Dragon Reformed (Reclaimed Dragons Book 3)

by Terry Bolryder

  Dragon Reformed

  Reclaimed Dragons Book 3

  Terry Bolryder

  Copyright © 2020 by Terry Bolryder

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  Author’s Note

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Epilogue

  Sample of Found by Frost

  Also by Terry Bolryder

  Author’s Note

  This is book 3 in my Reclaimed dragons series.

  Each book can be read as a standalone, with a new couple and a happy ending for their story, so feel free to just read this book if you want.

  However, if you want to start at the beginning and meet the other characters who might show up, their books are here:

  Dallin: Dragon Released

  Ryder: Dragon Redeemed

  As always, no cheating, no other men/other women, and a happy ending that will leave you sighing and satisfied!

  Enjoy!

  1

  Landon clutched the letter in his hand that had led him to this moment.

  A swirling purple portal lay in front of him, and once he went through, he’d finally be face to face with the woman he’d been seeking for what felt like forever.

  Though it had only been months since she had freed him from the lab where he’d been tortured and imprisoned.

  A lab where she had been as well, though they’d never been there together.

  It had been love at first sight. And even though he’d only seen her in the most pitiful version of her true form, scarred, starved, and furious at being revealed, she’d been the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.

  So of course he was going to accept her invitation, no matter how absurd it was.

  He took a deep breath, crumpling the letter in his hand on accident, his heart pounding as he tried to stay calm.

  But the dragon inside him was roaring. The fae inside him aware of his duty. His love.

  The fact that she was his soul bond.

  He had no doubt that this wouldn’t be easy.

  After all, Vex was holed up with an assortment of bad elements, still apparently plotting revenge on the fae.

  Which only made it more important that he go to her side.

  He’d only been waiting for an invitation, and now, he had one.

  He took a step into the portal, silently apologizing to his friends if something went wrong and he couldn’t come back.

  Darkness swirled around him as he fell forward, rushing air tickling his face, and an odd, acrid smell in the air, like faint smoke, as he closed his eyes and just let his body travel through the portal.

  When he landed with a thump on hard, cobbled stone, he looked up to see he was in some kind of stone fortress.

  He was in a great hall, which while in poor condition, with cobwebs hanging in the high rafters, was fairly beautiful.

  Stained glass windows on all sides rose up, letting light shine through them.

  The room was filled with fine dust, disturbed by his hard landing, and the little specks sparkled in the light from the windows like bits of rainbow snow.

  “How was the trip, dragon?” A sardonic voice drew his attention to the front of the room where stone steps led up to a heavy wooden door with iron knockers shaped like dragon heads.

  “What is this place?” Landon brushed off his pants, trying to stay calm and not think about the fact that she was there. She’d invited him.

  “Abandoned chaos fortress,” she said. “In the Blur.”

  Landon’s jaw dropped. The Blur was a prison world between realms where fae who were tainted by chaos were sent. Which meant…

  “So your cohorts are all infected by chaos in one way or another?”

  Vex raised a purple-gray eyebrow, her sparkling purple eyes darker than before, her pixie-length purple hair framing her face and outlining her beautiful, striking features. “We can’t all be squeaky clean like you, dragon. Some of us have to get our hands dirty.”

  Landon frowned. He’d accepted her invite, but to be in the Blur? No wonder the portal had smelled acrid.

  He studied Vex, who was wearing a black tunic belted at the waist to show off curves above and below. Her long, shapely legs were encased in black leggings, and she wore classic fae shoes, which were soft and more like slippers.

  “I haven’t seen you in fae clothing,” he said, grinning.

  Her face immediately went red right over her high cheekbones, and she scowled at him as she turned away. “I didn’t invite you here for an opinion on my fashion, dragon.” She waved a hand. “Now come on. I’ll show you around.”

  Landon grinned as he followed her, loving the sparks that flew between them almost from the start.

  She might try to act distant, but he could tell he had an effect on her.

  And coming to work with her was his chance to show it.

  She pulled open the heavy doors easily, showcasing her fantastic strength, and then led him down a hallway to a door with a small window covered in bars.

  She peeked in. “Diffy, you up?”

  Landon felt the floor rumble as something approached the door, shaking the fortress with every footstep.

  Huge green and yellow eyes appeared at the window, and a fierce snarl turned to an ominous, rumbling growl right before the thing rammed his head against the window, startling Vex and making her jump back.

  Then she waved a hand, stepping back to the window. “Oh, silly. Always playing around.” Purple fire gathered at her fingertips, and she pressed it to the window, sending it through to the creature inside.

  A low, satisfied hum was heard, followed by the sound of laughing.

  “What was that?” Landon asked, looking aghast as he followed Vex down the hallway as she skipped lightly. “Diffy?”

