Dragon Prince

by Michelle M. Pillow

  “Did you have to hit me so hard?” Grier opened his mouth wide to stretch his sore jaw.

  “Don’t whine,” Jaxx dismissed.

  “Don’t worry. I’ll be sure to return the favor.” Grier patted his cousin on the shoulder, hard. “But for now, let’s track my woman.”

  “Are you sure you can’t detect her?” Payton asked.

  “They must have traveled a distance. Even if they masked it, I should be able to pick up her scent, but I can’t.” The thought caused Grier to panic. Should he take to the sky to try to see her through the thick trees? Or run along the ground where he had a better chance of detecting her?

  “When did our planet become such a dangerous place?” Roderic grumbled as he searched the area. They all knew the answer to that pointless question, but Grier understood the man’s frustrations.

  “It was always dangerous,” Payton said. “Only now, shifters are fighting together, not against each other.”

  “You three take the ground, I’ll take the sky. Grier, you need to stay calm. Shifting won’t help.” Jaxx was already halfway out of his clothes as he said the words. Seconds later, his cousin was flapping his wings to surge upward.

  “You two follow the tracks.” Payton pulled off her shirt. “I’ll run the forest and try to pick up a scent.”

  She ran down the path, leaping to shift. The crossties of her pants stretched open to make room for her new body before falling away, along with her boots.

  They left the bag on the ground. There was nothing in it they had to keep.

  Grier moved in the direction the drag marks had been going, leaping over fallen logs and pushing through the brush. He searched right as Roderic went left.

  “Anything?” Grier yelled.

  “Nothing.” Roderic jogged back to meet him. “This might be a longshot, but what about your crystal?”

  “What about it?” Grier automatically felt his pocket where the stone was hidden.

  “It seems to light in your pocket a little more when you’re near Salena. It’s faint, and she doesn’t seem to notice it, but we can pick it up. Maybe we can use that to track her? If it glows brighter when she is—”

  “It’s never been done that I know of, but…” Grier dug in his pocket. The stone’s glow had faded to a barely discernable light. His eyes shifted so he could detect any subtle change in its luminosity. He held it in his palm walking left, then right, then in a circle until it brightened by the smallest of degrees. “You’re a genius. This way!”

  Grier hurried through the woods, pausing whenever the light changed to reassess their direction. It was slower going than he would have liked, but at least it was progress.

  “There.” Roderic pointed at marks on the ground. The farther they went, the less the kidnappers had covered their tracks, and they became easier to follow.

  As they came out of the trees to a path, he saw two distinct markings on the ground.

  “Here,” Roderic said. “They moved her by travois. It’s most likely marsh farmers. They cart supplies like that. Wheels get stuck in the marshes, so they drag.”

  Both men followed the grooves in the ground. Now that he had an easier trail, Grier let the dragon take partial control. The animal gave power to his legs, allowing him to run faster. Roderic kept pace behind him. When Grier glanced at his crystal, he saw it becoming steadily brighter. They were getting closer.

  Someone laid on the path ahead, arms strewn to the side and head partially hidden from view by a shrub. He couldn’t see a face.

  “Salena?” Grier shouted, his voice hoarse in his current state. He pushed himself harder.

  Thank the gods it wasn’t her.

  A fallen marsh farmer was sprawled on the ground. Grier accessed the cat-shifter briefly as he ran past. He wasn’t sure if it was drinking or fighting that had laid him out, for he reeked of liquor and had a bruised face. Perhaps both. Those he was with had left him behind.

  The tracks continued, rutted in the ground. He ran between them, feeling with each beat of his boots against the path that he was getting closer to his heart.

  Salena.

  Salena.

  Be safe.

  I’m coming.

  His thoughts were anxious, broken fragments of desperation and hope. They flowed through him, moving his lips as he mouthed his scattered prayer.

  Be safe.

  Salena.

  He dodged tree branches and blindly took the curves in the path. She had to be close.

  I’m coming.

