She brings out a side of me that I wish didn't vanish once she left.

"What did he want?" Being as I can't access my dragon, speaking through the mind link is impossible.

"You're not going to like it." I laugh as she twirls me around and bends me backward until my eyes land on an upside-down Cador. I instantly avert them.

"Is it going to piss your male off?" She pulls me up flush with her chest, our cheeks pressed together.

"He threatened me, you too." My nails dig into Tarja's back. I can't lose my best friend. She took a risk in telling me all about the bond I share with Cador.

It's our little secret. She keeps me in the loop when Cador is in town. Makes sure there's an event or a reason for me to be near him during his monthly visits. Tarja knows her king is suffering and does everything in her power to ease it.

She tells me when he stalks me in the dark. I have no way of sensing Cador when he's in stalker mode. There've been a few instances where I think it's him, and it hasn't been.

I wait until Tarja texts me to show a bit of skin. If I'm in my apartment, the curtain to the shower isn't closed. He has a clear view of everything I do from where he sits.

Tarja once told me Cador returned home covered in blood after a night of watching me. I freaked out thinking me using a dildo the general size of his cock—there's no hiding the ginormous bulge in his pants—got innocent people killed. She assured me they all deserved their outcome. It took a few days to believe her, though.

She sent me an image of Cador when he'd return home or head off to his bedroom. As the days progressed, his sour mood worsened. On the ninth day, she begged me to take a shower with the curtain open—the bastard had a camera installed in my bathroom.

So, I did.

I shaved my lady bits, sang my heart out, and masturbated until my legs were shaky and my breath uneven.

Tarja texted me later, saying to repeat whatever I did until my dragon appeared, as Cador was a completely different person after watching me.

That was over a year ago.

There are days when there's no doubt he knows I know the truth. And yet, he never shows me a lick of emotion. I'm a nobody, just like Crab stated.

"What did he threaten you with?" Her hands grip my hips. She's preparing to hoist me over her shoulder and make a run for it. And she will—one hundred and twenty percent.

"Whoever he works for knows who I am to Cador. I either leave with Crab, or you die." I press my cheek closer to hers, breathing in her scent of cinnamon and lust. "I can't lose you, Tarja. You're my sister."

She squeezes me tighter—a kiss to my temple. "You won't lose me, Val. I'll kill Crab before he reaches for you. And not to mention Cador—"

A hush falls upon the crowd as an old, wilting lady slowly walks into the center of the dance floor. Her cane clicks against the hardwood floor, making me wince.

"Cador!" she yells, her shrill voice grates my senses.

No one says a thing, and I don't dare look at Cador to see his reaction.

"She is the seer I told you about. Be ready for an extraction," the words are whispered so softly I barely hear them.

Tarja's right hand slides to mine, gripping my fingers.

"King Cador! Tonight is a turning point for the kingdom."

A tightness in my chest has me grinding my teeth. "Tarja, something is wrong."

I stumble against her, my eyes going hazy.

"Val?" Her hands cup my face, inspecting it. "What's wrong?"

"I feel fuzzy," I slur.

"Tonight, our queen—our king and Razar's mate will be revealed—"

Everything else is lost on me as a scorching pain slams into my chest. I claw at my skin. "Tar—"

"Let me see." Coolness caresses my skin when she rips my dress in half. "Fuck. You've been poisoned." Her eyes are wide in horror. "Crab poisoned you right under my fucking nose." Rage mixes with murder in her eyes.

Crab will die tonight.

My breath is stolen from me as a sharp pain fills my veins. It's as if I'm burning from the inside.

Through the thick fog, my eyes latch onto Cadors. Words aren't needed to know what is happening. What has been foreseen.

I must die to be his.

Cador approaches Crab, Orpheus, Holden, Leif, and Finn following.

The world titters.

Blood fills my mouth, forcing me to expel it.

"Shit. Val!" Although I can feel her hands on my skin, Tarja's voice is far away.

A scream rips from my bloody throat as my legs give out, dropping me into the pool of blood Cador is responsible for.

Pain shatters within every inch of my body. Bones snap, realign, and extend until all I feel is numb.

"Val," a frantic voice whispers urgently. "Val, you have to wake up."

I can't respond. Nothing works. My limbs don't shift, not even a flicker.

"He's losing it, Val. Your mate needs you to finish shifting into your dragon."

A presence in the back of my mind shifts. I've always felt her there, waiting, always waiting. This is different. It's like a key has been inserted into her prison's lock. The door hasn't swung open yet. She's still behind bars.

"They are using females, Val. Females to tempt your mate, your king, your razar. Do you want another female to touch what is yours? Do you want her to taste what is yours? To be bred by your male?"

The dragon shifts within my mind, forcing a painful agony to slice through my spine. Blood covers my eyes, blinding me.

"Mine!" the word is savagely roared within my head. Teeth and claws shred to the surface.

"He's bleeding the males who dare to come near you. Breathe in their blood. Isn't that what you want him to do to your enemies?" She demands I listen and obey. "Don't you want to scent your enemy's blood covering Cador's muscular chest as you rub yours against him? As he fucks his cum into your greedy cunt?"

The dragon roars, slamming against her cage.

"Or is your dragon too pathetic and will allow its mate to cum in another? To breed another dragon? Is that what she wants?"

The words are the prison door's ending.