A brutal assault nine months ago left eccentric portrait artist Micah with facial scars and PTSD. He’s struggled to leave his apartment ever since, and he can’t let anyone in. Then his only sanctuary is disrupted by signs of a haunting.
Between the 80s synth pop and motivation messages scrawled on his bathroom mirror, Micah finds himself more charmed than frightened by who he believes to be Cosmo, the deceased previous resident of his apartment. But when Cosmo’s ghostly visits suddenly stop, Micah is determined to lure him back.
Meanwhile, sculpture artist Cosmo – dramatic, unconventional, and very much alive – is mourning his old self. His boyfriend’s a serial cheater, he’s continually passed over for a promotion at work, and he’s lost contact with his best friend. To make matters worse, his apartment is being haunted by the ghost of a bespectacled man with an eye socket of scars. It’s his last straw, and seeking a new start, Cosmo moves out.
In a chance meeting, Cosmo and Micah’s paths cross again, and tentative sparks fly. But the phantoms of their pasts still linger. In order to find a future where they can both be happy together, Micah and Cosmo need to confront their trauma once and for all.
Macy Shaw, a journalist, has become obsessed with Jelvias—another species living alongside the human—and is certain they aren’t the heinous assassins the media claim them to be. For research purposes, on a story she hopes to write, she travels to the famous ‘Jelvian Caves’ in Cornwall. She shouldn’t have entered the cave, but being impulsive is one of her faults and it is there she meets a man who isn’t human—a Jelvia. Her obsession turns to devotion very quickly. Is she being played?
She smiled into the dark. She felt his fingers touch her face, and her chin was tipped up, and his lips brushed her mouth.
‘The majority of the Jelvian community have no problem with humans. I can’t say that about humans liking Jelvias, however,’ he said. ‘We’ll just have to tread carefully, and yes, we’ll have to be a secret, to begin with. But let’s see how you feel when we’re out of this cave.’ He sounded guarded. ‘Your feelings may change the moment we’re in daylight.’
‘They won’t.’
‘They might.’ He turned back, and began to walk, his hand holding hers behind him. His stride matched hers.
‘Can you see?’ she asked.
‘I can,’ he said. ‘You weren’t far from the entrance. The bats nest here, so it’s easy to tell when you’re almost there.’
Macy looked up at the roof area, but couldn’t see anything. She could hear them from time to time though.
‘Does it bother you that I’m a reporter?’
‘No, but be careful of anyone who wants you to work alongside Jelvias. There have been, er, problems in the past where humans have placed other humans in danger for the advancement of knowledge on the Jelvian community. Keep an open mind on things this friend William may tell you about us.’
‘Do you know him?’
‘Never heard of him.’
‘He’s on your side.’
‘If you’re willing to tell me, I’d like to know what he wants you to do.’
She hesitated, and he squeezed her fingers again. He said, ‘You don’t have to tell me.’
‘I’ve just signed a data protection clause, that’s all. I’m unable to discuss the whys and hows, and I can only tell you that I’d like to interview Jelvias. Aldarn is in charge, I believe? I’d like to interview him first.’
Narcifer stopped to look at her. ‘At Springfield’s insistence or yours?’ he asked, the twin beams of light on her face.
‘Mine.’
‘Yet you told Aldarn that you wanted to interview me,’ he said, catching her out on her fib. He turned back, and they began walking again. It was still very dark, and walking was slow as she had to hold his coat to avoid tripping over the ends. ‘You’re too trusting of this William Springfield,’ he added.
‘I’m an excellent judge of character. I’m not too trusting!’
Macy felt Narcifer squeeze her hand. ‘Are we having our first argument?’
‘No, I’m just saying I’m not too trusting.’
‘Okay, I believe you. I just want you to be careful. Springfield shouldn’t have allowed you to come to these tunnels. You could have died, Macy.’
‘He didn’t know what I planned. He knows I’m in Cornwall and that’s all. Christ, I didn’t know I was going to follow a Jelvia into the caves, either!’
‘But if I hadn’t heard you scream…’ His fingers rubbed the base of her wrist. ‘I couldn’t get to you fast enough!’
‘Hey, the dark is lifting. I can see outlines now,’ she said. ‘And I’m sure I can hear the sea again.’
‘Yes, not long now. The opening is just around this corner,’ he said and pulled her in front of him. Then daylight swamped them, and the sound of the sea crashing against the shore reached Macy’s ears.
Macy tried to turn around to look at Narcifer, but his hands on her shoulders wouldn’t let her. His breath fanned her cheek as he said in her ear, ‘Once you see me, you’ll be afraid again.’
‘No, I won’t.’
‘You will. I’ll see fear and mistrust in your eyes, and I think that will break my heart.’
‘You’re just going to have to trust me.’ She reached up and took his hands away from her shoulders and then turned around to face him. He was as she remembered: tall, beautiful, completely black eyes—but there was no grin this time. He looked serious, and for the first time Macy noticed his uncertainty, but it endeared him to her. The sound of the ocean and its light spray added to the surreal moment Macy found herself in—staring into a black cave and straight into the eyes of a Jelvia. His expression was impassioned, and his fingers brushed the side of her cheek.
‘I’ve dreamed about you every night since we met,’ he said, ‘and I’ll always be your hero, Macy Shaw, whether you reciprocate my sentiments or not.’
Everything Is Better With Dragons 