by Sher Dillard
“It’s a shame you didn’t get to see more of it,” he replied. “Of course, there are parts that are best left unvisited. Fifth Point for example.”
“What’s so bad about Fifth Point?” she asked.
Thad relaxed. It seemed they were talking to each other again. He told her about the different parts of the city, the history of the King. The fact that the city’s wealth was because of the dessert mines worked by slaves, and prisoners. The fact that Fifth Point was one of those places you didn’t go to unless you belonged. And if you belonged, you wanted to desperately get away.
She gave the city one last look then turned to watch the road with him.
“How far?” she asked.
“Three to four days,” he answered, pulling on the left reins to guide the horses around a bend.
Her shoulders sagged, “Where will we stay. An Inn along the road? Camp?”
He glanced over at her. She seemed worried about something. Was the idea of being alone with him that terrifying? he wondered. Well, to hell with it. He wasn’t changing who he was just because of her. And he wasn’t doing something dumb just to make her happy.
“Camp, I think. After seeing that man today. I don’t really know what to expect and the last thing I want is to be trapped in some building.”
Her eyes grew big with the realization of what he was saying. She understood that he wanted his freedom in case he had to turn into a dragon.
She swallowed and nodded her acceptance, then turned to watch the road again.
God, it was going to be a long day he thought. And, an even longer night.
Later, after he had pulled off for the campsite, and was watering the horses, he thought back to their prior encounters. The sweetness that was Rachel. His heart hurt with the loss. For the first time in his life, he had thought he had found someone special. Someone he could love.
But, now that she knew the truth about him. There was no longer any chance of finding happiness. Sighing in frustration, he pulled the horses away from the stream.
When he returned to camp he saw immediately that she had laid out the bed roles on opposite sides of the fire. Well, that was that. She was telling him to not even try to fix the problem between them. It was over. It would always be over.
“Dinner should be ready in a few minutes,” she said, as she unfolded a blanket.
“Good,” he mumbled, then plopped down on his bed roll.
She glanced at him for a moment, her eyes focused, as if trying to discern some hidden meaning in his words. Being unable to decipher the inner workings of a hungry man, she returned to fixing her bed.
Thad stared at her for a long moment. She still pulled at him. Still made him want her. Desperately, he wanted to take her like he had so many times before. But, no, not like this, he thought.
He might be a dragon, but he did have some morals. High on that list was not taking women who despised him.
As he watched her, a faint echo started to seep into his brain. A distant disturbance pushed through his hurt and made him aware of another.
He shifted to search the skies. Yes, far away, but yes. Another beast had entered his awareness.
He stood and stepped into the darkness.
“What is it?” Rachel called out. “A bear?”
“A dragon,” he answered unthinkingly.
Rachel gasped and scooted back into the shadows. “Are you sure?” she asked. “How can you tell?”
He sighed, one more thing to draw attention to his strangeness. It seemed that everything that happened reminded her that, at heart, he was an animal.
“I can tell when another dragon is in the area. If they are in dragon form at least.”
She was silent for a long moment, then asked, “Are you going to change? Like you did on the road.” The quiver in her voice told him of her fear.
He glanced back at her. His heart sank. She was afraid, he realized. Either afraid of the dragon in the distance, or terrified of the one standing near her at that moment.
Stepping back into the light, he shook his head. “Not now,” he said. “If he gets closer I will have to. But, not yet.”
Her shoulders relaxed as she stared up at him. “I still can’t believe it is real,” she said.
He didn’t answer, his mind was out tracking the distant beast.
“Are all dragons like you?” she asked.
“What? Handsome, intelligent, great in bed?”
She blushed and laughed. It was the first time he’d heard her laugh since the attack on the road.
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “You know, man and dragon. Changing back and forth.”
He nodded his head, “I think so,” he answered. “But, I haven’t met a lot of dragons. We have a habit of keeping to ourselves.”
“Why is that?” she asked, that curious glint in her eyes making him smile. That was his Rachel, always wanting to know things.
“Because we are very territorial. We protect what is ours. Nothing, absolutely nothing, can be allowed to take away what we have claimed.” He looked into her eyes and let her know what that truly meant.
She swallowed hard and looked away. He knew that she could tell he was talking about her. That, at some deep level, he would always think of her as his.
After a long moment, she stirred the fire and said, “Come, dinner is ready.”
He sighed. Once again, they were no going to discuss the pain between them. They would ignore it, push it away, and pretend that everything was all right.
He wondered what would happen when they got to Perralt. What would happen when she learned all of the truth?
Oh well, she couldn’t hate him anymore than she already did.
Joining her, he ate, but his mind was out searching, continuing to track. However, Rachel’s question kept returning. Did he think of her as his? This possessive tightness in his chest told him he did. What then? What happened to a dragon who fell in love only to be rejected?
For the first time in a long time, Thad felt a strange sadness. A loss and a fear of the unknown. A future without Rachel.
