Page 35 of Storm In The Sky

Keylon couldn’t say if Jarvis would have let it go if Carlyle had just vanished, but it certainly would have been easier than dealing with this. Maybe Jarvis would have pitied Carlyle enough to decide to let him live.

There was no way they would do so now.

“He’s probably hoping to kill all of you in one go,” Winter added.

Keylon didn’t answer. He was focused on the flames, and he didn’t think Winterwantedhim to answer. What could he say? Agree with Winter? Of course he did. Carlyle wasn’t strong enough yet, and this was the easiest way for him to fight them without actually fighting them.

Keylon wished they could better protect the castle and the forest, but he didn’t think there was anything else they could have done. Maybe ask the humans to move out of the castle? For at least a few of them, it would have been impossible. There was no way anyone would convince Matthias and Thorne to leave.

It was getting harder to continue moving, and Keylon had a new respect for firefighters. He’d never thought much about them. He’d never needed to call firefighters, so beyond watching them on the news or on that TV series Penley insisted he watched for the story and not for the hot actors, they hadn’t mattered to him. Now, he couldn’t imagine people doing this every day.

He was sweaty, and his legs hurt. His magic was quickly depleting because he had to extinguish so much fire. He wished he could say that the fire was almost out by now, but it wasn’t. He’d managed to clear a path for him and Winter, but the purple fire was still burning bright and creating new flames.

If they weren’t faster, someone would notice the fire and send firefighters. The last thing they needed was to have humans involved. If Carlyle was around waiting for the mages to reach him, he wouldn’t hesitate to kill any human who tried to help.

Keylon continued forging ahead. He thought he saw something on the ground beneath a tree that was on fire. He hesitated, not wanting to get too close to the flames, but they really needed to find this object. “There,” he said as he rushed forward.

An ominous creaking made him look up. Winter cried out just as Keylon saw one of the burning trees starting to come down. He tried to turn back, but the tree was faster, and Keylon was too close. It was coming down, and it looked like it would be coming down on Keylon’s head.

Chapter Twelve

It was as if, for a moment, everything went still. The tree was falling, and Keylon was underneath it. He raised his hands to use his magic to try to stop it, but he didn’t think he would be fast enough. He’d already used a lot of magic to extinguish the flames. He might not have enough left to stop the tree, but he would die trying.

There was a very good possibility hewoulddie.

His fingers sparked, the tree moved closer, and Keylon sucked in a breath.

A massive object appeared in his vision. Something curled around him, snatching him up, making him yelp as he was moved. He was pulled away from the tree and dragged against a massive body. The tree fell, hitting the ground with a force that made the ground vibrate under Keylon’s feet. The fire raged around him, but he knew he was safe.

Winter had caught him. He’d shifted and dragged Keylon against his body, pulling him to safety. Winter was a dragon, so he was immune to fire. As long as Keylon stayed close to him, he wouldn’t burn.

For a moment, he allowed himself to rest. Winter had used his tail to move him closer and had pulled him against his chest to curl up around him. He was holding Keylon tightly, and Keylon could feel his big heart beating.

He pressed his cheek against Winter’s chest. His heart was racing just as quickly as Winter’s. He couldn’t believe he’d survived. When the tree had started to fall, he’d been convinced he would die. He could still see the tree coming toward him and feel the heat of the flames, and his fear was still very much present, making his stomach churn and his body sweat.

Or that could be the fire.

Keylon needed a minute, and since he was safe, he took it. He allowed himself to rest against Winter’s chest just long enough to slow down his racing heart. Once he wasn’t panting in fear anymore, he tried to push away. He still had a job to do, and more than ever, he wanted to do it and go home. He needed a bottle of water and a shower. He wanted to bury himself in his bed and not come out until tomorrow.

Winter didn’t let him go. If anything, he squeezed even tighter. Keylon tried to push away, but Winter wasn’t budging.

“You have to let me go,” he murmured, knowing Winter would be able to hear him over the roaring fire because of how close they were.

Winter grumbled. He tugged Keylon closer to his chest as if he was afraid Keylon would sneak away. Keylon would have, but there was no way for him to get out of Winter’s hold.

“Please, Winter,” Keylon begged. “We have to continue looking for that object. It’s the only way to extinguish the fire. It’s the only way to keep me and the other mages safe.”

Keylon understood why Winter was being stubborn about this, and he didn’t blame him. If he could, he’d stay in Winter’s arms until this mess was over and they were both safe.

He’d known Winter wouldn’t let him get hurt, especially not now that Winter was on board with being his shield, but he’d still had a few doubts at the back of his mind. Sometimes he still wondered if Winter would change his mind and pick Samuel instead.

But as they were now, with Winter grumbling and keeping Keylon close, Keylon knew that wouldn’t happen. Winter was in for the long term. He’d saved Keylon, and he hadn’t done it because he was his shield. He’d done it because he liked him and didn’t want him to be hurt. He’d done it because he’d been terrified that something would happen to Keylon, just as much as Keylon was afraid that something would happen to him.

Keylon wiggled until he could look up at Winter’s face. Winter was glaring at him, but Keylon ignored it and kissed his nose. “I’m fine, and I’ll continue being fine because you protected me. You don’t have to let me go, but we do have to continue looking for the object.”

Winter narrowed his eyes as if trying to check whether Keylon was telling the truth.

Keylon was. He wasn’t looking forward to walking in the middle of a fire, and he would feel better if they could stick together.

---