“I’ll explain later,” I told Ember, my gaze fixed on the opposite wall. Though I could still see her from the corner of my eye, head slightly cocked, and my insides clenched. “You can trust the monks,” I went on. “If Jade says it’s safe, I believe her.” The red dragon continued to watch me without moving, and I forced myself to speak in that same low, flat voice. “Go, Ember. I’ll explain everything soon, but you need to get yourself taken care of. You won’t be any use to us injured.”
A flash of anger, and she raised her chin, the heat of her gaze searing the side of my face. For a second, I wondered if she would snarl at me or even spit fire. But her tail lashed once and she turned away, hopping stiffly out of the truck. The monks bowed as she hit the ground, then hovered around her, speaking in low, soothing voices as three of them escorted the dragon toward the temple. Even injured, Ember still put weight on her wounded leg as she trailed them across the yard, moving like she was determined not to limp. She did not look back once.
Riley regarded me, his expression unreadable. I knew he wanted to ask questions, too—demand that I tell him what was going on. But all he said was, “Tell Wes we’ll need more clothes,” and he slid gracefully out of the truck and trotted after Ember, followed by the remaining monks. I watched the procession of two dragons and six monks file up the path, climb the steps to the main building and vanish, one by one, through the door. As soon as Riley’s tail slid through the frame, the last monk reached out and shut the door behind him, and the world returned to normal.
Jade walked around the side of the truck, her gaze on the now-closed door and empty veranda. “Your friends are...interesting,” she said, making me snort. “I would hate to see your enemies.” She looked back at me, black eyes assessing. “You did not mention that one of the ‘friends’ you risked your life for was desperately hoping he could rip your head off.”
“I was a soldier of the Order,” I said wearily. “He’s the leader of a rogue dragon underground. I’m sure I’ve killed a few of his dragons in the past.” I’m also stupidly in love with the girl he considers his, and we both know it.
“Still, you did save their lives. One would assume they would be appreciative, unless there is something going on that I am not aware of?” She gave me a pointed look, raising her eyebrows. I stared back blankly, feigning ignorance, and saw the suspicion in her gaze. I was not good at lying.
“Are you certain we’ll be safe here?” I asked to change the subject. “What if the Order followed us?”
A small grin tugged at her mouth. “That would be inexplicitly difficult with all their tires leaking air.”
My brows lifted. “How did you manage that, and find a tractor-trailer?”
“A shen-lung has her ways.” She offered a deliberately mysterious smile that made her eyes glimmer green. “In any case,” she went on, sobering, “much is at stake, and we have gambled a great deal in coming here. Are you certain your friends will help us when the time comes?”
“I don’t know,” I answered, suddenly uncertain myself. Her lips thinned, showing her understandable displeasure; she’d come all the way here, put herself at considerable risk to help me, and the help I’d promised her might not pan out. Especially since the blue dragon had seemed to despise the Eastern dragon on sight; I hadn’t been expecting that. “Why was Riley so hostile to you?” I asked, and her lips tightened even further. “I assume the two of you have never met.”
She let out a huff, rolling her eyes. “Misconceptions and ancient prejudices,” she said, making an exasperated gesture at the building. “The Western dragons accuse us of cowardice and placidity, saying we hide in our temples and mountain retreats to escape the war. They have never understood that it is their own greed, violence and quest for power that brings St. George down upon them.” Her voice hardened. “And now, Talon has brought the war to our very doorsteps, forcing us to respond or to be wiped out. They have set the Order on us, for no other reason than we refuse to be like them. How can we not think our Western cousins are anything but corrupt?”
“Jade...” I moved to get down, but at that moment my shoulder sent a sharp jolt of pain up my arm, making me grit my teeth. The Eastern dragon’s eyes widened.
“You’re injured.” She shook her head. “Why are you standing here talking to me? Go tell the monks to take care of that. I did not come all this way, across two oceans, to watch you die of blood loss.”
A flash of anger, and she raised her chin, the heat of her gaze searing the side of my face. For a second, I wondered if she would snarl at me or even spit fire. But her tail lashed once and she turned away, hopping stiffly out of the truck. The monks bowed as she hit the ground, then hovered around her, speaking in low, soothing voices as three of them escorted the dragon toward the temple. Even injured, Ember still put weight on her wounded leg as she trailed them across the yard, moving like she was determined not to limp. She did not look back once.
Riley regarded me, his expression unreadable. I knew he wanted to ask questions, too—demand that I tell him what was going on. But all he said was, “Tell Wes we’ll need more clothes,” and he slid gracefully out of the truck and trotted after Ember, followed by the remaining monks. I watched the procession of two dragons and six monks file up the path, climb the steps to the main building and vanish, one by one, through the door. As soon as Riley’s tail slid through the frame, the last monk reached out and shut the door behind him, and the world returned to normal.
Jade walked around the side of the truck, her gaze on the now-closed door and empty veranda. “Your friends are...interesting,” she said, making me snort. “I would hate to see your enemies.” She looked back at me, black eyes assessing. “You did not mention that one of the ‘friends’ you risked your life for was desperately hoping he could rip your head off.”
“I was a soldier of the Order,” I said wearily. “He’s the leader of a rogue dragon underground. I’m sure I’ve killed a few of his dragons in the past.” I’m also stupidly in love with the girl he considers his, and we both know it.
“Still, you did save their lives. One would assume they would be appreciative, unless there is something going on that I am not aware of?” She gave me a pointed look, raising her eyebrows. I stared back blankly, feigning ignorance, and saw the suspicion in her gaze. I was not good at lying.
“Are you certain we’ll be safe here?” I asked to change the subject. “What if the Order followed us?”
A small grin tugged at her mouth. “That would be inexplicitly difficult with all their tires leaking air.”
My brows lifted. “How did you manage that, and find a tractor-trailer?”
“A shen-lung has her ways.” She offered a deliberately mysterious smile that made her eyes glimmer green. “In any case,” she went on, sobering, “much is at stake, and we have gambled a great deal in coming here. Are you certain your friends will help us when the time comes?”
“I don’t know,” I answered, suddenly uncertain myself. Her lips thinned, showing her understandable displeasure; she’d come all the way here, put herself at considerable risk to help me, and the help I’d promised her might not pan out. Especially since the blue dragon had seemed to despise the Eastern dragon on sight; I hadn’t been expecting that. “Why was Riley so hostile to you?” I asked, and her lips tightened even further. “I assume the two of you have never met.”
She let out a huff, rolling her eyes. “Misconceptions and ancient prejudices,” she said, making an exasperated gesture at the building. “The Western dragons accuse us of cowardice and placidity, saying we hide in our temples and mountain retreats to escape the war. They have never understood that it is their own greed, violence and quest for power that brings St. George down upon them.” Her voice hardened. “And now, Talon has brought the war to our very doorsteps, forcing us to respond or to be wiped out. They have set the Order on us, for no other reason than we refuse to be like them. How can we not think our Western cousins are anything but corrupt?”
“Jade...” I moved to get down, but at that moment my shoulder sent a sharp jolt of pain up my arm, making me grit my teeth. The Eastern dragon’s eyes widened.
“You’re injured.” She shook her head. “Why are you standing here talking to me? Go tell the monks to take care of that. I did not come all this way, across two oceans, to watch you die of blood loss.”
