Dragons lived long lives, much like vampires, so he must be lonely with no clan on this continent.
I averted my gaze when the dragon shifted back and pulled on some pants. He’d carried us from the location where the incubus landed. Thankfully the flight had been short and we’d seen no humans or magicals.
If what we all suspected was happening here, Vane had deliberately chosen a remote location, miles from the nearest settlement. When I scanned the area, there was nothing but rocky desert in every direction.
A rough track snaked away from the farm. No fresh tire marks meant Vane and his minions would almost certainly travel back and forth via portals.
“There are magical wards and illusion spells,” Olaf told us. “Even Kenji couldn’t breach them, but now that your witch mate has bonded with her final consort, we should be able to bypass the wards.”
“You knew about this place?” Maverick said, a hint of anger in his voice.
“I’ve known about it for some time, but until Kenji came and told me Vane had kidnapped his witch, I’d not tried to bypass the wards.”
“Did Vane take someone you care for?” I asked. It was becoming clear the mage enjoyed collecting rare magicals, and dragons were possibly the rarest of them all.
“Not someone. Something.” A plume of smoke drifted skyward as the shifter exhaled. Heat radiated from him, making the air hotter than it normally would be at this time of the morning. I stepped under a large tree, glad for the shade. Even with a protection spell in place, my skin was beginning to burn.
“Some of your gold stash?” The incubus squinted in the bright sun. “Seems like you have plenty of that already.”
“No, not gold. Something far more precious than gold. Dragon eggs.”
My jaw dropped in surprise.
“Baby dragons in eggs?” Zane seemed intrigued. “So your females lay eggs?” His eyes widened.
Maverick shoved him hard. “Don’t ask such personal questions!”
“A female dragon lays eggs once a millennium. The eggs hatch when the time is right, which is something fate decides. Vane somehow located two eggs in a hidden cave deep in the northern islands. I was unaware of the dragon eggs’ existence until Kenji informed me.”
I had so many questions but now was not the time.
The tether in my chest yanked hard, provoking a pained wince. My mate was close, and while I still couldn’t pick up her exact location, I hoped that would change the minute we entered the building.
“Raven’s in trouble,” Kai gasped, his complexion a sickly green color. “I can feel her fear.”
“How do we get into this place?” Maverick’s leather pants split as his animal fought to break free. “My bear wants to kill them all.”
“Follow Kenji,” Olaf said, pointing to a spot near a tumbledown shed where the air shimmered unnaturally.Magic.
We followed the kitsune, and the moment we reached the area Olaf had pointed to, the farm and outbuildings disappeared to reveal a starkwhite building. Two mages carrying automatic weapons barely had time to blink before the dragon incinerated them.
“Cool trick,” Zane marveled as Maverick shifted and wrenched the door off its hinges.
“I’m coming for you, Vane,” I muttered under my breath before I shot inside.
26
Raven
Greeting my father-in-law while naked was up there on the top ten highlights of my miserable life. Along with that fun time when I met the mer queen. Oh, and the other majorly fun time when I melted the sea witch.
My life was rapidly turning into a daytime soap filled with ludicrous plot arcs and implausible disasters.
Cum still trickled down my thighs as I snatched the torn robe to cover my breasts. Alaric had moved so his body was in front of me, blocking my view of his odious father. He was lucky enough to still have his pants on.
“What exactly do you mean by useful?” Alaric asked Tiberius while I had a mini-meltdown.
Losing my amulet, the last link to my mother, haunted me. A tear slid down my cheek, but I brushed it away and attempted to focus. Now was not the time to lose my shit.
