The Lure of a Traitor

by F. L. Jordan

  Yes, it smells like—, Copper dropped to the floor, following the scent under the bed. It is!

  What? Zach was worried that there was someone still in his room.

  It’s a dreamcatcher! The little dragon wrestled the dark magic trap out from under Zach’s bed, slicing through the webbing with his talons.

  Copper, is there anyone in the apartment other than us? Zach asked, trying to figure out when someone could have gotten into his apartment. It had to be while he was at work.

  Copper quickly checked the bathroom, No. We’re alone.

  “Look for other charms, is anything missing?” he tucked the gun away and picked up the dreamcatcher. Typically, this charm was meant to capture bad dreams and keep them from harming the person’s mental health. When infused with dark magic the opposite happened. The dreams captured within the charm would be amplified and expelled. Zach felt the objects tied to it. This particular dreamcatcher was designed to trap a person within their dream state, essentially torturing them endlessly. Had he and Copper gone to bed without finding it, neither of them would have woken up. He recognised the magical energy of the item, but wasn’t sure from where. It was strong.

  As Copper thoroughly searched the apartment, Zach took the disarmed dreamcatcher to the living room, setting it in the bowl with his keys. He’d take it to the station tomorrow and see if Natalie noticed anything about it that could be useful. After the dragon reported that nothing else was out of place, Zach set a reminder on his phone to call a locksmith in the morning and went to bed.

  He ended up laying awake for hours, trying to figure out who would want to hurt him. The list was long, considering his career. Could this be tied to Emily’s curse? How had they gotten into his apartment? If they were this ballsy, what else would they try to do?

  I can’t sleep, Copper crawled from his pillow to lay on Zach’s chest. Normally, Zach would have removed him, placing him back on the pillow. Not this time. Tonight he laid his hand over the dragon comfortingly.

  “Me either,” Zach said softly into the quiet of the night.

  It just doesn’t feel... safe anymore, Copper hated to admit it.

  “Yeah,” Zach rolled onto his side and hugged the small creature to him securely, “I know.”

  ~*~

  Natalie woke to a room full of morning sun. At first she stretched and rolled over, willing herself to reenter the wonderful dream she’d just left, but then she realized that it wasn’t the weekend. She screamed several profanities as she launched from the bed and raced to get dressed. The action scared Slag awake and the little dragon hissed, clawing her way from the bed sheets, What is it? What’s wrong?

  “I’m late!” Natalie forced a plain white t-shirt over her wild mass of curls, grabbing the closest pair of jeans she could find, not caring if they were dirty. She glanced at the analog clock Eli had given her for an alarm the night before, distressed to find that the battery had died somewhere around 3am.

  Slag sighed, willing her heart rate to slow. There was no emergency. Everything was fine. She bounded off the bed and into the kitchen, some advice Copper had given her last night ringing in her head. Sometimes our humans need help to make their lives easier. Be that help when you can, and they’ll treat you well for it.

  Slag grabbed the bread from its box and stuck a few pieces in the toaster. She then nuzzled her way into the cabinet, snagging a travel mug from and setting it by the coffee pot. Thankfully, Eli had forgotten to turn it off and its contents were still hot. As she put the bread away Natalie came running out of the bedroom, hopping on one foot and struggling to get her other sneaker on.

  Breakfast? Slag asked kindly.

  “Oh shit,” Natalie glanced at her watch, 7:30, she was two hours late. “I’m sorry, Slag. It’s going to be quick and dirty.”

  I can get my own, the little dragon beamed at her, Eli taught me how to open the fridge. I meant you. Toast and coffee ok?

  Natalie was shocked to stillness, “You made me breakfast? Slag, that’s so sweet!” She scooped the lizard up and planted a kiss on her head as the toast popped, “Thank you, sweetie. I’ll pick up something special for you on my way home, ok?”

  Ok, Slag nuzzled her neck, Have a good day!

  “You too,” Natalie set her down, stuffed a piece of toast into her mouth as she filled the mug, and ran to the door. “Lock the door please! Love you!”

