Page 8 of Serving my Dragon (The Dragocracy Chronicles #2)

Only the latter failed to accomplish anything because, apparently, I couldn’t report a missing person if that person lived with me.

When I tried mentioning Kayleigh’s injury and memory loss, I was told her case sounded like a medical issue and to speak with a doctor.

Another call to the embassy went right to voicemail again.

Annoying. Just in case, we did try emailing Sally again, this time attaching a picture of Kayleigh holding a sign saying: It really is me. I lost my phone.

Despite the cost, we also placed a call to the school she worked for only to get a recorded message indicating they were shut down for the American Thanksgiving.

“This is way more complicated than it should be,” I grumbled, apparently more bothered than Kayleigh, who chattered with Pollita. As promised, she’d begun teaching the supposed dragon how to read letters.

Mid-morning, Kayleigh showered and dressed. When I saw her about to head out the door, I frowned. “Where are you going?”

“Did you forget? Your mom promised to show me how to make those yummy tamales we had last night.”

“You’re leaving?” It emerged a tad more plaintive than expected.

“Only for a few hours. I’m sure you could use a break from my problems. Your mom told me you’re a hardworking man who will need to catch up on work emails and stuff and that you’ve made it clear you prefer to be unbothered when dealing with administrative tasks.”

I had claimed that, but that had been to stop my mother from constantly dropping by. “You can stick around if you want.”

“And miss out on learning your mother’s secrets? No way. I’ll be back around dinner.” She blew me a kiss—and I almost childishly grabbed it from the air.

As soon as the door closed, Pollita climbed the couch and flopped on my lap. “At last, we are alone. The female can cook, but she never stops talking.”

I glanced down. “Neither do you.”

“But at least I am interesting.”

True, if insane to admit. “Why do you think you’re a dragon?”

“Because I am.”

“But how could you know that?”

“Because we hatch with that knowledge. Unlike humans, who emerge from their fleshy wombs dumb and useless, we inherit the wisdom of our maternal progenitor.”

“Your what?”

“What you call your mother. Whatever languages our progenitor spoke, we can too. We also know the facts of our biology. History. Topography, although that tends to be useless the more time that passes between the creation of our egg and the hatching.”

“So you’re basically a clone of your mother.”

“No.” Pollita shook her head. “We are individuals with immediate consciousness and comprehension, but no personal memories.”

“Did you hatch in the canyon?”

“Not quite. Inside the volcano that erupted.”

“The Misti?”

“Is that its name? Then, yes. The heat of it cured my egg, setting me free.”

“Without burning you?” I couldn’t help a skeptical note.

“Dragons are creatures that can withstand much, including magma.”

“And yet stories claim dragons can be slain by swords.”

“An unfortunate aspect of our design is we do have some vulnerable soft spots.”

“If you’re really a dragon then where are your wings?” Because that usually seemed to be a key feature.

“Mine will come after a few moltings.”

“You’re going to shed your skin?”

“Yes, and most likely soon at the rate I’m eating. When that happens, you might find me listless and feverish. Simply leave me alone and it will pass.”

“Was that what happened when I found you on the shore of the river?”

“No.” Pollita jumped from my lap and paced, obviously agitated. “Upon hatching, I found myself in a place with scarce resources and no servants to procure nourishment. I ventured forth from the volcano to forage and found myself confronted.”

“By what? Cougar? Bear?”

“Humans,” Pollita hissed. “Several of them waited for me with a cage, as if I were an animal they could trap. But I escaped.”

“How?”

“I jumped off a cliff.”

Nonchalantly dropped and it took me a second to blurt, “You did what?”

“I wasn’t about to be captured so I leapt off a cliff and landed in a river. The current proved a tad more than I could handle with my diminutive size. Eventually, I washed ashore, which is when you found me.”

“Back up to the people with the cage. Were they there looking for you, or did they just happen to run across you?”

Pollita cocked her head and took a moment before replying. “I could not understand their words, but they definitely appeared to be seeking me out.”

Doubtful since dragons didn’t exist. Most likely some scientists collecting samples. They probably saw a strange new type of lizard and decided to nab it. “You mentioned growing. How big will you get?”

“Very big. We will need larger accommodations.”

I snorted. “Yeah. I don’t see that happening. I don’t make the kind of money needed to buy a bigger place.”

“Buy?” Pollita scoffed. “I am a dragon. I will take whatever castle suits me.”

“Castle?”

“My knowledge of them is that they’re nicer than a cave. Although, a lair high up in a mountain is harder to attack. However, they are also more difficult to staff. Humans can be finicky servants.”

I almost snickered, but she seemed entirely too serious. “I’m afraid there are few castles in the area. The ones that exist are mostly ruins left over from Incan times.”

“When I get my wings, you shall indicate their locations so that I might scout one for suitability.”

“Pretty sure the government isn’t going to just let you take over an archeological and historical site.”

“As if they have a choice in the matter,” Pollita scoffed.

For a tiny critter, she had the balls of a bull. “You should be careful,” I warned. “If you are noticed by the wrong sorts, you could find yourself in a zoo or a lab.”

“A zoo?” Pollita screeched. “I am not some freak to be stared at.”

“No, but you are rare. And rare things tend to be secured in places meant to keep them safe.”

“I will choose my own safe spot, and my protectors shall defend me.” An imperious claim not worth arguing over.

“So how long before you’re too big for my house?”

“That depends on my growth spurts and food intake. We most likely have a full revolution of the planet around the sun, maybe two, before it becomes entirely unsuitable.”

A year or two at most then. “I’ll miss you when you leave.”

“Why would you miss me? You’ll be accompanying me as part of my retinue.”

Yeah, I couldn’t stop the laughter this time. “Oh, Polly.” The shortened name slipped out. “I can’t move away. For one, my dental practice is here, and for another, Mama would never allow it.”

“Then we will bring her too. She can be my second cook.”

I allowed Polly her delusion because honestly, I didn’t see how any of it would work out.

If she spoke truly, and was actually a dragon, how long before she got removed from my care?

A creature so rare as to be thought legend would be contained in a secured environment.

Studied. Questioned. A terrible life, really, and I didn’t have the heart to detail what her future held.

Let her enjoy the time she had now before her reality changed.

“You say you were hatched in the volcano. How long was your egg there?”

Ever see a lizard shrug? Odd to say the least.

“I don’t know, but given what I’ve seen and experienced thus far, all of it new and unknown, it would seem much time passed as my memories have nothing of cars or televisions or this strange thing you call electricity that runs everything.”

“Are there other eggs waiting to hatch in Misti?”

“Doubtful. A progenitor will scatter its progeny like seeds to ensure viability.”

“Meaning there could be others elsewhere.”

“Most likely. Clutch sizes do range but it would be unusual for one with less than a pair of eggs. Now, if you’re done with the questions, I need a snack.”