Ilith roared in the amalgam’s face, digging her claws deeper into his chest. Rath appeared from the side. His paw flashed, ripping off the amalgam’s head. He gobbled it down in the next second.
Ilith shredded the amalgam’s torso, not giving it time to break apart. Finished with his treat, Rath tore into the other end of the amalgam with a single-minded fury that would have terrified Ilith’s bonded at the beginning of their relationship.
Lost in her blood lust, Ilith paid no attention to the concerns of her bonded as she ripped pieces of flesh off the amalgam and swallowed them. The hot splash of blood whetting her appetite.
If Tate chastised her, Ilith couldn’t hear as she reared, sending flame licking over the amalgam’s carcass. Rath warbled and pounced on one tongue of fire, catching it in his paws and breathing on it with his own fire.
The two blazes danced together as the shrieks of the amalgam gradually died and the smell of burned flesh overtook the amalgam’s stench.
Ilith bared her teeth in satisfaction. The sound of the amalgam’s death throws was a welcome symphony.
Rath prowled toward her, rubbing his side against hers. He nudged her head with his, sliding his jaw over the top of hers.
Ilith objected, batting him away. Cocky dragon, trying to establish dominance on Ilith. Rath settled on his haunches, showcasing a satisfied look as he gave her a bloody grin that managed to be goofy and terrifying at the same time. Perhaps it had something to do with the impressive row of teeth.
Ilith snorted and looked away.
Mate,Rath thought at her. He extended his neck, blowing softly into her nostrils, letting her catch his scent.
She set a paw on him and nudged him away. Males could be so needy.
It’s not over. He likely left several pieces of him outside the main body.
His chuckle reverberated in her mind.Alright, mate.
The distortion spat out several bodies, Dewdrop and Willa among the men and women wearing clothes with the image of a dragon curled around a shiny blue stone.
Ilith harrumphed at those wearing the fake stone. Liars. All of them. The last time she’d tried to pry one of them off a person’s chest, there had been so much blubbering. All she got in the end was a few scraps of cloth. Disappointing in the extreme.
How did Willa get here?Tate asked, sounding distracted.
Ilith ignored her as a man strode out from their center, glancing once in the direction of the two leggers and the shiny man before taking in the rest of the scene. The still burning amalgam, Ilith and Rath in their dragon forms.
His face tightened and his hand opened and closed. Metal crawled over his body as a whip made of blue light extended from his hand.
Ilith watched it all in fascination, her head cocking.
Roslyn’s father,Tate whispered.
Tasty?
No!
Ilith chuckled to herself. Sometimes antagonizing her Savior was just as fun as a good battle. The man Ilith had heard Tate refer to as the Duke of Spiritly was much too vexing of an opponent to fight. That armor would make eating him difficult. Not impossible, but Ilith didn’t want to have to throw up the metal pieces later.
“Are you kidding me?” Dewdrop cried, looking around him with a growing fury.
Uh oh,Tate muttered as Ilith looked up at the sky. Anywhere but at the young man who nearly vibrated in place from anger.
The Veles cub nudged a piece of the dead amalgam, seeming impressed at Ilith’s hunting prowess. As well she should be.
“Tate!” There was a growl in the word Ilith would have been impressed with if he hadn’t gotten her name wrong.
Not Tate,Ilith thought at him reproachfully.
There was a sigh in her mind.He knows that.
Ilith wasn’t entirely convinced. Two legger brains were pitifully small. Who knows how much information was lost every day?
