Dragon, p.16
Dragon, page 16
Hide.
I run down the alleyway and dive into the first shadowed area I find. There are boxes and other trash stacked up, so I drag them over my shaking body.
Fear swallows me whole and the tears begin. Once they start, it’s hard to get them to stop. I suck in air, trying to calm myself, but it’s too hard. I’ll die if they found me because I was crying too loudly.
A sound nearby has me choking down my sobs. Footsteps come closer and then the boxes move. A boy with a filthy face, close to my eighteen years of age and messy black hair peers down at me, a frown tugging at his lips.
“Are you okay?”
“Hide,” I hiss. “You have to hide.”
“Me?”
“Yes. T-They’re coming for me and they’ll t-take you t-too.”
Shouts can be heard nearby. He snaps his head toward the direction of the road and then glances down the alley. “They’ll find us here. Come on. I know a spot.”
He helps me to my feet and we run toward a giant dumpster. With quick, efficient movements, he helps me into the dumpster before also climbing inside. As quietly as we can, we bury ourselves under the trash.
The sounds of men speaking grow louder. I start to tremble so hard, all the trash around me rustles. The kid draws me to him, locking me in a warm embrace. For the first time in two years, I feel safe and protected and cared for. Tears silently stream down my face while I bask in the closeness of another human being who isn’t out to hurt me.
Now, if we can only make it out of here unscathed, I can finally be free.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
I swivel my head to see who’s tapping on the glass of the Tahoe. When green, familiar eyes mirror my own, I freeze.
Kai Thomas.
My brother.
Seeing him on social media is one thing, but seeing him on the other side of my window is something else entirely.
“Step out of the car,” Kai growls. Always had balls of steel. I guess some things never change.
“Nah, we’re just passing through,” I say through the glass, unable to stop looking at him.
His eyes narrow as though he recognizes me. I’d stolen Bermuda’s hat earlier and exchanged my Arkansas Razorbacks shirt I’d picked up at a gas station for a black T-shirt from my bag the guys brought with them this morning. My tattoos are on full display and I’m wearing sunglasses, so I’m not even close to looking like the brother Kai saw last. Still, he seems to pick up on the fact he knows me.
“Should we drive off?” Filter asks low enough for only me to hear.
I glance over at the house where a shiny silver Maserati sits in the driveway now. I’d been remembering my past and not paying attention to the fact someone arrived. And Filter’s dumb ass was probably sexting with Calla.
“Two guys went into the house and this one came this way,” Filter grunts, answering my unanswered question.
“Walk away,” I tell Kai, not looking at him. “Now.”
The car door opens, much to my surprise, and Kai grabs my arm. Before I can react, he twists my wrist and runs his finger over a scar—one he gave to me when we were kids.
“I fucking knew it,” Kai growls. “Chase? What the fuck, man? What the actual fuck?”
Flinging off my sunglasses, I shake off his hold and pin him with a fiery glare. “Chase is dead.”
His nostrils flare. “Always were dramatic as fuck. I told Mom and Dad a thousand times you ran away—”
I jump out of the Tahoe, shoving him so hard, he lands on his ass in the grass. “I did not run away.”
Always the quicker of us two, he’s back on his feet in a flash, shoving me back. He takes a swing at me, but I pull a knife and press it beneath his chin seconds after I duck.
“Look what you’ve done now,” I spit out, pressing the point of the blade into his flesh but not piercing him. “You’ve pissed me off.”
“Dragon,” Kai snarls. “I had a feeling and I was right. Benjamin owes me a hundred bucks.”
“How do you know my name?” I demand.
“You friended me on Facebook. All it said was Dragon and the pictures are of stupid shit like motorcycles and boats rather than people. Despite our no mutual friends, I accepted the friend request and have been watching you for a while now. Looking to see if you’d post anything that gave me a clue that it was you, Chase.” He huffs. “You’re my brother, asswipe. It’s called brotherly intuition.”
