“No. I don’t want any of it,” I said with a shudder. It was filthy money and I wanted nothing from my father. Ever.
“I thought Dragons like to have huge hoards,” Dwayne chimed in. “You could have a massive hoard with all that money.”
“A Dragon’s hoard consists of what is most important to him or her. I have money. I made it legally and I’ve invested it well over the years. It’s not important to me other than for the fact I can take care of my son. The only thing of importance in my life is Daniel. He’s my hoard,” I said simply. No riches could replace my child.
“Damn to hell in a hand basket, I think I’m crying,” Junior said as he wiped a tear from his eye. “My momma feels the same way about Hank and me. Your boy is lucky, Dima.”
“Thanks Junior,” I replied and handed him a tissue.
“So what exactly am I gonna do with the tens of millions I’m about to procure?” he asked as he dabbed delicately at his eyes and then blew his nose like trumpet.
“It’s hundreds of billions,” I corrected him as his smile grew wider with delight. “And I want every last cent of it to go to charity. Can you donate anonymously? I want no trace back to my father or any of us.”
“Can do. Will do. Junior can hack apart a small country. This’ll be a breeze. It’ll take a week or two ̓cause I’m gonna have to have a little help here and there. And if you have any passwords or account numbers, I’d be much obliged,” he said as he rubbed his hands together in excitement.
“Do you always talk about yourself in third person?” I asked as I squinted my eyes at him and grinned.
“Yes, I do. Goddangit, do you think that might be part of my problem with Sandy?” Junior asked very seriously.
He had it really bad for this Sandy.
“Well, it might be better to lose that habit,” I offered diplomatically. “Why don’t you ask her questions about herself? That might get her talking.”
“I don’t need to,” he replied with a self-satisfied smirk.
“And that would be because…?” Essie cut in with a grimace on her lovely face.
“I got her under surveillance,” Junior replied with pride. “I know every move my darlin’ gal makes.”
“That’s creepy,” Dwayne said with a shudder. “Please tell me you didn’t hide cameras in her bathroom.”
“Only one,” Junior admitted. “It’s aimed at the shower. I’m not a total jackhole.”
At this point, that was debatable as far as I was concerned.
“Junior, that doesn’t fly and if she finds out, you’ll lose her for good.” Hank’s grunt of disgust was echoed around the room.
“What in the dang hell are you talkin’ about?” Junior demanded, starting to freak out that he’d screwed up. “You stalked Essie in Chicago for a full year. I was takin’ my cue from you, bro-bro.”
“Stalking someone and filming them are two totally different things,” Hank argued. “I didn’t watch her eat her cereal in the morning.”
“Excuse me? I call bullshit on that one,” Dwayne reminded Hank with raised brows and pursed lips.
“Fine,” Hank groused. “It was only once or twice and I was hiding in the tree outside the kitchen window.”
Oh my God, Werewolves were more insane than Dragons.
“I think that’s kind of hot,” Essie admitted with a shrug and a wink at Hank. “So here’s the deal Junior, you can spy on Sandy in person, but you have to get the damn cameras out of her house.”
“What about her car, the yoga studio, the grocery store, the library where she heads up the book club, the park where she runs, the hair salon and her dad’s church?”
We were all stunned to silence—even Dwayne.
“Get rid of all that shit,” Hank growled. “You’ve lost your damn mind, man.”
“I love her,” Junior whispered and scrubbed his hand over his face. “I don’t want anything to happen to her. Sandy won’t let me protect her, so I figured out a way to watch over her and keep her safe.”
It was creepy, but it was also very clear that the poor sap was head over heels in love with her. He just had an unusual way of showing it.
“Can I re-suggest simply asking her questions about herself or maybe you should take up yoga or possibly running. Find out when she does her activities and make sure you do yours at the same time,” I said, praying to end this conversation in Sandy’s favor.
“Dima, you might be onto something there. How ̓bout I hack the shit out of your father’s holdings and you help me work on Sandy?” Junior bargained.
“I can do that,” I agreed with a laugh. “But you have to remove all the cameras immediately. I’d burn a dude to a crisp if I found out he was watching my every move.”
“Done,” Junior said as he crossed his heart. “So about the passwords, you got any?”
“As a matter of fact, I do. I was able to procure some of them them a few years back,” I told him as I pulled his laptop toward me and typed in some information that I’d memorized.
“You mean steal?” Essie asked with a grin.
“Semantics.” I laughed and shrugged.
Junior examined the screen as the information came up and whistled in appreciation. “Well slap my ass and call me Sally, this is gonna be even easier than I’d first thought as long as he hasn’t changed anything.”
“My father is a creature of habit,” I promised. “He isn’t capable of change.”
“Then y’all skedaddle. I got me some Dragon accounts to take down,” Junior mumbled. He became immediately engrossed in his computer screen as if we’d already left.
