Page 59 of Pursued By the Dragon Alien

That got her feet moving. With a rattling sigh, she stepped out from behind the screen to the sound of relieved sighs from her friends. Lilas got it. No one wanted to see the main hall burnt to a crisp by an emotionally distraught dragon Zaruxian.

Seeing the look on his face when he saw her was all she needed. There was relief, wonder, and utter adoration. And Lilas felt unworthy of it all.Howcould she have ever thought this male would betray her? Still, she held her head high and met him face-to-face.

Lilas’ heart pounded as she gazed at him. The main hall, with its towering ceilings and carvings, seemed to shrink as her gaze locked onto Razion. His eyes, storm-gray and wild, met hers, and for a moment, time itself seemed to pause. The air turned thick with the weight of unspoken words.

Razion’s face was etched with pain, his muscles tense. His wings were partially spread as if struggling to contain something primal. Yet, as their eyes met, pure, calm relief crossed his features, followed by a deep, abiding warmth that made her chest ache. She felt the weight of her mistake settle.

Lilas stood before Razion, her breath barely even, her hands clenched against her sides as she fought the last remnants of doubt clinging to her thoughts. But in the face of his raw, unmistakable emotion—relief, love, something deeper thatthreatened to break her apart—those doubts crumbled like dust beneath the weight of what they truly were. Shadows. Misunderstandings. Fear that had nothing to do with the male in front of her.

As they talked, she saw every truth she had ignored, every unspoken fear that had driven her to run. With each word he spoke, the anger she had held onto, the betrayal she had convinced herself was real, melted away into something infinitely more precious. She had been so certain that she had seen the worst of him, but now, with his voice rough with emotion, his hands trembling from the force of what he felt for her, she knew she had been blind to the best of him.

Her walls cracked, then fell, one by one.

She let him in. Completely.

Lilas took a slow, trembling breath, and as she did, her feet moved forward without thought. He closed the space between them, yanking her close even as her hands reached for him. In the desperate ache of their embrace, she felt grounded in the only truth that mattered.

She had been his from the moment she first looked into his silver-gray eyes.

And she would never run from him again.

TWENTY-FOUR

Razion

All Razion wanted was to be with Lilas. His instincts demanded it. Every fiber of his being begged for him to take her somewhere private, claim her as his all over again, make her feel the truth of what burned inside him. But instead, he was here, surrounded by his long-lost brothers, trapped in a damn meeting.

He had left Lilas in the main hall, settled on one of the plush sofas by the ionic fire. She sat with the Terian females he had just met—Fivra, Sevas, and Turi—along with Vedd, Cozax, and Bruil. The warmth of the fire flickered over her bronze skin, and for a moment, he had just stood there, watching her, memorizing every detail. It had taken every ounce of restraint to turn away and follow his brothers to this meeting instead of pulling her into his arms where she belonged.

But there would be time for that soon enough. He followed Takkian, Cyprian, and Ellion through the maze of the fortress to the ship’s library. The doors slid open, revealing towering shelves lined with rows of ancient texts, datapads, and scrolls stacked in perfect precision. The scent of old parchment, metal,and something vaguely floral filled the air. A massive circular table anchored the center, scattered with intricate star maps and Zaruxian history archives.

Razion barely spared the details a glance. “Are we here to discuss strategy,” he said, “or impress me with the size of your book collection?”

Ellion didn’t react to his impatience. He moved toward the table, his silver eyes scanning the documents like they were pieces of a puzzle only he could see. “Both.”

Takkian leaned against a nearby pillar, arms crossed. His expression was just as brooding as before. “Tell us everything the Axis leader said to you.”

Razion still felt raw. His limbs were loose and sore from his near transformation into a dragon, but this had to be done. He rolled his shoulders, forcing his focus off the lithe, purple-haired female who wasnotin this room, and redirected it to the situation at hand.

And he told them what he knew.

Each word sharpened the tension in the room as he recounted the conversation with High Chancellor Vahkos—the warning, the not-so-veiled threat, the revelation that the Axis was more concerned about them than they wanted to admit.

The red-scaled Zaruxian had remained uncharacteristically silent through Razion’s telling of his Axis visit, but when the story was done, Cyprian leaned forward, resting both elbows on the long table between them. “You realize what this means, don’t you?” His silver-gray eyes gleamed with something sharp. “If they sent a high council member to warn you off, it means they see us as a real threat.”

“A growing one,” Ellion added. “That means we move forward. We send word to the connections we’ve made—warn them of the Axis’ next move.”

Razion nodded. “They’ll go after the settlements, the Rokkols, everyone connected to Erovik.” He exhaled. “They’ll do whatever it takes to snuff this out.”

“The Terians from the settlements are going to be in danger,” Ellion added. He stared at the star map, his grip tightening at his sides.

Cyprian rubbed his temples. “I need to alert thecourtiasthat lived in my brothel. It was a home for many. And Glivar—” His expression tightened. “I left him in charge. If the Axis comes looking, he won’t stand a chance.”

“Then we send a warning,” Ellion said simply, already moving star charts on the table as if mapping out rescue points.

Razion absorbed all of it—their concerns, their battles, their priorities. He had spent so long fighting his own war alone. Taking from the Axis one wrecked shipment at a time. Now, he had a family. A real one.

Takkian turned to him, a faint smirk playing at the edges of his scarred mouth. “By the way, do not be surprised if Bruil calls you, ‘Your Majesty,’ or some nonsense like that.”

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