Salvation Page 14

  So he couldn’t share that knowledge with Sabrina. He couldn’t tell her that the man she had dated and fallen in love with was an immortal dragon slayer. What he did want to do, however, was rage at her for lying to him. He wanted to hold her and demand to know the truth. And he wanted to know if it was all a lie. Everything she had told him, the way she acted with him, the way she responded to his touch. Had it all been an act?

  He knew what dragons were capable of. He knew how diabolical and cunning they could be. He knew the evil that spewed forth from some of them. He tried to reconcile Sabrina, his little cat, with those thoughts, but it wasn’t possible. He didn’t want to believe it. He didn’t want to consider it. But he had to. And he needed to see the proof himself. Once he witnessed that, he would know what to do. Once he saw it with his own eyes, he would be able to handle the situation in the logical, straightforward way he always handled his life and his work

  He wouldn’t call Vlad just yet. This was one of those issues he was going to have to deal with himself. He would wait, for a little while. If his hunch was correct, and the evidence he found suggested it was, he wouldn’t have to put on an all-out search for Sabrina. She would come right back here. Right back to him.

  And when she did, she would have a lot of explaining to do.

  Sabrina had missed this. She had missed flying through the sky, enjoying the feel of the wind as it rushed past her, supporting her wings as she soared higher. Up, up she flew, into the clouds then out through the top. The stars shone brightly as she flew closer to them. It seemed that she could almost touch them, if she soared high enough.

  She stabled out, flying straight instead of up, and continued at a speed that took her breath away. She could have flown slowly, just cruised along carefully maintaining a set speed, but it had been so long—too long—since she had allowed herself this freedom.

  What would Eric think of this? What would he do if she lifted him up and soared with him into the night? What if they rose through the clouds and landed in a special place only they knew? A place where she could be herself with him. No games, no false promises, no pretenses, just the two of them, authentic in all that they were and wanted to be, together. And then they would join as they were meant to join, be together in a way she longed for.

  Lightning lit the sky below her, breaking her from her reverie. Who was she kidding? Eric would never understand this, he would never understand her. How could he? He was only a human. Once upon a time maybe they could have understood each other and come together in a way that was wonderful and fulfilling. But times had changed. The relationship between humans and dragons had changed, gone irrevocably bad over the centuries through past misdeeds on both species’ part.

  And Sabrina didn’t know if they could ever go back to the way it was. Once dragons and people had lived together peacefully, with respect for each other. Though it was only a short period, it had nevertheless occurred. And it had worked for a while. Though Sabrina hadn’t been around back then, she heard about it, read about it and listened to the elders speak about it.

  She longed for that relationship to return. She longed for that communication and trust to return to what it once was. That was why she had felt so driven to write her book. That’s why she had pursued it so strongly. Why she had hounded the elders and the leaders of their species to share what they knew of the past and the present.

  In human form she had pursued the other side of it. She had searched out each myth, each legend, each tale regarding dragons. Then she had dispelled the false ones, time and time again. The false propaganda about dragons that was circulating among humans was incredible to her.

  She searched for the origins of the rumors, wondering how they even began. That part was more blurred than the rest. How they started and who started them often remained a mystery to her. And though she had finished her book, dispelled the myths and tried to clear the name of dragons, she still wondered about that. She couldn’t understand why someone perpetuated such falsehoods about her kind. It was almost as if they were out to get dragons, purposefully trying to ruin their chances of ever integrating into human culture again. There were some myths, like the one about dragons living especially long lives, that she wished were true, but in actuality their lifespan was just about the same as the average mortal. Many others, however, created the bitter estrangement between humans and dragons and forced her kind to recede into the shadows, now thought of as nothing more than legend and mist. One that she found completely intolerable was the myth that dragons ate humans. It was laughable actually. Humans were not on a dragon’s menu—ever. The only exceptions to that were if it was in self-defense, or there was absolutely nothing else available to eat. Dragons, like humans, were omnivores. They ate a wide range of foods including vegetables and fruits. Yet they did tend to like meat best of all. Maybe that’s where the rumor began. Nevertheless, one fact remained. Dragons didn’t like to eat humans for a very good reason—they were said to have an extremely bitter taste to them. Maybe it had to do with the toxins they put in their body, or maybe it was something else. She wasn’t sure, never having tasted a human herself, but that was what she had been told.

  Sabrina knew one thing for sure.

  She would never, and could never, eat a human. Even without the fact that she was able to transform into human form, she couldn’t picture herself eating a person. It made her sick just thinking about it. And since many of her kind were capable of the human-dragon transformation, she was pretty sure a majority of them would agree with her.

  By the time Sabrina left her parents she was feeling much better. It didn’t take much more than her mom’s soft words of comfort and her dad’s firm advice to help her see things more clearly. Their unwavering support of her in terms of both her personal and professional choices was invaluable. Though she had dated many humans over the years her parents had never expressed disapproval or negativity. They had told her that she must make her own life choices, just as they had.

