I looked over my shoulder; she was only a few paces behind me. My heart sped up when I felt the heat of Draco's breath on my cheek.
"Keep running," he whispered.
I nodded and kept going toward the barn, using what strength I had, I opened the barn door all the way. I heard the assassin yelp as she tumbled head over heels before hitting a tree. She groaned but didn't move.
I went for the room at the back of the building and quickly removed my gowns, sliding into my dragon armor.
"Draco!" I hollered, emerging from the room.
He shimmered into sight, lowering his head for me. I hurriedly climbed onto his shoulders, holding onto the spines on his neck. He ran from the barn, both of us disappearing, before lifting into the sky. I looked down as guards surrounded the woman, who shakily got to her feet, daggers in each of her hands. She looked around wildly, probably for me. She let out an enraged roar and tried to fight off the king's guard. They managed to surround her, tying her hands behind her back.
"Was she one of them?" Draco asked.
"Yes. I believe so."
"What are they doing with her?" he asked.
"I don't know, Draco. I don't know."
"I'm taking you somewhere safe. You need to do more training, today."
"Okay."
He flapped his might wings, the wind bending around us, as we sped through the air. The countryside passed under us at a blur. The rocky cliff of the nesting sight came into view as Draco slowed, lowering toward the ground for his landing.
"Hold on, this will be bumpy for you."
"Okay," I shouted over the rushing wind.
His claws stretched toward the earth as it came upon us much faster than I liked. I lunged forward, his spikes digging into my belly, hugging his neck. The dragon armor protected my soft skin from being pierced. I let go, falling to the ground thankful to be alive.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Thankful to be alive. That was scary."
"Horace!" Draco called.
"Horace?"
A short, plump man emerged from beyond the rocky cliff. His balding head, bright eyes, and big smile made me smile in return.
"What can I do for you, sir?"
"Your bow and arrow. Please bring it. I need to train the princess."
He nodded and vanished beyond the cliff again.
"You're training me how to use a bow and arrow?" I asked.
"Yes. While flying it will be difficult for you to use a sword. I want you to be able to use both."
I nodded and accepted the bow and quiver from Horace before he disappeared to the nests below.
"Show me how you hold the bow."
"I don't know how to."
"Not at all?"
"I've only ever used swords and daggers, never a bow."
"What type of assassin doesn't use a bow?" he asked.
"My mother was more hand to hand."
He shook his mighty head and let out what I assumed was a dragon laugh. Smoke poured from his nostrils and the light of fire brightened in his throat. "Hold the riser in front of you."
"The what?" I asked, staring at the odd contraption.
"The center part of the wood. That's the riser. Get an arrow and nock it."
"You mean here?" I pointed to the center of the bowstring. "I put the feathery part of the arrow here?"
"Yes." He shook his head again. "The feathers are called the fletching. The carved out spot beyond that is called the nock. It helps steady the arrow."
I did as he told, holding the fletching between my fingers to hold it steady.
"Amazing."
"What?" I asked.
"You're holding it right!"
"Maybe I'm just a natural."
"Pull back on the bow string and arrow, aim for the tree in the center of the field."
"It's so far away!"
"You can make it."
"I don't think so."
"Trust yourself."
"I'll try."
"Steady your breathing, become one with your bow."
I nodded and closed my eyes. Slowing my breathing and listening to my heart thud in my ears. It slowed to a dull pat, pat, pat. The string seemed to melt into my hand as the feathers blew in the wind. The wood felt so smooth in my hand.
I opened one eye and breathed out one last time letting loose the arrow. I watched as the projectile soared through the air, wobbling toward the tree. A dull thud and it stuck to the center.
"Impressive," Draco said, sitting back on his haunches.
"That was good?" I asked.
"Very good. Now do it again."
I nodded and nocked a second arrow. I breathed in and out slowly before letting loose. The arrow soared through the air again and past the tree. It skidded through the grass landing beside a rock.
"That was not good."
"No. Not at all." I repeated the process over and over until my hands grew rough and my shoulders ached.
I didn't stop though. I walked about the clearing, searching for all the arrows I'd over shot. A few stuck firm to the tree, but a majority were amongst the tall grass and flowers. The sun waned in the sky as it sunk below the horizon, finishing its daily journey. Draco remained in his seated position his tail swishing about, knocking all the brush around him down.
As I bent to pick up the last arrow, I saw a gleam in the tree line. I stood and watched as a shadow darted behind the large pine tree. I stood and strained to see anything out of the ordinary. Another gleam a few feet down before the shadow darted behind another tree.
Am I surrounded?
A shudder ran up my spine, causing my body to convulse with shivers. It wasn't cold. I shouldn't be cold.
Before I could turn and run, something struck me in the abdomen. I let out a sharp cry before falling to the ground. I glanced down to see one of my arrows sticking out of my body.
Oh my God!
My breath caught in my throat as I sunk to my knees. Tears sprung to my eyes as I listened to the pounding of footsteps running toward me from the forest.
"Draco," I called as loud as I could before the odd taste took over my mouth.
