by Susan Illene
The smug asshole.
“I assure you,” I said, lifting my sword and pointing it at him, “that my size won’t stop me from splitting your gut wide open.” It got old that people underestimated me because I was only five foot four and had a small bone structure. Both of the shifters might stand over a half-foot taller than me and Ruari was easily twice my size, with Aidan a little less than that, but I had a kill rate against dragons no one could deny. The smaller the target, the harder to hit.
Ruari clucked his tongue. “Without that sword, you’d be nothing.”
He hadn’t seen me back when I had zero control over myself at the sight of dragons. Aidan had tried chaining me to trees, and I’d still managed to break loose and attack using whatever I could grab off the ground. A slayer full of bloodlust could make almost anything into a weapon, including her fingernails. Mine had grown extremely strong since completing my rite of passage and could puncture like daggers if I used them just right.
“Don’t you have a mating festival you need to be at?” I asked, hoping to needle him a bit. “Or are you putting off going because you know there isn’t a female who’d ever come within ten feet of you?”
Ruari’s face twisted. “Are you questioning my prowess?”
Aidan moved between us. “We can save this conversation for another time.” He glanced at his brother. “What is so important Nanoq sent you here?”
Ruari straightened his shoulders, affecting importance. “Two Thamaran dragons attacked on our side of the border late last night.”
I lowered my sword. “What?”
Except for in the early days after dragons first arrived and territories were still being worked out, the Thamaran had not crossed the Interstate 35 dividing line. I might hate them because some of their members killed and ate humans, but they’d always respected the treaty with the shifters and stuck to their land. It had made my life easier because at least I knew the humans in central and east Norman were safe. I only had to patrol the west side of town.
“When did this happen?” Aidan asked, moving to stand next to me.
“They attacked one of our patrols sometime between three and four in the morning, injuring both males severely, and went on to terrorize a neighborhood not far from the border. No humans were killed, but a few were wounded while fleeing,” Ruari answered.
My stomach twisted. “I should have gone on patrol last night.”
“You can’t be out there every minute,” Aidan said sternly. “If you do not take some time to relax, you will lose yourself to slaying, and there will be nothing left of the woman I care for inside.”
Ruari snorted.
“Maybe.” I gripped my sword. “But apparently I’m not out there enough if the Thamaran think they can just cross the border anytime they want now.”
Ruari flicked his gaze between us, settling on Aidan. “There were two of them. Can she even fight two at the same time without assistance?”
I gave him a menacing look and stepped forward. “Would you like a demonstration?”
Aidan gripped my shoulder. “She can handle herself perfectly well.”
“If you say so.” Ruari didn’t appear convinced.
It doesn’t matter what he thinks, I told myself. The more important thing was to find out more about the attack. “How do you know it was two Thamaran dragons?”
“Their scent, and one of the guards was conscious long enough to tell us.”
Aidan took several deep breaths before speaking, “What does the pendragon plan to do about it?”
“He requested that you be at the fortress in two hours. You are to go with him to meet the Thamaran pendragon and discuss the issue.” Ruari turned to me. “For now, he wants you to stay on our side of the border.”
“What? Why?” I asked incredulously. Just because I swore an oath and allied myself with the shifter clan didn’t mean I wasn’t allowed to carry out my natural-born duties. If dragons were attacking humans, I had an obligation to strike back.
Aidan gave me a patient look. “As you know, the Thamaran are not ones to break treaties. Before we declare war on them and risk our brethren’s lives, we must first be certain this was a sanctioned attack. We also need to know if it has anything to do with you.”
My jaw dropped. “Why would it have anything to do with me?”
“They may have noticed you are working with us now,” Aidan said, lips thinning. “If that is the case, the attack might be punishment for that.”
“By sending a couple of dragons to hurt people, but not kill anyone?” That didn’t make sense.
“Nanoq has considered that as well. It is possible these were simply two youths acting on a dare,” Ruari said, glancing between Aidan and me. “This is why our leaders must speak with each other before we decide on a course of action.”
“I’m at least going to patrol the border. That much is my right.”
Ruari pointed a finger at me. “By the pendragon’s orders, you will not fight today.”
“I’m a slayer and independent of your clan.” I crossed my arms. “Nothing in our alliance or the vows I’ve made says I can’t protect humans if they need it.”
“And if you happen to see dragons attacking on the Thamaran side?” Aidan asked.
I glanced down at my sword, knowing exactly what I’d do. “I’ll kill them.”
“Not today,” he said, shaking his head.
I gave him a mutinous look. “This is ridiculous! The attack can’t be about me, or they’d have made that point a lot clearer.”
Ruari inhaled deeply. “Even if it isn’t about you, it could become so because you have a shifter’s scent all over you. They will smell it, and this isn’t the time to be aggravating the issue.”
I shrugged. “Then I won’t let any of them live to tell about it.”
Aidan turned me to face him, gripping my shoulders. “Go meet with Trish, and do your shopping as planned—on this side of the border. I’ll make certain Nanoq puts out extra patrols so you’ll be safe, and we’ll find out what really happened. After that, we can act accordingly.”
