by L J Andrews
I did stop the car then. Clicking my seatbelt off, I held her face between my hands. “Don’t ache for me,” I whispered, inching my face closer. It was intoxicating drawing her lips so close to mine, but never closing the gap. I listened to the way her breath caught in her throat, and it only added to the tension. “Don’t hurt over this, Jade. Not for another second. No matter what, I will always choose you.”
Jade’s eyes were bright when she put her hands carefully on both sides of my neck. “Is it just the bond?” she whispered. “Is that what makes you say those things?”
Tracing my thumb over her lips, I shook my head. “Not a chance. You are more than a bond to me. I love you,” I said, realizing it was the first time I’d said the words out loud—at least directly.
I’d never seen Jade cry—really cry—part of me had wondered if dragons could cry. Her breath shuddered, and any distance between us was soon obsolete. When she pressed her lips against mine, her hot tears soaked my face. Jade had a strong grip she’d clasped behind my head when I pulled her from her seat, curling her on my lap—as best I could with the tight quarters. Perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to take a little more time getting back.
The white house was dark when we pulled up along the drive. Jade studied the windows and carefully got out of the car. The air was chilly, the first signs of autumn breathing into the night. Stepping at her side, I wrapped my arm around her waist. “We need to face them eventually, right?”
Taking my hand in confidence, she nodded and pulled me toward the door. The moment we stepped onto the porch the lights blinded us and the door practically ripped off its hinges. Sapphire was fuming in the doorway, but he said nothing. He simply leaned against the door frame and pointed inside the house. Jade kept her chin high and marched regally inside, though I found myself shifting away from Sapphire’s black gaze.
“Sit down,” he growled in a deathly slow tone.
“What do you think you were doing?” Mini’s shrill voice screamed from across the living room. I ducked when she tossed her knife—yes, her knife—at my head. All my anger from the night built like a throbbing cancer in my chest. I gripped the hilt of the weapon once the blade had lodged deep into the wall and pulsed my fury into the silver steel. Mini gaped when the metals crumbled under my touch. I didn’t know I could do that, but it brought a certain amount of pleasure when her eyes flashed with such malice I was positive we were about to duel. Ready—yes, tonight I was ready to fight. I was ready to unleash the boil of fury, and if Mini was the target, so be it.
“Sit down, Mini,” Eisha’s silky voice stopped the mage in her tracks.
“That was my favorite knife,” she hissed at me.
“Don’t throw it at my head next time,” I muttered in return.
“Teagan, we trusted you,” Eisha began, not even waiting for Jade to sit down on the sofa. “We couldn’t even sense Jade. Where did you go?”
“It’s not his fault. Teagan wanted to come speak with you, it was me. I convinced him to leave,” Jade said.
“Jade, we decided together,” I said directly. “We went to see my aunt. I had to know about my family.”
Eisha looked as though she might shift by the way her lips curled. “You left Wyvern Willows?”
“Yes,” Jade answered for the both of us. “And you’ll be interested to know we have learned a great deal.”
“Were you followed?” Sapphire hissed, rushing toward the window.
“Followed, by who?” I asked.
“Just were you?” he said again. “Leaving the protection of the willow is dangerous and foolish.”
“We weren’t followed,” Jade insisted. “I protected the car.” Both Eisha and Sapphire noticeably relaxed. “Surprising, I can problem solve through difficult decisions, isn’t it?”
“Jade, we have confidence you can make decisions,” Sapphire said.
“No, you don’t,” she snapped. “I’m a young queen, I realize this. But it is time I take my place. The willow warned me of changes and no one listened. Then the zomok came, the mages returned. I still feel something is coming. I know leaving was risky, but I feel Teagan and I now have an idea what we could be dealing with because we took the risk.”
Eisha seemed as though she wanted to say something, but held her tongue. I glanced toward Mini, who was still scooping up the dust of her knife, muttering angry words under her breath. Sapphire was the one who leaned forward, his focus jumping between me and Jade. “You’re right, Jade. It’s time. Teagan is growing more capable by the hour it seems, as are you. Tell us what you learned.”
