by Julia Mills
Leaning back in his chair, the man crossed his arms over his chest, rolled his eyes, and sighed. “You know why I’m here, lady, and if you think I’m gonna tell some uppity bitch like you a damn thing about my life then that judge done fucked up.”
“And why is that, Ted?” Myanna laid her hands atop the manila folder on the table in front of her and added, “May I call you, Ted?”
“You can call me anything you want as long as you get down on your hands and knees and show me that tight, sweet ass of yours.”
Red-hot flashes of fury raced through Banning like a runaway train. Gerallt roared, spitting fire while throwing himself against the impenetrable black magic of the witch’s spell. Pushing with all his strength, the Guardsman did everything possible to infuse calm and loving support to his mate, only to have it bounce back. Shaking with fury, he was floored by his mate’s courage and control. She was nothing short of amazing, for the dragon knew that without a doubt he would have torn the louse limb from limb the second he opened his mouth.
And so it went on, sixty long, treacherous minutes, during which time Myanna sat still, staring at the tiny ripples of the water, silent as a mouse. Wishing with every fiber of his being that he could communicate, just say one word, give one ounce of assurance or comfort to his mate, Banning breathed a sigh of relief when she raised her lovely face, tried to chuckle, and gave him a weak smile.
“I had a really hard day and I just don’t want to go home to an empty house. I know Lillian had to go back to her apartment, and for the most part, I’m okay with living alone. It’s just…” Her words trailed off as she looked down and dipped the tips of her fingers into the water, drawing lazy figure eights, her mind awash in more emotions than Banning could distinguish.
“Well, it’s just that I wish I could take you home with me.” She barked out a hollow laugh. “Wouldn’t that be something? How would I ever explain to the neighbors that I took the dragon from the park because I like talking to him?”
Oh, mo ghrá, I love talking to you. Love every second we’re together. I long to have you in my arms, forever and always…
Trying not to be frustrated. Doing everything in his power not to lose faith, Banning hung onto Myanna’s every word. All too soon, she got to her feet, shoved her hands into the pockets of her long camel-colored woolen coat, and smiled up at him. “I thought about bringing a sleeping bag and sleeping right here with you, but I’m somehow sure it’s against the rules.” Leaning closer, she added, her tone little more than a whisper, “But I will be back in the morning. Stay safe my dragon hero.”
Chapter Eight
Blowing out the breath she’d been holding, Mimi slumped forward just as the clang of the thick, reinforced metal door filled the tiny, isolated, ‘in-between’ room she and the guard stood in. Shoving his key into the lock of the opposite door, Bart, a short, muscular, brick-wall of a prison guard, smiled over his shoulder and nodded. “I don’t know how you do it.” Pulling his key from the lock, he held the door as he went on, “The shit that guy says to you,” he shook his head, “is downright horrible.
“Thank you,” was all she could murmur as she walked past.
Too exhausted, both mentally and physically, to stay on her feet but knowing the guard wanted to talk, Mimi took a seat in the only padded chair in the room and nodded as Bart continued, “And to know what he did to all those people. You deserve a medal or a raise or both.”
“Or to have my own head examined,” she snorted just before Bart laughed way too loud and with way too much gusto than was necessary. Preparing herself for what she had no doubt was coming, Mimi plastered on a smile as the guard leaned against the wall beside where she sat and fiddled with his keys as he asked, “So, what does your husband think about what you do here?”
Keeping her forced smile in place, she shrugged, “Not married.”
Bart’s smile grew just as she had known it would right before he asked, “Just haven’t found the right one?”
Deciding to lie through her teeth, the only time in all her life she’d ever done it, but not wanting to alienate any of the people she worked with, Mimi touched her mother’s ring, the one Robin had always worn and sighed, “I think I’ve found the right one.” Looking up, she winked. “I’m just waiting for him to propose.”
Looking less than thrilled with Mimi’s declaration but all the same still smiling, Bart pushed off the wall and chuckled, “Just my luck. All the good ones are taken.”
