Releasing the Dragon Read online

  And a good kisser too—don’t forget that, whispered a little voice in her head. It was true, her lips were still tingling from the passionate kiss he’d given her earlier and her body throbbed when she thought about it. It didn’t help that the skimpy silver outfit she’d taken from the Pairing Puppet barely covered anything and she felt half-naked and exposed. For the first time, she considered how embarrassing it was going to be to let Dru see her dressed like this.

  Too bad—should have thought of that earlier, whispered the same little voice. You’re stuck now. Besides, he’ll probably be so angry you stowed away in the first place, he’ll barely notice what you’re wearing.

  She heard the door to the shuttle open and close and then two deep male voices were talking. One of them was obviously Dru’s but the other was unfamiliar. It had a soft, hissing sibilance that sent a cold chill down her spine for some reason. The voices were getting louder and she realized that was because Dru and the other man were getting closer. They were both speaking in some alien language, though, so she had no idea what either one of them were saying—but their tone sounded civilized enough.

  Just two aliens making small talk—nothing to see here, ho-hum.

  Then Dru’s voice seemed to be coming from right over her head and Annie took a deep breath, her body tensing. Here we go—he’s about to open the compartment and see me! Oh God, I hope he’s not too angry. I hope—

  But just then the hatch of the storage compartment swung upward and a strange, smoky light filled the air. With it came a feeling of dread so strong, Annie could barely breathe. When she looked up, she saw a black oval face that seemed to be made of smoke or shadow with no features on it—none at all—bending over her.

  What the hell? What is that thing?

  Then a pair of burning, yellow eyes opened in the black, smoky oval and looked directly down into hers.

  Annie felt her heart lurch in her chest.

  Oh God—what had she gotten herself into?

  “I’m surprised you’re here to greet me in person, Slo’vv,” Dru remarked, surveying the Shade being who ruled the Maw Cluster with an iron claw dubiously.

  An iron claw might be the wrong terminology, though, since Slo’vv could have a hundred claws if he wanted to—though all would be made of the strange, shadow-smoke which comprised his physical being. His torso and head remained pretty much the same—a long, slender column of shadow topped with a black oval. But his limbs—however many he chose to have at any one time—appeared and disappeared at will, manifesting from any part of his body—including his head—and then dissipating again when he had no more use for them.

  He manifested one now, a long, black shadow arm growing from the center of his chest where his heart would be if he was in any way humanoid—which he was not. He reached for Dru, who took the limb in a warrior’s clasp without flinching, despite the deadly cold of the Shade being’s touch. Like all those of his kind, Slo’vv carried a lingering sense of dread with him at all times so when he touched the other male, Dru had the sense that something was going to go horribly wrong.

  Annie’s in danger…my Drake will get loose and wreak havoc, shaming me and ruining my career…somewhere back home my parents are dying and I am not there to help them…I have somehow contracted an incurable disease which will kill me very soon and I will die in agony…

  These and a hundred other dark and awful thoughts and fears rushed through his mind like a cabal of evil shadows as he clasped the smoky, ice-cold arm Slo’vv offered him. Dru was ready for these thoughts and fears, however. He did not—as he had seen some who touched Slo’vv do—jerk back in horror and disgust and run away as quickly as he could. He simply centered himself and sent calming messages to his Drake—who didn’t like the Shade being one damn bit.

  All is well…all is well…all is well…be calm, all is well.

  At last Slo’vv withdrew his arm—it melted like a black icicle in the sun, leaving Dru holding nothing but empty air. The intense feeling of dread lessened too, becoming only a dull ache in the back of his brain instead of the sharp, irrational fear he’d had while he and Slo’vv touched. There was no way to get away from the dread completely while in the Shade being’s presence, but it was a hell of a lot better when he wasn’t making physical contact with you, Dru thought grimly.

  “I am pleassed to ssee you again my friend.” Slo’vv’s voice was like the wind through a haunted tree in the dead of night. Dru had seen females faint and males go pale at the sound of those ghostly tones but he himself kept his face carefully blank—though not as blank as his host, who didn’t manifest facial features except when feeling strong emotion. Or at least, that was what Dru believed from observing him.

