Brandon followed Hannah blindly through the woods. Branches whipped at his face; he didn’t try to dodge them. Even in his human form, his skin was as tough as a Dragon’s scales. He barely felt the blows – and cared about them even less.

His entire mind, his entire being, focused on his Dragon.

It raged. It roared. It demanded that he give in to it. That he let its wild power sweep over him and transform.

How could she do this? We are Mates! We claimed her! She cannot deny her destiny!

But she could. The human part of his soul knew that and, grieving, accepted it. Brandon didn’t understand how things had gone so wrong. He’d never imagined that the world could swing from bliss to despair in the space of a kiss. Yet, it had.

No! Shift! Howl our rage to the skies until she sees how wrong she is!

A being of primal desire and energy, his Dragon could not understand how fragile humans were. How its power and anger could destroy a mortal mind. Dragons were not gentle creatures. Shifting now, when his Dragon raged so fiercely, would only terrify her. And he couldn’t bear to see fear in her face. Fear of him.

No. He could not let go of his pain, his betrayal. He was an Alpha, the master of his Dragon soul. He would not lose himself.

“Are you okay?” Hannah’s gentle voice broke the silence.

Brandon stared at her dumbly. How could she ask that? She had filled the cup of his soul with bliss. They had joined together, Dragon and Mate, and pledged their love with the wordless promises of their bodies. And then, at the moment when their union should have become eternal, she turned away from him. Rejected him, and his love. Then she asked if he was ‘okay’?

She waited for his answer. “Yes,” he said. “I’m fine.”

“Okay.” Clearly, she didn’t believe him. Yet she still ‘didn’t want to talk about it.’ So, she continued toward the farm.

A howl of primal pain welled up in him when she turned her back on him. Brandon staggered as his grip on his Dragon wavered. Scales, hard and black, flashed up his arms.

No! He was the master! He clenched his hands into fists. As his Dragon’s energy poured over him, razor-sharp talons sprouted from his fingertips – and drove themselves into his own palms. As he’d planned. A Dragon was, after all, about the only thing that could harm a Dragon.

That shock of pain startled his Dragon, and in its moment of confusion, Brandon drew its power back into himself. Locking it safely on the Other Side. Claws vanished. Scales faded to human skin. Once again, he controlled himself.

Sensing that burst of power, Hannah glanced back, her face creased with worry.

Brandon gave her a smile. A stiff, fake smile – yet it seemed to reassure her.

Denied an outlet into the mortal world, his Dragon keened with grief and loss. Though the danger of losing control was real, he couldn’t be angry with it. He understood, in a way Hannah didn’t, how much she’d hurt them.

Dragons guarded. The urge to protect filled them, in every scale, every drop of blood. Since the age of myth, they protected. Sacred places, like the Wellsprings. Sacred people, like their Mates. When the Wellsprings faded, they took the Dragons’ hearts with them. Robbed of their purpose, their love, some went mad and chewed their wings off. Like LeMar.

Brandon knew the urges that had destroyed his enemy. The cold, dull greyness that life became when it held no hope of love, of purpose. He had tasted the seductive allure of greed, the urge to submerge himself in the empty, petty pleasures that wealth offered. So many Dragons fell to that siren song of despair and greed.

Today, he had dared to dream that his longing was over. That Hannah could fill the hollow inside him, the emptiness that threatened to devour his soul and turn him into a depraved, evil reflection of himself. As LeMar had done. She, and the crippled Wellspring, would save him from that. By devoting himself to her, to protecting her family and home, he could finally become what he was meant to be.

A true Dragon, whole and complete. A Guardian.

And now that dream lay shattered. Destroyed by one simple word: “No.”

Despair washed over him and with it a lethal urge to shift and tear his own wings to shreds. Brandon closed his eyes until that mad desire passed and he was himself again.

I will not let you do this, he told his Dragon firmly. Remember this: if one word destroyed our dreams, then another word can bring them back to life.

Yes.

He would not rail at Hannah, would not let his Dragon lash out in its pain and harm her. When she was ready, she would talk. He would listen to her. In time, he would understand why she denied him. And then, he would change her mind.

He knew he could. Her body had whispered that message to him, as she moaned in the ecstasy of their union. She had claimed him as surely as his Dragon had claimed her. Whatever obstacles her mind might imagine, her heart knew they were soul mates. Destined to be together. When he understood her fears, he promised himself he would solve them. More gently, less brusquely this time. For now, he simply needed to give her time. To wait until she was ready to face this with him.

Furious annoyance radiated from his Dragon. Dragons were not patient by nature.

But he was. And he would not be dominated – not even by his own soul.

 

A blue sedan was parked beside the Stiles’ porch. Brandon spotted it the moment they stepped from the woods, but Hannah reassured him. “That’s Mrs. Grishom’s car. She’s Danny’s nurse. She was feeling sick yesterday and didn’t come by. I guess she’s better.” Her nose wrinkled. “Or maybe she just didn’t feel like working yesterday. She’s not very reliable. We really ought to find a replacement.”

“I will see to that,” he promised her. “Your brother deserves the best care.” Having determined that the car and its driver were not threats, he turned to other matters.

