Page 33 of Hungry Like A Dragon
When they were three storefronts away, he stopped the stroller and moved it closer to the brick wall, out of the way of passing pedestrians.
“Why are we stopping?” Petra asked.
“I want one of those little dragons.”
“If you go back, she might get suspicious. She really didn’t want us to know anything about them.”
“I know.”
He reached out and grabbed the arm of a kid—a dragon—who had his hands stuffed into his front pockets.
“Hey,” the kid protested.
“I want one of those little dragons you just bought,” Noah said.
The kid instantly bristled. “I didn’t buy nothing.”
Noah sighed. “It’sanything, and I just saw you come out of that shop. No dragon your age would go in there for anything other than those little figurines.”
“I don’t know what you’re—”
“How much did you pay for it?” Noah asked, pulling his wallet out of his pocket and spreading the pieces of leather so the kid could see the cash in there.
As predicted, the young man’s eyes widened. “Twenty bucks each.”
Noah pulled out two twenties. “Here’s forty. Give me one you bought and go get yourself two more.”
The kid reached for the money but Noah jerked it away. After a moment’s hesitation, the younger man dug in his front pocket and extracted a small glass dragon figurine. He handed it to Noah, who slapped the money into his palm, and the kid took off at a jog. Noah stuffed the dragon into his own pocket, grabbed the handle of the stroller, and started walking down the sidewalk with Petra at his side.
“Let’s go home and figure out what’s so special about these little dragons.”
