Assassin's Kiss (33 page)

The Vespera threw witchfire, which all the demons dodged, but it struck some of the Bronwy members. The good witches retaliated with witchfire of their own. In minutes the forest was blazing with blue and orange fire flying back and forth.

And at the back of the Bronwy group, protected by Watchers, Whysper recited a spell. Scorpio felt the push of her magic seconds before a wave spread out from her fingers, clear yet wavering like a rip in the fabric of time. It spread to the Vespera and settled over them.

They paused and braced themselves, as if expecting pain. Scorpio, too, didn’t know exactly what Whysper had accomplished, if anything,

But when the Vespera tried to fling more witchfire…nothing happened.

“Holy shit.” Brenin aimed a ball of fire at the nearest mage. It struck him in the chest, and in seconds, he was ash.

“It’s temporary, boys,” Whysper murmured. Her voice was clear to their ears, but wouldn’t carry to the now-panicked Vespera members. “Work fast. You have five minutes.”

The forest became a melee of swords clanging and soaring fire. Magic pops echoed off the trees as the Vespera tried to counter the attack. They had amulets, which still worked, and one of Aleksai’s men was thrown back from the force of an explosive spell charge. But amulets had to be touched to be used, and the dark mages fell, one by one.

At last, none remained. Aleksai’s man, Raul, was already healing from being thrown into a tree. Two Bronwy mages had been stunned by the blue fire and lay in a daze.

“Proceed,” Hallon ordered. “One of our men can stay back with them, and they’ll catch up soon.”

The group started forward again, punching through the overgrowth of shrubs, when a familiar voice caught Scorpio’s ear.
Tessa.

“Scorpio!” Her voice came from someplace ahead of them, reaching into his soul like a balm.

What was she doing out here? Had she escaped?

“That’s her!” Scorpio charged forward, shoving brambles out of his way, not caring about the web of lacerations they left on his arms. He had to get to Tessa.

Dimly, he registered Brenin and the others behind him. He leaped over a fallen log and ducked under a low branch, not seeing her. “Tessa! Where are you?”

Her voice sounded again, over to his left, and he changed direction. Pushing through more thick leaves, he spotted her. “Tessa!”

She stood fifty feet away, clad in the clothes she had worn when Zeebi yanked her through the portal. “Scorpio.” Radiant and unafraid, she extended her arms.

“What are you doing out here?’ he yelled as he sprinted. Her presence overrode his senses, his awareness of danger, or any other presence nearby. His mate was right there, needing him.

She didn’t respond, didn’t move closer, only watched him approach.

Twenty feet…ten. “Are you okay?” he shouted, though he was almost at her side.

A sudden flash of orange fire hit the ground next to him. “Scorpio, stop!” Brenin yelled.

Too late. Nothing could stop him from sweeping her into his arms. He reached to scoop her up—

His feet left the ground as his body flew back like a ragdoll. Heat blasted his front. He tumbled over and over in the tree canopy. What the hell? A roaring filled his ears and shouts from far below filtered up.

Thud!
His back hit a thick tree trunk and next thing he knew, he was back on the forest floor. Shaking his head, he looked up at…a dragon?

“Where’s Tessa?” He grabbed Hallon, who happened to be next to him. “Did that thing…”

“She was never here.” Hallon dropped to his belly next to Scorpio. “It was an illusion. And it nearly killed you. I’m sure that was their intent.”

Illusion? Holy fuck. The dragon towered, as tall as the oaks around them. Its scales glowed green and its fierce roar shook the ground. Worse, it breathed fire, just like dragons of legend.

Fire, one of the few things that could kill a Lash demon.

Whysper and Melixa were trying some kind of spell, but it wasn’t having any effect. The creature blasted a jet of fire in a semi-circle, aiming for as many of their group as possible.

Fuck. Scorpio signaled to Brenin and Aleksai, who joined him. “We need to get on its neck or back and slice its carotid artery. Maybe two Watchers. Maybe three, who knows.”

“On it.” Brenin leaped up and signaled to two of his men, who immediately climbed the trees behind the dragon.

The dragon’s thick scales would make the job tough but not impossible. A distraction would help, though. Scorpio leaped to his feet and ran in front of it, inciting the beast to spew a fresh line of fire in response. He ducked to the side just in time. Brenin followed him. “Nothin’ like a good brawl.” His friend actually grinned.

