by Donna Grant
Finally, his legs gave out, and he fell to his knees before slumping over as exhaustion filled him. He would sleep for just a little before he fashioned weapons to stand his ground.
Read on for a sneak peek of the next thrilling
Dark Kings novel
IGNITE
Available May 2019
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Chapter One
Dreagan
April
Things weren’t going good, and they didn’t look to be improving anytime soon.
V ran a hand down his face wearily. All he wanted was to go to his mountain and figure out why his sword wouldn’t work. But he couldn’t. If he did, every Dragon King at Dreagan would know something was wrong.
Eons after having his sword stolen and then hidden from him, it was now back in his grasp. But it did no good. Every King was counting on him to use it in order to check on the dragons.
He paced his room inside the manor, wondering if it was somehow his fault that his weapon wouldn’t respond to him anymore. Had he done something to . . . ? That couldn’t be it. The sword was his, part of him. All Dragon Kings had a sword that only they could use.
So if it wasn’t him, then what was it? What kept him from being able to use his sword to check on the dragons? Ever since the Kings forced the dragons to leave during the war with the humans, they had no idea if their clans were alive or not. The Kings didn’t even know where the dragons were.
The dragon bridge was manifested from the combined magic of all the Kings, and it was the one and only time they had ever used such a bridge.
V couldn’t stay in his chamber anymore. He stalked from his room and made his way downstairs. As he walked across the vast expanse of Dreagan—staying far from the Visitor’s Center at the distillery where people lined up to take tours—he was glad he didn’t run into any of his brethren.
Only Cináed knew about his conundrum. If this continued, V would have no choice but to tell the rest of the Kings. After all he and Roman gone through in Iceland just to find his stolen sword, it wasn’t right that he couldn’t make it work properly.
V kept walking. He didn’t care where he went. He just needed to burn off some of the anger and anxiety that churned like a raging storm within him. His first choice would be shifting into his true form and taking to the skies, but that wasn’t something they could do during the day. The fact they were hiding from the humans prevented that.
V could use his power. Every Dragon King was granted a special type of magic. For him, it was being able to disguise his dragon form when he shifted. He was so tempted to do that, but he didn’t. It wouldn’t be fair for him to take to the skies while others could not.
He had no idea how much time passed before he found himself walking along a paved road. V paused and looked up to get his bearings. He was no longer on Dreagan, and with their land encompassing sixty thousand acres that meant he had walked quite a ways.
V heard the roar of an approaching engine. He grimaced when he recognized the unmistakable sound of the Maseratti GranTurismo MC Stradale that belonged to none other than Constantine, King of Dragon Kings.
He watched as the bright blue sports car came into view. And just as expected, Con slowed when he spotted V. The Dragon Kings were the most powerful of beings on the realm, but even they had someone to answer to. That someone was Constantine.
Con rolled down his window, his black eyes locking on V’s face. He was attired in his usual—a suit, starched shirt, gold dragon head cufflinks, and no tie. “Everything all right?” he asked.
V nodded. “Just walking.”
A blond brow shot up on Con’s forehead. “Toward the village?”
“I needed to stretch my legs.”
“And you couldn’t do that on Dreagan? Or was it that you didn’t want to run into any Kings?”
V blew out a breath and looked over the top of the car to the opposite side of the road where sheep grazed on the steep hills.
“I see,” Con said after a moment. “You know you can talk to me about whatever is troubling you.”
“I know.” V met Con’s black gaze. “I just need some time. Finally having my sword back after so many millions of years without it is taking some getting used to.”
Con blinked, his expression devoid of any emotion, but V knew him well enough to know that Con was trying to discover what it was V was hiding. It was one of the many reasons Con was King of Kings.
“You know where to find me,” Con replied.
V gave a nod. Con stared at him a moment longer before he drove off. The last thing anyone at Dreagan needed was the knowledge that something was wrong with his sword. With all he and Roman had discovered in the mountain on Iceland in regards to the Others, there was much the Kings had to do.
The Others.
