Finn: Xavier’s Hatchlings ― Paranormal Dragon Shifter Romance (Xavier's Hatchlings Book 1)

by Kathi S. Barton

  “I don’t have a gun. Are you going to cooperate or not?”

  She told him she wasn’t going back. Like he was deaf and dumb, she thought. Suddenly every single part of her body seized up. The long wires coming from his odd looking gun were now attached to her body.

  Every muscle in her body was frozen. Screaming behind her clenched teeth, tight with the Tazer, her eyes watered profusely. Urine ran down her legs in long streams. Sandra was sure she’d shit herself too. Even as they put the cuffs on her arms and legs to take her back, she couldn’t breathe well, much less kill them for doing something she absolutely told them not to do.

  When the pain stopped, she laid there on the floor, her body and mind a mess for what had just happened to her. Looking at the two of them giggling and laughing it up as they dragged her to the waiting van, Sandra vowed she was going to get them both if it was the last thing she ever did.

  Chapter 10

  Closing her eyes as Finn had asked her to do, Rachel put her hand on the top of the large stone he’d found for her. He’d gone to the faerie queen to get information on having sight. It was, she told them what Finn could do. But both of them had a stronger ability now.

  “What do you feel, love? Anything yet?” Concentrating a little harder, she could hear something and told him what she was hearing. “Very well done. Perfect. Now, try and filter out the noises surrounding you, and listen to what the stone has to say. It’s a living being, remember, and has stories to tell too.”

  It didn’t seem to be speaking anything she could understand. Just as she was ready to give up and tell Finn she still hadn’t gotten it, the stone spoke to her. But the laughter from it drew her into his mirth too.

  I didn’t know what your language would be, my lady. You are a mate to a dragon. She asked him how he’d learned that. The dragons have been around far longer than I have been a stone of this size. Dragons, as you might know, are the magic of the world. But I could feel young Finn of the Manning Dragons close by you. What is it you wish to know?

  “I’m practicing.” He told her she was doing a fine job so far. “Thank you. It’s strange to think I’m speaking to a stone. I would never have thought it possible. However, I’m learning that there are a great many things people never thought was possible that do exist.”

  Yes, humans have been around for a very long time. I think they have gotten used to having things around them, such as me, and don’t notice us as much. His laughter again made her smile. My kind used to be used for all manner of things that we are no longer useful for. Skimming one of the smaller of us across a waterway was fun for us as well. We would hold homes up with the warmth of love seeping into us. A well too. We held the gift of water from the earth for humans and animals alike to use.

  “I’m sorry for your loss. I didn’t think about what you might have felt like. Not taking advantage of your presence has hurt humans as well, I think. Also shifters. So many of them live in homes constructed by things such as man made items.” She loved talking to the stone. Sitting on the ground, Rachel told him she was going to have to leave here soon. “There is this woman who is married to my brother. Or she was married to him. I think there is something wrong with her. Since I’ve had a chance to step back and think about her, I think she’s been ill for some time.”

  You can seek the truth of your questions if you wish. You only need to think of her, touch something, anything belonging to her, and you will know. It might be, however, easier if you touch her. She is the source of her illness, and it will show itself better for you with a single touch. Rachel asked him if it would tell her what her thoughts were as well. I know not this, my lady. You have a great gift of seeing things no one else will know nor understand how you can.

  “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to see if she’s ill or just a mean bitch.” The stone laughed, and she looked at Finn leaning against another stone apparently sound asleep. “I love Finn so much. More than I ever thought I’d love anyone.”

  As it should be. Of all the Mannings I have ever had the pleasure of speaking with, or even heard about from other stones such as myself, Finn’s father was the best of the best. All of them are good dragons. Each of them gives back to the earth when they take something from its depths. But Xavier Manning was the kindest, most generous of all of them. Which is quite a feat, my lady, as all of them are more than any other being in the world. The stone laughed again. This one, Finn Xavier Manning, is a man of men. A dragon too. His heart is tender yet strong. His mind is as sharp as any dagger that could be forged. He, with you at his side, will bring more goodness to the earth than anyone before or after you. I thank you for that.

