Chapter 2 Dragon Lord's Wrath and the Threat of the Arcane Guild

Master Bramwell didn't back away. He puffed out his round chest, his heavy velvet coat brushing past the ruined doorway.

"What is the meaning of this filth?" Bramwell sneered, glaring at the broken jars before his piggish eyes locked onto Keith. "Hiding a stray dog in your shop, Wendy? Is this where your rent money went?"

One of his guards laughed, tapping a heavy iron club against his palm. "Looks like she bought herself a pet."

My heart jumped into my throat. They didn't see Keith's scales in the dim shadows. They didn't see his golden slit pupils. They just saw a half-naked man kneeling on the floorboards.

"Bramwell, leave," I blurted, stepping forward. "I will have your coin by noon. Just give me a few hours..."

The glowing tether between my wrist and Keith's chest suddenly flared. A deep, vibrating growl rolled through the cottage, rattling the loose floorboards.

Keith rose to his feet.

He didn't stumble. He rose with the slow, terrifying elegance of a storm breaking over a mountain. He towered over Bramwell's enforcers, his broad shoulders blocking out the morning light trickling through the broken door. The violet chain of light pulsed violently against his skin, invisible to the mortals, but burning hot against my wrist.

"Did you just call me a dog, insect?" Keith's voice was velvet-soft, but it carried the weight of an executioner's blade.

The laughing guard sneered, stepping up to swing his club. "Shut your mouth, beggar..."

Keith moved faster than human eyes could track.

A sharp crack echoed through the room.

The guard didn't even finish his sentence. Keith caught the iron club with one bare hand, crushed the metal until it bent like warm butter, and shoved the man back. The sheer force sent the two-hundred-pound guard flying backward through the open doorway, crashing straight into the street mud with a loud groan.

Silence smothered the shop.

Bramwell turned pale as curdled milk. The second guard froze, his knees shaking violently.

"You..." Bramwell stammered, clutching the velvet collar of his cloak. "You dare strike an officer of the Arcane Guild? Who do you think you are?!"

Keith took a slow, predatory step forward. His golden eyes flared, the dark scales across his neck shimmering with dangerous heat. "I am the nightmare your ancestors prayed never woke. Touch one more thing in this dwelling, and I will tear your limbs from your torso and feed them to the crows."

Bramwell swallowed hard, stumbling backward over his own boots. He pointed a trembling, ring-covered finger at me.

"You, you witch!" Bramwell shrieked. "You harbor violent outlaws! The Guild will hear of this! I'm giving you until sunset, Wendy Thorne! Fifty silver, or the Mage Inquisitors will drag you to the dungeons and hang this beast in the square!"

He scrambled out the door, dragging his groaning enforcer through the dirt before running down the alley.

The shop fell dead quiet again.

I leaned against the broken counter, my legs trembling so badly I could barely stand. "We're dead," I whispered, clutching my head. "The Arcane Guild... they have combat mages. They have iron runes. They'll kill us both."

"No one kills me," Keith said coldly.

He spun around to face me, his golden gaze burning with lethal intensity. He looked down at his own wrist, then traced the shimmering violet chain that linked us.

"Now," Keith growled, closing the distance between us until I was trapped against the wooden counter. He planted one large hand right beside my head, leaning in until I could feel the scorching heat radiating from his chest. "Explain this curse, little mortal."

"I told you, it was an accident!" I squeaked, pressing back against the shelves. "I was only trying to grow moon-orchids to pay my rent!"

"You bound an apex dragon lord to a cabbage patch!" His voice dropped into a dark, dangerous whisper, his face inches from mine. "My wings are locked. My true flame is smothered. Every heartbeat in your pathetic chest pulls on my life force."

He reached out, his long, scaled fingers gently gripping my chin. His touch was burning hot, sending a shocking shiver straight down my spine.

"Tell me how to break this tether," Keith murmured, his slit pupils narrowing with dark intent. "Or I will burn this entire city to ash, starting with you."

I swallowed hard, staring into his molten eyes. "I... I don't know how to break it."

Keith's jaw tightened, a lethal fury flaring in his eyes.

"Then you had better figure it out before sunset, witch," he hissed, his thumb brushing against my bottom lip. "Because if t

hose guards return, I won't just kill them. I'll make you watch.”