dragons breath 01 - stalked by flames (11 page)

I ran my gaze back and forth, but couldn’t find where it came from. Then a man and woman came running across the parking lot into our view. Unwittingly, I took a few steps closer and caught a glimpse of a green dragon flying overhead. He was closing in on them fast.

I couldn’t say what came over me in that moment, but there was a driving need to go out there and protect them. An instinct I couldn’t understand. It wasn’t until I felt Conrad’s hand close around my arm that I realized I’d almost made it to the doors.

“You can’t go out there,” he hissed.

The dragon swooped down with his claws extended.

“He’s going to kill them. We have to do something.” I jerked from his hold.

He grabbed me again and wrapped his arms around me this time.

“Then he’ll just kill you, too.”

Conrad wasn’t a big guy, but he was strong enough that I couldn’t get free of him easily. I knew he had a point about the danger of going out there. Why I had this overwhelming need to save the people outside, I couldn’t explain.

What the hell was wrong with my survival instincts? Ever since the dragons showed up I’d had a tough time fighting the urge to go after them—to kill them. Never mind that I didn’t know how to do that.

Still, I struggled as I watched the dragon come down. He didn’t breathe out fire like I expected and instead grabbed the two people with his massive claws. They struggled and screamed, but couldn’t get loose. In the next moment, they were up in the air with him. We watched in shock as he took them away.

Conrad let me go. “That was…unexpected.”

“I don’t get it. Why would he take them alive?”

A crunch of glass drew our attention to the east entrance of the store.

“Because Mirrikh enjoys the taste of humans. He hoards them in his lair and eats them when he’s hungry,” Aidan said, walking toward us with a purposeful stride.

I froze. A part of me had hoped I’d never see the dragon shape-shifter again.

Chapter 11

Bailey

“Aidan,” I said, resisting the urge to step back.

Why didn’t I get the same driving need to kill him in this form that I did when I saw him as a dragon? Sure, my alarm bells were ringing at the sight of him, but not to the point I lost control of myself. With Aidan appearing mostly human, my feelings were more cautionary like anyone would feel when a dangerous man approached them.

“Do you know this guy?” Conrad asked, giving me an incredulous look.

“We met once.”

Conrad grabbed my arm and yanked on it. “Let’s get out of here. There’s something wrong with this guy’s eyes.”

“Leave, human, if you wish to remain alive.” Aidan was now only five feet away from us. His right fist was clenched as if he was about to use it.

I pulled out of Conrad’s grasp. “Go put the groceries in the truck. I’ll meet you out there in a few minutes.”

“No way.” He shook his head. “This guy looks crazy. I’m not leaving you here so you can end up like that dead guy in the back.”

I let out an exasperated breath. “I’ll be fine. Just go!”

Conrad didn’t move.

“You test my patience, human,” Aidan growled.

“Don’t mess with me.” Conrad lifted his arms and one leg like he was going to kick out. “I know karate.”

Sometimes I had to wonder if he had a death wish. Aidan lunged forward and took Conrad by the throat, lifting him into the air. The younger man clawed at the shape-shifter’s hands, but couldn’t get free. An acrid scent reached my nose as if something was burning.

“Let him go, Aidan,” I demanded, pulling on his arm. “You’re hurting him.”

He turned his yellow-eyed gaze on me. “This human is disrespectful and weak. You have no need of him.”

I pulled my pistol and aimed it at his head. This was the first time I’d ever pointed a weapon at a person…or at least someone that looked like a person. But I couldn’t stand by and let him hurt Conrad.

I gave him a cold look. “I said let him go.”

“Try it,” he encouraged, flashing teeth with pronounced fangs.

I swallowed. It was easy to pull a gun, but harder to pull the trigger. Conrad made choking sounds and the stench grew worse. My nose twitched. It smelled a lot like skin burning and there appeared to be steam coming from Conrad’s neck. Did the dragon shape-shifter’s touch burn flesh?

“Let. Him. Go.”

Aidan’s eyes turned cold. “No.”

My hand shook, but the barrel wasn’t more than three feet from his head. Even this nervous I couldn’t miss. I sighted on his nose and pulled the trigger. The bullet struck his forehead and jerked his head back before zinging away. Glass from a light fixture over a cash register shattered. When Aidan looked down on me again, there was nothing but a small gash on his head.

