Very well. I’ll see who will align with us. You’ll have the hawks as well. They’ve been our messenger birds for years.
The white dragon paused next to the spot where Rowan was supposed to be lying unconscious.
Where’s the boy?
The remaining orange dragon swiveled his head around and narrowed his eyes. Rowan’s blood ran cold. He doubted they could find him. He was hidden pretty well, and they’d never fit in the crack. But if somehow they did, he was probably a dead man, especially considering what he just heard.
How should I know? You were supposed to keep an eye on him.
He could be halfway to the royal dragons by now. Rowan rolled his eyes. He couldn’t believe they bought him being a dragon. Absurd.
I guess you better track him down. He might have overheard us.
One of the canyon dragons raced out of the cave. Rowan took his eyes off Skye for a moment. He needed to check out the cave so he could form a plan on how to get her out. Alive. For a second he wondered if this was how his family felt, searching for him in the freezing cold forests of Yellowstone. Did they think he was alive or dead? Not letting them know he was okay wasn’t fair of him. He knew that, but now he still might die, and no one would know what happened.
From the shadows, a young man stepped out. He shuffled forward with shackled feet. He had a black eye, bloody tattered sleeves, and a limp. He stared at the orange dragon with his held his head high, and Rowan had immediate respect for him. Anyone who could face a dragon like that as a human with no fear was incredibly brave.
“And if I don’t?” the young man asked the dragon. He cowered a little bit, like the words he said weren’t what he’d meant to say. Maybe he wasn’t as brave as Rowan thought. Maybe it was all an act.
The dragon responded with a jet of flames, and the young man skittered back a little bit. There was a conversation going on in their heads. He wished he could hear it, but that would only happen if the dragon was projecting his thoughts to everyone.
The young man shuffled out of sight and came back with another pair of shackles. He put them on Skye’s ankles and then backed away from the dragon again. He kept his head hung low. Rowan tried to see how he was locking the shackles, but there was no key.
Two orange dragons flew out of the cave with the white dragon just behind him. Rowan watched to make sure they were gone, then he looked at Skye. The guy knelt down and put his hand on her head. Jealousy rose up in Rowan, and without thinking, he ran out from his hiding spot and pushed the man’s hand away. No one else was allowed to touch her.
“Holy hell, where did you come from?” The man backed away.
Rowan ignored him and examined Skye. She didn’t seem to have any major injuries, although she was a little scratched up and unconscious, but her breathing seemed normal. Thank goodness.
Rowan let out a breath of relief. He turned to the man. “How do we get out of here?”
The young man raised his eyebrows and pointed to his own shackles. “You think I know?”
Rowan tried to pry his fingers under the cuffs on Skye’s ankles, but they wouldn’t budge, and he was afraid he was hurting her. He’d never felt so helpless in his life. The man knelt down next to Rowan.
“Who is this?” he asked. “I don’t recognize her.”
Rowan ignored his question, barely even processed it. He followed the chain that held the shackles to see if he could somehow release it. If Skye woke up, she could turn into a dragon and maybe burst them open. He looked down at her tied up ankles, frustrated.
“Who she is, is not your business. Who are you anyway?” Rowan found the chain coming out of a cave wall. However, the other end was buried deep inside the wall. Rowan kicked the stone. Dammit. Skye needed to wake up. He felt his panic starting in his stomach. Plus, his hands were shaking. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to focus. He opened them again and concentrated on the young man. Maybe he’d have some insight. He stood back from him a few feet and crossed his arms.
“Tell me who you are first.”
Rowan ignored the demand. It was then that he realized the man must not have heard the conversation between the dragons, or he would’ve known who Skye was. “Are you a dragon or human?”
“Dragon.” Of course he was. Rowan was getting tired of being the only one that had no special abilities. He felt along the ice-cold chain to see if there were any weak points he could exploit. Of course there weren’t. Everything was smooth. There weren’t even any welding joints.
Rowan glared at the man. “Then why don’t you change and bust open the shackles?” It seemed so obvious. Maybe he was a dense dragon.
