Carissa studied the flat space, but she couldn’t see anything remarkable about it. The pop and hiss of a speaker coming to life echoed through the room.
“How is a raven like a writing desk?” a voice boomed out from a corner behind her.
Carissa whipped her head around to look for the source of the sound, but Michael held her in place against him.
“Your hair wants for cutting,” he answered.
What kind of answer was that? Carissa looked at him, confused.
“Michael?” the voice asked. There was a note of disbelief in it.
“In the flesh.” Michael shot the wall a toothy grin. “Can I come in? It’s cold out here, and there are wolves.” The seconds ticked by as they waited for a response. A hissing noise came from the wall.
Carissa gasped in surprise as part of the brickwork swung open. A tall man with dark skin stood framed in the doorway.
“God, man, it’s good to see you.” The man stepped out of the doorway and took Michael’s hand. He pulled Michael in for what might have passed as a hug. It was more a chest bump and slap on the back. “I didn’t think I would ever see you again. Did you know that there’s a BOLO out on you?”
“I kind of figured.” Michael pulled away from his friend and turned back to Carissa. He placed his hand on her back and brought her forwards into the light.
“Carissa, I would like you to meet Terrence Basha,” Michael said, introducing the man. “Terrence, this is Carissa Markel. She’s helping me.”
Terrence looked at her with wide eyes. “Carissa Markel! As in the dragon king’s sister?”
Michael nodded. “One and the same.”
“My Lady.” Terrence took her hand and kissed it.
Carissa could feel Michael’s hand tense on her back. “Good evening.” She smiled and pulled her hand back. It would be better if she kept her distance from Terrence. Michael was obviously still brooding. There was no telling what might set his protective instincts off.
Terrence looked from her to Michael and back.
Carissa could see that he had picked up on something in Michael’s posture that set him on edge.
“Well, don’t just stand there. Come in.” Terrence stepped back, clearing the doorway. “I’ve been going over that file you sent me.”
Carissa relaxed a little as Michael’s hand softened against her back. She stepped over the edge of a metal doorframe. It was raised several inches from the floor with a rubber gasket wrapped around its curved edge, very like bulkhead doors on ships. The room that opened up in front of her was unique. Living room, office, kitchen, and bedroom all rolled into one long room.
“Did you find anything?” Michael asked as he followed her in.
A fallout shelter! Carissa’s eyes finally recognized the utilitarian building for what it was. The man was living in a fallout shelter! What kind of weirdo were they dealing with?
“Lots of stuff,” Terrence answered as he pulled the door shut and sealed them in. “I think you might have a bigger problem on your hands than you thought. And, what did you do to your hair?”
“It’s a long story.” Michael sighed and ran his hand through his white locks. “Can you show me what you’ve got?”
“Sure.”
Carissa stood there, forgotten, as the two men made their way to a table covered in papers. Stifling a yawn, she found a comfortable-looking, oversized beanbag and helped herself to it. The last few days had been amazingly long. She listened to the men chatter on, trying to understand, but the rise and fall of their voices eased her into sleep.
“What is she to you?”
Terrence’s words drew Michael’s attention away from his study of Carissa’s sleeping face. God, she was beautiful. Michael would love to wake up to that face every morning, with her soft curls tangled around her head and those luscious lips slightly parted. Desire burned in him again. For a while, he had been able to push her from his mind and concentrate on figuring out his puzzle, but now that he had his answers, it came back with a vengeance.
“She saved me.” Michael turned back to his friend. He had already told Terrence about their escape.
Terrence looked up at Michael’s white hair. “She did a bit more than just that.” His change in nature had been included in the story. “And, she stuck around. What are you going to do, now?”
“What do you mean?” Michael glanced back at Carissa. He had an idea of where Terrence was going.
“Are you going to try and keep her?”
Yup, he went there. “How can I?” Michael let out a forlorn sigh. “She’s the king’s sister, and I… well, I’m a security guard.” When it all boiled down, that’s all he was. Protection for dragons.
“One hell of a security guard,” Terrence scoffed at him. “Michael, you have one of the most prestigious jobs on the planet. Very few can even make it into your position. You work long, hard hours to make sure that people like her are safe in this world. You deserve something nice.”
“Even more reason to let her go. I don’t have time to pursue her, even if she wasn’t out of my league,” Michael pointed out. His insides screamed that he was wrong, but he ignored them. He was starting to get good at ignoring them.
“And that’s it,” Terrence huffed. “You’re just going to let her go?”
Michael looked at Carissa longingly, but nodded.
“Man, if I was in your shoes, I’d start by tagging that.”
“What?” Michael snapped.
“Hell yeah. Look, you have a fine piece there, and she’s obviously into you.”
“Says the man who’s ready for zombies,” Michael scoffed. “When was the last time you got out of here?”
“Hey, zombies could happen,” Terrence said defensively. “Anyway, I was out last Thursday.”
Michael raised an eyebrow at this.
“The gun show was in town, and I needed some more powder.”
“Terrence. Once-a-month tours of the local hardware supplier do not make a social life,” Michael pointed out. “You need to get out of this hole. Your grandmother left you a very nice farmhouse that’s falling to pieces just outside. Hell, once this thing’s blown over, I’ll get some of the guys together, and we’ll come out and help you fix it up.”
“Sure, put me out there in the open, undefended.”
“Aliens are not going to come kidnap you, the government doesn’t want your brain, and Bigfoot has better things to do than flounce through your flowerbeds.”
“And when we were kids, dragons didn’t exist.”
“Touché.” Michael had to concede that point.
“What are you going to do about the dragon thing?” Terrence changed the subject.
Michael ran his hand through his hair, ruffling up the white locks again. “I don’t know.” He sighed. “Carissa said the hormone thing should settle out in a few days.”
Terrence shot him a cheesy grin.
Michael had accidently mentioned his brooding. That had been an interesting conversation. “And I think I’m getting the hang of the rest of it.” Except for that reptilian voice that was currently laughing at him. What the hell did it know that he didn’t? “I’m going to have to stop in for a psych eval, but I’m sure I can handle anything unexpected.”
“Yeah man, whatever.” Terrence gave him a skeptical look. “The way I see it, Carissa’s responsible for you being a dragon. She should be the one to teach you what you need to know.”
Michael glared at him as that inner voice agreed with Terrence.
“She could at least help you with the hormone problem.” Terrence snickered.