BLOOD WIZARD

  DRAGON KEY BOOK 2

  MAC FLYNN

  CONTENTS

  Copyright

  Author’s Note

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Sneak Peek: Mana Dragon

  A Small Favor

  When’s the Next Book?

  Series by Mac Flynn

  About Mac Flynn

  COPYRIGHT

  Blood Wizard (Dragon Key Book 2). Copyright © 2024 by Mac Flynn.

  Published by Crescent Moon Studios, Inc.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, disseminated, or transmitted in any form or by any or for any use, including recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written consent of the author and/or artist. The only except ions shirt excerpts or the cover image in reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. All the names, characters, organizations, places and events portrayed in this novel or on the cover are either products of the author’s or artist’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author or artist.

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  Dear Reader,

  Thank you so much for joining me on a journey through my imagination. If you’re looking for romance and adventure with a guaranteed Happily Ever After, then you’ve come to the right place. My books contain paranormal plotting and fantastical action, and I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them.

  You can keep in touch with me by joining my newsletter or checking out my website for the latest updates.

  Check out my website

  Sign up for my newsletter

  Thank you for giving my book a chance, and Happy Reading!

  - Mac Flynn

  CHAPTER ONE

  “Duck!”

  The shout came from Tegan and the command was aimed at me. Something else was aimed at me, and that was the dagger-like claws of the creature that swooped down from the skies. I threw myself to the ground and covered my head with my arms. The wind from the claws brushed past my limbs before the creature regained its altitude.

  I whipped my head up and glared at Tegan as he held a fireball in each upturned hand. “I don’t like your shortcut!”

  We were in the middle of the dark woods with a starry sky overhead. I sat up and rubbed my ankle which I had sprained slightly after a trip over some rocks. A flurry of stones had fallen into the mouth of a nearby cave and three foul creatures had flown out. They had the neck and head of a woman but below that was a bright display of feathers and dagger-like claws. Their human parts weren’t much to look at, either, with wrinkled faces and dull gold eyes. Their long, straggly hair flew out behind them in crusty strands.

  I ducked again as one of them swooped down to try to grab my hair in their claws. The creature dropped a flurry of feathers on top of me. I sputtered and spat one out as the creature shrieked like a banshee.

  “I didn’t mean to disturb your beauty sleep!” I shouted at the fiend. “And heaven knows you could use it!”

  The three creatures screeched as Tegan hurried to my side and knelt beside me. “I don’t think they appreciated your comment,” he pointed out.

  I fluffed off the feathers. “I don’t appreciate them dive-bombing me.”

  The trio circled above us like vultures. Tegan watched them with a sharp eye as the flames in his hands increased in size. He looked like he was holding a pair of campfires. “Whatever happens, stay behind me.”

  I glared at him. “I can take care of myself.”

  “Not if you trip again and fall into my line of fire,” he countered.

  My face drooped. “Point taken.”

  I scurried behind him as the creatures made another pass at us, this time all in one go. They swung their claws out in front of them as they let loose more horrible screams. Tegan threw his fireballs and struck two of them, but the center continued its kamikaze mission as it aimed straight at us. My companion opened his mouth and spat out another fireball. The orb of fire struck the creature in the chest and dropped it like a rock. The three fiends flapped about on the ground and extinguished the flames, but they looked even worse than before. Their feathers were singed and their hair smoldered. They gave us dirty looks as they stumbled back into their hole.

  I fell back onto my butt and breathed a sigh of relief. Tegan did the same beside me and lifted his eyes to the thick foliage. “I guess this wasn’t such a good shortcut, but at least we’re not bored.”

  I snorted and brushed off more feathers. “Or maimed. Yet.” I picked up one of the quills and admired the green and orange hues. “You think they’d mind if I took one?”

  “We won’t be staying here long enough to ask,” he told me as I climbed to his feet and offered me a hand. “Can you stand?”

  “And walk,” I assured him as I accepted his hand. He pulled me to my feet with a little more force than I expected. I fell against his chest and blushed at the comfortable heat that radiated off his person. A chuckle rumbled through him. “Like what you feel?”

  My cheeks were lit on fire and I stumbled away. “I-I wasn’t thinking that!”

  “Thinking what?” he innocently asked me.

  I glared at him. “Thinking what you were thinking?”

  “I was merely thinking about where we should go from here,” he countered as he swept his gaze over the area. “We should be nearing the border between Conas and Blutstein.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “Those sound like two different types of hard liquors.”

  “They serve very different drinks in Blutstein,” Tegan mused as we made our way westward.

  “Blood on the rocks?” I guessed.

  “Among other ways. Some prefer their drink served very warm.”

