City of Dragons: Of Flesh and Blood

by Wilder, Adrienne

  Which was not the kind of thing that went unnoticed.

  “Yeah. I’m sure.” Orin thought about Deshi’s other question. How could Rehbek’ah gain enough metaphysical strength to kill her Mother? She was the only possible culprit for Re’ka’s death. Seeing Kin didn’t age and they didn’t get sick, the list of natural causes was pretty short, and teeth and claws were at the top.

  Haley stepped closer. “Orin, are you sure you’re all right?”

  He blinked and nodded. “Yeah. Just trying to figure out how Rehbek’ah could have overthrown her own Mother for the throne.” And by the look on Haley’s face, she wasn’t having a bunch of happy thoughts about that scenario either.

  She said, “We’ve got a room at the Hilton in town. Come back with us. We’ll wait for the lawyer to call.”

  The little voice in Orin’s head pointed out how he was supposed to be taking care of himself and feeding again. Haley had offered once before. Not to mention a nice private room alone with her and Deshi would give him the perfect opportunity to…

  Orin pulled his hand away. Enough touching. It was seriously dicking with his head.

  He said, “I can’t risk being seen.”

  Haley frowned. “And you can’t keep hiding. We have to go to the police about this.”

  “I’m sorry, but that’s not going to happen.”

  “And how long are you going to be able to keep up the cloak and dagger routine? How long before you burn out? Huh? You’re already pale, and you’re leaking hunger all over the place. You can’t keep this up forever, Orin, and you know it.”

  Thing is, he didn’t need forever. He just needed long enough to call in his debt.

  The flavor of honey smell hit Orin’s pallet. His head whipped to the side. “Shit…” Rehbek’ah was here and close. Worse, she wasn’t alone. The thick rich scent of Males flowed through the air.

  “We’ve got to move!” Orin headed into the mass of Human bodies with Deshi and Haley right behind him.

  Halfway through the crowded pavilion Deshi said, “We’ve got company.”

  Orin risked a quick glance over his shoulder. Three large Males jostled their way through the ocean of Human bodies. They were close enough to scent them, which meant metaphysical shields or not, they could follow their trail.

  “We need to split up.” Orin pointed to the open lawn. “You go that way. There’s a park on the east end with picnic tables and pavilions. We’ll meet over there, but I have to lose Rehbek’ah, and I can only do that by myself.”

  Haley made an unhappy sound. “What happens if she catches up to you?”

  “She can’t touch me, remember?”

  Deshi said, “But that doesn’t include her Marks.”

  Thanks for the reminder, Prince Perfect. Out loud Orin said, “I’ll be fine. I can handle the Males.” Which was true. “You go out the front and we’ll meet up again in five.” Orin turned and sank into the crowd. He heard Haley call his name but he didn’t turn around. Rehbek’ah was too close for comfort. The bitch.

  Orin all but ran into the mass of bodies caught in a surge spawned by electric guitars and propelled by drums. When Orin emerged from the crowd, he found himself facing the wall of the building. The dead end forced him to take another route. Twice more he had to stop and go another way because of being blocked in, or the risk of running right into her Marks.

  Orin ducked under the edge of the stage and clamored across miles of cables. He came out on the other side and was swallowed up by another crowd of people. He scented the air. The honey smell wasn’t as strong on this side.

  Even though it pissed him off, Orin had to admit Haley was right. There was no way he was going to be able to keep hiding himself. It wasn’t like he had a ton of resources to begin with, having pushed himself to the point of starvation over the past year. And while feeding last night had sated him, it wasn’t enough. Especially when he was burning metaphysical energy fast like this.

  Tapping any part of a true form was taxing. Every strength, every advantage came with a price. And the bill of sale read “pay in flesh and blood”.

  Orin headed down the grassy knoll and weaved through the bodies covering the lawn like pickup sticks. The college kids were putting on their own private parties, stretched out on blankets with their liquor and drugs.

