The Monster's Caress - S.E. Smith Page 0,68

a small firepit.

“Creon… she was here. I recognize the way she built the fire ring. Paul taught Trisha, Ariel, and me how to make one just like it,” Carmen exclaimed with relief.

He strode over to the pit and knelt on one knee. Carmen followed him. She handed him a thin piece of partially burned driftwood. He took the stick and poked at the remains of the fire before he held his hand over the ash.

“It’s still warm,” he said.

He threw the stick into the fire pit and rose to his feet, pulling Carmen close to him. A shudder of relief ran through both of them.

“Let’s find our daughter,” she urged, kissing his neck.

He nodded, sliding his hands down Carmen’s sides before he stepped away. Zoran placed a hand on Creon’s shoulder in brotherly support, then took the lead. Carmen slid her hand into Creon’s as they followed Zoran deeper into the Hive.

Isle of the Dragons:

A month earlier

The Time-Space hoop worked differently this time. Instead of dropping through a narrow tunnel, there was a dizzying perception that the world around him was turning backward on its axis. Ashure felt like he was being ripped in two. He saw a shadow of his former self standing in the Time-Space hoop in the village before he turned to dust. At one point he crossed the same thread of time and saw Drago, Orion, and himself passing through the portal.

The spinning slowed as he approached Drago’s castle. He was suddenly thrust forward when he reached the point where he and Orion were waiting for Drago to return from his hoard. He sucked in a breath when he merged with his previous self in the great hall of the Dragon’s Palace.

“Ashure, Theron said you were here on an urgent matter. Are you alright?” Orion asked, steadying him when he swayed.

Ashure held onto Orion and stared at the other man. Emotion threatened to choke him when he heard children’s laughter and Carly, Drago’s mate, calling out a warning to Roo, their daughter, to be careful.

“Yes,” he finally forced out.

“What’s wrong?” Orion demanded.

“The alien is on the Isle of the Monsters, and Nali needs our assistance,” he replied, feeling a sense of déjà vu as he repeated what he had said before.

“When did it appear?” Orion asked.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts. It was important that they did not make the same mistake twice. Ashure cleared his throat.

“The morning of my wedding,” he admitted.

Surprise swept across Orion’s face. “Tell me everything,” he urged.

“I’ll tell you, but there is… more to the story,” he cautioned.

He quickly ran through what he had told Orion the first time. His voice faded when Drago walked in carrying a large round metal hoop. Fear gripped him for a second when he saw the hoop in Drago’s hand. Before Drago could say a word, he strode forward and ripped it out of the other man’s hands.

“What are you doing?” Drago snapped in surprise.

“I watched you die a few hours ago,” he harshly replied. He held up the Time-Space hoop and looked back and forth between Drago’s stunned face and Orion. “I watched you both die. Everything was gone—you, your families, the Kingdoms… Tonya. The alien destroyed… everything.”

His voice faltered as he remembered the devastation. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply to regain control of his emotions.

“What are you talking about?” Drago demanded.

He inhaled a deep breath and slowly released it. “We’ve used this already. We ended up in the future—a month from now—on the Isle of Magic. The alien creatures had already destroyed all but a few survivors. Ariness was leading us back to the last stronghold when we were attacked. There were too many of them.” He looked at Drago. “You ignited the dragon fire inside you to give us time to escape. The few survivors there were from every Kingdom. Dapier told me—Tonya was killed. Mike was infected.”

“How did you get back?” Orion asked in a somber tone.

He turned to Orion. “Ariness is a Time Wizard. He can control the Time-Space hoop. You and Mike held off the aliens long enough for him to activate it and send me back to this time,” he explained. “None of you survived.”

Ashure looked down at the hoop in his hand. It was far too dangerous to use, he knew without a doubt.

“What should we do?” Drago murmured.

Ashure thought for a moment. “I have the power of the sword that Magna gave me, and we know the entity cannot survive the combined