by Katie Reus
With her? Always.
Tonight he wanted to cement the bond between them, to show her exactly what she meant to him. Because for her, there was nothing he wouldn’t give or do.
Chapter 22
Naram leaned against the stone balcony of his castle and stared out at the bleak countryside.
“He’ll return soon,” Shar said, coming to stand next to him.
Naram just nodded, though he felt anything but certain. He hated being in this state of limbo and the female had apparently left Biloxi if the male dragon’s erratic departure was anything to go on. One of Naram’s demon spies had been watching the half-demon’s club when the male dragon had burst through the roof in a rage and disappeared. No one had seen either Keelin or Bran since.
He could track her again but that would take a lot of power. Before he wasted that kind of energy, or blood, he’d sent a scout demon to Montana first. If Keelin was on her clan’s land, getting to her would be difficult. Not impossible, but very, very difficult. It was why he wasn’t going himself to search for her—yet. He would go after her when the time was right. It was possible that someone in her clan might sense him even if he was cloaked. Sometimes the ancient dragons had different gifts. There was simply no way of knowing.
He wouldn’t risk the chance. Not when he was close to getting what he wanted. And he hated having to wait for anything. He’d already waited for thousands of years. His patience was growing thin.
As if he’d been summoned by Shar’s words, the scout demon appeared on the balcony, his expression grim. He hadn’t bothered with a human form, but his body was humanoid. Two small horns protruded from his bald head, his eyes glowing a faint blue and his skin was a grayish-blue. He wore simple loose black harem-style pants and a black tunic. Naram didn’t remember his name and didn’t care.
“Well?” he demanded. This male was just a tool he was using. Something he’d called on from Hell to do his bidding. It was one of his favorite gifts as a demigod, even if it did piss off those who ruled Hell. He just took who he wanted, when he wanted, then flung them back into their home.
The male’s eyes narrowed the slightest fraction but he spoke. “She is there. So is the male. They’re not mated yet but they will be soon.”
“How can you be sure?”
“They were fucking in her home and their mating manifestation could be seen from the outside.”
“You didn’t go inside?”
The male snorted softly. “I will not interfere with a male dragon while he is rutting.”
Naram nodded and flicked his wrist at the male. He vanished as Naram sent him back to where he came from. When he was alone with Shar he frowned at him. “What did the scout mean by mating manifestation?”
Shar paused, his human face and form perfection. On this plane Naram had glamored Shar to look similar to himself. Tall with dark eyes and dark hair, though his was shorter than Naram’s. He was well built at over six feet tall, muscular and had the same bronze coloring as Naram. He was pleasing to look at, but right now Naram didn’t like that confused expression.
“I assumed you knew,” Shar said.
“No.”
“I do not either. Should we call the scout back?”
There was no we. He would be the one who had to call the male back and that would expend more of his power. In addition it would reveal that he didn’t know as much as the scout demon did about dragons. That was weak and unacceptable. “Not yet. If they haven’t joined then to strike now would be preferred,” he said more to himself than Shar.
Shar simply nodded in agreement.
“But we need her alone.” Naram had transported his captives to his current residence with his demigod gift. They were far from their home and unable to escape once he’d locked them in his dungeon. Getting to Keelin on her own land would be incredibly difficult. Despite his earlier reservation, at this point it was a risk he would have to take.
“Your timing will have to be perfect,” Shar said, understanding what Naram meant to do without him having to say the words aloud.
“Yes.” Which meant he’d have to be very careful when he made his next move. In the end it would all be worth it though. He’d have his talisman, another dead dragon—from the line that had cursed him to prison for so long—and all his power returned.
Then there would be no stopping him.
He nodded back toward the French doors open to his bedroom. “Let’s go see the prisoners.” He had a direct stairwell entrance from his room down to the dungeon.
“You mean to do it now?”
Naram nodded, his blood pumping wildly. “I will drain them all dry and when I’m at my peak I’ll transport to see the female.” Of course he’d have to figure out exactly where she was on her clan’s land, which would take some scouting. Then he’d make his move.
“You will need to disable her.”
“I know.” He softly patted one of the blades strapped over his chest. He’d learned many things since returning to this human world, but some things hadn’t changed, including battle tactics. He was going to engage in a rapid dominance move and snatch the female dragon before anyone could do a damn thing. He would just have to make sure she was alone. It meant entering the clan’s land cloaked and being discovered, but he would just have to risk it.
* * *
Bran felt like he was ten feet tall as he knocked on Drake’s front door. Keelin’s words from last night, or this morning really, played through his head on auto-repeat. I’m not letting you go either.
She might not have officially admitted it yet, but she was his. And that made him feel like a fucking king, invincible.
A moment later Dragos Petronilla answered the door, his mate right behind him. They were dressed to kill. Literally. Both looked like the type of bloodthirsty assassins he’d worked with and sometimes killed over the years. It wasn’t just their military-style fatigues or the blades strapped to their thighs—which he knew was a show all for him—it was the deadly gleam in their eyes as they watched him.
Well, he’d come here for a reason. Time to get this over with. He nodded politely at them, the small act of civility pretty much all he was willing to give them. If they didn’t approve of him and Keelin he didn’t care. She was his and he was hers.
