Tempt_The Pteron Chronicles Read online

  Dara shook her head. “Of course not.”

  “I made you what you are for a reason. I have many uses for you. Don’t fool yourself and think you are any better than that human toy you made.” He glared at where Daniel stood with a contented expression on his face. He had no clue what was going on. Poor guy. I wondered how he’d attracted Dara’s attention to begin with.

  “Human toy?” Glendale lifted his head. “Where?”

  “That one over there.” Randolph gestured to where Daniel stood.

  Glendale walked over. “Interesting.”

  Interesting? More like barbaric.

  “Why’d you pick such an ugly one?”

  “Excuse me?” Dara jerked her head back.

  “I assume you could have woven your magic on any man or woman. Why pick ugly?”

  “He isn’t ugly. He’s handsome.” Dara blanched. “How dare you suggest that.”

  “I’m only speaking the truth. Am I right?” Glendale looked around the room. “Someone back me up here. Dragon? You have to agree? Right? He’s ugly.”

  “You little shit.” She reached for him, but he easily stepped away.

  “Randolph, your witch is threatening me.”

  “I assume you can take care of her yourself.” Randolph chuckled.

  “I am not his witch.” Dara snapped.

  “Oh yeah? I just heard you agree you’d do whatever he wanted. That makes you his witch.”

  “And you’re any better? You’re doing anything he says.”

  Glendale laughed. And he laughed. He laughed so hard he fell over on his back. “Come on. No one else is going to laugh at this one? Like I would do whatever Randolph says.”

  Randolph shook his head. “You’ve made your point, Glendale.”

  “You are going to let him treat you that way?” Dara put a hand on her chest. “You are going to let a cat disrespect you?”

  Randolph adjusted his hand around the top of his cane. “Glendale has his quirks, but his expertise is quite astounding. Besides he cleans his own litter box.”

  Glendale hissed. “Watch it, Randolph.” He then flicked his tail in Veronica’s direction. “You ready? And warn me if you’re going to change into your other look. I’ve had enough ugly for one day.”

  Dara glared. “The only thing ugly in this room is you.”

  Glendale hissed, and Dara was suddenly tossed across the room as if by an invisible hand. Her back slammed into a stone wall. Now that was something new for Glendale. I was quite aware he was way more than a cat—a Helzin Demon to be exact—but he usually did a better job controlling his anger. “No one calls me ugly.”

  “You can throw the heat but can’t take any yourself?” Her eyes narrowed. Moments later she started to make a choking sound.

  “That’s enough, Glendale.” Randolph waved his cane. “Please, if you don’t mind I’d like to see the third now.”

  “Sure.” Glendale turned his head to the side and Dara fell to the floor. She gasped for air, finally uttering a curse as she rose to her feet.

  “All right, V, let’s take this dragon. Remind me where we’re going.”

  “It’s a maze. I’ll show you.”

  “A maze?” Randolph scowled. “What is that supposed to mean? Have you been playing games?”

  “No. I’m using it for training.”

  “What kind of training?”

  “You know, get her used to difficult situations. I don’t think she’s had all that much experience.”

  “She’s a Pteron. She doesn’t need more experience. Female Pterons have special traits already.”

  “Ok. Well, putting her in the maze didn’t hurt.”

  “Too much.” Dara laughed.

  She fell to the ground again.

  Glendale laughed.

  “What was that for?”

  “Just for fun.”

  I wasn’t sure what to make of this meeting with Glendale, but at least he was shelling out some pressure on Dara. I sure as heck was tired of sitting back and listening to her.

  “Have a nice trip.” Randolph nodded in our direction before he walked out of the room. “Follow.” He yelled out.

  Dara stumbled to her feet, grabbed Daniel’s arm, and started walking. She stopped to send one glance back at the smirking cat.

  He grinned back before turning to Veronica. “Tell me where we’re going. I can get us there faster.”

  She shook her head. “It’s not far.”

  “I can travel faster than the speed of light if necessary.”

  “Randolph said time wasn’t an issue right now.” She pressed her lips together.

