by Jules Tyler
Running a hand over his scalp, Adrian let out a sigh, “Well, that was fun.”
McKinzy turned towards him with a scowl, “You’re dismissed, Sergeant. Duke and I can handle this from here.”
Adrian opened his mouth to argue, but thought better of it and chose to walk away. It was probably best that they not be in the same room when this shifter came to, or it might cause more harm than good. He needed to sort out what he was going to do before he approached McKinzy again. He had a lot of explaining to do, and he needed to be sure he could trust her before he did.
Chapter Six
Duke settled the new arrival onto the futon in McKinzy’s sitting area and turned to face her. Even asleep, something intimidating was wafting off of this guy. No wonder they had knocked him out for transport. What she couldn’t understand is why they sent a human serviceman up here for disobeying an order. There were different ways of handling this but instead his options had been to either reside here or be placed in front of the firing squad? None of this made sense.
“Look, boss…Before he comes to, I think we need to have a talk,” Duke furrowed his brow.
McKinzy’s head snapped up from her interrupted thoughts, “Why do I feel like this place is more than I signed up for, Duke?”
“Because it is. Adrian said he had tried to tell you yesterday that this place is different. I just don’t think you realize how much more different it really is. This place, it’s…special. The men we tend to here aren’t just men…” He hesitated to continue.
And suddenly it all clicked into place. This wasn’t just some prison camp. This wasn’t just a prison at all. This was the shifter camp! This was the place the government swore up and down didn’t exist. They told the shifter public there was nothing to worry about, nothing like this would never exist. Yet here she was, running the damned thing as a shifter herself. Oh, this was not good. This was very bad, as a matter of fact. She had managed to land herself a gig she thought she could be proud of, but instead, she was representing the one thing she had nightmares about on a regular basis. The room felt smaller and her throat started to constrict. Gasping for air, she plunked down on the floor and hugged her knees to her chest.
“Please tell me this is all just some bad dream, Duke. This isn’t really the shifter camp, is it, Duke?”
He sunk down to his knees and put a hand on her back, “Aye, it is darlin’. Best come to terms with it now. You’re a human woman stuck in a shifter world. It really isn’t as bad as it seems though, it really isn’t. The men that are here are mostly all here for the same reason this man here is. The government couldn’t control them the way they wanted to. This is their safe haven, compared to what could have happened. I know it’s scary to be somewhere new, especially surrounded by people who could cause you harm. Just please know that these men will never be able to harm you. The boys and I won’t let them.”
She began to sob, “No Duke, you don’t get it. I’m not scared.” She looked up at Duke, fully aware of what he would see. Her eyes had shifted from her emerald green eyes to molten bronze, and he likely could see her pupils elongating to their reptilian point. Shaking her head to try and force her eyes back to normal, she waited for a reaction from Duke. “Promise me you won’t tell anyone, Duke. Not even Adrian. I can’t attract any attention, I can’t. If I do, there’s no telling what they might do to me. They took my people from me, Duke. My mom. My dad. My everything. I…I…”
Duke placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, “Don’t worry your pretty little head, boss, your secret is safe with me. But you probably should tell Adrian sooner, rather than later. If anyone needs to know, it’s him. We have to be able to have your back and we can’t do that if you’re keeping secrets from us.”
“I know,” she shuddered. “Sorry, I’m not usually the crying type.”
“It’s okay. Hey, do you want to know one of my secrets in exchange with you sharing yours with me?” He grinned, trying to lift the tensions in the room.
“Sure.” McKinzy said, giving him a smile.
Duke lowered his voice, “I’m a Silverback gorilla. Shh, don’t tell anyone.”
Holding out a hand to help her to her feet, Duke gave her a kind smile. Pulling her to her feet, they turned to check on the new arrival. He seemed to be coming to. Man, oh man, were they gonna have their hands full.
“Alright, thanks for the help, Duke. I’d best be looking into where we are gonna put this guy,” she said, wringing her hands nervously.
Touching her shoulder once more before turning to the door, Duke chuckled, “You’re alright, boss, you are alright.”
McKinzy stared out the door after Duke and tried to hold herself together. This is not what she had pictured for herself. She made a mental note to call Michaelson and give him the tongue lashing of a lifetime for making her come up here unprepared. Was it possible he knew what she was? Is that why he called her with the job? Too many thoughts racing through her head was making her feel like she was spinning. The new shifter on the couch started to stir, thankfully interrupting her train of thought.
He held a hand to his head, “Where am I?”
“Welcome to Hell on Earth.” She muttered bitterly.
“Who the hell are you?”
“I’m the warden here, McKinzy Regan. You were just dropped off by a black SUV with an unsavory driver.”
“Shit, you mean I wasn’t just having a bad dream? This is all real?” He fell back against the futon looking overwhelmed.
“Unfortunately for both of us, this is real. Do you know why you’re here?” She asked, lowering herself onto the other futon across from him, making sure not to give him her back.
“Yeah, those fuckheads from that task force wanted me and I told them where to shove it. I’d been successful at hiding from the time I was eighteen until they showed up at my door in the middle of the Smokies.”
