Page 2

Chapter Two

A s Antony Holbrook changed gears to slow down his car, he was careful not to wince. Three broken ribs bloody well hurt, but he’d endured worse.

Far worse.

He glanced at the woman in the passenger’s seat, and she snorted. “I told you to let me drive. I bet that hurt like hell, didn’t it?”

“Hush.”

“Nope.”

She grinned, and he rolled his eyes. Katrina Lau was one of the few people he trusted, and the only one who knew he’d been beaten to a bloody pulp during their last assignment.

It’d taken a lot of bribing to keep his superiors from finding out, but it’d been worth it. Otherwise, they might start suggesting he retire again.

And Antony wasn’t ready to do that. He was far from his dotage.

He turned onto the road leading to Clan Lochguard and steeled himself for another gear change as they approached the gate.

Trina said, “There are cars with automatic transmissions. You should try one.”

“It will be a cold day in hell before I do that.”

Pain radiated from his side again. But after his decades-long work for a secret division of MI5, he had a better poker face than just about anyone.

After they cleared the gates and he parked in front of the dragon security building, he glanced at Trina. “This is your last chance to change your mind. Because as soon as we head inside, you’ll have no choice but to go to Stonefire.”

Clan Stonefire was the dragon-shifter clan in the north of England. It was also where Trina’s half-sister, Nikki Gray-Hartley, helped run their clan security. And she didn’t know that Trina even existed.

She raised a dark eyebrow. “I would think I’ve proven myself enough times by now for you to trust my decisions, Antony. And I already made this one.”

“You have. But this is different, and you know. If you can’t recognize…”

She finished, “A possible weakness, then everyone could get hurt or die.”

“Exactly.”

“I know, I know. And I plan to be upfront with Nikki, the first chance I get.”

“That will still be some weeks away. We have to finish this next assignment first.”

She shrugged. “If no one has made the connection after all these years, a few more weeks won’t hurt.”

He’d suggested she talk to the dragonwoman earlier, but Trina had wanted some time to prepare. Nikki would no doubt have questions, and some of them weren’t easy to answer. Even Antony knew that.

He searched Trina’s brown-eyed gaze and nodded. “Right, then you handle it as you see fit. For now, let’s deliver this news before it leaks to the press.”

And it would, sooner or later. If it didn’t surface by tomorrow, his superior would do it himself.

Slowly, Antony rose out of the car and straightened his shirt and jacket. Part of him pitied Faye and Grant, who had no idea of the media storm coming their way.

And yet, a sense of excitement thrummed through him. Because he might see her again soon.

The dragonwoman he liked to ruffle, whenever he got the chance. Even though he shouldn’t.

In general, Antony kept his distance from people. Well, apart from his brother, Max, and Max’s mate, Lavinia.

However, staying in contact with his brother was risky, and the sensible thing to do would be to stay away. And yet, Antony hadn’t been able to cut Max out of his life. It was almost as if his brother were the last link he had to being human, and if Antony gave him up, he might turn into a monster.

You’re careful, don’t worry. It won’t be like before. Not wanting to think about the person he’d lost years ago because of his ego and recklessness, Antony pushed aside thoughts of family and the past before donning his charming persona. A younger dragon-shifter, not more than twenty or so, sat at the security reception desk. He stood as Antony and Trina stopped in front of him. “Hello, I’m Antony Holbrook. I have an appointment.”

“Of course, Mr. Holbrook. Although things have changed a wee bit.”

“How so?”

“Aye, well, see for yourself.”

Antony hated surprises because then he couldn’t plan for the eventual attack. “Tell me what’s changed, young man. Otherwise, I’ll turn around and drive off.”

Trina was used to his ways and remained silent.

The young dragonman frowned. “No need to be so dramatic, aye? It’s just that Faye and Grant are busy, so you’ll be meeting with Iris and Cooper.”

He made a mental note to find out what had happened to the co-head Protectors. If his protégé was as good as he knew she was, Trina would already know the answer by the end of his meeting.

