Page 37 of Marked Dragon

I kept hold of the dart, careful not to stab myself with it. I wanted to get an idea of how the contraption worked and what sort of anesthetic they’d used to subdue us.

The time for lightheartedness was gone, and even though our moment of levity had been at my expense, it had given us a reprieve from the tension. Vlad was right. We needed to get into position so we could meet our next contact.

The five of us walked, though a little slower since Vlad was still impacted by the drugs. I focused on Eva’s breathing and heartbeat, ensuring it didn’t slow enough to cause alarm.

Something skittered past my feet, startling me.Rats. My skin crawled. They were gross disease carriers, especially the ones that lived underground.

Light shone at the end of the tunnel, but there was no obvious exit, just a dead end.

A lump formed in my throat until I noticed the light was coming from above.

How odd.

The closer we got, the clearer the exit became. It was over the tunnel. When we reached the end, I looked up and saw tiny holes that allowed us to see outside.

Something caused the light to vanish, and a scream lodged in my throat.

Thorn turned and placed a hand on my arm. He connected,It’s a guard walking past the rocky edge. They blocked the sun. No one has found us.

Forcing myself to breathe steadily, I tried to focus. His touch grounded me, and I turned and rested my head on his arm. I needed his touch after being separated for so long.

He wrapped his free arm around me, and the jolt thrummed between us as the five of us who were awake stood in silence.

When there was no noise from outside, Vlad’s jaw twitched. He exhaled and glanced at the two people still passed out in our arms. “I know this isn’t ideal, but we need to get out of here after the next round of warriors passes.”

My brows furrowed. “But the king said we should wait.” We couldn’t risk getting caught again. Darkness would give us more coverage.

Concern wafted from Thorn as he and his dad locked gazes.

He was keeping something from me.

I swallowed hard and narrowed my eyes. “What aren’t you telling me?”

Thorn hung his head while Vlad crossed his arms. Vlad said, “If you don’t tell her, I will. Waiting will only cause us to have to fight the warriors again.”

“Just tell me,” I gritted out.

Saphira rolled her eyes. “I’ll do it.”

She turned her attention to me…and winced.

CHAPTERTHIRTEEN

The only thingsthat kept me grounded were Thorn’s arm around me and holding Eva to my chest. I was about to scream at them to tell me, but if I was too loud, a warrior might overhear me.

“Drake will take matters into his own hands and use every possible resource against us.” Saphira bit her bottom lip.

Nausea churned within. “Elliott and Peter.” Drake would target my brother—Eva’s twin—and my stepdad. Though I didn’t truly care about Peter, my siblings did. He was their last remaining parent, and I would do anything to ensure they didn’t lose him.

I sagged against Thorn, wanting to punch something. I hadn’t thought of that, which infuriated me, but I knew Drake would never stop looking for someone to use against us. People like Drake couldn’t let anything go. He would always hunt us.

Babe, I’m so sorry,Thorn connected, and his face twisted.I wish—

It’s not your fault.We wouldn’t have this conversation again.We’ll find a way out of this.I should’ve killed Drake when I’d had the chance, but I’d missed his heart. Part of me was relieved that I had—I didn’t want to killanybody—but if I’d succeeded, we might not be in such a dire situation.

My blood cooled, and I arched a brow at Saphira. “You do realize that also goes for Brenton and Tyson, right? You’re officially lumped in with us if they realize you helped attack the warriors back there.”

Saphira hung her head as if she hadn’t thought of that.

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