The Rookie

by Abigail Owen

  Gaining altitude quickly, Brand made sure he went only as high as the scent trail would allow. Not as high as he preferred, unfortunately. He pushed himself as fast and as hard as he could without losing it, and hopefully without being seen by humans, or worse, anything else hunting his quarry.

  Thank the fates for a moonless night.

  …

  Kasia hummed along to another country song—the only station she could get out here in the middle of nowhere, though it didn’t come in quite right, going fuzzy on her every now and then, but she needed the noise to help her stay awake. The Montana border was still hours away, but she was making decent time despite doubling back a few times and changing directions.

  The headlights lit up the patch of road in front of her, the highway only a two-lane road this far away from larger cities. At this early hour, long before dawn broke, she’d passed hardly a soul. If she could make it to Bozeman, she’d drop this car and borrow another, but that was hours of driving ahead of her.

  The only warning she got that she was being followed was the flick of a shadow in the headlights. Before she could react, a massive golden dragon slammed down on the road in front of her about half a mile out. She almost expected the ground to shake with the force, but the act was near silent.

  Dammit.

  She gritted her teeth and tightened her hands on the wheel. Rather than stop, Kasia hit the gas, pushing the car to go faster. He wasn’t taking her without a fight, that was for damn sure.

  The dragon’s deep golden scales glittered in the oncoming headlights. He didn’t budge. But he did growl, his tail slashing back and forth.

  “Move, you scaly bastard,” she muttered.

  But she didn’t let up on the pedal.

  He lowered his head and let loose a growl of warning, which she responded to by stomping harder on the gas.

  “Get out of the way!”

  She had no intention of playing chicken. If he didn’t, she’d ram this car down his fire-breathing throat. The hell with it. She didn’t want to go back to that cabin in Alaska anyway. Maul would miss her, but he’d be the only one.

  Only the dragon didn’t move. Okay, then. Kasia braced for impact.

  At the moment she should’ve slammed into him, the beast heaved himself into the air, and she zoomed past, fishtailing underneath him from the force of the wind his wings caused.

  He must’ve backed up, because he landed on the road in front of her again.

  “You want another go, you oversized flying iguana?” she shouted, and bore down on him.

  And again, he hopped out of her way only to land in her path.

  Damn. Kasia held in a scream of fear-tinged frustration. They could keep this up all night, getting them nowhere fast. He wasn’t going to let her go.

  With a growl of aggravation, though not defeat, Kasia stomped on the brakes. The tires squealed in protest, and the unpleasant odor of burning rubber followed her as she skidded the car to a stop broadside of the dragon, only a few feet away. If she rolled down her window, she could reach out and touch him.

  The terrifying creature moved around the car, his movements more of a glide, like golden water flowing around her. He lowered his head to gaze in at her with an eye the size of her entire thigh. He snorted, and smoke trailed from his nostrils as he glared at her.

  Please let this be Brand, and not some other phoenix-stealing dragon shifter.

  Kasia glared back but raised her hands off the steering wheel in a gesture of surrender. He backed up, and she slowly exited the car, grimacing a bit as she straightened her knees, the scrapes from her landing earlier having stiffened up.

  Once outside, she raised her gaze up, way up, as the dragon lifted his head. Was she completely nuts to think he was glorious? Impressively large—at least forty feet high—the sheen of his scales gave him a metallic appearance, as though hewn from spun gold. Even so, she could make out the definition of his muscles underneath. Hell, even his muscles had muscles. Deadly-looking spikes rose from his head, like a crest, meeting at the back of his neck. They stood out down the length of his spine to the tip of his tail, which sported larger spikes, like a mace.

  Her mother had told them all sorts of facts and stories about dragon shifters. She’d conveniently left out how sexy and powerful they could be in this form.

  As that thought registered, Kasia gave herself a mental slap. What was she doing drooling over this asshole who’d hunted her down?

  It’s official. I’ve lost my mind.

  “Brand?” she asked, needing to know.

  He didn’t move or make a sound, staring at her long and hard, muscles trembling as if he was not quite in control himself…or holding himself back.