  Love you too! Slag shouted happily as her human raced off to work. She snagged the second piece of toast for herself then raided the fridge. She found the shrimp Eli had bought her on his way home yesterday and demolished it. Slag then shut off the coffee pot, locked the door, and found a nice spot in the sun to lounge in. As she idly chewed on a shrimp tail, the little dragon wondered if she’d ever get to go to work with Natalie like Copper did. She hoped so.

  Natalie received a heavy dose of harassment from her coworkers as she entered the station. Many of them thought this was her walk of shame from a late night at someone else's house. She didn’t bother correcting them. She was too worried about how pissed Zach was going to be.

  Upon entering the locker room she caught a glimpse of her beyond frizzy curls and groaned. Taming it was going to take some substantial effort. She quickly changed into her uniform before making the attempt. Natalie had just managed to wrangle the last rouge curl when a familiar penny colored dragon landed lethargically on top of her Locker.

  “I know I’m late, Copper,” she said as she jabbed the pin into her bun.

  Everything ok? he sounded exhausted.

  Yeah, I just left my alarm clock at someone’s house last night, she looked up at him with a smile that instantly faded when she took in his appearance. Are you ok?

  Not really, he yawned, I’ll let Zach tell you about it. Better hurry up. He’s worried about you.

  She reached up and gently lifted him, holding him in her arms just like she would Slag as she left the locker room. He snuggled into her and closed his eyes. Natalie was surprised when his little body relaxed completely. She looked down to find him asleep.

  The astonished looks she received as she carried him through the main office were great. A few people asked her if he was ok. She assured him he was fine and quickly made her way to Zach's office. They had a right to be concerned. The little dragon was typically lively and vigilant. Considering Zach’s desire to keep people at arm’s length, many of them had likely never seen Copper in such a state, let alone in the arms of someone other than Zach.

  She didn’t bother knocking on the door, apologizing the second she opened it, “Sorry I’m late. The stupid clock Eli gave me died.”

  Zach was standing next to his bookcase by the door. He closed the book he was reading and turned to her, “I was starting to think something happened.”

  “I’m starting to think the same,” Natalie took in his exhausted appearance. “What’s going on with you two?”

  He sighed and walked over to his desk, picking up a broken dreamcatcher and extending it towards her, “Found this under my bed last night. Know anything about it?”

  “Excuse me?” Natalie instantly became defensive, gently setting Copper down on the desk as she took in the aura of the offending object.

  “No, not like that,” Zach sighed, “I know you didn’t do it. I meant, is there anything about it that might tell you who left it. Sorry, I’m tired. We couldn’t sleep.”

  She took it from him, knowing exactly who cast the spell the second it touched her finger tips, “I bet you didn’t. This is a strong charm.”

  “It’s been disabled,” he seemed confused. “Copper broke the webbing the second he found it.”

  “Oh, Copper!” Natalie looked over at the unconscious creature, “No wonder you look so bad. There’s a secondary charm on this thing, Zach. It drains the energy of anyone who tampers with it. One of the items tied to the dreamcatcher is a crow’s feather." They were used primarily in such spells.

  Zach’s expression switched to horror, “What? How did I miss
that? And Copper’s allergic to amla. Is there another herb that would work to break it?”

  "That won't be necessary," Natalie tore the feather from the charm. "Got a lighter by any chance?"

  "No, but Levit does," Zach moved to exit the office. “He sneaks off to smoke on the roof when no one is watching.”

  Natalie gently extended her hand, pressing her fingers into his chest to stop him, “I’ll get it, you stay with Copper. He’s asleep on your desk.”

  He nodded and reached out, finding the edge of his desktop and slowly prodding around until he found the sleeping beast. Natalie left as he was picking up the limp dragon. She examined the feather closely as she walked. Agram had taken a lot of time developing this spell, carefully etching runes into the quill. It was meant for Copper. First Zach’s sister, now this. What was her connection to him? Why was she trying to bring down his loved ones? Natalie was still examining the charm as she knocked on Captain Levit’s door.

  “Well, I’ll be damned,” Natalie froze, anger and fear coursing through her as she looked up to find her past staring back at her.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” she growled at Captain Corvis as he smiled smugly at her.

