Total pages in book: 130
Estimated words: 117336 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117336 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
"And what is it you think he's doing, Melina?" She tilts her head, watching me. "You think he's become their best friends and rocks them to sleep at night? That he's singing songs to them and keeping them entertained and that's why they stay with him?"
"I…" I struggle to find the words, because Emma's outrage is so overwhelming it's throwing me for a loop. I look over at Rachel, but she seems uncomfortable as well. Her drakoni mate, Jurik, hasn't shifted out of his dragon-form either. He just hovers protectively nearby, his eyes whirling a troubled gold and black. “This is a conversation you should have with Azar.”
“I can’t talk to Azar,” Emma says flatly. “If I get anywhere close to him, I’ll try to kill him.” She shakes her head. Some of the defensiveness leaves her tone. “That’s why I’m asking you what he told you. What do you honestly think he’s doing with the drakoni?”
"He's helping them," I say calmly, trying to settle myself. This woman doesn't know Azar like I do. "I know it looks like he's using them, but they're not in their minds, so he's protecting them until they can get back to themselves."
"Oh, Melina. You're too nice. You don't really believe that, do you?" Rachel winces. "That's why I brought you here. You seem like you genuinely want to help the fort, and I want you to know the truth."
"What truth?" I ask, getting more frustrated by the moment.
"The truth of who you're sleeping with."
My fear has disappeared into anger. "He's not the most warm-fuzzies of leaders, but just because you don't like him doesn't mean that he's doing a bad job with the fort. I don't know who you think you are, stealing me out here to try and spread a bunch of lies about my husband—"
"Melina," Rachel says, calm. "We didn’t bring you out here to lie to you. Please, just listen. Please.” She turns to the other woman. "Emma. This isn't a time to throw out accusations, all right? Just tell Melina your story. She's smart. She'll figure out the rest."
Emma lets out a deep breath and rubs the fat cheek of her baby. She glances back at the drakoni behind her and then at me. "Fine. My name is Emma Arroyo and my brother and I were nomads. We haven't really called a fort home in a long time, and I went off on my own after my brother hooked up with some shady characters. I ran into my brother again, and he says he's working for this new guy named Azar. That he's kinda a weirdo but he's got plans, right? Plans to take over a fort and make himself an emperor of his own little world."
I say nothing. Azar has confessed that in the past he worked with whoever would listen to him, and that he'd done some terrible things and worked with terrible people just to get a toehold in this world. I didn't judge it—I don't think anyone alive has spent the last seven years since the Rift opened being truly proud of all their actions. We just do what it takes to survive. So Emma's words don't surprise me. I would rather know Azar has stepped on people in the past and regrets it, than be with a man who refuses to acknowledge his flaws.
"You know why they needed me?" Emma's practically bristling. "Because he wanted my dirty panties to lure a dragon."
That startles me. I guess part of me was expecting to dismiss everything Emma said as the rantings of a jealous or angry woman. But the panties…I've talked with Azar about that and I don't like that he uses them to try and lure more dragons to the fort for mates.
Emma practically pounces when she notices my attitude change. Her words get faster, her expression more determined. "He used my scent to capture Zohr." She gestures at the dragon behind her. "He pinned him down while he was in human form and caged him so that if he tried to shift to get away, he'd destroy his wings. Show her, baby."
Behind Emma, the dragon lifts one wing and holds it out, and it takes everything I have not to gasp. Zohr's wings are not the delicate golden membrane like other drakoni wings. They're tattered with scars, some puckered heavily. The scars slice through his wings, terrible and old, and it's clear to me that's why he's walking. If he can fly, it can't be for long distances.
"He wanted to use him to fly up to the Rift and see if anyone could go home. But Zohr wouldn't do what he wanted, so Azar decided he needed to take over his mind." Emma's jaw clenches and her eyes shine with emotion. "I freed him, and his wings got shredded. He wanted to be free, because even injured and near death, it was better than being under Azar's control."