  Kasia raised her eyebrows, then opened her mouth to ask again, only a subtle change in his form caught her attention. It took another few moments of staring before she realized he was shifting.

  No bones crunching or grunting. No sound whatsoever. No naked skin, either, as he slowly reformed into a fully clothed man, though she had no idea where the garments came from. They appeared to flow out of him, along with a backpack, as he shrank to his human size in a silent rush. Limbs shifted positions and proportion, spine straightened to stand on two legs rather than four, scales disappeared, and wings tucked into his back, almost like they were absorbed into him.

  She let out a puff of relief. Definitely Brand.

  Then she caught the hard glint in his eyes and revised that thought. Maybe relief was the wrong sentiment; perhaps dread would’ve been a better choice. Kasia lifted her chin, matching him glare for glare as he stalked toward her, only to give in at the last moment, taking a small step back, brought up short by the car behind her.

  Brand didn’t stop when he got to her, instead invading her space. He leaned one hand against the car and stared down at her. Kasia held her breath and tried not to register the heat of his body close to hers or the amber and obsidian flecks that graced the depths of those tawny eyes. Eyes narrowed at her in smoldering anger. If she hadn’t seen him in her visions, she would’ve been nervous that he’d shake her or something, his gaze had gone so savage.

  Kasia waited, unblinking, for his next move.

  “Get in,” he growled. His voice was lower, smokier. Was that from his shift? And why was she noticing that inconsequential detail right now?

  Frustration—with herself for her reactions as well as getting caught—surged back to the fore, joining the dread that refused to dissipate. She had no choice but to follow his instructions. It’s not like she could outrun him. She’d just have to outthink him and escape. Again. Only better.

  Followed by his unfaltering stare, Kasia scooted along the car, away from his body, then moved around to the passenger side and got in.

  Brand took the driver’s seat in total silence. After a year of it, Kasia wasn’t a fan of silence, but she didn’t break it. He sat there for a long moment, running his hands over the steering wheel, almost in a caress.

  Realization struck. No way. She couldn’t have. “I took your car?”

  His jaw hardened. “You did.”

  Kasia grimaced. Of course she did. Because apparently the fates had it in for her. “At least I don’t have to worry about returning it now,” she quipped, though he didn’t strike her as the type to appreciate her “look on the bright side” comment.

  He wasn’t. “I suggest you don’t talk to me for a while.”

  He didn’t even glance her way. Instead he put the car in drive, turned it to head in the direction she’d just come from, and started them back on the road.

  She ignored the no talking edict. Too much needed to be said. “Where are you taking me?”

  “Away from here. Airport.”

  Airport? Hell no. “You know what I am?”

  He flicked her a brief, unreadable glance. “Do you?”

  Right. All those lies at the clinic. “Yes.”

  His hands gripped the steering wheel tighter, knuckles showing white, even in the d
im interior lights of the dash. “I do, too.”

  So much for her cover story. Back to that airport issue. “Are you going to try to mate me?”

  Would he be that stupid? Or did he assume mating a phoenix worked the same as mating a human? Mating a human had its own level of danger, resulting in the woman’s highly gruesome death if she wasn’t destined to be the dragon’s mate, not to mention the dragon losing part of himself as punishment. Mating a phoenix, however, added a whole extra layer of complication. If she didn’t choose him, the dragon was the one consumed by the flames, not the phoenix.

  Did Brand know that?

  “No. I’m not going to mate you.”

  So not that stupid. “Then why the airport?”

  “Because dangerous things walk the earth. Things that would love to capture a phoenix. The sooner I get you to a clan, the better.”

  That word—what she was—hung in the air between them. Like a gauntlet thrown down. Like a challenge. Like an unbreachable wall.

  Kasia frowned as she processed his statement but also the subtle shift in his tone. Was he…worried about her? “Where are you taking me?”

  “Scotland. To a man named Ladon Ormarr.”

  Ormarr. That wasn’t one of the names her mother had listed as a line of kings, was it? Kasia tried to pull the memory from her mind but couldn’t quite reach it. “Which clan does he rule?”