“Aww, thank you so much. I’ll have to tell Banning you said that.”
What the hell is wrong with me? Using my dream lover’s name. I need a vacation, and I need it like yesterday…
Getting to her feet as she mentally chastised herself, Mimi walked through the door that led out of the prison’s secured interview rooms in the high security ward, following close behind Bart as he opened each of the four doors for her. It was sad to think that Ted Dubronski, her newest patient and the man who’d tortured, killed, and then dismembered at least a dozen people, both men and women, before burying them in his grandmother’s garden, wasn’t the worst she’d been charged with analyzing or even the worst the prison housed. But he was by far the most intelligent and that made him lethal.
Finally, in front of the elevator that would take her upstairs to her office, lost in thought, the sound of Bart’s voice made Mimi jump and squeak, “Oh my heav—”
“—Sorry about that,” he tried not to chuckle. “I just wanted to tell you to have a good weekend.”
Taking a deep breath, her hands still shaking and her heart still beating like a bass drum, Mimi nervously snickered, “No worries. I just need some sleep. Gonna have a lazy weekend.”
“Good for you.” Bart patted her shoulder. “Tell that guy of yours that I said he’s a lucky man.”
“I sure will.” Mimi chuckled, glad the elevator doors had opened, giving her a convenient escape. Waving as she pushed the button marked 4, she added, “Take care. See you on Monday.”
Propping her hip against the wide brass rail on the side wall of the elevator, Mimi kept the smile on her face and refused to look up, knowing the camera in the elevator was monitoring her every move. She would never forget her first week at the prison and her horrible faux pas in that very elevator.
Hurrying to her first staff meeting, she’d raced out of her office, flown down the hall, and zipped into the empty elevator just as the doors were closing. Because her day had been packed with intake appointments and meetings, Mimi hadn’t had a chance to think, let alone fix her stockings that simply refused to stay put.
Since she was alone and the elevator was moving slower than molasses in January, the young doctor lifted her skirt, adjusted her pantyhose then turned and fixed the straps of her bra and the front of her blouse using the polished silver panel at the back of the lift. Exiting, she whipped into the conference room with mere seconds to spare, getting a polite head nod from the warden for her punctuality.
The problem sprang up after the meeting when she came face-to-face with Gregory, the older guard in charge of the Technology department. He’d motioned with his head for her to follow him to his office at the end of the hall.
When they reached his office, Greg invited her in, sat down at his desk, and taped the keyboard on the laptop positioned right in front of him, continuing to remain eerily silent. Looking up, his eyes twinkling like he had a secret, the older man turned his laptop toward her and pointed at the screen.
In that moment, for the first time in her life, Mimi literally thought about getting on her knees and crawling under Greg’s desk. It was like a train wreck, she couldn’t look away. There she was in living technicolor for all to see, hiking up her pantyhose in the elevator.
Covering her face with her hand, she mumbled, “I am so sorry. I just didn’t think about there being cameras in there.”
“Not to worry.” Greg chuckled. “I’m the only one that saw it and I have a wife, three sisters, and four daughters. Besides, I’m old
enough to be your dad.” He clicked a button and the video disappeared. “I deleted it from the main server and now it’s been erased from my computer.” He closed his laptop and nodded. “I just wanted you to see how important it is that you only ever do anything personal in the privacy of the bathroom on this floor.” He stood up and added, the fatherly tone in his voice crystal clear, “The men in this place are animals. We do our best to control them, but you just never know.” He walked out from behind his desk and stood next to her chair. “Follow every single one of those safety rules they gave you in orientation and never go anywhere without an armed escort.”
“Yes, sir,” she’d hurriedly agreed, thanking Greg on her way out. It had been one of the most important learning experiences of her life.
“And one I still remember,” she smirked, getting out on her floor and making her way to her office.
