Origin (Scales 'n' Spells 1)

Dieter got out and called to the other car, “Warin! What happened, do you know?”

Cameron reached for his phone in his back pocket only to come up empty. Had he forgotten his phone when he left the castle?

No. He’d had it in his lap. The damn thing must have fallen when they swerved to stay on the road. Unbuckling his seat belt, Cameron started to lean forward to search for it when a screech of tires came from behind them. Had someone from the castle been following them? Riding on a dragon was always fun, but he appreciated leather seats and air conditioning as well.

Twisting around, he sat frozen, his breath trapped in his lungs as a white, unmarked van idled behind them. It all happened too fast, and at the same time as if he were watching it all in slow motion. He was trapped. His limbs unwilling to move as he saw the side door thrown open and four men dressed entirely in black with masks jump down. Dieter rose from where he’d been kneeling next to the rear driver’s side wheel. He threw his arm out, his mouth opening in what was likely to be a shout, but one of the men pointed something at Dieter. Two wires shot out and hit Dieter square in the chest. The dragon shouted in pain and convulsed.

A taser. The bastards were tasing Dieter! As he thought it, another one aimed at Warin, who went down just as quickly.

Dieter’s and Warin’s pained shouts finally broke Cameron free of his paralysis. He shoved open the passenger door and nearly rolled down the side of the damn mountain before he could get his feet under him.

“Leave them alone!” Cameron shouted. Not that he actually expected that to work. He had no doubt in his mind this attack had been orchestrated by the Jaeggi. As he clawed his way back toward the road, the four men seemed to stare at him in surprise for a moment. Had they not expected Cameron to be in the car? Were they just trying to attack a dragon?

Those answers weren’t going to be coming anytime soon. The two bastards were still shocking the hell out of Dieter and Warin, both dragons twitching on the asphalt. But before Cameron could approach them, the other three attackers descended on him.

It was sadly no match. Cameron got in only a couple of swings before he was grabbed and tossed into the van. In the sudden darkness, more hands grabbed him. He screamed once for Dieter and then duct tape was slapped over his mouth, followed by a dark hood. His legs and arms were bound, but the fear didn’t set in until he heard the metal van door slam shut and the engine roared to life as they sped off down the road.

He paid attention to the movements of the van, trying to keep track of the turns, but they couldn’t have been traveling long before the van stopped, he was hauled out, and placed into another vehicle. They’d changed cars. Shit! How was Alric and his guards supposed to find him now?

Fear sank deep into his bones, leaving him cold despite the heat of the car. His phone was still in Dieter’s car. He had no idea if the dragon was injured or even dying. He didn’t know a single damn spell to help him escape or even help Alric find him.

And worst of all, the Jaeggi had him.

He had no idea why they wanted him, but considering their past, Cameron was sure it wasn’t for anything good.

For now, he could only wait and look for an opportunity to escape. He needed to get back to his dragon.

Cameron lost all sense of time and place as the car whipped through turns and over hills. Thank god he didn’t suffer from motion sickness or he’d have an even bigger problem than just being held by a bunch of assholes. He also didn’t have a great sense of how many people were in the car with him. No one was speaking.

A lot. He was going to go with a lot of people. It was hot, uncomfortable, and he ached from trading blows and being tossed around like dirty laundry. But all the discomfort meant nothing compared to the fear currently clawing his heart to shreds. There was no doubt in his mind Alric knew by now he’d been taken. Dieter was a tough old dragon. He would have gotten back to his feet within minutes of the van speeding off and would have called for help.

But Alric. It was like he could feel the dragon’s fear and unrelenting rage. And guilt. Alric would blame himself for Cameron’s kidnapping. Cameron had to get back to his dragon. He needed to crawl into Alric’s lap, cup his cheeks, and kiss him until he finally agreed that the kidnapping wasn’t his fault.