Betrayed (Dragon Shifter Book 3)

by Naomi Sparks

  Betrayed

  Exiled Kings Dragon Romance

  Naomi Sparks

  naomisparks.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Text copyright © 2019 by Naomi Sparks

  All rights reserved.

  Second Edition

  This book was previously published. Learn more at naomisparks.com

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Published in the United States

  Contents

  Blurb

  1. Galen

  2. Katia

  3. Galen

  4. Katia

  5. Galen

  6. Katia

  7. Galen

  8. Katia

  9. Galen

  10. Katia

  11. Katia

  12. Galen

  13. Katia

  14. Amasis

  Naomi Sparks (Exiled Kings Dragon Romance)

  Blurb

  Everyone knows you don't get involved with dragons. They're dangerous, unpredictable, and their fire-breathing passions are legendary.

  In fact, the only thing worse than dragons are dragons on the run from other dragons.

  So when tatted, lethal shifters park just outside my tribe's sanctuary, I know I should stay away. They may be traveling alone, but conflict follows them.

  As a soldier, I've seen what war can do. I can't lose anyone else. But then, I learn that the dragons aren't alone. They have a pregnant human woman with them. If we don't help, they'll lose her...and the baby.

  I took a vow to protect my people, and to protect the innocent. Even if I must turn my back on my tribe, I will do both.

  But I didn't count on him. The moment he looked at me, he claimed me as his. His kind and mine don't mix. I shouldn't want him. But it's hard to remember when I'm screaming his name. In his arms, I'm not a warrior...I'm just a woman. And for the first time in my life, I feel safe.

  But I'm not safe. The war they're running from will find us. And I'll have to sacrifice everything to protect those I love.

  1

  Galen

  The loud rumbling of the engines fills my ears. There's nothing out here for miles, just open air and dust. It seems like we've been driving for days now. Other than the information that there's a Fae camp out in the desert somewhere, we're just driving blind. Hannah hasn't had any visions lately, so we're stuck going around and around, hoping we just stumble across the camp.

  If it's possible to find the place, then wouldn't Amasis have found them already? They've got to be hidden somewhere, somewhere no one can easily find them.

  The question is, where?

  Patiently searching isn't what I'm good at. I'm good at fighting and making battle plans. Anything that involves actually doing something. I wish we could have pressed Bren's source for more information before leaving Seattle. But after Jerrick's mild freak out and Lex getting antsy, sticking around wasn't a good idea.

  Which is why we're out here in the middle of the desert. The sun beats down on us, and I'm not sure how the girls aren't dying of heat exhaustion by now. Even in jeans and leather, heat doesn't bother a dragon, but it has to be driving the human women crazy. They may have witches' blood, but it's not like those powers can lessen the heat.

  A shimmering to my left catches my eye, but when I turn to look at it, nothing is there. It's just miles of open desert, not even a tree in sight. I frown and shake my head. Maybe the heat is starting to get to me. Either that or my brain is just bored and is playing tricks on me now. But as we drive for another couple minutes, I see it again. And again.

  Each time I look over, there's nothing there. But if I focus on the area in my peripheral vision, something is shimmering over there. With a frown, I slow down. The others notice and slow, coming to a stop with me. There's has been no traffic on the road for miles, so they just stop where they are before hopping off their bikes and walking over to me.

  "What's up?" Lex asks, taking a swig of water out of a small canteen before passing it to Hannah, his mate.

  I tell them what I've seen, and they all look curiously in that direction. None of them see anything, and I wonder if I might be stir crazy.

  "You getting anything?" Lex asks Hannah, who weakly shakes her head. Then Lex looks over at Faith and asks the same thing.

  Faith closes her eyes and takes a couple of deep breaths before shaking her head. If a telepath isn't able to detect any chatter which even a hidden Fae camp would surely contain, that should suggest there is nothing here. Faith should be able to hear stray thoughts.

  Still, whenever I'm not focused on that area, I see the shimmering light, like something is hiding from me. I can't ignore it, because my instincts say it's important. Over the years, I've learned to trust my instincts, so I keep my gaze averted and head in the shimmering's direction. The others stay by the bikes, watching me curiously, but I ignore them.

  As I get closer and closer to the area, I can feel something. It's like something inside me is humming and vibrating. I frown as I approach, going slow and keeping all of my senses on high alert. If this is a trap, then I want to be on my guard. Nothing appears, and I keep walking.

  Until I hit an invisible wall, for a moment, I'm stuck, unable to move as electricity courses through my body. But before I can react, I'm thrown backward, a yell gets stuck in my throat as I slam into the hard desert ground, the world around me goes black as everything disappears.

  "God damn it, Galen." Lex's gravelly voice fills my ears.

  I struggle to open my eyes. My body feels weighted down. It takes a few moments before I can even lift an eyelid, much less sit up. A groan slips from my lips, and I can hear people scrambling around me.

