The Dragon King's Shaman

Never Again

Avery

The car hummed beneath me as I darted my eyes around the unfamiliar controls. Drive on the right. Drive on the right. There was no gear stick, and I felt like I’d forgotten how to drive, let alone on the wrong bloody side.

I sent up a silent prayer and drove out of the packhouse garage. At least the car Irina gave me wasn’t some huge monstrosity that some of the pack members drove about in, vehicles with wheels nearly as tall as me.

The sat nav told me it would take me half an hour to get to the airstrip. The perimeter guard did a double-take when they saw me. Not surprising, as I never left. The last time I left was for a rare night out. That night rogue werewolves who were after Irina attacked us at Quinn’s brother’s club. Needless to say, they didn’t get her, nor did they make it out of the club alive.

I glanced at my backpack on the passenger seat. It was all I had to show for three years living here. A pain pierced my heart at the thought of not seeing my dragon again. My dragon? Where the hell had that come from?

I floored it. It was like driving a go cart. My left hand felt restless. It was usually busy with a gear stick. The scenery could have been anywhere as I drove in the darkness. Out of the window, terrible shadows kept my heart racing.

A sign for the airstrip up ahead allowed me to release some of the tension in my shoulders. I even stayed on the correct side of the road as I turned into the entrance. The guy in the guard tower looked more alert than the average security guard. Ahead was an enormous hangar and a plane. Apprehension shivered through me. I went to roll the window down, but he waved me past, a blank look on his face.

I drove towards the plane and pulled into the small car park. I could see personnel buzzing around the single aircraft in front of the sleek grey hangar. Cutting the engine, I took a deep breath. I refused to cry.

A man in uniform walked over to my car. His eyes met mine. Coldness flooded me, and my heart stopped. Red eyes! Glowing red eyes like the ones that haunt my nightmares.

A strangled scream left my lips. Scrambling to restart the car, I threw it into reverse, pummelling the accelerator. Tyres squealing, I tore out of the compound, towards the guard box. The guard stepped out of the office. His red eyes burned in the darkness as he shouted for me to slow down. A sob fell from my lips.

How had they found me so quickly?

I braced for impact as I smacked through the barrier, splintering it into a thousand pieces. The vehicle screeched out onto the main road, and my wheels left the tarmac on one side as I grappled to keep control of it. The car smacked back down, and the steering wheel jerked violently out of my hands. I wrestled it back and sped off, staring in the rear-view mirror, expecting to see vehicles full of red eyes.

Go, go! Get away!

The road curved suddenly, and I yanked the wheel. It happened in slow motion as the back end of my car slid off the road. My stomach lurched violently. I clutched the wheel as the car became airborne and flipped over and over. My head snapped back, the seat belt viciously pinning me in place. The airbag burst into my face, and pain bloomed across my nose. Screaming and scraping of metal deafened me. My hand that clutched the steering column jolted, energy ran up my arm, and I felt a snap at the top near my shoulder. The car landed right way up, jostling me side to side, and it took a few seconds for me to stop moving. My ears rang as silence descended.

Get out of the car! my inner voice screamed at my sluggish body. It could blow up. Must get away. Breathing heavily, I undid the belt and groped for the door handle. Pain lanced through my arm.

My bag!

It had landed in the footwell. For one heart-stopping moment, the door jammed briefly, and I thought I was trapped inside the car. The handle engaged, and I yanked my bag out with me, stumbling from the car. My left arm dangled loosely at my side, my collarbone broken. Dizziness swamped me, and I dropped heavily to my knees.

I wasn’t far enough away. Get up, you stupid b***h! I staggered up and propelled myself forward. I choked on some blood in my mouth; it dripped freely from my bloody nose. My head felt fuzzy. Everything moved jerkily in my line of sight. The ground leapt up towards me.

I needed to get out of here. The sound of a vehicle stopping up on the road pushed me further into the forest that I’d crashed into the edge of. I could hear them; they were speaking in the language he used. Light-headedness had me gripping the nearest tree. I couldn’t run in a straight line. I was making too much noise.

Think! Look for shelter. I spotted some rocks up ahead and staggered towards them, air sawing in and out of my lungs. I dropped behind the crop of rocks, catching my breath. Nowhere to hide. I couldn’t outrun them. Forced into a corner I vowed I would never be in again. I fumbled in my jacket for the syringes. I would never go back. Never. One-handed, I unzipped the case.

Could I do it?

My hand was shaking and sweat dripped down my forehead as I uncapped one of the syringes one-handed, all the while footsteps neared me. I couldn’t bring myself to drive the syringe into my heart.

Coward.

I settled on my elbow crease; there were plenty of big veins there. It wouldn’t take long. Did I think my life would end like this? This was my final choice, my last resort. I curled my hand into a fist and slapped the vein.

The voices were closer now. There was another sound, a commotion. Was he here? Or would they take me to him?

No!

I took a deep breath. The smell of the forest steadied my hand. The needle scraped my skin and pierced my vein. My thumb trembled and paused over the plunger. I closed my eyes, and my dragon man’s face appeared in my mind. God, he was handsome.

“Forgive me,” I whispered.

Voices were practically on top of me now. They knew my location. Well, they could take my cold, dead body back to their psychotic leader. I would never be his prisoner again. I applied pressure to the plunger and closed my eyes.