Chapter 15

15

O ctavia

I'm surprised when we descend, making for a clearing. We haven't been flying for very long and, therefore, won't be too far away from Creed, which is good.

Creed.

Is he still fighting Tank?

Is he dead?

Will he find me if he makes it?

The dragon drops me from a few feet off the ground. I land with a thud on the hard ground, momentarily stunned. The beast lands next to me and shifts. I am gasping for air, forcing myself to scramble to my feet.

As suspected, the guy isn't very big. Not as far as dragon shifters go. He's a little taller than me, at around six feet tall, and muscular, but nothing crazy. Unfortunately, he's plenty big enough to overpower me.

"Female," he says as soon as he shifts. I don't like the way he says it. It gives me the creeps.

"Leave me alone." I fold my arms over my chest because he's leering at my breasts. Why did I have to pick this particular set? Red and flattering. It's padded and makes my boobs look huge. "No!" I yell at him. "Go away!"

"Mine. Make you mine."

"I said no."

He comes at me, and I punch him in the face. His head snaps back. I note that I busted his lip. He smiles, wiping away the small trickle of blood. Scales appear all over his chest. Then they disappear, appearing again a moment later.

My hand hurts, but I ignore it. I'm tempted to run, but I hear Creed's words playing back in my head.

Don't run; you will bring out the hunting instinct.

"Claim you! Mate you!" He speaks in a strange, monotonous tone.

"I said no."

"Mate…yes…mate." He grabs for me, gripping my wrists. His eyes are slitted. His teeth are sharp. More scales pop out.

I try to pry myself away, but I can't; he's too strong. The scales disappear again.

"Mine." He leers.

Oh my god, he's drooling. It's disgusting. I think he might be one of the shifters who is governed by his dragon. He doesn't look like he has much control.

"No! Not yours." I kick at him, my foot connecting with his shin. I yelp because it hurts.

He doesn't seem to notice. He laughs. "Good female. Strong mate." His face turns stern as he pushes a leg between mine, using his foot to put me off balance. I am on my back in the space of a heartbeat.

I grunt.

One second, he is on top of me, and the next, he is being yanked off by a big ebony dragon.

It is Tank. My blood freezes in my veins as I sit up, looking for Creed. I scan the sky but don't see anything. There are some trees in the way in places. He could be out there. I pray that he is.

There is a roar and a crunching sound, and the smaller dragon drops to the ground. Its head is at a strange angle, and its eyes have a vacant stare.

It's dead. He's dead.

The huge black dragon advances on me.

"Where is Creed? What did you do to him?" I shout at the creature. He cocks his head, his eyes just as cold as before. It's worse with the slits. They should be a beautiful vivid blue, but they're not. "Leave me alone," I tell it. "Go away."

Tank shifts, first growling and then laughing. "Soon, that male will be a distant memory. You don't need him." He palms his giant erection, making his intentions clear.

I note that he is bleeding from a gash on his shoulder and that he is covered in more blood. Is it Creed's?

Please no!

I look up. I look all around us. I don't see so much as a leaf stir. The sky is clear, too; at least, what I can see of it is clear. There's no bronze dragon anywhere. No Creed. My heart is sinking by the second.

"Don't bother," he says. "You're alone. It's just you and me, female."

"My name is Octavia. I am a human. I have feelings. I have a mind. I don't deserve this. I don't want you or any of the others. I want to go home. That's all!"

"You are lucky to have a male such as me. I am a perfect specimen." He opens his arms. "I'm big and strong. Bigger and stronger than all the others. I can protect you and look after you. Our children will be strong, too. I am a good male. You need to take off your pants. I will give you two minutes to prepare for me."

Prepare for him?

Prepare!

"I said no," I say in a clipped tone. I know it won't help, but I have to try.

"I'm going to claim you and put my seed in you, whether you like it or not. I suggest you prepare, or I might hurt you." He looks down at his erection. "It is going to be a very tight fit." He smiles like he just told me the biggest joke.

"It would be rape is what it would be."

"It would not be the first time I've taken a woman against her will. The first one enjoyed it by the time we finished. She had a good time. She even thanked me afterward. Kissed me and hugged me, but I still ended up getting banished from the city for the rest of my days like a dog," he growls. "You females." He shakes his head. "All liars. Every last one of you. She went straight to the governing body. They believed her over me. The king himself sat in at my farce of a trial. He gave the ruling himself. I got banished from the city for life…for life for fucking a female who enjoyed it."

