Page 27 of Cage Me

“I didn’t.” Fallyn stared at her and frowned. “Why are you in this place with your dragon, mermaid?”

Oh, to be a mermaid again, her skin cried out for the cool waters of the Atlantic. Her scales felt so dry, like she would crack if she went any longer without the sea on her skin.

“Azynsa!”

Her legs went out from underneath her. No, she didn’t have legs any longer. She’d lost them. Inch by inch her scales crawled up her skin, fusing her legs together into a tail.

But, those weren’t her scales. She was a rich deep yellow, so dark to almost be copper. These scales were brilliant gold, interspersed with pearly white.

That was probably a hallucination. She could tell because everything in the room was wavering and the colors were fading. A muffled buzz went off in her ears.

Aw, crap. She’d lost complete control of her body and she was going to pass out.

Fucking awesome.

Cage grabbed for her, sliding his arms under her tail and supporting her behind the back an instant before she hit the rock floor.

Chapter Seven

Chp 7 – Legs Are Required

Cage caught Azynsa and lifted her in his arms, holding her tight against his chest. Where her legs would have been, she had a tail, full-on fish fins. It was absolutely gorgeous. Her scales shimmered and shined brighter than any ornament in the room, more than all the gold, coins, jewels, or anything else in his hoard.

This, the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen, and the sight of it had his gut clenching, squeezed by the thought of losing her when he'd only just found her.

“Azynsa, wake up. What's wrong?”

If he wasn’t such a dumbass and had been paying attention, he would have seen the wound in her upper right arm seeping blood. Another in her tail looked worse, like a jagged hook had snagged her. Fuck, he should have protected her better. He hadn't even known she'd been hurt.

Her eyelids fluttered open and she grumped at him. “Why do you keep calling me that. Nobody calls me that, except the Mami Wata.”

Thank the First Dragon. The fist around his core loosened its grip. She wasn’t out of danger yet though. “I’ll call you your royal highness supreme, ruler of my universe if you promise never to scare me like that again.”

Although, he’d rather call her his lover. This mating had his mind in the gutter when it needed to be on rescuing her.

She blinked a few more times and wriggled in his arms. “I may hold you to that later. Just call me Azy.”

Sweet and sassy. He loved it.

“I guess I'm a fish out of water.” Azynsa made the joke, but there was real pain in her voice. “I haven't stayed in human form that long since meeting the Mami Wata. I don't really know what happened just now.”

Ky knew more about mermaids than he did. He would know better what to do. Cage's own healing abilities were much stronger when he was in dragon form, perhaps it was the same for other magical beings. “How badly are you hurt?”

The way she bit her lip instead of responding was answer enough. She didn't want to admit any weakness.

Now, that was something Cage could relate to. He may not know much about her, but he wasn’t a complete dumbass. She was hot to the touch and her scales and skin were dry.

He turned to Jett and Fallyn. “She needs water.”

Jett shrugged. “That's not really a thing in hell.”

Azy huffed out a one-note laugh. “That’s an understatement.

“Then it’s time for us to leave. I’ve been waiting for you a long ass time. No dying on me now.”

“We’re not leaving without her.” She pointed toward Fallyn.

Fallyn squeaked and backed up until she was surrounded by a circle of swords, then kept on going until she was hidden behind a whole store worth of Christmas ornaments.

---