His body was on fire. Hell! Now he knew what it felt like to be hit by one of his own power bolts and damn it hurt but not as much as knowing that Kimber was now in the mix. He tried to move his head but it took long seconds for that to work and by that time she was on her knees next to him, her eyes filled with horror as she pulled at his shoulders, trying to lift him.

“Victor! Get up, get up!” she cried, louder and louder.

“I’m fine, get out of here, Kimber. Get out, now!”

Nellie’s voice rose. “You’ll pay for that, Mivian. You won’t leave here alive.”

“Tell me you lied, old woman.” Mivian spat out. “Tell me you fucking lied.”

“No. Because I did not. I rode on the great Dragons of old. I heard them tell tales of how it was in ancient times and they shared magic with me. I soaked it up and never spoke of it until this day. It was my secret and I only told you now so you had a chance to spare your life . . . that has gone. You don’t deserve mercy, Mivian. You’re evil and I can’t allow you to carry on and hurt others. It’s the way of the Fae to protect others and you’ve broken that trust.”

“The Fae are weak!” Mivian scorned. “And I still don’t believe you. If you had that magic you would be young and beautiful and you wouldn’t be working for him as his lackey!”

Nellie shook her head. “You’re misguided, jealous, and vain.”

Kimber leaned down, whispering, “Are you going to be all right?”

Victor nodded. “Yeah, I’ll heal soon. I’m just dazed. Gimme a minute and I’ll be right as rain.”

He wasn’t sure that was the case. He needed blood to heal the internal wounds he could feel . . . ones that were hurting like fuck. But he wouldn’t divulge that just yet.

“Okay.” Kimber rose, his hand reaching for her but for some reason it wouldn’t do what he asked, his arm not rising from the floor.

His Bloodmate turned, her body shimmering and he knew what she had planned: she was transforming. Holy shit. What was she going to do? What would Mivian do when tempted by the very Dragon she’d come to claim? His heart stuttered in his chest with terror as he watched transfixed and mere seconds later his beautiful Dragon stood proudly before him. She let out a rumble before padding over to join Nellie, his voice a gurgled shout as blood leaked from his mouth.

“Kimber! No!”

Nellie placed a hand on Kimber’s head, keeping her in place. Mivian’s eyes roving over her with greedy desire. “There you are! Aren’t you beautiful? Come with me now and nobody else has to get hurt.”

Kimber’s beast stomped a foot, shaking its head firmly as Nellie held up a palm. “Mivian, this ends now.”

“Yes, it does, you old crone.” Mivian’s hands raised, completely encased in blue orbs.

Nellie’s mirrored the interlopers but hers were covered in white, with flashes of silver and gold. Mivian’s eyebrows rose as if not expecting whatever it was that Nellie was producing, and Victor could only pray that was a good sign. He watched avidly, Kimber’s lethal tail starting a slow twitch, as power started to flow from Mivian toward Nellie but the old woman’s was already flowing faster toward the younger woman.

The white met the blue in a crackle of sound that grew louder, with sparks, flashes, and embers dropping all around them. Some of which landed on their clothes to burn small holes and litter the air with the odor of burning flesh. Kimber’s Dragon was distraught, making high-pitched keening noises as she watched the battle between the two Fae continue. Victor knew she would intercede. He could feel it inside him and he knew Kimber. She couldn’t stand by and do nothing. He just wasn’t sure what, or when.

Her tail swished faster, knocking over a table and sending it crashing into the wall but neither of the women flinched, their focus on each other as they battled for supremacy. From his position on the floor, it was difficult to see who was winning. One moment he thought Mivian was gaining but the next he was certain Nellie was . . . or was that just wishful thinking on his part? With his injuries refusing to heal without an infusion of blood he was out of the game and anger flowed through him like molten lava.

“Kimber! Come here, please!” he yelled. Well, in his mind he did, but in truth it came out a garbled whisper with blood leaking down the side of his mouth. Damn it.

Where were his men? Surely someone must know something was wrong by now? Could he reach someone if he really tried? He had to. Kimber’s life was on the line. His mind was foggy at best but the strongest link he had was with Flint and he hoped the damn bitch’s spell hadn’t worked on him.

“Flint, can you hear me?” He paused, that one sentence almost knocking him out cold. Taking deep breaths that caused a coughing fit and stars to appear in his vision had him thinking he was worse than he’d first thought.

