Declan didn’t argue about joining them, so neither did Janessa. The scent of food stirred her appetite, and because Declan was there, she felt okay to eat. Not that her fears had subsided. She worried about what Patrick would do to Declan since he wanted to rule. If nothing else, she figured they could go down together, fighting.
Oh yeah, I can get the better of dragons. No problem.
Patrick smiled at the two of them. “You’re my guests. Please eat all you like. Enjoy.”
Janessa glared at him, and Patrick pretended she thanked him kindly.
“Has Declan been filling you in on our history, Janessa? We go back a long way.”
“Don’t pretend you’re old buddies,” she snapped. “I know you want to kill him so you can rule.”
“Not at all. I mean he has no use to me for fighting and protecting our people, mind you.” He paused to let the insult sink in. Janessa burned up inside because Patrick’s smile didn’t waver one bit. “His lineage is respected. He’s still one of us.”
“Perhaps if you set up a school,” the woman suggested, “he could teach ancient history.”
Declan surged to his feet, baring sharp pointed teeth. The skin around his eyes grew craggy and shimmery. “Don’t push me.”
“Or what?” Patrick said.
Declan took in the men standing all about the room, as well as those that had also taken a seat at the table. A muscle in his jaw tensed, and his eyes shot burning silver at Patrick as he took his time sitting down. “I don’t care what you do with me, but you will not hurt Janessa. Let her go.”
“Now why would I let your mate go, Declan?” Still the pleasant tone of voice. “She is your mate, isn’t she? I would think you would want her by your side forever.”
“She’s not my mate.”
Janessa clamped down on hurt feelings. “Why don’t you shut your mouth, Patrick?”
“Not your mate?” Patrick chuckled. “Ah, I get it. It’s because you and your family betrayed us all. You turned your back when the civil war broke out, refusing to fight and causing hundreds of us to die. That’s it, isn’t it?”
Declan’s fork fell to the table. He said nothing.
“The side who wanted to reveal ourselves and rule humans came after you. They killed your parents and your brother and wounded you. I guess you might as well be dead, huh? Since you can’t fly anymore?”
Chapter 15
Declan’s shirt ripped to shreds and fell to the floor as he transformed. He was on Patrick before Patrick had the chance to draw in a breath. After ramming a fist down the guy’s throat, Declan knocked him to the floor and climbed on top of him. He got in a few more punishing blows before Patrick’s men dragged him off. Declan paid for his attack by Patrick’s men piling on top of him and beating him senseless.
Janessa screamed. He couldn’t see her, but his senses filled with her fear and alarm. Knowing she was frightened and that they might harm her sent him into a rage. He shouldn’t have been able to get the men who were as heavily muscled as him off, but he sent them flying, crashing into walls and sliding across the tiled floor.
“Janessa!” he bellowed.
She flew into his arms and clung to him. He could hardly think clearly with her trembling. The change, which hadn’t been much more than bringing out his claws and wings, advanced more. He felt himself losing control, giving in to a baser instinct.
He saw red. Fire boiled in his belly and rose along his esophagus. All he could think about was burning the place to the ground and destroying his enemies.
“Declan.” Her tormented cry brought him to his senses.
He looked down at her and took in the widened eyes, the shoulders slumped and shaking. She was such a strong woman and to see her this way killed him. It was enough to jerk him back to reality and what he valued most. No matter what happened in the past, he wasn’t a violent man. He made threats, but they were only ever about protecting what was precious to him—namely Janessa.
She reached up to stroke his cheek. “I’m okay. Calm down. I’m alright, I promise you.”
She must have known he was losing it. He drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Little by little, his change receded, and he went back to his human form. As he looked around at Patrick’s men, he noticed they too had changed. All were poised for a fight. If Janessa hadn’t called his name, this mess would have escalated into something neither of them could handle.
Patrick stood up from the floor, wiping blood from his lip. He hadn’t changed at all. The suit he wore was still impeccable except for the speck of dust he flicked from a sleeve.
“Well,” Patrick said. “Since dinner is ruined, I guess we have no choice but to end it here. Take them.”
As they were shuffled toward the door, the men stared in wonder at Declan. He felt their shock and knew they condemned him as useless.
“Did you see his wings?” one man whispered to another. Of course they all knew he could hear them.
“You sense he’s not right anymore,” another man answered, “but to see it with your own eyes… Disgusting.”
Declan’s teeth sharpened in his mouth. He bit his tongue without meaning to and drew blood. They were taken outside and stuffed into a car. A few miles down the road, the driver pulled onto a dirt road. At the end of the dark road, they came to what looked like a dilapidated barn in the middle of a field of corn.
The moon rose high in the sky, shedding little light on the scene. Declan had no problem discerning everything, but he was sure Janessa could hardly see. She faltered as they walked from the car to the barn. He held her close to make sure she wouldn’t fall.
Once inside the barn, they were left alone, but men stood at various points all around the building. He both smelled and heard them out there. None stood in plain sight.
“Why did they bring us to this ugly place?” Janessa complained.
“To wait us out.”
“What are they expecting?”