“Come on,” Hank whispered as Junior typed away. “He doesn’t even realize we’re here anymore.”
“Can we eat?” Essie asked. “I’m starving.”
“You got it, babe,” Hank said as he took her hand in his.
I watched them with a mix of envy and happiness. I wanted love like they had, but I knew it wasn’t in the cards for me. If I could make Daniel’s life safe that would be the best gift I could receive in this life. Real love had eluded me for 499 years. It certainly wasn’t going to find me now.
“Do you guys mind if I call Granny and have her bring Daniel to meet us?” I asked as I followed them out into the bright Georgia sunshine.
“Already done,” Hank said over his shoulder with a smile. “They’re meeting us at the diner.”
God, I liked these Wolves. I knew I couldn’t stay here forever. It would be too dangerous for them if I did. My father was always searching for me and Daniel. However, I was going to treasure every single moment that I had in Hung, Georgia. Real friendship was new to me and it was getting addictive.
***
“I’d like to do a little show at the wedding reception,” Granny told Essie as she cut Daniel’s chicken fingers up so small I almost laughed.
We were all crammed into a booth at the Hung Diner. The place was packed and hummed with happy people eating fried food. I hadn’t felt so relaxed in a long time. Letting down my guard was dangerous, but I was in the company of two deadly Werewolves, a Vampyre and a half-Vampyre half-Wolf.
Essie’s granny had almost died in a fight with Dragons and feral Werewolves. Dwayne had taken a chance—and with Essie’s permission, had turned Granny. Other than the people at this table and Junior, no one knew of Granny’s new bizarre DNA. It was the only reason I’d told them about Daniel. Essie needed to know my most precious secret because I’d inadvertently learned hers. Very few people knew about Daniel and I wanted it that way. His life was in constant danger with my father alive.
“What kind of show?” Hank asked warily as Essie’s eyes narrowed at her grandmother.
“I want it to be a surprise,” Granny hedged as she put an obscene amount of ketchup on my son’s plate.
“Does it involve exposing your breasts?” Essie’s lips pursed as she questioned her grandmother and Hank’s eyes closed in pain.
It was a fair question. Granny was apparently notorious for
stripping in her younger years. She had to be in her eighties now, but didn’t look a day over forty. She was a looker and then some.
“Um…no,” Granny mumbled.
Dwayne grinned and watched the drama unfold.
“Nipples?” Essie demanded.
“I wear pasties—so, no. Mostly my bottom will be exposed as I’ll be wearing ass-less leather chaps,” Granny explained. “White ones because it’s your wedding.”
“What?” Essie choked out as Hank paled and tried not to gag.
“I only face the back when I do my leaps across the stage, so my tushy will be displayed minimally. Plus there are quite a few feathers near my butt,” she promised. “Now, normally I wear the nipple-less sequined bra for this number, but since it’s your special day I’m just fine with wearing white jeweled pasties. Dwayne’s gonna rap while I dance. He’ll be dressed as Nicki Minaj. His wig is fabulous.”
Hank’s guttural groan and Essie’s squeal of terror were eclipsed by Dwayne and Granny’s peals of laughter. Daniel, who was now covered in ketchup and looked like he needed hospitalization, joined in even though he had no clue what he was cackling at. These people were nuts and I so wished they were mine.
“Got ya!” Granny yelled with delight. “Shoulda seen your face. Hank near passed out!”
Essie’s sigh of relief was so audible I started to laugh.
“You realize you will pay for this prank when you least expect it,” Essie warned Granny and Dwayne with an enormous grin on her face.
“I’ll be ready, sweetheart,” Granny vowed as she kept laughing.
“I think it would have been fabulous,” Dwayne said as he attempted to wipe all the ketchup off of Daniel.
“You should never think,” Hank snapped as he shuddered.
“Excuse me,” a huge muscled man interrupted.
The man rocked back and forth on his feet, clearly uncomfortable. He was a Shifter, but I’d never seen him before.
“Howdy Jimbo,” Hank said evenly as he sat up straighter and put on his game face. “What can we do for you?”
“You’re sittin’ with Dragons,” he stated the obvious as his eyes squinted at Daniel and me.
“Yes. And?” Essie replied with a dangerous edge to her voice.
“We don’t want no Dragons ̓round here,” he shot back and crossed his arms over his massive chest.
My inner Dragon wanted to fry him like all the food offered in the diner, but I refrained and pulled Daniel closer. However, one false move on his part and he was dead. I could take him out in a heartbeat, but I’d only be proving why he didn’t want me here in the first place.
“She has every right to be here,” Dwayne said in a voice that made the hair on my neck stand up.
Either Dwayne’s tone didn’t faze Jimbo or he was stupid enough to tangle with a Vampyre that could blow people up. With a name like Jimbo I didn’t know why I expected brilliance.
“We don’t like Vampyres much either,” Jimbo informed the table bluntly. “Didn’t have no problems like this till recently. We ain’t gonna stand for it much longer.”
