Page 79 of The Infirmary for Dragon Burns and Midair Mishaps

“What’s it?”

She twisted around, eyes so wide they looked like they were going to pop right out of her head. She gave a pleasantly startled laugh as she dove back onto the bed, water sloshing over the side of the mug she still held. “Dragon saliva!” she cried. “That’s what I need to coat the armor in!”

“Saliva?” I repeated.

“What could be a better barrier than the very thing that coats a dragon’s throat from their own fire?” She finally set the mug down on the side table and threw herself on top of me, giddy as she squealed. “If I work it into the salve today, I can probably test it out by tonight!”

She grabbed my face with both her hands, squishing my cheeks, and kissed me so hard I was dizzied by it. She kissed me again and again, the silliness fading, the kisses taking on more intensity.

I gasped against her lips, sucking in air. “I take it we’re not getting up yet?”

“Are you complaining?” she asked.

“Absolutely not.” I reached down and squeezed her backside, delighting in Eden’s little giggle. “The dragon spit can wait.”

26

EDEN

“All right,” Vaela said. “Go on. Hand it over.”

Min made a great gargling sound in the back of her throat. I’d never heard a dragon make such a sound before. I winced as Vaela held a metal bucket above her head, teetering slightly as she tried to position herself right beneath Min’s mouth.

Suddenly, a great glob of dragon saliva landed in the bucket with an impressive thud. “Gross,” Vaela murmured, lowering the bucket to look at it. Her face screwed up, and she wafted her hand in front of her nose. “Ugh, the smell. Glad I haven’t eaten yet.”

Min made a chuffing sound.

“That’s not natural,” Vaela said to her. “We need to brush your teeth or something.”

I chuckled, watching as Min’s forked tongue lashed at Vaela.

“Knock it off.” She shuffled back toward the cottage, plopping the buck down on the porch next to me. “Special delivery. One bucket of dragon spit.”

“That should be more than enough,” I said, staring down at the thick slime. It had a slightly greenish hue that was mildly concerning. Then again, if it worked, this spit would be worth its weight in gold. I dolloped a spoonful of Min’s saliva into the salve Nisse had helped me prepare earlier in the week.

“What do you think?” Vaela asked as I mixed the two and checked the consistency.

“It’s definitely goopy,” I noted.

“And goopy is good?”

I shot her a grin. “We’ll find out.”

I headed back into the cottage, picked up a dragon scale and a small, feathered brush from my desk, then painted on the saliva salve.

“Can I help?” Vaela asked, coming up behind me. The fact that she still wanted to be a part of this project thrilled me.

“You could… start painting the leathers,” I said, pointing out the materials. “That way I can connect everything when they’re dry.”

Vaela nodded, and we worked in amicable silence for the rest of the afternoon, snacking on fresh blackberries. When the sun started to set, I lit candles, giving us enough light to finish coating everything. Vaela laid the leathers over the bedposts and set the painted scales out on every flat surface, allowing them to dry while I crafted the framework of the armor.

Once I was done, I began the tedious task of securing the scales.

Vaela lit more candles, bringing them close to me as darkness inked across the windows. Min peered in at us through the window, her breath fogging up the glass.

When the chestplate was finally complete, I held it up to inspect my work. “I think we should give it a couple of hours for the salve to really soak in,” I said, crossing the room to set the armor on the rocking chair. “Maybe even until tomorrow morning. Then we get Min to blast it.”

“You did excellent work,” Vaela noted. She reached out, and I caught her hand, pressing a kiss to her knuckles.