37. Bree

37

Bree

I sat through the Cryptid Powers and their Uses class, and by the end, couldn't have told you anything at all about it.

Because I was living inside Riggs's head.

The class bell went off, and I jumped as it disrupted the link I had with him. Sid looked over at me. "How is Riggs?"

The only ones who questioned that he'd left me behind were my teammates, as they knew we'd mated. The excuse I'd given was that his family would never have approved of our mating, and that with the flood, it wasn't the time to reveal it. And they had accepted that.

But I hated lying to them. They had started to feel like the family I'd always longed for.

I don't know how much longer my secret will be kept, anyway, Riggs said. Ganit knows that my family lives, and there are other Legion Dragons who are not happy with what is going on—if they come to us, they will too. Corruption seems to be the natural order of the day… once we get Tyrez out of there, we'll have to hide him too.

I swallowed at the desperation underscoring that last line. If everyone goes into hiding, that would leave Daize as Emperor .

We have to save Tyrez. Many in the Empire would follow him.

Sid was watching me closely. The wisdom and concern in his gaze led me to a decision.

I'm going to tell Sid and Adilyn about all this, I said.

And from within me, came a voice. Weak, but welcomed. Sometimes, to make someone trustworthy, you have to first offer trust yourself.

Only a Gryphon could come up with such sage advice in a poetic manner, Riggs commented.

Well, someone has to, grumbled Caliel.

Then Riggs's attention was called away as Cara and the others started to discuss ideas for getting Tyrez out. I looked up at Sid, who was watching me intently.

"I want to go for a walk," I announced. "Are you guys up for one?"

As expected, Nar pulled a face. "Not much of a walker," he stated. His gaze moved to Leah. "Swimming, on the other hand…"

We exited the building, and left them at the beach before continuing up the path.

Sid leaned close to me, and asked. "He's not visiting family devastated by a flood, is he?"

"What do you mean?" Adilyn asked from where she sat on his shoulder.

I sighed. "I have something I need to tell you guys." I glanced around, but there were a lot of students. "We need somewhere more private."

Sid merely nodded. "I know the perfect spot."

The Anisau led us along the path. Once we entered the forest, he started looking to the left—and eventually took us down a smaller trail.

We emerged at an old homestead with a metal arbor totally overgrown with vines. It was a squeeze for him to get into it, and he sat down on the bench inside.

I sat beside him. Adilyn had remained in Faerie form, flitting through the forest as we'd walked. Now she alighted on his shoulder.

"Okay," Sid said, somewhat impatiently. "Tell us who Riggs really is."

"He's the now-dead Dragon Emperor's youngest brother."

Silence reigned in the tiny space, before Adilyn asked, "How?—?"

So I told them, starting with that night in the alley, when Riggs had lost himself in the vicious attack, to going into hiding at the academy.

Their eyes grew ever wider as I spoke, but Sid's expression indicated only satisfaction.

"He has a role to play in all this," he stated.

"But he has lost his Dragon," I pointed out.

"It doesn't matter," he said. "Fate has plans."

As Team Dragon gathered at the gate for Night Games, I made one last effort to participate in an entirely different kind of mission.

I should be with you, I insisted.

I am safe here. It isn't me taking the risks. I'm just here to keep anyone else from doing anything dumb. Including, I may add, my son.

Are you saying Mykal is like his father? I teased.

No way I was ever that stubborn. Or reckless.

You pierced your dick because your brother dared you.

A hesitation. Yeah, you've got me there.

I should be with you, regardless.

You are flying cover for me being gone. It is way more useful than what I'll be doing.

I subsided, but only because he wouldn't be going along on the mission either. Razir had been too well known in the palace. Plus, the only way in was on wings—and he didn't have any.

So he was stuck at the treehouse with his family, Dani, and Ash, while Ganit and his chosen few joined with Talakai and Havoc to form the strike team going in after Tyrez.

They weren't alone. Cara was sneaking in with them. If they could get her to Tyrez, she could gate them all out of there.

Has Ash said anything yet? I asked.

In answer, Riggs showed me a glimpse through his eyes—of Ash, in the library, pacing. Dani sat at the table, watching him, but her eyes flashed constantly.

