Single Red Dragon: A Dragon Shifter Fated Mates Novel (Space Dragons Seek Mates Book 2)
Page 12
"Can you undo this cuff for me then? Please?"
The doctor had a permanent sour expression. She studied his face and wondered if his face would rip if he tried to smile.
"Doctor, I'm sure she won't go anywhere. She's my sister. She's home," Irene said.
He glared at her. "Have you asked her anything about the aliens? Your father isn't a patient man. Did you check for samples?"
Lilly thought she felt her sister's hand tremble, but it was hard to tell under the glove. She wished beyond anything that she could hold her, hug her. She'd never be able to hug her though.
Instinct had her pulling at the handcuff, ignoring the pain. Eadric would be pissed when he saw this bruise.
Irene squeezed her arm again, and she wanted to ignore it. Wanted to just get out of here. Lilly could reach for the doctor and burn him up, leaving behind ash and a few dental records.
She had hated herself for everyone she'd ever injured or hurt, but this man wasn't human. He had no soul, that was obvious.
Her father had no soul either though, but she hadn't realized that until now. She hadn't understood that what he offered wasn't love. Her entire life had been lies and manipulation.
The doctor raised his hand, a syringe in it.
"Wh-what's that?" Lilly asked.
He tilted his head.
"The same thing you had earlier, but twice as strong as it seems your body runs through it much faster than expected. I really need to see that chip, my dear."
She pulled away before remembering that she didn't need to be afraid anymore. She wasn't staying here.
"Come one step closer and I will burn you alive, Doctor."
He froze.
"Would you now?"
She nodded. "I will not allow you to control me anymore. I came back, I chose to."
This time he sneered. "Yes. And one would wonder why if the chip was no longer working. It hasn't sent out a signal in days. How dumb do you think we are?"
Her eyes widened. "It sends out a signal?"
He ran his tongue over his teeth.
"It does. And yours was working. We had tracked you to the city, but saw them coming for you. You were the perfect bait. It seems we aren't the only ones to think that, though."
She clenched her hands.
"What do you mean you weren't the only ones? And you left me for them? You didn't try to get me?"
The doctor shrugged. "My dear. Just because you are useful doesn't mean that a dragon with powers beyond anything we've ever dreamed about wouldn't be more valuable. I assume they sent you back in as bait as well this time. Only the question is. What makes them think you'd come back to them?"
Anger fueled her, and she needed it right now to get the fear from creeping up.
They had left her? All this time she'd thought she was at least a valuable weapon if she wasn't anything else. But she now knew that even that wasn't enough.
A million questions ran through her brain. What if they hadn't been friendly? What if they had killed her?
Never.
Eadric's voice stopped the fear from creeping in. She closed her eyes for a brief second, trying to allow the warmth of his words to flow through. Keep her from becoming something she wasn't.
"Maybe they treat me far better than dear Father ever did. Either way, you aren't about to find out."
Channeling a magic, a strength from her dragon, she gave a quick yank to the metal restraint and pulled free.
"Now. Let me go."
16
He waited.
And Goddess, did he fucking hate this.
Eadric could see a man in her head. She showed him a man, and what she couldn't hide was the disgust that went with the picture. He wanted to hear the conversation. He wanted to have something else to fuel his anger.
He punched the ground as his frustration exploded. If she had what they needed why did he need to wait? He didn't wait. He was a dragon for shit's shake.
Say the word, he commanded.
She didn't. She ignored him. Damn it.
He didn't want his mate to be strong right now. He wanted her to come to him. He wanted her safe.
His tattoos flared as he felt her pulling strength from him. This was a good sign. She needed to break out.
Eadric didn't understand what was all going on. She wouldn't talk to him. All he could figure out were disjointed thoughts, and to hell with logic if she didn't figure out how to hide her thoughts at this point in time. Perhaps it was her emotional state, he didn't know. And he sure as hell hated it.
Eadric got clear pictures of the sister, though.
His concentration, or more like his obsession, broke as Deo interrupted.
Eadric, did she get it?
A quick glance to the side and then he turned right back to glaring at the shed.
Yeah. She got it.
Another voice broke in.
Then what are you waiting for?
Damn it, now Kal was getting involved. He needed to focus on his mate, rather than what was happening here.
We are waiting for it to be safe, Eadric said, while nodding to Deo a few feet from him.
Shutting down his emotions, Eadric chided himself for breaking the rules already. He couldn't put Kal's emotions in the damn mix.
More panic tried to push in, not his but hers. Terror from the doctor. Terrified of hurting her sister. Terrified that her sister wasn't really on her side. Burning someone. More thoughts, but they crashed into him in waves, breaking before he could fully understand. Damn it. He shook his head. He fought against the instinct to run to her.
Something is wrong, he said to Deo.
A curt nod and Deo disappeared into the brush, forming a new plan.
His brothers were coming, ready.
We await your command.
Eadric stalked the perimeter. He walked the tree line, waiting for the fear demons to get to him. As he took a few more steps toward the compound, the less the magic reached. Perhaps it made sense to not torment the rest of the people working here. Maybe they hadn't expected them to get this close. Good. Now to find the weakness in their armor.
