The Witch Who Bled The DragonFire

The Price of HearthFire

The soldiers freeze.

One drops his spear.

The commander takes a step backward.

“Impossible.”

I can’t speak.

Dragons are extinct. I’ve known that my entire life.

Every story, every history lesson, every dusty book I’ve ever read says the same thing.

Yet one stands before me, wounded and furious, with the same golden eyes that looked at me outside my shop.

The dragon turns his head toward me.

For one terrifying moment, I expect him to attack.

Instead, he lowers his body and places one enormous claw beside me without touching me.

Behind us, the commander shouts for his men to regroup.

I look at the broken walls, the weapons scattered across the floor, and the creature offering me a way out.

I have no idea who Kael Draven really is.

I don’t know why the Crown wants my blood.

And I have absolutely no idea what the First Flame is.

But I know what will happen if I stay.

I climb onto his back, gripping the scales beneath my hands.

“I don’t trust you,” I whisper.

His golden eye turns toward me.

Fair enough. I wouldn’t trust me either.

Then his wings open.

The dragon launches into the storm, carrying me away from the ruined headland and the men who have just destroyed the last of my ordinary life.

Below us, the Crown’s soldiers disappear into the rain.

I hold on tightly, trying not to look down.

I left my apothecary believing my biggest problem was a nightmare.

Now I’m flying through the clouds on the back of a dragon.

And I have a terrible feeling the nightmare was only the beginning.

CHAPTER FOUR

The Price of Heartfire

Elowen Vale’s POV

Flying on the back of a dragon sounds exciting until you realise the dragon has been shot, it’s raining hard enough to drown a small village, and you’re holding on for dear life.

“Could you slow down?”

The wind snatches the words from my mouth.

Kael either doesn’t hear me or has decided my opinion is irrelevant. His enormous wings beat against the storm as we race over the coastline, leaving the ruined tower and the Crown soldiers somewhere behind us.

I tighten my arms around his neck.

I don’t look back. I have enough problems without checking whether an army is chasing us across the sky.

Another thought occurs to me.

My shop.

Everything I own is still there. My clothes, my books, my supplies, and the little things I’ve spent years collecting. I have no idea whether the Crown has already searched the place.

I tell myself the building is probably still standing.

It’s a comforting thought, even if I have absolutely no evidence to support it.

Then Kael’s body jerks beneath me.

“Kael?”

His right wing falters.

For one horrible second, the ground rushes towards us. My stomach climbs into my throat, and I tighten my grip so hard my fingers begin to ache.

Kael corrects his flight, but the movement is sluggish.

“Don’t you dare,” I shout into his ear. “You’re not dying while I’m still on your back.”

A low rumble travels through his chest.

I choose to interpret it as an insult.

“Good. At least you’re alive enough to be offended.”

He turns towards a narrow stretch of coastline. Beyond the cliffs, an abandoned stone tower rises above the rocks, its broken roof barely visible through the rain.

We descend behind it, away from the open sea.

The moment Kael’s claws touch the ground, his legs buckle.

I scramble off his back and nearly land face-first in the wet grass.

“Kael!”

Dark smoke curls around him. His wings fold out of sight, his scales disappear, and his enormous body begins to shrink. A few seconds later, he’s human again, kneeling in the grass with one hand pressed against his injured shoulder.

His breathing is rough.

I stare at him.

“You could have warned me before turning back into a man.”

He lifts his head, looking thoroughly unimpressed.

“You were rather busy screaming.”

“I was shouting.”

“Loudly.”

“There’s a difference.”

I open my mouth to continue the argument, then notice the black veins spreading beneath his skin.

Whatever comeback I had prepared disappears.

“Let me see your shoulder.”

“No.”

I blink at him.

“I’m sorry. Did you just refuse medical treatment while looking like you’re about to collapse?”

“I’ve survived worse.”

“And yet you’re still making this unnecessarily difficult.”

He attempts to stand. His knees almost give way, and I catch his arm before he hits the ground.

For someone who can turn into a dragon, he is remarkably bad at admitting when he needs help.

“Come on,” I mutter. “Let’s get you inside before you prove gravity works.”

The tower is barely standing. One side of the roof has collapsed, and the stone walls are damp with age. There’s an old fireplace in the corner and a narrow doorway that offers some protection from the rain.

It’s hardly a luxury hotel, but at least the ceiling isn’t entirely missing.

I help Kael settle against the wall, then dig through my medical supplies.

My hands are shaking.

I notice it only when I drop a roll of linen and have to pick it up again.

I’ve watched a man transform into a dragon. I’ve seen soldiers use magic to hunt him, and I’ve discovered that my blood can heal wounds that should be impossible to treat.

Apparently, the universe has decided that one ordinary afternoon wasn’t enough excitement for me.

I take a breath.

One problem at a time.

The silver blade is still lodged between Kael’s lower ribs. The bolt that struck his upper arm during the fight is there too. Both weapons are surrounded by dark, angry skin, and the black veins have spread farther than I’d like.