Betrayed (Elesian Dragon Mates Book 2)

by Sammie Joyce

  Annabelle managed to singe the pillow before Jade, who was practicing with Wendy, did the same, so she and Rose watched their two classmates for a bit.

  Rose leaned close to Annabelle, speaking in a low voice. “So… you and Dane. You managed to keep that one under wraps. How long has it been going on for?”

  Annabelle gaped at her. “How did you know?”

  “You do remember dragon hearing, right? He made a comment to you yesterday that Jagger heard. He told me that you could only be a couple.”

  Annabelle’s face went bright red. “Did he… did he tell you what Dane said?”

  “No, and I don’t want to know. I’m not sure if you wanted to keep your relationship private, but if you did, I think it’s too late for that. At least all of the dragons know by now.”

  “We hadn’t exactly discussed keeping it secret, but I was trying to be discreet. I guess Dane wasn’t.” Annabelle didn’t look upset, at least—just embarrassed. “I suppose there are worse things.”

  “There are,” Rose agreed.

  The lessons for the rest of the day were uneventful. Rose was looking forward to her date with Gavin tonight. It would be good to get out of the coven’s mansion for a while and forget about her worries. She’d given it some thought, and decided to take him to a restaurant in town.

  He still had his old bedroom in the basement, even though they all slept together in the same bed. Tonight, she and Gavin would sleep in his room. Rose was looking forward to the night in bed even more than the night out. She loved having attention lavished on her by all of her dragons, but it would be nice to have the time to focus on one of them and lavish attention on him in turn.

  Once their lessons were done, Rose hurried to their basement quarters. She picked out a dress from the cupboard, purple to match Gavin’s scales when he was in his dragon form. Rose seldom wore dresses, but tonight was an exception. She wanted it to be special. She was just putting on some gold earrings when Mace walked in.

  “Hey. What’s the special occasion?”

  “Gavin and I are going out for dinner.”

  “Oh, you never said anything. Is it somewhere fancy? I’d better dress accordingly.”

  “No, it’s just Gavin and me tonight.”

  “What?” Mace wasn’t prone to anger, but he looked annoyed now.

  “Gavin’s been feeling left out. I want to spend some time with him individually.”

  “Rose, he’s always complaining about something,” Mace groaned. “That’s no reason to give him special treatment. We always do things as a group. There’s no reason that has to change.”

  Rose sighed, trying not to get impatient. “What do you want me to do, Mace? He’s my mate, the same as you. It’s not just your job to take care of me. It’s my job to take care of you too. If Gavin needs more alone time, then that’s what he’ll get. I’m going to—”

  “Sure, let him keep you all to himself. You’re playing right into his hands, letting him manipulate you.”

  This wasn’t like Mace. He was usually the most easygoing of the brothers, but now his face was set in resentment. Rose had been about to tell him that she would be spending time alone with him, Jagger, and Asher too, but she was distracted by the undercurrent of anger in his thoughts.

  “What’s going on, Mace? What’s wrong?”

  Mace had never been one to hide his feelings like Gavin did, and sure enough, he didn’t hold back. “What’s going on is that Gavin almost killed Jagger yesterday! His own twin! How could he do that? I feel like I don’t know him anymore.”

  Rose took Mace’s arm, urging him to sit with her on the couch. “He’s struggling to learn to share me with the rest of you. You’re used to sharing—you’ve been doing that with your brothers for your whole life. Gavin isn’t. He’s always been a bit of a loner. Now he’s drawn more closely into the clan because of me. You can’t resent him for taking some time to adjust.”

  “No, but I can resent him for trying to murder Jagger.” Mace sighed. “But I suppose you have a point.” He hesitated. “Do you… trust him?”

  Rose didn’t have to think for a moment. “With my life.”

  “With Jagger’s life?”

  “Absolutely. You cannot possibly be angrier with Gavin than he is with himself. Trust me, he truly regrets what happened. He won’t be doing anything like that again any time soon.”

