Chapter Twelve
Griffin stood on the beach, his claws out, and his breath heaving. Valerie had left him. Fled from him.
His mate.
His.
Oh, the hell, no, she wasn’t getting away that easily. They were linked now, joined until death. And he didn’t plan on either of them dying soon.
His nostrils flared. It was easy enough to follow her scent. He could follow her—track her—anywhere. There would never be an escape for her again. Didn’t she realize that? He began stalking through the sand as the waves battered at the shore. He heard the music up ahead. The laughter. Griffin could smell cheap booze and sex on the breeze.
The bouncer saw him coming. The guy’s gaze swept over Griffin, and then his head lowered, a sign of submission. But when Griffin would have bounded inside, the shifter put his hand on Griffin’s chest. “You don’t want to go in there.”
“Something that belongs to me is inside.”
The bouncer’s gaze met his. “Only darkness is inside.”
Griffin bared his fangs. “Then she is my darkness.” Some people liked to paint the world as black and white. Vampires were evil. Angels were good. Shifters…they were mostly on the bad side, so why would he be afraid of a little darkness?
He was starting to absolutely crave the dark.
Griffin headed into the club. His gaze raked the place, looking for the one witch who belonged to him. As he stood there, a black raven flew right past him, nearly slamming into Griffin’s head.
A familiar bird.
Fuck me. Familiar.
He followed the bird’s flight. Saw it land—on Rio. The young shifter stood near a dark door, his hands crossed over his chest, his chin out in a tough-guy pose. A waitress had sidled near Rio, one clad in a very short skirt and a barely-there top. She pushed a drink toward Rio.
“He’s not legal,” Griffin barked as he closed in on them.
The waitress laughed. “Like anything in this place is legal?”
He growled at her.
She laughed again. “Oh, man, you’re not even the worst thing I’ve seen in the last five minutes.” She winked at Rio. “You want some fun, you come find me.”
Rio’s eyes were the size of saucers as he watched her walk away. “This place is…awesome.”
“No, it’s the pit of hell.” Griffin snapped his fingers in front of Rio’s face, trying to draw the kid’s attention away from the waitress’s ample ass. “Where’s my witch?”
Rio shook his head. Seemed to finally focus on Griffin. “What are you doing here?”
Griffin almost rolled his eyes. I’ve been around my witch too long. “I’m here to claim what’s mine.” A hard edge punctuated each word. “Where is she?”
Rio gave a telling glance back at the door.
Griffin frowned. Valerie’s scent had stopped right there—right at Rio. No scents and no sounds were coming from inside whatever room that was. Probably because the place is enchanted. “Move aside.”
“She’s…not alone.”
Griffin kicked in the door. It went flying back with a heavy crash and standing there—his witch. His beautiful, sexy as sin witch. And she was not alone. A big bastard with too many tats stood touching her. Touching her? He damn well dared?
Griffin’s claws lengthened as a red haze seemed to cloud his vision. “You’re going to lose that hand.”
The guy laughed. “Good thing I can regrow another.” And his hand lingered on her cheek. The tats on the guy’s arms seemed to slither.
“I sure as hell hope that’s the case,” Griffin muttered. He’d warned the bastard. Griffin lunged across the room, his claws flying.
And a fucking snake shot out at him.
His claws cut right through the snake’s head.
It vanished before it hit the floor.
The guy barreled at Griffin, but he just drove his fist into the fellow’s jaw. The man was big, but Griffin was fucking pissed. His blow drove the SOB across the room. The guy slammed into a wall. The whole building shook.
“Oh, I’m going to like kicking your ass.” The guy’s eyes had changed. Gone absolutely serpentine. Hisses seemed to surround him. He surged forward.
“Stop.” Valerie stood between them. One hand was on Griffin’s chest. The other was on the soon-to-be-dead asshole’s chest.
Griffin felt her touch resonate all the way through his body. Her touch seemed to burn. To mark him. And some of the desperate tension he’d felt since she left him finally faded. I’ve got her back. I won’t lose her again.
