Page 93 of Black Wing and Shadows
Shit.
I bolted after her, boots crunching over frozen roots and patches of snow. My breath tore from my lungs in sharp bursts as I pushed harder, the cold air burning in my throat. Through the lattice of branches, I caught flashes of silver darting ahead—low enough to force me to weave through the undergrowth instead of just watching her vanish into the clouds.
A low laugh—wait, could dragons laugh—rippled through my mind.
“You remembered me. But will you keep up?”
Branches lashed my face and arms, stinging hot lines across my skin, but I kept running. Instinct howled—if I lost her now, she’d vanish, and with her, my chance at the bond.
Esme dipped sharp, weaving between a fallen trunk and the riverbank. I plunged after her, boots sliding down the icy slope. Rocks tore at my palms as I caught myself before the drop.
The river churned black beneath a fragile skin of ice, water rushing fast enough to drag anything under. Esme had already banked toward the far side, wings beating hard, leaving me scrambling to keep her in sight.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I muttered, before I sprinted two steps and leapt.
For a moment, I was weightless—the icy wind ripping at my clothes—before I landed hard, sliding into the frost-hardened mud on the far side. My knees jolted, but I was already moving again. Esme glanced overher shoulder mid-flight, and for the first time, I swore there was approval in her eyes.
“Come find me.”
And with that, she vanished deeper into Flugblatt Forest, leaving me no choice but to chase her until either I caught her… or I couldn’t move another step. The silver light came first—shimmering through the trees like water spilling between leaves. My steps slowed, every instinct on alert, and then the trees opened into the glade. Frost clung to the grass in sparkling webs, but the air was warmer here, humming faintly in my bones.
Esme stood at the far side. Smaller than the great elders, yes, but her presence filled the space, silver scales glinting like she had been born of moonlight.
“You made it.”Her voice slid into my mind the same way it had on Judgment Day.“Now you choose.”
I took a step forward. “Choose what?”
“To take what you want… or turn away.”
Movement flickered in the shadows. Two cadets stepped into the glade—daggers drawn, eyes sharp with the kind of hunger Bonding Day always brought.
“I found her first,” I warned.
One smirked. “Bonding day’s fair game. Let’s see if you can keep her.”
The first came at me fast, and steel rang as our blades met. The second tried to come in low from my blind side, and I spun—too slow. Pain punched into my ribs, white-hot, as the tip of his dagger slid between the plates of my light armor.
I hissed, shoving him back with my elbow, warm wetness already blooming under my tunic. Not deep enough to drop me. Not today. The one in front of me grinned like he had already won—until I caught his wrist, twisted hard, and drove my knee into his gut. He went down gasping, and I ripped the dagger from his hand in one smooth motion.
The second lunged again, but this time I met him head-on, blades locking before I slammed my forehead into his. He stumbled, dazed, and I kicked his legs out, pinning him with a boot to the throat.
I straightened, breathing hard, the stab wound a throbbing pulse under my ribs. “Not turning away,” I said.
Esme’s eyes burned into mine.“Then come to me.”
I crossed the frost-rimmed grass, each step measured despite the ache in my side. When my palm touched her brow, heat poured through me—fierce and endless—burning the pain away until there was only her.
Our eyes locked, and I felt a pulse run from my head to my toes, locking our bond into place. Esme lowered her head just enough for me to reach the ridge of muscle between her neck and shoulder. My side burned where the dagger had been, but I clenched my jaw and hauled myself up, hooking my leg over her sleek body. No saddle. No straps. Just living, shifting muscle beneath me, and a scattering of ridges to hook my knees around.
“Hold on,”Esme’s voice purred through my mind—equal parts warning and challenge.
Her muscles bunched before we launched. My stomach dropped as the forest floor fell away in a blur of frost and shadow. The wind slammed into me, tearing at my hair and clothes, every movement threatening to pitch me sideways. I pressed my thighs tighter against her flanks, fingers digging into the base of her neck where the scales met softer hide. Her movements were nothing like the experienced fliers—raw, unpredictable, each wingbeat a jolt that rattled my teeth.
Esme twisted midair, banking hard to the left. My body went with her, but my balance lagged, and for a terrifying moment, I was dangling, my right leg slipping free.
“You’re not falling, are you?”she teased, but I caught the undercurrent of testing in her tone.
“Not… a chance,” I gritted, shoving my leg back over and lowering my weight closer to her spine.
