The Dragon's Secret Prize

by Jasmine Wylder

  “My name is Zuri Hayes, I live in this building. I’ve known Ava and her brother since they were little. Ava is seventeen-years-old. She is smart, really smart. She is getting a scholarship to a good school and she is going to have a good life. She is a good kid and she deserves that. Do you understand?” Zuri tried to control her voice and the shaking of her body.

  Chaz nodded slowly. “I will do everything I can to get her back.”

  “Promise me.” Zuri walked forward and stood so her eyes locked with Chaz’s eyes. She held his gaze.

  Chaz didn’t break the focus of his eyes on hers. His eyes were dark but there was a fire lit under them.

  “I promise,” he said.

  Zuri nodded her head.

  “Ok, what do we do first? Where do we go?” Zuri cracked her knuckles and looked down the street in the direction that the van had gone. She noticed the remains of her panic alarm under her toes and she kicked at it ruefully. Lot of good it had done, Zuri thought, everything in her ready to explode.

  “We?” Chaz asked. Zuri turned to look at him. “You heard that guy. They are dangerous people, you are not doing anything.”

  “I just promised a fourteen-year-old boy that I would get his sister back. I don’t take my promises lightly.”

  “And I just promised you that I would do everything in my power to find her and bring her back.” Chaz seemed to broaden and grow in height. “I don’t take my promises lightly either.”

  “Good.” Zuri wanted to believe him but she knew she couldn’t just walk away and sit around without looking for Ava. She would go inside and start doing some research, she would leave as soon as Chaz left, set off on foot if she had to. “How do I contact you?” she asked.

  “Contact me? You don’t think I’m letting you go back in there alone, do you?” Chaz looked at the building. Zuri knew that it would take less than two minutes for someone to break in if they wanted to but she wasn’t worried about her own safety. She didn’t care about the risks to herself, right now she only cared about Ava.

  Zuri felt herself growing rigid. She didn’t want protection. She wanted Ava back. Really, she wanted to take Ava’s place. “You should have let me get taken with her.”

  Without warning she threw herself at Chaz, hitting him fiercely in the chest. Chaz didn’t move, he took Zuri’s blows like they were nothing more than a fly landing on him. His calm only made her feel more helpless and she hit harder and harder until she had no strength left.

  Zuri pulled back from him, despondency overcoming her.

  “Why did you have to come? At least I would have been with her. Maybe I could’ve…done something.” She threw her hands in the air and let the tears come. “She’s probably still a virgin…just…”

  “Hey,” Chaz moved forward and took book of Zuri’s hands in his. “Just breathe.” He stood with her hands in his until her breathing calmed down. When he spoke again his voice was soft, “We’ll find her. Ok? I promise.”

  Zuri felt her lips trembling but Chaz’s eyes had the look of a man who meant what he was saying.

  “Come on, let’s get moving. You aren’t safe here.” He turned and began walking down the street toward a motorcycle that Zuri hadn’t noticed before.

  Zuri reluctantly followed him. It would be better for her to nearer to the action, to hear and know what was going on to help Ava.

  When they got to the motorcycle Chaz pulled out a helmet and handed it to Zuri. She took it and looked at it in her hands.

  “Where am I taking you?” He turned and looked at Zuri. She stared back at him. “Do you have family, a safe place to stay?”

  Her mind went blank. If she called a friend then she would be out of the loop, she would have no idea what measures were being taken to get Ava back. She shook her head.

  “Fine, I’ll take you to my place.” He put a hand up. “Just for a day…while we figure this out.”

  The helmet looked too small for Zuri’s head full of bulbous curls. She handed it back to him.

  “If you aren’t wearing one then neither am I.”

  He looked at the proffered helmet, not taking it.

  “I think there are other things to be more worried about right now.” She shifted her weight.

  This argument seemed to do the trick and Chaz took the helmet from her hands and put it back into the storage seat.

  Chaz put one leg over the motorcycle and started it up. The engine roared to life. Zuri managed to get on behind Chaz but she couldn’t manage to keep her body from sliding into his. Try as she might she couldn’t keep her thighs from forming around his torso.

