“Thank you,” I told him quietly. “For saving me. And for… all of this.”
The dragon bowed his head.
A gesture of acknowledgment.
Or trust.
Or something older than either of those.
I stepped forward.
He shifted just enough to let me squeeze past him.
His scales brushed my sleeve—
just fabric to scale—
but it still felt like a promise.
I paused at the mouth of the cave and looked back once.
He watched me with that single, ancient eye.
“I won’t tell anyone,” I whispered. “I swear.”
His tail curled tighter around the fire, like he was guarding the space where I’d been.
Then I turned—
and ran toward the sound of Ash’s voice.
Chapter 23
Kieran
She stumbled out of the woods like a fallen angel—
hair loose in long white waves, clothes torn, skin pale and trembling.
For half a heartbeat I forgot how to breathe.
I wanted to run to her.
I wanted to scoop her into my arms.
I wanted to know every place she hurt and every reason why.
But she didn’t look at me.
She went straight to him.
Ash froze when he saw her—eyes wide, chest heaving, bouncing on the balls of his feet like he was holding himself back by sheer force of will.
And she stepped right into his orbit. He handed her a pair of gloves which she quickly pulled on.
She got close.
Close enough that he visibly shook trying not to touch her.
