“Penny for your thought?”
Abby craned her neck to find Ty walking onto the balcony with a heavy shawl for her. He draped it over her arms as she snuggled into it relieved for the distraction from her thoughts.
“How you holding up?” she asked bringing her eyes to Ty’s. His swollen lips and bruised face was a stark reminder of what just happened and she flinched trying to push the thoughts back into the darkest recesses of her mind.
“I’ve been better. The real question is how are you?”
Abby snorted, “Been better.”
“What’s on your mind?” Ty curled his arms around her waist and held her tight. She moaned as he squeezed her pieces together so she wouldn’t fall apart.
“I just don’t understand, why he came for me. Why now?”
“Because you have been made whole again. With Luc’s heart out of you, he was able to sense you just like Luc had done when he discovered you’d come back. Each of us leaves a distinct trail so that others know where our territory starts and where it ends.”
“Kind of like a dog marking a tree?” Abby squinted her eyebrows together as she glanced at him. Ty’s chuckle rumbled through the shawl and into Abby.
“Something like that. He thought you were dead and so he gave up the search. But I guess when I went to steal your heart, it tipped him off that you might still be alive, and he wanted to see for himself.”
“Ty, I know we have had issues in the past. But he said you went to him and begged him to kill Donovan. Is that true?” Abby twisted around in Ty’s arms to face him. He cocked his head to the side and dropped his gaze.
“Donovan was going to kill you. I had to do something. Even after your mother swore that the threat had been taken out, he didn’t believe it.”
“So that’s a yes.” Abby continued to stare at Ty hoping he would give her the answer she held in her heart.
“Yes. I went to Nathanael. But back then he wasn’t so…” Ty’s voice trailed off as he tried to describe Nathanael.
“Mean?”
“That’s putting it nicely, but yes.”
“So what happens to you now that he is gone?”
“Nothing. My debt to him was paid, he said so himself before you ended him.”
Ty glared at Abby for a moment and let a smile slip through his tight lips.
“You know, you owe me an apology,” he said.
“Do I now?”
“You ran away, didn’t tell either of us where you were going. Do you have any idea what went through my mind?” Abby blushed and looked down at the buttons on Ty’s shirt. She reached up and started picking at the thread between the holes and shrugged.
“I didn’t think you would let me go.”
“Not alone anyway. Look,” Ty lifted his hand and tucked it under Abby’s chin. Slowly he tilted her head back forcing her to look him in the eyes. “I’m not going to keep you prisoner. If you want to go, go. But at least say goodbye okay? That way I know you are leaving on your own free will.”
“So that little charmed bracelet was just a gift of harsh love?”
Ty flinched and squinted his eyes as a flash of recognition struck his eyes.
“Maybe. And that’s another thing, how did you-”
“Get it off?” Abby finished his sentence. Ty nodded as the smile grew across his lips.
“You practically gave me the key with your journal.”
“You were young and out of control. There wasn’t a day that didn’t go by where I had to put out one fire or another that you started. So, I went to someone for help and they gave me that bracelet.”
Abby smiled as she stared up at him. “I read the story, but I do have one question.”
“Shoot.”
“Who did you get it from?”
“It doesn’t matter. They are no longer around. Why?”
“Just curious,” Abby said dropping her eyes once again to the buttons on Ty’s shirt. “It seemed like it was made just for me though.”
“It was, and it still holds its value even after all these years.” Ty glanced down to Abby’s wrist and frowned.
“Where is it?” Ty asked reaching for Abby’s wrist.
“Probably still by the gate where I dropped it when I shifted.”
“You really are turning out to be one of the most remarkable creatures I have ever met.” Abby’s face burned with embarrassment.
“Don’t say that. I’m not special.”
“Yes you are,” Ty said lifting her face up once more. “To me, you are everything.” Ty leaned his head down and brushed his lips to hers.
“Am I interrupting something?”
Abby pulled away from Ty and glanced around Ty’s shoulder to find Luc walking towards them. Her heart sank into her stomach as the butterflies took over.
“No,” Abby said as Ty said, “Yes.”
Abby shook her head and slapped Ty on the shoulder.
“I was just wanting to know what you wanted for dinner.” Luc moved carefully around Ty and pecked Abby briefly on the cheek.
“Nothing for me, I was just headed out,” Ty said glancing down to Abby. Her eyebrows scrunched together, and she held him tighter.
“Where are you going?” she asked as Ty hugged her tightly before releasing her to his brother’s arms.
“Just a few things I need to tend to,” Ty said pecking Abby on the forehead and stepped back allowing Luc to step in and take his place.
“Will you be gone long? Or maybe you might want some company?” Abby questioned hoping that he would stay with her.
“No, you stay here with Luc. I’m sure you two will find something to do while I’m gone. Besides, it’s a short trip and it won’t take long.”
Ty blew Abby a kiss and climbed up onto the railing of the balcony. Abby’s heart fluttered with fright as Ty slipped off the edge. She gasped and raced to the railing only to be pushed back by a gust of air. Her eyes widened to find Ty soaring up into the night sky and disappearing.
