Releasing the Dragon: Myths and Legends, Book One (26 page)

"What about the last part of the prophecy?
’Hate takes over, vengeance sworn, and from the flames new life is
born'," I asked. They both looked at me in surprise. I shrugged and
held up my wrist with the bracelet Claire had given me. "I spent
some time with Claire and she told me all about the prophecy, but
she wouldn't really explain that last part."

Dragon snorted. "Claire never really explains
anything. We'll just have to wait and see. It probably refers to an
attack Travali will launch when he learns his spell is broken.
He’ll most likely try something at the wedding and we'll be ready
for it." He looked at Rook. "Explain what happened last night."

"When you saw Claire stop me in the corridor
yesterday, she said that something was going to happen that night
and when it did I should be ready to set time back. She said I
needed to make sure Serafina was safely on your terrace waiting for
you alone when the danger was over. I can only assume she knew your
dragon would come out." He shook his head and looked at me. "What I
have to tell you is bad. Are you sure you want to hear it?"

I nodded. "I need to know what happened last
night. What could have been so horrible that you had to completely
erase it from history?"

Rook bowed his head for a moment before he
spoke then he looked Dragon in the eyes and began his explanation
with rage simmering in his voice. "We were in the meeting just like
you remember but it had progressed a little further. You swore and
took off like a bat out of hell. When you made it to Mystique,
Malachi already had Serafina in the lounge with the door closed. It
took you a few minutes to locate her. When you ripped the door off
that lounge we found her with Malachi hopped up on Oblivion. He'd
torn her clothes to shreds, beaten her, and he was raping her like
an animal while he drained her."

I gasped and my whole body started shaking. I
couldn't believe what that vampire had wanted to do to me. Dragon
pulled me onto his lap. He brushed my hair away from my face and
placed small kisses on my lips, forehead, and cheeks then hugged me
tightly. I think both of us needed the comfort. "He will never get
close to you again. You don't need to worry about him anymore,"
Dragon promised vehemently with his hand holding my head so that my
cheek was pressed against his. Rage poured out of him through the
bond. When he pulled back his eyes were the brightest red I'd ever
seen. The dragon wanted out and it wanted blood. "Malachi will
never have another chance to take you from me again.”

When we had calmed down enough to listen
again, Dragon nodded to Rook asking him to finish his recount of
the previous night. "When you entered the room he spat her blood at
you then you flung him out onto the dance floor. Before he could
attack, the dragon erupted from your body and cooked him." Rook
took a deep breath and let it out again. "I have to tell you, I was
damn glad to see the dragon, but given the circumstances for his
arrival I thought it best to set the clock back. I didn't know if
the dragon would come out again. I was worried I might take away
his only chance at freedom, especially when he didn't come out the
second time. I knew you saw the Oblivion vile and thought surely
that would push you over the edge. But the dragon didn't come out
to attack Malachi."

"It was the blood," Dragon told Rook who
looked at him curiously. "The missing puzzle piece we talked about
yesterday. It was Serafina's blood. The first time around, Malachi
spat her blood in my face. I must have gotten some of it in my
mouth. The second time he didn't have a chance to take her blood
let alone spat it at me. That's why the dragon couldn't come out
even though he was burning with rage. When we were on the terrace
last night I drank from Serafina for the first time. The instant I
tasted her blood the spell broke and the dragon was free."

Dragon tightened his hold on me and looked
into my eyes. "'That which you hate the most shall save us all in
the end.' That was what my mother told me when I asked her why she
invited you here. I didn't understand then, but now it's so clear.
The thing I hate the most is my need to feed off of others and
taking your blood was the thing that saved us all." He kissed me
briefly then looked back to Rook. "Even if the dragon hadn't woken
up later, you did the right thing. Serafina never would have
recovered from that poison. Thank you Rook, I don't know what I
would do without you."

Rook inclined his head to Dragon. "It was my
honor to serve you as always. I'm glad it worked out as well as it
did. What do you plan to do about Malachi?"

