Dreaming of Riches

LOCH

I stood in the expansive vault, yelling at the top of my lungs. The echoes bounced off the walls, reminding me over and over again how much space there was.

And it would all be filled up with riches beyond our wildest dreams.

Dragons always wanted to acquire wealth and status—that was in our blood. But to fill a six-story casino vault with gold, silver, and jewels…

I bellowed again, just to let out my excitement.

Maddie had only gotten a taste of what was possible in the vault. When it was finally filled to the top, we would have even more ways of making her submit.

I stepped out of the vault and listened to it close behind me with a satisfying hiss of hydraulics.

There would be no way to open that thing up without Hael or me saying so.

I was still high off my daydreams of incalculable wealth, so I walked through the halls of the casino. It was music to my ears, listening to all the work being done.

Maddie had a good idea. But with the Dobrzycka twins running the operation, we could actually make it into something ~amazing~.

As I continued to salivate over my good fortune, I noticed a tall, imposing figure shoot across the hall.

~Ash. Fucking. Onyx.~

What in the hell was he doing at ~my~ construction site?

“I don’t take trespassers lightly,” I growled. “And that includes any potential ~investors~ brought on without my consent.”

Onyx stopped in the middle of the hall, his broad shoulders practically bulging from his tight suit.

He turned slowly and locked eyes with mine. There was a glint of light in his eyes, and it made me oddly uncomfortable.

“I’m not a criminal,” he replied coolly. “And if I wanted to trespass, you would never have seen me.”

I was taken aback by the man’s brazen response.

He could see my confusion, and the devilish smile on his face let me know he was enjoying every moment of it.

With the highlights of red in his hair shining under the lights, the man looked like a demon.

~Or something else that likes to play with fire…~

“Are you threatening me?” I asked, trying to assert my dominance as much as possible.

“Absolutely not,” he replied nonchalantly. “I would never dream of it. But if you want to talk with me about business, I suggest you do so with a different tone.”

If anyone else had talked to me in such a way, I’d have ripped out their throat and held it in front of their dying eyes…

“You are not a partner, so there is no business to discuss.”

Onyx laughed, and it grated on my ears like nails on a chalkboard.

“The contract I signed with Maddie says otherwise,” he retorted. “If there’s nothing else to discuss, you must excuse me. I have ~work~ to do.”

I watched Onyx walk away, grinding my fangs until he disappeared around a corner.

The man had balls—that much was certain.

But he wasn’t just any ordinary man. No human could stand up to the Dobrzyckas and live to walk away.

Ash Onyx’s demeanor told me he was hiding something…

MADDIE

“Another healthy little princess!” Summer exclaimed.

She removed her latex gloves and handed the blonde-haired child a lollipop.

The girl accepted the sucker with a smile and sprinted from the room, excited to get back to her friends.

Summer had come to the orphanage to give the children a routine health checkup. I worked alongside her as an assistant and was amazed by her instant connection with nearly every child.

She was more than a doctor: she was a freaking magician.

“That’s the last of them,” I said as I wiped down the examination table. “I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to come here.”

Summer shrugged.

“I can’t believe how sweet they are,” she said. “But who wouldn’t be happy to live at a place like this?”

Her comment was innocuous enough, but all it made me think about was Zayda.

She’d been living in the depths of Xander U. Xythor was there to keep her company, but I knew he couldn’t provide much warmth.

I watched Summer pack up the last of her equipment. I’d heard through the grapevine that she had kept in touch with Zayda.

Zayda and I weren’t on speaking terms. It was hard for me to believe we ever would be…

But perhaps Summer could be the person to help bridge the gap.

“How is Zayda doing?”

Summer paused for a moment before her gaze met mine.

“She’s a fighter,” Summer replied. “That woman has gone through ~a lot~. I don’t know how she’s able to do it, practically living alone in the ruins of Xander U.”

My head dropped as I remembered the last time I’d set foot on the dragon-slayer campus.

I had been unable to quiet the fury of Freesia’s Curse. But Zayda had risen to the challenge and accomplished what I couldn’t.

The thought of having less power than Zayda was oddly unnerving.

Competition was part of my livelihood. Without that drive, I’d have been left out in the cold years ago…

Still, Zayda had been my friend. And if we were on good terms once, couldn’t that happen again?

