Meeting the Other Half

MADDIE

I kicked my legs and clawed at the hand clenched over my mouth, struggling in vain to break free.

The shadows consumed me more and more as I was pulled into a dark part of the alley…one where no one would be able to hear me scream.

The thought of dying was bad enough, but dying at the hands of Nautica... I refused to let that happen.

As I continued to fight with everything I had, the hand finally loosened its grip.

And that’s when I bit into the skin, tasting fresh blood on my tongue.

“Son of a—”

~Wait a second…I know that voice!~

I was dropped to the ground, landing on my ass with a thud. I looked up into my captor’s face, and all pain and fear subsided.

“Loch!?”

My mate was sucking on his hand and staring at me angrily.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

“I was trying to help,” he said. “Your warning about dragon slayers actually sounded credible. They’ve been fucking with us their whole lives. It didn’t make sense for them to stop now.”

I stood up and hugged Loch tightly, relieved by his presence.

“And where’s your counterpart?”

“It’ll take a bit more to convince Hael of any threat,” he replied. “Especially since we just killed Xander and destroyed the university.”

I kissed Loch and ran my hands through his hair.

“So, my mate actually ~listened~ to me for once,” I teased him.

Loch’s cheeks went pink, and he quickly turned away from me, not wanting me to see him blush.

After a moment, he turned back to me, his eyes burning with anger.

“You know better than to visit this neighborhood alone,” he chastised. “If I had been someone with bad intentions, you would be in trouble.”

“I’m not alone,” I admitted. “Dane and Aneurin came with me.”

Loch scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“I don’t see them ~anywhere~,” he growled.

I nodded in agreement. They’d listened to my stupid plan to split up, and now there was no telling where they might be.

After a short walk back, I showed Loch the symbols of Freesia’s Rock.

“We found this painted all over the Skeleton Quarter.”

Loch stared at the symbol for a long time before turning his attention to me.

“This certainly looks like the work of the slayers,” he said.

“Not only that, but I swear I saw Nautica.”

Loch’s eyes narrowed upon hearing the slayer’s name.

He took in a few deep breaths and sighed.

“When I was following you, I could smell someone else,” he said, lost in thought. “The scent was bitter and unmistakable, but it’s no longer here.”

We scoured the surrounding alleys for several more minutes before Loch simply shook his head.

“It’s gone,” he said. “Whoever it was is no longer here.”

I grasped his hand in mine and squeezed tightly.

“Then let’s get the hell out of here,” I demanded. “I need to shower and get out of these filthy clothes.”

Loch smiled and nodded.

Without another word, he shifted into his dragon and carried me on his back as we left the dregs of the Skeleton Quarter behind us.

HAEL

The casino was days away from completion. All the construction, interior decorating, and hiring were nearly finished.

And the last thing to look at was the vault.

“Unbreakable,” the security expert repeated. “You won’t have any problems keeping thieves out of this baby.”

The expert patted the large vault door…

“You keep saying that as if you’re trying to make ~yourself~ believe it,” Adara quipped.

I turned to my sister, who was already deep into her third vodka tonic. And it was barely noon.

“Shouldn’t you be bothering someone else?” I asked. “I thought that work was beneath you.”

Adara shot me a look before finishing off the last of her cocktail.

“You know I can never pass up a good vault tour,” she replied.

The security expert pushed open the vault, and we entered the expansive room. Even though I’d already seen the vault many times, it still took my breath away.

Bright lights glistened off the black, polished walls. It had some scattered piles of treasure, but when it would inevitably be filled with gold, the result would be almost blinding to look at.

And it would be ~impossible~ to infiltrate.

“Our vaults are temperature controlled; the walls and floor are touch-sensitive,” the expert said. “Not to mention there’s a six-factor unlocking process, and every inch of this place is fire-resistant.”

Adara and I shared a smirk over his last comment.

“And impervious to breach,” I added.

The expert nodded his head. “That goes without saying.”

But it didn’t hurt to hear him confirm it one last time.

I hated to admit when I was wrong. Still, Maddie’s venture into the Skeleton Quarter had proven the presence of slayers.

If they were still looking for retribution for Xander’s death, I needed to be ready.

I’d already made sure to buy state-of-the-art surveillance equipment, and I’d outfitted every room with steel doors that would put the entire building on lockdown with the touch of a button.

Now that I’d made sure the vault was impenetrable, I was feeling ~much~ better—even with a few rogue slayers running around.

“Not to beat a dead horse,” the expert continued with his spiel, “but this is one of the most high-tech security vaults in the entire world.”

He looked at me: “And the best part is that it requires both you and Loch to initiate a retinal scan to enter. Without both of you, ~no one~ is getting inside this bad boy.”

We stood in the vault a few moments longer, letting the silence envelop us.

Adara cleared her throat, and it echoed off the walls.

“You know there ~has~ been one person to steal from the Dobrzyckas,” she said teasingly, looking at her empty drink. “And that person was none other than your mate.”

HARRY

~His strong hands, pressing on the top of my head…~

~Warm kisses, exploring my neck and chest…~

~Hot seed filling my mouth, dripping down my chin…~

I finished off the glass of water and filled it again. My mouth was like a desert, and I’d practically drowned myself in water trying to quench my thirst.

Why was I so damn ~nervous~?

Well, that was easily explained by the man running through my thoughts.

Ash Onyx had shown me the way he liked to run a business. He took control and made sure that I would never forget the rules of his game.

And I couldn’t stop thinking about him.

His advances were unexpected but not unwanted. Yet I still felt confused by the power imbalance and his authority over me.

Would our little tryst be something he used against me?

My phone vibrated on the mahogany table, and I looked at the screen.

~Speak of the devil…~

I hesitated as my finger hovered over the home button.

Finally, I pushed the button and watched his texts pop up on my screen.

Onyx

Come to the roof.

Onyx

I have something I want to show you.

I stared at my phone, unsure if I should respond or not.

After a few moments, I finally began to make my way to the rooftop.

As I ascended the stairs, I could hear what sounded like the spinning blades of a helicopter.

Was Onyx going to take me somewhere?

My excitement piqued as I pushed open the door and shielded my eyes from the bright sunlight. After my vision had adjusted, I scanned the roof for a helicopter but saw nothing.

~What the hell?~

A large shadow spread across the roof, and I looked up in fright.

Hovering several meters above me was a massive ~dragon~!

Its scales were covered in a black-and-red marbled design that was absolutely breathtaking. The dragon’s jaw hung slightly open, and I could see his fangs glistening in the sunlight.

It almost looked as if the dragon were ~smiling~ at me.

And that realization made me absolutely terrified.

But as I contemplated running back inside, my time ran out.

The red-and-black dragon touched down on the roof, and I was suddenly enveloped in a black cloud of smoke.

A towering figure emerged naked from the smoke—Ash Onyx.

My jaw dropped in amazement, and I was utterly speechless.

“Just thought it was time you met my ~other half~,” Onyx said with a smirk.