Delicate ones. Ones he needed to broach diplomatically. “We need to get you and your family to safety. Only for a short time.” He raised a hand to interrupt before she could protest. “I know how much this farm means to your family. Remember, though, LeMar threatened to kill you. We can’t give him an opportunity to do that.”

She paused on the porch steps, sick with worry. “For how long? Will we ever be safe again?”

“Of course!” Without thinking, he stroked her cheek. At the contact, he hesitated. They hadn’t touched since their moment of passion. Would she ever want him to caress her again? Then she smiled, and relief washed over him. “I will protect you, Hannah, and this place. You are both very dear to me.”

He yearned to say more. To tell her of the emptiness her love filled in his soul.

Restraint, he warned himself. Give her time. We’ve touched. We’ve taken the first baby step toward reunion. Let it be.

“You’re dear to me, too,” she whispered, her eyes growing damp. Another tiny step. Even his Dragon grew quiet, sensing there might be some value to patience after all.

“Good. So here is my thought.” Normally, he would simply tell her what they were doing. He was an Alpha. He ordered. Subjecting his plans for another’s approval was an alien concept. Judging from his Mate’s own strength of mind, however, it was something he needed to get used to.

“Let’s get your family to my home in New York. Amarie is a doting nurse. I am certain she would love to care for your brother. I will stay here and…”

“Not alone!” she cried. “You can’t! It’s not safe!”

Silly as it was, her concern delighted him. She cared. No matter how much she swore they’d never be together, her own heart betrayed her. She loved him as much as he loved her. “Dearest, no Worm could threaten a Dragon. The mere chance of encountering me terrified him. You saw that.”

Hannah scowled, not reassured. “I also saw the magical trap he left for you. Which vaporized a Werewolf Shifter.”

Okay, she had a point. Knowing he could never defeat a Dragon in a fair fight, LeMar would, no doubt, resort to trickery and spells. Brandon, however, was certain he could manage that. “Honestly, I doubt he’ll bother. Now that I know about the Wellspring, I expect our enemy will flee town quickly. Probably today.”

“But the Wellspring is alive!”

“Barely. It’s not strong enough to heal, as it should.”

“It’s still priceless, isn’t it?” she protested.

“Yes, of course,” he explained, with pained patience. “It’s also now guarded by a Dragon. Which he cannot defeat.”

“By himself. If he gets reinforcements, though…”

Sweet scales and teeth, could she not let it go? This ‘democracy’ nonsense vexed him and his Dragon both. Why couldn’t she just let him give the orders, as he did with Amarie?

Because, he realized, she might be human, but her soul was as fierce as his own. Could he do what he demanded of her? Could he let her face an enemy without him to protect her?

No. Never. While Hannah might not be a Dragon, she understood the burning love that lay at a serpent’s heart. He needed to be patient, as unnatural as it was.

“I will summon reinforcements of my own,” he promised. “There is a Shifter family in Ohio that owes me a favor. They’re not warriors, however, they could be here by this evening and care for your farm. I’ll also summon my Flight. Other Dragons. Trust me,” he smiled. “Not even the Fangs of Apophis dare to face a full Flight of Dragons.”

She wasn’t happy with his plan – but she couldn’t find a flaw in it.

“Remember, this is only for a short time. Once my Flight and I have secured this area, you can return. I doubt you’ll be away more than a week.”

“And then?”

“Then we’ll discuss… other things.” What that might be, he left unsaid. Yet, she knew. They both knew that, no matter what words had passed between them, they couldn’t simply walk away from each other. They were Mates, their souls bound by destiny. If life threw obstacles in their path, they would find another road forward.

Hannah sighed and gave him a rueful smile. “Okay. Sounds like a plan.”

Ha! She agreed with his, um, ‘orders.’ “It’s settled then. Shall we go in and convince your parents?”

The door behind his love opened. Standing on the step below her, he couldn’t see the person who stepped out.

And he didn’t need to. A waft of foulness – garbage and uncleaned fur – touched his Dragon’s fine senses.

“Mrs. Grishom!” Hannah said. “How nice to…”

“Rat!” Brandon thundered. With one swift bound, he mounted the stairs, placing his body between his Mate and this sudden threat.

The woman before him quailed with a squeal of fear that betrayed her Rat Shifter nature. Contempt filled him. Him or his Dragon’s, he couldn’t say. Neither of them held much respect for this treacherous kind. One of LeMar’s stooges, no doubt. He called his Dragon to him, letting its power roll across his skin. As scales flashed across his lean body, he glared at Mrs. Grishom, fully expecting her to flee.

In that moment, he forgot one of the great truths about rats: that, when cornered, they’d fight.

A jacket lay folded across her arm. From under it, the woman drew an obsidian dagger. She flailed wildly; Brandon swatted the blow away, lest it harm Hannah. To his shock, the black blade sliced through the plated skin of his hand. The wound was nothing – a scratch that barely bled. Yet the knife’s track burned like acid.

With a shriek, Grishom collapsed into an oily rodent the size of a large dog. The knife clattered to the porch as she bolted for the woods at a dead run.

He spun, prepared to pounce on her and end her miserable life. At his movement, the world twirled madly, sending him crashing into the porch railing.

“Brandon!” Hannah darted to his side as his legs gave way. “What’s wrong?”

“P-p-poison! You need to…”

That was all he managed to choke out before the darkness took him.