Dragon's Pride (Dragon Blaze Ops Book 3) Read online

  What was worse was the feeling that something was inside of him. Clawing and struggling. Like he was the cage. The howling rang in his ears, louder than ever, but there was a symphony of other noises, too. The cawing of a crow. A cat spitting. The bellow of a moose.

  He pressed his hands to his ears, panting as he tried to block it out, but it was no use. What had they done to him?

  Things were clouded—the last thing he remembered clearly was ripping the hole open for Clementine to escape. The absolute relief he’d felt when she had disappeared into the forest. He had a vague recollection of pain. Being strapped onto a table. Then waking up here, in the cold and dark, with his fires desperately fighting the menagerie that had blossomed inside of him.

  The door in the roof of his cell creaked open and the Alpha’s face appeared in the grating. He laughed at Eugene as he sat there, huddled in that cramped position.

  “Well, well. See how the mighty dragon is brought low? Perhaps you are not so impressive as I always thought. It was stupidly easy to subdue you.”

  Eugene glared through the grating. The mocking would have no effect, he knew he had fought his best. Even if he didn’t fully remember that fight, he knew that he would have cost the Alpha greatly to bring him down. He also knew from his weeks here, fighting for the Alpha’s amusement, that the hybrids were stronger and faster than the normal shifter would be.

  “What did you do to me?” Eugene rasped out. A feeling like sharp talons cut across his chest and he hunched in pain, gasping as he fought not to cry out. The beast attacked him with a razor-like beak and wings beat against his ribs. His fires flared, chasing the sensation away, but it left him sweating and shaking. “More serum?”

  The Alpha chuckled darkly. “You were always my insurance policy, Dragon.”

  “Insurance?” Eugene unfolded his limbs, stiffly moving to his knees.

  His hand shot through the grating, nearly catching the Alpha’s collar, but he jerked back just in time. Eugene snarled at him, flames flickering in his mouth. He wanted to shoot them at him, to burn off that smug grin but was too afraid. If he lost any of his flames, would that be the last time he’d have them? They’d burn too low, unable to replenish themselves, and he’d lose this battle against the other creatures fighting in his chest.

  “What do you mean insurance? What do you think you’re going to get from me?”

  “Not from you,” the Alpha replied, shaking his head. “From Clementine. From the Academy. I had my suspicions since you arrived—”

  “I expected no less.”

  The Alpha’s eyes flashed like he wasn’t pleased with being interrupted but he shrugged. “You are good. I will give you that. You are very good at what you do. It’s been difficult to determine how genuine you were. The thing is, though, you did give away too much of your hand. Clementine is your mate. She will not abandon you to this fate. She is going to find a way to fix this, and she is going to bring it back to me.”

  “No,” Eugene said.

  “Yes. And then you will obey me for her sake, and she will obey me for your sake. And…” He leaned in close, pressing his face right against the bars. The smell that had faded since Clementine started him on the antibiotics wafted toward him, the sickly-sweet scent of rot. “And I will finally be able to think again.”

  Eugene opened his mouth again, but the Alpha pulled back. Eugene was just able to release the bars to avoid getting his fingers smashed as the trap door swung shut. Leaving him in darkness once more with only the cries of wolves and other beasts to keep him company.

  ***

  A snarl ripped through Eugene’s throat as two wolves and a bear came at him. He whipped around, flinging one wolf back with his tail while he swiped at the bear with his claws. The wolf jumped on his back, savagely biting at his neck. Eugene let out a roar and reached around. He grasped the squirming, struggling thing and ripped it away.

  Red washed over his vision. Why should they not suffer the same pain he was in. He opened his jaws, the howl from the beast in his claws echoing the howl in his chest as it reverberated down his spine.

  Flames flickered across his shoulders and back. Pain lanced through him. His grip on the wolf loosened as he screamed. It squirmed free and darted away.

