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"Whoa, whoa," he said, holding his hand up, eyes wide. "I clearly said they were descendants of the dragon riders. No one rides anymore — and before you ask, no, I don't know exactly why."
"Fine." I groaned, then turned back to the sparkling silver creature. "But gods — dragons!"
"I still remember the first time I saw one," Jaiel said, voice warm. "Nothing can quite beat that moment. You wouldn't want to see more, would you?"
It would be an excellent distraction …
Excitement bubbled up inside me as I nodded, though my hands shook at my sides.
Dragons were real …
Jaiel smiled, then led the way past the sunbathing dragon, through a warren of red stone tunnels, pointing out caves along the way.
I followed along, grateful to avoid confronting whatever had happened between us back there.
Something had changed, though.
The signs were there — from the way Jaiel periodically looked over his shoulder to check on me, to the way he rested his hand against my arm while he pointed out little details of the caves.
It all left me feeling … exposed — as though my insides had suddenly turned into a swarm of flutterwings. And I didn't like it.
Perhaps if I pretended nothing had happened, the awkwardness would eventually go away?
Hopefully.
"It may be quiet now," Jaiel said, gripping my forearm with a strong, warm hand. The other traced an engraving on the cavern wall to our right. "But this next area was once the dragon nursery. And this." He gestured toward a massive doorway leading to a large room. "Was where the queen nested."
Gently tugging my arm free, I stepped inside.
A massive mound of gray stones the size of a house sat front and center, and two dragon statues stood guard in front of it. To their sides were dozens of smaller mounds of gray stone, spread out seemingly randomly.
It was a strange and beautiful tribute, if a bit somber.
"Where is the queen?" I asked, stepping forward and running my fingers along a marbled gray fragment.
A distant roar interrupted Jaiel's reply and drew my attention back the way we'd come. My heart gave an excited thump, wiping away all thoughts of the still room.
Jaiel threw a grin over his shoulder and gestured for me to follow as he took off at a run back through the door we'd entered and down a wide hallway.
Finally, we broke out into another cavernous room — not quite as big as the queen's chambers, but still very large.
To my left was a wide doorway that led out to blue skies and an enormous, circular platform. And at the center of the sunlit platform was the most beautiful creature I'd ever seen.
The little dragon from earlier, sparkling silver while it napped in the sun, was stunning.
But this? This dragon was majestic. Dark as midnight, and tall as a lamppost. Its scales seemed to absorb every drop of light that touched them.
It stood completely still, head turned away from me, and for a moment, I wondered if it was just another statue.
Then it lifted a foot and slammed it into the ground, sending a rumble through my shoes.
I instinctively stepped back and into Jaiel, who caught me before I could fall to the ground. Cheeks warm, I righted myself and brushed away his hands. I needed to be careful. Between crying in front of him earlier, and now this — he was going to think I needed his damn protection.
"Mirrim!" A sharp voice snapped.
Eli — no, Liam.
My heart lurched and my throat tightened as a wave of conflicting emotions hit me. "Keep him still!" he grunted. "I need to finish mending this crack."
