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“Do you really hate serpents that much?” I tease with a meek smile.
Kai throws me a scowl. His face is pale and he looks like he might vomit. “They are vile, Terra.”
I flinch as a scream echoes through the forest ahead. It could be Frederick torturing or killing someone. He’s the only one of us who seems so eager to do so. “I thought this was my favorite class, but I take it back,” I murmur.
For the better part of thirty minutes, we ride in silence to listen to our surroundings. I have no doubt in my mind that we’re going to finish last, but I’m finding it hard to care. The only thoughts in my head at the moment revolve around Edgar. He won’t speak with me or let me try to make amends, even though he’s the one who attacked me. I miss him.
Kai’s dark horse comes to a stop and he looks back at me. A faint smile coasts his lips as he mumbles, “They waited for us.”
“Seriously?” I block out the sun with my hand and spot Raine and Finn at the bottom of the next ravine. They’re perched on their Shadows and talking casually. How long have they been waiting?
As we draw closer, they notice and lift their heads. Finn’s eyes shine with relief to see us, and Raine nods and grins at me.
Finn leans back like he’s exasperated as he mutters, “We were really fucking worried about you guys. What took so long? We’ve been waiting for like?—”
“Shut up, let’s get going now that they’re here,” Raine cuts Finn off. I frown when he jerks his head for me to come to him. “Ride with me. We have to catch up.”
I take one look at Raine’s terrifying, black, bony dragon and shake my head.
He barks out a laugh and dismounts, walks up to Amser, and lifts me from its back by my waist. My eyes widen at the strength he still has. I press my hands on his shoulder as he lowers me.
“It’s okay, you’ll love it,” Raine whispers against my ear. The warmth of his breath sends a shudder through me and all I can do is nod. “Just like the ziplines.”
A bright sunset with birds flying toward the sun paints itself in my head as I remember how he showed me his city’s sky not so long ago.
“This isn’t our last zipline, is it?” I murmur softly back, brushing a tuft of his black hair behind his ear and pressing a kiss to his neck.
He chuckles but doesn’t answer my question, just looks down at me and tips my chin a bit with his fingers. “After you, my lady.”
Raine’s dragon has a low, vibrating energy around it as if it is constantly searching for fates to ruin. Its skull is enormous, with two icy pits for eyes that chill my blood. Black smoke rolls from beneath its bones. Only Raine’s warm hand against my back keeps me walking toward it.
He smooths his hand over the muzzle and his Shadow lets out a low hum. Amser responds in kind as it fades back inside my bones. It clearly seems to trust the beast. At least one of us does.
We sit at the base of the dragon’s neck, Raine behind me with his arms wrapped tightly around my waist. Finn has Kai on his phoenix and has to continuously bat Kai’s hands away from the flames.
“All right, ready?” Raine says loud enough for Finn and Kai to hear. They give him a nod, and within seconds the dragon is lifting its wings, curtains of smoke and bones. One vicious beat later, we’re taking to the sky.
The air is cold against my cheeks and the only sound I can hear is Kai screaming from a couple hundred feet to our right.
“Holy shit!” I shout, clinging to a spinal bone. This isn’t like zip-lining at all. No harness or rope or line. Just one big bone to keep you in place.
Raine laughs behind me and grabs my hands, prying them away from the bone.
“Raine, stop it!” I laugh-scream and that only gives him more amusement. He burrows his lips into my skin where my shoulder meets my neck.
“I want you to feel everything up here. The wind between your fingers—the way your heart will rush when you're here with me.” Raine slides his hands out behind mine and the wind threads through our fingers.
“Why are you talking like this?”
He waits a moment to respond. The seconds feel like an eternity.
“I want you to remember me this way. As a nice guy, the one who wanted you to be safe and warm. Not the cold, cruel man you met in Barkovah. When you think of me I can only hope you’ll imagine the sky, the rush that I sent through your soul. That will be enough for me.”
Tears stream down my cheeks and I let my head fall back on his shoulder. His hands slide away from mine and trail back to my torso, sculpting my form. He sends chills up my spine as he grabs my waist firmly, digging his fingers into my hips and pulling me close against him.
“You’re more than the sky, Raine. You are the wind, the earth, the blood in my veins. I will never forget you.” I choke out the words. He responds with tears that wet my skin.
Our sentimental moment ends abruptly as a black shard pierces Finn’s phoenix, severing its head clean from the body. We don’t scream, not even Kai—the shock and fear are still too tangible for us to react properly.
