by Mandi Oyster
She bowed her head slightly. “I appreciate your faith in me, but I want you to know for sure.”
Looking into her lilac eyes, I saw a mother’s joy when her egg hatched. Horrified, I watched as she was captured by Draconian. I felt her fear for her son and her relief when he wasn’t taken. When I freed her, I felt her desire to flee, to find her son, but her need to repay me overrode that urge. I felt her strength, her gratitude, and her devotion.
“Thank you for staying and helping my friends.” I leaned back. “Did you find your son?”
She stepped away. “Yes, he remained safe. He is grateful to you for freeing all of us. Val was the same age as my son when he was taken. If Draconian would’ve taken him, I might have been able to resist orders as Mavros did for you.” She stepped away from me and looked at Cash.
He held his hands up. “Been there. Done that. She knows she can trust me.”
Arianna lifted her brows and looked at me. I nodded. “I’ve read all of your auras and Aurelia’s. I don’t know anything about the unseen dragons, but they helped me when I needed it.”
“Did anybody ever find out who Argentum screened?” Samantha seemed so small in a room full of dragons. “Obviously, Tye must’ve been one, but did he check anybody else?”
Russ rubbed his chin. “I don’t know if Aurelia found out, but I’ll ask her.” He closed his eyes and lowered his head.
We all watched him, wondering what the answer would be or if he would even be given one. While we waited, I walked behind Cookie Monster and rubbed Cody’s shoulders. “When Tye found out what Argentum wanted, he quit helping him. They’d been working together to take my powers from me. Without Tye, Argentum would’ve eaten me.”
“Still betrayed you.” Cody clenched the arms of the chair.
I shrugged. “He did, but I think he just wanted me to be taken by the Nephilim so that I couldn’t control him. It seems to be something most of the dragons fear.”
Chapter 33
Searching
“Tye was the only dragon that Argentum screened.” Russ shook his head. “I still can’t believe one of the elders would do something like this. All our lives, we’re told that they are the best of us, the wisest, the strongest, the bravest. We all endeavor to be like them. How could he do this?”
Arianna rubbed his arm. “Maybe the elders should be scrutinized after this.”
“They should’ve been after Dacia freed us.” Cash clenched his jaw. “They never lifted a finger to help.”
“They were scared.” Arianna’s voice was soft and soothing.
Cash stood rigid, his hands fisted at his sides. “If they’d have all gone in at once, they could’ve overcome him, but they were safe. As long as they stayed hidden, they had nothing to fear.”
“At least the others know about his deception.” I pulled my hand through my hair, forgetting about the cut on my palm. A strand caught on the scab, ripping it off. Blood pooled.
The dragons all turned toward me, and Cody stood up. “Out. Now!”
They all disappeared, and Cody dug out the first aid kit Nancy had stocked for me after learning about my nightmares. He rubbed antiseptic cream on the cut, then carefully wrapped it with a bandage. “Need to be more careful.” He taped the end. “They’re friends, but your blood does something to them.”
“Yeah.” I flexed my hand to see how bad the bandage impaired it. “Why didn’t it affect Aurelia like that?”
“That’s a good question.” Dan stood up and stretched his arms over his head.
Cody sat down in Cookie Monster and held his head in his hands. “Malcolm was the only one with a problem last time. He’s tasted her blood.”
“So has Argentum.” Samantha curled her legs under her, pressing herself into the corner of the red couch.
“Val liked the smell of it, but luckily, he didn’t taste it.” I walked over to the window and looked outside. The sun had set, but the campus was illuminated all the time. Snow blew into huge drifts. “It looks nasty out there. Is anybody hungry? We should go before it gets much worse.”
We bundled up to go to Sedum Hall for supper. The dragons met us in the hall and escorted us. As soon as we stepped outside, the wind seemed to tear through my clothes and bite into my skin. Cash moved in front of me, taking the brunt of it.