  Flashlights up ahead swayed back and forth over the spread of people, and the cops carrying them weren’t here for the show. Orin turned to go back into the crowd, but Rehbek’ah and her Marks were hiding in there. He realized she was forcing him to make a choice.

  The police or her.

  And that was like asking if he wanted to die by firing squad or cannon fire. Either way there wasn’t going to be a whole lot of pretty left behind.

  With so many people not moving and in prone positions, staying hidden was going to be hard. Not to mention the first lines of hunger were starting to kick Orin in the ribs.

  The Queen or the cops?

  Orin chose the uniforms. As Orin moved towards the police, he couldn’t move the people in his way, so it became his job to step around and over them. If he could just keep it up long enough to get through the search line then he could make it into the darkness and head for the picnic area.

  Orin moved past the lead cop who stepped a little to the left, pushed by a preternatural force he couldn’t see. Another ten feet and he passed through the second line of searches without incident. And damn it, he would have made it through the third if it hadn’t been for the dog.

  The German Shepherd walking with its handler went ballistic.

  Orin tapped everything he had and kept moving. A flashlight beam swung past him then came back, and the tide of uniforms turned his way following the canine officer. Just up ahead were the pavilions and the woods. Haley and Deshi were in there somewhere. Orin’s foot hit the concrete pad and at the same time a cop stepped out of nowhere and high beamed him in the face.

  Looking a little perplexed, the officer on the end of the Maglite blinked stupid a few times, then his eyes came into focus. His mouth fell open and the yelling brought his fellow Brothers in Blue like a swarm of locusts. But instead of the hum of wings, there was the slide and click of guns being pulled.

  “Down on the ground!” The angry demands came from multiple directions and were followed by threats of violence and bloodshed if Orin didn’t obey.

  Orin raised his hands up and did the only thing he could when facing the entire Athens PD. He went down on his knees. Radios crackled at the same time red and blue lights broke on the horizon.

  Four cops came forward. They shoved him to the ground, and a boot was jammed in the back of his head. They yanked his arms back. The handcuffs they put on him were a joke, but the bullets weren’t all that funny. No, if they got itchy in the trigger finger, Orin would wind up missing part of his head. And no matter how old he was, a bullet to the head in Human form would kill him.

  Orin bucked when a foot landed in his side. Someone screamed at him to quit resisting and landed a punch against his temple. Then they all joined in. Stomping, kicking, screaming obscenities.

  Since defending himself wasn’t an option, Orin clenched his eyes shut and tried to block out the sounds of the cops trying to beat him to death.

  Chapter 21

  Haley forced herself to stay right where she was, hidden in the shadows with the Jersey City Prince. The hand holding her cell phone trembled. The streaming video recorder icon blinked in the lower corner as she filmed the cops descending on Orin. If nothing else, at least there would be an infallible eye witness to prove Orin did not attack them first. They backed off and swept over him with their flashlight beams. Even on the crappy screen she could see the green sheen of ichor.

  In a team of four, the officers picked Orin up and dragged him by his arms down the hill and tossed him into the back of a truck.

  Deshi moved first and Haley followed. The wooded edge gave them plenty of cover as they circled around back toward her car. By the time they r
eached the Mustang Haley was shaking.

  Her first thought was that Medan’s RHage was back.

  “You’re just scared,” Deshi said, and wrapped himself around her.

  “A-are you reading my thoughts now too?”

  “No, you smell like food.” He stroked her head. “It’ll be okay.”

  “He’s hurt, Deshi. And bad.” Haley tried to think of who she could call and remembered she was supposed to be on vacation. With heavy air quotes.

  Deshi moved her into the passenger side, then went around and got behind the wheel.

  Haley glanced at the Prince. In the dark she could only see his eyes, silver and glowing with a soft fire. In the pitch black he maneuvered the car through the parking lot and onto the road. He kept the headlights off until they were at the farthest entrance. Haley stayed turned in her seat so she could watch the blue lights sink over the hill and into the night. Was Orin still alive?

  Part of Haley was angry because she didn’t stop them, but her Female instincts snapped that thought off real quick. Only someone stupid or with a death wish would have tried to stop them.