  “You can hold onto me if you need to.” His voice was quieter and Zuri understood that he was just as uncomfortable as she was.

  She braced her hands onto the back of the seat. “I’m ok.”

  Chapter Four

  Chaz pulled away into the early morning. The sun was just starting to come up and he felt a heaviness descend on him as his motorcycle moved through the quiet streets.

  Had he done the right thing in making a promise to this woman? He could have left her there, let her take her chances in staying at her own apartment instead of taking her home with him.

  There was something strange in the way he felt protective of her. He’d felt it the moment he’d seen her. Her body was on full alert. She’d looked ready to take down rhinoceros. The way she’d run straight into danger had left an impression with him.

  He’d seen Zuri before. She was the kind of woman it was hard not to notice. She was beautiful, feminine, and there was a self-possession about her, like she knew what she wanted from life and she was prepared to go and get it. For some reason that he didn’t understand, he wasn’t willing to leave her in what might prove a dangerous situation.

  No, he would take her home where he could keep an eye on her just until he found Ava and any of the other girls who might, even now, be missing.

  A tingle ran up his spine as he remembered Zuri’s words, Why didn’t you shift? You could have saved her. Was that true? Would he have saved the girl if he had shifted?

  A sinking feeling pulled at his gut. Would there ever come a time when he wasn’t responsible for hurting other people?

  It had been so long since he’d had anyone else on his bike with him that the extra weight of Zuri made him unsure of himself. He took the turns slowly, always afraid that she’d fall off and then he would be responsible for yet another woman’s fate.

  The roads outside of town were winding. The air was fresh and cold as it pushed against his face. Even though he was happy for the sharp chill he thought for a moment about Zuri. She must be cold. She wasn’t dressed for a ride or for the cold.

  Chaz made a turn a bit too fast and he felt Zuri’s hands grab his torso. The suddenness of the feeling was almost enough to make him ride straight off the road, off the side cliffs, and into the unforgiving water and rocks of the Pacific Coast.

  He clenched his hands around the handles, unable to move his mind from the spot where her hands still clasped at his sides.

  They were only a few minutes from his house. And in a flash Chaz realized what he’d done. He had invited this woman into his living space. A space no woman had entered. In fact, he’d never let anyone in. It had been his sacred space.

  He tried to imagine the state of his affairs but he hadn’t even been home in a few days and couldn’t remember how he’d left the place.

  Chaz felt his stomach tighten. It would only be for the day, he reminded himself. Zuri didn’t want to be there any more than he wanted her there.

  As they pulled up, he put down his feet and he felt Zuri’s grip loosen. Her hands slid back and he stopped the bike, waiting while she maneuvered herself off. She wasn’t any too graceful trying to get off but he squelched the urge to help her.

  He turned off the motorcycle and tried not to look at Zuri as he headed toward the house. Out of the corner of his eye he could see her push both hands into her jeans pockets. She had thick hips, spraw
ling female curves, milk chocolate skin, and a mound of black curls that highlighted her face. It was a good face if he were noticing that sort of thing, which he wasn’t.

  Chaz opened the door to his house and pushed it open. Reaching inside he flipped on a light and walked in. His eyes roamed over his possessions. Everything felt stark and very gray suddenly.

  “You live alone?” Zuri asked as she turned around in his living room.

  “Mmm hmm.” He bent and picked up a stray leaf that must have either blown in or come in on a shoe.

  “It’s…nice…” She said it as if she were trying to be polite. It struck Chaz that he really didn’t know this woman at all. He turned to try and see what she saw but as he did Zuri took a step back. He realized that she was probably scared of him, at least apprehensive, which she should be. He’d taken her up to his cabin in the woods, his stark, ascetic, gray cabin. He was a bear shifter who worked for the strongest and most dangerous motorcycle club in the northwest.

  Thinking about it, he wondered how she’d ever conceded to coming with him in the first place.

  “A bit bare,” she added with a half tilt of her head, “but really nice. Did you just move in?”

