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“I’m homeschooled,” he answers.
“But what about friends? Don’t you want to go to school and hang out with your friends?”
He takes a few seconds to respond. “I may not be the heir, but I’m still a prince of the dragons. The people at school didn’t really want to be my friend because they liked me, they only liked my title. School was miserable, so I talked my parents into homeschooling.”
My heart goes out to him. “I was homeschooled too.”
“Right. I guess it makes sense since you weren’t allowed to leave the castle.” He keeps his attention on the road, surprisingly driving cautiously. “What about friends?”
“Does Cypress count?”
“That’s your younger brother, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then no. He doesn’t count.”
“No friends,” I admit. “But I don’t have your personality.”
Anybody who takes the time to get to know Evander would like him because of who he is and not because of his title.
Evander’s shoulders relax at my words. “I used to have friends, but then I found out they only wanted to use me for what I could give them. Though, I am glad you like me. Don’t worry. I won’t tell Stellan. We don’t want him to be jealous.”
I laugh, knowing he’s only teasing me. I relax into my seat, feeling more at ease than I was before.
Stellan and I may come from different worlds, but we’re more alike than I gave him credit for. Maybe my marriage will work out—I already adore his family.
“We’re friends,” I tell Evander. “And we’re also family, so that means you’re stuck with me.”
He smiles, keeping his eyes firmly on the road and both hands on the wheel. He opens his mouth to say something, but the sound of metal crunching and glass shattering cuts him off. The car swerves as he tries to regain control of the wheel. I look behind us, wondering what happened, and I see a large SUV with a smashed grill speeding as it comes at us. Not having enough time to react, I wrap Evander in a shield, knowing he’s not old enough to shift into a dragon yet. Does that mean he doesn’t heal as quick? I have to protect him.
The SUV makes contact with the side of our car this time and my head hits the window with a loud thump. My vision blurs, but I force myself to stay alert. It’s all I can do to keep my protective shield wrapped around Evander.
Somehow, Evander manages to keep the car on the road. I wonder why he isn’t pulling over, but these men must be chasing us. My head hurts, but I send a burst of magic, feeling the other driver out.
“There are three dragon shifters in that car,” I tell Evander, though my words sound slurred, even to me.
“Are you okay?” he asks, still keeping his eyes on the road.
“I’m fine,” I reply, though I’m not sure if it’s the truth. My vision is still a little blurry. I hit my head pretty hard, but I know it won’t take long to heal. I can already feel my magic at work, lessening the pain.
The SUV hits again and my head once again hits the window. My vision goes dark around the edges and I know the only reason I’m still awake is because of my magic. Our car spins out of control and I think I feel another hit from the SUV, but it all happens so fast that I can’t be sure. I’m too focused on keeping my shield around Evander to notice anything else. I have a vague thought that I should shield myself too, but I can’t get my brain to work properly to put a shield around myself.
When our car comes to a stop, Evander’s door is ripped open by a tall man and I watch him be yanked out of the car. I put all my energy into the shield around him, knowing the man won’t be able to hurt him as long as the shield is in place.
A second later, my own door is open. It creaks loudly. My side of the car has the most damage. The only reason the guy can open the door is because of his dragon shifter strength. He uses a knife to cut my seatbelt and then pullsme out of the car. My head hits the side of the car once again and everything spins. I try to gain my balance, but the guy loses patience and ends up throwing me over his shoulder and carrying me.
I call for my magic, but it’s slow to respond. It’s taking everything I’ve got just to keep the shield around Evander. I do manage a spark. The guy carrying me lets out a yelp and drops me in a heap onto the concrete road. My head hits first with a loud thump and my ears begin to ring. I know I’ve only got seconds to do something. With everything I’ve got, I call for my magic, aiming it at our three attackers. I don’t know if it’s enough to knock them out, but I pray it is. I can’t open my eyes to see what happened, but I force myself to stay conscious enough to make sure Evander’s shield is still in place. No matter what, I have to protect my brother-in-law.
Stellan
“We’ve got to go.” Dad stands abruptly from the long, conference table. He even cuts off one of the council members who is speaking.
I stand when I see the look of terror on my dad’s face. I’ve never seen him look so pale before. I don’t have time to question him before he rushes toward the doors that lead outside. I follow him and the moment he’s out, he shifts to his dragon form and takes to the sky. I follow him, doing the same thing.
“What’s going on?” I ask through the telepathic link that dragon shifters share.
But he doesn’t respond. Instead, his eyes are scanning below, like he’s looking for something. He must find whatever it is because he dives down. I follow him, getting agood look at whatever is below. That’s when I see my car, or at least what’s left of my car.
