was a dragon for shit’s sake. Magic in human form or not, it didn't compare to that of his dragon. Brakton hadn't been himself since being made to stay in this hideous form.

  “Bullshit! Why are we cowering to these imbeciles? We are dragons! I do not bow to anyone! We can walk out of here in a casual stroll and they can't do anything. By the time they figure out how to get into the sacred cave, we will have figured out how to remove the amulet. This is a waste of time!” Peyon stomped around the room. He had always been the hothead of the group, and was known for wiping out entire villages for the sins of one man without a second thought.

  “Stand down, Peyon! Until we figure out what their plans are, we will all tread lightly,” Gandore growled dominantly. Gandore was the peacemaker of the group who had always defused the hot tempers all of them shared.

  “It may be possible to use one of the old cloaking spells undetected, but magic in large amounts is off limits for now,” Drakk suggested.

  “Spells? We have reduced ourselves to such lengths as to resort back to the simple amateur spells! This is a disgrace! Next you will tell us we have to stay in this God forsaken form!” Brakton roared.

  “Exactly. We will stay in their form to blend in,” Drakk said with a smirk.

  “You have lost your mind, and your balls, Drakk! And, how long will that be? A few days? Weeks? Years? How about we just stay like this forever. We can all join a bowling league and reduce ourselves to worthless, wastes of oxygen and space like they are!” Brakton complained.

  Before Drakk or any of the others could respond, General Wallace Washburn stepped through the door. His shoulders were squared, his chest puffed, and his expression cocky. Out of all of the humans, this one was the most irritating. He talked and acted like the dragons were mere pets to be commanded. When the time came, he was first on the list to be fried to a crisp.

  “This is over. Now, follow me, it is time to start the testing. I will not stand for any more delays.” He held some sort of Taser gun, which seemed ridiculous. It would take a hell of a lot more to take down a full size dragon, but Drakk decided to humor the asshat and see where he was taking them. With a simple nod command, he threw a smirk at the others and followed.

  Peyon snorted, grumbling under his breath loud enough only the others could hear, “Bullshit. Bite this asshole's head off and let's get the fuck out of here.” Drakk turned and gave him a dirty look, stopping the young dragon from doing something stupid.

  If the General wanted them to follow, they would. It could give them a better idea of what they were up against. A plan started forming in his head as they walked out of the huge hanger toward another sand brown metal structure. It was odd...there were no soldiers around this area like the rest of the base. There were three buildings lined up together, all identical.

  “This way.” General Washburn opened a side door that was hidden and camouflaged into the metal siding. Beneath a small panel was a keypad. Drakk focused in on it, magnifying his vision to watch the numbers to the code. 5, 2, 1, 9, 9, 8, 7, 6. The door popped open with a click, and they all stepped inside. The General was a cocky son of a bitch. He stood holding the door, waiting for them all to enter like disobedient children, or prisoners. Drakk had to grit his teeth, and hope that Peyon didn’t barbeque and eat him as a snack on the way in.

  Trevor Lan
gston IV stood beside a huge machine. Amongst the room were different vials, electronics, and other things the dragons couldn't identify. A metal table stood at his side, with huge needles filled with different colored concoctions. Two of them actually seemed to be glowing. Against the wall were cages that held other animals, including monkeys, wolves, and big cats. It became evident at their reaction to seeing them that they were test animals. Each one had weird characteristics, from being totally lethargic, to thrashing and fighting against the cage. A bright blue liquid was in a tank overhead, which went down through tubes to them. Each animal had a hole surgically made and the tube inserted into his or her back in what he assumed was the spinal cord area. The disconnected, glazed look in their eyes made him want to vomit.

  Trevor walked over to greet them. From the slight shake in his hands, and his dilated pupils, the dragons knew he was nervous, and lying. “Hello. I am sorry to take up your time, but we would like to do a few simple little tests. Each one will only take a few minutes, and you will be up and ready to go by nightfall.”

  As he pointed to the curtain partitioned beds that lined the entire length of the room, a group of soldiers came in from all sides and moved in on them. They all had some sort of metal cuffs, and there was no guessing as to what they were for. Drakk turned and shot a look at the others, knowing that none of them would allow themselves to be cuffed. The troops moved in slowly, weapons in one hand and the restraints in the other, boxing them in with no escape. Moments before they got within reaching distance, the ground beneath their feet began to shake and rumble. A bright, blinding light flashed with sparks flying in a cyclone around Peyon as he shifted into dragon form.