Supernatural Enforcement Bureau, Book 1, The Dragon and The Vampire: Book 1 (6 page)

“
So, somewhere in the Rockies but you don’t know where? How exactly did you get there, that one time, surely you saw something to give me a clue. A road sign, a street sign, a town?”

The Vamp was shaking his head from side to side. “No, really I didn’t see anything–I told ya we didn’t travel there, not as such, that Witch, well he can kinda move around and that’s what we did. He needed me to haul some crates and he did some spell or something. Shit, I don’t fucking know. It was magic, I don’t know anything about magic. All I know is he took me into the back of a van that was delivering to a blood bank, said his spell, then the next thing I know we’re outside the entrance to some fucking huge cavern. He made me haul the crates inside then we left...in the same way. Turned my fucking stomach, didn’t feel right for days afterwards.”

Ronan listened carefully to the man’s words. Supplies that were supposed to be for a blood bank? Interesting.

Ronan relaxed his body slightly, trying to put this lowlife at ease. “I hear ya, I hate all that mumbo jumbo stuff. So, crates from a truck? Seems a bit weird, if you ask me, but hey, Witches can be pretty damn weird.”

Ronan saw the way the Vamp relaxed, with his own body now standing, loose and easy, and his friendly tone, he saw the man’s brain working...maybe he was going to get out of this after all. He was mistaken; he just didn’t know it yet.

The Vamp’s tone was incredulous as he answered, “I know! Fucking Witches freak me out, but this one pays well so what’s a guy to do? Those crates–that was even weirder. It was those plastic bag things that they put blood into, you know, when folks go to donate blood and they hook them up? Crates of them there were. What the hell do they want those for in a fucking cavern in the middle of the Rockies?”

Ronan just shook his head. “So you really have no further information? What about any other teams in this area? Any other Witches? Where did the Witch stay, sleep, eat? Any information would sure be useful.”

Ronan’s friendly tone seemed to be working as he saw the Vamp take time to think before he answered.

“No other teams that I know of, no idea where he stayed or anything. He would always just ‘zap’ away and we never knew where he went…”

Ronan interrupted, “We? You just said we? Who else is here?”

The Vamp’s body language changed in less than a second, tensing before a small smile came onto his lips.

Ronan knew he had been led a merry dance by all the talking. He had been concentrating on the one in front of him, trying to get as much info as he could, while this fucker’s partner had probably been sneaking up on him.

Ronan moved forward, quickly, not wasting any time, just punching forward with his immense strength...straight into the chest cavity of the Vamp. The surprise in the eyes now staring back at him was a little compensation for the way he had been suckered in.

Closing his hand immediately, it found and encompassed the still beating heart, obliterating it completely, before pulling his hand out and turning so fast, he was only a blur. When he saw nothing at his back he frowned. He had expected at least one, possibly more, to have come up behind him.

Ronan then heard a commotion outside, moving to see what was going on, he exited the building. What he found had a smile playing across his features.

Drake’s large Wolf was circling another Vamp, one that showed signs of several injuries inflicted by the Wolf. Ronan had completely forgotten that Drake was with him, though he had obviously left Drake behind as his Vampire speed outran Drake in his quest to catch the Vamp he had been chasing. He was just about to intervene when Drake’s beast snarled and leapt high into the air, its maw wide, as it tackled the Vampire.

Ronan watched as the Wolf’s jaws snapped closed, completely decapitating the Vampire, before continuing to sail over the already falling body. The animal landed softly on its huge paws right in front of him, shook its head and stared up into his face with its head cocked to the side and its tongue lolling out the side of its mouth.

“
Good work,” Ronan said, realizing Drake had probably just saved him a world of hurt.

The Wolf made a sound down deep in its throat, a kind of rumbling noise, which sounded suspiciously like it was laughing at him. The animal moved away slightly, before it started to morph, the sounds of bones breaking and realigning seeming very loud in Ronan’s ears. It never ceased to amaze him what a Wolf went through each and every time it changed.

