Dragon Heart

by Amelia Jade

  I guess I’m not spent for the night after all.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Linny

  She awoke with a start the next morning.

  Why didn’t my alarm go off? Am I late?

  They’d stayed up much later than she cared to admit, and she was going to pay for it all day. Feeling a slight pain between her legs, Linny decided that the lack of sleep wasn’t the only way she was going to pay.

  Worth it. Every time.

  Rokk wasn’t just good in bed, he was unbelievable. Nobody would ever believe her stories of the night they’d spent together. Her body was beaten, bruised, and sore, and the only time he’d really touched her was to smack her ass. That was where one of the bruises now lay, when he’d gotten a bit too aggressive in the thick of it.

  Still worth it.

  The constant explosions had left her feeling like she’d just undergone some sort of hell training. Muscles that were already in shape left completely destroyed and feeling like they’d never truly been used until now.

  And to top it all off, she’d awoken late.

  “Shit.” She slipped from bed, easing Rokk’s arm off her breast and onto the bed so that he could continue to sleep.

  Padding out of the bedroom to the kitchen she frowned. Why was it still so dark out? Glancing at the clock, she smiled. It read just past six thirty. Right on time then. Sometimes I love the military life. Internal clocks are awesome.

  Padding over to the ancient beige coffee maker on her countertop, she started brewing up a fresh pot.

  “What time do dragons awaken I wonder?” Her eyes were heavy with lack of sleep, but put some coffee in her and she’d make it through the day, and this perfectly unnecessary review meeting that she would likely have to sit in on.

  Their clothes were still a mess. After piling into the bed the night before they hadn’t left except for bathroom breaks. Finding their clothes had not been a priority. Now though she picked them up and sorted them, dropping his in a pile in the bedroom, while hers went into the hamper.

  Snagging her phone from her pocket she noted in surprise that there was a voicemail. Odd, she didn’t get many of those anymore. Even in the military they often resorted to texts nowadays. Some called it unprofessional, but it was just easier. She listened to it.

  “Hi, this is Jackie Lemonde. I’m calling from Skyview Medical Center. Um, your grandfather Charles Cantor has you listed as the next of kin to contact.”

  The bottom of her stomach dropped out. Frantically she made a beeline for the nearest chair, collapsing into it as she filled with dread. Oh no. Was he dead?

  “Your grandfather is still alive, but I thought you should know he’s not doing very well. He’s out of intensive care, but is still not in good shape. His condition took a turn for the worse, and he’s going to have to stay with us for the foreseeable future. Um…” There was a long pause.

  “Just say it,” Linny whispered. “You don’t know how long he has.”

  “We’re not sure how long he has. It could be a day, or it could be months. He’s a very stubborn man.”

  She snorted out a laugh despite the tears threatening to work their way past her iron-willed control. That was her grandfather to the letter. Stubborn and independent. He was probably raising all sorts of hell in the hospital.

  “Anyway, I wanted to let you know. You should probably do your best to come see him. I’m sorry that I don’t have any good news. If you need more information you can contact me at…”

  Linny put down the phone. She didn’t need to know the rest. She knew it already. Leaving the phone on the counter, she made her way back to the bedroom.

  “Rokk,” she said sharply, speaking loud enough that his head jerked up immediately.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Linny shook her head. “I need you to leave.”

  He needed to go. Now. Her control was already faltering and she couldn’t let him see her like this.

  “Um. Okay?” He climbed out of bed, noticing the pile of his clothing.

  She tried not to watch his naked form as he put his boxers on. It was tough. He was gorgeous to look at, even with the news she’d just received. Still, this wasn’t the time for that. What was going on with Rokk was just good old-natured fun. Nothing more. Linny wasn’t ready to let him see what was about to happen.

  “Is everything okay. Linny?”

  “Just please, I need you to leave.” She started to point toward the door but the shaking of her arm stopped her. She didn’t want him asking questions.

