Handlers of Dragons (Children of Ankh Book 4) Read online

  “You definitely had a few bombshells dropped on you,” Zach acknowledged as they strolled away from the group.

  This had all gone down the night before. She needed a moment. She hadn’t had the opportunity to absorb anything. She recalled Seth’s words...he’d said, the rules no longer applied to them without explaining what he meant. Kayn crouched down and placed her palms in the luxuriously tactile sand. He’d told her to come find him in the in-between. Could she? What was she capable of? He’d left her with a million unanswered questions. When she peered up, they were all gathered around her. Were they waiting for her to give them direction? She didn’t know anything more than she’d known yesterday, besides her paternity. Any one of them would be a better leader. She didn’t want to lead anyone. She wanted to cease to think and succumb to the Dragon within.

  The Testing had only been four months ago. She was still a hot mess of emotions or lack thereof. It was like she was two sides of a coin and each day the universe flipped her to see what it was going to get. Last night, her Handler had taken the news of her paternity in stride but they hadn’t had the opportunity to speak privately.

  Astrid broke the awkward silence by announcing, “There’s no point in just standing here. Let’s go!”

  As they wandered away from her, Kayn got up and jogged to Zach’s side. She took her Handler’s hand, hoping once again that her paternity didn’t change anything. Their bond had become second nature but it hadn’t always been this way. Zach gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and she knew everything was good. Here, in this place of peace and eternal calm, she usually felt at ease but not now... Not this time.

  Mel nudged Kayn as she enquired, “Well? How do we find them?”

  How was she supposed to know? She didn’t have any idea how her abilities worked or even what she was capable of. She recalled a prior occasion, when Zach and her were searching for the others. She might as well attempt to do something. Kayn gazed at the symbol of Ankh on the palm of her hand and began curiously massaging it with her thumb. The last time, they’d known who they were looking for, but this time, they were strangers. The only thing they shared was the brand on their palms. She glanced at Zach and grinned as he caught on to what she was attempting to do. He placed his hand with the mark of Ankh on his heart. She did the same... Nothing. It was worth a try.

  The five immortals continued their stroll until Astrid teased, “It’s a shame your abilities didn’t come with instructions.”

  “Sadly no,” Kayn countered as she stopped walking for a second and smiled at the tall blonde girl with the pixie cut. She had no idea what she was supposed to be doing. She could find the people she knew and cared about but strangers... How were they supposed to find four complete strangers?

  “Are we just going to continue to walk around in the sand all day?” Haley questioned. “Does anyone have any ideas on where they might be?”

  She had an idea but it required separating from the others. She might as well do it. Wandering through the desert wasn’t getting them anywhere.

  Zach squeezed her hand gently as he quietly scolded, “Don’t you dare take off on me.”

  “I need to do this alone. I won’t be long. I promise,” she assured as she released his hand. “Trust me,” she whispered. “I promise I’ll come back.” Kayn stepped away from her Handler’s disapproval and closed her eyes as she thought of the man she could barely stomach to call her father. With her eyes shut, she disappeared in a flash of light.

  When Kayn opened her eyes, she found herself standing in front of an ominous castle like structure. Instinct alone led her movements as she scaled the stairs to the entrance. The door appeared to have no knob or handle. She gave it a good shove but it wouldn’t budge. There was however a large ornate knocker. She knocked three times and waited. She quickly stepped away from the door as it opened.

  For a second, Tiberius was shocked to see her. He teased, “Was killing you not enough to solidify your break up with my grandson? It really seems quite self-explanatory.”

  Hilarious. Kayn replied, “I’m not here to see Kevin, I’m looking for Seth.”

  “Now young lady, why would you possibly need to see Triad’s Guardian?” Tiberius inquired almost flirtatiously.

  She choked over her words, “He’s my father.”

  Appearing to be quite taken aback by her admission, Tiberius quipped, “Well... That’s one hell of a plot twist gorgeous. Come in. Make yourself at home.”

  Triad has a waiting room? Kayn strolled past Tiberius, knowing there was a distinct possibility she’d be coming face-to-face with Kevin. They’d talked things out but that was before she’d stolen his cellphone.