  I clapped a hand over the side of my throat. “Should I have packed a turtleneck sweater?”

  A rustle of branches ahead of our location made us freeze. Tegan swung his arm out in front of me and he scanned the area. “Who’s there?”

  The bushes ahead of us parted and a man of about thirty stumbled out. The man had shimmering long black hair that stopped halfway down his back and sported a pair of dark brownish eyes. He was slightly taller than me with disheveled jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. The stranger wore plain brown sandals and a matching thin brown coat covered him.

  The man started back when he noticed us and yelped before he stumbled backward and vanished into the same bushes he had just escaped.

  “Damn these things!” the man swore as the bushes shook violently. The stranger crawled out on his stomach looking even more scraped than before. He slammed his fisted hand against the ground. “Damn all these plants!”

  “Did you need some help?” I spoke up.

  The man climbed to his feet and brushed the leaves and twigs off himself. “No, I’m quite alright. I was just trying to get to Blutstein.”

  Tegan nodded to the west. “We were just headed that way ourselves.”

  The stranger eyed us with a curious look. “Through the woods?”

  “In the same manner as you,” Tegan countered.

  The man folded his arms over his chest and shrugged. “I like to be alone.”

  “Out here?” I wondered as I inspected the dark shadows that surrounded us.

  The man winced and rubbed the back of his head. “Well, I wasn’t planning on traveling this way, but I sort of kind of got. . .”

  Tegan cocked his head to one side and his eyes twinkled with mischief. “What was that last word?”

  The stranger scowled at him. “I’m lost.”

  “You could come with us,” I suggested.

  “Provided you keep your distance from our necks,” Tegan added.

  I did a double take on the stranger. He was unusually pale.

  The stranger kicked a stone on the ground. “Suit yourself.”

  Tegan bowed his head and took my hand. He led me around the man and westward through the woods. I couldn’t help but look over my shoulder at the stranger as he tagged along. He didn’t have the same deathly pallor as Mrs Brogan, but there was a strange air about him that seemed to block me from distrusting him.

  He noticed my attention and gave me a big toothy smile. “I don’t think I introduced myself. The name’s Zahn.”

  “Kate,” I replied.

  He bowed his head to me and his long dark hair slid over his shoulders. “A pleasure to meet you, Miss Kate.”

  I nodded at Tegan. “And this is, um-” He had a look of warning in his eyes. “This is Hal.”

  “Pleasure to meet you, Hal,” Zahn greeted him.

  “The pleasure is all ours,” Tegan re plied with more than a little terseness in his voice.

  Zahn didn’t appear to notice as he grasped his hands behind his back and looked up at the night sky. “Nice night for a walk, isn’t it?”

  “Not too bad,” I answered. “But what’s taking you to Blutstein?”

  He shrugged. “Business and pleasure. I’ve been away for a while and was wondering if anything changed.” A barking laugh escaped him that made me jump. He noticed my fright and got control over himself. “Bad joke, wasn’t it? Blutstein hasn’t changed in a century. It’s not bound to be any different after just a decade.”

  “So you lived there before?” Tegan spoke up.

  Zahn nodded. “Oh yes, for quite a few decades. I’m just coming home because I heard some interesting news from an old friend.”

  I lifted an eyebrow. “What kind of news?”

  He lifted his chin and furrowed his brow. “What was it again? Can’t seem to remember.”

  Tegan didn’t look too pleased with the man’s shallow demeanor. “Did you forget that with the way to the town?”

  “Of course I didn’t forget-” The man caught himself, but it was too late. He sheepishly smiled at us as he scratched the back of his head. “I’m no good at lies, am I?”

  Tegan stopped and turned to face the stranger with narrowed eyes. “Why are you really out here?”

  Zahn scowled back at him as I scooted closer to my companion. “I wasn’t lying about that. I heard some interesting news and wanted to see it for myself.”

  “And what is this news?” Tegan persisted.

  Zahn nodded at me. “That your friend here is about to be attacked by a vampire.”

  My mouth dropped open. Tegan threw himself between the stranger and me. He stretched his arms out and his hands became claws. “I won’t allow you to touch her.”

  Zahn smiled and shook his head. “You can’t stop me.”

  I blinked and the vampire had vanished. My heart raced as I whipped my head about, but he was nowhere to be found.

  I grasped Tegan’s sleeve and my words came out in a squeaky whisper. “I thought you said vampires weren’t any faster than us.”

