by Willa Hart
Honestly, I wasn’t all that worried. I was heading for the most dragony place in Los Angeles, after all. No one in their right mind would be dumb enough to attack Drakonis.
Chapter Nine
To say I was off my game was a major understatement. Not only had I driven a ridiculously circuitous route to get here, thanks to some weird sixth sense I didn’t even know I possessed, but also all the stuff with Zoe and my impending confrontation with Lazlo had me all jacked up. Kellum wrapped his arm around my waist and I immediately breathed in relief, as if his touch was what I’d been waiting for all along.
We sat in Lazlo’s outer lobby, Par’tia Niles pointedly ignoring us, as we waited to be called in. Once again, the difference in style and technology between Max’s office and this one hit me like a baseball bat. Max’s place could have been a museum, a repository for obsolete machinery no one had used in decades. I loved it there, in spite of its limitations.
Drakonis was the polar opposite. The expertly curated and intentional style spoke of extreme wealth, no doubt appealing to some of the richer dragon families in the weir. The phones chirped an electronic tune, every desk had an expensive, sleek computer, original art hung on the walls. The place was impressive, no doubt about it. But I still preferred Max’s old-school, slightly shabby office over this one.
I knew I was biased. As the boys had pointed out, my loyalty to Max had blinded me in the past. I wanted to be more objective, but that was tough when I had no reason to trust Lazlo. Not yet, anyway. But I’d promised Kellum I’d keep an open mind toward his boss, so I uncurled my fists and leaned against him for some strength. But Christ on a cracker, it was hard to be patient, especially when I could hear the man laughing as he talked on the phone inside his inner sanctum. Obviously not an urgent call, yet he kept us waiting anyway.
Kellum must have picked up on my irritation because he gave my side a squeeze, pressing more of my body against his. I forced myself to smile up at him, but I had no illusion he’d buy it. We seemed to be psychically connected now. The link had burned between us from the moment we met, and over time had only grown more powerful. The electricity crackled so intensely that my body gravitated toward him, like a flower yearning for the nurturing warmth of the sun.
Sleeping together seemed to have unified us in a primal way, the connection cemented in place for all eternity. We could never go back now. No matter what happened, we were inextricably linked, to the point we sensed each other’s emotions. There would be no point in trying to hide our true feelings.
“He’s an important man who’s very busy, Favor,” Kellum assured me quietly, so Niles didn’t hear. “He’s just taking a call, not blowing us off. I promise.”
“Sure. I get it. No big deal.”
He didn’t buy it, as I knew he wouldn’t. “He’s on our side, you have to trust me on that. Relax.”
I nodded. “No problem. Cool as a cucumber.”
He chuckled but said nothing else. Good man.
The muted laughing finally stopped and the phone on Niles’s desk buzzed. He fixed us with a placid look and said, “You can go in now.”
Kellum held the door open for me, and as soon as I laid eyes on Lazlo, all of my good intentions flew out the window. My anger boiled up ferociously, and I half-expected to breathe fire myself. When he stood and sauntered toward us, an annoying smirk on his face, I wanted to slap it off and stomp on it. Not only the smirk. His whole freaking face.
“What a delight to see you again so soon, Ms. Fiske,” he cooed, as if I couldn’t tell he was lying through his teeth. Then he eyed me up and down, taking in my casual attire. “Good to see you dressed for the occasion.”
I lost my patience and stormed right up to him, tipping my head way back to bestow a soul-withering scowl at him. Except, he sure didn’t appear to wither in the slightest. He simply raised one black eyebrow as he peered down his proud nose at me. That only fueled the spark of my rage.
“I see you,” I seethed, only breaking eye contact when Kellum grabbed me around the waist and pulled me away from his boss. “I see who you really are, even if you have everyone else around me fooled.”
“Oh, really,” he said, amusement in his eyes instead of fear, as I’d hoped.
“We didn’t come here to fight,” Kellum reminded me quietly, but my fuse had already been lit and I was burning too brightly to care.
“You knew who Titus was all along,” I hissed, jabbing a finger at him.
