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Chapter twenty-six

HYACINTH

Searing pain flooded my body as that tug, that pull, latched its talons into my soul. My knees buckled from under me as I collapsed to the ground, clawing at my chest as a scream tore from my throat.

I need it out .

This pain—this poison flooding my system.

Landers moved in front of me with one quick step, blocking the man’s line of sight as a snarl erupted from his lungs. “You are supposed to be dead, Cain.”

“Ahh, but alas, I am not. I do thank you, though, for freeing me—for bringing me my mate .”

Landers moved toward Cain with such rapid speed as the word fell from his mouth that I could feel the air vibrate where he’d been standing. A roar flung itself from his mouth as his sword cut through the air, the sound of steel hitting steel ringing through the valley as it collided with Cain’s.

Cain chuckled as they began to circle each other with slow, threatening movements. “Jealous are we, little brother?”

Violet magic began to crackle between Landers’s fingertips, snaking its way up his blade and sparking against the metal.

Dukovich lowered himself behind me as another scream tore from my lungs and he slipped his hands underneath my arms. He pulled me back against him, dragging me to my feet as he whispered in my ear.

“Breathe, Hyacinth. The pain will dim if you stop resisting the bond.”

My head twisted toward him, pain contorting my features.

“I’m not bonding with him. I can’t bond with him. Landers . . . Landers is my mate. He’s my person. I . . . I can’t.” The words came out in a frantic stream as I clung to Dukovich’s arm to keep my legs from giving out again.

“The mating bond is not a choice, Hyacinth. The pain will only grow the more you resist it. You need to let it in before the Fallen Ones step from that opening,” Dukovich said, the words sharp and commanding as my eyes flickered to Landers.

His skin was . . . glowing .

No, it wasn’t a glow—it was a reflection. A reflection of the sun shimmering off the scales that were slowly breaking through the surface of his flesh. A scream left my lungs as their swords slammed together, magic exploding from the connection with such force that we were thrown backwards.

My body flew through the air and I yelped out in pain as my back connected with sharp rock. A ringing sang between my ears as I gasped for breath, my body pulsing with adrenaline and pain as I frantically pushed myself from the ground.

They were going to kill us before the Fallen Ones even had a chance to wake.

I took in a heavy breath, closing my eyes and slowing my breathing as I let the pain consume me.

It only took a second, one fleeting moment for the bond to snap into place.

My eyes shot open, the pain dissipating from my limbs as my gaze locked onto Cain from across the clearing. I could see the gasp that left his lips as his hand flew up to his chest.

It was as if the world had halted as he slowly dragged his eyes toward me and grinned.

“Enough!” I snarled, taking a step toward them.

Landers’s head twisted toward me and I could see pain and fury flashing in his eyes as he realized what I had done—the bond I had accepted.

Cain took a step toward me and I threw my hand up, shadows flowing from my palm and wrapping around his limbs to keep him in place.

His eyes momentarily widened before, slipping back into his arrogant gaze.

“Who are you? How did you get inside that tomb?” I growled the questions as I prowled to Landers’s side, leaving no question as to where my loyalty fell.

No mating bond would rip me from him.

“How rude of me,” he said, placing a hand over his heart as he bowed in mockery.

“My name is Cain, and I am Landers’s older brother.

And as for how I am here, you do not need to know that— yet .

” Landers’s hand fell to the small of my back at his words, the pressure there tense, ready to pull me away from him.

I had never heard Landers speak of any other siblings. But if I had passed him on the streets of Nethkar, if I had seen him out in the world, there would be no mistaking their relation.

The resemblance between them was striking.

Landers stood a few inches taller, but they had the same build, the same sharp jawline.

Cain’s hair was longer, streaked with silver and slicked back but it was their eyes—the eyes that were so incredibly opposite.

Cain’s were the darkest black I had ever seen, as if I was looking into a black hole that threatened to consume everything they fell on.

“Half brother,” Landers hissed, the sound snapping me out of my thoughts as I looked between them. “Something so vile could never come from my mother.”

Cain rolled his eyes, groaning in annoyance at Landers’s words. “The bitch has been dead for centuries; you really should stop clinging to her.”

I could feel the hatred pulsing underneath Landers’s skin as I slid my fingers around his wrist.