Not sitting down for fear she wouldn’t be able to get up, Mimi packed her briefcase with the case files she needed to review, shoved her arms into the sleeves of her coat, and headed out the door. Using the stairs, only because she didn’t want to call a guard to her office and there was one at every exit door in the stairwell, she finally made it to the ground floor and walked side-by-side with Walt to her car.
Thanking him as he waited for her to get in, buckle up, and lock her doors, Mimi waved a final goodbye through the window and when she was sure he could no longer see her, let her head fall back against the headrest with a loud exhale. “Six sessions with that maniac…six freakin’ hours looking into his cold, dead, soulless eyes.” Raising her head and grabbing the steering wheel, she started her car and added, “I really need to see my dragon tonight. For some reason, I just know he’ll make me feel better.”
Pulling into what she thought of as her parking space at the park, Mimi suddenly felt energized. Opening the door, she felt lighter and brighter every step she got closer to the fountain. Passing the row of small holly bushes the gardeners kept perfectly manicured, the last bit of worry and fatigue magically floated away. Looking up at the dragon, her dragon, standing guard in his place of importance in the center of the courtyard, her heart felt lighter as she smiled her first real smile of the day.
“Hey there, Dragon Man. How was your day?” Chuckling to herself as she sat down, Mimi cheerfully added, “And you know if you actually answered, I’d fall face-first into that freezing water.”
For the next three hours, until the moon was high in the sky and the cold winds nipped at her toes and fingers, Mimi told her dragon about everything that had happened at work since she’d seen him at noon. She knew it didn’t make sense and that her Abnormal Psychology Professor, Dr. Genowitz, would say she was suffering from transference, but she didn’t care. Being in this place, talking to her dragon, felt good. It just felt right…and no one could convince her otherwise.
“Well, I don’t want to, but I think…”
The ring of her cellphone from the pocket of her coat interrupted what Mimi was about to say. Touching the screen when she saw the number from the prison, she quickly answered, “Hello, this is Dr. Havers.”
“Dr. Havers, this is Walt Jeffers and we need you back at the prison.”
“But I’m not on call this weekend. You’ll need to call Dr. Mitchell.”
“I tried and he’s not responding.” The guard cleared his throat. “I’m sorry to bother you, but we really need a doctor here as soon as possible.”
“All right,” Mimi sighed. “I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
“Thank you, Dr. Havers.”
Pushing her phone back into her pocket, Mimi looked back at her dragon and pretended to pout. “I have to go back to work. Yuck.” She grinned, “But I’ll see you in the morning. Stay warm.”
Making her way back to her car, she stopped twice to look over her shoulder at the bronze statue of her dragon. For some strange reason, it felt as if he was willing her not to go, that there was a tether between them and he was holding tight to his end, begging her to stay with him.
Shaking her head, Mimi scoffed as she climbed back into her car, “One step closer to insanity. Let’s hear it for the head shrinker who’s losing her mind. HA! But what a way to go.”
Chapter Nine
Four days had passed since Banning had watched Myanna walk away. Four days since she’d taken that call from the prison and he’d heard the fear in the guard’s voice. Four days since she’d promised to return…and hadn’t.
He had tried to warn her. Had pushed so much of his magic into their growing mating bond, calling out to her, begging that she not go, pleading for her to stay, that when the enchantment rebounded, both man and Dragon King were rendered unconscious until well into the early morning hours of the next day.
Seven bells and she still wasn’t there. Something was wrong. Something had happened. Myanna said she was coming back and Banning just knew she wouldn’t leave him high and dry without an explanation. Had every confidence that his mate would have at the very least told him she was through with him and would not be returning.
Every excruciating minute that passed, every agonizing tick of the clock, pushed the Guardsman closer toward madness. No matter what he did, no matter how many times he tried to calm himself and focus, it became impossible to shake the feeling that Myanna was in trouble.
Glancing across the courtyard, the headline of the newspaper an elderly gentleman was reading struck fear in the Guardsman’s heart.
FOUR DAY STANDOFF WITH INMATES STILL AT A STALEMATE.
