Dragon's Curse (Heir of Dragons: Book 2) Read online

  Kaylee took a step towards him. As she did the man kicked his motorcycle into gear. He gave a last nod to Kaylee then rumbled out of sight.

  Only then did Kaylee realize she’d shifted her hands to claws.

  Thanksgiving passed without anyone dying or the Slayers trying to kill her. Not surprisingly, it made the holiday that much more enjoyable.

  The next week was a battle for Kaylee to stay focused. Finals were squashed between their upcoming Christmas break, and on top of that she and Jade had been kept busy with their respective training; Kaylee trained by herself, trying to mimic the intensity of the lessons she’d had with Baba and utterly failing, and Jade practicing more for her test to become an official Tamer that would take place the following year.

  Kaylee’s parents had been a little more concerned lately too, and it showed with their increased questioning about finding her a new trainer. They hadn’t been the most involved in Convocation business, but now that Kaylee had stopped the training that would supposedly help her actually survive until at least college, they’d visited Alastair a couple times to figure out what was going on.

  “You’re in trouble…” her little brother Jeremy had said one night when their parents had gotten home from their latest meeting.

  “Shove it, squirt,” Kaylee said, pushing his head down. The move wasn’t as effective as it used to be. Jeremy had shot up over the last summer. Now he was one of the tallest seventh graders in his middle school, a fact he continually reminded her of.

  Kaylee had asked her parents if Alastair had found someone yet.

  “No one suitable,” her mother had answered.

  “They will,” her father had said cheerily. “Think of it like training for the Olympics. You have to find the perfect trainer to make it to the gold!”

  “That’s…not a great analogy, Tim,” her mother said.

  “Unless the gold is not dying,” Kaylee said.

  Kaylee knew something was wrong the moment she stepped out of her last class. Instead of being packed and ready to go to her after school training, Jade was waiting in the hallway for her, a serious look on her face.

  “Problem?” Kaylee said.

  “We’re not sure yet,” Jade said. “Get your stuff. Quick.”

  Jade stayed uncomfortably close to her as the pair of them threaded through other students to their lockers. As Kaylee pulled the books she needed, Jade kept a keen eye turned towards the outside doors.

  “You’re kind of scaring me,” Kaylee said, laughing weakly to try to lighten the mood. She lowered her voice, but it was impossible for anyone to hear them over the relieved end-of-school chatter. “Should I be prepared to…you know? Shift?”

  Jade’s eyes briefly widened. “No! I mean, hopefully not. You should never do that in front of normal people. Unless, you know, you’re in mortal peril.”

  Kaylee closed her locker and they crossed to the doors leading to the quad. “And will I be in mortal peril?”

  Jade didn’t answer. She double-checked the coast was clear, then pushed the door open.

  Maddox screeched to a halt in front of them. Jade went for the knife in her sleeve, stopping a second short as Maddox threw up his hands.

  “Friendly! Friendly!”

  “Idiot!” Jade hissed. “Maybe try jumping out of the bushes next time! Where is he?”

  “Gone,” Maddox said. “Pulled out of the parking lot a few minutes ago. A Protector swung by to tell me they’re trying to track him.”

  “Let’s get her home.”

  But as they talked, an uncomfortable feeling had started in Kaylee’s gut. “This…person, this guy…Was he wearing a leather jacket? Riding a motorcycle?”

  Jade and Maddox stared at her.

  “Please tell me you didn’t talk to him,” Jade said.

  “No! Of course not!” Kaylee didn’t mention she nearly had. She already felt like enough of an idiot, waltzing into danger like that. “I saw him once, about a week ago.”

  “Great. Who knows how long he’s been here,” Maddox said.

  “Who is he?”

  Jade pulled her arm and they started across the parking lot. For once, Kaylee wished she had a vehicle to go with her shiny new driver’s license. It would have been so easy to simply throw their things in and drive off to safety.

  “We don’t know who he is, only that he’s been around the Convocation safe houses and places of operation. He also seems to know a lot about how the Convocation operates.”

  “And about you,” Maddox said.

  “Thanks, Maddox. Like we needed to worry her any more.”

