Knowing I’d be too easy to spot if I walked out along the water, I stayed close to the edge of the jungle. I wasn’t entirely sure that it was any safer, given the giant snake and the oversized wolves that could be lurking in the vegetation, but I had to choose something. So, I walked along the tree line scanning the beach, searching for anyone else who may have washed up after the storm.
The sun rose up over the horizon, lighting the sky and the world. Orange overtook the darkness and reflected on the water, making the sight twice as grand. It was blinding and beautiful, and it happened so fast. Waves gently lapped onto the shore, and I listened to the ebb and flow of the water.
Dragon Island was quite the place to be trapped. A beautiful prison, just like my lakeside cell. But I was still trapped, and I was still alone.
The sky turned from orange to blue. I continued on my way, knowing that as I could see farther, so could the cultists, and so could the dragon. Either could appear at any moment.
Up ahead, a red object lay in the sand near the base of a large palm tree. It was much too small to be a member of my crew, but it could be one of their belongings.
I moved in for a closer look. The red thing was about the size of a grapefruit. I bent down to check it out. It looked like a piece of raw meat, and it was fresh. I grabbed a palm frond from the ground and poked it, flipping the flesh to the other side.
The other side was red, too, and sandy. It seemed strange to leave a chunk of meat out here on the beach and—
A shrill cry sounded from the tree above.
“Die, coyote scum!”
I leapt back just in time to avoid the spearpoint driven into the sand by a dark figure who dove from the tree. She was small and agile, but I wouldn’t go down easy.
I pulled my crystal out of my pocket and squeezed it tight in my fist. It was a much smaller weapon than hers, but in close combat, I’d have the advantage.
I just had to stay close.
Her face was obscured by a hood of gray fur. She wore a scrap of cloth around her chest, and another over her hips like a tiny skirt. And she had a string of tiny bones hanging from her neck.
She stood up tall, putting the butt of her spear into the sand. “Astra?”
My brain must have been clouded by no sleep, because I could swear her voice...
“Polly?”
The woman lowered her hood. It was Polly. Black and red dye of some sort streaked her face, and her blond hair was wilder than ever, but it was her.
I smiled and took a step toward her, not believing my eyes.
She brought her spear up, thrusting it toward me just enough for me to stop and keep my distance.
I put hands up in defense. “Whoa, just wait a minute.”
“How do I know you’re not one of them?”
“One of who?”
“The coyote monsters. They can change shape. They can turn into anyone, even me.”
“Coyote monsters?” Given everything else I’d seen so far, she could be right. The whole island was a ridiculous mishmash of the impossible.
She didn’t say anything at first, just eyed me with her weapon raised. Finally, she said, “They look like men...until they don’t.”
“When I first got here, I saw a man running. Then there was a wolf where he had been.” I’d thought it was two separate beings, but maybe Polly was right.
She nodded. “You’ve seen them too.”
It wasn’t exactly a question, and I didn’t exactly know the answer anyway. “Polly, what happened to you?”
“Those fuckers think they’re hunting me, but I’m hunting them.” She grinned the same way she did just before sticking a pirate in the neck with her knife.
The island had not been kind to her, not that it had been kind to me, either. But I’d been given a bed to sleep in, and she’d been reduced to...this.
“I have traps like this set all over the forest,” Polly said.
“Wait, you’re not making sense.”
Her face dropped, like she had just remembered something terrible. “How long has it been? I thought you died a long time ago.”
“Polly, it’s only been one day.”
“One...day?” She shook her head and laughed.
Maybe it had been more time, and I’d just been unconscious for the rest of it. It really was hard to tell.
“Start from the beginning,” I said. “What’s the first thing you remember after washing up on the island?”
“I woke up on this beach. I saw your father—”
Dad. My chest tightened, and I didn’t know if the next part was the best news of my life or the worst. “You’ve seen him? Is he okay?”
“When I was waking up, I saw him, alive and breathing. He was walking along the beach with that diary or whatever clutched to his chest.”
He was alive. I couldn’t believe it. Dad and Polly had both made it to the island, and we’d all survived.
“Where is he?” I looked down the beach and back, expecting him to show up any minute.
“He disappeared before the men and coyotes showed up.” Polly looked down and pushed the sand with her toes. “I tried to get up while he was around, but I could barely open my eyes. I’m sorry, Astra. I don’t know where your dad went. But what I did see was one of those island men transform. He turned into a coyote. I’m not even kidding. I couldn’t make this shit up.”
I nodded, wondering if Celedon was like the coyotes, and if Polly was right. Could they turn into anything? It didn’t seem like that was necessarily the case from her story so far or from what had happened to me. “It’s not your fault that you couldn’t chase after my dad.”
This time it was her turn to nod. “I guess both the men and the coyotes were all monsters. One coyote man came over and sniffed me, then went back to his pack.”
“Are you sure it was a coyote and not a wolf?”
“I grew up in fucking Wyoming. I know a coyote when I see one.”
Maybe it was me who was wrong about the wolf. That wasn’t the important part here. “Do you know which direction my dad went?”
