“You understand the plan then,” Mardoc was saying as they made their way along the hallway.
“All too well,” Tryst replied, her voice laced with something close to bitterness.
They were headed towards the front door. When Mardoc opened it, Ashlyn tiptoed out from her hiding spot and moved towards them, her ears still trained on the sound of their voices.
“And what of the other issue?” Tryst asked. Ashlyn could see that she and Mardoc had headed down the front steps onto the semi-circular gravel drive. She slipped along the wall, trying her best to stay out of sight.
“History, you mean,” Mardoc was saying. “Ancient history.”
“I don’t think your future mate will see it that way.”
“She need never know.”
Tryst whisper-screamed the reply. “Oh, come on. You think no one will tell her that you were responsible for the loss of her parents?”
In that moment Ashlyn’s heart failed itself, her legs all but giving out under her. She had to grab the wall to stabilize herself. “Please, no,” she muttered. No, no, no. Her breath caught in her chest, trapped behind some invisible barrier. It was as if she were being crushed under the weight of all the stones that had built this wretched place.
“Her parents were nothing more than collateral damage in a long war,” Mardoc was saying. “When she understands that everything was for her own good, she’ll learn to forgive and forget. She’s about to become the most powerful Dragon shifter in England, all thanks to the man who killed her parents.”
Enough of this. Enough madness. Ashlyn stepped into the doorway, fire blazing in her eyes.
“You bastard!” she screamed, fighting back the desire to lunge at him and tear at his face.
The two shifters turned her way, a look of utter surprise on their faces. How the hell had she been so stealthy, so able to conceal her presence from them? How had she masked her scent? Unless…
Ashlyn moved towards them both, stepping down the stone staircase that led to the driveway. A finger pointed at Mardoc’s face, she hissed the words. “You took my life from me all those years ago, you sick fuck.”
“Ashlyn,” he replied, his voice coming out in that smooth, deceitful tone of his, even as his eyes widened in surprise. Oh, he knew now. He knew that her Dragon had come out of hiding. She was no helpless human; not anymore.
“Don’t you say my name! Don’t you dare fucking say it,” her breaking voice shouted. Aegis. My shield. I need you. “You don’t deserve to say my name, given to me by people who loved me. People who looked after me in spite of the fact that you’d torched my house, burned my parents alive.”
“Your parents—they were friends of the blood seekers,” Mardoc protested. “They wanted to forge an alliance with them.”
“You fucked blood seekers,” Ashlyn spat, rage turning into a dark fire inside her. “You put babies in their bellies. How does that make you so superior?”
Mardoc was backing away, his head shaking from side to side. “You don’t understand. I used them—their genes—for my purposes,” he issued, as though it were a point of pride. “I created a race of useful servants.”
“The Forsaken aren’t your damned servants,” Ashlyn growled, her eyes blazing gold. “You use them as slaves, just as they use the Lapsed. You’ve created bloodthirsty monsters who are at the mercy of their urges. Their lives are torture, their minds bent on destruction, and somehow you think you’re so fucking noble for doing this to them.”
“Don’t you see?” said Mardoc. “The blood seekers, they’re inferior to us, to you and me. Your parents didn’t understand it. They wanted equality for all, they wanted us to share power with the vamps. They didn’t recognize that Dragon shifters are meant to rule the world. I merely found a way to harness the bloodlines of the vamps for our greater good.”
Tryst, who’d stood in a petrified state of silence, opened her mouth for the first time. “Ashlyn,” she said in an artificially sweet tone. Ashlyn turned her way, eyes narrowing. The woman was no less despicable than Mardoc. She’d betrayed her Guild; she’d betrayed Aegis and the others.
“Don’t you dare pretend to care about me or my well-being,” she snarled. “The Guild have risked their lives for the good of your kind and you…you come here, to join in an alliance with this?” She gestured violently towards Mardoc even as her vision began to glow red, her rage palpable on the air. “You support this man claiming to be my rightful mate, when you knew it was a fucking lie?”
Tryst opened her mouth, but no reply came.
