Sawyer raised his head and looked at Draco’s face. “Why?”
“This is scary shit. We don’t know what we’re up against. Hell, Palinouros could be there for all we know. I don’t like us walking in blind.”
“We can find another—”
“No, we can’t,” Draco interrupted. “We have to find the final guardian. You said it yourself, that has to be our priority. The asshole has him, so we need to rescue him. Doesn’t mean I can’t be worried for my mates, though. Worried for you.”
“Ready,” Henry said.
Draco squeezed Sawyer one last time before taking his hand again. Sawyer’s raven returned and landed on his shoulder. Sawyer closed his eyes and breathed. It was truly a beautiful thing to see. “There are more of them than we anticipated.”
That’s exactly what Draco had been afraid of. But Sawyer’s eyes opened and there was knowledge there, something more that Draco couldn’t quite understand. It was like his dragon instincts, something innate that couldn’t be explained, but real nonetheless.
“Draco, I need a path cleared,” Sawyer said. “Eduard, can you get Andvari in right behind him?”
“Yes.”
“Saeward, you follow them with Henry. Henry, we’ll need cover pretty quickly.”
“On it,” Henry said.
“Loch and Dakota, with me.”
Draco nodded and those who needed to shift did so quickly. When Eduard and Saeward were in their shifted forms, Andvari and Henry climbed onto their backs.
“In and out fast,” Sawyer said.
Draco sucked in a breath and let his fire start to build.
“Go.”
And Draco flew at his command, arching up over the trees and throwing flame over the guards outside. He moved so quickly they hadn’t even seen him coming. Those who escaped him on the first pass were quickly skewered by Andvari’s sword. Saeward trampled another few while Henry began working his magic, using his thighs to hold onto Saeward’s back.
They were a sight to behold, but Draco didn’t have time to admire them more. As Andvari, Henry, Saeward, and Eduard made their way inside, Draco made sure the path for Dakota, Loch and Sawyer remained clear. He followed them into the house, and toward the hallway Henry described. Loch led the way, his sword out and deadly. Dakota kept Sawyer protectively behind him. Draco shifted back, unable to fit through the doorway in his dragon form. But he had the magical daggers Eduard had passed to him strapped to his wrists, and he unsheathed them before taking his position at the end of the hall.
The main room, where Henry had seen the bulk of the guards, was chaos. They weren’t well-trained though, even if they did have more powers than they should have. They definitely weren’t prepared for a vampire with Andvari’s skills. He’d taken down half of them before Draco even finished his shift. The other half were well on their way to death as he watched.
Henry took cover behind a decorative pillar. It wouldn’t provide a lot of protection for him, but Andvari had insisted that he not remain out in the open as he worked his magic. Saeward stood protectively in front of him, while Eduard blocked the path of any of the guards who tried to circle around Andvari.
In the end, it didn’t take more than a few minutes. They’d come in fast and hard, doing exactly as Andvari had described. Henry had a protective ward around the house, keeping any newcomers from surrounding them. But Draco didn’t sense anything else.
It was up to Dakota and Sawyer now. Draco glanced down the hall impatiently. They needed to get their asses in gear and hurry up. He wanted to get them the hell out of this place and get his mates safely home.
He should have known that it was too easy. Draco heard the shriek about the time Henry trembled and sank to his knees. “Guardians,” Draco barked. They all ran to his side and knelt around Henry, who was struggling to hold the shields in place.
“Wraiths,” Henry gasped out. “I’m not sure how many.”
“Iron works,” Andvari said. “You have to slice clean through them, though. All the way. Cut them in half. If it doesn’t go all the way through, it won’t work.”
“Fuck,” Draco said. His daggers weren’t going to do him a hell of a lot of good.
“Draco, stay here. Make sure nothing gets down that hallway. Give Dakota as much time as he can to get through the locks. Henry, stay with Draco. Hold the wards for as long as you can, okay?”
Henry nodded and Draco crouched down beside him. “Pull from me if you need it,” Draco said.
“But…”
“Don’t argue. Do it. I’m fine.”
