Page 107 of A Kingdom Restored

“Very well,” the dragon said, in a voice like rock scraping against rock. “We will hold this Record Master to account.”

Without another word, the dragons all took to the sky, with the exception of Rekavidur and his father.

“Are they going back underwater?” Merletta asked frantically.

Reka nodded.

“I need to be there,” said Merletta. “Will you take me?”

“I will do so, if you wish,” Elddreki offered amicably. The dragon spread his wings in readiness, and Heath grabbed Merletta’s arm.

“Wait!”

She turned to him apologetically. “I think we’ll have to go deeper than you can follow this time.”

“I know,” he said. “But when will I see you? I don’t know what’s going to happen.”

“Neither do I.” She gave him a sad smile. “Isn’t that more or less the basis of our relationship?”

Heath groaned, and Merletta let out a chuckle that didn’t contain much real humor. Disregarding their dragon audience, she stepped close to him.

“We’ve been here before, Heath,” she murmured, her sweet salty smell enveloping him. “We just need to both stay alive, and we’ll find our way to each other.”

She gripped his dripping tunic with one hand, tugging him against her before he could respond. She pushed up onto her toes to press her lips to his in a quick, fierce kiss.

“We always do,” she added, the words somehow a promise.

And then, with a swish of dragon wings, she was gone.

Chapter Thirty-One

The delay with Heath had set them behind, but Elddreki moved quickly, and by the time the main group of dragons entered the water, they’d come within sight. Elddreki’s talons—considerably larger than his son’s—closed tightly around Merletta as he dove below the surface, his pace barely checking.

Merletta’s legs disappeared, her fins flicking with eagerness to be swimming freely. But she knew that even in her natural environment, the dragon could move much more quickly than she could, so she didn’t attempt to wriggle free.

Elddreki streaked downward, hard on the trail of the others. Merletta expected the dragons to make for Tilssted, where the fighting had seemed to be focused before her hasty departure. But they’d shot straight past it, entering the water high above the drop off that surrounded the Center.

Of course, they all passed smoothly through the barrier without the slightest check, causing Merletta’s thoughts to dwell darkly on the Record Master’s lies about the non-existent protection. How many had died that day, believing until the last moment that they would be safe if they just cowered inside the barrier as instructed?

As Elddreki moved down into the familiar streets of the Center, Merletta choked on a cry. Clearly the attack hadn’t been limited to Tilssted, as she’d originally thought. There could be no doubt dragons had been active here as well. A number of buildings had been affected, entire walls demolished by what looked like the sweep of a dragon’s tail. Rubble littered the seabed, and luminescent jellyfish floated aimlessly, freed from their lanterns. Plenty of merpeople were milling around, although they began to scatter as the dragons reappeared, screams once again lancing through the water.

“It’s all right!” Merletta called desperately, her heart wrenched by the fear in their eyes. “They won’t attack this time!”

If anyone heard her, they took no notice. At this rate, there’d be no one left in the area to hear the dragons’ reassurances.

“We do not come to destroy.” One of the larger dragons spoke in a voice that vibrated through the water with such strength that everyone stopped mid-stroke.

Many pairs of wary eyes turned toward the arrivals, and Merletta saw recognition on more than one face as they caught sight of her. She shifted at last, pushing at Elddreki’s talons until he released her into the water. She swam away from the dragons, ranging herself alongside the other merpeople.

“Merletta!”

Searching for the source of the hiss, Merletta’s eyes landed on Ileana. She hurried toward the young guard.

“You’re alive!” Ileana said. She shook her head. “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. You have as many lives as a catfish. Why didn’t the dragons kill you?”

“A couple tried,” Merletta assured her. “I got lucky. But they’re not trying to kill us now, I promise.” She looked Ileana over. “I’m glad you survived.” It was genuinely true, even if her words carried no great warmth. “What about the others?”

“They were all in one piece last I saw,” Ileana said curtly. “It was absolute chaos, I know, but the dragons were picking everyone off one by one. Not as many were killed before they withdrew as you might think. Whydidthey withdraw?”

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