Lilly, where are you?
He waited. Her voice flitting in and out.
What the hell. Their connection should be strong. Shouldn't be broken like this. The cloud around her mind was similar. Drugged again? Nothing else would stop her, he was certain.
He clutched his chest as a searing pain pierced his neck.
Shit. If she wasn't, she was now.
He couldn't charge out into the open space. They were on to her somehow.
He closed his eyes, letting his dragon surface. Listening. Heartbeats. Many. He just needed one. They lay to the ground, trying to feel her. Sounds far below the ground, faint, maybe invisible to most. There were corridors, lots of them. Air flowed in and out of vents.
There were vents, where? He turned his head, his eyes slits, the dragon looking beyond the visible to see the currents of the winds.
Wind danced here and there, nothing. He pushed up from the ground, still remaining hidden behind the boulders and trees of the land. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw a disruption in the air's pattern. There. One. It was small. He needed something bigger. An indication of something a human could fit in. Was there another intake? Maybe a back door?
He didn't bother waiting for Deo or Nyke or anyone else to stop him. They would follow.
Scanning the space, he moved within the cover of the landscape. A unique and out-of-place scent caught his attention. The whole smelled of old rust. It was definitely not like the lab they'd ambushed with Kal, and maybe this would work for his advantage.
Nothing obvious.
Shit.
Standing still, slowing his heart, focusing himself, he closed his eyes and listened. The wind would tell him something. It had to. If he couldn't see anything, he needed to listen.
His dragon quieted, pulling in the sounds. More air moving, but there was no obstruction to this sound. A hig
h-pitched noise that barely reached even his ears came from a few feet below. He followed it. He stopped and looked down. This was a straight path from the main entrance, but maybe a mile away.
Eadric stomped the ground, trying to identify where it was coming from. He looked around, the air still did nothing. Told him nothing. He snarled, releasing part of his dragon, his hands turning to claws as they began scratching and digging at the ground. Their claws scrapped over metal, and he feverishly began cleaning the place.
It was a rusty-looking hatch.
Lilly? There's a tunnel. Do you know it? It leads to a back hatch.
Nothing. Fuck, she was there. He could feel her. He could sense her. Where was she? His dragon wanted out, but not yet. Not if they needed to get in there.
Eadric?
Finally.
Lilly? Where are you? I can feel you, but I can't see exactly where you are.
Her mind seemed confused and slow.
I'm, I don't know. My sister. She knows.
Fuck. Sister better get his mate out of this damn mess.
Tell her to go to the hatch, he commanded.
Hatch. She says it's sealed.
A snarled ripped through him.
It will not be sealed when you reach it.
He let his dragon have his way. Cameras or not, nothing would keep her. As they transformed, he heard Deo in his head.
What are you doing?
Eadric ignored him while his dragon slipped a claw under the wheel that was now rusted shut. He pushed at it, pulled. It didn't budge. Fine. He yanked. The dragon studied it again. Old metal. This would not keep him from his mate.
Taking in a large breath, they set fire to the metallic door. After a few beats of his heart, he checked in with Lilly.
Are you close, mate?
Her thoughts seemed clouded again.
Close.
The metal smelled soft as they breathed in. This time when his claw yanked, the door cracked, creaked, and broke free.
His dragon sniffed the air rushing from the man-sized hole. Where was she? He couldn't smell her. Quickly he shifted into his human form for size, while his dragon remained just below the surface, but their claws and scales still out. Ready.
He sniffed the space once more and got the faint scent of a female. He jumped down, skipping the ladder.
Running along the long hall, he stayed at high alert.
I've entered the building. Find the hatch. Be ready, he sent to his brothers.
He felt around with his mind to Lilly.
What is wrong, mate? Why don't you answer me?
He felt her mind stir.
Shot, me. The doctor.
Damn it, these fucking humans.
I'm coming.
He barely got through what might have been a half mile long tunnel when he finally saw a smaller woman trying to carry Lilly.
She looked up and smiled before her head drooped.
"Help me, shifter. If you're here for her. Help me."
He hadn't waited for her to call him; he was already there, grabbing her.
The human, Lilly's sister, hesitated.
"You come too human. She will not leave you."
When she hesitated, Eadric's patience ran thin, and he grabbed her around the waist, hoisting her over his shoulder. He didn't have time to fucking argue.
This was starting to feel like a real battle.
"Put me down, you monster."
He didn't have time to listen to this.
Lilly, what did they shoot you with?
A gurgle escaped her lips. Useless. He quickened his pace to the ladder as more footfalls echoed.
The poison. It's burning away, but so tired.
He took the short distance as fast as possible while ignoring the other human. At least she'd stopped hitting him. That was good. As they got to the ladder, he stopped.
"Human. You walk from here. My brother is waiting at the top."
She glared at him, but started to climb.
Eadric looked down at his mate.
Lilly? Can you hold on to me?