“Show off,” Luc grumbled as he stepped closer to Abby. She turned to him and flashed a brilliant smile to him.
“I don’t think I will ever get used to that.”
“What’s that? Him leaving or our skill set?”
“Both,” Abby admitted walking over to Luc as he opened his arms up to her again.
“Does this mean that you are going to stay awhile?” Luc whispered in her ear as he held her closer.
“You would like that wouldn’t you?”
“You know where I stand on that issue.”
“And say I do stay, will I have my own room or do I have to share?” Luc pulled her away from him and frowned.
“You don’t want to sleep with me?” he asked with pain in his eyes and voice.
“Oh, I want to sleep with you,” Abby said crushing her lips to his. “But a girl’s got to have her own space too you know.”
“Well, then, I think that can be arranged.” Luc chuckled as Abby pushed herself onto her tiptoes and nibbled on Luc’s neck.
“Does this mean we can finally have our happy ever after?” she asked pulling away from him. Luc shook his head as he flashed her favorite crooked smile.
“If you call living with my brother a happy ever after.” Abby pulled back her hand and sent it crashing across Luc’s arm.
“Haven’t you figured it out by now? I’d do anything for you. I love you.”
“I know and I love you too.” Luc ran his fingers through her hair as he held her gaze.
“I feel like together, we could conquer the world,” Abby said crushing her lips to his.
END
If you love supernatural alpha heroes, badass chicks, and lots of romance. , you might like Rizer Series.
Saved by the Dragon Queen
The Fate of the Dragons Series
By:
Amelia Wilson
Table of Contents:
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Epilogue
Prologue
Laughter and merriment erupted from the banquet hall as Ty pushed through the large wooden doors. For a split second, he thought about closing them again and leaving before he could be announced, but he had a duty to the mistress of this house. If he hadn’t been bound to her husband, he wouldn’t have even set foot inside the great halls. But he had a debt to pay, and he would do anything to keep Abby as far from this place as possible.
“Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in,” the man beside the door whispered catching Ty’s attention immediately. The man stood beside him, stroking his beard as he assessed Ty’s body language. Ty shook his head briefly hoping he would not announce him, but as the man opened his mouth, people quickly took notice and glared at Ty as he stood beside the announcer blasting his voice to the farthest corner of the room. Growls and hisses followed along with low murmurs as the crowd glared at him.
Ty sucked in a deep breath as his stomach twisted into knots. He stepped cautiously into the banquet hall, scanning the others in the room. With every step he took, the tension grew. He wondered how fast he could shift to escape if the others of his kind turned on him.
He moved carefully through the lingering bystanders until finally, they parted, allowing him space to head towards the stage. While he had seen the throne of glass may times, he wasn’t particularly pleased to see it again. The last time he dropped to his knees before it, his life ended up in another’s hand, and he would be damned to let that happen again.
As he drifted down the isle, faces on each side contorted and shifted ready to pounce on him the moment the mistress gave word. There were only a handful times in his long existences he felt the pressure from others of his kind. It was clear by their gaze the word had spread to them, and they were looking for vengeance.
“Be still,” the voice commanded, settling the restless crowd. Ty glanced over the crowd to find the mistress rising from her throne with a smile etched across her face.
“Come now, what news from the West?” she said gleefully with open arms. Ty swallowed hard refusing to look her in the eyes. He stepped carefully closer before stopping at the bottom of the stairs with his eyes locked on the cracks in the stone flooring.
“Was my suspicion correct about the girl?” Ty felt a chill race down his shoulder as the Mistress brushed her fingers over the stubble on his chin. Ty kept his head down and nodded.
“Yes, mistress.”
“And what of my husband?”
“It has been done. The girl killed him as you wanted.”
The great hall erupted in cheers at the news. Ty’s eyes lingered on the woman’s shadow drifting down the stairs and cloaking him as his heart raced faster.
“Everything has been done as per our agreement Mistress,” Ty said holding his position in a low bow. “Please, release me from my bondage to you and this house.”
“Oh, Ty, is that really what you want?” Her voice was laced with her enchantment holding Ty in place. Refusing to give in to her seductive charms Ty cleared his throat.
“Yes, my lady.”
“But I can give you so much more,” the Mistress said, leaning down to brush her lips to Ty’s cheek. For a split second, Ty wondered if he would dare look at her directly. He knew the power she had over his kind and to tempt a glance could mean his very soul. But rage boiled in him, and he wanted nothing more than to defy her right then and there. Instead he kept his eyes low and crushed his lips into a tight line.
“Come now,” she whispered in his ear, letting her hot breath drift over his chilly skin. “Haven’t you thought of sitting in that very throne? Haven’t you desired my company, above all others? Now, you want to be free?”
Ty didn’t say a word but nodded. He knew despite his differences with his brother, he wanted a place in Abby’s world now. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. But if the Mistress entrapped him, there was no way he would ever escape her pull again.
Memories flashed in his mind of the late nights in the Mistress’s chambers. Images of her and him plotting to kill the king, and speaking of his rewards for succeeding. But, the fantasy quickly dissipated as Abby’s face came into his mind pushing away all other desires and wants.
