Page 20 of The Dragon Maiden

“I see,” he said, a thoughtful expression coming over his face. “I suppose you have been stuck inside for quite a while.” He continued to think before an idea hit him, his mouth spreading into a grin. “Come with me,” he said, standing and gesturing for me to follow.

Lord Dracul led me through the tunnels, towards a different part of the caves I had not been to before. We came across a set of steps winding upwards and he took my hand, guiding me up them. The staircase stretched high up into the mountain and I was winded by the time we reached the top, where there was a small landing leading into a wall. Lord Dracul paused before the wall, pressing a hidden mechanism on the right, causing the wall in front of us to slide aside, leading outside. My mouth dropped open as he led me onto a flat stone balcony surrounded by a waist-high barrier, the wall behind sliding back into place after us.

From our vantage point, I could see the forest and the expanse of the mountain below us. We were high enough up that I could not see any animals from this height, but I could tell that the foliage had changed and fall was on its way. It was a stark reminder that it had been half a year since I was taken. Looking further up the mountain, I could see snow-capped peaks, further affirming this fact. Wind whipped through my hair. At this altitude, it was so strong it ripped my hair out of its braid. Lord Dracul moved to the edge of the balcony, and after a couple seconds, I followed him, standing at the barrier. Together, we gazed out at the surrounding area, red and orange hues filling the forest as far as the eye could see.

“I hope this helps,” he said, loud enough to be heard over the wind. “This is the most I can do at this time.”

I nodded, wrapping my arms around myself, not dressed enough to combat the chill of the air. Lord Dracul shrugged off his velvet robes, placing them over my shoulders, and I instantly felt warmer.

“What about you?” I asked, watching as he stood bare-chested, placing his hands on the stone barrier and leaning out over the edge of it. Immediately I was distracted and did my best to ignore his muscles. His long, deep-blue hair whipped behind him in the wind. “Won’t you get cold?”

He chuckled, a low, rumbling sound that I could hear over the wailing of the wind. “I’m a dragon, remember?” he said, turning to look at me. “I don’t need anything to keep me warm.” Lord Dracul reached out his hands and gently placed them on my wind-whipped cheeks, warmth transferring from his touch to me. I could feel my face growing redder, though it had nothing to do with how cold it was outside.

“I suppose that’s true,” I mumbled, looking away from his intensely warm gaze. His eyes looked like pools of melted silver, which they resembled more often these days. I remembered the first day I had arrived, and they had looked like metallic shards, ready to pierce me. Now I felt like I could disappear into them, surrounding myself in their warmth. The thought flitted through my mind that I could always stay and continue to stare into these eyes forever.

I cleared my throat and took a step away from him, suddenly far too aware of my thoughts. This little excursion had distracted me enough, and I almost felt a pang of sadness at the thought of escaping in the next few days. Moments like that, moments of Lord Dracul’s kindness, tethered me there, but I knew that I needed to move forward and continue trying to find Ronan. That familial bond, that pull to know what had happened, drove me onward, and no matter how much I enjoyed my time with Lord Dracul, it was almost time for that to come to an end.

“Are you ready to head back inside?” he asked, looking once more out at the forest.

Slowly, I nodded. Despite his robes surrounding me and the previous warmth of his hands, I suddenly felt cold, frozen by the knowledge that this would soon be ending. The thought turned my stomach to ice.

Lord Dracul walked over to where we had come from and pressed the mechanism, the wall sliding open again. Carefully, we descended the stairs, and once we reached the bottom, I handed him back his robes.

“Thank you,” I said softly, trying to ignore the sadness that overwhelmed me. “I needed that.”

He smiled and my heart skipped a beat. “I needed a break too. It was a pleasure to have you join me.”

We walked back to his cavern, my mind in turmoil. The more time I spent with the Dragon Lord, the more attached I became. The new moon could not come soon enough. I needed to get out before I could no longer allow myself to leave.

* * *

Later that night, as I ate dinner with the other Dragon Maidens, they shared stories of their towns’ fall festivities. Most had a sort of late-night fall market, filled with comforting baked goods. A couple carved squashes and traded homemade boiled sweets with other villagers. And a few others had an annual bonfire with music and dancing. The stories and laughter made me feel homesick. The fall harvest bonfire had been the last festivity I had been able to celebrate with my parents. Only a few weeks after that was when we had been attacked and my life had changed forever.

Tonight, we had spiced pumpkin tarts for dessert, the smell warm and welcoming. We all huddled together in a circle, the steam from the heated pool warming us from the mountain’s chill. Gwen and Hyacinth had blankets wrapped around their shoulders. Vimery sat as far away from me as possible, avoiding my eyes as she glared at her tart.

“Vimery, you’re awfully quiet tonight,” Alonsa said. “Is everything okay?”

“I’m fine,” the other Maiden said, her tone short.

“It doesn’t seem like it,” Bethany prodded.

Vimery let out a huff of frustration. “Shegets all sort of special treatment and I’m sick of it!” she shouted, pointing a finger at me. “She breaks rules and doesn’t get punished for it. And then Lord Dracul took her topside today. It’s not fair!”

Alonsa let out a sigh. “She is under Lord Dracul’s guidance right now,” she said. “And that affords her certain benefits.”

“But she shouldn’t be! She’s not even a full Dragon Maiden yet. She hasn’t gone through the ritual!” Vimery wailed.

“Vimery, that’s enough,” Alonsa said firmly. “None of this is Valora’s fault. You need to let this go.”

The other Dragon Maiden continued to glare at me in silence. I felt the anger simmering beneath her gaze. I remained silent, knowing that any word from me and she would explode further. Though this shed more light on why she hated me, it still did not explain her immediate animosity when I had arrived.

There was a slight noise at the entrance of the cave and we all turned to look. Lord Dracul appeared in the doorway in his human form, an eyebrow quirked and his mouth set in a grim line. I knew immediately that he had heard Vimery’s outburst. I stood to bow, hoping to delay any punishment he would burden her with.

“Is there anything you need help with, my Lord?” I asked.

“Valora, please come with me,” he said, his voice serious. As I crossed the cavern to meet him, he directed his attention to the other Dragon Maidens. “Valora will be coming back after curfew,” he said. “Do not wait up.”

My stomach dropped at his words, worried about what was going to happen. Had he found out about my escape plan? I could practically feel Vimery’s smirk focused on me.

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