A smile tugs at my lips until I remember we’re not brothers. Not like we used to be. I’m Dragon now—vicious, violent, evil. Our worlds can’t intersect. They just can’t.
“Pretend you never saw me,” I spit. “Go away.”
He smacks away my arm, the blade scraping his flesh as he does it. His glare is furious as he rubs at the cut under his chin. “You’re fucking stupid if you think I’m going to pretend like the brother I’ve been searching for for over a decade didn’t just suddenly appear in front of our childhood home coincidentally at the same time our younger brother goes off the grid.”
“Coincidences happen.” I shrug.
“Not like this. You’re here because of Mitch. Is he with you? Are you bringing him back?”
Filter rounds the side of the vehicle and comes to stand beside me. The dude is built like a goddamn linebacker. Kai is taller than me now, but I’m a helluva lot more cut. Filter, though, is like a beast bedside me.
“So what? You ‘didn’t run away,’ but now hang with some biker gang?” Kai demands, gesturing toward the Royal Bastards emblem on Filter’s leather cut. “Recruiting our baby brother?”
I crack my neck and then shake my head. “I’m trying to find our brother, dipshit.”
“Mom thinks he’s just avoiding her,” Kai mutters, though he doesn’t seem to believe it.
I shove my knife back in its sheath before looking at Kai again. “I think the same thing that happened to me is happening to Mitch.”
“You think? And what exactly happened to you?” His voice grows hoarse. “Chase, tell me what happened.”
I squeeze my eyes shut, trying like hell not to think about what happened. “He stole me. Night Giant kidnapped me and…”
“A lot of fucked up shit,” Filter supplies. “Fucked up shit that will happen to Mitch if you don’t tell us everything you know.”
Strong arms wrap around me and I stiffen at the sudden embrace. Kai, who only moments before was being a cunt, is hugging me, his entire body shaking. I try to remain stoic, but having my past envelop me is too much to ward off. All I can do is sink into his hug, blinking back emotion that threatens.
“I can’t be here,” I mumble. “Kai, I can’t. Seeing you is one thing, but Mom?”
My brother pulls away, gripping my shoulders, a fierce glare on his face. “Too late, big bro. You fucked up by staking out so close to the house. Something’s going on with our family and we need answers. Mom thinks you’re dead, for fuck’s sake. You can’t let her continue on thinking that way.”
“You know Mom,” I grind out. “She won’t like this.”
This being me.
What I’ve become.
A monster.
“You’re wrong and a dumbass for even thinking that way. Mom can be a real bitch sometimes, but she loves us. Even when we fuck up.”
“This is more than getting a bad grade or getting kicked off the basketball team,” I hiss. “I’ve hurt people, Kai. A lot of them. I like it. I like to hear them scream.”
My attempt to scare him away falls on deaf ears. He doesn’t cower or shy away. Simply shrugs. Always such a dumb asshole.
“Kai…”
“Dad’s Maserati can outrun this SUV. No more running and hiding. Time to face Mom and Dad or I’ll chase after you and drag you back.” He squares his shoulders, daring me to argue. “It’s time to come home.”
Home.
This can never be home.
But maybe he’s right. Maybe I need to do this so we can find Mitch.
Every sane thought inside my head is screaming at me that this is a bad idea. For some crazy reason, though, I nod.
Looks like I’m going home for the first time in over a decade.
Fuck.
Cove
Lindsay’s green eyes narrow, reminding me so much of Dragon, it’s a punch to the gut. How different would his life had been had he not ended up as Night Giant’s captive?
“You knew my Chase?” she asks carefully, slowly prowling toward me around the coffee table. The woman isn’t an idiot, and I can tell she’s reading between the lines, snapping pieces together to form a picture that makes sense.
With her fierce gaze burning into me and the stealthy way she approaches, she reminds me of a panther circling its victim before she strikes. Though she’s slender and female, there’s no doubt in my mind that she wouldn’t go down without a fight if she had to.
Just like Dragon.
There is fire in her eyes.
Determination.
A little bit of crazy.
“Yes,” I admit, my voice coming out as more of a tremble than anything.
