I watched from my vantage point outside the ring of flames. Unable to stand still, I’d launched back into the air and circled the fire, worried. I knew that Brick could hold his own, and that his might was impressive.

I recognized the man he was facing off against—I’d seen him when the spike had been driven into my skull and my mind had gone blank. As much as I trusted Brick’s ability, I knew he was up against a vile excuse for a life.

I couldn’t calm my beating heart. I needed to know that Brick was going to be okay.

Orris looked surprisingly human now that he wasn’t hiding within his long, hooded robe. He stood there in his post-shifted nudity, every wrinkle and loose fold of skin exposed.

His age showed, especially when compared to the finely honed musculature of Brick and Cory. Orris wasn’t a small man, but he was a twig in comparison to my dragon warrior and his king—a twig that would be snapped without a second thought.

I circled around the ring of flames, trying to get a better look.

Orris’ manhood lay limply against his scrawny, pale thigh. His hair was thin and wispy, and his eyes were sunken and full of hatred. This was the man who we’d all feared? He looked like the creepy uncle who always tried to slip you sticky, old butterscotch candies when your parents weren’t watching.

I jolted when Orris raised his hands, his cold gaze narrowing on Cory. For a moment, I thought he was about to lash out with his magic again, but before he could follow through with whatever it was he’d planned to do, a blast of sand shot up from near Orris’ feet, spraying him in the face like a geyser.

I let loose with an enthusiastic screech, and if I’d been more bold, I would have launched myself upward and backflipped. My mate’s power was impressive, and my heart filled with appreciation for him.

Boy, quit your antics. You don’t want to distract them, do you? the purple dragon, none other than Sam’s nana, asked. I settled down and came to stand beside her again, ducking my head in embarrassment. Maybe I was a little too excited.

Orris shielded his face with his hands as best he could, but even still, he sputtered and turned his head. His eyes were squeezed shut, the sand temporarily blinding him.

I wondered why he hadn’t just jumped back or moved away from the sand, and looked down to see his feet had turned to stone, merging with the sand he stood on. Brick had once again manipulated the natural resources around him, trapping Orris in place while he and Cory approached.

I squinted against the dark, trying to get a look at the stone. I guessed, when it came down to it, it wasn’t quite stone. Sandstone, maybe? It shimmered with the same sparkling grains of crystallized salt that lit the desert up by moonlight, turning the evil man that was anchored down into something almost beautiful.

Whatever it was, the fact that it had locked Orris in place was what really mattered. Brick had done an outstanding job.

I watched in amazement as the sandstone slowly crept up Orris’ legs. Gradually, his body turned into one of the perfectly formed stone statues that I’d heard Emery and Sam describe from their first encounter with the dragon warriors almost two and a half years ago.

“Why would you betray us, Orris?” Cory asked with righteous anger. Without the dampening ear plugs Sam had made for me, I heard his every word clearly. “We loved and trusted you as one of our own. Did we not show you kindness? Did we not make you feel as though you belonged?”

While Cory spoke, three large dragons flew in from the west, landing within the circle of flames. Blue, red, and purple-black scales glistened in the light of our dragonfire.

Seconds later, the dragons shifted back to their human forms, revealing Blaze, Peter, and Sana. The three took up position around Orris, working with Brick and Cory so that each draconian warrior was an equal distance from the next.

Flickering shadows from the flames toyed with the angles and ridges of Cory’s face. He looked every bit the king he was, and he positioned himself appropriately, standing boldly before his adversary, unafraid. The dragon warriors stood by, waiting for instruction.

Their bodies were coiled tightly, ready to react. Even the smallest movement would set them off. Cory was in command of three highly trained machines… and by the looks of it, Peter, who was still new to his draconian heritage, would soon make it four.

“You weren’t ever more than a weak, sniveling child,” Orris sneered. “Everything you’ve ever received was handed to you by your father, the true king of Novis.”

Cory’s mouth tightened. “Of course it was handed to me—I was the crown prince. But try as you might to convince me otherwise, I have never been a weakling. A weakling would not have survived the hurt you have done me. A weakling would not persevere when he was torn from the world he knew and thrust into an unknown land. Do you know who is the weakling here, Orris? It’s the man who had to resort to measures like these to murder what’s left of our people… innocent lives you wish to destroy for your own selfish goals. And all for what? To take my place as the rightful heir of Novis? I trusted you, Orris. My father trusted you… and this is how you repaid that trust? I am appalled by your schemes, your crimes, and your lack of loyalty.”

