Chapter Sixteen
I’d sifted into the area that I had chosen to call the Monstrous Mountains. Ryder, locked himself in the war room with his men to pore over more charts. He’d scour this entire world to find her; she was the only acknowledged daughter born to Alazander, and Ryder’s only sister. One he’d vowed to protect. Being unable to find her was hurting them all. They all loved her.
I moved through the trails slowly for hours, looking for any hidden threat, anything that would prove that Dragons or anyone else had been present here. I made it through a group of trees and stopped cold as the sight in the clearing came into view.
The smell of meat cooking lingered in the air as the mist parted momentarily and revealed a camp. Genius, hiding among the mist, which was normally too thick to see through, even from the skies above.
I could hear the voices of men and women moving around, and the sound of children playing erupted as squeals came from somewhere deeper in the camp. I made my way to the edge of the camp as my eyes adjusted to the dense mist as it parted and swirled. I noticed that tents had been erected around the outer perimeter, and wards had been carved into large stones around the tents to keep up the magic of the mist and disguise these people from intruders, which was probably why no one knew they were here.
I pulled an invisibility glamour around myself, then worked my way around the edge of camp to watch as men congregated in groups that were either sparring or gaming, and women tended to cooking fires or cared for the children. Some of them were carrying heavy baskets of clothing or other things. The fog shifted, and I realized there were not just several tents; there were hundreds of them set up in this clearing. It wasn’t just a camp that had been set up overnight; it was a very well-established one that must have been here for years. I could make out rocks with runes carved into them littering the border of the camp, and the more I looked, the more wards I saw.
My instinct was to back away and go grab Ryder, but if these were the Dragons, I needed more proof than just my suspicions. I exhaled and scanned the camp, looking for the biggest tent. I hadn’t come this far to go home without proof, or without looking for Ciara.
I watched the men, noting they had Dragon tattoos or glyphs that matched Ryder’s. Ryder had mentioned that the Dragon brands had developed shortly after he had received the Heir brands. These ones moved on their skin—proof of what they were. Glyphs couldn’t be faked; they remained true to the breed, and these were mother-freaking Dragons. Holy farting Fairy buckets. Dragons!
I backed up until I was hidden in the line of trees that I’d originally come from as I figured out my next move. I should have left, should have run to Ryder and told him immediately of this discovery, but I wasn’t going to do it and I knew that. These men looked almost human.
Some men and women stood around large campfires and shared drinks as they talked within their small groups. Small boys played with wooden swords, and I swallowed past a lump as I realized what this was.
Displaced people who had banded together to survive.
If I returned and told Ryder what I had found, he’d need to neutralize the threat. He’d have to, and I hated knowing that it was probably what I needed to do. On the other hand, we needed to know more about them, what they were doing and planning. I doubted they could forgive him easily, even if he’d only been following orders. However, they’d survived it; he hadn’t wiped out an entire race after all. I watched as a man moved into an empty space and shifted, taking the form of a huge, glittering green Dragon, and with a sweep of his gigantic wings, he took to the air. A scout? They’d remained hidden this long because they’d been smart. They’d moved into a place that was thought of as uninhabitable, and yet here they were—motherfucking Dragons.
My eyes moved back to the camp and settled on the largest tent, which had guards surrounding it. Either someone important was in there, or they had someone that they didn’t want to escape from there. I’d have to search the other tents, but my money was on the tent that looked like it belonged to whoever was in charge of this place.
I slowly made my way to where a warded post was set into the ground. My fingers extended, pushing, testing the wards, and when they didn’t go off, I stepped through them. I paused, expecting them to sound a siren of alarm, but they didn’t. Once I knew I was safe, I walked deeper into the camp, past the playing children to where a couple of the men were playing a game with dice that looked like crystals as they cheered and clapped each other on the back.
“Damn! You have to be cheating, Aiden, no one is that lucky!” the man who sat opposite of the table shouted as he slammed his palms on the table and glared in open challenge.
“It is dice; you cannot cheat at it, Syphon. Look at them! Then watch your tongue before you accuse me of cheating you,” the other growled, death peering from his eyes as he watched his opponent.
