Page 72 of Earth-Bound

Anthony said, “Yes,” and gulped audibly.

Matty took charge. “Right, here’s what we’re going to do: I’m going to get that one last spell because then we’re finishedhere. It’ll only take two minutes. And then we’re going to go outside and tell Dum and Dee that we’re leaving. I’ll say we got a call from Laura and that Marcia is sick or something and we have to go back to the castle immediately. Even Arram will fly on Dee’s back then.”

I breathed out a sigh of relief. Theridirewould not harm a dryad but I knew enough about mates to know that the dragon would not be separated from her mate and wouldn’t fly home alone.

Anthony’s voice was faint as he said, “Ok then, if you say so.”

Matty’s voice was confident and authoritative. “You, Ant, are going to say nothing, do you understand? Nothing at all. Absolutely zilch. As far as anyone else is concerned, you have just taken a vow of silence.”

Anthony started to ask why but only got as far as, “Wh—?” before realising that he was talking and he wasn’t allowed to do that.

“Because you’re the worst liar in the world and they’ll know something is up. As soon as you say anything, they’ll know this is a trick and they’ll get suspicious and then they’ll get the truth out of you. If you say nothing, I can just say you’re upset about Marcia and we need to get home quickly.”

Cuthbert confirmed, “You smell of fear and worry and nausea, Anthony. They’ll believe Matty as long as you don’t say anything. If you try and lie, you smell really guilty.”

Matty snorted at Cuthbert. “You’re not going to say anything, either. You’re nearly as bad as Ant.” He didn’t give Cuthbert a chance to be offended. He began to organise. “Right, I’m letting the sound spell go so you two are not to say anythingat all from now on. Terrund? Thanks for the warning. We owe you.”

With that, the telephone went suddenly silent.

I looked at Joe.

“Do you think they’ll get away?”

He had a quizzical expression on his face. “Are they all scared of these dragon-hunters then?”

“Yes. Theridireare powerful.”

“How did you know they were near?”

I felt myself flush. “I, um, am regaining my strength. I can sense things in the earth and things that touch the earth…”

I didn’t want to tell Joe that his essence inside me made me stronger and that, when we mated, I would be more powerful than I ever had been. I would need to tell him about mates first, otherwise he might think he had magical semen.

We kept walking at a swift pace across the fields towards the house, drawn there by worry for our friends, even though they’d been warned already.

“Wow, look at that.”

Joe was pointing into the distance and I followed his gaze to see a large, grey dragon rise up into the sky. They beat their wings and gained height, moving across the sky like a large ship. I had to admit, they looked majestic but I still wouldn’t want to actually ride one. They looked so very high above the earth.

Behind them, another dragon took to the air and, when they had gained enough height, the third did the same. They streaked off, away from theuasalterritory, and I breathed a sighof relief as they grew smaller and smaller, getting safer and safer the further they were from theridire.

Joe suddenly asked, “Is it weird that I reckon I know which one was which?”

“No, not at all. They are distinct, if you know what to look for. A lot of people have to see the dragon transform or be introduced to them in dragon form before they can remember, though. Which do you believe was leading?”

“Dee.”

I nodded. “That’s what I thought, too.”

“And Dum was at the back.”

“Yes, I believe they sandwiched Cuthbert and Anthony between them for safety.”

Joe was shaking his head, smiling a little. “Weird that I’m going to miss them.”

“That’s not strange at all. We both grew rather fond of them. We’ll see them again, though. We have time on our side.”

Joe gave me a strange look for that but didn’t say anything and I reminded myself that he didn’t know we were mates yet, and he had no idea that his lifespan would extend to match mine once we were mated. I really needed to tell him, but I’d been worried about pushing him away.

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