Page 21 of Saving the Last Heir
No. That wasn’t possible. I huddled over, leaning away from the door and the terrifying claws that curled into it. People couldn’t turn into dragons. Science told me all I needed to know about that. Humans could not turn into magical beasts.
Yeah,and an hour ago, you’d have said dragons themselves couldn’t be real either, right? But your eyes aren’t lying. The damn thing is carrying the damn car through the damn air as we speak.
For a few seconds, I continued arguing with myself. My analytical mechanic’s mind only believed in what I knew to be true from textbooks, school, and general knowledge, and it was fighting with the part of my mind that believed in horoscopes, fate, and luck. Hell, I believed there were aliens out there in the stars somewhere, and some people thought that was ridiculous. Yet here I was, being carried through the sky in the grips of an honest-to-Goddragon.
Cursing under my breath, I leaned back out the window and looked toward the dragon’s head again. I couldn’t see its face, only the smooth scales under its jaw, like the smooth skin on the belly of a snake, milky white against the black of the rest of its body.
No way this is what’s happening, I thought, but I had to silence the curiosity swirling in my head.
“Uh…” I winced in embarrassment, then raised my voice to shout. “Jackson?”
The dragon continued flying, but twisted its thick neck and gazed back at me. The massive eyes of the dragon locked on me. Both of them were bright blue, but the left had a dilated pupil. The heavy lips curled into what I could only call a grin, revealing razor-sharp teeth.
The shriek exploded from my mouth before I’d even realized it was coming. ItwasJackson. The thing had theexactsame eyes. That was too big of a coincidence. This gigantic thing, this powerful mythical beast that was carrying me was also the guy whose nuts I’d crushed less than half an hour ago.
Frowning, I glanced through the rear window. Well, if dragons had balls, they must have been inside their body, because there were no swollen and throbbing danglies hanging out the back.
Confused and bewildered by all of it—and still trying to make sense of the entire situation—I sat back and waited, trying to figure out where he was taking us. Outside, the darkness became almost total as we left the city fully behind, and within thirty minutes we began to descend. When we got closer to the ground, I leaned out and looked down. I recognized the place. It wasa wilderness area a couple hours’ drive outside the city. People came here to camp, fish, and hunt.
The small bit of calm that had washed over me vanished as I realized I’d be on the ground soon. On the ground with a man who could apparently transform into a dragon at will. I glanced around the interior of the car for some kind of weapon, but gave up within seconds. I had no hopes of fighting off a person who lifted a five-thousand-pound car and flew it a hundred miles. Hell, he might even breathe fire.
A small access road appeared below us. Jackson flew directly above it until a cabin in the woods came into view. He circled, then descended, setting the car gently on the grass.
He flapped a few yards from me and landed. I opened the car door, trying to swallow my fear, and walked toward him, both awed and terrified by what I saw. Jackson sat on his haunches, massive wings folded behind his back.
“Is that really you?” I whispered, still thinking there was no way this could be possible.
The dragon gave a single nod of his head, and then…changed. My knees went weak, and I crumpled to the ground, my mouth dropping open in shock as the creature before me became like water or mist, morphing and shrinking in a few quick seconds, and then Jackson stood before me, whole and human once more.
He sighed. “I’m really sorry about all this,” he said apologetically.
My brain, threatening to short-circuit and send me spiraling into madness, fired off a few synapses, and I managed a couple of words.
“You’re…a…dragon?” I stammered.
He rolled his eyes and walked forward, bending down and helping me up. “It’s a long story and?—”
My hand snapped up, fingers clenched into a fist. Instinct screamed at me to hurt him, to run and get away. Jackson’s free hand shot out, lightning fast, and caught my fist. Rather than squeezing and shattering it, or twisting my arm to make me scream, he held my knuckles gently and gave me a sad smile.
“I probably deserve that,” he said. “Might have been better if I’d let you slug me.” Then he winced and twisted his hips back and forth as he adjusted himself. “Though, you may have prevented me from ever having kids, so maybe we’re even. Come inside. I’ll explain everything.”
Sagging in defeat, I gestured to the cabin. “What is this place?”
The building looked more like a luxury hunting lodge. At least three thousand square feet from the look of it, two stories, and an attached garage.
“It’s a safe house I use when I’m traveling or need to get away for a bit. I thought it was the best place to hidethatfor now,” he said, nodding to the car.
Despite my better judgment, I followed him inside. He flipped on the lights, walked over to the couch, and flopped down. “What do you want to know?”
“You’re joking, right? How about we start with the fact that you turned into a fuckingdragonout there,” I said, my voice rising to a manic shout, adrenaline still pulsing through my body. “We can start there.”
Jackson nodded and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Fair enough. A few humans know about us, so I suppose I can clue you in.”
“Humans?” I said. “You talk about us like we’re a different species or something.”
Jackson tilted his head to the side, and winced. “Sort of, not really, but kinda.”
“Oh, crystal clear now,” I said dryly.