  “Oh, a new pet,” she said. “His name is short for DFH3. You know, like the one your friend Ryder fought. They had another one in the same lab, and I thought, well, what a waste if they killed him.”

  Landon’s brows lowered. “But wasn’t he pure evil and a dangerous threat to everyone around?”

  She shrugged halfheartedly. “He’s not a threat to me, obviously, since my glamour can keep him comforted.”

  But Landon wasn’t so sure about that.

  “How did you calm him?”

  Vex grinned. “I just altered his reality slightly. That’s kind of my specialty.”

  “Glamour fae,” he said.

  She grinned at him over her shoulder. “Right.”

  “So what, right now he’s just frolicking in a field of flowers or something?”

  She stared at him. “No. A field of corpses, all fresh spoils from battle.” She shrugged one shoulder. “Okay, so he only wants to kill and destroy. That doesn’t mean we can’t use him for our purposes.”

  “Which are?”

  She paused for a second. “I’m not exactly sure at this moment. But we’ll discuss more after you meet the others.”

  They walk
ed down several halls until they came to another door. Vex opened it, gesturing inside. “The three bears.”

  Three sets of eyes looked up at her, narrowed. All three of them were playing a dice game but stood when she entered.

  “Vex, when’s the next mission?” The one in front cracked his knuckles, looking bloodthirsty. “You promised us kills.”

  She waved a hand. “Oh, shut up. You can always return to your part of the Blur if you want to.”

  The bear shifters sat down, the one in front frowning. “I prefer this to a cabin. It’s fine.”

  Vex nodded, then gestured to Landon. “This is our new cohort.”

  Landon stepped forward awkwardly, unsure he could like anyone from the Blur. But these bears didn’t reek of chaos. And they seemed harmless enough at the moment.

  The bears looked disinterested and turned back to their game.

  Just one bear sent him a glare as Vex shut the door, walking back into the hall again.

  “They don’t have locked doors?” Landon asked.

  “Why would they?” Vex put her hands in her tunic pocket and pulled out a bag of small candies, which she offered to him, then began to eat when he shook his head.

  They walked through another set of doors into a small open area, and Vex pointed to the door on the right. “That’s where Tyrus, my deputy, usually works, but he’s out on a mission right now.”

  “Doing what?” Landon asked.

  “That doesn’t concern you,” Vex retorted. “Tyrus is my second-in-command, and you’d do well to remember it.”

  Landon would be damned if he took orders from anyone here if he didn’t want to, but Vex didn’t have to know that yet.

  Let her think him easy, compliant. Let her underestimate him as everyone else had done.

  “Anyone else I should meet?”

  “Ah, yes.” She rubbed the back of her neck nervously. “Just one.”

  “My liege.” A high-pitched male voice echoed as a short man scuttled across the room toward her. “You have returned and brought our new cohort. You are truly magnanimous and powerful as usual.”

  Vex’s nose wrinkled. “And you need to stop being a disgusting suck-up.”

  The man, who had blond hair that was plastered to his forehead, gave her a greasy smile. “Whatever you say, oh great glamour fae. It is only an honor to serve you.”

  “That’s Toady,” she said. “Frog shifter.”

  “I didn’t know they existed,” Landon said.

  “The fae did some messed-up things in the labs.” Vex shrugged as she walked to a nearby door and swung it open. “Toady, get out of here. This is a private meeting, and I don’t want you nearby.”

  Toady bowed immediately. “It is my honor, my liege, as always, to obey your commands, and—”

  “Get!” Vex’s voice was raised as she glared at him, and the short man scuttled away. “I don’t know why I even let him join my cohorts. But I pulled him out of one of the labs, and he insists on following me.”

  Landon hoped she didn’t think of him that way.

  She walked into the room and over to a huge bowl of a chair with a purple cushion spread over it and sprawled on it. A desk was in the corner, slightly askew, made of a light-colored wood.

  If this was her office, it wasn’t what Landon expected.

  The walls were an eggshell white, soft and bright with the light from the stained-glass window at the back of the room. The floor was some kind of light wood like the desk was made of.

  There was a large refrigeration unit in one corner by her chair and shelves on the side of the room, newly installed, which appeared to hold a variety of snacks.

  It was a room he hadn’t expected, but since he knew the dungeon she’d once lived in, he understood.

  This place was bright and light and full of comforts.

  Not dark and dank and full of spikes.

  Vex waved a hand, and a chair just like hers appeared for him.

  It was awkward to get seated on but oddly comfortable as he sank back.

  “You can bring things out of nothing?”

  She shook her head. “I just brought it from another room through a transitory dimension.”

  He blinked. “What?”