But Valerie slowly turned her head. Her eyes seemed ice cold. “You’re not wanted here, shifter.”
His body stiffened.
“So why don’t you just drag yourself back to shifter land?”
Hell, no. “Not going anywhere, not without you.”
She lifted one brow. “You sure about that?”
“Abso-fucking-lutely.”
Valerie’s smile was almost angelic. She turned away from the SOB to focus totally on Griffin. At her move, it sounded as if the SOB snickered. Both of Valerie’s hands rose to press to Griffin’s chest. “I never finished going over all of my rules with you.”
Her scent was all around him. Driving him insane. He wanted to grab her and pull her close. To take her as far away from this place as possible. To take her home.
“I have one very, very big rule. Should have covered that, but, honestly…” She exhaled. “I thought it was a given.”
“Valerie—”
“Never betray me.”
A cold chill slid up his spine. No, no, there was no way—
“Never try to kill me.” She rose onto her tip-toes. Her lips slid over his. A light, tempting caress that had him yearning for so much more. “Because if you do, I’ll never forgive you.”
“Eye for an eye,” the dumbass behind her called out.
She kissed Griffin again. “Yes.”
Griffin breathed out slowly. “I haven’t tried to kill you.”
Her smile lingered. A smile that never reached her eyes. “Intent is a very dangerous thing.”
Oh, fuck me. Somehow, she knew. “Valerie—”
“I don’t forget. I don’t forgive.” Now her smile faded. “And, you, shifter, are now my enemy.” She started to back away.
His hands flew up and clamped around her shoulders. “I’m your mate.”
Valerie stiffened. “That, too. Enemy, mate. But you know the thing about mates? That bond only gets beneath your skin, it only drives you mad, if you’re a shifter. And in case you haven’t noticed…” A little shrug. “I’m not.”
He wouldn’t let her go. He would explain. He would tell her—
“Now, bippity, boppity, fuck you.” She wiggled her fingers.
He flew through the wall of the club. Flew back, back…until his body slammed down into the ocean. He burst up, spitting out salt water, and shaking. He swam back to shore, then stomped up the beach.
Valerie was there. His beautiful witch. Her hands were clenched at her sides. Rio stood a few feet behind her. The tattooed bastard was there, too. Watching. Grinning.
“Uh, oh,” Valerie murmured. “Someone looks like a wet dog.”
Griffin ran his hand over his head, sending drops of water flying.
“I could have drowned you.” She shrugged one shoulder. “Wiggled my fingers and the waves would have kept you prisoner forever. So easy to do.”
He stalked toward her. Only stopped when he was right in front of her. When he towered over her. Griffin wanted his hands on Valerie. All over her. But he kept them at his sides. For the moment. “Why the hell didn’t you?”
Her gaze jerked away from him. “I gave you a warning.”
Bullshit. “Since when does the queen of all evil give warnings?”
Her lower lip trembled. “You will stay away from me.”
“The hell I will. Listen, dammit, I don’t know what you heard or how—”
A raven torpedoed him. Shit. Shit. Griffin slapped at it, and the bird dodged easily. Then…the raven perched on her shoulder. “Fucking familiar,” Griffin muttered.
Valerie’s dark eyes glittered. “You were going to poison me. Kill me.” The wind seemed to pick up with each word she spoke. “You didn’t even know me, yet you took the job as my assassin.”
Okay, so now he was understanding. Too much. His chest ached. Burned. “I was told of your crimes.” A very, very long list of crimes.
Her gaze cut away from him, as if she couldn’t stand to peer into his eyes right then. She stared at the waves. “So you decided to be my executioner?”
“Don’t play innocent!” No, dammit, he hadn’t meant to say that. He grabbed onto his control, a hard feat when desperation gnawed at him. “You…you killed, Valerie. You were out of control. You took out your own kind. You took out demons. Vampires. You had to be stopped.”
“And you were the man to stop me?” Still, she wasn’t looking at him.
