Rohan tensed.
The Syndor Emperor hadn't just sent a small unit to hunt the remaining Dracans down. He had sent a Slayor General to lead the hunt.
Rohan's fighting instinct and reflex kicked in as the Slayors charged at him. He wasn't just the Crown Prince. He was a Lieutenant General of the Dracan army. He might be outnumbered, but he wasn't outmatched. He could think and move faster than these Slayors. He wasn't just a soldier. He was a leader, and a leader fought with his mind. Mind was always stronger and faster than matter.
Rohan waited until the Slayors were almost upon him before moving. His movements was swift and sharp, and he didn't miss his targets.
There was only a blur as Rohan slashed his blade across the throat of a Slayor. He spat and cursed when black blood spurted across his face. Whirling round, he kicked a blade out of the hand of another Slayor and stabbed his knife into the Slayor's chest. He left his knife there and turned to face the third Slayor.
The third Slayor was bigger than the other two, and he snarled as he kicked his dying comrades out of his way. He pulled a long dagger out and ran at Rohan. Rohan parried his blows, but the Slayor was brutally strong. He moved surprisingly fast for someone his size, and Rohan was forced deeper and deeper into the alley.
As Rohan fought back, he tried to find an opening. The Slayor was a skilful fighter, and he was stronger and bigger than Rohan. The Slayor knew that and his thin lips curved in triumph. He was anticipating his victory and relishing killing the Crown Prince of Draca.
Rohan dropped to the ground suddenly. He saw the enemy's weakness clearly.
Rohan slumped his shoulders and looked up at the Slayor with a look of utter defeat and resignation in his eyes. He looked like a man who knew that he was going to die at the hands of an opponent who was superior to him in skill, stature and power.
The Slayor bellowed in victory and raised his dagger. “Die, my worthless little prince,” the Slayor hissed derisively.
Rohan waited until the Slayor's blade started descending towards his neck.
In a flash, he reared up and buried his knife deep in the heart of his enemy. There was a look of surprise and incomprehension on the Slayor's face as he stared down at the knife in his chest.
Then he dropped to his knees in front of Rohan and the light died in his yellow eyes.
Rohan pulled his knife out of the Slayor's chest and wiped the black blood off. Stepping over the body, he deadpanned, “I'm not your prince.”
Rohan dragged the bodies of the three Slayors into the alley and kicked them into a pile. Stepping back, he called forth his dragon and felt the great beast ripple under his skin.
His gold flecks in his eyes expanded and spread until his blue-green eyes became fully golden. His skin shimmered as his dragon pressed up to the surface. He retained his human shape, but his dragon was in control.
As his dragon stared at the dead Slayors, a searing heat began to burn in his chest. The heat spiraled towards his throat, and Rohan opened his mouth to release a white hot flame.
The flame shot towards the pile of bodies and set them alight. In just a few seconds, the bodies had been completely incinerated. There was nothing left of them but smoke.
The smoke swirled around Rohan's feet as he walked out of the alley.
He glanced at his watch and smiled grimly. Three Slayors down and it wasn't even midnight yet.
CHAPTER TEN
“Ten! I took out ten Slayors and I burned those shits to smoke. Then I burned their smoke to nothing,” Zul announced as he came stomping into the kitchen.
Rohan glanced up from his phone. He had returned home an hour earlier, and he had already finished his breakfast.
Edriq and Zul came in together, but only Zul's heavy footsteps could be heard. Edriq made no sound as he moved, and that was what made him such a deadly killer.
Mrs Vomae came and placed a plate of sizzling steaks on the table, and refreshed Rohan's coffee. Zul had heaped two large steaks on his plate by the time Mrs Vomae returned with the garlic bread and scrambled eggs.
“Breakfast, my favorite meal of the day,” Zul declared, grabbing the whole bread basket.
As Rohan put down his phone and downed his black coffee, Zul shoveled the scrambled egg into his mouth and said, “So, how's it going?”
“How's what going?”
“You know.” Zul tugged at his short, brown hair and shuddered dramatically.