  “I hope you’re right. Asher wasn’t joking when he said he’d kick Gavin out. If I hadn’t gotten to you in time…”

  “Hey.” Rose tried to bring him out of his dark thoughts. “I’m fine, that’s what matters. You reacted like lightning, jumping on top of me like that. You’re my hero.”

  That brought a smile to Mace’s lips. “I just hope you don’t need a hero again any time soon. Has there been any word on Hellith?”

  “Not since I last checked in with Maria.” Rose stood up and turned to the mirror. She started brushing her hair, wondering if she had time to curl it.

  The door opened and she turned, expecting to see Gavin, but instead, Asher was there, looking harried.

  “Come, quickly.”

  Rose was immediately caught up in the urgency of his voice. “What’s wrong?”

  She and Mace hurried alongside him as Asher strode up the stairs and started along the hall.

  “There’s a fire in the distance, somewhere near the front gate. I’ve been trying to get in contact with the witches in charge of guarding that gate tonight, but they aren’t answering. I figured I should have backup in checking it out.” He was walking so fast that Rose had trouble keeping up with him.

  “Why didn’t you call us mentally, Asher? It would have saved time.”

  “I’ve done that with Jagger and Gavin, but I wanted to see you with my own eyes, to be sure you’re safe. If there’s something wrong out at the gate, you just stay behind me. You can cast magic from a distance. If there’s an attack, we would be better at taking the brunt of it.”

  As much as it rankled to be told she had to cower behind her dragons for protection, Rose knew he was right. Dragons were physically much hardier than witches. A blow that would cripple Rose would merely be an annoyance to them. Most of her training focused on casting ranged spells for that reason.

  Jagger and Gavin joined them just as they exited the mansion and stepped onto the lawn.

  Rose grabbed Asher’s arm, dragging him to a halt. “Asher, wait. If you really think something is wrong, we should get some of the witches to come too. I’m still inexperienced and weak compared to some of the senior witches.”

  “You have something they don’t have. Maria reckons that necklace of yours is more powerful than even the strongest witch here.”

  “Yes, but I can’t always control it, remember?” They had done a number of stress tests, but no one had been able to find any way to help Rose consciously direct the necklace’s power. It worked when it worked, often in times of great need, but not infallibly so.

  Asher hesitated only for a moment. “We’re nearly there. If they’re in trouble, I don’t want to wait. I’ll tell Dane to gather some witches and meet us outside.”

  It was the best she was going to get. Rose broke into a jog to keep up with her dragons as they hurried toward the gate. Was she imagining it, or could she smell smoke? No, she wasn’t imagining it. She could see a few tendrils of it rising up from the far side of the wall.

  That must be the fire Asher said he’d seen, and it didn’t bode well. The witches on guard had no reason to light a fire, and Rose couldn’t think how it could have been started accidentally. Even if that somehow did happen, they would be able to put it out with magic long before it started smoking like this one apparently was.

  Asher got to the gates and threw them open. Rose tried to peer past him, her heart galloping in her throat.

  Chapter Four

  Asher stood frozen only for a moment. Then he signaled Mace and Jagger to sweep the area. They did so silently, opening up a view of the scene for Rose.


  Julianna and Everlee, who had been guarding the gate, were lying on the ground, their necks bent at odd angles. It was only too obvious that they were dead.

  Rose’s feet took her forward automatically. She knelt down at Everlee’s side, gently closing her eyes. Gavin put a hand on her shoulder, but didn’t speak. Rose brushed away tears. There would be time for tears later.

  The corpses seemed to loom in Rose’s vision, until they appeared the size of giants. She forced herself to drag her eyes away. When she did, she noticed for the first time the smoking ground just outside the gate.

  There were words scorched into the ground: I’m coming for her.

  Those words sent a chill through her. Rose knew exactly what they meant. Hellith was coming to kill her, and she wouldn’t stop until Rose was dead. Without Rose, they stood no chance, not because Rose’s powers were the deciding factor in a fight, but because she was the only thing holding the dragons and witches together.