  This was her personal life. A part of her that she wasn’t ready to let him into yet, if ever. They certainly hadn’t crossed that line yet. Linny was happy to keep it as fun—extremely good fun—but fun nonetheless.

  “Listen, if it’s something I did…” he started to say, pulling his shirt on mid-sentence. “Then at least tell me. I’ll still go, but I need to know what I did wrong.”

  “It has exactly nothing to do with you. I promise you that. Now please.” She was practically begging him by this point.

  Rokk walked toward the door, but stopped short of going through it. “I don’t think I can leave,” he said softly, taking a step back toward her.

  “Yes, you can. I need you to.”

  He shook his head, and took another step toward her. Linny backed up an equal amount. “What are you doing?”

  “I can tell that you’re hurting, Linny. It’s written on your face and the rest of you. Let me in. Let me help. I promise I’m not going to hurt you.” He stepped closer.

  This time she didn’t back up. “I can handle this on my own,” she protested.

  “Of course you can.” Step. “I wasn’t insinuating that you couldn’t, Linny. But see, here’s the thing. You don’t have to. I’m here. Let me in.” He was almost on top of her now.

  She wanted to fight. To push him away and handle it on her own, but she couldn’t do it any longer. The dam she’d built around her emotions collapsed and she fell into his arms, letting him guide her down onto the couch.

  He kept her head pulled into his chest while she cried, instead of trying to get her to look at him. Linny appreciated that small gesture. She wasn’t a pretty crier. Not that anyone really was.

  “Tell me what’s wrong,” he whispered, stroking her hair while holding her.

  She started, but then the tears came anew, and she needed to cry for a bit longer first. Eventually she pulled away. Although his shirt was black, there was a huge wet mark across the front and side of it from where her tears had soaked it.

  “I’m sorry,” she said, pointing.

  “That’s nothing.” Rokk waved it off. “I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

  “It’s my grandfather,” she explained. “He’s not doing so well.”

  Rokk just nodded, not interrupting.

  “I had a voicemail when I woke up. He’s in the hospital, and they’re telling me I need to go see him because they don’t know how long he has.”

  “Oh Linny.” Rokk pulled her in tight. “I’m so sorry. I knew he was important to you from the way you talked about him. He was the reason you signed up, right?”

  She nodded, swiping at her eyes. “Yes. But you don’t know everything. It’s more than that.”

  “Can you tell me?”

  “My grandfather was the one who raised me.”

  He nodded in understanding. “You spent a lot of time with him did you?”

  She shook her head strongly. “No, I mean literally, he raised me. My mom just left when I was two or three, and my dad was an alcoholic. He wasn’t a very nice person. One day my grandfather came over and found me sitting alone watching TV. My dad had been gone for a day and a half. He took me and my things that day and I lived with him from then on.”

  Rokk’s angry growl filled her tiny apartment. Windows shook, dishes vibrated against one another, and a spoon perched on the edge of her sink clattered to the ground.

  “It’s okay,” she said, touching hi
s chest, trying to calm him. “It’s okay. I’m fine. I came out okay. My grandfather made sure of that.”

  “He sounds like a good man.”

  Fingers resumed playing with her hair, and she let her head rest on his chest, feeling it rise and fall with every mighty breath of her giant protector. When he’d morphed from late-night fun toy to that she wasn’t sure, but he had.

  “He was a great man. I joined the military because of him. To make him proud.” Guilt racked her body. “Now because of that I’m not around when he needs me most.” She started crying again.

  “Linny. Linny. You can’t think of it that way. You’re doing great. I guarantee you he’s so proud of you right now. Don’t forget, he did serve, like you said, so he knows what it’s like. He knows that you often can’t control when you go see someone, that the military owns you. He knows that. He would probably be disappointed if you did something crazy like run off without leave just to see him.”

