by G. Bailey
Wings of Spirit
Protected by Dragons
G. Bailey
Contents
Description
Prologue
1. Isola
2. Isola
3. Isola
4. Isola
5. Isola
6. Isola
7. Isola
8. Dagan
9. Isola
10. Isola
11. Isola
12. Isola
13. Isola
14. Isola
15. Isola
16. Isola
17. Isola
18. Elias
19. Isola
20. Isola
21. Isola
22. Isola
23. Isola
24. Isola
25. Isola
26. Dagan
27. Isola
28. Isola
Epilogue
Afterword
Links
Also by G. Bailey
Please keep reading for a small excerpt of True Light (From the Stars series)-
—
Please keep reading for an excerpt from Run Little Wolf-
Wings of Spirit Copyright © 2018 by G. Bailey
All rights reserved.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
The author acknowledges the trademark owners of various products, brands, and/or stores referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
Cover design by Christian Bentulan.
Created with Vellum
Three secrets. Two fights. And one broken curse.
Isola is finally back in Dragca, but nothing is the same when she is hunted and betrayed by everyone she meets. With one of her dragon guards fighting for his life, time is running out.
When the seers come to her aid, lies and blood are their price. With two battles on her hands, one for their freedom and one for her dragon guards, Isola has a lot to fight for . . . and a lot to lose.
The dragon guard curse must be broken, for fire has finally fallen for ice . . . but is death the final price?
18+ Reverse harem romance.
For all those who fight the impossible and win.
Prologue
No! I scream in my dragon’s head as we fall through the trees and land on the ground, his claws finally coming free of my wings, so I can move. I shoot ice onto his wings as he tries to fly and keep shooting it until his entire dragon is frozen to the ground. His dragon’s eyes almost dead as I stare at him encased in the ice. I look up, not seeing Thorne or any other dragons flying around.
“It has been a long time, Isola, don’t you think?” Tatarina’s cold, detached-sounding voice says from behind me, and my dragon turns to roar at her. I feel down my wings, knowing the damage to them is too much, and I won’t be able to fly out of here for a bit. There is only one thing we can do, even if it makes me vulnerable.
Let me take over? I ask my dragon, who doesn’t hesitate as we shift back. I stand up straight, keeping my head high as I face Tatarina. She stands still like a ghost; her dark, nearly black hair blowing in the wind is the only movement. Her eyes are completely black, and they match the dark glow her skin now has. I look over as a woman moves out from the shadows of the trees, making me take a step back.
"Bu-but, I killed you!" I gasp as Esmeralda stands by her sister’s side, smiling widely with her blood-red lips. Her eyes are now as red as her hair, and her pale skin is littered with black veins.
“Death was not my ending,” Esmeralda replies, her voice croaking and broken in places. Her head twitches as she speaks, and Tatarina places her hand on her sister’s arm.
“I will remember to chop your head off next time,” I sneer. “Just to be sure.”
“There will not be a next time, for this is your ending, Isola,” Tatarina says, holding her hands out at her sides. “You are all alone, and I am queen. Is this what you always thought would happen?”
Chapter One
Isola
“Isola, we need to take a break,” Melody gently urges, as I step over another fallen branch and pause, looking back. Melody is resting against a tree, looking breathless and tired, but watching me. I feel like crap, too, but I know we can’t just rest now. Resting could mean death, and I don't want to risk it. Bee strokes my cheek from where she sits on my shoulder, making me turn my head to stare into her green eyes. I can almost feel her sadness like it’s my own.
“Your sister is right, we need to stop. We have been walking for about ten hours, I believe,” Dagan says quietly, walking to my side. I automatically step away from him, shaking my head as I look at Korbin. His arms are around Thorne’s and Elias’s shoulders, and he is struggling to stand up as they all wait for me to say something. I know he needs to rest, but we need to get out of this damn forest and find somewhere safe.
“We can’t, look at him,” I wave a hand at Korbin. The purple lines of the poison are crawling up his pale face, and he can barely hold his head up. He is sweaty, pale, and looks on the verge of death. The poison is killing him.
“Isola, we are stopping. Korbin needs to rest, too,” Dagan says, nodding his head at Thorne and Elias who carefully set Korbin down next to a tree. He is barely conscious, and not strong enough to even hold his head up. “We are all worried. I get that, but we need to rest. We won’t stop long. I promise.”
I turn to Dagan, nodding in acceptance before walking over to Korbin and sitting next to him. I place my hand on his forehead, feeling how burning hot he is, and his green eyes pop open, a little smirk appearing on his lips.
“You make a sexy nurse, doll,” he tells me, and I chuckle, shaking my head. “I like hearing you laugh,” he coughs on his words, and I see blood on his hand even as he tries to hide it from me as he lowers his hand to his side.
