Chapter 248

Chapter 248
Elenna's POV

The guards closed in around us, their weapons trained on Aurelian and me. Spears and swords glinted in the candlelight, a deadly circle tightening with each passing second. My heart hammered against my ribs as I watched Aurelian's eyes dart around the room, calculating, measuring the distance between each opponent.

I knew what he was thinking. As a dragon, especially as the Dragon King, he could transform and kill everyone in this room before they could even scream. But my attention was drawn to the other side of the room, where children played, blissfully unaware of the deadly standoff happening just yards away.

Those laughing, innocent faces, the small hands clapping in delight at some simple game – they didn't deserve to witness the horror that would unfold if Aurelian unleashed his rage. And their parents, their families – they were here too. Even if Aurelian could protect the children from physical harm, he couldn't shield them from the trauma of seeing their loved ones slaughtered.

"What's your plan, Aurelian?" Millicent taunted, her voice dripping with amusement. "To fight your way out? Don't you want to play my game?"

I placed my hand gently on Aurelian's chest, feeling the rapid beat of his heart and the heat radiating from his skin – a sign his rage was building. I needed to redirect his focus, to dampen his fury before it consumed us all.

"The children," I whispered, angling my head slightly toward the playing area.

Aurelian followed my gaze, his jaw clenched so tight I could hear his teeth grinding. A low draconic rumble vibrated through his chest, contemptuous and dismissive, but he looked back at me anyway.

I tried to convey everything with my eyes: Not in front of the children. Please.

In another time, another place, Aurelian would have ignored my plea. He would have deemed it weakness, unnecessary sentiment. But now, I saw genuine hesitation flash across his features.

"Your softness makes things more difficult," he muttered, his voice so low only I could hear.

"If I were a harder woman, perhaps we wouldn't be in this mess at all," I replied.

Something in his eyes softened. We both knew it was precisely my nature that had made him care for me in the first place, and despite our current predicament, I couldn't bring myself to regret it.

Millicent watched our exchange with interest, her eyebrow arched in curiosity. Seeing Aurelian's stance shift from immediate attack to waiting, she didn't waste the opportunity.

"I suggest we move outside now," she said smoothly. "Everyone will be more comfortable."

The entire room waited for us to move first. Aurelian gave a short, sharp sigh before wrapping his arm around my waist and guiding me toward the doors that led to the garden. The others followed behind, with Millicent taking the lead as we stepped into the night air.

We continued walking to the rear of the garden, closer to the edge of the forest. When we stopped and turned to face our followers, I felt a brief moment of relief seeing that the children and their caretakers had remained inside.

That relief was short-lived.

Around us, warriors began to transform. Bear warriors grew even larger, their muscles swelling and fur sprouting across their skin. Wolf warriors' teeth elongated into fangs while their nails curved into claws. Horse warriors dropped to all fours, their powerful legs tensing, ready for battle-quick galloping.

Hooves and sharp curved claws dug deep into the grass and soil beneath them. Their eyes, glowing in dozens of different shades, reflected the moonlight. When the transformations were complete, the air was filled with hundreds of soft growls.

"You, Elenna, are our quarry tonight," Millicent announced, her smile growing wider as she saw me shiver.

"If you manage to survive until dawn," she continued, "I'll let you live."

Despite my fear, anger surged through me. "That's not enough! I want my handmaiden, Doria, returned to me as well."

Millicent's laugh was cold. "You think you have any power to make demands here?"

Aurelian's voice cut through the night air like a blade. "Since you know of Hadrian and his abilities, you should know how fast I can move. Do you truly believe I couldn't twist your head from your shoulders before anyone could react?"

Millicent straightened slightly in defiance, but I caught the flash of fear in her eyes.

"Fine," she conceded. "If you survive, I'll return your handmaiden."

She muttered something that sounded like "not likely" before raising her voice again. "For the sake of a fair chase, I'll give you twenty minutes' head start."

She raised her hand. "Starting now..."

Aurelian scooped me up in his arms, cradling me against his chest, and sprinted into the dense forest at a speed that was almost like flying. The fury inside him was practically palpable, a living thing that threatened to consume him. I knew what he truly wanted was to plunge his claws through the chest of every creature that dared to hunt us.

We were the Dragon King and his chosen mate – we shouldn't have to play the mouse in this cat-and-mouse game. If not for my pleading eyes, for those children, he would have slaughtered everyone in that room. Once his rage was unleashed, nothing could stop it.

But I hadn't just asked him to show restraint – I'd set new terms for the game. To save Doria, we needed to actually follow the rules of this game.

I knew the rules of chase games. The prey was restricted to a certain distance. For normal prey, this was enforced with barriers and guards. For us, I suspected more armed soldiers waited around the perimeter, ready to drive us back if we tried to escape.

His anger was directed at everyone – the warriors, Millicent, the rebels, even me. I could feel his irritation that I had put him in this position, prevented him from acting, forced him to participate in this game.

When we'd gone far enough, he set me down, scanning our surroundings and sniffing the air for danger. His enhanced senses detected threats in every direction.

"Aurelian..." I started.

"Don't speak to me," he snapped.

His harshness surprised me, but I recovered quickly. "You're angry with me."

Aurelian didn't respond to this obvious observation. Tiny red scales began to appear across his skin.

"Why are you angry with me?" I pressed.

He continued to ignore me, or at least tried to. When I touched his arm, he whirled toward me.

He grabbed my upper arms and roughly pushed me against a thick tree trunk.

"Aurelian?" I asked, confused, but he cut me off with a bruising, claiming kiss.

Just as he'd predicted, I immediately yielded to him, melting against his body. My lips surrendered under his assault, my fingers lightly clutching his cloak. Aurelian ravaged my mouth with his own, claiming me with his tongue, wishing he could possess me in other ways as well. Unfortunately, there was no time for more.

When he pulled away, I was breathless, my gaze unfocused as I looked up at him from beneath my lashes.