The Fate of Her Dragon (3 page)

Alicia held her breath, not
sure what to make of what she was witnessing. Then she saw the look of utter
love and devotion in the Commander’s eyes as he took his son and leaned down to
kiss Kyndel on the cheek, and knew theirs was a match made in the Heavens. It
was something straight out the love stories Brenna was always reading and would
make what Alicia had to say just a little easier.

Following the MacLendons into
the house and taking a seat at the kitchen table next to Liam and Hannah,
Alicia prayed for a meteor to hit the house or some other tragedy that would
keep her from having to tell her story. Unfortunately, nothing happened, and in
no time at all Rayne and Kyndel were sitting across from her asking what was
going on.

She told her story the same
way she had less than an hour ago, but this time with no interruptions, even
though she could feel Liam about to jump out of his skin at her side. “And now
I am here to ask if you and the other Guardsmen will help me get Drago out of
that Goddess forsaken hole.”

Time seemed to stand still as
Rayne simply sat and stared at her. Alicia wanted to fidget, thought about
getting up and leaving, but just sat completely still and waited. It seemed
that was what everyone
was doing,
including Rayne’s usually very animated and opinionated mate, and it was
absolutely nerve racking.

Alicia decided to count to a
hundred in her head and had reached seventy-eight when the Commander finally
spoke. “I understand you believe the man,” he said the word like it had quotes
around it, “is my uncle, but that simply is not possible. My father and some of
the greatest Guardsmen to ever swing a sword moved the Heavens and earth to
find Drago and his men and they came up empty-handed. There was no sign of them
or magic or anything. They had simply disappeared. There is no way that whoever
is speaking to you is Drago MacLendon. I think we should call Kyra and have her
see if it is Cleland or one of his lackeys. That is a much more logical
explanation. I am sorry you wasted your time.”

She’d heard enough. It had
been a long couple of hours and an even longer couple of weeks and Alicia was
simply fed up. She was going to save the man that needed her help with or
without the ‘great Rayne MacLendon’s assistance, and then she was going to show
them all that she was not crazy. But first, she was going to have her say.

“I see where it would be hard
for you to accept. Hell, it was hard for me to deal with too. But imagine
having someone talking to you when you sleep, willing you to literally get out
of bed and traipse through the woods in the middle of the night to find them.
Imagine feeling like someone else’s life was in your hands but in this case, it
was someone you’d never met, never even seen, and they were telling you they’d
been trapped for a hundred years and you were their only hope of survival. Can
you imagine that, Commander? Can you fathom it?’ She didn’t wait for his answer.

“Well, I have lived it and I
am here to tell you that I will save him and I will prove that he is your uncle
because I believe what he’s told me. I can feel it here.” Alicia laid her fist
on her chest right over her heart. “And I know it with all that I am.”

She stood up and started to
the door then remembered what Drago had told her. Spinning around, she looked
up at the six foot five inch Dragon Guard Commander who’d also stood and was
apparently following her out the door. “And by the way, the man you are sure is
not
your uncle said to remind you that your first taste of whiskey was
from your father’s flask after he’d had too much to drink after the battle at
Hunter’s Cove. He also said to tell you that you have a scar on your left butt
cheek from falling down the ladder the next morning after passing out in the
hayloft. And I think he said that he covered for you while you were sick during
training that afternoon.”

Rayne stood motionless with a
look of utter shock on his face. Alicia waited exactly two heartbeats before
doing an about face and heading toward to door. Only Kyndel’s words stopped her
progress. “Holy shit! He
does
have a scar on his ass and he told me it
was from a sword wound.”

Alicia turned again and
wondered if it would be easier just to turn in circles until all of this mess
was over, but laughed when she saw the blush on Rayne’s cheeks and the
shit-eating grin on Kyndel’s face. The entire room erupted in laughter when the
sassy redhead added, “Sword fight
my
ass! No, I guess it’s actually
your
ass!” She laughed out loud. “Just wait until I tell the guys this story.”

“Kyndel…” Rayne growled.

Swatting his arm, Kyndel
laughed even louder. “Don’t you growl at me, ya big ol’ grumpy dragon. I can
tell from the look on your face the story is true.” Her laughter had all but
stopped. “And it’s obvious
no one
else knows that story, so what are you
gonna do to help Alicia?”

The Commander looked down at
his mate and then at Liam before coming back to Alicia. “We need to call
Melanie and Kyra and the rest of my Force, as well as Rory and his men. I’m
sorry I doubted you, but you have to understand…”

Holding up her hand, Alicia
cut off whatever the Commander was going to say. “It’s okay. I understand.
Trust me, none of this shit makes sense.”

“I do have another question,”
Rayne paused, turning to Liam and Hannah. “Can you two begin rounding everyone
up?” He then added, “Oh, and will your mother and sisters be able to help, as
well?” He directed his question to Hannah.