“I like hearing you awake and talking. Do you want some water?” I ask him, clearing my throat as I try to speak through the fear I'm feeling. He nods, and I pull the small water bottle out of the bag that Melody brought with her. We have pretty much emptied it already. There wasn’t much in there to start with, but it’s better than nothing. We don’t have a lot of water left now, but we have to find a village soon, and we can re-stock. I open the plastic bottle, holding it to his lips and helping him drink. Before I put the bottle back, I take a long drink for myself. I rest the bag on the ground near Korbin. I look up as Bee flies off my shoulder, landing on Korbin’s lap and smiling up at him. She is growing; she even looks bigger than when I first saw her again.
“Dying,” Bee says, pointing a tiny hand at his stomach, and Korbin laughs, even though it makes him cough.
“Thanks for telling me that, Bee. I think I know, though, and don’t need a reminder,” he says playfully, and Bee shrugs, looking over at me with worry in her eyes.
“Food?” she asks, holding out a hand.
“We don’t have any food left, I’m sorry. There is water . . .” I say, and she sighs dramatically, flying up past us and sitting on a branch hanging over Korbin. She lies down, her long green hair blowing in the wind, and I think she is going to sleep, but who knows. She hasn’t talked to anyone much on the walk here. Well, none of us have really spoken, and I think it’s about time that changed. It’s been years since I was last in Dragca, and I’m worried what I’m going to find when we get out of this forest. I look back at Korbin, seeing his eyes are closed and light sounds of snoring are coming from his chest. I end up just watching his chest move for a while. The movement reminds me that he is alive, and we still have tim
e to save him. A branch cracks behind me, and I turn to see Elias standing there. His hair is messy, and his dark-blue eyes don’t have that glow to them anymore. He looks crushed, just like all my dragon guards have since we got here. Since they lost their dragons because of me. I struggle to swallow the guilt I feel as I look at Elias.
“We are all going to sleep for a bit, and I’m on first watch. Get some rest,” he says.
“I can’t sleep,” I say, frustrated, and stand up. I don’t want to sleep, because all I can think about is what happened when I last let myself be vulnerable. How I couldn't stop him and needed someone to save me. I can’t sleep because I’m scared I’ll wake up and Korbin will be gone. He needs me. Sleep is the last thing on my mind, but I can’t make the words leave my lips that I want to tell Elias. I look over to see Dagan making a fire, and the simple, normal act makes me relax a little. Reminds me that I’m safe, for now anyway. I look away to see Melody is resting against another tree, her hood covering her face, and Thorne is standing not far from us, watching the forest.
“You should try,” Elias says gently, moving to touch my arm, but stopping as I flinch.
“I’m sorry, it’s not you,” I blurt out my excuse. I can’t believe I just quoted every terrible clichéd movie quote as someone gets dumped. Not that I’m dumping Elias. I literally can’t as we share blood. We share a bond, and I don’t want to dump him anyway. I just feel scared to let him touch me, to let him hold me and tell me this is all okay when it’s so far from okay. I can still feel Michael’s hands on me, still feel how weak I felt and how powerless.
“It’s him, I know. When you’re ready, I will always be waiting,” he tells me, and I nod. I want to reach out and hold his hand, but I just can't. I almost hate myself for it when I see the longing in his eyes.
“It’s impossible to make you walk away, isn’t it?” I slightly tease him.
“You know it,” he smirks.
I walk over to Thorne, stopping at his side. He doesn’t move, doesn’t speak for a long time as I follow his gaze through the forest. It’s silent and almost peaceful.
“What has changed in Dragca while I’ve been gone? I need to know what your mother has done,” I ask quietly, and Thorne finally looks over at me, his pale-blue eyes still so hauntingly open to me. I can see what he feels, almost guess exactly what he is thinking, just by looking into them. He doesn’t hide anything from me, but it’s still not enough for me to trust him again. Saving me wasn’t enough for me to trust him with my heart again, but I know I can’t let him walk away from me yet, either. His pale-blond hair moves around his face in the wind, and his cloak floats just behind him as we watch each other. I wonder what he thinks as he looks at me? Does he see a scared princess, or someone else? Someone that is worth all of this. He still wears the royal cloak, the ice and fire dragons embroidered into it. It’s just a reminder of what happened to get us to this point. I hate that I can’t trust him, and I hate that it hurts my heart every time I think of our past.
“A lot,” he answers. Two words are not enough to explain everything I need to know. I’m tired of this; I won't settle for these non-answers anymore. How am I meant to save Dragca, convince the seers I’m their queen, and somehow get my dragon guard their dragons back when they treat me like a clueless girl?
“Simple answers are not enough right now. Tell me everything, Thorne. I will never trust you, never accomplish all I'm meant to, if you don’t tell me what I need to know. I’m not the same girl you met at Dragca Academy, the girl who didn’t know what she wanted or who she was . . . I am Isola Dragice, and I want to know what has happened to my world,” I demand, getting frustrated with him as he still silently watches me. I feel Dagan’s approach, just before he steps to my side and places his arm around my waist. I don’t know why I can let Dagan touch me, hold me. Maybe it’s just because he doesn’t ask permission to hold or support me. He just does, and once I’m near him, I don’t want to pull away.