He had been told by more than a few Wolves that it didn’t hurt...well, not after the hundredth or so time. Jeez, it sure looked, and sounded, as if it hurt.

Checking the area out, with his eyes and his senses,
Drake continued to change. By the time the man stood before him, Ronan  sensed Sam and Serge some ways away, with Esther not too far from where they were now.

“
You okay?” Drake asked as he gave his, now naked, body a shake.

Ronan gave a half smile as he answered, “Yeah, just pissed we missed our chance to help her tonight. God knows where she’ll go to now.”

Drake nodded his head. “That was some sight. A Dragon flying in the air like that, sure wasn’t expecting to see that tonight, but I’m sure glad I did. It’s not something I’m gonna forget in a hurry.”

Ronan knew exactly what Drake meant, it was...out of this world...he had no words to describe how he felt when he first saw the majestic beast. He felt even more determined to find, and help, the girl.

He started walking back towards where he had sensed Esther, but she met them half way. Her clothing marred on the front by what looked suspiciously like blood and brains. Ronan guessed he hadn’t been the only one to meet with one of the hunting party.

“
You okay?” he asked as she stopped in front of him. “You look a little messy there, Esther, is everything alright?”

The old woman gave him a scathing look, as if she didn’t like the fact he had drawn attention to the state of her clothing. “I’m fine. Now take me to where you saw the girl. She may have left something I can use to track her.”

Esther’s tone was a little sharp so Ronan said nothing, just turned around, heading back to the large building the girl had ran from. Esther completely ignored Drake and his nakedness and the Wolf started to follow before Ronan threw over his shoulder, “Drake, could you go back to the vehicle, get some clothes on, and get a clean-up crew out here for these two bodies?”

Ronan continued on, hearing Drake sigh, before heading back to where they had parked.

Ronan led Esther to the building, Sam and Serge joining them as they arrived. Sam noting the blood on his hand and the spatters on Esther’s clothing, but said nothing.

“
She was in here.” Ronan motioned for Esther to go on ahead, as he stayed at the entrance, he didn’t need to go in there again. The girl’s scent was all over the place and it was now imprinted in his brain. He needed some fresh air in his nostrils, to try and stop the need he felt to rush off and try and find her.

Sam noticed his reticence for entering the building and lifted an eyebrow. “You okay?” his friend asked in a worried tone.

Ronan sighed heavily, was he okay? He wasn’t so sure he was. “I’m fine, got some interesting information from one of the Vamps that was chasing her. Oh, by the way, did you see it? The Dragon?”

Serge stepped forward. “We only caught a glimpse, we heard it though, but we were over on the other side of all these warehouses so didn’t get a good view.”

Sam’s eyes were still watching him closely, his friend obviously wondering what the heck was wrong with him. He couldn’t answer truthfully, simply because he didn’t know.

Ronan was saved from any more questions from his friend as Esther reappeared, holding something leather in her hands. It looked to be a leather cuff of some kind, with steel studs embedded into it all the way around.

Esther held it out to Ronan. “Is this hers?”

Ronan took it from the old woman’s hands, bringing it slightly closer, before nodding, “Yes, that’s hers. I can smell her on it.”

Ronan held the cuff and inspected it closely, wondering why she would wear such a thing. It wasn’t pretty in any sense of the word, it looked utilitarian, though for what purpose he had no idea. He was about to place it in his pocket, when Esther’s cold hand covered his.

“
Sorry, but I’ll need that to do a locator spell,”

Ronan lifted his eyes from the cuff and stared into Esther’s, who inclined her head with a soft smile. He supposed the woman had an idea of the thoughts, and feelings that were coursing through his system, as she gently took back the piece of leather.

Esther held the cuff in her hands as she turned and started walking back towards where their vehicle was parked. “Let’s get home, I’m tired and I want to get started on this locator spell bright and early tomorrow.”

Ronan, Sam and Serge followed Esther, though they kept a watchful eye out in case there were any others from the hunting party in the vicinity. Ronan wasn’t looking forward to the rest of the night, already on edge and wishing it was already morning.