The mere thought of them made V want to retaliate. The mysterious group was a mix of good and evil Druids as well as Dark and Light Fae. Why such an alliance would come together still confused the Kings.
Worse, the Others seemed to be after the Dragon Kings. And they had waited thousands of years before taking action. No one knew why the Others had been so patient.
Or what they were after.
V waited until he saw the taillights of Con’s car disappear over a hill before he turned and resumed his walk. He couldn’t think about the Others right now. He had to focus on his sword. Yet the two were connected.
It was the Others who had initially tried to get his sword. Fortunately, a group of humans that V once protected discovered the Others’ plan. The humans used their skills to steal the weapon from V and hide it before the Others could lay claim to it.
He wished the gypsies would have told him their plan, but he knew he wouldn’t have listened to them had they tried. He would’ve told them he could take care of things himself. The truth, however, was that he would’ve underestimated the Others. And the gypsies had not.
It was the Others who spelled V so he lost his memories about when and how his sword was stolen. But he now had them returned. His memories gave him little insight into the group, however. What they did show him were the lengths some mortals would go to in order to help the Dragon Kings.
That was in direct opposition to what the majority of humans had done to the Kings, which began the war between them. V still couldn’t believe that the Dragon Kings, the strongest, greatest beings on the realm, had given up everything to the mortals.
That was a road he didn’t need to wander down. His mind returned to the Others. Despite the attempt by the gypsies, the Others found the man who had taken his sword. The gypsies made sure that the Others couldn’t touch it. Instead, the nefarious group put other traps in place throughout the mountain in Iceland to hinder anyone trying to retrieve the weapon.
It was through great difficulty and the help of friends that V and Roman were able to escape the mountain not only with their lives, but with the sword as well.
This wasn’t the first time the Others had set ruses and deceptions for the Kings. Perhaps it was because of the tricks the Others used that made V apprehensive. First, it was the wooden dragon carved as a replica of Con. One touch to that figurine caused chaos to erupt.
There was also the incident in New York with the black dagger and a fellow King, Dorian.
And now this.
At least, those were the only ones he knew of. There could be more. That in itself made his worry double.
Read all of the Dark Kings Novels
Darkest Flame (Volume 1)
Fire Rising (Volume 2)
Burning Desire (Volume 3)
Hot Blooded (Volume 4)
Night’s Blaze (Volume 5)
Soul Scorched (Volume 6)
Passion Ignites (Volume 7)
Smoldering Hunger (Volume 8)
Smoke and Fire (Volume 9)
Firestorm (Volume 10)
Blaze (Volume 11)
Heat (Volume 12)
Torched (Volume 13)
Dragonfire (Volume 14
)
The Dark Warriors Series
Midnight’s Master (Volume 1)
Midnight’s Lover (Volume 2)
Midnight’s Seduction (Volume 3)
Midnight’s Warrior (Volume 4)
Midnight’s Kiss (Volume 5)
Midnight’s Captive (Volume 6)
Midnight’s Temptation (Volume 7)
Midnight’s Promise (Volume 8)
Midnight’s Surrender (Volume 8.5)
About the Author
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Donna Grant has penned ninety novels, novelettes, novellas, and short stories spanning multiple genres of romance including the exhilarating Dark Kings and Reaper paranormal series, the romantic suspense Sons of Texas series, the historical paranormal Kindred series, and the contemporary Heart of Texas series. She lives with her two children, a dog, and three cats in Texas.
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Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
The Beginning . . .
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty-seven
Chapter Twenty-eight
Chapter Twenty-nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-one
Chapter Thirty-two
Chapter Thirty-three
Epilogue
Excerpt: IGNITE
Chapter One
About the Author
Copyright Page
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
“Dark Alpha’s Awakening” copyright © 2019 by Donna Grant.
All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.stmartins.com
Cover: design by Patricia Schmitt; photographs © Fotorince/Adobe Stock
Author photo © Yvette Michelle Portraits LLC
eISBN 9781250231710 (ebook)
First eBook Edition: February 2019
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