Page 22

Chapter

Eleven

Emmerich

P rotect my mate, protect my mate, protect my mate. I had to do everything in my power to protect my mate from…my mate?

I skidded to a stop within a few inches of Rumi, the omega I’d felt compelled to strangle in order to protect my mate just seconds before.

But the scent of honey and lavender filled my nose.

My insides jumped and shivered as the heavy, cold cord I’d been ignoring within me buzzed with life, like a river blocked by a dam that was about to break.

My heart beat faster as I studied the alarmed face of the omega in front of me instead of turning to ask for orders from the one behind me.

But underneath that all, at the edges of the confusion and turmoil, the tiniest voice called to me. It wasn’t even a voice, it was a feeling, an emotion. It was pure, innocent love crying out, “Daddy! ”

I breathed in again, surrounding myself inside and out with that honey-lavender scent. It was so far superior to the sickly sweet cherry cordial scent behind me that I took a step closer to Rumi.

“Emmerich?” Rumi asked, his voice shaking but strong. He slowly forced himself to stand straight and square his shoulders. “Emmerich, it’s me. It’s Rumi. I’m right here.”

“Rumi,” I repeated the name, then blinked.

“Don’t listen to him!” my mate shouted behind me, rushing forward. “He’s an evil sorcerer who is trying to keep us apart. Kill him!”

I raised my arms, but they felt like heavy weights. I dropped them again and glanced over my shoulder to frown at Nazeing. My mate’s face was contorted with hatred and rage…and suddenly, an old memory leapt to my mind.

It was hundreds of years ago. Things between me and Nazeing had ended hundreds of years ago.

I’d met Nazeing at the Magical Academy. He was a student and I’d been asked to give a guest lecture on governance.

He’d taken an immediate interest in me, and as a young, virile dragon, when he’d gone into heat, I couldn’t help myself.

Young Nazeing had been exciting and sensual, but beyond the bedroom, I’d quickly learned that he had a mean streak. He didn’t care about people except when they could advance his ambition. I’d witness him being cruel to others. Then I’d discovered that he was secretly studying black magic.

That had been the end of things for me, but Nazeing had continued to pursue me for years. He’d pleaded with me and told him no alpha would be good enough for him after me. I was the governor of the magical world and he wanted me .

He’d wanted my power and influence. I’d withheld it, and after a few more decades, I thought he’d given up.

I’d gone on with my life, doing Mother’s work and governing the magical world fairly and justly.

And then, in a surprise moment while I was investigating King Freslik and the cruel world, I’d met my fated mate.

My fated mate.

I sucked in a breath and whipped to face Rumi. He was so beautiful and smelled so good. And he was carrying my egg, our egg. I could see now how much his belly had grown. It was noticeably different than just hours before.

My mate was with egg, and we needed to birth it as soon as possible, before it was too late.

I had to protect my mate.

“Rumi!” I gasped. The strength with which our bond flooded with life and love again had me staggering as I stepped toward him to take him into my arms. “Thank Goddess you’re safe!”

Rumi let out a strangled sound of relief and joy as he fell into my arms and hugged me for all he was worth. “I knew you could beat the spell.”

“No!” Nazeing shouted, throwing out a hand to me. “He’s mine! He will be my mate! I’m the one who loves him.”

I felt Nazeing’s magic hit my back, but instead of seeping into me and causing me to think and feel whatever he wanted me to, it bounced off as if deflected by a shield.

I pivoted with Rumi still in my arms to face Nazeing. The wicked omega’s face was contorted with rage, but that rage fell into confusion, then anger as he shook his hand out then tried to throw another spell at me.

Again, it was as if his magic hit an invisible wall that surrounded me .

“No!” Nazeing shouted, louder and with more fear this time. “You should be bending to my will. You should bow before me.”

I was just as confused as Nazeing. Very few things could stop a sorcerer as dark and powerful as he had become.

“This is harder than it looks,” Leo’s voice sounded from somewhere behind where Rumi and I stood.

Rumi and I both turned to find the five other omega princes standing in a half-circle, their hands joined together in front of them. They all wore looks of intense concentration, and a sort of pale white light surrounded them.

Suddenly, I became aware of everything else in the room.

