Black Ruins Forest (The Elder Series Book 1)

by Karen DuBose

  “If they’re coming, they can find us.”

  I still don’t know what had her upset. I need to get to the bottom of this before we get there.

  “What did Kelso say to you earlier?”

  “Nothing you need to be concerned with. I can deal with it.”

  “Kira, please talk to me. You only get upset if someone has done something stupid or said something to hurt your feelings. Plus, I want to know why I’m kicking his ass for upsetting you.” I laugh to lighten her mood... But it isn’t working. What could he have said to upset her so badly?

  “Are you excited about going out with Kiernan tonight?” she asks, instead of answering me.

  I let out a heavy sigh….defeated. Leaning back in the seat. She will talk to me when she is ready.

  “To tell you the truth, I’m nervous as hell,” I giggle.

  “What is there to be nervous about? He’s into you, and anyone with eyes can see that. Besides, you’ve been dreaming of this since we were babies.”

  “For one, I have not been dreaming about him since we were babies, that’s gross. Unlike you, I have never been out or hung out with guys before. Being a child at the park doesn’t count.”

  “You’ll be fine. Just be yourself. Never be fake for any guy. If he doesn’t like the real you, then he isn’t worth it.”

  Grumbling under my breath “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  What she doesn’t know is that I don’t know if I can be myself around him. I feel like a youngling trying to be all grown up. My stomach is in knots, and I feel like I’m going to be sick. I just hope I can keep calm and not look like a fool.

  We arrive at the club about seven thirty. This place is packed. There’s a line all the way around the block. I guess we should have gotten here earlier.

  We park the blaster three blocks away and start to head toward the club. I hear my name being called. I turn to see who it is. Kiernan and Kelso are jogging to catch up to us.

  “Hey, beautiful. Don’t you look lovely tonight?” Kiernan says

  “Hi, handsome. Hope we didn’t make you wait too long.”

  “We just got here, ourselves. I had to wait for Pretty Boy over here to get ready. I swear he is a female hogging the mirror.”

  We turn to look at Kelso, and he gives us the finger for the comment. He doesn’t say anything to anyone, not even Kira. She’s standing on the walkway waiting for us. This is going to be a long night if there’s this much tension between those two already. I still don’t like the fact he’s made my best friend upset. I need to get to the bottom of this before it gets worse.

  He doesn’t seem to be mad at me anymore, but he could be hiding it well. We’ll see, I guess.

  Kiernan leans into me. “Are you ready to go in?”

  I try to find my voice as I look into his emerald green eyes. “I think it will be a while before we get to go in. The line is crazy long.”

  He gives me a smile that makes me weak in the knees. “Ah, you haven’t been in the company of me.”

  He holds his hand out for me to take. Without even thinking about it, I take it. I feel this electrical current run through my fingers and up my arm. I almost drop his hand. Instead, I look at him to see if he felt it too. He looks at me with those gorgeous eyes and smiles. If he did feel anything, he isn’t showing it.

  We start to walk up to the line, but he keeps going all the way up to the front. The bouncer looks at us, clipboard in hand. Kiernan gives him his name, and the bouncer lets us in. Kiernan smiles at me, and we head inside. The music is so loud that you can feel the bass going right through you.

  They’re playing some song I have never heard before, but I love the bass to it. Kiernan pulls me to the dance floor and starts dancing with me. I have never danced in front of people before. Don’t get me wrong, I can dance⸻in my bedroom. He starts swaying to the music, guiding me without any effort. He makes it seem easy. I start to sway with the music. I turn around, so I can grind on him. He must be enjoying it. He takes my hips in his hands and lets me lead for a while. I lose all sense of time, and all I can see, and feel is Kiernan. The song changes to a fast beat. I’m getting hot with all the bodies around us. I turn to him, being brave, and put my arms around his neck. I lean in to tell him that I need a drink.

  He grabs my hand and leads me off the dance floor. “What do you want to drink?”

  “Anything will do right about now. I’m so hot, my clothes are stuck to me.”

  I still can’t believe I’m holding hands with him. I’m starting to think I’m dreaming again.

