by Milly Taiden
20
It was a new week. The rest of the carnival was spent with Clacher doing things to get to know each other and letting Ker handle the shelter with Jules. She might not have wanted to be away from the shelter at first, but she couldn’t be happier over the days she got with Clacher.
Mondays were incredibly busy at the shelter, but she had her man sitting across from her, helping her file paperwork.
“You make a really sexy assistant,” she flirted.
He raised his brows and smiled. “Do I? Would you like me to bend over your desk and reach for a pen or something?”
She giggled at the image and nodded. “If you do, I promise to let you do dirty things to me later.”
He jumped to his feet. “Oh, that’s a plan, baby.”
They didn’t get a chance to see him act out his suggestion. Lexi’s phone chirped. She saw her mom’s name on the screen and answered immediately.
“Hey! I didn’t expect to hear from you today.”
“Hi, sweetie. Guess what?” her mom asked enthusiastically. “We have a surprise for you.”
“Oh, what is it?” Lexi raised her brows and glanced at Clacher. She mouthed the word mom to him and grinned.
“You have to go to our house, right now, and see.”
“Right now?” She looked down at the files on her desk “But I’m in the middle of―”
“Move your butt, young lady,” her mom said in a bit of a strange tone. “This is big.”
“Okay, all right,” she sighed. “I’ll be there soon,” she said and hung up.
“Everything okay?” Clacher asked as she grabbed her bag and headed for the door.
She closed her office door behind him. “Yes. There’s some big surprise I have to see right away and she won’t wait for me to finish here.”
“Sounds interesting,” he said, taking her bag and opening the front door so they could head to her car.
She groaned. “Interesting? My parents’ version of interesting is to set up a new nonprofit. Whatever this surprise is, I’m sure it will mean extra work for me. Not that I mind it, but I’m sure it could have waited until later.”
“Tell me about your parents,” he asked as she drove.
“Well, Mom and Dad are the ultimate givers. They have huge hearts and will do anything they can to help others. They love me like crazy since I’m their only kid. They love Morgan like a second daughter.” She got on the highway and sped up so they could get there faster.
“When was the last time you saw them?”
She gripped the wheel and honked at the slow driver ahead of her. “I don’t get why people get in the left lane only to go super slow,” she growled. “Move over!”
“A little road rage?” He laughed.
She gave him a don’t fuck with me look. “I have shit to do. Anyway, what was the question?”
“I asked when was the last time you saw your parents?”
“Several months. They’ve been on the other side of the world doing charitable work.” She gave him a quick grin. “It runs in the family. We like to help others.”
He chuckled and placed a hand on her lap. “You’re very giving. It’s just one of the things that makes you special.”
When they reached her parents’ home, she hopped out of her car and headed inside. She expected some kind of early birthday present or weird African sculpture they’d want her to check out. She did not expect to open the front door and find both her parents there, waiting for her.
She squealed and ran into her father’s arms. A second later, she left him and gave her mother a tight hug. Love poured from both and she reveled in the feelings.
“What are you two doing here?” she asked, her voice rough with emotions.
They looked at each other and then at her. She sensed something there, a secret, but decided not to press.
“We were missing you and decided to take a short trip to come see you,” her mom finally said. Both her parents glanced over her shoulder to the door where Clacher stood.
“Oh my god. I’m so rude,” she exclaimed. “Mom, Dad, this is Clacher Drachen. He’s a—”
“A dragon, right?” her mother asked him. There was a weird tone in her voice.
“Yes,” Lexi replied. “Clacher, this is my mom and dad, Leandra and Richard Eden.” She motioned for Clacher to come closer.
Clacher offered her parents his hand. They all shook and everyone walked into the living room.
“I just made tea,” her mother said. “I hope you like tea, Mr. Drachen?”
“Clacher, please. And yes, I do.”
“Mom, let me help you with that. You must be exhausted after that long flight,” she said and passed the tea cup to her father. Then she handed one to Clacher and kept one for herself.
Clacher drank his tea as did her dad.
“We really did miss you, sweetheart,” her father said. “We decided we needed to come make sure our little girl was doing okay.”
She grinned and turned to Clacher. “Only a father would refer to his thirty-year-old daughter as a little girl.”
Everyone laughed and she looked at her mother. Her mom was staring at Clacher. She wasn’t the type of woman to do that, so Lexi frowned, wondering what was wrong.
“How was your flight?” Lexi asked her mom, trying to get her to stop staring at Clacher.
Her mom jerked in her seat and looked at her, fear wide in her gaze. “Drink your tea, sweetie. Our flight was fine.”
She drank her tea and wondered why her parents looked so uptight. It wasn’t like them. They must be more tired than they were telling her.
She tried to sit up straight but realized she was getting very tired and it was almost impossible to hold herself up.
The sound of something hitting the floor made her look to the side. Clacher had fallen hard on the carpeted floor.
“Clacher?” She blinked and turned to her parents. “Mom? What did you do?”