I felt mixed emotions coming from Dragon and
got the feeling he hadn't wanted Rook to bring up that particular
topic in front of me. He looked at me briefly then answered Rook.
"I have already issued a challenge for tonight through Garrek."

Rook nodded like it was what he had expected
but I needed to understand what was going on. "What exactly does
that mean?" I looked at both of them and neither one seemed to want
to explain.

Finally Dragon made a defeated sound and
turned to face me. "I was planning to tell you about this after
Garrek confirmed the challenge has been accepted. While Malachi was
in our territory he was subject to our laws. Under our laws, any
wronged party can issue a challenge. In the past challenges took
place in the open, usually because the wronged party lashed out in
the heat of the moment. Now, we must hide challenge matches from
humans so we have The Pit, an underground fight arena. Challenges
fought in The Pit are fights to the death."

I think my heart stopped beating for a moment
and I was having trouble breathing. "You plan to fight Malachi to
the death? Tonight?"

"I cannot let him get away with what he did
to you. I don't care if he knew who you are or not. He came into
our territory and tried to harm one of our people. I would kill him
for touching anyone under my protection. The fact that it was you
he chose only adds flames to my rage." His expression told me he
would find it very satisfying to wipe Malachi off the face of the
planet.

"But what if you lose?" The thought of him
dying was too much for me to even consider.

"If I let what he did slide, I would be seen
as a weak coward. Then I would have hundreds of shapeshifters
lining up to challenge me. But even if that weren't true, I would
still challenge him. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I
didn't."

Before I could say anything Rook interrupted.
"Serafina, you must understand that we are not human, and we do not
play by human rules. Normally members of other races would fall
under interspecies law and, except in extreme situations, we would
have to go through the council to file charges against them.
However, the treaties we have with the vampires state that any
vampire who enters our territory is subject to shapeshifter
laws.

Technically, the only thing Malachi did was
take over your mind, and that isn't something the vampires consider
a crime. In fact, the faster they can invade someone's mind the
more respect they earn from their peers. In this timeline he didn't
have a chance to rape you and he could just claim he planned to
take the Oblivion himself. If you were just a human dancer under
our protection, we might ask for another kind of punishment,
because this challenge could potentially be the catalyst for
another war with the vampires. But you aren't just any human. You
are Dragon's mate. You are the Dragon Queen. By putting his hands
on you and invading your mind, Malachi's actions warrant a personal
challenge from your mate. Shapeshifter justice demands that Dragon
kill anyone who tries to harm his mate. There is no other
acceptable option. If Dragon did not issue the challenge he would
lose the respect of his people."

I did not like what I was hearing but I
understood there was nothing I could say that would change their
minds. "I want to be there. When do I need to be ready to go?"

Dragon stared at me intently for a moment
gauging my emotions. "The first match will begin at midnight. It
will be very dangerous for you to attend and I must warn you, the
fights will take place in a demon realm. You will see things that
will turn your stomach and you will want me to step in, but I won't
be able to. Mercy is a weakness in the demon worlds. Most demons
are sadistic animals who find rape and torture entertaining. And
the fight with Malachi will be brutal. I would rather you not see
me that way, but if you need to be there, I will not stand in your
way."

Meeting his gaze I let him see and feel the
truth of my statements. "Dragon, you are my mate and I love you. I
accept you for who and what you are. If you believe this is the
right course of action, then I will stand by you no matter what you
must do to keep us safe."

Dragon kissed me passionately letting me feel
his pride and love for me, making me forget everything but the feel
of his lips and the slide of his tongue along mine.

After several moments Rook cleared his
throat. "You'll have plenty of time for the honeymoon later. Right
now we need to get ready for the party." He was having trouble
holding back his laughter. "I'm going to show myself out. There're
a few things I need to check on before we head out tonight."

