Page 101 of The Secret Keeper's Daughter

“Who did it belong to?” I ask.

“My great-great-grandfather.”

“It’s an heirloom as well as my sword.”

He nods. “All the more reason to get it from that foul human.”

The farther we go down the corridor, the darker it gets. Einar lights torches that are spaced along the wall. It makes me think of drawings I’ve seen depicting ancient times.

After a while, Harek stops. “You keep your dragon all the way back here?”

“She isn’t captive. You’ll see. We’re almost there.”

We carry on down the path.

A chill comes over me, clinging like wet clothing. It makes me think of the cave Harek and I stayed in one night.

I’m about ready to turn back when a faint green glow shines up ahead. We come to a large open area with grass, a pond, and countless glitter bugs of every color flitting about. The light comes from them. But that isn’t the most amazing thing in the large area.

A large, dark orange dragon is curled up, sleeping next to the pond. Her wings slide up and down with each breath the creature takes. I’m not sure why my father was worried about all three of us fitting on her—she could easily fit twice as many people on her back and have room to spare.

My father marches over to her and rubs the side of her head. She opens one eye, then the other. He beams. “Meet Sapphire.”

The dragon lazily rises and yawns before nuzzling against Einar, practically knocking him over. She glances our way and releases a loud snort.

I press myself against Harek. Some mighty hunter I am.

“Come meet her,” my father says.

Neither of us move.

“Just hold your hand out and let her sniff you.”

“Like a cat?” I ask, my voice betraying my hesitancy.

“Exactly, and I’m right here. She’ll know you aren’t a threat.”

“I’m more worried about her.”

“She’s a love. Come on, we need to get the introductions out of the way.”

As if to prove his point, the souls ram into each other, making me nauseated again. If riding this dragon and fighting Gunnar is what it takes to remove the souls from me, then that’s what I’ll do.

I take a step forward.

Harek grabs my arm. “Are you sure?”

I turn to him. “We have no other choice. I need to get that sword back.”

“We could travel back through the woods and get it ourselves.”

“No, we need to do it this way.”

“Okay.” He steps forward with me.

My heart hammers louder with each step I take, and the souls whip back and forth, making me regret having eaten so much for dinner. It’s as if they know what’s coming. Maybe they do.

Once I have my sword, there will be no stopping me.

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