He wanted her to look at him. He needed her to look at him. “Things are different now. You’re my mate.”
“You never would have chosen me on your own.” Was that sadness? No, she could not be sad. “If you hadn’t been trapped as a dragon, if you had met me in the form of a man…” Now her gaze turned to him. “Would I be dead right now?”
Kill her? Could he have done it? Stared into her dark, deep eyes and taken her life? He remembered all of the stories about her, the proof he’d been promised by the council… “I can help you,” Griffin heard himself say. “You can change. You can be—”
The wind whipped harder against him. “You want to change me?” Valerie demanded. “Because I’m not good enough for you just the way I am?”
He hadn’t meant—
“You didn’t answer my first question, shifter. If you hadn’t been trapped as a dragon, if you hadn’t needed my magic, would I be dead right now?”
He’d taken some of the poison with him to the meeting with the council. He’d intended to use it on Valerie. To paralyze her so she couldn’t work her magic against him. But then everything had gone to hell when he’d been attacked. An attack he’d never even seen coming. He’d taken the poison and—“Fucking hell.”
“Is that a yes?” Valerie asked in her sugary sweet voice. “Or a no?”
“I lost the poison.” Something he’d just freaking realized because he’d been more than a bit distracted.
She stiffened.
“I was going for a meeting with the council. They were going to show me proof of your crimes before I handed down your sentence. But I was attacked. Panthers attacked me—”
“Panthers? Shifter panthers? I’m supposed to believe they attacked their own king?”
“Not all shifters swear allegiance to me.” If only. Life would be much easier. “I transformed into the dragon because there were so many of them. When I transformed, I ripped through my clothes. I had a pack with me. The poison was in the pack. I don’t—hell, I have no idea where it is.”
She sucked in a quick breath. “Someone has your witch poison out there?” Her gaze was frantic. “Tell me, exactly what it does.”
She wasn’t going to like this. His gaze darted over her shoulder. Rio and the other bastard were watching. Listening. And if shifters were inside that club, they could hear, too.
“I can’t tell you, not while we’re in the open.” He offered his hand to her. “Let’s get out of here. I’ll reveal everything, I swear I will.”
She peered down at his hand. “I don’t think…” Now her gaze rose. “I don’t think that I can trust you.”
“Valerie—”
“Fool me once,” she whispered.
Griffin shook his head. “You are my mate. My duty is to keep you safe now. Despite what you’ve done—”
Fury flashed on her face. Her hands came up, little electric sparks flying over her fingertips, and she shoved against his chest. Hard. “What I’ve done? Me? You’re the one who lied. You’re the one who betrayed. You’re the one who hurt me.”
He didn’t want to hurt her. He didn’t want—
“Now.” She released a long breath. “You’re the one who is dead to me.”
The wind whipped against his body. He was lifted up. High, higher. “Valerie!” Griffin roared her name.
Then he slammed down into the ocean. He was pulled down, down, down…and the angry waves held him tight.
***
Valerie stared at the swirling water. Her whole body ached. But the pain wasn’t coming from the outside, not from some powerful blows that she’d been given. The pain came from inside. From a heart most of the world would swear she didn’t have. “Henchmen!” Valerie called out as she turned her back on the churning ocean.
Immediately, both Rio and Stefan stepped forward.
Rio stared at her with worry.
Stefan…he just waited.
“I have to go on a little mission.”
Stefan’s gaze darted over her shoulder. His shoulders tensed. “He’s swimming toward shore.”
Of course, Griffin was. Because she couldn’t kill him. So much for being the queen of all evil. She had a soft spot. A weakness.
Her assassin was her weakness.
“Stefan, keep Rio at your side until I return.”
Rio immediately shook his head. “No! I go where you—”
“This time, it’s too dangerous.” The man she was seeking out was too dangerous. “You stay here, okay? Try to figure out how Stefan got those tats.”
She could feel Griffin’s gaze on her. Boring into her back.