“You know it. They’re just
waiting for you to say the word.”

“Consider it said,” was his
answer as he turned his attention back to Alicia. Nodding his head for her to
follow him, Rayne walked past, opened the door, and held it while motioning for
her to walk outside.

Once they were standing on
the patio, he asked, “Why is it that Drago can only communicate with you? And
you with him? Is there something else I need to know?”

Alicia could see in his eyes
that he already knew the answer but needed to hear her say it.

This crap is really
getting old.

Shaking her head, she looked
out over Kyndel’s huge garden and wondered how to answer. Alicia was exhausted,
but more than that, she was tired of answering the same question over and over.
Not that she should’ve been surprised. The dragons were very perceptive and
highly intuitive, so there was little that got by them. Just this once she was
hoping all the other news would trump this one stupid question.

Looking back to Rayne, Alicia
gave in and answered the only way she could. “He says we’re mates. And before
you ask, he’s probably right, but can we please just get him out of there and
worry about everything else later?”

Smiling the first real smile
she could ever remember that wasn’t directed at his family or one of his Guardsmen,
Rayne nodded. “Whatever you like, Alicia. And thank you for not giving up on
me. I know I can be stubborn but it has served me well over the years. Having
Drago back is something I never dreamed could happen. I can never thank you
enough for giving me back part of the family I lost.”

“You are very welcome,
Commander, but we don’t have him back yet,” was all Alicia could squeak out
past the lump in her throat.

Thankfully, the back door
flew open and out came Liam and Hannah, with Kyndel not far behind. Liam was
the first to speak. “We got a hold of everyone and they are all headed to the
McKennons’. Hannah called her mom and they’re getting ready too.”

Rayne nodded and looked at
his mate, who’d just started to talk. “Sam is on the way to hang with Jay and
me, so ya’ know Lance will meet you there, too. Keep in touch. I’m sure the
rest of the girls will end up here soon, so let us know if you need anything.”

Cutting through the crowd,
Rayne approached his mate, scooped her into his arms, and kissed her as if she
was the very air he breathed. Alicia knew she should look away but simply
couldn’t—it was just too amazing to behold. When they broke apart and Rayne
retuned Kyndel to her feet, they looked into each other’s eyes for just a
moment longer. The Commander said something in Gaelic that made Kyndel blush
and had Liam clearing his throat, then turned and stepped off the patio before
calling over his shoulder, “Come on, it’s time to see some witches about saving
an assassin.”

“Just watch your ass out there,
Commander,” Kyndel called after them.

Everyone laughed aloud as
they followed Rayne out of the yard and through the woods. For the first time
since all this had started, Alicia really felt like she might not be as crazy
as a bed bug.

Hi ho, hi ho, it’s off to
save the assassin we go!

Chapter Four

It took almost two hours and
four more times through her story to get everyone on the same page and headed
out the door to save Drago. For some silly reason, Alicia had thought once
Rayne was on board everyone else would be on board too, but boy oh, boy, had
she been wrong. They’d all needed to hear her story for themselves. By the time
the witches and dragons were marching the path she’d followed so many times it
almost seemed surreal. Never in a million years would Alicia have guessed that
she wasn’t really losing her mind but finding her…well… a man that meant a lot
to her.

Nope, can’t string those
words together. Maybe later, just not yet.

She knew she was being silly.
Sooner rather than later, if everything went as planned, Alicia would be face
to face with Drago. It was pretty much a foregone conclusion that he would
demand she acknowledge their connection, but for right now, she had a little
time and dammit, she was going to take it. Lost in thought, she ran right into
Rory’s—the leader of the Blue Thunder Guardsmen—back. Looking over his
shoulder, he grinned. “Not much sleep lately, huh?”

Deciding it was easier to
just answer than get mad, Alicia shook her head. “Nope, not much at all.”

“Do you have any idea what
we’re walking into? I mean I know you and your family have some serious magical
mojo, so does it feel like anything you’ve dealt with before?”

“If you’re asking if it feels
like Cleland and his crew then the answer is no. It’s most definitely black
magic but nothing I’ve ever felt before.”

“Give the girl a rest, Rory.
She’s had a rough couple of weeks and has to stay on her toes. This place is
damn near glowing with dirty magic. It still amazes me that I haven’t felt it
before.” Kyra shrugged. “Guess my mind’s been on Mom. At first I thought she
was just out gallivanting but now I’m worried.”

“We’ll find her
mo chroi’
,
you know we will,” her mate Royce answered, coming up behind her. “Calysta’s a
tough old bird. Wherever she is, she knows we’re looking. It’ll be over soon. I
can feel it my bones.”