Jade nudged my elbow, giving me the floor to explain about my aunt’s story. Mini stopped scooping the dust and listened when I spoke of the letter. Thankfully, Jade had brought the shoebox and held up the paper to prove what we said. The quilt drew all of their interests, even Eisha dropped her icy wall and studied the design.
“Jade has a theory about my parents,” I said softly, hating speaking of the idea again.
“I believe Teagan is the son of the High Priestess and High Priest.”
Mini closed her eyes and slid down the wall until her knees were pulled against her body. “I don’t know how that’s possible, yet I don’t know how you can’t be connected. The quilt, Jade is right, it’s the seal of the jade family. But the markings on the outer rim, those are unique. It’s not a mage crest, nor is it a wyvern crest. The only one who would even come close to a crest of the jade bloodline is the High Priestess.
“The High Priest lost his connection to the crest when he betrayed the family. Teagan, I know the High Priestess didn’t have a child during the war. As royal bloodline mages, we are close. I was close with the High Priestess. You would have to have been born after the war. She fought against the High Priest—her own partner. So, why would she join with him again?”
“Well, the High Priest joined Nag, would it be so far off to think the High Priestess would turn too?” I asked bitterly.
Mini seemed as though she were about to be sick. “I can’t…I can’t believe that. I knew her.”
“You knew them both, Mini,” Sapphire said, gentler than I would have.
Mini nodded. “I did know the High Priest. Well, what should we do, Your Majesties?” She said the words with a new respect I hadn’t heard before. Mini turned to Sapphire and Jade.
Jade’s palm was resting gently on my thigh, and she didn’t seem the least bit concerned. She was a marvel. “We stand against them. We protect the stones as always. They are still well hidden, right? Completely out of reach for now. But if any of the royals fall to Nag, the stones’ location will be easier to find.” She rose from the sofa, her voice calm and collected. In all the time we’d spoken I had never thought of the actual stones. I knew they were powerful, and Nag could destroy anything he wanted if he had access to the elemental stones. But I never considered they weren’t with the actual royals. “I will reach out to the other royals,” Jade said sharply. “Mini, we need your help assembling the mages—only those you trust with your life. Tell them the call to defend the wyverns has risen again. If the High Priest and High Priestess have joined with King Nag, it’s only a matter of time before they learn where we are. The willow is fading. They want Teagan. Since his power has strengthened, it’s possible they will sense him.”
“The High Priestess knows where Wyvern Willows is,” Eisha said coldly. “She’s the one who fueled the willow.”
A shiver spread down my spine. A zomok had come inside the willows and attacked after I’d arrived. I wasn’t exactly subtle about using my abilities. Something told me it was only a matter of time before I brought more danger to the place I’d come to view as my new home.
As fate would have it, the moment the thought passed through my mind was the moment life would never be the same. In a whirlwind, the windows of the house crashed in shards of glass. The lights combusted and cast the house in a thick blackness. My arm wrapped around Jade as I covered her with my own body against the flying debris. Ei
sha snarled, and the ground shifted when her body peeled back into her massive dark scales. Mini blocked Sapphire, who ripped a jagged shard of glass from his bicep. She gripped a long sword—I hadn’t even seen it on her back—and already her armor wrapped around her limbs and neck.
Then the sound that chilled my blood until it was frozen in my veins filled the night sky. Aunt Liz, she was screaming my name. Her voice was strained and sounded as though someone were choking her. Jolting to my feet, I faced the shattered window. The burn of my armor spread around my arms as though it were natural. My back ached as the seal bubbled beneath my shirt.
A man, dressed from head to toe in the blackest black, stood out on the lawn. His face was sharp and defined. Young, but frighteningly cunning. Even from the distance, I knew he was staring straight at me. Along the edges of his face were similar markings like my armor, but instead of green they were as dark as pitch and added a sinister appearance to his grin.
It didn’t take long before I started moving toward the window, my body trembling in fury. Behind the man was a row of zomoks. I could see their disgusting faces. Their slender, slithering bodies were wrapped around her—Aunt Liz. She was screaming, scanning the lawn desperately, trying to make sense of what was happening.
