* * *
Stretching was rather difficult with two men wrapped around me. After some impressive, almost acrobatic movements, I managed to shimmy out from under Iavo’s arm and crawl out from under Zach’s leg.
The men didn’t stir, and I took the opportunity to go get cleaned up. I looked at them in complete awe of their beauty and then flushed. I might have to make it a cold shower if I ever wanted to get to my brother.
Once I had dried off, I was sad I only had the borrowed hospital scrubs from the night before to put on. A fresh shirt would be nice. Maybe I would buy a shirt from the book store at my brother’s school, I thought. Show some school spirit or something.
I pulled my shirt on before going back out and was met by two naked and beautiful men sitting on the edge of the bed with their arms crossed.
“We would have showered with you,” Zach said as he smirked at me.
Iavo nodded in the kind of unsettling, emotionless way he had. He was back to hunting mode and the change in him would have terrified me if I’d been his prey.
“I would have enjoyed that,” I said, “but I have to be going, and I have a feeling that would have turned into a long shower.”
Zach stood and walked into the bathroom. I watched him walk by with admiration. He was one damn good-looking man. Iavo came over and pulled me into his chest. He brought his mouth down hard on mine and kissed me like he was making a mark. When he pulled away, I was breathless, and my knees were a bit weak. The pull between us was impossible to deny. I wanted them every moment of every day.
He made a move to pull me towards the bed, but I resisted—hard as it was. If I lay back down with either of them, I’d never make it to see Garrett. That was the whole reason for being in the city, and I wasn’t going to veer from my path. “Not right now, Iavo. You have to hunt a rogue dragon, and I have to go find my brother.”
No. It’s too dangerous.
I shook his hand off my wrist and stepped back. “Yes. He’s my brother and I have to find him.”
Zach came out of the bathroom. “Where are you going, love?” he asked with a smile, but there was tension around his eyes and mouth, and I knew he was communicating with Iavo and not including me. No denying, the way he said ‘love’ made my stomach feel warm, but I wasn’t getting detoured. Not today.
“To see my brother. When I went to his dorm, he wasn’t there. I’m not about to miss out on the opportunity to talk to him. I’ve looked for him for too long.”
The brothers looked at one another for a moment before turning their gaze back on me.
It’s too dangerous. We will take you to see your brother once the Riven is dead and no longer a threat to you.
Iavo was being demanding and dominant, but I wasn’t in the mood. Not today. Not about this. I could have died yesterday, and he never would have known I was looking for him. That I’d worried about him every single day we’d been apart. That I loved him. “No. I’m not going to run around afraid of a stupid dragon.”
“Brittany, baby, I don’t think—” Zach was using a tone of voice I’d heard before. Coaxing. Sweet. But in the end, he wanted the same thing Iavo did. Which was for me to sit here with a target on my back and hope the nasty green monster didn’t find me again.
“How do you know I’d be safe here?” I demanded. “He found me at work. He knows my scent. Are you telling me he couldn’t find this cabin? Track your dragon scent to this place? If he’s not stupid, he’ll know you have me here. The moment you leave, I’m a sitting duck.”
Zach looked to Iavo.
We will take her to Washington and leave her with the queen. Once she is safe, we will continue the hunt.
“Washington? I thought you were from Arizona?” It surprised me their queen was so far away. I had remembered them mentioning going with them before, but I didn’t think it was a hard request. I thought it might have been for a trip, or maybe even just as a suggestion. I had just assumed they were from Chicago. There were millions of people in this stupid city. What was two more?
“Yes, you’re our mate. You can’t deny the bond; I know you feel it.” Zach nodded his head, taking a step closer. “We can leave you under the queen’s protection and resume the hunt once you are taken care of.”
My anxiety returned then as I realized what was happening. I was being asked to make a choice between them and my brother, or so that was the way it seemed to me. That wasn’t an option. Not after all I had gone through to find Garrett and get to him.
