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

by Kathi S. Barton

  Finn nearly grabbed Rachel’s back when she touched her fingers to Sandra. Whatever happened, it certainly hurt Sandra. She started screaming about being electrocuted by the bitch, as she called Rachel.

  Putting her hands into her lap, Rachel started to cry. When Finn started to go to her aid, she told him she was all right. He knew she wasn’t, but did stand back out of her way while she gathered her thoughts. When she looked at Sandra then, her back was ramrod straight, and her body tense with anger.

  “I thought perhaps there was some sort of mental handicap you might be dealing with to make you like you are now. I hoped someone could help you so you’d be able to live a reasonably productive life. But there isn’t anything wrong with you. Physically or mentally. Other than your sick ways of thinking of things to do to other people.” Sandra asked her what she was talking about. “You’ve been like this all your life. Your parents knew there was no hope for you to change your ways when you were found killing small animals in the worst kind of ways. Even as a child, you were a monster. Not just to animals, but to other children as well. It was why they put you in the car with them when they killed themselves—to have you taken away, and their shame of having you as their child. You ruined them. They were no longer welcome at church, nor to a nice restaurant. Sandra, you really are a monster.”

  “They were too stupid to figure out how to make it so I could die with them. It’s what they wanted. They wanted me dead. Who would want to kill me off? I was just a kid.” Rachel asked her about the dead animals. “So? Every kid has a hobby. Mine was dissecting things to see how they worked. The blood was a good thing. I liked it the most.”

  “You killed the little boy next door to you too. Do you remember how you did it?” Sandra looked excited for a moment as if telling the reasons she might have had would have been wonderful. “Never mind—I don’t care. Why did you kill our parents? I want to know why you killed them.”

  “Oh, grow up. How would you have been able to make it rich without them dead? You benefited from their deaths more than I did.” Rachel told Sandra that she’d not been their child, so she wasn’t to benefit anyway. “Yes. I got nothing from the estate because my husband was a sap in his younger years. Then the fucking prick tells me there was lots of money to go around, he just didn’t want to share it with me.”

  “No. You have no idea how thankful I am for not sharing with you what my beloved parents left me.” Chad got up, towering over Sandra. “I’m finished with you. I won’t be back to hear a word from you. You’re on your own. Your life is just what you wanted it to be. I couldn’t care less anymore.” Chad told him he’d be on the bench out front.

  After he left, Sandra looked at Rachel. There were no words between either of them, though Finn knew Rachel was getting everything she needed to be able to cut Sandra out of her life as well. When Sandra’s nose began to bleed, Finn put his hand on Rachel’s shoulder and told her it was enough. She was raping the other woman’s mind—there was little to no doubt to him of what she was doing.

  Rachel stood up and turned and kissed him on the mouth. Her eyes were full of tears, but they didn’t fall. Taking his arm and wrapping hers around it, they left the room without a backward glance to the woman there. Whatever she’d found out, he doubted very much she’d share it with him or Chad.

  The three of them drove to the car lot in town and looked at cars. He knew what Rachel wanted in the way of vehicles; she wanted a candy apple red one with four doors. Finn was all right with her having whatever it was she wanted. Chad came to find him after they’d been there about ten minutes.

  “I don’t have any credit. Well, I guess I have credit, but it has Sandra’s name attached to mine, and no one will lend me money. I was—I hate to ask this of you, but could I borrow money to buy me a car? Please don’t tell Rach. It will only upset her more.” Finn told him he’d take care of it. “Thank you. I wouldn’t ask, but I’m afraid of Rach finding out and going back to the stationhouse and killing Sandra. I might not have cared before today, but she’s stressed out, isn’t she?”

  “She is. I think we’re going to go away for a little while next week. Just to clear our minds.”

  Chad and he went to the office of the dealership. Finn told the salesman who he was and that Chad was his newest brother-in-law. The salesman was falling all over himself trying to get the best deal for Chad. It helped to have a name people respected.

  By the time Rachel and Chad had a new car each, they were all starving. Finn knew for a fact that Rachel hadn’t eaten much that morning, so he was happy when she told him she was hungry too. Walking to the nearest restaurant, leaving their cars on the lot with the new ones to be cleaned up, it was nice to be able to sit down for a bit.

  Finn ordered for the table while Chad and Rachel were talking about the visit. He was glad the two of them were close. It gave Rachel someone to talk to when he was working. It wasn’t the only reason. The two of them needed each other because of the dealings with Sandra. By the end of the meal, the three of them were in a much better mood, as well as full. After walking back to the dealership to pick up their cars, Chad told them to take their older cars to the local high school and donate them to the shop department. The dealership was glad to do it for him.

  Chad drove his car to his new home. None of them felt like shopping tonight, and Finn was happy for it. He was exhausted too. His mind and body had been so focused on today; it had interrupted his sleep last night. Thinking he’d go to bed early, he was surprised to find Rachel already in bed. She was naked and motioning for him to come to bed with her.

  “Gladly.” Stripping out of his clothing quickly, he joined her on the bed. When Rachel wrapped her warm body around his, his cock stretched and filled out. “You make me hard every time I look at you.”