“No one is that bloody lucky,” Syphon snapped and removed his hands from the table. I moved away from them, watchful of those around me so that no one ran into me. I made my way to the closest tent and stood in front of it for a few moments, listening for anyone who might be inside before moving on to the next.
Tent after tent revealed no sound, no noise. Everyone seemed to be outside, working or playing in different groups. There was a gap in the tents where a group of women were baking different types of bread in stone-like ovens, talking briskly in excited tones; I paused when I heard reference to the Horde whore.
“He’ll show her how our people felt as they raped innocent women,” one commented while she stirred something in a large wooden bowl.
“If you ask me, he should just take her head and return it to the King on a pike. He’d be done with it, and we could wash our hands of her. Her presence here places us all in danger.”
“If he did that, they’d be sure to come. Right now they search for her everywhere, but they’ll never look here. Not when so many other monsters hide in these mountains. I, for one, am sick of being here, hiding like rats. These mountains are freezing my tits off.”
“Faye dearie, you barely have teats,” an older woman teased as she stifled a laugh behind her hand as the other woman peered down at her tits. “Not even big enough to feed a bairn, girl. Now all of you shush your slander. The Lord knows his business; whatever he decides to do with her is his business. It’s not chatter for the baking oven. Now get to work; this food doesn’t cook itself, you know. Plus, we have washing to do or we will all be wearing our undergarments soon.”
I swallowed and moved past them, heading directly towards the biggest tent here. Once I was there, I noted the guards I’d seen earlier and stopped as I considered something that I hadn’t thought of before I’d entered the camp: I couldn’t get into a tent without them noticing the flap move. I held my breath as I heard a whimper from the other side. The flap opened without warning and I slipped inside as a large, burly man pushed his way out.
My heart stopped beating as my eyes adjusted to the dimness of the tent and I got a good look at Ciara. She was wearing only a thin, torn, and ragged dress, and was chained in a standing position to one of the tent supports. Her hair hung in unkempt waves, and her cheeks were bright red as she glared at a man who was lounging atop a bed piled with furs. His hair was light brown, reaching a few inches below his shoulders. Twin Dragons in midflight had been tattooed on his sinewy back. His ass was firm, and his cock was limp but even so—it was impressive.
“Blushing from the Horde princess?” he taunted, crystal blue eyes watching her every move. He sat up and I eyed his naked perfection, but more so, Ciara’s blush intensified as he stood and moved closer to where she was chained. His hand cupped her chin and lifted it until she was forced to make eye contact with him. “You have nothing to fear from me, Ciara. I don’t force myself upon unwilling women as your kind is known for doing. I don’t slaughter the innocent. No, you needn’t ever fear that I’d lower myself to fucking you, no matter how much I’d enjoy this beautiful flesh.” He swallowed hard, and I could tell it was taking everything he had not to do exactly what he’d just vowed he wouldn’t do. She flinched, and it took effort not to pull my blades and end his life right then and there.
“Do what you will to me, Blane, but I will never be used to lure my brothers here to their deaths. You forget, I am Horde,” she hissed as her eyes slowly moved from his face to his other features with a hungry look. “You’ll have to feed me sooner or later, or watch me wither away. I need to feed regularly, and I’m ravenous. Tell me, Dragon, which will it be? Watch me wither and lose your only tool for revenge, or feed me?” she taunted in a throaty tone that left little to wonder what her game was: seduction.
I grinned. Here we’d been worried about her, and she was holding her own. I was so proud. She’d survived, and she wasn’t afraid of him. At least, she wasn’t showing that she was. She moved her hips and the thin belt cinched around her waist that gave a hint of her curves chimed like an alarm. She was a fucking trap. My eyes slowly moved to a gold chain that rested on her hips, and I noticed it had thin metal slivers that dug into her flesh as she moved. I blanched, but kept my temper under control as blood appeared where the slivers had dug into her exposed skin.
Blane’s eyes hadn’t missed it either; he swallowed as small trickles of blood trailed down her waist and onto the remains of the dress, which had dried blood covering a large section of it. He swallowed as she wiggled her hips a tiny bit more, watching his reaction. His hand slowly rubbed down his face as he turned and moved so quickly that I had no warning to move. Luckily, he passed without bumping into me as he exited the tent. I grinned at Ciara, knowing she had rattled him so badly that he’d left without even bothering to grab a pair of pants.
