“I think Mema Angie’s gonna get her wish,” she managed to say as she staggered until she leaned against the tree. Sure as heck the carving of the Gungnir glowed the entire length of its trunk before it faded.
This go around, it was different. She wasn’t being yanked back in time, but something or someone was definitely summoning her.
Bjorn.
The feeling was so strong, there would be no denying it. There would be no staying here to keep everyone safe. She had to get to him, no matter what.
Her pained eyes met Megan’s again, and she whispered, “I’ve got to go. He needs me.”
Megan nodded and offered a wobbly smile before she embraced Sam. “Then go and take good care of my boy, okay? He deserves someone like you.”
“I’ll be back. You know I will. And don’t be surprised if you see him too.” Sam hugged her tight and fought back tears. “Take care of yourself, okay?” She met her eyes. “Lots of fluids and rest, take all your meds and not too much dancing with Mema Angie. She’ll wear you out.”
Megan nodded and wiped away a tear. “You got it.”
“Speaking of…” Sam glanced around, her hand still on the tat as if that helped in the least. “Where’d Mema go?”
“I suspect inside heading off multiple battles,” she said with wry humor.
“Yeah, no kidding.”
Sam called out to Tait, “We have to go.”
She knew she should go say goodbye to Lauren and the rest of her family, but she just couldn’t do it. Not right now. Besides, neither sister liked her all that much at the moment.
Her eyes returned to Megan. “Please tell Emily that I’ll be back. That work needed me.” She frowned and glanced at the ground for a pretty rock or maybe a shell. “I just wish I had something to give her.”
Sam always got Emily a present. That’s one of the reasons she was the favorite auntie.
“Give Emily this for Sam, yes?” Sven murmured as he reached into his pocket then handed Megan a little carving of a wolf. It looked as though he had chiseled it from driftwood. “To lend her strength during difficult times.”
“Sven,” Megan whispered. “This is beautiful.”
Sven nodded thanks, his eyes lingering on Megan’s face before he quickly pulled out another carving and handed it to her. “For you…Grandmother. So that you might remember the strength that lies within and win your battle.”
Megan was speechless as she stared at the figurine. It was a woman standing proudly with her sword thrust in the air. His craftsmanship was so stunning and done in such detail, there was no doubting who it was.
Megan.
Strong, healthy, with a wild mass of curls and a fierce look of determination on her face.
“Thank you, Grandson,” she whispered, not bothering to wipe away the tears that rolled down her cheeks. “This is the most thoughtful gift anyone has ever given me.”
Sven nodded again, clearly unsure how to respond. Megan took care of that when she embraced him and murmured, “Your grandfather and I love and miss you very much, Sven. Come home when you’re ready.”
“I’m sorry,” Sam gasped as the pain grew far sharper. “I have to go.”
Sven drew a dagger and took up guard in front of her. Evidently, he was preparing for the worst wherever they ended up.
Tait was heading their way, his mood still way off. The closer he got, the more troubled it grew. By the time he reached them, she wasn’t surprised in the least to hear him say, “You have too much kin here now. I will stay and protect them.”
“Your family needs you, Tait,” Megan said softly.
“As do Sam’s and Cybil’s,” he reiterated. “As do you, Aunt.”
Megan was going to say something but stopped, eying her nephew with speculation. Some might say Tait was staying because there were two female dragons here but, believe it or not, Sam didn’t think that was the case. Whatever was going on between him and Lauren had his personality all askew.
Be that as it may, Sam couldn’t stick around much longer. Her tattoo hurt too much.
“Do what you need to do, brown eyes.” She offered him an appreciative nod rather than a hug because she didn’t dare leave the support of the tree. “Thanks for taking care of everyone.”
Tait’s eyes softened on her, and for a second, he seemed like his old self. A moment later his expression clouded as Lauren’s irate words floated outside.
“I can’t…” Sam tried to pull Sven close but staggered into him instead as the tattoo seared and the Yggdrasill in Scandinavia filled her mind. She gripped the Gungnir dagger. “I can’t wait any longer…”
Bright light flashed, everything fell away then the air thinned before a loud roar filled her inner ear. At least she thought that’s what it was. Soon enough, she realized she was dead wrong. The roar had come from Bjorn.
