Dragon Heat

Dragon Heat Book One

By Ella J. Phoenix

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Dragon Heat: Book One Copyright© 2012 Ella J. Phoenix ISBN: 978-1-60088-743-7 Cover Artist: Fiona Jayde Editor: Jana Hanson All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews. Cobblestone Press, LLC www.cobblestone-press.com

Dedication To my amazing mother, who is my catalyst, my fantastic husband, who is my inspiration, and all my dearests—Aluisia, Margaret, Tiffany, Kate, Sarah, and Helen—for their support and constructive feedback. Love you all, Ella

Glossary Apa Dobrý group of five gods, creators of life on Earth and the universe Apa Sâmbetei the land of the souls; the afterlife calathor someone who can cross to the land of the souls and return unharmed draco a dragon in human form Hiad the Underworld inimă the soul razbians lizard people known for their lack of intelligence Soartas the three witches of Destiny sujha a non-pure being; offspring of the union between two different races Terhem Viahta the land of the living; Earth Ucidhere god of death, lord of Apa Sâmbetei Zmyzel goddess of life

Prologue Romania, 1800 Tardieh realized he must have passed out as he could feel that the sun was in a different position now. It was almost sundown. I must not lose myself to panic. He opened his senses to his surroundings. He heard the faint sound of water dripping and someone breathing a few feet away to his left. They had left him with only one razbian to guard him. Hmm, interesting. They must have thought he was very weak to have done it so. Not that they were mistaken. He had lost a lot of blood, and his body ached all over. Breathe, breathe, he thought. He decided to open his eyes but just a fraction. He didn’t want the guard to know he had awakened. The first thing he noticed were the dancing shadows on the walls casted by the dim light of a single candle placed somewhere to his right on the ceiling. On the ceiling? No, he realized, the candle was on the floor. He was the one on the ceiling—hung upside down. The dripping sound had not been from water; it was his own blood dribbling onto the floor. He was suspended by his ankles with thick silver chains. His hands were bound behind him in the same fashion. His head pounded from being upside down for so long. Inhale, exhale.

He could smell piss, excrement, and something else, something worse. Fear. He could smell the fear of previous prisoners who had suffered in that room before him. Their terror had been so tangible it had tainted the air, the walls, the floor. ‚So yer awake, then.‛ The razbian guard stood up and placed himself in front of Tardieh. He could see the guard’s sharp blackened teeth and smell his putrid breath. ‚We thought yer was gone. But yer a mulish one, ain’t yer?‛ The razbian was of average height, much smaller than a draco or a vampire, but one would consider him bulky. The green leathery skin and bulging far-apart yellow eyes were the only things preventing them from walking among humans like vampires and dracos did. Thank Apa Dobrý for that otherwise the pricks would have turned the world upside down by now. Tardieh felt the air change around his face before the blow hit him. He was so weak, he didn't even try to duck or defy the guard. All he could do was close his eyes and welcome the pain. He heard the bastard’s high-pitched laugh. How long had he been in this piss-smelling prison? Another blow. This one hit his stomach with such force that Tardieh’s body swung back and forth. ‚Hey, I’m talkin’ ter ye!‛ More of the high-pitched laughter. Tardieh tried to say something, but he couldn’t make the words come out. He tried again. ‚Water.‛ This time the guard, taken by curiosity, bent down to try to hear what he was saying. The warrior inside Tardieh took over. His fangs extended smoothly, and with the last ounce of energy he had, he bit the motherfucker’s ear. His brain registered the razbian’s screams as if from afar, but fresh blood had already hit Tardieh’s lips. The delectable warm liquid oozed into his mouth. He forgot where he was or that his body was aching. There was only the metallic taste and the life energy spreading inside him. Razbian blood was a far cry from a humans’. It was more leaden and colder—razbians were distant descendents of the lizard people from the east. But at that moment, it was the best elixir Tardieh had ever tasted. ‚Yer sunufa bitch! Yer ripped off my ear!‛ If Tardieh had had the

energy, he would have laughed. His ecstasy was cut short, however, by another series of punches to his face. The door opened, and another guard stepped in the room. He was taller and leaner than the razbian guard. While the later had obvious evidence of his race, the former could have easily passed for a human. Tardieh recognized who it was by the strong odor of decaying meat. Vrajitor was his name, so-called the ‚magician.‛ He had politely introduced himself when Tardieh had been brought to that cell weeks before—or maybe it had been months already; he had lost track of time long ago. ‚Not that I have more magic than the others,‛ Vrajitor had explained on their first encounter. ‚It is just that I am known for magically making my guests speak.‛ Despite human folklore, dragons could unleash their magic when in human form, although it was never as powerful as when they were in their true nature. So Tardieh had not been surprised by the remark. ‚Has he awakened?‛ the draco asked the razbian guard, not wavering his glare from Tardieh. That was not a good sign. ‚Da, sire, the leech bit my ear!‛ the guard said, still holding what remained of his left ear. His ugly long scaled hands shook. A faint twitch that could have been mistaken for a smile appeared on Vrajitor’s face. ‚May that serve you well for underestimating your enemy.‛ He took a few more steps into the room. Tardieh noticed the bastard’s eyes scrutinizing his naked body. Tardieh held his gaze, trying to show no fear of what was coming. ‚You are either stronger than I have anticipated or more stupid, bloodsucker. But you will tell me what I want to know sooner or later.‛ And there it was again, the face twitch. But this time it came with a slight show of his shark-like teeth. ‚Bring me the scula,‛ Vrajitor barked to the razbian. The guard hurried out of the room and came back with a trolley covered by a long, stained cloth. Tardieh was now well acquainted with what they called the scula. The instruments were made of pure silver, of course, so as to enhance the prisoners’ pain. Tardieh tried to suck in a gulp of air, but his lungs ached too much. He must have had a few ribs broken in the never-ending punching sessions. He didn’t mind the punches,

though. They had always kept him awake. Throughout his years of training to become the leader of his people, he endured endless sessions of ruthless practice. His father, the vampire king, had made it clear that just because he was his heir, he was not to receive any special treatment. More so, Tardieh’s training had been even more callous than the other warriors. He was the prince and needed to be stronger than the others, more prepared to deal with any battles that the Soartas imposed on him. Such as this one. Vrajitor lifted the sheet to reveal his most loved torture apparatus. ‚Which one should we use today, leech? Would you like another session with my gheara?‛ He raised a blood-stained silver device that looked like a claw with four sharp fingers attached to a short handle. Tardieh swallowed dry. He could not stop the dread which came with the memories of that claw ripping his flesh open. Vrajitor had used it on his abdomen, his legs, and his back. In the beginning, he had healed immediately, but in the last couple of visits from the magician, Tardieh had noticed that his healing abilities had been slower. The wounds from their previous session were still bleeding. ‚Or maybe you would like to meet my newest invention, the para.‛ With the now familiar twitch on his face, Vrajitor raised a strange, long device. It had the shape of an oversized pear with an extensive handle on its narrowest end and a pointed prong at the other, where the bottom part of the pear would have been. Vrajitor’s grin got broader as he twisted the device’s handle. The bottom part opened up in three slices revealing a lengthy, thick screw. The more he twisted the handle, the more the slices opened up and the broad rivet was drawn out in the middle. ‚You see, my stubborn guest, my first para was developed to punish the ones who dared lie to me. These wedges can do quite a damage when inserted down someone’s throat.‛ Tardieh could imagine the pain such a thing would cause. Expanded by the force of the screw, the maximum aperture of the segments would mutilate the victim’s esophagus while the elongated middle section would continue ripping through the gullet’s channel. ‚But since you have not exactly lied to me—you refused to utter a word, and that’s not technically lying—I think I will apply my para in

another cavity in a lower part of your beautiful body.‛ Taking his time, Vrajitor positioned himself behind Tardieh. With a sickening dread, Tardieh noticed the bastard was aroused. ‚Tell me where your coward king hides and I will spare you.‛ Tardieh knew that was a lie. The fucker enjoyed his torture sessions too much to deprive himself of a good one. Tardieh felt the deceivingly smooth touch of the silver device burning his left gluteus. It was making its way down his buttocks. The strong smell of burned flesh invaded his nostrils. He had to fight the bile rising in his throat, but he would not fail his people. He would endure trials, torture, and suffering, till the Soartas decided it was time for him to meet his maker, but he would not betray his father’s location. ‚Tell me where your armies hide, bloodsucker!‛ Vrajitor bellowed, tracing another painful path down Tardieh’s lower body, dangerously close to his anal orifice. Tardieh could not contain the yelp; it came out like a bark. Struggling to keep his sanity, he gathered some strength. ‚Fuck you,‛ he said in a dark, low voice. It was all he could muster. He saw Vrajitor’s eyes narrow and become even more yellow. The fanatic look on his torturer’s face was so intense Tardieh thought it would expel fire at anytime and burn him to death right there and then. Death would have been most welcomed. Vrajitor raised his hand and leveled the device to its intended destiny. ‚Let’s see who is going to fuck whom tonight, bloodsucker.‛ Tardieh braced himself for the pain. ‚Excuse me, sire?‛ A female voice came from the open door. Probably in his obsessive state of mind, Vrajitor had forgotten to lock it up when he came in. ‚I have an urgent message from the dragon lord,‛ the female carried on. Tardieh could sense the uneasiness in her voice. Time stood still. After what it felt like decades, but it must have been just a couple of seconds, Vrajitor roared, ‚How dare you interrupt my session?‛ Tardieh heard the girl gulp in terror. ‚I-I have an urg-urgent message from the lord for you, sire.‛ Breathing with difficulty, she

continued, ‚He requests your presence at once.‛ Vrajitor’s anger was palpable in the air. He would probably make the poor girl pay for interfering in his work. ‚Stay here,‛ he barked at the guard, who looked as frustrated as Vrajitor, then left the room mumbling obscenities. ‚Would you like some water?‛ Tardieh heard the girl say to the guard. Her voice sounded much stronger now. ‚You look thirsty. Here, I brought some water.‛ Tardieh focused his eyes and saw the girl step into the room holding a clay jug and a cup. The guard looked her up and down with hungry eyes. Tardieh could smell the razbian’s arousal. The girl seemed to also be interested because she gave him a coy but very open smile. ‚I doesn’t know if I want water, lass. But I sure gonna have some of what other yer offerin’.‛ The guard took a few steps toward her. She poured the water in the cup and handed it over to him. The guard brought the cup to his lips without taking his eyes off her. Once finished, he threw it on the floor. ‚Now, let’s have a bit more of what yer have, hein?‛ He grabbed her by the hips, pulling her toward him. The girl turned her head to avoid his ugly lips and saw Tardieh for what he thought was the first time. She had dark honey-colored eyes, not like the other dracos whose eyes glowed yellow. Tardieh tried to take advantage of the guard’s distraction and free himself but only managed to increase the cut caused by the silver chain on his ankles and wrists. Unbearable pain shot down his arms and reverberated throughout his body. The sound of gurgles caught his attention. He could not believe his eyes. The guard who was minutes from having his way with the girl now crouched on the floor holding his throat as if he was choking on something. Brown foam started to pour out of his mouth. Shaking, the guard looked up at the girl, trying to understand what had just happened, but she was already moving toward Tardieh. ‚Shh, don’t say a word,‛ she said. ‚We have to get you out of here before Vrajitor realizes he was set up.‛ With the strength of a full-grown soldier, the girl released Tardieh from the silver chains and held him so he wouldn't fall flat on the floor. She took off the dead guard’s trousers and threw them on Tardieh’s naked lap. ‚Put these on, quick. Can you walk?‛

Tardieh tried to stand up but failed. She wrapped her arms around his waist and helped him put the trousers on. They were a bit too big for him, but they would have to do. Despite him being of above average height for a vampire, he had lost quite a bit of weight during this ordeal. He felt her hands lifting him up. With the girl’s help, Tardieh managed to get out of the torture chamber, leaving the guard’s lifeless body behind. The door led to a dim corridor that had another door at the end. The girl dragged Tardieh toward it as fast as she could. ‚Why-why are you helping me?‛ Tardieh’s voice was so hoarse he could barely hear his own words. ‚Shh, don’t waste your energy with stupid questions. We need to move faster.‛ The door at the end of the passage led to a long, descending stairway. Tardieh could feel his body giving in to tiredness. Blackness was enveloping his eyesight, but he found enough energy to take each step without falling down. They finally reached the bottom which then led to another dark hallway with a few doors alongside it. They were below the fortress, Tardieh realized, because the air was thicker and damper here. ‚Come, we’re not far now,‛ she whispered, pulling Tardieh toward the far end of the hall. When they were almost at the end, he heard a door open behind them. Immediately the smell of rotting meat permeated the stale air in the tunnel. ‚Well, what have we here? A little kitten stealing my feast?‛ Vrajitor was a few feet behind them. He was slowly advancing like a predator sure of his dinner. The girl moved so that she stood between him and Tardieh. Tardieh did not like it a bit. If someone was to face Vrajitor, it would be him not a fragile female. He tried to stand up, but she stopped him with unexpected force. ‚Oh no, sire. Please forgive me. The prisoner looked so weak. I pitied him. Please don’t hurt me, sire.‛ She bowed low almost touching the floor, the way a plaintive would. Vrajitor did not seem convinced but closed the gap between them with four long strides. ‚What of the guard? Where is that imbecile?‛ ‚He’s met his fate.‛ With that, the girl stood up with a speed and grace only known to vampires and stabbed Vrajitor in the right eye. While

he was trying to recover from the girl’s surprise attack, she was already striking him on the throat, a draco’s most vulnerable spot. Vrajitor fell on the floor, trying to stop the gush of blood coming out of his neck. Without wasting any more time, the girl grabbed Tardieh by the waist and ran out the door, and then Tardieh felt the floor vanish from underneath him. It wasn’t a door, he realized; it was a gate, and they were free falling. His body hit the icy water with a loud splash. When he opened his eyes, he saw the girl pulling him even lower toward the bottom of the lake. Vampires did not need air to survive, but he did not know that dracos shared the same talent. Who the hell was that girl? After a few minutes, he saw what she was heading toward. There was an opening on the base of the lake that looked like an underwater passageway. She led them through it, and they immerged on the other side of a cave. Tardieh could barely get out by himself. She helped him out of the water, and they collapsed on the cold cave floor. They both remained there for a few moments, catching their breath. ‚Who are you? Why are you helping me?‛ he asked between shallow intakes of air. His mind was working overtime. He had to find out who she was, where they were, and how to get out of there. The dragon lord was not the only enemy he had in this war. If she was working for another draconian sect trying to capture him for their side, he would be in deeper trouble than before. After all, the war had started when his father had been betrayed by one of his own councilors. The councilor in question was scheming with the dragon lord, who had ensured the councilor that he would be the vampire king once the dragons took over Romania. ‚Not yet. We can’t stop now. There’s still a long way to cover before we’re safely out of their reach.‛ She stood up and started toward the inner part of the cave. After what felt like hours of walking, they reached an opening that led to a very familiar forest. So he was still on vampire soil, Tardieh realized with relief. They had not taken him out of his father’s domain. Such arrogance. The sight of his land gave him extra strength to carry on. But the newly found energy deserted him after a while. He stumbled and fell by a large tree. ‚We can’t stop now. We have to keep on going,‛ the girl insisted.

‚They will reach us in no time.‛ She was panting as well, Tardieh noticed. ‚I can’t. I have to stop to regain some energy.‛ He closed his eyes and opened his senses to his surroundings. He had to find an animal, preferably a big one, to drink from. But he couldn’t sense anything close by. Vampires could survive off animal blood but not for a long period of time. Animal blood was not as fortifying as human or dragon blood; however, it would have given him enough strength to dematerialize out of there. ‚You are still bleeding. How come?‛ Her voice was closer now. ‚You’re a vampire. You should have healed a long time ago.‛ Tardieh opened his eyes and met hers. She was crouched in front of him, studying him. Her voice had been sharp, but her eyes showed more worry than annoyance. ‚I’ve lost a lot of blood.‛ He took a deep breath and closed his eyes again. Inhale, exhale. A strong smell of blue mist flowers hit his nostrils—blue mist and blood. Her blood. He could hear her heart beat and the blood flowing through her veins. Strong, plenty. Tardieh opened his eyes and asked in low tones, ‚Who are you?‛ She opened her mouth, closed it, then opened it again but closed it once more, as if undecided of what to do. That’s it; he’d had enough. He had to know what she was up to before it was too late. ‚I will not take another step before you tell me who you are and why you are helping me.‛ ‚It does not matter who I am. What matters is that you need to go back to your people and end this bloody war,‛ she retorted, leaning back on her heels. Tardieh could see her properly now. She was wearing a dark brown woolen kirtle over a loose-fitting shirt with long bell sleeves. The kirtle was topped by a dark green apron that complemented her eyes. Her long, black wavy hair, which had been pulled back by a plain headscarf, now cascaded down her shoulders in front of her full breasts. The combination of her striking almond-shaped, hazel-honey eyes with her thick lips gave her an exotic, mesmerizing appearance.

‚End the war? I thought you dracos wanted this bloody war,‛ Tardieh countered, trying to wake up from the trance of having her so near. ‚We? No, not we. That dragon lord and his bunch of ignorant followers. Who do you think has suffered the most from this war? The draconian people had never wanted to invade Wallachia. We were happy with our crops and our own land in the eastern mountains. We did not need more land. And now, it’s all gone, devastated, burned to the ground.‛ She stood up and turned her back to him. Tardieh could smell her anger mixed with fresh tears. ‚So what do you want me to do? Go back to my people and tell them to stop because the draconians have asked me to?‛ That was ridiculous. How could he, the vampire prince, go against his father’s commands? Yes, he would be king one day but not now, not soon enough to make a difference in the near future. ‚Yes. That’s exactly what I want you to do. I have risked my life to show you that not every draco agrees with this war. Actually, only the aristocratic minority supports that stupid dragon lord. The others who opposed him were hunted down, and their fate was worse than that of the war slaves. You have to go back and stop the attacks.‛ ‚I don’t have to do anything. And even if I could convince my father to stop the attacks, your dragon lord would continue. He would keep on trying to take not only Wallachia but the whole of Romania.‛ She was insane! She truly believed he had the power to stop this war. She stared back at him for a couple of seconds. ‚He won’t be around for much longer.‛ A cold chill ran up Tardieh’s spine. ‚What exactly are you talking about?‛ She raised her chin and looked at him with narrow eyes. It was then that Tardieh understood it fully. She and whomever was working with her were going to assassinate the dragon lord. Or at least they were going to try. And if she could get him to commit to stop the attacks from the vampires, the war could actually come to a halt. Until the next dragon lord decided he wanted a bigger backyard. She took a step closer and crouched in front of him again. ‚I know

what you’re thinking. You think you are just the prince, just another pawn in this game. But you are mistaken, Tardieh. You have more power than you realize. Your people look up to you. They admire you despite your young age.‛ That was true. The vampire community esteemed him despite him being just under two hundred years old. ‚Promise me you will end the attacks on my people upon your return,‛ she continued. Her voice carried a confidence that clashed with her fragile-looking figure. ‚I can’t promise you that. I am sorry,‛ Tardieh said with true sadness in his heart. ‚My father is the king, and he was betrayed. He will not stop until he gets his revenge.‛ But he saw her point now. His beloved Romania had suffered greatly from that war between the dragons of the east and the vampires. She turned away from him and said, ‚If the circumstances were different, if your father were
bloodlust would easily overpower him. ‚You need to feed, Tardieh. The razbian guards have probably realized what happened and may be on our tracks already.‛ ‚No. I will not take from you.‛ He turned his face to the side and took a deep breath. Big mistake; her blue mist smell was unbearably inviting. Leaning on her hands, she crawled forward and slowly positioned herself between his legs. He could not stop himself; he turned his face back toward hers. His gaze fell upon her luscious breasts barely hidden by the thin fabric, and finally landed on her throat. Her veins. Pulsing blood. She leaned even closer, her cheek touching his. Her voice dropped to a whisper. ‚You know you need to feed, Tardieh. Your wounds will not stop bleeding until you do, and it will ultimately lead the razbians straight to us.‛ Tardieh swallowed hard. Her scent was intoxicating. She raised her chin, positioning her gorgeous neck inches from his lips. ‚Drink from me. Take my vein.‛ He couldn’t resist her anymore. He grabbed the nape of her neck with both hands, holding her still. Her pulse quickened; the faint smell of fear enveloped his nostrils. ‚Too late now, lass. You will have what you asked for.‛ He opened his mouth, letting his fangs extend fully, then bit her. She made a short, startled sound and tensed in his arms. With her blood spilling inside his mouth, every coherent thought escaped his mind. All he could think of was more, more blood. Sweet, delicious blood. In the twinkling of an eye, he swapped positions with her before she could try to run away. He laid on top of her, his long body touching every part of hers. He felt her relax under him. No one could resist the erotic ecstasy spilled by a vampire’s bite. It did not turn humans or dracos into vampires, but the vampire’s fangs released a poison that neutralized a victim’s neural senses, opening them up for the physical enjoyment of the exchange. When done properly, the experience was very pleasurable for both parties involved. Tardieh continued to drink from her. He could feel his strength returning at a faster rate than he had anticipated. He enveloped his arms around her waist linking her lower body to his. He felt her moving slowly

with him, their bodies separated only by the thin material of the stolen trousers and her kirtle. He had to stop—he had already taken in excess—but the fantastic feeling of her warm blood flowing inside his veins and her soft body below him was too much to resist. Her legs wrapped around his hips. His shaft was fully erect, aching to meet her core, no doubt moist by now and ready for him. He heard her groan softly but not in pain. Another sound invaded his ears: footsteps on grass. Not close but not too far from where they were. Struggling to resist his inner part screaming to take her right then and there, he raised his lips from her delicate neck. ‚We have to go.‛ He could barely hear himself. He tried again. ‚We have to go. They are coming for us.‛ That woke her up from the trance. She opened her eyes and met his. He was still lying on top of her. Her gaze set upon his lips, watching his fangs recede. Blinking quickly, confused, she tried to move out of his embrace. He let her do it by sliding sideways but had to catch her when she tried to stand up and swayed. ‚Whoa, easy there, lass. It will take you a few moments to regain your bearing.‛ The sound of a massive explosion made them both turn toward the mountains. The dracoian prison was in flames. She tried to stand up again, and this time she succeeded but wobbled once more. Tardieh held her naked shoulders, steadying her. Her skin felt soft beneath his fingers. ‚They are coming. We have to go at once.‛ Her voice came out a few octaves below her usual commanding tone. She took a few steps away from him, straightened her blouse and turned in the opposite direction as the footsteps. ‚There’s a village not far from here. If we hurry, we can reach it before the razbians reach us.‛ And with that she started running. It was so easy to catch up with her. His wounds were completely healed, and he felt an immense energy flowing through his body. Never had he felt so invigorated so quickly. After all, his body had starved for how long? It would have taken him at least a good day’s rest to fully recover. Who was she? Or more to the point, what was she? Dragon blood was powerful but not that powerful. Tardieh grabbed both of her arms and stopped her.

She looked at him with a mix of annoyance and confusion. ‚What are you doing? There should be at least a couple of dozens razbian soldiers coming straight at us. We need to go, now.‛ ‚Yes, we do but not by foot.‛ He enveloped her waist, bringing her close to him. His shaft immediately responded. The damn thing had no sense of impropriety whatsoever. Gathering his strength, he focused on the image of his home village and let the darkness surround them. In the corner of his eye, he saw the guards approaching them fast. But they were too late; the translocation was already happening. Her startled gaze locked on his. He couldn’t talk but hoped he could give her some reassurance through his stance. Before long, the forest gave way to total darkness, and Tardieh welcomed the familiar feeling of free falling. As soon as it happened, it was gone. Opening his eyes again, he realized he had managed to transport them to the exact street corner he wanted. Despite the whole ordeal, he felt great and almost one hundred percent again. He gave her a small grin. ‚Not bad at all, hmm?‛ The girl looked dizzy at first but soon recovered. ‚Where are we?‛ ‚At the base of my castle. We are safe here.‛ ‚No, you are safe here. I’m still a draco in vampire territory.‛ She started down the dark alleyway. The moon had fully risen by then, and Tardieh could see her slender hips swaying down the path. ‚I can give you protection. Come with me, and you’ll be safe,‛ he said. For some insane reason he wanted her to stay. She turned back to him. ‚No, this is your home. It is time for you to go and keep your end of our bargain.‛ She came closer and stopped a few feet from him. ‚Promise me you will. Promise me you will stop the attacks.‛ Her honey eyes were intent on him. ‚I cannot promise you that.‛ His chest ached, but he could not lie to her. Not after everything she’d done for him. Her eyes filled up with sadness and disappointment. She started down the alley once more. Tardieh quickly grabbed her wrist. ‚But I do promise this.‛ That made her stop, so he carried on without hesitation. ‚I will do everything in my power to convince my father to stop them. And from this night onward, you will always have an

ally in my kingdom.‛ Her lips quirked in a small smile. ‚That is enough for me,‛ she said, watching him under long lashes. ‚Thank you, Tardieh. May the Soartas guide you in this new cycle of your life.‛ She turned away again and started down the narrow street once more. ‚Wait! Tell me at least your name.‛ She stopped but didn’t face him. Tardieh could see only her profile and her wavy dark hair cascading down her back. ‚Zoricah. My name is Zoricah.‛ And she disappeared into the shadows. Tardieh could not believe his ears. He had just been saved by Zoricah, the draconian demigoddess.

Chapter One New York, Present Day The techno music pumped at full blast. The dance floor was packed with seminaked bodies dancing to the hypnotic rhythm. Cascade was the hottest nightclub in New York. The name derived from its main feature: an enormous water fall that filled the whole southern wall and descended upon an amorphous swimming pool. The dance floor was on the opposite side of the spring and the bar on the western wall. The lights reflecting on the water enhanced the mystical vibe of the place. An enormous glass dome displayed the stars above. The VIP areas were located on the second floor, a large upper circle that ran along all four walls like an indoor balcony, as well as on the third floor. A very selective group of patrons had entry to the latter where private lounge rooms and suites were carefully secured. Yara had her eyes on a specific VIP booth on the upper circle. It had taken her less than thirty minutes to locate her target. ‚Hey, babe, how are you?‛ May Apa Dobrý help her, not another one! This must have been the tenth guy to come on to her in the last twenty minutes. True, she was glad that her carefully chosen outfit had proven to be serving its purpose. She was wearing a crimson halter top tied up just below her firm breasts with a low-rise miniskirt that left nothing to the imagination. She topped it all off with a pair of red lace-up seven-inch sandals, large golden hoop earrings, and marble bangle

bracelets. Yep, she was very pleased with herself, but she had had enough of those sad excuses of male gender disturbing her evening. This one must have been either blind or suicidal for he ignored her get-the-fuck-out-of-my-sight look and ran his hand on her naked, flat stomach. ‚So, does this belly button have a name?‛ Yara took an inquisitive look at the happy hand that had apparently found its home on her well-defined stomach and slowly raised her eyes to scrutinize its owner. The sad bastard was really under the illusion he could actually score. She didn’t say a word. She didn’t have to. She slowly reached for the misguided hand, which had already migrated a few inches south, and without taking her eyes off the male slime bucket in front of her, she twisted it. Too bad it was to the wrong direction. With curious amazement, she saw the guy’s eyes flicker from certainty to disbelief to denial and finally pain. When he was about to spoil her fun by screaming like a girl, she sealed his lips with her other hand. ‚Now, now, babe, you’re not going to make a fool of yourself by crying like a baby looking for mommy, are you?‛ He swallowed and tried to retrieve his hand in vain. His face went white, and he gave a little squeak that reminded her of an annoying piglet. ‚I suggest you leave her alone before she decides to have your hand for dinner,‛ Sam said, arriving with their drinks. The guy looked at them both, trying to kick his brain into second gear. ‚Let him go, Yara. Play time is after we do our homework.‛ Yara gave her friend a little shrug and let go of Mr. Happy Hands. He stepped away so fast it almost threw a couple of people into the swimming pool and then staggered desperately toward the exit. Yara gave a husky chuckle and turned to get her drink from her friend’s outstretched hand. ‚Oh, come on. He had it coming,‛ she said after seeing the disapproving look on Sam’s face. ‚We have to focus.‛ Sam scowled her. ‚We don’t know how long they’re going to stay at their VIP area. Do you have the ring?‛ Yara raised her right hand showing a large ring adorned by a huge ruby-colored rock. For the naked eye, it was just another overrated ruby ring, but at close range, a trained eye may have just been able to notice a

tiny latch on its frame, which once opened released a very rare and powerful poison known for knocking out crocodiles in the Amazon. ‚Don’t worry. I got it covered.‛ Yara looked at her friend and sensed something was amiss. Sam was her opposite. They were both beautiful in their own way. One was the typical Amazon splendor: tall with dark hair, slim, toned voluptuous body, and sun-kissed skin; the other was the perfect example of the Celtic angelic beauty: blue eyes, blonde wavy hair, narrow hips that accentuated her full breasts. ‚What’s wrong with you tonight?‛ Yara asked, trying not to sound too rude. Sam looked back at her with haunted eyes. ‚I
enjoying the view of her cleavage. The sweet smell of the woman’s cheap perfume was so strong Yara’s stomach lurched in protest. ‚That bitch! Now I’ll have to wait till he’s done with her before I can get an opening again.‛ She scowled. ‚By the way she is flashing her boobs at him, I bet it’s a sure thing.‛ Shit, shit, shit! She hated when things didn’t go exactly according to her plans. Well, no point on crying over the spilled milk now. Yara was about to make another acid remark about the redhead but stopped when she saw her friend’s expression. Sam was paralyzed, staring at something across the swimming pool. She looked like she had been hypnotized on the spot. Yara immediately searched for the source of what had entranced her friend. ‚Holy shit.‛ Sam could not breathe. Across from the swimming pool on the same balcony where the blond vampire was swallowing the ginger girl stood the most gorgeous man Sam had ever seen. He was tall with pitch black shoulder length layered hair. He was wearing black denim trousers with a tight charcoal V-neck sweater that exposed his lean but strong arms and very well defined abs. Sam tried to remind herself that staring was not polite when he stepped away from the balcony railing and started walking down the stairs without taking his eyes off her. His stare was so spellbinding that all she could do was try to remember how to breathe. Was he doing that on purpose? Sam knew some vampires had the power of hypnosis, but it didn’t feel like she was being put under. She remembered her name and where she was; she just could not avert her gaze from his. Sam noted he must be a really old vampire for his narrow eyes were dark brown. Younger vampires had a strange crimson film covering their irises. The older they got, the less prominent the redness became. Of course, to the trained eye, vampires were always recognizable by the eerie vibe they gave off as much as for their red-glowing eyes when taken by fury. But not this one. The vampire who was coming toward her had the most penetrating chocolate eyes she had seen in a long time. He wasn’t smiling, but he wasn’t angry, either. He had reached the bottom of the stairs and was now crossing the dance floor. People opened up the way for him like he was royalty. His long strides were definite like those of someone confident about what he wants, of someone on a