  Eugene collapsed. He clawed at the floor. His hands became paws. His claws turned to talons. Fur pushed its way through his scales. Feathers sprouted over his wings. The agony was white-hot. It burned through him, hotter than any fire. He writhed and screamed and flailed as he fought against the creatures taking over his body.

  Only the thought of Clementine, that he couldn’t leave her alone, allowed him to reign it in. To retake his human form. He was left naked on the ground, curled into the fetal position, panting as sweat stuck blood and dirt this his skin and tears streamed down his face.

  “Here we go,” a cruelly familiar voice said, as arms lifted him to his feet. “Come on, now. Let’s not tax ourselves any further.”

  Eugene let out a puff of smoke as he leaned unwillingly against the Alpha. His legs were so weak he could hardly hold himself up. “I’m going to… kill… you…”

  The Alpha chuckled. “Oh, I’m sure you want to. But you can’t even remember which way is up and which way is down. How do you expect to kill me?”

  A bear batted his ribs and Eugene snarled. “I’ll do it. Just wait. I’ll do it.”

  ***

  “CLEMENTINE!”

  Eugene jerked forward. The restraints over his chest stopped him from going any further than half an inch. Tears poured down his face as he looked around wildly. Where was Clementine? She was here just moments ago. They’d been walking through a field. There were flowers in her hair. She’d been crying. He’d tried to hold her, to comfort her. But she slipped from his arms and was gone.

  Now his arms were empty. The room was bright. Too bright. Too white. There was a beeping in his ears. Fast. Hard. Matching the pounding of his heart. He strained against the bonds. His arms wouldn’t move. Why wouldn’t his arms move?

  Where was Clementine? He had to find her. She was hurting, she was in pain. He needed to tell her… he needed to go to her. He’d left her too long already. Where was she? He needed to find her! Was she in danger? Did that man, that vague, formless man that kept taunting him in the back of his mind, have her?

  Voices spoke just outside the door. Clementine!

  Eugene roared as he yanked his whole body against the restraints holding him in place. He strained, smoke steaming from the pores. Flame danced before his vision. He gave another mighty jerk and his arms came free. The band around his chest felt like it was crushing his ribs, but suddenly the pressure was gone. He ripped the cuffs holding his legs in place and jumped to his feet.

  “Clementine,” he murmured, stumbling for the door. He could feel her, a mountain lion purring and wrapping around his chest. He clung to it, clung to Clementine.

  The door was locked, but he threw himself against it. It burst open. There were a couple of shouts and then two men were there. They had thick nightsticks in their hands, and he snarled at them.

  “Where is she?” He held up his hands, ready for a fight. If they hurt her, he’d kill them. He’d kill them all. His fires burned hot, the pain clearing his head. They were the ones who hurt her! He staggered toward them, swinging clumsily. “Where is she? Where have you taken her? Bring her back! Bring my mate back or I’ll tear you to pieces!”

  He tripped over his own feet and fell heavily. The two men chuckled as he lay there groaning. It hurt too much. He just wanted to let the floor swallow him up. It was so cold, but he was so hot. He didn’t know what he was supposed to do. If he just let the blackness at the corners of his eyes take over, he’d be able to go back to that field. To Clementine.

  A stinking odor hit his nose. The man that hurt Clementine.

  Eugene roared as he surged back to his feet. He grabbed the man blindly. They both went down, and Eugene punched the man in the face. Again and again and again. Then
the man grabbed his wrist and threw him off. Eugene rolled, only to be stopped by a boot pressing to his chest.

  He looked up at the Alpha. The man didn’t have a mark on him. So then who was he hitting?

  “You need to get your head on straight, Eugene,” the Alpha snarled at him. “If you don’t start behaving yourself, I’ll just kill you and still pretend to have you to bring Clementine back here.”

  “Don’t you touch her!” His shout came out as a strangled whisper.

  “Eugene,” Clementine whispered in his ear. The mountain lion purred and curled around him, batting playfully at his fires. “Eugene, let’s play hide and seek. I’m hiding in the woods. Can you find me this time?”

