Mate Of A Dragon Villain (Skeleton Key) (17 page)

She ran to Eldric. “What are you doing? Why are you just standing here?”

Eldric’s neck tensed. A shine entered his eyes. “I…have no right to interfere.”

Oh Christ. Eldric would let Hargreave kill Alger to make amends.

Being honorable was a good trait and everything, but
Christ
. “For God’s sake.”

She ran to Hargreave. She yelled for him to stop. He didn’t hear her. She couldn’t get at his shoulders with those big wings in the way. They moved with each punch thrown, and Amanda needed to get around them if she didn’t want to get hit.

She grabbed for his hands, getting blood on herself, and nearly getting punched in the process, but she eventually got his attention. “Don’t kill him! Don’t kill him. It’s over. It’s over.”

Hargreave panted for breath. Alger was still conscious, but his face was bloody and swollen. He wasn’t so handsome now. “It’s not over until he is dead!”

“No, no, look at me.”

Amanda got blood on Hargreave’s face when she grabbed him by the cheeks and turned his head, forcing him to look at her. The fire was still in his eyes, but her heart clenched painfully tight, like rusty wires were wrapping around it and squeezing hard, when she saw what could have been the helpless, hurting boy he’d been in that prison.

She spoke calmly, as softly as she could, needing to keep him with her, instead of going back to that dark place. “It’s over. You’re safe with me. All right? I promise.”

A choked noise left Hargreave’s throat. He shook his head, but Amanda couldn’t let him regress.

“Listen to me, please. You need to forgive him. No, keep looking at me. Don’t turn away.”

“He doesn’t deserve forgiveness.”

Hargreave launched another hard punch to Alger’s face. A bit more blood smattered from his flat-looking nose. Alger groaned from the pain. He looked like he was in agony, but he wasn’t so much as lifting his hands to fight back.

In fact, his hands were clenched into the material of his leggings, as though forcing himself to not raise his arms even in defense.

Amanda thought of every single Dr. Phil episode she’d ever seen. “Forgiving him doesn’t mean what he did to you was all right. You hear me? It doesn’t. It just means that you can let go, that you can…I don’t know, live your life without having to think about him, or your past, controlling you. I will help you. You can lean on me if things ever get rough, and I promise I will be there, but please, don’t kill him.”

Hargreave was silent for a moment, still glaring down at Alger, snarling, showing off the sharp points of his teeth. “Why spare his life? Why bother with him at all?”

Amanda looked back at Eldric, who stood exactly where he’d been this entire time. The man looked like he’d been left there in chains, his face pained.

“You need to spare his life, because then Eldric will owe you a hell of a lot more than he already does.”

Amanda turned away from Eldric’s hopeful face. Hargreave’s frown wasn’t much better.

“Eldric is honorable, remember? Now that he knows all this, he will help you rebuild, he’ll give back as much as he can that his father took.”

“As much as he can?”

Amanda bit her lips together. She wasn’t about to get into the nuances of this because there wasn’t time. She knew there was no way Eldric could give back everything his father had taken. Too many people relied on Eldric, on their king to care for them. If he suddenly went into farmlands of the people who had nothing to do with what happened to Hargreave’s family and started taking their livestock, nothing would be accomplished except more war and fighting.

“You still have a big fortune. You can both work something out. Trade goods and anything else each of you needs. I’m sure Eldric will help with the animals, right?”

She looked to Eldric. He nodded. “I will. I give my word.”

Hargreave still appeared distrustful.

Amanda needed to give him that final push. “If you spare his life, he won’t just owe you whatever help he can give, he will owe you the life of the man he loves. That is a debt he can never repay. You know this as well as he does.”

Because Amanda knew for a fact Hargreave would feel the same way if anyone had ever saved Amanda’s life.

Hargreave snapped his attention to her, and he smiled, a soft, sad thing. “You know me so well.”

Amanda sighed, relief pouring over her like cold water. “So, you’ll let him live?”

Hargreave nodded. “What was that expression you told me before? One for the road?”

Amanda didn’t understand until Hargreave grabbed Alger by the cuff and punched him again.

