“When did you learn this?” I asked, grabbing his arm again. This time James didn’t flinch away. He just looked sad.
“When you and Halo were unconscious,” he mumbled. “Those two dragons were talking about it. The weaselly one - Silas, I think - he was all excited, sucking up to the other guy. With the way he acted, you’d think he was in love with him or something.”
“This is bad,” I said, pinching the bridge of my nose hard. “We need to save Halo, but how? What can I do?” I groaned, feeling hopeless. “I’m sostupid! How did I let him get caught in this?”
“It’s not your fault, Kassius,” James insisted. “Nobody could have figured out things would happen this way.”
Everything seemed so futile. James was right when he said I was an alpha dragon - if anyone had the strength to stand up to Zenon, it should have been me. But instead, I ran and left my possibly pregnant omega mate alone. What good was I? The familiar cold darkness of depression crept up my spine, threatening to overtake me.
“Hey. Stop that,” James urged, shaking my shoulder. “Don’t let yourself fall into a spiral, okay? Halo needs you.”
“I’m just one man,” I mumbled, “what can I do? If I fight Zenon alone, I’ll be killed, and my mate and children will be left behind.”
“Who said anything about fighting alone?” James snapped.
For an omega, he was pretty fierce. In this moment he reminded me a lot of Halo. My heart ached.
James grunted. “Get up. You don’t have to do this alone. I’ll help you.”
My brows raised. “You will?”
He nodded firmly. “Yeah. You guys saved me. Least I can do is return the favor.”
I felt a rush of friendly affection for the fox shifter. “James… Thank you.”
James groaned but he was blushing in embarrassment. “Come on. No time for all that mushy crap. We have to save Halo.”
“I know. But where are we going?”
“We’ll start with my skulk. I know they’re not the bravest bunch in the world, but they also owe Halo a big favor.” James shot me a meaningful smile. “Especially since he’s the Golden Dragon.”
“Ah… So you figured that out, huh?” I asked.
James shrugged. “Kind of hard not to since he’s locked up in a cage for being so special. And y’know, seeing him shifted into a golden dragon form kinda helped.”
“Right.” I sighed. “Well, now you know the truth. Halo Fire-Eater is in grave danger.”
“And we’re going to be the ones to save him,” James added.
Determination flashed across James’s eyes, and I’d never been so grateful for a friend. I thanked the gods for his help, but Halo wasn’t safe just yet. And if we didn’t save him soon…
Well, I didn’t want to think about that.