A photo of Myanna, the one from the ID she always wore around her neck when she came to visit during her lunch hour, along with five men identified as guards and medical personnel, were front and center. Abject horror combined with hot, fiery rage, burned through every cell in Banning’s body like lava bubbling and churning deep within the earth, threatening to explode and spew its devastation on everything in its path. Calling to the Heavens, to the Goddess of All, to the Universe, to every deity he knew of, the Guardsman begged and pleaded, offering his own life in exchange for Myanna’s.
Then it happened. A flash of light. The scent of pine. The brush of thick, soft fur rubbed the inside of his mind. Then the low rumble of a voice he recognized. The bear. Beau.
“Dragon? What the…”
“Come now!”
“What? I…”
“Shut up and listen,” Banning demanded. “My mate is in trouble. Come now.”
“I’m on my way.”
Moments seemed like hours as he waited for the Alpha grizzly to arrive. Panic welled up inside the dragon. Thick and noxious fumes of dread, reminiscent of the kerosene fumes from the lantern his mother used to light, making the air in his lungs sink like rocks to the bottom of the ocean.
Gasping to breathe, he called out to Myanna, fighting the blind rage pushing both man and beast to certain destruction. Over and over he called to her, screaming her name, begging for a response, only to be smacked in the face by the echoes of his own magic.
His vision narrowed, darkening around the edges, his perspective growing smaller and smaller with each strangled breath he took. His lungs on fire, his heart beating out of control, Banning reached for the glorious glow illuminating his soul. Holding tight to the bond he shared with Myanna, his consciousness swirling out of control from his loss of oxygen, the Guardsman bellowed, “Myanna, mo maité, mo ghrá, mo chroí agus anam, please be…”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa there, Hoss, no one’s dying on my watch. Not tonight.” Beau’s deep southern drawl had an undertone of steel. The Alpha grizzly was used to getting what he wanted, when he wanted it, of that the hyperventilating Guardsman had no doubt.
“Do not worry about me, mo cara,” he slurred, coughing and sputtering as he begged, “Save Myanna…s-save my m-mate.”
“Shut up and let us do what we came to do,” Beau growled. “We’ll be savin’ both of you and then you and I be havin’ a talk about your willingness to die, old man.”
The impenetrable cloak o
f darkness descended. Unable to speak, all feeling gone from his extremities, the Guardsman prepared for death. His heart, once vibrant and alive, renewed by Myanna’s love, beat in slow, agonizing gurgles, fighting to push even a drop of his life’s essence through his body in a sad attempt to prolong a life already doomed to expire.
Banning floated in the abyss, failure his constant companion. Letting go, resolved to draw his last breath no matter what the obstinate bear demanded, the Guardsman whispered his final goodbye to the Universe, praying She would deliver it to Myanna.
Waiting for sweet death, welcoming the escape from a wasted life and the loss of the true mate of his heart after just finding her, Banning drew his last excruciating breath. Shuddering as he exhaled, the icy fingers of death tripped down his spine. Its gnarled and spindly tentacles crept up his neck and crawled across his chest before slithering down his arms, seeking to squeeze…to drain, the last dredges of life from his failing, withering cells.
Dreaming of his mate, floating on a cloud of the love he knew would always be with him, a warmth like the flickering embers of a campfire tickled Banning’s toes. Winding its way up his legs, swallowing the black vines of death, the flames grew, igniting the dragon fire within him.
Older than time, more ancient than the dragons themselves, he recognized the powerful mysticism responsible for the creation of everything. With each second that passed, the darkness receded and the pain dissipated. Powerful, steady, continuous pulses of power rocked his body, filled his soul, shocked his heart into a steady rhythm as the reverent whispers of not only Beau, but several of his kin, permeated Banning’s very being, the words etching themselves upon his soul.
Oh, Great Spirit, whose voice we hear in the winds
and whose breath gives us life, hear our plea. We are small.
We are weak. We thirst for your strength and wisdom.
I call to the East, where the Father ascends
to all Mother Earth where life begins.