“You will never need to fight or defend yourself again.” Ryker stated, “You have mates. You have me.”
Nix’s face soured. What if she still, even though she had mates, managed to get captured in this new life? The only thing changed so far in this timeline was that she stopped taking the cygnus illusion potion—and somehow, Persius and Elle were together.
Nix was stronger due to the lack of Evernell poison in her system, but she was still not as strong as the other alphas. She did not have an arsenal of combat knowledge she could depend on or extensive experience in potion-making to protect herself.
She was still vulnerable.
She hated that.
Ryker examined her quietly and took his time with each word as he asked, “Why do you wish to learn how to fight?”
“I didn’t enroll in combat class to run miles around the track.”
“Do you fear someone?” Ryker asked in a low growl.
Fear? It was too small a word. Fear. Only four letters for something so crippling?
“My special little birdie.” Her captor’s voice floated through her head, and she stiffened. Her heartbeat quickened from the memory alone. “You bleed so prettily. I could watch you cry for hours.”
“Who do you fear?” Ryker asked darkly. The rumbling in his chest reminded her of a small earthquake.
Nix blinked and refocused, noticing Ryker’s golden eyes narrowing into dragon slits. “Uh, no one. Forget it.”
“No one will ever hurt you,” Ryker promised her, touching her hand.
But it wasn’t true. Unless Nix successfully changed her future. “You don’t know that,” she muttered grimly.
“I won’t let them,” he growled.
“And what if I’m taken suddenly? I just disappear into the night, never to be heard from again—”
Ryker grabbed her arms and snarled at her, “Donotsay such things.”
“Why not? You said students are disappearing from the academy—”
“I havelost enough already,” he bellowed. His chest rose and fell with shaken breaths as he tried to calm himself.
The idea of her disappearing left him…hauntingly shaken. His fingers were sure to leave indents from where he clutched her upper arms. But…Nix liked it.He really does worry about my safety.
“I—I’m sorry, I just…”
Nostrils flaring, Ryker admitted solemnly, “My mother was taken. When I was nine.”
“Taken,” Nix repeated, feeling suddenly numb. “W-Why?”
Ryker painfully scowled at Nix’s chin, as if he could not meet her gaze, as he replied hoarsely, “Rare.”
“That is why female dragons are so rare?” Nix asked.
Ryker glared at the truth she hinted at. “They are…hunted. By enemies. And by rogue, lonely dragons.”
Thatmade Nix blink in confusion. “Dragons hunt other dragons?”
“Like any, there are some who…make wrong choices.” Ryker stared off into space, looking over her shoulder at nothing in particular. “As the females disappear, the males…lose themselves. Lonely alphas are very dangerous creatures.”
“You don’t mean that they…” Nix shook her head, her brows furrowing. “With the females going missing, and when you say ‘lonely’ leading to ‘dangerous,’ you don’t mean—”
“Some alphas feel…entitled to whatever they want.” Ryker’s expression tightened into one of disgust as he said, “No matter if what they want requires force.”