“She needs a friend,” Summer said sadly, her eyes locked on mine. “And she could really use ~your~ support, Maddie.”

I nodded in agreement but stayed silent, unsure of what else to say. We gathered up Summer’s equipment and headed toward the car she’d rented for the day.

To our surprise, leaning against the cars were Dane and Aneurin.

Summer gave each of them a kiss as they took her belongings and placed them in the trunk.

“This is a pleasant surprise,” she said. “What brings you out here?”

Dane and Aneurin shared an uneasy look before turning toward me.

“We have some important information we need to talk to Maddie about,” Aneurin replied.

“What’s going on?” I asked, unsure of what could be so damn important.

“One of our connections in the Skeleton Quarter reached out to us today,” Dane said. “There’ve been several sightings of dragon slayers in the area.”

~Just my fucking luck.~

“Rumors are spreading that they’re reassembling their ranks for an underground resistance,” Aneurin added. “And it’s headed by a man named Nautica.”

Hearing that little prick’s name caused my heart to skip a beat. He’d always been Xander’s most loyal follower.

The fucker just didn’t know when to quit. I was surprised it’d taken this long for him to come back into the fold.

“I haven’t heard that name in a long time,” I admitted. “But if it’s true, we’re in for a lot of pain. He hates dragons just as much as Xander did.”

The brothers looked at each other once again, their faces revealing their worry.

“There’s only one solution,” Dane stated. “We’ve got to stop him and rid Requiem of every last slayer.”

I couldn’t agree more. But the reality of the situation would be much more difficult.

If the rumors about the resistance were true, we were definitely in trouble. Nautica wasn’t just a threat to me; he was a threat to all dragonkind.

HAEL

Loch and I sat on the couch drinking whiskey and munching on fried goat. We’d just gotten back from another visit to the construction site, and all of the business talks had made me famished…

I’d heard about Ash Onyx’s presence and the way he stood up to Loch. Maddie had proven herself to be a more competent businesswoman than I had expected.

If we didn’t find a way to put her in her place, our newest venture might turn into our biggest headache.

The doors to the elevator suddenly slid open, and Maddie emerged short of breath.

“I’m glad you’re here,” she said. “I hurried back as quickly as possible.”

“Please don’t tell us you have ~another~ idea for the casino,” Loch sighed.

But I could tell by the look on Maddie’s face that she was concerned.

“Nautica’s back!” she exclaimed.

Loch and I shared a quick glance.

“Who the hell is Nautica?” Loch asked.

Maddie’s face fell.

“Don’t you remember the guy who kidnapped me?” she said in disbelief. “He was one of Xander’s right-hand men.”

~Nautica…Nautica…~

The name sounded familiar, but there’d been so many attempted kidnappings and battles it was lost in the fray.

“Why should we care?” Loch asked with a yawn.

“Some of the dragon slayers survived the battle at Xander U,” Maddie said. “And they’ve started an underground resistance.”

Loch’s laughter was sudden and contagious, causing me to do the same.

“An underground resistance?” I mocked. “That’s not a credible threat.”

“There’s been an uptick in slayer sightings,” she explained.

“How do you know this?” Loch asked, feigning curiosity.

“Dane and Aneurin told me,” she explained. “They have connections.”

Loch and I couldn’t help but laugh again.

“You heard it from two dragons that called the Skeleton Quarter home,” I sneered. “Which makes it even less credible than before.”

Maddie’s jaw was clenched, and the color of her cheeks had changed from pink to crimson. She clearly wasn’t happy with our responses.

But that didn’t matter to me. We’d lived with threats our entire lives. A few extra slayers running free in the city wouldn’t impact our lives.

“We vanquished Xander,” Loch replied. “You watched him die with your own two eyes.”

“But it’s not Xander I’m worried about!” Maddie screamed.

I stepped out onto the balcony and was engulfed in a puff of black smoke. When I emerged from the mist, I was in my dragon form.

I inhaled deeply and let out a blast of fire, drowning out the rest of Maddie’s protests.

She stood before Loch and me, completely naked. Her eyes were wide with rage as she seethed silently.

Maddie

You are such an asshole.

Hael

Perhaps.

Hael

But you need to learn a lesson.

Maddie

If the slayers find you, they’ll be the ones teaching you a lesson.

Maddie

That’s what I’m trying to prevent.

Hael

Let them try to slay me. I’ll burn them alive.