“Cherry, we should drive up here for a weekend and visit Lindisfarne. It’s gorgeous here today. I have the top down.”
“Lindisfarne? The island with the abbey? Holy Island? Rena was muttering something about weird dreams and robe-wearing monks when I spoke to her earlier.”
“Monks?” Liza chuckled. “Give me a naked sex dream anytime. Robed figures sound creepy. Oh, Cherry. You should see the view. Not a cloud in the sky. It’s a dazzling blue that’s too exquisite to describe. The air is fresh with the tang of the sea.”
“Stop, you’re making me envious. The strongest aroma here is dusty books.”
“You love your bookstore,” Liza countered.
Cherry’s chuckle rolled from her, and Liza grinned in concert.
The air took on a strange shimmer that grabbed her attention. She gaped, her smile fading. The atmosphere resembled fabric, and it was ripping. A giant green head stabbed through the shimmer.
Liza gasped, trying to make sense of what she was seeing. The air-fabric ripped further to expose a colossal body. Wings. Talons. Red eyes.
And they were staring at her.
W-was that a dragon?
A shocked cry forced up her tight throat.
“Liza?” Cherry spoke in a sharp tone.
Liza continued to stare until the jolt of her car jerked her back to the present. She’d driven off the road. Before she could correct her steering, her vehicle collided with the protective barrier. She screamed and fought the wheel, struggling to return to the tarmac, but it was too late. Her car flipped, and the last thing she heard was Cherry’s frantic shouts, demanding to know what was happening.
The airbag exploded, jamming her against the seat. She screamed again as her car flew over the edge of the cliff. A glimpse of green snagged her attention.Huh!Something was very wrong with her eyes.
Thatwasa dragon.
The creature darted past her car and disappeared because the airbag blocked her gaze.
Then her car struck the sea—the sound explosive and the collision shocking her from head to toe. Her head smashed against the car side as she struggled to release the seatbelt. The airbag held her fast, and the vehicle began to sink.
Her last thought before blackness claimed her was that she didn’t want to die. Dragons existed, and she wanted aNew York Timesbestseller, dammit.
3 – Rescue From the Lidless Box
Leo read the astonishment in the woman’s eyes. The same disbelief speared him in the chest, stealing his breath.
Impossible.
He wasn’t meant to see her. Nor she him.
None of this should be happening.
Her red metal box roared and thumped into the shiny barrier edging the cliff. Sparks flew from the point of contact, filling the air with a pungent metallic stench. Momentum kept the lidless box flying, and Leo beat his wings to avoid a collision. The box slid across the rocky ground. It balanced on the edge of the cliff before it tipped and toppled.
The instant the box fell, Leo snapped from his shocked trance. He darted after the steel box, flapping his wings faster to keep up.
A scream rippled from the woman, but the terror-filled cry ceased. Concerned, he directed his body closer, maneuvering with his wings. The woman slumped and blood trickled down her cheek.
The box struck the water with an enormous splash, the icy wave that pummeled Leo knocking a hole through his bewilderment. His thoughts slotted into proper order.
The woman.
She’d die beneath the water if he failed to act fast.
Already, the box had sunk under the waves. Air bubbles shot to the surface. Leo filled his dragon lungs with air, dropped his pack of belongings, and dived into the sea. The box settled on the seafloor, stirring mud and silt and obscuring his vision. Leo kicked his legs and propelled with his wings, instinct guiding him.
