For the Love of Her Dragon (22 page)

“Have
it your way,” he said and his hands grabbed her sides.

She
laughed wildly and when he paused for her to take a breath, she wheezed out, “I
was just...well, I was thinking...
oh, hell
. I thought you smelled good,
alright? That’s the truth.”

Kyra
turned her head to the side to avoid looking at Royce and showing how
embarrassed she was at what she had just admitted.

A
sweet lingering kiss on her neck, just below her ear, and then he whispered, “I
think you smell delicious,
mo
chroi
, absolutely delicious.” To show the honesty of
his words, he ran his nose the entire length of her neck, inhaling.

A
slight kiss on her cheek and then she felt his breath on her lips, one brush of
his lips on hers and then… “Royce, Kyra, breakfast is ready!” Aidan yelled from
downstairs. They groaned in unison and then burst out laughing.

With
a kiss to her forehead, the man that she wanted to trust more than anything in
the world stood and walked towards the door. His last words left her smiling
all the way to the breakfast table, “There will be a hell of a lot more of
that
later.”

After
breakfast was cleared and Royce had been properly teased for showing up in the middle
of the night, the guys headed out to relieve the others and Kyra headed
upstairs to unpack the rest of her supplies and avoid the other Guardsmen that
were coming to eat and rest. She had laughed out loud when she heard Royce just
outside the kitchen window warning them against even looking at her. The
afternoon flew by as she alternated between thinking about all they needed to
accomplish before the sun came up the next morning, and if she was ever going
to truly be able to forgive and forget and completely trust where Royce was
concerned. Just his name running through her mind caused her pulse to race. If
she knew for sure things could always be like they had been during the night,
then she would run headlong towards Royce and never look back.

Unfortunately,
Kyra had learned too many times, and always the hard way, that just because she
wanted things to be a certain way, didn’t always make them happen that way. She
was a survivor and part of that came from learning from her mistakes. For one
of the first times that she could remember since leaving the coven, Kyra
prayed, and not just a please help me get outta the mess I have created prayer.
She prayed a real, honest to goodness, talking to the Goddess, looking for
guidance prayer, and when she was finished, felt as if the weight of the world
had been lifted from her shoulders. Her future with Royce was still one big
question mark, but at least she knew somehow they would both be
alright.

Hours
later, every supply she thought she could ever need was out and ready to go.
Kyra took a shower, braided her hair to keep it out of her way, and dressed in
her favorite jeans and boots, along with her lucky black t-shirt with a
fluorescent green outline of a witch on a broom and the words…’
O’Cedar
Makes Your Life Easier’. Slowly, she walked down
the stairs, listening carefully to make sure she was alone, and was in the
kitchen making a tuna sandwich when Aidan came through the back door. “Hey,
whatcha
makin
’?” he asked and
grabbed a glass of tea.

“Tuna
sandwich, want one?”

“Sure,
that would be great. I’m starving,” he answered and took a long drink of iced
tea.

“Anybody
else coming in? I’ll make a few if they are,” she asked as casually as
possible, but Aidan’s laugh told her that he knew what she was really wanted to
know.

“Royce
is with Rayne and
Rian
. They got here about an hour
ago and they’re all going over the plans again. I’ve heard them so many times,
I can recite them forwards and backwards and I needed to talk to Grace…
alone
.
Even mind speak can be crowded when you have brethren like mine.” He smiled,
and the amazing love he felt for his wife was like a light shining straight
from his heart. He and Grace gave her hope that everything would turn out for
her and Royce.

“I
completely understand. Try growing up with at least a hundred other
witches…crowded does not begin to describe it. And try getting a hot shower
after seven a.m. without using your magic…
pfft
…not
happening.”

They
laughed together as she brought their sandwiches to the table and refilled their
drinks. She and Aidan ate and talked about their childhoods and families and
even football before she felt the sensation that accompanied the mind speak of
the Dragon Guard. Aidan nodded once or twice and then said, “The sun is going
down and Royce wants you to make sure the wards are as strong as they can be,
so that you are protected until you have to come outside right before
midnight.”

Any
other time she would have gotten pissed and told him to mind his own business,
but after spending time with the dragons and feeling at least some of what
Royce was feeling, she knew he was being the macho caveman to protect her, and
it warmed her heart. She nodded and then began walking from window to window,
repeating the Warding Spell. Then she repeated it on the doors. She finished,
returned to the table, and mock saluted. “Tell ‘dragon man’ that the wards have
been reinforced.” She almost got the words out before she collapsed in her
chair laughing. Aidan joined in and let her know that her message had been received
and Royce was chuckling, as well.

Aidan
stood and said, “I’ve
gotta
get out there. Duty
calls. Lock the door behind me and one of us will be back to get you in just a
little while.”

She
rolled her eyes but followed his instructions, settling in to watch cartoons
and wait to finally catch the scumbag that had caused so much misery to so many
people.

A
knock at the door startled her from her half sleeping, half watching TV
position on the couch. One look through the peephole showed Aidan and Aaron.
She opened the door and they both said, “He’s with Rayne,” in unison before she
could even ask the question. Either they were mind readers or she wasn’t very
good at hiding her emotions.
I’m going with B
, she thought to herself.

“We
have people watching every route into this place and there have been no signs
of our demented little brother or anyone that works for him. Royce wants you
out by the mountain and hidden long before Andrew gets here. For once, everyone
agrees, so we are here to make that happen. You ready to go?” Aaron spoke with
his usual cockiness, but this time it filled her with confidence instead of
pissing her off.

“Thanks,
guys,” she said as she headed up the stairs. “Let me grab my bag and I’ll be
ready to go.”