  The trail wound back and forth. The sound of the feet behind him changed as two became four. Roderic had sensed it too and shifted form.

  Salena.

  He swiped at a branch that hung in his way—and suddenly she was there.

  She’d been strapped to a travois. Two men were turning to face him. The shifter carting Salena dropped her feet when he saw Grier approaching.

  Grier leapt over her head and slammed into the cat-shifter who’d been dragging her. He didn’t give the man time to shift as he threw an elbow into his neck. The blow did little to affect the farmer, and he stayed on his feet. He threw Grier to the ground.

  Roderic roared, leaping forward even as Grier fell toward the ground. The cougar-shifter dodged the brute coming at Grier and took on the second man.

  He wanted to look at Salena but knew he could not take his eyes off his opponent. He stayed in his half shift. This farmer was strong. If the scars marking his skin were any indication, he was also used to brawling.

  “She’s mine,” Grier growled, trying to push up from the ground.

  The brute’s lips curled in a small smile. It wasn’t a pleasant expression. A beefy fist came from above. Grier dropped his weight and rolled to the side before springing to his feet. The man punched the ground hard and his knuckles cracked but he made no noise as if he didn’t feel pain.

  The brute didn’t miss a beat. He came at Grier, slashing hands that were now sharp with claws. The shift entered his eyes and by the time the cat reached him, he had mostly transformed into a lion. Grier’s dragon skin stopped the claws from cutting too deep. He gripped a handful of the lion’s mane and tugged hard.

  The cat was all muscle and did not go down easily. They rolled over the ground. Their momentum was stopped when they hit underbrush. Teeth bore down on his forearm. Grier swung his arm as hard as he could. The lion-shifter hit the tree and his bite loosened. Grier pulled his arm free and slammed a fist into his head. Between his blow and the tree, it was enough to knock the lion out.

  Grier didn’t hesitate as he crawled toward Salena. Blood dripped down his arm. The wound throbbed, but he didn’t care.

  Salena was tied. Her wrists looked as if she’d been struggling to get free. The small scrapes on her face seemed to be superficial and would heal. Relieved eyes met his. She jerked her hands and moaned.

  “Here.” Roderic threw a knife as he hurried past. The blade embedded in the ground. He held a hand over his manhood as he strode to gather his clothes.

  The shift seemed to melt off his skin as Grier grabbed the knife. He sliced her hands free and then her legs before helping her to sit. Salena pulled at her gag.

  Grier cut the material around her mouth. She gasped and coughed, throwing the gag away from her as if it were alive.

  “Thank you,” she croaked, her voice hoarse.

  “Forgive me.” He hung his head a little. “I failed to protect you.”

  She rubbed her cheeks and worked her jaw. Her right hand looked worse than the left. He reached for it but stopped, not wanting to hurt her more.

  “What did they do to you?” Grier wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms and hold her.

  Salena coughed again. She looked at the bite on his arm. “You’re hurt.”

  “It’s nothing.” Seeing a water pouch near where her feet had been tied, he cut it from the pole and handed it to her. “Drink.”

  She took it and downed the whole contents. When she was finished, she gasped
for breath. “If I weren’t so sore, I’d hit that gw-er with a club, too.”

  “Are you trying to say gwiddon?”

  “No, that,” she pointed toward the unconscious lion, “gwobr.”

  Grier couldn’t help the small laugh at her insult.

  “What? They called me that first.” Salena used his shoulder for support to push herself to her feet. She swayed right, to lift her ankle and roll it a few times, before leaning left to do the same with the other.

  “Gwobr is an old insult that loosely means battle prize,” Grier said.

  “Well, that battle prize is lucky I don’t have a stick right now,” she blustered. “And that he’s unconscious.”

  The sound of paws announced Payton in white tiger form before she showed herself. She skidded to a stop on all fours, looked at the fallen men, then Roderic and Grier. She gave a small snort of irritation and turned, walking back the way she came.

  “I think she’s pouting because she missed the fight,” Roderic said as he began rummaging through the two farmers’ pockets. “Again.”

