Page 46 of The Dragon's Warlock

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Gideon

His head pounded. Whoever was in the room was trying to whisper, but the voice was so loud. It took only a second for the nightmare to rush back. Diem hadn’t left him like she was supposed to.

When he opened his eyes, he found Kirin standing next to the bed.

“Where is she?” Gideon demanded.

Kirin glanced from him to the window. Rage filled Gideon’s body.

“We don’t know.” Kirin sighed.

Gideon went to sit up, and blood rushed to his head. Everything spun for a second. He rested his hand next to himself, trying to stay upright.

He didn’t want to show weakness. It was enough that Diem was gone because of him. He could barely think, and he needed to find her before they did something to her. But who? He hadn’t seen their faces. The assholes had worn masks and hidden behind a car with tranquilizer guns.

“How long?” Gideon asked.

The sun was still up, so he was sure not too much time had passed. They’d arrived in West Virginia a little after noon. She’d been hungry. Instead of feeding her, he’d kept her in bed. The drugs would take longer to wear off because her dragon wouldn’t be at its strongest. Another failure on his part.

“It’s been a couple hours.”

Lucy walked into the room and handed him a glass of water and a large white pill. Ignoring the pill, he took the glass. In one gulp, he drained it, but it didn’t quench his thirst.

The scientist rolled her eyes, grabbed the glass, and walked to the bathroom. When she came back out, she had the glass in one hand and shoved the pill at him with the other. “It will help with the side effects of whatever they gave you.”

He nodded and took the pill and downed the rest of the water. “What have you found so far?” He moved to the side of the bed and swung his feet over the edge. His limbs still felt heavy.

“Kia is working on the footage.”

Fuck, she’s gone. And it’s been hours. He wanted to scream and break something. His magic sparked from his fingers.

Kirin grunted.

Gideon took a couple of deep breaths before he stood up. There wasn’t time to sit and feel sorry for himself. He needed to find Diem.

When he swayed, Kirin gripped his arm. “Any chance you will agree to lie back down?” Kirin asked.

“Would you if Talia was missing?”

“No, but it didn’t hurt for me to ask.”

“I couldn’t see their faces. Do you know who it was?”

“Yes. In the warehouse, two men lifted Diem and carried her away. Darius walked in and stared down at you. I swear he was about to lift you up, but he changed his mind.”

“What? He had to know I would come for her.”

Kirin ran his hand through his hair. “I think we’re the reason. When we pulled up to the gates, he stepped back from you. I’m guessing he had a radio in his ear.”

“Still doesn’t explain why he didn’t pick me up.” Darius was a bear shifter and strong.

“He might’ve worried that you would get loose.”

“I’m going to kill him,” Gideon said.

“And I have no issue with that. I know what it feels like to have the people you care for taken from you and threatened. And before you go all sulky on me, that wasn’t a dig at you. It’s me telling you I understand that you feel frustrated and want to get your revenge, and I promise you, we will find her.”

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