Alger covered his jaw with his hand, his face twisted in pain, but Hargreave kept smiling as he got to his feet, pulling Amanda up with him.

Amanda wished he hadn’t punched Alger again, but she was too relieved he was sparing the man’s life to care. Besides, Hargreave had kind of earned those punches.

“You will spare him?” Eldric asked.

Hargreave kicked Alger’s boot, stepping away from him. “Yes, yes. I know you would only give him a lush prison with good food and your company for punishment, nothing compared to my dwellings, but I’m sparing him, and that worm of an advisor. I don’t want their lives. I want you to fuck off out of mine.”

Eldric nodded, moving quickly to stand over Alger. “Yes, of course.”

“And your spies in my home. Get them out.”

Eldric nodded again, though Amanda thought she saw his brows furrow slightly.

He might not know what Hargreave was talking about, and was just agreeing to anything at this point for Alger’s sake.

Amanda only then realized Udolf was huddling in the corner. She felt another twinge of pity for him, but considering everything that had happened, and how it was more than likely he was the one to plant those spies and assassins, he’d gotten off light.

“We will be leaving now,” Hargreave said. “I trust your men will not interfere?”

Eldric bent down, putting his hand on Alger’s shoulder. The two men looked at each other, with Eldric laying a gentle touch to Alger’s bloody cheek with the back of his hand. “They will not harm you.”

“Good. I will also take twenty cattle. Good ones for breeding, as well as twenty horses. My mate and I will need something to ride if we won’t be flying home.”

Eldric nodded again. “Of course.”

Hargreave hesitated. Amanda figured he wanted to ask for something else, but she also thought he was just looking to pick a fight, searching for an area where Eldric would disagree with him and deny him what he wanted.

Eldric seemed too defeated for that, and Hargreave looked confused by it.

He eventually looked down at her, that fragility back in his eyes. He sucked it back. “Take your bag, sweet. We are going home.”

A
manda had only ever ridden
a horse as a little girl in a carnival, and then later tried it out when she wanted to do her research on what it had felt like. Neither times had she been able to get used to it. Riding next to Hargreave, however, took her mind off of the enormous animal between her legs.

All she could think about was the man beside her.

“How do you feel?”

He’d been quiet since they’d left the castle. He’d made a couple of other small demands. They had enough food and water for the journey back, as well as some blankets and other supplies to make shelter with when they had to stop for the night. Hargreave even had a spear from Eldric’s armory strapped to his back. Eldric had given him basically everything he could carry, and Hargreave hadn’t stopped frowning since they’d left.

“Hargreave?” Amanda reached for him, touching his arm briefly before pulling back. She couldn’t keep her hands on him for too long. She was still trying to keep her balance on the horse beneath her.

He blinked and looked at her, as if she’d just pulled him out of a trance.

“Are you okay?”

“I…” Hargreave looked down at the animal he rode, then at the horizon ahead of them. Long, flat grassy plains, then the blue mountains in the distance they had to get through. “I don’t know.”

Amanda bit her lips together. “It’s okay, you know? This all happened so fast.”

He shook his head. “It seems…too easy. I really wish I had killed that prick.”

Amanda smiled, reaching for him again, and letting her hand linger a little longer than she probably should have. “I’m glad you didn’t, though.”

Hargreave stopped his horse. Amanda didn’t give her horse the command to stop, but it seemed to be following Hargreave’s lead.

Hargreave reached for her hand, holding it tightly in his own before he brought her knuckles to his lips. “And if it makes you happy, I would spare him again. Though, as much as I adore you, I will never stop being gleeful that Edward is dead.”

Amanda grinned at him. “Good. I’m glad that stupid asshole is dead, too.”

Hargreave’s eyes widened, and he burst out laughing. “A little killer resides in you, I think.”

“No,” Amanda said. “At least, I hope not, but I can still be glad he’s gone, too. He didn’t sound like a nice guy.”

To say the least.

Hargreave kept right on smiling at her, which Amanda took to be a good thing as their horses continued to move on.

“You know, I have to say, it’s really interesting seeing you on a horse. I don’t think I’ve ever pictured this.”

