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“I do.”

He frowned.Why didn’t you tell me before?

She signed back,I do now. I didn’t before.

“Hel, this is Dax. He carried me into battle once before. He’s Prince Ronan’s closest friend.”

He moved his hands quickly,His only friend. Ronan is a dick. Anyone else is only his friend because he’s royalty.

“Hey!” Ronan crowed. “I saw that.”

“Next time you approach my wife, don’t touch her without her permission.” Hel sneered.

Dax’s brows rose.I think Ronan and him would get along famously. They’re both dicks.

Valeen laughed, and Hel lifted his middle finger. “I know sign language too, asshole.”

“Anyway.” Ronan kissed the top of Piper’s head. “The army from the council is three miles from here. The fight we just had in Runevale was nothing compared to what they have now. If I had to guess, fifteen thousand strong, and it looks like there is more coming.”

The collective silence made the hairs on the back of Valeen’s neck rise. The quiet rustle in the trees and horses grazing in the pasture seemed loud. Hel’s gaze darted to her then Thane. It was the first time she’d seen him show any indication of worry.

“Holy shit,” Tif squeaked then slapped a chubby hand over her mouth.

“Fifteen thousand?” Valeen whispered. “How many of them are dragons?”

“There were at least a thousand in the air. There could be more on the ground, so we don’t know their true number.” He didn’t sound particularly worried. In fact, he almost seemed excited.Does he want to die?she thought.

I think he might just be a little crazy,Hel said. She hadn’t meant for him to hear that, and he smiled because he knew it too. “We knew this was coming,” Hel said calmly, but quickly took out another civar.

Leif scratched his head, sweat beading on his brow. “Is the dragon king sending more of your fighters, Ronan?”

He dropped his arm from Piper and sighed. “I sent a dispatcher to my father, but I don’t know if they’ll be here in time.”

“You don’t seem worried,” Hel mused.

He grinned. “If I die, I die fighting. It’s what dragons love. This battle will be talked about for ages. If I go down, I will be the dragon prince who fought with the god of war, the goddesses of night and day, and the god of magic to save the elves. Greatness will be mine. Just remember to write songs about me, will you?”

Piper lightly punched him in the side. “Don’t talk about dying before battle. It’s bad luck.”

Ronan tore his gaze from Hel and turned to her. “I’m talking about glory, darling.” He lifted his chin. “The council you told us about, they think they are doing right, but they will be seen as the tyrants. Elves are known for their peaceful nature, and they’ve come to eradicate them. I wouldn’t be surprised if your woodland elf neighbors joined us too.”

“They won’t.” With a frown, Thane shook his head and folded his arms. “Not only have we killed their last three lords, they’ve never helped us before. Although as a last hope, I did send amessenger. I doubt they’ll even believe what is about to happen unless they see it.”

Ronan shrugged. “You never know. No one would have thought the pale ones would fight with you and not against you.” He looked Hel up and down. “You’re a remarkable warrior by the way,Black Mage. I had my doubts on what you were actually capable of but no wonder everyone was afraid of you. My parents wouldn’t even leave the north because of you. Whispers of your return had them shitting their pants.” He smirked. “And your cursed army went down, but it was magnificent. The history books will love this.”

Hel chuckled and took a pull of smoke. “I have no quarrel with the dragons. Your parents don’t need to fear me unless they give me a reason, like not showing up with reinforcements for example.”

“Well, they did sign a contract that would kill them both if they don’t, so they’ll come, let’s just hope it’s in time.”

“Ronan may want glory,” Fennan said angrily, throwing his hand at him. “But this isn’t about glory. We could easily lose this battle. We just lost all of Hel’s army and at least two hundred Ravens, I don’t know how many dragons you lost but that leaves us with maybe four thousand warriors.” Fennan’s voice came out scratchy. He looked like he might be sick. “The odds can’t get much worse.”

Valeen knew exactly how he felt but they had to believe they could win, or it was already lost. “I’ve seen battles won with worse odds. It’s not hopeless.”

“I haven’t, and we have nowhere to retreat to this time.”

Hel stepped forward. “That’s right, so you better give this fight every fucking thing in you, or this city, your home, is gone. There will be no Palenor left. You are fighting for your land and your people. They will take the females as slaves, rape them and make them wish they were dead, and then kill every malehere, including children. I haveseenit. But they are only here on command of their god.” Hel shoved his finger into Fennan’s chest. “You are fighting with this.” Just when she thought she couldn’t love him more, he said that. She beamed at him, and he quickly added. “We show them no mercy.”

Leif bobbed his head and grinned. “No mercy.”