Page 5 of The Mating Magic
The ziplinestopped.
“Oh damn,” shewhispered.
She’d failed to adjust the line for her stature and weight and now hung in the middle, the alligator pit directlybelow.
Oh well. Failed again. Evie sighed and called upon her magick to shift into adragon.
Nothinghappened.
Okay, don’t panic, it’s just a glitch.Focus.
As she did, calling upon all the cells in her body to produce the magick that made her dragon, she heard an ominous creakingsound.
Evie glancedup.
The steel cable, worn out from years of humidity and exposure, had begun to giveway.
Below her a hungry gator snapped its jaws. Stunned, she watched it climb atop the other alligators to get closer to her. Her feet dangled in the air, a tempting target for the gator, but thankfully out ofreach.
Suddenly the alligator’s arms began to grow. Evie blinked. Surely the heat and fear were creating anillusion…
“Evie, hang in there. I’m flying up,” Laceyyelled.
But as her sister spread her arms to shift, nothing happened. “I can’t do it. What fresh hell is this?” Lacey clenched her fists. “I’m comingup!”
The alligator opened its jaws wider. A tentacle snaked out of its mouth, purple, long and speared. The alligator flicked the tentacle and something splashed on Evie’s sneakersole.
A hissing ensued. Panic welled up, hot and bright as the shoe began to disintegrate from the acid eating throughit.
Gripping the triangle tighter, she managed to kick off the sneaker, watched the tentacle grab it and draw it into the jaws of the gator, who ateit.
What was left ofit.
If I don’t die from falling into that creature’s mouth, my skin will melt from the acid it’s shooting. Gee, I wonder what’sworse?
“Lacey! Hurry up,” shescreamed.
But even as Lacey ran up the stairs two at a time, the line began to giveway.
Evie screamed. Desperately she called upon her magick to shift, but nothing happened. What happened? Still human. Stillhelpless.
Still vulnerable to those sharp teeth and snapping jawsbelow.
So this is how I die. What a waste. Evie sobbed as the line snapped and she went hurling downward, down… her sister’s screams filling theair.
A whoosh of wind and a flap of wings. Suddenly a giant claw folded around her midsection and she was gently plucked out of the air like a fish in an eagle’sgrasp.
Evie shut her eyes, unsure if she was flying in a dream or if she’d died and was being transported to theafterworld.
With extreme care, the beast deposited her on the ground and then flewoff.
Her eyes flewopen.
A minute later, Lacey landed on the ground besides her, her landing not quite as gentle. Her sister winced and rubbed herbottom.
Evie stared up at the magnificent black dragon dipping and soaring over the alligator pit. Sunlight glinted off his wings, making them gleam, and highlighting a patch of cobalt blue on the tip of his leftwing.
Only one dragon had that marking, indicating he had apprenticed himself to the ColdfireWizard.
