dragons breath 02 - dancing with flames (3 page)

Bailey glared up at him. “Why did you stop me? I was a second away from killing it!”

“Matrika has summoned every dragon in the area.” Aidan stood and helped the slayer to her feet. “I know of at least three who responded, and they are heading this way now.”

Bailey threw her hands up. “So why not let me kill her first, and then we could go?”

“I’ll explain that later.” Aidan picked up the slayer’s sword and held it out to Conrad, who’d just run up to them.

The young man glanced at it without taking the blade. “Man, what the hell?”

“Take it,” he said, forcing the hilt into Conrad’s hands.

“It’s Bailey’s,” he argued.

“Give that back to me.” The slayer attempted to maneuver around Aidan.

He caught sight of several humans coming from their homes across the street. They spoke amongst each other, no doubt debating whether to join them in the park or not. That was the absolute last thing they should do.

Aidan checked the sky. It was still clear, but it wouldn’t be for long. “You must get these people back inside. The dragon is a princess among the Shadowan, and they will come to avenge this attack on her.”

“But she isn’t dead,” Conrad argued.

Aidan’s inner dragon growled. Three dots had just appeared in the sky to the north, alerting him and the beast within him that they had minutes to spare before it would be too late and they’d have a major battle on their hands. He drew from
shiggara
, a mystical place where he could store a small number of useful items. A flask appeared in his hand. He removed the top and poured
stinguise
juice—a foul smelling concoction not unlike that of a skunk—across the ground where Bailey and Matrika had battled. He didn’t have time to fully remove the slayer’s scent since she’d fought in too large an area, but it would hide his and Conrad’s.

Bailey covered her nose but didn’t say anything. She’d seen him use the stinguise juice after other battles she’d fought and knew its purpose. Aidan gave her a grim look. If she was going to keep attacking dragons on her own, he would have to give her a bottle to keep with her.

Conrad took a few steps back. “That stuff is rank.”

“Yes, but it will keep the Shadowan from looking for you.”

Aidan glanced at the sky, alarmed to find the dragon shapes growing larger in the distance. He took hold of Conrad’s shoulders, turning him so that he could see the looming threat. “Get the humans to safety. Their lives are in your hands.”

The young man swung around. “What about you and Bailey?”

“I must take her away and hope the dragons follow us until we can lose them, but that will only work if you are not here to draw their attention.”

Conrad nodded. “Got it, man.”

“Are we going in my truck?” Bailey asked, giving Aidan a confused look.

“No, leave it here. We will go the faster way.”

Bailey dug into a pouch on her leg harness and handed over a set of keys to Conrad. “Which way?”

The dragons would be here in two minutes. The time for discussion had ended, and Aidan couldn’t wait any longer. He let his fire consume him so that he could return to his beast form.

“Wait, you can’t mean
that
way.” Bailey backed up a few steps. Through the flames, he could see her anguished expression. Any minute, her instincts would take over, and she would want to kill him again. He knew she wrestled with the guilt of that, though she tried to hide it from him.

As his body shifted into a much larger form, he watched her wrap her arms around herself and shiver. She squeezed her eyes shut, delaying the inevitable for as long as possible. Once the flames died down, though, she scented the beast, and her lids flew open.

Aidan didn’t hesitate to leap into the air, wrap his scaly arms around her body, and sail into the sky. He didn’t like carrying people and certainly not in this way, but he kept a tight hold on her. Bailey struggled at first, attempting to wiggle free. Once he climbed high enough, she stopped. Self-preservation took over, and even her slayer instincts saw that breaking away now would only result in her death.

He dared a glance back and spotted the three Shadowan dragons still far behind. Aidan had a safe lead on them, but with the extra weight in his arms he couldn’t fly at full speed. They would catch up soon. The only option he had was to fly directly to his territory and hope none of his brethren saw him carrying Bailey. There would be no easy explanation for what he was doing with her. Other than his cousin, Donar, none knew Aidan had allied himself with a dragon slayer. If they saw him carrying her in his arms, they would know she could not be a normal human. Only a slayer could tolerate his scorching heat for long without burning.

