Gavin's Curse (Brotherhood of Bandits (Mating Fever) Book 3) Read online

  table of contents

  Back Cover

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Books by M. Malone

  About the Author

  Copyright

  GAVIN’S CURSE

  Gavin Drake has spent years mourning the mate he lost far too young. After a lifetime of searching he’s finally discovered how to break the mate bond. Despite the risks, he’s determined to test it on himself, figuring nothing could be worse than continuing to live without the other half of his soul. Until he takes the serum and discovers that there is something far worse.

  Discovering that his mate is alive and has chosen not to be with him.

  Kia Warren has spent her entire life at the mercy of her madman of a father, subject to his experiments and hidden away from the world. Her only solace has been in the imaginary love of her dreams that she is starting to suspect is very real…

  **Never miss a book! Join the Pre-Order List

  chapter one

  Gavin Drake carefully secured the vial of blood he’d just drawn as his younger brother rolled his sleeve down. His eye twitched slightly as he fought off the headache that had been building for the past hour. He covered it by rubbing his eye, hoping Ian hadn’t noticed.

  “Am I good to go? Do you need anything else?” Ian asked, a thread of the impatience he’d been trying to hide for the last few days evident in his voice.

  Ian had come home three days ago with a nervous system that was shot to hell and the kind of soul-deep contentment that only came from finding his mate.

  Gavin bit back a stab of envy at his brother’s obvious excitement. Ian was restless to get back to his mate. He hadn’t said that, not in so many words, but he hadn’t had to. Every secret smile, every time he zoned off while Gavin was talking and even the restless fidgeting that was so unlike his stoic brother, gave it away. It was all there in his younger brother’s face, the bone-deep need to see her, protect her, and feel her touch.

  Even when he could tell that Ian was holding things back, trying not to talk about her so much out of deference to Gavin, every word was still a knife to the heart. But Gavin could hardly fault him for it.

  After all, he’d known that exhilaration once.

  “Yes, that’s it. The nerve agent used on you will have cycled out of your system after this point. I’ll run some more tests and see what I can find out.”

  Gavin still couldn’t believe someone in their old territory would dare to shoot another dragon out of the sky. His mind puzzled over the endless possibilities. It could have been dragon hunters. They were known for making reckless moves to get their hands on even the smallest amount of dragon blood. Their blood gave humans many benefits such as speed, strength and while it couldn’t cure most diseases, it could give the recipient the immune boost needed to live much longer than they would have otherwise. But his gut told him it wasn’t hunters. This was personal.

  “Let me know if you need anything else. Thanks for the pep talk earlier, by the way.” Ian gave him a salute as he walked toward the door.

  “Do you even remember anything I said?”

  His brother had quizzed him on everything he knew about human women, which wasn’t much but was way more than Ian knew. All Gavin’s knowledge was secondhand, gleaned from his extensive reading but he’d mainly found that human females loved wine and candy. They also seemed to like shiny things which was easy for a dragon to understand. Although they didn’t seem to hoard it the way the drakaaren did.

  “Sure I remember. Wine and sweets. Got it.”

  Gavin chuckled as the door swung shut behind his brother. He could only hope the human female Ian had claimed was the forgiving type. Ian wasn’t exactly a romantic.

  An hour later, Gavin had to admit defeat. If only he had access to the royal libraries in the old territory. But he’d lost access to all that knowledge as well as his extended family the day his parents had been executed for treason and they’d been cast out. One day he’d been a prince of the drakaaren and the next, an outcast. One day he’d had family, a bright future with his mate by his side and the next, it was all gone.

  He’d been one of the lucky ones. Most dragons had to search for years for their mate and his had been born into a neighboring clan. Images of Kitaana bruised and bloodied, her small body cradled in her father’s arms were all he had left of her now. Her father had been human, a brilliant biologist who had helped the clan develop several medicines that worked with their unique chemistry. Dr. Warren had been liked and respected despite being human and he’d always treated Gavin with kindness.

  Not that day.

  He woke sometimes in the dead of night, her father’s screams still echoing in his ears. Driven mad by grief, he’d screamed terrible things. He’d blamed the royal family, especially Gavin, for not protecting them. He relived those words for years, internalizing them, savoring them. Her father had said the same things Gavin felt. It was his responsibility to protect his mate and even though he’d only been nine years old then, he’d still been far stronger than his half-human mate.

  He should have protected her. That failure had defined every moment of his life since.

  After the chaos, his oldest brother, Nate, had managed to keep them all together and they’d built a thriving business recovering lost jewels and artwork for buyers all around the world. They had a good life. But he would never enjoy any of it. His heart, his joy and his ability to feel anything had died that day in the midst of battle. The mate bond was said to be permanent and that seemed to be true. Even fifteen years later, he felt the yawning emptiness in his soul where she was supposed to be. So he spent every spare moment researching, learning, experimenting and trying to find a way to end the agony. Things couldn’t go on the way they had been. Every year, every month, every day just got harder. He’d started to fear for his sanity.