I watched as Ciara’s features crumpled and her eyes watered. I slowly moved to the other side of her, noting the markings on the inside of the tent were indeed wards to keep her and any other creature of the Horde inside this tent, should they enter it. Yep, definitely a trap.
“Ciara,” I whispered.
“Syn?” she called out, and I hushed her.
“Quiet or the guards will hear you,” I hissed. “Are you hurt?” I murmured softly, and when she shook her head, I released the breath I’d been holding. “Dragons, who knew?” I slowly lowered myself to be eye level with the chain and belt she wore, so as not to create more pain than she was already experiencing.
“My brothers?” she whispered.
“Going crazy looking for you,” I murmured, focusing on the weird links.
“They can’t find me here, Syn,” she rushed out, flinching as one of the tiny slivers jabbed her a little too deeply as I touched the chain. “It’s a trap, and the moment anyone from the Horde enters, they won’t be able to escape. The entire camp is rigged to capture them should they try to sneak in.”
“I know; I’m aware of the wards and this…” I paused and waved at the tent, listening as Blane approached.
“You need to go, now,” she hissed.
The flap was thrown open and Blane strode in, still naked and holding a pail of water that he placed at her feet. He watched her speculatively for a few moments.
“Talking to yourself?” he mocked, his fingers slowly trailing over her breasts as he watched her body react. I could take him, but her reaction to him gave me pause. Her pupils dilated, and her back arched as if his touch excited her.
Shock me, Ciara, the naughty little imp. She liked him.
“I don’t talk to myself, I talk to Gods,” she sneered and kicked the bucket over, sending suds over the tarp that covered the ground beneath her feet.
“That was stupid,” he growled, and two of the guards opened the flap to see what the disturbance had been about. Their swords were drawn, ready to cut Ciara to ribbons if she’d escaped. “You could just use glamour, and then you wouldn’t stink or need me to wash your flesh, woman.”
I almost snickered. She was smart; magic left a taint in the air. Had she used it to clean herself up, her brothers could have traced it. She knew they were tearing this world apart to find her, and all she would have had to do was use her magic to bring them right to her, to this well-laid trap they’d created with her as the bait.
I watched as he gripped a handful of her hair and twisted her head back. His lips inched towards her ear as his body closed the distance between them. He wasn’t as unaffected as he pretended to be either.
My hand slowly moved to the dagger at my hip but as I watched, he struggled against his emotions. I didn’t dare try to read his mind, because he might feel it. I could feel his power, intense, raw, and hot. The more turned on he got, the hotter the temperature in the tent was. It put a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘hot damn’.
His lips grazed hers and she moaned as she opened her mouth in a slanted smile, then closed her eyes as she felt him fight a battle between what he wanted to do and what he intended to do.
“Feed me or free me,” she murmured against his lips. “One or the other, Dragon—or, kill me, and send my remains to my brother. You’ll have to choose soon, because time isn’t something I have.”
“You think I’d fall for your shit?” he snapped coldly as he backed away from her, glaring murderously at her. “Seductress of the Horde, do you feed from many men? Part these thighs for any cock willing to feed you?”
I almost growled, but her laughter startled me.
“Any who are willing, Dragon,” She laughed and wiggled her hips, and more blood seeped from the chain and down the gown. “A girl has to feed, and with my appetite, often is preferred.”
“You’re not adding me to their numbers,” he snarled. His hands moved to his head and his fingers threaded through his hair as he calmed his breathing. His dick throbbed, and yet he held himself composed as he moved to the bed, giving me his back.
I took a step and he paused, turned, and looked at Ciara carefully. His eyes searched the tent speculatively and then he turned, allowing me to breathe as he pulled a pair of pants from the bed and shoved his legs into them.
“Keep testing me and you may not like how I choose to feed you,” he warned. “I won’t be kept or swayed from my goal by a slick pussy, or a willing whore.”
I swallowed and considered gutting him. Fuck the consequences. Screw it if she liked him; that mouth of his needed to be taught a lesson. I watched as his eyes moved to the blood, and the muscle in his jaw ticked with his anger. He didn’t like her hurting herself either.
Interesting.
Did she know that? Had she picked up on it and continued to use it? He grabbed a shirt from the same pile his pants had been in, a sword, and a harness, and moved towards her slowly as he smiled with a coldness that sent a shiver racing down my spine.
