Page 29 of Henry & the Dragon
She murmured something, and Henry must have taken it as agreement. A moment later, fire roared through Kai as the pain returned, like stinging nettles raked over raw skin.
“Mother!” he cried out.
The dragon threw back her head and shrieked, the sound deafening.Clouds of dust were thrown into the air where they sparkled in the dim light as it billowed for a time. She began to stand, but Henry put a hand on her.
“Milady, please, I beg of you, don’t move. Kai is freezing, and I need you to warm him as much as you can,” he said to Mother.
Oh, Henry. His Henry. He faced a dragon, one of the mightiest of all, and he didn’t flinch. He took so much on faith, and he was the bravest person Kai knew. His hands were like magic as they—wait. This trulywasHenry? How could that be? Mother had taken Kai leagues away. And he’d said he killed to find Kai.
“Henry? I—“
“Please, Kai. Don’t talk. I must concentrate.”
He rummaged through his bottles, pulling out stoppers, sniffing the contents, then discarding them.
“Why don’t I have my salve?” he growled, his frustration obvious. “I’m certain I packed more than this!”
His salve? “Henry, I—“
“Kai, I have to focus on what I’m—“
“No, you don’t understand. Your salve…. It’s… There are several vials in my bag.”
Henry’s eyes widened. “Why do you have–? No, never mind. It doesn’t matter. Where is your bag?”
Kai struggled to think of where he’d left his bag. He’d had it when Neron attacked him, and—no. “I lost it when they tried to kill me.”
“Nothing is ever easy,” Henry muttered. “I have to find that bag!”
Mother flicked her tail in the direction of the cave opening. A chuff rumbled from her, and Kai noticed Henry’s eyes flick toward the darkened corner, then open wide.
“Dmitra, can you go grab that satchel?” Henry asked excitedly. “I’ll do this until you come back.”
Small hands were gone, and then the fire returned as Henry pressed his palms to Kai’s flesh. Kai sighed. He would gladly be consumed by the heat, if only Henry would never stop touching him.
“Here it is, Henry,” came a tiny voice.
“Who is this?” Kai croaked out, trying to focus beyond the pain so he wouldn’t scream at the poison that flooded his veins.
“My daughter,” Henry said softly, hesitantly, as he pulled the stolen vials from Kai’s belongings. “’Tis a long story.”
“I look forward to hearing it. Hello daughter of Henry.”
She gave him the most dazzling smile as she took a cloth from the satchel and swiped it over Kai’s head. He knew to his heart that this girl was special. She would become his daughter as well, he was certain. If only he would tell Henry of his feelings.
“Henry, I love you.”
“And I you, so please take what I’m about to say with that love in mind. Be still and remain quiet.”
Kai grinned. “Yes, my dearest one.”
As Henry ministered to the wound, his hands dextrous and nimble, he gave Dmitra several tasks, which she attended to quickly and without complaint. Mother, meanwhile, blew gentle breaths of fire onto the rocks that Kai lay upon, heating his body. She’d been doing that since she snatched him from Neron. Kai had been unable to tell her that Henry could save him. In fact, he wasn’t certain if he had spoken to her at all. Until this very moment, he wasn’t even sure she was real.
“They poisoned me,” he gasped out.
“Yes, I’m aware,” Henry replied, never ceasing his ministrations. “I’m trying to flush it out of your body. I wish I could bloody well kill him again.”
“You truly killed Neron? I thought it was only my imagination.”
