Wolf Prints

The Alpha's Insight

Bit of a shorter chapter this time. Enjoy!

Chapter 20 - The Alpha's Insight

A wing slapped me in the face, snapping me awake. This was a problem exclusive to me, I was convinced, as I opened one eye to see Drake sprawled out beside me on his back, legs in the air. Both leathery wings were splayed as far as they would reach, his tail wrapped securely around my wrist like a security blanket, and his head nuzzled in my hair.

With a yawn, I rolled over onto my side to keep my back to the dragon and hopefully prevent another sleep induced attack. The clock on the wall let me know it was six in the morning. Which was way too early for me to be among the living. I tugged the blanket closer, trying to catch a bit more sleep, but it evaded me.

Something was wrong. I could feel it. Like someone was yelling in my ear but I couldn't quite make out what they were saying. Clenching my teeth around a growl, I sat up and threw my legs over the side of the couch, catching Drake as he slid off the pillow. The chilly morning air had a harsh bite, but I didn't feel the cold.

Something was off...I glanced around my tiny apartment as the dragon crawled up my arm and draped himself across the back of my neck, attempting to fall back asleep. He was just big enough now to comfortably rest his head on one shoulder and reach his tail across the other to wrap around his own neck, forming an anchor. He seemed to have grown quite a bit since I first got him. Was this the normal growing rate for a dragon? If he didn't slow down I'd be forced to kick him outside before too long.

I scratched his back and took a deep breath to scent the air. Everything was normal on that front. Draken, me, the dragon I wore as a scarf. We were the only living creatures I smelled saturating the air. It must be the eerie silence that had me on edge.

And it was quite unnaturally silent. Contrary to Draken's previous arguments, he did snore like a bear in hibernation.

With a silence that came natural to me, I treaded across the carpeted floor and paused at the door to what used to be my bedroom. Years of conditioning left me standing perfectly still, hand hovering over the doorknob, though I could tell from the lack of a heartbeat he wasn't inside.

Reconsidering anyway, I knocked and waited a few seconds before entering. I felt a bit silly, because I knew he wasn't in there. But still, I knocked.

When it came to Draken it was always better to be safe than sorry.

Blankets were strewn half across the bed and in a large pile on the floor. Clothes, all in varying shades of black, were piled in a chair and across the nightstand. I cocked my head to the side, amused. It not only sounded like a bear lived in here. It looked like one did.

The only thing halfway organized was the set of knives laid out on the dresser, lined up perfectly symmetrical from smallest to largest. The biggest wasn't a knife at all. It was a katana. A perfectly sculpted and curved blade with a rather long handle. He'd spent months teaching me how to use one, but I never really clicked with it.

I didn't consider calling out to him, even to humor my curiosity. It would have been pointless. Draken was gone.

I didn't want to think about how he had managed to sneak out without waking me. I was on the couch, not far away from the door. He would have had to pass me to leave. The thought of how vulnerable I was in that moment made me colder than the morning air.

Careless of me to make these kind of mistakes. Even unconscious ones.

I turned to leave and narrowly missed the white sheet of paper folded up on the bed, halfway covered by a black shirt. I inched close enough to read my name in blue ink, written in Draken's unmistakable neat script, and snatched it up just as someone knocked on the front door.