“No. He went into the forest, and I haven’t seen him since.” She shrugged her shoulders and frowned.
“What about the coyotes? Have you seen them?”
“No, but I hear them. At night I can hear them whispering in the trees, planning to grab me when I fall asleep. But I have a secret,” she gave me a sly smile, waiting for me to guess. She tapped her forehead. “I never sleep! Ha!”
Polly seemed a bit more...manic than usual. If she was in and out of consciousness at the time, had she really seen my dad at all? “Polly, you should come with me. We’ll get you some water, and find a safe place to rest. Even if you aren’t dehydrated and sleep-deprived, you could have hit your head.”
“I’ve got water. I’m doing quite well, actually.” She looked over my face, then stared off into the distance. “You know though, you might be right. It must have been a pretty nasty bump because right now I’m seeing this big-ass green dragon swooping down toward us.” She laughed. “I must be pretty fucked up.”
I spun around as the shadow of Celedon’s massive wings blocked out the sun. At least I seriously hoped it was Celedon. There couldn’t be more than one dragon...could there?
If Celedon saw Polly, he’d snatch her up, too. In part, I thought it might be better to stick together. But she was a survivor, and there was no way to know what Celedon would do with us. Even though he hadn’t harmed me yet, I didn’t trust him. And neither of us deserved to be prisoners.
I turned back to Polly, unsure if I should tell her to run or to reassure her that everything would be fine, but she wasn’t there. I caught a glimpse of movement, a quick shadow crawling away through the low-growing plants by the edge of the jungle. She was already gone.
I could still run. I could still escape.
The force of the dragon’s wings whipped the air, flinging sand. I shielded my eyes with my arm, my feet planted firmly on the beach.
This was my last chance to run. But I didn’t. Maybe it was fatigue, maybe it was to protect Polly and give her time, but whatever the reason, I didn’t move.
Chapter 9
Astra
The dragon’s claws touched down, and I stared up in awe at the giant beast. Run. It was like I was tied to that stone all over again, struggling to save myself, but unable to move. His scales shimmered in the morning light, and he stretched his wings up over the trees before tucking them in against his sides.
I had to force myself to breathe, and to stop shaking.
The dragon bent his neck down toward me with his reptilian mouth open slightly. His hot breath blew back my hair. It smelled like campfire smoke.
I was terrified, but more than that, I was angry. I was pissed that I was trapped here, that this asshole thought it was okay to lock me in his dungeon and leave me to rot. Why did he care what I did? Why did he have to follow me?
I used that anger and steeled my nerves, balling my fists and meeting his gaze. “Don’t you dare try to pick me up with those teeth.”
The dragon snorted and turned his head so his massive serpentine eye came down near me. His pupil was a vertical slit, like a black portal in the center of a summer field. I knew those eyes, even if they were different like this. If I wasn’t sure before, I certainly was now—this dragon was Celedon.
“Be a man.” I put my hands on my hips and lifted my chin. “Literally. So we can have an actual conversation.”
Run. Run like hell.
A white glow enveloped the dragon. It was bright on its own, but the light reflected off the sand, making it blinding. I turned away.
The light faded, and I looked back. Celedon the man stood on the beach in front of me, with leathery green dragon wings extended from his back. He took two steps toward me and reached out, his palm open. “Come back to my cave, Astra.”
He was looking me in the eye, but I found it hard not to stare between his legs, given he was buck-ass naked. And despite being a dragon and a kidnapper, he was quite pleasant to look at. I used my hand to shield his man bits from my vision.
“Can you uh...cover that thing up?” I asked, meeting his gaze.
His lips quirked up on the side, and he reached a hand to the air next to his hip. His fingers, his palm, his whole damned hand disappeared into a slit that looked a bit like his dragon eye. He pulled his hand back out, along with a pair of white cloth pants.
I averted my gaze while he put them on. “What the hell is that tear in reality thing you just did?”
“It’s my pocket.”
I looked back at him, and his expression was completely straight. He was serious.
I pulled on the side of my pants. “This is a pocket.”
He just looked at me, offering no further explanation.
Yeah, whatever. I guessed I had to chalk it up to more Island nonsense.
“Come with me, Astra,” he said again. “Please.”
That took me a little by surprise. It was like he was actually giving me the option to say no. I narrowed my eyes at him and crossed my arms. “I have a choice? You’re not just going to drop down from the sky, snatch me up, and drag me back to my cell if I say no?”
His jaw twitched as he looked over my expression. “No.”
“Okay, then,” I said. “I’ll go.”
Without hesitation, he scooped me up in his arms. My breath caught as he took off into the sky like a shooting star. I leaned into his chest and closed my eyes. Why had I agreed to this? I should have just said no. I was free, it was what I’d wanted. And now...now what was going to happen?
It was terrifying going up so high, reaching well above the trees knowing that if Celedon’s grip loosened only a touch, I’d freefall right back down, inevitably plummet, and become a pancake on the ground. But he didn’t loosen his grip, and if anything, maybe this flight was a little less horrible than the first.
By the time my breathing evened and I was sure my heart wasn’t going to leap out of my throat, we were descending back into the forest.