Nees stands and comes to my side. “We just—”
His words are cut off by the sound of voices. Two men. At first, I think it’s Dragon, but soon, two handsome men enter the sitting room. The older one must be Dragon’s father. Though the man isn’t as built as Dragon, he’s broad and muscular despite his age. A flash of panic gleams in his eyes. I’m sure it’s worrying to find his wife alone with two strangers.
“Who’s this?” a younger version of the man demands. “Mom?”
Lindsay straightens her spine and walks over to her husband. He places a hand on her hip, drawing her close to him. The younger guy steps forward as if to shield his parents from us.
Of all the Royal Bastards, me and Nees are literally the least intimidating.
“These boys, Benjamin,” Lindsay clips out, “know your brother.”
“They know where Mitch is?” Benjamin asks, the hard edge of his expression softening as he glances at her. “Is he okay?”
“Not Mitch.” Her lips press together as she studies me for a beat. “They claim to know him, but they don’t. However, they knew Chase.”
Silence falls over the room.
Dragon’s dad clears his throat. “Is that so? How? I don’t believe I’ve seen either one of you before.”
“I didn’t know him,” I say, my voice coming out as a whisper. “I know him. Well. He’s my—”
“Boyfriend,” Lindsay finishes for me. “Hear that, Owen? Boyfriend. As in present.”
Benjamin’s jaw drops as he gapes at me. Dragon is going to flip his shit for letting this information slip out, but there’s no other way. His family isn’t stupid. They’re not falling for our lame attempt to dupe them into giving us information about Mitch.
“Fuck,” Nees mutters. “He’s going to murder you.”
Dragon is a lot of things—psychotic, vengeful, angry—but he’s not going to hurt me. At least not in any way I don’t like. It’s funny how my certainty in that statement has changed so much since that moment when we were in that cage together. When Night Giant ordered him to take me out. Back then he was a puppet on a string. Now, in the present, he’s a fierce dragon—fiery and powerful and protective over what’s his.
Like me.
I’m his whether I like it or not.
But I do like it.
“I’m Cove Gale, Chase’s…” Boyfriend? Lover? Piece of ass?
Owen, who seems to be stunned into silence, stares at me as though I’ve lost my mind. Lindsay takes the moment to study me like I’m a specimen under a microscope. I would squirm under her stare, but Benjamin has recovered before his father and is shooting me some seriously pissed-off death glares.
And here I thought one Dragon was enough for one lifetime…
Apparently I’ve stepped into a whole den of them.
“I don’t know whatever kind of sick bullshit you’re playing with my family,” Benjamin growls, “but we’re calling the cops. This ends now.” His attention darts to his father. “Dad, go find Kai. Mom, go with him.”
A door flings open and a voice booms along with it.
“Mom! Dad! You’re never going to believe what I found outside.”
I whip my head toward the sound of the voice, shocked to find a clean-cut version of Dragon striding into the room. The resemblance is almost disturbing. Minus the tattoos and biker gear, this guy is a spitting image of him. They even have the same fuckboy hair.
Heat prickles over my flesh and it has nothing to do with the Dragon lookalike.
No, the fire crawling down my torso on a straight path to my dick is caused by the real Dragon. My Dragon. A man who burns hotter than a thousand suns. The heavy thud of his boots across the marble demands every eye in the room as he walks into it. His emerald eyes bore into me, sweeping over me briefly to assess me for God only knows what, before landing on his family. His mother specifically.
“Hey, Mom.” He lifts a tattooed hand in greeting, flashing a half-smile that’s boyish and one I’ve never seen before.
She gasps, her hand flying to her chest. I expect her to shake or faint or something. Instead, she stalks over to Dragon until she’s inches from him.
“Do not ‘hey, Mom’ me. Not now. Not after all this time.” Her voice cracks only slightly. “I thought you were dead. I thought my son was dead.”
“Told you,” the Dragon lookalike mutters.
“Kai,” Owen admonishes.
