Queen of Dragons Read online

  Magical cuffs: complex handcuffs that cover the entirety of a shifter’s hands when they’re in human form. These cuffs are designed to keep thunderbird magic at bay. The Vaer have designed special cuffs just for Rory, with the ability to block her magic. These cuffs come with a remote that allows the captor to electrocute their captive to help subdue them, as thunderbirds are notoriously powerful.

  Spectres: a cruel and heartless organization that raises brutal assassins and hates dragonkind. The Spectres specialize in killing dragons and are known as some of the fiercest murderers on the planet, in part thanks to their highly advanced tech that no one else has yet to duplicate. They’re a spider web network that spans the globe, all run by the Ghost. Often, Spectres are raised from birth within the organization and are never given the choice to join. Once a Spectre, always a Spectre—quitting comes with a death sentence.

  Override Device: Spectre tech. Very frail and easy to break, it fits into USB ports and can grant access to sensitive files. Though imperfect and obscenely expensive to create, it usually works.

  Voids: Spectre tech. Fired from a gun with special attachments, a void can force a camera to loop the last 10 seconds and allow for unseen access to secured locations.

  The Knights: an international anti-dragon terrorist organization bent on eradicating dragons from the world. Run by General William Chase, they’ll do anything and kill anyone it takes to further their mission. There are some rebel Knights organizations that think the current General is too soft, despite his brutal rampage against dragons and his willingness to kill his own family should the need arise.

  Fire Dragons: the most common type of dragon shifter. Fire dragons breathe fire and smoke in their dragon forms. They’re found in a wide array of colors.

  Ice Dragons: uncommon dragons that can freeze others on contact and breathe icy blasts. Usually, ice dragons are white, pale blue, or royal blue. The only known black ice dragons belong to the Vaer family.

  Thunderbirds: dragon shifters that glow in their dragon forms and possess the magic of electricity and lightning in both their dragon and human forms. They’re the most feared dragons in the world, and also the rarest.

  The Seven Dragon Families: the seven dragon organizations that are run like the mob. Each family values different things, from wealth to power to adrenaline. Usually, a dragon is born into a dragon family and never leaves, but there are some who betray their family of origin for the promise of a better life.

  Andusk Family: sun dragons who prefer warm climates, almost all of which are golden or orange fire dragons. They’re notoriously vain, focused on beauty and being adored. Fairly materialistic, the Andusk dragons hoard wealth and gems and exploit those in less favorable positions.

  Bane Family: ambitious fire dragons who deal mainly in illegal activities. They view laws as guidelines that hold others back, while they aren’t stupid enough to follow others’ rules. They like to see what they can get away with and push the limits.

  Darrington Family: the oldest and most powerful family. Darringtons are mostly fire dragons, and angering them is considered a death sentence. They’re well situated financially, with a vast network of natural resources, governments, and businesses across the globe. They’re notorious for thinking they’re above the rules and can get away with anything… because they usually do.

  Fairfax Family: a magical family known as the only one to have thunderbird dragons. They have innate magic and talent, but sometimes lack the drive it takes to use those abilities to obtain greater power. They prefer to think of life as a game, and the only winners are those who have fun. To the Fairfax dragons, adrenaline is more important than money, but protecting each other is most important of all.

  Nabal Family: wealthy fire and ice dragons. Money and information are most important to the Nabal, and they have an eerie ability to get access to even the most secured intel. Calculating and cunning, the Nabal weigh every risk before taking any action.

  Palarne Family: noble fire and ice dragons known for their honor and war skill. Ruled by their ancient dragon code of ethics, the Palarne family operate as a cohesive military unit. Their skills in war are unparalleled by any other family.

  Vaer Family: a secretive family of fire and ice dragons, they’re known to be behind many conspiracies and dirty dealings in the world. Some see them as brutal savages, but most fear them because they have no ethics or morals, even among themselves.