"You just told me that you raped her. She didn't enjoy it. You're delusional."

"She thanked me afterward. She was all over me, kissing me…begging me for more."

"I doubt it. I think that she was probably afraid for her life, and rightly so." This guy is mad. I can see it in his eyes.

"Bullshit! Your time is up, female. Once I sink my cock and my teeth into you, you will be mine. There will be no going back. No one will be able to take you from me. On your knees."

"Fuck off! No means no!" I yell.

It doesn't help. I don't expect this monster to listen to me. He's beyond listening.

With a speed that is uncanny, he lunges for me, snapping a bra strap and exposing a breast. I quickly cover up, using an arm. "Leave me alone. I said no!"

"You will do nicely," he says, grabbing my arms in much the same way as the smaller guy. Only, his fingers will leave bruises.

He puts both my hands in one of his and grabs at my jeans. There's a ripping sound; my button goes flying. I try to yank free, but it feels like he has me in a vise.

"No! Don't!" I start screaming.

"Quiet," he growls at me. "Quiet, or I will hurt you. I don't want to hurt you."

I don't listen; I keep screaming for all I am worth.

I flinch when he pulls back his arm, intent on hitting me. "Last chance. Be quiet!"

He's going to have to hit me, and more than once. I know he'll quickly overpower me, but I have to try. I keep screaming, but he doesn't hit me as expected.

He lets go of one of my hands, yanking me against him and putting an arm firmly around me.

My pants are half down my hips. I pull them up before cupping my naked breast.

Three more dragons land one after another. The clearing is suddenly full to capacity. None of the dragons is Creed.

Where are you?

My eyes are stinging, and my throat feels clogged. I'm trying not to panic. It won't help me. Creed was right; shifters can be like animals.

One of the dragons rears back and snarls; smoke wafts all around us. I cough. He's that close. If they start fighting, I'm either going to be badly injured or killed outright.

One of the dragons shifts. He has dark hair and green eyes. "Hand her over," he tells Tank. "You're outnumbered. We're taking her."

We are base creatures. We're governed by instinct.

Creed was spot-on with all of his descriptions. I need to look at all the facts and to find a way out of this. I have to. I have a few moments while they are distracted.

"I will kill anyone who tries to take the female from me," Tank says. "I figure I can kill all three of you. At the very least, I will take two of you down. Is she worth it? Chances are you will die."

One of the dragons moves his weight from one foot to the other, looking uncertain. The second dragon growls low.

"Of course she is," the other shifter snarls. He looks at me. "She's plenty worth it. We are going to share her."

Share.

What?

That's worse. So much worse.

"You can join us. The four of us will be hard to beat. We can take turns mounting her. She can bear us all children. We will want for nothing," he pleads with Tank.

"I don't share!" Tank says in a rasp that has hairs lifting on my arms. "The female is mine. Go away so that I can claim her. Or watch! I don't care, but don't try to interfere, or you will die."

"It's you who will die, Tank. The odds are in our favor."

I think back to all the nature shows I've watched. These men remind me of some of the species they featured. I have to do something. I have to play to their instincts. Come up with a solution. It's clear that none of these shifters wants to fight, or they would have launched an attack already. They are quick to anger and even quicker to act. There is a standoff situation on the go here. I need to make the most of it. I need to try to save myself. To buy time.

I wish I knew where Creed was.

Let him be alive.

I need to come up with something, and fast. Creed also kept telling me that I thought too much like a human. These men are not humans; they're shifters. I need to think like them.

"If the four of you come to blows, I will be hurt or even killed," I say. "Did you think about that?" I address Tank.

"There won't be a fight. These males were just leaving," Tank says.

"You were right when you told Creed that there would be endless fights over me," I say, sounding frantic. "More dragons will come." As if on cue, there is a screech from above. "There they are now. You won't be able to keep me. It doesn't matter how strong you are."

"I will claim you quickly. I shouldn't have hesitated the first time. I won't make the same mistake again," Tank says. "Now back off!" he shouts at the green-eyed shifter.

Both dragons growl. There's smoke. The guy in the middle shakes his head.

"If you fight, I will die. Then, none of you will have a female. I will be useless to you dead. Humans break easily. We don't have your healing ability."

Don't think in human terms.

I don't know enough about dragons. I know animals, though.

Think like an animal, Octavia.

"The female is right," Tank says. "Move away. She's mine. We can't fight, or we risk hurting her."