“Titus? I’m afraid—”
“Oh, don’t bullshit me! You know exactly who he is, and I’d bet good money you know what his plans are. You’re in cahoots with him, I just know it!”
Lazlo chuckled as he casually walked behind his desk and sat down in his fancy-schmancy leather chair.
“Cahoots? Really? I thought that word went out of fashion in 1893. Maybe you’ve been spending too much time with Maximus, Ms. Fiske.”
I never took kindly to condescension, but especially not from smug wannabe usurpers of Max’s title.
“And if you’re certain you know so much about me and my intentions, then why are you here? You clearly have all the answers.”
And now he was playing the sarcasm card. Figured.
“First of all, I want you to admit it. Then I want you to explain it. I want to see if you’re man enough to tell us the truth.”
“You mean dragon enough,” he said as he watched me closely. “Regardless, why don’t you enlighten me, Ms. Fiske?”
I wriggled free of Kellum’s hold but stayed put and jammed my hands onto my hips. “You’re gunning for Max’s position as casique of the weir. Somehow the Romanian dragon named Titus plays a part in your scheming, and that’s why you met with him recently.”
“Is that what all of this is about? You’re white-knighting for your dear old uncle? You must not know Maximus as well as you think if you believe meddling in dragon affairs is any of your business.” He snorted with amusement. “And all this time I thought you were his par’tia-in-training, but no. You’re just some silly human girl.”
“I’m not just some silly fucking girl!” I shouted so all of Los Angeles could hear me roar.
Slamming his hands on his desk, Lazlo leaped up and glared at me. “I would ask you not use such language in front of me, Ms. Fiske. I’ve thrown out much more important people for less, and I won’t hesitate to do the same to you if you can’t remain civil, despite your relationship with my employee.”
So he knew about Kellum and me. Did he know about the dynamic between me and all of Max’s great-nephews? That was a question for future-me to worry about. Right now, I wanted answers.
“Spit it out. Tell us why you met with Titus, if not to conspire against Max.”
“Lazlo,” Kellum said coolly, moving a half-step in front of me, no doubt worried I’d attack the man. Excuse me, the dragon.
“Tensions are running high with Max leaving no word. We’re worried. You know us well enough to realize we trust and respect you, but Max is our uncle. Anything you might know would be helpful in trying to track him down.”
Lazlo returned to his seat and stared up at the ceiling, pretending his anger had fled, but I knew he was only being coy. Maybe out of politeness, even though I’d been anything but, or maybe as a courtesy to Kellum. It didn’t really matter, I saw through his act.
“I seem to recall taking a meeting with an emissary from a foreign weir not too long ago.”
“And?” I prompted.
He shrugged. “And nothing. It was a simple courtesy call.”
“Bullshit!”
He snapped his gaze to meet mine, his eyes glowing.
No. Actually glowing. Like sunlight glinting off pure, clear ice. It should have been enough to terrify me, but I refused to let it.
“Favor,” Kellum hissed over his shoulder. “Calm down.” He was doing his best to stay neutral, which was both honorable and infuriating.
“Careful, girl. Remember who you’re talking to.”
; I returned his steely gaze, though I was keenly aware my eyes weren’t glowing, dammit. “I’m very aware of who you are, Lazlo. But you should be aware of who I am. I have the unique ability to sense when a dragon — any dragon — is being untruthful, and you’re so full of shit, I need a shovel.”
He glared at me, his eyes flashing like ice, while his jaw worked double-time to keep his lips pursed tight. I took that as my cue to dive right in.
“Personally, I think you’re trying to oust Max. You poached his own damn family, after all, but that wasn’t enough for you, was it? No, you want more. You want it all. Your biggest desire is to be the leader of the West Coast weir. I saw how you handled yourself at the elder meeting. So damn righteous! Well, guess what, old pal. You’ll never sit in that center chair, not if I can help it!”
Before I could blink, Lazlo returned to his feet and started morphing before my eyes. He grew taller and broader as he stalked toward me, his eyes glowing even brighter and his scowl turning garish and beastly. He loomed over me, fierce heat radiating off of him.