Kyra and Rory laughed in
unison but it was Lance, another member of Rayne’s Force, who was the first to
comment. “And them are some real old bones,” he joked in his best good old boy
accent. “Heavens know they have the wisdom.”

Everyone howled, even Alicia,
although every step they got closer to the cave she grew a little more anxious.
She and her family had always been around black magic and had fought it at
every turn, but Kyra was right, the stuff they were walking into was old, like
really old…
ancient
. There was something just not quite right about it,
too. Something the young witch had mentioned to both her mother and the
incredibly strong daughter of the Grand Priestess, Kyra. Alicia couldn’t put
her finger on it but it was weird. It made the hair on the back of her neck
stand on end.

Creepy shit—and Drago has
been immersed in it for a hundred years.

Rayne repeatedly asked about
his uncle as they made their way through the woods. Alicia told him everything
she could but hated to admit that she’d argued with Drago more than she had assessed
his condition. It was one of things worrying her as they started up the
mountain to the cliffs. The Assassin had sounded so weak when he’d spoken to
her while she was back at the lair. At first, she’d blamed it on distance, but
that didn’t feel right. She’d called to him to let him know they were headed
his way almost twenty minutes ago and had yet to receive a response. Every few
minutes, she would say his name or ask if he was there, but their connection
remained silent. She knew he still lived because she could
feel
him… everywhere.
As soon as the thought crossed her mind, Alicia chastised herself for even
thinking something might have happened to him.

He’ll be all right. He has
to be. He’s been in there for a hundred years; a few hours couldn’t have made
things worse… could they?

Thinking she should ask her
mom, Alicia opened her mouth but Melanie, her sister Hannah’s oldest friend and
also a mate to one of the dragons, cut her off before she could speak. “Whatcha
thinking so hard about, doll?”

“Nothing really? Just
thinking about what has to be done.”

Melanie nodded but the
knowing look on her face said she wasn’t buying Alicia’s nonchalance. Her words
confirmed her expression. “I know you’re worried. Hell, I would be frantic if
it was Jace.”

“It’s not the same thing,”
Alicia muttered.

“Okay, yeah, whatever you
say. I’ll let you have a little more time with your denial, but as soon as
Drago is out of his cage, you had better be ready. These dragons don’t play
when it comes to their mates. And you’re boy’s been through a hell of an
ordeal. He’s gonna seriously need you.”

Nodding, Alicia murmured,
“Yeah, I know. I’ll cross that bridge when I get there.”

“I’m here if you need me.”

Looking up for the first time
since Melanie had started to talk, Alicia gave her a smile before saying,
“Thanks Mel. Really, thank you.”

“Any time, doll. Any time.”

They walked along in
companionable silence until Kyra and Sarah Beth called out in unison, “Alicia,
get up here.”

Jogging to the front of the
pack, she arrived just as Kyra was removing a copper pot and herbs from her
backpack. “What are you doing? We’re about a hundred yards from the cave.”
Alicia knew she was yelling and really didn’t care. Her frustration level was
through the roof and still climbing. Every minute they wasted was another
minute Drago had to suffer, and as far as she was concerned, that was completely
unacceptable.

Sarah Beth laid her hand on
Alicia’s shoulder and spoke as calmly as possible. “Kyra and I both felt a huge
surge of black magic right here.” She pointed to the spot on the ground where
the platinum-haired white witch had placed her copper pot. “Kyra is going to
scry for the origin. You’re going to need to be patient for just a little bit.
If my hunch is right, this is the source of the power keeping your… ummm… Drago
imprisoned.”

Alicia knew her mother was
about to call him her mate. She heard the snickers behind her and thought about
telling them all to go to hell. Nodding to her mother, she walked ahead about
fifty feet and sat on a rock to think while Kyra and Sarah Beth scryed.

Closing her eyes, Alicia
prayed to the Goddess that Drago was okay and that they would get to him on
time. She’d never been extremely devout when it came to her spiritual side, but
decided if it would help Drago, she would try anything. Several minutes into
her prayers, the one voice she’d missed more than she thought possible finally
spoke.

“I appreciate your
prayers,
ceann beag
, but it is you
I believe in right now. It is you that will free me from this hell.”

“Sure, whatever you say,”
she scoffed.
“And what did you just call me? I
understood the others but I’ve never heard that one.”

Chuckling the low, baritone
chuckle that seemed to ignite all Alicia’s senses and make it hard for her to
focus, Drago simply said,
“Little one. It means little one.”

Alicia wanted to be upset but
kind of liked the name. All the same, she felt an obligation to give him just a
little crap.
“Little one, huh? Where did that come from? I’m almost five
foot ten.”

“It is just how I think of
you, as my ‘little one’. Someone I can care for. Someone to love. Someone that
loves me back. You are my hope and that is something I haven’t had in a very
long time.”

