Page 85 of The Heart of the Dragon

"You mean I could fly?"

"Eventually. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Learning to fly is no easy feat. We'll work on it as we can, but there probably won’t be a lot of time any time soon."

"A dragon and a dark fairy. Why does that feel like the beginning of a joke?"

"I'm not laughing," he said without even a hint of a smile.

I, on the other hand, felt lighter than I ever had. Now that some of the panic had subsided, I was beginning to think this fae business might be the answer I'd been looking for for years.

"Okay then, what now?"

"We aren't going to get far before we're captured."

I jerked to a stop, forcing him to turn back to talk to me. "Why would we be captured?"

"Because it’s the only way into my uncle's castle. We just need to be smart about it."

“There is nothing smart about being captured. Doesn't he like to torture people?"

"He does. But he won't have either one of us long enough to go there."

A shiver worked over my body as I realized the real danger we were walking into. Magnus might understand how to defend himself, but I doubted I'd be given the chance to cook them to death.

"Uhm. Can we go somewhere to buy supplies before we surrender?"

"I'm not surrendering. And what did you have in mind?"

“I need plants. Preferably already dried and lots of them."

He let go of my hand and took a step away from me. "I cannot, in good conscience give you access to something that will likely kill me."

I smirked at him. "Ye of little faith. I think if I wanted to kill you, I could have figured out a way to do it already."

He shook his head. "And you wonder why I'm nervous."

"I said I could, not that I would. Jeez."

"I could help you with your plants."

We both whirled at the sound of a quiet feminine voice behind us, finding a petite creature I didn't know how to define. She had human features, but they came wrapped in vines and thorns.

"Hello, Ensley," Magnus growled.

Chapter

Thirty-Two

Rose

"I betyou thought you'd never see me again," the small creature spoke, her voice throaty and quiet at the same time.

"Considering we used Kitra's magic to get here, I'm actually surprised it took you this long."

She tsked. "I've been following you forever. As is half the forest. If I didn't intervene, you'd probably be dead by now."

They were having a completely calm conversation, but all I could do was open and close my mouth like a guppy.

"What's wrong with her? I know she can talk. The two of you having been going at it since she was dumped into the swamp."

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