Page 5 of The Soul of the Dragon

After making my way about halfway up, I found the perfect spot. Where the big old branches met the trunk, nature had worn them down leaving a natural curve that would not only give me a comfortable place to rest but allow me to remain almost completely hidden. I grabbed a few of the smaller, leaf-heavy branches and broke them free. I then curled against the trunk and used the smaller branches and leaves to cover me and provide warmth.

I'd done this many times before. The nights I’d spent in the forest alone felt like an entirely different lifetime. And, well, technically they were. When the king took my mother as his bride, she had to put more of her focus on him than me, and I learned to entertain myself. I didn't mind, mostly. I preferred my company over others most days.

And the woods that surrounded the castle became my playground, my babysitter, and eventually my best friend. It was there I was free to imagine what my life could be like when I grew up. There were no rules or limits beyond what nature required to keep the balance of life and magic, and I spent every waking, and often the sleeping moments as well, under an open sky.

Although never this deep into the dark forest.

Out here on the border of the realm, the wilder creatures lived. Danger lurked around every corner, and if I wasn't careful I could fall victim. However, given the choice of the unknown versus my stepfather and his dungeon, I'd choose the chaos of the forest every time.

As my eyes drooped shut, my worries began to fade. I believed in the power of fae and even without mine, magic still thrived around me. It was all I had, and it had to be enough.

"Boo!"

I screamed, bolting upright and losing my balance. My body rolled and my hands slipped. Automatically, I reached for my magic only for the binding spell to tighten and squeeze the air from my lungs. As the pain of the spell tore through me again, I scrambled for something—anything to stop me, but it was too late. I was falling through the air when a hard, thin hand caught my wrist.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you fall."

I blinked up at the imp standing in my tree, her arm outstretched to an unnatural length as she held me firmly in her grasp.

"Please don't drop me," I begged as fear still gripped my heart. Imps weren't known to have kind hearts. They were troublemakers filled with malice.

ButI was entirely too high up to survive if I fell from here. I don't know what I'd been thinking when I'd chosen that spot to sleep. I'd been so tired and I'd climbed on instinct not even considering that without my magic I could get into serious trouble.

"Can't you just—" She drew her brows together and looked at me with a myriad of questions in her dark, beady eyes. "Who would do such a thing?"

I had no idea what exactly she was talking about, but I really needed her to focus on keeping her grip on my wrist tight. "Pull me up," I pleaded.

This time she seemed to understand and she pulled me all the way into the tree until I could steady myself back into my chosen spot. "Thank you," I gasped as my heart beat out of control.

"Are you crazy then?" she asked. "What are you doing up so high if you can't fly down?"

"Habit. And I wanted to make sure no one found me, although that obviously didn't work."

She smirked. "Oh please. I've been following you for a while now as you ran through the forest like a panicked deer. Everyone out this way will have heard you by now."

I winced at her assessment. She wasn't wrong. "I did what I had to in order to make it this far. But I have to rest before I can keep going."

"And where is it you're trying to go? Isn't your kingdom back the other way?"

I looked in the direction of the castle as the grief and sadness once again washed over me. "Nay. There is nothing back there for me anymore. It's time to find a new life."

The imp looked at me like I was insane. "Out here? Are you daft? Your kind belongs in one of the fancy kingdom villages with all the baubles and pretty things. Especially someone as pretty as you."

I doubted I resembled anything remotely pretty at the moment. I was covered in dirt and sweat and certainly didn't smell pretty. "Not everything is as it seems. That fancy kingdom has its fair share of darkness too."

"And that's what you're running from? The darkness?"

I bristled against her too close assessment once again. How had we gotten into this conversation in the first place? “I never said I was running. I just need to get away.”

Her brow furrowed. “That sounds like the same thing. Are you trying to trick me?”

I shook my head. "No. You're the one who scared the life out of me, remember? I'm just not into telling strangers my life story. Why were you following me anyways? What do you want?" From my meager experience and knowledge of imps, they always wanted something and it usually came with a price you didn't want to pay.

She shrugged. "It gave me something to do."

That sounded like she needed to get a life and a total load of bullshit. I only hoped she wasn't going to try and take mine.

"I'm hardly worthy of such a game. Maybe you should head back home for the night before you are missed."

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