Snake Charmer (Shifter Squad Book 6)

by J. C. Diem

  Hunching over his tankard, the survivor checked to see whether anyone was listening. When he saw that no one was, he spoke in a hushed voice. “What if I told you the dragon was searching for something?”

  “What did you take from it?”

  “From her,” the old man clarified. “I stumbled across her cave by accident and found an egg that looked like it was made of pure gold.” He shot another guilty look around the inn. “How was I supposed to know what it really was? No one has seen a dragon for two hundred years! I thought they were all dead.”

  “What did you do with the egg?”

  “I hid it.”

  “Where?” Thomas asked. Eyes darting, the old man clearly didn’t want to tell him what he’d done with it. “Do you think she will stop at just destroying one town? You stole her offspring and she won’t stop searching until she finds it.”

  Shoulders slumping, the old man conceded defeat. “I hid it in the forge. Our blacksmith died a couple of years ago and we never did get a replacement.”

  Thomas pondered the problem. “Exactly where is the dragon’s cave?” Leaning in close, the old man gave him directions.

  Patting him on the back in thanks, Thomas took a seat at the table next to Harold as the innkeeper brought them two tankards of ale.

  “What is our plan?” Harold asked when they were alone again.

  “We’re going to return a stolen item and pray that the dragon doesn’t eat us.”

  Blinking in surprise, Harold raised his tankard in salute. “Your plan is sadly lacking in details, old friend, but I like the part where we don’t get eaten.” He’d been on many missions with Thomas by now and he trusted his judgement implicitly.

  In the morning, they were up well before dawn and headed back to the decimated village. With a little searching, they unearthed the forge. Harold rolled up his sleeves and sifted through the ashes. His eyes went round when he pulled out an egg that was the size of a human head. It was as golden as the survivor had promised, but weighed far less than real gold would have.

  Thomas pressed his palm against the egg and found it to be warm. “It’s still alive, praise God.” He didn’t want to think how catastrophic it would have been if the baby dragon had died.

  Following the directions the old man had given them, they headed east and eventually reached the coast. Knowing better than to take their mounts any closer, they tied the horses firmly to a tree before going the rest of the way on foot. Following the rocky shoreline, they knew they were getting close when they found a pile of rotting carcasses. Thomas noted that the dragon fed mostly on small animals and birds. He was beginning to believe that the old man may have exaggerated her size.

  Reaching a small bay, Thomas tilted his head back and searched for the cave. He nudged Harold in the side when he spied an opening halfway up the steep cliff face. Harold had wrapped the egg in his coat and clutched it to his stomach. Seeing how high they’d have to climb, he gulped in terror. It would have been difficult enough to make the journey without being burdened with the egg.

  “We need to start climbing if we want to return to the town before nightfall,” Thomas said.

  “That’s if the beast doesn’t eat us after all,” Harold replied in a near whisper.

  “Just try not to drop the egg,” Thomas advised. “She might let us live if we return it to her unscathed.” He felt it would be extremely unwise to attempt to attack her. They’d both seen the damage she could wreak. There was no question that they’d become ash and bones just like the ill-fated inhabitants of the town that had been destroyed if they made one wrong move.

  Exactly as the old man had described, they spied a large boulder sitting on the beach directly beneath the cave. Thomas pushed his way through a scraggly bush to find a path hidden behind it. The track hadn’t been used in a long time and it was only luck that it had been discovered at all. Curiosity had driven the old man to make the climb. Stupidity had convinced him it would be a good idea to steal the egg.

  Taking the steep path upwards, it took them nearly half an hour to reach the cave. The air that was expelled from the opening was musty and unpleasant. It smelled like a thousand snakes were living inside. They could hear something breathing and crept inside as quietly as possible. With luck, the dragon might be asleep. Thomas hoped to sneak in, leave the egg then creep away without being discovered.

