Page 15 of Awaken the Dragon
Magnum’s deep raspy voice sounded from behind him. Theo nodded and walked in the opposite direction of Bleu, then stood at another set of tempered glass doors and waited until the body temperature scan was complete. The doors opened and he walked inside with Magnum right behind him.
They moved through narrow hallways with black-tiled floors and dark gray cement walls. Deeper and deeper into the mountain they went, bypassing turnoffs that would take them into other areas of the fortress Theo had constructed. When they came to a set of sixteen-feet-high oak doors, Theo put the palm of his hand on the handle and the locks disengaged. He walked in and recessed lighting on the beamed ceiling illuminated the space.
Going directly to the table in the center of the main conference room, he took a seat at the head of a mammoth slab of live edge black walnut wood table, glossed to perfection with a state-of-the-art conferencing system at the center and twenty high-back chocolate brown leather chairs around it. Magnum, whom he’d known for the last hundred years, took the seat to his right.
Magnum rested thick arms on the table. He wore a long sleeve beige shirt that was snug to his form and tucked neatly into light blue jeans. On his feet were the stylish work boots he preferred. A leather band held the locks that stretched to his waist, back from his face. He cleared his throat and then reached up to remove the Aviator glasses he wore to shield his eyes.
“I was asked to take this case. It was a favor to those my father served long ago. They are still in the Yorubaland region in hiding, but keeping a close eye on the humans there.”
He let Magnum’s words sink in. “We are just a security company. Nothing more,” he reminded him.
Magnum met Theo’s gaze. “I know what we are here in this place. They know who I am because they are Drakon too.”
Theo hadn’t heard that word in a very long time.
“Why?” he asked.
“They didn’t know. The sense of danger came after a storm. The request that she be protected came to me in a dream.”
Magnum was a dream watcher. In addition to being majestic dragons with unmatched strength and fury by nature, the Drakon also had specific magickal powers. As a dream watcher, Magnum possessed the ability to tap into the dreams of others. On the Far Realm, he would have been tasked with watching the dreams of those in an assigned area and reporting anything out of the ordinary or treasonous to the emperor. In the Human Realm, they still had their powers, but by Theo’s decree, they didn’t use them. Not unless absolutely necessary.
“Whose dream were you in?”
Magnum shook his head. “I don’t know. I didn’t know when the dream came, nor did I know after what it would mean. It was simply a voice that warned she might be in danger. I was going to ignore it, but then I received the messages in my inbox from Joku N’Gara. He asked that I guard his daughter until she was safely wed.”
“Why does she need a guard, and why isn’t he here with her if he felt she wasn’t safe?” These were the same questions he’d been asking himself since first meeting Shola.
“I don’t know.”
“Is it possible somebody would try to harm her to keep her from marrying Warrick Camden?” It was the first time he’d said those words since the thought began rolling around in his mind. He hadn’t liked the thought and he didn’t like the sound of the words any better.
“Anything is possible.” Magnum’s response wasn’t what he wanted to hear.
“Take Steele and find out everything that happened at that hotel this morning. Forget all of us meeting here. I want to check some things out first. And tell Aiken I want to see him as soon as his stomach ailment is better. We’re not prone to human ailments, so I’d like to know what’s going on with him.” He was referring to the guard who was supposed to pick Shola up as he stood and began walking.
Magnum followed.
“It’s a woman,” Magnum said.
“What?”
“Steele already read him the riot act about stringing along these humans then having to take the time to clean their minds when they won’t leave him alone.”
They were at the door when Theo turned to him.
“Getting into the human mind is messy and using that magick is leaving a bread crumb. Which is precisely why I don’t want us using our powers. Just because there’re other preternatural beings living on this realm, it doesn’t mean our kind should be here.”
Magnum nodded. “Yeah, I know. Getting Aiken to stop being guided by his dick is another story entirely.”
Theo frowned. Aiken was a slick one. “I’ll deal with him after we get through this case.”
“Do you want me to find another hotel for her?”
There wasn’t a second of doubt or hesitation. “No. She’ll stay here with me.”
Chapter Six
“My name is Bleu. I’ll see to it that you have everything you need during your stay here.”
