Her Mad Dragon (Dragon Guard Series Book 15) Read Online Free PDF Page B

practice
with the young Guardsmen-in-Training, Maddox grumbled and growled at every
person who dared to tease him about being ‘domesticated’ and threatened to put
silver in their cornflakes when they asked how it felt to be ‘tamed’.
    Does no one have anything else to talk about?
    Sharpening his sword, still grumbling to himself about the
advantages of being a recluse, Maddox wiped off his blade and stepped away from
the workbench. The light from the noonday sun momentarily blinded him just as
his dragon jumped to attention and chuffed within the confines of the mad
dragon’s mind at something only the beast could hear. Walking farther into the
barn, the Guardsman shut out the rest of the world and focused on his dragon.
    The beast circled the confines of Maddox’s mind on high
alert. He wasn’t angry or defensive; simply on guard. After several tense
moments, his dragon jerked his head to the side and looked directly into the
Guardsman’s mind’s eye. It was the closet the two beings could or would ever
come to actually looking one another in the eye and for most Guardsmen, never
happened.
    Maddox’s beast narrowed his large blue eyes until only the
center of his elliptical pupils could be seen. Slowly nodding his huge head,
the dragon pushed the thought of an intruder into the mad dragon’s mind at the
precise moment the sensation of someone trying to access Maddox’s thoughts
pricked at his senses.
    Throwing up his mental shields, the mad dragon focused all
his enhanced vision and perception on the almost indiscernible trail of magic
the intruder left in his wake. Following the ribbon of light, apprehension at
who or what they would find filled man and beast alike. Both beings fought
against the need to draw blood first, ask questions later, concentrating
instead on identification. Maddox had just begun to lower a small section of
the wall he’d built within his mind when the remnants of a conversation floated
through his mind.
    “But hoo dae Ah knoo whit's real? How kin Ah be sure?” It was Kyran with his thick Scottish brogue and ability to ask the hard
questions, but he wasn’t talking to Maddox, or at least that’s how it felt.
    The mad dragon waited for the other party to answer, wanted
to answer himself but knew he needed to find out who his old friend was in
contact with before making his presence known. Holding his breath and counting
the seconds, Maddox grasped at the fraying thread of his patience. When no
answer came the mad dragon decided to speak, to tell Kyran to trust him, but
stopped short when a low growl that quickly grew into a roar made both man and
beast cringe against the abrasive intrusion and push back with a snarl of their
own.
    Magic beat against magic. Maddox’s skull pulsed with the
outrageous amount of power raging through it. He literally pictured his brain
exploding from the pressure but refused to relent. His dragon roared and took a
step forward. He lowered his huge head, positioning the fierce battle horns
that grew in length and width as they ascended from between his eyes across his
brow and over his head in the direction of the intruder.
    The imposing growl continued for what seemed like an
eternity but was less than ten seconds before shutting off as unexpectedly as
it had started. Echoing silence left in the wake of the retreating growl was
immediately filled with, “Ullmhú le haghaidh cath. Tá sé ar fad fíor.”
    Barely recognizing Kyran’s threatening tone, two things
became immediately clear; the Phantom was talking to himself and more
importantly, thought he was engaged in battle. Needing to talk his brethren off
the ledge before the Phantom hurt either himself or another, Maddox commanded ,
“Stand down, deartháir. The battle is over.”
    Silence was the only answer. Maddox could tell he was still
there but the feeling was strange, so unlike Kyran, but still recognizable with
the addition of his voice. It was obvious the Phantom was engaged in