mission. He reached the middle of the bar. Sam vaguely heard Yara say something, but for some reason, she could not fathom her friend’s words. He stopped a few steps from her, his brilliant eyes intent on hers. He took a breath as if he were about to say something, then gave up, moistened his lips, and exhaled. Sam held her breath. He was staring at her with a confused look, like a child trying hard to decipher a difficult equation. Without any warning, he closed the gap between them, leaned down, and kissed her. As soon as his lips touched hers, Sam felt the energies inside her go wild. He must have felt it too because he pulled away, startled. But it took him less than a second to recover and kiss her again. Hikuro was lost. After touching her lips and feeling that electrical tingling, he could not think of anything else but to keep on exploring the enigma in his arms. He had first sensed her when he was still sitting on the couch at the back of their VIP area. He had been focusing on not losing another chess game to his friend Dyam when the feeling of an electrical current woke his vampire senses. Immediately, he stood up and went to the balcony in search of the source. She was there, standing by the far end of the bar, across from the swimming pool. She was wearing a 1960s style light blue minidress that complimented her feminine figure. Her light blonde locks framed her heart-shaped face with barely any makeup. But it wasn’t her stunning beauty that amazed him; it was the strange glow that seemed to dance around her aura. Her lips parted in invitation. He raised his left hand, held the back of her neck, and deepened the kiss. The initial tingle was now a familiar buzz that went straight to his shaft. Too soon, she pulled away, blinking fast. She looked up at him with those haunted eyes. ‚I’m sorry. I don’t usually attack women like this. I don’t know what came over me‛. Hikuro said, still shaken by the madness of his actions. ‚Please forgive me.‛ She was scrutinizing him, but he saw her attractive mouth quirk up slightly. ‚Oh? So how do you usually attack women?‛ The question took him by surprise. ‚I
offered his hand to her. ‚Hi, I’m Hikuro.‛ After a few seconds that felt like an eternity, she shook his raised hand. ‚I’m Sam.‛ ‚Nice to meet you, Sam.‛ She gave him a small chuckle as if laughing at his sudden change in approach. Smiling back, he joked. ‚What? I would appreciate a little support. I’m trying not to blow it all here.‛ ‚Okay, sorry,‛ Sam said, trying hard not to giggle. ‚And what are you planning on saying next? ‚Well, I have a few ideas,‛ Hikuro replied, narrowing his eyes. Her eyebrows lifted, and she said, quite serious, ‚Oh, no, you’re not one of those who practice at home, are you?‛ Oh, dear Apa Dobrý, Hikuro needed a fast recovery because this encounter was rapidly going from bad to worse. He looked at her stunning blue eyes again, took a deep breath, and said, unable to stop himself, ‚You
much—after all, the vamp’s friends had probably been watching them, too—but to no avail. Sam had been completely entranced by the vampire god in front of her. Okay, Yara could almost sympathize with her friend’s predicament. The vamp was simply stunning with his dark eyes, chiseled chin, and longish hair, but Sam was the one who had reminded Yara just a few moments ago that play time was after they finished the job. Yara pondered the situation. Even if Sam had decided to take over and see their mission through, she did not have the poison with her or the note. How in hell was Sam planning on doing this? The vamp seemed to be dragging Sam to the private lounge rooms on the third floor. Man, he did not waste any time, did he? Yara could not just go after them because she did not have free access and the huge mean-looking vampire bouncer did not give the impression he was in the mood for charity. But Yara had to do something; she would not leave Sam without a backup, even if she did want to have a few hours being devoured by the vamp. That was the core motto of their friendship: whatever happens, they would have each other’s back. Damn it! She really really hated when things did not go according to plan. ***** On the third floor, Hikuro turned left and opened a secured door with his digital key. He entered the room first and checked if the coast was clear. His sharp eyesight did not need lights to clearly see danger lurking in the shadows. Satisfied, he turned toward Sam and held the door open. She hesitated for a second but went in. Hikuro closed the door quietly and meant to turn the light on, but the sight of her stopped him in his tracks. She did glow. Her profile was strangely surrounded by a soft radiance that seemed to dance around her. She looked up at him, took a deep breath, and slowly closed the gap between them. Her lips were soft on his. She shyly raised her hands and touched his shoulders. He immediately felt the tingling again wherever she touched: his pecks, his shoulders, his neck. He encircled his arms around her waist while parting her lips with his tongue. Their kiss became more urgent, more passionate. Hikuro could

not have enough of her. He reached down, cupped her lean ass, and pulled her fully against him. She rewarded him with a little groan. Let Apa Dobrý punish him later, but he had to have her right now. He lowered his lips, tasting her neck while his left hand made its way up her stomach and caressed one of her full breasts. She arched in response, giving him more access to her lean, gorgeous body. Another groan, but this time Hikuro realized it was coming from him. He had to have her now! ‚I’m sorry,‛ she whispered faintly against his ear. ‚Wha
Chapter Two Dyam was tired of this nightclub. After Hikuro had strangely deserted him and carried the blonde woman up to his private quarters, Dyam had returned to his whiskey-infused blood and finished the chess game by himself. He got their waitress’ attention and gave her the international signal for ‚one more‛ with his index finger. She promptly obliged, bringing him another triple dose of Springbank diluted in the same amount of fresh blood. Dyam took a nice sip of the dark golden liquid and sat back on the couch. He did not understand why his friends enjoyed this place. It was full of desperate humans looking for a cheap escape from their miserable empty lives and vampires looking for easy targets. Contrary to popular belief, vampires could not turn humans; one was either born a vampire or not, just like any other being. There had been some cases among sujha families where the vampire gene remained dormant and skipped a generation or two, scaring the hell out of the unsuspecting non-vampire parents. Vampires did not have to kill a human to get their nourishment, either, but there were a lot of vampires who lost themselves to bloodlust, and that’s when things got complicated. And places like the Cascade offered the perfect conditions for complications. Killing humans was strictly prohibited because it attracted too much attention to the vampires’ existence. Dyam had once asked Hikuro, who was much older than him, why the vampires hadn’t conquered the human race and lived freely on Terhem Viahta. It’s not like they depended on humans; vampires could survive off any kind of blood as long as it was

taken from a body with a beating heart. Hikuro had explained that thousands of years ago when all the races roamed freely on Earth, the life scale tipped when vampires and dragons started battling for world dominance. There were no restraints when it came to feeding the vampire and draconian armies. Large animals, like aurocks, giant deer, and sea cows were the first choice on the menu, mainly because only one of them could feed an entire brigade. When those beasts were hunt down to extinction, the other supernatural communities started to put pressure for a truce on the two battling races. After realizing that if they didn’t stop they would probably extinguish all life on Earth or maybe because their mighty armies could not fight for long off small animal or human bloods, the dragon lords and vampire kings agreed on a peace treaty and returned to their lands. By then, humans had evolved and defied their natural inferiority with cleverness and ingenious inventions. They had built entire cities made of stone and lived off plantations, a feat never seen before, for even the magical creatures survived on what the environment provided them. Dragons and vampires, blinded by their arrogance, realized what was happening a little too late—humans had discovered an incredible weapon: steel. And so the supernatural races like the vampires, the dragons, and the fae wisely decided to draw back to their nests and observe the strange race that dared defy the natural laws of life. They were all dumbfounded by the humans’ clever ways of changing the environment to suit their own needs: building cobblestone streets for better access and multi-story edifices to maximize space; creating amazing inventions like the steam train, electricity, and the telephone. So instead of fighting the humans, the magical races slowly started to live inconspicuously among them and enjoy the benefits of human inventions. Dyam took another sip and closed his eyes to enjoy the delicious amber liquid burning down his throat. He could feel the music vibrating in his body cells, hear bodies rubbing against each other, and smell the scent of sweat, a jungle animal, and lust in the air. Jungle animal? Opening his eyes, Dyam sat up straight and inspected his surroundings. What the fuck? He tried to shake it off and remind himself

that there was no way a jungle animal could have been in a nightclub in the middle of Soho, and it was probably just the whiskey talking, but no, he wasn’t mistaken. His Cherokee inimă, his soul, could sense it, smell it faintly in the air. He took another deep breath and stood up. Going to the balcony, he scanned the dance floor below, then the bar, the fake waterfall, and the swimming pool. Nothing. He could not see any jungle animal or any animal for that matter, not even a bird. And then he turned his attention back to the second level and saw her. A tall, olive-skinned woman with short spiky hair wearing a crimson top and matching miniskirt talking to the vampire bouncer by the elevator. She was just inches away from the guy. A dim light green radiance seemed to be glimmering off her eyes. The vampire bouncer with all his mass of muscles did nothing to stop her when she whisked by him and got into the elevator. Turning on his heels toward the back of their VIP area, Dyam spotted Joel, who was now enjoying the redhead’s mouth on his cock. His friend was not going to like him very much, but they had to find out what the fuck was happening. ‚Joel, we gotta go.‛ Joel didn’t even flinch. Dyam tried again. ‚Joel, something’s not right. We gotta go.‛ This time, his friend opened one eye. ‚Dy, buddy, this is not a good time.‛ ‚I know, but I think there’s a jungle animal inside this nightclub.‛ Okay, even he could see the insanity of his remark. ‚What?‛ Joel sat up straight but did not motion the girl off his cock. ‚What do you mean there’s a jungle animal in the club?‛ ‚She was getting inside one of the elevators. I think she is going to the third floor.‛ ‚She?‛ Joel asked, with an impish smile on his face. ‚Dy, my man, it is probably the remains of your Cherokee inimă begging for some release.‛ Joel leaned back on the couch with his hand on the girl’s head, encouraging her to go deeper. Joel was probably right, but Dyam could not shake off the certainty of what he had sensed. Deciding he could not just sit around and forget about it, he started toward the elevator. The bouncer was still on the same

spot. ‚Did you see who she was?‛ Dyam asked while checking which floor the elevator had stopped on. The bouncer looked at Dyam, blinking fast. ‚Who?‛ ‚The woman, the tall woman, wearing a red top and mini who had just passed by you.‛ The bouncer looked up to the nothingness and smiled broadly—he actually smiled! Dyam was overwhelmed by a smell of fresh rain on autumn leaves. ‚Oh, that woman. Yeah, she
he went to check on his friend. Hikuro’s head was still attached to his body. Thank the Soartas. Dyam released the breath he had not realized he was holding and tried to wake his friend up. Nothing. Hikuro was out cold. That was when Dyam saw a small envelope on his lap. Pulling his phone out of his back pocket, he punched the numbers. Joel had better take this. After a few more tries, his blond friend decided to pick it up. ‚There better be a whole fucking jungle invading the club, buddy.‛ ‚Hikuro is down, unconscious in his private quarters.‛ ‚I’ll be right up.‛ The phone disconnected, and in record time, Dyam heard footsteps in the corridor. A second later, Joel was by the door, his Heckler & Koch 9mm positioned to put a nice hole in the middle of any motherfucker who dared cross his path. ‚What happened?‛ ‚I don’t know. She was gone when I got here.‛ Dyam rolled his unconscious friend to the side to check for any injuries. ‚Are you sure it was the woman you saw?‛ ‚She was not a human female. She was a jungle animal. I’m not sure which one because I never got to look into her eyes. But I followed her distinct scent of rain forest leaves here.‛ ‚How the fuck did that happen? A female knocking Hikuro out? That’s impossible.‛ Joel helped Dyam lift their unconscious friend up. ‚I know. It is a disturbing thought. The other piece of this puzzle is why.‛ Together they put Hikuro on the chaise lounge. ‚I think we should go to the king. Look what I found.‛ Dyam took out the small envelope and handed it to Joel, who opened it and read the note inside. ‚What the fuck? What’s this supposed to mean?‛ ‚I don’t know. But I think we were not supposed to know.‛ Dyam held Hikuro’s hand and dematerialized out of there.

Chapter Three One a.m. He had been waiting in the stupid alleyway for thirty minutes already. If his brainless associate did not show up in the next three minutes, he would make sure he regretted not being punctual. The hell with it, he would make sure his associate paid for it regardless. The alleyway stunk of human feces and dead animals, typical in this part of town. East Flatbush, New York, was not known for having rose-smelling streets. Headlights blinded his vision, and he had to turn his head slightly to see his associate heading his toward him. When the green sedan was just a few feet away, he stepped out of the threshold he had chosen to hide from the view of curious neighbors and waved for his associate to stop the car. ‚You’re late,‛ he said bluntly. He regretted having chosen a half-human to do the job. He usually hired vampires or dracos, but this one had shown an interesting extra keenness for his bounty-hunting assignments. A short plump man nearing his forties stepped out of the car and closed the door with a thud. ‚The bitch was harder to get than I thought.‛ His associate had the audacity to open his unbuttoned flannel shirt and show his torso which bore a number of scratches. ‚She put up a hell of a fight.‛ Ignoring the exposed torso, he walked toward the back of the car. ‚I wonder what gave you the erroneous idea that I give a fuck. Open the trunk,‛ he commanded, accentuating the dark vibrato in his voice.

His associate obliged with a small ‚Yes, sir‛ and opened the trunk to reveal a female vampire inside. She was gagged with a cloth that looked like it had been taken from a mechanic’s office, her hands and feet were tied up with silver chains, and she had an ugly black eye and a few bruises on her arms that were already healing. Her wide eyes were staring up at him. Terrified, she started shaking uncontrollably. He bent over slightly, took a deep breath, and smiled. Yes, one more for his collection. The faint smell of urine invaded his nostrils. ‚Fuck! You made her piss herself!‛ his associate said with a snorting laugh. Shutting the trunk, he turned around and grabbed his soon-to-be former associate by the throat and squeezed. He saw his eyes bulging with surprise and then terror. The brainless moron hopelessly tried to punch and kick him, and that tickled a little bit, so he lifted the human off the ground and put more pressure on his grip. He didn’t want him to die too soon, though. He enjoyed seeing his victims’ eyes just before he squeezed all existence out of them. They held a remarkable glow that slowly, oh so slowly, dimmed until there was nothing. Curiously, it was always inversely proportional to their desperation level. The more the glow dwindled, the more desperate their feeble attempts to escape became. After all these years, it still fascinated him. He dumped his associate’s lifeless corpse farther down the alley, got in the driver’s seat, and left the area, the smell of urine still lingering in his nostrils.

Chapter Four By the time Dyam and Joel arrived at the headquarters, Hikuro was coming around. They had to dematerialize to a secure location about thirty minutes out of town, then took the Porsche Cayenne, which was one of the several all-wheel drives that were always ready and blasted up the hill. Twenty minutes later, they reached the main entrance. At first glance, one would think it was the beginning of just another wild forest with its high balsam firs, red spruces, and thick oaks. Only a trained eye would notice the small boxes imperceptibly attached against each trunk. Hikuro saw Dyam stop the Porsche Cayenne and swipe his digital key against the camouflaged brown box clipped to a large oak tree. A second later, a bright red light flickered between the two trunks in front of the car. The flickering intensified and expanded to encompass every single tree in the vicinity. In a few moments, a vast laser fence was displayed before their eyes. Red beams crisscrossed between tree trunks forming a crimson security net. With a second swipe of the digital key, the laser beams directly in front of the car disappeared, shaping a narrow pathway. Dyam put the car in first gear and started forward. As soon as the car passed the first row of trees, the laser beams automatically turned on again, reforming the security net mile by mile. After a few minutes on the dirt road, they reached the main gate and parked the Porsche along the outside walls, side by side with a black Jaguar, a dark blue Ferrari, and a charcoal BMW X6. Hikuro was still a bit shaken, his legs were not yet fully responding

to his neural commands, but he did not accept Joel’s offer to help him out of the car. A retinal scan and voice recognition later, the gates were open, and the three friends walked to the mansion. Hidden from preying eyes by the woodlands and the tall fence, the mansion looked like a great medieval fortress. Completely built of stone, it stood at the top of a hill that overlooked New York City. Before they had reached the entrance, the door opened, and an elderly man appeared in front of them. ‚His majesty is expecting you in the library.‛ ‚Thanks, Arthur,‛ Hikuro managed to say it with a nod. His head was still thumping from whatever happened to him. What the fuck had happened anyway? He remembered kissing the girl, Sam, in his private quarters at the Cascade; then she said something and bam! His muscles started spasming, his heart stopped beating for a second and the feeling of being fried from the inside out overtook him. He had not seen any weapons, any devices on her that may have caused such a massive electrical shock. And there was no doubt it had been massive because just a handful of things in this world had the power to knock out a three-hundred-year-old vampire like him. He crossed the ample foyer and turned left toward an open door. Even though it was ajar, he knocked before entering. Joel and Dyam were right on his heels. The room was large with a tall ceiling. Bookshelves covered two walls from top to bottom; the third wall housed a fireplace made of light brown sandstone. Two sets of black sofas were placed in front of it. The beautiful view could be seen through the fourth wall, made of thick bulletproof glass. The king was sitting behind the large mahogany desk located between the fireplace and the glass wall. He was staring at the view of the New York City night below. The three friends bowed deeply. Hikuro rose and met his king’s eyes. ‚Good evening, King Tardieh.‛ Tardieh was apprehensive. From what his most trusted friends were telling him, someone had just gone through a lot of trouble to make that attempt on Hikuro’s life. But why? He looked at Hikuro while Dyam was describing the female with olive skin he believed was behind the

attack. ‚So there were two women, then.‛ ‚Yes, my lord. The blonde one who introduced herself as Sam and the olive skinned one. We do not know who she is.‛ Hikuro's voice contained an edge. His jaw was so tight that Tardieh was amazed his teeth hadn’t splintered already. ‚But from what you are telling me, you approached the blonde woman. Are you sure she was human?‛ ‚I am not certain because I did not taste her blood, but she smelled like a human. However<‛ Hikuro hesitated for a second. Tardieh nodded to his friend, encouraging him to carry on. After taking a deep breath, he continued, ‚She glowed.‛ Silence descended upon the room. Tardieh raised an eyebrow and looked at Joel and Dyam, who had the same confusion mixed with incredibility stamped on their faces. Joel was the first one to recover. ‚Okay, I think the fall hit you harder than we thought, buddy.‛ Tardieh could not stop his lips from curling up. Joel could be the most serious and focused fighter he’d ever known, but he had the worst timing. As expected, Hikuro did not like the comment and said between clenched teeth, ‚This is not a joke, Joel. I’m not kidding. She had this glow, like a blue light dancing around her.‛ ‚What of the other female? Are you sure they weren’t working together?‛ This story had so many loose ends, it was giving Tardieh a headache. How had the blonde female managed to strike when it was Hikuro who had approached her in the first place? And why? She’d had enough time and opportunity to kill him by decapitation, but she had chosen not to. Her intent had clearly been to just stun him. For what purpose? What about the olive-skinned female who Dyam is so sure was a jungle animal? Tardieh had never heard of shifters in this part of the world, let alone someone who would shift into a jungle animal. There were some occasional werewolves here and there, but contrary to the human folklore, werewolves and vampires had no quarrel—as long as the fucking dogs stayed on their side of the country. ‚I am not positive, my lord. But I traced her scent to the third floor.

It was very distinct. And there’s one other thing.‛ Dyam took a small envelope out of his back pocket and handed it to Tardieh. ‚This was on top of Hikuro when I found him.‛ Ignoring Hikuro’s low growl, Tardieh opened the envelope to find a yellow piece of paper with just a few words inside. His blood ran cold. He read the message again, then took a deep breath. ‚Do you understand the meaning of this message, my lord?‛ Dyam asked, narrowing his eyes. Tardieh could not respond. He read the message for the third time. ‚‘From this night onward, you will always have an ally in my kingdom. 400404251N74023W.’‛ He raised his glare to meet three pairs of eyes very intent on him. ‚I believe I know who is behind this attack.‛ After summarizing his ordeal back in the war and how he had been saved by the draconian demigoddess Zoricah, Tardieh set upon them the task of deciphering the message. ‚What about a Morse code?‛ Hikuro asked, his face hopeful. Tardieh started decoding but soon realized it did not make any more sense than that whole attack. Half an hour for human standards is not much, but the same time span on a fast-paced high-wired vampire brain was a lifetime. They were all getting fidgety and annoyed. Hikuro sat on the black leather armchair by the fireplace, Joel was sprawled on the floor in front him after having tried every other piece of furniture in the room, and Tardieh was sitting next to Dyam on the leather couch. Dyam stood up and started pacing. ‚What if they are geographical coordinates?‛ ‚We’ve already covered that one, man,‛ Joel said impatiently, staring at the ceiling. ‚The four hundred number does not fit in.‛ ‚Yes, but what if the last combination of numbers are separate from the 400 one?‛ Everyone stopped and looked at Dyam. It could actually make sense. ‚If the 404251N74023W are coordinates, they could mean forty degrees, forty-two minutes and fifty-one seconds north<‛ ‚And seventy-four degrees, zero minutes, and twenty-three seconds west,‛ Tardieh finished. ‚Oh, fuck me sideways!‛ Joel said throwing his hands up in the air. ‚Now we have to find out where these coordinates lead us to.

Hikuro—‛ Tardieh didn’t have to finish his request, his tech-genius friend was already typing on his smartphone. A few seconds later, Hikuro announced, ‚They correspond to a spot in the middle of Prospect Park in Brooklyn.‛ Joel sat up straight saying. ‚Brooklyn? As in Brooklyn, New York?‛ ‚Yep,‛ Hikuro confirmed. ‚And maybe the four hundred is not a lock combination as we thought before. What if it is a specific time?‛ Everyone stared at Tardieh, considering his last remark. ‚Do you think the message is a meeting arrangement, my lord?‛ Dyam asked. ‚It’s got to be,‛ Tardieh replied, checking the time on his smartphone. It was three a.m. If he was right, they had exactly one hour to go to the spot and find out what the hell was going on. It was Hikuro’s time to get restless. ‚I don’t like this. It has ambush written all over it.‛ ‚Zoricah’s message was intended to reignite the tie between us. I don’t think this is a trap.‛ Or at least Tardieh hoped it wasn’t because he would have liked to have a few words with the demigoddess. ‚And why would this Zoricah go through all of this engineered trouble to get the message to the King to then set up an ambush?‛ Joel was already holstering his guns. Tardieh knew he was dying for some action. ‚Hikuro may be right. It is best to take precautions, my lord, just in case.‛ Dyam stood by the desk with his arms crossed over his chest. Standing like that, he reminded Tardieh of Dyam’s father, a Native American shaman from one of the most powerful Cherokee tribes of the nineteenth century. Tardieh considered the possibilities. Yes, it could well be a trap. Zoricah could have told someone about their encounter over two hundred years ago and that person could be using it now to allure him to his death. The Soartas only knew how often he'd had attempts on his life since being crowned. But then, it could be her. It could very well be Zoricah herself trying to get in touch with him. His blood boiled in his veins, a deep hatred overtook his usually serene countenance. Images of that dreadful night when Zoricah had

supposedly saved him from his fate, came flooding in his mind. He remembered arriving at his father’s castle to give him the news that he had been freed. The castle was quiet, too quiet. There was no one on the main entrance to meet him as was customary. A gush of wind blew with the opening of the front door, and the strong smell of blood invaded his nostrils. Vampire blood. Lots of it. Without wasting any time, Tardieh ran up the main stairway in a desperate search for his father. Several decapitated bodies were sprawled throughout the entire mansion. Tardieh recognized a few servants, royal guards, and dracos among them. Crimson pools marked the way to his father’s chambers as if in a macabre version of ‚Hansel and Gretel.‛ Turning left on the top floor, he reached the chamber he was looking for. The door was ajar, so Tardieh slowly pushed it open while checking for any foreign sounds. The sight in front of him stole his breath. His father’s headless body was hanging from the ceiling by its ankles. Small droplets of blood dripped onto the floor beneath the body where a large red puddle had formed. Tardieh’s head spun; his stomach convulsed violently. He turned sharply away from the scene in a desperate attempt to stop the heaves, but his eyes landed on the mantelpiece. His father’s head had been carefully placed on top of it with the famous golden crown as its base, holding it up, as if it were a souvenir. No, not a souvenir, a statement. The king’s lifeless eyes stared straight at him. This time Tardieh could not stop the gagging. Bending down, he emptied the contents of his stomach onto the floor. After a few more of those, still quivering, he remembered Zoricah’s words: “If the circumstances were different, if your father were…if he somehow let you make the choice, what would you do?” Tardieh had vowed to try to convince his father to stop the attacks on the draconian kingdom. What a fool he had been. Now Tardieh would not have to convince his father of anything, would he? As Zoricah had insightfully predicted, his father had let him make the choice by leaving this life. Or should he say that the draconian demigoddess had made the choice for him? Closing his eyes, Tardieh forced the dark memories back to the depths of his inimă and took a deep breath. When he opened his eyes

again, his three friends and personal guards were watching him apprehensively. His hatred might have shown a bit more than he had expected. He raised his chin and stared back at them. ‚Let’s go.‛

Chapter Five The green sedan crossed the narrow wooden bridge toward the farmhouse. Dawn was still a few hours away. A couple of minutes later, he reached the main house, drove around it, and parked at the back entrance located near the kitchen. The house had been a great find. It had the necessary space for his work—the nearest town was four miles away—and the previous owner had suddenly suffered a horrifying car accident the previous year, at least that was what the police records stated. The back door opened, and two razbian guards stepped out onto the back porch. ‚In the trunk,‛ he commanded. Having done the drill more than a dozen times, the razbians took the female vampire out of trunk, blocking her feeble attempts to escape. While they carried her inside, he stayed behind to retrieve the box of supplies he had brought; then he walked around the car and closed the trunk. The smell of urine penetrated his nostrils. At first he thought it was the new girl’s smell lingering, but no, this one was different. Slowly, he turned around and scanned the area. There, behind a small poison ivy bush. Two big brown scared eyes stared up at him. He recognized her at once. She was the vampire he had picked up at a filthy underground bar in Chicago a few months prior. He smiled back. ‚Well, well, well, my little kitten,‛ he said to the naked female. ‚How did you manage to get out?‛ In a rush of panic, the female ran toward the woods that permeated

the house. Despite her vampire speed, the little whore was not very bright, and in no time, he'd managed to ambush her and capture the fucking bitch. Twisting her arms around her back, he forced her down and shoved her face on the dirt floor, effectively muffling her cries. The noise must have alerted his razbian guards for they were on the porch again when he arrived with the runaway female. ‚How the fuck did she manage to escape?‛ he barked ‚Hmm
in the aperture, then squeezed the gadget shut. The soft sound of her tongue falling on the floor was muffled by her failed attempts to scream while choking on her own blood. Holding her in place, he watched her choke in panic and was amused by how resilient the vampire body could be. It did not matter how much she sobbed and chocked, she would not die by suffocation because she did not need to breathe to survive. The only ways of killing a vampire were by decapitation or by the well-known solar encounter. Another bout of chocking-sobbing-chocking woke him from his fascinating assessment. ‚Tie her up on the operating table near the hallway,‛ he ordered his guards. He would bring in more guards and reinforce the perimeter just after he cut the hearts out of those two. While the razbians followed his command, he went to check on his newest rising star in another hospital bed near the kitchen. Bending over, he delicately stroked the draconian’s long red curls, then her cheek. She uttered a small distressed sound and tried to turn her head away, but it barely moved. He smiled; the drugs were still working their magic. His hand went even lower and caressed her naked breasts, then her overextended belly. She was close, very close, he realized. ‚It is growing, my dear. You will soon experience the joy that every female yearns for.‛

Chapter Six The park was mostly silent apart from the usual sounds of animals foraging for food. Tardieh was getting impatient. It was almost four in the morning and so far no signs of foreign activity had been reported. The four vampires had arrived in the park almost one hour earlier and covered the grounds twice. If Zoricah was plotting something, they would have found evidence of it by now. ‚I don’t like this, my lord.‛ Hikuro, crouching beside him, was as fidgety as Tardieh felt. ‚At least let me go meet with them in your place.‛ ‚We have not found any vestiges of a trap in the park, Hikuro. If an attack on my life is on Zoricah’s mind, she will do it as a surprise.‛ ‚Exactly, my lord. You should not be here.‛ Tardieh took another look around. The narrow stone bridge where the geographic coordinates on the note led to was one quarter of a mile away. They were far enough to easily hide in the shadows but close enough for a good vantage point of the meeting place. Tardieh punched a button on his cellular and whispered, ‚Dyam, what’s your status?‛ Dyam and Joel were keeping watch one mile north and east, respectively. This way, the four friends had a closed circle around the meeting point which was a short stone bridge over a deep walking track. Half a second later, he got his answer. ‚Situation unchanged, my lord.‛ After repeating the procedure and receiving the same answer from Joel, Tardieh went back to watching the bridge and its surroundings. Three fifty-eight. Hikuro shuffled on his heels but refrained from standing

up. Four a.m. Tardieh opened his senses to anything and everything in the park and beyond. Suddenly, he heard high-pitched sounds deriving coming from the west. They were soon followed by dark wings coming at them. Bats. The bats that had been having their evening fruits on the western side of the park were flying out, scattered in every direction, as if fleeing from a threat. ‚My lord, something is scarring the animals here. It’s coming from the west.‛ Tardieh could barely discern Dyam’s voice on the cellular over the bats’ screeches, but before he could respond, he heard Dyam say, ‚I’m going to investigate.‛ Tardieh did not waste time watching the distressed bats fly low over his head. His trained eyes were already scanning the woods for any sign of danger. Then he saw it. It was just a shadow, and it could have easily been discarded as a trick of the moonlight, but he knew better. ‚My lord, three o’clock.‛ Tardieh’s head snapped forty-five degrees to the right as a response to Hikuro’s reference. He saw it again. This time it was clearer. A huge beautiful black panther crossing the woods toward the stone bridge at high speed. ‚What the fuck?‛ If it wasn’t for his oversensitive vampire eyesight, he wouldn’t have caught it for the beast was the fastest he had ever seen. He was about to go after it when Hikuro’s hand on his forearm stopped him. ‚Please, my lord. Let me intervene on your behalf. I beg of you, stay here. Do not endanger yourself any further.‛ Tardieh’s gaze darted to the stone bridge, then back to his friend. Tardieh was breathing hard and fast, he realized with a start. He was feeling a strong sense of anticipation he had not experienced in a long time. Hikuro was right; he was too involved in this case to think logically. ‚Okay. Go and find out what Zoricah wants.‛ Hikuro darted across the woods in a flash but kept himself hidden in the shadows. Tardieh saw Dyam’s profile pop out from behind a nearby tree. He signaled his friend to go to the bridge to provide Hikuro a strong backup. No words were needed. In the long years of service to their king, the three official guards had learned to take care of one another.