Their tension carried from them, through Riggs, to me. Whatever the Oracle had foreseen about this mission, it wasn't a sure or happy thing. So why, then, had Ash pushed Tyrez to go?

There is more to this than he is admitting, Riggs stated uneasily. I wish I knew just what it was.

Yeah. Damned Seers.

And he is the Seer of all Seers. Riggs was having problems standing still, too. The Matriarch sat next to Dani, her face set in stone, but the fingers stroking her teacup trembled.

"Is everyone ready?"

I yanked my focus from Riggs to Cody, who stood beside a swirling gate. He'd spoken generally, but his gaze was on me. The Sabre undoubtedly knew what was going on. But his role, like mine, was to run cover.

I nodded to him. He turned to the gate and took us through.

We emerged into a dense jungle beneath a restlessly tossing night sky. I adjusted the sword over my shoulder and looked around, but there was no gatekeeper or guards. This was either a wild gate—they sometimes sprang up naturally near the convergence of energy ley lines—or one that had been specially created by the Watchers for this mission.

We'd already been debriefed, so we moved out, following Cody through the damp foliage. Our target was about a mile away, and we jogged along a game trail as humans, doing as much climbing as running. This jungle, like most, worked hard to obliterate paths.

A light drizzle began to fall. The clouds overhead were so low I felt as though I could touch them—we must be at a high elevation. Cody held up a hand, and we slowed down, moving into the foliage surrounding a lake.

I peered through the gloom to a large island, bare of trees, with a building. And in a room on the uppermost floor—our target. I wondered if it was an old piece of machinery like our last score.

This was no moat, though, and there wasn't a bridge. Access was by boat, but we'd come in on the opposite side of the lake from the dockyard. Our progress to and from the building this time would be courtesy of our two aquatic members.

Nar and Leah slipped into the water and transformed. Sid grabbed hold of the fin running along the Sea Krayt's pale-scaled neck and allowed himself to be towed into the water while Adilyn flitted above. I sank my fingers in Leah's soft, dense fur.

Cody waded in as a human and began to swim with strong, sure strokes, the rain disguising any splashing he might have made. Which only strengthened my resolve to learn to swim. At least I now knew how to float, and I concentrated on being as small a burden to Leah as possible.

We were halfway across the lake when something big dropped from the clouds. Spluttering water, I glanced up?—

And then I shrieked as vicious talons plucked me straight out of the water.

The Dragon's talons closed on my upper arms and heaved me into the air as though I were a mere mote of dust, and I heard Cody shout. But then we were away, winging across the lake.

I squirmed in my captor's grasp, trying to reach the sword—but he had hold of my arms, and the effort was useless.

Riggs was suddenly there, an urgent presence in my brain. Freeze him, Breana. You can do it.

Without the sword, I wasn't sure I could. But then another presence surged within me, and Caliel was there. Not strong, but equally motivated, opening a channel between me and the Ice Drake.

I rotated my wrist and managed to bring my fingers into contact with the Dragon's foreleg.

Through the link, Riggs pushed supportive energy to me. I hadn't even realized he could do that, especially without the sword. It merged with Caliel's abilities and helped me channel the Drake. Icy cold swept from my fingers, and into the Dragon.

The great wings faltered, found their rhythm, and then faltered again. His talons opened, and I started to slide free…

Then he grabbed at me, clumsily, the talons missing my arm and slicing deep into both shoulders. Pain lanced through me, but I managed to get a grip on one of his toes, sending ice right into his veins.

He shuddered and dropped from the sky.

We crashed in the swampy shallows at the north end of the lake. I struggled free from his talons as he began to sink. Blood flowed down from the tears in my skin, soaking my hoodie. But when I glanced at the Dragon, his entire body was rimmed with frost.

Well done! Riggs said. Who in the heck was that?

Underworld Dragon, I surmised, glancing at it.

Your friend Victor, Riggs snarled. Get back to Cody and the team. No way he only sent one.

I sensed him pelting through jungle—heading for the gate closest to the treehouse. But with Cara gone, the only one available was a distance away. What he hoped to do, I had no idea—he might gain passage back to the academy, but he'd have to then get to this realm…

The gate Bellati can get me through, he growled. I'm going to rip those guys apart.

I acknowledged the reality of it—Riggs was too far away to help, and the Dragon had carried me a long distance away from the team. As I pushed myself through the pouring rain and sludge along the shore, I nervously glanced up to the clouds.

