Page 36 of No Honor Amongst Shifters
“That’s Irwin,” Gunther said.
Roslin hadn’t realized it, but he hoped that once this particular fight was over, the other cockatrices would stand down.He didn’t know what the coven would do, but he’d seen the bodies of several mages on the ground, and some of them had to be wounded.
The coven hadn’t attacked the dragon clan head-on.They’d asked Irwin for his help, which hopefully meant that they were outnumbered and knew they would lose without the cockatrices on their side.
Roslin looked up.Irwin was moving forward again, but even though he was fast, Elijah had his bulk on his side.He rammed his shoulder against Irwin’s chest, turning sideways as he sent Irwin flying.He also snapped a wing forward to catch Irwin, stopping his fall and pulling him forward.Irwin struggled, but in the end, he was no match for Elijah.
Roslin watched as his clan leader snapped his head forward and bit down on Irwin’s neck.Irwin screeched, and when the sound abruptly stopped, Roslin knew that Elijah had won.
He prayed it would be enough to save the clan.
* * * *
ALCOTT WATCHED IRWINdie, and the only thing he felt was relief.The fight wasn’t over yet, but one of the monsters had been slain.Hopefully, with Irwin gone, the cockatrices would take a step back.
For a second after Irwin’s body dropped to the ground, everyone in the area was silent.Alcott could still hear people fighting in the distance, but the people who’d seen Irwin fall knew what this meant.
Alcott wasn’t surprised when a woman stepped forward.Her dark hair was wild around her face, and she was holding her arm against her chest, but she didn’t seem to care.She stood strong as she looked around, pinning every cockatrice shifter in the area with her gaze.
“Irwin is gone,” she declared.“We need to stop this madness.”
Alcott recognized her voice.He’d heard her several times when he’d lived here with Damien.He’d never seen her face, but he knew precisely who she was.
Irwin had felt he was doing a good thing when he killed his cousin.He hadn’t counted on his aunt wanting revenge for her son’s death.Curt’s mother seemed to have decided she’d be the one to take over the cockatrice clan now that Irwin was dead.Alcott didn’t know if it was a good idea, but it was none of his business.He wasn’t a cockatrice, and if he had anything to say about it, he’d never return to cockatrice territory once this mess was over.
It wasn’t yet.As soon as Curt’s mother was done talking, someone else stepped in.Alcott shivered when he recognized Arlene.The coven might not have a leader per se since they were guided by a group of them, but if anyone asked Alcott who the worst of them was, he’d point his finger at her.The few times he’d been in the same room as her, she’d terrified him.She was emotionless and didn’t care about anyone but herself.She was also powerful and ready to do anything to obtain more of that power.
Elijah shifted back.For a second, he and Arlene stared at each other.Elijah was wounded, but he was standing strong, and Alcott had no doubt that his leader would shift back and fight Arlene if she refused to stand down.
“You lost,” Elijah declared.His voice was loud, even with the sound of fighting in the distance.“Irwin is dead, and the cockatrices won’t fight for you anymore.You could never win this fight on your own.No matter how much magic you have, my clan is stronger than your coven.”
Alcott noticed other mages gathering behind Arlene.Thomas was limping, which gave Alcott a savage satisfaction because he remembered the asshole kicking him.Callie stood behind Thomas, her arm around Freddie’s waist, holding him up.From the looks of it, Freddie was in bad shape.
And then there was Damien.Alcott had no idea what had happened to him after he and Roslin had run, but it was clear that he’d encountered a dragon.Someone had raked their claws down Damien’s face and neck.He was pressing some kind of fabric against the wounds, but Alcott could see them peeking out.The fabric was red with blood, and Damien’s skin was paler than Alcott had ever seen it.
Damien wasn’t dead, but he would never hurt Alcott again.None of these mages would.Alcott was finally free of them and, hopefully, free of what he’d done.
Roslin was still holding Alcott’s hand, and he squeezed harder when he noticed Damien.He turned to Alcott, who shook his head.He wasn’t afraid of Damien anymore.He had been earlier, but he’d had time to think about what Damien had said.
Maybe Alcottwasweak.Did it really matter?He hadn’t thought twice about putting himself between Elijah and the mage who’d been trying to attack him.He’d wanted to save his clan leader, and he had.None of them could know if the wounds Elijah would have sustained if the mage had succeeded would have killed him, but it didn’t matter.Alcott had been there, and he’d taken the hit.
“You won,” Arlene agreed.“We will leave this town.”
“Why should I allow you to?”Elijah asked
“You will because you don’t want any more of your people to be hurt.We might be weaker than you, but we have magic.We can still do damage.”
Alcott sucked in a breath.Arlene was right.If the mages decided to go down that path, they could do a lot of damage before the dragons killed them.Hell, some of them might even survive the fight.If they hurt enough dragons, they’d be able to sneak out.
Alcott briefly wondered if the coven would continue moving from town to town, destroying clans and hurting shifters.He felt guilty about sending them away, but at the same time, he needed to focus on the people he cared about.Once the coven was gone, his brother would be safe.The whole clan would be.That was all he cared about.
Elijah took a few moments to answer.“Go,” he ordered.“But know that if our paths ever cross again, I won’t be as lenient.”
Arlene’s lips curled into a smile.“Neither will I.”
She turned and walked away.She didn’t wait for any of the wounded mages to catch up with her.Alcott didn’t think she cared about them.She just moved, and they were left to scramble behind her.
None of them hesitated.They followed her, limping and in pain, and that was the last Alcott saw of them.
