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I’m not naïve enough to take Uziah at his word in there. He’ll keep coming for me if only to get to Legion—whom he apparently wanted all along. This was never about me. I was a means to an end. A tool.
I certainly feel like one now.
Regardless of how safe I’ll be alone, I’m not about to be in an enclosed space with Legion. Not while I’m angry enough to strangle him—with my bare hands. The irony isn’t lost on me that I’ve come full circle, right back to entertaining the idea of actually killing my fated mate.
Instead, I start the car and hit the gas, spinning gravel as I drive off, and leave Legion Razginath in the rearview—forever.
Chapter 31
Legion
Ilet her go despite every cell in my body screaming at me to stop her. The way she looked at me—the devastation and accusation in her gaze burned a hole straight through a soul I didn’t know I possessed. The only thing I want to do is chase her down and make her forgive me, whatever it takes. Unfortunately, the scores of Crimson Roses soldiers closing in on my position make that a very bad idea. I refuse to let them hurt her, which means dealing with them first and earning forgiveness later. At least, this way, she’ll live long enough to eventually, hopefully, stop hating me.
I watch the car drive off until it finally disappears, but all my focus is on the approaching gang at my back. They’ve been lurking in the woods since the moment we arrived. At first, I’d been confused over why they didn’t attack. But then Uziah made his offer. And his reveal.
My father wants my blood oath.
Now that I’ve refused to offer it voluntarily, he’ll try to take it by force.
Footsteps behind me tell me the enemy is done hiding.
I turn to meet them, sword drawn as I channel my guilt and loss into the rage my dragon is straining to unleash. Scales form along my arms and back, a half-shift that leaves me with a much stronger armor than the stuff I wore for Tori’s sake today.
Across the lot, Uziah stands amid a dozen vampires. They all watch me with a deadly stillness, waiting for his order.
“Last chance to come willingly, son.”
“I am not your son. And you will not have my blood oath. I would die first.”
His eyes glitter with the gauntlet I’ve thrown down. “That’s my least favorite option, but it’s your choice.” He nods to his men, and they attack at once, vampire speed blurring their bodies so that every counter-move I make is on instinct alone.
The power of gods and demons swims in my blood. The fury of my shadow beast is an unyielding madness as I give in to the hunger for blood—a hunger that apparently came from the male who sired me. A vampire god.
With rage fueling me, my sword cuts through the inexperienced vampire soldiers like paper. Their screams ring out, cut short by their swift death. One by one, they fall, and with each one I bring down, the shadow beast inside me rages hotter and brighter.
Bloodlust overtakes me until all I see is their blood to be spilled.
I lose myself to the battle, my mind nothing more than an algorithm for battle plans, constantly re-adjusting itself to the flesh I’ve yet to carve. When I’m finished, silence rings out, a clang of victory that leaves me empty and alone in the parking lot now littered with dead vamps. Their hearts lie beside their broken bodies.
I look down to find my sword clutched in a hand that’s half-man, half-dragon. Claws extend sharply from my scaly fingers, each one coated in blood. Black scales cover my arms, turning to flesh where my shoulder meets my chest.
The adrenaline lacing my blood finally wanes as thoughts of my mate eclipse everything else. She’s vulnerable. Not safe. I can’t let her leave, no matter how much she wishes I would.
I wipe my sword on my pants and sheath it then head for the road.
“If I can’t have you, I’ll take her.”
Uziah.
He vanished during the fight. I whirl, looking for him, but he’s hidden himself well among the trees behind the club.
“If you touch her, I’ll make you beg for death before I give it.”
“You’ll come to me eventually, boy. One way or another. It’s your choice how hard you make this decision.”
“Why don’t I come to you now?” I taunt. “Face me yourself. End this.”
He doesn’t answer.