Words escaped Alicia as she
sat there absorbing Drago’s beautiful words. They touched her as few things
ever had. It seemed incomprehensible for her to think of herself as anyone’s
hope, let alone a Dragon Guardsman’s who’d been trapped in a magical spell under
the earth for almost a hundred years. It seemed like some kind of mixed up,
upside-down fairytale. She felt like the princess who was saving her knight in
shining armor. The thought made her giggle, something she hadn’t done in a long
time.

“I love that sound,”
Drago whispered into her mind.

“What sound?”

“Your laughter. The only
thing better will be when I witness it for myself. I can’t…”
Drago’s words simply cut off and the link between them
went dead.

“You can’t what?”
Alicia asked, trying not to freak out but feeling her
blood pressure rising by the second.

Before she could get an
answer, Rayne yelled, “Alicia, come here, please.” Looking toward the group of
people she was proud to call friends and family, the young witch saw black
smoke billowing from Kyra’s copper pot while her mother, sisters and Melanie
stood chanting in a circle.

“What the hell?” Alicia
shrieked as she ran to them, still trying to contact Drago.

Squeezing in between Hannah
and their second oldest sister, Isabella, she grabbed their hands and chanted
along with them…

Under the earth, hidden
deep, make yourself known, wake from your sleep. Your power is vast, your reach
is long, and your work is finished, time for you to go back where you belong.

She could hear the dragons
joining in behind them but needed to focus. Something was happening and she
knew with all her heart it was blocking her communication with Drago. Maybe her
mother and Kyra had been right. Maybe whatever they were summoning was what was
holding the Assassin captive. No matter, the young witch split her attention
between contacting Drago and helping the spell.

The longer they chanted, the
darker the smoke became and the more horrible the air around them smelled.
Alicia would’ve said it was sulfur, but it held a coppery, almost sickly sweet
scent that reminded her more of day old blood than anything else. She prayed it
wasn’t Drago’s blood.

No, it isn’t. I would know
if something was seriously wrong. He’s okay. He has to be okay.

Staring into the smoke, the
young witch saw billowy figures forming. At first, they were hard to make out.
They looked like the pieces of tissue paper she and her sisters used to turn
into ghostly decorations every Halloween. But the longer she watched, the more
into focus they became, until she realized they were actual human faces. It all
became clear and made Alicia sick to her stomach. They were the people who had
been sacrificed by the
Dorcha
to create Drago’s prison.

Yelling over the sound of
chanting, Alicia screamed. “Kyra, it’s blood magic! Look at the smoke! You can
see them!”

A collective gasp went up
from the witches, accompanied by a low growl from the Guardsmen standing behind
them.

“Oh, my Goddess!” Kyra
answered into the now haunting silence. “Those bastards locked him away with
blood sacrifices and not just any blood, they used witch’s blood. There has to
be a focus, something that is holding all the magic, and it has to be somewhere
below us. That’s what Sarah Beth and I felt. The pieces of shit couldn’t risk
it being close enough to Drago to kill him. It was just meant to hold him…
forever
.”
Her last word was spoken with such vehemence that Alicia could almost see the
white witch shaking with a fury that matched her own. Kyra may have only been
five foot nothing, but she was powerful, off the charts powerful… the daughter
of the Grand Priestess and the mate of a very strong, very old Guardsman
powerful, and she was pissed off.

Putting out the fire in the
copper pot with a single command, “
Mhu’chadh
”, Kyra looked at Royce standing
with his brothers, Rory and Rian, before turning to Rayne then looking back to
Alicia. “We have to find whatever they’ve stored the magic in. It will do us no
good to try to get to Drago without it. The magic I feel is crazy powerful and
super concentrated. It will keep us from reaching your…
friend
at all
costs.” Kyra paused and Alicia could feel the white witch’s hesitation.

Fatigue battled with worry
and added to Alicia’s growing fear until just the few heartbeats of silence
between her and Kyra almost made Alicia want to scream. Unable to take it
anymore, the younger witch growled, “So what do we do? I was talking to him a
few minutes ago and our connection just went dead. Now, he’s not responding
at
all
. I can’t even really feel him anymore. I mean I know he’s still
breathing but other than that, I have no freaking clue what’s going on.” She
was talking so fast by the time she stopped to take a breath, her vision
blurred for a split second.

Feeling completely lost, she
looked to her mother, “What can we do, Momma? We can’t just leave him in
there.”

“We have no intention of
leaving him in there,” Rayne answered as he stepped into the circle and walked toward
her. “I will save my uncle if it means digging the hole and dragging him out of
there myself. I just need you to keep trying to talk to him. Tell him what’s
going on. He may be able to hear you even if you can’t hear him. Drago’s one
tough son of a bitch. He’ll make it out alive. If for no other reason than to
see you.” The Commander shocked Alicia by winking before he turned and walked
to Kyra.