Twin Dragons: Dragon Lords of Valdier Book 7 (34 page)

“Release my mates,” Melina demanded. “Now.
I’ve got a shovel and I know how to use it.”

Bane’s lips twitched as he gazed past her to
where his son lay in the muck. He was pretty sure Merck had a
broken nose, possibly a broken jaw, and the imprint of a shovel on
his ass. It was minor compared to what the boy was going to be
getting when he regained consciousness. He would be lucky if the
Twin Dragons didn’t kill him.

“I can see that, My Lady. Release them,”
Bane ordered.

Melina held the shovel tightly between her
hands until the neck collars around Cree and Calo were removed. The
moment they were free, she released the golden symbiot so it could
reform while she threw herself into her mates’ arms.

“Oh God, I was so scared,” Melina whispered
over and over. “I was terrified I’d be too late or they wouldn’t
believe me.”

Cree and Calo curved protectively around
Melina. The villagers and Village council standing in a semi-circle
around them gasped as the silhouette of their dragons rose up. Two
large male dragons held tightly in the embrace of the female.

“The Twin Dragon’s true mate. It is
possible,” Bane whispered as tears blurred his vision and the image
of his two sons, wrapped around their mate, appeared before
him.

“I learn from my mistakes,” Aikaterina said
soothingly as she gazed down on the trio wrapped around each other.
“Brogan and Barrack will be given their chance.”

Lyla laughed as she and Melina hurried down
the path. The sun was shining and Melina kept raising her face to
it. They had moved into their new home just a few days before. It
had taken a lot of grumbling and groveling, but Cree and Calo had
finally forgiven the villagers for almost killing them after they
kept bringing Melina different items for it and begging her to
speak with the twins.

Well, they had forgiven most of them,
Melina thought as she turned again to raise her face to the
sun.

She grinned as she remembered Merck, Bane,
and Lesann, Bane’s mate and Merck’s mother, coming by a few days
after she had whipped Merck’s ass. Merck had still been on Cree and
Calo’s poop list. It had taken both Creja and Bane to keep the
twins from killing the terrified boy.

Melina had felt sorry for Lesann as she
gripped her young son to her in a terrified hold as the men argued
about Merck’s punishment. Lyla had finally been the deciding force
when she reminded Cree and Calo that they had made their own share
of mistakes growing up. They may not have been as bad, but they had
still made mistakes.

“I… I just wanted to apologize,” Merck had
stuttered, looking pale. “I thought you had gone mad like my older
brothers.”

“You need to learn to follow directions,
youngling,” Cree snapped coldly. “You almost cost all three of us
our lives.”

Merck nodded, wincing. Both of his eyes had
been black and blue. As part of his punishment for not follow
directions when he had been told to stay away, Bane thought Merck
should understand a little of the pain he had caused and refused to
allow Merck’s symbiot to heal his son. It wasn’t much, but he
wanted Merck to think twice before he disobeyed a direct order from
his senior.

“Merck thought he was doing the right
thing,” Bane had explained. “Still, he did not follow directions.
He was told to stay away from your mate. I did not realize that he
had chased her until after we had returned to the village with you
and Calo. He will be leaving for Warrior’s training next week along
with Heron. Both my mate and I have been too lenient with him.”

“I am sorry for what my son has done. Since
the deaths of Brogan and Barrack… I spoiled Merck. I see that now.”
She paused as she looked at them. “This is the first time since our
older sons’ deaths that we do not feel the sense of loss that hung
over us,” Lesann added as she smiled shyly at Cree, Calo and
her.

“I… I saw them,” Bane said in a gruff voice,
pressing his mate’s hand to his lips. “I could see them, with a
mate.”

“I thought…,” Lesann blushed and bowed her
head.

“What?” Cree had asked.

Lesann looked up. “I thought I heard a voice
say Brogan and Barrack will be given a second chance,” she
whispered.

“Maybe it was Aikaterina,” Melina commented.
“She said she made a mistake. That she didn’t realize that it would
be so hard for two alpha dragons and their men to find a woman
strong enough to handle them both.”

“You… spoke with her?” Bane asked hoarsely
as the others stared at Melina in shock.

“Yes,” Melina replied with a grin, looking
at Cree and Calo. “She told me I had to show you that you were
mistaken about Cree and Calo.”

Bane and Lesann had left shortly after that
and the next day, the gifts and help had begun arriving. Calo and
Cree had been quiet the rest of the afternoon after Melina admitted
to speaking with the Goddess. Neither one of them doubted that she
had spoken with the Goddess after she described what Aikaterina
looked like, how she had floated, but most of all how Cree’s
symbiot had flowed through her and gathered more gold.

Melina grinned as she remembered how their
mouths had dropped open. She turned again seeking the sun when a
shadow passed over her. A squeal escaped her when she was suddenly
swept off her feet. Lyla’s laughter echoed behind her as she was
tossed up into the air before being caught in the front fore claws
of Calo’s dragon.

“Calo!” Melina squealed as she gripped his
forearms. “What are you doing?”

We have a home of our own now,
he
rumbled down to Cree.
Now, we need to fill it with
dragonlings.

Melina, unaware of what he was saying, waved
down to Creja and Cree who were standing on the back deck of their
home. Cree roared after them. Happiness swept through her as he ran
to the end of the deck and jumped, shifting as he did. Soon, Cree
soared with them before settling on the left side of Calo.

It is time? She agreed?
Cree demanded
as he settled next to them.

Melina leaned back in Calo’s arms and sighed
as she ran her hand over his chest. A low rumble escaped him. Love
flooded him.

We can ask her afterwards,
Calo
chuckled.

Both of them watched as she raised her face
to the sun. Never again would she be forced to pretend to be a boy.
Never again would she have to live in the dark. And never, ever
again would she be alone. They were both determined to make that
wish came true.

To be continued…
Melina was not the
only one taken from her world. Sara Wilson was taken to save her
life after she is almost killed on Earth. Can
Jaguin’s
Love
save her? The question is... will she let it?

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S. E. Smith is a USA TODAY and #1
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Now, she spends her evenings and weekends writing and her nights
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