Valerie lifted her hands. Sparks were dancing near her fingers.
“I can kill him for you,” Stefan offered in his booming voice. “If it’s too…hard…to do the deed yourself.”
Only shifters were supposed to feel that soul deep bond that came from a mating. Only shifters were supposed to feel like they’d found the other part of themselves.
She wasn’t even supposed to have a soul. Ask anyone.
For a witch to actually form a true bond with someone else—that was so rare as to be nearly mythical. A bond like that, one pure and true and deep…a bond like that was supposed to be stronger than death itself.
She did not have a bond like that.
“Do you want me to kill him?” Stefan pushed.
“Don’t,” the one word bit from her. “I need him alive.”
“Why?” Stefan seemed genuinely confused.
So was she. But… “Because I like the world better when he’s in it.” Even though he was a deceptive bastard, and she would never ever trust him again.
The wind whipped around her, and Valerie vanished.
***
Griffin roared his rage when Valerie vanished. One moment, she was standing on the beach, her hair blowing in the wind, and in the next instant, she was gone.
Gone.
No, oh, hell, no.
“Oh, look, a wet dog.”
She was gone, but that bastard with the tats was still there. And he had his arm slung over Rio’s shoulders. “Let him go, now,” Griffin ordered.
The guy lifted his brows. “I’m not going to hurt him. He’s part of my nest.”
What was that supposed to mean? “Rio, we’re going home.”
Rio stepped toward him.
The SOB jerked him back. “Rio, you are home.”
Rio swallowed.
Griffin sized up his enemy. “How many freaking snakes do you have on your body?”
“More than you can guess.” Laughter. “I’m Stefan Medusa.”
No way. No way.
Griffin’s expression must have shown his shock because Stefan preened. “Oh, you’ve heard of me? That’s good. Because I’ve certainly heard of you, Griffin Bastien.”
“Rio, move away from him, now.”
“I wouldn’t hurt the boy. He’s under Valerie’s protection, so that means he’s under my protection, too. But I do believe in free will so…” He let Rio go.
Rio took a few steps toward Griffin. Stopped. Frowned. “Valerie is mad at you.”
“A misunderstanding. I’ll find her and fix things.”
More laughter from Stefan. “You can’t fix what’s been broken.” He pointed at Griffin. “You did that.” A disappointed sigh. “You’re so lucky she wants you to keep living. My snakes could have a feast with you.”
Griffin marched toward him. Stefan kept his taunting grin in place. “Listen well, Medusa.”
Stefan lost his grin.
“Valerie is my mate. Bound to me body and soul. I will not be separated from her. No one will take her from me. And if someone tries…if you try…I will end you.”
“I’m not the one you need to worry about.” Stefan was suddenly dead serious. “I’d die for her a million times over, and never hesitate.”
Fuck. He loves her. Griffin’s dragon began to stir, his body heated, he—
“She’s gone to another. Someone even stronger than I am. And if she finds him, well, the guy does owe her plenty of favors. If anyone can break the bond between you, the Lord of the Dark will be the one to do it.”
Lord of the Dark.
Griffin shook his head. He’d better have misheard.
“Why else would she come down to the Florida Keys? She wants out of this mating with you, and her ex is just the guy to do the job.”
The thundering drumming of his heart filled Griffin’s ears. He was pretty sure he could taste smoke on his tongue. “Her ex?”
“Um, yes…I mean, you’re the king of shifters. Wow. Badass.” Stefan didn’t seem even mildly impressed. “But she likes to dirty dance on the dark side. Her ex is none other than Luke Thorne, the ruler of every bad thing on the planet. If anyone can get her out of her current predicament, then it will be him.”
Wings burst from Griffin’s back. His beast couldn’t be contained. His fury was too great. Someone was going to try and take Valerie from him? Someone was going to sever his bond with her? No, never.
“Well, that is something new.”
Scales sprang over Griffin’s body. His bones snapped and elongated. And when he took to the sky—
He was a mother fucking dragon.