The Whispering Echoes (Smoke and Mirrors Book 3)

by Melissa Giorgio

  The dragon let out a roar that cut off abruptly. I was halfway across the stream before I even realized it.

  I raced into the forest. Silence settled over me like a blanket and I paused between trees, circling slowly. For a moment I felt like I was back in the hedge maze, being chased by the man hired to poison Harlin. I’d lost myself then, succumbing to the panic that always lingered in the back of my mind. Curling my hands into fists, I shook my head. I wouldn’t let that happen again. Jaegger needed me.

  I closed my eyes, steadying myself. At first the only sound I heard was the pounding of my heart. Then, to my left—

  Rustling. It was growing steadily louder. Branches were cracking and trees were groaning as something collided into their large trunks. Was Jaegger fighting something?

  I took off in the direction of the noise, stopping once to pick up a hefty-looking branch. Holding it like a club, I entered a clearing—

  And nearly dropped the branch.

  Jaegger was indeed fighting something.

  A dragon.

  He was fighting a dragon.

  As hard as I stared at the scene before me, I couldn’t comprehend it. Their bodies were black and red blurs as they snapped and snarled at one another. The red dragon was smaller than Jaegger, but with the way Jaegger grew and shrunk, I had no idea if that was its true size or not. While Jaegger’s body was covered in lethal spikes, this dragon only had a few barbs on its tail, which it swung at Jaegger. He ducked and lashed out with his maw, his teeth narrowly missing the other dragon’s shoulder.

  They were a spitting mass of bodies, moving so fast I could barely keep up. Somehow the red dragon managed to trip Jaegger and I found myself crossing the distance and swinging my branch in the air. The red dragon lowered its head, causing the branch to collide with Jaegger’s face instead.

  “Little bird!” he hollered, ripping the branch from my hands and hurling it across the woods, where it smacked into the side of one of the trees. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m trying to help you!” I was between the dragons, their sides heaving as they panted. Each breath they exhaled was warm and smelled of fire. Belatedly I realized jumping between two dueling dragons wasn’t exactly a good idea. In fact, it was probably the worst idea I’d ever had. I risked a nervous glance at the red dragon, but it had backed down and seemed amused by my conversation with Jaegger.

  “Helping me?” he repeated. “By attacking me?”

  “I was aiming for that one,” I said weakly, pointing at the red dragon. It let out a growl and I shrunk back until I was hidden behind one of Jaegger’s front legs.

  He swiveled his head to glare at me. “I had this under control.”

  “Did you really?” the other dragon asked.

  My eyes widened as it spoke. The red dragon was a girl!

  She sat up, examining one of her claws. Her scales were the color of blood-red roses, and in the sunlight that sneaked in through the bare branches of the trees, they glittered like rubies. She had large, golden eyes, which she narrowed as she stared at us.

  At Jaegger. She was definitely glaring at him.

  Jaegger sniffed. “Of course I did. You are nothing but a pup, and had my human not interfered, I would have bested you. Easily.”

  A low rumble erupted from the red dragon.

  “No!” I poked him in the side, which earned me a growl from Jaegger. “Do you even hear yourself, Jaegger? You just found another one of your kind, and you want to kill her?”

  Some of the bloodlust faded from his eyes as his expression turned sheepish. “I wouldn’t have killed her…”

  The red dragon stopped rumbling to snort. “No, you wouldn’t have.”

  They went back to glaring at one another. I threw my hands up in the air. “Is this seriously how all dragons behave, or is because it’s you, Jaegger?”

  He butted me with his head, knocking me over. “I am a god—”

  The red dragon started laughing, her entire body shaking with the effort. “Oh, you’re one of those, are you?”

  “What do you mean, ‘one of those’?” Jaegger hissed.

  “I thought you were old,” she said, still laughing, “but I didn’t realize you were ancient.”

  I jumped between them before Jaegger could lunge again. Over my shoulder, I asked the red dragon, “What are you talking about?”

