For the Love of Her Dragon (4 page)

The
Council was made of up of the oldest, most powerful witches in existence, who
had absolutely no sense of humor or patience for rule breakers. She had only
ever seen them once, and it had been another time where she was somewhere she
wasn’t supposed to be but had gone undetected. A man she’d known her entire
life had gone completely off the rails, killed people, irreparably damaged the
Earth, and had completely turned to dark magic. It had taken ten of the most
skilled from her mother’s coven to capture him and the Council’s punishment had
been swift. One minute the accused was screaming and spitting venom and the
next he was on fire. Poof! Gone! Pile of Ash on the ground! Definitely not
something Kyra ever wanted to experience firsthand.

She
was shaken from her memories when Devon’s hand touched her shoulder. “Come on,
let’s get this over with. I’m ready to go home and relax.
Kyndel
invited me to dinner and Jay and I have plans for a rousing game of
roll-the-ball.” He winked and she knew he was trying to get her mind off the
one track it had seemed to be stuck on ever since meeting the dragon they all
called ‘the gentle giant’. Devon’s beautiful smile and twinkling grey eyes
didn’t hurt anything either. He didn’t make her feel anything but friendship,
but he was sweet and really nice to look at, as were all the Dragon Guardsmen.

“Alright
you two knuckleheads, lead the way.” Lance pointed towards the direction they
had been heading before the downpour.

Laughing, they began their trek, joking and teasing, but the fun
was long forgotten after several hours of endless
walking. Kyra was hot, tired, and seriously pissed, convinced they were
just wasting time, aimlessly marching around the hillside. She was just
about to suggest a break when a chill ran down her spine and her hands began to
shake. Without saying a word, she dropped into the lotus position with her
backpack on her lap and began pulling out her supplies, completely ignoring
Lance’s bitching and Devon’s inquiries about her wellbeing. It took only a few
seconds and she had the silver-framed mirror that had been her great-great-grandmother’s,
a vial of blessed water from the Black Lake, and her special herbs, and was
working her
Scrying
Spell. She could hear the two
Guardsmen discussing what she was doing but concentrated on the task
at hand. They had been around her long enough to know she wasn't wasting
time; any other explanations would have to wait.

The spell took less than five minutes and had a side effect she
had only experienced one other time in her life. Not only did she get a
location on Andrew, but she also had a vision of what he was planning. The
scene that played out in her mind was like watching a horror movie, only she
could feel what each character felt. Her heart raced and a cold sweat broke out
all over her body, but she was stuck watching the complete annihilation of a
quaint little community tucked in a once beautifully lush valley. Everything
she saw was from Andrew’s point of view so although she hadn’t seen him, she
knew he was there, but that was the only thing that felt familiar.

She searched the faces of the dead and injured for any indication
of the target of the asshole’s destruction, but nothing looked familiar and
there wasn’t any sound to help. All she knew was that he was somewhere off a
rocky coast with turbulent waters and he was having a great time hurting anyone
and everyone in his path. The silent movie of destruction went on and on. When
she was sure she couldn’t take any more pain and suffering and had decided to
see what the guys thought about what she had seen, her heart ceased to beat and
her lungs refused to hold air. There, standing in the middle of the war zone,
was Royce. His brow was furrowed, his brown eyes scanning the area for those
that most needed his help. Her heart broke when she saw the cuts and bruises
covering most of his beautiful face and his torn, bloody, and soot-covered
clothes.

The horror show unfolding in Andrew’s mind switched to slow motion
as Royce moved from person to person, helping the living from the rubble and
getting them to safety. He wasn’t the only one working rescue, but he
was the only one that mattered to her. He shouted something and she cursed
the lack of sound. In the next instant, a taller version of Royce (Was that
even possible?) appeared to his right. The resemblance was uncanny. The new guy’s
hair was short and curly, auburn instead of bright red, and he was not all
muscular and hunky, more long and lean, which only added to how
absolutely tall he was. The two worked furiously to clear away the debris,
looking for someone or something specific. Even though only a vision, she could
tell they were engaged in a constant stream of mind speak, another wonderful
perk of being magical.

An ominous sense of danger filled her and once again her breath
stilled in her lungs. She watched as both men turned in unison and began
running almost faster than her eyes could track. They were obviously screaming
orders to anyone that could hear from the expressions they wore and the way
their mouths moved. The feeling of impending doom engulfed every cell of Kyra’s
body as she felt Andrew’s enjoyment grow. The sick son of a bitch was enjoying
what he was seeing and delighted that more was coming.

Horror movies had never been her thing and to have the man that
was her mate in a starring role in one that would be a reality was seriously
freaking her out. Sifting through everything she had ever learned that was
stored in her goofy brain, she looked for a way to pull out of the vision.
Finally, she found what she thought might work, but true to form, a bright
light burst before her eyes, vibrations of an explosion she knew was taking
place in her mind gave her the sensation of falling, right before her world
went black.

Two
sets of very large hands shook her and babbled frantically. If she had been
able to, she would have screamed out loud when Lance said he was going to throw
her over his shoulder and run like hell, but it was Devon’s response that
almost stopped her heart.

“
Dammit
,
Lance, settle the hell down. She’s magical…
really magical
and super
powerful. Give her a minute to pull herself out of whatever happened before you
go all caveman. We have no idea what she was doing besides
scrying
,
and she told us that was just for location, so apparently her witchy senses
found a lead and she took it. Besides, if anything happens to her, Royce will
lose his shit. You and I both know it. She is his mate. He knows she’s his
mate. He’s just being pigheaded. There is no way in hell he could handle her
getting seriously hurt.”

She
could hear the rocks crunch under Lance’s worn-out cowboy boots and knew he was
pacing, his second favorite pastime.

