by Ciara Graves
The Hunters had come after all.
Should’ve known Rafael would’ve had them near, on standby, just in case. They fell into the hole, armed and ready for a fight. Hilfer was at the head of his force.
Envy cackled as he released me. “Too late.”
“Seize them,” Hilfer shouted.
Envy snapped his fingers, and suddenly, he was with the other hybrids. And they were holding all five artifacts.
“It’s been a real treat. Don’t worry. We will meet again. Perhaps not all of us, alas. Tick tock, Mercy.” Envy dropped a coin on the floor.
A swirling black and violet vortex opened.
The hybrids, Envy, and the artifacts fell through. Then it closed with a loud pop behind them.
“No! Damn it,” I snapped. I tried to stand, but the pain in my gut intensified.
Envy was gone. My chance to avenge Damian had gone with him.
I rolled my shoulders, curling in on myself. The artifacts were gone.
Shuval had everything she needed to finish charging the ley lines and bring on her war. Two hundred and forty more innocent people were about to die in a ritual.
We failed. Again.
“Mercy,” Rafael shouted.
“Stay back,” I ordered, the words coming out on a growl.
“What’s wrong with her?” Hilfer had sheathed his sword and eyed me warily. “Is she… is she shifting?”
I threw my head back with a silent scream, fighting against the twisted, evil magic inside me which wanted the dragon that shouldn’t be there to burst free.
I wasn’t meant to shift. No dragons were meant to anymore. It was going to tear me apart.
I grabbed at my stomach, my claws ripping through my shirt until Rafael caught my hands in his.
“Knock me out,” I whispered urgently. “Do it. I can’t get a handle on it.”
He hesitated, but then someone bashed me in the back of the head.
I collapsed into Rafael’s waiting arms.
Chapter 12
Rafael
Bowen helped me tie Mercy to a chair. She was starting to come to as we looped the chain around her waist.
“Is that necessary?” Hilfer asked, watching from nearby.
I locked the manacle around Mercy’s wrist. Bowen did the same with the other one. Seeing how Mercy reacted to the magic down there, watching her begin to shift and unable to control herself, trying to tear herself apart, I wasn’t going to take any chances.
“Yes,” I told him. “For now it is.”
“Rafael?”
I held Mercy’s hand, squeezing it. “Right here, love.”
She tugged on her arms. When she found them trapped to the chair, she laughed bitterly. “Peachy. Just freaking peachy.” She didn’t try to break free. She glanced around. “What about Envy and the hybrids? They got the artifacts?”
“They did.”
She glanced at Hilfer, then turned to me. “He knows?”
Hilfer eyed the chains warily. “Yeah, Rafael told me about the artifacts. And your… condition.”
“It’s for the best,” Mercy assured him. “Though how I’m going to be of much help now, I don’t know.”
“You can beat this.”
“I love you for being so optimistic, but you’re wrong. I can’t, alright? I’m going to be stuck here chained to a chair while Shuval’s out there tearing the world apart and turning everyone into freaking psychopaths!” She sucked in a breath like she was preparing to unleash on us some more.
I covered her mouth with my hand.
She glowered at me and licked my palm.
I frowned at her.
She raised her brow, shrugging.
I leaned in. “We will find a way to make this stop. If you’re going to sit there doubting yourself and us, then Shuval’s already won. Is that really what you want?”
“What do you want me to say?”
“I want you to tell me you’re not willing to give up. Would Damian give up? Would he let you run and hide?”
Her eyes turned icy.
I waited for her to scream at me for crossing a line.
She hung her head, shoulders sagging. “No.”
“Then you need to help us find a way to stop this evil from twisting you around.”
“And what if we can’t? What if you’re busy wasting your time with me when you need to be out there stopping that bitch?”
Hilfer stepped forward. “Let me worry about that bitch. We have to change our plan of attack now, anyway, get our forces ready.”
“How much time can you give us?” Rafael asked.