  “I’m pleased to see you too,” he said, heading around his ship towards the storage area. “But are you really meeting all the ships that come to the Shadow Palace personally now?”

  He spoke the Shadow Tongue with ease, though the words tasted cold in his mouth. As with all Kindred, he had an innate ability to pick up any language in a very short time and Slo’vv’s native tongue was no exception. It was another trait which endeared him to the ruler of the Maw Cluster. Aside from himself, almost no one spoke the cold, whispery Shadow Tongue besides Slo’vv, who enjoyed conversing in his own dialect though he was perfectly understandable in Standard, which most beings spoke outside their home planets.

  “I wasss bored,” Slo’vv admitted in his whispery, hissing voice. “And bessidess, my friend, you alwayss bring me the besst pressents.”

  Ah, so that was what he was after. Dru was glad he’d thought to stock some exotic finds from the other worlds he’d visited recently. He had a Z’Nth light cube, an everything plant, a wonder-nut from Yorkii which housed the tiniest known canine in the universe, and several other things that should keep the Shade being entertained.

  Which was a good thing because a bored Slo’vv was a dangerous Slo’vv.

  “Well, let me see what I have,” he remarked, opening the storage compartment. “I think I’ve brought you something you’ll really like this time. It’s—”

  The words died on his lips as the Pairing Puppet was revealed. No—not the puppet, he realized—it was Annie. And she was staring up at Slo’vv with a terrified expression in her big brown eyes.

  The ruler of the Maw Cluster was staring right back as well—Dru saw with horror that he had manifested eyes in his black, oval shadow face—a sure sign of intense interest.

  “My, my, Drugair,” he hissed, a mouth with red lips and sharp, white teeth forming below the glaring yellow eyes. “You really have outdone yoursself thiss time. She iss exquisite.”

  Thirteen

  “Who…what…w-who is th-that?” Annie’s teeth were chattering, though with fear or cold, Dru couldn’t tell which. He only knew the female he cared for was here, where she didn’t belong, and Slo’vv was looking at her as though she was the next course in a feast.

  He wanted to shake Annie and demand what in the Seven Hells she was doing here but he had to deal with the ruler of the Maw Cluster first.

  “Oh no-no—I’m afraid this one is not a present,” he said quickly in the Shadow Tongue. “This is the x’aan-chow I brought as my companion. She was simply…having a nap back here while I piloted the ship.”

  “And why can sshe not be mine?” Slo’vv hissed, the red-lipped mouth he had manifested turning down at the corners. “I find her enchanting—what are the speckless on her sskin? I have never sseen ssuch colorations.”

  “They are called Goddess kisses,” Dru explained. “They mark her as sacred to her people and render her too delicate to withstand, ah, any kind of fright or abuse. See how she trembles before you, Slo’vv—she could not live through your attentions.”

  “A pity…” Slo’vv manifested a hand from the side of his head, where an ear might grow on a humanoid, and reached out with one long finger to stroke Annie’s pale cheek.

  “No!” Even as Annie flinched away from the seeking shade-finger,
Dru’s Drake rose within him. He tasted flame in his throat and shadow wings beat the air until small whirlwinds formed on either side of them as the dust and grit of the docking area was stirred into angry swirls.

  “My-my—ssuch power.” Slo’vv withdrew the strange ear-hand, allowing it to dissipate like smoke blowing away as he stared wide-eyed at Dru. “I alwayss ssensed, my friend, that you had ssomething elsse within you. Ssomething akin to my own ssubstance. But I have never felt it sso clearly before.”

  “It is…my darker half,” Dru said haltingly. “It has claimed this little x’aan-chow for its own. Which makes me very protective of her. I must ask you not to touch her.”