  His eyes darted over the area. “They aren’t but some of them have their own unique magic that-”

  I didn’t hear the rest as a paralyzing pain struck me. The pain was focused on my throat and I could turn my head just far enough to see Zahn’s dark eyes staring back at me. His long fangs were impaled in my neck and two thin lines of blood ran down my neck. His cold arms wrapped around me from behind and drew me against his chest.

  A garbled cry escaped my lips. Tegan spun around and tried to slice half the vampire’s head off at an angle. Zahn leapt back and all my support went with him. I crumpled to the ground and Tegan caught me before I face-planted.

  Zahn stood over us with his teeth still grotesquely long. He wiped away a few drops of blood with the back of his hand and grinned down at me. “Thank you for that, Miss Kate. Until we meet again.”

  He turned and fled into the woods. Tegan drew me into his arms and his worried face hovered over mine. “Kate? Kate, can you hear me?”

  I weakly nodded, but the world around me was growing dim. The last thing I saw were the stars twinkling above us. Then all went black.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Darkness. Shadows. Those crept into my dreams as I lay in slumberland. The children of Night brushed against my sleeping visions, chilling me to my soul.

  And then a light came from afar and a voice called to me.

  “Kate!” The shadows stirred and scurried away like rats. “Kate!” The voice was growing louder. I stretched out my thoughts toward it and a light slowly appeared.

  My eyes flitted open and I found myself staring up into the pale face of Tegan. His bright eyes searched my features and relief washed over him. I gave him a weak smile. “Sorry about the nap.”

  He shook his head as he lifted me off the ground and propped me up in his arms. “It wasn’t your idea.”

  My pulse quickened as I recalled whose idea it was. I tried to whip my head about but I received a nasty case of dizziness for my effort. “Ow. . .”

  “Keep still for a moment. You’ve lost a lot of blood.”

  His words didn’t keep my heart still. “Am I going to die? Or worse?”

  Tegan shook his head. “Nothing as serious as death. As for the other option-” He dropped his concerned eyes to my throat and pursed his lips. “I’m not sure.”

  My face drooped. “What do you mean? Isn’t there some way to tell?”

  “Not until there are signs,” he told me.

  I swallowed the lump in my throat. “What kind of signs?”

  “I might start looking as tasty to you as you do to me,” he teased.

  I glared at him. “This isn’t funny.”

  “No, it isn’t,” he agreed as he studied my face. “But humor is a good antidote to fear and panic, both of which I can see in your eyes.”

  I shut my eyes and turned my face away. “Well, do you blame me?”

  Tegan grasped my chin gently in his grasp and drew my eyes back to face him. I dared peek them open and saw him smiling at me. “Not, I don’t. I was only trying to give you comfort.”

  My shoulders sagged and a heavy sigh escaped me. “I. . .I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you, especially with how much you’ve helped me.”

  A crooked grin slipped onto his lips. “We’re in this together, remember? You did bind me to you.”

  My mouth dropped open. “Me bind you? You’re the Key master here, bucko.”

  He arched one handsome eyebrow. “Bucko?”

  I waved off his question. “Never mind. Just know that it wasn’t my idea to go flying over my apartment building during a thunderstorm.”

  Tegan chuckled. “Nor mine, but I do like what came of it. Very much.”

  I couldn’t help but notice a slight heat in his words and his glowing eyes. My cheeks reddened and I had to swallow a lump in my throat. “Y-yeah, well, what do we do now? Do you start digging a grave or do I start picking out coffins?”

  “Neither, I hope,” Tegan replied as swept his eyes over the woods around us. “But we should keep moving. I know these lands pretty well and there should be a castle a day’s walk to the northwest. The master there is an old friend and knows more about the bite of a vampire than I.”

  I lifted an eyebrow. “A vampire specialist?”

  “More like a specialist who’s a vampire,” he corrected me as he swooped his arms under me and lifted me off the ground.

  “Hey!” I protested as I looped my arms around his neck. “I can stand!”

  “Do you really want to try that?” he countered.

  I looked down at my legs and bit my lower lip. “On second thought, I’m fine, but what’s this about the doctor being a vampire? You told me they didn’t get sick.”

  “They don’t, but some vampires make their living helping the living,” he told me as he stooped and snatched up his traveling bag. He tossed that into my arms. “Ready?”

  I grasped the bag against my chest. “You really don’t have to do this. I mean, I’m not exactly light.”

  He grinned. “To me, you’re as light as air.”

  Tegan set off through the thick woods. We passed tree after tree with only the occasional creek or huge boulder to break the monotony. However, the further we traveled the more the scenery began to change. Rocks replaced trees and the ground grew more uneven, as if a great upheaval had occurred in a distant past to rend the earth. Holes dipped low between short mounds, creating an endless roller coaster of travel.

 

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