They were like brothers and would protect one another at all costs. Tardieh valued and admired his guards’ loyalty not only to him but to each other. A quick movement on his left side made him snap his attention back to the action. It was Joel taking Dyam’s place where he could easily protect his king and provide backup for his friends on the bridge. Hikuro stood up from his hiding place and started crossing the bridge. What the fuck was he doing? Tardieh had to tilt his head slightly to see what had caused such an open advance from his most loyal guard and friend. A tall brunette beauty with short spiky hair stood on the opposite end of the bridge. She was standing with open stance, her arms hung loose on both sides of her hips. She was wearing black pants and a black top that complimented her lean figure. Hikuro reached the edge and stopped, facing the woman, the length of the bridge between them. From Dyam’s descriptions, that must be the woman who had hypnotized the vampire bouncer at the club. In an instant, Tardieh saw Dyam getting out of hiding and place himself just behind Hikuro. The brunette took a sharp breath at the sight of Dyam, as if something had hit her, but quickly recovered. ‚I’m here to give an important message to your king.‛ Her voice was quiet and husky. She knew there was no need to shout. Vampires have overly acute hearing abilities. They could hear a pin drop in a room full of screaming kids. ‚Give it to me and I’ll pass it on,‛ Hikuro said in the same low tone of voice. ‚No, I need to give it to him personally.‛ ‚Why is that, black panther?‛ This time, Dyam’s voice resonated in the woods surrounding them with a menace that made the air grow thicker. So she was the jungle animal Dyam had tracked down at the club. ‚Because I don’t trust you, Cherokee,‛ she answered in a low, menacing tone. ‚This message is for your king’s ears only. I will not deliver it otherwise.‛ ‚And why would he want to hear it?‛ Hikuro asked, measuring up the woman on the other end of the bridge. ‚It concerns him and his kingdom.‛ A gush of wind crossed Tardieh’s face, and the scent of blue mist

flowers invaded his nostrils. He froze. A second later, he heard a whisper behind him. ‚And because a gentleman always keeps his promise.‛ In a flash, Tardieh spun on his heels, raised his gun, and pinned his target by the throat against a nearby tree. Zoricah didn’t try to stop him or defend herself. She just faced him with an unreadable expression on her face. Her long midnight hair was neatly tied up in a ponytail; she wore no earrings or makeup. She didn’t need to. Her honey hazel eyes glittered in the dark night and illuminated her exotic features. Like her black panther, she was also wearing tight black pants, knee-high boots, and a black tank top that was a tribute to her perfect female figure. ‚What are you doing here?‛ Tardieh’s voice came out more like a groan. His gun touched her right temple. ‚What is this all about?‛ ‚I knew you would come,‛ Zoricah responded, pinning him with her beautiful eyes. ‚It’s been a long time, Tardieh.‛ Hearing his name coming out of those lush lips made his mouth go dry, but he managed to recoup some saliva. ‚Not long enough. What the fuck is this all about?‛ Tardieh saw a small hint of shock in her glittering eyes but whatever feelings he had stirred in her were quickly concealed. ‚We need to talk. Can you please be so kind and lower your gun?‛ For reasons he didn’t know or didn’t want to dwell on at that particular moment, Tardieh leaned forward. ‚Not until you tell me why you trapped one of my guards and knocked him unconscious.‛ Her nose was inches from his. He could feel the warmth of her body, her minty blue mist scent. ‚You are a very difficult male to reach, Tardieh, and my matter is urgent.‛ She looked him straight in the eye, no wavering, no faltering, no hint of hesitancy. She was dead serious. ‚My girl did not kill your guard despite having plenty of time and opportunity to do so. It was not my intention to offend you, but I had no other choice.‛ She had a point. After his father’s death and the attempts on his own life that followed, Tardieh had learned his lesson. He’d never stayed in one place for more than six months, never went to pre-scheduled functions or meetings, preferring to show up unexpectedly. That way, his

enemies would never know where or when to find him. Until now. A movement in his peripheral vision made him shift his gaze slightly. Before he had time to turn around, a delicate hand touched the nape of his neck. ‚Let her go, vampire, or I’ll fry you to dust.‛ It all happened too fast. In a second, Joel was pointing his gun at the new female who kept her hand on Tardieh’s nape. The brunette appeared a second later in her black panther shape, growling at Joel and Hikuro, who had reached the spot at the same time. Soon after, Dyam jumped in front of the panther, clearly prepared to take on her attack. ‚Stop!‛

Chapter Seven Zoricah was furious. She had gone through the plan a thousand times with her fighters and yet they still failed to follow it. She knew this situation would very likely happen, and she wanted it to be avoided at all costs. That’s why she’d had Yara and Sam distract the vampire guards while she talked with Tardieh. ‚Stop!‛ She had to shout once more. ‚Remove your hand, Sam.‛ Sam did not move. Zoricah unlocked her gaze from Tardieh’s, which had not wavered from hers the entire time, and found her friends’. ‚Sam, retrieve your hand. Now.‛ Her low, directive tones were enough to make her friend follow her command. Sam slowly removed her hand from Tardieh’s neck but kept her stance, ready for another attack if needed. Zoricah’s gaze found Tardieh’s again. ‚There’s is no need for hostility. I come in peace.‛ Tardieh’s eyes narrowed even more. ‚This matter concerns the healthy state of your kingdom.‛ He lowered his face, as if studying her between his long lashes. Their closeness was starting to bother Zoricah in ways she had not anticipated. She met his gaze squarely and said in barely audible tones, ‚Tell your men to stand down, Tardieh. I promise you there are no enemies in this park tonight.‛ After a few more seconds, Tardieh lowered his gun from her temple and said to his guards, ‚Stand down, my friends.‛ But he did not remove his hands from her throat nor did he step away from her. ‚Why are you here?‛

Zoricah saw pure hatred in his green eyes, a hatred she could not understand. It had been two hundred years since they had last seen each other, but she remembered every single minute of their encounter. For the love of all gods, she’d imagined every type of welcome she might receive but not pure loathing. She raised her chin and put her hand on his broad chest, pushing him away slowly. ‚I am afraid I do not bring easy words, king.‛ She felt Tardieh tense at her touch, but he did not resist and gave her some space. ‚If you give me five minutes of your precious time, I will explain my purpose.‛ ‚Speak. The clock is ticking,‛ he replied dryly. She noted his guards stood menacingly around them, ready to decimate any threat to their king. It was an interesting bunch. A Japanese samurai descended from one of the oldest vampire families in the world; a Native American who was said to be the son of a shaman, and a blond male who could have made a fortune as a movie star. As part of her preparations to meet the vampire king, she had of course studied his soldiers in depth. These three trained vampire warriors were known to be his personal guards, closest friends, and advisors. Seldom did Tardieh leave his home—or hiding place, as some said—without his trusted guards. Seeing them there, ready to stand between their king and any threats, made Zoricah understand why. She gave one reassuring look to her own faithful friends, Sam and Yara, and focused her attention on the tall male in front of her. ‚I have been investigating a series of disappearances in the past eighteen months. They started in the Middle East, Dubai to be more exact. Several females disappeared in the city’s underground life almost two years ago. No one gave the matter a second thought in the beginning because all of them were sujhas until the daughter of a draconian senator met the same fate.‛ Zoricah could feel those females’ desperation boiling under her skin. Having been outcast and labeled as non-pure by draconian society for being the result of a fling between a draconian female and a dragon god—apparently her father’s divine status was not good enough for her race’s aristocracy—she felt for every sujah whose life was cut short for lack of social shelter.

‚I fail to see the reason why I should care for draconian females disappearing in the Middle East.‛ Tardieh’s voice was hard but carried an edge to it, as if he was not entirely sure of that statement himself. ‚Because the females are not only dragons. There are vampires among the abducted.‛ Tardieh’s eyes widened in surprise for a split second, but then his features took on an even harder look. ‚I would have been advised if such occurrences had happened in my kingdom.‛ ‚Why? They were nothing but solitaire wonderers or outcasts, sujhas who had gotten sick and tired of our society’s prejudiced laws. No one missed them, so no one reported their deaths.‛ ‚How do you know they are dead?‛ ‚We found a mass grave just outside Dubai near a village called Al Musaydrah.‛ She reached for her back pocket. Big mistake. Before the thought formed in her mind, Tardieh had his gun at her forehead, his guards had raised their weapons, Sam reacted by placing her hand on Tardieh’s nape, and Zoricah could clearly hear the menacing roar of the black panther. Zoricah put her hands up as if in surrender. ‚I am just going to get my dossier from my pants. That is all.‛ Tardieh narrowed his eyes. ‚Where is it?‛ ‚In my back pocket.‛ Putting on her best innocent face, Zoricah said, ‚May I?‛ ‚No, you may not.‛ Without any warning, Tardieh reached behind her and shoved his hand into her pocket. ‚Not the right one. It’s on the left,‛ she said with clenched jaw. ‚And watch it.‛ ‚Don’t worry, goddess. Touching you is the last thing I want to do right now.‛ That hurt. She felt his big hands grabbing what she called her palm folder. It was a small black pentagram one inch high and just over five inches long with no apparent openings. After a quick look at the device, he said, ‚I thought you said it was a dossier.‛ ‚It is, an electronic one. Did you really think I’d fly around with a

briefcase hanging off my claws?‛ Zoricah’s patience was wearing thin. She had come here to try to get his support, but ultimately she was doing him a favor by trying to save his race from a predator. ‚Give me that. And take this gun out of my face.‛ Tardieh complied, but Zoricah saw he was a little bit startled by her harsh, commanding tone. She stepped away from him, put the small pentagram in the palm of her hand, and touched one of the sides. A flicker of bright blue light crossed its surface just before a narrow rectangle opened in the center, and a radiant translucent square of spread upward in front of everyone’s eyes. Zoricah looked at Tardieh watching her little toy as if it were magic. She had to bite the inside of her cheeks to prevent the smile that threatened to come out. She touched the side of the pentagram again, and a small picture appeared on the glowing rectangle. Slowly, it grew to the size of a piece of paper. The holographic photo showed mutilated bodies of vampires dumped in a deep hole on the ground. After a few seconds, the image was substituted for another one: headless bodies lay on top of more bodies, all butchered, with their bellies open and entrails showing. The slideshow carried on, and Zoricah noted that Tardieh was as intent on it as his guards. They had all gathered around watching the macabre demonstration. Zoricah gave them a few seconds to take in the pictures, then continued, ‚After weeks of investigation, we managed to track down where the vampires and dracos were taken. We broke in and destroyed the place.‛ Zoricah watched Tardieh’s eyes still locked on the images. It was Hikuro who managed to first wake up from the ghoulish trance. ‚What was it?‛ Sam responded, ‚It was a sort of hospital with beds and operating facilities.‛ Zoricah saw Hikuro shift his dark gaze to Sam. Did Zoricah really see her friend recoil? that made Sam go cold. ‚Who was behind it? And why?‛ Tardieh asked, bringing her attention back to the task at hand. ‚We do not know. Unfortunately we got there too late. They must

have been tipped off because the place was empty.‛ Zoricah’s stomach lurched with the memories. She still could not forgive herself for letting them get away in Dubai. ‚But it was a close one,‛ Yara added. ‚All surgical apparatus, bottles of medicine, and operating tools were still there when we broke in.‛ ‚We also found an inventory with a list of supplies dated a few weeks back,‛ Zoricah said measuring Tardieh’s reaction. ‚It had a New York address on it.‛ After the last image faded, Zoricah moved to put the pentagram away, but Tardieh grabbed her wrist. ‚Pictures can be doctored, especially with this sort of technology.‛ Without pulling her hand back, Zoricah agreed for the first time with the vampire king. ‚Yes, they can.‛ Taking a deep breath, she looked at her fighters. They were ready for an attack, but they wanted a specific target, and it was not Tardieh. If they were going to succeed in this mission, they needed his help. ‚You don’t have to believe me. Just see it with your own eyes.‛ She took a small piece of paper out of her front pocket. ‚This is where the facility in New York is. We believe it’s a laboratory, Tardieh, not a hospital. Someone is using vampires and dracos as lab rats.‛ Tardieh’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. He took a step closer and was nose to nose with Zoricah once again. ‚How do I know this is not another one of your brilliant plots?‛ Damn him! Zoricah could not believe his stubbornness. She’d had it. If this hard-headed vampire did not care enough for his race to get past his intransigence, she would make him. She looked straight into his green eyes. ‚Because I saved your life once and you owe me.‛ Her voice was dark, each word came out full of weight. Tardieh’s eyes went wide in disbelief, but before he gathered strength to respond, she raised her hand. ‚Look, Tardieh, it’s been over two hundred years. Why would I want to plot against you now when you have established yourself on the throne and your kingdom is strong?‛ She hoped some military rationale would get through that thick skull of his. She lifted her hand again in a second attempt of giving him the location of

the laboratory. ‚All I’m asking you is to be at these coordinates by midnight tomorrow and see it for yourself.‛ Still scrutinizing her, he said, ‚I’ll think about it.‛ Tardieh accepted the piece of paper, and before she could stop him, he took the pentagram that was still in her other hand. Zoricah knew her last strategy had worked and that Tardieh was just playing hard to get. Fine, two could play that stupid game. She signaled to Yara and Sam. It was time to leave the vampires to their own thoughts but not without one last demonstration. Zoricah took a couple of steps backward, opened her senses, and let her dragon surface. She felt the heat start at her core and grow deliciously inside her. She did not allow it to take over completely, just a little bit, just to give them a taste. Two huge dark golden wings grew out of her shoulder blades. In a graceful movement, she arched her back and extended her leathery wings fully. A small smile crossed her lips when she noticed the vampires’ gazes glued on her. It worked. They had completely missed her fighters leaving the park. ‚Fine. I guess, I’ll see you when I see you, then.‛ She gave Tardieh one raised eyebrow and flew dauntingly away. Tardieh was flabbergasted. With a start, he managed to close his mouth before drooling in front of his friends. She was beautiful. The moment she stepped back, her golden honey eyes flared, and he saw two massive wings simply grow out of her back. They had a hypnotic dark golden shine under the moonlight. Then she arched her back, giving him full view of her delicious body. Immediately Tardieh imagined her arching her back out of pleasure underneath him. No, he stopped himself. She was not beautiful; she was the enemy with an agenda, and he had to get a grip on himself. ‚Joel.‛ ‚Yes, my lord.‛ His friend’s voice came out in a gasp, as if he had also just been woken up from a trance. ‚Are your spies active?‛ ‚Always, my lord.‛ ‚Then call on them. I want to know where she’s hiding, where she’s been, and who she’s been getting her intel from.‛ Tardieh turned around and faced his loyal guards. ‚If this is a trap, Zoricah will not live to see another sunrise.‛

Chapter Eight ‚I don’t like this.‛ Yara’s voice came from the kitchen. Apparently the previous four times she voiced out her opinion about the night’s encounter had not been enough. Zoricah locked the front door behind her. Her fighters had just arrived back from the park, and Yara had headed straight to the kitchen. Due to her aerial voyage, Zoricah had returned faster. She loved flying over Manhattan, its perfectly geometrical streets lit by the fluorescent colors of skyscrapers and car beams. She knew it was partly because of the thrill born from the possibility of getting caught by humans, but she wasn’t a young dragon; she knew how to conceal herself even in bright full moon nights like this one. Tonight, however, she went straight home to clear her head before Yara and Sam got back. Sam crossed the living room and sat down on the leather couch. ‚Tone it down, Yara. You’ll wake Drew up.‛, she said weakly. ‚I’m already awake. I’ve been waiting for you.‛ Drew was standing by the hallway door. Her eyes were even more sullen than when Zoricah had left to meet Tardieh. This whole account had taken a big toll on her friend. Drew was the main reason why they were in New York. Her twin sister’s abduction had shaken the draconian senate. According to Drew, they had spared no efforts to find her sister, Deirdre, but to no avail. Zoricah, Sam, and Yara had been in Italy trying to take down a draconian Jack the Ripper when Drew managed to find Zoricah and convince her to help. Draconian twins were a rarity in the world and as with most magical races were treated almost as divine beings. Rumor had

it that the bond between twins was so great they could sense each other, feel what the other was feeling, and sometimes even read each other’s mind. Drew and Deirdre were the perfect proof that this rumor was more than just an old legend. Zoricah knew the senate had allowed Drew to contact her only as a last resort. Zoricah and the draconian high society had parted ways ever since her mother’s death almost eighty years earlier. She despised them for their conservative prejudiced ways. They despised her for her revolutionary mindset that threatened their millennia-old conventions. At first, Zoricah had agreed to take the case because other draconian females had been abducted, too. She knew that as soon as Deirdre was found—that is, if she was found—the senate would stop looking for the culprit and ignore the sujhas who had also been abducted. They were, in their eyes, the scum, the shame of their society. After a few months together, Zoricah saw there was more to Drew than what meets the eye. Her porcelain doll-like beauty gave out a fragile vibe that hid an innate strength and determination. Drew had refused to go back to the draconian lands in the far eastern mountains with the senate’s guards and basically forced her presence among Zoricah’s female warriors. At first, Yara and Sam had been beside themselves, but in no time, she conquered their hearts and respect. Zoricah looked at her pale friend by the hallway door. Her once shiny wavy red hair was gathered on a single plait; her blue eyes were dark with pain. ‚How are you feeling?‛ ‚How did it go?‛ It was all Zoricah got for an answer. ‚Those vamps are a joke!‛ Yara started again, coming out of the kitchen chewing on a raw chicken leg. ‚They have no idea what’s happening under their noses and yet feel they have the right to doubt us.‛ she said indignantly, waving the poultry limb at Drew. ‚It’s understandable. I would, too,‛ Drew responded, crossing the living room to take a seat next to Sam, who gave her a friendly smile but stood up and went to the balcony. She had always been the quiet one among them but tonight Sam was especially quiet, Zoricah realized. ‚If someone brought me hard evidence that my people were getting butchered everywhere, I would listen carefully and do something

about it instead of wasting my time shooting the messenger.‛ Yara said on her way to the kitchen—no doubt to get another piece of chow. When Yara was frustrated, she got very predictable. She ate, usually something raw and nasty to sate the black panther inside her, and let her Brazilian temper fly free. Drew ignored her Latin friend. ‚Zoricah, please. Are they backing us up tomorrow?‛ ‚Don’t worry, Drew. We’ll get Deirdre back.‛ It was all Zoricah could promise because, by Apa Dobrý, she would bring the draconian twin back home. It did not matter if Tardieh helped them or not; the following night she would lead her small but fierce army on the attack, as she had done countless times, and rescue Deirdre. Drew depended on her twin sister, and her girls depended on their well being to continue believing the world was not just a place where the gods dumped in foul people with psychotic obsessions. Maybe she should stop calling them ‚her girls,‛ Zoricah reflected. They have grown and changed so much since she'd welcomed them in her home. Yara continued to be a hot-headed Brazilian who had unsolved issues with her past, but she had learned how to tone it down, control the beast, and focus on heightening her strengths instead of blaming everyone else for her unfortunate fate. Sam had also matured but still struggled with her powers. Zoricah had literally felt her when she was investigating strange accounts in a small town near North Yorkshire in England. Sam’s inner energy was so great and so out of control that she had been locked up in a human mental institution and put under 24/7 surveillance and heavy drugs. Zoricah had known Sam was human and had no magical heritage in her blood, but nonetheless she was intrigued by the girl’s powers and infuriated by what the humans had done to her. So one night she flew in and got her out. That had been almost forty years before. Sam still looked like a twenty-something fresh-from-the-farm girl. Zoricah met Drew’s eyes; they were filled with sadness, but they were not dead, not yet. ‚We will need all the strength we have for tomorrow, and that means having more than just a few hours sleep.‛ She smiled reassuringly. ‚Why don’t you go back to bed, Drew. You too, Yara. I want you all fresh and ready by late afternoon. We’ll go through the plan

once more before we leave.‛ Yara and Drew nodded in agreement and complied. They were strong women but respected Zoricah as their leader. Zoricah crossed the Victorian style living room of her Soho townhouse and went to the balcony. She loved Soho in the summer. It was always buzzing with people about and music could be heard everywhere. It was the reason why she had bought that townhouse in the first place. It was not luxurious and had only four average size bedrooms distributed over three levels. She had decorated it with modern furniture in a classic almost minimalist style. It wasn’t the best home she owned, but it was in the perfect location, on Mott Street off Broome. Just seconds away from art galleries, bars, shops, and vibrant live music venues. Humans couldn’t discern if she was one of them or not, and unlike vampires, she had no issues with sunlight, so she could always enjoy the best of the human world without major worries. Zoricah saw Sam sitting on the outdoor sofa in the balcony. The lights had not been turned on so the place was only lit by the full moon above. Shadows highlighted the somber expression on her friend’s delicate features. She seemed to have taken great interest in the concrete floor. ‚Thank you for backing me up at the park, Sam.‛ Zoricah sat down on the armchair next to the sofa. ‚I am sorry for having to reprimand you in front of the vampires.‛ Sam looked up and smiled, but it never reached her eyes. ‚Oh, that’s all right. I probably deserved it.‛ ‚You did?‛ Zoricah asked not believing her ears. ‚Oh, well, you had warned us about what could happen and told us not to overreact. And I did, so<‛ Sam shrugged and let the silence fill in the gaps. Zoricah frowned not understanding where the guilty-your-honor attitude was coming from. Something was wrong, very wrong. She looked straight into her youngest fighter’s eyes and tried to read what wasn’t being said but failed miserably. ‚Sam, what’s wrong?‛ Sam looked away, then back at Zoricah and smiled again, but once more, it never reached her eyes. ‚I<nothing new really. I just wish we

had rescued Deirdre already. This waiting is driving me crazy.‛ She was right; this whole abduction was taking a very big toll on them all. It had been one of the first times that someone close, a dear friend, had been their mission. But Zoricah knew her petite blonde fighter was not disclosing the whole truth. Unfortunately now was not the time for therapy session; maybe later, after they finished their job in New York. Apa Dobrý only knew Zoricah herself was in no condition for giving out inspiring advice at that moment. ‚Why don’t you go to bed and have a nice rest?‛ Zoricah suggested with the best motherly voice she could muster. ‚It’s almost dawn, and we have to be really sharp tomorrow night.‛ ‚Okay. I think I’m just tired,‛ Sam agreed. ‚Yeah, that might be it.‛ It was clear Sam was trying to convince herself more than Zoricah. She stood up, gave Zoricah one last small smile, and went inside. Once alone, Zoricah could not stop the images of the past forty-eight hours from flooding her mind. She had planned the whole operation, from tracing Tardieh’s personal guards to the meeting at Prospect Park. Of course she hadn’t anticipated that Yara would be outsmarted by a human bimbo at the nightclub and that Hikuro would take such a mind-boggling interest in Sam. She was very proud in the way Sam turned the debacle around and completed the mission with flair and innovation. She was still learning how to fully control her powers—she could blast a whole house with one energy blow—so it had been a nice surprise to receive the news she had managed to strike Hikuro with enough energy to knock him out but not too much to cook him alive. Images of Tardieh were next to invade Zoricah’s mind. She remembered his angry expression when he had mentioned the knocking out Hikuro business earlier that evening. Was that the reason for so much hatred? She had expected him to be suspicious or even cold but not angry. With sadness she remembered the end of the bloody war at the turn of the nineteenth century. Both vampire and dragon kings were assassinated, and Tardieh had been true to his word. He had contacted the draconian high council and led them onto an arduous but decisive peace deal. It took several decades before her country recovered from the damages of war. By the end of it all, humans had acquired too much knowledge and

invented new technologies. The most traditionalist dragons had been forced to hide deep into the Russian far east mountains. The younger ones were happy to be scattered around Europe and Asia as dracos. She still remembered the last time she had seen Tardieh on the alleyway just behind his father’s castle in Romania. She had been so young back then; they both had. He had refused to promise her something he wasn’t certain of, and that had really touched her heart. Zoricah’s life had been filled with empty promises and deceptive friendships. It had been surprisingly refreshing to meet someone who would risk losing an ally for the sake of the truth. She had really admired him then. Well, being honest with herself, her feelings had been a little bit more than just admiration. She remembered vividly how his body had awakened hers with such passion. His hands caressing her nape and lower back, her hips rocking against his while his fangs sucked on her neck. It was the first time she had been bitten by a vampire. Despite the dangers imposed by his blood starvation, she had been confident he would not drain her dry. Maybe it was because he had resisted her offer with such vehemence. In the end, he had struck with the precision of an experienced vampire and the gentleness of someone who cared about his victim’s well-being. If they had had more time, she would not have been able to resist him. She would have opened her legs, taken off her clothes while ripping his out of the way, and given herself to him completely just as a freaking teenager would do. Zoricah shifted her position on the sofa. The friction of her panties enhanced the delicious wetness between her legs. By Apa Dobrý! It had been more than two hundred years, and he still had such effect on her. She had to get a grip on herself right away. The air around her changed slightly. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and she heard a barely audible sound of a shoe scraping on her balcony floor. On a fluent movement, Zoricah pulled her combat knife out of its holster on her hip, sprung out of the couch, and positioned herself facing the area where the noise had come from. ‚Be at ease, draconian.‛ Tardieh’s grave voice came out of the darkness, shortly followed by his tall, muscular body.

Zoricah held her breath. He was wearing black pants and a jade long sleeve shirt that accented his green eyes. His dark brown hair, cut short at the nape and a bit longer in the front, contrasted his almost-translucent skin and framed his chiseled jaw perfectly. Even from a distance, she had to look up to match his stare. She wasn’t usually considered a short female, but he was at least a head taller than her. Tardieh narrowed his eyes, clearly noticing her detailed scrutiny of his body, and repeated the words she had given him in the park. ‚I come in peace.‛ Zoricah noticed the sarcasm in his voice but decided not to reply. She went for the attack instead. She raised her knife higher and said with deceivingly easiness, ‚How did you find me?‛ Damn it. Her other weapons were in the house, too far for her to reach them before he reached her. One of his eyebrows went up as if in amusement. ‚Did you really think you could hide for long in my own territory?‛ No, she didn’t, but she had taken all precautions to at least have some time incognito before she had to worry about him knowing her location. Now it was too late for regrets. It was time for damage control. With her knife firmly pointing at him, she replied, ‚Fine. You found me. What do you want?‛ His head tilted slightly to the side, but he didn’t come any closer. ‚Funny, that’s exactly what I wanted to ask you.‛ ‚You know why I am here, Tardieh. I’ve given you enough proof of the seriousness of our mission.‛ Tardieh’s voice took on an even lower, more menacing tone. ‚Proof that could have been easily doctored.‛ Zoricah could not understand where such resistance was coming from. Tardieh had been known to be hardheaded, but he was also known for his quest for the truth. It had saved him from a number of attempts to destroy him and his closest friends. Letting her frustration show, she exclaimed, ‚Tardieh, it has been more than two hundred years. Why would I come to you after all this time if not for something of the utmost importance?‛ ‚Because you are the master of stratagems,‛ Tardieh responded

taking a step closer. ‚After all, you were the one who managed to get me out of the draconian prison back in the war. You, only you, and no one else.‛ ‚Yes. And I thought you would be grateful for that!‛ Zoricah said, not able to mask her frustration. ‚Grateful?‛ It was his turn to show his frustration, but just as fast, his features took on the cynical tones from before. ‚Oh, please forgive my lack of manners, Your Holiness.‛ Bowing low, he carried on with the sarcasm. ‚Please let me make proper amends.‛ Zoricah realized his intentions a second too late. With his vampire speed, Tardieh grabbed the hand which was holding the combat knife, twisted it behind her back while seizing her nape with his other hand. Just before he struck, Zoricah saw his fully extended fangs reflecting the moonlight. He pierced her neck with vigor but not violence. His strong arms enveloped her and locked her in place. She tried to move, but his hold on her left hand was in such an angle that to break away she would have to dislodge her elbow first. After the first pull, Tardieh seemed to have paused for a millisecond, as people do when they savor a rare wine. Zoricah felt the surge of power pass through them. Her blood streamed out into his lips. The initial pang from having her skin pierced quickly eased up with the anaesthetizing poison released by vampire fangs, giving room to the hypnotizing feeling of pure life energy flowing between their bodies. His right hand caressed her nape and massaged the base of her skull, taunting, gentle, and then pulling her even closer. She tried to resist but soon lost the battle. After a few more sips, she felt his hips closing in on her body. When she didn’t push him away, his strong pelvis became more imposing, rubbing her in the right places. It started small, almost imperceptible, forward and backward. Instead of listening to her inner voice that screamed for her to fight him off, she lifted her chin and gave him easier access to her neck. He took it. His left hand brushed her back, the same way he had done two hundred years before. His lips touched her skin as if kissing her as much as sucking on her. Her hips moved against his, wanting more, needing to feel more. She was soaked with wanting.