Within
two minutes she was back, backpack over her shoulder, ready to head out. Aidan
opened the door. “After you milady,” he said and winked. She grinned, and
together they all walked into the darkness to meet the others and put the
traitor in the deepest hole they could find.

The
trip through the woods had been a whole lot more fun than hiding between a
fallen log and a rock at the base of the mountain. For the first twenty minutes
she had run through what was going to happen, making mental check marks as she
went. Amulets spelled with the Perimeter Spell that would allow the idiots in
but not out, placed and activated with magic from the traitor’s brothers…check.
Containment Spell memorized and ready to work as soon as Andrew closed his
circle…check. Nerves of steel firmly in place…check (well, maybe a half a
check). It was going to be scary as shit to walk out and face Andrew and all
his followers, even with the knowledge that their magic was ‘stuck’, for lack
of a better term, within them by the special Containment Spell her Auntie Della
had given her. After that she would use a very safe, very literal Siphoning
Spell that would remove Andrew’s black magic and put it into a vessel. She had
made sure the specific spell she was using was one hundred percent white and
would only take the power from the host and store it in an inanimate object.
There was no way she would risk her immortal soul or her tenuous relationship
with her mate to extract the traitor’s magic. The urn she had chosen was the
final step to ensure that no one, not even her, would ever get ahold of the
darkness it would contain.

The
sweet young jewelry artisan, Emma, had crafted a wide bottomed, slim necked
vase out of silver and iron; silver to prevent any shifter of any kind from
touching it, and iron to prevent any witch, light or dark, from accessing it.
The stopper was also a combination of the powerful metals and would immediately
be covered with wax from a candle used in a ritual to avoid detection and
escape. Kyra had taken every precaution she could think of and had even spoken
to Auntie Della to be sure.

She
wished the Goldstone she had been using to track the dirt bag still worked, but
he was apparently so immersed in black magic, even the thought of him
obliterated everything good and pure. It was still hanging around her neck, but
only as a beautiful accessory, nothing more.

As
she sat there waiting, the moisture from the ground soaking into her jeans,
every minute or two she would get the feeling that Royce was thinking about her
or that he was trying to tell her something. It was a special, comforting
feeling that reminded her of what she sensed when the dragons were mind
speaking. If she concentrated on the point where the feelings originated, she
could almost hear his voice. Kyra closed her eyes and concentrated until the
sound of footsteps demanded her attention.

Holding
her breath, she listened for any sign of the identity of the group heading
towards her. Andrew’s voice, one she would never forget no matter how long she
lived, was clear and pompous, “Is everyone in position and ready to ascend?”

“Yes,
sir,” was the prompt reply that squelched across the radio.

Had
it been any other time, she would have laughed at the haughty air in his voice.
It was as if he was the general commanding his troops.
What a dick
, she
thought as a hand on her shoulder caused her to jump. Thankfully, she had
already put her hand over her mouth to avoid making any noise. Turning her head
as far as it would go, she saw Aaron, a look of fierce determination on his
face. When he smiled, it was almost scary and didn’t reach his eyes. She knew
it was his game face and was damn glad she would never have it pointed at her.

“You
good?” he mouthed.

Kyra
nodded in response and turned back to see if she could at least count feet
through the brush that helped provide her cover. Aaron tapped her shoulder,
evidently he knew what she was doing because he held up both hands, fingers
extended, indicating ten, and then held up a single hand with all five fingers
extended and mouthed the word, “Groups.”

Great!
Super!
Fifty dark wizards, led by a madman, trying to
extract powerful pure white Earth magic and twist it to something dark and evil
to destroy only the
Goddess knew
how many people…
no
problemo
.
Yeah…
riiiigghhhtt
.
Her mother and auntie had always said she was powerful and this was one time
she really hoped they knew what the
hell
they were talking about.

Andrew’s
voice cut through her thoughts, “Let us begin.”

She
knew the moment each wizard stepped over the perimeter she and the Guardsmen
had set. It was not an uncomfortable feeling, just an awareness of every foot
that touched the ground inside. She could see that Aaron felt it too by the
slight widening of his eyes. In an instant, he was again ready for this battle.
Kyra could see how personal it was for him and wished for a quick end to the
pain Andrew continued to cause the people she called family.

The
awareness that Royce was thinking of her was ever present and she longed for it
to be him beside her. She knew it had to be a blood relative of the douchebag,
but that did not stop her wanting her man with her before she had to go face
fifty pissed off wizards. Her thoughts halted,
my man
? Where the hell
had that thought come from? She was not sure she had forgiven him for all that
had happened, and damn sure knew she wasn’t ready to hand him her heart; she
didn’t trust that he wouldn’t turn on her again. But nonetheless, her crazy ass
mind was being led around by her heart and they were
both
already
thinking of him as
her man
.

She
immediately knew when the last person had crossed her magical border and slid
her hands into the gloves she needed to handle the vessel. With the vase in her
hands, she turned to Aaron and nodded. She followed in his footsteps to the
back of the mountain, remaining completely concealed. They climbed a path she
herself had made and spelled when the mountain had been her home. From an
especially dense patch of shrubbery and weeds, they waited for Andrew to begin
to close the circle.

Two
wizards, dressed in hooded cloaks, outlined the circle in white chalk, so
completely infused with black magic it made her eyes water. Andrew was joined
at the head of the circle by a tall, thin man with a long pointed nose, whose
silky black robe was adorned with a variety of symbols, indicating he had
reached Master status in the wizard community. The others around the circle
were dressed in plain woolen, indicating they were new or had not achieved any
recognition. Kyra’s mother had believed that it was important to know all they
could about their enemies. As a young witch, Kyra had hated learning all the
crap about anything other than magic, but now was grateful to at least
understand a bit about what she was facing.