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I scrambled down and ran after them. “Let her go!”
The man drew out a baton which he swung at me. I had only enough time to fling up my arms. Heat blazed out of my hands and he cut his weapon in two. The top half clattered to the ground as he stared at the singed portion he still held. I separated my arms and gaped at the blazing twin swords in my hands.
“Let go of me!” Helen protested as she thrashed in his hold.
My eyebrows crashed down and I pointed the swords at our foe. “Do as she says or you’ll end up like your stick!”
The man sneered at me before he threw the remains of the baton at my head. I instinctively ducked and he tackled me to the ground. His strong arms wrapped around me in a vice-like grip as I thrashed and kicked. The man hefted me over one shoulder and rushed off into the darkness away from the fight.
Helen followed in pursuit. “Will! Alex!”
A terrible roar came from the street we escaped and I glimpsed a giant silhouette rise in front of the lampposts. The man quickened his step and burst out of the other end of the narrow alley. An unmarked carriage with six horses awaited us and the door opened at our coming. My captor threw me onto the floor and slammed the door, shutting himself outside.
I twisted around but a sharp stick stabbed into my gut, pinning me to the carpeted floor. The complete darkness of the carriage meant I couldn’t see my new assailant but I couldn’t mistake that voice.
“Hold still, dragon wench,” Baddock hissed.
I stiffened as the carriage shot forward. We bumped and sailed down the road, the screams of pedestrians added to the chaos. However, in his hurry to escape, the bumpy ride meant that Baddock’s hold on my back was constantly interrupted. I took advantage of one of the higher jumps when the cane slipped off me to roll across the floor to the opposite side of the carriage from my foe.
Baddock’s bright yellow eyes glared at me out of the darkness. He dropped to his knees and crawled over to me. My swords burst out of my hands and I sliced the air. The man screamed and scuttled away as something heavy dropped on top of me.
My heart skipped a beat when I realized it was one of his arms. I screamed and scuttled back on top of the seat behind me. The snake let out a terrible hiss before he lunged at me. His remaining hand wrapped around my throat, cutting off my air and distracting me enough that my swords vanished.
“I do not need your blood to be warm, you bitch!” he hissed at me.
I grasped his hand and tried to pull it away but his grip was too strong. His eyes and the background noise began to fade as my grip on consciousness began to slip.
Will.
The carriage was rocked by a sudden weight on its top. The horses screamed and the driver shouted. Baddock looked up as a pair of huge claws dug into the sides of the carriage roof above the doors. Half the roof was ripped away and revealed Will in his full dragon glory. His wings stretched out behind him as he stretched his long neck toward us. His green eyes blazed with fury when he noticed Baddock’s hand around my throat.
The carriage hit a hard bump and the top-heavy weight meant the whole vehicle was thrown onto its side, tossing the driver away. Will was forced to fly into the air to avoid histail being pinned beneath the vehicle. We skidded down the cobblestones for many yards, dragged by the terrified horses before the tongue and their harness rings broke. They raced off into the night screaming their terror to the world.
I was only semi-conscious when a hand roughly grabbed me. Baddock dragged me from the wreckage and across the road. Will landed near us and lunged at my captor. The serpent flung my back against his chest so I was pinned between them. Will froze and his eyes burned with fury.
“Cool your temper, dragon, or your bride will find herself with a slice across her throat,” Baddock warned him as he backed us away toward a narrow alley. A narrow set of stone stairs led into the ground and he pulled me down them.
Will kept the same distance from us but was forced to stop on our entering the stairwell. A rotten wood door stood at the bottom and Baddock slammed his back against it. The rusted hinges gave under his weight and the dusty odor of the Grimton floated over us. Baddock dragged me into the dank confines of that horrible catacombs and we passed the decrepit remains of the interred.
The snake turned around and pulled me ahead of him so we both faced forward. He used his body to push me down the narrow, dusty confines of the catacombs.
“Damn him. . .” my captor mumbled and his words bounced off the walls. “Damn all those loathsome dragons.”
I swallowed my fear and lifted my chin a little. “How are you going to use me to become immortal?”
“Just your blood, my dear,” he cooed as he tightened his grip on me. “I merely need to transfer all of your blood into me and I will have gained immortality.”
My heart pounded in my chest. “That sounds insane.”
He chuckled as we rounded a corner and found ourselves at an intersection. “Then allow me to show you.”
Baddock shoved me face-first against the nearby wall and grabbed one of my hands. He wrenched my arm behind my back so hard I cried out. The snake dragged one of his claws across my wrist and I felt blood pool out from the deep wound.
He yanked the gash up and I recoiled when I felt his cold lips press against the cut. The snake sucked out the blood like a vampire and I quickly felt the heat inside my body began to drop. He pinned me closer against the wall and I found myself face-to-face with one of the cadavers. The bones shuddered as a little bit of life came back to them.
That gave me an idea. I mustered all the strength I could manage and lifted my voice so all could hear. “Here’s your bride, boneheads! Come and get me!”
My shout made Baddock lift his blood-stained lips from my wrist. He sneered at me. “What game are you playing, woman-”
