E R I K

Fury burned through me as Henry Lombard, the Prince's assassin, gave me a mock bow. He was the man behind all this misery - most likely following orders from the Mad Prince.

"Did you think that you could tempt my mate away from me, Henry?" I growled.

"Your mate came to me for help. I did nothing to tempt her away from you," Henry said smoothly.

"Do not lie to me, demon. My mate only came here to save her family," I snapped.

I took a moment to look away from Henry and check on Morgan. She was huddled on the floor next to Poppy in a thin white nightdress. Her arms were protectively wrapped around Poppy, who appeared to be drifting in and out of consciousness.

"Are you injured, my mate?" I asked Morgan.

She shook her head slightly, and my heart swelled with relief. If Morgan had been injured, I would have torn the heart from Henry's chest and tossed it into the fire.

"I would not hurt a lady," Henry said, feigning offence at the suggestion that he would harm Morgan. "I am Lord, now. The Prince kindly gave me a title and this fort as a reward for my services to him."

"This is my Uncle's fort," I replied through gritted teeth.

I hadn't recognised the fort when I had emerged from the portal. But I remembered the dining hall. It had once been decorated in the icy blue colours and banners of the Frost Wing Dragons. I spent many evenings in this hall as a child, playing with my cousins and brothers.

The dining hall was different now. The banners had been taken down, along with the tapestries that depicted the great history of the Frost Wing dragons. The walls were now bare and empty.

"I've not had a chance to fully redecorate this room," Henry mused.

"Where is my Uncle?" I demanded.

"I killed him and hung his dismembered corpse from the gate tower shortly after you disappeared," Henry explained.

"You bastard," I spat.

Henry shrugged his shoulders.

"It's just business, Erik. Nothing personal. After the dragons abandoned the mountains, Dante claimed the abandoned mountain forts and castles for his Knights."

I gripped the helm of my sword tighter, trying to keep calm and composure. The north had always belonged to the dragons. The vampires had no business being here. They hated the harsh weather and remote wilderness. They much preferred to dwell in their warm coastal cities, growing fat on the blood of the innocent.

"I will drive the vampire scourge from these mountains and reclaim this land," I announced.

"How will you accomplish that with no army, your majesty?" Henry asked.

"I have men willing to fight for me," I lied. "And I have the blue flame of my mate."

"Morgan now lives with me in my court," Henry scoffed.

My stomach dropped, and I turned to Morgan for an answer. She looks back at me with sad eyes.

"I had to save Poppy," she tells me weakly.

I shake my head, refusing to accept whatever monstrous bargain this demon has forced my mate to take.

"You owe this scum nothing," I tell my mate.

Henry walks over to Morgan and places a possessive hand on her shoulder.

"Morgan is now under my protection, Erik. She does not need you to protect her any longer," Henry said.

"My mate is a fox. She is a creature from the wilds and needs no man's protection," I snap and then turn to speak directly to Morgan, "This man holds no power over you - his words cannot imprison you."

For the first time, defiance twinkles in Morgan's eyes. Henry sneered at me and leaned into Morgan's ear.

"You are no prisoner, Morgan," he says in a silky voice. "You can leave with Erik, but I will take Poppy."

"No," Morgan said sternly.

"We had a deal," Henry yelled.

"We don't anymore," Morgan said, calmly placing her hand over Henry's.

Blue flames erupted from her fingertips, and Henry let out a high-pitched squeal of pain.

"You little bitch," he roared at Morgan, clutching his injured hand.

I swing at Henry with my sword, driving him away from Poppy and Morgan. Byron and Ranni backed me up, flanking my sides with their swords drawn.

Henry muttered a curse, realising it was better to retreat and fight another day than die in the moment.

"This isn't over," Henry yelled, bursting into a cloud of black bats.

The bats circled the room like an angry swarm of wasps and then escaped up the chimney.

A tense moment passed. Was Henry alone in the castle, or did he have a group of soldiers with him, maybe lurking somewhere nearby in the fort?

I waited for a moment, wondering if I would hear the sound of a bell or horn, alerting the vampires to our presence. I turned to the serving girl, trembling in the corner.

"Who else lives in the fort besides your master?" I asked her.

"There is only me and one other. The rest of Lord Henry's court has retired to the King's palace for the winter," she explained.

Byron scoffed loudly. "The vampires are too soft for northern winters. I imagine all the forts will be unguarded - we could use this opportunity to take back the mountains."

"We could, but with only three of us to hold the forts, we would soon lose them when the vampires returned in spring," I replied thoughtfully.

Ranni nodded in agreement and said, "We would need to recruit more dragons from the village to keep and defend the forts from the Mad Prince's army."

Getting the villagers to return to our homeland would be a challenge; however, with the right incentive, they might be persuaded.

I walked over to the long dining table and picked up one of the many solid gold goblets laid on the table.

"What do you think?" I asked Ranni, throwing the goblet to her.

She examined the goblet and pulled out a knife. Using the sharp edge, she scratched the side of the goblet and murmured, "It's solid gold."

"Good. We can at least loot the fort, so we have something to show for our troubles," I said.

I turned to the servant and ordered her to fetch some sacks that we could use to take the golden cutlery and dinner service.

The servant disappeared and then returned with several rough cloth woven sacks. Ranni took the sacks from the servant and passed them out. Glen, Ranni, and Byron started stripping the dining table of all its gold finery.

I dropped down next to Morgan and ungloved my hand. She seemed slightly dazed - perhaps by the shock of being kidnapped.

Her bright blue eyes were framed with dark rings of fatigue and worry. She looked exhausted. I gently cupped her face and asked, "How are you, my beloved flame?"

Morgan glanced down at Poppy, who was passed out on the floor. She chewed on her lip and eventually said, "Poppy is a vampire."

"Oh," I replied.

So, the vampires had finally solved the mystery of how to transform a dragon into a vampire.

"You're going to kill her, are you?" Morgan asked.

"Would you let me," I replied.

"No, I would burn your face off," Morgan said bluntly.

I couldn't help but smile at her response. She was so incredibly brave and loyal - everything was the opposite of what the fox was supposed to be.

"I don't know if we can help Poppy," I said frankly. "She's not a dragon anymore."

"She's still my family," Morgan protested.

"Then let us take her back through the portal. She can live in the Devil's House, away from the village, while we work out what to do with her," I suggested.

Morgan nodded, running her hand over Poppy's smooth blonde hair.

"What on earth am I going to tell Charlie and India? How am I going to explain this," she groaned.

"We will work something out, my mate. Whatever madness you choose to pursue, I promise to face it with you," I said.

Morgan smiled weakly at me.

"I guess you are mad at me about taking off with Poppy to see Henry," she said.

"Yes, it did take many years off my life. But we can discuss that later. I want to get you back home to the village where you will be safe," I replied.

Morgan shrugged and said unapologetically, "I don't regret doing this, especially as it means that Poppy is saved."

"Thankfully, all turned out well on this occasion. But next time, you might not be so lucky. Henry Lombard is the King's assassin and the most dishonourable vampire who ever walked these lands. Henry would have killed Poppy the moment she had outlived her use," I cautioned.

"Henry wanted to marry Poppy - that's why he attacked her. He wanted to use her to control me through her," she explained.

"We will have to keep a close eye on Poppy. She should be able to sense when Henry is near as he is her sire," I explained.

"Poor Poppy. I can't believe Henry would go to such lengths to get close to me... I just want everything to go back to the way things were," Morgan sighed.

I wrapped my arms around Morgan and pressed her tight against my chest. Finally, she was starting to learn the wicked games the vampires enjoyed playing with their enemies.