Lord of Chaos (The Dragon Demigods #7) - Charlene Hartnady Page 0,8

killer.” I could be one. Easily! “I’m not planning on killing you.” Accidents happen! I mean, I do fuck with a dagger strapped to my ankle.

“Not planning on it?” She laughs some more. She waits. I think she wants me to tell her that I don’t plan on hurting her either. All bets are off on that note. I won’t make promises I can’t keep. I’m not a nice person. I’m fucked up. I’ve killed before, and I might just lose it and kill again. I won’t lie to her. That’s not me.

Kitten licks her lips again.

I take in a breath, pulling out my phone. That does it! I’m calling her an Uber. She can wait in the lobby of the hotel. It’s that, or I’ll walk her back to the club. This isn’t going to happen. I’m not sure what I was thinking. I wasn’t! I was so caught up with need for the woman in the shirt, I lost my ever-loving mind for a few minutes. “I don’t think—” I start to say, when I hear a menacing snarl.

There’s a streak of black, and the girl next to me screams.

“What the—?” I shout. It’s the Doberman. Where did she come from? I left her at home, asleep in her bed. The dog grabs the girl’s leather jacket and starts to shake her viciously. She’s growling loudly as she shakes. I hear ripping.

“Dog!” I yell. “Stop that,” I shout again.

The Doberman doesn’t let up. In fact, I think she shakes the girl more viciously than before. Her growls have deepened. Her jacket tears some more. I think it might be faux leather.

“Fuck…Dog! Come on!” I grab her by her collar and yank. She doesn’t budge. I put my hands around her shoulders and give a hard pull.

The creature finally lets go. She turns and snaps at me as she does. Her teeth rip into my flesh. I growl a warning, feeling my lips curl back from my teeth.

I put myself between the dog and the girl. I watch as the Doberman’s eyes soften. Her whole stance softens.

I realize that I’m still showing my teeth. That my hands are curled into fists. Shit! Fuck! I think my eyes might be glowing. “Stand down.” My voice is guttural.

The dog goes down onto her haunches. Her eyes are still on me. I think I see defiance in their depths. This is not total submission. I’m part animal. I would know. She makes a whining noise. “You’d better be fucking sorry,” I mumble.

I hear ragged breathing behind me. I smell terror. That and urine. Good thing I didn’t take this princess back to the hotel room with me. If she couldn’t handle a dog, she certainly wouldn’t be able to handle me. “You okay?” I ask as I turn around.

“Don’t turn your back to it.” Her voice is shrill. She’s terrified. Her eyes are wide.

“The dog is mine,” I say. “I don’t know what came over her.”

“Yours…it’s yours?”

I nod.

“You take your dog out with you? What kind of sicko does that?”

I don’t say anything. I didn’t take the dog with me, but I am very much a sicko.

“Oh, my god!” She covers her mouth with her hand. “You’re bleeding.” Her gaze is on my arm.

I look down at the four puncture marks. They’re oozing blood. My shirt is ruined. “It’s nothing,” I say.

“That’s not nothing. You’ll probably need a tetanus shot.”

“I’ll live. Do you need me to walk you back to the club? Or can I organize you a—”

“I’m fine. I’ll manage.” Her eyes are on the Doberman, who’s sitting next to me in her usual position like nothing happened. The dog is looking at the girl. There’s murder in her eyes.

“Let me pay for the damage—” I start to say. Her jacket is ripped.

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.” I watch as the girl walks away. She’s going back towards the club, taking rapid strides. She glances back a couple of times. I’m not sure if she’s worried about the dog or if it’s me who makes her nervous. Probably a combination of both.

“What are you doing here? Did you follow me?” I look down at the dog. Irritated at myself for talking to the creature…yet again. Like a complete asshole, I keep going. “Let’s go home. It’s a long walk, because I doubt an Uber would agree to a dog in the back seat.”

4

Rage

“There’s been a new development,” I tell Gretchen.

“I still can’t believe she escaped.” The woman talks right over