“Daddy!” Serena whined.
“I won’t be back until then,” Amelis heard Val say in the room behind her, cutting Serena off.
The End?
DRACONES
THANIEL
Book Four
By
Sheri-Lynn Marean
Prologue
“Mommy, I’m hungry.” Four-year-old Thaniel eyed the blue-frosted cake on the counter. It looked like the yummiest cake ever.
“I know, Thaniel, but we need to wait for Daddy. He’s taking us for supper for your birthday.” Mommy glared in irritation at the clock on the wall before sitting down at the table, sighing. “Go watch out the window. He should be here by now.”
“Oh-kay.” Thaniel’s shoulders slumped as he made his way to the couch and climbed up. He leaned over the back and craned his head to look up and down the street. It was getting dark and a light snow had begun to fall, making it hard to see. Thaniel mashed his face against the chilly glass, making it fog up. Pulling away, he wiped it with his sleeve before leaning close to search the night.
It seemed like forever before his daddy pulled into the driveway. “Mommy, he’s here. Can we go eat now?” he asked.
But Mommy didn’t say a word and when Daddy walked in, she glared at him. “Where have you been?”
“Daddy!” Thaniel squealed, but Daddy ignored them both and hurried through the kitchen and down the hall.
“Daddy?”
“Be quiet,” Mommy hissed at him as she followed Daddy to their room.
Shocked and bewildered, Thaniel trailed after them. Then, heart in his throat, he stood in their doorway and listened to his mother rant while Daddy pulled clothes out of his dresser and closet and shoved them into a suitcase. A chill rushed through Thaniel.
“We’ve been waiting hours. You could have called,” Mommy cried.
His daddy didn’t say a word or even look at Mommy as he packed.
“Garret, what are you doing? What’s going on?” Mommy shouted and Thaniel saw anger flare in Daddy’s eyes before he moved past her and wheeled his suitcase toward the door.
Thaniel gulped and moved aside as Daddy flicked his angry gaze over him, but Daddy stop. Instead, he hurried past Thaniel with Mommy close behind. Filled with dread, Thaniel trailed after them.
“Why are you doing this?” Mommy asked, but Daddy didn’t answer. “Please, don’t go. I’m sorry for getting mad. Please,” Mommy begged as Daddy stopped near the front door.
Thaniel watched him pick up his briefcase and walk over to the dining room table.
“You want to know why?” he asked. Mommy nodded. Daddy pulled some papers out and tossed them at Mommy. “This is why. You are a lying, cheating whore. I’m done.” Daddy turned and pointed at Thaniel. “And that is not my son.”
At the vehemence in his tone, Thaniel felt like he’d been slapped.
“What?” Mommy blinked in surprise, but a moment later she shook her head. Tears rolled down her face. “No. No, please. I’m sorry, but Thaniel … he’s yours. I promise.”
Thaniel trembled. He didn’t understand Daddy’s words. Daddy didn’t want him anymore?
“You cheated on me,” Daddy said. Turning away, he grabbed his suitcase.
The only thing Thaniel understood was his daddy was leaving. Heart racing, he hurried over. “No. Don’t go.” Terrified, he latched onto his daddy’s leg.
“Let go!” Daddy growled and tried to shake him free.
“I’m sorry! I’ll be better so you want me. Please don’t go,” he cried, tears streaming down his face.
Daddy snarled at him. “Get off me.” He reached down and pried Thaniel’s arms from around his leg. Then though he’d had never spoken a harsh word to Thaniel in his life, roughly shoved him aside. “Get away from me, you little bastard.”
Thaniel fell backward and hit his head on the hardwood floor. His ears rang and it was a moment before he was able to catch his breath. Tears ran unchecked as a terrible heartache overtook him. He didn’t understand what he’d done to make Daddy so angry. The pictures on the walls rattled as the front door slammed. His mother collapsed to the floor, wailing. With difficulty, he choked back his own sobs, sat up, and wiped his face. Hurt and confused, he crawled over to his mother. “Mommy,” he said, trying to climb into her lap.