Three things struck her immediately as she took in her daunting surroundings.
The first, they were nowhere near the Yggdrasill.
Second, Bjorn no longer had a beard.
Third? And this one made her heart slam into her throat.
He was surrounded by a large band of warriors. Ropes were wrapped around his wrists and connected to two horses. Worse than that? His face twisted in pain as the men taunted the horses to pull in opposite directions.
Chapter Fifteen
BJORN BIT BACK emotion as his eyes locked with Samantha’s. While he fully expected to feel relief when she arrived, he was thrown by how strongly both he and his dragon responded to laying eyes on her again.
But then, everything had changed since the last time he saw her.
Now he had a plan.
And Agnar, who had survived Samantha’s fire with only a few burns, was playing right into it. Bjorn had told him about the Gungnir. How powerful it could make him. It was that information plus using his inner dragon to call Samantha here that Bjorn offered as proof of loyalty. Now it was a matter of things going as planned and everything falling into place.
“Ah, Son, it is so good to see you,” Agnar said to Sven. The rival king stood near Bjorn with his hands behind his back. “You did well before.” His eyes slid to Samantha with disgust. “I was sorry to see you stolen by…that.”
Sven nodded, stepped away from Samantha and joined Agnar. “It is good to be back, Father.”
Bjorn kept his face stoic though the words stung. He knew his son played a game. That he had a plan. But that didn’t make it any easier.
Agnar eyed Sven for a long moment before turning his attention to Samantha and Tait. His cousin looked truly baffled when he arrived but now had a hand on his dagger and sharp eyes on his enemies.
“Bjorn was foolish enough to return to my kingdom and seek forgiveness for all he did,” Agnar said to Tait. “For all the suffering he put my kingdom through when his father went to war with us. Now he seeks peace amongst my people.” His eyes narrowed. “What about you, dragon? Do you agree with Bjorn? Do you wish forgiveness and mercy on behalf of your kin? If so, what will you do for it?”
When their eyes met, Bjorn spoke into Tait’s mind. “Do not shift yet. More men come because they know you’re here. Many of Agnar’s warriors.”
“How many?”
“Enough to dwindle his numbers substantially.”
“Is that how you show forgiveness then?” Tait responded aloud to the enemy king as he looked Bjorn up and down, clenched his jaw and turned dangerous eyes Agnar’s way. “Is this what I can expect from your mercy?”
“That depends.” Agnar’s eyes dropped to Samantha’s blade. “On her cooperation.”
“What do you want?” Samantha said. Her voice remained flat, and her eyes never left Bjorn’s as she spoke into his mind. “I missed you.”
Bjorn didn’t answer because he refused to break his concentration. But he knew she saw the truth in his eyes. How much he had missed her too.
“I want you to give me the blade,” Agnar said to Samantha, his tone ominous. “Then I want you to giv
e yourself to my men…those who are willing to bed a monster that is.”
Every breath Bjorn took was a glorious countdown to dismembering Agnar beyond recognition. That’s what kept him going. That’s what kept him calm.
“Right, because every last one of your men isn’t a monster too, Agnar,” Samantha said with disgust, ignoring the lusty looks they gave her. It didn’t matter in the least she had been a dragon before and could be one again. They only saw a beautiful woman they could conquer with their cocks.
Samantha’s eyes stayed with Agnar as she shot him one of those sultry looks she was so good at and taunted, “I’ll give it to you, but you’ve got to come get it.”
“I do not think so. I think you will come to me, hand over the blade then show me the tattoo on your hip.” Agnar’s brows lifted before he flicked his wrists and the horses shifted, pulling Bjorn’s arms so tightly that they would soon pop out of their sockets. His eyes never left hers. He didn’t wince in pain. Hel no. He refused to give the bastard the satisfaction.