Hilfer looked at his watch. “Twenty-four hours, and that’s pushing it.”
“Then we’ll see you in twenty-four hours.” I locked gazes with Mercy and added, “All of us.”
Hilfer nodded then waved.
The Hunters who’d been keeping watch from the trees the whole time and saved us from Envy followed their leader out the front doors of the mansion.
Mercy might not have wanted them here, but there wasn’t a chance in hell Shuval wasn’t going to make a play for the artifacts. And even with their backup, we’d failed to destroy the only items stopping her from completing her plan.
I was not going to fail in saving Mercy. If we were to have a chance to stop this war, we needed her. If she didn’t believe that yet, I had to make her believe it.
Gigi had been talking with her coven ever since Bowen bashed Mercy in the back of the head. She’d also shouted at him for a straight five minutes until I yelled to shut her up. Arguing amongst ourselves wasn’t going to help anyone.
There were five dead witches and Bowen had lost most of his guard in the attack. In twenty-four hours, we would be facing Shuval and her entire fighting force on her turf. And we’d be outnumbered and out-powered.
Did I want to believe we could win? Yes. Was it probable? That was another matter altogether, but if we were going down, we’d go down fighting.
I needed Mercy by my side just as much as she needed me. We gave each other strength, which was what she needed now.
“I don’t know what you’re going to do,” Mercy whispered, pulling against the chains holding her down. “Whatever the hell it is, you might want to do it fast.”
She rolled her head on her neck, gripping the arms of the chair. Claws sprouted from her fingertips. They dug into the wood as it creaked and splintered.
These chains weren’t going to hold her forever. Nothing would, if that dragon managed to get a firm enough grasp and break free. That shouldn’t happen until Shuval did the ritual that would reverse the recessive gene. Whatever we’d interrupted when we saved her was messing with Mercy’s magical makeup.
She growled, her blue eyes shifting from normal pupils to vertical slits.
“Gigi,” I yelled, backing away from Mercy. “Now would be a great time for you to tell me you have a plan.”
“Working on it.”
“Work faster,” I snapped as Mercy broke the arms of the chair and pulled against the chains. When the links began to bend, Bowen and I rushed back to restrain her. “Gigi!”
Mercy’s strength had increased tenfold.
My boots slid across the stones as she lunged forward. Bowen grabbed hold of her shoulders, pressing her to the chair. Between the two of us, we should’ve been able to keep her in check without an issue.
Mercy’s growl turned feral.
I snarled when she dug her claws into my thigh, tearing easily through my skin.
“Knock her out again,” I growled to Bowen as Mercy snapped the links on the chains like they were paper. “Do it!”
Bowen let go of Mercy,.
She tackled me to the floor.
I snatched her wrists, barely keeping those claws from slashing down my face. If this was how she was without Shuval finishing the final ritual, I didn’t want to imagine what kind of monster she’d turn into afterward.
Her hand slipped out of my grip and ended up around my throat.
Bowen blurred behind her and bashed her in the back of her head with both his fists.
She froze, eyes narrowed.
“Look out!” I managed to yell, just in time for Bowen to duck under her flailing hand as she whirled around on him.
He came at her with his fists again, and this time, she collapsed to the floor.
“Chains. Get the damned chains.” I grabbed Mercy’s hands and didn’t let up, no longer worried if I was going to hurt her. Blood oozed from the wound at my thigh, but it’d have to wait.
“Don’t bother putting her in a chair. Forget about the chains,” Gigi said as she rushed over. “I think we have an idea.”
“And? Why don’t you look happy about this idea?”
“The evil magic might be twisted with what makes her a dragonborn. If we remove it, well, it could take out the dragon in her,” Gigi rambled. “If we remove it, there’s no way to put it back.”
I looked down at the woman I’d been through hell and back with. She was fierce, strong, determined. What would happen if she lost part of who she was? Would it break her? I couldn’t make this decision for her.