  She waved a pale hand. “You don’t need to worry about it. When a fae survives what I did, they have very unique powers. If they make it through the torture. It’s why my cohorts follow me. My powers are pretty much unmatched.”

  As far as she knew, Landon thought sardonically.

  Still, he couldn’t help but feel excited just being in the room with her as she waved a hand to shut the door behind him and he settled into his chair.

  “So you want me to join your missions?” Landon asked.

  Her brows drew together in confusion. “What? No.”

  “But you asked me in the letter. You said my services were needed and since I didn’t have a mate, I should come.”

  She nodded, pursing full lips. “But I didn’t say anything about a mission. I said you could join our cause.” She folded her arms. “It would be a waste to send you to battle.”

  He felt deeply confused by this turn of events and straightened in his chair slightly. Had he misunderstood? Was this some kind of trap?

  “Calm yourself, dragon,” Vex said. “I’m not trying to trick you. Just listen to my offer and see if you want to accept.”

  Landon relaxed back for a moment, putting his hands behind his head. “All right, go ahead. If you don’t want me for missions, what do you want me for?”

  Vex blushed violently at that, making Landon feel totally off-kilter. Why the hell would she be blushing about making him an offer?

  “You keep showing up in my dreams,” she said almost nervously, if he could believe her capable of being so.

  “Really?” He feigned innocence because his powers were not to be discussed with anyone but his mate, and she hadn’t agreed to be that yet.

  “Yes.” She frowned, still violently red. “And I don’t know if you’re doing it on purpose or if it’s just an effect of your stupid friends constantly reminding me you want to see me.” Her purple eyes met his, swirling with something he couldn’t quite make out.

  Something like heat.

  “Why do you want to see me so badly?” she asked.

  Landon frowned. “I think you know why. I’ve thought you were beautiful from the moment we met when you broke me out of that dungeon.”

  “I do have a soft spot for dragons,” she said. “Well, if you’re going to be pining, you might as well be useful.” She kicked back, bending her legs to perch her feet on the edge of the bowl. “I mean, if we’re both up for it.”

  “For what?” Landon had no idea where this conversation was going or what she’d want if there was no mission.

  If anything, her face went even redder as she tried to compose her thoughts, avoiding his gaze. “I… have needs.”

  His eyes went wide. “What?”

  “You want me, right?” Her eyes met his, and for the first time, he noticed how long her lashes were. How delicate her features were. How— “Stop mooning and answer me. You can’t be that obsessed and not want to get close.”

  Landon swallowed. “I do want to get close.” To be honest, he wanted everything, but he had a feeling she wasn’t offering that.

  “I want to make a deal with you,” she said. “I’m not like those fae you deal with back in the human world. I’m not soft or loving or sweet.”

  He wanted to argue but could sense it was pointless, so he didn’t. Nevertheless, she’d helped almost everyone he knew in one way or another, though she’d complained about hating being good each time.

  Landon knew Vex had a good heart despite everything. She’d stopped midway through a revenge monologue to come unlock his cell.

  There had to be good in her.

  “Anyway,” she said, still trying to hide her nervousness. “What I wanted to talk to you about was a compromise. I can’t be a mate or a soul bond or anythi
ng else that soft and annoyingly squishy. But if you wanted, I could agree to something with different terms.”

  “Like what?”

  She frowned, then took a deep breath and steeled herself. “It appears I’m attracted to you against all odds and all common sense. So I’m open to an arrangement if you are.”

  “Arrangement?”

  “An affair. A tryst.” She sighed. “I’ve noticed annoying needs arising. Your appearance in my dreams only aggravated the situation. I’m attracted to you. You want me. I think we could make something work between us.”

  “Work?” He was beyond lost at the situation.

  She nodded. “You take care of my needs so I can focus on my duty, and you get a piece of the woman you want.”

  Landon thought for a moment, his heart racing like a dragon from his fae overlords. “I… You want to have sex with me?”

  He was met with a violent blush as Vex nodded, then stood with folded arms.

  “Take it or leave it, dragon.”

  2

  She’d done it. She’d really done it.

  She’d invited that stalker dragon to her fortress and propositioned him, and there was no way she was going back now.

  Even if he was looking at her like she was crazy, his face calm but his eyes showing utter confusion.

  Well, what had he wanted her for that he’d been stalking her so intently through his friends?

  Every time Vex ran into one, they reminded her that he was mooning over her, wishing to see her.

  Now he was here, as stupidly beautiful as he’d been in her dreams. Tempting her. Teasing her.

  From top to bottom, Vex had to admit he was perfection.

  Tall, like any dragon, but with the refined features and slightly slimmer build of a fae. Broad shoulders tapered to strong biceps, taut forearms, and large hands with long, graceful fingers.