by Ann Gimpel
Angus kept surprise out of his voice. “Banished from Fire Mountain?”
Steam puffed from the dragon’s open mouth. “No. Idiot. I could live with that. They’ve banished me from the Highlands. My home.”
“What happened?”
“It doesn’t matter.” The dragon threw his words back at him. “We have to go to Fire Mountain, where I’m to find one of the First Born. Once we have him—or her—”
“One of the six First Born dragons?” Angus broke in, scarcely believing the dragon’s words. “They’ll never show themselves—unless it’s in their best interest.”
Another wing flap and a defiant head toss. “There are actually ten. One of them was my father.”
“When’s the last time you saw him?” The words slipped out before he could stop them. Dragon males frequently didn’t hang about once mating was over with, but the trembling mass of scales in front of him likely didn’t need to be reminded.
“Never. Mother said he was too immersed in battles on another world to return for our hatching.”
Angus unclenched his fists and hunted for something soothing to say that wasn’t an outright lie. Dragon energy poked past his wards and into his mind. He tried to block it, but couldn’t.
“You believe locating a First Born is hopeless.” The dragon sounded resigned. “I may as well throw myself into a crater at Fire Mountain. I’ll never see the Highlands again—or my mate.” More wing rustling and the dragon rose a few feet off the ground, clearly intent on leaving.
“Hold on.” Angus loped forward until he was right beneath the dragon. “I didn’t say that—or think it, either. I don’t know enough to make any sort of judgment. How about if you start at the beginning? If we’re going to work together, I deserve that much.”
The dragon circled a few times, indecision stamped in its erratic flight pattern.
“I know what it is to be alone.” He kept his voice gentle. “And to not have anyone who cares if I live or die.”
Maybe it wasn’t totally true. Celene might shed a tear or two, but she’d be the only one. He kept his gaze trained on the sky, relieved the dragon wasn’t putting distance between them. Something about the creature’s pain tugged at his heart and made it feel like a kindred spirit.
The copper dragon folded its wings and settled heavily to earth a few feet from where Angus stood. It straightened its shoulders and tipped its chin defiantly.
“My name is Eletea,” the dragon announced, revealing its gender.
“Angus Shea, though you likely know that.”
“Yes, I do. I killed a mage, who fancied herself a dragon shifter.” Eletea’s eyes whirled faster, as if she dared Angus to say something.
He crinkled his forehead as he dredged up what he knew about dragon shifters. “Don’t mages take their chances when they show up seeking a dragon to pair with?”
She nodded once, sharply. “The mage seduced one of us into believing her. I saved him by killing her, but he turned on me. Reported me to the Dragons’ Council, and they roped the Celts into deciding my fate, since the one I killed had Celtic blood.” Eletea’s scales rippled in the dragon equivalent of a shrug. “I don’t understand why they’re bothering. It’s not like I went after one of the gods. They’re immortal. The one all the fuss is over barely qualified as a Celt.”
Angus kept his expression neutral. “Celtic blood aside, I thought mages only bonded with same sex dragons.”
“That was another problem,” Eletea said, sounding vindicated. “No one saw it but me, though.”
Sensing the worst was out on the table, Angus settled on a nearby rock and invited, “Start at the beginning. We have time.”
“No, we don’t,” Eletea protested. “We should’ve been at Fire Mountain yesterday.” She hung her head. “I didn’t know what I wanted to do, so I flew and flew and flew. I almost didn’t land this afternoon.”
Angus did his best to project optimism. “Let’s open a time-travel portal and be on our way to Fire Mountain.” At the dragon’s reluctant nod, he went on. “I understand you have your own ways of returning home, but if you travel with me, you can fill me in as we go.”
What he didn’t say was it probably wouldn’t matter when they arrived at the dragons’ home world. First Borns wouldn’t give them the time of day, whether they showed up early, late, or right on time. He held many concerns, such as what would a First Born do, assuming they could locate one? But he held those cares inside for now.
He could’ve dreamed the future. Instead, he summoned a spell to take them to a time-traveling portal. Once the undulating gray-pink tube admitted them, he gradually paid out questions.
Reticent and quiet at first, Eletea finally began to talk.
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Also by Ann Gimpel
Dragon Lore
Highland Secrets
To Love A Highland Dragon
Dragon Maid
Dragon's Dare
Earth Reclaimed
Earth's Requiem
Earth's Blood
Earth's Hope
GenTech Rebellion
Winning Glory
Honor Bound
Claiming Charity
Soul Storm
Dark Prophecy
Dark Pursuit
Dark Promise
Standalone
Red Dawn
Marked by Fortune
Shadows in Time
Alphas in the Wild
Midnight Magic (Coming Soon)