“No,” she shouted shoving him away. “Get away from me. This is all your fault. I hate you. I should have drowned you when you were born,” she screeched, leaving him wide-eyed and terrified.
Chapter One
The Streets
THANIEL HELD PERFECTLY STILL as a pesky but familiar itch made the fine hairs on the back of his neck stand at attention. He couldn’t see her, didn’t even know how he knew it was her, but he knew.
All his life he’d often sensed someone watching him, but this was more than a feeling. Even over the reek of greasy food, asphalt, and car fumes, he was able to catch her scent on the warm July breeze. It was the faintest hint of jasmine mixed with a feminine musk. No. There was no doubt that she was back—his stalker.
Thaniel shivered and not from cold, but rather from a generic vision of his future based on his past. Cold and bleak and without hope. Though he may have once believed in unicorns and fairy tales, that childish innocence died a brutal death when he turned four years old.
Sixteen and a half years later, he knew that whatever reason she had for trailing his every move, it couldn’t be good. Nothing in his life had been, and he didn’t expect it to change now. He scanned furtively up and down the empty lamp-lit street. A block away, he caught the brief flash of headlights before the car turned and drove out of sight. Still he searched, but didn’t see a soul.
The logical part of his mind tried to convince him he was imagining her. The other part, the part that seemed to know things, believed differently. Really, though, what earthly reason would she have to stalk him? He’d often pondered that but came up with nothing.
His stomach rumbled and he turned to stare longingly at the soup kitchen across the street. The thought of mashed potatoes, soup, and the other food they often served made his stomach pinch—the place would be closing any time now.
He wished he had the guts to just go in and get something to eat, but without his big, surly friend Real by his side, he didn’t dare. For some reason, Thaniel always attracted the unwanted attention of thugs and bullies. The wrong kind of attention, as he’d learned the hard way.
Sure, not all the homeless were bullies or thugs. In fact, a lot were just people down on their luck who really only desired to be left alone. And yes, a lot of the homeless had some sort of mental illness too, but there were also the runaway teenagers. Something of which he was very familiar with since it was how he ended up on the streets himself years before.
He supposed that not all foster homes were bad either. Unfortunately, the one’s he’d been lucky enough to get put into were, and the older he got, the worse they became. As a small, scrawny kid too scared to even speak up, he had no defense against any of the abuse. The last home had been the final straw.
Though he was the same age as his foster parents’ twin boys, they outweighed him by at least eighty pounds each, and never hesitated to let Thaniel know how much they resented his presence in their home. When he finally got the courage to say something, his foster mother grew angry and called him a liar. Then one day he walked in as his foster brothers were watching one of their father’s porno videos. Before he could get away, they pinned him down. Then they told him what they planned to do to him later that night when their parents were asleep.
They laughed when he threatened to tell on them, and Thaniel knew he was done. There was no way either of his foster parents would believe him.
That night when his foster parents retired to bed, he went into his room, closed the door, and quietly lifted the window. Glad his room was on the first floor and heart pounding, he slipped outside and ran. As bad and scary as the streets were, he’d much rather take his chances on his own
.
Most of the time, the homeless didn’t even notice Thaniel, but he quickly found out that things could be just as bad on his own. It seemed no matter where he went, there were always bullies who thought it their right to do what they wanted, especially once they laid eyes on him. Even filthy and smelling like grime and garbage didn’t deter them from him.
Across the street, the door to the soup kitchen opened. Thaniel eased back into the shadows of the building where he hid and watched a small group emerge. Most went their separate way without a word, and Thaniel thought he was safe until a medium-sized man of about thirty with a scruffy beard and long unkempt hair stopped and stared across the street—straight at him. Thaniel sucked in a breath and held perfectly still, though he couldn’t stop the tremble that ran through him.
Finally, with a predatory gait, the guy turned and walked away. Thaniel still didn’t move. A moment later, one of the volunteers from the kitchen pushed the door open partway, checked that no one waited outside, then closed the door and locked it before disappearing back inside.