  “Then he was wrong. Time is always an issue.”

  “Since when are you and Randolph working together?” She put a hand on her hip.

  “That’s none of your business.” Glendale lay down.

  “It is since I’m supposed to trust you.”

  “Who said you had to trust me? I don’t even trust myself.” He swatted at something in the air.

  “Fine. The maze is underneath us.”

  Glendale grinned. “OK, folks it’s time for a little ride.”

  I’d gone on a ride with Glendale before, and I wasn’t looking forward to it. Thankfully, I knew what to expect.

  He touched my wing and Veronica’s hand. My ears popped as a strong whirl of wind wrapped around us. The gust of wind grew as an equally powerful light blinded me. A few seconds later we fell into a heap on a stone floor. It didn’t hurt. One benefit of my dragon form was my body was stronger than ever. I’d always been able to heal quickly, but this was different. I wasn’t even hurt. When I stood up I found a dent in the floor where I’d fallen.

  There was a whoosh, and then Veronica lit a lamp. She scrambled to her feet after kicking off her red high heels. “Ugh. And you implied your means of travel was superior to mine.”

  “I never said it was superior; I said it was quicker. If you had a watch on you’d realize no time actually passed.”

  “I’m not taking the return trip with you.”

  “Ok. Your choice.”

  I felt her. I felt a pull in my heart, and I could barely breathe. Hailey was there. I needed her. She needed me. I’d always felt a connection to Hailey, but this was something else.

  “Where is she?” Glendale swished his tail back and forth.

  “She’s in here somewhere. I’m sure we’ll find them soon.” Veronica’s voice lilted.

  “Them?” Glendale licked his paw.

  “Them.” Veronica gave a satisfied smile. “I suppose I forgot to mention that.”

  “Not that it matters to me.”

  “Don’t you want to know who else is here?”

  “Not really.” Glendale was very good at looking bored. I guess it came naturally when your usual form was a cat.

  8

  Hailey

  “Anastasia!” Cade called again. It felt as though we’d been walking for hours. Maybe we had been. I was losing all sense of time. My growing hunger and thirst made me wonder what time of day it even was. In the scheme of things, that shouldn’t have mattered, but it made me so disoriented I wondered if it would be possible for us to lose our minds down here.

  This time she didn’t answer. I yelled again. Maybe my voice could project further. “Anastasia!” I waited, listening to the echo of my voice and straining to hear any bare hint of her reply.

  Nothing. Nothing at all. The stone prison was silent save for the sound of our feet on the stone below. I couldn’t even imagine what we looked like. A motley crew fumbling our way through some crazy grey maze.

  Cade sighed. “Great. Either she’s passed out, or we’ve gone in the wrong direction.”

  He said what I didn’t want to. It wasn’t like me to care about making Cade feel bad. Maybe Eloise was having an influence on me or something.

  “That only makes it more important that we find her.” Hunter clenched his teeth. “I promised her we’d get out of this together.”

  “We wi
ll.” I wished I were confident but faking it would have to do for now. “We just might need a new plan.”

  “Another new plan?” Troy whined. “You have got to be kidding me.”

  “I wish I was.” I wiped sweat off my brow. “Anyone else suddenly hot?”

  “It has gotten warmer…” Eloise trailed off. The look of alarm on her face probably matched the one on my face. The random temperature changes didn’t seem normal.

  “It suddenly got cold earlier, so it may be nothing.” Cade continued walking.

  “No. This is something.” Troy wrapped his hand around my arm. “This is something big.”

  Considering Troy had done nothing but complain the entire time I took his words seriously. “What do you mean?”

  “I sense something… something ancient. It makes no sense.”

  “Something ancient?” Hunter rubbed the back of his neck. “What kind of thing?”

  “It’s hard to explain.” Troy looked up at the ceiling and then down at the ground.

  “No matter how hard it is to explain, you need to try.” I was running out of patience. I was exhausted, which meant even more time had passed than I thought. Pterons barely needed sleep.

