The Dragon

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

"Stalker," I greeted.

I felt pressure on the blade and pushed back against it, skidding back across the floor by the bed. I willed the lights on and a clear bright light filled the room. Even then, for a full moment, I saw absolutely nothing standing where I'd been standing.

Then, after a second longer, something seemed to materialize out of thin air. Bits and pieces of the image that was my bedroom wall fell apart and fell to the floor in sizzling pieces of ashes and a figure revealed himself from the pieces.

He was tall, nearly as tall as myself. He was muscular, though. Thick tawny muscles bulged through a mesh long sleeve top that led down to a pair of thick thighs into a pair of monstrous boots. His jet black hair was wavy and short, curling around little ears and just above a pair of sharp hazel eyes.

For a full second, he stole my breath away.

He was absolutely beautiful.

There was a fierceness to him that reminded me of uncle Hannibal, something raw and animalistic, something tight and ready to burst, coiled and ready.

Of course, I didn't have time to stand there and admire him because he flicked his wrist, testing out the thin silver dagger in his palm. I narrowed my eyes on it. A mere dagger wouldn't have been able to stop my swords. There was something different about that, something dangerous. Only magic could stop more magic. My eyes darted back up and met those hazel eyes that watched me with the predatory glare of an assassin.

"So you're the one who's been following me," I murmured. The male cocked his head slightly, giving his wrist another anxious twist as if to call attention to the dagger. There was something off about him, almost like he didn't want to do what he was hired to do. He was anxious. I could tell from the way he kept moving his wrist, noticed the way his feet shifted about, those hazel eyes refused to break away from me, like he was afraid one wrong move would leave me an opening.

I couldn't resist smiling now.

"What has you so amused?" He demanded, his tone offended. I smiled harder now.

"Nothing... I just think it's cute the Mother would send someone like you after me," I said, throwing out a guess. The male's eyes flickered.

So he was sent by the Mother, I realized. My gamble paid off. So I knew more about him. And now he had no idea how I knew about him. Because he hadn't been able to follow me into Keros's apartment.

Most apartments had special barriers set up by the owners. Barriers that kept out riff raff and thieves. He was able to blend in with his surroundings exceptionally well, but his power was limited. He couldn't bypass certain barriers. He could bypass the one on the house that we had, but not the apartment one. So he could only bypass private and not public.

"Are you here to kill me?" I asked. The male didn't answer me. He twitched the knife again. I didn't bother eyeing it. I wanted to keep staring into those hazel eyes that made me swear not to attack.

"If you are, please, carry on. I relish a good challenge," I invited. I held my arms out and let my swords fizzle out and disappear. The male's eyes glinted at that.

"Don't patronize me," he said.

"I'm inviting you," I answered. That seemed to anger him. He darted forward and slashed at me. I ducked and dodged and spun out of the way, catching his wrist and twisting the dagger out of his palm so it went flying across the room. His eyes followed it with alarm before he gritted his teeth and snapped himself out of my grasp. He went after the dagger, but I caught him by the back of his shirt and swung him around, throwing him up against the wall. He bounced off the wall and spun around to go after me, but I slammed him up against the wall and took his hand, twisting it up into my grip and threatening to break it. He hissed in pain, then jerked his head up to glare at me.