Another shot rang out and that time it came close to Bennett’s arm. The snow moved around the bullet, flying up and then back down again. Fuck, the vampire was a good shot.
“God damn it! I’m telling you, Ladon is on his way on foot. There is no road access back to this cabin anymore. You’re going to fucking hit him or my other brother with a stray bullet.”
“You’re lying! He’s a dragon shifter. He can just fly.”
“I haven’t had my first shift yet,” Ladon said from behind them. “That’s why I can’t just fly here.”
“Come into the house, Ladon.” Magnus’ tone softened.
“Oh god, I really want to do what he says, Vaughan.”
“If he goes, I’m coming with him!” Vaughan yelled out, and that was when Bennett stood. Garridan stood with him.
“We all go in,” Garridan said and held up his hands. He started walking to the cabin.
“Stay right where you are,” Magnus said and Garridan heard the gun cock. “Only Ladon.”
“It’s not going to happen. He can’t mate with you.” Garridan took a step closer.
“You’re mated to a snake. What gives you a right to be a prejudiced ass?”
“Ladon cannot mate with you. It would hurt him physically if he did.”
“That’s a lie.”
Garridan turned and waved for Ladon to come forward. Ladon did and stood beside him. “Ladon, tell him what you smell.”
Ladon rolled his eyes. “A forest. I don’t know. Nothing weird.”
Garridan turned back to the house. “He can’t smell you, Magnus. He won’t be able to until he has his first shift. If he mates with you now than he might not ever be able to shift and that would hurt his dragon. It would drive him crazy.”
“Gods, maybe I should just mate with him. It’s gonna fucking hurt to shift anyway, right? And what if I have fire like Bennett and burn Saint Lakes to the ground.”
“Also, something Bennett just about did,” Vaughan whispered from somewhere behind him.
“Please, Magnus. Give me my friend back. He’s very important to me and he’s been hurt by your coven so severely that this experience will traumatize him even more.” Ladon took a step toward the house.
Garridan saw the gun disappear from the broken window and then the front door opened.
Magnus stepped out onto the small wooden porch. “I’m not going to hurt him.”
Ladon smiled. “I know. It’s just that of all the shifters you could have taken, Sage was the worst choice.”
Magnus shook his head. “He was the only choice. I couldn’t take the witch. Your Alpha would have killed me. Sage was the best choice because he’s mated to your beta.”
Garridan growled. “Neither choice was the right one. I’ll kill you for touching him.”
Ladon’s eyes were wide and mouthed something to him that he couldn’t understand, before turning back to Magnus.
“Your coven kidnapped, raped and beat him. He’s not been the same since. He probably never will be,” Ladon said.
“They aren’t my coven. I’ll talk to him. He strikes at me whenever I get near him.” Magnus disappeared inside the cabin.
Garridan started toward the cabin, but Ladon put a hand on his arm. “He wants to make it right so let him try. For Sage’s sake.”
“If he hurts Sage, I’ll kill him.” Fuck, Ladon was right. If Magnus was relatively harmless, he was the only one who could make it right with Sage. It took everything Garridan had not to go in there, though. His dragon roared out a protest in his mind.
“If he hurts Sage, I’ll kill him myself.” Garridan saw Ladon had lost some of his innocence in that moment. Poor Ladon had to act like an adult and was doing a fine job. Still, Garridan was a little sad at the loss. Garridan wrapped an arm around Ladon’s shoulder and pulled him into a hug.
