by C. J. Hill
Tori still held her hands up. “The first dragon lords used their powers to turn dragons away from villages, not to attack them. Dirk may have been brainwashed by his father, but Aaron hasn’t been. And neither have I.” She could tell from their blank expressions they didn’t know why she’d said the part about her not being brainwashed.
“Technically,” she added. “You could say I’m a dragon lord.”
She’d expected at least a little surprise at the confession. But the only reaction was a sigh from Jesse, some exchanged looks between Rosa and Bess, and Lilly’s smug exclamation, “I have been saying so.”
Tori ignored Lilly. “If Aaron and I learned how to access our dragon lord powers, maybe we could take the dragons out of Overdrake’s control and stop him that way.”
Silence filled the van while everyone considered the idea.
“It might work,” Shang said. “In China, dragons are revered and considered lucky. The dragon lords who lived there must have had success controlling them.”
Jesse’s tone was more skeptical. “During our last fight with Overdrake, you got into the dragon’s mind but couldn’t budge Overdrake’s control on it. What makes you think you’ll ever be able to take control from him?”
Bess’s mouth dropped open. “You knew back then that Tori was a dragon lord?” She turned to Tori. “You went spelunking in a dragon’s mind and never told us?”
Tori looked back at her pleadingly, asking her to understand. “It doesn’t change anything.”
“Except our strategy,” Ryker said, and he sounded excited about the possibility. “I don’t know about bringing Aaron into the group, but Tori should definitely learn how to control dragons.”
“I wish she could,” Dr. B said. “Unfortunately, in all of my studies, I’ve never uncovered information about how dragon lords do what they do. They’ve kept their secrets to themselves.”
“Dirk knows,” Tori said. “He could teach me.”
Jesse tilted his head, clearly unhappy with the idea. “Why would he do that?”
They wouldn’t like her answer. Jesse especially. “When Dirk talks to me, sometimes I answer him online. Last night he flew with a dragon near McLean, and he wanted me to come out and see him. He told me that if I was around a dragon that wasn’t attacking me, I would love it.”
Jesse shook his head, his movements suddenly taut. “No. You should absolutely not go with him. It’s another one of his traps. Overdrake sees you as a threat to be eliminated.”
“Dirk could have eliminated me last October,” Tori pointed out. “He didn’t. He wants me to keep my powers so I can be a dragon lord.”
Jesse was still shaking his head. “Don’t go anywhere near Dirk. He’s too dangerous.”
“And fighting dragons isn’t?” Tori asked. “When we agreed to be Slayers, we accepted that it would be dangerous.”
Rosa looked at Tori sympathetically, as if she understood Tori’s position but thought she was being naïve. “You won’t be able to double cross Dirk. He’s your counterpart. He’ll know you’re asking for information to use against him.”
She was right, of course. Tori slumped into her seat, deflated. She hadn’t thought of that. How could she get Dirk to teach her about dragons while hiding her motives for wanting to learn? “I can ask him to tell me things online. He can’t tell whether I’m lying when I write.”
“Dirk wouldn’t go for it,” Jesse said. “He’s not that stupid.”
Tori didn’t want to let the idea go. Being able to control a dragon could be the difference between winning and losing a fight. “Maybe Bianca knows how to do it. She lived with Overdrake for years. He must have told her things.”
“That’s a possibility,” Dr. B said, “an option worth exploring.”
Bess stretched her legs into the aisle. “I hate to rain on your exploration, but Bianca didn’t seem all that willing to talk to us.”
Another inconvenient fact. Why was everyone so eager to point out that her plan wouldn’t work?
“We’ll have to find a way to convince her,” Tori said, though she wasn’t sure how. Bianca had obviously been afraid of Brant, maybe too afraid to give them any useful information.
“Wait,” Willow said, breaking into the conversation. “I’m still trying to understand all this. I thought only guys could be dragon lords. How is Tori one?”
“I’m part Slayer, part dragon lord,” Tori said. “Dirk told me that women probably inherit powers but usually don’t have a way to access them. For some reason, when my Slayer powers turn on, it activates my dragon lord ones too.”