She could feel his very hard cock rubbing deliciously against her. Damn clothes. Who was the killjoy who had invented them? He lifted his lips from her neck and searched her eyes. She looked up at him, barely noticing he still had her in check by holding her arm behind her. His fair cheeks were flushed—most likely because of her hot blood now coursing through his veins. He was even more handsome. Tardieh opened his mouth to say something but decided against it. His eyes were fixed on her, as if she was a too-complicated puzzle he was trying to decipher. A light breeze blew across Zoricah’s face, and she closed her eyes trying to prolong the moment and memorize the feeling of his body against hers for she knew it would not last long. Soon he would wake up and take on his accusatory tones again. He surprised her once more. His nose flared as if taking in a divine fragrance. His eyes went wild. An eerie red glow cloaked them for a split second; then his lips crashed against hers with unexpected passion. After taking a second to recover from the surprise, Zoricah gave in and returned his kiss with equal fervor. His lips were lush and inviting; his tongue searched hers in a sensuous dance. She lifted one of her legs in response, giving his fullness more access to its target. She felt his deep groan reverberating against her lips. Tardieh finally let her left hand go after safely throwing her combat knife on the floor, grabbed her ass with both hands, and lifted her off the floor. Zoricah felt the cold wall against her back. It was fascinating how its coolness contrasted with the intense heat growing inside her. Wrapping her arms around Tardieh’s neck, she rocked her hips slowly against his and was rewarded with growl. He gently stroked her flat tummy, then lifted her tank top and caressed her firm breasts. It was Zoricah’s turn to moan. He deepened the kiss while playing with her left nipple. She was so wet she could barely think of anything else but taking him inside her. His lips left hers and found her already hardened nipple. He suckled her, teased her, taunted her to the edge. She heard more moaning and realized it was her. She was close, oh so close. Too soon, he lifted his lips and whispered something in her ear, but Zoricah was too consumed by the fire he had lit inside her. ‚Tell me, Zoricah.‛ This time, he tried to say it more clearly, but his

voice was quite hoarse. ‚Why are you here?‛ ‚W-what?‛ It took Zoricah a few moments to understand where the sudden conversation was headed. Tardieh kissed her neck. ‚Tell me who you’re working for.‛ He licked the wounds induced by his fangs. ‚Tell me and I will spare you. Oh, hell, I may even keep you for myself.‛ His words had on Zoricah the same effect of a bucket of cold water on a balmy lazy cat. She pulled away and looked him in the eye. She was almost at his height in that up-in-the-air position. ‚Is that why you started this?‛ she asked, barely containing her fury. ‚Is that why you fucking kissed me? To get information about my supposed stratagem?‛ He returned her fury with a portion of his own. ‚Isn’t that why you came to New York? To plot against me and kill me the same way you had my father killed?‛ Zoricah was stunned by his accusation. She shoved him away while pulling her tank top back into place. ‚You are insane, you know that? You have surrounded yourself by so many deceiving people that you can’t tell friend from foe anymore.‛ ‚Do you really want me to believe that you knocked out one of my personal guards just to get in touch with me?‛ he replied as if that explained everything. ‚That’s because you are stupidly impossible to reach.‛ She tried to find where her combat knife had gone but was too furious to focus. ‚You know, that says a lot about your leadership style.‛ ‚You are on my territory, Zoricah. You should have come to me by official channels as tradition dictates.‛ ‚Tradition?‛ She was screaming now. She could not believe his words. What had happened to that prince who was willing to fight against all odds just because it was the right thing to do? ‚You know, I do apologize. I thought I was dealing with a true leader not a despot with a self-inflated ego.‛ Tardieh did not take her offense lightly and said through clenched teeth. ‚Well, you don’t have to worry about self-inflated ego, my dear. Your band of little girls proved once more that there’s always an agenda behind female kindness.‛

That was the last drop. Zoricah could feel her dragon stirring inside her, begging to come out and break his skull in two. ‚Get out!‛ she shouted. So much for teaching Yara about toning it down. ‚Get the fuck out of my balcony before I fry you to dust!‛ She heard noises in the house. Great, she had awakened the girls—no, they were not ‚girls‛; they were fighters, her fierce warriors—and yes, with a very important agenda: to save his freaking race. Tardieh seemed to have heard them, too. ‚I will leave, little goddess. But know this. I will know of every step you take inside my territory.‛ He gave her one last look over and dematerialized. Damn it! So that was why he had bitten her! Despite popular folklore, vampires could not track someone just from drinking their blood, but they could sense whenever that person was close by. The foreign blood acted as a kind of a biological alarm clock for the host. Stupid! She should have seen through his intentions; she was an experienced fighter and strategist. That was an affront to her intelligence! And she fell for it like an inexperienced teenager. What was happening to her? She did not let any male of any species make her lose control of the situation, let alone lose her cool. And there she was, panting and worn-out from yelling her head off at Tardieh. ‚Zoricah, is everything all right?‛ Yara was at the door pointing a Beretta M9 at everything in front of her. Her eyes were filled with worry and determination. ‚I heard you shouting.‛ Zoricah took a deep breath. This was not the way of a good leader. It was certainly not leading by example. She would not allow Tardieh to mess up with her head or with her plans. ‚It was nothing, Yara. Thank you for coming down and checking up on me, though.‛ ‚Oh, well, I was just finishing my snack when I heard the shouting. Was it a male who was here?‛ ‚It was no one, believe me – no one.‛ She found her knife that had slid under the sofa in the mist of her ridiculous French-kissing session with Tardieh. ‚Let’s go to bed, honey. Tomorrow we will bring Deirdre back even if the Apa Dobrý descend upon us themselves.‛ Yara gave Zoricah a satisfying smile. ‚That’s what I’m talking

about.‛ ***** The glass wall suddenly shimmered, and the stunning views of the mountains were engulfed by darkness. The sun was rising. Tardieh could feel it in his blood. All windows around his home had the same device that turned them into thick dark shields just before sunrise and back to see-through glass by sundown. The ingenious mechanism had been developed by one of Hikuro’s human acquaintances in Japan back in the 1990s. It was very convenient because it gave them access to the beautiful star-filled sky at night and saved his house staff the hassle of manually shutting all the hundreds of windows at every sunrise. Tardieh had gone straight back to his mansion in the woods after his turbulent encounter with the draconian demigoddess. He was still panting with rage and some other feeling he did not want to dwell on at that particular moment. Fair enough, he had been a bastard for kissing her. But to his defense, he had not planned on entangling himself with Zoricah when Joel gave him her Soho address just thirty minutes after their encounter at the park. It had been just too much to resist. He bit her in order to gain the advantage of being able to sense whenever she was nearby. That way she would not be able to sneak up on him again—at least not until his next feed. Her blood pounded in his veins. Being over four hundred years old, Tardieh could usually feel his victims’ blood for a longer period of time, but Zoricah’s demigoddess blood was different. It was the most delicious and powerful elixir he had ever tasted. He wasn’t just feeling it; he could sense it coursing through his body, relaxing him, breaking the tension in his muscles. He remembered how fast it had helped him recover from his wounds back in the war when they had first met. And then he remembered something more recent: the feel of her warm, voluptuous body, her long black hair cascading down her back, her acute honey eyes scrutinizing his every move, and her blue mist scent. By Apa Dobrý, that blue mist scent of hers had been the last straw. He had lost the battle with his cock after that breeze brushed her cheeks.

Tardieh took a deep breath. The whole night was water under the bridge, and now he had to focus on what to do next. Of course he would go to the destination which Zoricah claimed to be a laboratory facility holding several female vampires and dracos. He would die before he let any vampire be slain by enemy hands for nothing. But he needed to be cautious. He was sure Zoricah was up to something, yet the way she'd reacted to his accusations had really thrown him off. She was either truly offended or the best actress the world had ever known. He would have to uncover the whole truth the following evening. He only hoped to be a little more impervious to her charms next time around.

Chapter Nine ‚Burn in the flames of Hiad, you bunch of weak bitches!‛ The operating table went flying across the kitchen and smashed against the wall. The lifeless body of a female draco fell on the floor with a muffled thud. The situation was not good. He had invested everything in this operation, and those fucking whores kept on dying on him. That last one had been holding up well until the last quarter of her pregnancy. She went from extremely healthy to ridiculously weak in a fortnight. She was the thirty-fourth female to wither like a grape in the winter snow without any warning. He had tested and retested his formulas on female vampires and dracos, and nothing had come up as abnormal. He bet his long cock it was those weak females who could not handle the punch. In truth, he did not give a damn if they died on his operating table. Hell, they were doing him a favor and saving him the trouble later. But could they at least be a little bit more considerate and die after they'd given birth? No, they couldn’t, those ungrateful sujhas! He had taken them in when the whole world had shunned them. All they had to do was give him a fucking offspring. A couple more operating tables went flying off the floor along with a heavy metal desk. He took a deep breath. He had to concentrate; he still had one last prospect—the draconian girl. He slowly walked out of the kitchen-turned-operating-room, entered the living room, and gazed upon his beautiful draconian female

sleeping on one of several beds. Her long wavy red hair had almost made him lose his iron tight self-control. She had put on a nice fight when he had first brought her there over eighteen months before. It had taken him double the normal amount of drugs to keep her sedated. What a turn-on! The farther she was into the pregnancy, the more delicious she got. He bent over and smelled her. Yes, she was holding up just fine. She stirred, her eyebrows frowning. Her eyes opened slightly. He smiled at her. ‚Good morning, my dear.‛ When he raised his hand to touch her, the female turned away and tried to roll out of the bed, but the chains that kept her in place gave her very little room to move. She pulled hard at them with all the strength she could muster and they got a little loose, giving her enough freedom to cover her naked breasts and female core with her hands. She tried to cry for help, but all that came out beyond the tight gag was a pathetic muffled bark. ‚Now, now, my dear little fighter. Stop that before you hurt our baby.‛ She looked at him again, her eyes mad with fear and desperation. Without warning, she started punching her protruded belly. ‚You fucking bitch!‛ He grabbed her wrists and yanked them far apart. Piercing pain shot up his hands. The whore had managed to bite him. Blood was spilling down his arm, but he did not let go of her wrists. Pulling her, bed and all, farther down the room, he picked another set of heavy chains by the cupboard and tied her wrists to the bed’s metal headboard. With her arms completely immobilized, there wasn’t much room for movement, but she didn’t give up and started feebly kicking and jerking on the bed. After slowly licking his blood off his arms, he wrenched her head by her hair and whispered in her ear, ‚Yeah, that’s right, stupid dragon bitch. You can kick all you want now, but you will carry this pregnancy to term or until I say so.‛ She gave out another muffled cry and with the bottom ridge of her palm, she struck him right on the nose. He stood up sharply, his eyes blazing in fury. Without another

word, he grabbed her hand and twisted sharply. The sound of bones snapping echoed in the room. The draco girl cried out but once more was muffled by the gag. So he removed it; her cries were sweet music to his ears. Then he repeated the procedure, breaking her other hand. Wiping the sweat off her forehead, he said softly, ‚There, now. We will be a good girl, won’t we?‛ He went to the cabinet where his medicine and operating tools were carefully kept and pulled out a small flask filled with a yellow substance and a syringe. ‚I believe your little show has earned you another dose, my dear.‛ Going once again to her bedside, he grabbed her by the jaw and made her face him. Still sobbing in despair and pain, she didn’t even try to fight. The needle was stabbed into her neck without any concern or second thought. The bitch had to pay for her insubordination. After a few seconds, he saw her muscles go limp and her eyes close. Part of him actually wanted her to have jeopardized her pregnancy. Oh, yes, if she had, they would have a very nice long day together. He needed something to unleash his tension, and this little fighter would make a fine dancing partner.

Chapter Ten The Adirondacks filled the horizon before Tardieh. Rugged peaks outlined the dark summer sky like an expressionist picture frame. The majestic Whiteface Mountain, usually full of adrenaline junkies, stood silent under the moonlight. The wind blew lightly against Tardieh’s face. He took a deep breath and savored the fresh smell of alpine trees. He could almost enjoy the serenity of the place if it wasn’t for the farmhouse down the hill. He had dematerialized a few miles from the coordinates Zoricah had given him the night before. It was safer that way. He had walked the last miles, his trained eyes surveying every tree, every shadow around him. Dyam, Joel, and Hikuro had done the same from different directions. That way, the four vampire warriors had had the entire perimeter around the meeting point covered. It felt like déjà vu. After three quarters of an hour, Tardieh reached the top of a hill which looked over an old farmhouse. It was a large two-story broad frame building with a central front door surrounded by two multi-paned windows on each side. He could see the end of a large central chimney but no smoke was coming out of it. A small shed stood a few meters away from the back door. He had known he had reached the destined spot as soon as he got there. He didn’t need to check his GPS. In front of its main entrance stood two razbian guards who were wearing heavy rain coats and hats, probably on a feeble attempt to disguise their green complexion. In the past hour he had been watching the house, he spotted fifteen more razbians guarding the area, all heavily armed. Some stood still, well,

as still as their fidgety nature allowed, and others were making rounds. Tardieh could distinguish some movement inside the house. It was difficult to identify what was happening, though or how many people were in there because the windows were kept tightly shut. Joel found out that the farm had been owned by a middle-aged widow, who'd died in a car accident just over two years before. A few weeks after the unfortunate accident, the house was successfully sold for almost twice its market value to a private company whose proprietors’ names were nowhere to be found. Tardieh checked his watch. Eleven thirty. Fifteen minutes had passed since he last checked. Where was she? She had told him to meet her at midnight, but he knew she would try and get there before that. She would have wanted to survey the area for possible unexpected inconveniences to her plan—that is, if she was coming at all and if that was not a trap to assassinate him. He opened his senses to try and feel if she was nearby. Nothing. Damned female. Because of her, he had not had a restful day; in fact, he had barely had a few hours of fidgety dormancy. Every time he closed his eyes images of her hypnotic golden eyes flooded his mind. What a predicament. The Soartas had really fucked him up this time, Tardieh thought with a half smile. They must be having a full day on his account. He, the cold, calculating, rational vampire king, was losing his mind over a draconian female. And not any draconian. She was a demigoddess who had most likely orchestrated his father’s assassination. Great. What would his father say if he were alive? With a bitter snort, he remembered the countless times his father had reproached his actions. “Tardieh, you are the vampire prince. You cannot mingle with any vampire, let alone sujhas from other races!” His father’s deep voice rang in his ears. “Beware of eager females, son. They are only after your kingdom.” Tardieh knew that well. The several female vampires who had been presented to him as consorts—Apa Dobrý only knew how much his senate wanted to see him settled down—were a feeble excuse for wedlock material, desperate to add the queen’s crown to their extravagant hair accessories collection. But Zoricah had seemed to be different. Back on that fateful night when she rescued him and left him there standing in the dark alley, he had almost gone after her and begged her to stay, like a

fucking puppy. She had been the first female to actually leave him. When he arrived at his father’s castle and saw the leftovers of the dragon’s carnage, he understood why. ‚Damned female,‛ Tardieh cursed under his breath. He could not get rid of that stupid blue mist scent of hers which still lingered. Even now, he could feel it. Actually, he noted, it had got stronger. Finally realizing that the scent was the product of his cock-driven imagination, Tardieh stood up sharply and positioned himself upwind. His blood had started to boil, a sign that the donor was close by. After just a couple of seconds, he heard flapping sounds and saw the shadow of a winged creature approaching. She was flying low, dancing between the tall alpine trees like a hawk who had just found its prey. She lowered herself evenly and landed gracefully a few feet from him. Tardieh could not stop himself from taking in every detail, every curve, every movement she made. She hadn’t completely shifted. Large golden wings on a stunning female body; she looked like a dark angel from those human legends. She was wearing a similar outfit as the night before: black tight trousers, knee-high black boots, and a tank top that hugged her stunning body like a second skin. Her hair was tied up in a long plait that brought out her stunning eyes and her exotic features perfectly. The only difference was that this time she was carrying a shit load of guns and knives. At the sight of her, Tardieh knew he was doomed. Zoricah had been looking for Tardieh for the past half hour. She had flown in early to check the status of the razbian activities in the farmhouse and inspect the area for any inconveniences to her plan as any respectable military leader would have. One of those inconveniences was bound to be Tardieh and his lot. She had mulled over the events of the previous night and had decided that if he was not going to cooperate, she would not let him get in her way, either. She knew he would meet her—she had successfully awakened his curiosity—but she was expecting a full vampire barricade with spikes and barbwire. A minor obstacle that she was planning to dispose of fairly quickly. She walked toward him trying to ignore the way he was looking at

her, like she was a true goddess worthy of the most sumptuous of temples and lavish offerings. He was probably doing that on purpose, trying to divert her focus the same way he had done the previous night. Arrogant despot! It was not going to work, not this time. She was a fast learner and did not need a second time around to imprint a lesson into her brain, which was momentarily having difficulties sending that particular message down to her heart. ‚So you’ve finally decided to get your royal arse off the cozy throne and check what the evil strategist was up to.‛ Her voice sounded as cynical as she had intended it to. A human once said that sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, but Zoricah didn’t give a damn. The best defense is a good offense after all. Tardieh raised an eyebrow at her. ‚I thought you said you needed my help.‛ ‚I thought you said I couldn’t be trusted.‛ ‚I never said that.‛ ‚Oh, give me a break, Tardieh. I have no time for political games.‛ Zoricah walked past him and crouched by one of the trees. The farmhouse down the hill was only lit by the full moon. Two razbians guarded the front door. Zoricah quickly scanned the area around it. The other razbians were still covering the same positions they had the last time she watched the house. ‚There are seventeen guards in total.‛ Tardieh’s deep voice came from behind her. ‚Two at the front door, three covering the back—‛ ‚Two on the roof, two more in the shed, and eight hidden in the woods,‛ she said, finishing his sentence. Not turning around to face him—he was dangerously too close—she asked, ‚Has there been any activity inside the house?‛ ‚Some,‛ Tardieh answered, crouching beside her. ‚But it’s hard to make out exactly what. The windows have been shut the entire time I’ve been here.‛ ‚They are always shut,‛ Zoricah agreed. After a short pause, when Zoricah felt like a fish in a tank being watched by the hungry cat, he asked, ‚Where are your girls?‛ ‚They are not ‘my girls,’‛ she replied with an edge. ‚They are

trained fighters, just like your lot.‛ Tardieh raised his eyebrows in response to her sharp tones. ‚All right, where are your fierce warriors?‛ he asked again, cynicism dripping out of every word. Zoricah decided not to return the sarcastic blow. ‚They are where they are supposed to be,‛ she said, then calmly went back to surveying the farmhouse. Damn, he was really, really close. She could feel his powerful energy pulling at her even though they were not touching. He took a deep breath, probably to stop from raising his voice at her. ‚Zoricah, you said you had no time for games. Well, me neither. Tell me where your fighters are and what exactly is happening in that house.‛ Zoricah chose to ignore his commanding tones for the moment and pushed him to close the deal. ‚Does that mean you are backing us up?‛ He looked at her with hard eyes and gravely said, ‚I will not commit to an attack without knowing what and who is in that house. It is not illegal to have razbians guarding your property, nor is it illegal to keep your windows shut.‛ May Apa Dobrý damn him, but he had a point. She had no proof of what was happening in there, no evidence that females were being heavily drugged and inseminated. All she had was the testimonies of the deceased themselves, and she could not disclose that to him. Her talent had been her secret for over four centuries; only her closest friends and her father knew about it. Telling Tardieh how and where she got her information from was simply not an option. She looked straight into his eyes and let him see her truth. ‚I don’t have any proof, just like I didn’t have proof of what Vrajitor was doing to you back in that cell two hundred years ago.‛ She knew it was a low blow, but she was running out of time. His eyes flashed red, and he said in a low dark voice, ‚That is precisely why I am asking you. You always seem to know more than the most skilled spies in my kingdom. I know from experience that usually means one is either part of or leading the whole operation.‛ He leaned forward and narrowed his eyes. ‚So, which one are you, Zoricah?‛ There he was again, blaming her for what had happened to his father. Couldn’t he see she was only one fighter and she had been busy

saving his royal arse? Zoricah held her ground; she didn’t recoil or looked away. ‚I could not have prevented what happened to your father, Tardieh. Even if I hadn’t been busy trying to get you out of captivity, I would not have been able to stop the attack.‛ ‚Of course you wouldn’t,‛ Tardieh replied with a snort. ‚It would have ruined your whole plan, wouldn’t it?‛ The coin dropped. Utterly astonished, Zoricah realized he was not blaming her for failing to come to his father’s aid; he was accusing her of organizing the whole attack on his father’s castle. What the fuck? Zoricah fought to keep her voice down. ‚By Apa Dobrý! Do you really believe I orchestrated that massacre?‛ Tardieh just looked at her; he didn’t have to say anything else. His cold accusing, fully red stare was enough. Her heart sank. Zoricah leaned back on the tree trunk behind her, horrified. She had made a few mistakes in her long life, but nothing like that, nothing like the slaughtering of innocent beings, even if they had been an enemy race. All of her assignments had met their fate in battle or a clean attack. To think Tardieh believed she was capable of such a bloody massacre
trunk and leaned forward. ‚What about now, Tardieh? Why haven’t you struck? Or why didn’t you kill me last night when you had the chance?‛ Tardieh narrowed his eyes but before he had the chance to reply, Zoricah carried on. ‚I’ll tell you why, because you are not sure. You don’t think I was really the one behind the attack. You needed a scapegoat to get on with life and gain political favor with your precious vampire council and you used me to get it.‛ It was his turn to look flabbergasted. ‚Nonsense. I don’t need scapegoats. I find the truth and deal with it.‛ ‚Oh, do you now?‛ ‚Yes, I do. And if you are such an innocent lass, why are you concealing information from me? Why can’t you tell me who you got your intel from?‛ Tardieh could not contain his anger and unleashed his frustration at her. ‚Just like before, you expect me to follow you and not question why, how, or who. You are probably used to men drooling over you and doing as they are told like housebroken puppies. Well, not this puppy, Zoricah. You will have to tell me everything, and I mean everything, to get my cooperation this time around.‛ Zoricah was about to tell him she didn’t need his stupid cooperation, that even if she did, she didn’t want it anymore, when the large doors on the shed opened and a dark sedan drove off toward the forest. As soon as the sound of large iron doors being opened reached his ears, Tardieh’s military-trained reflexes kicked in. He crouched lower on the ground and saw Zoricah do the same. Narrowing his eyes, he tried to see who was inside the dark sedan, but the damned car had tinted windows. Turning his attention back to the shed, he saw that there were three razbians guarding it, not two. Hmm, interesting. Why were there so many razbians watching over a shed? What was in it? Turning his head slightly, he caught a glimpse of movement to his left. Zoricah’s two warriors were walking toward them, carrying a redheaded female he hadn’t seen before. Zoricah stood up to meet them. ‚It’s getting worse,‛ the tall brunette said. ‚Her abdominal seizures are getting less and less sparse. I cannot help her anymore,‛ added the slender blondie who had knocked Hikuro

out. Zoricah leaned down to check on the redhead after the two females had carefully laid her on the forest floor. ‚Drew?‛ she whispered, ‚Drew, tell me what you are feeling?‛ The redhead's eyes fluttered open, and she tried to talk, but no words came out. Instead she coiled over herself as if a sharp sword had pierced her stomach. ‚Drew!‛ Tardieh heard genuine desperation on Zoricah’s plea. It had not been staged. The redhead draconian was really suffering, and he had no idea why. He reached for his cell phone and speed-dialed his warriors. In less than two seconds, Hikuro, Dyam, and Joel were standing next to him. Zoricah stood up and faced him with a determination known only to true leaders. ‚We have to go in, now. There’s no more time.‛ She started to turn around to command the attack, but Tardieh grabbed her wrist and raised an eyebrow at her. She exhaled sharply and answered his unspoken question, ‚Her twin sister is in there, and she’s dying.‛ Twin sister? Tardieh’s eyes widened. Draconian twins were extremely rare. The bond between them was said to be so powerful that it was believed they were emissaries of Apa Dobrý. Several kings had tried to understand and reproduce their psychic connection throughout history. None had ever managed to succeed. Freeing her wrist from his grip, Zoricah took the electronic brief out of her back pocket and turned it on. Once more the blue rays emerged from the center of the device, but this time they formed a suspended horizontal platform, and a 3-D blueprint of the farmhouse appeared. Pointing at it, she continued, ‚According to my sources, the front central door opens to a large living room, which is followed by a kitchen. On the second floor, you’ll find three bedrooms and a bathroom.‛ ‚What’s in the shed?‛ Hikuro asked. ‚There must be something of value in there otherwise there would not be so many razbians guarding it,‛ Dyam concluded. ‚I’m not sure because my sources have never been in there,‛ Zoricah said, revealing more in one sentence than she had in the past forty-eight hours.

‚Dyam and Joel, you cover the roof,‛ Tardieh commanded, pointing at the digital blueprint on Zoricah’s hand. ‚Sam and Yara can attack from the back door,‛ Zoricah added. ‚I will fly in and create a diversion at the main entrance.‛ ‚Agreed. I’ll stay with you and try to attract as many razbians as possible,‛ Tardieh replied. Hikuro stepped forward. ‚I can cover the shed. There must be something there they don’t want us to find.‛ Tardieh nodded in approval. ‚The last intel piece reported ten females in the house, mainly on the ground floor. Our primary objective is to rescue them alive,‛ Zoricah said, emphasizing the last word. The redhead stood up and joined them. Zoricah put a hand on her shoulder and said sternly, ‚No, Drew, you will stay here. You are too weak to fight, and I don’t want to risk anymore than we absolutely have to.‛ ‚But I know where Deirdre is! I am the only one who can feel her,‛ Drew replied with fierce determination, despite her pallid features. ‚Tell us where this Deirdre is, and we’ll find her,‛ Joel counterargued with pure certainty. Tardieh saw the three females roll their eyes in response, but Zoricah intervened before they could lash out at his friend. ‚He is right. The house is not big, and we know the females are being kept mainly on the ground floor.‛ Drew’s angry reaction told Tardieh she would not back down. She tried to argue, but Zoricah put her hand up, silencing her words. Tardieh expected hard imposing tones; instead, he heard Zoricah speak softly to Drew. ‚Deirdre needs you alive, Drew. You said it yourself. She is very weak. You have had limited training and even less time in combat. So what happens if you get wounded in battle? Who will give her life energy, then?‛ Silence descended on the forest. Drew lowered her eyes in resignation. ‚Okay, I’ll stay here.‛ ‚Call us if you see anyone else approaching the farmhouse,‛ Zoricah said with a slight nod. Then she turned toward Tardieh and

raised her chin. ‚Ready?‛ He gave her a half smile in reply, with a glimpse of his fully extended fangs. ‚Always.‛ All six warriors descended on the farmhouse. Tardieh dematerialized a few feet away from the front door. ‚Hello there,‛ he said to the surprised razbians who seemed to have woken up from a boring slumber. With delight, he saw Zoricah fly in from high above. She hadn’t shifted completely, using only her powerful golden wings to carry her. More razbians were already coming out of their hiding places in the forest to meet the invaders. Zoricah landed on top of a pair and smashed them to the ground. One of them managed to recover and tried to seize her arms. With a smooth, continuous movement, she bent sideways and around, taking his left arm with her. Pulling out her knife, she took advantage of his open stance and stabbed him in the heart. With a loud cry, he fell lifeless on the floor. Tardieh felt the air change near him and managed to catch the razbian’s fist just before it reached his jaw. Reacting with his vampiric speed, he ducked down and plunged his combat knife into his attacker’s jugular. Dark brown blood spilled onto his hand. Twisting his wrist, he finished, slashing his opponent’s throat, and in the same movement, he gathered momentum to turn around and kick the other razbian’s gun out of his claw-like hands. The bullet intended for his heart hit a nearby tree, straight past Zoricah’s ears. She gave him a knowing look; he shrugged in apology. Then he saw her eyes go wide in warning. Without a second thought, Tardieh crouched down and turned on his left heel, thrusting his right leg in a semicircle. His leg hit another guard who was trying to surprise him from behind on the ankles, making him stumble and fall heavily on the ground. If it wasn’t for Zoricah’s worried look, the razbian would have succeeded in the attack. By Apa Dobrý! Focus on the battle, stupid puppy! Tardieh chided himself. But there was no time for self-reprimands. Having been joined by two others, the fallen razbian was already lifting himself up and coming at Tardieh once more. Tardieh materialized right behind his three attackers. It took them a few precious seconds to realize what had happened. Too bad it was a little

too late. In a heartbeat, Tardieh had slashed open the throats of two of them. Having seen his companions falling lifelessly on the floor, the third one backed away and fired three shots at Tardieh, who managed to dodge two. The third bullet hit him on the shoulder, slowing him down, but not enough to stop his progress toward the last razbian. Dropping low, he punched the gun out of the guard’s hand with his left forearm, then ducking to the right underneath his opponent’s left elbow, he thrust his knife straight into the motherfucker’s heart. Crouching low, he twisted on his heels to assess the situation. Zoricah was surrounded by three razbians who looked determined to make a meal out of her. Damn it! He stood up ready to go to her aid but stopped in his tracks. It was the most beautiful battle sight he’d ever seen. Using the razbian on her left as leverage, Zoricah kicked the second one in the head, knocking him to the ground. Smoke started coming out of the first razbian’s throat. Tardieh realized that Zoricah had set the razbian on fire while using him as a live catapult. Impressive. Then with the liquid grace of a lethal ballerina, she ducked out of the third razbian’s aim, dodging the bullet intended to split her brain open. Dropping low on the ground, she punched him in the groin, immobilizing him for good. Without wasting any time, she turned on her heels while pulling her gun out and fired two bullets at each of their heads. In less than sixty seconds, all three razbians had been eliminated. She turned around, and her eyes found him. Her lips curled up. ‚Close your mouth, Tardieh. You’re drooling.‛ Tardieh narrowed his eyes and went to her. He was about to tell her they should go and check on the others when a high-pitched cry shrilled through the night air. It sounded like a thousand knifes stabbing his eardrums. Zoricah looked toward the house, fear in her eyes. ‚Drew, no!‛ Tardieh turned just in time to see an enormous red dragon hovering above the house. So that was the source of that deafening sound. The dragon seemed not to hear Zoricah’s command. She was focused on the farmhouse, as if trying to see through the roof, but soon realized it was useless. Frustrated, the dragon swirled upward and took a deep breath,