  This was taking a risk and he knew it. The Lord of the Maw Cluster did not like to be denied. But he had known Slo’vv for a long time and he knew the Shade being considered him a friend. Besides, he couldn’t let the other male touch Annie—he fucking couldn’t. Not just because his Drake would force a shift and take over in order to protect her, either. It was also because he couldn’t stand to see another man’s hands on her pure, sweet body. Especially not the claws of a Shadow Demon—which was the true name for what Slo’vv was, though he preferred the more politically correct term, “Shade being.”

  There was a breathless silence but at last Slo’vv allowed the large yellow eyes he’d manifested to dissipate and nodded his featureless oval head.

  “Very well. I will ssimply have to take pleassure in watching you enjoy her in the Shadow Palace,” he hissed. “In the meantime, what else have you brought me?”

  “Many marvelous things,” Dru assured him. “But will you allow me time to unpack in my rooms first? That way I can make my best presentation and I’m sure the anticipation will heighten your enjoyment of my gifts.”

  Slo’vv briefly manifested a shadow arm from his abdomen which reached up with a black shadow-claw and scratched his oval chin speculatively. As the arm melted away, he nodded reluctantly.

  “Very well—I ssee that you need time, for your little x’aan-chow has not even been fitted with earss and a tail yet. You may have one hour to prepare for your pressentation. I will await you in my ssitting room. And you may have your usual chamberss.”

  “I thank you for your forbearance.” Dru nodded his head respectfully. “I will be there.”

  “You both will be in attendance,” Slo’vv hissed menacingly. “Though I cannot touch her, I want to ssee as much of thiss little x’aan-chow of yourss as posssible. I am quite taken with her goddesss kissesss.”

  Then he turned and glided smoothly away, his shadowy robes floating a clear foot above the ground, which was his usual mode of transportation.

  Dru let out a breath. Gods, that had been a near thing—Annie didn’t know how close she’d come to being claimed by a Shadow Demon!

  He turned back to confront her and demand to know what in the Seven Hells she was doing here…only to be stopped by the sheer terror in her eyes.

  “Dru,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “What was that thing? Was that the bad guy? He’s awful!”

  Dru sighed. “Believe it or not, he’s my ally—my contact here. Come on, we have to get going.”

  “But…but where are we going?” she asked and he remembered that she only spoke English and hadn’t understood a word of the Shadow Tongue he and Slo’vv had be speaking. Clearly he would need to give her some Translation bacteria to help her get along here in the Maw Cluster. Luckily every Kindred shuttle came with a few doses.

  Stop thinking about how you’re going to get her through this—she shouldn’t be here at all! What the hell is she doing here in the first place, putting herself in danger?

  It was a moot point now, he acknowledged. Unless he wanted to abandon this mission completely, he was stuck with letting Annie stay. Slo’vv might be willing to keep his shadow-claws off her but he had made it very plain he was only doing so because she was still going to be in his presence. Even if he couldn’t touch her, he wanted to see her. If Dru tried to take her home now, he would never be welcome at the Shadow Palace again and Zar’ren would be able to continue his plans against the Kindred without any kind of interference.

  For a moment Dru was torn. Should he abandon the mission and take Annie home? Or let her stay here?

  “We can protect her,” his Drake growled. “We kept the Shadow One from touching her. We will not allow her to come to harm. She is mine—ours.”

  “All right,” Dru muttered angrily. “All right, she can stay. But I am not fucking happy about it.”

  “What did you say?” Annie looked at him with wide, uncomprehending eyes.

  Within, his Drake rumbled contentedly but Dru was mad as hell. She shouldn’t be here, damn it!

  “I said we’re going to show you off,” he growled angrily. “Now come on—we’ve only got an hour to prepare.”

  After the awful encounter with the shadow-man, as she thought of him, Annie was scared to death. But Dru gave her no time to ask any more questions. He put a hand under her arm and assisted her out of the storage compartment, none too gently, and then grabbed her by the elbow and steered her through the parking area towards a set of double doors built into a large wall at one end of the dusty lot.

