Dragon Series: Dragon Heat

by Missy Lyons

  "No, don't you see? You are letting it defeat you before you even try."

  "But the consequences—"

  "Be damned. Think about it? Isn't love worth it? Even if it's only for a short time? Your mother loved your father."

  "And she left him when she had to. Before I was born she left him and has not seen him for twenty years since."

  "But do you doubt that she still loves him?"

  "No."

  "Or that she would not live that year she had with him the exact same way if she had a chance to relive it?"

  "I never thought of it that way."

  Alyssa knew fear of the curse was what motivated every Elisaid now. They would have to change the future. The past could not be changed but the future still had hope as long as they did not give up. Her voice was sad as she finished her thoughts, “Or that your mother would still return here if she didn't know in her heart that the curse would kill the man she loves."

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  Chapter 19

  Elsbeth and Liam stole away to talk in the barn. He held her in his arms, on a bed of straw. Her entire body tingled with awareness of his body lying next to hers, but he had not once allowed her to become a lover. It frustrated her to know she could be so close and yet not have her heart's desire, and she could not vow to stay with him, let alone admit her love.

  She could not remember a time she felt so alive or so much a woman as she felt now in his arms. Why couldn't she love the man, lead a normal life? Have children, be happy? Yes, she lived in fear of that curse even still. Elsbeth sighed, letting her hands fall in dejection.

  "What are you thinking right now?"

  Elsbeth closed her eyes against the rush of emotion. Which one did he want to hear—the pain, the hopelessness, the fear? “I—umm.” She sighed audibly. “It is nothing. Why do you ask?"

  "It's just that you looked so beautiful, so thoughtful. As if you have the weight of the world on your shoulders."

  "Sometimes I feel like I do."

  "Truly?” He lifted her chin up to meet his gaze.

  Her eyes had grown watery and were beginning to shed tears. “Why do you have to be this way?” She wrenched her face away from him, before striking at his heart. “Sometimes I wish I never met you, Liam."

  "Why would you say such a thing?"

  "Why? Do you really want to know?"

  He nodded.

  "Because if I never loved you, I would not feel this kind of pain."

  He lay silently, taking in everything she said, every pain-filled word stabbing at him in his heart. He didn't let her go from his embrace, but held her steady, giving her the physical support he wanted to give her emotionally.

  And once the dam of emotions broke, the surge would not stop, Elsbeth's eyes filled with new tears, and she couldn't stop the words from coming out. “I might yet have some kind of life. Children at home, and now you have ruined everything."

  "Elsbeth, it will be okay."

  "No, it won't,” she hissed, tearing her hand from his as if it had burned her. “Don't you understand?"

  "I don't think I do."

  "I love you, damn it."

  "Is that so horrible? To love me?"

  "Yes, it is."

  "I don't understand."

  "And you never will. Life will always be simpler for you. I will never be whole again. I should be happy with what I can have, but now I never will be. Not now that I have met you.” She crossed her arms before cursing him.

  His silence irritated her. She couldn't keep quiet now. The man had asked for more than she could give. He should know why it was impossible. “Do you know what it is like to be cursed?"

  He shook his head.

  "My life is ruled by fear. That curse will steal away my happiness, and leave me to live an empty life."

  He listened, urging her on with his silence. His hand rested on hers, not letting her run.

  She wanted to stop, but her tongue wouldn't quit. “I live in fear that it will strike down the man I love. I can't live a ‘normal’ life. I won't be a wife. That fear stops me from living. From loving. But you! You would accept no less than love. Well, now look what you have done to me! I love you now. Curse me! And now that I cannot have you I want no other man. So now I want no lover, and will not even be a mother. I will not know the few joys I am allowed to have in my cursed life. That is what you stole from me when you made me love you.” Her bottom lip trembled.

  The tears blinded her, her whole body wracked in shudders. She barely noticed his strong arms enfolding her, or the way her body relaxed naturally into his arms, seeking his comfort. She was using his strength to console her and guide her. She needed this more than anything if only to help her believe he loved her, too. That he might want to share what she felt.

  "Why can't you be happy with what I want to offer? It's not much.” Her fists beat on his chest. “I want to be your lover. For one night I want to forget about the curse and everything else in my life.” Her bottom lip quivered and her breath was ragged from her sobbing. She barely sensed his lips on her face, kissing away the tears that kept coming.

  He lifted her in his arms effortlessly, as if she weighed nothing. He carried her back into the main hall and began ascending the stairs.

  "Where are you taking me?” She hiccupped, her head snuggling deeper into his neck.

  "To my chambers and my bed."

  Her heart raced as she heard his words. She knew what it meant.

  "I wish I didn't love you."

  "Why not?"

  "It's going to make it that much harder to leave you when I have to."

  "Sweetheart, I will never let you leave me now."

  Elsbeth closed her eyes against the fresh onslaught of tears. She knew she would do whatever she had to in order to protect him from the curse. Even if it meant leaving him.

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  Chapter 20

  Alyssa woke with a new energy and a vigorous spirit to greet the day. She was hungry and she wanted something to eat. She should have called a servant, but she would never get used to asking someone else to do what she could do for herself.

