Page 64 of Marked Dragon

Removing his phone from his pocket, Thorn nodded.I’m just glad Alina intervened. Vlad used to tell me his dad was fair, but tough, and I should be thankful Aiden wasn’t the one who raised me. I thought Vlad had been exaggerating because he didn’t coddle me at all. He allowed me to learn things on my own, and when something didn’t work out, he was there to help me pick up the pieces, but he never fought my battles. I didn’t think there could be a tougher man out there than him, but I saw how it was just now with his dad.

Cassidy walked to the Suburban in front of ours and opened the door, then spoke to the people inside.

He’s hurting, even though that doesn’t make it right.I didn’t want it to sound as if I was mitigating the agony Vlad had to be experiencing, but if the child I’d assumed was dead for the past twenty years suddenly reappeared, I’d be conflicted too. Half pissed that they’d let me grieve for that long and half overjoyed that they were alive. I could imagine the turmoil Vlad’s parents were going through.

Cassidy turned to us, and Brenton jumped out of the back and into the driver’s seat of that vehicle.

When Cassidy got into the driver’s seat of our car, she exhaled a long breath and sat for a moment before stowing the duffel bag by Peter’s feet. She started the engine and put the vehicle in reverse. “Vlad is staying here while we find a place. I’ll let him know where we end up, so he can give his parents the address before shifting and joining us.” She backed out of the driveway onto the gravel road. “Once we get away from here, we’ll pull over and figure out where to stay.”

“What about a hotel?” Eva asked from the back. “One that takes cash?”

“Do hotels actually take cash anymore?” Elliott scoffed. “I’ve never had more than five dollars in my pocket. I use Dad’s credit card for everything.”

In one way, I was glad my siblings were so sheltered, but that created a whole other set of problems for them in the world. “First off, we’re likely talking about a motel, and second, we have to be careful where we stay, or Peter could cause problems.”

“Problems?” Peter scoffed and snapped his head my way. “You mean trying to free myself and my children from akidnapping?”

Thorn leaned forward, placing his hands on Peter’s shoulders, and growled, “Do you need another lesson?”

My stepdad’s response was a loud swallow.

“We can’t risk anywhere too close to other people and that isn’t soundproof.” Thorn swiped his phone. “Can you give me a credit card that’s under a different alias from the one you used to rent the cars? I found a house that can accommodate a group our size in Stuart, Virginia, thirty minutes from here.”

“Perfect.” Cassidy slowed the vehicle and took out a pink wallet with a rose engraved on the front. “Here. Tell me the address.”

When he took the wallet from her, she pulled up the car’s GPS and typed inStuart. As soon as the directions loaded, she pressed the gas and headed back onto the main road.

I leaned my head back and closed my eyes, trying to release the knot that kept twisting in my stomach. Each time my heart pounded, I swore I could hear wings flapping, but there was nothing in the sky. I needed to get a handle on my nerves before I did something stupid and made a scene.

* * *

Thirty minutes later,we pulled up to a three-story house that appeared to have been built in the eighties. The bottom half was brick, and the top half was wood panels. It resided on forty acres of property, which meant any neighbors nearby shouldn’t be able to hear Peter.

There was a garage, but we parked both vehicles in the driveway, facing the road in case we needed to exit quickly. Ten steps led to a front porch with four teal Adirondack chairs angled invitingly toward each other. Behind the chairs was a large wooden door with a glass storm door in front of it.

As soon as the engine turned off, Peter sighed.

I wondered if there was anything like dragon metal that we could use to put him into a deep slumber until we got things settled. If dragons were real, then maybe Maleficent existed too, and she could spell something for him to prick his finger on and sleep for a hundred years.

One could hope, but Thorn had mentioned only wolf and bear shifters. I hadn’t asked about vampires, witches, demons, or angels.

My heart thudded, and my skin crawled. The idea of vampires wigged me out more than the others. I rubbed my neck where my pulse pounded under my skin.

Thorn glanced at me and linked,I won’t let him be rude to you. I’ll knock him out in a split second if that will make you feel less uneasy.

That’s not it.My throat constricted with how much I felt for him.I was wondering if vampires, witches, angels, and demons are real. I’m a dragon shifter, but I don’t know anything about the supernatural world.

His gaze softened.Vampires and witches are real. Angels and demons are not. We won’t run into vampires out here. They live in cities where their food source is all around. The bigger the city, the more vampires live there. Witches tend to live out in the woods and keep to themselves. Out here, we’re more likely to run into witches than vampires, but even that’s unlikely. Witches can sense energy, and they’d know we’re here. They wouldn’t come near us unless they needed something for themselves.

Everyone got out of the vehicle, and Thorn connected as he stayed close by Peter,The code is 4181210 to get in the house.

I walked up the steps, opened the storm door, then punched the code into the device above the doorknob. There was a click, and I pushed the door open. We entered a large den with wood paneling and maple hardwood floors. Two black couches sat across from each other with two large black ottomans between them and centered in front of a large flat-screen television. In the back of the room was a fully equipped pool table.

Across the room from the front entrance, a double sliding glass door overlooked a flowing river. If I’d had a canvas and paints, this would’ve made for a perfect landscape to paint.

We piled into the house, and Thorn gestured to the wooden stairs on the right. “There are two bedrooms upstairs. A second master, which I thought Vlad and Cassidy could have, and another room with twin bunk beds and a full-size bed.”

“Maybe I should go lie down.” Peter crossed his arms. “I have a headache due to some menacing dragon hovering over me.”

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