Dragon tears his eyes from hers, his dark brows furling as he drops his chin to stare down at his feet. It’s such a docile move for someone so…wild.
“Chase, baby, look at me,” Lindsay whispers, her manicured fingers brushing beneath his chin and lifting so he’s forced to look at her. “You came back to me.”
His eyes slam shut and he mutters, “Momma.”
The slight woman jerks him into her arms, hugging him so tightly, I think she might have the power to break him. His massive, tattooed arms wrap around her, squeezing her back just as hard. Owen breaks from his stupor, rushing over to him, flinging his arms around both of them. Benjamin and Kai also approach, both wearing matching somber expressions.
I feel like a voyeur.
Watching something I’m not supposed to see.
A private family reunion that’s long overdue.
“I’ll go keep Filter company,” Nees mumbles from beside me. “You should stay, though. I think he’s going to need you.”
I glower at him for leaving me in the middle of—this—but he’s not bothered, quickly slipping away and out the door. The sniffles from Lindsay and Owen are heartbreaking. I imagine the discovery of finding out your oldest son is alive after over a decade has to be obliterating their minds right now.
Kai catches my gaze and frowns at me. “Who are you?”
“Chase’s boyfriend,” Benjamin blurts out. “If we’re to believe any of this shit right now.”
Kai drags his stare over me, assessing me in one quick sweep. His lips curl into an expression of disbelief. “Kind of small. The one outside was hotter. No offense, but you’re really not his type.”
I stiffen my spine. “No offense, but you really don’t know him at all.”
Benjamin snorts out a laugh.
“Hmph,” Kai mutters, flashing me a wicked grin. “Maybe you are his type. I forgot he always liked the mouthy ones.”
“Stop flirting with him or I’ll rip your head off,” Dragon growls, his teary eyes quickly hardening to the malevolent green I know so well.
“Boys,” Lindsay admonishes, though there’s a smile in her voice. “Though neither of you still live at home, house rules still apply.”
“No fighting in the house,” all three boys say at once.
Owen winks at me.
Of course Dragon’s family would be the new-age version of Leave it to Beaver. Of course they would.
Everything I thought I knew about Dragon is all wrong. It seems, every passing minute, he throws a wrench into what I think I knew and I’m revealed something a lot more…shocking or interesting or unexpected.
And I’m still here, craving to learn more.
It’s a strange thing to see.
Dragon being…Chase.
Sure, he’s still Dragon in all his tattooed, scary biker glory, but around his family, something inside him blooms. He blossoms into this guy who smiles at his mother—and not in that creepy “I’m gonna carve your heart out of your chest while it still beats” kind of way. His smile is filled with love. Again, I’m left wondering who he would have become had Night Giant not ripped him from his perfect world and shredded the innocent boy.
I thought he’d be guarded, but his mother has some way of pulling the truth out of him. And the truth flows like a never-ending flood. He tells them everything.
The ugliness of his captivity.
His escape.
Terror of being found.
How he became Dragon, Koyn and the Royal Bastards, his criminal life.
The second run-in with Night Giant, what he was forced to do—with Stormy and what he almost did to me. Lots of graphic torture highlights over his decade career as a lawless biker. Whatever else he can chatter on about like it’s normal chitchat, but it’s really fucking insane.
Dragon’s mouth just continues to expel this verbal vomit while everyone sits listening around him with a mixture of horror and shock. He eventually brings them to more recent events and his eyes land on me. The smile is back, sending curls of warmth swirling in my belly.
“Dragon,” I murmur, hoping he’ll end his verbal shit-show.
Kai snorts out a derisive laugh. “Dude. I can’t call you Dragon. It’s so lame.”
Dragon flips him off, but humor dances in his eyes. “Screw off.”
“Seriously, stop talking,” I warn, giving Dragon my meanest glare. “They don’t need those details.”
Benjamin smothers a laugh. Owen and Lindsay share a secret glance that I wish I could interpret. I shift in my seat, eager to get the hell out of here before Dragon starts blabbing about how wild our fuckfests get.