I swallowed, trying to calm myself before I spoke. “I just found my brother, and you want me to leave him now? With a deranged dragon serial killer on the loose in his city? No. No freaking way. I am not going anywhere.”
Without hesitation, without a moment of consideration or empathy, Iavo said, Yes, you are. Iavo wasn’t wavering. Our queen resides under the mountain in Washington. She will keep you safe while we finish the hunt. Once we are sure things are safe, we will come for you and take you to our home. It didn’t seem like he’d compromise at all, and that just made me angrier.
“In Arizona?”
Yes. That is our territory. We do not normally travel this far north but followed the Riven here.
I took a deep breath and sighed heavily, my fists clenched at my sides as I tried to get control of myself. I felt completely disrespected, and I wasn’t happy about it. “Look… I’m going to see Garrett and then we can discuss potentially going to Washington, or Arizona, or wherever you guys are from. I’m not your toy, and we’ve not known each other long enough for you to simply tell me I have to do something. Correction, no man can tell me I have to do something. Ever. And if that’s what you need in a woman, you’ve got the wrong damn one.”
My attempt at control had all been lost the moment I’d opened my mouth. My voice was getting rougher. The problem I was facing was I was in love with them. The truth was that going to Arizona to start a new life with them sounded great. I had always wanted to pack up and travel, move somewhere new and start a new life.
But that wasn’t possible.
Not now.
No matter how I felt about them, things weren’t just black and white. There was a grey area—one they would have to understand. My brother was the thing that threw a wrench in that plan, and I would absolutely have to choose family, even though he was a stranger to me now. Just because we didn’t know each other well now didn’t mean that it always had to be that way. We could become close, and I wanted that chance. I wouldn’t allow the guys to take that away from me.
And if they cared about me, about what I wanted or needed, they wouldn’t ask it of me.
Iavo looked as tense as Zach sounded. He was pacing in front of the bed staring at me. Both of them seemed upset and confused that I would consider anything other than what they had told me.
I shook my head. “I’m going to see Garrett and you’re going to go hunt a crazy dragon. That is what’s happening today.” I knew they couldn’t force me to go with them. It just felt like it would have been a lot more romantic if they had asked.
Breaking me from my raging thoughts, Iavo pulled me to him and kissed me. His kiss was urgent, forceful, and made my knees melt.
“Don’t worry. I’ll be fine. I’ll be safer in the city than I will be out here alone.”
Iavo let me go, his eyes glowing with the amber light I now realized only came with high emotion.
Zach stepped forward and placed his lips against mine. His kiss was a lot softer than Iavo’s had been. “Be safe. Stay out of sight if you can. If you go out, stay under cover. Be careful.”
“I will. I promise.”
“We’ll find the Riven and come for you.”
“Okay.” I was worried the Riven would hurt them. Kill one of them. But I didn’t want to put the thought into their minds. Confidence was key when heading into battle, and I didn’t want to be the weakling in our relationship. Still, I couldn’t hold back the words, “Come back to me.”
He will die a painful death
, mate. I give you my word.
I wasn’t sure if that was supposed to be romantic, coming from a dragon, so I didn’t say anything as I made my way out the door.
Chapter 11
Brittany
* * *
The sky had turned into streaks of gold as I wiped the tears from my eyes. I dropped the sun visor to protect my vision from the worst of it while driving. I’d had to call a taxi to take me back to my car, but I felt a bit better the moment I was back inside my own property.
The car wasn’t anything fancy, but it got me wherever I needed to go. There was this deep ache inside me the farther I got from the guys. I wondered if it was the bond they spoke of pressing on me or if it was my own emotions.
Maybe I shouldn’t have left without them, but I certainly couldn’t live without my brother, and they were dead set on the hunt for this Riven. Garrett and I were separated as children when we went into the system. I swore to him once I found him, I’d never let him go again.
The skyline of Chicago came into my view as I took the exit to the university. Dread welled up in me as I tried to calm my nerves. As if seeing my brother was a huge event. The university came into sight as I pulled into the parking spot closest to his dorm.