Willow cocked her head in confusion. “So if your ability to fly and your hearing are actually dragon lord powers, what’s your Slayer power? Shouldn’t you be able to extinguish fire or heal burns or something?”
“My Slayer power must be flying,” Tori said. “Any other power would have shown up by now.” Which would perhaps explain why she’d sometimes felt like she had counterpart abilities with Jesse.
“And the fact you’re counterparts with Dirk,” Willow went on, “Does that mean he’s got Slayer genes too?”
“I hope so,” Tori said. “Because that would mean part of Dirk wants to be loyal to us.”
“It would mean other things too.” Dr. B suddenly slowed the van. “Bianca may have Slayer genes. Why didn’t I think of that before?”
“Why does it matter?” Jesse asked.
Instead of answering, Dr. B turned the van around and pulled out his phone. “Booker, let surveillance know we’re going back to the house. I need to speak to Bianca again.”
“What?” Tori asked. “You already set up a surveillance team, and you let us sit here and debate the issue like it’s not already decided?”
Dr. B didn’t take his eyes from the road. “It’s my job to train you as leaders. However, that doesn’t mean I’m not still in charge of ground ops.”
* * *
Tori and Dr. B walked up to the house while the other Slayers waited in the van. This time, they knocked on the front door. Tori still didn’t know what he needed to talk to Bianca about, or why he was taking Tori with him to the meeting. She supposed he wanted her to hear anything Bianca might reveal about dragon lord powers.
Tori still wore her black jacket and pants. Her wardrobe choices for this meeting had been battle gear, a form-fitting skirt, or the Saucy barmaid costume. Battle gear just seemed like the best choice.
After a couple of minutes, Bianca cautiously opened the door. She didn’t look happy to see them, and she didn’t open the door wider or invite them in. “Back so soon?”
“I’m sorry to bother you again,” Dr. B. said slowly, “but what I have to say is best said in person. I must warn you that you may have Slayer genes.”
Tori had expected him to ask about how to control dragons, and wondered why he’d started with a warning instead. What good would it do Bianca to know about her Slayer genes?
“I don’t,” she said, her expression showing that she thought it was a ridiculous assertion. “If I had, my children would have been Slayers, not dragon lords.”
“They would be both,” Dr. B said. “At least, the first two would be.”
The first two?
Dr. B continued, his gaze on Bianca’s eyes. “I’m sure you understand the implications of what I’m saying. When you were pregnant with your third son, you didn’t ever go near a dragon, did you?”
Bianca froze, just stared at Dr. B.
Another son?
Bianca didn’t speak, but her mouth dropped open in a silent protest.
Dr. B motioned toward the living room. “I saw your family picture on the end table. You remarried. Aaron has a younger brother.” Bianca still didn’t speak. Dr. B’s voice grew worried. “Bianca, you understand what I’m asking?”
Tori hadn’t seen the picture, but she remembered Dr. B picking it up and returning it to the table. Bianca had a child with another man, a child who would have inherited only Slayer genes, not drago
n lord ones.
The color drained from Bianca’s face. Her eyes were stunned circles. “Why are you telling me this? Why would you think I have Slayer genes?”
“Because Tori has counterpart abilities with Dirk—”
“And Aaron,” Tori added.
Dr. B didn’t comment on that revelation. “Unless you have knowledge of dragon lords also being capable of having counterpart abilities, Dirk and Aaron have inherited Slayer qualities.”
Bianca held up a hand to show that she didn’t quite follow. “What are counterparts?”
Dr. B shifted his position into a pose of patience and used his teaching tone. “I didn’t know about the phenomenon myself until I began training the children. Counterparts are Slayers that not only share skills, but also the ability to read one another. Tori is counterparts with your first two sons, which indicates that they both have Slayer genes.”
Bianca shook her head, perhaps hoping her refusal would keep his words from being true. “What Slayer abilities does Dirk have? Can he heal burns or throw force fields up?”
“No,” Dr. B said, “but if his Slayer ability is flight, it would be indistinguishable from his dragon lord power.”