  “The ones from the wars with the magicians. They fancied themselves gods.” The red dragon yawned, as if already bored with this conversation, and her teeth flashed in the light. I gulped; she had more than Jaegger did. “That’s why they got themselves killed.”

  Jaegger smacked his tail against the ground in irritation. “We were at war—”

  “Because of ones like you,” the red dragon spat. “Because you couldn’t leave things well enough alone. You were jealous of the magician’s powers. ‘Why should they be allowed to wield power similar to ours?’ you asked. You were jealous and spiteful, so you set out to destroy them.” She closed the distance between them, ignoring me as she shoved her face inches from Jaegger’s. Her words were as sharp as knives. “You started the war, and because of your stupidity, our race was nearly destroyed.”

  Silence descended over the woods until I said, “Nearly?”

  “You are wrong,” Jaegger said angrily. “About two things. We did not start the war—the magicians did. And our race was destroyed.”

  “Was it now?” the red dragon asked mockingly. “What was it you called me again? A pup? If our race was destroyed, then how am I here, your godliness?” She darted away, moving so fast I could barely track her. “It’s a shame you attacked first, proving to me that you’re nothing but a savage.” As she disappeared through the trees, her voice carried back to us. “I would have answered your questions if you’d been more civilized.”

  Jaegger watched her go, his eyes wide with… fear? I reached for him. “Jae—”

  “She’s wrong.” He pushed past me, following the same path the red dragon took. “I have to—I need to tell her she’s wrong.”

  And for the second time that afternoon he took off, once more leaving me behind.

  As quiet settled over the forest, I couldn’t stop shaking. My pants were soaking wet from my trek through the stream, and I knew I needed to get back to camp and change, but I couldn’t will my body to move. Fear paralyzed me in place as my earlier bravado vanished as quickly as Jaegger had.

  Jae left me, I thought numbly. But he would be back, and he’d expect to find me here, so I couldn’t leave. That would be rude. I sat down, pulling my coat tighter around my body to stave off the cold.

  It wasn’t long before I heard Leonid calling for me. His voice wasn’t pitched with panic yet, but I knew if I didn’t answer, he would start to worry. With a sigh, and another glance in the direction Jaegger had disappeared, I shouted, “I’m here!”

  Leonid crashed through the forest, his sword drawn and his face murderous. “Lark, what are you doing?” His gaze dipped to my soaked pants. “Were you swimming in the stream?”

  “No! There was another dragon! With Jaegger!”

  Halting, Leonid’s mouth hung open. “What?” he managed to sputter.

  “And they were fighting, so I tried to stop them—”

  His expression went from shocked to incredulous. “You tried to stop a pair of dragons from fighting?” Leonid’s raised voice echoed across the forest. A bird had been singing high above us in one of the trees, but at the sound of Leonid’s voice, it broke off mid-song.

  I nodded meekly.

  Kneeling next to me, his eyes roamed over my body, checking for wounds. “How are you still alive?”

  “They stopped after I accidentally knocked Jae in the head with my tree branch.”

  Leonid laughed before he could stop himself. Then he said, “Again, Irina, how are you still alive?”

  I filled him in on the rest of their short conversation, ending with, “Jae went after her, so I’m waiting for him to come back.”

>   “Lark.” He looked at me with such pity in his eyes that I pushed him away and stood.

  “No,” I told him, knowing what he was about to say. “Don’t. Don’t you dare.”

  “He just found out he’s not the last of his kind,” Leonid said gently. “I don’t think… He’s not going to come back.”

  “Don’t say that!” I shouted, as if Leonid saying it out loud would somehow make it true. “Of course he’s coming back. He’s going to help us, Leonid. He promised.”

  Again Leonid opened his mouth, but he hesitated for a long moment before answering. “All right, but I don’t think he’d want you waiting for him in wet clothes. Come back to the camp, get changed, and have something to eat. I’m sure by the time we’re ready to go, he’ll be back.”

  “You don’t even believe that,” I said, my voice cracking.

  He shut his eyes, as if in pain. “I want to believe it.”

