Page 86 of Mad Dragon of Chaos

Haru sniffed. “There should never be anything subtle about a dragon. But I can only shift if it is to save you and Shey.”

Okay, Adrian had to concede that point. They had to get Shey out of Bellcairn alive.

“It will be a hard fight,” Haru continued. “Especially if you and Shey give in to your urges to protect those innocent troublemakers. I don’t wish the humans harm, but my concern is for you and our friend.”

That was also fair.

Haru flipped over his right hand so that it was palm up. “On the other hand, is Tyche. He was born the God of Luck, but he has acquired the powers of the God of Accidents and the Goddess of Nightmares. While it is easy to forget because Ty’s manner is so very harmless, he is a walking weapon. His magic is endlessly subtle. He doesn’t need to get close enough to Feng to shoot or stab him. The chancellor could have an accident and fall down the stairs. He could fall out of a window. He could…”

“Choke to death on a peanut,” Adrian supplied.

His mate smiled. “Exactly. And to leave again, he can cloak the building in nightmares so that those people never remember seeing him.”

Adrian stared at his own hands, seeing the easy, obvious answers that Haru had handed him. It all made sense. Tyche was a god. Why did he keep forgetting that? Yes, he could die, but this guy had survived for thousands of years. How could he possibly die now?

And yet…

“That makes total sense. Why don’t I feel better?”

Haru turned Adrian’s hands and lifted them so that he could brush a kiss across the knuckles on his left hand and his right. “Because at the heart of Ty, he isn’t a killer.”

“I don’t know. We saw that mess in the woods when we found them. Those guards died because of Ty’s magic.”

With a grunt, Haru nodded. “I would argue that Tyche wasn’t so much saving himself as he was protecting Shey. He admitted he was fond of his human from the time of their imprisonment. You worry Ty will hesitate, and that will get him killed. If Shey were there, the little god would not hesitate to kill Feng.”

Adrian dropped his head forward, knocking it lightly against Haru’s. “Fuck. Without Shey there, I guess we must hope he wants justice for Yesuntei bad enough to not hesitate.”

“Yes, because I will be furious if I lose my new friend.”

And no one wanted to face a pissed-off dragon.

THIRTY-ONE

SHEY THRUDESH-VO

Shey sat on the bed he shared with Tyche, his back resting against the headboard and his hands folded on his stomach. He was trying not to think. Desperately trying not to come up with alternatives to their plan to kill Chancellor Rati Feng. Mostly just trying not to think about how Tyche was heading into so much danger without him.

Logically, he understood. He got it. He really did.

This was the best plan for what they had to work with. It was an opening they couldn’t pass up. There was no telling when Feng would be outside of Aswa again. Attempting to attack him in the heart of New Rosanthe was stupid.

It had to be here and now.

And Tyche had to be the one to do it.

But he shouldn’t be alone. Jules was a nice guy, and while he apparently had some fight training, Shey was reluctant to believe it would be enough for what they faced. Compound that with the fact that Tyche had no fight training whatsoever, and the situation looked dire.

The door opened to the bedroom, and Tyche strode in with damp hair and a rosiness to his cheeks after his shower. A woodsy scent wafted into the room ahead of him from either his soap or shampoo. The god was wearing a pair of baggy shorts and an even baggier T-shirt that was Caspagir blue and had the emblem from the University of Sirelis emblazoned on the upper left side of the chest.

Shey’s eyebrows snapped together, and he sat up. “Where did you get that shirt?”

Tyche flashed a cheeky grin. “Stole it from you before we left Sirelis.” Tyche pinched the front of the shirt and lifted it to his nose, where he took in a noisy breath. His eyes fell shut as if he were savoring the aroma, then opened to stare at Shey. “Mmm…smells like you.” He dropped the shirt so Shey could see his wide grin. “Actually, it smells like the royal laundry detergent, but I started associating that smell with you during our time in the palace.”

A soft laugh escaped Shey, and he could feel his smile fading far too quickly, as if he couldn’t keep the corners of his mouth pinned up where they belonged.

Tyche frowned as well. “Don’t look at me like that.” He shut the door behind him and crossed the room, the floor creaking under his bare feet. The mattress bounced as he climbed into the too-small bed, but instead of sitting next to Shey, he sat cross-legged at the foot of the bed, facing Shey.

“I can’t help it. Tomorrow is going to be incredibly dangerous. People are going to die, and I’m terrified that you’re going to be one of them.” Shey licked his lips and his hands balled into fists at his sides. “You can’t tell me it’s not possible. Gods die. Zyros was killed. I fucking watched Yesuntei die. We don’t even have a clue if Cirina is still alive after Kaes made her disappear. I don’t want you to join them. We just found each other.” He swallowed hard, his voice cracking, “Ty, I⁠—”