Page 47 of Dragon Thief of New York
“No,” the High Priestess says firmly. “You wouldn’t. Most dragons don’t live long after being separated from a mate.”
“I did it before,” I whisper, knowing I only survived because I cut myself off from all feeling for a long time.
The High Priestess tilts her head, a slight curve to one corner of her lips. “And you think you can do it again?”
I don’t answer, crossing my arms over my chest and staring into the fire. Tears fill the corners of my eyes. I wouldn’t survive a second time, and we all know it. Otto might be able to fight for this, to search for her without end or hope. But I already know I’m not strong enough for it.
“Can you at least tell us what your parents’ challenge was, so we have an idea of what to expect?” Kat asks.
The High Priestess shakes her head, but her demeanor shifts to something more comforting. Calm. Gentle. A little sad. “Stay here tonight. Rest before you return home.”
She motions toward the door, a clear dismissal. Kat stands, but doesn’t move to leave. She tugs at her shirt and shifts her weight from side to side.
“What is it you want to ask?” The High Priestess tilts her head, studying my mate. “Ah, you’ve forgotten while you were still with Damian, haven’t you?”
Kat nods. I step a little closer, but don’t touch her even though my hand aches to take hers.
“It’ll happen more and more,” the High Priestess says. “You’ll always forget if you’re separated, but the more time you spend together, the more it’ll start happening at random times, too. It’s a sort of safeguard to keep dragons from stalking their mates after their mate has made a decision that’s supposed to be final.”
I didn’t think my heart could be crushed any more than it already has been, but this is a new blow. Even if we stay side-by-side, she’ll keep forgetting. There’s no way around this, no loophole we can exploit.
We need to do whatever this challenge is, and we can’t fail.
Chapter 25
Damian
“What’sgoingon?”Lincolneyes us warily when he walks in the door to find us all waiting for him on the couch. Kat texted him to come right home after school, but didn’t tell him why. Maybe we should have given him more of a heads up. I feel bad for ambushing him like this, but the sooner we can find out what we need to do, the sooner we can protect him and fix Kat’s memories.
She’s already forgotten me twice since we saw the High Priestess last night. Once because she chose to take a shower alone. The other time as we flew back, even though we were right next to each other.
“Am I in trouble or something?” Lincoln slowly sinks into the armchair across from us.
“No, kiddo. Of course not.” Kat’s smile is bittersweet in a way that makes my heart hurt. She’s doing a good job covering up her fear, but it’s clear she’s trying to keep from crying. “There’re just some things we need to talk about.”
“I already told you, I’m good with this.” He waves a hand between the three of us, his gaze hanging on me a little longer.
“Yeah, you did.” Kat’s smile is more genuine as she lifts her eyebrows at him. “So… yesterday, we flew to the high temple and spoke with the High Priestess.”
“It sounds like you were playing some kind of video game.” Lincoln chuckles. “I can’t believe this is my life.”
“Neither can I.” Kat sighs, but some of the tension drops out of her shoulders. “The first thing you need to know is Damian isn’t just the dragon mate I rejected and forgot. He’s—”
“My dad,” Lincoln finishes for her with a shrug.
“You know?” Kat asks.
He looks down at his lap and fidgets with the hem of his shorts. The move is clearly subconscious and so similar to the way Kat fidgets that it makes my chest constrict.
“It was kinda easy to figure out,” Lincoln says.
I reach for him, maybe to take his hand, maybe to pat his knee, but he’s too far away and my hand falls awkwardly back to my side. “If I’d known…”
“Yeah.” Lincoln stands up and crosses the room to the kitchen counter where one of his sketchbooks filled with dragons sits flopped open. He rolls the corner of one page through his fingers. “It’s fine. I get it.”
“It’s not fine.” I stand up and go over to him. This time I don’t hesitate to put a hand on his shoulder and turn him to face me. “I should have been here for you. Even if your mom didn’t remember, I could have been there for you somehow. If I’d known, I would have.”
He won’t meet my eyes, keeping his on the sketch of a red-scaled dragon spread across two pages. It’s a remarkable likeness of Kat’s dragon form, but with a lot more red in deeper, darker hues.