  Unfortunately, they didn’t get far before the dragon sensed them. Glowing red eyes appeared when they were only a few steps inside. Fear instantly pinned them in place. It was too dark to make out much, but her eyes shed a weak light. Her head rose as she lifted her neck. It stopped when it was several feet above them.

  “What do we do?” Harold asked in a panicked whisper.

  At the sound of his voice, the creature shot a burst of fire that stopped a few feet short of burning them to death. Harold made a terrified sound and Thomas hastily took the bundle from him before he could drop it.

  In the short time that the cave had been illuminated by the scorching flames, he examined the dragon. Instead of the gigantic, house sized beast that had been described, she was only around thirty feet long from her head to the tail that was curled around her body. Her claws were six inches or so long rather than the length of his arm. The only thing the old man had been truthful about was her color. Her scales were indeed as black as night.

  After that one burst of flame, her head hung dejectedly and Thomas felt pity for her swell. She was a mother whose child had been stolen from her and she was clearly grieving.

  Unwrapping the egg, Thomas cautiously approached her. His eyes adjusted to the darkness enough for him not to trip and fall. Her eyes latched onto the golden treasure. She followed his movements as he slowly and carefully knelt to place the egg at her feet.

  Smoke trailed from her nostrils, but she didn’t unleash her killing fire. She watched him as he backed away then reached out with a clawed hand and delicately picked up the egg. Lowering her head, she held the shell to her ear. Her eyes closed in relief when she either heard or sensed her child inside. She tenderly cradled the egg to her chest as they left her den.

  Their return trip down the path was far quicker than their ascent had been. They broke into a run as soon as they reached the safety of the beach. They turned to look back over their shoulders frequently as they raced for their horses.

  “Look,” Harold gasped when they’d nearly reached the trees. They stumbled to a stop as the dragon left the cave. For a few glorious moments, her wings were spread to their full length. She was a magnificent black silhouette against the sky with her egg clutched in one clawed hand.

  Thomas’ breath caught at her beauty. It was hard to imagine that a creature so majestic could actually be evil. Then she was gone from their view and his breath whooshed out again.

  “Where do you think she’ll go?” Harold asked as they resumed their trek at a much slower pace. He took his coat back when Thomas offered it to him.

  “I imagine she’ll search for a new home that is far away from people,” Thomas mused. He’d never admit it out loud, but he was glad she’d fled. After seeing her true size, he knew it would have been possible for them to kill her. The thought pained him deep inside. He wasn’t sure he could have brought himself to destroy something so beautiful.

  Although they’d been hideous in comparison to the dragon, he still felt a trace of regret for killing the nest of harpies. One small mistake had cost them their lives. This mission had been similar, although many humans rather than just one had died this time.

  The dragon had only attacked the village because the old man had stolen her child. She wasn’t like the dragons of legend that sacked villages and ate people on a regular basis. If she ever returned to seek further vengeance, he and Harold would do their duty, but he didn’t think it would come to that. Sometimes, the monsters weren’t as atrocious as the humans they were forced to exist alongside.

  ₪₪₪

  Chapter Eleven

  “I c
an’t believe they didn’t kill her,” Kala said after I finished reading the last paragraph. “I thought Thomas and his faithful sidekick always killed the monsters.”

  They did in most cases, but they apparently still had compassion despite all of the horrible things that they’d faced. “Do you think we should be killed just because we’re shifters?”

  “I see your point,” she said with a rueful smile. Checking her watch, she slid off the bed. “We should turn in. I’m sure Mark will find some clues for us to look into in the morning.”

  Mark was still sitting at the computer table when Zeus and I headed downstairs. Lost in thought, he barely noticed us as we walked past him. I knew better than to interrupt him when he was concentrating so hard.

  I let Zeus outside and he returned quickly. I sensed that he wasn’t particularly impressed by Texas so far. He preferred to be surrounded by trees rather than desert. He padded over to the rug in the living room rather than following me back up to my bedroom again. His leg was still sore and he wasn’t up to the climb again.