  Jaxx circled overhead. Grier gestured to him that all was well and motioned that he should circle back and meet them by their supplies. Jaxx flew away.

  “It’s not your fault.” Salena touched his arm to take his attention from the sky. “Those darts would have taken anyone out. You didn’t stand a chance. They’re not exactly sanctioned in most places, but that hardly stops black-market traders.”

  “The question, which I’m guessing will be easy enough to answer, is where did Curtis and his two brothers get them from?” Roderic moved to search the other man’s pockets.

  “You know them?” Grier asked.

  “This is Curtis.” Roderic patted the smaller of the two men before pointing at the larger brute. “That’s Fergal. Sleeping beauty on the path back there is Valter.”

  “Curtis hit Valter because I almost escaped.” Salena lifted her hand to show where the skin had been rubbed raw. “I nailed Valter with a rock before they tied me back up. It was highly satisfying and worth it.”

  “We’ve had a few run-ins with them during the nef deliveries.” Roderic pulled a folded paper from Curtis’ pocket. He glanced at it before shoving it in his own pocket. “They’re skilled farmers. They can read the shadowed marshes like nature spelled out its secrets for all to see. But they’re also about as feral as cats can get. Too many generations of drunkenness and wild living.”

  “Did they hurt you?” Grier lightly touched her cheek.

  “Yes, but I’m fine now. You came for me. I knew you would. As far as I’m concerned, you didn’t fail me. You saved me.” She smiled at him, and he felt as if his heart would explode.

  Salena pulled his hand from her face and held it.

  “You should get her out of here. Have Payton escort you to the Var palace. She knows how to get you in without all the fanfare of visiting royalty. We have a medical booth there. I’ll take care of these,” Roderic grinned at Salena, “battle prizes and meet you at the palace.”

  “But we didn’t find the drop-off point yet,” Salena protested. “I’m all right. I can go on.”

  “It’s not worth the risk,” Grier stated. “These woods have become too dangerous, much more dangerous than we could have anticipated. We need to get you medical attention and regroup.”

  “And you,” she said.

  “Me what?”

  “You need medical attention.” Salena gestured at his arm. “You’re bleeding.”

  “It’s only a cut. It looks worse than it is,” he dismissed.

  “It looks more like punctures to me, so we should get it looked at.

  “Did they say what they planned?” Grier asked.

  “They wanted to deliver me somewhere so they could get paid. They also knew to keep me gagged so I couldn’t ask them questions.” Salena again stretched her jaw. The skin where the gag had been was slightly discolored. “I assume the Federation has spread the word they’re looking for me. By the way they were in such a hurry to drop me off, it must be a decent bounty.”

  “I would say that’s a safe assumption.” Roderic pulled the cross-laces from the clothing Fergal had discarded during his shift. He tested their strength before moving to bind Fergal’s hands and feet. “You should take a different route in case Valter wakes up and comes looking for his brothers. I’ll meet you at the palace when I’m done here.”

  Grier nodded his thanks and escorted Salena away from the travois. He noticed she limped a little when she put weight on her left ankle, and he frowned. She didn’t complain.

  “Allow me.” Without giving her a choice, he swept her into his arms and carried her.

  She made a small noise of surprise but wrapped her arms around his neck and lay her head against him. The weight put pressure on his wound, but he didn’t care. He’d much rather hold her, and this was the perfect excuse.

  “It’s a small journey to the palace, but I don’t want to make you fly it,” he said.

  “As much as I want to enjoy flying, I’m afraid this is the highest I want to go for some time. I’m not sure I could hold on if we were to take to the air.”

  “Then I’ll carry you.”

  “I’d protest, but my ankle is throbbing. I think it landed on a rock when Fergal dropped my legs.”

  Grier took her through the woods as gently and quickly as he could manage. She sighed softly. Her breath hit his neck. The intimate feeling stirred many emotions inside of him, and he never wanted to let her go.

  “You’re holding me too tight,” she said, not lifting her head.