  “What would be a way for me to help you and other things of the earth? I’m willing to do anything you need.” He told her just speaking to him, a lowly stone, was more than enough. “I thank you for speaking to me as well. However, if you give me something I can help you with, I’d be grateful as well.”

  Flowers need to be plentiful. Rachel was confused for a moment, then he continued. The faeries will need all the nectar from the flowers, you see. It will give them energy to come along, dusting us off when it gets too dirty for us to get to the sunlight. Also, you may not believe this of a faerie, but they can sometimes burrow into our hearts and be safe from storms and such. They also use the smaller versions of myself to have roofs over their heads, daggers, or spears to protect themselves. So long as dragons are here, faeries will continue to be around for every living thing in the world. It’s the way it has always been. Also how it will be for all time.

  “That’s the most beautiful thing anyone has ever said to me. Who would have thought rocks could be so romantic?” They both laughed. The alarm on her phone signaled it was time for them to leave for the jail. “I have to leave you. I don’t want to. This has been a rare treat for me with all this other stuff going on. Thank you very much.”

  You are most welcome, my lady. You have an ability to speak to all manner of things now. Not just the forest, but things in your own home. Each item will tell a tale to you that you might enjoy. Not all, but a lot of them will be enjoyable.

  “I’ll do it. I think I’d like doing something along those lines to learn more about the things around us all the time. I think I’ve been missing out on a lot of things.” She thought of something and decided to ask him to see if he would know. “How do I turn it off? Maybe there are some things that I don’t want to know the story behind.”

  He laughed as he answered her. You need only to think of the story when you touch something if you want to hear it. If you only touch something to hold onto, you will be safe, I believe. Just ask whatever you’re touching to give you the story, and it will be there for you.

  As they made their way back to the house, she told Finn what she’d learned. “It was as if he was just waiting for me to come along and touch him.” Finn told her it was that way with whatever they touched now. “Have you figured out what’s different with your magic now? I know we were told we’re both stronger.”

  “I was sung to sleep by the stone I was leaning against. It was the strangest feeling. It was as if it knew I was tense.” Rachel asked him why he’d not told her he was tense. “Because, my love, we’re due in the courthouse in a few minutes. And if I make love to you again today, we’ll be late.”

  “Well, that settles it. I don’t like Sandra even more than I didn’t like her before.” He cocked a brow at her. “I don’t know what I was trying to say. Bear with me. I’m so nervous I think if someone were to sneak up on me, I’d die of fright.”

  “Then I’m glad you’re immortal.” They were still joking around when they got into the car with Chad in the back seat. After this meeting with Sandra, they all had a long list of things to take care of. “I don’t know how long this is going to take, but the chief said he’d cut her off if she were to get too mouthy. Are you going to be all right, Chad?”

  “I d
on’t think so, but then she’ll be restrained, so I don’t have to worry about her getting her hands wrapped around my throat.” It wasn’t funny. None of them laughed because it was a good possibility that if given the chance, Sandra would kill them both. “I keep telling myself she’s the bad guy in this thing. I didn’t have any idea what she was doing outside our home. Hell, I didn’t know what she was doing while she was in the house either. Other than, of course, bitching about how we had so little.”

  “My mom, she spoke to you both about what happened to your parents, didn’t she?” They both nodded when Finn asked. “It was a theory for a long time, I guess, implicating Sandra in killing her parents. After a lot of research on their deaths, Mom was able to determine that it was just as the paper said—murder suicide. But she did have a hand in the deaths of your parents.”

