Page 107 of Dragon’s Rebel

Then she added, “After all, that makes me the princess of this fairy tale.”

Thorne gave a burst of surprised laughter. He squeezed her hand back. “I’m good with that.”

They were nearing the place where the passageway went through the foundation of the house and turned into the underground tunnel. Suddenly, behind them, Thorne heard the padding of heavy paws, followed by a furious snarl.

“Hellhounds,” he muttered.

“Fuck it all,” Rebel said. “They must have tracked us.”

Thorne stopped and turned. There was no way they could outrun a hellhound. They’d have to fight. The hellhound emerged out of the shadows, eyes glowing.

It was surrounded by a magical shield, a shimmering bubble of red.

Fuck it all twice.

Thorne blew fire—stronger and harder than he’d been able to do it before. The hellhound flinched back, but the fire was absorbed into the shield before it could do any damage.

A shield against dragonfire. Damn Corwyn and his Draken-proof spells.

Thorne flexed his fingers and his skin rippled blue, claws extending from his finger ends. His dragon was almost back. If he could only hold on until he could Change, they might still get away.

“Rebel!” he said. “Go on!”

She was right behind him. “Not without you!”

He shook his head. “It’s the Seal that’s important.”

Her voice was low and intense. “Not to me.”

The hellhound was stalking closer, about to strike. “I’ll be okay!” he said. “Go!”

He heard her swear, and then her retreating footsteps. The hellhound lunged, jaws snapping.

Thorne flung out his hand, casting a magical shockwave. It knocked the creature back, slamming it into the next one coming behind it.

The lead hellhound tried to scramble to its feet, and he did it again. He hoped to hell he could keep this up until his dragon caught up with him. “Come on,” he murmured. “You can do it. I need you.”

He could feel his dragon remapping his neural pathways, squeezing its essence back into his body.

Can you hurry this up? he asked.

Great. Thorne slammed his magic into the hellhound again.

From beyond the tumbled hellhounds came a magical missile, trailing black fire. He ducked just in time and it deflected off his shoulder, burning through his shirt and gouging a furrow through his skin, leaving it raw and blistered. It detonated against the wall, sending exploding rock scattering like shrapnel.

Instantly, he was bleeding from a dozen cuts.

Fucking sorcerer. He could just make out D’Amboise behind the hellhound. His hands were glowing red.

Come on, buddy, he said to his dragon, backing down the passage. Come on.

D’Amboise threw another missile. Thorne deflected it with a magical shield, and it hit the roof of the passage just where it transitioned to the underground tunnel.

There was an explosion of fiery stone, and the roof of the tunnel collapsed.

Rebel felt the passage shake and heard the crash of falling stone. Fear lanced through her heart. “Thorne!” she cried out.