Mated to the Earth Dragon (Elemental Mates 2)

“The third time, they trailed us back to the hut I was renting. Five dragons came. We escaped just in time. I didn’t want to place Autumn in any danger, so I flew straight back home.”

The master of the council made a thoughtful sound. “Five of them. No wonder there were rumors of strange dragon activity.”

“I don’t know where they came from,” Damon said. “If they hid underground, it was too far for me to feel them. And after the first attack, they made sure to approach from the sky.”

“They knew you,” the chimera’s voice growled. “They knew you are the dragon of the earth.”

Damon nodded. “I think they’re ready to move against the council now. That’s why they didn’t come out of hiding until you sent me to Iceland.”

“In which case,” the chimera mused, “water and storm will draw them out just as well. And we have both of them in Iceland now. I have no doubt Gregory and Timothy will be able to deal with any danger. But there has to be more to it. Why come out of hiding now? What’s their plan?”

“Let me question the prisoner,” Damon demanded. “He hasn’t talked before—but now that his friends are no longer hiding, we need to know what he knows.”

The chimera roared at Damon’s words.

The sound echoed through the large cave so that Autumn shivered instinctively. She still couldn’t make out the exact shape of the chimera. Whenever her eyes seemed to make out a shape in the shifting shadows—a dragon’s wings, a goat’s head, a serpent’s tail—the shadows dispersed again, tricking her eyes.

The experience was unsettling, and she was glad that the chimera had shifted his focus from her to Damon.

“He hasn’t talked yet,” the chimera growled. “He’s a stubborn one, our fire dragon captive. The only thing he’s asked for is to talk to the storm dragon’s mate again, which I’ve forbidden so far. What can he hope to gain from talking to a human? He must be hoping he can trick her.”

Damn made a thoughtful sound. “He seemed very unsettled by Naomi. Without her, we wouldn’t know what we do. It’s the only weakness in his armor I’ve seen. They’ve hidden away from the world for so long, stewing in their hate, that they have no idea anymore what humans are really like.”

Autumn shivered a little as she imagined a fire dragon trapped in a cave right below her. They’d made the earth split apart beneath her in Iceland—who was to say that this fire dragon wouldn’t do the same?

“We keep him from shifting,” Damon explained softly, as if he’d noticed her discomfort. “There’s a way to do that. Dragonsbane—a drop or two is enough to keep us from shifting for a while. And as long as he’s our prisoner, we’ll keep him safely dosed with it.”

Again the chimera made a thoughtful, drawn out growl that echoed through the large cavern.

A moment later, the griffin came forward, surprising Autumn, who’d all but forgotten about him when the chimera had drawn her into the painful vision.

“Why not try a different approach?” the griffin suggested. “We know he won’t talk. And we also know how shocked he was when he met the storm dragon’s human mate.”

“What do you suggest?” the chimera boomed from the shadows.

“Don’t send Damon in alone. Let him take his mate along. They’ll both be perfectly safe. The fire dragon can’t use his powers. And humans unsettle him. Meeting another might be just what it takes to make him talk.”

“No,” Damon said at the exact same moment as the chimera growled his agreement.

“I won’t put Autumn into danger. I’m not taking her to meet a fire dragon,” Damon said heatedly.

Autumn still felt terrified by the thought of being face to face with one of the terrible beasts who’d breathed fire on them in Iceland. At the same time, she liked the thought of Damon leaving her with the unsettling chimera even less.

And they drugged the fire dragon. He’ll be just a man, like Damon and Jared. He won’t be able to shift or breathe fire.

Hadn’t she made her decision before? She’d chosen Damon over the simple life she’d dreamed of long ago. And choosing Damon didn’t just mean choosing the strange world of shifters he’d revealed to her. Being his mate meant standing by his side, no matter what.

She could face a fire dragon again, as long as he was there with her.

“I’ll do it,” she said before the argument could

continue.

When Damon turned to stare at her in obvious surprise, she met his gaze evenly.

“I’m not afraid of a fire dragon,” she said, then flushed when she realized that Damon could feel her apprehension through the bond. “Okay, maybe I am afraid. But I didn’t particularly enjoy being hunted by fire dragons. And if this helps to put a stop to that, I’ll do it. I don’t want to wake up one day and find that they’ve made their way to Dragon Springs.”

“Never,” Damon said heatedly. “That’ll never happen.”