“And I’m sure they will.”
She said it with such calm certainty that a roar of refusal nearly made it past his lips. The thought of life leaving her body was repulsive to him. He didn’t want her to die. Not now.
Not ever.
Kellan didn’t know what was wrong with him. He hated humans. Or he had.
How could he feel different about Denae after a night in her arms? He had spent many nights with females, but not one had ever touched him so completely, so absolutely as Denae.
“Don’t worry about me,” she said and walked to stand beside him. There she inspected where the chain was bolted into the stone wall. “There are much more important things than one human life. Like what the Dark want with a Dragon King.”
Kellan wanted to run his hands through her hair again. He wanted to drag her against him and just hold her. He wanted to kiss her and promise her that he would get her out alive.
Instead, he only stared.
She turned her face to him and smiled. “In the war with the Fae, did you fight the Dark?”
“Aye.”
“Did they take any of you?”
“Two.”
“It didn’t turn out good, did it?” she asked, a small frown marring her forehead.
He shrugged, thinking back so many eons ago. “Both Kings had to be killed. I did one, and Con the other.”
“What did the Dark do to them?”
“I suspect I’ll find out soon enough.”
She cleared her throat. “Their magic prevents you from shifting. Did they use it during the war?”
“Of course.”
“And how did you combat it?”
“There were too many of us Kings, and then there were the dragons.”
She nodded, a thoughtful expression falling over her face. “Isn’t it odd that they’ve waited until just now to capture one of you?”
“In a manner.”
Her gaze sharpened on him. “You aren’t surprised by their move. Which means this all goes back to the information MI5 got on Dreagan and my mission onto your land.”
“It does.”
“Someone wants to expose you. Someone who has aligned with the Dark, MI5, and God only knows who else to do it.”
“That they have.”
“And you aren’t worried?” she asked in exasperation.
Kellan took a deep breath and said, “Nay.”
“I’d call you a fool if I hadn’t seen firsthand what you could do. How are you going to get free of here?”
It didn’t go unnoticed by him that she didn’t include herself in that statement. Kellan let it slide. For now.
“With pleasure.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Isle of Raasay
After a quick look in the lodge, Rhys walked back outside, his face to the sky. And in the fast-moving clouds he saw a sight he hadn’t witnessed in thousands of millennia.
A group of dragons.
The Kings learned long ago how to deftly move within the clouds and stay hidden, but a dragon knew how to spot others.
Rhys caught a glimpse of gold scales. Constantine. The King of Kings was defying his own order and flying in daylight. If the situation wasn’t so dire Rhys had every intention of ribbing him about it.
It was easy for a dragon to remain hidden in the clouds, but he would have to chance being seen when he landed. And there was no missing the large size of a Dragon King.
With no rain in sight, they were taking a huge risk in being seen—one that, to Rhys, was worth it after Kellan had been taken by the Dark Ones.
Con was the first to descend. He tucked his massive gold wings and dove like a missile to the ground. Right before he would have hit, he shifted, tucking his body into a tight ball and rolling until he stood, his face to the sky.
Rhys glanced over the view of the sea from the house and, thankfully, saw no boats on the water. By the time he turned back around, Guy and Kiril were already on the ground next to Con.
A blur of amber sped through the sky, and Rhys recognized their newest member of the Kings—Tristan. He had been born to them just a few years earlier, though they still weren’t sure how. No new Dragon Kings had been made since the dragons were sent to another realm.
Tristan shifted into human form and landed with as much grace and control as Con. Then, as one, the four turned to Rhys and started walking to him.
Rhys lengthened his strides and tossed them the spare jeans kept in all houses owned by the Kings for such eventualities. “You all took a chance. A picture of any of you could be splashed on the front page of every newspaper in the morning.”
“Tell me what happened,” Con demanded and jerked on his jeans.
The fact Con didn’t even give Rhys’s statement a comment told him how upset Con was. Rhys gave a little shake of his head. “For hours there was nothing. I remained in the sky keeping watch.”
“Obviously Kellan didna sense anything.” Kiril pulled his pants over his hips and spotted the pile of dead MI5 agents.
Rhys glowered at Con. “Kellan did exactly what Con wanted him to do—he got close to Denae.”