I heard his roar as he leapt toward me. A ball of fire shot over my body toward my assailant. I heard the screams of pain from a woman not more than five feet away from me.
I tried sitting up, but the pain caused everything around me to go black. I sunk to the soft earth below, struggling to breathe as my life slipped away.
Is this the end of me? Am I finished before beginning?
I stared up toward the sky, imagining my soul floating to the heavens. Draco's big scaly face came into view.
"You're not allowed to die." He scooped me up in his might claws and flapped his wings, the grass swaying around my body.
"Where is the assassin?"
"She's roasted."
"Okay. Good. Draco, I'm sorry," I said.
"Don't start that, Evelyn. I lost one rider; I'm not losing you, too."
"It's okay."
"No. Now stop talking. I'm taking you to someone who can help."
"I'm dying. Nobody can help," I said.
"Shut up, Evelyn."
Tears streamed down my face as I watched the endless blue sky and white clouds go by. My breath staggered as my heart slowed. Mother was right. I should have gone to the castle. I should have listened. I wasn't ready for this.
I closed my eyes ready to be taken to the next life.
Chapter fifteen
I felt Draco drop from the air. The whooshing sound of his wings expanding, preparing for his landing. I struggled to open my eyes everything hurt so much.
"Where are we?" I whispered.
"Close to the person who can help."
"In the forest?"
"Stop talking, Evelyn." He held me tight in his claws as he proceeded forward.
Each step was agonizing. I hoped he wouldn't be going much further when he scratched at t
he ground.
"Priscilla!" he shouted. "Come out, witch!"
A door slammed against something and shuffling feet echoed off all the trees. "How dare you invade my woods, dragon? What do you want?"
"Save her." He placed me on the ground between him and older, haggard looking woman.
"Why? Who is that?"
"She's the princess of England and my rider."
"No. No. Your rider died quite a long time ago if I remember correctly."
Draco let out a terrifying roar. "That's because you wouldn't save him. You won't let her die too."
"Why should I save her?" the witch asked.
Why? Why not? You can't just let me die!
"You can't let her die." His voice shook as he tried speaking.
"Is that a tear? Are you crying, might Draco?"
"Please, Priscilla, save her."
The woman sighed heavily and approached me. Her face appeared in my vision as she stared down at me. She poked me with an old, wooden cane before grasping the arrow. Pulling with all her might, she ripped the weapon from my abdomen. I screamed out as the sheer agony caused everything to blacken. I could feel the blood seeping from my wound, pooling under the dragon armor. It smelled bitter and felt warm.
Things went quite as my eyes slid closed.
Clinking bottles and arguing drew me from the pained sleep I'd slipped in to. I lay on a hard, cold wooden table in the center of an old shack. I stared at wooden beams and a thatch roof.
"Oh look! Your princess is awake. Welcome back, young lady. I almost thought we lost you completely for a second there."
"Hurry before she is dead!" Draco urged.
"Calm yourself, dragon. I already got one of your tears so we're partially there."
"A. A tear?" I squeaked out.
"Oh ho! She speaks! You have energy enough to do that. Impressive." She moved toward a cauldron sitting over a fire. "Yes. That's one reason I couldn't save his last rider. He never shed a tear. Part of the potion calls for a dragons tear."
"You didn't tell me I need to cry," he growled.
"You had to cry on your own without me telling you how to save him. It was obvious he wasn't truly bonded to you."
I turned my head so I could watch the old witch. She dumped various vials into the black pot while muttering phrases and odd words I didn't understand. She held up a clear vile of bright blue liquid before carefully swirling it into the mixture.
"Now, dragon, I need a scale and the blood of your heart."
"What?"
"I need one of your scales and blood from your heart," she repeated.
"Will that...kill...him?'
"No, princess, it will not. It will hurt him though as I have to use another dragon's tooth to pierce his skin."
"Where did you get another dragon's tooth?" Draco asked.
"Oh years ago. You remember the hunting's?"
I could feel the tension building between the two. Draco wasn't happy about being pierced with another dragon's tooth.
"Don_don't do it Draco. Too much for you."
"Evelyn, I'm not losing you. I can deal with pain and losing some blood if it means you live."
Draco took a few deep breaths before grunting loudly as he pulled a scale from his smooth body. It shimmered an iridescent greenish blue in the firelight. The witch held a long, pointy tooth in her hand like a dagger, waiting for him to expose his heart to her. He pulled up a few scales, revealing a red hot, beating spot on his chest.
His heart.
He roared in pain as the dragon's tooth plunged into his flesh. I grimaced as the red liquid drained through the hollowed out instrument. Once the small bowl filled to the brim with the blood, the witch removed the tooth and returned to her caldron. Whispering more words, she poured it in. A small explosion and a wisp of purple smoke erupted from the fireplace. She stirred the liquid a bit more before dipping the scale into the potion. She walked toward me, the stuff sloshing about inside the scale.
"Drink."
"What?" I asked.
"Well what did you think you would have to do? Now drink. Don't let Draco's sacrifice go to waste."
