Page 2 of Kingdom of Chaos (Creatures of Chaos #2)

Striding forward, I move through the foyer, skirting the ugly dragon sculpture, and follow into the room where he disappeared.

It’s dimly lit, with dark wood trim and burgundy walls.

Thick red curtains are drawn tight, blocking out any natural light.

Wall sconces glow with muted faelight, and a fire crackles on the far side of the room, casting flickering shadows that leave parts of the space shrouded in darkness.

Drake is seated in a wingback chair in front of the fireplace, his gaze fixed on the burning logs as he slowly swirls the liquid in his glass.

I stop beside him, liking that I’m now taller than him. “Where’s Talon?”

“I already told you, he’s not here.”

“But when is he?—?”

“He’s not coming back,” Drake says, still staring into the flames. “He’s gone.”

Gone?

My stomach drops, and nausea prickles at the back of my throat. Talon can’t be gone. He owes me. Owes me answers. Owes me his help.

“But . . . I need Talon to find Becks,” I say quietly, mostly to myself.

Drake scoffs, a sneer tugging at his mouth. “Haven’t you heard? The dragon heir is dead.”

My insides twist painfully, like a lemon being wrung dry. “You know as well as I do that that’s not true.”

“Do I?” he says, his eyes locking with mine.

The leading theories about Becks are that he was either taken by the mysterious game master, who they believe intends to use him for ransom, or killed by the unhinged creature who orchestrated the nefarious games. The police now believe the entire point of Chaos was to trap the dragon heir.

Neither Talon nor I told them that Kerrim was the game master.

What would have been the point? He was long gone, and it’s not like they were going to find him.

At least not in this world. Our official story was that we were knocked out when the floor caved in and only regained consciousness shortly before the police arrived.

But Talon must have told his uncle what really happened Friday night, which, admittedly, doesn’t look good for Becks. Even as I’ve come to accept that Becks is gone, I refuse to believe he’s dead.

“Becks is the strongest creature I know. He survived. But he doesn’t understand where he is, and he won’t know how to return,” I say.

In his own way, Drake cares about Becks, even if it’s only because he’s the dragon heir. He might want to control Becks, but I know he doesn’t want him dead. If there’s a chance to get Becks back, I believe that would still be in Drake’s best interest.

“Haven’t you done enough?” Drake’s tone is hollow and emotionless, but I still flinch as if he delivered a physical blow. As much as he blames me for what happened to Becks, I blame myself more.

“You care about Becks, or at least about your precious dragon heir,” I say. “No one’s looking for him because they all think he’s dead. But I’m going to figure out a way to find him and bring him back. I need Talon to do that. So you need to tell me where he went.”

Drake finally looks away from the fire, eyeing me as he swirls the liquid in his lowball glass. “They’ll just pick a new heir. Everyone is replaceable.”

My chest tightens. That’s not true. Becks isn’t replaceable. And anyone who thinks he is can go to hell.

“Tell me where he is, or I’ll . . . I’ll . . .”

I’ll what ? What leverage do I have to make Drake tell me anything?

Drake arches a brow. “Or you’ll what?” he asks, echoing my thoughts.

I clench my fists, anger and frustration churning inside, threatening to boil over. Once again, I’m powerless against a powerful creature.

The frustration sharpens into fury. Before I even know what I’m doing, I slap the whiskey glass out of his hand. It sails through the air, shattering against one of the burning logs in the fireplace and sending a small burst of flame and embers into the air.

I step in front of him, forcing his full attention. A rough, guttural noise rumbles low in my throat, half growl, half warning, one I’ve never made before.

Drake’s eyes widen as he stares at me, shock clear on his face.

“Where. Is. He?” I bite out.

Then something strange happens. As I stand there, struggling to rein in my emotions, the shadows in the room shift.

Just slightly. So faintly I might have imagined it.

They ripple across the floor and along the walls.

The dim light from the sconces flickers, and for a heartbeat the room feels heavier, like the air itself is holding its breath.

Out of the corner of my eye, I think I see dark ribbons curling at the edges of the room, as if stirred by some unseen force.

I blink hard and take a step back, shaking my head. When I look again, everything appears exactly as it was.

Calm. Normal.

Maybe it was Drake subtly asserting his dominance, or maybe just the exhaustion catching up with me. I haven’t slept, and the last few days have pushed me past every limit. My mind must be playing tricks on me.

I take a steadying breath and glance back at Drake, who’s now assessing me with a calculated gleam in his eye after my outburst. I don’t like the look. I don’t trust it.

“Talon’s returned home,” he says, surprising me with a straightforward answer.

“And where exactly is that?” I ask, crossing my arms to hide the slight tremor in my hand. Even though I know the shadows in the room weren’t really moving, that it was just a product of exhaustion, I’m still a little shaken at the reminder of the powers creatures have that I lack.

A ghost of a smile touches Drake’s lips, but it does nothing to put me at ease.

If anything, it makes me more suspicious.

He reaches over to the end table beside his chair, pulls open a small drawer, and retrieves a pocket-sized notepad and pen.

He scribbles something down, chuckling darkly.

“I can’t wait to see what the Arcane Society does with you. ”

Does with me? What does that mean?

He rips the paper from the pad and hands it to me. “Either way, you won’t be my problem anymore.”

That might have been offensive if I cared one bit about Drake Brayden’s opinion of me.

I glance down at the paper, my eyebrows lifting when I see where he’s sending me: Grimbrooke. I’ve heard of the town, but I don’t know much about it, only that it’s on the coast and at least a half-day’s drive away.

Folding the note, I shove it into my pocket with a sigh. I hadn’t anticipated it would be this hard to track Talon down. He and I are going to have words once we’re face-to-face. Words, or maybe a fist in his gut. I haven’t decided yet.

“What’s the Arcane Society?” I ask, stepping back as Drake rises and then goes over to a bar tray sitting atop a dark cherry wood cabinet. Lifting a decanter, he pours himself a new drink, downing the whole thing before pouring another.

“You’ll find out soon enough.” With a full new glass, he sits in his wingback chair, focusing on the crackling fire, effectively dismissing me without words.

I mumble a thanks, though I’m not sure why I bother.

I don’t truly have anything to thank Drake for.

If anything, he owed me this address. After everything he and the meddling dragon council have done, I might never have entered Chaos in the first place.

And if that hadn’t happened, Becks wouldn’t be lost in the human world.

But half-drunk, slumped in his chair, alone in his dark, giant house, Drake looks pathetic enough that a small piece of my anger toward him slips away.

I shake my head as I walk away, not exactly wishing Drake well, but wishing that our paths don’t cross again. That’s the extent of the good will I have for the dark dragon shifter.

His voice rumbles from behind me just as I’m about to cross the threshold into the foyer. “Watch your back. You never know who your real allies are.”

I glance over my shoulder and see that Drake has twisted in his seat. Our eyes lock, and a ripple of foreboding crawls down my spine.

I consider asking him what he means, but I don’t trust him not to say something cryptic just to mess with me.

So instead I say, “I always have,” and walk out of his house without looking back.