“I
know,
dammit
, but you know I suck at waiting. When she hit the ground,
all I could think was snake bite, but there’s no way one would come anywhere
near us. Then she started digging in her goodie bag and I thought it was no big
thing, but now…what the
hell
? Her eyes were like…gone, rolled back in
her head, and she was shaking so hard I thought she would fall to pieces.” He
paced the whole time he spoke.

When
he stopped, she knew he had knelt down as the denim of his blue jeans brushed
her arm. She imagined him staring at her face, not sure what to do and then he
spoke. “Did you hear how fast her heart was beating? I wish Sam was here, she
would know what to do.”

“Dude,
you
gotta
chill. I’ve seen stuff like this before
with some of mom’s patients. Give her a little time and she’ll bring herself
out of it. Kyra is a fighter. You just have to be patient.”

“Yeah,
yeah, yeah…patience. You’re all Zen and I’m about to lose my shit. I really
hate you sometimes, Dev.”

Devon’s
chuckle relieved even more of the tension that had invaded her body during her
vision. “I’m not Zen, I’m just not crazy like you. Now, sit down and wait for
her to find her way back.”

She
heard the rustle of someone digging in her duffle bag. “You want a protein
bar?” Devon asked.

“Yeah,
throw me a couple and a bottle of water, please,” Lance replied, and she could
still hear the concern in his voice.

She
was once again amazed at how these people, these dragons, cared so much for one
another and
for her
. They’d only known her a short time and had
definitely met her under less than desirable circumstances, but nonetheless,
they had accepted her as one of their own. It was an amazing feeling and one
she would always cherish.

She
felt as if she was slowing floating upward despite the hard ground beneath her
back. The feeling returned to her fingers and toes slowly, with pins and
needles working their way up her arms and legs. As soon as her mouth worked
again, she whispered, “That bottle of water better not be to throw in my face.”

Though
her vision was blurry, she could make out the smiles that spread across the
men’s faces. Of course Lance was the first to speak, “What the hell, Witchy
Poo? You decide you needed a nap?”

“Yeah,
that was it,” she chuckled, as Devon helped her sit up.

As
soon as the warmth of his hand hit her shoulder a flood of images from her
vision came rushing back. The water she was drinking flew out of her mouth and
she shouted details as fast as she could. “It was so pretty and calm, but I
could feel the darkness coming. I could see and feel everything but couldn’t
hear a damn thing. I know the little asshole was there. I could see everything
through his eyes and he was so excited about the awfulness that was coming.”

She
used Devon’s knee to help her up while still shouting about all she had just
seen. “Everything was fine one minute and then…BOOM…”

“What
the hell are you talking about, Little Bit?” Lance shouted and grabbed her by
the shoulders, bending enough to look her right in the eyes.

Kyra
blinked a few times and took a deep breath, trying to get her bearing in order
to make sense of what she’d seen.

Lance
spoke again, softer and more worried than she could have ever imagined, “Come
on, Kyra, snap out of it. Tell us what you saw. What made you collapse?”

“I…he…it
was…” She closed her eyes and took another deep breath. When she opened them
again, both Devon and Lance were staring at her, expectantly. She took two
steps back and snapped, “Stop looking at me like I have two heads.”

They
both laughed, helping all the tension associated with the horrific vision she’d
just experienced drain out of body, finally getting her thoughts straight in
her head. The ending of her vision flashed before her eyes and for the first
time in her life she thought she might just faint. Without further thought, she
screamed, “We have to find Royce! He’s in danger. There’s
gonna
be an explosion!” She reached out and grabbed a hand from both men and started
to pull.

“Come
on! What the hell’s wrong with you?!” she shouted.

Neither
man moved, just stood and stared, looking at her like she had two heads. She
pulled so hard she could feel sweat dotting her upper lip. Completely
frustrated and more than a little pissed, she dropped both their hands and spun
around, only to find herself lifted in midair by Lance and deposited on the
same big rock she had been propped against just moments earlier.

Just
about to scream…again, she realized they were both using mind speak. Her heart
raced as she felt the seconds tick by. She had no idea how long they had until
whatever it was that Andrew was planning happened, she only prayed that they
could get a warning to Royce in time.

Lance
and Devon were deep in conversation with the others of their Force, not paying
any attention to her, when she decided that waiting sucked and she was going to
do whatever it took to stop the devastation she had witnessed. Her escape plan
would have worked if the damn dragons didn’t move so fast. Devon grabbed her by
the arm before she could get both feet on the ground and held fast. When she
turned to give him her best ‘Go
To
Hell’ look, he was
giving her his, and since he was about twenty years older and a foot taller,
his was better. She started to hunch her shoulders and then realized she had
absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. The man she was supposed to spend the rest
of her life with was in serious danger. It didn’t matter that he couldn’t stand
the sight of her, or that she already had feelings for him, she had to save him
along with the others she’d seen lying dead or broken around him.

“What
do you think you are doing, Kyra? We’re talking to Rayne and trying to get a
hold of Royce. Wait, just a fucking minute,” he scolded.

She
glanced over his shoulder to see Lance’s devil-may-care attitude gone, replaced
by a warrior, out for blood, ready to protect one of his own. It was
intimidating to say the least, but she refused to back down. Royce needed their
help. The threat was real and growing every second.

“Hurry,”
was all she could get out before she was deposited back on the same damn rock
and told to stay put.

Thank
the Goddess she didn’t have to wait long. Lance grabbed the large duffel she’d
dropped on the ground and reached for her hand, “We can’t get Royce to answer.
Rayne is on his way to the Elders. Come on, we’re taking you back to the lair.
You can stay with
Kyndel
and Grace while we go see
what the hell is going on.”