Hidden Dragon (The Treasure of Paragon Book 7) by Genevieve Jack (best book club books .txt) 📕

“Sylas…” She didn’t know what to say.

When a dragon mated, he mated for life. The bond was both biology and magic. He couldn’t break it if he tried. But as her husband dressed and donned his pack without ever looking back in her direction, she wondered if she was about to learn how far a bond could stretch.

Chapter Seventeen

The hike toward the Palace of Nightfall was an exercise in tedium. Sylas schooled himself in restraint, refusing to even look at Dianthe. Although it went against every instinct in his dragon body, he realized it was what she needed. It was what she’d asked for. In a roundabout way, it came from a place of love.

Smothered, she’d said. It was a harsh insult to a dragon. There were stories of his kind losing their minds and keeping their loved ones prisoner in their treasure room. Smothered was a way of saying he’d crossed the line into obsession. She’d accused him of killing her with his protective instinct. He scowled. He was still trying to figure out how she was both hiking through a dark forest in the vampire kingdom and being smothered.

But fine, if that’s how she felt, he’d give her space. And if that space came with the sharp edge of his anger, well, nobody was perfect.

He was relieved not to have encountered any more hornworms and to recognize some landmarks from his last visit to Nochtbend. They were close to the Palace of Nightfall, which was a good thing considering the suns were setting. Soon the vampires would awaken, and he would much rather be inside Nightfall’s gates, speaking directly to Master Demidicus about their mission, than out here, potentially fighting off the unwanted attention of hungry vampires in a dark wood.

They reached the mouth of the cave entrance just as Sabrina yawned and stretched in her mate’s arms. Another pang of jealousy hit Sylas squarely in the heart as the two kissed and exchanged good mornings. Dianthe might be right behind him, but she felt miles away at the moment. Her scent rubbed like sandpaper against his senses. Normally enjoyable, now it simply left his insides raw.

“Nightfall is through here,” he said. “There will be guardians at the entrance. Hold very still and allow them to smell you. If you remain calm, we won’t have a problem getting inside.”

“What kind of guardians?” Sabrina asked. “We use humans in our coven. Tobias told me there are no humans here.”

“Hellhounds,” Sylas said. “It is said they were a gift from Hades himself to the first of their kind.”

Tobias scratched his head. “I’ve never seen a hellhound. They sound positively unpleasant.”

“Think of them like magical wards. They are trained to keep out those with malicious intentions. We don’t have any. We simply want their help and cooperation. Keep a positive mindset and they won’t hurt you.”

“Can they hurt us?” Tobias asked.

It was a good question. “I haven’t tested the rumor, but the vampires claim the hellhound’s bite is poisonous to all but vampires.”

Sabrina chuckled. “So if this goes badly, I’m carrying you all out of here. Got it.”

“Positive thoughts. Simple enough,” Dianthe mumbled.

Funny. After their fight today, thinking positively seemed a particularly difficult task.

As Sylas stepped into the dark mouth of the cave, he thought it was a great metaphor for what was happening in their relationship. Their future was just as dark and uncertain. When he’d stopped to talk to her in the lake, he’d expected they’d exchange apologies and move on. But what she’d said to him was not something an “I’m sorry” could fix.

Smothered. His mind circled back to what she’d said. The word played on repeat in his head; he couldn’t seem to move beyond it. She, whom he was leading into a dark, forbidding cave, felt smothered.

He still wasn’t sure what to do with that information. Nothing about the past few days made him feel he had earned that label. For the Mountain’s sake, should he have let her be swallowed by the hornworm?

His reverie was interrupted when the low, menacing growl of a hellhound filled the cave. By the light of Dianthe’s glow, he saw the darkness melt into the shape of a dark dog with prominent teeth and long, lean muscles that gave it a sickly and gaunt physique. The things always looked hungry. What they ate, he had no idea, but by the glare in their red eyes, he’d always assumed it must be souls.

“Good doggy,” Tobias whispered beside him.

The hellhound sniffed his hand and then the general area of his torso.

Behind him, Dianthe said nothing, but her scent and light shifted. She’d moved from his right to stand between him and Tobias. Clearly she was afraid. He was tempted to take her hand but forced himself to leave it right where it was. Their relationship would never heal if he didn’t honor her request to be trusted with her own safety.

“I’m jealous,” Sabrina said. He hadn’t seen her move ahead of them, but she was already deep inside the cave, scratching a hellhound behind the ears. “They’re the perfect guardians. Do you think I could buy one to bring back to Chicago with me?”

Tobias winced. “Absolutely not.”

“Oh, but they’re so cute.” She made a kissy sound, and the hound licked her face. “I think this one is still a baby. He’s smaller.”

Sylas moved past the hound to the iron portcullis at the back of the cave and pulled a ribbon hanging against the wall. A bell inside rang, and a vampire appeared on the other side of the metal. Ruthgard, thankfully a member of the Defenders of the Goddess.

“Sylas. I never thought we’d see you back here. Last I heard, you were rotting in the dungeons of Paragon.”

“Pleasure to see you again, Ruthgard. Lucky break. I was cleared of all charges and freed. My friends and I need to speak with Master Demidicus. It’s important.”

Ruthgard glanced over