“Ah, the new mage,” the man hissed. “I’ve so wanted to meet you. Unwise to step out of your protection. It was all too easy to find you, Teagan.”
“Who are you?” I shouted, my arm flinging out to the side and pushing Jade back when she tried to step next to me. Eisha’s enormous form blocked her queen from following me, though I heard Jade’s angry protests as I continued forward.
“I would like to speak with you, that’s all.”
“Let her go,” I snarled, pointing at Aunt Liz.
“Not yet,” he said. There was a wrenching power about the man. Honestly, everything about him frightened me to my core. “You see, I want to make certain we really hear each other. If you don’t do anything foolish, she’ll be safely returned. Won’t you come here? It’s time we get properly acquainted.”
“I asked who you were,” I bellowed, planting my feet firmly away from the stranger.
“You are the jade bloodline mage by the looks of you. Imagine my surprise to see such a color on your skin.”
My fists balled when he avoided my question. The suffocating desire to protect the house, protect Aunt Liz from the grizzly man, sent my head into a spin. I had no weapon, but ever so gently the whispers of the forest found me and slowly I built the spark of power in my palms.
“Oh, no, there’s no need to fight,” he said, smirking as he pointed toward my fists. “I want to know you, Teagan.”
“Why? I don’t want to know you,” I shouted, my brow coating in sweat as he stepped closer.
He laughed. How I hated his laugh. It tossed my insides. “We’re of the same power. There’s no need to hide any longer. My name is Bron. You should know me. I am the High Priest of all the mage. And if you are the jade mage, you come from my bloodline. So,” Bron said with a dark grin. “I would venture that makes you my son.”
Chapter 26
There was a part of me that had known Bron from the moment I’d met his silver eyes. But hearing those words, that he too believed he had some sick claim on me as a parent, caused my knees to buckle beneath my weight. A cry broke through the night air when Mini shrieked and rushed out onto the lawn. Her body was completely coated in armor, her blade gleamed like stars beneath the moon, and her eyes spoke of nothing but slaughtering Bron where he stood.
“Agatha,” Bron chuckled. “What a pleasure to see you.”
“Pity, I can’t say the same, Bron. You disgrace the mage race! You’re a murderer and a traitor.”
Bron cocked his head, and all was silent for a single, tense breath. The ground rumbled, and Mini stumbled as the lawn separated. A crevice wider than Eisha’s BMW split along the manicured grass of Wyvern Reform House. Bron’s eyes flashed dangerously, and his grin was frightening as the earth threatened to swallow Mini whole. He stood still, showing no signs of controlling any bit of the disturbance—it was chilling and mesmerizing in one glance.
Slamming my fists on the grass, I felt the shock of Bron’s power resist my own pleadings to keep Mini topside. There was an audible groan in the soil as I fought against the trembling darkness of Bron’s force. Sweat beaded along my brow, and my stomach wrenched as though I might be sick. It seemed as though the comforting whispers that had stood by my side not long ago were now confused at which mage order to obey. Mini gripped the edge of the crack, her legs dangling precariously over the oblivion until she found the strength to pull herself over the edge. Without hesitation, Mini dug her fingernails deep into the damp soil. Once the lawn was bright and peaceful beneath the blue light of the sky, now it shredded in angry clumps and clots of dirt and rocks. The pressure between Bron, Mini, and me burst in a visible surge of power. I could have sworn a flash of gilded light escaped the soil for the briefest glance. A fissure cracked along the gravel drive, up the front porch, and across the front wall of the house until finally the tormented soil came to rest.
“Impressive,” Bron muttered as though he were bored. “Teagan, I fear lesser mages have fed you lies about me. Aren’t you curious,” he sneered, “even the slightest bit about who you really are? I can sense your torment. I can help you.”
The way Bron studied me was more than uncomfortable. I could practically feel his eyes carving into my most private thoughts, but he wasn’t wrong. Even after all the bitterness at the idea of him crept along my heart, I was curious. It was impossible not to wonder. “I have nothing to say to you,” I shouted.