There was a beat before McKinzy responded, “You were in hiding? Alone?”
“Sure was.”
“Why? It’s safer to hide in groups unless you’re a…”
“Say it.”
McKinzy whispered, furrowing her brow, “It’s not possible.”
“Sure is, precious.”
“But the dragon shifters were wiped out about four to five years ago. How did you manage to survive?”
“I was raised off the grid. My ma was real good at hiding. She somehow always knew that those cock heads in office would get too big for their britches and try to take everyone out.”
McKinzy’s eyes widened. Since losing her family, she hadn’t spent time with another dragon shifter. She was so certain she was the last one in existence. She could feel the blood draining from her face. How was he still alive? She had survived by the skin of her teeth and she had the scars to prove it, inside and out. But here this guy was, sitting right in front of her with not so much as a scratch on him. Something didn’t add up.
“The driver that escorted you here said you disobeyed a direct order. Your folder says you abandoned your post. So how did you live off the grid if you were in the military?”
“That’s what they told you?”
McKinzy hesitated, “Yes…”
“Do you believe everything you hear?”
“I don’t know what to believe anymore. Look, I don’t want any trouble up here. If you value your life, you’ll obey the orders you’re given by my staff and you won’t be picking any fights. One toe steps out of line and I will put you down myself, am I clear?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
McKinzy grabbed her radio, “Brenton, could you please come here to help our new arrival find a cabin?”
“Sure can.”
McKinzy set the radio on the table and focused back on the stranger, “So I can’t be calling you New Arrival forever. What’s your name, dragon?”
“Cole. Whatever else you want to know about me is in my file.”
Adrian’s footsteps on the porch caught McKinzy and Cole’s attention. He ope
ned the door and let himself inside. Avoiding eye contact with her, he turned toward Cole.
“You ready?” Adrian asked.
“Guess so. Where else am I gonna go at this point?” Cole sneered.
McKinzy cleared her throat and narrowed her eyes at Cole with warning. He gave her sarcastic smirk. Oh this was not going to end well. McKinzy could feel it down in her bones. This guy spelt trouble with a capital T.
“Adrian, if there is a cabin that’s empty, I think Cole is going to be better off in his own space for the foreseeable future.”
“Cabin D is unoccupied at the moment.”
Of course it is. D for dragon, how fitting. “Very well. Check in with me once you get him settled.”
“Will do.” He pulled Cole to his feet and escorted him out the door.
McKinzy released an unsteady breath and stood. She needed to stretch her legs. Her inner dragon was stirring, ready to break free. Having another dragon in her territory was not going to work well for her. She was dominant and she liked her space. She could handle being around other shifters because they weren’t nearly as dominant as her, but Cole’s dragon had a dominance that rivaled her own. She was going to have to avoid him if she wanted to keep her secret. It was bad enough that she was going to have to figure out where she could shift without anyone seeing her. Her dragon wasn’t exactly small by any means. She was actually quite large. Her florescent blue and white scales weren’t exactly well camouflaged either. Damn. Having him here was going to make her need to shift twice as often, if not more. Maybe Duke could provide some insight at dinner tonight.
Chapter Seven
Adrian glanced over at Cole again. The newcomer had some sort of monster tucked inside that skin of his, and Adrian just wasn’t sure if he wanted to know exactly what is was yet. It was offensive to ask another shifter what their animal was, but he got the feeling that there was a lot more to this guy than met the eye. Shaved head and covered in tats, if the government was sending him here he was probably a big beast.
“Just ask.” Cole muttered.
“Excuse me, what?” Adrian asked, raising an eyebrow.
“I know you’re dying to know what I am. I can feel it coming off of you in waves.”
“Then why don’t you just tell me and get it over with?” God this guy was already getting on his nerves.
“Because I’ve been enjoying watching you squirm, trying to figure it out on your own.”
“Whatever man, I don’t even care as long as you keep your animal in check.”
“Oh c’mon, you know you want to know,” he shoved Adrian a little too hard, testing him to see if he’d react.
“Are you gonna make a habit of trying to drive me nuts?”
“Possibly.”
“Just fuck off, man. Everything runs smoothly up here. You’re here because it was your last option for salvation. Behave yourself so we don’t have to put you down ourselves.”
“Calm your tits, Simba,” he sneered.
Adrian stiffened. How did Cole know what he was? He had been unconscious when the escort had called him that.
“Ah see, now I’m under your skin. Even better, now I’m in your head, too.”
“What do you know?” Adrian growled.
“A lot more than you think I do, that’s for sure.”
They stopped in front of Cabin D, and Cole walked up the steps and turned the knob. Letting himself into the cabin, he turned and faced Adrian one last time, “I’m a dragon, by the way. So, I mean, good luck putting me down, pussy cat.”
Adrian felt the blood draining from his face after Cole shut the door. A dragon? He had to be messing with him. Weren’t they all wiped out a few years ago? There was no way in hell they were equipped to deal with a dragon shifter. What was the government thinking sending him up here? He should’ve been locked up and been given daily doses of suppressant so that he couldn’t shift or something. He could be danger to everyone up here if he was a loose cannon. Now they were going to have to tread lightly to make sure they didn’t trigger a shift. This was not good, nope not good at all. He needed to talk to McKinzy. They needed to call an emergency meeting and fill everyone in, then formulate a plan to keep the more troublesome inmates away from Cole. This was not something that could end well for any of them if they weren’t prepared.
