Tammy squeezed her eyes shut. Oh G.o.d! She could only hope that Thunder knew what he was doing. He hadn"t looked in the least bit afraid. Not even a tiny bit nervous. Maybe he had a plan.
It was Thunder"s turn to laugh. The sound was deep and filled with confidence. "That would be a first. You"re someone who prefers a male"s back to facing him head-on. You play dirty. You break rules to get ahead. You"d step on your own mother to get ahead if she was still alive. Face me like a male."
"We both know that I would lose, so what would be the point?" Cloud"s voice was clipped. "I need you dead. I promise to take good care of your female."
Thunder roared. For a moment she was sure that Cloud had attacked, but then he spoke. "You are a coward. Hiding in the shadows. You are not the male I thought you were. You talked your mate into taking a drug that had a fifty percent chance of killing her. It is your own-"
Cloud screamed. He sounded like a man possessed. Thunder roared again. There was the sound of running. She heard two dull thuds over the crunch of the snow. What was that? What had happened? The dull thuds were followed by a loud thud and a crunch.
Then silence.
Her chest heaved. It was the only sound that reverberated around the small s.p.a.ce. She wanted to call Thunder"s name. She wanted to move. Thunder had told her to sit tight though. He"d been very clear about it. Another minute ticked by agonizingly slowly.
Screw it.
They were no longer fighting, which told her that one or both was too injured to keep on going. If Cloud was still fine, it was only a matter of time before he came for her. Maybe Thunder needed her. She rushed from the opening. Maybe Cloud was still alive but vulnerable. She could help. The snow crunched beneath her fur-lined boots. Thank G.o.d Thunder had insisted she wear them. She rushed although rushed wasn"t the right word since the snow was so thick she maneuvered around the rocky outcrop, going as fast as the terrain would allow.
When she saw the scene that unfolded before her, she stopped. Thunder was crouched over Cloud. His shoulders were hunched and his face bowed. Cloud"s eyes were open, unseeing. The crossbow lay a short distance away from him. His neck was at a strange angle.
Thunder"s chest and arms were covered in blood. He turned to her as she slowly closed the distance between them. "I told you to sit tight," his eyes glistened and his voice was thick.
"It wasn"t your fault." She knelt beside him. "You had to do it."
"I know but ..." he shook his head. "It has been many years since a dragon was put to death by its own. I had hoped never to have to ..." he sucked in a deep breath. "It was not to be avoided."
"The guy may have been really great once upon a time, but he changed. He lost his mind when his wife and unborn child pa.s.sed."
"Or maybe he was a great actor."
She frowned.
"I checked in with the healers soon after I arrived at the lair." He rubbed his eyes. "I don"t know that Cloud was the good male I thought he was, or maybe the madness started before he lost his female."
"Is that where you disappeared to, the healers?" He"d left ten warriors to guard her. Ten. Five on the balcony and another five outside his door. He"d been gone a total of fifteen minutes. She"d found it a little extreme at the time. Now, not so much. "What did they tell you?"
"I don"t even know why I went. I guess I needed more clarity. I asked a few questions about Cloud and his female. I didn"t really know what I was looking for at the time. One of the healers remembered them coming in for the drug. His mate was crying heavily. The healer checked several times before administering the herb. It was at the insistence of Cloud. I don"t think his female was comfortable taking the drug, I don"t think she wanted to."
"You mean he forced her?" That poor woman. Tammy couldn"t imagine.
"Yeah, that"s exactly what I"m saying. I think he forced her and then his sick mind twisted everything to blame me."
"But you still feel bad about killing him."
Thunder nodded. "I would do it again in a heartbeat. I"m glad you are safe." He gave a tired smile and her chest did a funny tightening thing. Then he held up his hands. There was a bolt through one of his palms and another through his forearm.
She pulled off her glove and unsheathed her knife. "I should start charging for this. I"d make a fortune."
Thunder laughed. "Don"t let Storm hear you say that. He"ll think you"re serious."
"You stopped the bolts with your arms."
He nodded. "Better than stopping them with my chest. I got him talking so that I could pinpoint his location and then I got him mad. An angry male doesn"t think clearly. Once he loosed-" he winced as she pulled out the first bolt. Thankfully the ends weren"t barbed. "the first bolt, I was already halfway to him. He didn"t have much time to reload. I stopped the second bolt with my arm. There was no time to change weapons or reload after that, I had him."
Tammy pulled out the second bolt. The wound gushed blood, which was probably a good thing. Hopefully some of the poison would bleed out.
There was a sc.r.a.ping noise. It was one of the fire dragons, it was trying to stand.
"We need to help them as well," Tammy said.