“Thank you,” I said as we trudged through the drifts.
His voice was muffled by the wind. “It doesn’t bother me.”
I don’t think Tye will be a problem anymore, but he threatened to kidnap my friends to get me to come out of hiding, I thought to the dragons. They all perked up, seeming more alert. I don’t want them to have to worry about it, but I’m afraid Argentum might try something.
We will be extra vigilant, Arianna responded.
When we were all seated, Samantha asked, “So, should Dan and I stick closer to you so all five dragons can keep an eye on you?”
Malcolm leaned back in his chair. “Three of us will do. Either Cash or I will stay in her room. She’ll be safe.”
I pushed my pasta around, occasionally taking a bite. Nefarious was the only monster I’d faced that wanted me dead, but at least he hadn’t wanted to eat me.
Looking around the room, I saw Diana and Olivia sitting at a table with a couple other students. I wondered if they’d follow me forever to make sure I didn’t fall to darkness. According to Aurelia, I would spend the majority of my life fighting monsters. Maybe their sanctuary would appeal to me sometime in the future. I nodded at them and ran my breadstick through my sauce, taking a bite. Now that they weren’t actively trying to capture me, I should try to make them my allies.
D
Thursday and Friday passed by uneventfully. Cody and I spent most of our free time working on homework. Cash and Val sat in my room with us while Malcolm searched for the cave Tye had taken me to. Either I’d been too deep underground or the cave was far from here. It seemed more and more likely that I would have to return there and face the silver beast. Even though the dragons would be there with me, I had the feeling that it would be up to me to bring Argentum down. I didn’t think I’d be able to win him over with my good looks and charm either.
When Malcolm returned to my room Friday night, his posture was rigid, and his hands were clenched. He stared out the window, slowing rolling his head from one shoulder to the other, over and over again. Time seemed to slow while I waited for him to tell us what had happened. Finally, he turned toward me. “I’m sorry, Dacia, but I can’t smell even a trace of your blood out there.”
My shoulders slumped, but I really wasn’t surprised. What were the odds that an elder dragon’s lair would be within fifty miles of Phlox University? “So … I’ve been thinking. Is Argentum his true name?”
“No.” Cash huffed a laugh. “That would be too easy. Wouldn’t it?”
Malcolm narrowed his eyes at me. “You can’t do that. If you control one of us using our true name, you’ll show all the other dragons you’re no better than Draconian.”
“That’s not what I wanted to do.” I set my pen down on top of my notebook. Even though most of my assignments had to be turned in electronically, writing things down helped me remember them. “I wanted to show him that even though I know it, I wouldn’t use it. Kind of like I did with Cash.”
“I should’ve known better.” Malcolm sat on the couch between Cash and Val.
Cody set his book on the floor. “Aurelia having any luck?”
“No.” Malcolm shook his head. His hair bounced from shoulder to shoulder. “I’m beginning to wonder if all this secrecy is worth it?”
Cash snorted. “And who would we trust? The elders? I think not.”
“I’ll take you there.” Knowing Cody wouldn’t be happy with that decision, I looked anywhere but at him.
“You crazy?” Anger and d
esperation filled his voice. “He wants to eat you.”
I yanked my hand through my hair. “I know, but I can’t just wait for him to come after me. He needs found.”
“Give me a couple more days,” Malcolm said. “If I can’t find him by Sunday night, we’ll get everybody together, including Aurelia, and figure out what to do. Until then, let’s train.”
L
Argentum emerges from the underground lake. The water falls off of him, and his sterling scales shimmer in the firelight. Six dragons stand with me, but compared to him, they’re tiny.
“You brought her to me.” His voice rumbles through the cave.
I step over a pile of bones. “These dragons are my friends. They know I won’t hurt them.”
“If they believe that, you must be controlling them.” He lifts his front leg. Water pours off his talons into the lake. “No dragon in its right mind would befriend a human.”
Malcolm steps forward. “She freed us, and we vowed to protect her.”
