Cameron paused, hands poised to remove his shirt. There was a sliver of skin visible at his waistband that made Gwen’s eyes lower. He felt a surge of joy as her eyes raked over him, but then she returned to the hesitation he heard in her voice.
“Am I what?”
She swallowed before her eyes rose to meet his. “Are you going to shift?”
He nodded. “It will make our return much quicker and easier than if we used a car. For one thing, a car cannot reach the mountain that my family is using for shelter. Eventually, we would have to fly there.”
“I knew this would happen, but I still can’t seem to make my knees stop shaking,” Gwen said as a queasy laugh escaped her.
Cameron stepped toward her, his hands at her hips while he looked down at her.
“I will not drop you if that is what worries you. I will ensure that you are safe the entire time for you are my first priority.”
“Right, weapon and all.” She looked away from him and he yearned to tell her the truth. But, she confessed something before he could speak. “It’s isn’t the flying that bothers me. If I had to, I’m sure that I could wrap my magic around myself enough to soften my fall. It… it’s your shape that bothers me. I’m ashamed of this, but I know your dragon form will terrify me.”
“I’m actually quite small for a red dragon. My brother called me a runt for most of our adolescent lives. He is the biggest of us all, so it was easy to seem like a runt in comparison to him, but even compared to our cousin or our leader, I am small. I hope that helps you.”
“You are not small,” Gwen muttered, thinking he could not hear her words.
“Is that so?” He couldn’t help the smirk of self-satisfaction that spread over his face while he pulled his shirt over his head.
He let go of the magic that was confining him to the small, human form. His dragon burst free from wherever it went when he was human. Scales unfolded into the shape of a dragon the size of a trailer, instead of a house. His body was awash with buttery yellow and gold that glimmered in the late afternoon sun.
He shook out his form and his beast surged forward. He lunged for control of the dragon form, but the beast shoved him to the back with a smug grin.
***
Gwen looked up at the most beautiful dragon she’d ever seen. He looked like sunshine and gold wrought into the shape of a lithe beast, tail snaking across the field like a snake. Molten gold eyes fell upon her. Fear should have surged at any moment, but she looked up at the dragon before her and felt a sense of peace and safety that confused her.
The beast lowered its head to the ground in a show of respect. She could see the hint of mirth in its gold eyes.
“Let’s get this over with,” Gwen grumbled in an effort to not look too closely at the feelings that were roiling inside of her. She stepped forward into the grasp of the dragon’s clawed hands.
His long talons carefully closed around her abdomen and thighs. Giant wings unfurled from his back and dwarfed the sunlight. They beat at the air until his dragon form lifted inexplicably from the ground. Should a monster of this size be able to fly? Or, was it magic that lifted them from the ground to soar over humanity?
The ground below her fell away. She gripped his talons as her stomach flipped. Flying wasn’t that bad, she tried to remind herself. It would be over before she knew it. The whisper of her spell was lost in the air, but the universe seemed to accept it as the See Me Not spell wrapped around them.
***
Her eyes shot open as she was engulfed by panic. It was followed by a wave of anxiety. Trees filled the world below. She’d fallen asleep. She hadn’t meant to, but it meant that she failed to hold the spell that kept them concealed. Her eyes surveyed the world around them, but there was no way of knowing where they were.
How long had she been asleep? Could they be in safe territory?
A rustle of the trees below caught her eye. The feeling of dread and anxiety rolled inside of her, an omen if she ever felt one.
A white dart shot through the air toward them. Gwen opened her mouth to scream, but the sound was swallowed by the air that rushed past her. The white dart slammed into the side of Cameron’s dragon form. They spun through the air, dropping quickly.
No, she thought. No. No. No.
Not white dragons.
Cameron’s wings flared out to catch the wind. Shakily, he leveled off. Gwen gripped his talons, anxiety pulsing through her. Her blonde tresses obscured her vision. She turned a dark glare toward the white dragon even as her heart thundered in her ears.
The white dragon banked. It swung around to dive again. At the last second, it drew its claws upward. Cameron tucked his wings in and surged downward. The ground was quickly approaching them, but the white dragon had other ideas. It followed in pursuit, tucking its wings tight to its body and stretching its long legs outward.
Cameron might have been nimble, but the white dragon had reach on its side. Its claws raked against Cameron’s wings from above. The sound of tearing flesh was drowned out by Cameron’s howls of pain. His speed faltered. Gwen saw red. Cameron’s form tilted, his wings trembling in pain as they spread to keep from crashing into the ground. His claws tightened around her, almost crushingly. She knew that he was afraid to drop her, even as she fought to suck in a full breath.
As soon as the white dragon entered her vision, she threw her hand out. The power that she left alone for decades came boiling through it. It lashed out through her outstretched hand and toward the white dragon that gloated a ways away from her.
There was nothing to show Gwen had done anything. No rainbow force streaked through the air. There was no sound. There was only the impact as it sent the white dragon rolling through the air. It cried out in pain as the magic moved through its now convulsing body. It plummeted toward the ground and crashed into the trees below.