“I know what I am,” Ashlyn told them both, her voice deepening to a resonant growl as the Dragon inside her began to take over her body. “I know where I belong, and it’s not here. Not with you. I am Ashlyn Raleigh, and inside me is the Dragon of Fire.”
The sound of snapping twigs echoed off the house’s exterior stone walls. A split-second later, a giant, iridescent Dragon stood in the open, towering over the two cowering, pathetic figures. Ire flowed through Ashlyn’s veins like hot lava, an insatiable bloodlust setting in.
Mardoc would die today. He would pay for his crimes, and her beautiful, terrifying Dragon would be the one to enforce his punishment.
“Ashlyn, no,” her enemy was saying. His voice sounded so small now, so weak. Oh yes, he was stunned to see her déor. Of course he was. He’d thought she didn’t know what she was, but now he’d see the full force of a daughter of Dragons. He would find out just what a purebred Dragon of Fire could do. “Come on now, we can talk this through. Don’t make me shift. Don’t make me hurt you,” he moaned.
“Do it, coward,” her Dragon voice roared through Mardoc’s mind. “Shift. Come at me, you bastard. Just try to hurt me.”
He submitted. What other choice did the asshole have? His Dragon, who had looked dull yellow under the sea of clouds the previous day, now shone a gleaming gold under the sunlight. Ashlyn drew back, stunned by the sudden realization that she was staring at the phantasm from her recurring dreams. The golden enemy who had burned her entire world to the ground. She’d been seduced for a few minutes by this man’s power, his charms, but she’d failed to see him for what he truly was.
Well, now she knew. He was the destroyer of worlds. But his reign had come to an end.
As Tryst looked on in restrained horror, Ashlyn shot high into the sky, her Dragon manoeuvring in preparation for a nosedive. Rage blinded her against all reason. There was no point in concealing her nature, no point in pretending that she didn’t loathe Mardoc with every fibre of her being. She would finish him quickly, and then she’d deal with that traitorous bitch Tryst.
“Don’t do this,” his deep voice bellowed inside her mind as he ascended towards her, flapping those huge wings of his with some effort. “We can bond. Our pure blood will make our offspring strong and…”
“Fuck you, traitor.”
Ashlyn didn’t wait for his next word. Lunging through the air towards him, she pried her immense jaws open to shoot a rapier-pointed dart of flame at his head. Mardoc managed to dodge, but her Dragon was faster than his, already prepared to shoot another. Released after so many years of imprisonment, she was only too eager to unleash her arsenal on such an abominable enemy.
The burst of flame hit Mardoc square in the neck, leaving an ugly black wound that sent a plume of smoke soaring into the clear blue sky.
Her enemy came at her then, the pain propelling him forward. Wrenching his fangs apart he unleashed a broad stream of fire in her direction. But Ashlyn’s gift was speed, and she swooped out of the way faster than any bird of prey could move, evading him entirely.
She shot past his left side and upward, leaving him sputtering in mid-air, spinning around to figure out where she could have gone.
Now was her chance, and she knew it. The opportunity to kill the bastard who’d taken her parents from her. Her déor, raging, was preparing for her first kill.
Thrusting her neck forward she shot her body towards him, a massive, beautiful ar
row in the sky. He was still looking around, still disoriented by the agony of his wound. Easy target. She would take his head as a trophy.
Opening her jaws again, she prepared for the assault. Fool had left his neck vulnerable. He was all hers now.
“Ashlyn, No!”
Aegis’s desperate voice bellowed through her mind from somewhere behind her. For a split second she contemplated ignoring it. Yes. She could ignore everything human inside her now, because something greater had been released. Her Dragon had gone rogue, and Ashlyn the human was about to find out just how powerful she really was.
“I love you, Ashlyn. Please remember that. Don’t do this to us.”
I love you too, Aegis.
She pulled up and halted in midair, twisting around to see her lover’s dark Dragon flying at her, a small battalion of shifters behind him. “Don’t do it,” he repeated. “Don’t kill him.”