  “Don’t stay up too late,” I said to Mark in a mock stern tone on my way past.

  “Yes, Mom,” he replied with a smile.

  Entering my room, I shut and locked the door out of habit. I lay awake for a long time, unable to fall asleep. Without anyone there to witness my weakness, I allowed my tears to flow. It was hard not to wallow in self-pity when I was feeling so miserable and alone.

  After a restless night, I was the last to rise. I wasn’t the only one who’d had little sleep. Mark looked a little ragged around the edges when I joined him in the kitchen. He was in the middle of making coffee and took an extra mug from the cupboard without bothering to ask me if I wanted one. He knew me well enough to anticipate my needs.

  “Did you find anything helpful?” I asked as I poured cereal into a bowl.

  “Nothing concrete so far,” he replied. “Just myths and legends, I’m afraid.”

  Zeus had already been fed, but he was hoping for scraps to fall so he could supplement his breakfast. I took a seat at the rustic dining table that could seat twelve. With just the four of us, our group seemed pathetically tiny now. Still, I hoped Mark wasn’t serious about recruiting someone else. I wasn’t fond of the idea of someone new joining our team.

  “Myths and legends often prove to be factual,” Flynn pointed out after Mark finished handing out coffee to both him and Kala. “Surely there has to be something in the records?”

  “I couldn’t find anything that has the power to control reptiles,” Mark said. “I only found references to beings that had snakelike forms.”

  “Such as?” Kala queried. I was amused to see she, Flynn and I all wore practically the same outfit of a white t-shirt and tan cargo pants.

  Mark listed the creatures he’d found on the PIA database. “Medusa, hydras, basilisks, lamias, nagas and a few others that have never been verified as actual living creatures.”

  “I don’t know about the others, but lamias are real, aren’t they?” I said with a glance at Flynn. Lamias weren’t shifters like us. If they had been, Flynn would be the male equivalent of their species.

  Mark shrugged. “Apparently, but I’ve never seen any actual proof of one. Whatever we’re looking for could be something that hasn’t been encountered before.” He was enough of a scholar of the paranormal to be excited by the idea. I wasn’t excited at all. I just wanted to track it down and kill it before it struck again.

  “I ran a search of the area where the snakes went underground,” he continued. “There’s no mention of caves anywhere, so they can’t have burrowed down very far.”

  “The area looked fairly desolate,” Flynn said. “Are there any properties or buildings nearby?”

  Mark shook his head. “None close to where the snakes disappeared.”

  “It’s a pity we didn’t bring the drone with us,” Kala said. A chewed up lump of toast fell out of her mouth as she spoke. Zeus lunged over to snap it up, almost knocking me off my chair in his haste. She barely batted an eye as he disappeared beneath the table again. “You could have used it to search the area from above.”

  Our boss looked at her as if she’d grown another head. “That’s an excellent idea, Agent Walker.”

  “I’m not just a pretty face and a hot body, you know,” she said, pleased by his praise. He usually only referred to us by our titles when he was impressed or annoyed.

  “No,” Flynn agreed. “You’re also extremely modest.”

  She grinned, displaying more chewed up toast stuck in her teeth before washing it down with coffee. I focused on my cereal while Mark finished off his breakfast then hurried up to the coms room. He made a call to one of his contacts and arranged for another drone to be delivered to us.

  “We’re in luck,” he called down to us, forgetting that we could hear him just fine. “One will be delivered by mid-afternoon.”

  “Is Fran going to deliver it?” Kala called out slyly. Even from this distance, I saw Mark’s face turn red. Fran had dropped some weapons off during our last mission. It had been pretty clear that she had a crush on Mark.

  “I have no idea who will be delivering the package,” he said primly. “The PIA has many employees based all over the country.”

  “So, if she shows up here, we can assume it isn’t a coincidence then?” Kala said with an arched eyebrow.

  Glowering down at us, Mark turned away and stomped over to the computer.

