Page 16 of House of Demons and Bones (Shades of Ruin and Magic #5)

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Barbie

T he bed crumbled under me, my butt hitting the floor with a thud. Where Killian had been now loomed a massive black dragon, his talons spanning half the destroyed bed. His chest expanded with each breath, and those golden eyes peeked down at me with a mix of worry and devotion.

I gaped up at him, my heart hammering against my ribcage as winter sunlight danced across his black and sapphire scales. He was perfect—the most stunning creature I’d ever laid eyes on—and for a moment, I forgot how to breathe.

“Breathe, mate,” he rumbled, his voice deep and rich, like thunder rolling through my bones.

My gaze caught on the symbol at his left temple—two golden half-circles embracing each other, glowing with power—the mark of our mating bond.

He’s my mate too.

I sensed Killian watching through those golden eyes as a storm of emotions poured through our bond—his frustration and annoyance with his dragon, plus his profound need for me.

“Back off and let me lead,” his dragon growled. “You’ve screwed up enough already. We nearly lost our mate because of your idiocy.”

My brain scrambled to catch up with this sudden transformation. One second, I’d been in Killian’s arms, thinking about round two. The next—dragon. I knew he had one inside him, but watching the actual transformation? Still, I needed to get my shit together before these two turned their alpha-male showdown into something worse. They both radiated enough aggression to spark a war, and I wasn’t about to let that happen.

“Hello, hello, dragon,” I said.

Hello, dragon, Sy also purred.

“Do you require assistance getting up, mate?” he asked as softly as his dragon voice could manage, extending a massive talon toward me.

“I got this,” I said, hopping to my feet.

“I’m Tyson,” he said proudly before lowering his head until we were at eye-level.

I reached out to touch his snout. The heat radiated through my palm, and he shivered, those golden eyes glowing with pure devotion.

“Nice to meet you, Tyson.” I smiled at him.

His pleasure rolled through our bond. I wasn’t scared of him at all, despite Killian’s warning. He was my mate too, and I knew deep in my bones that he’d never harm me.

“What would you like to do, mate?” he asked politely.

“Good question.” I studied him. “Not sure if this is too forward, but…”

“Nothing from you could be too much,” he rumbled. “I like you being forward. You can be aggressive with me.”

“Can we go for a ride then?” I asked. “But you’ll do most of the flying?”

“I’ll do all the flying.” He puffed out a stream of fire from his scaled golden lips. “I was afraid you’d never ask.”

“I asked politely,” I said.

He chuckled and lowered himself, though I didn’t need the help—I could jump onto him just fine. Still, that was sweet of him.

I’d already swung one leg over when a thought hit.

“Wait, dragon!”

I scrambled back to the bed, grabbed a blanket, and tossed it over his back.

He blinked.

“Gotta protect my butt from those scales,” I explained.

“I don’t mind if your butt is unwashed,” he rumbled.

My face flushed. The ridiculous lie had spread across campus, yet Tyson wasn’t joking. And yeah, I hadn’t had time to wash it after my mind-bending sex with Killian—I liked having his scent on me.

Carry my scent, Killian said in my mind, making me pause. Thanks to our mating bond, we could now mind-talk, but I enjoyed this bottom joke even less than the dick joke.

I leapt onto the dragon’s back. “Let’s fly, dragon, like in a storybook.”

“Never read one,” he said. “And call me Tyson, mate.”

He launched toward the sky, dark red fire streaming into the air. I hugged his neck, ducking his flame and holding on for dear life. He puffed out another jet of flame in satisfaction. The snowy mountains stretched far beneath his massive wings, wild wind whipping through my bouncing curls while sunlight gleamed on his scales.

“I’ll tell you a secret, Tyson,” I said.

“A good secret?” He craned his neck, rapt attention in his eyes.

“Yesterday, I was still a girl. Today, I’m a woman.”

“What happened?” Tyson asked in his dragon voice. “What turned you from a girl to a woman?”

“I’m mated to both of you.”

He purred with pride and happiness.

“So, I’m going to make some adjustments,” I announced.

“What adjustments?”

“Well, for one, I’ll tell fewer jokes.”

“That’s a joke, right?” He laughed. “It’s funny.”

