I jogged the rest of the way home without even thinking about it. I was a sickly child because of my father’s Infernian blood, though we didn’t know it at the time. After years of being mocked and tormented because of my size, I made the decision to never let another person bully me again. Since then, I’d taken great pride in my body and working out. So, running the two miles back to the small manor I shared with my mother was surprisingly easy for me .

The gate wasn’t guarded, there was no need. Very few people knew that we lived there. It was larger than a house, but set up as an apartment building of sorts. My mother had her own space and so did I, though I spent many nights camped out in her spare bedroom since she had severe anxiety attacks. It wasn’t surprising, considering the traumatic life she’d endured. There was little to be done for her except to make her comfy and be there as she needed me .

I walked into the main lobby and took the elevator up to the first floor. My mother jumped as the noise alerted her that I was there. When she saw it was me, her tension eased some. Smiling at her, I went to where she was sitting on the sofa and kissed her gently on the head before sitting down next to her. She had been a beauty in her day, with raven hair and emerald eyes, her dragon form was a delicate shade of green though she hadn’t shifted in well over a decade .

“How are you, Mom?” I asked her carefully. I could see from her hands that today hadn’t been a good day for her. They were red and swollen from her wringing them over and over as she sat nervously .

“Well, I thought that they had finally come for us today. Some man came by looking for you. He said something about a hovercraft he’d found. I don’t know who scared who more .”

“Mom,” I said very patiently. “We have been over this before, you have nothing to worry about here. It’s been twenty years since we left Dragselian. No one is going to come for us. We left peacefully and with the blessing of King Zaruv .”

“Sure,” she said critically. “They say that now, but what happens when they change their mind? We will be sitting ducks. I think we should have left Dragselian airspace all together. How else can I be sure that you are safe ?”

“For starters, I am a grown man. I think that I can defend myself. Plus, we are on good terms with the entire royal family. Just today Ragal asked me to come with him to Dragselian .”

She gasped, “You didn’t agree, did you? If they get you back there, who knows what they will do !”

I ground my teeth together, struggling to keep my temper under control. Even after twenty years, she couldn’t grasp that we were not being hunted for my father’s crimes. Things, though tense at times, were mostly peaceful for us. The royal family, our fellow cousins, cared about us and knew that neither of us had anything to do with my father’s evil plans before he was overthrown. Hell, I had been barely five when we left, how could I be a mastermind at anything when I couldn’t even yet assemble a ray gun ?

“I met someone today, a very nice young woman. I think I’m going to see her again,” I said, quickly changing the subject so that we could move away from the fear I saw starting as another panic attack .

“Oh?” she asked, her interest piqued. “That’s wonderful. I’ve been saying for too long that you need a nice woman to bring home. Someone who can keep that fiery temper of yours under wraps. Is she a Dragselian ?”

I shook my head. “Not really, she’s actually a human. I think you would like her though. She is a freight pilot, owns her own ship too .”

“Well now,” she said with a knowing smile. “Some of the best relationships I’ve seen are with humans. Look at your cousins. They have half a dozen kids between them with human mothers. Our very own queen is a human .”

“I know, Mother,” I stammered. “I haven’t told her about who I am yet though. I don’t know that I’m going too .”

“That doesn’t seem fair. An honest relationship is the best one for you. You don’t want her finding out about your father after you’ve made a commitment .”

“Easy there,” I said with an uneasy laugh. “We haven’t even gone out yet. For all I know, she could be a Drage spy looking for a reason to drag me back .”

As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I regretted them. My mother’s eyes grew wide with fear as she started to fidget. She looked off into space for a few seconds before I touched her hand and she jumped again. Her tired eyes turned to me as she smiled softly and pat my hand .

“Your cousins are good people, but I still worry about you. I am no fool. I know that there are others who would see you brought to harm .”

“Of course, there are, Mom, but that is going to happen anywhere because of who I am. Hell, we could go to the Infernians and they would treat me like shit because of who my family is. I am stuck between a rock and a hard place, but I’m going to make the best of it .”

“You always were such a brave young man, even as a child when we moved here you refused to let people push you around. I wish that I had that courage .”

“You do have it, you just lost it for a little while. When was the last time you went out into town and got some fresh air? The market has exploded with new products coming in every day. You would love it .”