He watched her fumble around in the dark, hands outstretched. An old trunk held a lantern on top, and a book of wooden matches lay beside it. Janessa found it just before he realized he should direct her to it or light the lantern himself. Weariness stole over him and weighted down every inch of his body and mind.
“They’re expecting me to vow my allegiance to Patrick to protect you.”
“We can pretend to and just call the police after we get out of here.”
“It won’t work like that.”
She struck a match, and soon the lantern illuminated the barn. “Big as that house was, they’re going to put us in this dusty place. I swear the roof’s about to cave.”
“I’ll take care of you.”
“And who will take care of you, Declan?” She was serious, bringing him amusement in this time of misery.
“I suppose we could ask them for supplies and you could make me a cheesesteak sub to replace tonight’s dinner.”
“You think you’re funny. I’m worth more to you than a hot meal!”
He drew her into his arms. “Of course.”
“I know. I’m just… Teasing, I guess, so I don’t go crazy.” She kissed his shoulder and stroked his bare back. No one had given him a new set of clothes. “Declan, they were so cruel to you. It breaks my heart that they would put you down and make fun of you because of what happened. You lost your whole family, and those idiots are complaining that you’re not what they want you to be. It burns me up. I wish I could fight them for you.”
He smiled. “Thanks, but don’t you dare try to go up against Patrick.”
“I said I wish I could. I’m not crazy. That fight back there was brutal. I was so scared. I’ve never seen you like that. You were bigger. How did you grow bigger?”
He shrugged. “Genetics.”
“Impressive.”
“Don’t be afraid of me, Janessa. I’ll never hurt you.”
“I’m not scared of you, buddy,” she teased. “Don’t fool yourself.”
“Good.”
>
He scanned the area around them and spotted a pile of thick material. Upon closer inspection, he discovered it was a tent. No poles or anchors though, but perhaps they could lay atop the tent to keep them dry and away from the dusty floor. He planned to cover as much of Janessa as possible to make sure she was warm enough.
“Let’s get some rest. I’m hoping a plan will come to mind by morning.”
She hesitated. “What about Roxie? Maybe if she knew you were in trouble, she could gather some men to help fight Patrick.”
He saw in Janessa’s expression how she hated even considering getting help from Roxie. Fresh shame washed over him that he’d allowed his relationship with Roxie to hurt Janessa.
What he had told Janessa was true. He didn’t love Roxie. He barely liked her. Still, she was one of his people. She could take care of herself. Of course, if she were in danger, he would help her. The fact that she’d accepted his loss of position and power had been the only other motivator for him to take her as a mate.
“I didn’t tell her where I was going when I left to find you. I hoped to get out of here before she discovers I’m gone and put herself in danger.”
“How will she know where to find you?” Janessa yawned. Her eyelids had grown heavy. He doubted she knew what she asked or heard the answer.
“By scent.”
“Bloodhound?” She yawned again and dropped down on the tent after he spread it out.
“We’re not canines. They aren’t the only ones who have a great sense of smell.”
He lay down facing her, and she touched his cheek. A thrill raced through his body. Not bothering to explain his reason, he scooped her closer until their lengths touched. She settled her face against his chest, sighing.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to insult you.” Her voice was muffled.
“I’m not.”
For a long while, she remained silent. He thought she had fallen asleep. After a while she raised her head. He studied her beautiful face in the dim lantern light. All of his being ached to be closer to her and to never part. Soon he would have to put her from him, maybe find a place for her to be safe. How? He’d told her he would never leave her, but if it meant she would be safe so be it.
His heart throbbed.
“Declan, will you bring out your wings?”
Her request surprised him. He’d always hidden his wings. What was the point in showing them off? Previously, the others hadn’t seen his wings. They sensed he was damaged and knew he had fallen a long way down from the former glory of his position.
“Why?”
“Please?”
He spotted tears in her eyes and knew she hurt for him. While he didn’t want pity, he felt pain radiating from her. If she could come to accept that this was his life, and know that he could deal with it, she might feel better.
He rolled over, facing away from her, and exercised his shoulder blades. Carefully, he drew them out and allowed them to grow. “It’s okay, Nessa. It doesn’t hurt much.”
A sob escaped her. She stroked a small curve beneath the arch of his injured wing. To his surprise, pleasure erupted in his body. No one had ever done that before, and he couldn’t have imagined it would feel that way. Perhaps it was because it was Janessa’s touch.
“It breaks my heart. I imagine you were so beautiful, Declan. I’m not saying you’re not beautiful now because boy oh boy you are.”
He snorted.
“You don’t deserve this or their ridicule. You were a child, and you acted in the way your parents raised you. There’s nothing wrong with hating to fight.”
He couldn’t respond.
“Don’t you have shifter doctors?”
“Not for us.”
“What do you mean?”
His face warmed. She might think he was sharing fairytales. “We’re healers. There’s no illness that’s ever fallen upon our people. Injuries are rare, and when they occur, we simply heal. It’s in our nature.”
“So why…?”
“I don’t know. A curse maybe.”
“Curse! You have curses?”