  Chapter One

  Cold December night air whispers across my skin as I flatten myself against the closest tree, my body tense and ready for battle.

  Through the dense smattering of snow-covered evergreens, I spot the corner of the Vaer research facility we will be attacking tonight.

  We have to succeed.

  No second chances.

  This is life or death.

  I’m risking everything by being here, and though my years as a Spectre let me stalk silently toward the compound, this mission isn’t going to be easy.

  If one thing goes wrong, people might die tonight. People I care about.

  I can’t let that happen.

  Tonight’s mission is straightforward—get in and divert the Vaer’s attention long enough for Drew to hack their network. The program he’s planting will allow us to spy on all of the Vaer’s dealings from here on out.

  But honestly, I have a second reason for being here tonight.

  A vendetta.

  So, yes, we’re going to hack their network. But we’re also going to free the shifters being held against their will. These people are being used by Kinsley. We think she’s testing them for some type of new bio-weapon. A weapon that I refuse to let see the light of day.

  I glance down at Ashgrave, in his mechanical dragon body, as he stands near my feet. I can’t help but smirk. I can’t deny it—I love having my murderous castle close by. His metallic head swivels as he takes in our surroundings, still curious about the outside world.

  From my vantage point of about fifty yards from the front doors of the Vaer compound, I watch three armed guards pace back and forth, weapons strapped at their waists as they scan the forest. The thunder of boots hitting the pavement lets me know there are more guards in the back.

  Time to blow their night to hell.

  Drew’s voice booms through the comm in my ear. “I have eyes on the front.”

  “Same,” I respond in a calm and steady voice. “If this works, we’re going to have a huge advantage.”

  “Yeah, it’s risky,” he admits. “It’ll work, Rory.”

  “I know.”

  It’s only a partial lie, really.

  This will work.

  It has to.

  “Let’s do this,” Drew says with a tense sigh. “Standby.”

  “Stay alert,” I warn everyone.

  The crunch of footsteps in the snow catches my attention, and I stiffen impulsively even though I recognize the gait.

  Tucker.

  “Hey babe,” I whisper without looking over my shoulder.

  “I thought I was being quiet,” he mutters, a twinge of disappointment in his tone.

  I shrug, my attention still trained on the guards. They haven’t seen us yet, thank the gods.

  I feel his gaze on my body, and I take a quick glance back at him to find his eyes observing my curves.

  I smirk.

  “Are you going to watch the enemy, or my ass?” I ask as I quirk an eyebrow.

  “I can multitask.” Tucker says as he puts a hand on his chest and sticks out his bottom lip, pouting as I call him out.

  The ex-Knight gestures toward the sniper rifle slung over his shoulder, indicating he’s ready to use it at a moment’s notice.

  As I turn back around to observe the facility and time our little invasion just right, he moves behind me, pressing his muscled body against my back and ass. I suck in a deep breath, my dragon immediately stirring in response. Heat burns through me as desire pools between my thighs.

  “You know I’m ready whe
never you are,” he breathes into my ear.

  “Jerk,” I whisper teasingly. “How the hell am I supposed to focus on getting us in there when you’re pressing against me like this?”

  I playfully brush him off and he gives me a peck on the cheek. Tucker jogs over to his tree of choice and hoists himself up, readying his sniper rifle and falling into silent mode.

  Now, he’s focused. I guess he just needed to mess with me first.

  I glance upward. The skies overhead are empty.

  Good.

  I know that Jace and Levi will be here at my signal.

  With a steady breath, I try to shake off the brewing tension in my shoulders. This is going to be an unusual fight.

  Mainly because we aren’t here to win.

  According to our little plan, I have to leave the facility standing and some of the Vaer guards alive, even though the Vaer are torturing people inside it. Our hack won’t work, otherwise. But we do get to throw a wrench into their operations which thrive on dragon experimentation, bio-weapon development, and drug trafficking.

  Kinsley makes her money by destroying the lives of those around her. I think it’s high time I give her a bit of her own medicine.

