Page 116 of The Heart of the Dragon

"Sorry, I know that was a futile question. But we have to get him out of here now and I need you to focus."

"I thought we couldn't risk moving him?" The first tear landed on my cheek as I asked.

"We don't have a choice. The integrity of this room has been compromised. We're afraid it’s going to fall."

"What?" I searched the room for trouble, and sure enough chunks of wall and ceiling were raining down faster than could be stopped by magic. "Oh you have got to be kidding me."

"I'm afraid not. So we've got to stick together in case Isaac needs to shift to keep us safe."

"And Magnus? Won't moving him kill him?"

"Staying here 100% will. At least if we move, we'll all have a chance. C'mon." Kitra grabbed my hand and pulled me from Magnus. I glanced back, and he'd passed out. Isaac was lifting him into his arms.

"Move," Isaac yelled, and we followed his command. I swallowed hard when I realized a group of the guards moved with us. Were they going to stop us from getting Magnus help?

"Those guards are with us. Not all were as loyal to the king as he thought. Some are glad he's gone and I'm sure it won't take long for the rest of them to come around."

I didn't feel a lot of confidence in Kitra's assessment, but I also had no choice. I had to trust that if they turned on us, Isaac and Kitra would find a way to deal with them.

"Here." Again, I turned to Kitra just as she thrust the dagger I'd dropped earlier back into my hand. "You never know." Shewinked and then took off, forcing me to tighten my grip and charge after her. A few more pieces of stone fell from the ceiling and we both had to dodge them to escape. A lump jumped in my throat as I worried about Magnus behind us, but I clung to the bits of training that Kitra and Magnus had drilled into my head over those few intense days. Because right now it wasn't just my life on the line, it was his.

Isaac needed to focus and I would not be the one to split his attention. We were almost to the door when two guards sprang from nowhere. Kitra smoothly ducked, and a flash of light pushed both men back. Another guard charged from the side, headed straight for me.

I twisted and turned in the hope of avoiding his grasp, but his fingers grabbed the edge of my shirt and pulled. I raised the dagger and swiped at the vulnerable inside of his arm that held me. He howled in pain, letting go of me to grab his wound. The red spray of his blood arced in front of my face, and I turned away at the sight of it.

Relieved at least that I was free again, I immediately ran towards Kitra, who had two guards trying to overpower her. But she'd come prepared to win as well and quickly dispatched them with her magic. However, by the time we'd made it to the door there were at least ten more guards blocking our way to freedom.

"We're all going to die in here if we don't run, now!" Kitra frantically warned them.

"So be it. We made an oath to give our lives to the king and that is what we intend to do.”

"The dead king? Or the king that needs a fucking doctor?" I wasn't sure how much more of this I could take. "Blindlyfollowing evil makes you no better than him," I hissed. "Now get the hell out of our way, or I’m going tomakeyou get out of the way."

"The only thing you should worry about is what we will do with you once he dies." They pointed behind me, but I didn't have to look. I could feel Magnus through our bond, and I knew he was weaker than ever. But I couldn't worry about that right now. We had to do something and we had to do it now.

"You son of a bitch!" I yelled, lunging for the closest guard and taking him enough by surprise to lodge my dagger in his neck. Unfortunately, it hit bone and stuck. I yanked and pulled to no avail, I couldn't get it free, and all I could hear and see was the tearing of his flesh and his agonizing wails.

It was all I could do not to crumple in on myself as my stomach turned, threatening to empty where I stood.

More guards sprang and in a matter of seconds we were surrounded. It was then I finally turned to Isaac and could see him trying to unleash his dragonfire. But the magic the king had used to ward this room against Magnus seemed to be taking a similar toll on his brother. Kitra ran to him, using what looked like her waning magic to help both men. I stared back at the guards and the venom of hatred filled my veins as did the fear of Magnus dying any moment.

His heartbeat waned and I knew he didn't have long.

"Please, let us go. The king got what he deserved and you know it."

"Shut up." the guard in charge said, grabbing my arm and yanking me towards him. "In fact, if you can't keep your mouth shut, I will shut it for you."

Isaac roared behind me, and I felt a familiar heat at my back. Magnus might be dying, but he wasn't dead yet, and he would sacrifice his own life to save mine. I knew that truth. Could feel it in my bones. My stomach turned again, and I grabbed it to steady myself. There was something very wrong with me.

All my worry and fear converged, and when the guard leaned forward and pressed his hand to the curve of my neck, I lost it. My body jerked, my arms going wide as that strange feeling erupted inside me again. I closed my eyes against the flash of blinding light and fell free, my eyes rolled to the back of my head and that burst of heat I'd thought I felt from Magnus erupted from my chest.

The strange feeling of bursting apart only lasted a second or two before I crumpled to the ground, unable to move.

"What the hell was that? And where the hell are we?"

I slowly opened my eyes, expecting that burst of light to burn through my retinas again. Kitra, Isaac, and Magnus were on the ground only a few feet from me and while Kitra and Isaac seemed okay, Magnus looked worse than ever.

"You are in the middle of my living room and someone better start explaining where you came from and how the hell that happened, or I'm going to incinerate you where you lie."

---