  "He's waking up!" Lex yells, and I groan again. I want to yell at him to keep his voice down. My head is pounding something fierce.

  When I finally get my eyes open, everything is ungodly bright. It's like there isn't a bit of shade for miles and miles around us. The light suffuses every detail with a dull tannish-yellow color. The desert, if possible, looks even more dry and barren. "Where are we?" I say. My throat is dry and cracked.

  "You flew back about twenty feet," Lex tells me. He's smirking and shaking his head. "We moved you back over near the bikes and waited for you to wake up."

  I blink at him, trying to make sense of his words. I look around. All the guys and girls are surrounding me, the bikes visible behind them. But I can't see anything else. It seems like we're in the middle of the desert. Why the hell are we in the middle of the desert?

  "Where are we? And why are we out here?"

  Lex freezes, his mouth is partially open. Then, he raises an eyebrow as he studies me. He doesn't speak for a moment. Then he glances over at the others. His brow is knit with worry, and my heart starts racing. "What do you remember?" Lex asks.

  I think about it for a moment, but as I try to remember anything, I think about other things. It's like my brain is being rerouted around the information I want. "Seattle. We were in Seattle for a while," I say. Then I blink and look around. "This is definitely not Seattle."

  Everyone looks at each other now, exchanging worried glances. "Should we get him to a doctor?" Jerrick asks. "I didn't think he'd hit his head that hard..."

  Lex frowns. I can see the gears working in his head as h
e studies me. Then, Lex looks over at Faith. "Can you get anything from?" he asks.

  Faith shrugs. I watch as she takes a deep breath and closes her eyes. I try to think about what happened, but the memories still won't come to me. It's like they're gone like the last couple days have been cut from my head.

  "He really has no memory of the last couple days," Faith says at last. She's frowning now, too. "He's trying to recall them, but it's like they're completely gone like someone has wiped that part of his mind. It's weird. I've never seen anything like it. Even when people have suppressed memories, I can still sense that they're there, just inaccessible. But for Galen, it's like the last couple days just aren't there anymore."

  "Sounds like someone is using a potent shielding spell," Bren says. Everyone turns to look at him now. "I've heard of ones that can erase your memory when you come into contact with it. Usually, it's just the last couple minutes, just enough to make you forget where you were headed, so you leave. Erasing a couple of days from someone's memory would take a powerful spell."

  Everyone starts talking at once. I close my eyes and kick myself, wondering how I could be so stupid to walk into something like that. It doesn't sound like something I would do, to just blindly walk into a trap. While the guys talk, I stand up and look over where they said I had fallen. I don't see anything, which just makes me more frustrated and confused.

  What's going on?

  When I turn back around, though, out of the corner of my eye, I see a shimmering. The moment I turn back, it's gone. I repeat the process a couple more times, each time getting the same result. Something is there, something with enough power to knock me on my ass and erase my recent memories.

  I know it's dangerous, but something calls me back again, like a siren's song. Is this a trap, I wonder? If I'd been alone out here, God only knows what would have happened to me. For all I know, whoever set up that spell is waiting somewhere, watching us. That thought is enough to make my skin crawl.

  Part of me wants to get the hell out of here. The other part of me wants to stay and figure out what's behind this barrier.

  "We should camp out here," Hannah says, making everyone stop talking and look at her. Her face flushes from the sudden attention. "It's not like, a vision or anything. It just seems like a good idea."

  Lex looks reluctant at first, so I chime in. "Wandering around the desert hasn't been working out for us. This is the best lead we've had so far."

  Finally, Lex lets out a sigh and nods. He doesn't look happy about it, but he knows I'm right. We can't just keep wandering around in circles. "Let's get the bikes off the road and start setting up camp."

  It doesn't take us long to get the bikes moved and the tents up. While everyone busies themselves getting things out, I volunteer to go look for some wood. I doubt I'll find much out here, but there are some dried branches or dead cacti we can burn. Enough for a fire to cook something to eat other than those damn energy bars in our saddlebags.

  I skirt the edge of the shimmering barrier, keeping a watch on it out of the corner of my eye. Something still draws me close, but I don't dare give in to that temptation. Not again. If it knocked a couple days' worth of memories out of me the first time, God only knows what it will do a second time.

  In my search for wood, I only find enough kindling to get a small smoldering fire going. Not enough to cook anything. Then, I spot a rabbit in the distance. I grin, knowing the rabbit will taste a hell of a lot better than energy bars. Assuming we can find enough wood to cook it, that is. But we can deal with that later.

  Creeping, quietly, I inch my way closer and closer to the rabbit. Despite there being absolutely no cover out here, the rabbit either doesn't see me or doesn't care. It just keeps hopping around, lazily. When I'm only a couple of feet away, it stops and looks up at me. But before it can react, I jolt forward, snatching it off the ground and breaking its neck.

  I grin at my catch, knowing this little guy is going to be tasty, assuming we can find enough wood to cook it. There won't be a lot to go around, but it's better than nothing. And out here, it's not like we have a ton of options.

