by Alexis Davie
“What the hell are you doing here, Brooke? You should be miles away by now, out of the country even!” he shouted. “You’re putting yourself at risk being here!”
“I’m here to get you out. Just give me a minute to think,” she replied.
Adonis felt frustration bubbling up inside of himself. Didn’t she know how close she was to being caught? Didn’t she know what they would do to her if they caught her here?
“Brooke, I appreciate this, I really do, but it’s too late for me. Please, just go, before it’s too late for you as well.”
She shook her head and her brow furrowed as though she was concentrating on something. Adonis opened his mouth to yell at her, to make her understand that she had to leave now. His words remained unsaid when Brooke began to shimmer slightly, and within a second, she was gone, replaced by an electric blue dragon, the same color as Brooke’s eyes.
He had barely registered what he was seeing when Brooke took a deep breath and began to blow flames toward the bars of the cell door. Adonis jumped back just in time, narrowly avoiding being fried. He watched in shock as the bars of the cell door melted away, becoming pools of liquid silver on the ground. Brooke shimmered again, and then she was back to herself, his beautiful girl. She smiled in triumph and launched herself into Adonis’ arms.
She tilted her head back and he saw tears of happiness shining in her eyes.
“That was so exhilarating,” she breathed.
He cut her words off by mashing his lips against hers. He felt her body melting into his and he would have given anything to stay there forever in that moment, holding her, kissing her. But instead, he pulled back from her.
“We have to go. Now,” he said. “The guards will be coming for me at any moment.”
Once they were out of here and away from Pengle, they could spend forever holding each other, kissing each other, making love to each other. Adonis was confused as to what was going on, but he knew Brooke was a dragon now. That meant they could spend all of eternity together. Assuming they both got out of here alive, of course.
Brooke nodded and took his hand in hers. They ran along the corridor, through the door, and up the stairs. Adonis felt the chill of the night air on his face as they burst out of the door and onto the castle’s grounds. It was something he had never expected to feel again.
He had a thousand questions for Brooke about her rescue mission, but they would have to wait. For now, they needed to get the hell out of there. He started to run toward the woods, but Brooke pulled her hand free of his and stopped moving. He turned back to her, his question written all over his face.
“We can’t leave yet,” she said. “We have to go to your mother’s chambers and…”
“After everything, you still want to finish what you started?” Adonis interrupted her, shocked and a little hurt that she would risk their lives to end his mother’s, even after finding out what had really happened all of those years ago.
“No,” Brooke said, shaking her head. “It’s nothing to do with any of that. We have to save Esmerelda.”
“Esmerelda? What’s she got to do with any of this?” Adonis asked.
“This was her plan. She turned me into a dragon and went to distract your mother long enough for me to get in and free you. I’m not going to let her die for helping us,” Brooke explained.
Adonis felt a moment’s hesitation. Running back into the castle was putting Brooke’s life in danger once more, and he knew his mother wouldn’t hesitate to kill them both. But he knew she was right. Esmerelda had helped them and she didn’t deserve to die for it. He took Brooke’s hand again and they ran back into the castle.
“We won’t run into a guard until we reach your mother’s private chambers,” Brooke said as they ran through the castle. “They’re all out looking for me, except the few she’s held back for your execution.”
“There will only be one, then—two at most. Remember, I’m stuck in human form so I’m hardly a threat,” Adonis said. His words brought the realization to the surface. “Fuck. Brooke, I can’t turn into a dragon. We don’t stand a chance against my mother.”
“Sure, we do,” Brooke said, flashing him a smile. “You might not be able to turn, but Esmerelda and I can.”
Adonis didn’t like the sound of that one bit, but he knew he didn’t stand a chance of talking Brooke out of this now. He tried to come up with a plan that didn’t involve Brooke putting herself in danger, but there was no time to think. They were almost upon his mother’s chambers. Before he even had a chance to warn Brooke, a shout echoed down the corridor.
“Who’s there?” a guard shouted.
Brooke paused. She held a finger to her lips and listened for a moment.
“He’s alone,” she whispered.
She moved around the bend in front of her before Adonis could stop her.
“I am,” she said.
She turned into her dragon form and blasted fire down the corridor. Adonis winced as he heard the screams of the guard, but he reminded himself it had been him or Brooke. Brooke turned back to her human form again, and this time, Adonis was prepared. He caught Brooke’s wrist before she could run off alone.
“Let me try and reason with my mother, okay? If she can see she’s outnumbered, she might be willing to let Esmerelda go. We won’t tell her it was Esmerelda’s plan, obviously. We’ll say I turned you and you threatened Esmerelda and forced her to do this.”
He knew it was a long shot, but it was better than Brooke going in there with guns blazing and ending up hurt. Brooke nodded her head and they made their way to the door to his mother’s private chambers.
18
Adonis nodded to Brooke, his hand on the door handle. She nodded back. Her stomach was swirling with nerves, but she kept herself under control the way her Uncle Steve had taught her to. Adonis pushed the door open and they burst in.
