Page 52

“Hold on.”

“As if I’m not already holding on!”

Daeja banks left—hard—and I’m thrown to the right, sliding off her back and dangling from her neck.

She falters and dips lower to the water, shrieking in surprise at the sudden shift of weight.

My legs pedal pathetically below me, my arms trembling in effort to keep clasped around her neck. My sweat-slickened grip slides off her scales, and I fall backwards with a scream.

I don’t know if it’s seconds or minutes into the free fall, but as I twist to face the water quickly promising to meet me, my body is snatched in the fall. Something yanks my shirt from above me, the wind whispering against my naked back. Daeja’s breath warms my skin, the steel of her teeth pressed against the nape of my neck. I grab hold of my collar to keep myself from choking. She lifts higher into the air, the water shrinking below my feet at an alarming pace.

My chest tightens painfully, my heart hammering like a war drum beneath my skin. “Put me down!”

“I can’t.”

“Daeja. Put. Me. Down!”

She snorts. “Fine. As you wish.”

Her grip on me disappears. A scream rips through me as I free fall once again. I crash into the lake, swallowed by the frigid water. I fight for air, my skin stinging as I race toward the surface. When I break through and suck in a breath of fresh air, I blink water out of my eyes and scan the dark night for her.

“That wasnotwhat I meant!”

A numbness creeps into my limbs, each kick and stroke slowing with every passing second.My legs lock up, and my face dips back below the surface. A panic heats my lungs as I struggle to keep my head above the water. But I sink, lower and lower with each delayed kick, until I’m completely underwater. The slowing pulse of my heartbeat echoes around me, my eyes dragging closed.

Daeja plunges into the water beside me. She stretches forward, grabbing a mouthful of my shirt and pulling me up. We break through the surface, a strangled gasp slips from my lips. Her powerful legs swish through the water as she carries me to the shore. Dragging me out of the lake, she leaves me on the shore, my body convulsing in shivers as I pull my knees up to my chest to conserve body heat. She gathers driftwood and sets them down near me. One of the branches snaps in her jaws, and I flinch.

My mind immediately swims back to the two men who were executed.

A warm glow seeps from the back of Daeja’s throat as she unhinges her jaw.

“N—no. Please, dddon’t,” I say through chattering teeth. I can’t fathom seeing a fire right now. My throat constricts atthe thought alone. That, and the light could attract unwanted attention.

My gaze sweeps over to the opposite side of the lake toward the outpost. The tree line blocks my view of camp, but a soft glow emits from its direction.

What is happening at the camp now…and who is responsible for cutting down the prisoners? Do they even get a proper burial, and their families a chance to honor their memories? What had they even been caught for, and why couldn’t Cole stop it?

My stomach churns. The prisoners likely didn’t have anything as damning as an actual dragon. If I was caught, that would be one thing. But if Cole was caught? If I were responsible for his violent death? The thought alone makes me nauseous.

Daeja curls herself around me, angling her wings to cut out the wind. The hot breath from her nose warms my skin, chasing away the shivers and cold.

When I first met her, she had been curling into me for warmth. And now I was tucked into her side for her body heat, her long neck and tail wrapping around me.

“Why did you do that?”I whisper.

“You told me to put you down.”

“Not what I meant.”

She snorts, the steam billowing in my face and warming my cheeks.

“Why did you want me to ride you?”

She shifts her body, somehow managing to edge even closer to me. “I thought we could get to the Dragon Lands faster if we could fly there.”

I gaze up at her.“We can’t go without Cole.”

“And why not?”