Celedon set me down at the mouth of the cave just as before. And we walked the now familiar river passageways toward the underground lake, where my vegetable prison was waiting for me. Why was I doing this?
I looked up at him, at the way the muscles of his back moved when he walked. And he turned, looking over his shoulder at me, as if sensing my hesitation.
“Everything all right?”
I met his gorgeous green eyes, and butterflies filled my middle. I nodded. “Yeah, I guess so.”
But that wasn’t right. I shouldn’t have been okay with coming back here. I’d lost my damned mind.
“Wait,” I said.
We stopped walking.
“I won’t be a prisoner,” I said. “I’ll escape over and over again, because I’m meant to be free.”
“You are not a prisoner,” he said.
I attempted to read his expression to figure out what exactly was going on in that head of his. Was he trying to humor me?
“I have something to show you.” He turned and started walking once more, leaving me to follow...or not, I guessed.
I did, though—I followed him to the entrance of the lake chamber, where I’d dug my way to freedom. But the woody vines that had made up my cell door were gone. Was this a new, cleverer trap? Or was he sincere?
Acting dumb and uncharacteristically trusting, I followed him down the rope bridge to the previously empty shore. Beside my cave room were stacks of baskets, wooden crates, and burlap sacks.
I took a peek into the nearest basket. There were green globes in there, a little like mangos, and they smelled just as sweet. “What is all of this?”
“I gathered a few supplies you might need to stay here. But I see now it was wrong to expect that,” Celedon said. “When I said no one leaves the island, it was not intended as a threat. My brother Kaelestis’s magic prevents any ingress or egress.”
I chewed on my lip, turning that over in my head. For one, I didn’t know this dude had family, though it was silly to assume otherwise. Two, he was doing the whole considerate thing again, and it made me nervous.
“However, you are not required to stay with me,” Celedon said. “You may take what you wish of the supplies and make your own life on the island. You should know that the shifters are not used to encountering humans, and I cannot guarantee your safety if you choose to go. If you do leave and find the journey daunting, you are always welcome to return.”
It was like he had a whole speech planned. And if there really wasn’t going to be a lock on the door, this was a hell of a lot nicer than I could do on my own in the jungle. Staying was probably the right move, but I wasn’t sure if I should tell him that yet. Plus, I had something to do before deciding anything—I had to find Polly and my dad. It’d be easier with Celedon’s help, I was sure, but that was a lot to ask.
“Before I go,” I said, “tell me...what is this place?”
“My cave?”
“The island. What’s with people turning into dragons and coyotes?”
“Coyotes?”
“Yeah,” I said.
“The village of Lycaon belongs to wolf shifters,” Celedon said.
So it was Polly who’d made a mistake. They were wolves. “The guys who took me—”
“Wolf shifters.”
“Werewolves, men who change into wolves,” I said. “And you?”
“I am a guardian.”
“A dragon.”
He nodded. “It is all magic.”
Magic. There was that word again.
“Before your arrival on the island, had you never seen a dragon’s power, witnessed the way he bends the elements to his will?”
I shook my head. He stepped forward and I breathed him in. He smelled clean and fresh, and unapologetically masculine.
He took my hands in his and placed my palms on his bare chest. I felt the heat of his skin, the beat of his heart. My pulse matched his, as did my breath
ing. My whole sense of being felt connected to his, like our bodies were entwined. Like his touch was my lifeline and nothing else mattered.
“That is all that magic is. Changing reality according to your intentions.” Celedon moved his fingers across my arms, and his fingertips brushed over my bare skin. “Even the slightest touch can have a profound influence.”
He stared into my eyes, and I was lost. There was nothing in the world at this moment but Celedon and me, with the charge between us and the need that swirled inside of me.
“Tell me, what is it that you will, Astra?”
My will is to taste your lips, to run my hands over the planes of your shoulders, your arms, and your abs. My will is to see exactly how compatible guardian dragons and humans really are.
I stepped up on my tiptoes and pressed my lips to his. His mouth was warm and inviting. He kissed me back, tender and soft. It was electric, it was fire, it was a storm. Such a small spark set my body reeling, made me lose myself and any connection I had to the world outside of Celedon’s kiss.
There was no other word for it. The kiss was magic. I let out a sigh as he broke away.
“That was—” Celedon touched a finger to his lips.
I took a step back, realizing exactly where I was and what I was doing. I was losing my shit, utterly, completely going mad.
“Yeah,” I said. “I, uh, should probably get some rest.”
“As you wish.” He gave me a curt nod before turning and heading back up the rope bridge.
I let out the breath I was holding when he stepped out of sight. I stood there watching a while longer, hoping he’d turn around, hoping he experienced the same profound feeling as I did from the kiss.
But he didn’t come back.
Time didn’t seem to pass the same way in the cave as it did in reality. It was a distinctly different world than everywhere else, because sleeping had never felt so good.
I stretched my arms and legs and climbed out of my plant bed. Who’d have thought that leafy vines beat a traditional mattress any day?
Dragon Guardian of Land Page 5