“Oh, I think you have much you want to say to me,” Bron hissed.
“Teagan, we must get to the sanctuary,” Mini whispered so softly I hardly heard her. “Our duty is to protect the royals, he will kill them—he’ll kill Jade.”
Mini’s words unlocked a feral instinct within me. How could I have allowed myself to become so distracted? I’d left Jade alone in the house.
“I wonder why you would be here, Teagan,” Bron said deliberately, taking a step closer. “What could have brought you to become so antagonistic immediately?”
My throat tightened, and the burn of the armor spread like fire across my skin. “Well, you have my aunt tied up by snakes, moron. That could be part of it.”
Bron tsked arrogantly, and his jaw set firmly like a stone. “Such a pity you were raised around humans. You sound just like them. No, I suspect there is more. I suspect there’s a reason why Agatha is here as well.” Bron chuckled and stared at the house. “You didn’t really think you could keep them from me, did you? I can practically smell them. Where are the royals?”
It was enough to set me and Mini into a blinding rage. I rushed toward Bron with the frenzied drive to keep him as far from the house as I could. Mini stuck at the pack of zomoks that shot toward us at our charge. She slashed at their bodies; they bit at her. Her sapphire armor held against their needlelike teeth, but one slashed its jaw against her cheek. Mini slashed through its heart. Bron’s focus was on me, and I learned quickly the High Priest was astronomically stronger than me. With the wave of his hand I crumbled, gasping as an invisible hand clenched tightly against my throat, choking all my air.
“Stop this,” Bron growled, bending down so he hunched at my side. It was as close as I’d yet come to the man, and I desperately wanted to know where Mini had gone. I no longer heard the shrieks of the zomoks or her foul mouth as she slashed her blade against them. Bron’s eyes were furious like a winter storm. I’d never seen such eyes. Even his irises were white. The frosty color was terrifying when he pressed his face closer to mine. I grappled against his black clothes, yearning for air. “You are mine—part of me. I will teach you how to use your power.”
Bron released his fist, and a painful gasp of air rushed back into my lungs. I coughed and gagged on the grass while he rose back to standing. Bron snarled through his teeth, and I ca
ught sight of Mini. A thick, rocky barrier surrounded the house now, blocking Bron and me out. There was a rumbling growl echoing through the air. Like thunder, the sound shook me to my core. Breathing a sigh of relief, I tried to scramble to my feet when I saw the enormous dragons swooping over the lawn. Raffi and Dash released a guttural shriek into the night, sending the zomoks into a frenzy. There were three more thick warriors who’d taken up the fight behind Jade’s defenders. The new dragons were painted in a bright blue like the summer sky, and their piercing yellow eyes sparked in fury as they charged across the lawn.
Bron whirled around on the zomoks. “Stop them.”
His flashing eyes landed on me, but I felt someone else tugging on my arm. “To the sanctuary, come now,” Mini shouted.
Raffi darted against Bron, who tried to stop me from leaving. Raffi’s jaw could swallow half a man in one bite, but Bron wasn’t an ordinary man. With a flash of white power Bron struck Raffi’s wings. The dragon bellowed in the night and filled the night sky with a molten stream of flames. Bron backed away, his attention lost from Mini and me.
“No, Aunt Liz,” I cried, rushing toward the retreating swarm of serpent dragons hauling my now-silent aunt away.
“We’ll get her,” Mini screamed. “Right now we must seek help. We can’t stop him, Teagan. If you’re dead, you can’t save your aunt.”
With a painful cry and curse at the stars, I tore away in the opposite direction from the woman who’d given me everything and darted toward the trees. My body trembled beneath the thick, hardened armor that had covered my body like an extra layer of skin.
“Where is she!” I screamed in Mini’s face when I saw the house. No lights signaled any life in the house. I wondered about the students. What would happen to them, who would protect them.
“I’ve protected the humans,” Mini hissed as though reading my mind.
But the house was empty. Eisha, Sapphire, and Jade were gone. Panic pounded in my chest, making it hard to focus and breathe. “Mini, where is Jade!”