“Gigi, step back. Bowen, be ready.” I tapped Mercy’s cheeks to rouse her. “Mercy? I need you to open your eyes, love. Come on. Wake up.”
Her eyes fluttered open.
I braced myself to restrain her, but her eyes appeared normal.
“Rafael? What are we doing on the floor?”
I let her hands loose.
She reached for my thigh. “You’re bleeding. Did I do that?”
“There’s no time to worry about me. Gigi has a way to get the darkness out of you.”
“Then why isn’t she doing it?” Mercy asked, confused.
“It comes with a cost.”
She sat up in a rush. “Whatever it is, I’ll pay it. Get this out of me.”
I grabbed her by her shoulders and forced her to look at me. The intense evil simmering just below the surface almost made me pull back, but she needed me now. “Mercy, if the witches draw the darkness out, it could remove the dragon in you, too. You can’t keep it without keeping the darkness Shuval’s filled you with.”
Mercy’s breath caught, and her fingers dug into my forearms. “Do it.”
“You’re sure?”
“I don’t have much of a choice. She stole that from me.” She took a deep breath, then let it out. “Do it before I change my mind.” Her grip tightened. She winced, gasping my name, then doubling over.
“We just have to draw the circle,” Gigi told me. “Five minutes.”
“I don’t think she has five minutes,” I warned, picking Mercy up in my arms. She curled into my chest, tugging on my shirt as she grunted.
She screamed suddenly. Her back arched, nearly sending her tumbling from my arms.
I held her more firmly. “Just a bit longer, hang on.”
Bowen directed Gigi and the rest of the coven to the large dining hall. He shoved the table against the far wall as the others grabbed chairs and pushed them out of the way.
The vampires followed his orders, clearing out the rest of the furniture and grabbing whatever Gigi needed.
All the while, I fought to keep Mercy from flipping out of my arms and smacking her face on the stone floor.
“You should just knock me out again,” she muttered with a grimace.
“Not happening.”
“Rafael, seriously,” she uttered as a snarl tore from her throat.
I almost couldn’t bring myself to do it, but then she began to shift again.
Mercy was lost in the shroud of evil attempting to control her.
I let her go and slammed her into the wall.
She kept swiping those claws at me until I drew my arms back and hit her against the wall again. She crumpled in my arms.
“Ready,” Gigi told me, rushing to my side. “She’s gonna have a nice egg from that one.”
I gave Gigi a look. “Not helping.” I hoisted Mercy’s limp body over my shoulder and carried her into the hastily drawn circle on the floor.
There was a larger circle around it, and several more designs that made no sense to me. The second I crossed that barrier, a rush of comforting warmth shot through me.
Three witches were lighting candles and placing them in the smaller circles while others tied bundles of sage and something ungodly sweet together, then dropped them around the large circle.
I placed Mercy in the center of it all, then backed out as Gigi directed me to. I hesitated, but Mercy was already coming to.
Once the circle was clear, a man with white hair and beard to match motioned for the witches to stand around the designs. There were groups of twos and threes around the small circles. The rest covered the main circle. The moment their hands connected, the chalk glowed a vibrant violet.
Mercy growled, rolling over until she was on all fours. Those claws were out, creating rivulets in the stone. The sounds she was making made the hairs on my arm stand up.
The violet pulsed in time with the spell being woven by the witches. It rose off the floor, forming a dome over Mercy.
Each time it pulsed, Mercy’s growling grew louder. She tore at the stones as if scrambling to get up, but was unable to. When she turned those claws on herself, I rushed to the barrier. She tore at her core, drawing blood and tearing through her shirt as if to dig something out of her body.
I took a step closer to her.
“No,” Gigi shouted. “Rafael, you have to stay back.”
Mercy’s growl turned into a scream as she threw her head back. This spell was going to kill her.
“Mercy, look at me, damn it,” I shouted. “You can do this. You’re strong enough.”
