How to Lose Your Dragon (The Immortality Curse Book 1) by Peter Glenn (beach read TXT) 📕

“I know what the app says.” I groaned and pulled on the door, but it wouldn’t budge. “Just let me off already!”

“Okay, Mr. Hasty.” She tsked, but pulled over onto the side of the road, cutting off a blue SUV in the process.

Blue SUV honked at us, and I winced at the sound. I fumbled for the buckle once more and barely remembered to grab Grax’thor in my haste to leave the vehicle.

“Thanks, Erin!” I said, waving at my driver. “Five stars!”

She saluted me again and peeled off, her tires screeching as she weaved back into the heavy traffic.

My phone buzzed at me to leave a tip and a review, but I shoved it into my pocket. I’d get to it later. First, I had to track down Rick.

I raced down the sidewalk, practically shoving a couple out of the way in my haste. They glowered at me, but I just grinned and kept going, scanning the crowds on the other side of the street all the while.

At the first opportunity, I crossed the street at a crosswalk. Hey, getting hit by a car was no fun. Trust me, I’d tried it forty years ago. Not a repeatable experience.

My eyes searched for Rick’s brown-colored hair and jacket. I thought I spied it about half a block in front of me, so I picked up the pace, speeding forward, squeezing through another knot of loiterers.

“Sorry!” I shouted back at them as one of them backed into the side of a building to avoid me at the last minute.

The brown-colored head turned at the sound of my voice. His eyes were narrowly open and he looked confused.

My heart soared. It was Rick, all right. I hadn’t lost him yet. And he was still safe, to boot.

“Damian?” Rick said. “Why are you following me?” He looked wary.

“Thank goodness you’re safe!” I called after him. We were maybe fifteen feet away from each other now.

“I’m going home, Damian. Don’t follow me,” he said, sounding disgusted. He turned on his heels and kept walking.

“Wait!” I demanded. But it was no use. He wasn’t listening to me.

I started forward again, determined to catch up to him, when something grabbed my attention not five feet in front of Rick. A rather tall, lanky individual was standing with his back against the window of an abandoned record store, looking a bit off. At his side, I could see a hint of metal gleaming in the light of a streetlamp overhead.

My stomach lurched. I recognized that guy. It was Mei’s kidnapper, and he had a weapon!

I reached for Grax’thor and lunged forward, closing the remaining gap in just a few strides.

“Rick! Duck!” I cried.

He spun on his heels at that exact moment, and Lanky Guy’s blow went a little wide, missing him entirely.

“Get out of the way! Hide!” I demanded, waving my hands like mad.

Rick finally ducked down to avoid my hysterics as I practically careened right into him.

Lanky Guy’s sword swung again, coming in a downward arc for Rick’s head. I brought Grax’thor up just in time to deflect the blow, our blades meeting with a loud clang that reverberated throughout the street.

Rick looked up at me and Lanky Guy with a bewildered expression. “What the hell is going on here?”

“No time to explain!” I chided, straining under Lanky Guy’s strength. “Get behind me!”

For once, Rick actually took my advice and scurried into place behind me, cowering like a cornered rat. I felt a little bad for the guy, but I didn’t have much time to console him. That could come later, when our lives were safe.

I turned my attention back to Lanky Guy. “You messed with the wrong guy, buddy.”

Lanky Guy grunted. “We’ll see about that.”

He came at me then with an overhand swipe of his sword, swinging hard. I brought my own weapon up to block it, and the blades collided, bouncing off one another.

I stepped in and slid my blade downward, aiming for the guy’s overly-long neck, but he backed away at the last moment. The tip of my blade slashed through his shirt, almost cleaving it in two. The tattered remnants of the garment flapped in the slight breeze.

Lanky Guy shrugged and the material fell from his shoulders, revealing a mess of bluish marks all over his chest and shoulders, much like Half-Naked Guy had had earlier. In the same motion, he lunged forward, coming underneath my guard.

But I was too fast for him, and I brought my blade across, knocking his away.

Lanky Guy’s lips curled into a snarl, and he growled at me, rushing forward with his shoulder low.

The move caught me off guard, and I wasn’t able to fully dodge his lunge. His shoulder hit my sword arm, and I flew backward a few feet. I was worried I’d topple into Rick, but he’d backed away quite a bit by this point and was now cowering next to a parked car.

I groaned and stumbled a few steps, trying to regain my balance. Lanky Guy shoved harder, and I ended up careening into the wall of a nearby restaurant. The Pho ‘Que. An Eastern/Western fusion restaurant that served smoked meats in its pho. It was very popular up here.

The air left my lungs as I slammed into the large, glass window and my vision blurred for a half second. My mind raced. This guy was half-decent with a blade, but he also didn’t mind getting physical. I’d have to switch up tactics a bit.

Lanky Guy came charging for me again a moment later, but I was ready for him this time. I turned my blade in my hand and side-stepped him. Right as his bulk was charging past me, I rapped him across the back with the flat of my blade.

This time, it was Lanky Guy that went flying into the glass, head-first.

I heard the clattering of glass as it shattered, and a hail of tiny shards flew into the air, spilling all over the damp ground as Lanky Guy’s head went through