Thunder nodded. "Let"s get the bolts out and then we"re going to fetch help. It"s only about a half hour from here to the Fire Castle."
Tammy sheathed the blade and started walking towards the conscious beast. She was startled to see that the dragon that had fallen close to this one was back in his human form. There was a bleeding wound in the middle of his chest and another in his thigh. He looked like he was still breathing but she didn"t need a medical degree to see that he was in a bad way.
"We need to hurry." Thunder came up behind her.
"Are they dying?"
Thunder"s only response was a deep frown.
She"d done this a few times, she fell on her knees beside the bleeding shifter. Tammy"s hand shook as she unsheathed the blade once again. She sucked in a deep breath and got to work.
Chapter 21.
A few hours later ...
They"d barely had a chance to wash up and eat when Blaze summoned them. The male sat at the head of a long table; he watched as they entered, his expression unreadable. Coal was in attendance. At least the younger male gave a nod of the head as greeting.
Both males rose to their feet as they entered. Thunder had to force himself to breathe slower, to unclench his fists.
"My healers advised me that you are doing well, that the wounds were superficial," Blaze said. He turned to Tammy before Thunder could reply. It was the male"s way of establishing immediate hierarchy. It p.i.s.sed him the h.e.l.l off.
Tammy clasped his hand tighter, as Blaze locked eyes with her. "I am Blaze, King of Fire and ruler of the four kingdoms. This is my brother, Coal, my second in command. We are royal." He touched his marking as was customary.
"I"m Tammy," her voice shook ever so slightly and Thunder had to stop himself from putting an arm around her. This was a formal meeting, such a gesture would be frowned upon.
Blaze finally looked him squarely in the eye and Thunder was taken aback by what he saw written in the male"s eyes. He looked sad. His face had a pinched look, even his shoulders were slightly hunched.
Thunder stepped forward. "Are your warriors okay? It was my understanding that all of them would pull through. Is that not the case?"
Blaze put up a hand. "Thanks to your quick thinking, and to the human"s," he motioned to where Tammy was standing, "skill at removing the bolts, the males will be fine."
"Thank f.u.c.k," Thunder blurted, he had thought the worst. He gave a sigh. "I am sorry it happened. I wish I had known, wish I could have-"
"There was nothing you could have done," Blaze interrupted him. "You saved my males. You saved the human from certain death. You righted wrongs in accordance with the lores." In other words, he"d killed Cloud.
Thunder gave a nod. He wanted Blaze to get on with it. To tell him the reason he had been summoned. Like he didn"t already know.
Blaze gestured to the table. "Let"s take a seat."
They all sat down, everyone but Coal. "Something to drink?" The male held up a jug of water.
"No," Thunder practically snarled. "Thank you," he quickly added. He was not beyond licking a.s.s. Doing anything it took.
"I read your report, but after today"s events, I can better understand what you were up against." He looked solemn. "I poured over the rule books but the lores are clear. I could find no loopholes. You shifted during a hunt, before making it back to the castle. According to the lores, your indiscretion calls for an instant disqualification."
Thunder held his breath. He willed his heart to slow. Adrenaline coursed through his veins. He wanted to put Tammy over his shoulder and run. Despite the situation, his d.i.c.k hardened up. Not all the way there but enough that he could feel a tightening in his pants. The need to claim rode him hard. He sucked in another lungful of air and forced himself to listen to what Blaze was saying. "You are also banned from competing in the next hunt."
Not that he gave a f.u.c.k about the next hunt.
"I had my brother take a look, just in case I was missing something."
Coal clenched his jaw and looked away.
"h.e.l.l, I had my mate look through several lores that I hoped I had wrongly interpreted. The three of us spoke about it at length."
The male was dancing in circles. He was dressed for battle, he had his sword but instead of coming in for the kill, he was dancing. It wasn"t like Blaze. Thunder was out of patience. "Your point, my lord? Not that I have to ask." It was insolent of him but he didn"t give a f.u.c.k.
Blaze frowned. "I"m sorry, there is nothing I can do."
"Bulls.h.i.t!" Thunder rose to his feet. The chair sc.r.a.ped loudly against the floor. "You are the king of the four kingdoms."
"Sit down," Blaze said, his voice even.
Thunder kept his eyes steady on the other male. His jaw was locked and his muscles bunched, he was ready for battle.
"Sit!" Blaze said again, this time using a commanding tone.
For a second he almost obeyed, every part of him wanted to do as the ruling king commanded but he forced himself to stay where he was.
"Do as he says," Tammy touched him on the side of the leg. "Please."