  “Monthly Captain’s meeting,” Corvis stated, implying she was stupid.

  Natalie glanced behind him, meeting the eyes of the other precinct captains, “Step aside, please. I need to see Levit.”

  He moved just enough for her to get past, purposefully touching her ass as he closed the door behind her. Natalie ignored her impulse to deck him and confidently strode up to Levit’s desk, saying hello to the others as she did so.

  “What can I do for you, Officer Lock?” Levit looked genuinely concerned about how she and Corvis had interacted, his analytical gaze shifting between the two of them.

  She held up the feather and Captain Lidia Bowen, 1st Precinct, gasped, “Where did that come from?”

  “Better question,” Levit stood, taking it from Natalie to examine it, “Who is it meant for.”

  “Copper,” Natalie said softly. “Zach found a dreamcatcher in his apartment last night. That was attached to it. If you look at the runes etched into the quill, you can see it’s marked for an animal. Zach said Copper cut the webbing the second he found it.”

  “Son of a bitch,” Levit held the feather to the window light, spotting the exact rune she was talking about. “Is he ok?”

  “No,” Natalie answered. “He’s passed out in Hail’s office. I came here to get a lighter from you and warn you that the smoke alarm might go off soon.”

  He eagerly handed the feather back to her and dug in his desk for the cigarette lighter he kept stashed away, “Normally, I’d be against destroying evidence, but Hail needs that dragon.”

  “Does he have the dreamcatcher with him?” Corvis asked from behind her, his serious tone was alarming.

  “Yes,” Natalie spoke to Levit, “I planned to have one of my contacts purify it before we submit it to evidence. Even after being disabed, it's potent. Zach said he couldn’t sleep.”

  “I see,” Levit handed her the lighter. “Thank you for making me aware of the situation.”

  She nodded and turned to leave, shooting a few daggers towards Corvis as she reached for the door. The words that came out of his mouth next fueled her anger into rage.

  “Why do you keep him, Mark? For Christ’s sake, the man is not only blind but an alcoholic,” Corvis scoffed.

  Natalie spun on him before her captain could respond, “Hail is here because he’s a damn good cop. He earned his title through talent and hard work instead of intimidating his competition. He can pass a weapons test with 100% efficiency when you can barely clear 86%. Hell, the man could easily kick your ass in hand to hand combat even if you did use your teeth. Don’t bad mouth someone simply because they’re better than you could ever dream to be, Captain Corvis.”

  Lidia stifled a laugh as the other two men in the room cleared their throats awkwardly. They knew she was right. Many of them had worked with her in anticipation of her obtaining the promotion he'd stolen from her. All of them were disappointed that the commissioner had selected Corvis instead.

  Corvis glared at her, pure hatred in his dark mahogany eyes. She returned the stare. This was her station, not his. She wasn't going to let him intimidate her here.

  "Perhaps you should go tend to that lizard of his," Corvis hissed through clenched teeth.

  Natalie opened the door and strode out. She had planned to go back to Hail's office to burn the feather, but decided to get some air instead. As she stepped outside she took a deep steadying breath.

  "Fucking prick," Natalie mumbled to herself as she held up the feather, igniting it.

  A voice rang out as the black magic burst from its burning host, “I see you, Pent.”

  Natalie gasped. Agram stood on the other side of the street, a wicked grin tugging the corner of her crimson lips. Her golden hair shone brightly in the summer sun as her emerald eyes bored into Natalie’s soul. Natalie took a step towards her and the woman vanished. This wasn't good.

  Chapter 11

  Zach paced in his office, worried about both partner and his dragon. Natalie shouldn't be taking this long to get a lighter. To quiet his thoughts he walked over to his bookshelf and plucked one of the many braille translated spell books he had acquired from the row. He flipped through to a page that listed ingredients and their associated spells. He’d started reading about grave soil when a knock came at his door.

  “About time,” Zach turned, setting the book down on his desk, “I was beginning to wonder if you got lost.”

