Page 31

Chapter 31

L ila

Fire erupts behind us, illuminating the night in a blaze that burns my retinas. I can’t tear my eyes away. Talon—magnificent, terrifying, beautiful—stands fully shifted against a wave of enemies, wings outstretched against the burning sky. His scales gleam like molten gold in the helicopter’s dying flames.

He already saved me once. Now he’s dying for me.

“Move!” Hargen yanks my arm so hard I nearly stumble. “He did this so you could save her. Don’t waste it.”

My feet move, but my heart stays behind, stretched between rooftops like a thread ready to snap. The distance grows with each step—my daughter ahead, the man who freed me behind.

A lifetime of impossible choices, and I’m still choosing.

Another explosion rocks the night. Talon’s roar shakes the very air, bestial and fierce. I feel it in my chest, reverberating through bone and blood.

“Lila, focus!” Hargen pulls me down as bullets rip into the concrete around us.

The Shard burns against my skin, its crimson light pulsing in sync with my hammering heart. With each step toward the warehouse where Elena waits, its glow intensifies, responding to the proximity of blood calling to blood.

Elena.

I feel her through the Shard’s power—her fear, sharp and metallic; her determination; her magic, untrained but potent, crackling like lightning beneath her skin. And something else—recognition.

She feels me too.

Mom? The word isn’t spoken aloud, but I hear it anyway, echoing through the connection between us.

“This way.” Hargen navigates us through a maze of ventilation units and rusted pipes. Blood streaks his temple from the crash, but he moves with precision.

We reach a service door just as three Circle operatives emerge onto the roof. I don’t hesitate. The Shard’s power flows through me, no longer the violation it was under Syndicate control, but an extension of my will. I fling my hand outward, and crimson energy slams into the men. They drop where they’re standing, faces frozen in shock.

“Well, that’s new,” Hargen mutters, wrenching open the door.

The stairwell beyond is dark, the air thick with dust and decay. We descend quickly, ears straining for sounds of pursuit above the thunder of our footsteps.

“One level down,” I gasp between breaths. “I can feel her.”

The Shard’s connection to Elena grows stronger with every step, her presence a beacon drawing me forward. Her emotions flood my awareness. She knows I’m coming. My baby knows I’m here.

Voices echo from below; shouts, the crack of gunfire, a woman’s command cutting through havoc. And beneath it all, a sound that stops the blood in my veins: the distinctive hiss of dragon fire, followed by screams.

We burst through a door into a cavernous warehouse space. The scene before us stops me cold.

Caleb stands in partial shift, scales rippling across his exposed torso, eyes blazing with inhuman fire. He moves with lethal grace, positioning himself between advancing Circle operatives and—

Elena.

My breath catches. My daughter. My beautiful, fierce daughter. She stands in the center of a protective circle, hands extended, eyes glowing with Rossewyn power. Each gesture sends bursts of red and gold energy toward her attackers, keeping them at bay through instinct and raw talent alone.

A Circle operative notices us, turning his weapon in our direction. Hargen fires first, the shot echoing through the warehouse. The man crumples.

The Shard pulses against my palm as I pull its power through me. I don’t fight it. I surrender to it completely. Crimson light explodes from my fingertips, catching three operatives mid-stride. They scream as the energy lifts them, suspending them in the air before hurling them against the far wall.

“Mom?” Elena’s voice breaks, her eyes wide with astonishment.

“Keep fighting!” I shout, advancing into the warehouse.

Hargen covers my flank, his shots precise and deadly. Caleb roars, unleashing a torrent of flame that incinerates two more attackers. Elena’s magic flares brighter at the sight of me, her hands steadier now as she directs blasts of energy toward the remaining operatives.

I feel the Shard’s ancient power singing through my veins—not draining me as it did before, but amplifying what was always mine. I reach deeper, drawing on all my suppressed rage. The warehouse trembles as crimson light erupts in a shockwave that knocks the remaining attackers off their feet.

Hargen finishes them with methodical efficiency. The last operative turns to flee, but Elena’s golden energy catches him, freezing him in place until Caleb delivers the final blow.

Silence falls. The warehouse floor is littered with bodies. Blood and ash mingle in the air.

It’s over.

For a heartbeat, nothing happens.

Then, Elena’s eyes find mine over the scattered bodies.

A lifetime of separation descends into a single moment of recognition.

Mother finding daughter.

“Mom!” The word falls from her lips, disbelief and hope tangled in a single syllable.

I can’t breathe. Frozen in place. Can’t think beyond the fact that my little girl stands before me, a woman grown, powerful and beautiful and alive .

Everything I gave up was worth it for this moment.

“Elena.” Her name breaks in my throat.

We move simultaneously, drawn together by forces stronger than what’s happening around us.