  Hunger made her search out the kitchen, on such a cold winter morning that few others stirred. A young female servant had just started the fires and the daily bread was just now rising.

  Alyssa left with a couple of apples, some goat cheese and some wine. Xanther would enjoy a snack, especially after she helped him to work up an appetite. She was looking forward to returning to that warm bed and waking him up. Seeing him greet her with that sexy grin on his face.

  She was so proud to call him her mate, her lover. He was hers and she loved him. She couldn't imagine living life without him. Perhaps she should tell him how she felt. She couldn't imagine returning to the life of an Elisaid woman now. She was happy. Xanther completed her. Nothing could be more perfect.

  Blackness stole her vision, surprising her. Someone was behind her, pulling a black hood over face and his arms were like bands of steel around her. He obviously expected a fight. Well, Alyssa was prepared for a fight.

  Her self-defense kicked in, and she assessed him, and her position in a nanosecond. She had no shoes, so stepping on his feet would mean nothing to him. Her hands went to her neck, fighting to control her breathing and willing her heart rate to return to normal. Above all she must not panic.

  "I got her!"

  "Yeah, but is it the right one?"

  She went limp as if she was not going to fight, concentrating on the colors in her mind, welcoming the blue and the red, strengthening them until they grew into a deep rich purple. They could cage her body, but not her mind.

  "It's the girl. The prince will come for her,” a male voice said.

  Damn it. Why did it sound so familiar?

  She reached out with her mind, wishing she did not have to ask for help, but if things went wrong, if there was a chance she did not prevail, someone must know.

  Xanther! Elsbeth! It's a
trap, she shouted in her mind, keeping the line open, so they could hear her thoughts.

  Alyssa locked one foot behind her captor's leg, and pushed with her weight, knowing full well it would likely bring her down, too.

  Why was she not more careful? The warrior in her should have known they were there, waiting for her. That this was a trap.

  She sent the man behind her down to the floor, but as expected she followed him to the ground. Hands were upon every limb, making it impossible to move. Her struggles turned futile with four hundred pounds of man on her. Who were her attackers?

  She searched their minds, hoping for something telling about her assailants. Something that could identify them. Something to tell her what they wanted. An impenetrable wall met her mind.

  Did that mean that they too were trained in magic? As she was or better?

  She felt them binding her legs and arms tight to her body. Stilling her movements. This was definitely a planned attack—the hood, the rope, they just happened to have what they needed.

  Someone knew her patterns; that Alyssa woke early and liked to make early visits to the kitchen in the morning. Then they planned to use her to get at the prince. Damn him for making his pursuit of her so obvious. The whole world knew of his claim on her. These two men planned to use it as a weakness. They wouldn't get away with this.

  Red brought fire, licking at her mind. Blue brought the winds. Together they made a firestorm. She could not release it until it was much more powerful. Powerful enough to destroy her captors here. So she built it, feeding it the colors of her mind to burn brighter and more vivid, waiting to release it, until the last minute. Until her mind could hold it back no more.

  The raw power released from her, crackling the air with electricity and a heat stronger than any natural fire she ever felt. The fire caught immediately on the things that could burn. The tapestries on the walls, the clothes on the men's backs, her own clothes, and the hood that blinded her.

  Both men yelped in surprise. The heat didn't kill them as it should, but it did singe them, it did burn their skin. The firestorm mostly just irritated them that a mere slip of a girl could get the best of them. It also gave away a little more than they wanted her to know. They were impervious to the heat because they too were born of fire, they too were of dragon blood.

  They may have blocked their minds, but that confirmed the men were not human. They were either dragons or some other magically strong creatures. Alyssa was willing to bet they were dragons.

  Alyssa growled a warning deep in her throat. She would bet her life that they were dragons. How could they assault her like this and want to use her like bait for Xanther? She couldn't let them do that, never to hurt him. Could they be the ones that also had tried to kill the king in the past? The ones who were plotting to overthrow the government?

  Alyssa? She could hear Xanther's voice cloud over with concern and fear for her safety. I am coming for you. What's going on?

  Xanther, you must not come after me. It's a trap. Don't come here. They are after you, not me.

  She struggled to free herself of the burning hood. She needed to see what was going on, and to regain her sight. She invited the fire to claim her, to burn her hood and her bonds, freeing her of her restraints.

  She could see again, through the tattered remains. She could see Drake McAllister. Damn that man! The other man was still behind her on the floor. A new sense of danger came over her. Not him again. That man was a thorn in her side. Did she have to kill him to be rid of him?

  Xanther!

  "Stop her! She's broadcasting it to the whole castle!"

  It's Drake. You must not—

  Suddenly a great weight came down, hitting her head with incredible force. A splitting pain thundered through her head, reverberating off her skull. Her vision shadowed and clouded into darkness. She fought the unconsciousness that followed, but her body would not let her win.

  * * * *

  She felt the pain in her head as a dull throb, warning her not to open her eyes. The memories flooded her mind, and she forced one eye open, wanting to know where she was. There was no guard she was happy to see. They must think escape was impossible. She lay on a pile of hay, surrounded by cold stone walls, no window and bars. She must be back in the dungeon of the castle.

