Page 12 of A Lick of Flame

“Believe me when I tell you that I know exactly what I am talking about. We need to break this tether, to find a way to—”

“We? There is no we, beastfae.” She looks horrified.

“My name is Orion, and I assure you that there is very much a we. As soon as you tethered with Raila, we became a package deal, human. If you die, your dragon will die. She’s too young to survive such an ordeal. It’s why we don’t allow whelps to tether.” I look down at Raila, who is resting her head against the woman, she has her arm wrapped firmly around the beast’s neck. How can she not see that she is bonded? Surely, she can sense it at some level? Then again, she is empty. Devoid of any magic.

“I’m not going to die,” she scoffs. “You’re trying to scare me.”

“You keep telling yourself that; it won’t make it any less true. I’m not trying to do anything. You should be scared. If Raila dies, Delphine will be heartbroken. She’ll blame me for her daughter’s death. She will break our bond, and I will die too. If I perish…if… It’s not important.” I sigh. My people need me. I am the king. I need to find a way to take back my throne. To end Snow’s reign of terror. There are so many wrongs that need righting, so much resting on my shoulders. This woman doesn’t need to know all of it. She’s a thorn in my side. She’s standing in the way of me finding the rest of the Lost Kings and saving the realm. I can’t trust her, and even if I did, it is knowledge that would put her in grave danger. “If you die, then I die. I have no choice but to find a way to break the tether and to save you. We will have to work together.” I shrug.

“And in so doing, you’ll save yourself?” She sounds bored.

I nod. “Yes.” She’s finally getting it. Finally owning up to her…make that our predicament.

I sense Delphine growing restless behind me. But since I feel a little dizzy, I ignore her, pulling in a few breaths instead. At least my shoulder isn’t hurting as much anymore. The problem is that I’ve lost a lot of blood. I really didn’t need this. Not right now.

“If all you say is true – and that's a big if – what do you suggest we do? How do we fix this?” she asks.

I admire her bravery. Most humans would have fled if faced with a big, bloody beastfae and his dragon. They would have run if they’d found an egg, especially if said egg hatched. Still, I’m thirsty, tired, and getting dizzier by the second. I don’t feel like having this conversation. Since weakness is not something I am used to, I stay on my feet. I’ll have to try a little longer to talk some sense into this irritating creature.

“Tell me, fae! What do you suggest we do?” she repeats her question like I didn’t hear it the first time.

I exhale, dragging a hand down my face. Then, I take a breath or two to steady myself. “I have been told that there is a witch deep in the Windsar Forest; it’s within the beastfae kingdom. She's ancient and enormously powerful. Rumor has it she knows how to break a dragon tether. It is our only hope.”

Her eyes narrow in suspicion. “A witch, you say?”

I also hate the thought, but we have no other option. That’s not entirely true, there is another way, but she’ll never go for it.

I nod. I’m too tired to argue further.

“So, you expect me to travel all the way to your kingdom and then traipse into a dangerous forest to ask a witch for a favor?”

“It would not be a favor. There would be a payment in return,” I say, talking slowly so I don’t slur my words. I can hardly keep my eyes open. I yawn.

“You expect me to believe all of this and to take you at your word?” she spits out, eyes blazing.

“Believe me, I'm no happier about this than you are,” I snap. “But neither of us will survive if that bond remains intact. So, either we work together to find this witch, or we die. Your choice.” I shrug. Right now, I don’t care anymore.

The human works her jaw, with clear conflict on her face. She glances down at the whelp, who stares up at her with adoring golden eyes. “I will admit that I feel a connection to the baby.” She tickles the little one under the jaw, and Delphine stomps her feet behind me. She wants her whelp. She is very nearly done waiting.

Maya looks up into the darkness behind me, her eyes wide. She sucks in a breath and then swallows audibly.

“My dragon wants her whelp. That is all. She won’t harm you in any way. You need to step away from Raila and let her mother do her job. The last thing we want is for the whelp to fixate on you, to think that you are her mother. That would be another abomination,” I growl the last, unable to help myself. “Go home and meet me here in the morning with supplies for a journey.”

“You’re trying to distract me. The baby must know her own mother.”

“And yet she is still with you.”

“Raila is fine. I’m leaving soon, so…” She looks down at the whelp, her eyes filling with tears. “I know her mother will take excellent care of her. I will go home now, but I am not coming back because I don’t believe you.” She shakes her head, some hair tumbling loose from her leather tie. “I refuse to go on some fool’s errand. To travel to your kingdom on some insane quest to find some witch who may or may not exist. It’s ridiculous. All of it is. You used your magic to put this mark on me.” She looks at her shoulder, which is once again covered by her dress and shawl. “You projected these wayward thoughts into my head. I don’t know to what end, but—”

“Exactly.” My voice is softer than I would like. “I have no reason to cast spells on the likes of you.” I snort. “Why would I saddle myself with a puny human? You’re weak and would break easily. I am setting myself up for failure by going on such a journey with you. A human…a…” My head is spinning. I think I might be slurring my words. Perhaps my wound is worse than I thought. Perhaps they used the blood of a yazuul lizard on the spear’s tip.

“A what?” She steps forward. I’ve never met such a fearless human. “So what if I am human?”

I want to answer her question, but I can’t because my world goes as black as the darkest recesses of these caves. I fall, but my arms don’t reach out to stop me. I hit the ground hard as I pass out.

Maya

I gasp and take a step forward toward the fallen beastfae. He is lying on his side; blood oozes from the wound on his shoulder. The spear clatters to the ground beside him. I want to help him but stop myself at the last moment as I remember who he is.

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