“I need you, darlin’,” Glesenda said without preamble.
“Be right there.” He disconnected. “Get your shoes on. We’ve got to get to the dojo.”
He was halfway through the house when he realized Ruby wasn’t moving as fast as he. Soon she’d feel the speed and energy of her Dragon even while in human form.
“The demon?” she asked, catching up quickly.
“Glesenda needs us. Which means things are seriously screwed up, because she never asks for help.”
The Book of the Hidden
Garnet woke to the trembling of the castle’s walls. Thump. Thump. Thump. The prince leaped from the bed and ran to the window, she at his side.
“Am I having a nightmare?” she asked, staring at the three-headed monster that crushed the forest and flattened the hills as it stalked toward the castle.
“No, it is the Black Doom.” He gathered her face in his hands. “It’s what we’ve been preparing for.”
He’d trained her ruthlessly, loved her fiercely, and, under his spell, made her love him, too.
They turned Dragon together, flying out a window large enough for their exit. Dragons, Deuces, and the few angels that resided within the castle came out, ready to defend and fight.
Opal darted in front of the monster’s eyes to distract it, but the horrible beast swatted her, sending her crashing against the trunk of a tree. Her limp body landed on the ground in a feathery heap. Garnet let out an agonized cry. Anger filled her with its power, and revenge sharpened her senses. She and the prince pounded the monster, weakening it enough so that an angel severed one head; then a Dragon severed another.
“We must fight it together,” the prince told her. “Use our Breath to incinerate it.”
She inhaled, as he did, and expelled a Breath filled with spikes and venom. The monster roared and knocked the prince directly into the path of their combined stream. Her own lance of fire cut into him like a sword, making him arch in pain. The monster grabbed the injured prince in its huge fist and crushed him, letting him drop to the ground. Like Opal.
With his death, the spell wore off, and Garnet dropped, too, no longer Dragon. She had no time to mourn or to ponder the loss of the beast inside her. Once she had come from magick. Now she would conjure the power she needed. As the monster reached for her, she created an orb of fire and threw it. While the others distracted and pounded at the monster, it was Garnet who had to defeat it. Garnet alone, she realized, looking at the broken body of her husband.
And so she threw orb after orb, but none did more than singe the monster. Then she had an idea, one that came from her Deuce instincts. She created an orb that looked like a pearl and sent it floating toward the monster. It stopped warding off its enemies and stared at the luminescent orb that very gently landed on its finger. The monster tilted its head as it brought it closer, smiling at its beauty. And when the orb exploded, so did the monster’s head. Its body fell with a force that cracked the castle walls. The castle’s residents applauded and begged her to stay as their queen. But this place of beauty had been her prison long enough. It was time to return to her kingdom and find out what was left.
Chapter 11
I want you to stay in my office.”
Ruby flinched at the order as Cyn drove. Though he appeared calm, she saw the flames darting in his eyes.
“What? You’re the one who’s always goading me to jump in, to not be afraid. Like hell I’m going to hide out in your office. The demon’s after me.”
“Which is my point. You’re not ready to fight as Dragon yet. I don’t know what we’re walking into.”
“I can use my fire Breath to hurt the demon, right?”
“Ruby, you’re not listening to me. You are not ready, and if I have to focus on keeping you under control or out of danger, I’m not watching my own back, or Glesenda’s.”
Ruby crossed her arms over her chest. “You’re saying I’ll be more of a distraction than a help.”
“Exactly.”
“But I—”
“No.”
“I—”
“Remember, Ruby, you follow my orders.”
She let out a huff. “Remember, Cyn, I didn’t agree to that.” She hated the thought of being a liability. Truth was, she probably would be. She could throw knives and shoot guns, but this was a whole new arena. “What was the first call about? You got all tensed up, and from what I’ve seen, that’s unusual.”
“Later.”
“I really hate ‘later.’ It’s never good.”
He didn’t deny that, watching the road ahead. Damn.
“You’ll see everything now. That will help. But always keep Rule Number One in mind. You can’t give away the Hidden.”