Page 12 of Flameborne: Fury (Emberquell Academy #2)

‘Can you help me remember? I’ve counted fourteen fires so far. But I think there are more I can’t see unless I get closer. I’ll wait until those men return and decide all is clear, then follow them so I can see the route they take in and out of the camp.’

‘Is that wise?’

‘I won’t follow them all the way in. But as long as they don’t detect me, following them will make anyone who hears anything think it was them moving—and it will show me where the guards patrol.’

‘Please, be careful, Bren.’

I didn’t like how tense she sounded, but it was a mark of how much she cared that she’d be so worried about me not making a mistake here. I sent her a rush of reassurance, then settled down, staring into the camp, but I was too far away to pick out small details. I needed to get closer.

Luckily, my friends returned soon. My heart thudded so loudly when they passed right under my tree that I stopped breathing, afraid they’d hear it.

When they continued towards the camp, still talking quietly about the frustration of Feg’s paranoia, I eased out of the tree and dropped to the ground, then followed, slipping under trees and ducking behind bushes when the rough trail they followed wound to the side.

Soon the quieter sounds of the camp reached my ears between wind gusts, and more of the smells as well. It was something my brothers had taught me—never ignore your nose. It would alert you of things you couldn’t see or hear.

When the two men stopped to talk to others alongside the trail, I backed away and looked for a quiet route through the trees, nearer the edge of the clearing where I thought I’d seen more fires.

I had to climb two more trees, and huddle in the muddy shadows of one for a full fifteen minutes when the forest pulled back from the clearing in a strange little cove I didn’t see and I almost stumbled right into two guards, seated on stumps on the edge of the trees, bored, but awake.

One of them turned in my direction like he’d heard something, and both of them stopped talking. But thank God they were either instructed not to leave their positions, or they were too lazy to explore, because neither of them moved.

Neither did I. For some time. Not until they relaxed again, snorting and laughing together, and I could be sure that they made enough noise to cover the sound of my steps if I misplaced a foot.

An hour into my reconnaissance I made it far enough around the clearing to peer into the trees where I thought I’d seen other fires, and sure enough. Now that I was on the ground level, it was clear there were dozens more fires here.

Dozens. Multiple.

A chill raised the hairs on the back of my neck until I remembered this was an exercise. My goal was to remain unnoticed, to gather intelligence, and to retreat and bring the information to my superiors.

I had crouched down, measuring how far the fires stretched and trying to focus on how I could accurately count them without being discovered, when the rain started.

‘There’s more to find here, Akhane, I’m going closer. You keep resting.’

‘Please, be careful, Bren!’

Her tone sounded so desperate, I instinctively turned my head in her direction, though she was too far away to see. ‘Akhane? What’s wrong? You sound like you’re hurting?’

‘I’m not in pain,’ she said.

‘Then, why—?’

‘I don’t like being away from the herd. But don’t worry for me, Bren. Focus on your task. I’ll be here when you’re finished. And we’ll return home to show them what you’ve done.’

I smiled into the dark. ‘Yes, we will.’

A fat drop of rain plopped right onto my nose and I ducked my head, adrenaline flooding my system because it startled me. But a moment later, I huffed under the noise of the rain, now pattering the trees above, and took a deep breath. This was actually going to help, as long as I didn’t slip.

I just needed to focus.

So, I did.

I spent two more hours circling wide enough to make an accurate count of the fires and tents.

I noted every weapon and strange piece of equipment and passed those mental images on to Akhane so she could help me draw them accurately.

I found two banners and one flag, and drew close enough to catch a glimpse of an unfamiliar sigil on the coat of a dozing guard.

When I was confident I’d found enough to be useful in war, I slipped back through the forest, running wide so I could move freely. I finally found the gully higher up the land, so I had to follow it back to Akhane.

As I walked along the creekbed, the rain intensified.

The water flowing at the base of the gully had grown from a trickle, to a small stream.

But it was no matter. Now that I’d done reconnaissance without being discovered, we were practically home free.

Akhane could get me out of there before the water became a problem.

I imagined flying directly to the Keep and reporting to Donavyn, pretending to look at him without any emotion. Pretending my heart didn’t thud in my chest as I passed him the parchment where I’d written everything I learned.

I prayed that in that moment, all I’d see in his eyes was pride. Not that dark, shuttered distance. Or worse, regret.

I was so deeply engrossed in my imagined triumph, that it wasn’t until I was almost at Akhane’s side that I realized something was wrong.

She’d remained exactly in the place where I left her, hidden from the woods above by the high sides of the gully and the overhanging trees. But she weaved, shifting her weight back and forth from one leg to the other and swinging her neck. Her mouth was open and she panted. And her scales…

Her scales glowed and pulsed with such a bright light I feared one of our enemies might catch sight of her in the distance, even in the dark.

“Akhane!” I rushed to her and laid my hand on her side, hissing when she felt warm. “What’s happened? Are you sick? Why didn’t you tell me?”

‘No, no,’ she hurried to assure me, but she was still panting and sometimes the rain drops that reached her skin sizzled. ‘I am well, Bren. Only, my body feels so tight. And hot. I am… I am driven. Can we return home now?’

‘Of course!’ I had already grabbed my bag and was climbing the mounting strap, wincing because she was uncomfortably warm to the touch. ‘But what’s happening? Why are you so hot? And glowing?’

She gave a strange sigh and a rumble. ‘I’m in need, Bren,’ she sent.

I settled into my seat, praying my ass wouldn’t burn before we could get to a safe place to bed for the night, because it was clear we couldn’t fly all the way back to the Keep tonight.

But I had to wait until she’d run up the gully and launched, flying well out of range to be seen by anyone in the forest camp before I could relax enough to question her.

‘What do you need, Akhane? Is it something I can—’

It was a good thing we were miles beyond that camp already, because suddenly Akhane lifted her head, opened her jaws and screamed. But it was a call I’d never heard from her before. A ragged, pleading cry that sank into my flesh and hummed in my bones.

My breath caught as my mind suddenly filled with images—

Donavyn ripping off his shirt and throwing it aside as he stalked towards me, eyes dark.

Donavyn looming over me, twisting hands into my hair and pulling my head back, burying his face under my throat.

Donavyn naked.

Donavyn pinning me to the bed, body writhing, his shoulders wide, blocking my view of anything but him, his eyes blazing with intensity as he entered me—

I gasped, mentally shoving myself out of the vision and swallowed hard, my body thrumming and needy now.

“Akhane!” I gasped. “What was that?!”

Another vision of Donavyn, this time on the shore of the mineral pools where I bathed sometimes, pulling me with him into the water and behind him, behind us…

Kgosi, powering through the forest, chasing Akhane, hissing, his neck snaking and more of those resonant calls and roars—

“Holy shit! Akhane! Are you in heat?!”

To answer, my dragon raised her head and gave another of those tortured, beautiful screams. And as her need crackled through the bond, my blood went up in flames.