“How dare you! Maximus has coddled you. He may let you mouth off and think you’re equal to him, but you must learn your place in the dragon world, Ms. Fiske. Perhaps today. Would you like that? A personalized lesson from Lazlo Aurelia regarding the station of uppity human would-be dragon keepers in the grand scheme of things.”
As he spoke, his voice changed along with his body, growing deeper and more growly. With every word, a faint whisper of smoke trickled from between his sharpening teeth. For the first time since walking into his office, a bolt of fear stabbed me.
Kellum closed the gap between Lazlo and me, puffing out his chest as he defied his elder. He too gave off an intense heat, combined with a faint scent of brimstone. I honestly had no clue what brimstone smelled like, but the odor filling the office is what I imagined it to be.
“Back off, Lazlo,” Kellum warned.
He grew larger and more animalistic, matching Lazlo’s state of transformation, all to protect me. The seams on their suits labored under their new girth, and it was all happening because I’d walked into this office to stand up for Max. But now one of his nephews was standing up for me. Not exactly how I pictured it, but considering how frighteningly demonic Lazlo looked now, I was eternally grateful.
“Tell your pretty little pet to back off,” Lazlo snapped back through a lengthening face.
“Pet!” I cried. “I’m not a fucking poodle, you assho—”
The sharp sound of glass breaking cut me off. It was distant, definitely not inside the office, but it was close. The sound was followed by angry shouts, then terrified screams. Massive thumps shook the floor under our feet. Then the unmistakable sound of gunfire. Doors slammed shut, much closer this time, and then the ear-splitting sound of a dragon’s roar. I gaped at Lazlo, not believing even he would stoop that low, but what other explanation was there?
“This is a trap! I knew you couldn’t be trusted!”
Lazlo ignored my wild accusation and sniffed the air. We stood perfectly still as chaos erupted somewhere below us.
“I think we have company,” he growled, his expression terrifying me. If I’d thought he’d been scary when he was pissed off at me, I had no clue what scary meant.
His overly large body stomped toward the door. He had to duck and squeeze sideways through the frame, but before he disappeared from view, he poked his head back in and gave Kellum a dark look.
“Keep her safe, no matter what. That’s an order.”
Chapter Ten
It’s almost impossible to describe the sounds of a battle you can’t see. Overwhelming is probably the best single word, but beyond that…
After Lazlo shut and locked the door behind him, Kellum removed his bespoke suit and laid it neatly over the back of a chair. For a moment, I wondered if he was hinting that we should get frisky, but before I could point out we were under attack, he shifted fully into his dragon form. No easy feat, considering the cramped quarters.
His lizardy bulk pushed me, as well as pretty much every stick of furniture, into a corner as he took up most of the space, his neon blue eyes never wavering from the door. Tendrils of smoke drifted up from his reptilian nostrils. His fire was stoked, ready to incinerate anyone who walked through that door, man or beast.
The tip of his spiked tail lay near me and I reached out to touch it. Even though all five boys had worked together to protect me against Titus and his gang, I’d never touched any of them in their dragon form. The grayish-green skin of his tail was smooth, not scaly, yet stiff as a board. Unyielding, like an old-fashioned hard leather suitcase.
He twisted his massive head around in my direction and I gave him a grateful smile. He bared his teeth in return, no doubt his best representation of a smile, in his current form. Then his fierce gaze returned to the door.
Crashes and bangs and screams and roars echoed up from the lower levels, growing louder and louder until the battle landed on our doorstep. The acrid smell of fire reached us, and my entire body went rigid. Dragons may like fire, but humans don’t. Not under these circumstances.
Only Zoe knew my deepest fear was to die by being burned alive. After seeing my parents suffer that hideous fate when I was only five, who could blame me? Yet I’d sought out the company of dragons and was now under attack by some who didn’t seem to like me very much. Of course, now wasn’t the time to wonder where I’d gone wrong.