Argentum swings his neck around and clamps his jaws down on Malcolm’s neck. Black blood puddles on the ground. Bones snap, and Malcolm’s aura blinks out.
“Stop!” I press my hands out in front of me. “Why’d you kill him?” I fall to my knees. “He was my friend.”
“He was a miscreant before Draconian took control of him—” he looks down at Malcolm’s body “—and it doesn’t appear that he changed.”
Aurelia steps toward him. Her gilded scales twinkle. “Argentum, the elder council wishes for you to stand before them and be judged for your crimes.”
“Crimes?” He scoffs. “I’ve committed no crime. If I rid the world of Dacia Wolf, she will only be missed by a few insignificant humans, and the world will be better off.”
“No.” She shakes her crested head. “She is a friend to dragons. Fairies have vouched for her to the Nephilim. They have accepted her. She has even made a demon change his ways.”
“Lies.” He swats his paw and knocks Aurelia to the ground. “Give her to me, and go in peace.”
“We cannot.” Russ fans his wings. “Dragon vows are sacred, or have you forgotten?”
“Do not insult me, boy.” Argentum drags his other leg out of the lake. “I helped make the laws that we live by.”
“So, why do you think you can break them?” I yell at him to draw his attention from the dragons.
“In times of danger, the elders have always had the right to do whatever was necessary.” He narrows his eyes at me. “Tell them to back away, or they will all die for you.”
“No one else is going to die.” The last word catches in my throat. I clap my hands, and all of the dragons but Argentum disappear.
He growls, and a shiver sprints up my spine. “It is time for you to give your life for the greater good.” He swipes a massive, taloned paw at me.
His claws slice through my back. I fall to my hands and knees. My vision darkens.
L
Cody stood above me. I couldn’t make out his words, but I could hear the anger in his voice. It took a few tries, but I finally opened my eyes.
“She’s awake.” Cash sounded relieved. He knelt down at eye level to me. “Are you okay?”
I tried to shake my head, but it sent a spasm through my back.
“Let us heal her,” Malcolm said to Cody.
He stood firmly in front of me. “Can’t trust you around her blood.”
“Please.” My voice was so soft I didn’t know if he’d hear it.
He looked down at me. “You sure.”
“Please.”
Cash and Malcolm each took one of my hands. Malcolm held on tighter than he normally would, and I wondered how much longer his self-control would last.
Their energy flowed into me, lessening the pain. The tension in my body released, and I looked into Malcolm’s bronze eyes. “He killed you.”
“Not going to happen.” He shook his head and smiled at me. “I won’t let him.”
“How do you know?”
He smiled at me. “Because you’re going to tell me exactly what happened. If it was a premonition, I’ll see it coming.”
Chapter 34
Hanging Out
Cody and I waited until he was allowed to be in the women’s dorm before we stepped into the hall with my dragon guards. Marcy grinned shyly at Val as we walked past, and I hoped he didn’t see it for what it was. With his instincts, I wasn’t sure how he’d react.
“Dacia,” Cassandra shouted from behind me when we stepped outside.
Huge snowflakes fell to the ground, blanketing everything. They caught on my eyelashes. Reaching up to wipe them off my face, I turned around and smiled at her. “Hello.”
“What are you doing today?” She trotted to catch up to us.
Pulling the collar of my coat up to block the wind, I pointed toward Sedum. “We’re meeting Samantha and Dan for breakfast. Then I thought about going to Althea.”
“Oh.” She looked down.
“Wanna come?” Cody asked.
She lifted her head, and a smile lit up her face. “That’d be great. Bryce, too?”
“Sure.” I shrugged. “If Samantha and Dan come, we’ll have to take a coupla cars. Cody’s is out. Too much snow.”
She walked with us to Sedum Hall. Bryce stood just inside the door, waiting for her. “Hey.” He nodded at us.
