Page 37 of To Fall for a Dragon

“He’s in the closet, off the workroom. There’s a note. I never opened the door, so he’s safe as houses. Please go put something on before anyone gets offended,” Ethan said as he attempted to reassure Hakko. His hand still covered his eyes, but he was more relaxed.

“Why would anyone be upset by my natural appearance?” Hakko asked. He took in a lungful of air and accepted that Ethan was telling the truth about Poe.

“Jealousy? No one is as hung as you?” Ethan offered. Tentatively, he grabbed Hakko’s arm and turned him around before pushing Hakko back to his apartment. “Please put something on and then see me?”

Hakko grumbled before agreeing with Ethan’s reasonable terms. He pulled on his pants, not caring they were soft and covered in penguins. He just needed to make sure Poe was okay.

Once dressed, he returned to the museum, where he found Ethan in the lobby with Caden and Darius, a town guardian of sorts. “What’s going on?”

“You’ve met Darius. He has a few questions. I said he had to wait, but he was insistent,” Ethan said, introducing Hakko.

“The gala was last night. It went well,” Hakko said. He glanced around at his guests, his mind still on Poe when Darius’s presence alerted him to possible problems. “Why? What’s going on? Is Bale alright? Are you alright?”

“Magic fizzled out my way. It was like a bubble bursting, and the air felt cleaner or something afterwards. Since there was a big to-do and therefore,hewould be here, I was curious to if anything happened. It’s been so complicated and messy.”

“I’m the land’s caretaker. My partner is also part of this. Please explain the messy.” Hakko crossed his arms and waited.

Darius, who looked so similar to Poe, both health-wise and appearance-wise, rubbed his eyebrow tiredly. “Fuck, I don’t know where to begin. It’s my fault all this started happening. If I hadn’t messed around with magic or decided to go in for a pound, maybe…maybe we wouldn’t have evil demons roaming the streets, or maybe I’d be happily doing shit in my backyard. But since that didn’t happen and people are getting fucking hurt, I gotta clean this up, and I honestly am lost. I’m so fucking lost. Can you help, or are you gonna kick me out?”.”

“You’re not a terrible person. You’re not fucking up. You’re overwhelmed, so don’t take it all on. I will help. I’m on your side, Darius. You are a good man.” Hakko glanced at the nondescript witch, knowing he was here for a reason. Was Poe okay? He had to find Poe, but this was problematic and needed to be dealt with before Hakko could reassure Poe.

“The spirits were so restless they sought me out. It was awkward.” Caden shrugged. Hakko nodded, baffled.

“Well, come on then.” Hakko led them through a warren of tunnels and rooms until they were on a ramp heading downward. Caden paused at every archway to gather black stones. Every time he did, his expression became dim with unhappiness.

“You had your fight in that room, right? I get so lost in this place.” Caden stared down the hallway. “The spirits won’t enter it. It’s been tainted.”

Hakko nodded, his gaze steady on Caden. He had to move forward. He had to confirm that Sawyer and Elijah hadn’t left any surprises behind. Darius remained close at his heels, irritating Hakko.

“What are you doing?”

“Threats to my life, Bale. You know, the usual problems.” Darius smiled wanly. His movements were sluggish, and his face became blank with hidden pain. He stood in the doorway and sighed.

Hakko peered around Darius and winced. The bloodstains were in one area, and they were dark red and still tacky. “Sawyer and Elijah trapped Poe here. They wanted him to join their ranks.”

“I’ve stopped questioning His Majesty’s motives. If he wants something, he’ll do anything to get it,” Darius said with a grimace. “Fuck, I don’t think…I’ll never fix this.”

Hakko glanced at him. The man wasn’t as arrogant as he seemed. Everything had been an act of bravado. “Breathe. You don’t have to do this alone, Darius. Don’t put that on yourself.”

“I was alone, you know. My parents died, and I was just so fucking lost. I found a magic book, and it made sense? It offered solace and a chance to speak to someone who understood. And I thought, why not? But he showed up. And I didn’t notice anything weird or off about him. Hell, I was likely so blinded by my burgeoning powers and his easy acceptance that I didn’t notice anything lacking, like his face or the tentacles. I just… followed him. Anyway, what did your friend do to banish him?”

“Banish him?”

“Yeah, he sent him flying back to the other place. It’s done enough to stop him for the moment.”

“Just bit the knuckle off and yelled at him,” Hakko said. He stared at the dark stain and worried. “He swallowed some, and it reacted within. I’m scared of what that’ll do.”

“I can’t answer that. Sawyer was the first vampire any of us encountered. But as for what Poe did? I think he broke the seal surrounding Elijah, and Hastur’s essence couldn’t be contained anymore. Elijah wasn’t a continuous human, like Hastur needed to remain here.” Darius shivered as he peered in the room and back at Hakko. “Like chewed it clear off? Really?”

“It might still be in here. I didn’t think Poe had it in him. But he must have had enough, and when Hastur stuck a finger in his face...” Hakko shrugged.

“That’s disgusting. And Poe? You said that His Majesty’s blood disagreed with him?” Darius asked, concentrating. Hakko wasn’t sure what to make of this man. He was open and not. He was arrogant and yet it seemed like a mask. “Is he okay? Has he been looked after?”

Hakko gave him a steady gaze, and Darius nodded jerkily. “Of course you have. Apologies. Christ, I need to get out more. I used to understand this shit.”

“Caden? Is the museum safe?” Hakko asked, bringing the subject back around to the main point. His museum. Demons. “We’ll have people wanting to visit, and I don’t want them scared.”

“It’s mostly good. The spirits here decided to have Poe’s back. That shift in attitude gave me whiplash,” Caden explained from the hallway. He hadn’t ventured farther toward them. “If there’s any danger to your patrons, the spirits would guide them to a better location. They’ve decided that you, the kappa, and the vampire are allowed in this area.”

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