“Oh?” Hargreave glanced at her, his eyes dancing. “And how did you see me? In flight with a weapon in my hands at all times?”

“Well, basically, yes.”

Hargreave chuckled. “I am sorry. I should be flying you home. That is the proper way, but this will do for now. Not a bad wedding gift for my mate, if I do say so myself,” Hargreave half turned on his horse and looked back at all the animals they had following them. He got more than the twenty cattle he’d asked for, and Amanda had to admit, she loved the horse she was riding. Eldric had given her a white horse, and congratulated her softly for her mating.

Hargreave had taken almost a full hour inspecting the horse, making sure the shoes were on right, that it had a good temperament and wouldn’t buck her off. He did almost the same thing with the saddle.

Yeah, he wasn’t entirely ready to forgive Eldric, but Amanda didn’t blame him. This tense peace they’d come to was better than nothing.

“I feel just like Daenerys Targaryen on this horse.”

Hargreave looked at her. “The warrior queen from your tales?”

“Not mine, but I brought the books. You can read them when we get home.”

“Ah, what gifts my mate gives to me.”

“They’re the leather bound special edition copies!” Amanda said. “It’s basically true love that I’d even let you touch them.”

Hargreave laughed again. “Yes, well, when we make camp for the night, I will show you how I devote my true love to you.”

Amanda shivered. It was rocky, and she hoped things worked out between Hargreave and Eldric, but this wasn’t a bad way to start her happily ever after. “Can’t wait.”

T
he End

G
arret Maxwell lifted
his head at the sound of that panicked scream, as did Jax and Dane, their ears twitching in the direction of the noise.

Garret looked at them. "They've found her. Move!"

They did. They ran with him, but they weren't as fast. He was the fastest of his men, especially now, and he tore through the trees and shrubs. Branches snapped off as he charged through the woods in his most powerful shape, his tail whipping out behind him as he ran to his woman.

Dennis had found her. That cock-sucking asshole was going to pay. If she were hurt or dead, Garret wouldn't let
him
die, not even when he begged for death!

Dane and Jax called out to him, but he ignored them. His human mind meshed with the animal within him He was on a mission. They both were, he and the beast inside. The scent of his woman and Dennis was getting stronger. Not just them, but others as well. Dennis had brought more of his pack of bastards to help him take out one girl, like cowards. They'd come through here, and he could still hear the frightful shrieking.

They were playing with their prey before they decided to kill her.

The sound of her screams sent his animal into a frenzy. It was as strong and powerful as if someone had thrown blood into his face and Garret was allowing it. He didn't fight it. If it pushed him faster and made him more dangerous, then so be it.

He roared as he spotted Dennis and his men. Laurence, Dennis's beta, was inches away from piercing his puny claws into Garret’s woman's chest. Pathetic they may be, but humans were as soft as warm butter. He would spill her blood all over the ground, and it could kill her. Garret was suddenly flying. In what seemed like slow motion, Laurence turned, his eyes widening, as if he honestly had not seen this coming.

Dennis roared and tried to rush at him, but Garret was faster. He ran through Dennis's wolves and leapt at Laurence's throat.

The beta had no choice but to lift his arms and claws to fend off the attack.

Garret crashed into him and they tumbled to the ground, rolling and snapping their teeth at one another.

Kill him. He was going to
fucking kill him
. Garret could smell his woman on this piece-of-shit beta, and he was going to rip his skin from his face and body if that's what it took to remove the scent.

Then he'd force the flesh down Laurence's throat and make him choke on it.

Garret's woman screamed again, stealing his attention away from Laurence. Jax had arrived. Big and imposing—bigger than Garret even—he had his wings spread out over her body protectively as Dennis and his men attacked. It kept her safe from the claws and teeth, but it also kept her from running.

It was good to have a dragon in his pack. It really was.

It was a mistake to look away from his opponent, however, as Laurence lifted his muzzle and clamped it down on the side of Garret's throat.

His fur was thick enough to prevent the teeth from doing more than pricking him, but that wild, animalistic need to fight and kill, to defend himself, returned with a vengeance. Garret's already large teeth lengthened in his mouth, becoming sharper and stronger. Spinning, he twisted until his throat was away from those smaller teeth, and then he bit down hard on Laurence's muzzle.