He knew damned well if I had Trish with me I’d only fight dragons if they attacked us. Otherwise, I would do everything possible to get my pregnant friend to safety. I doubted they’d show up during daylight hours and especially with the extra patrols, though. Their first attack was at a time when shifters were known to already be settling in for the night, and only a few roving guards would have been around to catch them. I’d need to head into Thamaran territory if I wanted to find them now, which I’d never do with Trish in tow.
“Do you have any idea how hard it is to stand by and do nothing while those dragons are still out there?” I asked, giving him a pained expression.
Aidan nodded. “I do, but you must promise me you’ll spend the day with Trish. This is about more than you and your need for vengeance—it is about what is best for us. Defying the pendragon will only make our lives more difficult.”
I sighed. Aidan was already using our earlier conversation against me. “Fine. I promise.”
“Good,” Aidan said, straightening. “I will meet you at Earl’s neighborhood later tonight and let you know what I’ve found out.”
“Just let me know when I can kill something.” I headed for the house to change and grab more weapons.
Chapter 2
Bailey
It was all I could do to stay calm while driving from my house outside of town and into Norman. The thought of two dragons coming into my territory and going on a rampage set my blood boiling. They would go down for that. I wouldn’t search for them until Aidan gave me the go ahead, but God help the beasts if they showed up on this side of town while I was out. I’d tear them to shreds.
Flipping on the radio, I caught a report from Hank about the dragon attack earlier that morning.
“…occurred at approximately 3:45 a.m. A family of four was chased from their home after two green dragons started lighting it on fire. The husband fell and br
oke his leg as he hurried to get away, and his wife and eight-year-old son were burned. Their ten-year-old daughter managed to escape without injury. Our town healer—Danae Logan—has been working tirelessly to treat their wounds at the Norman hospital, and she believes all the victims will recover. I’ll provide further updates as I learn more,” Hank said, finishing his report.
I should have known Danae would have gone right away to help the victims. She was a sorceress with powers specialized in treating the sick and wounded. Tending to three people, though, would be pushing her abilities to the max. I’d seen her use her magic to heal burn victims before, but she could only do one person a day if she wanted to finish the job. If there were two, plus a broken leg, she could only use a portion of her powers for each patient before she’d have to rest for a while. It was a grueling and exhausting process.
Trish and I had planned to take Danae with us to go shopping, but I wouldn’t bother her now. She’d likely want to stay close to her patients. Not being able to do anything to help made me feel guilty, and I wished I could do more. How was I supposed to continue my day as if everything were normal? Well, as normal as things could be in a post-apocalyptic world filled with dragons.
Veering around a particularly bad buckle in the road—due to a series of earthquakes that occurred when the dragon dimension collided with ours—I continued on my way to Earl’s neighborhood where Trish and my other friends lived. Hank had switched to playing music, putting on cheery Christmas songs to lighten the mood. I didn’t feel like listening to it and shut the radio off. I appreciated the efforts he went to for our town, but the guilt clawing at my chest over not being there to stop the dragons before they hurt anyone ate at me. Christmas music was the last thing I wanted to hear.
Up ahead on the left side of the road, the gate closing off Earl’s neighborhood from the other homes in the area appeared. Miles paced behind several barrels filled with dirt next to the gate. He was holding a rifle in his hands, scanning the area, and acting as the day guard. No looters would ever get past him. He had a knack for sensing danger and reacting quickly. His need to be cautious had about driven me nuts during a recent road trip we took, but we all came out of it relatively unscathed, so I couldn’t fault him too much for his methods.
He held up a hand as I turned toward the gate. I stopped alongside him and rolled down my window, letting in some of the cool outdoor air. Miles wore a set of black fatigues, and he’d slicked his blond hair back. The tense expression on his square face said he was on high alert.
“You heard?” he asked.
“Yeah.” I nodded. “Aidan’s out with the pendragon trying to find out why the Thamaran dragons crossed the border and violated the treaty.”
Miles lifted a brow. “It was Thamaran?”
“That’s what I heard.”
He cursed under his breath. “That’s the last thing we need right now.”
I couldn’t argue with him on that. “Especially with the holidays.”
“Are the shifters going to handle it?”
I ground my jaw. “We’ll see, but if I spot any green dragons around—I’m taking them down.”
Miles gripped his rifle a little tighter. “I’d kill them too if I could.”
There was more to that statement than he mentioned. When we went on our trip to recover an artifact a few weeks ago, two of the humans with us—Conrad and Danae—were made immune to dragon flames. We’d been deep inside a cavern at the time when they received the gift, but Miles had been waiting outside. Danae, who’d recently become his girlfriend again after they finally reconciled, didn’t tell him about her new immunity to fire until after we returned from the trip. He’d not been pleased when he found out. I couldn’t blame him since he would have been more than willing to suffer through the quest trials if he’d known that would be his reward. For whatever reason, though, the magical forces in the caves hadn’t chosen him. It didn’t mean he couldn’t fight a dragon, but it wasn’t easy battling one if all it took was one breath of flames to annihilate him.