Edriq elbowed Zul and said encouragingly, “You can do it, Rohan. It's not that hard. Right?”
Zul rolled his eyes and chomped on his steak. With a grunt, the big guy fell silent and just ate.
Rohan couldn't tell if the guy was deep in thought or just enjoying his food. Zul was built like a mountain, with thick shoulders and bulging biceps. He had a disarming, impish grin and he could look like an overgrown teenager with his streaked brown hair and handsome, boyish features. But when he was fighting Slayors, Zul was an unstoppable, killing machine.
Edriq didn't talk much. He ate the same way he worked, efficiently and quietly. He finished his eggs and steak and politely thanked Mrs Vomae for the wonderful breakfast as he went to pour himself another cup of coffee. Mrs Vomae always prepared a big, hearty breakfast full of protein and carbs. A night of flying and fighting sapped a lot of energy and they needed to recharge.
All heads swiveled to the door as Tessa came bounding into the kitchen. “Daddy! Daddy!” she squealed, jumping up and down.
Rohan looked at the clock. “What are you doing up so early? It's not even six o'clock.”
“I want to give you enough time to do my hair today,” she said, tugging him out of his chair.
“Sit down, Tessa,” Mrs Vomae said. “Finish your breakfast. Then you can do your hair.”
Tessa pouted but obeyed. Mrs Vomae was a good housekeeper and a no-nonsense nanny. She didn't let Tessa get away with anything. “Unlike you boys,” Mrs Vomae would sniff at them. “The girl runs circles around the three of you.” Mrs Vomae was right. Tessa had her dad, Uncle Edriq and Uncle Zul wrapped around her little finger.
Tessa gobbled down her breakfast and glugged down her milk. “Done!” she announced and pulled Rohan's hand. “Come on, Daddy! Hurry!”
“Okay, okay.” Rohan got up. Tessa was already pounding up the stairs.
“Need any help?” Edriq asked worriedly, getting to his feet.
“Nah. I got this,” Rohan answered.
Zul narrowed his eyes at him. “You sure? How'd you learn...””
“By watching YouTube videos non-stop since I came home,” Rohan said, waving his phone at them.
Rohan bit the inside of his cheek so he wouldn't laugh out loud at the expression on his brothers' faces. Zul and Edriq had both turned a paler shade of pale and were staring at him like he was about to walk into a battlefield to take on the entire Slayor army by himself.
“I thought you were kidding before, but now you're shitting me, right?” Zul spluttered. “You think you can learn to do a French braid just by watching?”
Rohan shrugged.
“There are some things you can't learn on YouTube,” Edriq said, shaking his head.
“Geez, if it were that simple, I'd be a concert pianist by now. Or a master chef, or an expert crocheter...”
“You're learning how to crochet?” Edriq and Rohan turned to gape at Zul.
Zul sniffed and folded his arms defensively across his massive chest. “It relaxes me.”
Rohan sighed and cracked his knuckles. “Okay, I'd better go up to Tessa's room now.”
Edriq stepped in front of him and held up two fingers. “If you're not out in two...”
“I can't braid Tessa's hair in two minutes,” Rohan protested.
“Two hours,” Edriq said grimly. “If you're not out in two hours, we're going in.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Rohan rolled his eyes at his brothers. Geez, he was just going into his daughter's room to braid
her hair. He didn't need to be rescued. These guys were overreacting.
“Relax, what could go wrong?” Rohan wasn't sure if he was assuring his brothers or himself.
“We'll be right here,” Zul said with a smirk. “Watching YouTube videos!”
Edriq smacked Zul upside the head for his smart-assery. “Just holler if you need us,” he told Rohan.
“I won't need you. Besides, neither of you know how to braid a five-year-old's hair,” Rohan tossed out as he started up the stairs.
“No. But I can distract her from the disastrous hairdo which you are about to inflict upon her. I can only hope the poor girl won't be scarred for life,” Zul called out.
“Not helpin',” Rohan growled from the top of the stairs.
