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She clutched the same doll in her tiny hands. “She told me her name was Raphael.”

“Damnit,” I muttered to myself and peered contritely up at Revel. “Guess I have a big mouth.”

Rossi’s tiny bow-shaped mouth became stretched and distorted, and seconds later, in a flurry of contortions, a man with a thick scar bisecting his cheek stood in Rossi’s place. The doll disappeared, and he held a sword in his hand. He slid it into a leather scabbard at his side. Rossi was handsome, but with sharp, intense features. He was taller and broader than Prince Granier, but still didn’t look like a match for Revel.

“What do you want, Granier? We need to get on the road.” Revel motioned for me to follow him. He casually led the donkeys over to the cart, and I stayed by his side. He pretended not to care about the unexpected visit, but I could feel tension coming off him.

“Just here for my bride,” Granier said.

“Yeah, that’s not happening.” Revel took my waist and lifted me into the wagon, then he started to hitch the donkeys to the wagon.

A rustling sound followed, and in one fluid movement, Revel grabbed his axe from the floor in front of the box seat and swung around to face Granier. More men and a few women, some armed with arrows and others with swords, peeled out of the trees as if they’d been part of the landscape. I counted twelve in all. Now they were a match for my protector, and I was worthless, no more than a damn whisper. Suddenly it seemed all too real and frightening. I was about to be taken off to a foreign land by a man I was connected to only by some stupid ancient rule of fate.

Revel moved forward, his lethal axe resting on his shoulder. “Don’t need a fight. How far do you think you’ll get before her other fated mate steps out of the shadows with his pack of wolves?”

Granier looked like someone who’d never get his own hands dirty with blood. He had his guards for that purpose.

“You don’t need to worry about that, vamp trash,” Rossi sneered. His hand went to the hilt of his sword. He waved his free hand and, instantly, metal cuffs snapped around Revel’s wrists. Long thick chains dangled between them. Shackles with a connecting chain snapped around his ankles.

Rossi’s deep scar puckered as he sneered at Revel. I hopped down from the wagon and raced over to try and unfasten the cuffs.

“No,” Revel said quietly, so only I could hear.

“Guess you’re not quite the warrior you once were without that dragon beneath you,” Rossi growled.

“I see that scar I left you with was permanent,” Revel drawled in return.

Rossi shrugged. “I should thank you for it. The women love a nice battle scar.”

“If you two are done exchanging war stories,” Granier quipped, “I’d like to get on the way with my betrothed.” His smooth, sophisticated expression crinkled in disgust. He looked around at his guards. “Looks like we have visitors.”

Just as the Solamites had peeled out of the shadows, a group of leather clad men, all with thick, long, silver and black hair stepped out of seemingly nowhere. Front and center was a man who nearly rivaled Revel in size. Like the others, his thick hair and beard stubble were streaked with silver. His striking features were dimmed only by his intense black gaze, a gaze that fell instantly on me. He assessed me brazenly and nodded with cocky approval as if anyone, especially me, had asked his opinion.

Granier lifted a nostril. “Fenrick, I thought I smelled you and your mongrels. As you can see, I found our mate, my mate, first, so trot back to your doghouses.”

The men surrounding Fenrick released low growls and crept forward like wolves about to pounce on their prey. The tension in the clearing grew so tight and volatile, the donkeys took off with the cart.

Granier laughed. “Looks like your ride took off without you, Greyhart. Not that it matters since you’re a little chained up at the moment.” Finding a mutual enemy, both sides laughed.

Revel didn’t look the least bit perturbed. He looked down at the chain between his hands and acted as if he was just noticing them for the first time. “Hmm, would you look at that?” He lifted his hands and yanked them in opposite directions. The thick chain snapped in two as if it was merely a paper chain on a Christmas tree. The spectators circling the clearing tried not to look shocked, but they were doing a lousy job of it. Revel did the same with the chain between his feet. As the chains broke, the cuffs and shackles disappeared. That tiny lopsided smile that I loved more than a luscious piece of chocolate cake appeared.

“Hell, Rossi, guess your magic never improved.”

Rossi winced at the insult. “How is that dragon of yours? Last I heard your dragons were fat, lazy and stinking up the whole town with their belches.”

Another round of mutual laughter. As much tension as there was between the Solamites and the Regnas, both sides seemed to be against Revel. I theorized it was because they knew that of all the men and women standing in the clearing, none of them were as dangerous or fearsome as the Valian warrior. I had no doubt that Revel could take any of them on and win, but together, there were more than twenty.

Prince Fenrick looked less royal and sophisticated, but he was a sight to see in his black leather coat, breeches and boots. A thick belt with a large bronze buckle was slung low around his slim waist, and a sword tucked in a black leather scabbard hung at his hip. He moved forward with the grace of a wild animal. The only sign that Revel was tense or worried was the slight twitch in his jaw.

“Looks like you’re outnumbered, Greyhart,” Fenrick quipped.

“I was the last time I met up with your pack, too, but I sent them all back to Regnamoor with tails between their legs.” A few of Fenrick’s guards released low, menacing growls. Revel moved forward to stand between them and me.

“I suppose one should remind you, Greyhart,” Granier said, “since you seem to have more than a healthy amount of interest in protecting her—if you take her virtue, then she’s as good as dead.”

“You haven’t already spoiled the goods, have you?” Fenrick asked.

“That’s it.” I moved around my giant protector. He reached for me, but I pushed away his hand. I stepped closer to my two fated mates but not too close. “I’m not goods, and my virtue is none of your business, neither of you.”