“You’re protecting people from humans,” I said, giving him a meaningful look. “That counts for something, too.”
We had more problems with regular people fighting each other in town than we did with dragons. It seemed like every other day we heard about someone getting killed. Resources were limited, and everyone fought to get what little supplies could still be found.
Miles grimaced. “You’re not helping.”
He was going to need time to deal with it, and I wasn’t in the mood to console him. “Can you open up the gate?”
Wordlessly, he turned and shoved it to the side for me. I gave him a nod before driving through and heading down the road. It was quiet in the neighborhood. No one milled about outside chatting, working on their lawns, or making home improvements. Considering it was the middle of the afternoon when it was warmest, that was unusual. The people in this neighborhood took pride in keeping the place up and doing whatever they could to fortify their homes against the cold weather.
I pulled up in front of Trish’s house. Last fall, she and Justin had started living there after the previous tenants left the state. This was before the shifters took over the area and made it safer—at least, until now. It was a simple two bedroom home constructed with red and beige brick and had a single car garage. Justin’s SUV was parked in the driveway. I’d hoped he might have gone out somewhere, but no luck. We didn’t get along very well under the best of circumstances, and I had a feeling today would be no different.
Trish ran out the door to meet me halfway across the lawn. She’d left her curly, red hair loose so that it flowed to just past her shoulders. What little color she’d managed to gain over the summer was long gone, so her skin was as pale as ever, highlighting the freckles on her cheeks and nose. The naturally curvy woman wore a pair of gray sweatpants and a purple sweater. Her clothing didn’t quite hide the growing bulge in her stomach. Trish was a little over five months pregnant now, and according to Danae she’d give birth sometime in April.
She wrapped her arms around me. “I’m so glad you’re here. Justin is driving me crazy.”
“He has that effect on people,” I said, pulling away to smile at her. “Have you considered duct tape?”
“Ha ha, but yeah, he’s worse than usual.”
“Because of the attack last night?” I asked.
“It’s making him into a monster.” She frowned and glanced back at the house before lowering her voice. “He wants to send me down to the storm cellar and keep me there until the dragon threat is over.”
Of course, he did. Sometimes I thought about shooting him just to put us all out of our misery, but Trish would probably get mad at me. “I’ll talk to him.”
The tension in her shoulders loosened. “Thanks. I’d appreciate that.”
We headed inside to find Justin in the living room, sitting on their dark blue couch cleaning his rifle. He had two other firearms on the coffee table that appeared to have already gotten a good once-over. This was what he did when he was worried about something, but couldn’t do anything about it.
“Please tell me you have a heavy-duty safe to keep those in after the baby is born,” I said, gesturing at his weaponry.
He cast me an annoyed look. “Of course, I do.”
“You know they aren’t going to do you much good against dragons.”
He ground his jaw. “They’ll help me draw attention away from my future wife if they come here.”
“Because you’ll be so much help to Trish if you’re dead.” I stared at him, waiting for a response, but he ignored me and kept cleaning his rifle. I turned to Trish. “When are you getting married?”
She brightened. “The pastor at the Crossroads Church said he could do it New Years Day. We’re just going to keep it simple, so no one has to get dressed up or anything.”
Crossroads Church formed shortly after the dragons arrived. It was actually a blending of several congregations in the area as we
ll as new members who’d suddenly become religious after the apocalypse. They’d grown to almost three hundred people living in their hastily constructed compound, and it took up about four blocks of buildings and homes. Anyone could join them, but they had to follow a strict set of rules. For those of us who chose to remain on the outside, we could still ask for their help with burials and religious services. They only asked that we provide food or other supplies in exchange. Since the church didn’t seem to be trying to force anyone to join or follow their dictates, I was all for their presence. It wasn’t like in some movies where a scary preacher ran around warning everyone they’d burn in Hell if they didn’t get right with God. The husband and wife who ran the church were nice and friendly, and they preached tolerance.
“Let me know what time, and I’ll be there,” I said.
Trish smiled. “Thanks. So how are things going with you and Aidan?”
I sat on the arm of their loveseat. “Great, actually. It’s going a lot easier than I thought.”
“Really?” She lifted a brow. “You haven’t discovered any weird quirks or something else strange about him now that you’re living together? He’s part dragon—there’s gotta be quirks.”
My lips twitched. “He belches fire in his sleep.”
Justin snorted.
“You’re joking, right?” Trish asked, eyes wide.
I shrugged. “Not really, but it’s just tiny puffs of flames. The blankets are fireproof, and since I stopped wearing clothes to bed, I haven’t had to worry about them getting ruined anymore.”
Justin rammed a cleaning rod through the barrel of his rifle. “That was more information than I needed to know.”
Trish went over and whacked him on the head. “Get over it. Just the other night you ran from the house naked with only a Glock in your hand when you thought you heard Jennifer’s dog barking. Poor Norma is going to be traumatized for weeks over that.”
I rather doubted it. The older woman probably enjoyed it, though she might have pretended to be offended just to embarrass Justin.
