The Dragon and the Vampire

  Supernatural Enforcement Bureau

  Book 1

  The Dragon and

  The Vampire

  by

  A K Michaels

  © 2014 by A K Michaels All Rights Reserved

  This book, or any portion thereof, may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission by the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Dedication

  Quite simply, for Pauline and she’ll know exactly why.

  Chapter 1

  Ronan sat at his desk re-reading the file in front of him, shaking his head in disbelief. Although the report was from one of his best men, he was having trouble acknowledging the information contained in the paperwork.

  A group of Bounty Hunters, that he could understand, after all, the Supernatural Enforcement Bureau (SEB) dealt with those lowlifes all the time. His confusion wasn’t with the hunt itself, but was centered solely on their prey…a Dragon?

  Surely not? He didn’t know anyone who had actually seen one, and was pretty sure they were a myth. Tales of fire-breathing Dragons were fabricated to keep kids in line…they were not real.

  As he continued reading, his hand ran through his hair, a tell-tale gesture whenever he was puzzled. Sitting up straighter in his custom-made chair–one specially designed for his six-foot-six frame–some of the words on the pages began to make sense. His Sire, Josef, had recently come across the rarest and most dangerous kind of sorcery...dark magic.

  It was a magic so deadly that it could incapacitate even the most ancient of Vampires…and kill the rest…including him. “Shit,” he muttered, knowing he needed to make the call. Rummaging under the mounds of paperwork scattered across his desk until he found his phone, he hit speed dial number three and listened to it ring on the other end, waiting patiently for Josef to answer.

  “How are you, Ronan?”

  Josef’s almost friendly tone had him smiling. Since his bonding, the change in his Sire was pretty spectacular, “I’m fine, sort of, but thought I should call. I’ve come across some information that’s, well, sort of weird and I thought of your mate’s father, and how powerful he was…”

  Josef interrupted, “He is dead. Peri dealt with him. What’s this new information, Ronan?”

  “Well, don’t laugh, okay? I know it sounds batshit crazy, but I’ve been told there’s a group of specialized hunters in the area…and that they’re stalking…okay, this is where you’re supposed to tell me how stupid this sounds…a Dragon.”

  Ronan’s tone changed to real skepticism as he finished, expecting his Sire to berate him for such nonsense. However, he recognized Josef’s loud exhale as one of resignation, and wondered what the hell was going on.

  “Where did you get this information? How reliable is it?” Josef seemed to spit the words out, as if knowing that Ronan was frowning on the other end of the phone as he replied.

  “It’s actually from a reliable source, but I was expecting you to tell me to get a grip or something. Dragons? Surely they don’t exist! I’ve never seen one. Have you?” Ronan was almost laughing by now, at the overall strangeness of the conversation.

  “Yes, I have,” Josef said quietly.

  It took a few seconds before Ronan was capable of answering.

  “Are you kidding me? Shit, what am I saying…you don’t kid around. Really? They’re real? Ifreann na Fola!” Ronan was shocked, his voice showing the extent of his amazement, using his native tongue to curse.

  “Yes, they are real, and very, very, precious. About four centuries ago, I met the only remaining Dragon family. I helped them fight off hunters at that time. You have to help them, Ronan, above all else, you have to help.”

  Ronan noted his Sire’s tone of voice. He was issuing a direct command and Ronan bristled at the words…not liking to be told what to do, by anyone, even Josef.

  “There’s something else. The details in the report indicate that they want the Dragons for their blood. Apparently some believe it to be very powerful in witchcraft. That was my initial reason for calling…especially now that the other guy is after Peri. I thought that if this were true that her father had somehow got his hands on some of this, so-called, magical blood…”

  “Of course,” Josef exclaimed.

  “I take it that makes sense to you?” Ronan asked, still more than a little surprised at the way this conversation was going.

  “Indeed it does, her father used dark magic–the oldest magic there is. I thought it was no longer in use in our world. Now I know how it returned…from the oldest magical beings anywhere…Dragons. You have to find, and help, this Dragon, whoever it is. You cannot let it fall into the hands of those who hunt it or we’ll see a whole hell of a lot more dark magic being used. That’s not something that will be good for anyone, human or otherwise.”

  “Okay, I’ll do my best. Josef. Your encounter with them was about four centuries ago? Wasn’t that about the time you found me?” Ronan silently wondered if Josef finding him had anything to do with the Dragons. That was also about the same time Josef had turned him into a Vampire, but the first week or two afterward was a complete haze in his memory.

  “Yes, it was. I know that when I found and turned you, amongst the rubble of your town, that I told you there had been an earthquake. I lied. The town had been decimated by the battle between the Dragons, me, and those who hunted them. I fought on the side of the Dragons. Your town had been caught in the crossfire, so to speak, and afterward we tried to save as many as we could. We failed miserably. You were the only one with even a ghost of a chance of surviving…and only then if I turned you. I was sworn to keep the Dragons’ secret, which I’ve done, until now.” Josef sighed heavily as he concluded his story. Ronan sensed his Sire’s emotions through the phone line, he was upset.

