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A roar pierced the air and shook the foundation. Gamble didn’t know how he knew but every fiber of his being told him it was Arden and as if the universe needed to confirm it a strike of lightning shot down and struck the ground in the distance.
“That’s where I need to go.” The children he held clung to him and he gazed down at them, perplexed. He was certain his men were there. Fighting.
The people from the shadows just couldn’t be basic average humans. No, they had to be dragons. Gamble wanted to curse out the universe but every wasted breath was a missed opportunity to find somewhere safe to hide the children.
But there weren’t just dragons; werewolves and werelions weren’t far behind, attacking the people fleeing the ball. Blood splattered and bodies were struck down before they could even shift. Gamble turned and headed for the direction he knew Arden was in. If push came to shove, he’d figure out a new strategy but it was his only option. Who knew how many people they were up against?
A growl wrapped around Gamble. He didn’t need to turn around to feel the predator's gaze on him. Teeth snapped at his ankles and Gamble wished he’d at least brought a weapon with him. He dodged to the right just as the werewolf leapt for him. Gamble lost his footing and tumbled down making sure to tuck the children close to him as he took the brunt of the fall.
He wasn’t given a second to breathe as more than one growl now accompanied the wolf. Gamble pulled his magic to the surface and forced it out wrapping everyone that surrounded him into an illusion. They stood at the top of a mountain, the ice-cold wind crashing into them.
The wolves and lions sank to their stomachs, claws digging into the earth as they tried not to fall off a mountain they weren’t on.
Gamble let out a shuddering breath as he forced his legs to work. He had to keep moving. Another bomb went off and he flinched as another piece of the palace was destroyed. Gamble might not know the importance of a palace but he’d seen the look on Arden’s face as they walked around. He had many fond memories there and now they were being stripped away. The witch’s heart ached for his mate.
Running wasn’t possible. The best Gamble could muster was a quick walk. His calves were locking up along with his arm muscles. The children weren’t heavy, but added on the strain with his injuries, Gamble knew he needed to find a place quickly before he fell and doomed them all.
Gamble was cast into a shadow and he glanced up to see not one but two dragons. Both of them landed only a few feet from him. The wind from their wings nearly blew Gamble off his feet. He gritted his teeth as he fought to stay up. There was no more falling because if the witch went down one more time he might not be able to get back up.
Three more dragons appeared behind him. Gamble couldn’t wait to see who was on whose side. A deep red dragon opened its mouth, and every nerve ending in Gamble screamed for him to do something. He didn’t think as he forced more of his magic out. His vision blurred and still Gamble blanketed his illusion over all five dragons.
Dragons were a rare breed but if Ezra and Arden were anything to go off of, it took a lot more magic to trap one of them in an illusion. If Gamble was at a hundred percent, it might have been easy but he wasn’t. The strain only added to the pain he was in. Sweat dripped down his back as he fought to hold the illusion. Slowly the dragons’ eyes slitted and he turned his mouth up to the sky and let out a huge flash of fire.
Even not aimed at them, Gamble could feel the scorching heat of the flames and knew there would be no surviving if it had been aimed his way. He sucked in a shuddering breath as he wavered on his feet. Shaking his head, Gamble stumbled forward. All of them started shooting elements up in the air.
“No one said a witch would be here.”
Gamble turned on his heels and ground his teeth as his body protested moving that fast.
“Five dragons, that shouldn’t be possible,” another said. Two witches walked toward him and Gamble’s back stiffened.
He wove more magic and wrapped them in an illusion but a slow smile appeared on the man’s face and he shook his head just as the illusion was shattered.
“Fuck,” Gamble groaned. He stumbled back, trying to catch his breath. He had no idea how much longer he could hold the illusion on the dragons, not when he was steadily working on the one around the children. And if the witch broke the one on the kids, they’d see the carnage once more. He might not be able to do much, but he’d spare them the sight of bloodshed for as long as he could.
“I thought we’d only be up against a bunch of shifters,” the woman said.
“What coven are you from?” the man asked.
Gamble glanced over his shoulder and he was still a few yards from the gardens.
“Should watch us instead.”
Gamble turned away from them as he thrust them both into another illusion, dropping them off in the middle of the ocean as he ran past the dragons. The moment the illusion broke again, Gamble was ready with another. Shoving them in the rainforest. Illusion after illusion was shattered and it was taking a toll on Gamble.
His heart beat so hard that his already aching ribs throbbed. The witch tried to cast another illusion but his magic fizzled and before he could dodge, magic slammed into his leg. Gamble went down, only able to twist just enough that his back slammed into the unforgiving ground. His hold loosened on the children and they slipped from his arms and rolled to the side. They were still heavily trapped in Gamble’s illusion, not even noticing that they’d fallen.
Air sawed in and out of Gamble’s lungs.Fuck, no time to rest.He shoved his elbow into the ground and rolled over. His leg was numb. Yanking up his pants leg, he sucked in a sharp breath. A dark web crawled up his skin, spreading out like branches on a tree.
Panic set in. All the magic Gamble had learned was entirely on his own. Illusions had been his specialty; everything else had been placed on the back burner. Especially when he’d decided to work for a human crime family.
He’d royally fucked up. But there was no time to dwell on what he should have done. Stuck on the ground, he focused his magic on the witches again.
“Free them,” the man told his partner.
If they freed the dragons, Gamble knew he was done for. There would be nothing in this world to stop them, not with Arden busy. His breathing all but stilled as both witches drew closer.
“You could have escaped if you weren’t so busy saving them.” The man pointed to the children and Gamble scooted in front of them. The pain traveled from his calf up to his knee; it was now impossible to move it. The fear and panic built to new levels as fighting happened all around them and it was clear no one was going to come to their rescue.
