Kovacs got one good hit to Lachlan's face, busting his lip, before Lachlan's training kicked in, and he struck the brute off and rolled to his feet. He pulled his throwing daggers free from the bandolier over his chest and sent them flying.
Kovacs laughed and shifted out of their way with unnatural speed before rushing him again. Lachlan blocked the assault, slipped to one side, and drove one of the tiny daggers into Kovacs's back. It hit body armor, and Lachlan swore.
"You're the one who stole my dragon," Kovacs said as he began to circle him. "I had so many plans for him."
"Apollo belongs to no one but himself, you ugly fuck," Lachlan snarled and spat a mouthful of blood onto the grass. He pulled a long black hunting knife free. He was going to need something stronger to get through that armor.
"You can't protect him," Kovacs mocked, still circling and forcing Lachlan to do the same to ensure that his back wasn't to him. "You're just a human. Not worth a dragon's time."
Kovacs rushed him and at the last second dodged past Lachlan and slid along the grass to his right.
"Are we going to fight or not?" Lachlan snarled.
"No need. I have what I wanted," Kovacs lifted his palm from the grass, and it shone red...with the blood Lachlan had spat out.
"Fuck."
Lachlan raced toward him, but Kovacs was already casting a spell. Lachlan's legs stopped working, and he crashed hard to his knees.
Kovacs laughed. "You really are a damn fool. Now, lift that blade up for me."
The dagger in Lachlan's hand shook. Valentine's medal in his pocket burned hot. Where was Val?
"You have some resistance but not enough," Kovacs said and used Lachlan's blood to draw a sigil on the back of his hand. Lachlan's own burned and throbbed as Kovacs took control of it. "Ah, that's better."
Lachlan lifted the blade to his own cheek and cut a line in it. He gritted his teeth against the pain and fought against the knife. It shook again, but it wasn't enough.
"Not so pretty now, are you? My dragon deserves pretty things," Kovacs mocked. "Now, I think I'll make you cut your own throat."
He raised his bloody hand to send the command when a blood-chilling roar shook the sky. Lachlan was frozen and unable to glance up. He was still looking at Kovacs as a clawed golden paw landed on him and crushed him like a bug.
Lachlan gasped and fell forward as the magic snapped. Something big and scaled nudged him, and he stared up into the eyes of a large golden dragon.
He let out a short laugh. "Hey, baby, you really are my golden boy."
34
The dragon that was Apollo snuffled him curiously before a large tongue licked Lachlan from his knees to his forehead.
"Oh my god, why would you do that?" Lachlan said and wiped dragon slobber and blood from his face.
"Mate," growled the dragon.
Lachlan stumbled back from him. "What? What do you mean by that?"
But the dragon wasn't listening. It launched itself into the air again, landed on the roof of the house, and started tearing into it.
Tor and Ciara ran to get out of the way of the falling masonry. Apollo was after something, and he wasn't going to stop until he found it. Valentine appeared through a hole he had made in the wall. He was grinning like a mad thing, his face flecked with blood. Behind him, tied with scarlet and silver thread, cametwo people.
"Bellerose and Mercurie," Lachlan snarled and picked up his fallen dagger.
"Look at that. He did turn out gold," Valentine said. He was cheerier than Lachlan had ever seen him and didn't know if it was a good thing or not.
"I don't know how, but he shifted and saved me from Kovacs," Lachlan said, unable to tear his eyes away from the rampaging dragon.
Valentine stared up at his brother. "My guess is he probably saw you fighting him, and he lost it. Suppose we won't find out until he shifts back." He put two fingers to his lips and whistled loud enough to have Lachlan flinching. "Apollo! I got what you want!"
The dragon's head snapped round to them, eyes burning with fury. Lachlan's insides clenched as his monkey brain told him to run quickly in the opposite direction. He stood his ground. He would never run from Apollo.
