Chapter 11
Brad drove through the darkness, half expecting a bolt of lightning to come out of nowhere and hit them.
He felt a little embarrassed that he’d been so shocked at seeing the dragon that it had taken him a while, and Lyrian’s thrusting a gun into his hands, to be able to react. He should have dealt with the situation better than that.
He needed to protect his baby, and her mother. No matter how hard it was to accept that dragons existed, and that Lyrian was one, he needed to do it. Disbelief would only get in his way right now.
In the seat next to him, Lyrian hugged Anarian tightly, making Brad nervous. He’d never been in a car with a baby before, but he knew they were supposed to have a special seat, not just be held by someone.
If that dragon did come, and something happened to the car, they were in trouble.
Between them, on the seat, was the loaded shotgun. Hopefully he wouldn’t have to use it. It really didn’t have the firepower to take on a dragon, but it was better than nothing if it came down to it.
The sooner they found somewhere safe to stay, the better.
He hadn’t spent much time in Mungaloo, but it had to be similar to other places he’d been didn’t it? Most towns were basically the same.
There’d be a bar, restaurants, hotels.
And a police station.
Briefly, he considered going there. They’d probably recognise him from the incident that morning. And they apparently already knew something about dragons.
But they’d been searching for a dragon, not wanting to help one. They might be able to help deal with the dragon chasing them, but if they realised Lyrian was one too…
Not to mention his daughter…
He assumed she was anyway. Half dragon at least.
How did that work?
Brad shook his head. Don't analyse, just escape. That’s what he needed to focus on.
And calling the police wasn’t an option. It wasn’t worth the risk. He needed a better plan.
“Is the dragon going to be able to track us?” he asked Lyrian.
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “Maybe. I thought I’d lost him earlier, and then he found me again somehow.”
Brad glanced over at her. “What happened? Why is he out to kill you?”
Lyrian was silent for a moment, staring out the windscreen. Brad was beginning to wonder if she was going to answer.
“Come on,” he said. “If you want my help, I need to know why. I need to know what he’s going to do, and how serious he is about wanting to kill you.”
Even saying the words sent a shiver up his spine.
He’d treated people with gunshot wounds before, but no one had ever taken a shot at him. No one had wanted to kill him. Or anyone he knew.
Until now.
Lyrian heaved a sigh. “There are two clans of dragons. He’s from the Trima clan, our enemies.”
“Two dragon clans?” Brad stared at her.
The idea was fantastical. It was hard to believe that one dragon clan could have been hiding from humans all this time. But two? That were at war?
“There were,” Lyrian’s voice was almost a whisper.
Brad wasn’t quite sure that he’d heard her correctly. “There were? What do you mean?”
To his surprise, her eyes filled with tears. “I can’t find any other Rian clan dragons. I’ve searched and searched, but they all seem to be gone. Now there’s just me and Anarian.”
There was a hopelessness in her voice that tore at Brad’s heart.
“You’re not alone,” he said firmly. “Neither of you are. You have me. I’m not going to leave you.”
“Yes you are,” Lyrian said, her voice tight. “You’ll go back to America again, just like you did last time.”
Brad wanted to snap at her, to point out that he’d only gone because she’d refused to talk to him. But the words stuck in his throat, making it ache.
He hadn’t even considered staying here with her. He had a job and a life to get back to in America. Yes, he’d wanted her to come with him. He’d had no idea how impossible that probably was. But it had never occurred to him to stay here with her.
“Would it have made any difference if I’d said I’d stay?” he asked her, curious.
Lyrian was silent.
That told him all he needed to know. It wouldn’t have mattered.
The only reason she’d told him now that she was here with him, was because she had no one else.
“What about your brothers?” he asked. “Or are they gone too?”
“They’re gone.” Lyrian’s voice was small, and it shook a little. “I was trying to find them. That’s when the dragon attacked.”
Brad felt sad for her in spite of himself. “I’m sorry,” he said gently.
Lyrian sniffed.
The sound tugged at Brad’s heartstrings more than a flood of tears would have.
It was then and there that he knew he couldn’t leave her. Not until she’d found her family at least.
He didn’t even want to consider the fact that they might be dead.
He reached over and put a hand on her arm, where it cradled Anarian. “I’m not going anywhere. Not until we find your brothers,” he said firmly.
Lyrian put her other hand over his and stared up at him, her eyes searching his, as though trying to guess if he were telling the truth. “Really?”
“Really,” Brad said firmly.
For a moment, he felt one of the most intense connections he’d ever felt to anyone. And it wasn’t even sexual. He wasn’t sure what had just happened. Had he imagined it? Had she felt it too?
He cleared his throat, and Lyrian moved her hand, enabling Brad to take his back without it being weird.
“So, do you think the dragon will follow us into the town?” he asked, changing the subject.
Her voice didn’t give any indication when she answered. “I don’t think so. I mean, I don’t know what dragons are doing now. That’s the first one I’ve seen since I woke. But before I went to sleep, dragons didn’t go where a human might see them. Not in dragon form anyway.” She hesitated for a moment, then added, “Most dragons are a little scared of humans.”
