Page 68 of Burned

Twenty-One

LORD

Ifelt the searing pain of the dagger sinking into Alrick’s gut just the same as if it had been plunged into mine. My roar was loud enough to shatter the windows in my sitting room and then everything went black.

“There you are, big guy.” Arson pats my cheek, and his face comes into view as I blink away the hazy fog. “How are you feeling?”

“What the fuck happened?” I shake my head to clear it, trying to remember exactly how I ended up on the floor.

The pain.Alrick’spain. I growl and reach for the spot where I felt the blade slice through his skin. Of course, there’s no corresponding wound on my body, no tenderness, no blood. My heart thunders and I search our bond for him, picking up a jumble of emotions that don’t do much to reassure me. Panic, determination, anger, love…

“He’s been stabbed. I have to find him.” I try to scramble to my feet, but Nico appears beside Arson and they each grab oneof my arms to keep me from going. I struggle against their hold, snapping blindly.

“Lord.” Dahlia’s voice is commanding but surprisingly soothing. “Don’t make me use another stunning potion, please.”

“You… youstunnedme?”

“Split-second decision. It didn’t seem smart to let you go full dragon and burn the world down for your mate before we even had all the facts.”

I growl again, but my dragon is surprisingly distant, more preoccupied with nudging at the bond to keep tabs on Alrick than anything else.

“Fine,” I grit out through clenched teeth. “So, what are the facts?”

“Firstly, whatever happened to Alrick, he’s obviously still alive, so he must not have been cut with a cursed weapon,” Tino says.

“And his father isn’t quite as stupid as we’d hoped. He managed to figure out that dabbing Alrick’s blood on himself and whoever is with him was enough to fool the wards into letting him through,” Montrose adds, his demon closer to the surface than usual with his eyes glowing and his voice eerily deep.

“They’re inside the compound?” I struggle against Nico and Arson’s hold on me again, and this time they let me go.

Knowing Alrick wasn’t stabbed with a cursed dagger is enough to keep me calm. If his father left him for dead again then I know he’ll be fine. Even better, he’ll be out of the way for whatever happens next.

Montrose nods. “They don’t think we know. I’ve been popping in and out to keep an eye on them. They’re working on a plan to turn this house into a massive bonfire and when we come out, they’ll attack with those special dragon-slaying blades of theirs.”

“Which means we have the advantage.” Nico huffs smoke through his nostrils, his dragon eyes flashing dangerously. “They think they’re surprising us, but we can surprise them first.”

Montrose grins wickedly in agreement.

“Surprise them by doing what?” Dempsey asks, chewing on his bottom lip anxiously. “Killing them?”

Hemingway puts an arm around his mate’s shoulders to soothe him. “We have to protect ourselves, Bijou.”

“No, I know that. What I mean is…” He looks over at me, pushing his glasses back up his nose as they slip out of place. “Is that what Alrick wants? I’m not sure murdering your in-laws is the best way to start off a new relationship, no matter how evil they are.”

Everyone falls silent and my gut clenches.

“Demps might be right on this one,” Lake says.

“Fuck,” I mutter.

“So, what? We let them torch the house?” Arson raises his eyebrows skeptically.

“I could call my pack in for extra muscle,” Draydon offers. “We can take them prisoner instead of killing them.”

“That’s just delaying the inevitable. Eventually you either have to release a prisoner or kill them,” Montrose says, his demonic features fading behind his beautiful human facade, boredom dripping from his tone now that bloodshed is more or less off the table.

The sound of my front door opening has us all falling silent again. My dragon finally tunes back in, my hackles going up at the unexpected invasion of my private territory. As much as I want to believe it’s Alrick returning home to me, I know it’s not even before I drag in a breath to sniff the air. He’s on the move, I can feel that much through our bond, but he’s not close yet.

“Hello.” A melodic, feminine voice with a thick Scottish accent rings out.

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