Endings
“You don’t understand, Aegis. I have to,” she protested, her insides torn to shreds. “He killed my parents. He…”
“I know.” The sadness in the deep voice that echoed through her mind was enough to break her heart all over again. “I can feel every ounce of your pain. I know what he did to you, sweetheart.”
“So let me kill him. Let me avenge my parents.” Her Dragon hovered tense in the sky, prepared to lunge once again. “Let me do what I was destined to do.”
“Ashlyn, this isn’t your destiny. Mardoc may be a killer, but you’re not.” The blue-black Dragon was close now; so close that she could feel the heat pouring off his sleek body. His eyes stared into hers, a strange quasi-humanity in his expression. Ashlyn could feel the bond between Aegis and his déor, how well they understood one another. Each controlled the other, yet neither was dominant.
She felt herself soften with his closeness, the fire in her Dragon’s heart melting away as he reminded her who she really was. Aegis stopped in mid-air before her, his Dragon close enough to touch as he flapped his wings slowly. “When I followed you on that first night in London and found you in that dark alleyway, you asked me to let the hybrid go. Even though he’d nearly choked you to death; even though he had cruelty written all over his damned face. Ashlyn, your human side is pure and good. You don’t have it in you to be a killer. Your Dragon may, but it’s only because she’s new to you, and still a wild creature. Don’t let her do this or you’ll go mad with regret. I don’t want to lose you now.”
“What would you have me do?” her Dragon called out to him, desperate. “How can I live with myself if I don’t…” She looked towards the golden beast below her, now surrounded on all sides by the Guild’s Dragons.
“Let them take care of him,” Aegis said. “Please, for me.”
For a moment she considered defying him. Mardoc was her prey, hers to finish. Hers to burn. She stared down at him, ready to shoot her body towards him like a nuclear missile.
“Come down to earth with me.”
Her lover was reading her mind. He knew how difficult this was for her, but he knew something else, too. He knew her heart.
Pivoting his massive body, he plunged towards the land below. Ashlyn hovered in place, the internal fight still raging between her two halves.
We need to avenge them, her Dragon’s voice growled. Mother and Father. No matter what he says.
But something inside her had shifted with her lover’s voice. The protector who’d come to her aid so many times; in the alley, on the train and now, in the sky high above a desolate wilderness. He was her warmth. He was her life.
He was the shield she’d always needed, and he was saving her from herself.
No, Aegis is right. Not like this, Ashlyn told her déor, a sense of calm flooding her. Let the others handle him. They’re warriors; let them do what must be done. Please. I’m not ready to kill.
The Dragon surrendered at last, succumbing to her wish and shooting towards the ground to set down next to Aegis, who stood by in human form, waiting for her. When she’d shifted, Ashlyn lifted her chin to the firefight that had begun in the sky overhead.
Lumen, Minach and Lyre were attacking from all sides, shooting flame at their overwhelmed foe. Weakened by Ashlyn, he barely had the strength to keep himself airborne. She watched Lumen’s Dragon catch him by the neck, spinning him into a barrel roll as the twins snapped immense jaws around his limbs, tearing away pieces of wing and flesh. Mardoc was sorely outnumbered and the onslaught lasted only for a few minutes before his enormous Dragon came crashing towards the ground, tumbling head over tail in a horrific defeat. Ashlyn pivoted, pushing her face into Aegis’s chest. She let out a choking sob.
She’d almost become a murderer.
Whether this was justice or not, Aegis had been right; she didn’t have it in her to take a life. At least not like this.
When the deed was finished, the Guild members landed near their enemy’s corpse. It was Lumen who shifted first, striding towards the Aegis with an expression of concern on his face. His friend still held onto his lover, a palm pressed to the back of her head as she let her tears flow.
“Is she all right?” Lumen asked.
She pulled away from Aegis’s chest, her eyes red with anguish, and nodded. “I’ll be fine,” she said, looking around. “Tryst was here earlier…I don’t know where…”
“I know,” said Lumen. “I watched her take off as we approached. I’m not too concerned about her for the moment; she hasn’t got the resources or the will to do us any harm, at least not right now. Needless to say she’s no longer welcome under Hampstead Heath. If she poses any problems we’ll deal with her later.”