“He will come for you, even if I have to lure him with bits and pieces of you, Ciara. After I’ve killed him and taken his throne, I may just keep you chained to my bed for eternity. I wonder if you’d beg me to feed you then, or would you beg me for a painless death?”
“He has a Goddess at his side; he will not fall to you, Dragon whelp,” she countered. “Do you have any idea how powerful Synthia is? She could be in here with us right now and you’d never know it until your blood covered this very floor. You can’t ward against her, no one can. You think she’d allow him to walk into your trap alone? She’d spot those wards inside that forest; she’d see them miles before they ever reached them. You’re a fool; take your people and leave. Live—he won’t care that you are alive, Blane, trust me. Just go. Before it’s too late.”
“He’s the Horde King; he won’t walk in, Ciara, he’ll sift. By then, it will be too late for him to turn back. He’s a cold-blooded killer—I know, I was there when he slaughtered my people. He killed my people; my mother was raped and killed by some of his men as I watched them from where I was hidden by my mother’s maid. I won’t run from him, not again. Last time I was a mere lad; now, I’m a man who will pay him back for what he did. I won’t allow it to happen again.”
“He was following orders. He has always regretted what he was forced to do to your people,” she whispered softly. “He killed our father not long ago. He made sure that the real killer paid for his deeds.”
“He took that monster that drove your father mad into him. It’s only a matter of time before he follows his own father’s steps and destroys what little remains of this world. He didn’t kill him because of his deeds, he killed him because he craved power; we’ve heard it whispered from the very day he killed his sire. Killing Alazander doesn’t absolve him of his crimes. Those who he killed were innocent; they didn’t deserve to die like that, or to be left for the carrion birds,” he growled, his blue eyes filling with ice that were laced with hate as he watched Ciara swallow against the malice she saw in his beautiful, watery depths.
“My brother’s beast is his own, not my father’s. I know what he is. I was there the day he killed my father. I saw what happened and why it happened. Ryder isn’t what you think he is,” she replied carefully, watching the Dragon as he moved even closer to her. “Do you think our monster of a father was any kinder to his children? He used us; he tore my brothers down until they had no choice but to do as he bid them, and if they fought against him, he would kill whoever they were closest to. He tortured them, but Ryder is not our father; they’re nothing alike.”
“And you’d lie to protect him,” he hissed.
“I’m Fae, asshole. One hundred percent High Fae royalty and you know it. I can’t lie!” she growled and glared at him. “I’m telling you the truth!”
“Who says the Fae can’t lie? The Guild? How do you know that isn’t something they fed to the Guild so that they would buy it? If I was the High Fae of old, I’d have told them the same thing. Takes out torture, now doesn’t it? They’d buy anything they told them because of course, the Fae cannot tell a lie.”
“You’re the most stubborn asshole in this entire world! Would you listen to me?” She growled as she struggled against the chains that held her.
I frowned. He made sense, because if I was the Fae, I’d have told them that too, even if it wasn’t true.
“The more you fight, the more you drain what little strength you have left, Ciara,” he said smoothly as his crystal blue eyes slowly trailed over her breasts where the tattered dress failed to hide her ample cleavage, which moved with every angry breath she took. “If I were you, I’d reserve that energy. I have no plans of feeding you or falling prey to your seduction, temptress.”
He wouldn’t feed her, but I would. My power left no residue that could be traced, nor would it be felt by anyone in this camp.
I watched as he moved to the flap and turned back around. His eyes narrowed and I could see the muscle in his jaw working as he decided what to say.
“I didn’t ask for this, but I won’t allow that monster to have another opportunity to harm anyone else. To destroy any other caste of Faery. You are innocent, but so were my people. So were the infants that were killed to prevent them from becoming pets for the Horde King’s sick pleasure. The people out there?” He pointed outside of the tent. “All of them are survivors or their children. We have to kill that monster. We have waited, bided our time, and that time is now. Don’t move too much, Princess. Your blood gives me no pleasure,” he gritted out before he turned and exited the tent.
I waited and watched as Ciara lowered her head and looked at where I had been standing before.