  But as the two of them flanked either side of Kaylee and hurried her down the street, Kaylee wondered if there was a very good reason to be worried.

  “Get inside,” Jade said when they reached Kaylee’s house. “I’ll stay out front for a bit. A Protector should check in soon.”

  “I’ll go update Alastair,” Maddox said. He jogged off in the direction of Edwin’s house, pulling out his cell phone as he went.

  “You should come inside with me,” Kaylee said.

  “Na-ah. Someone’s got to stand guard.”

  “Jade, I’m a little better at protecting myself than I used to be. And you won’t do much good protecting me if you’re out here.”

  Jade pointed to herself. “Tamer,” then to Kaylee, “dragon-kin. Now get inside.”

  Kaylee sighed. They’d had this debate before and there was no arguing with her. Jade swore she wasn’t Kaylee’s dragon-kin Tamer out of obligation, but as her best friend, but no matter how many times she said it Kaylee would never feel good about letting her friend be in harm’s way for her sake.

  Kaylee went around the side gate, towards the back door. She paused as she passed the garage.

  Odd. Her mom’s car was home. And her dad’s? They weren’t supposed to get off work for hours.

  Nervousness prickled the back of Kaylee’s neck. There was probably a good reason for them being home early. Maybe Jeremy had gotten in trouble at school again. That had to be it. Nothing sinister or unusual about that. All the craziness of the last hour had sent her internal alarm bells into overdrive.

  But as she put the key in the back door and cracked it open, she turned, sensing something out of place. It was a hiccup in the normal uniformity of their backyard—a disparagement in the usual outline.

  Kaylee held in a gasp.

  There, leaning against the shed, partially obscured beneath a ratty tarp, was a motorcycle. And not just any motorcycle: the one she’d seen the man riding the other week.

  Something shocked her leg.

  Kaylee let out a startled yelp of alarm and stumbled inside as an electric fox slipped past her.

  “Kaylee?” a gruff voice said. Kaylee froze. She should run. She could make it back to Jade before the creep could grab her.

  “Kaylee?” Her mom said.

  Oh no. Her parents. Maybe even her little brother. She couldn’t leave them here. She’d never be able to live with herself if they got hurt.

  Kaylee forced her nerves to settle and stepped the rest of the way inside and into the kitchen.

  Her parents stood, arms crossed, near the refrigerator. The motorcycle man leaned on the bar, eyeing her with interest.

  “There’s my favorite niece,” he said in a voice low and grating. “Technically my only one, but who’s counting? ‘Bout time we saw each other again.”

  “Who are you?” Kaylee demanded.

  The man chuckled. “Oh, you know me, girl, though you were just a spit when I saw you last.” He raised one hand and electricity crackled between his fingers. “I’m your Uncle Randy.”

  Chapter Five

  Kaylee’s arms shifted before she realized she’d done it. Goosebumps prickled the skin on the back of her neck as the temperature dropped. The windows fogged, then frosted.

  Uncle Randy cracked an eyebrow. “Well, I wasn’t entirely sure if I believed what they’d said about you. Glad to see I’m not completely wast
ing my time.”

  “Kaylee, what have I told you about magic in the house!” Her mom barked. “Away, now, young lady!”

  “He was at my school. A week ago,” Kaylee said, not moving. “He’s been following me.”

  “Not following,” Uncle Randy said. “Scouting.”

  “You went to her school, Randall?” Kaylee’s mom said. “Do you have any idea how creepy that is?”

  “In retrospect, not my finest idea. I wanted to see her before ol’ Alastair got a whiff I was here. Wasn’t sure if he would actually let me meet her.”

  “Gee, I wonder why that would be,” her dad said. “Maybe because you’re dangerous?” He pointed to the door. “You need to leave, right now.”

  “Calm down, Tim,” Randy said. “I’ll leave when I’ve said my piece. And why don’t we stop this idiocy?”

  He brought up one muscular arm and waved his hand in a swirling motion. The electricity rotating around Kaylee’s hands was pulled into the center of his palm. Randy closed his fist and the electricity vanished.

