Page 7 of Claim the Light
My eyes widen at how familiarly he speaks to me.Silly Sophia.It’s the dismissal my mother would give whenever I tried to ask for her help.
Silly Sophia, it’s all in your head.
Silly Sophia, you have it far better than I ever did.
Silly Sophia, be grateful Tyler doesn’t throw you out.
Silly Sophia, if you were a better wife, he would be nicer to you—
My mother called me “silly” so many times that my ex-husband took to using it, too.
A maelstrom of emotions springs to life within me, but I feel like a butterfly beating at my old cage.
If I could draw a full breath, I would let my rage loose in a scream.
All I can manage is a whisper. “Tyler.”
CHAPTERTHREE
My ex-husband pulls to a stop, raising himself fully upright, his shadow engulfing me in icy darkness.
“I warned you that you wouldn’t survive without me.” The corners of Tyler’s lips rise and his eyes gleam at me, as if he’s mocking me for taking so long to recognize him, but how could I have?
The Tyler I knew had blond hair, fair skin, and gray-blue eyes. He only picked fights against opponents he thought he could beat. He never would have taken on a Grudge dragon in the past, let alone their leader.Never.
But now…
He clearly has strength and power he never had before.
His entire form has changed, even more than mine has.
The dragon’s light was created to give dragons the power to evolve. It was intended to allow each new generation to be born with traits that ensured our survival through the ages and kept us in balance with an inevitably changing environment. The ability to take human form is one of those traits. The absence of an aura is another since it helps us evade detection from other supernaturals.
By bringing the dragon’s light back into the world, Lana restored our ability to have our own souls and our ability to find our hearts. No more will we struggle to shift or to have children or to blend into human society.
But the changes in Tyler are beyond anything I imagined possible.
Was his heart truly this dark that this is what he’s become?
Micah’s voice cuts through the frozen silence that was squeezing my insides, his command aimed at Tyler. “Step away from Sophia.”
It’s not the first time Micah has placed himself between me and my ex. He first did it within the Scorn’s territory—the clan with which Tyler has aligned himself. I didn’t need Micah’s help then, but I’m not too proud to admit that I need it now.
Micah and Ibothneed help. We can’t fight Tyler alone. Not in his new form.
For a second, my gaze flashes to the door leading back into the building. Zahra is one of the strongest dragons alive, but to run to her would take the threat to her daughter, too. The other two dragons I consider family—the Lamonte cousins, Beatrix and Felix—are too far away. They left earlier to take the rightful leader of the Scorn, the teenager Gisela, to safety. They wouldn’t have hesitated to fight, but they aren’t here.
The corners of Tyler’s eyes crinkle as he tips his chin at me, his posture deceptively relaxed. “You don’t give me orders, Grudge.”
I know that look on Tyler’s face. It’s the disarming smile he wears to hide the fact that he’s about to lash out.
My gasped cry of warning barely breaks the air when Tyler swings toward Micah, throwing a low punch.
Tyler’s black claws extend just before his fist smacks into Micah’s ribs and thecrackshatters my hope.
“No! Micah!”
The force of the punch propels Micah across the rooftop. He lands heavily on his side, his upper wing partially covering his torso and lower face. His eyes are closed and his breathing is shallow. I can’t see the extent of the wound Tyler’s claws will have made, but the crack signaled at least one broken rib.