  The Vaer Boss will think I’m here to rescue her prisoners and piss her off. But I will also walk away with the hack firmly planted in the heart of her telecommunications system.

  I can hardly wait.

  The snow falls lightly around me as I watch the armed guards pace back and forth. Their strides aren’t changing, and if they have any hint that we’re here, they aren’t acting on it.

  Something tells me they aren’t good actors—we’re in the clear.

  “Drew, how many are around back?” I whisper into my comm.

  “Eight. And no doubt there are more inside.”

  “We can handle it.” I reach for the gun at my waist and prepare for battle. “Are our decoys ready?”

  “Ready,” Jace’s voice chimes in. “Levi and I will charge in and take them out, clearing the way for Drew.”

  “Good,” I say. “Get ready, on my mark.”

  I nod to Tucker and then Ashgrave.

  “I WILL SMITE AS MANY AS I CAN, MY QUEEN,” Ashgrave promises, barely keeping his booming voice to a whisper.

  What a good evil butler.

  My gun weighs heavily in my palm, a comfortable reminder that I’m going in armed and ready to kill. It feels a little unnecessary, since I can summon a dagger with my magic. It would be easy to use my power to take out the guards. Problem is, my power fluctuations have been wild lately, and they’re only getting more uncontrollable.

  Not great.

  Besides, I don’t want to overwhelm any of the prisoners the Vaer have locked in there. Who knows what hell they’ve experienced, and how terrified they’re going to be as it is? Fear makes people do crazy things, and I want to make sure I get them out uninjured.

  A magic dragon-lady running in with a glowing white sword might scare the shit out of the people I’m here to help.

  So… I’ll play nice.

  For now.

  “Let’s do this,” I say into the comm, my voice tense and dark.

  Within seconds, my blue ice dragon flies silently through the air near the back of the facility. My black thunderbird flies at his side, and the two unleash a flurry of ice and blue lightning against the eight shifters.

  It’s not even a fair fight.

  I give Ashgrave a firm nod, and a dark plume of smoke escapes his nostrils as he flies toward the front entrance and unleashes fire from his throat at the three guards. Flames crash against two of them, consuming them in moments.

  They don’t even have time to scream.

  The third guard dives out of the way and tries to run for cover, but a muffled gunshot cuts through the night. The third guard’s head jerks back, his body going limp as he tumbles toward the ground.

  Tucker’s an excellent shot.

  These guards weren’t prepared for us. The men only seemed to be paying attention to their surroundings. They were too comfortable and felt too safe here. Their location is almost completely off the grid. The Vaer probably thought no one in their right mind would launch an assault on this facility. Well, they were wrong.

  “Tucker, let’s go,” I say into my comm.

  My weapons expert descends from the thick tree branch he perched himself on and slings his rifle back over his shoulder. He draws two pistols and runs alongside me. As we approach the entrance, Ashgrave circles us, as if daring anyone to come near his queen.

  The roars of dragons fill the air, but I don’t have time to watch Levi and Jace wage their war against the shifters now taking to the sky. They can handle this.

  I trust them.

  With a quick glance toward the camera that’s watching the front door, I do my best to suppress the desire to hide.

  After all, I’m the bait. We all are—Drew’s the one doing the heavy lifting on this mission, not me. I have to give him time to do his thing, and for that to happen, I need to draw as much fire as possible.

  Oh joy.

  “Make them work for it,” I remind Tucker.

  He growls in frustration as I type in the code Drew managed to steal for us—though, to my irritation, he still won’t tell me how he got it—and I can’t help but nod.

  I hate the idea of leaving a place like this still standing—even if it’s on purpose.

  The digital pad on the wall glows green and the door opens to a small reception area—which I was definitely not expecting in a place like this.

  It’s a military-style compound, for gods’ sake. Not a damn dentist office.

  The clatter of footsteps echoes down a nearby hallway as four men come around the corner and race toward us with their guns drawn.

