“We’re in luck. The sky is overcast tonight. No moon or stars to give us away,” Haru said easily. He rose from the log by the fire and motioned to the sky.
Adrian tipped his head up and stared at the clouds that blocked out any heavenly light. “Yeah, but it also means no light to guide you as you fly. Are you sure you’ll be able to spot a building if you do manage to fly over it?”
“My eyesight is quite good in the dark. Like that of a cat. I’m sure we’ll be able to spot it with little problem.”
Adrian had started to step away from Haru, but the man suddenly stopped and whipped his head around to squint at the dragon.“We?”
“Of course. It makes the most sense for you to fly with me. Going back for you after I locate The Pit would waste time, and I suspect you wouldn’t want me to go into the building without you.” As he spoke, Haru moved closer to Adrian. The human retreated step for step until he collided with a tree. Heput a hand on Haru’s chest, attempting to keep a “comfortable” distance between them.
“Yeah, you going in alone is out of the question. I promised Nori and Cael that I would keep an eye on you,” Adrian growled.
Haru leaned on Adrian’s hand, stretching as close as he could get. “And haven’t I been very well-behaved?”
“That is up for debate.”
“If I pushed the boundaries of being well-behaved, it’s only because I won’t allow anyone to harm my Adrian.”
With a grunt, Adrian shoved his chest and rolled off the tree, moving across their camp to put some space between them. “Enough of your nonsense. We need to find Shey and get him home. After that…”
That was an interesting pause. Haru followed closely behind Adrian. “After?” he prodded.
“We’ll talk.” Those two words were spoken with the same tone as when Adrian had mentioned their age gap.
Haru lifted an eyebrow. Talking was not what he had in mind. It also didn’t sound like things were progressing in the direction he wanted. He wished he could pry open the man’s head and see the thoughts he refused to speak. Unfortunately, Adrian was correct. They had to find the prince and stop anything horrible from happening to him.
He reached out to touch Adrian, his hand hovering just above his arm for a heartbeat before he pulled it back. As much as he longed to draw Adrian close to his chest, to hold him and protect him for all time, he knew he had to go slowly. Adrian was both human and incredibly independent. He didn’t wish for the same things, and if Haru pressed for too much too quickly, Adrian would run.
Soon.
Haru darted away and summoned the magic that existed in every cell of his frame, finally setting himself free. In the blinkof an eye, he shed his human form like an old skin, and his body exploded in size. Wings stretched, and a long tail lashed the ground, smashing into a couple of trees. His eyesight improved a hundredfold, and even his sense of smell sharpened. He breathed deeply of the rich scent of pine and damp earth from a recent rain. But the best of all was the smell of Adrian. He was sharp and spicy, different from anyone else he’d ever met, and he loved it.
On an exhale, Haru pushed out a tiny flame, briefly lighting up the camp and Adrian’s grinning face.
“You might be the world’s most annoying person, but I can’t deny that you make a beautiful dragon.” Adrian sighed.
Haru ignored the first half of his comment and focused on the latter half. With a low rumbling purr, Haru nuzzled Adrian with his long snout, nearly knocking the man over.
Adrian snorted and shoved Haru’s head. “All right, you overgrown golden retriever. We’ve got bad guys to find.”
Haru lay on the ground and tucked his wings in close, giving Adrian the chance to climb onto his back and get properly settled. The familiar weight conjured up images of the last time they’d flown into battle together in the Ordas, taking on the minions of the Goddess of the Hunt and the New Rosanthe soldiers. He and Adrian had learned to fight flawlessly together, falling into a comfortable rhythm of support and protection.
Adrian patted the side of his neck, signaling that he was ready. Haru ran into the trees, using his long talons to dig into the bark and wood, climbing above the canopy so he could finally extend his wings. With a low roar, he launched his long body into the air and flapped his wings, pulling higher and higher. The wind gusted, lifting him into the sky and caressing his scales. It was so much warmer here than at his icy home on the Isle of Stone, and the air held different notes of dirt and pollen. Different animals scurried about, begging to be hunted.
But the sound of Adrian’s delighted laughter chased away all those random thoughts. His mate was happy to be flying again.
Haru headed even higher, only now wishing that the moon and stars weren’t lost to the clouds. It didn’t matter. He and Adrian would have plenty of other opportunities to fly in dark skies lit by twinkling stars.
“Head west and we’ll circle east,” Adrian called out.
As they put up the tent earlier in the evening, they discussed starting with a wide search pattern that would have them steadily circling, tightening their search toward the center of the forest. Adrian had noted a couple of places he’d spotted on Ginger’s map where there could have been hidden roads and buildings. After listening to Adrian’s story of his youth, Haru had a better understanding of where Adrian had gotten his insights into the nefarious workings of the underworld.
Unfortunately, after more than two hours of scouring the forest that stretched under them, they’d turned up no leads. No pinpoints of light beyond the cabin and fire watchtower for the national park rangers. The temperature was dropping, and the wind was growing colder. While it was no problem for Haru, he was worried that Adrian would soon become ill.
Haru tipped his right wing, preparing to bank and head in the direction of their campsite when the wind shifted and he caught a hint of diesel fuel. That did not belong out in the forest, and not this strong. It was more than the fumes from a single truck. No, this smell was strong enough for an entire fleet of trucks and vans.
The dragon changed direction, dropping lower as he chased the scent. After a few more minutes in the air, a strange break in the trees revealed a low, rectangular building painted black and it even had what appeared to be some fake trees strategically arranged on the roof to disguise it. They were now low enough to make out the worn ruts in the dirt where vehicles had comeand gone. A tall metal fence lined the perimeter, keeping out potential trespassers.
“That’s it!” Adrian shouted, giving Haru’s neck another pat.