  “I mean I really can’t explain it. It’s nearly impossible.”

  “Wonderful.” I bit back a groan.

  “Save the sarcasm.” Troy narrowed his eyes.

  “I’m trying here.” I was. I was doing everything I could and doing what I believed was the right thing, but nothing was working. Everything had been moving downhill since arriving at the conference.

  “None of this is your fault.” Eloise spoke in a soothing voice “None of it.”

  “Some of it is.” I was all about her intention, but I wasn’t going to pretend my decisions hadn’t played a role. They had, and there was nothing I could do to change that. Just like there was nothing I could do to get us out of here sooner. The ceiling felt closer now. The walls too. I needed more air—I needed access to the sky.

  “Hailey, turn off your light.” Troy paled.

  “What?” I watched him warily. “Why?”

  “Turn off the light.” He grabbed my arm again. “Now.”

  “How do I do that?” It’s not like the Lightness abilities came with a manual. My companions were well aware of that by now.

  “Figure it out. Fast.” The terror in his eyes said more than his words did.

  I felt something a tug in my heart. Wyatt. Was he nearby? I felt conflicting emotions. Relief he was near, and unquestionable panic that he too might be in danger.

  “Hailey. Please,” Troy practically begged. “You need to shut it off.”

  The begging made something snap. I closed my eyes and focused on emptiness and darkness, and when I opened my eyes again my hands were no longer glowing.

  “Are you sure this is a good idea?” Cade asked. “I mean there’s something ancient that scares you, and we can’t see it now.” He didn’t sound like cool, collected Cade. Every time the darkness returned he lost his usual edge. I couldn’t blame him. I didn’t understand my new abilities, but I was grateful I could see even in complete and utter darkness.

  “Shut up!” Troy snapped. “Hailey can see. That’s good enough. We need to shut up and hope it doesn’t find us.”

  We stood in silence huddled together in the stone prison. No one dared to call out to Anastasia again, but I sincerely hoped she was okay. I hoped we were all okay.

  A whiff of something burning wafted our way. I was about to ask if anyone else smelled anything, but I thought better of it. Troy had been serious about staying hidden. Whatever it was he sensed wasn’t something I was in a hurry to confront.

  The temperature returned to its normal level for a few minutes, and the burning smell subsided. Maybe we were home free. Even as I tried to feel some relief, I knew it was premature. We weren’t escaping whatever this was so easily.

  “Don’t move,” Troy whispered in my ear.

  I startled. Hadn’t he been the one to tell us to keep our mouths shut? I assumed he had a reason for specifically warning me, but that in itself was a worry. Was this ancient thing after me? Was I unwittingly putting the others in more danger? I didn’t want to listen to him. I wanted to walk far away and save the others. I thought about it, but as soon as I did Eloise stepped on my foot. I choked down the words that wanted to come out of my mouth. I had the feeling her movement hadn’t been an accident. Had she realized I’d planned to run?

  And then I felt Wyatt. He was close. So close. My heart soared. My heart rate accelerated. But how was he here? Had he been thrown into the basement prison too?

  Troy imprisoned my hands in his. He was serious about keeping me there. A horrible thought crossed my mind: what if Troy was in on this? Hadn’t he tried to dissuade us from helping Anastasia? Hadn’t he been the naysayer the whole day, or whatever amount of time had passed? Maybe asking me to extinguish my light and stay still was for a darker reason. But that didn’t feel right. Troy had been a jerk, but aside from his suggestion we leave Anastasia behind, his actions hadn’t been all that unusual.

  The ground beneath us began to tremble, and then the walls shook. I looked up at the ceiling hoping it wasn’t going to fall on us again. It did. Large stones hurtled toward us, boxing us into the small alcove. We huddled together even closer. All of us silently agreeing to do our best to ensure our survival. No one ran. No one spoke.

  The air grew warmer again, and this time I heard a loud whoosh and saw a flash of bright light and felt the warmth of fire. Moments later through the gaping holes in the crumbling ceiling we saw a large green dragon step into view.