  Yes. Yes, he would find her! He’d find her and kiss her, and they’d make love until the stars grew cold. He could taste her, smell her. She was so close!

  Eugene embraced the mountain lion in his chest. Fur rippled across his skin, enveloping him with warmth. His paws stretched, and his tail flicked from side to side.

  “Cougar,” the Alpha murmured. “That’s new. When did we put a cougar in you?”

  Eugene sprang at him. He clawed the Alpha across the face and dashed down the hall. She was so close. He’d be able to find her again. His heart rose, warmth spreading through his body. He’d be able to tell her. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

  They could have as many kids as they wanted—Clementine always wanted kids. He did, too. He wanted to be a father and wanted to see his mate swell with his child. He’d do everything he could to help her through the pregnancy. Midnight pickle runs. Go with her to every prenatal visit. He’d carry her up the stairs if she was too tired.

  And after the baby was born, he’d change diapers. Get up in the middle of the night. Take on extra chores around the house while she was resting and caring for their baby. He’d do his share and more. They’d be so happy, he and Clementine and their children—

  ***

  The forest smelled strange. Nothing made sense. He didn’t know where he was or where he was going. The mountain lion had faded away, leaving him with nothing. Even his fires were gone. Eugene limped through the brush, calling for Clementine. It wasn’t fun anymore. Why was she still hiding?

  Something heavy hit him, causing him to sprawl on the ground. A prick of pain bit his neck. Darkness closed in.

  His last thought was of how much he longed to hold Clementine one last time.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Clementine rubbed her stomach where the baby was kicking. She had known pregnancy was going to be hard, even for a shifter, but she hadn’t thought it would be this hard. Not only had the morning sickness not fully faded, but her stomach was getting big enough that she was having more difficulty doing the things she needed to do. Everything seemed to be more sensitive.

  And worse, she had to do it all without her mate. She missed him like a physical ache. At night she couldn’t sleep, worried about where he was and what was happening to him. Every few days, the Alpha sent a new video, showing him in his ever-deteriorating state.

  If it wasn’t for the rest of the Blaze Ops assuring her that they would find him and bring him back, Clementine was certain that she’d go back to the Alpha just to make it stop. Just to make sure Eugene wasn’t alone.

  Erica and Utopia leaned back in their chairs, watching as the results of the latest tests came up on the screen they were both looking at. Behind them, Karey stood in the corner with her arms wrapped around herself.

  The two of them had found the Academy quickly after their escape—or rather, the Academy had found them. It had been months since then. Between the Blaze Ops backing up Clementine and Utopia vouching for Karey, the two of them were allowed to work with the other doctors to find an anti-serum. The charges against Clementine were put on the back burner for now. Getting Eugene back and fixing this was the highest priority.

  Utopia let out a sudden whoop, jumping to her feet. Clementine jumped in surprise, not liking how her body responded to the jolt, and looked at the screen. Numbers and percentages crossed, but she was too worked up to try to understand them.

  “It worked?” she asked instead.

  Utopia turned to her with a giant grin. “It worked. This new anti-serum completely undoes the effects of that botched up hack job the Alpha’s been using. It’ll fix everything. I’m sure of it. I have to go tell Maura. Karey,” she turned to the wolf, who jumped, “can you please copy the formula onto this USB drive? I want to distribute it so we can start production at once.”

  Karey nodded as she took the drive.

  Erica joined Utopia as they headed for the door. “I’ll tell Maura and you inform the Blaze Ops.”

  Utopia nodded.

  Clementine sat there, in numb shock as Karey started to do as she was asked. “Is it real? Can we really save him?”

  “I’m sure we will,” Karey replied. “I just hope that my father isn’t so far gone that he won’t be able to understand why trading him back for this is necessary.”

  A shudder ran down Clementine’s spine, but she forced it aside with effort. The Alpha had been getting better when they left. If he had kept up with the treatment she had him on, he’d have gotten more stable yet. That meant his head would be clear enough to understand that this was the only way he’d be able to move forward.