A moment later, her mother was yelling for the groundskeeper. He helped her dad walk Lexi to her parents’ car.
They slipped her in the back seat, where she lay slumped. “What’s going on? Mom?”
Her mother turned to face her from the front passenger side, her eyes filled with fear. “Honey, we couldn’t let that man get you killed. We’re here to protect you. You’re our baby!”
She knew her parents meant well, which meant they had to be confused about whatever it was they were saying. “Whaaa?”
She fought the sleepiness trying to take hold of her. A slow sizzle started on her right hip. She couldn’t move her arm to figure out what was wrong, but her skin felt like it was burning.
“We know. That dragon is going to get you killed. We were told.”
She struggled to get her mouth to move. “What diiid you do to him?”
Her mother glanced at her father who was busy driving. “We were given something. Some kind of magic potion and were told a drop or two would make it so you wouldn’t resist. And that the rest of the vial would kill the dragon.”
She widened her eyes and gasp. “Mom, no!”
“We couldn’t kill anyone, so we gave him half. It seems to have worked because it knocked him out but he was still alive when we left.”
Thank fuck for small miracles. Her father drove like a bat out of hell. “Where we going?”
“We met a seer in Namibia. She said the dragon would get you killed unless you got you away from him and we took you to a man who could destroy the link between you two,” her mom told her. “Don’t worry, baby. We’re almost there.”
The burning in her hip intensified. “Mom, take me back,” she gulped. “Please.”
21
It was getting harder and harder to speak.
The car took a sharp turn and they were on a rocky road. She fought the drug and sensed herself growing stronger slowly. The vehicle stopped suddenly. She watched several men come out of a small cabin in the woods that looked like it had seen better days. The roof loo
ked caved in. The whole thing appeared to be ready to fall over with one good wind.
Her parents exited the car and the men went into the backseat, grabbed her and dragged her into the dubious looking cabin.
Inside, they dumped her in a torn-up sofa chair. They used a zip tie to bind her hands and feet.
“He’ll be here soon,” one of the men said to her parents.
They huddled together, whispering to each other.
“Mom?” she asked, her strength growing by the minute. The burning in her hip had diminished and all but disappeared. “Who is he?”
“The seer told us to come see this man who could cut the link between you and the dragon,” her mother said. She sounded like someone had recorded those words and she was playing them back. “He will save you.”
The sound of tires screeching made her turn her head to look at the front door. A sense of dread like the one she’d felt in her dreams took over her body. Bile shot to the back of her throat.
The front door slammed open. A man in black stood there, light at his back making it hard for her to make him out. He marched straight in, his gaze on her and then on her parents. He went for her parents first.
“You’ve done well, but I don’t need you anymore. Go home now, you won’t remember any of this. All you will know is you came home to spend time with your daughter. As far as you know, she’s at work.”
Her parents turned and left her there. They just left.
Lexi tried to make sense of what was going on, but it was hard. Clearly someone had used her parents to get her away from Clacher. She tried to calm the fear in her heart for him. Was he okay?
“Yes.”
Her eyes widened at the response.
“Clacher?”
“I hear you, Lexi.” Clacher’s worry-filled voice floated in her mind.
“What the hell? How can you be in my head?” She glanced around, looking to see if anyone else could hear him, but everyone was standing around as if nothing was going on.
“My mate mark showed up. I’m guessing yours did, too. We share a bond, a link now. I know where you are, and I’m coming to get you.”
“You can’t! There’s some crazy guy here saying he’s going to sever our mating link.”
“Don’t worry, baby. I’ll be there soon. Ker is coming, too.”
She glanced up at the man in black who finally turned to face her and the air caught in her throat. “You?”
“So you finally remember me?” He grinned, showing perfect white teeth and a smile that would make any woman swoon. It was the coldness in his gaze that gave her chills. He was the doctor from her dreams. The one who kept telling her he was going to kill her.
“You’re that doctor from my dreams.”
“My name is Tremi,” he said, staring deeply into her eyes with his black ones.
“What do you want?”
“I have been sent by my brother, to get rid of you over two hundred years ago,” he said, stopping in front of her.
“Are you fucking crazy? How’s that possible?” She didn’t understand her dreams so how could she understand what he was saying.
“You really don’t remember, do you? I was told your soul never forgot true love,” he snorted. “I guess that’s a crock of shit.”
She frowned and made a face. “I still don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
“You were engaged to the Drachen brother a long time ago. Your first body was pretty but,” he took a good look at her crop top and tight jeans and grinned. “I like this one better.” He picked up a lock of her hair and slipped it between his fingers. “So soft. I knew it would be.” He sighed. “Anyway, my brother, Sayeh, wants you and your Drachen mate out of the picture.”
“Why?” she asked, trying to understand their feud.
He shrugged. “He hates them. Has for a long time. I don’t get involved in the whys,” he told her. “I do what I am told. I would have killed you last time,” he gave a dry laugh. “But you got cholera and you died of it. I had a feeling you’d come back, you never got the mate mark that time.” He frowned at her. “You got it this time, though.”