  9

  Wyatt

  The metallic pull inside my brain grew and grew, pulling me down the dark corridor. Something had changed. The hold was stronger, and it felt as if it wound around my neck, choking me when I slowed down, or even inclined my head to the side.

  I knew Veronica walked right beside me. I was barely aware of Glendale moving at my ankles.

  Keep moving. She spoke no words, and she wasn’t inside my head, yet the command was clear in the rope-like tendrils wrapped around me.

  Each step was heavy and awkward. As comfortable as I thought I was inside my new dragon skin, my motions weren’t. But maybe that was all the fault of Veronica and the twisted magic she used to control my physical actions.

  Stop. I stopped short, right before a fork in the tunnel.

  Veronica stepped around me. “You will go in there and burn them to the ground. Only Hailey can live. If you do not do as I say, Hailey will die.”

  Hailey wouldn’t die. She couldn’t. I’d die before that happened.

  Turn.

  I followed the order against my will and saw her. All I could focus on was her. Hailey.

  My greatest love and my greatest weakness. On the periphery, I saw others. But none of them were in focus. It was only her.

  Fire. The command tugged at the cord, and I could barely breathe.

  “Wyatt?” Hailey stepped closer. She was glowing. Glowing like a Lightness.

  That shock was eclipsed by another question. Had she figured it out who I was so quickly? Had she recognized me inside the dragon?

  “Wyatt.” My name slipped from her lips again, and she reached out for me.

  “Hailey!” A familiar male voice yelled. “It’s not him. Wyatt can’t be a dragon.”

  I forced my gaze to move to the voice. Troy.

  Hailey tentatively touched my wing, sending warmth racing through my system. “Wyatt.”

  She was so calm. I sensed no fear, only compassion. And love.

  “Kill them!” Veronica screamed. Why was she screaming? And then I realized the metallic cord was weakening. I could move my head. I focused only on Hailey. On her expressive eyes, her red hair.

  “Wyatt. It’s okay. Everything is going to be okay.” Hailey’s words soothed me, reminding me of exactly who I really was. I was more than a dragon. Her arms wrapped around my scaly wing, and
Veronica’s shrieks of protest faded away.

  “Holy shit, it is him.” Troy’s voice sounded far off.

  In the next moment the wind picked up, and a bright light blinded me again. Seconds later Hailey and I fell onto the dirt covered ground.

  I blinked a few times, trying to handle all the different emotions and thoughts swirling through me. First and foremost Hailey was with me. She was wrapped up in my arms. My human, naked arms. I was human again.

  “I have so many questions, but I need a minute.” She clung to me.

  I tried to comfort her, hoping we were truly safe and she wouldn’t be jerked from my arms. I gazed around out of instinct. We were in a forest with towering trees that looked as if they touched the sky.

  Hailey sighed but made no move to leave my arms. “It’s you, right, Glendale?”

  Glendale rolled over to look at us. “It is I. Do you know many other cats who could get you out of a mess like that?”

  “No. Not many.”

  He moved to his feet and walked over. “Oh. I suppose you need clothes.” He nodded in my direction. In the next instant I had pants on. “Uh, how’d you do that?” I probably should have felt violated in some way, but it was more amazement that I was feeling.

  He yawned. “You two like to doubt my abilities, don’t you?”

  “It’s not doubt. It’s surprise.” I brushed some leaves off of her arms.

  “I would have thought you’d have seen enough in your life to cease being surprised so easily.” Glendale sat down right in front of us.

  “I doubt I will ever truly stop being surprised.” She wrapped her arms around her chest. She wasn’t cold. At least I didn’t think so. Hailey rarely, if ever, got cold. Still just to be sure I wrapped her tighter in my arms.

  “You will. One day it will happen.” Glendale rolled his neck.

  “Wait. Where is everyone else?” Hailey glanced around. “I can’t believe I just realized that! Where are they?” Panic dripped from her voice.

  Glendale switched his tail back and forth. “I transported them somewhere else. Don’t worry. Let’s talk about you.”