preparing to fire. Tardieh saw through the open front door Hikuro, Dyam, and Joel right below the dragon’s target. Zoricah didn’t think twice. She had to stop Drew from burning the roof down. If she succeeded, she would kill everyone beneath it, including any female survivors, Sam, Yara, and the three vampires who had just reached the living room. ‚Get them out of the house!‛ she yelled to Tardieh. She knew she would not have the time to shapeshift fully, so she let her golden wings grow even bigger and took off toward her deranged draconian friend. Zoricah flew up and crashed straight into Drew, knocking her to the ground. Drew had managed to throw a fireball at the roof, which was rapidly disintegrating under the growing blaze. Zoricah was at great disadvantage. Drew was not an experienced fighter, but she was a powerful dragon, and Zoricah was not fully turned, so she had to play to her strengths. She managed to untangle herself while evading Drew’s sharp claws, which were slashing at anything and everything in front of her; then she flew around Drew’s head and landed on her friend’s back, straddling her as tight as she could. Zoricah placed both hands on Drew's leathery back and channeled her demigoddess heat toward them. But Drew quickly swung her long, barbed tail, slamming Zoricah squarely on the head. Unable to keep her balance, Zoricah fell hard on the ground. Rolling on her back, she saw that Tardieh, his vampires, and her fighters were still inside the house. What the fuck were they doing in there? Why weren’t they getting those females out? She managed to dodge another tail attack by rolling to the side, but Drew was already preparing to exhale a fireball. That would hurt. Quite a bit. Zoricah did not have much time; she had to act quickly. But what could she do to stop her friend without harming her? Zoricah stood up sharply and focused. She felt her dragon heat building inside her, growing, gaining speed like an avalanche on a steep mountain. She channeled the power fully to her arms. A shield of fire came out of her hands just in time to block Drew’s fireball. Without missing a beat, Zoricah raised both hands and brought them back down on a fluid movement. The fire that had blocked her friend’s attack became a blazing

whip. Repeating the circular movement smoothly, Zoricah brought her magical whip down on her dragon friend, who promptly started raging against the sharp thrashes. After three attempts, Zoricah managed to throw it over Drew’s head. She locked it tight like a collar and pulled it down with all her might. Drew lost her balance and fell sideways onto the ground. Zoricah took advantage of her friend’s momentary disorientation, jumping on top of the fallen dragon and tying her front claws together. Then she repeated the same drill with Drew's hind legs, immobilizing her friend completely. Drew did not like being tied up like a wild hog and started trouncing against the blazing ropes. Zoricah got down and walked around her friend, calling her attention. ‚Drew, you are out of control! Deidre cannot be saved like this.‛ The dragon’s eyes focused on her. It seemed to have lost a bit of the mad glow it had before. ‚Deirdre needs you, Drew. She needs you well and sane.‛ Drew gave out another anguished shriek. ‚She’s dying. She’s dying in there,‛ she managed to say through dark tears. ‚Exactly. The longer I spend here fighting you, the more time we waste.‛ Slowly, bit by bit, red scales shifted back into fair, soft skin. The long, barbed tail receded, and red locks cascaded down Drew's lean spine. Retrieving the blazing rope, Zoricah went to her friend and held her tightly in her arms. She had to go back to the house and find Deirdre. ‚Drew, promise me you will stay here. Promise me you will not go off like that again because we cannot afford to lose any more time.‛ Tears fell down Drew’s cheeks. Barely lifting her head up, she nodded. Zoricah stood up and started to race toward the house. Half of the roof was ablaze, and the other half was beginning to collapse from the lack of support. ‚Please, Apa Dobrý, don’t let them die in there,‛ she prayed under her breath. When she was a couple of feet away from the central door, she saw a tall figure coming out followed by a large animal. His jacket was on fire, and he was carrying someone in his arms. Tardieh. Zoricah raised her hand. The fire on his shoulder curved like a

blazing serpent, dancing against the wind. It slowly went across and disappeared into Zoricah’s hand. ‚Neat trick,‛ Tardieh said with true admiration in his eyes. ‚Thank you. It was starting to nag me.‛ Zoricah gave him a small smile and helped him put the female carefully down on the forest floor. He took off his battered jacket and covered the female’s naked body. ‚I think you’d better hold her. My body temperature is too low for her condition.‛ Zoricah followed his advice and accommodated the frail female on her lap. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw the black panther anxiously circling around them. ‚Yara, please, go check on Drew. She’s near the back door between the house and the shed. The black panther gave a small snarl in protest but complied and quickly disappeared into the shadows. Zoricah looked at the weak female before her. She recognized Deirdre instantly, despite her overly protruded belly. Her hands seemed to have been broken. Her once beautiful shinny red hair was plastered against her face. She was shaking uncontrollably. What had happened to her? ‚Where are the others?‛ Zoricah asked Tardieh while carefully inspecting Deirdre’s condition. ‚Hikuro and Sam had gone after a few razbians who fled through the underground tunnel.‛ ‚Underground tunnel?‛ Zoricah inquired, frowning. ‚Yes, that’s what it was in the shed. An underground tunnel connecting the house and the garage. Joel and Dyam are checking the site for survivors.‛ Zoricah’s heart skipped a beat. She looked up and asked, ‚Are there any other survivors?‛ Tardieh’s green eyes turned red for a split second. ‚No. They are all dead.‛ His deep baritone voice was filled with fury and grief. Zoricah’s heart sank. She had got to them too late. Again. She heard footsteps approaching. Tardieh stood up with his combat

knife and fangs out between Zoricah and the imminent danger. ‚Permission to approach, my lord. It is I, Hikuro, and Samantha.‛ Hikuro’s voice was low but firm. Both were covered in soot and razbian blood. Tardieh relaxed and stood straight once again. Putting his combat knife back in its holster, he asked his second in command. ‚What’s the status?‛ Before Hikuro could reply, more footsteps were heard. This time it was Sam and Hikuro’s turn to raise their weapons. They moved in unison, as if one was intrinsically aware of the other. Hmm, interesting, Zoricah thought. Sam had never shown such link with anyone else. ‚Whoa! If you have to shoot, aim a bit lower, okay?‛ Joel’s voice sounded in the darkness. Shortly after, Joel and Dyam were lit by the bonfire which had once been the farmhouse. Lowering his gun, Hikuro turned back around and replied to his king’s earlier question. ‚All seventeen razbians are down, my lord. Unfortunately, it was not possible to spare them for interrogation.‛ ‚What about the females? Any survivors?‛ Zoricah asked the four fighters. They all lowered their eyes in sadness. Sam slowly shook her head confirming Zoricah’s worst fears. ‚Deirdre!‛ Drew came into view, shortly followed by Yara, who was now in her human form. They ran across the field, avoiding the sparks from the blazing house. ‚I could not hold her for longer, Zoricah,‛ Yara said apologetically. Drew crouched down beside her frail twin sister and placed her hands on the unnaturally extended belly. Immediately, Deirdre’s shivering receded. Zoricah could feel the twins' connection as if she had just been hit by a warm weather front. She was angry at Drew for not having followed her orders, but a part of her understood her friend’s predicament, and deep inside, she admitted she would have done the same
They were four miles south of the village, which meant that the car was almost six miles away. Damn it. It was too far for her to carry Deirdre, and the night was too bright for her to fly over Lake Placid. Humans were bound to spot her and call the news channels or even film her themselves on their freaking cell phones. ‚I can dematerialize with her to a safe spot.‛ Tardieh’s low voice startled her. Zoricah looked at him in disbelief. What was he playing at? First, he didn’t want to believe in her; then he accused her of murdering his father; now he is willing to take one of her own to safety? Hmm, very fishy. But did she really have a choice? As if reading her mind, Tardieh added, ‚You don’t have many options.‛ ‚I don’t, but they are options, nonetheless.‛ The gates of Hiad could open right above her, but she would hold on to her pride till the last minute. ‚Zoricah, please, we need to move her now. She’s failing.‛ Drew’s pleading voice brought Zoricah back from her ego trip. She looked back at Yara and Sam. They both seemed determined to carry their friend until the ends of Terhem Viahta just to not have to accept any male’s help. But the one million dollar question was: would Deirdre survive the journey? With a sigh of resignation, Zoricah agreed to the last thing she wanted to happen. ‚Okay, you can dematerialize on my balcony in Soho. I will be right behind—‛ ‚And then what will you do?‛ Tardieh asked. He was trying hard not to sound condescending, Zoricah noticed. ‚You need supplies, a warm and large clean area to tend to her wounds.‛ Damn him! He was right. Dragons healed fast, not as fast as vampires but quite fast nevertheless. But in her condition, Deirdre would take a number of days to fully recover, and if her wounds and the strange fever were not tended to immediately, she might not live to see another day. Her townhouse in Soho could be described as ‚cozy‛ not ‚roomy.‛ ‚I’ll find a way,‛ she said stubbornly. ‚How? Your rooms are not spacious enough to be used as an operating theater nor are they fit to accommodate a wounded dragon comfortably.‛

‚How do you know our rooms are not big enough?‛ Sam asked, raising an eyebrow at Tardieh. He ignored her inquisitive look and carried on. ‚Zoricah, you know I am right. You need to take her to a safe, large, clean, well supplied hideaway, and you have to do it right now. I am the only one who can provide all of that at the present moment.‛ With dread, Zoricah realized she would have to agree to the second riskiest plan she had ever taken part in her life. The first had taken place two hundred years before. ‚Okay. But you are dematerializing me, too, at the same time.‛ A wave of heated female protests followed her words. She knew her fighters would be against it, but their disapproval was the least of her concerns. She needed to take Deirdre to safety and come up with a backup plan in less than thirty seconds and be well prepared for a more than likely vampire ambush. ‚There’s no way I’ll leave you to go unprotected with that blood-fucking-sucker.‛ Yara’s voice stood out in the sea of protests. ‚Well, these blood-fucking-suckers have just saved your ass tonight, witch,‛ Dyam retorted heatedly. Before another battle started, Zoricah stood up, faced her fighters, and said sternly, ‚We don’t have time for this. I hate to say it, but Tardieh is right. We do not have the right amenities to tend for Deirdre.‛ ‚So one of them stays with us,‛ Yara said, pointing an accusing finger at Dyam, as if she were a Spanish Inquisitor who had just found a heretic. ‚Yes, for ransom,‛ Sam added heatedly. Great, Zoricah thought, the Inquisition Court was complete. ‚I’ll stay.‛ Hikuro’s cold voice resonated like a bullet fired in a metal container. He was looking at Sam with defiance in his eyes. Tardieh gave his old friend an exasperated look as if saying "What the fuck?" but only got a reassuring nod in return. Zoricah took advantage of the momentary disagreement between the two vampires and closed the deal. ‚So it’s settled, then. Tardieh, you will dematerialize Deirdre and I at the same time to your castle while Hikuro stays here with Sam, Yara, and Drew.‛

An awful high-pitched screech echoed once again through the night. When Zoricah managed to recover from the assault on her ears, she looked at the source where the dreadful sound had come from. Drew was hugging her twin sister with so much force that Zoricah thought she would finish breaking the remaining bones. Oh, by Apa Dobrý’s honor, will she ever manage to get Deirdre to safety in time? Who else was going to throw a fit that night? ‚She needs me. She won’t make it without me,‛ Drew said weakly, almost in a whisper. Zoricah looked at Tardieh, not knowing what to do or what else to bargain with. The salvation came from the other side of the circle. ‚I’ll transport her, Zoricah. I’ll take Drew to the castle safely,‛ Joel said firmly. Then as if also reading her mind, he added, ‚By Apa Dobrý, I promise no harm will come to her.‛ Zoricah looked back at Tardieh, who nodded gravely in agreement. ‚So I’ll stay here with Hikuro,‛ Dyam announced returning Yara’s fierce stare. Zoricah bit her lip, took a deep breath to gain courage, and said to her friends, ‚I’ll meet you back at the Soho townhouse as soon as possible.‛ Tardieh came closer and held her hand. It was not a demanding gesture. It was soft, almost delicate. Together, they kneeled down beside Deirdre’s unconscious body and dematerialized.

Chapter Eleven Tardieh took Zoricah and Deirdre straight to one of the largest guest rooms in his mansion. Joel arrived with a very pale Drew soon after. The room was ample with a tall ceiling and a large window overlooking the back garden. The bath chamber was located to the left of the walk-in wardrobe, just like every other guest room in his castle. The interior designer Tardieh hired to decorate it had had only one rule: minimalist, clean solutions. He absolutely despised those Renaissance castles full of lavish furnishings and accessories that screamed for attention, every room packed with drapes, flower curtains, three thousand patterns per square inch. Thus, all his castles were an oasis of order; everything served a specific function with only a few tall vases here and there. His style came in very handy when situations like these presented themselves. It gave his home the space necessary to accommodate any wounded dragon quite comfortably. With their help, Zoricah had managed to put Deirdre’s arms and legs back into place without spilling too much blood. Drew was getting paler and paler by the minute, so as soon as Deidre stopped shivering and her breathing was less shallow, Zoricah convinced Drew to take a break. But as expected, she didn’t want to leave her twin sister’s side. So Tardieh had arranged for the room to be cleaned and a second bed with an extra set of towels and a robe to be brought in for her. Zoricah looked as tired as he felt, so he offered her the adjacent room. That way she would be able to take a nice bath and be close by for any emergencies.

After settling his intriguing guests comfortably in their respective rooms, Tardieh went to the library. He needed to ponder on what to do next. He had them where he wanted, hadn’t he? What next? The glass wall in front of him shimmered. Another sunrise was approaching. Tardieh took a sip from his whiskey-infused blood and saw the mountains before him become engulfed by darkness. ‚What are you drinking?‛ Zoricah’s voice came from the library’s door. Turning around, he saw her leaning on the door frame, arms crossed in front of her. Her long dark hair was tied up in a loose bun. Thin strands cascaded down her neck. She was wearing the silk summer kimono he had left her, his kimono. It was black beaded with Japanese characters in gold. It had been given to him by a shogun in the beginning of the nineteenth century, right after his coronation. It suited her very well. She had folded the too-long sleeves a couple of times to fit her better. The soft fabric hung loosely over her beautiful figure highlighting her full breasts and long legs perfectly. His cock jerked in response to the sight of her. ‚Whiskey,‛ Tardieh said, trying hard to think of something else, something that would keep his shaft down. Icy cold water being poured over his head. ‚Whiskey?‛ she asked, taking a few steps inside the library and shutting the doors behind her. ‚I thought vampires only drank blood.‛ ‚We do, but we can also digest other liquids diluted with blood,‛ he said, then took another sip. She went over to the fireplace and leaned against the desk the back of the couch in front of it. The light kimono opened up showing more of her silky legs. ‚Would you like a glass?‛ he asked, forcing his eyes up. What was she simmering in that Machiavellian mind of hers? ‚That would be good,‛ she responded hoarsely. Tardieh went to the bar across the room and opened the bottle of 1975 Bushmills Millennium Malt. Without turning around, he asked, ‚On the rocks or cowboy?‛ ‚On the rocks, please.‛

He put a couple of ice cubes in the glass—he didn’t want it too diluted—and poured the golden liquid into it. After topping his, he went over to the couch and handed the glass to her. ‚How are the twins?‛ She took it out of his hands. Their fingers touched briefly, and she gave a slight jolt, as if his touch were electrifying. Nice move, conniving fox, Tardieh thought to himself but decided to pretend he hadn’t noticed it. And let the games begin. ‚Drew has finally succumbed to tiredness, and Deirdre is stable,‛ Zoricah said after taking a sip from her drink. She crossed her legs while still leaning on the back of the couch. The oversized kimono opened up even more, endowing Tardieh with a VIP-box view of her toned thighs. A few more inches and her private parts would be deliciously exposed. She looked up at him under long, dark lashes. Damn, that was the problem with beautiful women. They knew how to make the toughest of men go down on his knees and beg for his life. Tardieh took another step toward Zoricah. Watching her, he raised the glass to his lips and took another sip of his whiskey. With his right hand, he lifted one of the ends of the silky belt holding her kimono closed. Her exotic eyes regarded him closely. ‚So, do you like my home?‛ Tardieh asked, playing with the soft material between his fingers. She narrowed her eyes, looked down at his hand, then back up at him. ‚It’s very
placing the book back on the shelf, her back still to him. ‚Cell phones are known to have poor reception here,‛ Tardieh responded, walking around the couch. ‚It’s the satellites. Too much interference,‛ he added, finally reaching where she was standing. ‚Still, I wonder why you insisted we brought Deirdre and Drew here.‛ Ah, she was on to him, then. She had put two and two together and realized he wanted to see the legendary draconian twin-link live and in color, hadn’t she? Well, that and what the fuck was growing inside Deirdre. Right, he needed to divert her focus to something else. ‚I couldn’t care less about your draconian twins,‛ Tardieh whispered behind her. She stood there very still, but Tardieh could see she got goose bumps on the back of her neck. He could hear her heart thumping like African drums. He lifted his hands and touched her shoulders lightly. His fingers trailed her neckline and caressed the base of her skull before sliding down her spine. Her skin felt like fire under his cold vampire fingers. He leaned in and took a deep breath. He needed more of her blue mist scent. He had given up on trying to make his cock behave. It strained inside his trousers, almost bursting out with the pressure. Her head tilted almost imperceptibly to the side. Was she giving him more access to her neck? His fangs extended, but he resisted the urge to bite her. Not yet. His hand slid down her left thigh and found the small knife strapped there. You clever girl. He slowly opened the kimono, unhooked the two Velcro straps holding the weapon, and let it all fall heavily to the wooden floor. Zoricah did nothing to stop him. He brought his hands back up and rested them on her hips. ‚You would have known if something was wrong, Zoricah.‛ He massaged her lower back with his thumbs and thought he heard a light groan in response but could not be sure. Oh merciful Apa Dobrý, please give him strength to not lose himself completely. Tardieh gave a small chuckle with that thought. Who was he kidding? He had lost that battle a long time ago. Tardieh leaned over her left shoulder, and touching her soft skin

with his lips, he whispered, ‚Turn around, Zoricah. Turn around for me.‛ Zoricah was well and truly screwed. She had come to find him in his library with the sole intent of unveiling his intentions. As soon as he saw Drew in the forest and realized that the whole attack was to rescue her twin sister, his eyes had flared. Zoricah had seen that kind of spark in countless vampires’ eyes. They could not avoid being seduced by all those legends about the preternatural link between draconian twins. But she needed to find out what his plans were before he had the chance to set them in motion. If he was thinking of making them eternal guests in his castle, to study the twins and try to bottle their powers as so many had tried in the past, he hadn’t given any indications of it yet. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t planning on doing it. Tardieh was most likely waiting to see the real deal before he ambushed them all. Drew was exhausted, and Deirdre was in some kind of coma. So far, they hadn’t really shown the true extent of their otherworldly connection. So Zoricah needed to act fast. Nothing like smoke and mirrors to help deceive the most cunning of eyes. She had prepared herself before going to meet him in the library. A long, hot bath followed by self-applied massage with scentless almond oil she had found in the guestroom cabinet. She was careful not to overpower her natural blue mist scent which Tardieh seemed to like so much. Her clothes had been dried by the time she finished her ritual, but she chose to wear the silky kimono someone had left on the bed instead. Oh, yes, nothing like light silk to accentuate one’s curves without being vulgar or too aggressive. She had left the three-sizes-too-big robe dangle loose, that way it wouldn’t be difficult for it to accidentally unfasten itself and display one of her breasts before she could realize what had happened then—blushing miserably, of course—close it tightly again. Zoricah knew Tardieh wanted her. So she would use one of the only weapons his vampire nature had no shields against: female heat. She was very skilled in that area. Who was the very wise human who said that practice leads to perfection? She couldn’t remember but took her hat off to him anyway. She had started off really well. Tardieh could not take his eyes off her legs, her breasts, or her bottom as soon as she'd walked into the

library. He had practically drooled on the floor. But then, everything changed. He called her bluff and came on to her like an octopus. His soft touch on her skin, his breath warming her neck, his thumb massaging her lower back< She felt her heart pound and her folds go so moist she thought her juices would spill down her legs any minute now. ‚Turn around, Zoricah,‛ he whispered in her ear again. His large hands had finished massaging her lower back and were trailing up along both sides of her ribs. She felt his lips on her neck again and could not prevent a whimper from escaping her mouth. She only realized she had tilted her head when she heard his low chuckle. He wrapped his strong arms around her waist, right above the kimono’s belt. His fingers started gathering the fabric, slowly, very slowly. Zoricah felt the cold breeze touch her bare chest. While holding the robe open with his right hand, his left one lightly stroked the base of her breast. It was sensual rather than urgent. Delicate, a whisper of a caress. After a few moments, he started tracing circles around it. Wide at first, then slowly closing in until he reached the tip. He fondled the already hard nipple for a while, teasing it, caressing it; then he squeezed it between his thumb and index finger. Oh, fucking gates of Hiad! Zoricah could not stop herself. Whimpering in ecstasy, she leaned back against his broad chest, opening herself up to his expert hands. ‚Zoricah,‛ she heard him whisper hoarsely, ‚you are going to be my demise.‛ She had barely registered his words when he turned her around and kissed her hard. Tardieh’s lips were demanding, hungry for her. Zoricah could not have enough of him, either. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back with the same intensity. His hands grabbed her ass, pulling her closer against his shaft. His hard cock was stroking her wet pussy through the light silk. Oh, what a torment! She wanted more; she needed more. She needed to feel him completely. While still caressing the base of his skull with one hand, she traced a path down his tight abdomen with the other, past his ribs, the belt line, and found his hard cock inside his pants. A hoarse moan told her he liked

that. Zoricah could feel his shaft dripping through the thick material. She rubbed her hand along his full length a few more times and was rewarded with another yet longer groan. As if answering her prayers, Tardieh untied her belt and opened the kimono completely. His mouth descended on her right breast while his left hand caressed the other. Zoricah arched her back in response, and he understood her signal. While still sucking on her breast, he drove his hand down her belly and covered the short curls between her legs. By Apa Dobrý, his fingers were divine! He stroked her, spreading her wetness all the way to her outer labia. With two very moist fingers, he started massaging her clitoris. Zoricah’s hips moved of their own accord. She lost track of what she had been doing, what she had gone to the library for. She parted her legs wide and held on to his broad shoulders. His left hand traced a path down her spine, over her buttocks and her anus. Two long fingers entered her pussy at the same time that the left middle one penetrated her anus. Zoricah cried out in pleasure. ‚Come for me, Zoricah,‛ he said huskily. ‚I want to hear you scream for me.‛ He dropped down on his knees and completed the torment. While his clever fingers were pumping in and out of her, his tongue licked her clit. First it was rhythmically; then he increased the tempo until Zoricah couldn’t remember her name. All she cared about was the orgasm building up inside her and the heat threatening to consume her. Tardieh groaned between her legs and inserted a third finger inside her core followed by a second one in her ass. The orgasm blinded Zoricah like a thousand stars. Unable to stop herself, she cried out and let the delightful heat overtake her body. She faintly felt his hands leaving her and returning after just a split second, then parting her legs even wider. She was still savoring the aftershocks of her first orgasm when Tardieh lifted her up and plunged his large cock inside her with so much force that two rows of books fell down to the floor with the crash. His arms hooked her by the back of her knees. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck to keep her balance. For the first time in her life, Zoricah had no control, she had no way out. She didn’t want any. She had never thought that it was possible to have two orgasms in

a row. She was wrong. Tardieh started thrusting mercilessly inside her. His lips smashed into hers. His mouth was wild, eager, and demanding. Then without losing the rhythm, he traced her neck with his lips and stopped right above her collarbone. A second later, his fangs pierced her skin with the urgency of a viper’s bite. His gulps were as unforgiving as his hips riding her. But Zoricah couldn’t care less. She had already lost herself to him. The pain mixed with pleasure tipped her over the edge. She heard Tardieh guttural cries and felt his seed spilling inside her an instant before her second orgasm hit her like a firebomb. They stayed in each other’s arms, breathing heavily, for a while. Tardieh slowly lifted his head up and delicately licked the bite mark. Zoricah heard him say something but could not distinguish what, nor could she gather strength to tell him that. ‚Hurt you?‛ he finally whispered again. Hurt her? What did he mean by ‘hurt her’? She had just had the best orgasms of her very long and quite lonely life. Not that she would ever tell him that. ‚No, you didn’t,‛ she answered. ‚Did I?‛ Tardieh’s low chuckle reverberated in her ears. ‚No, you didn’t, draconian.‛ He lifted her off the bookshelf and laid her on the leather couch. Then he crossed the room, opened the small fridge, and took out a bottle of fresh orange juice. Zoricah tilted her head slightly to get a better view of his gloriously naked body. He was simply gorgeous. His broad shoulders were well defined by muscular biceps; he had a monstrous six-pack abs, perfectly shaped legs, and an ass to die for. She hadn’t even seen him taking his clothes off. May Apa Dobrý bless the vampire speed. He turned around and raised an eyebrow at her. ‚Like what you see?‛ ‚Naw,‛ she said, looking away. His lips were still curled up when he went over and, sitting down by her side, handed her the juice. ‚Then I hope you like orange. That’s all I

got.‛ His gaze descended upon her neck, and Zoricah realized his fangs were still extended. ‚Apart from blood, of course.‛ She straightened and took the orange juice from his hand. She hadn’t realized how thirsty she had been. She took a few eager gulps of the gloriously fresh juice before remembering her manners and hastily stopping from draining the whole bottle in one go. ‚Thanks.‛ He was regarding her with a boyish half smile. ‚You’re welcome.‛ Realizing he wasn’t talking about the orange juice, she gave him a narrow glance and said. ‚Don’t flatter yourself, vampire. You were not the first one to give me an orgasm.‛ ‚Two, actually,‛ he replied, smiling. Standing up, she retorted, ‚Yeah but only you make me want to take it all back in record time.‛ She had intended to go and get her kimono by the bookshelves, but his arms closed in around her waist, and Zoricah fell down on his lap. Laying her down on top of him, Tardieh whispered, ‚And only you make me want to start it all over again in record time.‛ His kiss was soft and slow. He opened her mouth against his, their tongue dancing to the same tune. They fit perfectly together. Damn it, Zoricah thought. He managed to make her forget what she had gone there for again. She had meant to seduce him to get information. Instead she had completely lost her mind and herself in the process. But before she could gather her wits and start asking the right questions again, they heard a horrible cry echo throughout Tardieh’s castle. Zoricah’s heart skipped a beat. ‚Deirdre!‛

Chapter Twelve Red blood covered the sheets and the floor. ‚It’s moving, Zoricah. It’s hurting!‛ Drew had cried out standing by Deirdre’s bed as soon as they went in. After hearing the awful cry echo in the castle, Tardieh and Zoricah had dressed hastily and went to the master guestroom to find Deirdre convulsing wildly on the bed. Drew had been trying to sooth her but to no avail. Deirdre’s overly protruded belly was moving as if a serpent was trapped inside her. Tardieh had grabbed her by the ankles while Zoricah tried to hold her shoulders. He saw that her skin was changing color and texture; she was shifting into her dragon. Her body was probably trying to fight off the thing consuming her with all its weapons. Drew and Zoricah had tried to calm Deirdre down by giving her more of their own heat, but nothing seemed to work. They would find themselves in a very tricky situation if Deirdre’s unconscious mind managed to succeed and fully bring her dragon forth. ‚Zoricah, please, it’s killing her! It’s eating her alive!‛ Drew yelled. After a few more minutes of fierce struggle, Zoricah pulled her knife out and stabbed Deirdre’s belly. Instantly, it stopped moving. Brown, razbian blood spilled out of the wound. Twisting her wrists, Zoricah sliced Deirdre's belly open. A slimy green lizard lay dead inside. Taking the courage, Tardieh pulled the thing out and gave to Joel, who had taken it away. They needed to examine that freak of nature before completely destroying it. What had those fucking bastards been

doing to those females? Zoricah had tried to close the wound fast, but too much blood was spilling out, so Tardieh had taken over and, using his vampire speed, finished the operation. ‚Let’s give her more heat, Drew,‛ Zoricah instructed her friend. Both females placed their hands on the lacerated body trying to give her as much life force as possible, but Deirdre didn't look any better. Joel entered the room followed by Hikuro, Dyam, and the two female warriors. Wiping his hands on a clean towel, Tardieh gave Hikuro an inquisitive look but only got a small shrug in response. ‚Girls, I need you here,‛ Zoricah said as soon as Yara and Sam entered the room. All four females placed their hands on different parts of the ailing female draco. But nothing seemed to be helping. Deirdre was clearly getting worse. Her breathing was getting shallower; her lips had turned light blue color. ‚She’s getting worse
‚Tardieh, please, gather your warriors. I will need everyone’s help.‛ Zoricah took a deep breath and got off the bed. She did not know if she would be able to find Deirdre in Apa Sâmbetei, let alone bring her back, but she would try. She owed it to her friends. They might never recover from such tragedy if Deirdre died. After hearing that no other female had survived, that all abducted females were dead, Zoricah had really felt the weight on her shoulders. She had been too late again. Images of their attack in Dubai flooded her mind. Decapitated bodies, entrails spilling out of open bellies. Her blood boiled in response. Angry tears spilled down her cheeks again. Fuck all that! She would get the motherfucker who was behind those monstrous abductions, and when she did, not even Apa Dobrý would be able to save him from her rage. Wiping her tears away, she told Tardieh, ‚I need space behind the bed. Can you move it forward to the center of the room, please?‛ After the bed had been placed where she needed, she positioned the four vampires at the base and the three females by her side. She then beckoned them to hold hands, forming a circle around the bed where Deirdre laid unconscious. Sam and Drew held her elbows while she placed both hands on Deirdre’s chest. Zoricah looked up at all of them, then said, ‚Okay, here we go.‛ She closed her eyes and focused. She felt the energy of all seven flowing through the closed circle and channeled it toward herself. Her body responded to the power surge with a jolt. On the corner of her eyes, she saw Tardieh move. He was about to break the circle to come to her aid. She looked up and tried to reassure him without words. She knew he was still not convinced she was okay, but he settled back in his place in the circle. Zoricah took another deep breath and felt Deirdre’s heart. It was weak, so weak. Taking a third deep breath, she whispered, ‚Apa Sâmbetei, eu vin la tine.‛ Apa Sâmbetei, I come to thee. Streams of a thousand colors blinded her vision, and she was overcome with the feeling of drowning. She hated that part. She felt the colors engulfing her, churning her, taking her away, out of the bedroom,

and into the darkness. Zoricah opened her eyes and assessed her surroundings. The characteristic mist of Apa Sâmbetei was thick, almost impenetrable. She heard the sound of water flowing somewhere nearby. So I am near the first river, she thought to herself. Carefully she took a step forward. She did not have much time; she had to find Deirdre and get out of there before Ucidere, lord of Apa Sâmbetei, found out she had crossed over. She took a few more steps and felt confident enough to take a few extra but fell facedown on the floor. Damn celestial rocks. Straight ahead of her, through the dense mist, Zoricah saw the shape of a female walking on the banks of the river. Deirdre! Zoricah lifted herself off the ground and started running toward the female. But the mist was too thick and the rocks kept on making her stumble. By the time she got to the river, she only saw Deirdre’s red locks disappearing into the water. No, by Apa Dobrý, no! Without thinking, Zoricah dived in after Deirdre. Once more, Zoricah was blinded by a thousand colors. They were so beautiful, so inviting. Streams of bright reds, yellows, blues, and greens crossed in front and around her, as if they were schools of fish swimming with the current. Her body relaxed, her aching muscles loosened. All she saw, all she cared about was those beautiful colors warming her up. Shit! Wake up! Wake up, Zoricah! she told herself. Forcing her eyes open, she fought the celestial pull of Apa Sâmbetei and tried to spot Deirdre through the multicolored current. After a few frustrated minutes, she caught a glimpse of her friend a few feet away. She seemed to be unconscious. Swimming in the colors, Zoricah reached out and grabbed her friend by the wrists. The colorful currents started changing around them, from deep shades to brighter tones, until all were so bright they became one. Time to jump, Zoricah thought. Gathering all her remaining strength, Zoricah willed her body out of the light, taking Deirdre with her. They fell flat on gray, sandy floor. The good news was that they had successfully gotten out of the river. The bad news was that they had crossed to the other side.