She let out the breath that she’d kept within her. Her hands began to tremble, whether from adrenaline or the usage of the power she tried to ignore, Gwen didn’t know. All she could do was urge Cameron forward by tapping her hands urgently against his claws.
He got the message, his great wings beating the air even though he dripped a trail of blood through the air. She would have to explain later that she’d fallen asleep, that her See Me Not spell had faltered and it was her fault that he was hurt. Her first thought was that he’d be furious, but that wasn’t like the dragon she’d come to know. Cameron was more patient than that. She would have to patch him up if they were going to make it.
She settled her hands onto his claws, pouring the source of power that she trusted into him. In her mind’s eye, it gathered around his wounds and glowed a soft blue. Flesh knit itself back together, a process guided by his body and abetted by her magic. Meanwhile, her lips moved silently as she cast the See Me Not spell once more.
A fine layer of sweat broke out on her forehead as she held both spell and raw power at work. She hoped that they were close to where the red dragons hid because she could not do both for much longer. Her magic flowed from the claw marks on his wings and into his body, searching for more injuries. A rib was cracked from the initial impact. Her raw power wrapped around it and pushed it back into place to heal properly.
Cameron seemed to notice what she was doing, because his speed increased. The land below them flew past at a nauseating speed. Time seemed to pass slowly as she held both spells in place. Her eyes scanned the ground below them. Fear that another white dragon might break from the foliage made her heart beat an irregular beat. She didn’t know if twenty minutes or an hour had passed since the white dragon attacked. Ahead, a range of mountains rose from the earth like priestesses praying to the sky, she thought. Cameron didn’t angle himself to land on the ground below, but back flapped so that he could touch down on the mountain’s side.
She was sure that it was probably the only way to get into their secret home inside the mountain. As his claws sank into the cliffside, he lowered her onto the even ground and released
his grip on her. Exhaustion caused her knees to fold beneath her.
Cameron’s form disappeared, scales folding away and out of existence to leave only a man behind. He rushed to her side, panic and fear written across his face. She put a hand out while she caught her breath. Her limbs shook, but as her body pressed to the earth she asked for some of her magic to be returned. The earth saw the potential for magic in her and gladly gave up a bit of its power.
She could do that to replenish the power she used so often, the power that was green and peaceful. The dark power that swirled inside of her was another story altogether. Where it had come from, Gwen didn’t know. It could have been a gift from her non-existent father, or it could have grown inside of her, birthed by her own darkness.
She would have blamed her ex if she hadn’t known better. A white dragon had attacked them. Why did it have to be white dragons, she bemoaned silently. She spent a very long while trying to get as far from them as she could manage only to throw it all away in a single day. She had let herself be carried right into their fight.
Before her, Cameron’s knees dropped him to the earth. She looked up at his queasy face, but other than that he seemed in-tact. She was grateful for that, so happy that she’d been able to heal him. That relief brought up a new set of questions. Why did she trust this man so much? She should have known better than to freely trust any dragon, but here she was. She had let one drag her back to his home and was prepared to be his weapon.
“Are you… are you okay?” Cameron’s voice was a strained whisper.
As the green magic settled inside of her, she managed to nod. She felt a bit like herself once more.
“I wasn’t expecting an open attack,” Cameron confessed. “I should have known better. I should have taken to the forest floor and hiked until we met the mountain. You would have been safer that way.”
She was warmed by the concern he had for her, but she knew she had to tell him the truth. Yet, she couldn’t stomach the truth just then. There was no voice for it, so she turned to the other confession she still had yet to share. “I fell asleep.”
“What?” The confusion was clear on his face. He didn’t know how that had anything to do with the attack.
Her fingers dug into the earth. She was ashamed. It was her fault, too. It was her fault that he’d been hurt. His hand touched her arms. He pulled her into his embrace.
“I fell asleep and my See Me Not spell faded. That was how we were caught by the white dragon.” She didn’t tell him about her history with the white dragons. She didn’t tell him that was where her fear of dragons stemmed. She didn’t tell him that she could very well be useless to him and his family.
Worse, she could quickly become a liability if her ex learned she stood with them.
But, she had fought the white dragon in the sky. In that moment, Gwen hadn’t felt fear. She had tapped into the malicious power inside of her and thrown it at the white dragon to save their lives.
Cameron forgave her while he held her close. After a few moments, both of them were settled enough to pull themselves from each other’s arms. They turned toward the face of the mountain behind them. Gwen couldn’t see the entrance to the mountain home, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t there. Dragons had a touch of magic, too.
Cameron reached out and gripped her hand. “Are you ready?”
No, she wasn’t. Her death loomed on the horizon. She was sure of that now. She knew that the cards were warning her that she’d come across Malcom again. Now, she only hoped that the Ace of Pentacles spoke of a heaven, some place where she can finally be a rest.
Instead of voicing her fears, Gwen simply nodded. Cameron led her forward and the stone face of the mountain became immaterial as she stepped into it. A dark cavern hall, barely lit by the light that streamed in from behind them, greeted her.