  Chaz felt his face grow hot. “No, actually. I’ve been here for…well, maybe five years.”

  “Really?” Zuri looked genuinely surprised. “You live…light. I mean, that’s a good thing, if that’s what you like…” She trailed off and Chaz felt his face grow hot again.

  “I’ll just…” He made an awkward gesture and disappeared into his room. He stripped the bed and put fresh sheets on. “You’re probably tired. The sheets are clean now if you want to sleep.”

  “I’m not sure I can sleep. I could go for something to eat though.” Zuri gave him a look that told him she didn’t think he had any food.

  Chaz walked into the kitchen and he heard Zuri’s footsteps behind him. He opened the fridge. Not much. He heard a cabinet open behind him and he turned. Zuri closed the cabinet guiltily.

  “Sorry,” she said as she tried to look around innocently.

  “No, it’s fine. Make yourself at home.” Chaz hoped he didn’t sound sarcastic. Zuri smiled again in the same guilty manner.

  He closed the fridge and opened the freezer. Relief flooded over him.

  “I have some microwave meals.” He pulled out a turkey dinner and handed it to Zuri. She smirked.

  “Great, thank you.” She took it from his hands and began to unpeel the box. “What are we going to do about Ava?”

  Chaz watched Zuri fumble with the box and frozen dinner inside. He resisted the urge to take it from her and do it himself.

  “We aren’t going to do anything. I am going to go back into town. I’ll talk it over with Anthony, get some more information. We’ll get her back.” He wondered what Anthony would say if he knew that he had a strange woman in his house right now. If he knew what Chaz had already promised her.

  “Anthony? He is…” her question trailed off.

  “The head of Magus.” He peered at her. How could she have lived in Cliffs her whole life but not know anything about them?

  “Oh, right.” She nodded. “I’ve seen you around town a few times.” Zuri looked up. “What is it you do for Magus?”

  Chaz had a flash image of a bloody face in front of him. He thought of the enforcing he’d had to do and what it looked like. The broken faces, broken bones, men screaming for mercy. What would a woman like this think of his work, of his ruthless, unforgiving nature?

  “I watch over certain neighborhoods, keep people in line when it’s necessary.” He didn’t want to say how often it was necessary or how he kept people in line.

  “You protect the drug lords, don’t you?” She turned to him with accusation in her eyes.

  “Certain people pay Magus to look out for their interests…but we hold loyalties only to our own.”

  Zuri’s jaw tightened. “My mother was an addict her whole life, she died of an overdose because of those drug lords.”

  Chaz stood staring at Zuri. Pain surfaced in her eyes and he opened his mouth to respond but thought better of it. He wasn’t used to confrontation that didn’t involve his fists.

  Zuri took a long slow breath. She seemed to be grounding herself and she looked around again.

  “Don’t you get lonely out here?” Zuri changed the subject.

  “No. I like being alone. I like to keep myself to myself. And I always have my brothers in Magus.”

  The microwave beeped and Zuri jumped at the sound. He hadn’t realized she was so jittery. He felt a momentary need to protect her, but quickly pushed it away.

  “I’d better go and see what there is to find out. You’ll be safe here.”

  “When will you be back?” Zuri’s question sounded strange to him. It had been a long time since anyone needed or even wanted to know where he was going or when he would be back.

  Chaz turned away from her and grabbed his keys. In a flash he wished he hadn’t jumped in to save her. That he hadn’t felt the impulsive, burning need to protect her from those men. He wished he’d left well enough alone.

  “Just try to get some sleep. I’ll be back when I’m back,” growled.

  Chapter Five

  Zuri stood, unmoving, in the kitchen for a long time after Chaz left. She heard the reminder from the beeping microwave but ignored it. She was hungry, and if she was honest she was also exhausted, but now that she was left alone she didn’t feel like eating or lying down.

  She’d heard the motorcycle’s roar then heard it patter out of earshot. Her heart sank as Chaz left. She did want him to go, she wanted to find Ava, she needed him to find Ava. But she also felt horribly lost without his presence to distract her.