Scorpio tracked the Watchers in the trees as they dropped, one onto the thick neck, one onto its back. The dragon paused as it realized it had company, then gave a massive shake of its whole body. Neither man stood a chance, flying into the trees.

“Goddamn son of a bitch,” Scorpio growled. “I’m going up. Tell Whysper to do a spell to make me stick to the thing.”

He ran around to the tallest tree that one of the other men had climbed. Moving up quickly, he crawled out onto a branch above the dragon and looked down, trying to see Whysper. He wasn’t completely sure she could do what he asked, but she was here for a reason. She had to be able to do something against this massive beast.

She gave him a thumbs up from her spot back behind two of Aleksai’s men.

Scorpio dropped onto the dragon’s neck.

It roared and swung its neck from side to side in an attempt to shake him off. He wrapped his legs around it, squeezing as tightly as he could. He shoved the point of his sword under one scale and pried up with all his strength.

It was like lifting a two ton weight, made even more difficult by the roaring, writhing creature attached to it. The scales weren’t meant to come off except by natural causes.

Somehow, Scorpio didn’t lose his grip, no matter how the dragon moved. Far below him, he saw the Bronwy witches using spells and their own blue witchfire, aimed at the dragon’s belly.

Good. Any diversion would help. With a momentous shove, Scorpio pried up the foot-long scale. It popped free and fell, bouncing down the creature’s back.

Now with a section of leathery flesh exposed, he could strike deeply. The dragon’s skin wasn’t easy to pierce, but it was better than hacking through the damn scales. With an angry thrust, Scorpio’s sword plunged through muscle and tendon.

The dragon bellowed and renewed its effort to shake Scorpio, but to no avail. Scorpio sawed and pushed, knowing he was close to his target. And in seconds, the dragon’s scream turned to a gurgle. Witches and demons below ducked as a fountain of red cascaded down.

Scorpio kept up his assault, knowing the dragon was tough. If the artery was only nicked, it could probably escape and recover. It might be grisly, but he had a mate to rescue, and this predator needed to die.

With a wobble and a teeter, the dragon lost its footing and tilted to one side. Scorpio released his grip on its neck and rotated, gauging when the thing would land and how he could avoid being crushed. With an earth-shattering slam, it hit the ground.

Scorpio jumped free, breath sawing in and out of his lungs. He stepped back from the body, under which the forest floor was rapidly turning a deep crimson.

“You okay?” Melixa asked as he rejoined the group.

“Yeah. Everyone else?”

“Fine or recovering fast. All ready to go,” she said. “That was pretty cool.”

“All thanks to the spell you guys did. The thing tried its best to shake me off.”

“We need to keep moving,” Hallon said. “They must know we’re here by now. No one could miss that roar.”

The group set off again at a faster pace. Ten minutes later, Aleksai called a halt. “Our break off point is here.” He nodded at the ground. “According to the maps, anyway.”

“Yes,” Hallon said. “From that point, that boulder, you can dig down to the access tunnel.” He frowned. “Be prepared for anything.”

“Of course.” Whysper looked delighted to face another challenge. “Melixa? Let’s start the excavation spell.”

“Good luck,” Brenin said as they left Aleksai’s team of five men, plus five from Bronwy, with their own two witches.

In another minute, the stone façade of Damien’s home came into view. Gray and bumpy, it rose from tangled vegetation to a massive height of seventy feet. The only windows were near the top.

“There is a door at the base, in the center, even though you can’t see it,” Hallon said.

“The one in the building plans.” Scorpio glared at the sturdy structure.
I’m coming for you, Tessa.

“Yes. I’m sure it’s warded, but we should try that first,” Hallon said. “If we can’t break the wards, there’s another access tunnel running the length of the building.”

Scorpio nodded. “Let’s go.”

C
HAPTER
31

T
ESSA SAT ON A PADDED
bench in the sumptuous bathroom of the suite while Zeebi arranged her hair into an elaborate style. With each twist and curl, Tessa’s stomach churned harder. Too soon, this day was upon her, but she forced down her fear with thoughts of Scorpio. She willed herself to be as strong as her warrior. She
would
make the best of her situation.

She perched on the soft cushions clad only in her undergarments, having been warned not to sit down wearing the monstrosity of a wedding dress, lest she crush it. “Really?” she had scoffed at Zeebi. “Don’t you just have a spell to get the wrinkles out?”