A loud boom outside the door drew a startled scream from me. Clamping my hands over my mouth, I pressed deep into my little corner, simultaneously grateful Kellum was there to protect me and pissed off that I was so scared of an asshole like Titus. But from the sound of the fighting, my fear was justified.
Kellum bunched his dragon body up, ready to strike. Little flames spurted out with every breath, almost like a pilot light. He was ready. I was not. I wasn’t ready for any of this. I just wanted to go home, gobble down one of Aunt Shirley’s amazing grilled cheese sandwiches, and watch old Matlock episodes with her. Uncle Max hated the show, but Shirley adored Matlock, and I loved seeing her eyes light up whenever he was on screen. So damn cute!
A ferocious screech blasted me out of my utterly inadequate attempt to distract myself and I buried my head in my arms to protect my ears. Of course, I should have known that wouldn’t work with a dragon scream, but instinct took over. When the eardrum-shattering sound finally died away, it was followed by silence. Eerie, goosebump-raising silence.
Kellum never let his eyes waver from the door, and when footsteps approached, the scales along his back and head lifted slightly. A dragon version of goosebumps, if I had to guess. He took a deep, lumbering breath, as if to stoke his fires.
A moment later, the door slammed open and Lazlo staggered through, battered and bloody, singed and limping. He was also naked, but that didn’t distract me as much as it used to. Funny the things you can get used to.
Kellum grunted and quickly transformed into his beautiful naked self. Okay, he distracted me, but then he hurried to Lazlo’s side and caught him before the man fell and my attention was back where it belonged. When I saw the gash along Lazlo’s cheek, dribbling blood all over his body, a profound sense of worry flooded me.
I’d detested this man only minutes before, but now that he sat bleeding and beaten, all I felt was sympathy. I needed to help him. It felt like a biological imperative, not simple sympathy, but I didn’t waste time overthinking it.
I rushed to the door but saw no sign of Niles, so I searched every cupboard until I found a first aid kit. By the time I returned, Kellum had found his suit in the mess and had helped Lazlo sit in the only chair he hadn’t destroyed when he’d shifted into his dragon.
“Lazlo, talk to me,” Kellum said, his deep voice commanding and authoritative. “Serious injuries?”
Lazlo shook his head, then winced, which drew a groan of pain. “I’ll be fine.”
“Are they gone?” Kellum asked.
“We wouldn’t be talking her
e if they weren’t,” Lazlo said, so matter-of-factly that I couldn’t help but snort out a laugh.
I inspected every inch of Lazlo — well, not every inch, because…ew. The gash on his face looked to be the worst of it, but he had a nasty burn on his right forearm that was already blistering. I lightly touched a multitude of bruises that were forming all over his body, just to make sure nothing was broken underneath, but Lazlo didn’t even flinch.
Running footsteps drew my gaze and ratcheted up my heart rate, but it was only the rest of my boys spilling into the office, wide-eyed and furious.
“Shit,” Danic growled, “we missed the action, didn’t we?”
“More donuts for us,” Ryen said cheerfully, striding in with a box of donuts, presumably for the meeting. It felt like yesterday.
“What happened?” asked Ash, as Hale added, “It looks like Armageddon out there.”
“Kellum and I are fine,” I said, looking up as I dabbed ointment on some gauze. “Lazlo here got the worst of it.”
“You five aren’t my only employees,” Lazlo said, his voice hoarse from either the fight or emotion. “I didn’t take on that wretch alone.”
“I’ll leave these here and go see who else needs help,” Ryen said, dropping the box of donuts on what once was a coffee table but was now only half of its former glory. The other half lay in splinters by the window. Ash and Hale followed him, but Danic remained resolutely by my side.
“So, it was him?” Kellum asked.
“Titus. Yes.” He gave me a weary and somewhat pleading smile. “And I hope this proves to you that I did not set a trap for you, Ms. Fiske. Or if I did, that I’m bad enough at it I’m no threat to you.”
“Can’t fault a girl for being cautious in this day and age,” I said without missing a beat, finishing up a bandage on his arm and checking over the rest of him. “But you know something about Titus and his buddies, don’t bother denying it.”