Minach’s Dragon treaded air high above the ocean, his eyes fixed on the small cottage near the coastal cliffs.

Amara had said she never wanted to see him again. Well, if that was what she wanted, so be it. He would do his best to mask his Dragon form in the clouds so that her beautiful eyes wouldn’t be infected by the sight of him.

But he needed to see her.

He’d planned to head down to Perthewey, and eventually back to London with the others. But to do so would have gone against every protective instinct inside him. He needed to make sure that Amara was all right, to get one final look at her before he took his leave forever. So he’d forced himself into a shift and shot back towards the cottage only to find the house deserted, her scent leaving a faint trail leading to the woods in the distance.

Well, he’d wait. No doubt she’d be back, and he could wait. He needed to prove to himself that he hadn’t entirely ruined her life. To apologize one last time, even if the apology was a silent one breathed from a distance. If she was determined never to speak to him again, she would have her wish.

Minach had ruined Lyre’s life so many years ago in a place so like this one. All the ill feelings had returned in full force to haunt his mind; nausea, guilt, doubt. But this time, at least, the circumstances were different. This time he’d tried with all his strength to save the person he loved. This time he hadn’t stood by like a coward and watched; he’d been aggressive in his defence, a protector through and through. If Amara hated him for it, he could live with it.

For once in his life, he knew he’d done the right thing.

When his eyes picked up the sleek, beautiful grey Wolf darting back towards the cottage, his Dragon’s heart caught fire in his chest. Not only was Amara alive and well, but her incredible déor had come back to life, strong and vibrant. The amazing creature was alive, energetic, bounding over Cornwall’s rocky terrain as though she’d never forgotten how to run. She’d become the wind itself, floating over tall grasses and jagged rock. This was no Forsaken with a thirst for human blood. This was a strong, healthy shifter.

He watched her sprint to the house’s front door, watched her stop, her eyes turning up to look for him as she sat back on her haunches, panting hard. As the Dragon stared into her distant eyes, he understood what he needed to do. He knew that Amara’s anger had left her, and she wanted to speak to him.

Minach’s Dragon swept downwards, landing hard on the ground in front of the cottage. He reached his immense muzzle out nearly far enough to touch the Wolf’s nose. Without a moment’s hesitation she shifted, a hand reaching out to stroke the scales on his face.

“Minach, I’m so sorry,” she said, tears brightening her already ethereal eyes. “Please forgive me. I should never have spoken to you like that. I was upset, but now I understand that I shouldn’t have been. I can’t begin to explain what you’ve done for me…”

In an instant the tall, black-haired man stood before her, a smile on his lips as he looked down into her happy eyes. A euphoria unlike any feeling he’d ever known filled him as he reached for her, his thumb stroking her soft, rosy cheek. “You had every reason to be angry with me,” he told her. “I took a risk, and to be honest I didn’t know if it would pay off. I didn’t know if the power of the Relics would be enough. All I knew was that I couldn’t lose you, Amara. I would rather have you alive, even as a Forsaken, than lifeless on the ground. Hate me though you may, I love you far too much to let you go without a fight.”

“You…” she whispered, her voice catching in her chest before she could bring the next words to life. A smile more exquisite than anything the Dragon shifter had ever seen stretched its way across her lips. “You really love me, Minach?”

“I’ve loved you since the day we met,” he said, the words rising up from somewhere deep in his chest. “Don’t you know that by now, silly girl?”

She shook her head against his palm. “All I know for certain is how I feel about you. If it’s possible, I love you more now than ever before. What you’ve done for me…I can’t tell you what it means.”

“It’s the Relics,” he said. “They’re assembled now, and ours to keep. Their power is in me, and in you as well, thanks to the blood that flows through my veins and yours.” He took her face in both hands, pressing his lips to her forehead. She was warm for the first time since he’d met her, the blood of a Wolf coursing through her veins. The blood-seeker who had dominated her had been sent away, relegated forever to a place hidden somewhere deep inside her. Devastating, unrelenting need had been quashed in one quick swipe of a blade, the Dragon’s blood curing the Enlightened of her illness at last.

Amara wrapped her arms around him, pressing her small body into his enormous frame, and Minach enveloped her in a tight embrace. She felt smaller now. Or perhaps it was that he’d grown larger. It didn’t matter. She was his beautiful, strong Amara once again. Nothing and no one would ever separate them as long as he lived.

“Come,” he said. “Let’s get you inside.”