Taking a deep, steadying breath, Rohan bravely stepped into his daughter's room.
With the softest click, the door closed.
In the kitchen, Zul resumed eating while Edriq paced in circles. “You're making me nervous,” Zul growled. “Just sit your ass down, man. You gave him two hours.”
“Yeah, but...”
“Two. Hours.” Zul tapped at his watch. “I've set the alarm. At exactly, oh-eight-hundred hours, we move in. Now, eat. We need the energy to deal with whatever's comin'.”
One hour later, Tessa's room door remained closed.
Zul and Edriq crouched outside the door.
All was quiet.
There were no blood-curdling screams and hysterical sobs from the room.
They took that as a good sign.
Thirty-seven minutes and forty-nine seconds later, the door flew open and Rohan staggered out from his daughter's bedroom.
He stumbled into the kitchen where Zul and Edriq were waiting anxiously for him.
One look at him and Zul rushed into Tessa's bedroom in full uncle mode, all ready to do some serious comforting and cajoling and contain whatever damaged he'd wrought.
Edriq took Rohan by the arm and made him sit down. “You did your best,” Edriq said somberly. “I'm sure...”
Before Edriq could finish, Tessa came skipping down the stairs, leaving a slack-jawed Zul in her wake.
She did a perfect pirouette in front of Edriq and beamed. “Look at my hair, Uncle Edriq! Daddy did it! He braided my hair beautifully! It took him a few tries to get it right, but he did it! Do I look like a princess?”
Edriq gawked at Tessa's intricate French braid and opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish. After a minute, he finally found his voice. “Yes! You look very nice. Very nice indeed!”
Tessa giggled and ran to grab Edriq's hand. “Let's go, Uncle Edriq. I don't want to be late.”
They usually took turns dropping Tessa off at her kindergarten. Hunting Slayors at night meant they had to sleep in the day but their dragons only needed a few hours of sleep to recharge. They needed food more than they needed sleep. Rohan and Zul would catch a few hours of sleep before going to work at about ten or eleven in the morning while Edriq would go to work in the afternoon. Their working hours were flexible so they would rotate their shifts throughout the week. Sometimes, they simply worked from home if they weren't needed at the office.
Rohan spoke up before Tessa could drag Edriq out the door. “I'll drive her to school today.”
“But...”
“I think I deserve to see the expression on Miss Amelia's face when she sees my handiwork,” Rohan said, winking at Tessa. “I've earned it.”
“Okaaaaay. But...” Edriq's eyes darted to the clock. “Maybe you shouldn't take the car.”
“Why not?”
Edriq lowered his voice so Tessa wouldn't hear them. “Because...”
But at that instant, Tessa turned and her eyes bulged when she saw the time. “Daddy!” she shrieked. “I'm late! I can't be late!”
Edriq pushed Rohan out the door as Zul grabbed Tessa's backpack and lunchbox. “You know what to do, man,” Edriq said. “Just take the fastest route to school!”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Amelia stood at the door of the classroom and greeted her students with a big smile as they filed in. The children grinned and some jumped up to give her high fives as they trooped into class.
“Good morning, Miss Amelia!” they chorused.
Amelia grinned and waved to a small group of mothers who were chatting outside the classroom. She felt pretty upbeat today. She felt so much better when she woke up this morning.
It seemed that a good night's sleep was just the thing to clear her head and set it firmly on her shoulders. She had slept dreamlessly and deeply, and it was the best sleep that she'd had in years.
Refreshed and recharged, she was ready to take on the world. And a class of rambunctious, exuberant five-year-olds.
Amelia had taken over Lilly Vega's kindergarten class just over a week ago. Lilly had gotten married and was moving to another state. Lilly had gasped and blinked back tears when the children proudly presented the big card that was covered with their palm prints to her on her last day.
Amelia crouched down to help some of the children put away their bags and lunch boxes. She noticed that almost all the girls in the class had braided their hair today. Some of them giggled as they came up to her and showed her their pretty hairdos.
