CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The descending path snaked and twisted, but with Ross to guide their way, Kate was not worried about getting lost. She could smell the briny tang of the sea, and the air was fresh, suggesting an outlet to the outside world. As they squeezed through a narrow opening, he held his electric lantern high. Light flashed all around them, bouncing and shimmering from one reflective surface to the next. It was beautiful—like a magnification of the sparks that shimmered on Ross's body every time she got too close to him.
But what she was seeing was natural. They had entered a roughly circular cavern. The sea was rushing in from somewhere below, and all around them were jagged rock faces embedded with chunks of crystal. The light from the lantern was sparkling from thousands of crystal facets, shimmering in new patterns as the lantern moved.
The effect was breathtakingly beautiful. But she was so intent on gazing at the gleaming crystals that she tripped over some stones on the ground.
He caught her, and his arm grabbing her around the waist felt hot as a brand. He quickly let her go. "You see why I didn't want you to come here alone."
"I remember it. I was here before. It's where he brought me."
She continued to walk ahead of him down the narrow path that circled the pool. "It's a lovely spot for a sea dragon's den. I take it the water is coming in through an opening somewhere?"
"Yes. It's tidal. The tide is out now. It's beginning to turn, actually, but high tide is still several hours away." He joined her on the lip of the pool. "The pool is quite deep, even at low tide, and it's tidal, too. It will fill and overflow. At high tide, this cave will be full of water."
She looked up. The crystal ceiling was maybe two feet above their heads. "Entirely full?"
"Just about. You wouldn't want to be in here when the tide is high."
"What's that?" she asked, squinting at a rock platform on the far side of the cavern. It was the only place in the cave wall where the crystal chunks were sparse, and there was something strange there, something dark and jarring. She didn't remember seeing it on the night the Zrakon had brought her here.
"That," he said, "is where we're going. Come, I'll show you." Slipping carefully past her, he led the way down the still descending path towards the massive rock.
For a moment, she hesitated. As they got closer, she could see that there were two thick, sturdy-looking chains hammered into the rock wall. Each was several feet long, ending in a cruel iron manacle.
"Damn," she said.
"Indeed." He jumped down to the sandy bottom, which was about a couple of feet lower than the path she was standing on. There were several inches of water there now; he splashed through it to stand with his back against the rock. "You put the victim here and chain her to the rock." He was between the two chains. "When the tide is out, it's just a bit uncomfortable. But when the tide is full and the cavern floods..." he let his voice trail off.
"But the sea dragon comes before that happens, right? I mean, he's not going to let me drown."
"Of course not."
She ran her fingers over one of the chains. She would have expected it to be old and rusted, but it was shiny and new. She shivered. Had it been installed especially for her?
When she turned to look at Ross, he was glowing with a sparkling nimbus all around him. "Is that energy hurting you?"
"No. It's just very hard for me to maintain control." His voice shook, and she believed him. "We may have waited too long."
"Let's be quick about it then," she said practically.
She stripped off her clothing and jumped down to join him. She tried not to look too hard at the depth of the water in the cavern, which was rising rapidly. It was as if the waves were responding to the tumult inside Ross.
When she reached the rock, she turned so her back was against it. "You don't need to chain me. I won't run away."
He was staring at her naked body. He seemed transfixed by the sight of her. "I'd better follow the ritual exactly. I don't want to make him any angrier than he already is. Are you frightened?"
She began to say no, but in all honesty, she was frightened. She was trying not to think about what was going to happen. Not thinking about it made it easier to cope. "I am, of course. But I've met your Zrakon. He was gentle with me."
"You met me wearing his shape. I was in control. The beast wasn't dominant. Tonight he will be. He is hungry. Angry at being denied. Frustrated at being forced to wait. I'm not sure what he is going to do. All I know is that he's bursting out of me and I can no longer rein him in."
"Okay then. Let's not make him wait any longer."
Ross took one of the chains and stretched it out. The heavy clank of iron rang an unpleasant note in the cavern. He hesitated. "You must be willing. I have to ask. It's part of the ritual."
"I am willing." She held out her wrists. "You see? I am giving myself to you."
His eyes seemed to glow a deeper blue. "You're so fucking brave. So positive and cheerful, too. You're bringing light into my darkness, you know?" He paused for a beat, and then added, "I'm in love with you."
She was so surprised, she didn't know how to respond. She blinked, feeling unaccountably teary. But she couldn't cry. Not now. He might think she was unwilling if she started blubbering, but that wasn't it at all. He was so strange and special. So sweet in so many ways. And so ferocious in others.
He touched her carefully. The glow retreated away from his hands, so they did not burn her. He took the first chain and crossed her body with it, from shoulder to hip. He put the iron manacles about her right wrist where it lay against her hip, then did the same on the other side. The manacles were loose on her, but as soon as they were closed, they seem to tighten of their own accord until she could feel the metal biting into her wrists. She shivered. There was real magic here. She could feel it. It seemed to pulse all around them, and it had a dark and ominous feel. This was not benign magic. This was ruthless, powerful, and fierce.
Ross stood back, looking at her chained to the rock. The water was now over her knees, which was scary because no tide could come in so fast. Ross didn't seem to notice. He was breathing hard. The glow around him intensified and became fiery. Maybe the sea dragons of Mallochbirn maintained some vestige of their dragon fire, after all.
"What now?"
He didn't speak. His eyes had gone wild. He began pulling at his clothing, shedding it rapidly, tearing it off. He seemed to waver before her eyes. His body emerged, strong and muscular. Even more muscular than usual, perhaps. He was beautiful. Between his thighs, his cock rose hard and thick and long. At least it doesn't have spikes on it, she thought, a little frantically.
The Hunger. She could feel the lust rolling off him. He stepped back toward her, the fiery glow hot and searing.
"No," she cried. "You can't touch me as a man. You must let yourself change."
He wavered, as if no longer sure what he was doing. "Ross," she thought it to him this time, trying to open the golden tunnel into his mind. "Can you hear me? You have to let the change happen."
The mental bond didn't form. It felt as though he was blocked off from her.
He turned from her and dived naked into the pool, which was already overflowing. The water was now splashing up over her hips, rising higher every second. The dark waves closed over his form and he disappeared.