by J. L. Weil
“Why me?” I asked.
“That’s simple. Because they all desire you. You accepted them, not loving one more than the other, but the four of them equally.”
It was true. I did care about them all. Love might be a far stretch, but really? This was the grand reason I was the key? Talk about a letdown. I’d been hoping for something dramatic. Special powers. An ancient lineage. Fireworks.
This couldn’t be happening. How was I going to get out of here alive without handing over the very thing that would give the witch more power?
Tianna summoned a ragged-edged dagger. “Hand me the stone, an I’ll go away… for the time being. I won’t hurt you.”
Like hell, she wouldn’t.
I couldn’t take my eyes off the dagger. It wasn’t simply steel. Magic pulsed through the blade, etched into symbols I didn’t understand. My pulse roared in my ears, and before I had a chance to doubt myself, I turned and ran. I didn’t expect to get far. There was no moonlight to guide me, and I plunged heedlessly into the dark forest. I fled through the trees, my legs vibrating as I dashed down a slope. I was so blind with fear that I didn’t see Issik’s dragon until I rammed into him.
Relief poured through me. I was safe, right? The others would be here in moments.
Then it all happened so fast.
Issik let out a roar that echoed over the Isles—pure rage. He opened his mouth, expelling an icy mist of blue at Tianna, but the witch always had a plan. It was then I remembered the dagger in her hand. She cocked back her arm and let the blade go.
The sudden wheezing I heard left me confused. My frantic gaze searched for Issik. There in his chest was Tianna’s dagger. A dragon’s scales should have been impenetrable, but the magic imbued in the blade gave it the power to impale even the strongest of defenses. At the sight of blood, a strangled gasp parted my lips. She had hit one of my dragons.
NO!
Being so distraught over Issik’s injury, it didn’t register that I had been hit as well, but not with a magical sword. Issik’s frost had struck me in the heart after he’d been stabbed.
I sucked in a sharp breath. Never had I been so cold in my entire life. It knocked the wind out of me, and all I thought was death couldn’t be this painful.
“I will see you soon,” Tianna’s voice whispered in my ear, and then I was falling, as if from a great height.
“Olivia!” Issik shifted and somehow managed to catch me before I hit the ground.
Black spots danced behind my eyes, and then there was nothing.
Fire burned in my chest as I came to. The heat inside me exploded, pulsing in a giant wave that ran through my blood. It rippled like a solar flare straight from the sun.
With effort, I peeled my eyes open, and the first face I saw was Zade’s hovering above me.
Holy shit. I’m not dead.
“This better be the last time I have to breathe fire into you, little gem.”
“Is she gone?” I croaked, my throat feeling like I’d swallowed barbwire.
Zade nodded. “She vanished just as the rest of us showed up.”
My relief was overwhelming, but I also knew it would be short-lived. Her promise echoed in my ears. She would be back. Her desire for the stones would keep her hunting and threatening me. Then I remembered I wasn’t the only one who’d gotten hurt.
“Issik, he was stabbed. Is he okay?” I tried to sit up, but Zade pressed back my shoulders, keeping me on the ground.
“Not so fast,” he scolded me. “You need a moment to let your body return to its normal temperature.”
Didn’t he understand? I didn’t care about how hot or cold I was. If Issik was hurt, bleeding, we had to—
Issik sunk down to his knees beside me, his head resting near my face, but not too close, as if he was afraid to touch me. “You’re alive,” he whispered.
I blinked. What a silly thought. “Me? I’m not the one who got stabbed.”
There was so much regret in his eyes, and it hurt my heart to see it there because of me. “I could have killed you.”
“But you didn’t. And it wasn’t your fault,” I stressed. “She threw a knife at you.”
His blond brows furrowed together. “I never should have been so careless. Not with you, little warrior.”
Kieran and Jase shuffled their feet behind us then, and I sat up slowly. “What’s wrong? Why are the two of you so antsy?”
“Do you have it?” Jase asked, crouching down beside Issik.
The fingers curled around my palm slowly opened to show them the Star of Tranquility. It glittered under the starlight, vibrant and clear. It was safe. And so was I. Well, mostly. There was still the crazy thing that had happened when I screamed, but I was ninety-nine percent sure the cool stone in my hand was responsible for that.
A heartbeat later I found myself plastered against Issik’s chest. “I’m so sorry. I thought we lost you.” A look passed from him to me, and I squeezed him tightly, needing comfort as much as he did.
Pulling back, my eyes connected with his bright icy eyes. “Turns out I’m not that easy to kill, especially when I have four dragons around to save me.”
Kieran lifted me off Issik and spun me around in his arms. “We’ll always be here to protect you,” he vowed.
I was counting on it, for I knew we hadn’t seen the last of Tianna. We needed time to regroup, as did she, and next time we’d be ready for her.
Ready for the next part of Olivia and the Dragon Descendants’ story?
You can get your next fix in ABSORBING POISON the second book in the Dragon Descendants Series!
COMING SOON
Can’t wait to meet you back in the Veil Isles!
Thank you for reading.
xoxo
Jennifer
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Acknowledgments
First and foremost, I want to thank Stephany Wallace for being more than an incredible PA and editor, but also being my cheerleader and friend. I wouldn’t get through my edits without those comments that make me lol.
Another huge thank you to Allisyn, who constantly helps me grow in my skills as a writer. I really do take all your notes to heart, even if it seems as if I’d forgotten them.
I want to give a big shoutout to the YA Vets. You know who you are. This group is a resource I can’t do without. Muawah!
And as always, a massive thank you to the readers and reviewers. You guys give me the encouragement to keep doing this and making me believe in my dreams. I FLOVE all of you!
Read more by J. L. Weil
THE DIVISA SERIES
(Full series completed – Teen Paranormal Romance)
Losing Emma: A Divisa novella
Saving Angel
Hunting Angel
Breaking Emma: A Divisa novella
Chasing Angel
Loving Angel
Redeeming Angel
LUMINESCENCE TRILOGY
(Full series completed – Teen Paranormal Romance)
Luminescence
Amethyst Tears
Moondust
Darkmist – A Luminescence novella
RAVEN SERIES
(Full series completed – Teen Paranormal Romance)
White Raven
Black Crow
Soul Symmetry
BEAUTY NEVER DIES CHRONICLES
(Teen Dystopian Romance)
&nb
sp; Slumber
Entangled
Forsaken
NINE TAILS SERIES
(Teen Paranormal Romance)
First Shift
Storm Shift
Flame Shift
Time Shift
SINGLE NOVELS
Starbound
(Teen Paranormal Romance)
Dark Souls
(Runes KindleWorld Novella)
Casting Dreams
(New Adult Paranormal Romance
Ancient Tides
(New Adult Paranormal Romance
For an updated list of my books, please visit my website: www.jlweil.com
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About the Author
USA TODAY Bestselling author J.L. Weil lives in Illinois where she writes Teen & New Adult Paranormal Romances about spunky, smart mouth girls who always wind up in dire situations. For every sassy girl, there is an equally mouthwatering, overprotective guy. Of course, there is lots of kissing. And stuff.
An admitted addict to Love Pink clothes, raspberry mochas from Starbucks, and Jensen Ackles. She loves gushing about books and Supernatural with her readers.
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