Chapter 16
Maya
“We found him.”
Those whispered, hushed words instantly had my attention.
I looked away from the ocean’s darkening horizon.
It was late into the night, the coastline lit by the warm twinkling lights of the houses, and the sound of the waves crashing against the cliffside filled the air.
The celebration following my coronation had started to slow about an hour ago, and even my parents had departed, needing to attend to something in the Dreki realm.
Honestly, as much as I liked having them here, I wasn’t exactly sad to see them leave.
It felt like a lot of pressure having them constantly watching us, and I felt far more relaxed when it was just my mates and me, like right now.
We were sitting in a stone patio that was near the cliffside, away from the guests, but behind me I could still hear them celebrating.The majority, though, had taken the rides offered back into town by my brothers and Eleven, leaving our house in a state of lulled peace.
One that was now being fractured by the excitement in Atlas’s voice.
He attempted to hide it, but his dragon’s energy surged to such an extent that it felt like the air itself was sparking.
I turned in Henry’s lap as he ran his fingers through my hair in a soothing motion.
All of my mates were gathered around the patio, and even Az, who was leaning against a tree nearby, was right within reach.
I wished he was closer. I was starting to feel on edge, not having talked to him about the feather, but the soft vulnerability and affection he regarded me with every time I caught his gaze reassured me to an extent.
“Where?” Marco demanded, intensely focused.
“Near a small coastal village about twenty miles from here. He’s been hiding in one of the cliffside caves that’s only reachable by flight. My sources say there have been odd weather surges, like electrical storms that have been catching things on fire,” Atlas said, his voice tense.
“So he did absorb some of Ry’s power,” Henry muttered.
I nibbled my lip, not knowing exactly what to say in the moment.
What did we do now that we knew where he was?
Did we try to imprison him again? That hadn’t worked previously for us.
I just wasn’t positive how to handle this besides with violence, and while I hated Malcolm, I wasn’t positive I could decide to simply kill him in cold blood.
Or maybe it wouldn’t be a problem. I nibbled my lip, feeling a tug on my consciousness as my phoenix brushed off my worry, flashing images through our head in a snapshot slideshow of everything he’d done to us—everything he’d instructed Tina to do to us. He was truly a vile man.
“There is another element we need to consider.” Atlas hesitated, meeting my gaze. “It’s possible that since he knows we’ll be searching for him, that he took hostages with him.”
Oh no.
“Crap.” I stood up, feeling a surge of stress. “Is there any way we can find out for sure? I need Malcolm taken care of. I’m not sure what that means, but I can’t…I can’t have him just walking around. If he has people imprisoned, we have to handle this tonight, though. It’s not an option.”
“Peanut, it’s been a long day,” Anani said, looking at me with concern. “Why don’t we get more information?”
“What if he moves?” Ledger countered.
“Atlas has sources looking into the hostage aspect,” Sai said as he tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “If we find out he does, we will go immediately, but we don’t want to walk into this situation blind.”
Except now that I was aware of the potential captive situation, I wouldn’t be able to not think about it. I knew well what happened to people placed under Malcolm’s thumb, and I would never wish that on anyone.
“Can we try to get an answer tonight?” I nibbled my lip as Az made a troubled noise, my gaze moving to his.
I could feel frustration on his end, and I realized with surprise that he didn’t agree with the other men either—both of us knew how important time was when you were being held against your will.
“Yes.” Atlas nodded and stood. “I need to make a few calls if we are going to expedite this. Can a few of you help me?”
Most of them nodded and stood to follow Atlas, a few of them walking a bit more slowly as they made plans for the off-chance that we did need to go tonight. I could tell Henry wanted to be part of the planning process, so I slid off his lap and melted into the lounge cushion.
Henry pressed a kiss to my forehead. “Do you want to come?”
“I’m actually going to take a bit to relax after today,” I admitted. “I just need to sit out here and come down from all the excitement.”
“We will make sure the guests that are left head out. Don’t leave this area,” Marco warned, looking at me with a hard expression. I nearly smiled. I wouldn’t go anywhere without them, but he could probably also tell I didn’t agree with waiting.
I could wait for now, and if I really wanted to go, I would tell them that. But I did want confirmation on the hostage element—that would tell me the urgency of the situation at hand.