Thaniel waited until he didn’t see or sense anyone lurking about. He wasn’t even sensing his stalker. With a relieved sigh, he hurried away from the facade of safety the shadows had lent him. He’d really hoped that Real would be here tonight. Though his silent friend never said much of anything, he often met Thaniel at the kitchen.
At the corner, he turned and darted past buildings and across the next street. He made his way behind a burger joint where he planned to check out the dumpster, when he spotted two men wearing aprons standing outside the back door. Cigarette smoke curled around them, as if it could disguise the scent of the pot they’d previously smoked. Thaniel moved on.
Two blocks further, he started past the next alleyway when the aroma of steak and seafood activated his salivary glands, making him falter. The fancy restaurant that backed onto this alley was high end, not the usual greasy spoons he often dumpster-dived behind. His stomach cramped in hunger. How he’d love to eat here just once. Wishful thinking because it was never going to happen.
He was just about to continue on his way when the sound of garbage bags being tossed into a dumpster stopped him. This particular restaurant usually put their garbage out much later in the evening.
He peered around and not seeing anyone, crept into the alley. A young, clean-cut guy, likely the dishwasher, tossed the last bag in and headed toward the back door of the restaurant. Thaniel heard the door close and was about to make his move when a shape peeled itself away from the wall fifty feet in front of him. He stood still and watched as a man staggered down the alleyway in the other direction.
Being cautious had saved Thaniel’s ass more than a few times when he’d been chased from a dumpster. On silent feet, he slipped between the grungy brick of the building and a beat-up sedan. He crouched down and made himself as small as possible while the drunk shuffled away, only to stop in a dark corner and take a piss. It seemed like forever before he zipped, and continued on his way.
Thaniel began to blow out a breath of air when the hair on the back of his neck stood up. Of course she was back. Furtively, he scanned around his temporary shelter toward the entrance to the alley and saw nothing but more shadows hugging the stained and moldy walls. Nothing moved, not even a breeze.
A belch up ahead had his head swiveling back that way. Whoever she was behind him could wait. She’d been stalking him for months now anyway. If she planned to hurt him, she could have done so. Instead, he watched the drunk stumble around the corner and out of sight.
Thaniel quickly scanned all around, peering through waist-length hair that when clean was whitish-blond. Right now, it was a dingy grayish-brown. He hated letting it get so nasty but if it kept some of the assholes who wanted a piece of him away, he was all for it. He knew he should cut it off, but it was all he had and somehow, for reasons he didn’t understand, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Besides, he and Real were due to head over to the shelter and get cleaned up next week. It was something they did once a month.
Thaniel would have liked to go more often, but it wasn’t wise for him to look or smell too clean. For about the millionth time, he wished he were bigger. He didn’t understand why he drew others to him. He was ugly. Scars lined his body along with his mind, and no matter how many times others told him how pretty he was … he knew it for a lie. They just wanted someone to control, to use, and then discard without a thought.
How nice it would be, to not have any fear of those who gazed at him like they wanted to eat him up. No one looked at Real that way, but then Real was over six feet of raw muscle. Large, with feral, yet desolate green eyes, Real was the ultimate depiction of intimidating. No one messed with him.
He shivered as he recalled how Real had rescued him when he was fourteen. He’d been living on the streets for a year, barely surviving, when a couple greasy-haired, bearded men had chased him between two buildings.
***
Cornered in a narrow alley with old broken furniture and garbage everywhere, he thought he was going to get away, until he ran into a tall chain-link fence. With a quick look back, he saw the men gaining on him and began to climb. A moment later, two hands grabbed onto his legs in a painful grip.
“Ain’t nowhere to go, little mouse,” a gruff voice said before Thaniel was yanked to the ground. One of the men, skinny as a toothpick, danced around and chuckled like he had a few screws loose. The other man who had a hold of Thaniel, leered down at him.