I pressed my head against his neck. “Now Tyson, I’m going to confess my sins even though you aren’t a priest.”

“I’m not a priest. I’m your mate.”

“I’ll still tell you everything about me, right from the beginning,” I said. “Then you can share your dark history while we’re up in the sky.”

“I’m honored you chose me over Killian for your secrets, mate,” Tyson said, his dragon heat radiating into me, warming my bottom.

“It all started with an ancient evil god,” I said, sensing Killian’s intense focus through our bond. “After the war of the original gods, two vanished, but Ruin clawed his way back even after being shattered. He couldn’t hold a solid form. Then twenty-one years ago, he created a daughter who could eat magic and feed it back to him. For years, the God of Ruin sent me to drain magic from lands, cities, realms, and bring it all back. He absorbed every drop of power his daughter collected and grew stronger. And still, he kept feeding on me.”

I trembled at the memory of my father sipping my essence and sucking the magic-rich marrow from my bones.

Every nerve burned as he pinned me down. I’d killed myself countless times to escape the living nightmare of being consumed alive, but he revived me every time. I wasn’t just anyone. I was a goddess, and I couldn’t die easily like a mortal or an immortal.

“I tried resisting his orders to destroy the lands and cities and bring blight to the mortal realm,” I continued. “But he put his command in my head and implanted dark spells in my cells. Even then I fought back, but he sucked me dry, leaving me a skeletal shell, then had the Shriekers drop me in rich, green lands. The hunger was terrible, and I couldn’t control it, so I siphoned the magic again, and the Shriekers brought me back to him in chains. When I displeased him, he’d make me sleep in the snake pits, covered in blood and gore.”

An enraged roar tore from the dragon, disrupting my story. Killian’s wrath burned with his dragon’s until I couldn’t see the end of their cold rage. I swallowed. This was hard for me, but I had to finish the story—I wouldn’t tell it again and relive the terror.

“I got smarter. I adapted,” I said. “At five, I started pretending to be an obedient daughter, eager to please my father, living for a crumb of his approval—like a kicked dog still crawling back to lick her master. He thought he’d broken me, that his will was finally mine, but I was biding my time. That motherfucker failed. He never broke me because of Sy. She was with me from the beginning. When my father ate me alive, she held me and took the pain into herself. We never cracked. Never broke.”

Sy sobbed.

The dragon had stopped roaring. His and Killian’s silence felt even more lethal.

“Gradually, Ruin stopped guarding me so tightly. Then one day, he didn’t send a big army with me. I drained the land but left a drop, used the collected magic to fuel my strength, and then slaughtered every Shrieker. I’ve been running ever since, until I came to your realm. But now he’s found me, and he’ll come for me soon.”

He’ll never have you! Killian vowed. Over my dead body will he get to you!

“Over my dead body too,” Tyson bellowed. “Let’s kill the god—or any gods for that matter.”

“The realm became a target because of me,” I said ruefully. “I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for, mate,” Tyson said.

Sooner or later, Ruin will find Mist of Cinder, the last magical realm, Killian said. I sent out my elite scouts after your arrival at the academy. My spy network has been working double time to trace Ruin’s movements. I’ve known of his rising for a while, though we had no solid news before.

“He’s regenerated and grown stronger every day.” I swallowed. “Last time, he hitched a ride in one of his Shrieker captains. Soon, he’ll knock on our door himself.”

“Let him come,” he said. “We’ll be ready.”

“We won’t be ready.” I sucked in a shaky breath. “But I’ll do whatever it takes to stop him, including giving my life for the realm, for the people here.”

“You’ll not sacrifice yourself! I forbid it,” Tyson growled. “I’ll toast the world should you not be in it.”

I widened my eyes. “You don’t mean it.”

We mean it, Killian said. Fuck the world if you aren’t in it. Call us villains, and I don’t give two shits. He took in a purposeful breath. To protect you, we need to kill Ruin first. We need all the help we can get. We’ll need the heirs too, and it’s time to tell them some secrets. We need to act fast. I wish I could spend eternity here with you, but we’ll need to return soon.

“ Time is of the essence, and we’ll kill the god ,” Tyson vowed as he dove through the clouds, leaving the snowy mountains behind.