Ronan ran a hand up, over his face, through his hair and sighed, he wanted the spell to be cast as soon as possible. The sooner the better, so he could then set out to find, and help, the girl. It seemed to be the most important thing on his agenda, and he would put everything else to the side, to focus on this.

He absolutely
had
to find this girl and keep her safe.

Chapter 6

Ronan opened the door to his apartment, walking in, once more, in his combat gear. The journey back to the city had everyone talking at once, mostly exclaiming about the sight of the Dragon in the sky. Drake had gotten a good look and couldn’t stop speaking about it. Esther would add little bits if asked a direct question, of which Drake had many.

The entire car had grown silent when Drake asked how a girl could morph into a Dragon of such a colossal size. He had tuned in, listening avidly as Esther explained.

“It’s really quite simple...magic. Dragons are magical creatures, far more so than Wolves. With Wolves their body morphs, bones realigning and such, however, with Dragons they simply call on theirs and they change. They are one with their beasts. Wolves have their beasts in their head and can talk to them as if they are a separate entity–Dragons do not have that. Their Dragon
is
them and there is never any discourse between the human and beast. With magic anything is possible and we see that in no better way than with a Dragon.”

Esther’s voice lowered at the end as if she was contemplating on the way magic was responsible for Dragon shifters. Ronan felt more than a little awed at this news and once again felt deep inside him...he had to help this girl.

After that he had zoned out, not listening to the conversation going on around him. His thoughts bringing those violet eyes into his mind’s eye, again and again. Beyond doubt, they were the most breathtaking eyes he had ever seen. He wondered what they would look like up close.

Ronan found himself pouring a large bourbon, he couldn’t even recall getting the glass or bottle into his hands. His attention so riveted on those eyes, seeing them clear as day in his mind. Sipping the bourbon with one hand, he expertly removed his weapons with the other and placed them on top of the bar, before moving to sit in his favorite chair. Savoring the bourbon’s taste as it slipped down his throat he took in the vista in front of him, wondering when Esther would do the spell.

His phone vibrated in his pocket. He fished it out, saw Esther’s name, and smiled as he accepted the call. “Hello, Esther,”

Esther’s calm tone came down the line. “Hello, Ronan, I just wanted to let you know that I’m only going to rest for a few hours and then I’m going to do the spell. I can sense your feeling of urgency in locating the girl, so, if you meet me in my office at five am, we’ll get started. I think it best that only the two of us go to find her. If there are too many of your men, she may get spooked again and I do not wish to have to harm her in any way to catch her. That would be defeating the purpose, so to speak.”

Ronan’s smile widened as Esther spoke. “Thanks Esther, yeah I am kinda anxious to find her and I agree about it just being us two this time. Hopefully, we can manage to get her to listen to us and bring her back. She should be safe here. With all the staff located in the apartment blocks around us, she’ll have plenty of folks to look out for her. If we get her, then I’ll let everyone know to be on high alert for any hunters. They’ll get more than they bargained for if they come anywhere near here...though I’m not sure what we’ll do about the Witches that seem to be part of the hunting teams...”

Esther’s voice broke into his meandering thoughts. “I’ll take care of that, Ronan, I’ll put up a shielding spell and an alert spell. Anyone coming our way, well, we’ll be given plenty of warning. I want to anchor the alert spell to you, of course, but also some others, so pick at least another three or four of your best men, then I’ll anchor to all of us. That way even if one somehow misses an alert, there’s not a chance that we all will. Okay, I’m going to rest now, see you at five.”

Ronan said a quick ‘bye’ then hung up, the smile still playing on his lips as he did so. Hopefully, soon, he would once more see the girl...and those violet eyes.

He finished the rest of his bourbon in one gulp and pulled his long body from his leather recliner, moving more like a large cat than a Vampire. His very long, muscular, legs carrying him towards his bedroom. Ronan wanted to get some rest before he met with Esther.