  He clasped his head between his palms and squeezed, the tension easing the pain somewhat. The headaches had been getting worse this year, something he’d been trying to ignore for way too long. They’d all heard the stories of older dragons who’d gone mad after losing their mate, driven to violence and delusions from the prospect of living without half of their soul. No matter what his research turned up, he wouldn’t let that happen.

  If it came down to a choice between existing as a madman and a possible danger to his family, then he’d take himself out of this world first.

  “I won’t let any of them down. Not again.”

  Kia Warren had received extensive training in the art of appearing human. Not that it had ever done her much good.

  She was never to look people directly in the eyes, aiming instead for the space between the eyebrows. It wasn’t wise to allow anyone to examine her strangely-shaped pupils too closely. Smile, but not too widely. Wouldn’t want anyone to see the hint of fangs that no amount of her father’s experiments had been able to erase. For years her ash blond hair was dyed every month to eradicate any trace of the unearthly colors that threaded the strands naturally.

  And above all else, she was never to get angry.

  “Miss Warren, we will do everything to ensure that your father receives only the highest level of care. Here at Oak Pines we consider our patients family.”

  Kia smiled slightly and shook hands with Lori King, the young director of the top nursing home in Northern Virginia. They’d been in close contact for the past six months as Ki
a had put her plan in action, as she’d gone through the gut-wrenching legalities of having her father declared incompetent so she could take over his financial affairs. Now that she had control of the trust her mother’s family had left her and her father’s accounts as well, she’d never again be forced into contact with the man who had systematically tortured her the past two decades.

  Yes, Lori had saved her life, even if she didn’t know it. For that alone, Kia would always consider her a friend.

  “I know you will. Thank you again for all of your help this past year. It’s been…” Her voice broke slightly.

  “We’ve been happy to help. I know it’s hard.” Lori patted her arm, misinterpreting the emotion as sadness for leaving her father behind.

  Kia cleared her throat. “It’s hard but this is what’s best for him. What’s best for everyone.”

  “I’ll leave you to say goodbye then.” Lori smiled softly and then left the room.

  Kia turned slowly, regarding the older man slumped in the wheelchair he hated.

  “I’m leaving now, Dad. I’ll check on you in a few…” She stopped, not wanting to make any promises that she knew she wouldn’t keep. “I’ll check on you.”

  He lifted his head and glared at her, his dark eyes glittering with malice.

  She remembered a time when she’d thought he was her protector. When his brown eyes had represented safety and comfort. Then everything changed. He’d changed from her comfort to her torment.

  “Why would you do this? All my life, I’ve done nothing but protect you,” he muttered.

  Kia sighed. This was a familiar refrain. Even as he was keeping her captive, injecting her with who-knew-what, he’d always believed he was helping her. All of the experiments, the isolation, were done for her own good. It had taken her years to pull free of his control and realize that the way she’d been raised wasn’t normal. That she was more than just a guinea pig for a mad scientist to experiment on. That she deserved a life of her own. Completely isolated, her father had allowed her nothing but books.

  For an educated man, she was surprised he’d made such a mistake. Books were a window to new experiences. He’d isolated her body but through reading, her mind had been exposed to the outside world. Through books she’d lived a different existence in her mind, one free from pain. A life filled with friends and fun.

  By the time her father realized where her dangerous ideas about independence were coming from, it was too late. Her mind had been unshackled and there was no way to undue the damage.

  She was done with believing in lies.

  “I’m going to stop taking the suppression drug, Dad. Is anything bad going to happen when I do?”

  His hands flapped wildly and Kia jumped back, startled by the sudden movement.

  “Of course something bad will happen! You’ll have wings and a tail. You’ll be one of them.” He gripped the edges of his wheelchair so hard his knuckles strained against the pale skin.

  “I already am. There’s no denying it.” She glanced behind her at the open door. A nurse walked by, the squeak squeak squeak of her shoes against the waxed floor growing fainter as she got further away.

  When she turned around, her father regarded her with shrewd eyes. It was remarkable to Kia how he could present as a raving madman one moment and then completely coherent the next.

  “They’ll find you and do you know what they’ll do to you? They’ll take you too just like they took your mother.”

  Kia swallowed and looked away. Thoughts of her mother made her question her decision. How could she go back into dragon territory knowing that they’d killed her mother? Why couldn’t she just let it go? Now that her father couldn’t hurt her anymore, she could do whatever she wanted. Even after she stopped taking the suppression drugs he’d forced on her for years, it didn’t mean she had to reintegrate into dragon society. She could move to the countryside somewhere and just live.

  No one would care if she kept to herself and if she shifted into a dragon every now and again, there would be few people around to see. It was perfect. It was likely what she’d have done if her father hadn’t mentioned him in a drunken stupor one night.

  Gavaanik.

  She couldn’t even think the name without a shiver of longing running through her veins.