“Indistinguishable?” Bianca said. “So if Dirk is part Slayer, Brant wouldn’t know?”
“Brant knows that Dirk and I are counterparts,” Tori said. “He probably understands the implications.” Even if he didn’t want to admit the possibility of Dirk or himself not being completely dragon lord.
Bianca’s voice wavered. “The Slayer genes might not have come from me. They could have come from Brant’s mother or grandmother—someone in his line.”
“That’s possible,” Dr. B said. “But if he got those genes from you, then your youngest son would have inherited them too. So I ask again, did you go near a dragon while pregnant with him?”
Tori had thought Dr. B would want to find another Slayer, but the sympathy in his voice said otherwise.
“I can’t have Slayer genes,” Bianca insisted. “I can’t.”
Bianca’s fear meant one thing: There could be another Slayer.
Tori wasn’t sure whether she felt more hopeful or sick. The Slayers needed all the help they could get, but if the boy was Aaron’s younger brother, he couldn’t be more than ten. Too young to fight. And even if Overdrake’s next attack didn’t happen for years, how could the boy ever fight his own half-brother, or his brothers’ father? That was too much to ask of anyone.
Bianca leaned against the doorframe as if too drained to stand. Dr. B took her arm, pushed open the door and led her inside. “You need to sit down.”
“This can’t be happening,” she muttered.
He guided her to the living room couch. The broken chair still lay in pieces on the floor, untouched. “Was your youngest son exposed, then?”
She sank onto the couch, still pale. “I didn’t do it on purpose. I went to see Dirk when he was about seven. I wanted to take him with me—I had a new life. All I needed was a way to get Dirk. I thought . . . I didn’t know I was pregnant again. I wouldn’t have gone near a dragon enclosure if I had.”
Dr. B sat down next to Bianca. Tori, unsure what she was supposed to do, sat in a nearby recliner.
“I never would have endangered my child on purpose.” Bianca swallowed hard, then let out a small cry. “What am I going to do? Brant wants to wipe out the Slayers. If he knows Dirk is half Slayer, he’ll know that any other children I have might be too. What if he decides to find me to check?”
Dr. B put his hand on her arm, consolingly. “As you pointed out, the Slayer genes might have come from Brant. Or we might be wrong about the reason for Tori’s counterpart connection with your sons. On the other hand, Brant might already be looking for you. How old is your youngest son?”
“Jacob just turned eleven,” she said.
“Eleven,” Dr. B repeated. “That’s the age I began to train the other Slayers.”
Bianca let out an incredulous cough and shook her head. “He’s not joining you. I won’t let him hunt dragons or break into people’s homes.”
“We don’t break into a lot of houses,” Tori said. “Mostly we run drills, shoot weapons, and play with fire.”
Dr. B spoke without any sign he’d taken offense. “Jacob is too young to join us, but you can still protect your children by helping us fight Brant.”
Bianca stood, agitated, and paced across the living room. “I can’t fight him. He has armies and dragons.”
“You don’t have to fight him,” Dr. B said. “We’ll do that. But you have information we need. At least, I’m hoping you do.”
Bianca didn’t seem to hear him. “Jacob would be a flyer. Those are the most dangerous Slayers, the ones that go after the dragons.” She wrapped her arms around herself, a poor attempt to hold herself together. “I only stayed in the states because I hoped—I don’t know, I still hoped to find Dirk someday. But I’ve got to think of my other children. We need to leave the country.”
Dr. B wasn’t the sort of man who raised his voice. A terse tone was generally the closest he got. Now his voice went low with anger. “You’ve never been a coward. Don’t teach your children that running away is the answer.”
Her gaze snapped to his. “I won’t let you use my children to satisfy your revenge.”
His expression hardened. “All I want is to prevent Brant from wreaking havoc on this country. Don’t tell me about the need to protect your children. My daughter has already fought two of Brant’s dragons.” Dr. B stopped and took a breath to compose himself. He clearly hadn’t meant to tell Bianca about Bess.