She shook her head and pulled away from me. “You know what I am. I can’t be out there with those people. They would stone me .”

“You left Dragselian as an ally over twenty years ago. You are a Dragselian, Mom. No one knows who you are. You look no different than any other woman of your kind and this planet is mostly inhabited by humans. You should try to get out there some .”

My mother turned away from me again and I saw her slip back into the darkness of her mind. I didn’t envy her. I had been too young at the time to understand what was happening. Young and vulnerable, she’d married Zaruv’s older brother, Lepkior. It was that man that she thought she was having a child with, but instead it was an Infernian doppelganger, Midris. He had killed her husband and taken his place shortly before impregnating her with me. Things between us were better now, but it wasn’t always that way, though I couldn’t blame her .

Every day I was a reminder to her of what had happened. She knew that Midris’s Infernian blood ran through my body. I was her son, but I was also the offspring of the man who had killed her beloved king and husband. There were times as a young adult I would catch her looking at me with such anger and sorrow. Those were not looks that I was meant to see and she would do anything necessary to keep me safe, even if it meant living with the son of a killer. I sighed and headed for the door .

“Are you leaving so soon?” she asked .

I nodded. “I’ve had a long few days. I could use a good night’s sleep .”

“Oh, okay,” she said in a sad tone .

“Is there anything else that you wanted to talk about? Do you need me to stay here tonight ?”

She shook her head. “No. I would like to hear more about this girl though. It would be wonderful if you found someone you could really love. Who knows, maybe you could have a real family then .”

“You are my family, Mom,” I told her. “You and my cousins. I am very happy with my life, but it would be nice to start dating again. It’s been too long .”

“Yuck,” she whispered .

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Thinking about Janine ?”

“That Dragselian was intolerable. She was the worst kind of woman. I told you from the very beginning that she was up to no good .”

I winced at her words. She was right. The last woman I’d dated had turned out to be a terrible person. She was only after one thing, power. Somehow, she’d found out who I was and used her good looks to get into my heart. I didn’t know that she was after one of the ‘real’ princes as she called them. Of course, Tasha hadn’t been bashful about putting her in her place and having her exiled to a different planet because of it. I still wasn’t sure about the charges of treason they’d brought against her, but it taught me one thing, my family always had my back .

“Clara is different, she is really nice,” I promised her .

“She could give you a family, a real family .”

My heart sank. “You already said that, Mom, but yes, she could give me a real family. I don’t know if that’s what I want right now though. I think I just want to keep things easy if it’s all the same .”

“I just want you to be happy,” she whispered .

I went back and kissed her again on the forehead before heading for the elevators. “I will see you in the morning, Mom. Maybe we will go out and go shopping together .”

She smiled faintly. “I would like that .”

Slipping into the elevator, I knew that it was a lie. We both knew that she wouldn’t leave the house tomorrow or any day after that, but it didn’t matter. The small lie kept us moving with some loose form of normalcy. As the elevator opened up on the third floor, I stepped out and flipped on the lights for my own space. I chuckled as I thought about the lie. She wouldn’t even leave her apartment to see mine, she would never go outside .

I loved my mother, but it was a struggle to watch her deteriorate. I had a few faint memories of our lives before everything happened, back when she was cheerful and upbeat. I couldn’t let myself get pulled down though and I quickly pulled out the business card that Clara had given me. Flipping it back and forth in my hands for a few seconds, I pulled out my phone and dialed the number, surprised when butterflies started to flip in my stomach .

“Clara?” I stammered, feeling like a young boy again. “This is Rizor .”

“Hey,” she said in a groggy tone. “I was wondering if you were going to call .”

“I hope I didn’t wake you,” I quickly said. “I didn’t even think about how late it was. I’m just getting home .”

“It’s okay,” she said with a soft laugh. “I was just dozing off watching the cameras. The thrilling life of a captain is never over. What’s up ?”

“I was hoping I could take you up on that date. Maybe tomorrow night if you are free ?”

“Absolutely, do you want to meet me at the bar again? Maybe those pigs won’t be there again .”

“If I know Mac, they won’t be going back in there ever again. He’s a good guy .”

“He sure seems like it. To be honest, that was only my third time there when Mac was. I like him though .”

I grinned. “So tomorrow ?”

“It’s a date .”