Prologue
The blip on the screen, linked to a tracker, showed Malone—the evil scientist who’d dared to escape Abaddon’s custody!—on a flight out of Canada to the United States. The commercial jet was set to land in Las Vegas within the next hour. An odd destination, given Malone’s interest in dragons, and Nevada’s lack of active volcanoes. However, that didn’t mean none would erupt. if Malone believed an egg from Abaddon’s clutch had been hidden there, then he would enact his explosive protocol: AKA, cause a dormant cone to erupt.
Sound impossible? Think again. Malone had done it before; Abaddon, Pollita, and Persephone were proof of that. Their eggs had been dormant and might have remained so forever if not for the scientist meddling with nature. However, the man needed to stop hatching dragons. Abaddon enjoyed being the only living male, especially since he had the two females, born an ocean apart, vying for his attention. How to choose? Each had their allure. Abaddon had been conversing with them both via video conference, flirting as well, for while a dragon’s main purpose might be to dominate the world, the urge to procreate remained strong, even as those hatchlings would provide competition for his destiny as King of the World. A lofty goal that wouldn’t be easy to achieve.
Humans had flourished since Abaddon’s kind last roamed the skies. Billions of them littered the Earth, and they’d evolved since the days of swords and arrows. Guns, bombs, fighter jets that could launch missiles, along with technology that watched the skies, spelled danger for dragons. That danger was why Abaddon had yet to leave his lair to visit the lovely Pollita and Persephone.
Leo—the rich human who’d thought once upon a time he could own a dragon but had since become a loyal servant—seemed to think there might be a way to scramble Abaddon’s presence when he soared the skies. Something about causing a glitch in the radars monitoring for objects in airspace.
Maddox, whom many called Mads, entered, a burly protector who’d been aiding Abaddon greatly since his hatching.
“Hey, big fella. Those horns are coming in nicely, and is it me, or are you outgrowing this space?” Mads stated.
“My last molt increased my girth substantially,” Abaddon agreed. “The new bison herds have proven to be useful.” And delicious.
“About that, what did we say about hunting before dark?” Mads chided, showing no respect for Abaddon’s superiority. Abaddon allowed it because his protector needed leeway to properly ensure Abaddon’s safety.
“There is no one to see me for miles around.”
“You can’t assume that. It would only take one credible video for you to be in danger. As it is, Malone’s escape could be a problem if he decides to blab to the wrong people.”
“As if the Canadian government has the resources to hunt one as great as me,” Abaddon scoffed. Now, if he were south of the border, there might be an issue. The American military did have the weapons and troops to take on a dragon. But Canada? Half their jets couldn’t leave the ground due to aging and poor maintenance.
“I’m more worried about him getting in the ear of some billionaires who would want the prestige of owning your ass. They have the money to hire mercenaries.”
“I have my own wealth to counter them.” When Leo realized the errors of his ways, he’d bequeathed his fortune to Abaddon, giving him a sizeable hoard, which he’d been growing via something called investing.
“Wealth that will drain quickly if we have to hire more people and buy expensive defense systems. Not to mention, we have to be careful not to be too visibly aggressive because that will bring notice and might trigger a concentrated effort to extract or exterminate you.”
“I’d like to see anyone try,” Abaddon growled. “I am not some simple creature to be captured and caged.”
“Agreed, so use your head for something other than a thing to hold your horns,” Mads rebuked. “Fly only after dark, at least until Leo gets the aerial and cell phone scramblers in place.”
Ah, yes. Leo had mentioned something about equipping Abaddon with a device to emit a signal that would render electronics useless. The biggest issue? Turning it off upon his return so it didn’t fry the electronics in Abaddon’s home.
“I won’t hunt until the sun sets,” Abaddon grudgingly agreed. “But you do realize that this time of the year, sunset happens around nine o’clock?”
“I’m sure your two girlfriends can keep you busy while you wait,” was Mads dry reply.
“Jealous?”
“Hell no. I’ve got my hands full with Pip.”
Pip, Abaddon’s lovely first and favorite servant. She’d been hard to train and, to this day, still remained mouthy, but Abaddon stayed fond of her.
“Where is she? She’s not come by to gaze upon my greatness in hours.” A dragon could never be admired too much.
“She’s following up on a lead. Something about Scotland and a possible dragon sighting.”
The news stiffened Abaddon’s neck. “Male or female?”
“Unknown. Might not even be a dragon. The witness didn’t capture any actual footage, just claims to have seen some kind of dragon-like beast in the sky carrying something in its claws.”
“Scotland… Isn’t that the place with the Loch Ness Monster?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“No reason.” But Abaddon did wonder if perhaps it might be a dragon with an affinity for water. That wouldn’t be good. A water-breathing rival could douse Abaddon’s mighty flame. Add in the fact that this Loch Ness Monster had been around for hundreds of years, its age and size would make it difficult to beat in a fight.