Aidan crossed the invisible line where the shape-shifter territory began and looked back. The three dragons were already turning around. For now, they were safe. Should the Shadowan return to the park and pick up the slayer’s scent, though, they would be able to recognize her if she crossed paths with them in the future. The only thing protecting her now was that they must assume Aidan planned to kill her himself.

It would be some time before Bailey could return without risking drawing the Shadowan’s attention. He headed toward his secret lair, his gaze scanning relentlessly for any sign of his clansmen. Aidan prayed to the dragon goddess,
Zorya
, that his path would remain clear.

Chapter 3

Bailey

I was going to slay the dragon holding me the moment my feet safely touched the ground. My entire body thrummed with the need to fight, to kill, but through my rage I recognized my situation. Falling would be bad, very bad. I might be more durable than the average human, but I didn’t think I could survive a hundred foot drop. Even if I could, it would hurt like hell and the resulting injuries would leave me unable to defend myself.

A shudder ran through me when I glanced down. Not just because the houses and streets below appeared too small, but also because of what gripped me so tightly. Arms similar to a man’s—except with red scales—and fingers with long black talons were wrapped around my chest. The creature was strong, very strong. The massive chest radiated heat behind me like an inferno, and his heavy muscles rubbed against my back. This red dragon wasn’t as large as the green one I’d just fought, but he was fast to have captured me so easily.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, it registered that he was familiar. Someone I had known for months, but while he was in this form, I couldn’t make sense of it. All I could think of was the need to free myself and shove a blade through his heart. Watch him die, as all dragons should. In the deep recesses of my soul, this bothered me, but I couldn’t clear my head enough to understand why.

In the distance, I caught sight of another red dragon in the air. I stiffened at the same time as the beast holding me let out a low growl. The other beast flew a course straight for us. I estimated my chances of winning a fight against both of them while up this high in the sky.

Not good. Not good at all.

The dragon flared his red, leathery wings to slow down. The one at my back relaxed a fraction and made a throaty, rumbling noise that sounded suspiciously like a greeting. Wonderful—they were friends. I’d kind of hoped they’d do my job for me and kill each other, assuming they took their battle to the ground first.

The two beasts flew beside each other for the next few minutes as we soared in an easterly direction past the outskirts of Norman and into the countryside. Ranches and farms dotted the land. There were no vehicles on the roads, and aside from a herd of cows, nothing moved below. It was eerily peaceful.

I clutched the beast’s arms as he dropped lower, almost skimming the tops of the trees. It was getting late, and the sun would be setting soon. How I’d get home without my truck this far from town, I didn’t know, but I’d worry about that later. First, I had to kill the two dragons and hope I survived. A glance at my empty scabbard told me this wasn’t going to be an easy battle without a weapon. Maybe I would die, but I’d take at least one of them down with me.

A small empty field appeared up ahead. Though I’d never seen it from above, I recognized it and the two-story house sitting at the far end. This was where I’d trained to become a dragon slayer. The one holding me and his flying buddy had been the ones to teach me. They kept a weapons stash inside the house and all I needed to do was get to it. These fools might have been the ones to train me, but that was their mistake.

I braced myself as the dragon dipped toward the field. To my surprise, he dropped me mid-air. I fell about six feet, hitting the ground hard and rolling several times across the high grass. As soon as I stopped, I scrambled onto my knees and watched as the two dragons continued their flight to the edge of the tree line. It was only then that they landed.

Pushing off the ground, I dashed toward them.
Kill, kill, kill
ran through my mind like a mantra. The very sight of them colored my vision with rage. Their snouts billowing steam, their red scaly bodies flexing with hard muscles, and their long tails with spikes on the ends swishing back and forth—all of it grabbed my attention and drove me to attack.