  “Everything ok?” he asks.

  I look up into those beautiful eyes.

  “Everything is great. Thank you for meeting us here. I’m having a great time, sweaty and all.”

  He puts his arms around my waist, leaning me back against his chest while we wait to get a spot at the bar to order our drinks.

  “Well look who’s here⸻the losers of Zilo,” Nessa says.

  Kira comes up behind us. “You didn’t have to broadcast that you are here, Nessa.”

  Kira gives Nessa a look that said says, ‘One more thing and you will regret it.’ Nessa turns around and starts whispering to Adeen, who keeps glancing our way. Why must they always cause a scene everywhere they go?

  “Did you hear that Dariya is a seer? I’ve seen her go into a trance a dozen times. She even told me about one of her visions,” I hear Nessa say to one of the jocks from our old school.

  Are you kidding me right now? What the hell is wrong with her? I let go of Kiernan and walk over to her table.

  “What the hell is your problem? Why are you spreading rumors that you have no clue about?” I yell at her.

  “Oh, are you sure it’s a rumor? I heard you telling Kira in the bathroom that it was true. You didn’t want people to know, so I figured I would tell people for you,” she sneers at me.

  I’m so pissed right now, I’m shaking. I get up into her face.

  “Say another thing about that bull crap lie, and you will be sorry. You have no proof, and I am not a stupid seer. You want to tell lies? Two can play that game. I’m sure everyone wants to know how you still pee the bed at night or the fact you still have to sleep with your teddy bear.”

  “You wouldn’t dare spread that rumor,” she says, flabbergasted.

  “Test me and see what else I say about you.” I walk away from her.

  I go back to Kiernan. He grabs my hand and squeezes it, letting me know that it will be ok. I don’t know if it will be ok right now. If word gets out that I’m a seer, there’s no telling what will happen. I look at Kira, and I can see her wheels turning. Lord help us all. I know that look. She already has a plan brewing in that pretty little head of hers.

  “What do you want to drink, ladies?” Kiernan asks.

  “Whatever you’re having. I’m not picky. Kira will have a fizzy drink without the sugar.”

  He looks at me and smiles that smile. I have noticed that he only gives it to me. It melts my heart and weakens my knees. All I can do is smile back at him.

  “Your wish is my command.” He orders our drinks and hands them out. I take a sip of mine. It’s my favorite drink: a white fizzy drink I look at him with shock.

  “Do you not like it? I can get you something else to drink.”

  “No, no, I love white fizzy drinks.”

  He winks at me. “Well, it looks like we have one thing in common.”

  “Yeah, it looks like it. I’m sure we have other things in common. We’ll just have to figure out what they are.”

  He grabs my hand and leads us all to an open table. I notice that it’s far away from Queen Bitch. I silently thank him for that. I want to enjoy my night out for once. I usually try to stay away from the crowds. They tend to make my skin crawl. Ever since I was younger, I’ve had a thing with people being in my space. It’s like the air is being sucked out of me. Over the cycles, I’ve been going out more and more, trying to get rid of the feeling. It has worked somewhat. Tonig
ht, is the first time I’ve been able to breathe freely and not freak out. I want it to stay that way.

  He leans into me so I could hear him over the music. “Want to go back to dancing, or are you good here?”

  “I need to cool off before I go back out there. To tell you the truth, I don’t know how to dance,” I say sheepishly.

  “You could have fooled me. You had some great moves a little bit ago.”

  Kira leans into the conversation and laughs “Don’t let her fool you. She has some moves. She’s holding back.”

  I notice that she hasn’t said too much since we got here. That’s not normal for her. I look around, and I don’t see Kelso anywhere. Where the heck did he run off to? I’m about to ask Kiernan when we hear a loud bang. It’s so loud that it’s heard by everyone clearly, even over the music.

  We all turn around to see what’s going on, but we can’t see anything because there are too many people standing in the way. The three of us head in the direction of the noise to try to see what’s going on. Even at five-foot-nine inches, I can’t get a good look. I look up to Kiernan, since he’s six-foot-four, to see if he can see over everyone. He looks down at me with worry in his eyes.

