Chapter 10 #3
“Hence why I would encourage you to make contact. Perhaps you can counter their preprogramming. Teach them how to cohabit with humans rather than seek to destroy and enslave. Someone also needs to tell them to be more discreet. Luckily, we managed to get the videos of them scrubbed, but if they keep exposing themselves, it won’t be long before people realize they’re not fakes. ”
I frowned. “Didn’t the dossier mention Abaddon was in contact with two society members?” I’d skimmed over the staff details but did remember that key fact.
“They’re not real stewards,” Oliver scoffed.
“More like wannabes that were never brought into the true inner circle.” Which currently consisted of three people.
Oliver, Josie, a hacker whom I’d never met, and the decrepit mentor who’d inducted my lawyer.
Because of Tiamat’s violent actions, the U?um-gal Abarakkum society split eons ago with some of the stewards becoming part of the movement to eliminate dragons.
They couldn’t really be blamed, as they’d become disillusioned when Tiamat began murdering wantonly and, worse, convinced other dragons to follow her bloody path.
“Surely even these wannabes, as you call them, have enough sense to not let this Abaddon expose himself and to curb his thirst for world domination.”
“Keep in mind, we’re only getting bits and pieces of information, as whoever is maintaining Abaddon’s servers keeps them locked down tight.
It’s a wonder we managed to get anything at all.
If the most recent batch of messages we managed to decode can be believed, then one of those wannabe stewards might have been behind the sudden hatchings. ”
“And I’m just hearing about this now?” I managed not to roar, but only barely.
“Maybe if you’d replied to my last message requesting a meeting—”
“I thought you wanted to discuss my investments or how I’m spending too much on my renovation again.” I didn’t need Oliver chastising me about how I wasted my money. I had more than enough to be as frivolous as I liked, and if I ran low, I’d simply acquire some more.
“As if you’d listen to anything I advise,” Oliver scoffed.
“You’re right, I wouldn’t. So tell me why you think this person is behind the sudden rash of hatchings.”
“The exact details weren’t clear, but you might recognize the name. Doctor Ian Malone.”
I racked my memories before murmuring, “Wasn’t he the one who discovered Tiamat’s cave?” A tomb that still held her bones. The doctor had presented them as proof of dragons and been soundly mocked. Oliver’s doing. As a proper steward, he actually did a good job of keeping the dragon secret.
“That’s him, and while he never went public with it at the time, it would seem he didn’t just discover Tiamat’s remains. He also located a chamber with some documents. From what Josie has managed to glean, one of the recovered scrolls held clues indicating where to find Tiamat’s clutch.”
I blinked. “She actually wrote down their locations?”
“Not her, likely one of her servants penned it for her. Apparently. This Malone character then set out on a mission to find the eggs and hatch them.”
“You think he exploded volcanoes?” I couldn’t help but scoff at the ridiculous idea, but a somber Oliver replied, “Yes.”
Impossible, I wanted to claim, and yet hadn’t I suspected something unnatural about some of the eruptions? “To what purpose?”
“To show the world he’s not crazy and dragons are real? To study them? To make money?” Oliver shrugged. “If he’s like most humans, then I would imagine he’s driven by greed and a need for recognition.”
“Does Abaddon know?”
“Yes, and again, keep in mind we only have bits and pieces, but if we interpreted the messages correctly, the young dragon made him prisoner, only this Malone managed to escape.”
“He didn’t kill the man?” Perhaps I was wrong about Tiamat’s clutch and they’d not fully inherited her bloodthirsty tendencies.
“It appears the hatchling wanted this doctor to study him and provide a better understanding of dragon physiology.”
Not a bad idea. After all, I’d given it some thought myself but… “So we have a man on the loose who is aware dragons exist, can possibly explode volcanoes, and knows the location of Tiamat’s eggs.”
“Yes.”
“I don’t like this. You should have told me about this Malone the moment you learned of him.”
“I tried.”
“Not hard enough,” I snapped. “Why wasn’t this included with my dossiers on the hatchlings?”
“Because I found out about him after. I did send you a report. However, because the ferry is out of commission, it is currently sitting in Mallaig awaiting delivery.”
“There is this thing called a phone.”
“Which you never answer,” Oliver scoffed.
True. “I assume Josie is attempting to locate this Malone?”
“Yes.”
“When she does, I’m to be informed immediately so I can handle him before he blabs.” Or hatched even more eggs. Four of Tiamat’s clutch in the world was already four too many.
Davina returned, and my simmering annoyance abated somewhat at the fresh sight of her. Skin dewy from the shower. Her hair, damp strands with a slight wave that smelled of shampoo. Her body covered in one of Oliver’s shirts.
I almost ripped it from her skin.
Rather than give in to my stupid inexplicable jealousy, I growled, “I’m going to shower.”
And jerk off before I did something stupid like seduce the professor.