“Leave me alone.” Voice coming out a squeak, Thaniel struggled against the guy. He had to get away, but his fight was to no avail. The man was stronger than him, which he proved by shoving Thaniel up against the brick wall of the building between the fence and a stack of pallets. No—no—no! Think! Find a way out of this. Thaniel swallowed and searched around, looking for a means of escape, but there wasn’t any. Finally, he turned and stared fearfully up at the man who was now looking him over. “Ain’t you just a pretty boy, even all dirty like a rug rat.”
“I like ruhg rat,” his buddy piped up with some kind of drawl. Chuckling, he hopped from one foot to the other like he couldn’t hold still. Thaniel felt ill. Why couldn’t people just leave him alone?
The man who held him pinned against the wall, grinned. His mouth was full of rotted teeth and the stench of his breath made Thaniel want to gag. The whites of his cruel, watery-blue eyes had a yellow tint, like he was sick. Thaniel caught a glint of crazy in the man’s eyes and knew he was done for.
“This will go easier on you if you don’t fight it,” Cruel said and licked his lips.
“But I likes whens they fight,” Crazy whined. Darting forward, he touched Thaniel’s hair, making him jerk back.
“Let me go,” he said, but they both just laughed. Thaniel doubled over when Cruel punched him hard in the stomach. His breath whooshed out of him and when he finally dared to peek up again, his mouth dropped open at the sight of the giant bearing down the alley at them.
When Cruel saw that Thaniel’s attention was elsewhere, he frowned and glanced behind him. “What the fuck?” Letting Thaniel go, he faced the behemoth coming at them. At his buddy’s words, Crazy stopped jumping around and also turned, stepping back beside Cruel.
“Wah’s that?”
At first, Thaniel thought the giant with shaggy black hair, beard, and mustache must be another friend of his tormentors, but Cruel and Crazy’s reactions told him otherwise. Any doubts he had dissolved when the giant tossed the stack of pallets out of the way like they were nothing.
“Leave him alone,” the giant growled.
Thaniel stared at him in shock, not sure what was happening. Did he want Thaniel for himself?
“This ain’t none of your business,” Cruel said, sliding a switchblade out of his pocket and releasing the blade. The giant just growled again, showing a row of shiny, white teeth.
Crazy, who had stopped dancing, rocked back and forth from his heels to his toes as he parroted his buddy. “Yeah, ain�
��t none ah your bidness.”
“I said, leave him alone,” the giant repeated.
Thaniel could see the fear on their faces, but Cruel and Crazy shook their head, not wanting to give up their prize. Thaniel’s eyes widened and he pressed against the wall as the giant, who was over six feet tall and bigger than anyone he’d ever seen, made mincemeat of the two. Finally, Cruel and Crazy lay in painful-looking heaps on the ground, silent and unmoving.
“They’ll hurt you no more,” the giant said.
It took a second for Thaniel to realize the man was talking to him. He swallowed deeply, but said nothing as he continued to stare at the guy, wondering what he was going to do next.
The giant watched him for a moment, then turned and started back down the alley. When Thaniel didn’t move, he finally turned back. “You going to wait for them to wake up?”
Thaniel cautiously pushed away from the wall. “They aren’t—” Disappointment filled him as he mumbled the words to himself, but somehow the giant still heard him.
“You thought they were dead,” the large man said.
Thaniel hunched his shoulders, knowing it wasn’t nice to wish another person ill, but he couldn’t help how he felt. He was tired of people hurting him. He inched past the men on the ground, scared one would wake up and grab him again. They’ll be hurting tomorrow at least, he thought, feeling a slight satisfaction.
“They deserve it. I have no doubt,” the giant said as he watched Thaniel.
Keeping his face lowered, Thaniel peeked at him through the tangled strands of his hair, making sure not to make eye contact.
Once he was past Cruel and Crazy, he slowed, unsure. The giant hadn’t moved and he was scared to get any closer to the guy.
As if sensing his fear, the giant turned and began to walk again. “Come on, I won’t hurt you.”
Dracones Boxset Books 1-5 Page 90
