Page 97 of Payne's Envy

“You were free to do what you wanted. You could have done worse, ripped my heart out a thousand times without knowing, and it wouldn’t have changed. I just needed you to know I would have killed them all in my pursuit to be with you.”

“Did you…um…you know…with anyone during all those years?”

“Never.”

“Never?”

“I made that mistake when you were a teen and promised myself it wouldn’t happen again. Do you realize I’ve waited all my life for you yet?” He smiled slowly and then murmured, “You were worth the wait. So fucking worth the wait.”

Chapter Forty-Five

Payne

The dragons came again shortly after I confessed my truths to Joy. Only two showed that time, but the Reapers couldn’t penetrate the flesh of the beasts with their weapons. Grim’s children could send the creatures flying or knock them around with their powers, but nothing more.

I had to kill them, and everyone agreed to meet in the castle because of it.

“It’s a problem,” Grim said in the family room as he ran his gloved hand through his hair. I narrowed my eyes on the black material. I had a hunch about why he wore them.

“We can’t let Harvest know this.” Maureen shook her head. “It’s bad enough that he knows about our powers disappearing. If he knew we couldn’t hurt his dragons, he’d never stop sending them.”

“He’s already doing that.” Kitty stated.

“They’re getting tougher, but Payne’s still stronger,” Joy said. “But he can’t be everywhere at once.”

“Maybe we don’t need to penetrate their flesh,” Sebastian added. Everyone waited for him to continue. “With the right amount of pressure, we might damage them internally.”

Barron sighed. “We tossed them around like rag dolls, and it didn’t faze them.”

Everyone sighed after Barron spoke. The tension was high in the room. It had been days of attacks. Reaper work wasn’t getting done like it should.It exhausted everyone in that room except for August.He was searching for his own fate.

I’d always known what it was like to be weaker. I loathed myself for not being able to protect Joy like she could me. But I wondered how the Reaper family must feel. To be so powerful, to be immortal, and suddenly start to lose that strength. They were born as protectors, who were slowly becoming powerless.

I was not envious of my mate’s family. Despite the dragons getting stronger, they still had me.

Every time I attacked the dragons, although their flesh took longer to damage, I could hurt them with my claws and my fangs.

I touched my teeth. “What if we extracted my fangs or my claws while I was a Deathraka? We could create weapons out of them.”

Barron and Sebastian grinned at the same time.

My mate worried her bottom lip. “You know little about what you are. You might not have the ability to regrow your fangs, then how would you defend yourself?”

I pulled her close. “I’m your mate. Have you forgotten?”

Joy’s lips upturned slowly. “You have my regeneration ability.”

“I do.”

“It’ll work,” Grim said. “We can forge his claws into our weapons. We’ll need to add it to the ones we’re making with our essence, too. If Harvest is making this many dragons now, you know he’ll use them for the end as well.”

“Tonight will be Kitty’s turn to create her weapon,” Melanie added. “Tomorrow, Joy. And neither of you will complain like Maureen when your brothers stand guard. It’s a long process, and it doesn’t hurt to watch over each other.”

“Jackal had it under control.”

Jackal grabbed Maureen’s arm when she spoke before saying, “When it comes to your well-being, I won’t risk it, especially because of your pride.”

Maureen’s shoulders drooped, and she leaned into her mate. Everyone smiled as she melted into his side and hid her face.

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