The Water Dragons Box Set: Books 1 - 4 (Complete)

by Charlene Hartnady

  He carefully turned to the entrance of the cave and crouch-walked, turning back to her and growling. She didn’t need to understand dragon to know what he was saying. He was commanding her to follow.

  Here goes nothing. She pushed out a breath, reminding herself why she had worked so hard in the first place. To protect the human race from this cruel species. She needed to keep her wits about her, needed to try and escape somehow. It seemed futile and yet she couldn’t give up. She was made from tougher stuff than that.

  Alex followed him right to the cave opening, which was wider, allowing the dragon more space. He towered over her. She swallowed nervously. The cave was just as high as she remembered—she’d gone to check when he was sleeping. Had to be sure that there was no means of escape…and there was none. The cliff face was sheer and high. Even an experienced rock climber, with all the right equipment, would have trouble negotiating it.

  He growled, wrapping a claw around her waist. Was he afraid she might be tempted to jump? Alex might be a lot of things, but a coward wasn’t one of them. She would face what was coming her way with her head held high.

  Without warning, the dragon leaped from the side of the mountain. Her stomach lurched and the air was sucked from her lungs. When she could finally inhale, she screamed. They were high and he moved at a shocking speed. His wings mostly soundless. Alex held on to his giant talons. Not that it would do her any good if he decided to drop her. It took her a couple of minutes to realize that it was okay. To rationalize that he wasn’t going to suddenly kill her. If that was his plan, he would have done so a long time ago.

  She caught her breath and looked around them. Really looked. It was beautiful. Completely breathtaking. Hills, mountains, and forests as far as the eye could see. Her eyes filled with tears. It might truly be the last time she saw such beauty. That she tasted freedom, just as he had warned.

  It had been worth it. It really had. She’d do it again.

  The dragon jerked forward suddenly. The movement so jarring that her neck snapped forward, her chin hitting her chest. Her limbs felt like those of a rag doll.

  She scrambled to grab his claw. To hold on. What the hell? Then she heard it. A helicopter. It had to be. She turned towards the noise and, sure enough, it bore down on them. Alex narrowed her eyes. It was hard to see with her hair whipping about her face like it was. It looked like one of their fleet though. Couldn’t be. How did her father know where to find her? Why hadn’t they come sooner? Maybe her father had been looking for her after all. It had to be. And in all of this vast territory, they had found her. They were trying to rescue her. Never in her wildest dreams had she expected help from her father and yet…

  Wait a minute. Shit! There were bright flashes at the end of the machine gun. They were shooting at them. At the dragon. At her too. If they shot the dragon from the sky, she was dead. One stray bullet and she was dead. Her heart sank. This was her father through and through. Get a result at any cost. Even if that cost was the life of his daughter. The dragon darted to the side. Alex was jerked around. She screamed, trying to hold on. They had to know she was in danger and yet…out of the corner of her eye, she saw more flashes. They kept shooting. The dragon kept changing course. It was sudden and unsettling. Alex’s throat hurt from screaming.

  At one point, the dragon flipped, his big body jerked, his hold on her loosening a fraction. Then he was falling…falling…tumbling from the sky. Her scream died as the air in her lungs dried up. They were falling too quickly for her to be able to suck in another breath. His wings flapped, uselessly. The ground seemed to fly towards them, and not the other way around. For just a moment, everything seemed suspended and then they landed. The impact hard and jarring. There was pain…then darkness.

  Voices.

  Talking.

  Light. It stung her eyes as she tried to open them. Alex blinked a few times. “You said she isn’t badly injured,” the voice said. It was cold and emotionless.

  “She has minor cuts and bruises.” It was another voice. One she didn’t recognize.

  “How long will she be out for?”

  “I gave her a sedative, but it should be wearing off by now. She’ll be stiff for a few days, but…”

  “Fine! I need to talk to…Ah…I see she’s waking up. That will be all, doctor.” It was her father’s voice.