“I can’t,” she gasped, her eyes shifting from her normal blue to dragon eyes, then back again. She clutched at her stomach, hunching over so her hair fell over her face.
Her body trembled violently. An aura appeared around her, black and silver. It was so dark, it nearly blocked her from my view.
I paced outside the barrier, my rage building from seeing her in such agony and being unable to do anything about it.
The aura pulsed in time with the spell, expanding outward, then shrinking back, as if it was held by a rubber band. It expanded and snapped back again, hard enough to draw a shriek from Mercy.
I shouted her name, ready to rush to her. “What’s happening to her?” I demanded.
“The evil is strong,” Gigi said on a breath, having trouble maintaining the circle with the rest of the witches. Sweat beaded her brow. Her arms shook. “It’s fighting us.”
“Just get it out of her.”
“It’s not that simple. She’s letting it win.”
On instinct, I pressed my hand to the dome of light. I gritted my teeth at the rush of emotions that slammed into me. None of them were mine.
These were all from Mercy. The pain was on the surface. Beneath that was an anger so strong, it rivaled my rage. Sorrow was just as intense. The sorrow was over losing Damian and killing Rufus. It was also for all the lives that had been lost and the ones she feared she wouldn’t be able to save.
Beneath all of that was a desire to just give in and let go. She was tired of fighting. Tired of losing those she loved.
This spell was never going to work. It was going to kill her.
“Mercy,” I shouted, my hand pressed to the dome, “you have to fight.”
“I can’t,” she whispered again, the words a growl I hardly understood. She kept her head down as she spoke. “It’s too strong. Just let me go. You have to.”
“Not a chance in hell, you hear me?”
Mercy’s head whipped toward me, but she wasn’t Mercy anymore. She charged the dome, aimed right for me.
The second she made contact, the witches’ spell stuttered to a
stop.
Mercy was thrown backward with a harsh burst of violet light. She landed on the floor, gasping for air.
The dome vanished and I took my chance.
“Rafael, don’t!” Gigi warned.
Too late.
I stepped inside the circle and the light pulsed back to life behind me, trapping me in there with her.
“Keep going,” I told Gigi without taking my eyes off Mercy as she pushed back to her feet. Those dragon eyes held a promise of death. Mercy was in there. I knew she was. I had to reach her. “Gigi, do it.”
“You’re insane,” she muttered, but the chanting resumed.
The spell sought me out, too, but when it realized there was no darkness in me, it concentrated on Mercy again. The aura reappeared around her as she stalked toward me.
“You are stronger than this.” I walked the perimeter of the circle with her, keeping some distance between us. “Are you really going to let Shuval win? Are you?”
She slashed the air in front of her, snarling viciously.
“That’s what you’re allowing. You’re letting her win. All their deaths will mean nothing if you die here and now.” I took another step, then another, biding my time. All I needed was one opening, one chance to reach her. “Damian’s death will mean nothing. Is that what you want? You’ll dishonor his memory if you let yourself be defeated this easily.”
Her growl deepened. She tensed, as if preparing to lunge toward me.
“You want to fight me, then fight me,” I yelled. “Come on, Mercy. I’m not letting you give in this easily.”
She threw her head back as the aura around her expanded, then snapped right back inside her. She sprinted for me. Her claws slashed down my cheek as her other hand caught my chest. I took the punishment, using it as a chance to crush her to me. I held her with everything I had, letting my demon rage burst forth to give me a boost of strength.
“You are a fighter,” I told her as she thrashed in my arms. “Fight, Mercy. Fight it.”
When the aura grew again, the claws shrunk back into her hands. Her eyes returned to normal.
I had no idea how long it would last, and I did the only thing I could think of.
I kissed her, thinking of all the time we spent together, the laughter, the love. I thought of all of it and sent as much of those emotions as I could into her. Her lips moved against mine. She held my horns, as she always did.