  “Don’t worry, he’s not here,” Tiberius confided as he led her down the long hallway that opened into an enormous luxurious looking forest green and gold flecked marble room. He motioned to the pile of large jewel toned satin pillows on the floor and directed, “Wait here, I’ll go see if he’s available.”

  Kayn was too nervous to sit down. This wasn’t like her...not anymore. She remained standing. She felt more powerful while on her feet. Echoing footsteps came from the hall and she mentally prepared herself to see her genetic sire.

  Tiberius strolled back in and slyly disclosed, “He’s otherwise occupied. He has a casual thing going on with our friend Stephanie. He says he’ll find you when he’s finished.”

  Gross... She hadn’t needed that visual. Kayn was rather irritated. She’d gone out of her way to speak to her immortal douche of a father and she’d been blown off. With a fake smile, Kayn politely excused herself as she shimmied past Tiberius and quickly made her escape. She’d almost reached the door when Tiberius situated himself between her and the exit. He obviously wanted to say something.

  Breaking the silence, Tiberius enquired, “How’s Lexy?”

  She couldn’t help it as she bit the hook he’d dangled by replying, “Why do you ask?” Kayn was eavesdropping on Tiberius’s inner dialogue as he struggled to come up with a reason other than the obvious.

  He opted out of deception. Knowing she was on to him, he replied honestly, “She’s been kind of stuck in my head.”

  He had feelings for her. Interesting...it wasn’t just attraction for him. She felt defensive for various reasons as she attempted to shut his fantasies down the same way he’d tried to snuff out hers. Kayn innocently disclosed, “She’s been kind of seeing Orin.”

  Visibly stricken, Tiberius moved out of her way as he replied, “Oh...well...That’s probably for the best.”

  Lexy was her sister. She didn’t have the right to stand between her and anything she wanted. Even though the thought of it turned her stomach, Kayn glanced back at Tiberius and confessed, “It’s nothing serious.”

  “Did I hear that right?” Triad’s leader questioned while holding the door open.

  Shit. He’d heard her thoughts. Kayn strolled out without giving him a response. Why had she even come here? She should have known better. Embarrassed, she rushed down the uneven stone stairs, missed one and tumbled awkwardly down the last couple, landing with a thud on her rear end. Of course! She was such a klutz. Some things never change.

  Tiberius was laughing as he called out, “Break anything kid?”

  Kid. Right. I’m dating your brother you tool. Kayn scowled as she got up while shaking her head. She brushed herself off and met his Cheshire cat grin with an overly curt, “I’m fine.”

  “Have a nice day kitten!” he called out obnoxiously as he closed the door.

  Kitten...Cute. She was going to adorably kick his ass the next time they crossed paths. With her ego quite eloquently stomped on, she vanished in a flash of light. She reappeared in the desert where she’d left her clan. She was alone. They obviously went looking for her. Instinct led her to place her hand on her heart. She thought of her Handler. With another burst of light, she was in the forest. The rest of her clan were off in the distance. She grinned because she’d found them quite easily. Kayn took a seat on a fallen log
, requiring a moment. It was interesting that Seth had a physical place in the in-between and that Triad hung out there. The idea that she could accidentally run into Kevin at any time now, made her uneasy. Their little conversation in Alaska had extinguished the guilt over her little murder spree in the Testing. She was in a good place with Frost. She had Zach, a surprise sister and her clan. All things considered, she was doing rather well. She even knew who her father was. Although father was a mortal word that obviously meant something completely different in Seth’s mind. She’d gone out of her way to seek him out and he couldn’t even cut his booty call short to speak to her. She cringed again...Stephanie. She’d been able to begin the road to forgiveness with Kevin but for some reason, when it came to Stephanie, she just couldn’t. She sensed someone approaching, peered up and it was Zach.

  He sat down beside her and declared, “It’s time to set some ground rules. Where you go, I go. No exceptions. Especially now when you’re dealing with all of this added stress.”

  She saw his point. She disclosed, “I just went to speak to my absentee father. I wasn’t sure if I could bring anyone with me.”