Amelia touched her French braid self-consciously as she straightened up. She suddenly realized that the children were emulating her. They looked up to her and saw her as a role model.
Amelia swallowed, feeling both inspired and humbled. She couldn't let these kids down. She had to get past her nightmares, banish her demons and live a happy, healthy, meaningful life. She would live in the present, not in the past. And she would hold on to her goddamn mind. No more monsters and mythical creatures. She would not live in a horror movie of her own making.
She could do it. She would do it, for her parents, her students. And for herself.
Balling her fist resolutely, Amelia held her head high and gave her students a wide, brilliant smile. Immediately she was rewarded with a dozen happy, excited grins. The children were all raring to go, eager to start their school day. Learning was fun, making friends was fun, everything was bright and colorful when you're a kid.
Amelia closed the classroom door and did a quick headcount. She knew all the kids by name, and she was getting to know their likes, dislikes, personalities and quirks. Her students were little people with big personalities and there was never a dull moment in class.
Amelia counted the children again. Yep, one kid was absent. Amelia scanned the group of cherubic, glowing faces and frowned.
Tessa Draek was absent today. She hoped that Tessa hadn't caught the flu. There was a flu bug going around, and a couple of kids had stayed home last week.
Tessa had made quite an impression on her. Tessa was a sweet, vivacious, generous girl who was always willing to help her classmates and share her things with them. She also had a rather wild and wonderful imagination.
Just the day before, the children had taken turns to come up to the front of the class and tell their classmates about the people they admired. When it was Tessa's turn, she had stood in front of the class and said, “The person I admire most is my dad. My dad is awesome. He fights bad guys and he's a dragon.”
“A dragon?”
Tessa hadn't flinched at Amelia's question. Instead she had nodded firmly and said, “My dad, Uncle Edriq and Uncle Zul are dragons.”
Amelia had assumed that Tessa's dad and uncles were in the military. Maybe DRAGON was an acronym for a military unit, like the SEALs. Amelia had promptly looked up DRAGON on her phone to see if there was a new special-ops unit she hadn't heard about. There wasn't.
Amelia clapped her hands smartly to get the kids to pipe down. “All right, children. Go to your tables now. We'll be doing some drawing today. We're going to draw all the things we can find at the supermarket,” Amelia announced to her bright-eyed students.
As the children started drawing enthusiastically, Amelia walked
round the tables to check on their progress and pick stray crayons and colored pencils off the floor.
She was just walking past the window when something caught her eye.
Amelia gasped and staggered back. The crayons and pencils dropped from her hand and scattered across the floor.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
There was something outside the window, in the sky. And it looked like...a dragon.
Amelia forced herself to blink. Repeatedly.
Nope. She wasn't hallucinating.
It was still there.
That...that dragon. The same dragon she had seen or imagined or dreamed up last night.
The huge, magnificent dragon was flying across the sky, past the skyscrapers and buildings and coming closer and closer.
It was an unbelievable, incredible, impossible sight. The dragon's shimmering blue scales reflected the morning sun as it glided towards the school building. The dragon tilted to the side and Amelia let out a shocked, horrified cry.
“Tessa!”
That ferocious, fearsome creature had Tessa in its gigantic talons!
Amelia pressed her palms to the window and her students jumped out of their seats and crowded round her.
“Miss Amelia?” A few small voices called out.
She looked down at them and saw that the children looked puzzled and scared at her reaction.
“You called Tessa's name,” Jasmine said, looking confused and anxious. Jasmine was Tessa's best friend and the two of them were inseparable. They did everything together, but they never excluded anyone.
“Tessa's not here today,” Jasmine murmured. “Is she sick, Miss Amelia?”
“I...” Amelia shook her head and pointed to the window. The dragon was swooping down, coming in for a landing. “Can you see that?” she blurted out.
The children turned towards the window and some rushed to press their noses against the glass for a better view.
“Be careful!” Amelia began to pull them away, but the children stared at her in surprise.
To Date A Dragon: BBW Dragon Shifter Romance (Weredragon Warriors Book 1) Page 3