  Another flick of a glance. “Blue.”

  Kasia slumped down in her seat. So Brand was taking her to a dragon king. “Is he mated?”

  “Not yet.” Now his tone carried an edge of darkness.

  “I see,” she replied quietly.

  Less than a year on her own, and already she was to be slaved out to the first dragon king to find her. At least Brand wasn’t taking her to Pytheios. She could be grateful for that small mercy. But who was to say that this Ladon guy was any better?

  Can’t be worse.

  She hoped.

  Wait. She bit her lip. “What if I have a vision on our way there? They’re coming on faster lately. I might crash the plane.”

  He gave an unconcerned shrug. “I can control the fire if one comes on. Just give me warning so I can get you somewhere out of sight.”

  On an airplane? Sure. Easy. And what about the pain? The passengers would hear her screams, no matter how hard she tried to keep them in.

  Not that she wasn’t going to try to get out of this before they were airborne.

  Kasia turned her head toward her window, staring out into the inky darkness, but not seeing. A strange disenchantment threaded its way through the alarm and anxiety sitting in her stomach like giant boulders. Silence, her old enemy, settled between them, heavy and still.

  After a while, she closed her eyes and pretended to sleep, but used the time afforded her to tick over different plans to escape. First, she needed to figure out how he’d tracked her down so fast, so she’d know how to fool him next time. She’d wait and observe.

  For now.

  …

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  Acknowledgments

  I get to do what I love surrounded by the people I love—a blessing that I thank God for every single day. Writing and publishing a book doesn’t happen without the support and help from a host of incredible people.

  To my ever-fabulous readers… Thanks for suspending reality to go on these journeys with me, for your kindness, your support, and generally being awesome. Aidan and Sera had such a slow burn, I honestly wondered myself if they’d make it. But they did! And now they can be together in more than their dreams. Don’t worry, for those of you already concerned for Blake, I’m pretty sure he figures things out in the future. I hope you fell in love with these characters and their stories as much as I did. If you have a free sec, please think about leaving a review. Also, I love to connect with my readers, so I hope you’ll drop a line and say “Howdy” on any of my social media!

  To my invincible, amazing, and supremely patient editor, Heather Howland… this series and this book would not be what they are without you. Hours of brainstorming and edits to make sure we are getting everything just right have resulted in books I know are some of my best. I couldn’t do this without your support.

  To my Entangled team…I don’t know how you guys do it, but you’re awesome. From the various stages of editing, to production, to marketing and publicists, I’ve had nothing but support and help along the way. (And the most gorgeous, drool-worthy covers!) Y’all rock!

  To my agent, Evan Marshall… Thank you for your belief in me and guiding me through every crazy idea and new opportunity. You are a delight to work with!

  To my writing partner, Nicole Flockton… I don’t think I could keep the pace I’ve set without your love and support every day. My stories would be much worse off without your brainstorming sessions and critiques. Here’s to the next one!!

  To Anna Stewart… Dang woman, your feedback to do more with the dreams made this book and made the connection between Sera and Aidan something real and amazing. Thank you for all your awesome feedback!!!

  To my support team of beta readers, critique partners, writing buddies, reviewers, RWA chapters, writer’s guild, friends, and family (you know who you are)… I know I say this every time, but I mean it… my stories wouldn’t come alive the way they do if I didn’t have the wonderful experiences and support that I do. And that’s all because of you.

  Finally, to my own Fated Mate and our 2.5 awesome kids… I love you so much. My love for you is what I write for my heroines and heroes, and what I wish for every person to experience. You are my inspiration and my heart. My dreams don’t come true without you in them, and I thank God for putting you in my life. No one could be luckier.

  About the Author

  Award-winning paranormal romance author Abigail Owen grew up consuming books and exploring the world through her writing. She loves to write witty, feisty heroines, sexy heroes who deserve them, and a cast of lovable characters to surround them (and maybe get their own stories). She currently resides in Austin, Texas, with her own personal hero, her husband, and their two children, who are growing up way too fast.

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