“How bout this?” Hank offered as he leaned back and got comfortable. “You can move your prejudiced ass right on out of Hung. The Sheriff and the Pack are fine with this. These particular Dragons pose us no threat and are under our protection. And the Vampyre saved the town’s ass if I’m remembering correctly.”
“You are,” Dwayne added as he too sat back.
Relaxed Shifters and Vampyres were not a good thing in my vast experience.
“Or we can go out back and I can kick your ass to hell,” Essie offered with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“Awwww, come on Essie, I wanna have a go at Jimbo. He’s always kinda bugged me,” Granny complained and cracked all her knuckles, readying herself for a fight.
Jimbo blanched and backed away.
“We just don’t want no trouble here,” he said stiffly. “Dragons ain’t nothin’ but trash.”
“You know, Jimbo,” Hank said as he picked at Daniel’s fries and popped one into his mouth. He chewed slowly and stared hard at the now very uncomfortable Jimbo before he spoke again. “Never really liked you much and your intimidation tactics don’t work on me. In fact, they make me want to run you and your hate mongering family out of town, but I’ll just leave that to Junior since he’s the Alpha. He has a craw up his ass for species intolerance and he’s been itching for a fight for a while now.”
“Since he’s giving up being a manwhore, he has a hell of a lot of unused aggression,” Essie added with a shrug. “Pretty sure he killed the last guy who pissed him off.”
“Nah,” Hank corrected her. “He just permanently maimed him. Never gonna walk again. And if I’m recalling correctly, the guy’s a soprano now.”
Jimbo continued to back up.
“This ain’t the end of this,” he hissed as he turned and practically ran from the diner.
I knew it wasn’t. Dragons were not welcome in civilized places. I needed to leave this town sooner rather than later. I would not be the reason for discourse or death in Hung, Georgia. I let my head fall for a brief second and wondered if I’d ever find a safe place for Daniel. Even if my father was eliminated, our welcome wasn’t guaranteed anywhere in this world.
“Dat’s a bad man,” Daniel said quietly as he patted my face with his chubby ketchup covered hands. “Me will take care of you, Mommy.”
My heart grew bigger as I stared at my beautiful child. He was everything that was good and I was hell bent on making sure he grew up safely.
“No, my precious man, Mommy will take care of you,” I promised. “You get to be a little boy for a few more years.”
“And Dwayne will kill the shit out of anything that wants to harm you,” Dwayne promised as he leaned over and gently kissed Daniel’s forehead.
I didn’t give Dwayne any crap about cursing in front of my son. Daniel would hear much worse in his life and at least this swearing was meant with love. Furthermore, if Dwayne was going to raise Daniel, I was certain the salty language would come with it.
Daniel raised his arms to the Vampyre and cuddled up in his lap as Granny absently played with his curls. These people meant too much to me to put them in harm’s way. I’d wait for Seth and then find another place to hide while I planned my father’s demise.
“He’s just the tip of the iceberg,” I said wearily. “We won’t stay much longer. It’s not safe for you or for us. I can defend myself, but Daniel is just a child.”
“We’re going back to the Sheriff’s office,” Hank said as he stood and tossed some money on the table.
“Why?” Essie asked as she too stood and then reached for Daniel.
“Dima and Daniel need to be chipped,” he said.
“Perfect,” Dwayne said as he took Granny’s hand in his and put his other on my back. “I’ll feel much better if we can always find them.”
I wasn’t quite sure what they were talking about, but I was willing to do almost anything to keep Daniel alive.
I had to trust someone and these people were it.
Chapter 3
“Um…Sandy, I’m gonna need your help in here,” Junior called out as he spastically winked at all of us, nodding like a dummy with a plan.
Dear God, what was he up to now? His waggling eyebrows and snickering clued me in. I was clear on what chipping meant now and I suspected Junior had found another way to keep Sandy under surveillance without cameras.
Again, his reported MENSA status boggled me.
“What do you need, Sheriff? I’m in the middle of balancing the town budget and deconstructing the encryptions on the passwords you gave me,” Sandy said, avoiding eye contact with the besotted Junior.
She was just as lovely as all the other Werewolf shifters I’d met—wild long blonde curls framed her heart shaped face and her eyes were a beautiful shade of cornflower blue. However, far more impressive than her looks was her brain.
“I’m gonna chip Dima
and her son Daniel. Since you’re working for the city government now, you’re gonna get chipped today too,” he answered briskly as he pulled a sharp knife from his desk and some miniscule pieces of metal.
Sandy rolled her eyes and shook her head as Essie tried not to laugh.
“And who monitors these chips, Sheriff?” she asked as she folded her arms across her chest and narrowed her eyes at Junior.
“Um…I do, but only if someone goes missing,” Junior told her as he busied himself sharpening the knife that I realized he was going to use on me and Daniel to insert the chips under our skin.
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