“Want to go to Althea with them?” Cassandra sounded excited, and I couldn’t help but smile at how things changed if you let them.
He shrugged. “Sure. It’s nice to get off campus every once in a while.”
I got pancakes with strawberries and whipped cream and a few strips of bacon. Then sat down with my back to the wall. Diana tossed a smiled my way as she sat at a table between me and the door. I smiled back and made a mental note to try to talk to her.
When I was about halfway through breakfast, Dan and Samantha showed up. “Sorry we’re late.” Samantha took her coat off and hung it on the back of her chair.
“Althea?” Cody asked before shoving his toast into his mouth.
Dan nodded and sat beside Samantha. “Sounds fun. We haven’t been there together in a while.”
“Bryce and Cassandra”—I pointed my fork at them when I said their names—“are coming, so someone else will have to drive. My truck only fits two.”
Dan shrugged. “I can fit five in mine.”
“We don’t need a ride.” Cash leaned closer. “It’ll be nice to spread our wings.”
Both Bryce’s and Cassandra’s eyes widened.
“You won’t see them.” I sopped up as much syrup as I could with my pancakes. “Unless they want you to.”
“Cool.” Bryce put scrambled eggs on his toast.
Malcolm picked up his tray. “Do you want me with you? Say the word, and I’ll go.”
I looked at Cash, Val, Russ, and Arianna and pulled my hand through my hair. It was still damp from walking in the snow. I shook my head. “Unless you want to, I think you should keep looking.”
“Stay safe.” He nodded.
“You, too.”
We met in the commons at two o’clock to go to Althea. Before we left, I said, “I don’t feel right going anywhere with you—”
Cassandra’s face fell. “Then—”
“Let me finish.” I held my hand up. “I don’t feel right going anywhere with you, without warning you that there is an elder dragon hunting me.”
Bryce tilted his head. “So, what does that mean?”
“Not much since you haven’t seen a dragon before.” I tucked my hands into my coat pockets. “He’s about twice their size, and he’s one of their leaders.”
“I thought you helped them”—Cassandra moved closer to Bryce—“so why’s he aft
er you?”
I looked around the room, hoping nobody else was listening to our conversation. “He’s afraid.”
“Dacia’s really powerful.” Samantha rolled her eyes at my answer. “He’s scared she’ll try to control him, and he thinks if he eats her, he’ll gain her powers.”
“He wants to eat you?” Cassandra’s mouth hung open. “And you sent one of your guards away?”
I toed the ground. “Yeah, I’ll be okay. I just wanted to warn you that if you hang out with me, things can get kinda weird.”
“Okay.” Bryce rubbed his hands together. “Consider us warned.”
When we got done brushing the snow off my truck, Cody said, “Why don’t I drive?”
“Your car doesn’t get around in this, Cody.”
He held his hand out. “Your truck.”
“Oh.” I reached into my pocket and gave him my keys. “Why?”
He unlocked the doors and held the passenger one open for me. “Mavros pulled you away twice. What if Argentum can?”
“Okay.” I nodded. “Good point.”
He shut the door and walked to the driver’s side. Dan followed us out of the parking lot and into Althea.
Snowflakes drifted lazily from the sky, making Cody take the curves slower than normal. He kept both hands on the wheel the entire drive. Normally, our fingers would’ve been entwined, the music would’ve been louder, and the tension wouldn’t have been so thick.
There was more to his apprehension than the weather. He’d driven faster on worse roads. I opened my mouth to ask him about it but decided not to. Instead, I rubbed his shoulder. Then I traced my finger along his ear. His grip on the steering wheel loosened slightly.
He turned off the main road in Althea, driving through the less touristy areas. The bowling alley was on the far edge of town. Trees lined one side of the parking lot and continued behind the building. Snow clung to their branches and mounded at their bases.
Cody pulled into the lot, and the dragons made it look like they got out of a car a few down from us. They stopped by my truck. “Is bowling as easy as basketball?”