As if reading his mind, the woman spoke up. “I’m supposed to inspect the Protector drills today. So, if someone could show me the way?”

The dragonman motioned someone over, and Antony recognized the tall dragonwoman with dark skin, black hair, and brown eyes—she was Zoe Watson. They’d worked together during a recent mission involving a geocaching competition.

She nodded at him and then asked the dragonman, “What’s up?”

“The female is here to watch the Protector drills.” He frowned and glanced at Trina. “Sorry, what is your name?”

She smiled, and the dragonman blinked. Yes, his protégé was bringing out the charm. She answered, “Trina is fine. And you are?”

“Er, Arran.”

As he gaped at Trina, Zoe snorted. “And this is why you’re doing reception work, Arran. You need to learn how to resist a bonny face.”

Arran glared. “I would say more, but we have guests, aye? I know how to act.”

Zoe shook her head and turned toward Trina. “I’m Zoe. And I’ll take you, but you do know they don’t start for twenty minutes, aye?”

Trina nodded. “Yes, but my boss here is eager to talk with the Protectors in charge. He’ll just get grumpy if I’m in the room. I’d rather stare at the sky than deal with that.”

Antony bit back a smile and appeared to be a tad bit annoyed. “She’s right—I need to share sensitive information with Iris and Cooper, and she can’t hear it. So would you take her, even if it’s just to stare at the sky? Us mere humans don’t get to see dragons this close very often.”

In truth, Trina already knew everything but had come precisely to listen to clan gossip and report back to him.

She played her part and smiled at Arran again. “Or, you could show me what you do here? I don’t get to visit with dragon-shifters very often, you know. And I’m oh-so curious to learn as much as possible.”

Arran cleared his throat, but Zoe rolled her eyes and gestured. “The lad will never get anything done then. Come on, follow me.”

As the two women went off, Antony mentally laughed at the dejected look on Arran’s face. He couldn’t be more than twenty-two or so, and it showed. Antony asked, “Pray tell, what is your full name?”

“Arran MacPherson.”

“Right, Mr. MacPherson. If Iris and Cooper are ready, then show me the way.”

Thankfully, the dragonman pulled it together, and Antony followed him down the corridor to a familiar meeting room used for non-clan members. Ever since he’d helped Emma McAllister and Logan Lamont—or, rather, they had helped him—Antony had been visiting Lochguard at regular intervals. Mainly because the Scottish dragon clan was closest to his little problem, one his superiors wanted dealt with sooner rather than later. Especially given what had happened in recent days.

Arran knocked and twisted the knob. Inside, the dragonman named Cooper Maxwell stared down at his phone. Next to him sat Iris Mahajan. Her dark brown eyes met his gaze, and a shock of lust rushed through him.

What would it be like to see her completely naked and at ease? Maybe even laughing?

Stop it. He wasn’t a young buck any longer, and he needed to harness his legendary control. While he had some sort of strange pull toward the dragonwoman, it wasn’t as if he could do anything but tease her.

He refused to risk her life.

Focusing on what he could do, he smirked and asked, “Happy to see me like always, my dear?”

“More like I’m busy, so get started already.”

Cooper gave her a look—no doubt because the dragonwoman always seemed so cool with others—but Antony focused on her. “Ah, but small talk keeps us all civil.” He brushed invisible lint off his sleeve before tugging at his shirt cuff. “And I’d rather not talk about the weather. But if you’ve heard of any unique bird sightings, then do tell.”

“What the bloody hell are you talking about? You’re into birds now?”

He ignored Cooper’s deepening frown. “I always have been, my dear. One needs something to do when hunkered down in a forest, waiting for prey.”

Cooper cleared his throat, and Antony finally forced his gaze to the dragonman and smiled. “Hello, old chap. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

He blinked. “Er, yes. But Iris is right—we have a lot to do today. So if you could sit and get started, that would be helpful.”

Antony glanced from one to the other. “Is there anything I can assist with?”

Iris shook her head. “No. We have it in hand.”

No doubt she did. But he still replied, “I’m always here, if you should need me.”