  I didn’t want to fight with Leonid, not when we’d come so close to doing just that after he’d found out I’d been lying to him. Brushing aside a few stray tears, I said, “I might as well tell you what I wanted to say to both of you, away from the others.” Quickly, I explained about Parnaby’s connection to Dusk. “He’s hiding something, Leonid. Something even bigger than the amplifier.”

  Exhaling, Leonid raised his eyes to the sky and muttered, “As if we don’t have enough to worry about.”

  “What are we going to do?” My voice was small and plaintive.

  “About Dusk?” He shrugged and shook his head. “Nothing right now. We can’t do anything this far away from home. And there’s no use worrying about it when we have so much else to deal with.”

  “One crisis at a time?” I cracked weakly. Why was I even joking at a time like this? My heart felt like it’d been plucked from my chest and trampled on by the ruby dragon.

  “Exactly,” he said, kissing me on the cheek. Pulling me to my feet, Leonid led me out of the forest, showing me where the stream was narrow enough that we could cross it without wading through the ice-cold waters like I’d done. Everyone looked up as I returned, and when they took in my sorry state, they all began speaking at once.

  “She’s fine,” Leonid said, handing me my satchel. I removed my other pair of pants and went to the nearest tree, ducking behind it to change. I could hear Leonid explaining things as I did, and when I returned, the others were staring at me in shock.

  “Jae’s gone?” Quinn asked, her face scrunching up as she fought to control tears.

  “He’s coming back,” I said firmly, accepting a bread and cheese sandwich from Leonid. It tasted like ash in my mouth, and I had difficulty choking it down. But I needed to keep my strength up. Jae will laugh when he sees how we’re all acting. Me, especially. He’ll probably act annoyed, but secretly he’ll love all the attention.

  I kept telling myself that as I ate my bread. As I drank from my flask. As I settled against the tree trunk, my eyes on the woods. As the others repacked their satchels and checked the horizon. As Leonid and Vernen went back into the woods and returned without Jaegger.

  Leonid kneeled in front me, saying, “It’s time to go, Lark.”

  Fear crawled up my throat, threatening to strangle me. “But—”

  He shook his head. “I don’t think he’s coming back.”

  “N-No—”

  “Irina.” Claudette crouched next to Leonid. “Jaegger probably lost track of time. When he realizes how long he’s been, he’ll come after us. He knows where we’re heading, so he’ll have no trouble catching up.” Her expression was uneasy as she glanced at the horizon. “Unfortunately for us, we still have a way to go before we reach the town, and the city after that. We’re racing against time, aren’t we? Don’t we need to stop Aeonia before she realizes what she’s holding?”

  Claudette was right. Sitting here and feeling sorry for myself wasn’t helping our mission. As much as it killed me to leave Jaegger behind, I had to remember that he’d left me first. The thought was like a knife wound to my heart, and as I allowed Leonid to help me to my feet, I couldn’t stop the tears that trickled down my face.

  I always knew Jaegger could leave at any time. That our mission wasn’t his mission, nor was the fate of the world any of his concern. After everything he’d endured, he should have the chance to do what he wanted. To live the sort of life he deserved.

  I knew this, but it didn’t make his absence any less painful.

  DESPITE MY EXHAUSTION AND HEARTACHE, Leonid had me walk next to him, and I was forced to match his brisk pace. We held hands, his grip tight as if he feared I’d take off the moment he let go. But Leonid had nothing to worry about. Convinced Jaegger would reappear at any moment, I’d spent the first two hours checking the skies until I’d given up. There were only so many times my heart could sink with disappointment before I went mad with grief.

  Everyone was right. Even without Jaegger, the mission was still the same. We needed to find Aeonia and get the stone back. Maybe Jaegger would show up again. Or maybe we’d said our goodbyes without even realizing it.

  Whatever the case, I concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other.

  When the town, which Emile informed us was named Tyne, came into view, I nearly wept with relief. I wasn’t the only one. Even the siblings were weary with exhaustion as they pointed out the inn, telling us they’d meet us there after they stabled their horses.