There was nothing he wouldn"t give this female. Not a d.a.m.n thing. He looked at her, at her dark eyes, silently pleading, her skin looked pale. He felt himself calm and did as she said.
Once he was sitting, Blaze continued. "I wish it could be different. I feel for you ..." He looked at Tammy. "For both of you, but I don"t make the rules, I enforce them. The lores are clear."
"It"s not fair," Tammy said.
"What happened with Cloud was an anomaly. He made a mockery of the lores. I did what I had to do under the circ.u.mstances. I would never have shifted unless there was no other choice," he was breathing heavily, still trying hard to keep himself under control. His scales rubbed, he could feel his power simmering below the surface. "Given what I know now, I would do it again because we wouldn"t be having this conversation if I hadn"t acted. My Tammy would be gone."
"I take it you want to be together?" Blaze asked.
The question was completely unexpected. Thunder felt something lift. "Yes, of course." He was too afraid to breathe, too afraid to hope.
Blaze folded his arms and leaned back in his chair. He scrutinized them. His nostrils flared. "You are actively rutting."
Tammy gave a gasp and shifted in her seat.
Blaze ignored her discomfort. "You recently," his nostrils flared again, "marked this female and yet you haven"t mated." He frowned. "Why?"
Thunder swallowed hard. "My female ... Tammy isn"t ready. She was jilted by her previous... by a d.i.c.khead and is worried about rushing into another relationship. We are headed in the right direction, but we need time," he cleared his throat. "She needs time and I want to give it to her."
"I understand ... trust me ..." he widened his eyes. "Out of everyone in the whole d.a.m.ned lair, I understand better than most. If you had arrived here already mated, there was nothing I could have done. You would"ve received twenty lashes for breaking a lore but the female could have stayed," Blaze looked at Tammy. "You could have stayed."
His female lowered her gaze to the ground. A strained breath left her lips. "I don"t understand your lores. I"ve only known Thunder for just over a week, it"s too soon to take such a big step. I love being with him and we"ve been through so much together. I feel like I"ve known him for way longer but in reality, it hasn"t been long at all," Tammy spoke quickly, giving away how nervous she was. "It would be nuts to marry, mate one another after such a short time. What if one of us is wrong about the other or our feelings?"
It hurt to hear her say it, and yet he understood where she was coming from. She"d been badly hurt. Betrayed by someone she loved.
"Why can"t we date?" Tammy shrugged. "Spend time together? It"s far more normal to do things that way. Maybe in a few months, a year ..." Tammy went on and Thunder felt himself cringe with each admission. He didn"t mind, he"d do anything for Tammy but he worried about how Blaze would see things.
Blaze all out frowned. "Date? Normal?" He huffed out a breath. "Dragons don"t date."
"Why not?"
"We just don"t. We mate or we move on. Either you love this male and want to be with him or you don"t, it"s that simple."
"It"s not that simple," she looked mortified.
"It is if you"re a dragon," Blaze frowned.
"I"m not a dragon. I keep having to defend that important fact."
"No, but Thunder is and you are on our turf. Again, either you"re down with that or you need to go home." Again, Thunder cringed at each statement. He worried how Tammy would take the statements this time.
"Now, I"m going to give you this one chance and one chance only," Blaze narrowed his eyes. "I shouldn"t but I will. I can see that the two of you are crazy about each other and I don"t like the idea of tearing you apart." He locked eyes with Thunder, whose heart was beating wildly. "Are you willing to take twenty lashes with a silver-tipped whip?"
"Yes," he growled. "I"d take a whole lot more than that, although I didn"t think we possessed such a weapon."
Blaze smiled. "The vampires have plenty. Their kind are far more p.r.o.ne to breaking the lores, or so it would seem. Alternately, you could spend a week in the cage. It"s your choice."
"What is he talking about?"
Thunder squeezed Tammy"s hand, excitement coursed through him and a silly smile had taken up residence on his face. He could feel it. "I"ll take the lashes, I don"t want to be separated from my female for so much as a day. A week would feel like a lifetime."
Blaze nodded, looking like someone had p.i.s.sed on his parade. Thunder felt his smile wane. The male looked at Tammy. "If you agree to mating tonight, I will overlook this meeting ever took place."
"Oh my ..." Tammy gasped. She was frowning and shaking her head like she couldn"t believe what she was hearing.
Thunder"s hope plummeted, for whatever reason he had expected Blaze to say that they could date. That they could have as much time as they needed, but he was an idiot for believing it. "It"s fine," he turned to face Tammy. "I know that you cannot agree to such a thing." He swallowed hard.
Her eyes welled with tears. "I don"t want to leave you. It"s too soon though. I can"t leave you ... I don"t want to."