  Her mind kept pedaling through thoughts of Ava. Where was she now? Was she safe? Was she hurt? What would those men do with her?

  “Stop, focus on something else,” she said out loud to herself.

  Zuri took the plastic tray out of the microwave and walked over to the sofa. There was one plain brown sofa, a television, a side table, and a fireplace. She put the tray on the side table then walked to the bedroom. A queen bed stood in the middle of the room, a large window opened out to the forest beyond the house. There was a large closet and Zuri opened it. Inside were a few articles of clothing. She let her fingers run over the material. There were some shoes on the ground and in the back she saw a heavy looking black box.

  Despite herself, Zuri turned to make sure she wasn’t being watched. Chaz was gone and he wouldn’t be back for some time, she reminded herself. She turned back to the closet and got on her hands and knees, pulling the box forward.

  Zuri pushed at the heavy lid and opened the box.

  The first thing that she saw was a photo. A pretty faced girl with red hair looked up at Zuri. The girl had freckles across the bridge of her nose and smattered across her cheeks. Her eyes were light and laughing in the photo, her arms were hooked around the neck of a man.

  She paused and looked again more closely.

  The girl’s hands were around the neck of Chaz. Zuri hadn’t even recognized him. His face looked completely different. He looked happy. His face was partially buried in the girl’s hair and he was…smiling.

  Zuri stared at the photo, pulling it in close to her face as if she might notice some detail that she would otherwise miss. Slowly she lowered the photo to the floor and looked back into the box.

  A letter was next, Zuri looked at the pale white envelope. There was no name on it, no address, no stamp. A pang of guilt swept over her. What was she doing going through obviously personal items like this?

  She looked back into the living room. The good thing about Chaz’s motorcycle was that she would hear it coming in.

  Despite the guilt that still tugged on her stomach, Zuri opened the envelope and pulled out a thin sheet of paper.

  Rebecca—there is not a moment that goes by, not a day, not a second that I don’t think of you. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.r />
  Zuri turned the paper over. That was it. Nothing more. Zuri turned the name over in her mind. So the red haired girl’s name was Rebecca. And what had become of her? Had she left him? Maybe he had cheated on her?

  A whole load of questions came tumbling into Zuri’s mind. But why did she care? Chaz meant nothing to her, she’d only just met him after all. No, she was just curious. Wasn’t that part of the human condition? Being curious about the people around you?

  Zuri put the letter on the floor next to the photo. She had to make sure she put everything back just the way she’d found it.

  Under the letter were a few odds and ends. There was a purple hair tie, a green silk scarf, a small bottle of perfume, and under everything else there was a ring. Zuri smelled the perfume, and wondered what emotions and thoughts the smell elicited for Chaz. She tried to imagine Rebecca in this house, but try as she might she couldn’t. The house was too bare. How could a woman have ever lived here?

  When her imagination came back to the present moment Zuri pulled out the small diamond ring.

  The sight of it suddenly made Zuri want to cry. Could such as man as Chaz have ever picked out something so dainty, so lovely and unique? Maybe once upon a time the Chaz in the photo was capable of such a thing, but certainly the man she’d met only a few hours before was not up to such a task.

  Zuri placed the ring back into the heavy box, put each item back just the way she’d discovered them, then closed the lid and slid the entire box back into the closet where she’d found it. She stood up and brushed off her pants. There was a small chest of drawers and Zuri rummaged to find a clean undershirt and a pair of old sweatpants.

  She pulled out a towel that appeared to be clean and turned on the shower. Steam filled the bathroom and Zuri dropped her dirty clothes to the floor. She looked herself over in the mirror. The round peaks of her breasts, the full lines of her body, the gentle pull of her waist.

  When her mother was alive she would tell Zuri to go on a diet. Always pushed her to lose weight. Her mother had told her that men didn’t love “fat girls,” but Zuri knew that she wasn’t fat. She was just herself. She loved the curves of her body, loved the deeply feminine hips and the lines that made her feel substantial and fully alive.