I rushed out into the humidity, opened the door, and looked down the hallway. I could see his door on the right. I made a beeline to it. This time, I didn’t feel like fucking with any stupid roommate. Without hesitation, I opened the door, startling my brother and his roomy in the process. There he was… I couldn’t believe it. With just as much gusto, I ran forward. He started to laugh as I wrapped my arms around him.
“Where the hell have you been? I’ve been looking for you forever!” Garrett asked with obvious anger.
I just shook my head, and let the tears fall, unsure of how to answer. Every time we were separated I felt like I was falling apart. Maybe Garrett did also.
Shaking my head and stepping away, I said, “It’s okay, I’m here now. I met someone. That’s where I’ve been. You disappeared and scared the shit out of me.” I patted him on the back and pulled back.
Tears started to flow from my eyes again as I sat down at his desk. When I looked up at him, his dark eyes betrayed him as well, tears streaming down his own cheeks.
“Well, since you’re here, why don’t we go out and get a drink or two?” Garrett asked as he stood up and pulled me from my seat.
I laughed and let him lead the way. He led me to the parking lot and out to his Jeep. Once we were all settled in, we went. It only took a few blocks to get to the bar, but we chatted the whole way.
The bar was surprisingly not as busy as I had expected. We took two stools at the bar top, instead of opting for one of the tables, and I ordered a nice, neat tumbler of apple whiskey. Garrett ordered a dark ale and we sat and enjoyed each other’s company. The other patrons started to get loud and a few fists were thrown, so we moved away from the melee to a booth in the corner and hoped it didn’t spill over into our area.
My brother seemed happy, and I couldn’t help but be happy for him. “I only have a semester left until I graduate! I took the LSAT. Now I wait."
"Wait for what?"
"Answers from the schools I applied to." He grinned at me like I was confused, which I was.
"But, you're graduating. I'm confused."
He laughed, a real laugh, the first time I'd heard that sound from him and something broken inside me healed in an instant. He was okay, my baby brother. Really okay.
"Law school."
I nearly choked on my drink. "What?"
"If Mom and Dad could see us now, what do you think they’d say?” Garrett asked as he sipped his drink.
Still reeling with the idea of my baby brother going to law school, I didn't think to lie, or be diplomatic. “I honestly don’t know what they would say. They didn’t care about us when we were little, so I don't think they’d care about what we have going on now. I just want to enjoy the fact that you’re rocking school, and you’re about to have one hell of a life,” I said as I picked up my whiskey and sipped. I motioned to the waitress for another, and with a quick nod, she acknowledged me.
Garrett sat back and drank the remainder in his glass. The waitress dropped off my new drink on the way to the kitchen. “Who are you seeing now?” Garrett asked.
“We’ll talk about that later; it’s a little complicated. How about you? I heard there was a girl you’re seeing. Who’s she?” I smiled as I asked.
Garrett blushed slightly and answered, “Well, there is a woman I’m seeing named Megan. She’s amazing. I'm thinking about proposing, but I'm not sure yet. And besides, if I decide to go for it, I want to wait until graduation night to ask her.”
My eyes widened as the biggest smile spread across my face. “Oh, my god! That’s amazing news!” I screamed and jumped from my seat to hug him. I drew the attention of the entire bar, but I didn’t care. I was going to hug my brother whether the whole fucking bar agreed with it or not.
“Let’s get a couple of shots to celebrate! Mary! Two more shots of whiskey over here please! We’re celebrating!” I said with a laugh as I wrapped Garrett’s head in my arm and rubbed my knuckles across his head.
He pulled away but laughed as I took my seat across from him. "Don't go crazy, sis. I said I'm thinking about asking her."
It wasn’t long before Mary dropped off our shots as she walked by, smiling and giving her congratulations as she did. After all those shots, time with my brother, and a couple tumblers of whiskey, I forgot why I was even sad in the first place.
