Tyne grinned at the satisfaction of knowing Carlyle was hurt.There was blood seeping through Carlyle’s white shirt, a sure sign that he hadn’t been able to heal himself.He’d no doubt tried, but Emory had explained that Carlyle had never been good at healing spells, and it looked like it was true.Tyne was sure that if Carlyle had a choice, he wouldn’t have faced them in this condition.
But he didn’t have a choice.They hadn’t given him one.
Emory swiped his tail forward, hitting Carlyle in the legs.Carlyle dropped down, falling on his wounded arm, and screamed.He tried to push himself up, but Emory slammed a paw on top of him and pushed him back down, causing him to scream again.
Tyne winced.He wanted Carlyle to pay, but did he really have to be so loud?
“Please,” Carlyle said with a gasp.“Don’t do this.”
Tyne wasn’t surprised when Emory paused.He’d looked like he’d been about to squash Carlyle to death, but instead, he pulled his paw away.He didn’t shift back, but he stared at Carlyle, who was sprawled in the dirt in front of him.
Tyne remembered Carlyle back in the day.He’d always been a bit prissy, dressing well and never wanting to get dirty, which, as mages, wasn’t always easy.Some of the ingredients they worked with were messy, but he remembered meeting Carlyle a few times before Carlyle took a dive off the deep end, and he’d always been dressed impeccably.Tyne had even wondered if he’d come up with a spell that kept his clothes clean.
If he had, that spell wasn’t working now.Carlyle’s white shirt was bloody, and there were stripes of dirt decorating the front of it.Tyne was pretty sure he could see the imprint of Emory’s paw.For some reason, the sight made him want to laugh, and he bit on his lower lip and leaned closer to Meyer.He needed to be distracted, and thankfully, Meyer was the best distraction he could think of.
Meyer rumbled and pressed his body back against Tyne’s.Tyne had never felt so safe and protected, not even with Peyton.
He and Peyton had loved each other, but it hadn’t been an adult love.Everyone had pushed them to complete the bond when they were little more than teenagers, and of course they’d agreed because they’d thought they’d be together forever.Back then, it had made sense to them, but when Tyne thought about it now, he realized it had been a mistake—a mistake people who knew better should have stopped them from doing.They’d linked their lives together when they were eighteen, and that had been the beginning of the end for them.
Tyne had mourned Peyton when he’d vanished, but now, he thought it had been the best thing that could have happened to both of them.He was sure Peyton would disagree if he were still with them, but he was dead.He was never coming back, and he’d left Meyer in his place.
Both Tyne and Meyer were adults.What they shared was complicated, but if there was one thing Tyne was sure of, it was that Meyer would never be cruel.He would never leave him for Amber.
He would never leave him, period.
“You remember what we shared,” Carlyle said when Emory didn’t give any signs that he was about to shift back.“And I know I hurt you.I’ve been thinking about it since I got free, and about you.I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forgive myself for what I did, and I understand why you can’t, but please.You have to realize that killing me isn’t going to help.”
Tyne wrinkled his nose.He wasn’t surprised that Carlyle was begging for his life or that Emory had stopped to listen to him.He didn’t know what he’d do if he were in Emory’s place.He wanted to think that he’d focus on everything Carlyle had done and wouldn’t soften toward him, but could he?He didn’t know what he’d be willing to do for Meyer.Hell, he’d done things he’d never thought he would do for Meyer.
When he and the other mages had first found Meyer and Bennett, Tyne had convinced himself that he would never open up to his shield.He’d told himself that once this mess with Carlyle was over, he’d break the bond between them and send Meyer on his way.He’d been angry, even though he’d known that Meyer had nothing to do with what had happened in their past.
But Meyer had managed to break down Tyne’s walls.Tyne still wasn’t entirely sure how it had happened, but now, he knew the truth.He would never be able to let Meyer go, even though part of him wondered if it wouldn’t be for the best.His heart was still bruised over what had happened with Peyton, and putting it out there was terrifying, but Tyne didn’t have a choice.He was already falling for Meyer, and spending more time with him would only make that worse.
“I promise I’ll change,” Carlyle continued.“I’ll stay away from you if that’s what you want.Hell, you can ask your friends to trap me again.Just, please.Don’t kill me.Don’t kill your mage.”
Carlyle had been reaching for Emory.Tyne wasn’t sure that Emory had noticed it with how focused he was on Carlyle’s face, but he knew he was wrong when Carlyle’s hand started glowing, and Emory reacted instantly.
The spell didn’t even leave Carlyle’s hand.Emory struck, catching Carlyle’s throat with his fangs.Carlyle made a strangled sound, and the spell fell to the ground, its glow slowly fading.
Just like Carlyle’s life.
Carlyle’s body dropped into the dirt.He was pressing a hand against his throat, but Tyne could see the blood.Nothing Carlyle could do would stop it from seeping out of him, taking Carlyle’s life with it.
Emory stood there, staring at Carlyle.It was almost as if he couldn’t quite believe what he’d done.Tyne felt the same way.He’d been sure that Emory would leave this to someone else.Tyne would have happily killed Carlyle for Emory, but he wouldn’t have to.
Emory had gotten his revenge.
* * * *
CARLYLE WAS DEAD.MEYERcould see it, but part of him wanted to be completely sure.The only way to do that would be to move closer, but Meyer couldn’t do that without Tyne.He wasn’t leaving his mage behind.
Thankfully, he knew Tyne well enough by now to be sure that he, too, wanted to check in on Carlyle and Emory.Meyer waited for a moment, smiling when Tyne took a step forward as he’d expected.
That seemed to be the sign everyone needed.The mages and their dragons surged forward.Some of them headed toward Carlyle, while others went to Emory.Meyer wasn’t surprised to see that Penley was the first one to reach the dragon.He’d want to make sure that Emory was okay, and out of all of them, he was the one with the softest heart.He shouldn’t have to deal with Carlyle’s body.
None of them should.Unfortunately, they had some cleanup to do, and it included taking care of two bodies.
Meyer shifted back to his human form.He didn’t know what kind of fighter he’d been when he was Peyton, but the fighter he was now was having a hard time stomaching the scene in front of him.Carlyle’s body was slumped in the dirt.He still had a hand around his throat, but it hadn’t been enough.He was lying in a puddle of blood he hadn’t been able to stop from leaving his body.