Using his phone to set an alarm for four am to make sure he had plenty of time to get ready in the morning, he placed it next to his side of the bed. He always slept on the right side of his large bed and made his way there as he stripped off his clothes, slipping under the covers in only his underwear and closing his eyes.

This time sleep came easy, a dreamless sleep that had him waken five minutes before his alarm was due to go off. Ronan deleted the alarm on his phone and rose, going to the kitchen to take out a small packet of blood, placing it on the counter, and then going for a shower. He took his time, letting the hot water roll over his body, as he once more envisioned those violet eyes.

His breathing quickened and he was shocked to realize the direction his mind was taking him. Ronan could actually see the girl in his apartment, standing in front of the large window in his lounge. Her back to him as she stared out at the city below. Ronan shook his head, clearing it of those thoughts, he didn’t have time to daydream, he had to get ready and go and meet Esther.

His face was marred by a frown as he dressed, once again, in combat gear and collected his weapons from the bar. Securing them to his body, he continued on into the kitchen. Ronan picked up the packet of blood, felt it wasn’t quite at his preferred temperature, but drank it down anyway, a grimace on his face. Ronan frowned, knowing he needed the sustenance; however, he had been finding it more and more of a strain to feed on donor blood.

‘I may just go out with Sam,’
he thought. Go to a club and hook up with a human female. He would make darn sure she had a good time, but would not remember his feeding from her in the morning. It had been a long time since he had done anything like that; however, he thought he may just have to. The tempting allure of warm blood dripping down the back of his throat was getting more enticing as the days wore on.

Once again he shook his head, threw the now empty packet in the trash and, headed for the door. Checking his weapons as he moved, he circled his head to loosen a small knot at the back of his neck as he opened the door. Ronan made sure he had his phone before closing the door behind him, heading for the stairs instead of the elevator. He took the stairs at a jog, two or three at a time, landing sure footed, before he moved onwards. Within minutes, he was on the third floor where Esther’s office was located and he used his keycard to unlock the security door and pass through into the corridor beyond.

A soft light glowed from a door at the far end of the corridor: Esther’s office. Ronan checked his watch, saw it was not even a quarter to the hour...Esther was early. Good, Ronan thought, increasing his speed, striding to her office quickly. The door was ajar so he gently pushed it open all the way, to allow his large frame to get through, carrying on straight past Celeste’s desk. Esther’s inner office door was wide open and he could make out some shadows moving around as he drew closer. Flickering candles came into view as he moved into the room. Esther was slumped in her chair, eyes half closed, lips moving, and appeared to be in some kind of trance.

Ronan stopped dead, not wanting to distract the Witch from whatever she was doing. He hoped that it was the locator spell and even held his breath while he waited. His eyes stayed locked on Esther as she mumbled, the piece of leather held firmly in her hands. He again wondered why the girl would have such a thing, deciding he would ask her...if he got the chance.

Ronan waited, completely immobile, watching Esther’s face harden in concentration, as she continued to mumble quietly. He glanced at the leather cuff again, noting the heavy metal studding all around and got the fleeting notion it was utilitarian and not a fashion statement. The leather was thick, though pliable, the studs covering a large area of the cuff. He frowned as he tried to imagine what it could possibly be used for but came up empty.

He nearly jumped when Esther’s voice broke into his thoughts. “Good morning, Ronan, are you ready?”

Ronan smiled at the old woman. “Yes, though I wondered if we could discuss something first?”

Esther stood up and walked around her desk, stopping a few feet in front of him. “Of course, what’s on your mind?”

Ronan lowered his eyes to meet hers. “The hunter Vamp I caught, he was saying some weird shit about one of their Witches taking him to somewhere in the Rockies after they had stolen a load of supplies from a Blood Bank supply truck. Apparently, the Witch did a spell to move them there so he doesn’t know where it is but says it was definitely the Rockies and they took the supplies to the opening of some cavern. I’m not sure if he was telling the truth or not...what do you think?”

Ronan watched as Esther’s eyes widened and a look of realization dawned on her face, “What?” he asked as she obviously knew something.

