Page 53 of The Dragon Maiden

Chapter Thirty-Three

Dracul

Early the next morning, before dawn stretched over the skies, we attacked. I led the charge through the entrance I had spotted the night before, Firenze and Fangburn at my sides with the others close behind. The two measly guards Borthen had keeping watch were nothing to me—my claws killed them instantly, coating me in blood. I could feel Lora’s presence nearby and let that feeling guide me as I raced through the halls, unreservedly slashing anyone who crossed my path. I did not care if my warriors or Lords followed me—my mind was set on one goal: rescuing Valora.

After several minutes of running and bloodshed, I paused, trying to sense the direction of her presence. A human servant turned the corner and yelped in fear. Instantly, I pounced, pinning them to the ground.

“The woman your Lord took, where is she?” I demanded, my teeth dangerously close to their face. I smelled the odor of urine and wrinkled my nose in disgust.

“Down the hall, that way,” they said, pointing to a corridor to my left.

As soon as the words left their mouth, I launched myself off them, not bothering to kill them, and heard Firenze and Fangburn following me. We encountered no one as we entered a large cave filled with weird domes lining the walls all the way to the ceiling. From what I could tell, they seemed empty, except I could feel a presence in only one, almost all the way at the top on the right. I flapped my wings, gaining altitude to see who was there, holding my breath that it was her.

When I reached the dome, I peered in. My heart skipped a beat. Lying on her side in the corner was Lora, wrapped in a blanket. Her eyes looked red as she moved to look at me, her expression unbelieving.

“It’s you,” she said softly. “You came for me.”

I transformed into my human self, holding out my arms for her. “I always will.”

She rushed towards me, crushing me in her embrace. Tears soaked into my neck as she buried her face there, sobs wracking her frame.

“You’re safe now, Lora,” I said, holding her tightly. “Never again will he hurt you.”

Chapter Thirty-Four

Valora

He was there. Dracul had come for me. I stared at him in disbelief, my traitor heart pounding at the sight of him. I did not care that he was dirty or covered in blood—all that I cared about at this moment was that he was there. I pushed all the thoughts that Borthen had left with me deep into the recesses of my mind. I just needed to focus on Dracul. Now that he was there, everything would be fine.

I rushed to him, holding him as tightly as I could, sobs breaking from me. My captivity with Borthen had been short, but torturous. Seeing Dracul there, unharmed and well, was enough to break me. I sobbed into his neck, my hands scrambling to clutch him to me. His arms encircled me, as well, holding me just as tightly as I held him, giving me much needed relief. He murmured sweet, tender words to me, but I could not hear them over the rushing sound in my ears.

Eventually, I could make out his words. “I need to get you out of here,” he said over and over again. “We need to go, Lora.”

Wordlessly, I nodded and I felt him pick me up, moving towards the edge of the dome’s floor.

“Hold on tight,” he said before transforming into a dragon, holding me securely in his claws as he navigated us downwards. To my surprise, he had two Lords with him—Lord Firenze and Lord Fangburn. In the hallways, I could hear fighting going on, lots of screaming.

“Well done,” Lord Fangburn said, beaming at me as we landed.

I turned away, tucking my head into Lord Dracul’s chest as he still held me with one claw.

“What do we do now?”

“We find Borthen and end him,” Dracul said stiffly, his grip on me tightening.

“No need, Dracul. I’m already here.” Borthen’s voice came from behind us.

I squeezed my eyes shut at his honeyed voice.

“I see you’ve found your Maiden.”

“What was the point of this, Borthen?” Dracul asked. I could feel him shaking in anger. “Your forces were a mere distraction. You never stood a chance.”

“You and I duel, one on one,” Borthen hissed. “I want my revenge for what you stole from me.”

“I didn’t take anything that wasn’t already rightfully mine,” Dracul said. He set me down, pushing me towards Lord Firenze, who stood in front of me protectively. “But I will grant you this one last request. Before you die.”

The two dragons circled each other in the large cavern. I figured the domes would cause problems logistically and watched with growing apprehension.

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