Page 43 of Centaur Bolt

Wasn’t sure I could keep that promise.

You’re going to have to if you want to survive.

Where are the black scales coming from?

He hesitated.That answer eludes me.

I gritted my teeth, crossed my arms, and waited for the Dragon.

He’d spent the night sleeping up high at the back of the cave and had therefore missed all the drama associated with my dream. At least, I assumed he’d missed it. He certainly didn’t mention it when he’d appeared shortly thereafter, thumping down on the gravel.

All I could currently see of the hostile, scaly thug was his tail, thrashing the water to foam as he hunted for eels among the rocks.

Having seen the one the night before, I didn’t envy him the task. The damned thing had been longer than I was tall, with jaws the size of my head lined with razor-sharp teeth. Those teeth had left bleeding rents in the Dragon’s scales.

He’d ignored them as though they were nothing at all. Moments later, they had been. I’d never seen anyone heal that fast, not even a Bellati.

My stomach roiled with hunger. This shapeshifting thing came with a cost—I’d always been a good eater, but now I was ravenous, and thirsty, too. At least this place had fresh water—a rivulet of it snaked over the boulders in one corner.

We need more crystal dust,Iskar said, sounding strained. Ask the Dragon if this cave has any deposits.

I hadn’t been up for conversation the night before. By the time Havoc had caught and cooked the eel—sort of—I’d barely retained the strength to sit up and eat.

The silence seemed to suit the Dragon, as well. I still didn’t feel like asking him anything. However, if Iskar said we needed the dust, then I believed him.

While watching for any toothy attackers, I’d collected a sizable pile of seaweed and washed it well in the fresh water. As I spread it on the stones, my mind drifted to the dream, and Riley. Of her unusual green-rimmed gaze, her small hands chasing over me—my pulse quickened, and so did something else inside me.

For the love of fluffy purple feathers, please stop thinking about her,Iskar complained as he shoved hard to push it back down. It was more than just a dream.

I paused and then answered,Yes. I agree.

I looked at the scales on my wrist.What took over at the end didn’t feel like the Wyvern.

He took so long to reply that I thought he wasn’t going to.I am not sure.

That isn’t the same as not knowing,I pointed out.

I will not speculate on it.His mindvoice was firm, but it only made me more uneasy.

Even if I got out of this mess—how could Riley and I ever be? I supposed it didn’t really matter because my chances of seeing her again were slim. That dream might be the only time we ever had together.

When Iskar didn’t reply, I knew he was thinking the same thing.

With an explosion of waves and foam, Havoc emerged from the water. Clenched in his jaws was an eel even bigger than the one he’d scored last evening. It twisted to bury its teeth in his throat. Blood sprayed, but only for an instant. The Dragon’s jaws closed with a sickening crunch, and the eel went limp.

As he waded out of the water, the blood from his wounds slowed to a trickle. He dropped his prize at my feet before expertly sliding his talons along the midline and ripping out the innards. He turned to fling them into the water—it churned as the scavengers fought over the remains.

After another few cuts, he’d separated long strips of muscle from the skin. When he speared them on his talons and raised them towards his open jaws, I stopped him.

“I’m going to steam them.”

His coppery eyes narrowed, and wisps of smoke emerged from his nostrils as he suppressed his Dragon fire. “Hungrys now,” he insisted. “Fire’s quicker.”

“Your fire burned the outside and left the inside raw. If I steam it, it will cook right through.”

He gnashed his teeth at me. Impressive enough in most Dragons, but Havoc’s beast was freking—or fucking, if Riley were to be believed—huge. It elicited a defensive response from what lurked inside me.

I rose to face him. “If you don’t want toothy company, I suggest you give me the pieces and use your fire to heat those stones.” I gestured to the makeshift steamer I’d constructed, and the leaves I’d spread.

---