As if on a trance, Deirdre stood up and started walking again. ‚Deirdre, Deirdre!‛ Zoricah called out. But Deirdre didn’t slow down nor did she seem to hear. Zoricah started after her friend and suddenly was overpowered by the fantastic feeling of ecstasy. Wow, the sand touching her bare feet was so soft. The air on her skin was like velvet caressing her cheeks. She looked up and saw gray clouds, gray skies, gray planets. Everything was gray, but it didn’t matter because she could feel them all with her skin, her hair, her nails< The silk kimono on her felt like a lover’s hand caressing her body. She sat down and slowly dug her bare feet on the soft gray sand. What a marvelous feeling! In a complete state of bliss, Zoricah saw the sand moving deliciously around her feet, her ankles. She laid down and let the light breeze caress her arms. Oh, it had been so long since she felt that way. Utterly relaxed, in peace, she could stay there forever, leave everyone behind. But who was it that she had to take back again? There was someone waiting for her< Images of Sam and Yara came to her mind. Yara when she had first learned how to bring forth her panther and control it. Her loud laughter echoing triumphantly in the forest. Sam smiling gloriously after passing her first fighting test. All three of them laughing at something. Then the scenes changed, and images of two bodies intermingled near bookshelves, sweating, kissing. Images of Tardieh and the feeling of being complete for the first time in her life. Zoricah sat up straight and blinked a few times. Tardieh, Yara, Sam. They were back on Terhem Viahta, the land of the living, waiting for her. She had to go back; they needed her. But the sand is so soft; the breeze is so soothing< Too soothing, actually. Fuck! With a start, she realized this was the second river. She had already entered it, and that meant that Deirdre was in it, too. ‚No!‛ Zoricah said out loud. ‚Stand the fuck up and move!‛ Keeping her friends’ images in her mind so that she wouldn’t lose herself again, Zoricah stood up and ran across the sandy field. On the distance, she saw Deirdre on the ground, rolling on the gray sand like a

child playing on the beach. Zoricah went to her and crouching down she tried to talk to her again. ‚Deidre. Deirdre, it’s me, Zoricah.‛ But Deirdre didn’t seem to hear her, nor did she acknowledge her presence. She just kept on rolling and laughing, throwing sand on herself. Her long ginger locks covered the ground like a soft sheet. ‚Deidre!‛ Zoricah yelled, shaking her by the shoulders. Nothing. Nothing could disturb her. ‚She can’t hear you, you know?‛ The deep voice came from above. Damn it. Ucidhere, the god of death, lord of Apa Sâmbetei had found her. Zoricah stood up and turned around to face the mighty deity. ‚Hello, Father.‛

Chapter Thirteen The razbian’s vision was getting blurry. ‚Please, sire, I am telling the truth,‛ he begged, but he didn’t know how much of his words had actually come out. It’s hard to speak when your windpipe is getting squashed. ‚They surprised us. We wasn’t expectin’ it.‛ His sire’s eyes were completely red with fury. His grip tightened on the razbian’s throat. ‚I swear, sire. I came to you as soon as I saw the flames and the big red dragon!‛ ‚You mean you ran away like a scared little girl, and when I found you at the whorehouse, you decided to tell me what had gone down,‛ his master replied, flashing his teeth at him. ‚Please, please, sire. I try to find you, yeah, but couldn’, yeah?‛ he lied. The razbian didn’t mind begging for his life. Begging, kissing feet, changing sides as often as he changed clothes, all of that was part of keeping his heart beating. ‚I pay you to expect attacks to my properties. I don’t fucking care if it’s a bunch of freaking flying bees. You have to be ready,‛ his sire yelled, accentuating the last five words with a tighter squeeze on his throat. His voice had a strange dark vibrato quality to it, as if two people were talking at the same time. The razbian started seeing black dots, and a wave of panic hit him. ‚Oh fair Soartas, please don’t let my destiny be this. I gonna be good man from now on, I swear ta ya!‛ he begged for one more miracle in his thoughts. The sound of a cell phone ringing froze his sire’s deadly grip. Without taking his hands off but slacking his grip slightly, his sire

picked up the phone and checked the caller id. Swallowing dry, he answered the call. ‚Yeah?‛ Pause. ‚Well, we are a little behind schedule. Hmm, something came up. We had to relocate.‛ Another short pause. ‚Of course, I am. We are really close to finding it. I tell you, the—‛ Another pause, longer this time. His sire seemed strangely nervous. ‚Yes, I will. Don’t you worry, I am. No, no. There’s no need to send your guards over. I guarantee you I have everything under control. That draconian demigoddess will have a nice surprise waiting for her next time she decides to burst into one of my farms again.‛ After another tense pause, his sire ended the call and looked back at him. The razbian guard chuckled nervously. ‚Bummer getting flogged by the boss, hein?‛ His sire leaned closer and said with icy cold voice. ‚Yeah, too bad your boss’ whip is burning with the flames of Hiad.‛ The last thing that came to the razbian’s mind before feeling his windpipe being completely shattered and the agony of not having enough air was that he shouldn’t have bought those lottery tickets the day before. He would never be able to claim the money if he won.

Chapter Fourteen ‚Hello, daughter mine,‛ Ucidhere greeted Zoricah. That was the last thing Zoricah needed. Every time her father showed up, something went amiss. ‚She will not respond, no matter what you do,‛ he said calmly, referring to Deirdre. Zoricah looked at her friend who seemed to have gone back in time a couple of centuries. She was rolling on the gray sand, building sand castles while laughing out loud. ‚Why?‛ Zoricah asked her father. ‚Why can’t she hear me? Others have.‛ Crossing his arms in front of him as if he were a bored bouncer and she a teenager wanting to jump the queue, he said, ‚Because she has made her choice.‛ Ignoring her father, Zoricah kneeled down beside Deirdre and tried again. ‚Deirdre, we need to go back. You are needed back on Terhem Viahta.‛ Deirdre sat up straight with fear in her eyes. Suddenly she stood up and started running across the gray desert. Zoricah bolted after her. ‚Deirdre, no!‛ Damn it! She cursed under her breath. Reaching Deirdre was no problem, but stopping her from running again was another question. As soon as Zoricah tried to block her, Deirdre started screaming and kicking like a spoiled brat who didn’t want to go to school.

Long white fingers touched Deirdre’s shoulders, and she stopped struggling against Zoricah’s grip immediately. Taking a breath, Zoricah said to her father, ‚Thank you.‛ Ucidhere regarded her gravely. She took the hint and confronted the unspoken command. ‚I can take her back. She hasn’t crossed the third river yet. She is not officially inside Apa Sâmbetei.‛ The three rivers of Apa Sâmbetei acted like dimensional portals. The more one crossed, the farther away from the Terhem Viahta one became. The third river was the final gateway. Once crossed, the inimă could not return to be encased by a physical body any more, even if it wanted to. The rivers changed the composition of the soul; they cleansed it. Of course there had been cases of people who tried to cheat, and despite belonging to Hiad, the underworld, they had tried hard to cross the three rivers. But the rivers did not release anyone who was not spiritually clean enough to be in the gardens of Apa Sâmbetei. So those inimăs got trapped inside the rivers forever. It was Ucidhere’s job to guarantee balance was maintained by ensuring each inimă went to the correct place. Ucidhere caressed Deirdre’s shoulders, and Zoricah saw her friend relax even more under his powerful hands. ‚She will make a great addition to my garden.‛ Oh, for crying out loud! He still called Apa Sâmbetei his garden? Zoricah could not contain her desperation. The longer Deirdre stayed there, the more her inimă would be changed. Soon, even if Zoricah did manage to drag her friend’s ass back to Terhem Viahta, she would not ‚fit‛ into her unclean body. And Ucidhere was counting on that. Slapping her father’s hand, she said sternly, ‚That’s cheating.‛ Ucidhere gave her an innocent look. ‚Why? She was enjoying it so much.‛ Zoricah narrowed her eyes at him in response. Giving it one more shot, she placed herself in front of Deirdre, who seemed to be still enjoying the lingering feelings left by Ucidhere’s hands. Trying to capture her friend's eyes with her own, Zoricah said slowly, ‚Deirdre, the nightmare is over. You don’t have to go back to that torture anymore. You are safe.‛ Deirdre started giving out signs of distress again. Her brows

furrowed; then her eyes went wide. But Zoricah quickly added. ‚Drew is there, waiting for you.‛ Deirdre froze and, for the first time, looked straight at Zoricah. Yes! That was the key to get her out of there. On the corner of her eyes, Zoricah saw Ucidhere shuffle in agitation, so she continued. ‚Drew needs you, Deirdre. She won’t make it without you. And if she takes her own life, she will never be accepted in Apa Sâmbetei with you.‛ No inimăs who tried avoid the trials the Soartas had set for them by killing themselves were allowed in Apa Sâmbetei. Zoricah wasn’t exaggerating. She knew Drew would not want to live without her second half. Zoricah had had the opportunity to see their connection on one occasion, a hundred or so years before. The twins had been flying over El Salvador when Santa Ana Volcano erupted. Its collapse produced an extraordinary debris avalanche that swept everything on its wake into the Pacific Ocean. Drew had been right above the volcano when it all happened and got trapped in the lava. Since dragons are creatures of fire, they cannot be killed by it or any blazing material. So the rescue party had known she was still alive. All efforts were used to track her down, but the smoke cloud emanating from the craters lasted several days preventing the dragons from carrying out the search accurately. After the tenth day, Deirdre convinced her father she could locate her twin sister if he only let her. Hesitantly, he'd agreed to the dangerous idea; he had run out of options. Within half an hour, Deirdre found Drew, and the rescue dragons managed to dig her out of the solidified debris. Zoricah realized Deirdre was crying. Had she seen the images Zoricah was remembering? ‚Now that’s cheating,‛ Ucidhere exclaimed impatiently. ‚Of course she saw them. This is the gates to Apa Sâmbetei. Everything that is essence is shared. And there’s nothing more intrinsic to the soul than a memory.‛ ‚Drew.‛ Deirdre’s soft voice brought Zoricah back to her mission. Deirdre was still crying, but her eyes carried a different type of pain. The pain brought by hope. Slowly, tentatively, Zoricah reached out and held her friend’s hand.

She held it back and smiled for the first time. Zoricah felt like crying, too. ‚This is truly touching, daughter mine,‛ Ucidhere said, interrupting the beautiful moment, ‚but unfortunately the order still stands. You cannot take her back to Terhem Viahta.‛ ‚Yes I can.‛ Zoricah turned to him while hugging Deirdre tightly. ‚The rules are clear, if an inimă has not crossed the third river, it is officially in no-man’s-land and therefore able to return safely.‛ Ucidhere looked at her sternly. ‚The rules are clear. Apa Sâmbetei’s soul count cannot be disturbed, otherwise the whole world will suffer the consequences.‛ His dark voice reverberated like a lion’s roar. ‚But<‛ ‚No buts!‛ Ucidhere shouted thunderously. ‚The balance must be maintained.‛ Zoricah started to argue but was silenced by an excruciating pain in her chest. Something was penetrating her sternum and slowly squeezing her heart like a ripe grape. She dropped to the ground in agony. She couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t think, it was so much pain! Deirdre tried to help, but nothing could be done. ‚Daughter of mine, when are you going to learn life is all about balance?‛ Ucidhere remained distant, but there was something else in his voice—empathy, sadness, tiredness? That gave Zoricah an idea. ‚I will<‛ Zoricah managed to choke out over the unbearable agony in her chest. ‚I will bring you another soul.‛ The pain stopped as suddenly as it had started. ‚Now that’s something of interest to me.‛ Ucidhere raised an eyebrow and continued, ‚Tell me what you have in mind, child.‛ Wasn’t he the father every girl dreamed of? Taking a deep breath, Zoricah stood up. ‚You said that Apa Sâmbetei’s soul count could not be disturbed, so I will replace Drew’s with another.‛ Her so-called father regarded her for a moment, as if trying to decipher what she was up to or maybe read her mind. Zoricah froze. Shit, what if he could read her mind? As if on cue, Ucidhere’s eyes narrowed. ‚Do not fear, my child. I do not read minds.‛ Zoricah found that hard to believe, but there was not much she

could do about it. So she tried to gain some more ground over their battle of wits. ‚I will need some time though.‛ ‚Why?‛ ‚It’s not easy to find a pure soul who is willing to sacrifice himself or herself for the sake of world balance.‛ Zoricah replied crossly. Ucidhere circled around them and stopped by Deirdre’s makeshift sand castle. Deidre clutched Zoricah’s arm firmly. ‚What about the vampire king?‛ Ucidhere finally spoke. He had apparently decided to try to fix the sand castle by adding a few more towers. Particles of gray sand were magically lifting themselves up the air and forming a smooth pillar. ‚He seemed quite a good candidate.‛ Zoricah’s heart skipped a beat. ‚No, he won’t do.‛ ‚Why not?‛ Another sand tower added to the right. ‚Because<‛ Zoricah swallowed. ‚Because he has killed. He is a merciless ruler.‛ ‚Oh, but he is just. He is a seeker of truth, is he not?‛ her father asked, analyzing his work of art. ‚He has fought in and started many a wars. He is not suitable.‛ Zoricah was running out of arguments. She would not give Tardieh’s soul to Ucidhere, never! ‚Why not, Zoricah?‛ Ucidhere looked up and faced her. His striking dark eyes were almost too much to bear, but Zoricah stood her ground. ‚Because he has killed before.‛ She didn’t care about the consequences; her father could squeeze all the life out of her heart. ‚He repented himself,‛ Ucidhere replied pitilessly. His dark voice echoed around them like a thousand thunders. ‚Tardieh is not a candidate!‛ ‚Why not?‛ ‚Because he is mine!‛ Zoricah yelled back. Silence descended upon the gray desert. Zoricah could hear her own heart beating. It sounded like a hummingbird’s wings on steroids. Shit! Where in Hiad had that come from? She hadn’t meant to say it out loud or, more accurately, admit it out loud. She did have feelings for Tardieh. His annoying way of getting under her skin had brought her back to life. Her heart had been numb for a very long time. Before he came around,

she had only regarded the male species as a means to an end—to win wars, to help the unfortunate, for sexual release when the going got too tough. But Tardieh had refused to play his role quietly. He had surprised her in ways no one had ever had. Ucidhere’s low chuckle brought her back from her thoughts. ‚Does that mean that the mighty, independent, no-nonsense Zoricah has finally found her match?‛ He said sarcastically. At the disoriented look on her face, his chuckle turned into a loud laugh. Zoricah did not appreciate it one bit. But she knew she should not tease the beast anymore, so she swallowed her pride and kept quiet. For the moment. Zoricah felt a strong wind touch her face. Suddenly gray, sandy particles were everywhere. She saw Deirdre block her eyes with her hands. The sand castle collapsed. She could not see anything in front of her. ‚All right, daughter mine,‛ she heard him say from a distance. ‚I will grant you your wish. You have forty-eight hours.‛ ‚What? No! I need more time!‛ Zoricah tried to find him, but the sand cloud turned into a storm, and Ucidhere was gone. ‚Show off,‛ she said after the storm had died down. Forty-eight hours. Forty-eight bloody hours to find a pure soul and convince him or her to agree to the ultimate sacrifice. Zoricah collapsed on the sandy floor and put her head between her hands. It felt good. The second river was still very comforting, but she wasn’t blinded by it anymore. Small fingers touched her shoulder. Zoricah lifted her head to find Deirdre in front of her. ‚Let’s go home,‛ Deidre said, smiling. ‚Yeah, that sounds like a very good idea, Dee.‛ Zoricah stood up with her friend’s help, and she focused on getting them out of there. She had travelled in and out of Apa Sâmbetei numerous times over her long life but never had she taken anyone with her. That would prove to be an interesting task. ‚Just hang on to me tightly, okay?‛ she said to her friend, who promptly complied.

Zoricah closed her eyes and tried to gather the last of her energy. Nothing. Hmm, interesting. She felt good—the second river’s influence was very powerful—but the fact that she was having trouble gathering her strength meant she was dangerously running on empty. ‚Right. Better do this quickly, then,‛ she said to herself. Closing her eyes again, she tried harder. She channeled her dragon fire, bringing it forth and expanding it inside her. She visualized it spilling out of her ethereal body and engulfing Deirdre. Within her dragon heat, they were one. Using the last remains of her strength, Zoricah shouted, ‚Terhem Viahta, eu vin la tine.‛ ***** Tardieh was known for his extraordinary composure, but this was getting ridiculous. Zoricah had been completely immobile for over an hour now. He could see her energy dwindling by the minute. Half an hour after her soul had left to Apa Sâmbetei, anxiety had gotten the best of him, so he tried to go to her at the far end of the bed. But Yara, Sam, and Drew stopped him. After the female commands and swearing were silenced, Sam had explained to him that none of them should leave the circle, that Zoricah needed their energy to complete the journey. So there he stayed. ‚Are you sure this is normal?‛ he asked Yara for the third time. She gave him a look that clearly told him her patience was wearing thin too and replied. ‚Yes, Tardieh, this is normal. She will take as long as it takes to complete her mission. That’s Zoricah.‛ ‚Yeah but<‛ Sam bit her lips before continuing. ‚But what? But what? Tell me.‛ Tardieh’s desperate order reverberated in the room. His vampire warriors lifted their heads in response. He tried again. ‚Please.‛ Sam looked at Yara, who sighed and looked away. ‚She is usually quite fast,‛ Sam said shyly. Tardieh’s gut didn’t like that situation at all. ‚How fast?‛ he asked trying to contain his temper.

Sam looked at Drew and Yara again, as if uncertain of how much information she should reveal. It was Yara who ended the suspense. ‚Ten minutes max,‛ Yara blurted out. ‚Ten minutes? Ten fucking minutes? She has been there for more than an hour!‛ Tardieh’s blood boiled in his veins. He wanted to break the circle, go to Zoricah, and bring her back. Even if that meant he had to shake her, drown her, burn her. He would do whatever it took to get her out of Apa Sâmbetei alive and well. But as soon as he released Yara’s hand, she held on tighter, and the yelling and swearing started again. This time he did not back down, and more yelling, swearing, and threatening followed. Even Hikuro, Joel, and Dyan joined in the uproar to back him up. But Yara kept a surprisingly extremely tight grip on him. ‚Silence! She’s awaken!‛ Drew’s words did the job. Tardieh looked at Zoricah, but nothing had changed. She was still barely standing with her eyes closed and a frown on her face. Then he realized who Drew had meant. Deidre was awake and looking at her twin sister with a weak but sincere smile on her face. ‚No one breaks the circle!‛ It was his turn to shout. ‚Zoricah has not returned yet.‛ After a few anxious heartbeats, Zoricah shivered, then took a deep breath as if she had just come out of the water for air and slowly opened her eyes. She looked straight into Tardieh’s and said in a whisper, ‚Mission accomplished.‛ Then she collapsed on the floor, unconscious.

Chapter Fifteen Tardieh woke up with a start. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep; he didn’t want to leave her unattended. It had been over twenty-four hours since Zoricah had fallen unconscious since returning from Apa Sâmbetei. He had brought her straight to his quarters and settled her on his bed. Just like the other chambers in the house, his bedroom was ample with a high ceiling and decorated in a minimalist style; the only difference was that it was all in dark tones. The walls were dark slate gray, and the carpet was a deep forest green. Just like the library, one of the walls was made of thick translucent glass so that the room was warmed by the moonlight. The walk-in wardrobe had a spinning rack that automatically turned on once the door was opened. It was rather annoying, Tardieh had concluded. The bathroom was furnished with a large marble bathtub, which had been brought in from Italy, and a matching toilet set; a double shower ran across the east wall. In front of his grand king-size bed was a living room with a round table, a couple of cushioned chairs, and a chaise where he usually spent his nights watching the sky when he wasn’t working at the library. Tardieh loved to watch the ballet of colors in the pre-dawn sky. Tardieh looked at Zoricah once more. When he had brought her to his quarters, she was still unconscious but breathing steadily so he assumed she was going to be all right. But too long had passed, and Tardieh was starting to get really worried. He had been doing that a lot lately, he realized. Worrying, getting anxious, going out of his mind, losing his grip on sanity. He had a faint idea the reason for all that was

lying on his bed at that precise moment. Sitting up straight on his chaise, he lifted his arms and stretched his tight muscles. By Apa Dobrý, he was stiff. He hadn’t had a sound day’s sleep ever since Hikuro and the others arrived at his castle with that note from Zoricah. Damned female. Why did she have to be so stubborn, so independent, so freaking irresistible? He wasn’t used to females like her. He was used to people—nations!—doing what he commanded. Damned female! With a sigh, he turned his head toward the bed to check on Zoricah for the fifty-seventh time. His heart stopped. Her eyes were open. She had been watching him quietly. ‚What’s wrong?‛ she asked weakly. Standing up softly, he went to sit on the bed by her side. ‚Hey, how are you feeling?‛ ‚Like a train wreck,‛ she said with a tired smile. ‚What’s wrong?‛ ‚Nothing, nothing’s wrong.‛ ‚You were frowning,‛ she added, closing her eyes again. Tardieh waited silently for her to fully wake up. After a few moments, she opened her eyes again and took a deep breath. ‚I think I need a shower.‛ Her voice was still weak but seemed to have recovered some of its beautiful low timbre. Tardieh stopped ogling, went to his walk-in wardrobe, and picked up one of his silk robes. It wasn’t a beautiful kimono like the one he had chosen for her previously, but it was very comfortable and more practical. Then he went back to the side of the bed and raised the robe up. She took the hint and pulled the covers off to get out of bed but stopped midway. ‚Oh, I’m naked!‛ she exclaimed in true astonishment. Tardieh felt himself blush. Why was he blushing? He had seen her naked before, and stripping her had been the most rational thing to do. She was unconscious, and the robe she was wearing was full of blood, so he took it off and cleaned her up. No big deal. So why was he freaking blushing like a seventeen-year-old school boy? ‚It was the most rational thing to do,‛ he voiced his thoughts out, then realized it didn’t really explain anything, but decided to let it go. Looking a bit confused, Zoricah got out of bed and took what he

offered. ‚The bathroom is on the left,‛ Tardieh said, helping her into the robe. Her delicious blue mist scent invaded his nostrils once more. It had gotten stronger, he realized. Or was he just starting to notice every single detail about her? His cock hardened in reply to his rhetorical question. No, he chided. He was going to get a few answers before giving in to her charms again. Tardieh heard the bathroom door close with a soft thud. While she was taking a bath, Tardieh focused on getting her something to eat. He had sent his butler, Arthur, to the shops. He had no idea what Zoricah ate, so Tardieh told him to err on the side of caution and get everything he thought dragons ate, which was quite a wide range of options. Tardieh speed-dialed Arthur and told him to bring the food down to his chambers. By the time Zoricah finished her bath, Tardieh had a table full of food and freshly cleaned clothes ready for her. The bathroom door clicked open, and she stepped out. It was the most beautiful sight he had ever witnessed. His three-sizes-too-big robe had fit her even more perfectly than the kimono. Its dark green color complimented her eyes, which had become even more golden than before. Her exotic features looked rejuvenated, glowing with pure energy. Her long black hair was still wet and dripping slightly, making the silk robe cling to her delicious breasts. You need answers. Get those answers first! Tardieh reminded his cock which was throbbing with anticipation. He finally found his voice and asked hoarsely, ‚Feeling better?‛ ‚Much, thank you,‛ she said softly, coming into the room. She spotted the large round table in the middle of the chamber. Her eyes went wide, and her mouth dropped open. ‚By Apa Dobrý, how many people will dine with us?‛ she asked, smiling in surprise. Tardieh looked at the table, too. It had four different kinds of meat, bread, rice, vegetables, a light chicken soup—just in case she still felt too weak to eat—fruits, three types of juice, coffee, milk, cheeses, and bread. ‚Please don’t tell me you are a cereal kinda girl,‛ he said, turning back to face her. She chuckled at his remark and gave him the most beautiful smile

on Terhem Viahta. Man, he had it bad for that draconian. ‚No, I am not, but I am not an army either.‛ Tardieh pulled a chair for her, which she took graciously, and sat on the one beside her. They dined in silence. She took a few pieces of lamb, potatoes, green veggies, and a little bit of juice. He contented himself with a glass of blood mixed with tomato juice and vodka. After a while, she put her cutlery down, wiped her mouth with the linen napkin and said, ‚Okay, I’m nicely fed. You can ask your questions now.‛ Tardieh raised his eyebrows in surprise. She gave him a small smile. ‚I’m not psychic. It’s just that I would have wanted a few answers myself if I were in your shoes.‛ Tardieh nodded in agreement. He took another sip and put his drink down on the table. She waited silently. ‚You go back to Apa Sâmbetei and interview the dead,‛ Tardieh finally said. It wasn’t a question, but Zoricah nodded in response. Tardieh continued, ‚That’s how you get your information—contacting inimăs of people who had been where you need to be or had experienced what you need to know.‛ Another short nod. Suddenly curiosity took over, and he asked, ‚Who did you contact to find out where I was being kept back in the war?‛ ‚A razbian maid. She had suffered greatly by Vrajitor’s hand. He often used her to test his torture inventions on. She shared a cell with you when you were first taken to that place in the mountains,‛ she answered, then added thoughtfully, ‚But thankfully she died soon after.‛ Tardieh looked at Zoricah’s golden eyes and asked softly. ‚Why didn’t you tell me?‛ She just stared back at him, lost for words. Finally, she said weakly, ‚I couldn’t.‛ So he pressed on. ‚Why? Why couldn’t you tell me you are a calathor?‛ If she had, maybe he would have understood where she was coming from and maybe he would not have misjudged her actions. Of course that the fact that she was a calathor didn’t annul the possibility of

her being the mastermind behind his father’s assassination. Deep inside he didn’t really think she had orchestrated that gruesome massacre at the castle, but he was not one to only follow his gut feeling. If he were, he would have been dead long ago. Zoricah opened her mouth to answer his question, then decided against it and closed it back again. Tardieh gave her an irritated look and stood up, frustrated. There she was with her damned secrets. Couldn’t she realize that was ruining everything? ‚I didn’t know I could trust you,‛ she blurted out from behind him. ‚What about now? Do you still have doubts you can?‛ he asked, turning to face her once more. ‚No. I don’t have doubts anymore,‛ she answered serenely. Then she took a deep breath, straightened on the chair, and continued, ‚I am the daughter of Ucidhere, god of death, lord of Apa Sâmbetei.‛ It was Tardieh’s turn to drop his mouth open. Holy Apa Dobrý! He knew she was a demigoddess, but because no one had ever raised temples in her honor or venerated her, not in a spiritual way. He thought she was the daughter of a minor god, not one of the five gods who'd created their world, not one of the five gods in the Holy Apa Dobrý quintet! ‚Tardieh, sit down again, please.‛ Still flabbergasted, he granted her wish and sat down on the table beside her. Zoricah picked her fork up and started playing with the leftover food on her plate. ‚I didn’t tell you before because<well, because I didn’t really have a good reason to trust you.‛ She raised a hand when he opened his mouth in protest. ‚You are the king of the archenemies of my people! How many times have dragons been betrayed by your race?‛ Tardieh tried to retort, but she stopped him once again. ‚And you were very suspicious of me, so it is only natural I would raise my defenses, too.‛ He closed his mouth shut. She had a point. ‚And I don’t go off telling everyone Ucidhere is my father either,‛ she continued. ‚This is one of my only weapons against my enemies. If word got out that I am a calathor, that I can travel to spiritual realms, my enemies—and my allies, I'm sure—would try and use me for their own

