Page 113 of The Heart of the Dragon

There was only one thing left to do. I lifted the sword and swung it towards my mate, who caught it perfectly. His lips curved up slightly at the corners and it warmed everything inside me.

No sooner had the blade left my grasp, when another hand grabbed me and I had to spin and fight off another assailant. Goddess above, it was like a never-ending game of whack-a-mole with these people.

"There's absolutely nothing you can do. That poison is already weaving its way through your system. In minutes it will be in your heart and forcing it to stop bea?—"

With a sick thud, and a spray of bright red blood arcing through the air above me, the king’s diatribe ended as abruptly as it’d begun. The guard I'd been fighting stared over my shoulder in shock, no longer fighting me. I sagged in relief, knowing without turning back that the asshole behind me had lost his head. And yet, I couldn't help but steal a look. I had to be certain this ordeal was well and over.

It was a gruesome and bloody sight to behold as Magnus stood towering over the headless body of the fae king. My stomach began to churn, as I dropped to the ground unable to take my eyes from the body lying in a heap, his head a few feet away, mouth open and eyes wide in sudden fear.

Magnus had taken him by surprise.

I covered my mouth to keep the contents of my stomach down as pure relief shuddered down my spine.

It was definitely over?—

Another loud crash came from the far side of the room accompanied by what sounded like a— I stared in disbelief. A dragon roar.

What the hell?

In the big gap that had once been a doorway, now stood a man/dragon partially shifted, with familiar black and red scales covering most of his body, except for his head. Next to him stood a hooded woman dressed in thick brown leather with a bow and arrow drawn and at the ready, and they were both surrounded by tiny little creatures that kind of looked like Ensley, but somehow despite their size, managed to be even more menacing than her thorny body.

Before I could process what to say or do, movement through that crowd caught my eye. Speak of the devil. Ensley pushed her way through the mass of bodies and took her place next to Isaac and Kitra.

Another roar sounded, and a blast of fire erupted around the room, forcing all the remaining guards to run for cover in the opposite corner.

"Looks like we made it just in time," Isaac said. "Although, damn… I would have enjoyed getting here before the beheading. That would have been cool to watch."

"Isaac!" Kitra admonished with a smirk as I dropped to my knees.

Chapter

Forty-Three

Magnus

"Isaac!"Kitra admonished, almost giggling. "We came to help, not revel in death."

"Speak for yourself."

I ignored Isaac and directed my question to Kitra. "Was that noise outside the two of you? Or is there another attack I have to worry about?"

She shook her head. "Just Isaac.” She pointed to the corpse. "He was about to unleash an entire army on this castle, but Isaac stopped them from storming their way inside."

I regarded my brother for a minute, who looked like he wanted to beat his chest and preen. Fucking weirdo.

It didn't matter that I wanted to do the same. The end of the reign of terror by our uncle had been a long time coming. Isaac understood through his mate, and my mate understood throughme. But me and Kitra, we had endured more than most at his hands.

As I stood there, thinking about all we'd been through to get here today, my vision blurred, and I wavered on my feet.

"Are you okay?" Kitra asked.

"No, he's not!" Rose said, struggling to her feet before rushing forward. "He needs a doctor."

She reared up a few feet in front of me and pointed at my hand. "Can you please let that go? I do not want to get near that thing."

I looked down at my uncle's head firmly in my grasp. I'd picked it up without thinking, and the bloody thing was making a mess. I didn't want to touch him any more than she did, but the guards still looking pole-axed needed this. I raised it in front of me. "The man you served is gone. Whatever fealty you still have is to the crown, not the man. If you have a problem with that or me, now is the time to state your challenge. Otherwise, get the hell out."

No one made a move. Hands remained on swords and the only sounds heard were the heavy breaths still left from fighting.

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