  She nodded, understanding the words he was saying. It didn’t matter to her though. She couldn’t fight the guilt that had slowly been eating away at her since they first found out he was sick with some autoimmune disease that she couldn’t pronounce. Guilt that he’d been there for her when she needed him, and now Linny was going to abandon him when he needed her.

  “He needs me, Rokk. He needs me and I can’t be there for him. I should be there.”

  Rokk just hushed her and kept stroking her hair until she calmed down. “We’ll talk about it more later, okay?”

  “I guess. I just can’t help but wonder if I’m ever going to see him again, Rokk.”

  Only silence greeted her. Not even Rokk had an answer for that.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Rokk

  After getting Linny squared away as best as he possibly could given the circumstances, he went in search of his fellow dragons.

  To his surprise they were in the VR chamber getting ready to do a simulated fight against the Outsiders.

  “Sorry,” he said loudly. “Am I crashing your date?”

  Aric looked over at him, but Pyne didn’t.

  “Not at all. We were just bored and thought we’d suit up.”

  Rokk chuckled. “I bet Pyne was bored. What with not having a mate and all.”

  His brother glared at him but Rokk just laughed it off. “Can I join?”

  “Yes.”

  “No.”

  He frowned at Pyne. “Oh come on now, Pyne, don’t be a sore loser. It’s about time I got some of the spotlight anyway. You can play second fiddle to me for a bit. I’ve been doing it to you for a century.” He snapped his fingers. “Hey, maybe we could like, alternate by centuries. So the last one was yours. This one is mine. How does that sound? Maybe you’ll find your mate next century.”

  Reaching out to clap his twin on the shoulder, Rokk didn’t have time to react before a surge of electrical energy slammed into his chest.

  He went tumbling back down the metal-plated walkway that housed the quartet of linked virtual reality machines, coming to a stop by virtue of his head denting a control panel.

  “What the fuck was that?” he snarled, getting to his feet. “What the hell is your problem?”

  Pyne ignored him, which just enraged Rokk even more.

  “Answer me!” he bellowed, lashing out with his own power at Pyne. It caught his twin in the side and hurled him through the flimsy metal wall at the far side and into the main bay of the hangar that housed much of the training area for dragons and battlesuits.

  Soldiers all around stopped what they were doing, wondering if they would have to fight. If this was the time for them to do their part. Had the Outsiders finally come back?

  Rokk paid them no mind as he pushed past a tired-looking Aric and after his brother. He dove out of the way as a crossbow bolt of energy flew through the space his chest had occupied a moment earlier.

  “I always knew you were a sore loser, Pyne, but this takes the cake.”

  “Oh, well you shut up about that! Nobody gives a fuck about it except for you! You’re acting like a spoiled, petulant child who doesn’t know when to just let things be.” Pyne came at him then, abandoning his cover. Energy sparked up and down his body, flashing between various points like lightning in the sky.

  Rokk rose to meet him, but instead of abandoning the crate he’d used as shelter, he kicked it at Pyne as hard as he could. The metal side crumpled under the blow, but it flew straight and true. His twin hadn’t seen it coming and was caught completely by surprise. The metal box slammed into him and tossed him backward.

  Soldiers scattered out of the way as the pair closed again, leaving their weapons, content to only use their fists. Rokk got too close and was hurled toward the open doors when Pyne lunged in close, grappled, and took him to the ground before lashing out with a double-footed kick to the chest.

  Something shifted in Rokk’s side from the blow. Probably broke a rib. He took a breath. Or two.

  He thought about saying something to Pyne again, but his thoughts were scattered as another bolt from his brother’s energy crossbow flicked past his head. He closed, dodging his brother’s blows, until he’d worked his way around to the other side of him. Then he feinted low, made to go high, and hit his brother square in the chest with a double fist.

  Pyne flew out into the open air, tumbling several times and slamming into the side of an army Jeep. The metal siding dented deep under the supernaturally strong body. The vehicle itself rocked up onto its two side wheels before crashing down, depositing Pyne to the ground.

