Kidnapped by the unhinged dragon (Kidnapped by the shifter #1)

Chapter 1

“Mr. Davis, we see there is a history of family violence that has been reported. Because of that, we are granting the order for supervised visitation,” the judge said.

I exhaled. It wasn’t the win I wanted, but it was something.

David could call me bitter all he wanted, but the thought of him having Zoe alone terrified me.

He played the part of good father when we were out in public, but I knew the real him, the behind-closed-doors, with-the-music-loud-and-too-many-drinks version of him where a simple question could lead to him refusing to let me out of the room while he yelled.

I looked over at the other table. David was dressed in a nice suit, his face blank, but his jaw was clenched tight.

I wasn't even close to him, but I knew exactly what was happening in his body.

He was biting down on his cheek to keep from yelling, we were in public, he couldn't lash out the way he wanted to, and I knew it was tearing him up inside.

Tavailia walked me out of the courtroom and to the bottom of the steps.

“How are you feeling?” she asked, adjusting the blazer she was wearing.

She had come highly recommended, but her fees almost made me keep scrolling.

But I was glad I didn’t. She had already proven she was worth twice the money.

She was a beast in the courtroom, and I needed that because when you were dealing with a man like that, it was hard to see past the fog of gaslighting.

“I’m doing okay,” I lied. The truth was I wanted to get as far away from that courtroom as I could. I hadn’t seen David in weeks and being that close to him had me on edge. She nodded her head.

“Given his history, I was hoping the judge wouldn’t grant visitation at all. But supervised is enforceable. If he slips up even once, we go back in with more ammunition. Call me if you need anything.”

I nodded and power-walked to my car. My hands shook as I dug out my keys. All I wanted to do was get out of here and go home to my baby.

“So, you think your bitter ass can keep me away from my daughter?”

My entire body tensed. I made a fist around my keys, the metal edge poking out between my knuckles.

I would smash it in his eye if he tried anything.

I knew for a fact the most dangerous time for a woman was when she was leaving, and when his mask got pulled off in public.

We were outside of a damn courtroom, and he had come over here. I knew he was escalating.

I turned to face him.

“What do you want, David?” I said, doing my best to keep my voice from shaking.

“Just because you are mad that I moved on doesn’t mean you get to keep me from my daughter,” he said.

I looked him up and down. The man I had once thought was the best thing walking disgusted me.

Not only was he an abuser, but he was a cheater, a ride for anybody in the community.

I wish I could just erase any ties he had to me.

But we shared a daughter, and that was the thing that terrified me.

He had never hurt Zoe, but would he go as low as to hurt her to get to me?

The fact that I didn’t have a straight answer scared me.

“It's a shame women like you will break up a family and then try to play victim.”

I scoffed. “I don't have anything to say to you,” I said as I turned around. He reached out and grabbed my arm. I yelped and looked around. There was no one out here to help me, and then I saw the little black camera box on the side of the building.

“You’re on camera, David.” I tipped my head toward the camera.

He didn't take his eyes off me.

“You are going to regret this,” he said. Then he turned and walked off.

His new girl, Tameka, was standing by their car. She had a smirk on her face like she had won a prize.

I got in my car and locked the door. My hands were still shaking as I wiped my eyes and backed out of the parking spot.

I had never told anyone the truth about him.

But the police had been called a few times, and that paper trail was the only thing that had saved me in that courtroom today because he had always been so strategic about where he hit me, and I had been too scared to take any pictures because he went through my phone constantly.

Kendra, just focus on today, control what you can control, and let the rest go.

That's what I told myself as I drove home.

Later that night

I got Zoe bathed and into bed. She was out cold before I finished her bedtime story, her little hand still wrapped around my finger.

I sat there for a minute watching her breathe.

I had been doing it since she was an infant.

I would wake up out of my sleep just to look over and make sure her chest was moving, especially when she was sick.

It was like I couldn’t let her out of my sight for a moment.

Zoe and I had moved out of my mom’s house a few months back.

Mom had said we could keep the house, especially since she spent most of her time in Shadow Wolf Creek, but I had still moved out.

I said Zoe and I needed our own space. I had just gotten a divorce.

I wasn't helpless. I needed to learn to stand on my own two feet, but even with that being said, she still helped me with the deposit. She had done her best to convince me to move into a bougie condo, talking about how her grandbaby needed luxury. The thought made me laugh because that wasn’t me.

I needed to know I could do this on my own.

I had to prove it to myself, so I moved into an older building, but it came with its own issues, like the breakers tripping every damn week.

I kissed Zoe’s forehead and slipped out of the room.

My textbooks were spread across the kitchen table where I’d left them this morning. I had an exam in two days, and I was nowhere near ready. I made myself a cup of tea and sat down, determined to get through at least three chapters.

Going back to school had been humbling. But there were a lot of people my age and older going back to get their degree.

One of the ladies I met, Diedre, had become like a godmother to Zoe.

She would come over and watch her while I studied, refusing to take any money for it.

Said she remembered what it was like to be a single mom trying to better herself.

My phone buzzed.

I figured it was my mom sending me one of her viral social posts or another picture of her and Nathaniel. The two of them were so cute it was insufferable, but as I looked at the screen, I realized it wasn't her. Somebody had tagged me in a Facebook post.

I tapped the notification and Tameka’s page loaded.