She gaped. “What are you talking about.”
“Your eyes. There’s a distinct ring of green around them.”
“My eyes are hazel. They change color,” she said in a defiant tone. He wasn’t going to scare her.
He lifted a hand and slapped her across the face so hard, she saw stars. She swiped her tongue over her bottom lip but it was already swelling.
“Don’t treat me like I’m a fucking idiot. I told you I’d come back and kill you and here I am,” he said with a growl.
The sound of an angry roar made her glance around. Tremi cursed and looked her in the eyes. “I’ll be back in a second.” He glanced at her bound hands and feet and grinned. “Don’t go anywhere.”
Then he broke through his black clothing and shifted, shooting into the sky in his black dragon. Another of the guys in the room shifted into a black dragon and followed. Then a third.
She was left alone as a battle raged outside. Her hands were bound in the zip tie, as were her feet.
“Snap the ties,” Clacher told her in her mind.
“How? I don’t have the strength.”
“You do now. You’re my mate. That means you have some of my powers. You can do things with your mind. Try it.”
She focused on the tie, straining her hands. She pulled hard, until it snapped from the force. “Oh my god! I won’t even ask you how I did that.”
She moved to the one at her feet and did it again. Rushing out the door, she stopped short at the sight before her. It was a dragon war. Fireballs zipped left and right. She already knew Clacher from seeing him fighting the previous time, or she might have gotten him confused with the other dragon. Both Clacher and Ker had orange scales. They were shooting fire missiles at the bad guys. It was insane to watch. The missiles exploded on contact, leaving massive wounds on the black dragons.
They moved around so fast, shooting fireballs and slamming tails into each other. She wanted to do something to help, but didn’t know what. The biggest of the black dragons, she realized had to be Tremi. He hit Clacher with massive fireballs. Clacher was dragged back by the force of the hit. Tremi used that opportunity to swoop down and slam onto the ground in front of her.
“Raise your arms and block his fire!” Clacher yelled in her head.
She wasted no time. She lifted her arms in a cross and told her mind to block the fire just as the massive black dragon sent a long breath of fire at her. An invisible shield stopped the fire from hitting her.
The dragon readied to do it again, but Clacher shot his fire missiles at him. They hit Tremi’s animal hard. He flung around, his tail missed hitting her by a hair. She ran from the fighting dragons and behind one of the parked cars.
Tremi leapt into the air and went straight for Clacher. Ker shot more fire missiles at Tremi. The other blacks were nowhere to be seen. She wasn’t sure if Ker killed them or if they just took off. She doubted they’d leave their master. Clacher and Ker both attacked Tremi. He swung his tail at them, trying to pierce their sides at the same time he shot quick-moving fire at them.
Their missiles were faster and stronger. It was enough, though. They were in a dead-heat. She thought about everything Clacher had told her. She could control stuff with her mind. Did that mean she could control them?
She focused on the black dragon. In her mind, she grabbed him by his scaly throat and slammed him on the ground. A second later, Tremi fell, his body pulled down until he hit the trees so fast, the ground shook at her feet. She continued to mentally hold him down, keeping him in place while the others finished him off.
“This isn’t the end,” Tremi said in her head. “You’ve opened yourself and now my brother will see. He’ll kill you all.”
The chilling words gave her shudders. She fell to the ground from how drained she felt.
She couldn’t keep her eyes open. Dar
kness took hold of her mind.
22
Clacher lay Lexi on the bed in his suite at the castle and felt her forehead. She was weak and pale. He didn’t get a chance to do anything else when his door burst open and Morgan rushed inside.
She ran for the bed and grabbed Lexi’s hand. “Is she okay?”
“She did something I’ve never seen before.”
Morgan nodded. “She opened a link between herself and the dragon, allowing her to control his animal.”
“How did she know to do that?”
“I don’t know, but I think I know who helped her,” Morgan grinned. She placed a hand on Lexi’s belly and closed her eyes.
Clacher moved closer, his gaze on his mate’s belly. “What are you doing?”
“When I was pregnant, I found I got extra powers not just because I’d mated Tor, but because Noah was helping me.” She glanced up at Clacher with a wide smile. “Your daughter helped Lexi today.”
Clacher’s heart pounded hard behind his rib cage. “Daughter?”
He sat next to Lexi and placed his hand on her abdomen. A link clicked into place between him and his child and he knew then that she’d been there for a while. “How did she do that? How did we not know she was there?”
Morgan laughed. “She’s smart. Like Noah. They block their scent and themselves so nobody knows they’re there until danger has passed.”
Love for his unborn child filled his heart. He lowered his head to Lexi’s lower body and kissed her. He’d wanted a family for so long. And now he was going to get that. Finally. He’d do anything to protect them both.
“Clacher?” Lexi mumbled.
He raised his head and met her confused gaze. “Hey, baby.”