“No, it’s just what I told myself when I was still a boy, when I looked at the reflection of my wings and they didn’t heal. At first I hated myself and what I was. And then I accepted it.”
He continued to explain the ways and wonders of being a dragon shifter, and a strange warmth started in his wing. He assumed it was because she never stopped stroking it, soothing him with her words.
Then a twitch began, an odd sensation in the joints of his injured wing that made him jump and flinch. He rolled his shoulders and looked back at the wing, frowning. What the heck was wrong with it now? Was it getting worse, ready to fall off completely?
He sat up, heart pounding. God, he didn’t think he could take any more of this. It was bad enough that she saw him this way. As he explained what he should have been before the injury, he was glad he faced away from her. The last thing he could take at that moment was her pity. Still, he heard it in her gentle voice, the pain she felt on his behalf.
She rose when he did and wrapped her arms around him from behind. Her ear pressed to his bare back, she kissed the gnarled wing. “I love you so much, Declan. I wish with all my heart that we could be together forever.”
The warmth in his wing jumped a hundred degrees or a thousand. He bit off a cry and fell to one knee, almost taking her with him.
“What’s wrong?” She moved around in front of him, but he averted his eyes. He had to get space between them. He wouldn’t allow her to see him so weak.
Whirling around, he took two steps and wound up in the rafters. Before he could crack his head on the dilapidated barn ceiling, he put a hand out and caught one of the beams. A loft drew his attention, and he swung that way to land in a crouch.
“Declan!” she shouted from below. “What in the world? How did you…? Did you jump that high?”
He panted, running a hand over his moist face. She didn’t see because of so little light, but he felt it.
“Declan? Are you okay?” She shielded her eyes as if that would help her to see him.
“I’m okay. Give me a sec.”
“You don’t have to be so scared to show me when you’re upset. I won’t hold it against you. How many times have I cried on your shoulder?”
“I’m not crying.”
The last thing he felt like doing was crying. Well, not in misery. He looked over his shoulder at his wings and dared to flex both. A ripple of movement passed from the top arch to the tips, the weaker wing straggling a bit.
I’m not crazy. It’s stronger, and I flew!
Chapter 16
Janessa allowed the hot water to wash over her head and face. She had been in the shower for a good fifteen minutes already, and she was loath to come out. That dirty barn had been almost impossible to sleep in. Although since she woke up with Declan staring tenderly down into her face, sun shining over his shoulder through a gaping hole in the wall, she had to assume she gained some shuteye.
Thinking of Declan, she realized there was something different about him. After that freak out where he jumped clear to the ceiling, he dropped down later and insisted they try to rest. He wouldn’t talk to her about what happened, and she had no choice but to let it go.
In the morning, Patrick’s men returned to allow them back at the house, and she was given access to the bathroom thankfully. She wasn’t sure what would happen next, and she hadn’t come up with a plan to escape.
Someone banged on the bathroom door, and she jumped. “Coming,” she called.
These people had no sensitivity. What could she expect, given she was human? She left the shower, dried off, and donned the same dusty clothes she had worn the day before. Cringing afterward, she left the bathroom.
As the woman led her to the first floor of the house, the scent of bacon reached her, stirring her appetite. She walked into the dining room to find most of the same people present as the last meal.
“Janessa, go
od morning,” Patrick said in an upbeat tone. “Did you sleep well?”
“Of course not. I was held prisoner in a barn. I bet you slept like a baby.”
“I apologize for the treatment, but it was necessary.” He looked to Declan as she took her seat next to him. “And Declan, you look rested.”
Declan ignored Patrick as he prepared a plate for Janessa. She warmed at his thoughtfulness and quietly thanked him. Her longtime friend tucked into a plate of his own with three times the food he gave her.
“Today, we have several miles to travel,” Patrick explained. “My cousin can’t house us all forever. You’ll like the property I’ve meticulously acquired over the years, Declan. It’s perfect for rebuilding our town. And I’ve already contacted all the dragons scattered throughout the world I could find. In three days, we will have a ceremony where I will be crowned the new king. You will be beside me, endorsing my leadership.”
Janessa threw her fork down. “Why don’t you just handle all that and leave Declan out of it?”
“I can’t do that. There are some pockets that are stubborn. They want him in charge because of his blood. They’re small pockets—so don’t get your hopes up—but I want them squashed.”
“You’re a piece of work.” She wanted to smack the smile off his face, but there were too many of his people there to try it. Declan still hadn’t spoken, and she worried he might be hung up on last night’s weak moment.
When she looked at Declan, though, he didn’t seem to give a crap about anything Patrick said. It was as if Declan had a secret that he wasn’t ready to share, one that would blow the lid off this mess they were in. She hoped she wasn’t reading him wrong.
The breakfast party moved to the hall. Patrick’s people filled the space, coming and going. Janessa looked for her opportunity to slip through the cracks, but several of the men were selected to watch her and Declan. She bided her time.
Out at the back of the property with acres of land backed by a veritable forest, her mouth fell open as person after person shifted into a majestic dragon. She gaped at wings spanning several feet to several yards. They seemed to each decide if they wanted to shift into a gigantic creature or something no bigger than a human.
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