Page 3 of Surge of Storms

I didn’t want to live. I didn’t want to be without you.My words are broken by sobs.

Sam, no, don’t ever say something like that.

I just love you so much. I can’t be without you.Even as I say the words, I know that they’re true. That they’ve always been true. Granger is part of my heart and soul. I can’t exist without him.

You’ll never have to worry about that. I’m always going to be here.His familiar voice gives comfort in a moment where I feel on the edge of hysteria.

Up ahead, I see the coast, but we’re just a little further north than where the base is located. Maybe a half hour’s walk away in human form. It’s all rocky cliffs and forests here because of the preserve, but I’m just grateful to see an end to the water.

Now, we’re going to land. I’m going to do it as smoothly as I can, but just be ready. I’m new to this, and I’m not sure how it’s going to go.

I tense, unsure what to expect as he lands lightly on the edge of a cliff. The jostle hurts, but it’s better than I expected. Suddenly, he’s walking on land, with me still on his back, to the edge of a tree line.

We’re going to stop here, and I’m going to set you down. Then, we’re going to shift back, and I’m going to check over your wounds.

It’s hard to focus on his words. I just want to be with him, be close to him, hold him and never let him go. I almost lost him again. IthoughtI lost him.

He slides me gently from his back and moves further away from me. Then he asks,Can you tell me how you shift back?

Of course. He doesn’t know what it is to be a dragon. Because… he wasn’t a dragon before. Granger shifted.Grangeris the storm dragon.You picture your old self, your human self and your body, and then you shift back.

Within seconds of my explanation, I watch him change from the big black dragon to Granger, the man I’d grown up with, the man who was my best friend. Closing my eyes, I shift back too and collapse onto my knees.

Granger is there in an instant. He picks me up in his arms like a bride and carries me out of the rain and beneath the cover of the trees. He keeps going until we’re under a large tree with a thick bed of pine needles, and then he carefully sets me onto the ground.

I don’t hesitate. I throw my arms around him, bawling. “I thought you died.”

He holds me gently. “I know. I’m sorry. I know.”

“You fell, and then you were just gone. Gone, just like that. I thought I’d never see you again, or touch you again.” I’m crying harder.

“I thought I was dying too,” he tells me, and I can hear the tears in his voice. “You were all I could think about. You and Aydan. I just kept imagining never seeing you again.”

We hold each other for a long time. My entire body is shaking. He holds me gently, avoiding my back, before he finally lets me go and says, “I need to check you over.”

With slow, deliberate movements he removes my shirt and turns me around. His breath catches, and he’s breathing hard. “We need you to shift back and then shift into your human form again. We need to help your back heal.”

“Is it bad?” I whisper. “Is it more than my healing abilities can handle?”

He strokes my side. “Sam, you’ve got to be the toughest woman I’ve ever met in my life.”

He picks me up again, and we step back out into the storm. He stands back, and I shift, feeling my bones changing and my skin pulling. I stretch my wings and wince as pain radiates from them. My head swivels from side to side, and I watch as the tears in my brilliant red wings begin to heal before my eyes.

Granger approaches me, and I lean my head down. He pets me slowly, while I feel my body healing. How much? I have no idea, but I pray it’s enough for me to be able to fly again.

“Okay,” Granger says. “You should be able to shift back.”

I do, falling back to my knees, and he scoops me up as the rain continues to soak us. He carries me back under the cover and safety of the trees and beneath the shadows of the massive pine tree. He sets me down once more and inspects my bare back.

“It’s a lot better, mostly scars, but fuck, Sam. You should have never allowed yourself to fall into the green dragon’s trap.”

I turn to him. “And what was I supposed to do? Let you die? You know I’d never be able to do that.”

He winces, and I can’t help myself. I throw myself into his arms once more, and we just sit like that for a long time, holding each other on the forest floor. We never want to let each other go again.

I breathe deeply of his scent, that of soap and books, but this time it’s different. I had started to feel… strange when I smelled him, but it’s like my response to him is magnified by a thousand. Everything in my body tightens, even my grip around him tightens, and I breathe him in again. He smells… so, so fucking good. Amazing.

The hairs on my body stand on end, and my breath seems to vibrate through my body. “You smell… really good, Granger.”

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