What he did not count on, however, was Samantha feeling his pain as well. A shudder raked her and tears came to her eyes. Even so, she kept her head held high. She didn’t test Agnar any further but instead headed his way. A triumphant light entered the king’s eyes as she showed him the tattoo and handed over the blade.
Then, as Bjorn fully expected, Agnar walked around Samantha until he stood behind her. He groped her breast and whispered in her ear, “Ready to become mine, woman?”
“Be a good little dragon and become his,” Bjorn whispered into her mind. “Let him think he controls you, yes?”
Sam’s eyes held his, and he heard the smile in her response. “Are you being a bad boy again, Bjorn?”
“Very,” he responded.
Samantha clenched her jaw defiantly when Agnar yanked her head back, met her eyes and pressed the blunt edge of the Gungnir dagger against her tattoo. “You belong to me now. You are under my control. Do you understand?”
Bjorn bit back a smile when her eyes glazed over, and she sounded convincingly compliant. “I understand.”
“Good,” Agnar murmured. He nipped her neck then shoved her forward until she stumbled into Bjorn. “It’s nice to finally control the beast.”
Samantha stilled with her hand against his chest as the nervous horses shifted and his arms were pulled tighter. Her pupils flared at his pain and she barely contained her rage, her need to free him. “What are you up to?” she said. “Because whatever it is, it better happen soon, or all bets are off.”
Suddenly, Agnar yanked her hair back again and pressed a horse whip into her hand. “Now take care of Bjorn once and for all, woman.”
“Just a few more moments,” Bjorn said. “They’re almost here.”
Samantha’s heart thundered, and her hand shook slightly as she looked at the whip. All it took was one horse bolting to rip off an arm. And if she didn’t do it soon, Agnar would know he was being deceived.
“Might I have the honor, Father?” Sven said to Agnar, his eyes full of hatred as he looked at Bjorn. “Might I be the one to end his miserable life?”
Agnar considered Sven with a mixture of distrust and warped pride. “Yes, but only if you are willing to swear your allegiance to me not only by killing Bjorn…” He made a motion and Katla, of all people, was dragged out of the woods. “But your mother as well.”
“I will kill Bjorn without hesitation.” Sven’s eyes narrowed on Katla. “But what purpose does it serve you to have my mother gone?”
“Freedom,” Agnar said. “And the assurance that you are completely under my control and no others.”
“Do as he asks, Son.” Katla’s eyes met Sven’s as she was driven to her knees. “To hold such an esteemed position in this kingdom is a great honor.”
Though Bjorn didn’t need to enlighten Sven to his plan because he was inside his mind, he murmured, “You would do any kingdom a great honor by being theirs, Son.”
“Yet I did this clan no honor by being compliant,” he bit back. “Nor did I do honor to the Sigdir’s by staying away.”
Odin above, Sven’s words were more than he expected. Did he want to return home at last?
Sven nodded his agreement to Katla’s words. “If you think it is the right thing to do. If you are willing to die at my hands.”
“I am,” she gasped as a man twisted his hand into her hair and exposed her neck. “I will do anything to see you succeed, Son.”
Sven stood up straighter and nodded again, but Bjorn didn’t miss his heavy swallow. This was testing the boy’s limits. It was testing everyone. Bjorn could see it as his eyes went from Samantha to Tait to Katla before returning to Sven.
His son took the whip from Samantha and pulled out a dagger. He gripped the handle of the whip and eyed his father before he clenched the hilt of the dagger and turned eyes to his mother. If this had to happen, if he had no choice, he would take them out simultaneously.
“Do it then,” Agnar ground out. “Kill them.”
“Where are they, Bjorn?” Sven said into his mind at the same time as Tait and Samantha.
He closed his eyes and prayed to Odin they arrived soon.
That this happened as planned.
And thank the All-Father for listening, because dozens upon dozens of Agnar’s men finally arrived. Those devoted to him. Those willing to die for him. A small smile came to Bjorn’s lips as his eyes locked with Samantha’s, then Tait’s and at last, Sven’s.
It was time.
They would wipe out Agnar and his army in one fell swoop.