  Ever since she was a little girl, she’d had a recurring dream of running through wide open fields playing with a beautiful dark-haired boy named Gavaanik. He’d been older than her but he never teased her or treated her like a nuisance. In the dream, they were the best of friends and she knew that he would always be there for her. He was also a dragon. He would shift and allow her to touch his wings, the golden scales cool beneath her fingers.

  He loved her and she loved him back. It was the purest emotion, one she’d never experienced in real life, and had mourned for every day. But her father had brushed it aside, convinced her that she had never run with dragons. He’d claimed she was just imagining things. But then he’d said the name.

  She’d never told him the name of the little boy in her dreams, she was sure of it. It was something that she’d kept just for herself, one thing her father couldn’t take away from her. To hear him speak that name called everything she’d always been told into question. Were her dreams really memories? Had she once had a different life that her mind was blocking from her conscious memory for some reason?

  “Just tell me, Dad? I’m doing it anyway. Don’t you want me to do it safely?”

  He continued to mumble under his breath and she knew she’d lost him again. It was difficult to predict when he’d be lucid so she stood and grabbed her bag from the chair in the corner. Right before she left, she looked back. It would likely be the last time she saw her father for quite some time. She had a task ahead of her that would leave her forever changed.

  It was time to reclaim her dragon heritage.

  chapter two

  Three months later…

  Kia dropped her bags on the floor of the hotel room and almost passed out on the bed. The coverlet was scratchy beneath her cheek and she didn’t even want to think about what disgusting things were currently being transferred to her skin, but none of it mattered. Not today. Nothing, not even how crappy she was feeling, would take away the personal satisfaction she felt at that moment.

  She’d finally done it. Even without her father’s help, she’d successfully weaned herself off his suppression drugs. For the past few months, she’d weathered the physical side effects of withdrawal all while wondering if it would even be worth it. While she’d huddled in her bed, covered in sweat and the newfound scales she’d discovered after a month, the only thing that had brought her solace was the thought of him.

  Gavaanik.

  The imaginary friend of her childhood and the constant spectre following her through life. Everywhere she’d gone and every single thing she’d done, he’d been there hovering just at the edge of consciousness, reminding her of the life she barely remembered. It was enough to drive anyone mad. Was it real? Was it a figment of the imagination of a sad, lonely child? She’d torn her father’s office apart, looking for anything that would indicate they’d once led a very different life but found nothing. If she hadn’t overheard several sensitive conversations over the years, she wouldn’t think he was anything other than a human researcher.

  The physical defects she’d grown in her teenage years could have been explained any number of ways. She’d always been slightly stronger than the other kids and had very rarely been ill. It wasn’t until her hair started growing in with a blue streak that she’d begun to suspect that her father was keeping her confined at home for sinister reasons. He’d always said he didn’t want her exposed to the germs of the other children but his face when he’d seen her hair had shown her the truth.

  He was scared of her. Of what she might become.

  When her fangs came in, she’d kept it a secret for almost six months. But once he saw them, he’d gone on a rampage. She was one of them and he couldn�
��t have that. At the time, Kia hadn’t even understood who they were. But her father’s words and her strange dreams had introduced a forbidden idea. What if the things she dreamed were real? What if the reason her father kept injecting her with “medicine” wasn’t to save her but to keep her under his control?

  A blast of pain shot through her temples again and she curled into a ball. Ever since she’d gotten off the suppression drugs, her nerves had been bombarded with more than they could handle. Her skin and her hearing were both super sensitive and she could see detail on birds flying in the sky. Then there was the emotional longing she felt. Like someone was missing. Worse, she was almost sure she knew who it was. Gavaanik.

  If there was even a chance that he was real, she had to find out.

  Frustrated, she stood and pulled up the last email she’d received from her contact. Learning to navigate the internet had been a challenge but she’d always been a fast learner. It was overwhelming but also fascinating to discover just how much information was out there. After signing up for a Facebook account she’d discovered groups dedicated to dragon shifters.

  Since dragons had made their existence public, there were more people willing to talk openly about them. She’d found a woman online who had mentioned that her best friend had just mated a dragon. It had been hard to get any information out of her at first but once she confided that she thought she might have some dragon heritage, Hailey had suddenly been way more friendly.

  She’d shared a picture with some of her new dragon friends and one of the men in the picture looked so familiar. It was the main reason she’d asked to meet. Kia didn’t have much experience judging sincerity, especially not online but the girl seemed harmless enough. Kia could only hope she wouldn’t turn out to be a dead end.

  She’d offered to meet Kia at her best friend’s new house and introduce her around. It wasn’t the safest thing, meeting a stranger in an unfamiliar location but Kia didn’t feel like she had too many other options. This was it, her chance to meet real dragons who might be able to help her piece together her past. To be safe, maybe she’d just insist that they stay outside in plain sight. Hopefully if they were criminals they wouldn’t try anything in broad daylight.