  When she had decided to write her book exposing the truths and falsehoods about dragons and the way they lived, her parents hadn’t said a word against it. When her book sold and she made the decision to personally promote it to the public, her parents had wished her all the best. When the elders in their community had voiced their concerns, even approaching her parents about it, her mother and father had defended her choice without hesitation, standing up for the reasons she had stated for writing this book.

  Yes, her parents had always been there for her. They had always made her feel that she could do anything she wanted to do, regardless of the obstacles that may lie in front of her. And tonight, as she sat with them, pouring out her fears about who she was, what she was and the tasks that were ahead of her in promoting this book, they had listened quietly until she was finished. They had let her talk her fill without saying a word about anything she said.

  And then they did what they always did. They helped her realize something she had known all along.

  “You are an intelligent, capable, beautiful person who has a good head on her shoulders,” her mother said.

  Her dad agreed, nodding his head.

  “You make decisions based on a thought-out process of deductive reasoning,” her father explained. “Unlike your loco brothers, deciding to open that bar and grill downtown, you don’t just make decisions based on emotions. You think things through. They, on the other hand, don’t listen to their father. They have no respect—”

  “Let’s not get started about the boys, Manuel,” Helaina interrupted. “We’re talking about Sabrina right now. And as far as your father and I are concerned, sweetie, the decisions you’ve made recently have been sound, rational, good decisions. You should feel comfort in knowing that, if nothing else.” Her mother gave her hand a squeeze.

  “That Eric fellow, though, I still don’t know about him,” her father said with a frown. “There’s just something about him I don’t trust. I can’t put my finger on it, but I know there’s some
thing he’s not telling you.”

  Sabrina shook her head, smiling sadly.

  “Dad, you’ve been saying that since you first met Eric. And he’s not even an issue any longer. We’re not seeing each other in that way anymore,” she explained.

  Her father still looked doubtful.

  “Eric is my bodyguard. That’s it. And you know how good Sundown Security is. They have an excellent reputation. If I’m going to be protected, wouldn’t you rather I was protected by the best?” she asked.

  “I’d rather you not have that young human around you at all,” her father muttered.

  Her mother gave his arm a playful swat. “Càllense, Manuel! You know that Sabrina’s right. She needs protection right now, mi amor. And if she has the best protecting her, all the better. On the positive side of it, Eric knows Sabrina fairly well, so he’s the best one to protect her. He probably knows many of her habits and may also understand her motivations for making certain decisions. Their past relationship may help him do his job better.”

  Instead of relieving her father’s fears, her mother’s statements only seemed to agitate him more.

  “Only if that perrito watches himself and shows my daughter respect will I be satisfied with this situation. If he doesn’t, I’ll have to have a private talk with him. And I can promise you, Eric won’t enjoy it.”

  Sabrina gained comfort from her parents’ love and protection. They helped her just as she’d known they would. Flying home, she felt calmer, more at peace with her situation. She was making the right decisions. This book was important not only to her but to the wellbeing of her kind. She would follow through with her plan and deal with Eric as best she could.

  Her mind lighter, Sabrina let herself enjoy the peaceful evening as she glided home through the clouds. As she spied her house below, she descended slowly until she flew low over the park near her house. Encanto Park had been part of Phoenix’s historical landscape for a long time. It had beautiful giant trees, large areas of green grass perfect for picnicking, developed vegetation and a small children’s amusement area scattered with various rides. While the ducks slept huddled together and the paddleboats were docked for the evening, the quiet park lake sparkled as if filled with diamonds from the reflection of the stars and moon off its smooth surface. Closing her eyes for just a moment, she tried to savor the last few seconds of her flight. It was always such a joy.

  She never saw the net until it was too late. It shot up out of nowhere and before she knew what was happening she was hurtling to the ground. Her crash landing was hard, knocking the breath from her body. She started to stand, but before she could get to her feet she felt a sharp prick on her neck. Within seconds her surroundings began to fade and Sabrina tumbled into the darkness.

  Eric waited patiently.

  He stood just behind the curtains so he could see her approach. He didn’t need to wait very long. After about an hour he spotted her flying form just over the park by her house. She was coming in low and fast but with the unmistakable grace of a dragon who knew how to fly and enjoyed the ride. He couldn’t help but admire her beauty as she drew closer. Her golden scales reflected the moonlight as she soared above. It looked as if the creature were covered with diamonds that glittered in the night.

  Eric’s eyes narrowed dangerously as he saw something shoot up from the ground and cover the dragon. She dropped down in a spiral spin, struggling uselessly against her constraints. He knew she would probably be injured in the fall as she had no way of controlling her landing. Running from the room, he jumped down the stairs as fast as possible and raced out of the house toward the park.

  Dragon or no, Sabrina was his, and no one was going to have her but him.

  At last.

  He had her.

  His time spent planning had finally paid off. His patience had been hard-earned, but now he was glad that he had laid low until she was unsuspecting. He knew the female dragon would put herself in danger. It was the nature of the beast. Her kind couldn’t avoid danger and mischief. Their evil natures allowed nothing else. Their putrid souls could do nothing but sin against mankind. And kill. Kill all those innocents. Devour them without conscience or hesitation.

