Page 15 of Rejected By Dragons

Behind them both, Storm is a tightly coiled ball of rage, but they don't know it.

"Apparently not," I retort, my bluster going into overdrive.

Fury brushes past Jasmine. He looms over me, and I swallow hard, trying my best not to give him the satisfaction of seeing me cower. "Watch your tone," he warns.

Sarcastic rejoinders rise to my lips, but before I can get any of them out, he leans in closer.

"Or we may have to watch it for you," he growls. "King Zephyr's had his eye on you, you know."

An involuntary shiver runs down my spine. "I am pretty hard to look away from."

His nostrils flare, and I'm pretty sure he's stopping himself from slapping me.

"You're an embarrassment to the entire kingdom," he spits. "You don't belong. You never have. And if you want to prove to everyone what a worthless reject you are again and again--"

"Enough."

Fury and I both whip our heads around. Pride and relief twine together inside me. Of all the people to speak up in this encounter, the least likely was sweet, kind, quiet Brynn.

But here she is. She swoops in and puts her hands on her hips. "Ember belongs here just as much as anyone else."

"She's an outsider," Jasmine taunts.

"She's one of us." Brynn's dragon is usually as shy and quiet as she is, but when the beast is provoked, she can be as protective as the most fearsome in our clan. "We took her in. She's of our blood."

"Half," Fury growls.

Somehow, I find my voice. "Which makes me twice as good as the rest of you."

Brynn elbows me in the side, but she doesn't lose her focus. She opens her mouth to give Fury and Jasmine an even bigger piece of her mind.

Before she can, though, Storm interrupts. Quiet and dangerous, he says, "This isn't the time. Or the place."

I glance around. He's right. The shop is bustling, and we've attracted more than our fair share of attention. Fortunately, the only folks close enough to hear are dragons. Lord knows what a human would make of this all.

That said, a few of those dragon shifters have their cameras out. It's not every day you get to see the two princes of the Air Kingdom putting a couple of peons in their place. It's even rarer to see those peons talk back.

Undeterred, Jasmine snaps, "We do what we want, when we want."

But Fury sees the same situation I do. He puts a hand on Jasmine's arm, silently telling her to shut the hell up. Returning his attention to me and Brynn, he narrows his eyes. "Think twice before you make a fool of yourself at the Emergence." His gaze focuses intently on me. "Again."

I keep my voice in check, but in my heart, I'm undeterred. "All I'm thinking about is the look on your face when I show you all."

My dragon may be in hiding, but she's as fierce as any other. The day she shows her face will be the day I prove myself to everyone who's tormented me these past dozen years.

It has to be this time. It just has to.

Fury raises his brows. Ominously, he tells me, "Fail or succeed. It doesn't matter to me. But make no mistake--the king won't suffer you bringing shame on the Air Realm a sixth time."

The warning in his tone takes me aback. "What--"

The rules are clear. Any member of the Air Dragon Kingdom who's yet to Emerge can face the flames to bring forth the beast within. While no one's ever had to try as many times as I have, the ancient texts don't specify a limit.

"The Air Kingdom has no room for broken dragons," Fury growls. "Fail again, and you can find another kingdom to bring your shame to."

My eyes fly wide. He wouldn't. The king--

He couldn't.

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