  If the coven wasn’t united, Hellith would pick them off piece by piece. They would be destroyed. Their only chance against her was to stand united.

  Rose was the link. If she wasn’t here, the unity likely wouldn’t last for long. Maybe years down the line, the coven would be strong enough to hold together in the event of her death, but right now, it was too new. Witches and dragons were struggling to find a way to live and work together.

  It just took one bad leader to get the entire coven to champion the cause of hatred—Kaylee was proof of that. Rose still didn’t know how Hellith had taken a human form, or how she had infiltrated the coven under the guise of Kaylee, let alone gotten herself elected as leader.

  Maria had some of their most powerful witches working on that. If Hellith could get in once, she might be able to get in again. They needed to know if she could take the form of anyone here. It was a scary thought.

  The writing on the ground, though, certainly provoked enough fear as it was. Asher was shaking violently as he stared at the words. He didn’t look like he was shaking with fear—he looked pissed.

  “Asher.” Rose tried to walk over to him, but Asher abruptly ran away. Rose tried to follow, but Jagger grabbed her around the waist, not a moment too soon.

  Asher exploded into his dragon form. He leapt into the air, rising about twenty feet before unleashing a blast of flame upward into the clouds.

  “What…?”

  “Sometimes when we’re really angry, we change forms without meaning to,” Jagger explained. “Most of us learn to control it before we become adults, but it still happens from time to time. Asher could tell it was coming, and got away from us so that he didn’t hurt anyone.”

  “Is that what happened to you yesterday? You couldn’t control it?”

  “No, I don’t have that excuse. I just panicked. I knew I was doing it, and I didn’t think through the consequences of shifting with you and Gavin so near. It was my fault.”

  “No, it wasn’t. It may not be a physiological response like this, but people can’t always control themselves when they panic, and dragons are no exception. I probably would have panicked too in that situation.”

  Rose realized that while Jagger was speaking calmly to her, he was also silently seething. A glance at Mace and Gavin showed the same. Nothing made the dragons angry like a threat to her.

  Asher landed, shifting back, looking sheepish. “Sorry.” He came over to Rose, holding out his arms. She gratefully stepped into his embrace. She was shaking, but for a different reason than him. She knew she was no match for Hellith. With her dragons, she was strong, but alone, she was nothing. Rose didn’t know nearly enough about her powers to be able to protect herself.

  “We will protect you.” Jagger must have been picking up her chaotic thoughts. “We won’t let her touch you.”

  “You can’t be with me every minute of every day. What if she attacks when I’m practicing spells with Annabelle, or walking by myself to the bathroom? I’m not strong enough to survive a battle against her. She’ll kill me before I even get the chance to cry out.”

  “You will not be alone, not for a moment.” Asher looked deliberately at his brothers. “From now on, you will be accompanied by a minimum of two of us at all times—and that’s an absolute minimum. We’ll aim to make sure none of us is more than a couple of feet from you until this is over.”

  “Agreed,” Jagger said at once. “If you need to pee in the middle of the night, you wake us. If you want to go for a walk with Annabelle in the forest, we escort you. We’ll be there in your classes, when you shower, when you’re getting dressed.”

  Rose though that was going a bit overboard—being with just one of her dragons would be protection enough. One of them couldn’t fight Hellith alone, but they could fly her to a safe distance while calling for help. She loved being with her guys, but having them watch her pee wasn’t exactly a romantic thought.

  “I’m sure just one of you will be protection enough.”

  “Agreed. She is going to spend time alone with each of us.” Rose wasn’t surprised Gavin agreed with her. The poor guy really wanted his time alone with her. She had also been looking forward to their date, and hoped to convince Asher that he was being unreasonable.

  “Quality time with individuals is a good idea,” Asher conceded, “but it can’t happen right now. Hellith needs to be destroyed. Once that happens, when Rose is safe, then she can do that.”

  “No,” Gavin snarled. “Rose promised to spend some time with just me. You can’t overrule her—she’s co-leader. She has just as much authority as you do.”