  Those cops had been caught up in their own kind of Rage. Mary Gilsp had been one of their own and someone had loved her. And that was the kind of thing that could put a bad short in anyone’s morals.

  After they were on the road, Deshi asked, “Are you all right?”

  “No.” It was the truth. She felt helpless. It was the Submissives in the Tank all over again and she was powerless to stop it.

  “He’s strong, Haley.”

  Yeah, well he had to be to not turn on them. Orin had just laid there and taken the beating. “I don’t doubt that.”

  Deshi exited the I-10 and headed downtown.

  As a college town, Athens was a crowded mish-mash of Southern tradition and retro America. Large white mansions cluttered beautiful green lawns with ancient oak trees. Most of them had been turned into multi-resident apartments, frat houses, and businesses. A few remained as private residences, but not many. For a small town, the place sure was alive at night. Small cafes, shops, and eateries overflowed with college kids. They yelled at each other from passing cars, their shrill cries sounding like things that would be good to eat.

  The hotel was located on Washington Street in a nice neat area of the city.

  Deshi pulled in behind a Lexus. When the vehicle pulled away, Haley and Deshi got out. She retrieved her suitcase from the trunk. An attendant offered to take it, but she shook her head.

  The Prince’s hands were empty of luggage. Haley wasn’t about to let him go home and pack, and when she offered to stop at a clothing store in one of the outlet malls along the way, Deshi said he would have some things delivered.

  Of course he would. The Prince was used to only the best. And while he never openly complained, there was always a sense about him that suggested his standards were beyond ordinary means.

  However, he had no problems handing over the keys of her 1965 Mustang to a complete stranger.

  Haley bit her tongue.

  “You ready?” Deshi held open the door to the hotel lobby.

  They walked inside and Haley did not miss how Deshi’s eyes flicked around the elegant front room. But she couldn’t tell if he liked what he saw, or if he stamped it with a big fat F. They went to the front desk. Deshi pulled out a little plastic card and they waited for the clerk to look up.

  Okay, make that stop shuffling papers and pretending they weren’t there. Even though it was obvious the man was ignoring them, Deshi’s expression remained peaceful. The only sound he made was tapping his card against the counter between flipping it over in his fingers.

  When Haley couldn’t stand it anymore she said, “Excuse me.”

  The clerk shot her a look and Haley gave back a smile. “We’d like to check in.” His eyes gave them a once over. There was no mistaking Deshi for what he was. After all, they just don’t make Humans that beautiful. As for Haley? Good people, normal people didn’t rub elbows with the wyrms.

  “Sorry, all of our rooms are booked and we don’t have any openings.” And how come that sounded like a stand in for ‘You’re messing up the look of the place, so leave.’

  Haley said, “We have a reservation.”

  The desk clerk shook his head and shrugged at the same time. “I’m sorry, but that’s not possible. We booked up this block of time well over a year ago, and my last reservation checked in this afternoon.” When he looked up his eyes said, “See, so fuck off.”

  Deshi kept tapping the card. Flip, tap-tap, flip, tap-tap.

  Haley glanced at him and so did the desk clerk. If he noticed, Deshi didn’t seem to care.

  Haley waved a hand at the computer near the end of the counter. “Will you at least check?”

  The man let out an exasperated sigh and rolled his eyes. At least he did go to the computer and do a quick look up after Haley gave him their names.

  Flip-tap-flip-tap-flip-tap.

  Damn if that tapping sound didn’t seem to get louder and louder.

  Haley opened her mouth to ask Deshi to stop but the clerk spoke up. “There’s nothing. I don’t even have a broom closet.” The look on his face said he might consider putting them in one if he did.

  “Do you want to try somewhere else?” Haley looked up at Deshi. He didn’t reply. No, he was busy tapping that damn card and looking like a piece of Greek sculpture.

  The desk clerk said, “I’m sure the Budget Hotel has plenty of room.” Yeah, and they’d passed the place on the way here. If they had a room open, it was because the cockroaches wouldn’t even stay there. “But then with that concert in town.” The clerk did his shrug-head-shake combo again.