“What the…?” My jaw dropped.

With his free hand, he rubbed the wound, smearing blood across his forehead. He hardly winced. How could he still be alive?

“Tough skull,” he answered.

I aimed at his chest and fired several more shots. Aidan jerked and grunted, but he didn’t fall or let go of Conrad. What the hell kind of clothing did the dragon shape-shifter have on? Other than some indents in the material it appeared unharmed.

“Are you finished?” he asked.

I glared at him.

“Put your gun away and I’ll let your friend go.”

“What if I don’t believe you?” I asked.

“He’s got minutes before I’ll burn through his neck. Are you willing to take that chance?”

I hesitated but lowered it.

His eyes narrowed. “I do not wish to see it at all.”

Gritting my teeth, I tucked it into the back of my pants. Aidan released his grip, letting Conrad fall to the floor. I rushed over and kneeled next to him as he crouched on his hands and knees, gasping for air. His throat hadn’t been burned through, but his normally dark skin was pink with pus from where Aidan had gripped him. The burns looked similar to touching a hot pan for too long. It took Conrad a minute to catch his breath. I rubbed his shoulder, not knowing what else to do.

“Was that really necessary?” I glowered up at Aidan. If only I could have shot daggers through my eyes and killed him where he stood.

“This was your first lesson,” he replied, digging into a black pouch hanging from his belt.

“My first what?”

Aidan withdrew a vial and held it out. I ignored it.

“Never hesitate to attack an enemy if he’s threatening you or your friends,” he said in a cold voice. “And bullets don’t work on dragons. Don’t waste your time shooting at them.”

“You couldn’t have just told me that?” I felt my temper rising and stood up. “He is my friend!”

“And you risked his life by hesitating.”

I poked a finger into Aidan’s chest. “If you ever touch him again, so help me God I will rip your balls off and shove them down your throat until you choke on them. See how that works out for you.”

He lifted his brows. “I’m a dragon. How can you be certain I have…balls?”

I took a step back and almost stumbled into a row of shopping carts. My mouth opened and shut as I searched for a response.

“Well, uh, you’re in a human body, so I’d assumed…”

He laughed. The asshole almost doubled over he laughed so hard. The sound of it echoed throughout the cavernous store, mocking me. Glad I could amuse a dragon at my expense.

“I’ll just leave you to wonder about that,” he said, after he regained his composure.

“I was being serious.”

“I’m certain you were,” he said, a hint of humor in his voice.

Note to self—come up with better threats for dragons.

“Your English has improved a lot in the last week,” I remarked.

“I’ve known your language for some time, but rarely used it until recently.” He shrugged. “And I’m a fast learner when I choose to be.”

“Remind me to give you a gold star the next time we meet. What is that?” I indicated the vial.

“A cream that will help your friend heal faster. We keep it around in case one of our humans gets burned.”

“Your humans?” I gave him accusatory look. What were they doing with humans?

“Do you want it or not?”

“This better not hurt him,” I said, swiping it from his hand. Poor Conrad was starting to get control of his wheezing, but he was still on all fours on the tile floor.

Aidan snorted, letting loose a puff of steam from his nose. “If I truly wanted to make him suffer I wouldn’t have let him go.”

Maybe, but I didn’t want to take any chances. I popped the cork and dabbed a bit of the gel-like substance onto my fingertips. It was thick and brownish with no discernible smell to it.

“What’s in this?” I asked.

“You don’t trust me?”

I lifted my brows. “What was your first clue?”

Conrad pushed off the floor while keeping one hand protectively over his throat. His legs wobbled and he grabbed a nearby checkout stand for balance. An almost unintelligible croak came from his mouth when he tried to speak, but I was fairly certain he’d meant to say “motherfucker.” He glared at Aidan as if he plotted the shape-shifter’s demise and it would involve something very painful.

Did I take the chance and put the cream on him? So far it hadn’t hurt my skin, but neither did Aidan’s touching me. Maybe the gel substance wouldn’t, either. What if I put it on Conrad and it made him worse?