She nodded against his chest.
That wasn't at all convincing. He pulled her in with one arm and began to climb. Voices behind him pushed him to move faster. She would not be hurt again. Not on his watch.
He got to the top, Deo offering his hand to pull him out.
Eadric stood at the top.
Lilly, where is the antidote.
Her arm flopped as she moved it.
Pocket. Here.
He reached in the pocket. Nyke's hand outstretched, waiting. Eadric hesitated. First, he needed his mate to be okay.
Lilly, do you need this?
She mumbled a response.
"What?" he asked.
No. I'm fine. Sister? Where is she?
He looked up to see the small human standing near a tree, her saucer-like eyes saying it all. Right. Her sister.
"Sister? What is wrong with my mate?"
Her mouth dropped. Fuck, he didn't have time for this.
"What is wrong with Lilly?"
Nyke grabbed the vial when Eadric held it out.
Lilly's sister hesitated before finding her strength and marched through the throng of his brothers.
He didn't bother following Nyke already running down the mountain, shifting as he cleared trees and taking off into the sky.
At least someone felt urgency.
Eadric yanked Lilly away as the woman reached for her.
"I'm not going to hurt her, but I need to see how she's doing. The poison, it's. More like a sedative to Lillyanna-"
"Hold it right there," shouted a voice down the hole.
Where was a good door when he needed one? Instead, Deo stepped up and breathed in fire, filling the tunnel with flames.
"What were you saying?" Eadric asked.
"I, uh, the poison. Was that fire?"
Eadric was becoming very annoyed with her sister.
"Yes. He's a dragon. You surely know this by now."
She nodded. "Yes. I. It's very different from this side of things. Anyway, my sister. She'll be okay. Father wouldn't kill her, even if he could figure out how to. She's too useful. Or well, she was when she was on our - I mean, his side."
"Hold it," said another voice off in the distance.
What is it with these guys? How many of them were there? Lilly heard his thoughts and answered.
Enough. The illuminati have a lot of followers. Put me down.
He baulked at her request.
No. You can't even hold your head up.
To make his point, her head fell back with a jerk.
I can feel you in my veins, your strength. I will be fine. Put me down.
He looked at her and her sister.
"Let's just leave. They can't follow us in the sky."
Lilly whimpered and finally found her voice. "No!" she shouted.
He froze as his brother one by one began to change to their dragon forms. Her sister jumping as one by one they surprised her.
She didn't move far until Lilly began glowing a bright white.
"Put me down, Eadric," Lilly demanded.
He started to help her down as another voice came out of mist forming through the forest.
We need to leave now.
Lilly didn't look back at him as she took one shaky step at a time.
Shield my sister.
Eadric looked from her to her sister and pushed her sister out of the way, toward one of the dragons.
Shield her, he commanded.
He didn't know which brother answered as he reached out for his mate. He squinted at her as she stared to mirror the bright white of a star. What the hell? Did she always do this?
A stark sadness filled him as she took another step. What was she doing?
A voice came out of the fog as a few shadows shown through.
"Lillyanna, come back with us and we won't harm you."
Eadric didn't know who that was, but it sounded fam
iliar. It was then that he realized it was from Lilly's memories, not his own.
A flood of pain, fear, and regret flashed through her memory. A woman going up in flames and then a male face. He smiled over at her as she wept. The words weren't what he heard, but there was no mistaking what was formed on his lips, 'very good'. It was as if she remembered this moment, in slow motion.
Eadric watched her wobble for a moment. He sent his energy and his love to her, praying it was enough. He prayed he had will power enough to leave her to do what she needed.
The need for revenge, something he knew all too well.
"You will never hurt another soul for as long as I breathe," she yelled into the mist.
An evil laugh filled the forest and his brothers grew restless.
We need to leave.
He shook it off.
Then leave.
His brothers shifted, ready to leave.
Just grab her. We need to go.
Eadric hesitated. He would grab her if anyone dared reach out, but right now he was in awe at her. Lilly's skin glowing brighter, hotter as she stopped before the cloud of fog.
"Show yourself, Father."
There was no response, nothing but a laugh so evil Eadric wasn't sure he'd forget it anytime soon.
"Lillyanna, do you really think you can beat me?"
She whipped her head around.
"I don't know. But I can certainly hurt you."
The fog started to rush in without warning. His brothers took off, their wings beating against the air, the fog unaffected.
The scream of her sister a small note in the midst of this chaos, but Lilly remained deaf to him and her sister's cries. Eadric lunged forward for her.
His hand wrapped around her upper arm, as he readied to pull her out. Instead, a scream ripped through her, her skin exploding into a blinding light that Eadric squeezed his eyes shut against.
A blast of heat hitting him, burning along the arm still in contact with her.
He pushed against a force he couldn't see to wrap himself around her.
Seconds passed, and the silence defended him.
What had happened?
An acrid scent of charred flesh filled the air.
He opened his eyes slowly, waiting for the blinding light. Instead, there was no more fog, no more anything. Black ash for as far as the eye could see.