Page 17 of Blood of Dragons

“You knew who she was.”

“Of course. I know everything.”

“This could have been prevented if you had enlightened me.”

His eyes remained locked on mine. “It would have changed nothing, and you know it. And like I’ve already told you, I don’t interfere with the lives of the living.”

“You interfered with mine.”

“No. You interfered with mine when you came to me. Let’s not rewrite history.” He looked at the fire again. “What do you seek?”

“I need something from you.”

He turned to look at me again. “Haven’t I already given you everything?”

“To give suggests you get nothing in return, and we both know it came at a hefty cost.”

“I told you I can’t interfere with the living.”

“I’m not asking you to.”

“Then what do you seek?”

My arms rested over the edge of the armrests, the fire hot on my bare chest. To anyone watching the scene unfold, they would see me speaking to the fire, not the god beside me. “I need to be the god of the underworld—temporarily.”

3

CALISTA

Inferno flew over the White Mountains—and then I was farther away from home than I’d ever been. The mountains were as perilous as they claimed. Not only were they high, but they were deep, the mountain ranges stretching for leagues to the north, the peaks covered with snow, the air cold and painful on the lungs.

But it was beautiful.

The sun was shining on the clear day, the snow beneath reflecting the bright sunlight like stars in the sky. The wind whipped through my hair and stung my eyes, but I would never get tired of the exhilaration of being on the back of a dragon.

I held on to the spike in front of me, but any time Inferno shifted or slowed, I felt my body lean forward, and if the jerk was too profound, I could easily stab myself through the neck or the face.We need to make a saddle soon.

THE ELVES WILL KNOW.

Khazmuda doesn’t have spikes like this.

EVERY DRAGON IS DIFFERENT. NO TWO SCALES ARE THE SAME.

I love the color of your scales. Such a pretty color.

PRETTY?

I mean…vibrant and distinctive.

THAT’S BETTER.

We traveled across the mountains and saw the world grow flat, the ground green and lush. To the east, I could see how the terrain changed, how the green faded and turned into a yellowish-brown.That must be the Wastelands.

YES. IT MATCHES THE MAP.

That means we’re close to Riviana Star. All I’ve ever known is our lands, and now I realize how small it really is. This place seems uninhabited by humans…but so much bigger. I wonder how different our lives would be if humans could scale the mountain.

THEY WOULD BE RULED BY ELVES, OR ELVES WOULD BE RULED BY THEM.

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