Might need my frosty girl again right away, I stated.

You will need to use the sword to do it, Caliel said. I have little control.

We can't let these guys get hold of the sword, I countered. If I'm waving it around, it'll shine like the sun.

We might not have any choice, Riggs stated. Apparently, teeth grinding carried through mindbonds. We also don't know who is with them, he added. Your ice might kill, but you need backup.

I knew he was worrying about the Fire Drake. I adjusted the scabbard so I could reach it as I pushed myself as fast as I could through the slimy water and mud that rose to my thighs.

Through our link, I sensed Riggs pelting through his own jungle.

There isn't anything you can do to help, I said.

Get yourself under cover. It almost sounded like an order. I am on the way. Cody will come for you, too.

I appreciated Riggs's determination, but what was he going to do against a Dragon? I need the Drake, Caliel, I demanded, and pulled enough of the sword free from the scabbard to give us a surge of power.

He growled through my mind, but he cracked open the wall. My limbs began to writhe, the pain almost robbing me of breath. I kept my gaze focused on the firmer ground of the bank, and beyond it, a rock wall barely visible through the trees and driving rain.

I never even saw it coming, but something slammed hard into my back, knocking me off my feet and my hand free from the sword. It drove me back into the mucky water, and I rolled, to see another Dragon hovering overhead. I caught a glimpse of someone on his back—and he aimed not one, but two odd-looking guns at me.

Use the sword! Riggs screamed through my mind.

But half mired in the sticky muck, I struggled to grab at it—my fingers were already thick and tipped in icy talons as the Ice Drake surged. I couldn't get a grip on the pommel, and as I snarled up at the rider, he used the first gun to fire darts. They avoided the scales popping up on my skin and sank deep into the still human part of me.

I struggled to yank them out—they'd be using drugs rather than parasites. But before I accomplished that goal, the second gun fired a net. I thrashed within it as it sank around me in the mire. But the cable on the edges drew it tight, and then lifted my body clear out of it and into the air.

One leg remained tangled in the cable and I twisted, attempting to either reach the Dragon, or the sword. But no matter how or what I tried, I couldn't do either.

Caliel was there in an instant. You didn't have to physically touch those men who attacked Nettie…

Pain shot through me—I was in mid-transformation, but I closed my eyes and concentrated on pushing the power through me. When my taloned fingers tingled, I looked to see strands of icy lightning extending from them.

The Dragon was flying over the jungle now. Not so soft a landing—but I sent the lightning out to touch its talons. And then its legs.

It flinched, and hissed at me, but kept flying. The Bellati on its back leaned down—he had a gleaming red crystal in his hand, and laid it against the Dragon's skin. Its energy flowed toward the ice forming on its scales—and thawed it.

I pushed back and refroze them. But my Ice Drake was already struggling in the grip of the drugs. Caliel was, as well, trying to stop them from affecting me, while also keeping a tight rein on my monster—who wasn't interested in sharing anything with me, body or otherwise.

If Caliel lost all control, I might never be human again. But at this rate, freezing an entire Dragon was likely going to take more time or ability than I had. Time for Plan B. Or C, I said. The Drake isn't working, here. We need to put her back.

Caliel and I fought the Ice Drake for control. Scales fell free from my skin as we flew, and my human reasserted itself.

Now, if I could just reach the damned sword…

I was aware of Riggs, running for all he was worth, screaming obscenities. I squirmed, trying to reach the hilt. I figured stabbing it up into the belly above would be effective.

Dragon scales are resistant to regular swords, Riggs panted through my brain.

This isn't a regular sword, I reminded him. A useless thought, because it was a no go—hampered by the net, I couldn't get my arms raised above my shoulders, let alone reach the sword. Plan D, then. By bending myself almost in half, I finally reached my ankle and pulled free the knife I had there. I began to saw frantically at the net, but the strands were thick and stiff.

Before I'd managed to cut through more than a few of them, the Dragon dropped lower, and I saw a clearing. Strange fog rose from it.

As we flew through, the heat hit me. Not fog. Steam. The trees and ferns and moss had been burned away, and my stomach clenched. As if the underworld Dragons hadn't been confirmation enough, there was only one thing who could have done that.

Victor.

