Page 44 of Scaled Hearts

She laughs at me but nods her head in agreement.

Without wanting to. I pull away from her and help us both up to stand once again. She surprises me by wrapping her arms around me and pulling me into another tight hold.

“Thank you.”

I lean down and press a kiss to her head.

“Let’s get moving.”

* * *

We find the outskirts of the ruined city in only a few short hours.

As the caverns open up into a large chamber that expands miles out either way, we marvel at the city that rests at the bottom of it. To my surprise, the city doesn’t appear to be in terrible shambles like I once believed it would be.

Though from here, looks can be deceiving.

We descend into the belly of the chamber, taking a path that has been carved into the wall of the chamber in the shape of mal-formed steps. It’s too risky for me to fly us down there, even though that’s what I want to do.

There are too many pointy and sharp rock formations that have the ability to pierce through my thick scales and send both of us tumbling to our doom below.

I keep my hand wrapped around Kelly in order to keep her from slipping and falling off the edge of the stairs and into the inky darkness.

The city isn’t illuminated from within, but there is a stream of light that shines down from the giant-sized hole in the ceiling of the cavern. I can’t imagine how far down underground we are, but judging from how high up that hole is at the ceiling, it’s very far.

When we reach the bottom of the steps, I let go of Kelly’s arm and let my illuminated light crest over us.

“Wow,” she says next to me, reaching out to touch the side of one of the buildings closest to us. “This is in incredible shape.”

I hum my agreement back to her and narrow my eyes as well. It is suspicious how well-preserved everything is. Almost as if someone still lives here.

I don’t like the thought, so I pull Kelly close to me again and keep her tucked into my side. She doesn’t seem to mind though as we walk and lets me guide us through the outskirts of the city.

I head east, hoping that by doing so, we’ll end up in the middle of the city square. While I don’t know what lies there before we get to it, I do know that it’ll be much easier to navigate once we get there.

“How long ago was this place built?” Kelly asks me curiously.

I shrug at her, my eyes darting around to the shadowed corners we pass by. “Hard to say. Dark elf history is very long and hard to come by for exact records.”

“Well, you’ve heard of this place before. So obviously the records aren’t lost.”

I snort. “This place was an urban legend for a long time. I simply told you about it because of the rumor that the Paradise Lotus was here.”

“You knew how to navigate those caverns, though.”

“I did, yes. But just because things are urban legends, Kelly, doesn’t mean that they don’t have some truth to them.”

I turn to glance down at her, surprised to see her smiling up at me. “Thank you for taking the risk in coming out here with me.”

I stop short, shocked at her words. No one has ever thanked me for doing them a favor. Sure, most have groveled because they knew that by doing so, it would get on my good side.

But I’ve never had anyone show such true appreciation for something that I’ve done for them that way that Kelly has.

She continues to intrigue me the more we spend time together and the closer we become.

Is this what it means to be mates with someone? Other than the physical attraction and the need to protect them. It feels fulfilling to make her happy. To see that smile on her face and know that I am the cause of it.

I turn slightly to cup her face. Her eyelashes flutter over her eyes before lowering as I pull her into another kiss.

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