I paid the bill and we made our way out the door. Next door there was a perfectly placed restaurant, The Flapjack House. “My treat, we’re going out to have some flapjacks!” I said to Garrett as we drunkenly made our way to the front door.
The only patrons were other like-minded drunks who had obviously been in the same bar as we had. We took a seat in the corner and looked over the menu. I loved just being with my brother. After so many years were stolen from us, I had a lot of time I needed to make up for, and I couldn’t wait to get started.
“So, what do you plan on doing when you finish law school?” I asked.
Garrett opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted as the waitress walked up. “What can I get y’all?” The salt-and-pepper-haired woman's nametag identified her as Marcia.
My head was fuzzy as I looked at the menu, but I didn’t really need to see. I already knew what I wanted. “I’ll have three flapjacks, hash browns with onions, and a mocha, but can you add two shots of espresso to that?”
Marcia smiled, nodded then looked to Garrett. “And what can I get for you?”
He paused for a moment as he looked at the menu, but then finally just said, “I’ll have the same.”
She took our menus and left us. Even though years had separated us from one another, we still had the same taste in food. It was kind of a dumb thing to be excited over, but I would probably be getting excited over a lot of silly things for quite some time to come.
Picking up right where we had left off, he said, “Family law.”
Two words and he didn't need to say more. I knew. We both knew why. Lawyers and social workers had separated us. Kept us apart. Given us to other people. Not that staying with our parents had been an option, but that time in our lives had been chaotic and painful. "That's a rough road, little brother."
"I know. But someone has to do it. Who better than me?" The hint of laughter that lingered in his eyes was completely gone now and I knew that look well. Pain. Years of stress and worry. Instability. Never knowing if we were going to spend another night under the same roof or be torn apart. That kind of life left scars where no one could see them. Scars my brother and I shared.
Scars Zach and Iavo were beginning to heal.
Done, we paid and walked arm in arm toward the car. I was blissfully happy, so relieved that Garrett remembered his big sister, that he didn’t blame me for the completely messed up version of a childhood
we’d both survived.
“I love you, little brother. I never stopped looking for you.” I was crying and he turned, pulling me into a hug.
“I know. I love you, too. And now that we’re together again, everything will work out. You’ll see.”
I nodded and wiped at my runny nose as I looked up at him. He was tall, my baby brother. Almost as tall as Zach, and built of solid muscle. Whatever girl had her hooks in him was very, very lucky.
My unwavering smile faded as the hair on my body stood straight up. I flinched backward as I saw Garrett get pistol whipped from behind, my brother falling to my feet, unconscious.
Before I could react, the offender lunged at me with the barrel pointed directly at my head. I could feel the cold steel of the gun pressed against my temple. “Leave him alone. He has nothing to do with this.”
The golden eyed monster stepped around my brother’s body like he was a dead cat on the street. “On the contrary, I smell his blood. He is one of us, Dragonborn. He comes, too. Perhaps I will use him to bargain with the queen.”
I almost growled at him. “You’ll have me. Why do you need him?”
His laugh made my blood go cold. “You’ll be dead. The queen will not bargain for a corpse.”
He struck hard and fast. Blinding pain. The sensation of falling.
I landed on top of my brother.
Then…nothing.
I woke next to a pile of bodies piled as high as I was tall. There were at least three dozen people—all torn to pieces. I didn’t know where one began and another ended. Men, women, probably children… This wasn’t like the movies. These creatures didn’t care whether it was right or wrong to kill a child. Because the Riven was a true monster. He didn’t live by the morals of humans.
Everything around me was overwhelming, especially the horrible stench. I couldn’t handle the smell and I turned, vomiting in the dirt to my left. Not wanting to be anywhere near that smell either—thrown-up pancakes and booze—I scooted away from my vomit and the pile of mutilated bodies and saw my brother.
Marked at Midnight--Mark of the Dragon, Book 1 Page 10