  She looked around her as they went. The sky overhead was crowded with tall, alien-looking buildings and choked with some kind of smoggy blue shadow. Dimly, she could see the reddish outline of what might have been the sun on this strange planet but it didn’t seem to give much light or heat.

  Annie shivered in the thin silver outfit she’d taken from the Pairing Puppet as Dru pulled her onward. The double doors they were headed for seemed to lead into a vast, black edifice that towered over the parking area. But though it was huge—with towers and turrets that pierced the smoggy sky—it didn’t look quite real to Annie. The outlines of the walls seemed wispy and insubstantial, as though the whole thing might be blown away by a strong wind.

  “What…what is that?” she gasped, looking up at the strange building as Dru dragged her along.

  “That is the Shadow Palace where our host, Slo’vv, the Shadow Demon lives,” he growled. Clearly he was still very upset with her for stowing away. “It’s where we’ll be staying until I get the information I need and I can take you back to Earth, where you belong.”

  Annie felt hurt.

  “Dru, I’m sorry. I just…I didn’t want to leave you—didn’t want you to leave me, I mean,” she tried to explain. “I thought—”

  “No, you did not think at all.” He stopped in front of the double doors and whirled her to face him. Taking her by the shoulders, he gave her a quick shake. “Now you will have to play the part of my x’aan-chow whether you like it or not. If you fail, both our lives could be at risk? Do you understand?”

  “Yes!” Annie gasped out. “Yes, I understand. And…and I’ll do it.” She lifted her chin. “I can do this, Dru—no matter what it takes. I swear I can.”

  “You must.” His voice was grim and his black eyes flashed. “Or we will both die. Come—we don’t have much time and you must still be fitted for a tail and ears.”

  Annie wanted to ask what he was talking about but before she could, he pulled her through the double doors and they found themselves in a kind of elevator. She didn’t see any buttons but Dru pressed his palm flat against the black metal wall and spoke a word in that horrible, harsh language he’d been using with the Shadow Demon guy and then the doors crashed closed and the elevator began to drop so fast she felt like she was in free-fall.

  “Oh!” she gasped and grabbed at Dru’s arm. He was clearly still angry with her but at least he didn’t push her off—though he didn’t hold her to him either. He just allowed her to cling to his muscular arm while the elevator fell what seemed to be hundreds of feet before it stopped with an abrupt lurch that seemed to bring Annie’s stomach up into her throat.

  The doors slid open and they were suddenly facing two creatures about as big as Great Danes with strangely humanoid-looking heads. They walked on a
ll fours and their long, dog-like bodies were covered in short, gray fur but their flat, human faces held sharp intelligence as they cocked their heads from side to side and regarded Dru and Annie.

  Then one of them bared horribly sharp teeth—animal teeth, she thought dismally—and began to growl.

  Dru growled back at it and gave a volley of short, sharp barks. Was he threatening them in the only way they understood or speaking in yet another alien language? Whatever it was, it sounded distinctly canine in origin.

  The dog people stopped growling and lowered their heads, whining in apparent apology. Dru gave another series of short, sharp barks and pointed back at the elevator. They nodded and were quick to get in as Dru and Annie stepped out.

  “What…what was that all about?” Annie asked breathlessly as the doors shut and the elevator began to rise again.

  “The Doggers will get our luggage and bring it to our rooms,” he said shortly. “Which is where we need to go to prepare. But first we have to have you fitted for ears and a tail so you look the part of a proper x’aan-chow.”

  “I don’t understand,” Annie said, as he pulled her along again, this time down a featureless metal corridor with doors on either side every few yards.

  “You will,” Dru said grimly. “And you will not like it.”

  Annie wanted to ask what he was talking about but just then he chose a door, seemingly at random, and pulled her inside.

  Inside was yet another strange creature—a short, fat little man who had a beak like a parrot and bright green feathers for hair. He was standing in front of a large multi-compartment storage bin that looked to Annie like something you might buy at IKEA. Each compartment held a jumble of brightly colored objects but she couldn’t immediately tell what they were. Beside him was a waist-high platform which was padded with some kind of pink foam.