The dragon on the right snarls, and for half a second, I think he's going to attack. He doesn't.

"I am not his," I say.

Tank's arm tightens around me, holding me too tightly, and I cry out.

"You are mine," he snarls.

"If this escalates, I will die," I warn him.

Another couple of dragons crash down in the undergrowth behind us.

Think like an animal.

I've watched a million shows about the various species all over the world. My dad still loves to watch documentaries. We watched David Attenborough every Sunday. My favorite were the animals in Africa. My mind keeps going to one of the deer species. During the winter months, the males work hard to impress the females. As the rutting season reaches its peak, males will fight each other for the right to breed. These fights can end in death. Only the strongest, most impressive males end up procreating.

"Why don't you take turns fighting for me?" I push out. "Make it more structured."

"That's what we intend to do. We will fight," the other guy says. The one who wants to share me. His eyes are on Tank when he says it. They narrow. His jaw tightens.

Share me.

I shudder at the thought, but quickly school my emotions. "No, I mean that you all fight one-on-one, and the strongest male gets to keep me and mate me. Not here, somewhere more suitable. This," I gesture around us with one hand, "is chaos. There will be endless fighting. I will end up dead. There are no two ways about it." I mean every word. "Whoever wins in the end wins me as a mate. It's the only way this will work."

What am I saying?

I don't want that at all.

I also don't want to be trampled or torn in half, which is what is going to happen soon if I don't do something. I don't want to be shared around, either. I need to buy time to figure out an escape plan. My biggest wish is that Creed is alive.

"Tank will win. We would rather take our chances," the green-eyed guy says.

"Two of you will die. A third will cart me off. Those two dragons," I look at where we can hear them approaching, "will go after you. More are on their way as we speak."

"I'll form a team with them."

"Only until six or eight more attack the three of you. I will be killed, and none of you will get to claim me. It will happen. Mark my words. If you fight in a structured way, you will stand a chance at winning me. There is no chance right now." There is a screech from above us. There are more dragons circling.

Crap!

"I don't know." He sounds skeptical. "If we are a group of four or five, we might be able to—"

"You won't!" Tank says. "She is right. The female makes a good point. I can't mate and breed a corpse, and neither can you."

Tank has released his grip on me somewhat. I elbow him and step away. Tank doesn't try to stop me. I have him thinking.

"I will watch you all fight. I will accept the overall victor," I tell them. "A male who will have proved to me that he is the strongest and most deserving of getting me as a mate. I will willingly accept him." No, I won't!

Oh, Creed! Please be alive. Please!

The other guy doesn't quite look like he's buying it.

Two more dragons step into the clearing, and both of them shift. They're big; not as big as Tank, but huge.

"Hand the female over or die," they say in unison.

"I agree with the female," Tank says. "I think that fighting in an organized fashion until one of us wins is the most logical way to go. It's what we used to do. It's tradition."

"I'm not convinced," the other guy says.

"Are you afraid to fight me?" Tank goads him.

"No…that's not it." He sighs. "Fine. We spread the word. The victor gets to keep her and do with her whatever they deem fit."

They're speaking about me like I'm an inanimate object.

Tank grunts in acknowledgment.

"There will be those who will not agree. Those who are not capable of logical thought," the other guy says.

"We kill any who stand in our way," Tank says. "We will fight for the right to have the female!" he shouts. "One on one. The victor gets to keep her."

More dragons are circling above us. They know that we are here. They know that I am here.

"Let's make for the open plains. We'll explain the situation to all when we get there," Tank says. "If we can't convince enough of them, the female will probably be killed."

"That would not be ideal," the other guy says.

Not ideal?

Not ideal at all. I hate that they are still speaking about me like I'm a pair of shoes. Tank shifts and picks me up. It happens so fast that I barely have time to even register. Then he is flying above the trees with me dangling in his claws. Three dragons surround us, followed by another two, then another five.

They screech and grunt and rumble. I think they are talking. More and more dragons join. When one attacks, I watch as it is taken down. Limbs are torn away, including both wings, and the dragon falls in a bloody rush that ends in a crash through the canopy. I'm sure it must be dead.

They're vicious and unpredictable. All the stories are true; they're bloodthirsty.

What have I done?

I've bought myself time…and then what?

I try not to think about it as I am carted off to some unknown destination. The sky is turning black there are so many dragons.

They're all going to fight over me. One of them will win me.

I haven't seen Creed. I'm starting to suspect the worst. My eyes sting, but I refuse to cry.