  “That’s enough, brother,” Rokk called, watching his twin summon more energy.

  He ducked as Pyne lashed out with pure energy at him, the tentacle-like projection grazing his head as he got out of the way, leaving his hair standing on end.

  Angrily Rokk lifted his hand to the sky, ready to smash a mighty blow into his brother. They were both born of electrical energy. It couldn’t kill them. Just like a crimson dragon couldn’t die from fire. But it could certainly knock him out.

  Before he could lower the blow though something flashed past his vision, cranking his jaw around. Rokk’s knees gave out and he tumbled to the concrete.

  A pair of black combat boots walked past him over to Pyne. He watched as Aric struck his brother. Then the elder dragon shifter reached to the sky, uttering a single word.

  “Enough.”

  Lightning blasted down at both of them. The last conscious thought Rokk had was that he hoped Pyne was knocked out first. Then he couldn’t fight the darkness any longer.

  ***

  When he awoke his ribs still hurt, as did every other part of his body.

  “How long was I out?” he asked, forced to repeat himself twice until his mouth responded to his brain’s commands in an intelligible way.

  Nobody responded.

  Forcing his eyes to open, Rokk found himself staring up at the sky. The clouds were growing darker. A storm was coming. It was almost upon them. Getting to his feet, he realized he was still passed out on the concrete where Aric had hit him. Looking around though he saw no sign of his brother or any soldiers.

  “Perfect.” He sat back down, not quite ready to stand for a long period of time. “Just perfect.”

  What the hell had gone on with his brother?

  Overhead lightning flashed. Two seconds later thunder cracked and rippled over the base. The storm was close. Very close.

  A call awoke inside Rokk. Climbing to his feet, he made his way out onto the concrete pad near the hangar. Nobody was around. Nobody to tell him what to do. Nobody to make him feel bad for being happy that he’d found his mate.

  He closed his eyes and shifted. When he opened them again the ground was much farther below. Resting on all fours for a moment he gathered his senses, ignoring the gawking soldiers. They’d left him be while he was passed out, but a fifty-foot flying lizard suddenly appearing on the base would still be a cause for consternation by many.

  Not wanting to cause too mu
ch of a scene Rokk took to the air, winging right for the black clouds overhead. He was in a foul mood, and the power of the storm would be the perfect way for him to unleash some anger.

  He opened his long snout and howled, a loud, terrifying sound that could come from no human throat. Energy flowed from his jaws down his neck, across his thick, scale-covered cobalt body and into his tail.

  Around him the storm answered his call. Lightning flashed and thunder came in constant booms. Rain lashed out at him but he didn’t care, letting the water wash away his cares. Rokk called out again, and this time he unleashed a blast of his own lightning into the storm. Around him the clouds went berserk.

  The storm knew its master had come.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Linny

  Everything had felt wonky since the strange thunderstorm two days earlier.

  There was nothing she could positively identify as being out of place, but all of her senses told her that something was going on.

  Punching in the keycode to unlock the hangar that had become her designated practice zone, Linny looked around. She couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. Or that something was coming, looming above them all unseen. Could it have to do with the Outsiders? Reports had come in from the ice dragons and their battlesuit team, the first lead they’d had, indicating that they were closing in on one of the creatures. But that was all she’d heard.

  “Okay, Rokk, you can come down or out from wherever you’re hiding,” she called. “I’m turning the lights on, so unless you want to end up like a marshmallow again you should come down. Without ruining anything this time.”

  The echoes of her voice bounced around the empty hangar before slowly fading away. Overhead the big bulbs were slowly coming to life, but for the next few minutes her only light would be the emergency bulbs on the walls.

  She hadn’t seen Rokk since the news about her grandfather came in. Linny sniffled, forcing herself to stay under control. I’m a big girl, I can be sad and not break into tears every time I think of him.