Page 61 of Courting the Dragon Prince (A Royal Arrangement #1)

Chapter Sixty-One

T he door smashed into the woman opening it, knocking her flat on her back. In front of Onyx, Luther sprang from the back of the wagon.

Onyx jumped out after him, trying to ignore the dizziness that washed over him and the aches and pains from all the injuries he’d sustained that day.

Another soldier gaped at them, taking a step back. Lunging forward, Luther sliced the dagger across the soldier’s throat. Then, with a graceful fling of the dagger, he buried the blade in the chest of another who stood a few feet away.

Then Luther ran. Onyx followed, clenching his teeth.

Around them, voices and yells erupted.

Luther sprinted towards a massive rock outcropping. Onyx remained close on his heels. The moon lit their way. Four soldiers stood ahead of them. They all turned to face them.

Onyx flung his hands to the sides, pulling on the rocks. He thrust his arms forward, throwing the rocks in the direction of those before them. Blood spurted as rock smashed and tore through skin, flesh, and bone. The soldiers cried and screamed as they collapsed.

Luther jumped over one of them as he kept sprinting forward.

A boulder flew past Onyx. Suddenly, rocks and stones whizzed through the air around them. It seemed the soldiers had recovered from their surprise.

Whilst continuing to run, Onyx glanced back towards the wagon. He staggered to the side, narrowly dodging a hurling rock. It hit the ground in front of him, and earth burst into the air. He stumbled but managed to stay on his feet.

Onyx changed his target. He flung rocks backwards at those near the wagon, all the while continuing to run.

More earth erupted around him. Not just from the missed projectiles but also from the earth elementals who’d started to explode the ground they ran on.

Onyx stumbled. He sidestepped. He sprinted onwards. He no longer even tried to aim or look back. He just hurled boulders in the general direction of their enemy behind them whilst trying to stay alive and keep moving forward.

Onyx’s lungs ached as his legs pumped. Blood rushed in his ears.

Ahead of him, Luther had almost made it to the outcropping.

Luther’s scream wrenched the air as a rock the size of a fist smashed into Luther’s leg with a sickening crunch. His legs went out from under him.

“Luther!” Onyx yelled.

But Luther didn’t stop. He crawled on his elbows, dragging himself behind the outcropping, taking shelter.

A second later, Onyx joined him and dropped to his knees on the ground.

Luther leaned back against the rock wall, breathing heavily. His legs lay out in front of him. He gripped the upper thigh of his injured leg.

“Fuck! Are you all right?” Onyx glanced between the leg and Luther’s face, which had scrunched up in pain.

“My leg is pretty smashed up.” Luther gave a pained laugh. “I won’t be able to move on it.” He groaned. His gaze fixed on Onyx’s. He took a deep breath. “But you keep going. You get out of here.”

Onyx shook his head. “No!”

“You can’t stay here,” Luther growled. “We’re outnumbered. I can’t shift. If you stay here, we’ll both die! But you can run. You can still get away and live. But you have to go now before they?—”

“I said no!” Onyx snapped.

“Onyx, you don’t need to die here too.” Luther lifted his hands, and the chains of the manacles rattled. Luther clutched at Onyx’s coat.

Onyx leaned forward, pressing his forehead against Luther’s. “I won’t leave you here to die. I won’t.”

“Fuck, Onyx.” Luther let out a shaky breath. “Fuck.”

“I won’t. I can’t.” Onyx squeezed his eyes closed. “I love you.”

Because it was true. Despite all that lay in their pasts, despite the fact they’d been enemies, despite all the reasons Onyx had for hating Luther, when it came down to it, Onyx didn’t. He loved Luther. Onyx was powerless to do anything else. His heart wouldn’t allow it. “Whatever happens now, I need you to know that I love you with all my being. And I will not abandon you. Never.”

“Onyx,” Luther whispered. “I love you too.”

Onyx pressed a kiss to Luther’s lips. “And we’re not beaten yet.”

Luther let out a ragged laugh. “No?”

“No.” Onyx would fight with every scrap and every inch of his soul.

He’d fight. Even though they were outnumbered and wounded.

He’d fight. For the peace treaty. For his mother. For the Kingdom of the Grey Mountains. For Luther. And for the life that Onyx wanted to live by Luther’s side.

“Onyx,” a voice called out. “Prince Luther.”

It was a voice so familiar to Onyx. It was a voice Onyx had known all his life. A voice that had guided him. Advised him. It was a voice that now meant betrayal and death.

“You can’t survive this,” Warden Flint called out. “Just come out and it will be over quickly.”

Neither spoke; they just clutched at each other.

“You are outnumbered!” his uncle yelled. “And from the looks of it, Prince Luther sustained a pretty bad injury. You won’t be leaving anytime soon.”

“Fuck you, you stone-shitting cunt!” Luther yelled, the insult bouncing off the stone around them.

Silence followed.

“Very well,” Warden Flint said. “It makes no difference to me. Either way, you’ll be dead and my plan will progress.”

Then the stone Luther leaned against began to crack. Onyx looked up as a fracture raced up the face of the outcropping. It began to split apart.

Without having to think, Onyx knew what his uncle was about to do. He was going to bury them.

Luther screamed.

Onyx wrapped his arms and body around Luther’s.

He closed his eyes, mind connecting to the rock plunging, crumbling, and cascading down towards them. Onyx held his breath.

With every ounce of his will, he pushed back. He forced the falling earth back, not allowing it within four feet of them. He gritted his teeth, straining as he guided the falling rock to settle around them, creating a pocket beneath the avalanche of stone, a cave beneath the giant pile.

Onyx focused, feeling the earth, sensing it settle. Onyx breathed in and out, just ensuring he had the rock under his control.

After a while, Onyx opened his eyes. But all that surrounded him was darkness. “The stone has stopped collapsing on top of us.”

He’d managed to do it, managed to create a dome beneath the debris that his uncle had rained down on them. The rock groaned, cracked, and clattered. But with minimal energy, Onyx could keep it from collapsing on top of them.

For a moment at least, they were safe.

Then Onyx realised Luther trembled in his arms, shaking and shivering, muttering to himself.

“Buried and dead,” Luther whispered. “I am buried and dead.”