As Cole’s skin warmed beneath hers, love swelled in her, but so did a growing certainty… if they didn’t walk out of here with answers, they would never get them.
With every step, the torchlight grew brighter, and the dragon released another snuff. She glanced back to see the faint light of day fading to a pinpoint at the end of the tunnel before focusing forward again.
She didn’t think she’d looked back for long, but she almost gasped when they turned a corner. Her hand flew to her mouth as she spotted the beautiful creature in chains. The chains went to stakes embedded in the ground and cave walls and didn’t give the dragon much room to move.
This should never be!
The protective, hostile emotions crashing over her were so fierce it took her a few seconds to breathe again. No one should ever treat a dragon like this!
These magnificent creatures shouldneverbe bound in such a way. They should always be free.
However, they hadn’t been free in centuries as the Lord had also bound them, maybe not with chains, but in other ways. These poor beasts had been held captive for millennia… and it was time to set them free.
It wouldn’t hurl a wave of fire at them as thick chains pinched its mouth shut. A padlock locked the chains over its snout together.
“What did you do?” she demanded.
“I caught a dragon,” Orin replied.
“No shit! Butwhydid you do this to it?”
“To avoid being eaten,” he said slowly, like she was an idiot.
Lexi’s hands fisted. He smiled and crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned casually against the wall.
“You’re an asshole,” she told him.
“But I’m an asshole who’s still in one piece and didn’t get torched bya dragon.”
“Where is the key for the locks?” Lexi demanded. “I’m going to set it free.”
“Like hell you are.”
“How can I learn anything about what I can and can’t do with dragons if this one is chained like a prisoner?”
“Itisa prisoner,” Orin replied. “And you can work with that monster while it’s in chains.”
“You’re more of a monster than it is.”
Orin shrugged. “I’m fine with that.”
Turning to Cole, Lexi decided to ignore Orin. “I have to go closer, and I have to do it alone. It has to bejustme.”
“That’s not going to happen,” Cole said.
Lexi rolled her eyes over his stubborn nature, but she would argue about this because she was right. “I have to. Stay back and watch, but don’t come any closer.”
“Lexi—”
“I’m not arguing about this. It’s already chained, scared, and angry; it doesn’t need all of us approaching at once. Iamgoing alone.”
A muscle jumped in his cheek, the shadows shifted, and the dragon snuffed again before jerking on its chains. Lexi’s heart raced as she forced a serene smile to her face. She wasn’t fooling Cole.
“Cole, I have to go alone.”
“Lexi—”
Rising onto her toes, she clasped his cheeks and kissed him before releasing his face and stepping back. “I’m going alone.”