The beta yelped and cried out, but Garret didn't let him go. He tasted blood in his mouth and the frenzy increased. He would bite the top half of his face right off!

Something slammed into his side, pushing him off Laurence, and he landed hard. Aside from skin and fur in his mouth, he had not taken Laurence's nose with him.

He rushed to his feet. Dennis stood between him and Laurence. Laurence was ignoring the woman now. Good. Garret risked another glance to the side. Dane was there, in his alpha bear shape, and he was doing an excellent job of keeping the fight between Jax and the others fair. He noted his woman still safe under Jax's wing. She was on her belly, arms over her head, but still clearly alive and safe. He could hear her heart hammering beneath all the noise, and he zeroed in on it until he could almost
see
it in his mind's eye.

Garret glared at Dennis. "I will ruin you for this." His words were only somewhat slurred by his overly large teeth.

Dennis snarled back at him, his large teeth snapping. "You already did."

Garret opened his mouth and roared, a noise that shook the birds from their nests and would put Dane to shame. He slammed his fists down onto the ground before he lunged.

Dennis shocked him by not meeting him head-on. Instead, he dodged to the side. At first, Garret thought it was just the man's cowardice coming through. No, Dennis was making a run for Jax and his woman.

She lifted her head from her arms, her hazel eyes flying wide as she noted the beast that charged to her. Jax was too busy fending off the betas that snapped at him, and he would be taken off guard.

Garret chased Dennis down, claws kicking up dirt, grass, rock, and pine needles as he launched himself at the other alpha.

He didn't have time to get his momentum going, and he couldn't catch Dennis like this.

He was almost on top of them!

"Jax!"

Jax looked over at the alpha that charged at him with all his body weight, and Garret noted the way the dragon braced himself. It wouldn't be enough.

Garret snapped his teeth, and by some miracle, he caught Dennis's tail, bit down hard enough that he almost took it right off when he pulled back.

Some of his teeth popped out of his mouth but his adrenaline pumped so high he felt no pain. Dennis howled as he was yanked back, losing most of the skin and fur on his tail.

He veered off to the side.

Garret spat his teeth out, and the fur and skin and blood. That had been gross, even for him.

Dennis yowled as he climbed to his feet, looking back at his tail, and then at Garret, his muzzle crinkling in pain and rage. He sneered when Garret spat again, as if the taste of Dennis on his tongue disgusted him.

It did, and Garret was glad Dennis took the hint.

Dennis called out to his men, who had stopped their attack.

"Fall back."

Laurence growled, his hackles raised high. "No."

The hair on Dennis's back, and what was left of his tail, stood up as he roared at him. "I said fall back!"

Laurence cringed, practically giving Dennis his belly right then and there.

The betas, who were still too close to Garret's woman for his liking, spread out, eyes still on their target. Glowering and growling, they fell back to stand behind their alpha.

"You should stay, Dennis," Garret said, and now his monstrous voice was slurred thanks to a lack of some of his teeth. They'd grow back in a few days, but for now, with his adrenaline plummeting, he was throbbing in pain, could taste blood, and he wanted to fight. "We could end this right now. I might even make it quick for you."

He wasn't going to make it quick.

Dennis snarled at him. "If I ever see her again in my territory, I'll rip her apart."

"Not your territory!" Garret yelled, then he roared until his throat hurt, spittle flying from his maw.

Laurence, coward that he was, trembled even as he glared. It would be wonderful if he started to cry, but he didn't.

Dennis didn't blink.

He turned his back on Garret and walked toward the darkness of the trees. He did it so calmly and quietly, as if Garret and his men posed no threat at all.

The insult of being disrespected like that nearly sent Garret into a flying rage. He moved to chase after his enemy and finally put him in his place.

"Garret!"

Jax's voice stopped him.

He glanced over his shoulder, and Jax glared at him.

He wasn't the strongest, even as a dragon, but Garret trusted his judgment; that's why he was second-in-command.