Alexandria was pacing the floor, looking down on Esmerelda, who sat on an armchair. They both looked up as the door opened. Esmerelda started to stand up. Brooke could see instantly by the look on Alexandria’s face that she knew she had been played.
She turned in a split second, becoming the large, red dragon Brooke remembered. She blasted fire at Esmerelda, who screamed as her flesh began to roast. Brooke reminded herself that she would heal, but it didn’t make the smell of charring meat any more pleasant.
Brooke knew that there would be no reasoning with Alexandria and she turned herself into a dragon. She faced Alexandria, feeling more powerful than ever. The feeling didn’t last long. She blew out a plume of fire, ignoring Adonis’ panicked cries from beside her. Alexandria snorted, blowing out a plume of fire of her own. It was far bigger than Brooke’s plume, and before Brooke could do anything else, she felt the heat envelop her. She could feel her skin singeing, and the pain made her dizzy.
Alexandria stepped closer to Brooke and roared loudly, then she batted her aside like she weighed no more than a kitten. Brooke flew into the wall, slamming against it and sliding down it. She ignored the agony of her body, turning and watching Adonis and Alexandria face off against each other.
“Mom, you don’t have to do this,” Adonis said. “Just let us walk away from here. We’ll leave and you’ll never have to see any of us again.”
Brooke knew from experience that Alexandria could hear and understand what he was saying but that she couldn’t reply. She was sure Adonis was getting through to her, though. She hadn’t attempted to kill him yet.
He was still talking, trying to reason with Alexandria, but Brooke couldn’t focus. She could feel a hand on her face, and the touch, though light, was sending pain through her body like she had never felt before. She turned her head, ready to fry whichever guard was touching her, but it was Esmerelda and she held back her flames.
Esmerelda must have slipped from the chair and crawled across the room to Brooke while she had been distracted by Adonis. Now that she had Brooke’s attention, she moved her hand off her face and the pain diminished to
a slightly less intense level.
“Turn back to your human form. It hurts less,” Esmerelda whispered.
Brooke did as she said, and instantly, she felt the pain receding. She still hurt everywhere, but nowhere near as much.
“Thanks,” she whispered.
“You came back for me,” Esmerelda said, sounding surprised.
“Of course we did,” Brooke said. “She would have killed you.”
A hissing sound distracted Brooke and both girls turned their heads in that direction. Alexandria was hissing at Adonis, sending tiny flames toward him. He was backing away, keeping out of their range, but Brooke knew it wouldn’t be long until his back hit the wall and Alexandria ended this once and for all.
“What do we do?” she said to Esmerelda in panic.
“There’s nothing we can do. This is on Adonis now. Why isn’t he turning and fighting back?”
“Alexandria gave him something. Bellatone or something.”
“Debellatorque?”
Brooke nodded.
“When you freed him, you kissed him, right?” Esmerelda said.
“What the hell?” Brooke snapped. “Why is that…”
“Yes or no?” Esmerelda demanded.
The urgency in her tone made Brooke respond, although she couldn’t for the life of her fathom why Esmerelda wanted to know that now.
“Yes,” she said.
“Adonis!” Esmerelda shouted. “You can turn again. The only antidote to Debellatorque is the kiss of your one true mate. Now that Brooke is a dragon…”
She didn’t need to say more. Brooke watched as Adonis shimmered before her eyes and turned into a beautiful golden-colored dragon. He didn’t hesitate. He blew a huge plume of flames over Alexandria. She screamed and tried to blow a plume of her own, but Adonis stepped closer to her, blowing out more flames. She screamed again and then she turned back to her human form. She lay on the ground, tears of pain streaming down her face.
“Just end this, Adonis. Finish me off,” she said in a shaky voice.
Adonis switched back to his human form. He turned and ran to the door of the chamber. Brooke went to stand up, but she was still too burned to bear her own weight.
“Guards!” Adonis yelled.
Two guards appeared. Brooke looked at Esmerelda.
“I thought they were all out searching for me.”
“They’re the queen’s private guards. They never leave her chambers. Now that Adonis has won the battle, they’re his guards. He’ll have them finish her off,” Esmerelda explained.
Brooke turned back to Adonis and the guards. She saw them take in the broken queen and then look back at Adonis. They both dropped to their knees.
“Your Majesty,” they said together.
“Get up,” Adonis said. “Give my mother a dose of Debellatorque and put her in one of the cells. The key is on a chain around her neck. It’s charmed to withstand fire so it should still work. Don’t hurt her and treat her with respect, but don’t let her escape. Once she’s been injected with the potion, use your tears to heal her burns.”
He waited until the guards began to move to act on his orders and then he came over to Brooke and Esmerelda. He used his tears to heal them and then he took Brooke into his arms.
“We did it,” she whispered.
“And I’ve shown the guards how I will rule the pack. Firm but fair, and no one will suffer at my hands,” he said.
He grinned at Esmerelda.