"What sacrifice?" he asked.
"Well you tear and blood. It's not often a dragon cries. You're only the third one in all the years I've been alive to see cry."
"There is nothing wrong with crying," he said, holding a rag to the wound.
The witch held my head up as I took the scale and drank the potion.
It had a sweet taste. I prepared for something awful and bitter, instead it went down my throat smooth. Soothing relief filled me with warmth and the pain subsided. Tingling sensations started in my feet and traveled to the top of my head. My breathing became easier and I didn't want to sleep. I noticed the ashen color my skin began to turn was back to the ivory it had been prior to my shooting.
"Are you alright?" Draco asked.
I pulled up the armor and ran my hand over where the hole was in stomach. It vanished.
"I'm fine."
"It actually worked?" he asked again.
"Of course it did! What kind of witch do you think I am?" I finally got a good look at the woman. She was short and plump with stringy gray hair she wore pulled back with a black ribbon. She walked hunched over with a crane, shuffling as she went. A black cat sat near my feet, its tail twitching as it stared at me.
"I don't understand."
"Of course you don't, silly girl. It's an old magic that is older than this country. You royal folk don't believe in it."
"Why did you save me then?"
"I can't let a dragon cry and not use his tear! Such a waste." She puttered around for a minute before turning to look at us. "You are truly connected now. The essence of Draco lives in you. You are one. When one dies the other will die as well."
"What? Draco, why?"
"It was the only way I could save you," he said.
"But if something happens to me, you will die."
"Yes. I know this."
"It also means you will not die until he is killed or dies naturally," the witch continued.
"What?"
"Yes. You are now a supernatural being like Draco."
"I don't understand. How is that possible?"
"You've partaken of his tears and blood. His essence is in those tears and blood. It's why it's so rare for a dragon to cry or give the blood of their heart, it gives nearly eternal life."
"Why give me the potion? Why not keep it for yourself and say you couldn't save me?"
"Why keep it for myself? I'm already three hundred years old. I will go when it's time. It just not time yet."
I nodded and sat. I was immortal.
Immortal.
"Did you turn the Guild immortal?"
"No. I never aided those horrendous monsters in their quest to have eternal life."
"Do you know who did?"
"A powerful witch. A witch who has no moral compass. A witch who is a backstabbing, slug eater," she said before spitting on the ground.
"You do know who it is then?" I asked.
"Yes. My twin sister, Gremilda. She never cared much for who she helped as long as they could pay."
"I see."
"If you don't mind I have a lot to do."
"Uhm, thank you."
"No thanks. Just leave. You interrupted my ingredients gathering."
"Forgive us, ma'am," I said, sliding off the table.
She muttered something under her breath and whacked me on the back of the legs with her cane.
"Ow! We're leaving, we're leaving." I hurried out, followed by Draco.
I looked around the dense forest, hardly any light shined through the canopy of leaves. Nothing looked familiar, I wasn't sure if we were even in Scotland anymore. I walked alongside Draco until we reached a clearing. Large rocks stood in a circle, very odd and out of place.
"Are we in Ireland?"
"Yes," Draco repl
ied, lowering his head for me to climb onto his shoulders.
"Why?"
"I had to get you to the witch."
"I'm not going to grow another head am I?"
He let out a might laugh. "No. You won't grow any other heads."
We soared into the air, heading back toward Edinburgh castle. I didn't know how to explain what happened to anyone. What would happen when James grew old and I remained young?
I held onto my stomach where the arrow had pierced me. Now nothing more than a small red scar and a horrible memory still so fresh in my mind.
I had to tell James.
Chapter sixteen
I slid off Draco once he snuck into the barn. I hurried out of the armor, staring at my stomach where the arrow had pierced me. There wasn't a mark. I ran my hand over it, trying to find a bump or anything out of the ordinary. Nothing happened.
How is this even possible?
My world felt turned upside down, everything I'd thought to be real and true was not. I grabbed a knife hanging on the wall and sliced my palm open. Blood pooled to the surface, but the wound healed as I watched. My breath caught in my throat and I had to stifle a yelp.
What did that witch do to me!
"Evelyn?"
"Y-yes, Draco?"
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," I whispered.
"Did you cut yourself?" he asked.
"How did you know?" I opened the door and looked up at him in bewilderment.
"My palm slit open."
"I did that."
"Why?" he queried.
"I had to see what she meant by I'm immortal. It just healed on its own. What's happened to me?"
"You're immortal."
"But the cut?"
"Yes, that's one of the things about being immortal, minor wounds will heal on their own immediately. Something worse, that isn't life threatening, will take a bit of time. As long as neither of us dies, we live forever."
"Forever?" I asked.
"That's what immortal means."
"Our life forces are connected," he said.
"Oh."
"Hurry and dress before someone comes in."
I nodded and grabbed my gown, pulling it on just as James walked through the door.
"Where have you been?" he asked.
"Um, with Draco."
"You've been gone for hours! There was a search party out for you."
The Defender's Daughter: The Defender's Book 2 Page 10