“Why don’t we all sit by the fire and discuss this? There are things we haven’t had a chance to tell the princess, also,” Dagan asks Thorne as he rolls his lip ring in typical Dagan fashion. Thorne doesn’t seem to notice as he seems more focused on my proximity to Dagan than listening to him.
“Like what?” I ask Dagan, wondering what he could possibly be talking about.
“Your father gave us a mission before he died, before we even met you. A mission based on a prophecy that no one other than the old king knew about,” Dagan says, keeping his light-blue eyes locked on mine. I try to hold my dragon’s growl in as I move out of Dagan’s arms and feel ice on my fingertips as I get angry.
Too many secrets, my dragon whispers in my mind, and I couldn’t agree with her more.
“Tell me everything, and no one leaves out any secrets this time,” I demand, shooting a fierce look at both Dagan and Thorne before stepping away and walking over to the fire.
Chapter Two
Isola
“Start from the beginning,” I say, standing with my arms crossed as Dagan, Elias, and Thorne walk to the fire, crowding in close to me. It’s strange to see them all together like this; my dragon guards who I’ve been falling for and the dragon guard that has been haunting my dreams. I can’t stop myself from stealing glances at Thorne every so often because the dreams didn’t do him justice. I forgot what it was like to be near him, to have that inexplicable connection I feel. A connection that makes me forget about his betrayal, which I never want to do. Melody looks up from the tree she is resting against, listening in as her blue eyes lock on mine. My sister has yet to say much, though she's always watching me every time I look at her. I have a feeling she is hiding things from us, but calling her out on it won’t work. I imagine she is as stubborn as I can be. I hear a cough, and I look over to find Korbin sleeping, chest heaving. He sounds like he’s in pain, and it’s worrying me. This isn’t Earth, I can’t just take him to a doctor and demand they fix him. We need a healer that doesn’t work for the new queen. It’s like looking for a needle in a haystack, but with that haystack on fire. I can’t even bring myself to acknowledge that I might lose Korbin, not with how I feel for him. I love him, the pain I feel every time I look at him confirming it.
“Maybe you should start,” Elias suggests, giving Dagan a pointed look before his dark eyes drift back to me. Elias’s black hair is messy, and he looks tired, yet still so incredibly hot. It’s easy to get lost in my thoughts when I look at Elias, and the smirk on his lips lets me know he knows what I’m thinking.
“No, Korbin should be the one telling this to Isola as he started it all, but here we go,” Dagan says, clearing his throat and not looking my way as he starts to speak. “Korbin’s parents were both close to the king, and your father asked them to find three dragon guards he could trust implicitly. Of course, they chose their son, and Korbin asked us, trusting only us to keep a secret,” he says, pausing to look at Korbin, and Elias takes over.
“We were brought to the king, and the first words he said were, ‘The ones that come when called, will fall for ice. When fire falls for ice, darkness will have its price.’” I muse over his words, completely confused. Why would my father say that?
“I heard about the lost prophecy from my mother, but she never told me what it said. I think she feared it, hated it maybe,” Thorne admits, and we all look at him for a second. If his mother fears this prophecy, we need to know everything about it. Thorne keeps his eyes locked on mine for only a minute, and I see so much guilt. It reminds me that I still need to tell him what Melody showed me, what his mother has done. I just need to find time alone with him. He shouldn’t have an audience when he learns the truth.
“What is it? What else did it say, and who made it?” I rapidly ask questions as the cold wind blows against all of us, and Dagan holds his hands over the fire, warming them up as he answers.
“He didn't share the full prophecy with us. Only that single sentence and one other thing, before demanding that we meet him a
t Dragca Academy in two weeks when you were to return to Dragca. He told us to stay quiet and follow you,” he tells me. I stay silent for a while, just staring at the fire. My father was keeping more secrets from me, and it doesn’t even surprise me anymore. I don’t know how he expected me to take the throne when it was built on so many lies. I look over at Melody, who doesn’t seem shocked. She is a prime example of those lies.
“Tell me?” I look towards Dagan and ask carefully.
“He told us that ice cannot rule anymore, that ice and fire must find balance. That light and dark must find their way to survive, together. He said that we would be crucial in the war that was coming. A war that will destroy Dragca, destroy Earth, and anything light or dark in our worlds unless we stand in its way. Unless we change what everyone has always known,” Dagan says, and there’s a tense silence between us all as I look into the fire, trying to collect my thoughts before I reply to them. My father knew something, something bad, and he sent my guards to me. He knew they would fall for me, like I would fall for them, but why didn’t he say anything to me? I look over at Melody, who just pulls her hood back up, hiding her face in darkness and not saying a word. I bet my sister knows more than she is admitting right now.