  She blinked a couple more times before opening her eyes to the harsh light. Her head throbbed. Alex tried stretching out a little. Her muscles did feel stiff and sore, just as the doctor had said. For a few moments she didn’t know why she was there. Wasn’t sure what all the fuss was about. Then it all came back to her. All of it. Every detail. Every sound. Every…

  Alex sat up in bed.

  “Slow down,” her father warned. “You’ve been through the wringer.” Despite his words, his eyes remained hard and cold.

  “Where is he? Is he dead? What happened?” Her voice was panicked. All she could think of was the shifter and how he’d been shot…multiple times. Her memory was shaky, but she was sure he’d been badly injured. He might even be dead. “Tell me,” her voice was laced with desperation. Far too much emotion. “Is he alive?”

  “Are you worried about it?” Her father looked amused. “Did you bond with the creature while the two of you were holed up together?” he raised his brows.

  How did he know? Surely he hadn’t been following her and, if he had, surely he would have tried to rescue her sooner. Then again, a rescue attempt into a cave, off of a sheer cliff would have been treacherous to say the least.

  “How did you find me? Where is the shifter?”

  Her father rolled his eyes. “Yes, it would seem you developed an affinity for the beast.”

  “Not at all!” she shook her head, grimacing when her headache flared. She rubbed her temple. “That’s not it.” More evenly delivered, she needed to keep a lid on her emotions. Otherwise, Angelo Bell would use them against her at every turn. No one else had the ability to bind her into knots the way he did. “The beast…” she cringed at the word. The shifter was far from a mere animal as she had been led to believe. He was a ruthless asshole, but he was no simple animal. That much was for sure. She cleared her throat. “The shifter is worth more to us alive than dead. It would be such a shame, after everything, if he was dead.”

  Her father scrutinized her for a time. She had to work hard not to squirm. Not to ask him again. Why was he being so cagey? He finally nodded. “Of course it’s alive.”

  She threw the covers to the side and slid her legs from the bed. “Where is he? I want to see him.”

  Her father’s eyes narrowed slyly. “You need to stay in bed. Doctor’s orders.”

  Alex gathered her thoughts. Yes, she was stiff and sore. Lucky to be alive if she was honest but she didn’t need to stay in bed. “I could’ve…probably should’ve died out there.” Was her life worth so little to him? Yes! It didn’t take much soul-searching for the answer to appear in her head.

  Yes!

  Yes!

  A thousand times, yes! She wasn’t worth much at all. Never had been!

  “You didn’t give a damn about me out there, did you?” Much to her dismay, her voice hitched.

  Angelo rolled his eyes. “So overly dramatic!” He shook his head. “I made sure that the best marksman was behind that gun. I ordered that regular bullets be used. I’m sure a pretty little thing like you had him under your thumb by the time we intervened. That, by then, the creature would work to keep you alive. And I was right,” he shrugged. “You did your job perfectly.” He gave her a knowing wink, turning her stomach. “It was a calculated risk.” He spoke about her life as he would a stock or a bond. “One that paid off.” He nodded once. “We’ll take it from here. You can recuperate and then…I don’t know…do what girls do…a manicure maybe?”

  We

  Who was we?

  And a manicure?

  No damned way.

  She could feel that she was frowning heavily. “We?” Her stomach ch
urned. Alex had a feeling she was going to hate his answer. “Who the hell is we?”

  “Hello, Alex darling. Long time no see.” Her ex walked through the door. He was smiling broadly.

  Alex had to fight to keep her composure. “You brought Harry in? I thought we discussed this, Daddy.” She ignored the man in question.

  “We did and you had your chance and failed,” he replied, completely deadpan.

  “I was still busy. I would have…”

  “Would have…nothing.” Harry snorted. “You were the shifter’s prisoner. You were nowhere. Had nothing. I rescued you. Your knight in shining armor,” he smirked. “I’ll take a kiss as payment.” He winked at her.

  Fucking asshole!

  “I wasn’t nowhere. I was working on it.”