  “I see,” was the only reply Ronan gave, shocked by this entire conversation, especially the part about his origins of becoming a Vampire.

  “I did what I had to do, Ronan, I don’t apologize for that. My only regret is that so many were killed by those who hunted the Dragons. It saddens me that I couldn’t have done more to save your town.” Josef’s tone was one of sincere regret, and every word believable.

  Ronan tried to remember details from that time but couldn’t. He’s always believed that his town had been razed to the ground by an earthquake. Those circumstances were very rare in Ireland, but it never occurred to him that he had been lied to.

  “So, it was these Dragon hunters who destroyed my home?” Ronan growled his question, as hatred grew inside him for the Bounty Hunters who were hunting on his turf.

  “Yes, one of the Dragons was injured. We retreated into the mountains for it to heal, before moving on. The hunters found us, and instead of going around, they used dark magic to obliterate the town.”

  Ronan’s heart ached at Josef’s words, thinking of all the people from his small town who had been murdered…not killed in a freak earthquake as he had been told. He couldn’t understand how people could do something so callous. Trying to calm his breathing as anger was attempting to take hold, he exhaled slowly. Losing his temper was never a good idea.

  “Thank you, for finally telling me the truth. I’ll keep it in mind
when I hunt these guys. They may not be the same ones, but they’re cut from the same cloth.” Ronan was unhappy at his Sire’s deception, but guessed Josef had no choice at the time. He had to protect the Dragons…and that meant the fewer who knew about their existence, the better…even him.

  “If you think you may need my help, please call, Ronan.”

  “If you need mine to protect Peri, then do the same, call, and if I can’t get there myself, I’ll send men…lots of men.”

  “Thank you,” Josef said, with such feeling that Ronan realized he was very grateful for the offer.

  “I’ve gotta go, I need to process this new information, then I’m gonna deal with this case myself. Talk to you later, Josef.”

  With that, Ronan hung up, a frown once more on his face as he tried to decide how to proceed. He read more of the report, obtaining details of where these guys had been spotted. Suddenly he set the file on the desk and shouted, “Sam, get in here, will you?”

  Although Sam was in an office down the hall, he knew Sam’s Vampire hearing would pick him up, loud and clear. He continued to read as his Second in Command, and best friend, entered his office, to stand in his favorite spot, leaning on the back wall, next to the window. The sun shone through and glinted off Sam’s skin, although they were Vampires the sun did not have them combusting into a ball of flames. That was only in the movies, not real life. Ronan lifted his head and stared at Sam with dark eyes, noting that Sam was, as usual, relaxed and smirking.

  “What?” Ronan asked his friend

  “You got a real weird look on your face boss––what’s up? Something got you spooked?” Sam drawled, still with a smirk, highlighted by pure white teeth in stark contrast to his midnight dark skin and almost black eyes. Jeez it seemed as if that smirk was a permanent fixture on his face.

  He absolutely hated being called boss but everyone did it, no matter how many emails he sent telling them not to. His name was Ronan, even though he was now the Director of the SEB, he would much prefer to be called by his given name than ‘boss.’

  “Okay, how many times do I have to tell you not to call me boss, and I’m not spooked, but mac soith! You’re not gonna believe me when I tell you…”

  “Do you always need to swear in Gaelic? You know I don’t understand most of it–though that one I do know––‘son of a bitch.’ What’s got you so riled up?”

  Sam peeled his long, lean, body off the wall and slowly moved towards the desk. Settling into a chair in front, crossing his ankles, Sam placed his feet on the corner of the desk. He was careful not to dislodge any of the many piles of paper.

  “Yeah, well I’m pretty sure you’re gonna swear when you hear this. Don’t interrupt–I’ve got this report from Drake–telling me about a load of Bounty Hunters in the area. Not unusual, but these are special hunters–they’re after…and this is where you shut the fuck up ‘til I’m finished…a Dragon.”

  “What? Are you trying to pull some sort of prank? A Dragon…”

  “I told you to not interrupt! It’s no joke. I phoned my Sire, Josef, and he not only confirmed that Dragons are real, but he’s helped them in the past. In fact, it was while helping them that he found and turned me. The hunters were after the Dragons, and destroyed my town in order to get to them. So, yeah, they do exist and it looks like there’s one here.” Ronan slapped his hand against the report. “The Hunters have been spotted out of the city in an abandoned area of old warehouses ‘n stuff. So, guess where we’re going, my friend?”

  Ronan was sporting a full smile now, especially enjoying the shocked look on Sam’s face.

  “For real?” his friend asked, cocking his head to the side and scrutinizing him as if trying to gauge if Ronan was lying.

  “For real. We both need to change, then we’re heading out to see if we can get some more intel on the situation.”

  Ronan peeled his body out of the chair and walked to the door of his office. Every time he noticed the words engraved into the glass office door–Ronan P. Kelly, Director of the SEB–it unnerved him a little, even though the title had been his for nearly six years now. Landing this position hadn’t been his goal when he joined the Supernatural Enforcement Bureau. He had only wanted to help curb the growing number of crimes committed by his kind. It didn’t matter if it was a Wolf, Witch, or Vampire, they had no right to commit crimes against humans.