  “Not when her life is in danger.”

  Rose was about to speak up angrily, but she was interrupted by Mace.

  “Asher is right, Gavin. We have to protect her. Endangering our mate just because you want some alone time with her is irresponsible.”

  “It’s stupid,” Jagger added. “I know I beat you in the last ‘who can act stupidest for a day’ contest, but this time, you win the crown, brother.”

  Rose knew that hadn’t been a contest, that had just been Jagger joking around, as usual. It had nettled Gavin, and Asher had eventually put a stop to it. Now probably wasn’t the best time to bring it up, but Jagger wasn’t exactly known for his restraint.

  “I won’t have you taking her away from me! You have no right.”

  “No one is taking Rose away from you,” Asher said through gritted teeth, clearly striving to remain calm. “On the contrary, I’m telling you that you have to be by her side every moment.”

  “Yeah, with you between us! I see how she looks at you! You just want me gone!”

  “Gavin, stop it! No one wants that.” Rose quickly stepped between him and Asher. “Let’s just talk about this. Maybe we can find a way to compromise. And Asher, Gavin is right in that your authority is equal to mine. I agree that we all need to stay safe, but we need to discuss a plan. You can’t just order me and expect me to follow if I disagree.”

  Asher was in no mood to hear any argument that he thought might cause a threat to her safety. “We will keep you safe. Anyone who doesn’t agree with that isn’t welcome in this clan.” He glared at Gavin, his meaning all too clear.

  “You won’t get rid of me, brother! I will have her to myself, whether you want it or not!”

  “ENOUGH! Gavin, I have made my ruling on Rose’s safety. You can accept it, or leave and not come back.”

  Gavin spat in Asher’s face, then turned and ran, headed away from the mansion. Rose tried to run after him, but Asher easily stopped her.

  “No. You need to stay with us. Remember Hellith? Running off now will be playing right into her hands.”

  “Let me go! I have to stop him!”

  Before Asher could respond, Gavin shifted, leaping up into the air. He rose high and was soon no more than a purple streak in the sky.

  “Take me after him!” Rose turned from Asher to Jagger and Mace, but both of them shook their heads.

  “You have to stay here.” Asher’s voic
e was heavy with regret. “It’s not safe for you otherwise. Believe me, I wish that wasn’t the case, but it is.”

  Gavin! Gavin, please come back!

  It felt like she was hitting a brick wall. Rose’s own words were turned back against her. Gavin was closed off to her. She’d known it was possible to shield emotions, but she hadn’t realized that her dragons could block her words from reaching them.

  “I can’t talk to him. Jagger, you try.”

  Jagger pursed his lips. “I’ve tried. He’s blocked off. We’re all free to block our emotions, but stopping communication is banned in the clan. It’s too risky—you can’t tell what the person on the other side is trying to say. It could be an emergency.”

  “Well, Gavin isn’t part of this clan anymore, so he can do what he wants.” Though he sounded cold, Rose knew that Asher was hurting. She could feel her own pain mirrored in him, Jagger, and Mace.

  Rose couldn’t believe things had gone so badly wrong. Less than an hour ago, she’d been getting ready for a nice dinner with Gavin. She’d been anticipating sucking his dick. Now she didn’t know if she’d ever see him again.

  Hurt and grief welled up inside her. Rose loved Gavin, but he was being a jerk. How could he do this to her? One fight surely wasn’t enough to abandon her, to abandon his clan.

  Obviously, Gavin thought otherwise.

  Mace caught her as her legs collapsed. Rose turned her face into his shoulder as she cried. Mace carried her all the way back to the mansion. Asher led the way, going to Maria’s room, since it was too late for her to be in her office.

  “No, I want to go back to the basement. Let Asher talk to Maria.” Rose didn’t want to be around other people right now, not until she got control of herself. She couldn’t seem to stop crying into Mace’s shirt. Of course, her dragons didn’t count—she always wanted to be around them.

  She had the feeling that this particular sentiment would be tested over the coming weeks.