  Grier realized he’d started hugging her and loosened his grip. “I won’t let down my guard again.”

  “It’s not your fault. We both let down our guard.”

  Salena made a tiny movement in his arms, cuddling next to his chest. He wanted nothing more than to lay her on the grass and make love to her, but now was not the time.

  Apparently, there was never a good time for it. Every time something started to happen, they were interrupted. The gods had a terrible sense of humor.

  17

  If the Draig palace disappeared into the landscape to remain hidden, with only its contours and the tops of its walls discernable from a distance, the Var castle sprung from the planet’s surface to be seen from far and wide to dominate the surrounding forest.

  The stark contrast amused Grier. He’d always thought of it as a reflection of their shifter personalities. Their differences were also the reasons why (most of the time) they coexisted peacefully.

  But it was evident that their chosen architecture was an extension of their cultures. Dragons were contained, holding their power inside and subduing the urge to conquer all before them.

  On the other hand, for as stealthy as they were, cats were also wild and bold.

  Regardless of their contrasting attitudes, both fought fiercely for what they loved.

  There was something to be said for both ways.

  The village near the dragon palace had been laid on a grid of streets, orderly and symmetrical, a place where no one could get lost. In contrast, the cat-shifter village looked to be decided on a whim, spilling out of the palace’s front gate with curved roads created a maze around the homes.

  Despite this seemingly haphazard planning, the palace and homes were built with exceptional craftsmanship.

  Grier set Salena down as they waited, staying near her so she could use him for support.

  The gray brick of the rectangular two-story homes perfectly contrasted the red dirt on which they stood. The flat roofs were turned into spectacular living spaces colored and beautified by gardens that furnished the walls and helped purify the air. The Var had mastered outdoor living by artfully repurposing the roofs of their homes.

  Grier watched Salena more than he looked at the palace. Her eyes moved as if tracing the square turrets that dominated the blue-green sky. The dark blue flag with the head of a panther flapped over each one, the symbol of King Kirill. The Var
king was much loved, but also much hated. Aside from the marsh farmers, who seemed to hate everyone, there was a faction of Myrddians, named after a shifter purist and sadist, Lord Myrddin, who they had built into some kind of twisted spiritual leader.

  Grier knew the dangers of his world, but there was something different about them now. Before, Myrddians and marsh farmers, Federation and Cysgodians, all of them had been a duty he must face.

  And now that he had a woman to protect, they had become a much more fearsome prospect. Already three of those groups had come for Salena. He would make sure Myrddians did not try the same. He had no reason to think they would, but that didn’t matter.

  Grier stepped unconsciously closer to Salena and placed a hand on her shoulder.

  “I’d try kissing you again, but Payton would suddenly appear,” she said with a tiny laugh. “Our lips meeting seem to summon the nearest person, or the nearest danger.”

  At that, he smiled. “I am quickly losing my humor about it.”

  “Me too,” she admitted. “But the view is beautiful.”

  “This palace has stood since before my father’s birth,” Grier said, liking the quiet moment together they were afforded. He inched closer to her, and she leaned her shoulder into him. “I’m told one of the king’s brothers once programmed the central mainframe to be a pouty woman, so whenever she was insulted she reacted poorly, zapping people with electricity in their backsides. The brother then took off into space with his friends to sail the high skies and left the others to deal with the computer’s temper.”

  Salena laughed. “Is that true?”

  Grier shrugged. “I’m told it is. Her name was Siren. I also hear she had a crush on one of the princes.”

  “Had? So, the programming error has been fixed?” Salena laughed harder.

  “I would hope so.” He loved the sound of that laugh, and the fact she could still find pleasure despite all that had happened to her.

  “I’ve never been to a place quite like your planet,” she said. “It truly is amazing.”

  “All right. I’m ready. How do I look?” Payton came up from behind them.

  Grier turned to see the Var princess in a gown. The dress was pretty, but her hair was a tangled mess, as if she’d struggled to put it on. She held a small circlet in her hand. Unable to help himself, he started laughing.