He turned and jogged back down the trail towards McKinzy’s cabin and knocked without hesitation this time. He opened the door a crack before opening it to let himself in.
“We need to talk,” he blurted.
“Look, Adrian, I really don’t feel like revisiting this morning’s little…adventure.”
“No woman, not about that. We need to talk about a contingency plan in case Cole’s dragon makes an unwanted appearance.”
“Oh, yeah that. We do. Let’s talk,” she said, turning to walk towards the office.
Adrian watched her saunter down the hallway in front of him. Damn, she’s beautiful no matter what she’s wearing. He shook his head. Man, he really needed to sort out his shit because someone like her didn’t just show up willy nilly in life. Straightening himself, he followed her to the office. He leaned against the doorway and watched as McKinzy settled into the rolling chair in front of the computer while he tried to gather his thoughts.
“Look, I’m not gonna lie to you.. I’m flat out concerned about what we are dealing with here. We aren’t exactly equipped to contain a dragon shifter here. Especially since it’s right after dry season up here, and so much as a cigarette butt could ignite the entire cabin in about three minutes flat,” Adrian said, rubbing his temples.
“I know that. I don’t know what else we can do though. We can’t just put him down. That’s just cruel. He’s one of the last dragon shifters on this Earth. We’d be helping the government exterminate the last of the dragon shifters. Honestly, that exact reason is probably why they sent him here. They knew there was nothing we could do. We can’t put him down, but we can’t exactly control him either. It all stinks, if you ask me. I don’t trust Big Brother any more than any other shifter out there does after what they did to the dragons. I feel like they’re up to something sending him up here, and we are gonna find out what that is.”
“But what do we do when his dragon can’t be contained any longer and he loses control?”
“We’ll have to cross that bridge when we come to it. I have a few tricks up my sleeve.”
“How? You’re human, McKinzy. We have to protect you too,” Adrian felt heat creeping up his spine, it made him sick just thinking of what Cole could do to a woman like her if he set his sights on her.
“Don’t you worry about me. You’d be surprised at how well I can hold my own against a dragon, or any other shifter, as a matter of fact.” She gave a private smile, as though she had some big secret locked away like presents in the closet for Christmas Day.
“If you say so, Boss,” he ran a hand through his hair and turned to leave.
“Adrian?” McKinzy called as he walked down the hallway.
“Yeah?”
“I think I know what happened this morning.”
“And what exactly is that?” He turned, canting his head.
“Well, you just called me a human. I can only assume that this prison isn’t just for shifters, but it’s also ran by shifters. I mean, how else is the government supposed to keep these guys in line? They’d eat human men for dinner and pick their teeth with their bones.”
Adrian chewed his lip nervously, “Where are you going with this?”
“If my suspicion is right, you’re a shifter too. A predator of some sort, judging by the sound of that rumble that came out of you this morning.”
His brow furrowed, considering whether or not he should tell her the answer she was looking for. Telling her meant having to answer other questions that might come up. But judging by the partial boner he was sporting as he was staring at her, he knew he couldn’t keep this secret at bay much longer if he was ever going to make a move on her. Make
a move? When did I decide I even wanted to make a move?
He took a step toward where McKinzy was leaning against the wall, bracing himself for the response she would give, “You’re right.”
Her lips formed a perfect O before responding, “I am?”
“I’ll even let you guess, if you want,” he grinned, taking that response as a positive reaction, and since she wasn’t rushing to get away from him, he took another step forward. He could hear her heart start to race with what he hoped was excitement.
“It kind of sounded like you were purring…” she pondered out loud, staring at her boots, deep in thought.
“I don’t purr,” he rushed out defensively.
She smiled to herself, knowing she had gotten a rise out of him with that statement meant she was on the right track, “And the driver that dropped Cole off called you Simba…”
Adrian scowled at her, Simba was not a favorite nickname of his.
“Are you a lion?” She smiled hopefully.
Closing the space between them, he whispered, “Yes.” Just one more kiss. It doesn’t even have to be good. C’mon man, pull yourself together. You used to be better at this. What is wrong with you?
They both could feel the electricity pulsing between them. There was no doubt that there was chemistry there. Just as he raised a hand to caress her face, she turned away from him. “I can’t, Adrian. Not like this. Not only is this super inappropriate, but it’s also too dangerous for me to let anyone get close to me.”
“But…”
“I said no.” She straightened, her voice catching in her throat, “Can’t you just accept that? Maybe then we can try to be friends or something. I just don’t do attachments.”
Adrian wanted to argue, wanted to fight with her about this. He wanted to touch her. His lion was pacing hungrily from deep inside of him. He needed to touch her. He needed to hold hold her close; something needed to change. But maybe she was right. Maybe they were better off being friends. He could break her into pieces if he wasn’t careful, and given what animal he had locked inside, careful wasn’t exactly his nature. He needed someone he could be rough with on multiple levels.