My arms wrap around her as we reach each other, and all the years of emptiness collapse into this single, perfect moment. She’s taller than I am now, solid and real in my embrace. Her heartbeat pounds against mine, her tears dampening my shoulder as she clings to me with desperate strength.

“You’re here,” she whispers, her voice breaking. “You’re really here.”

I can’t say anything. My throat closes around words I’ve rehearsed a million times. Instead, I hold her tighter, breathing in the scent of her hair, memorizing the feel of her in my arms. My beautiful daughter. My sacrifice. My everything.

We tremble together, neither willing to let go. Her fingers dig into my back as if afraid I’ll disappear. I stroke her hair and press my lips to her temple.

“I never lost hope,” I finally manage, voice raw with emotion. “Every day, every moment—”

Elena pulls back just enough to search my face, her eyes swimming with tears.

“Mom,” she says yet again, the word carrying a wealth of longing.

I lift my hand to her cheek, trembling, hesitant, disbelieving. Her skin is warm beneath my fingertips. Real. Real .

Oh God. Oh, my God…

“I knew you were alive,” she whispers, tears streaming down her face. “I always knew.”

I want to say something… anything… everything to explain the years I’ve been away. To tell her how I watched her grow through fragmented glimpses stolen from visions. How I survived only for this moment.

Instead, I press my forehead to hers, our tears mingling. “I’m so sorry. I never wanted to leave you.”

“I know.” Her fingers close around my wrist, anchoring me to her. “I’ve seen you. In dreams. In visions.”

“Visions?” I stare at her in wonder. “You can see. You have ‘the sight’ too?”

“Yes, Mom.” Her lips curl up tremulously. “I can see images sometimes, and I—”

A deafening roar shatters our reunion; a sound of agony that splits the night.

Talon .

The pain in it knifes through me, stealing my breath.

Elena’s eyes widen as she feels my reaction. She looks at my face, then toward the neighboring rooftop, where golden light flickers and fades.

“Your dragon. You were with him in my vision,” she says, understanding instantly. Not a question. She knows.

The anguish must show on my face—torn again between the two people I care about most in this world.

“He stayed back to hold them off,” I say, my voice choked. “So I could get to you.”

Elena’s expression shifts, determination replacing shock. “Then what are we standing around here for? Let’s go!”

She takes my hands in hers, and the contact sends power surging between us. The Shard responds, its crimson light wrapping around our joined fingers.

“I don’t understand,” I stammer, even as my magic rises to meet hers. “How—?”

“Blood calls to blood,” she says, repeating words I never had the chance to teach her. “Rossewyn witches stand together. I can feel what’s in your heart. And I can feel he has a place in it.”

Caleb appears beside us, scales gleaming beneath torn clothing, eyes assessing the magical current building between us.

“What can we do?” he asks, deferring to our power in a way no dragon has done in my lifetime.

Elena—my daughter, so much stronger than I ever dreamed—takes command with natural authority. “Clear us a path to the roof. Mom and I will handle the rest.”

The word Mom sucks the air from my lungs. She was just a child the last time I heard her say it.

Caleb nods, then whistles sharply. A second dragon—darker, leaner, eyes blazing—materializes from the shadows. Dorian. The twin. He inclines his head toward me, recognition in his gaze. He knows who I am.

The battle shifts with breathtaking speed. Caleb and Dorian move in perfect tandem, dragon-form and human intelligence in deadly harmony, clearing a path through the Circle operatives we encounter along the way.

Elena grips my hand tightly, our magic flowing back and forth between us. The Shard pulses against my chest, drawing power from our combined bloodline, magnifying it.

“This way,” Hargen directs, leading behind the Craven brothers.

We fight our way upward, through stairwells and across corridors. With each floor, Talon’s presence grows stronger in my awareness—his pain, his fading strength, his absolute refusal to yield.

“Faster,” I urge, terror clawing at my throat. Somehow, I can feel him weakening.

We burst onto the rooftop to a scene from nightmares. Talon’s magnificent dragon form lies broken and bleeding, golden scales streaked with crimson, wings torn and twisted. He’s shifted partially back to human, the transformation stuttering as his strength fails. Circle operatives close in for the kill, weapons raised.

“No!” The word tears from my throat as power erupts from the Shard.

Elena’s magic joins mine instinctively, her red-gold energy weaving through my crimson power. The combined force blasts outward in a wave that sends the Circle operatives flying backward, horribly contorted. Some burst into flames where they stand, screaming as they burn. Others slam into ventilation units, bones cracking on impact.

I race to Talon’s side, falling to my knees beside his broken body. His eyes flutter open—those beautiful green eyes that saw me as a person when everyone else saw a tool.

“You came back,” he whispers, voice raw with pain. “Did… did you find her?”