The quietness between them ate at him. The way she glanced at him from under her brow. Constantly questioning herself. Constantly on the lookout for his beast.
The way she sat, guarded, defensive. As if afraid he would jump over the fire and take her right there.
He hated the way his insides churned, how all he could think about was what might have been.
Everything about this situation was wrong.
He sighed and tried to focus on finishing the stew.
It would never have worked, he thought. She would have discovered the truth eventually and this would have been the result.
After the meal was done, and he’d checked the horses one last time, they settled down for the night.
Thad crossed his hands behind his head and lay back, staring up at the stars.
His beast called to him, the distant dragon had gone, disappeared from his awareness. Thad wondered if it had left the area or shifted back to human form. Either way. It was no longer a threat.
Then, why couldn’t he relax? Why couldn’t he sleep? It had been a long hard day. Surely, he should be able to rest.
A faint whiff of lavender caressed him and he groaned inside.
That was why. She was there. Only a few feet away.
He swallowed the lust burning through him, and turned his back to the fire and the girl on the other side.
Three more days, he told himself. Three more days and he would deliver her to Perralt. The coin would be returned, and he could leave.
Three more days. God, it might as well have been three hundred.
Chapter Fifteen
Rachel pulled herself up onto the wagon as Thad finished getting the horses ready. The thought of him helping her up had bothered her. His hands grabbing her waist, lifting her up into the air and onto the seat with little, if any effort.
The thought sent a shiver down her spine. Not a scary shiver
, more the one of anticipation and longing.
Sighing, she folded her hands in her lap and watched him work. The man was tender with the horses, even though they feared him. She wondered if they could tell his strangeness. Did they know they were dealing with a monster?
He’s not a monster, she scolded herself. He’s a man. A good man.
True, he might be different. He might be hiding a giant beast inside. He might be awash with magic. But, deep down, deep down where it counts. He was a good man.
At no time last night had she worried about him. A woman alone. A woman who only two nights earlier had willingly shared his bed. Many men would have pressed their advantage. Maybe even most.
But, he hadn’t made a move. No sweet words to try and ease her mind. No tender caresses to seduce her back to his arms. No hint of intimidation.
No, he had held himself away.
She wondered if he even desired her anymore. Had she angered him so much that he no longer wanted her?
She thought not. It was something else. Something about the way he looked at her. As if she had disappointed him somehow. Not just her keeping the secret of the coin. Although that had obviously upset him. It was something else.
Sighing to herself, she waited.
The wagon rocked to the side as Thad climbed up onto his seat. She was reminded once again of just how big he was. Those wide shoulders, large hands. Her heart ached and her very core cramped with need.
No, she told herself. That was gone. What they had between them could not be. The man was a dragon, she reminded herself. But, for the first time, she wondered exactly what that meant.
Why couldn’t they be together?
What if the dragons didn’t look at women the same way? Did dragons even love? she wondered. Was it possible for a man such as Thad to love a woman like her?
There had been a time, a brief moment before, when she had thought it might have been possible. But, now? Who could tell?
The unknowing was burning her insides. This was a strange world. So much stranger than she had ever thought existed. And there was no person to ask. The one person who might have told her the truth was the one person she could not discuss it with.
He sat there, the reins wrapped between his fingers, like a solid chunk of granite. A force of nature. Magical, tender, yet strong. Intelligent, yet a beast at heart.
Such a contradiction. How was she ever to understand how to navigate around such a being? What was right? What was proper?
Her mind swirled with a thousand thoughts as she tried to understand this new world.
The day proceeded as the day before. A long road trip. The horses plodding through the dust. Thad silent, occasionally scanning the sky, her heart aching for what might have been.
A long, slow day.
Slowly at first, then more quickly, the distant mountains of Perralt came into view. Thad would glance at them and shake his head, Rachel noticed. He wasn’t happy.
“We’ll camp just outside the forest tonight,” he said with a shake of his head.
“What about the wagon? The horses? Will we take them to the mountains?”
Again, Thad shook his head. “We’ll turn the horses loose, some lucky farmer will find them. The same for the wagon. We won’t be able to use it in the forest. We’ll go the rest of the way on foot.”
That night at the camp, once again she lay on her bed and thought of the man across from her. The sounds from the forest, only a short distance away, washed over her.
“How’s your arm?” he asked out of nowhere.
Her heart skipped a beat. Did he care? Or, was he only worried that he might have to change the bandage? She remembered the last time. How he’d unlaced her dress, then gently tended her wounds.
“It’s fine,” she said, denying the thoughts that were jumping through her mind.
Every fiber of her body wanted him. Every part of her soul screamed at her to break this silence between them. To do something that would make him want her again.
Yet, she couldn’t bring herself to take that action. The thought of rejection terrified her. She couldn’t imagine what she would feel like if he dismissed her. Besides, the man was a dragon. Another. Something not of her world. Not of her understanding.
