23. Adrian

TWENTY-THREE

All words of the contract went in one ear and out the other. There was nothing that could be done now to stop the rage from reaching its boiling point inside Adrian's body.

His eyes bulged at the sight of the wretched photo in front of him.

The image of a bound and gagged Chloe only added fuel to the fire. He thought of another man touching his girl, and that was the final straw.

Immediately, his body surged, hot blood coursing through his veins that clawed to break through his skin. His inner dragon raged, the anger spreading like wildfire, taking over every inch of his mind, body, and soul.

"You bitch," he roared with an intensity that shook the very room they stood in.

He saw a moment of regret in Gayle's face, but it was too late now. She'd crossed the line in going after the woman he loved, his fated mate, and he swore to his inner dragon and himself that she'd pay.

His roar grew louder, shaking the entire building as he flipped his table over. The windows around them shattered one by one like a symphony of destruction kicking into gear. Chairs fell to the ground, as did the various paintings and decor inside his office.

A wave of blood rushed to Adrian's head. The shift began. He reeled over, out of breath, as his body morphed. Gayle turned and ran for her life.

I have to stop!

Adrian fought his inner dragon, knowing he'd only hurt himself should the transformation complete. His office was far too small for his draconic form.

But his dragon pushed harder, and he knew it was a fight he would not win. He relented and turned for the window, sprinting and jumping out.

The ground below came hurtling closer as if he was thrown from the sky. It was inches away, and then he swooped up and away, watching his body change shape and expand. He twirled upward as his dragon crawled up to the clouds, spreading its magnificent wingspan.

Adrian assumed full control and flew in a circle around his castle, scanning the vicinity below for signs of the enemy. He promised his inner dragon that blood would be spilled.

"Chloe!" he bellowed in a voice so loud that it threatened to tear down the skies.

He felt it quite literally crawling its way up inside of him. Opening his mouth, he let loose a cloud of flame that engulfed his immediate surroundings.

It was the most powerful manifestation of his abilities, the perfect weapon to reduce those who wronged him, shredding them on the spot.

He could see Gayle below.

He growled as Gayle emerged from the castle entrance, darting for her car. He flew up for a second to gather momentum and then came hurling down as her vehicle accelerated from zero to a hundred.

She swerved onto the road, just barely avoiding his talons. He unleashed a roar and flew back to the clouds as Gayle sped away.

Peering down, he spotted the car through the thick peaks of the trees. It'd be difficult to get to her with them in the way, but it wouldn't stop him trying. Nothing would. He had everything to lose.

He flew close, hovering above her. Gayle's car was fast but nowhere near as fast as Adrian. He reduced his speed, so he stayed above her.

She was, however, a capable driver, maneuvering well as she zigzagged each of Adrian's attempts to ruin her.

Adrian was far too large to get in a proper shot, relying on uncalculated swoops of his talons, which went astray with each shot.

He looked ahead, spotting a gap in the trees where the space opened enough for him to get to ground level. Picking up speed, he fought and clawed through the air, landing on the ground so hard that Gayle's car flew up for a brief moment.

She sped toward him.

He inhaled and filled his lungs to the maximum capacity.

With a mighty roar, he unleashed fiery hell, fueled by the thoughts of Gayle meeting a fitting end.

The shock hit like a knife to his side when Gayle's car emerged from the fire in front of him, carrying a few stray flames on its hood that quickly died out.

She drove underneath him, a grating sound of scraping vibrating Adrian's eardrums as he swiped the side of her car. Its door flew off into the tree line.

He turned and took off above once more. There wasn't going to be an opportune moment to get her. He knew that much now. Bracing himself, he swooped down, ignoring the searing pain as his massive body collided with the many trees on either side.

He gripped Gayle's car in his mouth and flipped it. It toppled to the side of the road, off into a ditch.

He crashed to the ground, fighting hard to stay conscious as he regained his footing.

Shaking it off, he spotted the black smoke from her vehicle rising into the white clouds. Mustering the strength to fly upward, he expected to see her lifeless body as he got closer to the wreckage, which was enveloped in its own mass of smoke.

Finally, he thought to himself. Now I can …

A sudden white mass flew out, knocking him to the ground.

He looked up at the dragon as it took off, gaining height for what he guessed to be an attack.

Gayle had survived, and worse yet, she had shifted.

He followed as she turned for him.

The two dragons made a beeline for one another, colliding midair before beginning their descent. As they fell to the ground, they snapped and bit at each other's necks.

With a moment to spare, Gayle kicked him off with brute strength. He hit the ground hard, his vision blurred for a few seconds. It cleared just in time for him to see her coming at him.

He dodged what would've been his end as Gayle crashed to the ground.

She growled and reared her head back.

He quickly prepared himself and mimicked her gesture.

Adrian and Gayle let loose at each other.

Each of them shot their flames at their enemy. The two separate waves of the same element met in the middle ground beneath them, incinerating everything nearby. Charred earth and metal paved the intersection.

Adrian was hurt, but so was Gayle.

He pushed and took a step farther, driving his nemesis back. His flame was clawing its way to her, fear in her eyes.

A sudden force knocked him to the ground. His throat was pinned to the ground by another dragon whom he recognized as Bethea. He realized that in his anger, he had forgotten all about Gayle's lackey.

Gayle made her way over, baring her teeth as Adrian fought to free himself. She cackled as they both peered down from above.

Chloe was all he could think about now that certain doom stared him in the face. He'd never get to tell her how he really felt about her, to claim her as his one true fated mate.

No! You have to try!

He roared, much to the surprise of Gayle and Bethea, who dodged his flames. Back on his feet, he went on the defense, fending off assaults coming from all directions.

He fought hard, and he fought well, but even though he held his own against two dragons, they gave him no chance to launch an attack of his own.

Dodging a bite from Bethea, he took hold of the dragon's neck in his mouth, threatening to Gayle that he'd break it should she come closer.

Roaring came from above. Out of seemingly nowhere, two more dragons joined the fight.

Adrian hurled Bethea in the opposite direction as Tillie and Zakary swooped down, cornering Gayle.

A dizzied Bethea came from behind, dodging three attacks from each of the allied dragons.

A face-off ensued, with Adrian leading his clutch of himself, Zakary, and Tillie against the duo of Gayle and Bethea.

The dragon king hesitated, though. In his head, he heard Zakary's voice communicating through their shared telepathic link.

"We'll hold them off,"Zakary told him. "You go find your fated mate. We'll save Gayle for your rightful judgment."

Adrian was proud of his clutch. He didn't know how they knew what was going on, but he was glad to have them there on his side.

Without hesitation, he took off into the skies, cackling when Gayle roared at him to stay and fight. As much as he wanted to end her life, he had another that needed saving.

Chloe wasn't yet claimed with his mating, so he knew finding her would be no easy task.

He had his heart, though, and he was confident in its ability to guide him.

Chloe, I'm coming for you. Just hold on!