  Tyne was busier than I expected, probably because in my mind I kept picturing it as similar to the one we’d passed on our first night of traveling. That town had been small, with only a few, squat buildings, while Tyne contained rows upon rows of two-, three-, and sometimes even four-storied buildings. When compared to Dusk, it still seemed tiny, but it had an inviting atmosphere that I welcomed.

  With the sun setting rapidly in the orange and red sky, people dressed in thick coats and scarves crowded the streets, with most heading for a large tavern that took up almost the entire main square. Across from the tavern and down a block was the inn, a cheery three-storied building with candles illuminating the front windows. Leonid opened the door and sounds of laughter and conversation spilled out, along with the irresistible smell of food.

  “I’ve never been so hungry in my life,” West complained, practically knocking Leonid out of the way so he could charge into the inn.

  Scowling, Leonid followed, going up to the counter to secure rooms for the night. I stood next to him, pushing down my hood. A roaring fireplace took up one wall entirely, warming the inn and throwing off a cheery glow.

  There were six wooden tables with benches, with five of them occupied by fellow travelers. After Leonid paid for the rooms, my friends and I sat down at the last empty table. We all groaned with relief as we finally rested our feet.

  Aden laid his head against the table. “I’m never walking again.”

  West, who sat next to him, poked him in the shoulder. “We still have to walk to Fairfield,” he said.

  Aden groaned.

  Frowning, Leonid got up and inquired with the inn’s owner about something. The owner pointed at the door, gesturing as if giving Leonid directions. He nodded and thanked him before coming back to the table, looking proud of himself.

  “We won’t have to walk to Fairfield,” Leonid said. “There’s a stagecoach that runs there daily. I’m going to go secure us passage on tomorrow’s coach. I’ll be right back.” He turned, paused, and glared at West. “Don’t eat my food before I get back.” Showing that he was serious, Leonid’s hand went to the sword that hung from his hip.

  West held up his hands in surrender. “Do you think I have a death wish?”

  Leonid knelt to plant a kiss on my forehead, and then he left the inn, the door banging shut behind him. The rest of us were too tired to talk, and no one moved until our food arrived. The serving girl brought us bowls filled with thick, meaty stew, and West and Aden groaned in appreciation.

  “Marry me,” West said with his mouth full to the girl, who blus
hed and scurried away to get the rest of the food.

  Elyse kicked him under the table. “Leave the poor girl alone. Besides, what about Claudette?”

  West stopped eating to rub his shin. “What about her?”

  “I thought you liked her,” Elyse said as the girl returned with more bowls of stew. I thanked her as she set one in front of me and instructed her to leave Leonid’s in front of the empty spot to my left. Still blushing, she nodded and left as quickly as she could.

  West, meanwhile, shoved another huge spoonful of stew into his mouth. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Liar,” Elyse said, rolling her eyes.

  The door banged open again and I turned, thinking it would be Leonid, but instead it was Claudette and Emile. “Stew!” Claudette collapsed in the seat next to me and began eating from Leonid’s bowl before I could tell her not to. Noticing my horrified expression, Emile poked her sister. “What?” she asked in between spoonfuls.

  “Nice knowing you, Claudette,” West said with a cheeky grin.

  “What are you talking about?” She glanced up, smirking. “Did you know you have stew all over your chin?”

  “So do you,” he countered. They shared a grin.

  Next to me Elyse muttered, “And yet he says he doesn’t know what I’m talking about.”

  Emile sat down across from his sister, signaling for the serving girl. “Claudette, I think you’re eating Leonid’s stew.”

  She stopped eating to look around. “How’s it his? He’s not even here.”

  “He’s booking a coach for us,” I explained quietly as Emile ordered two more bowls of stew.

  “Ah, well, it would have been cold by the time he got here, so I’m doing him a favor.” Claudette reached across the table to swipe West’s bread and he snatched it away, glaring at her.

  “Get your own bread!”