Chapter 36

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

The horses must have understood what he meant because they whinnied and dashed forward. The sudden surge of speed made our attacker lose his balance. He dropped to his knees and grabbed hold of either side of the hole he'd created. The man's blazing green eyes fell on us and he tucked a sword into its sheath before he reached down for us.

The carriage rolled out into the main road and two shadows dropped onto the roof, causing the weakened structure to give a half a foot inward. Helen and I ducked down as we watched the newcomers surround the swordsman.

Will and Alex did not look happy with our attacker.

The man twisted around and sliced the air with the sword he still held. His wild wavings forced our dragon men back and the man rolled across the roof to disappear over the edge. Alex and Will followed and vanished from our view. The carriage came to a stop and Helen and I lunged at the door. We swung it open and viewed the three squaring off. The man had drawn his other sword and swung the pair around showing off his skills.

Alex leapt at him and the man used his swords to fend off the dragon's sharp talons. The pair performed a dance of battle around the street as bystanders congregated around us. One of them was the vagrant we'd seen earlier who watched the fight with keen interest.

I jumped when Helen cried out as she was dragged from the vehicle. A large man had come from behind the carriage and now tugged her back in that direction. She kicked and slapped at him, but his muscles meant all her blows were nothing to him.

I scrambled down and ran after them. "Let her go!"

The man drew out a baton which he swung at me. I had only enough time to fling up my arms. Heat blazed out of my hands and he cut his weapon in two. The top half clattered to the ground as he stared at the singed portion he still held. I separated my arms and gaped at the blazing twin swords in my hands.

"Let go of me!" Helen protested as she thrashed in his hold.

My eyebrows crashed down and I pointed the swords at our foe. "Do as she says or you'll end up like your stick!"

The man sneered at me before he threw the remains of the baton at my head. I instinctively ducked and he tackled me to the ground. His strong arms wrapped around me in a vice-like grip as I thrashed and kicked. The man hefted me over one shoulder and rushed off into the darkness away from the fight.

Helen followed in pursuit. "Will! Alex!"

A terrible roar came from the street we escaped and I glimpsed a giant silhouette rise in front of the lampposts. The man quickened his step and burst out of the other end of the narrow alley. An unmarked carriage with six horses awaited us and the door opened at our coming. My captor threw me onto the floor and slammed the door, shutting himself outside.

I twisted around but a sharp stick stabbed into my gut, pinning me to the carpeted floor. The complete darkness of the carriage meant I couldn't see my new assailant but I couldn't mistake that voice.

"Hold still, dragon wench," Baddock hissed.

I stiffened as the carriage shot forward. We bumped and sailed down the road, the screams of pedestrians added to the chaos. However, in his hurry to escape, the bumpy ride meant that Baddock's hold on my back was constantly interrupted. I took advantage of one of the higher jumps when the cane slipped off me to roll across the floor to the opposite side of the carriage from my foe.

Baddock's bright yellow eyes glared at me out of the darkness. He dropped to his knees and crawled over to me. My swords burst out of my hands and I sliced the air. The man screamed and scuttled away as something heavy dropped on top of me.

My heart skipped a beat when I realized it was one of his arms. I screamed and scuttled back on top of the seat behind me. The snake let out a terrible hiss before he lunged at me. His remaining hand wrapped around my throat, cutting off my air and distracting me enough that my swords vanished.

"I do not need your blood to be warm, you bitch!" he hissed at me.

I grasped his hand and tried to pull it away but his grip was too strong. His eyes and the background noise began to fade as my grip on consciousness began to slip.

Will .

The carriage was rocked by a sudden weight on its top. The horses screamed and the driver shouted. Baddock looked up as a pair of huge claws dug into the sides of the carriage roof above the doors. Half the roof was ripped away and revealed Will in his full dragon glory. His wings stretched out behind him as he stretched his long neck toward us. His green eyes blazed with fury when he noticed Baddock's hand around my throat.

The carriage hit a hard bump and the top-heavy weight meant the whole vehicle was thrown onto its side, tossing the driver away. Will was forced to fly into the air to avoid his tail being pinned beneath the vehicle. We skidded down the cobblestones for many yards, dragged by the terrified horses before the tongue and their harness rings broke. They raced off into the night screaming their terror to the world.

I was only semi-conscious when a hand roughly grabbed me. Baddock dragged me from the wreckage and across the road. Will landed near us and lunged at my captor. The serpent flung my back against his chest so I was pinned between them. Will froze and his eyes burned with fury.

"Cool your temper, dragon, or your bride will find herself with a slice across her throat," Baddock warned him as he backed us away toward a narrow alley. A narrow set of stone stairs led into the ground and he pulled me down them.

Will kept the same distance from us but was forced to stop on our entering the stairwell. A rotten wood door stood at the bottom and Baddock slammed his back against it. The rusted hinges gave under his weight and the dusty odor of the Grimton floated over us. Baddock dragged me into the dank confines of that horrible catacombs and we passed the decrepit remains of the interred.

The snake turned around and pulled me ahead of him so we both faced forward. He used his body to push me down the narrow, dusty confines of the catacombs.

"Damn him. . ." my captor mumbled and his words bounced off the walls. "Damn all those loathsome dragons."

I swallowed my fear and lifted my chin a little. "How are you going to use me to become immortal?"

"Just your blood, my dear," he cooed as he tightened his grip on me. "I merely need to transfer all of your blood into me and I will have gained immortality."

My heart pounded in my chest. "That sounds insane."

He chuckled as we rounded a corner and found ourselves at an intersection. "Then allow me to show you."

Baddock shoved me face-first against the nearby wall and grabbed one of my hands. He wrenched my arm behind my back so hard I cried out. The snake dragged one of his claws across my wrist and I felt blood pool out from the deep wound.

He yanked the gash up and I recoiled when I felt his cold lips press against the cut. The snake sucked out the blood like a vampire and I quickly felt the heat inside my body began to drop. He pinned me closer against the wall and I found myself face-to-face with one of the cadavers. The bones shuddered as a little bit of life came back to them.

That gave me an idea. I mustered all the strength I could manage and lifted my voice so all could hear. "Here's your bride, boneheads! Come and get me!"

My shout made Baddock lift his blood-stained lips from my wrist. He sneered at me. "What game are you playing, woman-"

A loud jangle of bones answered for me. The skeleton near my face lifted its head and stretched out a bony hand to grab me. Baddock wrenched me backward and hissed at his competitor.

He was going to be doing a lot of that as more skeletons and mummies rose from their dusty beds and dropped their rattling feet to the ground. They shambled toward us with their bony fingers stretched out to grab me.

"Back!" Baddock hissed as his body began to transform.