Page 64 of Kingdom of Ashes & Bone
Zariah’s head lowered and nudged my neck fondly.
“Yes, very lucky,” Zion added, squeezing me protectively.
“Ah. All will be well then. The curse will end with you, provided you don’t pass on your dragon genes. I don’t recommend it; it’s difficult for dragons to find their mates. When they don’t, they go feral, then the covens are usually conscripted to track them down and kill them. Wouldn’t want to meet any of your progeny that way.”
I frowned. “Right … so, how do they not pass on their … dragoness?”
The witch grinned. “Simple. Stay human when you fuck. Easy.”
Both the man and dragon behind me went rigid.
The witch cackled with delight, rocking back and forth on her self-made chair of vines and branches.
“But … they’re not full blooded dragon, are they? They’re half?” I asked weakly, still trying to process all of it.
The witch raised an eyebrow. “Intrigued, are you? Well, live your best life. You might be fine. Then again, you might not. Best not to risk it, eh?”
Her eerie gaze snapped to Zion and Zariah, who took half-steps back at her utterings. “Oooh, something exciting will be afoot. When her time comes, you come and get me, you hear? This will be the beginning of something wonderful; I can already tell!”
I wanted to ask more, but the vines and branches snatched out, wrapping around the witch and obscuring her from view. When they finally cleared, the witch was gone.
Zariah huffed, and we eventually moved on after a full night of rest.
ChapterEighteen
The island was lovely. It was warm, and most importantly, so green I thought that some days it would bleach my eyes. Flowers and birds and insects and life itself thrived everywhere. It was the complete opposite of desolate wasteland that surrounded Barcenea.
Zion and Zariah still felt bad about it. Hopefully in time, the landscape would recover.
In the beginning, when we’d first set out east, they’d asked me over and over again if I wanted to seek out my home land of Hoveria. I didn’t need to be here to keep searching. I could do it from anywhere, and perhaps we’d even learn more on our travels.
The past was in the past, and I couldn’t change it. Knowing what I missed out on wouldn’t change me as a person, it would only bring about more heartache. And I’d already had my fair share.
My future and my life included my boys.
And the large lump growing inside of me.
He’s not a lump,argued Zariah immediately, growling from somewhere high, high above me. He was miles away, but we heard each other as clearly as ever. The closer our bond got, the more of each of others’ thoughts we could hear. After a lifetime of secrets and surviving, it was freeing to have someone just know every truth that passed through your mind. There were sometimes hurt feelings of course, but the unshakable bond between us had only grown through understanding each other.
I’m growing it. I get to name it. It’s a lump,I shot back, refusing to back down on this.
Zion lifted a scaly brow, his eyes cracking open from where he was sunning himself on the beach. Dragons loved the beach. Who knew?
I wiggled my toes deeper into the sand, relishing the coolness the wet earth had to offer.
I—
Whatever I’d been about to say next was cut off by a warning roar from Zariah far off in the distance. Zion had sprung to his feet a hair’s breadth before his brother had cried out, both of their dragons sensing immediate danger.
I stood as well, not that it meant anything. I could hardly climb up into our treehouse home as big as I was now, and relied on my boys to carry me everywhere while this child cooked inside of me.
It’s the black dragon!warned Zariah.He’s approaching from the south, he’ll get there before I can!
Zion roared, snapping me up in his claws carefully and fleeing from the beach, back deep into the jungle of the island.
Hey! Is it Sabrathan? Put me down!
I beat my fist twice against his claws, our universal sign that I wanted down. For the first time since we’d come here, Zion ignored me. Carefully, he deposited me onto the large bamboo platform in front of our treehouse, then whirled around and darted off into the sky. I couldn’t see anything due to the thick canopy of trees.
