Page 120 of Centaur Bolt

Now he looked alarmed. “That could be really bad.”

“Maybe that’s part of why I feel so lousy,” I admitted. I rose and paced a couple of steps. My knees shook, but I couldn’t sit still. I needed to move.

“What does Cara say?” he asked.

I shrugged, unwilling to admit that I hadn’t told her. “There is so little known about Jumpers.” I walked over to the steaming meat and poked it with a stick. “I haven’t been able to find out much of anything. The time travel thing was a complete shock, not only to me, but to Cara and Jacques, too.”

“You need a better instructor,” Marcus growled. “You shouldn’t be learning this stuff on the fly.”

“If there were better ones, Cara would find them.” I pointed out. “There just isn’t.”

He fell silent for a moment, before asking, “So where did you ‘absorb’ the Dragon scales?”

“Absorb them?” Havoc appeared out of the darkness. “What are you on about now?”

Marcus told him. I could swear he took perverse pleasure in telling him I wasn’t a Dragon.

Havoc didn’t comment, and it was impossible to judge anything from his expression. He merely tossed us some rolled-up leaves. Fresh, sparkling dust was inside. I was surprised by the craving that rose within me. I tipped a good amount into my mouth, and my entire body tingled.

Marcus inhaled his like a starving man and then leaned back with a sigh.

Havoc stared at both of us. “You know that stuff can hook into your soul, right?”

“Better that than teeth and scales,” Marcus stated.

As the zinging sensation spread through me, I suddenly felt powerful, as though I really could fly. Maybe the Dragon had a point. But if it could get me over this slump so that I could Jump us back to the academy, it would be worth it.

“So, whose scales are you absorbing?” Marcus repeated.

“Vali. She’s one of the new team members. Must have been her, she’s a blonde with yellow scales.”

Havoc stiffened. “Yellow is not a common color among Dragons.”

“She’s quite beautiful,” I admitted. “Although I’ve never seen her as a Dragon. She’s fighting coming into her cycle. Cara told her not to shift until she’s through it.”

“She’s fighting her cycle?” Havoc sounded oddly strangled.

I eyeballed him. “Yep.”

“Could you have absorbed more than just her scales?” Marcus’s voice was so deliberately casual that I shot him a look. His eyes were flaring wildly. “Would explain a few things,” he added.

My denial froze on my lips. Was that even possible? Answer: who knew?

Havoc growled, very low. “If it’s true—we’re seriously screwed.”

“Not if we find the Watcher,” Marcus stated.

I lifted the packet of dust. “With this, and rest tonight—I might be able to Jump us out of here.”

Havoc’s eyes narrowed. “Jump us where?”

“Back to the academy,” Marcus said.

“Fucking hell. Why would I want to go there?” Havoc demanded.

“Because you can use Isobel’s location to negotiate with them,” Marcus’s eyes were flaring like mad.

The tension between them was so thick I could smell it. I poked a stick at the steaming meat. “These smell good enough to eat,” I said.

---