Chapter 28
Keira glanced at the sky as she wondered how much longer it would be before Aaron returned. She judged that a full hour had gone by since he had disappeared between the trees, but she suspected that he wasn’t far away and was just biding his time.
The men had started mumbling as soon as he left, until finally the reeve, clearly irritated at such open insubordination, had rounded on them and branded them all as cowards. They’d fallen silent after that, but shifted nervously as they waited, darting looks between each other. Alan had dropped the dagger he held against Mother’s throat, and she’d fallen to the ground in a heap. When Father dropped beside her and pulled into his arms, she’d clung to him, weeping into his chest.
A few more minutes passed before Keira heard the heavy beats of a dragon’s wings. She looked up and watched as a large shape appeared in the sky, blocking the light of the sun for a moment as it circled above them. A thick tail streamed behind a huge body, while the sun glinted on iron-hard scales. A steady stream of flames spewed from the creature’s mouth, spreading heat around them, and as it drew closer, a long, loud roar tore through the air, reverberating across the mountains and sending a shiver down Keira’s spine. The barbs on its neck and along its tail reached up like a wall of spears, standing in sharp profile against the blue of the sky, and its claws were stretched to their fullest extent, the strength and brutality of them on full display.
For a moment Keira couldn’t reconcile the wild, savage creature circling above her with the man that she loved, and she drew back slightly as a wave of fear lapped at the edges of her mind; but at that moment he looked directly at her, as though he sensed her confusion, and in his bright burning gaze she saw him. He circled around once more, then dropped to the ground with a thud that shook the earth, forgoing his usual grace.
The men gripped their makeshift weapons with whitened knuckles as they scrambled away from him, the fear evident in their expressions as they watched the huge beast. Even the reeve pulled back, a momentary look of dread crossing his face as his hand clutched his sword.
The dragon swept his long tail over the ground in a wide arc that stretched across most of the clearing, lifting leaves and dust into the air, while the men pushed and shoved each other in an effort to get away from the deadly appendage, tripping when they were not hasty enough.
As the dragon settled on the ground, Father walked towards the enormous creature, his expression calm as he met the beast’s gaze. His actions were in such stark contrast to the other men that they stopped to stare at him in astonishment, but Father ignored them all as he met the gaze of the dragon towering above him. Man and beast, they stared at each other for a moment before Father moved back to stand next to Smithy, who clutched a pitchfork in his hand as though it was all that stood between him and death. The dragon swept his gaze around the circle, lingering for a moment on Keira, then lifted his head and let out another long, low roar.
Turning towards the reeve, Keira gestured to the dragon. “You wanted the dragon. Now let us go.”
The reeve had recovered from his momentary fright at the sight of the beast, and he looked at Keira with eyes narrowed in calculation. “Not so hasty, girl. We need to rid our village and these mountains of this monster. You can leave when the dragon is dead.” A low growl filled the air at his words, and the reeve’s hand tightened on his sword.
“Your actions will only bring about your own demise,” Keira said, amazed at the man’s stubbornness. She was about to say more, but from amongst the men came a voice of support.
“This has gone on long enough,” Daniel Draper said. “Let the girl and her mother go before we find ourselves paying too dear a price.” He gestured towards the dragon. “We stand no chance against such a mighty beast, and the fact that we’re not already dead makes me inclined to think that we should let it go in peace.”
“What are you saying?” the reeve snarled. “We are talking about a dragon – a mindless monster.” He pointed his sword at Daniel. “Are you willing to sacrifice your family in an effort to save this girl?” he shouted. “Because that is what will happen if we allow this monster its life. It will attack and burn our village as surely as the last one did. When the creature is dead, the girl can go free.”
“No,” Keira shouted, but her voice was overridden by the reeve’s.
“Kill it!” the reeve screamed, spinning towards Aaron and charging him with his sword outstretched.
Later, Keira would remember the events as they played through her mind in slow motion, each expression and action discrete; but at the time, they ran together in a confused explosion. Taking advantage of the momentary distraction caused by Daniel’s words, the reeve raced towards Aaron. The motion caught Keira’s dragon-sharpened eye and her cry reverberated through the surrounding forest. The reeve faltered, and instead of piercing the dragon, his sword sliced through Keira’s upper arm as she leapt towards Aaron. Aaron’s massive claws smashed into the reeve and sent him flying through the air, and he landed on the ground with a crash. Keira’s father, too, had seen the reeve’s actions and he surged forward, startling the man beside him. Pitchfork lowered, Smithy swung around, catching Father in the stomach and impaling him on the tines.
