Orsen
The rumble in Byron’s throat thundered, the noise taking on a warped sound as the air funneled into his throat while he conjured his dragon fire.
I still couldn’t use mine, and I stared into Rowan’s eyes as the seconds stretched long.
I’d promised her I’d walk out of here. I intended to keep that promise.
I needed distance. I needed Byron off me. If I was going to land a blow that I knew wouldn’t risk Rowan or my clanmates, I had to be in a better position. Angling the attack meant separating Byron’s mouth from my goddamn leg, and my time was running out.
I had two choices: get burned, possibly to death, or do something a bit stupid.
Well, here goes nothing.
I sunk my claws into Byron’s back, which didn’t stop him in the slightest. I secured a good hold and then pushed forward…
farther into his mouth. Byron’s teeth made it past the protection of my scales, finding the flesh underneath, and I roared as the first real pain sank in.
One inch and then two, which would have been a huge problem if I weren’t in dragon form.
As it was, my dragon demanded I stop, but I needed to get just a bit closer.
Come on, you fucker. Let… go! This is for our mate.
Holding Byron so he couldn’t get away, I snapped at his neck, sinking my teeth into him right where the glow of his dragon fire swelled in his throat. The rising rumble of the inferno abruptly cut off. I clenched my jaw tighter, my strength greater than the aging dragon’s scaled armor.
Byron’s hold on my leg was gone, and he bellowed loud enough to fill the clearing. My leg was free, and I wasted no time grasping Byron’s neck tighter.
The asshole was going for a ride.
Not letting go of Byron, even as he scratched at my face, I scooped him over me in a massive arc, throwing the Alpha over my shoulder like he was nothing more than a rag doll.
The ground boomed as his enormous body hit it, shaking the earth and knocking several people off their feet, which I spotted as I turned around to face him, hunkering down as I growled.
The crowd cheered behind me, the hoots of my clanmates louder than anyone else, and I let it bolster me, helping to push aside the burn in my leg from Byron’s teeth.
We protect our mate!
My dragon’s thoughts flickered between protecting Rowan and brutal homicide, it seemed.
I could feel the trickle of warmth between my scales as the punctures bled, but I’d saved myself from much worse damage.
Maybe my injury would be a good excuse for Rowan to fuss over me.
With another roar, I forced my wings down, launching me into the air.
I hovered above Byron, ready to crash down on top of him.
A moment later, his head was up, however.
It wobbled as he glared at me furiously.
His throat poured blood, littering the ground beneath him.
He wasn’t going to last much longer, no matter what, but it only made him more reckless, firing a blast of dragon fire into the air.
I narrowly missed the attack, dodging with a roll in the sky as I pulled my wings around me.
I knew my mates would be protecting Rowan from any stray dragon fire—I just needed to focus on killing this asshat.
The heat of the flames flared past the protective cage I had formed around me, and my heartbeat stuttered before rushing into the stratosphere, along with my body. That’d been damn close.
Thank fuck he shot upward.
Too many people sat on the sidelines, vulnerable to his flames, but Byron didn’t give a shit. I prayed it was a telling move, allowing the hordes to see what kind of man they’d been following and who we’d been up against. The reason we refused to turn Allison over to him.
Wild, feral eyes glowered up at me, and Byron forced himself into the air, barreling toward me like a bullet.
I barely caught him, the impact solid against my ribs as it sent me backward, and I had to flap my wings twice as hard to steady myself.
With my claws, I threw him off me, watching him reel in the sky as he struggled to stay aloft.
His throat began to glow once more, and I had mere seconds before he’d try to toss another blast my way.
Byron was being reckless, though. Conjuring up dragon fire repeatedly like that was draining, and he was already losing blood.
As I soared higher, I angled myself over him, just out of range as he breathed out a pitiful excuse for flame.
End this! Protect our mate!
After I pulled my wings in, I flew down toward Byron, grabbing hold of him as we both plummeted to the ground.