“You know any good personal assistants?” he said and the three of them laughed and hugged each other.
Epilogue
Two Years Later
Adonis smiled down at the tiny bundle in Brooke’s arms. Nothing he had been told had prepared him for the overwhelming rush of love he felt when he looked at his daughter.
“So, are you sure about the name? Lilly Alexandria?” he asked.
“It suits her, don’t you think?” Brooke said.
“Yes, but the name has connotations, doesn’t it?” he pointed.
Brooke nodded.
“It does, but it’s no longer a symbol of hatred. It’s a symbol of two races coming together. Lilly, my mom’s name, represents humans, and Alexandria, your mom’s name, represents the dragons. I know both of them made mistakes, but ultimately, they were both strong women who fought for what they believed in, even if their cause was skewed. But if you don’t like it, we can change it.”
“No, I do like it. I just wanted to be sure you did,” Adonis smiled.
Brooke returned his smile, but Adonis could see the sadness behind her expression.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
Brooke shook her head.
“I was just thinking this is kind of sad isn’t it? This is the moment where we should be introducing our baby to our families. My parents are dead, your dad’s dead, your mom has been banished, and my uncle hates me now that I’ve become a dragon.”
A smile stretched across Adonis’ face. He couldn’t fix much of that, but he had fixed a little of it, and he thought that it would make Brooke happy. Brooke frowned at him and then she sighed.
“I know you think Uncle Steve will come around, but he won’t. He thinks I’m a monster,” Brooke said as the door to the room slowly opened.
“I did think that once, but I can see now that I was totally wrong. I hope you can forgive me for that,” Uncle Steve said as he stepped into the room.
Brooke’s face lit up when she saw him.
“Uncle Steve! Oh my God, I can’t believe you’re here. Of course I can forgive you. I… how…”
Uncle Steve laughed and came to sit on the bed beside Brooke. He reached for her hand and squeezed it.
“I’m sorry, Brooke,” he said. “I should have come sooner. I should have known that you being a dragon didn’t change who you are.”
She waved his apology away.
“None of that matters. All that matters is that you’re here now.” She smiled. “Would you like to hold your great-niece?”
Uncle Steve nodded and Brooke placed the baby in his arms. She made a tiny snuffling sound and then she settled back down.
“She likes you,” Adonis smiled.
“Hey, little one,” Uncle Steve said softly, moving the blanket aside slightly and smiling down at the baby.
“How did you know she was here?” Brooke asked.
“Adonis called me,” Uncle Steve said. “He tracked me down a while ago, and instead of killing me—which, let’s face it, he would have had every right to do—he talked to me. Over time, he showed me that dragons aren’t monsters. Brooke, I had it all wrong. The Order made the dragons act like monsters because we hunted them. It took me far too long to see that. Can you ever really forgive me?”
Brooke smiled at him.
“You’re already forgiven,” she said.
Adonis looked at Brooke. Happiness radiated from her, and she hadn’t stopped smiling since her Uncle Steve had stepped into the room.
“Thank you,” she beamed at him.
“I just wanted to make you as happy as you make me every single day,” he smiled. “And I think now maybe I have.”
Brooke slipped down off the bed and moved into Adonis’ waiting arms.
“You make me happy every day, but you truly have surpassed yourself today,” she grinned. “I love you, Adonis.”
“I love you too,” he said.
He bent down and kissed her and he knew that no matter what happened, while he had Brooke and his daughter with him, he would always be this happy.
Returning to the Dragon
Text Copyright © 2019 by Alexis Davie
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictionally. Any
resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or locales is entirely coincidental.
First printing, 2019
Publisher
Secret Woods Books
[email protected]
www.SecretWoodsBooks.com
1
Lacey
I take a sip of my drink and nod my head in agreement with Leighton, the guy who has decided to take the bar stool next to mine. He promptly introduced himself and started asking me questions about why I’m here.
I suppose that’s fair. The tiny village doesn’t exactly attract many strangers, but I’m not a stranger. Not really. Although I feel like one. I’ve been gone for six years. I left for college at eighteen and then found a job in the city. I really thought I’d said goodbye to this place, but something kept pulling me back, and when I was made redundant, I decided it was time to come home. I have enough savings to see me through a few months while I search for a job in the next town.
“Lacey?” Leighton says.
I realize he’s still talking and I’ve missed whatever question he’s asked me. I don’t mean to be rude to him, but I wish he would get the hint that I’m not interested. I knew I should have waited before coming here to meet my older brother Cole, but I was bored and I figured I might run into a familiar face or two.
“Sorry, I was a million miles away,” I say.
“I asked you if you want another drink,” Leighton smiles.
I do want another drink but I don’t want him to buy it for me. I’m not sure how to politely refuse, but I decide to give it a shot. If I offend him, at least then he’ll go away.
“Yes, but I’d rather get it myself,” I say.
“Oh a feminist?” Leighton laughs. “Works for me. Mine’s a beer.”