“I won’t ever leave without telling you, Marco,” I promised.
He let out a low rumble and nodded as he followed my other dragon mates towards the house, leaving me to have a moment to myself.
I knew they only felt comfortable with it because of how well guarded this place was, but it was still thoughtful, especially since today had been so overwhelming.
Not in a bad way, just in the type of way that a little peace and quiet was a nice thing.
“You okay? I can leave as well if you want alone time.” I wasn’t surprised to hear Az’s voice as he came to sit next to me, his handsome face filled with concern.
“No, I don’t want you to leave… I’m just worried,” I breathed out. “I didn’t think about Malcolm taking hostages, but I should’ve known. If it means keeping himself safe, there isn’t much he wouldn’t do.”
“I know they want to wait,” Az stated softly, his eyes filled with so much heat and softness for me, “but whenever you want to go, I’ll go with you. This witch isn’t a threat to me, even with Ry’s magic.”
“You would just drop everything and go with me?”
The night air ruffled through his pale hair, his gaze running over my mouth before flashing back up to my eyes. “Yes. Yes I would, Maya.”
“Why?” I whispered.
When his hand came up to cup my jaw in a gentle caress, I leaned into it and felt my face warm.
I noticed his wings were wrapping closer around us, and I had to fight the urge to touch them again, my fingertips tingling with the remembrance of how soft they were.
I didn’t realize how far I’d leaned into him until he tipped my jaw back and examined my expression.
“Maya, I have very little control when it comes to you, and when you offer me your lips so sweetly, it very much tests it,” he rumbled, his eyes flashing with that dangerous, predatory light.
“I test your control?” I asked nervously, my toes curling in anticipation.
“Without a question.” Az tightened his hand on my jaw before leaning down, offering me a clear sign that he planned on kissing me—an action that I eagerly matched.
The brush of our lips sent currents of electricity bolting through me, and a pleased sound came from my throat at the way he dominated the kiss, savoring the intimate touch.
My entire body in that singular moment felt like it was being dipped in honey, something in my magic stirring and encouraging me to…push. But to what end? My teeth hurt, urging me to mark Az…as my mate?
I tensed, wondering how he would feel about that, and he immediately pulled back, looking worried.
“What happened? Where did you go?” he asked softly.
I swallowed, feeling overwhelmed as I let out an unsteady breath. “I’m worried I keep pushing for things you don’t want. I know our bond was made by accident, but I feel so confused because I just felt the urge to bite you, to put a mating mark—Az!”
I was flat on my back in the grass as he met my lips again, caging me and using a hand to roughly tug at my hair, a high-pitched needy sound nearly leaving my throat.
My breathing became uneven as he explored my mouth, and I opened my legs, his massive body positioned between them as I felt his cock harden against my center, making me feel overheated in the best way possible.
Then he pulled back, looking down at me with an extreme intensity that caused me to shiver. “Never, mon lapin, never think I don’t want you. Or want this. I want our bond. I want you, and if you wanted to mark me, if you chose to honor me with that, I would accept it in a heartbeat.”
Oh.
I exhaled in relief. “You would? But you know that would make us mates, right? I mean, I would…” I flushed, feeling like I was on the edge of stuttering because of my nerves.
“I wouldn’t mind that—I would love it, actually, not that I would expect you to feel the same…
But yeah, I wouldn’t want to put that on you if you don’t want it.
You finally got your freedom back, and while I want you here, I don’t want you to feel tied down. ”
Realization crossed his face. “Maya, you marking me would free me, not trap me—don’t ever think that.”
“So you would be okay with being my mate?” I offered nervously, really not wanting to interpret his words incorrectly.
His eyes flashed with a dark, possessive humor. “I’m okay with being your mate. More than fucking okay.”
“Wait, what?” It sounded like he was talking about it in the present tense, as if we were already mates.
Sitting us up, he pulled me into his arms, his wings sheltering us as he cupped my jaw lightly.
“The immolatio bond—it’s a mate bond, Maya.
I was shocked when I first realized we’d formed one, but then one of my feathers fell for you, and when you said you wanted to wear it, I knew for sure.
That’s a sign for angels that someone is their fated mate. ”