  “How’d that go?” Zach enquired as he began picking bark off the log they were sitting on.

  “He couldn’t be bothered,” Kayn admitted, while leaving out a few details.

  Zach ceased his bark picking. He placed his arm around her as he whispered, “Seth is a horrible person. Being your father doesn’t change that. If I were you, I wouldn’t expect too much. Azariah is our clan’s Guardian and as fate would have it, your aunt. If you have any questions, isn’t she the logical choice?”

  Her feelings were difficult to interpret so there was no point in trying. Kayn met her Handler’s eyes as she whispered, “Lesson learned. Forget about it. I plan to.” She turned her attention to the newbie Ankh as they approached with her friends. She nudged Zach and questioned, “How did you find them?”

  “It was Haley,” Zach whispered.

  Kayn grinned as she watched Astrid and Haley chatting with the Ankh they’d never met. There were three boys and a girl. It was different dynamics but as she observed their body language she could easily fill in the blanks. They all appeared to be angry at one of the boys. Was this animosity caused by an isolated incident or did they despise him? She continued to listen to the conversation as a bystander, without involving herself. Zach left her side and she remained seated on her log...It would probably be best if she didn’t identify with the four people she was about to torture. If they were nameless faceless individuals, it would be easier to shut her emotions down. The boy the other’s appeared to loath introduce himself to Zach as Amar’s son.

  Zach politely extended his hand in greeting while saying, “Nice to meet you Amar’s son.”

  The boy smirked and responded, “There’s no point in shaking hands with someone inconsequential.”

  Was this guy serious? Offending her Handler was a bad idea. She might to get up and smack this idiot.

  Zach knit his brow as he clarified, “I’m Kayn’s Handler. Are you really sure you want to act like this?”

  Amar’s son quipped, “And that means what to me?” He looked directly at Kayn as he provoked, “So, she’s the new Dragon? The blonde girl over there, that looks like she couldn’t hurt a fly. I’m terrified.”

  A lovely girl with waist length midnight black hair in a braid and deep olive toned skin apologized profusely as she shook Zach’s hand, “I’m so sorry. He hasn’t been training with us. I’m not even sure why he’s here.”

  Melody stepped in and clarified, “He hasn’t been training with you? Why not?”

  “He feels he’s above us,” an attractive red-haired boy with a British accent announced.

  Amar’s offspring ignorantly rolled his eyes while muttering under his breath, “I shouldn’t have to train with the riffraff.”

  This kid’s ignorance was annoying.

  Astrid coldly addressed the entitled teen, “When we die, we go to the same place regardless of our station. Nobody cares about the size of your bank account in the Testing.”

  The insolent youth nonchalantly shrugged as he replied, “My father’s in charge of this whole continent. Why would I have to go into the Testing?”

  The group had gathered where she was seated so Kayn reluctantly got up.

  “How does Amar expect him to blend with the others?” Astrid whispered.

  This whole group stood no chance in the Testing. Haley, their clan’s resident intuitionist gave Kayn a look. That was her cue. Kayn thought of a knife and it appeared in her hand. She marched over, met Amar’s son’s eyes and said, “Interesting theory you have there. My father happens to be Seth. You know, the Guardian in charge of Triad. That makes my aunt Azariah, the Guardian in charge of Ankh. My boyfriend is Frost, you know the guy in charge of your father and in a surprising plot twist, my sister is Lexy. I just finished the Testing. I find it odd that you don’t think you have to go in.”

  The defiant teen met Kayn’s gaze as he scoffed, “Sure you are. Why hasn’t anyone heard of this?”

  “We have,” Zach clarified. “It’s true. It all just came out.”

  She’d had about enough of this idiot. While clutching her weapon, Kayn ominously stepped forward and coldly commanded, “Run!”

  The group hesitated just as they had when Lexy and Grey had ordered them to flee. This spoiled brat didn’t flinch. Intrigued by the teen’s insolence, she grasped Amar’s son’s arm and probed, “And your name is?”

  “Samid,” he choked out, while still trying to look like he wasn’t buying her show of dominance.