“Yes… Yes, I did. Thanks to you, Talon. I found her.” Tears stream down my face as I cradle his head. My fingers tremble against his blood-streaked skin as I try not to gag at what they’ve done to him.

His hand rises, unsteady but determined, to touch my face. “I need to tell you,” he gasps, each word clearly costing him. “Should have said it before…”

“Don’t,” I beg, knowing what deathbed confessions mean. “Save your strength.”

“I love you, Lila.” The words fall between us, heavy with truth and desperate with time running out. “From the moment I saw you.”

Something breaks open inside me—a dam of emotion I’ve held back for too long. The need I’ve suppressed. The longing. The fierce, impossible connection to this dragon who freed me in every way that matters.

“I know,” I whisper, leaning down to press my lips to his. “I’ve always known.”

Elena approaches, her face solemn as she studies the scene. Her power still glows around her hands, Rossewyn magic coursing through her veins.

“This is the dragon who brought you back to me,” she says simply, assessment in her eyes.

I nod, unable to form words.

“We can help him.” She kneels beside us, placing her hands on Talon’s chest. Understanding dawns, and I rest my hands over hers.

Our magic flows together, crimson and gold, channeled through the Shard. I feel his body responding—torn flesh knitting, broken bones realigning, the dragon within him stirring in response to our combined power.

But it’s not enough. The damage is too extensive, his life force fading too quickly. It’s not like with Hargen, who shared my blood, who wasn’t as far gone as this.

“I can’t hold him,” I gasp, feeling him slip away beneath our magic. “He’s dying, Elena. I need help.”

“The penthouse,” Dorian says urgently. “Juno’s there. She can help him.”

“Can he make it that far?” Hargen asks, doubt heavy in his voice.

Caleb and Dorian exchange a look of grim determination.

“We’ll get him there,” Dorian says, moving to Talon’s side.

Caleb steps back, shifting seamlessly into dragon form. His scales shimmer in the dim light, and Dorian follows suit, muscles rippling as he transforms beside us.

“Get on,” Dorian says, his voice a deep rumble.

“What?” Hargen stares in disbelief. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

“Now is not the time for this, Hargen,” I snap him out of it. “Help me get him up!”

With trembling hands, I help Hargen and Elena heft Talon’s dead weight onto the beast towering over us. Then I clamber up alongside him onto Dorian’s back, feeling the raw power beneath me.

“Now!” Caleb roars as Hargen and Elena take a seat between his giant wings.

They leap into the air together, wings unfurling against the night sky. The wind rushes past us, whipping through my hair as we soar above Seattle’s skyline. Below us, city lights twinkle like stars scattered across dark water.

“Just hold on,” I whisper to Talon as we fly faster than I ever thought possible. “We’re almost there,” I add as we circle in toward a gleaming high-rise apartment block of steel and glass.

His breath rattles in his chest and then comes to an abrupt stop.

No! No, no, no!

“Talon, please!” I beg, almost tempted to try to shake some life into him.

The penthouse balcony looms ahead, and the dragons angle down sharply. With a powerful beat of their wings, we land softly before the glass doors swing open. I clamber down, Hargen at my side, helping me ease Talon’s lifeless body to the ground. He sags between us, unconscious… dead? I can’t bring myself to think it.

A woman stands in the open doorway, pale eyes wide with alarm as she takes in our bloodied appearance.

“Dear God, Dorian!” she chokes out, rushing over to where the dragon has shifted into human form behind me. “You swore you’d never go off without me again, dammit!”

“Explanations later, Juno,” Elena calls. “We need your help.”

The phoenix.

She’s smaller than the visions I’ve had, with delicate features that belie the power I sense radiating from her. She assesses the situation instantly, focusing on Talon’s broken body.

“I… I think he… he’s dead.” I don’t want to say the words out loud, but they come out anyway.

“We’ll see about that,” Juno says firmly. “Death happens to be my specialty. Guest bedroom,” she commands, already moving ahead of us.

They lay Talon on a massive bed, his blood immediately soaking into expensive sheets. Juno doesn’t seem to care, her hands hovering above his chest as she takes in his injuries.

“Everyone out,” she orders, golden light beginning to glow beneath her skin. “Except you.” She nods to me. “He’ll need an anchor. Someone he has a connection with.”

The others file out, Elena squeezing my hand before releasing it. “I’ll be right outside,” she promises.

As the door closes, I take Talon’s hand in mine. His skin is cool, no pulse beneath my fingertips.

“Don’t you dare die,” I whisper fiercely. “Not now. Not when I’ve just found you.”

Juno works in silence, her hands moving with precise grace over Talon’s broken body. Phoenix fire flows from her fingertips, golden light that sinks beneath his skin, seeking injuries, mending them from the inside out.