“She…she was a reluctant partner, I think,” Ashlyn said, wondering if she was being too generous to the cold woman. “She wanted to help the Dragons. She thought she was doing something good.”
“You’re far kinder than I would be. You know as well as I do that she’s a traitor.”
“I’m not kind at all,” she said, shaking her head, her voice trembling as her gaze fixed on Mardoc’s corpse. “I…I wanted to tear his head off, Lumen. Literally tear him apart. I wanted him to suffer for what he did to me. I would have killed Tryst, too, if Aegis hadn’t stopped me.”
“But you didn’t, Ashlyn,” Aegis said softly, holding her tight. “You’ve passed the test. You’ve conquered the creature inside you, and you’re one with her now. You now possess the greatest ally anyone could have—a Dragon with the strength of an army. Never forget, though: your human is even stronger.”
“Your mate is wise,” Lumen said. “Listen to him.”
Ashlyn offered up a weak smile, all she could muster for the moment.
Lumen put a hand on Aegis’s shoulder and looked him in the eye. “I’m going to leave you two alone. I’ll have the men deal with Mardoc’s body and the Forsaken in this place. Just let Neko and me know if there’s anything we can do.”
“We will,” said Aegis. “Lumen—thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
The Alpha turned and walked away without another word. Ashlyn pulled her head up to look into her lover’s face, offering him as grateful a smile as she could muster. “I love you so much for what you did for me back there,” she said.
“And I love you for everything you are,” Aegis replied. “I’m so happy to have found you…again.” He leaned down to kiss her ever so softly on the lips. “My Dragon lady.”
“That sounds a little grim, when I think about it,” she said. “How about just calling me a hardass?”
“Done, my little hardass. Now let’s go home, shall we?”
“Home,” she repeated. “Home is supposed to be an ocean away, you know. I’m American, remember?” The thought was only now beginning to sink in; she couldn’t legally remain in England, no matter how much she wanted to. A new wrench thrown into the works.
“Yes, well, they say that home is where the heart is, and given that you’ve stolen mine, I’d say home is anywhere you are.”
“Silly boy, I ca
n’t take you away from your Guild. But I can’t really stay here forever. There are laws about immigration and whatnot.”
“Whatnot it is, then,” he said, bending onto one knee as he’d done the previous night. He reached down and plucked a long piece of grass from the ground before twisting it into a small circle. Holding it up between his index finger and thumb, he spoke again.
“Ashlyn Raleigh, I may be a simple Dragon shifter, but I would be very honoured if you would consider eventually marrying me. That is, when your visa expires. Or something. I know a very nice church. It doesn’t have a roof, or windows, or even four walls, but it’s pretty nevertheless…”
“Aegis, we’ve known each other a week.” Even as she spoke the words, Ashlyn knew they were ridiculous. Their week had been more eventful than a lifetime in a normal human’s life.
“Yes, but you’ve become a Dragon since then. I think it’s safe to say we’re ready to settle down. A little, anyhow.”
“You’re right about that,” she said, slipping down to kneel in front of him to take his face in her hands. “In that case, yes. I will so totally, completely and utterly marry the hell out of you.”
Aegis slipped the makeshift engagement ring onto her left ring finger and kissed her again. “You are my Ashlyn. The girl with the fiery name, the fiery heart and the soul of flame,” he whispered.
“And you are my shield, and my love.”
They turned to watch as Lyre and Minach’s Dragons took hold of Mardoc’s body and arced into the sky, veering south towards London.
“What will they do with him?” asked Ashlyn.
“A burial, or possibly cremation. He’ll be treated with more respect than he deserves, given everything he’s done.” He turned back to look at her, wiping a tear from her cheek.
“You okay?” he asked.
Ashlyn nodded, throwing him a glowing smile. “So much better than okay. I’m happy.”
“Good.” Aegis rose to his feet and held out a hand, which she accepted gratefully. “Then let’s go.”
Dragon's Lover, Part Three: A Dragon Shifter Romance Page 9