“You have to go, Synthia. You have to keep my brothers away from them. They will fight to the death, and none of them will win. I can’t live knowing that it was my actions that bring down these people or the Horde King. I know he won’t stop looking for me, but he has to.”
“Did they create the problems with the portals?” My voice was barely above a whisper.
“No. They don’t bother themselves with the problems of Faery. They do, however, steal women, as they have only a few of their own. Dragon births are typically male, and since most of their females were lost in the Battle of Dragons, they now take them from villages that won’t be noticed by the Horde and mate with them. I think it’s why there aren’t thousands of them here right now. What you saw out there are the ones who were either away when the Horde attacked, were wounded and left for dead after battle, or were just small children that escaped. From what I have overheard, they have a few small encampments now, scattered in rough locations that most wouldn’t dare to think to look in. Most are not inhabited by creatures because of the locale. Dragon Aery is what they call their new home, and Blane is their born King. He was there the day Ryder slaughtered the Dragons; he watched him do it.”
“The chain, I think I can get it off of you.” I kept my voice low as I contemplated what she’d told me. I had been probing it, my eyes catching minute details of the chain, but then it glowed as she hastily interrupted me.
“You can’t,” she hissed. “It’s set to slice me in half should it be tampered with. I’m a trap, made to lure the Horde here to watch me die as they try to free me from it. Blane isn’t a bad guy; he’s damaged. He’s endured a lot, and I think I can reach him, Syn. I just need time. The chain, however, I believe is one of the relics my brother is looking for.”
“If that’s the case, it’s a pretty fucked up relic. Ciara, I’m not leaving you here,” I snapped.
“You are because you have to,” she whispered frantically as tears slid down her cheeks. “Promise me you won’t let my brothers come. Keep them safe. I will get free, I promise.”
“If he doesn’t feed you, you’ll weaken and waste away. There is a lot of emotion in this camp. Anger, pain, resentment, hate; it’s not enough to keep you going for long,” I growled as I struggled against the emotions warring inside of me. I couldn’t get this close and just leave her, but the more I looked at the chain, the more the details of it became apparent. It couldn’t be removed from her. Not by anyone except the person who put it there. Worse than that, the thin belt she was wearing had some kind of beacon in it, like a tracker. Probably a fail-safe in case she did manage to escape.
“He will feed me,” she replied confidently. “I’m going to break through to him, and I’m going to make him see I’m flesh and blood, just as he is. You have to go now. Please, trust me. My brothers don’t; they think I’m weak because I was born female, but I’m not. I can do this, and end this war before it really starts.”
I frowned and placed my hand on her shoulder, pumping power into her and feeding her enough to last a while. The wards on the tent started to glow, so I lessened the amount of power I was giving her. Her hair grew fuller, lusher in color as I fed her. The dark circles beneath her eyes vanished and her body filled out a bit, no longer starved for nutrients. Her flesh looked healthier now and, just to screw with his head a little bit, I cleaned her up and glamoured a fresh top and skirt on her body that would leave her midriff and the chain exposed.
I stepped back and watched as the violet glow in her eyes subsided from the feeding. I shook my head, unsure if I could do as she was asking, but I did trust her. I knew her; she was strong and stubborn, as her brother was. If she could end this war before it got to our doorsteps, it may be worth it.
I hugged her briefly and whispered close to her ear, “Ciara, I will come back for you. I will figure out how to remove that chain and I will come to get you. You have a very short window of time; I can’t watch your brothers endure failure as they come home without you for much longer. Do what you can, but I will be back. Understood?”
“He comes,” she whispered, and I moved to the flap, pushing myself against the tent’s side as men rushed in with weapons drawn. As they moved in, I moved out with one last look at Ciara as she smiled as the Dragon King entered with his own guards close at his heels.
“She did it,” one of the men cheered from inside the tent. “I told you she was too vain to remain dirty,” he snickered as he grabbed her arm and turned it over. “Vanity is a bitch, Ciara.”
“Is it?” she purred as her eyes lifted to their King’s. “Or was it something else?” she smiled saucily.
“Ready the weapons and have the men prepare to fight the Horde, should they come for her,” Blane gritted out coldly.
I swallowed, and prayed to the Gods that Ciara knew what she was doing. I’d kill them all before I let them touch Ryder. Every single last one of them.