Keira’s gaze was on Aaron as she leapt forward, but she saw her father fall from the corner of her eye, and she spun around to see him grasping the pitchfork with his hands as blood seeped between his fingers. Around her, the other men stood frozen in place, glancing between the dragon and Father, until fear and dread forced them into action, and en masse they turned and ran. The reeve, lying on the ground, groaned as he pushed himself to his knees, then scrambled back with a scream as a stream of flame caught his legs, blistering and blackening the skin. His body thrashed in the dust, causing the flames to slowly subside as he lost consciousness and fell still.
Mother ran to Father and fell in the dirt beside him, while on his other side, Smithy dropped to the ground and slowly eased the pitchfork from his stomach, his face a mask of horror.
“I’m so sorry,” he moaned. “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.” The words flowed from his mouth in an endless litany that grew more and more frantic as Father’s blood seeped out from the wounds. “Please, you can’t die. I’m so sorry.”
“Help him,” Keira shouted at Aaron. Blood was pouring from the gash in her own arm, the pale white bone exposed where the tissue pulled apart, but she barely noticed the pain. “He’s going to die,” she yelled. “Help him!”
“The dagger,” Aaron said, “Get Alan’s dagger. You’ll have to do this – do you think you can?” His voice was low enough that the others couldn’t hear.
Keira nodded as she picked up the knife, holding her wounded arm close to her chest. She stepped over to where her father lay. Small bubbles of blood escaped from his mouth, and she could see that he did not have long to live.
“Mother,” Keira said, grabbing her by the shoulders, “the dragon can help Father, but we need to hurry.”
“No,” Mother hissed, as Aaron moved to Father’s side, his clawed feet next to Father’s broken form. “Keep that monster away from him. He cannot have Richard.”
“Mother,” Keira said, struggling to keep her voice calm. “You have to trust me.” She looked at Aaron in despair.
Smithy still crouched beside Father, but at Keira’s words he stopped mumbling and glanced between Keira and the dragon, then walked around to where Mother knelt on the ground and gently took her by the shoulders, drawing her away. She tried to fight free, but his grip was unyielding. He nodded at Keira, and she smiled gratefully.
Rising to her feet, Keira stood opposite Aaron and placed the dagger against his chest. She stared into his eyes, drawing her strength from him. She drew in a deep breath, pulled back the dagger and plunged it into his chest. Behind her, Smithy gasped, but Aaron remained still as blood began to drip from the wound. Keira’s hand shook as her own blood loss crested in a wave of dizziness, and Aaron placed his
claw over her hand and forced the blade to the side, opening the wound enough for the blood to flow freely. The crimson stream splashed onto Father as he lay prone on the ground, the blood seeping into his wounds and running down his chest.
Looking down, Keira watched in amazement as the wounds started to knit together, the skin pulling taut before her eyes and closing the gaping holes left by the tines. She looked up at Aaron and smiled in relief as she tugged the blade from his hide. Another wave of dizziness hit, and she leaned against his chest as he clasped his claws around her and lifted her away from the others, turning so that his bulk hid her from their sight. The dagger still hung loosely in Keira’s grip, and Aaron wrapped his claw around her hand and guided the blade back to his chest, forcing the quickly healing wound open again. The blood welled up once more, and he pulled her closer so that it dripped over her arm and into her wound. Her flesh tingled as his blood mixed with hers, and she felt a slight tugging as the muscle knitted itself back together. She looked up at Aaron and caught her breath as he bent his neck down in a graceful arch and brought his mouth close to her ear.
“Drink my blood,” he whispered, his hot breath lifting the hair about her neck. “It will build your strength,” he said.
“What about my father? Must he drink your blood too?”
Aaron laughed, a low sultry sound that made her shiver. “Definitely not,” he said. “Now come, drink.”
Keira nodded slowly and drew in a deep breath, releasing it in a long stream as she brought her hands to his chest. She cupped them beneath the wound, which was still flowing freely, and watched as the blood pooled in her hands. She brought them to her lips and drank. As before, she felt the warm liquid hit her stomach and spread languorously through her limbs. The dizziness lifted as the blood flowed through her veins, and she cupped her hands beneath the wound again, drawing more of the elixir into her mouth.
Aaron’s head was still bent down to hers, and she pulled back a little to meet his gaze. His eyes were blazing with flames that leaped and sparked, and she smiled as she bent forward, slowly pulling the blade out of his flesh. Blood continued to trickle from the wound as it began to heal, and she leaned forward to lick the drops from his skin. She felt him shudder as a rush of hot air swirled around her, and she leaned back to look at him once more. He met her gaze with an intensity that made her catch her breath, before lifting her arm and slowly licking the blood that had flowed from her wound. His forked dragon tongue curled around her arm, running down its length, and she shuddered as she stared into his burning gaze. A soft growl sounded low in his throat, and his grip on her arm tightened.
“Never fear the dragon, my sweet,” he whispered, “for it is you who have power over the beast.”