Page 13 of Memories Like Fangs
I couldn’t bear to do that again.
Iwouldn’t.
Even if she looked just… wrong.
Snow soaked into the shins and seat of my leggings, the chill of it sinking into my bones. I didn’t care. As if it were touching my bare skin, I could feel the burning heat from my mom’s obsidian pendant through my coat and scarf. What I really craved was the warmth I used to feel from my mom when she was in this form.
The last time I saw her in her dragon form was the Thanksgiving before she died, when she shifted to stretch her wings like always. I remembered her full smile like yesterday, so alive and glorious, while she was engulfed in magical flames. Once they dissipated, a thirty-foot-long dragon stood where she once did. Her scales were ruby red with golden shimmers that glittered in the light of the day. Her black curls extended downher long neck, and golden horns grew from her forehead before ending in a curl near where her head met her neck. The teeth in her muzzle were as long and sharp as the black talons on her hands and feet. Her dark garnet wings cast shadows all over the forest, and her spiky tail swished behind her. I used to be able to feel the heat radiating from her body before I would approach her, full of awe. Making me feel like I was close to a massive bonfire in the middle of an Arizona summer, it would make me start sweating immediately, but I also found comfort in it. It was my favorite blanket fresh from the dryer after a cold winter’s day in the snow. It was one of my favorite things.
Now, Mom wasn’t like that.
This was her body, sure. At least, parts of it. It was her head as large as it ever was, and her gold and dark garnet traditional dragon wings. She was still beautiful. But, it wasn’treallyher. Her eyes were glossy, almost-black with a slitted artificial pupil. The gold dusting on her scales was so dull, if I didn’t know it was her, I would assume they were painted along with her too-bright red skin. Worse of all was just how cold she felt to the touch. She felt just like the snow underneath me.
In my head, my dragon howled forlornly, an echo of my own heartbreak and loss. She was still so restless, pacing in worry, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as it had been back in the office.
Now, I just wanted Mom laid to rest as she deserved.
Quinn squatted next to me, the snow crunching beneath her boots. The only light that we had was a MagLite that one of the boys had brought along, which was pointed to give Maisie the best view while she worked. Despite the lack of light, I could clearly see Quinn’s hazel eyes lighting up the night more than the flashlight did as they watched me. This whole night, Quinn had been my rock, the only thing keeping me on steady footing. If it wasn’t for her, I would have fallen into nothingness.
“Hey, don’t do that.” Her voice was a low whisper. “Quédate conmigo. Stay with me, yeah?”
“What do you mean? I’m right here,” I asked, scrunching my eyebrows in confusion.
“No, you aren’t. You are elsewhere, far from here. I can see it in your eyes. I just worry about where that place is.”
How did she always see straight through me like this? How did she know? I would blame the bond, but it doesn’t allow you to read minds. It only allows you to push some thoughts through while connecting our feelings together. Plus, she was doing this before we bonded. Quinn just knew me that well. I loved it when she did it, but something about her doing it when I was feeling like this made me love her even more.
Suddenly, my chin was attacked by a tiny tongue licking me, making me giggle immediately. Clarkson was trying and failing to hop up and lick the rest of my face as I tried to calm her down and keep her on the ground. Her little stub of a tail wagged ferociously. Clarkson was Quinn’s four-year-old Boykin Spaniel. In the past few months since I had first met her, she had quickly become my baby. Quinn constantly and affectionately called her “little traitor.” Even now, my favorite little chocolate fluff ball had never left my side since she followed us outside, having seen Simone grab my coat. Now, she stayed close to me in her cute pink plaid jacket and black booties for her to run through the snow.
I couldn’t stay upset with her around.
I stood up, and Quinn followed. Clarkson fled away to make more trails in the snow while also trying to eat as much of it as possible. I shook my head and leaned onto Quinn. She wrapped her arms around me to pull me as close to her as possible. It was just what I needed to ground me.
Quinn was the one who came up with the plan. Nat would go downstairs and tell the Trinity that I wasn’t feeling well anddistract them. Cody and Cole would take my mom’s body down from the wall and use the back balcony in the guest bedroom nearest to the office to set her down below as carefully as they could. Once on the ground, the boys would leap down and carry her out further into the backyard for Maisie to use her powers to teleport her home. First thing in the morning, we would all take a jet home to prepare my mother’s body for a proper burial.
We moved quickly but mindfully. Simone gathered everyone’s coats to face the elements. The boys were so considerate of my mom’s remains as they carried them. Once we were out of the house, Maisie shook out her hands, and her eyes started to blaze a hot, bright purple. She used her magic to collect my mom from the boys and carry her further away from the house.
We walked solemnly and quietly behind her, the only noise was the sound of the crunching snow under our feet. I leaned on Quinn the whole way there, feeling unsteady and having never felt so weary down to my bones like this before. It was a wonder I was able to walk at all. My sorrow was so heavy that I wanted to just soak in it. I wanted to lose myself to it. It was all too much. I could barely breathe. I knew that wasn’t what my mom would have wanted, but that didn’t make the feeling pass any faster. If it wasn’t for Quinn’s persistent heat and never leaving my side the whole time, I was sure I would fall apart.
Eventually, we reached a decent point far away from the house, close to the woodline at the edge of the property. Maisie sat Mom’s head and wings down in the snow. She waved a gloved hand over my mom before she started drawing an intricate rune in the air. Following behind her finger was a line of neon purple magic as if she were a painter of light. She connected one of the runes to another as she continued to fill in its details. As soon as it was done, the runes flared brightly. They rained a massive dusting of glitter down, leaving behind a purple-tintedfog that completely obscured my mom’s head and wings. It shimmered briefly for a moment. Then, the runes shattered like glass shards, even twinkling as they fell. The fog dropped, and my mom’s head and wings were gone. The only evidence they were ever there was the print left behind in the snow. Instantly, my necklace cooled around my neck.
“And, done! I teleported your mom to the guest room in your condo. That way, Everett won’t freak out if he comes home early.”
“Thank you so much, Maze,” I said, smiling at her. Internally, my dragon shook herself of the last of the bad energy and settled down. I could feel a strong sense of relief flood my system from her, and I couldn’t help but agree. Mom was safe and out of that hell office.
“Of course, babe. You know I got you always.”
“We had better skedaddle now, kiddies,” Cody said, pulling out his phone. “Nat is running out of ways to stall and is calling for backup. She says Cooper is asking too many questions.”
Quinn rolled her eyes. “Of fucking course he is. You all go on in, and I’ll be there in a minute.”
“Your mom is probably going to have a ton of questions, Q. What do you want us to tell her?” Cole asked.
“I’ll do my best to explain everything to her later. Just… tell her to let me work through this for now,” Quinn answered, and Cole nodded.
I gave Simone and Maisie hugs before they followed Cole and Cody inside. Once they were gone, Quinn pulled me in close against her. She held me like she never wanted to let go of me ever again.
I breathed in that scent that was uniquely hers: smoky campfire, sweet milk chocolate, and sharp citrus that always clung to Quinn. It was my favorite smell, and I inhaled it deeply. I would have closed my eyes, but I refused to miss theway Quinn’s eyes darkened to a beautiful burnt caramel. It all grounded me the most out of anything else tonight.