“ Never speak of her again.” There was a threat braided into Landers’s words and it hung between us as Cain smirked.

“Seeing as you killed our father, then spent centuries hunting me, I think I have earned the right to speak freely,” Cain said casually, his eyes falling to my face and studying me. My shadows loosened around him, hoovering nearby and ready to strike.

The muscles in Landers’s arms tensed under my fingertips.

“We get it,” Dukovich said, his voice sounding from behind us and our heads whirled to face him.

“The two of you have scores to settle, but we have much bigger problems that will soon walk through those doors that have no interest in your little family reunion.” He lifted his hand, a single finger pointing toward the hole in the mountain.

“A man of reason,” Cain said, nodding his head toward Dukovich in agreement. “In that case, I will take my mate and leave you to it.” He was at my side before I could register what he had said, his fist wrapping around my wrist and pulling me against his chest.

A snarl ripped from Landers’s throat as he lunged forward, his sword plunging into Cain as I scrambled out of his hold.

The sound of flesh ripping echoed between my ears as Landers pulled me behind him.

Cain stumbled backwards as Landers pulled the blade from his abdomen, collapsing to his knees and clutching the wound on his stomach.

A guttural sound escaped my throat as I clamped my hand over my mouth, trying to process the sight before me.

Crimson liquid trickled from Cain’s lips and splattered onto the dirt, mixing with the dust as a sharp laugh bellowed from his lungs.

Cain spit another mouthful of blood as he tilted his head up to look at us, his mouth and teeth stained crimson.

“Have you forgotten, brother, you cannot kill me,” he said, grinning as he slowly pushed from the ground. “You cannot stop me from taking what is mine . She is no longer yours to claim.”

He should be dead, that wound should have killed him, but as he stood to his full height the wound had already healed—nothing left but a shredded hole in his tunic.

“She will never be yours,” Landers growled.

“Both of you stop it,” I scolded, the words biting as I stepped from behind Landers and looked between the two men.

Anger danced behind Landers’s eyes, so many emotions pooling behind his irises as his gaze met mine. We had come here for the Fallen Ones. Whatever Cain was doing in that tomb with them, would have to wait.

“I’m nobody’s property,” I snapped, turning to Cain and refusing to cower away from him. “Your brother didn’t claim me, he earned me . There is a difference between the two that it seems you don’t understand.” I took a step toward him, letting shadow flow from my back.

“I will choose Landers every single time over some bond the universe did not give me a choice in. I choose my fate and who I love; you will not take that choice from me. And if you try, I will kill you.”

Cain lifted an impressed brow, the corners of his lips turning up as he took in the shadow crawling toward him.

“I do appreciate the sentiment, but you cannot kill me either. Once the bond is accepted, you cannot kill your mate.” My heart tumbled down my spine at his words and he chuckled at the color that drained from my skin.

The sound of stone crumbling crashed from the chamber and, for a second, I saw fear flash in Cain’s eyes as he slowly turned to face the opening and backed toward us.

The roar of a dragon sounded and the entire mountain quaked from the strength of it as my heart began violently beating.

My hand flew into Landers’s and I pushed myself into his side.

Instinctively, I reached for Dukovich, my fingers wrapping around his forearm and dragging him toward us.

I could feel his pulse pumping as rapidly as my own as a buzz of energy hummed over the surface of my skin.

Five beings stepped from the opening into the clearing and my heart stopped in my chest as a dragon’s head ducked under the arch of the doors. I had thought Nithra was enormous, and she was, but these creatures— they were monstrous .

I couldn’t tell if I was breathing, couldn’t feel my heart beating as the first dragon pushed itself fully from the opening and roared fire into the skies.

I watched as it pushed from the ground and soared into the heavens.

Four more dragons followed, their wings stretching and pulling taut as they beat against the air and stirred up dust around us.

My hair whipped around my face as I lifted a hand to shield my eyes from the debris.

The air stilled and Landers’s grip tightened around me.

My eyes slid up to see his jaw flexing, the vein in his neck pumping quickly as his fingers slid from mine.

He looked down at me for one moment, giving me a shallow nod then strode away from us.

With each step he took toward them, my throat tightened, my stomach twisting around itself in fear.