The crash landing was monumental, leaving a small crater where Byron’s now-broken body had hit the earth.
My own leg throbbed from colliding with the ground, the scratches beneath my scales pulsing, but I just snarled at Byron, locking my stare onto his.
He tried and failed to growl, barely able to hold up his head.
Regardless of his weakness, though, he attempted to summon more dragon fire.
He wasn’t going to back down. One of his wings was bent at an unnatural angle. It was broken. Badly.
I stared at him, hoping my gaze conveyed just how much I despised the fucker.
In a snap of movement, I grabbed Byron’s jaw, forcing it apart until the bones snapped.
His yellow eyes flared wide, panic filling their depths, any sign of bravado gone.
I hadn’t used it in ages, but I pulled from that deep well inside me, and the power rushed to the surface, my entire being thrumming with deadly purpose.
And I unleashed the full wrath of my dragon fire down Byron’s throat.
I made sure every spark and ember found its way down his gullet, burning him from the inside out. There would be no casualties. Byron would not walk out of this clearing, and deep down, I knew Cyrus was next.
An enormous boom of cheers shot out of the crowd around me. I dropped Byron’s head, letting it fall to the ground, smoke billowing out of his mouth and nose. His vacant stare on his face was eerie, and I turned to face my horde, my friends and family, my clan, my mate.
Rowan.
Throbbing aches snaked through my body as I forced myself to shift into human form, landing on my hands and knees in the beaten earth. But it was nothing compared to the relief and pride that swelled through me.
Covered in blood, I rushed up to Rowan, throwing my arms around her as she sobbed, my leg protesting the movement.
That’d been far too close for my liking, and I knew she was panicking, fearing the worst when Byron got his jaw around my leg.
In fact, I’d be making a trip to her clinic to clean those scratches up as soon as I officially declared my victory.
I looked out over the gathered horde members, two large groups of dragons eyeing me with shock and reverence, celebration and relief.
I nodded for my clanmates to join me, and they jogged over to me.
They stood at my back as I cast my eyes over the North Oak horde, my stare landing on Nina and Griffin, Allison and Colin, Celia, and of course, Ma, who had been given a chair a fair distance away from the battleground, despite her numerous protests.
My chest squeezed at the sight. My people, who I adored more than anything: my people I had a duty to protect.
“Let it be known here and now,” I called out, my voice echoing through the clearing as I scanned my gaze over the crowd, “Birch Creek now belongs to North Oak. You will be treated as one of us, so long as you dismiss any alliance to Byron and his beliefs, as well as my uncle, Cyrus, who has hidden like a coward among you.”
A rumble of agreement roared from behind me, the new members of our horde bowing their heads to me, some even taking a knee.
“As one of the Alphas here, champion of this challenge, I declare Allison and her mate, Colin, are forgiven for any previous slights. She is free to be with her mate, to honor her heart.” I looked at Rowan, and she smiled up at me, tears clinging to the corners of her eyes.
“Birch Creek is no more. Long live North Oak!”
Eyes flared wide through the onlookers, and each member of the former Birch Creek horde bowed. A rising cheer erupted, and I turned to my clan, smiling proudly as we stood together as one.
After a moment, the intensity subsided, at least from the crowd, and I turned to Rowan, pulling her closer.
Every fiber in my being hummed, desperation pumping through me as my body maintained a partial shift, eyes glowing, claws extended.
I had to have her. I’d just bathed in the blood of the man who’d tried to destroy my horde, and I fucking needed Rowan like I needed oxygen.
“We need to go.” I narrowed my eyes on her, heat rushing through me. “Now.”
Her brow furrowed. “Are you hurt?” Concern plagued her stare, and I shook my head. “No. I’m hungry.”
I let the weight of that one word land as I gazed at her, pulling Rowan against me so I could feel her, so I could breathe her in.
Her brows rose up to her hairline, eyes wide. “Oh.”
I needed to haul her fantastic ass to the closest place where we could be alone. I needed my mate, and I wasn’t waiting.