  “More like working on him.” Harry gave her a double wink, which he over exaggerated. “Don’t look so crestfallen, baby. We all do what it takes to survive. You just happen to have better tools than most.” Wink.

  She hated him. Hated. “Yes, you’re right! I did what it took. I went above and beyond and now I’m owed. I won’t be pushed out! That shifter is mine. I’m going to interrogate him. I’m—”

  Harry laughed. “You’ve done your bit. We all have our roles to play. Our strengths and our weaknesses. You played to your strength. You need to take a step back and let me take the lead on this. I’ll get him to talk. The human race depends on it. Innocent women and children. You don’t want to see mass slaughter, do you?”

  “Of course not.” Fucking asshole! “All I’m saying is—”

  “Harry is right. You’ve done your bit and I’m actually quite proud.” Her father said the words she’d burned to hear her whole life. Why did he have to say them now? Not when she finished top in her class. Or when she took the prize for being the best marksman. Why now? After whoring herself out to try and stay alive. Her eyes stung. Her throat hurt but she shoved back the emotion. Her feelings would only make her weak. Her father’s eyes looked solemn. “You did go above and beyond, but it’s time to take a step back. Let Harry and I handle it from here, darling.” His endearments were always patronizing.

  “Okay, fine.”

  Her father visibly relaxed. A rare smile forming on his lips.

  “I’ll take a back seat, but I want to be involved.” She had to bite her tongue to stop herself from saying please. Her father wouldn’t appreciate it. He’d see it as begging. Instead, Alex pleaded with her eyes.

  “Not a good idea,” Harry interjected.

  “I would appreciate a chance,” she tried again. “At least let me see him. You’re right, I have somewhat of a bond with him. Maybe I can use it to help us.” A total lie. Alex wasn’t sure why she needed to see the shifter so badly. She should just let him rot. Something didn’t sit right though. Something felt off. She’d also done whatever was demanded of her without question. Right now though, her intuition screamed. Every alarm bell went off. Aside from being used as collateral damage, there was something else. She needed to speak with the shifter.

  Harry snorted. “Don’t tell me you’ve developed feelings for the beast.”

  “Of course not.” She somehow managed to keep her cool. “I’m being logical about this.” She used her father’s words. It was something he had said countless times.

  “She might have a point,” Angelo nodded. She could see he was mulling it over.

  Alex held her breath.

  “I disagree.” Harry shook his head. “Let the thing heal and—”

  “The shifter might prove impossible to break. We hadn’t planned on starting until tomorrow. Alex can have a crack at it. We have nothing to lose.”

  “I can’t believe—” Harry began.

  “My decision is final.”

  “I brought it down.” Harry’s face had turned red. “It should be my decision as to…”

  “You brought it down using my resources.” Her father turned to her. “You have twenty-four hours to bring me something I can use, after that I’m handing the dragon over to Harry.”

  “You’ll be wasting your time,” Harry spat.

  Alex didn’t answer. She glared at her ex, telling him everything he needed to know using her eyes.

  “I guess I’ll go and find myself something to do.” By something to do, Harry was most likely talking about one of the housekeepers on the estate. It wouldn’t be the first time.

  “Make sure you’re in my office at six. We need to strategize about the way forward.” Her father’s eyes gleamed with excitement.

  “I’ll be there,” Harry said, smirking at her. He probably expected her to react because she hadn’t been invited to join them.

  “And for the record, daddy, Harry isn’t the best marksman. You said earlier that you used the best to bring the creature down. Just to set the record straight, you used the second best.”

  Harry stiffened. He turned, his eyes throwing daggers. “Only because you distracted me on the day of our final exam.”

  “I was in full uniform. No makeup. It was more like you allowed yourself to be distracted. I’d be happy to do a rematch.”

  “I don’t have time for games,” he retorted. Harry muttered something that sounded very much like bitch as he walked out of the room. Like water off a duck’s back. He could call her whatever he wanted. She didn’t care.

  “I wish you’d patch things up with that boy.” Her father stared at the door opening Harry had just exited through.

