“S-sure. I should, um, put Marcie down i-if you want to get anything started,” Ottis said breathlessly. “Do you have space for her?”
“Of course. Hijinks!”
“Probe Master!” someone yelled inside the mansion. The back doors burst open, only for a heavy-set butler to come bouncing out. Hijinks had a handlebar mustache and shaggy blond hair, and he was wrapped in a pastel rainbow suit. His gaze snapped to the sheet of paper in the dragon’s paw. “Oh! You’ve got your contract signed. You’re officially a kidnapper!”
“I will do nefarious things,” the dragon agreed. “Consensually.”
That sent another shiver down Ottis’ spine.
“Let me show you the nursery,” the dragon said. He turned and headed through the huge backdoor, thumping through the spacious mansion. Hijinks tugged the contract out of the dragon’s paw and disappeared.
Slowly, Ottis followed the dragon. He tried not to limp, but it was difficult. The scars on his calf pulled with every step, and despite his best efforts to walk evenly, there was still a slight limp.
The dragon didn’t respond to the odd rhythm of his gait though, so Ottis held his breath and hoped his limping wasn’t a deal breaker.
As they moved through the mansion, Ottis couldn’t help staring at everything around them. The potted plants in the corners, the shiny armor and shields hanging on the walls. They passed several wide doors and giant couches. Those were crazy to behold on their own, but next to the huge dragon, they made sense. After they had climbed the stairs to the second level, the dragon looked over his shoulder at Ottis, sweeping his red gaze from the top of Ottis’ head all the way to his feet. Ottis froze to hide his limp. “So, why did you agree to be kidnapped?”
Nope, Ottis wasn’t talking about Sevrian right now. He shrugged. “I was planning to walk to the nearest town, maybe scrounge up some money there for a place to stay.”
The dragon frowned. “Do you have enough money for a motel?”
“Maybe for a night or two.”
“What were you planning to do after that?”
Ottis shrugged. “Maybe camp out in the woods, or try to make money somehow. It’s okay. I’ve done it before.”
The dragon looked horrified. “Oh no. You won’t be wandering out there penniless with a tiny lil backpack and a baby. You’re staying with me now. Officially kidnapped.”
That made the dragon smile to himself, pleased.
He was... kind of adorable, in a way Ottis hadn’t expected.
The dragon waved for Ottis to follow him down the hallway. More shields decorated these walls, some battle-worn, others bright and shiny. The hallway fit the dragon so well that Ottis realized this place had been built with his size in mind.
How rich did a dragon have to be, to have amansioncustom-built for him?
He didn’t have time to ponder the question. The dragon stopped by an open door with a light on inside.
It was a nursery. Pastel walls, a changing station, some dressers, and even a few stuffed toys and squashy beanbag chairs along the walls. A crib stood in the middle of the room, with a colorful mobile hanging over it.
Ottis blinked. “Did you already have all this in place?”
“My minion set it up when you arrived,” the dragon said proudly. “Is the nursery to your satisfaction?”
“Yes, but... you didn’t even tell him there was a baby.”
“He’s a shapeshifter. He heard your heartbeats.”
“Oh, that’s right.” Ottis would’ve heard the heartbeats too; it was just strange, thinking about other species with abilities like his own.
He stepped carefully into the nursery, feeling out of place. For Hijinks to get the room ready in barely any time at all, it meant that these things had already been in the mansion. All of it smelled unused. They weren’t new though, with the dust motes floating in the air.
The fact that the dragon had a nursery in his mansion... It was telling.
Ottis swallowed, detaching the mobile from the crib. “Marcie’s learning how to stand. Best if she doesn’t try to grab the mobile. She’ll destroy it and endanger herself.”
“Gotcha.”