  “I'll always be able to find my way to you, Zachariah,” the man’s voice turned Zach’s blood to ice instantly.

  “This isn’t your precinct, what are you doing here?” Zach spun and shouted, “Get out!”

  “You look good,” Zach heard the man step into his office and close the door, “but you’ve always looked good.”

  “Just not good enough for your greedy appetite,” Zach spat at him. “Get out of my office before I knock the teeth out of your skull.”

  “Tell me,” the man was way too close to him, Zach could smell his nauseating cologne. “Do you still dream about me?”

  He brushed his knuckles against Zach’s jaw, capturing it before he could pull away, “Because I dream about you. Seeing your face all over the city drives me mad, you know.” The man pressed his lips to Zach's, pushing him up against the desk with his body.

  A deep seated anger welled up inside of him and Zach swung, delivering a powerful uppercut to the man’s jaw. The cracking noise the man’s teeth made when they collided was beyond satisfying. Zach didn’t give him a chance to recover before he swung again, hitting the soft flesh of his abdomen. Zach pushed him to the floor, quickly spinning to open his office door. As he turned to grab the man and throw him out, a fist collided with his jaw. Zach responded in kind, delivering a powerful blow to the man's face.

  The man grunted and moved to swing again, but Zach heard the rustle of his clothing and dodged, swiftly moving behind him. He kicked the man in the back, effectively pushing him from the office. Zach heard the man stand and prepared to swing again.

  “Get out of here, Daniel!” he heard Natalie shout angrily.

  "This doesn't concern you, Lock," Daniel Corvis growled.

  "The hell it doesn't!" Zach heard her engage with the man, "You put your hands on my partner! Burns! Help me get this piece of shit out of here before Hail kills him!"

  Zach moved to do just that, but a gentle hand landed on his bicep, Levit's calming voice followed, "Go back in your office, Zach. We know he started it."

  Zach shook him off, taking a step towards the sound of Burns and Lock dragging the struggling intruder away, "I’ll fucking kill him!”

  “Breathe, Zach,” Levit grabbed him again, just as gentle as the first time. “He’s gone. Tend to Copper. The little guy doesn't look so good.”

  His desire to kick Daniel's ass was over
ridden by his concern for his best friend. Zach huffed and turned, going back into his office and slamming the door. He found the dragon on his desk, struggling to stand.

  Are you ok? Copper asked, fear in his voice. Did he hurt you? I tried to get up, but I couldn't. I'm sorry, Zach.

  No, he didn’t hurt me, Zach picked him up, cradling him like he used to do as a kid. You rest. Natalie's taking care of it.

  Zach sat behind his desk, holding his weakened dragon. All of this felt too familiar. For the first time since the day he'd found Daniel in bed with that woman, he wondered if Copper had been asleep because Daniel had wanted him that way. The man had come to this precinct several times since his transfer, but he'd never attempted anything like what he'd just done. Copper had always vigilantly warned Zach about the man’s presence and kept the two of them apart.

  Copper, Zach spoke to him calmly, did Daniel feed you anything that day?

  Yes, Copper answered lethargically, he gave me some scrambled eggs for breakfast. I remember thinking they tasted funny.

  Zach hugged the small creature to his chest. Guilt washed over him as he realised how much blame he'd placed on his scaly little shoulders, I'm sorry for being such an asshole, Copper.

  I'll accept that apology, the little dragon nuzzled Zach's jaw. The office door opened and Zach stood, setting Copper on his desk. He was ready to fight again if he had to.

  It's me, Natalie’s calming tone felt like a pleasant internal hug, tell me what happened.

  Fucker pinned me against my desk, Zach’s knuckles hurt, he tenderly started to prod them with his fingers, counting several open wounds. He’d hit the bastard hard enough to break his own skin. Good.

  Any reason why he would do something like that? he heard her approach him, her cool fingers gently taking his hands to examine them.

  He's the guy I told you about last night, he felt her hands still.

  “Daniel Corvis is your ex?” Natalie's voice held an air of disbelief. He nodded and she pulled him in for a hug, "Oh Zach, it looks like we got fucked over by the same asshole."