personal benefit. I would have become a puppet in their hands in no time. Do you remember what happened to the last calathor?‛ Tardieh remembered him well. Having received his tutoring straight from Socrates and Plato, who were also fae mages in Ancient Greece, Epimetheus had been a very wise man. Tardieh’s father had convinced him to become a councilor in the Interracial Court Committee. When the war broke out between dragons and vampires in the last decade of the eighteenth century, Epimetheus tried to mediate a peace agreement before the bloodshed blew out of proportions but got caught in the dirty politics. Desperate and frustrated, Epimetheus openly recounted to the committee the testimonies of the deceased victims of war, denouncing the atrocities both sovereigns had committed. Tardieh’s father and the draconian lord accused him of manipulating the dead to his advantage. Alone and without protection, he was assassinated soon after. ‚Look, Tardieh, I know I have trust issues, and I need to work on that, but how can you blame me?‛ Zoricah asked sincerely. ‚I don’t, well, not anymore.‛ It would have been nice to have had this conversation when they'd first met, but he understood her reservations. He hadn’t been completely open and honest with her, either. If he were honest with himself, he would admit that he would have been less hard on her had she been fae or human not dragon. Tardieh leaned forward and took her hands on his. ‚But if we are going to find and destroy whoever is behind these abductions, we need to work together.‛ ‚Yes, I agree.‛ ‚And that means you need to trust me.‛ Zoricah didn’t reply; she just raised an eyebrow at him. ‚Okay, okay, I need to work on my trust issues, too, I admit it,‛ Tardieh said with a crooked smile. Then he grabbed the base of her chair and dragged it toward him. Leaning forward, he said. ‚Can I kiss you now?‛ She gave him an impish grin, then whispered against his mouth, ‚I thought you’d never ask.‛ Her lips touched his lightly, but he felt her warmth all the way to his bones. He parted her lips with his own, and their tongues met in a

delicious waltz. Yes, he thought to himself. She had found the scentless almond oil he had surreptitiously left in the bath cabinet earlier. She put her arms around his neck while he lifted her up and brought her onto his lap, straddling his hips. His cock jumped in delight as her flesh rubbed him on the right places. She wasn’t wearing any underwear. Tardieh needed to feel more of her delicious heat. He undid her belt and let the robe fall loosely on the floor. She was magnificent. Fair skin contrasted with dark midnight hair cascading down slender shoulders and added to exotic almond eyes the color of honey—it was the most seductive combination he’d ever encountered. Tardieh slowly stroke her cheeks, then her shoulders, descended through her breasts, her flat muscular belly, and finally her cunt. Zoricah gloriously arched her back in response. Ignoring his aching shaft, he took his time, not wanting to rush things over or miss a detail. He brought his lips down and sucked her right nipple while fondling the left. Her hard tip felt perfect in his mouth. He sucked, teased, nibbled it, then started all over again. As a reward, he heard her moan his name. She was rubbing herself against him, but his trousers were in the way. As if reading his mind, she lifted herself slightly, opened his zipper, and let his engorged cock out. By Apa Dobrý, her hands were clever on him. ‚Are you sure you’re not psychic?‛ he whispered in her ear. She chuckled and started rubbing his length with her left hand. The right was on the nape of his neck pulling him to another kiss. Tardieh groaned when he felt her fondling his cock between her hand and her wet pussy. It was almost too much to bear. Little drops of cum were already spilling out of his tip. Tardieh decided he didn’t want to wait any more. He grabbed her by the hips and meant to position her right on target, but he didn’t know Zoricah had other plans for him. Expertly, she dodged his grip and stood up in front of him. Then slowly, oh so slowly, she went down on her knees between his legs. Her mischievous glare was topped up by a small smile. Tardieh froze in place, watching her. He was ridiculously turned on, his shaft begging to be

touched again. All he managed to do was let the loud moan out when her lips descended on his cock. Holy Apa Dobrý! She started by just lightly licking its length; then she massaged the tip with her tongue while her hands caressed his tight balls. Without any further preamble, she swallowed him whole. Tardieh’s hips lifted on their own accord. He was close, but he forced himself to hold the orgasm a little longer. He caressed her breasts in return. Zoricah increased the rhythm of her movements, driving him completely insane. Then suddenly, she released his throbbing cock and looked up at him. ‚This is torture, Zoricah. Please<‛ He was rewarded with another gorgeous mischievous grin. She dipped her head down again, but instead of going for his cock, she passed her tongue over his balls. She sucked, licked, then nibbled, and sucked a bit more. ‚Zoricah!‛ he cried out in pure pleasure. He was on the edge of reason. That was by far the most powerful torture he had ever endured, and he would gladly submit himself to it again and again. Finally, answering his pleas, she went back to sucking him deep while her hands fondled his scrotum. Tardieh let out a guttural cry. His orgasm hit him hard, and with no control over his actions, he spilled his seed inside her mouth. He was blinded in utter orgasmic ecstasy for quite a while. When he had enough strength to open his eyes, he found her still kneeling down between his legs. She was looking up at him under long dark eyelashes. ‚Feeling better?‛ His lips curled up. He lifted her off the ground and carried her to the king-size bed. He tenderly laid her down, then stood back up, taking in every little detail of the beautiful sight in front of him. She arched her back, lifting those gorgeous breasts, teasing him with her sensual manner. ‚Like what you see?‛ She gave him back his words from their previous encounter. ‚Yes. Very much,‛ he whispered in reply. Tardieh stripped off his trousers and shirt. Then placing one knee

on the bed, he picked up her left foot and started massaging it. His fingers worked slowly through her muscles, loosening them, relaxing her pressure points. She arched her back again, but this time it wasn’t for tease. She released a soft moan when he extended the massage to her ankles and down her calf. When his hands roamed lightly over the back of her knee, she jumped in surprise. ‚What<what are you doing?‛ she asked, lifting her head off the bed to see more clearly. He didn’t reply. He just looked up at her with the same wicked smile she had given him earlier and carried on. He gently caressed the soft spot behind her knee, the one very few lovers know about. His fingers were like feathers on her soft skin. She jumped again. ‚Tardieh, you have divine fingers,‛ she said between short high-pitched cries. Tardieh knelt down in front of her and licked the same spot; then he slowly made his way to paradise. She was fully wet when his lips touched her feminine core. He opened her thighs and took a deep breath. ‚Zoricah, I can’t get enough of your scent,‛ he said nuzzling the delicate pink skin between her legs. ‚It drives me mad.‛ ‚Then have some more,‛ she whispered huskily. ‚It’s all yours to take, Tardieh.‛ She arched her back, opening herself even farther before him. Tardieh saw red. His fangs extended fully with the sight of her veins pumping alluringly between her folds. His cock followed his fangs and got instantly fully erect. By Apa Dobrý, he needed to feel her soft cunt hemming him in right now! It took all his willpower to stand up and move away from her intoxicating scent. Tardieh laid on top of Zoricah, who welcomed him with eagerness. Kissing her deeply, he thrust himself inside her. Neither could stop the deep sigh from coming out when the powerful sense of wholeness overtook them. Being inside her felt like... ‚Apa Sâmbetei!‛ Zoricah cried out in pleasure. ‚More, Tardieh, more. I need to feel you whole inside me.‛ Her voice was frantic in his ear. ‚Your wish is my command, my love,‛ he whispered before started

pumping ferociously inside her. Zoricah wrapped her legs around him, lifting her hips to meet him halfway. It intensified his pleasure exponentially. Pure heat emanated from her core. He felt his orgasm building up fast but controlled it. He wanted her to have her pleasure first. Moments later, her muscles tightened around him followed by an utterly delicious cry that reverberated across the room. His wasn’t any fainter. He let his orgasm take him right after hers. Utterly satisfied, Tardieh collapsed on top of her, meaning to roll over on the bed, but she held him in place. ‚Aren’t I squashing you?‛ he asked, kissing her neck. ‚No, you’re not. Your body cools me down,‛ she said, wrapping her arms around him. He lay there, hearing her heartbeat and her soft breathing until she dozed off. Tardieh slowly lifted his weight up and rolled to the side. Resting his head on his hand, he watched her sleep. She was the perfect image of calm, quietness. The opposite of when she was awake. Yep, his Zoricah was a handful, a delightful contradiction and everything he had tried and ran away from all those years. Tardieh paused. Had he just said ‘his Zoricah’? Had he called her "my love" when they were making love? Rolling his eyes, he chided himself. Oh, fucking gates of Hiad! He knew this would happen the moment he put his eyes on her at the park. It wasn’t like falling in love with her was a complete surprise to him. He saw the signs and yet did nothing to prevent it. It wasn’t just her beauty that took his breath away; it was her inner strength, her sense of honor, the way she embraced everything with all her heart and soul, and, yes, her stubborn-bordering determination. Fucking Soartas! They could not have thrown him into a more thorny fate than that. Now he would have to go and find a way of convincing Zoricah to stay. ‚What’s wrong?‛ Zoricah’s worried voice brought him back to the present. ‚You are frowning again. What is it?‛ He looked at those golden eyes full of worry and melted inside. ‚Nothing, my love,‛ he answered stroking her cheeks gently. ‚Go back to sleep. I’ll guard your dreams.‛

She smiled tenderly and cuddled up against him like a little kitten. Yep, he was well and truly fucked.

Chapter Sixteen Zoricah closed the bedroom door behind her and contemplated the beautiful hallway before her. Tardieh had told her to go ahead and meet her friends upstairs because he still had a few things to sort out or something—she didn’t know and bett it was just an excuse. But she didn’t mind; she too needed some space, some time to think about what had happened between them. The last couple of days with Tardieh had been an emotional roller coaster. When she woke up in his arms, after their amazing lovemaking, she didn’t feel suffocated like she usually did. She felt strangely good; she could even dare say she felt at home in his arms. There were a lot of endearing things about Tardieh, Zoricah pondered. Things that would melt any girl’s heart and make her want to set up camp beside him forever. But to play husband and wife was simply not possible in their case. At the end of the day, it did not matter how wonderful he made her feel, or how perfectly they seemed to complement each other, she was still the draconian demigoddess, and he was the vampire king. Dragons and vampires—archenemies for millennia. Zoricah sighed sadly and started walking up the beautiful marble steps. She would enjoy his company while it lasted, but once their mission was finished, she would say good-bye and leave. Even if a part of her died in the process. Reaching the ample hallway which lead to the library, the billiard room, and another never-ending corridor, she focused on her immediate task of taking care of her friends. She was looking forward to seeing her

fighters again. How would Deirdre feel? Had she completely recovered? She already anticipated Sam, Yara, and Drew’s protests for having to stay at Tardieh’s castle. The sound of laughter stopped Zoricah in her tracks. Following it, she headed toward the billiard room. She had never expected to see the sight in front of her when she got there. Sam was laughing her head off, Yara was performing her "I’m the best" dance, Joel and Dyam were looking flabbergasted at the billiard table as if trying to understand what had just happened, and the draconian twins were on the leather couch by the bar joyfully watching them all. Hikuro was the only one who seemed detached from it all. He was leaning on the bar, drinking something bloody and looking grimly at Sam. ‚I have no idea how the fuck she managed to get those three balls in, man!‛ Joel exclaimed in frustration. ‚Fuck, man, they are killing us!‛ Dyam agreed desperately. ‚And may that serve you right for saying females can’t play pool,‛ Sam said, chuckling. Zoricah looked over her shoulder. Tardieh was standing right behind her. He gave her a tender half smile; then his gaze landed on the fighters inside the room. Frowning slightly, he whispered, ‚What the hell?‛ She returned his grin with one of her own then shrugged in response. ‚Zoricah!‛ Deridre’s voice stopped everyone in the room. Zoricah took a few steps inside and grinned. ‚So I gather you have all been having the vacation of your life here, hum?‛ Sam, Yara, and Drew stood up to welcome her back to the land of the living. Deidre opened her arms but remained seated, so Zoricah sat down on the couch beside her. ‚How are you feeling?‛ she asked, hugging the draconian. ‚I’m well, Zoricah. It still hurts, but I’ll be fine,‛ she said teary eyed. ‚Thank you so much. I thought I would never be free from that nightmare.‛ ‚You are, sister,‛ Drew responded, wiping away a few tears of her own. ‚It’s over. You’re safe now.‛

Zoricah was getting a little emotional herself, so she slowly released Deirdre from the hug. ‚You smell different,‛ Yara said, looking weirdly at Zoricah. ‚What? No, I don’t,‛ she replied a little bit too quickly. ‚Yeah, you do,‛ Yara replied stubbornly. She leaned forward and sniffed Zoricah’s neck. ‚You smell like<‛ ‚Yara, please, I don’t smell like anything, okay?‛ Yara straightened, crossed her arms in front of her, and gave Zoricah a wicked ‘you-can’t-fool-me’ smile. Zoricah quickly glanced at the vampires across the room. They all had the same smug smile on their faces looking at Tardieh, who promptly lifted his chin up. Okay, smoke and mirrors needed pronto! ‚Deirdre, I am so glad you are well and recovering fast,‛ Zoricah said, trying to take everyone’s attention away from her sex life. ‚Yes, we are all very glad,‛ Tardieh added, coming to sit next to Zoricah on the couch. ‚You will always find a safe haven in my kingdom.‛ ‚We appreciate all your help in finding my sister, your highness,‛ Drew said, bowing her head respectfully. ‚It was nothing compared to all the efforts Zoricah has been sparing to stop these abductions on my people.‛ Tardieh looked at Zoricah tenderly. Will her heart stop having palpitations every time he looked at her? Forcing her mind to focus on the task at hand once more, she said, ‚But I’m afraid we’re not completely done yet. We need to find out where the bastard who is behind this is hiding.‛ Zoricah took Deirdre’s hands on hers. ‚I know this is very painful for you, Dee, but we need your help.‛ Prompted by Zoricah and Tardieh, Deirdre told them everything she knew about the abductions. She had been taken away at a concert in New York City. She remembered dancing with some humans and drinking cocktails, then waking up in the trunk of a car. She had first been taken to a warehouse that smelled like rotting flesh and manure; then she had been transported to the farmhouse where they'd found her. Tears streamed down her cheeks when she recounted her ordeal and her captor’s experiments.

‚I believe he was trying to create a hybrid razbian race by mixing our genes. None of the other females survived the labor,‛ she said through her tears. ‚He used to give us a foul smelling formula that made us so tired and numb at the same time.‛ ‚Maybe they are trying to come up with the perfect soldier, one that has the strength of a vampire and the abilities of a dragon but is easy to command like the razbians,‛ Dyam suggested. ‚And he was always taking samples of our tissue, our fluids, our blood with those weird tools of his,‛ Deirdre added, seeming to agree with Dyam’s theory. ‚What weird tools?‛ Tardieh asked, narrowing his eyes. ‚Hmm, he had a few. One looked like a metallic pear, and he used it in one of the vampires<‛ Deirdre shivered. ‚It was truly awful.‛ Tardieh looked sharply at Zoricah. ‚Do you think it’s Vrajitor?‛ she asked him. ‚It’s got to be. I remember very clearly how proud the motherfucker was of his gadgets,‛ Tardieh replied between clenched teeth. After seeing the twins widen their eyes, he added, ‚I apologize for the foul language, ladies.‛ ‚Do you remember being on the road for a long or a short period of time, Deirdre?‛ Zoricah asked. After thinking for a while, Deidre answered, ‚Quite a short time, like a couple of hours or so.‛ She put her hand on her forehead as if trying to contain a headache. ‚It’s hard to be exact because they gave me something; I was drifting on and off all the way to that first warehouse.‛ Drew sat on the floor and started massaging her sister’s feet. Immediately, images of Tardieh’s hands on her feet flooded Zoricah’s mind. His strong hands massaging her legs, followed by his lips tracing its way to her< She noticed Yara’s eyes on her. Blushing, Zoricah looked away. ‚Hikuro, get me a list of all abattoirs located on one hundred fifty mile radius around New York City,‛ Tardieh said, saving her from public humiliation. ‚Joel, find out if anyone has seen anything in that concert. I want a description of everyone who danced close to Deirdre that night. Dyam, we will need extra ammo for Zoricah’s fighters.‛

The three vampires left the room to complete the tasks given by their king. ‚It’s time to get ready. We will reconvene back here in one hour,‛ Zoricah told her fighters. ‚Deirdre, Drew, you are welcome to stay here in my castle while we're out on the mission,‛ Tardieh said standing up, ‚But I can also offer you an escort should you wish to leave for your homeland right away.‛ The twins looked at each other; then Drew answered for them both. ‚We thank you for your hospitality, your highness, and we are honored to accept your invitation to stay. ‚We would like to wait for your return,‛ Deidre added, bowing low. Zoricah stood up and gathered her girls to find Dyam and get ammo’d up. So that was it, she thought to herself. Tonight they were going to end these bloody abductions one way or another. ***** Sam was just leaving the billiard room when she felt eyes upon her. She looked suspiciously around the hallway, the library entrance, the high ceiling, and then finally at the staircase. Hikuro was watching her. The light coming from the corridor cast an eerie shadow on his tall figure. As soon as he saw she had noticed him, he took a step forward. His beautiful chiseled jaw was hard, his hypnotic narrow eyes were cold as ice. She didn’t want any confrontation—Apa Dobrý knew how hard she had been trying to avoid his fiery stares ever since they met again in the park—so she started walking down the long hallway, ignoring him. As soon as she turned around, he appeared in front of her. Damn it! ‚What do you want, Hikuro?‛ she asked, trying to sound more confident than she felt. He could be a very intimidating man or male as the magical races referred to them. Not giving him the satisfaction of knowing how nervous he made her feel, Sam lifted her chin up, taking on a nonchalant posture. ‚Hikuro, I know we got off on the wrong foot, and I am sorry for that. But I am not going to apologize for what happened at the nightclub.‛ She tried hard to

keep her hands from shaking. His eyebrows lifted slightly, as if he didn’t believe she had dared to mention the occasion to him. ‚We need to do what is necessary to accomplish our missions, the same way you vampires have to as well,‛ she added sounding very professional. His features took on the coldest stare Sam had ever seen in her life. ‚I am watching you, human,‛ Hikuro said darkly. Then taking a step closer, he added, ‚Tardieh may have been smitten by your leader’s cunt, but I am not as easily deceived.‛ Hearing such offense against the woman who had saved her life made Sam’s blood boil in fury. Without being able to stop herself or wanting to she closed her fist and punched Hikuro in the jaw. Just to be sure he felt it good, she added a few energy bolts to it. His head snapped sideways with the blow. ‚The only thing you should be watching is your filthy mouth when talking about Zoricah,‛ Sam said still wanting to punch him a few more times. How dare he? How dare he talk about Zoricah like— Sam never finished that thought. Out of nowhere, she felt her body being dragged backwards a few feet and hitting the wall. When she recovered, she saw Hikuro’s dark eyes a few inches from hers. He was securing her in place by her wrists which had been slammed against the wall above her head. She tried to kick him, but he quickly moved his knees between her legs, effectively blocking her blows. Sam felt his muscular body enclosing hers, pressing it against the wall. She couldn’t avoid memories of their kisses at the club. Hot, passionate, wild. ‚Next time you hit me, woman, I will hit you back,‛ he warned her. Sam tried to remind herself that the man she'd kissed at the club was completely different from the ogre holding her against the wall. ‚Oh please. Don’t make me laugh with fake chivalry, vamp.‛ She snorted. ‚If you want to trounce your frustrations by going at me, that’s perfectly fine. I can take you anytime, anywhere.‛ ‚Ha!‛ It was his turn to snort sarcastically. ‚You? Take me?‛ ‚Anytime, anywhere,‛ Sam repeated challengingly. ‚Like right now?‛

‚Yeah, right bloody now, vamp!‛ Yelling obscenities at him, she tried to get her wrists free, but Hikuro held on to them tightly. Damn it, he was really strong! So she focused on using the only weapon she had: her extremely volatile energy. Taking deep breaths, she brought her energy forth. When she felt her hands tingle with little shocks, she channeled power to her wrists, her legs, her breasts and everywhere else his body was touching hers. His eyes went wide in realization of what was about to happen. Yeah, that’s right, Hikuro, you’re about to get fried…again. His lips smashed into hers, making Sam lose her concentration completely. It was an angry kiss but not violent. She expected him to back away after successfully blocking her attack. But she was wrong. His lips caressed hers; his tongue massaged hers invitingly, wanting more. Sam felt her body lighting up all the way to her core. She couldn’t stop herself and kissed him back with the same eagerness. His hands finally released her wrists and enveloped her waist. His hips met hers. His long hard shaft pressed against her. Sam released a soft moan in response. She felt his expert hands traveling over her breasts, caressing them, teasing her. ‚Thank you for your professional services,‛ he whispered in her ear, shoving something down her cleavage. Cold wind replaced the heat of his body. Sam reached for the top of her dress and found a bunch of dollar bills between her breasts. Frozen in place, she watched Hikuro walk down the hallway and disappear into the shadows. She was still holding the bunch of dollar bills in her hand when teardrops of pure light started streaming down her cheeks.

Chapter Seventeen It was quite a chilly night for the usually steamy New York summer. Zoricah crouched beside Tardieh on the grass behind a large hedge plant. The slaughterhouse complex in front of them consisted of two buildings bordered by an electrical fence, which was marked out by four surveillance towers. The main structure was a long warehouse with a tall, arched tin roof and concrete walls. Apart from the twelve small windows spread across the south and north walls, there were only two exits: the main one faced east, and a smaller one located on the opposite side. The second building was an abandoned cattle shed, which was being used as a makeshift parking lot. After Hikuro and Joel returned with the information Tardieh had asked, they'd narrowed down the list of possible slaughterhouses that could be sheltering their enemy’s operations to three. After a little more digging, they'd found out that only one, located in Columbia County, about one hundred twenty-five miles north of New York City, had changed owners in the past twenty-four months and apparently was no longer in operation. They had planned the surprise attack dividing the seven warriors into four groups. Sam, Yara, and Joel would attack from the south while Zoricah and Tardieh would once more create a diversion at the main gate located on the east side, attracting as many guards as possible, leaving Hikuro and Dyam clear to free the hostages probably being kept inside the main building. But once they all arrived at the destination expecting an abandoned slaughterhouse, they had quite a surprise. It was not

abandoned; it was buzzing with activity. The high electrical fence was being guarded by four razbians positioned in the watch towers. There were heavily armed razbian fighters in front of the main building, more by the fence’s main gate, and a few more were removing contents out of the main building and loading them into two container trucks. ‚Tardieh, they are relocating,‛ Zoricah whispered. ‚Vrajitor most likely did not want to take any risks after we destroyed the farmhouse near Lake Placid,‛ Tardieh agreed. He was about to speed-dial their teams and order the attack when a group of fifteen female vampires were dragged out of the house. They were tied up in silver chains by the wrists and ankles. There were two razbian guards poking them with their rifles, forcing them toward one of the container trucks. One of the females, who seemed to be a little bit less drugged than the others, tried to punch the guns out of their hands and was rewarded with the rifle’s butt to her temple. She stumbled sideways, dragging the others down to the ground with her. The two razbians started kicking them to stand back up. Some females didn’t even try to block their blows. After a few tense moments, the females managed to stand up and were promptly locked inside the container truck. Zoricah saw Tardieh’s fangs extend fully. He was breathing heavily, his bright red eyes locked on the two razbians abusing the female vampires. ‚We need to move fast,‛ he said, his jaw tight with anger. Zoricah speed-dialed Hikuro and Dyam, who were hidden half a mile north of the property, waiting for their signal. ‚Joel, change of plans. The hostages were taken out of the main building and are now locked in a truck by the main entrance on the east side. I will fly in and try to call the razbians’ attention to the west side. This way, you can get the female vampires out of the truck and—‛ ‚No.‛ Tardieh’s dark command stopped Zoricah midsentence. ‚I will not let you be the bait. It’s too dangerous. There are too many of them.‛ Zoricah left Hikuro on standby and faced Tardieh. ‚And what exactly do you plan on doing?‛ ‚I will go and create the diversion,‛ he replied sternly. His eyes

were still locked on the slaughterhouse in front of them. Zoricah took a deep breath. She did not have time for Tardieh’s macho ego fit, but she needed to nip that evil in the bud straight away before it grew to become a delusional habit. ‚So you think you can lure twenty odd razbians away from the main entrance, overpower them all by yourself, kill the four others who are guarding the towers and be back home in time for dinner, dear?‛ Tardieh finally looked at Zoricah, confusion suffused his face. ‚I made beef casserole, you know, your favorite.‛ ‚Zoricah, I don’t think<‛ Zoricah cut him off sharply. ‚No, you are not thinking. You are forgetting who you are talking to, King Tardieh,‛ she said without preamble, ‚The plan has been agreed upon, and we will stick to it because you need me in the skies as much as I need you backing me up on the ground.‛ Tardieh opened his mouth to retort but stopped himself, swore under his breath, and returned his attention to the slaughterhouse. Presuming no answer was a good answer, Zoricah speed-dialed the others and confirmed the slight change of plans. Without another word, she turned to leave him to shape shift in the woods but felt strong hands on her arms, holding her back. Tardieh exhaled the breath he had been holding and said, ‚Be careful. Please.‛ Zoricah’s heart skipped a beat. She was expecting the typical macho retaliation, the ‘go back to oven’ kind, not the worry in his eyes and those short but caring words. She felt a knot clog her throat. ‚You, too,‛ she replied softly. She then reached across and kissed his lips. ‚See you soon.‛ She found a large shrub area not too far from their hiding place and undressed. Standing up completely naked, she took a deep breath and brought her dragon forth. She felt it stir inside her, her life heat building up from her core all the way to her limbs. She arched her back and let the large wings spread in the dark night. Her smooth fair skin gave place to tough leathery golden pelt. Next, it was time for her limbs to grow and her hands and feet to turn into large razor-sharp claws. Fully

shape-shifted, Zoricah looked at the four towers guarding the slaughterhouse through her serpent-like eyes. Smiling, she thought, Dinner time. Tardieh saw Zoricah disappear behind the large shrub. He had to call the attention of as many razbians as possible before she had the time to shift. He knew he was being stupid by trying to stop her from fighting, but he could not help himself. His almost five hundred years of existence was screaming to protect what he loved. So, yeah, the same inner self was not enjoying seeing Zoricah put herself in danger like that. But he also knew she would never want to see him again if he didn’t respect her as an equal leader and warrior. She was almost as old as he was so his fears were rationally unfounded. Rationally. After scanning the area, he focused on his target and dematerialized on the other side of the electrical fence. Stupid razbians, as if a mere fence would stop him from invading their compound. He placed himself between the main gate and the building. This way the guards at the main entrance would need to leave their posts to deal with their uninvited guest. It worked; Tardieh was welcomed by three bulky guards who came at him almost as soon as he dematerialized. Combat knife in one hand, knees bent outward slightly, and body weight evenly distributed on both legs, he was ready. With his left hand firmly open and fingers extended out, Tardieh hammered his first opponent in the ribs while slashing his exposed throat with his knife. The second opponent managed to strike him with a powerful front kick which sent him stumbling to the ground. Recovering fast, Tardieh deflected the second kick, aimed at his face, with his left forearm. Then raising his right knee straight up, he directed his right heel forward and smashed his opponent’s knee cap. Standing up swiftly, he turned his body sideways, away from the third razbian who was coming at him fast. Using his speed, he raised his left leg high up and bent his foot so that the curve of his instep was parallel to the ground. The guard never saw the powerful kick that hooked the side of his face. Tardieh pulled his semiautomatic Glock 17 Gen 4 out and shot all three between the eyes. Tardieh heard a bullet being fired and dropped on the ground to

assess where the attack was coming from. The guard in the east tower. Stupid razbians. Didn’t they know bullets can’t kill vampires? He spotted five other razbians running fast toward him. Good boys, he thought just before dematerializing and reappearing again farther west of the main building. ‚Now let’s play hide and seek.‛ Tardieh had intended to piss the razbians off with a little cat-and-mouse game and thus alluring them away from the main entrance and the container truck where the hostages were. When he turned around to check if the guards had spotted him, a massive shadow blocked the moonlight above him. He looked up to see what was happening and got lost for words. Large golden wings, fiery eyes, dark barbs delineating a powerful back all the way down to a long tail. Zoricah’s dragon must have been a good twenty feet long with a wingspan of probably thirty-five feet. She hovered effortlessly above the east tower and exhaled a fireball on the razbian guard who had switched his target from Tardieh to the menacing dragon above him and was trying to bring her down with his machine gun. Within seconds, the whole tower melted to the ground. While using the sharp spade at the end of her golden tail to keep the razbians away from the trucks, she exhaled another fireball on the cattle shed, setting all the parked cars on fire. As sharp as a hawk, she turned toward Tardieh and flew west, successfully attracting all razbian guards toward them, including the ones guarding the remaining towers. Tardieh raised his Glock and hit three razbians who were about to shoot Zoricah again. She flew past him, and he heard her beautiful low voice thanking him from above. When he turned around to reply, he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. A large figure was trying to surreptitiously run away through the back door. Instantly he recognized the motherfucker. ‚Where do you think you are going, Yerik?‛ Tardieh asked, dematerializing right in front of his father’s former councilor. ‚Well, well, Prince Tardieh, long time, no see,‛ Yerik replied with his characteristic dark vibrato voice as if two people were speaking at the same time.

