Page 17 of Mate of a Monster

Fuck, Hellpet!

For the second time in a single day, everything goes black.

Chapter Four

Legend

I storm back toward the castle, dragging the taste of smoke and scorched stone along the polished floors. The dragon’s fury still echoes in the back of my skull like a fucking bell that won’t stop ringing.

Sinner is halfway through the corridor with Knight and London on his heels, tracking the direction of the clouds after the beast blew through them like a fucking lightning bolt.

Creed is ahead, moving fast, his hands in fists at his side. He doesn’t turn toward the war room or council chambers, where any king would go when the realm is fucking bleeding.

So, where the fuck is he going?

I shove past the others.

“Creed!” I bark.

His stride doesn’t falter as he rounds the corner and disappears through the tall archway that leads to the Archives.

“Creed!”

He slams the doors open with a wave of his hand and stomps through.

I’m right on his heels, stepping into a room I haven’t set foot in since I was ten. Dad had said it was time to understand how our family kept our royal position when the Argents were stripped of theirs after the death of their king and queen.

The Archives is cavernous, a cathedral built of both human paper and old magic, shelves climbing so high they vanish into shadowed rafters.

Creed heads straight to the far left wall, where all the Aethentale’s of old Magic are located, and starts tearing texts out, tossing them to the floor and going for the next when he doesn’t instantly find what he’s looking for.

“Creed. Talk,” I demand, because clearly, he knows something. My oldest brother is about to tear the bones out of our own history. “What happened back there?”

He ignores me, fingers moving faster.

My chest has been tight since the moment those sapphire eyes locked onto mine and a familiar darkness threaded through me. I was harsh and unruly, but soft and binding. It made no fucking sense.

Creed continues to dig, pulling a thick, leatherbound text apart, papers flying around like dead leaves, before tossing it behind him.

“Creed.” My voice drops, a warning wrapped in it. “Fucking answer me!”

Knight, London, and Sinner file into the room one by one.

Creed drags another stack of books down, several tumbling and falling at my feet, making me jump back.

My head yanks toward my brothers. Little fucking help!

“Brother,” Knight says, keeping his tone careful. “What did you see?”

“Not now,” he replies without a single flinch.

“Yes, now. What just happened back there? What did you see when you looked in that dragon’s head?” I close the distance between us until heat rolls off his skin and onto mine. “What was he afraid of?”

Creed snaps the book shut and bends, tucking it beneath his arms to hide the spine and checking the ones that fell.

“What are you afraid of?”

His head snaps to me. “Leave.”