  Either this kid was incredibly brave or a fool. On the fence as to which he was, Kayn impatiently blurted, “We don’t have time for this.” With a swift slash of her serrated edged blade she slit Samid’s throat. Shocked, the boy clutched his gushing neck wound, staggered backwards and slumped to the ground. Weapons appeared in the trio of newbie Ankh’s hands. Interesting...They were fully prepared to stand their ground. Perhaps this situation wasn’t as hopeless as she’d originally thought.

  “What a dick,” Haley commented as she gave Samid’s body a boot with her foot.

  The others obviously knew their place in the immortal food chain because even though they’d brandished their weapons, their fear was obvious. Kayn stepped closer to the group as she enquired, “Do you know what a Dragon does?” They practically tripped over each other as they fled into the woods. Samid’s body twitched. Kayn grinned as the boy scrambled to his feet.

  While still clutching his throat, Samid raged, “My father will have you entombed for this!”

  The five immortals doubled over laughing as Kayn revealed, “Your father set up this training exercise.”

  “I don’t believe you!” Samid stubbornly retaliated while brushing off his immortal attire as though his appearance mattered. He looked around and noticed the rest of his group was gone.

  “I’d run away now,” Zach urged.

  Amar’s son didn’t move a muscle as he defiantly stood his ground. A blade appeared in his quivering hands. He was going to make her kill him again before their little game of hide and seek even started. Kayn grinned and cocked her head as she menacingly directed, “Run.” Samid raised his chin, insolently maintaining his stance. Kayn glanced at her Handler, knowing if she had to at least make him appear to have a part in her decisions while she was of reasonably sound mind. If she didn’t, she’d never hear the end of it.

  Zach shrugged as he gave her the green light, “Go for it.”

  That’s all she needed. With a rapid slash of her blade, Samid clutched his throat and crumpling to the ground. As she stood by his corpse, waiting for him to awaken once again, she glanced over at her friends and exclaimed, “You might as well go after the others. This may take a while.”

  Astrid, Haley and Melody wandered off into the woods. Zach remained by her side. Once again Samid awoke. This time, after he struggled to get up, he attacked her, swinging his weapon w
ith skill most impressive yet not nearly good enough to cause her concern. Kayn easily took him down. This guy was seriously stubborn. Five more times, Samid awakened and came at her, showing he had half decent skills but nowhere close to what he’d need to have a shot.

  Zach decided it was time to stop the insanity as he stepped in and declared, “This guy has a seriously stunted ego. We’ll be here all day.”

  This time as Samid got up, wielding his knife, Kayn tossed hers aside and announced, “Fine...I won’t even use a weapon. Do your best.” With each skilled swing of his blade, Kayn easily maneuvered out of the way. When she was done playing around, she decided to allow him to have his moment. She stood there, held both of her arms up and goaded him into stabbing her. He did. Moderately shocked by her lack of response, Samid released the hilt of his knife, leaving the blade within her as he stepped away. Kayn casually removed the blade from her midriff. Her wound warmed as it rapidly healed. Feeling cocky as hell, Kayn lifted her short blood stained white sarong to show him, she’d healed. He’d accomplished nothing. Zach cleared his throat. Oh shit. She wasn’t wearing anything under her sarong. Why did she always forget about that? Amar’s son winked at her as he responded to her impromptu flashing in Arabic. Kayn understood what he’d said as though he’d spoken English. ‘Go ahead, take it all off.’ She darted in and snapped his neck silencing the testosterone show.

  “This guy just isn’t getting it. He’s also not the least bit concerned about the others,” Zach pointed out.

  Kayn met Zach’s frustrated expression and nodded. She knew what he was saying...It was time to allow the Dragon within her to take the wheel. There was one thought that always took her mortal empathy away. The sensation of Kevin’s blade on her throat and the sight of him walking away. She started there but their last conversation had defused the betrayal she felt and it wasn’t enough. This was new. Her memory scrolled through the highlights of the Testing until she found the torturous brutality that unlocked the monster within. The girl that understood ration sunk into the emotionless abyss of her Dragon self.