Nazeing’s spell had blinded me to everything else but him, but now I saw and heard the impossible battle that rang through the Great Hall.

The soldiers that Nazeing had put to sleep were awake now and fighting what looked like a portion of Osric’s army.

Osric was right there in the middle of the fight, swinging his sword and doing his best to attack and defend as needed.

Somehow, while I’d been under Nazeing’s spell, my amazing mate and his brothers had brought the war into the heart of the castle. But even more surprising was the cloud of magic that surrounded the omega princes. It was magic they’d created.

“Of course,” I gusted out as a dozen pieces of the puzzle that had brought me to the cruel world, connected me to my fated mate, and entwined my brothers and their mates fit into place.

The reasons we had all come together and the connections between this particular world and the magical world were so much more extensive than even I had seen before, but the fact that my mate and his brothers had some sort of magic was suddenly as obvious as the love I felt for Rumi.

It was a stunning realization, but I didn’t have time to dwell on it.

“Attack them!” Nazeing shouted, pointing at the omega princes.

I wasn’t certain who he was shouting at until two of the suits of armor that had stood inanimate at the edges of the room lurched toward the princes, raising their swords.

“I won’t let you harm them,” Rumi said, breaking away from me and rushing to his brothers.

As soon as he joined hands with them, the light that surrounded the omega princes increased tenfold.

I could feel the intensity of the power the six of them wielded together.

But I could also tell that they were untrained and had no idea what to do with that power.

It formed a shield around them so that when the suits of armor attacked, their sword blows bounced off an invisible barrier, but that was the best they could manage.

I turned back to Nazeing, who danced frantically from one foot to another, shaking his arms like he was attempting to build up his magic. “This isn’t happening,” he growled, glaring at the princes. “I am the most powerful omega in the universe. No one can challenge my power.”

“Your power is false and fleeting,” I told Nazeing, filled with the calm of confidence. “You would do best to surrender now and appeal to Queen Gaia for mercy rather than continue this futile battle.”

“It is not futile!” Nazeing insisted. “I have captured this world and am now its king, and I will soon conquer the magical world and every other world as well!”

“You’ve what?”

The almost comically indignant question came from King Freslik himself, who had awaken from whatever slumber Nazeing had ordered him into.

Freslik stumbled forward as if still groggy, glaring at Nazeing as he did.

Whether he was fully aware of the battle in the Great Hall or not, he ignored it and marched straight up to Nazeing.

“Go back to sleep, old man,” Nazeing snapped at him.

“Old man?” Freslik shouted incredulously. “I am a king! I am the king. Neither you nor anyone else will ever replace me.”

“You are a worm,” Nazeing spit at him. “You aren’t worthy of my attention.”

Nazeing threw out a hand as if pushing Freslik aside, but Freslik didn’t budge. Nazeing did a double-take and turned back to the furious man, throwing an arm out at him and trying again to dismiss him with magic. Once again, whatever spell he’d cast had no effect.

With a shock, I suddenly realized why. The protective spell that the omega princes were concentrating so hard on extended to their father as well.

Their father, who was as evil as a man could be, who had made their lives miserable and would have hurt them even more if Argus hadn’t restrained him.

The princes could have used their magic to snap the man in half, but instead, some shred of compassion had compelled them to shield their father from Nazeing’s magic.

“No!” Nazeing shouted furiously, whipping away from Freslik to find the source of interference. His gaze landed immediately on the omega princes and he roared at them. “I will not have the victory and the power that is rightfully mine stolen by a group of useless whelps!”

Nazeing surged toward the omegas. Several things happened at once. I launched into action, determined to block Nazeing’s path. I wasn’t the only one who moved, though. Freslik lunged at Nazeing as well, drawing a long dagger with a serrated blade from the folds of his robe.

“This is my kingdom!” Freslik growled. “Mine!”

Nazeing had turned his back on Freslik in his efforts to attack the omega princes. He was an easy target for Freslik, who raised his hand and drove the dagger hard into Nazeing’s back.

For a sorcerer like Nazeing, the blow should have been simple to deflect and he should have been able to heal the wound as quickly as it had been made. Instead, Nazeing screamed in pain and fury, throwing his arms wide and his head back as if he’d been struck by lightning.