“It’s crazy how some women will use the court system to keep a good man away from his kids just because he chose better. Like, girl, HE LEFT YOU. Move on. Stop being bitter and blocking blessings. Some of us are out here building families while you’re out here building cases.”

The comments were worse.

“She’s probably one of them miserable baby mamas who can’t stand to see him happy.”

“Girl, I KNOW who you talking about lol she stay pressed.”

“Somebody needs to tell her it’s giving desperate.”

“This is why men leave ????♀?.”

“Wait is this the girl from the courthouse? I heard she lied on him.”

My thumbs hovered over the keyboard.

But Tavailia’s voice rang in my head. Don’t engage. She had told me that maybe we could build a case for harassment, and it would strengthen what we already had. David had already been instructed not to mention or post Zoe or me online, but apparently that didn’t apply to his new girlfriend.

Fuck it. If she wanted to prove my case for me, I would let her.

I set the phone face down and pushed it to the other side of the table. I pulled my textbook closer and stared at the same paragraph. The words blurred together.

Focus, Kendra.

I picked up my highlighter and forced myself through the first page. Then the second. By the third, I was retaining something.

The lights flickered once. Then everything went dark.

I grabbed my phone and turned on the flashlight. Probably the breaker. This townhouse was old as hell; it happened sometimes.

I turned to walk toward Zoe’s room.

Someone grabbed me from behind.

A gloved hand clamped over my mouth before I could scream.

They yanked me backward, my feet dragging against the floor.

I thrashed, tried to bite down on his hand, but the glove was too thick.

I swung the flashlight I was holding. He groaned and snatched it away from me, but I didn't stop fighting.

Panic was rushing through me. He slammed me on the floor and dropped the flashlight.

It caught his reflection. He was wearing a ski mask and all black.

He pinned me down with one hand and started fumbling at my pants.

He got them down to my thighs, and I reached for the flashlight and swung it at his head.

It connected with a loud crunching sound.

I scrambled up, grabbed my pants, and ran to Zoe's room and slammed the door behind me.

I shoved her dresser in front of it, the legs scraping against the floor.

He was on the other side in seconds. Banging. The door shook in the frame.

Zoe was sitting up in bed, eyes wide.

The wood started to splinter.

I did my best to push up the window, but it was painted over.

I grabbed the lamp off her nightstand and swung it at the window. Glass shattered everywhere. I knocked out the jagged pieces still stuck in the frame and scooped Zoe up, throwing a blanket over her.

I climbed out the window. Glass cut into my feet as I hit the ground, but I didn’t stop.

Blood was smearing across the concrete with every step, but I kept going. I made it to the first door and banged on it.

“Please! Somebody help me!”

Lights came on inside. Nobody answered.

I limped to the next townhouse. Banged again.

“Please! There’s a man in my house!”

I kept going. Door after door. Lights flicking on then off. People are looking through their blinds, but nobody is opening up.

“Please!” My voice was cracking. “I have a baby— “

I made it to a door with a ring camera. A woman’s voice came through the speaker.

“Ma’am, I can’t let you in. But I called the police. They’re on their way.”

I sat down on her porch, my back against the door, and held Zoe to my chest.

Red and blue lights finally cut through the darkness. Everything afterward moved quickly.

One of the officers walked over while the paramedic picked glass out of my feet.

Zoe was still in my arms. I hadn’t let her go.

Things were happening, and people were moving.

A male officer with light brown skin and hazel eyes walked over to me.

There was something odd about the way he walked, almost like he was gliding, but maybe the adrenaline had me seeing things.

“Ma’am, do you know this man?” He held up his phone to show me a picture. The man was brown-skinned with short-cropped hair. I had never seen him before in my life.

“No.”

The officer looked uncomfortable. “He’s saying you invited him here.”

“What?” The cop cleared his throat.

“There’s a website. For, uh, consensual non-consent fantasies.” He couldn’t even look me in the eye. “Your name is on there. Your address. A full description of the scenario.”

My stomach dropped.

“No, I would never post something like that, especially with my daughter at home. That wasn’t me.”

“So, he gets to just walk free? Look at my feet. That’s not something I would do.” I could hear the panic in my own voice. He raised his hand.

“We believe you, ma’am. But we’re going to need you to come down to the station.”

That night was one of the longest of my life.

I had no doubt in my mind that David had made the post. But knowing and proving were two different things.

It was almost two in the morning when I got to my car. Zoe was asleep in her car seat. My feet were bandaged. My fingers wouldn’t stop trembling.

I called Tavailia and got her voicemail.

“Hey, it’s Kendra. Something happened tonight. I need to talk to you as soon as possible. David sent somebody into my house.”

I hung up and stared at the phone. This was going to be a whole new case. I was going to have to ask my mother for money again.

The thought made me sick. She had given me everything I needed to stand on my own, and here I was, still needing her to save me.

But this wasn’t about pride anymore. David had gone lower than I had ever imagined. I knew he was slimy, but sending a man into my home to attack me was something out of a horror movie.

I pulled out of the station parking lot and got on the highway heading north.

Shadow Wolf Creek was a six-hour drive. I hadn't called ahead, or anything, and I knew my mother was going to take one look at me and know something was wrong. I’d have to tell her something, but I would figure that out later.

I looked in the rearview mirror. Zoe was in the back sleeping, and I just needed to get her somewhere safe.