Dragos stepped back, his eyes supernova silver as he watched Bran carefully. He motioned with his hand for Bran to enter. “You’re late.”
He was actually ten minutes early but he wasn’t going to argue the point. “My apologies,” he said, his voice wry as he stepped inside.
Arya shut the door behind him with way more force than necessary.
When the two of them just stared at him he cleared his throat. “I’d like to speak to you about Keelin. We can do it here in the foyer or somewhere more comfortable.”
Jaw clenched tight, Dragos jerked his head to the sitting room then turned his back on Bran, his mate falling in line with him.
The way they turned their back on him was a sign that they didn’t view him as a threat. The sign of disrespect rankled his dragon but Bran just rolled his eyes. He’d known he’d have to deal with this. And he wasn’t going to make small talk either.
As soon as they were all sitting, Dragos and Arya across from him on an uncomfortable looking couch, and him on an equally uncomfortable high-backed chair, he spoke. “I’m mating your daughter.” Unlike humans and their strange customs of asking for a bride’s hand in marriage, dragon shifters didn’t do that. They had to prove they were a worthy mate. Asking would make him look weak.
“Is that right?” Dragos rumbled, his dragon clear in his gaze.
“If she’ll have me.” Because the choice was hers.
At that, Arya sniffed haughtily. “We all saw your little light show last night. Don’t think sex is enough to keep my daughter happy.”
Next to her Dragos growled and shot daggers at Bran with his eyes.
Yeah, he didn’t want to talk about sex with Keelin in front of them either. “
What we have is more than physical. I love your daughter.” Something he hadn’t told her but she had to know. He planned to tell her today anyway in case she wasn’t crystal clear on the matter. Saying the words were daunting though.
“Love can be fleeting. She’s not like your brother’s mate so if you think that’s what you’re getting you are sorely mistaken,” Arya said with Dragos just watching and likely cataloging the hundred ways he wanted to kill Bran.
At her comment about his brother’s mate, Fia, Bran wondered if that was part of their issue with him in general. “I adore my sister-in-law but I don’t want a female like her. I didn’t even think I wanted a mate until I met Keelin. She’s everything an Alpha needs and whether you can see her strength or not, I can.” He felt his temper rising with each word he spoke. It pissed him off that they dared compare her to Fia, as if… He actually wasn’t sure what Arya’s statement meant. It was so vague but if she was trying to insinuate that Keelin was weaker than the other female, she didn’t know her daughter at all.
“She cares for others, seems to have no prejudice against any supernatural beings and is incredibly diplomatic. An attitude our kind definitely needs more of.” Something he’d told her last night. “Unlike Fia, she doesn’t throw fits when she doesn’t get her way. She doesn’t panic in the face of danger. My Keelin is strong and you should know that. And for the record, Conall would have been miserable with Fia.” The female was a perfect fit for his brother, who loved catering to her and taking care of her, but Conall needed a warrior. Bran could see that much from the little time he’d gotten to know the male.
To his surprise, Arya and Dragos leaned back a fraction as if they’d choreographed it, the scent rolling off them no longer acidic but pleasing to the senses. Dragos didn’t smile but he also wasn’t glaring anymore. That had to be a good sign. Right?
Arya gave him a half-smile. “You are correct in what you say about my son and Fia. We were pleased when she ran off with Gavin. And you are also correct that Keelin is strong. Thankfully she’s not like Fia and I was not insulting my daughter as you seem to think. Keelin is not physically as strong as the rest of our family so we do worry about her, that’s true. But the fact that she left you shows her strength. We weren’t sure of your true intentions until just now.”
When they didn’t say anything further, he figured he should speak. “I will do everything in my power to make her happy and I’ll never hurt her. I would rather lose a body part than cause her grief.”
“If you do hurt her, that can be arranged.” Dragos said, his dragon back in his gaze.
“Fair enough.”
After another long moment of silence, Arya continued. “Everything we’ve heard about you from both our sons and the difference we’ve seen in Keelin indicates that you are a worthy male. We won’t stand in the way of your pursuing her.”
He nodded once. “Respectfully, it wouldn’t matter if you did. She’s mine.” If a human said something like that he knew it would be considered rude, but not among his kind. They had to know that no matter what, his mate came first. Not the needs or cares of others, not even her parents.
Dragos gave him a ghost of a smile and Arya glanced at her mate. They seemed to be having an unspoken conversation before she turned back to Bran. “Now that we are on the same page, let’s go meet with Keelin. Dragos and I will retrieve our sons and meet you at Conall’s house. We have some decisions to make.”
Bran nodded and stood with them, relieved this part of it was over. Keelin had filled him in earlier that morning on who the demigod was so he’d passed the info on to both Finn and Bo in the hopes that the males might be able to reach out to any one of their supernatural contacts. He’d also informed his former boss about what was going on. August hadn’t been pleased about the new development but was glad for the intel. Hunting a demigod wasn’t easy and Bran wasn’t above using every resource necessary to find the male.
And eliminate him for good.
