“She is ours, so get out of our way before we knife you.” A glint of steel appeared.
“Really?” Ivor said. “A sword or an axe perhaps I’d be inclined to do as you bid, but a knife… No, I don’t think so.”
“We mean it!” The guy with the weapon stepped forward.
“I really wouldn’t,” Ivor said with a shake of his head.
“What, think you’re fucking Rambo, do you? Tough guy. In case you hadn’t noticed, this is three against one, you dickhead.”
“Dickhead.” Ivor nodded. “That’s what you think I am?”
“Yeah, dickhead. Fuck off.”
“Come a bit closer and say that.” He could hear the woman breathing hard behind him. She was clearly terrified, and that just made him madder. “I dare you.”
“Got a death wish, he has,” the guy at the rear of the group mocked. “Get him, Geraint. Mess him up bad for trying to spoil our fun.”
“I will. Watch this.”
Ivor closed his eyes, held his breath, and summoned the dragon from deep within. He then opened his eyes, wide and unblinking, and stared at each man in turn.
“What the fuck?” Knife Guy stopped in his tracks. “Jesus Christ.”
“What’s he done to his eyes?”
“They’re on bloody fire! Shit.”
The knife fell to the ground with a clatter.
Ivor kept on staring with his bright-red, vertical-pupil dragon eyes. Because he was angry, the scarlet irises would be flickering like flames, flashing orange, yellow, and black. He leaned forward and added a snarl for effect.
“I’m outta here.” The guy at the back of the group turned and ran. “He’s a fucking freak.”
The next one followed.
And finally, the guy who’d held the knife started running, falling after three paces only to scrabble back up. He threw a nervous glance over his shoulder before disappearing into the darkness.
Ivor could have followed. He could have easily shifted again, dug his claws into their flesh, and carried them out to sea, all three of them, then dropped them into the ocean bleeding and terrified and in agony. Dead before morning.
I still can.
No. He closed his eyes, waiting for his vengeful dragon to retreat, then opened them again.
“Hey, you okay?” He turned to the woman he sensed was still behind him.
“I … but…” She clutched her purse to her chest like a shield. Her silky hair had fallen forward, hanging like a dark river around her petite features. “They’ve gone. How did you—?”
“I wasn’t going to let anything happen to you.” As he’d spoken it was as if he’d been rammed into with a shield. One made of solid steel that was moving fast. His breath caught in his lungs, his stomach clenched, and his heart missed a beat then did two extra to catch up.
She’s the one.
How could she not be? She was beautiful, the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. He longed to touch the skin on her cheek and find out if it was as soft as it looked. Learn the shape of her nose, stroke her jawline, and gaze into her eyes. And her lips, set tight and scared, he wanted to kiss that fright away.
I will kill those sons of bitches.
“Please, I…” She half turned. “I need to go.”
“Go where?”