Tardieh saw red. Yerik was the councilor who had betrayed his father, conspired with the dragon lord, and started the whole war between their races. Because of him, millions of innocent beings were killed, and their countries devastated during the bloody conflict that lasted decades. In utter delight, Tardieh realized he had been mistaken. Vrajitor was not the one behind the abductions; Yerik was, and it was time for some long overdue payback. Without warning, Yerik raised his gun and fired twice. The bullets hit Tardieh’s sternum with a weird popping sound. Tardieh was disoriented for a split second, then felt his skin being consumed. They weren’t normal bullets; they were acidic. Looking down, he saw his chest being rapidly eaten up by the liquid. Instead of rejuvenating instantly, his skin was being charred like a thin piece of paper under a hot blaze. The wound was spreading throughout his torso and chin. Unable to keep his balance, Tardieh fell down on his knees. Incredulously, he looked up and saw his attacker raise the strange gun once again, straight at his forehead. Zoricah could not believe her eyes. From high above, she saw Tardieh fall down on his knees in front of Yerik. The razbian guards were closing in fast. Soon they would reach him and kill him on the spot. That is if Yerik didn’t burn him down first. What in Hiad was in that gun? Vampires could only be killed by the sun, fire, or decapitation. Period. Zoricah had never heard of any bullet being as lethal as the one Yerik had shot Tardieh with. She had to think fast. She needed to be very precise; a fireball would effectively take Yerik down but would also hit Tardieh. She couldn’t risk it. Taking a deep breath, Zoricah ignored the shots being fired at her by the approaching razbians and exhaled a fire whip straight at Yerik. It did the job. Just before the former vampire councilor pulled the trigger, her blazing lash hit him on the face, setting it afire like dry leaves under the summer sun. It wasn’t going to kill him, but at least it would give Tardieh more time to recover from that strange acid which seemed to be consuming his flesh. From a distance, Zoricah saw Joel strike another group of razbians who were attacking from the north. Sam followed right behind with her

thunderbolts. Yara’s black panther was by the container trucks helping Hikuro and Dyam free the hostages. She was snapping their silver chains open with her sharp teeth. Zoricah threw a fireball on seven razbians closing in on her from the east. Four caught on fire and were rapidly disintegrating before her. The others who managed to shirk her blast tried to carry on the attack but soon had to focus their attention on dodging their burning associates who were blindly colliding with each other. That will slow them down, she thought and looked back toward the slaughterhouse’s west exit. Tardieh’s wound was still quite ugly, but it had shrunk considerably. He had stood up again and was now fighting with Yerik for the acid gun. He evaded Yerik’s new shot by ducking out of range and striking his gun hand with his left forearm. Next, he swung around while still holding on to it tightly and smacked his elbow on Yerik’s chin a couple of times. Yerik’s head snapped backward on an impossible angle, making him loose his grip on the gun. Standing with his right side facing Yerik, Tardieh then lifted his right leg, bent the knee sharply, and threw a powerful side kick at his opponent, all in one fluid motion. The upper part of Tardieh’s boot hit Yerik hard on the temple, knocking him sideways. ‚You fight just like your father.‛ Zoricah heard Yerik’s double-vibrato voice from above. ‚You know, he lasted quite a long time.‛ He wiped the blood off his mouth. ‚Killed half of my men before they managed to take him down.‛ Tardieh had fought the urge to mindlessly let all his rage out on the bastard. ‚What did you say?‛ he asked in a low, dark voice. ‚Oh, you didn’t know?‛ Yerik replied sarcastically. His dreadful double-vibrato laughter echoed in the dark night. ‚Your father prided himself so much of his fighting skills. ‘A male of worth mustn’t require a shield’ the stupid despot used to belt out.‛ Yerik tried to circle around and strike Tardieh with his left foot but was instantly blocked. ‚Hmm, I can see your fighting skills have improved.‛ ‚It’s been two hundred fucking years, Yerik. What did you expect?‛ Tardieh replied, playing the game. Yerik raised a scornful eyebrow at Tardieh, who was still blocking

his path. Yerik had nowhere to run. ‚To be honest I was expecting the brainless playboy who only had eyes for easy pussies.‛ Tardieh let out a low growl but didn’t attack Yerik. His gaze shifted to the sky and he saw Zoricah blasting a few more razbians who were trying to go to their leader’s aid and attack Tardieh from the north. Their eyes met, and he knew she was giving him more time. She didn’t press him to get on with it. No, she knew he needed that encounter with Yerik; he needed his answers. ‚Oh, Tardieh, Tardieh. You shouldn’t hate me. You should thank me.‛ Yerik’s words brought Tardieh’s attention back to the fight. He knew this game very well. The traitor was trying to make Tardieh loose his focus and open his guard. ‚If I hadn’t killed your father, you wouldn’t have become king. You would still be living that futile life of yours, chasing those wanton sujhas around and hiding under your daddy’s robes. How many times had your father failed to make a male of worth out of you? But, you see, I succeeded, didn’t I? Look at you now! I managed to open your eyes to the real world and unleash the king inside you.‛ ‚Open my eyes to the real world?‛ Tardieh repeated, his jaw tight in rage. ‚Why, who do you think told the dragon lord which whorehouse to find you so that they could abduct you?‛ Zoricah saw Tardieh’s eyes narrow in pure hatred, his hands clenched in fists. Emitting the darkest war cry Zoricah had ever heard, Tardieh advanced toward his father’s murderer who managed to block his first punch but was not expecting the second one which hit him hard on the left ribs. Tardieh didn’t stop. He overwhelmed Yerik with a series of crosses and jabs with an astonishing speed that Zoricah couldn’t follow. ‚Tardieh, behind you!‛ Zoricah warned just before a razbian guard, who had come out of the west exit, fired at Tardieh. He ducked, and the acid bullet passed flying just a few inches away from his head. Without missing a beat, Zoricah exhaled a powerful fire whip, setting the guard on fire. Taking advantage of Tardieh’s momentary distraction, Yerik pulled Tardieh’s head down and struck him on the chin with his left knee.

Tardieh stumbled backward but managed to stand his ground and block Yerik’s second kick with his hands. Tardieh held on to Yerik’s foot and twisted it in a powerful motion. Yerik fell but not before hitting Tardieh’s ribs with his other leg. Both vampires went to the ground. Tardieh reached across and grabbed the razbian’s gun that had fallen a few feet from the door. Yerik used the same line of attack and went for his gun on the opposite direction. At the same time that Tardieh pulled the trigger, Zoricah exhaled a fire whip at Yerik. Her dragon blaze added to the strange acid formed an explosive combination. Yerik’s flesh disintegrated in front of them in record time. Zoricah had never seen a vampire as old as Yerik crumble so fast. Tardieh stood up in front of the melting corpse and watched it disintegrate into dust. Zoricah saw the huge weight on his shoulders literally disappear. Looking up, he gave her a confident smile. It was the smile of someone who had just reached closure. She was glad he had had the opportunity to get his long overdue answers, but most of all, she was glad he was alive and unharmed. Zoricah tensed her muscles to fly up high and go check on Yara and the hostages, but body wouldn't obey. She lost her balance; her wings wobbled in the air. She fell, taking half of the slaughterhouse’s roof with her. Trying to access what the fuck was happening, she saw an enormous wound rapidly corroding her dragon flesh around her left hip. It was as if someone was boiling her flesh with hot lava! Her left leg had also been hit and was being quickly consumed. The razbians had probably hit her with the same strange acid mixture Yerik shot Tardieh with. Zoricah felt her breathing growing shallow at the same rate as her limbs were getting numb. Feeling weak and dizzy, she let her head fall backward on the ground. Out of the corner of her eyes, Zoricah saw Sam’s thunderbolts shredding a razbian guard who was dangerously close by. Then Dyam, followed by Hikuro, Joel, and Yara, joined in. She tried desperately to tell them to go away, to save themselves before they were also killed by that strange acid. But no words came out. Exhausted, Zoricah closed her eyes. Probably next time she opened them

back again, she would see Apa Sâmbetei’s colorful first river. She wasn’t afraid or worried about making her final journey to the land of the souls. She knew her inimă would be welcomed there. The Soartas had been strangely kind to her. They had put Yara, Sam, and the draconian twins in her life. They had become her apprentices, her loyal friends, her legacy. Unlike vampires who were immortal, all dragons met their fate one day or another. With an unexpected lump in her throat, Zoricah realized she had only one regret: she wished she had told Tardieh she loved him.

Chapter Eighteen As soon as he saw Zoricah struggle to fly, Tardieh knew something was wrong. With his heart in his hands he ran to her, killing a couple of razbians on the way. ‚Hikuro! Form a barricade around her!‛ he yelled to his second in command. The moment Tardieh reached Zoricah, the four warriors and the black panther closed in on a tight circle around them, safely obstructing any razbian attacks. ‚Beware of their bullets!‛ he heard Sam shouting over the battle noises. ‚They contain some weird acid.‛ Tardieh looked at the beautiful golden dragon before him. Her wounds were expanding rapidly. ‚Zoricah, Zoricah!‛ He tried to wake her up. Slowly her eyes fluttered open. She let out a painful groan, and smoke came out of her nostrils. ‚No, don’t talk. Save your strength,‛ he quickly told her. He knew how badly those wounds hurt and consumed one’s energies. The acid was a strange mixture that ate from the inside out. He had only managed to fight it off because Zoricah had successfully diverted Yerik’s attention, giving his body time to regain enough energy to close the wound. But dragons did not have the same healing abilities as vampires did, and Zoricah’s two wounds were rapidly consuming her flesh. Tardieh realized he could see all the way down to her bones. ‚Please, please, Apa Dobrý, don’t take her away from me, not

now,‛ he prayed heatedly. Another puff of smoke told him she was in great pain. Soon the acid would reach her heart, and that would be the end of it. The end of them. With sad amazement, he saw her beautiful golden leather slowly shift into smooth skin. Her large snake-like irises went back to the golden color he'd grown to love so much. Next, her long tail receded and sharp claws yielded to soft hands and feet. Bit by bit, the twenty foot long dragon disappeared, giving way to his beautiful lover. She lay on the ground naked, the wounds now covering her whole left side. She whimpered in distress. Without knowing what else to do, Tardieh hugged Zoricah, accommodating her on his lap. Trying hard not to touch the wounded flesh, he kissed her on the lips. She trembled, and he saw a small smile appear on her beautiful exotic face. Desperation hit him. He could not live without her; he would not survive if she died. ‚Fuck that! I will give you my life if you save her,‛ he shouted to no one and to everyone. He bent down and kissed her lips again while hot tears streamed down his cheeks. A female voice invaded his mind. Your blood. The answer is in your blood. ‚My blood?‛ Tardieh repeated startled. ‚What do you mean by ‘my blood’?‛ he asked that strange voice in his head but received no reply. Suddenly an image of dragons and vampires congregating on a clearing flooded his mind. Both races were merry and seemed to be celebrating, feasting. Huge slabs of stone were aligned almost perfectly forming three large circles. The outer one, which encased the other two, should have been over three hundred feet in diameter. Males, females, and children were dancing around the loops of stone. They were all dressed in animal skin and woven fabrics made of flax. The sun shone brightly in the sky, but none of the vampires there seemed to mind it. Where was this place? Was he in the beginning of time, when all races were said to have lived harmoniously together? Tardieh followed a few draconian children toward the center of the third inner ring. A group of fully grown vampires and dracos were

playing drums made of animal skin and wood. In the center of their musical circle, a beautiful female was dancing. Tardieh recognized her immediately: Zmyzel, the goddess of life. Dressed in light colored see-through tunic, she was dancing sensuously to the spellbinding rhythm. Tardieh was instantly hypnotized by her. Their eyes met, and she offered her hand in invitation. He took a few steps forward and meant to try and get some answers, but as soon as he entered the musical circle, he felt a strange force pulling him forward. Suddenly, he was her. Completely flabbergasted, he saw his ancestors through her eyes. The feeling of being alive, in peace, overwhelmed him. Then his head snapped to the left. A male draco was drinking from a vampire’s wrists. His sips were lethargic, sensual. His male vampire friend was caressing his hair in invitation. After a long time of ecstasy, the draco lifted his head up and licked his lips, as if savoring the lingering taste of the red liquid. What the fuck? Dracos do not drink blood! But despite his rational confusion, Tardieh could feel the life energy coursing through the draconian’s veins, giving him the power to run faster, to dematerialize, to heal. In utter astonishment, Tardieh repeated the magic words. ‚My blood<‛ Blinking fast, Tardieh found himself once more at the slaughterhouse, his five friends were still barricading them from a few surviving razbians. Zoricah took another shallow breath in his arms. Without wasting any time, Tardieh ripped his already burned shirt and gun holster off himself. He opened a deep wound on his wrist with his fangs and raised it above his lover’s lips. “But note this, vampire king.” Zmyzel’s voice resonated in his head once again. “You will sacrifice your eternal life in order to save hers. By giving her your blood, your lives will be forever linked. If she dies, you die. If she triumphs, you triumph.” Tardieh opened his mouth to say ‚I don’t fucking care‛ but reconsidered. He didn’t think the goddess would appreciate such foul language. A sensual chuckle echoed in his mind. “Forsooth, vampire king, the choice is yours.” Once Zmyzel was gone, Tardieh opened the wound on his left

wrist again and raised it above Zoricah’s mouth. Nothing happened. She didn’t seem to be feeling it, let alone drinking it. Tardieh shook her softly, but she didn’t open her eyes. ‚Zoricah. Zoricah, my love, you need to drink this. You have to drink my blood in order to live.‛ He tried again, but she didn’t respond. No, no, no! It can’t be too late! Come on! Resting her head on his legs, he opened her mouth with his right hand while dripping his blood inside her mouth. This time, it hit the mark. Zoricah jolted in response, and the next few drops fell on her cheek instead of into her mouth. ‚Fuck!‛ Tardieh shouted in frustration. Taking a deep breath, he repeated the drill, but this time, he was expecting her draconian body’s reaction to his vampire blood and held her chin tightly in place. After he had opened his wrists for the fifth time, Tardieh felt a hand touch his shoulders. Startled, he looked up. Hikuro was crouched beside him and the other four warriors were standing there, looking somber. The battle had ended. A carpet of dead razbians filled the ground before him. ‚My Lord, she’s not responding anymore.‛ Hikuro’s voice resonated faintly on Tardieh’s ears, as if he were in another dimension. Tardieh looked down at Zoricah. She still lay unconscious on his lap, her wounds were still taking up half of her body, and white ugly foam had started coming out of them. She was cold in his arms, so cold. Sam crouched beside Hikuro. ‚It’s time to go,‛ she said weakly. Tears of pure light trickled down her cheeks. ‚It’s time to let her go.‛

Chapter Nineteen Zoricah felt like roadkill. Her body ached, her head was about to explode, her throat was as dry as a desert. That was not a very nice way of arriving in Apa Sâmbetei, she thought. She was probably still lying down on the rocks before the first river. Tentatively, she opened her eyes. Hmm, that’s weird. The room before her did not look like anything in Apa Sâmbetei. It actually looked a lot like Tardieh’s sleeping quarters. ‚Hi.‛ Tardieh’s deep voice warmed her heart. She would miss him; she would miss him dearly. Wanting to hear his voice one last time, Zoricah turned her head and saw Tardieh’s handsome face in front of her. He was sitting on the chase long next to the bed. ‚How are you feeling?‛ he asked softly. That couldn’t be happening. Zoricah had felt Apa Sâmbetei calling her. She had even seen her father. Or had she? Confusing images popped into her head. The mist near Apa Sâmbetei’s first river, Ucidhere’s light warming her, Ucidhere talking to Tardieh, strong hands smoothing her aching skin with a warm washcloth. ‚Where am I?‛ She tried to say, but her throat was so dry that no words came out. He answered her anyway. ‚You are in my sleeping quarters,‛ Tardieh said, caressing her cheeks. Tardieh stood up and brought her a glass of water. It was difficult to lift her head, so he helped her, and she managed to drink the soothing liquid. Her headache dwindled a bit.

After regaining a bit of her strength, she asked. ‚I don’t understand. How
‚Ucidhere.‛ ‚What?‛ Zoricah asked, trying not to have another chocking fit. Then she remembered her father’s ridiculous deadline. ‚Oh, dear Apa Dobrý, what time is it? What day is today? How long have I been unconscious?‛ Zoricah tried to get out of the bed but did it too fast. Her head spun around a couple of times, making her lose her balance. The next second, she was being held by Tardieh’s strong arms, and the food plate she had been holding sat safely on the bedside table. He had pulled his speedy act again. ‚I know you are eager to get out of bed, my love, but you will have to take it easy,‛ Tardieh said helping her sit down again. ‚No, you don’t understand,‛ Zoricah said, trying hard not to just lay there in his arms and enjoy the miracle of being given one more chance with him. ‚I need to return the balance to Apa Sâmbetei.‛ At his confused frown, she explained, ‚Ucidhere let me take Deirdre out of Apa Sâmbetei, well, actually she wasn’t officially in Apa Sâmbetei yet, but anyway, he wanted your soul as a replacement for Deirdre’s.‛ ‚Oh?‛ ‚But I said no,‛ she added quickly. ‚I told him I would find another inimă and bring it to him within forty-eight hours.‛ Zoricah looked frantically at the large clock on the wall. It didn’t provide much comfort. It just told her it was three o’clock but of what day? ‚Well, that explains it, then,‛ Tardieh said pensively. Zoricah darted her glance back to meet his gorgeous green eyes. ‚Ucidhere told me to give you a message. He said, ‘Tell Zoricah her debt is settled.’ I didn’t understand it then, but I do now.‛ ‚So please enlighten me because I’m completely lost.‛ Zoricah tried to stand up again, but the room spun around for a second time. She decided it was best to stay where she was. Tardieh took her hands in his and said softly, ‚Our lives are linked, my love. I am not immortal anymore.‛ The coin dropped like a brick in an empty well. Holy Apa Dobrý! Dragons had extensive lives, a million years sometimes, but they did get

old and wither until their bodies were no longer capable of holding their inimăs in. When that happened, the soul took its last journey and crossed the three rivers of Apa Sâmbetei. By giving his blood to save her life, Tardieh had linked up their existence forever. So once Zoricah’s dragon body withered and her inimă went to rest in Apa Sâmbetei, Tardieh’s would, too. Zoricah looked incredulously at those gemstone green eyes and asked weakly, ‚Why? Why did you do it?‛ ‚I love you,‛ he said tenderly. ‚I don’t want to carry on living in a world where you are not.‛ Zoricah felt the lump in her throat suffocate her. She lowered her head. Hot tears ran silently down her cheeks. ‚Tardieh, I love you, too.‛ She managed to say without choking. ‚But it’s almost impossible for us to be together.‛ ‚No, it’s not,‛ he replied softly, lifting her chin up with his fingers. ‚We’ll make it work.‛ ‚Your senate will crucify you.‛ More tears fell down and dripped on their hands, which were still linked together. ‚I am a sujha dragon, and you are the vampire king. Our races have been enemies for millennia. It’s become a tradition.‛ ‚Well, it’s time we started new traditions, then.‛ His lips touched hers lovingly. His tongue parted her mouth invitingly while his arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her up onto his lap. Zoricah would never cease to be amazed by how instantly her body responded to his. Kissing him back, she rocked her hips against his. Delicious heat engulfed them both, and she had to struggle to stop herself from opening his trousers and plunging his long shaft inside her. Zoricah knew that their relationship was a political suicide for both of them. But after feeling his lips on hers, his heat, his passion once more, she decided she didn’t care. She had been granted her wish, she had been given a second chance with Tardieh, and by Apa Dobrý, she would not waste any more time with what ifs and maybes. She would enjoy their time together with all her heart until her name was woven by the Soartas’ spinning wheel. Zoricah raised her lips from his and brought their foreheads

together. ‚The last thing that came to my mind when I heard Apa Sâmbetei’s call was that I wished we had had more time together, that I had told you how I felt,‛ Zoricah said softly against his lips. Then she raised her head up and looked straight into his warm eyes. ‚So, here it is King Tardieh. I love you. And I will welcome the challenge of making our races accept us as a couple because it’s simply not worth it being brought back to life if I have to endure it without you.‛ Tardieh’s eyes filled with tears. He pulled her close and kissed her passionately once more. After a few moments where Zoricah thought she would explode with so much fervor, he touched her cheeks and whispered, ‚So be my queen.‛ Zoricah’s heart skipped a beat. ‚Be your what?‛

Epilogue London, a few weeks later Sam opened the taxi door and looked up. Yep, it was still raining. She paid the fare and sheltering herself with her overcoat got out of the car. The pub across the street carried an old wooden sign displaying the name PIG AND WHISTLE. There were a couple of drunkards near the entrance but nothing to worry about. She had lived around that area when she had first come to London with Zoricah a few decades before. Islington had its rough streets and dark alleyways, but all in all, it was a fairly safe place—for a trained fighter. Sam crossed the street and entered the old pub. The wooden bar area with bronze rims topped by the now ugly maroon carpet corroborated Sam’s suspicions: the pub had probably last seen a cleaner the day it was opened, a couple of hundred years before. The small round light wooden tables cramped along the dining area were the only thing that remotely suggested she had not entered a time machine and was still in the twenty-first century. A few old men were drinking at the bar, another bunch was trying their luck at the slot machines by the back door, and a couple more were finishing a game at the billiard table. Instantly, Sam was overwhelmed by the stench of stale beer and body odor. Man, she missed the time when people could smoke inside those pubs. Not that Sam smoked or was pro-smoking—she did agree that it was a foul habit—but at least it concealed the real smell of those stinking patrons who insisted on rushing to the pub as soon as the

five-o’clock bell rang at the local factory. Like the one sitting on the bar and looking at her through his yellow cirrhosisitic eyes. Charming. Ignoring his attempts to get her attention, Sam look around and tried to spot the reason why she was in such a classy establishment. The tall draco named Phillip was sitting at one of the tables by the window. Blond wavy hair, large blue inviting eyes, and biceps to die for. Yep, that was Phillip all right, she thought, taking a deep breath. Their eyes met, and he nodded in acknowledgement. He was bigger than she remembered. She had met Phillip only once years before. She had been helping Zoricah crack down a series of murders in the Fae community in Manchester. They met Phillip in one of the most popular S&M nightclubs at the time. The whole evening felt extremely surreal to Sam, but it had been worth it. Phillip, with his infinite network of connections, had given them the ultimate lead that had taken them straight to the killer’s den. Sam hoped history would repeat itself. Taking her drenched overcoat off, she walked to the table where he was sitting. ‚Hello, Phillip‛, she greeted him. She was wearing dark blue jeans and a white and blue tank top that, according to Yara, despite its simplicity, brought out her eyes and complimented her figure. She hadn’t known what to wear for the occasion, and Yara’s skin-showing Brazilian style was not her thing. After having wasted a good hour trying on a number of outfits—from easy casual to slutty minis—she convinced Yara to let her settle for the classic T-shirt and jeans style. ‚Please,‛ Phillip replied, beckoning for her to take a sit. He gave her a very impish once-over and asked, ‚What would you like to drink?‛ ‚Nothing, thank you.‛ Big blue eyes met hers. ‚Oh, come, come, Sammy,‛ he said charmingly. ‚I remember how much you love a vodka cocktail.‛ His British accent was very distinguished; she remembered it being quite annoying. On that first occasion when she met Phillip, he had been accompanied by two voluptuous bimbos who kept touching him in front of Zoricah and Sam. She remembered being extremely uncomfortable and aroused throughout the whole encounter. Phillip was a very attractive draco, after all. Ignoring her refusal, Phillip raised his glass to the barman, who

promptly brought them a round of vodka and Red Bull. ‚It’s not a proper cocktail, my dear, but it is very refreshing,‛ Phillip said, raising his glass in a toast. Sam raised hers in reply and took a small sip. ‚Phillip, Zoricah asked me to come to you.‛ ‚Indeed? Is she back in London?‛ Phillip asked, looking at her over the glass’ rim. ‚Yes,‛ Sam lied bluntly and took another small sip. ‚I have heard quite interesting rumors about a mêlée taking place on the outskirts of New York City. Some even dare suggest she was in alliance with the vampire king.‛ Sharp blue eyes locked on hers. ‚Is it true?‛ ‚Oh, well, I wouldn’t say ‘alliance’ per se,‛ she lied again. Phillip’s suspicious glance released hers and slowly moved down to her lips and her throat and stopped on her breasts. Shifting on the chair, Sam carried on. ‚King Tardieh just offered his support. After all, a number of female vampires were abducted, too, not only draconians.‛ Sam tried to sound nonchalant. Zoricah had warned her that Phillip was a very good informant, but just like any other snitch, his loyalties were directly proportional to the size of the reward being offered. Taking advantage of the fact that his eyes had not left her bosom, Sam leaned forward, hoping she could pull the voluptuous bimbo act as well as his companions had done in the past. ‚Phillip, Zoricah is willing to reward you generously for your services.‛ His eagle eyes took in all she was offering. His thick mouth quirked upward in a mischievous smile as he reached across the table and took her hands in his. ‚I’ll tell you what, love. You get rid of your vampire boyfriend over there, and we can go to my hotel room and discuss what sort of reward Zoricah has in mind.‛ Sam’s blood ran cold. Turning her head around, she saw who Phillip meant. A tall man with amazing dark eyes was watching them from a stool at the far end of the bar. Hikuro. Bloody hell! He had surreptitiously taken a place where his presence was safely hidden in the shadows, just behind the front door. That’s why she hadn’t seen him when she first came in. Damn it, Sam, you should have been more careful, she

chided herself. Turning back to face her informant, she returned his smile with one of her own. ‚He’s not my boyfriend. Don’t worry about him.‛ ‚I couldn’t agree more,‛ Phillip replied, caressing her fingers. ‚Let’s go back to my hotel room, love, and
‚Hikuro!‛ Sam barked at him. ‚Let. Her. Go. Now,‛ he repeated the order crushing Phillip’s wrists. ‚I believe your girl here wants to try other fishes in the sea, my vampire friend,‛ Phillip replied with a deceivingly laid-back voice, but his blue eyes were intent on Hikuro. Sam managed to set her hands free from both men’s grips. ‚Hikuro, leave now,‛ she said, standing up. Hikuro didn’t even look at her; he kept his gaze pierced on Phillip. And then Phillip made the biggest mistake in his long life. He grabbed Sam’s arm and pulled her down to his lap. She had barely found her ground when Phillip’s lips crashed into hers. She struggled against him, but he held her in place with an iron-tight embrace. The next thing Sam felt was her body being swung off Phillip’s hold and crashed on top of a nearby chair. She managed to stand her ground and avoid falling on her ass on the lovely chewing-gum-washed carpet. When she looked up, Hikuro had Phillip’s head pinned down on the table. The draco tried to set himself free by elbowing Hikuro’s jaw, but the vampire was faster. Within seconds, the fight was over with Hikuro hooking both Phillip’s arms on his back at an impossible angle. Phillip snarled in pain. ‚Don’t you wanna know why your girlfriend is the key to all of those abductions?‛ Phillip tried to negotiate desperately. His posh British accent was nowhere to be found. ‚What?‛ Sam stepped in. ‚What did you say?‛ ‚Fucking liar. Stay away from her,‛ Hikuro replied, twisting the draco’s arms. Phillip was breathing heavily; sweat broke on his forehead. His beautiful blue eyes were wide and red. Sam couldn’t take anymore. Phillip being an alpha male himself was going to push Hikuro until someone got really hurt, and she would lose the opportunity to know what in Hiad had he meant by she being the key to the abductions. ‚Hikuro!‛ Sam took a few steps forward, on a feeble attempt to place herself between Hikuro and Phillip. ‚Let him go, now!‛

Phillip let out another painful howl. He looked up at Hikuro and said the two words that sealed his fate. ‚Fuck. You.‛ ‚What did you say?‛ Hikuro said in the draco’s ears. Sam averted her eyes just in time. The sound of bones being snapped echoed across the bar. Anyone who hadn’t stopped to watch the fight very much tuned in. Phillip let out a loud, agonizing cry. Hikuro didn’t seem fazed. He kept his gaze locked on his adversary. Sam could swear he was really thinking of twisting both Phillip’s arms out of their sockets. Damn it! Now there was no way Phillip would happily tell to her what she wanted to know. Zoricah’s voice came to her mind: ‚When you find yourself at a crossroads, the best solution is always the one you can’t see. The wise warrior removes himself from the situation and examines it from afar.‛ Sam grabbed her overcoat and walked away. It was still raining outside. Bloody hell! Putting her overcoat on, she started walking toward the tube station. After a few moments, she heard footsteps approaching fast from behind. Her training kicked in. She slowed her pace and waited for the attacker to get closer.. Just before he reached her, she twisted her body sideways, blocking her attacker's arm, and using the heel of her hand, she hit him hard on the nose. ‚Aww, Sam!‛ Hikuro’s voice was muffled by his broken nose. ‚What the fuck are you doing?‛ Sam asked, not knowing what to think about having successfully struck the vampire kung fu master. ‚I came looking for you when I realized you had left,‛ Hikuro answered, holding his bloody nose. ‚Oh yeah?‛ Sam snapped. ‚Then that served you well.‛ She spun on her heels and walked off. Hikuro was right behind her again. ‚Wait, Sam!‛ She ignored him and kept on walking, heels stomping hard on the concrete floor. ‚Damn it, woman, I said wait!‛ Hikuro said, grabbing Sam’s elbow. She spun around and slapped his hand hard. ‚Do you want me to break your nose again?‛ She was furious! How dare he ruin her assignment? How dare he show up like that after everything that had happened the night before? He had no grounds for being there, no

business following her around. He raised his hands up in surrender. ‚Let’s talk, okay?‛ ‚Oh, you want to talk now,‛ she replied sarcastically. ‚No problem, Hikuro. We can talk now that you're ready, now that you're not blinded by your chauvinist ego, now that you're not busy breaking the arms of the only good lead we’ve had in freaking weeks!‛ She knew she was almost hysterical, but she didn’t care. She was simply, absolutely, utterly raging. She started walking again to try and calm down, but it didn’t work. She spun on her heels yet again and faced him. ‚Why did you do it?‛ ‚Why did I do what?‛ His jaw tight with tension. ‚Why did you attack Phillip?‛ Sam tried hard not to shout. ‚I had the situation under control.‛ ‚Oh please!‛ It was Hikuro’s turn to lose his cool. ‚He was all over you. He was touching you and caressing you. He was fucking licking your fingers, for crying out loud!‛ ‚And why is that so bad, hein, Hikuro? Maybe I liked it. Have you thought about that?‛ Hikuro lowered his chin and snarled. Sam saw his fangs elongate. ‚Don’t. Say. That.‛ ‚Just so you know, a lot of guys find me attractive.‛ She didn't care if the whole neighborhood was watching them. He could pull the fang act all he wanted; she would not be intimidated. ‚As a matter of fact, I am going back to that pub right now and offer my loving help to tend to Phillip’s wounds.‛ ‚Don’t you dare.‛ ‚Why, Hikuro? Why?‛ Sam felt strong hands grabbing her arms and pulling her close. His lips were inches from hers. Hikuro’s beautiful slender eyes flashed red. ‚Because you are mine,‛ he replied darkly. Her heart skipped a beat.

Author Bio Ella J. Phoenix was just nine years old when she discovered her passion for the paranormal world. That passion led her to a bachelor’s degree in Performing Arts which enabled her to start her first attempts into the literary world, writing children’s plays and adapting Shakespeare masterpieces to the modern fast-paced audience. After years travelling around the world, translating other people’s novels and devouring paranormal romances, she decided to put her passion into words and write her first series, Dragon Heat. She is currently living in Queenstown, New Zealand, with her husband of six years.