“Your daughter?” Bianca stopped pacing to stare at him in surprise.
Dr. B nodded and let out a sigh. “When I left St. Helena, I didn’t realize I was moving to the one place my pregnant wife would come into contact with dragon eggs.”
“I’m sorry,” Bianca said. “We never meant to expose anyone. Brant and I were en route to the dragon enclosure with some eggs when I went into labor with Dirk. We were forced to land at BWI. Everyone in the airport was in range of the eggs.” A hint of weariness shone in her eyes. “It all comes around, doesn’t it? The parts we play while we’re hurting each other? Brant’s father killed your brother. Your father killed Brant’s father. Next it will be your daughter and my son.”
“No,” Dr. B said. “I still have hope for Dirk.”
Tori felt Aaron’s presence behind the wall separating the living room from the kitchen. He’d been there for a while, she realized. Perhaps during the entire conversation. Tori had been too caught up in the emotion in the room to notice him. She looked at the wall and wondered if she should tell Dr. B and Bianca that he was listening.
“I hope you’re right.” Bianca shook her head wearily. “Fate has dealt us both badly.”
“Perhaps. But fate has also given us an opportunity today.” Dr. B gestured to Tori, including her in the conversation. “We want to know how dragon lords control the dragons. Tori is half dragon lord. She needs to learn.”
Bianca regarded Tori, then turned to Dr. B with obvious skepticism. “Women aren’t dragon lords. You want to train Aaron. That’s what this is really about.”
“Women don’t usually have dragon lord capabilities.” Dr. B held up a hand, conceding the point. “But we’ve learned that if a woman also has Slayer genes, she can then access her dragon lord side.”
Bianca stepped away from Dr. B, distancing herself from him. “Aaron is only twelve. I don’t want him anywhere near dragons, and I certainly won’t pit him against Brant and Dirk.”
Ironic, Tori thought, that after hiding her dragon lord abilities for weeks, she finally wanted to claim them, and Bianca didn’t believe her. “I’ve been inside a dragon’s mind,” Tori said, “but I couldn’t take control from Brant.”
“Of course not,” Bianca still look unconvinced about Tori’s claim. “Once someone has hold of a dragon’s mind, it’s nearly impossible for another dragon lord to shake off his grasp
. And trust me, when Brant attacks, he’ll have control of his dragon. Involving Aaron would be pointless.”
Tori leaned forward in the chair. “What if we found a dragon when Overdrake didn’t have control of it? He’s not always in a dragon’s mind, is he? You must have an idea where he built his other dragon enclosures.”
Bianca raised an eyebrow. “We—meaning you and Aaron?”
“He wouldn’t have to do any fighting with the guards,” Tori said, “But it would be nice to have his help hijacking a dragon.” After all, what if she only had some dragon lord powers?
Bianca dropped her voice to a harsh whisper. “I won’t have Aaron involved. I don’t even want him to know about any of this.”
“Too late for that.” Tori motioned to the wall. “He’s been over there listening for a while now.”
Bianca’s head whipped around to look down the hallway. No one was visible there.
Tori shrugged. “He’s in the kitchen. I don’t have to see him to know. It’s one of those counterpart things.”
Bianca turned in that direction. “Aaron?” she called.
He stepped sheepishly out of the kitchen. Tori hadn’t considered the possibility someone else could have come to the house while the Slayers had been gone, but Aaron wasn’t alone.
A younger, brown haired boy stood with him—eyes large with wonder. “Does this mean I can fly?”
Chapter 10
Tori studied the boy—Jacob. With his dark hair and eyes, he didn’t look like Dirk or Aaron. He was tall, but still had the thin arms and full cheeks of a child. So young. Much too young to train to fight.
Bianca walked over to her sons, hands on hips. “No. And don’t even think about jumping off something to try.”
Dr. B stood as well. His gaze ran over Jacob as if judging him for combat ability. Perhaps he couldn’t help it when it came to Slayers. “Testing him is easy enough. He’s within range of a simulator right now. If he can see in the dark or has extra strength, then he’s got Slayer genes.”