Orris spat at Cory, but it lacked the momentum it needed and did nothing more than land on his own bare chest, oozing in a slow stream toward the ever-growing stone overtaking his body.

“Lies, Coryphaeus! All of it is lies! You are not the rightful heir to Novis—you are merely an accident… a mistake created from misspent seed. Look at you, the so-called crown prince, now king of our once-proud people. You have an omega for a guard who spent his lifetime attempting to pass as an alpha, and now you’ve gone so far as to take a halfling human hybrid for a mate? You were never man enough to rule Novis. I had no choice but to take countermeasures for the good of our nation.”

The sandstone had nearly taken over his body now; only his narrow, bony shoulders and head remained uncovered. I wished that his mouth had been sealed shut—hearing him spew his litany of hatred at Cory turned my stomach.

How could Orris not see that Sana was a skilled warrior whose power rivaled any alpha he was paired with? How could he not see the truth in Emery’s soul? His hatred was based in ignorance.

He didn’t care to see past his own prejudice, and it blinded him to the truth—that all of us, no matter how different or unusual we were, were all equally as capable and deserved just as much respect as any other.

The sandstone crept higher, over Orris’ collarbone and up the sides of his neck, leaving the front of it exposed. As it curled over his jawline, Orris flashed Cory a cocky grin.

“This stasis will only hold me for so long. When I break free—and trust me, I will break free—I will come for you. You will never be man enough to defeat me, and when I eventually beat you, I will take pleasure in fucking each of your pitiful mates after I have whipped them into submission. And when each of them are nothing more than broken husks of who they once were, filled with my seed and swelling with life for me, I will slit their defiled throats and piss all over their dying bodies.”

“I’ve heard enough of your filth,” Cory said sternly, his voice ringing through the night. As he spoke, the fingernails on his right hand shifted into claws.

The other men stepped forward to surround Orris in a tight ring. Blaze, who stood behind Orris, reached out and held Orris’ head firmly in place while Cory pronounced his fate.

“Orris, you will not be waking up from this stasis. As the rightful King of Novis, I sentence you to death for your crimes against the crown, your fellow citizens, and humanity at large.”

Without further hesitation, Cory swung his hand and cleanly sliced Orris’ throat. A gush of blood burst forth, spraying Sana’s chest until he stepped back out of its range. The blood splashed down on the ground in front of him, its scarlet hue vivid against the white desert sand.

But the flow didn’t last for long—sandstone crept into the crevice, invading Orris’ body from the inside while it continued to consume his head. His open mouth was filled, and his sunken eyes were hidden forever from the world. Finally, nothing was left but a statue.

I couldn’t help but wonder what Cory would do with a statue of his fallen enemy. If I were him, I wouldn’t want it around the house, especially with so many young children around. Orris’ face was a mixture of shock, rage, and fear—enough to give anyone nightmares.

I wasn’t left wondering for long. Brick motioned for the others to step back, then waved a hand in front of the statue. The stone began to turn to sand, slowly melting from the crown of its head. We all watched in silence as the statue of Orris crumbled away into a shapeless heap.

Then, Brick jerked both of his hands into the air and made a whirling motion with his wrists. The mound of sand turned into a whirling dervish that lifted straight up into the air. As we all watched, the swirling column moved out across the open desert, where a sudden gust of air came up and met it, scattering it all at once.

And just like that, Orris of Novis was no more.

* * *

Pain gripped my stomach, and I reverted to my human form with a startled yelp. Around me, sand rained down and smothered the dragonfire that separated me from my mate.

Nana must have realized that I needed help, I suppose, because I found myself being lifted into her purple-scaled arms. Before I had time to get my bearings, we were flying back the way we’d come—toward the compound.

Brick let out a roar as I was whisked away. Fear clouded the connection between us, and I knew he had to feel the pain inside of me, too.

I peeked over Nana’s dragon shoulder and was relieved to see Brick and the other dragons all back in dragon form, racing after us while Nana rushed me to help.

I wasn’t sure why we were fleeing. Maybe she didn’t realize Sana was there, when she knew he was capable of helping me. Or maybe she just didn’t want me to give birth in the middle of the desert. Either that, or she wanted to get me to Mama.

Whatever her reasons, I didn’t give a shit—I just wanted this baby out of me and for this pain to go away. The fact that my baby was three weeks early was a worry I’d put aside until this mind-numbing pain was gone.