  “There. Glad to see they didn’t completely skimp on your training, though when I heard they had Baba Menorah teaching you…” Randy shuddered. “Glad you’re still alive, kid.”

  “How did you do that?” Kaylee said, her curiosity temporarily outweighing the immediate threat.

  Randy winked. “Pretty cool, right? You can learn, if you want.”

  “What are you doing here, Randy?” her mom said. She snapped her fingers. “Kaylee. Dragon scales away. I won’t ask again.”

  Kaylee reluctantly shifted her arms back. Randy held up a hand.

  “I’ll explain everything in just a sec. Let’s let the rest of the party arrive—ah, here they are.”

  Kaylee hadn’t heard Alastair or the others come in. In an instant, a Protector blocked each door to the kitchen. Alastair himself stood in front of them, his sleeves rolled back, his hands clawed. It was an intimidating display of force. Randy looked unimpressed.

  “Oh look, the rest of the party.”

  “Back up, Kaylee,” Jade whispered behind her. “Let them handle this.”

  Kaylee stayed in place. After the initial shock at seeing her uncle again had worn off, her common sense took over. This was Uncle Randy, not Lesuvius or some rogue Slayer. The guy had visited once when they were kids and hadn’t hurt her then. He also could have attacked her at school but hadn’t. If he’d wanted her dead she would be by now.

  “Alastair.” Randy nodded. “I see the Scarsdale Convocation is still as alive and kicking as ever. Though your outer perimeter security is a bit lacking. It took your guys almost a week to figure out I was hanging out at all your Convocation hotspots.”

  “What are you doing here, Randall?” Alastair demanded.

  “Just heeding the call, like a few other trained dragon-kin.”

  “Heeding—” Understanding dawned on Alastair’s face. “Absolutely not. That position and any position like it was closed to you a long time ago.”

  Randy settled his weight on the kitchen bar. For such a big man the movement was almost delicate. “Circumstances have changed, my man. Clearly, if you’re having to—” He paused. He motioned to the Protectors still hovering around the edge of the kitchen. “Can these guys leave? We’re trying to have a decent conversation.”

  “They’re here to escort you out.”

  “If you’re worried I’ll hurt Kaylee or anyone else, don’t be.” Randy sucked in a deep breath. A prickle shot up Kaylee’s spine. The overhead lights blazed twice as bright, forcing everyone to cover their eyes. When Kaylee put her hand down she could see a cage of electricity surrounding Randy like a coil of snakes. An occasional bolt lashed out towards Alastair. The Protectors surrounding him took a step back.

  “If I wanted to hurt them, I would have,” Randy said simply.

  “No magic in the house!” Kaylee’s mom yelled. “Enough, Randall!”

  Randy let out another long breath, his eyes never leaving Alastair. The electricity vanished. “Whatever you may have heard about me, I would never hurt my family. I’m not a monster, Alastair.”

  “I never said you were. I also never said you were someone to trust.”

  “Why don’t you try giving me the chance to earn it?”

  The two held their gazes a second longer, then Alastair reluctantly waved a hand to the Protectors. “Outside, but stay alert. That means you, Jade.”

  “But—”

  “Now, Jade. Thank you for bringing Kaylee home.”

  Jade eventually nodded then joined the other Protectors as they left. Kaylee stepped closer to her parents. Alastair and Randy continued to face off.

  “I still won’t allow it,” Alastair said.

  “You did send out a call, didn’t you?”

  “For any teacher other than you.”

  “I’m sorry, are my qualifications lacking?”

  “Your methods are not how we handle things in the Convocation—”

  “Has anyone died?”

  “That’s not—”

  “But no one’s died.”

  “…No.”

  “And the people I’ve stopped deserved it.”

  “It’s not about deserving it—”

  “And I’m an electric dragon-kin, which is probably the closest elemental magic you’ll find to hers, unless you have another storm dragon hiding beneath that ridiculous suit. Plus, I’m family.”

  Randy stepped closer to Alastair. “So what you’re really saying is you don’t want me training her because I didn’t pledge allegiance to your little club.”

  “Did you come here to train me?” Kaylee said. “You’re applying to be my new teacher?”