  “What’s going on?” I ask.

  He shakes his head and starts to walk past the group of people in front of us. I follow behind him. He stops suddenly, and I run into him, hurting my nose.

  “Ouch! Why did you stop so quickly?” I say, rubbing my nose.

  He puts his finger on his mouth and pulls me next to him. There isn’t a sound to be heard, except the breathing of others around me. The music has even stopped. I look up to see a woman so beautiful, she’s scary. What in the world is going on? Wait a minute. I’ve seen her kind in history books. She’s a demon! They cannot be mistaken for any other shifter or non-shifter. Their beauty is so intense, it hurts to look at them. They carry an energy that makes you want to be sick.

  “Well, well, well. It looks like fresh meat,” she says with a purr. Her long, wavy white hair is cascading down her small frame. Her pink lips are curled up into a sneer, like she’s disgusted at what she’s looking at.

  I can see everyone freeze at her words. I turn on my DC and dial the dragon’s emergency number without letting anyone see me. Someone answers, and I say loudly, “Why are you here demon? You made a big mistake coming here.”

  “I am here to feed and take some of you back to my family, so they can feed as well,” she says.

  Not if I can help it. I wish I had brought my blaster My sword is in there. I sure hope the dragon on the line is hearing what’s going on.

  She lunges toward me. I block her from grabbing me. She goes to the next person, trying to find easy prey. I see her go after Nessa.

  Damn it, why must I save her? She doesn’t know how to fight as well as the rest of us. Before I can get into action, Kiernan goes after the demon. I see him bring out two amphismela daggers from his scabbard. How did I not feel those on him?

  Watching him in battle mode is like watching a ballet dancer. He has skills that only a dragon has. If his shifter is a dragon, he’ll have the skills to take down almost anyone. All I can say is, he’s hot!

  Nessa is screaming her head off. I can see the demon trying to twist Nessa’s neck so that she can feed from her. Kiernan is trying to stop the demon from killing anyone. Adeen is hiding under the table crying. What kind of friend hides while their friend is being attacked? I sneak up behind the demon while Kiernan gets her attention. I notice Kelso coming up behind me. He hands me his dagger. Where the hell did he come from? No matter, I look at him, saying thank you with a nod.

  Nessa is trying to get out of the demon’s grasp. Kiernan is yelling at the demon to get her attention. He’s trying everything he can to distract her.

  “Do you really think you’ll walk out of here alive or with any of us as your snack?” he challenges.

  “Who here is going to stop me? You?” she laughs an evil laugh that sinks deep into your soul.

  “I am more than enough to take you out,” he says.

  We both know that he’s not strong enough on his own. I get closer to the demon, and I can see Nessa crying. She looks at me and, with her eyes, pleads with me to save her.

  I hear a whoosh letting me know the dragons have arrived. knowing that my time is running out to kill this demon. The demon looks outside a large window with horror in her eyes. I take my chance and slice the demon’s neck open. She turns toward me with shock on her face. She tries grabbing me before she falls to the ground and disappears, leaving a blue blob behind. I don’t know if that’s normal⸻or if she’s dead⸻but I sure hope so. There is a crash at the front of the club. The dragons file in the club weapons up. They are looking for the demon.

  Bruno comes barreling through the crowd. He’s the head of the dragon headquarters, and he’s one scary badass. If I had an idol, it would be him. He stands at six-feet eight inches, and he’s built like a mountain. His hazel eyes are on fire⸻at least that’s what it looks like. His dragon eyes and human eyes are mixed. He isn’t shifting, but he has his dragon senses going. His dark brown hair is styled like he ran his hands through it way too many times. Right now, he looks like he’s ready to kill.

  “Where is the demon?” he demands.

  I turn to him with the dagger still in my hand.

  “I killed it, I think. There’s a blue blob of something where she fell and disappeared.”

  Bruno looks to where I point and whispers to one of the other dragons.

  He looks at me with a weird look. “I need you to come with me.”