  The thing was, Karey was brilliant. Far too brilliant to be simply a nurse. She’d been the one to figure out half of what they needed with this anti-serum. True, she had also been working on the problem longer, but all the same. She should not be relegated to the assistant. And if she went back to the Pack and stayed with them, she’d probably be able to figure out a serum that actually worked.

  “Karey,” Clementine said as she straightened up. “Do you want to go back to the Pack?”

  “I have to,” Karey replied, her voice small. “The Academy is going to trade me and the anti-serum back for Eugene. So it’s not like I have a choice.”

  “But you could,” Clementine insisted. “If you don’t want to go, if you’re afraid of what the Alpha will do to you for this, Maura will protect you.”

  Karey looked up doubtfully as she disconnected the USB drive from the computer. “I don’t think so.”

  “She will. I know that you must be terrified of going back, after you left like you did. The Alpha—”

  “The Alpha does what is best for the Pack. It is the duty of each one of us to serve him as we see fit.” Karey’s hand clenched around the drive as she glared at the floor. “The best way I saw fit was to come here, to do this. I wasn’t escaping my father, Clementine. I wasn’t running away because I hate him or I hate the Pack. I was… I was doing what I had to… for him... and he’ll see that…”

  Her voice trailed to uncertainty.

  Clementine adjusted her position, rubbing her increasingly sore belly. “But we both know that—”

  “You don’t know,” Karey shook her head, a desperate stubbornness coming to her expression. “He’s my father. I owe him my life. I owe him more than anybody can know. He’s the reason why I’m still given any authority, even though I’m an Omega.”

  “He’s physically and emotionally abusive,” Clementine shot back, hating to hear her defend a man who treated her like crap. “I know it’s hard to accept but protecting their children is a father’s job. You shouldn’t be indebted to someone who doesn’t even fulfill the basics of—"

  “You don’t know anything!” Karey shouted.

  The door opened and Adam stepped in. He frowned, but before he could say anything, Karey had stuffed the USB drive into her mouth. She swallowed as she shifted and burst past Adam while her clothes were falling off her.

  Adam whirled as Clementine jumped to her feet. “Karey!”

  And suddenly, even as Adam chased after the wolf, Clementine knew what she was doing. This wasn’t just an angry dash away from an uncomfortable conversation. Whether it was something she’d been planning from the start or if Clementine had push
ed her into it… She was going back to the Pack. She was taking the formula and going back to the Pack.

  If she got away, then they’d lose any leverage they had to get the Pack to hand Eugene over.

  Clementine jumped to her feet, her heart pounding. As she started after Adam and Karey, though, she forced herself to stop. She was in no shape to go chasing after anybody and it wasn’t like she could actually help a dragon. No. The Academy was guarded and there were plenty of others around. Cooper was no doubt hanging close by, keeping an eye on Erica. The other two doctors couldn’t have gone far, either.

  She forced herself to turn back and go to the computer. If Karey had erased the data… Relief washed over her when she checked it. Everything was there, with no indication that it had been tampered with. Clementine quickly grabbed another drive and copied the files onto it, all the while listening hard for any sounds that would tell her what was going on.

  Just as she finished and stood, a sudden, sharp pain hit her in the lower stomach. It wrapped around her abdomen, shooting up into her chest. Clementine cried out, gasping with pain as she clutched at her belly. Another pain drove her to her knees. She hit her head on the corner of the desk and fell to the floor as black splotches washed over her vision.

  Panting, gasping, writhing, Clementine tried to breathe. “Help,” she called weakly.

  Another pain, stronger than the previous two. This is not normal!

  “Heeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” White lights blinded her as the pain consumed her entire body. She felt something jerk and tug inside of her, a pressure on her pelvis. The feeling of being ripped in half while her bones threatened to snap. Her belly was full of snakes, viciously biting her again and again.

  A puddle grew around her, and she knew they were in trouble. She and her baby both. She clung to her stomach, sobbing and begging as though that would stop this. As though it would calm the terrible pain and put her amniotic sac back together.