Page 428 of Kingdoms of Night

A light illuminated the darkness before him, and he had no idea where it came from. But hope made him move. Hope pushed him until he reached a lip that would require him to squeeze so tight against the earth that he feared he would get stuck. Still, he tried. For his sister. For his clan.

Rowan released all the breath in his lungs so he was smaller and tucked his body underneath the ledge in the tunnel he’d squeezed himself into. The rock tightened around his ribs and back. The air he’d exhaled wasn’t enough to let him through. He was stuck here in this rocky tomb and now he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t inhale without rocks biting into his skin and pushing down upon his heart.

Rowan scrabbled his hands against the stones, searching for a handhold that would just... let... him...

His fingers found purchase, and he yanked himself through the tight squeeze and out into the illuminated cavern. Rowan wheezed in a long breath as his body fell down the rock wall and hit the ground hard. Still, there was air around him. Not stone.

Trying to catch his breath, he stared up at the ceiling and realized the light emanated from crystals above his head. Crystals in every color, some short and squat, some long pillars that glowed even brighter.

Now this, he thought, was beautiful.

Until an enormous head loomed over him. This dragon was much smaller than the ones he’d seen before. Its head and neck were the same size as him, so very small compared to the others he’d seen. Its amethyst scales seemed to sparkle in the light of the crystals, as though it had been dusted with stars.

Those giant purple eyes stared down at him, blinked, and then the dragon bared its long, jagged teeth.

“Just what are you doing here?” it asked.

Rowan was ashamed to admit his vision skewed, and then a dark mist stole his sight as he lost consciousness.

CHAPTERTWO

CHAPTER 2

Tanis had seen elven men before. They were rare in these parts. Usually because they caused more trouble than they were worth, so most of the dragons brought back female elves. There was a history with her people and the male elves fought hard for freedom. They weren’t easily convinced that dragons weren’t the terrifying creatures they feared, although for some reason, their counterparts understood that fact rather quickly.

She watched the elf pass out in front of her and then sighed. “This is why I prefer dwarves,” she muttered.

What was she supposed to do with an unconscious elf in her cave? None of the other dragons were finding unknown elves in their caves. She was certain of that. They were all asleep because they didn’t have to listen to their ancestors whispering in the memory crystals every night. She did. Tanis rarely slept, but tonight she had intended to try.

Until this happened. Now she had to deal with this mess.

At least he wasn’t awake for what she was about to do. He’d probably scream and then the crimson dragons would get involved. They were always sticking their nose into business which wasn’t theirs. Screaming people in caves got them riled up.

She didn’t need a protector, no matter how often they tried to tell her that. She could protect the crystals without a giant idiot standing outside her cave entrance.

Tanis stretched out her neck and placed her teeth around the elf. Carefully, of course, because she’d hate to break his skin. But she had to move at least somewhat quickly or he’d awaken inside her mouth and who knew what he’d do then?

If she remembered correctly, though it had been a long time since she’d seen a male elf, they were known for being rather stabby. And she didn’t want to feel any weapons in her gums because that would take forever to get out. No one here was good at teeth extractions or anything of the sort. Maybe one of the witches might know a spell, though.

She awkwardly maneuvered her way through the cave with the elf dangling from her mouth. He was quite heavy, and that made it rather difficult to move. She only got him halfway out of the crystals before he woke up.

“What—“

Then came the startled sound of a man who realized he was in the mouth of a very dangerous creature. She’d thought he would fight back, but instead, he went limp. As though he were pretending to pass out again like that would make her wonder if she wanted to eat something that had already died.

She wasn’t a big cat! Did he really think that would work?

At least it meant she could drag him over to the corner where the elves usually sat, and deposit him on the soft cushions there. Each of those stuffed cushions was about his size and, hopefully, her slimy drool wouldn’t ruin the elves’ hard work.

“There,” she said as he flopped dramatically onto his side. “That should be more comfortable.”

He didn’t move.

“I know you’re awake.” She reared her head back, looking down the length of her neck at him.

Why wasn’t he moving anymore? She could see his chest rising and falling much faster than it should if he’d passed out again. So he was definitely aware that she was talking to him.

Perhaps she was too close. Tanis hadn’t welcomed any newcomers to their isle in a very long time. She remembered they were usually terrified of the dragons when they first arrived. She didn’t blame them. The Umbral Kingdom had painted dragons as terrifying beasts who had no control over their hunger.

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