  “I love teasing him,” she said and wiped away an imaginary tear of suppressed mirth. “He has no idea how to react.”

  “I feel bad for him,” I said softly. “He lost his wife and he loved her so much that he never tried to find someone else.”

  “Neither did your father,” Flynn pointed out.

  “Maybe because his wife wasn’t technically dead,” Kala mused. “I mean, her body is deceased, but she’s still walking around. Not to mention draining people dry on a regular basis.”

  I let out a sigh at the reminder of my dysfunctional family. “Who wants to do some training?” I’d rather face their fists than my own problems right now.

  Kala immediately brightened. “Feeling the need to punch away your frustrations?”

  “You could say that.” Sitting around doing nothing would leave my mind free to wander. I’d end up wallowing in self-pity and depression again. Getting the crap beaten out of me sounded like a better alternative.

  “I wonder if you’ll be able to control your wolf without Reece here to hold you back,” Flynn mused.

  “There’s only one way to find out,” I shrugged. It was habit for us to rinse our dishes and stack them in the dishwasher. Then we headed for the boxing ring at the far end of the room.

  By lunchtime, it was obvious that my inner rage wasn’t going to be a problem. It was hard to become angry when I was so despondent. At least I was improving. I could dodge their kicks and punches enough not to lose so much blood this time.

  Worried that my shooting skills might be rusty from lack of use after my month-long absence, I headed to the indoor gun range after lunch.

  “Want some company?” Kala asked.

  “Sure.” There was something I’d been meaning to do and now would be a good time to try it. She followed me to a door that was halfway down the long hallway. Inside was a five lane gun range with targets of various shapes, sizes and distances. We spent an hour plugging away at the different targets. I was happy to see that my accuracy was as stellar as ever.

  Kala was still firing at her target when I stepped over to a control panel on the wall. She had a dozen magazines lined up ready to reload. I waited for her to empty her clip and to reload her Colt before I started flicking switches at random. Hidden targets in the shape of bad guys burst from the walls on both sides of the room. Far faster than a human would have been able to, she took them down with shots to the head or chest.

  “That was just a warmup,” I warned her then I put her skills to the test. Targets began to appear from th
e left and right and some even dropped down from the ceiling. They moved rapidly across the lanes or shot towards us. She missed a few, but overall she did far better than the first time I’d seen her tackle this test. Completely random, it was impossible to memorize the patterns.

  Waving gun smoke away when the last target went down, she turned and grinned. “How did I do, oh great and wonderful teacher?”

  “You make me proud,” I replied. “If I could improve my hand to hand combat skills like you have with your target practice, I’d be happy.”

  “You underrate yourself,” she scolded me as we left the range. “You had no combat skills at all when you joined our team. Now you can hold your own against us.”

  “Would you be happy with my pitiful level of skills?”

  She thought about it before answering. “No,” she replied truthfully. “I wouldn’t be happy until I could behead someone with a spinning round kick.”

  “Have you ever actually done that?” I could somehow picture her doing it quite vividly.

  “Only once,” she said with a nostalgic smile. “It was awesome.”

  I’d accidentally torn a man’s arm off not that long ago and I knew how it felt to dismember a human. He’d tried to mow us both down with his pickup truck, so I felt no guilt at all at the memory.

  Everything that I’d killed since becoming a member of the Shifter Squad had deserved the justice that I’d meted out. If I’d joined the army as I’d planned, I would have ended up taking lives as a sniper. Even if I hadn’t ended up as a monster, I’d always been fated to be a killer.

  ₪₪₪

  Chapter Twelve

  Kala headed to the kitchen to make coffee and I plonked down on the couch. Deep in research mode, Mark was in the coms room. Flynn was absent and so was Zeus. I reached out with my mind and sensed my guardian out the front of the compound. With a little concentration, I looked through his eyes and saw a white van parked at the gate. Flynn was talking to the delivery driver. It wasn’t Fran and was instead a man in his thirties.