The young man pointed to the shackles. “You think I’m an idiot or something? I tried. They’re enchanted.”
“How do you break the enchantment?” Rowan sank down next to Skye and picked up her limp hand. Rowan supposed he should be surprised by the magic, but nothing surprised him anymore.
The dragon man sat on his other side. Rowan really wanted to know his name.
“You kill the dragon casting it.” He spoke softly, like the thought was unthinkable.
“Do you know who that is?”
The man nodded, his scraggly hair bouncing on his head. “Yeah, it’s Victor. He’s the arctic dragon. We flew down here together from up north. I had no idea he was going to betray me once we got here.”
“Betray you?” Rowan was curious, but he didn’t take his eyes off Skye. She looked like she was sleeping—her breathing deep and even. This was good. That meant she’d survive. Hopefully. He felt stupid for not telling her how he felt about her. When she woke up, he’d tell her. She needed to know. If there was even a small chance she felt the same way, he had to know.
“Yeah. I’m pretty good friends with the arctic dragons. I was trying to patch relations with them. Victor was sympathetic, or so I thought, and asked me to accompany him to the canyons. I was ecstatic as relations with the canyons tend to be iffy too. Anyway, when we got here, he wanted to test out the shackles, so he had me turn into a human. Then he didn’t let me out again. I was a fool.”
Rowan snorted. “I’ll say. We have to get out of here though. Skye can’t stay here.”
The young man scrambled up. “Did you say Skye?”
“Yeah.” Rowan looked up at him, surprised by his reaction. He also mentally punched himself. He couldn’t believe he could be so dumb, letting her name out like that. Too many people wanted her dead.
“As in Obsidian’s Skye?” The young man gripped his hair.
“How do you know her?” Rowan still didn’t understand why the guy was so upset.
The young man dropped down on his knees next to him. He studied Skye and frowned. “Obsidian and I were good friends before he became king. So I knew Skye pretty well. These canyon dragons can’t find out who she is, or they’ll torture her for information.”
Rowan squeezed Skye’s hand. It was cold and limp. “Why? What do they care who she is?”
“Because they want Obsidian dead.”
They were keeping Skye alive for information, but Rowan had no doubt that as soon as they had the information they needed, they’d kill her. “They already know.”
“How?”
Rowan hesitated, not sure how much to tell the man. He’d be careful to only say things that would be common knowledge. “Because she’s blocking them from reading her thoughts. Mine too. We need her to wake up so you don’t reveal my presence to them either. Then we need to make a plan to kill that dragon and get her out of here.”
The young man let out a laugh. “And how do you propose we do that? I’m shackled, and you’re just a boy.”
Anger bubbled up in Rowan’s chest. He wasn’t some little boy. He got right into the guy’s face. “I’m a human that will do anything to save that dragon. Scoff all you want, but I’ll kill the bastard who’s keeping her locked up like this. Now you know who we are. Who. Are. You?”
He puffed up his chest. “Name’s Kingston.”
> ROWAN SCRAMBLED back, grabbed Skye, and tried to pull her with him, but the shackles wouldn’t go far. Her dead weight was difficult to pull. He’d kill this man with his bare hands before he let him hurt her. He gently set Skye down on the ground and stood in front of her. Though he didn’t know what he’d do if Kingston tried to come after him. He’d never fought anyone in his life.
Kingston approached him slowly. He kept his hand low, relaxed. The complete opposite of Rowan. Every muscle in his body was tensed. “Hey, man, you okay?” His voice was soft, unthreatening.
“Stay away from us.” Rowan put up his hands like he’d seen people do in the movies. He’d punch him if he had to.
Kingston approached with his hands held out in front of him, like he was all innocent. “I don’t mean any harm. What’s the matter?”
Rowan put himself in front of Skye and raised his fists up. “You’re Kingston. We overheard you and your buddies talking about killing a couple of dragons and all the rest that are close to Obsidian.”