“This girl has quite a hold on you, doesn’t she? Is that why you took so long to return to me?” The Mistress’s smooth speech seeped into Ty like poison. Ty closed his eyes and sucked in a deep breath to steady himself as her perfume filled his nostrils. The fragrant of roses and rain filled his senses luring his eyes up to greet her.
“Tell me, why do you deny what you truly want? I can see it you, you know. You and I sitting side by side ruling together as we spoke about all those years ago. And of course, you could keep this girl as your pet.” The Mistress drifted her fingers over Ty’s cheeks. “She would be only yours, no one else would be able to touch her or suffer my wrath.”
The idea of having Abby all to himself filled Ty’s mind. He didn’t want to share her with his brother Luc. He wanted her next to him, loving only him. After all, it was Abby’s heart that pulled him out of the darkness before. It was her kiss that stabbed his dead heart into beating again. But she wanted Luc to be by her side too, a thought that pricked him more than he cared to admit.
“She would be mine?” Ty asked, trying to keep his wits about him. A soft laughter caught his attention, causing Ty to glanced up. The Mistress smiled at him as their eyes locked. Before Ty could pull away, he was trapped within her powerful gaze.
“She will be yours forever.”
“How?” Ty asked as the Mistress’s gaze held him. Her deep ruby eyes filled every hole in his heart, mended every crack in his soul and filled him with more power than he had ever felt before.
“My dearest, to make her yours, all you need to do is remind her why she fell in love with you in the first place.” The Mistress winked with one eye before turning her back to Ty. The moment his gaze dropped, his heart sank to his stomach. He shook his head, trying to push the dream out of his mind, but it was too late, she had her hooks in him so deep that there was no turning back now.
“Give her this,” the Mistress said, turning to face Ty once again. In her hands dangled a simple necklace with a single ruby in the pendant. Ty reached out brushing his fingertips over the half moon pendant before glancing back up to the Mistress.
“What will it do to her?”
“It will make her yours forever.”
“No,” Ty pushed all thoughts of owning Abby out of his mind. He didn’t want her to love him like that. He wanted her to pick him out of free will. He shook his head.
“I can’t do that. I won’t enslave her like that.”
“This won’t enslave her,” The Mistress cooed narrowing her gaze on Ty. “It will liberate her from her feelings of anyone else. If she has any feeling attached to you, then they will magnify. If she doesn’t, then no harm will come to her. But given your history with the girl, I doubt she won’t be affected. You two go way back, don’t you? How long have you waited for a chance like this? Where she would finally pick you?”
The more the Mistress spoke, the deeper the enchantment went and seeped into the darkest recesses of Ty’s mind. The sparkles of light dancing from the ruby lured him in. Ty exhaled allowing the fantasy to play out in his mind giving hope to his deepest desires.
“And what do you get in return?” Ty asked, turning his attention to the Mistress.
“I get to keep my place here,” she spread open her arms with a wicked grin. “You never bring that girl here, and you can have her.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Your dearest love killed her father, the King. That makes her the rightful heir to this region and the throne. Keep her away from this place or from ever discovering her true father was the k
ing of the dragons and the trinket is yours.”
Ty stared at the pendant letting his passions swirl around his head, filling him with hope as he reached out his hand. The moment the pendant touched his palm and his fingers curled around the necklace, he knew he had made a terrible mistake. The Mistress stood back and clapped her hands together as Ty rose.
“It is done,” she said to the crowd. More cheers erupted from the group, and Ty turned to face them. The vengeful gazes and sneers were replaced by happy smiles. Ty shook his head, trying to figure out a loop hole to his transactions, but it was no use. A gift was offered, and he unabashedly took it.
“You know, you don’t have to give it her,” a voice whispered into Ty’s ear. Ty turned his head to find a young man standing next to him, eying the pendant. “You could “lose” it on your way home.”
“Maybe that would be best,” Ty agreed, realizing deep down that he couldn’t subjugate Abby to his will.
“Or, you could give it to me,” the young man suggested holding out his hand to Ty. Ty glanced at the pendant and back to the young man. “And I will give it to this girl of yours.”
Ty’s lip pulled back, and he held the pendant closer to his chest, “No, thank you.”
The young man laughed as Ty held the pendant close to his chest as he turned and walked away. Ty could feel the pressure of eyes on him as he made his way to the front doors. Every ounce of his body screamed for him to run before they could attack. But he moved with stealth through the crowd. The moment the large wooden doors open, pushing fresh cool air into Ty’s face, he sighed and stepped out into the night.
With the cold air clearing his mind, Ty glanced once more at the pendant in his hand before shaking his head. Ty stole one more glance at the pendant before arching his arm back and tossing the necklace over the side of the cliff. He watched as it sparkled like a star falling from the heavens.
“Not this time crone,” Ty mumbled as he shifted into his dragon form and took to the sky allowing the events of the night to fade into the back of his mind as he made his way back to Abby. He would find another way to keep her away from the Mistress and steal her away from Luc.
The Fate of the Dragons Series Box Set Page 13