  Deshi kept tapping the card against the counter, flip, tap, flip, tap. The clerk glared at the Male’s hand like he was considering knocking the thing out from between his fingers. Haley had to admit, it was getting to be pretty obnoxious.

  She put her hand on Deshi’s arm and that’s when the clerk’s expression changed. His eyes went wide and the color drained from his cheeks. The Prince stopped tapping the card.

  “I’m so sorry…Sir, I didn’t….” The Jersey City Prince held out the piece of plastic. When the man took it, his hands shook. He rushed back over to the computer and made a couple of frantic key strokes. “Just give me five minutes and I’ll have them freshen up your room.” The clerk came back, returned the card and handed Deshi the key.

  Deshi slipped the black card into his wallet and kept the other one in his hand. “That won’t be necessary.” He smiled. It made his beautiful face all that much more. “I know my way up.” His tone was gentle and yet his words managed to cut off anything else the man had to say.

  Haley let the Jersey City Prince take her by the arm and lead her to the elevator. Once inside she asked, “What was that all about?”

  Deshi chuckled. “My Mother owns stock in the corporation.”

  Haley raised an eyebrow. “How much stock?”

  “Enough.”

  Okay, it was obvious he had no intentions of elaborating. Haley looked at the panel. “What floor?”

  Deshi reached out and pressed the blank button at the bottom. “Our room doesn’t have a floor.” A glint of silver flashed in his baby blues, and he smiled.

  “Wait, I told Manny…”

  “Don’t worry. When he gives the front desk the room number, they’ll send him up.” The Jersey City Prince’s hand went up and down her back in long strokes.

  Haley let herself smile a little. “A private room and hotel staff at our beck and call. I could get used to this.”

  Deshi’s smile broke into a grin.

  When the elevator stopped, Deshi punched a code into the key pad at the bottom and the doors slid away.

  Haley’s mouth fell open.

  The Jersey City Prince had to pull Haley across the threshold because her legs had forgotten how to function. He took her bag while she stood in the middle of the room, doing a very good impression of an open b
arn door. The place was huge. One large great room welcomed them in a series of warm peach and gold hues, and an expanse of marble stretched to the floor-to-ceiling windows looking out on the small city. A large white sofa sat in the center, accompanied by two matching chairs. The kitchen off to the right was bigger than Haley’s entire apartment.

  Above it all hung the night sky, staring down at them through a peaked glass ceiling.

  Off to the side there was a room with thick wine-colored Berber carpet. The stuff looked six inches thick. Haley leaned a little to the left to take a peek inside. The bed looked like something that could sleep six.

  Oh, yeah, she so needed a bed like that.

  There was a carbon copy room on the other side across from the dining area, except the carpet in there was blue and one wall was solid windows.

  “Wow.” It was all Haley could say. Deshi gave her a glance while he moved around the kitchen opening cabinet doors, but it was obvious he wasn’t nearly as impressed as she was. “Seriously, this is…” Haley flopped her hands at her side. “Wow.”

  The Prince pulled out a metal jug from the fridge and poured the contents into a black coffee cup. He popped it into the microwave.

  “You don’t like it.” Haley made it a statement and Deshi didn’t answer. She walked over to him. The microwave beeped and he pulled out the cup and tested it with his finger.

  “Here, drink this.” He put the cup in her hands. Haley swirled the contents. It looked like milk but moved too slow. “It’s cream. It will give you more than milk.”

  “I’m okay.”

  “I know you are. This is just to make sure you stay that way. You were upset.”

  She took a sip and licked her lips. It was good. Really good. She tipped back the cup and drank it down. He made her another.

  Haley stared out the window while Deshi drank his first cup and she started on a second.

  She said, “Do you think they’ll kill him?” Behind her Deshi stopped moving. She nursed the warm cream, savoring the taste. The high calories soothed her metabolism and her body thanked her by relaxing. Haley felt the air shift behind her, then a line of warmth pressed against her back.