Garret glanced down at his woman, who was still trembling. There was the faint scent of urine in the air, and Garret was pretty sure it hadn't come from Laurence when he'd roared at the man.

Garret released a lumbering growl, before rolling his shoulders and forcing himself to be calm.

So many years of searching for her, just to find her like this, and so close to his home, too.

If he'd waited until tomorrow, been patient enough to wait for a decent hour to reveal himself, he wouldn't have heard her screams for help. Dennis would have reached her first and Garret would have been too late. All this would be new to her. Not a good first impression, especially for a human, and Garret was so big, and Jax was bigger and had scales and wings. Garret wondered what this human woman was seeing as she looked at him.

She was still on the ground, her face and body dirty, and her amber-brown hair was in a knotted mess with leaves and twigs sticking out at odd places. It might have once been in a bun, or some other hairstyle, but he couldn't tell. She trembled more violently as Garret approached.

He did look like the creatures that had just attacked her. His arms were long, long enough that when he bent down to run on all fours, his top side was taller than his back side. Her entire head could easily fit in the palm of his hand, and each of his claws were as long as her fingers, though much sharper and thicker, of course.

Then there was his face and muzzle, like that of a wolf, only one from nightmares.

He thought perhaps she'd be less frightened if he made himself appear as a real wolf. Then he could make himself look almost cute to the human eyes, especially if she happened to be a dog lover.

That had been the original plan. After he found her, he was going to show her his wolf shape, and prove to her that he could be trusted and sweet and protective of her. He'd planned on showing her
this
monstrous-looking shape only after she trusted him, when she, hopefully, would not fear him. Now it was too late.

"No one will hurt you," he said.

She tensed, her hazel eyes flying wide so he could see the whites all around them and a ring of bright blue. That didn't seem so common. He hoped she also had an uncommon sense of forgiveness after this, but she would learn to trust him. Even now, she must be feeling the pull between them as the mate of an alpha.

He certainly felt it for her. She was beautiful.

He held out his hand to her, but she flinched away from it as she continued to stare and say nothing.

He didn't appreciate the way she continued to hide under Jax's wing.

He looked to his friend, and Jax got the message and removed his wing.

A light squeak escaped her throat when she realized the protection she'd been using was leaving her.

"I will not hurt you. You are safe now."

His woman turned her attention back to him. She pushed herself to her wobbly knees, but still did not take his hand. She only looked at it.

"What's your name?"

She swallowed. Her heartbeat was quick, but it was proof she was safe, that she was here with him. It soothed the beast inside.

"Miranda Swanson."

Nice name. Garret had known her last name, but her father had lied about her first name. Of course, he'd suspected that. That's why he'd had such trouble finding her when the man vanished.

"Is this real?" She reached out and tapped lightly on the dark padding of one of his fingers before pulling back, observing, as though waiting for Garret to vanish in front of her.

Or attack.

"It's real. Please."

He wanted her to touch him again. That light tap had jolted him in the best possible way. Warmth radiated through him. His mate was looking at him, was curious about him, and the beast within him was willing to curl in front of her and present his belly, as though to a beloved master for a pleasant scratch.

There had been no mistake. The searching had been worth it.

She touched him again, this time holding on to his finger and allowing Garret to help her to her feet. She was not a willowy girl, but she was lighter than air. He reminded himself again and again that her human nature made her small and fragile. It wasn't preferred to have a human mate, but this was his mate, and Garret would have to take extra care around her. He didn't want to break her.

Dane suddenly hissed, catching his attention. "Garret, look."

Dane pointed with one of his claws, and Garret glanced down.

A bright splotch of blood seeped through the thin material of the ugly teal dress she wore. It was blooming outward, spreading and becoming darker at the center.

"What?" Miranda looked down, saw the blood at her hip, and swayed on her feet. "Oh."

Her knees lost their strength, but Garret caught her before she fell. She was so small in his large hands, and suddenly so pale.

He'd thought the smell of blood was from the injuries he'd given to Laurence and Dennis.

Garret stared at his mate, an alien sense of helplessness freezing his muscles for a half second before he snapped himself out of it. He looked to his men. "Move!"

They started to run with him.