Free Blood & Roses: Warriors of the Krieger by Theresa Hissong

me.
If she wants you do to anything out of the ordinary, please call me
first.”
    “Yes sir, Master Dragus. I will set that up
for you,” he yawned again.
    “Get some sleep, son. I will meet you at Ms.
Harwood’s home after sunset.” He hung up the phone and I glanced at
the clock. It was just after four in the morning.

Chapter 5

    Dragus

    Tomorrow night was my night off; I planned to
spend it with Charity. This was my chance to secure a date with
her. The thought actually made me a little nervous. I haven’t dated
in a very long time. In fact the last date I had, we ended up at
Woodstock; the first one. It was a double date that Ashby had
insisted I go on.
    After that, I was asked to implement a
training program for the new recruits. For the next twenty years, I
worked on adding dorms to all of the Krieger Estates and
directed one Krieger , at each location, to school the young
ones. I like the more hands on training I had experienced when I
was first accepted into the Krieger . For the past forty
years, the program has been running strong. Although I have my new
duties here in Port Royal, I am still obligated to review the
program a few times a year. New recruits are processed through my
office and I am responsible for approving or denying their
membership into the Krieger .
    After a hot shower, I made my way to the bed.
Sunrise wasn’t too far off, and I could feel the weight bearing
down on me fast. Closing my eyes, I succumbed to the pull of death
for the day.
     
     
    Charity
     
    When I came back to life Monday night, I
heard voices outside my house. I immediately let my senses take
over to see who was lurking around. Four human males were lingering
outside and I freaked. Screw calling 111; I dialed Dragus. It took
a minute to find my cell phone; I left it in my pants pocket from
the night before. By the time I opened it to call Dragus, my hands
were shaking. I was scared.
    “Charity?” he answered on the first ring. His
voice sounded strained. “What’s wrong, mi amado ?”
    “There are four men outside my home. One is
my Nachtmann , the others I…I don’t know,” my voice cracked.
Yeah, I was scared. I hope to hell they aren’t hunters. Please
don’t let there be a bunch of people outside my door wielding sharp
wooden stakes. The thought of getting that close to a wooden stake
again made me shiver.
    “Everything’s okay, my lady, I sent extra Nachtmann to your house this morning; just as a
precaution.”
    “What for?” I asked a little confused.
    “The Lycanthropes, of course,” he snapped.
“Adam may think he can control them, but I’m not sure. I can’t risk
your safety, just on his words.”
    “You’re worried about my safety?” I teased,
raising one eyebrow that I know he couldn’t see. I jumped up from
my bed and grabbed a robe.
    “I’ll be there shortly to stay with you
before he comes tonight. You should remain at home until I arrive,”
he suggested. Which was dumb, I had to make my nightly trip to the
local Fill-Er-Up for my feeding.
    “Sorry Krieger , but I’m starving. I
need to make a trip into town, but I promise to return as soon as
I’m done.”
    “No need. Open your door, Nachtmann Brady Wilson is an approved donor.” Well didn’t he just think of
everything? This is what I mean by obsessive males. Annoying as
hell, that’s what they are.
    “Dragus,” I whispered. “I understand your
concern, but you can’t keep me trapped in my own home.” I’ve tried
being cocky and that didn’t work; now I’m trying to be
reasonable.
    “Just humor me for tonight. Please?” he
begged.
    “Okay, Okay,” I surrendered; only because I
was freaking dying of thirst. My throat felt like a box of
sandpaper had mated with acid and hatched their babies in there. My
stomach snarled with anticipation; knowing food was just outside my
door, like Chinese take-out. Hmm, there’s a business idea ready for
the taking, take-out donors; door to door delivery for a fee. I may
just