Page 29 of The Dragon's Mate Proposal

“Yes, the mission,” Cade agreed, shooting me a look that warned me to be quiet.

I didn’t say anything, though I did hurry ahead to open the front door for them. Cade nodded in thanks, his eyes lingering on mine for a moment before we entered the dark house. There were windows everywhere, of course, but most of them were either covered in dirt or overgrown, severely limiting the light that made it through.

Cade guided us to the center of the house, where he opened a door we hadn’t gone through the day before. Stairs led down on the other side.

“I’m not that old,” Caliphon snarled as Cade tried to lead him down. “I can still walk.”

I bit my lip at the momentary lucidity. Caliphon seemed to wind his way in and out of sharpness, and when he was there, I could only imagine the force he’d been when he was younger.

By the time we reached the bottom of the stairs, with Cade holding a hand above his head with a ball of flame to show me the way, the elder dragon had already subsided into another fit of muttering to himself.

“Okay, we’re in the creepy basement,” I said, looking around at the boxes and bins piled high, everything covered in a layer of thick dust and cobwebs. “Now, what?”

“Now,” Caliphon said, coming alive, his eyes glowing with blue light, “I show you a thing or two, young lady!”

The hair on my skin stood on edge as the air filled with a sudden freshness.

Cade whirled, laying his hands on Caliphon’s arm. “Not yet, Old One,” he said. “Not here. Soon. Very soon.”

“Of course, of course,” Caliphon said, subsiding, the odd pressure fading.

Shuffling forward, following a path left through the stored items, Cade led us to a large, circular metal wall. It was fifteen or twenty feet in diameter, and when he grabbed a welded handle and pulled, I realized it was quite thick as well. The metal creaked and groaned, and finally came loose. The rumble as it opened reverberated through the floor and up my legs.

“What on earth is this for?” I asked, staring in at the contraption of machinery inside that was still and dark. I stepped forward, eager to inspect it.

A hand on my arm stopped me. “You’re going to want to stay out here,” Caliphon said, his voice deepening. “Trust me on this one. Just stand back and watch the show.”

He stepped forward into the center of the ring. As he walked, his shoulders stiffened, his spine straightening. Years were shed from his frame, and when he turned to face us in the center, his eyes once again glowed blue.

“Watch,” Cade said softly, cutting me off before I could speak.

The hairs on my neck stood up, and a second later, a lightning bolt shot from Caliphon’s hand. It hit a protrusion of the machinery and was bounced back, where it was caught by another protrusion. The process repeated several times. Then Caliphon raised both hands, and more lightning shot forth, bouncing wildly around the chamber in the center of the basement.

“It’s beautiful,” I whispered, the blinding coronal arc of electricity making everything glow blue.

Caliphon stood unperturbed in the center of it, lightning radiating from his body and around the center of the chamber, bathing him in blue light. The ancient dragon grinned from ear to ear as he worked his hands in a circle, turning, more and more electricity erupting from his body to become harnessed by the machinery.

Slowly, almost too slow to be perceived, the machinery began to move. Gears shifted and cracked into motion. Debris rained down, speared through again and again by the lightning.

I stood and watched the lightshow in awe, Cade at my side, his attention also fixed on the performance. The machinery started to move faster as Caliphon stood amid the fury of the lightning storm, constantly adding fresh bolts to the mix until every point and protrusion flickered and bounced with a light.

“He’s charging it,” I whispered in amazement a second before the lights in the basement turned on. At least one of them shattered, but more became lit than not.

“Yes,” Cade said, his face awash in a blue glow. “Yes, he is. He’s bringing it back to life.”

We watched the old dragon work. Caliphon was in his element, and it showed. Larger and larger bolts of lightning streamed from his chest, and with each one that crashed into the machinery, it moved faster.

“Beautiful,” I murmured.

“Yes.”

Something about Cade’s voice caused me to look away from the light show only to find the dragon was staring down at me. I flushed, looking away.

His hand caught mine. Stopping me. I flinched but didn’t pull back as his fingers threaded their way through mine. On purpose.

“Thank you for this surprise,” I said softly, unsure Cade could hear over the roar of the machinery. “It was worth the mystery.”

He smiled. “I’m glad you thought so.”

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