They tucked in their wings, and their bulky bodies went up in flames. I didn’t worry about that. The fire wouldn’t hurt me, and they were more vulnerable while some kind of metamorphosis altered them. In the midst of the flames, they transformed into what looked like demons. I put in another burst of speed, closing the distance. Just fifty more feet and I’d be on them. I caught sight of a sharp stick on the ground directly on my path and slowed briefly to grab it. Gouging their eyes out would be a good start. They’d still be able to hear and smell, but at least it would give me some kind of advantage.

Just as I made it to the last dozen feet, the flames covering their bodies subsided. Men who mostly resembled humans—except for having yellow snake eyes—stood in the dragons’ place. Both had short black hair, olive skin, and toned muscles.

Seeing them like that, I slowed my steps and dropped the stick. My rage ebbed away like the tide going out to the sea. I recognized Aidan, the leaner and lither of the two men. He had been the one who carried me here and organized my training. The other one was Donar. He was a big oaf and Aidan’s cousin. They were my two shape-shifter allies that I’d failed to recognize in their dragon forms—at least on a conscious level—and wanted to kill. God, I hated how little control I had over myself when my slayer instincts took over. It was like I became a different person.

I started to apologize, but then I remembered what led me to this place. Aidan had dragged me here against my will. I narrowed my gaze on him. Just because I didn’t feel the need to kill him anymore didn’t mean I wasn’t still angry about what he had just done.

“Are you out of your mind? First, you stop me from killing that dragon, and then you carry me back here, knowing what it would do to me.” What if I had tried to kill him mid-air? Sure, he had been smart enough to leave my sword with Conrad, but he had no guarantee I wouldn’t have fought him anyway.

His lips set in a grim line. “I apologize for that, but it was necessary.”

His voice rolled over me, the accent so foreign, and yet, a little on the sexy side. When I’d first met him, I’d been a little too intimidated to think much of it, but after months of getting used to him, I’d grown to love his deep timber. It could distract me if I wasn’t careful.

“No, it wasn’t necessary.” I crossed my arms. “You should have let me stay there and protect those people.”

He lifted a brow. “If I had done as you suggest, those dragons would have attacked the humans as well. Would you truly prefer to have their deaths on your hands?”

I closed the distance between us and poked him in the chest. “Not if we fought them. You and I against three aren’t the worst odds.”

“It would be if they called for more help,” Aidan said, glaring at my finger until I dropped it. “Matrika sent an open summons that any dragon could hear. I had no way of knowing if she spoke privately with any others in her toriq. If more of her kinsmen had come, you would have had no choice except to fight them until you were dead. I could not risk that.” A hint of strong emotion came over his eyes and he shuddered.

And there it was—the sign he cared more deeply about me than he wanted to admit.

“Fine, we had to get away, but you should have let me kill Matrika first. She’s been taking human children and harassing that neighborhood every night trying to get more kids. That was the whole reason I was there—to protect those people from her.”

He shut his eyes and expelled a breath. “I’m sorry to hear that, but even if I’d known, I would not change what I did.”

“Can we discuss this inside?” Donar asked, casting a wary glance at the darkening sky. “If I heard Matrika’s call for help from farther away than Aidan, it is likely others in our clan did as well. It is not a good idea to be out in the open should they fly over this place.”

That was one of the reasons why Aidan and I only met to train in the afternoons. His clan members usually didn’t stray far from the fortress until evening—dragons did the bulk of their hunting at night—so the risk of being noticed was lower when the sun was high.

“Yeah, let’s go in,” I agreed, heading across the field toward the two-story house.

It had white siding, a red brick fireplace jutting from the side, and a covered porch running the full width of the front. My best guess was that the place had probably been built in the 1920s or 1930s. Someone had kept it in good condition before Aidan took it for his private lair. There were no obvious signs of disrepair, and the siding appeared to have been replaced within the last few years. We had no idea what happened to the owners, but they hadn’t shown up since I started coming here a few months ago.