Page 74 of The Lost Child

“Clever little bitch to turn my weapon on me and bind him to you. But playtime’s over.” His eyes lingered on Canavar. “I’m going to take back what’s mine and get me a nice bonus while we’re at it.” His eyes moved to Nasi and Kaida. “We can breed the female.”

Kaida growled, pushing away her mate and leaping up with one pump of her golden wings. She slashed down and raked my father across his eyes. “Why does everyone try to breed me?” she remarked as my father screamed.

All hell broke loose.

The men attacked Kaida, which sent Nasi leaping into the fray. Canavar shot me a worried look, but I waved a hand at him to help. I’d pick up a dropped sword if I could, and if I had to fight naked, well, it was better than dying. My father was still on the ground, clutching his face.

I kept my eyes peeled.

Canavar made quick work of two of the pirates, who were clearly still terrified of him, but bravely thrust their swords forward. Canavar parried one quickly, and punched him in the face so hard he went out like a snuffed candle, crashing to the ground. The second aimed for his head with a heavy swipe of his blade that left him off balance. Canavar grabbed the pirate’s arm to stop his motion, then ripped the blade from his hands and threw it away. The man’s throat opened under Canavar’s claws.

Nasi and Kaida had already dispatched their two men and were advancing on my father. I clutched the furs tighter to my chest, unable to take part. Nasi and Canavar shot each other a look, then pounced on the pirate lord.

“Stop.” Alkdama entered the hut, one hand raised.

Canavar, Nasi, and Kaida froze in place, unable to move thanks to her magick. My father, however, was not affected. Seizing his chance, he raised his cutlass and brought it down on Canavar’s left ear, cutting it off in one swipe.

I screamed, but Alkdama stalked forward, hands raised as she pricked herself all over her body in precise, deft movements. Her skin glowed with symbols and letters, unrecognizable to me, her eyes liquid gold.

Faster than my eyes could track, she moved, a blur of motion until she stopped in front of me, my father’s cutlass in her hands. My father finished his motion, clearly intent on cutting off Canavar’s nose next. He pitched forward in confusion when he realized his hands were empty.

Canavar bled openly from the wound on his ear, unable to cry out in pain or staunch it himself. I leaped up from my furs, no longer caring about my nakedness. I grabbed one and ran to him, applying pressure to the side of his head. His eyes tracked mine, full of pain and anger.

“Alkdama!” my father roared, spinning to face her.

I kept my pressure steady as I tried to listen. My father knew her?

“I kept my promise,” Alkdama spat at him. “That doesn’t mean you get to maim them in my hut. Take them and never bother us again.” Alkdama tossed the cutlass to me, and I caught it by the hilt with one hand. I dropped it to the ground. The glow from Alkdama’s blood magick faded back into her skin. I used both hands to keep pressure on Canavar’s wound.

My father spit on the ground. “Help me get supplies, a wagon cage and some horses, or everyone in your coven dies.”

Alkdama paled, then raced toward the door. She was stopped by five more of my father’s men, all dragging young blood witches by their hair with daggers at their throats. I recognized Alina, tears shining in her eyes.

“This wasn’t part of the original bargain,” Alkdama argued, fire in her eyes.

Wait. What bargain?

“We’re past the original bargain,” my father growled, pointing at Canavar. “You promised that this one would be under my thumb with whatever hoodoo you did!” He glared at me. “My daughter undid it like that!” He snapped his fingers for emphasis, his gaze murderous.

Alkdama held her head high. “The blood magick curse on the draken held just fine. It broke when a matebond superseded it. None of it had anything to do with me. You’re the one who broke your word to leave my coven in peace on this southern tip.”

My father’s eyes bulged. “Mate bond. You mean she freed him by fucking him?”

I blushed as everyone’s eyes landed on my naked form, but I refused to move my hands from Canavar’s head. I’d be damned if he died of blood loss because I was embarrassed over a little bit of nudity.

Besides, there were far more troubling revelations to take in.

My father was insinuating that Alkdama had been the blood witch that placed Canavar under the blood curse all those years ago. And not only that, but she’d done it willingly in exchange for the safety of her coven from his pirates, likely after my mother had been raped.

It all made sense now.

I was pissed.

“That daughter of yours is a blood witch of my coven and falls under my protection. Hurting her is hurting my coven. Take your drakens and go. They will only be subdued so long as the wine is in their systems. I upheld my end, time to honors yours, or else the magick will do it for you.”

Oh, fuck that. I wasn’t sure what I could do naked against a handful of pirates, but I was willing to find out. I eyed Canavar’s claws, wondering if I could use them to cut myself open and somehow access my blood magicks.

“The girl is my property to do with as I like,” my father argued back. One of his men bent down and retrieved his cutlass, handing it back to him. I glared, but didn’t want to take my hands off of Canavar’s wound.

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