Episode Thirteen Give Me the Gun
C haska
I’m not a dragon-like man. Not like Alex is wolf-like or Roman is rabbit-like.
I’m a fucking dragon.
There is nothing humanoid about my face.
Nothing.
There are spikey things surrounding what I guess I should call my face, and my formerly black eyes are purple. Glowing purple.
I take a deep breath and steady myself by holding onto the counter. This is bad.
I retch into the sink even though I haven’t eaten since this morning and it’s past midnight. Corrosive bile empties out of me. Shit. I should have tried to hit the toilet, not the sink. Who can think at a time like this?
I take another breath as I pause. In a moment, I’m going to ask Shanna where the guns are. I’ve got to remain cool. I can’t even hint I’m going to use one of them to put a bullet in my brainpan. She’ll never give me a gun if she knows my intention. I’ll have to tell her I heard a noise and need to go check out the basement.
One more look, though. I didn’t get farther than my slit-purple eyes, sharp teeth, and spikey face-things.
The dragon in the mirror looks so sad. He should. He’s going to be dead soon.
Shimmering blue-green scales are everywhere: hands, clawed fingers, stomach, and legs. I absently pull off the remnants of my t-shirt and jeans. A dragon has no need for clothes.
I don’t know how to unfurl my wings, but evidently thinking about it makes it happen. If they didn’t belong to me, I’d think they were pretty. They shimmer in the bathroom light.
“Did you hear that?” I call to the bedroom after leaving the guest bath. “I think someone broke the window glass to get into the basement. I’ll take the gun and investigate.”
That was easy enough. I sounded worried, which is better than sounding like I’m lying.
“I’ll go with you,” Shanna says.
“Too dangerous, babe. Don’t worry. One look at me and they’ll run away.”
She opens the bedroom door and cocks her head as she looks me up and down. She’s a cool one, my wife, but she can’t hide her shock. Good for her, though, because she barely looks scared.
“I don’t hear anything.” She’s got the gun in her hand. “I think we’re all safe.”
Alex and Ro have been through enough. I don’t want to mess with their heads any more than I have to, so I’ll whisper.
“Shan, we’re not all safe. Look at me. I’m fucked. FUBAR—fucked up beyond all repair. Who knows if I’ll flip out and kill you all? Look at my teeth !”
I pause here and open my mouth wide, trying to shock her.
She marches up to me. It’s only now I realize I’ve grown a few inches. She feels so small next to me, but she steps almost close enough for our bodies to touch.
“What do you want this gun for?” she taunts. By the sound of her voice, she knows good and well why I want it.
“Someone needs to put me out of my misery. I’d say I’m the man for the job, but that word doesn’t describe me anymore.”
“Fuck you, Chass.” She steps closer.
I take a step back.
“Did you hear me? Fuck you! ” She pursues me.
I keep stepping back.
“I thought you were getting honors in your engineering program, Chaska. I never dreamed you were an idiot .”
I cock my head, not knowing what this is about.
“Did you or did you not just say you want to off yourself to protect us from you?”
I nod.
“Did I or did I not just tell you to fuck yourself not once but twice? As well as calling you an idiot.”
Oh, the hard look in those intelligent brown eyes. She’s pushing me.
“Answer me!”
“Yesss.” Shit, I’m hissing.
“And what was your response to me cursing you?”
I shrug, which feels bizarre with the added weight of the wings.
“You stepped back, dork. You didn’t try to hurt me.”
I huff out through my dragon nostrils. The breath is accompanied by a little puff of smoke. I guess that solves the mystery of whether I can breathe fire.
“Admit that you’re not going to hurt any of us.”
She’s staring at me. I know this woman. She’s not going to blink until I agree with her.
“Okay. You’re right.”
“Good. Now hug me with those beautiful shimmery wings of yours and let’s figure out what we need to do next.”