“I do not have time for this.” Aidan jerked the vial from my grip and stepped in front of Conrad, barring pointed teeth. “Put the damn cream on your neck if you know what’s good for you.”

“—uck you,” came Conrad’s mangled response.

Aidan cocked his head. “Scared? I’m disappointed after your little show of bravery a few minutes ago.”

Conrad flipped out his hand. Aidan dropped the vial into his palm and took a step back. Keeping a watchful eye on the shape-shifter, Conrad popped the cork and put a dollop on his fingers. He muttered a few more garbled cuss words as he examined the cream.

He looked at me with a question in his eyes and I shrugged. Neither of us could know if it was a good idea or not. He let out a ragged sigh and dabbed a bit on his throat. His eyes widened in surprise. He started rubbing it all over the burns as fast as he possibly could, arching his neck to reach the hollows easier. His eyes closed with pleasure.

I moved closer, trying to spot any visible changes.

“Give it until tonight,” Aidan said next to me. “He’ll be fully healed.”

Conrad finished, the pain gone from his eyes, and let me take the vial from him.

“Will this work on other kinds of wounds?” I asked, examining the cream with renewed interest.

“No. Only burns.”

Damn. It would have been nice to have a miracle cure on hand.

“How are you feeling?” I addressed Conrad.

“Better,” he answered in a hoarse voice.

“I’m sorry about this.” I gave him an apologetic look. “Do you want to wait for me in the truck? I should be out there in a few minutes.”

He shook his head. “We got all these groceries. Might as well load them up.”

“Are you sure you’re up for it?” I asked.

The burns on his neck were starting to lose their redness, proving the gel really did work, but I hated to let him do anything strenuous right away.

“I can handle it. Just be careful around him.” Conrad jerked his chin at Aidan.

He might be talking like he’d smoked for fifty years, but least the fight hadn’t gone out of him. That had to be a good sign.

“I will,” I promised. “If all else fails I’ll smack him in the nose. That hurt him the last time I saw him.”

Hesitating for a moment, Conrad headed toward the carts we’d filled earlier. More than once he looked back at us as if he thought Aidan would attack me without anyone around to stop him. Finally, he grabbed the first cart and wheeled it out of the store. I had to hope no more people or dragons showed up while he was out there. I moved closer to the windows to keep an eye on him.

“Why are you here, Aidan?” I asked, keeping my gaze trained outside.

“I’d hoped you’d survive this long. When I caught your scent I came here to speak with you,” he replied.

He caught my scent? I resisted the urge to sniff at my armpits. I’d just taken a sponge bath that morning and couldn’t have smelled that bad. “What do you want?”

He brushed up next to me. Together we watched Conrad slowly load the groceries onto the back of my truck. I really needed to go out there and help him, but until I got rid of Aidan that wasn’t going to be possible.

“I wish to train you.”

“Train me?” I cast him a sideways glance. “For what?”

“You’re a dragon slayer. You’re unskilled, but you have the potential to become a great fighter.”

I backed away a couple of steps, laughing. “Have you looked at me? There’s no way someone my size can take on a dragon. I’m not any kind of slayer.”

Aidan turned to face me. From beneath lowered lashes, he ran his gaze slowly down my body in a way that made me think he saw past my t-shirt and jeans to what was hidden beneath. I crossed my arms, pretending to be cold despite the rising heat from the afternoon sun pouring through the windows. If his undivided attention happened to have sent a thrill through me, I would have died before admitting it.

“Yes, you are a slayer, and size isn’t everything,” he said in a husky tone. “It’s how you use what you have.”

“That’s what she said.”

A few seconds of silence passed, then his lips twitched. “At least you won’t be boring.”

Yeah, because my secret goal in life was to amuse him. “I still don’t see how I could possibly take on a dragon.”

His expression turned serious. “Allow me to teach you and you’ll find it’s quite possible.”

“Why would you want to teach me?” I threw my hands up. “Wouldn’t that mean you’d have to give away the secrets for how to kill you, too?”

Aidan turned his head to stare out the window. “Our coming here has changed things. There are power struggles among the dragon clans you don’t understand, but they will affect humans as well. If you allow me to train you, then you’ll learn about them and learn why it would be wise to work with me.”