Page 60 of Dream Reaper

CHAPTER 15

AVA

Dragon thrashed against Ava’s hands, his sharp scales slicing through the tender skin of her palms.

Pain exploded as warm blood poured down her hands. Biting back a yelp, she tried to reach for the inconsolable beast again. He was going to hurt himself or get someone killed if she couldn’t calm him down.

Ava touched his face, smearing her own blood across the small scales that lined his jawline. “Dragon, please calm down. I need you to stay calm. I need you to listen so that I can help you.”

But Dragon merely wailed in response to her voice, his eyes squeezed tightly closed. He must be in unbearable pain. What the flames was causing it?

Shoving to her feet, Ava ran down the length of the dragon’s tightly coiled body, trying to get to the injury she had tried to heal earlier. Had she done something wrong? Caused more harm than good?

That seemed to be her lot in life.

The injury on his side looked unchanged, the stitches holding strong, the skin and scales still slightly blackened from her attempt to cauterize the wound. It didn’t look as if anything was wrong…

Wait.

A trickle of blood oozed between her carefully placed stitches, dripping over scales.

“Oh no!” She pressed her injured palm to the wound, her other hand on top to apply pressure.

Why was it still bleeding?

Dragon roared in agony.

“I’m trying to help you!” Ava wailed back, willing her flame back into her palms.

Just a little bit of fire, just a little more heat to finally stop the bleeding once and for all…

Heat flickered to life in her palms. Please stop bleeding. Please!

She forced her heat into Dragon’s side as he roared and twisted to snap at her. His teeth clanged together, mere inches from her elbow. She flinched, her fire flickering out.

Grinding her teeth together, she closed her eyes and focused again on her fire. She just needed a little flame, just a little more heat…

Dragon’s teeth clanged again, and this time her elbow reverberated.

“I’m trying to help you, Dragon!”

He snarled, eyes slitted as he tried to shove her elbow to force her to stop what she was doing.

“I swear on my flame, I am trying to help you! I am trying to heal you! You need to let me in! You need to let me do this!”

“By my oath, I’ll eat you if you don’t make it stop!” Dragon bellowed.

“That’s what I am trying to do! Let me do it!”

He stared at her, jaw clenched tightly, eyes so narrow she could barely see them. But then he gave her the barest of nods and eased away from her. He spread his neck across the ground, his teeth still too close to her legs for comfort, but at least he wasn’t snapping at her.

She closed her eyes and poured her fire into his wound. I swear I’m going to heal you. I swear it…

Heat flared up her arm. Yelping, Ava opened her eyes to a spiral of flame winding up her injured arm.

What the flames!

She tried to pull back, but her hands seemed frozen in place. The heat grew so strong against her skin, she expected blisters to break out at any minute. But the fire merely soaked into her skin, leaving behind a dark, spiraling mark around her arm.