  But now she would pay. Now she would come to realize that her kind were despicable and disgusting and needed to be wiped clean from the earth so that mankind could come to the true salvation they were meant to have. Once all the dragons were exterminated humans would be saved once and for all, without the evil stain her kind had spread for so long.

  She had planned to fool them. She had actually thought she would get away with it. She had written her disgusting book, trying to make humans believe that dragons were good, trying to get man to trust dragons once more. But that would never be. He wouldn’t allow it. Mankind had trusted the creatures once, and what had happened then? They had tried to devour the world and take over human life.

  This one would not be allowed to sway the minds of his flock. They would thank him for this. They would see with clear eyes as he finally destroyed all dragons and brought humans to that holy place they needed to be. And the world would be clean at last. And his work would be done. Then he could finally go on to the next place with the knowledge that he had fulfilled his duty and saved mankind from the evil all dragons were.

  Staring down at the female dragon’s still form, he smiled. Yes, he would kill her, but first he would convince her to confess to her sins and cleanse her soul. At least as much as a dragon’s putrid, rotten soul could be cleansed. Only then, when she was crying for mercy and begging to be saved, would he put her out of her misery.

  Eric stopped in his tracks when he saw the man standing over the netted dragon.

  No.

  It couldn’t possibly be.

  Eric shut his eyes and opened them again. It was him. St. Magnus. The man who had recruited him into dragon slaying so long ago. But how was that possible? How could he still be alive?

  “Magnus?”

  His name came out rough and pained.

  The man’s head shot up and Eric got a good glimpse of his face. Yes, it was Magnus, but yet it wasn’t. The kind face and caring eyes of his mentor were now gone. In their place was a face ravaged from time and pain, and glowing red eyes that spewed fury and insanity. They were the eyes of an insane, angry, violent man, not those of the caring saint that Magnus had once been.

  Magnus didn’t seem to recognize him at first. He snarled at Eric and his eyes blazed even brighter with hate and malice.

  “Don’t you recognize me, mentor?” Eric asked.

  He needed to calm Magnus down as quickly as possible. He noticed that Sabrina hadn’t moved since he’d arrived on the scene. That worried him. It meant one of two things. Either she had been drugged or the fall had injured her far worse than he’d expected. Neither choice was good. He needed to figure out what was happening right away but knew by the way Magnus hovered over her that he wouldn’t let her go easily.

  The man’s eyes cleared slightly when Eric called him mentor.

  “Eric. Is that you, boy?”

  “Yes, mentor.”

  “But how did you get to be here? How is it possible that you’re still alive?”

  The confusion in Magnus’ eyes was a relief from the maniacal gleam that had been there earlier.

  “I am an immortal, just as you must be. After learning from you, I became a dragon slayer in my own right,” Eric explained, “and now devote my immortal existence to this vocation as well as protecting mankind.”

  Magnus smiled then. But it wasn’t reassuring. It was more like the smile of a cat who had caught a mouse.

  “So we are brothers of a sort now, Eric. I also slay dragons and act as a protector of man. My duty is to rid the world of dragons so that humans can once again live the clean, holy lives they were meant to.”

  Eric nodded his head and smiled even though his stomach turned at the crazed, fanatical gleam that shone so brightly in Magnus’ eyes. The man had turned evil. His mind ha
d become decayed with hate and fury. And whatever was keeping him alive, Eric was sure it wasn’t something holy and clean. Evil and dirty, more like it.

  The village and all the people he had ever known had been burned to a crisp by a rampaging dragon. Eric had been set on a course at that point already, and Magnus had been fuel for the fire. Eric had sworn upon seeing his dead family and friends that he would avenge humanity. He made it his duty to slay each and every dragon he came upon during his travels.

  After meeting on a path between villages, Magnus welcomed him with open arms, allowing him to travel with his group of followers, entering towns and cleansing them of the dragon “demons”. And with each kill, Eric felt satisfaction and retribution. But it didn’t last long. Soon the sadness would return, and only by killing again was he able to push it away.

  Magnus tutored him in the way of the dragon during their sojourn together. He learned everything there was to know about the creatures, including where they dwelled, their social interactions, what they ate, how they mated, their physical makeup, what defenses they had and what vulnerabilities to take advantage of.

  The many months he spent with his mentor taught Eric a lot. He learned how to turn his hate into action. He learned how to kill. But he never learned the important lessons, like forgiveness, compassion or understanding. At the time, none of those issues mattered, but now looking back, he realized that even then at some level he knew something was not quite right with his way of life.

  He eventually split from Magnus and his followers and journeyed on his own. Going from village to village, he ruthlessly hunted dragons down and killed them without a thought. But the satisfaction he gained lessened over time until each kill brought nothing to his life but a sense of duty fulfilled. Nothing more, nothing less. And Eric just kept doing what he was doing, because he didn’t know what else to do. He had nothing else.