Rook stood to leave and was already striding
towards the door when Dragon asked him to wait a moment so he could
walk him out. The shutters opened at that moment and I stepped out
onto the terrace to get some fresh air. I lit some torches and
leaned on the railing while I waited for Dragon.

I followed Rook into the foyer and shut the
door so that Serafina wouldn't overhear our conversation. Sensing
something was up Rook gave me a questioning look.

"Something has been bothering me and I'd like
you to look into it," I explained. "Why would Malachi attack
Serafina? Even if he thought she was just a dancer and wanted to
get his rocks off. Why would he risk punishment when he could jump
back through the portal and do the same thing in one of Travali's
clubs without any consequences?"

"I've been thinking about that myself and I
keep coming back to the same two options. He could have wanted to
hurt you if he'd somehow heard that you've been spending time with
her. I believe that is most likely since he wouldn't think it was
possible for you to find your mate. Also he would be more willing
to risk punishment for an offense against a dancer than he would
for an offense against a mate. The other option is that he knew
she's your mate and he was trying to take her out of the picture
before she could help you break the curse." Rook's face was just as
grim as mine. Neither one of us liked either option because they
both meant that someone was leaking information to the vampires.
"Can you think of anyone that might want to help the vampires get
rid of Serafina?"

I shook my head. "Scarlett is the only one
who's had a problem with Serafina that I'm aware of. But I don't
think she would go as far as betraying us to Travali to get rid of
her. Besides, Scarlett wanted the spell broken as much as any other
nightshifter and the information was leaked prior to it breaking.
She wouldn't have done anything that would prevent the curse from
being broken."

"I'll do some digging and see if I can come
up with anything. Meanwhile we're going to need increased security
measures until we find out who has been telling secrets. With
Garrek's wedding coming up we can't afford to have any security
breaches right now."

"Keep me updated."

I went back into the apartment and found
Serafina standing by the railing on the terrace.

My mind kept returning to what Rook had told
us. I could have died, or worse. If it hadn't been for Rook I'd
probably wish I were dead. Now I had the added worry of Dragon's
upcoming death match. I didn't want either of us to die, or to feel
the pain and grief the other's death would cause.

The wind was picking up as another storm
rolled in off the water. I was glad to be outside again and I
wished I had time to go downstairs to the beach. There was
something soothing about the waves even in the near darkness. I
focused on the sounds of the rushing water and let their hypnotic
ebb and flow calm me.

Dragon came up behind me and wrapped his arms
around my waist. "I know what you're thinking and it's never going
to happen. I will never allow you to leave me, and I will never
leave you, not even for death." His voice held a fierce
determination that I was sure made him a king with following.

I turned in his arms so that I could look him
in the eyes. "Not even you can control everything and everyone. We
live in a dangerous world. I know you don't want me to watch you
fight Malachi but I need to be there. Last night shook you as much
as it did me, but we cannot let fear dictate our actions. I
understand why you don't want me anywhere near Travali and Malachi,
but I refuse to live in a box. If I'm going to be your queen, then
I need to be strong and show our enemies that they cannot make me
run and hide."

He pulled me closer and kissed me. "That is
why I know you will be a magnificent queen. But keep in mind, I
won't be held accountable for what happens to anyone who even looks
at you the wrong way."

"I'll keep that in mind. It's about time for
me to meet your mother at The Gateway. What are your plans until
the ceremony?"

"I have to meet with Garrek briefly then I
need to finish the paperwork for the marriage license. Do you want
to take my name or do you want to keep your maiden name?"

"Hmm, Serafina Drake?" I mused. "I like the
sound of that, but I think I'll keep Leroux for my stage name."

His lips curved into a happy smile. He was so
handsome standing there in the soft light from the torches. I was
having trouble believing he really was mine; that in a few short
hours he would officially be mine forever. He kissed me again then
I slipped Solomon's ring on my finger to hide the mating mark and
Dragon escorted me to The Gateway to prepare for the ceremony. The
next time I saw him would be when I met him at the altar for our
wedding.