Kingston froze. He backed up a couple of steps. His face showed surprise but not shock. “I hate to break it to you, mate, but I’m not who you think I am.”
“We overheard you talking. Of course you are who we think you are.” He wasn’t going to be misled by this guy.
Kingston rolled his eyes and dropped his hands. “So you think you know all about me and my motives from one little conversation?”
“One in which you openly discussed the killings of innocent dragons.” Rowan tried to remember the exacts of the conversation he and Skye had heard. So much had happened since then. It’d only been a couple of days. It felt like a lifetime.
Kingston laughed, which made Rowan even more nervous. Kingston took a few steps back and Rowan relaxed a little.
“I’m no threat. You have no idea. I’m a spy for Obsidian. I needed to warn him. Sent an eagle to him and everything. Problem is, they found out, and now I’m all tied up. They couldn’t put the chains on me because they aren’t human, see, so they gave me a choice. I could put them on myself, or they could kill me. I chose the chains. I didn’t realize Victor had enchanted them, or I might’ve chosen death.”
Rowan took a deep breath. “Why should I believe you? That’s not the story you told me a few minutes ago.”
“Yeah, well, I didn’t know who you were either. I had to come up with something.”
“I’m still not sure I believe you. If you really were a spy, would you tell me? I doubt it.”
Kingston shrugged. “Your choice, mate. Listen, I’m all locked up. I’m also your best shot at getting out of here alive. You can take it or leave it. If you don’t want my help, I’ll leave you two alone on this side of the cave, and I’ll stay on my own.”
Rowan thought for a minute. He didn’t trust Kingston. Not by a long shot, but he didn’t have many options. Besides, Kingston was all shackled up and couldn’t hurt them. Rowan decided to take a chance.
“Okay, fine. I’m gonna kill Victor. You said that’s the only way to get rid of the shackles, right?”
Kingston crossed his arms. “How are you going to kill him?”
“I don’t know. Bash his head in with a rock or something.”
Kingston laughed, and Rowan resisted the urge to punch him in the nose. Rowan didn’t see him coming up with any better ideas. They were stuck in a cave. Short of magic, a rock looked like a pretty good option.
After Kingston stopped laughing, he spoke again. “I’m sorry. I don’t see how you can do that. The best way to kill a dragon is to behead it.”
He really was an idiot. “How would I do that?”
“With a sword.”
“Where am I going to find one of those?” Rowan was liking Kingston less and less, and that was pretty hard to do at this point. He only gave him impossible solutions.
“Probably back there.” Kingston pointed deep into the cave. “Most dragons are hoarders of anything shiny and pretty. I expect you’d find a sword or two. Maybe even magical ones from years ago.”
“So you want me to go find one of those swords and just cut off his head?” Rowan had never even held a sword before. He’d have better luck with a rock.
Kingston stood over Rowan. “Seems easier than bashing the head in with a rock.”
“I don’t see how. I don’t have the slightest idea how to wield a sword.”
“Good thing I do then. But none of this is going to work until Skye wakes up and shields my mind as well. Otherwise, those canyon dragons are going to know you are here.”
Rowan stayed close to Skye. He willed her to wake up. He put his hand on her shoulder. Her body felt warm, but he still watched every breath. The damp floor of the cave couldn’t be good for her. He needed her to wake up. She could help him make sense of things. She’d know whether or not they should trust Kingston. He heard wings flapping, and his blood ran cold.
“You need to hide,” Kingston said.
“Why? They’re going to know I’m here because of you.”
“I can keep you out of my thoughts for a little while. I’ll be careful. Go.” Kingston pointed to the crevice where Rowan hid earlier.
However, Rowan spied another closer to where Skye lay. He quickly hid and watched as an orange dragon flew into the cavern. He dropped onto the floor next to Skye and stared at Kingston for a minute.
“I don’t think that’s your problem,” Kingston said.
The orange dragon shifted a little and snorted out orange smoke. Damn one-way conversations. He needed to hear what the canyon dragon said.
“Yeah, I’ll feed her. Whatever else I do to her is none of your business.”
