Chapter Five

Ashrac

THE EXPERIMENT WORKS on paper, but in reality I have squat. It’s back to the drawing board and I’m not happy about it. At least I have a new supply of cell phones and laptops for parts. The last thing I have time to do right now is go pillaging for more. Sad but true.

I look over the plans and make a few corrections before tearing the page off the table, ripping it up, and grabbing a new sheet. When I’m in my lab with a problem like this, the rest of the world falls away and time stands still. My back and neck hurt, and I check the time again. It’s after midnight, and I realize I should head to bed. Just a few more mathematical changes and I should have this.

It’s after three when I finally make it to my room. I fly past her tower and it’s quiet. I can’t help wondering if she’s settled in. This mating stuff is a lot of work and I guess I should have held off. Maybe I’ll return her tomorrow… today. I shed my clothes, climb into bed, and gray mist washes over me as I enter oblivion.

§ § § §

I POP MY eyes open when I hear a small noise. Sunlight pours into my bedroom and there’s a golden eagle on the ledge looking into my room. I rub my eyes and it’s still there. I saw the damn thing yesterday and I still have no idea how it entered this realm. We have no eagles here. Or I guess we do. One. A loud, head splitting shriek comes from its jaws. It rattles my sleepy brain before flying away.

Damn bird. It’s probably a joke courtesy of one of my cousins.

My stomach twitches and I ignore it. No time to eat. I’m naked, so leaping off the ledge and flying to my lab takes all of thirty seconds. I shift and pull on a pair of loose, black cotton pants and shrug into my white—or at least it started white—lab coat. The lab is as I left it—disarray that I have no trouble keeping track of. I get straight to work putting together the new plans I came up with.

“Uh hum.”

My head snaps up. “What are you doing in here?” I challenge in an unfriendly growl. The last thing I need is a woman in my lab. Especially this particular woman. She ignored the clothes I brought for her and is wearing some of mine, which don’t fit and are as far from flattering as they can be. It looks like she has my best tie holding up the waist of the pants. It’s not that I wear ties often but sometimes in Earth’s realm I’ve needed one. My mother gifted me the one this female currently has scrunched around her waist. The entire package is just plain ugly. Not that her clothes would make this woman more comely. That would take a legion of plastic surgeons. Unkind but true and I just don’t care. My genes are strong enough to give our children my good looks.

She pushes up the silly lenses obscuring her eyes and glares at me.

The tool I’m working with is sharp and it slips, gouging my finger. “Damnitsonofabitch,” I yell while jumping around. When I’m sure I’m not dying, I glance back at the door. “You’re still here. Go.”

She shakes her head.

I’m holding my hand, trying to keep blood from dripping on my workbench and not having much luck. “At least grab something and stop me from bleeding to death,” I whine.

She stomps—yes stomps—over to the sink in the corner of the room and grabs a towel. She marches back and tosses the cloth over my wound. “There, take care of yourself. On second thought, if you really think there’s a chance you’ll bleed to death, don’t apply pressure and it will all be over before you know it.”

“Ha ha,” I grumble. Someone thinks she’s a comedian. I press the towel to my hand. “You can leave now.”

Her legs plant six inches apart and her hands go to her hips. She’s looks like a pint-sized hobo midget. “You’re not the boss of me and I’m not leaving until I have answers.” She tosses her head back like a woman would do if she had long hair. With Miss Stuffy Pants’ hair in that goddess-awful contraption tight on her head, I wonder why she bothers.

“Your questions can wait until dinner tonight.” I walk over to the cabinet above the sink and remove a box of adhesive bandages I stole from another realm. I manage to get the little side things off but the bandage gets tangled up and sticks together. I toss it in the trash with another oath. “Here,” I say and walk closer to the woman. “Put this on.”

She looks at the bandage in my hand. She looks at my wound and she refuses to put her hand out. Instead she gives me a pinched expression that says, I’m not doing anything you say.

“Please?” I finally sink to asking.

“Oh for a feather’s sake.” She takes the bandage and slaps the sticky tape over the cut and presses it down. I inhale sharply at her rough treatment. It’s entirely uncalled for. She takes a step closer to me so we would be nose to nose if I weren’t a foot taller. She lifts her head and meets my eyes. Hers look like a fly’s because they’re bugging out of her head. “You’re nothing but a big baby kidnapper and I have no sympathy for you. Maybe you’ll contract gangrene and die. That would help my cause greatly. Hurry up with it, though, because I’m heading home this afternoon.” Her pointy nose curls up and she sniffs. Her lips pucker and it’s obvious she thinks something smells unpleasant. “Do you bathe?” she finally asks in a tight, disgusted voice.

I sniff a few times and realize I haven’t bathed in a while. My clothes are dirty too. “That’s okay, I’ll add bathing me to your list of your chores.”

She blinks. I stare.

Her fist rising doesn’t bother me. The throat punch does. I go to my knees while holding my throat and trying to breathe. This little pint-sized piece of fluff just decked me. If I could breathe, I’d eat her. I choke and cough. Snot comes out of my nose; my lungs will never hold air again. I’m dying and I didn’t even bleed to death.

Her bare feet draw closer and I can’t help my response. One hand snakes down to cover the family jewels. No telling what this crazy female will do next. A little air somehow gets past my broken airway but it does little to help. I’m still dying from lack of oxygen.

“When you can get yourself off the floor, your kidnapping days are over, and I expect a ride home. I’ll wait in my tower.” She tosses her non-existent hair again and walks away.

My cock stirs.

It’s odd. She’s ugly and she’s mean. Why would my favorite appendage take notice? More air enters my lungs and eventually I’m able to take a full breath. There was really no chance I would die; dragons have eternal life. However, we do feel pain. I slowly stand from the floor and look around. I have too much work to do to take time out to put an uppity female in her place. But I’ll make time for this. I rub my hands together in anticipation.

This should be fun.