  The guards rush into the well-lit reception area and open fire, but we take cover behind the partition with a built-in desk. I cover Tucker with a few shots as he leans out just enough to take out one of the guards.

  Ashgrave barrels in through the open door, fire building again in his throat, unleashing it on the other two.

  One left.

  I bolt toward the last guard standing. He’s barely eighteen, and his uniform is a little loose on his thin frame. His eyes dart from Ashgrave to Tucker, then to me, and I can tell he’s not ready for this.

  He’s not ready for war.

  I can’t really blame him—this may be a military-style facility, but it’s an outpost in the middle of Alaska with few Vaer soldiers to staff it. That’s what made it the perfect target for us. They won’t withstand the trouble my men and I are bringing.

  The kid lifts his gun at the last second, but he’s too slow. I duck out of the way and swing my fist hard into his groin. He groans, doubling over onto the floor, and I deliver a kick to his head and knock him out.

  “Ouch,” Tucker says, wincing as the kid goes limp.

  “Hey, at least I didn’t kill him.” I shrug. “By my standards, I’m being nice.”

  “Fair point,” my weapons expert says as he cocks his handgun. “After all, they did try to kill us.”

  “Hold this room,” I tell Ashgrave and Tucker.

  According to the blueprints Drew swiped for us, all the hallways funnel through the front lobby. Tucker and Ashgrave will be in the perfect position to kill anyone who tries to come after me—or get Drew.

  “Phase two, go,” Tucker says into his comm with a short nod.

  Time to find Drew.

  I run down the main corridor and turn the corner. Gunfire echoes down the hall, and it takes me a minute to place where it’s coming from—the front, where Tucker and Ashgrave are.

  I hate letting my men separate. I hate letting them put their lives on the line for me. I hate letting them risk everything—because they’re everything to me.

  But if we want this to work, we have to.

  “Vaer reinforcements are on the way,” Drew says, his deep voice booming through the comm. “Let’s make this quick.”

>   “Did it work?” I ask my fire dragon over the comm as I race down the hallway toward our rendezvous point.

  “It did,” he confirms. “Cameras are down, too.”

  Short and sweet. Just the way I like it.

  I breathe a sigh of relief. With the spying program planted, that’s one less stressor on my plate. Now, to rescue the Vaer’s prisoners and get out of here alive.

  Bonus—Kinsley can’t watch what we’re doing or where we’re going in her compound. With the cameras down, we won’t even need voids to stay hidden.

  I glance at the number on the wide, metal double doors in front of me.

  “I’m in Area Twelve. Where are you?” I ask Drew.

  The thunder of footsteps echoes down the hall, and sure enough, my gorgeous fire dragon rounds the corner seconds later. I can’t help but grin as our eyes meet.

  “Let’s do a good deed,” he says, cocking his gun before kicking open the double doors we’re standing in front of.

  The doors open into a large room with about two dozen beds lined against the far wall. Half are empty, and the rest are filled with people—shifters to be exact. The prisoners are young men and women who don’t appear to be older than Tucker. Most of them are cuffed to their beds, while the rest lie so still that I’m tempted to check if they’re still breathing.

  No wonder the Vaer didn’t bother restraining them. They couldn’t escape on their own if they tried.

  I knew I’d find something rotten in this compound. What I didn’t expect to see was seven shifters, severely beaten and chained to their beds with a terrified look in their eyes.

  There’s some kind of nurse’s station set up on the far side of the room. Small glass vials, syringes, and charts sit on the counter in front of the beeping medical equipment.

  I don’t know exactly what’s going on here. But judging by the bruises and open cuts on these people, I figure none of it is good.

  The doors slam closed, and every face turns toward me. A few shifters watch me through half-closed eyes, barely able to hold their heads up as they study us, while others hold their breath. They freeze. Eyes wide, they simply watch me like I’m some kind of grim reaper, here to finally take them to their graves.