Tait was the first to move as he whipped his dagger and sliced one of the ropes holding Bjorn’s wrist at the same time Sven whipped a knife and cut the other. Within moments, a mighty roar filled the air, and a golden dragon crashed down.
Heidrek.
Relieved to see his closest friend, his king, Bjorn roared a welcome as he embraced his dragon. Moments later, Tait did the same. Then nobody stood a chance. Some men screamed in fear and tried to flee while others were foolish enough to try and fight.
Fire rained and bodies burned.
Yet Bjorn had his eyes on one man.
Agnar.
When a scream rent the air, he realized the mistake he made when planning this. The overconfidence he had felt when they embraced their dragons. Because Agnar thought fast and grabbed not Samantha but Katla before he raced away from the battle. Naturally, his son was astride a horse and in pursuit.
Bjorn couldn’t fly in such a heavily wooded area so ran after him, his dragon navigating the trees and shrubbery as easily as his human form. The cries of pain from the battle faded as he raced after them. By the time he caught up, Agnar’s horse had come to a skidding halt as a glittering white dragon leapt out in front of him and narrowed its bright hazel eyes.
A sharp thrill raced through Bjorn at the sight of Samantha.
As his dragon saw her dragon for the very first time.
Agnar brought a blade to Katla’s neck as Sven raced up behind him. He positioned his nervous horse between Samantha and Sven, then held the blade tighter, his eyes on Samantha. “Kill the boy, beast. Then get me out of here.”
The fool still thought she was under his control.
Samantha roared before she lowered her head sharply, came face to face with Agnar, issued a defiant grin and shook her head no. His eyes widened in fear and his hand trembled as he held the blade tighter against Katla’s neck.
Bjorn was about to join her and add to the man’s fear, but Samantha stopped him. “No, stay back, Bjorn. I know what I’m doing.”
“But we can end this quickly,” he started before she growled into his mind one word.
“No.”
“Did you hear me, beast?” Agnar held up the Gungnir blade and aimed it at her. “You will obey me.”
Samantha’s dragon whipped its face back as though it had been struck before she stilled, whimpered and lowered her head.
“That’s good,” Agnar murmure
d as he yanked Katla off the horse. “That’s right.”
Bjorn’s heart raced as he watched everything unfold. He didn’t want Agnar near any of them. Not his people. His family. Those who mattered most.
“Stay back, Bjorn,” Samantha warned. “Let me do this.”
What was she doing, though?
Soon enough he learned as everything unfolded quickly.
Agnar shoved Katla toward Samantha as he backed away. His former wife didn’t fall to her knees but glared up with defiance and clenched her fists at the dragon. “Is this what you really want? To end me?”
Samantha bared her teeth and nodded as she stomped closer.
Sven swung off his horse and shook his head. “No, stop, do not do this Sam.”
When Samantha pounded a talon down in his direction, he staggered back, baffled. Then she wrapped a claw around Katla and dragged her closer as her dragon eyes narrowed.
His son shook with rage as he watched them…as he stood helpless.
That was the moment Bjorn realized exactly what Samantha was doing.
She leaned down and sniffed Katla before she bared her teeth again and released a mighty roar.
“No!” Sven roared in response and leapt forward.
Bjorn watched with amazement and pride as colors swirled and warped before his son shifted for the first time. Before Sven finally embraced his dragon. Still years away from reaching his full size, he was larger than Samantha but smaller than Bjorn. He looked a lot like his grandfather with his black coloring and blue eyes.
Samantha had drawn out his dragon.
And she had done it on purpose.
He was so caught up in being impressed by both of them that it took a moment to realize she had released Katla because his son was roaring toward her. To Sven’s dragon mind, Samantha had threatened his mother and he wanted blood.
“No,” Bjorn roared into their minds and flew forward as Sven attacked Samantha hard and pinned her down.
“Don’t worry about me. Sven will figure things out soon,” Samantha roared back. “Go save Katla and make this right, Bjorn. You’ve got a second chance. Take it.”
Vengeance of a Viking (The MacLomain Series: Viking Ancestors' Kin Book 2) Page 22
