Page 54 of Claimed By the Sinful Dragon
“Your Highness,” a voice said urgently from behind us. “You should move to safety until reinforcements arrive. The intruder is…stronger than we anticipated.”
“Strength? You don’t know the meaning of the word. Useless fools. I’ll take care of him myself.” He thrust my leash at the man without taking his eyes from Rook. “Lock my prize away in the dungeon until I’m ready to play with her.”
“Yes, Your Highness. Of course.”
But Uther was no longer paying attention to us, his eyes locked onto Rook as he strode forward.
“Kaylee,” the guard beside me said, his voice suddenly different, and I blinked at him. It took me a second to recognize him, but I placed his voice first. “I’m—”
“Rook’s friend, I know.” He was lucky Uther was too distracted to pay attention to him, or he’d have been caught.
“Well, friend might be putting it a bit strongly.”
I snorted, but then terror cramped my stomach. “Rook…”
“Yeah. Hold still, I’m going to cut your hands free.”
He moved behind me, took hold of my wrists with one hand, and then the ropes fell away. I twisted round in time to see his claw shifting back into a finger and pulled my hands in front of me, rubbing at my wrists and marveling that he hadn’t sliced them to pieces with a claw that size.
“You knew he would fight when you told him to run,” I accused, and he nodded.
“Yes. And so did Rook, which is why he told me to do it.”
“But he’s outnumbered already!”
“He’s the best fighter I know. And he told me to get you out of here, no matter what.” He took hold of my arm. “Come on. We need to leave. Now.”
“Leave?” I gaped at him. “No! Rook—”
Rook what? Needed us? I couldn’t even shift, never mind take on a trio of full-grown dragons. I shook my head. “Go and help him.”
“Yeah, not a chance, princess. You know what Rook will do to me if I leave you unguarded to go help him?”
“Nothing if he’s dead!”
Gaheris shrugged.
“You’re scared of him,” I said, narrowing my eyes.
“Fuck yeah. Now let’s—”
A tail smashed into his chest and flung him back into the wall. I bit back a scream, and ducked under a pair of back legs, darting after him to where he was crumpled on the floor, unmoving. I crouched down next to him, pressing two fingers to his neck, and blowing out a breath of relief when I felt a pulse. He was alive…but out for the count. Shit. Rook needed him!
I shook him roughly. “Come on, come on! Wake up.”
A roar of pain sounded across the courtyard and I looked up in time to see another dragon collapse in an unmoving heap. Now there were only two dragons still standing…Rook and Uther. But where Uther was fresh and untouched, Rook was bloodied and dragging one wing, his movements noticeably slower.
I watched in horror as Uther took to the air then dived at him, front talons extended at his head. Just as I was certain the talons would close around his skull, Rook ducked low, twisting round to rake his teeth across Uther’s belly. But Uther slashed downward with his back talons at the same time, clawing into Rook’s uninjured wing, and the bellows of pain from both dragons melded together so that I couldn’t tell one from the other.
I wrenched my eyes away, and shook Rook’s friend. “Wake up, dammit! Rook needs you. You’ve got—”
Another roar of pain cut across me, and I cursed and let go of the unconscious man. Nothing I had done had woken him, and more of the same wasn’t going to work. I needed to find something else.
And then a screech of pain echoed across the courtyard that drowned out every thought in my head. I knew without looking it had come from Rook, and my stomach cramped in terror again. My eyes blurred as I twisted to him, and my entire body trembled at what I saw. Uther had Rook pinned, his whole body under the king’s, and blood was flowing freely from where a claw had punched through his chest. Rook might be able to heal from that wound, given enough time, but it was clear Uther had no intention of giving him that time—his head was thrown back in victory, but his eyes were locked onto the soft spot of Rook’s throat.
No! Protect mate!
The voice echoed inside my head and before I could process it, my limbs tremored and blurred and I launched myself forward. I smashed into Uther as he dove his head at Rook’s exposed throat, and his teeth slid harmlessly off my scales as my claw closed around his wings and tossed him aside. He slammed into the ground with an audible thud, and—