She muttered, “I bloody well won’t.”

Antony chuckled as he sat down, careful not to wince at the pain in his ribs. “That may change, sooner than you think.” He held out a file folder and tossed it onto the table. “The clanless dragon-shifters living in Cairngorms National Park have disappeared.”

Over the years, as more clans accepted humans, some dragon-shifters had tried to keep dragon clans for dragons only. Eventually, those who resisted the changes had been banished or ran away. The majority of them had gathered together in Cairngorms.

It was something all the UK dragon clans had been watching closely. But not as closely as Antony and his superiors.

Cooper frowned. “So they’ve moved? To where?”

“No, they haven’t moved—they’ve vanished. And before you ask, we’ve been watching that site for a long time now. If they so much as took a piss, we knew.” He leaned forward. “And yet one day, the site was simply abandoned, with us none the wiser. It’s as if a portal opened up and swallowed them.”

Or, he had a traitor in his midst that had helped them. But one thing at a time.

Iris rolled her eyes. “This isn’t some science-fiction show, Holbrook. They had to go somewhere.”

“Indeed. Certain individuals are eager to find out where.” He tapped the file folder. “This will all leak by tomorrow, at the latest. We want to judge the public’s reaction and see if it helps answer the question of where they bloody went.”

Cooper jumped in. “But won’t that just send people to the dragon clans, saying we murdered our own kind, and cause chaos?”

“Perhaps. But we need to see how your enemies react to the news.”

As well as other dragon-shifters, but he couldn’t share that bit. Not yet.

Iris said, “That includes how the dragon hunters react, aye?”

“Yes, my dear. Especially them. But there are also people on the internet who stir the pot all the time. Some of it is to be cruel, and others genuinely want a human and dragon war. So we’ll be monitoring them, too.” He gestured toward the file folder. “Inside is information the media won’t get, so study it and let me know if you have any questions.”

He stood slowly and Iris asked, “You’re just going to drop that bombshell and leave?”

Raising an eyebrow, he replied, “That file will answer your questions, and then some. It’s better for you two to study it and then ask me questions later.”

“How can we when you always disappear into the ether?” Iris asked.

Antony took out a small phone and held it out. “This is your direct line of contact to me. It can’t be traced, nor will it dial any number but the one in there.”

She took it, careful not to brush her fingers against his. But Antony couldn’t resist, and reached out his forefinger to touch her thumb as she pulled away.

Like always, electricity raced through him at her touch. Her pupils flashed between round and slitted, too.

Ah, so she wasn’t as unaffected as she pretended to be.

Don’t think of it. Not even once. It’s too risky. Antony dropped his hand and nodded. “If anything happens, anything at all, let me know. You may also want to watch the family members here who have a relative or loved one who left back when Finn gave his ultimatum.”

At one point, some of the Lochguard dragon-shifters had wanted to hurt Arabella, Finn Stewart’s mate, and get rid of any humans. In the end, the Lochguard clan leader had banished anyone who wouldn’t follow his leadership or accept humans.

Cooper shared a glance with Iris and finally replied, “Aye, we’ve been doing that already, but we’ll increase our surveillance.”

“On all of them?”

As if he didn’t know Grant McFarland’s father and uncle had left Lochguard years ago with the traitors.

Iris frowned. “Some of them would die for the clan, like Grant. So, no, we won’t watch all of them.”

He smirked. “I was just testing you two. I already know Grant and his brother, Chase, can be trusted.”

Iris stood. “Then why waste our time?”

“Because sometimes you can learn a lot from a person’s reaction.” She opened her mouth, but Antony beat her to it. “Right, then I’m off. If I don’t hear from you, I’ll return in a few weeks. Our meetings will be more frequent, as a matter of national security.”

Before either dragon could say a word, Antony turned and exited the room. If he’d stayed, he would’ve been tempted to tease Iris some more. And nothing good could come from it. Distance was the only way to navigate his life and his work.

Because he would never again cause someone else’s death, like he’d done with his late fiancée.