No, no, no, no! Riggs's desperation beat at me as he chanted in time to his running footsteps. And from deep within him, I sensed something savage trying to tear its way loose.

The underworld Dragon deposited me in a heap on the scorched ground. They didn't bother to remove the net, and I had to struggle through a drugged fog to roll to my knees. I still clutched the knife, for all the good it would do me.

Caliel managed to keep me awake. Barely. If only I could reach the damned sword…

And then what? Caliel said, sounding exhausted.

I can use the sword on him.

This sword's magic is not about being able to slice the Fire Drake's testicles off. It's about unlocking potential. You try it, and he might sing a higher note for the three seconds it takes him to melt its blade.

Then we can use it to control the Ice Drake, I snarled.

Victor is fire to your ice, Bree.

I couldn't understand why he seemed to be giving up. But he'll get the sword…

I don't see any way around that now, Caliel stated.

My gut clenched as Victor walked out of the steam. He was human, but his skin was covered in bright-orange scales, and licks of flame drifted off his fingertips. The thought of us losing the sword, and to him of all beings, made me physically sick. At least he wouldn't be able to wield it. But then we would no longer have it—and Riggs needed it.

For all we know, this is what Fate has in mind for it. Caliel sounded suddenly and strangely calm.

"Hello, Bree," he said. "How nice of you to drop in."

As Riggs's running footsteps echoed through my brain, an eerie, shrieking howl sounded from the jungle far behind us. The wild rage in it prickled across my skin.

Sid had unleashed his beast.

"Your team is coming for you." The grin Victor gave me sent chills up my spine, and he raised a hand. A gout of flame shot six feet into the air. "That will be such fun."

How could I have ever thought this man was redeemable? He would fry them all. Nothing my team possessed—no strength, no talent—was any answer for this. And if Riggs came, he would die alongside them.

I was the only possible answer to the Fire Drake, and I was literally tied in knots.

This is what that accursed Oracle foresaw, Caliel hissed from deep inside me. It was never about Tyrez, or the Emperor. It was about saving Riggs all along.

The realization was like being doused in ice-cold water. If Tyrez hadn't gone to the funeral, the trap couldn't have been enacted. And Riggs wouldn't have been called away from the academy. He would have been here, with me.

And he would have died.

No. No way this was about me. Riggs's denial came on a vicious snarl of rage.

Caliel wasn't done. We need to know what is going on between the Empire and the underworld, he whispered through me.

But Taran is dead, I stated. Whatever he was up to, it died with him.

Unless Taran was never the one making those arrangements, Caliel said.

Through our link, I sensed Riggs stumble and almost fall. But it was him that breathed the name. Daize. It was Daize, all along.

My heart slammed to a halt. We'll need proof. How can we ever get it?

There is a way, my little wind dancer, Caliel said. We can get it from within.

I looked up into Victor's fiery gaze. He stopped walking only a few feet from me, and at that moment, I realized what Caliel was getting at.

So did Riggs. No, Breana. There are other ways. He was close to the gate now and increased his pace.

I tore my eyes from Victor. I had a weapon he knew nothing about—my bond with Riggs. And I didn't want the eye flashes to give it away. But I had some convincing to do with my mate.

None that are as good as this, I argued . I can do this. I took a deep breath. I will have access to the heart of the operation. If Daize makes contact—I will be there.

NO! His desperation was laced with pain, and it wasn't all emotional. Something was tearing his shoulders apart?—

Victor grabbed me by the jaw and wrenched my head up. He spoke to someone behind him.

"She's bleeding. She wasn't to be harmed."

A deep voice replied. "She fucking killed the idiot who did it."

My mind raced. Caliel had already stopped the bleeding on the tears left by the talons…

Don't heal them, I said.

What?

We need them to hide the mating marks. Just scab them over.

Right. Good idea, the Gryphon stated.

What are you doing, Breana? Riggs broke into the discussion. Just keep Victor there until I can get to you.

I shut Riggs out. Brutally, shoving a mental wall between me and him. And then I met Victor's piercing gaze and pushed ice through his contact with my skin.

For just a second, his fingers went cold. And then his eyes blazed, and they warmed again.

Caliel was right. Victor was fire to my ice. I couldn't hurt him. But he could also not burn me.