  In response to his sense of duty, Ronan joined the bureau and seemed to rise through the ranks at breakneck speed–to become the director. No one was surprised more than him. He no longer had anyone to report to–apart from the President–who had advised him that he had carte blanche to do what was required…no questions asked. As long as it didn’t involve humans, Ronan could do whatever the hell he liked…which was fine with him.

  “Weird, huh. Seeing your name there still kinda freaks me out too.” Sam half laughed as he spoke while studying Ronan’s face.

  “Yeah, we’ve come a long way, my friend.”

  Sam chuckled louder. “I only came along for the ride and look where it’s got me! In a freaking office, wearing a suit. You know I hate wearing suits, right?”

  “Unfortunately, we have to. The rule book says we need to look ‘highly professional’–I think that’s the term used. Anyway, most of the time we’re in the office now, so we don’t need to be dressed for a fight every second of our working day.” Ronan actually missed not going out on missions. Having to supervise everyone else wasn’t as much fun.

  “I know, but jeez, could the rules not be relaxed–just a little? It’s not as if I can’t do my job in jeans. We mostly work online or on the phone so nobody even sees these fine suits.” Sam walked past Ronan, on his way to the first floor locker room, where they kept a mission-ready set of clothes and weapons.

  “I wish, but we’re supposed to be setting an example, so suits it is.” Ronan followed Sam, feeling excitement build inside at the thought of going out on a real mission again.

  No way was he passing this assignment off to anyone else. He and Sam would handle it…no matter how long it took.

  Chapter 2

  The walk to the locker room took longer than it should as they were stopped several times by agents, wanting to either tell them something, or ask for advice. It was nearly a full hour before they were kitted up and ready to go. Both dressed in full, black combat gear, with several weapons dotted around their large frames.

  Ronan stood six foot six and Sam was a five inches shorter, six one. They were imposing and deadly looking in suits...dressed as they were now, most folk would run in the opposite direction, screaming loudly.

  “You ready?” Ronan asked and Sam nodded his head once.

  “Okay, Drake is downstairs and he’ll take us to the area that the hunters have been spotted… hope we find them.” Ronan’s voice tapered off as he remembered Josef’s words about it being Dragon hunters that had destroyed his town and everyone he had ever cared about in his human life.

  “Hey, what’s up?” Sam’s voice was low as he could see tension mounting in his friend and didn’t want to spook him.

  “What? Oh nothing––just something Josef told me and it’s kinda got me riled up a bit. Cac! I need to focus!”

  “Will you stop with the Irish swearing! I hate when you do that.” Sam gave him a playful punch on his arm.

  If he had done it to a human it would probably have broken a limb, fortunately, Ronan wasn’t human. He tried to smile and let the tension out...found it damn near impossible.

  “Shit...that’s what that meant.” Ronan liked to swear in his native tongue for a couple of reasons. One, it usually meant folks had no idea what he was saying, and second, it made him think of times long gone when it was the only language he spoke...and his loved ones were still alive.

  “I knew that one, and I also know you usually only swear in that Gaelic when you’re upset.” Sam did the head cocked to the side move, while staring intently at him.

  “Yeah, I am a little nonplussed, but I’
ll get over it.” Ronan turned to head towards the elevator that would take them to their underground parking where one of his best agents, Drake, would be waiting.

  “What?! Did you just say ‘nonplussed’ what the fuck is that? Must be you talking to Josef that’s got you talking like that! ‘Nonplussed’, Christ that’s so...”

  Ronan cut him off, “Shut up will you! Just ‘cause you don’t have a good grip on the English language doesn’t mean everyone is a Neanderthal. Try checking a dictionary out now and then.”

  He heard Sam’s laughter as he carried on to the elevator, a smile now on his own face. His friend always had the knack to get him out of any funk he was in no matter how serious or upsetting his mood.

  He pressed the button for the elevator and heard his friend approach, still chuckling. He knew if he turned around he would see the smile on Sam’s face and a twinkle in his almost black eyes.

  He didn’t turn around though, wanting his friend to think he was pissed.

  The elevator door pinged open and he strode in, stood tall, and crossed his arms...a scowl now in place on his features. Sam entered after him, and shot him a sideways glance, as if trying to figure out if his mood was for real.

  “So, Drake saw this Dragon?” Sam asked, in an obvious attempt to break his supposed bad mood.

  “Nope, he didn’t actually see it, but Josef has seen them before and Josef wouldn’t lie to me about this. In fact he gave me a direct command–help the Dragons and keep them safe.”

  Sam whistled through his teeth, a direct command from your Sire was impossible to ignore. Ronan knew his friend was aware of just how badly he took commands...from anyone.

  “Yup, so we’ll go and see what we can come up with. Maybe we’ll get lucky and catch one of those hunters. We need to be careful though, they may be using dark magic and if they are, we are all vulnerable. In that case we need to get Esther on board, but I know she’s away on a mission just now. Whatever, we’ll just do some recon and see what we can find out. Just be careful Sam. Okay?”