  “Yes. She did.” Chad turned to look out the window as he continued. “I never knew what a monster she was. Sure, we had some really loud and physical altercations when we were married. I got into the habit of walking away rather than confronting her. It was the only solution I could think of. I wasn’t going to hit her, no matter how badly she beat me, both verbally and physically.”

  “I think it was smart of you all the way around. It wouldn’t have gone over well to anyone. Especially when you factor in that Sandra has no compunction about telling lies to people around her.” Chad looked at her, and she could see his hurt. “I’m so sorry you’re going through this, Chad. I ache for you.”

  “You’re going through it too, Rach. Don’t underestimate your own pain. She’s been hurting you in one way or the other since I married her. You did try and tell me.” She didn’t say anything, but she had warned him. “This meeting is the last time I’m going to make it a point to see her. I might see her out and about when she’s finished with the sentence they’ll have her serve—I’m not sure what will happen with the hearing. I’m looking forward to having it just done. Then we can concentrate on the better things we’re doing today.”

  Transferring ownership of her home to Chad was the first thing Rachel was doing. He had decided, after spending the last few nights at their house, that he wanted to live there. Rachel wanted him to find himself someone to love and to love him back. Her brother deserved so much more than Sandra and the terrible things she’d done to all of them. She’d be glad to have it finished as well.

  Then it was shopping for them both a car. Even with all the money she had, Rachel had never bought herself a new car. It was something she needed, but the ones left behind when their parents were killed had been there, not being used. The same with Chad’s old car.

  Their parents had taught them how to save their money. Also, to use up what you had in the way of tangible items rather than tossing it aside when something newer or more advanced came out on the market. It was why she was driving a car much older than she was. Excitement raced over her when she thought of what she wanted in a new car. However, pulling up in front of the police station crushed even her good thoughts. Rachel sat there, trying to decide if she needed to confront Sandra once more.

  “Are you ready?” She looked at her brother, her only friend for so long, and nodded. Then she shook her head. “Yeah, I’m right there with you. I want to be able to tell her I’ve gone on with my life. How it’s better now she is no longer in it. Also, and I think this is what has me feeling so apprehensive about this, I don’t want to hear her putting me down. Again.”

  “How about we have a little talk with her? If she gets out of hand or starts saying things like she normally does to us, we just get up and leave. There isn’t any reason at all for us to have to put up with her abuse anymore. You’re divorced, and she isn’t related to either of us.”

  Getting out of the car, Rachel made sure Finn knew he was going with them. Rachel knew she could do it on her own, but his skin touching hers was all she needed to get through this. Chad took her other hand, and the three of them walked to the station house.

  It was going to be a good visit, she told herself. Even if Sandra was hateful to them or accused them of things they’d had nothing to do with, she and Chad were going to do this one thing, then be finished with Sandra for the rest of their lives.

  “Do you remember what they told you to do?” Both her and Chad had been asked to see if they could get a confession from Sandra about their parents. Carson assured them both she was going to jail, but with the conviction for murder, it was more than likely she’d be there for the rest of her life. Finn nodded as he continued. “You don’t have to do this if you’re not comfortable with her answers.”

  “I’m not totally comfortable seeing her even knowing she’ll be chained down. So we do this now, to make sure she pays for her actions, or it will haunt me for the rest of my days.” Rachel told Finn she felt the same way. Then Chad spoke again. “The only thing I have bothering me is that she’s been doing all this right in front of me. I never realized what she was up to. I would have—I’m not sure what I would have done, but it wouldn’t have gotten this far. At least I hope I would have been able to do something about it.”

  “Don’t blame yourself, Chad. It’s over. Done.” He nodded. Finn went to the front desk to tell them they were there. “We’re going to walk away and never return if it gets to be too much. All right? We’re not going to allow her to drag us into whatever crap she has in her mind. You and I, we’ve nothing to do with her ways. It’s all on her. Okay?”

  “Yes.” Chad kissed the back of her hand he’d been holding tightly. “I don’t know what I would have done without you by my side, Rach. Even when I hurt you, and I know I did, you still came through when I needed you the most.”