***
The dark hall looked the same as when he had left it. Cameron didn’t know why he expected it to change. Part of him feared that the white dragons finally found their hiding place and smoked his family out. Instead of screams and war cries, only soft silence filled the mountain home.
He didn’t let go of Gwen’s hand as he led her down the winding tunnels. He knew that this had to be terrifying for her. Dragons seemed to trigger some long ago wound that hadn’t healed correctly. It made him ache for his mate. Every day would be a struggle toward healing if she would stay with him.
“Where are we going?” Gwen asked beside him.
“You promised to help us, right?”
In the dim light of the cavern, Cameron could see her flinch. “I did,” she said finally.
He didn’t like that response, but he couldn’t call her out on it. She was trying to hold it together. “Then I’m going to introduce you to our leader. Drystan can be a bit dry and hot headed, but he’s kept us together since the Occurrence. I hope, for your sake, that Maggie is here.”
“Who is Maggie?”
“She’s Drystan’s mate. They’ve been together for as long as either has existed, it feels like. She’s definitely a foil to him. Maggie is a strong and determined woman that was either born in the wrong generation, or was one of the women that stood for the change that made this generation better.”
“Mate,” Gwen said the word as though she were tasting it. “Do you have a mate? Or, did your leader send you because you were without a woman?”
Cameron struggled with the answer to her question. In truth, he did have a mate. She was his one and only. She was the beginning and end. But, she didn’t know that. To say that he did, in fact, have a mate would either imply that he was taken or reveal what he was hiding.
“Mates are hard to come by these days,” he said, instead. “Times have changed and it seems harder to find women extraordinary enough to become mated to a dragon.”
Gwen snorted. “I tried it once. Turns out witches cannot be dragon mates.”
The growl that rumbled through him came on too quickly for him to hold it down. The sound filled the hall around them. She turned surprised eyes toward him. The beast wriggled, trying to break free so that it could claim it’s mate. He was sure that Gwen watched the gray-green of his eyes melt into gold.
“Is that who made you terrified of dragons?” Cameron asked through his growl. The beast wanted to throw his body over her, to be the shield against anything that might hurt her. He didn’t know how to tell the beast that they could not protect her from the pain she felt inside.
Gwen yanked her hand from Cameron’s grip. He was about to say something when she wrapped her arms around herself, her eyes cast downward. His heart cracked. He turned to her, dropped to his knees on the cavern floor, and pulled her hands into his.
“You are the Witch of Caernarfon. Whatever foe you cannot take care of yourself, I will protect you from. I promise that I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe until my last breath.”
The witch had no words. She stared down at him, a mix of surprise and warmth on her face. She squeezed his hands once before pulling away.
“Don’t sacrifice your vows for someone that isn’t your mate,” she whispered.
“I’m not.” The words slipped from him before he could stop them.
Her whole body froze, her back to him. “Then you’re wrong.”
The beast felt spurned. It gripped control of his human body to reach out and spin the witch around. He pulled her tight to his body, his hands slipping down her back to feel all of her at once. She looked up at him, brows flat over her glaring eyes.
“Do you think to tell me that you don’t feel this bond between us?” You think to tell me that you can deny how you feel for me when I touch you?” The beast growled through him.
Her breath seemed caught in her throat as her lips parted. Recognition danced lightly in her eyes, like she could see the truth, but wanted to fight it with everything she had.
“You might not have been the mate of the dragon before me, but you are mine and I lay claim to you until my dying breath.” T
he beast captured her mouth for a greedy kiss. His lips slid from hers and traveled to her neck, where his teeth bit down into the tight skin of her neck.
She cried out, hands rising to grip his elbows.
Cameron didn’t know what was wrong with him. He usually had much better control. The beast pulled back, but Cameron stayed where the beast left him. She would likely be terrified of him now. He ruined his chances at earning her love.
“You’re wrong, Dragon Man,” she whispered.
“I’m going to take you to meet Drystan, but after that, take the time you need to sort through everything. Come back to me when… if you want to.”
He suddenly let go of her and turned away. Gwen was left standing where she was as he continued to lead them into the heart of the mountain.
Chapter Eleven
Gwen didn’t know what to believe. His actions, the feelings inside of her. They both said one thing while her mind told her another. Her mind said that he was lying to her again. He would lie to keep her allegiance after her display of power.
But, her heart whispered something else to her. It was her heart that made her follow him down the hall, one hand over the place where he’d bitten her. The feeling of his teeth had sent a spike of pleasure down to her core and if he hadn’t held her, she would have let her knees drop her then and there.
Eventually, the cavern hall led into an open room, one big enough to hold a regal ball. Pale lights burned on the walls, flames held inside of beautifully wrought braziers. In the very center of the room was a long table. Ornate chairs, indicating the time when the home inside the mountain was crafted and furnished, sat around the table.
Maps and reports were spread out before a man that sat with legs askew at the head of the table. His chin was in his hand, elbow resting on the arm of the chair. He didn’t look up when she or Cameron entered, but she could see from the shift in his body that he knew they were there.
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