Dragons? Scared of humans? That made no sense to Brad.
It raised a whole lot more questions. Dragons could obviously take human form, since neither Lyrian nor Anarian had any wings or scales right now. How easy was it to change from one to the other?
That wasn’t what he needed to know right now though.
“Is the other dragon a threat in human form?” he asked.
Lyrian hesitated. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “He could still use his magic, but that would give away that he’s not an ordinary human.”
“Is he likely to risk that?” Brad asked.
“I don’t know,” Lyrian said helplessly. “I’ve been asleep for three hundred years, near as I can tell. Given that you’ve never heard of or seen a dragon before, I’m going to guess that he’ll try to avoid it.”
Normally, Brad would have agreed with her. He’d never heard even a suggestion that dragons existed.
Until today.
Unfortunately, Lyrian’s admission hadn’t been his first clue.
“When I first got here,” he said slowly. “I was pulled over by the police. There was a strange guy with them, and he said something about dragons…”
He could feel Lyrian’s eyes on him. “He did?” Her voice was a mixture of fear and disbelief.
“Yeah.” Brad tried to remember the exact words. “Something about Lisa, and her dragon buddy.”
“Do you know Lisa?” Lyrian demanded.
“Not a clue,” Brad said flatly. “Lisa is a very common name, and even if it wasn’t, I don’t know anyone in this town aside from you and Uncle Henry. And the lawyer,” he added.
Lyrian heaved a sigh. “Then there’s no way of knowing if she knows a Trima dragon or a Rian dragon.” She sounded defeated again.
“Well, maybe we need to see if we can find her and ask her,” Brad said.
He’d just said it to cheer Lyrian up. Their chances of finding one person whose last name they didn’t even know, even in this small town, weren’t high.
But Lyrian’s eyes lit up. “Do you think we can do that?”
“I… uh…”
He couldn’t bear to see that glimmer of hope in her eyes disappear.
“Sure. We can try,” he agreed.
“Oh that would be wonderful,” Lyrian breathed. “Maybe her dragon buddy is one of my brothers. Maybe Taurian. Or Verrian. Both of them weren’t in their Mesmer chambers. But that doesn’t mean they’re dead. Maybe Lisa woke one of them.”
Brad had no idea what she was talking about. Half the words were foreign to him. But he was pleased that she sounded more cheerful. “Maybe,” he agreed.
Lyrian gave a laugh. “You have no idea what I’m talking about, do you?” she teased.
“No, but if it makes you happy, then I hope it’s true,” Brad said seriously.
He could feel Lyrian’s eyes on him, but he didn’t look over. He stared at the road ahead, not sure what he’d say if he looked at her.
What was there to say?
They hit the outskirts of town, and Lyrian turned back to watch the road as well. Luckily the streets were mostly dark, only a few streetlights shining on the occupants of the battered ute.
Brad glanced over at Lyrian and baby Anarian, and bit his lip. Hopefully the police were busy somewhere else right now. If they got pulled over…
Or worse, had an accident…
He needed to find somewhere they could stay for the night as quickly as possible. Then he could figure out where they were going to go from here in the morning.
He headed towards the brighter lights, even though being closer to more people made him nervous. Sure enough, the main street sported a pub. It was a quiet, mid-week night. Hopefully they had a room to spare.
He parked the car in the gravel carpark out the back. “Come on, we’ll see if we can find a room.”
Lyrian though, hesitated. She stared at the building suspiciously.
“I’m pretty sure we aren’t going to find any dragons here,” Brad said, hoping to reassure her.
“No,” Lyrian said slowly. But she still didn’t move.
“Is something wrong?” Brad asked, trying to curb his impatience. He just wanted to get her and the baby out of the car. Even though they weren’t driving any longer, the lack of a car seat made him increasingly nervous.
“Will there be lots of… humans?” Lyrian asked nervously.
Brad glanced over at the pub. At that moment, a raucous cheer went up from the main bar.
He winced.
“Yeah, probably,” he admitted.
Lyrian shrank back, putting her arms protectively around Anarian, and shaking her head. “I can’t go in there. They’ll stare at me.”
They probably would too. He certainly would have. But not for the reasons Lyrian feared.
“Sure, they probably will,” he agreed. “But not because they know you’re a dragon, because you’re beautiful.”
Lyrian’s expression didn’t lighten any. In fact, she frowned.
Brad tried another direction. “Look, that dragon who’s searching for you, he’s going to want to stay away from all those humans far more than you do. Which means we’re safer here than anywhere else.”
Lyrian looked a little uncertain at that. “Maybe,” she allowed.
“Come on,” Brad encouraged. “I’ll be with you. I won’t let anyone bother you.”
She stared at him for a long moment, and Brad held his breath.
He wasn’t sure why he was so anxious that she agree with him. Well, other than the fact that he couldn’t think of anywhere else they were going to sleep tonight.
But this wasn’t about that.
He wanted her to trust him.
More than he’d ever wanted anything else in his life.