  They hugged, and when Finn came back to tell them they were to follow the officer in charge, the three of them were put in a medium sized room with a table. There was a large eye bolt in the table, as well as on the floor. The thought of someone, including Sandra, having to be hooked up like a dog, bothered her on so many levels.

  When the door opened again, a different officer asked them to have a seat, or they could just stand against the far wall. All three of them opted for the wall. Seconds later, the door opened again just after the first officer closed it, and Sandra was brought into the room with them.

  To say she looked bad would have been a gross understatement. Her hair looked as if someone had taken a saw to it. It hung down on her eyes and cheeks in dirty, stringy locks. It didn’t look as if she had washed it in days either.

  The jumper she had on was not a color that looked good on her. It washed out her already pale face even more so. Even though it was fairly clean, she still looked a mess. As soon as she was locked to the table and floor, Chad moved to the seat directly in front of Sandra. He looked as upset as she felt for the other woman.

  ~~~

  Finn kept an eye on both Chad and Rachel. He wasn’t concerned for their wellbeing, but more their hearts. It was difficult enough for him to be here. He could only imagine what their thoughts on her appearance were. Sandra looked like she’d been in several fights, and hadn’t managed to be the person on top. Moving away from the wall, Rachel joined Chad at the table.

  “Hello, Sandra. You requested for us to come and see you. Here we are. What is it you wanted?” Sandra turned and looked at him first. Finn saw what he was sure the other two were seeing. Insanity. She no longer had a grip on herself. “Sandra? What did you want?”

  The woman didn’t acknowledge either of them sitting in front of her, but continued, for whatever reason, to stare at him. It wasn’t until he shifted on his feet to try and break the tension between them that she looked at Rachel and Chad.

  “You’re to get me out of here. They’re trying to kill me.” Rachel asked her what they were doing to her. “You should know. Damn it. You’ve spent most of your life behind bars, haven’t you? I have to get out of here before they kill me.”

  “No one is trying to kill y
ou, Sandra. You’re in jail. Did you kill my parents? I’d like to know the answer to whether or not you had anything to do with them both being dead.” She looked at him again, then at Chad. As soon as the smile formed on her face, he knew, just knew, she’d done it. “Sandra? Did you kill my mom and dad?”

  “Of course, I did.” She laughed then, a maniacal laughter that sent shivers up his spine. “Had I known there wasn’t going to be a big pay off to you, then I would never have married you in the first place. Damn it, Chad, why couldn’t we have had all those lovely things they had? Why didn’t we get to live in their big house with servants, and fucking someone waiting on me hand and foot? I would have been much happier to be with you.”

  “You married me for money. Is this what you’re telling me?” Sandra nodded, then looked directly at Finn. Chad looked at where she was looking and turned back to Sandra. “What did he do to you? You’re staring at him as if you know he’s guilty of whatever is in your sick mind.”

  “He’s a dragon. Everyone knows it. He flies all over the skies every day and kills off sheep. Did you know he’s a dragon?” Chad told Sandra he did know. “I should have hired him to kill you off instead of having someone try and poison you. Think how much better off my life would have been without you there fucking it all up.”

  “What do you mean, you were trying to poison him? He’s never done a thing to you. Neither did I. Why do you hate me so much?” Sandra explained her reasons to Rachel. “You hate me because of my looks? That’s it? My looks?”

  “You could do anything and get by with it because of how good you look. I was going to kill you too, but the chance never came up. I had this big plan. I was going to hold you down and pour acid all over your face so it would disfigure you. I was going to allow you to live for a year or two. Having people hide their eyes from seeing you would have been so much fun for me. But I never got the chance because you had to go and buy my big house and keep it for yourself. You should never have had a thing to do with the will. I should have had it all. Do you hear me? Every nickel should have come to me for having to endure being around the two of you all the time.”