  “You make me wet when I think about how wonderful I’m going to feel with you inside of me.” He groaned, and she giggled. “Take me, big boy. I want to scream my lungs out.”

  “As you wish, my lady. As you wish.”

  Chapter 11

  She didn’t know what made her so desperate for his touch. It could have been one of a million things going on right now. Finn, with just his finger, could make her feel as if she had so much to live for. So much in life to look forward to as well.

  His mouth over her breast was heavy. He didn’t bite her, never made it painful, but loved her flesh like it was a part of him that he cherished. Finn would whisper little pieces of poetry to her, make her think he’d written it just for her, and no other.

  “Every inch of you belongs to me. You’ve no idea how hard it is for me to watch as other men hug or touch you. Including my brothers.” She moaned. An answer wasn’t anything she could form in her mind right now. “You are the most beautiful creature ever created.”

  He made love to her slowly. Each time he made her come, she screamed out she couldn’t take any more. Finn proved her wrong so many times more she could no longer hold her arms up to wrap around him. But he continued to love her, to mark her with his mouth.

  “Finn, I need you. I want to feel you deep inside of me.” He licked her pussy, having made his way down her body to the apex of her thighs. “If you take me there, I won’t be able to hold back anything. The world will hear—”

  It took her breath away when his tongue entered her sheath while his fingers held her open. It was a climax of all releases. Her heart stopped beating—even her blood, which she could hear pumping through her heart, stopped in mid beat. When she let the climax consume her, Rachel knew on some level she would never be the same person she was before.

  Working his way up her body, Finn’s cock touched her skin. It felt like a hot poker. Something so alien while making love, but it was all she could think of when he touched her. As he teased her body, Rachel came again. It was short, fulfilling, and oh so devastating to her already worn down system.

  He laved his tongu
e over her hips, her navel, as well as her breast. Pushing her tender breasts together, he suckled at one then the other. She both wanted him to stop and to go on to do more to her.

  When he entered her, filled her from toes to head, Rachel knew a special kind of love, so much of it she knew no one in the world could love as hard nor as much as she did Finn Manning. As he filled her again and again, she held on to his shoulders. Rachel gave him whatever he wanted or desired of her. She also knew he’d keep it safe, her heart and soul.

  As Finn released inside of her, his body seemed to catch fire. It moved along his arms and chest until it consumed her as well. Screaming, not from the pain of it but the incredible pleasure, Rachel was sure this was the end of her. As darkness consumed her, she knew she’d be safe. Never would she be any safer than where she was at this very moment.

  Waking up to a dark room, she looked at Finn as he turned on the light. “I have to take care of something. Would you like to come along or wait?”

  She got up and hurried to the bathroom. “What time is it, anyway?” Finn told her it was just a little after five. “And this emergency, it couldn’t wait until a decent hour?” She was laughing as she came out of the bathroom.

  “No, not really. I have to go and burn something to the ground.” She paused in dressing to ask him if it was something or someone. “Something. It’s bad, or I’d never do this. As it is, if I don’t go, there will be more deaths than there are already.”

  “I’m ready.” She had wanted to lounge in bed all day, just for fun, but Finn seemed so serious, she was afraid not to go with him. They bypassed the front door where the cars were and headed to the back yard. “We’re flying there?”

  “Yes. I’m going to be going very quickly, so I want you to hold on tight.” She told him she would. “When we get there, I’m not going to shift back. I’m going to take care of it in the air.”

  “I’m worried about you.” He told her he’d be fine, then left her on the deck while he shifted. Getting on his back for this trip seemed scarier than before. Almost as soon as she told him she was ready, they were off. “Can you tell me what we’re up against?”

  Forest fire. A really horrific one. The fire brigade is locked in, as in there is fire all around them. Dad called me to help since we’re closer. Once there, they’re going to show me by lights where they need the fire to be. I’m closing the main area for the fire to burn itself out. We’re hoping it works. She asked him if the rest were on the way too. Not unless I can’t do this on my own. I can, I want you to know. I’ve done this kind of work before.

  She could see the smoke. It was thicker than any fog or fire she’d ever seen before. As soon as she was off his back, Finn took to the skies again. Rachel turned to the fireman who was with her and asked what she could do.

  “If you were a fire dragon, I could use you here.” He laughed. She started to turn away but remembered she was sort of a dragon. Turning back, Rachel brought a ball of flame to her palm and showed it to the man. “Good heavens. Yes, come with me.”

  For the next three hours, she rode around in the back of a pick up tossing flame balls at some of the places where the fire was breaching the larger fire. It was hot, grueling work. Twice she’d changed out her clothing for something cooler, only to soak it through at the next stop.

  Rachel estimated she’d been able to save about a dozen homes with her newfound power. Once, she was even able to throw a direct hit to a burning tree so several wild animals could escape. For every stop they made, more than a dozen fires were starting up.

  Looking upward, she saw more dragons in the sky. Finn had called in his brothers, it looked to her, then realized it was more than likely his entire family. At the next outstation, Rachel hugged the other women and thanked them for coming to help. Rachel was glad for the extra hands, as well as the connection each of them had with one another.