And then it happens: he sucks in a gasping breath. His back arches as the magic takes hold, a groan escaping through clenched teeth.

“Hold him,” Juno instructs, her voice strained with effort. “He needs your connection.”

I hold his head in my lap, one hand pressed against his chest, where his heart suddenly beats erratically beneath my palm. The Shard pulses in rhythm with my own heartbeat, its crimson light mingling with Juno’s golden fire.

“Fight,” I tell him. “Stay with me, Talon.”

His eyes flutter open, finding mine through a haze of pain. “Lila,” he whispers, my name broken on his lips.

“I’m here.” Tears trickle down my face, falling onto his.

Juno works steadily, sweat beading on her forehead as phoenix fire continues to flow from her hands into Talon’s body. Minutes stretch into what feels like hours. His breathing gradually steadies, his skin warming beneath my touch.

Finally, Juno sits back on her heels. “I’ve done what I can,” she says, exhaustion evident in her voice. “The rest is up to him.”

“Will he live?” I can barely force the question out.

She nods. “Dragons are resilient. And he has something to live for.” Her eyes meet mine, knowing and sympathetic. “Stay with him. Your connection is part of the healing.”

As Juno leaves, I stretch out beside Talon, careful not to disturb his wounds. His breathing is deeper now, more regular. Color returns slowly to his face.

“I love you,” he murmurs, voice stronger than before.

“I love you, too,” I say, and though I still don’t understand how, I mean it with every fiber of my being.

He drifts into healing sleep, his hand still clasped in mine. I watch the steady rise and fall of his chest, relief washing through me in waves. The Shard’s light dims to a soft glow against my skin, as if it, too, can finally rest.

A soft knock at the door draws my attention. Elena peers in, her face tense with worry. “Is he…?”

“He’ll live,” I assure her.

She enters, approaching the bed cautiously. “Juno says he’s stable.”

The sight of her standing there hits me anew. So many years lost. So much time I can never reclaim.

“Come here,” I say, extending my free hand to her.

She sits on the edge of the bed, taking my offered hand. Her eyes study Talon’s sleeping face, assessing him in that direct way that reminds me so much of myself.

“I’m glad we could save him,” Elena says simply, squeezing my hand.

Caleb appears in the doorway, his expression a storm of relief and lingering annoyance.

“Elena,” he says, his voice tight with control. “A word.”

She sighs, releasing my hand. “Here it comes,” she murmurs to me.

In the doorway, Caleb’s composure finally breaks. “What were you thinking?” he demands, keeping his voice low but intense. “Running off without waiting for backup? You could have been killed!”

“I had a vision,” Elena responds, chin lifting in defiance. “I saw her there. Felt her, Caleb. My mother. After all this time, I couldn’t wait.”

“You put yourself in unnecessary danger—”

“It wasn’t unnecessary to me.” Her voice cracks with emotion. “All that time, Caleb. Of not knowing if she was alive or dead. Of wondering why she left me. When I felt her through our connection…” She swallows hard. “I couldn’t stop myself. I had to find her.”

The anger drains from his face, replaced by understanding. He pulls her into his arms, holding her tightly.

“I know,” he murmurs against her hair. “But next time, we go together. That’s what mates do.”

My heart swells at the word. Mates. My daughter has found her other half in a dragon. The irony isn’t lost on me as I glance down at Talon’s sleeping face.

Like mother, like daughter.

They move away from the doorway, their conversation continuing in hushed tones. I return my attention to Talon, brushing a strand of tawny hair from his forehead. His features are relaxed in sleep, the lines of pain and worry smoothed away.

“We have so much to talk about,” I whisper to Elena when she returns to my side.

She nods, her eyes never leaving my face. “Everything. But first, save your dragon.”

The simple phrase— your dragon —sends warmth blooming through my chest. She understands, this daughter I hardly know. Understands what Talon means to me, what I feel for him, what I’ve been through.

She settles into a chair beside the bed, reaching for my hand again. The contact sends a current of Rossewyn power between us, comforting and familiar though we’ve been apart for most of her life.

Outside the windows, night blankets the city. In the distance, smoke still rises from the warehouse district—evidence of a battle that nearly cost us everything. But here, in this moment, I have everything I thought I’d lost forever.

My daughter returned to me. My dragon is fighting to stay with me. And I finally allow myself to embrace something I’d forgotten existed:

Hope.

Elena squeezes my hand as if she can read my thoughts. “No more sacrifices,” she says softly.

“No more sacrifices,” I agree, though we both know it’s likely a promise we can’t keep. There’s still a war ahead of us, but it’s not one I’m afraid of, somehow.

Talon stirs in his sleep, his fingers tightening around mine. Even unconscious, he reaches for me. Claims me. And for the first time, I don’t flinch from possession.

Yours , I silently answer. And you are mine.