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Kieran's eyes snapped open from his otherwise restful sleep, his senses immediately on high alert. He was accustomed to the sounds of the night, the creaking of taverns settling, the distant hoot of an owl, but something was off.
A gut feeling churned within him, an unease that he couldn't ignore.
The experienced bounty hunter was seldom wrong, if ever, about the warnings his insides gave him, so he chose to listen to its whisper heedfully. Pushing the blankets aside, Kieran quietly rose from his bed and moved to the door.
He paused for a moment, his ears straining to catch any unusual sounds from the hallway. And then he heard it—a faint whimper, a muffled protest.
A female voice!
Nothing about it could be mistaken as consensual. His heart clenched with a sudden fear, and without a second thought, he moved swiftly toward the source of the noise.
As he reached the room, a few doors down from his own, his hand instinctively went for the hilt of his blade.
He could sense that something was very wrong. Readying himself for a fight if need be, he pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The sight that met his eyes made his blood run cold. Tessa was there, her back against the wall, her expression a mix of fear and confusion.
Malachai stood before her, his demeanor predatory, his fingers reaching for her erotic areas. Kieran's heart pounded in his chest, his masculine protective instincts kicking into overdrive.
"Get away from her," Kieran's voice was low and dangerous, his gaze locked onto Malachai's.
Malachai turned to face him, his eyes narrowing with a mixture of surprise and annoyance. "Well, well, Kieran. Didn't expect you to interrupt our little moment."
Tessa's eyes flickered with relief as she saw Kieran, and she quickly stepped back from Malachai. "Kieran…"
Ignoring Malachai's taunts, Kieran took a step forward, his stance radiating a silent threat. "I don't know what you think you're doing, Malachai, but it ends right now."
Malachai's lips curled into a cruel smile, his white fangs bared in raw aggression. Without warning, he lunged at Kieran with a black dagger that had been concealed up till then, his movements fueled by a mix of rage and arrogance, but Kieran was ready, his reflexes honed by years of danger.
He sidestepped Malachai's attack and swiftly disarmed him, sending the blade clattering to the floor.
"You picked the wrong person to mess with," Kieran's voice was laced with cold fury as he pinned Malachai against the wall.
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The malachite-colored fox struggled against Kieran's grip, his face contorted with anger. "You think you can protect her? You don't even know what she's capable of! You damn fool!” he roared.
Kieran's gaze remained steady, his grip unyielding. "I know enough. I won't let anyone harm her."
With a final warning glare, Kieran released Malachai, who ran out of the room as quickly as he could and turned his attention to Tessa. She looked shaken, her eyes wide with a mix of emotions. She was already crying. Without a word, he held out his hand to her, offering her the support she needed. "Tessa, are you alright?"
Tessa nodded, her voice barely above a whisper. "Yeah... t-thanks to y-y… y-you."
Kieran's gaze softened, his hand gentle as he brushed a strand of hair from her face. "Just promise me you won’t leave your drink unattended ever again."
Tessa managed a small smile, her fingers lacing with Kieran's. "I won’t. I… he…"
Before she could finish the sentence, a very loud commotion was heard downstairs, as if a fight had broken out.
Kieran took Tessa down with him, keeping himself between the violence and his female friend, not content to leave her alone at that time but still wanting to keep tabs on what was going on.
It turned out that after Malachai had bolted, he staggered out of the room and into the tavern's larger space. And there, waiting for him with eyes ablaze was Perseus. The fire dragon had roused from his slumber, perhaps somehow also induced by whatever drug the green fox had given to Tessa. His instincts were very attuned to the disturbance that had unfolded upstairs.
Perseus wasted no time. With a powerful lunge and deep roar, he pounced on Malachai, his sharp claws digging into the rapist's clothing and his jaws snapping dangerously close to Malachai's jugular vein. Perseus would not play nice or merciful, he had made it clear that he was Tessa’s protector and he would kill without question to achieve this goal.
Kieran simply watched, with a high Tessa closely near him. He was touched by the devotion that the little dragon had for his owner.
The scene was chaotic, a whirlwind of fury and adrenaline as the fire dragon exacted his form of justice upon the man who had manipulated his beloved friend. Perseus and Malachai were locked in a fierce struggle.
The fire dragon's claws were embedded in the green fox’s body, his tail thrashing, and his growls a symphony of pure hate. Malachai, on the other hand, was trapped beneath the weight and ferocity of the angered creature.
Amid the chaos, as Perseus lunged at Malachai with fierce determination, the fire dragon's jaws snapped shut just inches from Malachai's outstretched arm.
With a swift and calculated movement, Malachai managed to grab Perseus by the scruff of his neck, his gloved hand tightening around the scales despite the searing heat that radiated from the fiery creature.
A guttural growl of pain escaped Malachai's lips as the intense heat burned through his gloves and into his skin, but his determination was unshaken. With a strength that belied his lean frame, he lifted Perseus off the ground, his muscles straining against the fiery resistance of the dragon.
The dragon glowed brighter and hotter by the moment, and he jerked violently in what Kieran could only assume was rage that just kept on building.
The minty blue fox's heart raced as he realized the dire situation – if Perseus managed to break free, the consequences could be catastrophic for the tavern, and Isabella did not deserve that. Dawnbreak did not deserve that.
"Perseus, stop!" Kieran's voice rang out, his eyes locked onto Malachai's burning determination. "Let him go!"
"Perseus, no! Leave it!" Tessa yelled, her drugged state slowly losing effect due to the adrenaline pumping through her body, her eyes wide with panic as she took in the dangerous standoff.
With a final surge of effort, Malachai managed to toss Perseus aside, the fire dragon crashing into a table with a resounding crash. Ignoring the burns on his hand and the singed fabric of his clothing, as well as the blood that streamed down his slender body, the green-furred fox pushed himself to his feet and made a break toward the exit, leaving a trail of smoke and sparks in his wake.
Perseus, momentarily stunned by the impact, shook himself off and let out a furious roar that seemed to shake the very foundations of the tavern. With an agile leap, he sprang back to his feet and charged after Malachai, his fiery form beaming with unchecked hatred as he launched himself into the night.