The bridges spanned off into the open sky, cut off by some sort of smoky ash hovering in the distance, a deep rich charcoal color that hid everything below the bridge. I wondered if anybody had ever fallen into those depths. What lay below?
Another roar shook the land and I tore my eyes from the paths to focus on my pack, and then, without hesitation, I ran toward the broad, muscled backs which were across the meadow, my boots crushing the beautiful flowers and grass. There were more shouts and roars, and as I closed in on the group I counted five massive figures. Larky was no longer in dragon form.
I ran like hellhounds were on my tail. My pack was actually pretty close to the four bridges. The heat in my chest and neck kicked in harder as I neared my mate. I never slowed or hesitated, but at the last moment before I was about to launch myself into the middle of the group, Maximus reached out and caught me.
“You don’t want to go in there, Jessa babe,” he said as he tucked me in under his arm.
My heart was beating so hard, the back of my neck burning hot. This burn seemed to be increasing the intensity of the dull ache in my lower back. Everything in me was straining to get to my mate.
My absolutely stunning and furious mate.
I was greedy in those first few moments of seeing Braxton – standing legs set, arms held out to the side as he prepared to attack. He looked massive, bigger than I even remembered. He was six and a half feet of muscled badassness.
His eyes locked in on me, the blue intense and shining, and there was almost nothing human left in that gaze. He was animal. He was predator. He was a lethal killing machine and I had no doubt he’d made a very good attempt at destroying the world to find me.
Maximus was the only thing stopping me from going to him, my need to touch Braxton so strong it was choking the breath from my lungs. My eyes frantically worked to examine every part of him. Had he always been so freakin hot? He was the sort of male that statues were carved from, with an ancient and timeless beauty and strength. Like the dragon itself, there would never be an equal to my mate.
Although, the douchebucket across from him, Larky, was almost a close second. Both of them had death in their eyes, both filled with dragon magic, but only one of them was mine, and I would not let anyone take him from me.
King dick growled then. He didn’t appreciate the intense and emotional moment between me and Braxton. Without warning, Larky attacked, moving so quickly he was a blur as he smashed out with a long-bladed sword. Where the hell had he gotten that from? Supernaturals are kind of old-fashioned; we don’t trust modern weapons, and for a lot of us they don’t even work. The human-made materials are not compatible with our magic.
But swords, they always work, especially those forged in dragon’s blood and with a bone of our beasts used as a blade. Which was what Larky had somehow pulled from his ass. These swords were rare, and highly prized, and my heart almost stopped as Braxton spun to defend himself against the king’s attack. I wanted to scream a warning as Larky swung the razor sharp blade in a broad stroke, but Braxton was already moving, his hands partially shifted into dragon claws, which allowed him to deflect the strike.
My heartbeats continued in an erratic rhythm as I watched, Maximus’ strong arms offering limited comfort. I’d never had to fear for Braxton’s safety before; there were very few creatures in the world which could best a dragon. But I knew Larky was old, powerful, and allegedly had sorcery at his disposal.
Braxton showed not an ounce of concern, moving aggressively, his claws cutting through the air and smashing with sickening clashes against Larky’s sword. The king was skilled with the weapon, but for now Braxton was holding his own. My mate fought with a cold fury, his movements methodical but deadly, aiming to not only hurt, but kill. I’d never seen him lose his shell of humanity before, to become nothing more than a base instinct of kill, protect, love. Those fundamental elements had risen inside of my dragon quad, squashing down everything else. He’d never looked more the ancient warrior than right in this moment.
A hand snaked out and grasped mine. I looked down to find Tyson now helping Maximus hold me back. Unconsciously I was still straining to reach Braxton. Sure, logic told me I’d be a bloody mess if I threw myself into this fight. But logic could kiss my ass.
The dragon king swiveled in a complicated motion and slashed across Braxton’s arm. My mate’s blood shot off in an arc, before dribbling down his tawny skin. A growling rumble rocked my chest. I was not okay with him being hurt.
Larky’s stormy gray eyes narrowed on me, as if he’d heard my inner thoughts. Braxton used this distraction to his advantage, stepping into Larky’s body and clipping the king in the jaw with an uppercut. As the lines of fury deepened on Braxton’s face, I sensed his need to hurt the dragon king. He wanted to draw it out and make Larky pay for what he had done.
I was damned impressed, especially against a dragon blade, to see how much injury Braxton was inflicting. He did suffer some return wounds, but nothing to slow him. Yet. With Larky’s invincibility, eventually he would gain the advantage, so we had to figure out a way to incapacitate him long enough to get to the island.
The dragon quad started to hit the king in a rapid succession of jabs, upper cuts, and slamming hooks. Blood and bruises blossomed across the king’s face, no time for him to heal with all of the damage inflicted under Braxton’s heavy fists. Larky swung out a few times and managed to slice some deep cuts across Braxton’s chest. Bastard! My mate roared then, and ran full force at the king, managing to side-step the blade. He must have realized he wasn’t going to win like this, and had changed tactics.