Her comment had fallen on deaf ears. In fact, her friend didn’t seem in a talkative mood at all. Zeebi worked with an efficiency that bordered on anger, even though she radiated svelte gorgeousness in a deep purple gown. Not as fussy as Tessa’s, but created in the same style, with a full skirt of cascading layers.

“What happened to you, Zee?” Tessa now asked softly.

“I told you.” Zeebi released a lock of hair from her curling iron. “I got smart.”

“This isn’t smart.” Tessa watched Zeebi’s deft hands in the mirror. “This is crazy. You’re not looking at the big picture.”

“Obviously, neither are you.” Zeebi’s voice oozed sarcasm.

“Do you still wish there was a guy who’d look at you like you’re a goddess?” Tessa probed.

“I should never have said that to you,” Zeebi muttered.

“If you do, I don’t think you’ll find it here,” Tessa said. “There’s too much darkness to know what’s real.”

Zeebi snorted. “You’re about to get a lesson in what dark magic can do for you. Then you’ll have a better idea of what’s real.”

“I know the real Zeebi is still inside you, somewhere,” Tessa whispered, desperate to try one last time, before this awful ceremony, to reach the friend she loved. “Even if you’ve lost touch with her temporarily.”

Zeebi scowled fiercely and blinked. Was she trying to hold back tears? But Tessa never had a chance to ask, as Zeebi turned away. “You’re done. Time for jewelry.” She marched out and returned a few seconds later with jet black dangly earrings and a matching necklace. The shimmering onyx beads formed a reverse triangle, narrowing as it descended, and dipped down into her cleavage.

The unmistakable presence of magic hummed as Zeebi fiddled with the necklace clasp. “What is this?” Tessa slid two fingers under the piece, lifting it off her skin.

“Relax. It’s only a tracking device.” Zeebi turned Tessa forward with surprising force. “Damien doesn’t want you to be a runaway bride.”

Wow. The man’s paranoia was out of control. “I wouldn’t do that.” Tessa ran her fingers over the smooth black beads. “I follow through with what I say.”
Even if I have another motive.

“Hmpph.” Zeebi handed Tessa the earrings and watched her put them in. “Not my decision. Okay, that’s done. Time for the gown.”

Tessa got up and walked to the bedroom where the dress hung like a vulture from the armoire door. Zeebi took it off the hanger carefully and held it out to Tessa. “Step in,” she ordered.

Tessa complied, tugging the thing up over her bra. Zeebi zipped it behind her. It fit perfectly. Tessa didn’t bother to ask how. She was sure that gathering measurements was the least of what the witches here could do.

She slipped into the black strappy heels that had been designated by Damien and turned to Zeebi. “Is that it?”

Zeebi shot her a strange glance. “Don’t you want to look in the mirror?”

“No.” Tessa shook her head. “I don’t need any more visuals than what I already have.”

“Suit yourself.” Zeebi scowled. “Let’s go.” She yanked open the door.

The same two guards as yesterday stood outside.
Do they seriously think I’ll run away in this thing?
Tessa ignored them and walked to the end of the hall.

“Wait.” Zeebi strode to a table near the railing and grabbed a bouquet of deep red roses wrapped with black ribbon. She peered over into the foyer, and appeared to signal someone. She turned back to Tessa and brought her the flowers. “Your bridal bouquet.”

“Thanks.” Tessa half expected gloomy organ music to start playing as she descended the stairs. “Will you stand with me?”

Zeebi looked at her like she was stupid. “That’s not part of Damien’s plan.”

“We can change that,” Tessa whispered.
Be stronger, Zee.

But Zeebi’s face remained cold. “Time to go.”

Tessa hadn’t really expected a rush of warmth, but still, the rejection hurt. “Fine,” she said coolly, tucking her emotions aside for the moment. She’d have to work on Zeebi later; for now, Damien was the bigger problem.

“Can you walk or do you need assistance on the steps, mistress?” one guard asked.

About to mouth off that she was perfectly fine, Tessa reconsidered. Maybe she could pretend to wobble and then pick the guard’s pocket for a weapon. “Um…could you help me?” She smiled, hoping she appeared innocent enough.

He remained as expressionless as ever, but held out his arm for her to grasp. She took it and they started a slow walk down the stairs.

The strains of violins reached her ears, which may have been pretty under other circumstances. As they stepped lower, Tessa could see that the gathering room was full, and people had turned to stare in her direction. Crap. If she was going to try anything, it may as well be now.