Esther took a deep breath. “The manner in which they traveled is correct, in fact, it’s the way we will be using today. However, it’s what they took there...that’s the important fact. It makes me believe that there may be a Dragon being held there and they’re draining its blood. If that’s the case then we need to find it...”

Ronan interrupted her with a wave of his hand. “What? Are you serious? You think they’re holding a Dragon in that cavern? Why can it not escape? If it’s the same size as the one we saw then it’s freaking huge and powerful..”

It was Esther’s turn to interrupt, “Magic, dark magic. From the limited knowledge I have, they hunt them and capture them in human form. However, the blood has to come from the actual Dragon, so they would use the dark magic to elicit a transformation and bind the Dragon in place. I would assume they keep it almost starved and dehydrated to weaken it also...leaving it completely vulnerable, weak, and at their mercy. Ronan, once we have the girl we have to use every resource to find this place and the Dragon I suspect is being held there.”

Esther’s voice was strong and was almost, but not quite, an order. Ronan rankled at the tone but didn’t retort when he saw the pleading in the old woman’s eyes. He simply nodded his head in agreement and saw her relax slightly at his consent.

“Okay, we’ll get right on that once we get back. So, Esther, I assume you found where the girl is and can you please explain how we’re getting there?”

Esther smiled. “Yes, she’s about an hour’s drive from the city, in some woodland, nothing near it. She’s hiding and I can feel her fear, we need to take things slow and I will not harness any dark magic...she’ll feel it and think we are hunters. Another thing, Dragons have some empathic abilities, they do have to concentrate to use it but if she does, she should be able to sense we mean her no harm. Ronan, can you please try and not scowl? You look very frightening when you do that....”

Ronan frowned. “What? I don’t scowl!”

Esther actually laughed as she looked up at him. “You’re doing it now, Ronan. Just try and not frown, scowl, growl or snarl. Now, on to how we will get there. I’m going to do a spell and it will take us to very near to where she is...”

Ronan frowned again as he stopped her. “What? Really? I thought that was all mumbo jumbo nonsense. You can really do that?”

Esther inclined her head to the side as she smiled up at him. “It’s not mumbo jumbo as you so delicately put it. However, only someone very strong in magic and trained extensively in carrying out the spell, can do it. It’s not something I do very often but it does come in handy at times. So, just stay there and I’ll get started.”

Ronan wasn’t at all sure about this, being moved around by magic wasn’t quite what he imagined the morning journey to be. His gaze never left Esther, watching as she closed her eyes and moved her hands fluidly in the air directly between them. Her face showed deep concentration as she muttered some unintelligible words. Out the corner of his eye he saw the leather cuff, lying on the edge of the desk, he moved quickly, snaking his hand out to grab it and placing it in his pocket...a second before he felt very strange indeed.

Ronan had a split second of panic as he felt as if his body was being pulled apart, cell by cell. He only had time to realize what he was feeling before his sight went dark...again for less than a second...then he saw he was standing amidst a group of trees. The grass was thick under his feet and he took a stumbled step backwards before regaining his equilibrium, his eyes darting around to make sure they were safe.

Esther’s hand touched his arm and he jerked, looking down into her amused face. “It takes a little getting used to. Are you all right to continue?”

Ronan took a deep breath then nodded. “Yes, I’m fine, was just a little weird is all. So, where is she?”

Esther pointed off to the right and started walking in that direction. Her next action surprised him greatly. She started to hum a tune and after a minute or so of walking and humming she shouted out.

“
Hello! We’re here to help. I know you are scared but we will not harm you. I also know you have some empathic powers...use them now dear. Use them and see we mean you no harm.”

Ronan stared wide eyed as Esther continued walking and started to hum again. He wondered what the heck she was playing at...she had just given the girl the chance to escape...again.

Esther continued to hum as she walked on, her tiny feet making small indentations in the grass as he followed behind. After only another minute or two they broke free of the trees and entered a small area that was grass and wildflowers, surrounded by the trees. The area was only about twenty foot across and Esther walked to the middle and stopped.