Sighing, she turned on her side and pulled the blanket close to ward off the night chill. Oh, to have his warmth surrounding her again. His arms cradling her in his strength.
At last, Rachel finally fell asleep. Asleep to dream of being carried off by the man she loved. Of soaring through the sky like a bird. Looking down on the world.
Early the next morning, she woke with a start. The morning sky was barely gray, the sun a good hour from rising.
Twisting, she glanced across the dead fire to see that Thad was gone.
Her heart skipped a beat. His bed roll was still there. A blanket was thrown back as if he had gotten up in a rush. Had he snuck into the forest?
She quickly turned to look across the field. The horses stood quietly, both of them with their head down, a foot up, asleep. Surely, there was no danger. The horses would have known, wouldn’t they?
Fighting a growing panic, she continued to scan for Thad. Should she call out to him? Should she yell? What if he had left for a perfectly reasonable reason? She would look like a silly ninny for being afraid.
Swallowing hard, she glanced again at the horses and sighed. They were supposed to reach the Forbidden Forest that afternoon. Had he left her now?
Bending over, she carefully placed small twigs and blew some warm coals to life, and re-started the fire. If he was up, he would be hungry. She could at least have a meal ready for him when he returned.
He would return. She was confident. Or, at least, intended to pretend she was confident.
As she worked, she kept stopping to look around her. Her heart refused to return to normal. She quickly realized that it would never return to normal until she knew he was safe. Safe and sound back here with her.
Why had he left? Why hadn’t he told her? Was he that mad that he would abandon her here in the wilds?
No, not Thad, she assured herself.
But, what if something had happened to him? What if...
A distant sound caught her attention. Thad. Walking towards the camp, as if he had been out for a quiet Sunday morning stroll.
Her insides lurched with happiness. He was unharmed. She wanted to rush to him and hug him. He looked so good, so handsome, so strong. She wanted to jump up and slap him. How dare he do this to her.
He shot her a small smile and squatted down next to the fire. Stirring it as he stared into the flames, his brow creased in concentration.
“What is wrong?” she asked. “Where have you been?
“The dragon is back,” he said with a shake of his head.
Her heart jumped again. Why was it always something? Always something dangerous. Why couldn’t they just be left alone?
“I needed to get away from the camp. I needed some distance so I could probe and try and learn what he wants.”
Rachel wondered if he meant he needed to get away from her. Was he saying that she bothered him so much that he couldn’t think when she was around?
Her next thought was to wonder if that was a bad thing.
“And?” she asked, pushing away the possible glee that had rushed into her heart.
He shook his head. “I still don’t know,” he answered.
A heavy silence fell between them. What now? she wondered. The fact that there was a dragon in the area was disconcerting to say the least. The fact that up until two days ago, she would have said it was impossible, was beside the point.
Thad glanced up from the fire and looked at her for a long moment.
“Do you have the coin? Are you wearing it?” he asked.
Her forehead wrinkled in confusion. “Yes,” she said, as she put a hand to her chest and double checked that the coin still hung from around her neck.
“Good,” he said. “I need to go find
out what is going on with this dragon. For him to be in the area for the last two days is strange. I know for a fact that we haven’t entered his established territory. There is no reason for him to be hanging around like this.
“What could he want?” she asked, forcing her voice to remain steady.
Thad shrugged his large shoulders. “Maybe the horses, maybe the coin, maybe it is just coincidence. I don’t know. I need to go find out though.”
Rachel swallowed hard, then a thought occurred to her. “Why would a dragon want the coin? It doesn’t make sense.”
Thad laughed. “Believe me, there is a ton of things about those damn coins that don’t make sense.”
She stared at him, unable to truly understand what he was talking about. Before she could ask him for clarification, he continued.
“If I don’t come back. Hide in those rocks over there. If he comes for the horses let him have them. You stay hidden. Take the coin. Get to Perralt. Tell them I sent you. Tell them ... Just tell them I sent you.”
“What do you mean?” she demanded. What was he talking about? This was ridiculous. Was he really thinking he might not survive a fight with this dragon?
“Don’t,” she whispered. “Stay here. We can both hide. We can walk to Perralt if he takes the horses. Please,” she begged.
He looked at her and smiled slightly while shaking his head.
“Sorry, Sweetness, it doesn’t work that way.”
The use of the endearment on his lips sent a bolt of warmth to her heart.
Before she could stop him, he stood and left the fire, walking across the field.
Rachel stared after him. Unable to believe he was leaving. Unable to believe that this might be the last time she ever saw him. She hadn’t given him a kiss goodbye. She hadn’t told him how she truly felt.
Her heart broke, once again, as she fought to withhold the tears.
Thad glanced back over his shoulder, giving her a sad grin, then he erupted into flames and smoke.
Rachel gasped. She would always gasp. The magical transformation was soul shocking. There had been Thad, standing in a field. Now there was a pillar of fire, quickly transforming into a giant dragon.