What the hell was he talking about? Over Rowan’s dead body would Kingston do anything to Skye. Even if Kingston helped them get out of there alive, Rowan was going to punch him.
The orange dragon stood there for another minute and then flew off. Rowan waited until he was sure the dragon was out of the cave and stalked up to Kingston and shoved him. “What were you going to do to Skye, huh?”
Kingston laughed, which only made Rowan angrier. “Chill, man. I had to keep you out of my head. The easiest way was to focus on Skye.”
“Yeah, how exactly did you focus on her?” Rowan wouldn’t like this answer. But he had to know.
Kingston smirked. “Naked.”
Rowan didn’t think. He hauled off and punched Kingston in the nose. It didn’t have quite the desired effect he’d hoped. Kingston backed up and held his nose, but there was no blood.
“Holy crap.” Rowan doubled over. His hand felt as if he’d broken every bone. The whole thing was on fire.
Kingston knelt down in front of him. “Never punched anyone before, huh? You okay?”
Rowan glared at him. Kingston should be the one in pain. Rowan felt like such a wimp. He would fix that. He’d do a hundred push-ups a night if that meant he could protect Skye from losers like Kingston. Because right now, he couldn’t, and he felt his face flush with shame; he didn’t deserve Skye.
Kingston felt around his nose for a second, then frowned at Rowan. “Look, I have no interest in your girl there, okay. I was only trying to push your buttons. Plus, it was an easy distraction when I needed one.”
Rowan got up in Kingston’s face. “I don’t like having my buttons pushed. And leave Skye alone.” He backed away a few inches. “What did the dragon tell you?”
Kingston rolled his eyes. “He wants me to take care of Skye and get her ready for questioning. He said to make sure I feed her. It buys us a little time, I think, but I never know when he’ll come back. Plus, there’s Victor.”
“Who’s Victor again?”
“The white dragon who enchanted these chains. He doesn’t like me much, so he doesn’t come here often, but he’s the one we’ll have to kill to get the shackles off. If Helios asked me to feed her, that means he might be gone for a couple of days. But we can’t bank on it.” He rubbed at his scruffy beard.
“We might be able to figure out how to esc
ape in a few days.” Rowan was hoping for the time. He needed time to work through everything that had happened in the last couple of days. The fact that the orange dragon was leaving made him feel better. He looked around. The cavern was large, but well lit with fires along the cave walls. It was still damp and cold though. But not as cold as the air outside.
“Where are we anyway?”
“Near the Grand Canyon.”
“We flew that far? Skye and I were just in Oregon.”
“Long way. But now we can’t take any time for granted. You need to go find a sword.”
Rowan cringed a little. He couldn’t even break Kingston’s nose. He didn’t stand a chance against a fully-grown dragon. He followed Kingston anyway and found himself in a huge cavern full of shiny things. Rowan approached the pile and picked up a fork. He looked closer at the stuff in front of him. Most of it was junk. Cheap silverware and metal camping plates.
He turned around to face Kingston, who couldn’t reach the pile due to his shackles.
“This is all junk. There’s no sword here.” He felt like every time he opened his mouth around Kingston, he was accusing him of not being truthful. Maybe he should trust his instincts where Kingston was concerned.
“You’ll need to go farther back. You might even need to dig a little. The swords would have been from several hundred years ago.”
Rowan climbed up on top of the pile and looked around for anything that might possibly lob off a dragon’s head. There was nothing but crap. As he got farther into the cave, the things got older. Guns and cowboy spurs. The guns would be pretty useless against a dragon. He treaded slowly and carefully, not wanting to twist his ankle or fall down. Rowan stopped when he found the Indian spears and started tossing things around. Most of the metal was dull with age, but under a collection of old headgear he saw something sparkle. He dug farther, scratching up his hands. Underneath the mess was a sword, bright as the day it was forged. Rowan had never held a sword before, but the hilt felt comfortable in his hand. Maybe Kingston wasn’t lying after all.
Skye: The Dragon Kings Book 4 Page 6