  Really?

  “You should settle down and have children. Harry would make a good husband.”

  Alex almost choked on her own spit. “He cheated on me…more than once. I left him because he put me in the hospital when I called him out on it.”

  “Hospital…hardly!” her father snorted. “You had to go to the emergency room. He said it wouldn’t happen again. He was sorry. I believe him.”

  “I don’t want to have this conversation.” She shook her head. “It isn’t going to happen, so it’s a pointless discussion.”

  “Suit yourself. You know where I am if it talks.” He wrinkled his nose in disgust.

  “Yes.”

  Alex watched him turn and walk towards the door. “How did you find me?” she blurted. It was the question that had been on the tip of her tongue the whole time.

  “It doesn’t matter.” He glanced back. “All that matters is that we did.”

  “No, really, I’d really like to know.” She frowned. “You didn’t follow us back from the hotel.” Alex bluffed. She’d been unconscious at the time, but her father didn’t know that. Had the shifter been so badly injured that he hadn’t noticed a tail? It didn’t seem likely. Not with his superior senses. “That area of wilderness is vast. Thousands upon thousands of acres of territory. It would be too big of a coincidence that one of our helicopters happened to come across us. Especially since Harry pointed out he manned the gun and that the ammo wasn’t silver infused. That means you knew we were there and that you were waiting for us. You taught me not to believe in coincidences. How did you know?”

  He sighed and looked down at the side table. She followed his gaze to her ring and watch. They must have been placed there. “It was for your own good,” he said.

  She got this terrible feeling. What was it now? Instead of asking, she sat completely still. Waiting. She kept her eyes locked on her father. “I had a tracking device fitted in that ring I gave you.”

  She felt her blood run cold. “The one you gave me for Christmas last year?” He’d only ever given her this one piece of jewelry. “The one you said was my mother’s?” It meant so much to her. A keepsake.

  He nodded. “I had to get you to wear it somehow. To keep the thing on.” It was true, she never took it off. Never went anywhere without it.

  “So it wasn’t hers? You just said that so I would wear it?” A lump began to form in her throat.

  He shrugged, no remorse evident.

  Alex grit her teeth, attempting to keep her temper in check. “You could’ve
told me about it.”

  He made a face and snorted. “You would never have agreed. It was for your own good,” he repeated.

  More like for Angelo Bell’s own good. So that he could keep tabs on her. Alex forced a smile. “I understand,” she nodded. “Why didn’t you wait until we reached the lair? You could have tracked our movements.”

  “We lost signal the day before. The battery must be faulty or something. I took the liberty of having it changed while you were asleep.” He pulled in a breath and held it for a moment. “We knew your location, it was just a matter of waiting until you made an appearance. In the end there was no way we could have followed without the dragon catching wind though, so we chose to intervene.”

  “I see.” She tasted bile but didn’t react. She needed a chance to see the shifter and a chance to figure this whole thing out.

  “Report to me if you find anything. Harry takes over tomorrow.” Typical! He expected her to fail. He gave her a chance just to humor her, not because he actually thought she could do it. She also suspected another reason for allowing her this opportunity was to put Harry in his place. Angelo liked to make sure those around him knew their place. That they knew he was running the show.

  “Fine.” Alex waited until he left to get to her feet. Once the dizziness passed, she looked down at the ring for a half a minute before slipping it back on her finger. Then she made her way to the bathroom. She was going to get cleaned up and dressed and then she was going to see him. There was one thing she needed to know, and the shifter was going to tell her.

  Chapter 13

  Beck had long since stopped fighting the manacles. They were silver-infused and, therefore, unbreakable. Before the immunotherapy, they would have weakened him, even slowed his healing. That wasn’t the case anymore. The worst of the pain had already subsided. His body had expelled the bullet in his thigh as he shifted back into his human form. The rest had passed through him or only grazed his flesh. The ammunition hadn’t been silver. Their plan had been to injure him and not to kill him. To take him down. To capture him.