Into the Dragon’s Lair

MADDIE

It only happened yesterday.

The attack by that scumbag nearly gave me more than a few bruises.

That piece of garbage thought he could scare me off the streets and take my stash, money, and pride.

But that’s where he was wrong. I was resilient. And if escaping two psycho dragons hell-bent on fucking me into submission didn’t prove it, nothing would.

“I’m not eating another hamburger again,” Harry said sadly. “Fuck, Mads, I’m so sorry.”

I shook my head. Listening to him apologize for the hundredth time in the past few hours didn’t change how I felt.

We were going to take this city for all it was worth.

“Don’t beat yourself up, man,” I assured him. “It was bound to happen sometime.”

Darren chuckled. He wanted a group meeting after hearing what had happened and expressed his sympathy as well. But Darren wasn’t just in this to help out a friend.

No. He wanted to take this city just as badly as me.

“Can’t believe you came back,” Darren admitted. “I thought you’d be done for sure.”

“Yeah, well,” I shrugged. “Guess you can’t keep a broke girl down.”

“You’re no girl. You're a straight-up killer." Darren smiled.

I would be lying to myself if I didn’t feel shaken. Then again, how many times in my life had I fought just to keep from sinking under?

Just about every damn day. No slimeball would scare me away from earning a living.

“Well, if you’re as sure as you say you are,” Darren continued, “then I have a proposition.”

~Oh, joy.~

We're making a decent go of it on these streets. But if we're going to take this to the next level, we need to hit up the clubs, Darren said.

~Clubs? What clubs?~

Maybe the look on my face gave it away because Harry nodded his head in agreement.

“He’s right,” Harry said. “If we can get a steady supply inside Club Emerald, we might just take our profits right through the roof.”

“Overhead...through the roof.” Darren smirked. “I like that.”

I shook my head, more than a little wary of the proposition.

“And what gives you that bright idea?” I asked.

Hearing the name Club Emerald alone nearly gave me heart palpitations. The last time I was there, it was total chaos. Dominic dosed me with overhead, then he got brutally murdered.

The next day I woke up in a whole new world. I didn't much care to visit the club again anytime soon.

I sighed.

Oh, yeah. And Loch and Hael ~owned~ Club Emerald.

“Maddie,” Harry said.

His words pulled me out of a reverie I hadn’t realized that I’d lapsed into.

“What?”

“I’m only saying this because of Dane and Aneurin,” Harry replied. “On my way here, they stopped me and got some overhead. They mentioned something about needing an extra boost for the club.”

I shook my head, still hating the idea.

“We’ll be there with you,” Darren said reassuringly. “If anything happens, Harry and I have your back.”

“Always,” Harry said.

Great. Two bodyguards who weighed less than me soaking wet.

I didn’t relish the thought of coming face to face with Loch or Hael. But if the buzzcut twins were there, I might feel a little better roaming the dance floors.

“Fine,” I groaned. “When do we start?”

***

Turned out we started almost immediately. Once the sun began to sink behind the glass skyscrapers of Requiem City, we were through the door of the Emerald Club.

The bump of the club’s sound system pulsed through my body. My eyes scanned the scene before me.

Hundreds of people danced and swayed to the music. Some had drinks in their hands, while others preferred the dose of a drug I was carrying in bulk.

Right now, this club was five stories of sex and sleaze.

Just what we needed to take our profits over the top.

“Let’s stick together,” Harry cautioned.

“We’ll do better if we split up,” I said.

“You sure?” Harry questioned.

“We don’t have to, Mads, if you’re worried,” Darren added.

“This place is a dealer’s paradise,” I said. “It would be insane not to split up and try to make the most we can. Plus, I’m never going to sell anything with two awkward guys staring over my shoulder.”

They shrugged and went on their way, getting lost in the mass of gyrating bodies.

It was hard to go off on my own in this place, but hell if I would admit it out loud.

The flashing lights played across faces that looked at me with dilated pupils. In my mind, I could see their bodies transforming—morphing into dragons with grinning fangs waiting to tear at my skin.

Each pounding beat of the synth bass sent my stomach into flutters. If they were dragons, they could smell my anxiety.

Hands shot into the air, waving with the crescendo of sound as the lights turned dark green. To my uncertain eyes, it looked like fire rising off their bodies.

Green flames engulfed every person in an ominous glow that threatened to burn me up in its heat…

Loch and Hael were here. I was sure of it.

I didn't see them, nor did I want to. Not after all the shit they had put me through. I still wasn't ready to make nice.

But I could feel them. Their energy pulsed through the entire building. It was as if every breath I took was filled with their musk: dark, pungent, forbidden.

And that would mean the Dobrzyckas knew that I was here...they’d probably been waiting for me to walk through the door and into their dragon’s lair.

I tried to avert my gaze as the drunken bodies collided with mine. The last thing I needed was to look up and see Loch and Hael standing before me, their devilish grins beckoning me back into their fold.

“It seems the little mouse has come out to play,” Adara’s voice called out to me.

Her smiling face seemed to materialize at my side. She wore a black dress that accentuated her tight body. I had to admit, the bitch looked good.

“Nice to see you too,” I said.

“Don’t lie,” she replied.

“Okay, fine. You’re one of the last people I wanted to see,” I growled. “That better?”

To my surprise, she smiled—and damn if it didn't look genuine.

“I see that you didn’t come alone,” she said. “Darren was such a loyal little fuckboy. It was a shame I had to throw him out.”

“Just gives you the chance to weigh other options,” I retorted. “Look around. Aren’t there enough rats in this sewer?”

“There are more than enough. But somehow these rodents don’t have the same type of blind loyalty as your friend,” she admitted.

At least she was keeping it honest. That made it easier to talk to this snake, not having to wade through her bullshit.

Her cold hand wrapped around my arm and pulled me to the side. I thought about resisting, but she was unbelievably strong.

We stopped in the shadows, where a few inebriated clubbers seemed to be dry humping to the beat.

Check that...they were full on fucking.

Adara gave them a short glance before returning her gaze to me.

“There’s a matter I need to speak with you about,” she said.

Oh, joy.

“I’m not going back to your brothers,” I said, annoyed.

“I’m sure you think that,” she smiled. “But you have little choice in the matter.”

“The hell I do.”

She held up a hand, trying to calm the situation.

“You’re stubborn. I like that about you,” Adara said, much to my surprise. “But this isn’t just about you. It’s about Requiem City.”

What the hell did that mean?

Adara saw the confusion on my face and calculated her next words carefully.

“I’ve told you before that Loch and Hael go crazy when they don’t have their mate.”

I nodded in response.

Well, this time, your absence is manifesting into something much different,” she continued. “It’s Loch. I don’t really know how to explain. But since you’ve left, he’s started to change.”

Of course he has. The asshole got a dose of his own medicine and hated how bitter it tasted.

But something about her openness had me on edge. Adara only spoke to me when she had to. It was more of an obligation than an actual desire to have a conversation.

~This time was different.~

“And what about Hael? He’s still trying to keep in contact. But he seems to have gotten the message,” I said.

“Even though Loch and Hael are the same, they are vastly different in one way,” she said. “Loch stays in this city because he has to. Freesia’s curse forces him to. But it’s in his blood to roam.”

“I don’t understand what that means,” I admitted, confused. “What does that have to do with me?”

“Because when you’re not around…” Adara began before coming to a sudden halt. I watched her eyes look behind me and turned to follow her gaze.

That was when I saw them.

~Loch and Hael.~

They were in the club, standing on the second floor. Their eyes were searching the sea of bodies ravenously.

~Fuck!~

I couldn’t let them see I was here!