  When it looked like there was going to be some relief from the fire for a while, Rachel went to find Finn. His mother had told him to rest. Rachel hadn’t known about the amount of energy it took to be blowing flames all the time. When she found him, he was having his hand taped up.

  “What did you do?” She knew she sounded like a harpy, but to see his dirty hand wrapped up in white gauze startled her. “Are you badly hurt?”

  “No, ma’am, he’s just fine. I was wrapping this up for my own peace of mind.” She looked at the medic before sitting by Finn in the back of the ambulance. “You see, he’s not badly burned, I promise you. And I needed to do something for someone I knew wasn’t going to die as soon as they left my care.”

  “I’m sorry.” He nodded but continued to wrap Finn’s hand up. “How many lives have been lost to this? I would have thought there would have been enough time to get lots of people out.”

  “Some of the people, they didn’t want to leave their homes. I guess they had the mindset nothing was going to bother them here today. The little animals were hurt too. A couple of vets are here helping them out. It just breaks a man’s heart to know that some person did this and walked away unharmed.” She asked him if they knew who this person was. “No, ma’am. We know only that it was set. By whom? Well, we’ll have to work on finding him for a bit.”

  “I think I can help you with that.” She looked at Finn when she spoke. “I want to see if I can do this. It would perhaps go a long way in making sure it’s not done again around here. Okay?”

  “Yes. Just be careful for me, please?”

  Kissing Finn on the mouth, she made her way to the burnt out forest she’d tried to save. Walking in as far as the heat would allow her to, Rachel stopped moving when the branch of one of the larger trees stood up in front of her. It. Stood. Up. In. Front. Of. Her.

  “Are you here to help, my lady? Or are you going to let us burn more?” She told the branch what her plan was. “I can help you with that, my lady. You are the mate to the great red dragon, are you not? The one that has been burning a path to save so many.”

  “I am. I don’t know how many I was able to save from the ground. But as you know, Finn has done a great deal to ward off more burning surrounding the area.” The branch told her he was a good man, as was she a wonderful woman. “I thank you for your compliment, sir tree.”

  “The human who has done this is now at his home. He is watching what his fire has done to so many and finding humor in it. If you were to go to the epic center of the fire—the fireman you were speaking to first can help you—you will find enough evidence to have him arrested.” She asked him how he knew so very much about fire departments and such. “I’ve been around for a great many years. My parent tree will be able to regrow because she has been storing seeds from herself all her life. I am but one of her seedlings who didn’t have enough time to put down deep roots to save myself.”

  “I’m so sorry to hear you’re not going to live. Is there anything I can do to save you? I would hate to have you die when you’ve helped me so much.” He told her she’d already done that by being with him as he died. “I will stay until you stop speaking to me. I’m so terribly sorry for all this.”

  She waited with the tree—he was actually a tree, not a branch as she’d thought. When he crumbled to the earth, another pile of cinders from the fire, Rachel hurt for the loss of him as much as she had the small animals she’d seen who hadn’t been able to get to safety.

  Finn was gone when she returned. The medic was working on another person. Even from where she stood, Rachel knew he wasn’t going to make it. It was all she could do not to will the person to live. She also knew to wish something along those lines wouldn’t mean a good life for the poor man. He was nearly gone as it was.

  Riding around in the truck again, she was too exhausted to notice the animals she’d been able to free. A part of her mind was glad for it. The rest of it wanted to run away, to unsee all the things a single person had done. Remembering what the tree had told her, Ra
chel asked for the truck to stop for a moment.

  Telling the firefighter what she knew, he was able to follow her directions to the site where the man had been camping. There was all sorts of evidence to pick up. Most of it still in good shape. But it was the hazard flames they found in a metal box that told the story. He had labeled them all for places he wanted to set the next fire and the next.

  “This will help a great deal, Mrs. Manning.” Rachel asked him to call her Rachel, please. “I’m not going to ask you how you found this to be here. I’m just glad we can use it against this person. And pay he will. This is a national forest. We don’t take this sort of thing lightly.”

  “I’m sure you don’t.” He told her his first name was Jeff. “Thank you, Jeff. I think you and your men deserve a steak dinner after this. In fact, if you get me a list of the station houses and the people who have brought food here to feed you, my husband and I will do it just for you.”

  “You don’t have to do anything for us, Rachel. It’s our job.” She told him it was a done deal as far as she was concerned, and he’d better be getting her the list. “Yes, ma’am, I will. I can’t wait to tell them the famous Mannings are helping us out.”

  “We’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention our name.” Finn came out of the darkness around them and hugged her tightly. He continued when he wrapped his arms around her. “Just say a hefty donation came through, and it said to buy dinner for everyone here. I wish I had thought of it.”

  He kissed her again, and they spoke to Jeff as the police gathered up the evidence the fire marshall was pointing out. It made her feel good to know she’d been able to help them out, even if it meant getting someone else into trouble. By the time they were ready to call it a day, the fire was still burning, but no longer much of a threat to the homes and places of businesses around it.