Page 98 of Dragon Unhinged

I’m hungry and tired. My wings have been aching for a long time. I don’t understand how he’s been going this long. All for love? For his mate?

Or because of the craze?

I’m afraid of what’s going to happen, what he’s going to do, if we don’t get to his mate soon. I haven’t prayed to the gods since I was a youngling. Didn’t ever think they were actually listening. If ever there was a time we needed a miracle, it’s now. We need to find Brianna, save her and their baby, and bring Declan back. If there were gods who cared about us, that’s the miracle they’d bring.

Declan, please, you need to stop.

Pain. Mate. Now.

Great. I’m getting more words, but none that I can do anything about.

Syrena, we need to find her now. I’ve only gotten snippets from Brianna. I think she’s communicating with Declan, but he’s not coherent enough to handle any of this.I swallow hard, watching as Declan bellows out another burst of flame into the sky.Give me coordinates, some heading I can follow, so that I can steer him towards her. If he doesn’t find her soon, I have no idea what he’s capable of.

Silence.

Gods damn it, someone answer me!

I don’t even know any more if I’ll be able to get Declan to come back, even if we do know where Brianna is. Hell, we don’t even know if she’s okay or what Grey’s doing to her. I know Syrena’s putting her trust in Tabitha, and it certainly seems like Declan could be sensing something in Montreal, or close by. I’mnot entirely sure where I am now, I haven’t been keeping track. I’ve been too focused on Declan.

Trusting Tabitha is a bad idea. She has no reason to want to help us. Maybe she’s gone all Stockholm syndrome and is still working for Grey even though she’s not under the pull of Dragon’s Fire? We’re all hurting, because of Grey. Because of Tabitha. Because of the Elders and history.

I don’t get why we can’t just break off, do our own thing. Start our own counsel. There are enough of us now. Enough who want change, who want dragons to have the right to mate with whoever the Fates decide, regardless of how they’re born. Ash and Henrik think we need the backing of the counsel to get through the transition, but I think they’re wrong. The counsel has done nothing but tried to hold us back and make sure that dragonkind doesn’t survive.

Malcolm, what is Declan doing? There are reports of dragons moving in on New York, and the way the news outlets are saying one of them is…Levi’s consciousness leaves my head for a minute, before he fills my head to add,wrong. Ash told us he wasn’t healing.

I sigh, feeling like the bearer of all bad news right now.It’s me and Dec. He’s looking for his mate. Tell me I’m getting close to Montreal.

Declan takes a sharp turn north again.

We must be getting close.

Hold on just a little longer, Dec. We’re going to find her.

I’ve said it so many times in the last twenty-four hours, I’m not entirely sure I believe it myself anymore.

How are we going to find her? How are we going to take down Grey at all?

The only thing I can cling to, the only thing I can hope for right now, is that Brianna is as strong willed and stubborn as her mate, and just as much of a pain in my ass.

Just as much a fighter.

She’s going to need all the fight she can muster, to deal with a crazed dragon who can only think in grunts and single word sentences.

Brianna, if you’re out there somewhere, make yourself known so that Declan can find you.

And once again, no response.

I can feel the heat of the sun starting to rise on my tail as we get closer and closer to the borders of Canada. Closer to society, to a city. Closer to potential destruction, if he doesn’t have his mate back in his talons soon.

Closer to making the humans fear us even further. I suppose it’s inevitable at this point. But does it have to be my family that keeps scaring everyone?

Declan, please, stop. Give Syrena a chance to find her, to bring her to you. Don’t do anything that’s going to make Ash have to put you down.

Please, please don’t let me lose a brother to the craze. Not now, not when we’ve already lost our parents. Our home. Everything we held dear.

No matter how much we get settled amongst the humans, no matter how many of us find mates here, I can’t help but miss the comfort of being at home. A well-kept secret from the humans. Just living our lives.

Montreal’s skyline rises over the horizon, and my stomach sinks into my tail as Declan lets out another burst of fire, making him look like a haunted silhouette as he careens through his own flames.

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