Chapter 2: The King

“You can open your eyes.”

The sudden voice startles me. My eyes fly open, and before me, in the place of the dragon, stands a man. He’s tall, taller than even the tallest man in the village, and wide enough to match. His bare chest is large and muscular, and he rolls his shoulders. His golden tan skin glitters with scales that slowly disappear before my very eyes.

And as my eyes scan his body, from his orange eyes down his toned stomach, I realize…he’s completely undressed.

My face flares with heat and I spin around, looking away from him with a gasp. “Who are you?” I yell, my mind spinning.

“I haven’t introduced myself yet,” his voice—smooth like syrup—says nonchalantly. “My name is Dominik. I believe your people call me…the dragon king?”

I can’t believe it. Had I not seen the scales on his body beforehand, it would feel like a sick joke. I want to turn around, to see him, to study him for any lies. But the image of his naked figure is stuck in my mind, and I wish to see no more of it.

“How come you haven’t eaten me, then?” I ask.

“I have no interest in eating humans,” he answers.

I hear the ground crunch behind me as he approaches and grabs hold of my elbow. “Let’s go inside and speak,” he said, his voice low in my ear.

“Absolutely not,” I declared, turning towards him. I had to crane my neck to look up at his face, my own only coming up to his collarbone. “If you’re not going to eat me, then I have no reason to follow you.”

The corner of his lip turned up in a sneer, and his grip on my elbow tightened. “You’re not exactly being given a choice,” he growled. “You’re my sacrifice.”

“I was sacrificed to be your meal,” I retorted.

“If you don’t follow me, I’ll destroy your village.”

My heart once again leapt into my throat. Thoughts of my family and friends floated through my mind, and I could feel hot tears pricking the corners of my eyes. Reluctantly, I nodded, and allowed him to tug me along towards the castle.

“This is my home,” he explains, opening the large wooden door and leading me into the structure.

The room we walk into is tall, but little, crowded with shelves and tables full of trinkets. There’s a lamp hanging overhead, illuminating everything with a soft yellow glow. Two more doors are set in the walls, one leading to the right, and the other leading into the back. It smells musty and wet, like the fields after a heavy rain.

“How could a dragon own a home like this?” I asked myself aloud.

“I’m not just a dragon,” Dominik answered. I looked over at him as he donned a black robe which had been hanging on a hook next to the door. “I am a shifter, as were all my ancestors. My father, my grandfather, and so forth, back to a time when there were real dragons.”

“So dragons aren’t real?” I asked.

“Not in the sense that people believe,” he said. He finished tying the robe, adjusting it so it fit him comfortably, and then pinned his stare on me. “What you still call dragons are actually shifters. People with the power to transform into a dragon as needed.”

My eyebrows furrow. “Why would anyone need to transform into a dragon?”

He shrugs. “It has its perks,” he states bluntly. “For example, people fear you and worship you. They give you things hoping it will keep them safe.” He motions around the room and then looks at me once more, his eyes burning holes in me.

“If you don’t eat humans, what has happened to all the girls before me?” I ask. “Were they killed some other way, for your sick pleasure?”

“Ah, no,” he says, quickly looking away from me, his eyebrow twitching ever so slightly. “My father, grandfather, and so on…were not so kind as I am. They certainly ate their sacrifices.”

Fear grips my chest, rattling my ribcage. I hurriedly glance around the room, straining my ears for any sounds in the quiet castle. “Then you’re going to feed me to him?” I ask shakily.

Dominik looks back at me with a smirk playing on his lips. “He passed away two years ago,” he says. “This is my first time accepting a sacrifice. And as I said, I have no interest in eating you.”

A slight relief washes over me, but it is brief. I’m still aware that I am in a strange castle, with a strange man, who will threaten my family’s well being if I don’t cooperate.

“What is it that you want with me, then?” I ask.

He looks at me, eyes slowly sliding down my body. It’s like he’s studying me, evaluating me. Finally, he steps forward…and kneels, resting one knee on the stony floor. He takes one of my hands in his, his large, rough fingers rubbing against my skin. Flicking his eyes back up to my face, he opens his mouth.

“I wish for you to marry me.”