  I start looking for firewood and pick up the assorted stick and shrub of sagebrush. I'm still smiling when I walk back to camp. We'll need every scrap we can get, and I continue to look for firewood near the shimmering area. I feel something pulse, like an energy is going through me. There's a sharp stinging sensation that accompanies it. Both are familiar, but I can't place them.

  Then, something sharp pokes my back. I freeze, taking a deep breath and holding it. Someone must've come through the barrier, I figure, and now I can sense someone behind me. I'm not sure what's pressing against my back, but I'm assuming it's some kind of weapon. It could be something lethal, even to me, so I don't risk agitating whoever is behind me.

  The presence gets closer like it's right up behind me now. Then, it whispers, in a low and harsh voice. None of the others can hear, but every word comes through loud and clear to me. "Take your group and leave this place. Get far away from here and don't come back."

  The sharp point of whatever is against my back pushes hard. My entire body tenses, preparing to be stabbed or shot. Instead, the person reaches around and presses their hand to my forehead. There's a sharp jolt of pain as energy passes through my body. I'm pretty sure it's the same energy that went through me when I'd touched the barrier earlier. I still don't have the memory of that moment, but judging by how my body seems to remember it, that's my best guess.

  Except, this time, there's no memory loss. I stay fully awake, rather than blacking out. The person releases me, and an idea comes to mind. Remembering how Lex said the shimmering barrier sent me flying backward when I came into contact with it, I gasp and stumble forward. The firewood and rabbit fall out of my arms onto the dry ground in front of me.

  Which must be what whoever touched me planned. They back up, but before they can move away, I swing around grab them, holding them tight. It's not a man like I expected, but a woman, and now that I'm facing her and only inches away, her amazing scent hits me. I have to fight to keep from stumbling backward as all of my senses are assaulted at once. Her scent is intoxicating, stronger than any Fae magic I've ever seen or heard of.

  And immediately, I know what's going on. She's my mate. I can still remember my parents describing it, and this feeling is exactly like they described. It's similar to what Lex, and Faris, and Jerrick all said too, even with their differences.

  My heart is racing now, faster than ever, as I stare into her eyes. They're a deep green, even more vivid than emeralds. It's so easy to get lost in them, even without Fae magic to dazzle the mind. For a moment, all I can do is stand there and stare at her, unable to move. She doesn't move either but stares back at me. Her gaze is hard, and I wonder if she can feel the bond between us.

  I open my mouth to speak, though I'm not sure what I want to say. It doesn't matter, since she takes that moment to lash out, kicking me in the stomach. It's a hard, direct hit. Though it doesn't do much damage, it does what she wanted, making me stumble back a bit and release my grip on her arms. Before I can catch my balance, she takes off running.

  I curse under my breath and take off after her. She's fast. Her small body moves even quicker than mine. I'm not going to give up, and I put on a burst of speed, chasing after her long hair and dark limbs. But before I can reach her, she disappears through the barrier. Cursing again, I skid to a stop, not wanting to contact the barrier. She could go right through it, but I won't risk it.

  I stare at the place where she disappeared, but I still can't see anything. It's all just empty space, nothing as far as the eye can see. Even with my enhanced vision, I can't see anything. Nothing in the distance and nothing to suggest there's any kind of illusion distorting reality. And yet, I know something is there. There has to be. Why else put a barrier up?

  Letting out a sigh, I turn back and head toward the camp. Since I can't chase after her, I might as well go tell the guys what happened. Be
sides, as I pick up the rabbit and firewood again, the crew will want to start cooking this little guy soon.

  Halfway back to the camp, I glance over my shoulder, looking at the barrier. I can still feel the urge to return to it, and I wonder if it's because my dragon can sense her on the other side.

  2

  Katia

  Glaring, I watch the camp from inside the shimmer. They should be gone by now, not loitering out there. The longer they stay, the more likely someone will discover us. Normally, when people leave after encountering the barrier, either because they can't remember why they're here or because they fear the power.

  But not this group! They don't seem to be in any hurry to leave and don't see any reason they shouldn't stay.

  And the one who came into contact with the barrier and grabbed me. A shudder goes through my body as I remember him holding me, his hands wrapped around my wrists. He's a strong one, definitely has dragon blood in him. Of course, someone with dragon blood wouldn't just turn away after I tried to threaten them.

  Dragons are stubborn, hard-headed, foolish.

  "Are the men still out there?" Lysandra's sudden appearance at my side makes me jump.

  I frown at her, hoping she didn't notice how distracted I was, then I nod. "The women are still out there, too," I add dryly. But Lysandra doesn't care about any of them. She tosses her dark curly hair back behind her shoulders. She's only interested in the males, probably still hoping to find a mate from outside the enclave. None of the men here seem to be suitable mates for her, nor are they for me. Except for the certain someone I know Lysandra has her eyes on, though he pays her little heed.