It was hours later before his friend answered. Hours!

“Hmm, yeah, I’m here. You woke me from a nice nap. What’s up?”

A fucking nap. So the bitch did get to him after all. Victor had to center himself before replying, taking every part of his remaining energy and using as little words as possible. “Help. House. Now. Hurt.”

This time when his friend answered he was alert and obviously on the move. “Fuck! I’m coming! Hold on. I’m coming!”

Victor sighed, knowing that Flint would bring anyone he could find . . . and that was still awake. His eyes returned to the battling Fae, Mivian’s face a mask of hate and concentration, sweat dripping down to run rivulets through her make-up. Nellie, on the other hand, looked completely calm and relaxed and she was obviously gaining ground. Thank fuck. Kimber’s beast was now prowling back and forth, her anguish and anger prominent, growls and snarls erupting from her fierce jaws.

It appeared she wasn’t going to be able to stay out of the fight for much longer. A pain like no other pierced his chest and it didn’t come from his injuries, it came from fear for his Bloodmate. The thought of Mivian turning her power on Kimber was like nothing he’d felt before and it almost killed him stone-dead right there. Shit, Nellie, hurry up.

While he looked, though, it appeared to him as if Nellie was merely holding Mivian off. Why? Oh hell . . . he knew. He fucking knew why. She was waiting and allowing Kimber to take the final action. No! No! And hell no! Victor fought to move, the pain intense and indescribable as he pulled himself along the floor, leaving a bloody trail behind him as he slowly made his way toward his beautiful Dragon.

She was kind, soft, and not a killer. He was a killer. He could destroy Mivian without a thought but not his Kimber, that wasn’t something she should have on her soul. What the fuck was Nellie thinking?

He continued, slowly, so slowly, dragging himself toward her until finally he was in reach of her long tail and as soon as he was he reached out, tapping it gently. She spun around, jerking until she saw it was him, rushing to nuzzle him and mewling pitifully when she saw so much blood leaking from his wounds. Reaching up to pat her side he tried to console her. “It’s okay. I’ll be all right once I’ve fed.”

He wasn’t sure if his words came out right, or not, but he had to try. “Nellie, don’t do this. End it. Now.”

Nellie’s eyes flicked to his then Kimber. “She wants to, Victor. I can feel it. Can’t you?”

“No, don’t,” he stated again, more firmly.

That’s when Kimber turned, snarling viciously at Mivian, her eyes turning to see him once more, bloodied and broken on the floor her head lowered, a long tongue darting out to lick his face. And then he felt it . . . her rage. It engulfed him entirely. A mate’s rage against someone who would hurt those they loved. Nellie was right. Kimber’s beast was full of it, encompassed by the darkness of hatred that only one that can love so deeply, so fully, so utterly as a Bloodmate can.

He knew that feeling. It’s what he felt for Mivian and Kimber felt it now too and she was ready to wreak her own vengeance on the woman who’d hurt him. Her Dragon snarled, growled, and hissed as it stepped toward the Fae who’d dared to try and break them apart, her head rearing back as a mighty roar broke free . . . just as Flint and a bevy of guards tore through the doors.

“Stay back!” Nellie yelled a warning a split second before Kimber’s mouth opened and a plume of fire spilled from her mouth.

It flew straight toward Mivian, embracing her completely in its fiery death. Her mouth opened in a wide scream of agony and Kimber’s fire sped down inside her throat, burning her up from the inside out at the same time as from the outside in. Her skin melting and scorching until there was nothing but the stench of charred flesh and her blackened body lying on the floor.

Nellie had, somehow, contained the flames to a small circle so that the entire house didn’t go up in an inferno. As soon as Kimber had halted her stream of fire, Nellie had uttered some words and cleansed the surrounding area of anything still alight. Kimber’s Dragon stalked to Mivian’s remains, the blackened bones fragile and lying in a heap, and stamped down on them viciously to extinguish even that sign of the woman who’d come into their home to try and destroy their happiness. Only then did she retreat, rushing to his side and mewling loudly.

“What the goddamn fuck happened here?” Flint ground out, his eyes roving around the room as he looked at Nellie, then the charred remains before finally finding him on the floor. “Fuck! Victor, what the hell?”

“I’ll be fine . . . just need blood.”

“Yeah, right. Like a whole fucking blood-bank,” Flint snarled, reaching down to pick him up and carry him upstairs.