  She tentatively moved her wrists, feeling that she had indeed been re-bound, this time with chains. They knew she would try to escape. But unless they knew her secrets, they wouldn't be able to keep her chained.

  Alyssa flexed out with her magic, lashing violently at the chains and the walls. A backlash hit her that she was unprepared for. So they did know something. This place was spelled. The room was well warded against dragon magic and elemental magic. The chains were, too.

  So the wards were strong against elemental magic. They must know of her dragon blood. But could it withstand earth magic? Ancient druid magic, barely contained raw power? Alyssa closed her eyes, reaching out to feel the delicate lines of magic. Seeing with her mind's eye how the ward was woven.

  Any spell could be broken if one knew how it was cast. Or if one used a hell of a lot more power and just overpowered the original spell. She began gathering the energy around her, pulling in every loose bit of magic she could find. This castle was built on a foundation of magic, with ancient power. It would be painful, but she couldn't let the fear of the pain stop her. She centered her spirit, preparing her mind and body for channeling the earth's energy to bring down the walls around her if she had to.

  * * * *

  Xanther couldn't ignore the summons, not with his mate's life on the line, not after hearing her pleas for his own safety to stay, confirming the danger to her life. He couldn't lose her now that he had found her. Immediately he called a lockdown on the castle. No one was leaving without him knowing. He called his guards to arms, and began a search. He warned his father of the danger.

  Xanther asked for help from the one man he was sure he could trust: Remington.

  After hours of fruitless searching, one of his soldiers approached him with a note. “What's this?” Xanther asked even as he began opening it.

  "It's from Drake, Your Grace. He says it is of the utmost importance that you respond quickly."

  Xanther's heart sank as he read the note:

  I have your mate, meet me in the library alone, or she dies.

  ~Drake

  If Drake laid on hand on her, Xanther swore he would rip him apart with his bare hands.

  * * * *

  When Xanther arrived in the library, it appeared that he was alone in the room. Then his angry eyes adjusted to the dark, and his heightened senses took in the sweet smell of a pipe. The man had the gall to sit in Xanther's chair, in his library. Fouling the room with the smell of a pipe.

  "Where is she?” His voice was menacing, a threatening undertone to the controlled voice.

  "She's safe. She'll stay that way as long as you don't do anything stupid. Did you come alone?"

  "Yes,” Xanther growled.

  "Smart boy."

  "What should stop me from killing you right here?” Xanther demanded.

  Drake paled considerably before responding. “She would be killed the moment you touch me."

  "What do you want from me?"

  "Your life. You are in the way of what I want. Your backward thinking is getting this island nowhere, and I want the throne. I also want to get the shipping business back. You don't deserve it. You don't understand what money can buy."

  "I don't trust you. Take me to her. Or there is no deal, Drake."

  "Here.” Drake threw a pair of handcuffs at Xanther. “Put these on and I will take you to see her. Then we can trade your life for hers."

  "After you take me to her."

  "Very well, then,” Drake said, removing his feet from the desk and putting the pipe down on the table. He rose to leave.

  Drake led him to the castle dungeon, passing many empty cells and chambers before stopping in front of a wooden door. Instin
ctively, Xanther knew this was the one. His heart hammered in his chest as Drake opened the door. There were still bars between him and Alyssa, but she was there. She was there in one piece, on the floor in the tattered and burned remains of her robe.

  "Alyssa, are you alright?” Xanther knelt down, reaching for her through the bars. She did not stir or respond, but her eyes blinked up at him. She was awake and not bleeding.

  Drake drew his dagger, and crept stealthily behind Xanther.

  "Look out!” Alyssa shouted the words as she released the energy she had been holding, aiming it at Drake. An amazing amount of power erupted from her, ripping her apart with excruciating pain. She screamed, sending him into the wall, but it burned her deeply, damaging nerve endings she didn't know she had, inside of her body. He was temporarily incapacitated, but as long as he lived he was a danger to them both. She was helpless on the other side of these bars.

  Xanther, in one fluid motion, turned and became a dragon, the same beautiful creature she once loved for his sexual energy, for his raw male handsome looks, was now quite sinister looking. Drake became a dragon as well, the air shimmering around him as if he was in a mirage.

  "Well, I'll be damned,” Alyssa said, still shocked that Drake was also a dragon. He was a deep green and brown dragon, not even half the size of Xanther, and they locked claws in battle in a space that had no room for such a fight.

  It ended quickly, painfully and in a bloody finale, with Drake's life blood flowing freely out of his neck, and the gaping hole that Xanther left after ripping open Drake's neck with his teeth.

  Alyssa had never witnessed such a horrible death, it was bloody and grisly. She had wanted Drake's death ever since she met the man. She had prepared for war and trained to fight, but the blood was new, and it was a bitter success.

  * * * *

  "I thought being strong meant never losing your self control, but I was wrong. I love you, Xanther. I have never loved a man as much as I love you now."

  "Then make it forever. Love me forever. Will you marry me and spend the rest of your life with me?"

  "Till the end of my days. Yes, I will marry you, Xanther, and I will love you until the day that I die."