  Bruno turns and walks away. One of the other dragons came up to me and begins to escort me out of the club. I look back to see Kiernan cussing and trying to figure out how to get to me. What did I do wrong? I saved everyone in there.

  “Am I in trouble?” I ask the dragon who is leading me out to their blaster.

  “I couldn’t tell you. We haven’t had a shifter⸻who hasn’t changed yet⸻be able to take down something as powerful as a demon, let alone something even less strong.” He shakes his in wonderment

  I got into the back of the blaster. I look out the window as we head toward the dragon’s headquarters.

  What is he not telling me? There was only one demon, and I caught her by surprise. It’s not like I took her on face-to-face. I’m sure she would have killed me. Why didn’t she kill Nessa when she had the chance? Where did she come from? How are there demons here, again? I sure hope they don’t have an army. Why did she reveal herself to us, knowing she risked exposing her race? There are so many questions going through my head. I look out the window again. I notice immediately that we aren’t headed to the dragon headquarters.

  “Where are we going?”

  The dragon behind the wheel ignores me. I ask again. The man in the passenger seat looks over his shoulder.

  “We’re going to Bruno’s house.”

  “Why are we going there instead of the headquarters?”

  “Bruno will explain everything when we get there.”

  I sit back in my seat. Why in the world are we going to Bruno’s house? There is something going on here. I reach to use my digital corresponder and I realize that I have left it at the club on one of the tables. Great. How am I supposed to get in touch with anyone?

  A few minutes later, we pull onto a dirt road just outside of the city. It’s dark out, so I can’t really see anything. It doesn’t help that the windows are tinted. Ten minutes later, we pull up to a gate. We stop, and the driver pushes a button and scans his badge. The gates open, and we drive up the dirt driveway.

  I can’t help but think of what Kira and Kiernan are doing right now. I wonder who’s going to tell my mom where I am. I know she’s going to be worried. I had let her know before I left the house that I was going to the club with Kira, and I would be home after midnight.

  I sure hope she doesn’t try to demand anything at the headquarters, especially since we’re not even there. I can just
see her now: screaming and yelling until she gets to see me, her red hair flying behind her as she storms the place looking for me. I think I had better warn them about my mother.

  “By the way, you’d better call headquarters about my mom. She’ll destroy that place to get to me. She isn’t a bear for no reason, and her temper proves it.”

  Chapter Six

  Once we got to the front of the house, I saw the driver using his digital corresponder. I hope he is warning someone at the headquarters. The passenger came and opened my door. I get out of the blaster and walk behind him up to the house.

  We don’t speak as we walk up the stairs and head inside. I look around. You would think that the Moon Base had their headquarters here. There are elders right-hand dragons. Just inside the door, there are scanners that scan visitors from head to toe. The green light nearly blinds me. I walk through the scanner, expecting the thing to go off, but nothing happens. Looking further down the hall, I can see doors on either side. We walk past them into a grand entryway with stairs on either side of the room. Datalinks are stationed everywhere. Dragon shifters are standing everywhere. I didn’t even know we had this many dragons here in Zilo. Looking around in wonder, I spot Ritter talking to a dragon who appears to have just changed not too long ago. He’s still half shifted.

  “I’m sorry I had to bring you here,” Bruno says.

  I turn my head to look at him. He was walking toward me. He had a worried look on his handsome face which made his hardness that more pronounced.

  “Why am I here?”

  “It is a long story. Please follow me. Would you like something to drink?”

  I shake my head. “No, thank you. I just want to know why I’m here and not at the headquarters. Did I do something wrong? Am I in trouble?”

  He sighs heavily like he has a lot of weight on his shoulders. For all I know he does.

  “Let’s go in here and we can talk.”

  Putting his hand on my lower back, he guides me into the room. There’s a fire going in the fireplace. The heavy curtains are drawn back, so that the moon can be seen clearly. I take a seat in one of the two fluffy chairs. I wouldn’t have thought a man like Bruno would have furniture like this, but hey I’m not complaining. It’s better than a hard chair. I sit back and sigh as the heat of the fire warms me. I didn’t even know I was cold at the time.