"If you care at all about them, you will stop resisting," he said with a sneer.

My heart pounded as he released me and unwound a thick cord from his forearm. It was attached to a small leather sack.

"Do I have your word?" he asked.

"As long as you leave them alone." I hissed. My vision was blurring with the effects of the drug. But Caliel had managed to slow it down, anyway.

I glared at Victor. All I felt for him now, was hate.

He scanned my gaze. "Remove the net," he told the Dragon, who pulled on the cord holding the net closed, and it fell free.

I scrambled to my unsteady feet. My hand curled into a fist.

Use the sword! Riggs's desperate shout broke through my wall. Maybe it can take him, if he's not in his Drake or Dragon form…

I shut him down again, because Caliel's idea had taken root. We needed proof. And this was the best way to get it.

Riggs's presence was like a mental subconscious scream, but I stood like a rock as Victor turned his head sideways and gestured to someone behind him.

"Bring the cloak, and the collar."

At first, I didn't believe who walked out from the trees. The pure fury shooting along the link with Riggs almost drove me back to my knees.

Tez.

Emerging from the steam to hand a bundle of thick fabric to Victor, his expression as he regarded me was cold and remote.

As if we had never met.

As if he had never cruised through my dreams.

Be careful who you trust , he'd said. Had he, even then, planned to be part of this?

"Take the sword," Victor told Tez.

No. This sword was not for them. But what were my options if I was going to see this through? So I held still as Tez threaded the scabbard strap off my shoulder, and angrily stifled the zing of sensation as his fingers touched the skin of my neck.

Victor draped the cloth over one arm and took the weapon from him to examine it. Even with the hilt re-wrapped in leather, the quality of the sword was obvious.

"Nice fuckin' sword." The deep voice echoed from beyond Victor, and another figure strode out of the steam. I stared at the powerful form. Why did it seem like I somehow knew this hulking man? He wasn't a Dragon. His hair was so blond, with dark streaks running through it, framing a ruggedly handsome face with prominent cheekbones. Unusual, and strangely riveting.

I tensed when Victor held the scabbard in one hand, while his other closed over the hilt, and then he pulled. The muscles in his forearm bulged, but the sword would not budge.

"It must be glamored," the hulking man said. "Can only be drawn by the owner."

Victor glared at me. "Can you draw it?"

I sketched a shrug. "I was only carrying it for my trainer. It isn't mine." But even as the lie rolled off my tongue, I realized that Tez knew the truth…

To my shock, he didn't say anything when Victor handed the sword to him. "You try."

A quiver ran through me from Riggs. If Victor got one look at those runes—he'd know that was no ordinary sword.

Tez's eyes met mine, and I couldn't fathom what stirred deep within them. Then he closed his hand on the hilt, and pulled.

Nothing happened.

"Doesn't like me either," he said.

I stared at him, and through my confusion, I experienced the first stirring of hope.

Tez likely just wants the sword for himself, Caliel grumbled .

I flinched when Victor came at me with the collar. With that on, there was no way I could shift form to anything larger than my human. I kept my chin raised, and my eyes firmly on his, as he closed the restraint around my throat and then pulled the cloak over my head.

Through my mind, I was aware of Riggs passing through the gateway to the one at the academy. His mental presence hammered at me, trying to break through, but Caliel helped me shore the wall up.

My mate was far too close, and so was the rest of my team. My heart thudded as Victor finished arranging the cloak. It was a full body garment, covering me from boots to hairline, and arms to wrists.

"Put out your hands." I did so, and he folded the sack over them, using the cord to bind it, and to pull my wrists together.

He surveyed his handiwork. "You look best when tied up," he said huskily. "You and I share a past, Bree. And we are going to share a future, too."

Another howl shrieked through the jungle. It was close now. Sid was using his great speed to get to me. And from further back, a roar—Cody.

They were coming to save me.

Flames danced from Victor's fingertips. "Maybe I will kill them, anyway."

My pulse thudded. "You promised." I fought to keep my voice calm. "At one time, your word meant something."

Victor's eyes gleamed, but the flames winked out. "No more ice, or I will kill them all."

I glared at him. "I will come with you," I stated. "But I belong to no one, Victor. Certainly not you."

His eyes ignited, and he said, "We shall see about that."

Thank you for reading TRAP.