  “Yes. And as far as training…” Randy eyed her. “You’ve got spark, I’ll give you that. I’ve heard of Scarsdale’s storm dragon-kin darling. We’ll have to see if there’s any truth to the stories.”

  Kaylee’s dad stiffened. “If you think for a moment I’m going to let my daughter train with you—”

  “Tim,” Kaylee’s mother said in a warning tone, but her dad cut her off with a slice of his hand.

  “No, Dianna! This guy vanishes for years, then just shows up and expects to be let back into our lives?” He pointed a threatening finger at Randy, and for the first time during the entire conversation Kaylee felt a ripple of unease. She had never seen her dad lose his temper like this. “She’s not going to train with you.”

  “That’s not your decision, Tim,” Randy said. “Do you want what’s best for Kaylee?”

  Her dad’s face grew so purple Kaylee was afraid it would explode. “How dare—”

  “If you want what’s best for her then she needs the proper training. And that’s with me.” He turned to Alastair. “And I think you know it.”

  Alastair glared at him a moment longer.

  “Um…don’t I get a say in this?” Kaylee said. “He’s going to be my teacher, after all.”

  “Kaylee, we’ve got plenty of other teachers who I’m sure would be more than happy to take you as their student,” Alastair said.

  “You mean like the Trainee Torturer?”

  Alastair grimaced. “Viktor’s methods are a little…uncouth, I’ll admit. But he gets results.”

  Randy let out a rumbling laugh that reminded Kaylee of a car with a dead battery trying to turn over. “Viktor and the other two idiots I know applied couldn’t teach a baby how to cry. You really think an earth or sky dragon-kin know the first thing about her kind of magic?”

  “About as much as you.”

  “I want Randy,” Kaylee said.

  The room hushed. Her dad’s mouth hung slack.

  “Kaylee…” her mother said.

  Randy beamed at Kaylee. “Good choice, kid. We can start with the basics and move to—”

  “Wait.” Kaylee’s mom didn’t speak forcefully, but again the conversation came to a grinding halt. Kaylee had heard her mother use that tone only a few times before, and none of them had ended well for the p
erson her fury was directed at. It was almost as if she’d gone beyond simple anger and entered a whole new level of reprimanding.

  “Randall, you come motoring into town after years traveling God-knows-where, never having written, called, spoken to us once—”

  “I came by when Jeremy was born!” Randy protested.

  “And nearly caused an electrical fire and burned our house to the ground!”

  Randy shrank back as Kaylee’s mom advanced, finger raised. The way he stared at it made it seem as if she wielded a sword aimed straight at his heart.

  “As if that wasn’t enough you tried to traumatize Kaylee—”

  “I was seeing if she had any latent dragon-kin abilities.”

  “She was three, Randall!”

  “Turns out I was right, though, wasn’t I—?”

  “And after that you zoom off into the night and we don’t hear from you until now. Please explain to me how any of that sounds like the kind of responsible adult who should be teaching my child.”

  The room held its breath when Kaylee’s mom finished. Her dad gently patted her hand. All eyes were on Randy.

  He looked between each of them, a half-cocked grin on his face, eyes beseeching for some leverage. Some way out. When he didn’t find it his expression sobered.

  “Okay, okay, okay. No, I haven’t been here, or stayed in touch, or any of that. But you of all people should know that’s not how I roll, Dianna.”

  “That’s a pathetic excuse,” Kaylee’s mom said. “And I wouldn’t know ‘how you roll’. You never let me find out. Not when you spirited off every chance you got. Not when you left me and our parents without a word and just—”

  “Enough!” Randy roared. The lights flickered again. One shorted, raining sparks down on Randy who brushed them away as casually as a dusting of ash. He took a deep breath and the lights settled. A Protector rushed in, but Alastair waved him down, still expectantly facing Randy. “I’m the best not because I stay in one place or I’m the best role model to your precious princess,” Randy said. “There’s a reason I travel around. Settling ain’t my style. But you know what I am the best at?” He pointed out the now-darkened kitchen window. “Knowing what she’s going to face when she finally leaves this crummy city, and how to deal with it.”