Page 49 of Taming the Kraken

“He’s fine. He just thinks you’re cute.” Alexa giggled as she watched Bella turn a dark crimson shade.

“Okay, that is just too adorable.” Brian’s lips curled up as he stared at the blushing beauty.

Alexa glanced between the two men who were looking at Bella differently than she’d seen them look at her before. Brian had yet to find his mate, and Mikah claimed he didn’t want a mate. But they seemed captivated with Bella. She was a very beautiful young woman. She had an air of elegance about her but also needed protection. Maybe it was the vulnerable side of her that made their beasts interested? Maybe they were both curious and fascinated with the unique dragon, but she had never seen either man look at someone like that before.

Alexa watched as Bella covered her face, trying to hide her rosy cheeks. This was when Mikah chuckled and a soft smile spread across his lips. Mikah sat in his chair, relaxed. His arms weren’t tense and he had a gentle look in his eyes. It was a rare moment to see him so relaxed.

Alexa stood up to look around. There were a couple of darkened openings and she was curious about where she was.

“Alexa,” Mikah suddenly said, standing up from his seat.

Alexa turned to look at him. His serene look was gone, and he was back in protection mode. He really needed to have more time when he wasn’t constantly worrying about her.

“I’m just going to walk around. Sit down and relax. We’re in Shiva’s domain. It is safe, right?” Alexa looked over at Bella, who nodded her head.

“She is very safe,” Bella said sweetly.

“It doesn’t matter. I’ll get anxious with you out of my sight.” Mikah went to take a step toward her but Alexa's eyes widened with an idea.

“Oh let’s try something. I’ll walk away, and let’s see if Bella is able to keep you calm.” Alexa could see the disapproving look on his face.

“Why? What’s the point of that?” Mikah didn’t like to play these types of games.

Alexa clicked her tongue. “Because I want to know. I’m curious.”

Brian chuckled and stood up. “I’ll go with her, Mikah. Humor her before we have a temper tantrum on our hands.”

Alexa grinned and shrugged. “I’m not opposed to it to get my way.” She took a couple of steps away and froze. High-pitched screaming pierced her ears. She looked back at the others, who didn’t seem to hear it. Then everything shifted and the air changed.

Alexa looked around her. There were children running down a dirt street, laughing and chasing each other. She could see people buying produce from stands, and there were people playing music. It looked to be some sort of celebration that everyone was enjoying. Her gaze traveled beyond the buildings that were surrounded by a tall, rusted steel wall. There was a blurry aura around the colossal walls that she assumed was a fortified barrier of sorts.

The village bore the scars of an older tragedy, the kind of ruin she knew from the apocalyptic movies she’d watched. The buildings had been patched rather than rebuilt, new metal bolted over burn-scarred stone, gardens planted in the shells of collapsed homes. She tried to place this moment on the timeline and couldn’t. But no one around her seemed to notice the damage anymore. They lived in it the way people live with an old wound, which meant they’d been rebuilding for a long time. Years and years from now. Centuries … maybe longer. Whatever catastrophe had come before, the world was still climbing out of it.

The laughter changed to shrill screams that cut straight through her. The barrier’s blur stuttered out, the wall burst open, and creatures unlike anything she’d ever seen poured into the village. They were mountainous, grotesque things, and they did not slow, did not choose, did not stop. They ripped people apart as they ran. Blood sprayed across the stalls where music had been playing a breath ago, and the celebration turned to chaos.

Several villagers rushed to meet the beasts, and swords manifested in their hands out of nothing, just like Raine’s. It made no difference. The enemy kept coming through the breach, and their numbers swelled past anything the defenders could hold. A young woman went flying and struck her head on a steel pipe, crumpling where she landed. As she lay there unconscious, a familiar shape leapt over her body and planted itself between her and the monsters.

It was a lycan. For a second, she thought it was Aedan, and something in her lurched, but the longer she stared, the more certain she became. The build was larger. The coloring was close but not the same. This was not her cousin.

“Get her out of here!” a man with a sword yelled as the creatures closed over him.

The lycan clamped its jaws gently into the back of the woman’s shirt while another villager rushed in to heave her across its shoulders. It held still just long enough for her to be secured, then fled, tearing away with the woman on its back. Behind it, what was left of the defense collapsed, and the monsters overran the streets.

Through the haze and the ruin, a single red eye glowed, its body lost in the debris. It was not searching the battlefield. It was fixed on her. That should have been impossible. This was a vision, and visions did not look back. Yet the eye held her, and a slow, deliberate malice pressed into her chest, as if the thing behind the dust wanted her to know she’d been seen.

Alexa had never felt true fear before. In that instant, her body simply stopped obeying her. Her heartbeat filled her ears, so loud it drowned out everything else, and the fear grew until it had a life of its own, devouring her the same way the beasts were devouring the village. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t look away.

The color drained from her face as her gaze swept the carnage. The children from moments ago were being dragged away by the beasts. Adults lay dead, their dark blood staining the ground. This wasn’t a battle between warriors. This was a slaughter. These were people who had simply been living their lives, and they were massacred or taken. Her gaze pulled back to one of the men defending the village just as a sword slid through him from behind.

“How could you betray us like this?” the man choked out, gurgling on his own blood. The sword he clutched flickered, its light dying with him.

“Alexa!” Mikah growled. It was as if she was in a trance, unresponsive. He looked into her eyes as tears pooled in them. He felt her body tighten, and she began to tremble. She was afraid. “Lex,” Mikah whispered. He wrapped her in his arms and leaned his head on hers. “You’re okay, Lex.”

“What happened to her?” Ken yelled as he made quick strides over to her. He grabbed onto her shoulder as Mikah growled at him menacingly. Ken narrowed his eyes at Mikah and reached out with his other hand to grip the bear's shoulder. “Mikah … be careful.” He took a deep breath to steady his own emotions, their eyes clashing in an unspoken battle. Bella grabbed onto Mikah, and Ken watched as the feral look diminished. Mikah released his grip and slowly nodded his head, allowing Ken to take Alexa into his arms.

Her body was trembling, her tears still pooling. He looked over her and glanced back at Mikah. He’d never seen something like this before.

“She’s having a premonition. It’s the first one she’s had.” Mikah shook his head and gripped Bella’s hand to control his emotions. “She’s scared. I’ve never …” Mikah’s voice cracked, and he couldn’t finish talking. He’d never seen her this afraid before, and it broke him. Thank goodness for Bella’s calming energy. It was the only thing keeping him sane.