Chapter 23
Keelin glanced at her cell phone and frowned. No call or text from Bran. She wasn’t exactly worried for him but he’d been going to visit with her parents so yeah, she was a little nervous. Not that she thought he couldn’t take care of himself. The male was fierce and strong and could easily handle himself. She didn’t like the thought of her parents threatening him though. What if he changed his mind, decided she wasn’t worth the trouble of her family?
That was a fear she’d kept locked down tight but it was pushing to the surface now, no matter how hard she tried to ignore it.
“Do you think this set of books has enough information to help me control my powers?” Nyx asked Victoria, drawing Keelin back to the present.
The three of them were in Conall’s library going over books, ancient texts, and some of the files Bran’s former boss had sent him on all the supernatural beings who’d been captured in images around the missing dragons at one time or another in Bo’s club. So far Keelin recognized some of the people but that was normal considering she worked there. Same with Nyx. And they didn’t remember anyone being seen with the demigod, Naram. So it was more or less a dead end for the time being. However, with the demigod’s name and his history with her clan now known, Keelin had started scouring a couple diaries her grandmother had kept. Nothing important stuck out yet, but it was still early. Her parents would be here soon too, but they were meeting with Bran.
Something she needed to stop thinking about.
Nyx had taken up reviewing a set of old books on Greek gods and goddesses and was like a kid on Christmas morning. They weren’t the type of thing you could get at a library or find on the Internet either.
Victoria shrugged. “It appears to have information you can use but putting things into practice are always different than theoretic ideas. Do you think any of your relatives could help you?”
Nyx snorted. “Unlikely. Gods are assholes.”
“Well maybe we can try a couple things out in the mountains so you’re away from everyone. Not that I think you could really hurt anyone here but Keelin told me about your landing when you arrived.” Victoria looked over at Keelin and half-smiled. “Stop worrying about him. He’s fine.”
Keelin tried to smile back as she pushed up from where she sat at one of the desks. Telling herself she just wanted to stretch her legs, she headed to one of the windows and oh-so-casually looked out over Conall’s front yard and walkway.
No one was there and she felt a little insane keeping watch for Bran. But she wasn’t embarrassed enough to stop. Behind her, Victoria and Nyx were still busy talking, the two women having become fast friends.
Rubbing a hand down her face, Keelin’s gaze snagged on the bracelet she hadn’t taken off since her mother had told her it had belonged to her grandmother. And the male named Naram before that. It was apparently linked to his powers so her grandmother had used all her battle skills to steal it before locking the male in a prison of her making.
Somehow the male had escaped that prison and her mother was convinced he wanted his bracelet back. So Keelin was wearing it for safe keeping. If she knew where it was at all times it meant he didn’t have it. It was also part of the reason she’d been having visions, something Keelin wasn’t sure how she felt about, but at this point, she didn’t want them to stop. Of course her mother had demanded that she give it to her but Keelin had stood her ground, needing to set up new boundaries between them.
So far her parents actually seemed to be respecting those boundaries. Sure, it hadn’t been long since she’d been home, but considering they hadn’t stormed over last night when Bran had not-so-quietly arrived, that felt like progress.
Rolling her shoulders once to ease the tension there, she started to move back from the window when she saw Bran step through the heavy gate. A big smile spread across her face at the sight of him.
Unable to stop herself she drank in the way his broad shoulders stretched out his long-sleeved shirt and the way his thick thigh muscles flexed and strain
ed under his cargo pants. The male was walking, talking sex and he was all hers.
More than her clear physical attraction to him, she genuinely liked Bran. Okay, more than liked him. He’d gotten to her when she hadn’t even thought it was possible a male could. She was starting to see that he didn’t want to take away her freedom and after his comments last night it was pretty clear he meant to put her first, even ahead of his own clan if necessary.
That knowledge had stunned her. Still did. She lifted a hand and waved at him, but then realized he probably couldn’t see her because of the reflective coating.
Turning from the window, she started for the door, wanting to meet him in the foyer, but ran right into someone.
A male.
What the heck?
It took less than a second for who she was seeing to compute. The demigod. Panic slammed into her as she tried to step back from Naram. He grabbed her upper arm and fire instantly built in the back of her throat as she prepared to attack, her dragon seconds from taking over. Before she could release the flames, pain erupted inside her, sharp and punishing, coming from her stomach.
He’d stabbed her. Flashbacks of her last attack exploded in her mind, the memory vivid, but she called on all her strength and shoved at the male’s chest.
Shouts of alarm from Nyx and Victoria sounded as she was suddenly sucked into a vortex of rushing wind.
Full-on terror forked through her in jagged pulses of energy as they flashed into a dungeon of sorts. Fire burst from her throat, the flames bright and scorching.
Unfortunately, they flowed around the male as if he was surrounded by an invisible force-field.
Then he laughed, the maniacal sound bouncing off the cold, damp prison walls and turning her veins to ice. Her fire wasn’t affecting him and she was pretty certain she was trapped.
Her wound wasn’t bad and she was already healing; she figured that had been more to stun and transport her than to truly hurt her. She knew it was likely an impossible hope but she prayed that Bran figured out a way to find her. Because she wasn’t sure she could hold off a demigod by herself.
