Page 14 of Cruel Destinies

“Did you invite the Grim Reaper to dinner, too?” Kai said. “Because those knocks nearly scared me into a grave.”

“I’d like to see that,” I chuckled.

Opening my desk drawer, I tapped at my tablet, causing the office door to open. In no time, the tall, bulky figure of Lord Arthur Dracul, general of the shifter military, stood stiffly in his uniform, as if his back was made of a straight, metal pole.

“Ah, Arthur, I wasn’t expecting you,” I said as I got to my feet. I wasn’t as tall as the general, but I liked to think I held the respect of the intimidating dragon shifter.

“Forgive my sudden appearance,” Lord Dracul said in a way that feigned no apology. “The military has kept me particularly busy over the past few weeks with the increasing number of vampire attacks. I have only just visited my son. Regrettably, I wasn’t able to return to the Dome right after he was attacked. But I am glad to see how well he’s recovered.”

I nodded, hiding my doubt of his concern for his own son. “Tobias is a valuable asset. His courage and bravery in the fight against the vampires has earned him respect beyond anything he’s done in school.”

Arthur glanced at Kai as if he was just noticing the kitsune. “Ah, the Master Engineer himself.”

The general removed a round object from his belt, and I recognized it as the vampire tracking device Kai had developed just a few months before. I’d almost completely forgotten about it after Celeste finally approved the finances for its mass production.

“Your latest creation has been most helpful. However, it has done little to slim down the number of vampire attacks.”

Kai’s jaw ticked, hinting at the annoyance teetering on his emotions. “Slim attacks down? By my ninth tail, Arthur, the purpose of the vamp tracker isn’t to decrease the number of vampire attacks. In fact, last time I checked, that wasyourjob.”

Fire blazed in Arthur’s eyes like a lit match dropped into a container of gasoline. “How dare you speak to me with such insolence,” Arthur growled, stomping into the office.

“Alright, you two.” I made my way around the desk to get between them before blows could be thrown. “You don’t have to act like a couple of pubescent students.”

But Kai had gotten to his feet and stepped right in front of the seething, towering Lord Dracul.

Unsurprisingly, my words went unnoticed.

“If the military could figure out how to undermine the vampires and their operations, we wouldn’t have to rely onmytech to find them,” Kai quipped.

“You witless worm,” Arthur growled. “You sit here in the comfort of the most secure and safe facility in the entire world, playing with wires and a soldering iron. You tinker while I and hundreds of other soldiers are out there risking our lives protecting you and everyone you love. We aredyingfor that cause.”

“I know precisely what it’s like to be out there on the front lines,” Kai countered, his nostrils flaring as he tried standing as tall as he could—he barely reached Arthur’s chest. “Before you decided to join our cause, it was me and Caesar doing it. So don’t go throwing your scales around, acting as if you’re the only one who’s doing something in this war.”

Arthur raised a massive hand, fingers outstretched, then swung it down to grab a hold of Kai’s shoulder.

I reached out to try to stop it, but stopped short as Kai’s body went translucent. Arthur’s hand went right through Kai’s phased body.

“Nice try,Lord Dracul,” the kitsune said as he walked straight through the dragon shifter’s body, phasing back into his solid form as soon as he was out of arm’s reach. Over his shoulder, he said, “Thanks for dinner, Caesar, but my useless projects won’t ‘tinker’ themselves now, will they?”

Arthur’s chest rose and fell rapidly, and I wondered for a moment if the general was going to go after Kai. At last, the dragon shifter turned around and shot me a perilous gaze.

“Why you continue to befriend Kai Inari is beyond me.” The fire in his eyes slowly smothered.

“He’s a good man,” I said. “Kai can be a nuisance at times, but there’s nobody in the world I trust more.”

Arthur shook his head while pointing an accusing finger at the doorway. “You’d trusthimwith your life?”

I chuckled. “Ihavetrusted him with my life, Arthur. And I’d put my life in his hands without any hesitation. But something tells me you didn’t come to my office to complain about Kai Inari. What can I do for you?”

Arthur eyed the open door, adjusting his blazer over his puffed chest. “I wish to discuss a...delicate matter with you.” His hint at the need for privacy was about as subtle as a mermaid in a puddle.

Swinging around the desk, I sat in my leather swivel chair and opened the drawer that held my tablet. At my command, the door swung closed.

“Please, Arthur, sit down.” I gestured to the chair Kai had been sitting in. With a quick swipe of my arm, I knocked my friend’s plate into the trash receptacle attached at the side of my desk, then dumped my own plate.

The tall military general slouched instantaneously, drawing a hand up to his face as he rubbed his temples with his thumb and index finger.

“Does this delicate matter have anything to do with Tobias?” I asked.

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