Page 91 of The Soul of the Dragon

Please don’t kill me.

I thought you trusted me?

I do. But I hate this. Flying is officially not my thing.

I landed as close to where we wanted to go as I could, but it would still be a mile walk or so.

“Thank the Goddess,” she said as she stood on solid ground again, her magic winking out and leaving me slightly adrift without that connection. “We survived.”

“As if there was any other option. I would never risk your life.”

“I’m still not going up there again. Promise me that you won’t ever make me do that again.”

“I’d promise, but if your life depended on it, I would break it.”

She huffed off and stomped away in the direction of the portal.

“I thought you didn’t know where the portal for the human realm was?”

“I don’t,” she said without turning back or stopping. “But now that we’re here I can feel it.”

“Really? What exactly can you do with that power?”

“All kinds of things. Shields is a big thing. Which is how I could spend time in the forest as a child and not worry about being killed. I can cast spells to open and close things, heat liquids, cool liquids. Some illusions.”

“Phase to different places like the King did?”

“Sadly, I cannot. However, my mother could, and now that I have her power—maybe.”

“And you can do all of this at will, any time you want?”

“Yes and no. Yes, if my power is not depleted. But if I use too much I would have to recharge.”

“Mine is like that as well. That’s why I’ve kept this on me almost the whole time I’ve been here.” I bent over and produced the gold jewel encrusted knife I’d gotten from my father. “Precious metals and gems tend to do it for us. Hence, one of the reasons dragons hoard treasure so much. Back home we had an entire separate home to store what we needed. My mother called it her retreat.”

"Tell me about your mother again."

I didn't want to think about her right now. The pain of letting her down again had settled deep in my chest and it wasn't letting go. But this was Kitra, and there wasn't much I didn't want to share with her at this point.

"She's fierce about family, despite the hell we put her through. Although let me be clear. It was I who created most of the problems."

"That doesn't surprise me at all."

I knocked her shoulder with mine, and she laughed. My gut tightened at the sound. The idea of walking through that portal without the amulet was bad enough, but leaving her behind— I wasn’t sure I could do it.

“She’s also quite serious about her duties as Queen to the shifter kingdom. Before the witches’ curse, there was a lot of unrest and trouble brewing. Human culture was progressing at an alarming rate and it was clear things were going to need to change. My father, and especially me, weren't embracing that idea well. My last days with my mother were not pleasant. I behaved like an asshole."

"I'm sure she understood. Most mothers do."

"Not likely. I was cruel to the woman they wanted me to marry. And before you say anything, I have no excuse for that. But since she turned out to be my brother's omega it was probably better for her that I rejected her."

"Was it better for you?"

I took a measured breath, trying to choose my words carefully. "I wasn't sure at the time. When her omega status was revealed, I didn't want my brother to have her."

"You were jealous," she said quietly, a bite of pain in her voice.

"Only because I knew that omegas were special, and it was my brother I was jealous of. Cordelia was never for me. There was no real attraction. But I realize that now more than ever. Omegas are special, but they aren't random either."

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